At this moment, Wu Xiaodao came in from outside and reported: "Your Majesty, Tang Shangshu from the Ministry of Household Affairs and Chen Shilang from the Ministry of Personnel would like to see you."
When Zhao Tong heard this, his eyes fell on Fan Xuewen. Fan Xuewen must have tipped off the news, and the two of them knew that he was in the pavilion.
Sensing Zhao Tong's gaze, Fan Xuewen had some doubts in his heart. He originally sent Mr. Wu to invite Chen Shilang, but for some reason Tang Shangshu came with him. He couldn't figure out the reason, so he lowered his head lower, as if he was admitting guilt.
Zhao Tong sat there and squinted his eyes. Tang Shangshu was Tang Ke, who was currently serving as the Hubu Shangshu. This man was also a national thief with a weird and contradictory temperament.
When he was young, Tang Ke was very capable and had a strong sense of justice. Whether he was redressing the grievances of the people, or controlling floods to save the people, he dared to speak up and was not afraid of the official's censure or impeachment.
During the Jingkang period, Tang Ke worshiped the young prime minister and the minister of Zhongshu, who was the deputy prime minister.
When the Jin army invaded south, Tang Ke was a peace advocate. He proposed to Zhao Huan several times to abandon the three towns of Taiyuan, Zhongshan and Hejian to seek peace with the other party. He also openly and secretly excluded the main war ministers in the DPRK.
When the Jin soldiers came over, King Qin's rebel troops from all over the country gathered in the capital and came to escort them to participate in the battle. However, Tang Ke ordered the rebels from all over the country not to act rashly, so King Qin's army dispersed without a fight.
The Jin army later proposed to draw a river as a boundary, and all the Hedong and Hebei areas would be returned to the Jin. Tang Ke encouraged Zhao Huan to write to Wanyan Zongwang, expressing his compliance. As a result, the soldiers and civilians in Tokyo were angry, and he was spurned by the soldiers and civilians when he followed Zhao Huan on a tour of the city. He was beaten angrily, then impeached, and forced to resign as prime minister.
After the two emperors were exiled to the north, the Jin army established Zhang Bangchang as emperor. Tang Ke was quite supportive, but he committed suicide by taking poison after signing the certificate of recommendation.
Since he sold his country and signed his name, why he took poison and committed suicide? I am afraid only he himself knows the reason.
After a while, Tang Ke and the two came in. After seeing the courtesy, they did not dare to speak and just lowered their heads.
Zhao Tong sneered and said, "You two adults, can you bring troops?"
The two of them didn't dare to scream. Zhao Tong pointed at the Minister of War Wu Yiqian beside the wall and said to them: "You don't have the skills of Minister Wu, but Minister Wu came with the troops!"
The two of them looked back and saw Wu Yiqian leaning against the wall with a pale face, not daring to defend himself, trembling like a quail in winter.
Zhao Tong paused and turned to Fan Xuewen: "Are you Mr. Fan's family?"
Fan Xuewen said hurriedly: "Back to my lord, the guilty people are none other than Fan Loudong's family."
Zhao Tong said: "You claim to have sinned against the people, what crime did you commit?"
Fan Xuewen whispered: "The ten major crimes committed by the sinners are: first, not knowing that the prince is coming to Fan Tower, which is a crime of disrespect; second, not coming to greet the prince and toasting, which is a crime of disrespect; third, not arranging the best flower pavilion Drinking and eating food is a crime of disrespect, and the fourth is..."
After Zhao Tong heard him count his top ten sins, he became a little brighter and said, "I want to stay in Fan Tower, what do you think?"
"Ah?" Fan Xuewen was shocked when he heard this. King Qi actually wanted to stay in Fan Tower?
The corners of his eyes twitched. Originally, there was no problem in staying in Fan Tower. The middle floor of Fan Tower was prepared for distinguished guests like princes, princes and ministers, but tonight, tonight was a bit wrong...
"Huh?" Seeing his hesitation, Zhao Tong frowned and said, "What do you mean by Fan Dong's family? Do you think I don't know the rules of your guest's stay in the middle building?"
