Xian'er was a little surprised. Qining turned around and saw Longtai smiling. At this time, he saw Zhu Qianyi coming over and said, "I'll take my leave first." He didn't seem to adapt to the atmosphere on the Qinhuai River, and Longtai didn't try to stay. , nodded slightly and said: "Thank you for your hard work."
Zhu Qianyi glanced at Qining, but in the end said nothing and left quickly. Longtai looked at Zhu Qianyi's back thoughtfully.
Qi Ning said softly: "Xian'er, since Mr. Xiao is interested in elegance, you might as well show your skills. This Mr. Xiao is also a person who is good at music. Please give him a review."
Zhuo Xian'er said shyly: "The Marquis ordered that Xian'er have no choice but to show off her ugliness. Marquis, then... then Xian'er will go down and prepare."
Qi Ning nodded, waited for Zhuo Xian'er to retreat, then turned around, looked at Xiang Tianbei behind Long Tai, and asked softly: "Master Xiang has amazing ears, did you just find out that Xian'er is outside?"
Xiang Tianbei said calmly: "It's natural to not let irrelevant people know about our secret meeting tonight. She just approached the door, so she probably didn't hear anything."
Longtai smiled and said: "We have finished what we need to talk about. Master Xiang, you are also a person who is good at music. I heard that Zhuo Xian'er has great piano skills. Let's enjoy the blessing of our ears under the light of Jin Yihou."
Qi Ning said: "Your Majesty... Young Master Xiao also knows about Xian'er?"
"Don't get me wrong." Longtai smiled and said, "I'm not asking anyone to investigate. I just heard about the oiran convention held on the Qinhuai River not long ago. This is a very lively event in the capital, and I can always get some news. Listen. I've always wanted to see if this girl Xian'er's piano skills are really good.
Qi Ning said: "There are so many talented musicians in the palace, but Xian'er is probably not as good as them."
Longtai smiled faintly, without comment. He looked at the door that was damaged by Xiang Tianbei, and said with a smile: "Jin Yihou, send someone to replace the door here later. Don't let people say that we are overbearing." Turning back to the house, Sitting down at the table, Qin Ning thought that Xiang Tianbei had ruined it and it was none of my business, so he went back and sat down.
He originally wanted to ask the emperor why he knew so much about the situation in Xichuan and got more information than he had, but he thought that if Long Tai was willing to tell, he would tell him without asking. If he was unwilling, he really couldn't ask more. He picked up the teapot, poured tea for Longtai, and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, the tea here is not as good as in the palace. You have been wronged."
Longtai smiled and scolded: "Stop talking nonsense, Shili Qinhuai, Yingying, Yanyan, Qining, your boy is much more comfortable than me. You can come when you want. When I leave the palace this time, I have to be carefully prepared and sneaky."
"Did the emperor sneak out of the palace?" Qi Ning asked in surprise.
Longtai said: "Do you think I came out arrogantly? If...hey, if the Queen Mother finds out, she will have to nag me in my ears for several days." He waved his hand and said: "That's all, it's not easy for me to come out once, and I can't. It’s been too long, after listening to Miss Xian’er’s music, it’s time to go back to the palace.”
Qi Ning smiled and said: "The emperor came out of the palace just to see the swing and listen to a song. Xian'er is very honored."
"Are you thinking why I know so much about Xichuan?" Longtai picked up the tea cup and glanced at Qining, "I don't tell you many things because I don't want you to get involved too much. You should know , knowing too much about some things will lead to more troubles.”
Qi Ning smiled and said: "Your Majesty is too worried, I am very loyal. If the Emperor asks me to do it, I will do my best. If the Emperor does not want me to know, I will not ask more questions."
Longtai chuckled, and finally lowered his voice and said: "When the Black Rock Village incident happened, the first thing I thought of was Li Hongxin. I felt that Li Hongxin was behind this. Li Hongxin can no longer be compared with what he was back then, but If this person exists in Xichuan, he will be a threat to the imperial court."
