(Recommended book: I Am Not Jiang Taigong, by Ba Xi, whom you should be able to find in the book review section. The address is...)

After a moment's thought, Deng Ziyue thoroughly understood the Tisi's words.

The so-called "Head of Northern Qi" was indeed a very risky position, but also the most important link in the Overwatch Council's external front. Anyone who had held this position would be greatly valued upon their return to the country. The previous Yan Bingyun, Young Master Yan, need not be mentioned. At a young age, he had already become the head of the Fourth Bureau. Everyone knew that when Director Chen retired and Lord Fan took over as Director, Young Master Yan would certainly receive an even more important appointment.

And Deng Ziyue's familiar old boss, Wang Qinian, after warming the nest in the Council for ten years, was sent to Northern Qi upon encountering Fan Xian. Listening to the Tisi's previous words, Wang Qinian would also become the head of a new office after returning home.

The trip to Northern Qi was an adventure, but even more so, a political stepping stone.

The Tisi asking himself if he was willing to go to Northern Qi naturally meant he was preparing to promote him, and he had also heard that the old head of the Second Bureau was getting old and preparing to retire... and he was originally from the Second Bureau.

Deng Ziyue was extremely excited. He knelt before Fan Xian and said in a deep voice, "I will obey your Lordship's arrangements completely."

Fan Xian smiled and said nothing more. After the Jiangnan affair, he felt more and more that although His Majesty the Emperor trusted him greatly, he still absolutely prevented him from having any association with the military, so that the absolute power he held in his hands when handling affairs was still limited.

Otherwise, he would not be so wary of Xue Qing, the Governor of Jiangnan.

The one sitting on the dragon throne did not even trust his own legitimate son very much, let alone Fan Xian. Fan Xian knew that the Emperor had now given him such great authority, which was already very good, but he also knew that the other party would not allow him to expand his power any further. Since the path to obtaining power from the outside was very difficult, Fan Xian had to firmly grasp the power he already possessed.

For example, the Overwatch Council. The Overwatch Council after Chen Pingping's era had to be refreshed, and fresh blood loyal to him had to be replenished.

...

...

Deng Ziyue then reported to him on the recent actions of the Overwatch Council in Jiangnan, the main focus still being on the Ming family. Although the Overwatch Council specialized in supervising officialdom and did not have direct authority over civilian forces, there was no shortage of official reasons in this world. The Overwatch Council had made preliminary preparations and could intervene in Jiangnan affairs at any time according to Fan Xian's instructions, from the Internal Treasury to Suzhou to the shipyards, from accounts to warehouses, and comprehensively suppress the Ming family.

This was all Fan Xian could currently do. Since he could not find concrete evidence of the Ming family's crimes, he could not use official power to oppress them. The officials of Jiangnan Road were watching him... The current task of the Overwatch Council was to further compress the Ming family's income by harassing their trade routes and by the Internal Treasury's Transport Office tampering with supplies, so that their cash flow would be tight. Only in this way could the Ming family be forced to continue transferring large amounts of silver.

And the means were actually hidden in the silver transfer.

"How long has it been since news came back from the island?" Fan Xian frowned. That island affair, which was enough to crush the Ming family, had recently fallen into silence.

Deng Ziyue sensed Fan Xian's concern and was also somewhat suspicious. He reported, "The Quanzhou branch also feels that something is amiss and has sent people to sneak onto the island. News should be sent back in about two days."

Jiangnan was vast, and it took too long for news to travel from the island in the East Sea back to Suzhou. Fan Xian knew that he could only wait for the time being.

After Deng Ziyue left, Fan Xian finally felt a little tired. He stretched and walked out of the room, strolling in the Hua Garden.

Although the Hua Garden was Yang Jimei's luxurious garden, it was not tainted with too much of the wealth of salt merchants and the arrogance of private salt sellers. Instead, it was purely beautiful and elegant, with shallow flowing water, green artificial mountains, layers of overlapping peaks, and covered corridors and pavilions no different from other residential gardens. Through the ingenious arrangement of the original designer, it showed a different kind of vitality. The entire garden seemed to come alive, like the green mountains of Jiangnan, like the blue waters of West Lake, gently and quietly surrounding the people in the garden.

