Qin Xiao knocked a few times, and soon heard a "squeak" sound. The door opened, and a head poked out. He glanced at Qin Xiao and saw that Qin Xiao was dressed in cloth. He was a little confused, but still asked: "Who are you looking for?
"
"I'm Qin Xiao, I wonder if the Commander-in-Chief of Tantai is in the mansion?" Qin Xiao cupped his hands and said politely: "I have something urgent and I need to see the Commander-in-Chief."
The man frowned, but still asked patiently: "Who are you?"
Naturally, he didn't ask Qin Xiao's name. Qin Xiao thought for a moment and realized that since he had found Tantai Xuanye, there was no need to conceal his identity. He took out the tiger head jade pendant from his body, handed it over with both hands, and said: "I am Heiyu
The adopted son of the general."
This tiger head jade pendant originally belonged to Han Yunong, but it had been given to Qin Xiao, and Han Yunong also gave Qin Xiao his identity as the Black Feathered Night Crow.
This tiger head jade pendant was originally given by the emperor. Tantai Xuanye was an imperial general and had a close relationship with General Black Feather. With this jade pendant sent over, he could naturally prove his identity to Tantai Xuanye.
The servant took the jade pendant and said, "Wait a moment!"
Perhaps because he has met too many people, the gatekeeper of Tantai Mansion is also calm and composed, neither humble nor overbearing.
The man closed the door. Qin Xiao waited outside the door for a long time. The door finally opened. The gatekeeper handed the jade pendant back to Qin Xiao and said: "You come with me." Without any nonsense, he led Qin Xiao in. After closing the door,
, and led Qin Xiao into the house.
In the Zhumen High Courtyard of Tantai Mansion, Qin Xiao originally thought that it must be extremely luxurious. When he entered the mansion, he found that the furnishings inside were simple and plain. Although the mansion was large, there were not many objects, making it seem a bit empty.
Not only that, there are not many servants in this mansion, and the servants I see are all very old, and there is almost no young maid.
The servant led Qin Xiao to a side hall, where the furnishings were very simple. The servant said: "Later!" He turned around and went out without saying a word.
There was deathly silence in Tantai Mansion. No one could be heard talking in Nuo Da's mansion, and it was so quiet that it was almost breathtaking.
After a while, he heard the sound of footsteps. Qin Xiao thought it was Tantai Xuanye's arrival. He immediately stood up and followed the sound. He saw a middle-aged man in a wide robe and leather hat coming in from outside the door. He had a pair of mustaches.
, less than fifty years old, as soon as he walked in, a smile appeared on his face, and he smiled at Qin Xiao and said: "Sit down and talk, sit down and talk."
Qin Xiao saw that this man was amiable, but he did not have the temperament of a soldier.
He spent three years in the Turtle City Captain's Mansion, and also spent many days in Baihu Camp. Whether he was from the military or not, you could tell at a glance.
This middle-aged man has a slightly hunched back and a short stature. Because his neck is very short, he almost has no chin.
"The old slave is the general manager of Tantai Mansion." The middle-aged man sat down opposite Qin Xiao and said with a smile: "Everyone calls me Uncle Liang, and you can call me the same."
Qin Xiao cupped his hands and said, "Uncle Liang!"
"Are you coming from Xiling?" Uncle Liang, the manager, smiled and said, "Did the general send you here?"
Qin Xiao hesitated for a moment and finally said: "Uncle Liang, does Kyoto know nothing about the changes that happened in Xiling?"
Uncle Liang, however, was calm and asked: "What happened?"
At this moment, a servant brought tea, and the person who served the tea was an old man in his fifties. Qin Xiao was puzzled, thinking that this Tantai Mansion was different. Generally, the people who served tea and water in the mansion were young maids.
The Tantai Mansion asked an old man who was nearly fifty years old to do these tasks of serving tea and water, but he didn't know why.
However, Uncle Liang's reaction made Qin Xiao even more surprised.
If Uncle Liang knew nothing about Xiling, and heard Qin Xiao mention that something happened in Xiling, he would definitely be surprised and even eager to know what happened, and his emotions would change to some extent.
But he was calm and composed, and seemed to already have some understanding of what happened there. In this case, there was no need to ask more questions.
"Fan Jun rebelled, and Fan Ziqi colluded with a traitor pretending to be a prince and murdered the general." Qin Xiao clearly understood: "On New Year's Eve, the rebels started rebellion in the three counties of Xiling at the same time. Now the entire Xiling has fallen into the hands of the rebels.
We broke out of the siege and rushed to Beijing to report the news. After arriving in Kyoto, the day before yesterday, Master Du and Captain Han, the governor of Zhen County, went to the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of War separately. However, as of this morning, they have never returned and there is no news.
." Looking into Uncle Liang's eyes, he cupped his hands and said, "I really have no choice, so I took the liberty to come to the door. I hope the commander-in-chief can help me."
Uncle Liang nodded slightly and said: "There is indeed a military report at the border, saying that there is a rebellion in Xiling, but the old slave is just a servant in the palace and does not know much about military and state affairs. Captain Han went to the Ministry of War, naturally he wanted to report the military situation in Xiling
Go up?"
"Yes." Qin Xiao said: "Logically speaking, after the report is made, you should meet with me, but there has been no news, which makes people very worried."
"I understand. I will report this matter to the Commander-in-Chief when he comes back." Uncle Liang said: "You should know that the Commander-in-Chief is responsible for the imperial guard and has important responsibilities. He does not spend much time in the mansion.
