Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 167 A Frenzy of Bees and Butterflies Gather in the Hall

The banquet in the palace had just ended when another banquet began at the residence of Duke Huo.

Those attending the banquet were mainly the Northern Gate generals who had previously attended the palace banquet, along with their respective families. After bidding farewell to the Emperor, they followed Wang Maozhong and his family directly towards the banquet.

Although Wang Maozhong was in a bad mood, he could not refuse the crowd's hospitality, so he invited them to his home and ordered his servants to quickly prepare a banquet. He and the young men of the household entertained the guests, while the women who had accompanied him to the palace banquet returned to their inner quarters to rest.

After the disciples were seated, they first toasted Wang Maozhong. Then, some of the restless young men from the Northern Gate couldn't contain themselves any longer. They began to probe with their words, trying to get Huo Gong's daughter to come into the hall for another audience.

Having heard some rumors, they were already quite tempted and wanted to curry favor with Duke Huo, an old man with a powerful father-in-law.

Today, at the banquet, they saw the beautiful and talented daughter of the Duke of Huo again. Although the lady made a serious mistake while accompanying the Prince of Ruyang, it was not a negative point in the eyes of these young men from the North Gate. They were already captivated by her beauty and had endless fantasies.

Wang Maozhong had made meticulous preparations for this evening, all to offer his daughter to the sage. However, the sage remained unmoved, yet attracted so many admirers.

He was already in a bad mood, but the disciples from the Northern Gate in the hall were completely oblivious to his feelings, asking him questions impatiently and subtly, which was tantamount to rubbing salt into his wounds.

Of course, there were also those who didn't come for this reason, but they were even more difficult to deal with. The generals from the North Gate had come mainly to inquire about when this year's dividends would be distributed.

They all knew that Feiqian was doing very well and that the profits were astonishing. They were all hoping to cash in their profits, but now that the year was coming to an end, they still hadn't received any dividends, so they were naturally very anxious.

Speaking of this matter, Wang Maozhong became even more depressed. He had offended Consort Hui because of his plan to bring his daughter into the palace, and the palace officials took the opportunity to collude and withhold his profits from his illegal gains.

As a result, nothing has been accomplished, and the money cannot be withdrawn. One after another, debt collectors sit in the hall and refuse to leave, constantly demanding their share of the profits, without mentioning that this was originally a new source of income that he had created himself. Sharing profits is a favor, not an obligation, making it impossible for him to have peace even during the New Year.

After trying to appease him for a while, he became so annoyed that he simply used the excuse of being unable to hold his liquor to push the table aside and get up, ordering his sons to see the guests out.

Seeing that he was already showing some ill intent, the others dared not continue to pester him. Although they were still somewhat unwilling, they could only get up and take their leave.

When Wang Shouzhen and the others returned to the hall after seeing off the guests, they found their father still sitting there drinking alone in silence. Some objects were scattered on the table, presumably swept to the ground to vent his anger.

"Father, is it really impossible for my sister to enter the palace? Although we didn't get our wish tonight, the Emperor didn't refuse us after all!"

Wang Shouzhen was naturally unwilling to accept this, and quickly stepped forward to ask the question.

Upon hearing this, Wang Maozhong coldly replied, "One plan is not feasible, a second plan is not feasible, and if we wait until the sage refuses, then it will no longer be a matter of this matter being unsuccessful!"

The two attempts both failed, which means that the sage indeed had no such intention.

If this continues, not to mention whether it will displease the emperor, if he is directly rejected, some people will see it as a sign that Wang Maozhong has fallen out of favor. At that time, endless personnel disputes will arise, and the eunuchs will take the opportunity to kick him while he is down!
Although Wang Shouzhen did not yet fully understand the implications, she lowered her head in disappointment after hearing her father's words, and said resentfully, "My sister is such a wretched child. The family has spent so much effort cultivating her, but she can't live up to our expectations after so many years. This is truly hateful!"

"This little slut not only betrayed me, but also acted willfully and recklessly. What business is it of hers if other young men compete in skill? She deliberately played out the tune for the Prince of Ruyang, she wanted to buy time for Zhang's son! This slut has been confined to the courtyard for so long, when did she start having an affair outside? Don't you all know?"

Wang Maozhong glared and said angrily, "Zhezhi Qu is a very popular piece of music. I have heard my daughter play it many times and her skills are naturally proficient. I originally suspected that she made a mistake because she was nervous on the spot. But when I saw that this woman actually threw flowers to Zhang's son, how could I not guess her little thoughts?"

"Huh? This...this can't be, right? Even if I have dealings with Zhang Liu, we're not close. My sister has never even met him. How could there be any illicit affair between us!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Shouzhen was naturally astonished. He immediately shook his head. He was the only one in the entire family who had direct contact with Zhang Dai. If this were true, he would naturally have to bear the blame for negligence.

Upon hearing this, Wang Maozhong merely snorted coldly, while Wang Shouzhen, after a moment of silence, cautiously spoke up: "If this is truly the case—I mean, if—then Amei's entry into the palace is no longer possible, and it seems that promising Zhang Liu is also... his family is of the Prime Minister's rank, and he himself..."

