I wish to buy osmanthus flowers and share wine with you.
The candles in Tang Qi's room burned all night. He rode his horse to the Ministry of Justice in Jingzhou as early as possible, where he met Cheng Junshi.
Cheng Junshi was already used to running into Tang Qi. Zhui Feng and the others were loading the truck; today was the day they would set off back to Luocheng.
"What's up?"
Tang Qi had originally planned to exchange a few pleasantries, but seeing his attitude, he decided to be direct as well. He took out the letter and handed it to Cheng Junshi, saying, "Please pass this on to Lin Jiacuo for me. Consider it something I owe you."
Cheng Junshi lowered his eyes to look at the letter in front of him, and chuckled almost imperceptibly: "So you owe me?"
He stared at Tang Qi, his expression unreadable, and simply asked, "Can you calculate it clearly?"
Tang Qi was taken aback by the question. A number of excuses flashed through his mind in an instant, but unexpectedly, he said nothing.
Before he could speak, Cheng Junshi snatched the letter from Tang Qi's hand and stuffed it into his own pocket. He turned around, mounted his horse, and sat on the horse. His gaze lingered on Tang Qi for only a second before he tightened the reins and rode away with Zhui Feng and the others without looking back.
The sound of horses' hooves, both light and heavy, echoed in Tang Qi's ears until the last hoofbeats of the procession faded away. Only then did Tang Qi come back to his senses. As the dust kicked up by the horseshoes dissipated before him, he suddenly felt a sense of emptiness rising in his heart.
He shook his head slightly, suppressing the inexplicable surge of emotion, and took out the fake military tag from his pocket. It was time to settle accounts.
Tang Yan acted quickly. In order not to alert the enemy, he did not choose to search the military camp one by one. Instead, he chose to have someone outside the camp spread the word that a merchant in Jingzhou was distributing grain and promising that the troops could exchange their military license plates for rice.
At first, there weren't many people, but the news spread incredibly fast. Within two or three days, long queues formed along the street. While distributing rice, everyone's military badges were checked, with the Wolf Strategy Army naturally in charge of the checks. If anything seemed amiss, the person holding the rice would pat that person lightly on the shoulder twice as they handed over the rice, and the person would be secretly taken away a few meters later.
Tang Yan used this method to arrest two or three people. By the fourth day, five people had been arrested. Knowing that this method could not be sustained, Tang Yan stopped it in time and secretly took the five people to the Ministry of Justice for a talk.
During these four days, Tang Qi went to the Zhou residence several times, but all his attempts were fruitless; he had no chance to get close at all.
He wasn't sure if it was someone from Yunqi or the Zhou family.
In short, the connection was broken, so Tang Qi turned his attention to the military tag in his hand, which he did not return to Tang Yan.
Military license plates for each army are issued uniformly by the Ministry of War, and fake military license plates cannot be produced by the Ministry of War, so they must be privately made.
Copper and iron are generally controlled by the state and ordinary people are not allowed to possess them. However, there is one place where, even if it is not the government, people are allowed to possess them.
Blacksmith shop.
Privately owned shops would report to the Ministry of War to obtain ownership rights and then obtain raw materials from the Ministry of War, thus enabling them to open ironware businesses.
There are only four blacksmith shops in Jingzhou City, with the Guo family's shop in the west of the city being the most prominent.
The first place Tang Qi went to was the west of the city.
"Sword forging, weapon forging, or sewing?"
"Sewing".
General Tang Qi handed the plaque to the shopkeeper, saying, "It's a bit chipped, can it be repaired?"
"Of course, let me see... tsk... Wolf Strategy Army?"
Tang Qi noticed the shop owner glance at her and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Sir, aren't all your military license plates issued by the Ministry of War? If they're lost, why didn't you report it?"
"It's just a minor scratch; we'll fix it if we can, so we don't have to report it again."
The shopkeeper nodded, but handed the military badge back, and smiled at Tang Qi, saying, "Sir, I can't replace this military badge of yours."
"You just said you could fix it, so why can't you now?"
