Ink Burns

Chapter 207 I Want to See Xue Xiao

"Look at what you're saying. What's this about taking sides? I'll stand on whoever benefits me—I just said I'm just a middleman, trying to get you to talk. If you can reach an agreement, great; if not, we'll part ways and consider it a failed deal."

Shan Yue smiled gently, her hands folded on her knees, a posture and manner commonly seen among noblewomen in the capital.

Madam Zhou was stunned, but could not hide her anger: "This is business? This is my son's life!"

Shan Yue's expression froze, and she lowered her head awkwardly as if she had misspoke. She touched her lips with her slender fingertips, and after a while, she tried to make amends: "No matter how heartbroken or anxious you are, it doesn't change the fact that the young master has fallen into Xue Xiao's hands. Everyone thinks the young master is still in the capital. If you want to find someone to rescue him, who will? The Marquis of Guanbei? If the Marquis wanted to rescue him, didn't he already pull some strings when he was in the capital?"

Madam Zhou looked at Shan Yue with alarm.

Chang Lin was getting tired of cleaning up his son's messes. The first time Su Ge'er got into trouble, he killed an eighth-rank official. Although the official's rank was low, his family was quite wealthy. He came from a mine in the southwest border region and was said to be the only son in three generations. He spent four thousand taels of silver to pull strings with the Cui family and help his grandson get a good birth. Who would have thought that Su Ge'er would trample on him so badly as soon as he arrived in the capital?
To resolve this matter, Chang Lin made a special trip to the northern frontier. The Cui family intervened, and the Chang family paid 5,000 taels of silver to barely quell the situation.

After that, several more lives were lost, some of them commoners, some officials, and some merchants. The Chang family spent a lot of money to settle the matter.

She didn't think so—Su-ge'er was lucky to be born into a noble family. A fiery temper and eccentric behavior were only fitting for his birth! Those of them who weren't born well didn't have the guts to cause trouble even if they wanted to!

Moreover, Su-ge'er is Chang-Lin's only son!
Chang Lin himself had a fiery temper. He fought with others at the Xishan camp and was seriously injured, so he could no longer have a son!
A while ago, she could have shamelessly asked Chang Lin to rescue her son, but these past few days, she dared not risk offending him—although Chang Lin had no more sons, his younger brother had three boys, all of whom had been sent to the Xishan camp. She had heard that they were quite capable and hardworking, and had gained a lot of praise and popularity these days.

My nephews are all successful, but Su Ge'er hasn't figured things out yet and doesn't know how to study hard.
Chang Lin didn't want to get involved in Xue Chen's matter. When she went to beg, the old bastard looked at her with a half-smile: "You have more than just me around you. The Grand Princess, the Cui family, and Yuan Wenying of the Cabinet all have connections and can save your son."

The reason why the scapegoat was "beaten up" was because Princess Suiyuan had pulled some strings out of consideration for Su Ge'er's childhood friendship!

Chang Lin wasn't sure if he would care about her son's life or death.

Shan Yue offered another suggestion at the opportune moment: "The Grand Princess? Can the Grand Princess save her?" Shan Yue smiled: "Your Highness has long disliked Xue Xiao. Would she really lower herself to negotiate terms or do business with him? If Your Highness intervenes and angers Xue Xiao, he might hand over Young Master Chang to the Emperor as a fugitive, regardless of your connections or scapegoats. In that case, even if the Emperor intervenes and personally tries the case, Young Master Chang will still meet the same fate—"

dead!
Murderers must pay with their lives!
Once the sage personally conducts the trial, all scapegoats, altered testimonies, and schemes will be rendered meaningless!

Her son still won't survive!
Madam Zhou's face twitched, and the white pearl powder she had applied fell to the ground in a flurry.

"Only you can save Young Master!" Shan Yue reached out and grasped Madam Zhou's hand.

Mrs. Zhou reflexively pulled her hand back.

Shan Yue tightened her grip, saying, "In this world, only a mother can ever save her son!"

Madam Zhou took a few deep breaths: "What, what should we do?" "The best way is for us to make this deal with Xue Xiao quietly. He takes the goods, you take the people, and we can get back on track without anyone noticing. Wouldn't that be a win-win situation?" Shan Yue smiled and said reproachfully, "It's just a pity that I plan everything with you, but you say I've chosen Xue Xiao's side!"

Madam Zhou's mind was in a complete mess, like a pot of porridge. Whenever Shan Yue spoke, it was as if she was stirring the porridge with a stick.

The hot porridge was burning her brain, making her dizzy and her mind in turmoil.

"Xue Xiao, what do you want?" Madam Zhou asked tentatively.

“The account books of Guan'anzhai in the twenty-third year of Zhaode.” Shanyue replied, “He knows that your brother is in charge of Guan'anzhai. You are very close to Guan'anzhai. You definitely can’t get anything else. But if you put in the effort, you have a chance to get this thing.”

Mrs. Zhou's first reaction was confusion: "What does he need this for?"

Shan Yue carefully observed Madam Zhou's expression and saw only confusion and doubt, without any shock or astonishment. She knew that Madam Zhou was unaware of the fact that the six prefectures and twelve counties involved in the Duzhou dike breach case had laundered money with the Grand Princess Jing'an through Guan'anzhai—it would be abnormal for Madam Zhou to know! In "Qingfeng," she was not the most intelligent or the most capable, and could only rely on the Grand Princess and the Chang family to do some simple tasks.

Money laundering is a serious matter that Jing'an would never let her know.

Shan Yue shrugged: "I don't know. He has always been on good terms with Bai Yusi, the prefect of Songjiang Prefecture. The Liu family has been the local tyrant of Songjiang Prefecture for many years and has caused Bai Yusi a lot of trouble. The two of them have been investigating the Liu family since last year. They have been asking me openly and secretly whether there are many genuine works by Master Shen and Master Mi in the Liu family. I answered that I remember there was a painting by Master Shen called 'Spring Snow' in the Liu family. He found out as soon as he inquired that it was bought by a salt merchant from Jiangnan."

"I suspect he might want to obtain the account books as evidence to solidify the Liu family's crimes of collusion between officials and businessmen and accepting bribes, thus clearing obstacles for his friend's political career?"

When speaking, one should be seven parts truth and three parts falsehood.

Shan Yue's words are nine parts true and one part false.

It's true that the Liu family sabotaged the new prefect, it's true that the Liu family accepted bribes, and it's true that Xue Xiao wanted to investigate the Liu family. Every word and sentence can withstand scrutiny.

Madam Zhou's mind raced, and she murmured, "If they only want the account book, that would be easy. My brother has never liked abacuses or account books. He only owns this one shop, and he's always wary of the Princess's steward. He even gave me a key to the accounting room. If they only want one account book, it doesn't really affect anything fundamental."

Dou's mother walked slowly past the window.

Shan Yue smiled and patted Madam Zhou's hand: "Is that so? Xue Xiao and the eldest young master have always kept to themselves. Xue Xiao has been able to climb to his current position because of his crazy and stubborn spirit. We who have shoes on will not compete with him who has no feet on the ground. As for this account book, do you think it should be given to me, or you should personally hand it to Xue Xiao?"

Madam Zhou suddenly looked up: "I want to see Xue Xiao in person."

Shan Yue raised an eyebrow, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.