Mountains and rivers pray for peace

To Nie Qin, Mrs. Liu was no ordinary woman.

Mrs. Liu was of noble birth, gentle and carefree, but also extremely intelligent. His official career has been smooth in recent years, and it is also thanks to Liu's support behind him. Therefore, even if his beloved concubine Zhang disappeared overnight, he knew that Liu's handiwork was behind it, but he still chose to turn a blind eye. Even if she gave birth to such a ridiculous son as Nie Ru, Nie Qin never thought of recruiting new people.

Ms. Liu had already packed away the debris on the ground and stood up.

She smiled and said: "Master, there is something fishy about the imperial examination. Wang Shouli didn't necessarily know it from Ru'er. What Ru'er said in the restaurant just confirmed his suspicions."

"Oh?" Nie Qin said angrily, "Madam, are you saying that he has already had suspicions?"

Liu didn't show off, and explained in a gentle voice: "The group of poor scholars in Jiangyang who were friends with him included quite a few talented ones. When the rankings were announced, more than half of them failed. How could he not suspect that there was something fishy in them?" ? But since he didn’t lead those scholars to cause trouble in the first place, he may not do so now.”

Nie Qin stroked his beard and said, "Madam, what you mean is..."

"At the beginning, some of the poor scholars wanted to go to the Gongyuan Academy to review their examination papers, but Wang Shouli deliberately induced and persuaded those scholars. What he was afraid of was that others would affect his bright future. What he wanted was to climb into an official position. "

At this point, Nie Qin narrowed his eyes.

Liu is right. In fact, there are two important reasons why Wang Shouli was successful.

First of all, he himself is very talented and is a well-known talent in Lu County and even in Jiangyang. If you fail the provincial examination, it will only make those scholars suspect that there is something fishy in the examination room and it will be too eye-catching.

Secondly, he was very popular among the poor scholars in Jiangyang and was highly respected. When the results of the provincial examination were announced, Nie Qin originally sent people to secretly watch the movements of the poor scholars for fear that they would cause trouble, but Wang Shouli solved his serious problem with a few words.

Mrs. Liu saw Nie Qin's expression moved and continued to say patiently: "That's why I say that Ru'er used the wrong method this time. To deal with a weakling like Wang Shouli, one should pretend to be rich and generous. Now he is angry because he failed in the examination. But what if someone told him that as long as he swallowed this matter, he could destroy the big tree of the Nie family?"

"It has to be Madam."

Nie Qin finally showed joy on his face. He held Mrs. Liu's hand and then said: "But those who are barefoot are not afraid of those who wear shoes. If others don't have enough support, use this as a threat..."

Ms. Liu pointed upwards, and a strange smile appeared on her Bodhisattva face: "This matter affects the whole body, and it is not just you alone. Besides, if the sky falls, and your There is a teacher named Ning Guogong. Is it possible that Wang Shouli still dares to go against that teacher?"

Huo Ruhai, the Duke of Ning State, carried out the order to promote talents for the emperor and offended most of the court. However, he had a good reputation and high moral standing among the officials from a poor family. If Huo Ruhai is said to be greedy, it is not so easy to win people's trust. And if he was once accused of corruption in the imperial examinations, and the matter reached the public and heated discussions, the emperor would be slapped in the face first.

No matter how audacious Wang Shouli was, would he still dare to slap the emperor in the face?

Nie Qin suddenly seemed to have remembered something again, and couldn't help but put his hands in his hands and laughed: "Madam is still vicious, okay, okay!"

※※※

There was a strong smell of blood spreading in the last private room on the top floor of Yixiangyuan.

Shen Yuning took off his outer robe, revealing half of his muscular body.

There were marks of scratches from a dagger on his exposed left shoulder. The wound was not deep, but blood was pouring out, soaking through the snow-white shirt in the blink of an eye. His lips were slightly white due to excessive blood loss.

Tang Zhiyao sighed resignedly, soaked the gauze with the medicinal juice in the medicine jar, and then covered the wound. After the wound was bandaged, he stared directly at Shen Yuning. There was worry, doubt, and other unclear emotions in his eyes.

Shen Yuning frowned and glanced at him: "What's that look in your eyes? I can't die yet." Tang Zhiyao put away his usual careless expression and choked him with a stern face: "Did you do it on purpose?"

Shen Yuning had a lazy look on his face, staring at the double-eared Suan Ni incense burner on the small table in trance: "What's the intention?"

"Oh, your own body, didn't you count it?"

"Last year, when we were hunting black lions, those princes and hundreds of guardsmen might not be able to succeed. You just insisted on going your own way and had to hunt the black lions by yourself. Yes, you don't like the guards in the palace. I know. But why don’t you want the Xuanfu army to intervene?”

"There are many ways to conquer the army of the Marquis of Zhenyuan. Why do you want to make a blood alliance with the Yuan family?"

"It's like this again today! You know that once you see blood on your body, you will die if you don't get timely treatment, but you take risks every time."

"Since you don't value your own life, why do you want me to treat your injuries?"

Tang Zhiyao was pacing back and forth, out of breath as he spoke, obviously very angry. He has been practicing medicine for decades and has never encountered such a disobedient patient.

But he saw that the emotions in Shen Yuning's dark eyes were wrapped in thick fog, and they were cold and silent, making it difficult for people to see what he was thinking.

Tang Zhiyao lowered his head and quickly slumped, seemingly defeated by his appearance.

As a close friend, Tang Zhiyao could see clearly.

Shen Yuning's indifference was because he never really wanted to pursue something. He is strong because he is determined to die every time, and tirelessly consumes his life again and again. Such people are powerful, but they can be destroyed at any time.

For a long time, he looked at Shen Yuning with difficulty: "Shen Qi, sometimes I really feel that you are no different from the living dead."

Shen Yuning kept listening quietly, but in the end, he looked at the gauze on his left shoulder. He raised the corners of his mouth carelessly, and as his eyes moved, his smile looked cold and cruel.

When he didn't get a response, Tang Zhiyao couldn't bear it anymore, picked up the medicine box and rushed out. When he opened the door, he saw Gou Yue waiting at the door with a solemn face. He was stunned for a moment, but finally left in a hurry without saying anything.

Gou Yue glanced at Tang Zhiyao who left angrily, sighed, stood behind the bead curtain at the door and reported, "Master, this subordinate has something important to report."

Shen Yuning put on her clothes and said in a cold and tired voice, "What's the matter?"

Gou Yue said categorically: "The Peregrine Falcon has sent news. There is news about that person back then..."

"Still alive?"

"Still alive. He should still be in Jiangyang now. It's just that this person is cunning. He hasn't appeared for many years and has changed his appearance. It will take some time to bring him to you."

After a long moment of silence, she heard a voice coming from inside: "When I finish the matter at hand, I will go to Jiangyang myself."

Thank you to those who gave me monthly tickets. I bow and thank you.