"Your Majesty, I am the number one scholar appointed by Your Majesty. Your Majesty wants me to go east, but I will never go west. Therefore, as long as it is His Majesty's will, I must obey His grace!"
Emperor Qianxi chuckled and said, "Haha... Ling Aiqing is indeed loyal. I know it well. Ling Aiqing is so loyal. How could I listen to the slanderous words of the Ministry of Rites and go back on my words?"
After hearing this, Ling Yun let out a big breath and quickly flattered him, "Your Majesty is wise, His Majesty is wise..."
Faced with his compliment, Emperor Qianxi snorted coldly and said with a serious smile, "Huh! Since you are so sincere to me, then show some sincerity, otherwise I will mistakenly think that you are perfunctory and flattering me. Flattery."
Ling Yun choked for a while, and was a little embarrassed when Emperor Qianxi directly pointed out his little trick. He quickly explained, "I don't dare. I am sincerely devoted to Your Majesty, and I am willing to do anything for His Majesty, no matter what!"
Seeing that he was so confident in his words, Emperor Qianxi was not only not angry, but instead smiled slyly, as if he was planning something.
He said in surprise, "Oh! I never expected that Ling Aiqing would be so heartfelt. In this case, I happen to have a problem here. I wonder if Ling Aiqing is willing to help me solve the problem?"
"Forehead…"
As soon as these words came out, Ling Yun couldn't help but curse in his heart: Damn it, what is going on?
Why do I have the feeling that this old guy, Emperor Qianxi, has been setting a trap on him, and the ultimate goal is just for this moment.
I couldn't help but let out a long sigh in my heart, and said with many emotions: The ancients honestly did not deceive me, but if the bullshit is too much, it is easy for the tongue to slip.
He smiled bitterly in his heart. The mixed feelings of being tricked made him a little angry, but the other party was Emperor Qianxi. Even if he was resentful, he couldn't resist, so he could only swallow it down.
Ling Yun curled his lips and said generously, "Your Majesty, I am very lucky to be able to serve your Majesty. How dare I say I don't want to do it?"
"Hahaha…"
Emperor Qianxi immediately laughed loudly and praised him without hesitation, "Good, good, good. You are worthy of being my top scholar."
Ling Yun: “…”
He stopped whispering, let out a long sigh, and said with emotion, "The treasury has been empty recently. You must also know that even the salaries of officials have to be paid out of my anger. As the emperor of Daqian, I have nothing to do... Tell me, what should I do? how?"
Ling Yun listened quietly, and the more he listened, the more something was wrong. This was obviously Emperor Qianxi pouring bitter water on him, but this bitter water made him smell something unusual. What does it have to do with the empty treasury?
If you don’t have money, ask the Ministry of Accounts to find a way!
No matter what you ask him for, he doesn't care about the treasury.
Besides, as the emperor, you don’t even know, how could he know?
Even if he knew, how could he, a young bachelor from the fifth rank, still teach the emperor how to do things?
He didn't mind that his life was short, so he had to pretend to be confused and said, "Your Majesty, I...I don't know."
"Ling Aiqing is joking. I heard before that you have a way to make money. How about..."
Emperor Qianxi suddenly stopped mid-sentence and looked at him with bright eyes.
Ling Yun was shocked, worse than... worse than what?
Damn, this shameless guy, it turned out that the purpose of calling him into the palace on this trip was to get him to hand over the method of making money, and the previous attack by the Ministry of Rites was just to lay the groundwork, one link after another, so profound. means.
Ling Yun subconsciously wanted to refuse, but if he refused, what would he face?
He must have gone back and asked the Ministry of Rites about the gift, forcing him to give in.
But there is no way for him to make money now. Before, he was just making up random excuses to get out of the prison. Who would have thought that after he got his wish on the agreed terms, Emperor Qianxi actually regretted doing this? Once out.
He dared to conclude that as long as he said "no", he would never leave the imperial study room.
Just as he was thinking about how to deal with it, Emperor Qianxi continued to speak earnestly, "I am not doing this for personal selfish desires, but for the sake of the entire Daqian Dynasty. As an official of the Daqian court, Ling Aiqing must regard the people of Daqian. Seriously, don’t be reluctant to gain or lose personal interests!”
"puff!"
This reason was too high-sounding. For a moment, she couldn't help but be impulsive and wanted to go forward and undress his hypocritical face.
Ling Yun lowered his voice and said, "Your Majesty, there are no ministers."
Emperor Qianxi stood up suddenly and shouted loudly, "What did you say? There is no way?"
Ling Yun nodded mechanically.
"you…"
In just a moment, Emperor Qianxi became angry, with uncontrollable anger flashing in his eyes. He squinted and stared at him, wishing he could chop him into pieces and feed them to the dogs.
"Ling Yun, as a court official, you dare to deceive the emperor. Do you know your guilt?"
Emperor Qianxi's voice went from high to low, until finally he roared angrily.
Ling Yun was in a daze, and Emperor Qianxi's voice sounded again.
"According to the laws of Daqian, as an official of the imperial court, if you deceive the emperor and ignore your superiors, the crime will be increased by one level. You can know the crime!"
Emperor Qianxi was like a judge, judging Ling Yun.
