Chapter 101 [Calling a Deer a Horse]
"What is He Lin thinking? If the Yun family has so many datura flowers planted, shouldn't they just call the government officials?"
He Jing was still a little confused: "If it was burned down, wouldn't that mean there's no evidence to prove that the flower garden in Yunjiali County was planted with datura flowers?"
"No, this datura flower is usually dark red, and He Lin said the datura flower he saw was a variant."
Jiang Lili recalled what He Lin had said to her: "The Yun family's mutant datura flowers are similar in color and appearance to purple camellias. It's difficult to define mutant flowers as forbidden flowers. If the government is deliberately biased and calling a black cat a white cat, claiming these mutant datura flowers are new varieties of camellia, it will be difficult to convict the Yun family."
Jiang Lili felt that the burned flower garden must still have some traces of something, and it couldn't have been burned so cleanly. "What about the Yunjiali County flower garden now? We can't let them deal with it overnight. Clean up all the traces at the scene."
He Jing said, "My aunt immediately sent people to cause a disturbance at the Yun Family's Li County Flower Garden, forbidding the Yun Family from touching the burnt site. She said that while they could offer compensation, they had to first see what kind of flowers were burned."
Jiang Lili felt slightly relieved. Fortunately, He Shao, the head of the He family, was not someone to be trifled with, so she would not be treated as a soft persimmon.
At night, the moonlight in the sky was as cool as water. The late autumn night was a little chilly. In the yard of the inn, Jiang Lili's shoulders shivered in the autumn wind.
He Jing sighed, "However, only some stumps were left from the burn. The county government determined that they were the stumps of purple camellias. Purple camellias are rare, so the Yun family's compensation request is not excessive."
"Sure enough, they're still calling a black cat a white cat and refusing to admit it. The only way is to find other gardens where the Yun family grows datura flowers and compare them with these stumps."
"But even if it's a variant of the Camellia japonica, we can't define it as one that the imperial court has banned. Only the Minister of Agriculture has the authority to make that decision. The county government insists it's a purple camellia, and there's nothing we can do about it."
He Jing's face was filled with frustration. No matter how wealthy their He family was, how could they possibly invite the Minister of Agriculture from the Imperial Household Department over so quickly? Even the prefect of Lianzhou couldn't do it.
Jiang Lili smiled and said, "Don't worry about that. As long as you find the mutant datura flower, I will have a way."
She said meaningfully, "Lingnan is relatively isolated. They think they can control everything in Lingnan. The imperial court can't reach that far."
He Jing scratched his head. "They must have left some clues. Planting the datura flowers wasn't just to frame the He family. They were definitely doing it for profit. I wonder who they'll sell them to."
Jiang Lili made the final decision and said, "You should first bring the news to your aunt and explain the whole story clearly. Tell her to be on guard and keep an eye on the tribute."
At this time, Xin Che came to the yard. After bathing, he changed into a moon-white long gown with a cloak of the same color draped over his arm.
Seeing that Jiang Lili and He Jing had been discussing for so long, he said calmly, "What difficulties have you encountered?"
Jiang Lili nodded.
When He Jing saw Xin Che coming, he immediately said tremblingly: "Miss Jiang, I will go to my aunt first to tell her about this matter. It's such a big deal, and the tribute is important!"
He Jing and his servant were about to leave when Xin Che stopped him: "Send your servant to deliver the message first. I have something to ask you."
He Jing obeyed, standing stiffly in his place. "Just now, I really had something urgent to ask Miss Jiang. I didn't mean to take up her time."
Xin Che responded lightly and looked at Jiang Lili: "Can you tell me what difficulties you encountered?"
Jiang Lili then told Xin Che about He Lin and the datura flower, "The only possibility now is to find the Yun family's flower gardens with other varieties of datura flowers."
After hearing this, Xin Che understood and said, "So it's the datura flower."
His narrow, long, auspicious eyes looked at Jiang Lili's shoulders, which were shivering in the autumn wind. "I once handled a case involving a datura flower in the border area. If you trust me, I can help you find the Yun family's datura flower. However..."
"Of course I believe you!" He Jing saw that the big man was willing to help, and quickly interrupted: "Tell me what you need, and I'll prepare it right away!"
Xin Che glanced at the enthusiastic He Jing and calmed down. "I heard from Escort Cen that he and his companions went out on the street and saw that the Yun family's restaurant was doing a booming business, with diners coming in an endless stream, and the teahouse was often full, while your He family's restaurant was much quieter. Is that true?"
"Yes, but our attention is focused on the unsold medicinal materials in the pharmacy. Their attack on our pharmacy is the most intense."
Although He Jing was puzzled as to why Xin Che asked this, he still answered honestly: "As for the restaurant business, our He family's signature dishes are there, and they can't learn to make them. We still have regular diners who come to our He family for dinner, but they come less frequently."
"My cousin also went to inquire about it. The Yun family didn't introduce any new dishes. They still use the same old dishes."
Xin Che gently tied Jiang Lili's cloak and said softly, "The petals and stamens of the datura flower can be ground into spices. If added to dishes, the taste will make diners linger over the dish."
"You mean—" He Jing was shocked, "This Yun family is too shameless!"
Jiang Lili looked at Xin Che, who was a head taller than her. He was concentrating on tucking her cloak, his lowered eyes as cold as the moonlight.
After hearing Xin Che's words, Jiang Lili remembered that some modern restaurants and businesses also do this. When she was working, she loved to eat at a spicy hot pot restaurant near the company. She would feel uncomfortable all over if she didn't eat it for a few days. Later, when people from the Market Supervision Bureau came, she found out that the store had added ingredients to the spicy hot pot.
Throughout history, many people have crossed the bottom line for the sake of profit.
Jiang Lili lowered her eyes and watched Xin Che's slender fingers tie the cloak strap in front of her collarbone. "I believe you, but you are curious why I want to interfere in the affairs of the He family?"
"Just trust me. There's no need to explain anything else."
Xin Che withdrew his hand and turned to instruct He Jing, "Prepare these things for me: five agile hunting dogs, and the black market datura flowers..."
He Jing quickly wrote it down. After Xin Che gave some instructions, He Jing left. He and Jiang Lili were the only ones left in the backyard of the inn.
Xin Che said solemnly: "If you encounter any difficulties, tell me. You saved our Xin family."
His jade-like face was cold and cold, with a hint of urgency: "Li Li, you can try to trust me."
Jiang Lili smiled at him, two sweet dimples on her face: "If I didn't trust you, I wouldn't be so confident in leaving the safety of me and the backpack in your hands."
"I do want to save He Lin, but I didn't save him because I have any feelings for him. You will understand the reason later."
Xin Che raised the corner of his lips after hearing this: "Then you have to protect your own safety tonight. I'm going to help you solve the problem."
Jiang Lili nodded: "Okay, then you should be careful."
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