The news sent by Ren Wei was mixed with joy and worry.
The joy was that Wei Suizhong had finally made up his mind.
Yang Fan instructed his people to spread the truth of Madame Wang's suicide and create various rumors to put psychological pressure on Wei Suizhong. Then, she made use of Wei Suizhong's trust in Su Jiuniang. By redeeming Su Jiuniang's freedom, helping her and Wei Suizhong to be together, and giving them a sum of money that was enough for them to live the rest of their lives in peace, she made Su Jiuniang persuade Wei Suizhong. Now, it finally worked.
On the outside, the Zhang brothers, who were more favored by the Emperor, plotted against him. On the inside, Wei Suizhong, who knew all his dirty deeds, betrayed him. With these two factors combined, Yang Fan believed that he could not bring down Lai Junchen. But under the joy, there was also a worry. That worry was … it seemed that Li Zhaode was going to be unlucky again.
This news was not too detailed. It was sent by Li Jing, the new Recording Military Advisor of Luoyang.
Li Jing provided Lai Junchen with a large number of names of people who were sheltered under the protection of the three scammers, evaded taxes, and used public power for private purposes through the old nun of Hanoi, Taoist Shifang, and Molei. Not only did he cut off the last force of Young Master Jiang in Luoyang with Lai Junchen's help, but he also gained Lai Junchen's trust.
Because of this, Li Jing knew Lai Junchen's plan in advance, but he had not inquired about the details. Lai Junchen did not need him for the matter of Bi Yi, so he would not tell him too much. If he deliberately inquired about it, it would arouse Lai Junchen's suspicion. From the information he had now, he only knew that Lai Junchen wanted to deal with Li Zhaode, and the reason was that the Khitan leader Sun Wanrong, whom he recommended, had rebelled.
The imperial court system had always had the system of involving people. Although it was not as strict as in the Qin State, if an official recommended an official who committed a crime, he would be held responsible. This was also the reason why officials above the fifth rank had the right to recommend someone, but dared not to recommend someone at will.
Now that Sun Wanrong rebelled, even if Lai Junchen did not deliberately make trouble for Li Zhaode, he should also bear the responsibility. However, he had already been unlucky. Most officials would not do such a ruthless thing, which would affect their image in the officialdom. Moreover, Li Zhaode's recommendation had a special reason — Sun Wanrong was a foreign official.
The Khitan tribes were dependent on the imperial court, and the imperial court's policy towards them was to keep them in line. Whichever tribe was stronger, the imperial court would give the leader of that tribe a higher official position, so as to win them over and not cause any trouble. This had always been the policy of the Tang dynasty since its founding.
Li Zhaode was the Prime Minister, so it was only natural that he would weigh the pros and cons before making a recommendation to the Emperor. This was what Li Zhaode was supposed to do as the Prime Minister, but … he accepted the gift, so it was hard to explain. Why did you recommend Sun Wanrong? Was it for the sake of stabilizing the border, or out of selfishness?
The gifts Li Zhaode received included a sea dragon fur robe, a bushel of pearls, a box of ginseng, and four horses. Speaking of which, given his status as the Prime Minister, these gifts were not very valuable.
When Li Zhaode was the Prime Minister, he had already become the biggest obstacle to Li Tang's recovery. Now that he was only a supervising censor, he was already harmless to others. Yang Fan couldn't help but feel some compassion.
Yang Fan thought for a while and ordered, "Think of a way to leak this news to Li Zhaode, so that he can prepare early! As for Wei Suizhong, we need to work harder to win him over and prevent him from turning back. Once he has made up his mind, we will begin the entire plan to eradicate Lai Junchen! "
Ren Wei agreed and quickly walked out. As soon as Yang Fan destroyed the two secret reports, Third Sister called out from outside the study, "Ah Lang, Envoy Guo and Madam are here to bring Miss Ah Nu!"
Hearing this, Yang Fan hurriedly adjusted the belt on his robe and ordered, "Quickly open the door, I want to personally welcome them!"
Guo Jingzhi was going to be transferred from his post in Weizhou to another place, so he specially came back to the capital to report on his duties. Coincidentally, it was the festive season, so he stayed in the capital for a few more days. At this time, Guo Jingzhi's old mother had already passed away, so Guo Jingzhi didn't need to leave his wife at home to take care of his old mother, so his whole family had to follow him to take up his post. Madam naturally had to come along, but because her brother was born a little simple-minded, he couldn't manage the household alone in his hometown, so he brought her along as well.
