The Song Dynasty was the king for thirteen years before he knew that he was Tianlong.

Chapter 218 Entering the Palace, Speculation

At noon, the sun was shining, the sky was cloudless, and everything in front of the palace remained the same.

The soldiers' helmets and armors were shining, and the spears in their hands were gleaming with cold light. The servants were wearing new blue clothes, and they were full of energy and stood straight.

Zhao Ti walked slowly with his hands behind his back. Behind him, Lan Jian's pretty face began to become dazed. Looking at the three words "Prince Yan's Mansion" above the gate in the distance, her little mouth couldn't help but open in surprise.

"Son..."

"We're home." Zhao Ti smiled.

The soldiers and servants on the steps rubbed their eyes and looked over, then ran down the steps and came forward.

Because there was no prior notice, the palace and Jinfeng Tower did not know that he would return today and did not wait for him outside.

The soldiers and servants ran forward to salute and shouted, "Long live the king!"

Zhao Ti asked the leader of the army, "Has there been any incident outside in the past few months?"

The leader of the army bowed and said, "Your Majesty, nothing has happened. Everything is normal."

Zhao Ti looked at the guard again: "What about the mansion?"

The servant hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, everything is fine in the palace, just as it was before your departure."

Zhao Ti nodded: "Continue to guard diligently."

Upon hearing this, everyone saluted again. Two soldiers ran back to the steps to open the door, and the rest stepped aside and filed back to their previous posts.

Lan Jian was extremely nervous in the back and whispered, "Young Master, Young Master is..."

Zhao Ti smiled slightly: "I am the master of this mansion, the King of Yan of the Great Song Dynasty. Lan'er will live with me from now on."

Lan Jian bit her lips lightly, her expression stiff, and said anxiously, "I, I am willing to follow you, sir, but I don't know too many rules, I'm afraid, afraid..."

Zhao Ti looked at her slightly trembling eyebrows and her beautiful oval face, and shook his head and said, "There's nothing to be afraid of. There aren't many rules in the Prince of Yan's Mansion. You'll get used to it after living here."

Lan Jian felt a little embarrassed, and said shyly in a low voice: "I am willing to serve you, sir. If you don't despise me, I will not leave you..."

Zhao Ti smiled and said, "Come into the mansion, I'll introduce you to some people."

Lan Jian's cheeks flushed as he said, "Yes, sir..."

As Zhao Ti spoke, he walked forward. At this moment, the news had already been received in the mansion, and Tong Guan was the first to trot out.

"Your Highness, Your Highness has returned. I am late in coming to greet you. I deserve to die, I deserve to die!"

Zheng Fu, Azhu, Ruyi and others in the back also walked out quickly, all with happy expressions on their faces.

Ah Zhu walked forward and looked at Zhao Ti. Her pupils were clear and sparkling, and her face twitched a little: "Your Highness..."

Zhao Ti raised the corner of his mouth, stretched out his hand and flicked her face lightly: "What are you doing? This is not like your personality."

Ah Zhu couldn't help but smile upon hearing this, regaining her playful spirit, and said charmingly, "I just miss Your Highness."

Zhao Ti smiled and said, "I'm back now. By the way, I have someone to introduce to you. I'll take you there and settle you down later."

After saying that, he turned around and looked at Lan Jian and said, "Come here, Lan'er. This is Ah Zhu. You should have met her before in Shaolin."

Lan Jian said shyly, "Sir, I have indeed seen Sister Ah Zhu. At that time, I even suspected that she was Li Qiushui in disguise..."

Ah Zhu looked at Lan Jian and blinked her eyes, her eyes full of mischief: "It turned out to be Sister Lan'er. I was happy to see you when I was in Shaolin. I didn't expect that Your Highness would go to the Lingjiu Palace in Tianshan and bring you back."

Lan Jian said rather embarrassedly: "Sister Ah Zhu, you are the head of my Xiaoyao Sect. I, I am here to hold the sword for you..."

Ah Zhu stepped forward and took her hand: "Sister Lan'er, come with me. I will take you around the mansion and familiarize you with the different places."

Lan Jian glanced at Zhao Ti and whispered, "Okay, I'll listen to Sister Ah Zhu."

Zhao Ti smiled and said, "Don't talk outside, let's all go inside and talk."

