Chapter 99: Jiao Lan Palace

Spring in Bianliang City seems to come much earlier than in other places.

The wind that blew across the north and south blew the weeping willows on the banks of the Bian River. The willow branches fluttered in the wind. Fleets also traveled back and forth, bringing with them fresh southern delicacies, overseas treasures, fine white rice, and exotic fruits. Ship after ship arrived at the canal wharf.

Bianliang's canal transportation was prosperous, and it had supported countless men who made a living from it over the past hundred years. At present, many idle men gathered on both sides of the river, watching a boat coming by, and they all murmured in envy. After several fleets of boats passed by, nearly a hundred voices of surprise and admiration were heard.

There is no other reason. There are too many people who rely on water transport for a living. They rack their brains every day to compete for a job. Today is the largest batch of shipping since the beginning of spring, but it is still not enough for everyone to get a job as a towman or run errands.

On the bank, beside the river, there is a medium-sized restaurant with a low shed outside. Usually, it is a place where low-class people from all walks of life come to drink and joke.

On the second floor, near the window overlooking the river, Zhu Hanbin sat in casual clothes, with a square table in front of him and a servant making tea for him.

Amid the aroma of tea, two bad guys sat on opposite sides with their arms around each other, their faces grim.

The two of them had been ordered to monitor Zhu Hanbin in Caozhou, and since the latter was appointed as the commander of the Dragon and Tiger Army, the two of them each took on a team leader's assignment and served as the commander of Zhu Hanbin's personal soldiers. The latter's daily actions could not be hidden from the two of them.

After a pot of tea was ready, Zhu Hanbin waved his hand and asked the servant to prepare wine, and then casually poured a cup of tea for each of them.

"You two have known me for nearly half a year, right?"

Two cups of tea were quietly placed on the table. The two men looked indifferent and did not move.

Zhu Hanbin was already used to it. He drank his tea by himself and then pointed with chopsticks at the fleets on the river outside the window.

"Do you know where these fleets come from?"

"Not interested." After a moment, someone spoke in a low voice.

"They are tributes from Qian Liu of Wuyue, Ma Yin of Southern Chu, Gao Jixing of Northern Chu, and Wang Shenzhi of Quanzhou." Zhu Hanbin answered, "At that time, the waves should have been transported in different places, but in order to create momentum, the palace gathered them together and transported them into the city today."

The two bad guys said nothing, as if they didn't hear anything.

However, Zhu Hanbin was still able to keenly notice some movement on their faces.

A waiter brought two pots of wine. He raised his teacup, covered his sneer, and said, "Now, south of Daliang, except for Yang Wo in Huaixi, who is still not submissive, there is no rival. From this point of view, if the world is unified in the future, it must belong to Daliang. What do you think, yes or no?"

The two bad guys sitting opposite him looked at each other and then nodded slowly.

Seeing that the two seemed to be persuaded by him, Zhu Hanbin remained calm. He cleared the tea on the table, poured them a glass of wine, and whispered, "Now you two know me well. You also know that I have been appointed as the commander of the Dragon and Tiger Army, and the governor of Caozhou, and I am highly valued by Zhu Wen..."

He leaned forward and lowered his voice. "At present, although I am only Zhu Wen's adopted son, I have gradually gained power and even secretly made friends with the Dark Emperor. In the future, I can go a step further and spy on the throne. It may not be a problem. Now, Daliang is strong and the princes are weak. It will take time to unify the world. Although I am not talented enough, I am better than the Dark Emperor, that ghost. With the help of the two of you, there is hope for me to reach the top in the future..."

One of them interrupted rudely, "If you have anything to say, just say it. My brother and I haven't read much, so we don't understand the twists and turns."

Zhu Hanbin was not annoyed, he just picked up the wine glass in front of him and drank it all. Then he took out a wooden box from under the table.

The two people's attention was drawn over.

The wooden box was opened, revealing two property deeds stamped with official seals.

"You two have followed me through many places and finally arrived here. This is my thank you gift to you." Zhu Hanbin pushed the wooden box over and said, "This thing is not expensive. It is just two small courtyards with two entrances in Bianliang City. Consider it the place I found for you two to live."

After that, he pretended to smile and said, "The courtyard is where you are. A broker will take you there later. There are also some small gifts prepared by me in the courtyard. I hope you can accept them."

The two bad guys stared at the wooden box for a long time without moving.

Zhu Hanbin comforted them, "Don't worry, I have no other intentions. I just want to erase all the conflicts we had in the past. Just treat it as me and you two becoming friends. How do you think?"

One of them hesitated for a moment, then reached out and put the two deeds into his arms.

The other bad guy didn't stop him.

"Come, come, drink this glass of wine, and the three of us will put aside our past grudges and start over." Zhu Hanbin felt relieved at once, and then he kept pouring wine for the two of them. At the same time, he whispered, "Don't worry, I won't let your lieutenant know..."

