Jiuxi

Chapter 792 Chapter 790 [Present]

Chunfeng Pavilion in the northern suburbs of Beijing.

Duke Rong Xiao Wangzhi stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the official road to the north. Behind him stood a group of nobles with impressive bearing.

Soon, dust and smoke began to rise on the official road, and a mighty and majestic elite cavalry appeared in everyone's sight.

Immediately afterwards, dozens of riders broke away from the main force and galloped quickly towards Chunfeng Pavilion.

When they were more than ten feet away, the knights suddenly pulled the reins, and the leader jumped off the horse, walking forward with the gait of a dragon or a tiger.

Xiao Wangzhi looked at the face that was becoming clearer and clearer and now more solemn and restrained, and couldn't help but smile with approval.

"Greetings, Duke!"

Lu Chen walked closer, locked his eyes on Xiao Wangzhi's face, and immediately pushed down the golden mountain and overturned the jade pillar, paying homage to him with great ceremony.

Xiao Wangzhi was slightly surprised.

According to the rules of the Da Qi court, lower-level officials usually only need to bow or clasp their hands when meeting their superiors - after all, they don't need to kneel and kowtow every time they meet the emperor, unless it is an extremely grand and solemn occasion, such as the National Pilgrimage Festival, the Winter Solstice Ceremony, or the New Year's Day ceremony.

As the only duke in the court, Xiao Wangzhi must be very noble in terms of rank, but Lu Chen is only slightly inferior to him, so it stands to reason that he does not need to be so solemn.

He had never expected this to happen, and his support was a little slow, and Lu Chen had already completed the ceremony.

The other nobles who came to greet them could not hide their shock when they saw this scene.

At this time they finally remembered that although Xiao Wangzhi's life in the capital in the past two years was not comfortable, he was the founder of the Huaizhou border army and Lu Chen's guide after all.

As long as Lu Chen does not forget his roots, no one can shake Xiao Wangzhi's position.

At this moment, Xiao Wangzhi had come to his senses and realized that Lu Chen was supporting him with practical actions.

Looking at Lu Chen's smiling and gentle eyes, Xiao Wangzhi felt mixed emotions.

Once upon a time, the young man in front of him was just a wildly growing grass. Although he had shown extraordinary talent and resilience, he still needed his protection from the wind and rain.

Time flies, and before he knew it, Lu Chen had grown into a towering tree, and there was no change compared to what he was back then. He gave Xiao Wangzhi a surprise as soon as they met. How could he not be pleased?
"It's been a hard journey, right?"

Xiao Wangzhi held Lu Chen's wrist, his tone very gentle.

"It's not hard."

Lu Chen shook his head and raised his voice slightly: "Uncle Xiao has worked hard in the capital."

This sentence means something.

For nearly two years, Xiao Wangzhi has been supporting the overall situation alone. Although he has the help of Li Jingda, the pressure he has to bear is enormous.

War is never just a simple matter of head-on fighting. Logistical supplies can largely determine the strength of an army.

In addition to dealing with complicated paperwork, Xiao Wangzhi also had to be careful to deal with the open and covert attacks that might arise at any time. Coupled with the exclusion and suppression from the emperor and his colleagues, in less than two years, he showed obvious signs of aging.

Lu Chen saw all of this.

If Xiao Wangzhi had not been there to support him in the capital, he might still be able to defeat the enemy, but it would definitely be at an unimaginable price.

Xiao Wangzhi noticed that the atmosphere was a little strange, and at the same time, he didn't want Lu Chen to show off his talent as soon as he arrived in the capital, so he smiled and said, "Today you have returned triumphantly with three thousand elite cavalrymen, and all your colleagues have come to greet you. It is a completely spontaneous action, and I didn't even send an invitation. We are all acquaintances, so I don't think I need to introduce you one by one."

Lu Chen naturally understood Xiao Wangzhi's intention, so he looked to the side.

In fact, he already knew the identities of these people when he came here.

"Greetings, Lord."

All the nobles saluted in unison.

Lu Chen's attitude was an unexpected surprise for Xiao Wangzhi, but it was certainly not good news for some nobles. Even though they were local tyrants in the capital, Lu Chen was not a powerful dragon in the general sense.

Whether in terms of title, official position, military merit or prestige, this young man is above them, and as time goes by, the gap will become larger and larger, not to mention that Lu Chen's greatest advantage is his age.

Xiao Wangzhi stepped aside and Lu Chen stepped forward to return the greeting.

"Marquis Yongding, it's been a long time since we last met, you are still as charming as ever."

The first person Lu Chen greeted was naturally Zhang Xu, the Marquis of Yongding, the current Minister of Military Affairs, and the commander-in-chief of the Beijing Army's Wuwei Camp.

Although Xiao Wangzhi had never told Lu Chen about his situation in the capital, Lu Chen had his own secret channels of information. He knew that Zhang Xu's support was an important reason why the emperor and Han Zhongjie were able to sideline Xiao Wangzhi. However, this person was not hopeless. He did that probably because of some stubborn and pedantic principles.

Zhang Xu was very clear about what he had done, so he didn't expect Lu Chen to smile at him. After a brief moment of distraction, he said calmly, "Your Excellency is too kind. The border defense line is in danger this time, and it is thanks to your efforts that you have turned the tide. You are truly the backbone of the Great Qi."

"Marquis Yongding is too kind. This is not just my achievement."

Lu Chen passed it over and then turned to the second person.

