Chapter 96

Chapter 96

In the remote mountain wilderness, by the time Prince Yan's carriage left the Jiangling territory, at least five waves of assassination attempts had already occurred.

Since the Junior General's incident, the Sixth Prince had made all the arrangements in just a few days and then set out for Huaizhou.

Ye Xuanqi and the Light Garment Guard lurked in the shadows, each disguised as local Jianghu figures, looking at first glance like hired guards of Prince Yan. Ye Xuanqi turned to look at the person sitting in the carriage; outside, countless people wanted his life, yet Ying Fusheng sat calmly and serenely, savoring the clash of blades and glint of steel.

"All are Jianghu fighters, not assassins from the former dynasty," Ye Xuanqi reported.

Ying Fusheng nodded: "It's normal. They're testing us."

The Light Garment Guard served as escorts; the mastermind was testing how many men he had brought and how many opportunities there were to strike.

This time, Ying Fusheng brought more guards than trusted aides. Song An, as usual, accompanied him, while Weng Yanqing stayed in Jiangling along with his private seal. With Weng Yanqing and Vice Prefect Xu in place, Jiangling would be trouble-free. He had brought only Censor Xiao and Chen Xuqiu on this trip, and surprisingly, Wu Lao had also insisted on coming along, saying that his health required him to be there.

Wang Guanzhi was another unexpected addition.

Upon hearing that he was headed to Jiangnan, Lord Wang, who always puts the people first, handed over the dam project to his trusted deputy, turned around, got on his horse, and followed. Knowing the lay of the land, from the moment they encountered ambushes on the road, he had been leading Ying Fusheng on mountain detours, dodging two waves of attackers before finally entering the Jiangnan border.

The moment they crossed into Jiangnan, the pursuit instantly died down.

As they approached the Huaizhou border, Prince Jin's men showed up—an elite squad. From the moment they showed up, the assassins disappeared.

"His Highness the Prince sent me to welcome Your Highness. The famous doctors of Huaizhou are already waiting at the residence," said Prince Jin's man.

"My royal uncle is thoughtful." Ying Fusheng silently let him take the lead.

"That Magistrate Qian is a corrupt official through and through!"

Outside the carriage, spirit money floated past. As the voices grew louder, Ying Fusheng opened his eyes.

"Prince Yan, civilians are burning funeral money by the roadside," said Prince Jin's man.

A makeshift altar was set up by the distant roadside. Beside the mourning banners stood several literati, and the heated debate carried over to them. Looking closer, ink had even been thrown onto the mourning banners. A few passersby seemed about to pay their respects, but upon seeing the scholars' scornful remarks, they quickly avoided the area.

Ying Fusheng lifted the carriage curtain and saw the altar commemorating the official who had been hounded to death by the court's literati.

It was said that this magistrate was a native of Huaizhou, assigned to Ningjiang as its county magistrate. Ningjiang was right next to Huaizhou, so today should have been his homecoming. Thinking this, he glanced at the guide. The road into the city had been chosen by Prince Jin's men. This man had deliberately led him to this gathering.

"He did this on purpose," Ying Fusheng said.

Ye Xuanqi hesitated: "Your Highness, shall we look into it?"

Before Qi Hanzhou vanished, he had been investigating a case in Huaizhou.

He had not brought any Light Garment Guard with him then, using only Embroidered Uniform Guard personnel.

When news of Magistrate Qian's forced death reached the capital, the Emperor, true to his nature, would have ordered Qi Hanzhou to investigate the case. And in this case, Qi Hanzhou had not relayed any message back to Jiangling before disappearing. Even since he left Jiangling, he had sent no communication to the Light Garment Guard.

That proved one point: the case was of great importance, and Qi Hanzhou knew he could not easily use the Light Garment Guard.

The Light Garment Guard were different from the Embroidered Uniform Guard; they had been secretly reassigned to Jiangnan by Qi Hanzhou.

Given that the Embroidered Uniform Guard's secret agents had been exposed, if the Light Garment Guard also faced problems, the Qi family could easily fall into the court's suspicions. Moreover, the Light Garment Guard's existence was tied to the northern Qi Family Army. The case Qi Hanzhou was investigating might involve a broader scope beyond the case itself, which was why, even in danger, he could not send word to the Light Garment Guard.

