Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 400 Gathering
The official boats hurriedly docked, while the Guo family's fleet made some adjustments before resuming its journey.

Guo Xiong and the others followed Xu Huaiyi to the yamen, while the fleet was handed over to Guo Chuan. Guo Chuan first had people check if the boats were damaged, and then went to check on the boatmen.

Several boatmen were injured, but fortunately they were all minor injuries. Only one was stabbed in the arm by Xia Ziqiao, but the wound was not deep and the bleeding had stopped. That boatman had just followed Guo Xiong onto the official boat and went ashore to see the doctor first.

Guo Chuan told Xie Yuyan: "Thirty-six wooden boxes were lost, and ten others were damaged."

Xie Yuyan said, "Send the quantity of goods and the documents for their removal to the yamen in a little while."

Guo Chuan almost couldn't help but laugh when he thought of this, and hurriedly replied, "I'll take care of it after we get ashore." This was the first time he had let the four families suffer a loss.

It's true that their goods were lost, but only the Guo brothers and a few close confidants knew that the goods in the wooden crate had long been switched. They hid the icing and sugar ice and filled the crate with dirt instead.

This is why the boatmen from the Zhou family didn't stop them when they were throwing away the wooden crates; they let them do as they pleased. The matriarch had already stated that the Zhou family would compensate for whatever was lost.

They will keep the goods, but the Zhou family will still compensate them for the money.

"What should we do next?" Guo Chuan asked Xie Yuyan.

Xie Yuyan said, "Send the porcelain to the pavilion outside Yunqi Temple and wait for someone to come and see it."

……

In Bianjing City.

Liu Erlang and Zuo Shangying walked through the market. They had come out to see how well coal was selling in Bianjing. They were surprised to find that the coal business was far more booming than they had imagined.

The coal was processed into Buddhist charcoal at the official coal yard and then sent into the city. There were two Buddhist charcoal shops in the West Market alone, and from early morning, the shops were always crowded with customers. The goods delivered from the coal yard were sold out in just half a day.

“Besides providing warmth, it can also be used to boil water and cook food,” Liu Erlang said. “No matter the time, we can’t do without Buddhist charcoal.”

"It was only at this time that Buddhist charcoal arrived in the capital. If it had arrived any earlier, the weather would have been unbearably cold, and there would have been no use for it."

Zuo Shangying didn't speak, but walked into a porcelain shop. However, she didn't see any of Xie Da Niangzi's new kiln porcelain, and couldn't help but frown.

Liu Erlang continued, "There's something I really admire about Madam Xie. She was able to come up with the recipe for Buddhist charcoal, even though it's such a profitable business."

If Madam Xie hadn't provided the prescription, the Buddhist charcoal wouldn't have been sold in Bianjing so quickly.

Watching those thinly dressed people carrying away the charcoal with smiles, Liu Erlang was filled with emotion. He may have earned less money, but he had saved many lives.

Zuo Shangying entered another porcelain shop, but still couldn't find any porcelain made by Madam Xie. The envoys from the Western Regions were already outside Bianjing City. If Madam Xie didn't make her porcelain famous soon, she might have a hard time selling it at the border market.

Zuo Shangying wanted to find out more, so she looked at Liu Erlang and asked, "Did the son of the Minister of Justice invite you to a banquet last night?"

Liu Erlang nodded: "The Xia family sent an invitation. I didn't want to go, but my father and mother saw it and asked me to go and make some arrangements."

Zuo Shangying asked, "Did the young master of the Xia family say anything to you? Did he tell you that after you pass the exam, you should become a disciple of Minister Xia?"

The reason for holding a banquet at this time is nothing more than this.

Liu Erlang said, "It wasn't explicitly stated, but... Brother Zuo is right, that's the gist of it. Besides that, Xia Wulang also inquired about the local gazette in Daming Prefecture."

"Ask me if I can start a small newspaper in Bianjing?"

Zuo Shangying had some expectations, but he didn't expect them to target the tabloids so quickly.

When Zuo Shangying arrived in Bianjing, he considered whether to continue writing tabloids there, but he quickly rejected the idea. He felt that Bianjing was too dangerous and that he might be taken advantage of if he wasn't careful.

Thinking of this, Zuo Shangying looked at Liu Erlang and asked, "What are your thoughts, Erlang?"

Liu Erlang shook his head: "I haven't decided yet. When we left Daming Prefecture, Madam Xie made it clear that she would not publish a tabloid in Bianjing. If someone wants to, she will not stop them."

Zuo Shangying stared intently at Liu Erlang: "So, you really have such thoughts?"

Liu Erlang nodded without hiding anything: "However, I will definitely not listen to the orders of people like the Xia family." Zuo Shangying remained silent for a long time. He felt that this matter was not right, but he was not confident that he could persuade Liu Erlang.

As the two were talking, they heard a commotion. Turning around, they saw that it was the patrolmen clearing the way.

Zuo Shangying hurried a few steps to check, leaving Liu Erlang behind.

"How is this going?"

"So many people were being escorted to the yamen? Why were there nuns among them?"

"Isn't that Abbess Mingzhen from Yunqi Temple?"

Besides this group of people, several mule carts followed behind, with unknown people sitting inside.

The people followed to see the spectacle.

Zuo Shangying also squeezed in, and Liu Erlang hurriedly followed.

The group was escorted to the outside of the Ministry of Justice prison before stopping, while the mule cart continued on its way, eventually entering a courtyard of the government office.

Zuo Shangying stared at the mule cart, lost in thought for a long time. Liu Erlang pulled him back, saying, "You've been looking at it for so long and still don't know anything."

Zuo Shangying shook his head and said, "Do you know what case the Ministry of Justice is investigating recently?"

Liu Erlang said, "I've heard about it. It's said that the He family is holding a gambling gathering."

“There’s also the case of the kidnappers,” Zuo Shangying paused here, “and now there’s been progress in that case.”

Liu Erlang turned to look at Zuo Shangying: "How did you know?"

Zuo Shangying pointed to the mule cart: "Many women got off inside. You can see that their clothes are dirty and their figures are thin, which shows that they were in a bad situation before."

"I think they were probably kidnapped and sold into slavery in Bianjing."

Liu Erlang suddenly realized: "So, those people who were imprisoned were all kidnappers?"

Zuo Shangying didn't rush to answer this time, but thought for a long time before saying, "I don't know either." Nuns rarely leave the temple, so it's unlikely she would be a kidnapper.

Zuo Shangying pulled Liu Erlang aside and whispered, "Something big has happened." He didn't know how big it was, but it was sure to alarm Bianjing.

Liu Erlang still didn't quite understand.

Zuo Shangying explained to Liu Erlang in a low voice that Yunqi Temple was where the Empress Dowager offered incense, and it was a trivial matter that would not lead to the imprisonment of the nuns there. However, these were all his guesses.

Instead of leaving immediately, the two found a restaurant to drink tea while keeping an eye on the movements of the Ministry of Justice.

Half an hour later, more people were brought over.

Zuo Shangying looked down and saw a somewhat familiar face.

"That is……"

Liu Erlang interjected, "This is Xia Wulang, who hosted our banquet yesterday."

“Xia Wulang has also been imprisoned,” Zuo Shangying raised his eyebrows slightly. “If you want to run a tabloid in Bianjing, then do you dare to write about what you see here in the tabloid?”

Liu Erlang was stunned and unable to respond for a moment.

As the two were talking, a sedan chair stopped in front of the Ministry of Justice prison, and then Xia Mengxian, the Minister of Justice, bent down and walked out from inside.

Zuo Shangying said in a low voice, "Does this mean everyone is gathered?"