"Yes, Your Highness." Ah Zhu said with a smile, and then she dodged to the side like a butterfly: "Your Highness, please go first."

Zhao Ti smiled and led everyone straight into the mansion.

After sitting down in the front hall, he handed the memorial he had written on the way to Tong Guan, asking him to send it to the palace for Zhao Xu to read, and then ordered people to prepare a banquet.

I was away for a long time this time and experienced a lot of ups and downs. Although everything went smoothly, I couldn't help feeling a little tired. I only felt at ease when I returned home.

Not long after, everyone from Jinfeng Tower came to the mansion to pay a visit, and Zhao Ti asked them to stay and wait for the banquet later.

After mid-afternoon, he called in those members of the Imperial Guard who had not been taken out this time, and soon the feast began, which lasted until dusk.

It was getting dark at this time. Zhao Ti watched everyone disperse. He thought for a moment and decided to go into the palace.

He had originally planned to see Zhao Xu again tomorrow, but after Tong Guan sent the memorial back home, he brought a message from Zhao Xu, asking him to take a rest after dinner and come over to talk if there was nothing else.

He drank a cup of tea, then asked Tong Guan to prepare the carriage, and then left the palace and headed straight for the imperial city.

I entered the palace through the Zuoye Gate and walked towards the imperial study. From afar I could see the bright lights in the imperial study and the shadowy figure of Zhao Xu.

Yang Jian came to greet him outside the door and bowed, saying, "It is a great pleasure to have the king return. Just now, His Majesty was wondering if the king could come over..."

Zhao Ti asked, "It's so late, Your Majesty is still handling state affairs?"

Yang Jian said: "That's right, Your Majesty will know from looking at it, Your Majesty has been getting thinner and thinner in recent times."

Zhao Ti nodded, then entered the imperial study. Seeing Zhao Xu reviewing memorials, he said without raising his head, "Prince of Yan, please sit down. Yang Jian will go make tea. Prince of Yan, please let me read the memorials from Guangnan Road."

Zhao Ti glanced at the other person and saw that he had indeed lost some weight. He said, "Your Majesty should pay attention to your health even though you are diligent in government affairs. You have been busy with government affairs all day, and it is time for you to rest."

Zhao Xu shook his head and said, "My work is nothing, I am just reviewing some memorials. The King of Yan traveled to the Western Regions and faced many dangers and hardships. Compared with the King of Yan, I... am too comfortable."

Zhao Ti said, "Your Majesty, you are really embarrassing me by saying this."

Zhao Xu sighed, "Prince Yan has worked hard and made great contributions this time. I read the memorial sent by Tong Guan immediately. I originally wanted Prince Yan to have a good rest for the night, but I really had something to ask, so I asked Tong Daofu to pass on the message and ask Prince Yan to come to the palace if he is free."

Zhao Ti said: "I have nothing else to do, so I should go to the palace to report."

Zhao Xu smiled and said, "I told you when we left that there was no need to do this. It would be fine if you have a memorial. I am just too eager to hear the story now."

At this time, Yang Jian led the palace maids in to serve tea. After the tea was served, Zhao Ti took a few sips and Zhao Xu put down the folding book in his hand.

At this moment he looked up, and Zhao Ti could see clearly that he was different from when he left Tokyo. The completely different temperament in his expression reappeared slightly, and his face was a little too pale.

"I want to ask the King of Yan something first. This matter was not mentioned in the King of Yan's memorial." Zhao Xu picked up the tea bowl and took a sip. "Your Majesty, please ask." Zhao Ti had some vague guesses in his mind.

"Empress Dowager Xiao Liang was assassinated on the night the delegation left Western Xia. Prince Yan..." Zhao Xu stared at Zhao Ti, with a barely perceptible hint of expectation in his eyes.

"Your Majesty..." Zhao Ti thought for a moment and suddenly smiled. Actually, there was no need to hide this matter. He had led troops out several times and the Wude Division was secretly present in the capital. The fact that he had martial arts skills was no longer a secret to Zhao Xu.

"I was lucky enough to succeed."

Although he already had a guess in his mind, after hearing it from Zhao Ti himself, a blush of excitement appeared on Zhao Xu's originally pale face.

