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

"Okay, I'll arrange it right away."

Chen Xiao nodded thoughtfully, then put his notebook away again and tucked it back into his pocket.

"Remember what happened to Yu Zhongquan. His executions must continue, but don't let him die. Just torture him."

"yes!"

Chen Xiao, who was about to take his leave, swallowed hard and bowed respectfully in response.

Although our leader seems amiable and just like an ordinary citizen, he actually has a ruthless streak deep down.

He's not ruthless to himself, but he truly treats those who offend him like dirt!

As Chen Xiao turned and left the main hall, Bai Lang and Tie Jianguo, who were standing behind Zhou Feng, exchanged a glance, but neither of them spoke.

Others who were chosen by organizations in this world and followed Zhou Feng to the Dream Record world may not feel anything.

However, the two of them had been following Zhou Feng as his bodyguards, and they had witnessed all the changes in Zhou Feng over this period of time.

Putting everything else aside, at least the two of them no longer dared to face Zhou Feng with the same attitude they had back then.

"White Wolf".

"Why!"

"You and Jianguo pack your things and get some rest. Tomorrow morning, come with me to Zhao Pan'er's place. I want to see how her teahouse is doing."

"yes!"

At some point, Bai Lang and Tie Jianguo unconsciously began to stand at attention and salute when they heard Zhou Feng give the order.

Tie Jianguo opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but then swallowed it back.

Zhou Feng glanced at him sideways: "Just say what's on your mind. What are you hiding from me?"

"No...nothing, I just wanted to say, sir, you really need to take care of your health. You just came from the courtyard world, and today you went to see that Comrade Zhao again. Isn't that a bit too...too busy? You should give your body some rest!"

White Wolf's lips twitched, and he almost couldn't help but laugh out loud. He could only turn his head to one side and forcefully suppress his laughter.

Zhou Feng's expression darkened further: "I went to find Zhao Pan'er to get some information, not what you're thinking! Besides, I'm perfectly healthy!"

Tie Jianguo's expression froze instantly. He awkwardly tried to explain, but didn't know how to say it. His lips trembled for a long time before he finally managed to squeeze out a sentence: "Leader... I didn't mean that..."

"What do you mean by 'meaning'? Stop talking. I didn't say you were wrong. You were just trying to help me. Go get some rest."

Zhou Feng waved his hand, stood up, stretched, and walked towards the bedroom in the yard.

As she reached the door, she suddenly stopped, turned back to look at Tie Jianguo, and said, "When you find that recipe, remember to show it to me. My friend is quite important; don't let him take the wrong medicine."

"yes!"

Tie Jianguo stood at attention, saluted, and nodded vigorously in response.

What an idiot!

Zhou Feng rolled his eyes at him helplessly and went back to his bedroom.

Although the exterior of the room looks antique, the daily necessities inside were all brought from modern times by Zhou Feng, and they are quite comfortable to use.

Although there were no women around, Zhou Feng slept quite soundly, which was probably directly related to the afternoon he spent exercising in the courtyard.

When he woke up, it was already broad daylight.

In the world of Dream of Splendor, he still had to change into decorations that suited the era of this world.

The imperial palace has already sent over the clothes and decorations bestowed by the emperor: a moon-white Taoist robe and a jade crown.

Zhou Feng reluctantly put on the wig and then tied it up with a jade crown.

As the saying goes, clothes make the man. After changing into his new clothes, Zhou Feng looked like a celestial being, with the air of a Taoist master.

White Wolf had already prepared the carriage. Tie Jianguo sat in the driver's seat, holding a whip in his hand. When he saw Zhou Feng come out, he smiled憨厚ly.

Although they were only two-tenths of the first batch of people sent by the organization to follow Zhou Feng, their relationship with Zhou Feng was the closest, even comparable to that of Chen Xiao, who had always worked for Zhou Feng.

Zhou Feng immediately noticed the strange emblems that had appeared on the carriage as soon as he stood in front of it.

"Master, this is a pattern added by someone from the palace to prove your identity, so that you won't be offended by any blind and wicked people."

After explaining something to Zhou Feng, the person in charge of managing the carriages bowed deeply and lay down on the ground, straightening his back.

The purpose was obvious: he wanted Zhou Feng to step on his back to get into the car.

This...this is a bit too much, isn't it?

But Zhou Feng still stepped on it.

One must abide by the rules of an era.

It's like in historical novels where it's often written that generals eat and live with their soldiers to win their hearts.

In reality, however, a general leading troops in battle would never do that, because doing so would make his soldiers completely loyal to him.

If the military supervisor records such a matter and sends it back to the court, someone will surely impeach him.

The army belongs to the imperial court and His Majesty. You are merely acting as his proxy with the tiger tally. What are you trying to achieve by trying to win people's hearts in this way?

There have been many generals in history who ate and lived with their soldiers, but how many of them died peacefully?

