406, Two Kings Meet
406, Two Kings Meet
It was not until Zhao Lang sent someone to invite him that the Prince of Zhennan learned that Zhao Lang had already entered the city and was waiting for him in the inn.
He sent so many people to guard the city gate, how come no one noticed that Zhao Lang had entered the city?
The Prince of Zhennan was immediately shocked. It was only then that he realized that he had underestimated Zhao Lang, a junior who had come from behind to surpass him.
"Our master said that he and the Crown Prince haven't seen each other for a long time. Please come with him." Li Qun saw the shock in the Prince of Zhennan's eyes. He sneered in his heart, but kept a straight face as he relayed his master's words.
In just a brief moment, the shock in the eyes of Prince Zhennan disappeared, and his face regained its composure and calmness. He said to the guard who came to invite him, "Wait here for a moment," and left.
"Please hurry up, Your Highness. Don't keep our master waiting for too long." Li Qun turned and said to the back of Prince Zhennan.
Prince Zhennan stepped over the threshold and walked out without even looking back.
Li Qun, who was standing behind, felt that the Prince of Zhennan didn't care about their master at all, and a trace of displeasure flashed through his mind.
***
At this time, Qi Jun was in the study. When he heard the footsteps, he knew that his father had arrived.
As soon as he saw his father come in, Qi Jun said, "Father, I will go with you to see him." He also learned the news that Zhao Lang had sent someone to invite them, father and son, to go together.
However, the Prince of Zhennan looked a little worried, fearing that Zhao Lang had set a trap at the inn and was waiting for them, father and son, to arrive.
Knowing his father's worries, Qi Jun smiled and said, "Father, I understand Zhao Lang. If he wants my life, he won't let me come back."
"Since he came here in person, it means he is willing to negotiate with us. All we want is for the court to give us a way out. If he is willing to give it, we don't have to go against the court."
To be honest, Qi Jun didn't want to fight his good friend. They had spent a long time together in Kyoto Prefecture as teenagers, and he had always considered Zhao Lang his best friend. And Zhao Lang treated him the same way.
Prince Zhennan thought about his son's words and nodded.
Not long after, the father and son went out together, each riding a horse, bringing their own guards, and followed the guards who came to invite them to go to the inn to meet their new emperor.
When they arrived at the inn, they found that the entire inn had been booked by Zhao Lang, and the inn was full of Zhao Lang's people.
"Your Highness, please come in, Prince." Li Qun made a gesture of invitation in front of him. "Our master is waiting for you upstairs."
Prince Zhennan and his son exchanged a glance, and then the father and son followed the guard who led the way into the inn, walked towards the stairs, and climbed the stairs.
The people they brought with them also followed them into the inn, but were stopped by the guards guarding the stairs.
Seeing this, Prince Zhennan was about to explode.
Li Qun, who was following behind, spoke at the right moment: "Your Highness, Prince, the place upstairs is small. If too many people go up there, there might be no place to stand."
Qi Jun gave his father a look.
After receiving the look from his son, Prince Zhennan gave up and continued walking up.
When they went up to the second floor, they saw Zhao Lang sitting alone at a table by the railing, drinking tea, his posture as relaxed as if he was drinking tea at home.
Hearing the footsteps coming up, Zhao Lang turned around to look at the father and son who were coming up. He did not stand up from his seat, but simply made a gesture to invite Prince Zhennan and Qi Jun to come sit at his table. "Prince, Ajun, please take a seat."
This was the first meeting between Prince Zhennan and the young king.
However, Prince Zhennan had never met Zhao Lang before, but he had met Prince Ding Zhao Yuncheng.
Seeing Zhao Lang's face, which was about 70% similar to the young Prince Ding, he seemed to have seen the young Prince Ding in a trance.
"You look very similar to your father." Sitting down in front of Zhao Lang, the Prince of Zhennan said so.
Qi Jun sat between his father and Zhao Lang.
"Everyone who knows my father has said this to me." In front of Prince Zhennan and his good friends, Zhao Lang did not act like an emperor. He was as casual as if he was going out to have tea with acquaintances.
Zhao Lang was not surprised that Prince Zhennan knew his father. After all, his father and Prince Zhennan were once from the south and the north, and were known as the Southern and Northern Generals.
However, he didn't come here today to chat with the Prince of Zhennan and his friends, so as soon as the Prince of Zhennan and his son sat down, he turned the topic to business, "Your Highness, I believe Ajun has already told you what I mean when he returned."
"We are meeting today with the intention and sincerity of peace talks."
"If we come to blows, it would be pointless if we were to fight each other. If we really have the energy, we might as well go and fight the barbarians or conquer the small countries around us. Your Highness, do you think what I say makes sense?"
