Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 76: The inner ghost guards the country

Realgar, realgar…

Smelling the familiar scent with a slight garlic smell, Li Ming's thoughts suddenly flew back to the day when Li Shimin fell.

The memory of that day also smells of realgar.

“It is hot in the south of the Huai River, and there are many snakes, insects, dysentery and malaria, so the locals like to take or apply realgar wine externally to detoxify and kill insects.

"In recent years, more and more merchants from the south have come to Beijing and brought this custom to Chang'an."

Li Daozong said:
"Li Xiaogong was the governor of Yangzhou, and he developed this habit in the local area. Every year during the Dragon Boat Festival, he would prepare several jars of realgar wine, not just once or twice."

"Hmm..." Li Ming listened absentmindedly, searching his memory carefully.

He was a liberal arts student and had long forgotten the little chemistry knowledge he learned in high school, so when he first came across realgar wine, he didn't think much about it.

He himself had been smeared with realgar wine by palace maids and even drank a sip or two. It tasted like fermented rice with garlic and he did not feel any discomfort.

However, when this traditional medicinal material was put under the spotlight and linked to three strange and incoherent cases...

He thought of something.

At a certain moment, a gleam of light flashed in Li Ming's eyes.

But he quickly controlled himself and his expression calmed down.

Li Daozon noticed his abnormality and couldn't help but ask excitedly.

"Your Highness, have you gained anything?"

Li Ming narrowed his eyes with great cunning, and chose "yes" or "no":

"There is too little information at the moment, so I can't make a conclusion yet. I have to go to other places to collect evidence."

Li Daozong was skeptical:
"Are you taking this opportunity to go out for some fresh air?"

Li Ming asked back seriously:

"Am I that kind of person?"

"..." Li Dao Zong suppressed the twitching of his face and sighed:

"Okay, okay, where else do you want to go to collect evidence?"

The last four words are prolonged.

Li Ming was not polite and ordered a big dish right away:
"I'm going to West City."

Li Dao Zong almost refused immediately: "No! There are too many people in the West Market, it's too dangerous."

The biggest danger is Li Ming. This little guy is like a loach and will slip away if you are not careful in crowded places.

There was once a gatekeeper general named Wei who verified this bloody truth with his military rank.

"I'm going to the West Market to personally investigate the seller of realgar wine." Li Ming spread his hands and used the same trick again:

"This concerns the safety of His Majesty and the Crown Prince, and the injustice of the Prince of Hejian. If the King of Jiangxia thinks this is insignificant..."

"I know, I know, Your Highness, don't think about it!" Li Daozon covered his ears.

…………

"Ning, there's no need to be so anxious..."

Li Ming rubbed his butt that was almost cracked by the horse's back and returned to the West Market he had not seen for a long time.

It was almost noon, but the sky was overcast, the wind was strong, and it was not very hot.

"Since we're here now, why don't we go first..."

"You are not allowed to dismount!"

Li Daozon simply ignored him, kicked his horse's belly, and quickly ran towards a wine shop.

"After investigation, it was found that the realgar wine that Li Xiaogong drank came from here." Li Daozon introduced familiarly, while grabbing the corner of Li Ming's clothes with one hand to prevent this guy from jumping off his horse and escaping.

The wine shop owner came out to greet him warmly:
"Sir, please buy some of the best realgar wine... Eh? Brother Ming?"

Several mice followed him out.

Li Ming was also stunned when he saw this familiar face:
"Eh? You are... Zhishi Buzhen?"

It’s that Turkic merchant again who loses money on everything he sells.

"When did you change your career to selling wine? And you even expanded your business to the Prince's Mansion?!"

Zhishibu was really confused:

"What prince?"

"The original owner is still being detained for questioning. The shop was just bought by this Turkic man." Li Daozong explained, looking at Li Ming in disbelief:

"You know all of them?"

His understanding of the royal family was constantly refreshed.

My goodness, His Highness Li Ming is simply a socialite of the Tang Dynasty.

"Oh~ I'm so stupid, really."

Zhi Shi Buzhen's face suddenly turned sad, and he muttered sadly:

"After I took the money you gave me to buy the wood, I saw that the shop was being sold at a low price, so I took it over. Who knew..."

Li Ming couldn't help but cover his face when he looked at his cabinet full of realgar wine, the low number of customers, and the huge rats that kept him company throughout the house.

It is worthy of being the industry's dark light...

Realgar wine is highly seasonal and is only drunk when the weather is hot. Who will he sell it to after August?

