Although everyone was curious, they did not ask what role Yang Fan wanted the Zhang brothers to play in the conference. When the banquet was about to end, Zhang Changzong solemnly brought up this matter once more, and he repeatedly warned everyone not to leak it to the outside world, causing everyone to be even more curious. However, no one dared to neglect Zhang Changzong's repeated warnings.
Everyone kept their mouths shut, so outsiders had no way of knowing. However, it was no secret that Yang Fan had attended the second Zhang's banquet. This matter quickly reached Wu Sansi's ears. Wu Yizong also heard of this matter and immediately went to find Wu Sansi. He was immensely proud as if he had great foresight.
"Cousin, I already said that Yang Fan is a person who fawns on the rich and cannot be trusted. You see, he was originally Xue Huaiyi's disciple, but when he saw that Xue Huaiyi had fallen out of favor, he shamelessly used himself as a stepping stone to Taiping. He clearly knows that Taiping and our Wu clan are at peace on the surface, but when he saw that our Wu clan was suppressing the Li clan, he immediately threw himself under Cousin's banner.
When he saw that my aunt intended to make the Prince of Luling heir apparent, he felt that the Wu clan was about to decline, so he immediately protected the Prince of Luling with all his might. Right now, the Prince of Luling is clearly a hopeless fool, just like the Prince of Xiang, a good-for-nothing, and he has decisively thrown his lot in with Zhang Yizhi. This five-surnamed servant is even more shameless than Lu Fengxian! "
Wu Sansi was inwardly vexed. "If you hadn't kept pressuring him, how could he have acted so intimately with the second Zhang? Speaking of Xue Huaiyi and Zhang Yizhi, you and I are also extremely attentive to them. How much better can we be compared to Yang Fan? "
Although he felt that this cousin of his was stupid enough, he was one of the two people with the most military power in the Wu clan. Other than Wu Youyi, he was the next. Wu Youyi was only loyal to his aunt and had never been moved by his and Wu Chengsi's attempts to rope him in. It was clear that he was relying on his military power and did not want to make a stand before the general situation was clear.
He had many places to rely on Wu Yizong and could not reprimand him too much. He could only vaguely say, "No matter what, you shouldn't have pressured him too much. This person controls a thousand cavalry and is extremely important to us. In the future, we will need to rely on him!"
Wu Yizong replied, "What's so difficult about that? This person is someone who bullies the weak and fears the strong. He doesn't have any backbone. If Elder Brother wants him to submit, then you have to let him know the power of our Wu Clan and not blindly show him kindness. I will make things difficult for him, and when he realizes that he can't do anything outside of our Wu Clan, he will come and beg for forgiveness from Elder Brother! "
"Yi Zong …"
Wu Sansi wanted to say something but hesitated. He felt that it wasn't appropriate to do so, but Wu Yizong left excitedly after he finished speaking. Wu Sansi thought again, "Forget it, let him be. Let's see if he can subdue Yang Fan. If I can really force Yang Fan to work for me, that would be the best. If I overreach myself, as long as I don't show up now, I can come out later to clean up the mess. "
Thinking of this, Wu Sansi dispelled the thought of stopping Wu Yizong. However, when he returned to the back residence, he suddenly thought of something and couldn't help but be alarmed, "Oh no! This brother of mine has always been rash. Could it be that he wants to do something to the Grand Reading? This is the first Grand Reading since Aunt ascended to the throne. It is of great significance and cannot be delayed. Otherwise, if it is traced back to us … "
Thinking of this, Wu Sansi quickly sent men to chase after Wu Yizong and solemnly reminded him. Wu Yizong hadn't left the city yet. When Wu Sansi's men caught up to him, he couldn't help but laugh, "Elder Brother is worrying too much. The Grand Reading concerns the integrity of the country and cannot be delayed. Do I not even know this? Go back and tell my Elder Brother to not worry. As the saying goes, revenge is a dish best served cold. I, Wu Yizong, am also aware of this. "
Wu Sansi was relieved after receiving the report from his family. As long as Wu Yizong didn't do anything to the Grand Reading, he could do whatever he wanted.
…
Yang Fan originally thought that the Grand Reading would be an easy task. Most of the soldiers under him were from the Imperial Army. With a little reorganization, they would be able to meet the requirements of the Grand Reading. He didn't expect that after the actual training, it took a full month and a half before Lu Maofeng finally nodded his head and confirmed that it had already surpassed the standards of the Political Affairs Hall and the Ministry of War.
Among them, Yang Fan had the advantage of having fewer soldiers and elite soldiers. Otherwise, the quality of the soldiers would be different and the various departments would need to cooperate. This would then take a long time. The level of the Grand Reading that the Political Affairs Hall and the Ministry of War hosted back then was not as high as this one. It took a full half a year to prepare.
Since the standards of the training had reached the standard, the next step was to rehearse according to the procedures of the Emperor's Grand Reading. At this time, the Ministry of Rites also participated and gave instructions on the appearance, attire, command of the soldiers and the speech of the parade officers, as well as the etiquette used when meeting the Emperor.
This time, the rehearsal went on for more than half a month. It wasn't until everyone had memorized the role they were supposed to play during the Grand Reading and the entire process of the Grand Reading. After seven consecutive Grand Reading rehearsals without any mistakes, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.
However, it was also the hottest time of the summer. When Yang Fan told the Zhang brothers about the "scorching summer", it was originally a joke. At that time, he thought that the Grand Reading would begin in at most ten days. However, more than two months had passed. Yang Fan accompanied the soldiers on the drill ground every day, and his pale skin had gradually turned into a healthy dark color.
