Liu Zhao's life was not easy.
After leaving the Zongzheng Temple, they could only rest for a few days before they had to stand out and take the lead, bearing the fire from the civil servants for Emperor Wende.
He is not a good speaker, and he would definitely not be able to beat the civil servants in a verbal battle.
If literary means don’t work, you can only resort to force.
Catch a few typical cases, throw out the black materials against them one by one, and send them directly to prison and punish them.
However, this move caused more criticism.
Not only did the censor impeach Liu Zhao in the memorial, but other officials also impeached him in the memorial.
They said he abused public resources for personal gain, retaliated, and was narrow-minded.
They even dug up the incident of him overturning the table and disrespecting his elders in the Marquis of Lu's mansion.
He was just about to point at Liu Zhao's forehead and call him disloyal, unfilial, unkind and unjust, and a bastard.
Liu Zhao counted on his fingers, wanting to punch him. What should he do?
restraint!
Continue to exercise restraint!
The pressure on Emperor Wende was relieved and he was happy to watch the show.
Occasionally, when the civilian fire was too intense, he would step in to suppress it.
There was bustle in the court, and peace and prosperity in Jiangnan.
At Baoding Temple outside the city, Jiang Yan knelt in front of the Buddha and prayed devoutly.
After adding incense money, the monk in charge of reception welcomed her into the side room in the backyard.
Perhaps it was because the weather was so nice that I fell asleep soon after entering the room.
Her eyes were hazy and the maids and servants around her seemed to have fallen down.
She rubbed her eyes, realizing something was wrong, but she couldn't move.
In sight, the door opened and someone walked in.
Jiang Yan's heart was in turmoil.
The first thing that came to her mind was rape.
It's not that she is narcissistic.
With her looks, it was normal for her to be the concubine of the late emperor, to be favored by him, and to be coveted by others.
A cold, damp towel was placed over her face, and she shivered.
By the time the towel was removed, her eyes had brightened and her mouth and tongue could move freely, but her body remained motionless.
She opened her eyes wide and looked at the person in front of her with disbelief.
She glanced at the maidservants and old woman lying unconscious on the ground, knowing full well that she had been ambushed.
"Should we call you Jiang Shuyi or Madam Jiang?"
Chen Dachang sat down on the chair and looked at Jiang Yan with interest.
Jiang Yan took a deep breath, suppressed her inner panic, and sighed, "That Lantern Festival, you really recognized me."
Chen Dachang nodded. "Our other abilities are average, but our ability to recognize people has never failed. Who would have thought that we could meet acquaintances in Jiangnan?"
Jiang Yan smiled bitterly, then said solemnly: "Jiang Shuyi is dead, I am just Miss Jiang now."
Chen Dachang smiled knowingly and then asked, "Who helped you hide the truth, escape from the underground palace, and come to Jiangnan?"
Jiang Yan sneered, "Eunuch Chen, do you think I'll answer this question? Then I want to ask you, why didn't you die and go to Jiangnan to enjoy yourself?"
"We have our own ways to protect our lives. We came to Jiangnan for serious business."
Jiang Yan chuckled, "I also have ways to save my life. I came to Jiangnan to escape my past identity. Is Eunuch Chen satisfied?"
Chen Dachang looked at her with a half-smile, and it was obvious that Jiang Yan was wary of him.
He said, "Forget it. What happened in the past is in the past. We won't investigate how you were able to hide your secrets and settle down in Jiangnan. Now, let's discuss your man."
Jiang Yan's heart tightened, "What do you mean?"
Chen Dachang said expressionlessly: "After investigation, our family knows that your husband's name is Zhou Jin, and he is from the Huai'an Zhou family.
Our family specially sent people to Huai'an to investigate, but found that the Zhou family's ancestral home in Huai'an had been deserted several years ago.
Local residents say a fire broke out one night, and the entire Zhou family died. Clearly, the Huai'an Zhou family is trying to conceal their true identity. There's something fishy about this Huai'an Zhou family. All signs point to the seaside. What can you say about this?"
Jiang Yan sneered, "Eunuch Chen, are you working for the court? You're not a member of the court, so what does the Huai'an Zhou family's affairs have to do with you?"
Chen Dachang laughed. "It's a big deal. Do you know why our family came to Jiangnan?"
"How would I know?" Jiang Yan sneered.
Chen Dachang played with the Buddhist beads on his wrist and said with a smile, "It's okay to tell you. My family manages the Jiangnan business for Madam Zhao. I'm currently the General Manager of the Sihai Trading Company in Jiangnan. Madam Zhao wants to develop maritime trade, but she's been hindered by pirates led by Li Hailong. As for this pirate leader Li Hailong, you're not unfamiliar with him, right?"
"What Li Hailong? I don't even know him. Eunuch Chen, please don't wrongly accuse me." Jiang Yan's heart was pounding and she was extremely panicked.
She really didn't know Li Hailong, but she knew that Zhou Jin's identity was not ordinary and he should be making a living at sea.
On several occasions, the jewelry Zhou Jin sent was stained with blood.
Jiang Yan was not stupid. After a long time, she guessed it.
She had been playing dumb and never showed any signs of it in front of Zhou Jin. When facing Zhou Jin, she only talked about love and romance, and never talked about anything related to the sea.
Zhou Jin said she was tactful, and she was indeed tactful.
How could a woman who had served the late emperor and almost died in the underground palace not be sensible?
However, I never expected that Chen Dachang saw through everything.
