"Do you know how the copper barbed wire that His Highness pulled when he killed Huma was invented?"
"Huh? Isn't that iron?"
"It's not that big of a difference, you know?"
To be honest, Northern Qi really didn’t have such a thing. Northern Qi’s monarchs and ministers were also most interested in the military products in Nanqing’s Neiku Sanfang. Finally, one side of the conversation took the initiative to bring this up, and the other girl’s family naturally felt a little happy. He said sincerely, "I don't know."
"Oh, the copper wire is hard to pull." The gentle and gentle voice sighed, "I heard that the merchants in Jiangnan pulled it out forcibly in order to grab a piece of copper."
The joke was funny on its own, but came out cold as it came out of his mouth.
So the girl just curled her lips.
He asked again: "Do you know how the channel for the Shahu Lake in Shazhou to break through the embankment and enter the river was dug out?"
The girl shook her head, she didn't really want to play with him.
The man shook his head and said, "Because the Jiangnan businessman dropped a copper coin into a mouse hole on the embankment."
…
…
Haitang looked at Fan Xian who was telling jokes, and looked at him quietly for a long time before saying, "I can understand these two jokes. I just don't know what you want to say."
Fan Xian scratched his itchy and sore neck. Sisi hadn't been in a good mood for the past two days. She brushed her hair too hard every day, and the back of her hair was pulled too hard, so there were some small red spots. He scratched and said: "These two jokes tell us that for businessmen, stinginess is always the most admired virtue, and profit is always the temptation they cannot resist."
These are two jokes he heard about Jews in his previous life, and it's not too awkward to use them on Jiangnan businessmen at this time.
He turned around, pointed to Haitang at his vest, and scratched himself just now, but the area of the itch rapidly expanded, and immediately ran to the center of Tian Shi's back, although with Fan Xian's small trick, his palm could easily Dig there, but it doesn't feel good.
So he pointed to his vest.
Haitang glared at him, but she had already stretched out her hand, gently scratching his back through the clothes.
Feeling the masterful hand that could easily defeat the second priest, scratching his itchy spot with the supreme method, Fan Xian felt his whole body at ease, moaned comfortably, and continued: "It's the nature of a businessman to be stingy. Ming Qingda is so willing to cut meat, it is a bit unexpected, and it is related to interests, next year I will definitely appease the Sun family in Quanzhou and the businesses that have failed this year, so I would like to trouble you to tell your emperor to know, next year can at most keep this year No matter how many shares there are, it will be extremely difficult.”
Haitang hummed.
Immediately afterwards, she continued to ask: "How does the Ming family plan to deal with it? It seems that you are very satisfied with Ming Qingda's attitude."
Fan Xian shook his head, and said seriously: "His attitude does not fully represent the Ming family's attitude. What happened that night was not over yet, and it is impossible for me to stop. The Ming family's current injuries are all on the economy. During the past year, I can keep his family bleeding by relying on the shipment from the internal warehouse alone... But the whole body of the Ming family is still healthy, and it is impossible to eat them in one bite, so as long as I am in Jiangnan for one day , I will go to cut a piece of meat every few days."
The so-called encroachment may be the reason, but Haitang couldn't help but feel a little sad for Ming Qingda. That old man Ming put on a low profile, but he still couldn't control Fan Xian's powerful plan.
As if guessing what she was thinking, Fan Xian explained: "The Ming family will definitely not sit still. The problem is that Xiaoyan's plan this time is different from dealing with the Cui family. Everything that was done was in accordance with the rules of the Qing Law. This is not a conspiracy, but a conspiracy. Facing the gap in strength, it is impossible for the Ming family to counterattack head-on. Don't think that Ming Qingda is purely trying to calm things down. He is not the same as wasting time, waiting for the situation in Beijing to change."
He said with emphasis: "For the Ming family, the situation in the capital must change, otherwise they will have to wait to be eaten by the court."
Haitang said softly: "So you won't let them just wait in peace, but you should try your best to weaken their strength before the situation in Kyoto changes."
"That's right." Fan Xian said expressionlessly, "Everything is done according to the rules. My only worry is that the reputation of the Ming family is a bit incomprehensible. There is no problem with the accounts of the internal treasury transshipment department. The ability to suppress traces is too strong... Now that there is no news from that island, it seems that someone is helping them cover it up. Facing such a seemingly gentle and virtuous family, if I, or the Overwatch Council, treat the Ming family The pressure is too tight, and the posture of the Ming family is too pitiful, and the scholars and common people in the south of the Yangtze River may rebound."
"You are not a person who cares about what others say." Haitang said with a smile.
