Chapter 292 Brothers
The person responsible for escorting "Auspicious Rui" to Beijing this time is Shen Hua, the eldest son of the Shen family.
Although he is often criticized behind his back by his half-brother Shen Qiu and is called "my stupid brother", as the heir to a powerful family, he can no longer be a coward. Where to go.
He has a slender figure, regular facial features, and a sharp-edged, upright face. Although he cannot be ranked among the handsome men, he can still be called a handsome man. Qiu stood together, it was impossible for anyone to believe that they were two brothers.
His body also exudes an extremely powerful aura of true energy.
This proves that he has already become a strong man in the fourth level before he is thirty years old - even though he is not as good as the top talents like Chu Fengge and Zhao Yan, he can still be regarded as the leader of the Daqi Dynasty.
If this were not the case, the Shen family would not have placed high hopes on him and let him represent the family in the "Luoshui Conference"; the royal family would not have included him as a candidate for the consort and considered marrying Princess Zhaoning. he.
At this moment, Shen Hua was sitting in a luxurious carriage, leaning on a silk cushion.
He frowned and his face was filled with gloom.
Beside him, there was a little book boy with fair features and fair skin, who was carefully massaging his shoulders.
After a brief silence, the little book boy suddenly said: "Master, the palace has arranged for you to enter the palace tomorrow to meet the saint. What are your plans for today? Are you going directly to the family's villa, or -"
"——That guy Shen Qiu, what's the name of the elixir workshop he recently ran?" Shen Hua interrupted the little book boy.
"It's called 'Shuchangfang', young master," the little book boy replied, "It's a property under the name of Gu Xu, the head of the Exorcism Department."
Gu Xu owns a house in Luojing City It is no longer a secret that there is an elixir workshop.
Under Shen Qiu's management, it has become a bustling place recently. Many big shots came to show their appreciation with gifts, and many organizations and wealthy households signed large orders with them.
"That rebellious brother of mine," Shen Hua said with a frown, "he wrote a letter not long ago to break up with the family, just to become a guest in that Gu Xu's house.
"I really don't understand him. What do you think?
“Our Jinling Shen family is a descendant of immortals and a famous family in the world; that Gu Xu is just an insignificant sixth-grade official, a little viscount who cannot be hereditary.
“Gu Xu can Whatever is given to him, the family can also give it to him. "
While speaking, Shen Hua's expression looked very complicated, and there seemed to be a lot of thoughts hidden in his eyes. The little book boy next to him did not dare to respond for a while.
He paused for a moment, and then continued: "Since they have arranged for us to enter the palace tomorrow, then I will simply go to the Shouchangfang today... Well, there is something important that I must tell in person. That younger brother.
"Bao Qin, go and tell Manager Lu and ask him to send 'Xiangrui' to the Shen Family Courtyard first. "
"Yes, Master. "The little book boy named "Bao Qin" responded respectfully.
…………
At the same time, in Shouchangfang.
With a warm smile on his face, Shen Qiu sent an old man with a white beard in brocade clothes out of the door.
This old man is Ni Jingxiang, Marquis of Dongping in the Daqi Dynasty. His ancestors were heroes who followed Emperor Taizu to bring peace to the world.
But after the founding of the People's Republic of China, because this family has never produced a particularly powerful monk in its history, now it has become an idle nobleman with almost no real power.
Today, the reason why Dongping Hou came to Shouchangfang was to buy a batch of "Eternal Brightness Pills" for his grandson - that little kid only had the second level of cultivation, but he clamored to imitate him every day. Gu Xu, the leader of the Lantern Festival Arena, shocked the whole country by killing everyone at the "Luoshui Conference".
“If I remember correctly, this workshop is the property of Mr. Gu!” I heard Dongping Hou say with a smile, “The person my grandson admires the most is Mr. Gu.”
Shen Qiu responded with polite words, but he couldn't help but sigh in his heart: Mr. Gu's reputation in the capital has been really high recently - if his admirers were lined up, they would probably be able to circle Luo Jing City several times.
After Hou Dongping left, a gorgeously decorated carriage drove slowly from the end of the street and stopped in front of the door of "Shuchangfang".
A tall, well-dressed young man stepped out of the carriage.
This person is Shen Hua.
He raised his head, glanced at the plaque hanging on the top of the door, and murmured: "Who wrote this? It looks very powerful."
Seeing his brother's figure, Shen Qiu folded his hands on his chest and narrowed his eyes involuntarily.
Although he was standing on the steps outside the workshop door, the height of his head still only reached Shen Hua's ears.
"Master Shen, what do you do for me?" Shen Qiu said in a cold tone.
