Investigating and Returning (2)
Over the next few days, the search for someone at Guihai Wharf became the talk of the town.
It was said that this person owed Guihai Wharf thirty million taels of silver in unpaid goods and refused to pay. Everyone was encouraged to provide any clues they had, with the promise of a generous reward.
The people’s enthusiasm immediately soared. Everyone hoped they would be the lucky one to receive the hefty reward.
However, some people tried to pass off false information, claiming they had seen the person. But whenever they were questioned in detail, their lies were quickly exposed.
In just two days, the number of clues Guihai Wharf received skyrocketed from several thousand to more than ninety thousand.
This made things miserable for the sailors responsible for sorting and analyzing them. Looking at the piles of record books stacked higher than a person’s life, they suddenly felt as though they could see the end of their lives already.
Wanting to slack off a little, Lin Yuan eagerly volunteered to Ye Yurong.
“Don’t worry. Leave the task of verifying the clues at the wharf to me. I guarantee nothing will go wrong!”
Ye Yurong thought about it and felt that it made sense, so she agreed to his request.
“You’d better make sure nothing goes wrong. Otherwise…” Ye Yurong did not finish her sentence. Instead, she raised her fist and stared at him.
You’d better do your job properly, or I’ll beat you into a pig’s head.
Receiving the not-so-subtle threat, Lin Yuan shuddered.
“Mm. Boss, really, there’s no need to go that far…”
Ye Yurong ignored him.
“Enough nonsense. If you’re going, then hurry up and go. Keep watch over the wharf.”
As soon as he heard this, Lin Yuan immediately ran off.
That left only Ye Yurong and Jiang Wan together to discuss the matter.
“Don’t worry. Besides the people here at the wharf, I’ve also mentioned it to everyone in the places our association will be visiting. I asked them to keep an eye out as well.”
The corners of Jiang Wan’s lips lifted ever so slightly, forming a faint smile without showing her teeth. The smile was so subtle that it disappeared almost instantly.
“They’re working hard.”
Ye Yurong waved her hand.
“It’s nothing. It’s just something they can do along the way.”
“I’ll also be going out these next few days to collect local goods, so I’ll keep an eye out while I’m at it.”
Jiang Wan nodded.
“Then I’ll go help Lin Yuan sort through the clues.”
“All right. I’ll feel much more at ease with you keeping an eye on him. Otherwise, he’ll slack off and cut corners.”
“Then I’ll go first.”
Ye Yurong watched as Chunxia led Jiang Wan away. She picked up the vermilion-red brush on the table and began circling and marking several coastal villages, planning their route.
After circling a place called Honglian Town, the tip of her brush moved farther back and stopped at a place called Mizhao Town.
They had visited this town only a handful of times to collect local goods, but for some reason, she felt a strange intuition about it. She drew a red circle around it, making it the final destination on their route for collecting local goods.
……
Chunxia led Jiang Wan to the entrance of the wharf alley, which was already surrounded by people.
Jiang Wan watched as the people responsible for recording information wrote so quickly that their pens seemed almost capable of striking sparks.
As for Lin Yuan, he had set up a reclining chair on the elevated bow of the ship. With one leg crossed over the other, he leisurely enjoyed being waited on.
He called it, “Staring at them all the time hurts my eyes. I need to rest for a while.”
Jiang Wan had no intention of going over to call him.
There were only two possible outcomes.
Either he would immediately get up and organize the situation, or he would continue lying there, and no one would be able to move him.
Jiang Wan felt the second possibility was more likely, so she simply had Chunxia take her to the people responsible for organizing and verifying the clues.
The moment she entered, Jiang Wan could feel the busy atmosphere, along with a hint of tension.
The person in charge was a somewhat older middle-aged man. His hair was not yet particularly gray. He wore a gray-blue coarse-cloth short shirt with narrow sleeves, the cuffs neatly fastened. A cloth pouch around his waist held message slips from various places.
Amid the busy crowd, he was so inconspicuous that he could easily be overlooked. He simply kept his head down and examined the clue records in his hands.
Jiang Wan walked up to him, but before she could speak, he interrupted her.
“You’re here to help, right? There’s an empty spot by the window.”
Jiang Wan was momentarily stunned, but after only a moment, she suppressed the ripples in her heart and returned to her usual calm expression.
Jiang Wan wanted Chunxia to stop waiting on her and go rest. She could manage on her own.
Chunxia hurriedly refused.
“Miss Jiang, it is this servant’s duty to take good care of you. Please rest assured and do what you need to do. I won’t disturb you.”
Seeing this, Jiang Wan had nothing more to say.
The room was filled with small booklets, leaving hardly any space to stand except around the desks.
“Chunxia, I’ll be sorting through these for a long time. There’s a place outside where you can rest. Go sit there. I’ll call you if I need anything.”
Chunxia looked around before answering,
“Yes.”
She then went to the lodging quarters to wait for Jiang Wan, familiar with the route.
