Heaven's Formula

"What is that?" Li was suddenly attracted by a few talismans under him.

Xia Fan squatted down, pushed away the already stiff body of the opponent, and pulled out the talisman and pinched it on his fingertips—it was a kind of talisman that he had never seen before. Shiming, as if breathing.

"This is the Soul Gathering Talisman."

Ning Wanjun's voice came from behind.

"Soul Gathering... Talisman?" Xia Fan repeated.

"I also heard it from acquaintances," Ning Wanjun spread her hands, "This kind of talisman has nothing to do with magic, it's more like a container. What it holds is the evil spirit."

"You mean—" he couldn't help being surprised.

"Well, if the conditions are right, it can inspire evil spirits." The princess's answer confirmed his guess, "But this thing is very rare, and it is generally qualified to apply to the Privy Council only when you have the guard level. This guy has more than one card in his hand. , is really a bit abnormal.”

"That's exactly what the An family is good at." Wu Yueyao also walked in, "I didn't expect him to even have the chance to fight back. This battle... Your Highness won beautifully."

"It has nothing to do with me, it's all thanks to Xia Fan." Ning Wanjun twirled the two short spears in his hand, all regretting, "It's a pity that the victory was too clean, and I couldn't even clean up the battlefield. "

Xia Fan took the other party's stuttering as a slip of the tongue, "These talismans...how should we deal with it?"

"You keep it." Ning Wanjun waved his hand generously, "Although it can't be exchanged for money, it is indeed a rare item. Don't you want to study alchemy, this is a rare research material."

"Your Highness, the guard said they found something, I hope you can take a look." Qiuyue suddenly reported at the door.

"Oh? What is it?" the princess turned her head and asked.

"Some...dried corpses." Qiuyue bit her lips, "stuck in the wall."

……

"This...was also done by the Donghai Gang?" Xia Fan couldn't help frowning as he looked at the scene in front of him.

In a corner of the lobby, the guards were picking up the broken stones on the wall.In the part that has been exposed, everyone saw a dozen mummified corpses.What's even more incredible is that these corpses were obviously not stuffed in casually. They were similar in size and had a sallow surface, as if they had been soaked in tung oil.

"Do you know what they mean by doing this?" Ning Wanjun looked at Wu Yueyao.

The latter shook his head, "No, I don't know..."

"There seems to be something on the corpse." Li pointed to one of them.

Under the gesture of the princess, someone quickly pulled it out from the crevice of the stone.

When it lay flat on the ground, everyone couldn't help but take a deep breath.

The body of the corpse was actually engraved with runes.

This is a bit too evil.

Ning Wanjun was silent for a long time before she said to Xia Fan, "I have to admit that your guess is correct. The An family's presence here is not just for private salt. Although we still don't know what Dongsheng Kingdom wants to do , but at least their calculations have failed."

Then she gave an order to the guards, "Search this underground passage thoroughly, and drag all the corpses found outside to be burned. No one will be missed or lost!"

"Yes, Your Highness!" The guards responded in unison.

……

Jinxia City, inside the Wang Family Mansion.

"You, what are you talking about!?" Wang Yi'an shook his hands, and the cup fell to the ground with a bang. "This matter—have you confirmed it?"

"Master, it's absolutely true." Master Lu replied tremblingly, "Last night, there was a sudden drought and thunder in the south of the city, and then there was a constant roar. In the morning, there was news that Zhengshou Street and Wangfu Street were closed. Blocked. There is also a team of servants who don’t know where they came from and entered the Hongmu Building, saying they want to arrest the members of the East China Sea Gang hidden inside. I hurriedly sent people there to check the situation, but even the other courtyards in the outer city were surrounded by people Already!"

Wang Yi'an sat back on the chair, "The person you sent out—are you sure there are alchemists among the besiegers?"

Master Lu's expression became even uglier, "Yes, more than that, he also saw the commanding officer himself."

Wang Yian's heart suddenly sank to the bottom.

Xia Fan!

Is this his revenge for the previous attack?

Could it be that this transaction will end with nothing left?

He clenched his fists bitterly.

Damn foreigner, didn't it mean that the strength of those cultivators is not afraid of a local Privy Council?How did Xia Fan catch him?

