Niao Ni
Chapter 257 Domestic Affairs
This time, upon returning to the capital, the First Prince, as the commander of the army, was entitled to bring two hundred to five hundred personal guards into the city. However, he ultimately only selected two hundred soldiers, presumably to avoid causing suspicion among the officials in the capital and the palace. Nevertheless, these guards were all valiant individuals. At this moment, while vying for passage with the envoy, they were barely suppressing their murderous intent. These two hundred soldiers, mounted on horseback, wore expressions of arrogance and disdain. Those who came from the battlefield always looked unfavorably upon these civil officials. However, hundreds of gazes turned toward the carriage, recognizing the identity of the person inside, and they dared not say much.
Inside the carriage sat the future imperial concubine. No matter how brash these fierce men from the Western Army were, they wouldn't be foolish enough to offend their future mistress over a mere dispute about the road.
The Minister of Rites had come out ten miles beyond the city to greet them. Among the officials present, he had the most seniority and the highest rank. Amid the awkward silence, he stood out with considerable discomfort, preparing to smooth things over. He spoke a few words, but amidst the neighing of horses, few people could hear him clearly.
A sudden chorus of neighs erupted, and the Western Army's personal guard cavalry split like a stream, dozens of steeds controlled with precision, clearing a large space on the not-so-wide official road. Amid the clattering of hooves, a general clad in dark armor rode forward.
Fan Xian, standing beside the Eldest Princess's carriage, frowned slightly, preparing to step aside. Unexpectedly, the First Prince's soldiers, using the guise of giving way, charged recklessly. These soldiers, who had been away for years, knew nothing of Fan Xian's status. They had already been annoyed by the sight of this handsome young man speaking earlier, and now they harbored the intention of scaring him to the ground, thoroughly humiliating him. Therefore, the leading horses grazed past Fan Xian's body, appearing extremely dangerous.
However, Fan Xian smiled, bowed slightly, and saluted the general on horseback, completely ignoring the prancing, neighing, and provocative steeds around him: "Minister Fan Xian greets Your Highness."
Riding at the head was naturally Qing Kingdom's First Prince. His eyes were bright and piercing, naturally carrying a fierce aura. His eyebrows were straight, his nose upright, and his cheekbones slightly high, but not unattractive. Instead, he possessed a heroic air. The First Prince, mounted on his horse, was clad in gleaming armor, truly resembling a celestial being, causing people to dare not look directly at him.
So Fan Xian didn't look directly, but instead offered a slightly detestable and irritating shy smile, bowing his head slightly in salute.
The First Prince seemed surprised that the somewhat restrained and humble civil official before him was none other than Fan Xian, the current darling of the capital. He paused slightly, then suddenly said: "This pretty boy? Why does he smile like a woman?"
The First Prince was of a boorish nature, and his words were unintentional, but they were overheard by his guards, who assumed that their master intended to deliberately humiliate this civil official who dared to vie for passage with them. They burst into laughter, their voices echoing through the skies outside the capital, filled with boundless contempt. The First Prince was slightly taken aback, but didn't bother to interfere, a smile playing on his lips.
The horses, feeling triumphant, drew closer and closer to Fan Xian. He could even hear the sound of the steeds' nostrils flaring. Several long horse faces pressed towards him, as the First Prince's guards intended to force the envoy off the official road.
Fan Xian frowned slightly. He hadn't expected the First Prince to disregard his future wife's face, and even less likely to give face to his distant brother-in-law. Seeing the horse faces drawing nearer, the excitement in their huge eyes growing, and knowing that these warhorses were difficult to control and had a bloodthirsty nature, he sighed inwardly, preparing to retreat temporarily—since the goal of antagonizing the First Prince had already been achieved, there was no need to truly fall out with him. Fan Xian had never had any connection with the military, which was a major weakness. If the old generals of the Privy Council thought he was deliberately disrespecting the Western Route Army, he might face difficulties in the court in the future.
That was what he thought, but he forgot that his subordinates didn't think the same way. Seeing that the Commissioner was in a dangerous situation, the Inspection Department's officers and swordsmen hidden within the envoy revealed themselves, moving out like a dozen wisps of smoke, some standing on the carriages, others finding high ground by the official road, all raising their crossbows, aiming at the horses approaching Fan Xian.
