Volume 2: Eagle vs. Dragon Chapter 88: A Match Made in Heaven
Wu Xiaojiu, who was following Zhou Yijin, was seeing such a woman for the first time. He thought to himself, "Wow! Women are so scary. Their faces change in an instant!"
The person who came in from the corner was indeed Cai Qinghua. He glanced at Zhou Yijin, then at Ye Youyu, and asked, "What happened?"
Before Zhou Yijin could speak, Ye Youyu asked, "Is this Master Cai?"
Zhou Yijin said: "He is my master."
Ye Youyu stepped forward and bowed, saying respectfully: "Hello, Master Cai. I am the wife of Shang Haoguan, the guarantor of Yihe. My husband...he...he was framed by someone. He is really a good man." As she spoke, she secretly waved to Changzi, who half-concealedly tried to stuff a red envelope into Cai Qinghua's sleeve.
Cai Qinghua saw all of Ye Youyu's little moves, so how could he not know what she was going to do? He pushed Changzi and shouted, "What are you doing!"
Ye Youyu hurriedly drank Changzai's drink and said, "I am sorry for being rude. Master Cai, please forgive me."
Cai Qinghua thought to herself: "Another woman who thinks she is smart!"
He has been working as a legal advisor for so many years and has seen many wives of officials and wealthy mothers. When their husbands and sons were in prison, they were all like Ye Youyu. No matter what the case was, they would cry that their husbands and sons were innocent, and bribe people at all levels in an attempt to get out of trouble.
Zhou Yijin stepped forward, separated Ye Youyu and said, "Third Young Madam, you should go back first. Master Cai is a fair man. If Hao Guan is really innocent, he will not wrongly accuse a good person."
Ye Youyu then took two steps back. Seeing Ye Youyu's expression, Cai Qinghua thought that he couldn't get anything out of her, so he waved his hand and said, "Since you've seen her and persuaded her, then go back."
Ye Youyu said, "Master Cai, no matter what, please take care of my husband. It's inconvenient today, but our Wu family is a family that remembers long-term favors. Master Cai, you have shown me your kindness today, and when it is convenient in the future, the Wu family will definitely repay you."
When Cai Qinghua heard this, he knew that this was a hint that there would be more tributes in the future. He smiled and waved his hand to let them go.
Zhou Yijin said, "I invited the Third Young Lady here, so I should be the one to send her back."
Cai Qinghua said: "Please stay for two steps."
Zhou Yijin agreed and greeted Ye Youyu.
Ye Youyu bowed again and then walked away, looking back every three steps.
Cai Qinghua sneered and said in a voice that only Zhou Yijin, who was standing nearby, could hear clearly: "Only women and villains are difficult to raise. Her appearance is first-rate, but it's a pity that she is still just a woman and a fool. Her demeanor is much worse than that of the one on Huachahao."
Zhou Yijin said: "Rich and powerful families do not look at a woman's demeanor when choosing a wife, but rather her family background, character and dowry. As for character and intelligence, there is a saying: A woman's virtue lies in her lack of talent."
Cai Qinghua laughed, then his eyes turned cold: "What did Haoguan say?"
Zhou Yijin said, "The Third Young Lady went in by herself just now, and she just came out. How about I go in with Master?"
Cai Qinghua waved his hand impatiently and sneered, "No need, I'll go see him myself!"
Cai Qinghua sent Zhou Yijin away, asked his trusted servant to guard the door, and went in alone. Seeing the mess inside the cell, he couldn't help but laugh and said, "Why is it so messy? It seems that Officer Hao still needs someone to serve him."
Wu Chengjian seemed to have just noticed Cai Qinghua coming in, and he looked up and stood up and said, "Hello, Master Cai."
Cai Qinghua said: "The prison cell of Haoguan is really busy. People come and go one after another."
Wu Chengjian said in a cold tone: "Isn't this what you, Master Cai, want? If you wanted me to be unable to see anyone, why didn't you just take me back to the Governor's Office in Guangdong and Guangxi?"
Cai Qinghua smiled softly, walked into the cell, looked at the broken bedding, and said, "How did it happen? I heard from the prison boss that you are still crazy."
Wu Chengjian said nothing.
Cai Qinghua said: "Liu Quan has been here before."
There was no questioning tone in his voice, and Wu Chengjian couldn't help but frown when he heard this, but this slight change did not escape Cai Qinghua's eyes.
"Liu Quan's coming must have greatly stimulated you, otherwise you wouldn't have gone crazy all of a sudden." Cai Qinghua said with a smile: "Or maybe you wanted to pretend to be crazy?"
"Nothing can be hidden from Master Cai." Wu Chengjian said, "It's a pity that even if I want to pretend to be crazy, I'm afraid I can't do it."
Cai Qinghua took two steps closer and said, "Let's not beat around the bush. Tell me, what did Liu Quan tell you?"
Wu Chengjian said nothing.
