“We did meet him,” Feng Yu nodded, his face full of lingering fear. “Fortunately, we met him, otherwise, we wouldn’t have just suffered minor injuries—we would have lost our lives.”

He looked up: “We were injured by bandits. They wanted to rob the silver and tried to kill us.”

“Is the silver lost?” Ye Chongming’s heart tightened again.

Had the thing he feared most still happened?

Feng Yu’s face showed relief: “Luckily, you sent Head Escort Guan to meet us, otherwise, it truly would have been lost. Head Escort Guan was truly formidable—not only did he protect our silver, but he also captured one of the bandits. However, several escorts from the agency were injured.”

Having learned from his previous mistake, he dared not pause while speaking, and quickly continued: “They’re all at Returning Spring Hall now. The doctor at Returning Spring Hall said that fortunately they were brought in time, and their lives should be out of danger.”

The knot in Ye Chongming’s heart finally loosened. At least the people and silver were safe.

He now had the peace of mind to care about other matters: “Bandits? You captured a bandit? Was he sent to the authorities?”

“Yes. But he’s being temporarily detained. The magistrate said he’d hold court to question him after we’ve recovered from our injuries.”

Ye Chongming’s expression became grave.

Temporarily detained, not yet interrogated?

Earlier, Ye Yaming had warned him to be careful of Meng Chengwei trying another scheme if his first plan failed, with his attention turning to Ye Hongchang and the tea silver. Now her prediction had indeed come true.

Without even investigating, he knew this must be Meng Chengwei’s doing.

Now that the tea silver wasn’t lost and the bandit had been captured, would Meng Chengwei use his connections with government officials to collude with the bandit for false testimony? Or would he secretly have the bandit silenced or secretly released?

No, this matter had to be dealt with immediately to prevent complications.

“Alright, I understand,” he glanced around the room and said to Lin Zhensheng, “Manager Lin, go to Returning Spring Hall to check on the First Master, and handle any matters that need attention. If he’s not seriously injured, send him home to save the Old Lady and me from worrying.”

“Yes.”

“Tell those escorts to rest easy and recover. The Ye family will cover all their medical fees and the living expenses for their families during their recovery period. If anyone is too severely injured to work as an escort in the future, our Ye family will hire them for other work. Tell them not to worry about their future livelihood.”

Lin Zhensheng knew he was going to deal with the bandit matter, and immediately replied: “Yes, Master, rest assured, I will handle it.”

Zhou Xiang, being the most astute, immediately realized that Ye Chongming was heading to the government office upon hearing these words. He promptly went downstairs ahead of everyone to tell the coachman to bring the carriage to wait below.

Anxious, Ye Chongming was already waiting downstairs before the coachman could bring the carriage over.

Once in the carriage, he ordered: “Back to the mansion first.”

Zhou Xiang and Meng Ji were confused: Weren’t they going to the magistrate’s office? Why did the Old Master want to return home?

The coachman, unaware of what had just happened, simply followed orders. He flicked the whip, and the carriage slowly started moving toward the Ye mansion.

Lin Zhensheng had followed Ye Chongming downstairs. Instructed to go to the medical hall, he had assumed that Ye Chongming’s urgent descent—without visiting his injured son or comforting the escorts—meant he was rushing to the government office to deal with the captured bandit.

Now, seeing Ye Chongming’s carriage heading in the opposite direction toward the Ye mansion, he was puzzled: “Could the Old Master be confused from shock?”

Feng Yu’s arm had also been cut with a small wound, but it had already stopped bleeding, which was why he had come to report.

At this moment, he too wore a bewildered expression, saying in puzzlement: “Even if the Old Master is confused from shock, aren’t Meng Ji and Zhou Xiang in the carriage? How could they…”

The two men looked at each other, neither understanding what Ye Chongming had planned.

“Forget it, let’s go. I see you’re injured too. Hurry and get medicine and bandages,” Lin Zhensheng said.

The two men also got into a carriage and headed toward the medical hall.

…

Outside the carriage window was the prosperous scene Ye Chongming had gazed upon for decades: rows of shops, bustling crowds, sounds of laughter, and hawkers calling out—a scroll of life filled with the vibrancy of ordinary existence that Ye Chongming never tired of seeing even after decades.

But inside the carriage, Ye Chongming felt a chill throughout his body.

The Ye family had started as tea garden owners, then became tea merchants over four or five generations, always conducting business honestly. Although they had experienced many deceptions in the business world and had witnessed many dark deeds from his position on the third floor, he had never encountered someone who would threaten lives and try to destroy an entire family without any grudge or enmity.

Just an imperial merchant with a family member who was a consort—how dare he?!

Countless thoughts raced through his mind. But in the end, he only felt deep helplessness and endless desolation.

The Ye family had remained in Lin’an City for generations, farming and trading, with no connections in the capital and no backers in official circles. Meng Chengwei had probably observed this point and thus acted so recklessly!

Yaming was right. To become stronger, they must cooperate with others. They could no longer remain isolated, stubbornly guarding their small patch of land.

Returning to the mansion and entering the Second Branch, Ye Chongming instructed the door-keeping matron: “Go call the Third Young Lady here.”

Old Lady Ye was surprised to see Ye Chongming returning home at this hour.

Ye Chongming was a very diligent person who would generally stay at the teahouse handling various matters. If he had no specific business, he would make rounds at the tea factory or tea shops, or sometimes meet with clients at the teahouse to maintain relationships.

He usually left home early in the morning and returned in the evening. It was only approaching noon now, yet he had returned home—something must have happened.

Thinking of her eldest son who had not yet returned from the capital, her heart tightened, and she hurriedly went forward to ask: “Why have you returned at this time?”

Ye Chongming did not speak, but entered the room and sat down. He accepted a cloth from a maid to wipe his face and hands, then took a cup of tea and drank a few sips before finally saying: “Wait until Yaming comes before I explain.”

Old Lady Ye had no choice but to send someone to see why Ye Yaming hadn’t arrived yet.

Shortly after, Ye Yaming arrived. Ye Chongming sent all the servants out, and only then did he relate the news about Ye Hongchang and the escorts being injured.

Old Lady Ye was frightened. Fortunately, Ye Chongming, worried that she would react as he had, spoke very quickly, telling her that Ye Hongchang had only suffered minor injuries, and that he hadn’t returned home because the escorts from the agency were still in danger, and he couldn’t ignore them. Only then did Old Lady Ye avoid becoming seriously ill from shock.

After finishing his explanation, Ye Chongming sighed to Ye Yaming: “Yaming, you were right. We don’t provoke others, yet others will resort to deadly measures out of coveting what our family has. This matter, I’m afraid, cannot end well. Having failed to achieve his goal, he will certainly have follow-up plans. And that bandit—he will not allow him to reveal anything.”

“What do you think we should do next?” he asked.

“Is the tea silver safe?” Ye Yaming asked.

Ye Chongming nodded, his face full of relief: “Fortunately, you reminded me to send Head Escort Guan and his men to meet your First Uncle. Otherwise, not only would the tea silver be lost, but your First Uncle, he…”

At this point, he couldn’t continue speaking due to lingering fear.