"You both showed great courage." The two men raised their glasses to each other and then drank the wine in one gulp.

Zhu Hanbin was overjoyed, and poured another glass for each of them. He patted his chest and promised in a low voice: "As long as you two are willing to assist me wholeheartedly, I will help you two to reach the same level when I make further progress in the future!"

The two bad guys accepted all the wine and drank it again until the two pots of wine were completely gone.

After a few drinks, the two finally had a great time.

Zhu Hanbin felt reassured. Beforehand, he had planned to win over the two men step by step. He would first tie them up in Bianliang with a house, and then arrange some beauties for them. After going through the whole process, he would not be afraid that they would refuse to get drunk in the land of tenderness.

Bianliang is now the most prosperous place in the world. I believe no one can resist its charm.

By then, after he alienates the two, he can fish in troubled waters, making Xiao Yan work for him while seeking power for himself. When his strength is strong enough, he can...

Thinking of this, he smiled heartily and asked, "Since you two have agreed to be friends, can you tell me the truth? How does your captain treat me..."

A bad guy put down his wine glass and burped, but his face was not drunk at all.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table, and grinned, his mouth smelling of alcohol: "Just now, you boasted that you had such abilities, but after entering this Bianliang city, how come you have become deaf and blind?"

Zhu Hanbin's face froze, and then he became a little angry, "What do you mean!?"

"You are in charge of the left and right guards, don't you know that the captain is coming to the capital today?" The bad man laughed and said, "These two small courtyards can be regarded as gifts to welcome the captain to the capital."

"Nonsense! He is clearly still in Luoyang!"

A flash of panic flashed across his eyes. Zhu Hanbin stood up, propped up the table with both hands, and said angrily, "He has become close to Zhu Youzhen. Zhu Youzhen hasn't even returned to Beijing yet. How could he not stay in Luoyang?!"

“Don’t you think about why you can’t even receive such news?” The bad guy stood up slowly and pressed Zhu Hanbin’s shoulder with one hand. His friendly tone slowly turned cold: “The captain asked my two brothers to pass a message to the envoy——”

"He can lift you to this position, and he can also make you fall down at any time."

The hand on his shoulder patted down heavily.

"Do your job well and don't have any evil thoughts. The captain said that you and your son will be allowed to meet later."

The two of them hugged each other and went downstairs to wait as if nothing happened.

At the same time, they did not forget to take the wooden box on the table away.

Zhu Hanbin looked stunned and slowly sat down.

He now controls the Left and Right Dragon and Tiger Armies. Although he is not the most powerful general in Daliang, he is one of the most powerful military leaders in Bianliang City. But he didn't even know that Xiao Yan had returned to the capital! ?

There are only a few people who are capable of blocking his eyes and ears, and what those two bad guys just said is extremely clear...

After a moment, his eyes turned red and he clenched the wine glass in one hand until it broke with a shattering sound.

"Zhu Youzhen, I'm not done with you!"

------

Bianliang Imperial Palace, Jiaolan Hall.

Zhu Wen was reviewing memorials to the emperor, but after reading only a few of them, he felt his eyes becoming blurry.

An expression of disgust appeared on his face. He stroked his beard and pushed the memorial aside.

"Send someone to take it to Chongzhengyuan and let Jingxiang see it."

An eunuch looked embarrassed and whispered, "Your Majesty, the envoy of the Imperial Court said that he has simplified these memorials a lot, and Your Majesty needs to make the decision personally..."

"Your mother's head!"

Zhu Wen was furious. He picked up a copy of memorials and hit the eunuch in the face, causing his nose to bleed. "Don't you understand what I say? Take it to Jingxiang!" The latter covered his nose, not daring to disobey. He hurriedly ordered two young eunuchs to hold a pile of memorials each and go out.

"A bunch of trash."

Zhu Wen was in a particularly bad mood these two days. He had already made up his mind to attack Fengxiang in the west, but during these two days, some court officials kept reporting to him, saying that they should take the opportunity to attack Lulong in the north first, which was contrary to his idea.

The reason why he insisted on attacking Qi State was not only because Qi State was easier to attack and it was convenient for him to improve his prestige, but also because he and Li Maozhen had been enemies for many years, and their hatred for each other was no less than that of Li Keyong. On the contrary, although he was also envious of Hebei, he had to admit one thing:

He was a little scared.

After several failed attacks on Cangzhou, his prestige was almost destroyed under the city of Cangzhou. Although there was civil unrest in Hebei now, he still did not dare to make up his mind.

After all, it is a fact that Zhu Wen himself does not want to admit but has to face.

He was old, no longer as sharp and decisive as he was when he was young. Deep down, he was more or less afraid to take risks again, especially in Hebei, which he still feared.

Moreover, he was an old man who had been active in the feudal states since the reign of Emperor Xizong of Tang, and had seen too many examples of subordinates rebelling against their superiors. Even if he was decisive and famous when he was young, if he lost his prestige when he was old, he would be dragged down by the subordinates and become a stepping stone for the next one if he was not careful.

