Chapter 397 Learn from Chen Pingping (Two in One)
The little emperor seemed unaware and continued asking.
"How does that compare to your Nanqing?"
"There's no comparison. The palace walls of Nanqing are much shorter than here, and the place near the ditch smells like horse urine. So, should we get to the point, Your Majesty?"
Fan Xian ended the topic by self-deprecating himself. The little emperor wanted to make up for the loss of the national war in other ways, so just satisfy him. It was just talk anyway, so it wouldn't hurt anything.
Sure enough, after he said this, a look of embarrassment and speechlessness appeared on the little emperor's face. After a pause, he smiled and shook his head.
"It seems that Master Fan is in a hurry. Well, I won't waste time on this."
As he spoke, the little emperor leaned forward, picked up the teapot on the table and filled it with tea for Fan Xian and Mei Cheng'an, pouring the tea as he spoke.
"I heard from my junior sister that you two want to cooperate with me. I am quite interested in this. I wonder how you two would like to cooperate?"
……
"Your Majesty only wanted to keep them to chat because he liked their poetry and writing. Don't worry too much."
The Northern Qi Queen Mother sat back on the Fengyi throne and gently comforted the Jinyiwei pacification envoy Shen Zhong who was standing in the hall with a worried look on his face.
Shen Zhong's face still showed worry when he heard this, and he thought for a while and said.
"But those two are the inspectors of the Overwatch Council, and they are quite scheming and cunning. If they meet with Your Majesty alone, I'm afraid..."
Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by the Queen Mother of Northern Qi.
"We are not meeting alone. I have asked Haitang to come with us."
Shen Zhong was stunned for a moment and then secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"With the Saint here, it's fine."
The Queen Mother of Northern Qi said quietly.
"With Haitang accompanying them, I think His Majesty, Fan Xian, and Mei Cheng'an won't be able to tell any secrets."
……
Fan Xian and Mei Cheng'an looked at each other, and Mei Cheng'an spoke.
"How would you like to cooperate, Your Majesty?"
Proposing conditions first would be very passive. Although they were the first to propose cooperation, the initiative of whether to say it or not is still in the hands of the young emperor of Northern Qi. The best strategy is to first listen to what he requires and then put forward your own requirements based on his requirements.
The little emperor didn't hesitate to hear that and put down the teapot.
"Shen Zhong and his party have great power in the government and the country, and their minions are everywhere, but they are also loyal to my mother. I have suffered for a long time."
Fan Xian raised his eyebrows.
"Your Majesty wants us to help deal with Shen Zhong?"
The little emperor snapped his fingers and smiled.
"Yes, this is my condition, what do you think?"
Fan Xian thought about it and asked doubtfully.
"To deal with him... Since Your Majesty doesn't like him, why not just remove him from office? An emperor should have some power."
These words seemed to touch the little emperor's sore spot. Haitang hissed and glared at him, wondering if he could speak.
Fan Xian was completely confused by the stare, but the little emperor himself didn't mind too much. He smiled and waved at Haitang.
"It's not that simple. One move can affect the entire body. Shen Zhong has many connections behind him, and he has the Queen Mother to protect him. How can it be easy?"
Fan Xian spread his hands upon hearing this.
"If that's the case, what else can we do?"
Mei Cheng'an changed his words and asked another question.
"How does your majesty want us to deal with Shen Zhong?"
The little emperor glanced at the two of them and smiled.
"I heard that Master Fan once fought Sean single-handedly at the border and defeated him, and Master Mei..."
After a pause, the little emperor raised the corner of his mouth and glanced at Haitang.
"You are so skilled that even Junior Sister-in-law can't defeat you. With your skills, it shouldn't be difficult for you to kill Shen Zhong."
Fan Xian rolled his eyes and pointed at Haitang.
"Your Majesty, why bother to go far away? Miss Haitang's skills are far beyond our reach. Isn't her attack simpler than ours?"
The little emperor smiled.
"Now that the young nun has taken action, will the queen mother still believe her?"
After thinking for a while, Fan Xian asked again.
"Your Majesty, do you have no other experts under your command? That's impossible!"
The little emperor shook his head, picked up the teacup, took a sip, swallowed it slowly, put the teacup down, and then spoke.
"My men know Shen Zhong very well. Once he is mobilized, he will be alert immediately."
Fan Xian looked a little speechless, the road was really blocked.
"So, it is best for us to take action. We are from Qing country and we are only on a diplomatic mission. No one will be linked to us if we kill Shen Zhong because it will not benefit us in any way. No one will suspect your Majesty because your Majesty's people are being watched."
The little emperor's mouth curled up.
"Yes, do you agree?"
Fan Xian looked at his fellow villager and gave him a questioning look.
How to say?
