"Your Highness doesn't mind one of my subordinates coming in to talk about something, right?" Mei Changsu originally planned to ignore Tong Lu, but immediately changed his mind and asked with a smile.
King Jing is also a very interesting person, so he got up immediately and said, "Mr. Su is busy, I'll take my leave first."
"Please wait a moment longer, Your Highness, I think it's best for His Highness to know what he said." Mei Changsu stood up, and regardless of King Jing's reaction, he raised his voice and said, "Tong Lu, come in."
Tong Lu suddenly heard his voice and was startled, but he immediately calmed down, walked up the steps quickly, pushed open the door, and before he clasped his fists and saluted, Mei Changsu already gestured with his eyes: "I have seen King Jing. Your Highness."
"Tong Lu has seen His Highness!" The young man was very clever, and when he heard the identity of the guest, he immediately lifted the hem of his shirt and fell to the ground.
"No ceremony." King Jing raised his hand slightly, and said to Mei Changsu, "Is he a member of your alliance? Sure enough, he has a heroic spirit."
"Your Highness is wrong." Mei Changsu said politely, and then asked Tong Ludao: "You came to see me, is it a matter of returning gunpowder?"
"Yes." Tong Lu stood up and replied.
"His Royal Highness is not very clear about this matter, please repeat it from the beginning." "Yes." Although he was facing the prince, Tong Lu was still generous and did not flinch, "The cause of the incident was Yun Yunqing. The brothers of the Rudder and Foot Gang found that someone had carried hundreds of kilograms of gunpowder in small batches with various groceries and transported them into the capital…”
Only the first sentence at the beginning, King Jing's expression was a little stunned, Mei Changsu smiled and explained very considerately: "His Royal Highness has rarely been involved in rivers and lakes, so I don't know very well, the canal Qingruo and the foot walking gang are both The rivers and lakes gang formed by the coolie brothers who run boats or pull goods, one walks by water, the other walks by road, and they have an excellent relationship with each other. Although they are lowly, they are very loyal, and their leaders are also A straightforward and straightforward guy."
Prince Jing nodded and glanced at Mei Changsu. Although I have long known that this scholar is the suzerain of the largest gang in the world, but because of his bookish aura and his delicate appearance, people often forget his identity in the arena. When talking about these things at this time, only in my heart. A little bit of consciousness, realized his influence in the three religions and nine streams.
"Because it is a large amount of gunpowder, if it is used, it will be very lethal. In order to ensure the safety of the suzerain, we traced the whereabouts of the gunpowder," Tong Lu continued at Mei Changsu's suggestion, "I didn't expect that after several twists and turns, Afterwards, on the order of the suzerain, we deliberately checked the official ships that had been transported directly by water recently, and found that there were traces of gunpowder transported there. These official ships were loaded with fresh fruits, spices, Silk and other items used in the New Year's House of the noble family go to various places, and many palaces have reservations, so I can't see which one is the most suspicious at the moment."
"But being able to get on the official ship, ordinary Jianghu people can't do it, must have something to do with the noble officials in the DPRK." King Jing frowned and interjected, "Are you sure that the two officials are not transported?"
The two official fortunes mentioned by King Jing were understood by everyone present. According to the Daliang Law, the imperial court strictly controlled gunpowder. Only the Jiangnan Perak Hall officials directly under the Ministry of War made firearms, and the fireworks and firecrackers made by the fireworks workshops under the Ministry of Housing were not allowed to meddle in gunpowder. The transportation and trade of gunpowder under the brand name of Tang or Cannon Factory, other than that, are prohibited.
"Absolutely not. There is no such batch of gunpowder in the official transport directory." Tong Lu affirmed, "The whereabouts of the official ship's goods are almost all over the city. I didn’t expect it to be a book by coincidence, and I actually encountered…”
"Tong Lu, just say the result is good," Mei Changsu said gently, "How can Your Highness have the time to listen to you."
"Yes," Tong Lu blushed and scratched his head, "We found out that this batch of gunpowder was finally transported to a large enclosed yard next to the north gate, where there is a private artillery workshop..."
"Private gun?"
"His Royal Highness may not know that the price of firecrackers has skyrocketed as the New Year is approaching, making and selling firecrackers can make huge profits. However, the income from the sale of firecrackers in the official cannon-making workshops has to be put into the warehouse, and the Ministry of Household cannot keep it, so the original Shang Shulou Zhijing quietly opened this private artillery workshop, smuggling gunpowder in to make artillery, all the income... He is a little ignorant of himself, and most of it belongs to the prince... "
"You mean, the Crown Prince colluded with the Ministry of Household to open a private artillery workshop to make huge profits?" King Jing stood up angrily, "What are these things!"
