Chapter 26 If you want the Golden Terrace, hide it well.
Zhao Yan returned to the Purple Palace and had the young eunuchs unload all the treasures he had brought from Jinling. Over a dozen boxes, each big enough for two adults, filled the entire Purple Palace.
The young eunuchs were exhausted and panting. They opened all the boxes and Zhao Yan rummaged through them one by one.
The young eunuch accompanying the young man looked at the many rare treasures and gave him a suggestion: "Your Highness, this pearl is quite good, the size of an egg, and very rare. Give it to the prince."
Zhao Yan glanced at the night-shining pearl in the young eunuch's hand. It was a gift from his mother when he was ten years old to decorate his room. It was valuable but useless. "No, no, Brother Lan, you've seen all kinds of treasures. How can a broken pearl be enough?"
"What about this? This jade ruyi is made of top-grade mutton-fat jade..."
Zhao Yan glanced at it and said, "It's flashy but not practical. Look for it again."
"Your Highness, this sword is quite good. It should have been used by King Wu during his personal expedition during the Warring States Period a thousand years ago—"
Zhao Yan glanced at the sword lying in the wooden box at the bottom of the chest and thought for a moment, "This is a good one. My father gave it to me the year I got my hair tied up."
Zhao Yan: "A general must love swords."
Zhao Yan had the eunuchs carry out the sword. The entire sword was about the length of Cao Cao and weighed over ten pounds. The hilt was engraved with a dragon and inlaid with exquisite jewels. Even after nearly a thousand years of war and turmoil, it remained perfectly preserved.
"By the way, I heard that Brother Lan hasn't been back to the capital in many years. He must have a lot of things to do at home and can't take care of them." Zhao Yan glanced at the smirking man beside him, frowned, and then picked out a seemingly insignificant eunuch from the crowd. "What's your name?"
The young eunuch said, "Your Highness, this servant is Xiao Zhouzi."
Zhao Yan was very satisfied: "It's you. Go to the city and pick out some servants and maids for Brother Lan to send to his house, along with this precious sword. Tell him that I want to treat him to a banquet at Fanlou in the city tonight."
"If you do it well, I will reward you handsomely."
Upon hearing this, the young eunuchs in the Purple Palace knelt on the ground and said, "We, the servants, will do our best for Your Highness."
After choosing the gifts, Zhao Yan cleared out the boxes in the palace and called in the people from the Clothing Bureau to make a few pairs of black boots for him.
After hearing the young man's request, the female official from the Clothing Bureau knelt on the ground and said, "Your Highness, if you want your black boots to be this high, then your robe will be too short and your shoulders will be narrow, which will look... a little strange."
After the female official finished speaking, the eunuch waiting beside the young man heard the words and his face instantly turned ferocious: "You bastard, you dare to interfere with His Highness's request?!"
Zhao Yan glanced at the female official trembling on the ground, then squinted at the young eunuch beside him. "I haven't said anything yet, why are you butting in? Go down first."
The talkative eunuch quietly left the Purple Palace, and the female official on the ground stopped shaking.
"You're right," Zhao Yan took a sip of tea and thought seriously. "Then tell me, if I want to make myself taller, do I need to make a few new sets of clothes?"
The female official didn't expect Zhao Yan to be angry after hearing her suggestion, so she expressed her own thoughts: "Your Highness, that's true. However, if you want to look taller without looking strange, you only need to add some padding to the shoulders and broaden them. It will naturally look better."
Zhao Yan felt that what her beautiful sister said was right. "Okay, let's do this. I need at least four sets of this outfit. Can you please make them before my father's birthday banquet?"
The female official was delighted and said: "I will serve Your Highness."
Zhao Yan waved his hand and said, "Reward, ten gold coins each."
The female official and palace maid from the Clothing Department who came to take the boy's measurements fell to their knees again, saying, "Thank you, Your Highness, for the reward."
…
Before the afternoon twilight hour, the eunuch named Xiao Zhouzi had already selected the servants and maids. Zhao Yan then changed into a thicker suit and temporarily put a few extra insoles in his boots. Brother Lan's eyesight was blurry, so he could only see the general outline. When the time came, he only needed to stand up and use his height to dispel the other party's doubts.
As for speaking, he could pretend to be aloof and let the eunuch beside him speak for him. But this was not a perfect solution. After all, Xuan Ji had seen his face. If Brother Lan brought Xuan Ji with him, it would not work either.
Thinking of this, Zhao Yan called the eunuch to reserve a room with a screen.
After everything was ready, Zhao Yan left the palace and went to the designated room to wait for someone.
I don’t know how Brother Lan is doing.
…
Little Zhouzi from the Purple Palace came out of Fan Tower and walked towards Prince Yong's Mansion with forty or fifty servants.
But before they arrived, the spies in the palace delivered the news to the palace.
At that time, a young man in bright yellow clothes was sitting in the tea room of the palace. Wen Quan saw that the prince was discussing business. He paused after entering the room, then bowed to the young man and said, "Your Highness, Prince."
Xuanji went to the Shen family in Jinling, and Wenquan returned from Qingshui Village.
The young man looked at the person in front of him who was hesitant to speak, straightened his body, and bowed to Yong Shaolan beside him: "Uncle Emperor has important matters to attend to, so I will go back first."
"No problem." Yong Shaolan raised his hand, signaling Wen Quan to speak: "Just say it."
Wen Quan raised his hand and said, "It's the Seventh Prince. He sent many maids and servants to you. He said that the prince had just arrived in Beijing and was worried that the palace would be too busy to handle it."
"He also gave me a great gift."
"Yes, the sword of King Wu."