"I want to buy a jar of realgar wine." Li Ming knocked on Li Dao Zong while sitting on the horse. Li Dao Zong's mouth twitched and he threw down a string of copper coins.

"Okay!"

Zhi Shibu really came back to life and diligently brought out a black jar.

"Help me scoop out a pot and heat it on the small charcoal stove." Li Ming ordered again.

"Heat it up now?" Zhi Shibu was really confused.

Because realgar wine can repel insects, everyone drinks it in the summer. When the weather gets cold, no one likes to touch this medicinal wine with a garlic smell.

Drinking in the summer heats up the body, so why don’t you wear a cotton jacket?
"Just do as I tell you to heat it up!"

"Yes, yes, okay, okay!"

Boss Zhishi didn't dare to offend his only financial supporter, so he moved a small charcoal stove from the corner, found a special small wine pot for warming wine in the corner of the cabinet, and placed it on the iron net of the small charcoal stove.

In order to ensure the flavor, this wine jug is generally not large, just the amount of a bowl.

What is this kid planning... Li Dao Zong was confused and secretly looked behind him.

Li Ming was neither expectant nor nervous, he looked completely confident.

"Brother Ming." Zhi Shibuzhen crossed his arms and waited for the wine to warm up, while chatting casually:
"Are you still making things to sell outside the palace?"

Ok? !

Li Daozon felt that he had heard extraordinary information and stared at Li Ming sharply.

"Cough cough!" Li Ming coughed madly and winked at the big-mouthed Turkic man with a desperate look.

However, if one has good vision, he is not a dark light in the industry. Zhi Shibuzhen said to himself:

"Brother Ming, you'd better not go to the palace recently. I heard that things there are not peaceful recently."

Zhi Shi Buzhen didn't know Li Ming's true identity, he just knew that he had some connections in the palace.

Out of concern for his partners, he gave a special reminder.

Li Ming covered his face and ignored him, just wanting to get into the ground.

Li Dao Zong took over the topic with a half smile:

"Why, has anything happened in the palace recently?"

Zhi Shibuzhen lowered his voice mysteriously, as if he was sharing some earth-shattering secret:

"I heard that something big is going to happen there recently."

"What's the big deal?" Li Daozon asked excitedly.

He thought this Turkic merchant was quite interesting and wanted to see what kind of rumors he would spread about the recent disturbances in the palace.

Zhi Shi Buzhen looked around, came closer, and whispered in their ears:
"The Turkic guards in the palace are rebelling!"

"what?!"

The news was completely different from what he expected, and Li Daozon almost jumped off his horse.

Li Ming scoffed at the news.

This person is a sucker who misses out on every transaction. Is this source of insider information reliable?

"Which of your aunts or uncles told you this time?" Li Ming was quite sarcastic.

Zhi Shibu said seriously:

"My cousin, he works at the Right Prison Gate Guard..."

"What did you say?!" Li Ming almost jumped off the horse.

Li Ming felt a strong sense of disobedience when an unrelated businessman suddenly mentioned the term "Right Gate Guard", which is a palace-specific term.

Li Dao Zong's vigilance suddenly rose:

"Which Turkic tribe are you from?"

Zhi Shibuzhen answered honestly:

"The Zhishi tribe of the former Eastern Turkic was annexed by the Ashina tribe, and later surrendered to the Tang Dynasty along with Ashina Shibobi. It has been almost ten years."

Ashina Shibobi was Tuli Khan, the nephew of Jieli Khan, the dance king of Chang'an.

Before the Tang Dynasty destroyed the Eastern Turks and captured Jie Li Khan, Tuli Khan had already "revolted" on the battlefield and was the first to submit to the Tang Dynasty.

Later, these "Ashinas" were granted high positions and generous salaries by the Heavenly Khan Li Shimin.

Among them, there are many key positions in the Imperial Guards...

"Why are they rebelling? Who led them to rebel?"

Li Daozon asked questions like a machine gun.

Zhi Shibu was really frightened by this great general who personally participated in the campaign against the Turks. The fear was aroused in his blood and he blurted out everything he knew like beans.

"Because their leader... no, the general is not used to life in Chang'an, and he has not been promoted for many years. He has long been resentful of the Emperor of Tang..."

“Who is it?!” Li Daozon’s eyes were almost spitting fire.

Zhi Shibu was shaking violently.

"Yes, yes, it's the Lieutenant Colonel who's in charge of the gate, the Lieutenant Colonel of the Right Gate Guard...

"Ashina Association Rate."

(End of this chapter)