son-in-law

Chapter 1295 Typhoon (3)

Chapter 1295 Typhoon (Part )

The dense shade of the trees was accompanied by bursts of cicadas' chirping. The white clouds in the sky were large and gathered like lazy cotton wool. Craftsmen were measuring the collapsed wreckage near the collapsed courtyard gate. When the emperor came over, Ning Ji was playing Gobang with Qu Longjun under the eaves. They sat on the same side of the table, rubbing against each other, and it was unclear who was holding the black pieces and who was holding the white pieces.

The craftsmen were dismissed immediately. Zhao Xiaosong walked in front and shouted loudly: "Your Majesty has arrived." The emperor also sent him away: "It's noon, why are you shouting at the top of your voice? You are disturbing people's naps. All right, you can leave and do your own things."

Zhao Xiaosong was unable to see Ning Ji kneeling down.

Ning Ji did not kneel down, he had been in the southwest for a long time and did not develop such a habit. But the two of them stood up in a hurry, Qu Longjun blushed a little, and after the greeting, he was quite embarrassed. Jun Wu came over and took a look at the chessboard: "Hey, I know this chess, have you finished playing? I will play a game too!"

"...My humble lady, can you please go get something to drink?" Qu Longjun made an overstepping suggestion, and then fled with the emperor's approval.

Ning Ji said: "Then I am very powerful."

“Me too.” Speaking of playing Gobang, Jun Wu looked dignified, then frowned, moved two chairs side by side to both sides, put away the chessboard, and smiled: “Speaking of which, this way of playing was invented by our teacher back then… At that time, he played Go with Prime Minister Qin, Grandpa Kang and others in Qinhuai River. My sister and I went to watch and felt too tired, so our teacher taught us to play like this. But later, the tutor in the palace heard about it and scolded me, saying that such a childish game was too childish and insulted the elegance of Go… Later, my sister stopped playing with me. That doesn’t matter, I passed this Gobang to my friends in the city back then, and none of them were my opponents… Oh, it’s been many years since I played…”

"Your Majesty's little friend...what happened to him?"

"People and things in this world are not all like that." Jun Wu said, "Back then, they were all dandies from big and powerful families. When the Jurchens migrated south, some died and some dispersed. Later, my father succeeded to the throne. Some said they wanted to serve the country, but ended up becoming corrupt officials. I killed two of them myself. They bullied men and women and deserved death... But now, there are also two people who came to Fujian. They sold their homes to make money and donated some of the money they left behind when they migrated south. One of them became a minor official and can still greet me during festivals."

"Oh."

Ning Ji was somewhat interested in the life experience of this senior brother, but he could not say much when talking about his feelings about life, so he could only nod in a pretentious manner. The two of them set up the chessboard and made moves. Jun Wu sighed again: "Look, this Gobang is ever-changing, simple and interesting, which is in line with the meaning of simplicity. Those guys who play Go all day long have brains like wood, how can they understand the beauty of it."

Ning Ji nodded again and again, having learned a few powerful words, such as "the great way is simple", which he could use to describe himself in the future.

"Brother, are you very busy these past two days?"

"I can tell?"

"The circles under my eyes are huge, and my breathing is uneven."

"The city's affairs have finally come to an end. On the surface, I have made great plans and won a great victory. The clowns have returned empty-handed. Those who have second thoughts behind the scenes should temporarily give up their ideas... I have to comfort some people appropriately. In a few days, as long as there are no more complications, this difficulty will be temporarily over... It is not easy to weigh the degree of ending. Who can be rewarded, who should be appeased, who can be forgiven, and who to kill, I have to think about it many times. I haven't slept well these two nights." Jun Wu frowned: "By the way, Junior Brother, aren't you a doctor? In the southwest... is there any medicine to refresh yourself?"

"...Just go to bed on time in a few days and you'll be fine."

"Oh..." He nodded, and after a while, he casually said, "By the way, Junior Brother, have you and Miss Qu already..."

"..."

"That is... that... are they already together?"

"......Hmm." Ning Ji hummed sullenly.

"Very good, Miss Qu is a good match." Jun Wu clapped his hands, "However... although the children of Jianghu are free and easy, you and her can support each other outside, but now that you have settled down, do you want to... arrange a marriage for her?"

