The big tree in the "Shazhou side manor" was unlucky. Fan Xian had used the Emperor's sword to unleash his kingly aura and shaved off countless tree bark. The reason for this was all because the young imperial envoy's anger was not shallow. He could not put on a sour face in front of his wife, nor could he immediately rush to Shangjing in Northern Qi to scold his own sister's teacher. Thus, he had to find a way to vent his anger.
Fan Xian was not a boring boss who liked to beat and scold his subordinates to relieve stress. It just so happened that in his previous life, he had been lying in bed reading a book. He had once read a sour story that made him cry. Thus, in this life, he learned from the male lead of that story.
The male lead, who liked to pour water that he washed his feet, had been bullied by his wife and endured it for many years. He would always sneak out in the middle of the night and smash trees by the river to find a pitiful psychological balance.
Fan Xian didn't smash trees. He used the grand Sigu sword to slice at trees. As he sliced, he gritted his teeth hatefully.
When the trees in the courtyard had their hair all white overnight and their clothes torn to shreds, revealing their lowly and naked bodies, Fan Xian and his group left in the carriage and returned to the Peng manor by West Lake.
… …
There were many people waiting for the imperial envoy and the princess by West Lake. It was not convenient for the two governors in Suzhou to come personally, but the Hangzhou Zhizhou that Fan Xian secretly admired would not be polite. He sealed off a third of the long embankment by West Lake to make it easier for the Fan manor's carriages to enter. He also led a group of subordinates to wait around, afraid that these two important figures would be dissatisfied.
As for this flattery, Fan Xian comfortably accepted it. After all, Wan'er's health was not good and she did need peace and quiet. After everyone met up in the manor, Sisi and the wives of the Teng family served Wan'er to rest. Fan Xian found some time to see the Hangzhou Zhizhou and said a few warm words of encouragement. The next day, he had Tiger Guard Gao Da block all of the wives of these officials outside the back garden.
The mistress of the Fan family did not see guests.
…
…
Wan'er gazed at Fan Xian pitifully. Her brows had long furrowed into a weak willow leaf in the wind. Her eyes were crying and complaining. "Good husband, just spare me."
Fan Xian smiled and said, "Be good, just drink the medicine. Otherwise, I'll spank you."
Wan'er had no choice but to drink the medicine bitterly. She couldn't help but sigh deep in her heart. She wondered why she was so stupid. She told Fan Xian the reason. Given his personality, he would not allow her to do this. If she had known earlier, she would not have come to Jiangnan. She would have just secretly stopped the medicine in Jingdou.
Suddenly, she shyly thought that if she didn't go to Jiangnan, even if she stopped taking the medicine and got rid of the foreign element in her body, but … without him, how could she have a child?
Fan Xian was wiping away the medicine at the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief when he suddenly saw his wife's blushing face. He was startled, not knowing what she was thinking. "Wife," he teased, "why are you so shy?"
Wan-Er rolled her eyes at him and said, "I'm not telling you."
She quickly changed the topic. Coming to Jiangnan this time, for one, was a matter that had been decided before the new year. Another was an important matter that needed to be discussed with Fan Xian. For these matters, she could not trust the servants to pass on the message.
Fan Xian saw that she was serious and furrowed his brows slightly. Putting his ear close, he listened to his wife speak quietly by his ear. His mood grew heavier and heavier, but his face did not change. It remained calm. He comforted and said, "I thought it was something big for you to come down to Jiangnan in such a hurry … the elders in the Palace are used to gossiping about people and don't care too much."
During their days in Jingdou, this young couple had a good understanding. Furthermore, they had once made it clear that Wan'er was now someone's wife and daughter. In such a complicated relationship, Fan Xian pitied her and did not want her to be too involved in these dark matters, even if Wan'er could actually help him a lot.
For example, on the day the Great Prince visited Fan manor, the two of them spoke in the middle of the night.
Although she said this, Wan'er could not pretend that nothing had happened around her. Furthermore, she could not blindfold her eyes and pretend that she did not see her husband and her mother, who she was not very close to, at daggers drawn.
