Courtyard House: A System Connecting Two Worlds, Resources for the Nation

"You're right, sir!"

Uncle De was furious when he heard Ouyang Xu recount the three demands Zhao Pan'er had made.

"That Zhao woman is indeed cunning. What if she takes the annulment letter and immediately turns on you, suing you for breaking off the engagement and marrying someone else?"

Ouyang Xu's expression changed immediately. If it were before, he might have defended Zhao Pan'er, but now he also had many doubts in his heart.

For example, even Uncle De needed to rely on his title as the third-ranked scholar in this imperial examination to leave Qiantang. How could Zhao Pan'er arrive in Tokyo so many days in advance?

For example, why did Zhao Pan'er come to him again and again to ask for that picture of the Night Banquet?

What other tricks are hidden here?

Thinking back to what Du Changfeng had told him about the consequences if he helped Song Yinzhang get off the register, Ouyang Xu suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

If he really meets these three requirements.

The first condition would ruin his marriage agreement with the Gao family, the second condition would ruin his path to advancement in the court, so what is the purpose of the third condition?

Could this painting of the banquet night be the death of Ouyang Xu?

It must be said that as the newly crowned third-place winner, Ouyang Xu is definitely a sharp mind.

He guessed the wrong objective, he guessed the wrong process, but he guessed the right result. Even if Zhou Feng saw this, he would have to say that he was a genius!

"My lord! Honest advice is hard to swallow. Although I didn't particularly like her before, I wouldn't slander a woman for no reason! But she really isn't a kind person!"

Uncle De immediately knelt on the ground, kowtowing to Ouyang Xu while earnestly trying to persuade him.

Ouyang Xu glanced expressionlessly at his old servant, whose teeth had all been knocked out and whose eyes were filled with tears, making him look utterly miserable.

After all, he had been a servant who had followed him for so many years, and it was very upsetting for him to be humiliated like this.

"Fine, I've already torn up the contract, so don't bring it up again!"

Ouyang Xu waved his hand, frowned, and went into the inner room.

Although he had some doubts about Zhao Pan'er, he was also somewhat disheartened that he couldn't do any of the three things he had promised.

Despite being a newly appointed third-ranked scholar, he felt constrained in everything he did, lacking the ease he had before taking the imperial examination.

Uncle De noticed that Ouyang Xu's mood was off, but he didn't say anything. He just called over the servant who was doing odd jobs in the hall and gave him a few instructions.

As night slowly fell, Xiao Qinyan's residence, the Prime Minister's mansion, was located in a three-courtyard complex in the east of the city, with two stone lions standing at the entrance.

Inside the mansion, lights were scattered, and patrolling servants carried lanterns, circling the mansion every fifteen minutes, their steps lazy and yawning.

No matter what, this is Tokyo, the heartland of the Song Dynasty, and Xiao Qinyan is the Song Dynasty's envoy and prime minister, second only to the emperor.

Who dares to provoke this powerful figure?

The patrols were just routine; nobody thought there was any possibility of a problem.

But under the cover of night, in an abandoned courtyard 100 steps away from the Xiao residence, Chen Xiao lowered his voice and gave the order into his earpiece: "Everyone, get ready, to your positions."

Behind him stood nine fully armed special forces soldiers, all in pure black combat uniforms, wearing night vision goggles, with face paint on, and with silenced pistols, tranquilizer guns, ropes, and grappling hooks at their waists. Each of them also carried a small individual communication device.

With this lineup, it would be more than enough to carry out a mission in this world, let alone the Song Dynasty a thousand years ago.

"Lin Yin, what's the situation now?"

"There are 32 guards patrolling inside the Xiao residence. The patrol route is fixed, with four guards per shift. The light in the study in the backyard is still on, indicating that the target has not yet fallen asleep. There is a watchman on each of the two streets outside the residence, one on the east and one on the west. There is a stray cat in the alley to the north."

Lin Yin's voice came through the earpiece, tinged with a hint of teasing: "Be careful, don't startle the cat."

Chen Xiao's lips twitched: "I understand."

For these elite soldiers, carrying out missions using modern equipment in an era a thousand years ago was a piece of cake.

Despite this, Chen Xiao did not let his guard down. He turned to his team members, gave them a hand signal, and the ten men silently climbed out of the abandoned courtyard and crept along the wall toward the Xiao residence.

The courtyard wall of the Xiao family's backyard is over three meters high, and there are many broken porcelain pieces stuck on the top of the wall, all for the purpose of preventing thieves.

However, this height and protective capabilities are a joke in the face of modern technology.

