He Shilang Mansion, Outer Study Room

He Dongsheng's confidant Qi Lianhai was already fat, and when he changed into a big-haired winter dress, he looked more and more like a ball, making people want to laugh when they looked at it.

But He Dongsheng, opposite him, had a calm face and could not laugh at all.

Qi Lianhai's natural smile eyes drooped, and his face looked bitter. He was not only bitter on his face, but also bitter on his mouth, and even more bitter on his heart.

He was originally the second place among his aides. Li Zhenwen and He Dong were the oldest, and he couldn't compare, but it was completely fine to suppress another aide Wang Zhuan on the one hand.

Otherwise, such an important matter as contacting Dongchang would not be handed over to him.

But now, Wang Zhuan contacted the Qiao family and seized the news that he sent it back from Songjiang, and finally knocked out the Shen family's largest official Chenzhou in one fell swoop. He really made great contributions, which made He Dongsheng very satisfied and made more and more trusting Wang Zhuan.

Looking at him again, Qi Lianhai was also thinking of taking advantage of the opportunity of knowing people from Dongchang to expand his personal connections. Not only can Dongwen rely on it, but it will be of great benefit to himself.

Who knew that Dongchang was a bottomless pit, and the speed of asking for money was far beyond his imagination. The things Dongweng asked for were in no way, which directly led to almost no fear of appearing in front of He Dongsheng, and he felt that he was half a piece shorter than Wang Zhuan.

Qi Lianhai's neck was thick and his chin was too thick, and his head was not completely hung. He just went out of the corner of his eyes to see He Dongsheng's reaction.

He Dongsheng, who was sitting behind the desk, had a dark cloud covered his face and said nothing. However, he cursed him ten thousand times in his heart, so he naturally disliked Qi Lianhai's fat body. The errand was not done well, but the more he ate, the fatter he became. He was so generous that he was not concerned about the errand.

He Dongsheng stroked the round armrests of the official hat and chair in his palm, and now he really wanted to break off contact with Dongchang.

Just a month ago, He Dongsheng, who had just defeated Chenzhou, was overjoyed when he heard about the victims of Shanxi. He gave 10,000 silver to Qiuju, and then sealed several red seals of 1,000 taels per one. He sent his close subordinates to distribute them to several lower-level censors of the Censorate, instigating them to impeach the Shanxi Provincial Administration Commission, thinking of relying on the subordinates to impeach the superiors and using the victims to make an effort to send another official to the Shen family - the Shenshu who released Shanxi from the Shanxi.

The impeachment memorial was handed over and the inner court had no response yet, Hu Bingrui stepped on the clock and said that there were a few decent koi missing in the pool in the backyard of Eunuch Qiu.

In the winter, the water in the pond has become ice, so what kind of koi are raised?

But at a critical moment, He Dongsheng had to pinch his nose and accept it, and offered another ten thousand taels.

As a result, a Nanhai County Lord suddenly appeared and went to Beijing privately to fight for her rituals who were collecting money and food.

Then the inner court issued a strict investigation, and found out that the crime of taking money and food was not only true, but also forced the victims to pay the autumn tax after the earthquake. If they were not given, they would force the red deeds of land and a mu would be robbed as a custody, which caused the victims to leave their hometowns and flee!

Since it is forced by the powerful and powerful, it is not established that impeachment of the provincial government and the government department for disaster relief is unfavorable and even delayed disaster relief, resulting in the formation of refugees.

The investigation of the Ministry of Revenue was also released. The Shanxi Provincial Administration Commissioner opened an official warehouse to provide disaster relief as usual, borrowing official grain to the people, saying that it was enough to return the grain in autumn, and there was no mistake in the whole process.

It's natural that it's okay to be honest.

Not to mention that He Dongsheng spent money, the key is that three of the censors who wrote the letter to impeachment were soon caught by the party members of the Xixiang Party in Zhongshan, and threw them out of the capital. They took office in remote counties. The remaining few of them often used by He Dongsheng became quails, but they were afraid they would not be able to use them anymore.

This is the case if you steal a chicken and lose a piece of rice.

He Dongsheng was so angry that his teeth were itchy. The emperor wanted to ensure the stability of the officialdom in Shanxi, but the factory guards were all the emperor's eyes and ears. Since the incident between the Nanhai County Lord and his Yibin broke out, he did not believe that the Qiu Dazhangtou of the East Factory had no idea at all!

He knew about the situation but did not tell him, and even scraped away a full 20,000 taels from his hand. What's even more annoying is that he damaged the useful censor. How could he ask for help? This is to invite an enemy and an ancestor to come back!

This ancestor is now having a growing appetite. He wants to build a garden in the spring, so he comes to "borrow" the money in the twelfth lunar month. He refuses to find a reasonable one and just keeps perfunctory. Is this to test his bottom line?

He Dongsheng looked at the fat man opposite and wanted to raise his hand to smash the things on the desk.

