Madam, look at the sword!

Chapter 4 Flattery
At the junction of Luzhou and Beizhou, there is a post station named Xiangma.

At noon, the sunshine in the early spring of March seemed a bit sinister for some reason.

The warriors, caravans, and businessmen who were busy making a living in the Xiangma Station were naturally not afraid of the scorching heat, but the sweat flowed down unknowingly into their collars, and the clothes on their chests and backs were soaked.

There was no time to look up and curse God, but it seemed that God heard their voices and showed mercy, and a huge shadow began to gradually envelope the inn.

Feeling the coolness, people in the inn raised their heads one after another, with faces of astonishment and shock.

A large ship sailed in the sky, but they didn't know when it hung above their heads, blocking the sky and the sun.

A bright red flag hung high on the mast, as if it had drunk human blood, was ringing in the wind.

Due to its huge hull, it did not fall from the sky, but chose an open space outside the station to slowly fall. However, the air flow spurted by its spiritual crystal immediately swept inside and outside, bringing waves of refreshing wind. It dried the sweat on people's foreheads and woke them up.

"This, this? Is this a cloud ship?"

"There are only three cloud ships in Zhoutian, one is in the imperial palace, one is in Lixian Mountain, and the other one is."

"Dangbei Palace."

"Could it be the third prince who is going to Kyoto to get married?"

"Stay away, stay away, this boy is violent and murderous by nature!"

"Not only that, he is also addicted to sex and loves every girl. Hurry up and hide all your female relatives!"

……

In the cloud ship, on the deck, there is a peaceful scene.

There was an older middle-aged man who was sharpening a knife with his sleeves rolled up. He would occasionally light up the blade and stare at the deep ravine-like folds on his face for a moment, and then continue the sharpening action over and over again.

Next to him was a plump old woman with silver hair. She was embroidering flowers with a naive smile on her face. The silver needle was piercing flowers and butterflies in her fat hands. From time to time, a bright peony appeared vividly in front of her eyes. She He smiled with satisfaction and continued to embroider without saying a word.

An old yellow dog was lying between the two of them, with its belly turned up and its chin that had turned white fur raised, revealing its particularly proud body, and basking in the sun with squinted eyes.

Not far from them, there was a soft sapphire that reflected the sunlight and shone brightly.

Next to the couch sat a beautiful woman, holding a gold plate in her hand, with a bunch of crystal clear grapes placed on it.

Naturally, the third son of Prince Dangbei, Zhao Chengfeng, was on the couch. His black and gold clothes were open, exposing his chest. He was half-lying here, with his eyelids slightly squinting up and down, as if he was about to take a nap in the next second.

At this time, he did not know that the people in the inn gave him a very high evaluation - he was violent by nature, homicidal, addicted to sex, and loved every girl.

Otherwise, because he likes and dislikes others, he would wave his sleeves and shout boldly: "Reward."

Now Zhao Chengfeng just opened his thin lips mechanically, and a refreshing crystal grape hidden in the cold storage went into his mouth.

After chewing for a while, the handkerchief showing off the moire pattern was handed over to him. He spit out the skin and seeds, and couldn't help but said: "The sweetness is more than enough, but the acidity is a bit lacking. Mei Niang, where are these grapes?" ?”

The person who was called Mei Niang was the beautiful woman sitting next to him doing slave work.

Her skin is like snow, and her eyebrows are picturesque. Under the slightly upward corners of her eyes, a tear mole subtly softens her originally sharp and delicate facial features.

Although she is past the prime of youth, she is still full of charm, especially her plump figure that has matured over time, paired with a simple but decent cut of silk and satin, and her sitting posture makes her plump and attractive.

"Western Region."

After Liu Meiniang answered, she picked up another grape with her delicate hands, leaned forward slightly, and handed it to Zhao Chengfeng's mouth.

Zhao Chengfeng swallowed and looked down, seeing that the tight fabric on her chest was struggling to maintain the two towering mountains. The gap between them was white and attractive, deep and charming.

Whoever he was, he didn't take it seriously. He looked away and chewed slightly again, but said vaguely: "This one is a bit bigger."

Liu Meiniang heard it clearly and smiled: "Third Young Master likes to eat grapes?"

Zhao Chengfeng shook his head and spat out the purple skin and seeds on the handkerchief that was handed over in time: "It's not about the size, it's about the color of the skin."

"What color does Third Young Master like?"

"pink."

Liu Meiniang shook her head and expressed her opinion: "It's too green, pure purple and too ripe. Next time I will ask my servants to get some Buddhist pearl grapes. They are purple in pink, pink in purple, and taste great. Moderate sweetness and sourness.”

When Zhao Chengfeng heard this, his eyes lit up.

A series of rapid footsteps sounded not far away.

The two of them followed the sound and saw a boy wearing a silver robe and a Confucian scarf walking towards them quickly.

The boy seemed to be seven or eight years old. He had a small face carved in pink and jade, which looked like a piece of fragile porcelain under the sunlight.

His brows were full of righteousness and childishness. He was small, but his back was straight. A sense of pride that came from nowhere overflowed. He was holding another volume in his hand, and he was two feet taller with every step he took. Half the precise distance, exactly.

From a distance, he spoke loudly, but in a childish voice: "Mei Niang, don't dirty your young master's ears with dirty words!"

Liu Meiniang immediately gave him a roll of her eyes: "Little Aotian, you are a little book boy, but you always want to control the young master. Do you know that if you exceed your authority, you will also exceed your responsibility?"