Two issues stood out: first, the exposure of the Embroidered Uniform Guard's secret agents; second, the case of Magistrate Qian of Ningjiang.

"That corrupt official colluded with salt merchants to swindle small traders, even raised the salt tax—never seen a more insatiably greedy official!" The voices of the literati gradually faded.

Ying Fusheng had learned some details about the Ningjiang Magistrate Qian case before coming here.

Under Yingtian Prefecture were several subordinate counties, and Ningjiang County was one of them. Ningjiang had a canal wharf where salt transported by water had to pass through, so there were many salt merchants in the area. It was said that this Magistrate Qian had conspired with a major salt merchant to frame the Second Young Master of the Fei family, using the salt tax and other means to cheat small salt dealers out of money, eventually driving several salt dealers to commit suicide and bringing the case to court.

The Fei family—the Jiangnan Fei family had no presence in his previous life.

Ying Fusheng had never interacted with them, only knowing that a few court officials had come from the Fei family academy. In recent times, when secretly investigating the Jiangnan officialdom, he realized that this clan's status in the Jiangnan government was comparable to that of the former Xu family in the court.

If Magistrate Qian had truly been corrupt, the case would not have angered the Emperor so deeply.

The trouble lay with the Jiangnan Fei family. Behind the Fei family stood the Jiangnan literati. In the list of officials Qi Hanzhou had given him, several were civil officials from the Fei family. Given the mastermind's capabilities, the Fei family was likely his biggest chess piece in Jiangnan, and this network, entrenched in Jiangnan, had also colluded with the Prince of Qin over the grain reserves…

"...A web of relationships covering the entire southern region," Ying Fusheng murmured.

As long as the Fei family's network existed, the mastermind could hide behind all the princes and marquises, and even the court—or he himself—could not pinpoint who was stirring up trouble, until the court could no longer bear it, triggering the Emperor's military crackdown.

Ye Xuanqi was a military man, but since coming into contact with Ying Fusheng, he found it hard to grasp the prince's thoughts. Rather than try to understand, it was better to follow orders: "What does Your Servant need to do?"

"Once in Jiangnan, you don't need to investigate the case. Just proceed with our original plan."

Ying Fusheng leaned slightly against the carriage cushions. "In Jiangnan, there are three factions."

Ye Xuanqi was puzzled, and Ying Fusheng noticed his confusion.

Ying Fusheng said: "The Emperor, the princes and marquises, and the mastermind."

Ye Xuanqi understood his meaning. For the Dayuan imperial court, there were the specially appointed officials; for the princes, Prince Jin and the marquises; and for the mastermind, the Fei family. Among these three, the Emperor's faction was the weakest—Magistrate Qian was already dead.

Ying Fusheng lowered his eyes and glanced at the scenery outside the window. "If we want to enter Jiangnan's game, we need people who can be used by me."

He quietly laid out a few points.

Ye Xuanqi's expression gradually changed.

As they spoke, the carriage swayed into Huaizhou city.

Ying Fusheng looked outside. Jiangnan was much more prosperous than Jiangling; as soon as they entered Huaizhou territory, prosperity was everywhere. Even after the previous flood disaster, Huaizhou, one of the three Jiangnan prefectures, remained stable.

"The Fei family is noble! They traveled among the wealthy merchants to gather relief funds for the disaster, which is why we have peace in Huaizhou," the people on the road discussed.

Ying Fusheng listened expressionlessly.

When the carriage arrived at Prince Jin's residence, Ying Fusheng got out and saw Prince Jin waiting outside, smiling as usual. Beside him stood several officials, including a familiar face—the one who had mediated for the Jiangnan officials in Jiangling prefecture. He stood respectfully behind a middle-aged man.

Prince Jin walked over smoothly and said, "You've finally arrived."

Song An quickly fetched the wheelchair and helped Ying Fusheng sit down.

This action drew the attention of many nearby. Ying Fusheng, pale-faced, smiled as if he truly were seeking medical treatment: "Royal Uncle."

Prince Jin sighed and looked at him with feigned concern. "You really didn't have to come in person. I could have searched for the doctors and sent them over." As he spoke, he noticed the surrounding officials and remembered to introduce them: "I almost forgot—Lord Fei and Lord Zhang of Yingtian Prefecture have both come."

