No taboos

Chapter 501 Goose Drop
Mr. Cao and Mr. Lan lowered their heads, pretending that they did not understand the emotions revealed in His Highness's arrangement, and followed Mr. Wenqi away.

His Highness ordered Mr. Wenqi to stand guard outside the door, and that means he truly stands guard outside the door.

His Highness ordered Xu Yuan to stand guard outside the door, but actually he wanted Xu Yuan to "accompany" him outside the door.

What does it mean when a young woman says to a young man, "I feel safe sleeping with you by my side"?
But His Highness didn't actually say anything explicitly.

Mr. Cao and Mr. Lan were both inwardly impressed, thinking, "His Highness is a master!"
Who taught you all of this?

I learned it from my fourth aunt.

Princess Ruicheng's fourth aunt was once famous throughout the capital for her beauty.

Even today, in both the Northern and Southern Capitals, there are still many talented and handsome men in their forties and fifties who, whenever they talk about the Fourth Prince of yesteryear, feel a deep longing and sigh with emotion.

Fourth Aunt specially taught His Highness the secret: be neither too close nor too distant; when he advances, you retreat; when he retreats, you advance.

Princess Ruicheng previously wanted to take Miss Jinxi's people away—in this idea, Xu Yuan was not Xu Yuan, he was just "Miss Jinxi's people".

However, Xu Yuan solved the strange case in the camp in just a few hours, and also taught the "heart demon" a lesson through Mr. Wenqi.

In His Highness's heart, Xu Yuan had truly become himself.

"Miss Jinxi's person" has become a label on Xu Yuan, alongside "the youngest fourth-rate person in Huangming" and "master of strange cases".

Of course, His Highness will be even more excited with this label.

So His Highness was truly exhausted at this moment and wanted to find someone to keep him company so he could have a comfortable sleep.

It was the "he retreats, you advance" strategy taught by Fourth Aunt.

His Highness felt a tiny bit smug.

There's still a tiny bit of anticipation.

This is the first time I've actually used Fourth Aunt's technique—Fourth Aunt never demonstrated it herself, only explained it, yet I was able to use it directly. This shows that I have a great talent for being a lady.

Xu Yuan has taken this blow from me. I wonder if he is outside my door, lost in thought and his heart is pounding?

Xu Yuan had none at all.

Moreover, Xu Yuan, who was guarding outside the door at this moment, was full of resentment towards His Highness.

You've had a long day, and you've been investigating a case until midnight. Don't you let people rest?
As for the ambiguous feeling of "keeping watch for Your Highness" that His Highness had created, Xu Yuan was unmoved.

If he could sense it, he wouldn't have gone to the Zhu family. The Zhu family treated him with great favors, and he initially suspected something was amiss. It took him a long time to realize what the Zhu family was really planning.

Of course, this cannot be blamed on His Highness. Given His Highness's status and appearance, having someone keep watch over her alone at night is indeed a coveted opportunity for extraordinary men.

The problem was precisely that Xu Yuan wasn't among these "extraordinary men."

Xu Yuan sat at the door, and soon Da Fu came looking for him, wobbling along.

Dafu raised his head with some sympathy, glanced at Fanzhezi, and then lay down to sleep at his feet.

Xu Yuan looked at the soft white mass at his feet and suddenly felt at ease.

He sat down on the ground, gently stroking Dafu, and unknowingly fell asleep.

……

As dawn broke, a loud rooster crowed from some distant village.

His Highness's maids, carrying copper basins, cloths, and water cups, approached His Highness's door with small, quick steps, startling Xu Yuan, who was fast asleep.

Xu Yuan wiped his face, stretched and yawned, then got up and left with Dafu.

They didn't even want to greet the prince inside the room.

His Highness has also woken up and saw Xu Yuan through the window.

His Highness was feeling utterly defeated at that moment.

The smugness and anticipation of last night were gone.

Xu Yuan slept outside the door all night, which made her suddenly realize that she had made a mistake last night.

Xu Yuan was neither her advisor nor her retainer.

Those people do nothing all day long, and whenever His Highness thinks of something and gives an order, they immediately do it.

Because their duty is to revolve around His Highness and fulfill all His Highness's requests.

But Xu Yuan is different.

He has his own duties, and the safety of the city is his responsibility. He is busy with official business every day, which is very hard.

But he was willful, not allowing people to go home to rest in the middle of the night, making them stand guard outside the door...

