Madam Liu was very embarrassed by the question. She looked at Baoning carefully and asked, "Madam, do you really not know?"

Baoning shook her head.

Madam Liu understood. They had not done anything in the bedroom yet. Maybe the Fourth Prince thought she was young and was afraid of hurting her.

Wei Meng was still talking loudly. Madam Liu hurriedly pulled Baoning away, her face flushed with embarrassment.

She had also been a servant in a wealthy family for most of her life. She was very cautious. How could she dare to tell Baoning about this? She thought of fooling her and coaxed her, "I don't know either. Madam, ask the Fourth Prince tonight. The Fourth Prince is knowledgeable and will definitely be able to explain it clearly." Baoning

was skeptical and said, "Okay."

Madam Liu breathed a sigh of relief.

Over there, Pei Yuan saw Wei Meng's beaming face, almost spitting a mouthful of wine on his face, frowning in disgust: "If you have that much free time, why don't you go find a good matchmaker and get married? You won't be afraid of getting sick if you hang around in places like that."

Wei Meng was too lazy to argue with him, so he tilted his head back and took a sip of wine and said: "Everyone has their own aspirations, and I can't reason with you!"

Pei Yuan stood up: "I don't want to hear you say anymore, stop eating, There is still work to do, hurry up and leave."

Wei Meng's eyes lingered on the half-remaining duck paw, and he swallowed his saliva impatiently: "Eat some more, it won't matter a little while, it would be such a waste to throw it away. Such a good cooking, I don't know when I can eat it again, where did you find the chef, lend it to me for two days?"

Pei Yuan slapped him on the head, gritted his teeth and cursed: "Lend me your head!"

Wei Meng smacked his lips: "Young general, don't be so stingy, I'll use two jars of twenty-year-old aged Fenjiu in exchange, you lend me the chef for a month!"

Pei Yuan was so angry at his stubborn look that he raised his hand to hit him again, but when he turned his head, he saw Bao Ning who had been standing beside him for who knows how long.

He suddenly remembered what Wei Meng had just said, about her slim waist and legs, which were so thin that they could be held in one hand, and about hugging one on the left and one on the right. Pei Yuan immediately broke out in a cold sweat. He didn't know how much Bao Ning had just heard and whether she had misunderstood anything. He wanted to strangle Wei Meng on the spot.

Pei Yuan coughed stiffly and asked, "When did you come?"

Bao Ning smiled and said, "Just a little while. I saw General Wei was here too, so I didn't stay any longer. If you don't have enough to eat, I'll ask the kitchen to make more."

Pei Yuan carefully looked at her expression and was relieved to see that there was nothing unusual.

Wei Meng heard the voice and hurried over to say hello. This was the first time he had such close contact with Bao Ning. Seeing her standing there, not much taller than Pei Yuan's shoulders, gentle and beautiful, with a temperament very different from those girls in Qingluofang, Wei Meng was a little reserved.

He stopped smiling and bowed respectfully, calling her "little lady."

Bao Ning returned the greeting and said politely, "General Wei, thank you for your hard work."

Wei Meng was very happy to be praised, and he couldn't even pretend anymore, laughing.

Bao Ning stood there a little embarrassed, thinking that it was no wonder that Pei Yuan had a bandit spirit, and now the root of the problem was with Wei Meng. After being with such a person day and night for so many years, the only remaining elegance and reserve in Pei Yuan that belonged to a prince had been worn away, and it didn't seem strange.

Wei Meng put one hand on his waist and patted his belly with the other. Pei Yuan's eyelids jumped, and he quickly covered Bao Ning's eyes and turned to take her back to the room.

He decided in his heart that he must send soldiers to guard the gate of the backyard in the future, and never let this illiterate and reckless old man step in!

Wei Meng didn't know why, and called him from behind: "Young General, what are you going to do? We will discuss things in the study later, so you must come early, don't be late!"

After saying that, he turned around and looked at the things on the table reluctantly, sighing: "What a pity, what a pity."

