Who among the gangsters wants to fall in love?

Chapter 194 Before the Lantern Festival

It was late at night, and Luo Chaoyan and Guan Yunshu were probably resting, so Zhao Wumian went to a place called Ziqing Palace.

The Ziqing Palace is located on the northwest side of the harem. If the Kunning Palace is relatively popular with many palace maids coming and going, then the Ziqing Palace is deserted. Not to mention palace maids, there are not many masters of the palace hiding in the dark.

Zhao Wumian arrived here and jumped off the carriage. A small white snake came out from the corner, propped up its upper body at Zhao Wumian's feet, and swayed its head left and right. Its black eyes the size of soybeans stared at Zhao Wumian without blinking.

Zhao Wumian raised his hand slightly, and the little white snake showed a very human surprise on its face. It climbed up his pants to his forearm, then bit him and sucked his blood happily.

The little white snake is small in size and has small teeth, so when you bite it, apart from the slight stinging pain at the beginning, you will feel warmth and itchiness... After you get used to it, it actually feels a little comfortable.

Zhao Wumian walked into the palace with the little white snake coiled in his hand. Along the way, based on his current perception, he could see that the dark corners of the palace were almost full of poisonous insects, so dense that they were enough to scare ordinary people out of their wits.

Inside the hall, the scenery changed completely. It was almost filled with plants that Zhao Wumian could not understand. Some were lush and green, full of vitality, while some were shaped like bones, eerie and strange.

Zhao Wumian silently stared at a pitch-black lotus. From the center of the lotus was dripping red liquid that looked like blood. There was a container underneath to collect the 'blood'... Just by looking at this thing, Zhao Wumian was more and more certain that this world had nothing to do with the ancient world in his previous life.

What the hell is this? Creepy.

"What are you doing here now?"

An ethereal voice came from her ear. She looked in the direction where the voice came from and saw a girl in purple wearing a wide straw hat. She stood up from a patch of plants and looked at her. The shadow under the brim of the hat covered most of her pretty face, and she could only vaguely see a pair of bright eyes.

Zhao Wumian looked at her, then at the black lotus at his feet that was bleeding, and couldn't help but say, "This place is too gloomy and a little creepy. Fortunately, you are here, and I can see you dressed like a flower farmer. It's great."

"You should save this little trick to please girls for Chaoyan." The purple-clothed girl lifted her skirt and stepped over several flower pots. She patted the hem of her skirt and took off her straw hat with both hands, revealing her delicate face. "So why are you here?"

"I fought with Chou Manjiang tonight, and I wanted to borrow Naraku Hongsi to review the Wushan Sword... No matter how good this sword technique is, it is the famous martial arts of the Pavilion Master of Huanzhen Pavilion. Sooner or later, I will fight him in the future. After learning it now, I know myself and the enemy, and I can have a better chance of winning."

"Oh." The girl in purple took out her handkerchief, threw it lightly, then put on her straw hat again, turned around and bent down to continue taking care of the flowers and plants.

Zhao Wumian took the handkerchief and looked at her back, "Why aren't you sleeping so late?"

"Aren't you asleep too?"

"I have official business."

"I have some too."

"Take care of these things?" Zhao Wumian looked around again, "Why are you working so hard? Are you in a hurry?"

"Unlike you, I don't want to waste my time sleeping. I have to cherish every moment."

Zhao Wumian frowned slightly, "What do you mean?"

"It's just that I work harder." The purple-clothed girl squatted in front of a pot of white flowers with her back to Zhao Wumian, her back slender.

Zhao Wumian lowered his eyes and stared at her figure, was silent for a few seconds, and then found a chair and sat down.

The purple-robed girl tilted her head and asked, "What are you doing?"

"Feel it here."

"Can't you go somewhere else?" The purple-clothed girl frowned slightly, not used to having someone around her.

"Why do you want to go somewhere else?" Zhao Wumian asked in confusion, "You are here."

The purple-clothed girl was speechless, and she looked away as if she was angry, ignoring Zhao Wumian.

