I don’t know when the rain started to fall, in tiny dots and round circles.
Qi Dan held an oil-paper umbrella over the two of them, while Yue Ya'er carried a two-story square food box, which contained rice for Little Wolf'er.
Yue Ya'er didn't know why Mr. Bai put some leftovers into the food box after asking him to cook several delicious dishes. But now that she was Mr. Bai's, she was a little more restrained and didn't dare to ask. .
Of course, there is no need to ask, he must have his reasons for doing this.
The little wolf was severely beaten by the servants of Xiangsi Pavilion and then thrown into the alley. The second master Gui didn't do anything. It would be humiliating for him to go and beat up a helpless young man with his servants. His identity, and secondly, he had been cooperating with Qi Dan for more than a day or two. Naturally, he could see what Qi Dan meant, so he asked the servants to save Xiao Lang'er's life.
Rain mixed with blood slid down his body. He opened his swollen eyes slightly and saw two blurry figures.
"Little Wolf!" Yue Ya'er got out from under the oil-paper umbrella and rushed to Little Wolf's side. There were little splashes of water on the edge of the embroidered shoes. She helped Little Wolf who was lying on the ground and sat by the wall. He got up and gently wiped the blood off the other person's face with his hands, looking quite distressed.
"You...why did you come out?" Little Wolf's voice sounded very weak. Two of his teeth were knocked out, and his words were a little leaky: "And he...why did he follow you..."
Before he finished speaking, he began to cough violently and spat out a mouthful of blood. The mouthful of bright red saliva on the green mud road was particularly clear.
"It was Young Master Bai who saved me. She redeemed me from the brothel." Yue Ya'er wiped the rain off her face, "Don't talk about it now. You are seriously injured. Eat something to cushion your stomach. , I’ll take you to see the doctor again.”
After that, Yue Ya'er was about to open the food box and feed Little Wolf'er, but at this moment Qi Dan grabbed Yue Ya'er's wrist and brought her back to him.
"Little Wolf, right? Listen, my redemption of Yue Ya'er's life is not out of mercy, and I'm not a good man or woman. I bought her because she is still valuable to me." Qi Dan looked down at the embarrassed Wolf The little wolf said coldly: "The top of this food box is the top-quality delicacies I ordered the kitchen to make. It is something you may never be able to eat in your life. There are also five ingots of gold in it, which is enough for you." The rest of my life; and the bottom of the food box is full of leftovers, maybe half-eaten leftovers from others.”
"You can choose one floor and eat the food inside. Of course, if you choose the food on the upper floor, you can also take away the gold, but this will be the last time you see Yue Ya'er in your life, and the two of you will not be together anymore. There will be no intersection; if you finish eating the following, I will arrange an errand for you, and you can occasionally meet your beloved Yue Yaer, but only if you swear to be loyal to me, no matter what I order Whatever you do, you have to risk your life to do it."
"Haha... Mr. Bai, right? I heard them mention your name, and I also know that you have power that I will never be able to match in my life, but you may not know that you are rich and well-fed, but poor kids like us have leftovers. Food is our daily life..." Little Wolf'er tilted his lips and smiled provocatively. He stretched out his hand and pulled out the lower layer of the food box: "For Yue Ya'er, what's the harm in just eating a box of leftovers from other people's food? Woolen cloth?"
With a "bang" sound, the food box in Little Wolf's hand fell to the ground, and the contents were scattered all over the floor. A foot stepped on Little Wolf's face - Qi Dan's expression Somewhat sulky, but also a little inexplicable excited: "It seems that this is not a big price for you? Then eat all the edible things on the ground? Don't leave even a grain of rice."
"Bi, Mr. Bai, what are you doing?" Yue Ya'er looked panicked and knelt on the ground with a thud. The muddy water splashed on her gauze and made it very messy: "Little Wolf, he didn't mean to say that. , but this is the environment we children have lived in since childhood. Please don’t embarrass him..."