Fan Xuewen's heart skipped a beat, Your Majesty, you have never followed the rules, why are you talking about the rules now?
"Or...in the eyes of Fan Dong's family, I am not considered a distinguished guest?"
As soon as Zhao Tong finished speaking, Zhou Chu and Wu Xiaodao directly pulled out the blades and said loudly: "What a profiteer, how dare you despise the prince!"
"There are many thugs outside, I think you want to do harm to the prince!"
"Yes, this Fan Lou is so bold. There are so many people outside. Could it be that they want to ambush the prince?"
"Exactly, otherwise why would Fan Lou have so many thugs? He must be planning something evil!"
Zhou Chu and Wu Xiaodao said something to each other and rushed forward with blades in hand.
Fan Xuewen was shaken by the shining blade, rolled his eyes, and almost fell to the ground in fright.
His Fan family is a merchant. Although they have done some illegal activities, they are all for doing big business and making money. Why is it related to evil intentions...
As for raising thugs, a business like Qianfanlou cannot be done without raising thugs. If you don't raise thugs, other restaurants will find ways to harass you. You can't let Kaifeng Prefecture send people to stay here, right? Kaifeng Mansion doesn't know how to do it either.
It's not that he doesn't want to agree to Zhao Tan's overnight stay. If it were another day, he would have wished Zhao Tan could stay in Fanlou. That would be a good opportunity to get attached to him, but it would be difficult to do this tonight, because tonight... the official family is here!
The official family comes to Fan Tower about once or twice a month and almost always stays here. At this time, the middle floor of Fan Tower is not open to others.
Although Fan Lou is currently trying to use the tiger's skin as a banner, in fact, let alone those in charge, even Fan Xuewen has only met an official once.
It was just one time, and there was a bead curtain between them. He didn't dare to raise his head. He didn't even know whether the official was fat or thin.
At first, when the officials came to Fanlou, it was arranged by Wang Fu and Gao Qiu, with all the squads guarding them, and the rest could not get close. Later, it was arranged by Zhang Di, and the guards were also tight.
Later, a tunnel was dug in the palace, leading directly to the middle tower. The official family lived deep and could not get out. People on the Fan Tower side could hardly see anything. They just received a notice from the palace and made arrangements for Master Li to be ready to receive him. Drive, and then spend the night, and the official family leaves.
In the whole Fan Tower, only Li Shishi and a maid and a woman brought into the middle tower could see the official family. As for those who came to deal with Fan Tower and get rewards, it was Zhang Di, the chief escort.
When the officials come over tonight, the same process will follow. They should be chatting with Mr. Li in the middle building. At this time, let alone entertaining guests in the middle building, no one will come near the north gate.
Now, in order to cover people's eyes and ears, even the guards they brought were guarding the building so that outsiders wouldn't see it. Fan Xuewen was worried and sent additional guards around the north gate. He didn't dare to get too close and stared at it from a distance. Beimen, don’t dare to relax for a moment.
But now King Qi actually wanted to spend the night in the middle building, and Fan Xuewen's head immediately started buzzing.
At this moment, the knife that looked like snowflakes was shining with cold light, and the heart-wrenching words were spewed out of the mouths of the two guards for free. He felt that his family was really in a bad year, and he had been unlucky for eight lifetimes to be involved in the matter before him.
The biggest frustration is that he still doesn't dare to tell that the official's house is in the middle building. The official's oral instructions and Zhang Di's orders are passed down. If he dares to leak even a little bit of information, then his house will be confiscated and executed.
This is because when the officials first came to Fanlou, the whole city was in a storm, the court was shaken, and the people in Fanlou ran out and talked nonsense. The officials were extremely angry and issued the order.
Later, he spent a lot of time digging tunnels, just to hide it from others. If he said it casually, what would be the use of digging tunnels?
Therefore, it is probably impossible to say it. Once you say it, your life will definitely be at risk, and the Fan family's hundreds of years of business will be destroyed.
He couldn't say it, and there was no way to explain it to King Qi. Feeling the coolness of the blade, Fan Xuewen felt panicked.
