The lamp swayed gently. The not very sumptuous banquet had come to an end. When she noticed that the vegetable oil in the lamp was almost empty, Xiaochan came over and added some more. She fiddled with the wick to make the lamp brighter.
Although the age difference between the two was nearly double, after a conversation, it could be considered that they got along well. Qin Shaohe was not a pedantic scholar. His views on many matters were not inferior to his father's. After he expressed his gratitude, he first talked about some things that happened during the disaster relief last year. He basically followed the facts of the disaster relief plan in Ning Yi's booklet. However, in this kind of thing, there were all kinds of changes. Qin Shaohe handled it with his own views at the time. This time, when he came back, he discussed in detail with Ning Yi about the questions that arose in this area.
His attitude was sincere and not pretentious. However, the booklet that Ning Yi wrote was a combination of some of the disaster relief strategies and personnel management experience that he had read before. At this time, Qin Shaohe had practical experience and had a deeper understanding of specific matters than him. Therefore, he only exchanged his own experience with the other party and asked about the situation of the disaster at that time. These were considered serious matters.
Apart from serious matters, it was nothing more than chatting about various things. These days after returning to Jiangning, Qin Shaohe also heard some news. During the chat, he laughed and said, "I've long heard that Liheng's literary talent is unparalleled. This time, when I returned to Jiangning, I heard that Li Shishi from Fanlou is coming to Jiangning. Liheng intends to help Jiangning, thinking that there will be a new work. Is this true? "
"Someone came to ask for a favor once. Our relationship is not deep, but it is not easy to refuse. However, there are many talented people in Jiangning. I don't think there is a need for me to show my incompetence. I heard that Li Shishi is unparalleled in beauty. There is no benefit in offending a beauty like this … "
He had said the same thing to Puyang Yi. At this time, when Qin Shaohe heard it, he laughed and said, "You must be joking. But if Liheng is really interested in Li Shishi, maybe we can meet him another day."
"Brother Qin, you know him?"
"I don't know her. I haven't been back to Bianjing for years. Sometimes I come and go in a hurry. I don't know how the Top Courtesan of Bianjing is doing. But I know Mama Lee of Fan Lou. If she comes, it should be no problem for her to meet Li Shishi …"
Ning Yi nodded. "So it turns out that Brother Qin and Mama Lee are good friends, and their ages are about the same …"
Qin Shaohe was drinking. He was usually serious and upright, but at this time, he almost spat out the wine. He sat there laughing for a long time, then nodded. "She was indeed a beauty more than ten years ago … My father was also an official in Bianjing. Liheng knows that. At that time, I went to Fan Lou a few times. But the main reason was because of your Second Brother Qin. Second Brother ran amuck in Bianjing. He was the scourge of Bianjing. He often went to Fan Lou to support, so I often went to drag him home. When I got home, I was beaten and scolded. Because of this, I became familiar with Mama Lee. I still have some face … Oh, I heard that Liheng is interested in martial arts? "
"Hmm?"
"Shaoqian was the same. Mu Xiafeng was fond of martial arts and often exchanged pointers with some martial arts boxing masters. He came back with a body full of injuries. Later, he joined the army because of this."
"I haven't heard Elder Qin mention it."
"It can't be considered a good martial art. He just has a bit of brute force. I don't know how he is now. I only know that these years, he has made some contributions and has risen quickly. But this has nothing to do with personal martial arts. He hasn't talked about this much in the past few years, mainly because he doesn't want my mother to worry. He was stationed in Sizhou and received the news earlier than me. He should have returned home earlier than me, but I don't know what delayed him. He hasn't returned today. When the time comes, Liheng and him will definitely get along. "
After talking about Qin Shaoqian for a while, when Xiaochan went out to get tea, Qin Shaohe slightly lowered his voice. "What does Liheng think about this assassination and what happened afterward?"
Ning Yi glanced at him, picked up the wine cup, and paused. "After Brother Qin came back, you mainly came to investigate this, right?"
"Liheng is really amazing. I talked to my father a few days ago. Father said that there are some things that Liheng must have expected …"
"I can't think of much. It's just that Elder Qin deliberately let the assassins escape."
Qin Shaohe looked at him for a long time before nodding and sighing. "It can't be considered intentional. Uncle Kang purposely revealed some flaws. Originally, he just wanted to lure the fish out. Who knew that the fish was too big, and the net was broken, allowing them to kidnap the person. Father … probably predicted some of this, but when I saw it, I was still very disappointed. In fact, in Jiangning, Uncle Kang's influence is the greatest, but even the Prince Consort's residence may not be clean. "
"Wu and Liao have been trading for nearly a hundred years, and the interests are intertwined. Even the Su family that I belong to has business dealings with the Liao people after a few twists and turns. This isn't anyone's fault. I can guess it without seeing it. Actually, it's not too strange. "
"In the end, I'm just a little disappointed."