Qi Dan didn't know whether Little Wolf'er was deliberately provoking or saying it unintentionally, but he knew clearly in his heart that he did it on purpose - he wanted to wipe out all the wildness in this young man and make him accustomed to obeying from now on. His own orders let him know the possible consequences of disobeying him.
The fifth prince is not a person who gets angry just because others disagree with him or are tit-for-tat. On the contrary, he will tolerate others to the greatest extent and listen to suggestions, but the premise is that this person has the value worthy of his forgiveness - for example, he will not despise this guy because of He Nan's humble status, nor will he despise this guy because of He Nan's humble status again and again. Because He Nan was a well-matched opponent that he recognized in terms of intelligence, and he benefited a lot from the game with He Nan; or maybe it was because of Chi Zebao's provocation that he did not Angry, because if you put yourself in Chi Zebao's shoes, he also has his own positions and choices. Although they are nominally superiors and subordinates, they are actually partners in cooperation.
As for the little wolf in front of him, he certainly would not treat He Nan or Chi Zebao with the same "relatively" equal attitude - causing trouble without knowing the reason is foolish; taking risks regardless of one's own abilities is foolish. There is no plan; asking others but speaking rudely is a sign of lack of wisdom. The only advantage is that he is relatively resistant to beatings - how can such a person be matched with Qi Dan to treat him with a calm attitude, or even treat him with respect?
He is only worthy of being a lackey, a lackadaisical lackey, but without a brain he will always be a lackey.
The little wolf didn't say any more unnecessary words. He just silently picked up all the food stained with mud and dirt and put it into his mouth, then chewed it as if he was eating some delicacies. Shan held Yue Yaer's hands tightly throughout the whole process, until not a grain of rice was left on the muddy road.
"For a woman, do you even give up your dignity as a human being?" Qi Dan frowned and asked with a complicated expression. He just wanted to deliberately make things difficult for this kid, but he never expected that someone would actually eat him. Food stained with soil.
"For Yue Ya'er, I can give up everything." Xiao Lang'er's voice was very firm. This time he did not show any attitude similar to "arrogance": "I am a man, and I have to pay the price to protect the woman I love. .”
Qi Dan was noncommittal about this answer. He felt that the child in front of him was a little ridiculously shallow. He talked about "price" and "abandonment" without shame, but it turned out that it was just because of a woman? But for a lackey, this is a good thing.
"What do you need me to do for you?" Xiaolang'er wiped the stain on the corner of his mouth. He stood up with difficulty while holding on to the wall, and his address to Qi Dan changed from "you" to "you".
"You have a pretty good physique. Have you ever practiced martial arts?" Qi Dan glanced at Little Wolf.
Little Wolf'er shook his head, and Qi Dan added: "I will send you to practice martial arts for a while. If you make rapid progress, you can come back to me and be responsible for protecting my safety. But you were injured today. It’s a bit heavy, so you should go home and recuperate first. I will leave you an address and you can go directly there after you recover.”
Unexpectedly, Little Wolf'er asked instead: "If I become your personal bodyguard, will I be able to see Yue Ya'er often?"
Sure enough, Yue Ya'er was the biggest bargaining chip to motivate this kid. Qi Dan sighed in his heart - why are young people today thinking so much about love and love? However, seeing that Xiao Lang'er's attitude had improved a lot, he didn't deny it. After all, a slap in the face would mean giving someone a jujube to eat, right?
"Then there's no need to recuperate. I can go now." Seeing Mr. Bai's acquiescence, the little wolf felt as if he had been injected with chicken blood.
"Tsk..." Qi Dan thought for a moment, then left the two of them and walked straight back to Xiangsi Pavilion. After a while, he came back again: "Boy, can you drive a carriage?"
The little wolf touched his scabbed head nonchalantly: "Driving a donkey cart."
"It doesn't matter, they're similar." Qi Dan nodded and took the two boys and girls to the back alley of Xiangsi Pavilion. He originally planned to stay at Xiangsi Pavilion tonight and send the coachman away, but now he has to Let Little Wolf drive the car: "I will show you the way."
