Fuxingfang.
Yuzhen Temple is a Taoist temple built by Princess Yuzhen after she practiced Taoism. Most of the female crowns who practice here are members of the royal family and powerful people.
In the early morning, there were only three people, Liao and Liao, in the law hall.
Jiao Nu sat cross-legged, his legs aching, and when he took a sneak peek, he saw that Li Tengkong was still motionless; Mian'er had fallen asleep on the floor, her little chest rising and falling slightly, and she was sleeping soundly.
She stood up quietly, walked out of the temple, and moved her hands and feet in the sun, thinking that she would have to live such a boring life forever.
"Are you free? I have a visitor."
Finally hearing this announcement again, Jiaonu's eyes lit up, and she quickly responded, asking Li Tengkong to come out. She rubbed her face, returned to her stern expression of keeping strangers away, and guarded Li Tengkong.
Sure enough, it was the young lady from the Yan family who came. Every time she came, she brought a lot of delicious and fun things.
Posts, scrolls, books, musical instruments, shuttlecocks, tops... and two boxes of cakes.
"Sister Jiaonu, this is for you. I tasted the deer cake buns from Fufeng Hall, but they were delicious, but my mother-in-law didn't let me eat more."
Jiaonu waited for Li Tengkong to nod before taking it. He didn't say thank you, but he just liked this young lady from the Yan family.
"You go down to eat, and take the shuttlecock to play with you." Li Tengkong had already picked up a post and looked at it, "I'm going to see a doctor for the Yan family's sister."
…
Went to the small courtyard to eat cakes, bask in the sun, and watch Mian'er playing shuttlecock for a while. Jiaonu also felt sleepy, but saw two female crowns running by, faintly saying, "It's really the husband before." ?"
Jiaonu's ears perked up and he immediately became alert.
She got up and followed the two women's crowns towards the living room. From a distance, she saw Qi Niang handing a prescription to Xue Bai's hand.
It could be seen that Seventeenth Mother was a little happy. She forgot to bring her whisk, and she put her hands behind her back and made a pinching finger gesture.
As for that bitch man, he was still polite on the surface, but in fact he had no intention of marrying Qi Niang... Jiao Nu was furious.
She turned around, found a courtyard wall, climbed over, and went straight to the side door to wait.
~~
"Then I'll get some medicine."
"good."
Li Tengkong pursed his lips, assuming the attitude of a famous doctor who was hanging the pot to save the world. Seeing Xue Bai was about to leave, he suddenly said: "By the way, I... read the "A Chinese Ghost Story" you wrote."
She actually hesitated for a long time, but finally couldn't help but want to tell him.
Xue Bai seemed surprised for a moment when he saw her eyes, then nodded and turned around to leave Yuzhen Temple.
As soon as I went out, I saw a girl standing outside the door with her arms crossed and a figure-stepping look on her face.
"The thief is so brave, he dares to provoke the Seventeenth Mother."
This scolding was very serious, but Jiaonu could scare others, but not Xue Bai.
Xue Bai then pointed to the corner of his mouth and said, "Wipe it."
Jiaonu was furious and cursed: "I told you that Yuzhen Temple is surrounded by guards from the Youxiang Mansion. Let Alang know you are coming and skin you alive..."
Before she finished speaking, Xue Bai overpowered her momentum with one sentence.
"Then you might as well ask Ge Nu, have you considered this for your children?"
When Jiaonu heard the word "genu", his eyes widened and he forgot to refute.
Xue Bai turned around and left. He had recently been imitating Gao Lishi's conspiracy of "going with the flow" and was not afraid of people knowing his whereabouts.
~~
Right Prime Minister's Mansion.
Li Linfu glanced at the rankings for the spring re-examination that Wang Xian had prepared in advance and approved them with a "yes".
This matter is the same as in previous years, as long as you can convince the public. Anyway, passing the exam only gives you the qualifications to be an official, and it does not really give you an official position.