A girl's thoughts were difficult to guess. In this matter, she always wanted to find a way to protect Fan Xian and not let both sides sink into an irreparable situation.
However, it was very difficult. It was difficult for Fan Xian to understand, and it was the same for Wan'er.
Thus, she could only stay in Jingdou and carefully ask around for news from the Fourth Bureau. She helped Fan Xian analyze the mysteries of those women's politics. Using her aloof status and the privilege of entering and leaving the Palace as she pleased, she helped Fan Xian, who was far away in Jiangnan, contact the people in the Palace and eliminate any resistance that could be eliminated.
Fan Xian knew about these things and knew that he could not stop her, so he could only let her be. Furthermore, there were times when he needed Wan'er to act as a lubricant in the middle, just like the trip to the Palace after the spring examination.
…
…
Because of Fan Xian's opposition, Wan'er's abilities were not fully displayed. Her natural sense of politics and Palace matters was suppressed. However, this did not mean that she did not understand these things. Thus, after she learned of the story in the Palace, she resolutely came to Jiangnan.
Different from what everyone thought, the young mistress of the Fan manor did not come to Jiangnan to see the Northern Qi saint girl called Duoduo. She just wanted to remind Fan Xian of certain things in person.
"The elders in the Palace … can influence a lot." Wan'er looked at Fan Xian worriedly and said in a quiet voice, "The empress dowager is the empress' aunt. The relationship between these two cannot be separated. The empress has arranged for someone to enter the Palace to tell the empress dowager the story of Story of the Stone. There are dangers hidden within. You cannot be too careless."
Fan Xian fell silent. A glimmer of anger welled up in his heart. When he was copying Story of the Stone in Danzhou, it was only to find some games for himself and Sisi and for Ruoruo to entertain. At the same time, it was to satisfy his literary thoughts. He did not think too much of it. Although he knew that Old Cao's writings at the time were somewhat taboo, he thought that this was a completely different country and two different worlds. How could it be taboo, so he had been careless.
No one had thought that their life and their encounters would later change so much. Every word and sentence in Dream of the Red Chamber seemed to express their dissatisfaction and hidden bitterness.
Particularly that poem about Sister Qiao.
Anyone could write this book, but it could not be him. Yet, in the present world, everyone believed that he had written this book.
The resentment in the book seemed to be narrating his dissatisfaction with the matter of the old Ye family. The empress had arranged for someone to enter the Palace to tell the old empress dowager the story. Given the empress dowager's sensitive and suspicious mind, would she not think that he had ulterior motives?
The matters of the royal family were all about the heart. If the heart was suspicious, then the person was suspicious. If the heart could be punished, then the person could be punished.
Fan Xian thought quietly for a while and found that this was indeed a problem he was about to face. If the empress dowager truly thought that he had dissatisfaction in his heart and wanted to redress the matter of the past, then perhaps the old woman's temporary silence would no longer exist. Presently, the Qing Kingdom was governed by filial piety. Whatever the empress dowager said, his Emperor would have to express it.
However, this was not a big problem. Fan Xian had been in Jiangnan for a long time, and his strength had reached a certain level. These small waves would not make him very afraid. He gently patted his wife's hand and warmly said, "Don't worry, even if that old woman suspects me, so what? I haven't done anything. She can't just ask the Emperor to strip me of my position. "
Wan'er laughed bitterly and couldn't resist shaking her head. Using her finger, she gently poked at the spot between his brows and said, "That is my grandmother, and also your grandmother … why are you calling her old woman?"
Fan Xian chuckled and said, "Speaking of which, when I saw you in the Qing Temple, I would never have guessed that you would be my cousin."
"Hmph … I don't know who hid it from me for so long," Lin Wan'er muttered with a pout.
Without waiting for Fan Xian to comfort her, Wan'er continued with a serious expression, "Even if there is no harm in this matter for now, what about the matter of the Ming family? The storm of your lawsuit in Jiangnan has long spread into Jingdou. Presently, Song Shiren can be considered to have truly made a name for himself. To say that the eldest legitimate son does not have a natural right to inheritance … this touches the bottom line of many people. Although Song Shiren is helping Xia Qifei fight the lawsuit, everyone in Jingdou knows that you are their true backer. They can't help but ask in their hearts, just what is our Sir Fan junior thinking? "
Fan Xian raised his eyebrows and said, "What can I think?"
