Chapter Eighty-Nine
After Jiutong Trading House stepped forward to make the matter known, the major merchants in the southern regions began approaching Qilin Hall one after another, offering to pay their share in exchange for protection.
Seeing how carefully Fang Dai treasured the calling card bearing Chief Aide Song’s name, Liu Heipi consulted with Geng Dayou. He wanted to give several copies to the merchants they recruited as well, so that they would have Qilin Hall’s backing.
Chief Aide Song was in charge of the silver collected by Qilin Hall and already considered himself one of its members. When Geng Dayou returned and explained the situation, Chief Aide Song immediately wrote out a thick stack of calling cards and handed them to Qilin Hall for distribution.
Once word spread that merchants who paid their share would receive a calling card, the effect was remarkable. Those who had still been watching from the sidelines no longer hesitated and began coming to Qilin Hall in droves. By the middle of November, more than thirty merchants in the southern regions had agreed to contribute twenty to thirty percent of their earnings.
These merchants naturally could not compare with Jiutong Trading House, which conducted business overseas. Even so, the thirty-odd businesses together brought in a substantial sum. The smallest contributed thirty thousand taels a year, while the largest contributed one hundred thousand. Adding Jiutong Trading House’s three hundred and sixty thousand taels, the total came to more than two million three hundred and eighty thousand taels.
Previously, all this money had been passed up the chain as bribes to various powerful officials. And this was only a portion of the wealth in the southern regions. The total must have been staggering.
The annual military expenditure of the Great Yong amounted to more than eight million taels. The money they had collected could cover three months of military expenses.
During the years Emperor Xuanning had been on the throne, the taxes collected had declined year after year. In recent years, the court’s income had no longer been enough to cover its expenses, and it had survived only by robbing Peter to pay Paul.
Even the border troops’ salaries were in arrears. Unless the delay became utterly impossible to sustain, the court simply could not pay them.
With this silver as a foundation, the emperor now had room to maneuver.
Only then did Cui Lanyin truly appreciate how important the task the emperor had entrusted to her was.
She felt much more confident about leaving the palace in a year. Even if her relationship with the emperor came to an end, she would still be someone he could rely on.
Chief Aide Song prepared a model contract. Geng Dayou brought it to Liu Heipi, and Jiutong Trading House signed a contract according to the same terms.
After all these matters, Liu Heipi was thoroughly convinced. Whenever something came up afterward, he sought out Geng Dayou and asked him to consult Chief Aide Song. Chief Aide Song had, in effect, become the strategist behind Qilin Hall.
With Liu Heipi and Geng Dayou handling matters outside and Chief Aide Song handling matters within, Cui Lanyin had two capable assistants at her side. She only needed to set the overall direction.
Because Yu Lang had been unable to keep his mouth shut, Princess Yongjia had broken things off with him and found herself a new lover, Mr. Fan.
These days, when Cui Lanyin left the palace, she usually went home to visit her nephew. Occasionally, she would also visit Princess Yongjia’s residence to enjoy musical performances and dances.
Any respectable household in Yingcheng that held a banquet would send her an invitation to the former imperial residence.
Ever since rumors spread that she was keeping a lover, she could no longer attend a banquet in peace. Young men were always finding excuses to “encounter” her, much to her annoyance.
Moreover, whenever she went out and returned, the emperor would become difficult for a day or two. Thus, apart from a few invitations she could not refuse, Cui Lanyin declined them all.
On the twelfth day of the eleventh month, Little Hongfen held her full-month celebration. Cui Lanyin left the palace and spent the night at her family home. When she was preparing to return to the palace the next day, Geng Dayou came to report that Jiutong Trading House had run into trouble and that Fang Dai had gone to see Liu Heipi.
Jiutong Trading House was Qilin Hall’s showcase establishment. If they could resolve its difficulties properly this time, more merchants would come seeking their protection in the future.
Cui Lanyin decided to meet Fang Dai. She received him in the largest private room at Yunlai Restaurant.
She already had a reputation for keeping lovers, so what did it matter if she went to a restaurant by the Wu-Yang River?
This time, she did not wear a mask or travel inconspicuously. She rode in a four-horse carriage and brought Chief Aide Song along. The entire party made a deliberately ostentatious procession to the restaurant.
