Liangzhou Prefect
Emperor Yun stroked his beard without speaking, then turned to Tang Feng, "Grand Tutor Tang, what do you think of this matter?" Tang Feng glanced at Li Yunyu, then at Emperor Yun, and bowed before replying, "Your Majesty, I believe that, setting aside the issue of your position, the Ninth Prince is quite right. The common people are different from the feudal lords; they are simpler. They only know good and bad, not right and wrong. However, the Luo River flood has been over for more than three months now. Have the disaster relief funds issued by the court reached the affected areas? And has the latest situation been accurately reported back to the court? As the Son of Heaven, although you care about the people, you truly cannot go there to verify. No one knows the current situation of the Luo River. If you send the Ninth Prince to escort the second batch of disaster relief funds, even if the people haven't received anything before, they won't complain. The current emperor's princes are escorting goods for them; this will further strengthen relations. As for the officials, I advocate not alerting them prematurely; the people are the priority."
"Consort Yun, what do you think?"
When Emperor Yun asked her, Yunlan lowered her head and said, "It's just a woman's opinion. What insights could it possibly have? If Your Majesty thinks it's right, then it's right." Emperor Yun pointed at Tang Feng and Li Yunyu and said, "Yunyu, your tutor is very knowledgeable. You should learn from him. I've approved the trip to Luohe. Tang Feng will accompany you."
Li Yunyu nodded. "Your subject will certainly not betray Father's trust."
Luohe wasn't far from Xiling; it would take about four or five days by carriage. Tang Feng, watching Zhang Mobai sitting beside him eating melon seeds, couldn't help but ask, "Why did you come along too?" Zhang Mobai rolled his eyes. "Do you think I wanted to? The Ministry of Revenue required me to come along, even though I'm still on my spring break..." Zhang Mobai couldn't help but feel a little aggrieved. He'd been incredibly busy lately, and now that he finally had a break, he was being dragged into hard labor. Tang Feng chuckled, "I came too, so don't complain."
“That’s not the same. You chose this yourself.” Then Zhang Mobai lifted the curtain and looked at Li Yunyu’s sedan chair in front, asking, “How is Ninth Prince?” “How is what?” Seeing Tang Feng pretending to be stupid, Zhang Mobai couldn’t help but get a little anxious. “Why are you pretending with me? How does he compare to Li Yunrui?”
"There's no comparison at all," Tang Feng said, resting his chin on his hand and lifting the curtain to look out the window. "Li Yunrui is at least teachable, but Ninth Prince is completely wasting his breath." "Then why are you so concerned?" "What else can I do? We're in the same boat now. If I don't help him, I'll be in a dilemma myself. Don't make things difficult for him later."
Zhang Mobai chuckled dryly. "Why would I make things difficult for him? He's a prince, and I'm just a lowly official. We all know who's making things difficult for whom!" Tang Feng was about to change the subject when he heard someone knocking on the side of the carriage. Lifting the curtain, he saw Zhou Ziliang on horseback, bending down and saying, "Let's go to the disaster area the day after tomorrow! Let's rest at the post station in Liangzhou today. It's getting late, don't overwork yourself, get some rest."
"Why go to a post station?" Tang Feng seemed to have thought of something, a smile playing on his lips as he toyed with a leaf, then tossed the worn-out leaf out the window. "Don't you want to stay somewhere more luxurious for the night?" Seeing Zhang Mobai and Zhou Ziliang looking at him blankly, Tang Feng continued, "What was the name of that Liangzhou prefect again... Qi... Qi Ming, right? I heard he's incredibly wealthy, with several concubines. Just thinking about staying in a luxurious king-size bed like that makes most of my illnesses disappear." Zhou Ziliang knew Tang Feng had a plan, so he said, "Okay, I understand. I'll go tell them right away."
"Young man, you're so lucky! Ziliang dotes on you so much, I'm relieved." Hearing Zhang Mobai's somewhat sarcastic tone, Tang Feng wasn't annoyed and teased, "What's there to envy? Hurry up and marry Yang Fei, then you can boss him around." The two chatted casually along the way, while Li Yunyu in the sedan chair ahead seemed rather lonely. Thinking back to how flustered he'd been in front of Emperor Yun, and how Tang Feng had sat before him so calmly and eloquently, helping him clarify things, he was truly curious about what such a person had been like a few years ago at Lishan Academy. With such talent, it was no wonder his brother had insisted he go find him before his death. Seeing Li Yunyu preoccupied, Meng Lie tentatively asked, "Your Highness, is something on your mind?" Li Yunyu smiled bitterly, "I'm just a little worried about myself. The Grand Tutor is so learned, I'm always worried I'll be a burden to him..."