Lin Wan'er gazed at him and said, "As for looking at it on the surface, you want to help Xia Qifei take back the Ming family property … would the empress dowager not suspect you? Furthermore, there is also the disadvantage of the Story of the Stone earlier … combining the two, everyone will think that you want to take back the palace treasury. "
"But who does the palace treasury belong to?"
"Who is the eldest legitimate son in the Palace?"
Lin Wan'er sighed. "The things you did in Jiangnan, you truly placed yourself on the opposite side of the Crown Prince and even the empress dowager."
Fan Xian was silent for a moment and then decided to speak his true thoughts. "Correct … but in reality, I purposely created this kind of atmosphere to make the people in the Palace feel that I have ulterior motives."
Lin Wan'er opened her mouth slightly in surprise. She felt that such a rash advance did not seem to be in his character.
"You came a few days late, so you don't know that the Emperor has sent a eunuch to announce the edict." Fan Xian smiled slightly. "In a few days, the capital will know my attitude. I am standing on the Third Prince's side."
Lin Wan'er was confused and nervous. In a quiet voice, she said, "You are prepared to let the Third Prince fight in the arena … but he is still a child."
"This child is not simple." Fan Xian lowered his head slightly and smiled gently. "His ability is not bad. Furthermore, I have great confidence in my ability to read people. I also have confidence in my ability as a teacher. The person I teach will not be too bad."
"But … you still haven't explained why you created this kind of atmosphere today." Lin Wan'er furrowed her brows. If she allowed this situation to continue, the two sides would gradually lose any chance of reconciliation. It would also force … she abruptly raised her head and looked at Fan Xian in shock. Slightly startled, she said, "You … are prepared to force them to act?"
…
…
The bedroom was silent for a long time. Fan Xian slowly nodded his head. In a quiet voice, he said, "Many people have overlooked the empress and the Crown Prince. However, they and I both know that only one side can survive between us. Taking advantage of the fact that the Emperor still cares about me, I am going to force the hidden disaster to erupt earlier."
Lin Wan'er's expression gradually became one of helplessness. Her face darkened. Although she knew that the Son of Heaven's battle did not leave the slightest bit of affection, when she thought of her dearest husband or her brother, the Crown Prince, one of them had to die, she couldn't help but feel a trace of cold.
Fan Xian's eyes were even colder than his wife's heart. Slowly and indifferently, he said, "I don't want to kill people. However, they have already killed people decades ago. Now, they will not let me go. Since it is so, I will finish this matter. "
Lin Wan'er was silent for a long time. She then opened her mouth and said, "Then … what about her?"
The "her" in these words was the biggest problem between Fan Xian and his wife, the Eldest Princess who had never been willing to settle down.
Fan Xian's eyelids drooped slightly. Gently, he pulled Wan'er into his arms. Gently, he said, "The Emperor's thoughts run too deep. I won't pay attention to them. Your mother's thoughts are also too big. It is not my place to pay attention to them. This is a battle between her and the Emperor. I only need to be on the side. I can't promise anything else, but I can promise you that I will not personally do anything to her."
Was this promise trustworthy?
"Uncle Emperor has always doted on me …" Lin Wan'er was like a wounded kitten in Fan Xian's arms. She spoke weakly, but her eyes gradually became misty. If the Eldest Princess truly had the courage to do such a thing, then even if, with Fan Xian's power and identity, Lin Wan'er would not be implicated in any way, her identity in the royal family would become awkward and dangerous.
Fan Xian was silent. He knew that Wan'er's sigh was true. After they were married and walking in the Palace, only then did he clearly feel that his Emperor truly doted on Wan'er. Wan'er's status in the Palace was indeed much higher than that of a normal princess. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but sigh. The Emperor marrying his favorite niece to his illegitimate son could be considered compensation to him?
