Chapter 126 – Whose Sailor?

Fan Xian was not aware of what was going on within the Ming family, for him, the Ming family was a rock that he had to press but could not crush for the time being, anyway, he had the patience to do so, and there was no rush in fishing.

This day he came to hold the moon building Suzhou branch, the building’s business has been good, upstairs and downstairs girls are busy receiving customers, not many people noticed the male proprietor of the building, the female shopkeeper respectfully escorted a figure, quietly up to the top floor.

Push open the window and look out, only to see the back of that a skinny lake there are a lot of civilian workers are dredging and expanding the lake, to expand a lake, the money and labor required is not a small amount, he could not help but sigh: “Is it necessary?”

Shi Yanli smiled and said, “According to the meaning of the adults, the planning and pattern of the branch number will be transmitted to the north in an expedited manner, the day before yesterday returned the letter, the second young master’s meaning is that the lake is too small, the terrain is not open enough, the guests who come to play will feel a little cramped feeling, why not just put in a big effort, the lake will be dug a few hundred meters further ahead… …”

Fan Xian smiled bitterly, far away in North Qi Si Zhe seems to be still unforgettable for Holding the Moon House, such a big gesture, he only use to say a word, but he himself has to move a lot of manpower to do it.

“This has sound and smell, not afraid of affecting business?”

“It’s surrounded with green cloth, the guests in the building usually can’t notice that side. Although business is good now, but to dig the lake is only in time for this time to dig …… otherwise the spring is thick and the summer solstice is the time when business is at its best, and then it will be inconvenient to dig again.”

Fan Xian nodded and didn’t say anything, he did trust his brother’s vision of business, and today he came to Hugging the Moon Building, mainly to inquire about some news. He looked at the dossier his men had sent up and frowned, “Where exactly did that Ming family’s head butler flee to?”

The Ming family’s head butler had the same surname as the butler that Fan Xian had fought in Tanyuzhou when he was a child, both surnamed Zhou, this man was not simple, he had been Elder Taijun Ming’s close confidant and beloved for so many years, and he was in charge of managing the accounts of that mysterious Junshan Society. When Xia Qufei was assassinated by the Junshan Society in front of the Jiangnan Residence, the Supervisory Yuan began to secretly investigate the whereabouts of that butler, always ready to arrest him secretly, wanting to obtain some key contents from that person’s mouth.

However, that steward Zhou seemed to have disappeared within a day, no longer appearing in any of the Ming family’s properties, I don’t know if it was the officials of the Jiangnan Road who were helping to hide it or what, in any case, even the means of the Supervisory Yuan have not been able to find out any trace of the other party’s whereabouts nowadays.

Deng Ziyue came in from outside the room and reported to Fan Xian about the Fourth Master Ming’s capture into the Suzhou Mansion, and couldn’t help but frown when he heard His Excellency inquiring about the whereabouts of Housekeeper Zhou, who was in charge of this matter, and who was ashamed that there had been no progress for so many days.

He frowned and shook his head, after thinking for a long time, he said, “If it is not already extinguished by the Ming family, it should be ……”

“There’s a strong possibility that the other party is hiding in the Ming Garden in a dignified manner.” Fan Xian was clear that if he really wanted to hide that bookkeeper of the Junshan Society, hiding within the Ming Garden would be the most risky and secure method, he couldn’t help but laugh, “Is it really necessary to go into the Ming Garden to take someone?”

Deng Ziyue laughed bitterly, “Without a real proof, where can I go into the Ming Garden to take someone, the other party is also someone with a hereditary title, and by making things too serious, the Governor General will definitely be forced to open his mouth and put pressure on His Excellency.”

Fan Xian sighed, feeling that this matter has gradually lost its fun, waving his hand, he said, “If we can’t catch someone by breaking in, we won’t be able to explain ourselves in front of Xue Qing, if we confirm that there is someone inside, we can try to be barbaric for once.”

“Just can’t confirm.” Deng Ziyue said hopelessly.

The two of them were chatting, when suddenly a scout from the Supervisory Academy carefully knocked on the door outside, Deng Ziyue glanced at Fan Xian, stepped out of the door and whispered something, and his face immediately became grave. After whispering a few more words of advice, he hurriedly hurried back and attached himself to Fan Xian’s ear, saying:

“There’s news from the island.”

Fan Xian’s spirit perked up, that goddamned pirate dock had been quiet for so long, he nearly thought that he would no longer be able to use that island to deal with the Ming family, at this time, hearing that there was news, he said with great interest, “Speak.”

