The world of film and television begins from childhood

Sadly.

But it is precisely because of his ability that he is valued by all parties. Even the Si Gong of the Imperial City Bureau, who is obviously very afraid of him, has to make use of him.

In the afternoon, Zhou Chen rested for a while, and then began to practice. Although his progress in Pure Yang Jue was slow, he still persisted in practicing it every day.

Without extraordinary talent in martial arts, he could only make up for it through hard work, little by little, day by day. He did not seek to reach the realm of the Nirvana in Fire world, as long as he kept making progress.

"Dong dong dong..."

Suddenly, a hurried knock on the door woke Zhou Chen up. He frowned slightly, but before he could say anything, Zhou Huai's voice rang out.

"My Lord, the emperor's eunuch came to the mansion and said that there was an imperial decree."

"Squeak!"

Zhou Chen opened the door: "Where is the person?"

"We have already arrived at the central hall."

Zhou Chen said nothing more and immediately went to the central hall.

"The emperor has ordered that the loyal and brave Marquis Zhou Chen be summoned to the palace for an audience."

When the eunuch saw Zhou Chen arriving, he immediately conveyed the emperor's order. Zhou Chen then asked Yan Bo to deliver the things quietly, and then went to the palace with the eunuch.

On the way, Zhou Chen asked the eunuch for details. The eunuch was very respectful, but he didn't know why the emperor summoned Zhou Chen into the palace, so naturally he couldn't answer Zhou Chen.

The imperial palace of the Song Dynasty was quite special, spanning the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. It certainly cannot be compared with the Forbidden City and the like, but it is still tall, majestic and magnificent.

After traveling to this world, this is Zhou Chen's second time entering the palace. The last time was when he returned to Beijing to report. After that, he was in a period of mourning and did not have to go to court, so this time is the second time.

The main hall of the imperial palace is called Daqing Hall, where grand ceremonies are held. To the north of Daqing Hall is Zichen Hall, which is the front hall where the emperor holds court. The court meetings on the first and fifteenth days of each month, the congratulations upon the completion of suburban temple ceremonies, and the reception of Khitan envoys are all held in Zichen Hall.

Led by the eunuch, Zhou Chen came to the Wende Hall in the northwest direction. Usually, the emperor would rest in this hall after finishing his morning court session.

Standing outside the hall, Zhou Chen waited patiently for the eunuch to report after a while.

"Xuan, the loyal and brave Marquis! I am here to see you."

After hearing this, Zhou Chen immediately straightened his purple robe and, led by the eunuch, slowly walked into the Wende Hall.

Walking to the center of the hall, Zhou Chen bowed and greeted him.

"Your humble servant Zhou Chen pays homage to the emperor. Long live the emperor."

"Please stand up, Mr. Zhou."

Zhou Chen stood up and looked up, facing the official Zhao Heng. Zhao Heng's face was not old. He was dressed in luxurious clothes and sat upright, looking a little ethereal.

Zhou Chen knew very well that the life of Emperor Zhao Heng was already in countdown. It was also because of this that, at this point in time, he particularly admired Taoism and devoted himself to seeking the truth, causing chaos in the court and the country, with various forces scheming against each other and attacking each other.

But it is also undeniable that the emperors of the Northern Song Dynasty were very tolerant towards their subjects, especially scholars. Unless they committed extremely serious crimes, the most they would suffer would be exile, and their lives would not be in danger.

Zhao Heng's generation was nothing, but the next generation, Emperor Renzong, was even more powerful. He was so lenient that he couldn't even protect his own prince. This can no longer be called lenient, but cowardice.

There have been few emperors in history who have been bullied by civil servants.

Zhao Heng, who was standing in front of the case, asked, "Mr. Zhou, I called you here this time because I want to hear your advice on something. The Dingnan Army in Xiazhou has recently risen again. You have defeated the Dingnan Army before. In your opinion, who should be sent to guard the border of Xiazhou?"

Zhou Chen looked surprised. You know, he had defeated the Dingnan Army led by Li Deming a few years ago and almost captured Xiazhou. If it weren't for the lack of food supplies, he could have killed Li Deming.

It's only been a few years, and the Dingnan Army has revived? Is their vitality so tenacious?

"Your Majesty, I feel that the Dingnan Army has been colluding with the Liao court for many years. The best option is to use military force to destroy them in one fell swoop. Otherwise, they will be like weeds, endless. If your Majesty wants to use military force against Xiazhou, I am willing to serve as the vanguard general."

"I understand what Lord Zhou is thinking, but if you mobilize the army against the Dingnan Army, the Liao court will not sit idly by. It has only been more than ten years since the Treaty of Chanyuan was signed, so it is not appropriate to mobilize the army again."

Zhou Chen was not surprised by what Zhao Heng said. If Zhao Heng had ambitions, he would not have waited until now, not to mention that he is now in his old age, so it is more likely that he would mobilize troops.

"Your Majesty, the Li clan of Dingnan Army is as cunning as a fox. We must be on guard against the border. I think we should send a mature, steady and experienced general to guard the border."

