The most dissolute couple in the capital

The next morning, in the backyard of the "Bai Cao Tang" pharmacy in the capital.

As dawn broke, the aroma of herbs filled the air.

Manager He of Baicaotang was sitting in a grand chair, twirling two glossy walnuts in his hands.

He was over fifty years old, with a round face, and he always smiled like a Maitreya Buddha. Customers who saw him all said that he was the most approachable person.

The trusted clerk hurried across the corridor and reported in a low voice, "Manager, Wang, the registrar from the suburbs, sent an urgent letter overnight."

"Oh?" Manager He didn't even lift his eyelids. "What trouble has that idiot gotten into this time? Or has he set his sights on some barren paddy field and wants to spend some 'miracle cream' to mess with it?"

"Neither." The clerk handed over the secret letter with both hands. "It says that two fat fish from Jiangnan have arrived. They brought three thousand taels of silver as a gift, wanting to buy in large quantities and replicate our business in Jiangnan. Registrar Wang is undecided and asks for your decision."

Shopkeeper He paused slightly as he played with the walnuts, then slowly opened his eyes, took the secret letter, and glanced at it.

"Three thousand taels, merely a deposit..." A cryptic smile played on his lips as he casually tossed the secret letter into the small red clay stove beside him. The flames greedily surged up, instantly engulfing the letter in ashes.

"The Jiangnan water towns are the wealthiest places in the world. If you could really set up a business there, you could amass mountains of gold and silver in your lifetime."

Looking at the secret letter reduced to ashes, the shop assistant tentatively flattered, "Congratulations, boss! This is a windfall! Shall we prepare the goods and go greet our customer?"

"idiot!"

The two walnuts in Manager He's palm suddenly made a teeth-grinding grinding sound. The shop assistant was so frightened that his knees buckled and he knelt on the ground.

"A few things not kept secret can lead to disaster. These merchants from Jiangnan have suddenly appeared out of nowhere, wanting to devour such a huge quantity in one go. Even that country bumpkin, Doctor Zhang, dares to parade around town with his entourage. Many people know about this. If we really welcome them in as merchants, and the news leaks out, how many heads will we have left to lose?"

The waiter was so frightened that he kowtowed repeatedly, "The manager is right! Then...then we won't do this business?"

"Do it? Why not do it?" Manager He leaned back in his chair, the walnuts crackling softly again, but his tone was chilling. "Three thousand taels of silver, like meat delivered right to my lips, why would I spit it out? But while wealth is tempting, one must also be alive to spend it."

Manager He casually instructed, "Go and send a message to Registrar Wang, telling him that I've taken this business. Have him bring those two wealthy merchants from Jiangnan, along with Physician Zhang, to Luoyun Temple, thirty li outside the city, at 7 PM tomorrow."

Luoyun Temple was built on the edge of a cliff outside the city, but it has long been abandoned due to poor management. The terrain is treacherous, with not even a smooth mountain road, and it is surrounded by barren mountains and wilderness.

The waiter knelt at the lower end, not daring to speak.

Manager He slowly said, "Take my invitation and go to Black Wind Stronghold. Tell them that tomorrow at 7 PM, Luoyun Temple will have fat sheep worth more than three thousand taels of silver. After the deed is done, the silver notes will belong to me, and the remaining horses and personal belongings will all belong to Black Wind Stronghold."

He paused, then said, "Not only those two merchants from Jiangnan and Physician Zhang, but also that unreliable Registrar Wang, they should all be let go."

"The shopkeeper is brilliant! This servant will take care of it right away!" The clerk kowtowed repeatedly, grabbed the business card, and scrambled away to carry out the task.

-

Half an hour later, in a village on the outskirts of Beijing.

The guards of the Prince's mansion, disguised as "Master Qian," stood respectfully below the hall and reported the message from the registrar to the two people in the main seats: "Your Highness, Your Highness, the other party has taken the bait. They say that the head manager accepted the deal and asked us to bring the three thousand taels of silver to Luoyun Temple, thirty miles outside the city, at 7 PM tomorrow to complete the transaction."

"Good!" Li Chengjing stood up excitedly. "This coward has finally shown himself! Tomorrow, I will bring the guards from my residence and wipe out the head manager and Registrar Wang in one fell swoop! I want to see which blind fool dares to engage in such a head-risking business outside Chang'an!"

Hearing Li Chengjing's boastful words, Cui Qingyi merely glanced at the guard and asked, "Luoyun Temple? What kind of place is that?"

