Just when the nobles in the mission had their own thoughts, the convoy arrived at the last station outside the capital regardless of human will. Looking at the guard of honor and the battle array placed there, Fan Xian sighed, and had no choice but to drag Miss Shen's problem until he entered Beijing to deal with it. Based on his thinking, there is absolutely no need for this woman to stay, it's just that Miss Shen has friendship with that eldest princess, and Young Master Xiaoyan seems to be a little apologetic towards her.
At this time, officials from the Ministry of Rites and Taichang Temple of Honglu Temple were waiting here, watching the convoy of missions slowly approaching, each of them arranged their clothes, and greeted Her Royal Highness the Princess of Northern Qi to get off the car, very respectful. Fan Xian rolled his eyes and called Gundam to lead the two tiger guards to secure the princess' car, so that the courtiers could not discover the fact that there was a woman in the car.
In fact, with his current position of power, there is no need to be so careful.
"Master Fan has worked hard all the way!"
"Your Majesty Fan is very pleased with this trip, which greatly enhanced the country's prestige. I'm afraid he will be reused soon after returning to Beijing?"
"Old Hu is wrong, Mr. Fan is now..."
Amidst a burst of flattering compliments, Fan Xian entered the post station surrounded by all the officials. The princess of the Northern Qi Dynasty was resting in the inner room, and the pomp of welcoming the envoy seemed more grand. If one did not know Fan Xian's identity, one would be puzzled why the ministers of the Qing court would treat such a young Mid-level officials are so respected.
With a smile all over his face, Fan Xian raised his hand in return to the officials around him, not feeling bored, but slightly anxious. He glanced around and found that most of the officials who came to greet him knew each other. Some were his colleagues in Taichang Temple, and some were subordinates in name when Honglu Temple was negotiating with Northern Qi. Only those officials from the Ministry of Rites showed respect With a trace of fear. He understood the reason for this, after all, Guo Youzhi was brought down by himself.
He just sat down on the chair and only took a sip of the tea. He asked, "What is the next regulation? Is there any order from the palace? When can the mission enter Beijing?" Without waiting for the officials to answer, he took the initiative to He laughed and said: "I am an official, but I am still a little unclear about this application process."
The officials of the Ministry of Rites finally got the chance to get close to him, how could they miss it, a Yuanwailang hurriedly responded: "Lord Fan, don't worry, the Ministry of Rites will make arrangements for the guard of honor, the arrangement has already been made in the palace before the head, and it has been settled long ago .”
Another subordinate of Honglu Temple said: "The Holy Majesty knows that the officials of the mission have been away from home for a long time and are homesick, so he didn't make an explicit decree. He just ordered the mission to enter Beijing. After entering Beijing, my lord, go to the palace first..."
Before he finished speaking, an official wearing a fourth-rank official uniform came in from the outside, and the officials in the room hurriedly greeted him. Fan Xian took a closer look, walked up to him with a smile, patted the other person on the shoulder and said, "Master Ren, why are you here?"
The person who came was Shaoqing Ren Shao'an from Honglu Temple, a disciple of Fan Xian's father-in-law. Seeing that Fan Xian was safe and sound, Ren Shaoan also felt at ease, and said with a wry smile, "It's such a big deal for the Princess of Qi to marry. If I, a coolie from Taichang Temple, don't come, I don't need the censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate to attend, so I have no choice but to invite her." resigned."
Fan Xian smiled, but felt a little puzzled. Knowing that the mission is coming today, why did the Lord Shaoqing come so late? After greeting the officials in the room, he dragged Ren Shaoan to the door and asked, "What's going on?"
Ren Shaoan knew that although the man in front of him was young, his temperament was soft and wrapped in steel. He had done so many things in the capital and overturned so many officials in one year. He really didn't know what to say, but Prime Minister Lin Ruofu Retired and returned to their hometowns, disciples of the Lin family can only rely on Fan's residence in Beijing. After thinking about it, he couldn't help hesitating, and said, "Master Fan, what are you asking?"
Fan Xian stared into his eyes and asked, "I'm not a fool. What kind of thing is it like for the mission to return to Beijing? When we left Shangjing, the court should have known the specifications set by the Northern Qi court. A majestic princess." In the mission, why are there so many Zhima officials here? Where did Xin Qiwu go? And what about the servants from the Ministry of Rites? When the princess comes to marry, at least some old women should be sent in the palace, you are from Taichang Temple The person who cares about the royal family, I don’t ask who you ask?”
Ren Shaoan smiled wryly, and said: "Today...it's just a coincidence that Xin Qiwu went there, and those elders from the Ministry of Rites also went there. Offended there."