The little white snake crawled from Zhao Wumian's arm to the table, shaking its little head, and said something like "Don't quarrel~Don't quarrel~"

Zhao Wumian smiled slightly and said nothing more. He concentrated his mind on the Naraku Red Silk and carefully copied the Wushan Sword.

Wushan Sword, as a sword technique created by a martial arts master, is actually not that easy to learn. After all, Zhao Wumian's student, Chou Manjiang, may not have fully understood this sword technique.

But with the efficiency of Naraku Hongsi, Zhao Wumian has plenty of time and room for error. It was with the help of Naraku Hongsi that he mastered the Tai Chi intention and the power dissipation in just a few days.

There was silence in the vast hall for a moment, no one spoke, only the faint breathing sounds of the two people could be heard.

The night is quiet and the palace is silent.

The purple-clothed girl would occasionally look up in Zhao Wumian's direction, then silently look away.

Both of them were silent, yet maintained a mysterious atmosphere.

The girl in purple couldn't explain it either.

The moon sets and the sun rises. As the morning bell rings in the capital, Zhao Wumian also opens his eyes. He has gained a lot. Just as he is about to practice with the sword, he sees a brocade box placed in front of his desk. In the box is a green-black pill.

He was slightly startled. At this time, the purple-clothed girl's voice came from behind him. He looked over and saw that she had taken off her shoes and was lying on the couch, covered with a quilt, with her back to Zhao Wumian, saying:
"The poison pill is a tonic for you. This is the 'Li Ren Zui' that I extracted from the nun's body, and added some other poisons. Although the effect is not as strong as the cold jade Gu, after taking it, it can replenish your blood, strengthen your tendons and bones, and purify your internal energy. This is permanent... You can try it."

Zhao Wumian picked up the poison pill and looked at it, then glanced at the purple-clothed girl's back, "Thank you."

"Hmm." The purple-clothed girl snorted lightly, and then said, "I haven't slept all night, and now I plan to catch up on some sleep. Remember to close the door when you leave."

Zhao Wumian did not answer, but swallowed the poison pill and silently digested the drug. He then stayed in the hall for a while. After it was completely digested, he looked at the purple-clothed girl and asked, "You said before that you are different from us and need to cherish every moment... What does that mean?"

The purple-clothed girl didn't reply and seemed to be fast asleep.

Zhao Wumian stood up silently, walked to the couch, folded the handkerchief and placed it beside her pillow, then stood up and looked at her back for a while, then turned and left Ziqing Palace.

As Zhao Wumian's footsteps gradually faded away, the sound of a door closing was heard, and the bulging bedding on the couch moved slightly.

The ringing of the morning bell is actually a signal for the early morning court session.

All the civil and military officials got up and dressed before dawn, had breakfast, and went into the palace to wait in the Hongde Hall next to the Taiji Hall. They chatted with each other, and when they heard the bell, they straightened their robes, walked into the hall with their chests held high, and stood on both sides, waiting for the emperor to enter.

According to etiquette, everyone was well-behaved and waited with bated breath.

Tread-

Not long after, Luo Chaoyan, dressed in a dragon robe, put her hands behind her back and quickly stepped onto the steps in front of the dragon throne. Her black hair swayed gently behind her with her steps. Although she was the Son of Heaven, she had not been emperor for long after all, and had not yet developed much majesty. She still had more of the grace and nobility of a woman.

Many civil and military officials sighed softly. It was still hard to believe until now. It seemed like a lifetime ago that Luo Chaoyan was the one ruling the Dali Kingdom... But when they thought of the man behind Luo Chaoyan who was commanding two hundred thousand soldiers, they felt a little dazed again.

"See Your Majesty!"

But no matter what they thought in their hearts, etiquette could not be violated in the slightest. All civil and military officials bowed their heads and saluted. When the words fell, one could hear a pin drop in the hall... Luo Chaoyan did not say anything, and no one dared to make any other moves.

