After rebirth, I joined forces with my mortal enemy to seek revenge.

Upon hearing this, He Zan quickly called three chamberlains to help Pei Jiaoran go back.

Pei Jiaoran glanced at the servants who gathered around her, and she grinned. Pushing them away, he wandered out. Upon seeing this, the chambermaids rushed to chase her. Unexpectedly, when they came out, she had already walked far away while holding on to the wall.

"I...can...can go back. Don't follow me." Pei Jiaoran turned around, waved to everyone, and swung back along the corridor.

Seeing this, the three of them could only go back to recover.

Hearing that there were no more footsteps behind him, Pei Jiaoran, who was originally walking leaning on the wall, curled his lips.

Looking around, Pei Jiaoran saw a servant passing by. She immediately walked against the wall again, and didn't raise her head until she entered her own yard. His eyes were clear and clear, and he didn't look like he was drunk at all.

With one step, Pei Jiaoran stepped on the tiles and ran directly to the salt field in the distance. She took a walk around before the banquet and learned about it from the servants. In addition to many salt households living in the salt farm, there is also a prison specially used to detain private salt dealers.

It is just to the west of the salt field, and there is only one way in and out.

At present, most people in the Yanyuan are at the banquet, so the defenses everywhere are much weaker than before. Under the cover of darkness, he easily reached the vicinity of the prison where the private salt dealers were imprisoned.

Hidden in the grass half a man tall and looking forward. It's more like a stone house than a prison. There are two windows on the left and right, and the door is also an old wooden door. You can still vaguely see the light coming from inside.

A wooden fence surrounded the door, and two lanterns swayed in the night wind. There were only two guards at the door, holding knives and falling asleep.

After thinking for a while, Pei Jiaoran got up and walked out. Before the two men could react, they were knocked unconscious to the ground. Slowly he reached the door.

Peering through the hole in the door. The people locked inside were the same private salt dealers she had seen during the day. Pei Jiaoran observed carefully for a while and frowned.

Although the light in the room is not very good, if you look closely, you will find that these people do not look like so-called private salt dealers at all. Moreover, there is a thick layer of dirt on the feet, and calluses can be seen in some places.

Pei Jiaoran raised his eyebrows, and he suddenly had concerns in his heart. These people were probably caught by the people from Yanyuan to take the blame. She took out a silk handkerchief from her sleeve and covered her face, then pushed the door open and entered.

Several people inside were sleeping on the floor. When they heard the movement at the door, they quickly got up and knelt down to beg for mercy.

Looking past several people, Pei Jiaoran said coldly: "Don't worry, I'm not here to kill you. You can answer whatever I ask."

As soon as he finished speaking, several people kowtowed as if pounding garlic.

"Are you all private salt dealers?" Pei Jiaoran asked.

After hearing this, several people shook their heads. The person in the middle looked at her and hesitated to speak, "Lang Jun Mingjian. We are all honest salt farmers. How dare we sell salt privately."

"If you're not a private salt dealer, why are you here?" Pei Jiaoran looked at several people with a stern look in his eyes, "If we don't recruit him from the truth, I will keep your head and move him away immediately."

Although she had already seen that these people were not private salt dealers, she still had to confirm it with them.

Several people were already panicking when they were locked up here, but now that they were frightened by Pei Jiaoran, they didn't dare to hide it. Tell them exactly why they are here.

"So you are all wronged?" Pei Jiaoran asked with a frown.

The leader looked at her and sobbed: "We are all salt households, and our wealth and life are in the hands of the official. How can we dare to resist?" After saying that, he raised his hand to wipe his tears, "We were just talking to the imperial court that day. The visiting censor chatted for a few words, and without even thinking about it, he was dubbed a private salt dealer."

Hearing the word censor, Pei Jiaoran's eyes became more thoughtful.

"Oh? Then what did you say to him?"

"Youtian, a young man, saw with his own eyes that a salt dealer gave a lot of gifts to He Tuiguan and Yan Yanshi. After that, those salt dealers often came to the salt field." The leader said in a low voice.

Pei Jiaoran asked: "When was it?"

"Just two or three years ago. In those years, the people nearby bought salt directly from salt dealers." The man said.

After hearing the words, Pei Jiaoran looked at the oil lamp on the table. I recalled that I had seen Duzhi’s account book about the salt pond in northwest Beijing. There was indeed no problem on the surface, but after hearing what these people said and Uncle Liu's words before, a thought flashed through her mind.

The salt produced by the imperial court was sold by officials. At the same time, in order to prevent salt merchants from selling salt to the common people at high prices, Changping warehouses were set up in various prefectures and counties to balance the price of salt. But from what these people said, it was clear that someone was colluding with people from the Salt Institute and bribing them to smuggle official salt.

"Stay here with peace of mind." After saying that, Pei Jiaoran turned and left.

After locking the door again, Pei Jiaoran glanced at the two unconscious guards at the door and strode away.

Pei Jiaoran stood on a high slope with his hands behind his hands, overlooking the salt fields below. The summer moon above our heads is like lingering snow, reflecting on the salt fields, making it look even more pure and white.

She smiled lonely. Suddenly I understood why Emperor Wei agreed with Jia Gonglu's idea and sent her to investigate the salt industry in the northwest. At the same time, Yuan Yanchong was asked to join her. I'm afraid these two people, like Wang Yu, know the fishiness involved.

The two parties, Jia and Wang, were at each other's throats, but they were surprisingly unanimous in their treatment of her. Judging from the current situation, Yuan Yanchong probably knows a lot about Northwest Salt Industry, but he is here to check whether anyone has taken bribes and committed illegal activities.

As for her...

Both Jia and Wang wanted her to be transferred from the Ministry of Household Affairs, while Emperor Wei wanted to use her help to turn the northwest salt farm upside down.

"Ha..." Pei Jiaoran raised his lips and chuckled softly.

Although she didn't mind being used by Emperor Wei as a pawn to balance the imperial power and the prime minister's power, don't think that she would be a pawn that kept its own rules.

Because when climbing in the officialdom, you must keep your eyes open and pay attention to every step that appears in front of you, or every shoulder that can be used to climb upward. And if you want to go higher, you must make the right decision under the wave. It is true that becoming the emperor's chess piece is also an option, but it does not necessarily have to be according to his wishes.

The hot summer wind blew up her sleeves. Pei Jiaoran looked at the mountains under the night sky. Although she was in the salt courtyard in the northwest, she seemed to see the Uwa Zhuzhu behind the numerous ridges, the splendid Tai Chi Palace, and the mirror in front of the Zhengshi Hall. She curled her lips.

Since someone hopes that the Northwest Salt Pond will be transformed, why can't she comply with his wishes? It would be best to make the salt pond in the northwest a mess so that no one can easily get involved. Whether they are on stage or off stage or those hidden behind the scenes, they all have to be involved together. Otherwise, it would be a waste of such a good opportunity.

Pei Jiaoran frowned at the thought. Humming a little tune, he slowly left along the mountain road with a leisurely expression.