Qing Yao

Chapter 422 Father Emperor, do I resemble you?
The fat old man was wearing glasses with extremely thick lenses, and the smell of smoke was so strong that it choked people's noses even before they got close.

Who is the fat old man?
If it weren't for that pipe, Zhao An might not have known who this fat old man was, but that pipe revealed his identity completely.

It must be Ji Xiaolan, who was known for his "iron teeth and bronze tongue"!

Indeed, it is the Minister of Rites, Ji Daxueshi, whose cultivation has recently improved and who is expected to break through to the Nascent Soul stage.

Pushing up his glasses, Ji Yun smiled at Zhao An with the air of an elder appraising a junior, and said, "This must be Lord Zhao Youlu from Anhui?"

Does Fatty Ji know me?

Zhao An subconsciously prepared to get up and bow to Ji Yun. Ji Yun was the number one Golden Core cultivator and a true minister. Zhao An, a local official of the second rank, could ignore Ji Yun, but he still had to show some courtesy.

Unexpectedly, Ji Yun waved his hand to indicate that Zhao An did not need to get up, then leaned forward with his large belly and smiled, saying, "Lord Zhao must be feeling cold sitting in this windy spot, but Lord Zhao is young and has a strong internal fire, so a little cold will not hurt you, it will not hurt you."

"."

If Zhao An heard this in his own office in Anhui, he would definitely take a weight and smash Ji Laopang's mouthful of iron teeth to pieces.

What the hell? Are you making fun of me?
It wasn't just Fatty Ji who laughed at him; a lean old man also came along, looked Zhao An up and down, and then blurted out, "This young man is not bad. It hasn't been long, and he's already able to freeload at the entrance of Qianqing Palace. It looks like he'll be sitting in the palace next year."

Who?
Liu Luoguo without his hunchback.

Liu Yong was the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel in charge of organizational work. Having seen Zhao An's portrait in the personnel file, and with Old Fatty Ji present, he could easily guess Zhao An's identity.

Moreover, there was a nameplate on the table in front of Zhao An that clearly read "Zhao Youlu".

"Sitting in this windy spot for too long can easily make you catch a cold, so Lord Zhao should have a couple more cups to warm up later."

Perhaps it was Liu Yong's arrival, or perhaps it was just too cold outside, but Ji Yun and Liu Yong exchanged a smile, and the two, one fat and one thin, strolled slowly into the main hall, leaving Zhao An bewildered in the drafty passageway.

What are those two old guys trying to do?
It is unclear, truly unclear.

Looking around, the officials sitting in the corridor were not of the highest rank; most were vice ministers or deputy commanders of ministries, and there were a few guards wearing yellow jackets, who were probably mostly members of the imperial family.

Because they were unfamiliar with each other, most of the people hunched over and rubbed their hands, silently enduring the price of the emperor's "favor".

The cold dishes on the table were frozen solid, like popsicles.

While anxiously awaiting the start of the banquet, a young member of the imperial clan wearing a yellow sash plopped down on a cushion next to Zhao An, muttering, "In this awful weather, sitting under the eaves is worse than lying on the kang (heated brick bed) at home."

As he spoke, he sneezed loudly and casually pulled a handkerchief from his sleeve to wipe his nose.

Zhao An glanced at the nameplate on the other person's table, which read "General Haikang, Assistant to the State".

The title of Assistant General was the tenth rank of the Manchu imperial family, and it was a minor position. It is estimated that he received the invitation because of his illustrious ancestors.

The two were not familiar with each other, and Zhao An did not want to pay attention to this Manchu. When he looked away, he inadvertently noticed that there was a flower embroidered on the corner of the other man's handkerchief, which looked like a lotus flower. However, the shape of the petals was somewhat peculiar and did not look like a lotus flower.

In short, this pattern has an indescribable eerie feel to it.

Zhao An's heart skipped a beat: Bai Lian?

No way?
Could a general with a yellow sash be a follower of the White Lotus Sect?

