The First Lackey Under The Empress

The dark clouds over the capital dispersed before evening, as if announcing the end of the dueling.

Zhao Du'an changed into new clothes, rode a fine horse, and, bathed in the sunset glow from the west, arrived at "Zhangtai Garden."

— A detached palace of the royal family within the capital, exclusively for banquets, overseen by the Ministry of Rites.

"Scholar Zhao!"

Zhao Du'an had just arrived at the periphery of the villa when he heard a familiar voice and saw Han Zhou running quickly from the direction where the carriages were parked, his face beaming with a smile.

"Han Zhou?"

Zhao Du'an, immersed in dejection, was stunned for a moment, then saw the other scholars of the Institute for the Advancement of Literature behind Han Zhou, and his smile widened:

"It's you all."

After not seeing each other for many days, there were endless things to talk about.

Zhao Du'an's horse was led away by a servant, and he was immediately surrounded by a group of scholars, walking towards the gate of Zhangtai Garden.

A group of poor scholars, who spent their days buried in the Institute for the Advancement of Literature, were excited, their chatter filled with compliments and amazement.

Clearly, they had all learned of Zhao Du'an's performance in the dueling.

"Scholar Zhao, why are you coming alone? I heard that after the dueling ended, the threshold of your Zhao family was broken through."

Han Zhou teased with a smile.

Zhao Du'an blinked his eyes with a wry smile:

"That's why I'm hiding out here for some peace and quiet."

In the afternoon, after saying goodbye to Zhang Yan, he went home once and found his house filled with people who came to visit and congratulate him.

His concubine and younger sister were overwhelmed with the reception, and Zhao Du'an also felt a headache, so he disguised himself, sent a message to the servants at home, and hid out first.

After listening to his complaints, the scholars of the Institute for the Advancement of Literature looked at each other and smiled.

When they "entered the cabinet" in the past, each of them had a similar experience.

"…Back then, we were all like this, so frightened that we dared not go home. It was even more exaggerated than when we passed the imperial examination and were proud of ourselves. So we simply ran out to have a drink together, thinking it was a happy thing."

Han Zhou sighed, then admired:

"However, compared to Brother Zhao, we are just small fries. Today, officials from the court and the field are gathered to celebrate your success, what a grand occasion?"

Another scholar next to him shook his head:

"Brother Banshan is wrong. Not long ago, Scholar Zhao also had many generals in the army celebrating for him. He is already familiar with it."

For a time, there was a constant stream of flattery.

Zhao Du'an just smiled faintly, and as he spoke, he had already entered Zhangtai Garden.

At this moment, the sky was already getting dark, and officials from various government departments gathered in the garden.

Zhao Du'an casually chatted with Han Zhou and others, and the crowd surrounding him, with smiles on their faces, grew larger and larger.

Those who watched could not help but sigh:

Two months ago, the public opinion in the officialdom had compared Han Zhou with Zhao Du'an, believing that the former was better.

At that time, Zhao Du'an was often met with cold looks from officials wherever he went, who looked down on him.

But today, his status and treatment have been reversed.

Walking among a group of scholars from the Institute for the Advancement of Literature, he had the air of the leading young generation in the capital.

In Zhangtai Garden, attendants were like clouds, and there were also musicians and dancers to add to the fun.

Zhao Du'an went straight into the largest hall, where round tables were placed.

Inside, there were already senior officials of the fourth rank and above.

"Haha, the Military Star of our Great Yu Dynasty has arrived."

The Minister of Rites, whom he had met once, stood up to greet him, his face full of smiles.

Beside him, the old Minister of War, who had reviewed the troops together in the Shenji Camp's training ground, also stood up and joked with a smile:

"Today, Zhao Qian's feat also brings glory to us military officials. How can you civil officials steal my words?"

Zhao Du'an laughed and exchanged greetings with many officials in the hall, then looked at Grand Tutor Dong, who had arrived at the table earlier, and cupped his hands:

"Grand Tutor, why did you bother to come?"

Dong Xuan, wearing a Grand Scholar's robe, with white hair and beard, and already in his twilight years, pretended to be displeased:

"What, now that you have entered the fourth rank of military merit, you despise this old man?"

Zhao Du'an hurriedly waved his hand, and Dong Xuan showed a smile, patted the chair next to him that was left for him, and sighed:

"Since it is a celebration banquet, there should always be an old minister to support the scene. Yuan Li from the Censorate has something to do over there, and Xue Shence seemed to have gained some insight after seeing your Heaven-Opening Sword, so he also declined. As for Li Yanfu… hehe, he probably doesn't want to come, so only this old man came."

The Censorate has something to do?

What happened that made Yuan, the old fox, personally take charge, and couldn't even spare time for a meal?

Zhao Du'an was curious, but he didn't ask, just exchanged greetings and sat down.