"His Excellency the Prefect is busy with official duties. Your Servant is the Assistant Prefect of Yingtian, here specifically to welcome Prince Yan," said the middle-aged man. His demeanor was gentle, his bow and salute proper, appearing honest and straightforward, but without any sharpness.

When Ying Fusheng saw him, he knew who this was.

Assistant Prefect Fei, the second-in-command of Yingtian Prefecture in Jiangnan, a member of the Fei family.

A man who could occupy such a position could not possibly be unshrewd.

"Lord Fei." Ying Fusheng said with a faint smile.

Ying Fusheng looked to the back where another person stood; it was the Prefect of Yingtian Prefecture, the third-in-command of Yingtian. Unlike the others, he stood at the edge, with only two people beside him.

Seeming to notice Ying Fusheng's gaze, he finally spoke: "I, Zhang Wuyong, pay my respects to Prince Yan."

At that moment, a gust of wind came from afar, and Ying Fusheng's face turned pale as he couldn't help but cough.

Seeing this, the surrounding officials quickly urged Prince Yan to enter the mansion, not daring to let this sickly man catch more wind. The Jiangnan officials hadn't expected Prince Yan to be so frail and still come to Jiangnan. The renowned physicians Prince Jin had summoned were already in the mansion. As his wheelchair was brought in, the doctors each carried their medicine boxes and stepped forward.

Ying Fusheng casually said: "Thank you, Uncle."

"There's no need to stand on ceremony with me; your health is what matters," said Prince Jin. "Quickly, take Prince Yan's pulse!"

The famous doctors came forward one by one. Ying Fusheng scanned the physicians present, and behind him, Ye Xuanqi had already memorized their faces. The Jiangnan officials showed no intention of leaving; all entered, as seeing is believing. This move by Prince Jin and the officials today was probably to have these physicians personally test his pulse.

Before coming, Ying Fusheng had arranged for Chen Xuqiu to tamper with things. Chen Xuqiu, an expert in toxicology, had once concealed Ying Fusheng's pulse in front of the imperial physicians in the palace, let alone these people.

As the group of doctors checked Ying Fusheng's pulse, their faces turned grave and worried. Even Prince Jin, who had been smiling, saw a deeper look in his eyes after hearing the conclusions from several of them. By the time the last doctor finished, the expressions of the surrounding officials had changed significantly. The rumors were true; this Sixth Prince was truly this ill... Could it be that he truly came to Jiangnan for medical treatment?

"Traveling has been tiring; you should rest well in the mansion for now," said Prince Jin. "When you're feeling better, I'll throw you a banquet to ward off misfortune."

Ying Fusheng played along with Prince Jin. The other officials, who wanted to say something, had to take their leave for now.

Assistant Prefect Fei took his leave with his men. Shortly after leaving Prince Jin's mansion, a doctor who had just examined Ying Fusheng approached him: "Prince Yan's body still carries poison, some has been removed, but his pulse is weak. This body is indeed short-lived."

Hearing that Ying Fusheng still had residual poison and a short life expectancy, a glint of delight appeared in Assistant Prefect Fei's eyes.

"I understand. If Prince Jin's mansion summons you these days, continue to treat him," Assistant Prefect Fei said with a darkening gaze. "Play it by ear. If necessary, remove the poison to gain his trust."

The doctor understood and quickly returned to Prince Jin's mansion.

Assistant Prefect Fei shot a sidelong glance at the mansion behind him. Prince Jin was clever; keeping the man in his mansion made it hard to make a move. "Find some people to pose as the Sixth Prince's men. Say that the Sixth Prince is secretly investigating the grain depot. Also, keep an eye on Zhang Wuyong. He came today probably to see the Sixth Prince. I wouldn't mind one more official dying in Jiangnan."

Ying Fusheng, dragging such a sickly body, made things easy for them. Since he had been so diligent for the people of Jiangling, he didn't mind using a few more lives to gradually ruin this body.

"Is the matter of the grain depot not appropriate?" asked a subordinate.

"How is it inappropriate? If at this time it is discovered that the marquises had a hand in the grain depot, and they have been secretly dealing with the Prince of Qin of Western Shu behind the court's back, what would the court think?" said Assistant Prefect Fei.

