"Rong Nu Shi is not here? Does your Excellency know where she went?"
"I don't know. If you have any questions, Chang Shi, you can leave a message."
"It's okay. Please wait a moment. Sorry for bothering you."
"Yes, Chang Shi."
A female official lowered her eyebrows and left.
Only Ouyang Rong was left outside the hall, with a somewhat surprised look on his face.
I looked around.
I glanced at the sun, which had already passed the second quarter of the first lunar month.
Today, he specially wore an orange-red sachet and wandered around the porch for a few times. He turned around and left without seeing the real person.
Ouyang Rong did not go to the back door to find Ali to take a carriage. He walked out of the gate of the Supervisory Yuan and walked around the pedestrian snack street not far away.
After a while, when he returned to the Overwatch Council, he had a food box in his hand.
Ouyang Rong carried the food box in hand and returned to the entrance of the hall, basking in the morning sun and waiting for a while with squinted eyes.
Soon, a familiar figure of a cold and cold girl in palace clothes appeared in the distance.
Ouyang Rong patted his butt and stood up.
"Why are you sitting on the threshold and not going in?" Rong Zhen frowned, looked away, and asked, "How long have you been waiting?"
"It's rare to get some sunshine. It won't take long."
Ouyang Rong shook his head.
Followed by Rong Zhen who was leading the way, he walked into the hall and sat down.
"Something happened in the morning," she said.
"good."
Ouyang Rong nodded and didn't ask any more questions.
However, he turned around and looked at the expression of the girl in palace attire who was seated.
I noticed that her brows were slightly furrowed, as if she was worried.
Ouyang Rong didn't ask.
At this time, Rong Zhen glanced at the orange-red sachet on his waist, and then at the food box in his hand that was about to be handed over but was shrinking.
"This is?"
Ouyang Rong immediately put the food box on the table, took out two bowls of hot and spicy spicy soup, and placed them in front of the two of them.
He handed over a spoon: "Come on, come on, have some, the spicy spicy soup here is good."
Rong Zhen's eyelids turned up slightly, he looked at Ouyang Rong, took the spoon, took a sip and said:
"Be courteous for nothing."
He stopped and didn't say a word after that.
Ouyang Rong's expression did not change, he lowered his head and drank the soup.
Rong Zhen was silent for a while, then took out a cold sesame cake from his sleeve and handed it to Ouyang Rong.
The latter took it, broke it in half, returned one half, and took another half.
The two of them cooked the soup in tacit understanding and ate cold pancakes for a while.
The atmosphere among them was quiet.
"In the morning, Miaozhen went back to Xunyang."
Rong Zhen put down his chopsticks, put his hands in front of his belly, and spoke softly:
"I also brought news from the prison in Luoyang."
"What news?" Ouyang Rong asked curiously.
Rong Zhen did not go into details, but spoke concisely and to the point:
"Your Majesty is a little dissatisfied with the postponement of the Donglin Giant Buddha."
Ouyang Rong looked unsurprised, as if he hadn't heard anything, and nodded with an unchanged expression:
"The latest official document from the Luoyang court allows the postponement of the Donglin Giant Buddha, but it also urges us to shorten the construction period as soon as possible. In addition, His Majesty has sent a Chinese envoy out of Beijing to inspect Jiangzhou to show his sympathy for the difficulties."
Rong Zhen nodded, as if he already knew it, and sighed softly:
"The dissatisfaction is dissatisfaction, but your Majesty is clear in his heart. Ouyang Lianghan, you and Jiangzhou Hall did not do it intentionally. The situation should be true, and there is a master speaking in the court, so naturally he can only nod.
"It's just that... the Sacred Heart is unpredictable. At the same time, a private envoy from the palace was sent to inspect... Ouyang Lianghan, you need to pay attention to this envoy."
The cold and cold girl in palace attire who had been staying beside the empress for a long time stopped nodding and said no more. She lowered her eyes and concentrated on adjusting the sleeves of her palace skirt.
Ouyang Rong said in a grateful tone: "Thank you Rong Nu Shi for your kind advice."
Rong Zhen turned a deaf ear, as if he didn't say anything just now and didn't understand anything.
Ouyang Rong took a bold look at her expression.
With two eyebrows that look like they are frowning but not frowning, they are looking at the small piece of blue sky and white clouds exposed on the eaves outside the hall.
"Is Rong Nu Shi still worried?"
Rong Zhen was quiet for a while and suddenly asked:
"I have been slacking off these days, and there has been no progress in the matter of the master of Die Lianhua. The last plan failed, and I lost my elite colleagues, and also lost a precious square face... It is really my fault."
Ouyang Rong glanced at the guilty and uncomfortable look on her cold and pretty face.
It's rare to see this cold-hearted girl in palace attire reveal her true feelings in front of others.
"It's not my fault, Ms. Shi, that thief is cunning."
After a pause, he asked with some concern:
"But there is accountability on Si Tianjian's side?"