Early the next morning, as soon as Qi Dan opened his eyes, he saw a burly man standing next to his bed like a gun.
"Damn, why are you here so early?" Qi Dan was shocked. What time was it? It's less than a quarter of a second, right?
Seeing that Qi Dan had woken up, Jiang Wenbing sat down on his bedside: "Do you think everyone is an idler like you? At that time, the Yamen were all in office. My father is coming back soon, and I have to behave well for a few days. Thank you for finding me in time, I will have to go to work in the county tomorrow."
Jiang Wenbing's official position is Jingshi Zuofengyi - there are three counties in the Gyeonggi area, namely Jingzhaoyin, Zuofengyi and Youfufeng. The names of these three counties are both official positions and administrative areas. They are collectively called the Three Assistants of the Jingshi. Although they belong to Jifu is not called a county, but he is actually the county governor and the highest administrator of the county. However, in terms of rank, these three assistants are about half a level higher than He Nan's senior brother Zhou Li, the governor of Shuihan County—— After all, this is the Capital Region.
"If I remember correctly - my sister is about to give birth, right? Are you not in the capital at this juncture? Aren't you afraid of her scolding you?" Qi Dan mentioned casually - the reason why he never took Jiang Wenbing to a brothel It's very simple. He has a wife, and his wife is Qi Dan's cousin, the niece of Qi Dan's biological mother, Concubine Liu, and the daughter of Liu Wenlong, Minister of Industry. This also explains why Qi Dan and Jiang Wenbing have always been in the same spirit - after all, they are connected by breaking bones and connecting tendons. But then again, Qi Dan and Jiang Wenbing have been hanging out together since they were children. Together with a group of children from prominent families, Qi Dan's cousin was naturally among them. At that time, she had already secretly had a crush on the burly and majestic Jiang Wenbingfang. Maybe.
Do you think that with this relationship, Qi Dan dares to take his brother-in-law to a brothel? If his sister found out, she would have to peel off the skins of the two brothers and hang them at the door of the house.
Jiang Wenbing touched his chin: "Mr. Wen said it will take more than half a month. It won't be a problem if I go for ten days. Besides, why is she, a woman, pointing fingers at the men? A real man should stand with a three-foot sword. How dare she try to scold me if she doesn’t work hard?"
"I still vaguely remember the cowardly way you went to my uncle's house to propose marriage with such a shy face. Your father's dog tongue can't be stretched out as long as yours... Also, when you saw my sister dressing up on her wedding day, your mouth was watering. Up to the crotch..." Qi Dan's unusually handsome appearance is mainly attributed to his mother, Concubine Liu. After all, if he doesn't have a good skin, how can he get into the eyes of Qi Changgeng, the Emperor of Dasheng? When Liu Shangshu was young, he was also called a handsome man, which shows that the blood of this family is extremely good, and cousin Qi Dan's appearance - let's put it this way, in terms of appearance alone, she is even better than Zhu Zhao'er.
Qi Dan is usually taciturn and dignified in front of outsiders, but it is different in front of his own people. In fact, he is no worse than He Nian. For him, Jiang Wenbing is one of his own, and with his lackeys, subordinates, Friends are different. The two of them are life-and-death friends. They are better than Qi Fu, his seventh brother from the same mother. After all, Qi Dan and Jiang Wenbing are about the same age and have been playing naked since they were old, but Qi Fu has only been able to survive this year. Ten years old, there is a gap in age.
There are only a few people who are regarded as "one of our own" by Qi Dan, so there are not many people in the whole world who have seen Qi Dan look so childish.
"Okay, let's get down to business. Why did you ask me to tell you what I came to do in the middle of the night?" Every time the two of them were alone together, it was Jiang Wenbing who always got to the point. Firstly, Qi Dan likes to play mysterious, and secondly, Qi Dan can only relax in front of Jiang Wenbing.
