A divine healer, a general, a young marquis! Who can rival them!

Having established a firm foothold in the clinic, Yang Hu didn't relax.

The mansion attracted long queues every day, and its reputation grew. But the greater the reputation, the more conspicuous the mansion became. Zhao Yanei from the west of the city was eyeing this mansion because of its fame!

Treating patients from home is not a long-term solution.

People from all walks of life come and go seeking medical help. Who knows which one of them might be a thief with a lecherous eye, looking at their name and the box?

Qin Ying's identity must be kept secret, and the irrefutable evidence in that box must be protected. There are too many people at home who will gossip, and I'm always on edge.

Yang Hu wanted to find a proper, large shop to open a clinic, where patients could receive treatment at the clinic and rest in the house, thus separating them.

With the house quieter, he had fewer worries.

Yang Hu remembered Old Man Sun.

Jishengtang is the largest and most popular pharmacy in the city. Old Man Sun has a wide network of connections in the city's pharmacies, so it's perfect to find him for this matter.

Old Man Sun's heart was healed by Yang Huzi, and he had always thought about how to repay the kindness. When he heard that Yang Huzi wanted to open a shop, he patted his chest and said that he knew a few ready-made ones, and that he would cover the price if he could choose a good one.

On this day, Yang Huzi went to Jishetang to inquire about buying a shop.

Old Man Sun's spirits had improved considerably, so he personally invited him to sit down in the back hall and brewed him a cup of fine tea.

The two men talked about opening a shop, discussing the pros and cons of different shops in the city, which streets were bustling with activity, and which shop owners were kind and helpful.

As they talked, the topic turned to the shops in the city.

"These past few days, several large shops in town have been rather unsettled," Old Man Sun said, taking a sip of water. "Especially Zhou's grain shop, have you heard of it?"

Yang Huzi paused, holding his teacup.

Weekly journal.

"I know a little," he said, feigning nonchalance. "What's wrong?"

"Strange," Old Man Sun shook his head. "The amount of grain coming in and out of Zhouji is more than double what it used to be. They're running around day and night. A few days ago, one of my men saw several trucks covered with tarpaulins quietly hauling grain out of the alley behind Zhouji when he passed by in the middle of the night."

"Several carts?" Yang Huzi asked slowly, holding his teacup. "Is it all grain?"

"Who knows?" Old Sun said in a low voice. "You can't see it because it's covered by an oilcloth, but the ruts on the carts are very deep, indicating a lot of weight. My buddy also said that the people escorting those carts didn't look like grain shop assistants, but rather like martial artists, with bulging bodies and carrying weapons!"

Yang Huzi's heart clenched instantly.

Do we need martial arts practitioners carrying weapons to deliver grain on a regular basis?

They delivered grain at night, covered it with tarpaulin, and hauled it out of the city.

Everything I've observed and thought about during this period has come together perfectly!

"Where will the grain be transported outside the city?" Yang Huzi asked casually.

Old Man Sun sighed.

"Where can we go?" His voice was very low. "To the border!"

"border?"

"You're new here, you don't know," said Old Manager Sun. "The border hasn't been peaceful lately. Barbarians raid the border every few days, burning villages and stealing livestock. The border troops are fighting, they need food and medicine. These grain and medicine merchants in the city, whoever can get on the military supply line, they'll make a fortune."

He shook his head, his expression enigmatic.

"But the supply chain is a murky place. Some grain merchants get rich overnight, and no one dares to investigate how the grain is supplied or how the price is quoted. If you do, you'll get into trouble."

He paused again, as if remembering something: "A while ago, there was a cloth merchant who somehow offended someone in that industry, and his shop was shut down. Nobody knows where he went. Ever since then, nobody has dared to touch the word 'military supplies'."

Yang Hu listened silently.

In my mind, I quietly connected several lines.

Zhou's Grain Shop was sending grain out of the city at night because barbarian invaders were attacking the border, and military supplies were tight. Several grain merchants in the city had made a fortune by supplying the military, and the details of their dealings were very unclear.