Rong Zhen shook his head:
"There is no accountability, but the more this happens, the more I feel guilty. I have been recovering from illness these days and thinking about it, I feel very heavy.
"I must catch this thief with my own hands. Regardless of past grudges, this thief is very good at hiding. If he is not eliminated, he will eventually be the biggest hidden danger that affects you and the construction of the giant Buddha in Jiangzhou Hall. It cannot be tolerated."
"Thank you, Ms. Shi, for your concern." Ouyang Rong was a little moved.
He couldn't help but sigh, rolled up his sleeves, and responded to the female historian's criticism:
"You are really a young boy, what's the point of hiding here and there? If you have the ability to show your face openly and openly in front of Rong Nu Shi, then I will respect him as a good man."
"Okay, it's useless no matter how much we scold him. Let's think of ways to catch this thief as soon as possible."
Rong Zhen shook his head, muttered to himself for a while, then turned around and asked seriously:
"Ouyang Lianghan, do you have any new clues these days? Those Yue girls didn't show up again these days?"
"Uh, no."
As if she had expected that she had no hope for him, she did not criticize Ouyang Rong harshly, but frowned and analyzed:
"The previous clues of paper, ink, and literary spirit have been cut off. I have lost that rare ink spirit. Even though I am familiar with that literary spirit, how can I find it in such a huge Xunyang City?
"He doesn't seem to be someone who would be stupid enough to commit suicide. After the last battle, we must have known that we have clues to his culture, and he should be more cunning and cautious now."
"That makes sense."
Ouyang Rong nodded and shook his head:
"Well, I'm sorry for my incompetence. Even Rong Nu Shi and the heroes of Si Tianjian are helpless. I really can't think of any reason for this."
"It's normal, Ouyang Lianghan, you don't need to put too much pressure on yourself. If you have any clues, come to me as soon as possible. Don't act foolishly. You are not the opponent of the thief. Remember."
"good!"
He nodded like a fool, and sighed along with Rong Zhen, wondering:
"But I'm a little strange. It's all right. Why is Rong Nvshi worried that this thief will endanger the construction of the Donglin Giant Buddha? Could it be that our construction of the Giant Buddha has endangered him in some way and made him anxious?"
"Just saying it's possible."
After a vague sentence, Rong Zhen remained silent again.
Ouyang Rong was used to it. After looking at Rong Zhen's expression for a while, he suddenly asked:
"The Donglin Giant Buddha has not yet been built, and you became anxious and anxious this morning. Is it because there was some urging from Luoyang Si Tianjian? Could it be that... His Majesty also asked about this matter?"
Rong Zhen withdrew his eyes from the scenery outside the hall, looked at the concerned face of the weak-headed chief beside him, and looked at him for a while.
The topic changed - anyway, after Ouyang Rong listened, he felt that it had nothing to do with the question just now.
"Ouyang Lianghan, although we have been together for a long time and know some of the answers, I still want to ask you a question."
"Say, don't be polite to me."
"Others say you are a gentleman. I am very curious. With so many things going on in Xunyang City these days... have you ever had selfish motives?"
Ouyang Rong nodded without hesitation: "Yes."
"for example?"
"Can you be more specific?" He shrugged helplessly.
"good."
Rong Zhen nodded, looked straight at him with lowered eyelids and said:
"Take the most recent one, for example, Jiangzhou Hall was asked to promote the construction of low-rent housing in the suburbs, and in the end, Huang Xuan's father, Huang Feihong, was placed there. Is there any selfish intention?"
"Yes." Ouyang Rong nodded and admitted.
Rong Zhen's expression remained unchanged and he continued to ask:
"Go forward, dig the peaks of the twin peaks, and push forward the construction of Xunyang Grottoes against all opinions. Is there any selfish intention?"
"Yes." He sighed.
Rong Zhen also asked: "Going a step further, did you have any selfish intentions when you first built the Broken Wing Canal in Longcheng to benefit the people?"
When Ouyang Rong heard this, he smiled and nodded:
"There are some."
"Okay, very honest."
Rong Zhen stared at him honestly for a while, then slowly asked:
"Then...where is the public spirit?"
"Yes." After a pause, Ouyang Rong couldn't help but add another sentence: "It can't be."
It seemed to mean the same thing, but Rong Zhen's eyes were a little moved. He looked away, took a deep breath, and then asked:
"Then let me ask you, are these things more selfish or public?"
Ouyang Rong looked calmly, and did not answer more or less, but instead answered in order:
"Private first, then public."
Rong Zhen pursed her lips:
"Who is older and who is younger?"
"Private and public."
"Choose one of the two."
"Elect the public."
"Aside from clichés, why?"
"What is private is temporary, what is public is eternal."
Ouyang Rong did not pause and his logic was clear:
“A moment is one moment for one person, and an eternity is one moment for millions of people.
“Between public and private matters, why should we choose one and disparage the other?
"Public and private are not always in opposition. I believe that selfishness is the selfishness of one person, while publicity is the common selfishness of millions of people.
"Let one's selfish desires closely follow the selfish desires of millions of people and work for everyone. This is a public person."