Allowing servants to eat at the table and excessively emphasizing equality will only make others think that the people in this household are unruly, rather than that the master of the house is of good character.

After Zhou Feng stepped on his back, the man stood up, his face beaming with pride. Even the guards standing by the door looked on with envy, as if being stepped on by Zhou Feng was a great honor.

As the carriage traveled along the road, the surrounding people quickly moved aside, watching Zhou Feng's carriage pass by, causing a flurry of whispers.

The Emperor's second conferment of honors upon Zhou Feng has been finalized. At this moment, Zhou Feng's status in the Song Dynasty is comparable to that of a deity.

The eight-character title elevates the honor to its extreme.

Tie Jianguo drove the carriage very steadily, leaving the chatter behind. In less than half an hour, the carriage stopped in front of Zhao Pan'er's teahouse.

Zhou Feng lifted the carriage curtain and glanced inside. The original signboard of Zhao's Tea House had been replaced, and the current signboard had three elegant yet powerful characters: Half-covered face.

Several potted plants were placed at the entrance, and the place was kept very clean.

The location here isn't great, but it's quiet and elegant.

Just as he was about to get out of the car, he heard the sound of a pipa coming from the teahouse.

Regarding this kind of pure music from ancient times, Zhou Feng's appreciation level can only be described as pleasant or unpleasant; he can't offer any further comment.

He got out of the carriage and walked towards the teahouse, with Bai Lang following behind. Tie Jianguo parked the carriage and followed.

Upon entering the teahouse, Zhou Feng was slightly taken aback. Although the space was not large, it was already full of people.

A dozen or so literati were scattered around, some holding teacups, some waving fans, but all their eyes were focused in the same direction: a small cubicle on the second floor.

The melodious sound of the pipa was coming from inside the cubicle. These people seemed completely absorbed in the music, squinting and swaying their heads; some were even tapping lightly on the table to the rhythm, and one even had slightly red eyes!

Does the sound of this pipa evoke such strong emotions?

After the three entered, Zhou Feng immediately noticed Zhao Pan'er standing behind the counter.

But he didn't make a fuss; he simply pulled Bai Lang and Tie Jianguo to a corner to sit down.

At this moment, everyone in the teahouse was focused on Song Yinzhang's playing upstairs, and no one noticed them.

A scholar sitting nearby noticed Zhou Feng's attire and couldn't help but snort coldly.

Everyone knows that the current emperor is fond of Taoist culture, so Taoists hold a very special position in the court.

However, this also led those upright scholars to scoff at them, believing that those who practiced Taoism were all opportunistic officials and that they were ashamed to associate with them.

Zhou Feng didn't bother with him; it was his wife's shop, and he couldn't cause trouble there.

When the music ended, enthusiastic applause rang out in the teahouse.

Su Xiaoya, who was behind Zhao Pan'er, raised her head slightly and noticed Zhou Feng in the corner. She was about to say something, but Zhou Feng raised his hand to stop her, indicating that she didn't need to worry about him.

Su Xiaoya nodded, but still went to get tea and some snacks from the kitchen, and brought them to the table of Zhou Feng and the other two.

Just then, a woman wearing a gold hairpin and a jade bracelet on her wrist, clearly from a wealthy family, walked out of the private room on the second floor and headed straight for Song Yinzhang's room.

The other tea drinkers were also drawn to her movements and looked up to watch.

The woman stood at the doorway and knelt down with a thud.

The entire teahouse fell silent instantly, and all the tea drinkers stared wide-eyed at the scene before them.

The woman knelt on the ground, her hands supporting her weight, and when she looked up, her eyes were already red-rimmed. Her voice wasn't loud, but in the teahouse at that moment, every word was clearly heard by everyone upstairs and downstairs.

"Madam Song, your pipa skills are unparalleled! I, Su Niang, am willing to offer a hundred taels of gold to invite you to take me as your apprentice!"

One hundred taels of gold!

All the tea drinkers were in an uproar.

What is the concept of 100 taels of gold?

In this city of Tokyo, that's enough to buy a nice house, or even enough for an average family to live on for a lifetime!

Even if you go to a restaurant, you can eat at a banquet that lasts for three years!

This Su Niang is a famous pipa master in the capital city of Tokyo. Now she is willing to spend a hundred taels of gold just to become Song Niangzi's apprentice and learn the pipa!

Song Yinzhang put down his pipa, opened the door, and quickly stepped forward to help Su Niang up: "Please get up! Since we are all like-minded people, we can learn from each other in the future. Why be so concerned about titles and ranks? Come, let's talk over here!"

As she spoke, she took Su Niang's hand and led her to a separate room in another direction.

She didn't even glance at the tea drinkers who were watching her with admiration and sighs, as if they didn't exist.

"Is this pipa really that beautiful? Would you really pay a hundred taels of gold to learn it?"

Tie Jianguo secretly nudged Bai Lang's arm with his finger, and the latter glared at him: "What do you know? People are all about the charm."

