Yang Fan flew back to his own wall, his heart that had been hanging in suspense for a long time finally relaxed.
That scene just now had been far too thrilling. If others had seen the seven princesses of the Prince of Xiang kneeling before him, the little loli leading them even 'hugging his thigh', even though she had only been tugging at the corner of his clothes, Yang Fan, who had long ago experienced the gossipy woman's ability to spread rumors in Luoyang's Xiuwen workshop, could completely imagine it. Saying that the girl was hugging his thigh would be an understatement.
Just this scene was enough to shake the world, and these seven little girls, who hadn't even fully grown their hair, were still saying that they would entrust their lives to General Yang. It was simply unimaginable! Yang Fan patted his chest and inwardly rejoiced. Fortunately, I escaped in time and no one saw me. The Immeasurable Lord of Heaven, my Buddha!
In those circumstances, Yang Fan was in a hurry to escape, so he could only agree. The girls, who ranged in age from six to twelve, were easy to deceive. As soon as Yang Fan made a promise, they believed him. Yang Fan wasn't sincerely deceiving them, but ever since he had received the news from Maozhou, he knew that this peace marriage would be filled with twists and turns, and there was a high chance that it would end without any results.
However, he didn't dare to guarantee that this matter would be foolproof. If he tried his best and the marriage ended up becoming a reality, he wouldn't be able to do anything about it. If he went back on his word, then so be it. In any case, he was forced to do this. Lord Yang wouldn't feel guilty towards those little girls, and they wouldn't be able to do anything to him.
After thinking it through, Yang Fan walked toward the back of the residence. Separated by a wall, the seven little girls excitedly gathered together. Li Huawan excitedly said, "This is great! Third Brother has praised Great General Yang so much. Since he's agreed to help, us sisters won't have to marry off to Tubo."
The Lord of Qingyang County had a naturally pessimistic personality and timidly poured cold water. "But not even Father can do anything about this matter. He can only hurry up and marry off. No matter how powerful General Yang is, he can't be more powerful than Father. And besides, will he really help us? What if he goes back on his word? "
Li Chiying glared at him and threw down a harsh sentence. "He dares! If he dares to go back on his words, I won't let him off! "
Li Huawan rolled her eyes at her and said, "He is a great general who has a large army under his command. Even if you are a princess or a princess, what can you do to him? I heard that Sister An Le was humiliated by him in the East City. "
"I … I … I have my ways!"
Li Chiying rolled her eyes and puffed out her chest, saying, "If he dares to go back on his words, I will sue him for molestation and have Imperial Grandmother punish him!"
The six-year-old County Princess of the Huo Kingdom clapped her chubby little hands and said in admiration, "Good idea! Shiniang is the smartest!"
Li Huawan rolled her eyes again and said, "What good idea? How old is Shiniang? Would anyone believe that Great General Yang molested her? "
Huo Guo's County Magistrate nodded and said, "Wuniang is right!"
Li Huawan and Li Chiying spat at her together. "Bootlicker!"
Li Chiying was unconvinced and said to Li Huawan, "Why can't we believe him? I heard from Third Brother that Liu Qiantian, the magistrate of the Chang 'an Local Government, is a heretic and likes to play with young girls. He said that it can nourish Yin and Yang and prolong life. Anyway, if he dares to go back on his words, I will make him suffer. When the time comes, you can help me testify and see if Imperial Grandmother will believe him alone or the seven of us! "
The six little heads nodded like chicks pecking at rice, and the County Princess of the Huo Kingdom's silly flattery could be heard. "Shiniang is so smart!"
As Yang Fan walked, he suddenly sneezed for no reason and hurriedly pulled his clothes tighter …
…
As soon as Yang Fan stepped into the moon gate in the backyard, he saw Xiaoman and Si Rong hurrying over. Nianzu was running in front of them, but he stopped when he saw Yang Fan. Xiaoman said, "Langjun is back. Nianzu is talking nonsense about a group of little girls in the Shouchun Prince's Mansion hanging themselves …"
Xiaoman saw Yang Fan's strange expression halfway through and was startled. She asked curiously, "Is it true?"
Yang Fan shook his head and smiled bitterly. "It's hard to explain. Why did you come out wearing such thin clothes? Come, let's go to the hall and talk."
Yang Fan and Xiaoman led the two children back to the hall. The animal charcoal stove in the hall was burning brightly. Although it was winter, the hall was warm as if it was spring. There was also a faint fragrance in the warm air.
Ah Nu was wearing a soft silver silk inner garment and a pair of reed flower warm shoes with a soft inner lining made of cattail straw. She was sitting on the left side of the kang bed while Yang Ji was lying beside her with his head on her lap. He was snoring loudly and his sleeping posture was extremely pleasant. A Nu was holding a beautifully made hand stove in her hand and talking to Gu Zhuting, who was sitting on the other side of the kang table with a smile.
There was a swaddling cloth next to Gu Zhuting. Yang Daier was also sleeping soundly. Gu Zhuting was wearing a soft silk dress. Her abdomen was bulging. She was going to give birth in three months. At this moment, she was supporting herself with her hands on the edge of the bed. Her slender feet, wearing snow-white socks, were stepping on a rolling footstool.
This rolling footstool was made of bamboo. It was two feet long and six inches wide. It had a roller cylinder inside. When one stepped on it and rolled the bamboo cylinder, it could massage the soles of one's feet. Now that Gu Zhuting was pregnant, it was not suitable for her to exercise. It was also not suitable for her to take a walk in the courtyard in the middle of winter. Therefore, she used this rolling footstool to activate her blood vessels so as not to affect the fetus in her belly.
