Chapter 251: Here We Go Again

Chapter 251: Arrival Again

After the New Year, Zhen Guan Workshop gradually became less busy. The canned lychees had sold like crazy at the end of last year, while the canned oranges had been largely ignored. Most of them had been transported by merchants to cities around Lingnan for sale, especially in Qinzhou, where canned goods and lotus root flour were extremely popular.

Once the canned lychees were cleared out, Zhen Guan Workshop continued to accept a few batches of late-ripening oranges. Third Master Zhu loaded the orange cans and headed north and west. Yu Yandong followed along to see the world and didn't even return for the New Year.

"Xiao Yu has finally let go this time. After getting engaged to Jinshuang, he dares to go anywhere, whereas before he watched her like a hawk," Meng Wan said. He thought Xiao Yu was pretty great, with a young man's boldness in love and a free-spirited nature.

He was on his way to pick up Song Tingzhou from the government office. Chi Yu, as Song Tingzhou's personal guard, also followed the two of them. The Song family had prepared a separate room for Chi Yu.

"Among our Miao people, once a woman or a male gē'er gets married, they can only stay at home. If Manager Tang were to marry, could he still be a manager at Zhen Guan Workshop?"

Meng Wan answered matter-of-factly, "Of course he could. Even if he got married and had children, he would still come to work. Jinshuang is literate, good at math, knows etiquette, and knows how to negotiate with merchants. She's one of my right-hand people."

Chi Yu tilted his head and repeated Meng Wan's words, "Right-hand... people?"

Standing next to Meng Wan, he was taller than Meng Wan, robust and strong, with good skills. If one ignored his being a gē'er, he actually matched well with the fair-skinned and slender Meng Wan.

Chi Yu was currently enjoying the best treatment, with a high salary of ten taels of silver per month from Song Tingzhou, making him the richest person among the Miao people.

Maybe because he had been cooped up in the mountains for too long, he now loved running around with Song Tingzhou on inspections or cases, with no intention of getting married.

"He's only learned a few characters and can't understand idioms yet." Song Tingzhou had no intention of letting his own husband be someone else's teacher. He pulled Meng Wan forward quickly, interrupting their conversation.

Meng Wan couldn't keep up with his long strides and had to trot to follow, totally speechless. He had just called Xiao Yu narrow-minded, forgetting his own man was the king of jealousy.

"Chi Yu is a gē'er."

Song Tingzhou said nothing. He slowed down to wait for Meng Wan, and when he saw Chi Yu obliviously catching up, he told him, "Chi Yu, go to the courier station and see if there are any letters for us."

Chi Yu didn't understand what game the master was playing, speeding up and slowing down. He said a simple "Oh" and ran off to the courier station.

Seeing Chi Yu leave, Meng Wan pinched Song Tingzhou's hand hard, but the latter held his hand tightly and led him home. "Let's go home. Don't wait for him."

Meng Wan let out a helpless little laugh. "Alright, we won't wait for him."

Originally, Song Tingzhou had just made up an excuse to send Chi Yu to get the letters, but unexpectedly, Chi Yu actually returned with one.

"It's from Jin Rong," Meng Wan said, glancing at the envelope.

After opening the letter, Meng Wan's peach-blossom-like eyes got wider and wider. He took out the envelope again to check the date, then said urgently, "Quick, Xue Sheng is fast on his feet. Have him go to the courier station first."

He started walking out, while the others looked on in confusion.

Song Tingzhou picked up the letter Meng Wan had put down and followed him out while reading it.

Chang Jinhua called after them, "You just got home and now you're leaving? Can't you eat dinner first?"

Meng Wan's anxious voice echoed at the Song family's front gate, "No time!"

Meng Wan and Song Tingzhou went directly on horseback. When they arrived at the courier station, Xue Sheng was just taking a three-year-old child from the hands of a station attendant.

The child didn't cry or make a fuss, just sucked his fingers while curled up in Xue Sheng's arms.

Meng Wan, panting as he ran over, grabbed the station attendant, his voice shaky, "Where did he come from?"

The attendant said with a forced smile, "He came from Liuzhou Prefecture. They said he's a friend of the Master and paid a hefty fee. The couple dropped off the child and left. Our men had no choice but to send him back to our Xiwu Prefecture as instructed."

Another attendant was unloading goods and added helplessly, "We were just about to send someone to inform you, and then you arrived. Oh, by the way, young master, there's an old man in the back too!"

To be honest, they were relieved. They had been delivering goods for half a year, and this was the first time they'd seen anything like this. It was also fortunate that the child didn't cry or fuss and was easy to handle on the road; otherwise, they wouldn't have taken the job for any amount of money.

Meng Wan was so mad he wanted to cuss. He took the quiet little boy from Xue Sheng. "Tong'er, do you remember your little uncle? What did your dad say?"