After hesitating for a long time, the shopkeeper finally said awkwardly, "This... Sir, please don't try to fool me. I, Guo Cheng, have been blacksmithing for over twenty years. I can tell what kind of iron it is just by touching it. This... it's probably not iron from the Ministry of War, is it?"
"So, where is this iron from?"
Seeing that Guo Cheng still looked hesitant and dared not speak, Tang Qi took off the token from his waist, held it in his hand and showed it to him: "Just speak, there's nothing else to worry about."
"Young...Young Marquis?"
Tang Qi nodded and heard him whisper, "In Jingzhou City, there is a batch of smuggled iron circulating privately. The price is lower than that of iron from the Ministry of War. The military badge you have is made from that batch of iron."
"The Wei family?"
The man was slightly surprised, seemingly not expecting Tang Qi to guess so accurately, and nodded, saying, "Exactly."
It seems that the Zhou family is still involved.
Tang Qi retrieved his military tag and was about to turn and leave when he suddenly met someone's gaze. He looked at the person on horseback with slight surprise.
The visitor was Zhou Ziye.
Although Tang Qi had been looking for Zhou Ziye for the past few days, he was still caught off guard when he suddenly met the person in question.
The two sat facing each other in a restaurant, the atmosphere quiet and a little awkward.
Tang Qi rubbed his nose, intending to be the first to break the strange atmosphere.
"Um... well..."
"Are you looking for me?"
They spoke almost in unison.
Both of them paused for half a second. Tang Qi laughed and poured Zhou Ziye a glass of wine, saying without any hesitation, "Yes, I've been looking for you for so many days. It's really hard to see Chief Zhou."
Zhou Ziye picked up his cup, drank it all in one gulp, and asked bluntly, "What is it?"
Tang Qi smiled slightly and asked him, "Let's get straight to business. Aren't we going to catch up and get a little sentimental? It's been quite a while since we last saw each other."
"Are you very free?" Zhou Ziye looked at him and continued, "Even if you are very free, I don't have that much time."
"Rushing off to get married?"
Tang Qi continued to tease him, and Zhou Ziye put the money bag on the table, got up and left: "It's on my tab, you can drink slowly."
Seeing that he was about to leave, Tang Qi hurriedly called out, "Hey!"
Zhou Ziye stopped and turned to look at him, only to see Tang Qi raise the corners of his lips and say, "Shouldn't the blacksmith shop of the Guo family in the west of the city be renamed the Zhou family of the west of the city?"
Zhou Ziye didn't speak. Tang Qi chuckled twice, poured more wine into his glass, and tapped the table, saying, "Let's chat, Chief Zhou."
"How could you be so stupid as to think I would believe he would have the guts to reveal such a shady tactic as operating a private railway?"
Tang Qi continued tapping on the table: "Are you trying to target the Wei family, or me?"
Zhou Ziye remained silent.
"The buying and selling of smuggled iron is ultimately about profit. The Wei family's business practices are mostly shady. The government wants to regulate it, but the pursuit of profit involves too many people and things. The Wei family can both amass and dissipate wealth, and it can be used for the country's benefit, which is why the government turns a blind eye. With so many interests involved, maintaining the status quo is the best approach."
Tang Qi's face turned cold and his tone became serious as he said, "But Zhou Ziye, you should know that what I'm investigating is not within the scope of the authorities turning a blind eye. You can remain silent, but if the Wei family is really behind this, they won't escape, and your Zhou family will not be able to get away unscathed either."
Zhou Ziye finally reacted.
"You came to see me on your father's orders? If so, please leave. I have no interest in the stories you've made up."
To Tang Qi's surprise, Zhou Ziye shook his head frankly: "He doesn't know I came to see you. I will only answer one question for you, the one you most want to know. Tang Qi, I don't have much time left, and you only have this one chance. After today, don't look for me again."
Tang Qi was stunned, but quickly changed her expression and asked without hesitation, "Why did you return to Jingzhou?"
This question was like a torture device, torturing Zhou Ziye's heart.
"You are a military commander, why did you abandon your troops and return to Jingzhou?"
