Crossing the Mountains

Chapter 208 Imperial Merchants List
The political situation has changed.

It is said that the Crown Prince's faction clashed head-on with the Grand Minister's faction. His Highness the Crown Prince presented Shen Tu Jianzhi with five volumes of travel notes that Shen Tu Jianzhi had lost. These notes detailed the shady dealings he witnessed during his mission to the Western Regions. Qi Zhengchu's fake merchant caravan was secretly colluding with foreign enemies, exchanging fine iron weapons for ore and horses. When the matter was exposed, they planned to massacre the entire mission to silence them.

The Crown Prince questioned Qi Zhengchu in court about his intentions and goals!

Qi Zhengchu remained completely unfazed, arguing that the origins of these bamboo slips were unknown. If they were truly written by Shen Tu Jianzhi, why didn't he bring them out to plead his case when he was imprisoned? And why had no one ever known where the bamboo slips were? Why were they found at this particular time after so long? Could it be that His Highness the Crown Prince deliberately forged them to frame someone and eliminate dissidents?
Just as the Crown Prince had predicted, the travelogue alone was not enough to make Qi Zhengchu confess. He then took out a broken, bloodstained wax pill from the wooden box and handed it to Qi Zhengchu: "This is evidence that a captain of the Zhenxi Army infiltrated the caravan and risked his life to find. He snatched a secret letter from that crossbowman general. Would the Grand Minister like to see what it says?"

A crack finally appeared in Qi Zhengchu's expression.

Next, the Crown Prince presented the accounts of the caravan's trade with Ti Nu for refined iron weapons, ores, and horses to the Emperor for review. Feng Tai's apparent owner was also secretly detained by the King of Qin and sent to Andu prison.

His Majesty was furious. Soon after, Qi Zhengchu was sentenced to be torn apart by chariots, and all his accomplices were also eliminated. Shentu Jianzhi finally cleared his name of the injustice he had been falsely accused of, but unfortunately, he had no chance to return to Andu to thank the Emperor for his grace.

Of course, by the time these events reached the four prefectures of Hexi, the matter had already been settled.

For the local people, the turmoil in Andu was as distant as a fairy tale. Who died or who won, as long as there was no war, would not affect their lives.

Cai Zhu'er only sensed a slight tension when the King of Qin mobilized his troops. At that time, Zhou Wenzong mobilized the Zhenxi Army overnight, making it seem as if he was ready to go to Andu to deal with the rebellion at any time. Fortunately, it turned out to be a false alarm. Because the general of Ti Nu was assassinated, Qi Zhengchu's retreat was cut off, and everything was going smoothly at the Eastern Palace. There was no need for him to go to the capital to quell the rebellion.

Upon learning that Qi Zhengchu had been executed by dismemberment, Caizhu felt a great sense of relief, as her father and brother had finally avenged themselves.

They were just ordinary people from Mohe, no different from ants in the eyes of those powerful and noble families, but she didn't believe in fate. She always knew that revenge was difficult, and since she had inadvertently gotten caught up in it, why not get even deeper and take a bigger gamble? One day, she would be able to reach the boundaries of power and use the rules those people had made themselves to deliver a fatal blow to them.

Cai Zhu'er was also very glad that she had not been blinded by hatred.

She still has things she pursues and people she cherishes, so her life of being left alone in this world has not been in vain.
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The opening of the new trade route was progressing smoothly, and everything seemed to be developing in a positive direction. Just as Cai Zhu'er was feeling triumphant and planning to expand the influence of the Guangli Chamber of Commerce in Hexi, exciting news reached her ears.

The results of the selection of imperial merchants are in.

On the day the list of successful candidates was released in Zhangye Prefecture, the King of Qin actually visited the prefectural governor's residence in person, saying he wanted to congratulate the selected businesses in person. This made the already lively scene even more bustling, and the area outside the prefectural governor's residence was packed with people early in the morning.

