Chapter 163: I can’t beat anyone.

Emperor Jinglong does not like waste, meals in addition to the Palace Banquet, each meal but more than ten dishes.

This time, when he left Su Yan to have his meal, he didn’t make an exception for him.

A dinner table with wind ling, crispy lotus root, and ginger-marinated olives as cold appetizers, a main course of a jar of meaty and aromatic Buddha jumping over the wall, and side dishes of half-winged chicken, stir-fried lamb’s maw, sizzling clams, silverfish holding an egg, braised artemisia with fresh prawns, sauteed hawksbill bamboo shoots with mushrooms, magnolia shoots with garlic, and eight-treasure saving soup, and for dessert, rolls of jujube puree and Su Yan’s own cream cheese.

The courtesan serving the meal put a gauze scarf around her mouth and nose, and moved gently to lay out the food. The melodious sound of silk and bamboo music came from behind the screen.

The emperor in the diet is quite restrained, each meal only eighty percent full. Su Yan is seventeen or eighteen years old when the body grows, although the eating appearance is gentle, the amount of food is not small, and long time not tasted the authentic hometown flavor, the appetite is wide open. The emperor in order to let him eat freely, deliberately slow down the speed of the meal, waiting for him to eat almost, before putting down the chopsticks.

Wash up, Su Yan see has reached the hour, they have to go to the East Palace to send the gift of the year, for fear of being late to catch up in the next key before leaving the palace, then to the emperor politely proposed to retire.

The emperor, however, was positive that he should help him with his advice, pulling him to consult the public opinion maps of the Nine Borders and the military reports flying in from the town of Datong.

Concerned about political affairs, Su Yan will no longer excuse, carefully read, very alarmed: “Datong General and Deputy General are killed in action?”

The emperor frowned and said: “ten days ago, the tartar invaded Datong, tartar tai shi dehuodai personally led the troops, ambush elite in the big worm ridge, and more than a hundred riders of old and weak soldiers as a bait, to lure the Datong general soldier Lin yue out of the city. In this battle, the general soldier Lin Yue and the deputy general soldier died in the ambush, and the whole army was routed.”

Su Yan even if the ancient history learned again half a bucket of water, but also know Datong is the first town of the nine sides, is “arching God’s capital” important northwest barrier. If Datong is broken, the enemy swings south and then turned east, will be able to directly approach the capital, soldiers under the city!

His palms sweating with nervousness, he asked urgently, “And then what, did Datong hold?”

The Emperor nodded: “Tuo Huo Tai indulged his troops in killing and plundering animals, and when he arrived in front of Yanmen Pass, he was routed by the army led by Geng Le, the Commander of Datong Wei, and retreated back to the Northern Desert.”

Su Yan then relieved, sighed: “I am in Shaanxi, I feel that this year’s winter is too early, snow frequently, the sky is cold and the ground is freezing. Worried that the grassland white disaster is serious, more stimulate the wolf nature of the northern desert tribes, to go south to plunder, really still come to beat the autumn wind.”

“I am worried about more than that. The Tartars alone invade and plunder year after year, the border defense is already too much to be disturbed, if Walar joins hands with them–” the emperor’s fingertip, from the “Tartar” territory on the map, all the way to the northwest, pointing at the “Walar”, “and at the same time move south through the Hetao area, invading Ningxia, Yan Sui and other towns, then the battle line will be lengthened. If Wala joins hands with them – “the emperor’s fingertip, from the Tartar territory on the map, moves all the way to the northwest, pointing at the Wala” – “and at the same time, goes south, crosses the river-loop area, and attacks Ningxia, Yansui, and other towns, then the battle line will be lengthened, and the strength of the troops is bound to be tight.”

“Vara and Tartary can’t join forces.” Su Yan replied without thinking.

“Oh, why?” The Emperor raised an eyebrow, wondering what his point of view was behind his words.

Su Yan was a bit speechless. Can’t tell Emperor Jinglong, because he read history, know the whole period of the Ming Dynasty, the internal struggle of the North Desert is very fierce, Walar and Tartar these two is the enemy rivals, must be strangled each other in order to get to the top of the kind of.