"It's fine. It's all the elders' business," he said with a slight smile. "Let them make a ruckus."
Although his words were light, the content was not. In the next year, if the Qing court did not change masters, there would be a bloodbath in the royal family. What would happen to Fan Xian and Wan'er, the young man and woman? If it was the former, Fan Xian believed that his entire family would be buried with the Emperor. If it was the latter, how would Wan'er face it?
In this instant, Fan Xian suddenly felt that forcing the other party to act ahead of time seemed to be a very boring thing. However, in order to protect himself and the people around him, he had to do this.
"The old cripple should also be thinking this way, right? I hope he has some good ideas. "
Fan Xian gently patted Wan'er's back and looked at the calm lake outside the window, the green mountain, the fishing boat, and the willow branch. His thoughts floated to the distant Jingdou.
… …
In the chilly Royal Palace in Jingdou, the serving girls and eunuchs walked quietly. Occasionally, some of the younger serving girls would giggle and immediately be harshly scolded by the old nannies. Spring had ended, and the beginning of summer had arrived. The trees in the Palace were luxuriant, but the people in the Palace still did not have a sliver of freedom.
Guangxin Palace had once been the Eldest Princess's palace. After the matter of the Eldest Princess secretly communicating with Northern Qi and betraying a high-ranking Overwatch Council official had been exposed by Uncle Wu Zhu through the city, the most beautiful woman in Qing Kingdom had sadly withdrawn from the political scene in Jingdou and gone to the cold and cheerless Li Palace.
Although she could faintly influence the situation in the Palace from Xinyang Li Palace, it was not as convenient as being inside Jingdou. Thus, in the sixth year of the Qing calendar, she finally convinced the empress dowager to move back to Jingdou. At this time, the sensational incident of the Junshang Conference had long disappeared from people's memories.
However, not long after returning to Jingdou, the power of the Junshang Conference in Jiangnan was revealed angrily in front of her brother the Emperor. Thus, the Emperor ordered her to once again move into the Royal Palace. It was called a reunion, but in reality, it was to keep a close watch.
However, the Eldest Princess had, after all, operated in the Palace for a long time. She was also the empress dowager's favorite girl, and her relationship with the empress had always been close. Thus, no one could stop her from entering and leaving the Royal Palace. The tricks she had done in secret had also successfully fooled many people.
Of course, in order to reassure her brother, it was not convenient for her to leave the Palace too often. She had been in close contact with her subordinates, so her most frequent activity was to chat with the empress dowager in the Palace and study some flowers, birds, insects, and water with the empress.
What she embroidered was probably not cloth.
…
…
The situation in Jiangnan had already been settled. Regardless of whether or not Eldest Princess Li Yunrui accepted it, whether or not she admitted it, whether or not she was sad, the Jiangnan she had managed for over a decade … had already been completely taken over by her "successful" son-in-law!
The old Ming matriarch had died. Great Master San Shi had died. The Ming family was as silent as a cicada in winter. Under the combined suppression of Fan Xian and Xue Qing, the Jiangnan officialdom did not have much of a backlash. The trusted aides she had placed in the three large workshops of the palace treasury transport company had all been pulled out by Fan Xian. Although those officials were still respectful in their letters, under Fan Xian's tyrannical power, they could not move.
The anger of the people, which had been created with great difficulty, had, for some reason, quietly dissipated. Thus, the letters of blood from tens of thousands of people that had been sent to Jingdou from thousands of li away and the old scholar who had brought the case before the Emperor had become rootless trees. They were not a threat to the court at all.
"Forfeit salary?" The Eldest Princess Li Yunrui narrowed her eyes. A trace of ridicule flashed through her beautiful phoenix eyes. "Tell me, do you think the Fan family lacks this little bit of silver?"
Sitting beside her was the dignified and luxurious-looking Empress. The empress smiled slightly and said, "The Emperor dotes on the Fan family. A few days ago, the investigation of the Ministry of Revenue was also hastily concluded."
The Eldest Princess smiled slightly. Her long eyelashes fluttered with a tenderness that did not match her age. She smiled lightly and said, "Minister Fan has done a great service to the country. How can we women compare?"