His Highness was extremely annoyed.

The maids brought in the items and helped His Highness wash up.

One of the servants, usually lively and pampered, who always loved to chatter, said while serving His Highness's face washing, "That Xu Yuan left without even paying his respects to Your Highness. He's so presumptuous and doesn't know what's good for him..."

His Highness's expression turned cold, and he overturned the bronze basin.

It crashed to the ground with a loud, ear-piercing thud.

The clear water dampened the hem of His Highness's skirt.

The maids were terrified and knelt down with a thud: "Your Highness, please forgive us!"

"Get out!"

The maids slunk out, while the one who had caused the trouble remained clueless, looking completely bewildered.

Before long, a female official arrived with His Highness's order to send the maid back to the Northern Capital.

From now on, you will only be allowed to do menial and tiring work in the Princess's residence, and you are absolutely forbidden from appearing in front of His Highness again!
While His Highness dealt with the maid, he also ordered someone to send Xu Yuan some nourishing items such as ginseng and deer antler.

There is also a fourth-rate medicinal pill that greatly replenishes qi and blood.

Xu Yuan originally intended to "firmly decline the offer," but after calculating the value of these items, he found that they were quite valuable, so he accepted them.

……

Ma Tianshou was still in Hue City, dealing with the Shanhe Division.

The princess's order suddenly came—and then Ma Tianshou was truly "numb".

"How did this kid manage to provoke Princess Ruicheng again?!"

The mess in Hue hasn't been cleaned up for you yet!
Ma Tianshou dared not delay and hurriedly put down all his affairs and rushed to Champa overnight.

Princess Ruicheng is different from Miss Jinxi; she can genuinely influence some of the Emperor's decisions.

Unexpectedly, Ma Tianshou arrived outside Champa shortly after dawn and happened to meet Song Weiming, the newly appointed commander of Jiaozhi under the Shanhe Division.

The official document appointing Song Weiming had already been issued and disseminated to various parts of Jiaozhi.

Li Mouzhong has been transferred.

I don't know what the Shanhe Division will do with him, but he certainly can't stay in Jiaozhi.

Everyone thought Song Weiming was still on his way to his new post, but unexpectedly, he arrived in Champa without a word!
Ma Tianshou had met Song Weiming once in Beidu, so he recognized him at a glance.

That meeting was not a pleasant experience for Ma Tianshou.

At that time, Ma Tianshou was still a fifth-rate person, while Song Weiming was already a fourth-rate person.

The two men, one representing the Exorcism Division and the other the Mountains and Rivers Division, clashed in secret, and Ma Tianshou lost.

Song Weiming was a man who wouldn't let things slide once he was in the right, and he immediately launched into a sarcastic remark, leaving Ma Tianshou embarrassed.

Many people in the north know about this.

The Sanhe Division felt they had been taken advantage of in the Hue incident.

They deliberately arranged for Song Weiming to replace Li Mouzhong.

It was clearly intended for Song Weiming to "suppress" Ma Tianshou.

Upon seeing Song Weiming, Ma Tianshou even wondered if Princess Ruicheng had been invited by the Shanhe Division.
"Lord Ma, what a coincidence!" Song Weiming greeted Ma Tianshou with a forced smile.

Ma Tianshou frowned and asked, "Your office is in Hue, what are you doing in Champa?"

"I have heard that the Champa Purification Bureau is in charge of law, and your trusted and beloved general, Lord Xu Yuan, is a fourth-rate scholar at a young age, far surpassing all the geniuses of the time. Therefore, he is arrogant and acts recklessly. So I would like to come and learn from him!"

"You are the elder, yet you bully the younger generation; this is disrespectful to your elders!" Ma Tianshou mocked without any politeness. "Besides, Xu Yuan is no ordinary fourth-rate person. Do you think that just because you rose to the fourth-rate earlier and have accumulated more experience, you can surpass him? I'm afraid your lifelong reputation will be ruined!"

Ma Tianshou even wanted to go on stage himself and have another match with Song Weiming to regain the face he lost back then!
Song Weiming sneered, "Who said I'm still fourth-rate?"

Ma Tianshou asked in surprise, "You... you've been promoted to the third rank?"