"Why do you need to be angry, Your Highness?" Mei Changsu said lightly, "Lou Zhijing has already fallen, and Shen Zhui will definitely investigate after taking his place. This private artillery workshop will not last long."
King Jing was silent for a moment, then said: "I also know that there is no need to get angry. I didn't expect anything from the prince, but I couldn't bear it for a while. Mr. Su told me to stay and listen, just to let me know more about the prince. What kind of person
"That's not true," Mei Changsu was stunned for a moment before laughing, "I didn't know they had found this before Tong Lu came in. I just wanted to let His Highness know that there was a batch of unaccounted gunpowder in the capital. You should pay more attention to your own safety when you are in the place, and I plan to give you Xiaoling by the way..."
"Little Spirit?"
"A ferret, when it smells gunpowder, will move to warn you. I originally wanted Xiaoling to follow His Highness before the whereabouts of the gunpowder was found out... I didn't expect them to move so fast, it was beyond my expectations. "Mei Changsu said, he caught a small round chubby ferret from his arms and handed it to Tong Lu. "Take it and return it to the old master, there is no need for him to follow him, and I don't. time management."
King Jing's expression moved slightly and asked, "Isn't this little mink yours?"
"No, it's from a girl in our alliance."
King Jing's lips moved, but he didn't say anything. Mei Changsu made a gesture for Tong Lu to step back, turned to look at Prince Jing, and said in a low voice, "Does your Highness think my move is a bit cool?"
King Jing's eyes flickered, and he said, "The girl who sent the sable was naturally worried that you would be accidentally injured by gunpowder, but you arbitrarily decided to pass this sable to me, wouldn't you live up to others? Caring? But I still understand your kindness to me, and this is not something I should comment on. It's just that you ask, and I'll say it frankly."
Mei Changsu bowed his head silently and did not answer. In fact, he doesn't understand these principles of dealing with people and things, but he has a goal in his heart that he has to achieve, and everything else is prioritized because of the existence of this goal. Now that King Jing has been chosen as the lord, it is natural to prioritize him in everything, how Gong Yu feels, and now he has no time to think about it.
"Your Highness," Mei Changsu turned his face away slightly and changed the subject, "Did you say something to the concubine Jing?"
King Jing was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said, "I have to tell my mother about the path I've decided to choose and let her prepare. But don't worry, she will never discourage me."
"I know..." Mei Changsu muttered to himself in a low, inaudible voice, then raised his head again, "Please tell Your Highness that she is too weak in the palace, so please don't try to help Your Highness. There are some things that she can see in her eyes, don't check, don't ask, I can probably activate some power in the palace, after a while, I will find a way to transfer to the concubine Jing to protect her, please rest assured, Your Highness ."
"You also have someone in the palace?" King Jing did not hide his surprised expression at all, "I really underestimate Mr. Su's strength."
"Your Highness, don't be surprised," Mei Changsu looked back at him quietly, "The world's hard-working people are everywhere. It's really easy to buy a few with kindness. For example, the Tong Lu you saw just now, He was taken in by Jiang Zuo when he was cornered, and since then he has been loyal and brave, only for my use."
"That's why you trust him so much that you actually let him see me directly?"
"I trust him, not just his character," Mei Changsu's eyes gradually became icy cold, "Tong Lu's mother and sister are now living in Langzhou, and they are taken care of by Jiang Zuomeng. "
King Jing looked at him for a moment, then suddenly understood, and couldn't help but twitch.
"Treat Tong Lu calmly and use people without doubt, this is my sincerity; keep his mother and sister in hand, just in case, this is my skill," Mei Changsu said coldly, "not everyone wants to This is troublesome, but for those who have access to important secrets, sincerity and skill are indispensable, what I discussed with His Royal Highness just now is such a point of view."
King Jing shook his head and sighed, "Do you have to say everything you do is so cruel?"
"I was originally such a person," Mei Changsu said with a deadpan expression, "people will only be betrayed by friends, and enemies will never have the opportunity to 'betray' and 'betrayal'. Like a brother, you can't grasp what kind of heart is hidden under that thin layer of skin." King Jing's eyes narrowed, and the light of the past flashed across his mind, causing a burst of pain in his heart, gritted his teeth and said, "I admit it. You are right, but if you treat people like this, people will treat you like this, don't you understand the truth?"
