Bai Qing circled the two tea trees twice but found nothing unusual. He gave up and returned to his seat.
"I've interacted with the eldest branch of the Sui family's grain business and have some understanding. It seems they've sent people to the northwest."
Ling Manshuang frowned upon hearing Bai Qing mention the Sui family. "Bai Qing, do you know that the Sui family members who came to the northwest recently abducted Sister Jun Yao?"
"What? Was she injured?" Bai Qing was shocked. Such a thing had happened, and he knew nothing about it.
"I was not injured. The one who came to the northwest was Sui Ren from the fifth branch of the Sui family. He abducted me because he wanted to know the reason why our family could plant wheat on such a large scale," Qin Jun Yao did not mention that Qian Duo had instigated this.
"No wonder. The fifth, sixth, and seventh branches of the Sui family stop at nothing."
Ling Manshuang tapped the table. "I know all of this. Do you have any leverage over the Sui family? I only know they owe you a favor. Sister Jun Yao thought of a plan to deal with that Sui Ren, but I think it's too slow."
Bai Qing shook his head. "The timing is wrong. The eldest branch of the Sui family currently has ties with both Prince Luo and Prince Jing. They control the grain supply, and no one will openly fall out with them."
"Dealing with the person who abducted Jun Yao is simple; just kill him. However, if you want to deal with the fifth branch of the Sui family, or even the entire Sui family, now is not the right time."
Qin Jun Yao learned for the first time that the Sui family had connections not only with Prince Luo but also with Prince Jing.
She was not a killer. She only wanted to deal with Sui Ren.
However, she now wanted to drive the entire Sui family out of the northwest. The grain of the northwest must not fall into the hands of fence-sitters.
Ling Manshuang was annoyed. It seemed she could only use Sister Jun Yao's method, but that would take a long time, which was really frustrating.
Qin Jun Yao wanted to gather more information, so she inquired with Bai Qing.
Later, she discovered that Bai Qing's sources of information were far more extensive than Ling Manshuang's. He was aware of the dynamics of various forces and major aristocratic families.
Upon detailed questioning, Qin Jun Yao's doubts were resolved. What did Bai Qing do? Why did he have such great influence?
Bai Qing was an orphan, picked up by an agency in the imperial city when he was only three years old.
The agency taught these children different things to discover their unique talents and then sell them to suitable places.
They discovered Bai Qing's extraordinary musical talent.
No matter the instrument or the tune, Bai Qing could learn it after being taught once or twice.
At the age of six, Bai Qing was sold by the agency to an old prince.
The old prince was passionate about music and greatly favored a young genius like Bai Qing. He kept him by his side and hired famous teachers to instruct him.
With his excellent memory, Bai Qing absorbed a vast amount of knowledge during his six years with the old prince, even learning many secrets of the families in the imperial city.
Because he often accompanied the old prince, he gained some fame in the imperial city. Everyone knew that the old prince had a talented young attendant.
Unfortunately, a cold took the old prince's life. Bai Qing was then bought at a high price by a profligate young master of an aristocratic family.
This profligate youth initially wanted Bai Qing to bring him prestige. Later, he found Bai Qing attractive and developed improper intentions.
Although Bai Qing was young, his experiences were not shallow. Upon discovering the profligate youth's misconduct, he escaped and found the rival family of the profligate youth's family, revealing their secrets.
This action directly led to the profligate youth's family being exiled three thousand miles.
Fortunately, the rival family kept their promise and had Bai Qing's slave status revoked.
As a free citizen, Bai Qing became a musician to survive. Due to his fame and musical achievements, many families invited him to teach their sons and daughters music.
What did it matter that he had a humble background? Bai Qing's abilities were undeniable, and his young age spared him much trouble.