The sound of cars rumbled, and an inconspicuous-looking carriage, with the curtains on both sides lowered, hurriedly drove down the somewhat dim street.
Wu Gen sat in the car and couldn't help but look at the middle-aged man opposite. From the moment he got in the car, the man said nothing and closed his eyes to rest. In the darkness, the car stopped in front of a seemingly well-regulated yard.
The middle-aged man did not get out of the car. The carriage entered the yard directly at a side door and drove towards the backyard.
"Come down." Wu Gen's body swayed, and the middle-aged man had already stood up and moved out of the car.
After stepping on solid ground, the first thing Wu Gen did was to look around and check the surrounding situation. This is also a habit developed over many years. Although it is said that the eldest prince has no ill intentions, how can one trust the thoughts of such a royal person.
As the middle-aged man walked through the corridor and arrived in front of a two-story building, he stepped forward and nodded to the two guards there, then led Wu Gen directly inside.
As soon as they entered the small building, the lights inside were bright, just like daytime. When they arrived at a study room, the middle-aged man bowed and saluted, "First Prince, we have arrived."
In front of the writing desk, a twenty-seven-year-old man was splashing ink. Hearing this, he reached out and put down the pen, and a maid next to him handed over a towel.
The man raised his head. The mustache at the corners of his mouth made him look a bit mature, and there seemed to be a hint of white on his temples.
"You are Wu Gen." The man clasped his hands behind his back and looked Wu Gen up and down, showing the aura of a superior person in his every move.
"The eldest prince, this is Wu Gen." He bowed his hands and bowed, but Wu Gen met his gaze with neither humility nor arrogance.
The man nodded slightly, "I heard that you have a very good relationship with your junior sister Qian Hua, but it's because of Zhou Zheng." After saying that, without waiting for Wu Gen's answer, he said to the maids around him: "You all go down."
Soon, only Wu Gen, the middle-aged man and the eldest prince were left in the room. Wu Gen's heart gradually rose. He had such an indescribable status. He summoned him late at night. He couldn't just look at this eight-year-old man. The junior brother who can't hit the pole should just ask for help. With such a status, nothing could be done in the secret room. For a moment, Wu Gen regretted coming here.
"It's been a long time since I visited you, sir." The eldest prince looked at the candlelight and couldn't help but feel regretful. "With my current embarrassing status, too much contact will bring disaster to you. Wu Gen, my name is Zhao Linchen, in order of my disciples. , is the senior brother of you and Qian Hua." As he spoke, Zhao Linchen took out a set of words.
Wu Gen stepped forward and saw that it was indeed Zhu Buzhan's handwriting, but what could this mean? It was definitely not a good thing for this mysterious man to summon him and recognize his senior brother again.
"Wenbo, bring it up." Zhao Linchen greeted. The middle-aged man took out a tray from behind the bookshelf. On it was a bright jade bead and a pile of gold bricks.
"I know you are not a qi practitioner, so I won't give you those spirit jade coins. You can accept these for now as some of my feelings for you and Qian Hua, and it can be regarded as compensation for sir." Zhao Linchen waved his hand. , signaling Wu Gen to accept it.
Seeing so much gold, Wu Gen felt a little cold. To be honest, it was not that he didn't want the money, especially since Xing Luoyuan and his party had spent so much of their family's wealth, but it was very hot money to have. Thinking of this, he raised his head and said with a smile, "The eldest prince, this is the first time we meet, no reward for no merit, what is there to say here."
Zhao Linchen frowned slightly, "Just call me Senior Brother at home. I'm here to ask you for something." At this point, Zhao Linchen glanced at the middle-aged man standing on one side with his head lowered, and finally opened his mouth. He said, "I heard that you are good at witchcraft. Is this possible in Shanyan Town?"
Wu Gen sighed and asked instead, "Senior brother, where did you get this news?"
Zhao Linchen unconsciously glanced at the middle-aged man named Wen Bo again, "Don't ask me how I learned about my junior brother. The people in the town have a big hatred for me and my husband. Are you willing to help me?"
"Senior brother, the person who provided this information definitely has bad intentions towards you. Regardless of whether I know the art of witchcraft or not, even if I do, this art has always been taboo for the royal family. This is going to trap you to death. Hope. Senior brother, think twice." Wu Gen looked serious and held his hands heavily.
"You really don't know how? Then why are there rumors that you used this to coerce King Jinchun and gained a lot of benefits. Junior Brother, this is the first time we met, and I know you still can't believe me. To tell you the truth, the person I want to deal with is exactly It's Zhao Linqing, my second younger brother.
This thief teamed up with Rong Kui to attack my husband, causing him to go far away from home. I was forced to live here in seclusion. I will not be able to bear this grudge if I don't repay it. However, this thief was good at flattery and bewitched his father. He never got a chance to make a move, so he came up with this trick. Junior brother, if you help me, if I ascend to Dabao in the future, you will be my loyal minister. "Zhao Linchen took a step forward and grabbed Wu Gen's hands.
Wu Gen almost had goosebumps on his body, but he couldn't pull away, so he could only whisper in Zhao Linchen's ear: "Senior brother, it's not that I don't want to help you, I really don't know the art of witchcraft. I had no choice but to deceive King Jinchun."
Zhao Linchen was stunned, "What you said is serious."
"Take it seriously. If it's false, there will be thunder from heaven." Wu Gen knew that he had to make Zhao Linchen believe in him, and he even resorted to swearing.
"Oh." Zhao Linchen let go of Wu Gen's hand, took a step back, put his hands behind his back, and looked a little more disappointed, "It seems that junior brother is still a little cautious. In this case, junior brother, please keep tonight's matter a secret. Not to be spread outside."
