Niao Ni
Chapter 620: Duke Zhou as Teacher (Begging for Moon Tickets...)
The chapter title, "Learning from the Duke of Zhou," is taken from a line in the *Records of the Grand Historian, The Book of Zhou*: "The Duke of Zhou was our teacher, and he campaigned eastward against the Huai barbarians." It refers to Fan Xian entering Dongyi. The time is spring, and the Duke of Zhou was fond of sleeping, as is Fan Xian, of course, I found this on Baidu.
ps: Today is the last day of double monthly votes. Given my state and effort these past two days, I really don't have the nerve to ask for votes, but I'll still shout it out. I won't post a separate chapter to solicit votes, I promise you all that for the rest of this month, I'll make both writing and reading this book enjoyable and of high quality. Amitabha...
Those who believe in me, please grant me monthly votes.)
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Fan Xian and Wei Hua, these two top spymasters in the world, greeted each other like two innocent and straightforward students, admiring each other silently. They immediately took their seats, raised their cups in a toast, reminiscing about the old days outside the capital of Qing Yu Nian, whispering about smuggling, laughing heartily when happy, and feeling a myriad of emotions when sentimental...
Such a sincere display dumbfounded the Song officials accompanying them, as well as the officials from both Northern Qi and Southern Qing's Ministry of Rites who were serving as attendants. They wondered if these two had become such good friends? But soon everyone understood the reason and admired them greatly, thinking that they were indeed the best of the best spymasters. This kind of shameless hypocrisy was truly a meeting of equals, a clash of masterminds, a mutual appreciation that couldn't be helped.
After sitting and chatting for a while, everyone knew that since these two had met in Song, they would naturally represent the vast forces behind them and engage in some probing, forcing out some daggers and swords with their words. If they were to stay by their side, they would only ever see the two laughing heartily, so they consciously withdrew.
After the maids served the dishes and left, the most luxurious private room in Baoyue Tower fell into silence. Fan Xian did not go to the table but sat on a carved wooden chair on the side, his eyes very calm as he looked at Wei Hua and said, "You arrived yesterday and came knocking on my door today, you really don't give me a chance to catch my breath."
Wei Hua smiled, picked up the hot towel on the table and wiped his face, walked to Fan Xian's side and sat down. After pondering for a moment, he said softly, "Although everyone in the world can guess that Lord Fan Xian will definitely come in person, if we don't see it with our own eyes, how can the millions of people of my Great Qi be at ease?"
Fan Xian narrowed his eyes slightly and said with a smile, "What? Are you here to seek justice on behalf of your Great Qi people?"
Last year, the Overwatch Council launched an offensive in Xiliang, wiping out all the spies and secret agents from Northern Qi who had infiltrated Ding and Qing provinces and colluded with the Hu people, killing countless people. This matter caused great shock and anger in the Northern Qi court. The superficial peace that the little emperor of Northern Qi and Fan Xian had tried their best to maintain was finally torn open with a large gash.
At this time, there was no one else in the hall, and Fan Xian and Wei Hua naturally wouldn't chat about the weather anymore, their voices becoming light and cold. Wei Hua looked at him and said in a cold voice, "Lord Fan Xian, you and I cooperated in the past, and we could be considered to trust each other. But last year you made such a move without informing me beforehand, isn't that a bit too much?"
Fan Xian raised an eyebrow, his eyes filled with ferocity, and said, "You colluded with the Hu people to kill the people of my Great Qing, do I have to inform you in advance before I take action? Who do you think you are?"
Wei Hua's heart trembled slightly, realizing that the current Fan Xian was no longer the gentle and approachable youth who had just made his debut in the capital.
He was silent for a moment before saying, "Let's not mention the past. I just wonder what Lord Fan Xian is thinking about this trip to Dongyi City for the opening ceremony."
"Are you stupid?" Fan Xian said with a slight mockery, "I am the Duke of Danbo of Great Qing. What I seek in Dongyi is naturally the benefit of my Great Qing. You're not unaware of this, so why ask such a question?"
