Detective Di Renjie: The Mysterious Dynasty

Chapter 344 Prince Ying
In the guest room of Prince Liang's Mansion in Shendu, a young man in his twenties was having a pleasant conversation with Wu Sansi.

This man's surname was Yuan, and his given name was "Gui". He was the only legitimate son of Prince Ying Yuanqi. He had a handsome face, but he had a pair of triangular eyes that looked a bit evil.

He clapped his hands lightly, and a row of pretty women opened the rosewood lacquer boxes in their hands.

The box was actually filled with whole boxes of pearls, each one was round and full, some were as bright as snow, some were golden, and some were crystal clear black. It was truly colorful and dazzling.

Even though Wu Sansi was well-informed, he was still dazzled by the sunlight. You can't stand his large volume!

Yuan Gui spoke with a hint of pride, his triangular eyes flashing with cunning: "These pearls are said to be obtained from Southeast Asia. Although they are not rare, they are of good quality. I hope you will accept them!"

Fortunately, Wu Sansi had been a prime minister for many years and was not an ignorant bumpkin. He coughed, took a sip of tea, and retracted his eyes.

Seeing this, Yuan Gui frowned involuntarily and waved his hand again, signaling the servants to present the next batch of gifts.

Wu Sansi slowly put down the teacup in his hand, waved his hand to stop the young man's action, and exclaimed: "What a South Sea pearl! Even in the inner courtyard of the imperial palace, it would not be easy to collect such a quantity and color of pearls!"

"It's just that I won't accept the reward without merit. Your father is so generous. If you encounter any difficulties, you can speak up. As long as I can do something, you can speak up!"

Hearing this, Yuan Gui smiled and shook his head, saying, "Uncle, you are too kind. You and my father have known each other for many years and have a deep friendship. You have also taken good care of Prince Ying's mansion in the court. This is just a small token of my appreciation."

Wu Sansi smiled slightly, without making any comment, and prepared to listen carefully to what was to come.

As expected, Yuan Gui continued, "To be honest, my father is a close friend of Yang Jiucheng, the governor of Yangzhou. I am here for the officials of Yangzhou. You know that there was a little trouble with the transport of grain today. I hope you can help me. I will reward you handsomely in the future!"

When Wu Sansi heard this condition, he raised his eyebrows and tapped his fingers on the table: "I'm afraid this matter is not easy to handle!"

After saying this, he slowly stood up, put his hands behind his back, and said thoughtfully: "In previous years, the official salt and money and grain from Jiangnan were transported to the two capitals via the canal, and it is true that some losses were inevitable on the way."

"But this time, the Han Canal suffered an accident, and the loss was more than half. Your Majesty is extremely angry about this! Even I find it difficult to speak easily."

Yuan Gui also stood up with Wu Sansi and said, "Uncle, you don't know that the canal runs from the Yangtze River to Luoyang, passing through the Huai River, the Bian River, and the Yangtze River. The hydrological conditions along the way are very different."

"The official ships on the Yangtze River traveled thousands of miles to Luoyang, and the fleet would have to spend millions on food and supplies. The sailors on the Yangtze River were not familiar with the hydrology of the Yellow River and the Huai River, and the river ships were not adapted to the waterway, so it was inevitable that some of them would run aground and capsize."

"What's more, the grain transporters on both sides of the Han Canal are all unruly people. They are all cunning and lazy. They receive a large amount of money from the court to protect the grain transport, but they are unwilling to work hard. Instead, they commit crimes and steal on the river."

"Over the years, this group of unruly people have turned into pirates, stealing official ships, causing the canal to silt up and hindering the smooth flow of water! This year, these people have gone even further, with as many as thousands of pirates robbing official ships. As a result, the loss of official ships this year is unprecedented. I hope you can see clearly!"

Wu Sansi nodded as if smiling, then shook his head: "I can only do my best. My dear nephew, you should understand, but it is unreasonable for the court not to send someone to investigate such a mistake."

Yuan Gui didn't care at all and said with a smile: "Everyone knows that your uncle is the person your majesty relies on the most. If you ask, it will be easy to get him!"

"As for sending someone to investigate, if you are interested, you might as well send your trusted confidants to go and eliminate the pirates and facilitate the canal transportation. This will also be a great achievement!"

As he spoke, he presented a delicate wooden sign with both hands, "Uh, this is the certificate of Hongtong Counter. You can redeem it at any branch in the capital. Uncle, please accept it for the time being."

