Madam, don't do this!

Chapter 521 Will that mysterious woman come again? (Seven Thousand)

In the sky, the moon, with a small hole in it, has risen, scattering its frosty white glow across the land.

Moon stars are rare.

The silver-armored guards were impressed by their prince's astonishing ability to change his expression, finding it utterly unbeatable.

He thought to himself, "This shameless and brazen behavior must have been learned from the civil officials and scholars of Dongling City."

It's inevitable to feel sad.

Our prince has only been in the capital for a short time, and he's already been corrupted.

Despite thinking this, she didn't slow down at all and hurriedly headed out of the Prince's Mansion.

"My lord, what's the matter that you're in such a hurry?"

Luo Tianxuan's voice came from the bedroom behind her, her big eyes showing some suspicion. Normally, there wouldn't be many guests visiting someone else's house late at night.

Song Yan smiled and said, "They're probably sending money, so we must treat them well no matter what."

"Let's go, come with me to meet this year's God of Wealth."

Luo Tianxuan covered her mouth and chuckled softly.

It is extremely rare to see the gentleman so eager. Apart from annihilating the Japanese pirates, Jurchens, and Xiongnu, it is probably only worldly things like gold and silver that can excite him like this.

The Prince's Mansion is clearly not short of money.

Thinking this, Luo Tianxuan obediently followed behind Song Yan and soon arrived at the guest hall.

After about two or three minutes, a man arrived here, led by a silver-armored guard. Although the man was middle-aged, his eyes were not cloudy at all; on the contrary, they revealed shrewdness, and his mustache had the air of a cunning businessman.

Generally speaking, Song Yan's reputation as a "madman of Jingguan" is somewhat frightening.

A hint of fear crept into the middle-aged man's eyes, and his body became indescribably stiff; he didn't even realize that he was walking with his arms and legs moving in unison.

Upon reaching the center of the reception hall, he knelt down with a thud, his forehead pressed tightly against the ground: "This humble commoner, Xue San, greets Your Excellency!"

The silver-armored guard next to him rolled his eyes and kicked Xue San in the butt: "What kind of marquis!"

"Today, His Majesty personally bestowed upon my general the title of Prince of Yan. Call him Your Highness, understand?"

Xue San immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

Despite his usual intelligence and shrewdness, and his fearlessness in scheming, his intelligence is utterly useless against a tyrannical person like Song Yan.

Already terrified, and still pondering how to appease the Marquis of Champion to save his and his brothers' lives, they never imagined they would offend this killing god right from the start. If Song Yan were to anger him, a single command would likely turn them and their brothers into corpses on the spot.

In an instant, fear rushed to his head, and his face turned deathly pale.

His head slammed heavily onto the ground with a thud.

boom!
boom!
boom!
Before long, bloodstains appeared on the floor, indicating that the person had hit their head and broken it.

While kowtowing, he apologized, saying, "I deserve to die, I deserve to die. I was unaware that Your Highness had been promoted. It was my fault. I beg Your Highness to forgive me."

Black Tiger Gang.

They run casinos.

Song Yan naturally had no good feelings towards these people.

Seeing how frightened the other party was, he felt a little embarrassed and couldn't help but glare at the silver-armored guard.

Why be so fierce?
It makes it seem like we're bandits.

Then he slowly said, "Alright, get up."

call.

Xue Laosan let out a heavy sigh before shakily getting up from the ground. His heart was still trembling. The man in front of him was originally just the Marquis of Champion, which was already lawless. Now he had actually been made a king... It was over. He probably wouldn't be able to cause any trouble in the entire Dongling City.

Song Yan's expression was very calm, revealing no emotion whatsoever. He simply held a teacup in his hand, gently swirling it. But the more calm he appeared, the more terrified Xue Laosan became... He knew that many psychopaths were more normal than anyone else before they suddenly attacked someone.

Could it be that this prince is secretly planning what kind of mound of skulls he wants to be turned into?
"Mr. Xue, right?" Just as Xue Laosan was trembling inside, Song Yan finally spoke slowly.

