The First Lackey Under The Empress

"Lord Zhao, please."

Accompanying the Prince's words of farewell, Xu Junling woke up as if from a dream, stood up, and said to Zhao Du'an with an extremely complex expression.

In tonight's conversation, Zhao Du'an's resourcefulness undoubtedly made her look at this gigolo of her imperial sister with new eyes.

"… Okay." Zhao Du'an pushed himself up from the table, looked regretfully at the "Eight Delicacies of River Freshness" on the table, and suddenly said:

"Can I get it to go?"

Xu Junling was stunned, completely thrown off by his sudden change in temperament.

"Haha, just kidding, easing the atmosphere." Zhao Du'an smiled brightly and said seriously to the Prince sitting opposite him:

"Thank you for the hospitality tonight, I'll take my leave now."

Negotiation is negotiation, and threats are threats.

There's no need to make the surface relationship too stiff.

Zhao Du'an turned around and walked downstairs with Xu Junling.

Just as he was about to step down the stairs, he suddenly heard the voice of the Prince of Huai'an behind him:

"For my daughter's sake, let me remind you, the imperial court is in the open, and Prince Jing is in the dark. The one who should be anxious is not you, but Prince Jing."

Zhao Du'an paused, smiled, and walked downstairs without responding.

When they reached the fourth floor, Haitang and the others also heard the movement and got up to walk over.

The two sides looked at each other and tacitly followed Zhao Du'an out of Dafeng Tower.

After declining the Princess's offer to see him off, Zhao Du'an stood downstairs, turned around, and looked at the six-story high, extremely conspicuous pagoda-shaped building behind him, the lights on the fifth floor shining brightly in the night.

"Let's go," Zhao Du'an said softly.

Haitang held back again and again, but in the end, she didn't ask anything.

It wasn't until the group returned to the Humble Administrator's Garden that Zhao Du'an summoned several trusted confidants, closed the door, and held a small meeting.

Skipping the details, he briefly described the attitude of the Prince of Huai'an.

"What exactly does he mean?" Haitang frowned, "So, he didn't make a statement and just sent you out?"

Eunuch Hai, Hou Renmeng, Shen Juan and others also looked at each other.

They were more purely martial people, and they knew very little about the court's intentions, if not completely ignorant.

Zhao Du'an sat in the main seat, wiped his face with a steaming hot towel, and then said calmly:

"His meaning is very clear. The position of the Prince of Huai'an's mansion will not be swayed by my few words. That's not surprising. As for those words I used to scare and threaten him, they are just ideas after all, and no one can say for sure what will happen in the future. But…"

"But what?" Haitang was curious, the female investigator was extremely excited about participating in such a major event.

Zhao Du'an smiled, his eyes flashing:

"I can sense that the Prince of Huai'an is wavering, so his final position at the opening market will likely depend on the outcome of my struggle with Prince Jing. Heh, before leaving, he was afraid that I wouldn't understand, so he specially reminded me…

Now, of the three factions in Lake Pavilion, the Prince of Huai'an is neutral. Next, we will have to fight with the group led by Prince Jing. Whoever wins, the Prince of Huai'an may lean towards that side. Heh heh… A thorough merchant's nature."

Haitang said worriedly:

"That's troublesome. This isn't the capital. Can we win? And how do we win? By wooing the neutral faction?"

Tsk… You're good at solving cases, why do you have to get involved in power struggles? You don't understand this… Zhao Du'an corrected with a smile:

"It's not about wooing the neutral faction, but about winning over the Prince of Huai'an. Once the news of my meeting with him today spreads, who do you think will be the most anxious?"

Haitang's eyes lit up: "Are you saying it's Prince Jing?"

Zhao Du'an nodded and said seriously:

"The Prince of Huai'an's act of meeting with me is telling Prince Jing that because their father and son were overshadowed by me during the day, the Prince of Huai'an has a tendency to lean towards me.

Therefore, Prince Jing will be very anxious. He must show his ability and courage to suppress me in the coming period."

"So complicated…" Hou Renmeng and Shen Juan were already a little confused.

They sincerely felt that political intrigue was not something martial artists should play with…

Uh, although their lord was also a martial artist.

As for the old servant, he didn't care at all and was always dozing off.

"In short, from now until the start of the Lake Pavilion Gathering, I must maintain a high profile,"

Zhao Du'an looked at them helplessly:

"As for you, you must also be vigilant and guard against Prince Jing who may cause trouble for me at any time."

In the corner.

The socially awkward Ji Yue and the drunken Lang Shibaba finally perked up, rubbing their fists and palms.

…

…

Just as Zhao Du'an returned to the Humble Administrator's Garden.

Around Dafeng Tower, in a bustling shop, a Jianghu traveler put down a few coins, picked up his long sword, and got up to walk out of the shop.

