Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 520 Terrible

Bianjing (Kaifeng)

On the busiest West Street, there is a two-story pavilion that houses the Bianjing Porcelain Shop.

After the incident at the Han family yesterday, government troops came to the porcelain shop and took away all the documents and accounts. The once-prosperous porcelain shop is now in a state of chaos.

Early this morning, the porcelain shop's door was opened again, and several employees busied themselves rearranging the tables and chairs in the main room.

The Han family has fallen, that's true, but the Bianjing porcelain business still exists, and a new head of the business needs to be chosen.

Not only does Master Xing want to control the porcelain business, but he may also take over several porcelain kilns left by the Han family, which would bring enormous profits. Everyone has seen how much money the Han family has made through the porcelain business over the years, and who wouldn't want to hold onto those benefits? Especially the merchants who have been running porcelain shops in Bianjing for many years, they are all eager to get involved.

Of course, they had also heard about Madam Xie's story.

In a teahouse outside the porcelain shop, several merchants were chatting together.

Once the door was closed, the tea server and the servant boy both withdrew.

Among the group, the youngest middle-aged man was over forty years old. He was the owner of the Guan family shop, with a round face and exceptionally gentle features, giving him a somewhat masculine appearance.

Guan Fenglin stood up and bowed to the elders, then asked, "Have you all heard about the Xie family's matter?"

The merchants remained silent, but all cast their gazes at him.

Guan Fenglin smiled and said, "Isn't everyone worried that if we make things difficult for the Xie family, we might get involved in the Han family's case?"

Everyone knows this.

The Xie family first invited porcelain merchants to a meeting at the South City Wharf, and then the Han family was arrested for smuggling goods. No one would believe that these two events were unrelated.

The older merchant, Wang Yongnian, coughed twice and said, "Don't you know who the Xie family invited to the South City Wharf?"

Shanqing, who was standing next to Wang Yongnian, chimed in: "It's Zhou Guangyuan, Wu Tieshan, Jiang Qi and the like. They've been opposing Han Si all along. Although they're still in the porcelain business, they don't care about anything there."

If another two or three years pass, all these merchants' shops will have to close down. Shanqing had been keeping an eye on Zhou Guangyuan's shop, but he never expected Han Si to go bankrupt like this. With Han Si gone, Zhou Guangyuan and the others can finally breathe a sigh of relief, but his shop will be gone too. Just thinking about it makes his heart ache.

Seeing that the time was right, Guan Fenglin said in a low voice, "There are some inside stories that you may not be aware of."

As soon as he said that, everyone's eyes turned to him.

Guan Fenglin then continued, "Does everyone still remember Zhao Dazheng?"

Everyone's expression turned solemn. The death of more than a dozen members of the Zhao family sent chills down everyone's spine. It was Zhao Dazheng's death that allowed Han Si to secure his position as the elder statesman.

Shanqing said, "Why are you bringing up the Zhao family? Do you mean they want to overturn the Zhao family's case? The Zhao family members are all dead. Do you think the government will listen to them just because they have a few mouths?"

“Not all of them are dead,” Guan Fenglin said. “Zhao Dazheng’s son, Zhao Zhongliang, is still alive.”

Everyone's gaze sharpened, with a few people showing astonishment, while the others, who had obviously already received the news, did not show any surprise.

Guan Fenglin sighed: "We are not that close to the Han family, but we still do things according to Han Si's orders, so it's no wonder that we have been kept in the dark all this time."

Shanqing said, "So, the Xie family and Zhou Guangyuan helped Zhao Zhongliang together?"

Guan Fenglin nodded: "That's the news I've heard."

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately looked at each other.

"Wasn't Zhao Zhongliang dead? How could he have returned to Bianjing?"

"Shouldn't he be serving a prison sentence? How could he be in Bianjing? A fugitive—not only should he be charged, but even those who took him in should be held guilty of harboring him." "Zhao Dazheng was wronged. Zhao Zhongliang came back to plead his case. Now that Han Si has been arrested, the Zhao family can be exonerated. How can they still be considered fugitives?"

"Since the Xie family helped, will Zhou Guangyuan, Wu Tieshan, and others all support the Xie family?"

After Guan Fenglin and the others finished speaking, he took a sip of tea and said, "They will definitely support the Xie family. Yesterday, they gathered at the South City Wharf to fight for the position of the Xie family's elder."

Upon hearing this, Shanqing sneered: "It's one thing for a woman like her to cause a ruckus in Daming Prefecture, but what can you do when her husband is a short-lived man? What kind of place is Bianjing? Where does she get the audacity to take charge of the Bianjing porcelain business?"

Wang Yongnian said, "In just a few months, she sold her own porcelain to the market and even showed the Empress Dowager the reliquary she made. Do you think she had the guts to do that?"

Shanqing opened his mouth, but ultimately didn't dare to speak. The other merchants also looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Does Brother Wang mean that she has someone backing her?" another merchant whispered.

Wang Yongnian shook his head: "I didn't say that."

Guan Fenglin's eyes flickered: "It's not necessarily true that someone would support a woman behind the scenes."

“That’s not necessarily true,” Shanqing said bluntly. “Women are easier to control, don’t you think?”

These words elicited strange smiles from everyone.

If a beautiful widow gains power, the first thing that comes to mind is that her door is not properly closed.

"Then who is behind her?"

After this question was asked, both Guan Fenglin and Wang Yongnian shut up.

After a long while, someone spoke up: "Does this mean we'll have to take orders from her from now on?"

"If word gets out, won't people laugh at us to death?"

Shanqing waved his hand: "I don't want to be questioned by the women in my family about whether I'm keeping another mistress outside. If I let her boss me around, I'll never be able to clean myself up properly."

Guan Fenglin's expression changed, and he nervously looked around. He kindly warned Shanqing, "It's fine for us to talk about this privately here, but we must not spread it around. If others find out, they will inevitably hold a grudge."

The person he was referring to was not only the Xie family, but also the people behind the Xie family.

Shanqing snorted coldly: "What can they do? Investigate me too? I haven't done any business with Han Si in secret. Let them investigate all they want. At worst, I'll leave Bianjing. I have a porcelain kiln in my own hands. Why should I be afraid of not being able to sell my porcelain?"

"You're giving up the shops in Bianjing?" Guan Fenglin asked. "And you're not even selling your own porcelain at the border market?"

Shanqing felt as if he had been doused with a bucket of ice water, and his anger immediately dissipated by more than half: "How could she possibly care about this?"

Guan Fenglin said, "Go to Daming Prefecture and ask around, and you'll find out how Xie deals with those merchants who oppose her. More than half of those who made things difficult for her in Daming Prefecture have been sent to the yamen, and the rest are just barely surviving."

These words caused an uproar among the crowd.

This shows how ruthless Xie's methods were; those who refused to submit to her had nowhere to turn.

“Then we absolutely cannot let her become a caretaker,” Shanqing said, “unless we leave Bianjing.”

Before, people weren't too wary of the Xie family, but now that they've heard this, they've all made up their minds not to give the Xie family any chance.

"If they recommend Xie to be the head of the porcelain business when we arrive, we will immediately stop them."

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