Wei Mingcheng left Wei Juyuan's mansion, returned home, and called Wei Jie to the study.

"Jie'er, are you dissatisfied that your father didn't let you prepare for a thousand cows?" Wei Mingcheng asked.

"The child obeyed his father's orders, and tomorrow he made an appointment with Qiu Zhen to eat at the Immortal Tower." Wei Jie replied.

After Wei Jie came to Beijing, he stared at Qiu Zhenqi, the son of Qiu Shenji, the general of Jinwuwei, who leaned towards the government and the opposition, deliberately established a good relationship with him, and invited Qiu Zhenqi to the restaurant opened by his family for a while.

"It's good that you have this heart," Wei Mingcheng said, "With the strength of my Wei family, it will be easy for you to enter Qianniuwei, do you know why your father rejected your uncle's proposal and let you go to Jinwuwei?" ”

"I don't know." Wei Jie's expression changed slightly.

Qianniu is often the first stop for the children of the family to enter the army. Qianniu Wei is in charge of the guards of the Imperial Sword and the guard, and is the emperor's inner personal guard, and has always been favored by the children of the powerful. often shakes his eyes in front of the emperor, mixes his face and shows a little force, the art of war, so that it is not difficult to rise to the top in the army. Thinking that the ancestor of this dynasty started with a thousand cows and finally ascended to the throne, how could it be said that Wei Jie was not happy.

"In the past, my father would have focused on this, but now the situation is different. The Empress Dowager Wu Zetian's heart of change is well known, and at this time, it is inevitable that there will be suspicions of standing in line, the key is that after your sister-in-law is the abolished emperor, Wu Zetian is born with distrust in my Wei family, and you have no future in the palace. Don't look at your uncle, your uncle is in a high position, the scenery is infinite, once the situation changes, Wu Zetian will be heavy-handed. Wei Mingcheng said.

Wei Mingcheng has lived in the dark for a long time, observing the officialdom of the Tang Dynasty with a cold eye, observing the changes in the imperial court and perceiving the subtle changes in power.

"Then my Wei family is not in danger?" Wei Jie said.

"Not necessarily, Wu Zetian's ascension to the throne must eradicate the forces that do not attach to him, among which the Li Tang clan is the key, and secondly, it is necessary to suppress and subdue the magnates of the Luoyang generation in Guandong and consolidate the power in Luoyang, my Wei family is far away from the foundation of Guanzhong, and the threat to Wu Zetian is limited, and it has not yet fallen into her eyes." Wei Mingcheng said, "On the other hand, now the competition for Luoyang has become the focus of attention of all parties, and the power of Zuo Jin Wuwei General Qiu Shenji is scorching, far surpassing the previous Li Hui, the key is that he is the head snake of Luoyang, and even Wu Zetian has to be reused for him." ”

"The child knows," Wei Jie said in awe.

Wei Mingcheng's analysis of the movements of the imperial court made Wei Jie sincerely admire.

"The things that Jin Wuwei is in charge of are cumbersome, but you can get in touch with the people, and you have a lot of experience, which is very beneficial for the future." Wei Mingcheng said, "In addition, pay more attention to contacting the children of those powerful people, collect news from the DPRK and China, don't be afraid to spend money, our Wei family's underground power in Luoyang is too weak, and if we continue like this, we will suffer." ”

"The boy knows how to do it." Wei Jie said.

"Let's do it!" Wei Mingcheng said, waving his hand to let Wei Jie leave the study.

Xianren Building is located in Jishanfang, north of Luoshui, three floors high, overlooking Tianjin Bridge, bead curtains hang to the ground, colorful lights are reflected, and the flow of people is endless.

Cheng Boxian booked a few days in advance of the third floor by the window of the private seat, just in the northeast corner of the building, looking at the window, you can see the north palace city, the Ming Hall that has been built for several months gradually reveals a tall outline, looking down on Luoshui and Tianjin Bridge in the near distance, there is a unique artistic conception. This elegant seat is easy to not allow people, and the identity is almost impossible to book, of course, as the son of General Cheng Boxian Jin Wuwei, this thing can be done.

Jin Wuwei is directly in charge of the large and small restaurants and shops in the city, and these businessmen will not offend them.

"The Immortal Building has just opened for a month, and the guests are like clouds, and they all praise them after eating, and I quickly called you over to taste after I heard about it." Cheng Boxian led Li Rong and Wei Chi Xiu into the building.

"Cheng Gongzi is here, please come here!" A guy had already come forward, and I saw that the guy was wearing a clean light white cloth shirt, politely leading the three of them upstairs.

The Wei family is worthy of being an eight-hundred-year-old family, and the guys trained look shrewd and capable, which is not comparable to ordinary hotels.

"Good cedar wood, made of fine craftsmen," Li Rong raised his feet upstairs, swept the hall, and said secretly in his heart on the stairs.

The Wei family built the immortal building very carefully, the beams used are rare fir wood of more than 100 years, the lacquer is above the grade tung oil, and the wood exudes a faint fragrance, which is quite rare.

The guy led the three of them to the private seat on the third floor, and respectfully waited for the three of them to take a seat and order.

"What does Cheng Gongzi want to eat?" The guy asked respectfully.

"Here are a few good dishes, such as fairy belly, Xiaotian crisp, chopsticks spring, snow baby, Tonghua soft New Year's intestines, a stove of mandal-like sandwich cakes, three servings of Yuhuang Queen Mother's rice, by the way, I also want a jar of aged Xifeng wine, hurry up." Cheng Boxian nodded one after another.

"Okay," the man silently took to heart, turned and went downstairs to the kitchen to get ready.