After traveling for an unknown amount of time, Tang Feng saw the carriage stop and slowly peeked out, looking at Zhou Ziliang. "Have we arrived?" Before Zhou Ziliang could reply, he was interrupted by someone else. "Grand Tutor Tang! I've long admired your name. It's an honor to meet you today. Your presence and the Ninth Prince's graciousness truly shine upon my humble abode." Tang Feng's brows furrowed even before he disembarked from the carriage. The person who had stepped forward to flatter him was undoubtedly Qi Ming, the Prefect of Liangzhou. This man was richly dressed, with shifty eyes and a cunning appearance. Looking at the several servants standing behind him... The concubines, each dressed in their finest attire, said, "Why didn't you say so sooner, Grand Tutor? That way, I would have had ample time to prepare." "Lord Qi, there's no need for such a fuss. We're just staying for a few days; please take it easy." Tang Feng understood Qi Ming's reaction. After all, Qi Ming was merely a minor prefect, unlikely to ever leave Liangzhou in his entire life. Seeing a prince now was like his ancestors' graves emitting auspicious smoke. "Grand Tutor, you're too kind. It's windy outside; let's go inside and talk." Looking at Qi... Ming's ingratiating expression stirred a mischievous thought in Tang Feng's mind. He approached one of the concubines, smiling, and said, "Madam, you are fair-skinned; even without gold and silver jewelry, you look beautiful." He then removed a hairpin from the concubine's hair, saying, "Ziliang, this hairpin looks so expensive! Why don't I have one?" Zhou Ziliang knew Tang Feng was in a playful mood and sighed inwardly, "You are an official of the court; how can you wear such things? The current emperor advocates frugality. Don't you want your head?" Seeing the concubine's displeasure, Zhou Ziliang's legs went weak, and he was about to kneel, but Tang Feng caught him. "Madam, you must stand up straight. Only a dignified and virtuous woman is worthy of being the wife of a prefect. Here, take the hairpin back." Tang Feng then put the white jade hairpin back on the concubine's head. Qi Ming, standing nearby, naturally understood Tang Feng's implied meaning and quickly leaned over to whisper, "My wives are usually extravagant and wasteful; I've tried to persuade them..."
"Is that so!" Tang Feng lowered his voice and whispered in Qi Ming's ear, "I don't care about that... I just hope that the money spent by the ladies is all from Lord Qi's own hard-earned money. Ah... and also," Tang Feng glanced at the concubines and continued, "Lord Qi is so lucky to have married so many ladies at once. I wonder which one is his first wife. I just remember that Yan Yun seems to practice monogamy! Even my husband, a marquis, can only have me as his son." Then Tang Feng closed his folding fan and tapped Li Yunyu's chest beside him, "Your Highness should learn from this. To achieve great things, one should not be bothered by trifles. It's the same with finding women. Find more, and you won't have to worry about having no one to serve you." Li Yunyu's eyes flashed with coldness as he stared intently at Qi Ming, making Qi Ming's legs go weak. Tang Feng walked to Zhang Mobai's side and whispered, "As expected, a mediocre official." At this point, Qi Ming dared not let the steward lead the way. He shoved his concubines inside, then, with a fawning expression, said to Tang Feng and Li Yunyu, "Your Highness, Grand Tutor, please come in..." Tang Feng followed behind Qi Ming, opening his folding fan to shield himself and Zhang Mobai. "Have the accountant bring out the mansion's ledgers later; we'll check them tonight." Before Tang Feng could finish speaking, Qi Ming turned to look at Tang Feng, startling him. "Grand Tutor, this is the backyard. These rooms are warm in winter and cool in summer. I heard your health isn't good; this room faces the sun and is drier, so please sleep here. The Ninth Prince's room is next door." "The room," Tang Feng pushed open the door and looked at the furnishings. He couldn't help but joke, "Lord Qi, you're really thoughtful. But this house is so nice, shouldn't it be given to the prince first? He's the emperor, I'm a subject. If I live in a better place than the prince, wouldn't that break the rules?" Just as Li Yunyu was about to refuse, he met Tang Feng's eyes. Tang Feng shook his head slightly, and Li Yunyu stopped talking and went straight into the warm room. "This... indeed, I didn't consider this carefully." Tang Feng smiled. "Ignorance is no excuse." Then he leaned close to Qi Ming's ear and whispered, "Lord Qi, next time you try to curry favor, be careful. Don't fawn over people blindly. Even if the Ninth Prince isn't favored, he's still a prince. You agree, right?"