"Absolutely not!" The Minister of Rites exclaimed in alarm. To use force outside the capital? If this were to spread throughout the land, where would the court's face be? He, the Minister of Rites, would naturally lose his position. Did the First Prince think he could get away with it? And even if Fan Xian had the Inspection Department to back him, wouldn't His Majesty still give him a beating with a board?
The welcoming officials only now reacted, looking at the cold Inspection Department officials, and remembered Fan Xian's frightening identity. They shouted: "Stop! What are you doing!"
The First Prince watched this scene with cold eyes. For some reason, he found this Inspection Department puppy named Fan Xian somewhat pleasing to the eye. In his heart, anyone who dared to confront him directly was a man of some mettle.
Fan Xian, however, was secretly lamenting. These Inspection Department officials under his command had been trained extremely well on this journey. He hadn't expected them to be so concerned about his safety that they disregarded the court's face and dared to aim their crossbows at the Western Route Army returning from the east. These soldiers had been fighting for the country abroad for a long time. If this were to spread, even Chen Laobozi would be upset for a while.
The First Prince laughed, seemingly seeing Fan Xian's inner worries, preparing to see how he would handle this matter.
His personal guard cavalry, seeing that someone dared to threaten them, unleashed the bloody aura they had cultivated over the years with a deafening roar, raising spears and drawing bows, surrounding the envoy's vanguard. At the same time… the horses had already surrounded Fan Xian!
Fan Xian raised his hand, bending his middle and ring fingers, clearly making a gesture in the midst of the horses' encirclement.
The Inspection Department officials and swordsmen, seeing this gesture, remained expressionless. They lowered their crossbows, dismounted, and returned to their ranks, all in perfect unison, without the slightest hesitation.
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The First Prince, still on horseback, his face unchanged, was inwardly shocked. This seemingly weak scholar could control his subordinates so strictly. In this situation, a single gesture was enough to make everyone stop immediately. Even his own Western Route Army couldn't achieve such discipline.
The First Prince knew that nothing could really happen outside the capital, especially since the Crown Prince and the Second Prince were waiting at the city gate. So he gently pulled the reins and waved for the soldiers to withdraw. A somewhat disorganized rustling sound arose as the guards reluctantly sheathed their bows and arrows and pulled their horses back. Compared to the Inspection Department's immediate obedience, they were clearly lacking. The First Prince couldn't help but frown.
Just then, the horses surrounding Fan Xian were about to be pulled back when, unexpectedly, they were too close. Plus, the yellow soil on the official road had gradually dried, kicking up dust that entered the nose of a tall steed. The horse pawed its hooves, twisted its long neck, and immediately caused all the horses to become agitated.
Two horses simultaneously charged towards Fan Xian!
This was purely accidental. The First Prince, watching from ten zhang away, couldn't help but be startled. If he accidentally killed this red-haired figure in his father's eyes, all his achievements in the West would be wasted! But he immediately remembered the rumors of Fan Xian's abilities and couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope, thinking that since you are the Commissioner of the Inspection Department, you can’t be killed by a few horses?
Neigh! The horses charged straight through, instantly engulfing Fan Xian in a cloud of dust. Only experts could faintly see two flashes of light in the dust.
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With two dull thuds, the dust gradually settled, and Fan Xian still maintained that detestable smile, standing somewhat restrained in the center of the field. The two startled horses, however, had passed his body and collapsed to the ground. The riders seemed to have fainted, but the two horses were not so lucky. Their heads, along with two sprays of blood, had flown far away, and the horses' corpses shook the yellow soil on the official road, causing it to crack slightly!
Behind Fan Xian, two swordsmen in brown clothes tightly gripped their seven-foot-long sabers, their faces cold, their eyes gleaming with chill, looking at the First Prince's personal guard cavalry not far away.
Two sabers fell simultaneously, beheading two horses in a single blow. What fast sabers, what swift action!
The First Prince's pupils contracted slightly as he looked at the two swordsmen behind Fan Xian. For some reason, he felt that their movements were somewhat familiar. He lightly tapped the armor on the outside of his thigh, making a soft clanging sound. He looked at Fan Xian and said, word by word: "Lord Fan is indeed impressive. I have been campaigning for years, but I didn't expect that as soon as I returned to the capital, I would have two horses publicly slaughtered by you! So this is how the court welcomes soldiers home."
