Jinrong nodded toward Qi Younian, signaling that he understood.
Qi Younian instructed Yuan Shang, "You’ve had a hard time, running around all day; go and take a rest."
Indeed, for an outsider like Yuan Shang, who had only arrived in the capital a few months ago, to be so familiar with the city’s streets, customs, and people was no small feat.
Watching Yuan Shang leave, Jinrong said, "It seems that Ye Zi’s guess was correct. Today’s incident was not merely a conflict between craftsmen, but instead, someone wanted to use the newcomer’s discontent among the Jishui Lane craftsmen to completely replace the craftsmen in your Construction Industry."
"However, those craftsmen were restrained by Ye Zi and didn’t act like many others would have, rushing up to join in the brawl when someone stirred up trouble. This prevented those conspirators from getting the chance they wanted."
Qi Younian’s face darkened as he thought of the past events with his brothers, and he said, "Are you suggesting that they want to injure the people here so badly that we’re forced to hire others because these men won’t be able to get out of bed for months?"
Jinrong nodded, "If the craftsmen from Guangsha Construction are all, or mostly, injured in a fight, rendering them incapable of work for a long time, I’m afraid not many would dare to come work for your industry. And under such a shortage of hands, it would be even easier to infiltrate with people of unknown origins."
Qi Younian’s expression grew even uglier. How could he encounter such things everywhere he went? Even at the feet of the Son of Heaven. If he didn’t have the backing of Duke An’s Mansion and Prince Yu’s Mansion, one could imagine what his fate would be next.
Ye Xinyan, meanwhile, widened her eyes and looked at Jinrong, "Do you always plant undercover agents ? If placing spies is so easy, then don’t your respective mansions have holes everywhere, like a colander? That situation... is far too dangerous." How terrifying, how could one continue to live under such conditions?
Jinrong looked at her with disdain and said, "I’m telling you, Ye Zi, you’ve grown a clever face in vain if you are actually so foolish." Hmph, did she think he’d forget how she had just ridiculed him about marrying three women to bother him?
Ye Xinyan’s face stiffened with anger, "I say, Your Highness, you are a son of the emperor, can you not show a little face for His Majesty? Let’s stick to discussing the issue at hand, can we refrain from personal attacks?"
"Discussing the issue at hand, huh," Jinrong responded to Ye Xinyan’s retort without approval or disapproval, and continued, "I’ll tell you, most of the people serving us have been with us since they were little. Even those who joined later or were recruited have been thoroughly tested over time. Besides, there’s mutual wariness and common interests among them. How could there be as many spies as you imagine?"
Ye Xinyan asked, "What about the Construction Industry? Sixth Master, who is the person you mentioned who wants a complete replacement? Do they intend to sideline me and Grandfather, to seize control of the Construction Industry?" Ye Xinyan took the initiative to maintain the focus on the matter at hand.
Jinrong shook his head, "At the moment, it’s unclear whose handiwork this is, but I think it’s more likely to be Prince Fu’s. As for whether he wants to take control of Guangsha Construction, I don’t think it’s necessary. To Prince Fu, the project is just an unprofitable chore, not worth his effort."
"No profits?" Ye Xinyan curled her lip, "Isn’t there credit to be gained? Coveting that position, good credit is important, isn’t it?"
Jinrong made a disapproving expression, "For Prince Fu, this kind of project falls within the responsibilities of his managed ministry and has no relation to gaining credit. Plus, since there are no profits, that’s why he’d be willing to pass it off. As for the replacement, it’s likely only to position their men in critical roles, so that when needed, they can easily ruin the project."
Qi Younian nodded, recalling the disaster that had befallen him and his brothers, which led to their family’s downfall. Back then, it was Lao Liu, the one they trusted, who had sabotaged a critical part of the project, directly causing the ruin of seven brothers and their families.
If the opponent of the Sixth Prince wanted to sabotage him, their best opportunity would be during his first official task, dealing a devastating blow that would leave the court officials with a terrible first impression of him.
Even if the Sixth Prince later succeeded multiple times, it would likely be difficult for him to recover his reputation and people’s confidence in him.
Just as first impressions are very important, the first task can also create a profound, and even lifelong, impression on people.
Qi Younian, having more life experience than Ye Xinyan, was already very worried at this point. He furrowed his brow and said, "I’ve been considering the railtrack laying project for the past few days. If we were to unfold the eight-hundred-mile project as Your Highness mentioned, the workforce of the Construction Industry is far from sufficient. However, if recruiting more people poses a risk, that would be troublesome."
The harrowing incidents he had personally experienced taught him just how impossible it was to guard against a spy. If anyone they recruited had issues, and they sabotaged something critical... Qi Younian couldn’t dare to imagine that outcome.
Jinrong saw Qi Younian’s worries and comforted him, "It’s not as serious as you think. Your past experiences were primarily because you trusted your brothers and did not keep your guard up. It’s not that easy to find a spy, nor is it easy to accomplish their tasks, otherwise, we would all have perished long ago."
Qi Younian sighed, but nodded, agreeing with Jinrong’s words, "Your Highness is right, while we were in prison and exiled to the border pass, we also reflected on it; our youngest brother actually did show some flaws, but we never suspected that he could betray his brothers, and we did not think in that direction."
If he had been a bit more cautious at that time and had detected Lao Liu’s peculiarities earlier, he might have been able to prevent the subsequent tragic outcome.
Seeing that Qi Younian understood his point, Jinrong continued, "After the construction starts, I will send people over to act as guards. They are experienced in such matters and can easily detect any abnormalities in people’s expressions and behavior, which helps to prevent problems before they arise."
Ye Xinyan suddenly had an idea, though it was not a particularly good one.
First, she instinctively looked around the room. Earlier, attendants from Song Ping’s Household brought in tea with maids and servants, then all of them exited and even the door was closed, making this a place where they could talk.
In the living room at the moment, there was only Jinrong and the two of them, grandfather and grandchild. Ye Xinyan thought about it and said, "I actually think it’s not necessary to prevent problems before they occur. Completing all the projects with defects wouldn’t be bad either. As long as we can grasp the spy’s actions, that would suffice."
Jinrong was initially surprised, but in a moment, he understood Ye Xinyan’s meaning.
Preventing problems before they occur would only ensure the smooth completion of the project, an accomplishment that would benefit oneself; it would not greatly harm the enemy, only causing the opponent to return empty-handed.
Even if they caught a spy red-handed and exposed their sabotage, it’s doubtful they could trace it back to the top, and no one would offend those in power for a project that didn’t incur any losses.
However, if the project suffered significant damage, that would be a different story. First of all, allowing the spy to act frequently would make it easier to implement long-term plans to catch bigger fish,