Upon arriving in the suburbs, Fei Yanggu specially arranged for someone to buy a villa. Before coming over, he specifically had Ulanara's secret guards investigate the surrounding environment to ensure there were no suspicious individuals before Fei Yanggu brought the twins.
"Guo Luoma Fa, is this our home?" Yiken asked directly, looking around at everything.
Fei Yanggu smiled and said, "Of course, if Yiken'e likes it, Guo Luomafa can take you here to play often during the Southern Tour."
Upon entering the villa, Fei Yanggu immediately released the two children, allowing Saito and Eshuo to follow along, so that the siblings could roam freely without restraint. Without the servants following them, Yiken'e's complexion improved considerably.
Qingyan stood not far away, watching the smiles on their faces grow wider, and her mood relaxed as well.
After entering the royal family, Qingyan faced increased pressure. After having children, Anxie constantly threatened them, leaving her exhausted. Yin's harsh methods made it impossible to even guarantee the children's safety.
Ultimately, they had no choice but to follow Kangxi's advice, and the twins led to a large number of servants following them.
"Little darling, aren't the children very happy?" Fei Yanggu stood beside Qingyan and noticed that her mood had improved considerably.
During the southern tour, the women had to face even more challenges. The women of Jiangnan were sending women to the princes in various ways, leaving the princes' harem empty. This became a major focus of attention for the women of Jiangnan.
With an imperial edict from Emperor Kangxi, these women dared not openly give themselves away. They could only use various pretexts to hope that Qingyan would speak up, and the pressure on the Third Prince's wife was also considerable.
"Father, some officials from Jiangnan are on the list. Does our family have any collateral branches here?" Yin didn't hide anything and showed Qingyan the list of these officials.
However, Qingyan did not find any collateral branches of the Ulanara clan on the list. If some people changed their names, they might have hidden them.
"No!" Kangxi would not allow members of the Ulanara clan to have any influence in the officialdom of Jiangnan. Previously, when Saito and Eshuo took over the new army, Kangxi and his two sons, Feiyanggu, clearly stated that members of the Ulanara clan were not allowed to appear in the officialdom of Jiangnan. If any members of a collateral branch changed their names and entered the officialdom of Lianghuai, Kangxi would not approve of it.
Qingyan breathed a sigh of relief. Yin had mentioned that there would be a major purge of officials in Jiangnan. Apart from Cao Yin and his family, most of them were on the list. The officials were currently enjoying their positions, but they would be dealt with directly after the emperor's southern tour.
"Don't worry about winning the championship for now. Make sure to record all the jewelry from Linglong Pavilion. Those officials and wealthy families who commissioned top-quality jewelry must be recorded. Don't forget anything," Fei Yanggu said directly.
The Linglong Pavilion in Qingyan can be considered a compass for Kangxi to observe the officialdom in Jiangnan. Tulichen also sent many people to keep an eye on the officials in the Linglong Pavilion's account books, which will surely lead to significant discoveries.
“Father, if things continue like this, my Linglong Pavilion will become a target of suspicion from officials and nobles. Let them investigate at the Yuelai Inn, where there are many different kinds of people. They can at least say they heard the gossip in the lobby.” Qingyan sneered.
Tu Lichen only chooses nearby shops, and Linglong Pavilion's business has already begun to decline.
"Hmm?" Fei Yanggu noticed that Qingyan's words were a bit urgent, realizing that there were too many problems found in the investigation of Linglong Pavilion, which directly alerted the officials.
"Kulun, immediately inform Tulichen to withdraw everyone to the Yuelai Inn." Fei Yanggu summoned his guards and ordered them to inform Tulichen, "No one is to be allowed to set foot in Linglong Pavilion again."
Linglong Pavilion's business is extremely good, and Emperor Kangxi even relies on Linglong Pavilion's tax revenue. Now, if Linglong Pavilion in the south encounters problems, it will definitely have an impact on Linglong Pavilion as a whole.
"Father, will Tulichen listen to you?" Qingyan really couldn't compliment the stubborn Linglong Pavilion. As long as Kangxi gave an order, Tulichen would follow it without hesitation.
Fei Yanggu nodded; Tu Lichen still acknowledged him as his old commander.
"Little darling, have the orders from the south decreased?" Fei Yanggu rarely inquired about business matters.
In the officialdom of the south, everything is basically linked to the previous administration. Therefore, instead of getting information from officials, Fei Yanggu decided to obtain firsthand information from Qingyan.
"I suppose so, but the decrease isn't significant. It's mainly lower-ranking officials who won't be wearing high-ranking headwear anymore," Qingyan explained.
Fei Yanggu asked with a serious expression, "Lower-ranking officials? What's the lowest rank? Seventh rank?"
In Fei Yanggu's view, a seventh-rank official was considered a very low-ranking official. If these people could use high-end jewelry, one could imagine how wealthy the officials in Jiangnan must be.
"Previously, many families of seventh-rank officials would place orders, but since Father Emperor came here, such orders have become increasingly rare." Qingyan didn't hide anything; in front of Kangxi and Fei Yanggu, all concealment would vanish.
Fei Yanggu frowned slightly. The Emperor's side was about to act quickly, and the officials' greed far exceeded that of other places.
"Especially the officials in the salt administration, they are basically all like that." The officials in the salt administration all have gray income, which is all from the tributes of the salt merchants. Even the salt inspector of Lianghuai does not receive as much tribute as the lower-ranking officials.
A local official is more powerful than a distant one!
This saying is very popular in the officialdom of Jiangnan. In particular, salt merchants generally only pay attention to the officials closely related to them, and don't care much about the others. According to the rules, it is enough to pay tribute to the higher-ups.
“Father, there’s another strange phenomenon. Every May, the women of these officials’ families order a large number of jewelry items. Some salt merchants also place orders. The jewelry items they pay for are basically only for the families of sixth or seventh-rank officials.” Qingyan couldn’t understand this, so he told Fei Yanggu and asked him to investigate.
What? !
Fei Yanggu understood that the officials didn't go directly to Linglong Pavilion to order jewelry, after all, it was related to the Fourth Prince. Yin was incorruptible, and if the Fourth Prince had something on them, their lives would definitely not be easy.
“In the future, if you encounter similar situations, you can inform Fourth Master or me,” Fei Yanggu said directly.
She couldn't handle it herself; they needed time to resolve these issues. The officialdom in Jiangnan was incredibly complex, and a single move could have far-reaching consequences. They were all extremely well-informed. In order to uncover the entire network, Kangxi allowed the Crown Prince to become increasingly entangled in Jiangnan.
"Okay!" Qingyan replied.
From afar came the sound of Yiken'e's happy laughter, and a smile appeared on her face as well. It had been a long time since Yiken'e had smiled so easily.
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