The world of film and television begins from childhood

"Two copies means four taels of silver. This is a good deal."

Wang Qinian chuckled and said, "I want to make a little money. I want to make a little money. Are you going back home? Do you need me to lead the way?"

"The one who just passed by was Fan Xian from the Fan family?" Zhou Chen pointed at the slowly departing team of red-armored knights.

Wang Qinian's face straightened and he replied in a low voice, "My Lord, that was indeed Young Master Fan Xian from Danzhou."

Zhou Chen asked: "How are they?"

"Ah, what's he like? I just chatted with him for a few minutes, and I can't tell anything, but I feel that he is different from those young masters in Kyoto."

Faced with Zhou Chen's questions, Wang Qinian naturally answered all his questions and expressed his thoughts.

Zhou Chen nodded: "Okay, go and do your thing, Lao He, go back home."

"Goodbye, sir." Wang Qinian said respectfully.

He waited until the carriage had gone far away before he stood up and smiled happily.

"Although our Duke of Zhenguo is a great master, he is not overbearing at all. This is so rare. And Miss Sang Wen is also very lucky to have met the Duke of Zhenguo. She will have a good life in the future."

Inside the carriage, Sang Wen asked Zhou Chen with some curiosity, "Sir, are you interested in the illegitimate son of the Fan family?"

Zhou Chen smiled and said, "I met Fan Xian once in Danzhou when I left Kyoto for training. Don't underestimate him. His identity is more than just Si Nanbo's illegitimate son. He will soon stir up trouble in Kyoto when he enters the capital today. Kyoto will never be peaceful again. Just wait and see."

Sang Wen was very surprised. He didn't expect Zhou Chen to evaluate Fan Xian in this way.

To be able to receive such an evaluation from his own son and to be married to a princess by Emperor Qing, perhaps this Fan Xian really has some extraordinary qualities?

Zhou Chen knows Fan Xian's background better than anyone else. Fan Xian's arrival in Beijing is the beginning of the plot. Emperor Qing has also put a lot of thought into Fan Xian. As soon as he arrived in Beijing, he created an opportunity for him and Lin Wan'er to meet, and even cleared away the palace maids who wanted to block Fan Xian's way.

Thinking about the plot of Joy of Life along the way, the carriage soon returned to Zhou Mansion.

After returning home, Zhou Chen called Tong Quan.

"A few days ago you said the Second Prince was planning to invite me to a banquet, is that right?"

"Master, yes, it was three days ago. This is the ninth invitation sent by the Second Prince."

Zhou Chen chuckled and said, "This Second Prince is really interesting. Others would send invitations once or twice, and if they didn't get a reply, they would stop sending. But he sent invitations nine times. Whether it was just a show or a sincere invitation, he really didn't follow the usual path."

The second prince is an absolute villain in the plot. He is vicious, cruel, and kills people without mercy...

He has done so many wrong and evil things that it is hard to count them all, but if we really compare him with Crown Prince Li Chengqian, the Second Prince is actually far less evil than the Crown Prince.

The Queen of Qing's evaluation of the Crown Prince was absolutely on point. Crown Prince Li Chengqian is most like Emperor Qing Li Yunqian, whether in character, methods, way of doing things, etc., they are exactly the same.

Zhou Chen didn't like either of them. To be more precise, he didn't like the royal family of Qing. The royal family of Qing was really worse than the other.

"Tong Quan, go tell the Second Prince that I'm free tomorrow and we can get together at Yishiju."

"Yes, I will make arrangements now."

In the Second Prince's residence, when Li Chengze learned of Zhou Chen's reply, he still couldn't believe it and asked Xie Bian who was standing beside him.

"Bi'an, am I dreaming? Did that person really reply and accept my invitation?"

"Yes, Your Highness, the message from the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion just now is absolutely true."

The second prince scratched his head and felt more and more puzzled.

"It feels a bit strange. I have sent nine invitations in total, the last one was three days ago. If you really wanted to agree, why did you wait until today?"

"Bi'an, has anything happened in the Zhenguo Mansion in the past few days? Or has something big happened in Kyoto recently that I'm not aware of?"

Chapter 1440 The Second Prince’s doubts, was it a coincidence or intentional?

"Strange, really strange."

The second prince was barefoot, standing on the wooden planks on the ground, holding his chin, his eyes full of confusion.

He asked Xie Bian, but Xie Bian could not give him an answer.

"Could it be that he was moved by your highness's sincerity?"

The second prince immediately looked at him with a strange look: "Do you think that sending a few more invitations to someone like him would be considered sincere? There must be some special reason. Has nothing really happened in Kyoto these two days?"

Xie Bian scratched his head and thought for a while, and suddenly his eyes lit up.

"If there is something, there is indeed something. It seems that Si Nanbo's illegitimate son entered Kyoto today."

"Fan Xian?"

The second prince's eyes also lit up and he became interested. He was not interested in Fan Xian as a person, but in the marriage between Fan Xian and Lin Wan'er, as well as the financial power of the inner treasury.

"Is it because of Fan Xian?"