Qi Ning nodded slightly and said: "The Li family has been operating in Xichuan for several generations. As the saying goes, a skinny camel is bigger than a horse. Even if it is not better than before, we cannot take it lightly."
"Did you know that after Li Hongxin joined Da Chu, he would send people to the capital every year." Longtai looked indifferent: "I also know that he controls many businesses in Xichuan. It is not an exaggeration to say that he makes a fortune every day. And a lot of this money was sent to the capital to manage the officials in the capital. As far as I know, at least half of the officials in the capital have taken money from the Li family."
Qining frowned, Longtai sneered, and continued: "When money comes to the door, many ministers feel that if they don't get it, it's free, so why turn them away. But they don't think about it, Li Hongxin spends money in Beijing every year What is such a huge amount of money for?”
"That person's money is used to eliminate disasters for others." Qi Ning sighed: "In the final analysis, of course Li Hongxin wants these officials to speak good words for him. Even if they don't speak for him, they don't want to harm him."
Longtai nodded and said: "Yes, so all along, whenever Li Hongxin is mentioned in court, he is always said to be honest and well-behaved, without any ulterior motives. If he says too much, he will be taken as true. Before the Heiyanzhai incident, everyone in the court felt that Li Hongxin was no longer a threat. Even after the Heiyanzhai incident, the trend in the court was that Heiyanzhai was pampered and spoiled, and no one mentioned whether it would be related to the Heiyanzhai incident. It’s related to Li Hongxin.”
Qi Ning frowned and said, "So the money Li Hongxin has spent in Beijing over the years has achieved great results."
"Do you know why I sent you to Xichuan?" Longtai stared at Qining, "You are the person I trust most. This is naturally the reason, but there is another reason, do you know?"
Qi Ning said: "The Jinyi Qi family and the Xichuan Li family had a feud back then. And as far as I know, Li Hongxin spends a huge amount of winnings in the capital every year, but not a single copper coin enters the Jinyi Hou Mansion."
Longtai smiled and said: "The Jinyi Qi family has always been honest and self-sufficient. The Qi family has a grudge against the Li family, and the Li family would not dare to give away money." After drinking a cup of tea, he continued: "The candidate for investigating the Heiyan Village incident, the court said. There are quite a few of them, and many of them are shrewd and capable, but when I send them, I am afraid that when they arrive in Xichuan, not only will they not be able to conduct a detailed investigation, but they will also get into trouble with Li Hongxin and confuse me."
Qi Ning nodded slightly, thinking that this was also true. Wei Shutong, the dignified governor of Xichuan, was once found a way to control Wei Shutong by Li Hongxin. Li Hongxin had a lot of money in his hands. If ordinary people were sent there, under Li Hongxin's money offensive, He may not really investigate the case with all his heart.
"Your Majesty thinks that if I go to Xichuan, I will be able to find some clues?" Qi Ning asked with a smile.
Longtai shook his head and said: "Actually, I never thought that you could really find out anything. Your subsequent performance exceeded my expectations, which made me very happy."
"Your Majesty, this... what does this mean?" Qining asked in surprise.
Longtai lowered his voice and said: "I have suspected that Li Hongxin is involved in this matter from the beginning. Li Hongxin is deeply rooted in Xichuan and investigating the Black Rock Village incident. It is not easy to find out something in an open and honest manner, so I am proceeding in two ways. One way as a cover, the other as a covert investigation.”
Qining's body trembled, and Long Tai said slowly: "Only when the Jinyi Qi family arrives in Xichuan, Li Hongxin will not dare to take it lightly, and will definitely focus all his attention on you. The Qi family and the Li family The feud is very deep, so Li Hongxin knows that if someone from the Qi family comes to Xichuan, they will go all out to find the flaws and loopholes of the Li family, so he will naturally use all his strength to deal with you...!"
