Shen Chun dozed off on the recliner for a while. Seeing that it was getting late, Peng Bosheng and the others went about their business. In his daze, Shen Chun actually fell asleep. A series of nightmares startled him awake, drenched in sweat. When he opened his eyes, the moon was already setting, and it was almost dawn.
With a whoosh, he stood up, rubbing his eyes. Shen Chun felt like someone had arrived in the front hall. He threw on his clothes and walked out in a few strides, but a shadow flickered, and Peng Bosheng dashed over, falling to his knees with a thud, crying out:
"Lord Shen, it's over! Those new households looted the cellar... sob sob sob! I told you we should have acted sooner..."
Ah?
With a plop,
Shen Chun sat on the ground, his face instantly turning ashen. He murmured, "It's over, it's over..."
Peng Bosheng, after all, came from a humble background. When he was young, he worked in the yamen and became a broker, having seen plenty of storms. Now, in this desperate situation, his fighting spirit was ignited. He shouted loudly:
"Lord Shen, the only way out is to be ruthless! Charge in, smash all those jars and pots. Then there'll be no evidence!"
Upon hearing this, a glimmer of light flashed in Shen Chun's mind. He stood up with a whoosh and said in a low voice:
"Old Peng, go and get Old Shi and the others. Bring more men... Today we go all in. Once we get the stuff, we'll smash it!"
"Okay!"
Peng Bosheng stumbled slightly and then strode around the screen wall. Under the setting moonlight, Shen Chun felt a sense of dread.
...
Cloud Arrival Inn,
Zhu Mo and Lü Kun were squeezed into one room, one bed by the east, the other by the west.
In his sleep, he suddenly heard hurried footsteps and sat up abruptly. If it had been in the past, he would never have been so alert. But after several encounters with Japanese pirates, he had developed a sharp intuition in dangerous situations.
He immediately picked up his saber, crept to the door, and hid.
After a series of knocks,
A voice whispered:
"Lord Lü, are you in?"
At this moment,
Lü Kun suddenly woke up, his eyes snapping open, utterly bewildered. But the voice was very familiar, it was Wang Wei, whom he had spoken with earlier in the day.
Zhu Mo opened the door. Wang Wei rushed in, his face beaming with joy, and said in a low voice:
"My Lords, the new households found a batch of forbidden artifacts an hour ago. They were buried in the cellar of an old kiln owner named Peng Shancai!"
Zhu Mo asked:
"Forbidden artifacts? And who is this Peng fellow?"
Wang Wei said:
"It's also a five-clawed dragon pattern, but the shape is very strange, like Western or Huihui artifacts... Uh, this Peng is a local, rumored to have a relative who is Shen Chun's right-hand man."
Oh...
Zhu Mo pondered for a moment, suppressing his excitement, and asked again:
"Those new households, aren't they the Qi Nu? How did they know about this?"
Wang Wei said:
"Yes, they are the Qi Nu released by Grand Scholar Zhu... Well, rumor has it that it's been there all along. They all say someone framed Grand Scholar Zhu and kept watch. They only confirmed it in the last few days..."
Oh,
That makes sense.
Zhu Mo smiled and said:
"I think the Yan family originally wanted to play this trick, but Prince Yu got there first. Heh heh... Shen Chun and the others are very anxious, afraid of trouble. They must have heard something these past few days and panicked, which is why they've been exposed..."
Lü Kun nodded and said:
"This batch of artifacts must be hidden well. We need to have complete evidence, both human and material, to suppress the Yan family!"
Mm-hmm,
Zhu Mo made a swift decision. The three of them, under the cover of night, hurried on horseback to the new village where the new households were settled.
This new village was actually just a collection of shacks, and the conditions were quite harsh. Zhu Mo had assigned nearly ten thousand Qi Nu from various places. These people were accustomed to hardship. Although they were given relocation allowances, they were reluctant to spend them. They all went to the mountains to find wood and vines, built houses with rammed earth, and covered them with thatch to settle down.
For over a year, they had been assigned to various kilns by Shen Chun and Shen Shixing. Most were in imperial kilns, but a few were under new private kiln owners. Since these new private kiln owners were also respectable people, and the reforms had been implemented, these new households were quite satisfied. Even those in private kilns felt reassured, as it was a stable life to transition from servants and retainers to workers' families.
At this moment,
A large area of the village was brightly lit. At the village entrance, a team of thirty to forty people was patrolling, appearing quite orderly and disciplined.
