Daqian Night Emperor

Chapter 87 Why does this sound so familiar?

If there was anyone who was the most unhappy on Zhao Qi'an's first day in office, it would definitely be Xinning Earl Ji Hengyi, who was also the Temple Secretary.

Ji Hengyi sat behind his desk, looking at Zhao Qian'an with a bit of resentment in his eyes.

I really embarrassed myself today...

Even now, his face still felt hot. The slap from the Duke of England was quite powerful.

But whether it's shame or humiliation, these are not the key points!

Ji Hengyi glanced at Zhao Qi'an's men in the library from time to time, with fear in his eyes.

"Something's wrong. This fuss of Zhao Qi'an... How can this be called 'just for reference'? It's obvious that he's coming for the book library!"

Ji Hengyi knew best what secrets were hidden in the book library.

He panicked, and more thoughts popped up in his mind: "Could it be that His Majesty had already noticed the clues of Zongzheng Temple, so he sent this Zhao to check the accounts? It's very likely, otherwise why would he send this Zhao to Zongzheng Temple for no reason?"

If you think about it this way, the logic is self-consistent.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this was the case.

At this point, Ji Hengyi could no longer sit still and felt like he was sitting on pins and needles.

During the lunch break, he changed out of his official uniform and walked out of the yamen.

Coming out of the Zongzheng Temple and passing the "Qianbu Gallery", there is a tavern.

This tavern is not of high quality, so high-ranking officials naturally disdain to come here, but some minor officials and clerks from various departments like to come here the most.

It’s simple, just affordable.

Ji Hengyi usually liked to come to this restaurant to eat, but today he had no mood to eat and walked away quickly.

But as he hurried past, he did not notice that the familiar waiters in the tavern had been replaced by unfamiliar faces.

Even the signboard had been refurbished, and it was obvious that the store had been sold along with it.

He didn't notice it either as he hurriedly passed by the tavern.

The two men who were drinking and chatting at a table outside the tavern looked at each other, put down their wine bowls, then stood up and followed the direction Ji Hengyi left.

Ji Hengyi did not notice that someone was following him. After leaving the inner city, he hired a sedan bearer to take him to the east of the city.

After arriving at the east of the city, he made many detours and finally came to a building with carved beams and painted rafters.

Ji Hengyi walked in without thinking.

Not long after he went in, the two men came out from the darkness and looked up at the plaque of the building. On the high-hanging plaque, they saw four large gold-plated characters written in a flamboyant style - "Ruyi Casino".

……

In the gambling house, noisy voices, the rolling sounds of dice, and the collision of Pai Gow cards came like a tide.

At each table, gamblers were either shouting excitedly or looking dejected, with all kinds of expressions on display.

Ji Hengyi was so excited that he felt itchy and wanted to play a few rounds himself.

Just at this time, a servant came forward and greeted him with a smile: "Ji Sicheng, you haven't been here for a while. Are you still playing Pai Gow today?"

Ji Hengyi shook his head and said in a low voice: "I have something important to discuss. I need to see Mr. Gao."

"Second Master said that if you want to borrow money, he won't see you."

"No, I have something important to do."

The servant looked at Ji Hengyi's anxious expression and saw that he was not pretending. He nodded and said, "Then please wait a moment. I will inform you."

Ji Hengyi had no choice but to agree.

When the boy went in to report, he heard the gamblers at the nearby gambling table shouting in unison:

"Little, little, little!"

Ji Hengyi couldn't help but touch his arms and felt a few pieces of silver.

He had just borrowed this money from a good friend today, and was going to leave it for his wife at home. However, this little money would not last until the next salary, so he might as well...

……

When the servant came back, he found that Ji Hengyi was not there. He was stunned for a while and looked around for a while before he saw Ji Hengyi in front of the gambling table nearby.

"big big big!"

Ji Hengyi's eyes were red, and he shouted in unison with the gamblers around him.

But in the end, the dice player opened the dice cup, glanced at the number, and shouted in a long voice: "Three three one, seven small~"

Ji Hengyi's mentality suddenly collapsed. He watched helplessly as his few pieces of silver were taken away. He subconsciously touched his pocket, but found nothing.

"Ji Sicheng, Ji Sicheng... stop playing around, the Second Master wants to see you!"

The servant called Ji Hengyi several times, but he seemed to have lost his soul. It was not until he heard the name "Master Gao" that he came back to his senses with a start.

Ji Hengyi glanced at the gambling table reluctantly, then said, "Let's go."

The servant led him in front and took him to the back hall.

……

In the back hall of the gambling house, several strong men were shirtless. Two of them were practicing with weapons, sweating all over.

As soon as Ji Hengyi came in, he was stared at by those burly men, and cold sweat immediately ran down his back.

He walked behind the servant with his head lowered like a quail.

When they arrived at the door of a room, the servant knocked on the door and said, "Second Master, Ji Sicheng is here."

"Come in."

When the door opened, Ji Hengyi finally met the "Second Master Gao" as he wished.

Mr. Gao was nearly fifty years old, rather thin, with long, shriveled cheeks, like a donkey's face.

He was dressed in a brocade robe with dark patterns, the collar and cuffs were embroidered with delicate golden threads, and he wore a large jade ring on his hand, as if he wanted to wear his wealth and power on his body so that everyone who saw him could see it at first glance.

After Ji Hengyi entered the house and was about to pay his respects, he was stunned when he saw boxes of gold and silver on the ground.

Master Gao didn't even look at him, and said to another person in the room, "Send these to the eastern suburbs. Also send the last batch of goods. Remember to pick out the good-looking ones, and don't send all the ugly ones. If we offend the nobles, we won't be able to bear the consequences!"

The man in the room bowed and said, "Yes, Second Master, I will do it myself."

"Ah."

After finishing his explanation, Mr. Gao sat down on the chair, took the tea handed to him by the maid, lowered his eyes and said, "Ji Sicheng, are you here today to pay back the money?"

"I……"

This sentence immediately embarrassed Ji Hengyi.

Master Gao chuckled and said, "There's no rush to pay back the money. Has the last subsidy from the court arrived? Let's still follow the old rules, how about that?"

Ji Hengyi's eyes suddenly showed panic, and he quickly shook his head: "I'm afraid this matter can't be done, His Majesty has sent people to the Zongzheng Temple to investigate!"

This sentence immediately made Master Gao frown and asked, "Really?"

Ji Hengyi nodded repeatedly: "It's probably true."

"Eighty percent? You're not sure?"

Seeing that Mr. Gao's face darkened, Ji Hengyi quickly recounted everything about Zhao Qi'an's taking office today.

When Mr. Gao Er heard the name "Zhao Qi'an", he still looked disdainful.

But when he heard the face of the attendant following Zhao Qian'an, he was startled and his eyes widened.

He is short and ugly, with a rat-like face and a hunchback...

Why does this sound so familiar?
(End of this chapter)