After they were seated, Liu Heipi led Fang Dai inside.
When Fang Dai learned that Second Miss Cui wished to see him, his heart had been pounding all the way there.
The moment he entered the private room and looked up, he recognized the woman before him as the same one he had seen on the pleasure boat.
“Your humble servant pays his respects to Second Miss Cui. Please, Second Miss Cui, save my life.” His legs trembling, he was about to kneel, but Liu Heipi, seeing Cui Lanyin’s signal, promptly pulled him back up.
“Jiutong Trading House is a merchant under Qilin Hall’s protection. I should naturally treat you with courtesy. Young Master Fang, there is no need for such ceremony. Please, sit down.”
Cui Lanyin pointed to an empty seat. “Tell me what happened.”
Fang Dai walked over and sat down, but he did not dare settle fully into the chair. He looked ready to stand at any moment to answer her questions.
Cui Lanyin asked, “What trouble has Jiutong Trading House encountered? Is Chief Aide Song’s calling card of no use?”
Fang Dai immediately rose to his feet. “It is—”
Cui Lanyin waved her hand. “I dislike all those unnecessary formalities. Young Master Fang, make yourself comfortable.”
Only then did Fang Dai dare sit properly. He continued, “Originally, we promised Yuan Tao, the Provincial Administration Commissioner of Guangzhou, ten percent of our earnings. Then he said he needed to send payments farther up the chain, so we added another ten percent.
“We used to pay the two shares in full at the end of the year. Beginning last year, however, Yuan Tao would frequently use the excuse of needing money for bribes to withdraw funds in advance. Often, before the end of the year, the original twenty percent would already have been paid, and another thirty percent would have gone out as additional ‘handling money.’ If even one fewer ship returned from the sea, Jiutong Trading House would have worked an entire year for nothing.
“Half a month ago, Yuan Tao once again sent his steward to withdraw money. After my father and the others paid him the full amount, they took Chief Aide Song’s calling card and went to see Yuan Tao. They told him that all future shares would be paid to Qilin Hall.
“Yuan Tao accepted it readily. He even courteously escorted my father out, treating him with a degree of respect we had never seen from him before.
“We thought the matter was settled. We never expected that only a few days later, Lu Zhi, the Commander of Guangzhou, would have our ships seized and my father arrested. The charge was that Jiutong Trading House had colluded with pirates and endangered the frontier.
“The other owners of Jiutong Trading House went to Yuan Tao, but Yuan Tao said that senior officials in Yingcheng had learned that the share payments were no longer coming to them and had ordered Lu Zhi to act. He claimed there was nothing he could do.”
Cui Lanyin had not expected those officials’ extortion to be so brazen.
She had already thought the twenty percent Jiutong Trading House paid to Yuan Tao was excessive. From Fang Dai’s account, however, even after receiving that twenty percent, Yuan Tao had still demanded additional money whenever anything happened. The extra payments had amounted to another thirty percent.
No wonder the emperor had sought another path and had her collect shares from merchants across the country through Qilin Hall. The officials were all intent on lining their own pockets. Was that not precisely why they had fought so fiercely against the collection of commercial taxes, dressing it up with the lofty phrase “keeping wealth among the people”?
This was no minor matter. She needed to speak with the emperor.
To Fang Dai, Cui Lanyin said, “Wait here.”
Then she turned to Liu Heipi. “Have all of Yunlai Restaurant’s signature dishes brought out. Treat Young Master Fang well.”
With that, she rose and walked out. Chief Aide Song, Geng Dayou, and the others hurried after her.
Fang Dai was still uneasy. He cautiously asked Liu Heipi, “When Second Miss Cui told me to wait, did she mean—”
Liu Heipi had the most experience with this sort of thing. “When Second Miss Cui says ‘wait,’ it means you have her guarantee. The matter concerning Jiutong Trading House will be resolved soon. The only question is whether this will become a major incident.”
Yuan Tao was a third-rank provincial official. Anyone he needed to placate would surely be a senior official in Yingcheng of at least the third rank.
