On March 22 of the sixth year of Qingli, it is said that it is auspicious, so the Lord Qincha patrols the Inner Treasury Transit Division is making Fan Xian, and after arriving in Jiangnan, the first New Year bidding of the Inner Library was selected on this day.

This day of spring is bright, the breeze is warm, the sons and ladies in Suzhou City have gone to the outside of the city to go out, the grass has not grown on the wide official road, the warbler has not flown has been frightened, the green mountains outside the city, the green water silk, it has become a good place for men and women to hook up with each other, and the air is filled with a fresh and beautiful taste.

Suzhou city is another scene, from the Jiangnan Governor's Mansion to the south seventy-four zhang place, is the Inner Treasury Transit Division resident in Suzhou Mansion, whether it is the Jiangnan Road of the Yamen or the Suzhou Mansion Yamen are open in this place, it is the place where the official spirit gathers, it is the place where the guard is heavily guarded on weekdays, the first place to watch the defense, today I only see the sergeants wandering on both sides of the street, each holding a spear in his hand, and there is the spirit of the yamen to fight, vigilantly watching the movements of all parties in the sleepiness of Chunnong.

This large area has been tightly contained.

Every year, the opening day of the inner library is like this, one is that the giant businessmen from all over the country have too much silver in their hands, and the other is the person who presides over the opening of the inner library, in addition to the officials of the transfer department and the eunuchs sent by the palace, the governor of Jiangnan Road will also be present to observe, and at this time it is indispensable to the imperial historians who have nothing to do all day long. There is too much money and too many high-ranking officials gathered here today, so security has become a top priority.

Fortunately, Suzhou is deep on the bank of the river, Qingguo is strong, and no force dares to make any temptations, even the thieves in Suzhou City have long been expelled from the city.

It is a clear season to collect money.

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The Transit Division follows established practice. A large mansion was vacated. This courtyard is extremely wide, along the two sides of the main hall slipping small cubicles, it is said that the former dynasty in the Jiangnan area of the student examination room, later when the Qingguo Emperor visited the south of the library, found that this pattern is somewhat suitable for bidding, so it was set here, forming a convention. On weekdays, this mansion is empty in the most exclusive area of Suzhou. It was lent to the Yamen of the Governor's Mansion by the Transit Department to manage the accounts, but it was returned to the Yamen of the Transit Division in March.

It has been renovated and cleaned since ten days ago, and now the house is extremely bright and clean.

There are soldiers guarding the outside of the house, and there are several guards with ordinary faces standing next to the hall in the courtyard, and the light in the lobby is a little dim, only a row of four Taishi chairs can be vaguely seen, placed behind the table.

When the steamed buns of the Suzhou branch of Kyoto Shinafukan on South Street were sold out, the door of this house finally opened.

The giant merchants from the states did not panic and climbed the stairs in a very orderly manner. Turning a blind eye to the vigilant eyes of the soldiers around them, for more than ten years, they have long been aware of this whole set of procedures.

Behind a merchant often represents a family, as well as the officialdom faction behind the family, the opening of the door is a major matter, so the representatives who come today are the head of the family, but the number is not large, these merchants are behind their own long-term entourage and the bookkeeper, and also carry boxes and account books and related tools.

Ahead of the crowd. Of course, it is a representative of the Ming family.

Since last year, the Ming family has delegated most of the rights to the hands of Young Master Ming Lanshi, and Master Ming has rarely come out to show his face, but what shocked many giant businessmen was. Today, that old man Ming, Ming Qingda, actually went to the mansion in person!

Ming Qingda squinted his tired eyes slightly, bowed to his colleagues, brushed his long beard under his chin, and proudly walked into the door.

The Jiangnan merchant faintly headed by the Ming family, hurriedly returned the salute to the old man, and followed him into the door. No one will feel a little uncomfortable, since it is the bidding of the inner library, of course, it is the Ming family first. Everyone just didn't understand why the Ming family was so cautious today, and even the old man was invited out.