As a result, before his butt was warm, a refined and generous acquaintance, who attracted many eyes, entered the hall from outside.

"The Princess has also come?" Zhao Du'an was surprised.

Xu Junling was dressed up tonight, and with her already outstanding appearance, stepping into this dinner party, which was almost all old men, was like lighting up a beam of light.

She had bright eyes and white teeth, and smiled sweetly:

"What? Does Lord Zhao despise this princess for having no official position and not being able to enter this Zhangtai Garden?"

"Where are you speaking, Princess,"

Zhao Du'an laughed heartily, ordered someone to bring a chair, and then smiled:

"As long as the Princess doesn't think this room of men is dull and boring, I will accompany you even if you want to sit until dawn."

Everyone laughed.

Grand Tutor Dong was in a good mood today, and said to him with a smile:

"You have misunderstood. Half of the glory of today's celebration banquet belongs to you, and the other half is probably going to belong to the Princess."

"Oh?" Zhao Du'an was puzzled.

The Minister of Rites next to him explained a few words, and he suddenly understood.

It turned out that the imperial court holding a Zhangtai banquet after the Buddhist Dueling was also a tradition, which was first established by Emperor Taizu.

At that time, the glory of the dueling was suppressed by the masters of the imperial court.

The purpose of the banquet was to find a group of civil officials and scholars with good poetry to come and write poems to praise and show the martial prowess of the royal family.

But later… the inheritance of the royal family gradually weakened.

This Zhangtai banquet became a place similar to a "literary gathering."

The ministers still banqueted and composed poems, but not for Buddhism, Taoism, or the imperial court, but to make a name for themselves.

The theme of the poems was not limited to "dueling."

Because the season was in autumn, there were also many poems with the theme of "autumn", or more broadly, with the theme of "life's experiences."

"So, today is not only my celebration party, but also a literary gathering?" Zhao Du'an's expression was strange.

He thought to himself, no wonder he didn't see many military officials along the way.

I'm afraid that Xue Shence's claim of comprehending the sword dao was false, and avoiding comparing poetry with literati was true.

No wonder the Empress told him before that there would be literati writing poems to praise him tonight… it was probably also arranged by the Empress.

The purpose is to take this opportunity to show the power of the imperial court to the world, in order to pursue the glory of the Taizu Dynasty… which can be understood as a means of political propaganda.

And this Xu Junling, known as the "talented woman of Jiangnan", is best at poetry… which can be regarded as coming to her home field.

"It's just that my knowledge is shallow. In that case, I would like to ask the Princess to make a few good poems for this official afterwards?" Zhao Du'an teased with a smile.

Xu Junling sat upright, pinching the jade cup with her green onion-like fingers, and smiled faintly:

"Lord Zhao is said to also have the title of Scholar, but this princess dares not show off her poor skills."

The surrounding ministers all laughed:

"The Princess is too modest."

"Haha, don't embarrass Lord Zhao."

They all knew that although Zhao Du'an was talented and insightful in civil administration and economy, he had never written poetry or articles.

Even if he could really write, there was no reason to compare with Xu Junling, or even Han Zhou and other talented women and men.

Zhao Du'an had a smile on his face, met Xu Junling's pretty face with a faint provocative expression, curled the corners of his mouth, and thought:

"I can't be bothered with you."

…

…

Just when the capital was immersed in noise and hustle.

Thousands of miles away, in the darkness of night.

On a towering mountain peak, inside the Forbidden Mountain Manor, which is the main altar of the "Revival Society."

A fiery red lantern also followed the corridor, passed through one pillar after another, stepped over one step after another, and arrived at the high-rise building in the manor, which was adjacent to the cliff.

"Grand Tutor, has news from the capital come back again?"

The woman who was the official wife of the Second Prince Xu Jianwen, who launched the coup, and also had the title of "Princess Consort", was wearing a long skirt, holding a lantern, and looked at Zhuang Xiaocheng in front of her with a worried expression.

Zhuang Xiaocheng, who had the temperament of a great Confucian scholar, although he was old, was still energetic, was in a daze.

Hearing this, he turned around, and in the darkness, he seemed to smile, shook his head and said:

"Princess Consort, don't worry too much, it's not a letter from the capital."

The Princess Consort obviously breathed a sigh of relief and sighed:

"In the past few months, bad news has frequently come from the capital. Many experts who were sent out have been defeated one after another. A few days ago, news came back that the person King Jing had buried in the Privy Council had also been exposed.

Not only that, the blueprints of firearms that were obtained with great difficulty have also been greatly reduced in use due to the new firearms… I am really afraid of the news from there."

Zhuang Xiaocheng was saddened when he heard this. Wasn't he the same?

After the arrest of Thousand-Faced Divine Lord, the remaining members of the capital branch urgently cut off many actions and sent the news back.

