Earlier, what were the madams and young misses saying downstairs? Leader Duan Mu had already taken in a twelfth concubine, and each one was younger than the last. The youngest one had not even reached marriageable age.
He had brought his wife to celebrate Duan Mu An Guo's birthday for the sake of having Duan Mu An Guo speak to the court and have him take the position of prefect of Qing Zhou. The gift that he had brought was naturally valuable. But the current situation was different. He wanted to preserve his life and stand out from all the other officials to remain in the North. Just relying on madam Lu as a relative was not enough. This bit of birthday gift was also not enough. Adding on the daughter of a concubine was not enough. He needed to think of another method.
And this method …
Magistrate Lu's gaze quickly swept over Feng Yu Heng's body, as he came up with an idea.
The husband and wife did not speak any further. After a long silence, magistrate Lu finally gestured with his eyes, and the husband and wife decided to rest in the inner room. Either way, things had already gotten to this point. They could not leave, so they could only rest in the room.
Feng Yu Heng helped make the bed then helped madam Lu wash her face. Only then did she close the door and retreat to the outer room.
In the instant that the door was closed, madam Lu immediately sent a questioning look to magistrate Lu. Magistrate Lu quietly said: "Repeating the same old trick." She understood.
Feng Yu Heng faced the door and slightly raised her red lips. What sort of person was she? Having lived two lives, how could magistrate Lu's little thoughts be hidden from her.
You want to send me into the leader's palace? Very good, I was just worried that I could not get in, yet you have given me a good opportunity. But she needed to think carefully. If she became the thirteenth concubine, when the time came to send madam Lu into the bridal chamber, would Duan Mu An Guo be disgusted to death?
She made up her mind and leisurely lay down on the couch in the outer room, closing her eyes to rest.
As Duan Mu An Guo's birthday celebration drew closer, more and more officials entered Song Zhou. Of course, the majority of them were from other provinces. Not a single one of the officials from the capital that could attend court had come. After all, the capital was well-informed, and the people knew a bit about the situation in the North. This muddy water would naturally be avoided.
The day before the birthday banquet, Duan Mu An Guo sat in a study in the back of the palace. Sitting to the side was his eldest son, Duan Mu Cong.
This Duan Mu Cong was already in his early 40s this year. He was the father of Duan Mu Qing, who had died at the hands of Feng Yu Heng and Xuan Tianhua. In regards to Dashun, Duan Mu Anguo's hatred stemmed from many years of servility. As for this Duan Mu Cong, it stemmed from the pain of losing a son. Even in his dreams, he wanted to go to the capital and chop up Feng Yu Heng and the Seventh and Ninth Princes. Unfortunately, if Dashun went to the North, they could defend, but it was impossible for the North to rush out.
Duan Mu An Guo glanced at his son and knew that the enmity in his heart needed to be avenged. This enmity was not just limited to Duan Mu Cong. Even he himself needed to go to the capital to settle accounts. Duan Mu Qing was the grandson that he favored the most. He was capable in both civil and military matters. He had even begged for the position of deputy leader of the North. However, who knew that he would lose his life in a foreign land when he had just been sent to the capital to gain some experience. How could he be reconciled with this?
"Cong 'er." Duan Mu An Guo spoke up, "Don't worry. Father will definitely give you a chance to personally avenge Qing 'er, but it is not now. Right now, what we need to do is to conserve energy and help Dashun establish Qian Zhou as a strong opponent. When both sides have been injured, that is when we will truly take action. "
Duan Mu Cong took a deep breath and suppressed the hatred in his heart. Nodding, he said: "Father's words are reasonable. Right now, there are nearly 40 officials from Dashun that have come to the North. They have also brought their families. With these people present, even if we cannot empty out Dashun, we will have emptied out half of it."
Duan Mu An Guo's expression remained cold. He was not too optimistic about this matter, saying: "The people that can come to the North definitely have not heard about the situation here. To Dashun, this sort of person is probably not important. But it's fine. No matter how unimportant they are, at least there are many people. Even if they want to fill this gap, they will not be able to do so in a short period of time. These people must be kept in Song Zhou. No matter what method is used, even if they have to be locked up, they must be locked up. "
Duan Mu Cong quickly said: "Father, don't worry. They have already been placed in various inns. Son has already sent a large number of soldiers to stand guard. This place is the North, not the capital. Even if they understand and want to escape, it would be difficult for them to escape. Based on the records from when they entered Guan Zhou, we have already sent a large number of people to control their families. With their families holding them down, these people have no choice but to listen to us. "
Duan Mu An Guo sighed to himself. This eldest son of his, in the end, was not smart enough and did not think far enough. When he considered things, he would always think in a straight line and never turn around. This was also the reason why he had given the position of deputy leader of the North to his eldest grandson and not his eldest son.
He helplessly shook his head, saying: "The North is too far from the central region. These people have also come from all directions. How many people will you send? Or how many secret letters will you send out? With such a large number of people being sent out, how could Dashun's court not know about it. What's more, by the time our people find those families, the other party might already be on guard. How can we control them just like that? Cong 'er, oh Cong' er, if you were half as smart as Qing 'er, father would not need to worry about not having a successor. "
Duan Mu Cong was infuriated by his father's words, but he still could not understand, "Aside from this, what other methods are there?"