Occasionally, someone thinks of the new transshipment envoy from the inner library. That Lord Qincha thought of the young master of the Ming family secretly communicating with everyone this month. Only then did I vaguely guess that today's bidding for the inner library would not be as smooth as in previous years, nor would it be as bright and pleasing as today's spring.

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The two rows of rooms under the eaves have already been labeled with their names, and each family enters in turn, and the Ming family is lined up in the first big room on the left-hand side, and they bring the most people, bringing sixteen shopkeepers, as soon as they enter the room, there are people who are arranged by the transfer department to serve tea and pour water, hand hot towels, and some delicate small pastries.

Although it was the government that opened the bid, they also knew that these rich people also had to greet well, and in the words that Fan Xian said with a smile after knowing the arrangements in previous years, if they want to kill pigs, of course, they must fatten the pigs first.

Ming Qingda sat firmly in the chair, his eyes narrowed slightly at the light sky scattered in the courtyard outside the door, before entering the hospital, he had eye contact with those businessmen, knowing that everyone's thoughts were extremely consistent, in front of interests, no one was willing to raise the price of each other, especially those merchants, they didn't dare to offend themselves at all.

Thinking of this, Ming Qingda's heart was a little relieved, and he asked in a low voice, "How long is it?"

Ming Lanshi stood beside his father in an orderly manner, lowered his body and said, "It's almost over." He stretched out his white hands and brought them to his father with tea, and they were so clean that they were as if they had never been stained with blood.

Ming Qingda nodded, since the imperial court is still invented, and no one in this world has the financial resources to compete with him, there should not be much difference from previous years, but I don't know why, his lips are still a little dry, maybe he is getting old, and his energy is always a little lacking.

Thinking of this, the master of the Ming family felt a trace of inexplicable emotion in his heart, his mother was already so old, why was her body still so healthy?

Ming Qingda subconsciously glanced at it with his eyes, and easily distinguished the families represented in those rooms, although he has rarely entered the mall in person over the years, but the friendship of the older generation is still there. Today, those who come to the family are some second-generation descendants, and they also know that the sixteen bids of the inner library, the share vacated by the Cui family can be grabbed, and as for the eight items that the Ming family is destined to die, they will not be able to move.

It's just that...... The door of the last room under the eaves on the opposite side was still closed, and I don't know who handed over the bid. But they have not yet arrived.

Ming Qingda took a sip of tea, moistened his throat, frowned and said, "Who is Yiliu's house?

Ming Lanshi was stunned and couldn't answer, because he had obviously investigated in enough detail, why was that room still empty?

Ming Qingda began to have some kind of warning sign in his heart

After Fan Xian returned the 400,000 taels of silver tickets, he fell into silence, not knowing what the Lord Qin was thinking. He glanced at his son and said slightly: "The work must be done without leakage, and even the people have not been checked clearly, what if something goes wrong after a while?"

Ming Lanshi's face was slightly embarrassed, so he had to admit his mistake, but he was a little unconvinced in his heart, these characters from wealthy families all had this kind of bad problem of inconsistency, and said tentatively: "Could it be a salt merchant...... They have always been eccentric. Maybe this time it's also greedy. ”

Ming Qingda looked gloomy, shook his head, and said, "It's not a salt merchant, one." They gave us a promise, and second, Master Xue also made a promise to me. ”

The master of the Ming family looked at the empty room across from him, looked at the closed door, and looked at the chill that vaguely oozes from the glass window, and a strong uneasiness welled up in his heart.

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"It's a shame this time. In the study room of the Jiangnan Governor's Mansion, a master sighed: "The Cui family has vacated six items, but it is inconvenient for us to interfere." It's a pity to see so much silver being divided between the Ming family and those rich people in the south of the Yangtze River. ”

The official of the feudal territory, the governor of Jiangnan Road, and the first product of the first grade, Lord Xue Qing, smiled. Silent and silent.