Because Thousand-Faced was a master ranked at the forefront of the Heavenly Dipper, and mastered a lot of internal information of the Society, Zhuang Xiaocheng was busy and urgently ordered personnel to transfer from all over the country.

Cutting off the original contact methods and changing to new ones was another toss, which was considered stable.

Yet, news arrived that Prince Jing's side had also suffered heavy losses, with their secret agents failing once again.

And all of this was still related to that "Zhao Du'an."

Zhuang Xiaocheng had even heard some within the organization blaming him for not eliminating the threat at the root, leading to such a major problem.

"Your Highness need not worry. The capital city is the foundation of the false emperor, easy to defend and difficult to attack. Our defeat is only to be expected.

However, compared to the territory of Great Yu, the capital is but a single prefecture. Even if we were to abandon it, delaying the false emperor's efforts in exchange for a complete victory, in terms of military strategy, it would still be a greater gain than loss."

Zhuang Xiaocheng spoke eloquently:

"Moreover, with the ongoing Buddhist and Taoist conflict in the capital, if I am not mistaken, the Dragon Tree Bodhisattva of Shenlong Temple has been planning this for a long time, and will surely achieve a great victory this time.

By then, with Shenlong Temple's increased influence, the balance among the three factions in the court will be broken, and the false emperor will inevitably suppress them. This will be the opportunity for me to implement my strategies…

Heh heh, I have already laid out my plans in advance. Once the Buddhist sect wins, they will realize that their previous small victories are insignificant to the overall situation."

In other words:

We're winning big!

The Princess Consort's expression softened slightly:

"If the Grand Tutor says so, I feel much more at ease. By the way, who sent the letter today?"

Zhuang Xiaocheng snapped out of his grand scheme and smiled:

"It's from Taicang County, a secret letter."

The Princess Consort was taken aback, suddenly thinking of something:

"The Taicang Silver Mine?"

Zhuang Xiaocheng nodded slightly, stroking his beard:

"This matter is quite interesting. If I am not mistaken, someone is secretly taking action. Heh heh, if the false emperor wants to implement his new policies, he cannot avoid this chess piece. We only need to observe from the sidelines and perhaps reap the benefits."

A gust of mountain wind blew, and Zhuang Xiaocheng's sleeves fluttered, making him look like a legendary strategist.

He turned around, looked towards the direction of the capital with his hands behind his back, and smiled:

"Counting the days, the Buddhist and Taoist conflict should end today. I have already arranged for people to spread the word that the imperial family is declining and Buddhism is flourishing. Let's see how that false emperor, and that… Zhao Du'an, will respond to this open conspiracy?"

… …

… …

Zhangtai Garden!

The night grew deeper, and the entire villa was immersed in an atmosphere of joy.

Zhao Du'an's victory today swept away the imperial family's decline. Although the actual change was not significant, it was an excellent point to "promote."

The common people did not have a strong perception of which side was strong or weak, so public opinion was crucial.

Xu Zhenguan deeply understood the essence of this, and arranged for many scholars tonight.

When the banquet began, after the singing and dancing, it entered the poetry session.

A group of literati and poets threw out their prepared poems, lavishly praising Zhao Du'an and the Great Yu imperial family.

The explicitness and flattery of their words made even Zhao Du'an, a villain, feel inferior.

He immediately realized why the Empress Dowager was unmoved by his usual flattery.

It was because these scholars were too good at licking boots!

Zhao Du'an personally saw a scholar in the courtyard holding a volume of poetry and reciting it loudly at the entrance of the hall, praising Zhao Du'an in all aspects without dead ends.

He was praised as being rare in the heavens and hard to find on earth.

He felt uneasy, his face flushed, and when he turned his head to look at the other civil officials beside him, they all looked natural, eating and drinking as usual.

They looked like they were used to being flattered, with their threshold maxed out.

Zhao Du'an felt ashamed and thought that he still had shallow knowledge.

He immediately became interested, carefully admiring the scholars singing praises, and silently learning.

He prepared to apply what he learned in the future, believing that he would definitely be able to break Zhenbao's defenses.

Fortunately, the scholars of Great Yu were not completely shameless. After the praise singing session, they finally entered the "poetry meeting" stage.

This time, Zhao Du'an truly witnessed the demeanor of the scholars of this era.

Most of those present were officials, and which one was not learned and rich in knowledge?

Did they not roll out from the mountain of poetry?

They could casually produce a poem, and then others would make high-level comments, winning applause.

Xu Junling was worthy of being a talented woman. After everyone had performed a round, she gently threw out a poem, overwhelming the audience.

Grand Tutor Dong couldn't help but praise it greatly, personally commenting and giving it a high evaluation.

Afterwards, a group of scholars in the capital held their breath, exerting all their energy to compete with her.

