The Double
Chapter 239 - 103 Ancestors and Grandchildren_2

Chapter 239: Chapter 103 Ancestors and Grandchildren_2

Knowing he had become embroiled in a serious problem, Tang Fan felt rather depressed. After much deliberation, he realized that there was no way he could stay out of trouble now. Since he was going to offend someone either way, he might as well do Miss Jiang the Second a favor. After all, the Jiang Family’s position in the court had been stable for many years, and the Grand Secretary Jiang Yuanbai was a kind person. Having helped the Ye Family this time, Jiang Yuanbai would owe him a favor, and he would surely speak well of him in the future.

With this in mind, Tang Fan immediately said, "Second Miss speaks the truth, this matter is indeed no small concern. Although investigating the case does not fall under the purview of the Head of the Weaving Department, we were sent to Xiangyang by the Head of the Weaving Department precisely to thoroughly investigate this matter. Given that the Ye Family is Northern Yan’s foremost textile manufacturer, we will discuss with Tong Zhifu, starting from tomorrow, a thorough investigation of those traveling between Xiangyang and the Western Regions."

"Will Tong Zhifu agree?" Jiang Li asked lightly, furrowing her brow slightly, displaying a somewhat troubled expression.

"Please rest assured, Miss Jiang the Second," Tang Fan replied, "This matter concerns the people of Xiangyang, and the spread of the Tuoluo Flowers is also a dangerous affair. Tong Zhifu will certainly agree." Tong Zhiyang was after all just a prefect of Xiangyang, but he was from Yanjing City. Tong Zhiyang was used to dominating locally, not aware of how formidable Miss Jiang the Second could be, but he was very clear that when the Jiang Family was at its peak, almost half of the imperial audience hall consisted of Jiang Yuanbai’s protégés. The Jiang Family had grown more cautious now, but that did not mean they had declined, and they were not to be offended.

"If that’s the case, then I shall trouble Lord Tang," Jiang Li said with a smile. "I will write to my father about this matter when I return, tell him that everything is going smoothly."

Upon hearing this, Tang Fan perked up; his earlier hesitation about getting involved in trouble suddenly vanished. Jiang Li’s words were practically a guarantee of good words spoken in front of Jiang Yuanbai, and it might not be long before his path to promotion became even smoother.

Worth it.

Seeing a flash of joy in Tang Fan’s eyes, Jiang Li smirked inwardly. Officials from Yanjing were accustomed to climbing up the ranks by relying on connections, and even a minor dispatch officer under the Head of the Weaving Department was no exception. Having power indeed made many things convenient, and she was grateful for her status, which allowed her to skillfully leverage her influence.

Tang Fan and his team took away the problematic Ancient Fragrance Satin, a portion of which would be taken back to Yanjing as evidence. What came next was to investigate where the Tuoluo Flowers in Xiangyang City had come from, but Jiang Li was not too worried about not finding the person responsible. It was indeed unnecessary for the Ye Family to cause their own ruin, and clearing their name was just a matter of time. Now that Tang Fan was leaning towards her side, and she had leverage over Tong Zhiyang’s concubine, she was not too concerned. However, the Ye Family’s reputation had already been damaged beyond repair, and even after clearing their name, it would be impossible for them to return to their former glory.

Once bitten by a snake, one is scared of a well rope for ten years; the common people would probably shy away from Ancient Fragrance Satin from now on.

Upon returning to the Ye Residence with the members of the Ye Family, Lady Guan and Lady Zhuo were shocked and bewildered after hearing the entire process, as no one expected the sudden appearance of Tuoluo Flowers.

"Who would harm our family?" Lady Zhuo asked, puzzled, "The Ye Family has always been kind to others, even distributing food to the needy during disasters. We have never had conflicts with anyone, so who would use such a vile method to damage the reputation of the Ye Family?"

"Perhaps it is one of the other cloth merchants," Lady Guan suggested. "The Ancient Fragrance Satin business has been monopolized, which might have attracted envy."

"If it were just envy, there was no need to choose this time," Jiang Li said. "A couple of years ago, the Ye Family’s business was even more prosperous. These years, they have put aside other businesses to focus solely on textile production. If someone wanted to target the Ye Family, they would have started two years ago. Yet they chose the time just after Cousin Ye entered official service..."

At these words, everyone was startled. Ye Mingyu looked at Jiang Li and said, "Jiang Li, are you suggesting that someone wants to harm Shijie?"

Ye Shijie was the only male in the Ye Family to enter official service and the future support of the Ye Family; thus, matters concerning Ye Shijie were taken very seriously by everyone.

"It’s not about harming Cousin Ye," Jiang Li patiently explained, "Cousin Ye has just entered official service and has won the emperor’s favor. His position is very important. Perhaps someone wants to woo him, or someone wants to suppress him. If Cousin Ye were alone, it wouldn’t be easy to influence his thoughts, but it’s different for the Ye Family. If someone wants to use Cousin Ye, targeting the Ye Family is the most secure and advantageous method."

After careful consideration, she decided to share all these details with the Ye Family. It wasn’t good for the Ye Family to be in the dark against a known enemy; it was better to lay everything out in the open to allow the Ye Family to be on guard and prevent any future misdirection.

Ye Mingyu slammed the table and stood up, "What is this, an intentional act? All to restrain Shijie in our family?"