Chapter 375 - 373: Return to the Place of Beginnings (First Update)

Chapter 375: Chapter 373: Return to the Place of Beginnings (First Update)

For a time, there was much discussion in the court about why Xiao Yi and the Zhao family suddenly wanted to compete with the Jiang family for this position. After all, many knew that the Jiang family had been working on Guangming Hall supplying medicine to the military since the beginning of the previous year. Even if someone else coveted this task, knowing that the Jiang family was backing it, they would pull back their restless feet.

A joke, in the entire Great Chu Dynasty, the only ones who could confront the Jiang family head-on were the other three of the four great noble families!

Since the founding of Great Chu, the four noble families have maintained a delicate balance. Simply put, if you don’t provoke me, I won’t provoke you. No matter how their relationships were behind the scenes, they all appeared harmonious on the surface.

Therefore, such an open competition between the four great families had almost never happened!

This sudden event left everyone bewildered.

The most bewildering part for everyone was that the Holy Emperor seemed to welcome this development. After speaking at length about how the military was the shield of the nation and the importance of supplying medicine to the soldiers’ health, emphasizing the need for thorough investigation and comparison before making a decision, he formally established an investigation team to evaluate all aspects of Guangming Hall and Xinglin Hall, to finally decide who should supply medicine to the military!

Suddenly, not only common people, but even the court was in an uproar.

Everyone was waiting to see which side would eventually prevail in this unprecedented chaos among two-and-a-half families.

Why say two-and-a-half families? Because of Vice Minister Xiao’s relationship with the Xiao family, most people in the court knew that Vice Minister Xiao himself couldn’t count as a full family, at most half.

According to Zhao Shao Hua, these nobles even privately started many gambling matches to bet on which side would win in the end.

Indeed, whether they are nobles or ordinary citizens, their natural inclination to enjoy the spectacle remains unchanged.

Thinking of this, Xu Jing smiled meaningfully and said, "Ignore him, this is just the beginning. If he can’t handle this, how will he manage in the future?"

Having something she thought was a sure thing suddenly disrupted by herself, it was no wonder that Lin Chengzhao hated her so much that it made his teeth itch.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Shao Hua was invigorated, "By the way you say it, you have quite a few tricks up your sleeve to deal with him, don’t you? Come on, give me a hint to cheer me up. The other day, Vice Minister Lu’s wife also started a gambling match. I bet five hundred taels of silver on your Xinglin Hall!"

Xu Jing: "..."

No wonder this guy is so interested in the development of her Xinglin Hall!

Xu Jing said with an amused tone, "The main task ahead is still Xinglin Hall’s plan to open a branch in the Western Capital. I plan to replicate what we did in Anping County’s main store reopening, and have Xinglin Hall offer free consultations for three days. Also, early spring is the season when epidemics are common, I plan to have Cheng Xianbai take a few people outside the city to distribute porridge and herbal tea that can prevent epidemics to the refugees."

Although Great Chu has only been established for thirty-eight years, and generally speaking, peace and stability have been achieved, there still exists an imbalance in development between different areas. Families in some poor regions cannot survive the harsh winter, and can only sell their land and houses, eventually becoming homeless refugees.

Thus, early spring is a period when the number of refugees rapidly increases in various areas.

Zhao Shao Hua exclaimed with admiration, "You are doing this to leave a lasting legacy! That’s why I say, you may be a cunning merchant, but you’re not annoying. When the time comes, I’ll also help you."

"Leaving a lasting legacy might be an overstatement, I’m just trying to find a balance between medical ethics and profit."

Xu Jing smiled faintly and said, "This is what I agreed upon with Doctor Yan. However, during Xinglin Hall’s opening, I might not be present. If you want to help then, look for Doctor Wei. Doctor Wei is Doctor Yan’s apprentice, whom I introduced to you a few days ago."

Zhao Shao Hua raised his eyebrows, "Even for such an important event like an opening, you’ll be absent? Do you have something significant to attend to?"

"Yes."

Xu Jing said softly, "I have some matters to return to Anping County for."

After Zhou Qi told her about the suspicious epidemic from twenty-four years ago, she immediately sent people to investigate.

It was discovered that there were two managers close to Lin Chengzhao who had been sitting doctors in Guangming Hall when it was still a small clinic.

And the manager Zhou Qi said died by suicide had the surname Su, who suddenly appeared around Lin Chengzhao after the epidemic incident.

If there was indeed something unusual about that epidemic, apart from Lin Chengzhao, those two managers were most likely to know about it.

Those two managers could be considered Lin Chengzhao’s right and left hand now, one is surnamed Yang and the other Zhu. Lin Chengzhao greatly valued them; Manager Yang even married Lin Chengzhao’s sister, while Manager Zhu married Lin Chengzhao’s cousin.

They are now both in Anping County. Manager Zhu manages Guangming Hall’s main store in Anping County as the shopkeeper, while Manager Yang has always worked closely with Lin Chengzhao, being like his chief manager. During Lin Chengzhao’s absence from Anping County, Manager Yang typically handles all major decisions for Guangming Hall.

Xu Jing planned to personally go investigate these two people before Lin Chengzhao found out they were investigating the epidemic from twenty-four years ago.

Her original plan was to delay her visit to Anping County because of the busy preparations for Xinglin Hall’s opening.

However, that afternoon, just as she returned home, Cheng Xiao approached her calmly and performed a greeting, "Madam, our people who were sent to Anping County urgently sent a message back, saying that today, while tracking Manager Zhu, they seemed to have been discovered by him."

Xu Jing’s brows knitted at once.

The people she sent out initially reported that both Managers Zhu and Yang were extremely vigilant, any slight disturbance would catch their attention, so they needed to be extremely cautious while tracking them.

But still, they were discovered.

She pondered for a moment, sighed quietly, and said, "Prepare things, I will go to Anping County tomorrow. Meanwhile, send someone to invite Mr. Cheng over."

Cheng Xiao: "Yes!"

After arranging the tasks ahead with Cheng Xianbai, Xu Jing set out for Anping County early the next morning with Chunyang.

This was her first time returning to Anping County since coming to the Western Capital.

Reflecting on it now, she couldn’t help but feel emotional. Who would have thought that her initial trip to deliver medicine to the Song family would lead her to stay in the Western Capital?

Chunyang, on the other hand, was quite excited, "I never thought we would have a chance to return to Anping County. The young master often talks about the desserts from Huachun Garden in Anping County. We could bring a box back for him this time! And Chen Hu and Wu Xiangui, we haven’t seen them since they returned to Anping County. They will surely be excited to know that Miss Xu has returned."

Back then, after completing a month’s duty by Xu Jing’s side, Chen Hu and Wu Xiangui returned to their posts in Anping County.

Xu Jing smiled slightly, "Anping County isn’t far from the Western Capital. Besides, the main store of Xinglin Hall is here, we’ll have plenty of opportunities to come back."

Thinking of staying in Anping County for a few days, Xu Jing had someone rent a house there before returning to Anping County.

When Cheng Xiao brought her to the rented house, Xu Jing couldn’t help but be taken aback.