Among them, Han Zhou was worthy of his reputation, and the poems he threw out were not inferior to those of the Princess, which could be considered as saving some face for the people of the capital.

Zhao Du'an smiled and only ate, drank, listened to music, and watched dances, showing little interest in poetry competitions.

The surrounding officials were not surprised, only thinking that Lord Zhao was a "military general", and even if he had strategies for governing the country, it was normal for him to be unskilled in poetry.

However, no one knew that the real reason was that Zhao Du'an, who had been exposed to too many world-renowned poems in his previous life, had an overly picky aesthetic taste.

From a young age, he had memorized the pinnacle of art, so it was difficult for him to be interested in appreciating what was in front of him.

Lord Zhao only wanted to drink today.

Thus, when the night watchman's clapper sounded.

The banquet came to an end, and Zhao Du'an, who had been drinking silently, was drunk once again.

One after another, older ministers got up to bid farewell and leave.

"Everyone, this official will take his leave first."

Zhao Du'an exhaled a mouthful of alcohol and stood up, cupping his hands to those around him.

A group of civil officials who had long been immersed in the atmosphere of poetry competition and were unwilling to end it pretended to persuade him to stay.

— The circles of civil and military officials were distinct. Civil officials were energetic and enthusiastic about literary gatherings, while military generals yawned.

"No, no, I was quite tired from the martial arts competition today, and I want to go home and rest early," Zhao Du'an said with a smile.

The officials then reluctantly said goodbye.

"Lord Zhao is leaving so soon?"

Princess Xu Junling stepped forward and said with a smile. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were full of excitement and pride.

She was as proud as a female peacock.

During the day, Zhao Du'an was the victor on the arena.

That night, at this literary gathering, she, Xu Junling, was the victor.

"Heh heh, does the Princess want to send me home?"

Zhao Du'an said with a smile, throwing out a seemingly teasing remark, but it could also be understood as flirting.

Xu Junling suddenly remembered the scene when the two of them were in the teahouse, and Zhao Du'an's frivolous words, and couldn't help but feel a little angry.

Hearing this, she stretched out her proud neck and said with a faint smile:

"Lord Zhao is joking. I was just thinking that at tonight's Zhangtai banquet, Lord Zhao did not leave behind any calligraphy for commemoration, which is a bit of a pity."

"You want my calligraphy?"

Zhao Du'an asked with a smile in his eyes, taking advantage of his drunkenness.

Xu Junling's lips curled slightly, her expression natural:

"Of course. However, if Lord Zhao is not good at poetry…"

"Bring a brush."

Zhao Du'an gave her a strange look and suddenly said.

Xu Junling was stunned.

The surrounding civil officials also showed surprise, realizing that Zhao Du'an was going to write a poem, which was a rare thing.

Immediately, someone moved a table with writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones from nearby and presented the brush with both hands.

"The Princess is right, this scene should indeed be recorded," Zhao Du'an said with a smile, meeting the Princess's proud gaze, raising his hand, grabbing the brush randomly, and dipping it full of ink.

His gaze swept across Zhangtai Garden.

At this time, the remaining guests had heard that Lord Zhao was going to write a poem and curiously gathered around.

Zhao Du'an raised his eyes and looked around the room full of vermilion and purple.

Zhao Du'an lowered his eyes and saw that even the paperweight on the table was expensively carved into the shape of a golden whip.

He smiled, recalling his experiences over the past six months, from the disdain of the civil and military officials to their current flattering smiles.

The emotions in his heart suddenly surged.

Zhao Du'an put pen to paper:

《Night at Zhangtai》

Tonight, drunk among the flowers and willows of Yujing, I share wine with dukes and lords.

My ambition soars beyond the heroes of old, my spirit refuses to lag behind others.

The Emperor, beauty, and I, a youth, ride golden whips through Zhangtai.

Essays presented in the Taihe Hall, songs and dances linger at the玳瑁 banquet.

Zhao Du'an put down his pen and threw it away.

He stepped through the crowd, his sleeves fluttering, and walked into the night.

No one stopped him.

Inside the hall, the lights flickered, and it was magnificent.

The Minister of Rites, who was standing closest, read the poem aloud.

Then, the officials who had been watching the excitement were stunned.

Xu Junling stared blankly at the unrestrained words on the paper.

Han Zhou recited softly in the crowd, savoring it.

Grand Tutor Dong got up, muttered it once, and his dim and turbid eyes lit up:

"This poem…"

Then, he chewed on the sentence "The Emperor, beauty, and I, a youth", and his expression was a little strange.

The next second, the old Grand Tutor suddenly waved his hand, summoned a close follower, pointed to the piece of poetry, and said:

"Send it to His Majesty."

… …

It's late. Speaking of which, I wanted to change this poem when I started writing the book. .