In Hongwu, we started as rebels

Chapter 985 Kunshan Huangyao Saltworks
Following Lu Yunyi's instructions, Wang Chen dispatched the first group of men that very night.
A group headed to the dock of the Cha Lianbao Trading Company on the coast of eastern Zhejiang.

A team went to southern Fujian to investigate the canal transport routes.

The team closest to Yingtian was led by his confidant, Li Man, the manager of a construction company, and headed straight for Kunshan in Zhili.

After calculation, Wang Chen determined that the aquatic products from Lianbao Trading Company needed to be delivered to the palace within two days, as fish farms that were too far away simply couldn't make it in time.

Therefore, only Chongming, Kunshan, and Taicang meet the requirements.

A naval force is stationed on Chongming Island.
It was a heavily guarded military town, with extremely strict controls on entry and exit; seafood from there was only supplied to the military.
Thus, Taicang and Kunshan became the top choices.
The two places are only a hundred miles away from Yingtian, and can be reached in half a day by inland waterway boat, making them the most likely source of supplies.

The reason for choosing Kunshan as the first stop is
This was because when Wang Chen gathered his subordinates to look through the documents, they found the county annals submitted by Songjiang Prefecture.
During the Yanyou era of the Yuan Dynasty, a red tide occurred at the Huangyao Saltworks in Kunshan.
"The tide surges at dusk, and fires blaze at night; after several days of boiling, the salt turns purple."

There are also records from Zhenyang County dated July of the thirteenth year, the year of Yiwei.
"The sea tide is as red as blood, and the oysters are also bloody. They grow on the Nantou beach. When they are cut open, they are bloody. The beach is covered with them, and the people dare not pick and eat them."

He even found old records from the Northern Song Dynasty preserved in Chongming Military Town, though the exact date is unknown:

"Red water rises with the tide, and many coastal residents who harvest oysters die!"

The moment I saw the words "Many die from oyster harvesting,"
Wang Chen instantly understood what Lu Yunyi was investigating and also realized the shady dealings that Lianbao Trading Company was up to.

A day later, Li Man arrived with five men who were skilled in swimming and disguise.
They avoided the main road and hired a small fishing boat.
Disguised as a merchant buying seafood, they headed along the Loujiang River towards Kunshan.

The river breeze in October carries moisture and feels cool on the skin.

Li Man stood at the bow of the boat, gazing at the reeds rushing past on both banks, his brow furrowed.
Along the way, every dock marked with the name of the Lianbao Trading Company was guarded by strong, burly men.

When asked about the fishing grounds, they either stammered or gave vague answers.
They would either kick people out outright, displaying an extremely xenophobic attitude, which made Li Man keenly aware that something was amiss!
"Boss, we're at the Kunshan border ahead, and the Huangyao Saltworks are just ahead."

The boatman pointed to the earthen dam that was faintly visible ahead and whispered:

"I heard that the salt field is very old, dating back to the Song Dynasty, and salt is still being produced there now."

The fish farm is right next to the salt field. It was newly established a few years ago and is strictly regulated; nearby fishermen don't dare to go near it.

Li Man nodded and told the boatman to moor the boat in the reeds three miles away from the salt field.

He changed into a coarse cloth short jacket and, accompanied by two men,

Carrying two loads of coarse salt, he disguised himself as a salt deliveryman and headed towards the salt field.

As we approached the salt field, we indeed saw a wooden fence surrounding the earthen dam.

Inside were vast salt fields, with piles of white salt stacked on the ridges, and several salt workers bending over to turn the salt.
To the east of the salt field was a fish farm enclosed by wooden stakes.

A dozen or so square fishponds were neatly arranged, their surfaces calm.

Occasionally, fish leap out, making it look no different from an ordinary fishing ground.

Li Man approached a salt worker drying salt, handed him a pot of iced tea, and asked with a smile:

"Brother, are the fishing grounds to the east also part of the saltworks' business?"
"Come on, try this. It's iced black tea from Yingtian Trading Company; it's quite expensive."

The salt worker straightened up, stared at the kettle, and swallowed hard.

He'd seen this before; the manager drank it often, and it was definitely not cheap.

He took the kettle, took a sip, and his eyes immediately lit up:
"Wow, that's really good."

Li Man didn't urge him, and quietly waited for the salt worker to finish drinking.

After finishing his drink, the salt worker smiled, glanced at Li Man a few times, and lowered his voice to say:
"You're here to buy fish, right?"
Take my advice, don't wait here. Go somewhere else. This fish farm is owned and never sells to outsiders.

