Shi Lei entered the cabin, froze in front of Zhao Jingyan, knelt down and said, "Shi Lei, a common man, pays homage to King Shou."
Zhao Jingyan stretched out her long arms and helped him up, "No need to be polite, come, let's sit down and drink tea."
Shi Lei nodded, walked to Jiang Hongwen and saluted. After a few polite words, the three of them sat down with tea.
Zhao Jingyan put down the tea cup, took out a letter from her arms and handed it over, "He gave it to you."
A flash of surprise flashed between Shi Lei's brows, but it only flashed for a moment. He immediately regained his composure and looked at Zhan Xin in front of King Shou.
"this… "
After a moment, Shi Lei raised his head with confusion in his eyes.
Zhao Jingyan changed her usual playful expression and said, "This is what he means, and it is also what I mean."
Shi Lei thought about it: "The bank matter is no small matter. The taxes and money collected by each prefecture and state for the current season alone are already a huge amount. If you add in the supplies of the frontier army, Your Majesty, this is a huge amount."
Zhao Jingyan saw the key point at a glance, and secretly approved in her heart, saying: "That's why I asked you to come out."
"My identity..." Shi Lei pondered.
He is involved with the deposed prince. If he continues to manipulate the bank affairs, he may arouse the emperor's suspicion and be detrimental to the deposed prince.
What's more, it's a huge amount of money, but it also means big trouble. Once things come to light, such a big fat sheep will probably attract a pack of wolves. One careless move could cost him his family and his life.
"Don't worry, you are just secretly, and Hongwen is the one who takes action openly. He has always been a gambler." Zhao Jingyan knew what he was worried about.
Jiang Qiye? Shi Lei was shocked and quickly relieved his frown.
It would be a good idea to have Master Qi standing in front of him. The emperor's preference for the Jiang family was well known to the world. Even if there is anything, there is still an ancestor of the Jiang family standing in front of him.
"Wonderful!" Shi Lei looked at Zhao Jingyan with admiration.
"What's even better is that, I have returned to my father regarding the Silver Village." Zhao Jingyan is here.
Shi Lei was shocked again. Even the emperor knew about this, so...
"Don't be afraid. The emperor is also a human being. He eats whole grains and has seven emotions and six desires, so he is also short of money. I gave him 20% of the profit from this bank. I opened the bank according to the order."
She, Gu Liuneng, was willing to give up 20% of her profits to find him as a big backer, so why not follow suit and find the biggest backer in the world for the bank.
Money can make the world go round. With the emperor as a big backer, no one dares to say a word. No matter how jealous this king or that king is, it doesn't matter. Zhao Jingyan felt proud in her heart.
The admiration in Shi Lei's eyes was even greater. To be able to come up with such an idea and do it so thoroughly, King Shou was really a powerful person.
He lifted up his robe, knelt down on the ground, and said seriously: "Common people, please step down."
Jiang Hongwen, who had not spoken for a long time, held the tea cup and suddenly said: "Master Lei, from now on we two can have a good kiss. I don't ask for anyone else. I need to give enough money to the gambling house."
Shi Lei understood and said with a smile, "Don't worry, Master Qi."
Zhao Jingyan smiled slightly, her mind moved slightly, and she whispered: "Master Shi, do you know the sixth lady of the Gu family?"
The smile on Shi Lei's face disappeared in an instant. He thought rapidly for a while and said, "I know her. She called me brother-in-law."
The paradoxical sentence not only revealed the relationship between the two, but also revealed the distance between them, but it also brushed aside the past.
Zhao Jingyan looked at him deeply and said with a smile: "Do you know who is responsible for the money bank?"
"Isn't it your work, Your Majesty?" Shi Lei was curious.
"That's exactly what your sister is thinking."
Shi Lei's heart skipped a beat as it turned out to be Qingguan's idea. He hurriedly concealed his expression and said, "My sister has always been quick-thinking."
"It was also her hand that recommended you to come out." Zhao Jingyan said it lightly.
Shi Lei's heart pounded again and he was speechless for a while.
Why did Qingguan recommend him? What did she want to do? How could she make such a move? In her mind, it would never be that simple.
What's more, she only knew about the official relationship between the Shi family and Duke Dingguo's mansion, but she didn't know that she was secretly helping the prince.
Zhao Jingyan only thought that he was surprised at the relationship between Gu Liu and him, and asked: "Are you the one taking care of her Qingfengtang?"
"The idea and the money are all hers, I just helped with some small things." Shi Lei didn't know what Prince Shou meant, so he spoke extremely humbly.
Zhao Jingyan breathed a long sigh of relief. It seemed that what the woman said was true.
He moved his thin lips and said calmly: "Shi Lei, she and I have reached an agreement now. She will find ways to make money for me, and I will investigate the Qian and Sheng family cases for her. I won't hide any of this from you."
The shock in Shi Lei's heart could no longer be described in words. He only felt that his clothes were soaked with cold sweat.
He suddenly had the idea that the first thing he should do after entering Beijing was to meet Qingguan and ask him carefully. This girl was so brave that it shocked him.
He quickly collected his thoughts and said with difficulty: "Your Majesty... the common people don't know her..."
Zhao Jingyan waved her hand and said: "No problem, since I have agreed, I will definitely help. What's more, he and I both want to know what happened back then."
Even though Shi Lei was well-informed and witty, Zhao Jingyan's last words shocked him so much that his heart beat like a pounding.
He suddenly felt that before he entered the capital, he had one foot in the mud. The little fox in the Gu family, the old fox in front of him... really killed him.