Prince Zhennan looked at the young man with a faint smile on his face and replied, "That makes sense."
"Since neither of us has any plans to fight, why don't we talk about something practical?" Zhao Lang also realized that the Prince of Zhennan had no plans to fight him, or perhaps it should be said, the Zhenbei Army represented by him.
Because if the two sides really start fighting, it is not certain that the Prince of Zhennan and the Zhennan Army will be able to retreat safely from their hands.
Zhao Lang happened to be too self-centered. Lord Lu had said that instead of wasting manpower and financial resources fighting the Zhennan Army, it would be better to invest them in expanding the borders and territory, thus expanding the territory of Great Yan.
The territory of Great Yan is so vast that it cannot be defended by the imperial court alone. They need these vassal kings to guard the border, and they need the King of Zhennan to guard the southern territory.
Since the imperial court needs the princes to guard the borders, and the princes want power and status, why can't the imperial court give them?
This is a mutually beneficial thing. It is impossible for the court to take advantage of it but not give any benefit to the people who work.
In the words of their Lord Lu, if you want the cow to work, you have to feed it well; if you want the cow to work but don’t want to feed it well, there is no such thing as a good thing.
However, how much to give and how to give it are the key points.
That day, the three of them talked from dawn to dusk, finalizing countless matters regarding cooperation between the court and the Prince of Zhennan, and signed several agreements.
Zhao Lang was willing to give convenience to the Prince of Zhennan, but he also had a request for the Prince of Zhennan, that is, the orders issued by the court, whether it was the current Prince of Zhennan or the future Prince of Zhennan, must fully cooperate with the court to implement them in Nanjun.
At dawn the next day, he rode his horse and left the town with his men.
Prince Zhennan and his son Qi Jun stood at the city gate and watched the emperor and his entourage leave.
In fact, before meeting Zhao Lang, Prince Zhennan thought about leaving Zhao Lang's life here, but he finally did not take action against Zhao Lang.
Today... or rather, yesterday's meeting with Zhao Lang allowed him to witness the bravery and wisdom of this king. Such a young man is indeed more suitable to sit in that position than his son.
The disciple is better than the master, and this world should belong to the young people.
Watching the group disappear in the morning mist, the Prince of Zhennan sighed inwardly and said to his son who was following him, "Let's pack up and go back."
"Okay, father." Qi Jun nodded and followed his father back.
As they walked, the father and son talked about Zhao Lang, the imperial court, and some future events in their Nanjun.
Qi Jun thought of his wife and children who were waiting for him at home, and suddenly told his father about his wife, "Yier has always missed her relatives in Beijing. When we return to Pingzhou, I want to take her back to Beijing to visit her mother. If her mother is willing, I want to take her to Pingzhou to live in her old age."
"You two can discuss this matter. There's no need to ask for our opinion."
"Pingzhou City is so big, it is not difficult to build a house for her mother." Prince Zhennan also knew that after Zhao Lang became emperor, he disbanded the harems of the previous emperors.
Thinking of this, he suddenly remembered something and asked his son, "Has Zhao Lang not married yet?"
"...Father, please don't think about his marriage." When talking about this, Qi Jun remembered that after he came back, he had not told his father that his best friend liked the man.
So he leaned over and whispered this to his father.
When the Prince of Zhennan heard this, he suddenly realized, "So that's how it is!"
"I just said, why doesn't that old guy Zhao Yuncheng become the emperor himself, let his two sons, one be the emperor and the other be the prince, and he himself becomes the emperor!"
"I didn't expect that Lu Mingfei had such a method!"
"Father, you are wrong. I'm afraid it was Zhao Lang who was pestering Minister Lu..." When he was in Beijing before, Qi Jun secretly sent people to investigate the relationship between Zhao Lang and Lu Mingfei.
Although he didn't find much, he knew that if Zhao Lang didn't like him, no one would be able to bother with him. But Lu Mingfei, who came from a poor family, would not think of trading his body for his future.
So regarding the matter between these two people, Qi Jun felt that it was true that his friend had fallen in love with Lu Mingfei first.
However, the two of them had been hooking up right under his nose, and he only discovered their relationship after so many years. He actually underestimated his friend. He had never noticed Lu Mingfei, a talent who could rise from a humble background to the top position in the imperial examination.
The father and son whispered about the emperor's private affairs as they walked.
After Zhao Lang took his men away, the people in this city became their own.
That day, the father and son also led their troops to leave the small town.
Soon, the small town returned to its former tranquility and quietness... Author's words: Thank you Bole 9492239 (9492239) for your support, mua! To know more exciting content, please leave me a message on Liancheng Reading
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