Inside the County Princess's manor, Qingshuang hurried into Song Jinzhao's study, clutching a letter in her hand.
"County Princess, a letter from the southwest has arrived. After Huo Chong returned to Ningzhou, he secretly made a trip to Panzhou. Our trackers discovered that the owner of the residence he visited is Zeng Qing, the former commander-in-chief of the Yuecheng Army."
"How is the investigation into Gu Zhongxun going?" Song Jinzhao closed the ledger and set it aside.
After two years of large-scale expansion, the monthly revenue from her hundreds of shops had reached tens of thousands of taels.
Half of this came from the profits of the perfume shops, with the wives and daughters of high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital serving as their primary customers.
Besides making money, these shops occasionally provided her with gossip and information from the inner courtyards.
Qingshuang took another letter from her robes and handed it to Song Jinzhao. It was a full half-knuckle thicker than the previous one.
"All the information on Gu Zhongxun is in there, his temperament, background, and personal preferences."
"It also contains the background details of everyone in the Gu family, including their relatives, friends, and colleagues."
Ever since she conceived the idea of expanding her influence into the southwest, Song Jinzhao had arranged for people to open shops there, selling food completely different from what was found in the capital.
On the surface, they were merchants; in secret, they gathered intelligence.
Song Jinzhao flipped through the pages one by one. Her expression turned slightly surprised when she read about Gu Zhongxun's background.
"I didn't expect him to come from a peasant family."
Qingshuang nodded. "Back then, Gu Zhongxun did not rank high in the palace examination, only placing in the third tier. Coupled with his lack of background, he was directly assigned to serve as a county magistrate in a small, remote border town in the southwest."
"Having been an official for forty years, he climbed step by step from a county magistrate to the Provincial Administration Commissioner of the southwest. It is safe to say that no official in the royal court understands the southwest better than he does."
Looking up as she reached the third page, Song Jinzhao asked, "After serving as a county magistrate for six years, he was transferred to be a prefect for another six years. His political achievements are quite impressive. Did he never think of transferring out?"
Qingshuang nodded slightly. "There was one time."
"After he spent six years as a prefect, the late Emperor wanted to transfer him back to the capital. However, the official sent to replace him was killed by horse bandits on the way. The imperial court couldn't find a suitable candidate in time, so they ordered him to stay for another three years. Later, when the current Emperor ascended the throne, the matter was never brought up again."
"As time passed, seeing no hope of a transfer, Gu Zhongxun simply settled down in the southwest. Aside from the people in the foreign tribe settlements, the rest of the commoners in the southwest deeply trust and respect him."
Song Jinzhao tapped her fingers rhythmically on the desk.
Forty years was longer than the current Emperor's reign. Separated by such vast distances, the Emperor's title likely held less weight in the southwest than the name Gu Zhongxun.
After pondering for a moment, Song Jinzhao continued flipping through the letter.
With two sons, one a civil official and the other a military officer, both serving in the southwest, he had clearly established his family's foundation there.
When Song Jinzhao noticed the age of Gu Zhongxun's only daughter, Gu Baozhu, she could not help but voice her surprise.
"Gu Zhongxun is sixty-six this year. How is his daughter only fifteen? Didn't he refrain from taking concubines?"
Qingshuang smiled, the corners of her lips curling up. She had the exact same reaction when she first found out.
"Gu Baozhu is the child of Gu Zhongxun and his wife's old age. Even the sons of her two older brothers are two years older than her."
"Because she is their only daughter, she is deeply doted on and is the apple of the Gu family's eye."
Song Jinzhao blinked in disbelief.
Gu Zhongxun's wife was sixty-three this year, which meant she gave birth to Gu Baozhu at the age of forty-eight.
That wasn't just being an older mother; that was extremely advanced maternal age.
"How is the health of Gu Zhongxun and his wife?"
Qingshuang replied, "I heard it's very good. After going to the southwest, Gu Zhongxun began practicing martial arts. Although he only knows a few basic moves, it's enough to keep him fit and healthy."
"His wife is the daughter of a military general. She has practiced martial arts since childhood and is actually more skilled than Gu Zhongxun."
Song Jinzhao nodded in realization. "That makes sense."
After reviewing all the information, Song Jinzhao generally felt that there were no major issues with Gu Zhongxun.
The only person requiring attention was Gu Zhongxun's eldest son, Gu Gaoyuan.
If he intended for his son to succeed him as the Provincial Administration Commissioner of the southwest, this man would undoubtedly become Qiming's biggest competitor.