Bao Ning couldn't listen any more, she called Madam Liu over and ordered: "Go get a piece of oil paper later, and wrap the remaining duck feet for General Wei, and let him take the melon seeds away as well."

Madam Liu agreed.

Pei Yuan's eyebrows were knitted together: "You can't treat him like this."

Bao Ning sighed: "...Don't be so stingy, give him whatever he likes."

Pei Yuan didn't say anything else, and with a sullen face, he carried Bao Ning back to the room. Just as he was about to step into the house, Wei Meng's thunderous voice suddenly rang out from behind: "Thank you, young lady, for your reward!"

Bao Ning shuddered with fear, and Pei Yuan's face turned completely black. He hugged Bao Ning in his arms, stepped over the threshold, and slammed the door with his backhand.

This old man has no sense of propriety!

Bao Ning laughed instead. She sat on Pei Yuan's forearm and hugged his neck with her arms. This was the posture they usually used. Pei Yuan was strong and could pick her up with one hand, and it was still very stable. Only then did Bao Ning feel that marrying a martial artist was a very happy thing.

She thought of the Qingluofang incident again, raised her hand and pulled Pei Yuan's ear, and asked softly: "You didn't lie to me that time, did you? Qingluofang is really a ready-made clothing store?"

Pei Yuan's heart tightened, and he pretended to be casual and said: "How much did you hear just now?"

Baoning said: "I heard General Wei say something very valuable, and then Madam Liu took me away, and I didn't hear the rest."

Pei Yuan secretly praised Madam Liu for her good work.

Pei Yuan insisted: "It's really a ready-made clothing store."

He put Baoning on the bed, took off her shoes and socks, shook the quilt to cover her legs, and changed the subject: "You've been busy all morning, take a nap, I'm going out for a while and will be back later."

Baoning bent her legs and hugged her knees, and said okay.

Pei Yuan's heart was melting. He loved Bao Ning's obedient and innocent look. He couldn't help rubbing her face and kissing her lips. He felt that Bao Ning couldn't be more lovable and deceitful.

After a while of tenderness, when he couldn't delay any longer, Pei Yuan reluctantly left the house.

...

Wei Mengzhan had just finished chewing the last duck paw and was waiting for him under the tree at the door of the study.

Pei Yuan was so angry that he kicked him: "You almost killed me! You have nothing to do, why do you mention that place!"

Wei Meng exclaimed, "Ah", and said embarrassedly: "The young lady doesn't know about this, I thought you showed her the house deeds."

Pei Yuan snorted, "Do I dare tell her!"

"Forget it." Pei Yuan didn't mention it anymore. He glanced in the direction of the study, his face became serious, and asked in a low voice, "How did General Qiu have time to come? Shouldn't he be very busy now?"

The right prime minister Jiang Chunlai is about to resign. The Chongyuan Marquis's Mansion is a century-old family and is loyal. Chongyuan Marquis Jia Daogong has always been honest and upright. The emperor favors him. If nothing unexpected happens, the right prime minister will be replaced in two months. Pei Xiao and Qiu Mingshan are trying their best to win him over.

The reason why Pei Xiao proposed to marry Ji Jiaying was also related to this.

Because Jia Daogong's eldest daughter-in-law, the Crown Prince's Consort of the Chongyuan Marquis's Mansion, is Ji Jiaying's eldest sister, Ji Xiangzhen. In this way, Pei Xiao and Chongyuan Marquis's Crown Prince Jia Ling became brothers-in-law, and his relationship with Jia Daogong became closer. This is also what makes Qiu Mingshan anxious.

He will have to go back to Northern Xinjiang in another month, and he can't wait to use this time to do something.

Wei Meng said, "The secret letter from Pei Xiao was to Jia Ling, the son of the Marquis of Chongyuan. He promised him a large sum of money and beautiful women, and invited him to a teahouse to reminisce about the past. General Qiu just received news from the court that Jia Ling will take up a very important position. Guess what it is?"

