[R18] Will drink wine – “About Wine” Chapter 51 [English]

Chapter 49 Cold Light

Before Xiao Chiye entered the palace, Shen Zechuan first met with Li Jianheng in Mingli Hall and was awarded the title of fifth-grade Jinyi Guard.Therefore, he’s waist badge was replaced by a lacquered gold bronze plaque with a pattern of clouds and flowers printed on it, with “guard” written on one side and “accompanying the driver” written on the other.

Han Cheng only received some rewards this time, and he felt unhappy. He knew that he was being stepped on by Shen Zechuan, but he also knew that Shen Zechuan was receiving divine grace now, and he must not have any quarrel with him.

Returning to the hall where work was done, colleagues all came to congratulate him, and Shen Zechuan agreed one by one.When Han Cheng saw that everyone had almost dispersed, he said, “This is your first time wearing a gold medal. Are there some things you don’t know yet?”

Shen Zechuan lowered his stance and said, “Please give me some advice, Commander.”

Han Cheng was very helpful and said: “This guard gold medal must be worn on the waist during duty shifts and must not be exposed when taking a bath. Normally, I still serve in the 12th Institute, but I can’t be the same as before and speak more carefully. Although you have done tasks before, it is still different now. Now there is another task. If it is an ‘arrest warrant’, don’t rush to get the person. You must go to the Criminal Division and let the Criminal Division sign the matter. If it is a ‘local order’,I have to go out to the local area to investigate the case.Before I go out, I have to go to the Ministry of Justice and the Metropolitan Procuratorate to get a signature.”

Shen Zechuan accepted the teachings with an open mind.

Seeing that he’s respectful attitude was the same as before he was promoted, Han Cheng couldn’t help but feel a little love for talents, and continued: “In the past, Dongchang stood above our heads, and when we went out to see the eunuchs of Dongchang, we had to nod and bow. But now that the twenty-four yamen are vacant, and Dongchang seems to have been deposed, it should be heWe bowed and bowed to each other, and there was no need to give the eunuch a good look.But one thing you have to remember is that although the Jin Yiwei obeys the emperor’s orders, he still has to deal with the Third Law Department. When he goes to the local field, he usually works with the censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate. It seems that everyone has separate powers, but in fact they still need each other, so when doing business, you must deal with the officials of the Third Law Department, and you must not interact with him.If you accidentally leave a pimple, it will be difficult to do the next errands.”

Shen Zechuan remembered these things very well, but on his face he seemed to have heard them for the first time and listened attentively.

Han Cheng finally gave him face and said: “If you want to recruit new people, just go to the stall and look at the brochure to choose.”

Shen Zechuan thanked him and walked out along the corridor. He was not in a hurry to choose someone for the stall.When he walked out of the palace gate, Xiao Chiye was sitting on the carriage waiting for him.

Shen Zechuan paused and turned around.

Xiao Chiye half-opened the curtain and said leisurely: “I’ve been promoted, and my salary has also increased. Wouldn’t you be reluctant to treat me to a drink?”

When Shen Zechuan saw Ding Tao and Gu Jin standing on both sides, eyeing each other eagerly, he took a breath and calmly replied: “She’s willing, I’m looking for you.”

The two of them went to the house where Xiao Chiye hosted a banquet for his master. The tables and chairs were removed from the house, and small embossed screens were set up to separate the four seats. There was a dragon tooth table with an upturned head in the middle. It was simple and elegant. It was a good place for drinking and talking.

It was hot in the room, so both of them took off their cloaks.

Xiao Chiye sat down cross-legged, with a casual posture. Shen Zechuan, on the other hand, was still sitting dignifiedly on his knees. He smiled and said, “In terms of manners, you look more like you come from a noble family. Does Master Ji Gang still teach you these things?”

These were all typed by Taifu Qi with a ruler. Shen Zechuan did not answer and only said: “We are waiting for you at the palace gate today. What’s going on?”

Xiao Chiye watched the maid serve the food and wine, and after the door was closed, he said, “Aren’t you looking for me? You speak first.”

“I see that you didn’t go to the palace to meet the saint. You were busy all night last night and you should have stayed in the prison.” Shen Zechuan drank a few sips of hot tea to warm himself up and said, “Isn’t Poria cocos easy to detect?”

“Yeah,” Xiao Chiye poured himself a drink, “so that he can find out who doesn’t look like the person you should be using.”

