Chapter 290: Na Qiao
Ji Yong looked at the bustling crowd outside the Shuntian government office, and the anger in his heart flared up again.
Can we just let it go like this?
What does Song Mo think?
Are we just going to let these people fool us?
He thought about it and went to the Duke of England's mansion.
When Song Mo heard that Ji Yong was coming, he sent Ji Yong away with a sentence "Say I'm not at home".
Ji Yong thought, it's good that you're not at home. He asked to see Dou Zhao again and said to the servant, "Just say I'm here because of the fire in the Duke of Ying's mansion."
Proud people disdain to tell lies.
Dou Zhao met Ji Yong in the flower hall.
Ji Yong told Dou Zhao about his trip to Shuntian Prefecture, and said, "If those thieves knew that the government was only looking for someone to take the blame, they would be even more reckless in the future, and they might even target the Duke of Ying's Mansion. After all, the news that you have a dowry of 100,000 taels of silver has spread, and the rumors are getting more and more outrageous. Now you not only have to catch those thieves, but also find a way to divert their attention. You can't let other people's eyes always be on your dowry. There will always be people who will take risks regardless of their lives. There are only thieves who can steal for a thousand days, but there is no one who can guard against thieves for a thousand days."
Dou Zhao was very grateful for Ji Yong's concern for him, and told Ji Yong about Song Mo's idea with some reservations: "The prince also said the same thing as you, so he plans to use his personal connections to catch the thieves. Even if he can't catch all of them, he will try to catch most of them, so that those people in the martial arts world will know that the Duke of Ying's Mansion is not so easy to mess with."
Ji Yong felt relieved after hearing this, thinking that Song Mo was not completely foolish.
He told Dou Zhao: "If you have any news, let me know. With my uncle's visiting card, I can have some influence in Shuntian Prefecture."
The prefect of Shuntian Prefecture was a civil servant, the Ji family had been officials for generations, and Ji Yong was a Jinshi who passed the imperial examinations twice. It was reasonable for the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, Huang Qi, to give Ji Yong some face, and Ji Yong said this very sincerely.
Dou Zhao thought that Shuntian Prefecture was probably only thinking about how to keep things peaceful in this matter, so he made up his mind not to let Ji Yong interfere. But when he thought of Ji Yong's enthusiasm, he didn't want to pour cold water on him, so he thanked him again and again.
Ji Yong was a little unhappy and said, "You and I are cousins, and we grew up together. If you have anything to say, just say it directly. It's too awkward to thank each other like this. You were straightforward before you got married, but why did you become a vulgar woman after you got married? Is it because Song Yantang is controlling you? Then you might as well stay in Zhending. Who dares to control you in Zhending?"
Song Mo didn't expect that Ji Yong went to see Dou Zhao when he couldn't see him, and he always gave Dou Zhao the same rights and dignity as himself, so the servants in the family would naturally not stop him. But when he thought of the Ji family's covetousness for Dou Zhao and Ji Yong's recklessness, Song Mo couldn't sit still.
He thought it over again and again and decided to wait for an opportunity to "come back".
He was the only one who never expected to hear such words at the door of the flower hall.
Song Mo's face was gloomy, and it took him a while to come back to his senses. He walked around outside the flower hall again, and when he felt that his complexion should have returned to normal, he walked into the flower hall with a smile.
"Lord Ji, thank you very much for taking the trouble to come here in person to deal with the fire in the Duke of Ying's Mansion!" He bowed to Ji Yong and sat down next to Dou Zhao.
Ji Yong raised his eyebrows and said, "Shou Gu is my cousin. She was robbed by thieves and was frightened. Her husband's family couldn't protect her well, so I, a person from her mother's family, have to come and ask about it!" Then he said to Dou Zhao, "This matter is settled. You should have a good rest. I will come to see you in a few days."
