Two months prior, in August, or perhaps even earlier, marked the starting point of everything.

The imperial court, led by the two Prime Ministers, mobilized immense power in both the North and South, gathering the strength of countless individuals to transport large quantities of grain to the disaster areas where prices had skyrocketed.

In this endeavor, the Bamboo Company played a significant role, alongside the participation of other forces. They were responsible for North-South communication, arranging itineraries for everyone, ensuring safety, and coordinating with the government to facilitate the operation. During that period, it was when Ning Yi began to get busy, while she concerned herself with Tong Shuer's murder case, running back and forth, and later learned about the grain price issue, gradually becoming suspicious of it.

Subsequently, the Bamboo Company slowed down its expansion, and she, due to feelings of aversion, wanted to sever ties with Ning Yi. In this process, waves of people were heading to Hedong, Hebei, Huainan, Jinghu and other places. Initially, they went there purely with the intention of doing business, but among them, a group of people played a huge role, like the Manager Yao mentioned by these young men surnamed Yu. In the process of traveling between the North and the South, he explained some simple principles to them, guided them to distribute porridge and food, and at the same time, used words to create antagonism between them and those large grain hoarding households, step by step achieving a kind of instigation effect.

At first, Shishi thought that there was only one person like Manager Yao, and that such experienced guides maximized the effect of the events. But as she listened, Shishi realized that there might be far more than one or two such people.

Among the several routes affected by the disaster this time, the imperial court supported a total of seven major business routes. After entering the disaster area, these seven routes were dispersed again. And on each route, there was a certain number of passionate people like the Yu family. They originally went for business, bringing along their family's children to broaden their horizons. Then they gradually saw the suffering of the disaster victims and the inhumanity of the rich, and after their indignation arose, they began to prepare for a second and third round of disaster relief, while also calling on other members of their families to participate.

"...The more it went on, the harder it was to buy and transport grain, but this time we had already planned to come and go several times. In the end, our Yu family will have to transport at least two to three thousand *shi* to be able to explain it clearly!"

"...You're so proud of two to three thousand *shi*. Do you know that the Hou family we met last time transported 1,500 *shi* in one trip with their fleet?"

"We eat as much as we can handle. We always do our best to be worthy of our conscience. Moreover, the Hou family is also our relative. Didn't they say last time that Master Hou intended to marry their seventh daughter to Xiao Liu? Because Xiao Liu cried when distributing porridge, Master Hou said he had a kind heart... Tsk, I knew I should have cried too."

"Uh... Fifth Brother, don't talk nonsense. They were just saying it casually. You can't talk about this randomly..."

"How can this be casual? People think highly of you... But speaking of crying, I've seen disaster victims before. I really cried during that thing about Geng Qingtian..."

"That thing... If I had been there, I really don't know what I would have done with my temper..."

Time passed, and the discussion continued in the warm pavilion. Shishi's profession was this, and what she was good at on weekdays was to extract clues from people's words, piece together that huge outline. The more she pieced it together, the more restless she felt in her heart.

In the Wu Dynasty at this time, famines always occurred every once in a while. Even if it was concentrated in a small area, it could not be called a rare tragedy. At least Shishi herself had seen famines and disaster relief. Among these landlords and grain merchants who came and went, they may have also provided disaster relief in previous famine years, but the current situation was different from previous years.

The deliberate guidance of those Bamboo Company personnel stimulated the kindness in their hearts. At the same time, the mutual communication between different grain transporters gave them the impression that they were not isolated and helpless. They recognized and encouraged each other, which made their hearts even warmer. From the "I heard how it is in the South" and "I heard how the grain prices are in Hebei" that these young people occasionally said, Shishi could keenly perceive that there was at least a hub connecting various places, constantly rendering this information to them. And the matter of that County Magistrate Geng was said to have spread throughout the disaster-stricken area in just a few days. It was impossible to do this without a behind-the-scenes force systematically and consciously manipulating it.

A county magistrate with clean hands, in a famine year, would rather have his family eat chaff and drink gruel than let the starving people survive to the greatest extent. And when he asked the big households to sell grain, he was actually assassinated by the big households. It could be seen how vicious and evil these people were.

After these people entered the disaster area and attracted attention, conflicts broke out in several places, but they were subsequently suppressed. The persuasion of that Manager Yao was obviously very effective. After that, they were told about the fact that some people in other places were injured by the big households. Some people retreated because of this, but some people became even more stubborn. Listening to the words of these young men surnamed Yu, they already vaguely felt that in this matter, being injured by the big households was actually a more glorious thing.