Fan Xian also laughed: "That's true. But I don't care, it doesn't mean that His Majesty doesn't care. Your Majesty wants to leave a name in history, but also wants to have eternal monarchy. This is a troublesome thing. If it wasn't for this, the court has too many The method can directly level the Ming family, so why haven’t you done it? Isn’t it because you are afraid of leaving a bad impression on the hearts of the people, and you are afraid of leaving a disgraceful mark on the history books.”
"Is Emperor Qing such a person?" Haitang asked suspiciously.
"Believe me." Fan Xian said with a wry smile, "Your Majesty is indeed a man of good reputation, otherwise he wouldn't have insisted on arguing with your emperor for his leisure... This time His Majesty sent me Jiangnan accepts the Ming family, of course I hope that I can do it beautifully, and I want to trample the Ming family to death without getting a bad reputation. If the time comes, the people in Jiangnan and even the world will complain about the Ming family... If there is another disturbance in the power, even if His Majesty is ruthless enough to let me be a black dog, he will be forced to call me back to Beijing."
"Since that's the case, today is already the fourth day since Neiku opened the bid. Why didn't you do anything?" Haitang asked curiously.
Fan Xian smiled and said, "Who said I didn't do anything? I still put a lot of thought into Baoyue Tower."
When mentioning Baoyue Tower, Haitang felt a little strange, sighed and said: "You borrowed money from me to repair the river, that's all right, but the money from my Great Qi Dynasty...you used it to open a brothel, the news spread back Going to Beijing, I'm afraid His Majesty will laugh at me, my little aunt."
Fan Xian knew that this Northern Qi sage always felt a little uncomfortable about opening a brothel for her, so he said seriously, "He Gong is doing charity, as you know, the resettlement work I'm about to start is also doing charity, but In fact, you don't know, opening a brothel... is also doing charity."
Haitang was very puzzled, thinking that the brothel forced women to do such pitiful things, what does it have to do with doing good
"The two oldest occupations of mankind, one is a killer and the other is a prostitute." Fan Xian snapped his fingers and pointed to his back, signaling Haitang not to stop scratching his back, "You can't change this, I will change it." No, even my mother can't change it... Since this is the case, this industry will definitely exist forever, then we might as well control this industry in our own hands, set some rules, and protect the interests of those poor women as much as possible."
After talking about Gu Long's famous quotes, and then repeating the words that persuaded Shi Chanli back then, Fan Xian concluded solemnly: "I opened a brothel just to protect those prostitutes, and blindly put morality on my head, ignoring them. Covering your eyes and pretending that there is no such thing in this world, that is the real lack of benevolence, treating those prostitutes as human beings."
When Fan Xian talked about the various "new policies" of Baoyuelou, such as asking doctors and monthly leave, Haitang stopped tickling Fan Xian, and looked at the back of his head in slight shock, as if It never occurred to Fan Xian that what he said was not just a lie, but that he was actually doing these things.
When she heard the last sentence, the admiration on Haitang's face faded immediately, and she said softly, "What An Zhi said makes sense."
"Huh?" Fan Xian turned his head in surprise. He didn't expect the other party to reply so seriously. It felt really bad, as if Xu Ziling was trying to convince the nun.
He shook his head, drove this sad and sad association out of his mind, and said without thinking: "Duo Duo, I'm sorry."
This time it was Haitang's turn to hum unexpectedly.
Fan Xian said: "A few days ago, you and I separated a bit. Afterwards, I thought about it. This is mainly my problem. Of course, there is also your problem, but in the final analysis, it is my problem."
Although Haitang didn't quite understand what he wanted to say, and didn't understand this weird sentence pattern that was superfluous and filled with waste water, it was still easy to think of what the young man in front of him said on the ancient road outside Shangjing City in Northern Qi Dynasty. The sun at eight or nine o'clock, the world, yours and mine.
There was a slight smile on the corner of her lips.
Fan Xian clapped his hands, stared into her eyes and said, "I expect honesty among friends, but I'm not honest enough with you, so this is my problem. Since you left Beiqi and came to Jiangnan, you have been You have to stare at so much money, and you have to worry about me. You are under too much pressure, which makes you feel uneasy. It is not as good as before, and it is your problem that you cannot successfully resolve this pressure. However, you have pressure, and I have The pressure, at the end of the day, I create the pressure, so the problem is mine."
Haitang laughed and covered her mouth, only revealing those eyes that were as bright as Qinghu.
Fan Xian was slightly taken aback, and subconsciously said, "The eyes are pretty."
"Huh?" The third time between the two of them.