"Immortal, snow baby, what is this?" Wei Chi Xiu frowned.

"You'll know if you eat it, haven't you heard of it?" Cheng Boxian pretended to smile mysteriously, "This is the signature dish of the Immortal Building, from the secret recipe of Jingzhao Wei's family, of course, this Immortal Mansion is also opened by the Wei family." ”

"The fairy belly is a stewed chicken with milk, and the snow baby is a roasted field chicken," Li Rong smiled, "but ordinary people are not as good as Webster." ”

Li Rong's grandfather Li Xiaogong was involved in the battle for the throne and was imprisoned for a time, although Emperor Taizong later succeeded to the throne and released him, he was still a little jealous of him and put Li Xiaogong in an idle position. Li Xiaogong collected a lot of wine and food recipes to avoid trouble, and then to relieve the depression in his heart, and he collected a lot of wine and food recipes, and he knew some of the Wei family's dietary secrets.

"It turned out to be a chicken and a field chicken, and the name was weird and nice." Yu Chi Xiu pouted.

Only these gate lords will have this kind of leisure and leisure, and come up with this way of eating!

"It tastes even better!" Cheng Boxian said.

"As if you've eaten it?" Yu Chi Xiu said quietly.

The two of you are arguing back and forth.

"Mingtang is really high!" Cheng Boxian sat there, facing the palace city, and it was already visible that the Ming Hall was higher than the city wall, and from a distance, the craftsmen who were as small as ants climbed up and down the construction.

"This is the face project of Her Majesty the Holy Mother of God and the Emperor, naturally the more majestic and gorgeous the better!" Li Rong said.

"Face project?" Cheng Boxian was stunned when he heard it, such a statement is very fresh and appropriate.

"Xing, the people are suffering, dying, the people are suffering," Li Rong said softly.

The craftsmen and servants used to build the Ming Hall were tens of thousands, just to meet the needs of the ruler's face, which is not a heavy joke.

Downstairs, Wei Jie brought Qiu Zhenqi and Zheng Guanlan here together, ready to invite two newly met friends to taste the Wei family's food.

"Wei Bao, take us to the third floor, I'm going to entertain two friends." Wei Jie said to the lobby shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper named Wei Bao was busy and respectfully led the three of them upstairs.

"Can someone sit in the northeast window seat?" Wei Jie asked.

"Cheng Boxian, the sister-in-law of Lord Cheng Chubi, the general of the Right Jin Wuwei, is there with his friends." Wei Bao said with a little bitterness.

Wei Bao is a shrewd and capable person of the Wei family personally selected by Wei Mingcheng, and his ability to recognize people and see people is the crown of the dark department, he remembered him when he saw Cheng Boxian, of course, the reason why he felt bad was that the pale young man who followed Wei Jie's side, Qiu Zhenji, the youngest son of Qiu Shenji, the general of Zuojin Wuwei, and the first-class gentleman of Luoyang, had not been on the right path with Cheng Boxian since he was a child, and it would be bad if the two of them got into trouble.

Before Wei Bao presided over the Xianren Building, he went to various restaurants in Luoyang, tasted their food one by one, and even observed their furnishings, identified those dignitaries and dignitaries who often went in and out of the restaurant, and found out their tastes. After careful preparation and arrangement, Xianrenlou became an instant hit and became the best restaurant in Luoyang.

Qiu Zhenqi is a frequent visitor to the restaurant brothel, with a unique taste, how could Wei Bao not know him.

"Cheng Boxian wants to grab a seat with me," Qiu Zhenqi said in a dark voice, "His father Cheng Chubi is not a good thing, he can't compete with my father in the army, so he has to teach Cheng Boxian a good lesson." ”

"Of course, General Qiu is deeply favored by Her Majesty the Holy Mother God Emperor, and the day before yesterday, he was in the shadow of the seventh-rank martial arts, which is much stronger than my brothers." Wei Jie was very clever and did not take Qiu Zhenqi's words, and said instead.

A few days before Qiu Zhen's period, he was sealed because of Qiu Shenji's merit in breaking the snake spirit lair, and he was given the position of a seven-rank captain. Wei Jie also used this reason to invite Qiu Zhenqi to dinner, and by the way, he contacted his feelings.

"Wei Jie, Zheng Guanlan," Li Rong's ears moved, and he heard footsteps from the stairs, and three masters came upstairs. Two of them are still acquaintances, one is Wei Jie of the Wei family, and the other is Zheng Guanlan.

The "Xuanyin Wonderful Sword" that Li Rong learned requires a very sensitive to sound, and it is not difficult for Li Rong to judge a person by the sound of footsteps, as long as he has seen someone.

"Cheng Boxian, Wei Chi Xiu is silent," Qiu Zhenqi said in a low voice, with a bit of disgust in his tone.

It is said that Qiu Xinggong, the grandfather of Qiu Zhen, and Cheng Boxian, the ancestors of Wei Chi Xiu, Cheng Zhijie, and Wei Chi Gong both served under the account of Emperor Taizong, and the relationship should be quite good, but the essence is not.

Cheng Zhijie, Wei Chigong was born in the civilian Han clan, and Qiu Xinggong was from the Luoyang Wang clan, when Qiu Xinggong's father Qiu He was still a member of the Sui Dynasty. The two sides come from very different backgrounds, don't like each other, and rarely fight together, so the relationship is very delicate. When the Empress Dowager Wu Zetian moved to Luoyang, Qiu Shenji's family rose sharply, and became Cheng Chubi's top boss, and the contradiction between the two sides deepened.