In recent days, various rumors have been rampant, with different lists leaked from various channels. Some people have offered high prices to buy them, but none of them are accurate. The merchants are anxiously waiting and feel wronged by being deceived. Unable to contain themselves any longer, they are trying every means to find people to pull strings and try to get the most reliable information.

Prefect Chi was also overwhelmed by the harassment; even his seventh maternal aunt's cousin's third brother-in-law came to his door to try and pry him open up. Poor thing, he had no way to explain himself. The list of imperial merchants from the four prefectures of Hexi was in the hands of the Prince of Qin, and he knew absolutely nothing about the inside story; asking would be pointless. But none of those people dared to probe the Prince of Qin's intentions, so in the end, they all cornered themselves on him.

To demonstrate the prestige of being chosen by the royal family, Prefect Chi specially erected two towering masts at the entrance of his residence, waiting for the King of Qin to hang the list embroidered on cloth there for everyone to admire.

A large crowd gathered in front of the mansion.

Caizhu came with Pei'er. She stood on the outskirts of the crowd, her fingers unconsciously twisting her handkerchief. She had arrived very early, and the morning dew had dampened her embroidered shoes, but she was completely unaware of it.

A distant gong rang out, and the King of Qin's personal guards slowly emerged carrying a vermilion tray. The yellow silk list gleamed in the sunlight, attracting everyone's attention. The King of Qin also arrived at the scene.

Prefect Chi and the people kowtowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness, the King of Qin."

Cai Zhuer followed the others in bowing and paying her respects. When she stood up, she tripped on the hem of her skirt and stumbled slightly. When she looked up again, she met Zhou Wenzong's gaze.

Zhou Wenzong knew she would come, and he had been searching for her in the crowd. When he saw her kneeling before him, he was momentarily dazed.

They used to be a loving couple, though it was just for show, and they lived in constant fear. He still missed those times dearly. Back then, she stood beside him without needing to perform the courtesies of a commoner.

Later, he learned from the Crown Prince that his mother had once intended to kill her, and he felt a chill run down his spine. It was then that he understood why, despite his best efforts to treat her well, he still couldn't keep her.

She disliked being manipulated by those in power and no longer wanted to be someone else's pawn.

Zhou Wenzong looked at Caizhu quietly, his eyes revealing complex emotions, a mixture of regret and comfort.

Cai Zhu'er paused, realizing what was happening.

"The results are out! The results are out!"

The crowd suddenly surged forward, pushing and shoving, but Cai Zhu'er took advantage of the chaos to slip away.

She looked up at the huge yellow scroll, listening to Prefect Chi loudly proclaim: "The list of selected imperial merchants includes... Bi's Merchant Firm, Fuquan Merchant Firm, Biyun Merchant Firm..."

There is no name for the Salan trading company.

Even though she was mentally prepared, Cai Zhu'er still felt extremely sad when she confirmed that she had not been selected. She had started from scratch and worked her way up, and all her efforts had gone to waste. How could she not feel wronged and how could she accept it?

The selected businesses cheered and celebrated, while the unsuccessful ones lamented and regretted their loss; the cacophony of voices buzzed in her ears.

Pei'er comforted her repeatedly, saying there would be other opportunities in the future. Just as she was about to help her turn and leave, someone suddenly called out to them: "The owner of the Salan Trading Company? The Prince invites you."

Following the guards, Cai Zhu'er entered the prefectural governor's mansion through a side gate and met Zhou Wenzong, who had been waiting for her for a long time.

Cai Zhu bowed respectfully, forcing a smile as she said, "I thought I would definitely be selected this time, but I was too arrogant. I'm sorry for making you laugh at me, Your Highness."

Zhou Wenzong gestured for her to sit down, ordered someone to serve her tea and snacks, and said, "You were on the initial selection list, but something went wrong along the way, so you were temporarily removed from the list. I invited you here to tell you not to be discouraged. This is only the first batch of imperial merchants. Salan Merchants is on the shortlist."

Cai Zhu hesitated before asking, "I want to know what went wrong that led to my expulsion."
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Next chapter: He was filthy himself, yet he wanted to drag others down into the mud.