She sighed and said, "When all is said and done, I don't actually have a child. Having a daughter is not that close, so why should I care about these things? I think that when autumn comes, I should ask my mother to go back to Xinyang to live.
The empress's heart thumped. She silently cursed this foxy woman for pretending to be young. She could also hear that the other party was retreating in order to advance. However, in the present situation, if Li Yunrui really did not do it, then she and the Crown Prince would not be able to stop Fan Xian and the Third Prince's momentum. Of course, the empress was not an idiot. She knew that the Eldest Princess would not give up the power in her hands and leave. The other party had said these words to gain the upper hand in the situation.
There was even a glimmer of caution in the empress's smile that should not have been there. "What are you saying, sister? Although I am a stupid woman who does not know the affairs of the country, I know that you are a pillar of the country and have obtained countless benefits for the Qing court. If you truly go to Xinyang, the Emperor will be the first to not agree. "
The conversation between these two women still could not leave that chair. However, no one dared to speak too bluntly of such a matter before it started.
The Eldest Princess was silent for a moment and slowly opened her mouth to say, "Mother is old and is always easily deceived by others."
The empress nodded and smiled slightly. "Let's take it slowly."
The two of them were silent and raised their teacups to sip. The empress suddenly asked probingly, "I heard … Fan Xian is doing well in Jiangnan. Is it that an ace suddenly came and cut down half a building in Suzhou?"
The matter of cutting down half a building with one strike could not be hidden for long. It still traveled back to Jingdou and into the Palace.
The Eldest Princess knew what the empress wanted to ask, but she purposely did not give her the truth. With a trace of pride, she smiled and said, "I do not know much about the matters of the jianghu."
If a Great Grandmaster stood behind the Eldest Princess, then the empress would have a clearer understanding of where she should stand in their cooperation. Of course, this would also greatly strengthen the empress and the Crown Prince's resolve.
Seeing that the Eldest Princess was not willing to speak clearly, the empress cursed in her heart and took her leave.
Looking at the mother of the country's slightly lonely figure, a glimmer of pity and disdain flashed through the Eldest Princess's eyes. She wondered where this kind of character got her confidence from to want a piece of the pie.
The chief strategist of Xinyang, Huang Yi, and Yuan Hongdao could not enter the Palace, so the trusted aide at the Eldest Princess's side was a eunuch. The eunuch stood to the side and quietly said the question in the Eldest Princess's heart, "Does the empress not know this is …?"
"Asking a tiger for its skin." The Eldest Princess said the words that it was inconvenient for a trusted aide to say. She smiled coldly and said, "Even if I am a tiger, she can only stand on my side. Otherwise, if the Third Prince truly ascends and Fan Xian wants to avenge Ye Qingmei, who will help her block it?"
She slowly closed her eyes and said, "She and I have temporarily put aside the question of whether it is Chengqian or the Second Prince … because she knows that if the matter succeeds, she will not be able to win against me. She only wants a way out."
"The Jiangnan side?"
"Don't worry about it anymore." The Eldest Princess sighed. "That son-in-law of mine had already made preparations before he went to Jiangnan. How could those natives in Jiangnan be a match for him?"
She shook her head and faintly said after a moment of silence, "Now that I think about it, I really did make a big mistake back then. If it wasn't for the Niulan Street incident, how could Fan Xian and I have become like this? If he stood by my side, who in this world could oppose us?"
Not waiting for the eunuch to reply, she laughed self-mockingly. "What a fantasy. If Fan Xian and I did not have such an unsolvable hatred, how could my Emperor brother dare to put him in such an important position?"
The eunuch listened to the side and didn't even dare to breathe loudly.
"From the beginning, I was wrong." A glimmer of coldness and decisiveness flashed through the Eldest Princess's beautiful face. "No matter how powerful Fan Xian is, he will still be held by the Palace's strings by his limbs. Why should I care about this puppet? What I should care about is the person holding the strings."
…
…
In Hanguang Palace not far from Guangxin Palace, the empress dowager was half-lidded. After all, she was old. Her spirit was not as good as it had been in the past, and the decisiveness to kill in her heart was also not as good as it had been.