"Please rest assured, senior brother, this matter will definitely not be spread to outsiders." Wu Gen nodded heavily, "Senior brother, I will take my leave."
"That's all, let's go." Zhao Linchen waved his hands in boredom, but returned to the case to start painting.
Wu Gen quickly exited the room, a cold sweat broke out behind him. Looking at the night sky, the stars are like chess pieces, as if there is a big invisible net covering me.
A middle-aged man named Wenbo followed out, his face a little gloomy, "Let's go." He took the lead and walked forward.
When he arrived at the carriage, he folded his hands and whispered to Wu Gen: "Don't look around, don't talk nonsense, so you can take care of yourself." After saying that, he turned around and left.
Wu Gen squinted at the other person's back, touched his wrist, turned around and got on the carriage. As the car was walking in the courtyard, Wu Gen always felt like a thorn in his back. There must be some kind of formation in this courtyard, like a giant beast crouching in the dark, staring at the surroundings.
When he returned to the inn, Wu Gen looked at his empty hands and shook his head. This cheap senior brother is really a philistine, he doesn’t pay for things he doesn’t do.
Looking at the swaying tree shadows outside the window, Wu Gen pondered for a long time. It seemed that someone had taken action against him. The methods behind this are the most disgusting. Killing people without blood. If you are caught in it, you may die without knowing how you died.
This Zhao Linchen seems to be an idiot who can't achieve anything big. How can he find a "junior brother" who has never met him and not be afraid of revealing such a taboo thing? Could it be possible...Wu Gen's scalp felt numb, it seemed he had to be careful these days.
The next day, Wu Gen went directly to look for Jian Xing, and the old guy finally agreed to see him. When they met, Wu Gen grabbed his hand and said with a mournful face: "Master, you have to save me."
Jian Xing wanted to pull out his hand, but Wu Gen held on tightly, so he could only sigh and said, "What trouble have you caused again?"
Wu Gen quickly told Zhao Linchen about finding himself. This old guy was the only person he could trust in the capital besides Zhu Buzhan. He was an insider, not an outsider.
After listening to Wu Gen's statement, Jian Xing looked serious, "This idiot, he is really looking for death. No wonder he was pulled over for the herring case."
"What is the herring case?" Wu Gen asked curiously. According to Zhao Linchen, if it hadn't been for this case, Zhu Buzhan would not have come to Dingyuan City, and he and Zhu Qianhua might not even know each other.
Jian Xing looked at Wu Gen's eagerness for knowledge. He pondered for a moment and then said with relief: "Since you are hanging around in the capital, you should know some things."
It turns out that the Qingyu case lies with Zhao Linchen. At that time, the eldest prince was the most likely to be established as the crown prince because he was the eldest son. It's just that the current emperor Zhao Ye has been unable to make up his mind, so he delayed.
Zhu Buzhan served as Zhao Linchen's attendant at that time, and the two naturally had a deep relationship. Later, Zhao Linchen was crowned, and calls for him to be crowned prince arose one after another, and a group of court officials gathered around him.
But now the emperor just doesn't express his position, and several court meetings have ended without making a decision. At this critical moment, Zhao Ye occasionally felt cold. To show caution, Zhao Linchen caught a herring himself, cooked it and presented it to his father.
This was a good thing like taking off your clothes to feed mosquitoes and lying on the ice to beg for carps. Zhao Ye was very pleased. Just when he was about to eat, a cat owned by the Queen Mother suddenly jumped out and took the fish away in one mouthful. The servants and maids The eunuch couldn't catch up and could only watch the cat leisurely eat the fish on the roof.
Originally, this was just an accident, but it was a pity that the eldest prince was careful, and the cat was raised by the queen mother, so it was nothing. But less than half an hour after the cat ate the fish, it suddenly jumped up and down and screamed miserably. It actually vomited black blood and died on the spot. When the cat's body was examined, it was found that it had been poisoned.
In this way, this matter is not just an accident, but a major case of someone trying to assassinate the emperor. Zhao Ye was furious when he heard the news and ordered Zhang Changshi to lead people to investigate carefully.
But the bone spurs of the herring had been thrown away by the cat. Even the plate holding the fish had been washed clean, and there was nothing left to find. In the end, it became an unsolved case, and it was impossible to determine whether there was poison in the fish.
At this point, Zhao Linchen lost his Sacred Heart and was trapped in the house, facing the danger of being demoted to a commoner at any time. In this difficult situation, only a few officials wrote to defend Zhao Linchen, and Zhu Buzhan was the most determined one among them.
But how could Zhao Ye endure it when he was so angry? As long as the officials who submitted the letter were demoted, that was all. But what is interesting is that these officials have not lost their status as nobles. However, Zhao Linchen's reputation was greatly damaged after this experience. He stayed in seclusion for many years. Although he had no shortage of uses, it was no different from being imprisoned.
Therefore, Zhu Buzhan arrived at Dingyuan City. However, Zhu Qianhua was still young at that time, so he could only wait for him to settle down before his mother Jia Wenyun took him with him.
But just before leaving, Jia Wenyun suddenly died suddenly in his mansion. When Jian Xing arrived, he had already died, but he found Zhu Qianhua sleeping soundly in a woodshed behind the courtyard.
Considering that it might be dangerous if Zhu Qian's paintings were sent to Dingyuan City, Jian Xing, after obtaining Zhu Buzhan's consent, sent Zhu Qian's paintings to Guiyuan Zong Zhao Zhen to be raised by him.