"Master..." However, Master Lu's bad news did not end, "I heard one more thing..."

Wang Yian gritted his teeth and stared at him, "Say it!"

"Some people are spreading rumors at the scene, and Princess Quang Binh's people are also involved!"

He froze suddenly, and there was a bang in his mind!

your Highness?Why would she get involved in this kind of thing?The East China Sea gang failed to attack Xia Fan, and Xia Fan's retaliatory action is still reasonable, but what about the princess?What does this have to do with her! ?

In an instant, a terrifying thought leaped into Wang Yi'an's mind.

The other party...couldn't have discovered the problem in the saltworks, right?

No—it's impossible. The peripheral members of the Donghai Gang don't know about it at all, and the core members are all from Dongsheng Kingdom. Naturally, they know how important this matter is, so how could it be easily revealed!

However, the more you worry about something, the faster the bad things will happen.A servant ran into the study out of breath and bowed to Wang Yi'an.

"Master, Princess Guangping sent a letter, inviting you to Fengyang Villa for a banquet!"

Chapter 119

……

This is the second time Wang Yian has set foot in the classroom of the Villa Club, but his mentality is completely different.

When he first came, he was full of ambition, thinking that this would be a rare opportunity.The princess and the Wang family are just a couple who need each other and can support each other. The salt industry can bring wealth but not stability, but the heirs of the royal family can. Can your child achieve a career?

But when he came this time, his mind was blank.

What does the princess want?Wang Yian found that he did not understand.

"Caomin greets His Highness."

"Get up, please sit down." Ning Wanjun was still sitting on the chief seat, her expression was neither enthusiastic nor indifferent.

But this attitude made Wang Yian even more worried.

As for the dishes on the table, he didn't even have the mood to take a look at them—things that he was looking forward to when he first came here had become unattractive now.

After sitting down, he couldn't wait to ask, "I don't know why the princess called me...why?"

"Don't you want to eat something first?" Ning Wanjun picked up the chopsticks, "Although these dishes can't be called rare and luxurious, the taste is carefully prepared."

"Yes, then... I'm not polite." Wang Yi'an had no choice but to respond.Judging from what the other party meant, it was obvious that she didn't intend to get straight to the point - what was she planning?Did she really know about her connection with Dongsheng Kingdom?Countless questions swirled in his mind, but he was not qualified to ask them.

When the first piece of fish came into his mouth, he couldn't help but startled.

This fish...is not salty.

Could it be that the cook forgot to put salt?

He tried another dish, still bland.

However, the princess didn't seem to notice it, and she still enjoyed her lunch bite by bite.

Wang Yian felt the sweat on his forehead.

He finally scooped up a spoonful of broth, put it to his mouth and sipped it slightly.

Except for a little oily smell, there is no smell at all.

He couldn't take it anymore.

Pushing away the chair, Wang Yi'an took two steps back and knelt down again, "The grassroots are guilty!"

"Oh?" Ning Wanjun raised her eyebrows, "What's your crime?"

"Maliciously raising the price of salt has made it difficult for the people of Jinxia City to eat salt." He was struggling for the last time.

But the princess's slow words broke all Wang Yi'an's defenses, "It can't be considered malicious, after all, a large part of it will be divided and sent to the harbor pier..."

she knows...

The princess really knew it!

Wang Yi'an's head buzzed, even though he had a premonition when the Donghai gang's hiding place was blocked and the news of the princess' banquet came together, but there was always a fluke in his heart.Even in the face of a lunch without salt, he tried to use the price of salt to find out the other party's intentions.

However, when the princess said the word "harbour" lightly, Wang Yi'an only felt a chill down his back, and his legs seemed to have lost consciousness.

"This matter... this matter..." He muttered a few words but failed to utter a complete sentence.Selling private salt is fine, not only selling it to other countries, but also using the profits to recruit law practitioners from other countries. Once this matter is exposed, even if His Majesty does not take him now, there will be a day of liquidation in the future. Shang can be said to be his role model.

Is there any other way to reverse it?

Kill the princess here?

For a moment, Wang Yian had this thought in his mind, but he was quickly dismissed.It's simply extremely stupid, let's not say that the princess is an angry person, even if it is done, if such a thing can happen during a banquet, his royal family will definitely be punished by the clan.

