Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 517 Secretly assassinating Chen Cang
While Zhang Dai was still practicing his tea ceremony at Pei Guangting's house, Wu Wenshen had already been introduced to Yuwen Rong's house by Li Linfu and had a pleasant conversation with Yuwen Rong's son, Yuwen Kuan.

"Now that Lord Wu has joined us in this scheme, Zhang Dai will be powerless to resist! We will seize his flying money, divide the spoils among ourselves, and help Lord Wu acquire more flying money in the Hexi Corridor, where we will enjoy boundless wealth and endless riches!"

Wu Wenshen was generous and magnanimous, and he also flattered and befriended Yuwen Kuan. Yuwen Kuan had a good impression of him. After the cooperation was settled, he raised his wine glass to him.

Upon seeing this, Wu Wenshen quickly bowed and said, "I must thank you for your kindness and guidance, and also thank you for your introduction, Shilang. I have brought limited belongings with me to the capital this time, and I do not have enough cash for 300,000 strings of cash. However, I have some connections with the foreign merchants in the West Market, so it should not be difficult for me to borrow some for a few days. I will definitely prepare enough money and silk as soon as possible to send the money, and I will not disturb your grand plan!"

Li Linfu, who was sitting next to Wu Wenshen and acting as a go-between, couldn't help but sigh inwardly when he heard Wu Wenshen's bold statement. This guy was really rich and powerful. He agreed to the 300,000 strings of cash without batting an eye, and it seemed like he still had money to spare.

He quickly composed himself and said with a smile, "With Wu Jun's investment, the total amount deposited has reached one million strings of cash. I doubt Zhang Dai would store one million strings of cash in Bianzhou. When his followers storm his shop and make a ruckus to withdraw the money, he will not be given any room to maneuver."

Once his shops are empty, which wealthy merchant in Bianzhou will still trust him? If this affects the profits from the imports into the inner palace, the Duke of Bohai and others will surely punish him. This man will be held accountable, and we can then take the initiative to take over the matter, using the money and silk we withdrew earlier for redemption, and clean up the mess..."

Following Li Linfu's description, the group imagined the wonderful scene and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Yuwen Kuan's smile was even more joyful. His main business was lending, which required a lot of cash to invest in its operation. This Bianzhou Flying Money was simply tailor-made for him. He could not only collect considerable profits through the Flying Money business, but also continue to expand his lending business with the Flying Money, thereby earning even more profits. In the end, it would be a gold mine!
Spurred by this promising prospect, the group began to indulge in drinking and merrymaking, and before they knew it, they were all completely drunk.

When Li Linfu woke up again in Yuwen Rong's guest room, it was already the morning of the next day. After getting up and making some inquiries, he learned that Wu Wenshen had already left and returned home to raise money and silk.

Upon learning this, Li Linfu was secretly delighted, and a cold smile crept onto his lips. He had previously used the Wu family to instill a lot of information in Wu Wenshen, finally managing to lure him into the trap.

The prospects he described last night were certainly very promising, but Wu Wenshen was not among those who would benefit from them. His promise to help Wu build the Helong Flying Money scheme was nothing but empty promises.

Li Linfu knew what kind of person this was, and after getting what he wanted, he would not continue to entangle with such a person!

He was leisurely enjoying his breakfast in his guest room when suddenly a servant rushed in, shouting, "My lord, something terrible has happened..."

A servant came forward and whispered a few words in Li Linfu's ear. After hearing them, Li Linfu's expression changed immediately. He dropped his half-eaten breakfast and hurriedly went out the door.

Meanwhile, Zhang Dai finished breakfast at Lü He's house and leisurely walked south along Fang Street.

The autumn sun is not as hot as the summer sun; it feels warm and pleasant on the skin.

The streets were bustling with carriages and horses. Several street urchins from Wuhoupu quickly came forward, greeted Zhang Dai with smiles and clasped hands, and then spontaneously ran around to clear the street and escort Zhang Dai, making his playboy demeanor even more pronounced.

He quickly arrived at his house. Ding Qing and the others had stayed there the previous night, keeping a close watch on the movements of Bodhi Temple. Upon seeing Zhang Dai approach, they all rushed forward and whispered their reports: "Master, we haven't seen Li Linfu enter or leave the temple since last night. Yin Huan is still in the temple, and we haven't seen any outsiders entering or leaving the monastery where Madam Wu is staying. This morning, however, several of Pei's servants were sent back..."

"Have you all eaten? Go find something to eat at Beili Qiting's house. Don't drink alcohol before noon. Come back here later to meet up."

After listening to Ding Qing's report, Zhang Dai waved his hand and gave instructions. He then stood in front of the gate, a smile on his lips, watching the Bodhi Temple to the south for a while. The temple was very popular, with at least a hundred people coming and going in a short time.

Many of these women lived in the Beili Sanqu area and were considered prostitutes. To facilitate management, they were usually not allowed to leave the neighborhood. If they wanted to worship Buddha and pray for blessings, they could only do so at the Bodhi Temple in the neighborhood.

They offered their money to the Buddha, hoping to cleanse themselves of their karmic burdens and praying for blessings in their next life. The monks accepted the money with a clear conscience and offered solace to these believers.

