Lu Ming

After all this was done, the sky was already dark and it was a good time to enter the city.

Before Song Jia boarded the ship, he had already paid out the tax collectors at the wharf and all kinds of monsters and monsters. At this time, there were only a few sedan chairs that Song Jia had hired in advance to berth outside the Hongzi wharf.

So the arrogant envoys, one by one wearing veils and bowing their waists, quickly got off the boat and got into the sedan chair.Before closing the city, the four sedan chairs entered Fuzhou City under the guard of more than a dozen people.

Not long after the mission left, the sky became increasingly dim. At this time, another unremarkable black and thin man came down from the Ryan.After this person got off the boat, he hurried to the south gate, and the sailors on the boat didn't seem to see him.

The north and south of Fuzhou City belong to each other, the south is under the jurisdiction of Houguan County, and the north is under the jurisdiction of Min County.

Walking northward along the stone street lined with ancient buildings, the mission team starts from the middle line of the South Gate, passes through Fuxue, Houguan County Government, Antai Bridge, and Huanzhu Gate, which is the center of ancient Chinese cities. One of the most famous buildings: Drum Tower.

After passing the Drum Tower, and then passing the Maoying Bridge, you will arrive at Beicheng District where governors and governors gather together.

When the team got here, they didn't go any further, but turned right. In the end, the envoys settled down in a secluded house near the Zhongyi Temple in the upper right corner of Fuzhou City.

This house is the first real estate purchased secretly by Fuzhou Railway Station Pu as soon as it was established.The house is small, with three entrances and a small garden. It is located between Zhongyi Temple and Shiqiao, with convenient transportation and a single family.

……

"You guys have worked hard, I have come all the way and there is no reception, alas, I'm really sorry." After entering the room and washing up, Song Jia, a local snake, had the opportunity to exchange pleasantries with everyone.

"Okay, old man, don't be too polite, hurry up and tell us about the situation." Song Jia's colleague, Director Tang Qitang, who was wiping his face with a damp cloth, turned his head and said.

"Well...then I will briefly report the situation to everyone." Song Jia said after pondering for a while: "The overall situation is good at the moment. The news I got from 'Emei Peak' is that Xiong Wencan is still looking forward to meeting you with 'Brother Cao'." meet."

After smiling slightly at the counterfeit Cao Chuan, Song Jia said: "However, Lao Zheng also made moves. A few days ago, Lao Zheng raided the Zhongzuo Office, which put pressure on Xiong Wencan. In addition, I recently asked to lobby Xiong Wencan There are also other people, all of which are for Zheng Zhilong's purpose."

"Then shall we still act according to the original plan? Is there anything that needs to be changed?" Hearing what Song Jia said, Zhang Dongdong couldn't help asking.

Song Jia shook her head, and said firmly: "No, nothing will change. The most important thing now is your meeting with Lao Xiong. Everyone else, all work must be used to ensure the smooth progress of the meeting. After that, we will judge the results of the meeting , to agree on the next step.”

"Don't worry, I have a plan here. Tomorrow Old Tang will work out the plan with me." Song Jia said with a smile: "As for the two of you, just prepare for the old bear's interview with peace of mind, and don't worry about everything else. .”

"Okay, that's the only way to go first." Zhang Dongdong nodded when he heard this.

……

Since the establishment of Fuzhou station is too short, there are not enough trustworthy subordinates, so there are no outsiders in the courtyard of the mission, only three cross-members and a dozen subordinates from the Intelligence Bureau brought by the officials. .

Three of them were Song Jia who stayed that night, and they were personnel from Fuzhou Station who were familiar with the local situation.As for Song Jia himself, after a few quick words, he returned to his own residence—it was already the beginning of Haishi, and if he didn't leave, he would be in trouble if he encountered patrolmen.

So that night, Zhang Dongdong and his party could only do it themselves. After washing up, they made the bed and arranged for the sentry, and everyone went to rest early.

Chapter 187 Contact

In the morning of the next day, the first people to come to the "Bie Yuan" were a donkey cart escorted by Song Jia.

The house where the envoys live now was formerly the residence of a certain merchant.After being bought by Tang Qi, the house was left unused there, and there was no signboard of the Tang Mansion, and the house had always been code-named "Bieyuan".

Four donkey carts, escorted by Song Jia and sailors, brought the cargo on the Ryan.

The cargo was unloaded from the Rui'an to the sampan in the early morning, and then the sampan circled the moat for half a circle and entered the city from the Jinglou Gate in the southeast corner of Fuzhou.

The Jinglou Gate was called the Shipyard Gate before Wanli, and the Minjiang Shipyard was outside the gate.There are not only government-run shipyards here, but also large and small private shipyards.There are piles of wood and craftsmen gathered here. Every year, a large number of lucky boats are newly built from here.

