In the morning, a horse carriage drove out of the palace and headed towards Chongren Lane.
The horse carriage was the second generation "Don't Touch Me" from Strange Interest Pavilion. Regardless of speed or comfort, it was much better than the ordinary horse carriages in the market. However, the person sitting in the horse carriage wasn't in the mood to enjoy. He frowned and his old face was so gloomy that water could drip from it.
"Could it be that I was wrong? Could it be that the King of Shu really didn't have the intention to fight for power? "
The person sitting in the carriage was Zhangsun Wuji. Previously, he had a conversation with Li Er in the palace, and in the end, they naturally parted on bad terms. However, Li Er's last words were deeply engraved in his mind. "Nobody knows a son better than a father. I know these few sons of mine better than you! Ke 'er loves the way of the economy and has no intention of fighting for power. "" We are only thirty years old. We advise you not to get too involved in the battle for the throne. "Recalling the words that Li Er had said in the Ganlu Hall, Zhangsun Wuji couldn't help but have self-doubt.
"Impossible! I can't be wrong! "
The horse carriage moved forward at a moderate speed. The conversations of the pedestrians and the cries of the peddlers didn't seem to reach Zhangsun Wuji's ears. He sat on the soft leather sofa in the horse carriage in a daze. After an unknown period of time, Zhangsun Wuji shook his head violently. His eyes gradually regained their vigor and he muttered to himself.
"Holding an important position, having money and soldiers, plus the royal bloodline of two dynasties, how can he not have ambition? Even if he doesn't have it now, he will have it in the future, just like His Majesty back then! "
Other than Zhangsun Wuji, there was no one else in the horse carriage. Obviously, his words were for himself to hear. He wanted to confirm the thoughts in his heart. He wanted to tell himself that he didn't do anything wrong!
In the end, he still didn't believe that Li Er wouldn't have the intention to fight for power when he was in control of the Yanhuang Bank and the gold-robed guards!
Putting himself in Li Ke's shoes, Zhangsun Wuji asked himself honestly. If he was Li Ke and was in Li Ke's current situation, he definitely wouldn't have the slightest bit of ambition!
Zhangsun Wuji had gone through ups and downs in the officialdom for more than ten years. Not only was he wise, but he also had a sharp eye. He had seen too many people, so he was confident that he wouldn't be wrong this time!
"Master, we're here!"
Just like that, amidst Zhangsun Wuji's' self-doubt 'and' self-resistance ', the carriage stopped after a while. The coachman jumped off the carriage and bowed to Zhangsun Wuji through the curtains.
"Yes!"
Zhangsun Wuji finally regained his senses from his chaotic thoughts. He stood up, opened the curtains, and jumped down from the carriage. When the servant in front of the Zhangsun residence saw the familiar carriage stop at the entrance, he quickly went up to welcome it. At this moment, Zhangsun Wuji suddenly thought of something and said to the servant who was about to greet him, "Call Ma Cheng to the main hall to see this old man!"
His voice clearly contained a trace of anger!
"Yes! Master! "
When the subordinates heard this, they were instantly shocked. They could also sense that Zhangsun Wuji was angry, so they quickly responded.
Zhangsun Wuji nodded and stepped into the mansion, heading towards the main hall.
Obviously, he wanted to settle the score with Ma Cheng!
If Ma Cheng hadn't come over this morning to "bewitch" him, he wouldn't have rashly gone to the palace to impeach Li Ke, and he wouldn't have been beaten by Li Er!
"Ma Cheng pays his respects to Cabinet Elder!"
After Zhangsun Wuji returned to the main hall and drank half a cup of tea, there was a series of footsteps outside the house. Shortly after, Ma Cheng appeared in front of him and greeted him with a bow.
Zhangsun Wuji placed the teacup in front of his mouth and used the teacup cover to rub the teacup. He looked like he was seriously tasting the tea, but he was secretly observing Ma Cheng from the corner of his eyes. As expected, when he saw Ma Cheng bowing to him, he was also secretly observing him.
Observing one's expression!
Obviously, Ma Cheng wanted to observe some clues from Zhangsun Wuji's expression to determine the "results" of Zhangsun Wuji's trip to the palace!
Zhangsun Wuji retracted his gaze, but his heart was moved. He placed the teacup on the coffee table beside him and looked at Ma Cheng with a smile. "Zhongming, you don't have to be so courteous!"
Zhongming was Ma Cheng's courtesy name!
Seeing the smile on Zhangsun Wuji's face, Ma Cheng instantly felt relieved. When he greeted Zhangsun Wuji previously, he saw that Zhangsun Wuji was expressionless, neither happy nor angry. He thought that Zhangsun Wuji's trip to the palace didn't go smoothly. Now, it seemed like Zhangsun Wuji definitely had a fruitful trip!