Aotian's surname is Long. After hearing the words, he raised his head with no fear on his face: "As the old saying goes, if a person wants to see himself, he must have a clear mirror; if the master wants to know his faults, he must rely on loyal ministers!"

Liu Meiniang was an expert in the sex industry, but at this moment she was suffering from some lack of education and looked to the Third Young Master for help.Zhao Chengfeng spread his hands: "You resolve your conflicts yourself..."

But despite saying that, as a young master, he still picked up the grapes on the plate and handed them to his study boy, thus interrupting the matter.

The scholar Aotian took the grapes, peeled them with great care, and peeled off the seeds before slowly eating them. After tasting them, he made his evaluation: "There is more than enough sweetness, but not enough acidity. Master, where are these grapes from?"

Zhao Chengfeng: "Western Regions."

"Oh?"

"Mei Niang said that the pearls and grapes from Buddhism are good. When I get them, you and I will try them together."

The book boy Aotian said noncommittally: "What Mei Niang said is not serious, the young master just listens to it."

"Then say something serious."

As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere on the deck became positive.

After Zhao Chengfeng finished speaking, he sat up straight and leaned on the back chair with a serious look on his face.

Liu Meiniang, who was sitting next to the jade couch, no longer hesitated, but acted like she was listening.

The swarthy man sharpening his knife and the plump old woman doing embroidery, who had never interrupted no matter what they said before, also came over and sat down casually.

Only the big yellow dog was still turning over and basking in the sun. The only movement it made was to tilt its head here, which seemed to express its attitude.

The book boy Aotian took out a few letters he had just received, straightened his clothes slightly, and said seriously:

"The imperial examination is approaching. There are many frictions in the four major academies. Some new people have been added to the elite list. They are..."

"The eldest prince has taken a concubine in a low-key manner. She comes from the Wang family in Jiangdong."

"The specifications of the sacrifices prepared for ancestor worship in the palace this year are much richer and grander than in previous years."

……

"The four major academies have produced a bunch of losers in recent years. Zhou Tian's Qingyun list is only in the top ten, and the rest can be ignored. They are worthless."

"The Jiangdong Wang family still has some background. The eldest prince is keeping a low profile this time because he is afraid of bringing bad luck to His Majesty, and he does not want to give up this force as a support in the future."

"The sacrifices are grand and grand, and not all of them may be used to worship ancestors. If your Majesty wants to take advantage of the time of worshiping ancestors to go to Lixian Mountain, you can't go empty-handed."

……

After each piece of information, Liu Meiniang and the plump old woman will take the lead in analyzing it.

They are the intelligence chiefs of the previous generation and the current generation of Dangbei Palace, and they all have the ability to capture clues and reduce complex matters into simplicity.

The other three people would raise objections, discuss or add supplements. The old yellow dog never barked. In the end, if there was any decision to be made, it would naturally be made by Zhao Chengfeng.

This is the daily routine since Yunjian left Beiting City.

The combination of five people and one dog is the core team of Zhao Chengfeng, the third prince of Dangbei Palace, who came to Kyoto for his engagement this time.

……

More than twenty pieces of rich information were quickly dismantled, ranging from the fact that His Majesty might actually go to see the Grand Ancestor of the Lixian Sect to discuss the matter of establishing a heir apparent, to the small matter that there might be something fishy about the missing kitten in the imperial censor's house.

All in all, after half an hour, today's parliament finally came to an end.

The last message was read out by the book boy Aotian:

"The daughter of the Seventh Prince, Princess Wei Huanchu, recently failed to attack the Lingshu Vein Gate, and now she is suffering from the disease of madness."

Liu Meiniang frowned when she heard this, and immediately mobilized the information database in her mind: "If I remember correctly, when we set off from Beiting, there was news that the third prince of Dahuang proposed a marriage with His Majesty, and the little princess was Come out, are you trying to avoid marriage?"

Twisting a silver needle, always with a naive smile on her face, the fat old woman, who was called Aunt Zhong by everyone, said leisurely: "The little princess has an excellent reputation. She has a very high reputation among the people. She is also very smart. When Your Majesty promised, I was afraid that in my heart There is also a plan to let her maintain stability in the wilderness, but if she makes a fuss, I'm afraid she will lose her favor."

Everyone agreed and looked at the Third Prince.

Zhao Chengfeng was thoughtful, but after holding it in for a long time, he waved his hand: "Do you have anything else to do today?"

Putting all the letters into his sleeves, the book boy Aotian raised his little face like porcelain and said: "Li Mingyang, the postmaster of the Thieving Horse Station, has been waiting under the ship for a long time. Do you want to see me, young master?"

Hearing the words Li Mingyang, Zhao Chengfeng's mind pictured a face he hadn't seen for a long time, and he nodded.

Upon hearing this, the book boy Aotian stepped forward with his short legs and puffed out chest to make arrangements.

Not long after, a series of 'thumping, thumping, thumping' sounds came from the connection between the deck of the cloud ship and the ground.

Immediately, a face full of expectation came into view. When he saw the Third Prince from a distance, this expectation turned into joy, then shock, and finally turned into confusion.

Then, with this puzzled look on his face, he knelt down and came to the Crown Prince without even scratching the deck of the cloud ship. He said in a sharp voice with a hint of crying: "See His Highness the Crown Prince."

After the word '下', he watched the Third Prince's emotions continue to change, and mist suddenly appeared in his triangular eye sockets, with a sad look on his face, and he was about to cry.
Zhao Chengfeng raised his eyebrows: "Mingyang, what are you doing?"

Li Mingyang said with tears in his eyes: "His Royal Highness, you... you have lost weight."

(End of this chapter)