Qi Ning had understood at this time and said with a wry smile: "The emperor asked me to go to Xichuan. It was actually a pretense. The purpose was to get Li Hongxin to focus on me. But the emperor secretly sent another group of people. That is Really investigate the Black Rock Village incident."
Longtai put his hand on Qining's shoulder and said: "Don't blame me. I didn't mean to hide it from you, but if I tell you the matter, your behavior in Xichuan will not be too natural. The matter in Xichuan is a matter of concern." It's important, so I can't be cautious." He smiled and said, "But your performance in Xichuan was better than I thought. If it weren't for you, I would have just let it go this time."
"Miscalculation?"
"I always thought it was Li Hongxin who was behind the scenes, but the development of things has proven that Li Hongxin is not the real mastermind behind the scenes. He is just a chess piece at best." Longtai's expression became solemn: "With his current power, it is impossible to persuade If the Miao people rebel, no Miao people will really defect to him and obey his orders."
Qi Ning frowned and said: "The Emperor of Cangxi Miao King has been killed. Naturally, the Emperor has known about it for a long time."
Longtai nodded and said: "The second son of the Miao King, Langchatulu, killed the Miao King and framed you and Dandu Gu, and almost won the throne of the Miao King. Langchatulu dared to set such a trap, and naturally someone followed him. Support him, and that person will never be Li Hongxin, and Langchatulu will never obey Li Hongxin’s command.”
Qi Ning thought that the little emperor knew everything clearly, and he hid it much deeper than he thought. He only heard Longtai continue: "The incident that happened in Cangxi Miao Village has made it clear to me that Li Hongxin is not the real one." Black Hand, everything that happened in Qianwu Ridge after that made me understand that what happened in Xichuan one after another was caused by someone carefully weaving a big network." He sighed: "At that time, I was always worried that you would have an accident in Xichuan. I only thought that your opponent was Li Hongxin, but later developments let me know that your opponent at that time was much stronger than Li Hongxin. If you hadn't exposed Langchadulu's conspiracy in Cangxi Miao Village, then Once he becomes the Miao King, the Miao family rebellion that I am most worried about will happen...!"
Qi Ning sighed: "The emperor is strategizing, and I admire him very much." He frowned and said: "But why is the emperor so concerned about Xichuan's affairs? This time he even met Zhuo Qianyi in person and asked him to investigate the matter?"
"This matter has been a big deal from the beginning." Longtai said: "The purpose of the epidemic in the capital is to frame the Black Lotus Sect, but in fact it is not entirely the case. To frame the Black Lotus Sect, it will attract the Shenhou Mansion to attack the Black Lotus Sect. There are many ways to teach strikes, so why do your opponents insist on going to war in the capital?"
Qi Ning nodded slightly and said: "What the emperor said is absolutely true. In fact, I have always felt that the epidemic in the capital is probably not as simple as framing the Black Lotus Sect."
"Think about it for yourself, what would have been the consequences if the epidemic had not been controlled in time?" Longtai looked grim: "The capital will fall into chaos. When the epidemic becomes serious, even the soldiers and horses will not be able to control the situation. If it happens at that time , the capital city of Ye will become a dead city, and I will have to move the capital. Once the capital is moved, the situation will be chaotic, and people with ulterior motives can find opportunities. This is the most serious and terrifying consequence of the epidemic in the capital, but in fact we have controlled it He defeated the epidemic and controlled the damage to the minimum range, but still allowed the Shenhou Mansion to find the opportunity to issue the Iron Blood Message. Qining, think about it for yourself, how powerful your opponent is. No matter whether the epidemic spreads successfully or not, you can get them. The desired result is that not only the Shenhou Mansion, but also the imperial court is under their control...!" The little emperor's eyes were like daggers: "To plan such a large-scale layout, are our opponents just ordinary people? I suspect that the person who compiled this network is a huge force, and even court officials are among them."
…