Chapter 314 He deserves to die! (Seeking monthly votes)
With the silver, it was still two million taels of silver.
Chen Yi naturally wouldn't hide them away at the bottom of a box to gather dust.
Flowers are a must.
Counting the days, more than half a month has passed since Yan Hai and his group went to Guangyuan to investigate the situation.
It's time to take the first step in Baicaotang's expansion.
It's truly unacceptable that the Wuhou Mansion, with its 200-year history, is struggling to make ends meet.
Not for his own sake, but for the sake of the Xiao family, which was riddled with problems, it was imperative to expand Baicaotang.
We shouldn't let the Xiao family worry about money anymore.
It's laughable.
After giving his instructions, Chen Yi took out one hundred silver notes with a face value of ten thousand taels from his pocket and placed them on the table.
"Of the 500,000 taels, the money used to purchase grain in the previous days was used to make up for the losses. The money earned by Xue Duanyun and others from selling the grain was also included in the Baicaotang account."
"The remaining five hundred thousand taels..."
Chen Yi tapped the silver note and looked at Wang Ji, saying, "This incident at Xinglinzhai has reminded me of something."
"We can't rely entirely on those merchants for medicinal materials; we'd better find our own way."
Wang Ji lowered his head, "Your Excellency is right."
"Although Lao Jia's situation is unfortunate, in the end, it's because we can't find any other options."
"When Baicaotang encounters a wealthy and powerful entity like Xinglinzhai that monopolizes all medicinal herbs, its business will inevitably be affected."
Wang Ji glanced up at the silver notes on the table, feeling rather envious.
"Don't worry, sir. With this money, I will find a way out and never let Baicaotang suffer from a shortage of medicinal herbs again."
Chen Yi nodded noncommittally, "When you go to the Xiao family tomorrow, ask the eldest young lady to negotiate peace with the mountain tribe."
"Giving the medicinal herbs from the Wumeng Mountains to others is giving them away, and giving them to us is also giving them away."
"Remember to save face; it's okay to spend a little more money."
That's what they say.
The mountain tribes only harvest a limited amount of medicinal herbs from the Wumeng Mountains each month. If they give these herbs to Baicaotang, they can't give them to other medicine merchants.
They had worked with the mountain people for so many years to gain this connection, and now it had been taken away by someone else; they were bound to feel resentful.
Even if the Xiao family intervenes, the mountain tribes will find it difficult to refuse and agree, as it would ultimately damage their reputation and old relationships.
Especially the conservative people like the mountain tribes.
Therefore, Chen Yi was willing to spend more money to save face for the mountain clan, avoid making the Xiao family indebted to them, and also to shut up the medicine merchants.
A triple win.
A short while later, Chen Yi got up to leave, but then he caught sight of Zhang Dabao and Liu Lang, and after thinking for a moment, he said to them:
"You have all worked very hard this time. Wang Ji will give everyone some silver as a reward later."
Wang Jigang had just put away the silver notes when he heard this. He looked at Zhang Dabao and Liu Lang and asked, "Sir, how much... is appropriate?"
“Each participant will receive one hundred taels of silver. Those who perform exceptionally well will receive an additional one hundred taels. Da Bao, Liu Lang, and others will receive an additional three hundred taels.”
"yes."
Liu Lang and Zhang Dabao bowed and thanked them with great joy.
Chen Yi nodded, then slipped out of the quiet room and returned to the Xiao family.
Wait until he leaves.
Wang Ji muttered with some pain, "You don't know the cost of firewood and rice until you're in charge of the household. How can you give away money like this?"
Liu Lang glanced at him unhappily: "Shopkeeper, we've all been doing things that could cost us our lives this time. Are you really going to be so stingy with a hundred or so taels of silver?"
"No, no, please don't be offended, Guard Liu."
"I doubt you'd dare."
Zhang Dabao glanced at the smirking Wang Ji, then at the displeased Liu Lang, and tried to smooth things over:
"Brother Liu, let's go too. We still need to make some preparations for what the adults asked us to do."