Although Ling Yun was frightened and uneasy, he remained calm on the surface and said calmly, "Your Majesty, I don't know what crime I am guilty of?"
"You...bastard, you deceived me in prison, isn't that a crime?"
Ling Yun held his head high, neither arrogant nor humble, and said, "Your Majesty, I will certainly fulfill your Majesty's conditions if I agree to it, so I have not deceived you."
"Since there isn't any, then show me how to make money."
"Wei Chen has no choice."
"Then you dare to argue that you didn't deceive me?"
"Your Majesty, I have agreed to your Majesty's conditions. As long as I complete the task on time, why should I cheat?"
"You...are great! You are indeed my top pick. Not only can you speak well, but you can also make strong arguments."
He suddenly looked at Xiao Lizi, threw down a piece of rice paper with text on it, and said in a deep voice, "Xiao Lizi, take it off and let him sign it."
Little Lizi didn't dare to disobey, so she shivered and picked up the rice paper on the ground, and handed it to Ling Yun gently.
Ling Yun took the rice paper in his hand and took a closer look. It was clearly a contract. The content was roughly similar to that in Tianlao, except that the original two million taels of silver on the rice paper had become eight million taels of silver today.
"Your Majesty, this...why is this?"
Emperor Qianxi snorted coldly and said, "Didn't you just say that if I asked you to go east, you would never go west? If that's the case, then let's sign it!"
"I…"
Ling Yun gritted his teeth and was silent for a while, but finally chose to lower his head and write his name directly.
After finishing writing, Xiao Lizi picked it up again and handed it to Emperor Qianxi. The latter checked it carefully and found that it was not wrong. Then he nodded with satisfaction, and at the same time he did not forget to warn, "Remember, together with the two million taels before, , a total of ten million taels, and the time is only two years. If you cannot complete it in two years, I will send people to Nanyi Prefecture to execute you directly on the spot."
Ling Yun pursed his lips, but finally said nothing, Quan should acquiesce in Emperor Qianxi's banditry.
Before leaving, Emperor Qianxi did not forget to tell him, "You will be leaving soon. When you get back, make proper arrangements for your family as soon as possible. Don't expect a little servant to protect you!"
"By the way, before you leave, remember to pay a visit to Minister Zuo of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. If you can get him to explain something to you, it will only be good for you and not bad for your trip to Nanyi Prefecture."
Until he left the imperial study, Ling Yun was in a state of confusion. He felt that he was being squeezed when he entered the palace.
However, before leaving, he remembered the two sentences that Emperor Qianxi said verbatim, because it was obvious that Emperor Qianxi was giving him directions.
The first thing I did when I got home was to deal with the Ling family's return to Annan. At the same time, I took the time to go to the Li Mansion and ask Li Chengyou who the left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs mentioned by Emperor Qianxi was.
After getting the information he wanted, Ling Yun did not stay in Li's house for long, but turned around and went to prepare gifts without stopping.
The next day, when Ling Yun stood in front of the Wang family's house, he looked uncertainly up and down for a long time. At the same time, he also asked the Wang family's neighbors. After confirming that everything was correct, he handed over the greeting card.
The boy who opened the door learned that he was an official of the imperial court, so he did not hesitate and called the steward of the palace.
The latter came out, directly invited Ling Yun in, led him into the hall, poured a cup of hot tea smoothly, and asked Ling Yun to wait in the hall for a while, while he went to ask for instructions from the master, the so-called left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, Wang Zhengyang.
While waiting, a middle-aged woman and a young girl suddenly walked in. The girl held the woman's hand, with a smile on her face, and seemed very happy.
The woman also had a constant smile on her face, and it could be seen that the two of them were in a particularly happy mood.
When he saw the person coming, Ling Yun didn't dare to express his gratitude and hurriedly stood up to salute the person.
The woman suddenly asked, "Who are you?"
"My dear, Ling Yun, haven't you asked me for advice?"
Unexpectedly, when Na Na heard Ling Yun announcing his home, he was instantly shocked. His feet subconsciously moved on his hind legs, his hands subconsciously protected the girl behind him, and he confirmed in a cold voice, "Are you Ling Yun?"
Ling Yun was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect the woman to react so strongly when she heard his name, so she replied, "I am Ling Yun. Does this lady know me?"
The woman sneered, pointed in the direction of the gate, and said directly, "Do you know me? Haha... please get out of the palace for me, madam, my palace does not welcome people like you."
"Forehead…"
The woman's words immediately stunned Ling Yun.
I don't know why when I heard his name, I asked him to leave directly, so I could only frown and ask, "Madam, I don't know why?"
"Why? Humph! I think you should know better than me about why. A lecherous person with bad conduct dares to break into my palace. You'd better leave voluntarily, otherwise I will ask someone to ask you out directly."
The woman bit the word "please" very hard, showing no trace of hatred towards him, which puzzled him.
"I…"
Ling Yun hesitated to speak and wanted to ask clearly what was going on. He could see that the woman in front of him was full of anger, as if he couldn't stay any longer. She was really calling for someone to ask him out as she said.
If you do that, you will really be kicked out.
After a moment's hesitation, Ling Yun bowed his hand to him, and finally chose to leave voluntarily.