Luo Chaoyan landed on the dragon chair, raised his hand gently, and said calmly, "Report to me in detail what happened in Wutong Garden last night."

After hearing the news last night, Luo Chaoyan specially sent a minister to help Zhao Wumian deal with the miscellaneous items. However, it was late at night, and the people who witnessed the incident in Wutong Garden were all inside and outside the palace, so Luo Chaoyan currently only knew that Zhao Wumian caused a big fuss in Wutong Garden and captured a wanted criminal inside.

The minister sent by Luo Chaoyan to assist Zhao Wumian last night was the Dali Temple Minister, an old man over fifty years old.

The Dali Temple Minister stepped forward and bowed before speaking:
"Your Majesty, the thieves from Huanzhen Pavilion set up an ambush in the Black Arena of Wutong Garden and captured alive Shen Cekai, the eldest son of the Shen family, Pei Yuzhong, the eldest son of the Pei family, and Tian Wenjing, the eldest son of the Tian family. Hou Weiming Hou heard about this and brought his personal maid and a group of retainers into the Black Arena. They killed one person, captured another, and saved the eldest son of the Pei family. However, one thief fled in panic. The whereabouts of Shen Cekai, the eldest son of the Shen family, and Tian Wenjing, the eldest son of the Tian family, are also unknown..."

The court officials had already known the news, but they were inevitably shaken when they heard it. They all subconsciously glanced at Prime Minister Shen Yiwen and the Minister of War Tian Songqing, and then spoke angrily,
"How outrageous! Huanzhen Pavilion is just a martial arts sect, yet they dare to do such a treasonous thing. Their actions simply disregard the prestige of the court."

"Whose property is Wutong Garden? How could a thief from Huanzhen Pavilion sneak in?"

"Yes! Fortunately, His Majesty has a keen eye for talent and appoints people based on their merits. He promoted Wei Minghou from the Jianghu, thus saving some face for the court."

Although his son was arrested, Shen Yiwen remained calm and showed no emotion.

Tian Songqing was not so patient. He kept cursing and spitting.

He really didn't expect that Mei Chongyang had just died for his country and Mei Lijun was still in Suzhou handling the funeral, and his own son actually got into trouble at this time... Naturally, he was already extremely anxious.

Luo Chaoyan sat at the head of the table, looking a little unhappy. It wasn't because the court had lost face, but because she didn't expect Zhao Wumian to bring the Queen Mother with him when he went to capture someone... What did he want to do? Did he have any ideas about my mother?
However, the thought of this kind of sexual intercourse between men and women only flashed through her mind for a moment, and she gently raised her hand, and the hall immediately became quiet again. All the civil and military officials were looking at Luo Chaoyan. The feeling of being the center of attention for every word and action actually brought a sense of pressure.

Luo Chaoyan did feel some pressure on her first day in court, but now she has adapted a lot.

Luo Chaoyan frowned slightly and looked at the Dali Temple Minister, "Go on, have you found out the identities of the three thieves?"

"The deceased was named Tang Ziqian, the second son of the Tang family in Shu, but the Tang family had expelled him from the family five years ago. The captured alive was Chou Manjiang, a thug active in the Jiangnan area, who had killed countless people. The escaped was Li Jingnan, one of the top five martial arts masters. He had not been heard from for a long time since he was defeated by the former sword master. He showed up again and held several legitimate sons of aristocratic families hostage."

"The first five mountains?" Luo Chaoyan's expression changed slightly, "Did Wei Minghou get hurt in the fight with him?"

The civil and military officials in the palace were all tense, looking at each other with their eyes wide open. It was inappropriate to ask a man if he was injured at such a serious moment. The Dali Temple Minister was also an old official, and he said impartially, "I don't know, but Wei Minghou and Li Jingnan fought in mid-air, and he kicked Li Jingnan so hard that he wanted to retreat and fled. It was obvious that Wei Minghou had the upper hand, and he even held the hand of his personal maid at the end, looking relaxed and leisurely, so naturally he was not injured."

