In the deep winter of the tenth year of Qingli, the great victory in Qingzhou, the great general Li Hong succeeded in the world, and was summoned to return to Beijing. In his thirties, he was appointed as the deputy envoy of the Privy Council, which is extremely honorable. However, those who sang the praises of the great Daqing Dynasty in the capital naturally saw very clearly that the position of deputy envoy of the Privy Council was actually just an idle job. As in the city, he has his own force. And no one has forgotten that the previous person who ascended to the lofty position of deputy envoy of the Privy Council at such a young age was Qin Heng, and that person's fate was not so glorious.
After Li Hongcheng returned to Beijing, he naturally went to the palace to meet him at the first time. His Majesty the Emperor did not vent his anger to him in the imperial study, but just talked about the scenery of Xiliang calmly. Fan Ruoruo's mood fell to the bottom. After leaving the palace, he went to the Privy Council to hand over the errand, and set a date for returning to the court. Li Hongcheng returned to the palace, and saw Prince Jing, who had just been released from the palace for many days, and his weak and pitiful sister, The family of three sat silently, the old prince sighed again and again, patted Li Hongcheng on the shoulder, and said, "Fortunately, nothing happened. You can persist until today before returning to the capital, and you can be regarded as an explanation to the other side."
Having said that, Li Hongcheng went to Fan Mansion in person that night. He knew how much Fan Xian had expected of him. It dragged on for a few more days, but he was summoned back in embarrassment after all, and he always had to give Fan Xian an explanation in person.
No one knew about the conversation between this pair of friends in the study in the back garden of the Fan Mansion. Presumably it was just an expression of apology to each other. government.
"I never thought that things would develop like this." Fan Xian smiled wryly, stood up, hugged him, patted his back lightly, and sent him out of the study.
Li Hongcheng turned around when he left the study room, looked at him worriedly, and said, "Deng Ziyue should have escaped, but I'm afraid that several people from your Qi Nian team died on Xiliang Road, after all, this is yours." I don't know the inside story about the things in the courtyard, I hope you can control your emotions."
"I don't know who the betrayer is. Maybe it was just one of the three meetings. The people in the courtyard found out about it. After all... Yan Bingyun went to sit in town this time. I don't have much to say about this person. Confident." Fan Xian's expression was a little gloomy, and he said, "But don't worry, I've never been very interested in things like revenge, I just feel a little flustered."
"If even you feel flustered, then I advise you to be more honest recently." Li Hongcheng shook his head, rejected Fan Xian's intention to send him out of the house, and patted him on the shoulder like his father comforting himself. , flicking up the skirt of his clothes, and walked outside the mansion.
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Seeing Li Hongcheng's slightly lonely figure disappear into the winter garden, Fan Xian was silent for a long time before turning around and sitting on the master's chair in the study again. Hongcheng had previously relayed Gong Dian's evaluation of him, and Fan Xian couldn't help but feel the bitterness in his mouth from that evaluation, was he arrogant? If you really want to get to the bottom of it, Fan Xian's arrangements in Dongyi City and Xiliang do have this kind of meaning, and this kind of meaning is undoubtedly untenable on the moral level.
How can a man use the blood and lives of soldiers as a bargaining chip when he is happy with his hatred! But who can really understand Fan Xian's thoughts, he just didn't want too many innocent people in the world to die because of the war between himself and His Majesty the Emperor, that's why he chose the current arrangement .
The victory in Qingzhou was a perfect manifestation of His Majesty's foresight. Whether it was Hu Ge's feint attack or Shan Yu's reaction, all of these were laid by the Overwatch Council or Fan Xian with a lot of effort. He was ruthlessly and calmly used by His Majesty the Emperor.
Fan Xian didn't have the slightest feeling of closeness to the barbarians on the grassland. The dead bodies and burned houses on the Xiliang Road farmland would only make him applaud the Qingzhou victory. The problem is that this time the victory easily tore up Fan Xian. With all the arrangements on Xiliang Road, if Li Hongcheng still wanted to procrastinate and not return to Beijing under the circumstances, he would be looking for death.
Fan Xian felt chills and admiration for His Majesty's methods and abilities, and an irresistible cowardly thought arose in his heart.
"You heard it all. This matter has nothing to do with me." Fan Xian put his hands on the desk and closed his eyes wearily.