Xue Laosan immediately put on a smile and said, "Your Highness is too kind. I am of lowly status and do not deserve to be called 'sir.' Please just call me Xue Laosan."

"Alright, Third Brother Xue." Song Yan didn't insist, but simply nodded slightly: "May I ask what brings you to the Prince's residence so late at night?"

"Does he intend to assassinate me?"

hiss.

One sentence made Xue Laosan gasp, feeling as if an electric current had run through his body, and he trembled uncontrollably.

Thinking about what happened to those who actually tried to assassinate Song Yan, Xue Laosan felt a chill run down his spine. Could it be that Song Yan planned to dismember them as well, and then wander around Dongling City with his severed limbs?

Thinking about it this way, Xue Laosan, who was usually quite arrogant and domineering, almost burst into tears. He had just stood up when he knelt down again with a thud, kowtowing repeatedly: "Your Highness, please understand, how could I dare to have such thoughts?"

"Yesterday, those scoundrels, utterly ignorant of Mount Song, dared to defy His Highness's mighty power and attempt assassination in broad daylight. I was terrified upon hearing this, and could not stop trembling. His Highness is the pillar of Ningguo, the pivot of the imperial court. If even the slightest harm were to be done to His Highness, even if the Black Tiger Gang were torn to pieces and their nest burned to ashes, it would still not be enough to atone for even a fraction of their sins!"

Old Xue must have been truly terrified.

He must have read a few books on a regular basis, but in his panic, he suddenly started writing.

Although the words were obscure, one could still understand their meaning; it must be said that this Xue Laosan did possess some literary talent.

"I am filled with anxiety and fear, as if I were standing on the edge of an abyss. I fear that Your Highness's health may be compromised, so I humbly offer this wild celery as a sacrifice and humbly pay homage at the steps of Your Highness. With the utmost sincerity of an ant, I only hope that Your Highness will grant me the favor of the sun and moon and forgive my wrath."

As he spoke, his forehead touched the ground once again.

Upon closer inspection, one could even see that Xue Laosan's clothes were stuck to his body, yet in a short time, his entire body was soaked in cold sweat.

The offering of wild celery comes from the book "Liezi" and symbolizes that the gift is simple but the intention is sincere!
The phrase "伏谒阶墀" (fú yé jiē chě) comes from the "Rites of Zhou" and means to humbly pay a visit.

Song Yan's face twitched.

Good heavens! If it weren't for his vast knowledge of classical texts, he probably wouldn't have understood what Xue Laosan meant. These days, most educated people are like this, constantly spouting classical phrases and quoting sources. If you don't have a good grasp of literature, you probably wouldn't even understand what someone is saying when they insult you.

“Wild celery…hehe, that’s quite interesting. Bring it up so I can take a look,” Song Yan said with a laugh.

Xue Laosan was overjoyed.

If the prince is willing to even glance at the gifts they brought, it means things are going well, and they will have a chance to survive.

He immediately apologized, scrambled to his feet, and hurriedly went outside.

Only Xue Laosan was allowed to enter the Prince's Mansion; the other members of the Black Tiger Gang were still waiting outside.

The Black Tiger Gang and the Azure Dragon Society are both large organizations with a large number of members. Although they cannot compare to the Ghost Cave, they still have eight or nine hundred members. Even though Song Yan killed a group of them, the remaining number is not small.

Despite their usual arrogance and domineering nature, where they readily break the limbs of gamblers who owe money, they dared not act recklessly before the Prince's mansion... For one thing, the eight gatekeepers standing at the entrance alone were enough to send chills down their spines. Though there were only eight, their murderous aura was almost overwhelming. They had a premonition that if a fight broke out, even if they had four or five hundred men, these eight could still kill dozens of them.

As for the Prince's residence, there are countless veterans like him.

So they all obediently lowered their heads and stood beside the car, without having the slightest thought of causing trouble.

