Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 600 Benefits
Xie Wenjing had a feeling that she might never be able to leave Bianjing City.

The place I once desperately wanted to come to now feels like a prison.

Seeing this, Chunxi hurriedly stepped forward to persuade her: "My lady, don't lose your composure."

"What do you know?" Xie Wenjing's face was grim. "That Prince Huai was clearly here to test me. What does a prince need a prescription for external injuries?"

Chunxi hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

Xie Wenjing said, "In the past, I would have thought he was deliberately making excuses to talk to me, but now..."

To continue thinking like that is to deceive yourself.

Only Madam Zhou was kept in the dark and knew nothing about it. When she heard that a prescription was needed, she revealed a meaningful smile.

"I don't know when he started to suspect it," Xie Wenjing seemed to be muttering to herself. "I was so stupid that I didn't see it before." The Prince of Huai acted too convincingly. Every time he came to the mansion, he would not ask her anything, but he would bring her many rare and precious items. When he met the Empress in the palace, he also gave her enough face.

She even thought that after getting married, she could use some tricks to make the Prince of Huai cherish her even more.

Therefore, before getting married, she preferred to confine herself to her room, learning needlework every day, reading books such as "Women's Biographies," "Women's Admonitions," and medical books, trying to become a well-mannered noblewoman.

But in the end, it was all fake.

She still couldn't become the real Xie Wenjing.

Xie Wenjing was lost in thought when Chunxi brought her a bowl of medicine: "My lady, drink this medicine and rest for a while to rejuvenate. I'll go outside and gather some more information."

Xie Wenjing looked up when she heard this, and Chunxi continued, "Are you afraid that the Prince of Huai will make the medicine powder and find that the two bottles of medicine powder are different? So what? Just say that it was left by the old lady, and that you didn't know what you added to it, and you'll cover it up."

"Don't think too much, just drink your medicine."

Xie Wenjing took the medicine bowl and slowly brought it to her lips. The bitter medicine entered her mouth, and she swallowed it in one go. Then, Chunxi helped her to the inner room to rest.

Chunxi looked at Xie Wenjing lying there. His wife was different from when she first arrived. In fact, every move she made was like that of a true lady from a prominent family.

This was originally a good thing, as it would prevent her from easily revealing her true colors in front of others. However, Chunxi has now noticed that his wife has lost some of her sharpness and become timid and hesitant.

Perhaps because he was too eager to hold onto the status of this noble lady, he panicked at the slightest sign of trouble.

As Chunxi thought this, she heard even breathing coming from the bed. She was somewhat surprised that her wife had actually fallen asleep like that; the medicine that her husband had sent was indeed effective.

……

After leaving the Xie family, Prince Huai changed his clothes and went straight to the palace's duty room. Since Wang Yan took charge of the Imperial Secretariat, he had been moving between the government office and the duty room. Especially now, when he was in charge of the overall situation and dealing with those demon cultists, Wang Yan could not relax his efforts in the slightest.

However, this incident also reveals the benefits of controlling the Imperial Memorial Hall. All the memorials submitted from various places had to pass through Wang Yan's hands first. With Wang Yan's abilities, he would surely be able to find clues about the Demon Sect in them.

A clerk entered to announce the arrival of the Prince of Huai, and soon he was invited inside.

Wang Yan was indeed talking to officials from the Jinzouyuan (Imperial Secretariat) inside the room.

Wang Yan sat in the main seat, his expression calm, but his eyes revealed a hint of authority. The other officials in the room listened to his instructions with utmost respect.

"The household registration and tax information reported by various localities," Wang Yan said, "must be compiled and reported to the Ministry of Revenue within three days." The official acknowledged the order and left.

Once there was no one else in the room, Prince Huai sat down.

Wang Yan looked over: "Does Your Highness have any instructions?"

“I wouldn’t dare,” Prince Huai immediately replied. “I just came from the Xie residence to report the situation there to Lord Wang.”

At this point, Prince Huai smiled and said, "Let's get down to business."

"The second daughter of the Xie family is already panicking. If I go a few more times, she should be unable to sit still and will try to leave Bianjing."

Wang Yan raised his eyes: "Is Your Highness confident?"

The Prince of Huai nodded: "I have also inquired about the fire at the Xie residence. It was caused by a rat knocking over the offering lamp. Since the Buddhist hall contained Buddhist scriptures and prayer flags, the fire quickly spiraled out of control."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Coincidentally, I had just told Xie Chengxin that members of the demonic cult would place the Mani Buddha statue inside other Buddha statues and worship them secretly. This fire must have been set by Xie Chengxin."

The things he was going to do have now yielded results, and Xie Chengxin has become one of his hidden pawns.

Upon hearing this, Wang Yan met the gaze of the Prince of Huai: "Your Highness's methods are brilliant."

“Unlike you,” the Prince of Huai pointed to the memorials on Wang Yan’s desk, “why did He Chun order the Imperial Secretariat to investigate household registrations and taxes?”

Wang Yan said calmly, "If the imperial court wants to verify the effectiveness of the Green Sprouts Law in various regions, it will naturally start with these aspects."

Prince Huai shook his head: "That's not all. He Chun wants to find out where the Demon Cult is located. Wherever there is frequent migration and a surge in refugees, people should be sent to investigate. The members of the Demon Cult are very likely hiding in these places."

“If something happens in the capital, the Demonic Cult will definitely send people here. As long as you plant spies in advance, you will be able to detect the Demonic Cult’s movements. Then, follow the clues to catch all the hidden members of the Demonic Cult.”

The Prince of Huai had to admire Wang Yan and Xie Yuyan's shrewdness; the two had laid out their plans long ago, keeping everyone else in the dark.

Wang Yan was not surprised at all. He had no intention of hiding it from the moment the Prince of Huai came to his door, otherwise he would not have let the Prince of Huai in.

Wang Yan handed a map to the Prince of Huai: "Your Highness has made a contribution by discovering the suspicious circumstances in advance. When the time comes to wipe out the demon cult, the Emperor will definitely let Your Highness participate. These are the places I suspect the demon cult members are gathering. Your Highness has men and troops at your disposal, so you can go and investigate. When it's time to take action, it will be much more effective."

What the Prince of Huai needed was simply a reward, which would also help him solidify his position in the Prince of Qin's residence.

This is the result of cooperation between the two parties, where both sides get what they need.

The Prince of Huai smiled. Wang Yan's gift to him was a warning not to covet anything else.

"Don't worry," said Prince Huai, "I will never go back on my word, and He Chun will know in the future."

Wang Yan looked away from the official document in front of him: "I hope so."

After the Prince of Huai left, Wang Yan put away the official documents in front of him. Sang Dian immediately came up to him and said, "Young master, can we go back to the palace tonight? The guards on duty are really unacceptable. It's so hot, but they still refuse to change to thinner bedding. The food they bring is also getting worse and worse, and it's all cold. If you keep going like this, you might catch a cold."

Sang Zhi happened to enter and frowned upon hearing Sang Dian's words. Just now, the servant had clearly wanted to come and change the bedding, but Sang Dian had stopped him. Now, he was saying this to the young master. Wasn't this just giving the young master an excuse to rest somewhere else?

(End of this chapter)