"Cousin Ji, take care!" Ji Yong and Song Mo met. Although Ji Yong was the first to provoke, Song Mo usually tried to remain silent, but every time the two of them could not avoid a fierce confrontation. Dou Zhao did not want to see such a scene. She personally sent Ji Yong to the Chuihua Gate. When she came back and saw Song Mo sitting there thoughtfully, she could not help but smile bitterly and explained: "Cousin Ji went to Shuntian Prefecture specifically for the fire in the Duke of Ying's Mansion. As a result, the Shuntian Prefecture Governor Huang was not prepared to catch those thieves at all, but was prepared to collude with the Five Cities Army and find someone to take the blame..."
Song Mo smiled and patted Dou Zhao's hand, saying, "I know that Lord Ji is a cold-faced, warm-hearted, and arrogant person. I was indeed wrong in this matter, so every word he said to me was full of thorns. Don't worry that I will quarrel with him, and I don't take his words to heart. I was thinking about what you just said, about Risheng Silver House seizing Guo Yan..." He also told Dou Zhao that Queen Wan asked him to go to Liaodong to visit Prince Liao, "...I originally thought it was just a small matter, and I could visit my fifth uncle by the way. Now it seems that I'm afraid I have to think about it carefully!"
What is Dou Zhao most afraid of?
Song Mo was used as a gun by King Liao just like in his previous life, and ended up being infamous for eternity and having a miserable end.
Her hair stood on end when she heard this. Compared to that, the conflict between Ji Yong and Song Mo was like a fight between children that had nothing to do with itchiness.
"Can I not go?" Dou Zhao asked Song Mo, "You are the emperor's personal bodyguard, you can't leave the capital at will, right?" But Empress Wan's methods are endless. Dou Zhao, who has lived two lives, knows this best. Moreover, in her previous life, she was at the bottom of the aristocratic circle. No one had to avoid her when they had something to do. She knew more than she does now. "What if the queen insists that you go, it will be difficult for you to refuse. Can you ask the emperor for permission?" At least she has an excuse in front of the prince.
Song Mo nodded and said with a smile: "I will also say hello to the Crown Prince - no matter what, the Crown Prince and Prince Liao are brothers. Since I am going to visit Prince Liao, it is only natural for me to ask the Crown Prince if he has anything to say or anything to bring to Prince Liao."
This is better.
Dou Zhao breathed a sigh of relief.
Song Mo asked hesitantly, "Have you ever met King Liao?"
I've seen it in my previous life.
Dou Zhao muttered in his heart, "I've never seen it before."
Song Mo seemed a little confused: "Then why are you so wary of the Liao King? Did you hear something? Or did the elders in your family say something?"
"That's not the case." Dou Zhao's mind was spinning rapidly. "Don't you say that the emperor is in poor health and sometimes he doesn't even recognize people? I was thinking, if the emperor dies, and the Duke of Ying is the first among the nobles, as long as they are impartial, even if they can't win the new emperor's favor, they won't be implicated because of palace affairs... No matter who becomes the emperor, it is impossible for them to target the Duke of Ying as a loyal minister, right?"
In the previous life, when a powerful monarch like King Liao ascended the throne, he ended up killing a chicken to scare the monkeys by punishing several nobles who spoke ill of him.
Song Mo thought about it and nodded, saying, "I think we should go and pay our respects to the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess in a few days, right?" He added, "Originally, we planned to have you stay at your parents' home for a month before going, but now it seems that it will be a little too late."
It would be best to pay a visit to the Crown Prince and his wife before Song Mo sets out for Liaodong.
Dou Zhao asked about the preferences of the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess.
The couple sat on the big kang in the inner room and discussed the gifts for when they met the prince and his wife.
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Dou Ming was anxious and angry, and tears fell like pearls from a broken string.
"He is so cruel!" She complained to Zhu'er, "If I didn't send the appointment letter to him, he wouldn't come to take it. Could it be that he really doesn't care about the deputy commander of the East City of the Five Cities Army? Does he know how much effort I put in to help him get this job... He really doesn't know how to cherish it at all!"
