Chapter 393 Countermeasures
When Xia Chunyu came back from his shift, Ye Jiayao asked him if there had been any famine anywhere recently.

Xia Chunyu was surprised and asked, "Why are you asking this suddenly? There was a good harvest last year, so how could there be a famine?"

Ye Jiayao smiled and said, "I'm just asking casually."

After dinner, Cui Dongpeng came again and said that this situation did not happen in other houses except Tianshangju. Xiao Yang and the others secretly followed these beggars, but these people looked around and they didn’t know who to follow.

Ye Jiayao's expression became serious. They really were a group of organized beggars!

It seems that it will be difficult for her to handle the situation with just her manpower.

Cui Dongpeng added: "Today's sales have been reduced by half. During dinner, there were even beggars running to the store to ask for water. Several tables of guests in the lobby left halfway through their meal without paying and were very unhappy. The brothers almost went crazy and wanted to beat up these beggars, but Brother Xiang stopped them."

Ye Jiayao nodded: "For the time being, we can't have a conflict. These beggars are so bold, they must be instructed by someone. If a conflict breaks out, I'm afraid we will fall into the other party's trap. Go back and tell everyone to do their own work. If they come again tomorrow, I will still give them buns and steamed buns. I will find a way."

After dinner, Xia Chunyu chatted with Chunfeng for a few words before returning to his own courtyard. He casually asked Xiangtao, "Where is the second young lady?"

Xiang Tao said, "Cui Dongpeng is here, and the Second Young Madam has gone to see him."

Xia Chunyu asked sensitively: "What is Cui Dongpeng doing here?"

Generally speaking, people from heaven would not come here unless it was something important.

"He came here once before, and it seemed that there was trouble in Tianshangju." Xiangtao was not very clear either.

Xia Chunyu took a deep breath. Is there trouble in Tianshangju? This is really surprising. Who is so bold as to cause trouble in Tianshangju?

Xia Chunyu turned around and went to the outer courtyard.

Halfway through the journey, they met Ye Jiayao. Ye Jiayao was thinking about something with her head down and did not see Xia Chunyu. However, Qiao Xi saw him and called him "Young Master".

Ye Jiayao then raised her head: "Are you going out?"

Seeing her worried look, Xia Chunyu asked, "What happened in Tianshangju? I heard Cui Dongpeng came to see you."

"That's what I was going to tell you!"

The two talked as they walked back.

After hearing this, Xia Chunyu cursed angrily: "Who on earth came up with such a dirty trick? If I catch him, I will kill him."

"I plan to go check out the situation tomorrow. Maybe it's industry competition. However, such means are too despicable." Ye Jiayao was also wondering who did it.

It is impossible for Liuli to do this. After Lin was divorced, she left Jinling and was said to have gone to her hometown in Xuzhou. It is even more impossible for Prince Yu to use such means to deal with Tianshangju. Tianshangju is not qualified enough for Prince Yu to deal with. Apart from this, she really can't think of any other enemy who wants to deal with her. Therefore, Ye Jiayao believes that the possibility of competition from peers is more likely. After all, Tianshangju is now known as the number one restaurant in Jinling, and there are many people who are jealous of it.

"Don't go for this. I have the night shift tomorrow and I have free time during the day, so I'll go." Xia Chunyu didn't want Ye Jiayao to deal with a bunch of smelly beggars.

So the next morning, Xia Chunyu went to find Jiu Ye and asked Jiu Ye to lend him a few men to use. Jiu Ye naturally did not say a word and immediately assigned twenty men to Xia Chunyu to use.

These little hooligans are familiar with the area, and their identities will not attract attention, so it is convenient for them to get things done. This is why Xia Chunyu asked Jiu Ye for people.

You have to know that beggars also have territories and gangs. In this kind of organized action, the other party will definitely look for the beggar leader first.

Xia Chunyu asked these gangsters to find out which beggar gangs were involved in this incident. It would be best if they could find the beggar leaders and keep an eye on them secretly, as they found out which beggar leaders had contact with those people.

The twenty little hooligans received the order and acted separately with great enthusiasm.

Being able to work for the Jing'an Marquis' Mansion is a job that is so good that you would never ask for it. The second young lady of the Jing'an Marquis' Mansion is very generous and the rewards are always considerable. How can everyone not work hard?
The net had been cast and it was almost time for dinner. Xia Chunyu and Song Qi were both dressed in casual clothes and rented a cruise ship on the river. They sat on the boat seemingly leisurely cruising the lake, but their sharp eyes were staring at the gate of Tianshangju.

Sure enough, dozens of beggars came from all directions one after another and sat at the door of Tianshangju. Some of them were lying down to sleep, some were picking their toes, and some were catching lice. They were as disgusting as they could be.

Xiao Lu and his friends brought steamed buns and distributed them to the beggars one by one. The beggars took them and ate them. After they were done, they continued to pick their noses and toes.

When the guests passing by saw this scene, they covered their noses and walked around, not to mention entering the restaurant to eat.

Xia Chunyu was so angry, what a mean guy!

This was not the end. When a customer finally got into the restaurant, a few beggars clung to him like plasters and begged for food, which made the customer very angry and he turned around and left.

