After the two finished their meal, Jin Wang escorted Bai Fei Wan back to the main courtyard. “You’ve been traveling for so many days. Rest early tonight.”
“Aren’t you going to rest?” Bai Fei Wan asked.
Seeing her concern for him, Jin Wang’s gaze softened. “I still have some matters to attend to. You rest first. I’ll come find you when I’m done.”
Bai Fei Wan knew he was going to deal with the salt issue in that batch of fabric and obediently replied, “Alright. Don’t be too late, then. Come back early.”
Jin Wang kissed Bai Fei Wan’s forehead. “Alright,” he said, then turned and left.
Meanwhile, Jin Wang and Jiang Shun arrived at the dungeon in the residence.
Every one of Jin Wang’s properties was designed with a dungeon, convenient for detaining people and preventing their escape.
Inside the dungeon, Ying Yi and Ling Yu, who were interrogating the fabric merchants, saw Jin Wang arrive. The two of them saluted. “Wangye.”
Jin Wang gave an almost imperceptible nod. “What have you found out?”
“Replying to Wangye,” Ying Yi said, “the men all claim they were only transporting fabric. They refuse to say anything else.”
Jin Wang nodded. “Has all the fabric been soaked in water?”
This time, it was Ling Yu who replied. “It has all been soaked. The water is being boiled off now. It should be about done. Does Wangye wish to go have a look?”
Hearing their conversation, the faces of the detained men first went blank, then filled with panic. They tried to bite their tongues to commit suicide, but Ying Yi and the others had already dislocated their jaws.
Watching the change in their expressions, Jin Wang sneered. “Tell me what you know now and spare yourselves the suffering. Since this prince already knows there’s a problem with the fabric, finding its source is only a matter of time.”
With their jaws dislocated, the men couldn’t speak. They just made “ah, ah, ah” sounds upon hearing his words.
Jin Wang gave Ying Yi a look, and Ying Yi immediately stepped forward to reset one of the men’s jaws.
The man immediately begged for mercy. “My lord, we were only transporting fabric! We truly don’t know anything about what you’re asking, nor did we know there was a problem with the fabric.”
Seeing that they were still being stubborn, Jin Wang didn’t want to waste any more time on them. “Separate them and lock them up. Let’s go see the situation with that fabric first.”
“Yes,” Ying Yi replied.
Ling Yu, meanwhile, followed Jin Wang to the place where the fabric was being processed. The entrance was guarded by the Prince’s mansion’s guards, and the inside was also filled with them. None of the residence’s servants were allowed near.
Seeing Jin Wang arrive, all the guards saluted. “Wangye.”
Jin Wang walked to the side of a boiling pot and saw that the water inside was nearly evaporated, leaving behind a pale yellow solid.
Jiang Shun, ever perceptive, stepped forward and scooped some out with a ladle. He pinched a bit between his fingers to show Jin Wang, then licked his finger.
“Wangye, it is indeed salt.”
Hearing this, Ling Yu immediately rushed to Jiang Shun’s side, reached for the ladle, and pinched a small amount of salt to put in his mouth. He then spat it out. “It’s so salty.”
This was all within Jin Wang’s expectations. He simply gave a casual “en” and looked at Ling Yu. “Go and secretly investigate the source of this batch of fabric.”
Ling Yu immediately accepted the order. “Yes, Wangye.” His voice was filled with deep admiration. The Wangye was truly amazing. He had only just arrived in Jiangnan and had discovered the salt issue without even investigating anything.
Jin Wang then told Jiang Shun, “Go have Ying Yi re-interrogate those men.” After speaking, he headed toward the main courtyard.
Jiang Shun immediately replied, “Yes,” and headed for the dungeon.
Back in the main courtyard, Jin Wang washed up and returned to the room. Bai Fei Wan was curled up in a ball, lying on her side with her small mouth slightly agape, looking utterly adorable.
Jin Wang got into bed lightly and carefully pulled Bai Fei Wan into his arms, then drifted off to sleep, content.
The next day at Mao Shi, Jin Wang woke up and saw the person in his arms was still asleep, so he got up quietly.
The little one needed a lot of sleep, often not waking until Wu Shi. If he woke her, she would throw a fit.
It had been like this before—she would always sleep until noon, skipping breakfast and eating lunch directly. When he tried to wake her for breakfast, she would get grumpy.