The young brother He Beisheng frowned and said dissatisfied: "The He family is not his money bag, so we can just take it if we want money. Now we have nothing to ask for."

These words calmed down He Dongsheng and waved his hand and said, "Lao Wu, don't speak nonsense."

He wanted to break off relations with Dongchang again, but the case was not settled for a day, so he could not act rashly.

It is not easy to ask Dongchang to help him, but it is too easy to destroy him.

Besides, Shen Rui and Zhang Hui, the second son of the British Duke's Mansion, were very close to several princes of the Princess Mansion! Those were close people around the little emperor.

He Dongsheng held back his mouthful of blood and waved his hand: "Take two thousand taels first, just say that the various payments for the New Year have not arrived yet. The expenses were too high a while ago, and we have to prepare for the New Year Festival. We are tight for a while, and we will talk about it when we have enough money after the New Year."

He paused, then gritted his teeth and said, "See what the reaction there is, and prepare a decent gift for the New Year."

The folds on Qi Lianhai's face, whether it was fat or worried, became three points deeper. His heart had been soaked with coptis chinensis juice, and it was bitter. I didn't give him any good face when I went to Dongchang to hold the money. If I had less money, I was afraid I would have to scold him.

The silver was the silver of the boss, and he couldn't say anything. He responded respectfully, slowly exited the study room, and left dejectedly.

When He Beisheng saw him go out, he immediately said to He Dongsheng anxiously: "Brother! Even if the He family has a mountain of gold and silver, it is not enough to spend it like this. How much money has been filled in in the past few months, but he doesn't even have the right to help his second brother get rid of his crime..."

He Dongsheng stared at his younger brother and said, "Give me a steady mind! Take a long-term vision! Make friends with Dongchang not only for this case, but will come from good things! No matter what, there is a man from Eunuch Qiu, who can provide Hejia Weaving Factory with how much convenience can it provide? How much money can't be returned?"

Not to mention that he may be able to leverage his power in the court in the future. Now the internal officials are in a strong position to rise. He has secretly learned that there are quite a few officials with neither high or low positions who have been enrolled under the eunuchs in the inner court.

He Dongsheng persuaded him like this, and suppressed all kinds of dissatisfaction in his heart.

He Beisheng opened his mouth and closed it again.

During these days, he followed his brother and watched as he studied to be a director, and he felt more and more troubled. It was better to study. Therefore, he still hoped that his second brother would come back safely. Not only did he stop being guilty in his heart, but he also hoped that his second brother could still take care of his family and be his scholar.

He Dongsheng was about to teach his brothers a lesson, but suddenly he reported that Li Zhenwen had an urgent matter to ask for a meeting with the master.

Li Zhenwen was He Dongsheng's number one confidant. He said there was an urgent matter, so He Dongsheng immediately became alert and hurriedly ordered people to come in.

Li Zhenwen lost the elegant temperament of the literati. He walked in with two steps in three steps. He ordered everyone at the door to stand farther, turned his hand and closed the door, his face anxious, and his speaking speed was a little faster than usual: "Dongweng, Liu Fengren is missing."

He Dongsheng sternly said: "What's going on?"

This Liu Feng is a confidant thug under Li Zhenwen, and has handled many dirty work that He Dongsheng ordered.

The most important thing is that this lynching questioned He Xiang, the housekeeper who defected around He Nansheng and sent his body to the field to be displaced by Liu Feng.

Li Zhenwen talked about the whole story in a few words. The people he sought were reliable. It was a basic requirement to be gambled or not to drink, but to be afraid of being used.

Liu Feng only works in a dull way, and has an old lady and wife and children at home. As long as he holds his family, his loyalty is also extremely high.

Liu Feng didn't go out very much. When he went out the day before yesterday, he bought plaster for his mother with poor waist and legs. He didn't come back after he went out.

His wife thought that the master called him to do secret matters halfway through, and did not know that he was at home. This was common, so she didn't care.

Until today, his wife went to buy plaster, but the familiar plaster shop owner said that Liu Feng had already bought it.

If Liu Feng bought something in the past, he would find someone to bring it back when he went out to do business halfway. The wife asked a few familiar servants in the mansion who brought the plaster back.

The news reached Li Zhenwen's ears. He knew best that Liu Feng had never sent him to do business, so he immediately realized that something was wrong. After a brief investigation, he came to report to He Dongsheng, hoping to use more resources to find Liu Feng back.

He Dongsheng's face became darker and he said in a deep voice: "Go and find it. Dispose of it."

Li Zhenwen's body trembled. He knew very well that if someone asked about the secret of the He family from Liu Feng's mouth, it would probably give the He family a fatal blow. What's even more terrifying is that people appear in the court.

Therefore, you must not leave a living mouth. If a person dies, he can not recognize anything.

