Li Qi is not a stingy person, but he is not a stupid person either. The reason why he chose to give 10% of the profits to Liang Shicheng and Gao Qiu each was because he wanted to have a good relationship with Liang Shicheng. Only interests can turn the relationship between the two parties into a good relationship.
unbreakable.
In fact, the relationship between Gao Qiu and Li Qi is already very strong. After all, they have collaborated on many projects. However, Liang Shicheng is different. Although this person is greedy, he is not without brains. On the contrary, he is very cautious. He really wants to have a relationship with him.
It is not an easy task. Li Qi knows the importance of a chamberlain, especially for an official like him who is not even qualified to go to court. It is even more important.
As the saying goes, there are people in court who are easy to get things done, and this is absolutely true.
Since there are many entertainment events in the palace during these two days, such as archery, Cuju, etc., special envoys from various countries must also participate, so Liang Shicheng arranged their meeting on the eighth day of the lunar month, which was a good day.
Li Qi couldn't ask for it, so he had to make some preparations and take advantage of these two days to wish the New Year.
In the afternoon of that day, after Li Qi came out of Taiwei's Mansion, he rushed to Hong Mansion without stopping. Ma Qiao had been waiting for this moment for a long time. He had been in the Northern Song Dynasty for so long, and the most enjoyable drink he had ever had was
With three generations of the Hong family. In addition, Gao Yanei followed shamelessly. He also sent someone to call Zhou Hua and others, and the group marched towards the Hong Mansion in a mighty manner.
Fortunately, Hong Bajin only had a son, Hong Tianjiu, and the family was strangely deserted. The more people there were, the happier he became. Especially when he saw the two masters and servants Li Qi coming, he became even more elated, with a hint of hatred mixed with happiness.
Hong Qi and Hong Bajin, father and son, are undoubtedly best at gambling and drinking. However, since the appearance of Li Qi's master and servant, they have been hit hard. They cannot win against Li Qi in gambling, and they cannot win in Maqiao when drinking. This makes them feel
They lost all face. This time they came to greet Li Qi and others with a heart of revenge.
Before Li Qi's buttocks were warmed up, Hong Bajin asked him to hold a banquet. Several people gathered around a large round table and started a battle between men. Although it is unfair to say this about Master Li, in the Northern Song Dynasty, there were
What man doesn’t drink?
The three generations of the Hong family had the same goal. They pointed the finger at Ma Qiao as soon as the table was served. Ma Qiao had suppressed it for several days. Today, he finally burst out under the provocation of the three generations of Hong Qi. But this time he learned to be smarter.
, in the short moment when the wine was served, he had already eaten three bowls of rice in a row. He was afraid that it would be like last time, and he was dragged away by Li Qi without even taking a bite of the rice.
As soon as the wine was served, there was only wine on the table, saliva flew everywhere, and the restless group of Gao Yanei also joined the Hong family's camp.
Li Qi lost even the slightest bit of appetite. He ate something as a token of appreciation. Looking at these beasts, he felt very sick and ran to find Hong Tianjiu. Hong Bajin's concubine went to play mahjong. The gambling king
The concubine is very familiar with gambling, and they often go to the women's house, so they are also familiar with Li Qi.
A man and a woman was what Li Qi longed for most. Of course, the result was that he almost lost his underwear when he was killed by those wolf-like women.
Without Li Qi blabbering here, Ma Qiao's interest increased greatly. He didn't talk to Hong Qi and his son at first, changed to a larger bowl, and knocked down Gao Yanei and other juniors in a few seconds. With these flies around, he drank
It's really not fun, and then he competes with Hong Qi and his son. Ma Qiao's drinking capacity is already very scary. In the words of his master, this is talent and cannot be learned. However, today he was well prepared and is currently extremely excited.
In such a state, the amount of alcohol consumed also increased greatly, and several people fought until it was dark and dark.
This drinking session lasted from the afternoon until almost midnight. Although Ma Qiao could drink a thousand glasses, it did not mean that he could drink ten thousand glasses. After drinking Hong Qi and his son down, he was almost done. Fortunately,
His thinking was relatively clear, and when the servants came in to clean up the mess, he asked to be allowed to sleep here for an hour.