Luo Chaoyan's face suddenly darkened, thinking to himself that there was no need to keep mentioning that damn 'personal maid' over and over again.

Seeing that Lao Deng's words had broken the emperor's mind, the court officials immediately spoke up: "Marquis Weiming is a martial arts expert, and he must be as brave as the martial arts champion. How can a defeated general of the former sword champion be a match for Marquis Weiming?"

"That makes sense! His Majesty has a keen eye. He entrusted Marquis Weiming with such an important task. Naturally, he trusts Marquis Weiming's ability."

"In the end, it was all the work of Her Majesty. If she hadn't promoted Marquis Weiming, the villains from Huanzhen Pavilion would have succeeded last night. Now at least we have rescued the Pei family's legitimate son and captured him alive. All we need to do next is to interrogate him properly. We won't have to worry about not being able to rescue the Shen family's legitimate son and the Tian family's legitimate son."

Among the ministers in the court, there are some honest people, but there are even more who have good vision.

Luo Chaoyan was actually quite pleased to hear these words, but her face showed no change of expression. She just raised her hand calmly, frowned slightly, and asked, "The Huanzhen Pavilion seems to be seeking the four colored glaze jades when it comes to the capital this time. Have you heard anything about this, my dear ministers?"

The Four Glazed Jades are extremely famous in the martial arts world, but these court ministers do not mingle with the martial arts world, so unless they pay close attention, they naturally would not know about these things. However, Prime Minister Shen Yiwen's expression changed slightly.

Luo Chaoyan keenly noticed the change in his expression and tilted her head to look at him, "Does Prime Minister Shen know something?"

As soon as Luo Chaoyan opened her mouth, the hall fell silent, and all eyes were focused on Shen Yiwen.

Prime Minister Shen Yiwen pondered for a moment, stepped forward, saluted and said, "Your Highness...I don't quite understand it, but the Detective Department's case office should have some records."

Then the ministers' attention was focused on Chief Constable Su, who was standing in the front row and remained silent.

Chief Constable Su raised his eyebrows, then raised his hand slightly, "The Detective Department is in charge of Jianghu affairs, but in Jianghu, the Four Glazed Jades have not appeared in the world for many years... Even if there are records, they are old stories, vague, and have little useful information. But since it concerns the two sons of the Shen and Tian families, I will lead people to look through it later, organize it as soon as possible, and present it to His Majesty."

This is the truth. The four glazed jades are related to the Nine Bells. Ever since Chief Inspector Su took over, he has been interested in investigating, but there is no information... We now know where the glazed lamp, the green jade pendant and the Zhan Yan hairpin are, but there is still no clue about the last piece of crimson jade.

Everyone speculated that it was in Wudamu's hands, but there was no evidence after all.

Luo Chaoyan shook her head slightly. "If you have any news, first give it to Marquis Weiming... convey my order. From now on, Marquis Weiming will handle the matter with full authority. He is originally a man of the underworld, so he is quite adept at handling such underworld affairs. Kidnapping the legitimate son of the Shen and Tian families is a serious matter. Therefore, if Marquis Weiming has any request, all departments in the court will agree to it."

This decree was too broad, and the court officials' eyes jumped when they heard it. With this decree, Zhao Wumian could do whatever he wanted. He said that there was a thief from Huanzhen Pavilion in your family and he wanted to investigate your family. Who dared to disobey? Whoever dared to disobeyed was up to something and disobeyed the decree. There was no need to investigate, and he would be dragged out and chopped off.

The teacher has a legitimate reason and the imperial edict is at hand, so the power is that great.

No, no, I have to give some gold, silver and jewelry to Wei Ming Hou after the court session ends today. Eh? Does Wei Ming Hou have a mansion? Where is he? Where should I go to find him?

Hiss~ Many court officials took a deep breath... How come Wei Minghou has such great power, but he doesn't even have a mansion? You can't send gifts to the emperor's bedroom, right?
"Okay, let's put this matter aside for now and leave it to Marquis Weiming to handle." Luo Chaoyan spoke again, and then looked at the Minister of War, "How is the war in Jin?"

