Chapter 142: Vengeance (Part Four)

The next day, a group of people were detained in the Anju Building in Anyi Ward. Aside from several scholars from the Qi family, there were also more than ten Manichaean followers, with the rest being merchants or travelers renting rooms in Anyi Ward.

However, Wu Yueling had no intention of letting any of them off easily right away. Apart from the Manichaean followers and the third young master of the Qi family, the interrogation methods used on the merchants and travelers were relatively mild, though not without purpose.

Over the next two days, they would first be interrogated, then woken up in the middle of the night for further questioning. If there were any discrepancies in their testimonies or contradictions between their previous and later statements, harsh methods involving chili water and whips would be applied.

The rule of torture was leniency for confession, severity for resistance.

Meanwhile, on this very day, Wu Yueling did not rest; she summoned Du Fu, who had been continuously studying the ways of merchants.

Because of his dissatisfaction with commercial matters, this fellow had, aside from that single occasion, sought her out several times successively, hoping to abandon commerce and engage in some practical statecraft instead.

In truth, his grievance was not entirely unreasonable. He was a pure bookworm; what could he do? He possessed very little executive capability and probably could produce nothing useful outside of writing poetry.

Sending him to study merchants had a purpose: she intended for him to take charge of the taverns in the future.

This was because, after testing him, Wu Yueling found that although Du Fu was already in his thirties, he remained a naive fellow lacking worldly astuteness, knowing even less about how to wield statecraft and political machinations. At worst, a sweeping generalization would still label him merely as a scholar.

They say that of all pursuits, the scholar's is the most useless, yet scholars also require tempering.

Therefore, she sought to instill the concept of profit in him, hoping he could use a merchant's keen sense of smell to sort out the interest relationships within certain matters, thereby perfectly assisting her.

Presently, however, he was still confronting her, and his emotions ran quite high precisely because he was a man of letters, not a lowly merchant.

Trading is deemed lowly, yet commerce is actually the path to building family wealth and the very foundation of a strong state. If the Tang Dynasty could open its eyes to this point, it would no longer need to remain permanently dominated by a small-scale peasant economy.

This was Wu Yueling's perspective as a modern person. At some juncture in the future, she would surely break down the ward walls and allow commodities to circulate freely.

Sitting opposite each other across a square table—such taishi chairs should, for Du Fu, be called Eight Immortals chairs.

Tea and pastries were served, and the debate began.

"Princess, this humble Du does not mean to offend, but the path of commerce utterly fails to benefit the world and aid the people. This subordinate hopes to be assigned elsewhere."

Toward the princess, Du Zimei held three parts of respect due to status and seven parts of inner admiration. After all, she was one of the Drunken Eight Immortals, a title that carried significant weight.

His dark circles were slightly heavy, as he had not yet completely emerged from his sorrow, and combined with excessive late-night studying, his complexion was somewhat pale.

"Is that so? I do indeed have a task to entrust to you, and I hope you can accomplish it well!"

Hearing the princess's serious tone, Du Fu's expression also tightened as he responded with a smile.

Wu Yueling then had him carefully browse through a dossier.

At first, Du Fu's expression remained relaxed, but soon his brows furrowed deeply. This matter was by no means simple, and he faintly felt a wave of dizziness.

Because the connections were intricate and convoluted, his mind struggled to adapt.

These documents contained conjectural links concerning the Manichaean sect, the Qi family, and the Right Chancellor. The volume of information was massive, naturally including the battle incident at Banbifeng Peak.

One must realize that many of these matters were things Du Fu had never even heard of.

"Zimei, you should know that showing you these things represents my absolute trust in you!"

And it also thoroughly drags you into the muddy waters, Wu Yueling thought to herself. Right now, she was short on people; since he couldn't wrap his head around commercial matters, he could come and help her with planning instead!

Nodding in agreement, Du Fu had no idea that he had already become the princess's strategist.

Originally, he had merely pinned his hopes on the Princess's Mansion, hoping the princess could recommend him for an official post. Unfortunately, Elder He had departed and the Left Chancellor had been dismissed, shattering his dream of entering the official career path to become an official of the people.

Moreover, the outside world's reputation regarding the Right Chancellor was hardly favorable; Du Fu's well-informed elders had chatted about it back during the Kaiyuan era.

Therefore, upon seeing the information above, he did not find it strange, failing only to acutely perceive the conflict between the Princess's Mansion and the Right Chancellor.

After all, he lacked the acute olfactory sense of a merchant!

"I thank the Princess for her trust!"

"Very well, sort out the information contained within this first!"

Hearing this, Du Fu read through it once more, then explained that the Manichaean sect indeed deserved to be sanctioned. He had previously heard unfavorable rumors outside about Manichaean followers at the tavern, and now it seemed it was indeed so.