Sometimes the east wind overpowered the west wind, and sometimes the west wind overpowered the east wind. But no matter which side got bigger, they were ambitious enough to nuisance Daming. After all, the shortcomings of the environment and the economy were there, and without the products of the Central Plains to raise the standard of living, they would have to fall back to the era of slavery.

During the period seems to have come out of a brilliant character, a unification of the North Desert, but only a short period of 20 to 30 years. To be and that person died, the northern desert is once again divided, until finally the rise of the female true, have not been unified again.

What’s that guy’s name again …… Prince So-and-So? Or King Khan something-or-other?

Can’t remember.

“Because the Emperor is so wise and powerful that he will certainly not sit idly by and watch the alliance between Wala and the Tartars, and can easily stir up trouble between the two.”

Emperor Jinglong kindly laughed: “Is this flattering, or is it an insinuation that I’m not acting openly enough?”

“Soldiers are not too deceitful.” Su Yan smiled, “I see that the emperor is still in the mood to give meals, must be the case of Wala emissary assassination, the heart has already coped with the strategy. Please be generous with your advice.”

“Little witless child.” The Emperor poked him lightly in the corner of the forehead and asked, “Do you know the person of Ugha Lang?”

Su Yan instantly felt that this name is familiar, “I’m sure I’ve heard this name! Wait, I recall ……” he habitually curled his fingers against his jaw, gently rubbing, suddenly the spirit platform a light, “think of it! In Shaanxi Hengliangzi town, the group of Tartar cavalry that attacked me and caused me to fall into the valley, playing is the signboard of the Woods Hurricane!

“Later I also to a …… kunle prince to understand, this Wood Ha Lang is the Tartar master off fire Taiwan’s youngest son, useless and sex like fishing color, even in the North Desert departments, the wind evaluation is also extremely poor.”

The emperor said: “good. Although Wu Ha Long is a waste, but it is the most favored woman of Tuo Huo Tai was born, extremely popular with him. Since the Black Duo Shaman can use the death of the Prince of Warrat to buckle the black pot to the Great Ming, then the Great Ming naturally can also use the death of the Woods Harang, the pot back to the head of the Warrat.

“The Tartar Khan King is a sham, the Imperial Master controls the real power, but his beloved young son died at the hands of the Varrat people because of a battle of wills. In this way, can Valar and Tartary still be allied?”

Taking the way of others, beautiful! Su Yan couldn’t help but applaud in his heart.

But then it felt difficult to maneuver – with the mountains at the pass and the vastness of the Northern Desert, how could one penetrate into the enemy’s country and create such chaos?

No less than the Great Witch of Hedo, who was supposed to be the anti-disguise of loyalty, lurked around Alltan as a shaman, planned painstakingly, and waited for the right opportunity to strike, before he succeeded in assassinating Alltan.

And on Daming’s side, how to approach Woodhallang, disguised as a Valar man striking without arousing Tartar suspicion? After thinking hard, Su Yan felt that it might be possible to do so only by sending a small team of extremely secretive and capable spies to blend into the Valar interior. These spies would also have to look like Northern Desert people in order to hide their faces.

He gave the Emperor a rough outline of this vision.

The emperor smiled lightly and spoke with appreciation, “Qinghe knows my heart well.” Saying this, he pulled out a sheet of paper from the folders and handed it to Su Yan.

Su Yan took it and saw three big words on the line–

The night does not close.

This is the …… crouch …… Su Yan shocked, Daming most mysterious, the most bizarre special reconnaissance force “night not collected”, is indeed the real existence! Moreover, not just a few scouts belonging to the border guards, but also a little-known dark blade held by the Son of Heaven.

Although the Jinyiwei were pervasive, espionage was basically internal only; while external reconnaissance and espionage, including special operations such as surprise attacks, were left to the Night Uncollected to carry out.

Emperor Jinglong said, “Though the Night Uncollectors are secretive and elite, they are too few in number after all, and the strength of each team is scattered, and since the previous leader was killed in battle, I have not been able to find a successor who excels in the field.”

After a pause, he added, “The same goes for the Brocade Guards, the position of Palm Seal Commander is still vacant. Truly a thousand gold is easy to obtain, but a general is hard to find.”