Unsure, he subtly withdrew his gaze, wiped his nose, casually stuffed the handkerchief back into his sleeve, grinned at Zhao An, revealing two tiger teeth: "This gentleman looks unfamiliar. Which department are you from? I am Hai Kang, Assistant General of the State, and a servant of the Qianqing Gate."

"My name is Zhao Youlu, acting governor of Anhui."

Out of politeness, Zhao An cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards the other party.

Haikang looked to be about the same age as him, both in their early twenties, but he was quite eccentric and didn't have the airs of a member of the royal family.

The two chatted idly, mostly Haikang talking about interesting things happening inside and outside the palace. Zhao An listened, occasionally chiming in, but inwardly he was wondering if there was anything strange about the lotus flower on Haikang's handkerchief. Suddenly, a high-pitched, drawn-out eunuch's voice rang out from afar: "The Emperor has arrived!"

The announcement of "The Emperor has arrived" seemed to press the pause button, instantly silencing the commotion inside and outside the hall. Everyone sprang up as if electrocuted and knelt down in unison, their foreheads touching the ground, too ashamed to look up.

Zhao An and Hai Kang were the same; all they could hear were distant footsteps and the tinkling of jade pendants approaching.

The old man has arrived!
Unable to resist, Zhao An secretly glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw the old man, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe and wearing a warm hat, slowly walking towards the main hall, supported by a man and a woman.

Judging from his physique, the old man was obviously hunched over, and his unsteady gait made it extremely difficult for him to move around. Getting closer, one could clearly see that his aged face was covered with brown age spots.

The woman supporting the old master was Consort Dun, née Wang, who had a smug look in her eyes. She was the mother of the old master's most beloved tenth princess.

On the other side was the handsome Heshen, who followed closely behind, his face always displaying just the right amount of respect and concern.

Or, to put it another way, the woman on the left is the mother-in-law, and the woman on the right is the father-in-law.

Behind the three were several princes and Grand Councilors, all with smiles on their faces.

"Long live my emperor, long live, long live!"

The sounds of homage immediately rang out, and Zhao An's voice was among them.

The lively scene put the old master in a very good mood. His cloudy old eyes slowly swept over the kneeling officials, and he nodded with a smile. Then, with the careful support of Consort Dun and Heshen, he stepped up the steps of the Qianqing Palace and headed towards the main gate of the hall.

Heshen smiled slightly when he saw Zhao An kneeling on the "windy spot". Just as the old master was about to step into the main gate, whether it was because of his old age and difficulty walking or because the steps were frozen and slippery by the cold wind, the old master slipped and his body uncontrollably leaned towards Consort Dun.

That is, the direction where Zhao An was kneeling.

"emperor!"

"master!"

Heshen and Consort Dun exclaimed in surprise at the same time, one holding on tightly and the other pulling on tightly.

Upon seeing this, the surrounding guards and eunuchs were terrified and almost lunged forward.

Fortunately, the old master did not fall, but Consort Dun's lack of strength caused the old master's center of gravity to tilt to one side, and his gaze fell on Zhao An's face right in front of him.

Zhao An had his head up because he heard the exclamation and instinctively looked up to see what was going on.

Then, their eyes met.

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Zhao An felt a chill run down his spine; the distance was so close that he could clearly smell the old man's distinctive odor.

In the few breaths before the eunuchs came to help, the old master kept his eyes fixed on Zhao An, staring intently.

To an uninformed outsider, that gaze was filled with an indescribable focus, a hint of inquiry, a touch of daze, as if seeing some distant memory through Zhao An.

To be precise, the old man was also severely nearsighted, and Zhao An's image was extremely blurry in his vision.

Apart from the faintly visible double-eyed peacock feather, everything else is abstract.

The reason it took several breaths was simply because the eunuchs helping out were slow in their movements.

Once his body returns to its original position, the old man will definitely feel a sense of powerlessness, a powerlessness that comes with age and makes it difficult for him to even walk steadily.

A sense of vicissitude and melancholy prevented the old man from immediately entering the hall. Instead, under the watchful eyes of all the princes and ministers inside and outside the hall, he stared blankly at Zhao An, who was kneeling on the ground and meeting his gaze.

(End of this chapter)