Rebellious officials bow their heads

Xu Yan watched Xie Linze's back go away, walked around the hall alone, saw the scrolls scattered on the bookshelf, picked them up and flipped through them, only to find that the handwriting transcribed in the book was extremely large, with no more than ten characters on one side.

He hesitated to put it down, and noticed that there were still bamboo slips with uneven inscriptions on the case table.

Before he could think about it, someone knocked on the door of the palace, interrupting his thoughts, the visitor did not come in, but whispered: "Young Master Xu, the National Teacher invites you to come to the teahouse in the west of the city to have a talk."

Xu Yan frowned, and glanced at the clepsydra in the corner. It would take several hours for Xie Linze to come back. He put on a black robe and walked out.

An attendant stood outside the palace gate, and bowed to him with his hands folded.

Xu Yan glanced at him, followed him into the carriage, left the palace, walked through the streets, and stopped at an unremarkable tea house.

In the early morning, there were few people on the street or in the teahouse. When Xu Yan walked up to the second floor, the attendant bowed and opened the door for him. The golden sunlight pierced through the bamboo curtains. If there is a faint fragrance.

Qingci was sitting by the fence, in front of a red sandalwood table, there was a row of white jade cups, with slender fingers protruding from the wide sleeves, and tea was being cooked calmly.

Xu Yan sat down on the mat across from him, and moved his eyes from his movements to outside the fence. Looking down from this angle, he could clearly see two or three pedestrians passing by on the street.

"Did you ask me to come here just to watch you cook tea?" Xu Yan said, "I don't have as much time as you to relax."

"I know, if it wasn't for the sake of helping you last night, you wouldn't have come here." Qing Ci smiled slightly, "But I invited you to the teahouse just to invite you to have a cup of tea and talk about it."

Xu Yan stared at him and said, "Talk to the heart? I'm curious, how did the Master Guoshi who lives outside the palace know that I am in the Taixuan Palace?"

"After the burning of Yue Luoyuan last night, you can guess it next time." Qingci poured the tea powder into the cup, "You are serving the emperor."

Xu Yan was noncommittal, "It seems that you have a good understanding of the situation in the palace. So what is your position on Ji's family and the emperor?"

"Naturally, His Majesty Kuang Fu." Qing Ci held a long spoon, scooped the boiled tea soup into the cup, and pushed it in front of the other party.

Xu Yan took it, the hot water in the cup was boiling, his sharp eyes pierced through the mist, "unfortunately, I once talked with the emperor about the first and second national teachers, from his words, I can't help but make me wonder whether you are loyal to the emperor or not." Confuse."

Qingci raised his glass and drank, sighed slightly, and said with nostalgia in his tone, "Ji's family power is devoted to the government and the people, and his lower body is in Duyun Temple instead of the temple. , in the eyes of the emperor, I am afraid that I have already joined forces with the Ji family, and if I want to lend a helping hand, it will be beyond my reach."

He raised his glass to Xu Yan, "Fortunately, the emperor has your help by his side. It is very difficult to get rid of Ji Jiading. I wish to help with my modest efforts to return Haiyan Heqing to court."

Xu Yan pondered for a moment, then clinked cups with him and drank the tea soup. He felt refreshed, his mouth was fragrant, the stale air in his chest dissipated, and his mind was clear.

"Your Majesty and Mr. Xu are considered old friends. After a few years, you must be unfamiliar with the affairs of the government and the public. If you have any problems, there are some files left by the previous generation of state teachers in my mansion for you to consult."

"Thank you." After talking, even Xu Yan couldn't help but feel that the person in front of him was very approachable, and getting along with him was like a spring breeze.

Qing Ci added tea for him, and said with a smile: "You don't need to say thanks, it's all for the emperor."

Xu Yan glanced at the hourglass next to the table, then drank his tea and looked outside the fence, "I have a question that has puzzled me for a long time."

"But it doesn't matter."

"During the years I left, what happened in the palace that made the Ji family emptied the emperor's power and made him unable to see with his eyes?"

Qingci pondered for a while, "This matter is related to He Jifeng, the traitorous general who ruled the country back then. I only know a thing or two, so my views are too narrow to be worthwhile. Why don't you ask Your Majesty about this?"

"If you are his friend, why don't you know that no matter what kind of suffering a person like him encounters, he will just smash his teeth and swallow it in his stomach. He will not let others bear it for him, and he will not say anything."

Qing Ci was deeply moved: "Yes..."

Xu Yan looked at the street suddenly, and saw Ji Xun, the fourth son of the Ji family's second house, hurrying past with two servants, and the inn clerk A'an who was spying on them at the stall not far away.

"I still have something important to do, let's go first." He only left this sentence and then quickly went downstairs, caught up with Ji Xun's whereabouts, and patted A'an who was not far behind.

Ah An was staring at Ji Xun intently, when someone slapped him on the shoulder suddenly, he felt goosebumps popping up all over his body, and he almost cried out in shock.

When he turned around and saw that it was Xu Yan, he breathed a sigh of relief and stroked his chest in shock, "Boss, aren't you in the palace? Why did you come out?"

"What's going on with Ji's family today?" Xu Yan asked.

A'an: "Ji Han said that he was sick and did not go to court. The Ji family, whether the son, the servants, or the guards stayed in the mansion all day long. It seems that Mr. Ji ordered not to go out to avoid accidents. Only Ji Xun ran out at this juncture. Big things to do."

"Let's go and see what he's going to do."

Xu Yan and A'an followed them and entered a tavern all the way. Ji Xun took his two servants and sat down in the corner. , seems to be just the information that the listeners are talking about.

Xu Yan lost his patience after listening for a while, it was almost time to go down, and said to An An: "You follow him, I will go back to the palace first."

"Don't worry, Boss." A'an said, "This Ji Xun has been communicating with Feige, and I guess he is here to see that person to deal with the Mu family together. If there is any news, I will send it back to Baijumen."

"Be careful." Xu Yan patted him on the shoulder and walked out.

After he left, Ah'an carefully observed Ji Xun's actions. Sure enough, after a while, another person cautiously entered the wine shop and came to the opposite side of Ji Xun. After handing him a letter, the two walked out and parted. Go in two directions.

A'an saw that Ji Xun was going back in the direction of Ji's mansion, so he followed the other sneaky person, and saw someone turning to the alley, but when he walked to the alley, there was no one there.

Shocked, A'an was stunned for a moment by the lost person, and ran around the alley a few times, but still couldn't find any trace, so he could only run to report back in the direction of Heiji.

Little did they know, the person he was following was lurking on the top of the wall, silently watching A'an go away.

Xu Yan walked through the market and could already see a majestic corner of the palace, so he couldn't help but quicken his pace. When he turned the corner, he suddenly felt someone following him not far behind.

He didn't show any flaws, his expression became colder, and he walked to another intersection, and every scene after meeting A'an kept popping up in his mind.

He said that none of the guards of Ji's family showed up today, so maybe they are not in Ji's mansion...

Among the young masters of the Ji family, Ji Xun was the only one who left the house alone. Who was he going to meet?If it's a big deal, why send a mere Ji Xun...

Or who exactly does he want to take this bait?

Xu Yanru stopped in ice water, and suddenly turned around: "Ah An—"