Chapter 593: Arresting! This officer must use the majority to bully the minority
“This…this…”
When Earl Yuanshan heard Zhao Duan's question, his face became visibly panicked.
The rest of the family members in the yard were also nervous.
How could they not know how terrifying and fierce the King of Hell was?
What's more, the person who led the team today was the mysterious Baimian Jisi, who was only known to represent Zhao Duan. Therefore, Zhao Duan's light questions sounded as heavy as a mountain in the ears of everyone.
"I don't know why the police came to my house?" Earl Yuanshan insisted with a stiff upper lip.
Zhao Duan just smiled and didn't respond. Instead, he walked straight into the hall and sat down on the chair where Xu Wenyan had just sat. He used his fingers to feel the temperature of the teacup and said softly:
"Prince Hejian was here just now? What did he say to the Earl?"
Earl Yuanshan didn't dare sit down, but stood with his hands behind his back and hurriedly explained:
"I didn't say anything, just chatted about family matters, asked about the family situation, and talked about some old stories about my acquaintance with his father."
This was not an interrogation room, but Count Toyama still relayed everything that had been said in the conversation in detail.
Zhao Duan said "yes" and smiled:
"Old things, that's collusion."
Earl Yuanshan was horrified, his face turned visibly pale, his lips turned blue, his legs trembled, and he almost fell to his knees.
The family members behind him seemed to be strangled by the neck, with a look of despair on their faces.
"No, no... no..." At this moment, Earl Yuanshan was as timid as a child.
"Haha, just joking." In the almost dead silence, Zhao Duan laughed, stood up, dusted off his robe, and said in an unusually gentle tone:
"Your Excellency, there is no need to panic. Although the Hejian Crown Prince is the son of a rebel king, since he has come for peace talks, he is a guest of honor. We are only here to understand the situation on the orders of Your Majesty. Since we have only discussed some insignificant matters, we will take our leave now. Thank you for your inconvenience."
After saying these words, Zhao Duan took one last look at the gift boxes in the room, then turned around and walked out without hesitation, waving his hand:
"withdraw!"
The Jinyimen from Lihuatang responded and followed him away. The group came quickly and left even faster.
When the figure disappeared, Earl Yuanshan's legs went weak and he fell into his chair with a thud. His family members, who had been as silent as a mouse, gathered around him in panic, "Master..."
Earl Yuanshan's eyes were blank, and he felt his back was wet.
After just a few words of exchange, his clothes on the back were already soaked with sweat.
Coming back to his senses, he looked at the precious gift box in the room and felt like he was looking at a pile of hot potatoes. He said without hesitation:
"Quickly send these gifts to the imperial court! Then, feign illness and shut yourself up, refusing to see any visitors until the delegation leaves! Furthermore, not a single word of what happened today can be revealed to anyone! Do you understand?"
…
After leaving the Earl's Mansion, Zhao Duan got back into the carriage and continued to slowly follow Xu Wenyan's route.
This time, they came to the residence of Marquis Qinghe.
Still waiting until Xu Wenyan and his group walked away, Zhao Duan emerged from the dark and brought his men to forcefully and domineeringly break into the Marquis's mansion.
The Marquis of Qinghe is a middle-aged man in his prime and well-maintained.
Seeing a group of living devils coming in, he was not as panicked and nervous as Earl Yuanshan. However, the slight changes in his expression and body movements revealed that his heart was not as calm as he appeared.
"Mr. Bai Ji came to visit, but I failed to greet you. I wonder what's going on?"
Marquis Qinghe took the initiative to invite Zhao Duan to sit down and spoke first.
Zhao Duan stroked the pure white mask on his face with his fingers and said with a smile:
"I heard that the Hejian prince came to the mansion early this morning, and I was ordered to track the envoy's whereabouts."
Marquis Qinghe said calmly:
"The Prince of Hejian is plotting rebellion, so logically, I shouldn't be meeting his son. However, since we are now in the stage of peace talks, and the Crown Prince has come to see me with courtesy, I prioritize the greater good, so I'm merely exchanging polite greetings. These are just polite words, but I'm sure the inspector will be disappointed."
Zhao Duan smiled and said:
"I understand, I understand. I believe that the Marquis, a nobleman whom Your Majesty relies on, would never interfere in the peace talks, and Your Majesty would not misunderstand."
This time, the two of them sat and talked nonsense for a longer time, without getting angry the whole time. After Zhao Duan patted his butt and got up to leave.
The well-maintained Marquis Qinghe finally felt relieved, and it was difficult for him to maintain his confident attitude. His palms were sweating under his sleeves.
He sighed in fear, glanced at the precious Western gifts on the expensive carpet on the floor, and called the servants:
"Send these to the imperial court."
…
Most of the nobles in the capital gathered in the North City, and at this moment, after leaving the Marquis' Mansion, Xu Wenyan's convoy headed towards the residence of Duke Chen.
But he did not rush to visit the house, but stopped at a quiet street near the Duke's Mansion.