Wei Hua frowned, feeling a chill in his heart. He thought that although His Majesty was talented and managed the government in an orderly manner, the situation in the world was like this, Qing was as strong as ever. This trip to Dongyi, if he wanted to persuade both Jianlu and the city lord not to be overwhelmed by Qing's strength, was indeed an extremely difficult task. Especially since Southern Qing had sent Fan Xian, this Southern Dynasty colleague whose true depths he had never been able to see through, he felt somewhat apprehensive and lacked confidence.
"Someone asked me to ask you a question." Wei Hua sat next to Fan Xian and said in a low voice, "Does the agreement in the restaurant still count?"
As soon as these words came out, Fan Xian's expression changed slightly, a hint of elusive self-deprecation appearing in his eyes as he said softly, "What agreement?"
Wei Hua's expression remained unchanged, but his brow furrowed even deeper. He probably didn't even know what the agreement that His Majesty had asked him to ask about was. His throat was a little dry as he asked, "Is the Young Duke planning to break his promise?"
Hearing this, Fan Xian frowned slightly, stood up and said, "First, there has never been any agreement. Second, shouldn't you be the one to discuss this with me?"
Although Wei Hua was the commander of the Northern Qi Brocade Guard and was deeply trusted by the Emperor of Northern Qi, his status and position in the country was far inferior to Fan Xian. Especially when it came to certain major matters, Fan Xian was even more certain that the other party was not qualified to negotiate with him.
"Dongyi City is a large piece of venison." Fan Xian turned around and looked at him, saying, "The capable will get it, and I won't let it go."
Wei Hua got up and replied calmly, "My Great Qi naturally won't let it go either."
The atmosphere in the hall gradually solidified, the intention of swords and daggers diffused, and a chill rose, making even the steaming precious dishes on the table afraid to breathe. Fan Xian just laughed, then sat down at the table, picked up a chopstick and grabbed some food, and said casually, "Si Gu Jian invited you, so Northern Qi certainly didn't just send you. I'm very curious, who is your real leader?"
Wei Hua naturally wouldn't answer this question, but the chill in his heart grew stronger and stronger. Looking at this young and handsome official from the Southern Dynasty in front of him, he felt great dread. Now everyone in the world knew that Fan Xian controlled the Overwatch Council with one hand and the Internal Treasury with the other. He was the left and right arm of the Emperor of Qing. If they wanted to weaken Qing's strength, being able to kill this person would certainly be a wonderful choice.
However, Wei Hua couldn't make this decision, nor was he qualified to make it. After the recent two incidents, the Northern Qi court had realized how powerful Fan Xian was. It was certainly good to kill such a person, but if they couldn't kill him, the consequences would be endless.
And who in this world could kill Fan Xian? The Princess of Qing Yu Nian couldn't, nor could the ambush arranged by the Qin family in the valley. Could they rely on the Northern Qi Brocade Guard, or the ninth-rank assassins from Jianlu along the way to Dongyi City?
Wei Hua gathered his thoughts, sat down again, tried to stabilize his emotions, and accompanied the now-calm Fan Xian as he ate, chatting idly.
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Southern Qing and Northern Qi were the two most powerful forces in the world, and the two major delegations to Dongyi City to observe the opening ceremony actually met so coincidentally at the beginning of their entry into Dongyi City's controlled territory. This fact made many people feel frightened and uneasy. Especially the disciples of Jianlu in Dongyi City who were receiving them, and the officials from the city lord's mansion in charge of etiquette, were extremely vigilant, fearing that these two would become jealous and impatient and start fighting.
The two delegations added up to a total of five hundred people, and they happened to be staying in adjacent villas. Every time they entered and exited, the officials from both sides stood across the long street, their animosity confronting each other, which looked quite terrifying. A thousand eyes were killing with their gazes, and no one would feel comfortable in such an environment.
Wei Hua was worried, but he remained relatively calm. The truly calm one was Fan Xian. He wasn't worried about encountering any danger on this trip at all, unless Si Gu Jian had already made a crazy decision. No one in the entire Dongyi City would dare to attack the Southern Qing delegation, risking the wrath of Emperor Qing.
The Song officials and nobles dared not offend either side, and they expressed their sincerity with the highest level of etiquette and the most extravagant expenses, especially towards Duke Danbo Fan Xian of Southern Qing, they were extremely humble.