"No way. Fan Xian is just an illegitimate child. Not to mention that he failed to marry the princess, even if he did marry the princess, it's hard to say whether he could take over the financial power of the inner treasury. What qualifications does he have to attract the attention of the Duke of Zhenguo?"

What Xie Bian said made sense. The difference in status between an illegitimate child and a grandmaster, the Duke of Zhenguo, was too great.

The Second Prince himself also found it unlikely, but he really couldn't understand why Zhou Chen would "change his mind" and even set a meeting place.

"No matter what, it's a good thing for me to meet him. Yishiju, right? Let's get someone to book the best private room right away and ask the restaurant to prepare the best food and wine tomorrow."

"So we need to clear the place tomorrow?"

Xie Bian asked tentatively. The Second Prince was about to agree, but quickly shook his head, remembering Zhou Chen's style.

"No need to clear the place. This Duke of Zhenguo is different from others. He doesn't care too much about appearances."

"Okay, I'll have someone do it now."

"It's better for you to do it yourself. I can trust you to do it."

"it is good."

Ever since he witnessed the terrifying power of the Grandmaster, the Second Prince had a special feeling towards Zhou Chen: worship, awe, and desire...

Although he knew about the deterrent power of the Grand Master in the past, his concept was very vague. But after that night, he understood why there were only five Grand Masters in the world, why people in the world were so afraid of the Grand Masters, and why Si Gu Jian could defend Dongyi City with just one man and one sword and survive in the cracks between Qing Kingdom and Northern Qi.

Perhaps his father knew how terrifying the Grand Master was, which was why he indulged Zhou Chen. Even though Zhou Chen's behavior had already disregarded the law and the imperial power, his father had no choice but to endure it.

Li Chengze is still just a prince after all. Everything he does now is to become the crown prince and thus strive for the supreme position.

So his perspective on the problem is different from that of Emperor Qing.

From his point of view, Zhou Chen's arrogance did not make him feel angry. Instead, he was extremely eager to win over Zhou Chen. With Zhou Chen's support, he felt that he was better than countless people. At this time, he would not even think about the threat posed by the Grand Master to the imperial power.

In short, one is the present and the other is the future. He can't even handle the present, so how can he think about the future?

Zhou Chen received the second prince's affirmative response and smiled slightly.

In fact, even without him, the Second Prince would have targeted Fan Xian. After all, the Second Prince and the eldest princess Li Yunrui used the financial power of the inner treasury to smuggle with Northern Qi. Most of his silver came from smuggling through the inner treasury. If Fan Xian inherited the financial power of the inner treasury, it would be equivalent to cutting off his largest source of income. Of course, he would not sit idly by and wait for death.

Thinking of Fan Xian being tricked into going to the temple, Zhou Chen suddenly remembered that he had traveled to this world for so long, but he seemed to have only been to the Qing Temple in Dadong Mountain once, and had never been to the temple in Kyoto.

However, he knew what a temple was, and he himself was not a believer in gods or Buddhas, so he respected the existence of temples but did not believe in them blindly.

When I returned to the study, I saw Sang Wen holding a book and reading it seriously.

Although Zhou Chen is now the Duke of Zhenguo, he only has one woman, Sang Wen, in his mansion. In addition, Sang Wen is in charge of the mansion's accounts, so even if Sang Wen has no official status now, she can be considered half-mistress of the Duke's mansion.

The reason is that Zhou Chen dotes on her very much. Although she also has her own yard, she now lives in Zhou Chen's yard and lives in the same house with Zhou Chen.

Servants are the best at guessing their master's intentions. Zhou Chen dotes on Sang Wen, so the servants naturally treat Sang Wen as their master and dare not look down on her because of her previous identity.

"What book are you reading so seriously?"

Sang Wen turned the book over to Zhou Chen. It was a book with a red cover.

"A Dream of Red Mansions, I don't know where it came from, but now this book is the most popular book in the market. Young ladies from all houses like to read it. I also heard about it, so I sent someone to buy a copy. It is indeed very good."

Sang Wen was not only a musician, but also a talented woman. She was not proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, but she was definitely not worse than those ladies from wealthy families.

"Red Mansion?"

Zhou Chen took a look and laughed. A Dream of Red Mansions is one of the four great classics. It was thanks to Fan Xian that he could remember it and wrote this book just to satisfy Fan Ruoruo's curiosity.

"I'm going out tomorrow and won't be back before noon."

"Where are you going, young master? I'll prepare clothes for you."

"I am going to the Second Prince's banquet. You can choose your clothes."

Zhou Chen himself doesn't care much about his clothes, as long as they are clean. But when there are women around, he will let his women choose.

Sang Wen didn't ask anything, just nodded, already thinking about what clothes to dress Zhou Chen tomorrow.

In the study, Zhou Chen sat cross-legged to practice, while Sang Wen continued to read. Occasionally, he looked up at Zhou Chen with a look of satisfaction on his face. He hoped that the years to come could be like this.

However, she also understood that this was just an unrealistic idea. No matter how well Zhou Chen treated her, being able to give her the status of a concubine already made her extremely satisfied. She had never expected anything more.