Therefore, Ma Cheng hurriedly stood up and couldn't wait to cup his hands and ask, "Cabinet Elder, did you just return from outside?"
Although Ma Cheng was anxious to know the results, it didn't mean that he had lost his rationality. Of course, he couldn't directly ask Zhangsun Wuji what Li Er said in the palace. If he did that, wouldn't the fact that he was secretly monitoring Zhangsun Wuji be exposed?
Therefore, at this moment, he had to feign ignorance and pretend that he didn't know that Zhangsun Wuji went to the palace previously.
Hearing that, Zhangsun Wuji narrowed his eyes, but he quickly chuckled and said,
"Haha! That's right, I just returned from the palace! "
Speaking up to this point, he deliberately paused. Indeed, he saw a flash of joy and eagerness in Ma Cheng's eyes. Therefore, he continued, "After I heard about the news of the Yan Huang Bank from you, I immediately went to the palace and informed His Majesty. After His Majesty heard the news, he was furious. After all, the Yan Huang Bank is an official yamen under the Ministry of Revenue. How can King of Shu suppress whoever he wants? In the long run, where will the prestige of the imperial court be? Where will His Majesty's prestige be? "
Speaking up to this point, Zhangsun Wuji's expression became agitated and even faintly contained a trace of anger. In Ma Cheng's opinion, Zhangsun Wuji was angered by Li Ke's reckless actions, but in reality …
"His Majesty is brilliant! After all, the Yan Huang Bank belongs to the imperial court and not King of Shu alone! "
Ma Cheng hurriedly licked his lips and echoed. Following which, he finally asked the question that he had always wanted to ask, "Cabinet Elder, I wonder how His Majesty intends to deal with this matter?"
This was the question that he was most concerned about!
Because if he could really help An Shuncai and the rest get rid of the "sanctions" of the Yan Huang Bank, An Shuncai and the rest would definitely not lack benefits for him! After all, before this, An Shuncai had already given him 10,000 strings of string of cash. Who knew how much benefits An Shuncai would give him after this matter was settled?
Another 10,000 strings of cash? Or 20,000 strings of cash?
Thinking up to this point, Ma Cheng's breathing suddenly became hurried. Speaking of which, before this, he had never thought that he would one day have a wealth of 10,000 strings of cash! If it was in the past, he might have felt that 10,000 strings of cash was a lot and that he would never be able to spend so much money in his lifetime. But now, his greed had been aroused. In his opinion, since he had the chance to earn more 10,000 strings of cash, why not go for it?
Of course, the higher the benefits, the greater the risk. Ma Cheng, who was blinded by greed, did not realize that danger was approaching him step by step!
"Hmph! King of Shu used his authority to suppress the merchants of An Country and Kang Country for no reason. His Majesty has already urgently ordered King of Shu to return to the palace! I believe that it won't be long before the Yan Huang Bank welcomes a new manager! "
Zhangsun Wuji snorted and said.
At this moment, Ma Cheng's heart was about to jump out of his chest. If not for the fact that he knew that the current situation wasn't right, he would have jumped three feet high in excitement. He forced himself to calm down. A huge fortune was right in front of him and could even be obtained easily. He would have endless glory and wealth for the rest of his life and enjoy it endlessly. At this moment, he had to be "steady" and "develop wretchedly". He definitely could not be "reckless" and let Zhangsun Wuji see through the clues and become suspicious!
"Zhongming, you have done well in this matter! I called you over because I want you to continue to keep an eye on the Yan Huang Bank. Once there is news from there, immediately report to this old man! "
Zhangsun Wuji continued at this moment.
Ma Cheng thought that he had hidden it well, but in terms of foresight and "expression management", how could he, a "small fry" who had just entered the officialdom, be a match for Zhangsun Wuji who had been in the officialdom for more than ten years? Although he forcefully suppressed the excitement in his heart, his tightly clenched fists had "betrayed" him. Zhangsun Wuji could see through the clues at a glance!
However, Zhangsun Wuji did not expose him.
"Thank you for your praise, Cabinet Elder!"
Hearing Zhangsun Wuji's praise, Ma Cheng's taut face could finally reveal a smile. He smiled and cupped his hands towards Zhangsun Wuji, saying, "Cabinet Elder, I am indebted to you for recognizing my worth. Zhongming is willing to go through fire and water for Cabinet Elder. I will go to the Yan Huang Bank to keep an eye on it for Cabinet Elder now!"
"Mm! Go! "
Zhangsun Wuji nodded with a "gratified" face and waved towards Ma Cheng.
Ma Cheng cupped his hands towards Zhangsun Wuji, then turned around and left.
The moment he turned around, Ma Cheng's face could no longer be taut. From the original smile, it turned into an extremely exaggerated laughter. However, he held it in and did not make a sound. After all, he had not gone far!