What should she do now?
After thinking about it, I can only continue to play dumb.
Chen Dachang smiled. "Zhou Jin is Li Hailong, and Li Hailong is Zhou Jin. Don't tell us, you don't know. The Jiang Shuyi we have in our minds is no fool. Jiang Shuyi, who can maneuver between Concubine Xue and Concubine Li De, and is favored by the late emperor, how could she not see through Zhou Jin's identity? Who are you trying to fool?"
Jiang Yan frowned and said unhappily, "I've said it before, Jiang Shuyi is long dead. The woman in front of you now is just a little girl who wants to live a stable life. She is a foolish woman who doesn't understand the sufferings of the world. Please don't embarrass me, Eunuch Chen."
Chen Dachang laughed heartily. "Misunderstanding! Our family never intended to embarrass you."
Jiang Yan didn't believe it.
If we don't make things difficult for her, how can we explain the current situation?
Chen Dachang followed her gaze, glanced at the maids and servants lying on the ground, and said, "It's not easy for us to see you. You are guarded by someone at all hours of the day. There are also several secret sentries outside the house where you live.
It seems that Zhou Jin cares about you, but is also worried about you. As for everything that happened today, our family had to resort to this desperate measure in order to see you."
Jiang Yan remained unmoved.
Chen Dachang continued, "Whether you admit it or not is irrelevant. We came here today, firstly, to reminisce about the past. It's a blessing to meet acquaintances in Jiangnan, far from the capital. Secondly, to find a way out for you. You can't really expect Zhou Jin to support you forever. His love fades with age. When you're old and your looks fade, will he still support you?"
Jiang Yan had a blank expression on her face and remained unmoved.
Chen Dachang raised his eyebrows and stared at Jiang Yan with a strange expression.
His gaze slowly moved down to Jiang Yan's abdomen.
"Could it be that you are pregnant?"
Chen Dachang stood up suddenly, rushed to Jiang Yan and grabbed her wrist.
Jiang Yan's face turned pale. "Let me go."
"What are you afraid of? When you served the late emperor, we had seen everything." Chen Dachang scolded Jiang Yan, his eyes suddenly turning cold.
He fiercely shook off Jiang Yan's wrist. "She's pregnant, indeed. No wonder she's so devoted to Zhou Jin. Humph, hoping to trap a pirate leader with a child? When did Jiang Shuyi become so naive?"
Chen Dachang worked in the palace for many years, following the imperial physician and learned the most basic pulse diagnosis.
He was sure that Jiang Yan was nearly two months pregnant.
Jiang Yan laughed at Chen Dachang, "How could Eunuch Chen understand a woman's mind?"
Chen Dachang stared at her. "I'm telling you the truth. Zhou Jin is doomed. We'll know the outcome within five years. By then, I'll want to see how you'll support the pirate leader's child."
Jiang Yan's heart tightened, and her eyes became fierce. "You want to kill him? Dream on."
"Hahaha... You appear strong but are actually weak. You obviously know in your heart that Zhou Jin will die sooner or later. He hindered Madam Zhao's maritime trade. If he doesn't die, who will die?"
"Why do all the good things go to Gu Jiu? Why?" Jiang Yan roared.
Bang!
Chen Dachang slapped Jiang Yan in the face.
Jiang Yan was stunned and never expected that Chen Dachang would hit her.
Her eyes were filled with disbelief.
Chen Dachang snorted coldly and said in a stern voice, "You have no respect for your elders! Have you forgotten the rules you learned from the nanny? How can you call Madam Zhao by her name?
Don't forget, you're just a little girl from the countryside in the northwest. If it weren't for Madam Zhao helping you rise to prominence, do you think you could enter the palace, could you earn His Majesty's favor? Could you have gone south, hidden your identity, and continued to live a life of luxury?
You ungrateful, treacherous bastard. If you weren't a woman, I would have killed you today."
Jiang Yan was stunned.
After a moment, she burst into laughter. "Eunuch Chen, who is second only to the emperor and above everyone else, has actually become Madam Gu Zhao's dog. This is hilarious."
Aren't you the late emperor's most loyal lackey? Why don't you just die and continue to serve the late emperor in the underworld?
"You went to Jiangnan to work for her, which is equivalent to betraying the late emperor. You are the real ungrateful bastard!"
Chen Dachang sneered, "Madam Zhao's ambitions, how can a mere mortal like you understand? Our family's lofty ambitions, how can you possibly comprehend them? Your mind can't hold anything else except men and children. Today, we gave you a chance, but you didn't know how to seize it. Don't regret it when Zhou Jin's head and body are separated one day."
Chen Dachang waved his sleeves and left.
"Stop, stop right there."
Jiang Yan roared.
Chen Dachang turned around and looked at her, "I wonder if Jiang Shuyi has any other instructions?"
Jiang Yan gasped, "What do you want to do? What do you want to do?"
Chen Dachang smiled contemptuously, "Of course we do what we have to do. Kill the pirates and open up the sea route. Do you understand?"
"You can't kill him. You can't kill him."
"Then let's wait and see if we can really kill Zhou Jin. Oh, I forgot to tell you one thing. The pirate leaders of all generations are all called Li Hailong. Li Hailong is just the pirate leader's pseudonym. As for Zhou Jin, he may be Li Hailong today, but not tomorrow."
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－－
Kavin, huge Kavin!
It took me two days to sort out the subsequent plot.
Keep typing!
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