Chapter 37
"My master also has an irreconcilable feud with Wei Yan."
Zhao Wen was born with a pair of smiling eyes, which gave people the illusion of being friendly and easy to talk to, but there was also a sense of alienation in those eyes: "I am not trying to get close to the Marquis because I want to take advantage of him. It's just that my master thinks that if the Marquis knew the truth about the Battle of Jinzhou sixteen years ago, he would want to kill Wei Yan. I concealed my identity before, but it was not intentional. My master just wanted to wait until the time was right before revealing his identity to the Marquis."
Xie Zheng's eyes were cold and sharp. He had a vague guess in his mind, but he still asked, "Who is your master?"
Zhao Wen asked, "Those who were lucky enough to survive the fire in the East Palace sixteen years ago."
Xie Zheng raised his lips coldly: "Grandson of the Emperor? If the Grandson of the Emperor were still alive, shouldn't he go to find Li Taifu and his group to conspire? Why did he wait until today to find a loser like me?"
Zhao Wen looked embarrassed. "You have also investigated the clues about the battle of Jinzhou sixteen years ago. You should know that Wei Yan, the old villain, always does things thoroughly without leaving any handle. When the crown prince died and the East Palace caught fire, the late emperor asked the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple to investigate together, but they could not find any results. Not to mention the past and the present when things have changed. Li Taifu is the head of the clean stream in the court, but he will not risk everything to fight against the Wei Party for my master. The Marquis is different. General Xie died on the battlefield and was hung on the city tower for three days by Beijue. Wei Yan also had a share of the revenge. Doesn't the Marquis want to avenge this?"
Xie Zheng clenched his fingers, and a bloody aura seemed to seep out from the cracks in his bones, making this private room, which was not cramped, difficult to breathe. "Tell me, what happened sixteen years ago."
Zhao asked, "My master has been hiding for many years, but he has not found any clues about the Battle of Jinzhou. When the East Palace caught fire, the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple investigated and blamed it on the night watchman who accidentally knocked over the candlestick after falling asleep. But according to the loyal servants around my master, an assassin broke into the East Palace at night. The Crown Princess ordered the loyal servant to take the little prince away, and she and the prince's playmate stayed in the bedroom. The corpse found in the bedroom by the Dali Temple was the prince's childhood playmate."
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Chengde passed away, and the previous emperor passed away. Only Wei Yan was left to control the emperor and command the princes for more than ten years. It was hard not to suspect that the battle of Jinzhou that year was the work of Wei Yan. General Xie died in the battle, just to clear Wei Yan of suspicion."
Xie Zheng half raised his dark eyes, with a hint of impatience between his brows: "What I want is evidence, not your speculation."
Zhao Wen smiled. "Prince Changxin rebelled in Chongzhou. There was a conspirator with him who belonged to my master. He proposed the slogan of 'cleansing the emperor and eliminating the Wei Party' to Prince Changxin. In order to build momentum among the people, he spread rumors that the tragic case in Jinzhou was planned by Wei Yan. I'm sure the Marquis knew what happened later. He was just re-examining the case file in Jinzhou, and Wei Yan planned to kill him."
Xie Zheng narrowed his eyes, his gaze sharp, and sneered, "It seems that I am also part of your plan."
Zhao Wen's face was slightly stiff. "Your Excellency is too kind. My master just wants to win over the ally of Your Excellency."
Seeing Xie Zheng's expression of surprise, he quickly added: "That old thief Wei was exposed after being bombed like this. His assassins crossed the capital and seventeen prefectures and killed more than ten people. My master has already found out the identities of some of them. They were all family generals who once worked for Wei Yan and later retired."
Xie Zheng asked, "As for the butcher family surnamed Fan, I guess you have also found out their identities?"
Zhao Wen looked ashamed. "The butcher surnamed Fan has kept his identity a secret. My master has sent people to investigate several times. Whether it's the Fan family's hometown or this town, they have found such a person. The government even has records of him escorting a dozen years ago. It seems that someone in the government deliberately helped to cover up his past identity."
