Zhou Weiqi could truly be considered a good prince who humbly accepted instruction. Qian Ying had taught him to get closer to his Crown Prince father. He had dispatched Wei Yansheng personally to retrieve the silver from the Chen family in Xiangfan, and now that he finally had some free time, he devoted himself wholeheartedly to finding medicine for the Crown Prince—before his mother passed away, she had once requested an old ginseng root from Han Zhengqing. It was said this ginseng was extremely aged and had the effect of prolonging life. First, he wanted to test the relationship between Fan Liangdi and Han Zhengqing; second, he genuinely needed this item to present to his father. He tentatively sent a letter to Han Zhengqing, and unexpectedly, Han Zhengqing actually replied. Not only did he reply, he even had Second Master Han of the Marquis Jinxiang Manor personally deliver the old ginseng into his hands. He was quite pleasantly surprised.
Originally, having experienced the matters of Little Madam Fan and Han Zhi, he had thought that Han Zhengqing would inevitably harbor some resentment toward his mother. When his mother on her deathbed had someone send a letter to Han Zhengqing, he had only felt it was futile. But unexpectedly, even in a situation where both Little Madam Fan and Han Zhi had died at his mother’s hands, Han Zhengqing still stood firmly on his side.
He felt blood rushing to his head. Holding the exquisitely beautiful box containing the mountain ginseng, he was so moved that his voice trembled slightly as he asked Qian Ying: “Why do you think the Marquis Jinxiang can let go of everything so completely?” Previously, he had been anxious and angry over that vague suspicion in his heart, his heart hanging in midair at every moment. But now that his mother was dead and his father could do nothing, he actually felt somewhat fortunate—fortunate that his mother had left him such an ally.
Qian Ying was also completely baffled. He frowned, feeling somewhat worried in his heart. He glanced at the Prince of Dongping, slowly suppressing all the doubts and suspicions in his heart, and forced his lips into what passed for a smile: “That the Marquis Jinxiang is still willing to give you this item fully demonstrates his attitude—at least he stands on your side.” He paused, then vaguely glossed over it with words even he felt were trying to cover something up: “This is also the good karma that Liangdi Niangniang established for you.” No matter what, the Marquis Jinxiang Manor was now at least an asset, and a huge one at that. The Prince of Dongping had only just received his assignment and had only just begun cultivating his own team—those people and forces that Fan Liangdi had previously controlled, they had only recently learned, did not belong to Fan Liangdi, and even she couldn’t fully control them. If that was the case, the Prince of Dongping couldn’t obtain these assets either. Now, aside from the Wei family, he couldn’t even freely command the Fan family. Given this, cultivating people he could use became critically important. If the Marquis Jinxiang could stand behind the Prince of Dongping, it would undoubtedly be a great boon. He swallowed his worries and, after thinking it over, still advised Zhou Weiqi: “Your Highness should send a letter to properly thank the Marquis. It would be best to also explain the matters regarding the Marchioness and the heir of Marquis Jinxiang clearly to the Marquis…”
Zhou Weiqi hesitated: “Mother already sent a letter…” Seeing Qian Ying shake his head, that vague worry in his heart surfaced again. He sighed somewhat helplessly: “But I don’t know how Mother explained things to the Marquis. If I tell the Marquis everything in detail, but Mother concealed some things there, and the Marquis becomes angry…”
This worry coincided with Qian Ying’s thoughts. He also felt that the Marquis Jinxiang’s goodwill came inexplicably and incomprehensibly under circumstances where Little Madam Fan, Han Zhi, and Han Yueheng had all met with misfortune. Precisely because it was so difficult to understand, he truly couldn’t accept this goodwill with a peaceful mind—what if this was arsenic wrapped in honey?
He honestly told Zhou Weiqi his thoughts: “We must find out why the Marquis is helping us like this, otherwise how can we be at ease? This is… the heir is his only legitimate son… Without clarifying, would you dare present this ginseng to His Highness the Crown Prince? What if something is wrong with this ginseng…”
Zhou Weiqi’s eyes widened. He felt a chill rising from his heart, shivering from the cold, and hurriedly nodded: “Adjutant Qian is right. I was confused. I’ll write a letter immediately to explain the whole story to the Marquis Jinxiang.”
Qian Ying nodded, then reassured him: “Actually, Your Highness needn’t worry too much. The Marquis Jinxiang’s clan isn’t without people. You also sent a letter before. This time we’re bringing up old matters again, merely wanting to confirm the Marquis Jinxiang’s intentions. This way both sides can be at ease, isn’t that right?”
Zhou Weiqi felt somewhat more settled. He handed the box to someone to put away and picked up his brush to write to Han Zhengqing.
The letter was only half-written, and Zhou Weiqi was still discussing with Qian Ying how to phrase things, when urgent knocking sounded from outside. He called out loudly to enter. The eunuch He Shun carefully bent at the waist as he entered, came forward a few steps to Zhou Weiqi’s side, and said in a low voice: “Your Highness, news has come from Xiangfan. They say they’ve inquired clearly—that silver from the Chen family is deposited with the Chen family’s fourth branch. It can only be retrieved with a seal.”
Wei Yansheng’s work efficiency was quite fast after all. Zhou Weiqi, holding his brush, didn’t hesitate. He turned back to instruct He Shun: “Who did Wei Yansheng send back to report? Tell him to tell Wei Yansheng to proceed as previously discussed—have him find a way to get someone with the seal to exchange for the money. This matter can’t be delayed for even a moment!”
He Shun acknowledged with a yes and turned to leave. Suddenly remembering something, he stopped and turned back, reporting in a low voice: “By the way, Your Highness, His Highness the Crown Prince’s Heir specially sent silver to the Ministry of Justice, instructing them to take care of Minister Chen’s family members.”
Qian Ying had reminded Zhou Weiqi about this matter when Chen Dezhong first had his incident—he should find a way to win hearts. Chen Dezhong had, after all, been someone the Crown Prince arranged for Zhou Weiqi. If nothing unexpected had happened, he was originally supposed to become Zhou Weiqi’s advisor in the future. Now that something had suddenly happened, whether for the Crown Prince’s reputation or for Zhou Weiqi’s own reputation, he should at least go through the motions on the surface. But there had been so many matters recently, and after Fan Liangdi passed away, Zhou Weiqi’s side didn’t have anyone to handle these internal affairs for him. For a time, he had actually been too busy and forgotten.
Zhou Weiqi lowered his head and thought for a moment, then turned to look at Qian Ying: “Although it’s somewhat late now, doing it is still better than not doing it. Why don’t I send people to visit Old Madam Chen and those female family members? We can also send some items in.”
Better late than never. Qian Ying’s eyes showed satisfaction, and he nodded with a smile: “That Your Highness can avoid competing over momentary pride—this is very good. I heard that there are female family members in the Chen household who just gave birth. Medical supplies can be prepared more generously. These things don’t matter whether they’re early or late—what matters is sincerity.”
Zhou Weiqi responded with a yes and instructed He Ying to go to Nanny Fang’s place inside and tell Nanny Fang to prepare these things, so they could all be sent together to the Chen family when the time came.