Regardless of whether he came for medical treatment, that grain depot hanging over everyone's heads should serve as the fuse to ignite the Jiangnan officialdom.

The eldest young master said that the Sixth Prince's coming for medical treatment was an open strategy. Since it was an open strategy, it might as well serve as their bargaining chip, a weapon to threaten other marquises. Assistant Prefect Fei walked away: "Let's go."

Outside Prince Jin's mansion, several Light Garment Guards witnessed this scene and quietly left.

"From the moment we entered Huaizhou City, there were eyes everywhere," said Ye Xuanqi, an exceptionally skilled scout of the Light Garment Guards. But the situation in Jiangnan was no simpler than the court; if their men got too far away, they would be spotted, so they had to give up. "As you expected, the Fei family enjoys an excellent reputation in both Huaizhou and all of Jiangnan."

After hearing this, Ying Fusheng understood why. No wonder the Imperial Guard could make no headway in Jiangnan.

If the streets were full of informants and they were constantly being watched, Jiangnan, seemingly part of Dayuan, some had essentially become local emperors.

"Keep an eye on Zhang Wuyong," said Ying Fusheng. "Do you think a family like the Feis would allow a county magistrate to get leverage over them and drag their second son to court for trial?"

In the Jiangnan officialdom, there were good people like Wang Guanzhi, who worked for the people but were opposed to the court. If Yingtian Prefecture was sending people, there was no need to dispatch both Assistant Prefect Fei and Zhang Wuyong. These two were not on the same side. Considering the case of Magistrate Qian, how could the Fei family, with their influence, let their own family member be brought to court?

This internal strife in Jiangnan officialdom likely meant they used it to eliminate Magistrate Qian.

"You want to win over Zhang Wuyong?" Ye Xuanqi understood.

"I'm not trying to win him over," Ying Fusheng chuckled.

"The Director of the Imperial Guard got into trouble with his secret investigation, and Qi Hanzhou's secret investigation also ran into problems," Ying Fusheng said coldly. "Since we can't work in secret, we'll work openly. It's almost time."

...

Meanwhile, in a hidden room in the West market of Huaizhou City, two injured Imperial Guard soldiers sat in the corner. After days of travel, they had encountered successive acts of dark assassination. Deep in the room, a middle-aged man in coarse clothing sat silently, his left hand resting on a sword, his right sleeve empty, with bloodstains at the edges.

He looked up and saw a young man sitting by the door.

The young man's clothes were stained with blood. He leaned against the side, while an Imperial Guard carefully bandaged the wound on his waist. The hideous wound lay on his side, but he felt no pain, reaching out to take the cloth and handle the wound himself.

The man, with a full beard of stubble, couldn't help but joke: "For saving me, you almost lost your life. I'm not worthy of explaining this to General Qi."

"The Imperial Guard's secret post was exposed, you lost your right arm, and you're trapped in Huaizhou City," Qi Hanzhou said, looking at the one-armed man. "Director Ji has fallen to such a state; when you return to the capital, you will have to be punished."

"Let's talk about staying alive first." Ji Wuming, the Imperial Guard Director who had been missing for days, said, "You little brat, do you think Jiangnan is an easy place to investigate? Don't think I don't know you moved Old General Chen's troops to protect Jiangling... If you weren't in Jiangnan, how could you have gotten him to act first?"

Qi Hanzhou didn't say, because someone had been prepared, but it was too late to save Jiangling.

"Young General, the Sixth Prince has arrived in Huaizhou," said Ye Xuanjiu from outside.

Qi Hanzhou frowned. He had used the falcon to send a false signal to warn him, not to have him personally walk into danger in Huaizhou. He suddenly stood up and heard someone behind him ask: "Is that the Sixth Prince who pacified Jiangling? Thanks to him, things didn't escalate."

"Not only that, there are people in the city prying into the grain depot in the prince's name," Ye Xuanjiu said calmly.

When the grain depot was mentioned, Ji Wuming nearly lost his composure: "Is he investigating?"

"No, if he had wanted to investigate the grain depot, he wouldn't have come under the guise of seeking medical treatment," Qi Hanzhou denied.

Someone was acting in his name. Huaizhou was one of the three prefectures of Jiangnan, which had just experienced floods at the end of last year, followed by a winter snow disaster, and now was just entering spring. Spring had barely arrived, and the city of Huaizhou seemed unchanged, but outside the city and in the other two places, there were still refugees.