Liu Lang immediately got up and walked outside, saying, "Goodbye, shopkeeper."
Zhang Dabao smiled at Wang Ji, then turned and followed him out.
Wang Ji watched them walk away, first lightly patted his mouth and muttered something like, "It's not your money anyway," before taking out a stack of silver notes and counting them.
He's like a miser.
Chen Yi, who had arrived outside Baicaotang, listened to the conversation behind him and shook his head with a smile.
Wang Ji is too short-sighted; otherwise, he wouldn't have resorted to such underhanded tactics at Jishi Pharmacy.
Even though he became the manager of Baicaotang and his horizons broadened, he still had some bad habits that were hard to change.
For example, he is often stingy with his subordinates.
Fortunately, Wang Ji was obedient and efficient in his work, and he devoted himself to Baicaotang, so he was able to accomplish some things.
Otherwise, Chen Yi would never have put him in charge of the expansion of Baicaotang.
"Ah, such talent is rare indeed."
Wang Ji and Ma Liangcai, these two self-taught individuals, can barely keep up now; their future depends on their fate.
In contrast, Liu Lang, Zhang Dabao, the disciples of the Tianshan Sect, and most importantly, Yuan Liuer have a promising future.
"Grow up quickly, I can't even be a hands-off boss, it's really outrageous..."
Chen Yi moved like a phantom, disappearing into the alleyway and vanishing into the night.
Not long after.
He arrived on Chuanxi Street, about to go to the house to remove his disguise, when he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye.
Fang Hongxiu.
At this moment, Fang Hongxiu looked slightly anxious and serious, and was hurrying from west to east with several judges.
Something seems to have happened.
After thinking for a moment, Chen Yi snapped his fingers and asked with a slight smile, "Commander Fang, where are you rushing off to in such a hurry?"
Fang Hongxiu was startled when she heard the voice. She turned her head and saw Chen Yi's figure. Her stern face showed a hint of surprise.
"'Dragon and Tiger'?"
These days, the name "Dragon Tiger" Liu Wu has resounded throughout Shu Prefecture, and Fang Hongxiu is naturally aware of it.
Furthermore, she personally led a group to Puyin Temple and brought Du Cang's body back to the prefectural government office.
When she saw Liu Wu appear, her expression became somewhat complicated.
Firstly, Liu Wu has transformed from "Dragon Spear" to "Dragon Tiger," making him even stronger than before.
Secondly, the person Liu Wu rescued was the eldest daughter of the Xiao family, not a member of the Xiao family, but someone related to the Xiao family.
The past grievances are no longer relevant.
Besides, it was Liu Wu who delivered the news of the disappearance and death of the barbarian slave in the East Market to her last time.
In addition to earlier transactions...
At this moment, Fang Hongxiu didn't know how to face "Liu Wu".
The judges behind her exchanged glances, looking somewhat flustered and wary.
Chen Yi slightly lifted the bamboo hat on his head, revealing his handsome face, and looked at Fang Hongxiu, who was at the head of the group, and asked with a light smile:
"Shall we talk in private?"
Fang Hongxiu hesitated for a moment, then nodded and instructed the other judicial officers to continue on their way.
After the person left, she took a few steps closer and asked in a low voice, "You came all this way to see me, is it about that matter?"
Chen Yi raised an eyebrow. "What? Has Commander Fang found out something?"
After taking Asutai away that day, he did send someone to deliver a message to Fang Hongxiu, just to annoy Liu Hongtian.
They didn't really expect the Criminal Investigation Department to find anything useful.
Upon hearing this, Fang Hongxiu understood that he hadn't been tipped off, and shook her head, saying, "I haven't found anything."
Chen Yi didn't believe it and said with a smile, "If it's about the Liu family, just hand it over to me. I guarantee it won't implicate anyone."
He was trying to force Liu Hong to reveal his true colors, but he was missing some conditions.
Seeing that he had seen through her thoughts, Fang Hongxiu remained silent for a moment before taking the sachet she always carried from her waist and handing it to him.