Mei Cheng'an shook his head slightly and looked at the little emperor.
"Killing him is not difficult, but after killing him, how can your majesty guarantee our safety?"
Fan Xian was stunned for a moment when he heard this, as if thinking about something.
The little emperor was also stunned for a moment, then smiled.
"I can guarantee that if you kill Shen Zhong, it will never implicate you or the delegation."
Mei Chengan asked again.
"If your majesty regrets it later, there is nothing we can do."
"..."
The little emperor looked at him speechlessly.
Fan Xian followed up.
"Yes, if His Majesty regrets it later, we don't seem to have any means to retaliate. At that time, His Majesty will put the blame on us and behead us in public, which will win people's hearts, but we will die in a foreign land."
"..."
The little emperor was doubly speechless.
Haitang was also speechless. She rolled her eyes at the two of them and then looked at her little emperor and spoke.
"I told you that they are both cunning and mean, but Your Majesty didn't believe it before. You always thought that I was prejudiced against them because I suffered a loss. Now, Your Majesty should believe it."
The little emperor nodded silently.
Haitang glanced at the two of them again and snorted.
"Judge a gentleman by your own mean standards!"
Mei Chengan: “…”
Fan Xian: "..."
The two looked at each other, and Fan Xian opened his mouth to refute.
"You can't say that. We have to consider all aspects before doing anything. We should be careful first and then be gentlemen."
The little emperor spoke.
"So what do you mean?"
Fan Xian thought for a moment and looked at his fellow villager. He didn't understand what his fellow villager wanted to say for a moment, so he just cooperated subconsciously.
Mei Cheng'an didn't keep anyone in suspense.
“It’s not that we don’t trust your Majesty’s character, but we cannot risk the lives of our delegation and the reputation of Qing.
Our intention is very simple. Killing Shen Zhong is too risky for us. Although we proposed the cooperation, we are also prepared for the risk. We can take the risk, but it is not worth taking such a big risk. After all, all we want is to successfully bring Yan Bingyun back and complete the mission of the delegation. "
The little emperor said.
"Yan Bingyun is in Shen Zhong's hands!"
Fan Xian roughly understood his fellow villager's idea. He wanted to make a fuss about the unequal risks taken by both parties. He responded immediately after hearing this.
"But he will let go sooner or later!"
"Even if it's your country's queen mother, you wouldn't want to fight another war over such a small matter, right?"
The little emperor smiled and said meaningfully.
"People will be released, but it's hard to say when."
Fan Xian understood the underlying meaning of his words, knowing that another unknown change had occurred, but he pretended not to understand. If his momentum weakened at this moment, he would be caught.
"Even if he can delay until we leave Beijing, it will only take seven or eight days at most. It won't take long for the agreement between the two sides to be implemented."
The little emperor smiled and was about to say something when Haitang beside him suddenly spoke.
"You can't leave even after the agreement is implemented!"
Fan Xian was stunned when he heard this. Mei Cheng'an raised his eyebrows and showed a hint of surprise in his eyes. The little emperor was also stunned for a moment. After looking at Haitang, he shook his head speechlessly, but didn't say anything.
"What do you mean?"
Fan Xian looked at Haitang with a question mark on his face.
Haitang opened her mouth and was about to say something, but then she closed it again as she thought of something and turned to look at the little emperor.
I've already said it, why are you still looking at me now?
The little emperor smiled helplessly and waved his hand.
"Little Sister, please feel free to speak."
Haitang nodded and looked at the two of them.
"The Queen Mother's birthday is coming soon. The letter asking you to stay in the capital to celebrate her birthday was sent to Nanqing several days ago. The reply was received the day before yesterday, and your emperor has agreed."
"..."
Fan Xian was quite speechless.
Mei Cheng'an didn't feel speechless, but just a little dazed, remembering the confusion he had when he saw this plot in the drama in his previous life.
Fan Xian had just arrived in Kyoto and had just visited the imperial palace, but the letter that the delegation wanted to leave in Beijing had to go back and forth between the capitals of the two countries thousands of miles apart. This was too unreasonable.
At that time, I thought it was just a small bug in the play, but now I finally understand what happened. It seems that Shen Zhong had long had the idea of keeping the delegation in Shangjing to delay time, and he arranged this matter in advance. He was prepared for a rainy day, which was quite something.
Fan Xian also thought of this, and in his heart he cursed his elder Shen Zhong. After he finished cursing and felt a little better, he spoke.
"How long is it until your Queen Mother's birthday?" "Three months."
"Seize the young master?"
Fan Xian stood up with his eyes wide open.
Haitang raised her head slightly and looked at him calmly.
"The Queen Mother's birthday is in late October. You can calculate it yourself."
"..."
