From a son-in-law to a favorite of the empress

One thousand taels of gold is roughly equivalent to more than ten thousand taels of silver. It can be said that he was generous.

Giving money in front of so many people must be intended to recruit. Whether to accept or not has a great impact.

Zhou Yuan had a smile on his face, but his heart sank again and again.

This time he met his match! This Annan Marquis Han Tuo seems to have some skills.

A military marquis with great military achievements, who was targeted by the empress and stripped of his title, came to Lin'an Prefecture and was able to hold up such a big scene, so that the Criminal Prison Department and the prefect came to visit him. This kind of influence is definitely not what his past merits can do.

In some areas of power, this marquis must play an important role.

Being able to do this shows that Annan Marquis himself is very smart and powerful.

And such a person's reckless recruitment may have a deeper meaning.

Zhou Yuan examined his resources and was slightly shocked.

Although his father-in-law, the top scholar in the Jinke, was temporarily sent out, he had outstanding political achievements and it was only a matter of time before he was reused in Beijing.

Being on good terms with the Xue family means that one has a good influence in the army. After all, Xue Changyue made great contributions in the past, and many generals in the court now come from his command.

Being on good terms with the Qu family means that one is talented enough and has influence among the literati.

At the same time, he is a centurion of the Jinyiwei, and an airborne centurion with connections above him.

All the conditions combined make him undoubtedly worth investing in.

The Marquis of Annan must have investigated him thoroughly before making such a reckless recruitment... It seems reckless, but in fact, it is a heavy sword without a sharp edge and great ingenuity without work.

In front of so many people, it is naturally difficult to refuse, but once he agrees, with so many people witnessing, Zhou Yuan naturally becomes his man, even if he is superficially compatible, others will not believe it.

This is a typical oppressive recruitment. More than 80% of people dare not refuse even if they don't want to. In order to avoid tearing their faces, they can only be forced to agree.

Annan Hou is indeed something. Zhou Yuan had to admit that this guy has great power, otherwise he would not have been able to get so much accurate information and then make risky and oppressive recruitment.

"Thank you, Lord Hou, for your appreciation!"

Zhou Yuan was excited and took the box quickly, saying loudly: "Lord Hou, you are generous. If you need me in the future, please speak frankly."

It's not that Zhou Yuan has no vision or that Zhou Yuan is timid, but he doesn't want to make enemies. After all, there are still big things to do in Lin'an Prefecture.

"Why are you being polite! Come and eat fish!"

Han Tuo laughed loudly and invited Zhou Yuan and everyone to sit down. He was obviously in high spirits.

Everyone also responded, but occasionally glanced at Zhou Yuan with a little contempt in their eyes.

You, Zhou Yuan, were so proud before, but now you want it for money, and become Annan Hou's running dog?

All crows are black, and you, Zhou Yuan, are still circling around yourself.

If someone despises, there will naturally be someone who envies, and Zhou Yuan's reputation will gradually polarize.

"Are you crazy?"

After sitting at the table, Qu Ling lowered his voice and said, "Is the money so easy to get? It's obviously to bribe you! If you agree to this, the whole world will think you are his, and you will have no choice if you don't want to get on the pirate ship."

Zhou Yuan smiled and said, "Do I have a choice?"

Qu Ling said, "Why not? Even if you don't accept it, what can he do to you? You are not completely without background."

Zhou Yuan thought for a while, and then said, "It's not good to offend him directly. All my energy must be invested in the gambling house in the south of the city. If I can borrow his power, it will be a good thing."

Qu Ling sneered and looked around, squinting and said, "If he is so easy to get along with, he can't afford such a mansion."

"This man must be a ruthless person."

Zhou Yuan patted Qu Ling's shoulder and smiled softly, "Who told you that I would spit out bones after eating people? Relax a little, it's nothing more than someone giving me money and I accepted it."

"After the show, I just have more money, and I haven't lost anything else."

Qu Ling sighed and shook his head, "Don't understand it that way. If you take money but don't do anything, your reputation will be ruined and can't be restored. And as for doing things, some things are really difficult to do."

"Anyway, I feel that you didn't make a good move."

Zhou Yuan was silent. In fact, it wasn't that he didn't make a good move, but Han Tuo had prepared everything and forced him to make this move.

There is no point in regretting, just to do your own thing as soon as possible.

So Zhou Yuan asked, "When can we get the information about Ye Mian and Lu Hanxing?"

Qu Ling said, "The day after tomorrow. Go back to the house the day after tomorrow and someone will communicate with you directly."

Zhou Yuan nodded. Han Tuo's appearance made him feel inexplicably uneasy, so he wanted to sort out the things on hand in the shortest time possible to see what the situation was.

I just hope that these things will not be related to Han Tuo.The sea bass was delicious, the atmosphere was perfect, and everyone was chatting happily.

It was just because of what happened just now that Zhou Yuan became the one who was left out, and even many boudoir girls no longer looked at him.

After all, these scholars naturally disdained the mercenaries who were blinded by money.

But when such a thing happened to them, they would be extremely excited.

After all, they were not the beneficiaries.

"There are three joys today!"

Han Tuo raised his glass and looked at everyone, laughing loudly: "First, I am very lucky to be able to meet with you in this summer and have a feast for fun."

"Second, Lord Li and Lord Xu came to visit, and the little marquis was not very happy. I made a little wine and chatted with the world."

"Third, this marquis and Zhou Yuan met, like old friends, and we hit it off at first sight."

"These three joys should be made clear!"

After the voice fell, everyone raised their glasses and drank happily.

After drinking for more than an hour at the banquet, Zhou Yuan was not drunk, but he was in a hurry to pee. He asked the servant for the toilet and rushed in.

After walking out refreshed, Zhou Yuan subconsciously looked into the depths of the mansion, and saw a figure hurriedly walking in.

Zhou Yuan's heart was moved, and his brows suddenly frowned. The figure just now looked so familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere, but he couldn't remember it clearly.

He secretly remembered this back in his heart, hoping to recognize it next time he saw it.

After a day of fun, the meeting finally ended.

Zhou Yuan's reputation was completely spread, not only the name of Yuan Yi Zhenren, but also his own talent, which was actually very helpful for his future career.

After everyone left, Annan Hou sat quietly in the courtyard and played chess.

After the chess piece fell, he said slowly: "This man has talent, courage, and determination, otherwise he would not be able to write such good poems and kill people in Yunzhou."

"It's just that he lacks ambition and determination, and lacks some vision, which is just right for us to use."

The bald man next to him laughed softly: "My Lord, you have a keen eye, I admire you, but... is Zhou Yuan really that important? It's worth my personal effort to win him over."

Annan Hou snorted and said: "What do you know? The empress is too short of people now. The top scholar of the Jinke has a clean background and is capable. He will be reused soon."

"It's just that this sick land is probably beyond salvation."

"The one in Shenjing, he must have been unable to sleep in recent years."