"What do you think of Meng Cong? I remember that he seems to be your uncle?" Zhao Heng suddenly asked.

"Returning to the emperor, Lord Meng is my eighth uncle, so I cannot say much."

Zhao Heng laughed and said, "You are young, but you are mature. It is not necessary to avoid relatives when selecting talents. Forget it, let's choose Meng Cong."

He had obviously thought about it a long time ago, and asking Zhou Chen over was just a routine question.

"Mr. Zhou, I remember your mourning period is almost over, right?"

"Go back to your Highness. My mourning period will end in two months."

The three-year mourning period is actually only twenty-seven months.

Zhao Heng nodded and said, "Well, you are a young general of our Song Dynasty. You can't just stay idle at home like this. You have to serve the court quickly."

"I thank you, Your Majesty."

Zhao Heng chatted with Zhou Chen for a while before letting him leave the palace.

After leaving the palace, Zhou Chen thought to himself that although Zhao Heng asked him to come over today and said a lot, it was basically meaningless, as if he was just looking for him to chat. This should be because his mourning period is about to end, so he comforted him in advance, won him over, and also reminded him that he will be reused after the mourning period is over.

This was good timing for him, as it was very rare for an official to be reinstated after a period of mourning, and even rarer still to be given an important position.

This is also the biggest reason why many officials, for the sake of their own careers, deceive their superiors and conceal the death of their parents and relatives.

However, the Song Dynasty ruled the country with filial piety, and after the perfect system of mourning, not many people dared to touch it.

From the conversation with Zhao Heng, Zhou Chen could also feel that this emperor's temperament was definitely much stronger in terms of generosity and tolerance compared to Emperor Liang in the world of Langya Bang.

…………

"What are Madam Zhao and the others doing recently?"

After Zhou Chen instructs a group of personal guards, he asked Qin Yi that he had always asked Qin Yi to arrange people to protect Zhao Paner, but Zhao Paner and the others did not know about it.

Qin Yi replied, "Mrs. Zhao and her friends have been quarreling with Ouyang Xu recently. I don't know why. They even blocked the entrance of Ouyang Xu's ancestral home, causing quite a stir in the surrounding area."

"Really?"

Zhou Chen looked surprised. He knew that this scene had happened in the plot, but at that time Zhao Pan'er wanted Ouyang Xu to return the Night Banquet Picture.

But because of his appearance, although Zhao Pan'er already knew about the Night Banquet Picture, she did not have any interaction with Gu Qianfan. Logically, she should not have made such a big fuss about it.

"Is it really for the cancellation of the engagement?"

Zhou Chen had some guesses in his mind, but it did not delay his actions.

"Let Zhou Huai prepare the carriage and go out for a trip."

"Yes, Lord Marquis."

Zhou Chen took a carriage to the inn where Zhao Pan'er and the others lived. As soon as he entered the inn, he found that it was very lively and bustling, with many people trying to squeeze in.

At Zhou Chen's signal, Zhou Huai stopped one person and asked curiously the reason.

"It's Chi Yanei, the famous Thirteenth Young Master of Tokyo City. He's competing with someone. I heard that the other party is a few young ladies from other places."

"I heard there will be three matches. We have already played two, one win and one loss. Now we are going to play the last match."

When Zhou Chen heard this, he immediately became interested. So this is what it was.

"Let's go over and have a look."

Zhou Chen followed the crowd and came to the corridor inside the inn. There was a pavilion in the center of the lake, and many people gathered there.

They were the two parties in the duel, Chi Yanei and Zhao Pan'er and his daughters.

As expected, Zhao Pan'er and Chi Yanei Chi Pan were competing in the game of rolling dice.

Zhao Pan'er is truly a man of both civil and military talents. She is even very good at playing casino dice. In the end, she used her tricks to roll thirty-seven points, beating Chi Pan's thirty-six points.

Chi Pan was so angry that he kept screaming, but in front of everyone, he had to admit defeat. Finally, he reluctantly led his people away from the inn.

Zhou Huai was stunned, his eyes shining: "Madam Zhao is too amazing, if I were as good as Madam Zhao, I would definitely be able to win all the money of Blind Wang and the others. I want to become Madam Zhao's disciple."

"Get lost, you are such a loser."

Zhou Chen held Zhou Huai's head, pushed him aside, and walked towards the pavilion.

Because the competition was over and Chi Pan had left, Zhao Pan'er and the other girls received a lot of applause, but when the audience saw that there was nothing exciting to watch, they all left.

Zhao Pan'er and her two daughters sat down in the pavilion, and their maid Yinping served them and poured wine for them.

Song Yinzhang took a sip of the wine and said in surprise: "This is the first time I drink wine from Tokyo. The wine from Central Plains is really different from the wine from Jiangnan."

Sun Sanniang said happily: "We defeated Chi Yanei today, it's really satisfying."

Zhao Paner smiled and was about to talk about something.

"It's really refreshing. You've become famous right after arriving in Tokyo. I was right, Madam Zhao. You two are really suitable for Tokyo."

"Lord Zhou!"