"Ok?"

"It's like this, Senior Brother, I was thinking that the two of you being together is a big deal. When you return to the southwest, you will have to explain this to the teacher sooner or later. With the teacher's open-mindedness and Xiaoqu's personality, he will certainly not object, but by then, he will inevitably have to teach you a lesson... Don't you think so?"

"...Hmph..." Ning Ji nasally sounded with a hint of guilt in his voice.

"Why not arrange a marriage here?" Jun Wu put down the chess piece. "After all, you are now in my territory. Although it is not easy to publicize it, Master always knows that I am the eldest disciple, right? Arrange a marriage. First, you can give an explanation to Miss Qu. Second, I will send a letter to inform Southwest about this matter. You can also report safety to Master, Madam Xiaochan and everyone in the family. The newspaper about killing Fan Zhong and Tun Yun can also be sent back."

Ning Ji made his move mechanically, and Jun Wu smiled.

"Some things may not be so easy to say. You were wronged in the southwest, but how could the teacher and Madam Xiaochan not worry about you? It may not only be your safety. You were slandered by that bitch surnamed Yu. They are probably worried that you don't trust other women... You are here, officially married, and the Southeast Court and the Zuo family sent letters together. This is the most open and aboveboard thing. Everything they are worried about can be explained. In the future, when you go back, even if you have to be beaten, it will be different from being beaten without any news, don't you think?"

"... In addition, there is a third point... Miss Qu is an excellent girl, but she has also experienced many hardships. She was sent to the southwest, so she met you. This is a blessing, but there are also many things that cannot be said. But now that she has arrived in the southeast, she is a descendant of a loyal and good family to the Wu Dynasty. With my sister and I as guarantors and backing her up, no matter who speaks of her faults in the future, she can stand up straight. Junior brother, this matter was raised by my sister - it is an important matter."

"Yes." Ning Ji nodded, "Then... I'll discuss it with her."

“This matter must be taken seriously.”

The two chatted while playing a few games. Jun Wu won three games and Ning Ji won two games. They were evenly matched and were quite excited. After a while, Ning Ji asked about the weather forecast from the Si Tian Jian. Jun Wu then said, "Did Master Cheng tell you about the typhoon?"

"Yeah." Ning Ji nodded, "Didn't he tell you?"

"Of course I know what Chen Shuangran is waiting for. Master Cheng didn't tell you... Well, after all, I am the emperor, and I have a lot of things to do all day long. According to him, this matter is about to be closed. Do you still want to participate?"

"Yeah." Ning Ji talked about Zuo Xingzhou.

Jun Wu was also silent for a moment: "...They fought blood and survived many deaths in the southwest, but when they arrived in the southeast, it became like this. It is my dereliction of duty."

“No.” Ning Ji shook his head. “If it wasn’t just Zuo Xingzhou who became like this, someone else would have become like this. Fighting always has a price, but now that it has happened, I’m going to ask Chen Shuangran for the price.”

"...Chen Shuangran knows a lot of information." Jun Wu held the chess piece and frowned, "Master Cheng may not let you kill her...I will kill her after the interrogation. Are you still willing?"

"..." Ning Ji took a breath and made a move.

"Also, the Astronomical Observatory said that there is no typhoon in the next few days..." Jun Wu muttered a few words, then leaned over the chessboard and lowered his voice, "I have an idea, which may not be correct... Do you think Master Cheng is lying again to fool you and me?"

"...Ah?" Ning Ji opened his mouth wide.

"It may not be malicious, but this kind of thing has happened before..." Jun Wu muttered, "He may have other plans for Chen Shuangran, and he's afraid that you can't help but do something, so he simply gave you a deadline, saying that he would give you an explanation when the typhoon came... But if the typhoon didn't come, what could he do? You waited and waited, and the matter was over before the typhoon came. I think this is also possible..."

Under the eaves, the emperor thought more and more that it was possible: "In the last one or two months, all the things that happened in Fuzhou were caused by that evil woman Chen Shuangran. She took advantage of the time when I took a concubine to make a move. She must have a big plan. Now that the farce in the north of the city has ended, it can be said that she threw out the abandoned pawn to deliberately paralyze us. But if in a few days, I appease all parties, she will probably not be able to make trouble again. Wait for the typhoon... If this typhoon has to wait for half a month or even a month, all her arrangements will be in vain..."

