Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 215 Leading the Team Personally
"Are you still suspicious that someone in the caravan leaked the information?"

Facing Zhu Shenzhui's question, Kang Youfu nodded and said, "Sixth Master, it's not that I'm suspicious, nor do I distrust Uncle Ma and the brothers, but this matter is too strange when I think about it carefully. Even if someone knew the whereabouts of the caravan in advance, it would be difficult to intercept the caravan so accurately on the grassland."

"If my guess gets out, it will certainly chill the hearts of the brothers, but I have also thought about it carefully, and it is better to investigate this matter. Whether it is true or not, once the investigation is clear, you will be relieved, right?"

The next day after Zhu Shenzhui came back, Kang Youfu came to him privately and said these words to him. Although Kang Youfu had raised this view when discussing with Ma Shizhou before, Ma Shizhou denied that there was a problem within the caravan and vowed that the brothers in the caravan were all good. If it weren't for everyone's desperate efforts, how could they have forced the other side to retreat? Accusing Kang Youfu of being completely suspicious, he could not doubt these brothers who had been through life and death with him.

Ma Shizhou's thoughts and intense reactions are understandable. Ma Shizhou is an old military leader. Although he is no longer a soldier, ever since he led the team to travel between the grassland and the Ming Dynasty, these people have followed Ma Shizhou in wind and rain, taking risks and sharing the joys and sorrows along the way.

Especially during this attack, none of these brothers retreated, and followed him, Ma Shizhou, to fight bravely. After the enemy retreated, almost everyone in the caravan was injured, and several were seriously injured. How could they still doubt their loyalty? Ma Shizhou couldn't get over this hurdle in his heart.

Zhu Shenzhui had sent a letter to Zhou Anmin, detailing the attack on the caravan and his own guesses. He asked Zhou Anmin to send someone capable to investigate the matter as soon as possible and find out who was behind the attack.

Zhu Shenzhui didn't care how the Jinyiwei investigated the case, he just wanted the result. Moreover, he believed that the Jinyiwei organization, which had been established for more than 200 years, was not comparable to ordinary government offices. Jinyiwei was full of talents, and once they worked hard, they would definitely find clues.

There has never been a case in the world that cannot be solved, let alone such a big thing. As the saying goes, people leave their names behind and wild geese leave their voices behind. As long as someone has done something, there will definitely be traces left behind. I think Zhou Anmin will not let me down.

But now Kang Youfu talked to him privately again, expressing his doubts about the situation within the caravan, and also put forward his own opinions. Zhu Shenzui couldn't help but think about it.

After careful consideration, I have to admit that Kang Youfu's judgment makes some sense.

Zhu Shenzhu nodded and said, "You don't need to get involved in this matter. I have my own arrangements."

Kang Youfu finally felt relieved. He was most worried about internal problems. If such a thing is not investigated, it will happen again in the future, especially if there are people with ulterior motives among his own people. This is not a trivial matter. The caravan was lucky this time, and the enemy did not have many people, but what about next time? If the people and goods of the entire caravan were gone, the loss of the business would be huge. Don't forget that Kang Youfu is the head of the business.

After saying this, Kang Youfu asked Zhu Shenzui about the future arrangements for the caravan.

Because of this incident, most of the goods that Ma Shizhou transported to the grassland were destroyed. Not only did the company suffer losses, but the goods originally ordered by Ashitemur were also not delivered.

Considering the relationship between Zhu Shenzhui and Ashitemur, the problem of delayed delivery of goods by the tribe is not a big deal. However, it cannot be delayed for too long. The trade between Ming Dynasty and the grassland can only last about eight months a year. When late autumn and winter come and the first snow falls, trade will no longer be possible. Therefore, all trade for the year must be completed in these eight months, otherwise we will have to wait until next year.

It was only summer, and although there was still time, some of the goods that Asitimur had ordered were for the tribe, and most of them were to be sold to other tribes. The lost goods were originally reserved by the owner. Now that so much was lost, it was not bad for his own tribe, but it was difficult to explain to other tribes, so the company had to organize a caravan as soon as possible to set off for the grassland.

"When will the goods for the grassland be ready?"

"It will take some time. You know it will take more than a few days to replenish such a large batch of goods. Besides, we lost several brothers last time, so we have to redistribute some staff."

Zhu Shenzhui nodded, thought for a moment and said, "This time it should be Old Hu who leads the team, right?"

"Sixth Master has a good memory."

"How long will it take?"

Kang Youfu thought about it and replied, "It will take at least five days."

After thinking it over, Zhu Shenzhui told Kang Youfu that five days was enough time and asked the company to prepare for departure. Five days later, he would personally lead the team out of the Great Wall and walk through the grassland. "Sixth Master, are you going in person?" Kang Youfu couldn't help asking.

"What? I can't go?"