"Which side is that over there?" Fan Xian was slightly surprised.
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Ren Shaoan continued with a wry smile and said: "The eldest prince also returned to Beijing today, and he was stationed in the camp less than three miles away from you, so it was a coincidence that people from the Ministry of Rites, the Privy Council and the Ministry of War were all waiting there. Naturally, the mission here is quieter." After saying this, he continued: "Fan Xian, your friendship with me is here, and I'm not afraid to say that you are also a person with a crystal heart, isn't it true? Care about these superficial rituals?"
Only then did Fan Xian understand what was going on, and shook his head with a smile: "I just want to return to Beijing quickly, but the princess is a princess after all, if the court treats her slowly, it will cause the world to discuss, it will not be beautiful."
At this moment, he finally understood why the mission's specifications were much weaker. After all, there was an eldest prince with military power over there, so those courtiers naturally wanted to live there. —He waved his hand to stop Ren Shaoan from explaining, and asked curiously: "The decree at the beginning of the year was written clearly. The eldest prince will lead the army back to Beijing when the grass grows deep in autumn. It's only early autumn, why did he come back?"
"It is said that the Empress Dowager misses her eldest grandson." Ren Shaoan smiled meaningfully, "So we set off early, and the West Route Army stationed in Dingzhou. This time, the First Prince led two hundred soldiers back to Beijing."
Fan Xian shook his head, and reprimanded: "The officials of the Ministry of Rituals don't know if they have learned from the Guo family. The envoys enter Beijing, the prince returns to the palace, so many people, don't they know how to make arrangements? Send a letter on the road, No matter which way, it is not impossible to delay for a day or two, this is good, we are all crowded on this road outside the city. What should I do?"
"The Ministry of Rites and Honglu Temple sent you letters along the way, telling the mission to slow down. Who would have thought that the mission would go back to Beijing without a break for a day, so they were crowded together."
Fan Xian chuckled, but didn't say anything. It was his intention that the mission would gallop thousands of miles back to Beijing.
"Rong Yirong, when the arrangements are made, the mission will enter the city the day after tomorrow, what do you think?" Ren Shaoan glanced at him cautiously, wondering how long this man had stayed in the Overwatch Council, and whether he had succeeded President Chen Pingping. The arrogant arrogance that no one saw in the eyes of the stock, said again: "The new Minister of Rites is embarrassed to come to the mission, so he asked me to pass a message."
"Damn it, I'm in a hurry to go home and hug my wife!" Fan Xian, who was familiar with him, spoke a little presumptuously, scolding with a smile, "Wait for two more days, be careful if you come to the mansion in the future, my family will punish you. "
Ren Shaoan was sweating on his forehead, of course he knew what kind of character Fan Xian's family was. Although he was sick all the time, his background was extremely profound.
Fan Xian also didn't want to compete with the eldest prince whom he had never met, and he was not qualified to compete with others. He patted Ren Shaoan on the shoulder with a smile, and said, "Don't worry, I won't make it difficult for you." After thinking about it, he said: "I'll go and report to the princess, lest there will be a rift between the young couple if they don't meet. We courtiers, we need to explain."
Ren Shaoan was dumbfounded, watching Fan Xian walk towards the room where the princess was temporarily resting, thinking what are you doing? If you don't say anything, what if you delay it for two days? If that princess is unwilling to let the wind fall, your explanation will probably become a provocation.
How did he know that Fan Xian, a wimpy fellow, was simply in a hurry to go home. As for the fight between the eldest prince and the eldest princess, he didn't bother to care about it.
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Ren Shaoan was waiting outside wiping his sweat, and found another fourth-rank official who was wiping his sweat ran in outside the post station. The official's back was already soaked, and it was really a disadvantage for him to run around in the scorching early autumn. The person who came was Xin Qiwu, Shaoqing of Honglu Temple. When he saw Ren Shaoqing here, he bowed his hands and said in a low voice, "You came quite early."
Ren Shaoan knew that the other party was a close relative of the Eastern Palace, so he wasn't very close at first, but after the prime minister resigned, Ren Shaoan had already been assigned to Fan Xian's faction in the official circles, and there was no closeness to the princes, so the two of them were familiar with each other these days After getting closer, he laughed and scolded: "Master Fan is here, if I don't come, I will be scolded by the lady. But you, you have always been close to him, why did you come at this time, be careful that he will embarrass you later. "
Xin Qiwu was slightly taken aback, and said with a wry smile: "Lord Fan is not from this passer-by." Thinking of today's absurdity, he couldn't help laughing at himself: "The eldest prince and the embassy arrived outside Beijing at the same time, I see, let's not talk about the Ministry of Rites People don't know how to arrange it, and even the courtiers of the three courtyards, six departments and four temples are a little confused, which side should we meet first?"