"Damn it, Young Master, I can't stand it anymore. I'm going to beat these beggars to death right now." Song Qi rubbed his hands together and was about to go ashore while muttering.

Xia Chunyu glared at him and said, "Stop causing trouble for me."

I couldn't help but curse all the ancestors of the bastard who launched this conspiracy in my heart.

"I can't swallow this." Song Qi snorted. "Who can swallow this? Is it any use if you beat them up? They will all be lying in Tianshangju by then, and they will come to extort medical expenses." Xia Chunyu said depressedly. Only by catching the mastermind can the problem be solved.

After mealtime, the beggars finished their work on time and dispersed one after another.

Xia Chunyu and Song Qi then got off the boat and went into the restaurant to eat.

Cui Dongpeng was cursing: "Damn it, we only served two tables of customers in the whole lunch. So much food was wasted."

Zhong Xiang patted him on the shoulder and said comfortingly, "Don't worry, this situation won't last long."

“We can’t afford to lose even one day. The hotel was originally full. How much money will it cost?” Wang Mingde felt distressed.

This is all hard-earned money, and everyone has a share in it!

Xiao Lu said angrily, "The most infuriating thing is that we still have to give them buns and steamed buns. I really want to put some arsenic in them and poison these ungrateful beggars to death."

"If we really do this, it will be what others want." Xia Chunyu walked in with a sullen face.

"Your Highness..." Everyone hurriedly bowed.

Xia Chunyu waved his hand: "No need to be polite, bring me two dishes."

Wang Mingde hurried to do it.

Xia Chunyu sat down in the lobby and said to everyone, "Don't act rashly no matter how upset you are. The matter will soon be cleared up. When the time comes, whoever did it will be punished double."

With the prince's words, everyone's anger subsided a little. Now that the prince has taken action, is there any worry that he cannot deal with these beggars?

Xia Chunyu ate his lunch leisurely before going to the agreed location to meet up with the gang of thugs.

These hooligans were really efficient. They found a lot of useful clues and figured out a way forward in just one morning.

"My Lord, someone is indeed secretly manipulating and buying off the four major beggar gangs in the east, west, north and south of the city. They take turns to come and cause trouble. Yesterday, the ones from the east came, today, the ones from the west came, and tomorrow, it will be either the north or the south."

"My Lord, I have heard that they have collected a deposit of 50 copper coins per person per day from Sanlun. If the work is done well, there will be additional rewards."

"My Lord, I have heard that they have further plans. If they clash with Tianshangju, all the beggars in the city will flock to Tianshangju to cause trouble."

"My Lord, I have heard that..."

Xia Chunyu's face became more and more ugly. The person who planned this was so cunning. There were four beggar gangs. After three rounds, it would take twelve days. After twelve days, all the guests of Tianshangju would be driven away. The most important thing was that the other party had already paid three rounds of silver and would not contact these beggars in the near future, so he couldn't find out even if he wanted to.

He knew very well that even if he arrested these beggar leaders for interrogation, even if he found out what the people who had contact with them looked like, it would be useless. They would hide and not go out, or they were originally insignificant people. Where could you find them? Arresting them would only cut off the clues.

A bunch of beggars are all worthless people. If you, Tianshangju, dare to beat or catch them, they will blackmail you and pester you without caring about your life. Therefore, you, Tianshangju, have no choice but to endure it and cannot do anything about them.

Things were more serious than he had imagined.

Xia Chunyu frowned and thought about making a memorial.

Song Qi said, "My Lord, this is not a solution. These people are obviously here to cause trouble. Why don't we report to the authorities and let them arrest them one by one?"

Xia Chunyu shook his head and said, "Can we catch them all? You said they were causing trouble, but did they? Who said beggars can't beg outside Tianshangju? It's useless. This is not a cure."

"What should I do?" Song Qi felt extremely depressed.

One of Jiu Ye's subordinates said, "My Lord, if you just want to calm this matter down, it's easy. They are making such a fuss just for the sake of benefits. As long as we negotiate with the leader, it should be settled. But we can't catch the person in charge."

Xia Chunyu said: "If you can't live with the person in charge, what's the point of talking."

He just wanted to catch this bastard.

"You guys should work harder and follow them tonight. If you find any clues, report them immediately." Xia Chunyu took out a bag of silver and said, "Thank you for your hard work. Use this little money to buy some wine."

Everyone took the money with a smile.

Xia Chunyu went back and told Ye Jiayao about the situation. Ye Jiayao said, "We can't let that person lead us by the nose. So, I will ask Zhong Xiang to start distributing porridge near Tianshangju this afternoon. We have to stand firm on this point. If we have the right, even if they make trouble again, we will still have a loud voice."

"If they continue to stay at the door, it will be pure trouble. The government will have reason to arrest them. Then, let Jiu Ye's people keep an eye on the leaders. When things get out of hand, the other party will definitely have further contact with the beggar leader. At this time, we can arrest them. I don't believe that we can't deal with this group of people."

Xia Chunyu thought about it, his brows relaxed, and he slammed the table and said, "Yaoyao, you are still smart."

(End of this chapter)