Late at night, early spring brings a touch of warmth, dispelling the deep cold at night, but there is still more than a month left before real warming. Especially for places like the Imperial City where snow falls in winter, it will be later.
It's midnight, and the watchman strolls around the street hastily, knocking on the bamboo pipe in his hand a few times, which means he has finished his errands. If he knocks too loudly at night, he might startle someone with a hammer blow, so It would be best to finish your errands quickly and go home to sleep.
When passing by Junhou Street, I saw a lantern hanging on a high door from a distance. I thought to myself that it would be better not to get close to it today, lest I startle the nobleman and get beaten again.
It's so troublesome to do the watch in the imperial city. There are too many high-rise doors and red walls. If you are not careful, you will cause trouble and getting beaten is a common occurrence. I can only avoid some of them, for fear that the sound of the night watch will disturb the sleeping people behind the wall.
In fact, the watcher didn't know that not everyone was asleep inside the tall red-walled house he was worried about.
This is the Qin Mansion, the residence of Qin Mu, the envoy of Jingbei Town, in the imperial city.
Like all those who came to the imperial city to serve as officials, the house Qin Mu prepared for himself was not that big, but it had high walls, wide doors, a special location, and a stronger status symbolism.
The only people who lived in this house all year round were Qin Mu, his wife, three concubines, and slaves. Sometimes the children of the family come to visit and stay in the house for a few days.
In the afternoon, the eldest son Qin Haiping went to the imperial city to run errands and stayed overnight afterwards. Unknown to outsiders, only people in the mansion knew that Qin Haiping and Qin Mu went to the study after dinner and did not come out at this time.
Gu Gu Gu Gu Gu... The charcoal fire in the room boiled the water in the copper kettle. Qin Haiping stood up and lifted it down, making another cup of tea for his father next to him and a cup for himself.
"Father, do you really want to send something to Lin Chen? Isn't it necessary?" He served the tea and blew the foam on it, with a slightly unwilling expression on his face and some caution. He usually didn't dare to say anything to Lin Chen. My father was talkative, but this incident really hurt his face. At least that's how he sees it.
In Qin Haiping's view, although Black Flag Camp is now powerful, it is not untouchable at all. The power, foundation and support of the Qin family are no worse than Black Flag Camp. Besides, he didn't think that Shen would fall out with the Qin family just for a few supplies.
The leader of the Black Flag Battalion is from the fourth rank, and the leader of the Qin family is also from the fourth rank, which is right.
Moreover, now they are related to Lu Liang, the judge of the Central Academy of Sciences, through in-laws. The two parties have already met, and they have the intention of entering into an agreement whether to advance or retreat, which adds more confidence to the Qin family.
Mr. Lu Liang, Mr. Lu, is a person who will become the prime minister in the future, and he is also the most trusted person of His Majesty. Who else needs to be tied to the Qin family?
Squeezing Lin Chen away allowed the Qin family to establish a stronghold in the Xuanqingwei system, and also made the Jingbei Black Flag Camp understand: No matter who is in Jingbei's territory, they must look at the Qin family's face, otherwise they will not be able to stand firmly!
The risks of doing this are certainly not low, but the benefits are also many. Even to keep Jingbei under his control, it was worth offending the evil star Chen.
But as soon as today came, Qin Haiping was summoned to the study by his father Qin Mu. After talking about some daily matters, he directly asked him to change his original plan and distribute all the supplies that had been withheld to the Jingbei Black Flag Camp. . This made Qin Haiping very puzzled.
Qin Mu took a few sips of the tea. His expression was very calm, with no ups and downs. Even his eyes did not fall on his son in front of him. Instead, he looked at the tea leaves swirling in the cup, as if he was in a trance.
After a while, Qin Haiping stopped talking and waited for his father to speak. There was a silence that lasted for a stick of incense in the study. This made Qin Haiping panic. Usually in this situation, he said or did something wrong.
"Father, my child is stupid, please teach me." Qin Haiping has been obedient to his father since he was a child. He understands that his father is far more considerate than him, so he kneels down on one knee and asks for advice if he makes a mistake.
Qin Mu then put down the teacup in his hand, a look of helplessness and some relief flashed across his face. Among his sons, Qin Haiping was the only one who could be considered a "talent", but it was limited. His talent for cultivation and intelligence were not that of a top-notch person. I can only hope that after more experiences in the future, I will develop a prudent character, so that I can barely pass on the Qin family.
"The world is unpredictable, and the wind does not blow in one direction all the time. Only if you know how to adapt to changes and assess the situation can you live a long life. I have told you these things, but you always think you are right and only think half of it. How will you be in charge of the Qin family in the future if you are so careless?"
"My child knows his fault."
Qin Mu snorted and stood up from the chair. He walked to the window and opened it to let the night breeze in. He took a breath and said, "You also went to Shen Hao's wedding before. You were also shocked by the grandness of the ceremony. Why didn't you think more about it?"
Do you think that every fourth-rank official can ask the steward of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to personally make a trip to deliver His Majesty’s reward?
Or do you think that the elders from Wanjuan Shushan and Mingshan Sect, as well as Duan Jue from Fenghong Villa, went to congratulate you because they were crazy?
Things have changed.
His Majesty's attention to Shen Hao is not limited to his contribution in the Black Flag Camp. Can't you see this? "
"The child thought that the sect came because the Forbidden Army and Fenghong Villa came forward to destroy the four second-rate sects, and Shen Hao was given this face as the middle man. This seems to be consistent with Shen Hao's status... ."
"madness!"
The blank look in his son's eyes made Qin Mu a little angry. Then he raised his voice and said sternly: "Zhongzhong? Can just one Zhongzhong bring elders from Wanjuan Shushan and Mingshan Sect? Can Fenghong Villa have three elders?"
"Father, you mean... Shen Hao is not just an intermediate?" Qin Haiping finally came to his senses at this time. His brows furrowed because he also thought of a possibility.
"Hmph. Of course he is more than just a middle man. If he is just a middle man, neither the sect nor Fenghong Villa will send elders to his wedding. The only reason why he is worthy of this courtesy is Shen Hao now has a new identity, such as some kind of title that represents Fenghong Villa or directly contacts the sect."
There is no need to tell anyone about Maple Red Villa other than the emperor, and the inside of Maple Red Villa is very tight. It is extremely difficult for Qin Mu to find out the information inside, but based on the external appearance, he can It was determined that Shen Hao's identity had changed drastically.
"Once Shen Hao has a new identity in Fenghong Villa, the status between us and him will change, and it will be difficult to control him. Even including Lu Liang."
Qin Haiping was not a fool after all, he understood. Because if the person named Shen has a new identity in Fenghong Villa, in other words, he will have more weight in front of the emperor. This weight is even several times higher than the position of the commander of the Black Flag Camp. After all, Fenghong Villa is the most important place of the country. In this way, if there is a direct conflict between the Qin family and Shen, Lu Liang is likely to put aside the relationship and get rid of the Qin family. In that case, the Qin family will be in big trouble.
"But father, if the power of the Black Flag Battalion is allowed to take root in Jingbei, the business at home will be in danger."
"Well, the risk control needs to be tightened. The previous purges of the Black Flag Camp in various places have been completed, and all the threads have been solved by us in advance. As long as there are no new problems later.
But Lin Chen doesn’t get along with you, so having him stare at you all the time is really not an option..."