Teng Zi Yue looked at him again, carefully said, “The people on the island …… are dead, dead clean.”

There was a snap! Fan Xian expressionless slap on the tea table beside him, the tea table did not break, the tea bowl did not break, but in this slap very clearly expressed his indignation and resentment, the Ming family hand down really hard really clean, he frowned and asked, “Where are our people?”

The Inspectorate had spies on the island, and Fan Xian was worried about his life and death.

Deng Ziyue said, “Luckily, he survived, and the Quanzhou side touched the island just in time to pick him up.”

Fan Xian’s face sank slightly, “What’s his name?”

“Qing Wa.”

“Where is the person?”

“Just arrived in Suzhou, and is recuperating in a dark apartment.”

“Go.”

Qingwa felt that he was dreaming, and had been dreaming all these days. When the island was besieged by the officials, he was the only one who survived, and surrounded by a sky full of thieving gulls and a ground full of dead bodies, he tried to find the way to live that the chief had once left behind, to get to the hidden cove, to find the boat to go out to sea.

But did not think that the Ming family extermination made so desperate, all the boats on the island were destroyed, even the pirate leader hid a few three-sailed fast boat, were sunk into the water.

Looking at the water was soaked and changed the color of the sails, Qingwa some despair. The island is alone overseas, if Quanzhou side found out that things have changed and risked to send people to the island again, it will also take a long time, and these days he is alone on the island with no water and no food, can he survive?

Supervisory Yuan two and four secret agents, from the beginning of the hospital to accept the very strict field survival training and intelligence collection training, also thanks to this skill, single person Qingwa, even so on the island so live down.

There is no water on the island, but luckily it is raining.

There is nothing on the island beasts, but there are corpses …… have eaten corpses of thieves gulls, there are fish and mussels in the sea, so he is still strong and disgusting to survive.

Until finally Quanzhou side of the colleagues ventured to the island again, has been weakened to the extreme Qingwa, was finally carried to the ship.

The ship drifted back to the mainland.

Qingwa was also finally able to have a good night’s sleep.

But just in his sleep, thinking of those water birds he ate, those water islands may have those rotting human flesh in their stomachs …… Qingwa still can t help but have nightmares.

He slept for a long time this sleep, from Quanzhou until Suzhou, and when he woke up, he found that there was a young and clean big official in front of him looking at himself with admiration and pity.

The official of the Supervisory Court beside him reminded, “It’s Lord Tiji.”

Lord Tiji? Qingwa was startled and struggled to get up to salute.

Fan Xian hurriedly stopped him on the bed, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked at this Qing Guo version of Robinson, a wave of sighs and admiration welling up in his heart. The political struggle is not a dinner invitation, it is a matter of life and death, but the ones who need to be sacrificed every time are actually the officials at the lower level.

Fan Xian took out the pills and fed them to him, then used the golden needle to revitalize his blood, and carefully treated him for half a day before confirming that there wouldn’t be too many aftereffects, and that the other party would have enough energy to open his mouth, and only then did he begin to ask questions.

In the midst of the conversation, Fan Xian obtained a lot of useful information, a lot of news that had not been able to make it back to the shore, such as that pirate leader’s association with Auntie Minglan Shi.

He said indifferently, ”No wonder that auntie would suddenly go back to her hometown to visit her family, only to be afraid that now she has long been sunk into the river and fed to the wangbang …… Married a wangbang, and in the end, only to be fed to the wangbang, and is also a poor person. Zi Yue, immediately send people to that aunt’s old home to investigate the case, I would like to see, Ming Lan Shi is prepared to explain how.”

Qingwa also took great pains to preserve a letter, which is also very solid evidence, although the Ming family can still deny it, but can always use it to make some articles.

“Do you have any judgment about the officials and soldiers who came to the island?”

Fan Xian asked, staring into Qing Hua’s eyes. Although he knew that it was already not easy for the other party to survive on the island, and that once he was on land and had gone through a long distance, his entire body had been weakened to the extreme, he had no choice but to ask, because this fact, which was sticking in his heart like a thorn, had made him very wary.

That group of sailors, obviously aided by the Ming family, was naturally also sent by the Elder Princess, and Fan Xian was curious to know just who in the military was on the side of the Elder Princess, and he thought that His Majesty the Emperor was also very interested in this matter.