"Actually, it's not a big deal. It's just that I met a ignorant boy yesterday. Seeing that he was still not afraid of death, I stopped him. But he was quite wild and didn't know martial arts, so I thought about it. I will send him to your place for training for a while, and your brother will have to come back with your father, right? It would be best to let him do it himself." Qi Dan said lightly.
"You mean to let him join..." The expression on Jiang Wenbing's face was wonderful. Such a guy with unknown origins...
"Shh, the walls have ears." Qi Dan abruptly cut off the words Jiang Wenbing was about to say: "Anyway, I'll thank you two brothers for your troubles. I guess I'll have to arrange a lot of people for you during this time. , As for where to put it, it won’t be too late to say it by then, I know it in my heart.”
"The partition wall has a fucking ear. Your shabby yard only has a big space and a few people. I can't even ride a horse..." Jiang Wenbing looked contemptuous. What he couldn't understand the most was Qi Dan. Covert words.
The place where the two of them are staying now is the serious Prince Zhao's Mansion. Although what Jiang Wenbing said is a bit exaggerated, it is not outrageous. The general palace is more than a hundred feet long from north to south and more than eighty feet wide from east to west, covering an area of 150 acres. This was during the time when the Sheng Kingdom divided the kings and did not set up prefectures as fiefdoms. All princes could only live in the capital for three days. The scale of the palace built in the auxiliary area; if it were placed in the days when the princes and kings had fiefdoms in the previous dynasty, the largest palace was said to be more than 200 feet long from north to south, and nearly 200 feet wide from east to west, covering an area of more than 600 acres - this figure It has exceeded 70% of the current "Five Senses City" of the imperial palace, but in the previous dynasty it was only about 50% of the size of the imperial palace.
Although Qi Dan's palace is said to be a prince's palace, its scale and decoration are not as good as the mansions of powerful people or wealthy businessmen. It is really a bit too shabby - his palace was not specially built at all, but he bought a fairly spacious courtyard. Then he put up a sign called "Zhao Mansion" without even the word "king". There was only one person in the whole house, and occasionally friends who were familiar with him would come to visit. It's not that Qi Changgeng didn't like Qi Dan so he was very mean to his son. In fact, Qi Changgeng worked hard to save his face and gave Qi Dan whatever he wanted - except power.
So Qi Dan was not short of money at all. From the fact that he casually gave five gold ingots to Xiao Lang'er, it can be seen that this man is also a man who spends money without blinking an eye. It's just that Qi Dan wanted to keep a low profile, and secondly, mainly to anger his father, so he found such a place to live. As for the original Prince Zhao's Mansion in Shengguo, it was naturally empty.
In contrast, the largest palace now is the residence of Qin Wang Qi Jun. It is really difficult to compare people to death and to compare goods. The base of Prince Qin's Mansion alone is only one foot and two high, second only to the unified standard of Wuguan City's three foot and three, and it covers an area of 400 acres - if one day he really dies in the hands of He Nan or Qi Dan, then this One of them might also be one of the crimes. Of course, you can't be hostile to someone just because their house is big. After all, His Highness King Qin built it with his own money, and no money from the treasury was used. Even Qi Changgeng couldn't stop it - God knows why King Qin is so rich, but He Nan Both Qi Dan and Qi Dan know that his ability to make money will only be better than his ability to spend money.
Just as Jiang Wenbing finished scolding Qi Dan, he was slapped in the face in the blink of an eye. Yue Ya'er knocked on the door lightly and walked in. Her slender arms held a basin of water: "Mr. Bai, I knew you were awake when I heard some movement in your room, so I went to get a basin of water for you. Wash up..." Before she finished speaking, she realized that there was another person in the room besides Mr. Bai, "This is..."
"It's none of your business. You can go out first." Qi Dan waved his hand to Yue Ya'er to signal her to leave. Yue Ya'er was also very smart and sensible. She knew that she couldn't hear what Mr. Bai and this burly man said, so she put down her water. The basin retreated.