Back in the Central Plains, Begonia Duoduo, who had put on the cotton padded jacket again, appeared behind him. After the Battle of Hongshan Pass, she and Yiba in Dingzhou City left at about the same time. Li Hongcheng returned to Beijing very quickly. But still a day later than her. Now that the monitoring of Fan's residence in the palace has been relaxed a lot, how could it be possible to stop the Northern Qi saintess from entering the residence quietly.
It's been a year since we saw each other, Haitang silently looked at the young man in the grand teacher's chair, thinking in his heart that he was actually not very old, but why he looked a bit old-fashioned now, with a smug look on his face. The exhaustion that can't be wiped away. Thinking of what happened in Nanqing these days, and thinking of the dead head of the Overwatch Council, Haitang suddenly understood why Fan Xian looked so tired.
"But because of what you asked Hong Yiqing to bring to me, many people died on the grassland." Haitang said.
Fan Xian opened his eyes and said with a sneer, "I just asked Wang Ting to agree to Hu Ge's dispatch of troops, but I didn't expect that Shan Yu would want to take advantage of this opportunity."
Haitang was slightly taken aback, and did not explain to him that she had tried to suppress Su Bida's ambition, and said lightly: "But in the end, you Nan Qing still took advantage of it."
Fan Xian was silent, and said after a long while: "You don't need to worry about how the news got out. I sent two people to Xiliang Road. Hong Yiqing has not been able to gather the original four people. It is obviously Ziyue. During the handover, I was watched by the courtyard... "
Speaking of this, he took a deep breath and suddenly thought of the young general of the Ye family mentioned in the information. It is said that the young general is now leading four thousand light cavalry into the grassland to chase Shan Yu Wang Ting Fan Xian couldn't help admiring this man's courage, but thinking of the cold winter and being deep in the grassland, he feared that the four thousand cavalry would never come back alive.
"Those barbarians who moved from the north to the grassland... still listen to your orders?" He looked up at Haitang, and said: "After all, you are the princess of the snowy field, and you are respected by Shan Yu on the grassland, with a high status. It must have some power."
Haitang frowned slightly, and a hint of anger flashed in those eyes as bright as the North Sea, and said coldly: "At this time, you still worry about the life and death of those four thousand Qingqi? You really deserve to be a powerful minister of the Nanqing Dynasty... Why don't you think about the grasslands? Go to those tribes that are completely damaged and have no resistance?"
"I'm from Qing, then I'm from the Central Plains, and finally I'm a human." Fan Xian replied with his head bowed, "As you said, Speed was too ambitious this time and took away a large number of young and strong from various tribes. The power on the ground is already empty, after Qingzhou Dashou, four thousand Qingqi rushed into the grassland, as long as those snowfield barbarians who stayed in the west of the grassland keep a distance from them, maybe they may really come back."
"Xihu is finished, and if the timing is right, those of your tribe who migrated from the north to the grassland may be able to take advantage of the situation." Fan Xian lured Haitang lightly, "You must accept this reality and then use it. "
"I'm different from you. There are many things that I know are in my interests, but they don't agree with my principles, so I can't do them." Haitang slightly lowered her eyes, and replied softly: "It's your words at this time that really make me feel uncomfortable." I'm a little surprised, you're obviously a ruthless person who puts pride on himself and doesn't put Qing's interests first, why do you have such a request?"
"If I really don't consider the interests of the Qing Kingdom and the entire world, why am I still suffering in this mansion? Whether it's to throw blood or hide from the world, I have already done it."
"When did you become a saint?"
"I'm not a saint, it's just that at a certain stage in my life, when the highest desire for power has been satisfied, I will pay more attention to spiritual considerations... and I don't like being seen as a cold-blooded and ruthless person. , who only know how to use the blood of soldiers."
"After all, you are still a hypocritical and selfish person." Haitang looked at him and said, then put the small knife in his arms in front of him.
Fan Xian replied blankly: "If this is hypocrisy and selfishness, I think the people all over the world will be very grateful to my vain people... I know that your emperor is a daughter, so let me blackmail you."
Haitang's body trembled slightly, she watched him without speaking for a long time.
Fan Xian also remained silent, and the whole study room was immersed in a depressing atmosphere. After a long time, he asked sadly: "Actually, there are many times when I need help and advice. Yan Bingyun and Wang Qinian acted in this role, now that Yan Bingyun is his pure minister, I have arranged for the old Wangtou to go away, and there is no place to ask... I am not a god, facing him, there is no With a sliver of confidence and no one to help me, I am really helpless."
"Are you acting pitiful in front of me?" Haitang said sarcastically, but she was slightly taken aback, sighed and said, "What do you want to ask?"
