Chapter 27 Escort Company—There is something wrong with this group of people.
Yan Siqing looked at him and opened the kite. It contained the whole story of the Baimao Village case. This case had now spread throughout Daozhou and people were talking about it. However, the government used it as an example and started a vigorous campaign to regulate the salt industry.
During this period, the two of them rarely communicated with each other. One was dignified and the other was cold. Even Jiang Hui was deliberately controlling the number of times he contacted and talked with her, and he was determined to have dinner with her.
Don't miss a meal.
He said he was worried that she would not eat and faint from hunger on the road, delaying her trip.
This person's ideas are sometimes very unorthodox, and she finds it difficult to refute them.
But Jiang Hui made quick decisions along the way and made the fastest journey.
This is the only way to arrive at Zhanglin Station in advance.
Under such circumstances, he suddenly came to find her and told her about the matter that had already been settled. There must be a reason.
She thought for a moment and whispered, "Will easing the punishment for the relatives involved make it easier for them to sacrifice their own relatives for the sake of justice?"
Private salt dealers make huge profits, and there are always some people who miss out on money. If there are no strict collective charges, or even rewards for reporting, then their close relatives and friends are much more powerful than the government inspectors, and their reports are always accurate. This is also an effective way for the court to save energy and quickly implement salt reform and thoroughly investigate illegal systems.
Jiang Hui admitted, "But I'm afraid the salt merchants in various places will have a more severe counterattack."
What he said actually revealed some very powerful information - he believed that the official salt merchants in various places were the financial backers behind these private salt dealers, but they did not buy these private salt from their own official salt shops. Instead, they used the channels they controlled to squeeze out the public salt resources and make money from selling the private salt into their own pockets.
There are actually people behind the salt merchants, but it’s hard to say for sure.
But the people at the top and behind the scenes will not participate in the current wave of pursuit and strangulation. At this point, the illegal salt dealers are just vines that are being touched, and the melons are broken. The melon farmers can hide or run away, but the melons cannot escape, so they can only resist in desperation.
Because once they are caught, they will definitely be charged with the serious crime of having their property confiscated and their families exterminated.
This is also the only reason why they dare to go against the imperial court, it all depends on the method...
"What are your plans, Your Highness?"
Jiang Hui: "If the other side has fewer people, you should stay close to me, don't go too far away."
Yan Siqing's gaze lingered for a moment on the other person's hand that was supporting the railing.
The scars on it where cut by branches have healed, but they are still a little red.
This man looks precious, but in fact he has suffered a lot and is a bit rough on himself.
“What if there are many people?”
If there were more people, it would be more dangerous to be close to him. At least she was still worth keeping alive, but he was a thorn in the eyes of others, and they wanted to eliminate him outside the city of Chang'an.
Jiang Hui: "Then you have to be by my side."
Yan Siqing couldn't understand what he meant, "Your Highness, what do you mean?"
Jiang Hui: "With so many people, we can't escape anyway. This will give them confidence. If I show you're incredibly important to me, they won't have to resort to ruthless tactics. Using you as my weakness will force me to make concessions. This will be more beneficial than killing us outright, and they won't have to force me into a desperate fight. That way, won't you be able to survive?"
Yan Siqing said: "The Art of War says: When besieging an army, leave a gap; when an enemy is desperate, do not press it."
Jiang Hui: "Extremely so."
Yan Siqing: "The person who can lay out such a plan to besiege Your Highness is probably not so easy to deceive. Some things cannot be faked, and even if you do, the other party will not believe it. Moreover, Your Highness and I both know that when it comes to accomplishing a major task, the greater the investment, the more it can change the outcome is time. Speed is of the essence in war, and delay is not an option. Therefore, once the other party has made such a move, they will definitely not delay the military operation. There is no result more precious than Your Highness's life. Therefore, when the time comes, I will definitely run away first."
Jiang Hui raised his eyebrows. "You have a point, but you won't have such an opportunity."
"I will kill you with one sword before you run away."
Yan Siqing: "That's great. It would be my honor to die at the hands of His Highness."
Jiang Hui was amused, "Commoner girl?"
Yan Siqing looked down at the clothes on his body that made him look more and more like a gentleman, and paused, "Cousin."
Jiang Hui's eyes swept over the other person's jade-like and splendid appearance, suppressing the heat in his heart and said calmly: "The clothes suit you very well, cousin."
