Chapter 262 Teasing Xu Junling
On the long street, the drizzle that had briefly stopped fell again.
Zhao Duan's proud laughter echoed wantonly in the air, clearly falling in the ears of every spectator.
At this moment, on both sides of the street, whether they were the guests in the teahouse or the people hiding under the eaves and watching, there was deep awe on their faces.
They didn't know exactly who the person who took action was, but based on some reasonable speculation, they concluded that it was Zhao Duan's bodyguard.
After all... what high official or dandy boy doesn't have his maids and guards by his side?
It belongs to stereotype.
"No wonder... Zhao Yan Wang is so confident, he is called a big shot."
Many people had similar thoughts and felt envious.
Lu Qingfeng choked, and the expression on his slightly pale old face changed, but he swallowed the name on his lips and said respectfully:
"Thank you, senior...raise your hand with Mr. Zhao."
Zhao Duan's smile faded and he said sarcastically: "Who said I raised my hand? Do you really think that fighting the officers and soldiers in the capital is just a matter of time? Come here, kill this person and these few ignorant people." All the people under the king’s law were locked up by my officials and taken to prison.”
Lu Qingfeng's expression suddenly changed. Unexpectedly, Zhao Yanwang beat him up and insisted on arresting him.
At this time, a group of forbidden soldiers were gearing up and came over again carrying iron chains, as if they were fighting against each other.
"Wait!"
At this time, a cold female voice finally couldn't bear it anymore and could not speak to stop it.
But he figured it out... Zhao Duan slowly raised the corners of his mouth and looked towards the half-broken teahouse opposite.
I saw a young woman with a ladylike temperament slowly peeking out from the half-open window.
Her face is smooth, her skin can be broken by blows, and she has the elegance of a Jiangnan woman. She has an elegant and poetic air just standing tall and graceful at the window.
"Ah - such a handsome lady..."
"Who is this?"
"Shh, keep your voice down and don't criticize noble people."
The crowd first started talking, and then some people became alarmed and shut up one after another, for fear that their words would be wrong and offend someone they shouldn't offend.
Zhao Duan's eyes lit up. He looked across a dilapidated street and said with a playful smile: "It's really strange today. One after another comes. Why, this girl also wants to sit in the imperial office?" "
"Bold! You..."
Beside the window, the maid Lv Shui was furious.
However, she was forced to retreat by a look from Xu Junling. This talented daughter of the royal family had a graceful manner. Faced with this scene, she just smiled lightly, raised her voice slightly and said: "I wonder, Mr. Zhao, can you honor me and talk in detail?" ?”
Zhao Duan said nothing, but raised his hand and made a "vacant position" gesture.
He asked me to go there in person... Xu Junling's eyelashes trembled, and he turned around seriously and went straight downstairs.
Not long after, she led the maid, and the two of them walked out of the first floor of the teahouse. Under the gaze of people, the maid held up an oil-paper umbrella to protect them from the rain.
This woman with quite good looks and temperament walked through the wet and cold street and walked towards the opposite side.
"……Miss."
When he passed by Lu Qingfeng, the palace guard who had made such nonsense not long ago looked ashamed.
Xu Junling only shook his head, indicating that it was okay.
Lu Qingfeng's lips moved and a ray of voice was passed into her ears:
"The old man in the building is probably the legendary top master in Ouchi."
Xu Junling's steps paused slightly and his eyes narrowed slightly.
Then, he walked into the teahouse opposite without changing his expression, and climbed up the wooden stairs under the watchful eyes of the waiters and tea-goers on the first floor.
…
On the second floor, after Zhao Duan revealed his identity, the rest of the tea guests had already fled in droves, for fear of being implicated.
At this moment, only Zhao Duan and Hai were sitting at the table, looking at the two women who came up to the stairs.
"Xu Junling, the daughter of the King of Huai'an, has seen the sea and worshiped her, Zhao Shijun."
The gentle and elegant princess bowed gently and took the initiative to speak.
Eunuch Hai, whose beard and hair were all white, smiled, waved his hand and said: "The princess has ruined our family."
