After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

Her black hair cascaded down as she walked to Ning Nan's side, gracefully bowed, and poured him a cup of wine with her jade-like hand, then poured one for herself. Her voice was soft and boneless as she said:

"This humble woman, Zhu Ning, possesses talent that rivals both the ancient and modern, and her fame spreads far and wide."

She raised her glass, made a toast, and then gently lifted her veil to reveal a beautiful face that only Ning Nan could see, with fair and delicate skin.

The woman parted her red lips slightly, tilted her head back a little, revealing her fair neck glistening with sweat, and slowly drank the wine in her glass.

The rim of the cup was just off my lips, and a bright red rouge mark remained on the mouth of the cup.

Ning Nan's face stiffened.

Li Wei laughed heartily and said, "Since Lady Zhen has offered me a toast, how could Vice Envoy Ning possibly refuse such a beautiful woman's offer?"

For a moment, the officials of the Northern Dynasty looked at Ningnan with envy, and at the same time, they all started to make a fuss.

Ning Nan looked slightly embarrassed, but still took a sip of the wine. After moistening his throat, he lifted the glass from his lips and smiled:

"Thank you, Madam Zhen."

At this moment, the young woman, her face veiled, looked at him with sparkling eyes, her excitement palpable. She leaned slightly towards him and said in a very low voice, suppressing her excitement:

"Young Master Ning... I... I'm not surnamed Zhen... My surname is Li... My given name... um... my given name is Xinlian... I begged Sister Zhen for a long time... and she finally taught me this dance so I could take her place... Um... Thank you, Young Master Ning..."

Having said that, the veiled young woman blushed and lowered her head, then stood up and gracefully left... leaving Ning Nan standing there, his lips half-open, frozen in place.

The banquet lasted until after midnight before finally ending with everyone enjoying themselves.

The Southern Dynasty delegation was accommodated in a residence called "Crane Garden," which was right next to the government office.

Ning Nan's residence was in the east wing of Heyuan Yaji Courtyard, while Master Xu, the physician he had specially hired, was arranged to stay in the west wing.

"Li Xinlian is Li Wei's adopted daughter," Xu Xiyin nodded.

Ning Nan picked up the teacup: "Adopted daughter?"

Xu Xiyin sat opposite him and said:

"That's right. I've already sent people to inquire about it. This matter was quite significant two days ago. I heard that Li Xinlian's original surname was Fang, and she is the daughter of Li Wei's old friend."

"After this friend surnamed Fang passed away, he entrusted his four-year-old daughter to Li Wei, who raised her with his wife. Two days ago, Li Wei held a grand banquet to formally adopt the girl as his daughter, giving her the surname Li. He plans to find her a husband later."

Ning Nan took a sip of tea and smiled, "What a coincidence?"

Xu Xiyin flicked her whisk and frowned, "I also think it's a bit of a coincidence."

Just two days before the delegation arrived, they adopted a goddaughter.

"Does Li Wei have a biological daughter?" Ning Nan asked curiously.

Xu Xiyin paused for a moment before saying, "I have five sons. As for a daughter, I heard I had one, but she died very young; she was born to a concubine."

The delegation left the day after tomorrow, so Ning Nan stopped thinking about it and smiled:

"Alright. Master Xu, if that Miss Xinlian comes looking for me, I'll have to trouble you to deal with her."

Xu Xiyin blushed slightly. How could her poetry skills compare to those of the leader?

"Rest assured, Master," the female Taoist priest said, forcing herself to speak.

After seeing Xu Xiyin off.

Ning Nan drank quite a bit of alcohol and felt a little dizzy, so he went to bed.

In a hazy state, he heard shouts of battle, the sound of drums and cannons, and hurried footsteps.

Every now and then, a distant shout could be heard: "Take them alive..." or "Don't hurt anyone..."

The sound was very loud, but he had been drinking, and for a moment he couldn't tell whether what he was hearing was real or a dream.

The next day, it was broad daylight.

When Zhang Yaojie and his men came to his courtyard to report, he realized that the voice from last night was not a dream... it was all real.

Last night... Li Wei was assassinated.