“No, no, no!” Kang Youfu shook his head repeatedly: “Sixth Master, of course you can go, but today is different from the past. Something just happened to Uncle Ma. If we go to the grassland this time, what if…”

"Haha, isn't this perfect?" Zhu Shenzhui laughed. In fact, Kang Youfu didn't say that he also planned to lead the team to the grassland personally this time.

He wanted to see what was going on. Where did the bandits on the grassland come from? Who was behind them? As for the danger, where was there no danger for the caravan? Wasn't it less dangerous when he led the people from Wangjia Village to smuggle salt? Didn't he also rely on the sword in his hand to kill people?
Especially now, something like this has happened to the caravan on the grassland, and the morale within the company is somewhat unstable. At this time, Zhu Shenzui, as the owner of the company, has to do this, because only by doing so can he stabilize the company and give confidence to the tribe.

If we suspend trade and wait for the Jinyiwei to investigate before making a decision, it will take too long. No one knows whether the Jinyiwei can find out the truth as soon as possible. If the investigation takes one or two months or even more, will the company stop trading? How will the company continue to operate? How will the grasslands view Zhu Shenzhui?
Now the trade between the merchant company and the grassland is one of the main sources of income for Zhu Shencui. Once the trade stops, the loss will be huge. Without this income, what will Zhu Shencui use to support the expenses in Zhaowuling?

So no matter from which point of view, the trip to the grassland must not be stopped, not only can it not be stopped but also must be carried out normally. In addition to the previous losses, the cargo carried to the grassland this time will increase significantly.

As for the issue of manpower, Zhu Shenzui had already thought about it. He decided to transfer some people from other places to temporarily join the caravan to fill the gap.

These people were all brothers brought up by Zhu Shenzui himself, so there would definitely be no problem. In addition, with some of the things Zhu Shenzui had prepared, Zhu Shenzui had enough confidence to deal with them even if he encountered that group of horse bandits again.

After listening to Zhu Shencui's instructions, Kang Youfu said goodbye and left. As the head manager, he still had a lot of things to do, especially since Zhu Shencui was leading the team himself. It was also his responsibility to make proper arrangements before departure.

After seeing Kang Youfu off, Zhu Shenzhu returned to the yard and went straight to the main house.

When I entered the main room, I saw Xu Jingqiu and Qiao'er talking, both of them had smiles on their faces. Not far away, my sister-in-law Zhang was doing needlework. What she was fiddling with in her hands were the small clothes for her unborn baby.
Since marrying into the Zhu family, Xu Jingqiu has been very satisfied with this marriage. Whether it is her husband Zhu Shenzhui, her sister-in-law Zhang, or Qiaoer, they all treat her very well. Now she is pregnant again, and the child will be born soon. When she thinks of this, Xu Jingqiu's heart is full of happiness.

Although he was a little dissatisfied at first when he heard that Zhu Shenzhu had a woman on the grassland and that this woman had given birth to a son for him, this matter has long passed. It is common for men to have three wives and four concubines, not to mention that this woman is a Mongolian woman. As the eldest wife in the family and Zhu Shenzhu's legal wife, Xu Jingqiu can still tolerate this. Moreover, she is already pregnant. When she gives birth to a son for her husband, then this child will be a legitimate child. The child of the woman on the grassland can never pose any threat to her son.

"Aunt, when can the little brother come out?" Qiao'er snuggled up to Xu Jingqiu, staring at her bulging belly with her round eyes, and asked with curiosity and anticipation.

Touching Qiao'er's head, Xu Jingqiu smiled and said, "In three months, the little brother will be out. What's wrong? Qiao'er, do you want to see your little brother?"

Qiaoer frowned and asked, "Can't my brother come out earlier? My brother is not well behaved and has stayed in my aunt's belly for so long? I want my brother to come out earlier, okay?"

Xu Jingqiu's smile widened when she heard this. She patiently explained to Qiao'er that her brother was not yet grown up and would have to wait until he grew up before coming out of her belly. All children were like this, and it was the same when Qiao'er was in her mother's belly. She had to stay in the belly for a full month before coming into this world. Three months was not a long time anyway. One day passed from opening your eyes at dawn to sleeping at dusk. This kind of life would only last for ninety days. When the time came, the brother would be able to come out to see Qiao'er.

After hearing what Xu Jingqiu said, Qiao'er nodded as if she understood. She stretched out her little hand to touch Xu Jingqiu's belly, and muttered, "Brother, brother, grow up quickly. I'm your sister, you have to come out earlier. When you come out, your sister will take you to play, okay?"

As they were talking, Xu Jingqiu suddenly felt the fetus in her belly move. Qiao'er also felt it. She raised her little face with joy and said, "Aunt, my brother heard me and moved. He moved just now. My brother likes me, hehe."

Seeing this scene, Zhu Shenzhui smiled. Wasn't this kind of warmth what he had been looking forward to? He really hoped that his child could be born earlier and come into this world.

At the same time, he also thought of Tana and Tenger on the grassland. It has been a long time since he came back from the grassland. He didn't know how they are doing now. I guess everything is fine, right?
(End of this chapter)