"Well," Yong Shaolan said, "accept it. I will thank His Highness later."
"Yes... Your Majesty, the Seventh Prince is hosting a banquet at Fanlou and wants to treat you to a drink." Wenquan asked, "Should I prepare the horses?"
Yong Shaolan twirled the teacup in his hand without commenting. Wen Quan immediately understood that the prince did not want to make his position clear in front of the prince.
Wenquan then left the tea room.
There were only two people left in the hall.
As soon as Yong Shaolan returned to the capital, the Crown Prince and the Seventh Prince rushed to show their courtesy to him. It was hard to guess what they were thinking.
But he has no intention of disrupting the situation now.
"The emperor's uncle is really popular," the prince smiled faintly.
"Father's birthday banquet will be held soon." The Crown Prince saw that Yong Shaolan had no intention of rejecting Zhao Yan's gift, and his expression was not very good. "I still have a lot of things to take care of, so I won't bother the Emperor."
"I will see His Highness off." After Yong Shaolan said this, he stood up to see the guest off. The prince's face became unnoticeably colder.
After seeing them off, Yong Shaolan returned to the tea room, and Wen Quan returned again: "Your Majesty, where is the Seventh Prince? Do you want to go?"
In the quiet tea room, you can hear a pin drop.
Yong Shaolan reclined in his chair, removing his blindfold. A pair of distorted eyes were visible across the man's delicate features, tinged with weariness. His golden pupils swayed constantly from side to side, gradually swallowing up the other pupil until the two completely merged and then rapidly split apart.
The poison in the body is about to break out again.
Yong Shaolan held the handkerchief in his hand, put it in front of his nose, and deeply inhaled the body fragrance that was about to dissipate.
"not see--"
Before Yong Shaolan finished speaking, he heard the doorman's voice from outside the teahouse, "Your Highness, the letter from Guard Xuanji has been delivered."
Upon hearing this, Yong Shaolan immediately perked up and sat up straight on his chair: "Come in."
Wenquan presented the letter, only to see that his prince's face became even uglier.
Wenquan: "Prince, have you found the little princess?"
"Heh," Yong Shaolan twitched his lips and crumpled the paper into pieces. "There is indeed a man named Shen Buyu in the Jinling Shen family, but he already has a wife and children."
Wen Quan shuddered with fear: "So, that kid really dared to play with your feelings?"
"..." Yong Shaolan lowered his eyelashes, remembering the letter that Shen Yan had asked the groom to deliver to him after he left. The young man said he would go back and investigate the matter of his poisoning and make excuses for Nangong and the Seventh Prince. He was so angry at the time that he didn't think carefully.
His signature consisted of only one word: "Yan".
Yong Shaolan said calmly, "His last name is not Chen."
"Have Xuanji continue to watch in Jinling. If anyone is found, bring them back to me immediately."
"You." Yong Shaolan pondered for a moment and said, "Go check if there is any boy with the word 'Yan' in his name around Chen Buyu."
Wenquan: “Yes.”
"So where is the Seventh Prince tonight? Is Your Majesty still going?"
“No,” Yong Shaolan didn’t want to get involved with the Nangong family and the Zhou family. Since Ana Shen spoke so much for the Seventh Prince and the Nangong family, it was enough to show that the Seventh Prince was very likely to know them and had a good relationship with them.
He would be able to find the person sooner or later, but if he went to see the Seventh Prince at this time, as long as the Seventh Prince slandered him casually in the future, Ana Shen would not believe a word of it.
Yong Shaolan: "Until I find the person, I will not see anyone."
Wenquan: "Yes, I will reply right away."
"Yeah." Yong Shaolan let out a breath, and his heart couldn't help but feel numb.
Yanyan, you have to hide well.
…
Zhao Yan waited in Fanlou for more than two hours. When it was completely dark, little Zhouzi returned alone.
Seeing that he had returned on his own, Zhao Yan thought the matter was settled: "Has the gift been delivered? What about Brother Lan? When will he come over?"
Little Zhouzi knelt on the ground with a plop. "Your Highness, the prince said he accepts your kindness, but he has been in a bad mood recently and has fallen seriously ill. I'm afraid he won't be fully recovered until Your Majesty's birthday banquet."
He continued, "Your Majesty, the prince said that if you have anything to say, you can wait until the birthday banquet to speak in front of His Majesty in the Taiji Hall."
Zhao Yan: “…”
How can this be done... accepting gifts but not doing the work???
However, Brother Lan still doesn't know his whereabouts, so it's normal for him to be worried about him.
"Forget it, forget it, get up." Zhao Yan sighed, scaring the young eunuchs in Fanlou so much that they dared not even breathe.
The young eunuchs thought, is His Highness disappointed?
Although Prince Yong holds the position of regent, he has no foundation in the capital. Their Seventh Prince is the only talented child in the Great Yan Dynasty. It is his blessing to be favored by Prince Yong!
I didn't expect that this guy would dare to reject your highness's kindness!
The young eunuchs had no idea what Zhao Yan was thinking. They just thought that Zhao Yan called him "Brother Lan" because he admired him. Now that he didn't appreciate it, the young eunuchs began to comfort Zhao Yan.
"Your Highness, there are many handsome men in Yujing. Why do you have to waste your energy on Prince Yong?"
Zhao Yan frowned, took the sugar water and ate it, looking at the people around him in confusion: "Huh? What do you mean?"
The young eunuch hesitated, "Your Highness, the Qilin blood in your body will be activated again in a few days. You are so anxious to see Prince Yong, isn't it because you want him to accompany you... to spend those few days with you?"
Zhao Yan: “…”
Six hundred and sixty-six.
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