"Wang Gong, although she is indeed extraordinarily beautiful, but right now..."
Seeing his master about to let his little head control his big head again, the steward couldn't help but remind him.
"Of course, she's just a beauty. Compared to the position of Prefect of Shuo Commandery, what does that count for?" Wang Shen waved his hand, speaking with considerable 'clarity,' "Even if I take in this beauty, I won't be used by Wei Wusheng."
Seeing that Wang Gong was determined to accept her, the steward hurriedly reminded him: "I'm just afraid she might be Wei Wusheng's spy and ruin our great enterprise."
"Don't worry, I only want the person. At worst, I'll just lock her up and keep her like a dog." Although Wang Shen was lustful, he was still cautious by nature and wouldn't be so easily blinded by beauty. "What I'm more concerned about is this Song Shi'an. I keep feeling that if he didn't have so absolute certainty, he wouldn't dare enter our city alone."
"True, if it were just futile negotiations, there'd be no need for him to make this trip in person. He's still quite important to Wei Wusheng, so he wouldn't co personally for sothing without certainty." The steward agreed and speculated, "Could it be that what Wei Wusheng can offer is also substantial?"
"What could he offer? Could it be that he wants to give us this Prefect of Shuo Commandery position?" Wang Shen asked rhetorically.
"The Great Qi Emperor is so brilliant and mighty that even Wei Ye was deeply wary of him. How could this child Wei Wusheng be a match? Even if he gave you the prefecture, Wang Gong, when Shuo Commandery is lost, there'll be no place to hold office."
"Then perhaps a commandery in Southern Liang?" Wang Gong speculated.
"But if we lose our wulei stronghold, lose these troops, and leave Qi County, no one will take us seriously anymore."
After comparing notes, the two reached a conclusion—whatever price Wei Wusheng could offer couldn't possibly be higher than Ji Yuan's.
Moreover, Northern Liang would sooner or later fall into the Qi Emperor's hands anyway.
"In that case, let's not worry about it. If he talks nonsense or insists that we go et Wei Wusheng, we'll just accept the beauty and drive him out of the city." Wang Shen decided.
"Wang Gong, I think since it's co to this point, if he's too arrogant... why don't we just detain him?" The steward said after so thought. "Firstly, it would delay Wei Wusheng. Secondly, if we're really pushed to the edge, we can present this person to His Majesty as a great rit."
"Good, good, good."
Wang Gong nodded, suddenly enlightened and beaming with joy: "Summon the beauty into the city!"
.........
Song Shi'an and Xinyue waited below the gates of Wulei.
It was now the fifth month of the lunar calendar, and the weather was already quite hot.
The sun overhead made people's faces feel hot.
Beads of sweat gradually seeped from their foreheads.
Whenever Xinyue had sweat, Song Shi'an would take out his handkerchief and carefully wipe it away for her, his technique quite gentle.
"..." Looking at this man, she really didn't know how to evaluate him.
"Don't have that deadpan expression. Just keep your face neutral. Also, take that stubborn look in your eyes and push it all back inside."
Song Shi'an had no doubts about Xinyue's looks. The floral dress was also quite becoming on her. Though she was different from Sun Jinhu, that sweet and soft little cupcake type, it was just a difference in style, with no distinction in quality.
Right now, her biggest problem was acting like an ordinary woman of this era.
It didn't matter if she couldn't flatter—rich n loved this type of ice queen.
The key issue was her assassin nature.
"Wang Gong says, please enter the city, you two!"
Just then, the militia at the top of the wall shouted down.
Song Shi'an looked up, revealing a smile, and raised his voice: "Very good, little brother, please open the gate."
"Please forgive us, daren!" The militiaman shouted again. "This is warti, and Wang Gong has sealed the city gates to prevent Qi army invasion! So the gates cannot be opened casually!"
"I understand, I understand!"
After Song Shi'an finished shouting his response, he pointed at Xinyue and complained with a changed expression: "Everyone else calls them Qi bandits, but they call them Qi army. Who knows how they curse us as Yu bandits behind our backs."
"Yu bandits?"
"Yu people, Yu people."
I was just joking with you. Do you really need to have such a strong sense of conviction?
Xinyue, you big dummy.
After a while, a large bamboo basket about a ter high was lowered from the top of the wall.
Xinyue placed her hand underneath and instinctively lifted her foot to step over, her pale leg already showing a bit. Seeing this, Song Shi'an imdiately coughed: "Ahem."
Xinyue forcibly held back, already feeling sowhat irritated inside.
"Here."
Song Shi'an handed her the ceremonial staff.
Then, with one hand supporting her waist and the other lifting her thigh.
And Xinyue could only grit her teeth and submit, being princess-carried into the basket.
After placing her properly, Song Shi'an also got in.
After they stood steady, the militian at the top of the wall pulled on the thick rope of the windlass and slowly hoisted the two of them up.
Then, after untying the rope, several people together struggled to move the basket onto the wall.
Once up, Xinyue turned her head to the side with a lifeless expression: Co on, carry .
No, is it really that difficult for you to pretend to be a gentle, quiet little girl?
She's actually a Mulan—isn't that absurd!
After lifting her out, Song Shi'an also took back the ceremonial staff and held it in his hand, looking quite official.
"May we go see Wang Gong now?" Song Shi'an asked.
"Daren, please wait a mont," soone said.