The other master sitting next to him also showed pity on his face and said, "Yang Jimei came a few times a few days ago. I don't expect adults to help him talk in front of Xiao Fan...... His family has been making salt for generations, and now he is also hungry when he looks at the fat meat in Neiku. ”

Yang Jimei was the largest salt merchant of the Lianghuai generation, or a smuggler of salt, and had always been careful about the Governor's Palace.

After Xue Qing thought about it, he said with a smile: "Who is not greedy? Yang Jimei is an old killer...... Such a good Huayuan, I asked him for it, but he didn't give it, this time I had to give it to Fan Xian as a residence through my hand, what did he think, didn't the official know?

As the governor of Jiangnan, he is in charge of one-seventh of the world's soldiers and horses, and his strength is extremely strong, and he naturally has many ears and eyes...... He didn't have much of a chance. ”

The master asked curiously, "What does Lord Qincha think?" Who is he going to hand over the six items that have been vacated?"

The smile on Xue Qing's face gradually faded, and he said: "Actually, you don't need to ask, since Your Majesty sent him to Jiangnan, these six items are naturally prepared for him to get by himself." ”

He then sneered: "Don't talk about these six, I think the Ming family's own eight items, if you want to keep them today, I'm afraid it will be very difficult." ”

The master frowned deeply and said, "I don't know which one Lord Xiao Fan chose this time." ”

Xue Qing sneered, he commanded a place in the south of the Yangtze River, of course he knew that Fan Xian had done some tricks, and said with a smile: "That candidate, I'm afraid that none of you can think of it, this Lord Qincha is also very powerful, he doesn't choose a spokesperson among the businessmen, but he poachs people in a reckless manner, if that guy dares to swagger into Su City on weekdays, the official is only afraid that he will be imprisoned and ask for some benefits." ”

The master didn't know the inside story, so he laughed dryly, but he was still a little reluctant in his heart, and asked tentatively: "Regarding the opening of the inner library, Lord Qincha...... Didn't I tell you?"

According to the practice of officialdom, such a big piece of fat as Neiku cannot be swallowed by officials of one faction, especially Xue Qing's transcendent status and deep roots in Jiangnan, no matter how arrogant Fan Xian is, he must always mean to the Governor's Mansion.

Xue Qing frowned slightly, shook his head and said: "Lord Xiao Fan has naturally mentioned this matter, don't look at his age, but he acts in a very harmonious manner, Fan Shangshu and Dean Chen taught well...... It's just this official. This time, I had no choice but to refuse the kindness of Lord Xiao Fan. ”

"Huh?" the master exclaimed in surprise, politely refusing the kindness? As long as Fan Xian opened his mouth, this small kindness, I am afraid that there is at least a share of more than 100,000 taels of silver, when did the Governor become so honest and self-controlled? Could it be that he has learned to change his face?

Xue Qing laughed to himself and stood up. said: "Although it is close, let's go first, Lord Xiao Fan is waiting in the house, and Guo Zheng's old white face, the father-in-law in the palace also came with a will, let's not be too slow." ”

He didn't explain to his masters, who were closer than his wife, why he politely rejected Fan Xian's kindness, because Xue Qing understood that Neiku seemed to be just a contest between Fan Xian and the eldest princess, but in fact, there was a deeper meaning behind it. How to sort those princes has begun to become an extremely thorny question.

Xue Qing's identity did not allow him to stand in line too early, otherwise His Majesty would be very angry, so it was inconvenient for him to share the feast of Neiku.

Under the arch guard of the guard, he walked out of the main gate of the Jiangnan Governor's Mansion, Xue Qing subconsciously turned his head, looked at the plaque in front of the mansion, and was shaken by the sun in his newborn, and his heart swelled with strong uneasiness, His Majesty has been acting more and more ...... in recent years It's weird. Everyone in the world is looking at Kyoto, speculating about the future pattern, but such turmoil is for the imperial court of Qingguo. Definitely not a good thing.