"I understand, but I don't care," Mei Changsu looked at the red flames swirling in the brazier, making the light and shadow suddenly dim on his face, "His Royal Highness can use any means to test me, try me, I will It doesn't matter because I know what I want to be loyal to and I never thought about betrayal."
The tone of his words was light, but the meaning was very cruel. King Jing heard it in his ears, and the five flavors were mixed in his chest for a while, but he didn't know how to react. The room was silent for a while, and the two of them sat opposite each other.
After sitting for a cup of tea like this, King Jing stood up and said slowly, "Sir, I have a good time to recuperate. I'm leaving."
Mei Changsu nodded lightly, sat up a little, leaned on the bed and said, "His Royal Highness walk slowly, I won't send you far."
Just as King Jing disappeared, Fei Liu appeared beside the bed, still holding a citrus in his hand. He tilted his head to examine Mei Changsu's expression carefully. The flap was handed to Mei Changsu's mouth.
"It's too cold, Brother Su won't eat it, Fei Liu can eat it by himself." Mei Changsu smiled, "Go open two windows to get some air."
Fei Liu followed his words and ran to the window, cleverly opening the west window where the sunlight could shine in, and the air in the room also flowed.
"Sect Master, it will be cold." Li Gang, who was guarding in the courtyard, ran in, a little worried.
"It's fine, just open for a while," Mei Changsu listened carefully, "Who is making noise in the outer courtyard?"
"Ji Bo and Aunt Ji," Li Gang couldn't help laughing, "Aunt Ji hid Ji Bo's wine gourd again, Ji Bo secretly searched and couldn't find it, and was scolded by Aunt Ji, saying she hid such a How could he easily find something from a few years ago..."
Mei Changsu's hand softened, and the cup of tea he had just received from Fei Liu fell onto the green brick floor and shattered.
"Sect Master, what's the matter with you?" Li Gang was shocked, "Fei Liu, help me quickly, I'll find Dr. Yan..."
"No need..." Mei Changsu raised a hand to stop him, lay back on the soft pillow, raised his head and thought about it, a layer of sweat soon oozing out of his forehead.
For the same reason, the gunpowder workshop didn't start smuggling gunpowder only this year. Why didn't you notice it before, but this year, it was so easy for the people from Qingduo and the Foot Xing Gang to notice the difference? Could it be that because of Lou Zhijing's downfall, some of the controls were loosened
No, that's not the case... The private gunsmiths have been smuggling gunpowder for a long time, and they must have their own independent channels. They won't go through the conventional mixed transportation methods such as Qingduo or foot gang, but it is more appropriate to carry it on the official ship... Every year There is a large amount of material mobilization, the use of official ships, unknown to ghosts, and under their control, no matter how you look at it, it is impossible to take the risk of taking the civilian boat and civilian transportation, so...
The person who transported gunpowder through Qingduo and Zuoxinggang must not be the same as the private artillery workshop in the Ministry of Housing!
If... that person already knew the secret of Hubu's private gun shop, he could naturally make good use of it. It doesn't matter if the smuggling of gunpowder into Beijing is not noticed. Once he is noticed, he can subtly point the line to the private gun workshop, thereby confusing the public. Because the private gun workshop does have smuggled gunpowder into Beijing, most people will find it here, and they will Thinking that the truth has been found out, I would never have thought that there is another batch of gunpowder with different purposes and different destinations, quietly staying in the capital...
Who is this person? What is his purpose? The use of gunpowder, if not used to make firecrackers, is to blow up something. After spending so much effort, even the Ministry of Household was dragged up by him to use his strength as a shield to cast smoke. He must not be an ordinary Jianghu person... If it is not the grievances of Jianghu, then it must be related to the court affairs, whether he wants to kill or destroy What? Is there any important occasion in the capital recently that will become the target of this person's attack
Thinking of this, four words flashed through Mei Changsu's mind like lightning.
The end of the year ceremony... The most important festival of the Daliang court every year...
Mei Changsu's face was as pale as snow at this time, but his eyes became brighter and clearer, with a burning warmth.
He remembered something he had heard. At that time, I heard a faint sense of disobedience in my ears, but I didn't pay attention and didn't pay attention, but at this moment I suddenly remembered, but it seemed like a key to open the door of mystery.
In the vast fog, Mei Changsu jumped over all the illusions and suddenly caught the cold light in the deepest part.