"Stop, stop." The old woman stopped the storytelling serving girl in the Palace with disgust. She glanced at the book in the serving girl's hand and didn't speak for a moment.
"It's all preposterous words. I don't know why so many people in the marketplace like to read it," an old nanny at the side said in a fawning voice.
The empress dowager shook her head. A moment later, she quietly said, "Children … it is normal to be a bit dissatisfied."
The old nanny didn't say anything more.
A complicated emotion flashed through the empress dowager's eyes. How could she not know why the empress wanted her to read The Story of the Stone? Although she was indeed angry at Fan Xian's resentment, she was even angrier at the empress's actions.
No matter how wrong Fan Xian's mother was, Fan Xian was, after all, a descendant of the royal family. This was what the empress dowager valued the most.
"How long has Chen'er been gone?" The empress dowager suddenly thought of her favorite granddaughter and asked the person beside her.
"The princess should already be in Hangzhou by now."
"Hmm … I've also been to Jiangnan. The scenery there is not bad. It's just that those women are too presumptuous." The empress dowager furrowed her brows and ordered, "No matter how much effort the Fan family put into preparing, it cannot compare to the things in the Palace. Have someone prepare some things to send to Jiangnan."
The old woman thought for a bit and then said, "Go ask Chen'er if she is used to living by West Lake. If she doesn't like it, have her move to the temporary imperial residence on the mountain."
The old nanny quickly made a sound of acknowledgment.
…
…
Inside the royal study, the Qing Emperor, who had just finished the Imperial Conference, rubbed tiredly between his brows and took a sip of warm ginseng tea. Looking at the scenery outside the window that never seemed to change, he furrowed his brows in disgust.
"Hong Zhu …" the Emperor unconsciously called out. Only after calling out did he remember that Hong Zhu had already been moved to the Eastern Palace by him for half a year. He couldn't help but smile self-mockingly.
"Your Majesty, what orders do you have?" the head eunuch beside him asked respectfully.
The Emperor shook his head and gently coughed a few times. The echo echoed through the royal study. He couldn't help but be startled. He thought that perhaps he really was getting old. Hearing the echo of his cough, he realized that he was very lonely.
"Go to the little building and have a look."
He brushed his dragon robe, straightened his chest, and walked toward the door. The eunuch behind him quickly followed. They were only in time to hear the Emperor faintly sigh, "When do you have time to go to Danzhou and have a look?"
…
…
This year, the Qing Kingdom was no different than any other year. The Palace was still lonely and dirty. Outside the Palace was still bustling. The court was still arguing. The six ministries were still fighting. The Overwatch Council was still silent and ferocious. Old Director Chen was still enjoying the singing and dancing in Chen Garden. Minister Fan was still busy in the Ministry of Revenue.
The common people were struggling to survive. Apart from surviving, they found some happy things to comfort their almost numb hearts.
For example, the East family had married a girl, the West family had lost an old man, the South had not had a flood this year, and there seemed to be a war in the West. Sir Fan junior had not written poems. Had the Northern Qi saint girl and the young mistress of the Fan family met?
All the way down from Jingdou to Jizhou, where it was about to merge into the Great River, there was a bustling scene on both sides of the river banks. The people repairing the river banks laboriously moved sand and stone like ants. This year, the Qing Kingdom had been lucky. The spring floods were much smaller than expected. The abundance of the national treasury also gave the river transport governor's yamen a lot of confidence. Although it was heavily deducted, in the end, they still gave out a lot of wages. Thus, the motivation of the people to work was much stronger.
Yang Wanli's face was dark. He wore coarse clothing and stood with his brows tightly furrowed in the bamboo shed. Although the present situation was good, the autumn floods were the most terrifying thing. Furthermore, he had the heavy responsibility of supervising the movement of the silver that was secretly shipped over. Thus, the mental pressure was incomparably great.
As for repairing the dikes and dividing the water, although he did not understand these things, he still put down his pride and personally carried them out. The continuous exposure to the sun finally washed away the last trace of scholarly aura from this Fan family student, turning him into a true official.
