Chapter 7: The Robbery of Color

  Because Zhu Yinglong originally wanted to use Tian Shuying's father, his old father-in-law Tian Hongyu, a merchant from Yangzhou, to explain the origin of his huge and mysterious wealth, now he has a plan to use his own birthday to accept bribes and accumulate wealth, which is even more seamless. He also doesn't have to worry about Wei Zhongxian suspecting that he has so much silver to build the Yinglong Garden.

  Zhu Yinglong wanted to go personally to pick up his father-in-law, but as the king of the Great Ming Dynasty, he had a noble status. Tian Shuying was just a concubine, and in ancient times, etiquette was very strict. If Zhu Yinglong were to run over to greet a lowly merchant, it would be beneath his dignity as a king and would also damage the imperial court's reputation. Zhu Yinglong knew that Rome wasn't built in a day, and now wasn't the time to break with these feudal customs. At least, he couldn't give others an excuse to attack him. So, he could only have Shi Kefa accompany Tian Shuying to Zhuxiantown Wharf to pick up her father and family.

  The old father-in-law's family was originally from Shaanxi, but later moved to Yangzhou for business. When Emperor Tianqi issued a decree to select a consort for Prince Xian, the astute Tian Hongyu knew that his daughter would not be able to enter the imperial palace because he had heard rumors about the fate of the emperor's consorts who were favored by him. None of them had a good ending unless they relied on Wei Zhongxian. However, Tian Hongyu looked far ahead and knew that the eunuch party was only temporarily powerful and would not last long. So, although he hoped to use his intelligent and gentle daughter to rise to prominence, he did not want her to die in the palace's internal struggles for power. Prince Xian was different; he would eventually be released from prison and establish his own estate. Marrying a high-ranking prince was better than fighting for favor in the imperial palace. Tian Hongyu also knew that his daughter was not born to play tricks or plot schemes, so when selecting consorts for Prince Xian, he did not hesitate to push his daughter, Tian Shuying, forward. As expected, she successfully became Prince Xian's consort, and their business suddenly improved. The government looked favorably upon them because of their connection to the prince, and they no longer encountered difficulties as before. They also saved a lot on bribes, and instead, officials came to curry favor with them, hoping that Tian Hongyu would put in a good word for them with Prince Xian, which would ensure their promotion. However, these officials did not know that although Prince Xian was favored by the emperor, he rarely interfered with court affairs. He collected his money and said what needed to be said, but whether things were accomplished or not was not his concern.

  This was not the case, as Tian Hong received a letter from his daughter, asking him to move his whole family to Kaifeng. He was overjoyed and immediately summoned his son, Tian Ye, to take on important responsibilities. Now, he was being asked to bring his entire family to Kaifeng and settle there, which meant that his daughter had gained the favor of Prince Xian. Among the three consorts of Prince Xian, only one had received a letter asking them to move their whole family, and Tian Hong knew this because he had his own sources of information. After making some discreet inquiries, he found out that the Zhou family in Beijing and the Ye family in Fuzhou, Fujian, had not received any news. This made him even happier, as it showed that Prince Xian was extremely fond of his daughter. He immediately decided to move his whole family to Kaifeng, which would bring him great benefits. Not only would he be able to expand his business, but he would also become a prominent figure in the imperial court. Although he had some influence in Yangzhou, it was limited compared to what he could achieve in Kaifeng, where he would be under the nose of Prince Xian. With Prince Xian being the emperor's favorite brother, Tian Hong knew that he would be untouchable in Kaifeng. As soon as he thought about this, Tian Hong hastily arranged for his whole family to leave Yangzhou and move to Kaifeng by boat.

  Zhu Yinglong asked Tian Shuying in a letter to keep a low profile for the old father-in-law this time, so Tian Hongyu and his family rented an unassuming commercial ship, and the whole family came over like that.

  Zhu Yinglong, this letter king, although already well-known in Kaifeng, few people have actually seen him, and even fewer know Tian Shuying, the concubine of the letter king. So, before she could leave Kaifeng City, Tian Shuying was intercepted by someone.

  Tian Shuying rarely went out, and usually stayed at home reading books and practicing the guqin. After marrying Zhu Yinglong, she became even more reclusive, spending most of her time in the glass workshop or discussing music with others in the Xinfeng Palace. Today, upon learning that her parents and family members had arrived, Tian Shuying was overjoyed to see them after nearly half a year of separation. She quickly ran out to greet them, while Zhu Yinglong didn't think much of it, believing nothing would happen during the day. He only sent a few people to follow her, keeping things simple and quick, as he hated making a big show. As a result, all outings from the palace were kept low-key, and the carriage didn't bear the Xinfeng Palace emblem. This was because Zhu Yinglong often needed to keep his whereabouts hidden, and having the emblem on the carriage would be equivalent to revealing his location. Coincidentally, Tian Shuying hastily got into the carriage that Zhu Yinglong usually used, which didn't have the Xinfeng Palace emblem. In her eagerness to see her parents, the carriage rushed ahead, accidentally colliding with a so-called official's son.