The court has a lot of official business to deal with, so it won't just worry about Huanzhen Pavilion.

The Minister of War stepped forward and said, "The Rong people used Piantou Pass as their base and deployed 130,000 soldiers to attack Ningwu Pass and Yanmen Pass in two routes. However, the Rong people were not able to break through the natural barriers so easily. After all, it has only been less than a month since the Piantou Pass was breached. The Rong people's forces have not yet been fully assembled, and it is not time for the general attack. However, I estimate that there are less than two months left before the general attack, because the Rong people's food and grass can no longer support them to continue the massive attack..."

As the saying goes, "food and fodder must be sent before troops arrive." The Rong people did not know how to farm, so they raided the city in autumn because they did not have enough food. They thought they could plunder on a large scale after entering Piantou Pass, but in the end, all the granaries in the cities were burned down, and they robbed nothing.

But the one who burned the granary... was actually Dong Yan. This was arranged by Luo Shuzhi during his lifetime. Now it is also beneficial to Luo Chaoyan, but Piantou Pass was broken because of Luo Shuzhi... Such political affairs are difficult to talk about. The court officials and Luo Chaoyan tacitly agreed not to mention this matter.

In order to prevent someone from following him, Li Jingnan wandered around the capital at night and did not dare to return to his villa until dawn.

In the villa, Ning Zhongxia did not appear in the black arena of Wutong Garden due to injury. At this moment, he was still practicing sword silently in the yard.

Seeing Li Jingnan coming back alone, covered in dust, he stopped and looked a little surprised, "I've heard about what happened in Wutong Garden... but you can't beat Zhao Wumian?"

Li Jingnan sat down on the chair, picked up the wine bottle beside him, raised his head and took a sip of wine, then sighed softly, "In terms of strength, he is a little behind me, but in actual combat, we have to fight to know who will win."

Ning Zhongxia was slightly stunned. After a moment of silence, he continued to practice swordplay silently. "Tang Ziqian is dead, Chou Manjiang was captured, and Zhao Wumian's strength was tested... The plan was quite successful. Next, we have to wait for Hall Master Tong to enter the capital."

The Master Tong that Ning Zhongxia mentioned is the Master of Benwo Hall, Tong Congdao.

He doesn't have a martial arts champion plaque, but he is a genuine martial arts champion-level master. Even he wants to go to the capital, which shows how much importance Huanzhen Pavilion attaches to this matter.

Li Jingnan held a wooden stick and lightly stirred the flame in the stove, his eyes slightly complicated, "Just to investigate something that happened more than 20 years ago, you have to mobilize so many people. If you fail, then..."

Li Jingnan sighed lightly and said nothing more.

Ning Zhongxia said coldly: "When it comes to the Nine Bells, there has never been a loss of life. Just for the case of Naraku Hongsi, how many martial arts masters were involved along the way?"

"We got this news from Wudamu. He wants to use us to consume Dali. His wolfish ambition is obvious." Li Jingnan frowned and said, "Now we are the mantis, and he wants to be the oriole."

"He is seriously injured and without the Qingying Jade Cloth, how can his injuries heal so quickly? He just wants to use us to attract the court's attention and ease the war in Jin." Ning Zhongxia shook his head slightly, "The interests are here, we have to move, can we just do nothing?"

Li Jingnan was silent for a while, then asked, "Where are Tian Wenjing and Shen Cekai?"

"Last night, before the news reached the palace, we secretly transported them out of the capital. Everything went smoothly." Ning Zhongxia said while practicing swordplay:

"Zhao Wumian has a huge reputation, and it seems that he is quite capable now. It will be too late to ask the headquarters for help. Doesn't Canghualou have disciples in the Shen family? Why don't you go and ask, Mr. Li?"

