Chapter 407: Door-to-Door Challenge (5k)
As the New Year draws closer, the temperature in the capital drops again and the city is plunged into deep winter.
Zhao Duan's getting-up time also became later and later.
Early morning, in the bedroom.
"Huh." Zhao Duan crawled out of the warm quilt, exhaled deeply, raised his palm to gather a ball of clear water and covered his face to drive away the remaining sleepiness.
Then he turned over and sat cross-legged on the bed. He was stunned for two seconds, and suddenly put his hands on his chest to make a gesture.
A Buddhist symbol of the character "卍" surrounded by a faint glow emerged silently from the air.
Zhao Duan spread out his right hand, letting the "卍" character fall into his palm like a falling leaf. He felt the blue lotus in his sea of consciousness quickly dim, and the corners of his mouth slowly rose, spreading into a smile:
"It's done."
More than half a month had passed since the Western Regions monks left. During this time, in addition to his daily practice, Zhao Duan had devoted a considerable amount of energy to studying the Azure Lotus of the Sea of Consciousness.
Finally, through continuous attempts, he learned the first Buddhist technique - "Demon Sealing Spell"
That is: he can use the Green Lotus of the Sea of Consciousness to transcend the differences in cultivation systems and release Buddhist mantras.
According to the book on Buddhist magic in his hand, the ability of the Demon Sealing Spell can confine the enemy to different degrees according to the level of mastery from low to high.
"My current mastery is still shallow, and I can probably bind the enemy. If I gain a deeper understanding, or if I reach a higher level, I can try to seal the opponent's magic power, or even the five senses."
"Huh, I couldn't unleash my full power yesterday, but I can this morning. Does this count as a proficiency upgrade? If I had a training panel system, I'd probably hear the 'ding ding' sound of a new skill upgrade by now..."
Zhao Duan suppressed the urge to make a "ding" sound with his mouth, and slowly released the maintenance of the "Demon Sealing Spell", causing the spell to dissipate and disappear in his palm.
…
Inner hall!
When Zhao Duan entered the room, a sumptuous breakfast was already laid out on the table.
"Good morning, auntie, good morning, sister, good morning, dog."
Boss Zhao Duan casually greeted the two women and a dog at the table, sat down and started to eat heartily.
Eugene Hua spat and continued to grumble as she served him food:
"Da Lang, you are an important person now. You should pay more attention to your words and manners. Why are you still acting like a child?"
Tsk, after nearly a year, the stepmother has successfully walked out of the shadow of being bullied by her stepson, and now she even dares to nag.
He was just saying the "critical" words, but he couldn't stop smiling.
It seemed that in her opinion, such a casual stepson was lovable. If he was really like those "masters" in the court, putting on airs, it would chill the family affection.
"Yawn..." Zhao Pan yawned continuously. He had long since abandoned the enthusiasm he had for learning martial arts. He even looked sleepy.
"Brother, why did you get up so early today..."
In the past, Zhao Duan got up late, so she would also stay in bed, under the pretext of having dinner with her elder brother.
Today, Mr. Zhao got up early, which was unusual for him. The girl had no choice but to get out of her warm bed without the excuse of staying in bed. Her mother pulled her out of the warm bed.
Zhao Duan held the bowl of porridge, sucked his lips full of fragrant white porridge, and waited for the hot liquid to slide into his esophagus before saying:
"The Duke of Zhenguo will return to the capital today, and a group of military officers have been ordered to line up outside the city to welcome him. I can't hide away."
Eugene Hua was surprised and said nervously:
"It belongs to the young master who has a grudge against you..."
"It's okay, the misunderstanding will be cleared up if you explain it." Zhao Duan said soothingly with a smile. He quickly finished his breakfast, changed his clothes, and walked out.
…
The time for Zhenguogong Tang Daren to enter the city is scheduled to be in the morning.
Zhao Duan went to the yamen first, and as agreed, he and Ma Yan represented the yamen to welcome him.
"Brother, the Shenjiying Camp didn't even ask me to go, so why did our Zhaoya want to take me there? This is against the rules."
As soon as Zhao Duan walked into the Governor's Hall, he complained to Ma Yan who was handling official documents.
Ma Yan sat upright in the main hall, his long and thin face expressionless.
As the year draws to a close, all the major government offices in the capital have a lot of affairs to deal with. The major halls of the imperial yamen have basically stopped all tasks and are busy preparing "reports" and summarizing them to the Governor's Hall.
Ma Yan has been so busy these days that his eyes are dark circles.