Fan Xian sighed, raised his hand to cover his nose and mouth, seemingly disliking the smell of the horse blood, and explained: "Your Highness, even if you gave me a thousand gallbladders, I wouldn't dare to kill Your Highness's warhorses." He only now realized that this Highness, although boorish, was not stupid, and every word was aimed at him. Only after hearing the First Prince refer to himself as "this Prince" did he remember that when the imperial decree was issued ordering the First Prince to return east from the Western Expedition, His Majesty had already conferred upon the First Prince the title of Prince. He was the first of all the imperial children to be ennobled.
Thinking that he had offended the other party badly today, Fan Xian couldn't help but frown.
As the First Prince's expression grew colder, his personal guard stepped forward and said something. Hearing these words, the First Prince's eyes narrowed as he looked at the two sabers behind Fan Xian and frowned: "So they are the Tiger Guards."
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Gao Da also said in a low voice behind Fan Xian: "The man beside the First Prince is a Tiger Guard."
Fan Xian raised an eyebrow and asked: "You know him?"
"This subordinate does not recognize him, but this subordinate knows," Gao Da replied in a deep voice, the horse blood still dripping from his saber. Fan Xian said: "Since you are a Tiger Guard, how can you be so rude to the First Prince?"
Gao Da said in a deep voice: "Young Master, His Majesty has ordered that this subordinate only needs to protect the Young Master's safety. As for who the other party is, there is no need to consider it."
The two spoke in extremely low voices, and a few strange expressions suddenly appeared between Fan Xian's eyebrows. After a long silence, he suddenly bowed deeply towards the First Prince's mount, saying nothing more.
At this time, the First Prince's personal guard cavalry had already carried back the two unconscious soldiers, waiting only for His Highness to give the order to charge forward and give the envoy a good beating. However, at this moment, the First Prince fell silent. Suddenly, the First Prince rode alone, driving straight to Fan Xian's side, leaning down slightly, and said in a low voice: "I like your temper, but killing horses is inauspicious. After entering the capital, be careful that this Prince causes you trouble."
Fan Xian looked at this brother and sighed: "Your Highness, it really has nothing to do with this humble servant. Please Your Highness understand."
The First Prince snorted coldly. As a member of the imperial family, he naturally knew the command of the Tiger Guards and thought that they were bodyguards that his father had arranged for the envoy, which had nothing to do with Fan Xian. But deep down, he was still extremely angry.
"It was this palace's intention. If Your Highness is dissatisfied, do not make things difficult for Lord Fan." The Princess's voice, which had been silent for a long time in the carriage, finally sounded again.
At this time, the officials surrounded them, Ren Shaoan holding Fan Xian's hand, Xin Qiwu hugging the First Prince's leg, the palace eunuch desperately clutching the First Prince's reins, the Minister of Rites blowing his beard and glaring, scolding the personal guard cavalry with hateful expressions back, and the elders of the Privy Council acting as peacemakers. In short, the Qing Kingdom court mobilized together, surrounding the First Prince and Fan Xian in the center, turning hostility into friendship, and transforming violence into peace.
With so many officials gathered, the conflict between the envoy and the Western Route Army naturally had to stop. Otherwise, if a fight broke out and someone injured one of the old people, it would be equivalent to disrespecting the court.
What is the court? It's not the three departments, six ministries, and four temples, but face, the face of all the officials.
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Just then, the city gate, which had been watching from afar as if something had happened here, finally reacted. A rider rushed over, kicking up dust, and only after asking around did he understand that the envoy had arrived early and was fighting with the First Prince for the road. Such a big event was not something that subordinates could handle, so he quickly reported it.
At this time, both sides were competing with each other. Even if Fan Xian wanted to retreat, the princess in the carriage and the civil officials in the envoy did not want to retreat any further. They insisted on entering the city before the First Prince.
But the First Prince had suffered a great loss of face today by killing two horses in disgrace. If he hadn't known that the Tiger Guards were trusted by his father and could never be used by a minister, he would have ordered a barrage of gunfire. But at this time, he was also provoked and refused to let the envoy enter the city first. What the hell is a princess! Won't you be the one to wash my feet in the future!
Unable to resolve the dispute, the imperial officials hugged legs, blocked horses, and naturally a fight could not break out. So they had to play some verbal tricks, but the Western Route Army soldiers were skilled in fighting or, but how could they be the opponents of these diplomatic officials who were good at sophistry? From court rules to the friendship between the two countries, from His Majesty's holy will to the officials' faces, the First Prince's side gradually lost ground, but he stubbornly blocked the official road and refused to let the envoy enter first.
