Eagle-eyed and wolf-watching

Chapter 1700: Luxurious Reception?

Ye Mingsheng, who was sitting in the chair, wanted to rest for a while, but he didn't expect to fall asleep. He didn't know how much time had passed when he suddenly felt someone talking in his ear. He opened his eyes and saw Zhang Hu and the white-bearded old man named Lin Yongkang talking in front of him.

"I didn't mean anything by it, I just wanted to tell this gentleman that we have a bed here and he can go to sleep on it!"

Hearing Lin Yongkang's words, Zhang Hu still warily sized up the old man in front of him.

After Ye Kui was promoted to Commander of the Imperial Guard, Zhang Hu became Ye Mingsheng's most trusted chief bodyguard, and was basically in charge of Ye Mingsheng's security.

Zhang Hu was mainly in charge of security for this inspection. Now that Jing Ren has been bitten by a venomous snake, Zhang Hu is also to blame. Therefore, he has ordered the other guards to strengthen security.

Only half an hour after he gave the order, he saw the white-bearded old man, Lin Yongkang, walk towards Ye Mingsheng, who was sitting in a chair.

Although Zhang Hu did not believe that the white-bearded old man intended to harm Ye Mingsheng, out of a sense of duty as a guard, he could not allow him to easily approach Ye Mingsheng while he was resting.

Just as Zhang Hu was about to say something, Ye Mingsheng's voice came from behind him:

"Dr. Lin, how is my son's injury?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yongkang also looked at Ye Mingsheng and said:
"I just gave him his medicine, and he's still sleeping. You don't need to worry, sir. Your son will be fine; he'll recover in a few days..."

Ye Mingsheng nodded in satisfaction upon hearing this and said:

"I told you I would reward you handsomely if you cured Jingren! What do you want?"

Upon hearing Ye Mingsheng's question, Lin Yongkang pondered for a moment and then said:
"I haven't thought about that yet. Let's talk about it after your son is fully recovered!"

Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly upon hearing this and said:
"Alright!"

After saying that, Ye Mingsheng also gave the following instructions:

"I have too many people with me, and your home can't accommodate them all, so I'll go back to the inn to rest first. I'll arrange for a few people to stay and take care of Jingren. Is everything alright here with you?"

"Sir! No problem!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng went to check on Jingren again. Seeing that the child was fast asleep, Ye Mingsheng did not disturb him. Then he left Lin Yongkang's house and returned to the inn.

When Ye Mingsheng returned to the inn, Zhang Hu knelt down and begged for forgiveness:
"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince was bitten by a poisonous snake this time because we failed to protect him properly. We beg Your Majesty to punish us!"

Hearing Zhang Hu say this, Ye Mingsheng's expression also turned cold. He hadn't expected such a big thing to happen today. If Jing Ren had been less lucky and had been bitten by a short-tailed snake instead of a pheasant, the consequences would have been unimaginable!

Putting aside others, just considering An Miaoyi alone, she would definitely want to fight me to the death!
In order not to wrongly accuse anyone, Ye Mingsheng also said in a deep voice:

"Tell me again what exactly happened!"

"When we were almost at Lüqiao Town, His Highness the Crown Prince said he needed to relieve himself. Wang Beishan, who was in charge of protecting His Highness, took two guards to escort him to relieve himself. Wang Beishan had already chosen a place for His Highness, but His Highness did not want to be seen, so he walked into the depths of the bushes and did not allow Wang Beishan and the others to follow him!"

"Wang Beishan and the others thought that His Highness was just going to the toilet, which wouldn't take much time or pose much danger, so they didn't follow him..."

Ye Mingsheng frowned slightly upon hearing this. Judging from Zhang Hu's description, the responsibility for this situation mainly lay with Jing Ren. It was because he ignored the guards' attempts to stop him and walked into the depths of the bushes that the incident occurred.

Of course, Wang Beishan, as a guard, also bears joint responsibility for failing to stop Jingren in time!

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng also asked:
Where is that Wang Beishan?

"He stayed at that Dr. Lin's house!"

"What's going on?"

"After His Highness the Crown Prince was bitten by a snake, Wang Beishan immediately sucked out the venom with his mouth, but he was also poisoned and is now staying with Doctor Lin for treatment!"

Ye Mingsheng was somewhat surprised to hear this, but felt that although Wang Beishan had made a mistake, he was still loyal to his master!
After all, Jingren had just been bitten by a snake, and no one knew what kind of snake it was. At that time, it took a lot of courage for him to suck out the venom through his mouth.