People from the North and South were actually incited in this way, and their heroism was stimulated by what they saw and heard in the disaster area, making it difficult for Shishi not to think of Ning Yi's actions in the Bamboo Company to absorb those storytellers. That night, after the Yu family left, after the night was quiet, her mind was still ringing. For a while, she thought of the enthusiasm of these people, and thought of them fighting with those big households all over the North and South. For a while, she thought of Zuo Jilan, that young master Sun from Jinghu, and the affairs of the powerful families in Huainan, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

In the end, the feeling of fear was even greater.

In recent years, she had lived in the capital. Because she was a woman, her knowledge may not be as good as others, but she understood the horror of power the most. The actions of these young people were of course respectable and admirable. There may be many who could be connected and echo each other between the North and the South, but in the court, in the field of power, these loose people could not be a backer.

They may also be families with good status in the local area, with fields and land, and many who could be called prominent families. But Shishi knew after listening for a while that these people could not enter the real circles of power. They had no one in the capital, and no relatives who served as high-ranking officials in other places. Even if some people in their families had one or two officials, they were mostly small officials. And the wealthy families such as the Zuo family, the Sun family, and the Huainan merchants, were often connected with high-ranking officials. If necessary, they could also speak to people like Cai Jing, Wang Fu, Li Bangyan, and Tong Guan, and some people even had close ties with the imperial family.

This time, they were enthusiastic, and in their words, they also seemed to have a heroic spirit of believing that evil would not prevail over good. But in reality, if it weren't for the fact that the Prime Minister's power firmly controlled the security forces on several routes during this disaster relief, they would really be beaten to death for entering the market and suppressing grain prices in this way. The biggest protection for them in the process of selling grain and competing for profits with the local snakes was this. Shishi also understood how much effort the Prime Minister's Office, Ning Yi and others had to put in to achieve this effect.

But now, while they were selling grain all over the North and South, the local wealthy families had already found the core of the problem and were coming towards the capital. If there were three people who found her, then in addition to that, there might be thirty or three hundred people who were trying to attack this side.

With such worries in her heart, she was a little anxious the next day. In the past, when she heard about the deeds of various heroes, she most admired those great heroes who, despite facing thousands of people, would go where righteousness led them. But when this kind of thing happened to people she knew, she could know the stakes and became afraid instead.

In the past two years, the two Prime Ministers on the left and right had taken office, and their power had been maintained for a long time. Prime Minister Li's personality was upright and firm, and Prime Minister Qin's methods were sharp. The two worked together, one in charge and one assisting, to promote the Northern Expedition. But when it came to the highest level, Shishi had always maintained an impression. Now in this capital, the most powerful people were still the old officials such as Grand Tutor Cai and Junior Tutor Wang. Their cronies were all over the world. Now they were enduring for the sake of the overall situation, but if a conflict really broke out, the two Prime Ministers might not be able to withstand their fierce methods. Because in order to handle affairs, Grand Tutor Cai and the others only offended the people, not the corrupt officials, while the two Prime Ministers offended many powerful people. Counting this time, there were probably even more.

Even if their methods were powerful, she was still worried about whether they could withstand it, even though she was an outsider.

That morning, she was considering this matter, preparing to look for Ning Yi in the afternoon. Perhaps her worries were excessive, but she should always give him a heads-up. After all, the Zuo family and the Sun family were not easy to provoke. However, after noon, before she could go out, she heard someone coming to report that Young Master Zuo Jilan had arrived and asked her to come out. Shishi wanted to delay for a while, and quickly asked the maid to invite Young Master Zuo in to wait, saying that she had something to do and had to wait. But soon after, the maid came in and said that Young Master Zuo was waiting outside the Fan Lou gate, saying that he would not come in to sit.

This move showed the strength and dominance of the man, but Shishi was too lazy to pay attention at this time. She quickly went to find Mother Li, told her about Zuo Jilan, and asked her to help find Ning Yi and give him a heads-up first. She would delay here before leaving. Li Yun looked at her strangely, but finally went out herself to inform Ning Yi.

Shishi went to a room on the second floor facing the front of Fan Lou and quietly opened the window to look down. On the street outside, Zuo Jilan and Wang Zhizhen were talking about something. After a while, an official stopped to talk to them. It was a Yuanwai Li from the Ministry of Works, who also knew Zuo Jilan. The two parties chatted and laughed for a while. During the conversation, Zuo Jilan occasionally looked back at Fan Lou with a frown.

Shishi knew that her delay would offend the other party, but her offense was a small matter. She was considering in front of the window what the other party was probably going to say to Ning Yi, how she should help to ease the atmosphere, and prevent the two sides from really falling out. She also thought about how to solve this matter from Ning Yi's position: It was impossible not to care about the disaster area, but if she wanted to care, how could she afford to offend so many people.

She was feeling upset when she suddenly heard a commotion below. She only heard Zuo Jilan say, "What are you doing—" Then there was a scream, and chaos rang out...