Zhu Er had no choice but to comfort Dou Ming: "Husband and wife are one body, why does Madam have to argue with the Marquis about these things? The Marquis is a man, and you criticized the Marquis in front of the Madam yesterday. The Marquis was humiliated, so he got angry with Madam. The old lady always said that softness can overcome hardness. Madam, why don't you personally deliver this appointment letter to the Marquis and give him a step down."
The old lady that Zhu'er mentioned refers to Wang Yingxue's mother, Wang Xu.
Dou Ming was very hesitant: "If so, wouldn't that mean I'm giving in to him? How can I still have face in front of Lord Hou?"
But if the appointment letter is not sent over, and Wei Tingyu behaves badly and really refuses to take up the post, what should we do?
Should he just stay at home and play around with the title of a marquis? What's the difference between him and those idle people in Kyoto? What's the point of this marquis having no power? How can she face people when she goes out?
Dou Ming thought about it and waited until the afternoon. It was almost time to leave the court, but Wei Tingyu still hadn't come to see her. She felt uneasy. Another maid came in to report that the fourth master Wang from the Marquis of Yan'an was coming and that the Marquis was going to have dinner with him. Dou Ming was really panicking and had to go to Wei Tingyu's study. She knew in her heart that she had completely lost this game and it would be difficult to get back at him in the future!
Wei Tingyu was not trying to show off as Dou Ming thought. Instead, he thought that since Dou Ming wanted to recruit him for the position, he didn't want to be the deputy commander, so he simply asked Wang Qinghai to go out for a drink together.
So when Dou Ming took the initiative to deliver the appointment letter, he was still very happy.
At least Dou Ming knew he was wrong and took the initiative to admit his mistake.
Wang Qinghai shouted "Congratulations" and joked, "No wonder you asked me out for a drink, it turns out you have a happy event. But you're too mean to tell me now." Seeing that it was getting late, he hurriedly urged him to go to the Wucheng Military Department to report, and said, "Do you want me to go with you? My father-in-law has just been appointed as the commander of the Wucheng Military Department, and I have met the commander of the East City, Hao Dayong, several times, so we can be considered acquaintances."
Wei Tingyu was overjoyed when he heard this and asked curiously, "Why did your father-in-law go to the Wucheng Military Command?"
He was worried that he was late and would upset the commander of the Five Cities Army.
"So you didn't know yet?" Wang Qinghai was surprised and told Wei Tingyu what had happened in the past few days.
A thought flashed through Wei Tingyu's mind.
If Dou Ming wasn't so nosy, he might be able to get a job as deputy commander of Dongcheng through Wang Qinghai...
He took Wang Qinghai to the Wucheng Bingmasi Yamen without even saying "thank you" to Dou Ming.
Dou Ming looked at Wei Tingyu's excited back, feeling lost.
Wei Tingyu rushed to the Wucheng Bingmasi Yamen, but he did not see the Duke of Dongping, who was also the commander-in-chief of the Wucheng Bingmasi. The clerk told him, "The Duke has gone to the Duke of Ying's mansion. If you have anything to do, come back tomorrow!"
Wei Tingyu hurriedly took out his appointment letter.
The clerk smiled and said, "It turned out to be the Marquis of Jining. We didn't receive the letter, so I guess the master didn't know that the Marquis would come to our Wucheng Bingma Division. I will send someone to tell the master. Would the Marquis like to have a cup of tea here and wait for the master?"
Wei Tingyu was about to agree, but Wang Qinghai pulled Wei Tingyu's collar and said with a smile: "Then I'll trouble you, sir. However, it's almost time to leave the yamen, and I'm afraid that the uncle will not return to the yamen. We'd better come again tomorrow morning! Please let him know for us." As he said that, he stuffed two red envelopes into his hand.
The clerk responded with a smile and personally escorted Wei Tingyu and Wang Qinghai out of the yamen.