Fortunately, the first close contact between the two delegations within Dongyi territory only lasted for a day. Wei Hua didn't get any reassuring information from Fan Xian, and his unease grew stronger and stronger. He didn't have the energy to continue probing the conditions that Southern Qing was going to offer Dongyi City and left Song in advance.
The Song officials and the reception personnel from Dongyi City all breathed a sigh of relief as they watched this scene. However, on the same afternoon that the Northern Qi delegation left, Fan Xian gave an order, and the Southern Qing delegation followed.
They followed for three days. Fan Xian was just taking spring naps in the carriage, seemingly not worried about what might happen on the Dongyi City side. However, the officials from the Ministry of Rites of Qing, knowing that the Northern Qi delegation was ahead, kept their team's speed down, and there was no further contact with the other party.
Spring sleepiness makes one unaware of the dawn, who knows the great dream first, Fan Xian slept lazily for a few days, and finally noticed some problems from the speed of the team's progress. He frowned and asked, "According to the original itinerary, we should be at Dragon Mountain now, why are we only in Huai Shang?"
Shi Chanli also felt a little strange. He asked the members of the Qinian team from the Overwatch Council in front, and only then did he understand the reason. He returned to the carriage and reported, "The Northern Qi delegation is too slow. I don't know if Lord Wei doesn't want to go to Dongyi City to face defeat, so he's deliberately going slow."
These words were said with a smile, but Fan Xian didn't smile. Shi Chanli stopped talking, wondering if there was a big problem even if the speed was slower?
Fan Xian scratched his head and frowned and asked, "If... someone leaves the capital of Northern Qi, how many days will it take for the information to reach my carriage?"
"At least eight days."
"That is to say, if someone leaves the Northern Qi capital five days ago, and I have no way of knowing?" Fan Xian shook his head and said, "If it really is that woman who came, the news must be well concealed. If she really came to Dongyi City, she's probably entered Jianlu in the last two days."
His brow furrowed as he said, "And we're still on the road."
Shi Chanli's heart trembled slightly, and he said softly, "Even if Miss Haitang goes to Dongyi City in advance, it won't affect anything."
Fan Xian smiled, not saying anything, but thinking that Wei Hua, that kid, was actually using such a underhanded means to buy time for the Northern Qi's lobbyists to meet with Si Gu Jian alone, which was really interesting.
However, what was interesting to Northern Qi was quite uninteresting to Fan Xian now. So when the delegation's mighty convoy just entered Dragon Mountain City, he summoned the officials of the delegation and the Overwatch Council subordinates, making a decision that stunned his subordinates.
However, no one dared to object to Fan Xian's decision.
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Another year of spring has arrived, willow catkins are flying everywhere, fluttering for thousands of miles, seemingly like snowflakes swaying in the warm wind. Soaring straight up, covering the city walls, obscuring the sea light, causing pedestrians to cover their faces and walk quickly, making a collective expression of grief, without half a share of enjoyment.
Two merchants wearing straw hats were standing in the midst of the flying catkins. Obviously, these were two strangers from out of town, not at all disgusted by these annoying catkins, but rather a little intoxicated by them, standing next to the carriage and admiring them endlessly.
"It's truly a supreme scenery in the world, but it's a pity that it obscures this majestic city, the number one in the world, and I can't see it clearly... Achoo!" The younger merchant wearing a straw hat sneezed loudly, instantly ruining his interest in enjoying the spring.
The older merchant wearing a straw hat next to him didn't react much, but just stared blankly at the willow catkins in the air. After a long while, he came back to his senses and said indifferently, "Such a big city, you'll naturally see it clearly as you get closer. I used to see these willow catkins often when I was a child, but they'll only last for two days before they all scatter. Young Master, you're lucky... But speaking of supreme scenery in the world, you've been sleeping while the carriage passed through the spring road these past few days, I didn't think you were a good person to enjoy the scenery."
The young merchant wearing a straw hat raised the brim of his hat, squinting at the passing pedestrians and merchants, as well as the city in the distance that he couldn't see clearly, revealing his ordinary and upright face, a hint of a smile flashing in his eyes.
This person was none other than Fan Xian of Southern Qing. For some reason, he took the risk of leaving the main force of the delegation, only bringing the person next to him, and came to the front of Dongyi City.