"Please buy me a drink." The second person was very blunt, which was completely different from Zhang Xu's caution and restraint.

Lu Chen couldn't help but laugh sincerely and nodded, "No problem, any wine shop in Beijing."

Li Jingda grinned and said with satisfaction: "I knew you wouldn't be stingy."

The two looked at each other and smiled, saying nothing.

The third noble was visibly nervous.

Compared to the others, his qualifications were indeed somewhat shallow, and he was also the only earl present.

He was the temporary commander of the Beijing Army's brave camp, Jiangyang Bo Yuan Xingqin.

In the great defeat at Kaocheng last year, Han Zhongjie suffered heavy casualties and his title was demoted to earl. Naturally, he also lost his military position. Having fallen to the bottom, he would definitely not come to Lu Chen today to embarrass himself.

Yuan Xingqin was originally the marching commander of the Brave Camp, so it was natural for him to temporarily take over the position of commander-in-chief.

Lu Chen looked at the nobleman who was over 40 years old and said calmly: "How is Lord Jiangyang these days?"

Yuan Xingqin bowed his head and said, "Thank you for your concern, Lord. I am the new commander of the Beijing Army, and I am extremely terrified."

"Your Majesty lets you lead the army, which shows his trust in you. You can be nervous, but there is no need to be too nervous."

Lu Chen had the final say from the beginning to the end. This was how it should be with his status and reputation. If he were to put on the humble attitude of a subordinate now, it would probably cause criticism from both the government and the public.

Yuan Xingqin nodded repeatedly with an extremely respectful attitude.

When Lu Chen came in front of the fourth noble, his eyes narrowed slightly.

The man had a calm expression, an upright posture, and was neither humble nor arrogant.

The atmosphere suddenly became a little solemn, no longer as relaxed and leisurely as before.

Lu Chen raised his head slightly, shifted his gaze to the sky, and said indifferently: "Marquis Linjiang took the time to come out to greet you, Lu is not worthy of it."

Chen Lanyu seemed to have anticipated his sudden bad attitude. He had a very deep skill in cultivating his Qi, so he said calmly, "The Duke has made great contributions to the country, so it is only natural for me to go out of the city to greet him."

"is it?"

Lu Chen sneered, then said coldly: "But after I saw you, my mood became very bad, what should I do?"

Li Jingda looked at this scene and suddenly felt very happy. He couldn't help laughing.

Zhang Xu beside him frowned slightly, Yuan Xingqin looked down at the ground, and the other nobles pretended not to hear anything.

When Xiao Wangzhi was about to go to Beijing to lead the Military Academy, many people thought that Chen Lanyu would be his most steadfast assistant. After all, Chen Lanyu was a military hero promoted by Xiao Wangzhi.

Without Xiao Wangzhi's appreciation and hands-on teaching, Chen Lanyu, a man of ordinary family background, would never have reached his current position. It is doubtful whether he can lead an army on his own, let alone become a senior military official and commander-in-chief of the Beijing Camp.

However, no one could have imagined that the two would go their separate ways and drift apart. Instead, it was Li Jingda, who came from the Beijing military system, who supported Xiao Wangzhi at several critical moments, making his situation in the Military Academy less embarrassing.

Therefore, everyone present could understand Lu Chen's attitude.

Although he knew that Lu Chen had bad intentions, Chen Lanyu still said calmly: "Since the Duke is unhappy, I will try not to appear in front of him in the future."

His expression was normal, without a trace of anger.

Most people would stop when they see the good, but Lu Chen is definitely not an ordinary person. He said with a half-smile: "You have been in the capital for three to five years. It is hard to say whether you have made progress in other aspects, but your self-restraint and tolerance have indeed been well honed. I still remember that when you were under the command of the Huaizhou Governor's Office, although you were known for your calmness and composure, you were not a clay man without blood. Why have you become so humble today? Are you used to bowing your head and smiling in the capital?"

Chen Lanyu knew exactly why Lu Chen was looking for trouble, and everyone else present knew it very well too. However, they did not expect Lu Chen to make trouble in this situation, and to show that he would not give in.

Chen Lanyu hesitated for a moment, but finally gave in and said, "I will remember the Duke's teachings."

No matter how Lu Chen provoked him, he was determined to swallow his pride. The other party couldn't possibly attack him openly, right?
The next moment, Lu Chen sneered, "That's not necessary. I suddenly remembered something. I heard that in the first year after Linjiang Hou came to Beijing, his life was not poor, but he was also frugal. After all, it's not easy to live in Beijing. In the past two years, your house seems to have changed. There are more and more servants. I heard that you have taken in two new concubines with beautiful women. Even your two sons have transformed themselves into well-known dandies in Beijing. They are very generous when they are outside. How cool. Linjiang Hou, can you teach me, Lu, how to become rich in two or three years?"

After these words came out, Chen Lanyu's expression finally changed, and he said in a deep voice: "The county lord actually sent someone to investigate me?"

"investigation?"

Lu Chen put away his smile, his eyes sharp as a knife: "Why investigate something that is obvious? Could it be that Marquis Linjiang has been hanging around in this prosperous place for too long that he doesn't even have the courage to take responsibility for his actions?"

Chen Lanyu's face flushed and she was extremely embarrassed.

At this moment, Xiao Wangzhi's calm voice sounded beside him: "His Majesty must be waiting for you in the palace now, don't delay too long."

"it is good."

Lu Chen glanced at Chen Lanyu coldly and said softly, "There's still a long time to go, let's play slowly."

(End of this chapter)