Temples nowadays offer a wide variety of services, providing whatever services believers need. Even if it violates morality, it doesn't matter, since any negative karma is absolved in the process of creating a radiant golden body for the Buddha.

Last night, Wu ran away from home, partly because the curfew had begun and they couldn't leave the neighborhood, so they stayed at the Bodhi Temple. This also aligned with Zhang Dai's prediction that the Bodhi Temple would be used as a place to send urgent messages. If his prediction was correct, then Li Linfu would certainly appear nearby soon.

While waiting, Zhang Dai took the opportunity to stroll around his own garden. Although his villa wasn't as grand as the mansions in the capital, it still covered sixteen or seventeen acres, complete with all the necessary buildings, more than enough to house a couple hundred people. The main buildings were long completed, but craftsmen were still finishing the details. The flowering trees that the Princess of Yunyang had transplanted from her garden had been used to build pavilions for enjoying the blossoms and sheltering from the wind, scattered around Moon Lake in a pleasing arrangement. When the trees were in full bloom next year, the scene would surely be breathtaking.

Besides the magnificent central hall, the house also features several viewing pavilions, especially at the rear of the residence. From these pavilions, one can directly overlook the Three Bends Street to the north. Imagine being able to enjoy the song and dance performances across the street without even leaving home – it sounds incredibly pleasant.

Zhang Dai waved for the artisans applying the lacquer and preservatives to continue their work. He then climbed to the top of the pavilion, leaned on the railing, and surveyed the various art galleries of Nanqu before turning his gaze to the street. A smile immediately appeared on his lips. In his line of sight, Li Linfu was riding a chestnut horse swiftly into the neighborhood.

Despite the distance between them, Zhang Dai could see the anxiety in Li Linfu's eyes. His horse nearly collided with pedestrians, and after entering the neighborhood, it quickly turned into the alleyway.

Zhang Dai also hurried down from the pavilion and quickly came to his own door, asking the several followers who were keeping watch: "Has Li Linfu entered the temple?"

Upon hearing this, the others quickly shook their heads. Zhang Dai, however, was not in a hurry and sat down in his foyer to wait. Li Linfu had rushed into the neighborhood; surely it wasn't because he had unearthed gold and silver treasures on his property?
To avoid alerting Li Linfu, Zhang Dai instructed his family members, who were scattered around the Bodhi Temple, to disperse further or even return to their quarters, so that Li Linfu would not feel it was too dangerous and abandon this temporary meeting place.

In broad daylight, it's hard to hide a grown person entering and leaving a temple, so there's no need to keep too close an eye on them.

But he waited there for quite a while, and even after Ding Qing and the others had finished their meal and returned, he still hadn't heard any news of Li Linfu entering the temple.

"Go and find out where Li Linfu went!"

Zhang Dai gradually became impatient and gave another order.

Two attendants responded and left, returning a moment later, followed by Ji Wen. Upon seeing Zhang Dai, the fellow exclaimed in an exaggerated tone, "How fortunate I am to have met Sixth Master in the neighborhood!"

Zhang Dai beckoned him into the house and then asked, "Did you follow Li Linfu here?"

Upon hearing this, Ji Wen nodded: "This Li Shi stayed at Minister Yuwen's house last night. This morning, he received some news and hurriedly left Minister Yuwen's house, heading straight to Pingkang Ward. After entering the abandoned house, he has not come out for a long time. It seems that there is a problem with the construction of the house?"

He dared not approach and peer, and could only guess. Zhang Dai frowned upon hearing this; had he guessed wrong?

The information he deliberately revealed to Wu yesterday should naturally be passed on to Li Linfu as soon as possible, and Li Linfu's hasty entry into the neighborhood just now clearly indicates that he encountered some emergency.

Could it be that this guy is worried about attracting too much attention and is therefore waiting until dark to enter the temple? Or perhaps they don't even need to meet, and there's a middleman to relay the message?
As he was lost in thought, someone suddenly entered and said, "My lord, Li Linfu has left his residence and gone out of the neighborhood."

"Sixth Brother, should I continue chasing after them?"

Upon hearing this, Jiwen quickly inquired as well.

Zhang Dai nodded, signaling the man to leave, and he himself stood up, walked into the house, and went upstairs to look eastward from the side closest to Li Linfu's residence.

Most of Li Linfu's land remains vacant. Only a section of about seven or eight acres has been enclosed by rammed earth walls on the south side, where some houses have already been built, and craftsmen are busy working on the construction.

Zhang Dai noticed that this area was adjacent to the monastic quarters of Bodhi Temple, separated by only a wall. Some of the shacks where craftsmen lived were even built against the wall of Bodhi Temple.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Dai's furrowed brows gradually relaxed, and he then went downstairs again, preparing to personally visit Bodhi Temple to see what state Wu was in now.

Leaving Zhang Dai aside, Li Linfu didn't go anywhere else after leaving Pingkangfang. Instead, he went straight back to Yuwen Rong's house, pushed aside the guests in the outer room, and went straight into the hall. He beckoned Yuwen Kuan to follow him to a quiet place, and then said to him in a deep voice, "Eldest son, quickly send a servant to the capital to invite the master home. Something terrible has happened..."

(End of this chapter)