"When you're working, you call it your job title."
Ma Dugong put down the seal in his hand, picked up the blue and white teacup to moisten his throat, and then glared at him:
"Why should I take you with me? Don't you know?"
Zhao Duan smiled and pulled a chair to sit down: "It's not that you want me to show my presence in front of the Duke, right?"
Ma Yan was no longer surprised by the strange expressions that popped out of his mouth from time to time, and said helplessly:
"Back then, you established your authority in the Shenji Camp and severely humiliated Tang Ping. Even though you later reinstated him, this matter still needs to be explained to Duke Tang in person to clear up any misunderstandings. Otherwise, if Duke Tang hears some bad rumors and a misunderstanding arises, it will be disastrous."
Zhao Duan didn't care much about it. After all, he had seen a lot of storms in the past year. He casually grabbed a handful of melon seeds from the fruit bowl on the table and said curiously:
"Even if news from the border is slow, a dignified Duke should know this."
Ma Yan said seriously:
"Stop smiling so frivolously. From what I know about that young master, given his character, he would never mention these things to the Duke. Duke Tang, as a general guarding the border, would not take the initiative to inquire about the affairs of the Beijing camp in order to avoid suspicion. Even if he has heard about your improvement of firearms and the overthrow of the traitor in the Privy Council, he would not know the details.
Besides... His Majesty has already covered up a lot of the Shenjiying incident to minimize the impact and avoid leaking secrets. Even officials in the capital, those with lesser status, don't know how much you were involved in it. How would the Duke know if the young master didn't bring it up?
On the contrary, those who dislike you, or those like the Prince of Hejian in Xipingdao, may deliberately pass information to the border, using the conflict between you and Tang Ping as an excuse to sow discord between Duke Tang and Your Majesty...
Anyway, I've already sent a letter saying you'll be there today. It's better to discuss things face to face than to leave it alone. "Don't you think you've made enough enemies?"
Zhao Duan heard that his cheap senior brother was thinking about him, and said innocently:
"I didn't say I wouldn't go."
The two chatted for a while, and seeing that the time was almost up, Ma Yan and Zhao Duan rode their horses straight to the west city gate.
At this moment, a group of civil officials and military generals have also taken their positions.
A large group of people stood in the cold wind, chatting while waiting for the Duke's team.
However, everyone was eagerly waiting for a long time, until the sun rose high and the time had long passed the agreed time, but there was still no sign of the team on the official road.
"Did they have an accident on the way and delay the trip?" someone wondered. "Or did they copy the delivery time wrong?"
Ma Yan also frowned, and at this moment, an official came galloping in from the city gate behind them. He dismounted breathlessly and waved to the crowd:
"Don't wait any longer. The Duke and his entourage have already entered the city through the north gate and are now back at the Duke's Mansion!"
Many officials were stunned, confused, and some even looked dissatisfied:
"The letter said we should enter the city through the west gate. Why did you suddenly change the route? You made us wait in the cold wind for nothing? Are you trying to make fun of us?"
The official showed hesitation, glanced cautiously at Zhao Duan in the crowd, and explained:
"The Duke's intention seems to be that because he knew in advance that General Zhao was coming to greet him, that's why..."
Everyone was silent for a moment and the atmosphere became strange.
Zhao Duan, who looked like a salted fish, was stunned for a moment, then smiled: "So what?"
The official, sweat beads on his forehead, stammered, "That's why we changed the route."
Ma Yan's face suddenly turned ugly, and then he felt a headache. He felt the strange atmosphere, coughed lightly, and said:
"In that case, follow me back to the city and go to the Duke's Mansion to meet the Duke."
A group of officials looked at each other, tacitly not mentioning the previous conversation, and echoed:
"Okay."
Whether it was Zhao Duan or Duke Tang, they didn't want to provoke them for no reason.
Zhao Duan glanced at Ma Yan and smiled:
"Please take the others there, Lord Governor. I will not go, so as not to displease the Duke."
Ma Yan took a deep breath, pulled him aside, and said:
"It seems the situation is more troublesome than expected. I will go to explain it to Duke Tang later. You go back to the government office first and wait for my news. Don't wander around."
Zhao Duan smiled and said:
"What are you talking about, Governor? How could I be someone who doesn't understand the overall situation? Don't worry, it's just a misunderstanding. I'm waiting for you at the government office and I'm not going anywhere."