"Unbelievable? Heh, that's true. After all, fourth-rate is already incredibly difficult for you, and third-rate is even more out of reach. I went into seclusion half a year ago and emerged a month ago, having officially advanced to third-rate!" Song Weiming stared straight at Ma Tianshou: "I know you recently advanced to fourth-rate, but Ma Tianshou, I was already one step ahead of you back then, and I will always be one step ahead of you!"

Ma Tianshou's face was extremely ugly. He turned and left without saying a word.

This is a loss that can't be recovered...

Song Weiming shouted from behind, "Don't worry, I don't do things like bullying the weak. This time, I won't take action against Xu Yuan. My Shanhe Si Juncai will handle him."

Xiang Qinghuai, who was standing next to Ma Tianshou, frowned and whispered, "That guy surnamed Song seems very confident?"

Ma Tianshou understood Shanhe Division's scheme: "Xiao Xu has severely humiliated Shanhe Division."

The Mountain and River Division must send someone who is not too much older than Xu Yuan to defeat him.

Otherwise, they'll never get their face back.

Ma Tianshou turned and glanced at Song Weiming, saying, "Do you think the man surnamed Song is truly dignified enough not to lay a hand on a junior? Hmph, what kind of man surnamed Song has such integrity?"

Xiang Qinghuai frowned: "But I really can't think of anyone under forty years old in the Shanhe Division who is more skilled than Xiao Xu."

"Don't worry about that for now," Ma Tianshou said. "The Mountain and River Division... in the end, their biggest backer is that old dragon. As long as the old dragon helps, they will definitely produce a young person who can defeat Xu Yuan!"

Let's hurry into town and inform Xiao Xu about this in advance so he can prepare accordingly.

The reason why the three departments of the Bureau of Strange Affairs could stand on equal footing was that, in all these conflicts, whichever department lost face could always regain it.

If Shanhe Division fails to accomplish this, it will be the beginning of their falling behind.

This is not simply a matter of face; it also involves the mysterious issue of "luck."

They rushed to the government office only to find out that Princess Ruicheng had not entered the city at all!
They actually slept outside the city last night!

"Nonsense!" Ma Tianshou stomped his foot angrily and hurriedly walked out, but after taking two steps he turned back and instructed Yu Yunhang: "If any people from the Shanhe Division come to inquire about Xiao Xu's whereabouts later, you must find a way to stall them!"

"Don't worry, sir, leave it to me."

Ma Tianshou managed to buy himself some time and get to the city outskirts as quickly as possible—but he couldn't immediately communicate with Xu Yuan.

The commander must first pay his respects to His Highness.

The commander's plan was to take advantage of the time while waiting for His Highness to receive him to have a private conversation with Xu Yuan.

Your Highness is indeed not busy in Champa.

Once Ma Tianshou arrives, he should be able to see her directly.

However, the high-ranking officials and nobles of our Ming Dynasty have their own set of "methods of managing subordinates." Even when they are idle and drinking tea alone, they will deliberately delay when their subordinates request an audience. Those who are granted an immediate audience are either true confidants or the other party is deliberately showing that they value you highly.

To Ma Tianshou's surprise, His Highness showed no sign of trying to control himself.

After the guard went in to announce his arrival, Mr. Cao immediately came out to welcome him inside.

On the way to see the princess, Mr. Cao noticed a hint of worry in Ma Tianshou's expression and assumed he was concerned about meeting the princess. So he thought of making a good connection: "Your Excellency has a good subordinate."

Ma Tianshou was taken aback: "Xu Yuan?"

"Indeed," Mr. Cao said. "His Highness now holds Lord Xu in particularly high regard."

Mr. Cao, that's enough.

But he found that he had clearly reassured Ma Tianshou, so why... did Ma Tianshou's worry not only not lessen, but become even more obvious?

Princess Ruicheng treated Ma Tianshou very well and personally told him about the strange case from the previous night.

Ma Tianshou was initially shocked and broke out in a cold sweat, but he eventually smiled and echoed His Highness, saying, "Xu Yuan is indeed an outstanding young man. It is his honor to serve His Highness."

His Highness sat upright, dignified and elegant, and then asked Ma Tianshou, "Old Commander, you've come at the right time. I'd like to ask how I should reward Xu Yuan for his great achievement?"

The tonics I sent to Xu Yuan before certainly couldn't be considered a reward.

Ma Tianshou's heart skipped a beat: Should His Highness intervene and suppress Song Weiming?

In fact, Ma Tianshou understood that making such a request was extremely unwise in official circles.