Only when Xue Laosan walked out of the Prince's mansion alive did everyone breathe a sigh of relief, but seeing the bloodstains on Xue Laosan's forehead, their hearts tightened again.

"Third Master, how is it?" a man who seemed to be a minor leader asked in a low voice.

There were also dozens of people whose eyes were fixed on Xue Laosan; these were all managers of various gambling dens.

Originally, they were somewhat dissatisfied with having to hand over all the money they had accumulated over such a long time. However, ever since the silver-armored guards passed by the gambling house time and time again, especially in the middle of the night, and some silver-armored guards were loitering around, seemingly wiping bloodstains from the street, they always felt that those people were watching them.

The shopkeepers were also frightened.

No one wanted to be part of the cart, so during the day they all obediently exchanged various banknotes for cash.

Escape is out of the question. I heard that the Yang family was trying to send a few people out of Dongling City, but Song Yan caught up with them and beheaded them. They don't have the Yang family's abilities, and they certainly can't escape under Song Yan's nose.

Generally speaking, large-scale exchanges like theirs require advance reservations, and the money exchange needs time to prepare the silver. However, the Black Tiger Gang still holds some status, and the money exchange is unwilling to offend these desperate criminals unless absolutely necessary. So, they made an exception and scraped together the silver in the shortest possible time. Even so, it was already dark by the time they finished all that work.

Xue Laosan let out a heavy sigh: "Fortunately, the prince doesn't seem to have any intention of killing anyone. But everyone, keep your mouths shut. Hold back when you shouldn't speak. And... he's not a marquis now, he's a prince, understand?"

Seeing everyone nod, Xue Laosan was somewhat satisfied: "Carry everything inside."

"Eighth Brother, Ninth Brother, and Tenth Brother, you three, each take a box and follow behind me."

Xue Laosan quickly made the arrangements.

Hundreds of Black Tiger Gang members immediately sprang into action, quickly securing ropes to the box, then threading two arm-thick wooden sticks through it. Four men lifted it, their faces contorted with rage and teeth clenched, clearly indicating the box was quite heavy.

Most of the boxes were placed in the front yard, where Song Yan could see them clearly from the main hall.

In the front hall, there were three chests.

Three figures stood beside the box.

"Open it," Xue Laosan said in a deep voice, waving his hand.

The eight, nine, and tenth brothers quickly bent down and opened the box.

In an instant, Song Yan's pupils contracted.

Inside the first box were neatly stacked gold ingots. Under the candlelight, their bright gold color made Song Yan's heart skip a beat.

The second box contained rows of silver bricks, their frosty white color sending chills down one's spine.

As for the third box, it contained a jumble of miscellaneous items, including jade, emeralds, pearls, and agates. Even though Song Yan didn't know much about these things, he could tell at a glance that they were all quite valuable.

At the same time, the Black Tiger Gang members outside opened the boxes one by one.

Song Yan's fingers, which were resting on the armrest of the seat, twitched involuntarily.

Under the moonlight, the golden and frosty colors shone even brighter.

At first glance, Song Yan even felt a stinging pain in his eyes.

Even his breathing was not as steady as before.

He barely moved his throat before finally standing up and walking to the center of the hall. His gaze swept over the items in the boxes, while Xue Laosan bowed beside him with a fawning smile, saying, "Your Highness, please take a look!"

"This is all the Black Tiger Gang's assets, totaling eighty-one boxes, sixty-six of which contain silver. Each box is filled with five thousand taels of silver, for a total of three hundred and thirty thousand taels of silver."

He was extremely glad that he had someone exchange some of the banknotes for silver in advance.

After all, the visual impact of 330,000 taels of cash and 330,000 taels of silver notes are completely different concepts.

“Gold, each box contains one thousand taels, seven boxes in total, totaling seven thousand taels, equivalent to seventy thousand taels of silver.”

"In addition, there are eight boxes filled with various gold, silver and jade artifacts, pearl jewelry, the value of which is hard to estimate, but it should be at least 100,000 taels."

That's 500,000 taels.

