Chu Qiao suddenly opened her eyes as if she was blind, and could only see a shadowy figure. She said unhappily on the spot: "What are you doing? This is a shawl to block the wind and sand. I can't see the road when I put it on."
Zhuge Yue waved away her hand that was trying to pull at her veil without giving any explanation, and said, “If you can’t see, just follow me.”
Chu Qiao was annoyed. If she had to wear such a thick scarf, why did she still need to put on makeup?
She took a careful step but nearly bumped into the table.
“How stupid!” Zhuge Yue walked forward, grabbed her hand, and shouted angrily, “Follow me!”
Chu Qiao struggled hard, "Let me go!"
Zhuge Yue suddenly turned around and grabbed her chin. Chu Qiao was startled and thought he was going to fight her, so she immediately attacked, and in a flash, she put the dagger under her sleeve against Zhuge Yue's neck. Her movements were surprisingly fast.
Unexpectedly, Zhuge Yue seemed not to have noticed the dagger. He looked at her coldly and said in a gloomy tone: "If you keep talking so much, I really don't mind dying with you." After saying that, he coldly put down his hand, took her hand, turned around and walked out.
"Guard the door, and don't let anyone take a step further!"
"yes!"
“Come on, what are you thinking about?” Zhuge Yue scolded her impatiently and pulled her out of the room.
Yue Qi quickly led his men to follow behind, leaving only a few soldiers guarding the room. They shook their heads and looked at the backs of the crowd. One of the guards sighed, "The young master really likes this woman. He takes her with him wherever he goes."
"Maybe when he returns from Bian Tang this time, there will be a happy event in our house. Even if she is not the principal wife, he can still take a concubine. The young master is already old enough to take a concubine."
The night breeze is cool and the place is quiet. Flowers are red, willows are green, and herbs are fragrant. The spacious long street is bustling with people, merchants, and shops, creating a bustling and prosperous scene.
Xianyang City, it is Xianyang City again.
After many days of travel, a group of people finally walked into the gate of Xianyang City, exhausted. The accompanying guards paid the entrance fee, and more than twenty war horses escorted a blue cloth carriage and slowly walked into the streets of Xianyang City.
Although Xianyang is a border town, its business is extremely prosperous, so the buildings in the city are built magnificently.
The city is divided into the inner city and the outer city. The inner city is mainly composed of the Mengren Palace south of the Chishui River and the Luoli Palace east of the Chishui River. The two palaces span a tributary of the Chishui River and are connected by a stone bridge more than 400 meters long. The stone bridge is thick and wide, and can accommodate more than 20 carriages and horses in parallel. Although the Mengren Palace and the Loli Palace are named palaces, they are not real palaces, but are composed of a series of mansions.
As everyone knows, Xianyang is the richest city in the world, and is not inferior to several major cities in Huaisong port. This city, which is less than one-fifth the size of Zhenhuang City, has developed rapidly in just thirty years after the free trade between Daxia, Bian Tang and Huaisong, relying on its super geographical advantages. It has quickly become a prosperous commercial city in the Simon Continent. The taxes it sends to the imperial capital every year are enough to cover the total expenses of one-third of the imperial army in a year. It is said that this small city encompasses all the wealthy people in the entire Simon continent. Those rich men who spend money lavishly have bought land in the inner city of Xianyang and built mansions. Looking around, the magnificent buildings are majestic, undulating and magnificent.
The outer city covers a vast area, more than ten times larger than the inner city, and is where civilians and traveling merchants gather. The business here is developed and the transportation is convenient. There are all kinds of wine shops, money houses, pawnshops, carriage and horse companies, shops, inns and restaurants. A pink, emerald green pavilion by the Chishui River was so fragrant that even in the daytime, one could faintly hear the sweet laughter of a woman.
The carriage drove all the way and entered Xianyang City without any further concealment. After all, this was a world-famous commercial capital with many wealthy people, and a mere twenty guards were not particularly conspicuous.
This group of people were none other than Yanbei’s men, and the man in the carriage was naturally Yanbei’s prince Yan Xun, who had just led Yanbei to independence. Yan Xun's face was a little pale, but his eyes were sharp. He frowned and seemed to be thinking about some troubling problem.
"Young Master, we have arrived."
Yan Xun was wearing a simple green robe, with clear brows and a calm face. He jumped off the carriage and walked towards a magnificent mansion.
This mansion is located in Luoli Palace and consists of eighteen courtyards. Although it is not as luxurious as the mansions in Zhenhuang City, Xianyang has a large population and little land. The fact that high-ranking officials and wealthy businessmen can live in such a vast area shows the status of the owner of this house in Xianyang.
Yan Xun moved forward all the way, and there was no one along the way. A Jing and other guards quickly dispersed, took control of the entire mansion, and took strict precautions. After a while, Yan Xun, accompanied by more than ten guards including Ah Jing, came to the main courtyard. He saw a man in a green robe kneeling on the ground with hundreds of servants. He said in a loud voice without raising his head, "Your subordinates respectfully welcome the prince. May you live a long and prosperous life."
Yan Xun, who had been frowning all the way, suddenly smiled, took two steps forward, put his hand on the other's shoulder, and scolded with a smile: "You bastard, get up!"
The young man was no more than twenty years old, with delicate features, fair skin as white as snow, and thin eyebrows that gave him a hint of femininity. Only his eyes moved shrewdly, and it was obvious at first glance that he was a scheming guy.
"Hehe," the young man laughed and said, "Prince, you've worked hard on the journey. I've prepared delicious food and wine. Come in and take a rest first."
Yan Xun nodded and walked forward first. As he walked, he tugged at the young man's clothes and said with a curled lip, "Zhi Jinxiu? You're doing pretty well, brat."