Generally speaking, the status of royal women is not high, but their status is more noble. However, Xu Junling is different from other princesses in that she represents half of the Huai'an king.
Secondly, since she is not married, she is still considered to be a member of the royal family of the Xu family. No matter how high the status of Hai is, she is still a royal servant in name.
So the tone was quite polite.
"Ah, I didn't know that the princess was here, and I didn't know the real person. I was very rude just now. I hope the princess won't blame you."
Zhao Duan was "shocked" and stood up, as if he only knew the identity of the other party at this moment.
"..." Xu Junling's smile froze, thinking, "Can you act more fake?"
But with a sweet smile on his face: "Master Zhao, you don't have to be polite."
Eunuch Hai glanced at the two of them, suddenly smiled, stood up and said: "We went out to eat, you guys can chat."
After saying that, without waiting for anyone to react, the figure jumped lightly and flew out of the building like a wisp of smoke, disappearing without a trace.
No... Lao Haiqi... Zhao Duan's eyelids twitched.
However, Xu Junling's expression did not change. He walked straight to Eunuch Hai's seat and sat opposite Zhao Duan.
The maid carrying the oil-paper umbrella did not go far or come near, but stood at the top of the stairs with her hands hanging down.
"It's really unexpected that Mr. Zhao and Hai are enshrined here." Xu Junling said calmly.
"Haha, I didn't expect that the princess would come to a place like this to watch the fun." Zhao Duan smiled and pretended to be confused:
"The person surnamed Lu downstairs..."
"He is the guard of the mansion," Xu Junling said, sitting dignified and elegant:
"The Buddhist and Taoist event was approaching, and on a whim, I came to join in the fun. I had just been escorting and witnessed the conflict below. I was worried that if a fight broke out, all the soldiers would suffer.
Especially once word spread, it would inevitably bring bad reputation to the imperial court, so they took action rashly. This was intended to calm the trouble, but it was not malicious, but it made Mr. Zhao laugh. "
He didn't cover it up, but made it up blatantly, well...it seemed like he was talking about a small misunderstanding.
Zhao Duan's eyes flashed and he laughed and said: "I see, I was still thinking about when there was such a great master in the capital. If I had known that he was under the princess, this would not have happened. Misunderstand.
To put it bluntly, the two traitors down there are disgusting. Not only do they despise the laws of the court, but they also involve the official and the princess in an almost conflict. They are really hateful...
I'm afraid he's calculated it accurately. Knowing that the princess is here, deliberately provoking it will be punishable..." Xu Junling could only force a smile and said after considering:
"The Jianghu people are vulgar, but they may not have complex thoughts. At this moment, it would be better if there are fewer disputes in the city."
Zhao Duan said a long "Oh" with a smile in his eyes:
"Is this what the princess thinks?"
After a pause, before Xu Junling pursed his lips and was about to speak again, he waved his hand and said with a smile:
"Then I must have overthought it. Since it was just a reckless act, and the princess spoke up, let's just forget about it."
Pick it up high and put it down gently...
In one sentence, he forced a favor from the other party.
Just now he was aggressive and arrested people many times, just to force out the real mastermind behind it.
Now that the princess has gone up to the building in person, she has given him face, and Zhao Duan also needs to get some face back.
During the conversation, he was also observing the famous princess.
Consider the other person’s purpose.
As far as he knew, King Huai'an was the more vacillating one among the "Eight Kings".
Unlike King Jing, who was secretly suspected of supporting troops, King Huai'an lived in the "Huai River Road", which was prosperous, prosperous in commerce, and full of nobles.
There are many industrial shops under the royal family, and many of the ships traveling on the Grand Canal have the shadow of the King of Huai'an behind them.
Those ships were also earning copper coins from King Huai'an's purse every moment.
Therefore, it is inevitable that this prince has the talent of a businessman and is accustomed to "betting in many ways."
When the empress ascended the throne, King Huai'an was the first to send a congratulatory message.
"Among the eight kings, King Huai'an is the least greedy for the throne, and he is also the one worth winning over."