Fan Xian laughed and said, "I didn't expect you to have the side of a little girl... But after all, you haven't told me how old you are until today."
Seeing Haitang's slightly angry expression, he waved his hand noncommittally and said, "Change the subject! Didn't I just ask, why didn't you do anything to the Ming family these two days?"
"You said you were busy with the decoration of the brothel." Haitang could also joke, but it was a bit jerky.
Fan Xian nodded and said with a smile, "This is a problem. Of course, the main problem is... I'm waiting for Xia Qifei to recover from his injuries."
※※※
On the night of March 26th, at the place where the residences of salt merchants and imperial merchants gathered in Xicheng, Suzhou, the red lights were hung high, the firecrackers were loud, and there was a sense of joy. Xia Qifei officially bought a courtyard in Suzhou City, and opened the door to welcome guests for the first time today.
In fact, the real rich people in the south of the Yangtze River have their own compound outside the city of Suzhou and in the water towns of the south of the Yangtze River. They usually live in their own manors and seldom stay in the city. A luxurious residence is preset in Xicheng, because it is a symbol of status and a display of family strength.
The land price in Xicheng is extremely expensive, and no one has always been willing to sell real estate, so not everyone is eligible to live in it. Xia Qifei was able to successfully open his own house, which means that after the battle of the inner treasury, Jiangnan has recognized his qualifications.
Of course, Xia Qifei, who lives in Suzhou City, must of course clean himself up, without leaving a trace of gangsters on his face, so naturally he cannot move in as the commander of the Jiangnan Water Village. His current identity has changed, and he has become Xia Mingji's owner.
Xia Mingji, of course, is also a newly opened firm. The hidden meaning in the name, the merchants who came to congratulate him, knew that the Ming family was so eye-catching, but they didn’t know if the Ming family would send someone to come today. It was said that the owner of the family, Mr. Ming Qingda, passed out that day, and then he woke up two days later, his body was so weak that it was a mess.
A carriage stopped in front of the Xia Mansion. The carriage was completely black without any emblem, but the guards staring at it all around, and the strangers who suddenly appeared in the street all showed the identity of this carriage.
The merchants who were surrounding the entrance of the summer house hurried over, bowed to the carriage, and eagerly prepared to welcome the people in the carriage.
Inside the carriage, Fan Xian said to the third prince in a harmonious voice, "Your Highness, do you really want to join in the fun? It seems a bit inappropriate."
The third prince smiled sweetly and said: "I know what the teacher is worried about, but since the teacher did not avoid suspicion today to help Xia Qifei, adding one more student is nothing."
Fan Xian smiled, knowing that this little guy never forgot Concubine Yigui's teachings, and that he had to be tied to him life and death, not only psychologically, but also in terms of public opinion.
One big and one small, the two nobles from Suzhou got out of the carriage reservedly, and there was a commotion outside the carriage and voices of greetings one after another.
…
…
Fan Xian stood in the room, touching the apparently newly-made desk with his hands, sniffing the faint woody scent coming from his nose, thinking that nothing else in this world is good, but the newly renovated house does not smell of methane, This benefit was enough, he was suddenly startled, and found that he hadn't thought about the things in the original world for a long time, and he didn't know what it meant.
Maybe it's because I'm getting used to this world more and more, but why the unknown desire in my heart is still scratching, making my heart itchy, but I don't know what I'm longing for.
It's not tobacco, it's not porn, I don't know what it is.
When he got out of distraction, he realized that Xia Qifei and His Highness the Third Highness were staring at him blankly. He couldn't help laughing at himself and said, "Qingcheng, you're injured, just sit by yourself. Don't pay attention to me. I'll often be in a daze."
Knowing that the imperial envoy and the third prince came hand in hand, the Jiangnan businessmen who came to congratulate the front yard were secretly envious of Xia Qifei's luck, and were shocked by the unavoidable behavior of the imperial envoy and the third prince. On the other hand, they did not dare to make too much noise, so The sound of drinking and having fun in the front yard did not disturb the conversation in the study in the back garden.
Xia Qifei was actually shocked by Fan Xian's arrival, not to mention the third prince who came with him!
Fan Xian shook his head and said, "In today's Jiangnan, everyone knows about your relationship with me, and I think the capital should know about it too. If that's the case, why bother to cover it up?"
Xia Qifei glanced at the third prince, and when he thought of the rumors in the market, he didn't shy away from it, and said directly: "Master Tisi, I'm afraid that this subordinate will bring you trouble."
"What's the trouble?" Fan Xian looked at him and said gently, "You work for the imperial court. You seem to be doing well recently, but in fact you have suffered a lot."