"Prince Yan has accomplished such an extraordinary feat. I really don't know how to reward him."

Zhao Ti shook his head: "Your Majesty, this meritorious official is not wanted. I don't want the outside world to know that I did this. Your Majesty doesn't want Xixia to know about this, right? It will not be beneficial to future plans."

Zhao Xu took a long time to say, "That is indeed the case, but I am so happy about this matter that I cannot express it. I feel suffocated and unhappy... Alas."

After saying that, he shook his head: "We still have to focus on the big things..."

Then he began to ask about his travel experiences. Zhao Ti wrote down in his memorial what he could about his journey to the Uighurs, Qiuci, Kunlun, and Qingtang, which made Zhao Xu very interested.

Zhao Ti recounted the story in detail, and Zhao Xu actually asked the most questions about the Kingdom of Qiuci. He asked a lot about the Nine-story Magic Pagoda and was quite interested in the appearance of the evil monk Youlou.

The second is Kunlun’s experience. Zhao Ti also wrote about Kunlun’s affairs in his memorial, talking about the man in white and the monk, but the fight was hidden, and he only talked about what he saw and experienced.

After Zhao Xu finished listening, nearly an hour had passed. He looked at the clepsydra and said with a smile, "I also want to go out and see the outside world, but it is always difficult..."

Zhao Ti said: "Your Majesty is worth a fortune, but you can't just sit in the hall, how can you go out?"

Zhao Xu shook his head, pretending to be dissatisfied: "It's OK for the King of Yan to wear the white dragon fish costume, can't I wear incognito for a private visit?"

Zhao Ti blinked: "Your Majesty, this is not the same thing..."

Zhao Xu was silent for a moment after hearing this, then suddenly smiled and said, "Emperor Taizong and Emperor Zhenzong both led the army in person. I envy them."

The corners of Zhao Ti's mouth twitched when he heard this. He looked at Zhao Xu with eyes as bright as stars, without saying a word.

Zhao Xu walked out of the case, paced back and forth, and after a moment he sighed, "Prince Yan, go back and rest. There is no need to rush to attend court. I will give you a month's vacation, but if there is anything, I will still summon Prince Yan to discuss it with me."

Zhao Ti nodded and said, "I will follow your majesty's orders." After that, he walked out and left, gradually disappearing into the night.

Zhao Xu stood in the room, looking at Zhao Ti who had disappeared, and whispered to himself: "Alas, eighth brother, do you know that I actually envy you very much..."

After saying this, he slowly walked out, and Yang Jian hurriedly followed behind.

Standing in front of the imperial study, Zhao Xu looked up at the night sky. At this moment, the moon was bright, the stars were shining, and the Milky Way ran across the sky like a jade belt.

His voice was a little hazy and unclear: "The seven stars are in the same palace. I didn't expect that I would catch up with them. Could it be that it was destined in the dark? I don't believe it. I... don't accept it."

"Your Majesty..." Yang Jian said cautiously, "I find it hard to believe the mysterious words of the Imperial Envoy."

The department in charge of astronomy, calendar and stargazing in the Song Dynasty had different names in different periods. In the early period, it was called Sitianjian. After the Yuanfeng reform, it was called Taishiju, and its chief official was Taishiling.

Zhao Xu didn't look at him, and continued to look at the sky with his sleeves behind his back: "You don't understand, and those people in the Taishi Bureau don't understand everything either..."

Yang Jian dared not speak, and stood aside with his body bent.

After a long while, Zhao Xu suddenly said, "Yang Duzhi, you said that Emperor Taizong and Emperor Zhenzong could lead the army in person, can I... do the same?"

Yang Jian was stunned when he heard this, and suddenly fell to his knees with a plop: "How dare your Majesty address you like that..."

Zhao Xu said calmly: "I am asking you a question."

"Ah?" Yang Jian couldn't help but groan inwardly when he heard this. How should he answer this? Is this what he should answer? Is this what he can answer?
If you answer "no", it means that you are not as good as Taizong and Zhenzong. Although both of them lost the battle, they still went out. If you say "no", doesn't it mean that Your Majesty can't even lose the battle? This is the way to death.