As Song Yan was pondering this, Xue Laosan raised his hand again and sent another person up. That person was also carrying a wooden box about a foot square. When the box was opened, there were stacks of silver notes inside.

"There are also 1,000 silver notes and 731 notes, which is equivalent to 731,000 taels of silver." There was no other way; the money shop simply couldn't come up with much cash at once.

"A total of 1,231,000 taels of silver."

Well, there are both whole and odd amounts.

It seems these really are all the Black Tiger Gang's assets.

Sure enough, gamblers' money is easy to earn; this is much more than the assets looted from the Ghost Cave back then.

Xue Laosan's expression became even more obsequious: "Your Highness, these are just some vulgar things, not presentable at all. Please accept them with a smile."

Song Yan took a deep breath, then his expression hardened, and he said in a deep voice, "Mr. Xue, what do you mean by that? I, the Prince, possess Anzhou and Pingyang. Do you mean that I am still coveting your little bit of silver?"

Xue Laosan's expression tightened, and the other three people beside him shuddered and turned pale. They thought to themselves that this man was indeed the "Jingguan Madman". Just the moment his expression changed, they all felt a murderous aura rushing towards them. The unspeakable fear made their teeth chatter.

Xue Laosan, with his stronger mental fortitude, forced a smile and said, "Your Highness is too kind. Although we brothers were not involved in yesterday's events, they are ultimately related to the Black Tiger Gang. Therefore, we feel guilty and have put together these vulgar things to help Your Highness calm down."

"This is by no means a trick or a robbery by Your Highness, but just a small token of our appreciation from the brothers."

Song Yan pursed her lips. "Look how eloquent this person is!"
"Isn't it a bit much to calm your nerves?" Song Yan's tone softened slightly.

Xue Laosan's eyes darted around: "Well, brothers, we've heard that the soldiers at the Pingyang border are fighting against the Xiongnu, resisting the Jurchens, and protecting the peace of Ningguo... We don't have the ability to fight those barbarians on the border, but we admire these soldiers very much. This is just a little something from us brothers, consider it an invitation for the soldiers at the border to have a pot of wine and a couple of bites of meat."

"We're not from any high-class family, this is all we can do."

"These are for our brothers on the frontier, Your Highness, please don't refuse them on their behalf."

Song Yan was growing to like Xue Laosan more and more; he was so skilled at speaking.

Song Yan looked bitter, as if he had carefully considered his words before speaking: "Very well, since it is your goodwill towards the soldiers on the border, I cannot refuse. In that case, I will accept it on behalf of the soldiers on the border."

"You're not allowed to do that anymore."

call.

Xue Laosan let out a heavy sigh, thinking to himself that Song Yan really had no shame.

They clearly wanted the money, but they pretended to be reluctant and acted as if they didn't want it and that they were the ones who insisted on giving it to them.

It was still a difficult task.

That's absolutely despicable, shameless, and utterly shameless.

You mean you won't be allowed to do that anymore?

If I don't survive this time, then there will be no future.

Of course, with Song Yan accepting the gift, Xue Laosan could finally rest easy.

Clearing his throat, Song Yan said again, "It's getting late, so I won't keep you any longer. Go back now, and remember, never do anything illegal or disorderly again."

They just took the money and they're already kicking people out? They should at least offer them a cup of tea! Even Luo Tianxuan couldn't stand this behavior. She put her hand to her forehead, her face slightly flushed.

Xue Laosan and his group, on the other hand, were overjoyed, as if they had been granted a pardon: "Your Highness, those silver-armored guards from Dongling City..."

Song Yan was taken aback.

Aren't all the Silver Armor Guards in the Prince's Mansion?
Could it be referring to Zhang Han, Lei Yi, and the silver-armored guards who went to mop the floor with the two of them?

Why is Xue Laosan bringing up these people?
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Song Yan's mind: Could it be that the Black Tiger Gang members saw Zhang Han, Lei Yi, the silver-armored guards, and the scene of them wandering the streets with many dismembered bodies yesterday as a threat to him?