Xu Wenyan and Mr. Feng waited in the carriage for a while. Finally, a soldier from the Hejian Palace came running outside and reported through the curtain:
"Reporting to the prince, there are indeed people following us, but their identities are unknown. But wherever you left, they entered immediately, and are now in the Marquis of Qinghe's mansion."
Mr. Feng looked at the fat prince, frowning:
"I'm afraid they're also the henchmen of the imperial court. Maybe they're the same people who were watching Princess Yanshan yesterday."
Xu Wenyan did not show any surprise, but his eyes were clear:
"On someone else's territory, every move is watched. We didn't expect to hide our actions today from anyone. But they acted so decisively, not even trying to hide. We visited a family, and these hawks came to warn them. It's really frustrating."
Mr. Feng sighed and said worriedly:
"With the other party being like this, I'm afraid the nobles won't dare to disobey."
Xu Wenyan looked calm:
"Just because they don't appear to be resisting doesn't mean they're not willing to contribute behind the scenes. On the contrary, the more pressure the court's lackeys put on the nobles, the more nervous and worried the nobles will become, fearing that once the Eight Princes are liquidated, their turn will be too.
As long as this fear exists, there will definitely be people who would rather see the peace talks succeed. The more princes who can stay, the thinner the imperial power will be, and the more the empress will try to win them over, thus making their position more stable.
On the other hand, once the external enemies are eliminated, they will no longer be important. Don't worry, we still need to visit them. We can ignore the timid ones, but the bold ones will definitely contact us."
Mr. Feng exclaimed:
"Your Highness is very wise. The prince was indeed wise to send you here this time."
Xu Wenyan said self-deprecatingly:
"He just got lucky by accident. Well, I also want to see what's so special about the person who ordered Sister Xuelian to be so humiliated, so I might as well wait for him."
After saying that, the obese and stupid Xu Wenyan actually took the initiative to lead Mr. Feng out of the car.
The moment he got off the car, he resumed his silly disguise.
The two of them stood in the snow, looking like they were waiting.
Soon, a carriage turned out from the end of the quiet street, its wheels rolled over the ground and stopped not far away.
Hou Renmeng, who was driving the car, jumped down first and pulled open the thick windshield. Zhao Duan, who was in the car, put down the stove in his arms, first stretched out a boot, and then pulled out his body.
Then, in Xu Wenyan's sight, Zhao Duan, wearing a black cloak and a white mask, walked over slowly, guarded by his subordinates.
Because it was near a noble mansion and it was snowing, the long street, which was spacious enough to accommodate three carriages, was empty, with only two groups of people confronting each other.
"What are you all trying to do by following us? Why are the imperial guards hiding instead of showing up openly?"
Mr. Feng's eyes were sharp and his tone was not polite.
Zhao Duan stopped and looked at the other person with interest. He didn't look at this important guest of the palace for long. His eyes fell on Xu Wenyan's face.
The famous stupid prince looked honest and simple, as if he was completely unaware of the tense atmosphere, and his eyes were full of curiosity.
Such acting skills... He can only win an Oscar for Best Actor... Oh, he is Chinese, that's a bit too much... Zhao Duan complained in his heart.
He was not surprised to be discovered by the other party. If he really cared about this, he would not have followed so closely.
"Prince, do you recognize me?" Zhao Duan said with a faint smile.
Mr. Feng frowned and said:
"Although you are not wearing official robes, you are carrying swords and walking around the city in a dignified manner. Moreover, with the Bai Jisi's signature mask, it would be unreasonable if you still can't recognize it."
Zhao Duan finally glanced at him and said sarcastically:
"I'm speaking to the Crown Prince. How can a subordinate like you have such a say? Is the Hejian Palace really so rude? A mere country dweller without any achievements has the nerve to come and negotiate peace? Is there no one left in Xiping Dao?"
Undisguised sarcasm.
Mr. Feng looked annoyed. He was indeed from the countryside, but being publicly mocked by Zhao Duan was tantamount to humiliation.
Xu Wenyan took a step forward angrily and said defensively:
"Sir, Mr. Feng is the teacher who teaches this prince in my house. I cannot sit idly by and watch you humiliate my teacher like this.
What? I heard from the master that you went to find Sister Xuelian yesterday and bullied her. Are you going to bully me today too?"
Zhao Duan smiled softly and said:
"I wouldn't dare. In Dayu, we value respect for teachers. Since he is the prince's teacher, I should protect him. However... just now, Mr. Feng asked why I was following him?
Well, you might as well explain to Your Highness that I ordered the Yamen Jisi to supervise the capital, and the day before yesterday we checked the list of the diplomatic envoys, but unexpectedly discovered that this Mr. Feng was related to an old theft case in the Yamen's case library. He was suspected to be a thief and fled to Xiping.
That's why I followed him to investigate. Please, Your Highness, hand this man over to me. I'll release him after I've thoroughly investigated the case."
It wasn't just the other party who heard this.
Hou Renmeng, Chen Juan and others were stunned.
