But he heard something: there was a gold mine in Heifeng Village, and it was being concealed.
Who concealed it? The Third Prince? How audacious!
If this is discovered, the family will be confiscated and the property will be destroyed...
No, he is a member of the royal family. At most he will be punished to kneel for a few hours. It’s no big deal.
The investment is small and the profit is huge, anyone would go crazy for it, let alone the prince and grandson of the emperor who are already favored by everyone!
He frowned and looked at Ling Jiheng, wondering how he knew this and whether he had already taken action on the gold mine.
Ling Jiheng remained unmoved: "I heard from them that they had just delivered a batch of goods to Shangjing when they encountered an earthquake.
A large rock rolled down from the mountain or somewhere, blocking the entrance to the cave.
If they hadn't received the news that we were passing by on the official road, they would have organized people to rescue the brothers in the mine that day.
But I didn’t expect…”
Ling Jiheng said with regret, "The Black Wind Village caught fire, burning the entire village to the ground. It's said that not a single bandit survived!"
General Zhou looked at Ling Jiheng suspiciously, feeling that this guy was making up stories, but he had no evidence and felt that Ling Jiheng had no motive.
Such big news, why not just not tell it out? Is there any need for artistic processing?
What General Zhou didn't know was that this was just surrender, or revenge.
Although the Ling family arrived in Youzhou safely, their war with the third prince had just begun.
Ling Jiheng didn't want to do it himself and fight to the death with the other party, nor did he want to let that bastard get the upper hand.
Therefore, it is very necessary to unite with the Zhou family, who also have a grudge against the third prince, to take the lead.
General Zhou guessed a little about Ling Jiheng's thoughts and asked, "The information about the gold mine is confidential. Aren't you afraid that I will kill someone to keep it secret?"
Ling Jiheng chuckled: "If I wanted to reveal it, I wouldn't have come to tell General Zhou!
As for what you will do after you find out, I don't care. I just want to get rid of the shackles on my body and let the elders at home feel at ease."
General Zhou raised an eyebrow. "No other requests? I can give you a position in the army, starting as a centurion!"
Ling Jiheng showed no interest and simply said, "I, a commoner, have no lofty ambitions. After experiencing exile, I now just want to stay by my parents and wife's side."
General Zhou felt a little regretful, but he also felt that it was human nature.
He nodded and said, "I can decide to reduce your family's taxes by half, but as for the rest, I can't do anything about it."
Ling Jiheng nodded in agreement, not caring at all whether or not he could actually get rid of the tax. His goal wasn't this at all.
Making requests is just to establish a personality that is demanding but not greedy.
General Zhou was very satisfied with Ling Jiheng's answer. He called Zhou Chengyu in and took him to dinner.
The generals' food was much better than that of ordinary soldiers. Ling Jiheng ate rice and braised pork.
Even the winter mushrooms he brought were prepared and cooked, but Zhou Chengyu only got a small dish.
Zhou Chengyu poured Ling Jiheng a glass of wine and didn't mention what happened in the tent. Instead, he intentionally or unintentionally brought up the topic of Dahe Village.
"I have a friend who currently lives in Dahe Village. It's been freezing cold lately, and I'm really worried about her!"
Ling Jiheng understood: "When we get back, I'll go visit him on behalf of General Zhou!"
Zhou Chengyu nodded and told Ling Jiheng the man's name: "His name is Cui Shouqing, the legitimate son of the former Minister of Revenue."
Ling Jiheng pursed his lips and said nothing.
Zhou Chengyu was afraid that he would not take it seriously, so he explained: "When the emperor issued the decree, the Cui family did not know that they had relatives in Jiangning Prefecture."
Ling Jiheng joked, "Being able to climb into the Shangshu Mansion is truly an honor for my Ling family!"
He doesn't care about being implicated by the other party. After all, even without the Cui family, there are still the Jiang family, the Zhao family, the Wu family, and the Zheng family.
The royal family wanted Jiangnan's wealth, so false accusations were inevitable. Being able to survive the other party's desire was already a good thing.
Seeing no resentment or resentment on his face, Zhou Chengyu felt relieved. He told his personal servant to put the things on the ox cart and asked Ling Jiheng to take them back.
Ling Jiheng didn't hesitate, he quickly finished his meal and left.
After three days out, he missed his little fairy so much. He wondered if Chi Xingyue had eaten and slept well, and most importantly, if she missed him!
What Ling Jiheng didn't know was that Chi Xingyue had a little thought about it on the first day, but the next day she was overwhelmed by the gossip of her parents-in-law and just wanted to share it with them.
As for the third day, hahahaha, Chi Xingyue was bored and made playing cards with bamboo strips, and asked her parents-in-law and grandmother to play together, and completely forgot about Ling Jiheng.
Even the old lady was attracted by this novel way of playing and forgot about her little grandson who was running around outside.
"Ahhh, I won, give me money, give me money!" Chi Xingyue deliberately let the old lady win, letting her experience the joy of the novice protection period.
She even deliberately hung her face and said in a coquettish voice that the old lady was lucky because she won all her snacks.
That’s right, even when playing at home, the Ling family didn’t use real or fake silver, for fear that someone would become greedy and come outside to block them.
The old lady looked at the small pile of peanuts in front of her, her eyes full of smiles.
She grabbed a handful and handed it to Ling Weiwei, who was watching the fun nearby. The little girl happily said in a baby voice, "Thank you, great-grandmother!"
The lively atmosphere made Geng Suhua and Liang Zhijun itchy, so Chi Xingyue gave up his seat and gave guidance from the side.
Hearty laughter could be heard from Rongsiyuan from time to time, which made Song Lizheng, who came to visit, wonder: "What good news is this? Why are they laughing so loudly?"
***
Ling Jiheng came out of the military camp and rushed to Qingshan Village without stopping.
After walking more than ten miles, he pulled over to the side of the road and whispered to Ling Jiheng, "Master, while you were having dinner with General Zhou, Master Fu came to ask if Ling Yi and I wanted to join the army."
Ling Jiheng smiled: "He has good taste."
It's just not very kind. He didn't even inform his master about it.
"Well, did you agree?"
Jin Bao curled his lips and said, "Of course not. Ling Yi and I are living a comfortable life with our master. Why would we go to the military camp and fight like crazy and be restrained by others?"
Ling Jiheng asked in return, "The path Fu Huanping has pointed out to you could lead you to become a marquis or a prime minister in the future, and you won't have to be inferior to others anymore.
Is it worth it to be my subordinate?"
Jin Bao scratched his head. "At first glance, it's tempting. But I know my own worth, and I'm not destined to be the boss."
Master, why don’t you join the army!
They say that the servants of high-ranking officials are more prestigious than county magistrates. If you work hard, Ling Yi and I will be able to act like a bully when we go out!"
Ling Yi stood there with a wooden face, nodding his head desperately.
Ling Jiheng raised his hand and tapped Jin Bao between the eyebrows, scolding him with a smile: "You think too much, go home!"
"Okay!" Jinbao sat in the front row, whipped his little whip, and the carriage started moving.
He even shouted at the top of his voice, "Master, when we get back to Yunrou County, I want to eat two honey-glazed roast chickens. It's your treat!"
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