Because Guo Jingzhi had also brought his wife along, Yang Fan hurriedly ordered someone to find Xiao Man, and the husband and wife joined hands to welcome them. The door was wide open, and Yang Fan and his wife walked all the way. Just as they reached the door, they heard a loud shout, "Where's my family's cousin? Why hasn't she come to see me, I'm going to find her!"
Yang Fan took a step out of the doorway, and coincidentally saw an awe-inspiring burly man walking towards them, and someone shouted from behind, "Erlang, you can't, stop right there!"
Yang Fan took a look at this man, he was as strong as a bull, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and regular facial features, he was definitely a burly man, but he was full of simple-mindedness, lacking a bit of quick-wittedness and calmness. Yang Fan's heart skipped a beat, and he thought to himself, "Could this be the Guo family's Erlang, Guo Shaofan, that A Nu mentioned before?"
Yang Fan smiled and cupped his hands, saying, "Are you the Guo family's Erlang?"
The burly man was stunned, he looked him up and down, and scratched the back of his head in puzzlement, "Who are you, how do you know me?"
At this time, Guo Jingzhi and his wife, who were standing at the bottom of the stairs, quickly walked up. Guo Jingzhi laughed and said, "I presume this is the Erlang? Haha, thank you, Madam Yang, for coming out to welcome me, I am ashamed, ashamed. "
Guo Shaofan continued to scratch the back of his head, he was even more puzzled, "Big brother, why don't you recognize me, what are you thinking, I am the Erlang!"
Madam Guo did not know whether to laugh or cry, she glared at him fiercely, and tenderly scolded, "Go away!"
Guo Shaofan pouted and whispered, "You're still so fierce to me in front of my big brother, you tigress!"
At this moment, Yang Fan was sizing up Guo Jingzhi. He saw that this Provincial Governor was nine feet tall, with a purple face and a long beard. He had a square face and big ears. His stature was tall and sturdy, his physique strong and sturdy. If his leopard eyes were replaced by red phoenix eyes, and he wore a green turban on his head, and held a crescent saber in his hand, he would look very much like the Marquis of Han Shou Ting, Guan Yu.
Yang Fan thought, "This is Provincial Governor Guo? As expected of the descendant of the Great Han Dynasty's Marquis Aling, truly awe-inspiring, what a great man! "
Guo Jingzhi was also sizing him up. Yang Fan was only wearing casual clothes, a moon white long robe embroidered with bamboo patterns. His hair was tied up in a jade bun, and he had a jade colored headband that reached his eyebrows. His figure was tall and handsome, his face like jade, his eyes like bright stars, and his eyes as clear as water.
Guo Jingzhi saw his character and was secretly impressed, thinking, "This is the new Sect Leader of Xian Sect. His character and demeanor are no less than Lu Binmi's. Compared to Lu Binmi's cold arrogance that pushes people a thousand miles away, he is more likable and approachable."
The two of them were thinking of each other, but their hands were not slow. Yang Fan first bowed and said with a smile, "Envoy, Madam, this Yang and my wife did not go out to welcome you, forgive us, forgive us!"
While they were sizing each other up, Xiang Ruolan was also watching from the side. She first looked at Xiaoman and saw that her appearance was charming, her figure was enchanting, and her looks weren't inferior to her sworn sister, Ah Nu. She couldn't help but nod silently.
Xiaoman looked at her wide-sleeved robe, jade-colored silk skirt, her slender neck, and her exquisite facial features. She was as enchanting as the orchid in the bottle, and her every movement was dignified and elegant. Xiaoman couldn't help but be silently impressed. "As expected of a daughter of a prestigious clan, a noble madam. Such a disposition is truly extraordinary."
Xiang Ruolan looked at Yang Fan again and saw his appearance. She was delighted. "No wonder my sworn sister is infatuated with him. He is truly a talented man. Now, he is the Sect Patriarch of Xian Sect and is worthy of my sworn sister. With the two clans being married, the relationship between the Xian Sect and the Hidden Sect will no longer be as hostile as before! "
The more Xiang Ruolan thought about it, the happier she was. She smiled and said, "Our clans are going to be real relatives soon. There is no need to be so courteous."