I wondered when this happened.
After looking at each other, they realized that it was their own master who was talking nonsense and making it up.
Hey... when the King of Hell arrests an official, isn't it a basic skill for him to fabricate charges on the spot?
“Nonsense!”
Mr. Feng was almost laughing out of anger. He had thought these people could have some clever tricks, but he didn't expect them to be so crude.
Xu Wenyan was also angry, and perfectly acted out the behavior of a disciple after his master was humiliated. His face flushed red and he shouted angrily:
"How ridiculous! You still want to slander me? Mr. Feng is the deputy envoy appointed by my father. He has a high moral character. How could he be involved in such a crime?"
Zhao Duan said with ill intention:
"Whether he's guilty or not, we have to arrest him and interrogate him to find out. Old Hou, get moving!"
The marquis was stunned for a moment, surprised by the adults' decisiveness.
But the title of the number one troublemaker in Lihuatang was not an exaggeration. After a moment of hesitation, he grinned with his sharp teeth, grabbed the lower back with his right hand, grasped the hilt of the knife, and pulled it out with all his strength.
“clang!”
The bright and sharp steel knife was unsheathed, and Hou Ren took a big step forward. The steel knife in his hand rolled up the wind and snow, like a piece of chain, and chopped forward.
It seemed as if they were going to force the Xiping soldiers to retreat and forcibly capture Mr. Feng.
"How dare you!"
Xu Wenyan was furious and made a gesture with his fat hands behind his back.
Immediately, a martial arts master from Xipingdao, who was among the surrounding guards and disguised as a soldier in the royal palace, suddenly stepped on the ground and rushed out like a tiger or leopard, while the long sword at his waist stabbed out like a poisonous tongue.
“Woo woo—”
In the cold wind, the swords cut through the air, as if pulling out two faint streams of air.
Then they collided violently, and the martial artist's energy followed the collision of weapons, making a mournful sound of metal.
Hou Renmeng and the Xipingdao swordsman felt a numbness in their waists almost at the same time, and their arms felt as if they had been electrocuted. They took two steps back, and the thin layer of snow on the ground spread out in a ring with the two of them as the center.
In just one collision, Hou Renmeng took the advantage of the main attack, but he actually took more steps back.
It is undoubtedly at a disadvantage.
"He's a master..."
Hou Renmeng's face flushed red. This time he gathered all his strength. After releasing the strength, he shot out like an arrow, opening and closing the steel knife, and the knife energy weaved a big net. Although his swordsmanship was far inferior to Lang Shiba's, he had already stepped into the ranks of masters whether in the imperial army or in the martial arts world.
Obviously, Lao Hou's martial arts have also improved in the past two years.
However, in the end, the swordsman from Xiping Dao had better attainments in martial arts. Facing the Hou Ren's fierce attack, he blocked them one by one with the long sword in his hand, and seemed to be quite at ease.
He smiled coldly, shook his head and thought to himself that the imperial guards in the capital were no better than this. Who said that people in the martial arts world could not defeat the "regular army"?
He had fought his way out of the martial arts world after experiencing bloody battles, and was fortunate enough to catch the eye of King Hejian and be invited into the palace as a guest martial artist. Today, he stepped into the capital to practice his sword skills, and his blood was boiling, as if he was ready to chop down the marquis.
"Sir, the old marquis can't hold on any longer." Shen Juan said in a low voice.
Zhao Duan glanced at him unhappily and said:
"Then what are you guys still standing there for?"
Chen Juan and the other Jinyi were stunned for a moment, then they grinned fiercely and put their hands on their waists in unison.
Accompanied by the continuous sound of swords being drawn, everyone rushed forward and in just a moment, beat the Xiping swordsman to the point of vomiting blood and retreating.
"You have no moral principles! You are bullying the minority with your numbers!"
Xu Wenyan widened his eyes, stunned by Zhao Duan's shamelessness.
Zhao Duan stared at him with surprise under his mask, somewhat confused.
"This isn't a duel. I'm trying to apprehend a criminal. Who would fight you one-on-one?"
Xu Wenyan was speechless.
At this time, seeing that Mr. Feng was really about to be arrested, the other guards of the palace also looked at the prince, wondering whether to take action.
But they came out to visit the nobles today and did not bring enough people with them. Even if a fight really broke out, they would probably be defeated.
"What are you going to do?"
Xu Wenyan finally couldn't pretend anymore and stared at the white-faced police officer.
Zhao Duan raised his hand, ordered his men to stop attacking, and said with a smile:
“Just following the law.”
Xu Wenyan said angrily:
"This prince has come to negotiate peace. Your Majesty, do you want to imprison my men before we negotiate peace?"
After a pause, the fat prince suddenly said calmly:
"Or does the imperial court think that we have no bargaining chips in this peace negotiation?"
Zhao Duan narrowed his eyes: "Oh?"
Xu Wenyan looked towards the horizon dimly: "The news should be coming soon."
(End of this chapter)
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