The two of them spoke without rhyme or reason, but in fact, they were talking about what happened after the assassination. Jiangning was supposed to be the home ground of the Wu dynasty, and with Kang Xian, the mastermind behind the scenes, how could it be so easy for the other party to kidnap the injured person that they had already captured and guarded against? Originally, Kang Xian wanted to see if there were any remaining forces behind him, so he purposely relaxed some of his guard. Who knew that the bait would really be eaten by the other party? Looking at Qin Shaohe's attitude, there must be a force close to Liao operating behind the scenes. Moreover, this network of interests was probably very deep, so much so that Kang Xian had not been able to make a move until now.
At this time, Xiaochan came back, and the two of them clinked glasses and changed the topic. However, Qin Shaohe's attitude toward Ning Yi was slightly different from before. He originally knew that Ning Yi was not ordinary. Although there were some examples and he had heard a lot from his father, after all, he did not see it with his own eyes. Now, after a few words, this middle-aged Zhizhou official finally had a real recognition of Ning Yi in front of him.
*****
In the night of Jiangning, there was a dazzling light. Hundreds of kilometers away, in a mountain range north of Huai River and south of Xuzhou, something was happening.
The mountain range was barren and uninhabited. As far as the eye could see, it was shrouded in black forest. The moonlight shone hazy and gloomy light through the gaps between the trees. There was a fire burning in the forest. It was a dilapidated mountain god temple.
Four travelers were resting in this temple.
There were four men. Three of them were tall and burly, one was tall and thin, one was blind in one eye, and his head was wrapped in bandages, he was tall and burly, and the last one was even taller than this man. His skin was dark due to too much sun exposure, and there were five or six large and small scars on his face. These scars even extended to his body, and there was an iron band around his forehead, making him look like a monk with hair. However, his hair was too messy, and as he squatted there, he looked like a crouching giant beast, and everyone could feel the ferocious aura coming from him.
The man who was carried by the three men was wrapped in bandages. He had not recovered from his injuries. He was lying in a haystack in the corner of the dilapidated temple, staring at the fire in a daze. Above the fire, a pot of rice porridge was almost cooked.
These were the people who participated in the assassination in Jiangning. The giant man with a face full of scars was a later person who joined in. Although they had escaped from Jiangning, along the way, Kang Xian could secretly mobilize a lot of forces. After that, they were intercepted several times along the way. Fortunately, the giant man was highly skilled in martial arts. They were able to adapt quickly and escape all the way here. Now, they had not been harassed for a few days.
However, another ambush was about to arrive.
Four pairs of eyes were looking in this direction from the dark forest.
"The information I received is correct. They should be from the army in Northland. They are injured, but it's not serious and won't affect their combat abilities. The blind one should be the easiest to deal with. The tall and thin one should still be able to fight at full strength. Those two are fine, but the one beside the fire has a calm and steady presence. He's as tall as a mountain, and the light from the fire moves with his breathing. This person has practiced high-tier qi, and he's also experienced in slaughter.
The forest was quiet at night. Occasionally, there would be the sound of birds or the rustling of unknown animals in the forest, rendering the silence even deeper.
"Hey, if they dared to go to Jiangning and kill my father … it will be difficult for me to deal with them."
"Want to try?"
"… Father's revenge … Do we need to spend the night?"
*****
The wind blew in from the forest outside, slightly fanning the fire. The giant man with a serrated broadsword on his back stood up from the fire and looked out. It was dark outside.
After a moment, a voice came from the other side of the broken temple, followed by the faint cry of an animal. The tall and thin man and the blind giant heard the first sound. They grabbed their weapons and stood up. The next moment, they slightly relaxed. They knew that it was the cry of a wolf. There was a wolf in the forest and it had triggered a trap.
Because triggering a trap would always make people nervous, although they had experience in the wild, there was one thing that had to be said first. The tall and thin man said, "There is …"
The moment the word "wolf" was about to come out of his mouth, the moment the air began to relax, it suddenly shrank to the extreme!
With a "hua" sound, the saber light whizzed through the door of the temple with the sound of wind and thunder. It was a long saber that was thrown with all his strength. Several sounds rang out in an instant, tearing through the night sky.
"Hu —"
"Ah —"
"Bang —"
The long broadsword was smashed away by the black-skinned man as he roared. The iron wrist guard and the blade collided, causing sparks to fly. The light of the broadsword flew to the top of the temple. In the center of the broken temple, the flames were fanatically swaying and spinning. Inside the dark temple, dust and wind seemed to carry a figure. The black giant turned around, and the light in the broken temple dimmed. The shadows on the wall reflected two figures madly colliding. The newcomer used his peak state of momentum and spirit to block four punches with the giant man in the blink of an eye, forcing the giant man to take a step back. When the other people in the broken temple reacted, the giant man had already been hit by a punch, revealing an opening. The body of the person who rushed in seemed to shrink and release, exploding in front of the giant man!
The fiercest move of the ancient Basi Boxing, Mountain Lean!
*****
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