Chapter 409 Seeking Help
On the winter streets, Ma Yan and Tang Ping galloped on their horses, causing the people along the way to panic and avoid them.
The huge horseshoe inlaid with horseshoes hit the stone road, making a roar like metal collision.
Fortunately, the Duke's Mansion was not far from the Imperial Court, and soon the building in front was in sight.
"Go to Lihua Hall!" Ma Yan rode his horse around the main gate and headed straight for the small gate of Lihua Hall. The two of them rushed into the yamen in a hurry, looking anxious, fearing that they would have an irreparable conflict.
However, to their surprise, the Lihua Hall was completely empty, without a single person in sight.
"No one?"
Ma Yan's heart sank, and then he vaguely heard a noise coming from the direction of Yamen Square.
He immediately grabbed the young master and ran over there. From a distance, he saw people in brocade clothes gathered around the square, three layers inside and three layers outside.
"The Governor is back!" Someone with sharp eyes bowed his head in greeting.
Ma Yan's face was grim and filled with anxiety: "What are you doing here?"
The investigating officer shuddered with fear and explained:
"Duke Tang's second daughter is competing with Lord Zhao in a duel..."
The duel... the fight started... Ma Yan and Tang Ping who was following behind felt their hearts sink and had a bad premonition.
Especially the young master's handsome face showed regret.
In his opinion, it was all a misunderstanding. Now that his second sister had beaten Lord Zhao, given Zhao Duan's vengeful character and the emperor's favor for him, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Yes, in his opinion, the outcome of the competition was a foregone conclusion.
"Get out of the way!" Ma Yan shouted, pushed through the crowd and rushed into the front row.
Then, Ma Yan, who had been prepared to rescue Zhao Duan, froze in expression, his body suddenly stiffened, his pupils slightly dilated, and he looked at the scene in disbelief.
"Master Governor, what's going on? Is Lord Zhao seriously injured?"
Young Master Tang Ping lagged behind by a step and now he squeezed through the crowd, but his voice got stuck in his throat.
In the messy square, Zhao Duan was leisurely tidying up his clothes, smoothing out the wrinkles, and sheathing the Frost Sword.
Next to him, a pitch-black lance was lying on the ground. Tang Zhao, the "Rouge Horse of the Frontier", was tied to the ground and cursing.
Her hands and feet were bound, and "ropes" made of Buddha's light bound her tightly in the "tortoise shell binding" posture, making it difficult for her to break free. She cursed with words like "no martial ethics".
"Master... Governor? You're back so soon?" Zhao Duan asked with a surprised smile.
After seeing the young master under the Shenjiying, his expression became a little strange.
"Little...brother?" Tang Zhao, who had unlocked the defeat cg in the tortoise shell bondage posture, stopped cursing abruptly. He turned his head away in shame in front of his brother's stunned gaze.
At the same time, the power of the Buddhist chains on her body was exhausted and gradually dimmed and disappeared.
"Governor!" Haitang, Zhang Han and other Jinyi officials around him bowed and saluted.
Ma Yan turned a deaf ear to it. His long, thin face was expressionless. He just looked at the two of them several times and said,
"you……"
Zhao Duan smiled and said, "Miss Tang wanted to compete with me in martial arts, and I was lucky enough to win by one move."
How is that possible? How could you defeat Tang Zhao? And what about the binding spell? Even with Ma Yan's experience, he fell silent.
Feeling the gazes of his subordinates, he rubbed his brows and scolded:
"Everyone, return to your posts. Who gave you permission to leave your post?"
Immediately, he looked at the Tang siblings and the troublemaker with complicated eyes:
"Go to the back court!"
…
In the back hall, in a room in the small courtyard.
"So, this is all a misunderstanding. Zhao Chenshi originally wanted to find out the traitor, so he kicked me out of the Shenji Camp.
Later, an investigation revealed that I had been deceived and misled by some people with ulterior motives. Afterward, I and many of my colleagues cleared up the misunderstanding with Zhao Chenshi and were reinstated." Tang Ping patiently recounted the incident.
Tang Zhao, who had been successfully rescued from the defeat, sat in a chair, rubbing his wrist slowly. He listened to his younger brother's story with a stern face, his face flushing and whitening, and he angrily cursed:
"Why don't you write to explain things to me and my father?"
The young master's face turned red:
"What's there to say about such a small matter? I don't know where you got the information from, and why did you come straight to my house?"
Sitting opposite the siblings, Zhao Duan, who was sipping tea, gave them a proper reminder:
"Duke Tang even took a detour because of this, leaving us officials waiting in the cold for a long time."
The brother and sister were choked and speechless.
The atmosphere in the room was extremely awkward. Neither the brother nor the sister was willing to bow to others, so they kept silent. Finally, Tang Ping sighed, stood up, and saluted to Zhao Duan in shame.
"Sir, my sister came here without knowing the whole story and has offended me. The root of the problem lies with me. I am willing to be punished by military law."
Tang Zhao, like a tigress, became anxious. She stood up and stopped her younger brother behind her. She stared at Zhao Duan opposite her unwillingly, digging the ground with her ten toes in her boots. She mustered her courage and said stiffly:
"This matter is my fault. It has nothing to do with Tang Ping. If you want to vent your anger or compensate me, I will take care of it alone!"
Ma Yan sat in the main seat, frowned and said nothing, looking at Zhao Duan.
