Ch. 7 - King Dong: Go Back

When leaving, it was still Zhanrong who showed the way out.

Zhong Yansheng's robe was tightly covered, and he was still frightened.

My brother's temper is really not very good.

Zhan Rong was silent for a long time, then suddenly said: "This subordinate is called Zhan Rong."

Zhong Yansheng was stunned for a moment. The question he asked before was delayed until now. He was not angry. He saw the knife on Zhan Rong's waist and nodded generously: "Oh, okay, guard Zhan."

Zhan Rong looked calm and cold on his face, but in fact he was still in constant shock. He did not refute the title and looked at him secretly again.

This person couldn't react quickly, was thin and frail, and looked like he had never practiced martial arts. He could be killed by someone with one hand.

But he was able to survive the prince's attack of headache, and almost threw him out without being punished. The prince also commented that he was "weirdly cute", and even slept with him in the room in the afternoon!

You must know that the prince has very poor sleep due to a headache. He will wake up at the slightest disturbance. Especially in the past few days, when he has a headache, he has been unable to sleep almost every night.

Terrible.

It's really terrible.

Even those princes who like to jump around are not like this in front of the master... No, this young master is calm.

Calm and composed.

It's worth admiring.

Zhong Yansheng didn't know that the cold-faced Zhan Rong beside him had a strange respect for him.

Zhan Rong's steps were too big. It was difficult for him to keep up, and his body hurt. After walking for a while, he couldn't stand it anymore, and a pale look of pain appeared on his face.

Zhan Rong: "..."

He slowed down a little with an expressionless face.

Zhong Yansheng discovered this sensitively, smiled and sincerely thanked: "Thank you, you are a good person."

Zhan Rong looked at him again strangely.

For the first time in his life, someone said he was a good person.

When Zhong Yansheng walked out of the gate of the other courtyard, Zhanrong's attitude was not as cold as before. He nodded to him and then gently closed the gate.

Zhong Yansheng clearly felt that Zhan Rong's hostility towards him had subsided a little.

It seems that the people around Mr. Zhen have become more harmonious!

Zhong Yansheng got on the carriage in a good mood, and when Yuncheng returned to Beijing together, he sneaked back to the Marquis mansion.

As soon as he entered his yard, Zhong Yansheng went straight to the kitchen, where dinner was being prepared. Seeing him coming, they all laughed: "Why is the young master here? What are your orders?"

Zhong Yansheng greeted each one politely and then said: "Aunt Li, I want to eat the pine nut and lily cake you make. Can you make it tomorrow morning?"

The little master was picky. Normally, everyone would worry about losing their head and do this and that. The little master could only squeeze in a few mouthfuls. It was rare that he came over to make a request. Aunt Li, who was in charge of the spoon, smiled from ear to ear: "Yes, of course I can!"

Zhong Yansheng once again explained that it would be packed in a box when the time came, and then he left with satisfaction, feeling that the future of the Marquis mansion will become brighter and brighter due to his efforts.

The ointment Xiao Nong gave him was very effective. It not only promoted blood circulation and removed blood stasis, but also provided analgesia. The medicine he applied in the afternoon made the pain less painful at night.

Such a useful medicine must be very valuable.

Zhong Yansheng likes to be clean. He always takes a shower when he comes back from going out. After washing, he reapplies the medicine. He smells the bitter fragrance of the medicine on his fingertips, touches his belly through his inner clothes, and decides to choose a gift, in return.

Uncle Wang gave him flower seeds and asked for a gift in return.

It's just that the return gift must not be taken from the small warehouse in the courtyard or the ancient bookshelf in the house, otherwise he will feel awkward as if he stole the true master's things and gave them to him. After all, these things will have to be returned in the future.

After wiping her hair, Zhong Yansheng pushed out the door, leaned against the pillar, and waved to Yun Cheng in the courtyard: "Yun Cheng, come here."

Yuncheng was joking with the little maids in the courtyard. When he heard the call, he ran over with a smile: "What's wrong, young master?"

Zhong Yansheng lowered his voice like a thief: "How much money do I have in my little private treasury?"

Zhong Yansheng has his own small private treasury, and the money in it is earned by selling paintings - the literary style is prevalent in Suzhou, and there are many wealthy businessmen, most of whom like to be arty.

The painting was bought by a wealthy businessman two years ago. At that time, Zhong Yansheng thought that he probably wanted to climb the high branch of the Marquis Mansion rather than fall in love with his painting. At first, he was not willing to sell it, but the wealthy businessman repeatedly assured that he genuinely appreciated it. He liked those two paintings and wanted to buy them, but Mrs. Marquis coaxed him a few more words before selling them.

