Song Linzhi had thought it all through. The Song family owned grain shops, cloth stores, jewelry shops, teahouses, restaurants, and more.
The other prominent families were much the same, with businesses of all kinds. As long as the Song family and the other major families reached an agreement to act together, even a commandery princess would be powerless against them.
With that thought in mind, he immediately rose and headed out. He intended to discuss the matter with the other families.
Half an hour later, at the Qi family’s council hall—
Qi Qian, head of the Qi family, flatly rejected Song Linzhi’s proposal. “Brother Song, this concerns the safety of my entire clan. Forgive me, but I cannot agree. The price hikes were merely taking advantage of the circumstances. Now that a new ruler has come to the city and completely overturned everything the previous magistrate did, all taxes have returned to normal. If we continue to hoard the city’s supplies and sell them at inflated prices, we’ll be challenging her authority.”
Song Linzhi’s brows drew together in displeasure. “Brother Qi, are you afraid?”
Qi Qian shook his head with a smile. “It isn’t fear. There’s simply no need. When Magistrate Zhao Quan used the princess’s name to collect more money from the people, we didn’t stop him. Now things have merely returned to how they were before, and we haven’t suffered any losses. Why would I take such a risk?”
Those words ignited Song Linzhi’s temper. His voice suddenly rose. “How can you compare the two? They’re just a couple of little brats. What right do they have to order us around?”
“They have the right because they’re commandery princesses, because they’re the acting administrators appointed by Princess Wenqing, the owner of this fief, and because the Seventh Princess is with them. If you want to die, don’t drag the Qi family down with you. Brother Song, I still have matters to attend to, so I won’t keep you for dinner. Take care.”
Qi Qian’s expression darkened as he issued a direct dismissal. He wasn’t an idiot. He had no intention of doing something that harmed others without benefiting himself.
If this had been an ordinary city, perhaps things would have been different. But Xin’an City was Lu Qianning’s fief. Even a dragon had to coil itself up when it entered someone else’s territory.
Seeing that Qi Qian remained unmoved, Song Linzhi snorted coldly and swept out of the hall.
Watching him leave, Qi Qian shook his head regretfully. “Sigh. Why make such a fuss? His mistress was exposed, yet he wanted to have the affair without letting his wife find out. Now that someone has called him out, he wants revenge too. What in the world is that brain of his made of?”
After saying this, he glanced toward a spot in the corner of the hall and barked softly, “Come out. Is hiding under a chair really that much fun?”
The next moment, a teenage boy in blue slowly crawled out from beneath the chair. He was one of the five who had fainted at the Ten Directions Inn, and the very same person who had returned to investigate the inn out of curiosity—Qi Che.
Once he was on his feet, he waved at Qi Qian with a cheeky grin. “Dad, what a coincidence.”
Qi Qian did not take issue with him hiding there to eavesdrop. Instead, he asked calmly, “Che’er, you heard everything just now, didn’t you? What do you think?”
The cheerful smile vanished from Qi Che’s face, replaced by a solemn expression. “Dad, the two little commandery princesses aren’t ordinary children. They sat atop a pile of corpses as casually as if they were sitting on a pile of toys. We don’t know exactly what happened inside the magistrate’s office, but the result is right in front of us: the magistrate is dead, everyone connected to him is dead, and now there’s a Seventh Princess as well. She brought quite a few guards with her, and those people aren’t here to sit around doing nothing. If we follow the Song family and cause trouble, we won’t even know how we died.”
Qi Qian smiled with satisfaction at his words and nodded. “Mm. You’re not completely stupid after all. You have decent relationships with the younger members of the other families, but don’t meet with them for the time being. Otherwise, when they get themselves into trouble, you may be dragged down with them.”
Qi Che obediently nodded. “Understood, Dad. I’ll be careful.”
After leaving the Qi family, Song Linzhi went in succession to the Qiao family, the Pei family, and the Ouyang family. Each family reacted differently.
The Qiao family and the Pei family reached an agreement with the Song family, while the Ouyang family threw him out as soon as he finished explaining his proposal.
