Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 462 Advice
Xie Yuyan and Liu Siniang went to the side room in the courtyard to talk.

The young novice monk greeted Xie Yuyan with Buddhist prayers, then left the room and closed the door.

"Madam." Liu Si Niang seemed a little reserved, though she had a lot to say but didn't know how to begin.

"Sit down and talk slowly," Xie Yuyan gestured for Liu Siniang to sit down.

Liu Si Niang nodded.

Once the room quieted down, Liu Si Niang said, "Actually, I wanted to apologize to Madam on behalf of my second brother."

Xie Yuyan asked calmly, "You mean the tabloids?"

Liu Si Niang pursed her lips: "Second Brother really shouldn't have done that. This tabloid was originally made by Madam, but Second Brother..." She glanced at Xie Yu Yan cautiously, but found that Madam Xie's face did not show any emotional fluctuation.

Xie Yuyan said, "It is true that I was the first to print the Daming Prefecture Gazette, but there is no reason for me to prevent others from printing it."

“But my second brother is different,” Liu Si Niang said with a hint of anger in her eyes. “My second brother can do all these things because the eldest madam taught him.”

"Others might not care about these things, but Second Brother has benefited from Madam's kindness. How can he be so... ungrateful?"

Xie Yuyan said, "They wrote a tabloid for me, and I paid them money. This was agreed upon long ago."

Liu Si Niang was stunned when she heard this. When she told her second brother about these things, he said the same thing.

Xie Yuyan continued, "When the incident occurred in Daming Prefecture, Liu Erlang gained fame as a result, but he also faced danger. If he hadn't been able to bring down Prefect Liu, he would have been implicated as well."

"He, along with Mr. Tong and Zuo Shangying, spoke out for me and were later praised. So, Liu Erlang did not owe me anything. His popularity after coming to Bianjing was also due to his own words and deeds."

Liu Si Niang was speechless for a long time.

"Madam...did you hear what those people said? Why did they say the same thing just now?" The people Liu Si Niang was referring to were the scholars who co-authored the Bianjing tabloid with Liu Er Lang.

Whenever Liu Erlang felt even slightly uneasy, those people would spout these kinds of arguments. Standing outside the study, Liu Si Niang felt an urge to rush in and argue with them whenever she heard this.

Xie Yuyan smiled and said, "If we look at the gains and losses, Liu Erlang has never wronged me. We're even."

In fact, Xie Yuyan had heard that Liu Erlang was going to start a tabloid, and guessed that Zuo Shangying would come to visit, but she did not want to get involved, so she asked Yang Hong to pass on those words to Zuo Shangying.

Since her business dealings with Liu Erlang in the tabloids have been settled.

That should be the end of it.

Liu Erlang would not ask her what she meant, and she would not say anything.

Liu Si Niang was somewhat anxious, but couldn't explain why: "After my second brother returned to Bianjing, he was surrounded by people all day long, probably because of the tabloids. He heard too many flattering words and didn't even know how capable he really was."

Since Liu Si Niang wasn't surrounded by people flattering her like that, she naturally saw things more clearly.

After they returned to the capital, Madam Ming said that Bianjing was not a suitable place to run a tabloid, so why didn't Second Brother listen?
How clever or insightful could someone be to print tabloids and thrive in Daming Prefecture in just a few months? Would a few words of advice at a crucial moment be less valuable than so-called interests? Is it really true that personal relationships are less important than financial gain?
Xie Yuyan was not a warm-hearted person, and she did not want to say another word about the Liu family tabloid incident, but she did not expect Liu Si Niang to come to her.

"Do you want me to say something to persuade your second brother?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Si Niang blushed slightly, knowing that it was somewhat unreasonable, but she was genuinely worried about her second brother.

Xie Yuyan said, "Then I only have one thing to say." Liu Si Niang listened carefully.

Xie Yuyan said, "Since he's taking over the Bianjing tabloids, he has to bear the consequences, no matter what."

……

After Xie Yuyan left, Liu Si Niang went home with a heavy heart, her mind replaying Xie Da Niangzi's words.

The maid whispered, "What's wrong, Fourth Miss?"

Liu Si Niang was somewhat dazed: "I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen to my brother." Otherwise, the eldest daughter-in-law would not have given such a warning.

Upon returning to the Liu family home, Liu Si Niang wanted to go straight to find her second brother, but the head housekeeper whispered, "There are quite a few people in the second young master's room, all discussing the announcement of the results tomorrow."

Liu Si Niang was really worried, so she instructed the head housekeeper, "Let me know when they leave."

Liu Erlang had many friends and often invited them to his home. This time, the group even discussed going to see the list of successful candidates together. Liu Erlang simply invited them to stay at the Liu family home, so it wasn't until evening that Liu Si Niang finally got the chance to meet her second brother.

Looking at her second brother's anxious face, filled with anticipation for the upcoming results, Liu Si Niang wondered whether she should speak up at this moment.

Liu Erlang asked, "Fourth Sister, what's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry?"

Liu Si Niang took a deep breath and told her about meeting Madam Xie.

When Lady Xie was mentioned, a look of shame flashed across Liu Erlang's face.

Liu Si Niang said, "Anyway, I have conveyed what Madam Xie said. Second Brother, you can decide what to do! Second Brother may have forgotten that Madam Xie did not ask you to write a tabloid at the time; you came to her yourself."

Liu Erlang felt as if he had been doused with cold water. After a long while, he said, "I will think about it carefully. Even if... I will look at it carefully again and again to make sure that there will be no mistakes."

Liu Si Niang frowned. She knew it would be difficult to stop her second brother now, but she hoped that her words tonight would have some effect on him.

Unable to sleep either way, Liu Erlang went to his study and read through all the articles in the tabloids. Just as he was about to put the tabloids away, Huang Zongwu walked in.

"The bookstore should be ready soon. We're lucky; they happen to have movable type, so they can print it out quickly."

Huang Zongwu rubbed his hands together as he spoke: "If all of us can make the list and our tabloids can be published at this time, then we'll steal all the limelight, won't we?"

"It would be best if the tabloids sold well before the palace examination, so that whoever hears them might get them into the palace. Every year during the imperial examinations, someone is known to the emperor for their excellent poetry, and he will specifically look at that person's exam paper during the palace examination. Our poetry is a bit lacking, but our essays are really good, so perhaps this time we will also have a chance to catch the emperor's eye."

Huang Zongwu's face was full of excitement and expectation as he spoke eloquently into Liu Erlang's ear.

After a long pause, Liu Erlang said, "Perhaps it won't be able to be printed."

These words clearly dealt a heavy blow to Huang Zongwu.

"Why?" Huang Zongwu asked. "The owner of the bookstore has repeatedly said that it can definitely be finished in the next day or two."

Liu Erlang's throat tightened, and he couldn't continue speaking. He could only stammer, "I'm just worried... If it can really be engraved, that would naturally be good."

He suddenly realized that whether or not to print this tabloid was no longer a decision he could make.

There is another chapter tonight