Zhou Feng's lips twitched slightly.

Putting everything else aside, he was 100% certain that this method was orchestrated by Zhao Pan'er, with the aim of using this incident to spread the name of "Half-Covered Face" throughout Tokyo.

To put it bluntly, wasn't Su Niang just a child born more than a thousand years earlier?

If this kind of plot were used for promotional purposes in later generations, even short video bloggers wouldn't bother using it; it's simply insulting to people's intelligence.

But in ancient times, spending a hundred gold pieces to learn the pipa was considered the most elegant thing to do!

"You uncouth people dare to use such vulgar language to comment on Madam Song's zither playing; it is the greatest offense you can commit against her!"

The scholar, still standing to the side, glared at Tie Jianguo through gritted teeth.

Although he lowered his voice, his size and build meant that what he said was still clearly heard by the other person.

"Do you all know that although Su Niang's 'Mingfei Song' is good, it lacks a certain grandeur in its melodiousness? That Mingfei went beyond the Great Wall for the country; how could she possibly have the mindset of a mere woman?"

"In contrast, Lady Song's 'Mingfei Song' has four layers: the first is melodious, the second is weathered by hardship, the third is longing for her homeland, and the fourth is a resounding melody. How can they be compared?"

Tie Jianguo was somewhat bewildered by what he said, and then became furious: "I...we were just talking to ourselves, why were you eavesdropping?"

"Ha... People as vulgar as you dare to associate with us and appreciate Lady Song's music?"

The scholar held his head high, with an air of arrogance.

Other literati, drawn in by his impassioned speech, also chimed in.

"That's enough. This is Tokyo. If you say too much, you might not be able to cover it up."

Tie Jianguo was Zhou Feng's personal bodyguard, so Zhou Feng naturally couldn't sit idly by and watch him be talked about like that.

The man wanted to say something more, but suddenly noticed the pattern on Zhou Feng's Taoist robe and the jade pendant at his waist, and his expression froze.

For so-called literati and scholars like them who frequent the streets, observing people's expressions and discerning their identities are essential skills.

Putting aside the patterns on Zhou Feng's Taoist robe, the jade pendant alone was enough for them to confirm that it came from the palace!

Those who can be dressed like this are either members of the imperial family or enjoy the emperor's favor; neither of them are people he can afford to offend.

These so-called literati and scholars know when to display their superiority; if there are people they can't afford to offend, they won't stubbornly confront them.

Just like the person in front of Zhou Feng at this moment, seeing that he had kicked a hornet's nest, he knelt down very readily and bowed at a ninety-degree angle: "I was presumptuous and did not recognize your esteemed presence. I hope you will forgive me."

"It's alright, sit down, just enjoy your tea!"

Zhou Feng waved his hand dismissively.

Seeing his demeanor, the people around him knew he had met a benefactor, so they stopped watching the spectacle and continued discussing Song Yinzhang's zither skills as if nothing had happened.

But the commotion attracted Zhao Pan'er's attention. Her gaze swept over the area and settled on Zhou Feng, her eyes instantly lighting up.

Her initial composure turned into surprise, and she got up and walked over.

However, with so many people in the lobby, she didn't say much. She simply suppressed her smile and gave Zhou Feng a slight bow: "Since you are here, how can we not go to the private room upstairs? Please follow me upstairs for tea."

Upon hearing Zhao Pan'er's words and seeing Zhou Feng's retreating figure as he went upstairs with her, the scholar involuntarily broke out in a cold sweat.

Rumors circulated that this half-veiled man had powerful connections, but no one expected that this important person would be able to get a private room on the second floor. Luckily, his attitude changed quickly, otherwise, who knows how to deal with him!

"Pan'er, I miss you so much!"

The two went up to the second floor, and Zhou Feng immediately pulled Zhao Pan'er into his arms. Although she exclaimed in surprise, upon hearing Zhou Feng's words, her body immediately went limp, and her hands involuntarily wrapped around his neck.

Just before, Zhou Feng declared her to the entire Kaifeng government office that she was his fiancée, and then left Tokyo. Although he returned once, he only stayed for one day!

How could she not feel uneasy and have wild thoughts?

Now that Zhou Feng has finally returned, he came straight here and took the initiative to express his feelings to her. How could she resist?

Looking at the exquisite face of the person in his arms, smelling her faint fragrance, and feeling her soft, boneless waist, Zhou Feng couldn't help but swallow hard, wanting to lower his head towards her full lips...

"Is anyone there? Come out, everyone!"

A loud shout came from downstairs, startling the two of them. Zhao Pan'er, who was slightly dazed, panicked and left Zhou Feng's arms.

Then, after straightening his clothes, he quickly opened the door and went out.

"Damn it!"

Zhou Feng, still sitting there, cursed angrily, but given his current state, he would have to wait a while before going out, otherwise it would be too indecent!