The corners of Fan Xian's mouth twitched, and he was extremely puzzled. He wondered if his Majesty had lost his mind to agree to such a thing.
Can't we send another group of people to celebrate the birthday? Three months is more than enough time, must they be the ones? Don't you understand that delays will lead to changes?
This guy is afraid that they will complete the task too easily, so he has to make it more difficult for them, right? I am so speechless!
"Cough cough~"
Mei Chengan seemed to choke while drinking tea. He put down the teacup, tilted his head to cover his mouth and coughed twice.
Hearing the voice, Fan Xian looked down at him, thought for a moment, and then sat down sullenly. Haitang glanced at him, then picked up the handkerchief on the table and handed it to him.
"Is everything okay?"
"It's okay, I just choked accidentally."
Mei Cheng'an took the handkerchief and simply wiped the corners of his mouth and hands before putting it down. He picked up the teacup and started drinking again, as if nothing had happened just now.
The little emperor glanced at him and smiled at Fan Xian.
"You two, now we can have a good talk."
……
Qingguo, Taiping Villa Lakeside Pavilion.
Emperor Qing was standing by the railing in a red robe. He held the tail end of the fishing rod in his right hand and flicked it lightly into the lake. The hook sank into the water, causing ripples. Chen Pingping was sitting on the right side of Emperor Qing in a wheelchair with a fishing rod in front of him. Eunuch Hou was standing quietly behind them. On the left side of Emperor Qing, there was an empty stool with a fishing rod leaning against the railing next to it, as if waiting for its owner to arrive.
An unexpected guest arrived in this quiet occasion, it was Gong Dian.
"Your Majesty, Minister Fan has arrived."
Emperor Qing didn't even turn his head when he heard this.
"Xuan!"
As they were talking, Fan Jian walked along the winding path and stood outside the pavilion. Gong Dian turned sideways, bowed to him and left. Fan Jian nodded, waited for him to leave, and swaggered into the pavilion. He glanced at the empty seat and fishing rod next to Emperor Qing, then stood behind Chen Pingping and teased in a relaxed tone.
"What's the matter, Dean Chen? Did you know I was coming?"
Chen Pingping leaned against the wheelchair and tilted his head towards him. After he finished speaking, he looked up at Emperor Qing, smiled, and replied in a gentle voice.
"How can I have such ability?"
Fan Jian opened his mouth and was about to say something when Emperor Qing's voice suddenly came from the side and interrupted him.
Upon hearing this, Fan Jian's expression became serious and he turned to look at Emperor Qing.
"Your Majesty, Northern Qi clearly has other intentions in wanting to keep Fan Xian."
Emperor Qing turned around and looked at him speechlessly. What did he mean? He was just joking and bickering with Chen Pingping, but he was serious when talking to him, and complained indignantly. The two were quite different.
Fan Jian's complaints continued.
"In the enemy's capital, staying one more day means more risk, not to mention three months. Why did you agree to this?"
Emperor Qing waved his hands in pain.
"Okay, okay, you're talking too much. Sit down and fish!"
After saying that, he turned around and stopped looking at him. Eunuch Hou stepped forward at the right time and moved the chair behind Emperor Qing slightly forward, then helped Emperor Qing sit down.
Fan Jian was speechless and stood there depressed for a while. He sighed and walked towards the empty seat on the left side of Emperor Qing. He sat down reluctantly. Eunuch Hou helped him get the fishing net and bucket.
Sitting in his seat and looking at the lake in front of him for a while, Fan Jian looked down at the fishing rod in front of him. He sighed again and reached out to pick it up. He looked at the hook, confirmed that there was bait on it, moved his wrist, and threw it out.
Fishing is a quiet activity. A qualified fisherman is always patient and can always endure silence.
As the initiator of the event, Emperor Qing could bear it, Chen Pingping could bear it, and Fan Jian could actually bear it too under normal circumstances. However, he was now full of questions, especially after Emperor Qing avoided answering his questions. Not only did his questions not get answered, but he also accumulated a lot of frustration. So as time went by, the more he fished, the more annoyed he looked, and he was almost scratching his ears and cheeks.
Emperor Qing secretly glanced at him twice, and seeing him like that, he couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth, but after a moment he retracted it and suddenly spoke.
"If this person's mind is not at peace, the fish won't take the bait."
Fan Jian knew that Emperor Qing was pointing at him. He raised his eyebrows and glanced at the bucket under Emperor Qing's feet. Seeing that there was only a pool of clear water, he chuckled and retorted.
"Your Majesty, haven't you caught any fish in such a long time?"
Translated into plain language, this means that no one has caught any fish and we are all noobs, so what qualifications do you have to show off in front of me?
Emperor Qing said calmly.
"There are no fish in this lake."