As soon as these words came out, Ren Shaoan and Xin Qiwu fell silent at the same time, and the scene seemed a little strange. After a long time, the two coughed twice. The reason for this is because they discovered that their conversation just now put the importance of the eldest prince and the mission on the same level. Could it be... In the end, it could be vaguely compared with the status of a prince in charge of soldiers
Xin Qiwu shook his head, putting this somewhat absurd idea behind him, but he clearly knew that since the officials were in such a difficult situation, they had subconsciously placed Fan Xian in a very high position. That's right, it's really surprising to see that Mr. Fan has done so many things in just over a year since he entered Beijing. Although there was a princess from a foreign country in the mission, the true intention of those officials was naturally to curry favor with the Fan family and the Overwatch Council.
"Lord Fan... You didn't see me before, so you didn't say anything?" Xin Qiwu asked cautiously.
Ren Shaoan shook his head. Xin Qiwu felt a little relieved, and said with a smile: "Actually, it is due to emotion and reason, the eldest prince will come first, and I will always pay my respects to the East Palace. Master Fan is a courtier after all, so he has his own points."
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"I don't have any points." Fan Xian walked all the way over and greeted Xin Qiwu: "It's a pity that you are refreshing when drinking with me, calling you brothers and sisters. I have been abroad for several months, and you didn't come to welcome me." I'm angry, angry, haha."
He said he was angry, but he was laughing. Xin Qiwu smiled helplessly, and was about to say something, but saw Fan Xian with a gentle smile on his face, and said softly, "You are the young minister of Honglu Temple, and you are in charge of foreign affairs. You came to pick up the mission, but ran to pick up some eldest prince, are you planning to find a counselor in the Privy Council?"
The words were flat, but there was a trace of displeasure.
Xin Qiwu was slightly taken aback, thinking that Fan Xian shouldn't be the kind of person who cares about this matter, let alone show his dissatisfaction on his face so stupidly.
Fan Xian bowed his hands to the two young and powerful officials in the court, straightened his body, and said: "The mission is going to Beijing today, the two ministers can make arrangements, the Ministry of Rites can't find anyone, you guys Go find it."
Hum! The heads of the two young ministers suddenly grew bigger. No one could have imagined that Fan Xian would have the guts to fight against the eldest prince! It's just that the palace seems to have forgotten about this matter, and there is no order at all. If the mission wants to enter the capital first, speaking from the rules, there is no big problem.
The problem is... the eldest prince over there!
Ren Shaoan coughed twice and glanced at Fan Xian, wanting to remind him that Xin Qiwu is after all a member of the prince's family, so don't show such disrespect to the eldest prince in front of him. However, Fan Xian accepted all his "eyes" and still smiled and said, "The embassy must enter the capital first, which is the meaning of Her Royal Highness. You go and make arrangements, the eldest prince's side...let them wait."
After saying these words, he flicked his sleeves and left the post station, ordered the subordinates of the mission to start preparations for entering the capital, and left the two dumbfounded Sirs Shaoqing behind the room, thinking who is this person? How dare you compete with the First Prince! The expression on Xin Qiwu's face kept changing, and finally he gritted his teeth and said: "Anyway, there is no explanation in the palace, so I don't care about this matter!"
Ren Shao'an asked curiously: "You don't care where you go? You Shaoqing from Honglu Temple don't care about the ceremony of the mission's entry into Beijing, be careful of others attending you."
Xin Qiwu smiled, and said: "I don't care about the eldest prince, anyway, this is my duty, even if the eldest prince is unhappy, I have an idea, I will go with the mission... But you, the Taichang Temple management clan The royal family, this side is His Majesty's son, and the other side is His Majesty's future daughter-in-law, which side are you going to take care of?"
Ren Shaoan scolded him countless times in his heart, but he was close to Fan Xian after all, so he shook his head and rushed towards the eldest prince to let the Ministry of Rites prepare. At the same time, he planned to turn around in front of the eldest prince. What will happen on the only official road outside the door.
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After getting into the carriage and looking at Yan Bingyun, Fan Xian shook his head: "Don't show your face for a while. Once you enter the capital, Master Yan will send someone to pick you up. Remember not to let others know about you before you report on your duties. "
Slightly nodding his head, Yan Bingyun suddenly said: "What are you arguing for? After all, he is the eldest prince, His Majesty's son. What qualifications do you have to fight with him? You are not a stupid person, how could you do such a stupid thing?"