These lines, like strands of silk scattered in a corner, cannot yet be strung together into a net, but their destinations seem to be the same.

If the grain that Zhou Ji sent out of the city was really just grain?

The border troops are short of food, and military supplies are extremely profitable. These few skilled men with weapons escorting the cart outside the city do not look like ordinary grain sellers.

It seems more like someone is using the Zhouji Grain Company as a front to secretly send some shady things out of the pass.

To whom should it be sent beyond the Great Wall?

Thinking this, cold sweat broke out on Yang Hu's back.

The hand he's looking for is probably right here.

The shop deal was settled; Old Manager Sun chose a good location in the east of the city, and the boss was very generous. Yang Hu thanked him a few times and went home with a heart full of satisfaction.

As soon as he returned, he was about to open a clinic, and the hospital staff immediately got busy.

Lu Yan was in charge of the medicinal herbs and had made a list well in advance, specifying which commonly used herbs to buy in larger quantities and which precious herbs to buy in smaller quantities. She wrote everything down clearly. Lu Rou started calculating the accounts rapidly, figuring out how much money she would need to open a clinic, how many employees she would need to hire, and how to charge for consultations and medications, etc.

"Since opening the clinic, we've had more customers than at home," Lu Rou said, tilting her head back with a serious expression. "So you need to keep even more careful records, don't let them get messy."

Yang Hu smiled as he looked at her earnest expression.

This girl has really grown up a lot!

Liu Ye wasn't good at these accounts, but she was useful. She said that once the clinic opened, all sorts of people would come, so someone needed to look after it. She would take care of that.

The family had a clear division of labor, which was more comprehensive than Yang Hu's approach alone.

That evening, he told Qin Ying some of the things he had learned during the day.

She was polishing a small knife under the lamp when she heard about the border and military supplies, and her hand stopped.

A hint of murderous intent, rarely seen in Yang Hu, peeked through his usually calm brows.

"quartermaster……"

She murmured something.

Yang Hu knew that these two words had touched a raw nerve.

She is the daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo, and a military commander!

She was ordered to patrol the border when she was ambushed by barbarians and fell into a swamp. The case involved strange things about military supplies and intelligence from beginning to end.

"Regarding military supplies, if there really are people in contact with those outside the Great Wall..."

Qin Ying spoke each word with an unusually cold tone.

"Why do those barbarians always invade the border? Why are they able to control the lifeline of the border troops? It all makes sense."

She looked up and glanced at Yang Hu.

"If this line of investigation can truly be traced back to the bottom, it won't just involve one person!"

As she spoke, she held a knife in her hand, and the back of her hand was white.

Yang Hu knew what she was thinking.

The Zhenguo Duke's family, the way the document described her death as "martyrdom for the country," and that ambush case that they dared not mention—this supply line is probably tied to her, who carries a deep-seated blood feud.

"Don't worry." He reached out and took her hand that was gripping the knife. "I'll investigate this lead with you, step by step, until we find those hands. There's no need to rush."

She stared at him with wide eyes.

Under the lamplight, the sharp, piercing gaze and the chilling aura in those eyes slowly dissipated.

"Okay," she said softly.

Under the lamplight, the two looked at each other.

At that moment, they all realized how astonishing the power was hidden beneath the seemingly calm waters of the city.

The night was quiet, and Yang Hu extinguished the candle.

Outside, in the courtyard of Zhao Yanei in the west of the city, the lackeys who were keeping watch have been working even harder these past two days. Liu Ye is guarding the courtyard very strictly, not giving them any chance to take advantage of the situation.

But he can't afford to worry about those troublesome things right now.

He was planning something else.

The barbarians on the sidelines, the grain merchants in the city, the grain that sneaks out of the city at night—these few lines, those hands, are a thousand times, ten thousand times more powerful than those ignorant hooligans in the west of the city!

The newly opened hospital.

Using the hospital as a front, he intends to cast a wider net across the city.

You'll hear more news and see more things.

Where does the grain from the weekly journal actually go?

Who has the butler met in private?

He will use the hospital as leverage to gradually uncover the truth behind these matters.

Finish