Cai Qinghua said, "Even if you don't say it, I can guess a little bit. It's nothing but coercion and inducement. But Haoguan, you are a smart man, you should know the principle of a new emperor and new ministers. Now it is the Jiaqing Emperor who is in power. Even if Heshen is extremely powerful, how long can he keep this power? You are also a man with a family and a career, and you will soon be a father. Even if you don't consider yourself, can you consider your wife and children?"
Wu Chengjian remained silent.
Cai Qinghua said: "Okay, I will give you one more day. By this time tomorrow, if you still insist on not changing your ways, even if I am willing to let you go, someone will not be polite."
Cai Qinghua was about to leave when Wu Chengjian suddenly said, "Master Cai."
"Huh?" Cai Qinghua paused, turned around, but did not come over.
Wu Chengjian said, "You are forcing me like this. Is it really good for you, for Governor Zhu, and even for the emperor?"
Cai Qinghua asked: "What do you mean by that?"
Wu Chengjian asked, "Someone from Beijing is here, right? What's his name? Guangxing?"
Cai Qinghua narrowed his eyes suddenly and said, "Liu Quan's news came quite quickly!"
Wu Chengjian said, "Master, you are not slow to get the news. But even if it is for Governor Zhu or Emperor Jiaqing, Master Cai, should you also consider this: relying on a few boxes of red goods, you want to shake the foundation of a military minister. Is it really feasible?"
Cai Qinghua said coldly: "Whether it will work or not is not something you should consider. What you should consider is where to go next!"
He waved his sleeves and said, "My tolerance is limited, and other people's tempers are worse than mine. When Master Guangxing comes... then, many things will not only be out of your control, but even out of my control!"
Zhou Yijin got on the four-wheeled carriage under the pretext of sending Ye Youyu off.
Guangzhou is the provincial capital and an important town in southern China, so the roads are well built. Once you get out of the West Gate and approach Xiguan Street, the roads become better and better.
Wu Qi and Changzi were sitting in the front of the carriage, and Wu Xiaojiu was sitting in the back. The sound of the wheels would interfere with the conversation between the people in the carriage, but Zhou Yijin and Ye Youyu kept their voices low.
Soon after Zhou Yijin got on the carriage, he asked, "What did Haoguan say?"
Ye Youyu said: "He has already told me the truth."
"Um?"
Ye Youyu stretched out his hand and raised three fingers.
Zhou Yijin then understood that she was talking about Mr. Liu Sanye.
Ye Youyu said, "But I don't know everything. Because Hao Guan told me not to consider everything. He said that if there is anything he wants to help with, just start with the key pain point. That is, the batch of red goods."
Zhou Yijin said: "I couldn't solve that matter."
"Every inch has its own merits." Ye Youyu said, "Perhaps I can help?"
Zhou Yijin hesitated for a moment, and finally said: "There are two major difficulties in this matter. First, the two important chess pieces I originally arranged - Lao Gu and Tietou Junba - have been targeted, which is equivalent to crippling one of my hands and feet; second, this matter must be done, but no handle can be left. If people suspect that it was us, then the crime of burning evidence will still fall on Hao Guan's head - this makes things even more difficult."
Ye Youyu said: "It's not okay to just be suspected by others?"
"No." Zhou Yijin said, "A sage governs a country from the heart, not from the evidence. What does it mean to follow the heart? It means that if the emperor, He Zhongtang, Jiaqing, or Governor Zhu are all convinced that you did it, then even if there is no evidence or the evidence is insufficient, the emperor will think that the guarantor is cunning and untrustworthy, He Zhongtang will think that Haoguan betrayed him, and Jiaqing and Governor Zhu will also feel that they have been fooled. Even if they have no evidence in this matter, as long as they are convinced of your guilt, they will make trouble for you in another matter, and in the end you will still die."
Ye Youyu said, "If that's the case can we still do this? It's impossible. Unless it's really like you said, a thunderbolt fell from the sky and burned Xingchenghang, then we can say it was God's will."
"Actually, I have a vague idea..." Zhou Yijin said, "It is to make it so that people dare not believe that Hao Guan dared to do this. In that way, although it may not completely dispel the suspicion of those superiors, it can also put an end to the matter."
Ye Youyu asked: "How to do it?"
Zhou Yijin said, "There seems to be a secret passage in Xingchenghang's warehouse. And the Green Camp idiots don't seem to have discovered this secret passage yet. But how can we find the location of the secret passage and make Ye Dalin keep it secret? I can't think of a way for the time being."
Ye Youyu pondered and said, "If there really is such a secret passage, I can find a way to get it, but even if I get it, what can I do? Stealing the 'hot stuff' from the secret passage is not feasible."
"Let's put aside how to use the secret passage once we get it." Zhou Yijin said, "You just said you have a way to get it?"
Ye Youyu nodded cautiously and whispered a few words.
After hearing this, Zhou Yijin looked Ye Youyu up and down, and suddenly said, "You and Hao Guan are indeed not from the same family, so you should not enter the same door."
Ye Youyu hummed, quite puzzled.
Zhou Yijin chuckled: "You two are both good at tricking people to death without blinking an eye. You are really a perfect match!"
