Lin Gao Qiming

"...After investigation, Zizhenzhai is a treasure store in Guangfu. There is a jewelry workshop inside. The soft and delicate styles are different, and the valuation is very high. The glazed cups are not sold by him, but there is another shop named Zichengji. This All kinds of goods displayed in the shop are called Australian foreign goods. They are all exquisite and unusual. They are also known for their glassware, including plates, lamps, windows, and mirrors.

"Both the two shops are owned by one person. This person's surname is Guo Mingyi. His name is unknown. He has no fame or family name. However, he built a ten-foot-high building on the ground, and he won ten thousand gold in an instant. There is also a Ziming Building, which is a sensual, dog-horse, The place where Fengyue sells gold is in the hands of his concubine, Mrs. Pei. In the name of the oiran, Mrs. Pei has a close relationship with the gentry in Guangli, and the dandies flock to it, and the merchants gather here...

It was sent together with the secret report, and there were several joint ventures, including some Australian products bought back by Liu Xiao: several wooden carved vermilion lacquer powder boxes with silver mirrors inside, the style is similar to the ones I saw in Yangzhou before. Very similar, but the material seems to be different.There are also two glass bottles, which should be the Wushuang Wine of the National Scholars according to Liu Wei's secret report.Although the wine in it is clear and pure without any turbidity, it is undoubtedly a high-quality wine, but the crystal clear glass bottle is even more valuable.It seems to be putting the cart before the horse to use such a utensil to hold wine.This wine is the "fire wine" proposed by Zhou Xianren before.It's just that he proposed to take the cheap mass route at the beginning, but this wine is to follow the upper-class route.Hearing that the price is six taels of silver for a gift box, the supply is still in short supply, and the stock is often out of stock, Wang Yehao is not aware of it.

What Wang Yehao was most concerned about was Dongzhu Guo mentioned in the letter, a rootless foreign businessman who was able to earn a huge fortune in the Guangzhou market. It seemed that there were indeed some background means.

Originally, Wang Yehao was just trying to track down the whereabouts of the Qiankun Mirror, but now things started to get complicated, and he had to be more careful.Passed the report to Liu Zhao who was on the side.

"Master, so the Australian maritime merchants really came back again? The Qiankun mirror..." Liu Zhao was surprised after seeing it.

Wang Yehao raised his hand to stop Liu Zhao's words: "It's hard to tell the truth about the Qiankun Mirror, so we can't say anything about it."

"The subordinates understand that they just went to Guangli with Mr. Zhou to find something. Looking at his words and deeds, they don't seem to be fake."

Wang Yehao nodded slowly in agreement.Indeed, if it wasn't for looking for things at that time, there was no need to go back to Guangli again.Moreover, when he was in Guangli, Liu Zhao revealed a lot of flaws according to Wang Yehao's wishes, but Taoist Hearthstone had no intention of taking the opportunity to escape.What's more, the Hearthstone Fairy obediently followed Liu Zhao back to the capital, and Wang Yehao's previous doubts were also dispelled.

"Let's ignore the mirror of heaven and earth, today's secret report, what do you think?"

Liu Zhao thought about it, and said cautiously: "My lord, I have a guess, and I don't know if I should say it or not."

"But it doesn't matter."

"When my subordinates visited Guangli earlier, there was no such person as Guo Yi, and according to what Liu Jia said, this person seemed to have no foundation, but he was able to earn such a big scene in just one year. It sounds like a ghost. Like a legend, how can it be accomplished without the help of gods and supernatural powers?"

"There is no foundation at the bottom, and it is difficult to guarantee that there will be no backer at the top. Even the sea merchants from Guangdong and Fujian, and high-ranking officials and nobles are indispensable to operate in the court." Wang Yehao played with the old residence of the wine bottle in the exquisite Guoshi Wushuang gift box-he didn't like fire wine Drink, but this bottle and wine set are really delicate.

"Nine times out of ten, this person is following Gao Ju's path. Otherwise, he is an outsider and sells Australian products. How can Gao Ju tolerate him?"

"Master is right. Judging from the meaning in the letter, the relationship between Gao Ju and Dongzhu Guo seems to be quite harmonious..." Liu Zhao said, "I just don't know what Gao Ju wants to support such a person."

Wang Yehao frowned, he had already investigated the backstage of the high-ranking, and he was indeed the chief eunuch in the palace. Although he was not a newcomer to Xinwang's mansion, it had nothing to do with Nine Thousand Years, and his position in the palace was very stable at the moment.

Putting all these together, there seems to be an answer. Dongzhu Guo who suddenly appeared is probably an "Australian maritime merchant", or their agent.In order to do business with Australians, Gao Ju had to support him...

That makes sense.For the sake of caution, it is better to check it out.After all, Dongzhu Guo is a mysterious "Australian" -- and Hearthstone seems to be particularly concerned about Australians, and even claims to be Australian...

It seems that Taoist Hearthstone's self-proclaimed "Australian" may not be an expedient nonsense, maybe they are really a group.

"Just go out and ask, is there someone in the court who can set up a threshold for him. It is not appropriate for this official to come forward. You can find an excuse and go to Fourth Uncle to find out the news."

"My subordinate understands."

Wang Yehao put the Australian treasures on the desk back into the box, put the letter paper into the stove, and then asked casually, "Have Taoist Hearthstone been safe recently?"

"It's not the same. I'm really envious of the rich and noble idlers." Liu Zhao replied with a smile.

