In the late winter of the tenth year of Qingli, Qingzhou won a great victory, and the general Li Hong was successfully in the world, and was called to return to Beijing. However, those who sang the praises of the great Daqing Dynasty in Kyoto naturally saw very clearly that the position of the deputy envoy of the Privy Council was actually just an idle position, and under the suppression of Ye Chong, the prince Li Hongcheng could no longer have his own force as in Dingzhou City. And no one has forgotten that the previous one who ascended to the lofty position of deputy envoy of the Privy Council at such a young age was Qin Heng, and that person's fate was not very glorious.

After Li Hongcheng returned to Beijing, he naturally entered the palace as soon as possible, and the emperor in the imperial study did not vent a trace of anger to him, but just talked about the scenery of Xiliang very calmly, but the prince looked at Fan Ruoruo beside him, and his mood was low to the bottom. Out of the palace, went to the Privy Council to hand over the envoy, set the rì period for returning to the palace, Li Hongcheng returned to the palace, and saw many people who were under house arrest in the palace, Jing Wangye, who had just been released, and his weak and pitiful sister, a family of three sat speechless, the old prince sighed again and again, patted Li Hongcheng on the shoulder, and said: "Fortunately, there is no chaos, you can persist until today before returning to Kyoto, which can be regarded as an explanation to that side." ”

Having said that, Li Hongcheng still went to Fan's mansion in person that night, he knew how deep Fan Xian's expectations were for himself, although he was very tenacious in Dingzhou to resist the will of His Majesty and the pressure of the palace code, and dragged it out for a few more days, but after all, he was still called back very wolfly, and he always had to give Fan Xian an explanation in person.

No one knew about the conversation between the two friends in the study in the back garden of the Fan Mansion, and they thought that they were just expressing their apologies to each other, and the palace didn't seem to be very interested in this conversation, because no one prevented the prince Hongcheng from entering the mansion.

"I didn't think things would turn out like this. Fan Xian smiled bitterly, stood up, hugged him, patted him lightly on the back, and sent him out of the study.

Li Hongcheng came out of the study, turned around, glanced at him worriedly, and said: "Deng Ziyue should have escaped, but the people in your Qi Nian group are only afraid that several people will die on Xiliang Road, after all, this is a matter in your hospital, and I don't know the inside story, I hope you can control your feelings." ”

"I don't know who the betrayer is, maybe it's just one of the three joints, and the people in the courtyard found out the news, after all...... This time, it was Yan Bingyun who went to sit in person, and in the face of this person, I didn't have much confidence. Fan Xian's expression was a little depressed, and he said: "But don't worry, I've never been too interested in revenge, I just feel a little flustered." ”

"If even you feel flustered, then I advise you to be honest lately. Li Hongcheng shook his head, refused Fan Xian's intention to send him out of the house, and patted him on the shoulder vigorously like his father comforted him, flicked his clothes, and walked out of the mansion.

............ Seeing Li Hongcheng's slightly lonely figure disappear into the winter garden, Fan Xian was silent for a long time before turning around and sitting on the Taishi chair in the study again. Hongcheng previously relayed Gong Dian's evaluation of him, and that evaluation made Fan Xian can't help but feel the bitterness in his mouth, and he is self-respecting? If you really want to dig deeper, Fan Xian's arrangement in Dongyi City and Xiliang does have some such meaning, and this meaning is undoubtedly untenable at the moral level.

However, who can really understand what Fan Xian is thinking, he just doesn't want too many innocent people in the world to die because of the war between himself and His Majesty the Emperor, so he chose this kind of arrangement at the moment.

The great victory in Qingzhou is a perfect embodiment of the foresight of the emperor's majesty, whether it is Hu Ge's feint attack or Shan Yu's reaction, this qiē is the foundation laid by the Supervision Yuan or Fan Xian with a lot of effort, and this foundation was ruthlessly and calmly used by the emperor's majesty.

Fan Xian didn't have the slightest sense of closeness to the Hu people on the grassland, the dead bodies on the tuntian on Xiliang Road and the houses after being burned would only make him applaud the Qingzhou victory, the problem was that this time the victory easily tore up all the arrangements of Fan Xian on Xiliang Road, Li Hongcheng In this situation, if he still wants to delay the time and not return to Beijing, then if he is looking for death.

Fan Xian was deeply chilled and admired by the methods and abilities of His Majesty the Emperor, and a cowardly thought was born in his heart that was difficult to resist.

"You've heard it, it's none of my business. Fan Xian pressed his hands on the desk and closed his eyes a little tiredly.