Just as he was about to deal with other official duties, when he closed his eyes, he thought of the dream he had not long ago.
In the dream, the man who looked exactly like Pei Kuan almost took away his body, causing him great fear.
Instructing the female envoy at his side to send out the list, Li Linfu said again: "Ask Wang Xian, how are the arrangements for his promotion to the imperial censor?"
"Here."
"Alang." Another female envoy, wearing only socks, walked across the sandalwood floor, walked quietly around the screen, and reported: "Yuzhen Temple came to report, Xue Bai went to see the Seventeenth Mother."
Only then did Li Linfu think of Xue Bai in his busy schedule, and ordered: "Summon Da Xi Yingying to see him, and then go to the patrol envoy to get information and find out what Xue Bai has been doing recently."
"Here."
"By the way, where is the Fourteenth Mother? Have you found her?"
"No."
"Let Juro go find the Du family and take the person back, but don't make a big fuss..."
After a while, information about Xue Bai's whereabouts was sent.
This is not difficult to check. The Youxiang Mansion has already told the Wuhou in various places in Chang'an to take note of it and just call it when needed. It is a waste of paper.
Not long after, Da Xi Yingying also arrived and fell down in the hall to answer questions.
"Xue Bai rarely comes to Fengweilou. I only heard that he has been studying hard recently. By the way, on the Cold Food Festival, the Xue and Du families went out of the city to worship and sweep. The slave family asked some servants and they went to Qingxu Villa; on the Qingming Festival, Xue Bai repaired the Xue family's ancestral tomb, went to the Yang Mansion of Shangzhu State, and then moved into Madam Guo's Mansion..."
What she said was consistent with the news Li Linfu received.
"Continue to investigate, don't let them find out that you are from the Right Prime Minister's Mansion."
"I will try my best."
"Do you have any information about Han Yu?"
"The slave family is useless, there are no clues."
"Back off."
Li Linfu sat there, shaving the back of his hands with his thick beard, and murmured: "Qingxu Villa, Pei Kuan, Yang Zhen, discussing the salt method... Sure enough, there was a plan..."
He rolled his eyes and suddenly remembered something, so he took out a small scroll from the shelf and opened it.
On the scroll, Yang Shenjin's name was marked with a red pen and an ink pen. Li Shizhi's name was only marked with an ink pen. The name written below was "Pei Kuan".
"Have you even guessed this? Planned it in advance?"
Li Linfu was deep in thought, his eyes suddenly shone brightly, and he shouted: "Summon Wang Xian and Luo Xishi to Yanyue Hall, hurry up!"
As soon as these words came out, everyone in the hall immediately shuddered. They all knew that the Right Prime Minister was about to eliminate another political enemy.
~~
Yushitai.
In the official room, Pei Kuan was looking at a file with vigilance.
This is what Wang Fei personally delivered today.
Taking this opportunity, Pei Kuan also tested Wang He's attitude towards the re-examination list and found that if he wanted to fulfill Xue Bai's request and let all three of them pass, he would almost declare war with Wang He, and I'm afraid the price would be high.
Hearing his son analyze the pros and cons of the Salt Law, he hesitated again, so he secretly asked Dong Gong, "I heard that Ge Nu wants to get rid of me?"
The answer was "Don't worry, don't be provoked."
So Pei Kuan felt lucky again and considered whether Xue Bai had deceived him.
He has never been of a decisive nature, otherwise he would not have been called into the court to serve in a false position just by issuing an imperial edict.
At this time, what made him even more embarrassed was the file in his hand.
The content of the file is very simple. A general named Cao Jian broke into a house drunk, raped a woman, and killed four members of his family. The evidence is conclusive.
There was a box on the other side of Pei Kuan's desk. The box was filled with five hundred taels of gold. Pei Dunfu, a member of Pei Kuan's tribe, had put it here while he was not paying attention.
Pei Dun was reinstated as Henan Yin, and Cao Jian was his subordinate.
