Chapter 283 Adventure
Since it was something that Prince Jing wanted to do, Cheng Maoming had nothing to hesitate about. After all, Prince Jing had only brought him benefits and had never cheated him.
After saying goodbye to Lin Hao, Cheng Maoming went directly to where Mr. Fox was imprisoned.
Unlike those suspects who were living a life worse than death in the Jinlinwei prison, Mr. Fox's residence was similar to an ordinary guest room, except that there were no sharp objects that could hurt him, and escape was impossible.
Hearing the door open, Mr. Fox, who was pretending to be asleep with his eyes closed, looked over.
Cheng Maoming strode in with a smile on his face: "How are you doing lately, Mr. Fox?"
"I won't die." Despite saying this, Mr. Fox felt a little bit of anticipation in his heart.
When a person is locked up for a long time, even the most disgusting person will appear to have some good looks in front of him.
"I feel relieved that Mr. Fox is in good health." Cheng Maoming laughed.
Mr. Fox said coldly, "The Grand Commander is coming here, are you trying to let me out?"
"Haha, Mr. Fox, you're joking. It's not up to me, Cheng, to let you go." Cheng Maoming didn't keep him in suspense and unfolded the portrait in front of Mr. Fox. "Mr. Fox, take a look. Can you make a mask based on this portrait?"
Mr. Fox glanced at him casually, raised his eyebrows with a hint of a smile, and said, "So the Grand Commander never comes to visit you unless he has something important to do."
Cheng Maoming laughed dryly: "Isn't this because Mr. Fox is so talented?"
In terms of thick-skinnedness, he is no less shameless than anyone else to reach this position.
"I don't have the ability to do that with just a portrait."
Of course Cheng Maoming would not give up just because of a rejection. This was obviously asking for benefits from him.
"Ahem, Mr. Fox doesn't look very well. It might be because he's been cooped up in the house for too long. Go out for a walk and get some sunshine. Maybe he'll feel better."
Although Mr. Fox wanted to take Qiao away, he also understood his status as a prisoner and immediately withdrew while he was ahead. "I've taken a closer look. This portrait is different from ordinary ones. Perhaps we can give it a try."
"Then I'll leave it to Mr. Fox." Cheng Maoming bowed and gave Mr. Fox enough respect.
Five days later, Cheng Maoming came to Mr. Fox again and got the mask and a small porcelain bottle.
"Drop three drops of medicine into hot water, soften the mask and wear it against your face. Don't touch it before it dries. If you want to take off the mask in the future, drop three drops of medicine into hot water, immerse your face in it and apply it..." Mr. Fox instructed how to use it.
Cheng Maoming's expression was a little strange: "It didn't seem so troublesome to take off Mr. Fox's mask at the beginning."
After a moment of silence, Mr. Fox's expression twisted and he asked angrily, "Do you know how much it hurts?"
He was unconscious and felt nothing, but after waking up his face hurt for a long time!
Cheng Maoming smiled awkwardly and left quickly.
Lin Hao waited anxiously for a reply, and finally got an appointment with Cheng Maoming.
The place where the two met was still the teahouse.
The teahouse is near the Jinlinwei Yamen, and it can be said that it is controlled by the Jinlinwei, so there is no need to worry about anything being spread out.
"This is the mask that the prince wants." Cheng Maoming handed over the box containing the mask.
Lin Hao opened it and examined it, then he felt relieved and exclaimed: "Mr. Fox is indeed a master of his craft."
"If the prince is in a hurry, it would be best to send it through the post station."
The information transmitted by the post stations was divided into priorities and urgency. For particularly urgent messages, the post stations could travel hundreds of miles a day. There is a poem that says: The post riders pass from one post station to another like shooting stars.
The official post station was responsible for delivering official business. The letter Lin Hao received was brought back along with the war report from the north.
"The Grand Commander is right."
Seeing Lin Hao say this, Cheng Maoming took the initiative to say: "If Miss Lin Er is at ease, leave it to me."
The post station was under the management of the Ministry of War's Chariot and Imperial Household Department, and with Cheng Maoming's status, it was just a matter of saying hello.
"Thank you very much, Grand Commander."
Of course, the General's Mansion or Prince Jing's Mansion could deliver the letter, but expedited processing is not a private matter.
"Miss Lin, do you have any letters to send along?"
"Yes." Lin Hao didn't hesitate and took out a thick letter from his sleeve.
The letter was written a long time ago and was thicker than Qi Shuo's letter.
Cheng Maoming took the letter and his mouth twitched slightly.
I've had enough of these two!
The postman set out from the capital, carrying the box containing the mask and the letter. He traveled one stop after another and delivered the items to Qi Shuo in a few days.
It was already February, and the grass and trees in the capital were already green, but the north was still covered in silver and snow.
Qi Shuo rubbed his stiff fingertips, carefully opened the letter, and read it over and over again.
Prince Jing walked in from outside with a cold air. Seeing his son's raised mouth, he couldn't help but smile: "Did the girl from the Lin family write you a letter?"
"Yeah." Without waiting for Prince Jing to come over, Qi Shuo put the letter away and put it in his arms.
Prince Jing silently rolled his eyes and thought, "Didn't this letter arrive with the previous batch?"
"The target horse is delivered quickly."
Prince Jing's face darkened when he heard this: "Nonsense!"
In such a critical time, how can we send letters home in an expedited manner? If we take it too seriously, we will lose our heads.
"It's business."
Prince Jing sat down and took a sip of hot tea to dispel the cold. "What's the matter?"
Qi Shuo put one hand on the box containing the mask, and then he told the plan he had been planning for many days.
Prince Jing's butt hadn't even warmed up when he jumped up again, pointing at Qi Shuo with a dark face: "Are you trying to kill yourself? You actually want to sneak into the enemy camp as Wu Ye's nephew!"
Wu Ye was the general who led the troops against the Zhou army. He was also the brother of the King of Qi, a man in his prime and extremely capable. His nephew was named Wu Li, who was only in his twenties but was very ferocious in battle and had a reputation as a fierce warrior in the Zhou Dynasty.
Facing Prince Jing's nervousness, Qi Shuo remained calm. "My son has been making inquiries and observations these days. Wu Li is a quiet man, so it would be difficult to be exposed if I were to impersonate him. It would also be very convenient to approach Wu Ye with his identity. He is the most suitable candidate."
Prince Jing was unconvinced. "Wouldn't it be easy to expose? Shuo'er, you know that although the Qi people speak the same language as us, their nobles have their own language. Even if the Wuli speaks little, he's not mute. If he opens his mouth, he'll be exposed!"
"Then my son can speak Qi language."
"I'm just saying—" Prince Jing suddenly realized, his voice changing, "You can say that?"
"Yeah, I learned it before when I was bored."
Prince Jing was surprised, but knowing that his eldest son had been intelligent since childhood, he accepted it: "Even if he could speak, his accent would be different."
"After hearing Wuli's voice, my son has been practicing imitating it. Now he can speak it about 80% similarly. He should be able to cover it up by saying he caught a cold."
"You've thought it through, but how can he impersonate someone when Wuli is actually in the Qi army?"
"My son has a plan..."
Prince Jing listened silently, his expression constantly changing.
"Father, the Great Zhou has sent a large force northward, outnumbering us three to one, but even so, they can only barely hold out. If this war drags on and we run out of food and fodder, we'll have no hope..."
Prince Jing gritted his teeth and finally nodded.
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