Xu Yixing didn't react much. He stood up and patted the mud off his body. He couldn't wear this clothes anymore.
"Look at you, what are you so anxious about? If you really didn't care about government affairs, you wouldn't have dressed up and waited here today, right? My lord, if your talent is not used in the right direction, it will be a loss to both the people and the court."
Xu Yixing's lobbying speech was not contagious at all, but she still said that it was all from the heart, and it was up to you whether to listen to it or not.
“Shen knows these words in his heart, so there is no need to say them again.”
Xu Yixing saw that Chen Yue had already turned and gone to the inner room. She had no choice but to take Ying Wu out of the room. But just as she was leaving, she heard Chen Yue's voice coming from inside the door:
"Last time you said that General Xu was about to get married. If that's all right, I'll go to your house and ask for wedding wine."
"Really? That's great, my dad will definitely be very happy! Then we will wait for you at home with peace of mind!" Xu Yixing shouted through the crack in the door. This time there was no response from inside, but she was really happy.
Leading the horse, he happily left Chen Yue's yard.
"Master, why are you so happy?" Ying Wu didn't understand. Chen Yue had clearly rejected her argument, so why should she be so happy?
"Are you unhappy that someone is visiting your home?"
"I have no home."
Xu Yixing turned to glance at Ying Wu, checking to see if this man was deliberately trying to provoke him. "I forgot that you Shadow Guards have been trained since childhood to follow your masters, so it seems you really don't have a home. But it doesn't matter. When the time is right, I will let you settle down."
These weren't empty words. Sooner or later, the Shadow Guards would all grow sick and old, and Xu Yixing hadn't planned to keep them around until they died. As for how to accommodate them in the future, he would have to wait until everything was settled before making a decision.
Yingwu disagreed. He thought that he might die tomorrow anyway, so why think so far ahead?
Xu Yixing went out and mounted his horse, but he did not go to Gushan Mountain. Instead, he lingered in the nearby woods for a while. It was almost dark when he prepared to go to the outer palace.
"Wait a minute, there's movement ahead!" Ying Jiu suddenly appeared and stood in front of the two men.
Xu Yixing was shocked. His feeling came true. Did something really happen?
The atmosphere in the Outer Palace was unusually high. The moon-viewing party was originally scheduled for tomorrow evening, but the Emperor was in high spirits today and had already held a small banquet. All the ministers were present, and everyone was having a great time. Even the talents of several princes, princesses, and their husbands were on display, creating a truly peaceful atmosphere.
After performing a standard sword dance, Lu Anyuan quietly returned to his seat, looking at the empty seat next to him with a bit of panic.
Didn’t you say you would come in a while? Why haven’t you arrived yet at this time?
If I had known earlier, I should have let A-Da go with me at noon. Yixing insisted that having the shadow guard was enough. It’s such a headache!
Lu Anyuan glanced at the rising moon outside the hall and calculated the time. Could something have happened? But it shouldn't be the case. The entire Gushan Mountain is under martial law today. Even if Yixing was going to Nanshan, there is only one official road, so it is impossible for him to get lost.
He glanced again at the Second Prince who had just performed a trick with great pride. He now had a smug look on his face as he leaned close to the Queen and the Queen Mother, saying something to no one.
Lu Anyuan cast his gaze towards the Fifth Prince standing beside him. He saw it and responded softly, indicating that there was nothing unusual. But Lu Anyuan felt uneasy. His second brother had been silent for so many days. Could it be today? He was so brave!
After much deliberation, Lu Anyuan decided to leave the palace and tell his people that the Second Prince might be making some moves and that they must be on guard. However, before he could even leave the palace, the head of the Imperial Guard suddenly entered, interrupting the originally lively banquet.
"Your Majesty, there are archers attacking at the foot of Drum Mountain. The number of archers is unknown. The Imperial Guards have advanced to fight them. I would like to ask Your Majesty for an imperial decree to request reinforcements from the capital."
Lu Anyuan stopped dead in his tracks, a look of disbelief on his face. "A violent attack? Is Second Brother crazy? Just relying on those small teams he brought in who thought no one knew about them, he was thinking of starting a rebellion?"
The hall was completely silent, and the emperor's displeasure was evident in the frown on his face. He was displeased with the general. Why would he bring up such a trivial matter at a banquet? What if he scared the empress dowager?
Yes, the emperor was extremely arrogant throughout his life, and assassinations were commonplace. Was it necessary to make such a fuss and shout about it?
"Hmph, a bunch of rabble, what reinforcements can they provide! Your Majesty, I am willing to lead the Royal Guards on the mountain to defeat the rebels in one fell swoop and bring the head of the leader to us!" These words were of course said by Old Man Xu, but they were actually a bit arrogant. When the emperor was assassinated, the safety of Your Majesty was naturally the most important thing, but the emperor liked the arrogance of his words very much.
He raised his hand slightly, signaling that no movement should occur in the hall for the time being. He spoke with the airs of an emperor, "General Xu is thoughtful, but the Imperial Guards we brought to Drum Mountain are mostly lightly armored. They can defend, but attacking is a bit of a challenge for them. It's okay, General Xie. Take the tiger talisman and return to the capital to mobilize troops for reinforcements. There's no need to panic."
"Yes!" General Xie of the Imperial Guard stepped forward, took the tiger talisman from the emperor, and hurried away.
The Emperor offered a few more words of encouragement to the assembled ministers before turning to comfort the Empress Dowager and her family. He wasn't worried about his own safety at all. Defenses had been deployed near the capital a month earlier, and there had been no unusual reports. So, even if there were an attack today, it would be a bunch of scattered troops and bandits, nothing to worry about.
Before he could open his mouth to comfort him, the second prince hurried over, lowered his head and said a few words, and the emperor's face immediately turned bad.
"Where is the seventh prince?" the emperor shouted across the hall.
Only then did Lu Anyuan notice that the position he was standing in was really awkward and strange - he was about to leave the hall to look for his people, but was interrupted by this news, so the position he was standing in now was at the back of the hall, which was definitely not the position for a prince.
Besides, everyone would be sitting, and if he was sticking out like this, it would look like he was trying to escape.
Damn it!
Lu Anyuan now felt that something was wrong. It was definitely not a good thing for his father to call him at this time!
After replying "Yes", he hurried forward. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, his father still asked him to go up, apparently wanting him to go to the banquet table.
Standing only one person away from his father, he could see the puzzled expressions of the Empress and the Empress Dowager, and was also wondering why His Majesty was looking for him alone.
"Yuan'er, where is your princess consort?"
As soon as the emperor opened his mouth, he asked directly about Xu Yixing. Lu Anyuan suddenly felt something was wrong. She was the only one not in the hall at the moment. Could it be that her father had linked the assassination to her?
Looking at the Second Prince's gloating look, he really wanted to dig out Lu Chiyan's eyes!
"Father, Yi Yan felt unwell when she went up the mountain today. She got off the carriage on the Nanshan official road to get some fresh air. She hasn't returned yet. I am very worried about her."
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