Chang Lian arrived at the yamen and sat down, not thinking about his job. His mind was still thinking about the fan and the familiar figure, and his heart was beating wildly. Xuzhou had also heard about the situation of the emperor in the capital, and it was not that the King of Qi wanted to give it a try.
Chang Lian pursed his lips, thinking that he had to tell his father, so he took out a pen and paper and began to write. He was afraid that the letter would be intercepted, so he wrote very obscurely, believing that his father would be able to understand it.
However, this letter was destined not to leave Xuzhou City. The King of Qi thought that something bad was going to happen, so he sent people to keep an eye on it early.
The King of Qi opened the letter and found nothing wrong with it. It was just that Zhou Changlian still underestimated him. He should indeed admire Zhou Laosan's sharpness. It was a pity that Zhou Laosan guessed wrong.
Zhou Mansion, Tao came by herself this time, Zhulan, "Why didn't you bring Tao Ran with you today?"
Tao's smile faded a little, "I have asked someone to send Tao Ran back."
"Um?"
This is not right. Tao really likes Tao Ran, otherwise she would not bring Tao Ran with her every time she came to Zhou's house.
Tao didn't want to talk about the family scandal. She got angry every time she thought about it. Her nephew actually had this idea. Not to mention that her eldest grandson was already engaged to the Zhou family, even if they were not engaged, her father-in-law and husband would not choose a girl from the Tao family.
Now she knew that the engagement was already done and her father-in-law would not allow anyone to disrupt it, and she would not allow it either. But her nephew still had his eyes on his grandson, so she could only take her as a concubine. The thought of her mother's daughter becoming a concubine made her furious, and she gave up the idea of pulling her mother's family into a fight.
Originally, she brought Tao Ran to Zhou's house because she thought that if she got along well with Yang, she could win Yang's favor and be good to Tao Ran in the future. However, her nephew did not understand her painstaking efforts and plotted against her.
Seeing that Tao's face was getting worse, Zhulan changed the subject, "Why are you here today?"
Mrs. Tao smiled again, "Of course it's a good thing. Your Mingrui is not young anymore. You are not worried about your child's marriage. I have a good candidate here. Let me tell you about it."
Zhulan was in high spirits. She was also worried about Mingrui's marriage. Many people came to introduce her to men, and many were interested in him, but none of them were satisfactory. She finally found a suitable one, but after asking around, Zhulan rejected him.
The second room is not suitable for a daughter-in-law with a deep mind. She will not get along well with Zhao, and the relationship between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law will be bad. The second room will have a lot of troubles in the future. Mingrui is not suitable for a child with many thoughts. A simple and generous one is good.
The second wife is different from the first wife. The eldest daughter-in-law of the first wife needs to be the head of the household. When the second wife splits up, Zhao is also the head of the household. After all, Zhao is young, and Yudie and the baby in her belly are small!
Zhulan smiled and said, "Tell me about it."
Tao, "The daughter of Lord Jiao, she is eight years old this year. The little girl has a straightforward temper. I have met her a few times. She is a very nice child."
Zhulan thought about it for a while. There weren't many people with the last name Jiao in the capital. She thought carefully and asked, "Are you talking about Jiao Zhuo, the Chief Censor?"
Mrs. Tao nodded. "Yes, she is from his family. This is a little girl who was brought up by a teacher, so she is a little naive."
Zhu Lan thought, he is a fourth-rank official. Jiao Zhuo himself is capable, and so is his father. This is one of the most honest families in the capital. "The Jiao family has a great family background."
Well, she had never considered the Jiao family. If it was just Jiao Zhuo himself, she could still think about it, but she didn't think about Jiao Zhuo's father. How could the legitimate daughter of the Jiao family marry into the second house of a seventh-rank official? Even if Changyi worked hard, he couldn't wait for the legitimate daughter of the Jiao family to get married and strive for the fourth rank.
As for valuing the Zhou family because of Zhou Shuren, that’s not the case. The Jiao family has been honest for generations and has a good family tradition. The Jiao family has its own confidence.
Tao said, "I think we can give it a try. The Jiao family doesn't look at wealth when marrying off their daughters."
The daughters of the Jiao family had no trouble finding a husband, and many people wanted to marry them, but no girl from the Jiao family had ever married into a wealthy family.
Zhu Lan smiled and shook her head, "The Jiao family is great, but I wouldn't choose the Zhou family."
It can be seen from the marriage of their daughter that the Jiao family has a clear mind. Not getting too involved with the nobles and maintaining a clean family tradition are the way for the Jiao family to survive.
Tao really felt it was a pity, "Do you think about it carefully?"
Zhulan: "Don't think about it."
If the Zhou family did not have the blood of the Rong clan, it is hard to say whether this good marriage could be accomplished. Now the Jiao family will only avoid the Zhou family because the Zhou family is too conspicuous.
On a small island on the sea, Rongchuan and his companions were so hungry that their stomachs growled, but they could not make a fire for fear of attracting the attention of the distant islands. The two islands were not far away.
The island is not big. It is hidden under a cliff and is covered with rubble. A small boat is tied to the rocks not far away.
Rongchuan touched his stomach and felt hungry. He had eaten all the dry food he brought with him on the boat. If there had not been a boat passing by last night, they would have already reached the opposite island.
At this time, Yang Wen came down from the side of the cliff. The clothes he took off were bulging, and it was obvious that he was filled with a lot of things. There were a few people behind Yang Wen, all carrying things.
Rongchuan saw Yang Wen and asked, "Did you find something to eat?"
Yang Wen grinned, "Uncle, we dug up some sweet potatoes."
Rong Chuan was stunned, "Why are there sweet potatoes here?"
Yang Wen put down the sweet potatoes in his clothes and said, "We checked the entire island and found a stone house in the east. It has been abandoned for a long time. We found a piece of land near the house and found sweet potatoes. We dug some back."
Rongchuan, "It seems that this island is a sentinel island."
As for why it was abandoned, he didn't know. Fortunately it was abandoned, otherwise they would have been discovered yesterday.
Now we have sweet potatoes. Even though they are raw, we can still eat them. We don’t mind the dirtiness. They are not big, so we can just wipe them and feed a dozen people.
Rongchuan ate two and felt full before he took out the map.
To be honest, he was lucky. When he saw that he could not catch up and wanted to turn back, he unexpectedly encountered a navy patrol warship. He had a military token in his hand, and Yang Wen was on the ship, so his identity was proved. The ship was much faster than the small boat, and the escaped person was quickly caught.
These people ran into the sea, which shows that there is a secret base on the nearby island. He brought not only experts but also secret guards, and they found out the location through interrogation.
But the warship was too big and would surely be discovered if it got close, so when they were almost there, they changed to a small boat and continued to move forward. The island in front of them was their destination, and they had to sneak up on it under the cover of night.
Yang Wen also finished eating and took out the telescope in his arms. "I just looked carefully. There are many patrols on the opposite island, and there are several high platforms. It is not easy to land on the island. Uncle, do you think we should wait for the messenger from the navy to come back and capture the island together?"
He really didn't want his cousin to take any risks, and he wanted to protect him.
Rongchuan took the telescope. Fortunately, the two islands were close, otherwise the telescope would be useless. He pursed his lips. The island opposite was too strict. "It's easy to be discovered at night with too many people. Now choose two of the best skills to try. If you can't find them, you can only wait."
He still wanted to find out some details. He remembered gunpowder, and the defense on the opposite island must be complicated.