Chapter 040 The Little Mermaid is a Cool Baby
Today we go to Hejia Restaurant, tomorrow we go to Hejia Cake Shop, and the day after tomorrow we go to the tea shop...
He asked for money when he went there, and if he was not given money, he would fall to the ground and scatter it, attracting onlookers.
Anyway, with the He family backing them up, they would not be discovered by the emperor no matter how much trouble they did, and the He family would not dare to touch them.
This kind of life is much more comfortable than hiding in the slums before. Qin Shan feels that even the emperor in the palace may not live as well as he does.
They felt relieved, but He Yan was so angry that he almost vomited blood when he saw the large sums of money he was forced to pay out every day.
But no matter how angry he was, He Yan really couldn't do anything about these people.
When his father found out that he had sent people to teach Qin Shan and others a lesson, he called him in and scolded him severely, blaming him for not handling the relationship with the rest of the party well, which led to them being manipulated.
He Yan felt wronged: "Who knows why they suddenly became smart?"
The manager had clearly told him that Qin Shan and the others were a bunch of cowards who would run away when frightened. He never expected that they would come up with such a way to retaliate.
The head of the He family sighed: "Don't underestimate anyone."
He Yan responded in a low voice.
The He family's misfortune was naturally seen by the other three families. As companions, they not only did not offer any advice or help, but also ridiculed them behind their backs.
"He Yan is such a useless guy. Once his father dies, the He family will probably fall into ruin."
If the He family falls into poverty, they can divide up the He family's property.
Although the four companies seem to be very united, they are actually competing with each other internally. The losers can only become the feeder of the winners to strengthen their own forces. After all, who would think that they have enough money and power?
If it weren't for the pressure from Zong Zhengxiao, they would have fought each other long ago.
Patriarch Li poured tea for Patriarch Cui and said with a flattering smile, "Among the children of this generation, your Silang is the most promising, otherwise how could he be accepted as a disciple by Elder Baishan?"
Old Man Baishan was a famous scholar of the time. He never participated in party struggles. After resigning from office many years ago, he traveled around giving lectures. Even the rebels had to address him as "Sir" when they saw him.
Two years ago, he returned to Beijing and took a liking to Cui Xin, the youngest son of the Cui family. He asked him to be his teacher and took him on the journey of studying abroad again.
Walking outside all year round without anyone to protect them, it is easy to encounter danger. Cui's parents were reluctant to let their child suffer, but thinking of the reputation of Mr. Baishan, they had to reluctantly separate their own flesh and blood.
As long as Cui Xin returns after completing his studies, whether he enters officialdom or not, the Cui family's reputation will be elevated to a higher level.
The last time I heard from the two of them was half a year ago.
Now, when Patriarch Li praised and criticized his youngest son, Patriarch Cui's expression did not change at all. He just said, "Xin'er is still young. He won't achieve much."
"Indeed, the child still needs to grow up." The head of the Li family agreed on the surface, but he curled his lips in disdain in his heart.
Everyone knows that when Cui Xin first became the disciple of Elder Baishan, the Cui family held banquets for several days in a row to celebrate. Whenever the women in the Cui family's backyard gathered with other officials' wives, they would mention their own Cui Xin.
Who doesn't know how happy you are? Yet you're pretending in front of me.
Patriarch Cui was very clear-headed and could see the sourness of Patriarch Li, so he changed the subject and said, "The He family really didn't do things cleanly this time. They couldn't even handle a few hooligans. They are really getting worse every year."
Patriarch Li listened quietly. Patriarch Cui paused for a few seconds after he finished speaking, and then asked, "Did the little emperor find any clues?"
The head of the Li family said: "The He family responded promptly and attributed the cause of the trouble to a personal conflict. The little emperor has been keeping an eye on us, so he naturally sent people to investigate, but they were all blocked by the He family, so they probably didn't find anything."
Patriarch Cui looked cold and said, "If you keep doing this, it will only arouse suspicion. Talk to the He family and ask them to stop causing this kind of trouble."
Patriarch Li nodded in agreement and started chatting with Patriarch Cui about other things.
As for Zong Zhengxiao, he naturally knew what Qin Shan and others had done, because Hong'er had long been bribed by his people and was under his instructions.
Even the woman who just moved in next door to the Qin family is one of theirs.
The entire Shijing Street was under their surveillance, and he knew everything that the He family, Qin Shan and others did.
The letter to my younger sister should have reached Yingzhou. The net he had laid was tightening step by step, and the prey was doomed to fail.