This kind of heaven-and-man-in-one skillful arrangement was undoubtedly most appreciated by the descendant of the Heavenly Dao, Haitang. Therefore, during her days in Suzhou, she spent most of her time meditating in the garden, and did not go out to seek the style of Jiangnan figures.

So, when Fan Xian saw the floral cloth clothing by the small lake, he was not surprised.

"Fishing doesn't seem to suit you."

He walked to the lake and sat down, slightly closer to the shore than Haitang, keeping a distance of one foot between them. From this angle, he could just see the steady shoulders of Haitang, as well as the floral cloth towel wrapped around her head. Beside her was a very ordinary straw hat, yellow in color.

Haitang did not turn her head, and replied gently, "Why doesn't it suit me?"

The bamboo pole in her hand was motionless, only the tip of the rod was nodding, as if greeting the fish in the water, without any other meaning.

Fan Xian laughed, wiping his moss-covered hands randomly beside him, and said, "Fishing is also killing. I'll teach you a method. Don't use bait, just 'fish with your heart'."

This was a trick he had seen in novels in his previous life, which those mysterious characters in mysterious novels liked to play the most. Unexpectedly, Haitang still did not turn her head, nor was she moved. Instead, she ridiculed, "What a boring thing to do. If you don't use bait, does that mean you don't want to fish? 'Fishing with your heart'... since what you seek is your state of mind, you fish with your heart, so naturally you have fished. What difference does it make whether you catch anything or not?"

Fan Xian was exasperated, thinking that he just wanted to chat, so why did he have to bring up these pretentious conversations again?

Haitang turned her head and glanced at him, smiled, and said, "Knowing that you have been restless these days, how about sitting together? Fishing is very good for calming the mind."

Fan Xian shook his head and laughed, "A gentleman stays away from the kitchen, let alone nets and forks?"

Haitang couldn't help rolling her eyes at him and shaking her head, "What a hypocritical fellow."

Fan Xian chuckled, moved forward a little, but slipped under his buttocks and almost fell into the lake, causing him a flurry of hands and feet, and he screamed.

There were stones but no trees or grass by the lake. Except for Haitang, there was nothing to lean on, so he naturally grabbed Haitang's shoulders with both hands.

Haitang's shoulders trembled slightly, and she shook his hands away, instead grabbing his wrist and helping him to steady his balance. She said with a smile, "Not only hypocritical, but you're also acting so falsely. You're not even trying... How can a Ninth-Rank expert not be able to sit steadily?"

Fan Xian sighed to the sky and said, "The world does not know me, and Duoduo does not believe me. How can I live this life?"

Haitang turned her wrist and let him sit beside her. She naturally took out another fishing rod beside her and stuffed it into Fan Xian's hand, saying, "If you want to fish, you have to be patient. Don't rush."

Her words were double-edged, but Fan Xian knew that she was not talking about picking up girls, but about dealing with the situation in Jiangnan. He smiled, took out an earthworm from the small mud jar beside him, hung it on the hook, and lowered it into the water. He also sprinkled some of the bits and pieces that Duoduo had prepared into the water to lure the fish.

The lakeside suddenly entered a state of tranquility.

A moment later, Fan Xian's light voice broke the rare silence, "I am patient, and I am not in a hurry. The situation in Jiangnan is not difficult to control, and with the plan already in place, I am confident that I can proceed step by step. The problem is that Jiangnan is watching Kyoto, but I cannot control what will happen in Kyoto. Things there may develop in the way I want them to, or they may suddenly erupt into a major event that no one can react to in time."

"A major event?"

"Indeed." Fan Xian did not continue, but said with a trace of doubt and a sincere admiration, "You know that I am the Tisi of the Qing Kingdom's Overwatch Council, so you must also know who the real boss of the Overwatch Council is."

"Northern Xiao En, Southern Pingping." Haitang's smile contained a trace of bitterness, "That Director Chen has killed so many of our Northern people, how can we not remember him?"