The answer is yes. If the civil officials in the court knew about this, they would skin him alive. Even if Your Majesty protects him now, if something goes wrong or he suffers a defeat during the expedition, those turbaned people will definitely say that it was instigated by this traitor. Then, Your Majesty will not be able to protect him anymore.

"Humble slave, humble slave..." Sweat dripped down Yang Jian's forehead.

"Go ahead." Zhao Xu's voice gradually became colder.

Yang Jian gritted his teeth, weighing the pros and cons of the two evils and choosing the lesser of two evils. He took a deep breath and said, "I believe that Your Majesty is a man of great talent and wisdom, and of course you can lead the army in person."

"Oh?" Zhao Xi looked at him: "Is it possible?"

Yang Jian touched the ground with his head: "Of course I can. Your Majesty, if you lead the army in person, you will surely be invincible. Wherever your army goes, there will be no rivals in the world. However, I think..."

"That's enough, I..." Zhao Xu turned around and slowly went back to the study, his voice a little drifting: "I also want to go out for a walk. Forget about being wise and brave, as for being invincible..."

At this time, he looked extremely lonely, his eyes were filled with ambition, his wisdom was filled with compassion, and there was a hint of loneliness and desolation. He slowly walked into the imperial study...

Zhao Ti left the palace and got on the carriage, thinking about Zhao Xu's words in his heart. Zhao Xu was very interested in the Western Regions, especially those monks and people in white, and asked them repeatedly.

He looked a little solemn. Could it be that this Sixth Brother also knew something about Kunlun?

Zhao Ti could not help but ponder, thinking of the word "outsider" said by the man in white, and some other words, such as the celestial phenomena have changed drastically, the leader should issue an edict, and the alliance that year should be abolished.

Outsiders may refer to people outside the Kunlun area, or outside those ancient sects.

Outsiders are not allowed to learn their martial arts, nor can they practice martial arts to a certain extreme level, otherwise they will be hunted down by them.

As for the reason, the man in white did not reveal it, and the monks did not say it either. It was quite mysterious and strange.

At this time, Zhao Ti thought of his own Phantom Yin Finger again. There was a question here. Why didn't Gao Taotao pass this finger seal to him when he was not alive, but instead waited until he was dying to hold on to this finger seal and show it to him?
It was obvious that there was a lot of hesitation and consideration in between, and he only decided to hand it over to himself when he was dying.

After practicing this finger technique, I was able to enter that realm of temperament. In the eyes of the white-clothed man, I was also a target of pursuit. Based on this, could my grandmother's injury be related to these ancient sects? Or to Kunlun?

He was still a little confused about this. After practicing the Phantom Yin Finger, he would enter that kind of aura as long as he used it. What was the difference between this and the auras of Murong Longcheng and Xiaoyaozi?
He did not take any elixir to stimulate his potential, nor did he use any secret method to stimulate his body. It seemed that he was not even half a step away. Did he rely on this one finger to force his way into that realm, or was he already at that realm?
He was not sure whether Gao Taotao had mastered this finger. After all, the power of one finger was too obvious. Once it was mastered, it would be extremely difficult to be hurt by others, not to mention that Gao Taotao's identity was extraordinary.

I was able to succeed because my internal strength is extremely powerful, and there is no bottleneck in my practice. Even if Gao Taotao has mastered the sixth level of the Huanyin Sutra, his internal strength cannot be stronger than mine, and it is even less likely that he will encounter a bottleneck.

If she hadn't mastered this finger, she wouldn't have been able to reach that realm. Where did the injuries on her body come from? It was impossible for her to comprehend this finger on her own. Where did she get it from?
While Zhao Ti was thinking, the carriage had already returned to the outside of the mansion. Tong Guan raised the curtains and he got out.

When he entered the mansion, the lights were bright everywhere and there were lanterns lit. He saw Ah Zhu and Lan Jian were still awake, catching fireflies in the garden. When they saw him coming, they hurriedly saluted.

Ah Zhu said, "Your Highness, Sister Lan'er's accommodation has been arranged. It is not far from me."

Lan Jian said: "It is separated from Sister Ah Zhu by a courtyard."

Zhao Ti nodded and said, "It must be Miss Wang's yard. Take me over there to have a look."

(There is one more chapter, it will be very late, don't wait, read it tomorrow, this part is not charged)
(End of this chapter)