I am a prince in Zhutian Films

Chapter 352 Zhao Pan'er: I will never be a concubine in this life
Unfortunately, Liu Sheng’s shouting had no effect, and the gangsters instead rushed towards the three men with knives.

Seeing this, the three of them rushed forward like tigers out of a cage.

As Zhao Wei's personal guards, they were people who had experienced the baptism of war and walked out of mountains of corpses and rivers of blood. Their martial arts might not be as good as Gu Qianfan's, but in terms of killing, Gu Qianfan was no match for them, let alone a few salt merchants.

However, within just a few breaths, except for one bandit who dropped his weapon and squatted on the ground trembling, the rest... either had their throats cut and fell to the ground, holding their throats and twitching, or had their chests pierced by sharp blades and died on the spot.

Blood was spurting everywhere, and the strong smell of blood kept drilling into people's noses, making people feel a little nauseous.

At least Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang retched twice, their faces turned pale, and the way they looked at Zhao Wei changed.

There was no way, they really didn't expect Zhao Wei's guards to be so brutal.

Gu Qianfan and Lao Jia didn't expect that when they saw the two bandits twitching on the ground, their hearts couldn't help but tremble violently.

"Direct...command."

"Shut up." Gu Qianfan shouted.

At this time, the group of yamen runners also rushed in. When they saw the scene in the tea shop, their faces turned pale at first, and then they looked at the three people who took action.

One of the yamen runners shouted, "Who are you? How dare you travel in Qiantang..."

Before he could finish his words, he was slapped on the head.

"Shut up!" A yamen runner who seemed to be the leader shouted angrily, then bowed to Liu Sheng and said, "I am honored to meet you, Lord Liu."

Liu Sheng was stunned and asked in confusion: "You know me."

"A few days ago, Master Liu and Master Zhao came to the county government office. I met the two masters from afar."

Liu Sheng nodded and waved his hand, saying, "Take everyone away. We don't need you here."

Soon, several yamen runners took the corpse and the only surviving private salt dealer away, and peace returned to the teahouse.

Zhao Pan'er looked at the scene in amazement.

This was Liu Sheng’s first time in the teahouse. She didn’t know Liu Sheng’s identity, let alone his high martial arts skills. She was a little surprised, but what surprised her even more was Zhao Wei’s identity.

Even a fool could see that Liu Sheng's identity was not simple, but such a person was just Mr. Zhao's... follower? !

Zhao Pan'er was surprised, but then she felt something was wrong. She looked down and found that she was being held by Zhao Wei. This made her tremble all over and she hurriedly left Zhao Wei.

"Mr. Zhao, thank you very much for what I just did."

Zhao Wei shook his head and said with a smile, "Madam Zhao, you don't have to be so polite. To be honest, it's my fault. I forgot that they are used to fighting in the army. Your tea shop is stained with blood. It will be troublesome to clean it up."

Zhao Pan'er said casually: "It's just some external things, as long as the person is fine."

"Liu Sheng, help Madam Zhao clean up."

"Yes, son."

After saying this, Gu Qianfan also said to Lao Jia beside him: "Lao Jia, you go and help too."

After saying that, he walked up to Zhao Wei and bowed without saying a word.

"Your Highness, Gu Qianfan, the commander of the Investigation Division of the Imperial City Department, is here to meet Han..."

"Cough cough."

"Greetings, General Zhao."

Gu Qianfan changed his name, which made Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang's eyes widen immediately. They looked at Zhao Wei in disbelief.

"General... General, such a young general?" Sun Sanniang murmured in shock: "Wait, that's not right, Pan'er, Mr. Zhao is not a scholar, how can he become a general?"

Zhao Pan'er didn't say anything, but just looked at Zhao Wei in shock.

Zhao Wei noticed Zhao Pan'er's gaze, smiled slightly, and said to Gu Qianfan: "Gu Qianfan, you are from the Imperial City Division, you only belong to the emperor, not my subordinate, don't be so polite."

Gu Qianfan, however, became more respectful: "I have always admired and respected what the general has done."

Zhao Wei naturally knew that he was talking about guarding the border, and said with a smile: "Commander Gu, I heard that you were a Jinshi in the year of Yiyou. Why did you give up literature and join the Imperial City Department?"

"My father was once the inspector of the northern border, so I will follow in his footsteps."

Zhao Wei nodded and said with a smile, "I see. Then, Commander Gu, are you willing to join me?"

"This..." Gu Qianfan was a little embarrassed for a moment.

"No need to answer so quickly. Commander Gu can think about it first." Zhao Wei shook his head and smiled. "Commander Gu is a very busy man. He came all the way from Tokyo to Qiantang. I guess he is here to handle a case, right?"

"I do have some official business to attend to. I wonder what the general has here for? If you have blood medicine, I can help a little." Gu Qianfan carefully explored the purpose of Zhao Wei's coming to Qiantang.

