Ningyuan Hou Mansion.
Ren Li looked at Jiao Jing and Xue Heng, who were sitting opposite and looking at him leisurely, and couldn't help but feel a little surprised.
He didn't expect that he had just planned to be more careful with Jiao Jing, but when he turned around, the British duke came to his house in person not even half an hour after he left the house.
The orderer served the tea, and Ren Li vaguely noticed the other party's intention, so he sipped the tea one mouthful at a time without saying a word.
Seeing this situation, Jiao Jing and Xue Heng looked at each other and said, "To be honest, Marquis Ren, I went to the palace to see the Holy Mother in person just the day before yesterday."
Ren Li's eyelids twitched, but his expression was still calm, and he said: "Of course, the Prince Consort and the Holy Mother are relatives. The confinement is lifted, and it is natural to go and pay respects to the Holy Mother."
Seeing that the other party was pretending to be confused, Jiao Jing simply made it clear.
"There are only three of us here, so why should Ren Hou pretend to be confused? The Holy Mother has already told me everything. It is obvious that the person who contacted the palace through the British government is Ren Hou, but he was pushed to Jiang Yi. Ren Hou is really a good person."
Having said that, there is no point in denying it.
What's more, Ren Li had already expected that Jiao Jing would know about this.
You know, these Supreme Emperors are also close to each other.
The people closest to Empress Dowager Sun in the palace are naturally Jiao Jing, whom she promoted, and her son-in-law Xue Heng.
Secondly, there are the old relatives of the British Duke and Duchess who took orders from her because they were favored by the Supreme Emperor.
Finally, there are people like Ren Li and Luo Tong who were later roped in.
Because of Huichang Bo's incident, Empress Dowager Sun was obviously wary of the British government, so she ordered him to do things.
But for a true confidant like Jiao Jing, Queen Mother Sun would definitely not hide anything.
What's more, even if Empress Dowager Sun didn't say anything, Princess Changde couldn't hide it with Xue Heng's presence.
At least for now, he has no way to break away from the eldest princess and contact the palace. Once Xue Heng's restraint is lifted, he will definitely know about this matter.
Putting the tea cup in his hand on the table, a subtle sound of clinking porcelain was heard. Ren Li shook his head and said.
"I didn't say that it was Jiang Yi who was in contact with the palace. If Prince Consort Jiao had asked Uncle Ning Yang, he would have known that he was the one who was aggressive and angered Jiang Yi. I didn't even say a word."
Jiao Jing looked at Ren Li without changing his expression and said calmly: "But Marquis Ren didn't tell the truth, right?"
Ren Li's face turned slightly cold and he spoke.
"So, the two consorts came to my residence today to persuade me to go to the British Duke's residence and admit my mistakes?"
Jiao Jing asked, "Isn't it right?"
The flower hall fell into silence, Ren Li looked at Jiao Jing expressionlessly, and the latter was also not afraid of his gaze.
In this way, half a cup of tea passed.
Ren Li looked away slightly and said.
"The letter asking me to gather people in the court was brought by the eldest princess of Changde. It is not that we deliberately want to cause internal conflict. The Holy Mother has an order, and I am just following the order."
"The current situation is because Zhang Xi insisted on sacrificing Uncle Huichang for Uncle Ningyang, which made the Holy Mother displeased. Besides, it is not a good thing to have a single family. Prince Consort Jiao should understand this."
These words are already a disguised form of submission and explanation.
But Jiao Jing did not stop there, but hit the nail on the head.
"Now that the Supreme Emperor is still in Yibei, everything must make way for this. Ning Yang Bo has made many military exploits and has a high prestige among his relatives. Even if he cannot enter the court now, it will be of great use to win over other mansions."
"As the Holy Mother lives in the palace, it is inevitable that she will not be sure of the general situation in the court. Uncle Huichang is from the Holy Mother's family. If there is a sudden loss, it is inevitable that the Holy Mother will be panicked."
"But Renhou has been in the court for a long time, so he should not understand the helplessness of the Second Master and others. Although the Holy Mother has a destiny, if Renhou really thinks about the overall situation, he should advise the Holy Mother, clarify the interests and harms, and bridge the gap, at least wait until When the Emperor returns to the south and makes plans, how can he secretly form cliques and go his own way, only to increase internal strife?"
When he said these words, Jiao Jing's expression was not severe, but Ren Li felt a sense of oppression.
He knew in his heart that this sense of oppression did not come from Jiao Jing, but from Jiao Jing's influence on the Queen Mother Sun in the palace.
Although Ren Li was supported by the British government, as long as he was not willing to be a marionette, he had to rely on the Queen Mother Sun.
Just like when he wooed Luo Tong, what finally made him make up his mind was the Queen Mother Sun's handwritten letter.
Although she is in the palace, she is like a flag.
Carrying the four words of the Holy Mother's mandate, he can develop his power boldly and confidently.
But now, Jiao Jing has obviously gained the trust of Empress Dowager Sun. More importantly, if he is willing, he can even communicate directly with Empress Dowager Sun by virtue of his status as a relative.
This was the reason why Ren Litangtang, a powerful Marquis, was willing to be so polite to Jiao Jing, a relative who had no errands.
Of course, this does not mean that Renli will always give in.
After listening to Jiao Jing's somewhat reproachful words, Ren Li's tone became cold.
"I just said that everything is done under the orders of the Holy Mother. The most important thing for a minister is to be loyal. Only those rotten civil servants will think about admonishing the king every day. We and other generals only know how to obey orders. Act.”
"If Prince Consort Jiao feels that something is wrong, he can report it to the Holy Mother. As long as the Holy Mother gives an edict, not only to go to the British government to admit his mistakes, but also to ask me to bear the burden of apology, what's the difficulty?"
After saying that, Ren Li gently pressed his hand on the tea cup, as if he would serve tea to see off the guests if they disagreed.
Oddly enough, when Ren Li lowered his body and explained tactfully, Jiao Jing was aggressive.
But at this time, Ren Li acted like if you want to tell someone, just go ahead and tell him. Jiao Jing's expression softened, and he sighed softly and said.
"Marquis Ren doesn't need to test me. I didn't expose this matter in the British palace today, that's why I didn't mean it."
Ren Li took his hand away from the tea cup and felt relieved.
To see a person's true attitude, you can't just look at what he says, but also what he does.
Ren Li still understands this basic principle.
So even though Jiao Jing had a strong attitude just now, since he had arrived at the Ningyuan Hou Mansion privately, Ren Li was 70% sure, and Jiao Jing didn't want to break up with him.
After all, Jiao Jing was a member of the Empress Dowager Sun. Simply speaking, his friendship with the British government was not very deep. There was no need to act in their interests in everything.
There is also a point that Ren Li himself has been emphasizing. It is essentially the Queen Mother Sun's intention to break away from the British government and cultivate influence in the court.
Although Ren Li knew that Jiao Jing had considerable influence on Queen Mother Sun.
However, once a person's suspicion arises, it is not that easy to extinguish it.
Therefore, taking all factors into account, Ren Li still felt that Jiao Jing was bluffing and did not really want him to confess to the British government.
I just don’t know what his purpose is for doing this?
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