"Let's make a deal." Seeing that Wang Yi'an's momentum was gone, Ning Wanjun didn't plan to act anymore, "First of all, the sale of salt overseas must stop. I don't care what kind of deal you reach with that side, from today It's all useless."

The word deal lifted his spirits.

The princess doesn't seem to intend to tell the Holy Majesty about the private salt?

His blank thoughts started working again.

"Your Highness, I can give half of the proceeds to you—"

"There is no second possibility for this matter." Ning Wanjun interrupted, "If you don't want to break it, I will break you first. This choice should be easy to make, right?"

Without the support of the Donghai Gang, he would have lost more than half of the control over Jinxia City. This is undoubtedly a tragic loss, but compared to the worst liquidation results, at least the Wang family can continue.

If you are alive, you will have a chance.

"I...will do so."

"A wise choice." Ning Wanjun nodded, "Second, lower the price of salt. This part of the salt is for private sale, and you cooperate with the merchants to release it. I can not ask about your previous illegal gains for the time being. "

"Yes." This is another loss, but the loss of money is much more acceptable than the previous point.

"Finally, if Dongsheng Kingdom comes to your door, no matter what news you hear, you must report to me." Ning Wanjun said in a deep voice, "I don't want such a rat's nest to exist in Jinxia City anymore."

Wang Yi'an moistened his dry lips, "As you... wish."

Once the salt sale ends, there will be no way to send people to support him. Even if the princess doesn't mention the third point, he won't be able to piece together a new Donghai Gang.

"To be honest, these three points are far from commensurate with the crime you committed." Ning Wanjun raised her chin slightly, "Do you know the reason why you can still stand in the hall?"

"Because... Jinxia City still needs me to produce salt."

"That's right, do your job well, so that the Privy Council won't find you." She stood up satisfied and walked towards the inner door, "I have other things to do, so don't worry about it." Eat with you. Enjoy it slowly by yourself."

Wang Yi'an clenched his teeth tightly, "Respectfully, Your Highness!"

……

Back in his mansion, Wang Yi'an just walked into the study when he saw the eldest son Wang Qingzhi already waiting in the room.

"Father, Your Highness invited you to go, what did you say?"

Wang Yi'an let out a long sigh, and told the whole story about going to the banquet.

"You...you don't plan to listen to the princess, do you?" Wang Qingzhi frowned.

"That's all, that's all." Wang Yi'an leaned back in his chair, "This time, the Wang family lost their bet. Forget about my previous plan, Dongsheng Kingdom, it will never happen again."

"Father!" Wang Qingzhi raised his voice eight degrees, "This matter must not be abandoned halfway, Princess Guangping——I didn't come here to entrust you, she has ambitions!"

The word ambition was almost roared out by him.

"Can I not know that she has ambitions? So what?" Wang Yi'an also became angry. Now it seems that Xia Fan is really a nail inserted into the Privy Council by the other party.Cutting down the Donghai gang first, and then ending the smuggling of salt, this is not at all what a princess who will live the rest of her life would do!What's more terrible is that the power she used has nothing to do with the original power of Jinxia City. Whether it's the well-trained servants or the arresting team of the headquarters, they are all newly created things in a short period of time.The Wang family's connections and financial resources have no checks and balances on this.

What Ning Wanjun did obviously exceeded the boundaries that a conferred princess should have.

It's just that he didn't see this clearly sooner!

"At least...the Wang family still holds the right to produce and sell salt. And Dongsheng Kingdom...is too far away from me." Wang Yi'an rubbed his sore forehead, "Go out. I've already done this. It's decided, you can arrange it as I want."

Wang Qingzhi stared at his father for a long time, and finally lowered his head slowly, "Then you have a good rest."

Father, have you ever thought about why you took this path?

The salt industry can bring wealth, but it cannot bring stability.

The Wang family holds the right to discuss salt now, but what about in the future?Since the princess has ambitions, will she just watch all the huge benefits flow into the Wang family's pocket?

In Wang Qingzhi's eyes, he felt for the first time... that his father was getting old.

Chapter 1 Farewell and Visitors