The story of Xia Huaizhang had spread throughout almost the entire capital, and Xiao Weishen knew it, too. He privately disliked his cousin, so he just offered him symbolic condolences and pretended to care about him by sending him some compensation items. In fact, he was so happy in private that he spent several days in the palace watching singing and dancing and admiring beauties.
No matter who did it, Xiao Weishen didn't care. For him, the life-and-death struggle between these ministers was what he was most happy to see. Although he did need to rely on his maternal uncle to secure the throne, Xia Huaizhang was really unpleasant. He often acted rudely and arrogantly based on his status, and many times he ignored him as the emperor, which often annoyed him and made him dislike the entire Xia family, but there was nothing he could do.
A few days later, it happened to be You Shu's turn to be on duty again, and his partner today was the youngest and the least talkative Ying Shi. This kid just turned sixteen last month, and at such a young age he loves to act cool, not only does he always look sophisticated, but he also follows the principle of "silence is golden" when speaking, and firmly believes that a man who speaks less is more attractive.
In the entire Shadow Guard Battalion, only You Shu, a habitual offender, can compete with him in terms of pretense.
When they are put together, they are a living statue with the word "Silence" in capital letters.
Xiao Weixin got up early in the morning and dressed up carefully. He even fumigated his clothes with pinewood and agarwood a day in advance, as if he was going to attend some important occasion. You Shu knew that the male lead was going to act again, because today was the birthday of the concubine Zhou Wan. There was no main wife in the palace, nor any other concubines, so he, as a prince, should go and take a look.
What's more, Zhou Wan was a woman personally selected by Xiao Weishen and had an extraordinary status.
Xiao Weishen was not very confident in any of his brothers. He actually had people in every mansion, otherwise how could he know so many private matters of others. In name, he was concerned about his brother's lifelong affairs, but in reality, he just wanted to plant spies.
In addition to Xiao Weixin, the palaces of the King of Qin and the King of Yong all had women he had sent in. However, Xiao Weiming was still young and there was no mistress to manage the household business. He was not very familiar with matters between men and women, so the women he sent were used as housekeepers, basically as tools. Xiao Weijing was a playboy, and it didn't matter to him to have more women. They would look good as decorations in the palace. In any case, they all acquiesced to Xiao Weishen's behavior, whether truly or not.
Xiao Weixin could choose not to touch Zhou, but he couldn't really treat her as air, otherwise it would arouse Xiao Weishen's suspicion, so on his birthday he still went to Zhou Wan's Fallen Plum Garden.
You Shu and Ying Shi followed behind in silence. Actually, there was no need to be so strict in their own house. After all, it was unlikely that an assassin would really come to die. However, Lord Ying Shou was more careful than a needle tip. He always believed in the word "cautious" and always strictly required them to protect the prince and not to relax at all.
Luomei Garden was the only place where the female members of the family lived in Prince Ling's mansion. When Xiao Weixin arrived, the maids were already kneeling at the door to greet him, and Zhou Wan had already dressed up and was waiting outside the door obediently.
"Your Highness." Zhou Wan's eyes lit up when she saw him, and a shy and gentle smile appeared on her face, but she still half-knelt politely.
Xiao Weixin hurriedly stood up and helped her up, half-seriously and half-fakely reproaching her: "Didn't I tell you to wait inside? Why are your hands so cold?"
Zhou Wan smiled obediently, her eyebrows bright and her eyes moving, as if she was complaining: "Your Highness hasn't come for a long time, how can I not be anxious?"
The two of them seemed to be in love as they entered the inner room. The other guards stood guard at the door, while You Shu and Ying Shi squatted on the roof as usual. The wind in late autumn was really strong, and the two of them stood upright on the roof like two black chopsticks, neither of them spoke as if they were competing with each other.
The voices of Xiao Weixin and Zhou Wan could be faintly heard in the room. Just by listening to the warm and harmonious voices, outsiders would definitely think that this was a perfect match for a loving couple, and would never imagine that they actually looked down on each other.
Zhou Wan is Xiao Weishen's person. She was trained as a spy since childhood. She was married into the mansion under the identity of an official's daughter. Her purpose was to monitor Xiao Weishen's movements and report any abnormality he showed.
Although Xiao Weixin wanted to kill her a thousand times, he had to keep her. In order not to arouse suspicion, he had to deal with her from time to time. Zhou Wan looked down on the sickly and incompetent Xiao Weixin, but she could only obey orders.
You Shu was still sighing at the performances of the two best actor and actress below, but Ying Shi was still young, so he spoke first: "The concubine is really devoted to the prince."
There are shadow guards monitoring Zhou Wan's courtyard all year round, but very few people know her identity. You Shu is just a prophet who knows Zhou Wan's identity, but other people don't know much about it. So in Ying Shi's opinion, it's a pity that the concubine is so beautiful but not favored.
"Don't judge things by appearances." You Shu said to him calmly.
Ying Shi was a little puzzled and couldn't understand what was wrong. The concubine was beautiful and gentle. If the prince had not endured humiliation and endured heavy burdens, they would have been able to live together long ago.
What does a sixteen-year-old child know about love between men and women? You Shu looked at his innocent eyes, raised his hand and patted his shoulder with a mature look: "You are still young, you will understand when you grow up."
Ying Shi blinked, somewhat dissatisfied that he was looked down upon, "Ying San is obviously not much older than me, we are of the same generation, you don't have to lecture me."
You Shu sighed.
In terms of mental age, I'd have to be your uncle, little brat.