Xie Zheng's mind flashed back to the way Fan Changyu looked when he was telling him about his parents' past. He was distracted for a moment, and a flake of snow fell on the back of his hand. The coolness of the melting snowflakes instantly brought him back to his senses.
He leaned back slightly, one arm resting on the armrest of the yellow pear wood armchair. His casual posture gave people an extremely oppressive feeling: "Just based on your words, it is ridiculous to let me believe that the person behind you is the grandson of the emperor who died in the fire sixteen years ago."
Zhao Wen's face changed, and just as he was about to speak, he heard him say, "I will investigate the truth behind the battle in Jinzhou sixteen years ago. I don't care whether your master is the real grandson of the emperor or a fake one. If you don't want this alliance to end here, it's better for him to come to see me in person."
Zhao Wen looked unhappy, but he could only bow and say, "Zhao will convey the Marquis's words."
When Xie Zheng stood up, his eyelids drooped slightly, and he said lazily: "By the way, let him think about the exchange conditions for these 200,000 dan of rice."
Zhao Xun lowered his already slightly bowed posture three degrees: "Yes."
When Xie Zheng left, he placed the jade ring, which was originally a token of alliance, on the yellow pear wood table.
Xie Zheng had been dealing with this Zhao Xu for so long just to find out what kind of power he belonged to. Huang Sun's answer really surprised Xie Zheng.
He was not worried about not being able to grasp the other party's movements. When he asked the man surnamed Zhao to buy food, he had already asked his people to secretly pay attention to the intelligence and secrets under the name of the Zhao family. He would investigate these places and even if his master behind the scenes did not show up, he would be able to catch him quickly.
He and Wei Yan did have a grudge, but before the dust settled, someone dared to plot against him just to make him a great help to the other side. They really thought too well of him.
-
Xie Zheng came out of the bookstore and saw that Fan Changyu and her sister had not come yet. He frowned and walked towards the direction where Captain Wang lived.
Not long after walking, they ran into Fan Changyu and Changning. Changning had candy in her mouth, her cheeks were bulging, and she was hopping as she walked. Fan Changyu was holding one of her chubby little hands, with a bright and energetic smile on his face.
Seeing Xie Zheng, the smile on her face did not fade at all. She waved to him from a distance, and when she got closer, she said, "Let's not go back to town tonight."
Xie Zheng looked at the smile on her face, and the gloom and unhappiness in his heart eased a little. He asked, "Why?"
Fan Changyu said, "Manager Yu also opened a Yixianglou in the county. A wealthy man's son is getting married and has booked a banquet here. A large amount of brine will be prepared tomorrow. Manager Yu is afraid that he will not be able to prepare it in time, so he asked me to go to the building early tomorrow morning to help make brine. It just so happens that there is a lantern festival in the city this year, so we can go to the festival in the evening."
Xie Zheng asked, "Then let's find an inn to stay in first?"
Fan Changyu shook his head: "Shopkeeper Yu has already found a place for us to live. The food and drink provided to the kitchen staff in Yixianglou are covered by the restaurant. Shopkeeper Yu also rented a place nearby in a lane and let them live there for free."
Xie Zheng raised his eyebrows slightly: "This shopkeeper is a strange man."
Fan Changyu smiled and said, "That's right. Manager Yu is a very nice person. All the employees in the restaurant trust him. I heard from Chef Li on the stove that before, there were managers of other restaurants in the county who were jealous of Yixianglou's business and wanted to poach the manager of the restaurant who was promoted by Manager Yu. The other party offered a price twice as high as that of Yixianglou, but the manager didn't leave."
Xie Zheng just said: "Sometimes, friendship is indeed more effective than money."