Ning Ji blinked, then frowned and looked at his serious senior brother opposite him. He scratched his head and said, "Senior brother... you are His Majesty. It's not good to expose Cheng Zhouhai's conspiracy to me like this..."

"Hmph, nothing happened." Jun Wu shook his head, calmly, "Master Cheng is a weird person. Most of the time, I can't do anything about him. Sometimes, he doesn't report some small things directly, but in the end, I find that things have the best results according to his arrangements... If you can expose his schemes, go ahead and expose them. I also want to see his surprised look, haha..."

He smiled and placed another piece: "But generally speaking, I think that even if you and I join forces, it will be difficult to disrupt his arrangement."

Ning Ji also leaned forward and whispered, "...I'll discuss this with my little Qu."

Jun Wu also came up and said, "...That's possible. She is very smart."

"Humph!"

proud.

The light and shadows between the trees were mottled in the afternoon breeze. Amid the chirping of cicadas, the emperor, who had temporarily relieved himself of his responsibilities, and his invincible junior brother talked about many things, including past experiences and insights, Zhou Fuyang's baba, the land reform in the southwest, and the prospects of the southeast after the return of the sea ship. During this time, Qu Longjun brought over the ice jelly, but asked the chief eunuch who was guarding outside to taste it before coming in. She did not come to disturb their chat, but chatted with the chief eunuch for a while under the eaves outside the courtyard.

Later, Zhou Pei came nearby and saw the two poor students playing chess, dragging the more promising Qu Longjun along to review memorials.

That night, Ning Ji talked about marriage with Qu Longjun. He mentioned the eldest princess's considerations and looked at the other party cautiously.

I thought that the experience of being sold as a skinny horse and then taken to the southwest to cause trouble would be a knot in her heart, and she would probably be moved to tears by the princess's consideration, but Qu Longjun's attitude was calm. She looked around and thought for a while: "Just tell them that we still need to consider..."

"Well...you..." Ning Ji was confused, "...don't you want to?"

"It's a good thing to have an official identity, but this matter is not as serious as they say." Qu Longjun said, "Remember when I was in the southwest, it was your sister-in-law, the first-year girl, who came to see me and arranged things for me, right?"

"Yeah." Ning Ji nodded.

"And it was Mr. Ning who asked her to come and handle this matter."

"Yeah." Ning Ji continued to nod.

Qu Longjun smiled brightly: "That means that my affairs have been reported to Mr. Ning. If he or Sister Chuyi had doubts about my identity at that time, they could have quietly dealt with me. But later, Miss Chuyi asked you to settle me down, heal my injuries, and give me nutrition fees, didn't she?"

"Hmm..." Ning Ji nodded slowly.

"Then what do I have to fear? Since Mr. Ning and Sister Chuyi have this attitude, I will have to speak for our family next... It is still uncertain what the relationship between the court in the southeast and the southwest will be like. Although His Majesty and the Princess are close to Mr. Ning, in the final analysis, they represent the Wu Dynasty and Confucianism... The two sides may fight in the future. Xiaolong, will we become a reason for peace or a nail that prevents Mr. Ning from taking action here? We have to think it over carefully."

"..." Ning Ji's eyes rolled, "But I think that if the Southwest really attacks, Brother will probably surrender immediately."

"He won't." Qu Longjun shook his head seriously.

"But my senior brother..."

"Xiaolong, what I said is not to say that His Majesty has bad intentions, but it is precisely because he respects Mr. Ning that he wants to fight." Qu Longjun squeezed his hand, "Taoism and philosophy are not invisible and intangible things. Mr. Ning wants to oppose Confucianism, and Southeast wants to respect Confucianism. Mr. Ning killed Zhou Zhe of the Wu Dynasty, but Southeast represents the Wu Dynasty... Whether it is Confucianism or the Wu Dynasty, what it represents is not just a slogan from the emperor's mouth. There are thousands of people in the world who agree with it. If you want to change them, it is not something that can be implemented by an imperial edict or a government order."

