Chapter 326: Master Qin means that this girl might have someone affiliated with Master Xie?

"No matter how powerful she is, she is just a woman and a child."

Qin Fu interrupted the man and said after thinking carefully: "Instead of being on guard, it is better to close it down."

"Collect? Master Qin, have you come up with a better way?"

Old He was very curious. He saw Qin Fu move the letter onto the candle and look at the burning flame with his eyes narrowed.

"She can die, but the musket must be left behind."

"The letter says that she is Xie Huaian's wife. Lord Xie is the former Prime Minister and is not someone to be trifled with. To be able to become his wife and even to be able to forge a musket, do you think she could really do this on her own?"

"Master Qin, do you mean that this woman is backed by someone affiliated with Master Xie?"

"Xie Huaian's death was instigated by the princess. Why did the princess target him? He must have some hidden secret. I think it's probably because of this weapon. If I can get this musket, I can then present it to the King of Yan. If the King of Yan gains power and sits on the throne, wouldn't I soar to the sky?"

Old He's eyes suddenly lit up! He immediately understood: "That makes sense. Mr. Qin is indeed ambitious. If we can get the secret of the musket, we will surely have a smooth career and no obstacles in our way."

Qin Fu stroked his beard contentedly and said, "So, no matter how powerful Ruan Mian is, we don't need to care. We just need to get the secret of the musket from her."

"Besides being Xie Huaian's wife, before she was exiled, she was also the daughter-in-law of the Qi family in Kyoto."

"Qi family's daughter-in-law? Could it be Qi Nanfeng?!"

Old He was shocked, while Qin Fu nodded calmly, "That's right, Qi Nanfeng is just a fool who has accomplished nothing. I don't know why he was favored by the princess and enjoyed a lot of glory for a long time."

"But I didn't live long after being exiled. However, this relationship gave me a breakthrough."

"Although the Qi family was exiled, it turns out they have a branch. Do you remember Liu Shu, whom I mentioned to you?"

Old He thought about it carefully and was shocked: "Could it be that Liu Shu has some relationship with Qi Nanfeng?"

"Qi Nanfeng's cousin, Liu Shu, what do you think if I could send him to Wuheng to discover the secret of gunpowder?"

Old He suddenly realized something: "Liu Shu is a gifted speaker and a handsome man. Many women are attracted to him. Ruan is just a widow of two husbands. How could she resist the temptation of such a charming man? Not to mention Liu Shu..."

At this point, Lao He and Qin Fu smiled at each other meaningfully, and they vowed to settle the matter.

···

Wu Heng.

Ruan Mianzhen rested in the house for three days. During these three days, the farthest she had been was to her brother's house.

Because she was too worried about her sister-in-law and brother, she didn't expect that Chen had recovered as usual and was no longer as spineless and worried as before.

Not only does she work every day, she also keeps her home in order.

When asked, Cuizhu whispered to her, "Miss, please don't worry about the young master and the young lady. They are doing very well recently. I see that their relationship is very close, and it seems that it is even stronger than before."

"Young Madam goes to weave cloth every day. Besides her own chores, she also asks Meixi for martial arts lessons. Can you believe it? However, Young Madam is weak. Meixi said that if Young Madam wants to learn martial arts, it won't happen overnight. She will have to pay more than I do. But Young Madam is very determined to learn."

"And the young master has been studying even harder. Besides going to the academy, he spends his time studying in his room, just like he did before the imperial examinations."

Hearing this, Ruan Mian became puzzled: "You said brother is studying all day?"

She felt strange, so on the third day, she persuaded Yun Xiu and found Ruan Qingsong to ask about his situation.

Although he had come to visit her this morning, Yun Xiu, Cui Zhu and the others were there, so Ruan Mian didn't feel comfortable asking.

Now that they were alone, she asked why he had suddenly become so eager to study. Her intuition told her that things were not simple.

Sure enough, there was something else behind this.

But it's also a good thing.

"Mianmian, I received news the day before yesterday. The new emperor has changed the system and will select candidates from the public, so the imperial examinations are no longer as strict as they used to be. Now, even if you're in business, even if no one in your family can read, even if you've made mistakes in the past, you still have a chance to make a comeback."

Ruan Mian saw the light in his eyes and seemed to be infected by his joy: "Is this news reliable?"

She knew that in this era, merchants were not eligible to take the imperial examinations. Even if there had been business people in the family for three generations, they were not eligible to take the examinations.

Furthermore, those who have committed a crime or have had their household registration revoked are not eligible.

Especially for fugitives like them, even if they change their nationality to good ones later, they are not eligible.

He was rejected in the provincial examination, not to mention that Wu Heng had not yet officially established a government at that time.

But now everything is different.

"Brother, do you mean you want to take the exam again?"

Ruan Qingsong nodded without hesitation and spoke seriously, "Mianmian, although I wrote that poem, I never meant to be disrespectful to the saints or to Dajing."

"Others misinterpreted my words and spread rumors, causing my entire family to be implicated and exiled thousands of miles away. This is the pain of my life. How can I accept that the Nguyen family fell into my hands like a piece of toothpaste?"

"No one will redress the Ruan family's injustice for me, so I have to seize this only chance myself." Ruan Qingsong stood up and walked over to her and said, "I should have told you this earlier, but you haven't been feeling well these past two days, so I thought I'd tell you after you're feeling better."

"Now that we've been re-registered, Wuheng City has officially been established as a prefecture. The new system for the imperial examinations no longer requires an age limit. Whether it's me or anyone else in the academy, anyone can take the exam."

"I have failed not only my entire Ruan clan but also your sister-in-law. How can I, a man of eight feet tall, live in such disgrace?"

"But brother, our current life is already..."

"I know what you mean, Mianmian. Our life now is indeed stable and happy, but for me, Ruan Shi cannot be cleared of her guilt, and I will never be able to calm down. Rather than letting me live like this, it is better for me to pay for the lives of my father-in-law and mother-in-law!"

"My lifelong wish is to clear my name and allow us to return to Wu Heng with honor!"

When Ruan Mian heard these words, she actually understood him very well.

Some people live just to live, but some people have other purposes in life.

Not everyone just wants a stable and happy life. Just like Ah Huai, if he just wanted a stable and happy life, why would he fake his death and go deep into the tiger's acupoint?

Besides, if He Wenxuan only wanted a stable and happy life, why would he choose the path of conscription and end up in this situation?