Chapter 167

Chapter 167: From Where Did He Come?

Second, and the question he truly wished to ask: “Princess, at what price will you set the cotton?”

He had journeyed personally from the Northern Desert. Even though the cold disaster had yet to strike, the price of cotton in the market had already started to rise.

Yesterday, cotton in Ji Prefecture had jumped from two hundred coins per pound to three hundred.

And the Princess?

Was she buying cotton to earn silver ingots, or was it for the sake of the common people in the Northern Desert?

Of course, Sheng Zhi Wan had no need for silver ingots.

The silver Shang Hang Yu transported from Tedan was partly resting in the Qin family’s money banks and partly being sent to Manifest Dragon Mountain.

But she couldn’t simply give away the cotton without charge—that would disrupt the market.

Eventually, Sheng Zhi Wan decided to set the price between two hundred fifty to three hundred coins. Commoners could still afford it by tightening their belts, and most importantly, it prevented the wealthy families from hoarding cotton and speculating prices to make excessive profits.

Everyone in the world chased after profits; even before disasters, this truth rarely changed.

Those with vast wealth, like Meng Yang and the Third Prince from her past life, colluded with corrupt officials and merchants. They bribed influential clans, monopolizing the market, and leaving only overpriced cotton circulating. Thus, commoners were entirely cut off from survival.

As for those with little capital, even small merchants could sense profit, buying low and selling high to earn a tidy profit. This, too, was a natural human instinct toward gain.

The first situation must be firmly prevented. The second could be tolerated, but it mustn’t grow too large.

When water is too clear, no fish can live in it.

The best approach was cooperation with local influential clans. Both sides would gain benefits, yet no social class would be driven to despair by profit-seeking.

When it came to matters of life and death, principles of profit could be relaxed. Choosing Du Yi Zhi was partially due to his roots in Ji Prefecture’s powerful Du clan.

Shopkeeper Lin waited in the side hall for two hours before Du Yi Zhi was led out by Ting Lan.

After they left the Princess’s manor, the two men parted ways.

Du Yi Zhi currently served as steward of one of Sheng Zhi Wan’s country estates. Familiar with his surroundings, he soon arrived at a modest courtyard.

Inside, a single lamp flickered dimly.

From a prestigious lady to a widow forced from her home, Madam Du had long grown used to doing everything herself. Even now, with improved circumstances, she continued doing embroidery to support the family.

When she learned her son would return to Ji Prefecture the next day, Madam Du nearly dropped her sewing basket.

Her first reaction was to forbid it.

“No! If the Old Madam and Eldest Master discover you’re alive, they’ll never let you go!”

Du Yi Zhi’s father, Du Ming Hao, had been a concubine-born son of the Du family’s main branch. Though born from a concubine, he was gifted and passed the highest imperial exam at twenty-seven, becoming the county magistrate of Yuwen County, Yuantai Prefecture, in Ji Prefecture.

Young and promising.

But within two months, he offended a powerful nobleman while investigating an old case. He left a “letter of remorse” and hanged himself from a beam.

Madam Du refused to believe her husband had committed the crimes described in the letter—seducing an official’s wife and causing her death—nor did she believe he would abandon them through suicide. She took her children and knelt before the clan, pleading for justice.

That very night, their home was stormed by furious “commoners.”

Had Du Yi Zhi not been quick-witted, all three of them would have perished in the flames.

Du Ming Hao was struck from the Du family register.

His surviving wife and children faced endless scorn.

Du Ming Yi, a legitimate-born son of the main branch, rose quickly afterward, first becoming a Junior Fifth Rank assistant magistrate, then promoted to Fourth Rank Prefect.

Madam Du never spoke of justice again, focusing only on survival. But this did not mean the Du family truly left them alone.

They merely refrained from staining their own hands, waiting coldly for the mother and children to perish from poverty.

If Du Yi Zhi appeared again in Du family territory, thinking of those past torments…

Madam Du’s eyes instantly reddened!

“Mother, I’m returning to Ji Prefecture to escort cotton garments and grain the Princess donated to the Northern Desert troops. Even the Du family would hesitate to harm me openly due to Princess Ning’s influence.”

The earlier shipments via water and land were covert. This convoy he would lead tomorrow was the public one.

“But…can’t the Princess send someone else?” Madam Du refused strongly.

She wanted only to survive; nothing else mattered.

Yet Du Yi Zhi steadily met her gaze. “Mother, don’t you wish to restore Father’s honor and allow his coffin into the ancestral tomb?”

Of course, she wanted that—but not at the cost of her son’s life!

“Mother, if I cannot clear Father’s name and ensure he rests honorably with our ancestors, then living itself…would be meaningless,” Du Yi Zhi said.

“Mother, just let Elder Brother go.”

Though Du Yue was only thirteen, she was already mature. While her mother sought merely survival, Du Yue understood her brother’s ambition clearly.

He wanted not only to live, but to live openly and with dignity.

“Elder Brother, don’t worry about home. I’ll take care of Mother. You just stay safe,” the young lady said solemnly.

Du Yi Zhi gently stroked her hair. “Good. Yue, wait for your brother’s return.”

The next day, a caravan of dozens of fully loaded carts departed grandly from the capital.

Du Yi Zhi’s convoy carried not only finished cotton clothing and quilts but also a hundred and fifty skilled soldiers Shang Hang Yu specially recruited from Shuo Prefecture.

Dressed as escort guards, upon arrival in Ji Prefecture, another group from Serene Virtue Escort Agency would join them. These one hundred fifty men would then quietly infiltrate Manifest Dragon Mountain, taking charge of soldier training.

“This Du Yi Zhi…looks weak as a willow. Where did the Princess find him? Is he trustworthy?”

Gathering Worthies Teahouse, third floor.

Shang Hang Yu withdrew his gaze, his voice sour.

He knew Princess Ning wouldn’t rely on appearances alone. But if she valued Du Yi Zhi, then the man surely had exceptional qualities.

And he was handsome, too.

Instantly, Shang Hang Yu’s guard went up.

“He’s from the Du clan of Ji Prefecture. His father offended a noble and was killed. The clan used this chance to cast out the widow and children. Now, his mother and sister live in my estate. He’s trustworthy.” Sheng Zhi Wan paused, glancing sideways at him.

Shang Hang Yu fell silent, pouting slightly. He vowed inwardly he must prove himself more useful, lest other charming men divert the Princess’s attention.

“I hear the Shang Residence is quite lively these days?”

Mentioning this, Shang Hang Yu snorted. “Quite lively, indeed—but it has nothing to do with me.”

“How can it not? I’ve heard those noble ladies came specifically for you.” Sheng Zhi Wan found amusement in his irritation.

“Oh?” Shang Hang Yu’s eyes brightened, locking onto Sheng Zhi Wan’s face. “Why would Princess care about such matters? Could it be—”

Sheng Zhi Wan gave a cold laugh.

Shang Hang Yu promptly swallowed the rest of his words.

Yet his eyes lingered on Sheng Zhi Wan. Yesterday’s banquet had been too crowded; he hadn’t found a chance to speak privately with her.

Now, finally alone, he couldn’t resist asking, “Princess, do you remember what I said to you before?”

“What words?” Sheng Zhi Wan blinked. But even as she spoke, she suddenly remembered clearly—that foolish promise of “repaying a lifesaving grace with oneself…”