Chapter 113: Insider (Part 1)

Wuyue, Jinling City, thirty miles outside the city.

Wujin Lane is also famous in Jinling. It is not because of the real estate of Wujin, but also because of the small alley.

In fact, this place has a quiet environment, surrounded by mountains and rivers, and is a rare place to live in seclusion.

During the previous dynasty, many famous scholars lived in seclusion here and could live in a long alley, so they got this name.

When several emperors came to power in the Yan Dynasty, the power of the emperor was weak and the power of the court fell. The court gradually could not tolerate upright officials. In the court, some literati defected to the powerful and noble families, spread their writing styles, and created momentum for their service to the master's family. Many capable scholars chose to live in seclusion.

There is such a family in Wujin Lane. Since moving here more than ten years ago, he has been living a life of simplicity. Others only know that the house is full of flowers and trees, and the scenery is elegant. There will be a faint sound of piano reading. The servants go in and out and buy things and rarely interact with others. It is a very mysterious family.

On that day, a carriage came from the official road, passed through the streets of Wujin Lane, turned a few bends, and stopped directly in front of the door of this mansion.

"It's here." Someone in the carriage said, and the coachman stopped the carriage.

The carriage followed the four servants, all dressed in decent clothes. When they heard the master's words, they dismounted. One of them stepped forward and opened the carriage door. The other walked slowly down from inside, but it was Chen Qing.

Even after many days of trekking, Chen Qing still had a wide-sleeved robe. He looked about thirty years old, with handsome facial features, a peaceful face, and a gentle and calm look.

After getting off the carriage, Chen Qing looked up at the mansion in front of him, and couldn't help but look nostalgic.

"Go and call the door." Chen Qing stood there and said to his entourage.

"No." A follower in blue clothes walked up the high stairs and pressed against the door.

After a while, a sound of footsteps came. I stopped at the door. A slightly old voice asked inside the door: "Who is knocking outside?"

"I am Chen Qing from the Chen Mansion. Come to pay homage to your master." The entourage was about to speak, but was stopped by Chen Qing. Chen Qing took a few steps forward and said in person.

"Ah? Is it Mr. Chen?" Hearing Chen Qing's voice, the people inside immediately agreed, and were a little surprised.

The door slowly opened from the inside at this time. An old man in his early fifties in his navy blue walked out from the inside, stood on the steps, looked at the people standing outside, especially Chen Qing, looked at him carefully, and bowed with a gentle face, saying, "It's really Mr. Chen, you haven't come for a while, but today, my master went to the bamboo forest over there, and he won't return until the evening."

The old servant pointed to the valley in the distance and said, "Why don't you go to the mansion first and wait?"

Chen Qing looked at the bamboo forest over there, which was a place he often went to, and said, "It's okay, I have a car, just drive over to see him. Anyway, I often go to this bamboo forest, and I can find him as soon as I go, and I also bring some wine and meat."

"It's good, I'll tell you to prepare some more meals and pick them up for later." The old servant nodded and said, "It's all family friends, very familiar, so I'm not very polite."

Chen Qingzhong got into the car and ordered people to drive towards the bamboo forest.

There are hills, lakes and bamboo forests in Wujin Lane. The scenery is beautiful. Literati live here and it is inevitable that they often come to relax.

Chen Qing felt a little moved while watching outside in the carriage.

There are many seclusions in this place. When I was in Wu, I often came to meet some talents, but now I come to visit once, but I take a lot of risks.

If Wei Yue knew that he had sneaked back to Jinling, he would not let him go.

However, this time, after being ordered by the king, I came back with a serious matter, which was to use my own connections to contact the talents and families of Wu to respond to the inner response.

Now the King of Chu is stable and has a righteous deed to fight against rebellion. If possible, he would never let his friends continue to waste their time and talents here.

I will definitely take my friend to the King of Chu camp, otherwise my old friend will be forced to take the initiative by Wei Yue in the future. Then the two of them will be their own masters, which will be unsightly.

The bamboo forest was not far from Wujin Lane, and I drove over again in a carriage, and it was not long before I arrived at the place.

The carriage stopped before stopping a bamboo forest. After the follower dismounted, he opened the car door and Chen Qing walked out of the carriage.

Looking around, there was a bamboo forest half-covering a path. Although November was still lush and refreshing, Chen Qing, who was originally a little depressed and irritable, looked cheerful.

Just then, I heard the sound of play.

Looking at the sound, the bamboo forest was blocked tightly, but you could still see a group of children playing hide-and-seek.

Chen Qing heard this and smiled: "This is the children nearby, they all sneaked to the garden to play."

As I talked, I saw that more than a dozen children were playing, and I felt a sigh in my heart that the scenery was still the same, but things seemed to change.

"You two are watching the carriages and horses here, you two are carrying things and following me into the forest."

"promise."

He ordered two followers to watch the carriage outside. One of them carried the dishes they bought on the road and the other one carried a jar of wine, and went into the bamboo forest with Chen Qing.