However, the expected sarcasm did not appear. Zhao Duan slowly put down the teacup, smiled, and said:
"Miss Tang, your words are too serious. If it's just a misunderstanding, it's all right if we clear it up. As for military law, huh, Tang Ping, do you think I'm someone who abuses the law?"
The brother and sister were both stunned and looked at him in surprise. They didn't expect Zhao Duan to be so easy to talk to.
Zhao Duan was stared at and was in a state of confusion:
"Why, do you think I am a person who is unreasonable and never gives in?"
"No..." The young master waved his hands, but his eyes betrayed him.
Over the past six months, no one in the officialdom of the capital has doubted Zhao Duan's courage.
Others might be cautious when flattering a duke and not dare to provoke him.
But Zhao Duan is undoubtedly an exception.
Considering that "King Zhao" is vindictive and will avenge any offense he has committed, such a magnanimous person like Zhao seems indescribably strange in his eyes.
Zhao Duan sighed softly, feeling helpless.
There were indeed many names in his little notebook, but he was not a mad dog. If he wanted to gain a foothold in the court, a certain predecessor had already given him earnest advice, which was nothing more than forming cliques.
In other words, make more friends and fewer enemies.
Zhao Duan will certainly spare no effort to fight against those enemies with whom he has become irreconcilable and has formed deep hatred.
But he would be crazy to offend a high-ranking official like Duke Tang, who was in a high position of power and had no substantial conflict of interest with him, because of this misunderstanding.
Besides... he didn't suffer any loss. He just stood in the cold wind for a while, turned around and beat up the other person's daughter, so he made a profit.
"Ahem, since Zhao Jisi has said so, the misunderstanding will be resolved. You two should return home first to avoid worrying the Duke." Ma Yan spoke at the right time.
The brother and sister finally came to their senses and thanked Zhao Duan with mixed feelings. After saluting to their superior Ma Yan, they left together.
…
The other side.
The brother and sister rode back to the Duke's Mansion, walked straight through the pavilions and towers, and went to the east wing.
Pushing open the door to the wing room, there were only two women in the room. One was an older woman, her youthful beauty long gone, but she was of noble bearing and was the head of the household. The wife of the Duke of Guo.
The other one was a lady in her late forties, Tang Ping's eldest sister. She had been married for a long time and had come back to her parents' home today.
"Mother, elder sister." Tang Ping stepped into the room, bowed to the two of them, and asked, "Where's father?"
The eldest sister of the Tang family has a rare gentle personality in the family. She said:
"Father is going to talk to those officials. Don't disturb him. He will be back soon."
The old lady stared at Tang Zhao, who looked like he had done something wrong, and said unhappily:
"What trouble have you gotten yourself into again?"
"I didn't..." Tang Zhao insisted stubbornly.
The old lady was furious and started to scold her, saying things like "not like a girl". The eldest sister and Tang Ping beside her worked together to comfort her.
After a long while, a servant came over and said, "Second Miss, Young Master, the Master wants you to come over."
The brother and sister walked out of the wing room and went to the main hall. They saw that the officials had just left and the room was still full of leftover tea cups, fruit plates, and a charcoal basin that was no longer very hot.
Duke Tang, lame in one leg, dressed in gorgeous clothes and with a dignified appearance, sat alone in the main seat. On the snow-white wall behind him was a large painting of an ink dragon. This painting was the work of a famous artist and was hung in the main hall. It was said that it could shock people.
"Father."
The brother and sister saluted side by side.
Duke Tang looked at the two of them in surprise, especially his second daughter, whose temperament was no less rebellious than his own when she was young. He was surprised that the other party was so "obedient".
As his thoughts turned and he had a guess, he said calmly:
"You beat him up? You know you're in trouble? Never mind. He's just a favorite. I've offended him, but I can't kill him. He's still got a breath left, and I can save him with elixirs. As for the anger from His Majesty, I'll handle it myself."
Tang Ping opened his mouth and explained:
"Father, no...it's not that bad, and Lord Zhao hasn't..."
Tang Zhao was dejected and said unconvincedly, "I didn't win, I lost."
Duke Tang was stunned. He turned his head and stared at his daughter's face, as if he had heard it wrongly.
…
…
Imperial Court.
After sending the siblings off, Ma Yan sighed with mixed feelings:
"Fortunately, despite some setbacks, it didn't cause any major chaos. After they return, they'll explain everything to Duke Tang, and the matter will be over. I just hope the Second Miss won't hold a grudge..."
Zhao Duan rolled his eyes: "I don't hold a grudge, and she's not happy?"
Ma Yan said helplessly:
"You win the fight, and yet you tied him up like that... That method of tying him up is new, I've never seen it before."
"Oh, that's called the tortoise shell binding. Brother, let me tell you, this..." Zhao Duan was very excited and was about to explain it.
Suddenly, the two heard a commotion outside again, accompanied by the sound of someone breaking in.
The two stopped talking and looked at the closed door at the same time. Then, they saw the door was suddenly pushed open, and the cold wind wrapped in a little snow foam rushed into the room.
The person who pushed the door was a woman with white eyes, wearing a frozen red dress and with black hair scattered like a ghost.
"Ji Yue? Why are you here?" Zhao Duan exclaimed in surprise.
Jiyue, a socially anxious person, raised his head, his face pale, and said in a trembling voice:
"The drunkard has been arrested!"
(End of this chapter)
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