The situation in Qingyang City was quickly ascertained. A guard who was probably Jiang Shuyue’s confidant returned and reported that they had captured someone.
"Your Highness, this should be the person who made contact with the Northern Liang people."
"Bring it up."
The guard went out for a while and then brought in a person.
The man knelt on the ground, head down, not saying a word, his arms hanging limply, presumably broken.
“Tell me, whose person are you?” Jiang Shuyue asked.
The man didn't speak. The guard behind him stepped forward and kicked him, and the sound of bones breaking was heard. The man let out a low growl and fell to the ground, his whole body trembling.
"Still not going to talk? If that's the case, then don't say anything at all. Men, pull out his tongue, sever his meridians, and throw him up in the mountains to feed the wolves!" Jiang Shuyue's eyes were cold, and there was no trace of her previous girlish gentleness.
"No, no, I'll talk, I'll talk..."
"It's...it's...it's the Second Prince..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Song Ning frowned, stepped forward, and brushed aside the hair on the man's forehead, where there was a scar.
really.
He stood up and asked calmly, "Are you really one of the Second Prince's men?"
Yes, yes.
"For such a meticulous matter, the Second Prince wouldn't be foolish enough to send only ordinary guards. If he were to intervene, it would be a suicide squad. Since they are suicide squads, they wouldn't betray their master. The fact that you revealed the Second Prince's identity so easily makes me wonder if you are actually one of the Second Prince's men."
The person on the ground groaned in pain: "I...I am indeed the Second Prince's man."
"Really? If I remember correctly, the people around Tang Xinghuai have a small mark on their foreheads. Your scar must be to erase the mark on your forehead, right? That day, you deliberately let me see you, and today you deliberately let our people catch you, didn't you?"
The man fell silent.
Song Ning laughed: "Who does Tang Xinghuai look down on? Does he think we're easy to fool just because we're women?"
By using the Second Prince's name, even if the matter is exposed in the future, only the Second Prince will be implicated, and Tang Xinghuai will have no connection whatsoever.
What a clever scheme! However, this matter is probably also related to the Second Prince, but I never expected that the people below would be so bold.
Jiang Shuyue had no good impression of Tang Xinghuai. After taking the person away, she started talking about Tang Xinghuai.
"A-Ning, where did you meet Tang Xinghuai?"
Song Ning was taken aback. She had never mentioned what happened on the road during the famine to Jiang Shuyue, so she asked, "Sister Jiang, did you... know him before?"
Jiang Shuyue's expression was subtle as she said, "I did know someone who looked a lot like him before, but that was when we were kids. I don't know what that person looked like when they grew up, but... Tang Xinghuai does look a bit like that person, only their personalities are completely different."
The person she knew was gentle by nature. When they were children, he wasn't even as strong as her and was often bullied. He would follow his cousin around all day, which annoyed her to no end.
But after inquiring, she found that the identity and age did not match.
"Sister Jiang, identity and age can be faked. Who is the person you know, and where is he now?"
Song Ning always felt that Tang Xinghuai harbored resentment towards the royal family and Xie Linzhou, but she had no idea where this resentment came from.
"He was Prince Chen's youngest son. When Prince Chen rebelled, his entire family was wiped out, and he died along with them..."
Prince Chen? This was the first time Song Ning had heard of such a thing.
“My cousin and I were both young at the time. He was ten, I was five, and he was nine. We weren’t in the capital then, and by the time we came back, the Prince Chen’s mansion was gone.”
“My cousin was sad for a long time and fell ill with a high fever. When he woke up, he couldn’t remember many things. After that, my aunt forbade her to mention the matter in front of my cousin. Now, more than ten years have passed and the matter has been forgotten. It’s normal that you don’t know about it.”
When Jiang Shuyue spoke of it, a hint of melancholy appeared on her face.
Although she didn't like that person, he was her childhood playmate after all, and now that she thinks about it, there are still some feelings between them.
What's his name?
"Xiao Chang'an".
Chang'an...
Jiang Shuyue continued, "I also sent people to investigate. His identity and age don't seem to be faked. It shouldn't be him. There are many people in the world who look alike. Perhaps it's just a coincidence."
Song Ning didn't think so. Where would so many coincidences come from?
Tang Xinghuai clearly harbors resentment towards Xie Linzhou and the royal family. If they are indeed the same person, then everything makes sense.
So Song Ning asked a treasonous question: "Is it true that Prince Chen rebelled back then?"
"I don't know the specifics either. Back then, His Majesty and the Xie family handled that matter together. Neither His Majesty nor Uncle Xie were the kind of people who would harm loyal officials. I only heard about it later. I heard that someone in the Prince Chen's mansion was involved in smuggling, a business that could cost them their lives. I also heard that they were involved in human trafficking. After the matter was exposed, they developed rebellious intentions."
The father plotted a rebellion back then, and now the son wants to plot a rebellion too. It's truly a family tradition. There's no need for rebellion to be hereditary, is there?
He sighed and began to worry about Xie Linzhou's safety.
Tang Xinghuai has gone mad, probably out of resentment for the massacre of his family years ago, which is why he is now plotting to overthrow the Jin Dynasty.
Xiao Chang'an and Tang Xinghuai are definitely the same person.
Song Rui also sent a message that there were people from Beiliang there, all dressed as merchants, who looked like they were there for an inspection.
After spending a few days in Qingyang City, Song Ning and his party set off for Yuezhou. Zheng Gaoyi had also set off from Tianxiang County a few days earlier, and the people from Beiliang had already arrived.
Yuezhou had arranged the negotiation venue well in advance. After Song Ning and Jiang Shuyue arrived that day, the people from both countries met directly without taking a break.
The leader was the same leader she had met at the teahouse in Qingyang City; he was a very energetic-looking young man.
This was Song Ning's first time participating in such negotiations. The two sides sat on opposite sides of the negotiating table, each with their own people behind them. She also got a taste of what it was like to be a diplomat.
As soon as I sat down, the person opposite me said, "Let's begin."
Jiang Shuyue and Zheng Gaoyi were in charge of the negotiations, while Song Ning sat to the side observing the people opposite them. After watching for a long time, he still couldn't see anything wrong.
They seem genuinely interested in cooperating with them, even appearing more proactive than their side. So why did they arrive early? And why are they colluding with the Jin Dynasty?
The negotiations lasted for several days, with both sides presenting their views and striving to achieve cooperation while safeguarding their own interests.
After some discussion, both sides reached a consensus: as Song Ning suggested, tariffs would be set up, and taxes would be levied on both entry and exit, and merchants would be subject to strict inspections.
Each month, both the Jin Dynasty and the Northern Liang Dynasty would hold two market days, with the Jin Dynasty choosing Tianxiang County as the starting point.
This was also Song Ning's personal motive.
This place is practically my hometown, so naturally I'd want to make the most of this wonderful opportunity here.
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