Chapter 176 Fierce (Make up for Yesterday's)

The third day of September is an ordinary day. Even the weather is so ordinary. It rained slightly last night, and it was sunny again this morning. The weather is slightly cool with rising heat. It is definitely a comfortable day suitable for anything.

In the right wing of Leyi Academy, many scholars also thought so. Only half of the people came today, and many scholars took leave directly from the master, and went out with three or two friends to enjoy the chrysanthemums.

In the huge school, there were more than twenty scholars sitting sparsely. Most of the people were studying in silence. The teachers who were teaching came once in the morning, assigned some homework, and then left in a hurry, leaving the scholars alone.

This is a common occurrence and is nothing to worry about. Jiang Yuanbai, who suddenly became more playful, hugged his books and encouraged his friends to go outside to enjoy the scenery and read. Chen Heng and others didn't object. It was always good to go out and get some fresh air.

Besides, they always had a habit of saying something when they got together. Sitting in the classroom chatting will inevitably affect others. Instead of doing this, it would be more comfortable to go to a secluded place to read.

The four of them found a place where Xue Tadong usually painted, put the wooden bench on the grass, put the tea set on the brought coffee table, and hid in the shade of the tree to read, drink tea, and chat.

The topics of small talk always start from the parents' shortcomings. Yesterday was the day when the eldest sister and her eldest brother-in-law returned home. Chen Heng specially took a day off to stay at home. Jiang Yuanbai had better ask around. When I met my friend today, I couldn't help but ask about Hu Xiangheng's situation yesterday.

The son-in-law who comes back has a lot of fun. No matter whether he is reserved or nervous, he always makes a fool of himself. Teenagers who have begun to enter adolescence also have the leisure to eat melon everywhere. Jiang Yuanbai was listening enthusiastically, but his joy was broken by Xue Biao's words, "You will have this day in the future." He and Qian Dayou immediately looked sad.

Chen Heng couldn't help laughing. Seeing him laughing so wildly, Jiang Yuanbai was helpless. Who told Hengdi to be younger than him? A few people chatted and joked, and then asked Xue Biao about the meeting between the newspapers in the four states.

Speaking of this, Xue Biao felt bitter. He took the money and made a lot of tea. While shaking his head, he took out some of what he had seen and heard and said,

After Jiang Yuanbai listened silently, he asked in surprise: "So, Jiangnan News is determined to compete with us for this title?"

Maybe it's because of the relationship with Jing'an Literary Society, or maybe because I am responsible for the connection between the literary society and the newspaper. Jiang Yuanbai took the initiative to bring his own perspective to "Jing'an Daily" and complained about his unfair treatment.

"Yes." Xue Biao nodded and explained to the other two people, "The newspapers in Jiangsu and Hangzhou have received a lot of help from us. They are biased towards us. But behind Jiangnan News, there is also Jinling News Shadow. When the two come together, they are quite powerful.”

Having said this, Xue Biao sighed, "And when the people from Jinling News came to Yang this time, the Jinling Prefecture sent twenty officers and soldiers to escort them. Didn't you see that a group of people sat down to talk, and these people stood nearby? Gou looked at him. He looked so aggressive. He obviously wanted to report the situation to Jiangnan. Who would want to come out and talk more."

Jiang Yuanbai listened silently and then sighed with emotion: "What a shame. Aren't they afraid of the excitement of the crowd if they do this? If everyone insists on confessing their dissatisfaction, even if they get a leader, they won't be able to convince the crowd."

Qian Dayou also nodded, but looked at Chen Heng who had been silent. He pushed the thoughtful Chen Heng with his elbow, "Brother Heng, what are you thinking about?"

"I think what they want may not be the president." Chen Heng smiled, took out a copy of "Jiangnan News" that was just sold this morning from his sleeve, and handed it to several friends, "You guys take a look first. content above."

Xue Biao was the most nervous and curious and took the newspaper immediately. Jiang Yuanbai and Qian Dayou on the side had no choice but to join in. The three people's eyes fell on the front page, which read "Weak successor! Is Qiupu Street a big success? Or is it for the people?"

They continued to look down, and saw the writer named West above, severely criticizing Qiupu Street. The rhetoric is simply that the things made by the refugees cannot be sold, and the big households in Yangzhou do not buy it. The government office has to use treasury money to fill the hole. This move is to put out the fire without a salary, and is simply asking for trouble.