The "other courtyard" is not far from the gate of Jinglou.After the sampan entered the city, it unloaded directly at the Shiqiao near the Zhongyi Temple, and then hired a few donkey carts, and the goods were delivered to the courtyard.

After the four donkey carts were unloaded, they had to go for the second trip non-stop—the Ruian came to Fuzhou this time, and the ship was loaded with a large amount of goods and gifts, which were prepared to give gifts to officials of all sizes in Fuzhou. of.

……

Dozens of people were busy until dinner time, sorting out the incoming goods and sorting them out. After a while, the guests arrived.

When it was still dark, two small sedan chairs entered the gate of the other courtyard one after the other.

When the first sedan chair entered the door, there were several shadowy figures around it, and there were people watching along the way, and the atmosphere became inexplicably tense.

The person in the sedan chair is Xue Haiyuan: the person in charge of the semi-open official office in Fuzhou city.

The office stationed in the city of Fuzhou by the officials is currently under pressure from all sides.As a semi-public agent of Haizhu—at least in the eyes of others, Xue Haiyuan and Xiong Dao, who is far away in Hangzhou, are the same thing.

The days of obscurity are over.As the news that the cross-travel forces have taken over the top ranks gradually spread, there is another group of bandits on the surface of Fujian, Guangdong and Ocean that can defeat the Dutch. This news has now been known to most people who eat sea food.

There are quite a few offices of sea masters in Fuzhou City, and suddenly there is a new family in the circle, and people will naturally come to test them out, some come to contact them openly, and some inquire from the side.

But the Fuzhou office, which had some conflicts with Lao Zheng, soon felt the pressure.Especially now that Zheng Zhilong is powerful and arrogant, and there are a lot of people in Fuzhou city for his purpose, so Xue Haiyuan has to be careful when going out now. Detours and breaks are necessary, otherwise there will be security and tracking problems. .

After arriving at the other courtyard, Xue Haiyuan and Zhang Dongdong held a brief meeting, and then everyone ate while waiting for comrade "Emei Peak" to enter the door.

Today's gathering was the most well-managed and last time for the time-traveling forces in Fuzhou before their public appearance, especially Xue Haiyuan himself.

In theory, Xue Haiyuan should be in charge of the reception activities of the mission.However, since neither Xiong Wencan nor the time-traveling forces wanted to let the outside world know of the existence of the high-ranking mission before the conquest was successful, it was inappropriate for the public figure Xue Haiyuan to appear on the stage.

In the future, the communication between all parties will be carried out through the car radio, and high-risk activities such as meetings will not be held again.

……

Said Cao Cao, Cao Cao.

Before the dishes were ready, Comrade Emeifeng's sedan chair arrived at the door.

Comrade Emei Peak naturally did not come alone.

A small group of personal soldiers wearing the uniform of the governor's office, and a confidant of Boss Xiong accompanying Xiong Qi, this is the basic configuration.

After Song Jia heard the news, she hurried out the door.After a while, Huang Ping Huang Dajuren, who held a folding fan and was dressed in Songjiang fine cloth, was welcomed into the main room where everyone was having dinner.

And the Fuya soldiers who came with them were naturally invited into the side room at this time, and began to enjoy the high-quality noodles brought by the nearby restaurant with a smile. .

As for Xiong Qi, a confidant who can reveal Xiong Wencan's dynamics at any time, at such a critical moment, the crossing crowd will naturally not be stingy with money.So after Xiong Qi entered the door, someone who looked like a butler immediately invited Lord Xiong into the wing room alone, and besides serving wine and serving dishes, Xiong Qi also got a 20 taels of gold scorpion.

Smiling so much that he put the gold ingot into his sleeve, apart from Huang Ping, Xiong Qi, the only one in this team of fuyamen who knew the origins of the crossing people, returned the gold ingot with only one sentence: "A few days ago, Zheng Yiguan captured the central government. Zuo Suo, my master was angry in private, alas, the world is difficult."

……

Xiong Qi's hint was quickly spread to the table of the crossing crowd in the main room.

And Huang Juren, who was being teased by everyone, tapped the fan in his hand after listening, nodded and said: "Xiong Qi's news is consistent with my observation results. Old Xiong was indeed in a bad mood those two days."

"In that case, tomorrow you still have to focus on talking about Zheng Zhilong's harm with Lao Xiong, and then compare us." Song Jia turned her head and said to Zhang Dongdong after hearing this: "If there is no comparison, there will be no harm."

"Understood." Zhang Dongdong, who was burying his head in eating the fish, nodded, indicating that he received it.

"In addition, Lao Xiong is more taboo about the words "strong soldiers, strong horses, strong horses". When the time comes, you should pay attention to what you say." Huang Juren added at this time.