Pei Yuan walked with him to the study. He thought for a moment and asked, "Commander of the Imperial Chariot?"

Wei Meng was surprised, "How did you guess it?"

Pei Yuan said, "The emperor is about to go to the temporary palace to escape the summer heat. He will pass by Lihu Lake. Pei Xiao's desk is filled with the eight important things he has done. The map of Lihu, which was out of reach, showed that he had evil intentions. But the emperor had eight carriages, and no one knew which one was sitting in it. Even if he wanted to do something, he couldn't choose the right target. "

Wei Meng continued: "If Jia Ling became the commander of the carriages, he would be the only one who knew about the arrangement of the carriages and horses. Pei Xiao had been following him and learned the news..."

Before he finished speaking, the door of the study creaked open, and Qiu Mingshan stood at the door and said: "You are right."

Pei Yuan looked up. Not sure if it was his illusion, he saw that Qiu Mingshan seemed to have aged a lot. Pei Yuan subconsciously thought that this might be the reason why his two daughters got into trouble.

They walked to the inner room.

Qiu Mingshan sat down. He was wearing a casual suit, and perhaps because he was older, his temperament became gentler, and he looked kind.

Pei Yuan lazily leaned back in his chair, poured a cup of tea and pushed it in front of Qiu Mingshan, and asked, "What do you think about this matter, General?"

He spoke very politely, but this politeness was very rare for Qiu Mingshan. He was hesitant about whether to say what he was thinking, but Pei Yuan's attitude gave him courage.

Qiu Mingshan said: "In ancient times, there was a story about Zhang Liang assassinating Qin Shi Huang at Bolingsha. You should all know about it."

Wei Meng nodded: "It's an old story, everyone knows it. Zhang Liang wanted to kill the First Emperor, so he hired a strong man with a huge iron hammer weighing 120 kilograms. He stood guard at Bolingsha, ready to kill the First Emperor. Unfortunately, the First Emperor prepared several chariots, all of which were exactly the same. Zhang Liang couldn't tell which one had the First Emperor sitting in it, so the strong man threw the hammer and hit the wrong person."

He asked: "Why are you talking about this?"

Pei Yuan supported his chin with his fingers. He realized the topic that Qiu Mingshan was going to bring up, and his eyes narrowed. Qiu Mingshan said, " What

