Fan Xian looked at the young man and smiled. However, the thoughts hidden deeply in his smile were not discovered by the young man. He had stood on the meadow for a long time and watched the young man walk out of the King's tent. He waited for the young man to gradually approach the meadow before he said those six words.
He wanted to give the young man a chance to strike up a conversation because he knew that the young man who had walked out of the King's tent would want to speak with the merchants of the Central Plains. Striking up a conversation was one of Fan Xian's best skills. Back in the day, the Northern Qi saint girl Haitang had also lost to his skill of the tongue, much less this young man.
"Of course." The young man chuckled. "Although it was only six words, the aura of the grasslands was immediately forced out by them."
This was an excuse. It was an excuse that the young man, who had been lonely on the grasslands for a long time and urgently needed to chat with someone from the Central Plains to relieve his homesickness, had found. His long years of working as a special agent of the Overwatch Council allowed Fan Xian to quickly make a decision in such a short amount of time. The young man's appearance was clearly not that of a Hu person, but he had walked out of the King's tent. He must have some connection to the person he was searching for, which was why he had acted.
"Someone from the Central Plains?" Fan Xian looked at him suspiciously and asked, "I didn't see you in the merchant group."
"When I came back last time, there were some goods I didn't sell. The King treats us guests very well, so I stayed behind to see if there were any benefits." It was clear that this young man was not an expert liar. Fan Xian heard some problems in his tone.
"This is my first time here." Fan Xian chuckled and pointed at the crescent sea and grasslands in front of him. "I didn't expect the scenery on the grasslands to be so enchanting."
"If you look at it for a long time, you'll get tired of it," the young man said with a pained smile.
"Oh? I just got here today and haven't gotten tired of it yet. How long have you been here? " Fan Xian asked curiously. "Everyone says that the Hu people are barbaric. Aren't you afraid that they'll suddenly go crazy?"
After his disguise, Fan Xian had a handsome and sincere face. Additionally, his relaxed tone and sincere attitude made it easy for him to gain the trust of others. His conversation with the young man continued very naturally.
This young man's surname was Wei Wucheng, which was probably a fake name. According to him, he was also one of the businessmen who came to the prairie, but he was forced to stay in the prairie. He had been here for more than three months.
However, Fan Xian already had a plan in his heart. He would not believe these excuses. If they were merchants, how could they so easily enter and exit the King's tent? To deal with the homesick young man with sincerity, he easily got some information out of him by using the treachery in his sincerity.
The young man's attire and the worn Hu leather boots revealed that he had spent a long time on the steppe. Through these conversations, Fan Xian obtained a lot of useful information. For example, there should be more than one young person from the Central Plain who had stayed in the crescent sea King's tent. There were at least 10 people who had stayed for a long time. There were also some slight changes in the King's tent these two years.
"In the end, this is the territory of the Hu. After clearing out the goods, Brother Wei, you should return to the Central Plains." Fan Xian sincerely invited, "If you come with us, your safety will be guaranteed."
Wei Wucheng paused and didn't know how to respond. Looking at the young merchant's sincere expression, he felt a bit of guilt in his heart. He didn't understand why he had talked for so long with this seemingly normal young merchant. He could feel that this conversation was very comfortable. The other party was a person worthy of trust.
If Wei Wucheng's deduction got out, the entire world would probably laugh their heads off. Was the Qing Kingdom's Fan Xian someone who could be trusted?
"Alright, I'll go ask the elders in the tribe," Wei Wucheng replied with a forced smile. Fan Xian was not stupid enough to directly point this out. He rose from the meadow and patted his bottom. "Brother Wei, see you tonight."
At night, the Western Hu King's tent held a banquet to entertain the merchants from the Central Plain. If Wei Wucheng was truly a merchant, then they would certainly meet at the banquet. Wei Wucheng hesitated for a moment and then explained, "The banquet tonight is to entertain you. We probably won't come."
…
…
"Wei Wucheng doesn't have an accent, but he is certainly not a merchant." Fan Xian drank a mouthful of goat milk wine and furrowed his brows uncomfortably. He said to Mu Feng 'er beside him, "Furthermore, he has been on the grasslands for at least a year. There are at least a dozen people with him who can enter and leave the King's tent at will."
Mu Feng 'er glanced at him and asked in a low voice, "Is it the person we're looking for?"
"It should be." Fan Xian seemed to have not expected his luck to be this good. He immediately shook his head. "Wei Wucheng is not a professional spy. Otherwise, he wouldn't have made such a big mistake. I'm thinking, what exactly do these Central Plain people want to do by staying in Western Hu territory?"
Fan Xian put down his bowl and looked at Mu Feng 'er. "Most importantly, the person called Songzhi Xianling has yet to appear. Regardless of how Wei Wucheng and his group can help Western Hu, the reason the Western Hu King trusts them so much must be because of Songzhi Xianling."
"As you wish, I went to ask around, but I didn't directly say the name in fear of drawing attention," Mu Feng 'er reported. "However, during these two years, the Chief of Western Hu has not taken a concubine. Other than his first wife, he hasn't even had a woman."