"These are merely superficial details. Have you not noticed the web of interests woven within them? This web is descending to enshroud us. In truth, many matters have hidden backstories! The front stage is merely a place for acting."

Wu Yueling lightly tapped the table, scrutinizing Du Fu's expression. She could tell that he did not fully comprehend the intersecting chains of interest within.

"This..."

Du Fu was at a loss for words, still unable to thoroughly straighten it out. What he could understand was that a connection existed among the Qi family, the Manichaean sect, and the Right Chancellor, but the underlying relations of interest truly eluded his analysis.

"Judging from my deduction, the Right Chancellor's ability to drive the Manichaean sect indicates that he possesses control over them. Furthermore, he now concentrates all power in the palm of his hand. What does this signify? Whether in the imperial court or the jianghu martial world, he intends to hold absolute control over both! This old fox's scheming is shrewder than anyone else's! He is a troublesome entity, and the one standing behind the scenes, without a shadow of a doubt, is Li Linfu!"

"Another point: the Qi family must have ties with the Right Chancellor; otherwise, how could the Manichaean sect and they come together? I suspect there is also an element of underestimating me contained within this."

"Even though our current target is the Manichaean sect, it runs counter to the Right Chancellor's interests—meaning we are opposing the Right Chancellor. That is where the true stakes lie! Therefore, Zimei's strategic depth is still insufficient!"

Having said that, she herself had not noticed it at first either. Only after meticulous contemplation had she ascertained this state of affairs, and back then she had been somewhat startled, having always assumed the Right Chancellor was merely someone well-versed in worldly sophistication.

In reality, he showed one face to the world while holding a knife behind his back, being exceedingly insidious. Because of his gift-giving and flattery, his suspicions had been thoroughly washed clean, leaving him largely unconsidered as a suspect by most.

That affair with Physician Yan was probably also orchestrated by him behind the scenes. Although the exact method remained unknown, this man's capabilities were definitely not to be underestimated.

"I see. Du will not submit to tyranny. The Princess has shown me the grace of taking me in, and in the Princess's Mansion's hour of peril, I shall never flee alone!"

Faced with Du Fu's upright and steadfast vow, Wu Yueling was still somewhat taken aback, but it was just as well; having an extra person meant an extra share of strength when the time came. The Princess's Mansion was now her turf, and she had to fulfill her responsibilities as the master.

Any harm suffered by anyone would be a failure of her duty and capability.

"Then, based on the intelligence from last night, I have decided to set a trap at the Anju Building and wait for them to take the bait!"

"Them?"

"The Qi family's young master has vanished, so the Qi family will certainly be anxious. At the same time, the Manichaean sect will inevitably sit still no longer and come to investigate the situation. When that happens, we can pull in the net! Furthermore, we will distribute tasks according to the Manichaean sect's existing strongholds. We currently have three thousand militia troops; when the time comes, we will eradicate the Manichaean strongholds in Chang'an one by one! Not a single cultist will be spared! And then, this task is handed over to you!"

Du Fu raised his head in slight surprise and respectfully accepted the mission.

"In this matter, Du shall certainly exert his utmost effort to fulfill it!"

On the other side, in Qi Family Ward.

"Third Hierarch, my family's Third Lang went to Anyi Ward and has not returned. He should have gone to visit the Anju Building, which is operated by your sect. I hope the Third Hierarch can give a clear explanation, and that my unworthy son is unharmed!"

The head of the Qi family wore a worried expression, his emotions somewhat out of control, his tone hurried, and his brows knitted tightly enough to spark a fire.

Kongming vaguely felt something was amiss. The message sent back previously had yielded a response that no abnormalities had occurred, and the Qi family's young master had indeed visited before leaving for parts unknown.

Now that the head of the Qi family had come to inquire, the matter became rather suspicious.

"Could it be that the head of the Qi family has not made inquiries on his own?"

Kongming waved his fan, a trace of impatience flashing across his fair face. To be frank, the Qi family was merely a chess piece to them anyway.

"I have been, but old woman Yan's excuses were somewhat strange. Qi feels that since this is a place operated by the Manichaean sect, if my unworthy son has committed any offense, I ask the Third Hierarch to accommodate us."

Kongming slowly waved his fan, putting on a magnanimous air to express his attitude, while also growing suspicious. If this was the case, there was indeed something problematic about the Anju Building. Out of caution, he decided to investigate under the cover of night.

Having now offended the Princess's Mansion, he had to act with utmost care. According to the fat man's account, the princess had used a strange device that cracked mountains apart like thunder from the heavens, after which Gao Yu had died inexplicably.

The corpse had also been examined; the head was pierced right through, something achievable only by firing a powerful crossbow pressed directly against the forehead.

With such thoughts, his uneasiness grew steadily stronger.