Qi Ming took out a handkerchief, wiping the cold sweat from his brow as he nodded, "The Grand Tutor is right, I will remember that."
"That's all, you can go back now! Oh, by the way, have your accountant come over later to check the ledgers." Qi Ming rubbed his hands together, looking at Tang Feng obsequiously, "The ledgers are in the government office... Grand Tutor, how about this, Your Highness, you've had a long journey—no... Your Highness, you must be tired from your travels—why don't you rest today? I'll send someone to get them tomorrow."
"Why tomorrow?" A sly glint flashed in Tang Feng's eyes. He then beckoned to the steward behind Qi Ming. "Go and fetch the Qi family's account books. Then send someone to accompany your master to the government office to retrieve them. Your master is afraid of the dark and can't go alone." Hearing Tang Feng's words, the steward didn't dare move. One was his master, the other a second-rank Grand Tutor; he dared not offend either. Seeing the steward frozen in place, Tang Feng smiled and said to Zhang Mobai, "The steward is still loyal. They say a higher rank can crush you, but I don't see that's any use." Zhang Mobai couldn't help but laugh out loud. Although Tang Feng and Zhang Mobai were genuinely laughing, Qi Ming interpreted it as a threat. He waved his hand at the steward, "Aren't you going yet? Doesn't the Grand Tutor's word carry any weight?"
Under Tang Feng's coercion and enticement, the account books were quickly delivered. Zhou Ziliang and Zhang Mobai each took an account book and began to look through them, while Li Yunyu sat at the stone table and asked Tang Feng, "Sir, you're pressing Qi Ming so hard, do you think there's something wrong with him?"
"What does Your Highness think?" Tang Feng pointed to the two account books and said, "Whether he's honest or corrupt, we'll know once we see them. But it's understandable, though. How could a mere prefect have the money to marry so many concubines? Judging by their attire, they must have put in a lot of effort."
At this moment, Qi Ming and several concubines were eavesdropping on the sounds from the backyard through the doorway. Qi Ming couldn't help but grumble, "You guys, are you trying to kill me? I told you to dress more simply, and look at you! Gold hairpins! Jade bracelets! Do you know who these people are? Princes! Marquises! Grand Tutors! If they find out I embezzled disaster relief funds from Luohe, I wouldn't have enough heads to chop off!"
At this moment, Tang Feng heard the commotion behind him and said, "Lord Qi! Are you possessed by a clam spirit? Opening and closing the door like that is about to break!" Qi Ming knew that although Tang Feng wanted to investigate him, he didn't intend to kill him, and there was still room for maneuver. He opened the door, walked out awkwardly, and smiled ingratiatingly, "Grand Tutor... have you... found out anything?"
"Hmm... fine, I guess so!" Tang Feng fumbled with the two account books. "But I still want to hear Lord Qi's own explanation." "I... I'm innocent!" Looking at Qi Ming's smug expression, Li Yunyu was furious. He was about to get up and reprimand him when Tang Feng grabbed him. Tang Feng said, "Innocent? Hmm... alright! Since Lord Qi won't defend himself, then I'll explain for him. Where did the 1256 taels of silver go? Don't tell me, Lord Qi, they went on vacation and didn't want to go to Luohe."
"Actually... it's not impossible," Qi Ming wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and retorted with his head down. Tang Feng nodded. "Ah... he went on vacation... Then, Lord Qi, how come there's an extra 1,256 taels of silver in your account book? Is it someone staying at your house temporarily, like me?"
"Maybe...yes..."
"Bullshit!" Tang Feng threw the account book at Qi Ming's face and stood up, saying, "His Majesty allocated funds for disaster relief, but you embezzled all of them! Do you want the court to let the people starve, or do you want the people to curse the court to death? You're really clever! You're the one who benefits from both ends! You're something else!"
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