In the darkness of the night, a group of carriages quietly entered Liangzhou City and passed through the tightly guarded city gates without any obstructions. Mount Qingliang opened its Yi Gate, and the Northern Liang Prince's Mansion opened its doors to welcome guests in a manner that was normally reserved for the emperor.
There were three carriages. The white-robed monk's family of three and the little monk Nanbei sat in the first carriage. Master White Lotus of Mount Longhu, Bai Yu, and Han Guiqing of Mount Qingshan Monastery of Mount Wudang sat in the second carriage. Chang Sui, Xu Huang, and the others from Shangyin Academy sat in the last carriage.
Xu Weixiong led a large group of people out of Mount Qingliang to welcome the guests. Behind Song Dongming, the deputy administrator of Beiliang, stood a group of curious advisors. Song Dongming's official residence halfway up the mountain was known as the Dragon Gate of Beiliang. Hsu Fengnian's residence in Wutongin was known as the Phoenix Pavilion. It was clear that Song Dongming had an extraordinary position in Beiliang's officialdom.
Only Li Dongbei and the little monk Nanbei could be counted as revisiting old haunts. Li Dongbei's eyes were sharp. She immediately spotted Song Yu, the chief steward of the prince's residence. She trotted over and greeted him warmly. Song Yu, who had been the steward of the Xu family for most of his life, was also very happy to see this little girl. This rigid old man, who was privately called the cold-faced Yama by the officials of Liangzhou, actually squeezed out a smile for the first time. Probably because he was not used to greeting people with a smile, his face was slightly stiff. However, the old man still smiled and said that he would personally accompany Miss Li to the cosmetics store tomorrow. The little girl was very happy. Lu Chengyan and Wang Chudong did not show their faces in public. After all, the two girls were future princesses. It was not proper for them to go out and greet guests.
Xu Weixiong greeted the white-robed monk and Master White Lotus first, then walked to Chang Sui and the others. Chang Sui raised his empty wine gourd and shook it. He smiled and said, "Green Ant Wine, no more and no less. One pot a day. Junior sister, you have a big family business. This shouldn't be a problem, right?"
Xu Weixiong nodded and said, "Drinking is not a problem. Just don't go to Tidehark Lake to drink in the middle of the night. If you fall into the water, you will be fed to the fish."
Jin Baogu's eyes were red as she called out to her Senior Sister.
Xu Weixiong smiled gently and said, "It's only been a few years since we last met and you've already grown up. Do you want me to be your matchmaker? Although the men of Beiliang are used to drinking the northwest wind and eating the yellow sand of the desert, and are not as well-read as the scholars of the Central Plains, after interacting with them for a long time, you will know that they are more capable of shouldering burdens than the scholars of the Central Plains. Especially the men over there. They ride the best horses, carry the best sabers, drink the strongest wine, and kill the Beimang barbarians. I'm sure Junior Martial Sister will like them. "
Jin Baoshi grabbed Xu Weixiong's hand and held it in her arms. She smiled coquettishly and said, "Senior Sister, you're not married yet. Why should I be in a hurry?"
Xu Weixiong turned to greet Xu Huang, Sima Can, and Liu Duanmao. She did not say anything extra and just called them Senior Martial Brother and Junior Martial Brother.
The white-robed monk stood next to his wife and watched as Bai Yu and Song Dongming hit it off at first sight. One was a Taoist immortal who was highly regarded by the late Emperor, the other was a scholar who had a high chance of becoming an important official in the imperial court. These two were among the few scholars in the entire Liyang Dynasty. They chatted happily. But when Li Dangxin recalled the secret conversation about Leader Zhao on Mount Wudang, the white-robed monk felt a little tired. He sighed softly and no longer paid attention to Bai Yu and Song Dongming's conversation. After entering the palace, he looked around at the scenery. In the early years of the Liyang Dynasty, there was a saying, "Millions of families have suffered, but one family has become rich." In other words, the Xu family, who occupied a mountain and sat on Tide-listening Lake, wantonly collected the wealth of the people in Beiliang. Their wealth was comparable to that of a country.
Soon, the aides of the "Dragon Gate" lined up to Li Dangxin. Probably because the Deputy Administrator had warned them beforehand, these Beiliang officials who had admired the white-robed monk for a long time did not dare to open their mouths and talk about their daily lives. They all respectfully introduced themselves and at most added a few compliments. The white-robed monk smiled and nodded in return. The latter did not think that the abbot of the Two Zen Temples was putting on airs. Everyone knew that when the white-robed monk returned to Tai'an City after traveling thousands of miles to the west, he only put his palms together and saluted the emperor who personally led the horse for him. He did not even turn over and dismount from the horse! This group of officials who had leaped over the Northern Liang Dragon Gate had already achieved a certain level of attainment in the official field, hence they did not want to give the Wudang Mountain's Great Zhenren Han Gui the cold shoulder. Very sincerely, they asked for advice on the Taoist school's health maintenance technique. Forget about other things, Han Gui, who had the highest chance of becoming the next Wudang Sect Leader, could not be considered cold shoulder anymore. In the future, he would be a minister of the same rank as the Six Ministries Minister, who would dare to slight him?
In addition to the white-robed monk and his wife who led the chief butler Song Yu to a house to stay, the East and West Girls and the North and South Monks had already left the group and wandered around with familiarity. Along the way, she could accurately call out the names of the maids she met. She also had an elder sister. The clever maids of Mount Qingliang certainly remembered this little girl clearly. She was someone who was doted on by His Royal Highness as his own sister. The little girl had a good temper, so it was hard not to like her. Bai Yu and Chang Sui followed Xu Weixiong and Song Dongming to the unique official residence halfway up the mountain. Although it was called the Deputy Administrator's residence, it was actually a continuous series of short courtyards. A Deputy Administrator and more than thirty assistant officials dealt with government affairs and basic necessities of life here. Those Dragon Gate officials, who were like the male servants of the Liyang imperial court, sensibly dispersed and went back to their own homes. They continued to deal with the affairs gathered from the Governor's Mansions of the three provinces of Beiliang.
In the last room, except for Xu Weixiong, who was in a wheelchair, Song Dongming, who was an important minister of the border area and had to be admitted by the Liyang imperial court, Bai Yu and Chang Sui, who were temporarily in Mount Qingliang as the top guests of the Prince's Mansion, Xu Huang, who was a master of the art of war who was about to go to Huaiyang Pass, Sima Can, who was already the governor of Tie You County in Lingzhou, Liu Duanmao, who was about to enter the Governor's Mansion of Lingzhou as an assistant to Xu Beizhi, and Jin Bao Shi, who wanted to enter Wutongin, all sat down.
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