"Quake, quack, quack..." Chang'an City, the sound of crows came one after another.

In the snowy yard, a middle-aged man in a scarlet official robe stumbled into the main hall. Before he even had time to stand firm, he excitedly took out a piece of mulberry paper with words written in his arms and held it high in the air. "Second brother, second brother, the person named Zhang finally showed his fox's tail! Why is it a saint who is so vigilant, he is not untied, he is just trying to gain fame!"

"What did he reveal?" Wu Yanxiu, who was playing chess with his brother, quickly raised his head and looked happy. "Hurry up and take it to me to see. I know that that guy will sooner or later be unable to calm down!"

"He asked the court for the position of Suzhou Governor and Ganzhou Governor, and gave his two junior brothers. He also asked the court to allocate 100,000 stones of rice and grain from Guazhou every year to support the soldiers of the western army." The middle-aged official Wu Yanzhao gave the mulberry paper to Wu Yanxiu, and summarized excitedly, "In addition, he also asked to leave 40% of the compensation from the Shi Kingdom to the Protectorate of the West to rectify the city defense, build official roads, and add stations. And, there are a lot of other things that I have copied down! That guy really dared to speak loudly, and he was not afraid of suffocating himself to death."

"If he only brought three thousand soldiers and horses, he dared to sit in the Xuanwu Gate. What else would he be afraid of?" Wu Yanxiu curled his lips and took the mulberry paper with a sneer. "I'm sure Li Xian died suddenly, and all the forces were caught off guard!"

"Maybe it was to follow Wang Jian's old wisdom and to be the heart of Empress Dowager An!" Wu Yanshou, who was sitting opposite the chessboard, put down the chess piece and stretched casually. "Zhang Qian is actually very smart. He will not be so stupid that he will be so proud that he will hold three thousand soldiers in his hand. Second brother, don't underestimate him!"

"He can be Wang Jian, but with Wei's big sesame mind, how could he be the King of Qin?!" Wu Yanxiu continued to shrugged and whispered, proud as if he was a rooster.

"Hahaha..." Around the scene, laughter burst into aroused. Except for Wu Yanshou, all the Wu children gathered in the main hall deeply agreed with Wu Yanxiu's words.

Back then, Wang Jian was ordered to conquer Chu. Before going to the expedition, he asked King Ying Zheng of Qin for various benefits. His greed made his son unable to see him. However, King Ying Zheng of Qin understood that the more Wang Jian asked for him, the less likely he would be to betray the Qin Dynasty.

Now Zhang Qian has been on the public and asked the court for the positions and various benefits of the two governors. His original intention is probably exactly the same as Wang Jian. However, he did not think about it carefully, how could the Empress Dowager Wei Wushuang compare with King Ying Zheng of Qin? Even if he pinched his nose and met his request, he would double the benefits after he sat firmly in the court.

"That's your mother-in-law!" Wu Yanshou did not laugh, rolled his eyes, and whispered to remind him.

"That's why I understand her so much." Wu Yanxiu continued to sneer and curl her lips, with dissatisfaction on her face. "If Anle and I hadn't given her advice to her in the past two years, how could she have gone so smoothly? As a result, haha, what did she repay me and Anle? Apart from giving this house that originally belonged to the Wu family to me and Anle, she refused to give up any other penny."

"Indeed, the Empress Dowager was born into a small family after all, so she must be used to it."

"She is very qualified to be a poor couple. She is indeed much worse than her grandmother when she is the empress dowager in charge of the Tang Dynasty."

"It's understandable that she dare not make her second sister-in-law the crown princess. But even a third-rank subordinate of the same Pingzhang family would not be willing to give it to her second brother, which would be too much!"

...

Wu Yan, Wu Yanguang, Wu Yanliang and others were talking a lot, and they all felt that it was not worth it for their second brother Wu Yanxiu.

In their opinion, the reason why Empress Wei was able to control the court steadily during Li Xian's recovery period and also let his cousin marry Xiao Zhizhong's daughter, Wu Yanxiu and Princess Anle made great contributions to it. Now Empress Wei is only concerned about promoting her own brothers, but she is unwilling to give Wu Yanxiu any benefits, which makes her feel like she is killing a donkey.

"The Empress Dowager has always been very fond of her second sister-in-law." Wu Yanshou's performance today was very unsociable. He smiled and shook his head slightly, "I haven't entrusted the second brother with an important task at this moment, so I may not have forgotten my second brother. Instead, I was suddenly dead by the emperor and was hit in a mess, so I just wanted to take the military power in my hands as soon as possible to prevent accidents..."

"Then why don't you appoint your second brother as the general of the Ten Thousand Cavalry Camp, but you only care about promoting the Wei family's brothers?" Wu Yan'an, the third-ranked Duke of Wu Xing, glanced at Wu Yanshou and twisted his nose to retort, "In terms of ability, knowledge, and qualifications, what is the second brother worse than the Wei family's brothers?"