Returned to the Central Plains, and the begonia flowers that re-put on the flower cloth cotton jacket appeared behind him, after the battle of Hongshankou, she and the one in Dingzhou City set off at about the same time, Li Hongcheng returned to Beijing very quickly, but still a day later than her. Now that the palace's surveillance of the Fan Mansion has been relaxed a lot, how can it be possible to stop the Holy Maiden of Northern Qi from quietly entering the mansion.

It's been a year since I saw him, Haitang looked at the young man in the Taishi chair silently, thinking in his heart that the other party was actually not very old, but why did he look a little old now, with a trace of exhaustion on his face. Thinking of what happened to Nanqing in these rìzi, and thinking of the dead director of the Supervision Yuan, Haitang suddenly understood why Fan Xian seemed so tired.

"But because of the words you asked Hong Yiqing to bring to me, many people died on the grassland. Begonia said.

Fan Xian opened his eyes, sneered and said, "I just asked the royal court to agree to Hu Ge's troops, but I didn't expect that Shan Yu to take advantage of the opportunity." ”

Haitang was slightly stunned, did not explain to him that he had tried to suppress Subida's ambitions, and said lightly: "But in the end, it was still you Nanqing who took a big advantage." ”

Fan Xian was silent, and said after a while: "You don't have to worry about how the news leaked, I sent two people to Xiliang Road, and Hong Yiqing has not been able to collect the manpower of the original four places, it is obvious that Ziyue was targeted by the courtyard when he handed over ......"

Speaking of this, he took a deep breath, and suddenly thought of the young general of the Ye family mentioned in the intelligence, it is reported that the young general is now leading four thousand light cavalry into the grassland to chase the remnants of the royal court, Fan Xian can't help but admire this person's courage, but thinking of the cold in winter, and deep in the grassland, I am afraid that these four thousand cavalry will never come back alive.

"The brute horsemen who have migrated from the north to the steppe...... Do you still listen to your orders now?" he glanced up at Begonia and said, "After all, you are the princess of the Snow Plain, and you are respected and respected on the grassland, and your status is high, so you must have some strength." ”

Haitang frowned slightly, his eyes as bright as Beihai flashed with a hint of anger, and he said coldly: "At this time, are you still worried about the life or death of those four thousand light horsemen? You really deserve to be a powerful minister of the Nanqing Dynasty...... Why don't you want to think about those tribes on the steppe who are young and strong and have no power to resist?"

"I am a Qingren, then I am a Central Plains person, and finally I am a person. Fan Xian bowed his head and said: "As you said, Su Bida's ambition this time is too great, taking away a large number of young people from various tribes, the power on the grassland is already empty, after the Qingzhou Da Xuan, four thousand light horsemen slaughtered into the grassland, as long as those snowfield barbarians who stayed in the west of the grassland kept a distance from them, maybe they might really come back." ”

"Xihu is finished, and if the time is right, those of you who have migrated from the north to the steppe may be able to take advantage of the situation. Fan Xian faintly tempted Begonia, "You have to accept this reality and then take advantage of it." ”

"I'm different from you, there are many things that I know are in my interests, but I can't do them because they don't match my rules. Haitang lowered his eyes slightly, and replied softly: "But what you said at this time really surprised me a little, you are obviously a ruthless person who is arrogant and self-respecting, and does not give priority to the interests of Qingguo, why do you have such a request?"

"If I really don't consider the interests of Qingguo and even the whole world, why am I still staying in this mansion now? Whether it's to throw blood or hide the world, I would have done it a long time ago. ”

"When did you become a saint?"

"I'm not a saint, but at a certain stage in my life, when the highest desires of power have been satisfied, I will pay more attention to the divine considerations...... And I don't like to be seen as a cold-blooded and ruthless scum who only knows how to use the blood of soldiers. ”

"After all, you are still a hypocritical and selfish person. Begonia looked at him and said, then put the knife in his arms in front of him.

Fan Xian replied expressionlessly: "If this is hypocrisy and selfishness, I think the people of the whole world will be very grateful to my vanity...... I know that your Emperor Xià is a daughter, even if I want to blackmail you. ”

Haitang's body shook slightly, and he looked at him for a long time without speaking.

Fan Xian also kept silent, and the entire study was immersed in a depressing atmosphere, and after a long time, he asked a little sadly: "In fact, there are many times when I need someone to help give some advice, it turns out that Yan Bingyun and Wang Qinian acted as this kind of corner, and now Yan Bingyun is his pure minister, and the old king has been arranged by me to leave, and there is nowhere to ask...... I'm not a god, and in the face of him, I don't have any confidence at all, and I have no one to help me, so I'm really helpless. ”

"Is this pretending to be pitiful in front of me?" Haitang said sarcastically, but was slightly stunned, sighed and said, "What do you want to ask?"