Most of the assassins who tried to kill him died, but some escaped.

The person Zhang Yaojie brought to pay his respects was the head constable of Huai'an City.

The patrolling constable first bowed and kowtowed to him, then said with great embarrassment that the governance of Huai'an was inadequate, which had disturbed your esteemed delegation. He then assured your delegation that he had brought two hundred men and would thoroughly search Crane Garden, ensuring that the thieves would have no chance to disturb you!

Ning Nan narrowed his eyes slightly.

Two hundred people? ...This person is probably not a city patrol officer at all, but a city garrison general or something like that.

Li Wei wanted to send people to Heyuan to search for the escaped thieves, but he was afraid that the delegation would not agree, so he used this as a pretext.

Ning Nan thought for a moment, then said to Zhang Yaojie, "Lord Jing, Lords Jia, Wu, Zhao, and Jiang, and Lady Xu, the female Taoist priest, you, Commander Zhang, will lead your men to check for dangers in these places. This constable brother can witness from the outside, but he is not allowed to go in. As for the rest of the places..."

Ning Nan gave a thumbs-up, first pointing to the east wing where he was.

"Brothers, feel free to search as much as you like. Hmm, let's start with Ning's room."

The constable, whose eyebrows and eyes were rather broad, quickly kowtowed and thanked him.

Ning Nan didn't say much more and strode out, with Qian Sijin and the other Imperial Guards following closely behind.

Martial law has been declared in Huai'an.

When Ning Nan arrived at Zhe Liu Lou on the shore of Xiao Hu Lake, he saw soldiers with long spears rushing past in groups.

They are searching everywhere for the thief who assassinated the Governor-General of Jiangnan last night.

"Assassination?"

Ning Nan arrived at the private room of Zhe Liu Lou and asked Qian Sijin in a low voice.

"Is it related to the Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

Qian Sijin quickly shook his head: "Young Master is heading north to Huai'an. The Embroidered Uniform Guard will not cause any trouble at this time."

Ning Nan hummed in agreement.

He frowned; Li Wei had offended quite a few people.

In order to successfully implement policies such as the land tax reform for Emperor Yongzheng, he offended countless people.

It's likely that many of the salt merchants in Huai'an harbored deep-seated hatred for each other.

After all, Li Wei was truly willing to push them to the brink of death in order to raise grain and silver to support the war between the imperial court and the Rakshasa people.

The private room in Zheliu Tower faced Xiaohu Lake, where mist hung over the surface. However, it was winter, and the air was bitterly cold. After a short while, he closed the window.

Knock, knock, knock, someone is knocking on the door.

Qian Sijin went to open the door.

Three waiters each brought in a dish to serve.

Both were rather plump.

The other person was of medium build and dressed as a waiter, but his noble air was still undeniable.

Chen Ruhai and Fatty Chu, disguised as waiters, introduced Ning Nan to them:

"Young master, this is..." Chen Ruhai introduced the man of medium build by spreading his hands.

"That's none other than Zheng Gu, the renowned head of the Huai'an Salt Gang!"

Ning Nan immediately stood up, and with a courtesy uncommon in this era, firmly grasped the other person's hand, smiling warmly, "I am Ning Baixuan! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

…………

Crane Garden.

Yajiyuan.

West Wing

"What is this?" a rather charming and weak voice asked.

Xu Xiyin sat at the round table, cleaned the wound on the other person's left arm from the arrow, and then gave her a little penicillin.

"Don't worry about it."

The female Taoist priest calmly addressed the woman dressed in black, whose hair was tied up with a wooden hairpin.

"If this humble Taoist priest tells you to submit, then submit."

The woman's cheeks were thin and her skin was deathly pale. She glanced at her and smiled:

"Oh, Sister Xu, it's been so long! You're still as hot-tempered as ever. I've been telling you to find a man soon, but you wouldn't listen. I know plenty of good men in the capital, how about...?"

"Li Susu,"

Xu Xiyin bandaged the wound on the other person's left arm and calmly interrupted:

"Call me Auntie."

The woman rolled her eyes: "Call me Zhen Susu."