Yan Siqing tugged at his sleeve, feeling a little annoyed, but unable to show it - they had a tight schedule and were in a hurry, but people had previously misunderstood that they were actually husband and wife, even though they were calling each other cousins, which was not good either.
There have been two misunderstandings, and three times the truth will never happen.
She cares, and he should care too, so he took the initiative to bring it up.
Yan Siqing finally agreed to dress up as a man and act as his cousin.
This was nothing, but Jiang Hui was a troublemaker. He insisted that since he was one of his cousins and a member of a super wealthy family, ordinary clothes could not match the clothes of a young man from a small family. He had to wear good clothes.
Where can you find good clothes in remote areas?
This person actually took it out, as if he had planned it for a long time.
The situation was stronger than the person, and as a prisoner, there was nothing to fight against, so Yan Siqing stopped complaining, changed his clothes, and became someone's cousin.
Fortunately, the clothes fit well.
But at the moment, Yan Siqing had some opinions, "Your Highness, I am a woman after all, and I can't pretend to be truly masculine. Ordinary people with sharp eyes can still see it. Otherwise, forget it and change it back as soon as possible."
It's not one of those outrageous plots in storybooks.
She always felt something was wrong.
Jiang Hui: "It's okay, my cousin looks like a girl, stunningly beautiful, and famous all over the world. You can easily pretend to be him."
There was wind on the balcony, and the wind carried his voice to his ears. The man blurted out the words, his eyes on her, as if he believed it without a doubt.
Yan Siqing paused, turned away and didn't respond.
Jiang Hui didn't care. He showed his true intention and handed the thing over with his long arm.
"But your concerns are justified. Take this and wear it."
“It is common sense to show respect to others, but it is more convincing to show respect to others.”
"When you wear it, anyone with a bit of common sense won't dare to bother you."
"If someone doesn't have good sense, he wouldn't be worthy of being in front of you and making such a fuss."
In his hand was a jade pendant hanging from his waist, a rare purple jade with a blue bird pattern holding a orchid.
She didn't move, just frowned at him.
Jiang Hui: "Why, you don't want to? Oh, didn't you claim that you were a prisoner and had to obey me in everything? It seems you are not that obedient."
Yan Siqing turned his face away to avoid breaking the moral code and scolding him.
But he also took the jade pendant and tied it around his waist. He was about to say that he would just eat something in the room and would not go downstairs to dine with him.
Suddenly, I saw a caravan rushing towards me in the distance, with dust and smoke billowing.
I originally thought it was a caravan, but after a closer look, it turned out not to be. It looked like a convoy escorting some precious people.
The flag is very conspicuous.
Yan Siqing recognized him.
"The world's number one escort agency, Weiyuan Escort Agency?"
The Shen family's fleet has its own guard team and does not need to find an escort agency, but for some cross-domain and obscure transactions that are not easy to publicize, it is common to find some escort agencies to escort them.
She had placed an order with Weiyuan Escort Agency and knew that their quote was not low.
There are at least three great bodyguards in this group, and these three alone are worth three thousand taels, not to mention the dozen or so ordinary bodyguards.
To be able to spend such money, the customer must be either rich or noble.
——————
The other party was rich, had good escorts, and their horses were strong and fast, so they arrived at the door of the post station in no time.
At this time, Yan Siqing and the other person had not returned to the house yet.
These two people were not afraid of trouble, and they knew that there must be Qi Wang's pursuers or murderers like Lin An chasing them openly or secretly.
Then they have to know something about everyone around them.
So everyone was on the balcony, ready to see what kind of person it was...
The tall horses were breathing out hot air, and the carriage was of decent specifications. The curtains were opened, and the experienced maidservants got out first, but the wind also brought the elegant fragrance from inside the carriage.
Yan Siqing smelled the fragrance of magnolia before he saw anyone.
Just as her slender jade fingers were about to rest on the maid's arm, a young man in white riding a horse nearby smiled and pulled the maid away, taking her hand.
"Frustrate everyone..."
The maid suppressed her expression and lowered her head. The woman in the carriage paused and said, "Thank you, Master Chen."
I still put my fingers on it, and the person came out, with a white gauze hat, looking hazy.
But it was like the green mountains hidden in the mist, the rising sun broke through the hidden clouds and illuminated the magnolia-like girl, her whole body was beautiful and graceful, and she got off the carriage holding a pipa in one hand.
In fact, when Yan Siqing and Jiang Hui heard the name Fuyi, they knew each other's identity.
