Chapter 430
The night was as dark as ink, with a single lamp burning like a bean.
In the study, Zhan Feiyu sat opposite Yin Wuyan, her face taut, her expression solemn and serious.
Flipping through the roster with still-wet ink, Yin Wuyan looked up after a long silence, his clear voice carrying a rare trace of surprise, "Are you short of money?"
Shaking her head like a rattle drum, Zhan Feiyu quickly replied, "Not at all, but I won't sleep soundly if I don't make money from this windfall. Big Brother, I've already memorized the roster this afternoon. When the time comes, I'll have A Nuan and the others make a few copies. Each one will sell for fifty thousand taels. Cash on delivery, no cheating honest folk."
As for the court replacing all the officials in Longyou Dao half a month later, that had nothing to do with Zhan Feiyu.
Of course, for the honest officials who were innocently implicated, Zhan Feiyu planned to use some silver to subsidize them, considering it compensation for their entanglement.
At the darkest hour of Yin Shi, sensing an attack from the shadows, the person on the bed suddenly sat up with a stifled groan, "Who's there?"
"Young Master?" Almost simultaneously, the guards outside Min San's quarters also shouted loudly, and then pursued the black-clad figures who had infiltrated the courtyard.
After a while, candles were lit in the bedroom, and the young Master Min San, wrapped in his clothes, had a grim expression, "Did you lose them?"
"Yes, the opponent's skills are extremely strong. Your subordinate lost them." The guard who knelt to confess lowered his head. The black-clad figures did not linger to fight; using the cover of night, they vanished in the blink of an eye.
"Useless!" Min San roared in anger and kicked him, "What's the use of me raising you useless people? Can't get the roster, can't catch an assassin? Will you only confess guilt if someone takes my head one day?"
The suppressed anger of days no longer controlled, Min San kicked a few more times before venting his fury. "Get out, don't kneel here and be an eyesore."
Turning around, as if about to return to his bed, Young Master Min San paused, then walked over quickly, picked up a letter from beside his pillow, unfolded it, and scanned it rapidly. His expression instantly became bizarre and complex.
The same thing was happening in several other places in Minhe Prefecture. Before the roster was destroyed, they all thought Zhan Feiyu was diverting disaster by lending the roster to Yao Zhenyi to hand over to Prefect Yuan.
But now, looking at the fifty thousand taels written in the letter, everyone couldn't help but suspect that the reason the prefectural yamen's backyard was blown to ruins was Zhan Feiyu's doing, with the aim of selling the roster privately.
Regardless of the startled and uncertain forces, Lord Yao, upon receiving the news, had just finished washing up. He was standing in the courtyard, and after hearing what his guard Chen Fan had to say, he couldn't help but be stunned, "Is the news accurate?"
"Reporting to Your Lordship, although our men are just ordinary guards..." Chen Fan had received the news around Yin Shi as well. Black-clad figures had infiltrated Young Master Min San's residence at night.
At first, Chen Fan thought this was a warning from Zhan Feiyu, or rather, the Jinlong Guard. But later, their men sent back intelligence, and Chen Fan was busy until dawn before rushing to report to Lord Yao.
Glancing at Lord Yao, who was lost in thought, Chen Fan continued, "As soon as dawn broke, Young Master Min San sent someone to the bank to withdraw three taels of silver notes. Fifteen minutes later, a middle-aged man withdrew twenty thousand taels from the bank."
These people lurking in the shadows were naturally not short of money, but they had spent a lot of money following them from Suzhou Prefecture to Minhe Prefecture. Once their money ran short, they had to go to the bank. But after black-clad figures broke in last night, going to the bank to withdraw money at dawn seemed very strange no matter how you looked at it.
Chen Fan's face was filled with suspicion, "Your Lordship, what is Miss Zhan trying to do?"
What Chen Fan dared not say was whether Zhan Feiyu intended to extort Young Master Min San and pay to avert disaster? Otherwise, why would Young Master Min San withdraw money early in the morning.
The attendant carrying the food box stopped from a distance, not daring to disturb Lord Yao further.
"Never mind, just wait and see." Lord Yao was too lazy to bother. No matter what Zhan Feiyu intended to do, with the Jinlong Guard and Scholar Gu blocking the front, nothing major could happen.
Lord Yao might not care, but Commander Xie, upon receiving the news, was so angry that he overturned the table. The freshly prepared breakfast was scattered all over the floor. In his rage, Commander Xie kicked the fallen table away, "This is too much, simply too much!"
Although the Jinlong Guard had infiltrated several places at night, they had not killed anyone. They looked more like a warning, which made Commander Xie furious.
The Yi Zhuang still held over twenty coffins, containing people from the Commander's Office, loyal subordinates meticulously cultivated by Commander Xie.
Since the Jinlong Guard were not bloodthirsty murderers, why should they kill people from the Commander's Office? Wasn't that going too far!
The personal guards and servants outside the reception hall stood in silence, even their breathing slowed, for fear of incurring Commander Xie's wrath. If a table could be kicked apart, what about their flesh and blood bodies?
"Someone, fetch me brush and ink!" Commander Xie roared, his eyes dark and terrifying. He wanted to send a message back to the capital immediately. The people who died in the Commander's Office were all military officers of the court. Did Zhan Feiyu really think that the Censorate was all Scholar Gu's lackeys?
But when the servant had prepared the brush and ink, Commander Xie, who had just picked up the brush, angrily threw it onto the desk. After calming down, Commander Xie realized that writing this secret letter would not be easy. It would not only offend the Jinlong Guard again but also offend the forces lurking in the shadows.
If Zhan Feiyu had instigated the Jinlong Guard to slaughter others, Commander Xie could have reported it, uniting various forces to impeach Scholar Gu or even the Jinlong Guard.
But the current situation was that only people from the Commander's Office had died, while Zhan Feiyu had only administered minor punishments to other forces.
As for the news that Young Master Min San sent someone to the bank to withdraw money, Commander Xie's suspicion was the same as Chen Fan's. If they could pay money to avert disaster, compared to offending the Jinlong Guard, would various forces care about tens of thousands of taels?
...
Yuan Residence.
Zhan Feiyu's appearance greatly surprised Madam Yuan. After receiving the visiting card yesterday, Madam Yuan had sent someone to the prefectural yamen. Prefect Yuan had sent word back to treat her as a distinguished guest.
"Mother, I'll go to the front to welcome her." Miao Shi, as the eldest daughter-in-law of the Yuan family, was suitable to say this in terms of status and age.