Lin Yuan was still lying in his reclining chair, leisurely enjoying himself like a spoiled young master. Every now and then, he would direct the person holding the sunshade to shift its position, or tell the person fanning him to use a little more strength.
Jiang Wan picked up the first booklet from the towering stack to her right and opened the first page.
She almost couldn’t stop herself from continuing to read.
[I saw that person. He was dressed in black and had a scar on his face. Several people were holding knives against him and taking him eastward. I don’t know where they were going.]
[I saw this person. He came to my house two days ago and stole a chicken. I saw him with my own eyes. If you find him, you have to compensate me! ]
[That person was covered in blood and was being dragged past my house. There were quite a few people with him. He was wearing black clothes. As for his appearance, I saw his face—he was ugly.]
[The group dragging that person around committed arson, murder, robbery, and looting. They killed several of my geese. You have to give me more money.]
……
Jiang Wan read for half an hour.
There was an overwhelming amount of useless nonsense, along with outright fabrications, leaving her utterly exhausted and giving her a terrible headache.
Meanwhile, Lin Yuan ran into some trouble.
Someone started causing a commotion directly at the wharf, inciting the people gathered around as well.
The man argued that they were merely recording information and would only find the people who provided clues and award them according to the information recorded in the books.
But what if they found out the clues were useless?
Then they would have wasted everyone’s time, and the people who had waited there would receive no compensation at all.
He claimed that Guihai Wharf would certainly go back on its word later.
They could simply say that someone from within their own organization had found the person and then refuse to pay a single coin, essentially getting the reward money for free.
As soon as the crowd heard this, they became dissatisfied, and the scene quickly descended into chaos.
The moment Lin Yuan saw the crowd erupt, he immediately got off the ship and went to the wharf.
“Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing?”
“Guihai Wharf is the largest ship merchant association here, and we’re also the wealthiest!”
“If we say we’re going to do something, we’ll do it! Guihai Wharf has always valued its reputation!”
The man leading the disturbance immediately retorted,
“You are the most trustworthy, that’s true. But that doesn’t mean you actually intend to pay out this reward.”
“If you simply pick someone from among your own sailors and claim that this person provided genuine and useful information, then give him the reward, you can always take the money back afterward. You wouldn’t lose anything.”
The man became increasingly agitated.
“Meanwhile, those of us providing clues have to stand here under this scorching sun and wait in line just to have our information recorded, and we don’t get a single benefit. How is that fair?”
Lin Yuan immediately understood what the man was trying to accomplish and was about to argue back.
But the other people surrounding them immediately began shouting and even started getting physical.
“That’s right! Big Brother is right! Why should we waste our time like this?”
“You make us come all this way and give us nothing!”
“What if they’re just putting on a show? Then none of us will ever get the reward!”
The people waiting in line became dissatisfied when they heard this, and the two groups began pushing and shoving each other.
Seeing that the situation was about to spiral out of control, Ye Yurong returned after finishing her collection of local goods.
The moment she saw what was happening, she immediately stepped in.
“Everyone, stop!”
“Who are you?”
“What do you do?”
……
Ye Yurong remained calm and proceeded at her own pace.
“I am the owner of Guihai Wharf. My surname is Ye. Here, I solemnly promise everyone that as long as the clues you provide are valid, we will award the reward according to the information recorded in the notice.”
“Please rest assured! Guihai Wharf has been here for so long. I believe everyone has their own judgment!”
A man dressed in blue stepped forward.
“That’s right. Everyone, don’t let this person deceive you. What is Guihai Wharf like? Don’t you all know?”
“Guihai Wharf buys the local goods we can’t sell and also brings us good things from other places, allowing all of us to have enough to eat.”
Hearing this, the crowd silently reflected.
“We’re sorry, Boss Ye. We were misled by these troublemakers.”
“We’re sorry, Boss Ye…”
“……”
Seeing that the situation was under control, Ye Yurong spoke clearly and openly.
“That’s all for today. Everyone, go home for now. Starting tomorrow, everyone who comes to provide clues will receive one hundred copper coins.”
“But there is one condition: your information must match the contents of the notice. Anyone who tries to pass off false information will be severely punished!”
When the villagers heard this, some of their faces immediately fell.
No matter how unwilling they were, they could only leave.
Others could barely contain their smiles and happily headed home.
Once almost everyone had left, Ye Yurong rolled her eyes and walked over to Lin Yuan.
“So this is the result of you keeping a good eye on things? They almost started fighting, and you’re not going to give me an explanation?”
Lin Yuan suddenly shrank like a frightened quail.
“Boss, hear me out! It was an accident, an accident! Who could have expected someone to cause trouble?”
Ye Yurong suppressed her anger.
“You can forget about your wages for this month, next month, and the month after that. And you can forget about your allowances, too.”
Lin Yuan immediately felt as though the sky had collapsed.
“Don’t! Boss, do you want me to starve to death?”
“Every bit of the deducted money will be given to those who come forward with clues. No negotiations.” Her tone was firm.