People's hearts are uncertain, how can officials deal with themselves?

Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what are you thinking?

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The inner library opened the door, and the merchants who had come to respond to the bid were already sitting in their rooms waiting. And Fan Xian, who presided over the matter, was still drinking tea leisurely at this time, and the person who drank tea and talked to him was a eunuch from Kyoto.

The inner treasury is the property of the royal family, according to the rules. It will be jointly supervised by Taichang Temple and the Inner Court, because Fan Xian himself is the Shaoqing of Taichang Temple, so today Taichang Temple will not send people to Suzhou again, and it will also reduce a lot of trouble for him.

But a big eunuch came, and at the same time it was a big trouble.

"What Huang Gonggong said is reasonable. Fan Xian put the tea bowl on the desk. smiled and said: "The official also thinks that it is better to be still than to be still." Everything is still handled according to the rules of the year. ”

This great eunuch from the palace has a very high rank, otherwise he would not have been entrusted with such an important task. This person was born with a fat head and big ears, and the fat on both cheeks was piled up in one place, at this time, listening to Fan Xian's words, he smiled and said: "My lord is presiding over this matter, our family is relieved." ”

This eunuch has always been deep in the inner palace, although he knows Fan Xian's name very well, but he thinks that he has a holy order, but he is not very afraid of the other party, on the contrary, he came to Suzhou for a few days, but Fan Xian did not invite him to come over to talk about it, this fact that was ignored made Huang Gonggong's heart a little uncomfortable.

In the previous conversation, this Huang Gonggong brought a very bad news to Fan Xian, to be precise, it was to pass on the old man's message from the Queen Mother, and let Fan Xian preside over the affairs of the Inner Treasury, as long as the rules of the year are still the same, don't mess around.

Don't mess around?

Fan Xian sneered in his heart, this naturally means that the Ming family will return to the Ming family, and the rest will be tossed slowly by herself, it seems that after the eldest princess returned to Beijing, the queen mother felt sorry for this young girl, and actually stretched her face and used such a big face!

He knew in his heart that the Queen Mother was warning himself not to go too far, and always to leave some living money for those members of the imperial family, thinking of this section, Fan Xian couldn't help but want to laugh, thinking that his emperor Lao Tzu was known as a generation of emperors, why did he live more and more over the years?

Of course, he knew that the emperor was not a simple person, but he became more and more confused about what the emperor had created such a turbulent situation.

"If you want to be in chaos, you must first make a big mess?" he said with a subconscious frown.

"What?" asked Grandpa Huang, who was beside him, curiously.

"Nothing. Fan Xian smiled and said, "Hard work father-in-law to pass on the decree. ”

Huang Gonggong coughed twice, and said with a slight pride: "It is also the old man of the Queen Mother who can trust us as a slave, of course, I also want to thank Lord Xiao Fan for selling our family's face." ”

Fan Xian didn't answer, just looked at Huang Gonggong's pig-like face with a smile, and said after a while, "Are you on the ground?"

Huang Gonggong was stunned.

Fan Xian smiled and said, "Gonggong Huang, in front of this official, you'd better put away that set." Lao Yao, Lao Dai, Lao Hou...... It's a little bit better than you're a man. ”

Huang Gonggong was furious, but he was shocked again, Fan Xian mentioned that these three people are all powerful eunuchs in the palace, although Lao Dai has long lost power now, but in addition to the eunuch Hong Xiu, the leader who was recently transferred to the East Palace, Lao Yao Lao Hou ...... But they are all bigger than their own face!" Fan Xian said. Naturally, it means that even Father-in-law Yao and Father-in-law Hou have to be respectful in front of him, what are you doing?

Huang Gonggong's city was quite deep, and he put away his anger, but responded with a smile: "What the lord said is true." In his heart, he looked down on Fan Xian, such a young minister who made enemies everywhere, he was afraid that it would not be possible for a long time in the future. And after all, he is a close friend of the Queen Mother, and his identity is somewhat special.