"Hehe, money is indispensable to you, but there is one thing, you must keep an eye on him." Wang Yehao picked up the teacup, glanced at Liu Zhao, and signaled that he could step back.

About a month later, Liu Xiao's second secret report was placed on Wang Yehao's desk.

"There are no Australian ships berthed in any port of Zhaguang Prefecture. Some people say that the goods sold by the Guo family come from Lingao County, Qiongzhou Prefecture..."

"Lingao..." Wang Yehao put away the letter paper and murmured to himself about this place name far away in the world, when suddenly a vague impression flashed in his mind.

"Wang Liang, quickly go to Mr. Jin and ask him to look for official documents from Lingao County in the past two years."

With the downfall of the eunuch party and the recovery of fame, Jin Wenchi felt more and more that Wang Yehao was a boss who kept his word and was worthy of entrustment.Therefore, Jin Wenchi has always been very attentive in doing things in the mansion, whether it is handling public and private documents, or handling receptions and deliveries, everything is done seamlessly.Having been in the mansion for more than two years, Jin Wenchi now seems to be an important figure in Mr. Wang's curtain, specializing in various secret affairs.

These few days coincided with the New Year's holiday, and there were no official documents to be done, so it was a rare leisure time.But Master Wang suddenly wanted to investigate a small remote county, which seemed to be something important, which made Jin Wenchi a little puzzled.But it's strange to be strange, and the errands still have to be done.Important official documents between the DPRK and China have been transcribed and archived in the Department of General Administration.In order to facilitate management, some abbreviations are yellowed.For the sake of convenience, Wang Yehao kept the copied yellow book in his study at home.

But Lingao County is too small and out of the way, and there are few relevant question books.Jin Wenchi and the master in charge of documents searched for a long time before finally finding a few.

Although only abbreviated, it is enough to understand the relevant matters.Jin Wenchi was afraid that Mr. Wang would want to read the test book, so he informed the master who was in charge of documents to rush to the Department of General Affairs to retrieve the relevant test book for file.I came to Wang Yehao with the abbreviation.

"My lord, this Lingao County has neither production nor is it an important place. There are very few inscriptions related to this place." Jin Wenchi said, "However, in the past two years, there have been a few inscriptions on this place. It was not an important point in the first place. It’s just because what I said is anecdotal, so I have a little impression. The student has asked Mr. Han to go to the Department of General Affairs to get the original.”

"What did you say?"

Jin Wenchi took out the excerpt and replied: "Lingao County is located in a remote place, except for the occasional intrusion by pirates, it is rarely heard of. The first one is an urgent document asking for the suppression of pirates, saying that more than five hundred pirates have been sent to sea. The thieves came on a big iron boat, intending to bring disaster to the village, but the county magistrate led the village to resist bravely, keeping the city gate intact. Although the thieves could not plunder, they did not retreat. It has been occupied for a long time. Lingao County suffers from poor people and money, and cannot be expelled, so it has written to the imperial court, hoping to send troops to pay them."

Wang Yehao glanced at the summary, and laughed aloud: "It's so funny, you can drive a boat, how can you drive a big iron boat? Pirates repair bridges and repair roads, so Jiannu can't give porridge and food?"

"Students also think that there are a lot of absurdities in this matter, so they should just read it for entertainment. But the second matter is well-founded."

"Oh? Let's talk about it in detail." Wang Yehao said with great interest.

"About April or May of last year, more than a thousand pirates under Liu Laoxiang landed and plundered, but this time Lingao county magistrate led Xiangyong to take the initiative and won a complete victory, beheading the leader of the pirates There are hundreds of them, and the handing over of the flag is useless."

"Well, after Mr. Jing said this, I also remembered that at that time, the court rewarded him for his meritorious deeds to show his bravery."

"Exactly. The students don't remember any other news."

Wang Yehao thought about it, and felt that it didn't make sense: "With the financial resources and population of a small remote county like Lingao, even if you can recruit local braves, there are no more than a hundred people at most. If you want to kill the attack of more than a thousand desperate sea bandits , It’s just a fool’s dream.”

"According to your lord's opinion, is it true that Lingao County killed the good and pretended to be meritorious?"

"No." Wang Yehao shook his head, "After all, Qiongzhou Mansion is a peaceful land, not a land of chaos. The local garrison is just a flag army sergeant, and they only deal with a few barbarians on weekdays. It shouldn't be possible to take rewards like this Come out. Besides, there is no aristocratic family in Lingao County, so this kind of thing can't be hidden."

"What your lord said is true, and the students also feel that this matter is strange. If Lingao Xiangyong really can defeat a hundred with one, then why worry about the disaster of pirates? Wouldn't it be better to just transfer to the north to suppress Jiannu?"

After much deliberation, there was still no conclusion, so Wang Yehao had no choice but to end the topic: "If there are any documents related to Lingao County in the future, please sir, please transcribe them."

"Students, please remember." Jin Wenchi bowed his hands, and then asked, "It's just that Lingao County is far away in poor mountains and rivers, thousands of miles away, why is your lord so caring?"

"There are a lot of strange things about this matter, and I don't have any clues yet. Mister has the right to do it."

"Student understands." Jin Wenchi withdrew knowingly.

"Is there really a mirror of heaven and earth? It seems that we still have to find out with him." Wang Yehao struggled for a long time, finally made up his mind, and ordered: "Wang Liang, prepare some New Year's gifts, and come with me to Mr. Zhou's residence tomorrow. "