Chapter 116: The Ignorant Cousin
Wang Chengen on the side widened his eyes, shocked and at a loss.

Wang An actually wanted to drag Chongzhen to welcome Wei Zhongxian. This was simply rebellion against the will of heaven and treason!

But from Wang An's point of view, there was nothing wrong with this move. Moreover, Chongzhen had just said that he wanted to become a salt merchant and even lied that he had some friendship with Wei Zhongxian.

Although this is indeed good from a certain perspective, but...

Letting Emperor Chongzhen go to welcome Wei Zhongxian, young master, you are going against the will of heaven!

Chongzhen also opened his eyes wide and seemed a little at a loss. It was not because he felt unhappy or angry at being dragged by Wang An to meet Wei Zhongxian.

But he suddenly thought, what would Wei Zhongxian do if he suddenly saw him?
I guess he will kneel down and greet me, right?

By the way, shout "Long live the emperor" three times?
Wouldn't his identity be exposed then?

Thinking of this, Chongzhen hurriedly winked at Wang Chengen.

Wang Chengen immediately understood what Chongzhen meant, but he was helpless in such a hurry.

Just as he was feeling embarrassed, Wang An had already dragged Chongzhen to the gate.

Just then, I saw Li Yongzhen helping Wei Zhongxian get off the carriage and preparing to enter.

Fortunately, Wei Zhongxian was looking down at the stairs and did not see Chongzhen at once.

However, when Wang An pulled Chongzhen Ying up, he bowed and said, "I greet Eunuch Wei. Why did you come so early today?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhongxian slowly raised his head and looked at Wang An.

Just as he was about to say something, his eyes suddenly focused, the polite smile on the corner of his mouth slowly disappeared, and a look of shock appeared on his face.

Li Yongzhen beside him also had a change of expression on his face. After a moment, he opened his mouth and shouted, "Emperor..."

At this critical moment, Wang Chengen suddenly jumped out, clapped his hands on Li Yongzhen's shoulders, and said excitedly: "I didn't expect that Eunuch Li and Eunuch Wei still remembered my last name, Wang. I am really flattered!"

Wei Zhongxian and Li Yongzhen were originally a little hesitant, but when they met Wang Chengen, they immediately no longer doubted that there was something wrong with their eyes.

However, Li Yongzhen did not immediately understand Wang Chengen's intention. He stretched out his hand to push him away and bent his knees to kowtow.

Wang Chengen quickly hugged Li Yongzhen and laughed heartily, "Don't be offended, Eunuch Li. I learned this etiquette from the Mongolians. The tighter we hug, the deeper our feelings!"

While speaking, he looked at the shocked Wei Zhongxian, and his eyelids were almost blinking sparks.

At this time Li Yongzhen also felt something was wrong and looked at Wang Chengen hesitantly, his eyes full of questions.

Seeing that Li Yongzhen had finally come to his senses, Wang Chengen nervously but happily leaned over to whisper in Li Yongzhen's ear: "The Emperor has ordered that your identity not be revealed. Anyone who does will be beheaded!"

"Gudong"

Li Yongzhen swallowed hard and said gratefully, "Thank you, Eunuch Wang, for saving my life. I will definitely repay you handsomely in the future!"

Wang Chengen had no time to reply. He immediately turned to Wei Zhongxian and bowed respectfully as if he was meeting an important figure.

"I am Steward Wang. We met once in Jiangnan. Do you remember me, Eunuch Wei?" Wei Zhongxian opened his mouth slightly and was stunned for a long time before he reacted. He followed Wang Chengen's words and said, "Ah... I remember! Steward Wang!"

Wang Chengen felt relieved when he heard this. Finally, Chongzhen's identity was not revealed at the critical moment.

At the same time, he couldn't help but admire Wei Zhongxian. He was worthy of being a eunuch with great power. Look at his reaction ability, which was much better than Li Yongzhen's.

Although he still didn't understand what was going on, he instinctively felt that something was wrong and was able to coordinate with his own words.

Although Wang An felt a little strange while watching the scene, he couldn't help but feel happy about his resilience when he saw that his cousin's housekeeper had such a close relationship with the two eunuchs Wei Zhongxian and Li Yongzhen, and even hugged each other.

This is more than just a little friendship, this is simply a close friendship!
With such a close relationship, wouldn't it be a piece of cake to get a few salt permits?
Thinking of the historical records about how the Jiangnan salt merchants squandered money and lived a life of debauchery, Wang An couldn't help but smile foolishly.

I secretly made up my mind that when my cousin has established a firm foothold in Jiangnan, I will definitely hold on to this thigh and go to Jiangnan to see the legendary Yangzhou skinny horse...

Ah, it’s the scenery of Yangzhou!

After grinning foolishly for a while, Wang An hurriedly stepped forward and invited Wei Zhongxian into the mansion.

But when he bowed, he saw his cousin still standing there stupidly, and Wang An immediately pulled him in frustration.

"Brother, what are you doing standing there like an idiot? Come over and pay your respects to Eunuch Wei. We don't usually get to see an honorable person like Eunuch Wei."

Chongzhen had a constipated expression on his face and wanted to pretend that he didn't hear what Wang An said, but Wang An just stared at him seriously, like a parent scolding an impolite child.

Seeing this, Chongzhen had no choice but to clasp his hands together and prepare to bow.

However, Wei Zhongxian didn't dare to accept this greeting. He quickly jumped over and held Chongzhen's arms with both hands, smiling very kindly and said, "This is... this is it?"

Wang Chengen quickly replied with a wink: "This is my son, his surname is Wang, and his given name is Xin!"

"My son wants to undertake the salt permit in Jiangnan, and he has communicated with you, Eunuch Wei."

"Your surname is Wang... Prince Xin..." Wei Zhongxian chewed on it for a while, and the look of surprise on his face disappeared completely. He said, "So you are Prince Wang. It's better to meet you in person than to hear about you for a long time. You are indeed handsome and outstanding!"

Wei Zhongxian flattered the emperor calmly. Although he didn't understand why Emperor Chongzhen would go out incognito and get involved with Wang An, he was still very good at seizing opportunities.

When Wang An saw that Wei Zhongxian actually praised his cousin, he felt even happier, and even the frustration of losing his newly bought house faded a little.

After the greetings, Wang An led everyone into the house.

Wang Chengen deliberately lagged behind, walked beside Wei Zhongxian and whispered, "Your Majesty does not want to reveal your identity, Eunuch Wei, remember to act according to circumstances."

Wei Zhongxian nodded calmly without saying anything more.

Because everyone had already walked to the inner courtyard, Wang An had turned around and asked everyone to sit down.

After everyone was seated, Wang An, who hoped that his cousin would be successful so that he could curry his favor, was busy pouring tea and water, only thinking about how to further the relationship between his cousin and Wei Zhongxian.

As a cousin, doing this is the most you can do.

(End of this chapter)