Chapter 12: Laozi is a stubborn commoner (Part 2)

  Just as the two sides were at a stalemate, facing each other across the hall door, a sharp and bright voice suddenly rang out from outside the willow garden: "The princess has arrived——"

  It is said that one should be prepared for a surprise, and as soon as he turned his head to listen, the sound of jade pendants ringing could be heard, and a group of people walked in from outside the garden. In front were imperial guards, behind were palace maids and eunuchs, surrounding a noble and elegant palace-dressed beauty and a maiden who looked like an immortal fairy.

  Kai Sheng was the Left Guard General of the Imperial Army, often serving in the palace. At that moment, he recognized the beautifully dressed woman as Princess Nanyang, the eldest daughter of the current Emperor, and the young girl beside her was none other than her younger half-sister, Princess Jincheng.

  Just as the two princesses were walking towards the main hall, he suddenly said: "Please stop, Your Highness. I have been ordered to capture the rebels and traitors. This place is very dangerous, and the thieves have the Big Thunder Sword Symbol and the secretly made poisonous hidden weapons of the Tangmen in Shu. Absolutely cannot get close."

  Princess Nanyang glanced at Gyun Kai and stopped in her tracks, asking: "Who are you?"

  "Your humble servant Gu Yun Kui, Left Guard General of the Imperial Army, pays his respects to Your Highness!"

  As he knelt down, all the imperial guards, including Long Zhenwu and Long Zhaoyuan who had just slipped out of the hall, immediately followed suit and knelt down in unison, thunderously chanting: "Greetings to Her Highness the Princess!"

  The Princess of Jin City said calmly: "Who told you that everyone in the hall is a rebel?"

  Gu Yun hastily replied, "Reporting to Your Excellency, these people are harboring the bandit Iron Evidence from Shandong, and it is certain that they are rebels. As he spoke, he suddenly had an idea and added, "General Yuwen, with his keen insight and swift actions, has specially ordered me to come and capture them, not a single one should be allowed to escape."

  Princess Nanyang smiled slightly and said: "General Gu, you must have mistaken them for someone else. They are all noble guests I've invited."

  As soon as this remark came out, Gu Yun and others were stunned, and even the people in the hall who knew about the Huabu Bureau, such as Xiao Si and Yu Linglong, thought they had misheard.

  "Your Highness, where did this come from?" Gu Yun wiped the sweat on his forehead and stuttered: "Just now, that group of people... openly resisted arrest and injured Long Douwei."

  Long Zhenwu didn't utter a word, he had long been resentful of Gu Yun Kai, how could he possibly speak up for him now.

  "Jin Cheng Gongzhu said coldly: 'You and Long Douwei stay behind, the others withdraw from Liu Garden to await orders.'"

  Gǔ yún kāi zhàng zhe dǎn zi wèn dào: "liǎng wèi diàn xià kě yǒu Yǔwén jiāng jūn de shǒu lìng?"

  Translation:

  Gu Yun Kai Zhang asked, "Do the two princes have General Yuwen's written order?"

  Princess Nanyang said: "You're referring to Yuwen Chengdu? Are you saying that I should send someone to summon him, and only then will you withdraw?"

  It is said that when one's heart is open, one's head will be shaken. Knowing that the husband of Princess Nanyang was actually the uncle of Yuwen Chengdu, Yuwen Shi Ji, things are going to get out of hand, and the unlucky one will definitely be oneself.

  Having understood this point, he dared not hesitate and immediately ordered: "Everyone withdraws to the outside of Liu Garden and waits for orders!"

  At this moment, except for the few military officers who fell to the ground and lost consciousness, and Long Zhenwu, who was allowed to stay, all the other imperial guards quickly put away their bows, crossbows, and swords and rushed out of the garden.

  Xiao Si let out a breath of relief, but didn't dare to put away the talisman in her hand. After all, no one could guess the intentions of these two young ladies. Yuling and others also had the same idea, secretly being vigilant and not daring to relax at all.

  Only then did Princess Jincheng step forward slowly and say: "Which one of you is Xiao Si?"

  It is said that even if it opens, it's unclear whether it's true or false. He stepped forward to block the way of Princess Jincheng: "Your Highness, be careful, this group of people are ruthless..."

  "Hsss——" Princess Jincheng's hands didn't move, her feet didn't lift off the ground. She only lightly swept her cloud-like sleeves, like a slight ripple on an autumn lake after the ancient clouds parted, and with a turn of her waist, she sent him flying over 15 meters away, along with his armor weighing over 200 jin.

  Yu Linglong, Yi Bo and Geng Shaohua, who were standing in the hall, were all old rivers and lakes. Seeing this scene, they were all shocked and said: "This princess is actually a deeply hidden high-ranking official, her cultivation is much stronger than ours!"

  Xiao Si's scalp was numb with fear, but Jin Cheng Gongzhu seemed like a delicate little girl who wasn't afraid of the powerful Lei Jian Fu and Yan Rou Xuan Hua in his hand. Her cultivation was probably even higher than Lao Mangzi's, and only top-notch experts like Chi Zhong Xia could rival her.