There is no need to look for it specifically. As soon as you enter the bamboo forest, you smell a faint fragrance of wine.

Following the fragrance of wine, I quickly saw two people in the bamboo forest in one place.

Confucian scholars and followers.

The man in a Confucian robe was twenty-year-old, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, but had a strong bookish spirit. When Chen Qing saw this, the man was sitting on the ground, tearing half of his chicken legs in his hand, and eating slowly.

The followers warmed the wine on the stove, and the fragrance of the wine slowly spread out, mixed with the aroma of meat, which was a pleasure!

Seeing them coming, the man in Confucian robe was startled and stopped his movements. After a moment, he smiled and pointed at Chen Qing with a smile: "You man, you left in a hurry not long ago, and now Ju is running back again. Let's talk, what are you doing when you come back this time?"

Chen Qing asked his entourage to hand over the wine and meat to the other party's servant, and then sat opposite him and smiled: "Zhao Yuanjing, am I here to see you?"

"I don't believe it! You guys will look at me specifically? The general is so angry. You more than a dozen families have made a big fuss this time." Zhao Yuanjing shook his head and said this, but his tone of reproach was not heavy: "After this, I'll come back at a big risk just to see my old friend. I'm afraid it won't be so simple, right? Tell me, where are you now? Could it be... under the rule of the King of Chu?"

"You really don't care about the world?" Chen Qing took the cup handed over by the other party, and then gently bited half of the chicken leg, and asked.

"Why, I'm guessing it?" Zhao Yuanjing asked.

"Don't you think the King of Chu is a wise king?" Chen Qing avoided talking about this topic and looked over with bright eyes.

"I've said it a long time ago, I'm just an idle person. It's not that wise or wise, and I don't have much to do with me. I don't have a big ambition like you... Let's talk about it, what official position are you now? What rank do you have to be?"

Chen Qing had heard too much about the other party's jokes and had long since disregarded him. When Zhao Yuanjing asked, he said, "Nine-grade now!"

When Zhao Yuanjing heard this, his eyes widened slightly and he smiled: "Why are you a ninth rank when you surrender to the King of Chu? The general who was the first to summon you to treat him with a fifth rank."

"This is different." Chen Qing said seriously: "This is the strict king's rule and the aura of the emperor. If the official rank can be given lightly, this will not be a bandit. I will be a lobbyist when I come here this time."

Without waiting for an answer, he even said, "If you don't want to recognize me as an old friend, you will be able to knock me out like someone else. If you wish to chat with me for a few days, you will take me in. I don't plan to go anywhere except you."

"You guy is still so raspy!" Zhao Yuanjing stared at Chen Qing helplessly, and had to shake his head. Although Zhao Yuanjing was unwilling to get involved in the battle between the two kings, his old friend came and could not really drive him out. He had to say: "Come on, I can't let you live outside. Besides, your identity is awkward. If you let the constable see it, you will inevitably not be arrested to meet the official and receive rewards."

I sat in the bamboo forest for a while, put out the fire, and stepped on the sparks, and then decided to return.

Zhao Yuanjing walked over. When he went back, Chen Qing accompanied him slowly on the road, and several followers drove the carriage and followed behind him.

"You used to live in seclusion here as a helpless act. My uncle was disheartened about the affairs of the government and the country, and took your family to Wujin Lane to live in seclusion. It has been almost twenty years since then. The court of the past no longer exists. Why should you abandon all your talents?"

Chen Qing's words only made Zhao Yuanjing smile.

"Old friend, you are a lobbyist, you are really dedicated. When you meet in the first year of junior high school, you are talking about this matter, which makes me wonder how to answer. Why not talk about the situation of the Chen family under the rule of the King of Chu?"

Chen Qing nodded, knowing that this old friend would not change his mind for a while, so he had to stop mentioning this matter for the time being.

Along the way, the two of them just picked up some common things to talk about, and gradually became more pleasant.

The bamboo forest is not far from the Zhao family’s mansion, and it’s half an hour to walk.

The entourage went up and called the door. After a while, the old servant opened the door. When he saw that his master was coming back, he brought the guests. He hurriedly opened the door and let them in.

"Instruct them to free up a courtyard before night to place my old friend, and add a few more dishes to the stove tonight." As he walked in, Zhao Yuanjing said as he ordered.

"I understand, lord, let's talk to them now." The old servant went to do it immediately.

Zhao Yuanjing asked his entourage to arrange the rest of Chen Qing's four entourages.

Turning his head, Zhao Yuanjing said to Chen Qing: "Come on, let's go to the small hall first. We haven't played chess with you for a long time. Today we will have a few games!"

"You lead the way, and today I will throw you away your armor and armor!"

The two of them were talking and laughing, walking through the courtyard and coming to the place where they used to play chess. Chen Qing sat down in his seat, facing a chessboard, and a familiar feeling arose.

It seemed as if just ten years ago, two young people were playing chess.
Chapter completed!