"Nothing, just a secret visit. I heard that Jiangnan Shipping Company had some problems, so I came to check on my mother. I didn't expect to meet Commander Gu. Commander Gu came all the way to Qiantang to handle the case. It must be hard work."

"I am paid by the emperor and I am loyal to him. This is what I should do."

Zhao Wei smiled and said, "Commander Gu, Jiangnan is not peaceful. It would be a good idea to find your biological father. Although I heard that you don't have a good relationship with your biological father, sometimes a real man needs to be able to bend and stretch."

"How could you ..."

"Although the relationship between Commander Gu and Prime Minister Xiao is secret, it is not difficult for someone to investigate. After all, I have not been in Tokyo for several years, and I have to investigate Prime Minister Xiao's life." Zhao Wei said with a smile.

Gu Qianfan suddenly realized that his biological father was now a member of the rear party and would definitely be investigated by the Prince of Han in front of him. With the power of the Prince of Han's Mansion, it would not be difficult to investigate his relationship with Xiao Qinyan.

"Yes, I remember it."

It can be seen that Gu Qianfan was a little disapproving, but Zhao Wei did not say much. He chatted with Gu Qianfan for a few words, and then Gu Qianfan tactfully took Lao Jia away.

Sun Sanniang dared to speak only after they left. However, her attitude was completely different from before. She was extremely respectful and her tone became cautious.

"You, you are the general?"

Zhao Wei laughed: "Why, don't I look like a general?"

Sun Sanniang quickly shook her head and waved her hands: "No, no, you look like me, very much like me. When Pan'er first saw you, she told me that you have an extraordinary bearing and must be a noble man. But, but I still didn't expect that you are actually a general. You are a general at such a young age, this is too scary."

Zhao Pan'er then bowed respectfully to Zhao Wei and said, "I am Zhao Pan'er, a country woman. I am honored to meet you, General Zhao. I did not know your identity before and neglected you. If you want to blame someone, please blame me alone. Sanniang has nothing to do with it."

"Why? In your eyes, am I the kind of unreasonable person?"

"I have absolutely no such intention."

"Although I am a military commander, this is Qiantang, not Tokyo. In your teahouse, I am just an ordinary customer, so you don't have to be so reserved."

Zhao Wei told the two of them not to be so reserved, but knowing Zhao Wei's identity as a general, how could they really be as relaxed as before?

Even Sun Sanniang, who was always careless and didn't think before speaking, was cautious at this moment and didn't dare to speak. But seeing that Zhao Wei didn't mean to argue with them, she felt relieved.

Sun Sanniang would be fine, but Zhao Pan'er had met many officials, but among all the officials she had met, there was not one whose status could compare with Zhao Wei.

Even though she didn't know what kind of general Zhao Wei was, she was still so sure.

After all, the commander of the Imperial City Department was so respectful to him, so it was obvious that he was not just a simple general.

In Zhao Paner's opinion, Zhao Wei was at least a fourth-rank general of Zhongwu or Zhuangwu rank, and perhaps he was related to His Royal Highness the King of Han.

"General, you are of noble status. Don't blame us for being indifferent. It is already a great gift from heaven. How dare we treat you as an ordinary guest?"

Zhao Wei knew this would be the result. Fortunately, Gu Qianfan did not reveal his other identity. He sighed silently and said, "I guess I will have to stay in Qiantang for a while. Regarding my identity and mission..."

Zhao Pan'er immediately understood: "General, rest assured, Sanniang and I will never reveal a single word about this matter."

Sun Sanniang also hastily assured: "Yes, General Zhao, don't worry, I will never tell anyone, even my son, I won't tell him a word."

Zhao Wei nodded and said with a smile, "My interest in drinking tea just now has been interrupted. I can't stay in this room anymore. I'll go to the pavilion outside. Please, Madam Zhao, make me another pot of tea."

"Of course, General Zhao, please go ahead and I will make you a pot of Lingyin Buddhist tea."

Zhao Wei walked out of the teahouse and sat down in the pavilion by the river in the courtyard.

Zhao Huai'en, who came along, immediately handed over the incriminating certificate he had just read.

Inside the house, Sun Sanniang withdrew her gaze, breathed a sigh of relief, looked at Li Wu who was helping to clean up, and whispered, "Mr. Li, what kind of general is General Zhao?"

"General of the Zhen Army."

The General of the Zhenjun Army is a general who guards a region and is of the second rank.

Sun Sanniang naturally didn't understand this, so she asked curiously, "What rank is that general?"

"Sanniang." Zhao Pan'er shouted helplessly, and said to Li Wu and the other two, "Please forgive me, my lords. I apologize on behalf of Sanniang."

Liu Sheng waved his hand: "It's okay, Madam Shopkeeper, you are too polite."