Fan Xian clapped his hands gently, and asked Haitang to sit down at the desk very seriously, then took a sip of cold tea to moisten his throat, stretched out his tongue and licked his lips, and said: " My own sister is in the Imperial Palace, my family is in Kyoto, those loyal subordinates who are attached to me and believe in me are in the shadow of this country, I have the strength but it is difficult to shake the cornerstone of this court, and I don't want to shake this cornerstone, so that all the moss, ants, and rabbits above will fall to death, while my opponent has great strength, indifferent rationality, extraordinary planning ability, and he has the allegiance of the vast majority of people in this land...... The most important thing is that although I know from the small news that came out of the palace after the rain in early autumn that he gradually walked down from the altar and gradually began to become like a mortal, leaving a little empty door on the love, I still believe that his blood is cold enough, his heart is strong enough, and once I really make a move, these people I want to protect will really ...... There is no more zài. ”

"I used to be afraid of death, but now I'm not so afraid of death. Fan Xian continued to summarize seriously after saying a long paragraph, "But I'm very afraid that the people I love and the people I protect will die, can you help me solve this problem?"

Haitang didn't stay silent for too long, and said directly: "No." ”

Fan Xian spread out his hands, let out a long sigh, and said, "Look, there is no one in this world who can help me solve this problem. ”

"What do you mean when you say he stepped down from the altar?" Haitang was obviously very interested in this matter, she didn't know where Fan Xian's judgment about Emperor Qing came from.

Fan Xian gently placed his right hand on the position of his heart, and said with a smile: "After all, father and son are connected, and there are some small changes that you can't notice, but I can detect them...... He told me to stay in the house and do these tricks, and then smashed them one by one to show me, although it showed the strength of a king, but don't you think, in fact, it's very troublesome? He has too many ways to make this qiē disappear, but he didn't do it, he ...... is angry with me, angry with Chen Pingping, and angry with my mother. ”

"A person who was originally lifeless, ruthless and unrighteous, but now he has learned to gamble, don't you think he is becoming more and more like a normal person?" Fan Xian shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Presumably this is also the consequence of the old cripple dying and thinking." ”

"But there's still nothing you can do to change that. Haitang sat on the chair and lowered his head slightly, "You have been sitting in Kyoto for the past few months, but you have thrown the cause of chaos to all parties in the world, your idea is actually very simple." ”

She raised her head and stared at Fan Xian's bloodshot eyes with bright eyes, and said heavily: "Presumably, this is also Chen Pingping's revenge arrangement, first the whole world is shaking, taking advantage of the chaos to force the palace, and then thundering a blow...... It's just that you haven't gained the trust of Emperor Qing as he imagined, this is your poor vanity, and at the same time, you can't really be ruthless with this world, this is your poor hypocrisy. ”

"You should understand very well that your xìng feelings seem to be yīn strong, but in fact you are not a big man after all, there are many things you can't do. Haitang blinked slightly, swept away the terrifying cold light in his eyes, and said calmly: "In this case, the qiē you are doing now, except for naivety and naivety, there are no other words to describe it, because in the end...... You still don't have the faith to confront him head-on. ”

Fan Xian was silent for a moment and said, "Who can have this confidence? In the past few months, I have just beaten the side drum, trying to sue him, so as to maintain a form that may be shattered at one moment, and to defend these people around me as much as possible...... If it weren't for the fact that I didn't break the jar and didn't let half of Qingguo fall into turmoil, do you think Yang Wanli, Cheng Jialin, and those people in one place would survive?"

He raised his head, stared at Haitang and said, "I have to prove my strength in order to save the lives of these people, yes, at the last moment, I still have to fight with His Majesty face to face, I don't have that confidence...... So I've been waiting for someone to come back. ”

"Blind Master. Begonia didn't ask, but said the name that seemed to have magical powers.

"You can't always put your hope in these ancestors who have supported you to grow up, whether it is your mother, or Chen Pingping, or Master Fan Shangshu, they have done too much for you. Haitang looked at Fan Xian, and a trace of pity suddenly appeared in her heart, "Have you ever thought that if the blind master never comes back, what is the point of you suffering in this Kyoto?"

Haitang Zheng advised Fan Xian and said: "Many things always have to be done by yourself, whether you have this confidence or not, but the situation has forced you to this point, since you can't be indifferent to the death of your mother and Chen Pingping, then you will never be able to play his good courtier, good son." ”

Fan Xian suddenly felt that these words were very harsh, he frowned, raised his hand, stopped Haitang from speaking, and said in a low voice: "You haven't personally experienced his strength, so you can easily say the word confidence." ”

Haitang sighed and said, "But how long can you wait? The movement between you and His Majesty in Cangzhou City, he didn't think about it at all, but directly waved his troops westward, easily erasing all the hidden dangers over there." Then there is Jiangnan, which is Dongyi City...... No, maybe he won't pay attention to Dongyi City at all, but go straight north. Once the situation develops to that day, all your power has been uprooted, and what else can you do except nest in Kyoto like an idler, watching him step by step towards the top, and watching him sneer at the souls of your parents?"