It couldn’t be Yan Xiaoyi, although Yan Xiaoyi had been appointed as Qing’s northern conquest governor with a superb position on the ninth rank, his military power had been under the close watch of the Supervisory Academy, and Fan Xian was clear that Yan Xiaoyi didn’t have much power in terms of the naval division.

“Back then, the Quanzhou navy was the strongest water force of the imperial court.” Deng Ziyue glanced at Fan Xian and said softly, “However, after the Ye family’s affair, in order to remove the Ye family’s influence in the Quanzhou naval division, the imperial court abolished the Quanzhou naval division into three, and nowadays, the Jiangnan naval division’s nominal chief court is in Shazhou, and Your Excellency should have met with the officials in that part of Shazhou, and from Shazhou, we will enter the sea to board the island to kill . . the journey is too far, and the voyage is on a large river, so it’s extremely easy to expose the traces, according to my subordinate, it shouldn’t be them.”

Fan Xian nodded his head, without any emotional fluctuations due to the two words Ye family, and turned his head to look at Qingwa.

Qingwa on the bed had white blisters bulging at the edges of his lips, and he was also trying to recall the officials and soldiers who had boarded the island that night, knowing that this matter was important enough to allow the courtyard to determine who the forces that dared to collude with the pirates actually were.

He opened his mouth with great difficulty and said, “When the official ship boarded the island, it was the moment before dawn, and the reefs around the island were many, so dark under the light of day, able to forcefully board the island, it should be a professional sailor, not a borrowed ship of the shore officials and soldiers …… subordinate once looked at the face of an official and soldiers, and looking at the contours of his face, it should be someone from the north.”

Fan Xian’s brow furrowed, “Is it possible that it was a sailor from Dong Yi City?”

Qing Wa shook his head with difficulty and reported, “They have occasionally opened their mouths to speak, not in a Dong Yi accent.”

Fan Xian looked at Deng Ziyue, seeing the trace of uneasiness in each other’s hearts, the three major naval divisions of Qing, the one in the north was the Jiaozhou Naval Division, stationed near the Shandong Road, which was strong, and if the other party was a competent general on the side of the Princess, then the strength the Princess wielded in her army appeared to be much stronger than those of her own people had previously imagined.

In Fan Xian’s mind, since the emperor has been stingy to let himself grasp a trace of military power, and has been showing such confidence and God, he is very confident that the vast majority of the Qing army’s power is in the emperor’s grasp, in such a premise, Fan Xian do things, will be more bottom line some. Now suddenly realized, the eldest princess and the imperial sons of the strength assessment has a sudden leap forward, let Fan Xian how not vigilant?

The Ye family would gradually fall to the Second Highness, and Yan Xiaoyi, the Great Governor of the Conquest of the North,…… now had an additional sailor division!

“Who are the Jiaozhou sailors?” Fan Xian asked with a frown.

Deng Ziyue lowered his voice and said, “The governor of the water division is a first rank military general, naturally, he does not need to be commanded by Yan Xiaoyi, and has never sensed any inclination on his part, after all, this man comes from the Qin family, but his relationship with Ye Chong’s lineage is not bad either.”

Fan Xian gently clenched his fist and shook his head without saying anything else, looking at the tired Qing Wa on the bed, a faint smile surfaced on his face and said, “Get well and follow me after you recover from your injuries.”

He admired this young official of the Supervisory Yuan who was able to lurk on the pirate island and managed to survive in the end, such an excellent talent should become his own close friend.

Qing Hua was shocked, not expecting that he would have such good luck after nine deaths, and for a while he froze on the bed, not knowing what to say. Until Fan Xian led the Qinian group of people out of the room, the Supervisory Yuan around the Quanzhou inspection division officials smilingly said congratulations to him, he just woke up, know that he finally came out of the head …… nightmare finally woke up.

Fan Xian is a little annoyed, today met some bad news, it seems that you have to hurry to send the courtyard newspaper back to Kyoto, so that the old Chen spirit some, do not always stay in the Chen Garden to see beautiful women …… Your successor has encountered a problem, you always have to solve it, is not it?

“My lord, there’s good news.”

Just as Fan Xian was bellyaching about his bad luck today, Deng Ziyue suppressed a trace of joy and respectfully reported.

“What news?”

“The whereabouts of that bookkeeper …… of the Junshan Society are available.”

“Where?”

“Lord wise, the news is true, that person is in …… Mingyuan.”

Fan Xian heshi sighed: “Finally something to do.”