Li Qi returned to the hall with a breeze in his sleeves. Seeing this scene, he sighed to himself, it seems that it would be better to visit Hong Mansion less often in the future.
But then again, this guy in Maqiao is a pervert when he drinks, and he is even more perverted when he is sober. He slept on the table for more than an hour and then woke up. Then he asked for a cup of ginseng tea. After drinking the tea, he woke up.
He rubbed his hands and said sorry twice to Li Qi. After discussing with Li Qi how to deal with Lu Meimei, he drove the carriage back to the Qin Mansion.
The next day, Li Qi went to the Taishi Mansion to pay New Year's greetings. After not seeing him for many days, Cai Jing showed a hint of fatigue on his face. This is no wonder. After all, he has been in power for so many years, and the Cai family can be regarded as the first family in the capital, with many people visiting him.
In countless cases, Li Qi still relied on jumping in line to meet Cai Jing.
The two talked about health maintenance during the New Year and had lunch, then Li Qi stood up and left.
After coming out of Cai Mansion, Li Qi went to Liang Shicheng's home. The two did not have a close relationship, so they only talked about the situation. Of course, the topic they talked about was unparalleled in the world.
On the morning of the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, Li Qi went to Bai Mansion with a worried heart.
Bai Shizhong also gave him enough face and set up a large formation to welcome him. His wife, concubines, children, and grandchildren were all present.
In fact, the matter between Li Qi and Bai Qiannuo is not a secret. Except for the servants of Bai Mansion, everyone else knows about it.
In the back hall, Li Qi was sitting on pins and needles, sweating profusely. When he first formally met his parents, it was just his father-in-law and mother-in-law, but Bai Shizhong, a guy like this, has eight or nine horses, and there are several more.
A grandson. Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, uncle-in-law, and brother-in-law took turns asking him questions, making it like a defense meeting. He answered them one by one tremblingly, not daring to make any omissions. Then Mrs. Bai saw Li Qi acting like this
There was no trace of sympathy in his expression, but instead he was gloating about others' misfortune, and kept blaming him, which made Li Qi have orgasms over and over again, and he felt like dying, but he couldn't do anything about this weird mother-in-law.
What's even worse is that his other woman, Ji Hongnu, is also present. This is the first time he has encountered this situation. This makes him have to be very alert, for fear of leaking the truth. He will be happy again in the future.
I don’t want to pay New Year’s greetings either.
Bai Qiannuo Ailang was eager and came out to rescue Li Qi, finally letting Li Qi breathe a sigh of relief. However, when it was time to eat, he was tortured again to extract a confession. Even though he was very eloquent, at this moment, he was so big.
He could only fight with fatigue.
After lunch, Li Qi hurriedly excused himself to go to another place to pay New Year greetings, and stood up to say goodbye. If he still had dinner, he would probably have half his life left when he went back.
Before going out, Mrs. Bai's words, "I'll come tomorrow and play a few rounds of mahjong with me," frightened Li Qi so much that he almost fell over. After hesitating a few times, he rushed out of the door in a state of extreme embarrassment.
After getting into the carriage, Li Qi finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Deputy Commander, where are we going now?"
"Go back home. This New Year's greeting trip is finally completed." Li Qi wiped his sweat and suddenly said: "Wait a minute. Ma Qiao, do you think it is necessary for me to go to the palace?"
"I don't know about this, but since you have even gone to the Hong Mansion, will you offend anyone if you don't go to the Wang Mansion?"
"That's true. Wang Pangpang is very narrow-minded." Li Qi nodded slightly, thought for a while, and then said: "Then let's go.md, it's only half a day away anyway."
"But you didn't send someone to inform you yesterday. What if Mr. Wang is not available?"
"Ma Qiao, do you know something better? Do you think the Royal Palace can compete with the Grand Master's Palace? You also need to report that Wang Zhongling is only a third-grade official, and I am just a little younger than him. And I also have a bonus halo, so if anything happens, I will
He came to beg me. I went there to give face to Madam. There is no need to worry too much, just go."