**************

Regarding the trip to Beijing, Zuo Jilan didn't have much to think about. As far as he was concerned, everything could be done step by step: visit his uncle Zuo Houwen, visit officials who were friendly to his family, and pass letters from Qi Fanghou to some high-ranking officials in Beijing. Once these things were done, pressure would be formed on the Prime Minister's Office, and the pressure on that Ning Liheng would be even greater. He was going to pay a visit. He had already thought about it. As the heir of the Zuo family, he would move the other party with affection and reason, but at the end of his words, he would clearly tell the other party: "This time, I can't back down. I will definitely kill you."

He could speak a little more clearly. It didn't matter.

Although he was proud, he was not an unreasonable person. On the contrary, he especially knew that this time he came to Beijing, he needed to be swift and decisive. Therefore, he did not waste any time and quickly visited everyone to convey his meaning. When he saw Li Shishi's poetry meeting, he actually went to meet other uncles. His uncle Zuo Houwen knew that he was a little interested in Li Shishi, so he arranged the idea of this "middleman". After Li Shishi left, he also smiled and revealed to him the meaning of "I created an opportunity for you."

Zuo Jilan just smiled proudly. He didn't have the intention of seeking pleasure, but Li Shishi was more beautiful and had a good temperament. If he could take away a beautiful heart on this trip to Beijing, that would be good too.

In the capital, many people probably flattered this courtesan like stars surrounding the moon. He didn't do this. When he arrived at Fan Lou, the maid asked him to come in and wait, but he just waited by the roadside. It was also to give the other party a meaning: Come out to me quickly. Some women might be annoyed by this, but he had the qualifications for it. Many women, even if they were angry at first, would still be tamed by him in the end. Women are mainly cheap.

However, this time, the other party might really have something to do, which made him wait for a long time. She might want to play hard to get and deliberately tease him. Not long after, he saw Yuanwai Li from the Ministry of Works, whom he had visited the day before, and chatted with him for a while. But he became a little impatient in his heart: This woman, doesn't she know that he is here to do business? Who is playing these tricks with her...

Because of this, his anger was a little high. When a pedestrian suddenly bumped into him on the road, he pushed the other party out casually: "What are you doing—"

*****************

Compared to Zuo Jilan's composure and sense of entitlement, Wang Zhizhen knew the complex feeling of the power field even more. He liked this feeling.

This time, the Zuo family brought a pressure to the Prime Minister's Office and to Ning Yi, and pressures from all over the world were gathering here. In the end, they had to compromise. This was the essence.

This was the essence of the grand path, the condensation of power, the location of great power. True power was not something that a Prime Minister or even the title of an emperor could represent. True power lay in moving with the trend, and even those with great power had to compromise. And he, a talented man with extensive knowledge but who had failed the imperial examination several times, had ultimately promoted a part of this trend, drowning those high-ranking guys.

Prime Minister Li, Prime Minister Qin, Li Pin, Ning Yi, and some people who were in the same stream as them might be very tough, but they would understand what the general trend was. He was also very sorry that people died in the famine, but how could people's desires be suppressed? If he was ever to rise to a high position, he would have more powerful and reasonable methods to change all of this, rather than being as stupid as they were. Before that, he was happy to see the collapse and compromise of these stupid people.

Therefore, he was also looking forward to today's meeting. What kind of attitude would the other party show? Disgust or politeness? Humility or irritability? But any smart person would understand what the general trend was and that it was impossible to reverse it. He had also prepared a series of words to teach the other party to understand this point.

Hedong Road was pressing over, the Zuo family was pressing over, the Qi family was pressing over, and countless people from all over the world were pressing over...

He didn't expect the next scene to unfold.

"What are you doing—"

Zuo Jilan pushed the beggar who bumped into him, and the beggar fell to the side of the road with a thud. Then, scarlet blood flowed from his head.

Zuo Jilan and Wang Zhizhen were both stunned, and then they understood: "Damn it, you're trying to extort money from me! You don't even know what place this is... Beat him to death. No, grab him and send him to Kaifeng Prefecture for severe punishment!"

Zuo Jilan shouted like this, and the guards next to him immediately came over to grab the beggar who was bleeding from his head on the ground. At the same time, the constables of Kaifeng Prefecture had already come in formation: "What are you doing..."

"Hey, you constable, come over here. This guy is clearly trying to extort money in broad daylight. Be sure to arrest him and punish him severely—"

"The sky is clear and bright. Who are you people? How dare you commit such violence—"

"This constable, I am Li Jing, Yuanwai of the Ministry of Works..."

"Arrest them!"

"Yes..."

"What are you doing..."

"Quickly call a doctor. Someone is going to die here—"

"Intentional injury..."

"Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing? Don't you want to live..."