  This so-called official's son is not even worthy of mentioning in the same breath as Zhu Yinglong's current identity, but for ordinary people, it's a different story. He is the son of Chen Jiucai, the prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture, and his father has only been in office for less than a year, yet his reputation is not as loud as that of his son. More people know about his son than they do about him, the prefect. He is the greatest scourge of Kaifeng City, so the people of Kaifeng call him "Chen Huo" (meaning "Chen the Scourge"). Because his father is a high-ranking official in Kaifeng Prefecture and belongs to the eunuch faction, which holds power in the imperial court, the Chinese people have a submissive nature and dare not speak out against them. Even some of the wealthy merchants and nobles in Kaifeng City do not want to provoke him.

  Today, this young master's luck was really bad. He had drunk too much wine and lost a lot of money at the Silver Moon Gambling House. He also didn't hold back on stealing some of the silver coins that those officials had given to his father as a tribute to use for gambling. Seeing that the silver coins in his pouch were almost gone, this Chen Da Gongzi was quite aware of his situation and didn't dare go to the gambling house to borrow money at high interest rates to try to win back what he lost. Instead, he left the Silver Moon Gambling House with a group of friends, laughing and chatting loudly.

  As soon as Mr. Chen left the gambling house, he happened to see a horse-drawn carriage speeding out of the city with Tian Shuying on board. He immediately came up with a sinister plan, pretending to be hit by the fast-moving carriage and then extorting money from them. This was his usual trick, and those who had been victimized by him before knew that whenever he appeared on the street, there would definitely be no one within five meters around him.

  The people around saw Chen's trouble coming out and quickly walked far away. As the young master of the prefecture suddenly fell down about a foot away from Tian Shu-ying's carriage, his friends and family slaves rushed up and blocked the speeding carriage. They did this kind of thing several times a month, and they were very familiar with it. No one in Kaifeng City dared to provoke them.

  Shi Kefa had heard of this "Chen Huo" before, and whether or not he really bumped into him, the horse carriage had to stop anyway.

  "Chen Huo Hai" was actually Chen He, who was seen lying on the ground hugging his own legs, wailing "Aiyo, aiyo..." nonstop. Shi Kefa had to jump down from the carriage and approach him to see what was going on, but he was suddenly pushed by Chen He's men with great force. As a weak scholar, he couldn't withstand their push, and let out a loud "Ahh" as his body retreated backward, landing hard on his buttocks. A sharp pain immediately spread from his lower body, causing Shi Kefa's face to turn bright red with rage. Pointing at the person who pushed him, he angrily exclaimed: "You...?"

  "What are you doing, my goodness! You've injured the young master of our house and not only do you not apologize, but you also try to harm him again. Have you eaten leopard gall?! Ah!" The rude family slave who pushed Shih Kuo Fa pointed at Shih Kuo Fa, who was sitting on the ground with tears almost falling from his eyes.

  Many people had already gathered around, but they were all afraid of Chen's evil old man being the prefectural magistrate, so naturally no one dared to speak up for Shi Kefa. The carriage driver and the five plainclothes guards from the Divine Machinery Battalion who followed Shi Kefa and Tian Shuying out were immediately tied up by Chen He's men. It wasn't that the people from the Divine Machinery Battalion weren't capable, but good men can't withstand a crowd. Four of them protected one person tightly, allowing him to escape back to the Wang Mansion to report the news.

  What's even worse is that the Wang family has always kept a low profile in Kaifeng, and not many people know them. Shi Kefa, although born and raised in Kaifeng, has always stayed at home reading books and rarely goes out to handle family matters personally. This time they all wore casual clothes when they came out, and none of the onlookers recognized them as members of the Wang family. Besides, who would have thought that such a thing could happen under broad daylight?

  This group of people had experience early on and didn't let go of a single informant, so they knocked to get more benefits. So let the escaped soldier from the Divine Mechanism Camp leave.

  Poor Shi Kefa was a scholar who encountered a rascal, and this crooked reasoning of his couldn't get him past these lawless and unscrupulous hoodlums. In no time at all, he was dragged away and beaten up, with many onlookers showing signs of distress and sympathy for Shi Kefa's plight, yet not one person stepped forward to take up his cause.

  Tian Shuying, sitting in the carriage, couldn't sit still anymore. She heard Shi Kefa's one after another mournful cries, but she was a weak woman and had always lived under her parents' protection. She had never encountered such a situation before, and her heart was anxious and at a loss. How could she have anticipated that on her way to meet her parents, she would encounter such a thing? It made the inexperienced young girl rush around in circles, unable to think of even a single idea.