if Zhang Liang had hit it at that time? The First Emperor would have died early, and there wouldn't have been so many disputes afterwards, causing so much suffering to the people. Anyway, the First Emperor was going to die sooner or later." Wei Meng took a breath and said, "What do you mean, General?" Qiu Mingshan didn't dare to look at Pei Yuan. He stood up and said with his hands behind his back, "I know what you are thinking. If Pei Xiao and Jia Ling really joined forces, your first choice would be to save the emperor, kill Pei Xiao, and then seize the position of crown prince. But why bother with this! If Pei Xiao really wants to kill the emperor, let him do it! After he's done it, we will purge his side. Isn't it killing two birds with one stone? Not only will we gain a good reputation, but we won't waste our efforts on that position..." Before he finished speaking, he heard a click behind him. Qiu Mingshan's heart tightened, and he turned around to see Pei Yuan holding the broken wolf-hair brush in his hand and throwing it hard at his feet. Qiu Mingshan took a step back, regretting his recklessness, as he knew Pei Yuan cared about this the most. But now the opportunity is rare, he must be ruthless and try to persuade him: "Yuan'er, you don't have to feel guilty about this. If the emperor dies, it is not you who killed him! You..." Pei Yuan said coldly: "I knew you were a traitor, but can't you hide your wolfish ambitions a little bit?!" Qiu Mingshan clenched his fists tightly at his side. He gritted his teeth and held back for a long time. Finally, he couldn't help but said: "Yuan'er, your mother's death will be in a month! Do you really think that your mother's death has nothing to do with your good father? She died in your father's harem!" Pei Yuan glared at him: "I know you have some bad ideas about my mother, but don't forget the conditions we agreed on at the beginning!" Qiu Mingshan's lips trembled, and he murmured: "Do you think my ideas are bad ideas?" "Isn't it? You have no shame, I am ashamed for you!" Wei Meng looked at the two men, not knowing how to persuade them. His heart was on Pei Yuan's side, and he looked at Qiu Mingshan with caution. He even thought Qiu Mingshan was a little stupid. He repeatedly said he wanted to kill someone's father in front of his son. What else could he be if not stupid? He was a disgrace to his wisdom. Wei Meng attributed Qiu Mingshan's behavior to his pursuit of fame and fortune and his eagerness to rise to power. Pei Yuan thought so too. Qiu Mingshan was hurt by what he said just now. He was silent for a long time before he spoke: "Yuan'er, do you really respect that man so much? Don't forget, he was the one who misunderstood you, he stripped you of your title, he is stubborn and selfish." Pei Yuan replied: "You too." ... Qiu Mingshan didn't know how he left that place, he walked out in a daze. The manor was not big, and there were only a few steps from south to north, but he wasted a lot of energy. Finally stepping out of the door of the manor, Qiu Mingshan couldn't help it, he supported himself with a knife, and reluctantly sat under the Chinese toon tree at the door. He buried his face in his palms, and soon, tears leaked from between his fingers. "Ah Xiang, did I really do something wrong? I remember what you said. I didn't dare tell him because I wanted to protect him, but why are we getting further and further away?" "He doesn't even recognize me." "What should I do?" ... It was almost evening, the wind was cool and refreshing. Bao Ning woke up and ate something. She couldn't sit still, so she pulled Aunt Liu to the gate of the manor to pick the leaves of the toon tree to make toon leaf tea. The toon leaves are no longer tender now, and they don't taste good, but they are still tasty when used to make tea. When Bao Ning walked to the door, she saw a tall figure sitting under the tree. She recognized him at a glance. It was Qiu Mingshan. What was he doing sitting there? He seemed to be still crying. Bao Ning wanted to turn around and leave, but after taking two steps, she couldn't help but look back. She asked Aunt Liu, "Is General Qiu sick?" Aunt Liu shook her head, "I don't know, but he doesn't look very well." Bao Ning said, "Let's go and take a look." Qiu Mingshan heard footsteps behind him, he pursed his eyes, turned around and looked at Bao Ning's smiling face. Her attitude was as distant and polite as Pei Yuan's. She asked him from three steps away, "General, are you okay?" "Yes, yes, yes." Qiu Mingshan smiled and replied, looking a little flattered. He stood up and said gently, "It's just that the old illness has come back. Rest here for a while and it's all right now."

Bao Ning hesitated and said, "It's late now. I'm afraid it will be late at night before we go back. Do you want to stay in the manor for one night?"

Qiu Mingshan waved his hands repeatedly, "No, no."

Bao Ning did not try to persuade him to stay. She said, "Then I'll take you there."

"No, it's windy. You should go back soon." Qiu Mingshan said, lowering his head and groping in his sleeves, and took out a purse. He handed it to Bao Ning and smiled innocently, saying, "Good child, I've seen you many times, but I've never given you anything decent. I have some money, take it, and buy whatever you want to eat."

Bao Ning did not dare to take it. She felt that Qiu Mingshan was acting strange today, so she shook her head and said, "No, I have money. Thank you, General."

"Take it!" Qiu Mingshan stuffed the money bag into her hand without saying anything, and waved his hand, "My uncle is clumsy and can't pick out any good gifts, so I can only give you money. Go buy whatever you like."

Without waiting for Bao Ning to say anything, he walked to the side of the horse: "Seeing you reminds me of a child of mine who has no fate."

Bao Ning said something out of turn.

Qiu Mingshan turned around and smiled, and Bao Ning stared at his lonely back, watching him walk into the mountains.