Shi Lei lowered his head and sighed: "Your Majesty, please be careful. This matter is not trivial. What if..."
Zhao Jingyan suddenly stood up, patted his shoulder and said, "Do you know that he almost died at the end of summer last year?"
Shi Lei nodded, he had heard about this for a long time.
"He has retreated this far, but there are still people who refuse to spare his life. When there is no way to retreat, there is no way to take a step forward."
"My lord, it's not easy." Shi Lei sighed as he tossed and turned in his stomach several times.
Zhao Jingyan said solemnly: "Most things in this world are not easy. It's not easy for ordinary people to survive, it's not easy for scholars to get fame, it's not easy for officials to climb up... It's not easy for princes and grandsons to reach high positions amidst the light of swords and shadows. He... more not easy."
Jiang Hongwen, who was listening to the gossip, slowly smiled and stared at the man in front of him with a sword-like gaze, feeling inexplicably sad in his heart.
"Have you ever seen a majestic prince drinking cold tea and wearing single clothes?"
Zhao Jingyan's eyes turned red as she thought about the woman whose lamp had run out. "We can't let him... stay like this for the rest of his life."
Shi Lei felt a pain in his heart, and after a moment he said: "Please be more careful, Your Majesty, and do everything slowly. Although Lei is not talented, he is willing to pave the way for him, and the same goes for the Shi family."
Zhao Jingyan patted his shoulder twice more, "Good brother!"
Jiang Hongwen's eyes were deep, but he gave a rare smile and said: "Come on, stop gossiping and do business. The bank's regulations, how I am in the light and he is in the dark, must be discussed in detail."
After a night of idle chatter, Shi Lei returned to the Shi family's ship at dawn, braving the river breeze. As soon as he stood firm, the ship on the opposite side had already raised its anchor and set sail.
He stood quietly on the bow of the boat with his hands behind his back, watching the boat go away, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.
The historian has not been in business for generations, and has also been involved in officialdom. However, the officialdom is dark, which may lead to the disaster of annihilation, which makes the ancestors of the historian very afraid.
Therefore, among the descendants who studied and became officials, their families were equally divided and started a new business. The head of the family of each generation must choose the most outstanding manager from the family.
My father shouldered the heavy responsibility of running the family at the age of twenty-five, but he died young when he was only seventeen years old.
Before his death, his father was afraid that he would not be able to support the family business because of his young age, so he helped him marry the second young lady of Dingguo Duke's palace. Only then did he understand that his father secretly had frequent contacts with Duke Lu.
The reason why Duke Ding's palace was willing to marry off his daughter was because the queen was seriously ill at that time and the prince was alone in the palace with no help. Therefore, he wanted to have more capable people around him through marriage.
The Shi family was the richest family in the south of the Yangtze River, so it caught the eye of the late empress.
One wants to cling to her, the other wants to attract talents. When the two match up, the marriage is done.
When the father dies, he observes mourning for one year. A year later he married Zhiyu.
Zhiyu is gentle and virtuous, not half as squeamish as a noble girl from aristocratic families. After getting married, the husband and wife are harmonious, playing the piano and the harp together.
Soon, he became a secret ploy for the prince to make money in Jiangnan. Most of the expenses of the prince's mansion came from the historians. The historian also relied on the prince's power in the court to expand his business.
Unexpectedly, things in the world have changed, and blessings and misfortunes depend on each other. The shocking storm six years ago involved the historians.
No one knows how frightened he was in those days, fearing that one mistake would put the historian in jeopardy.
A cloak covered him, disrupting his thoughts. Shi Lei looked back and saw his wife looking at him worriedly, so he smiled, took off the cloak and put it on her shoulders.
"It's windy outside, what are you doing out here?"
"I'm worried about you." Lu Zhiyu's eyes were filled with cyan.
Shi Lei laughed angrily: "Worried about what I'm going to do, a close friend came over and chatted all night. Let's go back to the cabin with me and sleep for a while."
Lu Zhiyu looked at him angrily and said softly: "I ordered someone to cook millet porridge for you. You can eat a bowl before going to bed."
Shi Lei thought of Qingguan and said with a smile: "I will be in Beijing one day. Qingguan is afraid of being impatient. I will look for an opportunity later to pick you up and ask her to take your pulse. I will see that the number of people is reduced in the past few days." ”
Lu Zhiyu said with mixed joy and anger: "Seriously?"
"It's absolutely true. By the way, the Shi family has a separate courtyard in the capital. I have ordered people to clean it up. This time we will not live in the Duke Ding Mansion, for fear of attracting too much attention."
Lu Zhiyu was stunned for a moment, with disappointment in her eyes.
Shi Lei turned a blind eye. Living in Duke Dingguo's mansion, he leaves early and comes back late, fearing that others will notice something wrong. Only living in a separate house can facilitate his work.
"You just take the child to that mansion during the day, and remember to come back and warm my bed at night."
"Who will warm your bed?" Lu Zhiyu spat at him, feeling so sweet in her heart that she had long forgotten the disappointment of not being able to go back to her parents' home.
Shi Lei hugged his beloved wife and sighed slightly in his heart.
Since you married her, you must protect her throughout your life. This is not only a husband's ambition, but also a man's responsibility. He boarded the prince's boat and never regretted it.
Shi Lei chuckled and said, "If you don't warm my bed, I won't get into this cold quilt. Are you willing to do so?" "Debt collector." Lu Zhiyu lightly punched the man's chest and shoulders.