Tong'er stared with a serious face at Meng Wan for a while, then said slowly, "Father... save people... Tong'er... Grandpa... don't go."

"Yeah, yeah, where's that old guy?" Meng Wan asked the attendant.

The attendant pulled a donkey cart from the backyard. On it lay a sleeping old man with gray hair and a flushed face, his sleeves greasy and grimy, reeking of alcohol.

Meng Wan rubbed his forehead and handed Tong'er to Song Tingzhou. He went up to Old Man Ge and shouted in his ear, "Hey, wake up! Tong'er has been kidnapped!"

Old Man Ge sat bolt upright. "Tong'er! Where's Tong'er?"

"Master Ge, is this how you watch a child? Tong'er was taken away and you didn't even know."

Old Man Ge was half sober. "Oh, it's Wan Ge'er. Rong Ge'er told me you married your cousin and had a son. I brought him something..." He fumbled around on himself and pulled out a wooden plaque covered in old stains. "Here, Wan Ge'er, for your son."

Song Tingzhou quickly pulled a handkerchief from his sleeve to wrap the plaque and took it himself. "Xue Sheng, it looks like Uncle Ge can't get up. Take him and the donkey cart back."

They had gone on horseback, but returned with a donkey cart, an old man, and a child.

Meng Wan had Xue Sheng carry Old Man Ge directly to a guest room in the front yard to continue sleeping. He then carried the smelly Tong'er to Chang Jinhua's courtyard.

Chang Jinhua was still waiting for them to eat. Seeing Meng Wan come back carrying a child, she hurried over and asked, "Where did you pick up this child?" She looked closely and felt increasingly familiar. "Tong'er? Is it Tong'er back?"

Tong'er had been cared for by Chang Jinhua when he was at the Song house, so she recognized him at a glance.

Song Tingzhou took out Fang Jinrong's letter and explained to Chang Jinhua, "They had to return to Qinzhou for something urgent. They didn't have time to detour to Xiwu, so they entrusted Tong'er and Master Ge to the courier station to be sent back to Xiwu."

Chang Jinhua didn't listen to a word. She hugged Tong'er and headed to her room. "Poor Tong'er. Come, let Grandma give you a bath and change your clothes. How were they taking care of you on the road? You've got mud on your little face."

After his bath, Tong'er looked brand new. He was probably ravenous, as he started shoveling food into his mouth as soon as he sat at the table.

Chang Jinhua, feeling sorry for him, put a few pieces of tender braised pork belly on his plate. "Eat slowly. When you finish this bowl, Grandma will get you more."

Tong'er was still a bit unfamiliar with everyone, but he was close to Chang Jinhua.

A Yan was a little jealous. "Grandma, I want some too."

Meng Wan put a piece of winter bamboo shoot on his plate. "By nominal age, you're five after the New Year. Can't you serve yourself? Do you still need help?"

A Yan snorted, pouting with his beautifully shaped lips, and glanced sideways at the focused Tong'er. His expression was starting to resemble Meng Wan's more and more.

Song Tingzhou's rebuke turned into a soft word. "Eat quickly."

"Oh." A Yan listlessly ate his greens.

Tong'er stayed at home for a few days and gradually got familiar with everyone, but he was still quiet by nature, unlike A Yan, who was lively.

At first, A Yan was quite disdainful of Tong'er, but after a few days, he started to like him.

He had a little brother now!

The Ge family's grandfather and grandson settled in the Song house. Meng Wan wrote back to Fang Jinrong. The courier business hadn't expanded to Qinzhou, so he didn't know if Fang Jinrong and Ge Quanshou had received the letter.

Tong'er lived in the Song house for two months, and then, at A Yan's strong recommendation, he also carried a small backpack identical to A Yan's and started school.

He didn't really know what schooling meant yet; he just did whatever Brother A Yan did.

On a very ordinary rainy day in May, Meng Wan woke up early, saw that the weather was bad, and thought that there didn't seem to be anything important requiring him to go out in person, so he decided to sleep in.

"Master, the magistrate sent me back to fetch you, saying there's an honored guest arriving." Chi Yu's loud voice rang out from the courtyard.

Meng Wan jolted upright in bed. "Honored guest?"

It must be someone important for Song Tingzhou to send a messenger specially to fetch him. Meng Wan got up quickly, washed and changed, pushed open the door, grabbed an oil-paper umbrella from the eaves, and headed outside.

Chi Yu waited for Meng Wan under the eaves for a moment. Seeing him come out, without waiting to be asked, he said, "I don't know who it is, but they have quite the entourage. They went directly to the yamen to find the magistrate."

Meng Wan stopped in his tracks. "Went directly to the yamen? Is it a man or a woman? Did they state their identity?"

"It's a young gentleman, claiming to be sent by Prince Lian." Chi Yu also held up an umbrella and followed behind him with long strides.