This unknown scholar also predicted on paper that either this month or next month, the government will no longer be able to spend money to continue supporting Qiupu Street. Where will tens of thousands of workers go? This will be the biggest crisis in Yangzhou.

The content may be true or false, but the intention to overgeneralize and deliberately incite panic is definitely indispensable. This is what Xue Biao thinks. He knows the government's painstaking efforts in doing these things, and he also knows that there may have been a war at the border.

But the person who wrote the article doesn't know whether he really didn't know, or whether he maliciously concealed these things. They only make a fuss about commodity prices and things on Qiupu Street, which makes people want to criticize but have nowhere to criticize.

"What do you mean by Brother Heng?" Jiang Yuanbai asked his friend what he thought.

Chen Heng still wanted to understand some of the other party's methods. He picked up a few empty tea cups and set up a dragon gate array on the coffee table. "You see, the people who set up the game first gathered the owners of newspapers from all over the country together. Without these people making decisions in the shop, even if someone wanted to say something fair, they would not care about Qiupu Street for the moment. thing."

"But this gathering is about the position of leader. Even if you don't want to come, you have to come. Regardless of whether your family can win or not, doing some favors to the new leader will also facilitate future relationship discussions."

"This move is to muddy the waters, just like the sudden change of Jiangnan Daily to publish every three days. It is all for the purpose of controlling the discourse power of various places in a short period of time." Chen Heng raised another teacup and placed it on the table, "Disrupting Jing'an Daily, I think it is also for this purpose."

"Whether it is to win over the Wang family or to tie the Xue family's attention to the matter of the head of the meeting." Chen Heng picked up the tea and poured it into the cup until the tea overflowed the cup, "It is to make the Xue family have no time to join the game and mess with them."

Seeing such a simple and ordinary thing, there is such a trade-off game inside. Jiang Yuanbai also took a breath and couldn't help asking: "Is our Jing'an Daily worth it?"

"It's worth it. Whether it's for a short period of exclusive discourse power or the influence of Jing'an Daily."

Chen Heng nodded with a gloomy face. As the first newspaper to eat crabs, Yangzhou people still have a lot of feelings for Jing'an Daily. Especially the newspaper shop has the sign of Mr. Yuanhe, and it is published every five days, and the price is cheap.

A little trick can control Jing'an Daily, regardless of whether the Wang family is sincere or hypocritical. If the Wang family agrees, they will complete the transition from Jiangnan Daily to Jing'an Daily, and get rid of the huge investment of Jiangnan Daily.

As long as a date is set to complete the exchange, it will be a big profit for these people when everything is settled. If the Wang family does not agree in the end, these means will be enough to give the Xue and Wang families a headache, and they will not be able to see their true intentions for a while.

Xue Ke was shocked, and he wondered why someone suddenly emerged recently to target their Xue family. He finally understood why his father had been unable to sleep and eat recently, and he had to meet Chen Heng.

"So my father came to you that day?"

"What exactly did they do this for?" Jiang Yuanbai also asked.

The two people's problems can be understood. Chen Heng picked up the handle of the teapot and shook it, saying with a smile: "They want to be the one who pours the tea themselves."

This is a mysterious statement, but Qian Dayou has figured it out. He just spit out the word "prefect" and he was so scared that he covered his mouth.

The bold Jiang Yuanbai also shuddered because of this unfinished sentence. Some things, he thought were so far away that he could only see them in the storybook. Now that Brother Heng said this, he realized that it was really happening around him, and he was so close to it.

So it is said that the world is bustling, all for profit. The profit here is more than just money? Isn't power also a kind of profit? Even its temptation is higher.

Chen Heng sighed with emotion. The people of Yangzhou accidentally joined the game and everyone became a pawn. This is the big network called "power", and its terribleness.

"Then..." Xue Ke opened his mouth, he was still waiting for Chen Heng to answer his question.

"Uncle actually wanted to ask this." Chen Heng shook the teapot, then put it down and continued, "I said the Hu family is fine, but the teapot is fine."

In fact, Chen Heng has not had the opportunity to meet Uncle Lin until now. He only knew that the other party had sent rice cakes to his home before the college entrance examination to comfort him.