Then he passed through the crowd, through the streets and alleys, gradually leaving the bustling and lively streets, and slipped into an alley bathed in moonlight.

And stopped outside a courtyard.

The Jianghu traveler gently pulled the door knocker and tapped it in a specific rhythm. After a while, the courtyard door opened.

The person who opened the door was a boy of about sixteen or seventeen years old. His face could not be seen clearly in the moonlight, but he felt full of energy.

"No tail," said the Jianghu traveler.

"Okay." The boy nodded vigorously and closed the door warily.

Then the two entered the dark room together. The house looked dark from the outside, but in fact, it was lit with lights inside, only the windows were covered with black cloth.

As soon as the two stepped into the room, they saw several people sitting or standing around a round table with orange-yellow candles lit.

There were men and women, ranging in age from teenagers to thirties, all of whom were a group of passionate young people.

The leader was a woman dressed as a scholar, apparently disguised as a man. Because her kerchief was taken off, she had thick long hair scattered down.

Her palm-sized face had round and charming eyes, but her temperament was cold and clear.

A cloth bag was hanging around her waist, and it seemed to contain a heavy, pancake-shaped object.

"Wu Ling, how is it?" A young woman named Lin Yuebai asked somewhat eagerly.

The other passionate young people also looked over earnestly.

The Jianghu traveler took off his bamboo hat, revealing the handsome face of the actor Wu Ling, who had become famous in the capital's opera house.

In Wu Ling's bright black eyes, the candlelight on the table flickered. He shook his head and said:

"No chance. Thief Zhao is extremely cautious. He is always guarded by experts when he travels, and he never leaves them even half a step. He went to Dafeng Tower to meet with the people from the Prince of Huai'an's mansion. I couldn't get in, and I don't know what they talked about."

"Hmph! What else can they talk about? It's nothing more than two dogs doing evil things that harm heaven and earth!"

Beside him, the boy who had just opened the door said angrily.

The boy had thick eyebrows, which made him look quite heroic, like a little tiger. At this moment, he clenched his fists heavily:

"That thief Zhao is willing to be a gigolo for the pseudo-emperor, harming loyal and good people, and killing so many of our brothers and sisters? I, Kou Qichi, can't wait to eat his flesh raw to pay homage to the martyrs who were arrested and died tragically in prison!"

As soon as these words came out, the other young people at the table, except for the female mage named Lin Yuebai, were all united in hatred and cursed Zhao Dog.

Wu Ling was expressionless, but his heart was quite complicated.

It had been many days since he left the imperial prison in the name of "escape" under Zhao Du'an's orders.

After leaving the capital, he immediately contacted Zhuang Xiaocheng, the leader of the rebellious party, through the secret contact method of the Kuangfu Society.

He reported the news that the bewitching national teacher was killed, and that it implicated the destruction of the entire Kuangfu Society branch.

As soon as the news came out, there was a shock within the Kuangfu Society.

Zhuang Xiaocheng was shocked and immediately demanded to see Wu Ling.

After inquiring about the situation, he first let Wu Ling rest for a few days to recover from his injuries, and then learned that Zhao Du'an was about to go south to Lake Pavilion.

Zhuang Xiaocheng ordered Wu Ling, who was "familiar" with Zhao Du'an, to join the members of the Huaishui Dao branch to keep a close eye on Zhao Du'an's situation and seize the opportunity to assassinate him.

So, Wu Ling, as a spy, came to Lake Pavilion in a watery way and met this group of passionate young people who were kept in the dark and vowed to eliminate the treacherous officials and kill the Zhao Dog who had done many evils that could not be written down.

How should I put it, the mood is quite subtle.

"Qichi!"

Lin Yuebai, as the leader of this team, scolded and said seriously:

"Thief Zhao is extremely cunning. If we want to kill him, we must plan calmly, act cautiously, and remember to be reckless. You should change your temper."

The young Kou Qichi said "Oh" and slumped down:

"Sister, I know."

"Cough cough," Wu Ling coughed lightly and said seriously:

"Yuebai is right. When I was in the capital, I tried to assassinate this thief and almost lost my life, but I didn't even see him. It's enough to show that this person has extraordinary means. With our strength, I'm afraid we can't do it."

The female mage disguised as a man nodded, but then smiled and said:

"I know, but Tai Fu had already considered this, so the main force of this assassination is not us. We are just listening to news and tracking his whereabouts. In the next two days, a master from the society will arrive to kill this thief."

Wu Ling was stunned, his eyelids twitched: "A master from the society? Who is it?"

Lin Yuebai didn't suspect him, smiled and said: "The former commander of the Imperial Guard of the Imperial Palace, Qi Yuchun!"