kvmb Chapter 353 A Gift for You
Chapter 353 A Gift for You
Zong Que stared at Sheng Junyi with a calm gaze.
After a moment, he said softly, "Until we meet again."
Sheng Junyi smiled, his eyes and brows exuding charm and allure, and asked with a playful tone, "Does Your Highness mean you can't bear to part with me?"
“Someone once told me that you can only get everything you want by living,” Zong Que said to Sheng Junyi. “I’d like to pass on those words to you as well.”
"Then I thank Your Highness for your kindness. Farewell." Sheng Junyi's eyes flickered slightly, and he turned and left lazily.
“Wait a minute,” Zong Que remembered something and instructed, “There might be a problem with the salt mines in Ning County. I don’t have time to investigate it now. Keep an eye on it, and if necessary, report it to the Governor-General of Jiangnan. He will take care of it.”
"Your Highness is still concerned about the country and its people even at a time like this," Sheng Junyi chuckled. "But is Your Highness sure that if there really is a problem, the one above wants to get involved?"
"Then we'll see if what the Yang family offers can win him over. They're just a few parasites. Even if they can't be touched, with someone supervising them, they'll at least be more restrained." A gust of wind blew in, causing Zong Que to cough a few times. He waved to Sheng Junyi, who didn't say anything more and turned to leave.
After he left, Pei Ji entered and handed Zong Que a cloak and a specially made cane. Zong Que took the cloak, fastened it, and the black hood fell down, covering most of his face.
Pei Ji was somewhat puzzled: "Why does the young master trust the second young master of the Sheng family? When I was in the capital, I had someone follow him. He is ruthless and leaves no room for maneuver. He is the one who secretly resolved many things for the Duke of Sheng."
Zong Que gripped his cane, his fingertips tightening little by little, trying to gather strength to stand up.
“Ayao once asked me for a favor, saying that if Sheng Junyi ever truly stands against us, spare his life. Because once he cares about something, he becomes obsessed to the end. But in reality, his bottom line is his family. If his bottom line completely collapses one day, that's when he truly goes mad.” Zong Que thought for a moment, “If we assume there was no affair between Yangyang and Sheng Yunzhu, or if Sheng Yunzhu were the winner between them, then there should be no surprise that he would side with the Duke of Sheng and the Third Prince. But if that were the case, he would become the most dangerous one. The Third Prince can't make good use of him as a pawn with Sheng Yunzhu. Similarly, if the Duke of Sheng can't give him what he wants, he will eventually suffer the consequences.”
“Yangyang has disrupted the existing order of the Duke of Sheng’s mansion and thwarted the Duke’s plans. Sheng Junyi is an ambitious man who knows how to assess the situation. If he goes to seek refuge with the third prince now, he will only be heading towards his own doom.”
Zong Que gripped his crutch and tried many times before finally standing up. The fine, dense pain in his legs and feet made him feel as if he were stepping on steel needles by a campfire, unable to touch the ground at all. A layer of cold sweat instantly seeped out from between his brows, but his eyes remained bright and sparkling, and a smile played on his lips.
After a long while, he finally stood firm and let out a soft breath. "He came to me, but the person he truly chose was not me."
"Who is that?" Pei Ji asked, puzzled.
Zong Que did not reply further: "You'll know later. It's getting late, let's go."
Pei Ji stepped forward to protect Zong Que, and when they reached the door, he turned around, flicked a pebble between his fingers, and extinguished the lamp on the table.
……
Jiang Zhiyi was very quick; by the afternoon, she had prepared everything Lu Yangyang needed and arranged a carriage.
Lu Yangyang climbed onto the carriage, only to see Wen Qingqing and Liu Xiang sitting inside.
Lu Yangyang frowned as she looked at Liu Xiang: "Why is it you? You're in poor health right now, you shouldn't travel so much."
Liu Xiang replied gratefully, "Don't worry, young lady. I asked Doctor Wen, and she said that with her there, I'll definitely be safe. Although I've been away from the Ning County salt mine for many years, I have a deep memory of it. It will be much more convenient for me to take you there than for anyone else. And who knows, I might even recognize someone there. After the salt-making system was abolished, although fewer and fewer people from nearby villages and towns went to the salt mine, there were always a few families who were struggling financially and wanted to rely on the meager income from the salt mine to make a living. The officials in charge of the salt mine didn't dare to embezzle too much of the labor service money, so they would always keep a few salt workers."
"If I happen to know someone, they might be able to help."
Jiang Zhiyi said from the side, "Miss, Liu Xiang is right. I have checked the location of the salt mine. If no one leads the way, we may not be able to get in."
Lu Yangyang knew that Liu Xiang wanted to help, so she nodded and said, "Take care of yourself and don't push yourself too hard."
Liu Xiang nodded gratefully, while Wen Qingqing said from the side, "Don't worry, with me here, you'll all be fine. If anyone is blind enough to do that, I'll have Xiao Guai bite them to death!"
Lu Yangyang had really forgotten that Wen Qingqing, this little fairy doctor, was the biggest threat.
She took the list of officials in charge of the salt mines from Jiang Zhiyi, who pointed to one person: "Yang Jingshan, Yang Chengfeng's father, served as the magistrate of Ning County for ten years. He died in office five years ago while on duty due to bandits. The magistrate who succeeded him, Liang, was the cousin of the eldest wife of the Yang family. The list of officials in charge of the salt mines seems to be changed every three years according to regulations, but they are all more or less related to the Yang family. The current manager is from a branch of the Yang family. The salt official in charge of local salt affairs is not related to the Yang family, but he is the brother-in-law of Duke Xiao."
Lu Yangyang didn't know much about the complicated marital relationships among the officials in the court, but Jiang Zhiyi, who came from a prestigious family, knew these marital relationships by heart since childhood. Especially since she was going to marry into Jiangnan, she had specifically sorted out the marital relationships of all the officials in the vicinity of Jiangnan Prefecture before her marriage, which was why she was able to find the list so quickly and accurately point out the relationships to Lu Yangyang.
Wen Qingqing and Liu Xiang were also in the carriage. After Jiang Zhiyi pointed out the relationship between these people, he didn't say anything more.
Lu Yangyang roughly understood the connection between them. The Yang family had no power to appoint salt officials, but appointing managers of salt mines was a piece of cake. With the Xiao family manipulating things, the two families joined forces to make a profit.
No wonder the Fifth Prince kept chasing after the Third Prince; it seems he was not only impressed by the Third Prince's character, but also by the complex relationships behind it. However, it now appears the Yang family is unwilling to give up a share of the spoils. But with news of Yang Chengfeng's affair with a famous courtesan reaching the capital, the Yang family will likely suffer a significant financial loss.
Jiang Zhiyi probably thought of these things as well. She exchanged a glance with Lu Yangyang, and the corners of her lips unconsciously curled up.
The carriage traveled through the night and finally arrived at the border of Ning County just before dawn.
Meanwhile, on another road, a low-key carriage was just leaving Ning County.