A lakeside courtyard in Xiyuan, Hangzhou.
"Princess, get up and eat quickly. I grabbed the whitebait and snow lotus soup in the kitchen."
Zhao Fujin was sleeping soundly while wrapped in a brocade quilt, when she was suddenly awakened by the shout. The open door and the cold air immediately woke her up.
She reluctantly opened her eyes and looked at her female sword guard, and said resentfully:
"Sister Mei Jian, you are robbing Zhongjing Hou's house again, how rude!"
The female sword guard said indifferently:
"This is a good thing. It can moisturize the skin and nourish the body. Even the princes eat less of it."
"Marquis Cao has no good intentions, and it is best for him to live in poverty."
Just as he was talking, he saw Zhao Fujin getting up and hurriedly stepped forward to help her get dressed.
Zhao Fujin was a little unhappy and said:
"Why are you saying bad things about Zhong Jinghou again? He has been teaching me calligraphy and painting these days, how can you repay kindness with hatred?"
"Besides, I want to worship him as my teacher..."
The female guard said speechlessly:
"My princess, if he was really kind, he should have sent you back to the capital long ago."
"You are a noble girl in the boudoir. Why do you have to live in someone else's house all the time?"
There were some things she didn't say.
When she first came here, she wanted to explore the garden at night, but before she could climb over the courtyard wall, she was discovered and almost beaten to death.
Although she couldn't see the opponent's appearance clearly, she could feel the strength of his martial arts skills.
Even Prince Duan's Mansion couldn't produce a few such masters.
If Cao Bin didn't have bad intentions, why would he send such a master to keep an eye on the princess.
But she didn't know that this was just Lu Yuan's normal defense, and the guards she was fighting against were not the top experts in the Hou Mansion.
After hearing her advice, Zhao Fujin didn't take it seriously and said:
"Didn't I come here on my own?"
As he spoke, he became a little excited and said:
"My painting skills have improved very quickly these days, and I just took the opportunity to complete the ten scenes of the West Lake."
"Also, Zhongjing is already so pitiful, you are not allowed to speak ill of him."
As he said this, he sighed a little:
"Mr. Pang is going too far. Just because Zhongjinghou has little money to honor him, he wants Mrs. Zhongjinghou to reconcile with him. How can there be such a father-in-law in the world?"
When Pang Ji brought her to Hangzhou, in order to pave the way for his plan, he made up a lie.
Although Cao Bin did not adopt Pang Ji's strategy, Zhao Fujin felt very sympathetic to him.
The female guard felt a little helpless when she heard this.
She always felt that Pang Ji was an old liar, but she didn’t know how to expose it, so she could only say:
"Princess, let's return to Beijing as soon as possible. You have been living in Cao's house, following Cao Bin around all day long, and you don't shy away from it, just like his wives and concubines...?"
Speaking of this, she said more directly:
"Princess Princess, I think Zhong Jinghou is plotting against you!"
When Zhao Fujin heard this, his pretty face suddenly turned red, and he quickly shook his head and said:
"What are you talking about? How is this possible?"
She admired Cao Bin's painting skills very much, but she never thought about the relationship between men and women. After all, Cao Bin was married.
Not to mention a concubine, even Xu Xian's legitimate wife is too unsuitable for a princess who has never married.
What's more, there are many rumors in Beijing about Cao Bin and her aunt Princess Zhaoyang.
Thinking of this, Zhao Fujin also became a little suspicious.
Looking at the remaining snow and dry lotus in the yard, she hesitated for a long time before saying:
"Okay, I will ask Marquis Zhongjing tomorrow and ask him to send someone to take us back to Beijing!"
She has been living a very comfortable life in Hangzhou these days.
I travel around the mountains and rivers every day, paint as I like, and have discussions with the famous teacher Cao Bin. Now that I have to leave suddenly, I still feel a little reluctant to leave.
Seeing that she agreed, the female guard was happy and quickly reminded:
"Princess, if Hou Zhongjing is looking for excuses, you must not hesitate to be soft-hearted. If necessary, you can use national law to suppress him."
Zhao Jinfu nodded and was about to speak when a maid suddenly knocked on the door and said:
"Princess, my Marquis said that you have been in Hangzhou for a long time and will personally send you back to Beijing tomorrow. Please prepare as soon as possible."
After saying that, the maid left in a hurry.
Zhao Fujin looked at the female guard for a long time and said with some resentment:
"We have wronged Zhong Jinghou, what should we do?"
"The people in the Marquis must have heard us..."
Thinking that Cao Bin was "made difficult" by his father-in-law, and now he was doubted by herself, he must be very sad... She couldn't help but feel a little guilty.
At this time, in the secret room of Xiyuan.
After reading Pan Renmei's letter, Pang Ji smiled at Cao Bin and said:
"It seems that Pan Renmei has made a desperate move and has agreed to all your conditions."
"Can Juncai be sure?"
Cao Bin took a sip of tea and said calmly:
"Don't worry, father-in-law. Although time is a little tight, there should be no problem."
Although he is usually a bit lazy and rarely willing to take risks, this is a critical moment and he has to take it seriously.
If you win, you will have great power from now on, and you will be able to live a peaceful life, at least for the rest of your life. If you lose, you will run away and become a savage or turn your tail between your legs and become a dog.
Even for the sake of a better life as a playboy in the future, he has to fight hard.