This is "seeking reward for one's achievements," and superiors all despise such subordinates.

But... the old man was really worried about Xu Yuan.

Besides, although His Highness is noble, he is not a superior of the Exorcism Department. The old man felt that even if His Highness disliked him... let him dislike him.

“Your Highness,” Ma Tianshou stood up, clasped his hands in a salute, “I am currently in a difficult situation. I wonder if Your Highness would be so kind as to lend a helping hand?”

His Highness's eyes lit up: "Difficulties?"

Ma Tianshou was puzzled: Why did His Highness seem so excited when he heard that Xu Yuan was in trouble?

"Ahem," His Highness coughed lightly, his fist pressed to his lips, his expression quickly becoming serious: "Old Commander, please speak freely, and I will do my utmost!"

Ma Tianshou was even more confused. His Highness actually said something like "do everything in his power"?

What superior would make such a promise to his subordinate?
Princess Ruicheng knew she had made a mistake as soon as she spoke.

The main reason was that she was so excited to discover that she could actually help Xu Yuan and make up for her guilt over her willful behavior last night that she lost her composure for a moment.

Ma Tianshou couldn't figure out whether His Highness truly "valued" Xiao Xu or was just putting on an act.

But since he had already spoken, Ma Tianshou had no choice but to bite the bullet and recount the grudges between Xu Yuan and the Shunhua City Shanhe Division from the beginning.

When he mentioned that Xu Yuan had turned Li Mouzhong into a dog in front of the Shanhe Si government office in front of everyone, His Highness couldn't help but cover his mouth and laugh, saying, "He really did that? That's in line with his character."

After Ma Tianshou finished speaking, he finally mentioned Song Weiming: "Song Weiming is already a third-rate person. He is insidious, ruthless, and has a sharp eye. Since he thinks that the person he brought this time can help Shanhe Division regain its face, then there is a good chance that Xu Yuan will lose to that person."

Her Highness raised her willow-leaf-shaped eyebrows: "Don't worry, my lord, if Song Weiming comes, I guarantee he'll slink away with his tail between his legs!"

……

Song Weiming arrived even faster than Ma Tianshou had anticipated.

Yu Yunhang was unable to hold him back.

He found the prince's camp only half an hour later than Ma Tianshou.

But he was unaware that a strange incident had occurred in the camp the previous night.

Mr. Cao kept it strictly confidential; even Xu Miaozhi, who was right next to him, was unaware of it.

So Xu Miaozhi rushed into the city early in the morning to find Zhu Zhanmei to join forces.

Then it suddenly dawned on me: Dafu is gone!
But she soon realized: Dafu had returned to Xu Yuan's side.

So that morning, there were three teams heading from Champa towards the camp.

Ma Tianshou and his group were at the front, while Xu Miaozhi and Zhu Zhanmei, the "cold-faced duo," were at the back.

Song Weiming and his group were caught in the middle.

Why are Xu Miaozhi and Zhu Zhanmei so "cold-faced"? The two women are genuinely unable to smile right now.

Song Weiming was unaware of the mysterious case, and therefore unaware that Xu Yuan was now a favorite of His Highness.

Once they arrived outside the camp, they handed over their identification tokens as usual and explained to the guards at the gate, "We are looking for Xu Yuan. Please ask him to come out."

The soldiers knew that Xu Yuan had performed a great service last night.

It could be said that Xu Yuan saved their lives.

Upon hearing that these people were looking for Xu Yuan, he returned the silver from under the token: "I don't need silver to inform Lord Xu."

This attitude made Song Weiming frown secretly, and he had a bad feeling.

At this moment, Ma Tianshou had just spoken with His Highness.

Having received the promise from His Highness, the old man felt completely relieved and immediately went to find Xu Yuan to tell him the good news.

Upon arriving at Xu Yuan's barracks, they were told, "The head of the guard just went out, and a soldier came to shout that someone is looking for you at the camp gate."

Ma Tianshou's heart skipped a beat. Without asking any more questions, he turned around and chased after them.

But after taking a few steps, he hurriedly turned back to His Highness.

"Your Highness, Song Weiming has arrived!"

Princess Ruicheng immediately stood up, lifted the hem of her skirt, and ran quickly outside.

"Follow me all!"

Mr. Cao secretly sent someone to summon Mr. Wenqi.

Xu Yuan walked slowly through the camp, while the princess jogged all the way.

