"You mentioned earlier that You Jujing was very fair?"
Zhu Mo suddenly remembered.
An Xiaoliang affirmed, "Yes, Lord You is very fair. For four years in Yunnan, he repeatedly requested the court to send troops to defend against Mang Yinglong, but unfortunately, the court did not adopt his suggestions... Although we are subordinates of the Guizhou Chief Military Commission, he always treated us equally, unlike Liu Bingren."
Heh,
Zhu Mo thought: This man, caught in such a predicament, can still be so fair, which is rare... He asked for troops to guard against Mang Yinglong, but Yan Shifan would naturally not pay attention. Without any trouble, how could people be replaced?
Thinking of this,
He felt that An Xiaoliang might be exaggerating a bit. You Jujing, as a governor, was no ordinary governor. In fact, he could interfere in the major affairs of Guizhou. Would he really let someone like An Xiaoliang go to his death?
Reader ID - Wu Liu San Qi Si San Lu Qi Wu
"Lord An, since Lord You is assigning military duties, why are you so scared? Even if Mu Chaobi wants to harm you at Liu Bingren's behest, would Lord You just turn a blind eye?"
Alas,
An Xiaoliang sighed. He thought if he continued to conceal it, it would be himself, a minor character, who would die in the end. Since this person in front of him was currently a powerful figure, what did he have to fear?
"Scholar Zhu, I will tell you everything! I have also spoken privately with a few Tushou (local chieftains), and we all feel that Lord You is in great danger this time..."
Oh?
Both of them immediately sensed that important information was about to be revealed.
An Xiaoliang indeed said:
"Scholar Zhu, you may not know this..."
He suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Wang Daren has also arrived..."
When he spoke these three words, he was already somewhat horrified.
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Wang Daren?
What the heck?
Zhu Mo was suddenly surprised.
Li Zhi, however, suddenly laughed and said, "Zixuan, I've heard of this person. He passed the Jinshi examination in the thirty-seventh year, but this person is obsessed with talismans and immortal cultivation, and scholars are ashamed to associate with him. However, he is close to Daoists like Tao Zhongwen, Tian Yu, and Wang Jin. The Emperor has also summoned him for an audience, and later he became a Censor... When I discussed this with my fellow Jinshi in the capital, everyone thought he was an oddball, somewhat mysterious..."
An Xiaoliang nodded and said:
"Lord Li is correct. I heard from the Tuguans (local officials) that Wang Daren is collecting talismans and secret scripts from all over the world for the Emperor... In the past few years, a Fangshi (Daoist priest) named Liu Wenbin came to Yunnan. He claimed to have found several immortal abodes and left behind immortal's alchemy furnaces and talismans...
These are actually nothing. What I want to say is that Lord You never speaks of strange powers or supernatural phenomena. He once severely beat Liu Wenbin and drove him out of Kunming Prefecture. Later, Liu Wenbin, alas, later got acquainted with Wang Daren and entered the Chaotian Temple... Now that Wang Daren has come down, everyone says Liu Wenbin invited him, and Lord You will most likely be slandered..."
Mmm, mmm, mmm,
Both of them nodded together then.
Kou Kou Wu Liu San Qi Si San Lu Qi Wu
This makes sense. Wang Daren is close to Wang Jin and Tian Yu, so he is likely a Fangshi offered by the Yan family. Now that Mang Yinglong has made a move, if they want to control Yunnan, they must drive You Jujing away. Following the Yan family's usual tactics, having Wang Daren slander him is indeed the best method. To say that he beat the Emperor's Daoist friends is enough to cause trouble. Now that Wang Daren has personally arrived, can't he find a handle? Once they submit a joint memorial, You Jujing would be lucky to keep his life.