Fan Changyu excitedly told him a lot about Yu Qianqian, but he didn't respond, so she stopped talking. Seeing that he didn't have anything in his hands, she asked, "Didn't you go buy paper and ink? Why did you come back empty-handed?"
She thought of a possibility and said with a complicated expression: "Could it be that you spent all the money on buying things for Ning Niang? You should have told me if you didn't have enough money..."
Xie Zheng smiled slightly, and the gloomy mood he had felt since leaving the bookstore had mostly dissipated. He said, "No."
In the face of Fan Changyu's suspicious gaze, he said, "The things in the bookstores in the county are too expensive. I'll buy them when I get back to town."
Fan Changyu asked: "Why did you stay in the bookstore for so long?"
Xie Zheng replied: "I read some books and lost track of time."
Fan Changyu asked curiously, "You've been reading for so long, but you didn't buy anything. Wouldn't the bookstore owner be disrespectful to you?"
Xie Zheng glanced over and asked, "Who told you that?"
Fan Changyu wanted to say that Song Yan was like this in the past. Because he only went to a bookstore to look at books but did not buy any, the bookstore owner gave him a cold shoulder, so he had a stern face for several days after he came back. Later, when he mentioned this matter again, he would also mock the bookstore owner by saying that he was full of copper smell.
But she swallowed the words back when she thought of Yan Zheng's poisonous words when he mentioned Song Yan, and muttered, "I guessed."
Xie Zheng glanced at her a few times, and Fan Changyu's subcutaneous muscles tightened, fearing that he would utter some murderous words in the next second.
Fortunately, I was not ridiculed by him along the way.
It was getting late, and they had decided to stay in the county town for one night. Fan Changyu still decided to take Xie Zheng and Chang Ning to see the lanterns in the evening, so they did not return to the residence arranged by Yu Qianqian for them, but went to a restaurant for a midnight snack first.
Those who eat out on New Year's Day are all from relatively well-off families.
A young couple at the next table had just finished their meal. When the waiter went to settle the bill, he said to the man with a smile on his face, "Sir, the total is one or two yuan."
The man looked frail and had a timid expression, seeming to be quite uneasy.
The woman sitting next to him said, "He has no money, I'll do it."
The woman had a very loud voice, attracting many diners in the restaurant to look over.
Someone whispered, "It's so shameful for a grown man to ask a woman to pay for his meal outside!"
"Tsk tsk, I'm afraid he's just a pretty boy!"
"I know that guy. He's the son-in-law of the An family. He's just a gigolo. I don't know what the An family lady likes about that gigolo!"
The man's face turned red with anxiety, and he wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
After the woman paid the bill, he walked out of the store with his head down as if he was escaping.
Xie Zheng had already finished his meal and was watching the farce with a cold expression.
Fan Changyu, who was sitting opposite him, finished his third bowl of rice. The dishes on the table were as clean as they could be. He put down his bowl and chopsticks with satisfaction and called to the waiter, "Waiter, check out."
Fan Changyu has a big appetite and tonight is New Year's Eve, so he ordered a rich variety of dishes. However, he didn't order any drinks, so the meal wasn't outrageously expensive.
The waiter counted the items and said, "Eight silver coins."
When Fan Changyu was about to pay, Xie Zheng, who was sitting opposite him like a jade sculpture, said, "I'll do it."
Both he and Fan Changyu were very good-looking, which attracted a lot of attention in this small restaurant. As they were talking, more people kept glancing over here.
When Fan Changyu saw that he was about to pay, he remembered what happened to the couple just now and stopped taking out his wallet.
When Xie Zheng reached into his arms to feel around, his expression changed slightly.
Upon seeing this, Fan Changyu quickly cast an inquiring look.
After a moment, Xie Zhengfei turned back and looked at Fan Changyu: "You come."
The author has something to say:
Restaurant gossip:
Onlookers: Amazing! I saw two pretty boys in one day!
Xie Hou: ...
Changyu (whispering): So I really don’t have money to buy paper and ink…
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