Chapter 649: Identities Are Given by Myself
Qin Yao was calculating something with pen and paper in front of the newly bought dressing table.
There were three lights in the room, one in the outer hall, one by the bed, and one on the dressing table. The light was sufficient, so sufficient that no charm could be created.
It only took Liu Ji a second to realize that he might have been wrong. There was no deal waiting for him in the room.
He sighed secretly and brought the hot sugar water to the dressing table.
Qin Yao naturally reached out to take it and drank half a bowl. She returned the bowl to the tray and continued to draw a few strokes on the paper before stopping.
"I spent almost seventy taels of silver today. The prices in the capital are expensive, and money can't be spent at all." Qin Yao complained and silently crossed out the balance of the deposit calculated on the paper with the tip of the pen.
No matter how fast Liu Ji's eyes were, he only scanned a number one. But he was sure that there were at least four numbers behind this one!
With so much money, seventy taels of silver was nothing. Liu Ji laughed out loud with a heroic spirit.
Qin Yao motioned him to the small hall, and the couple sat down face to face and began to talk business.
Liu Ji sat straight, with his hands on his knees, looking serious.
Qin Yao said: "Tomorrow morning, we will go out to the Imperial Master's Mansion to explore the way and see the defense situation there. I will be responsible for exploring the way, and you will be responsible for inquiring. The more information related to the Imperial Master, the better."
Qin Yao said, and Liu Ji remembered. Although he didn't understand why he had to inquire about the Imperial Master's hobbies, who he made friends with, and who he was hostile to, but what his wife said must have her reasons.
The two chatted for half an hour, agreed on the main route of action and the gathering place for tomorrow, and Qin Yao yawned and kicked Liu Ji out of the room.
Looking at the quiet room, Qin Yao gently sniffed the comfortable air in the room, fell on the new bedding that was laid out today, and fell asleep beautifully.
In the morning, Qin Yao woke up when the chickens of the neighbors next door crowed.
A voice came from outside the courtyard: "Collect the night incense! Collect the night incense!"
The cold air in the early morning seemed to have a smell that was difficult to describe.
Awang had already woken up, opened the back door and called the old man who collected the night incense, and poured all the buckets of night incense stored in the toilet at home into the big wooden barrel brought by the old man.
A new day began with this wonderful smell.
Qin Yao and Liu Ji did not eat breakfast at home, and simply packed up and went out.
Before leaving, Qin Yao asked the four children to sort out the written self-reviews, and she would check them when she came back tonight.
The four brothers and sisters, who were still a little sleepy, woke up instantly when they heard this, and hurriedly responded, standing in a row to watch their parents go out.
Children should not ask about adults' affairs. The four brothers and sisters were very sensible and did not ask anything. They went back to their rooms to prepare their own self-reviews.
Qin Yao and Liu Ji walked out of Yongtongfang, bought a bun each at a roadside stall, and ate while heading north.
Both of them had foreign accents. Whenever they asked for directions, most people were very friendly and gave directions to the two new foreigners.
They asked and walked all the way, and finally arrived at the place where they crossed the river.
It turned out that there were three bridges under the Yang River. One bridge led directly to the Ziwei Palace, which was the only way for all officials to go to court, and ordinary people were not allowed to enter.
The other two bridges, one led to the Shangyang Palace in the west, a holy place for royal vacations, banquets and rest, and was closed all year round.
Only the bridge on the east side was for ordinary people to go to the north city.
There were many boats under the bridge, and you could row a boat to cruise the river. Both sides of the river were full of taverns, teahouses and restaurants. It was just ordinary during the day.
But at night, both sides of the river were brightly lit, with singing and dancing, fine wine and delicious food, beautiful women and poets, and drunkenness and dreams. It was the number one gold-spending cave in Kyoto.
If you want to come here to play, you have to have thousands of gold in your pocket.
Qin Yao grabbed Liu Ji, who was staring at the beautiful woman singing in the brothel across the river, and crossed the bridge to the north.
The Imperial Master's Mansion was easy to find. It was the largest one in the mansion closest to the East Palace.
When they got here, the couple split up and acted according to the plan.
"See you downstairs of Xichu Tower across the river in the evening." Qin Yao disappeared in a flash after saying this.
Liu Ji didn't have time to say a word before his wife was gone. He spread his hands helplessly, followed the singing of the beautiful woman he had just seen, straightened his back, exuded the aura of nouveau riche, and swaggered into the brothel.
It was still early, but this kind of self-proclaimed elegant restaurant opened very early. There were mostly children of officials who didn't need to go to court. After reciting a few sour poems and listening to two clear songs, he felt that he was not the same kind of people as the playboys who only appeared at night across the river.
Liu Ji had a good appearance and a strange face, so he attracted a lot of attention as soon as he entered the door.
Liu Ji, who had 30 taels of private silver, had received a promise from his wife that his expenses could be reimbursed. He generously treated all the guests in the building to a pot of tea, which attracted the attention of the young men in the building.
Some people laughed disdainfully, wondering which nouveau riche came from the countryside, so vulgar.
However, it was absolutely unacceptable for someone to show off to them!
In a short while, a group of people surrounded the small private room by the river where Liu Ji was staying, either testing, polite or sarcastic, to find out his background.
Liu Ji's thick skin, like a fish in water, was able to deal with this group of young young men with ease.
Anyway, when he went out, he gave himself an identity. He claimed to be a candidate from Wangcheng in the northwest to take the exam, and secretly revealed that his family had a salt mine and that his relatives lived in Xiuwenfang, where the six high-ranking officials were located.
The person who just secretly laughed at his sudden wealth suddenly changed his face. If there is a mine, how rich would he be?
There are relatives from the six ministries here, so they must be the children of the famous families in the northwest.
The leader of a group of young masters lifted his robe and sat down opposite Liu Ji, "My younger brother Lu Xiaofeng, I wonder if Brother Liu can go to the private room on the second floor to listen to a song? Let's make friends?"
Liu Ji: "Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Lu, but I am not interested in listening to the song. I just heard that the national master is very profound in Taoism, so I want to find a place closer to the national master to get some good fortune."
"If I have the opportunity to see the national master from afar, it would be even better. He will definitely bless me to be successfully listed in the next spring exam." Liu Ji looked expectant and admiring, and inadvertently revealed a corner of the amulet on his waist.
These young masters look bright and beautiful, but because they have the protection of their elders at home, they can enjoy various privileges. There are really only two or three candidates who have passed the imperial examination.
Hearing that Liu Ji still had the confidence to enter the Spring Examination, the look in his eyes was a little different.
Lu Xiaofeng said "Oh~", it turned out that he was a believer. He himself didn't believe in anything, but it didn't stop him from understanding. He immediately told Liu Ji that the Imperial Master was in seclusion and advised him not to wait, because he wouldn't see him for the next month.