Second Miss Cui might be formidable, but third- and second-rank officials were no pushovers either. If the two sides came into conflict, whose side would the emperor take?
Faced with a table full of fine wine and delicacies, Fang Dai could not taste a thing.
Half a month later, he received a message by carrier pigeon from Guangzhou. Lu Zhi and Yuan Tao had been arrested by the emperor’s secret guards and were being escorted back to Yingcheng. His father had already returned home, and all of Jiutong Trading House’s ships had been released.
Fang Dai felt as though he were dreaming.
Second Miss Cui had gone to see the emperor and overturned two third-rank provincial officials—one civil and one military—in a single stroke.
What's there to fear for Jiutong Trading? Hand over 30 percent of the proceeds to Qilin Hall, and you can rest easy from then on.
Not only did Fang Dai redouble his efforts to introduce Qilin Hall to other merchants, he also felt he needed to do something more.
When Geng Dayou brought back two young men, one as handsome as a blooming orchid and the other as valiant as a sturdy pine, Cui Lanyin felt completely thrown off.
"What on earth is this?"
Geng Dayou, noticing Buyan throwing frantic winks at him, suddenly realized he might have messed up.
"Second Miss Cui, these two were brought back from Yangzhou by Young Master Fang. He spent quite a sum of silver on them. Young Master Fang says you are the very benefactor that gave Jiutong Trading a new lease of life—no gift could ever possibly express his gratitude fully. Since you lack nothing at all, he thought long and hard but could not come up with anything worthy enough, so he decided to buy two pleasing lads to attend to you. If you find them useful, he will keep selecting even better ones for you later."
Geng Dayou pulled two sheets of paper out from his sleeve pocket. "Young Master Fang gave me their deeds of indenture too."
Last time, a scholar blocked her carriage to volunteer his services, and the story spread far and wide. She had to promise the emperor no end of favors before he helped smooth things over.
If these two were sent to her manor, she would probably have to promise everything she owned to make things right.
"Take them back exactly as they are at once."
Unexpectedly, the two young men knelt down together. "If Second Miss Cui does not take us in, we will be sold elsewhere, and there is no telling what terrible fate awaits us. Please be kind enough to have mercy on us."
Cui Lanyin truly could not bear to see this kind of human trafficking business, so she pointed at Geng Dayou and said, "Take them to Liu Heipi, see where they can be of use there."
Afraid that things would get messy if she stayed any longer, she did not linger for a moment after stepping into the imperial prince's former residence, and turned straight back to the palace.
The Cabinet did not receive the memorial from Guangzhou until the first day of the twelfth lunar month, and learned that Yuan Tao and Lu Zhi had been arrested.
All the grand secretaries were dumbfounded. The emperor had ordered the arrest of people beyond the Cabinet's jurisdiction, without even a single word of notice to them.
It was then that these people realized what a huge thing Second Miss Cui had pulled off. She had gotten her hands on the profit shares of many big merchants in the southern region, which was equivalent to her levying commercial taxes privately.
Not only did the emperor connive at this, he even had the Guangzhou Administration Commissioner and the Regional Military Commissioner arrested together just to build up her prestige.
If things went on like this, the Cabinet would become nothing but a decorative showpiece.
It so happened that the next day was the imperial court assembly. Chief Minister Li stepped forward first and raised the question to the emperor.
The emperor had long been prepared. He motioned for Buyan to throw over a list, which clearly recorded exactly how much tribute each noble household had received from Jiutong Trading.
The emperor scoffed, "Hiding wealth among the people, huh?"
He tapped the stack of documents on his desk. "I suggest you all conduct yourselves properly."
It was obvious that he held a far more detailed list, and this was a warning to these men not to push their luck and bring shame on themselves.
None of the Cabinet grand secretaries were on the list the emperor had produced, but who could guarantee that the tributes that had passed through layers of hands from others did not originate from these merchants? What if the emperor had already dug up all those details too?
Thinking of the elusive Dark Qilin Guards that seemed to pop up out of nowhere, nothing felt impossible anymore. Chief Minister Li did not dare to take the gamble, and his previously high-and-mighty aura deflated. He said reluctantly, "But Second Miss Cui still should not have..."
The emperor cut him off with a single line, "I allowed it."