He had heard from Shuangxi that the prince had special feelings for this Miss Zhao, and that she might become his woman in the future. How could he dare to put on airs in front of Zhao Pan'er?

"Master Liu, we just need to clean up here, you ..."

Liu Sheng shook his head: "Madam Zhao, our master said that he would help you clean up, you can go and do your own thing, don't worry about us."

Seeing that Liu Sheng was adamant, Zhao Pan'er did not try to persuade him any further and took Sanniang into the kitchen.

She was really afraid that Sun Sanniang's careless mouth would cause some trouble.

Zhao Wei and his group were out of reach for common people like them. If they accidentally made them unhappy, a single word from them could bring them devastating consequences.

"It's really scary. It turns out that Mr. Zhao is actually a great general. Pan'er, you have good eyesight. You can tell at a glance that he is extraordinary."

Zhao Pan'er shook her head: "I don't have much insight. I just saw that he had an extraordinary demeanor, unlike an ordinary person, but I didn't expect that he was actually a general. It doesn't seem real that a general like him could talk to a common merchant like us on an equal footing."

Sun Sanniang agreed: "You are right. I felt that he was humble before. He is not like the officials here. The small officials are always arrogant. By the way, Pan'er, how high is the rank of this Zhenjun General?"

"This... I don't know either, but he must be at least a fourth-rank official. The key is that he is still so young, he must be the son of a top noble family in Tokyo." Zhao Pan'er paused and said thoughtfully, "At least he is the son of a marquis. In addition, he was conferred the title of general at such a young age. His future is limitless. Even our prefect may not be as good as General Zhao."

"Ah? He's not even as good as the prefect? ​​He's such a high-ranking official, and so handsome. I wonder if he's engaged or not." Sun Sanniang looked infatuated.

Zhao Pan'er was speechless: "What are you thinking? Whether they are engaged or not, it has nothing to do with us. Hurry up and get your fruit. They just saved us, we have to repay them."

Sun Sanniang nodded and sighed, "I just feel it's a pity, Pan'er, I think General Zhao looks at you in a wrong way. If it weren't for your Ouyang Xu, I think you would be a good choice with him."

"Hurry up and shut up." Zhao Pan'er was startled. She glanced at Liu Sheng and the other two outside in panic and lowered her voice again: "Don't talk nonsense. Ouyang and I are destined to be together. I am only grateful to that General Zhao, nothing else. And I have sworn long ago that I, Zhao Pan'er, will never be a concubine in my life."

She was also born in a family of officials. Later, she was sent to the Music Bureau. She had seen too many women who became concubines and their fates were one more miserable than the other, so she once swore that she would never be a concubine in her life.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have become a good woman and not gotten married until she was 20 years old. You have to know that in that era, 20 years old was already an old maid.

Until three years ago, when she met Ouyang Xu, she only had Ouyang Xu in her heart and could not tolerate anyone else.

She did not deny that Zhao Wei was better than Ouyang Xu, but no matter how better he was, what did it have to do with her, Zhao Pan'er.

Sun Sanniang said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Pan'er. I just said it casually. I know what you're thinking. Didn't General Zhao also say that the exam should be over? I believe Ouyang Xu will definitely pass. Maybe he has already arranged for someone to come to Qiantang to pick you up and take you to Tokyo. By then, you will be the wife of a Jinshi, Madam Ouyang."

Hearing this, a sweet smile immediately appeared on Zhao Paner's face.

But for some reason, she suddenly remembered what Zhao Wei had said to her before.

If Ouyang Xu passed the exam and stayed in Tokyo, would he still treat me as well as he did in Qiantang?

Zhao Pan'er became more and more uncertain, sighed silently, and said with a smile: "I hope so. Is your fruit ready?"

"All right."

Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang brought tea and fruit to the pavilion and placed them on the table.

"General, your Lingyin Buddhist tea and fruit"

"Well, thank you."

"You are too polite, General. Sanniang and I will go back to clean up the house first and won't disturb you from drinking tea."

"it is good."

Zhao Wei picked up the teacup and took a sip, then continued to read the information Zhao Huai'en had collected.

In addition to Yang Zhiyuan, there are naturally other officials in Jiangnan. Just looking at the information collected by Zhao Huai'en, nearly half of the officials in Jiangnan should be exiled.

It's really shocking.

In the blink of an eye, an hour passed. Zhao Wei was about to stretch and stand up when he suddenly saw something flying towards him from the other side of the stream.

Zhao Huai'en's face changed, and he moved as fast as lightning to catch the flying object in his hand. It turned out to be a ball used for Cuju.

"Throw it back."

Zhao Wei said with a cold expression.

Zhao Huai'en did not hesitate at all, even though the person opposite him was a child.

He threw the ball at the child with perfect aim, hitting the child right in the face.

(End of this chapter)