Xiao Qian found a slightly clean place to sit down, "The surname Xi is rare, who are your parents?"
Xi Duanhong was chewing the roasted rabbit leg. When he looked up, Xiao Qian saw her extremely unsightly side and couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth: It's rare for a woman to be like this.
"I was brought back to the mountain by Mu Lao. I have no parents. Mu Lao gave me the name Xi Duanhong after searching for a long time." He said with his right hand wiping his mouth, "Mu Lao told me this name probably when I was five years old. Yes, you have always called me Yaoyao."
Xiao Qian lowered his head silently, looking at the roast rabbit in his hand, not knowing what to think.
"What's wrong?"
"It's okay, you are different from other women, no matter in any aspect, but when it comes to food and appearance, no one can compete with you."
Xi Duanhong understood and smiled awkwardly, but did not make any changes, "I have grown up in the mountains and am used to being carefree. Mr. Xiao, please bear with me a little longer."
In the distance, Xi Zi Shu Zheng and Ting Yu Ting Xue were discussing. Xiao Qian noticed this child when he first arrived.
The air between Xi Duanhong and Xiao Qian slowly solidified. Only Xi Duanhong was still chewing the fragrant rabbit meat.
After Xi Duanhong finished eating the whole rabbit leg meat, he wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and said, "You will arrive in Jiangnan tomorrow, and the work assigned to you by Cheng Yuan will be completed. What are Mr. Xiao's plans?"
"The teacher took this opportunity to let me come out just to gain experience and not be in a hurry to go back."
The night is particularly beautiful today. When you look up, you can see the sky full of stars shining brightly in the dark night.
"It's okay, walk around and see more," Xi Duanhong stood up and stretched, "I still say the same thing, you know, it's getting late, Mr. Xiao, please take a rest early."
…
——It’s night, on the carriage
Xi Duanhong leaned on the fluffy and soft cushion, lit a candle and read the volume in the faint light.
On the other side of the car, Xi Zishu had already fallen asleep and was lying on the mat. The space in the car was large enough for two teenagers like Xi Zishu to lie down.
An unknown amount of time passed, and when Xi Duanhong put down the third volume, he opened the curtain and looked out the window. It was already late at night.
"Hmm~"
Blinking his already sore eyes, he stretched and swayed from side to side, rubbing his brows tiredly.
I will meet up with Xue'er and others when I arrive in Jiangnan tomorrow. I don't know how they are doing here. I hope everything is going as planned.
The next day, Xi Duanhong and his party came to Jiangnan as promised
"Ting Xue, you go find Qian Shengxue. She is here. Ji Yu is also here. Set things up. If Mr. Xiao wants to come together, we can arrange it together. If you don't want to go with us, let him go."
"Yes, miss."
Xi Duanhong and Xi Zishu were walking on the lively street. The scenery in Jiangnan was comparable to Kyoto. The feng shui here nourishes people. Everyone is tender and handsome, regardless of gender.
The two of them walked around until after noon. Seeing that Sanlang was really hungry, they walked into a noodle shop and sat down.
"Waiter, please serve two portions of the best noodles you have here."
"Okay, gentlemen, please wait a moment."
Xi Zishu was lying on the table, playing with chopsticks with his right hand. Xi Duanhong was smiling and didn't know what he was thinking.
Passerby 1: "It's only been ten days, and all the salt merchants' shipments around here have been confiscated. It's said that she's still a girl. Did you hear that?"
Passerby 2: "Who says it's not the case? Our prefect is very angry right now. If we find out who did it, that person will definitely not have a good outcome."
"Not only these, but all kinds of resources, including restaurants, have been acquired!"
"Who is so powerful?"
"Who knows, but with so many outsiders coming recently, there is no guarantee that they are not these people."
Xi Duanhong couldn't help but frown when he heard this: He had told Xue'er to only acquire all businesses except the royal industry, so why did he even acquire salt merchants? No, we have to get in touch with Xueer as soon as possible, and we can’t create unnecessary complications.
At this moment, Xi Duanhong really had no intention of eating, so he pushed his face to Xi Zishu, indicating that if he didn't have enough, he would eat it all.
After Xi Zishu finished eating and paid the bill, Xi Duanhong took Xi Zishu and hurriedly went to find Xue'er. Before she could think about how to go, a carriage came in front of her, and the person traveling with her was Ji Yu.
"You, how do you know I'm here?" Looking at Ji Yu's indifferent expression as always, Xi Duanhong immediately reacted, "Sanlang, get in the car."
Under the escort of Ji Yu, Xi Duanhong successfully reunited with Qian Shengxue.