Pang Ji nodded with satisfaction and said:
"Okay, Juncai is becoming more and more like a general."
As he spoke, he reminded again:
"Winner or loser, since you have an idea, just let go."
"But try not to break the rules of the court. If you act arrogantly, even if you succeed, you will be in a lot of trouble."
Seeing that Cao Bin listened, Pang Ji nodded and said:
"After you set off, I will rush to the capital as soon as possible to help you..."
Early the next morning, Cao Bin did not disturb his wife and concubines at home. He only called Zhao Fujin's master and servant and set off with a thousand personal guards.
"Brother Cao, you don't need to give it to me personally."
Zhao Fujin followed Cao Bin to the dock and saw that he had mobilized a large number of troops and not only mobilized a thousand personal guards, but also had a dozen large ships with thousands of materials waiting for him. He couldn't help but feel more ashamed and said with embarrassment.
Cao Bin laughed twice and said enthusiastically:
"Yes, yes, Cao has been treating the princess poorly these days, and he still wants to apologize to His Highness Prince Duan. The princess must intercede on my behalf!"
He actually brought Zhao Fujin with him just in case. If the coup in the capital failed to happen and King Duan really succeeded in seizing the throne, he would come to the same place to get married and recognize his father-in-law first.
If that still doesn't work, Sayazi can be used as a hostage while he runs away.
What surprised Cao Bin was that Bao Zheng was also waiting at the dock.
"Juncai, Mr. Bao also wants to return to Beijing to report on his work. Can you take a quick boat ride?"
Cao Bin was overjoyed, another hostage came...
Water transportation in the Song Dynasty was convenient and commerce was developed. The only disadvantage was that there were too many merchant ships, which easily blocked the rivers.
Cao Bin's ship was not small and was more likely to get stuck. When he sailed day and night and rushed to the capital, it was already the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month.
This day is the day of the great dynasty agreed with Pan Renmei.
He rushed to the south gate of the capital with his personal guards. Seeing that the gate of Bianjing was closed and heavily guarded, Cao Bin became nervous and knew that a critical moment had come.
At this time, Wu Song stepped forward holding an official document from the Privy Council and shouted:
"Marquis Zhongjing has been ordered to return to the capital. Open the city gate quickly!"
I saw Liu Niang and Qiniang of the Yang family at the top of the city looking down at Cao Bin and others and shouting:
"There is an order in the book that the city is under martial law today and no one is allowed to enter or leave."
"Brother Bin, take Mr. Bao to the military camp on the outskirts of the city to rest first. The court will summon him soon."
When he met the female general of the Yang family, Cao Bin knew that Pan Renmei was being plotted.
The power in his hands was not as good as others, but now that his plan was exposed, there was basically no possibility of victory.
Looking at the sun that had risen ten feet high, Cao Bin had the urge to turn around and leave.
The Great Court Meeting has been going on for a long time, and perhaps the position of heir has been determined now. Even if he goes in, he may not be able to change anything.
Is it so difficult to kill Zhao Ji directly?
Not to mention whether it can succeed or not, even if it succeeds, it will become the public enemy of the world.
Cao Bin did not hesitate for long, raised his gun and shouted:
"Liu Niang and Qi Niang, let me enter the city, otherwise I will attack the city!"
After all, he still didn't want to give up.
As he shouted, the guards behind him immediately shouted together, raised their repeating crossbows and pointed them at the city head.
The faces of the two female generals of the Yang family and Bao Zheng changed greatly, and the soldiers at the city head also raised their crossbows.
Liu Niang hurriedly shouted:
"Brother Bin, don't mess around."
"As long as you retreat, we will never sue you. Even in the court, Prime Minister Wang, Mr. Kou and my Yang family will protect you..."
Hearing this, Cao Bin couldn't help but laugh, was he trying to get himself into the gang?
It's a pity that with Zhao Ji, Kou Zhun and your Yang family's character, it's difficult to protect yourself, so you still want to protect me?
Bao Zheng also wanted to come forward to persuade him, but he was hugged tightly by the sedan chair and covered his mouth. He couldn't say a word, and he couldn't help but feel helpless.
It's just that the city wall of Bianjing is tall and difficult to break. Cao Bin said that attacking the city was just to scare them. At this time, seeing that they couldn't open the city gate, he was a little helpless.
At this moment, Cao Bin saw Zhao Fujin sitting on the horse, dizzy, and had not yet recovered from the jolt of the horse. He couldn't help but roll his eyes, pulled her to his horse and shouted:
"Liu Niang, look who this is? Does Princess Kangfu know her?"
"Cao has some old grudges with His Royal Highness Prince Duan. This time I want to make atonement and ask the princess to intercede. However, you don't let Cao enter the city. Do you want to harm me?"
"Don't forget, your Yang family owes me two favors. How dare you want to be ungrateful and kill Cao?"
The female general of the Yang family couldn't bear to hear ungratefulness. She immediately hesitated after hearing this. Liu Niang said:
"Are you telling the truth?"
Cao Bin nodded and said:
"Of course it's true. If you don't believe me, ask the princess if Cao treats her well?"
"I'm just waiting for her to intercede with me...is that right, Your Highness?"
Zhao Fujin didn't understand what was going on. He only knew that Cao Bin was asking him if he was treating him well, so he subconsciously nodded repeatedly.
Seeing this, Liu Niang could only say:
"I can let you into the city, but you can't bring soldiers in..."
