Troubles in the Jinyi Hou Mansion came one after another. Gu Qinghan supported Nuo Da's mansion. Although he was still calm and composed in front of others, he was already exhausted mentally and physically. After the night, he was extremely tired. When he returned to the Hou Mansion, Yang Ning comforted him. Take a short break.
Yang Ning knew in his heart that if Qi Jing had been alive, the things that were happening one after another would not have happened. However, after Qi Jing passed away, many people with ulterior motives came to add insult to injury.
Although Dou Lianzhong has appeared, Yang Ning also realized that this person must be involved with everyone, but he did not feel that the Dou family was the mastermind behind the scenes.
Although the Minister of Hubu is a high-ranking official in the empire, the Dou family alone may not have the strength to deal with the Jinyi Hou Mansion.
Although the Jinyihou Mansion seems to be in decline, the two generations of Jinyihou have made outstanding achievements in the empire, and they are both generals. At least they have a deep foundation in the military. Looking only at the protection Xue Lingfeng, the commander of the Tiger God Camp, showed to him that day, It can be seen that the foundation of connections laid by Jinyihou has not completely disappeared with Qi Jing's death. No matter who wants to take action against Jinyihou's mansion, they still have to think carefully.
Jiangling tax money has not arrived, Zhongling Courtyard was assassinated, and this fire broke out in the pawn shop. On the surface, these things seem to be unrelated, but Yang Ning is still keenly aware of the behind-the-scenes of each incident. There must be a thread connecting them.
He even felt that the Jinyihou Mansion was actually on the edge of a cliff, and the other party would never stop there. If his guess was correct, there should be a back-up plan. There was only a trace of negligence on the part of the Jinyihou Mansion. It is very likely that there will be a disaster.
He was already very sensitive to the approaching danger, and this feeling was very strong at this moment.
The most irritating thing is that the current Qi family is almost in disarray. The three old masters and Qi Yu's mother and son are obviously colluding together, colluding with each other, and are alienated from the Hou Mansion. The pillars of the Qi family who can stand alone are no longer alive, and the remaining ones are no longer alive. All of them are drunkards. Not only are these people of no benefit to the Hou Mansion, but they have become a cancer for the Hou Mansion.
Yang Ning naturally has no feelings for the Jinyihou Mansion, but he knows in his heart that although Gu Qinghan is capable in doing things, she is still a woman. If someone is really plotting against the Jinyihou Mansion, then the opponent's strength is definitely not weak. Maybe Gu Qinghan It is difficult to cope with the storm inside the house, but it is not easy to cope with the storm coming from outside.
The waves and clouds in the imperial city are treacherous, and the entire capital seems calm, but Yang Ning always feels that this is like the calm before the storm. He cannot predict how big things will happen next, but he knows that if he is not careful, the Jinyi Hou Mansion It is very likely that they will be shattered into pieces, and the fate of people like Gu Qinghan will definitely be very sad.
If he left at this time, given the current situation in the Jinyihou Mansion, he might not have much energy to pursue him. If he just left it alone, Yang Ning always felt a little uneasy.
He thought to himself that he would do his best to protect it for now, but when it became uncontrollable, he would make plans on his own.
Dou Lianzhong was true to his word. Not long after the sun rose in the sky, Yang Ning received a report and informed the prince of the Ministry of Revenue to visit him.
Yang Ning was also unambiguous and asked Dou Lianzhong to come into the house.
Zhao Xin followed Dou Lianzhong into the mansion and was led by a servant to the main hall. However, Yang Ning was not in the main hall. The servant only said that the prince was washing up and would come out to see guests soon.
The tea was brought to him and Dou Lianzhong took a sip. It was indeed good tea. Although he was the son of the Minister of Household Affairs, he had never sat in the main hall of the Marquis Mansion so arrogantly. Now he came as a debt collector. I felt comfortable all over my body.
"I heard that the affairs of your Marquis Mansion are taken care of by the Third Madam. I came here today to do business. It doesn't matter whether the Crown Prince can see you or not, but I want to see the Third Madam." Dou Lianzhong held the tea, his eyes flashed, and he looked at the waiter. The servant on the side said: "Actually, your heir apparent cannot handle such a big matter."
Naturally, he had known for a long time that the person in charge of Jinyihou Mansion was a beautiful widow, but he had never seen her. When he saw it last night, he was shocked. He is a person who wanders around flowers. He has seen pink butterflies and green willows. There were countless ladies, including ladies, but it was rare to see someone like Gu Qinghan.
The servant just lowered his head and said nothing.
Seeing that there was no one around, Zhao Xin leaned closer and whispered: "Sir, Qining seemed very confident last night. He couldn't really come up with more than ten thousand taels of silver, could he? The Jinyi Hou Mansion seems to have a big family and a big business. Ten thousand taels of silver." An extra couple of silver doesn’t seem to be a big deal to them.”
"The outside of the gold and jade is ruined." Dou Lianzhong chuckled and said in a low voice: "I know the situation in their home very well. I sent people to keep an eye on the area last night. Qining didn't go out at all after he returned home. It's impossible to come up with more than ten thousand taels of silver at once." He looked confident, "Just watch and see how I deal with them today."
After waiting and waiting, Gu Qinghan and Qi Ning never appeared. Dou Lianzhong lost his patience and stood up and said: "Where are you three ladies? You owe money to pay, how can you be fine if you hide like this?"