This is the judgment Zhao Duan came to after reviewing the information.
Because of his business talent, King Huai'an was in the middle of the situation. In order to protect his interests, he did not want to betray the "Eight Kings" alliance headed by King Jing.
He also didn’t want to offend the dead empress and was worried about being liquidated.
Even when it comes to Kuang Fu She, he has a neutral attitude.
Bet on multiple parties and be completely loyal to no one. But because there is a large amount of money in hand, to a certain extent, it will also determine the weight of the balance of power among all parties.
"Oh, not long after the new policy was promulgated, the news of the imperial court's opening of the market came out. Before the other princes made any explicit response, the King of Huai'an became impatient and sent his daughter over..."
"After arriving in Beijing, I was busy trying to establish relations with all parties. I'm afraid I was still doing the work of collecting intelligence...
This talented princess is like the eyes and ears of the King of Huai'an. She comes to see with her own eyes the changes in the court, to judge the situation, and to evaluate the chances of the empress taking over the throne..."
"Well...if that's the case, then it wouldn't be a surprise to find me. The purpose is to see me with your own eyes and understand my details..."
Zhao Duan laughed loudly.
There were many thoughts flashing in my mind at the same time.
…
So easy to talk to?
Xu Junling's beautiful eyes glanced at him in surprise, and when he met the latter's half-smiling gaze, he couldn't help but lower his eyes and said: "Your Majesty is so generous and generous, and you are worthy of being an emperor." My sister values a capable minister."
The first half of the sentence is a thank you, and the second sentence is a compliment, but at the same time, it seems to contain a bit of yin and yang that seems to be there but not there.
Just as Zhao Duan guessed, the purpose of Xu Junling's visit today was to weigh the qualities of this popular favorite in the capital.
What kind of personality and behavior do you have?
It is said that if you know yourself and the enemy, you can fight a hundred battles without danger. In this chess game in the world, if you want to make accurate moves, you must keep your eyes open.
But how to meet and test them is another big problem.
Just because of his understanding over the past few days, Xu Junling was certain that Zhao Duan and the "Li Party" were complete political enemies.
However, "Huaishuidao" is also the base camp of "Li Party" officials.
Under Li Yanfu, there were a series of officials, most of whom were Jiangnan scholars and were backed by many Jiangnan nobles.
The King of Huai'an has always maintained good relations with those noble families.
This resulted in Xu Junling naturally being close to the "Li Party" from a family standpoint.
When she came to contact Zhao Duan, every move and attitude she made was reflected on her.
They will all be seen by the "Li Party" officials, the empress, and even the other seven princes including Prince Jing.
Any signal released may trigger an unpredictable chain reaction.
Therefore, Xu Junling thought carefully before directing today's drama.
According to expectations, Lu Qingfeng would take action at a critical moment and lead the two parties to meet by intervening in the challenge.
This can not only test Zhao Duan's character, cultivation, and behavior style in one breath... but also avoid the displeasure of "Li Party" and prevent misunderstandings among the seven kings.
It wouldn’t really offend the empress…
As a result, something went wrong.
Eunuch Hai's unexpected attack completely disrupted her plan.
At this moment, the two of them chatted for a while, and what they said to each other were all compliments and unnutritious gossip.
After a while, Zhao Duan opened an inverted cup, poured the tea himself, handed it over, and said with emotion: "Since the princess has come early, why don't you meet me?"
Xu Junling smiled, took it with green fingers, and said with a smile:
"Master Zhao has a close relationship with the imperial sister. As a younger sister, I have to avoid suspicion."
This is another test.
She took a sip of tea with her red lips and stared at Zhao Duan's expression, trying to judge his relationship with the empress.
Zhao Duan did not respond directly, but said casually: "Princess Princess, do you think this tea is acceptable?"
Did you change the subject...Xu Junling smiled lightly and said, "It's quite sweet."
Zhao Duan stared at her sweet face with great interest, and suddenly smiled frivolously and evilly: "But I don't know which one is sweeter than the princess's saliva compared to this coarse tea."
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(End of this chapter)