The Good Concubine of the Qing Dynasty [Red Mansion]

Yun Shuyao gained some insights from the Spirit Mirror that had absorbed the Mirror. Feeling confident that she could help if she went into that murky water, she proactively requested to head to Yangzhou.

The old lady was somewhat surprised by her decision.

“You’ve really thought this through?”

She looked deeply at Yun Shuyao, believing that her intentions weren’t simply to compete for favor with concubine Mei. After all, in two years, she would be old enough to be a grandmother or a maternal grandmother—unlike everyone else, not everyone was like concubine Mei.

Moreover, concubine Yun was indeed more careful and steady than concubine Mei. The old lady felt more at ease with her taking care of her son.

So, after a brief period of consideration, she quickly agreed, “Go ahead, I’ll make arrangements.”

Since Yun Shuyao intended to travel quietly, not many people would accompany her.

Additionally, she had disguised herself as a man.

When she came out dressed in a male riding outfit, Luoyu and the others were shocked. Was this really their aunt?

She looked like the same person, yet somehow different.

Her complexion had become slightly darker, her eyebrows were groomed to look more heroic, and the collar of her outfit concealed her lack of an Adam’s apple. If one didn’t know better, they might think she was her aunt’s younger brother.

Luoyu hesitated to express her feelings about her aunt heading south. She wanted to go too, but their sisters’ wedding dates were approaching, and their grandmother wouldn’t allow them to leave the house.

Chenyu wanted to go even more. He couldn’t help but sigh, “Aunt, take me with you.”

Yun Shuyao glanced at him, “Don’t be silly. You still have things to take care of at home.”

There was nothing wrong with Lin Ruhai for now, but there were still many matters to attend to on their end. “You need to keep the fences tight to avoid disturbing the family, and pay close attention to your two sisters as well.”

Since Lin Ruhai was fine, the wedding date would proceed as scheduled.

Yun Shuyao looked at her daughter, “I will return before your wedding.”

Yun Shuyao felt optimistic about it. There was still time, and the most dangerous period for Lin Ruhai should have passed; there wouldn’t be another test of the family’s resilience like this.

Luoyu and Chenyu didn’t say anything more. Even though they were reluctant, they could only watch their aunt depart.

When they set off, there were four people and four horses; the other three were two men and one woman, all guards from the Lin residence.

Yun Shuyao and her group didn’t delay on the road and hurried to Yangzhou as quickly as possible.

Along the way, the three guards had expected their delicate aunt to complain, but it turned out they were the ones who became more exhausted and in need of rest.

Was this reasonable?

Yun Shuyao replied, “I naturally have more energy.”

The guards were left speechless: “Really?”

The reason Yun Shuyao wanted to go to Yangzhou was that her mirror had now roughly recovered about thirty percent.

At first, when she saw its appearance, she thought the spirit mirror had fully recovered, but it turned out to be a false joy; it had only regained thirty percent. However, even at thirty percent, it was still very useful.

Most importantly, Yun Shuyao had obtained cultivation techniques here. Although it was the simplest method for refining Qi, she had found a way. She no longer needed to stumble around blindly like before, worrying that one misstep could lead to chaotic meridians and result in her death.

This was an authentic cultivation method, and she also had a spiritual root. Although she was no longer young and her body was not the original one, her progress would be slow. Nevertheless, compared to before, she could see hope.

There was indeed hope for self-protection if evil cultivators came knocking at her door.

Another source of confidence for her was that she had learned three types of talismans.

The first one was called the “Clear Wind Talisman”. It didn’t have any other effect; it simply helped keep a person alert, making it suitable for studying.

The second one was the “amulet“given by the abbot of the Guoguosi (National Temple). Yun Shuyao mastered this one the fastest since she had practiced it many times before and had already grasped some of its essence. Now that she understood the key points, relearning it came naturally.

The last one was the “Rejuvenation Talisman”, which meant she could finally treat ailments.

The “Rejuvenation Talisman” might not be a cure-all, but it could enhance a person’s vitality. In a dire situation, it might just save a life.

Was Lin Ruhai completely out of danger?

Not necessarily.

It could only be said that he was fine when he wrote that letter.

If he encountered danger again, something beyond human ability, the “Rejuvenation Talisman” might be able to help.

They hurriedly arrived in Yangzhou and quietly approached the vicinity of the Lin residence. They discovered that the area around the Lin residence was heavily guarded, with soldiers stationed nearby to keep out unauthorized individuals.

After taking a round, they didn’t find any vulnerabilities, which made them feel more at ease.

After circling around, one of the guards stepped forward to prevent any misunderstandings. He spoke to a soldier from a distance, claiming that they were here from the capital to deliver a message and requested to see the housekeeper.

The soldier was quite suspicious, but after the guard presented their credentials, someone was sent into the Lin residence to convey the message.

Before long, the head housekeeper came out personally.

At first, he didn’t recognize Yun Shuyao. Since the message from the capital had just arrived, and now another message was coming, he was worried that something had happened in the capital.

The letter had been prepared early that morning and had not been touched. It was placed on a tray and brought inside with great caution. Although the family emblem matched, and the credentials were in order, he only recognized three of them, while one was unfamiliar.

And just because someone was familiar, did that mean they wouldn’t betray him?

Not necessarily.

Previously, they had received quite a few letters, and the envelopes had been tampered with. If he hadn’t been careful enough, he wouldn’t know what might have happened to him by now.