Fan Xian said with a smile, "Each serves his own master, and each has his own beliefs. The two sides were enemies back then, and it was natural for you to cut me and for me to kill you. I just want you to understand that this old man is one of the two people in the entire world that I cannot fully see through."

"Two people?" Haitang curiously turned her head to look.

"Indeed." Fan Xian said with a solemn expression, "Even my Emperor, your Emperor, I can guess some of their thoughts and positions, because their butts are sitting on the dragon throne, and they must think about things related to this chair. But Chen Pingping is different. The saying goes, 'Without desires, one is firm; with acceptance, one is great; a dying man's words...' are unfathomable. I can't see through what this old man wants to do, or what he is currently doing. With his current status, there is no need to get involved in the struggle for the throne. No matter who becomes the prince, they must treat him well... And he has always been so calm, which is not in line with his style of doing things throughout his life."

Chen Pingping was the most famous schemer alive. Such a figure, if he didn't act, it was all over.

After a little thought, Haitang said softly, "If you hadn't told me clearly about the relationship between your mother and Director Chen without avoiding me, I would have had a different view on this matter, including everyone else in the world. I'm afraid they would all think that the reason why Chen Pingping values you so much is entirely because of the Qing Kingdom Emperor's decree."

"Indeed."

"And through those things you have told me in the past, I seem to be able to see some ominous tendencies." Haitang laughed self-deprecatingly, "You want to support the Third Prince, Chen Pingping... could it be that he wants to support you?"

"Too difficult." Fan Xian frowned and said, "My background is a bit problematic. If I don't clean up those nobles in the palace, I won't be able to enter the palace at all... And who knows who is hiding behind the events of that year? I will have to figure this out one day, but I can't rush it now. As for what you said about the Director's intentions..."

He smiled and shook his head, saying, "Becoming an Emperor is not like being a Tisi. Such a big thing, if he doesn't tell me, he would never dare to do it alone."

Haitang fell into deep thought, and after a moment, she shook her head and sighed, "If you can't figure it out, don't think about it for now."

"Jiangnan is just a small fish, Kyoto is the big fish." Fan Xian's eyes were calm, staring at the two thin lines that were slightly undulating on the lake surface. After a long time, he said, "Fishing... I am always worried that I am catching a fish, or that I am being dragged into the bottom of the water by the fish, and I will never be able to climb back up."

Haitang smiled and said, "You have already wet your feet by the river. You can't help but step into the water."

Fan Xian gave a bitter smile and said, "That's true, but there is a feeling of uncertainty. I don't like this feeling of having things not under my control."

"No one, not even the ruler of a country... can control everything." Haitang said softly, "Just try to grasp the overall trend. That is already good enough."

...

...

"You said just now that there are two people that you can never see through. One is Chen Pingping, and who is the other?" Haitang was very interested in this question. She knew that Fan Xian was very confident in his ability to recognize people. Even the Qing Kingdom Emperor, he thought he could grasp some aspects of his mind, but he admitted that there was someone he could not see through. She wanted to know who that second person was.

"My father." Fan Xian said with a smile, "Actually... he and Chen Pingping are both very powerful figures. However, Chen Pingping has been floating up and down on the surface, while he has been sinking to the bottom. Although I am his son, I don't know what he is really thinking."

Fan Xian treated Chen Pingping and Fan Jian as his elders, sincerely and without doubt. After his mother passed away, they presided over the revenge. In the bloody night in Kyoto fourteen years ago, they wiped out the Empress's family cleanly. And in the later growth process, these two parental figures showed him concern and care, which made Fan Xian feel grateful.

But it was very strange that the two closest people were the hardest to see through.

"So, what you have been worried about all along is not Jiangnan, but Kyoto." Haitang said with a smile, "With two such unfathomable figures behind you, you really don't need to worry too much about the affairs of Jiangnan."

"I am the whetstone that His Majesty set up for those few brothers." Fan Xian said with a smile, "This Jiangnan affair, the Eldest Princess and the Crown Prince, the Second Prince... Aren't they the whetstone that Father and Chen Pingping have set up for me? The elders have high hopes for me. I am very pleased."