"What's going on... you hide your beauty in the golden house? That little girl looks only sixteen? Fourteen? Are you a beast?" Jiang Wenbing was stunned for a few breaths before he came back to his senses: "Didn't you go to Zhao'er's house to propose marriage? Is this okay if Zhao'er's brother knows about it?" Jiang Wenbing was present when he visited Zhu Shangshu's house last time, and Zhu Xieyang's words were still fresh in his mind - he even teased Qi Dan because of this, "You Mr. Bai His reputation as a frequent visitor to the brothel has spread all over the country, so why not change his name to Young Master Qing?"
"Haha, I think you went to Feng Yi's place just to hide from my sister... Do you have a new love there?" Qi Dan quickly changed the subject and retorted, but he also knew that this was not the time to bicker. "Clearing one's suspicions" was more important, so he told Jiang Wenbing what happened last night in detail.
After listening to the whole process, Jiang Wenbing glanced at Qi Dan sideways: "I said...did a certain mad dog-like guy leave such a deep impression on you?"
The mad dog was naturally referring to He Nan, and what Jiang Wenbing actually meant was, "How do you choose people now by picking treasures from the trash?"
"Shun was raised in the countryside, Fu Shuo was raised in the building, Jiao Ge was raised in the fish and salt, Guan Yiwu was raised in the army, Sun Shu'ao was raised in the sea, Baili Xi was raised in the city..." Qi Dan quoted again. He read a piece of Mencius's words, and it seems that He Nan's impression on him was not that deep - after all, the first confrontation between the two started with Mencius's words: "People say that if they see a dragon in the field, there is nothing to lose if they try it."
"I have to say that I learned a lot from him... It's a pity that there are not so many difficulties in the world." Qi Dan's eyes dimmed slightly: "Although our identities are very different, we are still in the same situation. In terms of resourcefulness, ambition, and courage, he is an opponent that I recognize. His character even makes me a little embarrassed." Thinking of this, Qi Dan couldn't help but smile. The character he was referring to was He Nan. Of course he will not forget that he said, "He Nan is the most despicable and shameless person he has ever seen."
"So what? Isn't he still under your control?" Jiang Wenbing asked tentatively. He knew that Chi Zebao had brought a letter congratulating Nan to Qi Dan.
Qi Dan also explained to him the true meaning of the letter.
"It's just a temporary restraint. You don't think he is the kind of person who would sacrifice his life or even his ideals for the love of his husband, his concubine, and the love of his children, right?" Qi Dan could see He Nan clearly, just like He Nan Ye. Read him.
"Then you still said Zhao'er..." Jiang Wenbing was a little stunned. He thought his brother had strangled He Nan to death.
"He will tolerate or even retreat in order to take care of his son, but that's all." Qi Dan patted the shoulder of the person he regarded as a brother and sister: "But don't worry, I have other things to restrain him."
Before leaving Prince Zhao's Mansion, Jiang Wenbing suddenly asked Qi Dan: "What about you?" He did not say the whole sentence, firstly because there was a little wolf beside him who wanted to follow him; secondly, because with him Contrary to his rough appearance, Jiang Wenbing is actually a very thin-skinned person. He feels that it is more or less difficult to say the complete sentence "Then will you give up everything for Zhao'er?"
In fact, he knew the answer. After all, compared to He Nan, Jiang Wenbing was the one who understood Qi Dan best. This was the reason why he couldn't tell her. He had always treated Zhao'er as his own sister, and was in a dilemma.
The tiger regretted it as soon as the words came out of his mouth. He shouldn't have asked. At least it would be better to hide the answer in Qi Dan's heart than to let him say it. As for expecting Qi Dan not to understand what he meant? Pigs flying in the sky are more likely than this.
"Won't."
The owner of that voice didn't give Jiang Wenbing a chance to regret, he did it simply, decisively and without any hesitation.