"Just like foreign tribes wanting to rule the Central Plains, they need to kill people one round after another. If Your Majesty wants to control the Southeast, you need to put on a show one after another... If the show is done well, thousands of people will know who won and who lost in this fight. Mr. Ning wants to change Confucianism, and Confucianism will resist. This resistance will have a leader. If he tries his best and fails to defeat Mr. Ning, everyone will recognize the result and know that the situation is stronger than the person. But if Your Majesty kneels down immediately when he sees Southwest, the Confucian spirit will not be extinguished. They will choose other people, other representatives, to fight against Southwest for a few more rounds before giving up..."

"Moreover, the southeast is responsible for more than just Confucianism... Mr. Ning handed over the idea of ​​constitutional monarchy to Your Majesty. Whether this path can be taken or not, Your Majesty must go all out... These days, I have seen that Your Majesty's character should be like this. He has a gentle temperament, but in fact, he is steady and serious... Alas, if Zhou Zhe could have been half as good as him, the Wu Dynasty would not have become what it is today..."

"That makes sense..." Qu Longjun explained in detail, and Ning Ji finally understood. He nodded repeatedly. The two of them lay on the bed, hugged each other, and kissed several times. Ning Ji whispered in the hot atmosphere, "So you're worried that Wu Chao's show of goodwill here may become a factor that interferes with my father's decision in the future."

"That is to say, this matter has both advantages and disadvantages. I have to think carefully about how far I should go. I can't owe a lot of troublesome favors... In fact, I am not too worried about Your Majesty and the Princess. But as for Mr. Chengzhou Haicheng, if he uses us to compete with Mr. Ning in the future, I will have no choice but to kneel down in the yard and admit my mistake."

"No, at worst I can just run away with you." Ning Ji vowed, then frowned, "But Cheng Zhouhai is indeed capable of doing such a thing..."

He discussed with Qu Longjun again. As to whether the story about the typhoon was accurate, Qu Longjun did not have enough information and could not say much. After that, he could only give Ning Ji some ideas on how to cheat by relying on his status.

After finishing the business that night, they naturally got close to each other. Qu Longjun was still in pain, so there were some things she couldn't do, but she had a wealth of theoretical knowledge and was now a married woman. With curiosity and shyness, the boy and girl enthusiastically explored many unknown ways of getting along that night, and they all felt excited and thrilled...

Early the next morning, Ning Ji went to the office area in front of the princess's mansion with great vigor and enthusiasm and found Cheng Zhouhai.

He made jokes and annoyed the other party for a while, then asked about the fish king indirectly: "I have a few brothers... Although they were not good people in the past, they have finally done some good things now... For my sake, should the government release them..."

Cheng Zhouhai was annoyed by him for a while. He lowered his head to handle official business and didn't bother to look at him. At this time, he responded while writing: "In the matter of Yinan Village, you killed all the masters in the underworld. Gao Xingzong and others were locked up in the government office for a period of time. It was a protection for them. Now we are going through the formalities of treating them equally. In the future, the government will give them an identity. You should do it for their own good, so don't settle it privately."

"……Oh."

Ning Ji wanted to release the fish king, in fact, he hoped that the other party would become his spy, and then confirm Chen Shuangran's information indirectly. However, the old thief's statement was impeccable, Ning Ji scratched his head and had to admit it.

It was the early morning of June 13th. After asking around without success, he played cards, ate barbecued skewers, drank wine, and sang and danced with the little princess in the yard, causing a lot of chaos.

On June 14, before dawn, he went to bother Cheng Zhouhai again. Cheng Zhouhai sensed something and asked, "Do you suspect me?"

"Who wouldn't doubt you, Uncle Cheng?" Ning Ji jumped up, "There hasn't been a typhoon recently! What is Chen Shuangran waiting for..."

"..." Cheng Zhouhai rubbed his forehead in distress, "This is the news I got. I didn't lie to you this time."

“……” Ning Ji stared at him.

Cheng Zhouhai sighed: "I understand if you don't believe me, but our interests are the same in many things here. I think the matter of Fan Zhong and Tun Yun has proved my attitude."

"Then you lied to me too."

"If I told you about Qu Longjun's situation in advance, would you be able to set up this plan?" Cheng Zhouhai looked at him. "What's more, the newspapers you asked for have already been produced. Recently, the news in the city has been sparing no effort to publicize your deeds... At this time, can't you stay quiet for a few days and wait for me to make arrangements?"

