Chapter 76
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After his classmate finished speaking, he couldn’t help but laugh, “I used to laugh at you for taking the imperial examination, but now I’m starting to do the same. I just hope I won’t disgrace myself. You were the top scholar, I won’t compare myself to you, as long as I don’t end up in the third class.”
Chu Wei smiled lightly, “You won’t.”
His classmate laughed heartily, “Thanks for your auspicious words, top scholar!”
As they passed by the Zhaoyuan Building, his classmate happened to look up. Glancing through the window of the building, he remembered something and pointed at the window, “I remember when we were traveling together before, we saw a handsome young man with red lips and white teeth at this window. You said that beauty fades, that the skin is just a skin. Do you remember?”
Red lips and white teeth? Chu Wei glanced up at the window and remembered the emperor, unable to help but suppress a smile, his expression softened, “I remember.”
Before he could finish speaking, a commotion erupted in the street. They turned to see a group of people and horses rushing into the bustling market, wearing golden robes and long sashes. The people looked down on everyone, tall and deep-eyed, clearly foreigners.
The people and merchants in the market panicked and fled, and the vendors’ goods were knocked down in the chaos. The peace that once prevailed was shattered by this group of people. Chu Wei’s face turned cold, without hesitation, he strode forward and reprimanded, “The laws of Great Heng clearly state that causing trouble on horseback is forbidden. Where are you from, daring to be so arrogant and bold!”
The group of foreigners stopped their horses and looked down at Chu Wei, speaking in their language without caring about anyone else. Then they burst into laughter.
His classmate followed up, smiling but displeased, “You come to Great Heng and ridicule our officials. Isn’t that a bit inappropriate?”
The group of people stopped laughing and looked at each other. After a moment, a man walked out from behind them. He wore a felt hat and looked young and handsome, with slightly curly black hair flowing under the hat. He looked at Chu Wei with a hint of arrogance and interest in his eyes.
“Are all the officials of Great Heng like this?” The man looked Chu Wei up and down, raising an eyebrow. “Are they all prettier than women like this?”
Chu Wei’s expression darkened, and his beautiful face turned cold.
The foreigners laughed a few times and wanted to say more. But the patrol soldiers of Great Heng had already arrived on the street. They surrounded the cavalry with swords, shields, and spears, and the leader’s expression was grim, not looking very good. “The emissaries of Xixia, please go to the Mingsheng Relay Station first, and our officials will come to deal with the matter of riding horses in the streets.”
Seeing these fully armed infantry, the arrogant demeanor of the Xixia people subsided a bit. They looked at the man in front and were about to speak, but the leader of the patrol soldiers said firmly, “Please.”
The Xixia people were forcibly dismounted, and the grim expression on Chu Wei’s face eased slightly as he and his classmate looked at them coldly.
The man who had spoken to him earlier was still interested, pointing to Chu Wei and asking the patrol leader, “Who is this person?”
The leader of the patrol soldiers looked at Chu Wei and didn’t respond to the man. Instead, he nodded and said, “Lord Chu, we are here, feel free to go.”
Chu Wei nodded to him, the veins on the back of his hand bulging. His classmate whispered, “Look at their attire, they must be nobles from Xixia. Zihu, don’t act rashly, let’s leave first.”
Chu Wei restrained himself and said, “Let’s go.”
***
The next morning, the incident of the Xixia envoys riding through the streets was presented to Gu Yuanbai.
This matter seemed familiar; if he remembered correctly, Xue Yuan had also left his name with Gu Yuanbai because of such incidents. Gu Yuanbai’s face remained expressionless as he tapped the table with a heavy voice, “Since the Xixia envoys have come to Great Heng, they shall be dealt with according to Great Heng’s laws. If they are dissatisfied, let their emperor personally write to express their grievances.”
“Yes,” the magistrate of the capital replied. “Your Majesty, among the Xixia envoys who came to the capital this time, there is also a Xixia prince.”
“Prince Li Angshun,” Gu Yuanbai tossed the memorial on the table and snorted coldly, “Keep an eye on him.”
