Chapter 43 Visitors from Chang'an
Chapter 43 Visitors from Chang'an
Inside a private courtyard of Jiangdu Shangyuan Inn, the room was brightly lit. A tall young man was squinting his eyes and looking closely at two pills on the table. A middle-aged scholar was sitting next to him.
On the other side sat a lean and thin man in black, looking at the young man with disdain.
"Master Yuan, don't you claim to know all the medicines in the world? Why can't you recognize it now?"
The young man looked sullen and glared at the man in black with dissatisfaction.
The middle-aged man waved the fan in his hand to smooth things over and said with a smile: "There are so many medicines in the world. It's normal that you don't know some of them. Don't force yourself, nephew!"
The young man sighed and said, "The red pill should be Xiao Moke's Diamond Pill. The green pill must be based on the Heavenly King Pill, but it has been transformed by other medicines. I suspect it is the legendary Spring Rain Pill."
"So be it!"
The man in black stood up, picked up the pills and said, "I have to throw the pills back to his room quickly to avoid him getting suspicious. Sorry to bother you, Master Yuan. I'll leave first!"
The man in black clasped his fists and bowed, then turned and walked away.
The young man glared at his back fiercely, "Do you think you are so great just because you are the prince's confidant?"
The young man's name is Yuan Shirong, he is the eldest son of the Yuan family in Chang'an. He and the man in black are both palace guards, and they are also colleagues in the same position. As the sons of nobles, Yuan Shirong was very wary of the appearance of the man in black in Jiang.
The middle-aged man is Yuan Shizhi, Yuan Shirong’s second uncle. He was entrusted by the head of the family to come to Jiangdu to investigate logistics and freight.
Yuan Shizhi advised: "Hasn't He Ruo Laoliu always been like this? Why should my dear nephew take him to heart?"
"I know He Ruoyue is like this, and I don't care about him, but I want to know what the prince meant by sending him to Jiangdu?"
Yuan Shizhi understood his nephew's thoughts and smiled, "Don't worry! He is not here to compete with you for the position of Jiangdu County Lieutenant. The prince has already promised the head of the family and will not break his promise."
"Then what is he doing here?"
Yuan Shizhi waved his fan and said, "He should be here for that child, following the order of the Crown Prince to protect that child."
It turned out to be for the child of the Xiao family. Yuan Shirong felt relieved. He asked in confusion, "Didn't the Crown Prince always want to kill that child? Why did you change your mind and protect him now?"
Yuan Shizhi shook his head. "It's a different time now. The prince wanted to frame his father, the Prince of Jin, by assassinating the child. He wanted the prince to bear the crime of poisoning his own children. But the assassination failed, and the princess reported the case to the emperor. The emperor was furious and scolded the prince severely. So now the situation is reversed. The prince is afraid that someone else will assassinate the child and frame him."
"Then it can only be the King of Han!"
"I don't know, but it's best for us not to get involved in this matter. Even if we do know, we should pretend not to know. Just like your father said, we can only watch but not participate in the battle for the throne among the five dragons. Once we get too involved, if the situation turns around in the end, the Yuan family will be dead without a burial place."
"Uncle San is right, I'll remember that!"
Yuan Shirong turned his attention back to himself and said worriedly, "The Crown Prince has agreed to recommend me to be the lieutenant of Jiangdu County. How long do I have to wait?"
Yuan Shizhi smiled bitterly and said, "I don't know either. I heard that Yuwen Shu is stuck and he won't give up. I estimate it will take another month or two!"
Yuan Shirong thought of something and asked, "Second Uncle, I heard that Yuwen Shu started burning incense to the King of Han last year. Could it be that the King of Han wants this Jiangdu County Lieutenant?"
"It is indeed possible. Jiangdu is a springboard for Jiangnan. Its strategic location is too important. The situation of the Five Dragons competing for the throne is still unclear, and none of them are willing to give up Jiangdu easily. So you must keep a low profile and be patient. I will return to Chang'an to report to the head of the family tomorrow morning. You continue to do family affairs, and the Chen family will be handed over to you."