But even if you keep a cat and dog, there is still feelings. What's more, a person who has been trained for more than ten years, Li Zhenwen couldn't help but say a stern voice: "...Dafeng is the most strict, and his wife and son are all in the mansion, so he won't talk nonsense. If so..."

If you give him some money to send it away...

He Dongsheng only looked at Li Zhenwen coldly, and the latter felt cold in his heart, and he couldn't say a word.

He Dongsheng said slowly again: "Please sort out the mansion, and everyone who is important has to shut up."

Li Zhenwen felt like falling into an ice pool, but he finally responded with difficulty and retreated silently.

He Beisheng also felt his teeth tremble. The last time he dealt with He Xiang, he was already disgusted. Now...

After that, He Dongsheng lacked the interest in teaching him, said a few words and let him go.

He Beisheng felt confused and came out of the study room and walked unknowingly to the small Buddhist temple where Mrs. He worshipped Buddha.

Since Mrs. He entered the capital, she has lived in this small Buddhist temple, started eating a long vegetarian meal, chanting scriptures every day, saying that she wanted to wash away her son's sins and prayed to the Buddha to protect him from returning safely.

He Dongsheng and his wife advised each other several times, but the old lady insisted on doing this, so she had to let her go.

When the maid at the gate of the courtyard saw He Beisheng coming, he hurriedly whispered: "The old lady is chanting scriptures, the fifth master will come over later."

He Beisheng waved his hand and said it was okay. He walked in quietly, stopping the maid and the woman who asked him all the way, walked into the outside room, and sat cross-legged on the cushion.

The mother's low and dull voice came from inside. Although the sound was not loud and she couldn't hear what she was reciting, the nose was rich sandalwood, and the sound of Buddha was faintly hidden in her ears, which made her heart calm down suddenly.

After Mrs. He finished reciting the scriptures, she got up and went out to have tea. She saw her younger son sitting cross-legged on the cushion, staring at her eyes, her eyes were empty and her face was dull.

Old Mrs. He sighed. She had four sons, the eldest son was the best, and her career was smooth. The second son had no talent in studying, but knew how to manage his hometown and managed it. The third son was also a seed of study, but unfortunately he died early.

When a person is middle-aged, he can't help but be a little addicted. He has the eldest son in the officialdom and the second son manages the family property in his hometown. He doesn't need the youngest son to have any prospects. Just study steadily and live a leisurely life.

But now...

He Beisheng came to his senses and found that his mother had come out, so he quickly got up and supported her.

Old Mrs. He was helped by him and sat down in the main seat. The maid brought tea to her. She moistened her throat and asked He Beisheng, "Why did you come here? Is there something wrong?"

He Beisheng was silent for a moment and said, "It's nothing, just... I pass by, come in and see my mother." Then, he said, "Mom, from tomorrow, I will come here every day and chant scriptures with you."

Old Mrs. He sighed, "But there is something wrong in my heart?"

He Beisheng shook his head and forced a smile, "I'm just praying for my second brother. I'll accompany you. I want to... be quiet."

Old Mrs. He was silent for a moment and said decisively: "You don't have to come. I know you are worried about your second brother's case. Don't worry, I have a handle on the Shen family. If the case is unfair, I will go and beat the drum and sue him for the Shen family."

He Beisheng was stunned for a moment. Although his mother had always shown some certain attitude towards the second brother's case, she never said firmly that she would win, and the Shen family's handle had never been revealed at all.

He Beisheng was a little confused, and suddenly remembered what his elder brother said before. His mother mentioned an old story from the Shen family fifty or sixty years ago. I wonder if it was this.

I heard Mrs. He say to herself: "Don't worry, it's just not until the time to say it. Now the three officials have secretly tried it, and we don't know the result. We rashly mentioned it, which makes people suspicious and bad things. We just wait until the final judgment is finished before we discuss it. The He family will not suffer this wrong."

He Beisheng stopped asking and nodded.

Old Mrs. He looked at the youngest man lovingly and waved her hand, "Go, don't feel too uncomfortable. Your second brother has something wrong with his behavior. This time it was his disaster. If he passed this hurdle, he could change his mind and nature. It might be a good thing."

He Beisheng did not respond and just bowed silently.

In his heart, he still believed that his imperial examination had implicated his second brother.

There are causes and effects. If the second brother had not been forced by someone to buy a question, there would not have been any illegal things in the future, let alone... The eldest brother has made all kinds of fierce measures now.

But he forgot how He Nansheng sinisterly plotted against the Shen family, and how He Dongsheng insisted on silence He Pingsheng.

I forgot that his two brothers are so cruel.

Old Mrs. He slowly drank the fragrant tea, walked slowly back to the Buddhist temple, knelt on the cushion holding the Buddhist beads, and silently recited the scriptures.

Buddha is here. If my son has any sins, if he is retribution, he will report to my old woman who has not taught her son well. May Buddha bless my son with peace.

*
To be continued...