The group threw out grappling hooks, the tips of which were covered in rubber.

After silently securing themselves to the wall, everyone simultaneously pushed off the wall and scrambled up.

Those shards of porcelain posed no threat whatsoever to the cut-resistant gloves.

Chen Xiao made a hand gesture, and the two team members pointed their tranquilizer guns. With two soft "pop" sounds, the two servants who were dozing off against the pillars of the backyard corridor felt a numbness in their necks, their heads tilted to the side, and they passed out.

The ten people filed in and made their way forward along the covered walkway in the back garden.

Lin Yin's drone could see everything clearly from above: "There are two more around the corner ahead, and ten steps further ahead, there's one by the study door. There's a figure on the study window paper; it looks like that should be the target."

"receive!"

Within a few breaths, the two servants at the corner also fell to the ground.

The guard at the entrance to the study looked to be quite skilled in martial arts, as he was leaning against one side, holding a long sword.

He reacted the instant the tranquilizer gun was fired, but unfortunately, despite his quick movements, he was still hit by two shots when all four guns were fired at the same time, and his vision went black as he collapsed to the ground.

Without giving Xiao Qinyan any time to react, Chen Xiao and his men broke down the door and entered.

Inside, a middle-aged man in his fifties was sitting at his desk, frowning as he read a letter, his expression somber.

Before he could speak, several anesthetic needles were injected into his body.

Xiao Qinyan froze, the letter in his hand fluttered to the ground, his arm was only halfway raised when he could no longer move, and he fell onto the desk with a dull thud.

Chen Xiao and the others quickly stepped forward, gathered up the documents in front of Xiao Qinyan, swiftly blindfolded him with a black cloth, gagged him, and then tied him up like a dumpling with rope. The whole process took less than 20 seconds.

"withdraw!"

A group of ten people carried the unconscious Xiao Qinyan back the way they came and climbed over the wall.

At this moment, a hundred paces away from where they had climbed over, there was an inconspicuous mule cart.

The bottom of the carriage has a mezzanine, just big enough to fit one person inside.

After stuffing Xiao Qinyan inside, they covered him with a layer of burlap and piled up several bundles of dry grass, so that no one could tell the difference.

The mule cart swayed and wobbled forward, turned into a small alley, and disappeared into the night.

Lin Yin stared at the drone screen, watching the mule cart safely return to their courtyard before finally letting out a long sigh of relief.

"Excellent. No one noticed you the whole time. It'll probably be until those who were anesthetized woke up or were discovered that the Xiao family will become aware of it."

"Then let them take their time looking."

Zhou Feng's lazy voice came through the communication channel: "According to our plan, tomorrow Lao Chen and Lao Tie will come with me to meet the emperor of the Song Dynasty."

"yes!"

Chen Xiao and Tie Jianguo agreed at the same time, and the others looked on with a hint of envy.

This is the legendary emperor!

In their generation, the word "emperor" had become history. But almost no boy was immune to thoughts about that title.

Even elementary school students, when playing role-playing games, will want to play the emperor.

That position represents the pinnacle of power!

Before dawn the next day, the Xiao family was in an uproar.

The Prime Minister has disappeared, and many of his guards and servants have fainted.

The study was in a mess, with letters scattered all over the floor and the door damaged.

The steward asked all the servants and guards in the mansion, but no one knew where Prime Minister Xiao had gone, nor had anyone heard any noise from him.

Before he could get any clues, he could only send people to search the whole city, and he dared not report it to the authorities.

After all, if word got out that the Prime Minister had been kidnapped silently in his own study, the entire Xiao family would lose face.

While chaos reigned in the Xiao family, a eunuch was already waiting outside the Emperor's bedroom, carrying a brocade box.

After Emperor Zhao Heng finished washing up and received permission, he excitedly ran into the palace with the box in his arms: "This humble servant Liang Jinshou greets Your Majesty! Your Majesty looks radiant today; there must be great news!"

Zhao Heng, who was sitting upright, put down his book, glanced at Liang Jinshou, and noticed the brocade box in his hands. The corners of his mouth immediately curled up: "What new treasure have you gotten that you've come here to show off?"

"Your Majesty, I have the honor of meeting a celestial messenger from Penglai outside the palace yesterday. He spoke mysteriously, saying that this item was no ordinary object and insisted on presenting it to Your Majesty. I have served in this palace for many years and have seen many treasures, but this is the first time I have ever seen one of this quality."

Hearing Liang Jinshou's words, Zhao Heng also became interested and beckoned to him: "Bring it here for me to see. Let's see what kind of treasure you're talking about so mysteriously?"

