At this time, there was still an hour before Youshi. Tong An led Xue Ne directly into Da Ci'en Temple, and Zhang Gou went back first.
After breaking up with Zhang Gou in the restaurant, Tong An smiled at Xue Ne and said, "How long have you known Junior Brother Zhang?"
Xue Ne thought for a while and replied seriously: "We just met today."
"Then why does he like you so much?" Tong Anqi asked.
Xue Ne was silent for a while and said: "Brother Zhang is a kind-hearted person. He learned that I encountered difficulties recently, so he came to help me."
The smile on Tong An's face immediately disappeared. He put his hands behind his back and strode back to the Great Ci'en Temple.
When Xue Ne came to him, he turned his head and glared at Xue Ne.
Xue Ne immediately understood the meaning of this look and followed Tong An one step behind.
As Tong An walked, he asked, "What did you do before?"
Xue Ne replied: "Responsible for the security of a certain place."
Tong An grinned and said:
"It's from the area south of Huncheng. Tsk, tsk, I'm very familiar with that area. I heard that there has been chaos on the road again recently, and Boss Zhong of the Zhuye Gang was killed. Do you know that?"
Xue Ne shook his head.
Tong An curled her lips and thought to herself: "If you don't even know such big news, you must be a little guy." He stopped talking to Xue Ne.
The two came to the back door of Da Ci'en Temple, and Tong An said calmly: "Do you live in the temple or outside?"
"Live outside."
Tong An advised: "Otherwise, you can live in the temple and work a few more hours every day. We are paid by the hour."
Xue Ne said: "Thank you for your kindness. However, something happened at home recently, and there may be some emergencies. I feel more at ease living outside."
Tong An curled her lips and said, "That's up to you. I'll help you find a monk in the temple to get a wooden sign later, and you can freely enter and exit through the back door."
"It's time to work."
After following Tong An into the temple, Xue Ne noticed many lamas walking in the backyard of the temple and wondered: "When did there be more lamas in Da Ci'en Temple?"
Tong An curled his lips and said: "They are all monks from Tibet who come to our Tang Dynasty master to discuss Buddhism. They are very wild. You should be careful when you meet them."
Xue Ne nodded.
After a short walk, we gradually arrived at the mountain behind the temple, and saw a row of monks' houses with green bricks and yellow tiles appearing near a huge mountain wall.
A group of monks and craftsmen are standing in front of the mountain wall.
As we got closer, it turned out that a giant Buddha was being built on the mountain wall.
The Buddha is more than ten feet high and most of it has been built. Only its head and right hand are missing.
In order to build the Buddha, masons carved many steep stone steps into the mountain wall.
Many craftsmen were walking on the stone steps with ropes tied around their waists.
Tong An held his head high, crossed his hands and said, "This Buddha is hosted by the Great Ci'en Temple, and Master Xuanzang came to me personally."
He cupped his hands toward the north and said:
"It is said that even Her Royal Highness the Queen is paying attention to this Buddha statue. If Junior Brother Zhang hadn't personally requested it, I would not have let someone who doesn't know the details get involved in such an important work. You'd better understand this."
Xue Na said: "Don't worry, I will never make any mistakes here."
Tong An laughed and said: "I don't trust you to do the work of cutting rocks. You can just help move the rocks. Don't worry, you will be paid for the work."
Xue Ne nodded in agreement.
Seeing that Xue Ne was quite knowledgeable, Tong An had a better impression of him and said, "Come with me and have a look."
As he spoke, he walked towards the Buddha statue.
When the two came to the Buddha statue, a monk suddenly walked over to Tong An.
Xue Ne was slightly startled. The monk had thick eyebrows, big eyes, and piercing eyes. He was very different from the monks he had seen before.
When the monk approached, he raised his thick eyebrows and said, "Master Tong, where have you been?"
Tong An grinned and said:
"I'm sorry, Master Hong'an, my junior brother came to see me. As you know, he is a craftsman from Shenhuofang, and he is very arrogant. If I don't go, I'm afraid he won't recognize me as my senior brother in the future."
