Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 172 Interest
After Xie Yuyan finished speaking, the scholars did not respond immediately, as they had indeed considered this possibility beforehand.

After all, they didn't know much about this Madam Xie.

In their minds, merchants are all in it for the money; who would write anything detrimental to them in their own printed newspaper?
Yan, the scholar who brought the message, had been thinking the same thing all the way. He realized that this matter could no longer be written about. Thinking deeper, he wondered whether the tabloids would continue to be printed after the Yang family's misfortune.

But now Madam Xie has come and told them that she has prepared three months' worth of money for printing, and... she will not stop them from writing about what happened today.

How much of that is true?

Even though Madam Xie didn't seem to be joking, they still had some doubts.

Zuo Shangying spoke first: "Is there something else going on in this matter? Is it not as the rumors say?" He was the first to react. Since they weren't afraid to write it down for everyone to see, the Yang family must be fine.

Xie Yuyan said, "You can't listen to me explain this."

Liu Erlang roughly guessed what Madam Xie meant.

“We must ask the county government,” Xie Yuyan said. “We must know what the county government says and what the Xie family says in their complaint. We cannot listen to what people in the neighborhood say, nor can we believe anyone’s one-sided story, including mine.”

"I've said before that especially important news must not be inaccurate, and that's what I mean."

"Otherwise, this wouldn't be called a tabloid of Daming Prefecture, but rather a tabloid of the Yang family or the Xie family..."

Zuo Shangying understood.

Xie Yuyan said, “You can’t just write whatever you want for money, and you can’t just make things up. The cases that were printed in our tabloids before were all judged by the yamen. You need to think about how to write about cases that haven’t been judged. But… anything without solid evidence must never appear in the tabloids.”

Zuo Shangying and Liu Erlang looked at each other, both showing expressions of admiration.

After Xie Yuyan finished speaking, he stood up and said, "You can continue your discussion. If you need anything, just come to the Yang family to find me."

The scholars hurriedly rose to see him off, and even after Xie Yuyan boarded the carriage, Liu Erlang still stared thoughtfully in the direction the carriage had left.

Zuo Shangying pulled Liu Erlang along again: "Let's go, there are still many articles that haven't been finalized."

Liu Erlang murmured, "It's a little different from what I expected."

The difference is that Madam Xie is even more impressive than he thought. Based on what she just said, most men don't have her perspective.

No wonder the Wang family would use her to do things.

Liu Erlang thought about Xie Da Niangzi's gaze. Even without saying a word, she stood out exceptionally. That all-knowing clarity and composure immediately captured his attention.

"Tell me, how could such a person exist?"

Zuo Shangying seemed not to hear and did not respond. Liu Erlang was embarrassed and could only pretend not to say anything, leading the group back to the teahouse.

Master Wen, who was in the private room, sat back down in his chair. Now that he heard the story, it was starting to sound interesting, and it piqued his curiosity; he wanted to know how this matter would be resolved amicably.

Master Wen instructed the steward: "Go and find out carefully what exactly happened between Madam Xie and the Xie family's porcelain kiln. What grudges are involved?"

Since Master Wen had lived in Daming Prefecture for a while, he would naturally have acquaintances there, so it wouldn't be difficult to find out.

The manager responded.

Master Wen continued to listen to the commotion outside, while the scholars discussed who should go to the yamen to inquire.

He was already very curious even before seeing the next tabloid. What would it say? Something he hadn't cared about before, he now wanted to find out.

……

Xie Yuyan sat in the carriage and looked at Wang Yan beside her. When she arrived, there were only her and Mama Yu in the carriage, but after she came out of the teahouse, there was another person in the carriage.

and……

Wang Yan held the cat in his arms, looking down at the document in his hand, his expression quite natural. When their eyes suddenly met just now, she thought they had boarded the Wang family's carriage.

Wang Yan put the documents down, reached out to stroke the fur on the back of the raccoon dog, and then scratched it. The raccoon dog comfortably squinted its eyes and stretched out in his arms.

The cat was a little different in Wang Yan's arms than when it was with her. It was more obedient to her, but with Wang Yan, it would hook its paws around him, letting him scratch its chin. Its big eyes held a hint of smugness, as if it had done something good and was asking for a reward.

Wang Yan looked up at Xie Yuyan: "The news from the yamen is that several servants of the Xie family are injured. They are now insisting that it was because they disagreed with the results of the inspection of the clay furnace and tried to stop the Yang family. The Yang family attacked them without saying a word."

"The Yang family's hired workers and apprentices told the exact opposite story. When they went in to get the clay furnace, the Xie family came to greet them. When Shi Yong saw that the Xie family members were injured, he knew things were going badly and tried to lead everyone away, but the Xie family members stopped him. As a result, the two groups got entangled."

Xie Yuyan asked, "No one was killed, was he?"

“The military patrol went early,” Wang Yan said, “and only two of them were seriously injured.”

If it were any later, it would be hard to say.

The Xie family will find a way to solidify the charges.

Wang Yan said, "In the prison, the guards will take care of them and won't let Shi Yong and the others get into trouble, but interrogation is inevitable."

Xie Yuyan nodded: "Even without a trial, we cannot clear their names."

Wang Yan looked at Xie Yuyan: "The Xie family has sent people around to spread the word. These past two days, you have been reminding those who go from street to street selling water not to get into conflicts with anyone."

Xie Yuyan nodded.

"And people from Yong'anfang, Sanhe Village, and Chenyao Village."

Now that the Xie family has made up their minds, they will further solidify their gains once they succeed. During this time, her water shop and market have gained some reputation, but gossip is a powerful force, and things change after a few rumors spread.

So it must have been very difficult for them before they figured it out, but from another perspective...

"The bigger the commotion, the better; the higher you climb, the harder you fall."

Wang Yan didn't say much. Xie Yuyan could arrange all these things, so he didn't actually need to come.

There was someone in the teahouse just now.

When Wang Yan said this, Xie Yuyan knew that he was not referring to the scholars like Zuo Shangying, but to someone of special status.

"There is an official in mourning who has just received an imperial decree to be recalled to the court and assigned to another post. He happens to be passing through Daming Prefecture and will stay there for a while."

"If he can agree with the local tabloids of Daming Prefecture and see your case with the Xie family, it will be of no benefit to you."

Xie Yuyan realized that Wang Yan had secretly found her a helper.

With such a person around, she no longer needed to worry about how to send the message to the capital.

Xie Yuyan's eyes lit up slightly. The imperial court was to select porcelain to be sent to the border markets in February, which was already a bit too rushed. Now that she had this person, she didn't have to rush.

"Lord Wang," Xie Yuyan pondered carefully, "is that the person you're planning to promote to head the border market?"

She wanted to know who that person was and whether the outcome was different from her previous life.