"It's not those surnamed Wei, but the second sister-in-law is finally surnamed Li. The second brother is one step behind the second sister-in-law!" Wu Yanguang also frowned and was indignant for Wu Yanxiu.

"You are right. The second brother's surname is Wu, not Wei, this is a fact!" I really couldn't stand the stupidity of several brothers of the same clan. Wu Yanshou put away his smile and whispered, "Who can be selfless in this world? Is it wrong for the empress dowager to put her brothers of the same clan in front of her? Is it better for me to see that she can never remember her second brother and her second sister-in-law..."

"Fourth brother, what do you mean?" Wu Yan'an was so embarrassed that he couldn't come to Taiwan. He frowned and scolded, "Are you willing to be ashamed of a Duke's title and wait for the rest of your life to die?"

"Yes, fourth brother! Second brother is the leader of us. If he cannot become a prime minister, when will we take back all the debts owed by the court to the Wu family!"

"The Fourth Brother has been to Meilou too much recently, and I'm afraid I'm intoxicated by the Red Pink Formation!"

"Fourth brother, we all know that you are cautious in doing things. But if you miss the opportunity now, you may not be able to find a better one within ten years."

...

Wu Yan, Wu Yanguang, Wu Yanzhao and others also spoke one after another. They were very dissatisfied with Wu Yanshou's behavior of "not thinking about progress".

"The one who really owes our Wu family is Li Xian. Li Xian is dead!" Wu Yanshou grinned and shook his head with a wry smile. "Whether he died of excessive happiness or was poisoned, I will regard him as a person as a death debt. As for what the imperial court owes the Wu family, it is not difficult to get it back, but whether it can be kept is two different. If you are not sure, I think there is really no need to hurry back and get it back now."

"Why is there no need? The Empress Dowager's status is not stable at the moment, and we need the support of our Wu family. If we don't take advantage of this moment, we will work together to restore the family's former glory, when will we wait?"

"How come you can't hold on? Second brother, third brother, and fourth brother, you are all heroes of the world. Second sister-in-law is also the queen mother's favorite daughter."

"Fourth brother, what are you talking nonsense? The late emperor died of overjoyed. Countless people have seen it with their own eyes. How could it be poisoned?"

...

The Wu brothers retorted in a verbal manner, and no one was willing to stop as Wu Yanshou said.

"How much support can we give to the Queen Mother than Zhang Yongzhao?" Wu Yanshou held the table with his hands and stood up. "In addition to the second brother, which of us is more capable than Zhang Yongzhao? Look at what Zhang Yongzhao asked for from the court? Which one is it for him alone? He held three thousand tigers and wolves in his hand and was unwilling to stay in Chang'an City to continue to wade into the muddy waters. What should we do? With the bloodline left by the ancestors, when the daggers were really discovered, the bloodline of the ancestors could help us raise our swords, or help us block arrows?!"

"This, this..." It is rare to see the chubby Wu Yanshou lose his temper. The Wu brothers were startled and didn't know how to deal with it in an instant.

Wu Yanshou felt more and more disappointed when he saw the brothers of the same clan looking at each other. He walked to the wall and grabbed the marten cloak, put it on his body, and added with a sneer: "People are not fish. You can't just stare at that little bit of cheap bait, but you can't see the risk of being caught on the shore and going down the soup pot. After the New Year, I'm going to volunteer to go to the newly recovered side of Mobei to experience it. At this moment, there are many things to prepare at home, so I won't talk with you more. You all, please do it yourself!"

After saying that, he pushed away the servant who came to serve him, wrapped his cloak, walked out of the door in two steps.

"The fourth brother!"

"Fourth Brother!"

"Cousin Yanshou!"

...

The Wu family's children became increasingly at a loss, and their screams rose and fell. However, no one took the initiative to hold Wu Yanshou back and asked why he was so impatient today.

"Fourth brother, wait a moment, I'll give you it." Hengguo Duke Wu Yanxiu was also angry by Wu Yanshou's actions. However, as the core of this group of people, he could not watch Wu Yanshou part ways with everyone. Therefore, he decisively threw the copy of the memorial aside and quickly chased the other party's figure.

"Second brother, don't need to give it away! I really have something to do today!" Wu Yanshou fell into his brother's face, sighed secretly in his stomach, and took the initiative to slow down. "Besides, it's so cold, you are not wearing a cloak."

"It's okay, I was sent to Mobei to marry into the family back then. The weather there was much colder than here." Wu Yanxiu's heart was filled with anger, but his face was sunny. "Don't be angry with them. Everyone has been idle for too long and don't want to live a lifelong life and wait for death."

"I know." Wu Yanshou thought about it and nodded obediently, "They are all my brothers. What I feel in my heart over the past few years should be the same."