Soon, a sowhat chubby young man in fine clothes who looked like soone who frequently went drinking with him at pleasure houses approached. Upon seeing Song Shi'an, he spoke with considerable contempt: "You're Song Shi'an?"
The obvious disrespect in that single sentence was completely undisguised.
With Song Shi'an being such an arrogant person, could he endure this?
"May I ask who this is?" Song Shi'an inquired.
"This is our Wang Gong's eldest son," soone nearby explained.
"Long admired, long admired." Song Shi'an bowed in greeting.
Even Xinyue was a bit surprised: "..."
She'd heard this person cursed the Three Excellencies at the Minister's mansion. Why was he being so polite to the son of clan bandits?
Song Shi'an, who wasn't even afraid of super-rank officials, was being so humble today?
He had no fucking choice but to be humble.
These were clan bandits—every person under them was a potential assassin and reactionary elent. To still show off and act up at this mont would truly be foolish.
Just like what Duke Zhang said that day—he felt his act of killing Zhang Ting was like the indiscriminate slaughter of mountain bandits.
Bandits have no sense of order.
Bandits have no concept of so-called dignity.
Even though clan bandits contained the character 'clan' and seed to have so concept of family continuity, they were essentially small-scale ard separatists.
Being praised like this, Young Master Wang, who had been quite domineering just monts ago, imdiately felt much better and joked: "I heard you even dared to curse that Minister Sun. Why are you being so polite to today?"
"Minister Sun is just a decadent scholar relying on his seniority, while Young Master Wang is straightforward and open—that's a true hero." Song Shi'an said.
"Hahaha." Toward this Song Shi'an with his discerning eye, Young Master Wang had developed so appreciation.
Then, looking at the woman beside him whose expression was cool but whose features were extrely delicate and whose figure was quite perfect, he developed a trace of interest and smiled with so greed: "You go see my father. I'll watch this woman for you."
With that, he raised his hand, preparing to touch Xinyue.
Song Shi'an smiled while pressing down his hand, advising: "Young Master, business first."
Being blocked like this, Young Master Wang's face imdiately darkened. Then he directly shook off Song Shi'an's hand and turned around: "Let's go."
The two of them followed behind this little pervert.
Lust really is genetic, isn't it.
Song Jing wasn't lustful, so why was the original Little Song so lustful?
Could it be that my father was... hiss, that's actually possible!
After the two descended from the wall, they walked into the city.
Wulei was different from a proper city, lacking many functions. Overall, everything was very compact, except for where the city lord could live, which was sowhat more luxurious.
As for everyone else, it was probably like the Kowloon Walled City—the lower class only had the minimum survival environnt.
Because except during warti, these people still needed to produce and mainly lived in concentrated farming villages outside the city, similar to villages.
When war ca, all the clan mbers would return to the city with their grain, oxen, and livestock, and seal themselves inside.
If the fields outside couldn't be harvested in ti, they'd simply burn everything in scorched earth tactics rather than let others benefit.
Yet the common people controlled by the clan bandits were actually sowhat happier and more prosperous than other common people in Great Yu.
It wasn't that the clan bandits exploited less—it was that there was only one layer of exploitation.
Those ordinary commoners had to be exploited at least twice. As for tenant farrs, there was no need to ntion them—they couldn't possibly own property, and even eating their fill was quite a luxury.
Therefore, the people here had extrely high loyalty to Wang Gong.
Everyone who looked at Song Shi'an and Xinyue had quite sinister eyes, with obvious hostility toward intruders.
If not for Young Master Wang leading the way ahead, they probably would have already pounced to rob them.
In ancient tis, people really were turned into ghosts.
Compared to this place, Sheng'an was a legal paradise for the entire world.
Hard to imagine how comfortable Wang Gong's life must be.
Walking on and on, they finally reached the very center.
A compound with a footprint of about ten thousand square ters, with walls that were alarmingly high, approximately ten ters.
For a scale like this, it was actually quite small for prominent families.
The Song Estate in the Palace City was seven or eight tis this size.
After all, they were just clan bandits—compared to greater clans, their scale was still much weaker.
After entering the compound.
There was a rosewood corridor, about two ters wide, with rooms on both sides.
Very cramped, yet also very secure.
Song Shi'an often fantasized about having such a castle and doing whatever he wanted inside.
Watching films in a private castle would indeed be interesting.
Walking to the end, there was an upward staircase. On both sides below the stairs were soldiers on guard duty.
The staircase was about five ters long and three ters high.
Above was the great hall.
Below the hall should be a basent.
Above the hall was an open loft.
The architectural sense of hierarchy was very strong, everywhere revealing a sinister defensive feel.
Seeing the two arrive, a soldier said to Song Shi'an: "Wang Gong is currently in an important discussion with guests. Song-daren, please wait a mont."
Hearing this, Xinyue's heart tightened slightly.
She looked down at the shadow at her feet.
It was already much shorter than when they'd entered.
When it reached its shortest point, those cavalryn would begin making a show of force around the wulei.
But if they started before the plan was completed, Wang Gong would definitely kill Song Shi'an—didn't you say you ca alone? You dare bring troops!
So this wait was extrely critical.
Xinyue couldn't help but glance at Song Shi'an, only to find he wasn't anxious at all.
He was just standing there quietly.
"After waiting this long, he's still not urging?" Wang Gong was sowhat puzzled.
"It seems his attitude really is quite low. Wei Wusheng must really need you now, Wang Gong," the steward said.
Wang Gong nodded and said: "Let Song-daren enter."
Reviews
All reviews (0)