Gu Changqing was able to redeem his daughter and place her on the estate because of a woman, and it didn’t affect any major affairs.

However, Master Yi was different, there was possibly something between him and the Second Prince, and who could predict what would happen then?

At that time, Gu Changqing wouldn’t be able to take action either.

Moreover, if the situation arose and Gu Zikai dismissed Master Yi, it would make Gu Zikai appear heartless. But now it’s Master Yi who is resigning voluntarily, which makes it unrelated to Gu Zikai.

As long as Gu Zikai handles things beautifully in the end, providing Master Yi with ample travel expenses and various gifts, it would achieve a good reputation and also resolve the crisis around Gu Zikai—why not?

Gu Zikai also thought of this, so he promptly agreed.

Master Yi couldn’t fathom this at the moment, but once he figured it out, it would be too late to regret.

The Gu Family has done everything they could, beyond reproach.

Old Granny Zhang finally understood, thought for a moment, then whispered into Wang Yongzhu’s ear, "Honestly tell your mother, was this arranged by your great-uncle? Was this trip entrusted to you by your great-uncle?"

Everything tied together, if their daughter could receive news, with elder brother’s skills, could Gu Zikai, his own son, not receive it? 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Wang Yongzhu chuckled and tacitly agreed.

Old Granny Zhang knew that with her elder brother’s depth of scheming, he likely had a plan as soon as Master Yi’s scheming reached his ears—now he’s just going along with it naturally.

Indeed, officials in the Imperial Court have dirty hearts!

Earlier, Gu Zikai escorted Master Yi out, and upon returning, he walked in and made a big bow to Wang Yongzhu, "Thanks to my cousin for your gracious aid!"

Wang Yongzhu sidestepped the courtesy and smiled, "We’re indeed close relatives, there’s no need for such politeness, cousin. Just don’t blame me for intervening!"

Gu Zikai hurriedly said, "To be honest, after last time, I already intended to dismiss him, but out of respect for my father, and because Master Yi was quite sensible afterwards, I thought as long as he behaved himself and did not harbor other thoughts, I could tolerate him."

"Who knew about his involvement in the rebellion—saving him was already difficult enough, yet he wasn’t grateful and even dared to rescue his daughter, I couldn’t put up with it! If it wasn’t for my cousin arriving in time today, I might have found a way to make him resign himself, though it might have affected my reputation."

"Thankfully, my cousin brought this news today, letting him resign voluntarily, preserving everyone’s dignity!"

Gu Zikai is not foolish, what Old Granny Zhang noticed, he figured out swiftly, thus infinitely grateful.

After a bit of polite conversation, seeing Old Granny Zhang was leaning towards tiredness, he quickly arranged a comfortable rest for her.

Only then did the two cousins speak outside.

Gu Zikai inquired about the situation in the Capital City, which Wang Yongzhu relayed one by one, finally saying, "The rewards after this event will surely include the Gu Family. In this situation, it’s unlikely to be conferred upon great-uncle, but several cousins might rise this or next year, does cousin Zikai have any thoughts? If so, you could act in advance."

Gu Zikai pondered for a while, then said, "Big brother has been serving elsewhere for years, now would be an opportunity to return to Capital City. The positions of the other brothers could also rise, as for me, I’ve only been in Yunzhong County for a short while, I can still gain experience for a few more years."

Wang Yongzhu immediately understood Gu Zikai’s intent, no need to persuade further, just said, "By the way, is there any progress on the previous gold mine exploration?"

Speaking of this, Gu Zikai became eager, "Coincidentally, the people exploring the gold mine returned yesterday saying there’s good news. But because Master Yi was around, I planned to send them away and call them back to report in detail. Now you’re here, it’s perfect, let’s listen together."

Wang Yongzhu naturally had no objections.

Gu Zikai had already arranged for them to rest at the back of the County Yamen, and soon they were fetched.

These people were originally under Song Chongjin and Wang Yongzhu’s command. Upon arrival, they first paid respects, and before Wang Yongzhu asked, they explained their discoveries thoroughly.

For over a year, they’d rarely returned to the county. We spent most of the time in the wilds, valleys, and rivers, initially tracing the river upstream, navigating numerous tributaries—quite a task.

Thanks to Song Chongjin and Wang Yongzhu’s generosity, offering ample silver and supplies, these tough men endured till now.

Throughout the year, almost all upstream tributaries of Yunzhong River were surveyed.

Recently, some clues and oddities were found in several valleys near the grasslands.

They showed a hand-drawn simple map.

Wang Yongzhu and Gu Zikai examined it—a simple yet clear depiction of Yunzhong County’s location, the upstream tributaries of Yunzhong River, distances marked.

One valley with clues lies within Yunzhong County, equidistant from the county town and grasslands.

It’s a small tributary deep in the mountains, sparsely populated.

Access is quite challenging; the tributary is an underground river passing through a cave, requiring underwater traversal of over ten meters.

Beyond the underground river, the cave exit leads to a valley traversed in about two quarters of an hour.

They searched this valley thoroughly and discovered many oddities.

There seems to be traces of human activity, and strange symbols on the stone walls.

Wang Yongzhu raised an eyebrow, intrigued.

The exploration team, brave and cautious, made prints of these symbols, wrapped them in oiled paper, and brought them.

They now lay on the desk.

Wang Yongzhu casually flipped through a stack, suddenly his eyes focused—it seemed to be textual?

Even appeared patterned?

Wang Yongzhu was shaken inside, yet maintained composure, turning to the explorers, "Any other findings?"

The explorer then reported, aside from that, there wasn’t anything else in this valley.

However, in another valley, traces of a gold mine were found—they collected samples and in this valley, they found several pieces of Nugget Gold, which they brought back.

With this, they presented the Nugget Gold.

The Nugget Gold appeared of good quality—if true, then this credit could bolster Gu Zikai.

Gu Zikai realized this too, visibly delighted, nearly infatuated with the Nugget Gold.

After some time, he regained composure, looking at Wang Yongzhu gratefully.

Knowing that this was a benefit given by Song Chongjin and Wang Yongzhu for free.