"Oh? He doesn't sell takeout? Then why does he keep so many fish?"

"Mind your own business. Lianbao Trading Company has plenty of money. They can raise as many as they want."

However, I heard that all the fish here are sent to the capital.

Ships have been coming to load cargo every day without stopping; it's incredibly busy.

"So that's how it is. We're from the capital too."
I'm thinking of buying some fresh seafood to resell. Do you know of any connections?

"If I had connections, would I be here drying salt?"

Li Man smiled, took out twenty coins from his pocket, and handed them over:
"Brother, we're not exactly rolling in money either, could you please give us some pointers?"

The salt worker quickly collected the copper coins, his expression unchanged, and said:

"A few miles further south, there is the Dongyue Fishing Ground, where many merchants from the capital buy fish."

"Don't even think about the Lianbao Trading Company's fishing grounds; they're incredibly dangerous."

Li Man raised an eyebrow and pressed on:
"How strange? How so?"

The salt worker smiled but didn't speak, his expression somewhat enigmatic.

Li Man then handed over a pot of iced tea, and only then did the salt worker relent:

"This fishing ground... at night, the water looks like it's on fire."

However, they always cover the fishpond with a cloth, so it's generally invisible to the naked eye.
Once, a strong wind blew the cloth away, and I only caught a glimpse of it then.

"This water can catch fire?"

The salt worker waved his hand:

"There are many strange things at sea. A few years ago, I even saw a mountain standing on the sea."

As he spoke, a hint of apprehension appeared on his face.

"I think it was the year before last or last year, there was a fool who tried to steal some fish at night, and he died the next day."

When they were pulled from the water, nobody knew how they had died.
From then on, no one from the salt fields dared to approach the fishing grounds.

The trading company also increased its guards, with patrols conducted every hour at night.

Li Man understood the situation and thanked the salt worker.

"Thank you, brother. Let's go check out other fishing grounds."

He carried the salt toward the town, circled around, and then quietly returned to the reed marshes.

"Boss, how is it?" his subordinate asked hurriedly.

"There's definitely something wrong with the fishing grounds!" Li Man said in a deep voice.

"Let's sneak in tonight and see what that red light is, and then we'll bring back some clams as evidence."

"Yes!"

When it was completely dark, the moonlight bathed the earth.

Li Man, along with four of his men, stealthily made their way to the fishing grounds under the cover of the reeds.

The night wind carried the smell of salt and made the wooden fence sway.

The saltworks were still lit, and as you walked past piles of coarse salt...

You can see people busy in the distant fish farm, seemingly carrying canvases to cover the fish ponds.

By the light, faint streaks of crimson could be seen spreading along the cracks in the fishpond.

Even the beach next to it was stained light red.

"Damn it, there really is something fishy going on!"

Be careful, wait until it's completely dark before you move!

Li Man cursed and waited until midnight before finally making a move:
"Let's go across the mudflats behind us. The water is shallower there, and there are fewer guards."

He was the first to jump into the mudflats; the icy water reached above his ankles.

The group of people crouched low, stumbling forward with each step, trying not to make a sound.

As they approached the fishpond, they suddenly heard the guards' voices from ahead:
"Hurry up and get to work. This lousy job is making my back ache and keeping me up all night."

"Are you stupid? This is a great job that everyone else would fight over!"

Yesterday, Manager Ye mentioned that a new fish farm has opened in Zhoushan.

This fishing ground will soon be unused; you won't even have the chance to operate it again then.

"What? It's going to be shut down?"

"Keep your voice down! Keep a close eye on things! I heard business in the capital is bad."

Should we close the door?
Li Man felt a chill run down his spine, keenly sensing that something was amiss.
The fish farm, which had been operating for several years, is suddenly closing down; it's clearly a case of having a guilty conscience!
He signaled his men to stop and waited until the guards were out of sight.

He quietly approached the fishpond and scooped up a handful with the fine net he had brought.

There were a few clams and a few small fish in the net.

The shell was covered with a thick layer of dark red algae, which was slippery and shimmered slightly in the moonlight.

"This is it!"

Li Man was a little excited. He lowered his voice, carefully put the clams and algae into the kettle, tightened the lid, and then scooped out a few more before quietly backing away.

Just as I reached the middle of the mudflats, I suddenly heard the light of lanterns behind me, and someone shouted:

"Who's there?!"

Li Man's heart tightened, and he quickly led his men to run towards the reeds, getting covered in mud and water.

The guards' footsteps followed, accompanied by shouts:

"Someone's stealing! Fire arrows! Shoot them dead!"