On the river banks, a number of people came from afar. It looked like they were officials heading to a foreign place.
From a distance, the group of people began to call toward the inside of the bamboo shed.
Yang Wanli pulled up his lapel and wiped the sweat from his face. He gazed in that direction with confusion. Finally, he saw clearly who the people were and couldn't help but walk out of the shed with joy.
"Brother Jichang? Brother Jialin? Why are you here? "Yang Wanli went forward emotionally and grasped the people's hands.
The people who had come were Hou Jichang and Cheng Jialin of Fan Xian's four disciples. After the spring examinations, these two had been sent out to work in other counties. Because of Fan Xian's care and their own hard work, they had advanced quickly. In just over a year, they had completed a few jumps and crossed the first big hurdle of the seventh-level.
However, the places where these two people were officials were far from Jizhou. So, while Yang Wanli was pleasantly surprised, he also couldn't help feeling a bit surprised.
Hou Jichang did not have time to reply to his words. He only held those callused hands and gazed at Yang Wanli's dark face. Moved, he said, "Sir's letter only said that you had arrived at the river transport governor's yamen. I didn't think it would be so difficult."
To the side, Cheng Jialin had already begun to sigh.
Yang Wanli chuckled and thought of something. With a serious expression, he said, "Usually, Wanli only talks about political matters. It was not until I came into contact with the matters of the people's lives that I realized how difficult it is for the people of the Qing Kingdom. Teacher had Wanli come to repair the river because of his trust and cultivation. Only after experiencing this personally do I know that under teacher's seemingly unconcerned appearance, there is a heart that worries for the country and the people."
The three of them fell silent. It was Hou Jichang who broke the silence and slowly said, "According to rumors, the reason you were able to subdue that Northern Qi saint girl was all because of the words you said in the Northern Qi Royal Palace."
Speaking of Northern Qi saint girl Haitang, even though these three were all Fan Xian's students, they still couldn't help but laugh up their sleeves.
Yang Wanli suppressed a smile and asked, "What words?"
Hou Jichang turned around and looked at the laborers on the embankment at his feet and the roaring river not far away. With a sigh, he said, "First worry about the worries of the world, then delight in the joys of the world … I was thinking, back then, we seemed to have underestimated Sir."
First worry about the worries of the world, then delight in the joys of the world.
The three of them chewed on these words in their hearts. A sense of respect rose involuntarily.
"Teacher … although he looks tired, he actually has a pure heart." Yang Wanli thought of everything he had seen and heard these few months, the importance Fan Xian placed on the river transport, and the changes that had happened to Jiangnan because of Fan Xian's arrival. He couldn't help but sigh in admiration.
Beside the bamboo shed on the embankment were other officials of the river transport yamen. Hou Jichang noticed that Yang Wanli kept using the word "teacher" and couldn't resist coughing a few times in a low voice to remind him, "In front of outsiders, it's best to call him sir, otherwise the court will say we have formed a clique."
"A gentleman has friends but not cliques. If we really want to form a clique, I am willing to be teacher's lackey." Yang Wanli smiled slightly and said with a calmness that was different from his in the past, "Everyone under heaven knows that we are the four disciples of Fan Xian. As long as we are working for the benefit of the people under heaven, why should we care about other people's words?"
Hou Jichang was slightly startled, then he laughed loudly and said, "That's true. I'm still a bit intentional. It looks like Wanli has indeed improved a lot in this half year. Following at teacher's side is indeed beneficial for cultivating one's character. "
Cheng Jialin also said enviously, "We are officials outside while you are in Jiangnan. Who knew that teacher would go to Jiangnan?"
Yang Wanli smiled and said, "I haven't been with teacher for many days, but that kid Shi Chanli … if you go to Suzhou to see, you will know how much teacher has changed him."
Speaking of this, only now did Yang Wanli remember to ask, "Where are you going?"
Cheng Jialin smiled slightly and replied, "During this half year, teacher has been reorganizing the government in Jiangnan and there have been a number of vacancies, so the Ministry of Appointments is transferring me to Suzhou."