I was wondering why these people were so eager to give me money, and now I know why.

Song Yan subconsciously thought about that scene. These people already had something to hide, and then they saw trucks full of dismembered bodies passing by the door, and people wiping blood at the door in the middle of the night... Tsk tsk, no wonder they were scared.

For a moment, I felt an urge to laugh. I never expected that Zhang Han and Lei Yi, those two impulsive guys, would have such an unexpected surprise.

Of course, Song Yan wouldn't show any weakness at this time. He cleared his throat and said, "Don't worry, I will call them back."

Old Master Xue was overjoyed. After thanking Song Yan again, he hurriedly left.

Once outside the Prince Yan's mansion, all the members of the Black Tiger Gang felt as if they had escaped death. The feeling of being watched by the silver-armored guards all around the mansion was terrifying, as if they could be torn to pieces at any moment.

"My god, we finally survived! That scared me to death!" One of the brothers patted his chest, looking utterly pathetic. But at this point, no one would laugh at him; after all, everyone was in the same boat. "But Third Master, now that we've spent all our money, we only have a few copper coins left. How are we going to survive?"

This is also a concern for many others.

Xue Laosan didn't care: "Aren't there still dozens of shops? Sell them all. You can get at least tens of thousands of taels. The brothers can divide it up, buy a few acres of land, and live an honest life from now on. Things won't be bad."

"If all else fails, we can go to Pingyang and join the army. I've heard that the Silver Armor Guards have excellent benefits, including food and lodging, and they also get two taels of silver a month."

"Would Pingyang Prefecture even want someone like us?"

"Why not? We brothers are all good fighters too."

Accompanied by rustling sounds, hundreds of Black Tiger Gang members gradually disappeared into the night.

Right there in the front hall of the Prince's mansion, with no outsiders around, Song Yan could no longer suppress his smile, and an exaggerated smile appeared on his lips.

Be nice.

silver.

gold.

It's all good stuff.

We've collected plenty of banknotes, but such a large pile of gold and silver is truly rare.

"Your Highness, wouldn't this be considered embezzlement?" a silver-armored guard asked in a muffled voice, looking rather simple-minded.

Song Yan slapped the helmet: "You bastard, what are you saying?"

"How can no one be exonerated out of nowhere?"

"Is this what you call embezzlement? Didn't someone just say that part of this money is compensation for me and part is a donation to the army? I didn't embezzle a single copper coin from it."

The silver-armored guard glanced at the dozens of boxes... Where are the copper coins in here?

"Besides, am I doing this for myself? Do you want to look at the armor you wear, the warhorse you ride, the sword you use, and the salary you receive? Where does all this money come from?" Song Yan sighed, "I'm doing this so that my brothers can have meat to eat, wine to drink, and money to marry wives."

The somewhat simple-minded silver-armored guard was immediately moved.

It turns out that the prince was thinking of his brothers, which is why he was willing to bear the infamy. It's truly touching.

The prince's kindness can never be repaid.

I will definitely fight hard in the future, bravely kill the enemy, and never disgrace the prince.

"Alright, go out and run an errand, and call Zhang Han and Lei Yi back," Song Yan said, waving his hand.

The silver-armored guard left immediately, but returned shortly afterward with a strange expression on his face: "Your Highness, another group of people has arrived outside, claiming to be from the Azure Dragon Society..."

Song Yan: ???
……

yellow.

bet.

Indeed, it was one of the most profitable professions in ancient times.

Song Yan wasn't sure exactly how much they had paid to the people behind them, but the gifts from the Black Tiger Gang and the Green Dragon Society alone amounted to three million. And this didn't even include the various jewels and ornaments in the dozen or so boxes, which should also be quite valuable.

The Green Dragon Society, which ran brothels, made even more money than the Black Tiger Gang.

Zhang Han and Lei Yi were called back.

Song Yan didn't say much, and gave each person a thousand taels of silver.

Incidentally, they were also promoted a level.

According to the military system of Ningguo, the highest rank for a military general is either the Grand Commander of the Army or the Grand Marshal of the Army.