A bright yellow carriage slowly approached the accident site amidst the most lively vegetable market commotion in the Qing Kingdom's history.
Finally, someone noticed it and quickly stopped talking, and at this time Fan Xian had already retreated, huddled next to Yan Bingyun's carriage, not knowing what he was talking about. After Yan Bingyun's reminder, he immediately noticed the carriage, quickly greeted it, sorted out his official uniform, and followed the officials around him, giving a great salute.
"Greetings, Crown Prince!"
The Crown Prince was originally preparing to greet the First Prince's return to Beijing at the city gate in accordance with His Majesty's holy will, but he never knew that it would be so chaotic here. He had no choice but to condescend and come to mediate in person.
Seeing that the Crown Prince had arrived, the First Prince did not dare to scold recklessly again, quickly dismounted, and walked to the Crown Prince's carriage in armor and knelt. But at this time, the Crown Prince had already got out of the carriage and quickly stopped him, not letting him kneel down, and kept saying: "Brother, you are wearing armor, there is no need to perform this great gift, and besides, you are my brother, how can I let you bow to me."
The First Prince's temperament was really direct. If the Crown Prince said not to bow, he would not bow. He straightened up and took off his helmet. Although the officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and the Ministry of Rites were whispering something in their hearts, but it was the matter of the two brothers, and since His Majesty did not care about these etiquette, what could these officials say.
The Crown Prince looked at his brother's cheeks and said with some emotion: "Brother has been fighting for the country outside for many years, and has been exposed to wind and sun, and has lost weight."
The First Prince replied with a smile: "What's the matter? Running horses outside is also comfortable. You also know that I hate staying in the mansion the most, it's suffocating. If it wasn't for Grandma insisting that I come back, I would have liked to stay outside for a few more days."
The Crown Prince blamed: "Not only the Emperor's grandmother, the Emperor's Empress, Concubine Ning, and our brothers, all want you to come back sooner."
The First Prince looked sideways at Fan Xian and said: "I'm afraid some people don't want me to come back sooner."
Seeing that he was unhappy, the Crown Prince asked clearly what had happened, but he couldn't help laughing. The ministers didn't know what the Crown Prince was playing. The Crown Prince gently beckoned and ordered Fan Xian to come over, blaming: "Are you fighting with the First Prince for the road? Do you know that this is a serious crime."
Fan Xian smiled and explained: "How dare this minister, it is really that the Grand Princess of Northern Qi has come a long way, and has caught a cold on the road. She really can't wait any longer outside the city."
The Crown Prince nodded slightly, and took the First Prince's hand to the carriage and gave a soft greeting, then turned back and said to the First Prince with a smile: "You can't argue with these ministers, besides, you haven't been in the capital for two years, you don't know what happened, I guess you don't know Fan Xian, come, let me introduce you."
Fan Xian and the Crown Prince had never really met, but seeing the Crown Prince's gentle expression at this time, he knew that the other party wanted to show his close and friendly relationship with him in front of the officials, so he walked forward with a smile and gave a salute to the First Prince: "Minister Tai Xue Feng Zheng Fan Xian, meet the First Prince."
"You are the Fourth Grade Ju Zhong Lang," the Crown Prince blamed: "How can you forget your official position."
Fan Xian smiled wryly and shook his head: "This road north and south is really a bit confused, please forgive me, Crown Prince."
The Crown Prince said softly to the First Prince: "Fan Xian is now helping Dean Chen."
"I know that, Commissioner of the Inspection Department, what a big official." The First Prince said with a sneer.
The Crown Prince smiled and smoothed things over: "Stop it, even if you don't look at my face, look at Chen yatou's face, you can't be angry with him, speaking of which, when you were young, you and Chen yatou were very good... Speaking of which, Fan Xian is also our brother-in-law, we are all family, what kind of anger are you having."
The First Prince snorted coldly, looking at the somewhat restrained Fan Xian: "I'm angry at this, Chen'er is the treasure in everyone's hands in the palace, and she is married to such a sissy, it's annoying to look at! It's been less than half a year since we got married, and you have asked to be an envoy, leaving your newly married wife in the mansion, how can you be a good match for Chen'er!"
Fan Xian smiled bitterly, only then did he realize that he had completely misunderstood the direction. It turned out that the fight for the road was indeed a family matter, but it was not a family matter between the First Prince and the future imperial concubine, but a family matter between this prince and his brother-in-law.