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng said in a deep voice:
"Zhang Hu, get up first! I will take appropriate action after the matter is investigated!"

"Yes!"

After Zhang Hu stood up, he reported to Ye Mingsheng again:

"Your Majesty, there is one more thing I need to report to you. After you fell asleep at Doctor Lin's house, Prefect Zhang Dafu of Rao'an came to see you, seemingly wanting to report something. However, seeing that you were asleep, he didn't disturb you, only saying that he would come to see you tomorrow morning..."

Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly upon hearing this and said:
"Okay! I understand! Zhang Hu, you've been busy all day, go and get some rest!"

"Your humble servant is not tired!"

"Go and get some rest! You have a lot to do tomorrow!"

"Yes!"

At Ye Mingsheng's instruction, Zhang Hu also left the room. Ye Mingsheng, who was alone in the room, subconsciously looked around at the room's furnishings.

The room showed obvious signs of cleaning, and the wardrobe, desk, calligraphy brush, inkstone, paperweight, glass mirror, and bed all looked very new, clearly prepared on purpose.

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng's expression was somewhat complicated; he didn't know whether to be happy or angry.

Before the inspection, Ye Mingsheng specifically instructed the various prefectures and counties along the way not to make any special preparations, especially not to hold lavish receptions, and that any violators would be severely punished.

When Ye Mingsheng inspected Zhuoxian County, he concealed his identity and stayed at an inn. Although he stayed at the best inn and in the best room in Zhuoxian County, the bedding in that room had been used by others, even though it had been washed and was very clean.

However, since there is no laundry detergent or liquid detergent available yet, clothes can only be washed by hand, so some stains cannot be removed by hand washing.

So on his first night at the inn, Ye Mingsheng found some indelible stains on the bedding—a pool of blood that had been washed but still had faint traces of blood.

Ye Mingsheng was initially wary, even suspecting he was staying at a shady inn. However, upon closer examination of the bloodstains on the bedding, he vaguely realized the truth and figured it was most likely left by a woman. Although Ye Mingsheng wasn't like many people in this era who were superstitious about such things, considering them unclean and unlucky symbols, he still felt a bit uneasy sleeping on them!

So the next day, Ye Mingsheng had all the old bedding in the room thrown to the innkeepers and replaced it with new bedding he had bought himself...
To be honest, although Ye Mingsheng's requirements for food and lodging weren't as low as they were back when he was conquering the country, he was still somewhat prepared for this inspection trip. However, things couldn't be too bad; he couldn't bear it. After all, people change as their status and position change. He was no longer the lowly soldier he once was, content with just food and a place to stay.

Therefore, Ye Mingsheng was quite satisfied with the arrangement of this room.

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng collapsed onto the bed. He didn't know how long he slept before he slowly opened his eyes.

Feeling parched, he immediately began to speak:
"Water! Water!"

Upon hearing Ye Mingsheng's voice, a guard entered the room carrying a teapot and teacup, poured Ye Mingsheng a cup of tea, and said:

"Your Majesty! This tea is freshly brewed and still a bit hot, please be careful!"

Ye Mingsheng took a small sip and immediately exclaimed in surprise:
"Is this Tieguanyin tea? Did you bring it?"

"No, this was provided by the inn..."

"The inn has this?"

"Yes! I heard it was Prefect Zhang from Rao'an who specially arranged for people to make the purchases, knowing that Your Majesty was coming!"

Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly upon hearing this.

This Tieguanyin is Ye Mingsheng's favorite tea. It is produced in Lingnan, and because of the long distance, it is not widely sold in the north, and is only available in some large cities.

Ye Mingsheng originally thought that he would only be able to drink Tieguanyin tea again when he arrived in Licheng and Yujing, but he didn't expect to be able to drink it in such a small place as Lüqiao Town!

Moreover, this tea seems to be a new tea from this spring. I have to say, Prefect Zhang Dafu of Rao'an really put his heart into it.

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng also asked:
Has Zhang Dafu arrived?

"You've arrived! Prefect Zhang has been waiting outside to see you since early this morning!"

Ye Mingsheng said in a deep voice:
"Let him wait outside!"

"His Majesty is right outside the room!"

"I'm referring to outside the post station!"