“She has an old mother and is soft-hearted. With so many handles, she is the easiest to manipulate, but also the easiest to change her mind.” Shen Zechuan said with a smile, “You are right, if it were me, I would never use this kind of person.”

“But Shen Lanzhou,” Xiao Chiye looked at him while drinking wine, moistened his throat for a moment, and then said, “I’m not surprised by who you choose.”

“I am also a human being,” Shen Zechuan took the wine bottle from Xiao Chiye, “I still have some emotions.”

“But he didn’t give me any love at all,” Xiao Chiye said regretfully.

Shen Zechuan poured the wine slowly and said, “You are not much different.”

“I have reached out many times,” Xiao Chiye said with kind eyes, “You turned a blind eye and are determined to fight with me?”

“If you tell some irrelevant news, even if you extend your hand,” Shen Zechuan put down the wine bottle and looked at him, “then this alliance is too cheap.”

“So you turned around and fooled around with Xi Hongxuan,” Xiao Chiye said, “What kind of a Wu’er is that? He’s better than your second son.”

“The Second Young Master was much more powerful when he suppressed me than he is now,” Shen Zechuan said. “The capable ones rise to the top. You can’t blame others.”

“I can’t bear to blame you,” Xiao Chiye said through the heat of the pot, “You couldn’t step on me with your feet last night. Are you feeling upset?”

“No.” Shen Zechuan smiled.

“Your eyes are really cruel sometimes.” Before Shen Zechuan could answer, Xiao Chiye continued, “Of course, it would be more interesting to be harsh.”

Shen Zechuan endured it for a moment and said, “Then you really have special hobbies.”

“You’re not bad either,” Xiao Chiye made a pun, “This is the first time I’ve met someone who likes to be bitten.”

“Let’s get down to business,” Shen Zechuan said, “What are you looking for me for?”

“Let’s have a drink,” Xiao Chiye finished the glass of wine, “and let’s chat by the way. Donglong Yaxing has a backer, but he and I are on the same page, so everyone has been in peace in the past. But this time it is framed on me, I have to find out who they are relying on.”

Shen Zechuan fished out the vegetables in the pot.

Xiao Chiye said: “This investigation only found Xi Hongxuan. It’s really strange. The last time we were here, you specifically told me that the Eight Families were going to join forces to deal with me, but you turned around and stepped on me with them. I thought about it and didn’t understand what you meant, but I reversed the order and I understood your purpose.”

Shen Zechuan eats fish like a cat, eating it cleanly and beautifully.He didn’t raise his head, and just said “hmm” to indicate that he was listening.

Xiao Chiye turned the wine glass on the table and said: “I should put the plan of ‘stepping on me’ before ‘the eight major families join forces’, so it makes sense. Your purpose is not with me at all. You instigated Xi Hongxuan to do it, prompting himYou seek an alliance with other families, but you leaked the news to me in order to make me react and use the powerful position of the Eighth Camp to seduce the other families not to follow Xi Hongxuan.What is this, the art of instigating the alliance with words? It is not a trivial matter to create a gap between the eight major families.”

Shen Zechuan glanced at he and said, “You came up with this just because you found out that Xi Hongxuan was among the people behind Donglong Tooth Shop?”

“There are clues,” Xiao Chiye said, “You can’t wipe them clean. When Xi Gu’an was in prison, Xi Hongxuan sold his life in exchange for a job. It must have been your idea, otherwise Xi Hongxuan would not have listened to your words.”

Shen Zechuan wiped his hands with a handkerchief, thought for a moment, and said, “I am not the one who can make him obey his words.”

“I originally thought you came up in a hurry just to make it easier to investigate the case of Zhongbo’s defeat.” Xiao Chiye poured another drink and said, “Who knew you had such a big appetite, what benefit would it bring to you to split the eight families? You know that Qandu is surrounded by eight cities, and they are far older than the Li family. Look at Hua Siqian, the Queen Mother is still safe in a big case like the Hunting Ground Rebellion. How can you imagine that you can divide the eight families with the power of one person?They?You can take a good look at the clouds. They have been intertwined in the ground for hundreds of years.”

Shen Zechuan stopped using his chopsticks completely and sat upright with the intention of starting a conversation.He was not angry. He was even very calm. He said, “I just want to ask you one thing.”

Xiao Chiye paused and said, “Please speak.”

Shen Zechuan said: “The Hua family and the Xiao family have always been restrained by each other. The Nanlin Hunting Ground has caused the Hua family to decline. The Xiao family has the upper hand, but have you won?”

