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

Creating leverage has always been one of his strengths.

But this time...

Ning Nan sighed inwardly.

He actually knew it too.

Prince Jing is a very good card. With Prince Jing in hand, the other side can not only delay the negotiations, but also support Prince Jing and use his orders to win over a group of officials in the Southern Dynasty and create a wave of popular support.

Later, King Jing could become the emperor of the Southern Dynasty, and after a few years of transition, the throne could be abdicated.

But... Prince Jing is Cui Cui's uncle. So naturally, he can't play that card anymore; he can't say, "Let me go, and I'll hand Prince Jing over to you."

long silence.

The emperor, who loved to claim the moral high ground and enjoyed debating with others, even publishing a book on the subject, suddenly sneered:

"Water that is too clear has no fish. Although Li Wei and Wang Shijun are not exactly incorruptible officials, they are both top-notch officials handpicked by me. They are not parasites, much less cruel officials with the power of life and death!"

Ning Nan calmly said:

"Such capable officials are plentiful in our Great Liang. If Your Majesty truly has no one else to use, our dynasty can send some scholars who failed the imperial examinations..."

…………

The sun is westward.

In late spring, March, enjoying a pot of tea and basking in the sun is a very pleasant thing.

Lu Chong cracked peanuts and stood up from the second-floor private room of Du Lou.

I witnessed that carriage leaving the Prince Duan's residence about an hour ago.

He weaved through several alleys and arrived in front of the carriage, but the curtains on the side doors of the carriage seemed to be nailed shut.

The curtain at the front was also weighed down with bricks, preventing the wind from blowing it open.

Therefore, it remains impossible to determine exactly who is inside.

Lu Chong made a guess, assuming that Prince Duan was involved in the disappearance of the Southern Dynasty envoy that night.

Those who could enter the palace in a carriage with such tight security were either Prince Jing or Jia Shi'an.

Or... Lu Chong rubbed the peanuts in his hand, the peanut skins falling off in a rustling sound... that might be the Grand Prince Consort who had already been declared dead.

Others would lose face.

The old spy, with a mink coat draped over his shoulders, descended Du Lou.

As I merged into the bustling crowd, my eyes fell upon a slender figure.

The figure was slender and graceful, dressed in plain clothes... she looked like the maidservant beside the Seventeenth Princess.

And these days.

This maidservant followed the Seventeenth Princess in and out of Prince Duan's residence.

The maid entered a silk shop, seemingly intending to buy a few feet of cloth.

Lu Chong was drinking tea at a roadside stall.

Because of the custom of shaving their heads, people from the Southern Dynasties were particularly easy to identify from those from the Northern Dynasties.

Aside from Nalan Ruo, the only other person who could avoid shaving their head was the envoy from the Southern Kingdom who had just arrived in the capital.

If you just ask the maid whether the people her mistress has met these past few days have shaved their heads, you can get pretty much the gist of the matter.

I squinted and took a look.

When the other party was carrying out the silk shop.

The old spy rubbed his neck and strode after him.

…………

The first meeting with the emperor naturally ended unhappily.

However, to his surprise, the other party did not threaten him.

For example, they might say that if you don't reveal the whereabouts of King Jing, they will torture or kill you.

While sitting in the dark carriage, Ning Nan silently pondered something, fiddling with his fingers.

just now.

His task became to escape from Beijing.

If one wants to escape from Beijing, Yongzheng is an insurmountable obstacle.

Attack where the enemy must defend.

What Emperor Yongzheng cared about most was the Southern Dynasty... and Han Qing.

I tricked the other party once before using Han Qing.

But it was harder to fool them the second time.

Phew, Ning Nan exhaled a deep breath from his lungs.

Fortunately, with Han Chang and that "sister" around, at least she didn't suffer any physical pain.

I've actually thought of many plans these past few days, but no matter how much I think about it, I still can't figure out how to use 'Han Qing' to set up a trap again.