"I did find some information, but... you should consider it yourself."
Chen Yi glanced at the sachet, then at her expression, and took it from her.
"I know."
"Regardless of the outcome, this matter has nothing to do with your Criminal Investigation Department."
Fang Hongxiu carried it so carefully close to her body, the contents of the sachet must be extraordinary.
Chen Yi could even imagine the heavy mood she had been feeling these past few days, probably because she was worried that revealing her secret would bring about her death.
Fang Hongxiu nodded gently, her expression relaxing. "If you have nothing else, I'll be going now."
Chen Yi put away the sachet and casually asked, "You all seem to be in such a hurry, has a major case occurred?"
Fang Hongxiu looked around and, seeing that no one was around, leaned closer and whispered a few words.
Upon hearing this, Chen Yi's smile vanished. "It's that serious? There are even refugees moving around?"
Fang Hongxiu nodded and said, "Several counties have suffered natural disasters. Even though the prefectural city has distributed relief grain, there are still many starving people."
"News came a couple of days ago that tens of thousands of disaster victims were heading towards the city, and the faster ones have already arrived at Linzhuang outside the city."
"Lin Village..."
Chen Yi looked towards the east gate and asked, "What did the Provincial Administration Commission and the Prefectural Government say?"
Although he had heard some time ago that several counties downstream of the Chishui River had suffered from floods and had extremely low grain yields, the government should be able to allocate grain for the overall harvest in Shuzhou this year.
In retrospect, he underestimated the wickedness of the Provincial Administration Commissioner, or rather, Liu Hong.
They allowed people in several counties to engage in cannibalism, causing disaster victims to be displaced and all news to be blocked...
Chen Yi could easily deduce that Liu Hong must have had a deeper meaning in doing so.
However, due to the short time constraints, he couldn't immediately understand Liu Hong's intentions.
Surely they couldn't be cooperating with Jizhou Merchants to continue raising grain prices, could they?
Fang Hongxiu bluntly stated, "After Lord Liu learned of this matter, he ordered the prefect to open the granaries and distribute grain."
"But because..."
Seeing that she hesitated to speak, Chen Yi thought of what had happened two days ago, and his expression changed slightly as he said:
"Because Lord Xiao and General Jinghong suggested that he stabilize grain prices?"
Fang Hongxiu nodded and said helplessly, "The Prefect means that the prefectural city is more important."
Chen Yi frowned inwardly. These words might be acceptable when applied to Liu Si, but they were somewhat unreasonable when applied to Liu Hong, the provincial governor.
Whether it's the prefectural city or the county town, they are all within the territory of Shuzhou. How can we not treat everyone equally when such a big thing happens?
If problems arise during disaster relief, it's hard to guarantee that the disaster victims won't cause trouble.
However, Chen Yi had already guessed Liu Hong's response—using the excuse that Lord Xiao had come to his door to "force" him to stabilize grain prices, he submitted a memorial to the court to "plead guilty with a bundle of thorns on his back."
He pondered for a moment.
He said in a deep voice, "This matter is of utmost importance; we should focus on appeasement as much as possible."
Fang Hongxiu nodded. "I understand."
Seeing that Chen Yi did not speak again, she clasped her hands together and said, "Let's let bygones be bygones for the many misunderstandings we had before."
After saying that, she turned and left without waiting for Chen Yi to speak.
Chen Yi watched her run away, then took out the sachet.
He also knew that the Ministry of Justice's departure from the city was mostly for defensive purposes, to prevent any of the disaster victims from causing trouble.
There was no way to get involved in disaster relief.
However, the food he currently has is only a drop in the bucket for tens of thousands of disaster victims.
If this matter cannot be resolved in a short time, it is hard to guarantee that Liu Hong and his group will have other tricks up their sleeves.
Thinking about this...
As Chen Yi took out the contents of the sachet and examined them, he turned and disappeared into the alley, returning to the West Market.
Now that he knows about this, he can't just let it go.
