Ming Dynasty: I am truly not the Emperor of Longevity

"Guo Qing, I have a task for you."

Lu Chen looked at Guo Shoulu.

"After Wang Ziyan returns to the capital, we will befriend him."

Duan Chaoyong did not have the conditions to synthesize the "fatigue-relieving and awakening agent," and the possibility that he himself was a transmigrator who brought "ice" to this plane was also very low.

Duan Chaoyong was to refine elixirs for the emperor in the Western Garden, but he couldn't leave the capital. Wang Ziyan was his liaison with the people behind the scenes.

Wang Ziyan was well-prepared this time, and his whereabouts are now very difficult to trace.

But after he "purchased" the medicine, he still had to return to the capital.

Duan Chaoyong, such an audacious swindler, is no pushover. He has now gained the trust of the Jiajing Emperor. If he has enough "fatigue-relieving and awakening agents", how can the transmigrators hiding in the shadows restrain him?

Therefore, the amount of "ice" provided to Duan Chao each time must be very limited.

Before long, Prince Yan will definitely leave the capital again to retrieve "ice".

It's okay if you don't catch up this time; if you do it many times, there will always be clues.

"Your Highness, do you want me to find out from Prince Yan where he 'purchased' the medicine?"

Guo Shoulu asked in a low voice.

"Don't ask him anything. It's not the right time yet. Don't arouse his suspicion."

Lu Chen thought for a moment. Alerting the other party too early would not do him any good. It would be better to spend some time slowly working on this person who knew the truth.

"Just befriend him, use all the skills you've developed as a playboy over the years, invite him out often, and let him experience the life of high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital."

Do whatever interests him!

These charlatans have never experienced anything decent; we must make sure they become addicted to it.

If you try to meet him and he makes excuses about having something to do, it's because he's going to "buy" medicine again.

"When the time comes, just report to me, and I will arrange for someone to secretly follow you."

. . .

Taiyuan, Jingyin Temple.

"It's really not easy to see you."

A woman dressed in simple blue robes clasped her hands together and bowed to the Buddha statue, but what she said had nothing to do with worshipping Buddha.

"Li Dali was quite dissatisfied with his son taking a courtesan as a concubine, and he had been secretly sending people to keep an eye on me."

A woman in green, who was also praying nearby, responded softly.

"Among the servants waiting outside the palace now are his spies. If I were to meet someone in secret out of their sight, who knows what kind of trouble I would get into."

"In that case, I won't reminisce."

The woman in green did not turn her head.

"Is there a maritime merchant family surnamed Lin, whose head is named Lin Chaoxi, related to the Li family?"

"Lin Chaoxi?"

The woman in green thought for a moment,

"Never heard of it."

The Li family is focused on developing their cult; they're not cut out for things like maritime trade.

The Zhao Xixian you asked me to keep an eye on has risen very quickly in the Li family cult over the past two years.

I once heard Li Tong mention that Zhao Xixian had presented Li Dali with a miraculous medicine last year. Taking it could maintain vigorous energy throughout the night, and when combined with aphrodisiacs, it could unleash an extraordinary level of male potency.

"Has Li Tong himself taken it?"

The woman in green quickly pressed for an answer.

"Did he show you what that 'miracle drug' looked like?"

"Of course Li Tong succumbed. How could he, the spoiled grandson of a cult leader, resist such temptation!"

The woman in green smiled dismissively.

"Strangely enough, that 'miracle drug' looked completely different from ordinary pills; it resembled more like rock sugar or alum."

He finally found that batch of "ice"!

The woman in green's voice trembled.

What has Zhao Xixian been doing in the past year?

What did the Li family do after obtaining this "miracle drug"?

"That playboy Li Tong can't hide any secrets from me."

The woman in green snorted coldly.

He boasted to me that Zhao Xixian was sent by the Eternal Mother to help his Li family achieve great things.

According to Li Tong, his grandfather had already sent two capable subordinates from within the sect to the capital to make arrangements, and also sent another group of people across the border to the Right Wing Mongol royal court in Ordos.

I estimate that both groups carried the "miracle drug" offered by Zhao Xixian. This kind of thing that can make men more virile must have attracted a lot of nobles in the capital and the Mongol royal court.

As for Zhao Xixian himself, he was appointed as the Right Protector of the sect, a position second only to the sect leader and the sect leader's son, the Left Protector Li Dali.

"Do you think Zhao Xixian has the ability to secretly open a glass workshop and produce a large quantity of glassware without the knowledge of the Li family?"

After a few seconds of silence, the woman in green asked softly.

"He can't do it."

The woman in green chuckled softly.

"Who are the Li family? They are a branch of the White Lotus sect and the leaders of a cult."

Despite being suppressed by the imperial court twice, during the reigns of Emperors Hongzhi and Zhengde, the emperor was able to rise again.

In the sixteenth year of the Zhengde reign, the grandfather of the current leader, Li Tong, actually changed his name and became the commander of the Taiyuan Left Guard!

They gave Zhao Xixian a prestigious position within the church, second only to the Li family father and son, because they wanted to use his abilities, not because they genuinely considered him one of their own.

Zhao Xixian could keep some minor matters a secret, but there was absolutely no way he could hide the fact that he was setting up a workshop from the Li family.

Moreover, I don't think his mind is on this.

According to Li Tong, in order to win over Zhao Xixian, the Li family patriarch passed on to him a set of martial arts secrets that only the leaders of the sect were qualified to study.

It is said that whenever Zhao Xixian had time, he would shut himself in to study the martial arts manual.

The Li family even promised him a happy ending: after a few more years, when Li Tong's sister comes of age, they will be betrothed to Zhao Xixian.

Li Dali only has one son and one daughter. Li Tong is a playboy and doesn't seem capable of inheriting the position of sect leader at all.

If Zhao Xixian truly becomes Li Dali's son-in-law, he might very well be the next leader of the cult.

"It seems that the Li family has truly realized Zhao Xixian's value."

The woman in green gritted her teeth.

"Zhao Xixian used to be a daring person who dared to risk his life."

Back then, he and I walked for several days in the deep mountains before we finally found a place with human habitation.

Even if I were to go back now, I might not be able to find that place again.

Unexpectedly, he actually went back to look for it and found that batch of "ice"!

He did this not to assist the Li family father and son or help them achieve any great cause.

Once he has gained enough power, he will surely try to seize the legacy of the Li family.

"Nanyin, if one day Zhao Xixian and the Li family become embroiled in conflict, you must extricate yourself as soon as possible and come to Ningxiang Pavilion in Hangzhou to find me."

. . .

The next day, south of Taiyuan city.

"Miss, are we going straight back to Hangzhou?"

A woman dressed as a maidservant approached the carriage and asked in a low voice.

"No, we're going to Yunyang Prefecture, Fang County!"

The woman in blue on the carriage remained silent for a while, then finally made up her mind.

"That 'Lin Chaoxi' has nothing to do with Zhao Xixian!"

It seems there really was a third person besides him and me that day!