Hearing this, Meng Wan suddenly stopped again. "A young gentleman? Prince Lian?"

Chi Yu didn't understand why his master had stopped and asked again, but still confirmed, "Yes, that's right."

Meng Wan stood there under his umbrella, raindrops pounding urgently on the canopy, creating a noisy sound. He looked up from under the brim at the heavy dark clouds, his brow deeply furrowed. He stood there until Chi Yu's feet were almost numb, then turned around and went back into the room.

Chi Yu looked bewildered at his retreating figure. "Master? Aren't we going to the yamen to see the honored guest?"

Without turning back, Meng Wan said, "Wait for me a moment. I'll be right there."

---

Luo Jining was jostled about by the carriage until he felt sick, finally arriving at Xiwu Prefecture. Despite the journey's discomforts, he bypassed the city and settled in a nearby town.

Prince Lian stubbornly refused to leave the capital, seizing the opportunity while the Crown Prince was away to intimidate and coerce several courtiers to rebel. Unable to do anything else, Luo Jining had to coax and trick him into sending someone to escort him to Xiwu.

After resting a night at an inn, he let out a deep breath. The air was filled with the fishy smell of mud, making him feel like vomiting.

This was no way to live, and Luo Jining couldn't bear another day of it. But what could he do? Fate was cruel.

Leaving those two foolish advisors at the inn, he took the even more foolish guards with him and headed straight for the Glaze Workshop and Rubber Workshop.

The guard captain asked, "Master Ning, shouldn't we go to the Zhen Guan Workshop first?"

What's the point of visiting that canning workshop? Luo Jining cursed inwardly, but feigned displeasure on his face. "His Highness ordered you to follow my instructions. Do not speak more than necessary."

He was tall and slender, exuding an air of noble aloofness. Even though the guards didn't respect Luo Jining, they dared not act disrespectfully in his presence.

Luo Jining first circled the Glaze Workshop but didn't try to enter. He knew about the imperial Guanyu Workshop and had discovered that the Glaze Workshop in Xiwu was personally supported by the Crown Prince, with craftsmen originally from there. Its origins were well-founded and beyond suspicion.

He then turned his gaze to the smallest workshop next door—this Rubber Workshop was far too peculiar.

Geographically, it was possible for rubber trees to grow in Xiwu, but to extract rubber and make sealing strips—wasn't that too advanced?

On the surface, Prefect Song Tingzhou of Xiwu was the most suspicious person. But from the information Luo Jining had gathered using Prince Lian's influence, the prefect's husband owned a vast number of industries. These three workshops were his creations, and he seemed even more suspicious.

Moreover, two years ago, Luo Jining had tested Song Tingzhou in the capital. The man was simply an ordinary, talented, and upright official, wholeheartedly devoted to the country and its people. He seemed more like a local than Prince Lian, despite the prince's royal blood.

Luo Jining grew frustrated. He had been transported to this unknown dynasty, unable to even consult history books. The history he had studied was filled with figures more formidable than any time traveler, leaving him uncertain what to do.

In any case, if there was a problem, it must be with the Rubber Workshop.

Steeling himself, Luo Jining pretended to be a merchant wanting to place an order at the Zhen Guan Workshop and used the excuse of wanting to inspect the Rubber Workshop. He managed to get himself and his guards inside.

Many merchants were envious of the huge profits from Meng Wan's Zhen Guan Workshop. The clever ones weren't lacking—since they couldn't get their hands on the Glaze Workshop and dared not replicate it commercially, they could at least try to learn the production methods of the Rubber Workshop.

Thus, from the end of last year onward, many outside merchants had been inquiring about the Rubber Workshop, both openly and secretly. At first, Manager Liang of the Rubber Workshop assumed Luo Jining and his group had the same intentions.

"That scruffy-looking man is the one who originally invented rubber?" Luo Jining pointed at Fengzhong in disbelief.

The Rubber Workshop laborer said proudly, "Not only that, but Master Feng also masterfully refined the gray powder that originated in Heshan County!"

A glint flashed in Luo Jining's eyes. "He also made gray powder? Then he really has some skill. Can I have a word with this Master Feng?"

The laborer couldn't make that decision, nor did he dare to disturb Fengzhong's work directly. So he went to fetch Manager Liang.

Manager Liang looked at Luo Jining meaningfully. "Young master wishes to speak with Master Feng? Please forgive me, but Master Feng has a bad temper. If there's something you need, I can relay it on his behalf."

Luo Jining understood Manager Liang's intention—he was afraid that this "outside merchant" would poach the Rubber Workshop's treasure.

"Rest assured, Manager. My family deals in tea in Jingzhou Prefecture. There's no conflict of interest with your workshop. I was impressed by the ingenious sealing method of the fruit preserve jar. Perhaps it could be used for tea as well, which is why I came to take a look."