Xia Qifei's expression darkened when he thought of his brother who died that night.
"Is the injury better?" Fan Xian asked.
Xia Qifei respectfully replied, "It's much better."
"Hmm." Fan Xian said slowly after pondering for a while, "You don't have to worry too much. My attitude towards the Ming family is very firm. Maybe the progress will be slower, but... don't think that this official is someone's boss. Posture is deceiving."
The kneeling of Ming Qingda, the contemporary master of the Ming family, in the mansion in Neiku, and the fainting after winning the bid have already spread throughout the city of Suzhou these days, so Xia Qifei, as the knife in Fan Xian's hand, is most worried. It is the hand holding the knife, will it suddenly change its mind? Hearing Fan Xian's promise at this time, Xia Qifei's body was wounded, and he couldn't help but feel refreshed—revenge and recapture the Ming family were his greatest wishes in this life. Without Fan Xian's help, he would never be able to do it.
Fan Xian looked at his expression, and said in a deep voice: "If you work for the court, the court will support you. To be more direct, since you belong to this official, this official must tell the world openly that this relationship is There is no need to tear it off, and there is no need to cover it up. In the future, you will work in the south of the Yangtze River and transport goods to the north. With this influence, it will be much easier."
Xia Qifei's face was moved, but he was a little apprehensive in his heart. He didn't know why Mr. Tisi was so anxious to reveal this matter. In fact, Xia Qifei still thought that he was working for the imperial court. He didn't understand that Fan Xian's use of him did not mean that the imperial court employed him.
It was Fan Xian's goal to let Xia Qi fly to the north to transport goods, pass through the old Cui family line, connect with Fan Sizhe in the north, and reopen the smuggling line under the protection of Southern Fan Xianbei Emperor.
Now there is the Overwatch Council in the south who is secretly managing it, and Wei Hua, the commander of the Zhenfu Division in the north, is not only an old acquaintance of Fan Xian, but also someone who the little emperor of Northern Qi trusted. This route itself is already flawless, and the only thing that needs to be hammered The two strokes... is Xia Qifei himself at the beginning.
Fan Xian came here today under the auspices of arguments, nothing more than using the words of the world to firmly tie Xia Qifei to his side. After today, no matter who it is, they will not believe that Xia Qifei is not Fan Xian's confidant. Xia Qifei just wanted to betray Fan Xian. I'm afraid no one would dare to believe him, and Fan Xian's enemies would also target Xia Qifei. Jiangnanju had already made a good start, so this would only force Xia Qifei to hug Fan Xian even tighter...
Consolidating his heart with external aggression, tying people to board the ship, the third prince is begging for nothing to get on the ship, but it is impossible for Xia Qifei not to get on board.
…
…
"The day after tomorrow." Before leaving Xia Mansion, Fan Xian finally told Xia Qifei: "The necessary procedures should be completed, and it's up to you to act then."
Xia Qifei felt a little excited. Although he knew in his heart that Master Tisi just needed to attract the attention of the Ming family, he could finally shout in the Suzhou mansion. It seemed that he was getting closer to his goal in life. some.
"But you also understand." Fan Xian sighed and patted him on the shoulder, "Qing Lu has no precedent for this kind of thing, the other party is the eldest son of the eldest son, according to the law, he is taking advantage, even if the courtyard Helping, it is unlikely to get the desired result... There are many ways to get back the lost things, don't worry, and don't be too disappointed."
Xia Qifei's heart trembled slightly, and he always felt that the young Tisi in front of him was not only talking about the Ming family's affairs, but that there seemed to be a kind of harmony between the superior and the subordinate because of the word "family property". With both fists, he said emotionally: "Because of Xia's matter, I don't dare to bother my lord."
"It deserves it." Fan Xian said pitifully: "It was explained from the beginning that I am also a person who puts interests first, so don't be too concerned."
The more he emphasized interests, the more Xia Qifei felt that the other party was sincere, so he saluted repeatedly and sent him and the third prince out of the mansion. To be precise, Fan Xian and the third prince only stood at Xia's house for a while and then left. It took only a cup of tea before and after. However, the attitude and determination shown in this will definitely be spread through the mouths of those businessmen and officials. It spread to the ears of the head of the Ming family.
After the carriage left Xia Zhai, it was not in a hurry to return to Huayuan, but drove towards Beicheng. Most of Suzhou Beicheng were heroes, so the guards beside the carriage also became nervous.
"What's the day after tomorrow?" The Third Prince asked Fan Xian with his innocent and harmless eyes.
Fan Xian replied: "Xia Qifei went to the Suzhou government office to sue the Ming family for seizing the property."