Upon hearing Ye Mingsheng's words, the guard was taken aback at first, but then understood Ye Mingsheng's meaning and bowed before leaving.

A moment later, Ye Mingsheng came to the window and saw Zhang Dafu, dressed in G-clothes, standing at the entrance of the inn, wiping the sweat from his face. He looked extremely disheveled.

Seeing this, Ye Mingsheng didn't say much, but began to eat and wash up. After finishing these things, Ye Mingsheng had Zhang Dafu called over and asked:
"Have you investigated everything regarding that Dr. Lin?"

"The investigation is complete!"

"Dr. Lin's real name is Lin Yongkang. He is fifty-one years old and a native of Lüqiao Town. He has always lived in the Rao'an area. He has a son named Lin Jian and a daughter named Lin Xiaoran..."

"My daughter, Lin Xiaoran, married and moved to Licheng and hasn't returned for over ten years. My son, Lin Jian, got married ten years ago and has a daughter named Lin Meng'er, nicknamed Xiaohua, with his wife, Liu. However, not long after Lin Jian's marriage, he was conscripted by the Youyan Army!"

Hearing this, Ye Mingsheng asked with some surprise:

"His son even served in the Youyan Army?"

Zhang Dafu nodded and said:
"Yes, at that time, the Youyan Army recruited a large number of able-bodied men. Many young men served in the Youyan Army. Lin Jian studied medicine with his father, and Lin Yongkang was a well-known doctor in the area around Lüqiao Town. At that time, the Youyan Army wanted to recruit his father, Lin Yongkang, to be a military doctor!"

"Lin Yongkang couldn't refuse, so Lin Jian said that his father was too old to serve in the army, so he volunteered to join the army in his father's place, and that's how he joined the Youyan Army!"

What happened to Lin Jian afterward?

"When Zhao Fuqu attacked Yunbing, Lin Jian also went with him. He was shot in the leg by an arrow on the battlefield and became lame. He returned to Lüqiao Town and died of illness in Lüqiao Town a few years later. Later, his wife Liu remarried, leaving only Lin Yongkang and his granddaughter to depend on each other in the family!"

Hearing this, Ye Mingsheng finally felt relieved. He had been worried that Lin Jian had been killed by the Fengwu Army, which would have been awkward. Now that he had died of illness, it had nothing to do with him.

"Does Lin Yongkang have any preferences?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dafu replied without hesitation:
"A few years ago, Lin Yongkang was keen on collecting ancient books, but he lost interest in recent years. So now he lives with his granddaughter, Lin Meng'er, and we haven't heard of him having any hobbies since..."

Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly upon hearing this, then looked at Zhang Dafu and changed the subject, asking:
Do you know why I made you stand outside as punishment just now?

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dafu was immediately startled and his mind raced. However, he couldn't recall what he had done to displease Ye Mingsheng. Since receiving Ye Mingsheng yesterday, he had been doing his best to avoid neglecting him in the slightest.

Seeing Zhang Dafu's rapidly changing expression, Ye Mingsheng raised his teacup with a half-smile and said:
"I can still drink Tieguanyin tea in a small place like Lüqiao Town. Prefect Zhang, you really have a kind heart!"

Hearing Ye Mingsheng say this, Zhang Dafu realized Ye Mingsheng's thoughts, and after organizing his thoughts, he spoke:
"Your Majesty, with your noble status, you have graced Lüqiao Town with your presence. This humble subject will naturally do my utmost!"

"Hmph! Going all out! Didn't I issue a decree before saying no lavish hospitality?"

"Your Majesty's benevolence and frugality are praised by the world, but I believe I have not engaged in any lavish hospitality!"

"Looks like you're still trying to argue!"

"Your Majesty, please allow me to introduce you to this Tieguanyin tea. Although it is expensive, costing two taels of silver per pound, I only bought half a pound, which only cost one tael of silver!"

Ye Mingsheng was also somewhat surprised to hear this. He didn't expect Zhang Dafu to be able to explain it from this perspective. However, to be fair, one tael of silver was indeed not too extravagant.

While Ye Mingsheng remained silent, Zhang Dafu said somewhat embarrassedly:

"Your Majesty, I know that in addition to inspecting Youyan, you will also be traveling to Hebei, Henan, Shandong, and Hebei. Therefore, your stay in Rao'an will not be very long. So, I took the liberty of buying only half a jin of Tieguanyin tea, thinking that half a jin would be enough for you to drink during your time in Rao'an..."