You must know,
Yan Song was once a Daoist companion of Jiajing in his pursuit of immortality, and he was truly a "Qing Ci Prime Minister." They practiced fasts and rituals together for many years. Later, when Yan Song became the Grand Secretary, he was too busy and became somewhat distant. But what kind of person was Yan Song? He had long ago planted small Fangshi like Wang Jin and Tian Yu, and he had also won over Tao Zhongwen. He would seize any channel for advice with all his might.
Just as the court was divided, so too were the Fangshi. Lan Daoxing, Shao Wenjie, Gong Kepei, Hu Dashun's faction, and Tian Yu, Wang Jin, Duan Zhaoyong, Gu Kexue, Zhu Longxi's faction were clearly distinct.
An Xiaoliang's words made Zhu Mo feel a sense of danger—
With Emperor Jiajing, as soon as immortal cultivation is mentioned, he becomes irrational... A single "Yun Chao Shu" might not be as effective as a talisman! If the Yan family really sent Wang Daren to frame people, then You Jujing and An Xiaoliang would likely be doomed...
He paced back and forth, feeling that things were becoming increasingly bizarre. Was it aimed at him? Logically, it shouldn't be. Given the current situation, the Yan family and Prince Yu's faction were in the center, the Qingliu (pure officials) were in the middle, and he and the Emperor were a group. In terms of strength, the Yan family was still at a disadvantage. How could they attack him here?
After much deliberation, Zhu Mo felt that they probably just wanted to prevent him from succeeding. Because it was now the middle game, where every move was crucial. If this round of the Yunnan-Guizhou trip failed, their momentum would be lost, and without momentum, it would be difficult to detach the Yan faction from Prince Yu.
With this thought,
He made up his mind and said:
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"Lord An, rest assured, I will protect you if I can, including Lord You. You have no past wrongdoings... Of course, I can also speak to the court about your succession to your father's title. However, you must tell me the truth about everything, and I need to obtain evidence before I can report back to the court..."
An Xiaoliang immediately knelt down and said loudly:
"Thank you, Scholar Zhu, for saving my life! I, An Xiaoliang, will tell you everything I know, and if there is a single falsehood, may I die a terrible death!"
Mmm,
Zhu Mo asked slowly:
"Alright, to tell you the truth, the purpose of my visit to Yunnan and Guizhou this time is twofold. Firstly, it is to resist Mang Yinglong from the west, because behind him is a Frankish person named Soza, who is the Governor-General of the East Indies Company in the Far East. I previously apprehended him in Ryukyu, but he escaped to Mang Yinglong's side. This time, his northern invasion is not without reason... You should keep this in mind first... Secondly, I am here to investigate the smuggling of tribute goods..."
As he spoke, he took out the inventory list and said, "Take a look at these items: golden monkeys, rhinoceros horns, ivory, agate, jade. Who is doing business in Yunnan and Guizhou?"
Zhu Mo saw that he was looking quite seriously, but there was no surprise on his face, indicating that he had heard something.
Indeed,
An Xiaoliang replied:
Discussion group Wu Liu San Qi Si San Lu Qi Wu
"Reporting to Scholar Zhu, regarding these items, I do know a little. Golden monkeys themselves are not precious; it's just that scholars in recent years have been too pretentious, favoring rarity and novelty, thus using golden monkey tail hairs to make brushes... Uh, these golden monkeys are found in the Gaoligong Mountains, in the Yongchang Military Prefecture area. I heard that an nephew of the prefect Liu Zhangkuan is involved. Additionally, there is agate in the Yongchang Guard, which is also a tribute item... As for rhinoceros horns, I suspect they might be coming from the Cheli Xuanweisi (Pacification Commission)."
Zhu Mo seemed to know something and said:
"When you go down, investigate discreetly and spend more money while showing less presence... Well, now that Mang Yinglong has indeed made a move, I will have to stay in Yunnan and Guizhou for some more time... Try your best to investigate, and call any reliable people here. I need to ask more questions."
"Yes! I will do as you say!"
An Xiaoliang felt as if he had escaped from death and was unable to hold back his tears.