  "Stop it at once! Don't hit Mr. Shi!" Tian Shuying could no longer bear the sound of Shi Kefa being beaten and, without thinking, lifted up the curtain and rushed out.

  A stunning beauty suddenly emerged from the carriage, standing in front of the crowd with a mixture of shyness and anger. Her apricot-yellow cloak wrapped around her captivating figure, and it was clear that she had reached the prime of her life. At seventeen or eighteen to twenty-four or five years old, women are at their most beautiful and charming, and Tian Shuying had just reached this age. As a result, when she revealed even a hint of her beauty, everyone was stunned. No one had expected that inside the carriage was a woman so stunning that she could topple cities. Especially when Tian Shuying saw Shi Kefa being beaten until his face was purple and bloody, curled up on the ground, her eyes instantly became misty with tears. Being kind-hearted by nature, she couldn't bear to see good people being bullied, so she got down from the carriage, helped up the injured Shi Kefa, and coldly stared at Chen He, who had already forgotten to cry out in pain.

  Chen He didn't forget to cry out in pain, but he was mesmerized by Tian Shuying's stunning beauty. He had never seen such a beautiful woman before, and compared to the ordinary women in the brothel, she was infinitely more attractive. In that instant, he made up his mind - today, he wanted this woman as compensation.

  Chen He's gang of domestic slaves, how could they not see through his thoughts? After waking up from the shock of Tian Shuying's beauty, they immediately took the next step and started fighting for people. All of this was too familiar to them, they could do it with their eyes closed!

  "What do you want to do?" Tian Shuying looked at the approaching men with sinister faces and slow, lustful smiles in terror.

  "I don't want to do anything, our young master wants to invite the miss to our mansion as a guest. When your family arrives, they can compensate my family's young master!" The man who had just pushed Dao Shi Kefa was walking step by step towards Tian Shuying, drooling.

  "Don't come over, I am..." Tian Shuying supported Shi Kefa who had been beaten unconscious and retreated backwards, but her strength was no match for Shi Kefa's large body. She was almost dragging him as they walked backwards, her voice trembling with tears. Her beautiful face was covered in tears, making her look even more charming and alluring, completely bringing out Chen He's lustful intentions. Having lost at the gambling den, he had gained in the arena of love. He had already forgotten whether he should first figure out where his opponent came from before acting. With his lustful intentions rising, he became impatient and eager to act.

  "What are you? Look at how anxious you're making them, aren't you eloping with this useless man? Ah, if that's the case, wouldn't it be better to follow our Master Chen instead? I guarantee you'll live a more carefree life than with this softie. Little beauty, little girl... Haha..." The surrounding area erupted in a fit of unbridled laughter.

  Tian Shu-ying had never seen such a spectacle, nor heard such lewd and obscene language. She was so frightened that her face turned bright red, and she stuttered, unable to utter a word.

  "Come on, little girls, pretty ladies, follow our young master? We'll take care of you in the future, hmm...ah, you won't want to leave, haha..."

  Tian Shu-ying cried more sorrowfully, Chen He's group of dog friends and family slaves laughed even more happily.

  "Ah, you stinky bitch, how dare you bite me!" In a moment of desperation, Tian Shuying bit the person who came forward and grabbed her back, but what followed was a loud cry as she was slapped by that person in anger. Tian Shuying felt herself spinning around, suddenly losing consciousness and fainting to the ground.

  "Take them away!" Chen He led a group of people, including the unconscious Tian Shuying and Shi Kefa, as well as the captured soldiers of the Divine Engine Regiment, swaggering away with a flourish. The onlookers behind pointed and chattered for a long time before dispersing.

  Unfortunately, no one recognized that this was the carriage of the King of Xin's mansion. Even if there were people who did, they didn't dare to approach and talk to them. They hoped that this rascal would fall into the hands of the King of Xin, so that someone could punish this bad egg. The mouths of the several soldiers from the Shenji Camp who had been tied up were all stuffed with cloth strips. Chen He still didn't know what kind of person he was robbing. In his eyes, the entire city of Kaifeng, except for a few royal mansions, was not worth provoking. There wasn't a woman he didn't dare to play with, so he couldn't wait to think about how to enjoy this beautiful young woman when he got back. He didn't care about anything else!

  It's strange that Zhu Yinglong himself shouldn't have sent Shi Kefa to the past, if he had sent Wang Chengen instead, Chen He wouldn't have dared to have such thoughts of extortion. Because Wang Chengen often walked in and out of the government office, which official in Kaifeng Prefecture didn't know him? Chen He naturally knew him too, but Shi Kefa was always by Zhu Yinglong's side, doing mostly strategic planning work, except for people in the palace, few outsiders knew him. Many factors came together to create today's scene of Princess Xiang being robbed on the street.