The moment Lin Yuan heard her tone, he knew there was no room for discussion. He swallowed his heartache and reluctantly agreed.
Ye Yurong did not look back at him. Instead, she instructed the others to sort the local goods they had collected, pack them into crates, and ship them out that night.
By the time Jiang Wan finished going through the booklets assigned to her, it was already completely dark. Chunxia had come in several times during that period, but Jiang Wan had told her that she had not finished sorting everything yet and asked her to continue waiting outside.
She walked out of the room, and Chunxia happened to approach her.
“Miss, are you finished?”
“I’m done.”
“Miss, it’s almost time for the evening meal. Would you like to eat with the bosses?”
Jiang Wan lowered her eyes slightly.
“Let’s go.”
Inside the middle cabin of the merchant ship, the sea breeze blew in through the porthole.
The moment she pushed the door open, she sensed that the atmosphere between the two of them was somewhat off.
A three-foot-long old shipwood table stood in the center, but no food had been served yet.
When Ye Yurong saw that it was Jiang Wan, she could not help complaining to her about everything Lin Yuan had done that day. She also told her that the investigation she had conducted while she was out had yielded nothing.
After hearing the whole story, Jiang Wan raised her eyes and looked at Lin Yuan.
He still wore that carefree, devil-may-care expression, seemingly not bothered by it at all.
Outside the window, the sea churned beneath a moon that had not yet fully risen. At that moment, the evening meal was brought in and arranged on the table.
The three of them said nothing more and quietly sat down to eat.
Early the next morning, Ye Yurong once again took her people to other towns to collect local goods.
Before leaving, she warned Lin Yuan to keep a close eye on things and instructed Jiang Wan to supervise him. If anything happened again, he could forget about getting paid and prepare to work for her for free.
As a result, Lin Yuan diligently kept his eyes fixed on every person below.
What he was watching was not their expressions.
It was the hundred copper coins they received.
Every time another person took away a hundred copper coins, his heart bled a little more. Yet he showed nothing on his face, pretending that he did not care at all.
His eyes, however, remained fixed on every single person who walked away with his money.
Everything remained peaceful until sunset.
Ye Yurong was not among those who returned with the local goods.
The farther away they went, the longer each trip took. Fortunately, she had brought more people this time, so whenever they reached a village, she could have different groups transport the goods back in batches.
Everyone who returned would bring a letter for Lin Yuan.
Without exception, the letters told him to keep a close eye on the wharf. Otherwise, all his money would be deducted, and the accountant was not allowed to secretly give him any money either.
Lin Yuan could only resign himself to working properly.
Finally, three days later, he recorded a very valuable clue.
The person providing the information was a young woman.
She took the initiative to approach Lin Yuan and said, “I’ve seen the person in the notice. He’s a man, fair and clean-looking, with bright eyes and handsome features. I happened to see him when I went into the mountains to gather herbs. He was being held down by more than a dozen people, and it looked like they were taking him toward some town.”
Lin Yuan pressed her for more information.
“Do you know which town they went to?”
The young woman shook her head.
“No, I don’t.”
Lin Yuan sighed and had someone give her five taels of silver before seeing her off from the wharf.
Another four or five days passed, and everything at the wharf continued as usual.
Whenever Ye Yurong went to the villages to collect local goods, she would use her investigation tool to look around.
She found nothing.
Until she reached the final town.
Mizhao Town.
There, she discovered something unusual.
By the time they finished collecting the local goods in the town, it was already evening. Ye Yurong had half of her people transport the goods back first, while the rest stayed in the town to rest.
That night, after most of the lights had gone out, Ye Yurong activated her investigation tool to its maximum range.
She discovered something strange in a small courtyard.
There were a great many people inside the courtyard—far more than would normally be expected—and all of them were carrying long blades.
Her tool could only detect how many people were present and whether they were carrying weapons. Anything beyond that required her to investigate with her own eyes.
She let out a long breath and decided to return the next day to discuss it with Jiang Wan and Lin Yuan.
The sun had barely risen when Ye Yurong and the others finished packing up.
They arrived back at the wharf around the hour of You, just in time for dinner.
When the two saw Ye Yurong return, they immediately asked about her condition.
Lin Yuan said, “As long as you came back alive, that’s good enough.”
Jiang Wan asked, “Are you all right? How was the journey?”
Ye Yurong nodded.
“I discovered something unusual in Mizhao Town while collecting local goods. When I activated the investigation tool, I found a small courtyard with a large number of people guarding it, and they were all carrying weapons.”
Lin Yuan raised his eyebrows.
“We received a similar clue not long ago, too. We just don’t know where the place is.”
Jiang Wan combined the two clues.
“If that’s the case, then that courtyard in Mizhao Town is highly suspicious.”
Ye Yurong nodded.
“Then the day after tomorrow, we’ll select some people and go there to investigate.”
Neither of the other two had any objections, and they agreed to the proposal.