Master Hong'an snorted and said:
"You should understand the importance of this mission. If something goes wrong, Her Majesty the Queen will be blamed. Not to mention that your junior brother is an official of Shenhuo Square, even if he is the supervisor, he can't save you."
Tong An smiled and said: "Yes, yes, don't worry, nothing will go wrong."
After Master Hong'an left, Tong An spit out the smear and coldly snorted:
"Stinky bald donkey, do you think I don't know that you are secretly playing tricks on the Buddha statue? When the trouble comes, it will be your fault!"
Xue Ne frowned and said, "Brother Tong, what are you talking about?"
Tong An turned his head and glared: "What did you call me?"
"Uh...I don't know what I should..."
Tong An snorted and said, "Just be like them and just call me boss."
Xue Ne nodded and said: "Boss, what did you mean when you said that the monk was playing tricks on the Buddha statue?"
Tong An glared and said, "Did I say that? You heard me wrong, okay. I'll take you to get the entry and exit token first. After you get it, you can go back and come back to work tomorrow."
When Xue Ne returned to the palace, it happened to be the beginning of the Youshi hour.
The gate of the palace was open, which meant that Wu Chengsi had not returned to the palace yet.
After entering the mansion, he followed the long corridor to the east courtyard and saw Xue Yujin, Li Zhiying and Cheng Caiyi sitting around the stone table in the courtyard talking.
After Cheng Caiyi saw him, he stood up and said, "Yujin, it's getting late. I'll go back today and come back to you tomorrow. Let's go to Da Ci'en Temple together."
Xue Yujin smiled and said: "Okay, remember to come here early."
Xue Ne secretly lamented that the Xue family was in this situation, but his sister's two friends never left him, which made him both ashamed and relieved.
Li Zhiying sent Cheng Caiyi away. Xue Yujin came to Xue Ne and said with a smile: "Brother, what do you think this is?"
He stretched out his hand behind his back, and it actually held a big bag.
When I opened it, I saw that there were dozens of copper coins inside.
Xue Ne was surprised and said, "Where did you get all this money?"
Xue Yujin smiled and said:
"This afternoon, the eldest lady of the Xiao family invited young ladies from all over the house to have a literary and drinking party. Zhiying and Caiyi accompanied me. At the meeting, I sold some clothes and jewelry to those who participated.
A woman who knows how to do it.”
Xue Ne was stunned, lowered his head and said, "You must have suffered a lot of grievances."
Xue Yujin clenched her fingers a little tighter.
Just as Xue Ne said, the way those wealthy ladies looked at her and spoke to her changed their attitudes.
If it weren't for Li Zhiying and Cheng Caiyi's sake, she probably wouldn't be able to sell any of them.
Xue Yujin smiled forcefully and said: "No, they all sympathize with my experience. Don't think too much about it."
After a pause, he continued: "By the way, Caiyi has a friend who is planning to sell a house in Fenglefang. I went over and took a look. The house covers an area of two acres. If bought, it can be enough for our family to live in.
"
Xue Ne frowned and said, "The price of a house in Fenglefang is not low. It's hard to buy a house with two acres of land without two hundred dollars."
Xue Yujin smiled and said: "Caiyi said that the house was originally a place where her friend's brother bought fighting cocks. Chickens were raised in it and it had a strange smell, so the price was very low, only one hundred guan!"
Xue Na was silent.
Even if it has some taste, it is impossible to reduce the price so much. There must be favors from the Cheng family in it.
Xue Yujin said cautiously: "Brother, don't you agree to buy this house?"
Xue Ne smiled and said: "How come? In a few days, I will sell my set of Mingguang Armor, and I can almost collect the money to buy furniture. When my father and the second son return to Beijing, they will have a place to stay.
"
Xue Yujin bit her lip and said, "I'm just afraid that daddy will go to jail."
Xue Ne comforted: "No, after all, my father has made great contributions to the court in the past, and with the mediation of His Highness King Zhou, the situation will not be so bad."
Xue Yujin nodded and said: "By the way, brother, how was the person Zhang Gou took you to meet? Did you find the errand?"
