On the ship.
Li Qing was leaning on the soft and comfortable couch, reading the "Yongle Dadian" boredly. The three women were very interested and chattering non-stop.
"Sir, where should we go first?"
Li Qing yawned, "We will first stay in Jinling for two days to pay homage to Xiaoling, and then go to Jiangxi."
The reason why we go to Jiangxi first is because the source of porcelain is there. Starting from the source is the correct way to start.
After the canal was dredged, the convenience of traveling to the south of the Yangtze River became apparent. Traveling by water was fast, stable, and not bumpy.
Li Qing smiled and said, "The road is still long. Save your energy and wait until you get there before releasing it. Just rest."
"We're not tired."
"..." Women are most energetic when it comes to leisure activities such as playing and shopping.
Li Qing shook his head and laughed, and continued to read the "Yongle Dadian". The Dadian has been published for fifteen issues. Every time it was printed, Li Qing bought a complete set. He has collected nearly two thousand volumes.
Li Qing never gave up on his coveting of the Grand Ceremony.
After reading for a while, Li Qing's eyelids became heavier and heavier, and he soon fell asleep.
When I woke up again, it was already late at night.
Li Qing helped the three girls tuck in the quilts and went to the deck to enjoy the breeze.
The moonlight is bright, the water surface is sparkling, and the night wind is mixed with water vapor, refreshingly cold.
"Li Shangshu didn't sleep either?" Yu Qian's voice sounded from behind.
Li Qing turned his head and saw that he was holding a wine gourd in his hand, and he was drunk. He said funnyly, "When did you become a drunkard?"
"No way." Yu Qian smiled sheepishly, "Since I came back from the Northern Expedition, I like to have a few drinks without getting drunk."
"There's nothing wrong with having a hobby." Li Qing smiled and saw Yu Qian trembling and sat down.
Yu Qian also sat down and felt that the night wind was much lighter and not so cold.
"I woke up." Li Qing explained, "It's you, why are you still up so late?"
"Xiaguan has seasickness." Yu Qian said sarcastically, "I felt groggy and sleepy during the day, but I couldn't sleep. I felt better at night, but I became energetic."
Li Qing laughed dumbly, "Just get used to it, it's much easier than marching."
"Yeah, that's right."
Yu Qian took another sip of wine and wanted to invite Li Qing to drink with him, but he was afraid of being disliked, so he found a topic: "Are you going to Jinling first?"
"Well, I will go to Xiaoling on behalf of the emperor." Li Qing nodded, "Then we will go to Jiangxi."
"Jiangxi?" Yu Qian asked, "Porcelain?"
"Yes, only by curbing the supply of goods can we curb smuggling."
Yu Qian thought deeply, and then asked: "What about the thieves?"
"Suppression!" Li Qing said speechlessly, "Otherwise, why would I come all the way here?"
"That's not what I mean by lowering my rank." Yu Qian frowned slightly, "Sir, in fact, a large part of the smugglers and bandits do not do harm to the people, they just want to make some money and improve their lives;
They broke the law, but their sin did not lead to death. "
"Did I say I wanted to kill them?" Li Qing laughed and said, "Suppressing bandits means making bandits disappear, not making people disappear."
Hearing this, Yu Qian felt relieved, cupped his hands and said, "This official is stupid."
Li Qing stood up and patted his butt, "It's windy here. Don't get sick again. Go to the cabin hall to chat."
"Hey, okay." Yu Qian nodded, feeling that he was an old man in his sixties and Li Qing was a young man in his twenties.
~
Yu Qian blew on the fire, lit a candle, and placed it between the two of them. The light in the room became much brighter.
"Are you really sleepy?" Li Qing asked.
"not sleepy."
"Then let's talk about the Japanese pirates!"
Yu Qian nodded and began to tell: "There are real and fake Japanese pirates, but the harm caused by fake Japanese pirates is no less than that of real Japanese pirates. They not only rob money, but also rob people and even kill people."
"Do you have any specific information?"
"That's not true, but one thing is certain, these people all live on the island..."
"Wait a minute." Li Qing grasped the key point, "Are they a group?"
"Yes." Yu Qian nodded, "According to the people, the magistrate of Jian'an claimed that the island was too far away and was not sure where exactly they were stationed. It was extremely difficult to capture it, so the people were persecuted."
After a pause, "Of course, it cannot be ruled out that the magistrate of Jian'an County did not act, or even colluded with the Japanese pirates, and said this deliberately."
Yu Qian sighed: "At that time, there were not many people who were able to use their lower senses, and they were powerless to investigate further."
"You've done a good job." Li Qing patted his shoulder, "Don't worry, they won't fall behind this time."
Yu Qian showed joy. He could trust the minister's ability.
~
After chatting for a while, Li Qing saw that Yu Qian was fighting before his eyes, so he asked him to go back and rest.
Lords, aristocratic families, smuggling by bandits, plunder by Japanese pirates... Li Qing leaned on his chair and frowned slightly. There were quite a lot of things to be solved during this trip.
I originally thought half a year was a lot of time, but when I think about it, I really don’t have enough time.
…
In the days that followed, Li Qing began to plan a solution step by step, and it became less boring.
In a flash, more than half a month passed.
Jinling, Yangtze River Estuary.
The officials had been waiting here early. As soon as Li Qing got off the boat, everyone immediately rushed up to pay homage.
