The Incense Monopoly Order

Chapter 26: Second Master Comes to Seek an Audience

"Madam, Mr. Cheng is here to ask for a meeting. The master sent me to ask you if you would like to see him?" The master and servants were discussing the Shi family when someone came to report from the front yard.

"Is Mr. Cheng alone?" Shang Mingshu asked, wanting to find out whether it was for public or private reasons.

"To answer my lady, there is only the Second Master."

Shang Mingshu thought for a moment and said, "Please invite Mr. Cheng to the waterside pavilion in the garden and prepare some tea and snacks."

White walls and black tiles, high ridges and flying eaves, layered buildings and courtyards, winding corridors, pavilions and waterside pavilions. Even the old houses in the county are not lacking in the merchant mansions.

Holding a round fan in hand, her skirt swayed gently, her black hair flowed elegantly, and she danced slowly in the wind.

Cheng She stood in front of the beauty in the waterside pavilion, watching Shang Mingshu walking silently towards him with two maids.

Her peach-colored gown accentuated her delicate and graceful figure, the veil as light as mist. Today, she wore only a jade hairpin to hold her hair up, appearing at first glance to be extremely simple and elegant. The draped placket across her chest held a piece of fine white jade, lustrous and beautiful, exquisitely carved.

This piece of jade is more valuable than a whole set of head ornaments.

"Second Master Cheng." Shang Mingshu stepped forward and saluted, then greeted him naturally, "Second Master, please take a seat."

After Cheng She returned the gift, he slowly took a step towards Shang Mingshu and sat down.

He Sui poured tea, and curls of white smoke rose up. Shang Mingshu asked directly, "Second Master, why are you looking for me?"

"Mrs. Sanniang, where did you get the news that night that made you rush to Yuliang Dam?" Cheng She didn't beat around the bush. "I learned the whole story from your father. I sent people to investigate, but they couldn't find the person who delivered the message to Madam Shang."

It turned out to be about this matter.

Shang Mingshu guessed Cheng She was hoping to use this clue to uncover more of the pirates' whereabouts. She hated them, and was happy to help, but she couldn't conjure up a person. "I'm so sorry, I don't know who it is. I happened to have a nightmare that night, and my aunt brought me the news. I couldn't rest easy without going."

Cheng She's deep eyes looked at Shang Mingshu quietly.

Obviously he did not believe Shang Mingshu's words.

Shang Mingshu took the tea from He Sui and sipped it calmly.

"Miss San, do you have any suspicions?" Cheng She had no choice but to settle for the next best thing. "That night, a large number of Japanese pirates sneaked into the city. If someone hadn't been so eager to gamble that he used a musket and was reported to the authorities, I'm afraid they would have already hidden among you and me.

When the plan failed, they mistakenly thought that my Cheng family was ruining their plans and deliberately set a trap for my brother. If it weren't for the encounter with the Third Lady, my Cheng family would have been in danger without even realizing it.

These people are omnipresent. Miss Sanniang, please let me know who you suspect and I will investigate."

"Second Master, I hate the Japanese pirates as much as you do. My grandfather died at their hands." Shang Mingshu said sincerely, "If there is any clue, I will not hide it."

Cheng She finally believed that Shang Mingshu hadn't deliberately concealed anything. Thinking of Shang Mingshu's character of not wanting to do anything without profit, he couldn't help but say, "If the Third Lady has any news in the future, please let me know. I can not only give her the tooth seal, but also get her a musket."

"Really?" Shang Mingshu, who dreamed of owning a musket, had her eyes lit up.

Her eyes were naturally lively and moist, and now they looked like thousands of stars shattered in her eyes, sparkling and bright.

Cheng She was inexplicably afraid to look directly into those bright eyes. He lowered his head and took a sip of tea: "Seriously."

After tasting the tea, he frowned and stared at the tea. Seeing his expression, Shang Mingshu, delighted, said hurriedly, "This is the new tea my second sister developed. It's quite drinkable, but it needs some improvement."

