Xiao Mansion, located in the north city frontage, the magnificent gate and the huge pair of stone lions at the door all highlight the extraordinary Xiao family. With the sound of ticking horses' hooves, a carriage stopped at the gate of the mansion, and the old servant then got out of the carriage, followed by Li Yi.

There is a person standing at the gate at this moment, but it is Xiao Bin, the patriarch of the Xiao family, seeing Li Yi's arrival, Xiao Bin showed a sincere smile on his face and laughed: "Brother Li is really fortunate to be able to come with a face." ”

Li Yi didn't dare to slack off, and hurriedly returned the salute: "Brother Xiao is polite." ”

Xiao Bin waved his hand and said with a smile: "I, Xiao Bin, have never been polite people, and today I took the liberty of inviting Brother Li to come to the house to get together, which is really something to discuss." Brother Li, hurry up and follow me into the house, let's sit down and discuss! ”

Li Yi did not postpone it, and after thanking him, he followed Xiao Bin into the Xiao Mansion. Passing through the front yard to a rather secluded small courtyard, the outside was heavily guarded, and even the old servant who had been following left and right did not go in, only stayed outside the courtyard.

Xiao Bin and Li Yi entered the courtyard and went straight to the small wooden building inside, and in the study of the wooden building, Xiao Bin invited Li Yi to sit down. A little boy brought tea, and when the little boy who delivered the tea retreated and closed the door, Xiao Bin said with a smile: "Brother Li, Xiao called himself a brother when he was a few years old." ”

Li Yi nodded and smiled: "Brother Xiao! ”

"Hahaha...... Okay, good, Brother Li is really refreshing. We Mingren don't talk darkly, and I agree with Brother Li's remarks at this gathering. I hope we can have a more in-depth exchange, if Brother Li has any follow-ups, you might as well say it, and we will add it up. Xiao Bin said straight to the point.

Li Yi didn't respond immediately, he stared at Xiao Bin's face for a while, and hesitated and said, "Brother Xiao doesn't want to be an enemy of the government?" ”

Xiao Bin nodded and said: "The people do not fight with the officials, it has been like this since ancient times. In Fucheng, our Xiao family, as one of the three major families, is never afraid of anyone. But now we are facing the imperial court, but it is not enough for our Xiao family to stop the wishes of the official family.

After a pause, Xiao Bin suddenly sighed and said, "Don't be afraid to tell Brother Li, don't say that it's our Xiao family, even if all the forces in the city work together, they will definitely not be able to fight the imperial court." Therefore, defiance is not the way to solve the problem, although the smoking ban has had a big impact on all of our forces. But this is not a bad opportunity, if we can all grasp it well, it is estimated that this city will change in the future. ”

Li Yi's heart was shocked when he heard this, and he clearly understood a different meaning from Xiao Bin's words. After thinking about it for a while, Li Yi didn't dare to say with certainty: "What Brother Xiao means is that he wants to defect to the official family?" ”

If defecting to the official family is known by others, it will inevitably be squeezed out by other forces. Although the Xiao family is among the three major families, its ability is indeed not to be underestimated, but if everyone else unites to deal with the Xiao family, he Xiao Bin will not be able to finish eating and walking.

Seeing Li Yi so surprised, Xiao Bin laughed and said, "Isn't Brother Li so willing to give up everything he has worked hard for here in Fucheng and leave the prosperous place of Fucheng empty-handed?" ”

Li Yi slowly closed his eyes, shook his head and smiled bitterly: "If there is a chance, the little brother will naturally not think about that." ”

"Isn't that enough, since Brother Li also has the intention of defecting to the official family, wouldn't it be better for the two of us to join forces now." Xiao Bin's expression was very relaxed.

"What the eldest brother said is very true, and the younger brother has been worried before. With the strength of the younger brother's family alone, the official family may really not look down on it. Now, with the eldest brother joining, the younger brother can gain a little more confidence. Li Yi let go of the worries in his heart, he had already seen that Xiao Bin was not testing himself.

"Well, Brother Li has no worries about his eldest brother now, I wonder if you can tell me your plans for reference?" Xiao Bin proved his position and began to ask Li Yi to state his plan.

"Plan ......"

Li Yi shook his head and smiled: "Where does the junior brother have any plans, I didn't know that the eldest brother would have the same idea as the younger brother. ”

Xiao Bin frowned and said, "Could it be that Brother Li really doesn't have any plan at all?" ”

Li Yi resolutely said: "No! ”

"Big brother, in fact, we don't need to plan at all now, because we don't know what the official family is thinking. Instead of speculating here on our own, it is better to go directly to the official family and talk to them frankly. Li Yi proposed.

"It's good to talk directly to the officials. But has Brother Li ever thought about who to talk to? Xiao Bin said in a deep voice.

"Looking for Yan Zhenghai! On the Fucheng side, the Yan Governor can still be trusted. Big brother might as well talk to him, probe his tone, and then we will make a conclusion. Li Yi said with a smile.

Xiao Bin frowned and pondered for a while, then suddenly slapped the table and stood upright: "Okay, just follow Brother Li's words and talk to Yan Zhenghai." ”

Li Yi immediately clapped his hands and said, "Big brother, why don't we visit now?" ”

Xiao Bin nodded and smiled: "Indeed, this matter cannot be delayed, and there will always be problems if it drags on for a long time." Let's go to the government now. ”

Xiao Bin then instructed the old servant who was guarding outside to prepare the carriage without the Xiao family's mark. Only then did he quietly go to the government with Li Yi.

The Dark Guard's eyeliner is all over the city, and no wind or grass can escape their eyes. Yan Zhenghai had already received a report on the secret gathering of several major forces, and he was struggling with whether to send troops to encircle and suppress him.

Just when Yan Zhenghai couldn't make up his mind and wanted to ask Hong Chengchou for advice, he was unexpectedly informed that it was the head of the Xiao family and the Li gang leader who asked to meet. The party over there hadn't dispersed yet, but Xiao Bin took the initiative to come to the door, Yan Zhenghai immediately realized that something was wrong, and he immediately ordered someone to bring Xiao Bin to see him. On the other hand, he ordered someone to inform Hong Chengchou to come.

After tidying up his clothes, Yan Zhenghai had not finished drinking a cup of tea when he saw Xiao Bin and Li Yi. After the two sides politely greeted each other, Yan Zhenghai said straight to the point: "Patriarch Xiao has nothing to do but go to the Three Treasures Palace, I don't know what you are going to do when you come to the palace?" ”

After he glanced at Li Yi, he said bluntly: "Don't hide it, in fact, Xiao Mou came this time in the hope of resolving some misunderstandings with the imperial court." I also hope that adults can read our previous feelings and give Xiao some guidance. ”

Yan Zhenghai's heart moved slightly, and he said quite unexpectedly: "What does Patriarch Xiao mean by saying that he wants to stand on the same side as the imperial court?" Is Patriarch Xiao representing himself at this moment or is someone else thinking the same way? ”

At this moment, Yan Zhenghai was very excited in his heart, and he was worried about what to do with those forces who dared to openly confront the imperial court. Unexpectedly, Xiao Bin had already taken the initiative to send it to the door.