Fan Xian patted his hands lightly, and seriously asked Haitang to sit down beside the desk, then took a sip of cold tea to moisten his throat, stuck out his tongue and licked his lips, and said seriously: "My sister is in the palace, I The whole family is in Kyoto, those loyal subordinates who are attached to me and believe in me are in the shadow of this country, I have the power but it is difficult to shake the cornerstone of this court, and I don't want to shake this cornerstone, so that the moss ants above All the rabbits of the sun fell to their deaths, but my opponent possessed great strength, indifferent rationality, and extraordinary planning ability. Afterwards, some news from the palace revealed that he gradually stepped down from the altar, and gradually began to become like a mortal, leaving behind some emotional gaps, but I still believe that his blood is cold enough, His heart is strong enough, once I really make a move, these people I want to protect will really... cease to exist. "
"I used to be very afraid of death, but now I am not so afraid of death." Fan Xian continued to make a serious conclusion after a long speech, "But I am very afraid of the death of the people I love and protect. problem, can you help me solve it?"
Haitang didn't stay silent for too long, and said directly: "No."
Fan Xian spread his hands, heaved a long sigh, and said, "Look, there is no one in this world who can help me solve this problem."
"What do you mean he stepped down from the altar?" Haitang was obviously very interested in this matter, she didn't know where Fan Xian's judgment on Emperor Qing came from.
Fan Xian put his right hand gently on the position of his heart, and said with a half-smile: "After all, father and son are connected, and there are some small changes that you can't notice, but I can notice... He asked me to stay in the mansion. Make these hands and feet, and then smash them one by one for me to see. Although it shows the power of a king, don’t you think that this is actually very troublesome? He has too many ways to make all this invisible , but he didn't do that, he...was angry with me, Chen Pingping, and my mother."
"A person who was ruthless and ruthless, but now he has learned to be angry, don't you think he is becoming more and more like a normal person?" Fan Xian shook his head and smiled bitterly. Think about the consequences."
"But you still have no way to change this trend." Haitang sat on the chair and lowered her head slightly, "You have been sitting in the capital for the past few months, but you have thrown the cause of chaos to all parts of the world. Your idea is actually very simple. .”
She raised her head and stared at Fan Xian's bloodshot eyes with bright eyes, and said solemnly: "I think this is also Chen Pingping's arrangement for revenge. You have not won Emperor Qing's trust as he imagined, it's your poor vanity, and at the same time, you have no way to really attack the world, it's your poor hypocrisy It's messing around."
"You should understand very well that your temperament seems to be stern, but in fact you are not an open-minded hero after all. There are many things you can't do." Haitang blinked slightly, and suppressed the frightening coldness in her eyes. , Said calmly: "Since that's the case, there is no other word to describe what you are doing now other than naive and childish, because in the end...you still don't have the confidence to confront him head-on."
Fan Xian was silent for a moment and said, "Who can have such confidence? In the past few months, I have only been beating the side drum, trying to warn him, so as to maintain a situation that may be shattered at any moment, and to protect these people around me as much as possible... If not Your Majesty thought that I didn't break the jar, didn't throw half of the Qing Kingdom into turmoil, do you think Yang Wanli, Cheng Jialin, and those people in one place will survive?"
He raised his head, stared at Haitang and said: "I have to prove my strength in order to save these people's lives. Yes, at the last moment, I still have to compete with His Majesty face to face. I don't have the confidence... So I have been Waiting for someone to come back."
"Blind Master." Haitang didn't ask, but directly said the name that seemed to have magic power.
"You can't always place your hopes on these ancestors who supported you in the past. Whether it's your mother, Chen Pingping, or Master Fan Shangshu, they've done too much for you." Haitang looked at Fan Xian, feeling anxious. Suddenly there was a trace of pity, "Have you ever thought that if the blind master never comes back, what's the point of you suffering in this capital?"
Haitang sternly advised Fan Xian, "A lot of things have to be done by yourself, whether you have the confidence or not, but the current situation has forced you to this point, since you can't be indifferent to the death of your mother and Chen Pingping, then you It will never be possible to play his good courtier and good son again."
Fan Xian suddenly found these words harsh. He frowned, raised his hand, stopped Haitang from speaking, and said in a low voice, "You haven't personally experienced his strength, so you can easily say the two words of confidence. a word."
