Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 203: The "Female Bat's" Evaluation of Haiyue and Yan Shifan
"This is the Shen residence. Shall we climb overboard?"

"it is good!"

Yan Xiu's actions were entirely in the style of the martial arts world. Upon arriving outside the Shen family's residence in broad daylight, he suggested going straight in.

Haiyue didn't hesitate either, directly scaling the high wall over the backyard.

"Brother Hai is truly a man of both literary and martial talents!"

Seeing this, Yan Xiu said, "It's a pity that the martial arts champion is not valued. Otherwise, if one could become the champion in both literature and martial arts, one could become famous throughout the world!"

Haiyue smiled and said, "I also want that kind of fame, but unfortunately there are people who are better than me in both literature and martial arts. I don't want to be the top scholar, so I'll just rank second or third!"

Yan Xiu praised, "Brother Hai has none of the pedantry of a scholar, yet he is quite proud. A true man should be like this!"

"People from Qionghai don't care about those things... They have connections!"

Haiyue was chatting when she stepped aside.

The Shen family residence is located in a quiet alley in the south of the city. Its blue bricks and gray tiles are nestled among a few old plum trees, making it quite elegant.

Upon entering the house, one discovers a hidden paradise, especially the back garden, where a winding stream meanders around an artificial hill, and a hexagonal pavilion stands beside the pond, its pillars inscribed with the lines: "The ink pond is shallow in spring, the brush holder is clear in the evening sun."

Looking at the stone table, there was an unfinished chess game, and next to it was a half-written note, which seemed to have been left not long ago. At this moment, a maid appeared, came to the stone table, and tidied up the things. At the same time, she muttered to herself, "Madam Wei is here again. Miss doesn't want to see her, but she always wants to find a husband for her good-for-nothing brother... Sigh!"

After the maid finished tidying up and left, Haiyue and Yanxiu finally came out.

Yan Xiu said, "The Wei Niangzi that this woman just mentioned is very likely the daughter of Wei Jiu of Baishuntang. Wei Jiu has a daughter and a son. His daughter is a business expert, but his son is a disappointment and is of marriageable age."

Haiyue raised an eyebrow: "Bai Shun Tang? That business started with brokers?"

Yan Xiu nodded: "That's them! Bai Shun Tang has three managers, Bai Da, Sai Wu, and Wei Jiu. They all started as brokers, but later rose to power through the eunuch faction, opening Bai Shun Tang, which specializes in buying and selling servants. Now they're colluding with the Embroidered Uniform Guard, buying up antiques and paintings from confiscated officials at low prices and reselling them at high prices to merchants from other places..."

In the Baihua Wine incident, Zhao Wenhua's list of buyers included these three people. Their descriptions at the time were almost identical to what Yan Xiu had said, except that they did not include the detail that he had risen to power through the eunuch faction.

Haiyue said, "So, the Liyuan Society has its eye on Baishuntang?"

“It would never have happened before. Bai Shun Tang has been in business for thirty years, but it has not completely shaken off its identity as a broker. It is still a small force. It seems to have made a lot of money, but it is just a treasure trove. Once it gets involved in the struggle of the court, it will be destroyed in an instant. All the hard work it has done over the years will be used to benefit others!”

Yan Xiu said with some disdain, "Right now, perhaps Tian Shi Yuan has his eye on Bai Shun Tang, and Tai Wei Yuan is cooperating in an attempt to seize the business ahead of time?"

Hai Yue's eyes flickered slightly: "Has business been slow in Tian Shi Yuan lately? Is it related to the strict maritime ban imposed by the imperial court?"

Yan Xiu was quite surprised: "Brother Hai, you even care about this? Qionghai isn't that affected by the sea ban, is it?"

Haiyue said, "But the coastal areas of Zhejiang and Fujian will be greatly affected. I'm afraid that if this goes on for a long time, Japanese pirates will run rampant!"

Yan Xiu frowned: "Wokou? Are they pirates from Japan? How can such a small number of people run rampant along the coast?"

Haiyue said, "The threat posed by real Japanese pirates is indeed limited due to their numbers, but merchants in Zhejiang, Fujian and other places will definitely incite the people to engage in smuggling and become fake Japanese pirates if their original trade sources are cut off. If they collude with outsiders and someone else stirs up trouble behind the scenes, the harm will be much greater!"

Having lived in Guangzhou for several years, Yan Xiu thought for a moment and his expression became serious: "Brother Hai is right, this really will happen!"

Haiyue sighed secretly.

The maritime ban policy of the Jiajing reign was an extremely foolish decision. Regardless of whether the policy itself was right or wrong, it would have been fine if it had actually been enforced. The key issue was that the central government of the Ming Dynasty simply did not have that kind of control over the coastal areas.

As a result, the government banned the lowest-class people who relied on the sea for a living, while coastal merchants and even local officials continued to participate in the huge profits of smuggling, which ultimately led to the full-scale outbreak of the Southeast Japanese pirates. After countless deaths and injuries, the sea was opened again in the first year of the Longqing reign...

If the Tian Shi Yuan of Liyuan Society is related to merchants, then there is no doubt that the coastal trade will be involved. The fact that the Japanese pirate raids broke out so thoroughly is probably also due to their behind-the-scenes instigation.

Such foresight was nothing to Hai Yue, but Yan Xiu admired him more and more as he thought about it: "Brother Hai, you were able to see through the mystery of Tian Shi Yuan's misdeeds when you first learned about it. Such ability to see the big picture from small details is truly admirable. With an opponent like you, the Li Yuan Society is probably doomed!"