"Understood." Zhang Dongdong finally finished eating the fish at this time: "Old Xiong was forced by Zheng Zhilong to come to Fujian to be the governor of Zhao'an. Although he pinched his nose to appease Lao Zheng in history, it doesn't mean that he feels comfortable in his heart. At least in the initial stage of recruiting, he had this mentality."

Zhang Dongdong paused for a moment, then organized his language and continued: "Now the old bear has more options for us, so it is reasonable not to listen to such hidden threats as soldiers and horses."

"Zheng Zhilong and his group, if they are still putting on the airs of history in front of Xiong Wencan, hehe, the old bear we are used to praising is a proud person, Zheng Zhilong, let's go and rest."

"Well, not bad, Lao Zhang has a good grasp of Xiong Wencan's mentality, and the word "tsundere" is well used!" Huang Juren, who has now mingled with Xiong Da Fujun as a painting admirer, applauded at this time.

"Hehe, speaking of Tsundere, you, Huang, are an expert! Do you know how many people who watched your Tsundere video said they were physically and mentally traumatized, and the content caused serious discomfort?"

"Hahaha..." A group of people started laughing again.

And Mr. Huang was a little embarrassed at this moment: "It's over, it's over, brother, you can't stop making fun of people!"

The dinner party is over quickly.

As for Huang Zanhua, who took the task of "secret meeting with Cao Chuan to discuss meeting matters", he had already discussed the details of tomorrow's meeting between Zhang Dongdong and Xiong Wencan with his time-traveling colleagues.Seeing that it was already 8:[-] in the evening, Huang Ping decided to go back to the Yamen.

Theoretically speaking, after traveling through the public to Fuzhou, they should have gone to the governor's yamen to post posts and ask for directions.However, the current situation is special, that's why Xiong Wencan specially sent Huang Ping, an inconspicuous Zanhua who had a detailed study of the situation in Fujian and Guangdong, to contact the envoys after dark.

Of course, in this way, Huang Ping happened to have the opportunity to exchange information with his comrades, which was considered a good thing.

After settling down to meet with Lao Xiong tomorrow night, Master Huang and the guards who had already eaten and drank formally left.Master Huang's team didn't care about curfew and night ban. After leaving, they lit up the lantern of the governor's yamen and went on a rampage.

The difference from when I came here is: there is an extra donkey cart in the queue that Mr. Huang is going back.

……

Time: 1 hour after Huang Ping left the other courtyard.Coordinates: Fujian governor's yamen, back house, small study.

In the past, the study room needed to be lit with red candles, but now there is no smell of oily smoke, instead it is brightly lit.A brass antique solar horse lamp is emitting a bright, even a bit dazzling white light on the desk... The characters and accessories in the small study are fully exposed at this moment.

The censor of Youqin Capital, Xiong Wencan, the governor of Fujian, was sitting at the desk, carefully looking at a gift list in his hand.The light emitted by the solar lamp at this moment made the wrinkles on the old bear's face clearly visible, and even the slightly trembling beard on the old man's face fell into the eyes of Huang Ping who was sitting with a smile at this moment.

After a long while, Xiong Wencan raised his head, put the gift list on the table, and sighed softly: "For an old and dim-witted person, it is easy to read this gift list. This Chunyang lamp is really a rare treasure. This generation must have a heart gone."

Huang Ping smiled slightly at this time: "The proprietor really has eyes. Listen to what Cao Chuan said, this pure Yang colored glaze is not easy to get, even in the land of Taixi, it has not been seen that a piece has been produced in ten years."

Hearing this, Xiong Wencan nodded, then stroked his long beard under his jaw, and opened his mouth to ask: "Sir, can you get anything from seeing Cao Chuan today?"

Huang Ping knew that the critical moment was coming, so he said seriously: "I see Cao Chuan, he speaks earnestly and is eager to find a place to stay under the ruler of the East, not like that faker."

"Hmm." Xiong Wencan continued to ask after thinking for a while, "How does the Cao family compare with the Zheng family?"

Huang Ping chuckled: "The Cao family is weak, while the Zheng family is strong. One is a merchant and the other is a bandit ear!"

"Based on what you see, sir, who should you appease?"

"Proprietor, it is better to make mistakes than meritorious deeds, and it is better to be weak than to be strong!"

……

On June 1628, 6, the morning of the third day when the Dayuan envoys arrived in Fuzhou.

Zhang Dongdong was wandering around in the courtyard.

Late last night, Huang Ping from the governor's yamen, the mission of the other court, Song Jia's headquarters in Hangzhou Station, and Xue Haiyuan's office, these four locations, had already made calls through the car radio.

So Zhang Dongdong is extremely calm now: he is full of confidence in the interview with Xiong Zhuang tonight.