It was a clear, warm day with no wind and a calm sky.
There was an archery target outside the pavilion in Yinjiao Garden. Zong Zhengxiao took off his complicated robe, put on a black suit, held the bow and arrow, and prepared to practice archery.
After ten years of fighting on the battlefield, Zong Zhengxiao was still able to sit on the throne unscathed. This was not only due to luck, but also to his absolute strength.
The brothers and sisters of the Zong Zheng family were all brave and good at fighting. Even the youngest sister, who was not convenient to go to the battlefield, had learned good marksmanship and often wanted to challenge her brothers.
As an emperor, he has to deal with more people and things. Compared to when he was in the barracks, Zong Zhengxiao is really neglecting exercise now. He can feel that his physical strength in all aspects has obviously declined.
As he happened to have nothing to do today, he decided to practice archery first.
After warming up, Zong Zheng swiftly drew his bow and shot an arrow. With a whoosh, the long arrow hit the target, and the tail feathers were still trembling for a long time.
Rong Yin, who was sitting next to him, took a look and saw that the arrow seemed to be nailed on the eight rings. Then he looked at Zong Zheng Xiao, whose thin lips were tightly pursed and his brows were wrinkled.
Zong Zhengxiao was naturally dissatisfied. In the past, his archery skills were considered outstanding among the outstanding brothers and sisters. Although he could not shoot an arrow through a target from a hundred paces away, he could still hit the target with every arrow. How could he have been as unsightly as he was now?
He rubbed his wrist and adjusted his bow, trying to regain his old feeling.
The second time, probably at the Jiuhuan area.
The third time, it hits the bull's eye.
The fourth time, the arrow broke through the third arrow and took its place.
"Ah!" Seeing Zong Zheng Xiao's brows relax, Rong Yin immediately clapped his hands. Influenced by him, other palace maids also clapped their hands. Then they quickly realized that this was not in accordance with the rules and stopped immediately.
Zong Zheng Xiao didn't care about their inappropriate behavior. He smiled at Rong Yin and continued shooting arrows until his arms were numb. He realized it was time to rest, so he handed the bow and arrow to Si Xi and turned to walk towards Rong Yin.
Zong Zhengxiao was sweating after finishing his workout, even in the cool autumn weather.
Lu'e poured tea, Zong Zhengxiao took a sip, and then Rong Yin picked up the handkerchief to wipe his sweat.
Rong Yin had a low body temperature, so after wiping the sweat off his face, she put her hands on his flushed face to cool him down.
"Ah!" Rong Yin looked at Zong Zhengxiao proudly, thinking: It's comfortable, others are warm babies, but I am a cool baby.
Zong Zhengxiao didn't know that the "warm baby" that Rong Yin was talking about was the name of an object, and thought that he was acting coquettishly unconsciously again. Looking at his sparkling eyes, he couldn't help but raise the corners of his lips.
The two of them faced each other, and Zong Zheng Xiao's smile naturally caught Rong Yin's eyes, causing his heart to skip a beat.
Zong Zhengxiao tied her hair into a high ponytail today, and paired it with a simple waist-hugging outfit. She looked several years younger than before, and more vigorous and energetic.
He is a bit like a handsome gym student. He is lively and energetic when exercising, and his whole body exudes the scent of sunshine.
Rong Yin thought: If Zong Zheng Xiao were in my world, he would have to attract a lot of girls and boys.
Hearing this, Zong Zhengxiao raised his eyebrows slightly.
He really wanted to ask: Does this little boy include you?
But meeting Rong Yin's eyes that contained no evil thoughts, Zong Zheng Xiao had no choice but to give up.
Is it because he is not seductive enough, or is it that Rong Yin is just a dullard?
Zong Zheng Xiao sighed silently in his heart.
After resting, Zong Zhengxiao practiced for another half an hour. Feeling that he had practiced enough for today, he took a shower and changed clothes. Then, he returned to Rong Yin with a fragrant smell and wet hair.
Rong Yin took the clean towel handed to her by Lu'e and wiped Zong Zhengxiao's hair under the sun.
Zong Zhengxiao's hair was not as long as Rong Yin's, nor as black as his, but its texture was harder and coarser.
At the beginning, Rong Yin carefully rubbed and absorbed the water from Zong Zhengxiao's hair bit by bit, but after doing it for a long time, her patience ran out, and as she had evil thoughts in her mind, she gradually became bolder.
He directly covered Zong Zhengxiao's head with the towel and rubbed it with both hands, as roughly as he would wipe his own short hair in modern times. Zong Zhengxiao's head was shaken by him.
