"Is the emperor ill?" Qin Wanming frowned, his face full of suspicion.
Shen Qing was ill, but Jiang Zhuo didn't accompany her. Why did he go to Beishan? There must be something wrong. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that something was wrong. He suspected that Shen Qing was not ill at all, but was going to do other secret things.
"Dad, did you see with your own eyes that the emperor was sick?" Qin Wanming asked anxiously.
"No, Jiang Zhuo said so." Qin Canghai shook his head, looking a little helpless. "Your Majesty is a woman, and as subjects, it is not convenient for us to visit her."
Yes, only Jiang Zhuo can come and go freely and stay by my side.
"Then you don't suspect that Shen Qing is not in the palace at all?" Qin Wanming stared at Qin Canghai with a sharp gaze. "My people just said that they saw Jiang Zhuo coming back from Beishan. I suspect that Shen Qing may not be in the palace."
Qin Canghai couldn't help but recall the furtive, secretive conversation between Jiang Zhuo and Jiang Ling that day during the court session. The scene became increasingly clear in his mind. For a moment, he almost believed Qin Wanming's words, and his doubts grew stronger.
"Could it be that Chen Qing has also gone to Beishan?" Qin Canghai murmured. "Tomorrow, I have to go and test it out."
Shen Qing waited until the hour of Xu, then rode her horse and led her men to the northwest wasteland. She pieced together the body parts she had ordered her men to find from the mass grave to form a complete human figure, put it in a sack, and dumped it in the wasteland.
Then, Shen Qing went to the vicinity of the wasteland, found a secluded place and waited quietly, his eyes always fixed on the front, not missing any movement.
Finally, when night fell, two men in black came hurriedly. They were not the man in black robes described by the bandits.
They were agile but sneaky. After looking around, they quickly went to the center of the wasteland, picked up the corpse with skillful movements, and turned away without hesitation.
Shen Qing didn't dare to slack off at all and followed closely.
The two men in black were very cautious, constantly checking to see if anyone was following them. Along the way, Shen Qing tried not to make any unusual noises.
Until they followed them to a steep cliff, the two men jumped down without hesitation, carrying the corpse on their backs.
Shen Qing's eyes trembled, her heart filled with surprise and confusion. She walked forward quickly, leaned over and looked down, only to see that the cliff below was bottomless and pitch black, with no trace of the two people just now.
Shen Qing raised his hand slightly, and two well-trained killers appeared behind him in an instant.
"Go down the mountain and take a look. If you find anything unusual, don't alert the enemy and report it immediately." Shen Qing lowered his voice, his tone serious and decisive.
"Yes." After receiving the order, the two men flashed and quickly ran down the mountain.
After the two left, Shen Qing looked down from the cliff and saw that the stone wall was covered with dense vines, intertwined with each other, like a huge green spider web.
Did they go down by following the vines? Why choose such a dangerous method? And if they really went down by following the vines, wouldn't that be too fast?
Not long after they jumped, they disappeared.
Just as I was thinking about it, a quarter of an hour later, the two killers came back.
"Master, there is nothing at the foot of the mountain."
Shen Qing narrowed her eyes, thought about it, followed the vines, and slowly climbed down the cliff, always paying attention to the movements below to avoid being discovered.
When she reached about halfway up the mountain, she saw a stone platform with a man standing guard on it.
Great! Building our nest halfway up the mountain is a great spot. With so few people and so well hidden, even if someone attacks, it's easy to defend and hard to attack.
We can't explore any further. We don't know how many people are inside. It's not a good idea to go in rashly. We need to think carefully.
Shen Qing thought about it, then grabbed the vine and climbed up.
"Go back to Beijing."
She left the assassins outside the village there and asked them to report as soon as they had any news.
Shen Qing rushed back to the capital overnight and sent someone to write a letter to Jiang Zhuo. She needed to make some careful plans regarding the puppeteer.
The next day, Qin Canghai and a group of people went to the Golden Palace to ask to visit Shen Qing.
"No." Jiang Zhuo refused outright.
"Your Majesty has been unable to attend court for so long, and we are deeply concerned. We are merely visiting from afar, and will not offend Your Majesty."
"Your Majesty's condition is improving day by day, and he will be able to return to the court soon."
"Jiang Zhuo, we are only concerned about His Majesty. Why are you obstructing us in every possible way? I have reason to believe that you are plotting to harm His Majesty and seize power!"
Jiang Zhuo looked at Qin Canghai in silence.
"General Qin, why are you looking for me so urgently? Is there something important?" Chen Qing walked in with Qingge, yawned lazily, and watched everyone kneel down.
Qin Canghai's eyes showed surprise for a moment, and he immediately lowered his head and knelt down to salute.
"Stand up." Chen Qing raised his hand and looked through the record book on the table. "While I was away, my dear ministers also spent a few days in this Golden Palace."
The court officials below all lowered their heads and dared not speak.
We haven’t had enough of the good days yet, why is she back so soon?
"General Qin's voice is so loud that I can hear it even when I'm lying on my sickbed. If you have something to say, just say it." Shen Qing looked back casually, holding a string of Buddhist beads in his hand.
"Your Majesty, we are just worried about your safety." Qin Canghai pretended to be concerned. "It's not just Lord Jiang who is concerned about your Majesty. We don't know about your condition, and we are really worried."
"Well...are you the imperial physician?" Shen Qing nodded and asked curiously.
Qin Canghai was silent.
"You are not the imperial physician, so what's the point of you seeing me?" Shen Qing snorted coldly, "During the days when I was sick, I didn't see you, the people who were worried in your hearts, send me one or two supplements?"
"This, your Majesty..."
They avoided her so much that they never thought of giving her gifts to please her!
"Is there anyone who hasn't seen my appearance clearly? Do you need to follow me to the Qing Palace to see enough?"
Jiang Zhuo lowered his head and chuckled.
"I have already made a decision on the candidate for the Minister of Rites, and will have someone draft an edict later."
"I dare to ask, who is the candidate for the Minister of State, Your Majesty?"
"Cui Huaiyu."
Cui Huaiyu, the son of a merchant named Cui from Lanzhou, was a descendant of three generations of merchants. His family ran various businesses in the Lanzhou area, including silk, tea, and porcelain, and accumulated a substantial fortune.
Cui Huaiyu was a brilliant child. Despite being born into a merchant family, he had a keen interest in poetry, literature, and classics. He often pored over classics, history, and literature in his study, harboring a deep desire to serve his country.
Cui Huaiyu wanted to join the government, but his career was always looked down upon. People generally believed that businessmen valued profit over morality and were unlikely to serve the people as officials.
"Your Majesty, Cui Huaiyu comes from a merchant family, so I'm afraid he won't be qualified for the position of minister." The minister said worriedly.
"What I value is his talent and ambition." Shen Qing's eyes were firm. "Although he comes from a merchant family, he is well-read and has a heart for the world. I am willing to give him a chance."
"But Your Majesty, I'm afraid the ministers in the court will find it difficult to be convinced." Qin Canghai frowned and said.
"I have made up my mind. If he truly possesses true talent and knowledge, he will surely silence the nagging gossip." Shen Qing's expression was serious, brooking no room for doubt. "Why, does Commander Qin have other plans?"
"I dare not."
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