Jade City is close to the desert, and at night, the whistling wind can be heard throughout the land.
Early in the morning, when Chen Jinjun opened the door, he saw the yellow sand all over the sky. Even the buds that had just sprouted on the top of the magnolia tree in the middle of the yard could not be seen.
Chen Jinjun frowned. He had to say that the natural conditions in Yucheng were worse than those in Yongzhou.
Someone walked over in the distance despite the wind and sand. Chen Jinjun looked at it for a long time before he saw that it was a Taoist priest.
His large Taoist robe was wrapped in the wind and clung tightly to his thin body like a hemp stalk, as if the wind was stronger and could blow his whole body away.
When he saw Chen Jinjun, the Taoist priest hurried to a place sheltered from the wind and spat out a few mouthfuls of saliva that was stained yellow by the sand.
Chen Jinjun hurriedly asked someone to pour a cup of tea for the Taoist priest. After rinsing his mouth, the Taoist priest looked at Chen Jinjun apologetically: "The weather in Yucheng is like this. Spring has just begun and sandstorms are prevalent."
"Then you have to walk so far." Chen Jinjun looked at the dim sky and sighed worriedly.
The Taoist priest waved his hand: "I'm here to tell my boss that I have contacted someone from the gang."
"Gangsters?" Chen Jinjun frowned in confusion, "Didn't we agree to start with small gangs? Why did we go directly to the gangs?"
Seeing Chen Jinjun's anxiety, the Taoist priest quickly explained to her: "This person is not a gangster, but his status in the gang is extraordinary. What's more, his identity is opposite to the person behind Zhang Gui."
"Oh?" Chen Jinjun narrowed his eyes, confronting Shao Peichen's identity? Who is that?
"You will know when you go there," the Taoist priest looked at the sky, "today is a good time."
Chen Jinjun nodded. Indeed, this kind of weather is the most suitable for instigating rebellion.
The Taoist priest seemed to have remembered something and whispered to Chen Jinjun: "Don't take Brother Wen with you anymore. I'm afraid he will be unhappy when he sees that person."
Chen Jinjun became even more curious about this person's identity.
She took Xu Fanming with her, wrapped her up tightly, and followed the Taoist priest's men out.
After twisting and turning all the way, we arrived at a pawn shop. The guide stood under the high counter and clicked the wooden boards regularly.
A faint voice sounded from above: "What are you pawning?"
"Be a seal." the man replied.
"What seal?"
"Two dragons playing with beads, a jade seal of good luck and good fortune."
The man above became silent and stuck his head out to check to make sure there was no one else in the pawn shop.
"Go and report to the master that a distinguished guest is coming to your door." The man shouted towards the backstage.
Chen Jinjun couldn't help but frowned when he heard his voice.
This tone seemed very familiar to her, but she couldn't remember where she had heard it.
With doubts in mind, Chen Jinjun followed the leader to the second floor of the pawn shop.
Once on the second floor, the first thing you see is a huge cloisonné enamel screen. When Chen Jinjun looked at this screen, he felt that it looked very familiar.
The entire second floor was filled with smoke, and the smoke from the incense burner spread slowly on the floor.
Chen Jinjun looked over and saw an old man sitting on the imperial concubine's bed.
However, his hair is Manchu braid.
Chen Jinjun stepped forward and let the old Manchu man see him.
"Who is here?" The old man's voice was sharp and thin, as if it was squeezed out of his throat.
Chen Jinjun remembered that she had heard it in the palace, and it was exactly the tone of the eunuch's speech.
"Xu Fanming, a disciple of Du Yu, the chief criminal of the Qinghong Society." Xu Fanming took a step forward and stood in front of Chen Jinjun. To outsiders, it looked like he was the person in charge.
Chen Jinjun did not speak, but looked at the old man in silence.
"Qinghonghui?" The old eunuch's high-pitched voice was full of doubts.
"Qinghonghui." Xu Fanming repeated it again, his triangular eyes staring intently at the old man's bare forehead.
"I heard, are you from Yongzhou?" The old eunuch opened his eyes and looked at the two of them.
Xu Fanming nodded.
The old eunuch waved his hands and sang: "Sit down."
Chen Jinjun was even more convinced that he was a eunuch in the Qing Dynasty palace, and what was certain was that this person's official position was definitely not low.
Thinking of this, Chen Jinjun looked at the incense burner aside. The aroma in the whole room was rich, but it was not pungent at all. With such a large dose, the aroma did not change at all. It was not an ordinary spice.
The old eunuch saw Chen Jinjun looking at his incense burner: "Why, are you interested in our incense burner?"
Chen Jinjun shook his head: "The incense burner is indeed exquisite, but the spices in it are even more complicated."
"Okay, I know the goods." The old eunuch's voice sounded particularly excited.
He stood up slowly, walked down from his imperial concubine's couch, walked to the incense burner, and caressed it lovingly: "This incense burner is the one used by the old Buddha. The spices were mixed by the royal perfumer in the palace. If you want
All in all, this spice is indeed more valuable than this incense burner."
When Chen Jinjun heard him mention Lafayette, he couldn't help but ask: "Have you ever worked as an errand for Lafayette before?"
"Oh, how many years ago was that?" The old eunuch narrowed his eyes and thought carefully.
"I was only seven years old when I entered the palace." He stretched out three fingers of his withered hand.
Chen Jinjun and Xu Fanming could clearly see that he was wearing big rings on each finger, which looked like jewels and wealth.
She finally understood why the Taoist priest said that this man and Shao Peichen behind Zhang Gui were absolute opposites.
As a veteran of the Qing Dynasty, how could he get involved with Shao Peichen, a senior official of the Republic of China government?
That's fine, I can talk freely, and I'm not afraid of the old man playing dirty tricks.
The old eunuch continued: "I was just a young eunuch at first, but later I became a godfather. My godfather was a popular figure around Lafayette. Don't those arrogant officials also have to be polite when they see my godfather?
"
Having said this, a bit of pride appeared on his face.
Chen Jinjun remembered that the famous man next to the Queen Mother was beheaded by the emperor's order.
She asked the old eunuch in a bad way: "Then why don't you stay in the palace instead of going to this inhospitable Jade City to suffer?"
The old eunuch turned around and looked at Chen Jinjun with narrowed eyes: "In the palace? Little girl, what kind of good place do you think the palace is?"
He looked at Chen Jinjun with a pair of cloudy eyes, and felt that Chen Jinjun was different from the concubines he had seen in the palace.
After all, he is someone who has stayed in the palace. He is very confident in his own eyesight. The woman in front of him is definitely not an ordinary person.
He looked at Chen Jinjun and then at Xu Fanming, understood something, and took a breath.
"Qinghonghui?" the old eunuch asked Xu Fanming.
Xu Fanming nodded: "I am the apprentice of Du Yu, the chief criminal officer of the Qinghong Society."
"Du Yu, I seem to have seen this name somewhere." The old eunuch touched his long, smooth braid.
His gray-white braids were neatly arranged by him, and not a single frizzy hair could be seen.
It seems that this old eunuch is still a nostalgic person.
Chen Jinjun lowered his eyelashes and pretended to be hesitant: "Logically speaking, how could a person of your status come back to Jade City?"
The old eunuch didn't speak, but sighed quietly, with a look of bitterness and hatred on his face: "Being with a king is like being with a tiger."
He returned to his imperial concubine's couch and looked at Chen Xu Fanming and Chen Jinjun, hoping to see what he wanted from their faces.