, sometimes it’s rare to come back even once a month.”
Qin Xiao frowned and said: "Uncle Liang, is there any way to find the commander-in-chief? The commander-in-chief has many connections in Kyoto...!"
"You are wrong." Liangshu, who was originally smiling, instantly suppressed his smile: "The commander-in-chief is devoted to protecting the imperial city and does not interact with other officials. He is a soldier and has never been involved in court affairs. He only obeys the orders of the saints.
I'm on errands, so what you said about having a wide network of contacts doesn't matter."
Qin Xiao was startled, and Uncle Liang continued: "The incident in Xiling can be reported to the Ministry of War, or to the South Academy or even the North Academy. They will all report it to the saints, but the commander-in-chief will never be involved in such a thing.
." The body leaned forward slightly, and his eyes became extremely sharp: "Do you understand what I mean?"
Qin Xiao is so smart, how could he not understand the meaning of Liang Shu's words?
When he thought of Tantai Xuanye last night, it was as if he had found light in the darkness. He thought that given the friendship between Tantai Xuanye and General Black Feather, Tantai Xuanye would not ignore it.
But not only could Tantai Xuanye not be seen today, the good uncle's words obviously meant that he did not want Qin Xiao to find Tantai Mansion again because of the incident in Xiling.
He didn't know whether this was Uncle Liang's own intention, or whether Tantai Xuanye arranged for Uncle Liang to say this. At least at this moment, the last glimmer of light that Qin Xiao had expected was extinguished in an instant.
"Excuse me!" Qin Xiao stood up, turned around and left.
"Wait a minute." Uncle Liang called Qin Xiao, clapped his hands, and walked in from the door with a tray in both hands, covered with a black cloth.
Uncle Liang walked over and lifted up the black cloth. There were several ingots of silver on the tray, "This is two hundred taels of silver. The expenses in Kyoto are higher than in the countryside. You should put them away first."
"What do you mean, manager?" Qin Xiao glanced at Uncle Liang.
"Good intention." Uncle Liang sighed: "You are the adopted son of General Black Feather, so I invited you to enter the mansion today. If it were anyone else, you would not be able to enter the gate of Tantai Mansion. However, the Xiling Incident is of great importance, and the commander-in-chief
It is true that we have old friends with the general, but the friendship between gentlemen is as light as water, and personal relationships must not involve official business. The commander-in-chief is dedicated to serving the public. This matter involves General Black Feather. As long as the commander-in-chief is involved, there is selflessness and selfishness.
This may even cause greater trouble."
Qin Xiao frowned and said: "General Manager, with all due respect, there has been a change in Xiling. Why should I report the details to the court? I didn't ask the commander-in-chief to help me kill people and set fires. It's just that I just arrived in Kyoto and am not familiar with the place.
The two companions who were together suddenly disappeared, so I ask you to help find out their whereabouts. Could this cause trouble? What do you mean by trouble? "
Uncle Liang looked into Qin Xiao's eyes. After Qin Xiao finished speaking, he finally said, "Let's go and leave Kyoto. The sooner the better."
"Why?"
"It's still a good intention." Uncle Liang sighed: "The three of you entered Kyoto, and the two of you are missing. Don't you want to think about your own safety?"
Qin Xiao smiled and said: "Thank you for the reminder, manager. But since there are three people entering Beijing, when they leave, either three of them will leave together, or none of them will leave. Don't worry, manager, it is really reckless to come to the door today. From now on, I will never do it."
Come and disturb me again." He cupped his hands, turned around and left. Uncle Liang said: "This money...!"
"The friendship between gentlemen is as light as water." Qin Xiao did not look back: "What's more, the person who has friendship with your Tantai Grand Commander is a general. I have no relationship with your Tantai Mansion, so I can't accept this money."
Uncle Liang looked at Qin Xiao's leaving figure, frowning slightly.
Qin Xiao left Tantai Mansion and left Tianhefang, smiling bitterly in his heart.
Suddenly I understood that the roads in the capital were wide, but without connections, it would be really difficult to move forward.
Going to Beijing to report the news was originally a simple matter. Find the relevant yamen and report in detail what happened in Xiling, and then the court would respond.
But now, not only have they lost contact with each other, the Tantai Mansion has even tried to avoid him like the plague. Uncle Liang even persuaded him to leave Kyoto. He really couldn't figure out which royal law he had violated, and he had to leave Kyoto to seek refuge.
The streets are lined with clear canals, boats and horses flowing, tall buildings and pavilions, elms and willows reflected in the glow, and the beautiful scenery is bustling with activity. Just looking at the endless flow of people on the streets, it is difficult to imagine that a cruel event has just happened in the western frontier of the empire.
In this prosperous capital city, there is not even a trace of smoke and smoke from the war.
The rebellion in Xiling seemed to have no impact on life in the capital.
"Do you want to take a boat?" Qin Xiao dismounted and stood on the bank of Luoshui River, looking at the cruise ships on the water in a daze. He suddenly heard a sound in his ears, interrupting his thoughts. He looked up and saw a small boat.
Stopping in front of him, the boat girl wearing a bamboo hat was holding a pole in her hand, looking at her and asking.
The boat girl is not young. She looks about thirty years old. She has bright red eyes and a charming figure. She wears a floral long-sleeved narrow dress with a pair of gray cloth trousers underneath. She has a round figure. This outfit also makes her exquisite.
The convex figure is well-proportioned, and from head to toe, she has the charm of a young woman.