Wang Wei spoke a few words to the leader and then ran into the village. The leader immediately ran over, and upon seeing Zhu Mo, shouted loudly:
"It's! It's Grand Scholar Zhu! Everyone, come quickly!"
With a rumble,
Thirty to forty people immediately swarmed over. A few of them had seen Zhu Mo in Hangzhou, but most did not recognize him. However, at this moment, everyone's faces were filled with excitement, as if they had seen their own kin!
The leader said excitedly:
"Grand Scholar Zhu, my name is Wang Shengcai! They, they are all, all our own people! Haha..."
Hahahaha,
The crowd didn't know what to say, and they also burst into laughter.
Zhu Mo clasped his hands to the crowd and asked:
"Everyone, are you all getting by?"
"We're getting by!"
"Much better!"
"That's great!"
"Like night and day!"
"..."
Hahaha,
Zhu Mo didn't know what to say for a moment, so he just laughed a few times. The crowd smiled at each other, face to face, eye to eye. The atmosphere was particularly warm and joyful, yet he couldn't quite describe the feeling.
Lü Kun's eyes were slightly moist. Just as he was about to speak, Wang Wei arrived with three or four people in a hurry.
Wang Shengcai said:
"Grand Scholar Zhu, the one in front, Xu Chuan, is our leader... A while ago, everyone heard that some places had revolted, and it was the brothers from the Tunken Guard who protected them. So, they decided to follow suit, organizing themselves into Jia Wu, like the garrisons, so they could deal with matters together..."
Mm-hmm,
Yes, yes,
That's right. Zhu Mo patted his shoulder and said with emotion:
"Old Wang, this is the right way for you all. I've always been too busy, and I really forgot about this aspect..."
As he was speaking,
Xu Chuan had already arrived, shouting from a distance: "Grand Scholar Zhu! Grand Scholar Zhu, you're finally here!"
Even in the moonlight, it was evident he was extremely excited, truly like seeing a loved one. After a brief greeting, Xu Chuan led two people into the village and immediately came to a cow pen. Amidst the hay, porcelain pieces were displayed. Illuminated by the torchlight, they were clearly visible – indeed, they were five-clawed dragon patterns.
Zhu Mo immediately asked:
"Where are they? Have the people from the cellar been brought?"
Xu Chuan said:
"Naturally, they have been brought! Grand Scholar Zhu, they slandered you, how could we not act? Everything has been investigated. The cellar owner is named Peng Shancai, a cousin of Peng Bosheng, the Deputy Director of the Imperial Kiln Office. When we arrived, there were also several household retainers, all of whom have been brought."
Good!
That's great!
Zhu Mo breathed a long sigh of relief.
He then sat down and questioned them, and the whole story became clear:
Shen Chun had received a secret order from Yan Shifan. He first fired a batch of forbidden artifacts and even took care to make them resemble Western artifacts, intending to frame someone. After they were fired, just as he was about to instigate a conflict between the new households and the old potters, Li Mingfeng's incident occurred, and another batch of forbidden artifacts was discovered. This meant Prince Yu was also involved.
Xu Chuan continued:
"Before the incident broke out, we heard that Peng family's kiln was firing five-clawed dragons. At that time, we suspected they were targeting Grand Scholar Zhu... Later, Li Mingfeng's horseshoe kiln turned out to be problematic. Shen Chun was confused and didn't know what to do. We were watching, and we'd long wanted to seize them, but those retainers were quite formidable and always opposed us, so we never had a chance to make a move... And now? It's heaven's will. Grand Scholar Zhu just arrived, and we've seized these things!"
Mm-hmm,
Looking at the porcelain, Zhu Mo paced a few steps and suddenly had a thought:
These things cannot be revealed yet...
It's probably best to wait a while longer, ideally to transport them to Hangzhou and place them in the锦衣卫 (Imperial Guard) yamen, complete the case files, and then wait for Prince Yu and the Yan family to make their moves... If they are brought out now, it will only complicate matters... This is a trump card, and it must be saved for the very end...
But would Shen Chun dare to tell Yan Shifan?
Or,
Should I use these items as leverage to deal with Shen Chun first?
Would he yield?
As he was pondering,
Suddenly, there was a commotion outside:
"They're here!"
"Shen Chun has sent troops!"
"Guard the village entrance!"
"Wake everyone up!"
"Let's fight!"
"Beat the lackeys!"
"..."
Xu Chuan blurted out, "Oh no! Grand Scholar Zhu, Shen Chun has sent the Wei Army! What should we do?"