Chapter 47: Deposed

The guard stared wide-eyed at the drawing on the paper, nodding vigorously.

Madam Gao leaned in to take a look.

There were only a few common patterns used by the aristocracy, and the one depicted was the auspicious cloud pattern. However, it had two upward-curving embellishments, likely altered by the embroidery workshop to distinguish their goods from others.

“Lan’er, where did you see this pattern?” The same pattern at least indicated that their clothing or boots might have come from the same source. Following this clue might help them locate Mingxuan!

Wei Yunlan clearly realized this.

The scene from the previous day at Fengji Porcelain Shop flashed before her eyes. If she remembered correctly, the Manager who had bowed to send off the manager had the same auspicious cloud pattern embroidered on his boots.

“On the boots of a Manager.” Wei Yunlan recalled the assistant at Fengji Porcelain Shop proudly describing that Manager, “A Manager named Liu, from the household of Lord Hong, the commander of Suizhou…”

“Hong Minrong?” Wei Maolin vaguely remembered that a colleague from the Inspection Institute had recently attended a meeting regarding this Lord Hong.

It seemed that the matter involved a favored concubine driving out the legal wife, forcing the legitimate wife to live in a convent.

However, this incident ended without consequences, and Hong Minrong faced no punishment.

The legitimate wife had suffered to such an extent; how could the brother-in-law still benefit from his brother-in-law’s influence?

Wei Maolin was skeptical, “Could there be something else going on?”

“Let’s investigate first; after all, it’s a lead.” Wei Yunlan glanced at the people in the room and instructed Dong Da, Ningshuang, Suihe, and Manager Wang to go out.

They would split into two groups and use the pretext of shopping to inquire about the whereabouts of Lord Hong’s brother-in-law among the merchants in Suijiang.

Ningshuang was meticulous, and Manager Wang had previously worked outside the Wei household, having some experience in handling such matters. Just as Wei Yunlan sent off the physician who had come to treat Gui Xiang, she saw both groups returning.

“Did you find out anything?”

“Miss, the brother-in-law of that Lord Hong you mentioned is indeed named Liu, but he is not a respectable brother-in-law at all!” Ningshuang had learned about this “brother-in-law” from the owner of a steamed bun shop without much effort.

“People in Suijiang call him Young Master Liu. His sister is the concubine among Lord Hong’s favored ones who drove away his legal wife.” Ningshuang spoke with a hint of righteous indignation.

She clearly recalled the past experiences of their own young lady, where the heir of the Marquis of Jinyang regarded the legal wife as nothing, living day in and day out with a concubine. Wasn’t that also driving the legal wife away? No, it was even worse than that!

“Miss, that Young Master Liu is not originally from Suijiang.” Manager Wang reported the information he had just gathered to Wei Yunlan, “The Liu family comes from a merchant background and only moved to Suizhou a few years ago. They have a large business spanning the three provinces of Suizhou, Lianzhou, and Chongzhou. That Young Master Liu doesn’t just have one sister married to the commander of Suizhou; he has several sisters who have married into influential households in these three provinces.”

As he spoke, Wei Yunlan did not ask Ningshuang and Manager Wang to avoid the Tianshu Pavilion guards.

Hearing this, Seventh Lady Yu couldn’t help but show a hint of surprise.

If the Liu family was merely seeking power and wealth, that would be one thing, but if there were deeper motives…

“Miss Wei, I think I should report this matter to the Pavilion Master,” Seventh Lady Yu said seriously.

Wei Yunlan was somewhat surprised; she hadn’t expected her to consult her first.

Since she had allowed Ningshuang and Manager Wang to speak in front of Seventh Lady Yu, she had no intention of hiding this from the Tianshu Pavilion. Moreover, with the capabilities of the Tianshu Pavilion, they would surely gather more information than they could.

“Please do not hesitate, Team Leader Yu.” Wei Yunlan replied calmly, “The Pavilion Master is broad-minded and cares for the people. If the Liu family does indeed have issues, it would be better to inform him early. Perhaps it could prevent a disaster for Great Yong.”

Seventh Lady Yu was even more astonished at this response.

What surprised Seventh Lady Yu was not the matter of the Liu family, but rather… that Miss Wei had such a high regard for their master!

The contributions made by their master to Great Yong over the years had mostly been in the shadows, and few remembered his merits. This was the first time someone had so openly praised him.

Their master was currently facing hardships.

He would definitely relay these words in the secret message, so their master could also feel pleased!

“Manager Wang, please find out what businesses the Liu family is primarily engaged in.”

Ordinary businesses wouldn’t require abduction. Wei Yunlan suspected that the Liu family might be involved in human trafficking.

But even if they were buying people from traffickers, an ordinary young adult male would only be worth three to five taels of silver, and at most, it wouldn’t exceed ten taels.

Moreover, with disasters befalling various regions, many victims sold themselves into slavery to survive, which would only lower the prices even further.

At this time, abducting refugees to sell would yield only a small profit, even if they captured hundreds at once. Considering the risks and losses during transit, they might barely earn less than a thousand taels from a single operation.

Given the information gathered, with the Liu family having connections to so many powerful households, would they really risk so much for just a mere thousand taels?

It seemed unlikely.

So what were they secretly abducting people for?

“Team Leader Yu, I will also go out for a while; please continue.” Wei Yunlan planned to leverage her identity as a merchant who had purchased silk and porcelain over the past few days to investigate further along the lead about Manager Liu.

“Miss Wei,” Seventh Lady Yu said, looking at her, “You might as well wait for news from the Tianshu Pavilion. Since we know there are suspicious activities involving the Liu family, the Pavilion Master will surely send someone to investigate. In three to five days, we should have some results.”

“I understand.” Wei Yunlan knew that the Tianshu Pavilion’s power was far greater than her own, but she could not entrust her and her family’s safety entirely to someone else.

She also couldn’t just sit and wait for the Tianshu Pavilion to provide results in three to five days.

“As long as I am uncertain about Mingxuan’s safety, I can’t find peace. Even if it’s just a glimmer of hope, I want to do my best to try.”

Seventh Lady Yu was taken aback by her words, and the comforting remarks she had intended to make were left unsaid.

Wei Yunlan led Suihe into the alley where Yuantouju was located. Manager Feng had just gone out on an errand and wouldn’t return for another half an hour.

After leaving a message for Manager Feng with the assistant, Wei Yunlan went to a nearby teahouse and requested a private room.

As she poured herself a cup of tea and brought it to her lips, she suddenly heard the storyteller below strike the table heavily with his stick.

“This time, I will tell you about recent events in the capital.”

“Years ago, the Empress practiced witchcraft, which was deemed unacceptable by the heavens, resulting in divine retribution. In recent years, disasters have frequently befallen Great Yong.”

“The Crown Prince, feeling guilty towards the people, has voluntarily requested to be deposed from his position as Crown Prince!”

Wei Yunlan’s hand trembled slightly, causing tea to splatter from her cup.

This event had not occurred in her previous life!