"What nonsense! When Zhang Shuo was at the height of his power, he had to bow down to me. Now that the old man has lost power, he is nothing more than a playboy composing poems for amusement. Besides, his grandson is not even born of the legitimate wife, yet he is not worthy of my daughter's affection!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Maozhong snorted coldly and said resentfully, "If his family were an old Shandong family, I might give them a second glance. But they are a newly established family, impoverished all their lives, and not worth my humble service! That Zhang son is audacious and has ruined my plans. I will never let him go!" Although he knew in his heart that the biggest reason why this matter could not be accomplished was that the emperor had not intended it, he was still filled with resentment because a plan he had prepared for many years had failed in the end. He needed someone to vent his anger on.

Besides, that Zhang boy wasn't entirely innocent. Even if he borrowed the singer's voice, wouldn't he have questioned him afterward? Why did he have to make such a scene in front of the emperor!
Especially when he thought of his daughter's eagerness to vote for Zhang Dai, even at the risk of offending the Prince of Ning's family, Wang Maozhong felt even more indignant. Was the daughter he had painstakingly raised and nurtured for so many years meant for this wicked Zhang family disciple?
"If Zhang is not suitable, then who can we marry our younger sister to? This woman is ruining the family business and is truly hateful. Keeping her at home will only waste money and resources. It would be better to send her away as soon as possible to avoid further trouble!"

Previously, Wang Shouzhen had been eager to benefit from this girl's fame and become a member of the royal family, so he had always treated her with great courtesy. However, now that his hopes had been dashed, he couldn't help but feel resentment, and he was filled with anger whenever he thought about it.

Upon hearing this, Wang Maozhong sighed deeply and pondered for a while before saying, "If it's truly impossible, I can only choose one of the families in the North Gate to marry her off to. But raising this girl has taken a lot of my time and effort, and I must make up for it no matter which family visits!"

"Those dog slaves got off easy! Zhang Liu is truly despicable and despicable!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Shouzhen also said bitterly. He had originally thought that Zhang Dai was a good backup option, but after hearing his father's words, he gave up the idea and naturally began to resent Zhang Dai.

After a moment's hesitation, he said, "This scoundrel has ruined my family's long-term schemes. Tomorrow I will have my servants kidnap him and throw him into the river!"

After hearing this, Wang Maozhong thought for a moment and then shook his head, saying, "This man is no ordinary person. The Eastern Capital is not like Chang'an. When a fugitive comes and goes, he will inevitably leave traces."

Although Zhang Shuo has lost power, the Emperor still treats him with lingering affection; executing his grandson might have repercussions. We must especially guard against the eunuch using this as an excuse, especially since Consort Hui has treated him quite well. If we kill this scoundrel, we might lose the money we've been paying him; let's teach him a lesson first. If he still doesn't repent, we can punish him more severely!

Killing a son of a high-ranking official wouldn't be too difficult for Wang Maozhong, but considering the young man's complicated interpersonal relationships, he still needed to be somewhat wary.

"That scoundrel lured two slaves away from the manor the other day. He accepted my gifts but ruined my plans. He needs to be made to return them!"

Wang Shouzhen was still filled with hatred, and then said in a deep voice, "Later, I will use the pretext of capturing runaway slaves to enter the neighborhood, capture this scoundrel, and bring him to the North Gate, where I will then prepare him in a more elaborate way to vent my anger!"

"Okay, be ruthless, don't let him escape!"

Wang Maozhong nodded at first, but after thinking for a moment, he said, "Don't bring him to the North Gate. If Consort Hui comes to ask, we will have no way to refuse. Besides, the Emperor has already rewarded this man, so it would be inappropriate to punish him at the North Gate. If we take him to the Imperial Guard, many of the soldiers in the Southern Army will also resent Zhang Shuo for his poor treatment of Dongfeng. Even if they try to rescue him, it will not go smoothly."

The father and son then finalized their plan to punish Zhang Dai the next day, before each of them went home to sleep, each filled with resentment.

Zhang Dai left the palace in the early hours of the morning. Instead of having Gao Chengxin escort him back to Kangsufang, he went to his villa in Huixunfang to sleep and returned to the mansion early in the morning.

When he arrived home, more visitors came, and he followed his uncle Zhang Ji, busy greeting and seeing them off, before he could finally relax.

In the afternoon, Gao Chengxin arrived as agreed. Zhang Dai then apologized to his grandfather and, with some gifts in hand, went out with Gao Chengxin to prepare to visit Yang Sixu.

When Zhang Dai saw that Gao Chengxin had brought more than a dozen servants with swords and staffs, he was dumbfounded: "Isn't this a bit too much?"

"Sixth Brother, don't underestimate the arrogance and wickedness of the Wang family. Not only do the servants at the North Gate obey their orders, but many of the children in the Five Workshops and the inner servants also hide their lives and follow their commands."

Even if someone commits murder in the street and hides in the inner palace, the authorities have no way to trace them. In previous years in Chang'an, more than one or two people have fallen victim to his cruelty; caution is still necessary!

Gao Chengxin said with a serious expression, looking as if he were facing a formidable enemy.

Of course, the reality is that even if the Wang family father and son were indeed arrogant and domineering, it was impossible for them to be so unscrupulous and disregard the law. Gao Chengxin's act was naturally intended to make this favor bigger and to make Zhang Dai even more grateful to him.

Zhang Dai didn't think Wang Maozhong would dare send someone to assassinate him in the street, but since his life was at stake, he certainly wouldn't gamble on the possibility of such an attack. Moreover, Gao Chengxin had already arranged security personnel, so he accepted the assignment and once again took Ding Qing and An Xiaochen, his two henchmen, with him when he went out.

(End of this chapter)