"Shen Qiu, what did the family do wrong that made you decide to leave?" Hearing his brother's sharp words, Shen Hua sighed softly and said, "You don't even want to leave now?" Are you willing to call me 'big brother'?"
"Aren't you asking knowingly?" Shen Qiu chuckled.
Shen Hua was silent for a moment.
He and Shen Qiu grew up under the same roof. Naturally, he knew that the head of the Shen family had always disliked Shen Qiu, the deformed and ugly concubine son, and his attitude towards Shen Qiu had always been cold and bad; he also knew that, His own mother, Mrs. Shen, had always regarded Shen Qiu as a thorn in her side, wishing that this dwarf born from a slave would disappear from the world immediately.
To be honest, Shen Hua felt a little sympathy for this poor brother.
After all, things like birth and appearance were arranged by God, and Shen Qiu himself had no choice.
However, Shen Hua is a weak and indecisive person.
Although he sympathized with Shen Qiu, he did not dare to confront his parents or show a rebellious attitude in front of them.
When his parents wanted to teach Shen Qiu a lesson, he could only obediently hand him a ruler and didn't even dare to say a word of mercy.
It is precisely because of Shen Hua's weak and lack of opinion that after he took over the Shen family's industry, he often listened to slanders, was deceived by people with ulterior motives, and made many wrong decisions, which ultimately led to Shen Qiu was needed to help him clean up the mess.
Thinking of this, Shen Hua took a deep breath and slowly said: "Actually, Shen Qiu, the head of the house, his wife... and I all hope that you can go back.
"You Staying here, managing the elixir workshop for a small sixth-grade official, is really an injustice to your talents. You can definitely display your skills on a wider stage, and your family can also provide you with better resources——"
"——This sentence was taught to you by Shen Qianren, right?" The smile on Shen Qiu's face became more playful. With his weird facial features and raised corners of his mouth, he looked like a clown on the stage.
Shen Qianren is the name of the head of the Shen family.
Hearing this, Shen Hua hurriedly wanted to deny it.
However, he quickly caught Shen Qiu's gaze and found that the other person's eyes were particularly sharp, as if saying to him, "Stop lying, I already know the truth."
In the end, Shen Hua nodded and admitted in a low voice: "That's right."
"It is true," Shen Qiu said with a smile, "Master Shen, with your brain that has been kicked by a donkey, you will definitely not be able to think of such a beautiful scene.
"Tell me, the family has encountered another problem recently. What kind of trouble is it that requires me to go back and save it?
"Is a certain censor investigating the missed taxes of the family again, or is the emperor trying to dismantle the family's property again?" "You have guessed this." Shen Hua said solemnly.
"It's nothing difficult to guess. I heard that the family sent 'Auspicious' to the capital with great fanfare today, saying that it would be dedicated to the emperor to praise the peaceful and prosperous age today," Shen Qiu said, "The Shen family is also a big family that has produced immortals in history. If it hadn't encountered trouble that was difficult to solve, why would it have done such a self-degrading thing?"
Shen Hua looked at his younger brother in front of him and felt that there seemed to be great wisdom hidden in his short and rickety body. His asymmetrical eyes seemed to have the magical ability to see through phenomena and see the essence.
"A person cannot be judged by his appearance." Shen Hua thought to himself for the umpteenth time.
In the past, every time Shen Qiu helped him clean up the mess in the family, such thoughts would pop up in his head.
"Is that okay?" After a short silence, Shen Hua asked, "Come home with me, okay?"
Shen Qiu shook his head without hesitation.
"My dear eldest brother," he said in a sharp tone, emphasizing the word 'eldest brother' very hard, "the Shen family is like a boat with holes in it, and will sink to the bottom of the water sooner or later.
"You didn't even want to jump to the shore in time, but instead wanted to drag me into the water...Tell me, do you want to murder your half-brother? "
Shen Hua has long been accustomed to his younger brother's eccentric speaking style.
"Then why did you choose to follow a sixth-rank official of the Exorcism Department with a humble background? He then asked, "In my opinion, you must at least join the three major sects, or become a disciple of a saint, to be worthy of your status." "
"This sixth-grade official is not an ordinary sixth-grade official," Shen Qiu sneered. "He is a sixth-grade official who survived the catastrophe of the 'fierce god'. He is even a national master. A sixth-grade official who asked him for advice on Fu Dao.
"Mr. Shen, have you gone crazy by visiting brothels? You haven't even read the newspaper recently?"
Shen Qiu knew that his brother Shen Hua had two major weaknesses: one was weakness, and the other was lust.
Because of indulging in beauty and causing trouble - this kind of thing happened to Shen Hua more than once.