Si Xi and Lu'e were both stunned. Although it was true that His Majesty doted on the master, was it really okay for him to do this?
Zong Zhengxiao's originally smooth hair was tangled into a mess. He grabbed Rong Yin's wrist to stop him, turned his head to look at him, and asked in a tone of admonishing a naughty child: "Do you want to be punished?"
He originally thought that it was a very heartwarming scene to see Rong Yin slowly brushing his hair, just like a loving couple, but who knew that the little guy would act naughty again this time.
"Ah!" Rong Yin withdrew his hand, lowered his eyes, and looked like he knew he was wrong.
But only Zong Zheng Xiao knew that he was already smiling in his heart.
Rong Yin: Hahahaha, I don't want to laugh, but Zong Zheng Xiao looks like a savage.
Zong Zhengxiao: “…”
He raised his hand and clamped Rong Yin's jaw, staring into Rong Yin's eyes, leaving him with no way to avoid it but to look at himself.
Rong Yin glanced at Zong Zhengxiao's afro, and the pretended guilt on his face disappeared, and his expression gradually distorted.
Rongyin: hold back laughter.jpg
Half a minute, one minute, one and a half minutes passed...
"Pfft!" Rong Yin finally couldn't hold back her laughter, and Zong Zheng Xiao successfully caught her.
Zong Zhengxiao's expression was hard to tell whether he was happy or angry, and the palace servants all lowered their heads, fearing that they would be killed to silence them if they saw this scene.
"It's funny, isn't it?" Zong Zhengxiao asked with a smile.
Rong Yin shook his head to show that it was not funny, but he couldn't suppress the upturned corners of his mouth.
"Okay." Before Zong Zhengxiao finished speaking, he stretched out his hand to take Rong Yin into his arms, picked up the cloth that fell on the blanket and pressed it on Rong Yin's hair, and ruffled Rong Yin's hair with a few strokes.
Rong Yin, who hadn't fully reacted yet, looked at Zong Zheng Xiao in confusion. Zong Zheng Xiao narrowed his eyes and smiled, "Do you still think it's funny?"
Rong Yin saw his current image in Zong Zhengxiao's eyes. The new hairstyle that Lu'e had made for him this morning was messed up.
Rong Yin: “…”
Rong Yin: I was careless and forgot that it would be terrible if Zong Zheng Xiao was unhappy... However, my current hairstyle looks like a pile of poop.
“…”
"Puff!" This is the sound of Rong.
"Puchi." This was Zong Zheng Xiao who heard Rong Yin's inner thoughts.
This is the confused palace maid: Huh?
The fire was about to start, but it inexplicably went out on its own. The palace servants could only sigh: the masters' minds are really ever-changing.
Zong Zhengxiao and Rong Yin both laughed at themselves and each other. Zong Zhengxiao was too proud to show his self-restraint, but Rong Yin laughed until tears came out and his sharp teeth were exposed.
Looks cute yet a little scary.
Afterwards, the two of them helped each other comb their hair. Zong Zheng basked in the sun, and when he felt sleepy, he did not go back to the house to sleep. He rested his head on Rong Yin's tail and closed his eyes peacefully.
Zong Zhengxiao often lent his legs to Rong Yin as a pillow, so Rong Yin didn't mind him doing so and even turned his body to the side to block the sunlight from his eyes.
Because the ends of his hair were not dry yet, Zong Zhengxiao did not tie his hair up, but let it hang loose, scattered on Rong Yin's tail like the hem of a skirt.
Zong Zheng Xiao was lying on his back with his head slightly tilted. His eyes were closed, giving people the courage to look at his face. It was only then that people discovered that his facial features were truly too superior.
If Rong Yin is exquisitely beautiful, like a painting of a beauty carefully painted by a painter, then Zong Zheng Xiao is a stone statue casually carved by a military general, with a profound and stern aura.
Rong Yin raised his hand and gestured towards Zong Zhengxiao's face, first moving over his brow bone, then his eye sockets, his high nose bridge, and his thin lips with distinct lines...
The sleeping Zong Zheng Xiao seemed to feel Rong Yin's invisible touch, and his eyelashes trembled from time to time, as if he was shy, but also like a bold response.
Lu'e was watching from the side and always felt that the way her master was staring at His Majesty at this moment was a little strange. How to put it, it was so gentle that it seemed as if water was about to drip out of it.
She didn't understand what this look meant, but her master had never looked at her or anyone else like that before.