The magistrate of the capital acknowledged and retreated.
Gu Yuanbai’s birthday was at the end of September, and in mid-September, the Dali Temple stopped accepting criminal complaints. Before stopping his work at the Dali Temple, Gu Yuanbai took the time to investigate the cases handled by the Dali Temple during this period. After leaving the Dali Temple, it was still early, so the carriage slowly headed towards the palace.
Passing by a teahouse, Gu Yuanbai heard a familiar voice outside the carriage, “What do you want to do, sir?”
The voice was cold and icy, like spitting ice. Then, another thick voice with a hint of an exotic accent sounded, “I want to talk to the officials of Great Heng.”
Gu Yuanbai frowned, half-lifting the curtain of the carriage to take a look outside. In front of Zhang’s Bookstore, a man dressed in Xixia attire was blocking Chu Wei’s path.
Chu Wei’s expression was not good. He pinched several finger seals in his palm, but he still suppressed his anger. As diplomatic relations had been established between the two countries, as a court official, he naturally couldn’t act impulsively. He replied stiffly, “I’m sorry, I can’t accompany you.”
Li Angshun had a jade-like face, deep facial features, and a high nose bridge. He was very handsome, but his behavior was barbaric. Seeing Chu Wei about to leave, he took a step to the side, showing interest, “Is this how Great Heng treats guests? So rude?”
Chu Wei’s temples throbbed, he detested such men the most in his life. Being entangled by this man, he almost couldn’t maintain his etiquette.
Just then, a low-profile carriage passed by, and a voice came from inside, “Lord Chu, come over.”
Chu Wei’s expression changed slightly. He turned to look at the carriage, then nodded, feeling somewhat annoyed. He quickly walked over and bowed respectfully, “Your Majesty.”
The Xixia prince who had been stopped by the guards was prevented from following Chu Wei. The curtain of the carriage was gently lifted, revealing the lips tightly pursed in anger. Chu Wei glanced at them, and the faint shadow caused by the incident the emperor had witnessed disappeared slowly.
“The Xixia Prince has some nerve,” the emperor’s temper was unpredictable, and his tone was heavy, “To come to Great Heng’s land, under the feet of this emperor, and insult the officials of Great Heng.”
His words were long and drawn-out, his lips tight, exuding a cold and ruthless air.
The Xixia prince, being stopped at a distance, intuited that this person should not be provoked. He bowed and wanted to see the person’s entire face from inside the carriage. But all he saw was a slender and tense jawline and pale lips. The Xixia prince asked, “May I ask who you are?”
The person in the carriage gave a cold smile and continued, “Great Heng is a country of etiquette. Since the Xixia envoys have come to Great Heng, they should learn the customs of Great Heng. Since they don’t know the manners, they should stay at Mingsheng Relay Station and learn the manners before coming out again.”
With ample treasury, full granaries, and strong and powerful soldiers, Gu Yuanbai was full of confidence. He could directly adopt the demeanor of an elder brother towards the Xixia, which had gradually declined due to extravagance over the years.
The guards who stopped the Xixia prince said sternly, “Please, sir.”
The Xixia prince watched as Chu Wei boarded the carriage, the horse’s hooves raised, and the well-bred horse slowly left under the escort of many guards.
The Xixia prince’s face was gloomy, feeling deeply humiliated. He secretly signaled to his people in the crowd.
His people nodded and cleverly followed the carriage as it left.
***
On the carriage, the light was dim.
Chu Wei sat silently on one side, his head hanging low. He looked very depressed.
Gu Yuanbai’s expression wasn’t good either. He sighed and whispered softly to comfort him, “Are you okay, Minister Chu?”
Chu Wei whispered back, “I caused trouble for Your Majesty.”
Gu Yuanbai snorted coldly and said warmly, “How can it be considered you causing trouble? Those Xixia people are rude and insolent. They don’t know how to behave on the land of Great Heng. Clearly, they don’t regard Great Heng highly.”