It is not clear about how much the paintings were sold for. The Marquis of Huai'an and his wife raised him carefully, so that he would not be short of food and drink. There were too many monthly bills to spend on him.

Zhong Yansheng didn't have high expectations for the small private bank. The wealthy businessman said he would give a price that he thought was worth it. He felt that his painting skills were just like that and he shouldn't have much money.

As a result, Yuncheng reported a number that far exceeded his expectations.

Zhong Yansheng thought he heard wrongly, and his eyes widened in shock: "How much?"

Yuncheng repeated it again, scratching his head: "Young master, do you think it's too little? That's right. When you first sold those two paintings, they weren't very famous. If you put them now, they would definitely have multiplied several times!"

"Ah?" Zhong Yansheng was even more confused, "What is it famous for?"

Yuncheng suddenly realized: "Oh, young master, you almost always stay in the Marquis's Mansion and seldom go out. You don't know that the rich businessman who bought the painting was warned by the Marquis and did not dare to reveal your identity, so whenever someone asks him who the author of the painting is, he said he was 'Mr. Chunsong'. Although only two paintings have been circulated, the name Mr. Chunsong is still quite famous in the Jiangnan area!"

Zhong Yansheng supported the pillar and calmed down: "..."

Why don't I know anything?

Zhong Yansheng was stunned when he unexpectedly learned the big news. However, the money in his private treasury was more than expected, which was a good thing. After all, this was what truly belonged to him so far.

The stone in her heart fell to the ground. Zhong Yansheng calmed down and opened the flower seeds sent by Uncle Wang, preparing to wait for Mrs. Marquis to come back and give them to her.

Wait for a suitable time later and tell mother that this is a gift from Master Zhen.

As a result, he waited until late at night for Mrs. Marquis to come back. Yuncheng ran to ask about it and came back and said: "Master, please don't wait. Madam is staying at Jinfu Temple tonight."

Zhong Yansheng said, "Ah". Sometimes he was really worried that his mother would become a Buddhist and become a monk.

He rubbed his eyes and had no choice but to put down the flower seeds he had been carrying like treasures all day, got into bed and slept soundly.

It was already time to wake up the next day.

The Marquis of Huai'an and Mrs. Marquis were both away, so no one could control Zhong Yansheng. He took the pine nut and lily cakes specially made in the kitchen early in the morning, took the money from the private treasury, and slipped out of the Marquis's mansion.

The East Market in the capital was the liveliest, but the carriage that Yuncheng rented was parked at the inn in the West Market. Zhong Yansheng made an appointment with Yuncheng where to meet, and then went to the East Market first, preparing to pick a hotel here and buy a return gift.

The Imperial City is much more prosperous than Suzhou. The long streets are bustling with traffic and crowds of people, and the various shops offer a dazzling array of attractions.

Zhong Yansheng had thought about what to give to Uncle Wang last night, and after looking around for a while, he found what he wanted - when Uncle Wang demonstrated how to loosen the soil yesterday, he helped to dig it up twice and found that Uncle Wang's flower hoe was a bit too big and old.

He squatted down, picked up all the hoe, shovel, and scissors in front of him one by one, waved them, and nodded with satisfaction: "I want them all."

The shopkeeper, who was originally dissatisfied with his knocking and waving behavior, suddenly smiled and said: "Okay, there are a lot of things. Do you want to send them to the house, young master?"

"Please wrap it up first. I'll pick it up later."

After Zhong Yansheng finished choosing, he took out his money and gave the money. He felt very comfortable spending his money.

If I had known, I would have sold two more paintings.

Uncle Wang's return gift has been bought, but his brother's gift has not been decided yet.

Zhong Yansheng walked through a few more shops before stopping in front of a jade shop. After walking around for a while, his eyes stopped on something.

The clerk had been peeking at Zhong Yansheng since he entered the door. When he saw this, he stepped forward with a smile and said, "Young master, are you interested in this jade? This Tian Huang stone was just delivered yesterday. The best batch of materials only produced two. This jade has just been put out, you can see it, it is destined to you!"

Giving a seal is just right, neither high-profile nor tacky. Zhong Yansheng didn't think about it for long and nodded: "I want it."

The business was settled in just one sentence. The clerk rubbed his hands with a smile on his face: "Which one do you want?"

"Both of them are needed." Zhong Yansheng pointed to the two best ones, "One of them should be engraved with a leisure seal, and the other does not need to be engraved. Wrap it separately."

One is for my daddy and the other is for my brother.

Zhong Yansheng thought happily.

After some time, I would reveal to my brother, intentionally or unintentionally, that this jade was sent by the Marquis of Huai'an to him. Wouldn't I gain a lot of favor?

Same old trick, but effective.