Yuan Shirong nodded, "I will go to Chen's house tomorrow!"………..
The head of the Jiangdu Chen family was named Chen Zhongnian, who was the adopted son of Chen Chang, the son of Chen Baxian, the Emperor Wu of Chen, and the godson of Chen Baxian.
Chen Chang was drowned when his boat sank while crossing the Yangtze River. Chen Chang had no sons, and only his adopted son Chen Zhongnian stayed in Jiangdu due to illness and saved his life.
Several of Chen Chang's retainers brought a large amount of wealth to join Chen Zhongnian, thus establishing the Jiangdu Chen family.
Chen Zhongnian claimed to be the grandson of Chen Baxian, but he was actually the adopted son of Chen Chang. Therefore, the Southern Chen court never recognized him as a member of the Southern Chen royal family. This allowed the Jiangdu Chen family to escape disaster after the demise of the Southern Chen.
Chen Zhongnian is already over fifty years old and has four sons. The four sons actually control the Chen family. With the painstaking efforts of two generations, the Chen family is currently the third largest family in Jiangdu, second only to the Liu family and the Xiao family.
Today, an important guest came to the Chen family. He came from the capital Chang'an. The guest's name is Yuan Shirong. He is the legitimate son of the Guanlong noble family Yuan. He came to Jiangdu on the orders of the head of the family and his father Yuan Xiaoju.
In the study, Yuanshi Rongzheng and Chen Zhongnian were having a secret conversation.
“There are only three quotas for merchants at Jiangdu New Wharf. The emperor originally wanted to increase it to five, but was opposed by the ministers. Currently, he has decided to maintain three quotas. However, the emperor means that one of the three quotas must be reserved for the southern nobles.
This is a bit difficult to handle. Our Yuan family means that if we really want to reserve a spot for the southern nobles, it would be best if the Chen family takes it. Do you understand what I mean, Patriarch?"
The Chen family’s backer in the court was the Yuan family, and Chen Zhongnian clung to Yuan Xiaoju’s thigh.
Chen Zhongnian certainly understood what Yuan Shirong meant. This quota was just held by the Chen family on behalf of the Yuan family. It nominally belonged to the Chen family, but in fact it still belonged to the Yuan family. However, the Chen family could have a share of the pie.
It would be nice to have a piece of the pie, but if all three trading houses were taken up by the nobles of Chang'an, the three great families in Jiangdu would have to bid farewell to this industry completely.
Those small fleets could continue to survive by relying on the Chang'an nobles, just like they are now relying on the three major families in Jiangdu, but the Liu, Xiao and Chen families cannot. They are too large in size, and the only outcome is that they will be swallowed up by the Chang'an nobles.
"How to compete for the quota?" Chen Zhongnian asked.
"Nonsense, of course it's a martial arts contest. Can we compete with the Southern Dynasty nobles in literature?"
Chen Zhongnian couldn't hide his bitter smile. "If we're just competing in martial arts, the Chen family is the weakest among the three families in Jiangdu. We specially invited two sixth-rank masters, the Yu brothers, but I don't know if we can beat the Liu and Xiao families in the end."
Yuan Shirong sneered, "Of course we know, otherwise why would my father ask me to come to Jiangdu? But I want to remind you that the two so-called sixth-rank masters you invited are undercover agents arranged by someone."
"what?"
Chen Zhongnian was horrified, "Who arranged this?"
"Who they are has nothing to do with the Chen family, and the head of the family doesn't need to know. In addition, there is no need for your Chen family to send anyone to the competition. I will make arrangements."
Chen Zhongnian breathed a sigh of relief, "When is the competition?"
"When the emperor comes to inspect Jiangdu, it will probably be around November. The court will soon announce it. Currently, only the Chen family knows about this. You must keep it secret and don't let the Liu and Xiao families know."
Chen Zhongnian nodded, and after a pause he said, "Those two martial artists have actually resigned and were poached by Xiao Hu at a high price. Could it be that their target is actually the Xiao family?"
"I've said it before, this matter has nothing to do with the Chen family!" Yuan Shirong said with a long face.
(End of this chapter)