Fan Xian paused for a moment. From the beginning, he had thought that Songzhi Xianling was a woman. That was why Mu Feng 'er had investigated from this angle. Hearing Mu Feng' er's report, Fan Xian couldn't help but laugh at himself. "If it really was her, how could she have become the Chief's favored concubine?"
"There's another problem," Mu Feng 'er said seriously. "I feel that Wei Wucheng's appearance was too coincidental, so coincidental that it cannot be explained. His words cannot be completely trusted. What if it is a trap or a misdirection?"
"My target has never been the Central Plain people in the King's tent," Fan Xian said seriously. "Wei Wucheng's appearance may seem coincidental to you, but I don't think it's coincidental at all."
He shook his head and said, "The grasslands and Central Plain are two completely different worlds. If you don't stay here for a year, you will not be able to understand those people's longing for home. Wei Wucheng is still a young man. It is difficult to suppress his homesickness. Seeing us merchants from the Central Plain, he wanted to come and talk and hear what interesting things have happened in his homeland."
Could homesickness really make people so uncomfortable? Mu Feng 'er furrowed his brows. After he had been transferred from the First Bureau to the Qinian Unit, he had also been sent out on missions. He didn't think it would be that bad.
Seeming to guess what Mu Feng 'er was thinking, Fan Xian said, "There will always be a day when the missions are finished. However, those people from the Central Plain, or Northern Qi, who enter and leave the King's tent, they may never be able to return to their homeland."
After saying this, he sank into silence. The reason he understood Wei Wucheng's thoughts so clearly was because Fan Xian understood how much emotion a wanderer who found it difficult to return to his homeland and was stranded in a foreign land would have.
It was just like him. After leaving that world filled with the smell of medicine, he could never return. Although he had never thought about it, it was still difficult to suppress his longing.
"Even if Wei Wucheng is homesick and wants to talk to the merchants of the Central Plain, are the people in the King's tent not afraid that he will spill the beans?"
"He is using the identity of a merchant. We are unable to go deep into the King's tent to see the proceedings of the Western Hu nobles. No one can prove anything."
It was clear that Mu Feng 'er was still worried about Wei Wucheng and the Commissioner's coincidental meeting. He furrowed his brows tightly and said, "I just find it strange. Since it is a casual chat, why didn't he go find the Xiong family merchants or me? Why did he come find you?"
Fan Xian was silent for a moment. A cute smile rose to his face. He opened his mouth and said, "My meeting with Wei Wucheng was not a coincidence. When he came out of the King's tent, I was already standing on the meadow and watching his every move."
Mu Feng 'er had also seen that scene clearly. He stood at the door of the tent by the crescent sea and watched the Commissioner stand on the meadow and look down at the grassland and lake.
"I am good-looking. Even if I am disguised, I am still good-looking," Fan Xian said with a smile. "Furthermore, I give people a feeling that they are willing to get close to me. When I stood on the meadow, the Hu women by Haizi's side were all looking at me passionately. Didn't you notice? "
Mu Feng 'er's expression changed. Such narcissistic words were not easy to respond to. However, he knew that what the Commissioner said was the truth. Perhaps he could disguise himself as a normal merchant, but he was certainly the most attractive of the merchants.
"I stood on the meadow to attract the attention of the young man hurrying out of the King's tent," Fan Xian said. "I wanted him to see me at a glance and then come find me. If it was me who seduced Wei Wucheng to come talk to me, it would not be far from the truth."
Mu Feng 'er helplessly spread out his hands and said, "So, it's a honey trap."
The two of them chatted in the tent. In reality, they were waiting for the sun to shine down on the crescent sea and the arrival of the King's banquet. Before long, a Hu interpreter came forward to respectfully invite the guests. The merchants in the various tents all came out. They did not bring any goods, but looking at their chests, they should be carrying valuable gifts for the Chief.
Mu Feng 'er also brought some. Fan Xian was not sure of the specific arrangements. He walked at the back of everyone and inconspicuously headed toward the King's tent.
The largest tent at the foot of the mountain and the tall royal flag symbolized the noble status and great power of the person inside. Looking at this scene, Fan Xian couldn't help but feel a strange feeling in his heart. This was the Western Hu King's tent. Inside lived the master of the grasslands. The Qing army and the master of the grasslands had fought and chased for countless years, but they had never been able to find this royal flag.
Because the Western Hu King's tent could move at any time and its tracks were mysterious, regardless of whether it was the Qing Emperor personally leading an army on a Western expedition or the repeated attacks of the Great Prince and the Ye family, they were unable to find it. They couldn't even get close.
Fan Xian's footsteps moved slowly. He thought to himself that the King's tent, which tens of thousands of Iron Riders could not get close to, was right in front of him. This kind of attraction and temptation was incomparably great. However, he immediately calmed down. The Western Hu King's tent dared to make such a declaration in front of the world. It proved the other party's intentions and the changes the Central Plain people in the King's tent had brought.
Only after entering the King's tent did he find that the tent was no longer like a tent. Rather, it was more like a palace with a unique style. The lofty roof was painted with strange patterns. A strange light appeared in the clouds and flowed with strange colors. It immediately gave Fan Xian a strange sense of familiarity. It was like he had seen it somewhere before.