"Your Highness, the Luoyun Temple is built on the edge of a cliff outside the city. It has been abandoned for more than ten years because it was destroyed by fire years ago and has not been repaired. The surrounding area is all barren mountains and wilderness, and there is not even a flat mountain road that can be crossed by a carriage," the guard replied truthfully.

Li Chengjing interjected, "Qingyi, I know that awful place! I took He Li and the others there hunting a few years ago. The Taoist temple's roof is drafty and dilapidated; nobody ever goes there. It's a godforsaken place!"

"Don't rush." ​​Cui Qingyi wasn't swayed by Li Chengjing's words. Instead, she turned to the guards below and began to question them carefully. "Let me ask you, what is the terrain like around Luoyun Temple? Is there a smooth road leading from the main road?"

The guard thought for a moment and replied, "Your Highness, once you turn off the main road, all you see are barren mountains and rocks. The only way to reach Luoyun Temple is a narrow, steep path worn down by woodcutters, with dense forests blocking out the sky on both sides."

Cui Qingyi's eyes flickered slightly as she continued to ask, "Is the carriage allowed to pass?"

"It's difficult to get there." The guard shook his head confidently. "Let alone a carriage, even on horseback, only someone with superb riding skills can get there."

"I see." Cui Qingyi's gaze sharpened. "It's normal to choose a remote place, but the problem with Luoyun Temple is not that it's remote, but that it's isolated."

Li Chengjing was taken aback: "Absolutely? How so?"

"Your Highness, think about it," Cui Qingyi patiently guided the slow-witted playboy, "the bait we're using is to buy in large quantities. If this 'immortal cream' is delivered in large quantities, it's quite heavy. Since the carriage can't go up, are we going to have to carry it up the cliff box by box along the narrow path every time we make a transaction? That doesn't make sense for large-scale transactions."

Cui Qingyi continued, "Secondly, Luoyun Temple is surrounded by cliffs on three sides, with only one difficult dead end. If something goes wrong during the transaction, or if they encounter a government raid, they won't even have a place to run. As someone who is secretly carrying out such important business while infiltrating the government, choosing such a place as the transaction location is probably not for the purpose of doing business."

Li Chengjing then realized, "You mean, this old fox never intended to do business with us in the first place, and that place was a trap?!"

"Since it's a deadly trap, there has to be a knife to kill." Cui Qingyi didn't answer directly, but turned to look at the guard again, her voice slightly deep, carrying the oppressive feeling of the mistress of her previous life when interrogating her steward, "Think carefully again, in the vicinity of Luoyun Temple, or in this area west of the capital, have there been any rumors of unrest in the last six months? Since it's a desolate wilderness, have any bandits or outlaws been roaming around?"

The guard broke out in a cold sweat: "Your Highness! I remember now! A while ago, I was drinking with the brothers from the patrol battalion, and they mentioned that Black Wind Stronghold, about thirty miles west of the city, seems to have recently gathered a group of refugees from other places. They're quite restless and have even robbed a few passing merchants. The patrol battalion originally planned to wipe them out before winter, but they put it on hold because they didn't have conclusive evidence."

"Black Wind Stronghold... thirty miles away..." Cui Qingyi connected all the clues. "That makes sense. Three thousand taels of silver, an abandoned Taoist temple with no way out, plus a band of desperate bandits who desperately need money and food. Your Highness, the mastermind behind this is quite cunning."

Li Chengjing now fully understood: "Trying to trap someone! Using someone else to do the dirty work! Destroying the body to cover up the crime! Murdering for money! Getting something for nothing! Outrageous! This is outrageous!"

He angrily cursed, "In my twenty years of life, I've always been the one abusing my power! And today, in this Chang'an city, there's actually someone so blind as to try and scheme against me, even trying to steal my money and kill my men?! This is utterly outrageous, defecating on the head of the royal family!"

"Qingyi, what do you suggest we do?" Li Chengjing leaned closer to the soft couch, rubbing his hands together eagerly. "I'll take the gold token and mobilize a thousand Imperial Guards! Tomorrow night, we'll raze that Luoyun Temple and the Black Wind Stronghold to the ground! Let's see how they try to outmaneuver us. Can they outmaneuver the Imperial Guards with their divine crossbows?!"

"Using the Imperial Guards would be too much of a commotion. If this gets to the Emperor, Your Highness will inevitably get a lecture. Besides, why should Your Highness do it personally?" Cui Qingyi said to him in a few words, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Li Chengjing became increasingly pleased as he listened: "Great!"