Ma Yan's cold and slender face twitched slightly. He always felt that the smiling face of his subordinate was a little creepy. He was silent for a moment and said:
"There's no need to mention my job title in private. It's awkward."
…
The unexpected episode caught everyone off guard.
Everyone turned back into the city, and Ma Yan led a group of officials who had resentment in their hearts but dared not express it at all and went straight to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.
Zhao Duan rode back to the imperial court alone, lost in thought.
Although he has made some preparations, Duke Tang, who has always been very protective of his subordinates, is likely to be dissatisfied with him because of the young master's affairs.
But Zhao Duan originally thought that with his current reputation and the favor of the empress, at least the attitude of Duke Tang would not be too bad on the surface.
But it seems the situation is a little worse than expected.
However, unlike what outsiders worried about, Zhao Duan himself knew that his bad relationship with Tang Ping had been reconciled as early as that night when he personally invited Tang Ping to return to Shenjiying.
However, only the two parties involved knew about this reconciliation, and outsiders had no way of knowing it. Bao Kuai Ma Yan still believed that Zhao Duan finally reinstated Tang Ping because of the empress.
After that, Zhao Duan seldom went to the Shenji Camp, which was interpreted as him and the young master being fed up with each other.
But Zhao Duan really wanted to say: You think too much...
Therefore, in his opinion, this matter was not that complicated. As long as Duke Tang returned home and summoned Tang Ping in person, the father and son would talk things out, and the misunderstanding would be resolved.
Outsiders all think that Lord Zhao is vindictive, but the real Lord Zhao is a broad-minded person.
Shaking his head, Zhao Duan put the matter aside and did not take it to heart. However, just as he turned into the street where the imperial yamen was located, he saw a familiar figure hurriedly running out with a horse.
"Sir?! You're back!"
The anxious Hou Ren, holding the horse, was stunned for a moment. "I was just about to leave the city to look for you."
Zhao Duan looked surprised: "What happened?"
Hou Renmeng spoke very quickly and said:
"You should go back to the hall and take a look. A fierce woman just came. She didn't say her name, but you can see that she is quite powerful and has a military aura. She wanted to see you, sir. Qian Kerou said she was not in, but she insisted on waiting. Old Zheng saw that this person had bad intentions, so he asked me to come out to find you."
Zhao Duan's face was strange: "The other party didn't reveal his identity? Then how did he get into the government office?"
You can't just enter the imperial court casually.
Hou Renmeng said, "The other party has the badge of a lieutenant general in the army."
"Take me over to have a look." Zhao Duan dismounted and followed the old marquis straight to Lihua Hall.
As soon as he entered the courtyard, he saw Zheng Laojiu, Shen Juan and a group of Jinyi gathered in the outer courtyard. They were all shocked to see him coming:
"grown ups……"
Zhao Duan asked calmly, "Where are the people?"
"In the main hall, Ke Rou is with her."
Zhao Duan nodded, pushed aside the crowd, and led them into the courtyard. They walked around the big pear tree that had been bare and only had branches left, and saw that the door to the hall was open.
The main seat at the long table in the hall, which was originally used as a meeting room and belonged to Zhao Duan, was now occupied by a female general.
His skin color was slightly red and dark due to years of exposure to the sun, but he had a murderous aura cultivated in the army. He was not wearing a military uniform, but only a simple neutral outfit, through which the soft armor lining could be vaguely seen.
At this moment, he sat upright with his legs crossed and his eyes slightly closed. On the table in front of him was a long lance, with a cold light flashing at the end.
"grown ups!"
Qian Kerou, who was standing nearby, came over quickly, a look of joy on her round face as she explained:
"I didn't let her sit in your seat, she wouldn't listen."
Tsk, it's just you, Xiaorou. If it were the other troublemakers, they would have taken action long ago... Well, no wonder Old Zheng asked you to stay and entertain the guests, and let the most brainless Hou Ren come out to find me... Old Zheng really knows how to use people...
Zhao Duan complained in his heart.
When Tang Zhao heard the voice, his slightly closed eyelids fluttered open. This rouge-painted horse actually had a pair of cold eyes with distinct black and white.
Tang Zhao stared at Zhao Duan and was stunned for a moment when he saw his handsome appearance. An idea flashed through his mind:
Such a handsome man couldn't possibly be the one who bullied my younger brother.
"I don't know which army you are from, but you suddenly come to Lihua Hall to ask for my advice. What advice do you have?"
Zhao Duan looked at the face that looked familiar but he had definitely never seen it before and asked in a deep voice.