"oh."
Wang Zhongling's mansion is located in Xicheng, and its scale is naturally not comparable to that of Bai's Mansion and Taishi's Mansion, and is even a little worse than Li Qi's manor.
Since this was Li Qi's first time here, the doorman didn't know Li Qi and asked, "Who are you?"
"Li Qi."
The doorman had a surprised expression on his face. He had obviously heard of Li Qi's name. He said "please wait a moment" and ran to inform him.
After a while, the door opened from the inside, and Mrs. Qin was seen standing in front of the door with Xiao Tao. Today Mrs. Qin was wearing a more colorful dress, a brand new purple-red dress, which made Li Qi's eyes light up and he said with a smile.
: "Madam, you are so beautiful today."
Mrs. Qin rolled her eyes at him, but said nothing more, "Why are you here?"
"I'm here to pay New Year's greetings."
Mrs. Qin whispered: "That's great."
"What? Madam, what did you say?"
"Nothing!" Mrs. Qin shook her head gently, stretched out her hand and said, "Please come in quickly, my father is still waiting for you."
Li Qi followed Mrs. Qin to the back hall. There were three people sitting in the room. Wang Zhongling was sitting directly above him. There was also a woman with a good face, but her temples were turning white, sitting next to her. She was about forty or fifty years old.
people.
It goes without saying that this must be Mrs. Qin's mother.
To Li Qi's surprise, the famous and elegant second brother Zheng Yi, Zheng Yi, was also there. He secretly said, "I'm just telling you, why is Madam wearing such gorgeous clothes today? I bet her lover is here." He secretly winked at Madam Qin.
His eyes earned another look from Mrs. Qin.
"Li Qi has met Uncle Wang and Mrs. Wang." Li Qi saluted. This was the first time he and Mrs. Wang had met, so it was best to address her as Mrs. Wang. Then he and Zheng Yi exchanged hand-to-hand greetings.
Wang Zhongling laughed and said: "My dear nephew, please take a seat quickly."
After Li Qi and Mrs. Qin sat down, Mrs. Wang looked at his short hair, frowned slightly, and said with a smile: "It's been a long time since I've known him as the Golden Knife Chef King, and today I see that he's really well-deserved." What she said was quite lively, and it was also good.
With a hint of sarcasm.
How could a man like Li Qi not notice this? However, he was rich and his official career was at a rapid pace. He did not want to have a relationship with the Wang family. He smiled lightly and said: "No, no, Mrs. Wang's words are serious."
Mrs. Wang added: "Thank you very much for helping Yao'er take care of Zuixianju during these days."
Li Qi said confused: "Who is Yao'er?"
Mrs. Qin beside her whispered: "My name is Wang Yao."
You didn't tell me earlier. Li Qi quickly changed his words and said, "Mrs. Wang's words are wrong. My sister and I are also cooperating, so we can't say who is helping whom." But he said in his heart, don't make it sound like your daughter is the only one in Zuixianju.
Even if he is alone, he will take advantage of him.
"You are right." Mrs. Wang nodded expressionlessly, exchanged a few polite greetings with Li Qi, and then turned to Zheng Yi and said: "Yier, you have been away for many years, so don't leave when you come back this time.
, no matter how nice it is outside, it can’t be better than in Bianjing.”
Zheng Yi nodded and said, "What my aunt said is true, Yi'er also has this plan."
Mrs. Wang smiled and nodded frequently: "That's very good, very good." Her tone was completely different from the way she treated Li Qi just now. She added, "By the way, why don't you come with your wife today?"
Zheng Yi glanced at Mrs. Qin unconsciously and said: "Yi'er is unfilial and has not married yet."
It's true. You're still a bachelor in your late thirties. You're trying to fool someone, or you're a eunuch. Li Qi doesn't believe it.
After hearing this, the smile on Mrs. Wang's face became even thicker, and she chatted with Zheng Yi about the past. She was so unhappy. As for Li Qi, it was just like a decoration. Mrs. Qin helplessly gave Li Qi two apologetic looks.