Rong Zhen didn't know when he got up, but he had already turned around and looked at Ouyang Rong.
She listened with a somewhat dazed expression.
There seemed to be some kind of light brewing in his eyes.
The atmosphere between the two of them was silent for a long time.
"Is there no conflict between the public and the private? So Ouyang Lianghan, do you want to be this kind of public person? What about... the private person?"
She thought of something, her tone seemed a little low, and she asked and answered herself:
"Is it going in the opposite direction, using the selfish desires of one person and one family to represent the selfish desires of tens of thousands of people and families?"
Ouyang Rong nodded and said softly: "So all the people and families in the world have become her fuel."
"I see."
Rong Zhen stood up, lowered his head and quietly put away the dishes and chopsticks he had finished eating, while whispering softly:
"Take the current Xunyang Grottoes and the construction of Buddha statues as an example. When the... imperial court announced the construction, the scholarly debate was heated, and various states and places opposed it.
"Ouyang Lianghan, you were one of the first to respond to the imperial court and even appease thousands of scholars at the Temple of the Holy Master, because you think that selfishness can coexist with publicity, right?
"And the prerequisite for these is the conditions you agreed to in public with the people of Jiangzhou. It will not waste people or money, and it can also control water and attract business. It will be of great benefit to Jiangzhou."
Ouyang Rong nodded, looking a little embarrassed and said:
"Unfortunately, it has also resulted in the postponement now, which makes you worry."
Rong Zhen seemed not to hear and continued to talk to himself:
"There is also the matter of low-rent housing. Ouyang Lianghan, as a benefactor, you should rule out Huang Xuan's ungrateful stabbing of you that day. You should have wanted to help Huang Xuan's family before, but you are not limited to helping only one family.
It is based on the selfishness of each household, but it has been promoted and benefited thousands of households, Huang Xuan's family is just one of them... By the way, there is also the Zheyi Canal..."
The girl in palace attire had a calm expression, and while she was collecting the dishes and chopsticks with her sleeves rolled up to reveal the big bowl, she was counting them one by one.
After listening silently for a while, Ouyang Rong couldn't help but ask:
"That's right, it's pretty much the same, but... Rong Zhen, from what you said, you seemed to have been too entangled in the distinction between selfishness and publicity.
"Not only for me, but also for the people around me. It seems that as long as there is a little selfishness, it will never be regarded as a public person. Why is this? Can you elaborate on it?"
Rong Zhen ignored him and didn't answer.
Ouyang Rong coughed to relieve his embarrassment. After thinking for a while, he took the initiative and said:
"Actually, in addition to what you analyzed, my selfish motives are a little... special."
"What's special?" Rong Zhen asked.
"It's a bit hard to describe. Well, you can understand it this way. Doing these public things can... make me happy and feel happy, as if I have gained something."
"Happy harvest?" She frowned and muttered.
Seeing this, Ouyang Rong reorganized his words and said with a very sincere face:
"Well...it's like this. My mother and aunt both believe in Buddhism. I have a little bit of it. I believe that doing good deeds can accumulate merit. Well, that's it. Yes, it's better for people to accumulate more merit. At critical moments... maybe... If you can be blessed, you can save your life."
Ouyang Rong paused in his words because he found that Rong Zhen looked at him as if he was speechless.
It seems to be asking, you, a Confucian scholar who reads books about sages, still believe this stuff.
However, the current trend of the Daqian and Zhou dynasties is that the three religions of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism are integrated into one in folk temples. It is normal for some people to study the three religions at the same time and integrate them...
She didn't think much, nodded and admitted, murmuring:
"The Ouyang family of Nanlong is really a family that has accumulated good deeds, and there will definitely be more happiness."
Ouyang Rong said casually: "The same goes for your family."
Rong Zhen suddenly frowned and looked at him with a strange look on his face.
"What's wrong? Did I say something wrong somewhere?"
Ouyang Rong touched his face and asked curiously.
"It's okay. I'd like to lend you some good advice. I have something to do, so I won't send you off and I'll leave."
After packing all the dishes and chopsticks into the food box and stuffing them into Ouyang Rong's arms, Rong Zhen turned and left the hall.
Ouyang Rong heard that she walked out of the door against the sunshine outside, and coldly said:
"I just forgot to mention that the news Miaozhen brought this morning, apart from what I mentioned before, there is one more thing."
"Is there anything else?" He frowned: "Why do you talk so incoherently?"
Rong Zhen's emotionless voice came from the door:
"After weighing it up with the supervisors of Si Tianjian, Grand Siming selected a Lingtai Lang to be sent to Jiangzhou to assist me in investigating the owner of Die Lianhua to ensure the smooth completion of the Great Buddha!
"Lingtai Lang will accompany the envoy... to Jiangzhou together. You can make preparations together."
Ouyang Rong raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Ling Tailang?"
He couldn't help but glance at the indifferent back of the girl in palace clothes leaving.
It seems that a certain female historian was not happy this morning not just because of him...