There are countless musicians in the country, but only a handful of them are famous throughout the world. One of them is Fuyi, and she is also the only woman among them.
Even more famous than her musical skills is her beauty.
Everyone in Yancheng had heard of Yan Siqing, and now seeing him, he was indeed worthy of his reputation.
But she only glanced at it, and she also noticed other things - for example, before she completely got off the carriage, the Fuyi girl withdrew her hand and naturally held the pipa with both hands.
Mr. Chen's face was a little stiff, and he seemed a little dissatisfied, but he immediately came forward to talk to her, asking her if she was tired, what she wanted to eat in the evening, and when she would bathe Yunyun. He even put his finger under his nose and sniffed it in front of her, and insisted on staying by her side.
Fuyi had no complaints and was treated with great courtesy.
Fortunately, the maid was perceptive and interrupted to say that there was someone at the post station.
"There's no room left."
This interruption distracted Master Chen's attention. "Impossible! I've already reserved rooms at various post stations. Even if this place is overcrowded, they have to make enough room for me!"
He boasted of his noble family background and immense wealth, and was so confident as to be almost arrogant. He turned around at the maid's suggestion, but his expression was slightly stiff.
Because I saw two people standing on the balconies of the two best rooms in the inn at a glance.
The more arrogant a person is, the more likely he is to suffer a blow, especially when the gap is too obvious.
The young man in the upper room of Jiaer is as bright as the wolf in the sky on the top of the cliff, lonely and greedy for the moon, arrogant and cold.
The young man in the upper room of Jiayi was much thinner and there was nothing to describe him.
The maid felt that she had been influenced by her own girl for many years and had learned some literary and artistic knowledge, so she racked her brains before coming up with this idea.
——Like the moon shining on the world.
Because it falls down, people think it is the light they can covet.
The wolf is greedy, and so are humans.
Is this an appropriate description? She subconsciously looked at her own girl.
I can't see it because of the gauze.
They looked at each other from a distance, and what Mr. Chen could see, Fu Yi could also see.
She thought it was her maid who casually said it to end it for her, and it seemed quite natural, so she looked up.
The second person in the group is extremely dangerous. He doesn't consider himself or Chen Jiao as human beings. People like him are always in high positions and have great power - based on her many years of experience.
She also saw the horses by the lake.
Those horses...are not ordinary either.
Horses are an extremely valuable substitute for walking, and are used by officials, the military, the wealthy and powerful, and wealthy families.
But people are divided into high and low classes, and so are horses. Well-raised horses can run short and long distances, have endurance, and can run hundreds or thousands of miles. The strength of their bloodline and the difference in their upbringing can all reveal the background of their owners.
She could also tell who was good at riding - the man in Class 2 was dressed in military uniform, and the buckle on his waist belt was specially used to tie a whip.
On the other hand, the young man from Class A was wearing an elegant long robe and treated everyone equally, even with a gentle look in his eyes.
Yan Siqing was indeed looking at them, and she also saw that Fu Yi was watching them through the veil. After looking at her for a while, she quickly looked away, then bent her waist and slightly bent her knees, with the dignified and elegant manner of a lady.
Show them respect from a distance.
But he was looking towards Jiang Hui, not Yan Siqing.
Yan Siqing didn't care. His eyes passed over the lush grassy area by the lake behind Fuyi and his cavalry, where some horses were leisurely grazing.
Those were their horses, and the post station brought them there to graze. After all, it was spring now and they didn't need hay to feed them.
This is not surprising, as there are traces of horses grazing on grass in other places. It is just that the grass grows rapidly in spring, and the mottled green color and root height vary.
Yan Siqing looked at it for a while, thoughtfully.
Mr. Fuyi suddenly saluted, and Jiang Hui reacted indifferently. Out of his childhood politeness, he nodded slightly, then turned to look at Yan Siqing. He was about to ask her if she wanted to come downstairs for dinner. He rehearsed the speech in his mind several times, but found that this person was looking at Mr. Fuyi.
The eyes are deep and look far.
She kept looking until everyone had entered the post station.
Jiang Hui remained silent until Yan Siqing came to his senses and was about to go into the house, but found that someone was still on the balcony.
She paused.
"Your Highness, I will first..."
“Is it that beautiful?”
"?"
Yan Siqing knew that he was asking about the Fuyi master.
Ask yourself.
"It is indeed very beautiful, like a fairy."