Jin Wang got up, ate breakfast, and went out to handle his affairs.
He returned at noon to have lunch with Bai Fei Wan.
After lunch, Jin Wang said to Bai Fei Wan, “I will be very busy these next few days. You stay here and be good. Try not to go out if you can help it. It’s not safe outside. I’ll leave two people to protect you. I’ll take you out to have fun when I’m done.”
With that, he stroked Bai Fei Wan’s head.
Bai Fei Wan had long since grown accustomed to Jin Wang’s occasional head pats and kisses. She didn’t react much, simply replying obediently, “Alright.”
Then, she looked at Jin Wang with concern. “Wangye, you must be careful. This humble servant will be waiting for your return.”
This sentence was truly sincere. Bai Fei Wan did not want anything to happen to Jin Wang.
On one hand, she still hadn’t found a suitable opportunity to leave the Prince’s mansion. She couldn’t just run away, as her family would suffer the consequences. She needed a method that was justifiable, beneficial, and wouldn’t lead to repercussions.
On the other hand, Jin Wang had been very good to her throughout the journey, and she didn’t want him to get hurt.
Looking at Bai Fei Wan’s worried eyes and hearing her refer to herself as “this humble servant,” he realized he disliked her using that term.
So he said gently, “From now on, when we’re in private, don’t refer to yourself as ‘this humble servant’ anymore. I’ll take care of myself, don’t worry.”
Bai Fei Wan obediently agreed. “Alright.”
Seeing how well-behaved Bai Fei Wan was, Jin Wang left in satisfaction, leaving behind the words, “Wait obediently at home for this prince’s return.”
Seeing Jin Wang leave, Zi Zhu came in to attend to her young miss. With her were the two guards Jin Wang had sent to protect Bai Fei Wan.
“Zhu Zi, these are the guards Wangye asked this servant to bring for you to meet,” Zi Zhu said.
Bai Fei Wan looked at the two of them, a man and a woman who appeared to be in their early twenties. The man looked simple and honest, while the woman was proper and pretty, but upon closer inspection, there was a subtle resemblance in their features.
“What are your names?” Bai Fei Wan asked amiably.
The proper and pretty woman answered first. “Replying to Bai Zhuzi, this subordinate is called Chun Liu.”
The simple and honest man slowly said, “This subordinate is Chun Shan.”
“Are you two siblings? You look somewhat alike.”
Hearing this, Chun Liu replied, “Yes, Bai Zhuzi.”
“Then you’re the younger sister, right?” Bai Fei Wan asked Chun Liu curiously.
Chun Liu smiled at her words. “Replying to Bai Zhuzi, yes, this subordinate is Chun Shan’s younger sister. My brother and I are fraternal twins.”
Bai Fei Wan nodded. “This is my handmaid, Zi Zhu. You should all get acquainted.”
The two siblings nodded at Zi Zhu, and Zi Zhu returned a smile. The group was now acquainted.
Seeing that there were no other issues, Bai Fei Wan said, “You may leave for now. I will call you if I need anything.”
The two immediately clasped their hands. “This subordinate takes their leave.”
After the two had left, Zi Zhu said excitedly, “Young Miss, Young Miss, are they really twins? They don’t look that much alike. Aren’t twins supposed to look very similar?”
Zi Zhu usually called Bai Fei Wan “Young Miss” in private, only calling her “Zhu Zi” when others were present.
Bai Fei Wan hummed in agreement. “They’re fraternal twins, from two different eggs, so it’s normal for them to look different. Usually, only identical twins look the same.”
Zi Zhu said, “That’s so amazing. This is the first time I’ve ever seen fraternal twins.”
Fraternal twins were indeed rare in ancient times. Nowadays, many people go to hospitals to conceive them.
And so, for the next few days, Bai Fei Wan basically never saw Jin Wang except at night. She was still not used to going out, so she just stayed in the residence and lived her life. It was almost no different from being in the Prince’s mansion, just in a different place.
Seeing how busy Jin Wang was, Bai Fei Wan felt helpless. The novel hadn’t specified where the private salt was, only that it was in a poor, small village on the border of Jiangnan, and that the magistrate governing it was one of the Third Prince’s men.
Jiangnan was so large, with over fifty counties and countless villages. She had no idea which one it was.