His status was the second manager of the leading merchant in Shazhou. Compared to the other major merchants, his status was much lower. He only followed Mu Feng 'er and sat closest to the door.
The master of the grasslands, the ruler of the Western Hu, sat in the main seat in the deepest part.
It was dark inside the tent. It was impossible to see the Chief's face clearly. Fan Xian narrowed his eyes and tried his best not to draw attention as he stared in that direction. He could only vaguely make out that it was a middle-aged man in his 30s.
Fan Xian found that his calmness was indeed necessary because there were six or seven Hu aces by the Western Hu ruler's side looking down coldly.
They were true aces. Three or four of them were even more powerful than Hu Ge. Fan Xian lowered his head and quietly estimated that even if he performed to the best of his abilities, he could at most deal with four people. Furthermore, the King of the grasslands, whose face was hidden in the darkness, sat steadily and with the power of a wolf and tiger. It was impossible to tell how powerful he was.
To want to capture the tiger king in the tiger's den was not bravery. It was stupidity. Furthermore, Fan Xian did not have the awareness of being a suicide squad of the Qing army's Iron Riders. Thus, he lowered his head and nibbled on the leg of lamb. He was silent and listened.
It was a pity that there was not much information to remember at the banquet. The mutton was not bad, and the Hu tribe servant girls who poured the wine were filled with a healthy beauty. However, the praises of the merchants and the passionate toasts of the Great Lords on the left and right were truly annoying to listen to. The King of the grasslands was not as rough as Fan Xian had imagined. After more than two hours of banquet, the Chief had only said three sentences.
It was these three sentences that made Fan Xian feel a glimmer of coldness. Although his tone was polite, there was a sense of intimidation seeping through it.
In the detailed intelligence reports of the Overwatch Council, there were not many records of the Chief. For one, the King's tent had always been secretive. For another, due to the continuous attacks of the powerful Qing Kingdom and the successive defeats of the Western Hu, the Chief's control and influence of the court was far from what it used to be. The reputation of the Left and Right Virtuous Kings had gradually grown. When the father of the current Chief died, there were even rumors of choosing one of the two virtuous kings to succeed him.
Although the Chief had inherited the court with great difficulty, the entire grasslands faintly regarded the two virtuous kings as the most powerful. The Qing Kingdom's intelligence work had long turned toward the two virtuous kings' tents. They had somewhat overlooked the Chief.
No one would have thought that the young Chief in his early thirties would be able to control the situation on the grasslands so well and begin to greatly weaken the power of the Left and Right Virtuous Kings. In particular, he stood his ground against the opinions of the masses and welcomed the Man tribe brothers from the snowy plains in the North. He brought the tens of thousands of Man elites into the personal guards of the court. His power immediately increased explosively.
Furthermore, there were so many people from the Central Plain in the Chief's tent. What exactly did he want to do? As Fan Xian drank, he wondered about the Chief's thoughts in the darkness.
The Chief seemed to sense something strange. Furrowing his brows, he raised his head. His eyes revealed a hawk-like gaze as he swept his gaze across the banquet.
He didn't discover anything. When his gaze landed on the door, Fan Xian was drunkenly peeking at the bulging chest of the Western Hu girl beside him. With a glimmer of caution and reluctance, he played the role of a merchant's attendant very well.
It was still the same old saying. The Qing Emperor and Fan Xian were the two most powerful actors in the world.
…
…
After the large banquet, countless merchants had been forced to drink by the Hu people. The oil lamps hung high in the tents, giving off wisps of black smoke. The Chief and the Left and Right Guyi Kings had all gone to rest. Only the two masters and the good men of the Hu tribe remained, relentlessly grabbing the Central Plain merchants and forcing them to drink.
Fan Xian and Mu Feng 'er had long passed out from being drunk. They were carried back to their tents. It was a pity and rejoicing that the Western Hu people's actions were not as preposterous and shameless as the Central Plain people slandered them. At least, in the tents of these Central Plain merchants, there were no seductive Hu women as beautiful as wildflowers.
After the lamp went out, Mu Feng 'er sat up with great difficulty. Turning his head, he saw Fan Xian's bright eyes. The gaze was like a wolf's. Involuntarily, his heart froze.
In the common house in Qingzhou, Mu Feng 'er had also seen this kind of gaze. It was completely unlike the usual gentleness and coldness of an adult. He didn't know if it was the knife-like autumn wind on the grasslands that made some ruthlessness in Fan Xian's heart resurface.
Fan Xian handed over a hangover pill and didn't say anything else. He walked out of the tent. Taking advantage of the cover of the night, he passed through the Hu people's camp and came to the foot of the lonely mountain behind the crescent sea. He tied up his clothes and climbed up the mountain.
Just as he was about to climb to the top, he found a protruding rock. Sitting on the side of the rock, he took out a small tube from his clothes. Very seriously, he fiddled with it a few times. He then stretched out the small tube and brought it to his right eye.
It was the newest telescope produced by the palace treasury. Fan Xian had personally designed it and was the first to use it.
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