Fan Jian was startled when he heard this. His already dark face instantly became even darker. He glanced at the lake and spoke in a muffled voice.
"So what are we fishing for while we sit here?"
Emperor Qing glanced at him indifferently and spoke word by word.
"Fishing for the past!"
"..."
Fan Jian's face was as black as the bottom of a pot at this moment, and he was completely speechless.
Emperor Qing noticed his expression out of the corner of his eye and couldn't help but smile. He raised his hand and pointed at the lake in front of him and looked around.
"You, you, have you forgotten? Many years ago, we used to fish here together."
Fan Jian was stunned when he heard that. His eyes flickered and became a little dazed after looking at the lake. Soon he remembered that they were still very young at that time and that person was by their side.
Chen Pingping smiled and nodded repeatedly.
"It's the same as before, there are still three of us."
Fan Jianxing withdrew from his memories, his eyes were very calm.
"It's different."
Chen Pingping looked at him across Emperor Qing, waiting for his next words.
"Except your majesty, we are all old."
In the end, Fan Jian still didn't dare to mention that person. That name became a taboo at the moment of her death, for both Emperor Qing, him and Chen Pingping.
Emperor Qing leaned back in his chair and glanced at him.
"What do you mean? You're saying I'm an old witch? I won't age?"
Fan Jian didn't even look at him, and said in a deep voice with a hint of meaning.
"Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, and your actions and decisions are beyond the reach of ordinary people. How can you follow the common people?"
Emperor Qing raised his hand and pointed at him with his finger, then turned to look at Chen Pingping with a smile.
“There’s still resentment!”
Chen Pingping smiled but didn't respond.
Fan Jian tilted his head slightly towards Emperor Qing.
"I just don't understand why! Don't you let Fan Xian return to the capital as soon as possible?"
Emperor Qing hissed and suddenly asked.
"Do you want Fan Xian to take over the inner treasury?"
Upon hearing this, Fan Jian immediately turned to look at Emperor Qing and said solemnly.
"After all, it's her mother's property."
Unexpectedly, Emperor Qing suddenly turned his head and looked to the other side.
"Chen Pingping, do you want Fan Xian to take over the Supervisory Council?"
Fan Jian's eyes glared at Chen Pingping.
Chen Pingping leaned towards Emperor Qing, nodded and whispered.
"I am old, this child is suitable."
Emperor Qing nodded and said.
"This kid is good, but he's not good enough. Far from good enough. Do you know... what his biggest problem is?"
Fan Jian pondered for a moment.
"Your temperament is a little erratic?"
After thinking about it, Chen Pingping gave a completely different answer.
"Too sentimental!"
Emperor Qing shook his head several times.
"No, it's too smooth!"
After glancing at the two of them, Emperor Qing continued.
"Under your pampering, he has been smooth sailing all the way. If you don't put him in a desperate situation, how can he become the most powerful official in the world?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Pingping suddenly tilted his head towards Emperor Qing. From the sound of his words, it seemed that he tacitly agreed to let Fan Xian serve as both the Supervisory Council and the Imperial Treasury at the same time. Otherwise, how could he be called the most powerful minister in the world?
Fan Jian's focus was different from Chen Pingping's. He was more concerned about Emperor Qing's words of putting oneself in a desperate situation to survive. He thought for a while and said.
"Your Majesty, by leaving him in Northern Qi, are you planning to use the enemy's methods to hone him? But...what if something really happens?"
Emperor Qing adjusted his sitting posture and did not answer him.
Chen Pingping glanced at Emperor Qing and spoke.
"The Northern Qi army was defeated and is now in a weak position. In this situation, even if there are hardships, his life will not be in danger. This is the last test for him, Your Majesty."
Emperor Qing glanced at him with a smile, but did not refute his words. He obviously agreed and glanced to the left.
Fan Jian looked straight ahead with an uncertain expression. He thought for a long time but the worry on his face never faded.
"After all, it's still too risky."
Emperor Qing looked at him sideways.
"Learn from Chen Pingping. When you do something, you have to be ruthless!"
Fan Jian opened his mouth, glanced at Chen Pingping, then closed it again, looked out into the distance at the lake and said nothing.
Chen Pingping on the other side smiled, retracted his gaze, leaned back on the back of the wheelchair, and looked up at the sky with his head slightly raised.
After Emperor Qing finished speaking, he moved his gaze to the lake in front of him. He seemed to have discovered something. He hissed and his eyes suddenly lit up. He leaned forward holding the armrest of the chair and looked down at the water.
"Wow, there really is a fish!"
Upon hearing this, Chen Pingping and Fan Jian leaned forward to look, and indeed saw a black fish under the lake... swimming slowly towards the fishing hook set by Emperor Qing.
……
(End of this chapter)