This is also the main reason why Zhu Wen became more and more tyrannical and treated Zhu Yougui more viciously.

Thinking of this, a look of viciousness appeared on his fat old face, and then he waved his hand.

"Come here, summon Zhang Zhenniang to the palace."

This was a common occurrence, so the eunuchs in the hall bowed and responded, then left the palace.

Zhu Wen yawned. Although it was still early in the morning, he had already planned to return to the harem and wait for someone to serve him.

But at this moment, a palace maid hurried into the hall.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."

"You useless thing, why are you panicking!" Zhu Wen opened his eyes wide and glared at him as he left.

The palace servant trembled all over and knelt down hurriedly: "Your Majesty, the former Tang Dynasty bad man Xiao Yan has arrived outside the palace. Your Majesty ordered two days ago that he should be summoned to the palace as soon as he returns to the capital..."

Zhu Wen waved his hand impatiently, "Let him go, I don't have time to see him today."

The palace maid didn't dare to speak again, but thinking of the silver in her sleeve, she finally put her forehead on the ground and stammered, "Xiao Yan said that he has a plan to take over Hebei..."

Zhu Wen, who had already walked down the hall, suddenly turned back and looked around.

"Summon him to the palace."

But he thought for a moment and said, "Wait a minute. First send someone to summon Jingxiang to the palace to see me, and then summon him into the palace."

After hearing this, the palace maid finally relaxed, then bowed and walked out.

……

The palace envoy who summoned Jing Xiang arrived at Chongzhengyuan almost at the same time as the memorial.

Jing Xiang didn't say much and immediately asked someone to prepare a sedan chair.

Fortunately, Chongzhengyuan was right next to the Imperial Street, only a hundred feet away from the Imperial City. The sedan chair carried him all the way to the Imperial City in just a quarter of an hour.

When they were close to the imperial city, Jing Xiang wanted to get off the sedan chair and walk in, but was stopped by a palace messenger, who told him that he could ride in the sedan chair today.

At this time, he saw a tall young man waiting outside the city gate, talking with a eunuch.

"That is……"

He stroked his beard and frowned in question.

"Oh, I don't know if that person is the one that His Royal Highness Prince Jun mentioned in his memorial. He is a former Tang Dynasty bad guy who came to serve our Daliang. His name is Xiao something..."

"Xiao Yan."

Jing Xiang had an excellent memory and instantly remembered that he had seen this name in a memorial some days ago.

But he was just extremely confused. It was clearly the first time they met, so why did he feel so familiar?

However, he did not have time to think about it, as the palace messenger had already ordered the sedan bearers to speed up and enter the palace for an audience.

……

Outside the imperial city.

Xiao Yan put on a warm smile and held the eunuch's hand.

"If it weren't for your kind words, I would not be able to see Your Majesty today, and I'm afraid I will never see you again in the future."

Feeling a cool touch on his palm, the eunuch smiled with satisfaction and nodded: "Okay, okay, Mr. Xiao is a righteous man who knows the current situation. Your Majesty already values ​​him, and we are just going with the flow."

However, Xiao Yan just smiled faintly and talked to him for a long time again, which was nothing more than some flattering words.

This eunuch's face was about to break with laughter. When someone came to summon Xiao Yan, he did not forget to remind him, "Your Majesty has been in a bad mood these past two days. When you meet the emperor, you must be careful with your words."

"Thank you, father-in-law."

Xiao Yan followed the eunuch all the way in, walked through Tianjie, and arrived outside a hall.

There is a square outside the main hall with several lampstands and stone sculptures.

Judging from the shape, it is not difficult to see that this is an imitation of Luoyang Ziwei City, but the area it occupies is not so exaggerated, and it is a bit small.

On the door of the main hall, there is a plaque with golden characters that read "Jiao Lan Hall".

He looked around quietly for a moment, and when someone called him in a shrill voice, he bowed and went in.

In the hall, a murderous atmosphere suddenly filled the air.

Xiao Yan showed no sign of reaction and immediately bowed his head.

"I, Xiao Yan, pay my respects to Your Majesty."

A rough and deep voice came from the head of the palace.

"You call yourself a bad man from the Li Tang Dynasty, why are you talking about common people?"

"The former Tang Dynasty's bad guys have become the dust of history. They are just common people in Daliang."

Zhu Wen, who was sitting behind the imperial desk, laughed out loud when he heard this, and the fat on his face trembled constantly.

"If all those self-righteous Tang officials were like you, I would be satisfied. Stand up and tell me how capable you are. How dare you say that you will take over Hebei!"

Xiao Yan stood up and bowed again.

Beside the hall, Jing Xiang sat like an old monk, but he looked Xiao Yan up and down before speaking.

"slow."

"Your Majesty, I seem to see a shadow of an old friend in this Xiao family."

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(End of this chapter)