Too smart!

Zhong Yansheng was very wealthy and bought two Tian Huang stones without blinking an eye. The waiter immediately became extremely attentive, wiping the already shiny chair, asking Zhong Yansheng to sit down and wait, and asked Zhong Yansheng what content he wanted to engrave.

Zhong Yansheng thought about how after returning to the capital, the Marquis of Huai'an was busy with official duties and could not see him very often. He selfishly wanted him to have some leisure time, so he said, "Let's engrave 'Peaceful and Clear Night'."

The clerk sighed, took the seal to the back and asked the master to engrave it. In a short while, the seal was carved, and the two pieces were packaged and delivered separately. They were packed in small, exquisite sandalwood boxes and wrapped in cloth.

The waiter was probably not from Beijing, and his accent was quite strong: "Young Master, the yellow ones are without words, and the red ones are with engraved words."

Zhong Yansheng was trying to distinguish between "red" and "yellow" when a voice suddenly sounded in his ear: "Little master Zhong?"

The voice was so unfamiliar that Zhong Yansheng was startled and turned his head strangely.

The person who called him was a strange young man with a handsome face. He was dressed in gorgeous brocade clothes and was shaking a red sandalwood fan carved with landscapes. He had the typical demeanor of a rich young man in the capital. Seeing Zhong Yansheng turn around, he was surprised and said: "It is indeed you, Little master Zhong!"

Zhong Yansheng tilted his head: "Who are you?"

"It's me," the young man stepped forward and pointed at his face, as if in disbelief, "Have you forgotten? I am Xiao Wenlan! When you returned to Beijing a few days ago, His Highness King Jing invited us to visit Qinxin Garden with you. I was right behind you."

After saying this, Zhong Yansheng stared at his face and remembered: "Oh, are you the one who hugged my legs and cried loudly when you were drunk?"

Xiao Wenlan was not annoyed when the embarrassment was brought up. Instead, he laughed and said, "It's a joke. Everyone drank a little too much that day. I didn't have the energy to help you when you fell into the water. I heard that you have been sick for several days. It's great to be okay! We are destined to meet each other today, why don't we go have a drink together? ”

This man was talking to himself, babbling and babbling, talking very fast. Zhong Yansheng was shocked: "No..."

"Everyone was worried about you after you fell into the water that day. We also sent a lot of tonics to the Huai'an Marquis Mansion. Did you receive them?"

It turns out that this is where the small mountain of tonics came from. Zhong Yansheng thanked her sincerely: "Thank you..."

"You just returned to the capital, don't you have many acquaintances? Come on, I'll take you to make some friends!"

Xiao Wenlan was very strong. Zhong Yansheng was half-pushed and half-dragged out of the shop with two small boxes in his arms. Just when he was about to tell him clearly that he had something to do today, as soon as he went out, several more people gathered around him, and his eyes were filled with helplessness. Everyone was extremely excited: "Little master Zhong, it's really you!"

"Mr. Xiao, your eyes are sharp enough. You can tell at a glance from such a distance!"

Xiao Wenlan was shaking his fan fiercely beside him, his eyebrows were dancing with joy, and he said proudly: "That's right, my eyesight is one of the best in the capital."

"Last time His Highness King Jing was here, I didn't even get a chance to talk to the young master. This time I have to make a friend, haha."

Zhong Yansheng was surrounded by a group of dandy boys who appeared out of nowhere, with a dull expression.

Why is there still an ambush?

Several rich young men from aristocratic families were jostling each other in the middle of the avenue, all trying to get close to Zhong Yansheng. At this moment, a kind person nearby shouted: "A carriage is coming, please give way!"

Everyone shouted with disdain: "So what if the carriage is coming? I want to see whose carriage dares not to give way to us?"

"That's right, who dares?"

The boy on the side stretched his neck to take a look, his face changed drastically, and his voice broke: "Young Master, this is the driver of Prince Ding's Mansion!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the faces of the group of people who had been arrogantly crossing their arms suddenly changed drastically. They were so panicked that they crawled and rolled, and in the blink of an eye, they cleared up the way.

Xiao Wenlan, who was still laughing and joking just now, stopped shaking his fan, turned around and covered his face to hide.

Even if Zhong Yansheng doesn't pay attention to government affairs, he still knows the name of Prince Ding - Xiao Nong.

Dayong's surname was Pei. In the past three dynasties, there was only one king with a different surname named Xiao.

It is said that Taizu lived among the people when he was young and was adopted by the Xiao family at that time. Later, when the rebellion broke out, Xiao Nong's grandfather accompanied Taizu in conquering the world and made great contributions. He saved Taizu from danger several times. Although blood is not thicker than water, but love each other as brothers.