"Thanks to Brother Zhang's help, I found a job as a craftsman. The wages should be pretty good."
Xue Yujin was very happy and said with a smile: "I didn't expect him to be quite loyal."
At this moment, a servant of the palace suddenly came to report that Wu Chengsi had returned to the palace, and invited the two of them to have a meal together in the side hall.
When the brother and sister came to the side hall, they found that Zhang Gou and Xu Wenqing were also there.
Xue Yujin thanked Zhang Gou for Xue Ne's matter. Zhang Gou waved his hands repeatedly and said: "It's a small matter, Miss Xue doesn't have to do this."
Wu Chengsi and his wife sat at the top. He stretched out his hand to signal the four of them to sit down, and asked with a smile: "Sister Yujin, what are you talking about?"
Xue Yujin smiled and said: "Master Zhang helped my brother find a job."
"Oh, what kind of job is it?" Wu Chengsi asked.
Xue Ne's cheeks were slightly red, and he said a little shyly: "Da Ci'en Temple is currently repairing a Buddha statue. Brother Zhang introduced me to help build the Buddha statue and put in some effort."
Wu Chengsi was silent for a long time, poured a glass of wine, and said in a deep voice:
"Brother Xue encountered such a change, but he was able to regain his energy, which is admirable. If I were in your place, I'm afraid I would still feel sorry for myself now. I'd like to toast you."
Xue Ne looked up at Wu Chengsi, his eyes flashing.
He is not steel, and his heart is full of loss and unwillingness. He just suppresses these emotions for the sake of his family.
Wu Chengsi's understanding allowed him to experience the feeling of a scholar meeting a confidant. Without saying a word, he poured wine and had a drink with Wu Chengsi.
Xue Yujin, who was on the side, was very happy when she saw that Wu Chengsi liked his brother so much, and said: "Brother Wu, I went to the Xiao Mansion with Zhiying and Caiyi this afternoon and sold most of my clothes and jewelry."
She looked expectantly, obviously wanting to be praised by Wu Chengsi.
"You did the right thing. Seeing you two, I believe that your Xue family will be able to make a comeback!" Wu Chengsi said with a smile.
Xue Na's eyes were bright and he was very encouraged in his heart.
If someone else said this, it was just comfort. When Wu Chengsi said it, the meaning was completely different.
Xue Yujin glanced at Wu Chengsi secretly and whispered: "Dad's crime this time is so serious, and Dong Gong is personally watching. I'm afraid...Dad won't be able to wait for that day."
Xu Wenqing said: "Don't worry, as long as His Highness is here, everything will be fine."
Finally, as if she was afraid that her words were not convincing, she added: "My father was rescued by His Highness!"
The Xue family brothers and sisters all looked at Wu Chengsi, hoping to get a promise from him.
Wu Chengsi was silent for a while and said slowly:
"Although I cannot guarantee that General Xue will be cleared of his grievances, I can at least guarantee that he will be safe and will neither be sentenced to death nor jailed."
Xue Yujin's eyes filled with tears, she wiped the corners of her eyes and said with a smile: "Brother Wu, my brother and I plan to buy a house in Fenglefang. When dad comes back, we will have a place to live."
"On the day of housewarming, Zhiying and I will be the first to show our support." Wu Chengsi said with a smile.
After a light meal, Wu Chengsi and Li Zhiying took a mandarin duck bath together.
After washing, the two returned to the dormitory together. Wu Chengsi leaned on the bed with his hands behind his head, while Li Zhiying sat in front of the dressing table and combed her hair.
There are three stoves in the dormitory, so you won't feel cold even if you are wearing single clothes.
Li Zhiying looked through the bronze mirror and saw Wu Chengsi frowning, and couldn't help but slow down in combing his hair.
Although Wu Chengsi always smiled when he was out in the past few days, when he returned to his dormitory, he always showed such a worried expression.
She knew what difficulties her husband must be facing.
Originally, she had been wanting to mention her brother Li Jingye's matter in the past few days and asked her husband to help arrange it.
Seeing his expression, I always felt that the timing was not right.