Pei Kuan thought about it, wrote the verdict on the file, and finally added the word "cut", recruited someone, and reported the file.
He personally carried the box of gold to Pei Dunfu's residence.
Pei Dunfu was not at the house, but his wife knew Pei Kuan, a clan brother, and told her husband the details of his departure.
"It was a Luo Yushi who came suddenly and invited Mr. Lang to the Prime Minister's Mansion."
Pei Kuan had a bad premonition and was shocked when he heard this. The heavy wooden box in his hand fell to the ground.
"Bang."
The wooden box shattered, and dazzling gold ingots were scattered all over the floor.
It's like it foreshadows the fate of this prominent family of the Pei family.
…
Pei Chen hurriedly returned home.
He was suddenly summoned from Jingzhao Mansion. As soon as he entered the hall, he saw Pei Kuan sitting there with a bloodless face.
"Grandpa, something happened?"
"Genu is about to take action." Pei Kuan forced himself to calm down and recounted today's events, saying: "I will never pursue Cao Jian's case for personal gain. But what is the purpose of Genu bringing Pei Dunfu to the Prime Minister's Mansion? Borrow him. Remove your hands from me.”
"Does Pei Dunfu have any evidence of my crime in his hands?"
"It's not evidence of guilt." Pei Kuan shook his head, "When I was in Fan Yang, I had a favorite general named Shi Siming. He used to be a tooth man in the trade. He plundered the Xi people and surrendered the Khitan tribe, and all the women and children were sold by him. , the generals divided the profits, and Pei Dunfu also had 10%."
"This happens all the time in the army. On the contrary, Pei Dunfu went too far in Henan. I heard that he was defeated by the pirates. Instead, he killed good people and took credit, pretending to be a great victory. I have long advised my grandfather to make a clear break with him."
Pei Kuan said: "But he has something in his hand that can make the saints suspicious of me."
"What?"
"I have a letter for him complaining about Gonu."
"Are you complaining about a slave or a saint?"
Pei Kuan frowned and couldn't tell who he was complaining about.
Seeing this situation, Pei Chen turned pale with horror.
The father and son were in shock and doubt for a long time. Pei Chen asked, "Master, has Xue Bai come to see you these days?"
"No. After listening to what you said that day, I also felt that the matter of negotiating salt was difficult to handle. They must have wanted to put forward conditions, but they never waited for him to come."
Pei Chen frowned and thought, and murmured: "No, why did Brother Nu find Pei Dunfu so quickly?"
"what for?"
"Did Grandpa accept bribes or enforce the law impartially? He should have waited for the results to come out. Why is he so impatient?"
"Why?"
"Could it be that... people in Qingxu's business are too talkative, and Genu knows that Xue Bai has been in contact with Grandpa, and he is anxious?"
"How can I see it?"
Pei Chen took a few steps and murmured: "Of the six Cao Cao in Jingzhao Mansion, Ji Wen is the most powerful Cao Cao. But I heard a while ago that Ji Wen was demoted because of Xue Bai. At that time, I only thought that Xue Bai was the most powerful Cao Cao." Mrs. Guo Guo only bowed her head, but now it seems that Ge Nu is very jealous of him... It should be said that Ge Nu is very afraid of Yang Hao intervening in taxation and taking away his position."
Pei Kuan said: "Of course Ge Nu is afraid. If he loses his position, let's see how many enemies can't wait to pounce on him."
"My lord, now that the matter has come to an end, we are discussing the salt law with Yang Zhen." Pei Chen finally made up his mind and said loudly: "Now that it is done, my lord will take over the position of brother slave, rectify the government, and turn chaos into good governance. , a generation of fame and fortune."
"Can?"
"Can!"
Pei Kuan calmed down and finally had the attitude of risking life and death.
In this way, he thought about it more carefully. When the time comes, he will take the lead in handing over the hidden salt tax and the rent of the escaped households, encourage the Hedong family to make concessions in their interests, and the saint will replace Li Linfu with himself as the prime minister. This is the best result. .