Li Jingnan shook his head. "No one can command the disciples of Canghua Tower without the order from the Pavilion Master. Zhao Wumian will definitely go to the Shen Mansion to investigate... Canghua Tower doesn't know our plan. If we go looking for them now, we will be easily exposed."

Ning Zhongxia pondered for a while, "Does Lady Canghua have rebellious intentions? That's why the Pavilion Master didn't let her participate in this operation?"

"Two guardians of our hall died in Qinfeng Mountain. Tong Congdao wanted to throw the dirty water on Empress Canghua, but the Pavilion Master also knows that the two have always been at odds. If the two are allowed to act together, they will probably start fighting before entering the capital." Li Jingnan was silent and looked around the courtyard for a few times.

When they entered Beijing, there were Li Jingnan, Meng Juncai, Ning Zhongxia, Chou Manjiang, Tang Ziqian... But after just a few days, only Li Jingnan and Ning Zhongxia were left in the villa.

Li Jingnan's eyes were a little complicated. He drank a sip of wine silently, and was silent for a moment before he said, "You are no match for Zhao Wumian... I will deal with him from now on. Haven't you always wanted revenge? It's impossible for Guan Yunshu not to act with Zhao Wumian. You can find an opportunity when the time comes."

Ning Zhongxia paused, then continued practicing swordplay silently, saying, "There is nothing to do next, just wait for Hall Master Tong."

"Haha, yes, cherish this little time. How many people will be alive after the plan starts?"

“If it weren’t for Guan Yunshu, my Ning family, old and young, would still be able to celebrate the reunion year this year.”

"But if it weren't for the Ning family, how could Guan Yunshu have lost his uncle who was like his mother? The Pavilion Master once said that Monk Dongwen's wife died early, and Guan Yunshu had been motherless since childhood, so he always regarded Dongzhen as his biological mother." Li Jingnan shook his head slightly, took another sip of wine, and then sighed softly, "The grudges in the martial arts world, right and wrong, who is right and who is wrong, who can tell clearly?"

"..."

The capital is too big. If Ning Zhongxia and Li Jingnan are determined to hide, they will have to search every inch of it, and it will take who knows when they will find it.

Therefore, Zhao Wumian was not in a hurry. He had some guesses about the plans of these guys at this moment, and he just had to wait... Speaking of which, he had to thank Luo Shuzhi, because he trained Zhao Wumian when he was competing with him for the throne.

So Zhao Wumian didn't do anything on purpose, but he spent a few rare days in peace.

He ran between the Su Mansion, the Shen Mansion, and the Forbidden City all day long, either practicing martial arts or chatting with the girls.

Every night, after he accompanied Miss Su for a while in the Su Mansion, he went to Ziqing Palace in the second half of the night.

The purple-robed girl looked at him and sighed softly, "Why are you here again?"

Zhao Wumian smiled slightly, "I have made some progress in martial arts recently, so I want to borrow the Naraku Red Silk..."

The purple-clothed girl threw the handkerchief at Zhao Wumian. "Take it away, take it away. Don't give it back to me, so you don't have to run to me in the middle of the night every day. Do you know that Chaoyan's eyes are getting more and more strange when she looks at me recently?"

Zhao Wumian took the handkerchief and laughed, "I need Naraku Red Silk, you need it too, and Xiaobai Suzhen also wants to suck my blood... right?"

The little white snake nodded repeatedly, "Your blood is delicious~"

The purple-clothed woman's chest heaved with anger, "Why do you always come here?"

"I think you're too lonely in the palace alone..."

"I have been living like this for so many years. Why are you lonely? Why don't you go to Kunning Palace to accompany the Queen Mother?"

Zhao Wumian didn't say anything, just sat down on the chair and closed his eyes.

The purple-clothed girl couldn't do anything about him, so she could only bend down angrily and pretend that Zhao Wumian didn't exist.

The days passed, and finally, the Lantern Festival arrived.

Early in the morning of the Lantern Festival, a man in a white robe, leading a horse, entered the capital.

The head of Benwo Hall is Tong Congdao.

(End of this chapter)