At the end of the eighth month of the twelfth year of Jinghan, the capital, where martial artists gathered, held the martial scholar examination. Originally, in order to coordinate with the enlistment edict issued in the first half of the year, this time's martial examination was held with great pomp. However, with the news of Wanyan Aguda's death at the end of the seventh month, the winds in the capital suddenly changed. Several conflicts that broke the law and order were brought to the surface. The Kaifeng Prefecture sent people to arrest some people, and discussions about not tolerating martial artists breaking the law also spread among the scholars.
These things didn't seem to have much to do with the martial scholar examination. Everything went on as usual. Then, a man named Wei Sannian, who was a member of the Imperial Boxing Dojo, won first place in the martial examination. After parading through the streets on horseback, he waited for his post to be issued. The clamor outside had already begun to die down …
"… What a strong start and a weak finish."
As the carriage moved forward and neared Bianliang, Ning Yi looked at the intelligence report and sighed slightly. After the martial scholar examination, the arrangements for the various martial examinees had not yet been issued, but the general arrangements, the duties that would be given, and so on, had already been drafted by the Prime Minister's manor.
Most of the participants and candidates for this martial examination came from the north, and many of them were also beneficiaries of the enlistment edict. In order to consolidate the effect of this enlistment edict, the grace came from above, so that these people would not be loyal to a certain power or a certain person, but would be loyal to the Emperor and the country, this open and aboveboard selection was held.
Originally, after this selection, most of these people would be put in important positions. Through the name of 'the Son of Heaven', they would be given real power, and even in some places and aspects in the north, autonomous power over the civil officials, in hopes that they would play a big role in the future. But in this intelligence report, all the arrangements had been greatly adjusted.
Politics itself was an extremely delicate matter. The officials opposed each other and fought over each other. Between the Emperor and the officials, there was often a relationship of opposition. How to make this portion of the military officials loyal to the Emperor and not to the people required many methods and arrangements. Otherwise, if you used great effort to raise up a person, only to benefit a large power, then it would be extremely inconsistent with the way of balance.
Before Wanyan Agui was beaten to death, the Emperor also had this spirit and thought. However, when the news of his death came, he clearly took a step back. Because the power of the civil officials began to counterattack, the initial tacit understanding had already been lost. While the various officials were trying to suppress the power of the military officials, they were also trying to rope in the military examinees who had passed the military examination this time. If they wanted to carry out the original plan, the amount of energy they had to expend and the need to balance the internal strife had already become very troublesome. The Emperor also saw where the problem was, so he decided to break up the follow-up of the martial examination and continue with the same pace as before. He took a step back in order to avoid trouble. What followed was a tremendous change.
"The distribution hasn't even started, but the civil officials are already making a move. How dare they … Cai Manor's Head Instructor secretly fought with Wei Sannian in the Fan Tower. I heard that Wei Sannian suffered a loss. Tsk tsk, Cai Jing … "
Reading the report, Ning Yi shook his head and smiled. Zhu Biao pursed his lips.
"I've seen Cai Jing's Head Instructor. At most, he's a bit taller than me. If we really fought, it wouldn't be long before a winner could be decided. It's quite easy to be the martial champion. If I'm in the capital, it seems that it's me. "
Ning Yi laughed and flipped the report over. "Naive. Did you know that Zhou Dong, Grandmaster Zhou, also participated in the Martial Arts Examination, but in the end he was only a Martial Scholar. He guarded the Imperial Boxing Dojo and fought his way to the Head Instructor of the Sky class. His name shook the world, but in the end, it was difficult to fill the gap in the army … "
Zhu Biao rubbed the back of his neck. "Then now … don't I also have a backer?"
"That's true." Ning Yi put down the report and thought for a moment. "If you really went to take the examination, you could really become the martial champion. At least the Minister's Residence would definitely support you. After you become the champion, there would be a gap to fill."
"Haha, forget it. I've seen so many things. How can I not know what the army is like? Even if I go, I'll be suppressed by those officious officials. I'm not as free as I am now. " After Zhu Biao finished, he continued, "However, Big Brother Ning, you were originally promoting chivalry in Jianghu, and this Martial Scholar Examination is also very important. Now that it has been pushed back, wouldn't all your previous efforts be in vain?"