In a chaos, the constables began to put shackles on Zuo Jilan. Shishi on the upper floor widened her eyes. She could see that it was obviously extortion, but Zuo Jilan was arrested. That Yuanwai Li couldn't stop it at all. Someone began to render "foreigners committing violence". Zuo Jilan was obviously stunned, and then struggled and shouted: "Do you know who I am! Do you know who I am..."

"My father is Zuo Duanyou! My father is Zuo Duanyou! You are dead, do you know! My father is Zuo Duanyou—"

In the roar, a young man bowed his hands towards Yuanwai Li. Yuanwai Li walked over there, and the two chatted for a few words. That Yuanwai Li looked at this side and didn't know what to say. But Shishi recognized that this person was Wenren Bu'er, a disciple of Prime Minister Qin. After finishing speaking with Li Jing, he walked towards Wang Zhizhen, who was already stunned on this side.

Seeing Li Jing talking to the other party, Wang Zhizhen understood that there was an inside story. This sudden change was like a head-on blow. He wanted to stop the constables from arresting Zuo Jilan, but the constables pushed him away. Zuo Jilan asked him to find someone and kill these guys. The young man who had finished speaking with Li Jing walked over to this side.

"Brother Wang Zhizhen, I've heard a lot about you." The other party cupped his hands.

"You... Who are you people? Do you know..."

"I am here to pass on something." Wenren Bu'er took out a letter from his sleeve. The letter was sealed with wax, and the front said: "Respectfully addressed to Brother Zuo Duanyou" The signature was: "Brother, Qin."

"It's just a show for now. Young Master Zuo will be well-fed and well-housed here. He won't be treated badly. Brother Wang, don't worry. This letter was written by my teacher, Duke Qin, to Duke Zuo. Please bring it back to Hedong and hand it over. At that time, Brother Wang will naturally know how to pick up Young Master Zuo... Time is short, the capital is deep, Brother Wang, don't wander around, go back early."

Wang Zhizhen was really stunned this time. He had been in Beijing for a few days, and it didn't matter if he returned without success. He hadn't considered it, but everything was too sudden. The most important thing was that he was a staff member next to Zuo Jilan. Zuo Jilan's hoarding of grain was all handled by him. They came to Beijing to put pressure, but Qin Siyuan directly arrested Zuo Jilan and wrote a letter to Zuo Duanyou, who was said to have broken off relations—when he personally handed this letter to Zuo Duanyou, how should he say it... What would Zuo Duanyou think of him? It was conceivable...

The constables arrested Zuo Jilan and dragged him away, making a lot of noise. Wang Zhizhen stood blankly on the side of the road with the letter in his hand, not knowing what to do.

Suddenly, a figure ran past him...

****************

Shishi was watching from upstairs. When she saw Wenren Bu'er, she naturally thought of what was going on.

At this time, Mother Li hadn't been out for long, and it must not be the response from the other party after the news was delivered. That is to say, they were prepared for Zuo Jilan. Such swift and decisive methods made Shishi breathe a sigh of relief, but immediately, she didn't really feel relaxed. Now the two sides had begun to fight, and even if they caught Zuo Jilan, the other party still had several powerful families in the disaster area. How many people could this kind of tough method deal with?

She chased out of the building and caught up with Wenren Bu'er, who was walking last.

"Young Master Wenren, Young Master Wenren."

Shishi's address was soft and pleasant to hear. Wenren Bu'er turned his head and smiled and cupped his hands: "Oh, Miss Shishi, what's the matter?" Then he said, "Could it be that you want to intercede for that young master who injured someone in broad daylight?"

Shishi smiled and shook her head: "He was going to find Liheng. I was holding him back in the building, and I also asked my mother to report the news. I didn't expect you to take action. Young Master Wenren, your side... It's quite troublesome, isn't it?"

Wenren Bu'er smiled and thought for a while: "It's not easy. Miss Li also knows?"

"Liheng, on his side, there are probably a lot of troubles too?"

"It is indeed troublesome. Recently, some people with connections have also come to his house. Recently, some cotton merchants, silk merchants and some of his Bamboo Company's partners have come to his door, asking him to stop, otherwise they will threaten not to cooperate with him and not supply him. His wife is mindful of the past and is waiting for him to express his position. She hasn't been ruthless to these people yet. That's why, today, we came to arrest Zuo Jilan, and he went back to deal with this matter..."

The two walked forward while talking.

"No wonder he's been so busy recently. But I have something to do. Can I go to the Prime Minister's Office to meet him tomorrow?"

"Actually, he's not very busy. Miss Shishi is coming, he will definitely have time..."

******************

Time returned to not long ago, Ning Yi was leaving the Prime Minister's Office and was going to take time to return home to deal with the matters of many guests. In late October, all kinds of trivial troubles were indeed coming to his door in waves...