When Xu Yuan arrived at the camp gate, he saw Song Weiming and the other man. Upon realizing that he did not recognize them, he became somewhat wary.

Song Weiming coldly asked, "Are you Xu Yuan, the law master of the city of Champa, who is in charge of exorcising evil spirits?"

"Exactly."

"Hehehe!" Song Weiming let out a cold laugh...

Before the sneer could finish, a sharp rebuke rang out: "Song Weiming! Do you recognize me?"

Song Weiming certainly knew him; he had served as an official in Beidu for many years.

"Greetings, Your Highness." Song Weiming hurriedly knelt down.

"What do you want by showing off your power in front of my camp?"

Song Weiming was completely dumbfounded: Had I been showing off?
I did chuckle, but it wasn't loud and my expression wasn't arrogant. How could that be considered "showing off"?
He felt wronged; His Highness was clearly finding fault with him and trying to punish him.

This is the same principle as asking, "When you go out today, do you step out with your left foot or your right foot first?"

Xu Yuan was also somewhat puzzled, glancing at the old man and then at His Highness.

Just then, the two cold-faced beauties arrived.

His Highness pointed at Song Weiming: "Why aren't you going to Hue to take up your post? What are you doing here at my camp? What are your intentions?"

When Mr. Cao saw Mr. Wenqi wiping his mouth with his sleeve and staggering over, he immediately felt much more confident and shouted, "Protect His Highness!"

The armored soldiers surrounded His Highness, glaring angrily at Song Weiming.

Song Weiming was sweating profusely and explained, "Your Highness, I only..."

"Get out of here right now! Otherwise, I'll go to the Dragon King's Temple and file a complaint against your Mountain and River Bureau!"

Song Weiming gritted his teeth, feeling a surge of pent-up anger in his chest that felt like it was about to explode.

But since His Highness had even brought out the "Dragon King Temple," he dared not say another word and turned to leave quickly.

The two cold-faced beauties looked ashen-faced for a moment.

They became the Gray-Faced Twins.

Xu Yuan couldn't understand it, but women understand women best.

Your Highness is clearly trying to impress Xu Yuan.

In terms of power, those two... let alone the two of them, even if their two families were combined, they wouldn't be a match for His Highness.

The two women exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with deep worry: How can we fight this war?
……

Song Weiming fled in disarray, accompanied by a squad of officers from the Mountain and River Division. One of the younger officers asked as he walked, "Sir, why is Princess Ruicheng protecting Xu Yuan?"

Song Weiming's face was gloomy: "I don't believe that Xu Yuan can hide in His Highness's camp forever!"

We'll keep watch outside the camp. The moment he comes out, you strike immediately, defeat him, and then we'll talk about everything else!

"it is good."

They slipped out of the prince's sight and quickly hid behind a mound.

Song Weiming gave a signal, and two brothers among the captains knelt down behind the mound in unison, bowing their heads towards the camp.

Both brothers are hunchbacked.

The back is high and bulging.

When they knelt down, a spiderweb-like network of black blood vessels appeared on their faces.

As he kowtowed, the hunchback on his back began to wriggle and swell, tearing his clothes and exposing the dry, twisted skin on his back.

Then the entire hunchback shattered, and countless insects with bites of flesh and blood on their backs burst out with a bang, then rustled and burrowed into the grass.

Beneath the grass, unseen by the others, these elusive insects surrounded the entire camp, closely monitoring every movement within.

……

Ma Tianshou finally met Xu Yuan. The old man immediately pulled Xu Yuan aside and explained in detail Song Weiming's background and purpose.

Xu Yuan frowned. The only way he could think of for the so-called "young talents" of the Mountain and River Division to defeat him was:
Craftsmanship.

However, high-quality craftsmanship is heavy, requiring extremely heavy weight to weigh it down.

Xu Yuan was able to use the third-rate craftsmanship ox horn lamp because he was a cultivator of destiny.

"Is he also a cultivator of destiny?" Xu Yuan was guessing when suddenly Da Fu, who was lying at his feet, flapped its long neck and sprang up, propping up its big goose head. Its two round goose eyes shone with excitement as it stared incredulously outside the camp.

"Quack quack..."

Dafu started yelling incoherently.

Only Xu Yuan understood what Da Fu was saying: "Goose drops, goose drops, all goose drops!"

(End of this chapter)