"The martial champion examination was originally not important." Ning Yi shook his head. "Whether it's good or not, I don't have too much expectations for it. The promotion of chivalry is the main point. We've taken advantage of this wind to rise. Although it's a little affected now, it doesn't seem to be too big. "
He handed the report in his hand to Zhu Biao. "This time, everyone is working hard to divide the fruits of the martial champion examination. Grand Preceptor Cai is old and wants the status of a scholar. The rest of the people are mostly thinking about their own families, roping them in and suppressing them. Prime Minister Li and Prime Minister Qin want to truly build a line of defense in the north. This is one of Tan Zhen's political achievements. He also hopes that the military officials can rise a little. In the end, those people have no choice but to give him some face …"
He smiled. "Suppress the military officials, but not kill them. Suppress martial artists. Under the circumstances where Prime Minister Qin is present, they will maintain an indifferent attitude towards my Takeshi propaganda. This is also a matter of taking Prime Minister Qin's face into account. Although the martial examination was a mess, we can be considered to have benefited from it. However … "
After saying these few words, he suddenly frowned when he saw a page of information. After looking at it for a while, he took a deep breath and said, "Qin Hui …" Zhu Biao glanced at him curiously. Ning Yi showed him the page of information and turned his gaze to another aide in the car who was in charge of handling information from the Office of Secret Investigations.
"What are the details of Luo Jinyan's current situation?"
The aide cupped his hands in greeting. "We are certain that he died that night."
As the carriage moved forward, the constant jolting of the road caused Ning Yi to fall silent for a moment. He tapped his fingers on the seat below him, then asked, "What about his wife and son? How are they? "
"For the time being, we don't have any definite information. We believe that they may also be dead."
"Don't assume so. We need to be certain," Ning Yi said. Ning Yi said, "Investigate this matter immediately. If he's still alive, try to come up with a rescue plan. But it has to be clever. We can't let Qin Hui know that we did it … We have to be careful. Do it immediately."
"Yes."
The aide cupped his hands in greeting, lifted the curtain, and alighted from the galloping carriage. He took a horse from the returning carriages and galloped off into the distance.
Zhu Biao finished reading the report on Luo Jinyan and slapped his hand on the seat. "That old dog." Then he frowned and looked at Ning Yi. "However, Big Brother Ning, isn't it a bit too early for us to make a move against Qin Hui? If we act rashly and alert the enemy, wouldn't we lose more than we gain? His reputation as an official is excellent, and Luo Jinyan is already dead, so there's no evidence. Even if he has his wife and son, I'm afraid they won't be able to threaten him. "
Ning Yi looked at him with a smile. Zhu Biao was actually an honest and straightforward person. To him, he would only feel indignant when he saw injustice. However, having been in the Office of Secret Investigations for so long, he understood the logic of the big picture. His current worry was not for himself, but for Ning Yi and the entire Office of Secret Investigations.
"I'm not Luo Jinyan. It's good that we don't fight Deputy Prime Minister Qin. If we really do fight, it might not be that scary. If we can really save Luo Jinyan's wife and son, it's useless for the time being. But perhaps we can use it as a foreshadowing that will come in handy in the future. Not only will it make people feel at ease, but it might also be beneficial. Why not? " Ning Yi sat there, watching the autumn wind occasionally roll up the curtains and the swaying road outside. "But for you and me, after seeing so much of this kind of thing, I think the most important thing is … to cherish the people in front of us. When we return to the capital, I'll give you a few days off. Spend more time with that girl from the Wang family. Don't think too much about it. "
"Got it!" Zhu Biao waved his fist cheerfully.
Ning Yi looked to the other side of the curtain. There were some things he had said, but there were also some things he hadn't said. People like Qin Hui might say that he had no choice, but in reality, he was very decisive in his actions.