He couldn't get a chance to attack Han Qing... He interlaced his fingers in the carriage, his gaze gradually becoming deep and unfathomable... So he could only start with the Southern Dynasty.

Master Ning pursed his lips.

This... will depend on Susu and the others.

…………

Zhen Susu, her face veiled and carrying a cloth, walked from Qipan Street all the way to Chaoyangmen Street.

There is a Sihe Restaurant on Chaoyangmen Street.

The owner of Sihe Restaurant is surnamed Shi.

His name is Shi Sidong.

The restaurant was small, and business had always been lukewarm.

However, being located in the capital city, and in such a prime location, Sihe Restaurant managed to get by.

These past few days, the shopkeeper has been somewhat uneasy.

When guests come to pay their bills, the abacus is used more slowly than usual.

When Zhen Susu passed by the Sihe Restaurant.

A young customer dressed in silk was about to enter the restaurant.

Bang!

A young customer accidentally bumped into the cloth being held by the graceful young lady.

Clang!

The silk cloth fell.

"what!"

Zhen Susu exclaimed in surprise, then looked at the young guest reproachfully.

"I'm so sorry!" The young man quickly knelt down and helped Zhen Susu pick up the piece of cloth, saying awkwardly, "I'm so sorry, I was so rude, so rude..."

Zhen Susu took the cloth and snorted, "Get lost!"

That's all.

Holding the cloth, they continued walking towards a wine shop ahead.

The young man, with a letter hidden in his sleeve, entered the Sihe Restaurant.

Not far from them.

The old spy frowned as he watched this scene.

He turned around and said to the tea vendor by the roadside, "Brother, please."

The peddler, a secret guard of the Sticky Rod Bureau, withdrew his gaze from the corner of his eye and looked at the middle-aged man in front of him with some surprise.

Lu Chong pointed to Zhen Susu ahead, took out two taels of silver from his pocket, and whispered, "Brother, to be honest, you have sharp eyes. We thought that girl looked like she came from a wealthy family, so we followed her all the way..."

The vendor glanced at the silver in his hand and rolled his eyes: "The capital, the most prestigious city, you dare to swindle money here?"

Lu Chong smiled and said:

"How dare I? I'm an old Manchu from Ningguta in Liaodong, and I'm too old to do such a thing."

"I just thought this girl came from a wealthy family, so I wanted to follow her around to see which household she was from, and maybe ask her to put in a good word for the lady of the house to buy one of our old ginseng roots. You know how it is with the ladies of wealthy families; if they see that we're being respectful, they'll spend money like dirt. But we don't know what kind of temperament this young lady has, so we don't dare to give her anything casually."

The vendor glanced at him, nodded, and said, "You're right. Without a middleman in the capital, it's best not to give gifts to people for no reason. Otherwise, if they're not in a good mood and think you have malicious intentions, they might report you to the authorities, and you'll be the one who suffers."

We chatted for a while.

Lu Chong nodded repeatedly as he listened.

He stuffed the silver into the vendor's hand and said, "Brother is right. I'll follow that girl and find the steward of their household."

The vendor weighed the silver in his hand and laughed, "Now that's more like it!"

Holding the cloth, the girl who had bought the wine walked back.

After drinking a bowl of tea at the vendor's stall, Lu Chong followed him.

Not long after Lu Chong left.

Shi Sidong, the restaurant owner, walked out looking nervous.

Arriving at the tea vendor, he loudly ordered a bowl of tea, then bent down and stretched out his sleeve, revealing a letter he had just received.

"A letter from the south... instructs me to deliver it to the mission..."

The vendor took the letter.

Zhen Susu wrote this letter down. According to someone, it was written three days ago. Following the method of aging, it was deliberately left to dry for three days to make it look like a letter that had been written for about ten days. When the sun was setting, it arrived at the desk of Mu Shu, the first-rank official in charge of the Sticky Rod Office.