"Prince?" Fan Xian sat beside him, waiting for the convoy to leave, and said with a smile, "Is this thing rare? Besides, it's not me who wants to compete with him, but a certain nobleman who wants to compete with him." .”
Yan Bingyun was puzzled, and Fan Xian laughed and said, "The young couple have not met yet, and they are going to start fighting for the right to speak in the family in the future. That princess is originally a calm temperament, but when she heard that the eldest prince is going to rush into the city, Then she raised her brows upside down, stood at the river east and opened her mouth... This woman really can't understand."
"Hedong? What river?" Yan Bingyun scolded: "You are not provoking this matter. I don't understand. Before returning to Beijing, you are about to tear yourself apart with an eldest prince. What do you think? of."
"Excellent, it seems that you have started to think about everything for me as a boss." Fan Xian said with a bitter face, "I really didn't provoke the princess, really. Who knew that this quiet princess actually believed in the principle that the east wind prevails over the west wind. "These words come from Chapter 82 of the Story of the Stone, and they haven't been written at all. Fan Xian is just referring, but he feels a little happy in his heart. He is really in a hurry to go home. The reason is as simple as that.
"As for why I offended the First Prince, the reason is very simple - it is very difficult for me to find such an opportunity like today, an opportunity to show that I really dislike the First Prince."
"Why do you want to do this?"
"Although you have been in the north for a long time, I believe you have learned a lot about me from the mission these days." Fan Xian looked at Yan Bingyun.
Yan Bingyun nodded.
"How is my relationship with Donggong?"
"On the surface, it seems that there are some disputes, but in fact the crown prince values you very much. He is taking care of you including Chun Wei's affairs. Later, when he was on the mission, he also took great care of you and showed you a lot of favor."
"That's right, that's why I have a lot of defense for Dong Gong." This was about the matter in the Chunwei fraud case. Fan Xian didn't explain it clearly to Yan Bingyun, and continued: "And I have a good relationship with Prince Jing's son, Prince Jing The eldest son is from the Second Prince's faction... So, my relationship with the Second Prince is not bad."
Yan Bingyun immediately understood why Fan Xian wanted to offend the First Prince.
"I have a good relationship with the East Palace and the Second Prince. If I have a good relationship with the First Prince in the future..." Fan Xian had a self-deprecating smile on his face: "How about a young man who has the Overwatch Council and the Internal Treasury in his hands? Befriend the three princes at the same time, what exactly does this young man want to do? Will the women in the palace think me pleasing?"
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Today, there is chaos outside the city of Kyoto, and the only deep palace that has the ability to quell the turmoil has yet to come out with a decree, so all the officials are sweating and cowering, standing in front of the city gate, looking at the official road far away. The two lines that came along kept cursing their mothers in their hearts, scolding Fan Xian's mother—the eldest prince's mother is His Majesty's woman, so they dare not scold her.
The first prince's personal soldiers were all fierce soldiers who came down from the battlefield in the west. Seeing that this broken mission dared to compete with the prince, they were already furious. However, the first prince's military discipline was extremely strict, so he endured it all the time. Seeing the seemingly innumerable carriages of the mission slowly passing by them, among the group of cavalry, a barnyard general of the eldest prince couldn't bear it anymore, and scolded: "Where did you come from? You don't even know the rules, are you courting death!"
The teams on both sides stopped at the same time, and the atmosphere in the arena was extremely tense.
Fan Xian got out of the carriage, straightened his clothes pretentiously, bowed to the faintly visible prince in the carriage, and said, "My humble minister, Fan Xian, pay my respects to Your Highness."
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"Fan Xian? Are you Fan Xian?" A majestic voice came from there, with a hint of contempt: "I didn't expect that Chen'er Xu's husband is actually you. You dare to fight with the prince. You have a lot of courage, but It's kind of stupid."
Fan Xian smiled slightly, and said very respectfully: "I dare not compete with His Highness, it's just..."
Before he finished speaking, the Northern Qi princess's calm and confident voice came from the extremely luxurious carriage behind him: "I am a weak and weak girl who has traveled all the way south and far, is it possible that His Royal Highness wants me to stay outside the city for a few more days? "
The First Prince's soldiers were all stunned, as if they only remembered at this time that there was still a distinguished person in the mission, and this woman would become the First Imperial Concubine, the mistress of people like himself in a few days.
Fan Xian glanced at the first prince's cavalry, thinking that this was a family matter, so he would not get involved.