The housekeeper took the letter, and Yun Shuyao and the others were invited to wait for news in a certain area of the gatehouse.

Before long, Lin Ruhai saw the letter and had someone come to escort Yun Shuyao into the inner courtyard.

The letter mentioned that Yun Shuyao had arrived and that she was disguised as a man.

A familiar face from the Lin residence came to meet her, and as soon as Yun Shuyao spoke, the familiar voice made everyone lower their guard. “It’s really you, Aunt Yun. Would you like to freshen up first?”

“Sure.”

After washing up and changing back into women’s clothes, she was guided through the twists and turns of the Lin residence until she finally saw Lin Ruhai.

For safety reasons, Lin Ruhai did not stay in the main courtyard, which would have made him an easy target.

Yun Shuyao pushed open the door and entered the room, immediately detecting a strong medicinal smell. Lin Ruhai had his hair down, wearing only a shirt as he leaned against the bed. One hand and part of his shoulder were wrapped in gauze, while the other side had documents scattered on it.

Even in this state, he still had to handle work.

Seeing Yun Shuyao, Lin Ruhai felt somewhat helpless and said in a weak voice, “Why did you come? Didn’t I say in the letter not to come?”

“You did say so, but I forgot and came anyway. Don’t worry, no one else knows I’m here.” This was the most disheveled Yun Shuyao had seen him; although he had been worn down during his mission to Fengtianshi, he had still maintained his spirit. But now… the previous gentle and graceful gentleman had turned into a pale, sickly beauty.

Yun Shuyao looked at him, her mood heavy, which showed on her face.

Lin Ruhai noticed and smiled slightly. Due to his weakness, his speech had slowed considerably. “I’m not seriously injured. Doctor Zhou said that as long as I rest well for a while, I’ll be fine.”

“Extend your hand,” Yun Shuyao said, not fully convinced.

Her skills in pulse diagnosis were better than most doctors, and indeed he was no longer in mortal danger, but his condition was still poor. “You shouldn’t be stressing yourself like this.” Now was the time when he needed rest the most.

Lin Ruhai replied, “Some things still need to be dealt with. You know that in times like this, we can’t back down. Once it’s over, everything will be fine.”

Yun Shuyao understood, but still felt the need to advise, “If someone else can handle it, let them do it. You have to take care of your health.”

Lin Ruhai nodded in agreement. “Shuyao, Doctor Zhou is keeping an eye on me.”

“I’ll keep an eye on you too.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Ruhai smiled again.

“Master, what exactly is going on?” He was reluctant to elaborate in the letter for fear of scaring the family, but now that she was here, there was no need to keep it a secret.

Lin Ruhai sighed. “When I was being carried back in the sedan chair, an assassin jumped out from the alley.”

Of course, he had been prepared; if he hadn’t, he wouldn’t just be injured but would have already been collected as a corpse.

Yun Shuyao asked, “Did you catch the people behind this?”

Lin Ruhai shook his head. “I don’t know which family sent them. It was just those families after all; one of them is as good as another. I won’t let any of them get away.” At this point, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

After the news leaked, the reactions from various families differed. Some chose to back off and eliminated their stockpiles before the large amounts of sea salt could be released to recover some of their losses. But more wanted to maintain their current advantages and wealth by eliminating the sea salt and the new methods at their inception. To achieve this, they not only took measures to prevent the sea salt production from the salt fields but also used various excuses to refuse to sell salt, leaving the public unable to buy any. They spread all sorts of rumors against the sea salt and him, causing public panic.

Without much thought, it was clear they wanted to stand against him and the court.

If the news hadn’t leaked, by the time they had stockpiled enough sea salt, even if they wanted to disrupt the market, they wouldn’t have been able to.

Yun Shuyao frowned while hanging the talismans she had painstakingly drawn—the protective talisman and the rejuvenation talisman—onto his uninjured hand. “How did the news leak?”

Lin Ruhai glanced at the yellow talisman, puzzled as to when she had come to believe in such things. However, he didn’t say anything and allowed her to hang it there.

“This matter is quite suspicious,” Lin Ruhai said, his gaze flickering.

After waking up, he had already written down all the oddities in a secret report, which was urgently sent to the Emperor.

In this world, among scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants, merchants were at the bottom of the social hierarchy. However, if this group of the wealthiest merchants in the world were to stir up trouble, the impact on the realm would be significant.

The Emperor would absolutely not want to see such a prosperous place fall into chaos.

So it would soon calm down.

Moreover… he had sensed something unusual during his last business trip. Upon returning to Yangzhou for his official duties, he not only did not avoid the Emperor’s secret agents but also took the initiative to request personnel from the Emperor to be by his side, all to unearth the mastermind behind this.

In the vast world, there is no land that does not belong to the King.

Lin Ruhai did not believe that there could be a hidden force that could remain completely undetected under the Emperor’s thorough investigation.

This time he was injured, nearly crossing into the gates of death. But if he could expose that hidden mastermind, then his injuries would be worth it.

At this time, the Emperor may have already identified who was behind all of this. The actions taken by that person were too taboo, and the Emperor would definitely not let it go easily.

In fact, this was indeed the case.

After ruling out suspicion against several of his own sons, Kangxi grew even more wary.

Now that the opponent was using such mysterious and unpredictable methods against the Lin family and Lin Ruhai, if one day they were to use similar methods against him or the Royal family clan, what would happen?

“Come here, summon the abbot of the Huguo Temple to the palace.”