Fan Xian held the sword and smiled bitterly.
After his father entered the room, he immediately put on his most sincere smile and said, "Father, you're back so early?"
Fan Jian nodded and sat down in front of the bed. "There hasn't been much to do in the Ministry of Revenue recently, so there's no need to stay there all the time." After saying this, he handed over an oiled paper bag and said, "Buns from Xinfeng Restaurant … the Third Prince has been silently studying these two days. The old man thought that he had been outside for a year and watched him closely. Although he knew of your injury, he couldn't come out for a while. He only remembered that you liked Xinfeng Restaurant buns, so he had someone buy them and deliver them to you."
Fan Xian accepted the still warm paper bag and took out one from inside. Carefully taking a bite, he found that the oily soup in the large bag was not very hot. Fan Jian looked at his son's appearance and couldn't help but furrow his brows and shake his head.
Fan Xian took a bite and then placed the paper bag on the table. Unconsciously, he turned his head to glance at the snow on the windowsill. A glimmer of envy appeared in his eyes.
"Don't think about going out again." Fan Jian saw what his son was thinking and coldly said, "The day before yesterday, I let you slip out and go to Chen Garden. Be content. Jingdou is snowing and the roads are slippery. You're also injured, yet you don't know how to behave yourself."
Fan Xian smiled self-mockingly and said, "Am I really that popular? It's not like everyone wants to stab me with a knife. Besides, in Jingdou, would there actually be people who would dare to make a move? "
Fan Jian smiled coldly and said, "The inside and outside of Jingdou are only a dozen li away. What difference do you think it makes?"
He was silent for a moment and then quietly said, "It's best if you calm down for now. The Emperor will naturally seek justice for you."
Fan Xian's mouth respectfully agreed, but in his heart, he was thinking of a completely different matter. Both Chen Pingping and Fan Jian seemed to be watching the Emperor's attitude. The two old men also had their own private actions. However, they both hid it from Fan Xian and didn't want him to get too involved. However, Fan Xian knew that the one who was injured was him. He was also the first to bear the brunt. Blindly enduring it was not in line with his principles.
As for what the Emperor would do next, Fan Xian could vaguely guess a little through his conversation with Chen Pingping. However, the change of blood in court did not seem to have much to do with him.
…
…
After his father left the room, Fan Xian rolled his eyes and stretched. He tested the wound on his back and found that it was almost healed. His medical skills and his freakish physique made him very suitable for a life of dancing on the edge of a sword.
He got out of bed and put on his clothes and shoes. He tried to be as quiet as possible so as not to disturb the maids serving him outside. Sitting on a stool by the table, he frowned and thought for a moment, and decided that the box should be safe to leave as it was. There were many clever people in the world, but those who were too clever would never think that they would do such a thing.
After making up his mind, he gently pushed open the innermost cotton curtain. A gust of hot air came from the incense burner in the outer room. He crushed a pill between his fingers, and its fragrance gradually filled the air.
The sluggish maid was already feeling sleepy by the incense burner. She was startled to see her young master come out, but when she smelled the fragrance, she immediately fell asleep again. Fan Xian tilted his head slightly and looked at the maid's charmingly naive appearance. He couldn't resist smiling. It looked like Siqi, that girl, would be enchanted by him for the rest of her life. Wan 'er had thought it would be a long journey to Hangzhou, so she hadn't brought this girl. Unexpectedly, he still had to send her to sleep after returning to the capital.
Wrapping himself in a thick fur cloak, Fan Xian carefully snuck along the corridor toward the back door. Presently, the Teng couple were both in the manor. Their control over the servants had always been lax. In this snowy day, if the master did not give any orders, the servants and maids liked to hide in the room and laze around. Coincidentally, no one discovered Fan Xian's act of leaving the house.
Of course, when he was about to approach the metal door, there were always guards standing there. However, Fan Xian glared at them, and the guards could only pretend to be mute. In the end, the young master and the old master were both masters. It would not do to offend either of them.
Easily leaving the manor, Fan Xian climbed into the normal carriage. Mu Feng 'er carefully helped him into the carriage and then carefully sealed the cotton curtains around the window. Fan Xian shook his head and said, "I just wanted to see some scenery. What if you've sealed it?"
Mu Feng 'er smiled and didn't say anything more. Putting on a raincoat, he covered the Overwatch Council robe inside. With a shake of his wrist, the horsewhip made a few turns in the air, bringing down a few snowflakes. The carriage slowly began to move.
The swordsmen of the Sixth Bureau followed in the dark. There were also some Overwatch Council secret agents disguised as passersby who merged into the small number of Jingdou pedestrians.