Seeing that Shen Hua didn't respond for a while, Shen Qiu continued: "I'd better remind you out of kindness! After coming to Luojing, you'd better restrain your lust. Recently, Zhao Yan has She has also returned to the capital. It is said that she often stays in the Jiaofang Department at night. If there is a conflict between you two, I don't think you can beat her."
"Zhao Yan..." Shen Hua. He recited the name silently, his expression a little complicated. Many years ago, he was once defeated by Zhao Yan's spear.
"Of course, if you are going to Elephant House, you don't need to worry about this problem." Shen Qiu added in a sarcastic tone.
Xianggu Pavilion is a brothel for male prostitutes.
Shen Hua is not only lustful, but also a man for both men and women.
Not long ago, it was revealed that he often visited the streets and alleys for the first time and kept a male favorite in private.
The marriage between him and Princess Zhaoning fell through precisely because of this incident.
According to rumors, when Princess Zhaoning learned about this situation, she was so disgusted that she vomited out her dinner that day.
This also became a major scandal for the Jinling Shen family.
"Can you stop mentioning this matter?" Shen Hua sighed, looking a little embarrassed for a moment.
Chen Qiu smiled and changed the subject: "By the way, has my mother come to the capital with you? I remember I wrote a letter to my family at the end of last month saying that I wanted to take care of her personally."< br>
Shen Hua pondered for a few seconds and said, "Actually, Shen Qiu, the most important purpose of why I came here to see you today is to tell you about your mother's situation."
"What's wrong with my mother?" Shen Qiu raised his voice and his eyes became as sharp as a wild beast. Shen Hua's hesitant tone gave him an ominous premonition.
"She...she..."
"What's wrong with her? If you have something to say, say it quickly! Don't hesitate here!"
Shen Hua took a deep breath, Said: "Shen Qiu, the troubles the Shen family has encountered recently are more serious than you think. Madam and several elders... they want to force you to go home, so they use your mother as a bargaining chip.
" They claimed that your mother committed theft while working as a servant in the family and sent her to the prefect of Jinling.
“If you don’t go home in time, they will torture her and send her to the northern border.” After being subjected to corporal punishments such as tattooing and stabbing, they were sent to border military camps to perform hard labor of drying grain and pounding rice.
Shen Qiu's mother Ningxiu was once a rough servant in the Shen family.
Although she was kicked out of the house by the angry Mrs. Shen, she still did not get rid of her slave status.
In the Daqi Dynasty, the status of mortal slaves was extremely low. If the owner claimed before the authorities that they had committed any crime, they had no chance to refute it.
In fact, compared to the previous Da Chu Dynasty, the situation of Da Qi slaves was slightly better. After all, Emperor Taizu once issued a decree strictly prohibiting family heads from lynching slaves. Emperor Taizu was born into a poor family, and he knew very well that in front of the powerful and spiritual practitioners, ordinary people with no cultivation were like livestock and could only be slaughtered by others.
But even so, Mrs. Shen has countless ways to deal with a humble servant.
Shen Qiu knew that Mrs. Shen was a very jealous woman. She regarded every woman who was close to her husband as a thorn in her side and wanted to kill them if given the chance.
"Why did you delay talking about such an important thing until now?" Shen Qiu stood on the steps, tiptoeing, grabbing Shen Hua's shoulders and shaking him violently back and forth.
His face was filled with angry emotions, making his expression particularly ferocious, like an evil ghost emerging from hell, which was in sharp contrast to his previous cynical attitude.
Shen Hua was a little frightened by him.
He rarely saw his brother showing such an expression.
"Ouch..." Shen Hua couldn't help but groan in pain as he pinched her hard, "I... I actually... haven't thought about... how to... say to you... This matter..."
For what happened to Shen Qiu's mother, Shen Hua actually felt very guilty.
Because he had witnessed his mother make this decision.
He felt that he had a chance to prevent this and prevent the family's problems from involving an innocent mortal.
But because of his weakness and because of his fear of his mother, he stood silently and watched, letting the woman named Ningxiu be escorted to the government.
Shen Qiu took a deep breath, trying to keep himself calm, and at the same time slowly let go of Shen Hua's shoulders.
“Do you have a ‘Breaking Sky Bead’ in your hand?” he asked.
"Yes." Shen Hua replied, taking out a "sky-breaking bead" from the storage magic weapon and handing it to Shen Qiu's hand.
"Give me a quarter of an hour. I'll explain the follow-up matters in this workshop," Shen Qiu said calmly. At this time, his expression was frighteningly calm, and he did not forget his responsibilities because of the accident that happened to his mother, "Then I will go to Jinling”
(End of this chapter)