Chen Heng was not clear about Uncle Lin's countermeasures, but he had to stabilize the Xue family for Uncle Lin, and he couldn't let the Xue family enter so eagerly.

He had this move and confidence not only because of his personal relationship with the Lin family, but also because he held the biggest card in his hand.

Chen Heng knew and remembered. The fall of the four kings and eight dukes in the original book, the death of the emperor, and the great victory of His Majesty's department.

To this day, from the plaque of the academy to the promotion of the former Wei Zhifu to the left vice minister of the Ministry of Rites, if Chen Heng still couldn't see that the person standing behind Uncle Lin was the emperor, Chen Heng would be in vain.

But until now, it was the other party who was making the move. Uncle Lin was too quiet, too quiet.

Uncle, what are you waiting for?

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Li Bian hosted a banquet at Huang's house today, and there were more guests than last time. Not only the previous salt merchants, but also the merchants who were engaged in goldware at home, as well as rare salt merchants like Feng Zhu, and the owners of Jiangnan Daily and Jinling Daily, as well as some scholars accompanying the guests, the scene was really lively.

However, the strangest thing here was not the old fox Feng Zhu who rarely showed up. It was the officer who was specially arranged to sit next to Li Bian. This Wu Tou's surname was Ma and his name was Yin. He was not very old, and he looked only about eighteen or nineteen years old.

Ordinarily, such a young man should not sit above everyone. Unfortunately, although Ma Yin's official position was low, he had a father who was the commander of Jinling Guard.

Li Bian valued this little brother very much, and his words were full of win-over and concern. If he, a dragon crossing the river, really wants to capture Lin Ruhai, the local snake, he must have his own people who can use force. If he really relies on conspiracy, Lin Ruhai will turn over the chess table when he can't beat him. Who can he go to for justice?

What Chen Heng said was right for most of his thoughts. But he missed one thing. The soldiers in Jinling had the reason to enter Yangzhou in the name of escort.

Once Lin Ruhai chose to turn the table, as long as he was with Ma Yin, he would have a golden medal of immunity from death.

Whether he took the opportunity to retreat to Jinling or led the commander Ma to come to rescue his son, he could save himself or turn the tables.

If it really came to a bad situation, as long as he had a life. When the lawsuit was brought to the emperor, it would be very safe with the prime minister. With such frequent strategies, there was a way to advance and retreat. Li Bian didn't believe that Lin Ruhai could turn the tables. He had calculated everything and thought of everything. What could Lin Ruhai use to fight him?

It was also because of this confidence that he dared to let his advisor write the article in Jiangnan Newspaper, pointing directly at Lin Ruhai who was ill and could not go out. This was the first scene of the struggle.

Most of the people in the field saw these signs and rushed to Huang's house to meet Li Bian. No matter how you look at it, Li Bian's advantage is big enough at the moment. He was afraid that he would burn incense too late and let this nobleman look down on him. Everyone at the table was trying to please him.

The people should not fight against the officials, and the situation of the merchants is similar. They can only see the afterglow of power, but cannot hold the power. Blame it on the man surnamed Lu, who set a bad precedent.

Those salt merchants who have always followed Feng Zhu's lead saw Huang Wendong sitting at the top and feeling proud, but they were a little indignant in their hearts. Someone came close to Feng Zhu's ear and said unwillingly: "Head, you let him be so proud? After we came in, he didn't say a word to us."

"That's right, that's right. Let such a person climb over our heads. Don't we have to live by Huang Wendong's face in the future?" Another companion shook his head and was very worried about his future.

They, the old acquaintances, knew best how domineering the Huang family was. On weekdays, everyone also had disputes on the business road, and it was thanks to Feng Zhu's frequent mediation that everyone's emotions were stabilized.

How could Feng Zhu not know? He looked at the feast and the feast, and his mood was still calm. He just raised his wine glass and signaled everyone to stay calm.

"Don't worry, everyone, I'm here. I will definitely keep everyone safe and live up to your trust."

Feng Zhu has been the head of the meeting for so many years, and his words are still effective. Seeing him so confident, the other salt merchants simply returned to their positions. Their position today is at the end of the right side. This position is very embarrassing, lower than the position of the pearl merchants present.