As he spoke, his expression became more profound. It was because of this that he said Great Heng needed a big victory to demonstrate its strength domestically and internationally.
Let the Xixia people know that on this land, Great Heng used to be their elder brother, and now it still is, but the elder brother’s temper has changed, and he won’t tolerate the little brother’s unruly behavior anymore.
Chu Wei wanted to say something else when suddenly, the sound of horses approaching could be heard outside. Indistinct murmurs followed. Gu Yuanbai lifted the curtain and saw Xue Yuan’s face leaning down.
Xue Yuan seemed not to expect Gu Yuanbai to lift the curtain. There was a hint of surprise in his eyes. With eyebrows like swords and a wild and arrogant demeanor, his breath seemed to be blowing onto Gu Yuanbai’s face. After recovering, he smiled, his warm breath mixed with a hint of laughter.
Gu Yuanbai glanced at him and looked at the horse under Xue Yuan’s crotch for a few rounds, “How come Hongyun is with you?”
Xue Yuan was still bending over, one hand holding the reins, the other pressing down on the top of the carriage to stabilize himself. He smiled at Gu Yuanbai, “Take another look?”
Gu Yuanbai lowered his head and carefully examined the horse. Only then did he notice a ring of dark fur above the horse’s hooves, resembling a black rope. The horse was vigorous and fierce, staring at Gu Yuanbai with a fierce gaze.
The carriage was still moving slowly, and the horse under Xue Yuan’s saddle was also forced to move at an extremely slow pace. The horse neighed discontentedly and was ruthlessly reprimanded by Xue Yuan.
“Another good horse,” Gu Yuanbai couldn’t take his eyes off such a fine horse, “How did you get it?”
“The number of foreigners coming to celebrate the emperor’s birthday in the capital has gradually increased,” Xue Yuan said leisurely, “I exchanged this horse for three good horses and two wolf cubs.”
Seeing that Gu Yuanbai was still looking at the steed beneath him, Xue Yuan whispered as if sharing a secret, “Your Majesty, can you guess if this horse is male or female?”
Stallions are bigger and stronger than mares. Gu Yuanbai could tell at a glance that it was a stallion. He said bluntly, “Regardless of whether it’s male or female, I’ve taken a liking to this horse.”
Xue Yuan couldn’t help but laugh, pretending to be distressed, “But I’ve been invited to Heqin Wang’s mansion, and without a horse, I’m afraid I won’t make it in time.”
“Heqin Wang invited you to his mansion?” Gu Yuanbai frowned.
“Yes,” Xue Yuan straightened his back. He glanced at Gu Yuanbai sideways and suddenly frowned, “Your Majesty’s lips seem a bit red. Did you scald them with tea or were you angered by someone?”
Gu Yuanbai was stunned. He couldn’t help but touch his lips.
Xue Yuan’s gaze suddenly became somewhat restrained. He restrainedly averted his gaze and met the eyes of the chief guard on the other side.
The chief guard urgently opened his mouth silently: “Guard Xue, pay attention to Lord Chu.”
Xue Yuan understood his lip movements, raised an eyebrow, and nodded without changing his expression. The chief guard breathed a sigh of relief, his expression somewhat relieved.
Gu Yuanbai withdrew his hand and continued to ask about the previous matter, “When did Heqin Wang invite you to his mansion?”
“It was the day we returned from the summer palace to the capital,” Xue Yuan squinted his eyes and smiled gently, “Heqin Wang sent someone to invite me for a chat. I don’t know why, but since Heqin Wang ordered, I dared not refuse.”
After saying this, Xue Yuan thought for a moment and felt that it was inappropriate, so he changed his tone leisurely, “I am honored to be invited, so I felt that I must go.”
“Coincidentally,” Gu Yuanbai pondered for a moment, then suddenly smiled, “Perhaps it’s been a long time since I visited Heqin Wang. Since we’re out now, let’s go see him together.”
Heqin Wang and Xue Yuan.
What relationship could they possibly have?
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