Well, with this thing, bribery becomes much easier.

Wu Sansi took the wooden sign and couldn't help but smile and sighed, "Hongtong Shop! The father and son are really business geniuses! Anyway, it seems that I have to help you with this favor."

The other party was willing to spend such a large price, Wu Sansi could not help but say a few more words: "Also, I would like to advise my nephew that the atmosphere in the court is not right recently."

"There have been many reports of impeachment against old officials in the local area. Zhang Jianzhi and Prince Yan are trying to make a big fuss out of this. Your Majesty has been bewitched by them and has implicated many of his old friends. As far as I know, Xue Qinglin, the Marquis of Pingnan in Jiangzhou, is not in a good situation. You should also be careful." Yuan Gui heard this but did not take it to heart. He smiled calmly and said, "Don't worry, uncle. My father has never been involved in government disputes. I will just remind him to be more cautious when I go back."

Seeing this, Wu Sansi nodded slightly, his expression solemn: "That's great, there is no time to lose, I will go to the palace to meet Your Majesty immediately!"
-
Ever since the tunnel incident in the East Palace and the flood in Ziwei Palace, Wu Zetian has been staying in Shangyang Palace.

Zhao Ji stood leisurely in a corner outside the Zhenguan Hall, his expression calm, and it was obvious that he was in a very happy mood.

After a while, Shangguan Wan'er pushed the door open and walked out of the hall. Seeing Zhao Ji waiting there, she walked over and whispered, "Your Majesty is in a bad mood today. Be careful when you go in."

When Zhao Ji heard this, his brows slightly raised, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, as if he had expected this.

Then, a tall woman dressed in the uniform of the Inner Guard walked out of the hall. She looked heroic and valiant. It was Fenghuang, the new chief of the Inner Guard.

She passed by Zhao Ji and bowed, saying, "Greetings, His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan."

Zhao Ji smiled and nodded, even as a return of greeting: "No need to be polite, Grand Master."

After saying hello, Fenghuang had no intention of talking any more and went straight away, apparently having some important official business.

Just like when Xiao Qingfang was around, Shangguan Wan'er always looked down on female leaders of the inner guards, especially since Fenghuang was much younger and more beautiful than Xiao Qingfang.

She stared at Fenghuang's back and unconsciously criticized, "I don't know what medicine the internal guards took today, but they found out that he went to Wu Sansi's mansion."

Zhao Ji's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he said with great interest: "Oh? The inner guards are investigating the Wu family? This is really strange!"

Shangguan Wan'er also frowned slightly and said sourly, "Not entirely. She reported that Prince Ying had just arrived in Beijing last night and was taken to the Liang Palace this morning for a visit. He was very secretive and his whereabouts were mysterious."

"When the Han Canal incident just happened, the Internal Guard found out some inside information. His Majesty praised her for being swift and decisive, far better than Xiao Qingfang and Huang Shengyan."

Zhao Ji blinked subconsciously, and a playful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth: "It seems that the inner guards are keeping an eye on Prince Ying's mansion, but they just happened to follow Wu Sansi, there is nothing wrong with that!"

Shangguan Wan'er knew Zhao Ji very well. Seeing his reaction, she immediately asked suspiciously, "Could you be involved in this?"

Zhao Ji heard this and said innocently, "What does this have to do with me? Wu Sansi, Ying Wang Yuanqi, and the inner guards have nothing to do with me!"

Shangguan Wan'er did not continue to ask, but just smiled with a hint of sarcasm: "Then Wang Xiaojie's memorial must have something to do with you, right?"

Speaking of the army, Zhao Ji's face turned serious and he said, "You can't talk nonsense. That memorial was signed by many generals in the northwest, not just Wang Xiaojie...Okay, I'd better meet His Majesty first."

After saying this, Zhao Ji straightened his clothes and strode into the hall.

Shangguan Wan'er looked at Zhao Ji's back with a smile, muttering to herself, "You said it had nothing to do with you, but you knew it was signed by all the generals from the northwest without even reading the memorial. Humph."

At this time, Wu Sansi's carriage had just arrived at Tixiang Gate, and he received a generous gift from Yuan Qi and his son. Naturally, he was in a very good mood.

But he hadn't expected that Zhao Ji had already prepared a bigger "gift" waiting for him in the palace.

　The remaining cases will be intertwined, and the Yangzhou Salt Case will be mentioned before the Black Society. The protagonist is about to start playing a big game.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)