…
…
The carriage traveled to a lively part of Jingdou and carefully avoided pedestrians.
Fan Xian lifted a corner of the curtain and looked out. He saw that the shops on both sides of the street were still open. The vendors selling snacks held up large umbrellas and used the heat in their pots to resist the harsh winter temperature. Compared to a year ago, there was nothing strange.
He couldn't help but smile. For the court, the imperial envoy being assassinated was indeed a major matter. For these common people, presumably, it was the most delightful topic of conversation these few days. However, it could not affect them too much. Those who needed to do small business still had to do small business. Those who needed to worry about the surplus food in their homes still had to worry about it. His being assassinated made the court restless. It did not change much for the daily life that had been the same for tens of thousands of years.
Suddenly, his heart jumped. He stared at a few people on the neighboring street and did not move his gaze for a moment. Those people, who clearly looked like aces, were warily surrounding and protecting a young man. It was clear that the young man had disguised himself, but how could he hide it from Fan Xian's eyes? His heart jumped.
"Follow them," Fan Xian ordered in an urgent voice as he watched the group of people buy some things and climb into his carriage.
Mu 'er made a sound of acknowledgement. He gently lifted the reins and followed.
The two carriages, one in front and one behind, circled around the busy street and turned into a relatively quiet and luxurious street. At this time, it was still early. The winter entertainment had not yet begun, so the buildings on the street were all quiet. Only the brothel in the best position in the middle of the street had red lanterns hanging high. Heavy curtains blocked the wind and used the spring scenery inside to attract the male creatures in the cold wind and bitter snow outside.
It was Jingdou's most famous Baoyue Brothel.
Fan Xian watched as the group of people got off the carriage and walked into the building. He furrowed his brows and wondered if his eyes were really blurry after his injury. His head was full of questions. Without thinking, he had Mu Feng 'er drive the carriage into the inner courtyard of Baoyue Brothel from a side road and stop outside the door by the lake behind the building.
He was the true boss of Baoyue Brothel. The housemaid waiting at the back door saw him come down from the carriage and jumped in fright. She thought to herself, Is this master heavily injured? How could he still have the leisure to come to the brothel to inspect? She didn't say anything. She quickly sent someone to inform the second shopkeeper, Shi Qing 'er, and carefully led Fan Xian to the prettiest independent courtyard by the lake.
Fan Xian shook his head and thought of the person he had seen earlier. He passed directly through the snow by the lake and slowly walked toward Baoyue Brothel. Going up to the third floor and coming to the room of the exclusive owner, Fan Xian composed himself and listened to the light words coming from inside. He couldn't resist the corners of his lips twitching slightly and smiling.
The old housemaid behind him didn't say anything. She didn't even dare to cough. Earlier, she had sent someone to inform the second shopkeeper, but she had no choice. She only hoped with all her heart that the people inside the room would be careful with what they said.
After listening quietly for a long time, Fan Xian pushed open the door and entered.
…
…
"Who is it?"
With a hiss, the sound of a curved knife being unsheathed rang out. A heart-chilling knife intent hit him in the face. However, Fan Xian didn't hide or avoid it. He walked forward with an ugly expression.
The person who had drawn out the knife wore normal clothing, but his brows were full of vigilance and steadiness. The knife had never been pulled back. Seeing that the young nobleman in front of him didn't even avoid it, he knew something was wrong and forcefully pulled the knife back. Zhenqi clashed and his face flushed red.
Mu Feng 'er, who followed behind Fan Xian, also entered. He turned and closed the door. He then smiled warmly at the knife-wielding man, thinking that they would be colleagues in the future.
At the same time, the group of people who had entered the room first had already abruptly stood up and surrounded Fan Xian, who was walking in front.
Following this were two crisp sounds. The tea bowls in the hands of a woman and a young man fell to the ground at the same time. The two of them stared dumbstruck at Fan Xian and couldn't speak for a moment.
"All of you, put down your knives!" The young man came to his senses first and cursed angrily at his followers. "Do you want to die?"
The followers looked at each other, wondering who had come to make the big boss so agitated.
Fan Xian was not agitated. He walked in front of the young man, bent two fingers slightly, and knocked down viciously. With a pop, a red dot immediately appeared on the young man's slightly plump face.
"You want to die!" Fan Xian cursed angrily. "Who told you to come back?"
The young man pursed his lips and said with great grievance, "Brother, I miss home …"
…
…
Everyone dared to leave the room. Even Si Qing 'er, who wanted to defend the young man, was chased out by Fan Xian. Only then did he walk boldly to the chair in the center and sit down. Looking at the respectful young man in front of him, he didn't speak for a moment.
