Upon arriving at the foot of Hanshan Temple, Qingyan personally cut up the account book, placing the rest in the inner cabinet of the carriage. With a heavy heart, she climbed the stone steps one by one.
"Little darling, forget about the account book!" Yin noticed Qingyan's strange expression and quickly reminded her.
When they got off the carriage, Yin asked Su Peisheng to bring out all the things the two of them usually used. Among the servants who were following them, some of them looked at him strangely.
Qingyan gave him a strange look and did as he said.
Just as lunchtime was approaching, she had finished praying to Buddha when Su Lan hurriedly walked in from outside.
"Master, our carriage has been stolen!" The carriage was placed in the stable, with a servant left to guard it.
When the stable boy was preparing to feed the horses, he discovered that the servants watching over the stables and carriages had been knocked to the ground. Fortunately, the stable boy had come from both mansions together and could testify for each other.
"What?!" Qingyan exclaimed in surprise.
Yin also came in from outside, first pulling Qingyan into the courtyard, and quietly explaining to her that only their carriage had been stolen. Qingyan's face immediately fell. Hadn't anyone checked the greetings memorial Yin had sent?
"The memorial!" Yin was very nervous, worried that someone might have seen it.
"I put the things in the leather of the memorial, and no one except my father, the Emperor, knows about it." Every prince had such a memorial, and they hid their things in different places.
ah?!
Qingyan was stunned; it turned out that Kangxi had taken precautions all along.
Yin also got wind of the situation and rushed over. He first went to check on the carriage. Yin's carriage had been ransacked, and many things had been discarded outside.
"Fourth brother, is someone watching us?" Yin noticed the two standing under the tree and walked over.
"Brother, how's your carriage?" Yin didn't want his carriage to suffer any unnecessary disaster.
"It's all messed up, and we can't be sure which of us it's targeting yet!" Yin frowned, unable to find peace even after coming out.
Yin felt a bitter taste in his mouth. The tattered account book inside the carriage was gone. He had sent out a memorial. Connecting the two, he should know that the item had been sent to Kangxi.
Later, the losses of both carriages were calculated. Apart from the account book, nothing was missing from Yin's carriage; the interior of Yin's carriage was simply ransacked.
After lunch, the four adults sat at the table, their faces not looking too good. Their journey was very secretive; they had even changed their carriages. Ordinary people wouldn't know their whereabouts. There must be something wrong with the servants in the group.
"Brother, the guards we brought out separately should be fine. They were probably chosen by others!" Yin was also annoyed. They had been outmaneuvered so quickly.
Li Xu probably couldn't hold back any longer. The moment the manager of Yuelai Inn made his move, the man became nervous.
"Little darling, what did that ledger record?" Yin Genjue Luo Shi was puzzled. A single ledger had revealed such an important informant.
"The records of some officials' dealings with salt merchants were sent to Father Emperor along with a memorial of greetings as soon as Yin got off the carriage!" Qingyan pouted. "Is it that important?"
Qingyan looked innocently at Yin and Yingenjueluo Shi. Yin sighed in frustration. Xiao Guai was still too young. Those few thin pieces of paper might ruin all these people's schemes.
The chef at Hanshan Temple had prepared a delicious lunch, but none of the four adults had much of an appetite. Songkelierha, however, thoroughly enjoyed it.
“The salt merchants are all very timid. If we make even the slightest move, we are very likely to be targeted!” Yin knew those salt merchants better than Yin. He had encountered similar problems before. At that time, he was framed by Suo'etu and almost fell into the trap set by Yan Shangmen.
Qingyan found it strange that the salt merchants were keeping an eye on them.
"That's what salt merchants are like, always so cautious," Yin concluded. He had fought against salt merchants his whole life, but ultimately he had never won.
Today, the struggle between the salt merchants and the imperial court is about to begin again.
"How much?!" Yin put down his chopsticks and looked at Yin.
"Half a month ago, Father issued an imperial decree for a southern tour, and Tulichen delivered the imperial edict and silver. However, Yuelai Inn has been hosting large-scale banquets for salt merchants and officials since half a month ago." Yin looked at Yin, the amount of which was a secret.
Yin nodded. He could calculate roughly how much silver would be needed in half a month. Yuelai Inn operated on a fixed price system, and unless it was a third-class place, the price would not be reduced.
“Cao Yin won’t be moved,” Yin said helplessly. “In the past, apart from Cao Yin, all of Father Emperor’s study companions were very loyal. If Cao Yin were to fall, Jiangnan would really be in chaos.”
After being persuaded by Yinti, Mingzhu finally stopped causing trouble, but Suo'etu became somewhat arrogant.
Yin served Qingyan some food, telling her to eat as much as she could, since the head chef at Hanshan Temple rarely cooked anymore, and most of the cooking was done by younger chefs.
"The vegetarian food is delicious, much better than that of Hongluo Temple!" The vegetarian food from Hongluo Temple has a strong flavor, which is more in line with the tastes of people from outside the Great Wall.
In the Jiangnan region, the dishes are prepared according to southern tastes, and are therefore lighter in flavor.
"Use as much as you like, sister-in-law. We can't leave now. The carriage is a mess, and we'll probably have to stay overnight." Yin was worried that if they couldn't catch the person in the afternoon, it would be dangerous to travel again.
"Brother, let's leave immediately after lunch. It's still a while from here to the villa by West Lake. The Yuelai Inn by West Lake has already sent a carriage over!" Yin Zao sent a guard to inform them, and Tu Lichen also added more manpower to prevent any further problems.
"Alright!" Yin was worried about his wife and daughter, and in the end, he chose to listen to Yin's advice and leave this place as soon as possible so that his wife and daughter could have a safe environment.
After lunch, Songkelierha lay sleepily in Yin's arms. The room where the group was located was surrounded by the guards of the two mansions. Apart from the four shadow guards sent by Kangxi and the mansion's personal guards, the remaining guards were left behind.
"Master, the carriage has arrived. Would you like to move your things to the new carriage?" Su Peisheng informed the guards, as it was not appropriate for the women to rest here.
"No need, let those people watch over it." Yin refused, leaving only the commonly used items, which the innkeepers of Yuelai Inn had already prepared.
These were brought from the Cao residence, and it's impossible to determine whether there's anything wrong with them.
An hour later, Qingyan sat in the carriage, her little face flushed red from the sun. It was the hottest time of day. Yin and his brother insisted that they leave immediately. In the end, Yingenjueluo and Qingyan sat in the carriage under the scorching sun.
"My goodness, it's so hot! Sisi, we have to take the carriage this time, it's so hot!" Qingyan took out the Cold Jade from her purse. Her little face was flushed from the sun. The carriage was filled with ice, but it couldn't keep out the scorching sun outside.
"Hanshan Temple isn't safe either. It's the salt merchants' territory. Every year, two-thirds of Hanshan Temple's income comes from their donations. It's not impossible for the abbot to give them preferential treatment." Considering this, Yin and Yin had no choice but to arrange their early departure. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
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