At this moment, an idea suddenly came to his mind, and he thought of a way, and said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty has misunderstood the sinners. The sinners just felt that there were not many preparations in the building, so they rushed to receive the Prince for fear of being disrespectful. If the Prince does not It’s too late for the guilty people to be happy.”
"Oh?" Zhao Tong glanced at him: "What's so rude about this? I'm tired and don't want to go back to my palace. I just want Yuan Nu to be by my side."
As he spoke, he put his hand on Zhao Yuannu's leg, feeling a warmth and warmth, and said with a smile, "Yuannu will stay with me tonight."
Zhao Yuannu snorted, while Xiafei's cheeks were lowered and his neck was lowered, not daring to raise his head.
Zhao Tong said to Teng Tu: "The Kaifeng Mansion will handle the matter here, and I will give an explanation to the king afterwards."
Teng Tu was overjoyed. King Qi asked him to handle the matter. This was a way of selling his family's face and asking him to buy favors. He immediately said: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, Teng Tu will live up to His high expectations and handle it well... Sirs and the yamen." thing."
Zhao Tong nodded with approval, then looked at Fan Xuewen: "Dong Fan's family, I will go to the middle building to rest now!"
Fan Xuewen smiled apologetically and said, "The guilty people will lead the way for the prince."
The solution he had in mind was not to leak the news that the official family was in the building, nor to refuse Zhao Taosu's presence in Fan Building.
After all, if the official's whereabouts are revealed, the house will be ransacked and executed, but if King Qi is not allowed to stay tonight, I am afraid that the bearded guard will immediately chop off his head with a knife.
Since both methods are unavailable, it is better to ask King Qi to stay. After all, the four doors in the middle building are blocked, and the official family lives in the North Gate Tower, so it is arranged for King Qi to live in the East Gate Tower.
Although the Zhang Yaban in the palace ordered that no outsiders be entertained in the middle building after the officials arrived, the King of Qi seemed not to be an outsider. The King of Qi and the officials were father and son. Even if they were left in the court, all the great scholars could quote scriptures. I'm afraid I won't be able to argue with the word "outsider".
Moreover, when Zhang Yaban said that he was not allowed to receive outsiders, he did not say that violating the rules would be a capital offense. He just told him to remember that no outsiders were allowed in, otherwise he would be severely punished.
Fan Xuewen felt relaxed at this moment. He felt that this deadlock had been resolved. It would have been impossible to come up with such a perfect compromise in normal times. As expected, one had to put a knife on his neck to force him to come up with a clever plan.
Zhao Tong laughed loudly at this time, stood up and put Zhao Yuannu on his shoulders: "My lady, spend the night with me!"
Zhao Yuannu was frightened and ashamed. He lay on Zhao Tong's shoulder and did not dare to move. He closed his beautiful eyes slightly and said in a voice like a mosquito: "But...but it's up to the prince to make the decision."
Zhao Tong walked towards the pavilion door, Huang Gusu Shi quickly got up and followed, and Fan Xuewen led the way.
When he got outside, Fan Xuewen saw Mr. Wu and gave a cryptic wink. Mr. Wu followed closely behind Zhou Chu and other guards.
There are back doors on the fourth floor outside Fan Tower that lead directly to the middle building. When the group walked out of the back door, they saw where the middle building was.
They were in the west at the moment. The official family was at the north gate of the middle building, and the south gate was for his own use. Fan Xuewen led Zhao Tong towards the west gate of the middle building.
When he arrived at the west gate within a few steps, Zhao Tong suddenly frowned: "I don't like the west direction, so go to another door."
Fan Xuewen was confused when he heard this, but then he thought that King Qi was the one leading the army. It seemed reasonable to dislike the west. He hurriedly said: "The sinners didn't think carefully. Please ask the prince to move to the east gate tower."
As he said this, he led the way south so that he could bypass the forbidden area at the north gate. Who knew that Zhao Tong walked directly to the north.
He hurriedly chased after him and said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the road here is uneven. It's better to go from the south. It's better to go from the south."
Zhao Tong kept walking and said calmly: "Why is the road uneven? I don't think you are a human being. I am fighting on the battlefield. If you haven't gone through all the ups and downs, your small yard is nothing!"