Haitang sighed, and said: "But how long can you wait? He didn't even think about what happened between you and His Majesty in Cangzhou City. Hidden dangers. Then there is Jiangnan, Dongyi City... No, maybe he will ignore Dongyi City at all, but go directly north. Once the situation develops to that day, all your power will be wiped out What else can you do other than just nestle in the capital like an idler, watching him step by step towards the top, watching him sneer at the souls of your elders?"
"He can't move Jiangnan, if he moves that place, I have to move, and if I move, the whole Qing Kingdom, including him, will feel pain."
"I don't know what you did in the inner library, but I believe that a character like Emperor Qing would not care about any loss because of the obsession in his heart." Haitang said.
At this time, a voice sounded from the shadow of the study, extremely cold: "The emperor is not a human being, how can he know the feeling of pain."
It was the shadow who was talking, the shadow that had been floating in Kyoto like a shadow for the past few months. Immediately afterwards, another direct and steady voice rang out, seeming to be trying to convince Fan Xian, "I don't know much about self-confidence, but if I really want to draw a sword... I will tell myself that I must be confident."
The person who said this was Wang Shisanlang, the closed disciple of Jianlu with a firm heart, even if he was facing the unfathomable master Qing Emperor, he was still so calm and persistent.
As Fan Xian analyzed before, His Majesty the Emperor, or the Qing Kingdom, the biggest source of life right now lies in the extreme lack of cutting-edge personal force. Those who were once powerful all died one by one in the internal friction of the Qing Kingdom. Today, more than half of the ninth-rank powerhouses in the world are in Fan Xian's camp. Even Emperor Qing would not dare to underestimate this strength.
If Mr. Hong, father and son of the Qin family, Yan Xiaoyi and other masters are still alive, then the current Qing Kingdom can really be called an iron-clad camp.
Fan Xian was silent for a long time. Instead of directly answering the persuasion of the three extremely strong men in the study, he frowned and said, "I don't want you all to die at his hands... Besides, this is my business after all."
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In the deep winter of the tenth year of Qingli, Fan Xian was like a beast trapped in a snowstorm, restless, gloomy, and restless. He watched helplessly that His Majesty the mighty emperor cut off his right arm and right arm with a scheming far beyond his own, and watched the court of the Qing Dynasty march towards the achievement of unifying the mainland in an orderly manner, but he was unable to do anything.
In front of Emperor Qing, Fan Xian, who had always been good at hiding himself, finally became unconfident for the first time. He didn't know how to defeat such a powerful figure. So he was waiting, but he didn't know if the person he was waiting for would come back. And in order to ensure the safety of himself and those around him during the waiting time, he is working hard to do something.
However, the capital city was unexpectedly calm. According to the information that Baoyuelou learned very hard, Fan Wujiu in the residence of Master He was injured in a surprise attack and has disappeared since then, while He Zongwei did not implicated in this matter. While Fan Xian was slightly disappointed, he finally understood that the old fox, Master Hu, was not so easy to use.
What frustrates Fan Xian even more is that news finally came from Jiangnan, bad news.
The transmission of information in this era is always so slow, so slow that it makes people angry. The news Fan Xian received in the twelfth lunar month was actually a month ago.
The Neiku Transit Department received the secret decree from the palace, and started the preparations for the opening of the warehouse next spring according to the plan. However, this year, the bidding process of the Neiku has undergone a shocking change—changing the bidding for the preparation of silver to the bidding for the imperial court evaluation report— This change has directly transferred the power of negotiating investment from the imperial court to the merchants, and it has completely become an arrangement on the part of the imperial court. winning the bid.
As a result, the Ming family presided over by Xia Qifei may not be able to continue its previous glory even with the secret support of China Merchants Bank and Taiping Bank. This is undoubtedly a heavy blow to Fan Pai's strength.
The bidding rules for the inner treasury have been fixed since the completion of the three workshops, no matter whether it is the old Ye family or the later inner treasury, no one dares to touch this rule lightly. And this winter's change is undoubtedly a shameful setback. Everyone knows that His Majesty's decree will have an inestimable adverse impact on the commercial activities of the entire Jiangnan.
However, to the surprise of many people, the giant merchants in the south of the Yangtze River did not form a group to resist this faint decree. On the contrary, the Xiong family in Lingnan and the Sun family in Quanzhou kept silent, while several salt merchants were eager to try. Several of the children of a salt merchant died at the hands of Mr. Fan because of the Chunwei case.
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(Tomorrow starts tearing up, a little unconfident, just like Fan Xian, anyway, try your best... Please vote monthly to support me, to calm my heart, thank you, thank you.) (, If you want to know what will happen next, please log in , more chapters, support the author, support genuine!)