Grand Secretary Shen stepped forward. "Your Majesty, why not have the Ministry of Revenue take charge of levying commercial taxes instead?"
The emperor flicked a finger against the armrest of his throne, and Buyan said, "We can discuss that later. Move on to the next matter."
Buyan glanced at the emperor, and after getting a nod of approval, he continued, "The Yanhua Hall has been fully renovated. His Majesty will be moving there to handle state affairs and reside from now on. Starting tomorrow, all ministers will attend audiences with His Majesty at Yanhua Hall."
The court officials were all horrified. For four successive generations of emperors of the Great Ying Dynasty, all had resided at Benyuan Hall, the very heart of the imperial palace. The emperor was supposed to live right in the center, how could he move to a side hall? This was nothing short of shaking the very foundation of the dynasty.
But the emperor did not even have the patience to listen to their objections. He threw out a line, "My mind is made up," then told Buyan to announce, "Court is adjourned."
In the Funing Palace, Cui Lanyin was sitting beside Grand Empress Dowager Chen, helping her look at her cards as they played a card game.
Empress Dowager Xu and the others had moved to Luanju Palace and Xuanwei Palace on the 18th day of the 11th lunar month.
Those two palaces were just a short walk away from Funing Palace. On their free days, Dowager Consort Shu would invite Empress Dowager Xu along, and then call for Consort Wan, so the three of them would come over to keep Grand Empress Dowager Chen company, chatting and playing cards.
Dowager Consort Shu and Consort Wan were both excellent conversationalists, and Empress Dowager Xu had a straightforward, candid personality. The four of them got along harmoniously, and Grand Empress Dowager Chen gradually grew fond of their company. They would gather to play cards every few days.
That day, Princess Yongjia had followed Consort Wan over. Instead of sitting beside Consort Wan, she squeezed right next to Cui Lanyin, chattering about all the fresh, interesting stories she had heard outside.
Princess Yongjia was a loose-tongued girl who never held back her words. She got so caught up in her story that she forgot where they were, and pulled Cui Lanyin's arm, saying, "I snuck over specially to meet those two lads someone gave you. They are truly each uniquely charming, far more eye-catching than the two I have. Why didn't you keep them for yourself? Instead you sent them off to learn how to manage accounts? What were you thinking? You even kept that weird, old crank around?"
Princess Yongjia did not lower her voice at all, so everyone present heard every word.
Empress Dowager Xu and the others did not know whether they should pretend not to have heard, but Grand Empress Dowager Chen smiled and asked Cui Lanyin, "Yongjia is right. What's the point of keeping that weird old fellow around for the New Year? If only you didn't live in the palace, I could have those two lads brought to my place to vet them properly for you."
Princess Yongjia nodded vigorously. "The Grand Empress Dowager is absolutely right."
Cui Lanyin was so embarrassed that she did not know what to do. For no reason, her stomach felt tight, and a wave of nausea rose up her throat. She got up, planning to go to the side washroom to wipe her face with a damp cloth, but the moment she took a step, the world spun around her. She lost control of her body and crumpled to the ground.
Amid the exclamations of the crowd, she blacked out. When she woke up again, she was lying on a heated kang, with a group of people surrounding her, looking at her with deep concern.
That wave of nausea came back, and she could not hold it in anymore. She quickly grabbed a handkerchief and covered her mouth, retching—luckily it was only dry heaves, and only a bit of sour bile got on the cloth.
Dowager Consort Shu and Dowager Concubine Wan exchanged a look, both wanting to say something but hesitating.
Grand Empress Dowager Chen and Empress Dowager Xu kept urging anxiously, "Hurry, call the imperial physicians here."
"Make sure Imperial Physician Chief Cao comes too," Grand Empress Dowager Chen called after Qi An as he was rushing out.
Two quarters of an hour later, Imperial Physician Chief Cao and Imperial Physician Liu arrived, panting for breath after following Qi An.
Without a word, the two of them took Cui Lanyin's pulse in turn. Imperial Physician Chief Cao kept his composure relatively well, but Imperial Physician Liu, even though he tried his hardest to hide it, could not conceal his panic.
Here you are [kiss kiss emoji]