Fan Xuewen was sweating profusely and kept saying: "Yes, yes." But in his heart, he almost worshiped all the gods and Buddhas in the sky. He just hoped that the officials would not be in front of the window at this time, otherwise he would be in trouble. .
Zhao Tong carried Zhao Yuannu to the north of the middle building. It was quiet here. There were big red lanterns hanging in front of the building, and colorful string lights on the trees in front, which shone very brightly. If you look from upstairs, you can see everything below. Nothing left.
Fan Xuewen lowered his head and prayed silently in his heart. When he reached the middle, Zhao Tong suddenly said: "I think the north is good. If you go to the east, this is the best!"
"Ah?!" Fan Xuewen immediately opened his eyes wide after hearing this and was stunned for a moment: "Your Majesty, I'm afraid...it won't work on your side."
Zhao Tong frowned and said, "What's wrong? Could it be that you are resentful and deliberately took a detour to tire me?"
Fan Xuewen was horrified. He didn't realize that Zhao Tan wanted to enter the North Tower. He opened his mouth and said, "Wang, Your Majesty, there are guests in the Beimen Tower. There are guests here."
Zhao Tong was immediately furious: "Whoever doesn't open his eyes and lives in a place that I like, why don't you give it up to me as soon as possible!"
After saying that, he carried Zhao Yuannu on his shoulders and staggered towards the door.
At this moment, Fan Xuewen seemed to be struck by thunder, and he said "Ahhhh" twice. He wanted to pull Zhao Tong but did not dare. He stood there blankly, at a loss.
Zhao Tong shouted as he walked: "People in the building, listen, I have taken a fancy to this place, let me out immediately!"
There was silence on the North Gate Tower. Zhao Tong walked a few more steps and continued to shout: "I am the King of Qi. If the people inside don't get out quickly, they won't get out...
Before he finished speaking, he saw the north door open with a bang, and a person hurriedly ran out, but it was a eunuch in uniform.
The eunuch ran up to Zhao Tong within a few steps: "My lord, my lord, why are you here?"
Zhao Tong took a breath of alcohol and said loudly: "I have come to sleep with Madam Zhao. Hey, who are you..."
The eunuch said in a tearful tone: "Your Majesty, please look carefully, the youngest one is Zhang Di!"
Zhao Tong was stunned for a moment, took a closer look at the eunuch's face in front of him, and wondered: "Are you...Zhang Yaban? What is Zhang Yaban doing here?"
Zhang Di said: "My lord, let's go first. We'll talk about it later. We'll talk about it later."
Zhao Tong was not willing to leave, and hummed: "Zhang Yaban, why did you leave the palace without permission? Do the officials know? Does the capital prison know? This is a serious crime!"
Zhang Di said: "Your Majesty, I'm not a kid, I'm a kid..."
Zhao Tong kicked him away, but he was drunk and unsteady. The kick came to nothing, and he said angrily: "You have slurred speech and confusion, but you are doing something shameful!"
He said and walked forward again, when the north door opened again, and four people came out, all wearing standard soft armor, holding weapons, looking at Zhao Tong with ugly expressions.
Zhao Tong rubbed his eyes when he saw this, pointed at the four people, and said doubtfully: "You, you are not the Imperial City Secretary's personal servants..."
At this moment, the window upstairs suddenly opened with a crash, and a copper wine pot smashed out from inside.
Then an angry voice sounded: "You bastard, you bastard, get back here!"
Zhao Tong jumped to the side and almost fell, but he also avoided the attack of the wine pot. Then his expression changed and he looked at Zhang Di: "Zhang Yaban, this, this is..."
Zhang Di said hurriedly: "Since the prince has heard it, why don't you leave quickly..."
At this time, an angry voice came from upstairs again: "Go, go, go..."
Zhao Tong's throat rolled twice, he carried Zhao Yuannu on his shoulders, turned around and ran away. Then he heard something being thrown down from the upstairs, accompanied by bursts of angry sounds, "treason, treason, bastard, bastard..."
(End of chapter)