Among the salt merchants, only Huang Wendong has the highest position. The pearl merchants are in Li Bian's favor because of the Qiupu Street incident. Compared with these people, the appearance and position arrangement of Feng Zhu and others, it is definitely a lie to say that Li Bian did not deliberately knock on them.

But Feng Zhu also knew that Li Bian would definitely invite him after the banquet. Otherwise, why would he invite himself here? It can't be that he is here to be a witness. Feng Zhu didn't want to drink, and saved his energy to prepare for the final matters.

He is also a local snake in Yangzhou, and he still holds Huang Wendong's life gate in his hand. Naturally, he is not afraid that the other party will gain power and climb over his head to tyrannize in the future.

Sure enough, after the banquet, Feng Zhu received an invitation from Li Bian and was kept in Huang's house to talk about some old feelings. Feng Zhu and Li Bian have no old feelings. The two people who have nothing to do with each other, accompanied by Huang Wendong, sat together enthusiastically.

The three of them only drank tea this time. Li Bian, who was in high spirits, said some polite words. Feng Zhu also accepted all the words and responded with some nice words to suit the occasion.

In the end, it was nothing more than one trying to win over Feng Zhu and the other trying to do a favor. Only Huang Wendong was worried about gains and losses. He knew that Li Bian valued Feng Zhu and knew the power of the Feng family in Yangzhou. The financial resources of the Feng family alone were far superior to his own, so he couldn't help but say a few sour words during the period.

Li Bian was very happy to see Huang Wendong's actions. He and Feng Zhu were jealous of each other for him, which just showed that he had a sure win.

Li Bian was happy to watch the fun, but Feng Zhu was annoyed. He came today with the intention of making a deal. Huang Wendong was so dominant that Feng Zhu felt at ease selling people.

Thinking this in his heart, Feng Zhu coughed lightly and said, "Sir, I have heard some things recently, and I feel uneasy. I feel guilty that I must report them to you in private. Otherwise, I feel guilty."

"Oh?!" Li Bian was very interested. What he lacked most was an eye for news. He said happily, "Mr. Feng actually had this matter. Why didn't you tell us earlier? We should have had a few more drinks at the banquet earlier. We almost missed Mr. Feng."

If you don't leave me behind, you naturally won't hear this news. Feng Zhu snorted in his heart, but his usual kind smile appeared on his face.

Seeing that he didn't continue to speak, Li Bian immediately guessed what the other party meant. He looked at Huang Wendong, who was curious and nervous, and said, "Brother Huang, can I borrow your precious land for a while?"

Don't think that Li Bian is so polite. Huang Wendong is relying on him, how can he refuse. Since he could hear the intention of expelling the guest, he, as the host, had to stand up unwillingly and smiled awkwardly: "Sir, I'll go to the kitchen to see the food prepared by the servants."

Huang Wendong left very angry, both because of Li Bian's disrespect and because Feng Zhu didn't look at him more. He guessed that Feng Zhu must be talking about his own family.

Could it be that Feng Zhu knew that he sent someone to poison Xu Mazi? Impossible, the jailer who poisoned the guest, his whole family was imprisoned in his manor. Even if he was alive, he would not dare to betray himself! !

Huang Wendong, who was worried, closed the door and deliberately stepped out to tell the people in the room that he would not eavesdrop. He, Huang Wendong, naturally did not need eavesdropping. He also kept many capable people in his mansion.

After he left, Li Bian picked up the teacup and looked at Feng Zhu with a smile, "You can tell me now, Mr. Feng."

"Of course." Feng Zhu bowed and thanked Li Bian for his understanding. "Your Excellency, as you know, last month, Brother Huang bribed the jailer of the government office and poisoned several prisoners to death."

This was a big deal, so Feng Zhu naturally didn't need to use any sentence like "Your Excellency is in big trouble." Sure enough, Li Bian, who was drinking tea, coughed violently when he heard it, and it was obvious that he was choked.

"Seriously?!" Li Bian was shocked. His heart felt cold at first, then shocked, and then he became furious.

Seeing Feng Zhu nodding silently, Li Bian slammed the table angrily. He was worried that these salt merchants had dirty hands and feet. Before, I asked them if they had any clues in Lin Ruhai's hands, and each one of them patted their chests and assured them.