At this moment, Wu Chengsi spoke.
"Madam, how is Miss Xu's health going? When can we start treating her eyes?"
"Ah, we can start in half a month." Li Zhiying hurriedly replied.
Wu Chengsi noticed that his wife had a different expression and said, "Madam, what's wrong with you? Is there something wrong?"
Li Zhiying hesitated for a moment and whispered:
"Husband, my brother has been hanging out with a bunch of ruffians in the south of the city recently. My grandfather doesn't care about him. I... I'm a little worried."
Wu Chengsi was silent for a while and said, "You want me to transfer him to the military camp, right?"
Li Zhiying lowered her head and said, "I think the environment there should be better for him."
Wu Chengsi stood up, came to his wife, held her in his arms, and said softly: "Your brother's problem is in his head. No one else can help him. He needs to have an epiphany on his own, just like the big brother of the Xue family."
Just like a man."
Li Zhiying said quietly: "But I'm afraid that he will just collapse."
Wu Chengsi thought for a while and said: "You should go and see him more often when you have time. You don't have to ask him to do anything. You just need to let him feel your care and concern. I believe he will wake up sooner or later."
Li Zhiying nodded and leaned lightly on Wu Chengsi.
At this moment, the little maid Yumian suddenly entered the bedroom.
Seeing the two hugging each other, she thought they were going to do something embarrassing, so she turned around hurriedly and said: "Your Majesty, sir, Zhuge Shaoqing and Nie Sicheng from Dali Temple want to see you!"
Wu Chengsi's heart moved. The two of them came to see them so late. There must be something important.
Li Zhiying loosened her hands and said with a smile: "Husband, go quickly."
When I came to the study, I saw Zhugenan's face flushed with excitement, as if it said "I have good news" on his face.
Nie Ziyun was much calmer.
As soon as Wu Chengsi entered the door, Zhuge Nan couldn't wait to say: "Your Highness, we have found clues about Cai Yang!"
Wu Chengsi's eyes lit up and he said, "Oh?"
Zhuge Nan said: "We have been secretly watching Cai Yang's men and found that one of them recently hired a murderer in the south of the city and killed a monk."
Wu Chengsi was stunned: "Monk?"
"Yes, he also asked the murderer to pretend to be a lama."
Wu Chengsi was slightly shocked. When he went to Liyuan at noon today, he happened to encounter a case of a lama killing a monk on the road.
I didn’t think much about it at the time, but I didn’t know that this matter was actually related to Cai Yang!
"Who is that monk? Why did Cai Yang want to kill him?"
Zhuge Nan said: "He is a monk from Daci'en Temple. As for why Cai Yang sent his men to pay for the murder, it is still under investigation."
Wu Chengsi frowned and said, "Didn't you catch Cai Yang's subordinate and torture him?"
Zhuge Nan glanced at Nie Ziyun.
Nie Ziyun said in a deep voice: "Your Highness, my subordinates think that they can find Cai Yang through that person, so I urge you not to arrest him first."
Wu Chengsi nodded and said, "Does the murderer pretending to be a lama know anything?"
"He is just a person who takes money to do things. He doesn't know anything." Zhugenan replied.
Wu Chengsi was silent.
There are currently two possibilities. The first is that Cai Yang is under the control of that organization, and the purchase and killing of murderers was the order of that organization.
Second, this murder was planned by Cai Yang alone.
This is incredible. Cai Yang should know very well that the organization and the government are looking for him, so why would he risk taking such a case?
No matter what, finding Cai Yang is the top priority right now.
"Zhuge Shaoqing, go investigate that monk again to see if he has been involved in anything recently. I don't believe Cai Yang will kill him for no reason!"
Zhuge Nan bowed his hands and accepted the order.
"Nie Sicheng, you continue to keep an eye on Cai Yang's subordinate, and you must find Cai Yang's whereabouts as soon as possible!"
Nie Ziyun agreed, and the two of them resigned together.
…
Princess Taiping Mansion.
In the Nuan Pavilion, everyone lowered their heads, lowered their hands, and did not dare to take a breath.