The people Nan Yun had arranged kept a clear eye on everything happening among the major families. Before long, they reported it all to Xi Qingyue.
At that moment, Xi Qingyue was sitting and resting inside the new residence they had chosen. She had even prepared a table full of food and drinks, which she and Lu Jinshuang were leisurely enjoying together.
After hearing Nan Yun’s report, Xi Qingyue smiled indifferently. “They’ve thought it through quite nicely. Let them enjoy themselves for a few days. Once the prices of all the other goods in the city return to normal, if they still refuse to lower their prices, we’ll deal with them according to the rules.”
She had even abolished the one-tael entrance fee and made entry into the city free. Yet these people still wanted to sell their goods at exorbitant prices. They were truly delusional.
Lu Jinshuang calmly lifted a cup of juice and took a sip. She sighed with emotion. “Yue, if I return to the capital, I won’t be able to drink anything this delicious anymore. Why don’t you teach me how to make it?”
Xi Qingyue glanced at the bright red strawberry juice and smiled. Strawberries did not yet exist in the Great Jing Empire.
She smiled at Lu Jinshuang. “Even if I told you, you wouldn’t be able to make it. There are no strawberries in the capital. When I have some free time and go back to the capital for a visit, I’ll plant you an entire strawberry orchard. I’ll plant all kinds of other fruit for you too, until you’re sick of eating them.”
Lu Jinshuang was delighted. “Wonderful! It’s a promise, then. I’ll wait for you in the capital. Don’t forget. In a few days, once you’ve finished dealing with things here, I’ll have to go back. I really can’t bear to leave.”
“Sister Jinshuang, I’ll miss you too,” Xi Weilan said, running over to Lu Jinshuang with a serious expression. “Big Sister and I will go to the capital to visit you. We’ll also see Big Sister Lu, Sister Wan, and Consort Qin. We’ll definitely go back.”
Lu Jinshuang kissed her on the cheek. “Lan’er is such a good girl. I’ll wait for all of you in the capital. Don’t forget—the capital is your home too.”
Xi Weilan narrowed her eyes with a happy smile. “Mm! We haven’t had enough fun in the capital yet.”
Xi Qingyue did not try to persuade Lu Jinshuang to stay a few more days. She knew that Lu Jinshuang was not in the mood. What they had seen and heard along the way had been far from pleasant, and Lu Jinshuang clearly wanted to return as soon as possible so she could get to work.
She merely remarked casually from the side, “Don’t worry. Leave this region to me. Once I have some free time, I’ll go deal with Prince Kang. Tell Big Sister Lu to act boldly. Don’t let a bunch of old men intimidate her. If they deserve to be killed, then kill them.”
Lu Jinshuang’s eyes lit up at once. “Yue, you really are our lucky star.”
Xi Qingyue shot her a glance, her smile radiant. “Of course I am. I’ve dealt with so many corrupt officials for you, which is another way of saying I’ve done you a huge favor.”
Lu Jinshuang wholeheartedly agreed. Between the two sisters, they had killed quite a number of people—but the silver in their pockets had also been steadily increasing.
Just then, Nanxing flew over the wall from outside. She was drenched in sweat, clearly having flown all the way from somewhere else.
Xi Qingyue raised a hand and waved it. The sweat on Nanxing’s body and clothes vanished, leaving her refreshed and invigorated. Nanxing’s face immediately filled with shock.
“Nanxing, what’s the rush? Is a huge army coming to attack us?”
Nanxing had no time to be astonished. She hurriedly delivered the news she had just received to Xi Qingyue and the others.
“Princess, Commandery Princess, Duke Anguo has arrived. The people at the docks just sent word in a panic—they saw Duke Anguo.”
Xi Qingyue waved her hand indifferently. “What’s the big deal? Let him come. It’s not as if I’m afraid of him.”
Nanxing continued, “Commandery Princess, it’s not just Duke Anguo. The Ninth Prince came with him as well. The Duke’s heir was pushed into the city in a wheelchair, and along the way, they deliberately revealed their identities. It won’t be long before everyone in the city knows about your relationship.”
