Dragon's Origin

Chapter 379: Something Happened (Part 2)

Steward Wang was running anxiously, tripping over something midway and nearly falling, looking extremely disheveled. Yet, he didn't dare utter a sound, continuing to run towards here.

Since the last time at the execution grounds, Wang Sheng had never seen Steward Wang with such an expression. Standing up, he gestured to stop Steward Wang from reporting anything, letting Mei'er take Steward Wang elsewhere to understand the situation. He himself stayed to continue discussing his insights with Master Yu.

Master Yu was very calm, listening to Wang Sheng's suggestions bit by bit, as if he didn't see Steward Wang at all. He listened as Wang Sheng suggested writing down the scores of existing musical pieces in staff notation for preservation, then converting some timeless classics to the piano to try out, and finally exploring the piano's various chords and playing techniques, a whole long list of things.

It wasn't until Wang Sheng finished saying everything he had in mind that Master Yu nodded in satisfaction, waving his hand for Wang Sheng to go busy himself. He then started yelling at the imperial musicians, "Didn't you hear what the Marquis just said? Write down what needs to be written, first adapt the pieces you're good at..."

Wang Sheng was almost two hundred meters away when he could still hear Master Yu's voice. There was no way around it, Wang Sheng's hearing was too good now, and Master Yu's voice was loud, making it hard not to hear.

"Marquis, something happened!" Without needing the guards to point the way, Wang Sheng relied on his ears and nose to know where Mei'er and Steward Wang were, heading straight for them. As soon as he saw Wang Sheng, Steward Wang hurriedly reported with a distressed face.

"Don't worry, the sky won't fall." Wang Sheng didn't sense any disturbance in the Marquis's estate, nor did he feel any murderous intent around, indicating that whatever happened was outside. He wasn't worried at all.

After sitting down, Wang Sheng turned to Mei'er and asked, "Is it very troublesome?"

Mei'er had been frowning, suggesting that what Steward Wang said also made her uncomfortable. Hearing Wang Sheng ask, Mei'er nodded slightly.

Wang Sheng motioned for Steward Wang to sit down and slowly explain the whole story again. Steward Wang didn't dare to be negligent, quickly recounting what he had just told Mei'er to Wang Sheng.

During this time, Wang Sheng had been staying in the capital, only visiting the neighbors across the street when he first returned, going to the Laojun Temple to calm his mind, and taking a trip to the Linglong Pavilion and Master Yu's residence. Basically, he was staying at home like a shut-in, tinkering with musical instruments in the Marquis's estate, not paying attention to anything outside.

Anyway, Wang Sheng's core interests were all within the Thousand Despair Land. Without Wang Sheng leading the way, no one could safely enter or exit the core area of the Thousand Despair Land. Wang Sheng wasn't afraid of anyone harming his interests. It would be good if someone could get in, accelerating his process of exploring the core of the Thousand Despair Land.

The industries in Worry-Free City were all in the inner city, and no one dared to touch them. Anyone who did would be going against the entire Worry-Free City, so they could be said to be safe and sound. As for the capital, with annual dividends of over a hundred million gold coins to the Emperor, no one would dare to touch Wang Sheng's industries. Without Wang Sheng even lifting a finger, the royal family would devour anyone who tried to do so alive.

It was under these circumstances that Wang Sheng could peacefully hide in the Marquis's estate to continue his cultivation, ignoring other trivial matters. But it was also under these circumstances that Wang Sheng's industries were still coveted and acted upon.

Worry-Free City didn't actually have any real industries, just two houses, and no one dared to touch them. What really moved people's hearts were Qian Sheng Yuan and Run Zi Fang.

Qian Sheng Yuan, in Wang Sheng's words, had mastered core technology and wasn't afraid of competition from others at all. The only one with the ability to compete was probably Linglong Pavilion, but Linglong Pavilion was currently working closely with Wang Sheng and was unlikely to undermine him.

No matter whose power it was, no matter how strong, it was impossible to gain the recognition of those master craftsmen who were not only skilled but also had equally extraordinary tempers. Without these master craftsmen, the brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, and stationery they produced would be, at most, exquisite, far from being top-quality or unique.

Kidnapping the master craftsmen? That would mean offending not only Wang Sheng but also the royal family and Linglong Pavilion at the same time, and there was no guarantee that these master craftsmen would obediently listen. Moreover, every master craftsman was at least at the eighth level, and many were ninth-level legendary experts, making kidnapping extremely unlikely.

Therefore, under these circumstances, the eyes of those with ulterior motives turned to Run Zi Fang.

To describe Run Zi Fang's business as making money hand over fist was actually a bit of an understatement; describing it as robbing money was more accurate. In this world, as long as they were women, from ninety-nine years old to just learning to walk, which one didn't want Run Zi Fang's cosmetics?

But Run Zi Fang only existed in the capital, and only under the imperial city, nowhere else. The ladies of the dukes and marquises of various principalities who wanted to use them could only send people to buy them from the distant capital. Merchants often ran this kind of resale route, making more than double the profit in one transaction.

Unlike Qian Sheng Yuan, Run Zi Fang's business didn't use any master craftsmen. Even if there were, it was only one or two core perfumers or medicinal herb processors. Such a large quantity of goods couldn't possibly be produced by just a few people.

Run Zi Fang's production workshops were located in the suburbs of the capital, often employing entire villages to produce various cosmetics. After production, they were transported to Run Zi Fang in the capital for sale.

The incident didn't happen at Run Zi Fang under the imperial city of the capital, but at two villages in the suburbs responsible for production. The scale of the incident wasn't actually very large; it was just that several villagers went missing from the two villages with over a thousand people each.

If they were just ordinary villagers, it wouldn't be a big deal at all. In this day and age, it was too normal for a few villagers to go missing. But this time, the missing people were all villagers who had mastered several key steps, and they disappeared almost simultaneously, making the matter a bit intriguing.

"How much did these people know?" After listening, Wang Sheng thought for a moment and asked Steward Wang.

"We're investigating. The steward in the village noticed something was wrong and immediately reported it, so we haven't had time to investigate this yet," Steward Wang quickly replied, "This servant will go ask."

"Okay, go ask." Wang Sheng nodded, then added, "Also, tell the steward across the street about this, so they're aware. After all, it's a joint business."

Steward Wang agreed and quickly left. Wang Sheng looked at Mei'er, who was still frowning, and comforted her with a smile, "Don't worry, nothing major will happen. It's just a few people, and even if they know a lot, it's just a few production processes, which won't shake the foundation of Run Zi Fang. Besides, since it's a joint business and this is the capital, let the royal family investigate, and we'll just wait."