Song Yinzhang was the first to stand up and shouted excitedly, Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang also stood up.

Zhou Chen raised his finger and said, "When we are out, you don't need to call me that. Just call me Mr. Zhou as before."

The three girls looked at each other, and finally Zhao Pan'er was the first to call out, "Mr. Zhou, how come you have time to come here today?"

Zhou Chen sat down opposite Zhao Pan'er and said, "I heard that you guys were making trouble outside Ouyang Xu's house recently. I was worried that you might get into trouble, so I came to take a look. I didn't expect to see such a wonderful scene as soon as I arrived. Madam Zhao of Qiantang is indeed someone that even the casino tyrants have to be afraid of."

Even Zhao Paner felt extremely embarrassed to show this ability in front of Zhou Chen.

"Mr. Zhou, please stop making fun of me."

"This is not a joke, but a compliment. There is no difference in skills. No matter what the skill is, it may be useful someday. Just like today, if you didn't have a superb gambling skill, how could you have defeated Chi Yanei?"

When Zhou Chen was young, he watched many TV series such as God of Gamblers and Casino Royale and was even obsessed with them for a time. However, his talent was limited and he made no achievements in gambling.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 976: The Peerless Zhang Haohao

"If I have time in the future, I would like to ask you for advice."

Zhou Chen's words made Zhao Pan'er even more embarrassed: "Mr. Zhou, please stop making fun of me. This is just a despicable trick. Don't dirty your hands."

"Isn't it too stressful to have many arts?"

Zhou Chen chuckled and changed the subject, asking, "You have been in Tokyo for a few days. How do you feel? Do you want to stay?"

Zhao Pan'er didn't answer immediately, but Song Yinzhang couldn't help but say, "Dongjing City is really big, much bigger than Qiantang. I think Dongjing is better than Qiantang."

What she said was all true, but the most important thing to her was that here, no one knew that she was a government prostitute, and she didn't have to endure other people's strange looks all the time.

The maid Yinping agreed with her master's words. She had been walking around a lot in the past few days, and everything she saw and heard was an eye-opener for her. Especially at night, it was extremely lively and far beyond Qiantang.

Sun Sanniang said: "I have looked around these days and found that there are many inns and restaurants with many customers. If I do business here, I will definitely make money."

Her focus is different from Song Yinzhang's. Making money and surviving are more important to her than anything else.

Zhou Chen looked at Zhao Pan'er, and Zhao Pan'er said, "I haven't thought about it that much. I just want to deal with Ouyang Xu's affairs. Let's talk about other things later."

Zhou Chen said: "For someone like Ouyang Xu, you should cut the Gordian knot and break up with him. If you drag it on like this, it will only make things worse. Why make it difficult for yourself?"

"It is precisely because I want to break up with him that I ask him to take back what belongs to me. I no longer have any thoughts about him at all."

Zhao Pan'er's face was firm, and she continued, "But I didn't expect that I hadn't seen his true face in the past three years. He was more shameless than I thought. He agreed with his mouth, but shamelessly regretted it behind his back."

Zhou Chen suddenly said, "Do you want me to help you? Although I am not familiar with Gao Guancha, he will definitely give me face. I can explain Ouyang Xu's situation to him. Although Gao Guancha is a bit of a bully and looks strong but is actually weak, he still cares about his reputation. If he knew what Ouyang Xu did, he would definitely not marry his daughter to Ouyang Xu."

Sun Sanniang exclaimed in surprise: "This is possible, Pan'er, isn't Ouyang Xu just trying to get rich? We've ruined his plans and made him so angry."

But Zhao Pan'er shook her head: "My Lord, Sanniang, although I hate Ouyang Xu to the core, this is a conflict between me and Ouyang Xu. I don't want my Lord to worry about these little things of mine. No matter how difficult it is, I will solve it in my own way."

Zhou Chen shook his head. Zhao Pan'er had never suffered the harsh reality. Although she had lived in the Jiaofangsi for several years and had seen a lot of darkness, she obviously did not understand Dongjing, the capital of the Song Dynasty. Here, the truth and reason were not important, and power and status were king.

When the people fight against the officials, how many of them can have a good ending?

In the TV drama, it was because of Gu Qianfan that they were able to survive in Tokyo City and drive Ouyang Xu away.

And now, if Zhao Pan'er didn't have any backing, there was no way she could defeat Ouyang Xu.

After thinking about it, since Zhao Paner is so stubborn, let her try it first.

"Okay, I won't ask about your relationship with Ouyang Xu, but are you planning to stay in this inn forever? The cost here is not low, right?"

Speaking of this, Sun Sanniang became excited and started complaining.

"It's not just not cheap, it's outrageously expensive. We've only been here for a few days and we've already spent a lot of money. If it continues like this, all our money will be used for accommodation."

The maid Yinping nodded in agreement, saying that the money she had paid to the inn these days was enough to redeem her.

Zhao Pan'er was also distressed: "I didn't expect that the cost of living in Tokyo would be so high. If we want to survive in Tokyo, we definitely can't live in an inn all the time. We must find a way to make a living."