Jiang Hui: "You can see this through the veil?"
He didn't notice.
Yan Siqing doesn't like to discuss other people's appearance with others, but her beauty is indeed impeccable and a unique sight.
She thought for a moment and answered seriously, "A peerless beauty has a beautiful figure and an extraordinary complexion, which can be felt even through the veil."
Jiang Hui just asked casually, but he didn't expect Yan Siqing to be so serious. "You act like you're taking the imperial examination."
Yan Siqing: “….”
This prince is so sarcastic and difficult to please.
"Well, are you satisfied, examiner?" Madam Yan was still polite but not enthusiastic.
However, in Jiang Hui's opinion, this man was leaning against the railing with his waist, wearing gorgeous clothes, with clear eyebrows and eyes, and his tone was casual and a little perfunctory. He looked like a gorgeous jade regardless of gender, and his complexion was extraordinary under the light.
He was stunned and stared.
"you're right."
"There's really no need for a specific description. Even if it's through a veil, a river, a forest, or a sea of people, it's unforgettable."
He seemed to be taking the imperial examination.
And he went straight to the top three in the imperial examination, achieving great fame and honor, with a strong desire.
Yan Siqing turned his eyes away again and looked in the direction where Fu Yi had just been.
"Is my cousin going to eat?"
She reminded him that no matter what their identities were before, they were still what they were now.
Terribly calm.
Jiang Hui came back to his senses, feeling a little uncomfortable. He looked away, a bit listless and distracted, "Yes, I'm a little hungry."
Yan Siqing lowered his voice and said, "Cousin, please wait for a moment before we go to eat."
Jiang Hui was surprised, but he also understood what she meant - she was willing to go downstairs to eat together.
That's great.
Don’t say one or two, just wait for two or three.
——————
Jiang Hui returned to the house and stood by the pillar in the second-floor corridor. He heard the noise outside getting louder.
Someone even more noisy than that Chen guy is here.
Jiang Hui usually has no interest in others, but because he is now at risk of being assassinated by anyone in disguise along the way, he has to be careful.
He leaned against the pillar and glanced down, and found that the people making the noise were a caravan.
This group was somewhat similar to the previous one, except that the former were escorting people, while the latter were escorting large boxes with seals and iron locks, which seemed to be very precious. Each box also looked very heavy, and it took two burly men to carry it together and deliver it to the empty room upstairs.
The stairs were made of wooden planks, and the two big men made quite a loud noise when they went upstairs.
But because Jiang Hui was outside the house, Ruoqin and other guards were also outside. Among them, Ruoqin was observing the preparation of some food in the store, especially the iron pot for stewing mutton in the hall.
Ruoqin coldly watched for a while as these merchants' guards came in and out carrying things. The caravan boss with two small mustaches that looked like a weasel was still arguing with the shopkeeper about the number of rooms and the price, and was trying to lower the price, but the shopkeeper would not allow it... Amidst the noise, the footsteps of those carrying things upstairs were still loud.
Upstairs, Ruo Zhao appeared out of nowhere and reported the results of the surrounding investigation to Jiang Hui in a low voice, almost like lip reading.
Jiang Hui placed one hand on the sword pendant on his waist, on which was a sword, but his fingers did not touch the sword itself. He just lazily stroked the red jade wolf head on the sword pendant.
After hearing this, he didn't make a decision. He just looked at the stairs. Ruo Zhao lowered his eyes and said, "When my subordinates came back just now, they saw this group of people. They seemed to be real business travelers. The guards are all quite skilled. The goods in the box must be very heavy..."
So it made a lot of noise when it was carried upstairs.
Jiang Hui scoffed. "Loud footsteps mean the object is heavy? You also said they have some kicking skills. Martial artists exert precise force. If the object is heavy, with two people lifting the box, their center of gravity will drop, and their arm muscles will tense and swell with blood. But look at their arms."
Ruozhao's eyesight was not as sharp as Jiang Hui's. When the two big men came upstairs and investigated with suspicion, he suddenly realized.
The two big men had ferocious faces and their feet made loud thudding sounds, as if they were carrying something heavy. However, they were actually not exerting full strength in lifting the boxes. Not to mention whether the muscles under their sleeves were engorged with blood, at least there were no bulging blood vessels on the backs of their hands, and their joints were not rough, which showed that what the prince said was correct.
——The box is not heavy at all, very light in fact.
——Pretending to be mysterious.
——There is something wrong with this group of people.
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