Zheng Zhilong, a contestant, has the highest written test score in history.So even though this guy is very attractive and his interview results are average, the examiner Xiong held his nose and admitted him in history.

Everything is different now.The cross-travelers have already opened up their joints, and Xiong Zhu's examiner's house is already full of Moutai, so what if Zheng Zhilong comes first in the written test?He will soon know what it means to be a hero's sad interview.

Chapter 188

It was the day when the crossing team was fully preparing for the summit.

At 10 o'clock in the morning, Minwang Temple in the east of the city.

Minwang Temple, also known as Zhongyi Temple, is dedicated to the King of Fujian of the Five Dynasties: Wang Shenzhi.

The king of Fujian, Wang Shenzhi, is a household name in all parts of Fujian.This king has been in office for 29 years, protecting the environment and the people, lightly paying taxes, rewarding industry and commerce, and encouraging land reclamation. Within three years, the people have no worries about food and clothing. , a moment of great rule in central Fujian.

Governments of all dynasties have repaired the Temple of the King of Min, and the most recent one was during the Wanli period more than 20 years ago.On weekdays, the Minwang Temple is full of incense, and many foolish men and women worship.

A middle-aged woman is walking through the messy incense candle melon and fruit stand in front of the temple at the moment, and is walking into the temple.

This woman has rough skin, ugly appearance, sad eyebrows, and no makeup on her face; judging from her appearance, the woman is about 30 years old, wearing a green cloth skirt, with a thin bamboo basket on her arm, and dressed as a servant .

After stepping into the gate of the ancestral hall with the four characters "Shaoyue Kaijiang" engraved on the wall, the woman bowed her head all the way, followed behind the bustling pilgrims, passed through the vestibule, sacrificial gate, and backyard to the main hall.

After waiting patiently for a while, it was the woman's turn to get a futon.

Taking out incense sticks from the bamboo basket, the woman began to complete a series of incense burning, kneeling, kowtow, and prayers to the statue of the King of Fujian with a peaceful face and a purple robe and black beard.

Finally, the woman sincerely shook out a wooden stick from the bucket.

After getting up, he took out a handful of copper coins, counted some carefully, and put the rest back into his pocket.Then the woman took the copper coins and bamboo sticks and went to look for the Taoist priest who released the sticks outside the temple.

"What is the benefactor asking for?"

"Seek good or bad luck."

At the next moment, the woman respectfully handed in the copper coins and bamboo sticks, and the Taoist then gave a hexagram of understanding: Zehuoge, dry seedlings get rain, and sign up.

After hearing the hexagram "It's beneficial to travel, win the top prize in business, the disease is getting better, and the pursuit of fame will be fulfilled", the woman was overjoyed, thanked her a few times without opening her mouth, and then turned around and left the Minwang Temple.

Walking all the way south along the stone street in front of the Minwang Temple, the woman came to the Caishikou of Luomaqiao in a short time.It's just that the closer she got to the entrance of the vegetable market, the woman's already relaxed face showed a trace of apprehension and fear, and the further she walked, the slower her pace became, and she almost stopped at the end.

At this moment, a figure suddenly rushed over from the diagonal, grabbing the woman's arm.

The woman who was about to open her mouth to scream took a closer look, Hao Xuan breathed out a sigh of relief: "Jiao Er, you bloody person, you scared the hell out of me!"

The visitor was a young man in his 20s.This person was wearing a half-worn parrot-green silk robe, a soft hat, a pair of thin-soled fast boots, and the sleeves were rolled up. He was dressed like a rascal idler.

I saw the idle man said anxiously: "Sister, hurry up, don't let the two uncles wait any longer!"

While talking, the idle man took his elder sister's arm and hurried forward.

The woman originally wanted to struggle to evade, but after thinking about the lottery she had just obtained from the Minwang Temple, she sighed secretly and let her brother take her into a restaurant by the road.

Now is not the time for guests in the restaurant, so there are not many tables in the building.The leisurely Han Jiao Er took his elder sister to the second floor and passed between two tables of men in green robes.Jiao Er smiled apologetically from side to side, and at the same time pushed Sister into the box.

There are two people in the box.Judging from the temperature of the teacups on the table, these two have been waiting in the room for a long time.

One of them was a big fat man.This man was about forty years old, bald and without eyebrows, with a fleshy face, and a fat body; he was wearing a double-breasted black velvet vest on his upper body, and a pair of fat soft pants on his lower body. A slap-wide gold silk pixiu mouth belt is endowed with extraordinary momentum, revealing its domineering side...

This man's name is Wu Shigui, people in Jianghu call him Lord Wu, he is skilled in martial arts, and he is the boss of the underworld in the Luomaqiao area.Mr. Wu's family runs a gambling shop and a pawn shop, and he has apprentices and dozens of rogues under him, and Jiao Er is one of them.