The scariest people in the world were usually not those who simply did evil. For example, Yang Yi and the Yang Heng brothers, who had kidnapped him on the Jiangning ship several years ago. No matter how ruthless they sounded, they still believed that they were doing evil. They just felt that they couldn't live if they weren't ruthless. This kind of 'doing evil' was determined by the universal moral values of a society. These kinds of people usually didn't cause too much damage to the world.
Only those who were philosophical, had a way of thinking, and believed that everything was reasonable, would do things without hesitation. This was because they would distort the concept of morality and values from the very root of the chain of logic. The spy lying in ambush beside Qin Hui said that in the end, Luo Jinyan accused Qin Hui of being 'forced'. It seemed that in this world, everything was forced. But once they truly accepted this' forced ', they would be more determined to do evil than to do good, and they would have more subjective initiative.
Because they had already found a sufficient reason, they could only do it. They might feel a shallow layer of guilt, but they usually wouldn't have any more hesitation.
… That Luo Jinyan's wife and child might already be dead.
In reality, Ning Yi had such a guess in his mind. But because it was still a guess, he didn't say it out loud.
The wind blew through the post road that was nearing the end of autumn. Outside the curtains of the carriage, yellow leaves and yellow flowers danced in the wind. Outside the city of Bianliang, the number of pedestrians gradually increased. On the way, more people came to join them. Then, a few large carriages in the middle of the convoy left the group and headed for the countryside near Bianliang.
The road twisted and turned for a while, merging with and separating from the surrounding small roads. Occasionally, there was a stream, and in the distance, an old waterwheel could be seen. The autumn equinox had passed, and the rice in the fields had long been harvested, leaving only yellow rice stubble. The carriages slowed down when they saw the village in the distance. When Ning Yi alighted from the carriage, yellow leaves floated down from the trees by the roadside.
At a fork in the road not far away, pedestrians were coming from that direction. In front of them were a few women, some of whom were wielding weapons, and behind them were a few attendants.
But in front of them was a tall and beautiful woman. Her face was gentle, intellectual, and exquisite. She was dressed in a white autumn dress, and the embroidered shoes on her feet were also white. She had the air of a young lady from a wealthy family. The autumn wind blew a lock of hair on her face, and the sun shone down softly.
She paused for a moment, then ran in this direction.
If it was in the past, she would not run like this.
Nie Yunzhu, the intelligent and gentle woman whom he met in Jiangning, knew, and experienced many things together, was now a little different from when he first met her.
She only stopped when she was near, her chest heaving up and down. Her slightly raised face looked at Ning Yi with clear and joyful eyes. Ning Yi had already come over and directly picked her up.
She was immediately at a loss of what to do.
Beside the carriages and on the roadside, many subordinates smiled at this scene that belonged to the young couple. They had long been used to their boss's shocking behavior, so they were not surprised.
However, some people would still smile and turn around consciously …
Not long after, in the courtyard of Fanlou in Bianliang City, a maidservant also walked in. Looking at Miss Shishi who was sitting idly in the room and arranging flowers, she said, "Miss, I heard that Master Ning is back."
"Yes." Shishi nodded casually and continued to finish the flower arrangement in her hands. Soon after, a clean and neat work took shape on the table.
She put her hands on the floor and let her body lean back, leisurely looking at her work. When feeling the sunlight shining in from the courtyard outside the door, she raised her head and slightly squinted her eyes, feeling the warmth like a cat basking in the sun in autumn.
When the summer of this year passed, she also formally rejected Zhou Bangyan's proposal to marry her. Since then, although there were people who made such requests one after another, making her the topic of "redeeming" and "marrying" popular, in a sense, the best possibility might have passed.
What would the future hold? She still had no answer.
But maybe some people would have some ideas.
She wanted to talk to him.
She squinted her eyes, and after a while, there was a sudden bang in the room. When the maidservant came over to take a look, her daughter was sitting on the floor, covering the back of her head. The autumn sunlight cast a bright boundary in the room, and her daughter was sitting in that boundary. She was beautiful and cute, squinting one eye and pursing her lips at the maidservant.
It really was like a cat that could charm all living things …
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