It was not until a long time later that Lu'e, who had seen her two masters being affectionate with each other every day, recalled today's scene and suddenly realized that this kind of tenderness that she did not understand was called love.
The late autumn wind blew across the capital and also reached Yingzhou.
When Zong Zhengxi received the secret letter from Zong Zhengxiao, it would be a lie to say that he was not surprised.
At that time, his father passed away, and his brothers were fighting for the throne. Zong Zhengxi was caught in the middle and could only watch the situation develop in an unpredictable direction until the dust settled.
Her second brother died at the hands of her fourth brother, Zong Zhengxiao, but she couldn't say a harsh word to him because he had never done anything wrong to her.
When fighting for the throne, she was not forced to take sides.
Later, as the first princess of Da Sheng, she received the most preferential treatment. Even when she insisted on returning to her hometown, Zong Zheng Xiao did not stop her and even ordered people to build a princess mansion for her.
In the court, Zong Zhengxiao also gave her face and valued the family members of the prince consort.
In recent years, she has treated her remaining brothers equally, including her third brother who competed with Zong Zheng Xiao for the throne, but Zong Zheng Xiao still treats her as well as before.
Some time ago, she received news that her third brother had somehow offended Zong Zhengxiao and might not live long.
Although Zong Zhengxi was sad, she did not go to the capital to dissuade him, because she knew that her fourth brother now sat in that position and had too many things to consider.
Fortunately, the third brother did not die in the end, but ended up being disabled.
Zong Zhengxi knew that Zong Zhengxiao was showing mercy, and perhaps she had her reasons for doing so, because Zong Zhengxiao knew that she didn't want to see brothers killing each other again.
This time she received a secret letter from Zong Zhengxiao, asking her to help go to Beijiang, which also involved the safety of the country.
Not only out of brotherly love, but also because of her status as a princess, Zong Zhengxi would definitely help her.
Zong Zhengxi called the prince consort over and told him Zong Zhengxiao's plan. As the person Zong Zhengxi trusted the most, the prince consort certainly had no choice but to do so.
"It just so happens that I have someone in Beijiang. We can ask him to go and test the waters first. Otherwise, if we act rashly, we might alert the enemy." said the prince consort.
"Yes." Zong Zhengxi nodded in agreement. "We have to do this properly for His Majesty. The world has only been stable for a few years. If war breaks out again, how can the people survive?"
Who would have thought that beneath the seemingly peaceful and stable surface, there was such a huge cancer hidden.
After the couple reached an agreement, they integrated their respective teams and rushed towards Beijiang River together.
As early winter was approaching, news about Beijiang was continuously sent to the princess's mansion. Looking at Fang Lin'an's preparations for rebellion, the princess could not help but secretly curse him, saying that he was stealing their Zong Zheng family's money to raise soldiers and rebel against their Zong Zheng family.
Beijiang's maritime and water transport were well developed, and Fang Lin'an made a lot of money from them. He also had several mines, which he used to privately manufacture armor and weapons, and he also sold them to places outside Dasheng through various channels, thereby making huge profits.
To be honest, even the national treasury may not be as well-funded as Fang Lin'an's.
But Fang Lin'an was in a high position of power, so how could he not understand that if these minerals flowed to other countries, they might become swords to chop down the soldiers on the border of Dasheng in the future? How was this different from colluding with foreign enemies?
He only cares about his own rebellion plan and doesn't care about the future of the country at all. Is this kind of guy qualified to be an emperor?
Zong Zhengxi put away the evidence and looked at the prince consort beside him: "My husband, it's our turn to take action."
The next day, news spread from the princess's mansion that the princess was ill, and her husband was taking care of her personally, and that the two would not receive any outside guests for a long time in the future.
While everyone was wondering what illness the princess had, the couple had already left Yingzhou and headed towards Beijiang.
Beijiang was originally a prosperous place. Although it had suffered from the baptism of war, it has recovered a lot of its vitality after three years of recuperation.
The princess and her husband entered the city as wealthy businessmen, and happened to celebrate the full-month banquet of the grandson of the Beijiang prefect. The two dressed up and presented generous gifts, and met the prefect who was over fifty years old at the banquet.
The prefect’s surname was Zhao. He was sent from the capital and was a member of a group of meritorious officials.
Zong Zhengxiao was afraid that Fang Lin'an would become the most powerful person, so he specially asked a man named Zhao to check and balance Fang Lin'an and manage Beijiang for him.