The sound of stringed instruments came from the house. You Shu crossed his arms and looked up, staring straight ahead. Just in time, a group of wild geese were flying in a line towards the south in the clear sky. Ying Shi turned around and looked at him in confusion.
Although it is difficult for outsiders to understand, the brothers in the Shadow Guard Camp have a very good relationship with each other. They are all orphans who have survived the bloody purgatory together and live a life of uncertainty. Therefore, their relationship is better than that of others, but Ying San is definitely the strangest one among them.
He is always silent, works steadily and carefully, and trains the hardest. Almost everyone agrees that if nothing unexpected happens, he will be the next Shadow Leader and take over the prince's Shadow Guard Camp together with the Second Shadow Leader. That is what many people dream of.
But Ying San didn't seem happy about it. He almost never showed his emotions, and no one knew what he was thinking. Everyone said Ying Shi was mature, but in fact, Ying Shi learned to be silent to some extent because he admired him.
Ying San is the number one genius in the Shadow Guard Battalion. He was able to go on missions alone when he was just twelve years old. He is so experienced that he doesn't look like a child. He is the role model that many low-level Shadow Guards dream of.
Just like now, Ying Shi looked at him blankly as he looked up at the migratory birds in the sky.
Why is there such an inexplicable sadness in his eyes
How could a shadow guard be sad
not understand.
You Shu looked into the sky, while Xiao Weixin in the room was equally annoyed.
Zhou Wan was a very difficult woman. She had to be more careful when acting in front of him than in front of Xiao Weishen. Any slight mistake could lead to mistakes. Moreover, she came close to him several times and kept hinting at something, which made him even more upset.
Xiao Weixin had a serious mental obsession with cleanliness. Although there was no such term in ancient times, it was almost the same. He could not tolerate unclean things touching him. Zhou Wan was a woman who came from a spy family. She had served countless men in the past. Xiao Weixin felt sick just thinking about it. He was strongly disgusted by her soft and boneless hands touching him. He wanted to chop her hands off and throw them away immediately.
"I've drunk too much fruit wine, so I'll go back and rest first." Xiao Weixin finally felt that the time was about right, so he stood up and pretended to be drunk: "You don't have to see me off. Today is your birthday. If you like anything, just send someone to buy it for you. Don't let yourself down."
After saying that, he stood up, as if he had drunk a little too much, and his body swayed slightly. Hua Chun immediately came forward to support him. Zhou Wan had no choice but to bow to him with tears in her eyes, as if she was reluctant to leave.
You Shu watched the two movie stars leave the show, and followed them quietly from the rooftop.
Not long after leaving the Plum Blossom Garden, Xiao Weixin's face turned cold. Hua Chun understood what he meant, and took off his outer robe for him, replaced it with another one, and put it on him again. The clothes that Zhou Wan had touched would most likely be burned.
"Keep watching her and tell me if she takes any action." Xiao Weixin left these words and strode away. He was in a hurry to go back and take a shower. His whole body was filled with the disgusting scent of the woman, even her hair. He felt like he was going to suffocate.
But as soon as I returned to the yard, I found someone was already waiting.
"Seventh brother, you don't look very happy. What made you angry?"
Yong Wang Xiao Weijing smiled and swung his legs while lying on the recliner, teasing him, "You really don't know how to be gentle with women."
Xiao Weixin looked at him coldly and said in a cold voice: "I can give it to you to cherish it."
"That's not necessary. There are too many women in my house, and they will fight." Xiao Weijing sat up with a smile, "Besides, women like Zhou Wan, except Xiao Weishen who is not picky, even I won't go for her."
Xiao Weixin snorted coldly, sat down on another chair, took the tea brought by Luo Yao and took a sip: "How is the investigation going?"
"As you said, Xia Huaizhang did a lot of 'good things' behind our good brother's back! He even embezzled the money for bridge repair and disaster relief, and embezzled a hundred thousand taels of silver." When Xiao Weijing said these words, his usual frivolous expression was put away, and he was serious and solemn, unlike that playboy: "He is so audacious."
"Is there anything he dare not do?" Xiao Weixin was not surprised. "I'm afraid Xiao Weishen would never have thought that Xia Huaizhang would sleep with a woman even before him."
"Is there such a thing?" Xiao Weijing came over to gossip with great interest, "Does he really dare to cheat on Xiao Weishen?"
Xiao Weixin frowned, "Stay away from me, the smell of powder on you is too stinky."
"Alright, alright. This bad habit of yours is really killing me. I don't know what kind of person will be pleasing to you in the future." Xiao Weijing sat further away helplessly. "I heard that you embarrassed Xia Huaizhang a few days ago?"
Xiao Weixin held the teacup and said with a bit of satisfaction: "It was done by one of my men."
"Do you have such talent under your command?" Xiao Weijing was very interested, and her slightly feminine and delicate face was full of an expression of 'I want to meet him'. "I like this technique so much. When can you introduce him to me?"
Xiao Weixin drank his tea by himself without answering, obviously not wanting to be recognized by him.
Xiao Weijing was just joking. He lay back in his chair and said nonchalantly, "According to the date, the young general should arrive in the capital in the next two days."
"When the time comes, should we try to win him over?"
Xiao Weixin's eyes were somewhat deep. He shook his head and whispered, "Not for now."
"Although Yang Qixian is young, he still has some pedantic ideas of loyalty to the emperor. There are too many people trying to curry favor with him right now. If we go, we will not be well received and will be more likely to expose ourselves."
"Since he is willing to be loyal to the emperor, then let him be loyal. Sooner or later, he will know what kind of emperor Xiao Weishen is."
Xiao Weixin gave a sly smile.
The capital has been peaceful for too long.