The Grand Secretary's Child-Raising Diary

The two men kept their eyes open and waited in the cargo hold until almost midnight before cautiously making their way to the upper deck. They avoided the night patrol boatmen and made it to the second deck where the grain was stored.

Shouyan fiddled with the door for a moment, and the iron lock on the door fell off with a click. The two of them slipped inside.

This cargo ship belongs to the Li family, one of the three major shipping families in Jiangnan. According to their information, this northbound cargo ship is carrying a large amount of smuggled salt, which will be distributed to salt smugglers who have been waiting at the entrance of the Yangtze River. These smugglers will then transport the smuggled salt to various parts of the north.

If we can find concrete evidence on the ship and leave physical evidence and markings, we can use the Li family's cargo ship to break the alliance of several powerful families in Jiangnan.

With limited time, Lu Shiyan and Shouyan each went to check the stored grain and the ship's hull compartments, respectively. After a moment, Shouyan lowered his voice and said, "Master, there's none here."

Lu Shiyan: "The ship doesn't have any additional compartments. Let's get out of here first."

The change happened suddenly. The instant the hatch opened, the distinctive whistling sound of an arrow cutting through the air rapidly approached. Shouyan shouted, "Master, be careful!"

But it was too late. Lu Shiyan let out a sudden, muffled groan, his body swayed, and he fell directly into the surging river. Shouyan, clinging to the gunwale, shouted loudly, "Master, Master!"

Only the sound of the river's waves could answer him.

Shouyan's eyes were bloodshot as he roared at the people who had somehow appeared on the deck: "You bunch of rioters! My master is the Imperial Inspector of the Grand Canal, appointed by His Majesty. How dare you kill people! His Majesty will not let you off easily!"

After shouting, he threw himself into the river without looking back.

The man, still cloaked in the sweltering summer heat, stared at the dark, murky river, his rough voice sounding as if it had been ground by sand and gravel: "Are you sure it's that inspector of grain transport? Was he really hit by an arrow?"

A dark-skinned man in shorts replied, "We found one of the best, so he must have hit the target. Besides, there are many hidden reefs in this river. Even seasoned veterans who travel here year-round wouldn't survive, let alone a landlubber from the north."

The cloaked man was still uneasy and instructed, "Don't let your guard down. Send out men to patrol along the riverbank."

The dark-faced man replied "Yes," and then turned to go find someone.

The cloaked man stood on the deck for a while, and when he heard nothing, he turned and went back to the cabin.

When news of Lu Shiyan's disappearance reached the capital, it was already five days later. During the morning court session, Emperor Chenghe was furious. The heads of the six ministries, along with the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, were all severely reprimanded by His Majesty.

After the court officials knelt down and pleaded with His Majesty to calm down three times, Emperor Chenghe breathed a heavy sigh of relief and ordered the Secretariat to draft an edict. The entire edict had only one meaning:

"What are you good for, Kang Lian? Are you even fit to be the Governor-General of the Waterways? The censor I sent has vanished right under your nose, and you haven't uttered a single word. You're completely deaf and blind. How can I trust you?"

After being drafted and embellished by the Secretariat, the memorial was sent to Huai'an Prefecture. The Grand Canal Governor Kang Lian was so frightened that he submitted a memorial of apology overnight, saying that he had not yet met the Imperial Censor in charge of the canal transport.

In short, Your Majesty, please forgive me. I am filled with trepidation, but I am truly innocent.

Upon receiving this memorial, His Majesty was so enraged that he summoned the heads of the Six Ministries and the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review to the palace and gave them a severe dressing-down.

When news of Emperor Chenghe's reaction reached the local areas, many people who had been holding their breath were relieved and continued with their daily lives.

.......

On that day, the Imperial Concubine had already chosen her preferred companions for the Eighth Prince: Cao Li, the son of the Vice Minister of Revenue; Du Ruohuai, the son of the Head of the Hanlin Academy; Meng Yue, the son of the General of Wuwei; and a child from the family of a military officer.

She had originally thought that if His Majesty insisted on making that silly boy from the Lu family a study companion for her son Shizhen, she would replace him with Lu Qichen as Xiao Zhuozi suggested. After all, they were both surnamed Lu, and even if His Majesty found out, he wouldn't do anything to her for Shizhen's sake.

Unexpectedly, when His Majesty saw the list, he did not blame her. Instead, he simply changed Meng Yue to the son of another military general and Du Ruohuai, the son of the head of the Hanlin Academy, to Huang Shuheng, the son of the vice minister of the Dali Temple.

Consort Zhao waited anxiously for His Majesty's reply, and immediately stood up excitedly. In fact, her initial favorite was the son of the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, but she did not want His Majesty to think she was too greedy, so she chose Du Ruo as a second choice.

As for Meng Yue, Consort Zhao felt it was a pity, but she was not too disappointed. After all, the Great Qian Dynasty was at peace. If she wanted the support of military generals, there would be plenty of opportunities once her son Shizhen grew up.

Lu Youning was quite happy in Funing Palace. The only serious thing he did every day was to get up early to practice horse stance and some basic moves taught by the martial arts instructor.

Then they frolicked around the Funing Palace, having a great time.

But Funing Palace was only so big, and after a day or two, Lu Youning felt a little bored. However, the rules of the inner palace were strict, and without His Majesty's summons, one could not move around.

Once the Eighth Prince's study companions were officially selected, and seeing that he was indeed not on the list, Lu Youning secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He then instructed the eunuch to pack his luggage and prepared to return home.

As the old saying goes, there's no place like home; the palace may be nice, but it's not as good as Songtao Courtyard. It's better for him to go home and wait for his cheap old man to come back.

As a result, Lu Youning waited and waited, but instead of the person who would escort them out of the palace, they were greeted by the eunuch who had delivered the imperial decree to the Marquis of Cheng'en's residence that day. The eunuch smiled and presented the Emperor's rewards, saying to the young masters who had not been selected:

"A carriage will take the young masters out of the palace later. Young Master Lu's son can stay here for now."

Lu Youning's thoughts had long since wandered out of the palace, so he didn't hear the last sentence the eunuch said, nor did he notice the stares he received from those around him.

He followed the crowd in shouting "Long live the Emperor!" three times, expressed his gratitude, and then took a step forward, only to be blocked by a pair of long legs.

The eunuch's smile became much more genuine: "Congratulations, young master! His Majesty has decreed that you are granted permission to study alongside the princes. This is an extraordinary honor! I will take you to the Chongwen Academy now."

The eunuchs were all beaming with joy, and even the maids and eunuchs serving in Fu Ning Palace had joyful expressions on their faces. Only Lu Youning, the person in question, was in a rage.

What a joyous occasion! He had no desire to stay in the palace, let alone attend classes at the Chongwen Academy with all the princes and princesses.

He clutched his small bundle tightly, his legs seemingly glued to the floor tiles of Fu Ning Palace. The eunuch noticed the conflicted look on Lu Youning's delicate, fair face, with a bead of sweat on his upturned nose. Remembering his Emperor's earlier words about teaching his son properly on behalf of Imperial Censor Lu, he managed to suppress a laugh.

He waved to the back of the room: "It's quite a distance from Funing Palace to Chongwen Hall, Xiao Linzi, you carry Young Master Lu."

Lu Qichen, carrying his own bundle, watched as Lu Youning was held in the arms of a young eunuch. He pursed his lips, silently turned around, and followed the eunuch who was seeing them off out of the palace.