She also learned a lot from Zhou Chen. She knew that there was a great princess of Northern Qi who had a very good relationship with Zhou Chen and would most likely be the mistress of the mansion in the future.

Zhou Chen told her that the Grand Princess of Northern Qi was a very good person, so she had always thought that no matter what the Grand Princess's personality was, as long as she could stay, she could endure it even if she was wronged.

The capital city is not peaceful today. Fan Xian's arrival in the capital has caused the eldest princess Li Yunrui, the crown prince, the second prince, as well as some other forces to turn their attention to Fan Xian.

Li Yunrui even took direct action, but was resolved by Emperor Qing. Emperor Qing also took advantage of this opportunity to order the commander of the imperial guards, Gong Dian, to cut off Gong Dian's contact with the prince.

Li Yunrui was unwilling to give in, so he took the initiative to find the Queen Mother and asked her to break off the engagement between his daughter Lin Wan'er and Fan Xian.

However, not only was her request not met, but she was slapped hard by Hong Sixiang. After going to Emperor Qing, she and the prince were severely scolded by Emperor Qing, which made her lose face.

It's just that she was born to be a stubborn and crazy person. The more the Queen Mother and Emperor Qing were like this, the more she wanted to destroy her daughter's marriage with Fan Xian, and even wanted to kill Fan Xian.

The night passed quickly, and a new day came with the crowing of roosters.

Zhou Chen and the second prince had agreed to meet at noon. Before leaving, Sang Wen specially tidied up Zhou Chen's clothes and appearance before going to the appointment.

He Qin was still in charge of driving. After Zhou Chen got on the carriage, he flicked the reins and the carriage slowly drove towards Yishiju.

On the other side, the second prince arrived at Yishiju early and sat in the private room that had been booked long ago, waiting for Zhou Chen to arrive.

"Your Highness, are we here too early?"

Xie Bian, who had been standing for quite a while, couldn't help but ask the second prince.

The second prince took a sip of wine and said, "Not too early. If you come earlier, it will show more sincerity. Zhou Chen is not only the Duke of Zhenguo, but also a Grandmaster. No matter how high the etiquette is, it is not too much."

"But this Duke of Zhenguo has never been involved in affairs since he was conferred the title of Duke. His Majesty has conferred him an official title, but he has not responded. What does he mean by this?"

"You should know more about him than I do. After all, you are all martial artists. Maybe he is really the kind of person who is indifferent to fame and fortune. Look at the five great masters in the world. Except for the grand master in the palace whose specific identity is unknown, which of the other grand masters has served as an official in the court?"

The second prince pinched a grape and put it in his mouth, muttering, "In my opinion, the Grand Master is no longer a normal person. The fame and power that ordinary people pursue are probably no longer valued by them."

Xie Bian thought about it and it seemed to be true: Ku He of Northern Qi, Si Gu Jian of Dongyi City, Ye Liuyun and Zhou Chen of Qing Kingdom.

Ku He is a member of the Northern Qi royal family, but he doesn't care about the affairs of Northern Qi at all. Although Si Gu Jian is the city lord of Dongyi City, he is a sword fanatic and rarely takes care of things. Not to mention Ye Liuyun, who is just a free and easy person. Now Zhou Chen, although he has the title of Duke of Zhenguo, is unwilling to serve as an official in the court.

"Since Your Highness thinks he will not be burdened by fame, wealth and power, why do you still want to win him over?"

The second prince chuckled and said, "Zhou Chen is a great master and is not burdened by fame and fortune, but others are different. He is not the only one in the Zhenguo Mansion. He will definitely marry and have children in the future. Even for the sake of future generations, he will definitely make a choice, right?"

Xie Bian said: "That's the truth, but can it be done?"

"Who knows? I'm just trying my best. But he didn't agree to the prince's request. Instead, he came to me first. This means that my chances should be greater than the prince's. It depends on whether I can convince him."

He did not expect to win over Zhou Chen. He was a grandmaster and the Duke of Zhenguo. How could he be conquered by a prince who was not even a crown prince? He wanted to win him over. At least, it would be enough if Zhou Chen would side with him between the crown prince and him.

At this time, Fan Wujiu pushed the door and walked in.

"Your Highness, the Duke of Zhenguo has already set out and should arrive soon."

The Second Prince was immediately alert: "Okay, have someone clean up this place right away, and prepare the food and wine."

…………

Inside the carriage, Zhou Chen was resting with his eyes closed when suddenly the carriage stopped.

"Master, we have arrived at Yishiju."

Zhou Chen opened his eyes and got off the carriage. As soon as he got off the carriage, he saw the second prince and Xie Bian coming to meet him.

"Meet the Duke of Zhenguo."

Zhou Chen nodded and replied, "Your Highness."

Looking at the pedestrians around him and the guests in Yishiju, he was a little surprised.

"I thought His Highness would clear the streets."

The second prince smiled and said, "I did have this idea, but I thought the Duke would not like to be so ostentatious and would prefer to have fun with the people, so I did nothing."

"Your Highness is quite frank."