The winter of Tianchen's twenty-fourth year seemed to be particularly cold. It was only November, and snowflakes began to fall in the north. The cold wind was howling in the capital, the sky was overcast, the streets were deserted, and even the major Goulan theaters seemed a bit cold.

So lonely.

Lin Wan's hands and feet were red from the cold, so she entered the house wrapped in a cloak and shivered close to the charcoal pot by the fire. Qiu Zi hurriedly poured hot tea, took off Lin Wan's cloak, and advised, "Girl, please change your clothes.

"

Lin Wan nodded and stood for a while, waiting until her body was warmer before going into the inner room to change clothes.

Forsythia came in with hot water, curled her lips, and complained angrily: "General Lu, it's true that he asked the girl to see someone in the cold weather! I don't know if our girl can bear it! So does Zhou Ming.

What a fool!"

Qiu Zi pulled Forsythia funny. "Say less."

Forsythia snorted, took a sip outside, and then entered the inner room with hot water.

Zhou Ming, who was outside the house, touched his nose and said to himself that he would have to remind me next time.

Lu Junzhao returned to Prince Xining's Mansion in high spirits and in a good mood, and went all the way to Prince Xining's study.

King Xining was lying on the rocking chair, with his eyes half-closed and his fingers tapping the armrest rhythmically. When he saw Lu Junzhao entering the room, he hummed: "You know you're back?"

Lu Junzhao ignored King Xining, poured himself a cup of hot tea, and sat down opposite King Xining.

"The Holy One asked the Ministry of Rites to hold a banquet to entertain the envoys from Beiyan."

King Xining snorted disdainfully and sneered: "I'm not going!"

Lu Junzhao hummed, frowned and said, "The Holy One asked me to go by name."

"Just going through the motions." King Xining waved his hand impatiently. "You went to find Xu Luwen? Humph, Xu Chengshan won the top prize and went to Jiangnan. Boss Xu told me before that he wanted to go back to the north! I hope I will be well.

What a fool!"

Lu Junzhao raised his eyebrows, spoke in a cold voice, and said slowly: "Xu Luwen has returned to the Xu Mansion."

King Xining sat up from the rocking chair, glanced at Lu Junzhao with a strange expression, and hummed: "Xu Luwen is slippery, do you want to go back now? Humph! Is there news from the north?"

Xu Luwen was holding his hands behind his back and hired an old and leaky carriage. He drove all the way through the deserted Chang'an Street and got off the carriage at the corner gate of Xu Mansion.

Xu Luwen looked up at the decaying high walls and tiles with a complicated expression, frowned and sighed, strode forward and knocked on the door.

An old butler with a gray beard opened the door with a creak. When he saw Xu Luwen, he was stunned for a moment, and then his eyes widened. His mouth was wide open, and he pointed at Xu Luwen with trembling hands, but he could not speak for a long time.

"Old Uncle Sub, it's me." Xu Luwen smiled and stepped forward to hold the old man's hand, stepped across the threshold, then turned around and closed the door. "Old Uncle Sub, do you still recognize me?"

The old housekeeper's face was covered with tears. He held Xu Luwen tightly with both hands, crying and laughing. He kept nodding his head and repeated in a trembling voice: "I recognize it, why don't I recognize it? You are the second master, the second master...

"

Xu Luwen smiled and nodded.

The old housekeeper was choked and speechless, so he just pulled Xu Luwen and walked into the yard. The huge yard looked even more decadent and deserted in winter, with few people in it. When the cold wind blew, the whole yard was filled with squeaking branches.

Shaking sound.

"Uncle - uncle - come and take a look -" the old housekeeper shouted excitedly as he walked around in the yard.

Suddenly a skinny old man in his fifties ran out of the yard. His face was covered with wrinkles, but his eyes were strangely bright. He rolled out like a gust of wind. He stared at Xu Luwen, his eyes widened and he suddenly stopped moving. It took a long time to swallow with difficulty.

He took a sip of saliva and tremblingly squeezed out two words from his throat: "Second brother?"

Xu Luwen also widened his eyes and looked at Xu Chenglin, who was sixty percent similar to him, as if the high-spirited elder brother had aged terribly in an instant. Xu Luwen resisted the heat that surged into his eyes, stepped forward and pulled Xu Chenglin and said with a smile: "

Brother, it’s me.”

Xu Chenglin held Xu Luwen's arm and burst into tears. He just nodded and kept saying, "Okay, okay, just come back."

The two brothers were holding each other's hands and crying in the huge yard. The old housekeeper kept wiping his tears beside him. After a while, two or three people ran out from nowhere and were stunned when they saw the situation in the yard.

Xu Chenglin gradually stopped crying, wiped his face with his sleeves, and ordered to the stunned people in the yard: "Go and clean up the house quickly! Let the kitchen cook some good dishes, and make a jar of wine! Go quickly

!”

After saying that, he pulled Xu Luwen through the corridor and into the study.

The study room of the Xu family has two floors, inside and outside. It is very empty and has been separated now. The bookshelves in the room are scattered with various ancient books and old books, which looks a bit messy. Looking around, I feel that the room is empty again.

It's air-conditioned.

Xu Luwen frowned and looked around, feeling sour and unbearable, and a stream of heat rushed straight to his forehead.

The two brothers sat opposite each other, but were speechless for a moment. Xu Luwen sighed and said, "Brother is getting old these days."

Xu Chenglin smiled bitterly, nodded and replied: "We are all old, and Chengshan is not young anymore. Have you been in the north all these years?"

"Well, I have been following the second son of the King of Xining - Lu Junzhao." Xu Luwen's voice was calm and he looked at Xu Chenglin with a broad look, "Brother, have you not thought about going north?"