The important thing is not the little money from the salt tax, but the ability to stabilize the current situation of the country.
This was the greatest significance of his entry into the court as Fan Yang Jiedushi. The saint beat him, forced him to compromise, and used him to win over Hedong.
"There is an expert behind Xue Bai..."
~~
It was almost evening.
Xue Bai took down a large bag of medicinal materials from his horse and carried it into Yuzhen Temple.
Li Tengkong came out of the alchemy furnace room, stood on the steps and looked at him, unable to hold back his laughter.
"Um?"
"I'm laughing at you, Mr. Xue, the great Mr. Xue, humming and humming like this to carry medicine."
"Because you, Yu Zhenguan, won't let my two guards in."
"I mean... can others use you like this?"
"I'm not a big shot, I'm not difficult to control."
"That's it." Li Tengkong thought for a while, "Go and get me a glass of water."
After she finished speaking, she saw Xue Baizhen going to get the kettle on the stove and said hurriedly: "Hey, I'm joking with you, don't really pour it."
"Split the medicine?"
"I've divided up what the Yan family's sisters want to drink today, and you can pick up the rest tomorrow."
Li Tengkong tried his best to speak naturally, looking like a seasoned doctor, and grabbed a few medicinal materials to weigh.
Xue Bai stood aside and chatted casually: "These days, I have become enemies with the right side of the current government, and I am afraid that it will be a life-and-death situation."
The fingers that were wrapping the medicinal materials stopped unconsciously.
"Xiangfu Juro is my friend. I think he will be in trouble when the time comes." Xue Bai said: "What I want to do will not stop because of him. I am very sorry for this."
Li Tengkong asked: "Then what should your friend do?"
"She will inevitably have a grudge over this, so she shouldn't interact with me anymore. She should do what she wants to do and seek peace of mind."
"What about you? Do you have a grudge against her?"
"The feud between me and the right prime minister is a public feud, so it does not involve his family."
"Then...if you are also framed by the right prime minister, Li Julang will save you out of friendship, right?"
"I'm afraid I can't afford this friendship."
"She definitely didn't want you to take the responsibility. Have you ever thought that this is also a practice for her to seek peace?"
Xue Bai was silent, but when he looked at the woman in front of him, he was a little surprised.
He originally wanted to enlighten her and gently pushed her away.
Unexpectedly, she actually has a Taoist heart.
"Perhaps, Li Julang makes friends with you not because she wants to do something to you. She wants to forget who she is and find out who she is again. Blessings have been enjoyed, sins have been done, and debts must be repaid. She is willing to accumulate good deeds throughout her life. But sometimes people You should always have yourself, your own happiness, your own happiness, even for a moment, so that you can live up to the birth of heaven and earth. Isn't it the so-called 'Tao follows nature'?"
When Li Tengkong said this, he raised his eyes and looked directly into Xue Bai's eyes.
She no longer concealed her happiness. At the same time, her eyes were clear and she knew exactly what she wanted.
"That's why Xue Langjun doesn't have to be burdened. You and Li Julang are friends to help her practice."
"Been taught a lesson."
The more he faced such innocent eyes, Xue Bai became less able to speak.
After looking at each other for a few seconds, Li Tengkong turned his back.
Xue Bai picked up two packets of medicine and said goodbye.
"Then...will you come to divide the medicine tomorrow?" Li Tengkong asked, his tone trembling slightly, and then he said calmly: "I can't divide it all by myself."
"good."
Xue Bai hurriedly agreed and left.
He actually didn't believe that if he had a long-term relationship with Li Tengkong and fought to the death with Li Linfu, she would not be in pain.
Of course, normally speaking, he couldn't defeat Li Linfu at all. After all, she was still planning to save him...
I also wrote 8,500 words today, and it’s still foreshadowing the plot~~ Please vote for me, please subscribe~~