Cheng She understood and took another sip, savoring it carefully this time. "This tea is truly unique. I've never smelled a tea with such a powerful aroma. If Sanniang can make it quickly, we only need to brew a pot at the tribute market next year. Without further ado, it will attract tea drinkers."

"Second Master is absolutely right." Shang Mingshu also had this plan.

The tribute market was a commercial market held by the imperial court after foreign nations paid tribute. These foreigners would bring merchants and rare items from their countries to trade with these merchants.

Such merchants must hold a certificate before the government will allow them to enter and sell their goods.

The ya tie is a pass issued by the government to the ya brothel. All transactions must go through the ya brothel and cannot be sold privately.

This was also the reason why Shang Mingshu asked Cheng She for help in getting the tooth plaster that day.

The certificate of approval must be issued after evaluation by the government. There are too many merchants in Huizhou Prefecture, and there are countless people whose assets meet the requirements. There are quite a few people who want the certificate of approval, but Shang Jinliang has no way to get it.

The two were unfamiliar with each other, and Cheng She didn't know what to say for a moment. He stood up to say goodbye, but suddenly something occurred to him: "Third Lady, I've recently heard that someone in the Longxi area has been lying about having a way to deliver tea as tribute, and many wealthy merchants have been defrauded and left heavily in debt."

"Thank you, Second Master, for telling me." Shang Mingshu was truly grateful.

As a girl, she was trapped in this small world. Shang Jinliang did not allow her to come and go, but she could not hear any sounds from outside the prefecture and She County. Occasionally, her fellow apprentices would write to her, talking about the vast mountains and rivers, mostly interesting stories...

When the young lady was sincere, her eyes became even brighter and more stunning, as if they contained all the morning sunshine in the world and were full of vitality; fresh energy flowed from her pupils, and when they came into contact with her, all the troubles in her heart disappeared like mist meeting the sun.

"No need to thank me." Cheng She's voice softened unconsciously. "I have something else to attend to, so I won't bother you, Miss San."

"Goodbye, Second Master." Shang Mingshu saw the guest off gracefully.

He turned back to his room, picked up his pen to write a letter, and sent Hemu to deliver it to the post station to see if he could find a chance to deliver it to Longxi.

When this dynasty was founded, the imperial court stipulated that "post stations are not allowed to be used for transportation unless it is for important military or national affairs." However, as merchants became more powerful, the imperial court charged high fees for transportation of goods at checkpoints, and more and more nobles and wealthy businessmen began to rely on post stations for transportation.

The phenomenon of "the items carried are only one box or one cabinet, but a ship is often used to carry merchants and load a lot of contraband goods" was common, and the court also acquiesced to it.

The post station is safer than a private escort. A letter is light and Shang Mingshu is generous, so it can be easily delivered.

At night, Shang Mingshu went to bed early, and Shang Jinliang returned home under the stars. Even though he heard that she had gone to bed, he couldn't wait until the next day and ordered someone to wake her up and bring her to the study.

"Dad, do you want to ask about Shi Dalang falling off the cliff?" Shang Mingshu guessed that it was a serious matter and Shang Jinliang would surely be eager to ask her when he came back, but she didn't know when Shang Jinliang would return and she was too lazy to wait.

"Did you really hear that someone was planning to murder Shi Dalang and put the blame on you two sisters?" Shang Jinliang always felt that there was something he couldn't understand.

Shang Mingshu chuckled softly, "Dad, do you think that just because of my daughter and Shi Dalang, it's worth the pirates' trouble?"

"Why would I bother? Bribing a servant and finding out Shi Dalang's whereabouts is a piece of cake." Shang Jinliang felt that he could achieve his goal without any effort on the part of the Japanese pirates. He then believed that the Japanese pirates really wanted to sow discord between the two families. "A few days ago, the Japanese pirates even went to the trouble of setting up a trap for Master Cheng San!"

Compared with dealing with Cheng Mian, the means used to deal with Shi Guangchao seemed particularly careless.

"Can the Shi family compare to the Cheng family?" Shang Mingshu was unwilling to argue with Shang Jinliang. "It was Shi Qingyu who hired the killer. Whether you believe it or not is up to Dad."

(End of this chapter)