Chapter 276: Speculation
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
Jing Song was very worried, “Your Highness, according to Liansheng’s words, there are probably hundreds of them in this group. If it’s true, then one of them is really scheming.”
This meant that Zhongshan Wang had already had intentions of rebellion while Emperor Wen was still alive. After these orphans were uniformly trained, they were sent to various mansions in the capital through various means, and even into the palace. Starting from the lowest servants, some might even be doing the roughest work, while others, like Liansheng, became respectable servants. Together, they formed a huge network.
There were also mysterious restaurants and brothels, secret passages and wells scattered everywhere… Yuwen Chu frowned and paced around the room a few times, signaling to Jing Song, “Bring Fu Mingzheng over. Remember not to alarm anyone.”
Fu Mingzheng arrived quickly and brought a box for Mingzhu. Yuwen Chu had someone take the box to Yinghui Hall and sat down as host with Fu Mingzheng.
Fu Mingzheng didn’t know why he was being called in the middle of the night, so he greeted him, “There’s something I have to tell Your Highness, can you guess what it is?”
Yuwen Chu smiled, “If it’s about business being profitable and making money, then I congratulate Fourth Brother-in-law.”
“Please don’t jest. No one dares to say that business is doing well in front of Ying Wang.” Mingzhu had followed his advice and sought out the leaders of the various trades in the capital. As long as they revealed their identities a bit, most people would listen to them. Although half of it was due to the power of the Xiang Mansion, the other half was due to the power of Ying Wang’s Mansion. Mingzhu didn’t know, but she couldn’t hide it from him. Otherwise, how could they say that Ying Wang was the richest? His money didn’t come from nowhere, even if he had a good way of making money, he still had to have a method. Who knows how much money this man had hidden? He had to find a chance to tell Mingzhu so that she would have an idea.
Yuwen Chu didn’t argue with him and just smiled, “Fourth Brother-in-law s joking.”
“It’s just a joke.” Fu Mingzheng was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, “But it’s not entirely a joke. When Your Highness becomes rich and powerful in the future, naturally, I hope that everyone will say that it’s easy to make a living.”
His words were clearly aimed at implying that Yuwen Chu harbored ambitious thoughts and wanted to dominate the world.
If it were someone else, they would probably immediately put on a stern face and reprimand him, then fiercely tell Fu Cong so he wouldn’t know where to turn, in order to prove that Ying Wang was a loyal subject. But Yuwen Chu didn’t. He looked at him silently, his sharp eyes like substance, piercing straight through his eyes and into his heart.
Fu Mingzheng heard Yuwen Chu speak with a calmness that couldn’t be more serene, “All those surnamed Yuwen hope for peace and prosperity for the world. I’m someone who loves money, and with a wife who knows how to spend, of course, I want to earn more money. Otherwise, with so many children to support in the future, I don’t want them to live in poverty.”
Indeed, if he could achieve great things and bring prosperity to the world, his sons and grandsons could live well. Otherwise, if the princes and grandchildren lived in poverty, what would be the point? This man, usually silent and reserved, once he opened his mouth, he spoke boldly. He wondered what kind of alliance his father had made with him to let him be so unrestrained and unconcealed. Nevertheless, he was straightforward and manly! Fu Mingzheng chuckled, “So, is it all our Mingzhu’s fault?”
Yuwen Chu didn’t want to beat around the bush with him and said straightforwardly, “It’s not convenient to visit my father-in-law. Please tell my father-in-law that the autumn rains are coming soon. According to the observations of the Qintian Observatory, there will be heavy rain this autumn, and the drainage systems in the capital and the palace haven’t been cleared for many years, which may cause flooding.”
Fu Mingzheng was smart enough to understand that he wanted to investigate how many secret passages Zhongshan Wang had arranged, so he said earnestly, “It’s not a big deal. I’ll have the Ministry of Works look into it.”
Yuwen Chu was cautious by nature. “It hasn’t flooded yet. Suddenly wanting to investigate without cause may startle the snakes.”
Fu Mingzheng frowned, “Understood. We’ll find a way to let it flood once or twice, and then there will be a reason.”
Yuwen Chu walked to the window, pushed it open, and looked at the dark sky. “There will be heavy rain in three days. Fourth Brother-in-law, please prepare early. Also, before the Double Ninth Festival, I want to take Mingzhu to the manor in the Big Temple for a break. I hope Fourth Brother-in-law can come too.”
That side of Big Temple was the secret manufacturing base for bed crossbows. A few days ago, someone was sent to inform him that the bed crossbow had been built and invited him to try it out. Yuwen Chu probably received a similar report here and wanted to personally inspect it. Fu Mingzheng nodded, “I happen to have some business there in a few days. I’ll have to trouble Your Highness and the Wangfei for a few days.”
Although they were Brother-in-law relationship, their identities were special, not like ordinary people. They needed to avoid suspicion in their interactions, so they always found suitable excuses for their actions, pretending to have chance encounters.
After chatting for a while, Fu Mingzheng wanted to see Mingzhu. “I wonder if the Wangfei is resting? I rarely come over and would like to pay my respects.”
Yuwen Chu was keenly aware of the relationship between the two siblings, and even if he exchanged pleasantries, he would consider it acceptable without saying much to Mingzhu. Immediately, he said, “It’s truly unfortunate, she has already gone to bed.”
Fu Mingzheng remembered Mingzhu’s poisoning incident and was somewhat worried when he heard that she was sleeping so early. “Is she not feeling well?”
Yuwen Chu smirked slightly. “No, she’s just tired.” After saying this, he felt afraid that Fu Mingzheng would overthink it, so he added, “We had guests in the mansion today, and she’s used to being lazy. After the guests left, she went straight to bed.”
Fu Mingzheng, knowing that they were doing well, didn’t bother with unnecessary concerns. “In that case, please tell the Wangfei that a few days ago, the people from Jade Emperor Temple who found Ban Jian had been found.”
Because his men had to watch Jiang Shanshan’s workshop and movements, they accidentally encountered the two missing people outside the workshop. He couldn’t help but think more about it. Even if Jiang Shanshan was determined to do something big and make a lot of money, people like Ban Jian seemed to have little to do with glass products or whatever soap. Following the vine down, he made a new discovery. It turned out that Jiang Shanshan not only found Ban Jian but also many craftsmen skilled in making machines. Combined with the fact that Jiang Shanshan had presented a drawing to Yuwen Chu before, it couldn’t help but raise people’s alertness.
“Jiang Shanshan, could she be so audacious as to want to build her own bed crossbows?” Fu Mingzheng felt that his speculation made sense.
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