However, these two positions were not permanent; they were temporarily conferred during times of war, and the positions would be revoked once the war ended.

The next rank is General of the State (first rank), General of the State (second rank), General of the Army (second rank), and General of the Dragon and Tiger (second rank).
Then there are generals with miscellaneous titles, such as General Who Pacifies the Barbarians, General Who Presences the Distant Lands, General Who Subdues the Waves, General Who Crosses the Liao River, and General Who Soars with the Eagle's Flight. Most of them are third-rank military officers.

Next comes the deputy general, who has no further title and is considered a fourth-rank military officer.

Finally, there was the lieutenant general, a fifth-rank military officer.

Ningguo does not have official positions like Colonel, but in terms of power, a Lieutenant General is actually similar to a Colonel, both being junior officers who command a thousand or two thousand soldiers.

Below that are the various ranks of squad leaders, roughly corresponding to squad leaders, platoon leaders, centurions, and chiliarchs.

Lei Yi and Zhang Han were originally both fifth-rank lieutenants, but now they have become fourth-rank deputy generals.

Song Yan is now the Prince of Yan, and Emperor Ninghe has granted him considerable autonomy, making it quite easy for him to appoint several fourth-rank military officers. In any case, Zhang Han and Lei Yi have managed to raise three million in military funds, a truly significant achievement.

Having received the reward, Zhang Han glanced at Lei Yi, his eyes full of smugness, clearly saying: Now you believe me, right? I told you no one understands the prince better than me.

Lei Yi was filled with admiration and made up his mind that from now on, he would do whatever Zhang Han said about the prince and would never utter a word of rebuttal.

Of course, it still has to be done in a pretense.

Therefore, Song Yan ordered Zhang Han and Lei Yi to be punished with one hundred lashes... The people who did it were all Zhang Han and Lei Yi's subordinates. Don't be fooled by how high the sticks were raised; just before they hit their buttocks, they would suddenly pause for a moment before finally striking them.

One hundred strokes of the military rod, and it's slightly red!
However, the screams of these two were so shrill that they could probably be heard by people outside the palace.

The next day, the two of them were lively and energetic again, and they didn't seem to care about putting on an act.

However, having just received three million, Song Yan was in a great mood and didn't dwell on these trivial matters.

These past few days, the vast Prince's mansion has been extremely busy. The wedding arrangements are becoming more and more elaborate, and Emperor Ninghe's approval arrived the next day, which was naturally granted without question. Not only that, but they even selected many precious items from the imperial treasury and sent them over.

Starting from the second day, more officials came to visit, mostly wanting to improve their relationship with the Prince of Yan. Even if they couldn't become friends, they at least didn't want to become enemies.

Seeing the brightly decorated Prince's mansion, they learned after making a few inquiries that the Prince was about to marry his second wife. Within a day, almost all the powerful and influential people in Dongling knew about it. Many of them were thinking that they could take the opportunity of attending the wedding to ease their relationship with Song Yan. They just didn't know what kind of gift to give.

On the third day, the Fang family helped prepare some precious items, along with some gifts from Emperor Ninghe, and various pearl jewelry sent by the Azure Dragon Society and the Black Tiger Gang. After careful selection, these items were sent to the post station as betrothal gifts. Although Chu Yue claimed that the Chu Kingdom was Hua Lianyue's family, he wouldn't shamelessly keep the betrothal gifts for himself. These precious items were naturally to be sent to the Su Nu Pavilion.

fifth day.

The time for the wedding procession has finally arrived.

Song Yan rode out of the palace gate on a warhorse adorned with red flowers, dressed in a wedding gown.

Chang'an Street was already packed with a dense crowd. Silver-armored guards carried bamboo baskets and threw out handfuls of copper coins, causing a frenzy of people to scramble for them.

Looking at the lively scene, a strange thought suddenly popped into Song Yan's mind:

This was a joyous day for him and Hua Lianyue.

That mysterious woman, she won't come back, will she?

(End of this chapter)