Because for the past two months, he had also been training under the hot sun every day. His skin had become a healthy and attractive bronze color. His chest muscles were stacked, his arm muscles were firm, his leg muscles were firm, and his buttocks were strong. Coupled with his handsome appearance, if those pampered ladies in the city saw him, they would probably have erotic dreams for three days straight.
Seeing that the rehearsals were going extremely smoothly, Yang Fan finally reported to the court and asked the Emperor to approve the Grand Reading. When Wu Zetian heard the news, she was overjoyed and immediately announced that court would be suspended the next day. Early in the morning, she would go to the Thousand Horsemen Camp for the Grand Reading. The princes, princesses, relatives of the emperor, and the ministers of the various ministries were all present. Afterwards, according to the rules of the Grand Reading, food was distributed to the troops to be read.
The Emperor's food naturally couldn't be too low. At noon that day, the Thousand Horsemen Camp slaughtered pigs and sheep. The fragrance of meat wafted all the way to the Right Guard ten li away, causing the soldiers there to swallow their saliva. After the soldiers of the Thousand Horsemen Camp ate their fill, they made an exception not to practice in the afternoon to conserve their energy.
Inside the palace, the Zhang brothers were also rubbing their palms in excitement.
In the past two months, the number of times the two of them left the palace had clearly increased. Sometimes they left together, and sometimes they left separately. After entering summer, Wu Zetian was tired of eating and thirsty for sleep. Normally, she would go to the Flying Fragrance Hall and the Lovely Spring Terrace to enjoy the cool. She also didn't summon them to serve her in bed or to sing and dance, so they happily agreed.
That day, the two brothers asked for leave together to leave the palace. They told Wu Zetian that they would meet at the drill ground the next morning. Wu Zetian would have the Grand Reading tomorrow and needed to wake up early. Tonight, she wanted to have a good rest. As a result, she generously agreed to the request of her two most beloved little lovers.
The two brothers excitedly left the palace and immediately rushed home. Although Zhang Changzong had left the palace frequently in the past two months, he had almost never returned home. Zhang Yizhi, on the other hand, had returned a few times, but he had only greeted his mother before leaving in a hurry. Today, however, he wanted to return home to stay. Because he had to go to the Thousand Horsemen Camp the next morning, Zhang Changzong did not return to his own mansion. Instead, he went to Zhang Yizhi's home.
The two of them hurried to the Zhang mansion and went straight to the inner residence. Zhang Yizhi asked the housekeeper with a smile, "Where is my mother?"
The housekeeper replied, "Langjun came back just in time. Recently, Old Madame has been depressed and hasn't been eating well. She has been frowning all day long. Your servant has invited a doctor to visit her, but he can't tell what's wrong."
"What?"
Hearing this, Zhang Yizhi was very nervous. He didn't have time to be angry with the housekeeper and hurried to his mother's bedroom. Zhang Changzong quickly advised, "Wulang, don't worry. It's probably because the summer is hot and First Madame is sick of eating." Zhang Yizhi did not say anything and hurried to his mother's residence.
When they arrived at Mrs. Azang's residence, Zhang Changzong stayed outside while Zhang Yizhi went in alone. Mrs. Azang's personal maid, Yan 'er, was originally serving in the room, but because the mother and son wanted to talk, she was also driven out.
Zhang Yizhi saw that his mother had indeed lost some weight, her face looked haggard. He could not help but secretly cursing himself for being careless. The last time he came back to visit his mother, he did not notice that his mother was unwell.
Zhang Yizhi hurriedly inquired about his mother's condition. When Azang saw her son, she still frowned and sighed, as if there was something difficult to say, but in the end she could not say anything. Zhang Yizhi asked anxiously. Mrs. Azang simply turned over and slept facing the bed, ignoring him.
Seeing this, Zhang Yizhi lifted his gown and knelt in front of the bed. He kowtowed and choked with sobs, "Mother is unhappy, it's all your son's fault. If your son has done anything wrong, not being filial, I hope Mother will reprimand your son. I must not torture myself, otherwise your son will really die of fear. "
Azang sighed softly and said, "My son has always been filial, how could he have done anything wrong? Mother is unhappy, but it is not because of my son. You don't have to blame yourself. "
Zhang Yizhi said, "Then please tell me, what is it that you are unhappy about? As long as it is not about picking the moon, your son will definitely do it for you."
Mrs. Azang sighed faintly and did not say anything. Zhang Yizhi was anxious, in a deep voice he said, "Your son is slow-witted, it is difficult for me to guess Mother's intention. I beg Mother to tell your son!" Then he started to kowtow again, as if if Azang did not tell him, he would keep kowtowing without getting up.
Mrs. Azang listened to her son kowtowing and finally could not bear it anymore. She quickly sat up and said with tears in her eyes, "My son, quickly get up. This is all Mother's fault, it really has nothing to do with my son."
Zhang Yizhi was so anxious that his lungs were about to explode, "Mother, tell your son, so that your son can ease Mother's heart."
"Mother …"
Mrs. Azang wanted to say something but hesitated; she covered her face with her hand and said, "How can Mother say this? If you want to know, ask Yan 'er. "
When Zhang Yizhi heard this, he jumped up and walked out. Yan 'er was waiting in the courtyard. Zhang Yizhi rushed into the courtyard, pointed his finger at Yan' er and shouted angrily, "Lowly servant! I asked you to serve my mother because I trusted you. Why are you making my mother unhappy? Hurry up and confess! "
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