Fan Xian said with a smile: "Gonggong Huang, you'd better be honest with me in Suzhou City." ”

Gonggong Huang lowered his face and responded, "Lord Qincha, where are you talking about?"

"Speaking Kyoto dialect. Fan Xian said gloomily: "This official hates people to use the queen to press me the most. Others are afraid of you, but they don't include me, and you can talk about it everywhere after you return to Beijing, and what kind of pattern it looks like when you see it. ”

Gonggong Huang raised his head in anger, a courtier dared to be so disrespectful to the Queen Mother!

Fan Xian said this, he had his own reason, he froze his face, flicked his sleeves, turned the side corridor and walked to the main hall of the house. Drop the last sentence: "Find out your own identity, you don't have the surname Hong!"

In addition to the old husband Hong, in that cool palace, what else is worthy of Fan Xian's fear?

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......

Fan Xian stood indifferently on the stone steps in front of the main hall. The merchants in the rooms under the eaves on both sides hurriedly came out and bowed to him.

He stared straight at the front door, not even looking at the father and son of the Ming family in the A room closest to him.

The door creaked open.

A column of silent people walked in slowly, and this group of people did not have the smell of wealth and nobility common to businessmen, nor did they smell of officials, but were filled with a reckless feeling of bloody killing.

As soon as the group stood in the courtyard, it was like a few wolves suddenly coming from a flock, and a deer's tail resting on the pastry. It seems out of place and abrupt.

The leader is the commander of Jiangnan Water Village, Xia Qifei.

Today, Xia Qifei was wearing a light cyan washed silk, but he still did not hide the breath of subway blood on his body. Although his face was calm, there was still a trace of excitement and nervousness in his slightly squinted eyes.

Xia Qifei hugged his fist. Xiang Xian saluted and said, "My lord, the grass people are late." ”

"It's not too late. Fan Xian said indifferently: "As long as you come, it's fine." ”

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The giant businessmen in Jiangnan often have some shady business, and they also have many places Although they rely on the reckless power of the local land, Xia Qifei, as the big leader of the Jiangnan Water Village, actually secretly has some dealings with these businessmen and even with the Ming family.

So some people have seen Xia Qifei's true face, today he led his brothers to stand in the courtyard, and immediately someone with sharp eyes recognized him, and the whispering gradually rose, and gradually turned into countless exclamations!

The water bandits also came to the inner library to bid for bids!

The giant businessmen looked at Xia Qifei in the courtyard with panic on their faces, and couldn't help but glance at Fan Xian standing on the stone steps, and they didn't understand this matter no matter how they thought about it.

What do we businessmen do? Do we want to be bandits? This world is ...... Ever since Lord Fan became famous, it seems to have become a bit bizarre and elusive. Moreover, these Jiangnan businessmen are even more curious, even if Xia Qifei robs everywhere, where can he raise so much silver? But since these people from Jiangnan Water Village have entered the inner library gate, they must have at least paid the deposit...... When a bandit can make so much money, then he still needs to work hard to do business?

Ming Qingda, who was standing at the door of the room closest to the stone steps, squinted his eyes, looked at the person who was the last to be admitted to the hospital, and said softly, "Who is this person?"

"It should be Xia Qifei. Ming Lanshi attached to his father's ear and said personally: "The big boss of Jiangnan Water Village, there have been some contacts in the past, but I haven't seen me, I don't know what's going on, he also came to join in the fun today." ”

Ming Qingda's eyes narrowed more and more, and he was about to lose sight of the cold eyes inside, so he only heard him say faintly: "It seems...... This person is the pawn planted by Lord Chincha in advance. ”

At this moment, Xia Qifei slowly turned his head, met the gaze cast by the contemporary master of the Ming family, and smiled slightly, and the smile was extremely sincere...... Infinite hostility and blood-devouring desires.

The seventh young master of Ming, who was robbed of his mother by his mother, finally had a chance to stand on the table for revenge with the help of Fan Xian.