"Guards, take Liu Rui into custody at once!" Upon learning that there was a traitor within her own household, Yang Yumniang immediately issued the order.
The servant sent out to capture him soon returned, looking bitter as he reported, "Eldest Miss, Liu Rui already left our Yang family estate early this morning with his bundle!"
"Damn it, what an ungrateful wretch! To think our Yang family was willing to take him in and even pay to sponsor him for the imperial examinations! No matter to the ends of the earth he flees, our Yang family will never spare him!" Yang Yumniang's pretty face flushed with anger as she spoke with bitter resentment.
If not for Li Feng's timely appearance, the moment the Court of Judicial Review searched their backyard and found witchcraft materials, the Yang family would have had a hundred mouths and still not been able to clear their names. The fate awaiting them would have been execution of the entire clan.
At this thought, she could not help but look at Li Feng with gratitude, casting aside her earlier prejudices against him and no longer believing him to be a truly useless prince.
Near noon, Old General Yang returned.
Yang Guang was currently the Grand General of the Xia State, but due to his advancing age and lack of favor from the current Emperor, he now held a semi-retired position at court.
On his way back, he had already learned what had happened at home, and seeing Li Feng in the hall, he immediately bowed and said, "Your humble servant pays respects to Second Imperial Highness!"
"Old General Yang, please dispense with the formalities!" Knowing full well that the man was one of the few truly loyal subjects of the Xia State, Li Feng immediately stepped forward to help him up.
Yang Guang had naturally heard of Li Feng's reputation, and with an imperceptible wave of his hand, he said, "Second Imperial Highness, please be seated!"
"My coming to the General's Manor today is actually to make a somewhat presumptuous request," Li Feng said straight to the point, knowing Yang Guang's straightforward temperament.
Yang Guang instructed the housekeeper to serve Li Feng tea, then asked earnestly, "Please speak!"
Yang Yumniang was accompanying them on the side and looked at Li Feng with curiosity.
Li Feng picked up his teacup, took a sip, and carefully structured his words: "The Empress and several of my sisters are preparing to have me replace the First Prince as a hostage in the Zhou Country. What are your thoughts on this, General?"
This...
Upon hearing of this move, Yang Yumniang widened her eyes in astonishment.
Li Feng was the Emperor's biological son, whereas Li Xian was merely an adopted son. Yet the Empress and several princesses were actually prepared to push Li Feng into a pit of fire.
"Utterly absurd! You are His Majesty's own flesh and blood—how dare they make such a demand?" Yang Guang set down his newly lifted teacup and immediately expressed his indignation, making his stance clear.
Seeing Old General Yang react this way, Li Feng realized that dealing with military men was indeed much more comfortable. "I would like to ask Old General Yang to step forward and stop this matter. Would you be willing to help me with this favor?"
The top priority was to prevent the injustice of his past life from happening again. After all, once he truly reached the Zhou Country, he would be entering a den of dragons and tigers; going there himself would undoubtedly mean a life of nine deaths and few survivals.
Although he had managed to survive by a fluke in his previous life, the pain and risks he endured were beyond description to outsiders, and he was unwilling to go through a life of living under someone else's roof ever again.
"Consider this matter settled by this old man! Such an unjust deed—even without your coming to mention it, I would never let such a thing happen!" Being an upright and forthright person, Yang Guang patted his chest without a moment's hesitation.
"Then I thank General Yang sincerely!" Li Feng's hanging heart finally dropped, and he bowed respectfully.
In his past life, the Yang family had been executed for witchcraft, which was why Yang Guang could not step forward to stop it. Now that the Yang family had escaped this calamity and Yang Guang was stepping in to put a stop to it, the likelihood of him replacing Li Xian as a hostage to the Zhou Country was greatly reduced.
Yang Guang was a man of hasty temperament and even more so a man of action. "Relying on this old man alone probably isn't secure enough; I need to put our heads together with a few old comrades!" With that, he turned his gaze to Yang Yumniang and instructed, "Yumniang, the Second Imperial Highness helped our family escape a massive calamity today. Take him out to tour the capital."
"Understood!" Without noticing the trace of slyness in her grandfather's eyes, Yang Yumniang agreed with great heartiness.
North of the city, at the Drum Tower.
Commerce and trade in the Xia State were extremely developed; not only was domestic commodity circulation highly active, but frequent trade with various countries had resulted in the emergence of numerous mega-wealthy merchants everywhere.
The manager of Huaxin Firm was Shopkeeper Shen, a well-known tycoon in the Xia State.
Because he knew how to integrate various cotton farmers, the massive amount of cotton he now commanded made him the undisputed "Cotton King" of the Xia State, and he even operated the capital's largest weaving workshop.
"I want to book all the cotton of your Huaxin Firm for this year!" A middle-aged man with a mole on his face arrived at Huaxin Firm and stated his purpose straight away.
Shopkeeper Qian, who was clicking away on his abacus, immediately looked up, scarcely believing what his ears had just heard.
"Only, if I take it all, you'll have to give me a ten percent discount off the prices of previous years!" The middle-aged man with a mole on his face slightly upturned the corners of his mouth as he put forward his condition.
Seeing that the man was serious, Shopkeeper Qian shook his head like a rattle-drum. "Ten percent? That price is far too low! You're making our cotton farmers labor in vain for an entire year!"
"I am buying up all the cotton in your hands in one go, not purchasing it piecemeal!" As a man of business, the middle-aged man with a mole on his face naturally knew that the other party was actually tempted.
Shopkeeper Qian was indeed tempted and immediately began counteroffering. "Five percent. At most I can offer a five-percent discount; that is my absolute limit!"
"Ten percent! You won't have to worry about sales this year, nor do you need to fret over price fluctuations—this is guaranteed, visible profit!" The middle-aged man with a mole on his face raised his index finger, refusing to yield an inch.
Shopkeeper Qian's earlier claim that there was no profit had merely been a pretext, so he made another concession. "How about this: I will report the matter to Shopkeeper Shen and give you an answer tomorrow!"
"Very good, then I shall wait one more day for you! Your Huaxin Firm had better think this through. This allows you to lock in your profits ahead of time while cutting down on countless troubles. I'd appreciate it if Shopkeeper Qian could put in a good word for this—consider this a tiny token of my appreciation!" The middle-aged man with a mole on his face readily agreed while slamming a bar of gold onto the tabletop.
Shopkeeper Qian cast a greedy glance at the gold bar, but lacked the authority to make such a major decision. "Yes, I will certainly help you persuade our Shopkeeper Shen and strive to make our cooperation happen tomorrow! But let's get our ugly truths out first—if our Shopkeeper Shen refuses, I won't be able to help you either! If you can agree to just a five-percent discount, I can sign the contract and close the deal with you right now!"
"Ten percent is my bottom line! You just need to mention it to Shopkeeper Shen; he is a smart businessman and will definitely agree to this deal!" Knowing full well that Shen Baishi would certainly agree, the middle-aged man with a mole on his face spoke with utmost confidence.
Shopkeeper Qian wanted to escort him out personally, but was refused by the middle-aged man with a mole on his face. Just as the man stepped out the door, Li Feng and Yang Yumniang entered together.