The servant finally raised his head and said: "The third lady is not feeling well, and all matters in the house will be handled by the prince for the time being."
Dou Lianzhong was disappointed for a while, but he still said: "Since it is the prince who handles it, what about others?"
"This...!" The servant hesitated and then said: "The prince is busy in the side hall...!"
"What's more important than paying off debts?" Dou Lianzhong rolled his eyes and strode out the door, "Lead the way."
The servant was still hesitating, but Dou Lianzhong had already scolded him: "Why are you so dazed? Why don't you lead the way? I don't have time to waste here."
The servant had no choice but to lead the way. Dou Lianzhong led Zhao Xin behind him, passed through a long corridor, and went around to the back door of the side hall. The back door was slightly open. Dou Lianzhong looked inside and saw Yang Ning sitting there. He was sitting at a table, holding his chin in his hands, staring at something on the table, motionless, as if he was in a daze.
Dou Lianzhong was puzzled. The servant was about to report. Dou Lianzhong raised his hand to stop him and walked in lightly. The sun was shining brightly outside, but the side hall was slightly dark. Only then did he see clearly that there was an antique on the table. , Dou Lianzhong was well-informed, and he could tell at a glance that it was a horse made of colored glaze.
He put his hands behind his back and walked behind Yang Ning. Yang Ning didn't seem to notice. Dou Lianzhong glanced at the glazed horse, thinking that he thought it was some precious thing. This toy only cost a few dozen taels of silver to break the sky. The glazed horse was nothing. A rare thing, but the shape of this horse is lifelike and lifelike, as if it is galloping with its hooves raised.
He secretly laughed in his heart, feeling that the Jinyi Hou Mansion had indeed fallen into decline. The dignified Jinyi Prince was in a daze for such a glazed horse, as if he was fascinated by it, as if he had never seen anything good.
"Your Majesty, what are you looking at?" Dou Lianzhong wanted to scare Yang Ning. He raised his hand and patted Yang Ning's shoulder. Yang Ning screamed strangely and almost jumped up. Dou Lianzhong saw his frightened expression and burst into laughter. He said: "The prince is from a martial arts family after all. How can he be so brave?"
Yang Ning seemed a little embarrassed and forced a smile: "It turns out to be Dou... Brother Dou!"
Dou Lianzhong's face darkened and he said: "Your Majesty, brothers have also settled accounts. There are no brothers or sisters today. You should know what I am doing here." Looking at Xin Zhao who was standing outside the door, he gave a look, and Xin Zhao immediately came in. He came, cupped his hands and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, I'm here as promised."
Yang Ning raised his hand and scratched the back of his head and said, "I was just thinking about this. Since I have made a promise, I will not break my promise."
Dou Lianzhong sat down on the chair next to him and said, "Your Majesty, we are not outsiders. I am an upright person and speak my mind. Can you really come up with fifteen thousand taels of silver?" He added, "We want It’s cash money.”
"Cash silver?" Yang Ning frowned and said, "To be honest, I don't have that much cash on me."
Dou Lianzhong immediately darkened his face, "You don't have any money? Then you still vowed last night that you will repay any debt you owe? Your Majesty, the reputation of Jinyihou has been accumulated by two generations of your Qi family. If you go back on your words and this spreads, the reputation of Jinyihou will be ruined." If you want to plummet, the credibility you have finally accumulated will be ruined by you in an instant."
"Don't be impatient." Yang Ning said, "I didn't say I wouldn't pay it back." Pointing to the glazed horse on the table, he smiled bitterly and said, "Aren't I thinking about using this treasure to pay off the debt?"
"Baby?" Dou Lianzhong glanced at the glazed horse and said with a smile: "My lord, do you think this piece of shit can pay for fifteen thousand taels of silver?" He said disdainfully: "To tell you the truth, Such a thing can't even get through the door of our Minister of Household Affairs. It's amazing that it can be worth fifty taels of silver if it breaks through the sky. You actually want to use it to pay off debts. Do you really don't know the goods?"
"Not valuable?" Yang Ning also laughed, "Brother Dou, do you think it's just a glazed horse? If that's the case, how can it become an heirloom of our Qi family?"
When Dou Lianzhong heard this, he looked slightly surprised and said, "You said this is the heirloom of your Jinyihou Mansion?"
Yang Ning sighed and said: "This was handed down from my grandfather, but it has always been kept by my grandmother. Now that my house does not have so much cash, my grandmother reluctantly took it out. If it were not a difficult time, ordinary people would just look at it. It's rare to see it at all." Pretending to be surprised, he said: "Brother Dou should be a master of rare treasures, why did his eyes fail this time?"
Seeing Yang Ning's serious look, Dou Lianzhong wondered if he had really made a mistake. After all, the Jinyihou Mansion once had its heyday, and if they had several priceless treasures, Dou Lianzhong really didn't doubt it. Yang Ning said This glazed horse is an heirloom of the Qi family, and I'm afraid there is another mystery behind it.
"Your Majesty, can you let me take a closer look?" Dou Lianzhong usually regarded himself as an expert in this field, thinking that he could not lose face in front of Yang Ning.
Yang Ning hesitated for a moment, then finally nodded and said, "I'm afraid this thing will be handed over to you later. You can take a look at it, but be careful."
Only then did Dou Lianzhong reach out and carefully pick up the family heirloom from Jinyihou Mansion.