Li Man's pupils contracted. There were still arrows?
He cursed under his breath and quickly waved his hand, "Hurry, hurry, let's go!"

Whoosh whoosh—

Sharp arrows grazed past their ears; the men dared not look back, running forward for their lives.

They finally breathed a sigh of relief after disappearing into the reeds and jumping onto the fishing boat.

"Set the ship quickly!"

Li Man, panting heavily, looked at the lights of the distant fishing grounds, filled with lingering fear.
Damn it, I almost got caught here.

In the capital, seven days have passed since the Crown Prince fell into a coma.

For the first two days, the situation was relatively calm and quiet, both in the government and among the people.

However, in recent days, impeachment memorials have been flooding the palace.

The target is the Market and Exchange Bureau, which has been making headlines recently.

The grounds for impeachment are varied and numerous.
"He arbitrarily deployed the Imperial Guards to surround the Crown Prince's residence, disturbing the Eastern Palace and showing no respect for etiquette."

"He conducted a private investigation of the Imperial Kitchen without imperial decree, disregarded palace regulations, and overstepped his authority."

Furthermore, an imperial censor impeached the Market Exchange Bureau.
"Under the guise of investigating cases, he is actually exercising his power and disrupting the lives of people in the capital region. I suspect he harbors rebellious intentions."

Many officials echoed this sentiment, and the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Justice, who had a long-standing feud with the Market and Exchange Bureau, even jointly submitted a memorial requesting the emperor to punish Lu Yunyi.

Among the scholars, some jointly wrote a petition and submitted it to the capital prefecture.
They demanded that the Market and Exchange Bureau return the land and property of those people.

However, these memorials either disappeared without a trace or remained unpublished.
The only news from the palace was that the chief eunuch, Li Zhong, had to carry a large box of memorials to the side hall where discarded memorials were stored every day.

Although the court officials knew that the memorials might not have been read, they still did not stop impeaching the officials.
In particular, Lu Yunyi submitted a memorial requesting that official roads be repaired and connected in all directions, with Beiping as the core.
The opposition grew uncontrollably, and the entire capital was in an uproar.

Inside the Market and Exchange Bureau, Lu Yunyi ignored the impeachments.
Instead, he focused on searching through a pile of yellowed county annals.
He even retrieved some old memorials that recorded auspicious omens from the storeroom.

The flickering candlelight on the table illuminated the bloodshot eyes.
Having not slept for several days, he naturally exuded a sense of weariness and desolation.

"During the Shaoxi era of the Song Dynasty, a red tide occurred near the sea of ​​Jiaxing. Fish and clams ate it, and people who ate it would become dizzy and fall over."

Upon seeing this record, Lu Yunyi's eyes lit up, and he quickly circled it carefully with a red pen.

Just then, hurried footsteps came from outside.

A guard rushed in, panting, and said:
"My lord, Lord Wang has sent someone with a message saying that it has been found! He wants you to go to the ice cellar to inspect it!"

Lu Yunyi suddenly looked up and stood up abruptly.

In an instant, he felt his vision go black and the world spin, but thankfully the dizziness was short-lived.

"go!"

Lu Yunyi left the imperial city with two personal guards.

He moved with a bit more haste when he mounted the horse.

The sun wasn't too strong just after Chen Shi (7-9 AM).

Horse hooves trod on the bluestone slabs, kicking up fine dust.

The group sped along and soon left the capital, arriving at the Yingtian Construction Firm in the south of the city.

From a distance, the gray and white buildings gradually became clear.

It was probably early morning when work started, and there were many more craftsmen and workers coming and going.

Upon seeing that it was Lu Yunyi, the guards quickly bowed and made way for him.

Arriving at the three-story building in the very center,

As soon as Lu Yunyi dismounted, Wang Chen rushed out to greet him.

His temples were streaked with gray, clearly indicating that he had just finished working.

"My lord! Li Man just returned last night. He was a little frightened, but he's alright."

"Let's look at the things first."

Lu Yunyi waved his hand, his tone serious, his gaze sweeping into the depths of the trading company.

He noticed a lean man following behind Wang Chen.
The gray cloth jacket was still stained with mud, and several shallow scratches on his face had scabbed over.

When Li Man saw Lu Yunyi looking over, he quickly bowed and greeted him, his voice slightly hoarse:

"This humble one, Li Man, greets Lord Lu."

He instinctively gripped the hem of his shirt with both hands, his heart pounding.
I never imagined that I would be working for such an important person.

Wang Chen led the group towards the backyard of the trading company, passing through two rows of warehouses piled with cement bags.