Duan Mu An Guo sneered, telling him: "There's no need for us to do anything ourselves. We just need to spread the word that these officials have already joined the three northern provinces and joined my Duan Mu family. As for their families, Dashun's court will take care of them for us. As for these people, we can easily control them with just a few words. Could it be that you believe that they have the ability to leave Song Zhou City and investigate on their own? "
Duan Mu Cong heard this, and his face alternated between red and white. He quickly stood up and said: "Then son will go and make new arrangements." After saying this, he quickly left.
Duan Mu An Guo let out a heavy sigh, and it was as though he had aged ten years in an instant. His originally strong waist had also collapsed a little, and his hale and hearty spirit had also become a little sluggish. That biting cold aura that was as cold as the North gradually faded away, and a layer of age appeared on his face.
In the end, he was old. Even if he did not want to admit it, his body had already begun to remind him that he was no longer as good as he was in the past. Qian Zhou had wild ambitions. From beginning to end, they had been eyeing Dashun's territory. This was fine. He was all too eager for Qian Zhou to begin fighting with Dashun. If possible, he would help Qian Zhou in secret. It would be best if he could help Qian Zhou charge out of the country and attack the central region. Once this bird flew out, his Duan Mu family would immediately turn around and attack Qian Zhou.
Duan Mu An Guo squinted his eyes, and a cold look appeared in his eyes once more. Back then, the Duan Mu family's ancestor and the Xuan family had worked together to conquer Dashun. The Xuan family had obtained the central region, while the Duan Mu family only had a small general to protect the North. At that time, the North was not as large as it was now. The three provinces, Guan, Song and Jiang, were not part of Dashun's territory. As for the current North, it was the land that the Duan Mu family had fought for over a few generations. From the moment that Duan Mu An Guo took over the position of clan leader, he had decided to seek justice from the Xuan family. Of course, the third prince, Xuan Tian Ye, was nothing more than a chess piece that he used to disgust the old emperor. He knew his own name. Dashun's territory was too large, and the Duan Mu family could not afford it; however, there was another place that they had to obtain.
The Lu family couple had wanted to pretend to rest for a while. The two would chat and discuss the next step of the plan. However, who knew that madam Lu would pretend to be too serious. Not long after, she really did fall asleep. Magistrate Lu had nothing to do, thus he could only sleep with them. Perhaps it was because they were tired from the journey, as they slept until the sky turned dark. They did not even get up to eat dinner.
Feng Yu Heng did not want to starve with them. At noon, she entered her space to eat half of a pork shoulder. At night, she entered her space to eat the remaining half of the pork shoulder. She even took a bath and brushed her teeth. Her life on the road was very happy.
But in the end, there were times when she had nothing to do. She hugged her knees and sat on the kang bed in the outer room. Through the window, she could see the figures of the guards standing outside. Although they were being imprisoned in disguise, the Duan Mu family did not mistreat these people. The North was cold, and it was popular to sit on kang beds. From the inner room to the outer room, the kang beds were heated especially well. It was such that she had to sit on the blanket to avoid being burned.
Feng Yu Heng could feel that the Duan Mu family seemed to be carrying out a large scheme, but she felt that this scheme was not as simple as it appeared on the surface. The North had defected to the enemy, but would the place that they had defected to really become allies with the Duan Mu family?
She pulled the blanket over her body. Although the kang bed was hot, the body that was exposed would still feel cold. She leaned against the wall and thought. Xuan Tianming had a large number of soldiers. They walked slowly, and they had to take a detour. Even if they were slow, they should have finished half of the journey by now, right? That guy must have been furious that she had taken the risk to travel alone. The purple lotus on his brow must have bloomed even more when he was angry. It was very beautiful.
A certain person began to become infatuated. At the same time, the man with the purple lotus suddenly sneezed. He sniffed and seemed to have guessed something. He could not help but snort coldly and roll his eyes.
Bai Fu Rong glanced at him and quietly asked Bai Ze: "What happened to his Highness?"
Bai Ze was very good at guessing his master's thoughts and immediately said: "It's most likely that he was nagged by the princess."
"Oh." Bai Fu Rong nodded, "Heng Zheng has this sort of long-distance control ability? Truly amazing! " While saying this, she wrapped the cloak around her. The further North they went, the colder it became. The mountains had already begun to freeze, and the surface of the river had frozen. Just looking at it made her feel cold, not to mention the occasional cold wind that would blow. That was truly bone-chilling.
Bai Ze said with a smile: "Don't appear to be too weak. After all, this bit of cold is nothing to our princess. If you're too weak, it's easy to be exposed. Or … "He leaned forward a little:" Or are you happy to see this exposed? "
Bai Fu Rong raised her eyes and forcefully suppressed her anger, saying: "What are you saying? If I was happy to see this exposed, what was the point of me coming all this way? Would it be good to stay at home and be my precious young miss? Tsk! " She waved her hand subconsciously, "I really don't understand. How could someone like you, who clearly doesn't have enough brains, be able to stay at His Ninth Highness's side? I really feel bad for His Ninth Highness. He was actually able to endure you for so many years. "
"You damn woman!" Bai Ze was so angry that he wanted to hit her, but with so many people watching, he could not hit the princess, right? He could only hold in his anger. His face was bright red, and he glared at Bai Fu Rong with a venomous look.
Bai Fu Rong snorted, "That's the look of a resentful woman. You're not embarrassed to glare."
Just like that, the two of them bickered back and forth. During this period of time, another goshawk soared above the canyon's horizon ….
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