"Sir," the young man said with a bitter face and a pursed mouth, "This is already my most worn-out piece of clothing. I was afraid that you would say I was extravagant, so I searched through boxes and cabinets to find such a piece of clothing. I still feel itchy when I wear it now."
"Haha," Yan Xun laughed loudly, and while laughing he turned around and said to Ah Jing, "See, the phrase 'kicking someone's nose to get ahead' is tailor-made for people like him."
Ah Jing chuckled, smiled at the young man, punched him on the shoulder, and said, "Be careful that the young master will rob your house if you are so arrogant."
Several people chatted and laughed as they entered the room. Sumptuous food was prepared in the main hall. They did not talk about business but sat around the table and started eating, talking about interesting things that happened along the way. Yan Xun seemed to be in a good mood today. Even when Ah Jing made a joke about him saving Miss Helian on the road, he didn't get angry.
After finishing the meal, Ah Jing tactfully withdrew. Yan Xun and the young man walked into the study together. After closing the door, there was no longer any trace of laughter on their faces. The young man lifted up the hem of his shirt, knelt on the ground, and said in a deep and excited voice: "My Lord, you are finally here."
Yan Xun squatted down and helped him up, his face showing a rare gentleness, his lips were soft and his eyes were calm as he said, "Feng Mian, how long have we not seen each other?"
Sure enough, this young man was Feng Mian, the little servant who followed Yan Xun and delivered letters to Chu Qiao many times. Outside Zhenhuang City that day, most of Yan Xun's attendants were killed. Feng Mian was young, and although he was seriously injured, he escaped with his life.
Afterwards, the Yanbei clan was eradicated by the empire, Yan Xun lost power, and Feng Mian lived a life worse than pigs and dogs for two years. It was not until the third year that Yan Xunfang bribed the jailer with a large sum of money and rescued the child who had been imprisoned in a dark water dungeon for two years.
Feng Mian could not stay in the imperial capital, so he went south alone and came to Xianyang City. With the help of the Datong Guild and the Yanbei backbone, six years later, he had become the leading underworld tycoon in Xianyang City, with influence covering many industries such as escort companies, carriage companies, water transport, and sea salt. He owned more than 80 shops including brothels, wine shops, pawnshops, and money houses. He controlled more than 20 ferry and shipyards in the Chishui area in the southeast of the empire, and created the Cao Gang, the overlord of the water that was feared throughout the country. Nowadays, in the southeast, perhaps no one would recognize Feng Mian, but when it comes to Feng Siye, even a three-year-old child would probably be able to recite some of his legendary deeds.
“Prince, it has been six years. I have finally waited for this day.” Feng Mian’s eyes were red and misty. He excitedly held Yan Xun’s hand and said in a deep voice.
"Yes, in the blink of an eye, you have grown up." Yan Xun smiled, "I'm afraid it's a bit inappropriate for the famous Fourth Master Feng to call himself a servant. I heard that even Old Prince Jing and Prince Ling are frequent visitors to your house. Last year, Prince Ling's son Zhao Zhongyan owed you money for the transport gang, and you actually publicly burned Prince Ling's fleet. Prince Ling lost thousands of pieces of brocade and almost couldn't survive for years."
Feng Mian smiled shyly, not looking like a gangster boss at all, just like a shy little girl. He said embarrassedly, "What Fourth Master? It's just a name called by outsiders. Zhao Zhongyan relied on being a descendant of the Zhao family to use his title to pressure me, so I naturally can't let him have a good time. Besides, we suffered a lot from the Lingwang Mansion in the imperial capital, and I have disliked them for a long time." At this point, Feng Mian suddenly looked a little excited, "Feng Mian will always be a servant in front of the prince. Without the prince, there would be no servant today. My life belongs to the prince. If I dare to put on airs in front of the prince, would I still be a human being?"
"Okay, get up." Yan Xun said with a smile, "I was just joking with you, why take it seriously?" After that, he pulled Feng Mian up. The two of them sat down opposite each other on a tea table. Feng Mian skillfully brewed tea and boiled water. After a while, the fresh tea fragrance filled the whole room.
"My Lord," Feng Mian asked with bright eyes and a smile, "Where is the girl? Is she okay? Why didn't she come? I heard a while ago that you guys had a big fight in Zhenhuang, and the girl led thousands of troops to fight north and south, killing the officers and soldiers of Daxia. I was so happy that I couldn't sleep all night, and I wanted to take my troops back to Yanbei. This time when you go to Bian Tang, won't the girl follow you?"
Yan Xun's face was calm, and he said slowly: "She and I were separated, and Zhao Che issued a wanted order, hunting Ah Chu across the country, didn't you know?"
"What?" Feng Mian was stunned and said, "But later there was news from Yanbei that the girl had gone back!"
"I was the one who released that news. It was fake. I just wanted to ease the pressure on the pursuers behind Ah Chu. I wanted them to think that Ah Chu had already returned to Yanbei and they wouldn't have to chase him anymore." Yan Xun took a sip of tea and said, "Although I informed the various vassal kings before, I was still afraid that they would not pursue him openly but would trip him up secretly, so I had to make extra preparations."
Feng Mian nodded, frowned and said, "So the girl is still on the run. Don't worry, my lord. I will send people out to look for her. I dare not say anything else, but as long as the girl is still in Daxia, whether on land or on water, my people will be there."
Yan Xun shook his head slowly, "I guess she may have left Da Xia and entered Bian Tang."
"Bian Tang?"
"Yes, if I'm not mistaken, she should have turned into Bian Tang, then detoured to Tang Jing, turned into Nanjiang, and went up the river."
"So the prince came to Bian Tang?"
Yan Xun nodded and said, "This is also one of the reasons."
"Well, I'll give orders right away to notify the Cao Gang in Bian Tang to search for her. As long as the girl is on the water, there will be news."