Seeing Yang Fan coming in, the two hurriedly stood up. Yang Fan quickly gestured for them to sit down. He and Xiaoman sat on the side chair. Yang Nianzu couldn't wait to ask, "Father, are the sisters next door dead?"
Yang Fan said, "Who said that they wanted to hang themselves? They were too naughty and didn't listen to adults. They didn't know the severity of the situation and used hanging as a game. In the end, they were almost hanged to death. Fortunately, father saved their lives. Otherwise … Nianzu, you can't be so disobedient. Do you understand?"
Yang Nianzu didn't expect that in less than three sentences, his father would go back to lecturing him. He couldn't help but agree dejectedly. Yang Fan asked again with a frightening face, "Have you memorized the article that I asked you to memorize today?"
Yang Nianzu said in a panic, "Ah … I have … almost … almost memorized it."
Yang Sirong quietly stuck out her tongue and tiptoed to the study. Yang Fan pretended not to see and said to Yang Nianzu with a straight face, "Quickly go and memorize it. Father will test you in a moment. If you can't memorize it, I will hit your palm!"
Yang Nianzu made an "oh" sound and walked to the study with his head drooping. Xiaoman whispered to Yang Fan, "It's almost the New Year. Don't be so strict with them."
Seeing that his son had already entered the study, Yang Fan said to Xiaoman with a smile, "You, don't you understand the principle that a loving mother spoils her son? You, A Nu, and Zhuting all spoil them. If I don't let them know what fear is, won't they turn over the sky? Do you think I like to play the role of a villain? "
Xiaoman wrinkled her nose at him. Although she was a mature woman, such a small action still carried a bit of playfulness of a young girl, "All right, all right. If you continue, I will also be scolded by you. What happened in Prince Shouchun's mansion? Did someone really hang himself? "
Yang Fan sighed and told them what had happened just now. A Nu and Gu Zhuting also listened attentively. After listening to him, A Nu smiled and said, "There are always some false rumors among the people. Although Tubo is not as good as our Central Plains, you don't have to treat them as barbaric as foreigners."
Gu Zhuting said, "Even so, even if Tubo is ten times stronger than it is now, these noble ladies may not be willing to marry there."
A Nu nodded and said, "That's true. Which ordinary people would be willing to marry their daughter to Tubo? These princesses were desperate to find a doctor, and they actually pestered their Langjun. What is Langjun going to do? Do you really want to help them? "
Yang Fan spread out his hands and said with a smile, "Whether they marry or not depends on the current emperor. How can your Langjun make them refuse to marry?"
Xiaoman said angrily, "Then you shouldn't have lied to them. Why did you lie to them that you are willing to help?"
Yang Fan touched his forehead with his hand and said with a bitter smile, "You don't know the situation at that time. The seven little girls were kneeling in front of me. If people saw that, how could I not agree? However, I didn't mean to deceive them. Today I just received a secret report. If it is true, this peace marriage … will definitely cause more problems! "
Yang Fan was silent for a moment. He raised his eyebrows and said to Xiaoman, "Tomorrow, ask the kitchen to prepare some fine wine and dishes. There are distinguished guests coming!"
Early the next morning, it was another bad weather with heavy snow falling from the sky.
Today, Ma Qiao was on duty at the Black Tortoise Gate. Yang Fan and Ma Qiao were like brothers, so he only sent someone to deliver a message to Ma Qiao. Yang Fan himself didn't rush to the palace to patrol and only cared about waiting for Shen Mu. As soon as Shen Mu's carriage entered Chang 'an, he did not return to his mansion but went to Longqing Square.
Yang Fan held a banquet to welcome Shen Mu in the Pine Wind Pavilion. The dishes were naturally sumptuous, the Eight Treasures of Water and Land and Dried Fruits. However, in this winter, the real precious thing was not the dragon liver and phoenix marrow, but the chives, celery, rape, spinach and other fresh green vegetables.
In this era, if one wanted to eat these green vegetables in winter, they either had to use the natural geothermal hot spring or build a greenhouse. It was very expensive to take care of them. Therefore, only the imperial banquets could be enjoyed. Even the noble families had no chance to ask, let alone the ordinary people.
On Yang Fan's left was Princess An Le's mansion, on his right was Shouchun Jun Wang's mansion. His own family's three meals a day, or the banquets and banquets these past few days, admittedly had no lack of delicacies, but he had never seen this kind of fresh green vegetables. For Yang Fan's dining table to have this kind of imperial treatment, naturally it was because of the Succession Hall's strong financial resources.
Yang Fan raised his cup and said, "When I saw the heavy snow this morning, I was worried that Brother Shen would miss the journey. I did not expect that Brother Shen would brave the wind and snow to rush back. Now let's prepare some water and wine. Let's have a drink. Cheers! "The two drank a cup together. The wine was soft and sweet, leaving a fragrance on their cheeks.
Shen Mu took a mouthful of vinegar-stained celery. Yang Fan asked, "How is Brother Shen's trip?"
Shen Mu smiled and said, "I have already said that they are all outstanding people who know how to adapt to circumstances. Naturally, everything went smoothly. How are you doing here? "
Yang Fan said, "Chang 'an used to be peaceful, but recently it seems that the trees want to be quiet, but the wind does not stop."
Shen Mu's gaze froze. He put down his chopsticks and asked, "Where does the wind come from?"
Yang Fan said, "The Tubo Plateau!"
As he said this, he took out the secret letter from his sleeve and slowly pushed it towards Shen Mu. Shen Mu took the letter and read it carefully. He put the letter on the table and poured himself another cup of wine.
Yang Fan sat in front of the table and calmly asked with a smile, "I wonder what good plan Brother Shen has?"
Shen Mu glanced at him and drank the wine in one gulp. He took a mouthful of celery and said, "You obviously have an idea. Why test me? Tell me, what do you plan to do?"
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