Su Yan could not help but mutter secretly: the commander of the brocade guards, I think that who is quite suitable, but you are on the defensive.

–Of course I wouldn’t dare to say it, to avoid suspicion.

“The matter of killing Woodhullang must be carefully planned to ensure that nothing goes wrong. If the timing and manpower are not suitable, it is better not to make a move than to reveal one’s identity so as not to make a mistake.” The Emperor said.

Su Yan nodded: “Your Majesty is well thought out. Then I must also seize the time to uncover the black hand behind the Floating Sound as soon as possible, so as to give an explanation to the Walar side, and also delay the time for them to raise their troops to attack.”

But the emperor said: “also not so urgent, do not have to push yourself too much. The imperial prison is not still a dismissed Yan Chengxue. On the state letter of Warrat, he was named to pay for his blood debt. After all, the poison is his production, the death of Prince Kunle how he can not get out of it. Borrowing his head when necessary will also delay the battle.”

Su Yan was austere, on the one hand, he felt that although Yan Chengxue was guilty, it was a bit unjust to die like this; on the other hand, he also knew that from the point of view of the national interest, it was more appropriate for Yan Chengxue to die than to live.

He thought about it, after all, it was a human life, and it was better to try to save it if he could. So he arched his hand at Emperor Jinglong and said, “Please Emperor, do not kill him for the time being, allow the minister to figure out a perfect method and report back.”

The emperor, after a little meditation, granted permission, but gave Su Yan a deadline – before he returned to Shaanxi at the beginning of March.

If there is no better way, Yan Chengxue must die.

Su Yan obliged.

The Emperor said, “I would like to give you some more time, but the situation cannot afford to wait. For I suspect that the secret envoys I have sent out will probably not be able to safely deliver the secret letter to Wara and hand it over to Tiger Crowley.”

Su Yan asked, “The Emperor suspects that the Black Duo Shaman will still be working from this?”

“I am even more skeptical that it is hard to say who is actually in real power in Wara today, and whether Tiger Crowley is still Tiger Crowley or not.”

Su Yan heard the meaning of the strings, silent for a moment, said, “If the missing Prince Kunle comes back alive, it may be able to change the situation of Wala, or perhaps …… will face greater peril.”

The Emperor said, “I have heard that you met Kunle at the Clearwater Camp and got along quite well?”

Su Yan hurriedly replied, “It’s just a casual encounter, and there is a gap between the foreign races, and the few times we talked were only for horse matters. Your Imperial Highness should not make fun of me again.”

The emperor smiled as if letting him off the hook and turned his face to look out the window, “Half past the hour of 5 o’clock, the palace gates are about to be keyed down, why don’t you stay in Qianqing Palace this night. The West Warm Pavilion also has a floor dragon, suitable for you, a cat that is afraid of the cold.”

Su Yan was startled. Foreign ministers stay in the East Palace, it is already a bit beyond the rules. But Duanbeng Palace, after all, in the front court, they have the title of the crown prince’s readers, was caught by the crown prince as a companion is quite understandable. Qianqing Palace is the harem of the harem, how can you stay at will!

If the courtiers knew about this, they would poke him hard! Even if he could hide it from all the courtiers, including the magistrates and historians, there are still so many servants and court ladies in the harem, there is no guarantee that they won’t tell. There is no impermeable wall in the world.

No, I can’t take the blame for “serving the king with sex”.

Su Yan made up his mind, never stay in the harem, but it is not good to directly resist the decree, so make a grateful look, said: “the emperor do not have to worry, I fast feet, will be able to catch up in the next key before the door of the palace, can not be misplaced.”

The emperor left him, in addition to wanting to spend more time alone with him, but also stored the intention to test, hoping to ambiguity further. Unfortunately, Su Yan did not have this intention, and even from the eyes of the hidden worries and confusion, the emperor can only sigh silently in the bottom of his heart: the fire is not yet, anxious. Fermentation slowly, the old wine is more fragrant.

He was about to open his mouth to ask Su Yan to leave, but then he heard the voice of the crown prince outside the hall, exploding like thunder, calling out, ”Father! My son has come to greet Father Emperor! I respectfully request Father Emperor’s holy peace!”