"You were right just now. The court is in chaos at this moment. If you don't come out to do things, you may not be suffering. I'm anxious because of my second brother." Wu Yanxiu smiled again and continued to ease the relationship between the two parties.

"The second brother is different from us. The second brother is the prince-in-law. He comes out to work for the new king only in the morning and evening." Wu Yanshou hesitated for a moment and responded in a low voice, "And the empress dowager is extremely fond of the second sister-in-law and almost always responds to every request. After the New Year, the emperor's coffin entered the tomb. You ask the empress dowager for a governor of the Shangzhou or another person through the second sister-in-law. With your ability, you will not take long to manage the local government and not pick up the remains."

"You suggested that I leave Chang'an? Why?" Wu Yanxiu immediately heard something in the other party's words, and his brows frowned tightly.

"I see that Zhang Yongzhao not only left by himself, but also recommended both of his junior brothers to be the governor of the place." Wu Yanshou did not hide it and responded with a wry smile, "He is so smart, I think we will definitely not make any mistakes when we learn from him."

"You..." Unexpectedly, such an unreliable answer appeared in the mouth of his fourth brother, who was known as the most cunning. Wu Yanxiu was amused and crying, and stood in the cold wind and shook his head. "What's the reason? Zhang Yongzhao also hooked up with Tubo Zhumeng, why didn't you learn from him back then?"

"I thought about it, but I have married, and the child is not young anymore, so I don't have the conditions." Wu Yanshou smiled and said perfunctorily. Then, he put away his smile and added seriously, "Second brother, you are born as the prime minister, but you have never had the opportunity to show it. Stay in the court, even if you barely become the third rank of the same as the Secretary of the Central Committee, you are still at the last place and have no weight in speaking. And when you go out to accumulate ten years of political achievements, the situation will definitely be very different. Look at that Zong Chuke, although everyone hates him to be cunning, he often decides every major event in the court. Even Xiao Zhizhong sometimes has to obey his advice."

"I want to go to the place to show off, but your second sister-in-law is unwilling to leave Chang'an." Knowing that Wu Yanshou was saying something good, Wu Yanxiu couldn't listen to a word, so she directly pushed his wife out as a shield.

"Although the second sister-in-law is a little more domineering, it's not that she is irrational." Wu Yanshou knew in his heart that the other party was saying an excuse, but he didn't expose it. He smiled and added in a low voice, "Besides, the scenery of Chang'an is seen every day, and the second sister-in-law should have been tired of seeing it."

"Well, I'll try it!" Wu Yanxiu was too lazy to think about it, and she was perfunctory, "Where are you? You are really going to go to Mobei."

"Zhang Renyuan and Niu Shizhuo have expanded the land thousands of miles in the north of Mobei this time. I heard that the court was preparing to restore the old Zhenguan system and set up the Governor's Office in Mobei. With chiefs of all races as the governors, and officials in the Central Plains sent officials as the chiefs. I want to plan a Governor's Office, whether it is the Governor's Office, the Governor's Office, or the Governor's Office, or even go north to be the Governor's Office, the Governor's Office, and the Governor's Office," Wu Yanshou did not hide it and responded with a smile, "Anyway, the court must send people to stare at the Governor's Office in a foreign race, so as not to surrender and rebel again. I now volunteer, and maybe I can still gain a good reputation for sharing my worries."

"Well" Wu Yanxiu pondered in a low voice. It took him seven or eight breaths to make sure that his fourth brother was not lying. So he smiled and promised in a low voice, "Do you want Princess Anle and I to help you? Maybe you can go to Zhang Renyuan's Dadu Protector's tent and go directly to be the chief of the marching army."

"It's okay, it's okay. I'll ask for freedom when I go out this time. Go to Zhang Renyuan's account and be stared at by him every day. I'm not tired enough!" Wu Yanshou immediately smiled and waved his hand, "Thank you, my second brother, I'd better do it myself! The governor's offices in Mobei are not very good or rich, and they are not rich in beauties. The weather is so cold that it can freeze people to death. I volunteered. Someone may not be willing to compete with me at this moment."

"That's true!" Wu Yanxiu thought for a while and nodded slowly.

At this moment, going to the chief ministers of the governors' offices that had just been restored in Mobei is like being demoted to the officials in the court. Most people have to find ways to refuse when they are turned on. Therefore, as long as Wu Yanshou volunteers, he will definitely not be rejected, and it will also make countless knowledgeable people in the court and the public look at him with admiration.

However, this path is suitable for Wu Yanshou, but not for him. Although Wu Yanshou hated Li Zhi to the core, he had no ambition since he was a child. And he had been carrying the hope of the entire family since he was a child, especially after Wu Sansi's death, he was even more expected and could not be shirked.