Xiao Chiye squeezed the wine glass tightly.

It was already dark outside the window, and there were no lights in the house.The shadow of Shen Zechuan sitting by the window was very thin. He said: “You will soon realize that you are facing more than just a flower family. Maybe you can comfort yourself at first. They only want the Eighth Camp, but if you think about the six states of Zhongbo, you will understand that they want much more than that.”

“The case of Zhongbo’s defeat has not been resolved yet,” Xiao Chiye hid in the darkness and remained silent for a while, “Are you so sure that they did it?”

“This is a bad debt,” Shen Zechuan said. “We looked at the Zhongbo defeat case over and over again, trying to figure out who was at fault. But in fact, this is not something that one person can control at all. And there is one thing in the defeat case that no one can figure out to this day.”

Xiao Chiye said: “Why.”

“Yes, why.” Shen Zechuan said, “When Biansha entered the country, everyone’s vitality was severely damaged. The tens of thousands of people who died in Zhongbo was just a temporary problem. The subsequent problems include the tax revenue of the six states of Zhongbo that will be vacant for many years. How to move the population back, how to rezone the fields, how to repair the towns that were slaughtered, the national treasury cannot afford it, and Zhongbo has becomeIt has become a hole in the country.The most difficult thing is to rebuild the garrison. Without enough troops, Zhongbo will be defeated again.How long can the reinforcements from Libei and Qidong last?This is directly related to the safety of Qidu.Didn’t anyone think of these issues before the defeat, or did the Eight Families think about it, but there was no such thing.Even their power can’t do it.”

“Every turmoil in the Great Zhou Dynasty is related to hisThey are inseparable.Twenty-five years ago, when Emperor Guangcheng came to power, it was a turning point in the rise of the Hua family. In order to consolidate her power, the Queen Mother killed the virtuous and observant prince.Eighty years ago, when Emperor Yong’an came to power, it was the court of the Yao family.Sancai, the cabinet is also known as “Yao Tang”.A hundred years ago, the Yongyi Port was opened in Juexi, and the Xi family became the key to the granary of the Zhou Dynasty. With this, they took over the Haiwan Salt Farm on the west side of Xuhai and became the richest people in the world. Even the Li family had to ask for their weddings.They borrowed money.None of these things were due to personal grudges. They took turns being the leader between the changes of emperors, and no one really fell into decline.”

“There are no noble sons from poor families, and few of the famous officials in the Zhou Dynasty who can influence the situation of the government are from poor families. How many years does it take for a Qi Huilian to be born, and how many years for a Hai Liangyi to be born? They are like a scribble. Even if they survive, they are taken over in a hurry.”

“If you have to name one person who can stand firm in the iron net of many aristocratic families, that person is the one you are most familiar with.”

Shen Zechuan looked at Xiao Chiye and spoke clearly.

“Libei King Xiao Fangxu was born at the foot of Hongyan Mountain. He joined Luoxia Pass as a soldier at the age of fifteen and was promoted to guard Luoxia Pass at the age of twenty. He was defeated at the foot of Hongyan Mountain at the age of twenty-three. He built the Luoxia Racecourse at the age of twenty-six. He formed the Luoxia Cavalry at the age of twenty-eight. He fought again with the Biansha Snake Tribe at the age of thirty. He crossed the Hongyan Mountain at the age of thirty-two and traveled all over the Hongyan East Mountains at the age of thirty-five. From then on, the Luoxia Cavalry disbanded and became the Libei Iron Cavalry.He was no longer a garrison at Luoxia Pass, and he was awarded three awards and became the king of Libei with a different surname.The scale of Libei County was fixed from then on, and the Great Zhou occupied the entire Hongyan Mountain.”

“The fight between your Xiao family and the Eight Great Families is not only a battle for power, but also a battle between nobles and common people. The person who broke through that door and reached the top is called Xiao Fangxu. You have long been at odds with the Eight Great Families.”

Shen Zechuan lowered his eyes slightly, arranged the bowls and chopsticks in front of him, and said: “If you want to conclude an alliance, you must at least show my sincerity, and not just use a few words about the accounts of the Forbidden Army. That is not valuable to me.”

The small screen blocked out the sound of the wind, and the two people sitting opposite each other in the darkness had their own postures.The window was slightly bright, and the snowy light shone faintly on the sides of the two people, reflecting the cold night.The Langlu knife was facing Yangshanxue. Although it was not unsheathed, there was a cold glow from the blade in the room.