The words "very pleased" were said with extreme annoyance.

The two thin fishing lines were still steadily submerged in the gentle surface of the water, without a trace of trembling caused by the wrist. Haitang glanced at him and said, "It seems that you really don't need to use fishing to temper your mind."

Fan Xian said, "I have always been resolute in character, calm in mind, and difficult for external things to linger in my thoughts."

Admitting one's own advantages in front of women was not an embarrassing self-promotion for Fan Xian, but a very good attitude of self-analysis.

"How old are you now?" Haitang asked curiously, unable to understand how such a young person, suddenly holding great power in his hands and handling complex affairs in one area, could still maintain such a calm state of mind.

Fan Xian replied quickly, asking back, "How old are you this year?"

Haitang pursed her lips, her eyes bright, making the blue lake in front of her look dull, but she refused to answer this question.

Fan Xian snorted and said, "I turned eighteen on the eighth day of the month."

Haitang shook her head and ridiculed, "Looking at your daily actions, no one would believe it if you said you were eighty."

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The old people have experienced spring winds, summer rains, autumn frosts, and winter snows. They have already seen everything in the world, so they can use those eyes that seem a bit indifferent to see through everything in this world.

Only by experiencing it can one take it lightly, and only then can one use the most stable mentality and the most experienced methods to face those seemingly extremely complicated situations. One of the necessary foundations of a conspirator is that his desires must be few, so that there are fewer loopholes that can be exploited by the enemy. Therefore, from ancient times to the present, those who are known for scheming and planning are either old men, old women, or eunuchs.

Young people are always passionate, such as the Second Prince, the Crown Prince, and even the Eldest Princess. Therefore, they will make some less than wise choices at certain times.

And like Fan Xian, who had the experience of two lifetimes, although he was labeled with the sad label of "eighty years old" by Haitang, on the other hand, he was indeed as patient as an old man when doing things. While fighting the family property lawsuit with Xia Qifei and the Ming family, the other aspects of the Overwatch Council remained silent. It was not until the storm of the family property lawsuit was about to subside that the Overwatch Council took action.

For a time, many officials in Jiangnan Road were politely invited to drink tea at the Jiangnan Road Patrol Division office of the Fourth Bureau.

Everyone knew that the tea of the Overwatch Council was authentic Longjing, fragrant and overflowing, but no official was willing to drink it.

Although, for the sake of Governor Xue Qing, few officials in Jiangnan Road were detained, some old events occasionally mentioned by the Overwatch Council during the tea and chat process still made those officials tremble with fear. After returning to the government, they began to consider their future and personal safety problems with a headache. Correspondingly, the officials who were reminded also noticed that it was no longer possible to protect the Ming family too much on the surface.

On the other hand, the Overwatch Council also began to harass the Ming family's business. Although it was impossible to directly arrest people and seize goods, under the pretext of investigating spies from Dongyi City, the Ming family's shops began to be inspected by the government within a day, and the Ming family's convoys and fleets also encountered unprecedented trouble during the transportation of goods.

Although the Overwatch Council did not catch any major handle of the Ming family, except for some minor crimes of carrying smuggled goods, the continuous harassment successfully slowed down the operation of the Ming family's large industrial system.

Merchants pay attention to the speed of transporting goods back and forth into cash, just like a big river that never stops flowing. Now, the Overwatch Council is like countless sand and stones slowly sinking into the river. The flow of the river slows down, and the mud and sand also settle down. It was originally a pool of living water, but now it is gradually becoming muddy and difficult to move.

The Overwatch Council's move used the least manpower, caused the least discussion, but achieved quite good results. After paying a huge amount of bid silver to the Internal Treasury, the Ming family felt a little stretched for the first time in so many years. Now that they were being harassed by the Overwatch Council, the flow of water became even more insufficient and they were forced to transfer silver to the Taiping Bank. At the same time, Ming Qingda, the head of the main branch, also began to secretly sign drafts from the Zhaoshang Bank.