The Litchi Road Episode 31 Recap
> The Litchi Road Recap
Yu Chengen voluntarily took on the task of purchasing white wax. Supervisor Wang bribed Zhou Sanlang to monopolize the white wax market, trying to push Yu Chengen into a corner. Yu Chengen borrowed a large sum of money from the Right Chancellor and went to Zhou Sanlang to buy white wax. He also returned the goods on the grounds that the white wax was unqualified. Supervisor Wang asked Zhou Sanlang to sell it to Yu Chengen at double the price.
Yu Chengen bought it again as before, then returned it. Zhou Sanlang was dumbfounded. He went to Supervisor Wang for help, but Supervisor Wang refused to see him. Yu Chengen came to urge delivery, and even used the Right Chancellor to exert pressure. Zhou Sanlang had no choice but to reveal Supervisor Wang's conspiracy. Yu Chengen hosted a banquet for Supervisor Wang. Supervisor Wang was so scared he almost lost his wits.
The Right Chancellor reminded Yu Chengen to repay the money on time, otherwise, he would be responsible for the consequences. Yu Chengen then introduced Zhou Sanlang to the Right Chancellor. The Right Chancellor agreed to hand over the white wax purchase to Yu Chengen and Zhou Sanlang. Zhou Sanlang was deeply grateful to Yu Chengen and regarded him as a 'cabinet minister' among his peers. Zhao Xinmin made a detailed analysis of the various forces in Lingnan.
Li Shande recommended A Mita as the representative of the Hu merchants; the two of them were allied. Zheng Pingan and Yun Qing were another faction. Li Shande had intricate connections with Zheng Pingan. Yu Chengen and He Youguang formed their own faction. There were irreconcilable conflicts between them all. Zhao Xinmin weighed his options repeatedly, unsure which side to align with.
As soon as Yu Chengen arrived in Lingnan, he put on a facade of integrity, refusing He Youguang's invitations and gifts, and also sidelining Su Liang. What he cared about was not petty gains; he wanted to make a huge profit from transporting the lychees. Zheng Pingan took Gou Er and A Mita to see A Chai. He asked her for the evidence A Tu had left behind regarding He Youguang burning the sea tiger. A Chai refused to cooperate.
A Mita pleaded desperately, and only then did A Chai take out the box A Tu had brought back with herbs. She had been puzzled at the time, as A Tu had only brought back some very common herbs from Dayuling. A Mita recognized immediately that it was no ordinary box; it was waterproof and moisture-proof, specifically used at sea. Li Shande witnessed Yu Chengen forbidding Su Liang from participating in the lychee transportation. His desperate pleas were useless.
Li Shande felt he owed Su Liang, who had sold his merchant ships to help him raise funds. Li Shande went to the lychee orchard alone and told A Tong exactly what had happened. A Tong could only offer Li Shande words of comfort. Shopkeeper Feng had a terrible gambling addiction and soon lost everything. He had no choice but to go to his nephew Lan Ge to borrow money.
Lan Ge guessed he had gone gambling again and gave him a harsh lecture. Shopkeeper Feng swore never to gamble again, and only then did Lan Ge agree to lend him two guans of money. He Youguang and Zhao Xinmin came to the cockfighting arena. Yu Chengen's attendant came to He Youguang to inquire about the preparations for transporting the lychees. He Youguang tried hard to flatter him, asking Lan Ge to pick out the fiercest fighting cock for him.
That rooster won, and He Youguang had Lan Ge give the prize money to the attendant, seizing the opportunity to propose visiting Yu Chengen. The attendant revealed that Yu Chengen had come up with a way to make money, which was to issue "lychee bonds" in Lingnan. He also described the secret of how Yu Chengen pleased the Right Chancellor and the Emperor. He Youguang suddenly understood everything. He hadn't expected Yu Chengen to be so greedy.
He gritted his teeth in anger. Zheng Pingan heard that A Tu had asked Shopkeeper Feng to deliver something to A Chai, and suspected that Shopkeeper Feng had replaced the evidence inside with common herbs from Dayuling. Zheng Pingan came to Lan Ge to inquire about Shopkeeper Feng's whereabouts and explained the stakes to him. Once He Youguang learned that Shopkeeper Feng had the evidence, Shopkeeper Feng would surely die.
Lan Ge quickly found Shopkeeper Feng and forced him to hand over the evidence A Tu had left behind. Shopkeeper Feng had no choice but to admit that he had sold the evidence to Zhao Xinmin. Zheng Pingan immediately told Yun Qing this news. He was worried that Zhao Xinmin would defect to Yu Chengen. Yun Qing analyzed that Zhao Xinmin was still hesitant, so the evidence must still be in his hands. He Youguang felt he was being sidelined.
He tried hard to win over Zhao Xinmin, repeatedly claiming that he treated Zhao Xinmin as a brother, although he often scolded and hit him. Zhao Xinmin responded with a smile and played along with He Youguang. Back then, he was just a minor handler for the 'Haifan bonds'. It was thanks to He Youguang's help that he was where he was today, and he was grateful to He Youguang.
The more He Youguang thought about it, the more scared he became. A Mita, Li Shande, and Yu Chengen were all eyeing him fiercely. He wanted Zhao Xinmin's help. Zhao Xinmin swore he would serve him like a loyal dog or horse. He Youguang wanted to issue lychee bonds to compete with Yu Chengen. Zhao Xinmin advised him to think twice, warning that if Lingnan fell into chaos, he would be held accountable. However, He Youguang's mind was made up.