In the end, he was a fool who deserved to be killed by a thousand cuts if he did such a thing behind his back. Li Bian suppressed his red face and asked: "Where is the jailer?"

"The prisoner died, and the jailer also swallowed poison and died." Feng Zhu said in a cold tone. Seeing Li Bian's expression relaxed slightly, he added: "But I have an informant in the government office. I heard that person say, Magistrate Lin We have rescued this man, but we are afraid that people will come to murder him, so we have imprisoned the jailer elsewhere."

A hundred secrets and a sparse, a hundred secrets and a sparse. Li Bian was originally in a relaxed mood and wanted to say that Huang Wendong was clean in his work. Now he became nervous again and almost called his master to scold him heavily.

In the past few days, he has been meeting guests at Huang Mansion again and again. If Lin Ruhai finally gets the news from the jailer and puts the lawsuit on his head, wouldn't he be unable to defend himself? There is really yellow stuff on the crotch, it’s not just shit, it’s shit.

Li Bian's frightened and panicked look was noticed by Feng Zhu. The latter was also proud of himself. Huang Wendong had planned for Li Bian, and in the end, didn't he make wedding clothes for the Feng family?

As long as Huang Wendong is kicked out, the Feng family will naturally be able to offer Li Bian more favorable terms. Don't be afraid that the other party won't be moved, don't be afraid that the other party won't reuse you.

"Brother Feng, is this news reliable?" Li Bian was still a little unwilling to give up. He had seen deeper than Feng Zhu and knew how scary the news was.

Seeing that Master Li had changed his title, Feng Zhu also said with all his heart: "Absolutely reliable." He explained clearly the activities of Huang Wendong and Xu Mazi, and added, "My spy was Master Lin who acted as a meddler when he first came to Yangzhou." It has been several years since the servants sneaked into the house, and there is absolutely no chance that Mr. Lin will know about it. "

"Okay, very good, Brother Feng." Li Bian stood up excitedly, walked to Feng Zhu, and praised repeatedly: "If Brother Feng helps me with the things I am doing for the Prime Minister, I will be even more powerful, and great things can be accomplished."

He walked around for a few steps, but still felt that something urgent needed to be done urgently, and immediately said to Feng Zhu: "Brother Feng, there are still important things in the lower house. You and I will get together some other time."

Feng Zhu shook his robe, stood up and said, "It's just right. I drank some wine today, and I'm not overly drunk. Why don't I let my younger brother serve as host and prepare a banquet at home, and then invite your Excellency to the house to have a chat."

He is much older than Li Bian. It is really incredible that he can be called his younger brother in person.

"Very good, very good." Li Biangong handed over his hand and left impatiently without even taking the time to wait for Huang Wendong.

The rightful owner had already left, so Feng Zhu naturally didn't want to stay any longer. When Huang Wendong came back, he saw that there was no one in the room, and he didn't know what happened. He immediately threw the tea cup angrily.

He immediately summoned the steward of the mansion and interrogated him about recent events in the city.

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When Li Bian returned home, he was too angry and couldn't sleep, so he called his master directly to discuss countermeasures. This master has been his helper for many years and is very knowledgeable about family matters. He knows that the master has recently received a lot of money and gifts from Huang Wendong.

After hearing that Huang Wendong had committed this major case, the master also looked sad. This matter can be big or small, the key is to see what Lin Ruhai wants to do?

If the two parties have a good relationship and the officials protect each other, Huang Wendong can use some money to settle the matter secretly. But the two parties are now at odds with each other, and it is impossible to gain any favor.

"Sir, how about..." The master made a gesture of dropping the knife. Li Bian's eyes lit up, but he hesitated and said, "Is it necessary to do this?"

The master thought about him wholeheartedly and asked directly: "My lord, if Magistrate Lin captures Huang Wendong and he bites him wantonly in prison, unless it is your lord's instigation, then our situation will be passive."

This was what Li Bian was worried about. He had accepted Huang Wendong's money and was about to insist that he had nothing to do with it and that he could keep his official position even if he got in front of the Prime Minister. If you just drop the word "greedy", you will definitely have no hope of promotion in the future, and your heart will be even more anxious.