Sigh. If I had known this, I wouldn’t have come to join in the fun. After listening for a while, Li Qi got to know Mrs. Wang more or less. Compared with Mrs. Bai, they are two extreme people. Mrs. Bai is everything.
They all put Bai Shizhong's political interests first, and the city is extremely deep and difficult to fathom, while Mrs. Wang pays more attention to personal cultivation, and her emotions and sorrows are all reflected on her face.
After sitting for a while, Li Qi felt bored and stood up and said: "Uncle Wang. Mrs. Wang, I have something to do, so I'll take my leave first."
Just as Mrs. Wang was about to nod, Wang Zhongling suddenly bounced up like a meat ball. He rushed over and grabbed Li Qi's hand and said: "My dear nephew, what can you do to you who is celebrating the New Year? Have dinner before leaving. Come on, come on.
Come, I just have some questions that I want to ask you. Let’s go to the study to talk.”
As he spoke, he took Li Qi out without waiting for Li Qi's reply.
When they got outside, Wang Zhongling suddenly let go of Li Qi. He sighed and said, "Xiannie, please don't be offended. My wife also has many misunderstandings about you because you left Yao'er in Zuixianju."
Humph. How can I be as knowledgeable as a woman? Li Qi smiled and said, "Uncle Wang, you really look down on me, Li Qi. If I, Li Qi, have such a little bit of magnanimity, then I'm still a fool."
Wang Zhongling laughed and said: "Okay. Uncle Wang really saw the right person. Come on, let's go to the study. I happen to have a few more questions that I want to ask you."
Wang Zhongling seemed to have been prepared for it, just waiting for Li Qi to throw himself into the trap. When Li Qi saw the dense formulas, he was immediately confused, but who asked him to come to the door by himself, so he had to explain it to Wang Zhongling patiently.
.
It wasn't until the maid came to ask them to eat in the evening that Wang Zhongling reluctantly left the study.
During the dinner, Mrs. Wang was still lukewarm towards Li Qi, but she was very affectionate towards Zheng Yi. There was Yi'er on the left and Yi'er on the right. If Mrs. Qin hadn't been here, Li Qi would have thought that they were having an affair.
In fact, he had already seen that Mrs. Wang had some intention of bringing Zheng Yi and Mrs. Qin together, and he also felt that this was not a bad thing. Mrs. Qin had a great life, and being a widow would be a waste, but the 30% of the shares held by Mrs. Qin,
But it made him feel a little worried. People's hearts are sinister, and he didn't understand Zheng Yi. God knows what he was thinking.
In the Song Dynasty, it was not uncommon for women to remarry or remarry, especially in the upper class society. It was not uncommon. The court also explicitly stipulated that women had the right to remarry, but the prerequisite was that they were divorced or their husbands did not return for three years. However,
Whether to remarry or not does not depend on the woman herself. The decision-making power is still in the hands of her elders, which means that women still do not enjoy this power.
In addition, because the status of widows is very embarrassing, in the Song Dynasty, the capital for many widows to remarry was precisely the property left by their ex-husbands, which was called "remarriage capital". When you have a rich inheritance in your hands, then fight to marry or rob you.
The more men you have, this property will also be the widow's most solid backing when she comes in, so Li Qi's worries are understandable.
However, judging from the current situation, it seems that this is just Mrs. Wang's wishful thinking. His daughter is very resistant to this and even looks to Li Qi for help. After all, she knows Li Qi's eloquence.
However, Mrs. Qin's resistance made Zheng Yi feel very embarrassed. In fact, anyone with a discerning eye could see that his feelings for Mrs. Qin were by no means an ordinary friendship.
Li Qi had regretted coming here for a long time. He was still willing to meddle in such nosy business. When he saw that Mrs. Qin had asked him for help, instead of helping, he took the opportunity to get up and leave.
This made Mrs. Qin so angry that she kept stamping her feet under the table.
Seeing that Li Qi was so sensible, Mrs. Wang gave Li Qi a sincere smile for the first time, and "enthusiastically" asked the maid to send Li Qi out.
As a result, Li Qi ran away under Mrs. Qin's resentful eyes.