Yang Wanli nodded happily. He knew that Cheng Jialin going to Suzhou would certainly be of help to Fan Xian.
"What about you?"
Hou Jichang smiled and said, "I'm going to Jiaozhou to be a Dianli."
Yang Wanli was startled. He thought that this kind of transfer was equivalent to being demoted. He didn't understand why Fan Xian would make such an arrangement.
Hou Jichang did not explain anything. He only knew that Sir Fan junior had his reasons for wanting him to go to Jiaozhou. Furthermore, according to what the teacher had said in his letter, of the four of them, only he could manage to do such a sinister funeral.
…
…
"Worry about the world first?" In the Jiangnan water village, Fan Xian lay on a bamboo chair on a large boat. Looking at the sky full of stars, he couldn't resist sighing and saying, "I came to this world to enjoy happiness, not to worry about the country and its people."
On such a night, the large boat sailed along the river. It had long left Hangzhou.
After spending a month by the West Lake, Fan Xian had carefully studied the medicine Fei Jie had left behind. He discovered with some annoyance that what Ku He had said was probably true. However, Fei Jie seemed to feel remorseful and didn't say a word about Fan Xian's invitation. He didn't know where that old pervert was hiding.
However, Wan'er persisted in drinking the medicine, so his body gradually recovered. Fan Xian's mood was much better. His hatred toward Northern Qi Ku He had also decreased. As for the matter of having a child, he was not in a hurry. He wasn't even 20, so what was there to be anxious about?
After all the matters in Jiangnan had been settled, he brought everyone around him onto the large boat the navy provided and began to travel along the Jiangnan waterways.
Their destinations were, without a doubt, Wuzhou, Jiaozhou, and Danzhou.
At this time, it was late at night. Wan'er, the Third Prince, and the others had long fallen asleep. There was only Fan Xian and Lin Dabao lying side by side on the quiet plank. Even the swordsmen of the Sixth Bureau and the Tiger Guards, who were usually hidden in the dark, had been called down by Fan Xian.
Fan Xian couldn't sleep. Dabao had slept too much during the day on the boat, so he could endure a little. The two of them lay side by side and ate the delicious pastries of Jiangnan as they talked randomly.
The world had never understood why Fan Xian had such a good relationship with that idiotic brother-in-law. In reality, even Fan Xian himself could not explain it. Perhaps it was because when talking to Dabao, he could obtain an unprecedented ease. He didn't need to think about anything and didn't need to be afraid of anything.
Furthermore, he didn't need to talk about politics, the world, right and wrong, black and white, good and evil, the death of others or his own death, the White Jade Square, or the smelly gutter.
He only needed to talk about simple and pleasant things like eating. For example, the stars that dotted the night sky above the ship.
The river wind blew gently, and the water rippled without stirring. The ship was anchored in the middle of a nameless lake. The reeds around it were far away, and there were no water birds chirping at night. It was quiet. The starry sky above them was lonely and distant. Fan Xian looked at the starry sky above him and said to Da Bao beside him, "What do you think the stars in the sky are?"
"It was Sesame." Dabao gestured with his wide and plump palm. "The moon … is a sesame cake. The stars … are sesame … Little Bao said it before."
Xiaobao was the second young master of the Lin Family who had died at Uncle Wu Zhu's hands. Fan Xian's heart jumped. Shortly after, he smiled slightly and pointed at the stars and the crescent moon in the sky. "I don't know if it's shaobing or not. I only know that the Qing Kingdom's starry sky also has a moon and those stars. Furthermore, strangely, there is also a sun during the day."
It was not strange for the sun to appear in the day and the moon and stars to appear in the night. This was common sense that even children understood.
But Da Bao nodded his head very seriously and said, "Little Xianxian, I also think it's very strange."
Fan Xian sighed and said, "Yes, it is too strange. When I was young, I discovered that this place … is still Earth."
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(Volume Five, End of Jiangnan in Jinghua)
(Note: Writing the end summary tomorrow … it's really tiring. I wish everyone a happy New Year, even though it's a bit late.)
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