Xu Chenglin was stunned for a moment, a glimmer of light flashed in his eyes, he patted Xu Luwen on the shoulder and laughed: "You will be a lobbyist as soon as you come back?"

Xu Luwen nodded calmly, fell back on the chair, crossed his legs, looked at Xu Chenglin and said: "The Holy Master is old, all the princes below, ha!" Xu Luwen laughed sarcastically, "The Lu family

The foundation is deep in the north. When Lu Junzhao gets married, the King of Xining will definitely put his focus on the north. The court does not need to make any big moves, just wait a few years and it will be almost done..."

Hearing this, Xu Chenglin suddenly shrank his eyes and almost slipped off his chair. The expression on his face changed. After a long time, he pointed at Xu Luwen with trembling fingers and asked in an unsteady voice: "The Lu family is going to rebel?"

Xu Luwen was stunned for a moment, and looked at Xu Chenglin with wide eyes. Seeing that Xu Chenglin still had a look of disbelief on his face, Xu Luwen rolled his eyes, reached out and pushed Xu Chenglin's fingers away. He coughed: "Brother, where are you thinking? Lu

Why should the family rebel? The Lu family just needs to guard the north!"

Xu Chenglin's eyes moved, he glanced at Xu Luwen, then he twirled his beard and frowned in thought.

"The Lu family has not had enough heirs. This is a thankless task, and the old fox like King Xining really doesn't know how to do it." Xu Chenglin frowned and thought while nodding. "It's just that my heart is not small. The Lu family has guarded the royal family for so many years.

If you want to replace the country, it is not impossible. Not to mention the royal family... Haha," Xu Chenglin stroked his beard and laughed sarcastically, "I am already too afraid of the Lu family. There are a lot of actions behind the scenes, and there is a shortage of things to the north.

Food, but His Majesty only issued a few innocuous edicts... Hehe... It is impossible for King Xining to fail to take action."

Xu Luwen just crossed his legs and listened to Xu Chenglin muttering to himself. Finally he stood up and added: "The roots of the Xu family are basically in the north. If you wait a few years, there will be a lot of opportunities." Xu Luwen's eyes flickered, and his eyes were filled with laughter.

The smile is unclear.

Xu Chenglin's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he patted Xu Luwen on the shoulder. The two brothers smiled and looked at each other, understanding each other.

At this moment, the main hall in the inner courtyard of the palace was brightly lit and bustling with people coming and going. Several adults from the Ministry of Rites and Honglu Temple who were responsible for receiving envoys from Beiyan warmly and thoughtfully invited several envoys from Beiyan and Yuhe County.

The Lord went to the side hall to rest.

As the chamberlain said, "Your Majesty has arrived," everyone in the palace hurriedly knelt on the ground. The envoys of Beiyan and Princess Yuhe who were in the side hall also came out one after another to kneel down. Emperor Cheng Ming entered the room dressed in yellow clothes with a smile on his face.

With a gentle smile. "Everyone, get up." After saying that, he moved his eyes to Beiyan and his group. The smile on his face was a little deeper. "Princess Yuhe and a few adults also please get up quickly. No need to wait for more."

present."

When everyone stood up, Emperor Chengming signaled to Su Wen, who sang "Let's start the banquet——".

Afterwards, the ceremony officer sang "Hey" several times, the palace musicians played official music, and with a long "Take your seats -" everyone took their seats one after another.

The banquet went on silently. Chen Rui, the young minister of Honglu Temple, greeted Beiyan and his party politely and thoughtfully. Emperor Chengming occasionally asked a few gossips with a smile, and the envoy of Beiyan answered in a polite manner - a

The banquet came to an end in unusual calm.

Unexpectedly, the envoy of Beiyan suddenly left the table. He quickly walked to the center of the hall, knelt down, and saluted Emperor Chengming respectfully: "Holy Lord, Holy Ming, we have received such kindness from Your Majesty, and I am deeply grateful. I am brave enough today, and it is worth it."

On this beautiful occasion, I would like to ask Your Majesty to choose a husband for me, Princess Yuhe, from the royal family of Northern Yan."

Emperor Chengming's eyes dimmed, but the smile on his face did not diminish. He chuckled and said: "Master Yelu, this is really difficult for me! All the adults present today have families and even children. I don't dare to

I have wronged Princess Beiyan."

"I heard that General Lu has not married yet. General Lu is a young hero who is really admirable. Princess Yuhe also admires the general very much." The people of Beiyan are open-minded, and they naturally have less scruples when speaking. Yeluhe, the envoy of Beiyan

He proposed to Princess Yuhe on the spot.

As soon as these words came out, the whole place fell into silence.

The gloominess in Emperor Cheng Ming's eyes flashed past, and his gaze stayed on the sharp-looking Lu Junzhao for a moment. The smile on his face also faded, and he said in a deep voice to the envoy of Beiyan: "I have given Junzhao a gift a few days ago.

We are married, Lord Yelu probably hasn’t heard of it yet.”

Yeluhe bowed his head and saluted Emperor Chengming again, and said apologetically: "This is a low-ranking official who has been reckless."

Just as Yeluhe was about to retreat, Princess Yuhe who was behind the curtain suddenly knelt down towards Emperor Chengming and said, "Your Majesty, Yuhe has admired General Lu for a long time and is willing to be his equal wife."

Before the voice fell, the whole audience was in an uproar.

Lu Junzhao glanced at everyone in Beiyan with cold eyes, stood up, cupped his hands towards Emperor Cheng Ming, and sneered: "I don't care about you!" After that, he waved his sleeves and left without caring about everyone's expressions.

Emperor Cheng Ming's eyes were dark and unclear. After a long time, he chuckled and said to everyone in Beiyan: "Jun Zhao is young and has a bad temper. Please be understanding."

Everyone hurriedly knelt down and said, "Don't dare."
Chapter completed!