Although Dongyi City shouldn't attack Fan Xian at this time, who knows what kind of arrangements the people of Northern Qi had made in this place. Fan Xian shouldn't be taking such risks, but he had a complex premonition that he had to come early, otherwise Si Gu Jian might lean towards the north.
Moreover, he wasn't too worried about safety. Although there were many ninth-rank experts in Dongyi City, he was now a top powerhouse of the ninth-rank, and with the world's number one assassin by his side, it shouldn't be difficult to escape if he couldn't beat them.
Having Shadow by his side was like having half of the Sixth Bureau of the Overwatch Council.
Fan Xian looked back at Shadow and couldn't help but smile slightly. This time he was traveling to Dongyi, and he had revealed Shadow's identity, having him follow him by his side. Those enemies in the world who knew him very well would probably never guess.
Having left home young and returning old, Fan Xian knew why Shadow was showing such different emotions from usual at this moment, and why he had suddenly become so talkative.
Fifth Uncle was saying more and more before he left, and Shadow, his number one admirer, was also saying more and more. In Fan Xian's view, this was a very good thing.
"Haven't you come back all these years?" Fan Xian suddenly thought of something and asked in surprise.
Shadow pressed the brim of his straw hat down, blocking the falling catkins and covering his face, and said coldly, "I can't kill him, what's the point of coming back?"
Fan Xian smiled and didn't say anything else. The massacre of the entire family in Dongyi City back then was too strange. There was no way to explain it except by saying that Si Gu Jian was crazy and an idiot. However, Si Gu Jian was a Grandmaster, and no one dared to ask him anything. Even if Fan Xian wanted to help Shadow solve the tragic past that had affected his entire life, he couldn't find any clues.
"Your idiot brother is about to die." He patted Shadow on the shoulder and said with a sigh, "When a person dies, it's like a lamp going out. In the future, when your family is reunited on the road to the Yellow Springs, you can ask him."
Shadow's shoulders stiffened, and he said, "He must die by my hand."
Fan Xian's heart tightened, and he didn't know if he had done the right thing by bringing Shadow back to Dongyi City.
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Although Shadow hadn't returned to Dongyi City for a long time, he had grown up in this big city before he was a teenager, and he still remembered the directions of the streets clearly. His explanation about the willow catkins was also correct. When the two of them got close to Dongyi City, the flying catkins had already fallen into the soil, and there was no trace of them flying anymore.
Fan Xian jumped down from the shaft of the carriage, looking at the bustling market around him and the merchants hurrying to and fro, and said with emotion, "It really is a commercial city, but without the flying catkins, there's no feeling of a majestic city, which is really disappointing."
He was indeed very disappointed. The world had been spreading rumors that Dongyi City was the largest city in the world, but Fan Xian didn't expect that when he really saw this city, he would find that this so-called largest city didn't have a city wall at all, but was just pieced together by countless markets and buildings!
"Dongyi City was built very late." Shadow said coldly from the side, "It has never had a city wall since the beginning."
Fan Xian looked at the gray buildings that filled his vision and the layers of streets, secretly shocked. The area of Dongyi City was really terrifyingly large. After listening to Shadow's explanation, he frowned and said, "But such a large city without city walls, isn't it easier to be invaded by foreign enemies?"
"In the early days of Dongyi City, there were only greedy merchants and foolish people, who had no ability to resist foreign enemies at all. Even if they spent countless amounts to build a city wall like a natural barrier, it would be impossible to resist the armies of Northern Qi or Southern Qing? The presence or absence of a city wall doesn't have much of an impact on Dongyi City."
Shadow paused for a moment and said, "Some people say that my elder brother is the city wall of Dongyi City. If he's alive, no foreign enemy would dare to invade Dongyi City even without city walls. If he's dead, even if Dongyi City has walls thousands of feet high, it will still be a scene of national destruction and family ruin."
Fan Xian was silent for a long time, understanding the hidden meaning of Dongyi City not building high walls. He cast his gaze to a certain place outside the suburbs of Dongyi City, thinking to himself, what choice will that city wall of Dongyi City hidden in Jianlu make before it collapses? And is that person already in Jianlu, trying to repair the cracks in this city wall's heart?