While he was secretly feeling, he heard Wu Yanshou whispering, "Actually, Yangzhou is very good. Zhang Yongzhao asked his junior brother for the governor of Suzhou, and the empress dowager was short of one person to help him watch this person. Yangzhou is known as the world's number one gold-selling cave, and the second brother and sister-in-law..."

"I will stay in Chang'an!" Wu Yanxiu shook his head and interrupted in a deep voice. "Come against the current, if you don't move forward, you will retreat. Since you have gone to the place, I have to stay."

After saying that, he didn't want to continue discussing the same topic with Wu Yanshou. He paused and asked with a smile, "You just said that no matter whether Li Xian died of illness or poisoned, the debt will be eliminated. What does this mean? Did you hear any news?"

"Second brother shouldn't have come to ask me about this." Wu Yanshou looked around vigilantly, and confirmed that there were no outsiders, so he lowered his voice and responded, "In Chang'an City, there are doctors. Second brother finds someone with a famous name and asks what it looks like to be overly happy and dies when his heart is broken. Then ask what it looks like to be killed by poisonous hair."

"Who can do it?" Wu Yanxiu chose without hesitation and would rather believe it, and the cold light rolled in his eyes.

"I don't know, maybe it's just a rumor in the market. I didn't go to the doctor to verify it." Wu Yanshou smiled again, and his heart was clear. "I don't want to investigate who was the one who took the action. If Li Xian really died of poisoning, the poisoned person is my benefactor. I can't even thank him for it, so I won't drag him into danger to satisfy his curiosity."

"Well! That's right!" Wu Yanxiu nodded slightly, but her face looked very unnatural. "There is no need to investigate. I hope there is such a person! But, I believe that 80% of the drunkards are chewing around!"

"I think so too!" Wu Yanshou sighed secretly in his heart and nodded obediently.

The two brothers suddenly lost interest in talking. They walked towards the side door of the palace together. A servant had prepared a carriage and waited at the door in advance. When Wu Yanshou saw it, he immediately accelerated his pace until he walked to the carriage. He turned around and bowed to Wu Yanxiu with a smile, "Second brother, I'm leaving, you can rest soon. During the national funeral, I can't invite you to drink and enjoy flowers. In the past few days, I will not disturb you anymore. When the matter of going is settled, I will ask you for tea."

"Fourth brother, be careful on the road!" Wu Yanxiu suddenly felt a little ache in her heart, stopped and waved her hand gently.

"Second brother, be careful!" Wu Yanshou seemed to reply casually, and seemed to deliberately remind him. Then, he stopped talking and jumped into the carriage.

The car door quickly closed, and the carriage slowly drove out of the side door of the royal palace under the escort of more than 20 confidants and slowly disappeared into the wind and snow.

The three years of the Dragon have not ended for a long time, and the snow has never ended. Wherever it passes, everything dirty and ugly in the world has been covered in pure white.

In the back garden of Dingwang Mansion, Princess Taiping Li Lingyue, wearing a fiery red fur, waved her horse whip to a plum tree. With a "bang", the white snow and red plums flew upside down, and the sky was filled with colorful colors.

"The princess is very skilled!"

"The princess is mighty!"

"What a beautiful Hongxue!"

...

The servant and the maids clapped and praised each other, fearing that they would not shout in time enough, so they would stand with the plum tree the next moment.

"Pa! Pa! Pa!" Princess Li Lingyue, the eldest princess of Taiping, was so excited that she waved her whip like a poisonous snake, and then sucked towards the surrounding plum trees. Each time, the red-ying splashed.

On the snow, the petals fell more and more, and bits were as bloody as the surroundings. The cheers were rising and falling. As for the plum trees in the back garden, no matter how precious this thing is, it is not as good as Princess Taiping. Even if the main trunk is injured, it will wither and die in a few days. If you spend money to transplant hundreds of plants from other places, it is really no big deal with the princess's fortune.

"Princess, Aunt Li is looking for a meeting!" A servant with a small body but a pinker face than a girl trotted forward, and his sharp voice seemed to be a wild cat calling out.

"Mr. Li, let her go directly to the back garden!" Princess Taiping immediately stopped waving the long whip, looked at the servant lovingly, and gave a soft command.

"Yes, princess!" the servant agreed, took a few steps back first, then turned around and jogged away. Soon, he brought in the concubine Li Gu, who was the subordinate of the Secretariat Pingzhang, Cui Shi.

"I have seen the eldest princess." Compared to a year and a half ago, Li Gu's body was much more round and her dress was much more luxurious. However, in front of Princess Taiping Li Lingyue, she still looked timid. She bent her body from a distance and squatted down and saluted her solemnly.

"Okay, come here! They are all the prime minister's wife, so there is no need to be too polite!" Princess Taiping was in a very good mood today, and pretended to be supportive in a false manner, and joked with a smile.
To be continued...