Princess Taiping sat on the couch with her feet together and her pretty face as cold as frost.
In front of her, two scribes were kneeling on the ground, their foreheads covered with sweat.
"It's been four days, but you can't find anything useful, which makes me look embarrassed in front of my second cousin. What do you think is the use of me raising trash like you?"
A scribe hurriedly said: "Your Highness, we have carefully investigated all the properties of the Wei family inside and out, and we have not missed a single step. Their business really has nothing to do with the palace!"
Princess Taiping said sharply:
"Nonsense, didn't you say that the Wei family's business has been losing money for many years, and it has only recovered a little in the past two years? If there were no other means, where did they get so much money?"
Another scribe said: "Maybe... maybe it's something left by their predecessors."
Princess Taiping waved her hand, threw the tea cup on the man's head, and said angrily: "Do you think I am easy to bully? I know the details of those big families better than you!"
The man had hot tea poured on him, but he didn't dare to move.
At this moment, a deacon from the Princess Mansion entered the Nuan Pavilion and whispered: "Your Highness, Miss Fan family wants to see you."
Princess Taiping said coldly: "Let her come in."
The deacon responded respectfully and went out. Not long after, he brought Fan Yuping in.
Fan Yuping bowed respectfully: "Yuping pays homage to His Highness."
Princess Taiping raised her hand and said calmly: "What do you want from me? Could it be that someone is causing trouble for your cloth village?"
Fan Yuping smiled and said: "With the protection of Her Royal Highness, no one will dare to take advantage of our business."
Princess Taiping nodded slightly: "Just explain your purpose of coming."
Fan Yuping said softly: "Didn't His Highness summon my daughter last time to ask about the Wei family's property? My daughter thought about it for a long time afterwards and felt that her answer at that time was not accurate enough, and she was worried that she would miss something important for His Highness."
Princess Taiping's phoenix eyes flashed slightly and said: "I remember that you said at that time that you had not heard that the Wei family's business was involved with the imperial palace. Is this wrong?"
"Everything the little girl said is true, but the little girl suddenly thought of something else."
"What's the matter?"
"As far as my daughter knows, although the Wei family's property has nothing to do with the palace grounds, the Wei family's shops have close relations with many imperial merchants, and those imperial merchants are supplying goods to the palace."
Princess Taiping's heart moved and she asked, "Does your relationship with Shijindan also have a good relationship?"
Fan Yuping nodded and said: "Yes."
A trace of joy flashed in Princess Taiping's eyes, her mood improved, and she smiled and said: "Yu Ping, you are indeed very capable. I like you more and more."
Fan Yuping said repeatedly: "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness."
Seeing the princess smile, everyone in the room breathed a sigh of relief.
The two scribes were even more grateful to Fan Yuping, because Her Royal Highness the Princess was always very kind when she was in a good mood.
As expected, Princess Taiping did not pursue the fault of the two of them anymore. She stood up with a smile and prepared to leave the Nuan Pavilion.
At this moment, Zhili whispered: "Your Royal Highness, something big happened in the court today?"
"What's the matter?"
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince impeached Xue Rengui for colluding with King Pei. His Majesty decreed that the Pingguo Palace be sealed, General Xue removed from his military post, and asked to return to the capital for trial by the three divisions."
Princess Taiping was surprised and said: "There is such a thing, what is the attitude of the second cousin and the queen mother?"
Zhili replied: "It is said that Her Majesty the Queen had no objection. Her Majesty the King of Zhou took the Duke of England and Duke Xing to intercede for General Xue, but they could not change His Majesty's decision."
Princess Taiping supported her chin with a round fan and said, "Since the second cousin failed to save Xue Rengui, it must be true that he colluded with King Pei. Where are the Xue brothers and sisters now?"
"I was taken to the palace by His Royal Highness King Zhou."
Princess Taiping nodded and said, "Do you know what the evidence is for the prince to impeach Xue Rengui?"
Zhili shook his head and said, "I haven't found out yet."
"Immediately send someone to investigate this matter. I want to know the details before tomorrow's twilight hour."