"...Hmph!" Ning Ji crossed his arms and did not agree.

Seeing that Cheng Zhouhai's attitude was ambiguous and he didn't offer any hard goods, Ning Ji went to hang out outside the princess's mansion again. He led Yue Yun to roam the city without restraint and returned to Yinqiaofang for another inspection. This time, many people recognized him and came to talk to him. Many people - even the auntie who was selling "Jia Rice with Dog Stuffed" at the next stall - came to greet and inquire about him.

"...I knew that Young Master Long would be fine. He is humble and gentle."

"...Young Master Sun, you two brothers are amazing!"

"...You killed that so-and-so. Young Master Long killed that lecherous monk. That's amazing."

"...Look, Master Yue has become his follower..."

“…Fuck! Who said follower, get out here—”

Amid the chattering sounds, Ning Ji held his head high and chest puffed out, feeling extremely proud. This was the most glorious moment of his time since coming to Fuzhou.

At this time, a large group of beautiful women came running over from Jinqiaofang. They were the courtesans and maids who had heard about the young heroes' return. Led by Xiaodie's mistress Fang Ruitao, they all came to entertain the two young heroes. Many of them stretched their necks to ask, "Where is Young Master Long? Where is Young Master Long?"

Young Master Long was of course busy, and Young Master Sun, who was often bullied by the brothel maids in the past, was frightened and took a few steps back after receiving such treatment. Then he took Yue Yun, who was still arguing with others about "who is the follower", and fled in panic using Qinggong, leaving everyone behind sighing: "Young Master Sun looks so handsome when he runs..." and "I think Young Master Sun, I can do the same..."

After becoming famous, there are also troubles.

Another day passed, June 15th, and Chengzhouhai continued to worry.

The weather has been hot for days, and there is no sign of a typhoon. But even if Ning Ji wanted to do something, he couldn't find a place to start. Fortunately, he had a close relationship with Qu Longjun. His injuries gradually healed, and he played with Yinping and Yue Yun in the yard, or took Zhou Fuyang to rob bird nests. There was always something to do every day, but he always felt unspeakable resentment when he went to see Zuo Xingzhou, who was gradually weakening.

Although he mentioned the idea of ​​killing Chen Shuangran to Cheng Zhouhai, in fact, he felt in his heart that the other party would not really agree. After all, Chen Shuangran still had a lot of secrets, and when he was really caught, the court would definitely interrogate him thoroughly.

June 16th was another sunny day. In the afternoon, Yue Yun, who had disappeared for a while, suddenly came to look for him: "Mr. Cheng wants us to come over! There's something urgent."

Ning Ji looked at the clear and windless weather and followed all the way to the front yard, only to see several leaders he knew gathered there. Cheng Zhouhai seemed to be giving orders one after another, and as soon as they arrived, they were led in.

"The matter is settled. According to the agreement, Chen Shuangran will be yours. You and Yue Yun can take the first action."

"But..." Ning Ji frowned and pointed outside the house, "Didn't you say the typhoon..."

"Taiwanese%￥#& bullshit——" Cheng Zhouhai frowned and cursed, "What a fucking psycho——"

Ning Ji and Yue Yun had never seen Cheng Zhouhai curse like that. As two poor students, although they were arrogant on weekdays, after seeing the other party's methods, they were still a little afraid of his rage, and their momentum weakened for a while.

Then Cheng Zhouhai turned around, pulled over a map with marked areas and buildings in Fuzhou City, and began to explain the next arrangements.

Ning Ji listened for a while, trembling with fear: "Then, Cheng... Teacher Cheng... you mean... if I go in first and accidentally kill her..."

"No matter how careless you are, it's your ability to catch her. If you want to chop off her hands and feet, I'll let you do it... a damn bitch who killed a lot of people..."

Ning Ji scratched his head, but couldn't help but ask: "But...you won't interrogate her?"

"It's already been chewed up." Cheng Zhouhai glanced at him and said, "You guys are just finishing up, it's not the main point. Time is precious, just do what you want to do and stop talking nonsense."

Ning Ji looked at him seriously.

Then he laughed.

"--okay!"