It's better to do it sooner rather than later; he'll have to do something about it eventually.
After taking only a few steps, Chen Yi stopped in his tracks when he saw the contents of the slips of paper in his hand.
The note contained several clues that pointed directly to Zhao Shichang and others around Liu Hong:
[On the first day of the ninth lunar month, Zeng Zhifeng, with the help of the government, ordered the canal transport gangs to prepare several boats for the southward journey.]
[On the third day of the ninth lunar month, Zeng Zhifeng, who had rented a house outside the East Market, disappeared without a trace, suspected to have been abducted by "Dragon Spear".]
[On the fourth day of the ninth month, bandits from Vaishsa Kingdom went to the village outside Liu Family City.]
On September 9th, several suspicious-looking people entered and left the Liu residence, one of whom is now at Xinglinzhai...
After reading it, Chen Yi narrowed his eyes slightly.
The other clues about Zeng Zhifeng were fine, but the last one was that someone from Xinglinzhai appeared at the Liu family's house...
If we're talking about suspicious behavior, aside from those members of the Five Poisons Sect, Chen Yi doesn't consider any other possibilities.
His mind raced.
The circumstances of the first, second, and third branches of the Liu family in Jingzhou flashed by one by one.
Liu Jing died.
Liu Wen died.
Liu Zhaoxue colluded with the Five Poisons Sect, intending to control the main branch of the Liu family in Jingzhou...
The Five Poisons Sect...
"Could it be that Liu Hong also has connections with the Five Poisons Sect?"
"If that's the case, then he truly deserves to die!"
With that thought in mind, Chen Yi put away the notes, quickened his pace, and rushed towards the West Market.
Not long after.
He found Liu Lang and Zhang Dabao, and, meeting their surprised gazes, solemnly instructed them:
"You shall go to the Lin family tonight and make sure to finalize the sale of that million shi of grain."
Liu Lang pinched the stubble that had just touched his face and asked in confusion, "Why are you in such a hurry? Did something happen?"
Chen Yi nodded and said, "This is a matter of life and death, so do as I say."
"In addition, after you confirm the transaction time with Lin Zhenghong, go to Linzhuang to suspend the sale of grain before dawn tomorrow."
"Temporarily, pause?"
Liu Lang was startled and almost plucked out his beard. "Boss, it's not that I disagree, but the area outside Lin Village is now surrounded by people from the city."
"If we really stop selling grain, I reckon those people will resort to looting."
Chen Yi waved his hand and said, "The disaster victims have arrived."
Given the sheer number of disaster victims, the people of the prefectural city, once they saw it, would probably have no desire to stay outside the city.
Naturally, it was impossible for them to clash with Xue Duanyun and the others.
Liu Lang was completely baffled. "Disaster victims? What disaster victims?"
"Many of the disaster victims from several counties downstream of the Chishui River have now arrived in Linzhuang..."
After Chen Yi finished speaking briefly, he reminded him, "Da Bao, you can ask Lin Zheng Hong to transport the grain out of the city as soon as possible."
Zhang Dabao and Liu Lang understood and agreed in unison.
"Once you arrive at Lin Village, you must guard the grain well; I have a great use for it."
"Don't worry, sir..."
Although there isn't much left, it should last at least a day or two, leaving some room for maneuver.
After Zhang Dabao finished disguising the two men, they bid farewell to Chen Yi and headed to the East Market in disguise.
Chen Yi watched their retreating figures, thought for a moment, then found a pen and ink and wrote a few lines.
This is a very important matter, and he needs to inform the Xiao family about it as soon as possible.
...
It's past the middle of the hour of Chou (1-3 AM).
After taking a detour and completing several tasks, Chen Yi returned to Chunhe Garden.
He changed into his casual clothes and went to the window to look at the few scattered lights that had appeared in the courtyard not far away.
"Hopefully, the old man can come up with a solution."
"Otherwise, given Liu Hong's methods, the longer those disaster victims stay outside the prefectural city, the worse the outcome will be..."
(End of this chapter)
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