It was awful!

Xing’an desperately wanted to say “delicious,” but after being poisoned for days, he couldn’t bring himself to praise Shui Xing’s cooking. He simply said, “You’re busy every day, so you don’t need to do these things yourself. Let the kitchen do it.”

While the kitchen’s food wasn’t as good as Miss Su’s cooking, it was still far better than Shui Xing’s.

Shui Xing’s cooking…

Well, it was barely cooked, just not raw.

The color, aroma, and flavor were completely nonexistent.

“These past few days, Miss Su has been busy taking care of Lord He, and with the help of her two older sisters, Ai Cao and Qing Kui, I haven’t had much work to do,” Shui Xing said. “Don’t be shy. It wasn’t a particularly busy or tiring job to begin with. With their help, it was all done. But you’re injured like this, so you need someone to take care of you, especially with the food. It can’t be done carelessly. I’ve been doing everything myself and haven’t let anyone else lift a finger.”

Xing An was speechless. At least let someone else help out; maybe then it wouldn’t taste so bad.

“I’m mainly worried you’ll overwork yourself…” Xing’an chuckled. “Besides, I’m just a servant, I eat whatever’s available in the small kitchen. It’s not right to have separate meals prepared for every meal. If this continues, people will inevitably gossip and say hurtful things.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Shui Xing reassured him. “I paid the small kitchen to buy the vegetables and meat specifically for you. I paid for it myself, so I’ll just swallow whatever others say.”

“You’re a patient now, just rest. Don’t worry about these things.”

As she spoke, Shui Xing shoved a spoonful of rice into Xing’an’s mouth. “Don’t talk too much. It’s tiring, and the food will get cold. Eat up.”

Xing’an had no choice but to open his mouth, chewing and swallowing with a tasteless gusto.

Shui Xing fed him spoonful after spoonful, giving him no time to rest.

Xing’an, “… Second Master, save me!”

A few more days passed, and He Yanxiu’s condition visibly improved. Although the splints on his hands couldn’t be removed yet, and the wounds on his hands were only just beginning to scab over. The external injuries on his body, thanks to the significant effects of the internal medicine and external ointment prescribed by Su Yujin, were almost completely healed. Even the pain from the bone fracture had largely subsided.

He Yanxiu was now able to occasionally get out of bed and walk around, and even when resting in bed, he could often sit up.

Qu Zhiwen arrived, travel-worn, his face exhausted, and his eyes bloodshot.

“Lord He,” Qu Zhiwen greeted him with a bow.

“Please sit down, Lord Qu.” He Yanxiu stretched out his hand, which was wrapped in gauze like a rice dumpling. “How is Lord Qu’s condition?”

“The mine has been restored. The mine shaft has been reinforced, and a few more blasts were carried out on the mountainside next to it. Now the copper ore is exposed, and there is a considerable amount, enough for a year and a half of mining.”

Qu Zhiwen lowered his voice slightly. “Regarding the matter of Lord He’s mine collapse, we have investigated for several days and found some clues.”

“Please speak, Lord Qu.” He Yanxiu sat up straight.

“I thoroughly investigated everyone in the mine and found that the trapping of Lord He and Lord Wan in the mine that day was indeed intentional.”

Qu Zhiwen said. “These two men, one named Ge Peng and the other Zhu Ming, were both guards at the mint. They confessed that while on night duty, they were abducted by masked men in black and taken to a secluded place, where they were poisoned. The men in black threatened them, saying that if they obeyed his orders, they would not only live but also receive a large sum of silver; otherwise, they would die from the poison in a month or so.”

“After weighing their options, Ge Peng and Zhu Ming agreed to the plan. Following the man’s instructions, they placed gunpowder inside the mine, intending to blow up the entire mine. However, they misjudged the amount of gunpowder needed, so although part of the mine collapsed, it did not completely crumble.”

“After the mine collapsed, to kill you, Lord, the two of them prevented experienced miners from rescuing them. They even bribed the government officials to poison the horses with needles on our way up the mountain, causing them to go mad and prevent us from entering the mountain to rescue them.”

“That masked man in black later showed up again, revealing his true face. According to Ge Peng and Zhu Ming, he was tall and thin, with a long face, small eyes, and a scar about an inch long on his right cheek…”

He Yanxiu narrowed his eyes, “His appearance sounds very familiar.”

“Indeed.” Qu Zhiwen nodded, “He looks exactly like the person who instructed Zhu Liu under the alias Zhang Shuisheng when the copper sulphate poisoning incident happened in the mine last time. I had someone draw a portrait based on Ge Peng and Zhu Ming’s description, and then had Zhu Liu identify it. Zhu Liu also said it was him.”

“I have distributed this portrait to search within the jurisdiction of Hedong Prefecture, as well as several nearby counties. The prefectural city has also sent messengers to strengthen checks at the city gates. We must find this person.”

This person had caused trouble at the mines twice in a row. Whether the target was the Ministry of Revenue or He Yanxiu, if He Yanxiu or the Mint made a mistake, Hedong Prefecture would bear a great responsibility.

Therefore, they must bring this person to justice!

He Yanxiu said in a deep voice, “Finding someone who would deliberately hide their whereabouts is like finding a needle in a haystack. It won’t be easy.”

“But we can’t let this person get away with it!”

They couldn’t just do nothing; they must at least make an effort.

“That’s natural.” He Yanxiu nodded, and after thinking for a while, said, “This person obstructs the Mint’s affairs at every turn, repeatedly causing trouble at the mines, and even going so far as to plot against an official of the court. His intentions are indeed extremely malicious.”

The person who ordered this person to do these things was indeed audacious enough.

“To capture this person, simply interrogating him won’t be enough. We’ll need to think of another way.”

Seeing He Yanxiu’s confidence, Qu Zhiwen cupped his hands. “Lord He, you mean…”

He Yanxiu curled his lips, “I’m afraid this time, we’ll need to borrow something from you, Lord Qu.”

—

Late fifth lunar month, the heat was intense.

But in the mountains, a cool breeze blew, refreshing and invigorating.

In the mint, the craftsmen were busy with their respective tasks in an orderly fashion.

The hammers and chisels in the hands of the stonemasons were clanging incessantly.

A large stone had broken off from the rock; it looked quite heavy. The craftsman picked it up and examined it carefully for a while, then suddenly exclaimed, “Gold! This is gold? I’ve dug up a gold nugget!”

(End of Chapter)

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