"Generals in the field may disobey the king's orders. As a soldier guarding the city, you are only entitled to the commander-in-chief's orders for transfer. If you do not wish to transfer, even though your father is the Left Censor, it will not be an easy matter for him to transfer you back to the capital."
"Zhou Ziye, I'll ask you one more time, why did you return to Jingzhou?"
Tang Qi pressed on relentlessly. Zhou Ziye stared at him for a long time before finally letting out a faint smile and pulling something out of his sleeve, which he then placed on the table.
It's his military license plate.
Tang Qi glanced down at the things he had placed on the table, then immediately slammed her hand on the table and roared, "Zhou Ziye! Are you crazy?!"
The military license plate was engraved with an official seal, and the red character "废" (waste) pierced Tang Qi's eyes.
Those who join the army spend their entire lives with their military license plates. If they die on the battlefield, the plates will be taken back to their hometown and sealed and preserved. Even when they retire in old age, the plates will still be properly stored.
Only upon discharge from the military will a military badge be stamped with a large red seal, permanently invalidating it. Furthermore, those discharged are barred from ever enlisting in the military again.
Tang Qi's clenched fist trembled as he shook his head in disbelief: "You're really crazy."
"I am no longer Li Guangjun, so I am leaving Hecheng and returning to Jingzhou. Are you satisfied with this answer?"
"What am I satisfied with!" Tang Qi leaned over the table and grabbed Zhou Ziye by the collar: "Zhou Ziye! Your military license plate is invalid. You can never join the army in your life, do you know that!"
Zhou Ziye let him grab his collar, and just looked at him and smiled, "I'm not stupid."
"Not stupid? I think you're incredibly stupid!"
Tang Qi abruptly released his grip, slamming him back into the chair. Suppressing his anger, he leaned on the table, staring into his eyes, and said, "Joining the army is your dream. Even if no one supports you, the dream is yours, and you have to walk your own path. Even if no one is behind you, you have to keep going. You told me that, Zhou Ziye. This is what you told me!"
"How old is he? Ten? Eleven? Or twelve?" Zhou Ziye sneered. "Tang Qi, do you still think you're a child? Who told you people don't change? Who would hold onto their old dreams for a lifetime?"
“I won’t change, and neither will they! Zhou Ziye, I bet you won’t change either.”
Tang Qi stared at him, speaking with a stubborn and resolute tone.
Zhou Ziye stared at him for a long time before finally letting out a sneer: "Looks like you're the stupid one."
He picked up the wine glass on the table, shook his head, and drank it down.
Tang Qi stared blankly at the hand holding the cup. The wide sleeves concealed the scars on his arm, some old and some new. Tang Qi couldn't see them clearly, but judging from the degree of scab formation, the wounds were definitely not shallow.
"Are you injured?"
Tang Qi grabbed Zhou Ziye's hand, preparing to roll up his sleeve, but Zhou Ziye pushed it away with a backhand.
Zhou Ziye straightened his clothes, completely concealing his arm in his sleeve, and said calmly, "Is it rare for someone who's been in a war to get injured?"
"But that's clearly—"
"Tang Qi".
Zhou Ziye's eyes were cold.
"Have you made enough of a scene?"
He turned his head to look outside the restaurant, his eyes darkening.
It was still light out, but there weren't many people on the street. The vendors, wrapped in thick cloth, called out their wares, but the wind was so strong that it whistled and stopped their conversation.
Winter had long since arrived in Jingzhou City.
Zhou Ziye's emotions were indifferent; Tang Qi even hoped to see anger, sadness, or even despair in his eyes.
But there was nothing there; his gaze was as indifferent as if he had long since died.
Tang Qi felt a pang of sadness. He wanted to say something, but felt that nothing he said would be appropriate. He was like a baby in swaddling clothes, his mouth opening and closing but unable to find the words to form a sentence, so he could only remain silent.
Zhou Ziye turned to look at Tang Qi, seemingly wanting to say something, but in the end he just poured him a cup of warm wine and chuckled: "Drink something hot. It'll be snowing in Jingzhou soon."
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