After a long silence, Fan Xian smiled coldly and said, "The big boss is very powerful now … he has Northern Qi aces as bodyguards by his side. It looks like I don't have much of a presence as a brother."
The young man in front of him was no stranger. He was the business genius who had been chased to Northern Qi by Fan Xian a year ago. He had now completely taken over the business routes of the Cui family and managed the smuggling business between the Northern Qi royal family and Fan Xian in Jiangnan. He was the second son of the Fan manor, the one with the annoying pockmarks on his face … Fan Sizhe.
Fan Sizhe moved closer to his brother and carefully rubbed his arm. In a small voice, he giggled and said, "With money … what kind of ace can't we invite?"
Fan Xian was angry and angrily scolded, "Why did you sneak back like this? Don't you know the wanted posters are still up all over the world? "
Fan Sizhe smiled and said, "That's just a piece of scrap paper. I glanced at it at the Cangzhou gate. It has long been soaked in the rain. How could it still recognize me?"
Fan Xian couldn't resist scolding, "Don't keep smiling! Tell me what happened. Why did you sneak back? Why didn't you tell me beforehand? "
Fan Sizhe was momentarily speechless. He scratched his head for a while and then said, "In a few days, it will be father's birthday …"
Only now did Fan Xian remember this matter. Looking at his brother's face, which was clearly much thinner than a year ago, he couldn't resist sighing. He thought of how he had been alone in Northern Qi for more than a year and had to deal with so many complicated matters at such a young age. It was truly pitiful. His heart softened. He couldn't bear to scold him anymore. He shook his head and said, "If you're going back, then you're going back. You should at least tell me beforehand."
Fan Sizhe felt wronged and said, "If I was going to tell you first … you definitely wouldn't agree."
Fan Xian suddenly thought of a problem and furrowed his brows. "Where is Lao Wang? He's watching you in Shangjing. Why didn't he tell me you left? "
He huffed coldly and looked at his brother without saying anything.
Fan Sizhe's eyes spun around a few times. He was slightly anxious. A moment later, he hesitantly said, "Didn't Sir Wang also come back? I followed him all the way into the pass … brother, don't blame him. "
Fan Xian slammed the table and roared angrily, "This old shameless fellow also came early? Why didn't he tell me? You guys are truly rebelling! You dare to hide everything from me. "
Fan Sizhe trembled and didn't dare to say more. He knew that if this brother of his was truly angry and hit someone, he could really bear to use his foot to kick them.
"Since you're back, why didn't you go home?" Fan Xian furrowed his brows and asked.
Fan Sizhe was slightly startled. Immediately after, a glimmer of ruthlessness rose to his face. "Brother, as soon as I entered the capital yesterday, I heard about that matter. I was afraid that going home right now would cause you trouble. Also, the court still hasn't found anything, right? I wanted to see if there was any news from Baoyue Brothel, so I stayed here first to see if I could help you. "
Fan Xian had actually overheard these words from outside the room. Hearing it from his brother's own mouth now, he was even more moved. He gently patted his head and sighed. "What trouble are you afraid of? It's not like the Emperor doesn't know about your matter. Who would dare to do anything? Come home with me in a bit. As for news of Baoyue Brothel, if I need it, I will have someone come ask. You are a proper businessman. Don't get involved in these things. "
He couldn't resist glaring at his brother again and said, "Don't think I don't know what you're thinking in that head of yours. You're afraid that I'll scold you directly when you come home, so you want to do something to make me happy. Don't play this game with me. Use this on your parents. We haven't seen each other for over a year. Don't think about how Aunt Liu misses you. How can you bear to stay outside? If this matter goes up, see how your mother will deal with you.
I won't ask for leniency. "Fan Sizhe nodded his head in grievance. He thought to himself, It's all because of your accumulated power that I'm afraid of approaching the manor and not knocking.
"You've grown a bit taller." Fan Xian looked at him with a smile and patted his shoulder. After not seeing him for a year, his heart was also excited and happy. "You've also grown a bit stronger. Looks like you've been doing well in Northern Qi."
Fan Sizhe was just about to complain and tell on his future sister-in-law when he heard the sound of knocking on the door. This knocking sound was very gentle and careful. It was like crying and complaining, like the pain of losing a father.
Fan Xian laughed coldly. "Get your ass in here. You're a supporting character. Don't pretend to be sorrowful here."
…
…
(I've read all the book reviews seriously. Some are very interesting, but the new versions have been refined. I'm really not familiar with them. Everyone, wait for a while. It's probably because I'm too lazy. I've been drinking too much these past two days.) (To be continued, if you want to know what happens next, please go to WWW. QIDI. com. There are more chapters. Support the author. Support the original reading!)
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
