Film and TV: People in Joy of Life become stronger by reading

Chapter 118: Borrowing a knife to kill someone, all calculated
Xue Qing first glanced behind Li Chengping and found that he only had one guard with him. The panic on his face gradually disappeared.

"Your Highness, you may not know that recently there have been people impersonating officials to commit fraud in Jiangnan Road. This has annoyed me a lot, so I said that."

"Yes, Your Highness, there are many such scammers in Suzhou City recently. You must be careful to avoid being cheated!"

Zou Lei followed suit.

Seeing the two of them singing in unison, Li Chengping decided to continue the show with them.

"I see. I must have misunderstood you two adults. Please stand up."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

The two men stood up and brushed the dust off their knees. Xue Qing bowed and smiled.

"Your Highness, why did you suddenly think of coming to Jiangnan without informing me in advance so that I could send someone to greet you?"

"No need, someone has already greeted us on the way here."

Li Chengping spoke indifferently, glanced at the two of them, and a layer of coldness appeared on his face.

"You two are such a good magistrate!"

"When I came here, we were attacked by pirates and our boats were sunk. These bandits are so rampant, and you, as officials, are still in the mood to drink and have fun here!"

The two looked at each other and their hearts skipped a beat.

"Your Highness, you don't know that although Suzhou is prosperous, the relationships here are complicated and more than 90% of the business is controlled by the Ming family."

"And the Ming family is the controller of the three major districts in Jiangnan and has direct connections with the inner treasury. It is said that the Ming family has a close relationship with the eldest princess and the crown prince."

"We are just small local officials. We can't afford to offend them!"

Xue Qing said with a sigh.

"Yes, Your Highness, that pirate seems to have some connection with the Ming family. Due to the power of the Ming family, we are powerless!"

Seeing the exquisite cooperation between the two, a barely perceptible sneer flashed in Li Chengping's eyes, and he pretended to be angry.

"How dare a mere Ming Jia'an be so arrogant? Arrange someone to go to the Ming family to report. I have arranged a meeting with them at Jinghu Tea House this afternoon!"

After saying that, he flicked his sleeves and turned to leave.

The two of them walked him to the door, and only when Li Chengping disappeared did they look away.

"Lord Zou, why did the Third Prince suddenly visit Jiangnan? There is no news from the court."

Xue Qing frowned.

He was the governor of Jiangnan Road, a high-ranking official.

Unless there are special circumstances, we cannot contact the court at will, so we don’t know much about the news in the court.

Zou Lei is different.

As the Censor of Jiangnan Road of the Censorate, his duty was to supervise whether the governor had committed any illegal acts during his tenure.

He was in frequent contact with the capital, and from time to time he would learn about the changing situation in the capital from his colleagues in the Censorate.

Although the situation in the capital is changing rapidly, at least it allows them to take precautions.

"Governor, don't panic. His Majesty has indeed not sent the Third Prince to Jiangnan."

"From what I know, the Third Prince is heading to Dongyi City to capture the murderer."

"Perhaps he encountered a setback in Dongyi City, and when he went south to Jiangnan, he was attacked by pirates, so he was so angry."

"As long as we find a way to solve this problem, the Third Prince will leave and return to the capital to report."

"What's more, we can also take advantage of the Third Prince's anger and punish the Ming family!"

Zou Lei smiled faintly.

Although he and the Ming family are somewhat cousins, there are no fathers and sons in the officialdom, not to mention this fragile network of relationships.

"Brother Zou's plan is indeed a good one. Not only does it solve the problem of the Third Prince, but it also gives the Ming family a warning. This way, even if the Ming family has any complaints, it has nothing to do with us!"

Xue Qing's eyes lit up.

Over the years, the Ming family relied on the support of the crown prince and the eldest princess, and sometimes even ignored him as the governor. He had been paying attention to the bandits for a long time, but due to the complicated relationship between them, he had never been able to take action. Now Li Chengping came forward and gave him this opportunity.

"Someone, go to the Ming family and tell them to meet at Jinghu Tea House at 3 p.m. this afternoon. A big shot from the capital wants to see them!"

After leaving the Governor's Mansion, Li Chengping took a carriage back to the manor.

"Your Highness, why don't we go directly to the Ming family? Why do we have to wait until the afternoon?" Zhang Han was a little confused.

"Don't worry. Anyway, we know all the things they did. There is no need to rush. It would be better to let them fight each other."

Li Chengping smiled faintly.

The Ming family has been rampant in Jiangnan for a long time. Governor Xue Qing must have some complaints in his heart, but both sides have been forbearing. In this case, he doesn't mind giving it a push and letting the fire burn!

Mingyuan.

As a landmark building of the Ming Dynasty, its materials and design are so ingenious that it is praised by people all over the world as one of the three most beautiful and luxurious private buildings in the world besides the Imperial Palace.

In the main hall.

Ming Qingda, the head of the Ming family, sat in the main seat, looking at the steward of the Governor's Mansion with a slightly strange expression.

"You mean Governor Xue asked me to meet him at Jinghu Tea House this afternoon?"

"It's not Governor Xue who is inviting you. It's an important person from the capital. Mr. Ming, I have delivered the message. It's up to you to decide whether to go or not."

Looking at the butler's back as he left, Ming Qingda fell into deep thought.

Just then, the sound of a cane tapping on the ground was heard.

Old Lady Ming walked in supported by her maid.

Ming Qingda shuddered, quickly stood up, walked over and bowed deeply to the old lady.

"The child has seen his mother."

"No need to be polite, just get up."

Old Lady Ming had a kind face and reached out her hand to help Ming Qingda up.

The maid saw everything and thought that the mother and son of the Ming family got along very harmoniously.

"You go down first."

Ming Qingda waved at the maid, stepped forward and helped Old Lady Ming to sit down slowly.

When he looked up again, the smile on Old Lady Ming's face had turned cold.

Ming Qingda naturally understood the reason and quickly told him the news he had just received.

"A big shot from the capital? Have you received any new news recently?" Old Lady Ming frowned.

"To answer mother, I have not received any news that any important person from the capital is coming to Jiangnan."

"In that case, you can go to Jinghu Tea House this afternoon to see what tricks Xue Qing is up to."

"Yes!"

The conversation between the two was simple and clear. There was no affection between the mother and son just now, but it sounded extremely cold.

At this moment, Ming Qingda acted like an obedient servant!

……

The hour of Wei arrives in a flash.

Jinghu Tea House, under a pavilion.

Xue Qing and Zou Lei arrived early and were waiting. As they were chatting, they suddenly heard a familiar voice from behind them.

"Haha, my two adults, what a coincidence! I didn't expect to meet here!"

Ming Qingda came over with a smile on his face, but his seemingly calm heart was actually filled with turbulence.

Originally he thought that this was just an excuse made by Xue Qing, but seeing the two of them arriving so early, he couldn't help but be curious about the identity of that big shot.

(End of this chapter)