Ying Fusheng had just pacified Jiangling, and now if the grain depot was used to attack, some in Jiangnan would think it was targeting them, further inflaming the conflict between the court and the local authorities.

"That's a huge problem. Whether it's him or not, as long as it's in his name, it represents the court," said Ji Wuming. "In any case, we cannot let these people act recklessly in the court's name. The Sixth Prince coming here is too risky."

Qi Hanzhou frowned: "Lord Ji, what did you find?"

"I found that when someone was about to move against the Jiangling dike, I dispatched others to prevent them from destroying the dike, and thus I was lured away and fell into an ambush."

Ji Wuming barely stood up with the support of his sword. His face was pale from blood loss. "I didn't bring many people with me to Jiangnan this time. His Majesty suspects that there are remnants of the former dynasty among the princes and marquises' factions, so we couldn't openly ask for help, as it would easily arouse the suspicion of the princes and marquises. Reluctantly, we had to cut contact with the court and wait for His Majesty to send someone else to relieve us. But I never thought that the person who would find me following my clues would be you. And at such speed, it could only be you. Did you give the list I left to His Majesty?"

"Not yet. Before I saw you, it was half true and half false." Qi Hanzhou had only given the confirmed list to Ying Fusheng. Without seeing Ji Wuming, he couldn't be sure if other parts of the list were forged by others. "Is there anyone in the Jiangnan officialdom we can use?"

"The Governor of Yingtian was pushed up by the princes and marquises. He basically only follows the orders of Prince Jin and other princes and marquises. I only managed to escape from those people thanks to Zhang Wuyong," Ji Wuming continued. "Zhang Wuyong is a local official from Jiangnan, not sent by the court. But his subordinates are basically good officials who work for the people. Do you know what he's investigating?"

"Salt," Qi Hanzhou replied.

"Yes. The magistrate of Ningjiang County and the county magistrate of Qian secretly investigated the canal docks and found a big salt merchant colluding with the government to tamper with the salt, backed by the Fei family's wealth. They brought the Fei family members to court, but unexpectedly, the Fei family overturned the case using literary scholars to denounce them, and in the end, the magistrates were killed." At this point, Ji Wuming's face darkened. "Magistrate Qian was a good official."

There were indeed good officials in the Jiangnan officialdom, who tried their utmost to peel off a layer of the Fei family's power, only to be used against them. Not only did the Fei family not lose anything, but Magistrate Qian's death also stirred up tensions between the court and the local authorities. Now some princes and marquises had united, waiting to see the court's reaction.

At this moment, to investigate the grain depot in the name of Prince Yan—wasn't that pouring oil on the fire?

"Zhang Wuyong has evidence, but it's very difficult to suppress the Fei family," Qi Hanzhou understood his meaning.

The Fei family's reputation was too great. The scholars of Jiangnan followed them. Such a family was hard to topple.

Just like the Xu family back then, who repeatedly avoided punishment with their reputation, only falling after many attempts. Even if Zhang Wuyong had evidence, he dared not use it directly because he couldn't bring them down.

"And there's more. Right now, Jiangnan is suffering from food shortages, and the Fei family has gained considerable prestige by rescuing the people," Ji Wuming said, recalling the Fei family's reputation for spending their fortune to save the common folk. "In the eyes of the people across the three prefectures of Jiangnan, the Fei family's reputation is no less than that of Prince Yan of Jiangling."

Just then, someone rushed in to report—it was one of Ji Wuming's informants.

The man entered with a tense expression, disregarding all protocol, and immediately said, "Something terrible has happened. Ningjiang is in trouble."

Ji Wuming shot to his feet, his face went pale.

The grain supplies—damn, it's the people's anger!

Jiangnan can't take any more stirring up. If something else happened, it would be a disaster.

Qi Hanzhou remained calm and said, "Out with it."

The Secret Guard reported: "At Ningjiang dock, a wealthy merchant's ship was intercepted by local river bandits before it could even dock. The ship was set on fire and sank. They say the ship was packed with grain. Now the people are in an uproar there!"

"Whose ship was it?"

"It seems to belong to a merchant surnamed Liu."