The Pei and Xiao families are as close as one family. Taizu granted Xiao Nong's grandfather the title of 'prince' that can be inherited. It is a supreme favor and glory to protect the descendants of the Xiao family. Unfortunately, within three generations, the Xiao family was already depleted, with only two people left.

One of them is Xiao Nong, who inherited the throne.

But Zhong Yansheng didn't know Xiao Nong because he was the only king with a different surname in Dayong.

Nowadays, the Holy Emperor is getting older. After the first prince passed away, he has not established another prince. In the past few years, the Holy Emperor has often fallen ill and has been difficult to manage the government.

Last year, the Holy Emperor suddenly ordered several princes to come to Beijing to coordinate with the cabinet to handle political affairs. Officials in the court thought that His Majesty wanted to take the opportunity to select someone worthy of the big post.

Unexpectedly, after the princes returned, Xiao Nong, who was stationed in Mobei, also returned to the capital from time to time to live permanently, which made people panic every time.

When Xiao Nong was young, he was stationed at the border with his father. At the age of sixteen, he led the army to recapture Liaodong and pacify Mobei. He achieved great military exploits and held a large number of troops. His prestige was extremely high, and he was no longer controllable. Now in government affairs, as long as he opens his mouth, even if he is the chief minister of the cabinet, he must weigh his opinions carefully and does not dare to refute easily.

His Royal Highness, Prince Ding, is vaguely developing in the direction of the regent.

Moreover, it is said that Xiao Nong has an extremely cold and cruel temperament. He does not recognize his relatives and is unstable. He is also murderous and will definitely retaliate. Anyone who offends him will be skinned and cramped, and hung on the wall to dry.

Faced with such a person, how could this group of dandy boys who fight against each other all day long not be afraid of him?

Zhong Yansheng raised his eyes and looked over, and sure enough he saw a prince-shaped carriage coming down the avenue.

He always felt that the coachman driving the horse in front of him looked strangely familiar, but he was blocked by a group of people behind him, and he was not as tall as them, so he couldn't see clearly.

By the way, there are only two bloodlines left in the Xiao family, and the other one seems to be called...

Zhong Yansheng's eyes turned to Xiao Wenlan, who was squatting at his feet, covering his face with a fan, trying to hide in the crowd, and fell silent.

However, this is of no use.

Prince Ding's carriage slowly stopped beside them.

Everyone, including Zhong Yansheng, was suffocated.

Zhong Yansheng followed the others and bowed their heads and knelt down: "I have met His Highness Prince Ding."

At the same time, a cold and deep voice came from the carriage: "Xiao Wenlan."

Xiao Wenlan's calves trembled, and he couldn't stand up. He was like a quail, crying and crying: "Cousin, cousin."

The only other bloodline left in the Xiao family is called Xiao Wenlan.

Everyone lowered their heads desperately for fear of being noticed. Zhong Yansheng also lowered his head, so he could clearly see that Xiao Wenlan's hands were shaking so much that he stabbed the person in front of him... in the middle of the buttocks with his fan.

The one in front was stabbed so badly that he didn't dare to move in front of King Ding.

Zhong Yansheng looked at it for a while, then kindly stretched out his hand, held down the fan, and rescued the friend in front of him.

This Xiao Wenlan was completely different from his cousin, who was both brave and famous.

But why did he feel that the voice of His Highness Prince Ding was... quite familiar?

Zhong Yansheng thought hard, recalling where on earth he had heard this sound. At the same time, there was a soft rustle, and the curtain of the carriage seemed to be lifted a corner, and Prince Ding glanced at Xiao Wenlan.

Xiao Wenlan trembled even more.

Because he was kneeling next to Xiao Wenlan, Zhong Yansheng could clearly feel that gaze flashing across his head, like a dragonfly touching water, and then glanced away in an instant without caring.

Zhong Yansheng blinked, suddenly uncontrollably curious about what this rumored Living Yama looked like.

Even if you find him peeking, you won't chop off his head in the street, right?

Zhong Yansheng didn't know where he had the courage all of a sudden, so he secretly glanced up.

Unfortunately, he hesitated for too long and was a step too late. When he raised his eyes, he only saw a slender and clear hand retracting.

The car curtains fell again, completely blocking the people inside.

Probably because he had something urgent to deal with, King Ding didn't stop for a long time, and coldly uttered "Go back", and the car started to move.

Zhong Yansheng suddenly realized at this moment.

His Highness Prince Ding's "Go away" was very similar to that of his ill-tempered brother who stayed in Changliu Courtyard, but he was more impatient and more evil.

Zhong Yansheng, who was called out yesterday, secretly felt that he should really introduce these two people to each other.

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