However, even though Fang Lin's case had caused so much trouble in Beijiang, Prefect Zhao seemed to know nothing and never reported it to his superiors.
Later, Zong Zhengxi found out that Prefect Zhao was indeed unaware of the situation at first, but Fang Lin was mining, training soldiers, and privately manufacturing weapons right under his nose, so even if Prefect Zhao was slow to notice it, he still noticed it.
But before he could complain to Zong Zhengxiao, Fang Lin'an came with a large sum of money that Prefect Zhao could not refuse, and threatened Prefect Zhao that if he dared to let Zong Zhengxiao know any real news about Beijiang, none of them would be able to leave alive.
Prefect Zhao accepted Fang Lin's money and threats, and from then on he became a deaf and blind man.
"Mr. Zhao, congratulations, your family has a new addition." The son-in-law and other merchants who wanted to curry favor with the Zhao family came forward to congratulate the prefect Zhao.
Prefect Zhao looked down upon these businessmen and wanted to deal with them casually, but he froze suddenly when he met the eyes of the prince consort.
In just a cup of tea, Zong Zhengxi and his wife were invited into the Zhao family's study. Prefect Zhao knelt down in front of the two of them. Of course, the one who knelt mainly was Zong Zhengxi.
"Your humble servant Zhao Ling pays homage to Her Royal Highness the Princess!" Zhao Ling prostrated himself on the ground, his body shaking like a sieve, with cold sweat already breaking out on his forehead.
Zong Zhengxi looked down at him coldly, "Looking at your expression, you should have guessed why I came here, right?"
Zhao Ling swallowed his saliva and replied in a trembling voice: "Your subordinate knows."
Apart from Fang Lin'an, what else is there in Beijiang that is worthy of a princess disguising herself and coming here?
Besides, since they dared to come, they must have a backup plan. Even if he and Fang Lin jointly killed the princess and her husband, it would be of no avail.
Zong Zhengxi said, "Your Majesty has long known what Fang Lin did, and has already collected all the evidence. Lord Zhao, you know that if you conceal such a serious matter as rebellion, you can be regarded as an accomplice. Tell me, if Fang Lin is sentenced to exterminate all his clans, what will be your fate?"
Zhao Ling had no time to be afraid now. He knelt forward and begged, "Your Majesty and the Princess, please spare the Zhao family. It is not my will to conceal Fang Lin's rebellion. Fang Lin has said that if I dare to tell anyone, he will kill my whole family. Your Highness, I have an old mother and a young child. I have no choice but to agree."
Zong Zhengxi: "Oh, so you were forced."
"Yes, yes, yes. Thank you for your forgiveness."
Before Zhao Ling finished speaking, Zong Zhengxi asked again, "Then I found out that you accepted tens of thousands of taels of silver from Fang Lin'an. Were you also forced to do so?"
Zhao Ling was trapped and had no way to defend himself.
"You can just lie to yourself with these words." Zong Zhengxi frowned, "You have been with our father for five years, making plans for him. Even if you have no merit, you have worked hard. His Majesty trusts you, so he sent you to this rich Beijiang to enjoy life. I thought you would do your duty and manage Beijiang for His Majesty, but I didn't expect..."
Zhao Ling's eyes were red and his face showed pain and guilt, but it was unclear whether it was real or just a pretense.
He kowtowed and said with a sob: "Zhao Ling is ashamed of the late emperor and Your Majesty, and deserves death."
Seeing that the stick had hit the real target, Zhao Ling knew that he was afraid that he would regret it. Zong Zheng Xicai said again: "If you don't pay for the sins you have committed, what's the point of dying a thousand times? Since you value your relatives so much, do you really want them to be beheaded with you?"
Zhao Ling suddenly raised his head and looked at Zong Zhengxi expectantly: "What does your highness mean?"
"You can at least save your family's lives by making up for your mistakes. I don't need this princess to teach you how to do it, right?"
Zhao Ling understood that this meant that he was asked to help solve Fang Lin's case so as to seek a glimmer of hope from the emperor.
"I will do my best." Zhao Ling kowtowed again, but this time he was not filled with sorrow, but with hope.
In fact, he hated Fang Lin'an in his heart. It was his good luck to come to Beijiang to be the prefect. If Fang Lin'an had been honest in being his own governor, they would have each done their job, and there would be no doubt that they could enjoy their old age in peace and leave a good reputation in history.
But this bastard not only wanted to rebel, but also dragged him into the water. All the achievements he had worked hard for half his life were destroyed in the hands of Fang Lin'an. How could he swallow this!
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