The carriage rolled slowly into Suzhou City.
Unlike the strict order of the Capital City, Suzhou City was alive with prosperity and freedom. The streets teemed with people, shops stood row upon row, and the very air seemed to carry the scent of money.
Chen Qian lifted the carriage curtain and looked out at the scene, so different from the Capital City. His heart grew heavier.
What kind of man was Gu Shen, who had built a commercial empire in a place like this?
The carriage did not go to the post station. Following the address Prince Yan had given them, it headed straight for the Gu family estate in the south of the city.
When the carriage stopped at the estate gates, even Chen Qian, who was used to the grandeur of the prince's mansion, couldn't help drawing in a sharp breath.
The estate before him was so vast that its boundaries were almost impossible to see. Two enormous stone lions stood before the entrance, carved with exquisite skill and radiating a commanding presence. They were grander than those at many noblemen's mansions he had seen.
The vermilion gates swung open, and a man in blue, who looked like a steward, came out to greet them. He was neither servile nor arrogant.
"May I ask if you are Assistant Minister Chen, come from the Capital City?"
Chen Qian stepped down from the carriage and adopted an official tone. "That's right. I am here at Prince Yan's request. Where is Gu Shen? Have him come at once to receive the decree."
He instinctively tried to cow the man with his official authority.
But the steward only smiled faintly, his expression courteous yet distant.
"My master is receiving a guest in the rear garden and cannot come out. He instructed me