'It's not that simple...'

Haiyue gently shook her head, but didn't say anything more.

He knew very well that the likes of Li Yuanshe were nothing more than a malignant tumor that had grown out of the decline of the nation. Even if this scourge were eradicated, the deep-seated problems in the southeast would still remain. Only by vigorously implementing new policies and eliminating these problems could the nation be revitalized and the people be able to live in peace and prosperity.

These words need not be spoken; we can simply take it one step at a time.

The two trespassed into a private residence as if it were their own home, and even had the leisure to discuss the situation in the southeast before finally entering the inner courtyard.

With no servants or guards and very few maids, Shen Jinghong's boudoir was empty at the moment, and the two swaggered in.

The first impression this boudoir gives is that it is filled with books. The bookshelves on all four walls reach up to the beams, and they not only contain classics, histories, philosophical works, and literary collections, but also many rare and exotic books.

On the embroidery frame by the window, there was a half-finished landscape embroidery piece, with the silk thread still hanging on the frame.

Looking further ahead, the dressing table wasn't filled with much rouge or face powder, but rather with various pigments and homemade stationery.

The arrangement exudes a scholarly atmosphere, yet it's not an artificial kind of elegance.

Every brick, every tile, every blade of grass, and every tree seems to be imbued with the owner's talent, and even the air is filled with the faint fragrance of ink and the charm of plum blossoms.

She is indeed a talented woman.

"The Li Yuan Society has many common practices in training its members. For example, women who are unable to go out will keep their secret boxes within sight. The 'Female Bat' should be no exception..."

Yan Xiu walked forward without any hesitation, touching and tapping here and there. After a while, he pointed to an exquisite and beautiful wooden box that looked like it belonged to a refined young lady and said, "This is it! The identity of Li Yuan Society is correct!"

Haiyue raised her brows.

The purpose of their trip was to further confirm Shen Jinghong's identity. After all, all previous speculations were still in the analysis stage and there was no absolute evidence. But now that Yan Xiu had directly identified the communication box, that was irrefutable proof.

Haiyue examined the exquisite wooden box, looking at the keyhole: "Can this box be opened?"

Yan Xiu shook his head: "Without a special key, opening it rashly will destroy the contents, and the key is obviously carried by Shen Shi..."

Haiyue asked, "Then what should we do?"

"give it to me!"

Yan Xiu patted his chest: "Before midnight tonight, the contents of this wooden box will appear before Brother Hai."

"it is good!"

"I trust people I employ," Haiyue nodded, then observed Shen Jinghong's boudoir again, her gaze lingering on the unfinished landscape embroidery: "Let's go!"

Yan Xiu modestly said that he had not yet settled down since returning to the capital, but he certainly had not been idle in the past year or so.

Sure enough, not to mention before midnight, just as darkness fell, Xiao Chuan, who had been following Yan Xiu around, appeared, smiling as he presented a wooden box with the key already inserted: "My brother asked me to give this to Young Master Hai!"

"Thank you!"

Haiyue opened it and found a stack of letters neatly arranged inside. She took them out one by one and began to read them.

The letters were very direct, containing the latest news about eligible young men from powerful families in the capital.

It mainly consists of high-ranking officials in the imperial court, heads of the six ministries, and other distinguished officials from various departments.

As expected, Yan Shifan's actions at Biyutang were recorded, along with rather honest evaluations. Judging from the handwriting, it should have been written by Shen Jinghong herself: "lustful," "meticulous," "profit-driven," "stingy and mean," "arrogant"...

I didn't see a single good word.

Haiyue shook her head secretly. As she looked, she saw her own reflection in the thick envelope, which recorded her actions since arriving in the capital, including the creation of Journey to the West, the establishment of the Yixin Society, and her relationships with various parties.

The comments next to it were much more positive: "Exceptionally intelligent," "Quick-witted," "Loyal and devoted," "Ambitious," "Aloof," "Difficult to approach"...

'This woman seems to understand me quite well!'

Haiyue's eyes flickered slightly, and then her expression suddenly became serious as she looked back: "The Empress Dowager wanted to adopt Li Shi of Annam as her goddaughter and marry her to Haiyue. The previous plan is not feasible and must be abandoned."

Since he listened to his mother Zhu Lin's suggestion, he did try to get Li Yuying to become the Empress Dowager's adopted daughter, but the results are still unknown.

After all, Li Yuying did make great efforts in the Princess's Mansion case, protecting Empress Dowager Jiang and Princess Yongchun from harm. However, such merit can only be appreciated by the other party. Once the intention of taking advantage of the favor is revealed, it will often have the opposite effect.

Therefore, he suggested that Li Yuying appropriately complain to the Empress Dowager, saying that both parties had feelings for each other, but their social statuses were not compatible.

Li Yuying tried this, but has not received any feedback yet, which makes her quite discouraged. Haiyue does not think it is necessarily a failure. Perhaps the other party is just observing and waiting to see if she will seek another marriage when she is successful in the imperial examination and in the midst of her triumph.

However, he was unaware of the outcome of this matter, and even Li Yuying herself was unaware. Yet, Li Yuanshe had informed Shen Jinghong in advance, urging her to give up her pursuit of him.

"Li Yuanshe has people in the inner palace, and they are very close to Empress Dowager Jiang!"

Haiyue slowly put down the letter, made her judgment, and then looked at the latest one, which was in someone else's handwriting: "Yan Shifan seems to have noticed something. Judging from his wavering resolve, we can go with the flow and act according to the plan..."

(End of this chapter)