At the end was a house made of exceptionally thick blue bricks, with a plaque above the door reading "Ice Cellar".

Before they even got close, the waiter guarding the door hurriedly stepped forward.
With great effort, he pushed open the heavy wooden door.
A cloud of white mist suddenly surged out, carrying a biting chill.

"Sir, watch your step."

Wang Chen reached out to help him in, then stepped inside first, expertly lighting the oil lamp in the corner.

Under the dim yellow light, a dozen or so ceramic jars were neatly stacked inside the ice cellar.
On the central wooden shelf were two distinctive blue-and-white porcelain jars.
The bottom of the jar was lined with crushed ice, and inside were a dozen or so clams.
The shell was covered with wisps of dark red algae.
Like congealed blood, it gleamed with a slippery sheen under the candlelight.

Lu Yunyi stepped forward, slowing his pace.

His eyes were fixed on the contents of the blue and white porcelain jar.

He reached out and touched the side of the jar; the icy touch sent a chill through his fingertips, instantly clearing his mind, which had been foggy for days.

The red tide algae were even denser than those he had seen at the Imperial Kitchen.

Clinging to the clam shells, arranged in rows,
Gently shake the jar, and the algae float slightly with the water flow, exuding an indescribable eeriness.

"Was this retrieved from the Huangyao Saltworks?" Lu Yunyi asked in a low voice.

Li Man quickly stepped forward and nodded, saying:
"Yes, sir, I sneaked into the fishing grounds at night."

I scooped these clams out of the fishpond; each shell was covered in this algae.

Lu Yunyi turned to look at Li Man:
“Tell me everything you saw and heard at the fishing grounds, word for word.”

"Yes."

Li Man swallowed hard and recounted his experiences from the previous day in detail, his voice still carrying a hint of lingering fear:
"Finally, I overheard the two guards saying that Steward Ye had instructed that a new fishing ground had opened in Zhoushan, and this one would soon be obsolete."

"No?"

Lu Yunyi raised an eyebrow, his eyes instantly sharpening.

Wang Chen added from the side:

"My lord, some people from the Lianbao Trading Company have recently left the capital and gone to Zhoushan."

Lu Yunyi nodded, his gaze returning to the blue and white porcelain jar.

He was silent for a moment, then took a deep breath.

A feeling of relief welled up in my chest. I was so glad I insisted on getting it checked out back then, otherwise the consequences would have been unimaginable!

"Bring a clean earthenware jar, one that can be sealed," Lu Yunyi suddenly said.

Wang Chen quickly left the ice cellar and soon returned carrying a lidded porcelain jar with a cotton thread wrapped around its mouth.

Lu Yunyi carefully opened the blue and white porcelain jar.

Using a clean bamboo chopstick, I picked up some red algae and a clam entwined with algae, and placed them into a celadon jar.
When the bamboo chopsticks touched the algae, they could feel a slippery sensation, which sent a chill down his spine.

"Cover it tightly and seal it securely," Lu Yunyi instructed.

Wang Chen quickly stepped forward and tied the mouth of the jar tightly with cotton thread.
I also applied some wax to the rim of the lid to make sure it wouldn't leak.

Lu Yunyi took the celadon jar and held it in his arms.
The cool canister pressed against his chest, making him even more awake.

He looked at Wang Chen and Li Man:

"This matter must not be made public, Li Man. You and your men rest for a few days. You may be required to confront them later."

Lord Wang, continue investigating the canal transport routes of Lianbao Trading Company.

No one involved can be overlooked.
The new fishing grounds in Zhoushan also need to be investigated; find out when they moved there and who is behind them.

"Yes, sir!" the two replied in unison.

Wang Chen looked at the pottery jar in Lu Yunyi's arms, a hint of worry on his face:

"My lord, are you about to enter the palace?"

"The memorials impeaching you are still piling up; why don't you lay low for a while?"

"The more this is the case, the faster we need to act."

Lu Yunyi interrupted him, his eyes resolute:
"His Highness the Crown Prince is still recovering from his illness. The longer we leave our things behind, the greater the risk we will face."

"I will now enter the palace to meet His Majesty and the Crown Prince. You are all to stand by and await their summons."

"Yes!"

After he finished speaking, he didn't linger any longer. Holding the celadon jar, he turned around and walked out of the ice cellar with a solemn expression.

Just as he reached the door, he stopped, turned back to look at Li Man, and said to Wang Chen:
"Lord Wang, this man has rendered a great service; he deserves a rich reward!"

"Yes!"

Li Man was taken aback, then bowed and said, "Thank you, sir!"

(End of this chapter)