Chapter 497 Chapter 498: Emperor’s Wrath
Xie Jinshu's letter in the capital failed to reach Ling Yunhe's hands, and the long attendant who went to deliver the letter came back overnight.
“Can’t find Master Ling?” Xie Jinshu asked in surprise, “Please tell me carefully what happened.”
"Sir, I went straight south after leaving the capital, but when I went there, Master Ling had already gone all the way south. I had to chase him all the way south, but when I got to Qingzhou City, there was no news. I paid someone to ask someone to find out. According to the news, I vaguely heard that Lord Ling only stayed in Qingzhou City for two days and then left. As for where he went, no one knows."
Xie Jinshu's face looked a little ugly. Ling Yunhe was not an unreliable person. He would leave letters for himself all the way south, but he didn't even dare to leave letters in Qingzhou City. This meant that he had encountered something fatal.
He didn't even dare to think about whether Ling Yunhe was still alive or not.
It was because he was careless. No matter how careful he was in collecting grains, he would still disturb some people. Once he had bad intentions, the consequences would be unpredictable.
Xie Jinshu didn't dare to send a letter to the Ling family easily. If the Ling family knew that something happened to Ling Yunhe, they didn't know what would happen.
Ling Yunhe was forced to suppress the incident caused by the Ling family, so some people in the family were very dissatisfied with him.
If he knew something happened to him, he would definitely think of swallowing his things.
Xie Jinshu cannot get involved in the internal affairs of the Ling family, so now he not only cannot ask the Ling family about Ling Yunhe, but he also has to pretend that everything is normal with Ling Yunhe so as not to make the Ling family suspicious.
However, he cannot do nothing.
Xie Jinshu had many thoughts in his mind, but he was not sure that he could be found without alerting others. After much thought, he decided that he should inform Song Shangshu about this matter.
Xie Jinshu made up his mind and immediately handed over the greeting card to Wenxinhou Mansion. It was a coincidence that Song Nanzhen had just returned home and received the greeting card from Xie Jinshu, which was a bit surprising.
However, he had a good impression of this junior, so he was invited to come over and speak.
After meeting Xie Jinshu and knowing what he and Ling Yunhe had done, Song Nanzhen was shocked. He never expected that these two people were so courageous.
"After the New Deal was implemented in the south last year, a lot of tax and grain were paid back. There is not much grain that can still be sold on the market. If he goes south to collect grain, even if he does it secretly, it will definitely affect the interests of local grain merchants. You are simply audacious. ." Song Nanzhen frowned.
"Uncle, we also know that this matter is not easy to handle, so we are very careful, but there is still no news. My nephew is really worried about Yunhe's safety, so he has no choice but to ask uncle for help. Otherwise, my nephew would never dare to disturb his uncle. "
Xie Jinshu's words were sincere, and Song Nanzhen sighed. Young people are still a little too impulsive in doing things.
“You go back and wait for the news, I’ll ask someone to ask.”
Xie Jinshu thanked him hurriedly, stood up and left.
Song Nanzhen first asked someone to go to the Ministry of Punishment to inquire whether there were any major cases recently. Then he wrote a letter and asked someone to go out of the city overnight to deliver the letter. By the time the work was done, it was already dark.
Before the news from the south came back, Song Nanzhen received a letter from his eldest nephew. After reading the letter, he was not shocked.
Song Weiran's letter mainly has two meanings. The first is that Ling Yunhe asked him to deliver a letter to Xie Jinshu to report that he was safe. Second, I want my uncle to know about the food issue. I am afraid that this matter will involve the Ministry of Household Affairs, so I want my uncle to make preparations in advance and check if there is any insider. Song Nanzhen first asked people to deliver a letter to Xie Jinshu, and then asked people to chase the messenger he sent. Then he immediately recruited his confidants to secretly investigate the officials of the Ministry of Household Affairs.
By the time Yun Zhao got the news, the matter had been settled.
She first met the eldest lady. The eldest lady was entrusted by her father. Only then did she know that such a thing had happened.
The eldest lady looked at the imperial concubine's uneasy expression and comforted her softly: "Ling Yunhe is a smart man. He immediately made preparations when the situation was bad. Fortunately, he was quite lucky, but he didn't expect that the matter would be so involved."
Song Yunzhao nodded, "Who would have thought that the aftermath of last year's New Deal could spread to this day."
"Yes, after paying back the taxes and grains under the New Deal, I thought things were complete. Unexpectedly, for their own benefit, those people actually resold the grains to the border to earn high prices, and also prevented others from transporting grains at a fair price. This time if It’s not that Ling Yunhe was involved by accident, I’m afraid it won’t be discovered yet.”
The madam became more and more angry as she spoke, and the soldiers at the border guarded the city desperately. What was the result?
Some officials actually dared to do such an unscrupulous thing. According to her, beheading would be an advantage for them.
This kind of person should be cut to pieces in order to vent his hatred.
“It’s a stroke of luck that Ling Yunhe was able to save his life this time,” Song Yunzhao said.
“Yeah, I didn’t expect him to come up with the idea of buying as he goes. In this way, he gives himself a chance to breathe, and only then can he save his life.”
If I had bought the grain and kept it around me, and then shipped it out together, I'm afraid that no bones would be found by now.
The eldest lady conveyed the news, saw the two princes again, and then left the palace. Before leaving, she reassured Yun Zhao that the family would keep an eye on what happened outside, so she didn't have to worry.
Song Yunzhao smiled and agreed. This time Ling Yunhe was lucky. He met his eldest cousin who was summoned to the border town. If his eldest cousin had not been in the border town, it would not have been easy for Ling Yunhe to meet the emperor or find an official who could protect him.
Another day later, Song Yunzhao received another letter from Feng Yi. The content of the letter was similar, and he was also telling her about Ling Yunhe's incident this time.
The letter praised Ling Yunhe for being courageous and knowledgeable, and praised her for her sharp eyesight. He also told her that at least half of the border officials had been dismissed. Since the enemy troops were ahead, those who were not guilty of serious crimes were given a chance to make meritorious deeds.
Officials who committed extremely serious crimes, such as reselling military rations privately and maliciously arranging money to buy civilian rations at high prices to line their own pockets, were beheaded in front of the three-army formation as a warning to others. In addition, even their family members and relatives were exiled to the army, and only under severe punishment could such evil deeds be restrained.
From the handwriting on the letter, Yun Zhao could guess how angry Feng Yi was. After reading the letter, he picked up the pen to reply.
In the letter, she gave soft words of guidance and gentle words of comfort. In the face of a powerful enemy, military affairs should be our priority. I also wrote about the trivial matters in the palace and the affairs of the two children, especially the interesting things about the two sons' daily interactions, hoping that Feng Yi would feel better.
The military rations shipped by Ling Yunhe gave the Ministry of Household Affairs time to adjust the grain and raise the grain and grass to **** them to the border city again. At this time, the war between the border city and Beiming also reached a critical juncture.
After the New Year, matters regarding this year’s draft are also on the table.
Concubine Shu came to Yun Zhao to discuss, "According to previous years, His Majesty should issue an edict on this matter, but now that His Majesty is on an expedition in person, the palace has to make the first decision on this matter." When she said this, she sneered, "I will report it directly. The Queen Mother is just afraid that the imperial concubine will stop her."
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(End of this chapter)