Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 726 Visit
The Srivijaya envoy, Pukhara, followed the county magistrate into the prison. The overwhelming smell made Pukhara cover his mouth and nose; if he were locked up here for a few days, he would surely go mad.

"It's right here." The clerk waved his hand, and the jailer immediately hung the oil lamp he was carrying outside the cell.

Puhara squinted at the cell, but before he could see clearly, a dark figure suddenly rushed over and fell onto the cell.

Puhara was startled and involuntarily took a step back.

The people in the cell clearly recognized him and shouted, “Puhara, you’ve finally come! Quickly… take us out! Those Liang people deliberately framed us, took our goods and ships, and are trying to punish us. They may have forgotten that all our success at sea is because we opened the port and allowed their ships to land.”

"And that wretched woman Xie, the Liang people actually made her do some kind of old woman job. If this were in Srivijaya, they would cut off her nose first, so she would never be able to show her face to anyone for the rest of her life."

"When we get back to Srivijaya, we must lead a group to blockade the shipping routes, teach them a lesson, and make them pay a hefty price to make up for the humiliation and suffering we've endured these past days."

Puhara looked around. Although they were speaking Malay, no one dared to speak it, so no one could understand them.

“Don’t worry,” Puhara said immediately. “I just came from the government office. I will get you out of here as soon as possible.”

Upon hearing this, Li Bodi in the cell was stunned for a moment before saying, "What do you mean by that? Didn't you come to the prison to take us out?"

Pu Helu shook his head: "Not yet. You know that Daliang is cracking down on maritime transport... Many officials have been imprisoned. Right now, all matters related to maritime transport in Fujian must be handled with extreme caution..."

Li Bodi shouted, "I am not their minister, they have no right to deal with me."

“Our merchant ships dock here, and the two countries send envoys to each other every year. If Daliang really wants to punish us, there is nothing we can do. We can’t just make a scene in Datun.”

Li Bo's face grew even uglier: "Did you send a message to my family? My father will try to plead with Datu and get him to send someone to find the Liang people. He might even be able to use this opportunity to make some demands on the Liang people."

Puhara asked, "Will Datu agree?"

Li Bodi thought for a while before finally deciding to speak. If Puhara didn't help, he might have to stay in prison for a while longer.

“My family was just an ordinary maritime merchant family. My father was acquainted with people around Datu, and that’s how we controlled the shipping lanes. To put it bluntly, much of our business at sea went into Datu’s private coffers,” Li Bodi said with a cold snort. “That’s why I say they really shouldn’t have provoked me. They thought that since I was associated with Xie Yizhi, they could get rid of me after taking down Xie Yizhi. Little did they know who was behind me.”

"Besides, Xie Yizhi means nothing to me. Even without him, we wouldn't need to do business with that woman. If we want goods from Daliang, other maritime merchants will deliver them for us. It's useless to curry favor with Xie now; her caravan is destined to never be able to establish itself at sea."

Puhara nodded: "I will convey your words to the Li family."

After saying this, Puhara looked at the clerk beside him and handed him the money bag: "Could you please prepare some good food and send it over?"

To everyone's surprise, the registrar refused to accept the money and pushed it back, saying, "They are all envoys from Srivijaya, so we will naturally take good care of them."

Puhara had no choice but to visit Singa in another cell. Singa was just as excited as Liboti, but he had nothing else to say and simply followed Liboti's instructions.

After leaving the prison, Puhara didn't ride a horse or sit in a sedan chair. Instead, he walked through the city. He had come to Daliang because someone had secretly instructed him to come to Daliang to resolve this case.

He had found it strange that day, wondering how they, as mere merchants, could have alarmed noblemen. But after hearing Li Bodi's words, he understood everything.

It turns out that the Li family works for Datu. Datu and a group of nobles rely on sea transport for their private treasuries. That's why Li Bodi dared to be so unscrupulous at sea. No wonder his status at sea has been unmatched by other merchants in Srivijaya over the years.

However, Puhe Luo could also tell that Lady Xie was not someone to be trifled with. He knew Cao Yu and had heard that Cao Yu was now working for Lady Xie. He assumed Lady Xie would send Cao Yu as an intermediary, but unexpectedly, Cao Yu had taken his fleet out to sea. What did this mean?
Did Lady Xie not take him seriously? Or was she confident she could resolve everything without needing Cao Yu to mediate?

Puhara knew this job wouldn't be easy, but after traveling around Quanzhou, he discovered it was even more difficult than he had anticipated.

"If you want to buy porcelain, just come here. Porcelain from several kilns in the north can be found here."

Upon hearing the sound, Puhara looked up and found himself in the market. In front of a shop, a man dressed as a manager was talking to someone who had come to the door.

That person...

Puhara frowned. The man's appearance and attire clearly indicated he wasn't from the Liang Dynasty; they were…

The merchant said, "Didn't you say the shop had no more porcelain?"

The manager smiled and said, "We don't have any right now, but if you've decided on one, you can pay a deposit and then pay the rest when the goods arrive. The best pieces made in the kiln are all here; it's hard to get them without placing an order in advance."

The merchant thought for a moment and said, "Then let's go in and take a look."

Puhara stood there, watching the merchant walk into the shop. It took him a while to come to his senses. The merchant came from Jianyi in the east. In recent years, Jianyi had grown stronger and stronger. Not only did it resist the rule of the dynasty, but it also sent caravans to trade spices and other goods, competing with them for their business and causing them considerable losses.

Now, merchants from Jianyili have come to Quanzhou and have even been invited to a porcelain shop... Puheluo gasped. Could it be that the Liang Dynasty is preparing to support Jianyili?

Even without openly interfering in their politics, as long as they do business with Jianyili and let Jianyili earn more money, one day Jianyili will become powerful enough to make Sanfoqi difficult to control.

Puhara suddenly sensed danger, which was clearly what Lady Xie wanted him to see.

“Go and ask where Lady Xie lives.” Puheluo looked at his servant. Even if it was just to rescue Li Bodi, he had to find out what Lady Xie was saying.

The servant responded and hurried off to find someone to inquire.

Puhara pointed to the porcelain shop: "They must know."

……

By the time Puhara and his servant arrived outside Xie Yuyan's courtyard, it was already getting dark.

The servant quickly knocked on the door, explained the purpose of the visit, and the steward asked a few questions. After looking at the credentials in Puhara's hand, he entered to report.

A quarter of an hour later, Puheluo sat down in a chair in the main room. His gaze fell on Xie Yuyan, and he couldn't help but sigh in his heart, "Madam Xie is so young."

Puheluo could speak the official language of Daliang, though not fluently. He said to Xie Yuyan, "The sea routes are bustling right now, but Li Bodi and the other two are locked up in prison... If this continues, it may be detrimental to the trade of the sea merchants. I heard that the two were imprisoned because of Lady Xie, so I came to ask when they can come back with me?"

When Li Bodi will be released is, in theory, none of Xie Yuyan's business. However, Xie Yuyan did not correct Pu Heluo, but looked at him with a faint smile: "That depends on whether Envoy Pu is willing for them to go back."

(End of this chapter)