He doesn't have many other hobbies, but collecting novelties is one of them. He accepts all kinds of rare treasures, calligraphy and paintings, and antiques.

Liang Jinshou presented the brocade box he was carrying, and a eunuch inspected it before opening it.

There was a five-clawed golden dragon glass ornament on display. It was cast entirely in gold glass, with the dragon's body spiraling upwards, its five claws outstretched, and its head held high, making it lifelike.

The base is decorated with bronze patterns, giving it an antique look, but it is actually a solar battery specially made by modern craftsmen at Zhou Feng's request.

The most ingenious part is that the base is equipped with a small light sensor that automatically charges and stores energy during the day, and the LED light inside lights up when the light dims at night.

"This…"

Zhao Heng suddenly stood up from his seat, walked closer to examine it carefully, and reached out to touch it, but then pulled back: "This is made of glass. How can there be such a large glass piece without a single air bubble?"

While formal glassmaking techniques existed in the Song Dynasty, most finished products were small and the colors were not pure. A golden glass dragon as clear and large as this was something I'd never even heard of, let alone seen.

"Your Majesty, that person said that this treasure has an even more wondrous aspect when it's pitch black at night!"

Liang Jinshou leaned forward slightly, his eyes burning with desire as he looked at the treasure before him, but he knew in his heart that this was not something he could touch.

However, the credit for presenting the treasure would definitely fall on him, so his attitude became much more proactive.

"Oh? There are other amazing features? Guards, block the doors and windows to shut out the light!"

At Zhao Heng's command, a group of palace maids and guards began to busy themselves, not only closing the doors and windows, but also finding thick cloths to hang down from above to block the sunlight from the outside.

The next second, a golden light flashed in the dark palace.

The crystal dragon's body instantly became dazzling, as if a real dragon had descended to earth. Each dragon scale was distinct, its eyes were wide open, exuding both murderous intent and noble aura.

The most amazing thing is that the light emanating from inside refracts through the golden dragon's body, creating layers of golden light that make the entire dragon seem to be alive and gently floating.

Zhao Heng and Liang Jinshou, who were present, were both stunned.

If this treasure is said to be similar to a luminous pearl, then even a luminous pearl only emits a faint glow; how can it compare to this golden light descending upon the world?

"Liang...Liang Jinshou, where is that person now? Quickly bring him to the palace to see me!"

With this treasure as a stepping stone, Zhao Heng couldn't wait to meet the legendary Penglai Immortal Envoy!

He was already obsessed with cultivating Taoism, and now that a celestial messenger had descended to earth and brought him such auspicious treasures, how could he not be extremely anxious?

"Yes, Your Majesty! They are in the inner court's residence. I will go and fetch them right now!"

As he spoke, Liang Jinshou ran out of the palace as fast as he could. Zhao Heng waved his hand and told the palace maids and guards to reopen the doors and windows, allowing him to admire the glasswork in front of him under the sunlight.

If these treasures were said to have come from the heavens, Zhao Heng would not have the slightest doubt.

At this moment, Zhou Feng was still resting in Liang Jinshou's residence when Tie Jianguo strode in from outside, followed by two eunuchs carrying white robes given by the palace.

When entering the palace to meet the emperor, one's attire naturally cannot be casual. Liang Jinshou has already prepared white robes for them.

After changing their clothes, Zhou Feng and the other two followed Liang Jinshou to the palace.

Inside the mansion, Lin Yin carefully observed the situation of Zhou Feng and the other two through a drone.

The other soldiers were all fully armed, with their bodies covered in deadly weapons.

Zhou Feng's entry into the palace was crucial and extremely dangerous for them.

Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger. If the emperor wanted to do anything bad to Zhou Feng, they would storm the palace and make sure Zhou Feng's life was not threatened.

As Zhou Feng followed Liang Jinshou through numerous palace gates and corridors, he was mostly just watching the spectacle and didn't feel particularly nervous.

Although the guards of the Song Dynasty palace looked very formidable, he was not without confidence. If he really wanted to overturn the table, the firepower he had placed in this city of Bianjing was enough to turn the palace upside down.

But there's no need. He's not here to fight a war; he's here to play a different game!

Upon entering the side hall where the emperor was, a sandalwood fragrance wafted towards them. Zhou Feng glanced around the hall.

Although the palace is not large, it is decorated very elegantly, with rosewood tables and chairs and famous paintings and calligraphy on the walls.

Zhou Feng doesn't need to judge the authenticity of anything here; they are undoubtedly genuine!

Emperor Zhao Heng was sitting at the head of the table, holding a teacup in his hand, looking them up and down.