Guo Shaofan finally came to his senses and exclaimed, "Ah! You are Yang Fan? You are my younger sister's husband? Haha, I am also called Fan, and you are also called Fan. We are really fated! "
Xiang Ruolan said angrily, "What nonsense are you talking about? Yang Clan's Second Brother is slightly older than you. You have to call him Elder Brother!"
Guo Shaofan said excitedly, "That is not how it is, that is not how it is. Ah Nu is my cousin. Even if he is 80 years old now, he still has to call me Elder Brother. I am older than him. Hahaha …"
Xiaoman burst out in laughter and quickly stepped aside to let the guests in. "Envoy, Madam, Guo Clan's Second Brother, please go to the hall and have a chat. Let us not stand at the entrance."
The group walked inside in a lively manner. Guo Shaofan loyally played the role of the elder brother. "This young lady is so beautiful. You are Beta Persei's wife, right? Let me tell you, Ah Nu is my younger sister. She married into your clan and became your younger sister. You cannot bully her. If you bully her, I will not allow it … "
This time, Guo Jingzhi's face also darkened. "Erlang, shut up!"
Guo Shaofan straightened his neck and challenged his elder brother. "Elder Brother, are you talking about Beta Persei's son or Guo Erlang? If you are talking about Guo Erlang, then I will shut up! If you are talking about Beta Persei's son, then I will not shut up! "
Guo Jingzhi put his hand on his forehead. He had a headache.
Xiaoman rolled her eyes and held back her laughter. "Ah Nu often talks about you, especially Guo Erlang. She misses you very much. Does Erlang want to see Ah Nu? "
This Guo Shaofan could be said to be stupid, but he was also a bit narrow-minded. As soon as he heard Xiaoman's words, he did not care whether she was talking about Yang Erlang or Guo Erlang and immediately agreed. Xiaoman then said, "Steward, take Erlang to see Miss A Nu!"
Guo Shaofan happily followed the Yang residence's housekeeper to see his cousin. After luring this unreasonable person away, both the host and the guest then took their seats and started to discuss the details of the wedding.
Yang Fan knew that the Guo Clan was a Taiyuan Aristocratic Clan and had a close relationship with the Hidden Sect. Guo Jingzhi also knew that he was the Evident Sect Patriarch. Speaking of which, other than being relatives, they were already considered a family. However, this family wasn't harmonious. Because the Evident Sect and the Hidden Sect used to fight openly and covertly, some things were hard to say now.
A faction's grudges and conflicts weren't something that could be decided and controlled by the faction's leader alone. Some things had to wait for Yang Fan and Shen Mu to meet and discuss and resolve it before there would be no future troubles. Shen Mu was still in Xinluo and had yet to return. As a member of the Hidden Sect, it wasn't good for Guo Jingzhi to have too much contact with Yang Fan.
Yang Fan was also aware of this. Therefore, he only discussed the wedding with Guo Jingzhi. As for topics that shouldn't be mentioned, both of them tacitly avoided it. After they finished their discussion, Xiaoman accompanied Xiang Ruolan to fetch Ah Nu while Yang Fan personally sent them back to their residence.
Coincidentally, after Guo Jingzhi and his family entered the capital city, they rented an empty residence that belonged to Wu Sansi's family. It was the residence that Ah Nu and Yang Fan rented in order to trick Liu Junfan and pretend to be a prestigious clan in Dunhuang.
Back then, Ah Nu only wanted to repay a debt of gratitude to Yang Fan and didn't reveal her true identity to him. Meanwhile, Yang Fan was burdened with a blood feud and was disguised as a shopkeeper to search for his enemies. He didn't have the time to care about starting a family. They never expected that fate was decided by the heavens and that they were finally together.
When Yang Fan and Ah Nu alighted from the carriage and saw the huge residence, they subconsciously looked at each other.
Their eyes met and they smiled at each other.
That smile was like the melting of ice and snow, the stopping of the north wind, the arrival of spring, and the blossoming of flowers. All the frustrations and hardships in their hearts were fermented and turned into a cup of mellow and fragrant wine!
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