Looking at this huge mansion, with the three characters "Xue Xi Mansion" written on the plaque, Xi Duanhong shook his head helplessly and pulled Xi Zishu inside.
As soon as he entered, a white figure rushed towards Xi Duanhong quickly. Before he could react, Xi Duanhong was thrown to the ground by this figure. If he looked carefully, it turned out to be Qian Shengxue.
At this time, Qian Shengxue looked at Xi Duanhong with red eyes and tearful eyes, and said with a choked voice: "Why did you come here? I miss you so much... Wuwuwu..."
Ji Yu, who came in last, looked at the scene in front of him, coughed twice in embarrassment, and then turned around and left.
Xi Duanhong comforted Qian Shengxue, who was already in tears, and helped her up, "Okay Xue'er, I'm here right now. Let's go in and talk."
Qian Shengxue nodded casually and stood up, but she refused to let go of Xi Duanhong's hand.
When they came to the main hall, there were two people sitting inside. One of them was wearing a green robe and a tulle shirt. His hair was tied up casually behind his back. His hair hanging down on his chest was as gentle as water between his eyebrows. He saw Xi Duanhong and Qian Shengxue. Come in, stand up with Zhou Xu and salute the two of them.
Xi Duanhong waved his hand for the two of them to sit down: "No, these false gifts will be waived from now on. Is it your idea for Jianxing Shang to acquire the salt merchant and sea freight?"
"Yes."
Xi Duanhong walked over and sat down, looking at Jian Xingshang in confusion, "Those matters are related to the royal family. Whether you accept them or not will not do us any good. Accepting them will only leave us with no way out."
Qian Shengxue and Zhou Xu knew they couldn't get a word in, so they simply sat aside and listened (dizzy, confused and stunned~)
"No," Jian Xingshang's eyes flickered, "I know what you want to do, but if you just want to acquire their business without controlling their waterways, your goal will be far from achieved."
"How to say."
Jian Xingshang tapped the water in the tea cup with his right hand and drew a square on the table. "This is the entire Jiangnan, and Jiangnan is surrounded by water on at least two sides. These two places are the lifeblood of Jiangnan," he said, asking Zhou Xu handed him a map and unfolded it, "Look carefully, here, and here."
Xi Duanhong looked at the two places he pointed out to him and immediately understood what he meant, "Daqi's lifeline!"
"That's right, here," Jian Xingshang pointed to Liren Pass, "this is Daqi's defense line, and this river connects to the sea and is an important link with foreign trade."
"..."
Jian Xingshang put away the map and rolled it up, his eyes slightly lowered, "And I didn't ask Miss Qian Sheng to collect both of these places. One is enough. As for the other, don't touch it unless you have to, unless you want to open up... …”
Xi Duanhong didn't need to say what he said later to understand what he meant, "With you here, I'm really not worth mentioning. However," Xi Duanhong looked at Jian Xingshang in embarrassment, "That's all, just do as you say, you More forward-thinking than me.”
Seeing that the two of them were almost done talking, Qian Shengxue wanted to take Xi Duanhong out for a walk, but was rejected.
"Axu has worked hard on you, and Xue'er has worked hard on you too. You can go out first. I have something to say to him alone."
The two stood up and left, leaving only Jian Xingshang and Xi Duanhong in the house.
"Congratulations on becoming the first female official in Daqi. Mr. Mu already knows about your stay in Kyoto. Not only him, but all of us know about it."
Xi Duanhong scratched his head in embarrassment and asked weakly: "Grandpa, is he angry..."
Seeing Xi Duanhong's submissive look, he sighed helplessly and said, "No, I heard that you offended Xu Lingxiang and the others in the court?"
Xi Duanhong was even more ashamed and wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl in.
"They will definitely investigate your parentage, but they won't dare to challenge Linyuan Pavilion directly yet," Jian Xingshang changed his voice, "You'd better make a choice as soon as possible, whether to go back with me or decide to stay and swim in this muddy water. .”
"I have learned a lot here, which I couldn't learn in the mountains. I want to give it a try. Moreover, I really want to know my life experience. Only by coming out can I possibly know."
"..."
Xi Duanhong raised his finger and pointed outside, his eyes as calm as water without any ripples: "You have also seen that they are my friends, especially Xue'er. I want to fight for them and myself..."
Jian Xingshang was surprised at her change and smiled lightly, "Little girl has changed a lot. It seems that I did nothing wrong in letting you out."
"It doesn't matter, since I'm here, I'm here to fulfill you. Do what you want to do with me."
"grateful?"
"Go, go, your friends are waiting for you."
"Hey, let's go~"
Look at that crazy look, it's still exactly the same as before, helpless, helpless