"Are you Zhao Duan?" Tang Zhao raised his eyebrows.
Wait for him to nod.
Tang Zhao suddenly felt that this person's face was disgusting. She snorted, stood up and said:
"You don't know my identity, but you should know that Tang Ping has a second sister."
The young master's second sister? The female general from the Duke's mansion who had practiced martial arts since childhood and served in the frontier army? Tang Zhao?
Zhao Duan was slightly stunned, and the corresponding information emerged in his mind. When he investigated Tang Ping, he naturally checked the personnel situation in the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion.
Suddenly it dawned on me!
No wonder I always feel that this person looks familiar. His face is clearly somewhat similar to that of the young general Tang Ping in white robe.
Wait...wasn't the second sister of the Tang family supposed to have entered the city with Duke Tang today? Why did she come straight here? Judging by the time, she couldn't have come straight to me after entering the city without even going home...
Of course, he didn't know that Tang Zhaocun's intention was to help his younger brother vent his anger first, and then go back home to see his younger brother.
This would be glorious and would make her feel proud, and it would also prevent her family from stopping her from taking action.
"So she's the daughter of the Duke's Mansion, Miss Tang Zhao." After Zhao Duan realized the other party's identity, he smiled and revealed her origins.
The Duke's daughter?
The group of people in brocade clothes behind him were stunned, looking at each other, and felt relieved for a moment - fortunately they did not rush into battle with the other party and cause trouble for the adults.
Daughter? Miss? After hearing these two titles, Tang Zhao's expression suddenly became unfriendly, and he said coldly:
"Then you should know why I am here."
Zhao Duan pretended to be confused, smiled and said:
"Miss Tang and I have never met before. We have no grudges in the past, and no enmity in the present, but I can't figure out why."
Tang Zhao was furious when he saw his frivolous appearance:
"I don't want to waste time talking to you. I just want to ask you one question: when you took up your post at the Shenji Camp, did you strip my younger brother of his official robes and drive him out of the camp? Was that you who did it?"
Zhao Duan raised his eyebrows and said lightly:
"So what? As a fourth-rank official, I shouldn't be judged by others when dealing with my subordinates."
Tang Zhao was so angry that she laughed. She was always quick-tempered and protective of her shortcomings, but suddenly she pulled out the badge from her waist and threw it forward:
"Alright, just admit it. A country has its own laws, and the army has its own rules. I really can't control the affairs of your Divine Machine Camp. So I came to you today to practice martial arts according to the military rules. Do you dare to accept the challenge?!"
"Snap." Zhao Duan raised his hand and grabbed the flying waist badge. He glanced at the words on the bronze badge and the shaking tassels below, and said slowly:
"What if it doesn't work? What if it does?"
Tang Zhao said as a matter of course: "If you agree, let's fight. If you don't agree, I will leave immediately."
So simple? Zhao Duan knew, of course it wasn't that simple.
Now he is no longer the newbie he was when he first traveled through time. He knows that in the Yu army, there are rules of martial arts competitions between generals.
As long as the ranks of both sides are equal, they can invite each other to fight, or they can refuse to fight. However, if this gets out, it will become a laughing stock. The army has always been ashamed of those who dare not fight.
Tang Zhao was at the border. The rank of the border troops was somewhat different from that of the inland military headquarters such as the Beijing Camp, and was a little higher, so Tang Zhao was of the same rank as him.
"Don't worry, I won't bully the weak. I heard that you have entered the Divine Chapter Realm a few months ago. I am also in the Divine Chapter Realm, so it won't be considered as bullying you." Tang Zhao said with a condescending attitude.
His tone was extremely confident.
After Zhao Duan advanced to the Divine Chapter, his only public battle record was the Buddhist-Taoist competition.
But that time he used the Taia Sword to "cheat", so it didn't count as a real result. In everyone's eyes, he was just a newcomer who had entered the divine realm only a few months ago.
Even the number of people who knew that he had reached the middle level of the Divine Chapter was extremely limited.
However, Tang Zhao was a top-grade Divine Chapter honed through military training. Whether in terms of the solidity of his martial arts foundation or his martial arts skills and awareness, he was among the strongest among the Divine Chapter.
In the eyes of almost anyone, as long as there is no cheating, this is a battle of great disparity in strength, and the outcome is almost certain.
"Sir..." A group of men in brocade clothes looked anxious and wanted to speak.
But Zhao Duan raised his hand to stop him, looked at Tang Zhao with a strange look, and smiled: "Okay."
(End of this chapter)
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