Li Qing held his head high and accepted the ceremony on behalf of Zhu Di.
Then, all the officials stood up and bowed in salute, and Li Qing returned the salute.
After a lengthy formality and pleasantries, Li Qing was able to relax.
He did not go anywhere else. He first took the three girls back to Yongqinghou Mansion, and then asked Yu Qian to take 200 Dongchang Fanzi to go to Jian'an, Fujian Province to check for Japanese pirates.
Time was precious, and Li Qing didn't want to waste any of it.
After settling in, it was already afternoon. Li Qing had a brief lunch, then went to the Ministry of Etiquette, told them about going to Xiaoling, and asked them to prepare.
Originally this was Fatty's job, but if Fatty came, Zhu Di would be busy, so Zhu Di asked Li Qing to do it.
After coming out of the Ministry of Rites, seeing that it was still early, Li Qing went to Cao Guogong's mansion instead.
~
"Hey, why are you, a busy man, here in Jinling?" Li Jinglong, who is in his fifties, already has white hair, but is full of energy, "What am I talking about? When you get older, you should grow old or you should. Look, , I even used a walking stick.”
Li Jinglong's poisonous tongue transferred from Lan Yu to Li Qing.
I shouldn't have stopped Lan Yu from beating you back then... Li Qing rolled his eyes, "You know nothing, this is called forcefulness."
"Come on." Li Jinglong curled his lips, "I must have shed tears behind my back."
Li Qing's fist hardened. He finally understood why Lan Yu beat this guy up after a disagreement. His mouth was really poisonous.
"Then shall I leave?"
"Look, what did I say?" Li Jinglong looked innocent, "Let's go into the house."
…
Food and wine are served.
The two chatted while eating.
"Brother Li, my life has been really boring and tight since we separated." Li Jinglong sighed, and then asked, "Isn't it just to pay homage to Xiaoling Mausoleum this time?"
Li Qing nodded and said directly: "Have you participated in the smuggling in Jiangnan?"
"Look at what you said, am I that kind of person?" Li Jinglong rolled his eyes, "The title of Duke Cao cannot be ruined in my hands. Besides, I am not short of money either, hiss..."
Li Jinglong suddenly took a breath and said in surprise: "Are you here to check this?"
"Well, what's wrong?"
"The water here is deep!" Li Jinglong frowned, "There are so many people in the court, who can't control them? You said you are already old, what can you do to achieve this?"
"You're a brother, just tell me what you know." Li Qing heard the implication.
Li Jinglong asked: "Do you really want to take care of it?"
"It doesn't matter." Li Qing spread his hands, "The emperor issued a death order."
Li Jinglong was silent for a moment and said with a wry smile: "I will tell you and you will listen, because I have no evidence."
"Don't worry, I will never drag my brother into trouble." Li Qing said, "Just point me in the direction."
Li Jinglong was a little embarrassed, "It's not that brothers are unjust, this big family...Besides, I really have no evidence."
"You are already interesting enough." Li Qing smiled and said, "Don't feel bad about it."
Li Jinglong dipped his hand in wine and wrote the word 'Ning'.
Li Qing was startled, "Is there more?"
"He is the source." Li Jinglong said, "As for the people below him... I don't want to tell you that offending too many people is not good for you. If you hold him down, the matter will be solved. There is no need to offend him again." Others."
Li Qing knew Li Jinglong's painstaking efforts and didn't ask any more questions.
In fact, he didn't want to break the casserole and get to the bottom of it. Anyway, the sea would be opened in a few years. There was no need to expand the scope of the attack, as long as the current smuggling case could be solved.
"Thank you. Come on, have a drink." Li Qing raised his glass with a smile.
"You are getting older, so you should drink less."
Li Qing felt moved in his heart, and then he heard what Li Jinglong said next: "You are an imperial envoy. What if you drink yourself to death in my house?"
"..."
~
Half an hour later, Li Qing was as steady as an old dog, but Li Jinglong was eight points drunk and couldn't even speak.
"Brother, you don't know that I am lonely. I don't even have a close friend to talk to..." Li Jinglong kept talking.
"The Duke Cao Guo of Shuntian has been built. You have to come back, otherwise we and I can get together more often." Li Qing also felt the same, "Why don't you go back and I'll talk to the emperor and issue an imperial edict to ask you to come back."
"Don't say goodbye." Li Jinglong sobered up a little, "It's extremely cold and remote there. How can it be compared to Jinling?"
"Oh... it's too shallow."
"What's so shallow?"
Li Qing looked hurt, "My feelings have become shallow."
Li Jinglong's face heated up, "Good brothers are in my heart."
After a pause, "We Ming officials will work until they are seventy and retire in another six or seven years. When you retire, you will be able to settle down in Jinling. We will drink... burp every day~"
Li Jinglong smacked his lips and said with concern, "You have to take care of your health. Don't be like Lan Yu and die just after reaching retirement age."
"...Don't worry, I won't take your death with you."
"That's not necessarily the case. I'm younger than you and will definitely follow you." Li Jinglong was quite confident.
"We'll see."
"We'll see."
…
After a drink, Li Qing was fine, but Li Jinglong was vomiting.
Although he drank and vomited, he still had a hard mouth and shouted: I didn't perform well, I will try again tomorrow.
~
Back at the Hou Mansion, Li Qing readjusted his plan and added an extra half month to his stay in Jiangxi.
Alas... Xiao Qi!