As for Huang Wendong, he takes on everything without causing any trouble to his overall situation. Li Bian didn't dare to gamble or even think about it. It would be stupid to put his own wealth and life on other people's thoughts.

Li Bian was so anxious that the original pride in his heart had long since disappeared. One moment I think about the worst-case scenario, and the next moment I think about remedies.

What he wants is more than just an academic administration! He wants to climb higher. If it is not for official position, what is his painstaking planning? Is it for the common people in the world? Is it because the prime minister has all the power?

Now that Lin Ruhai's defeat was certain, Li Bian knew that the Yangzhou government's treasury must be short of money, and His Majesty also wanted to prepare border army pay in Jiangnan and other places. Just wait, maybe another month at most. The memorial to impeach Lin Ruhai would fly to the imperial court like snowflakes.

He is only one step away from the fourth grade Fei Pao. How can we be burdened by Huang Wendong? How can we stop here? Li Bian, who didn't want to lose, finally changed his mind and immediately told his master: "Go and ask Ma Yin to come see me and tell him that I want to give him a fortune."

"Yes, sir."

The master took the order and left.

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Huang Wendong waited at home for two days before the informant came to report that the jailer who had poisoned him had been rescued by the prefect. He beat several stewards on the spot and smashed things in the hall.

"Stupid, all stupid. All they know is to make money from me. They can't catch Xu Mazi. They can kill a few people and be rescued by the government. Why did I keep you stupid!!"

Looking at the steward kneeling in the hall, Huang Wendong raised his foot and kicked a few people. He still felt that he couldn't calm down his anger, so he pointed at the steward who was gasping for breath and said, "Tell me, what else can we do now."

The steward had just been kicked by Huang Wendong, and his chest was aching. Hearing the master's question, he didn't care to soothe the pain in his chest, and hurriedly gasped: "Master, it's like this. Why don't you go to Lord Li and tell him directly?"

Their family was so eager to surrender to Li Bian, just because they felt that their handle fell into Lin Ruhai's hands, and they wanted to find a backer for themselves. That's why they were willing to be Li Bian's vanguard, not only obeying orders and charging into battle, but also often giving him generous gifts.

"If he really wanted to help me, he wouldn't have left that night." Huang Wendong said angrily, cursing Li Bian, the ungrateful man. After spending so much money, when the time came, the other party ran away cleanly.

But Huang Wendong didn't think that Li Bian was his life-saving straw, but he was not Li Bian's only helper. This is a different time. Li Bian now has many people he can use, and Feng Zhu has taken the initiative to join him. Compared with Feng Zhu, Huang Wendong has many shortcomings.

"Then..." The chief steward rolled his eyes and said viciously, "Then let's do it once and for all. Master, as long as we are clean and no one knows what we did, we can give gifts to Lord Li to apologize and ask him to take care of us. He will definitely change his mind."

"Stupid, how could I not know? But you have to know that place!" Huang Wendong's eyes were red, and he looked at the servant who had gone out to inquire about the news before. The latter immediately said: "Master, I have already found out where the jailer lives."

Huang Wendong was overjoyed when he heard this, and then he breathed a sigh of relief, pointing at the servant with his hand, "You are still useful. If you can do this, I will promote you to steward when you come back."

"Thank you, Master, thank you." The servant immediately knelt on the ground and thanked Huang Wendong for his kindness.

Afterwards, Master Huang asked the servant to explain the process of the inquiry. Seeing that his answers were detailed and thorough, and there were no doubts in any place, he finally believed that the news was accurate.

Since we know where the other party lives, the rest is to recruit some reliable people. Huang Wendong has a lot of such people. In just one night, he gathered a group of vicious criminals and hid the equipment in the mansion, waiting for a rainy night when it would be convenient to act.

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That night, Xin Geng sat in the tent for a while. Guard Li, who had escorted Xin Suzhao to run around many times, brought him a letter from the city. With the help of the light in the tent, Xin Geng read the contents of the letter clearly.

"Sir." Guard Li saw Xin Geng put away the letter and immediately clasped his fists to obey orders.

Xin Geng raised his arm guard, rubbed his beard, thought for a moment, and ordered: "Take a team and follow me into the city."

"Yes!"

This chapter of 7,000 words is to make up for yesterday's. Today's will come later.