"He can't move Jiangnan, if he moves that place, I have to move, and if I move, the entire Qingguo, including him, will feel pain. ”

"I don't know what you've done in Necuri, but I believe that a character like Emperor Qing won't care about any loss for the sake of the obsession in his heart. Begonia said.

At this time, a voice sounded from the shadow of yīn in the study, and it was extremely cold: "The emperor is not a human being, how can he know the feeling of pain." ”

It is the shadow that speaks, the shadow that has been floating in Kyoto like a shadow for the past few months. Immediately after that, another direct and steady voice sounded, as if he wanted to convince Fan Xian: "I don't know much about self-confidence, but if you really want to make a sword...... I will tell myself that I have to be confident. ”

The person who said this was Wang Shisanlang, this closed disciple of the Sword Mansion with a firm sword heart, even if he was facing the unfathomable great master of Emperor Qing, he was still so calm and so persistent.

As Fan Xian analyzed before, the emperor's majesty or Qingguo, the biggest lifeline at the moment is that there is a great lack of cutting-edge personal force, and those once powerful figures are dying one by one in the internal friction of Qingguo. For example, today, most of the nine rank powerhouses are actually standing in Fan Xian's camp, and this strength, even if it is Emperor Qing, he does not dare to underestimate it.

If the old husband of Hong, the father and son of the Qin family, and Yan Xiaoyi are still alive, then today's Qingguo can really be called an iron-clad camp.

Fan Xian was silent for a long time, and did not directly answer the persuasion of these three supreme powerhouses in the study, but frowned and said, "I don't want you all to die in his hands...... And, after all, it's my business. ”

............ Fan Xian in the deep winter of the tenth year of Qingli was like a beast trapped in a blizzard, anxious, depressed, and restless. He watched the powerful Emperor Xià cut off his right-hand man with a knife with a plan far beyond his own, and watched the Qingguo Imperial Court move towards the unification of the continent in an orderly manner, but he couldn't do anything.

In front of Emperor Qing, Fan Xian, who has always been good at disguising himself, finally became unconfident for the first time, and he didn't know how to defeat such a powerful figure. So he was waiting, but he didn't know if the person he was waiting for would come back. And in order to ensure the safety of himself and the people around him during the waiting time, he is trying to do something.

However, Kyoto was unexpectedly calm, according to the information that Baoyuelou had obtained very hard, the Fan in the He University Scholar's Mansion was helpless, and the former second prince strategist was injured in a surprise attack and has not been seen since, but He Zongwei has not been implicated in this matter. Fan Xian was a little disappointed, but he finally understood that the old fox of Scholar Hu was not so easy to use.

What made Fan Xian feel even more frustrated was that there was finally news from Jiangnan, bad news.

The transmission of information in this era is always so slow, so slow that it is infuriating, and the news that Fan Xian received in Layue was actually a month ago.

The Inner Treasury Transit Division received the secret decree from the palace, and began the preparations for the opening of the warehouse bidding in the coming year according to the plan, but this year's bidding process of the Inner Treasury has a shocking change - changing the bidding for the preparation of silver to the bidding for the imperial court evaluation report - this change directly negotiates the power of the Inner Treasury to negotiate between the imperial court and the merchants, and completely becomes the arrangement of the imperial court on the one hand, in other words, the bidding of the Inner Treasury will be opened next year, and whichever the imperial court wants to win the bid, it will be the winning bid.

In this way, the Ming family presided over by Xia Qifei, even with the secret support of the two major banks, China Merchants Qianzhuang and Taiping Qianzhuang, may not be able to continue its past glory, which is undoubtedly a heavy blow to the strength of the Fan faction.

The rules of the bidding of the inner library have been fixed since the completion of the three major squares of that year, whether it is the old Ye family or the later inner library, no one dares to touch this rule. And this winter's change is undoubtedly a shameful regression, and everyone knows that this will of the Emperor Xià will have a bad impact on the commercial activities of the whole of Jiangnan, which is difficult to assess.

However, to the surprise of many people, the giant merchants in Jiangnan did not form a group to resist this faint decree, on the contrary, the Lingnan Xiong family and the Quanzhou Sun family remained silent, and several salt merchants began to leap forward - as we all know, several of the children of those salt merchants had died at the hands of Xiao Fan because of the Chūn case.