Outside the Warming Pavilion, Lan Xi was busy discouraging, “Little master, alas little master! Can not be so shouting and screaming, bad rules of the palace not to mention, in case of disturbing the imperial master can be how good.”

Zhu Hailin thought to himself: if Father Emperor is really doing something that will be disturbed by me, then I am not disturbed enough!

He tore his voice away to yell some more, but then he saw the door to the warming pavilion suddenly open.

Su Yan stepped out of the door with a speechless face, and in Zhu He Lin’s surprised expression, he took a big bag from the attendant and put it in Zhu He Lin’s arms.

Zhu Hailin clasped both hands together and asked, “What is it?”

Su Yan replied, “I gave my young master a yearly gift, go back and unwrap it and read it slowly. I will leave.”

“Hey, you wait! Why are you walking so fast? Just a few words and you’re leaving? You’re just ignoring me!” Zhu Hailin squeaked and chased after him. Under the corridor, the two figures gradually moved away from the Qianqing Palace.

Only after he had walked away did Zhu Helin lower his voice and say to Su Yan, “It’s fortunate that you came out early.”

“What’s wrong?” Su Yan rushed the door ban, his feet not stopping.

“I just saw, Wei Guifei side of a small palace maid, in the Qianqing Palace near the probe, must be she left the ears and eyes. You accompanied father after the meal, closed the window alone so long, and the palace people are driven outside the temple, any who will not suspect?

“In case the Wei family instructs another cohort, or writes a whistle-blowing letter to a speech officer, or goes to the Empress Dowager to chew the dust, you’ll be in deep trouble! As soon as the annual vacation is over, you’ll be faced with the verbal abuse and impeachment that splits the court.”

Su Yan turned his head to look at the Crown Prince and smiled faintly, “Keeping an eye on everything, awesome my little master.”

“Of course.” Zhu Helin said smugly, “And don’t look at how smart Little Master is. She’s staring at me, and I’m still staring at her! Today, Father has whisked her and the other three concubines back to their mother’s home, and summoned you to the palace in the evening, so I’m worried that Father has something against you that isn’t-“

“Tail don’t go up to the sky.” Su Yan covered the crown prince’s mouth and dragged him along, “Go arrange a sedan chair for me, the palace is too big, my legs are going to break.”

Zhu Hailin pulled away his hand and said angrily, “Bold! How do you speak to Little Master, you don’t distinguish between honor and inferiority.”

“Yes, yes, I’m not right, to put it another way: I’m physically weak and not durable to walk, I beg the young master to give me a sedan chair, so that I can rush out of the palace before the next key.”

“That’s more like it …… What’s the rush to get out of the palace for, one less bed for you in the East Palace?”

“His Highness the Crown Prince is about to choose a consort, he is not a child anymore, it is very improper to allow foreign ministers to stay in the East Palace any longer, even if they are attendants and playmates. Please have Your Highness focus on the greater good.”

Zhu Hailin was unhappy and bristled, “You started off with ‘Your Highness, Your Highness’, so you’re just being bureaucratic and purposely pulling away from me. I know, there’s no need to remind me about choosing a concubine again and again, little master is annoyed!”

Su Yan laughed: “What’s bothering you, is it not good to choose a gentle and beautiful flower of interpretation to accompany you always?”

Zhu Hailin asked rhetorically, “And what about you, why didn’t you choose a decapitated flower and chose a dog’s tail grass?”

Su Yan choked and righted Jing Hongchou’s name: “Ah Chou is not a dog’s tail grass. He is, is ……”

“Stones in the Cottage!”

“Bah, he’s bird not da.”

“What the hell? Birds aren’t big, really?”

“It’s the bird not da! A hot, drought-tolerant plant. Normally it looks like a few insignificant dead twigs, covered in thorns, with no place for a bird to land. But with a little water, it produces extremely colorful red flowers.”

“–Was that big or not?”

“Great.”

“–Well wow! And you said it was just a kiss! This has been touched!”

“Touch my ass! What the hell do you think you have in your head all day long when you’re the crown prince of a country!”

“I forbid you to call yourself a ghost thing.”

“……”

“Why don’t you say something?”

“I can’t flirt with anyone, so I’d better shut up.”