Stepping out of the main hall's door, Ma Cheng seemed to be able to see countless Tangyuan waving towards him. At this moment, he really wished that he had a pair of wings and could instantly fly to An Shuncai's side. It was not because he "loved" An Shuncai, but because he could immediately obtain a lot of money from An Shuncai!
With this money, he could totally establish his own household. Why would he need to continue being a guest in the Zhangsun Residence?
"Qinghe!"
In the main hall, seeing that Ma Cheng had already walked far away, Zhangsun Wuji hurriedly shouted towards the door.
"Your subordinate is here!"
Very quickly, a warrior holding a saber walked in from outside the house.
This person was the Zhangsun Family's guard leader, Zhangsun Qinghe, an expert at the peak of the Qi Transformation Realm!
"Immediately bring a few astute men to follow Ma Cheng. If he did not go to the Yan Huang Bank and went to meet someone, bring him and that person back for me! Remember, I want them alive! "
Zhangsun Wuji said coldly with a solemn face.
It was obvious that Ma Cheng was hiding something from him and wanted to use him to achieve a certain goal. Zhangsun Wuji had been in a high position for many years. How could he tolerate such a "small fry" using and manipulating him?
The reason why he did not expose Ma Cheng was because Zhangsun Wuji wanted to see who was behind this fellow!
"Yes! Family Head! "
Hearing that, Zhangsun Qinghe accepted the order loudly and turned to leave.
After a short while, four to five warriors left the Zhangsun Residence and followed behind Ma Cheng from afar. At this moment, Ma Cheng was not heading towards the Yan Huang Bank's headquarters in the west. Instead, he was heading east. That was the east market of Chang 'an City!
"Family Head's prediction was indeed correct. This fellow, Ma Cheng, definitely has some shady business going on!"
Looking at Ma Cheng's back, Zhangsun Qinghe muttered to himself.
"Shopkeeper, quickly call your boss over. Tell him that I have something to tell him!"
Half an hour later, Ma Cheng arrived at a teahouse in the east market. After entering, he went straight to the counter and spoke to the shopkeeper in a low voice.
This teahouse was the one where he and An Shun had a discussion over tea in the morning. It was called "An Shun Teahouse!"
"… Oh! So it's Ma … Mr. Ma, please come upstairs! This old man will send someone to invite our boss over! "
The shopkeeper was just about to say, "Who the hell are you? Our boss is not someone you can meet whenever you want," but when he looked up and took a closer look, he instantly felt that the person in front of him was somewhat familiar. After a moment, his heart quivered. He thought to himself, Isn't this the person who drank tea with the boss on the second floor in the morning? Moreover, before the boss left, he had specially instructed him that if this person came again, not only must he receive him well, but he must also immediately send someone to report to him! Therefore, the shopkeeper's expression changed several times, and he hurriedly changed his words.
"Mm! Hurry up! My time is limited! "
Ma Cheng nodded and urged the shopkeeper.
It was not that he was worried that he would be discovered if he stayed here for too long, but he could not wait to get more benefits that An Shun had promised!
"Yes, yes, yes! Mr. Ma, please come upstairs first. Our boss should be at the An Shun Restaurant in the east market. He will be here soon! "
The shopkeeper really thought that Ma Cheng still had urgent matters to attend to. He was afraid that this distinguished guest that his boss had mentioned would not be able to wait and would leave, so he hurriedly "pacified" him.
Ma Cheng nodded and turned to go to the second floor. The shopkeeper's manservant was very perceptive and ran in front of Ma Cheng to lead the way.
"Da Zhuang, you run fast. Quickly go to the restaurant and ask the boss to come over. Just say that Mr. Ma is here!"
After watching Ma Cheng go upstairs, the shopkeeper hurriedly pulled over a manservant and instructed.
"Yes! Shopkeeper Hu! "
The manservant responded, put down the tea tray in his hand, and ran out as if he was flying.
"Boss, should we go in and capture Ma Cheng now?"
Under the banyan tree in the west corner of An Shun Restaurant, Zhangsun Qinghe and his group were secretly observing here. At this moment, a slightly smaller Zhangsun Residence guard opened his mouth and asked.
Obviously, they already knew the mission of this trip, so they also called Ma Cheng "Ma Zhanshi" and directly called him by his name!
"Wait first!"
Zhangsun Qinghe frowned and looked at the manservant that ran out of the teahouse. He said, "This Ma Cheng just entered the teahouse, and a manservant ran out. Obviously, the main character has not arrived yet. Let's wait a little longer!"
When he spoke up to here, Zhangsun Qinghe turned his head and instructed the four people behind him in order to ensure that nothing went wrong. "The few of you go and see if there are any other exits from this teahouse. If there is a back door, leave two people there to guard it. The other two come back and guard the front door with me!"
"Yes! Boss! "
…
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