  He swallowed his saliva and replied: "I am Xiao Si." Rarely in his life, for the first time, a whole sentence without half a dirty word.

  Princess Jincheng looked him up and down and said: "I've heard that you're skilled in the art of Qimen Dunjia, is it true?"

  Xiao Si said with a humble tone: "Let's just make do and get by."

  The Princess of Jin City raised her wrist and swiftly threw a golden arrow at Xiao Si, saying: "Tomorrow morning, enter the palace, I will order someone to meet you outside the Hanguang Gate." After speaking, she turned around and left. As she passed by the side of the Princess of Nanyang, she said again: "Sister, it's up to you here."

  Princess Nanyang smiled and said, "Alright, I know you don't like to chat with people."

  Xiao Si stretched out his hand to catch the golden arrow, unaware of whether it was good or bad luck. This Golden City princess was beautiful, but from her bones outward, she emitted a cold and chilling aura that made people's hair stand on end and their bodies feel icy cool when facing her. If one were to meet her in summer, it would be refreshing and cooling, but the problem was that now was still early spring, with its biting chill - how could anyone survive this?

  In comparison, Princess Nanyang was much more pleasant and had a sweet honey scent on her body.

  He watched Golden City Princess leave the willow garden and cursed in a low voice: "This little girl has a big tone, I haven't even agreed to go yet."

  Upon reflection, she is a princess and I am just a commoner. Moreover, there are 180 fierce imperial guards outside, which makes me feel even more frustrated.

  Princess Nanyang said: "Xiao Gongzi, Fei'er has been like this since she was a child, don't mind it."

  Xiao Si was stunned for a long time before he finally realized that "Diao Gongzi" referred to himself. His bones instantly became lighter, and with just one puff of air, he could float up to the moon.

  He had a premonition that Princess Jincheng was looking for him, and it was probably related to the Qimen Dunjia, but with his limited abilities and without Lao Mang's help, he had no idea what would happen tomorrow when he entered the palace.

  It's said that accompanying a lord is like accompanying a tiger; if it were the princess, then it would be an old mother tiger, and if things go wrong, one might get eaten by the tiger in one bite.

  For now, I can only take it one step at a time. Forcing a smile, I said: "My grandfather once said that the worse someone's temper is, the greater their abilities are. This is called being arrogant and proud of one's talents." After sneaking a glance at Princess Nanyang without getting a reaction, I immediately added: "Also, the better someone's temper is, the more power they have. This is called having the ability to hold up a boat in the belly of a prime minister."

  Long Zhenwu and Gu Yun Kai stood by, secretly scolding Xie Xiao Si for being shameless, under the bright daylight, he was flattering the princess so much.

  Princess Nanyang smiled and said: "Xiao Gongzi, you really know how to talk. I heard that one of your friends was caught by General Yuwen?"

  If Princess Nanyang didn't ask, Xue Xiao Si would never mention it. The spring breeze ripples the water in the pool, what's the big deal about Xia Pei Heng being dead or alive? If this Xia Zong Bao head resists and strictly stays at the bottom of the prison for a lifetime, he can be considered a hero.

  Reluctantly, Xiao Si replied: "He is the new boss of our Chang'an branch, but I haven't seen him yet."

  Princess Nanyang nodded slightly and raised her voice: "Pass on my order to have Yuwen Cheng release the person!"

  An old man took his leave, and as the ancients said, he was bitter in his heart but did not dare to make a sound.

  Princess Nanyang looked at Long Zhenwu and Gu Yun Kai and said, "You can go back and report the truth to General Yuwen. Also, tell him that things will stop here, and in the future, do not make it difficult for Hui Tongbiao."

  Long Zhenwu and Gu Yun Kai nodded in unison, and Yu Linglong and the others were overjoyed: "Thank you, Your Highness!"

  Princess Nanyang added: "Xiao Gongzi, come into the palace early tomorrow. Fei'er hates it most when people don't keep their promises."

  Xiao Si's face fell as he said, "I'm afraid it won't work out, I still need to repair the roof."

  Princess Nanyang exclaimed in surprise: "What's wrong with this roof, do you have to fix it yourself?"

  Xiao Si sighed: "We're new here and have to spend money everywhere, so we should save wherever possible and work hard to make ends meet."

  Princess Nanyang was taken aback and lost her smile, thinking for a moment before saying: "Gu Du, since you've wantonly destroyed the civilian houses, I won't pursue it further. Instead, send 3,000 taels of silver to Liu Garden as compensation."

  It is said that Kai's bitter face was met with a smile from the little four, who was making a funny face at him, and he was so angry that smoke was coming out of his seven orifices.

  At this time, a eunuch shouted in a shrill voice: "The princess is leaving..."

  Yu Linglong and others hurriedly sent off from behind, Xiang Xiao Si couldn't help but ask: "Your Highness, who exactly asked you to come to Liu Garden?"

  Princess Nanyang replied: "You also know this person. If you have any trouble in the future, just enter the palace with that golden arrow and let me help you."

  On the other side, Gu Yun lifted up the unconscious imperial guard officer and followed Princess Nanyang with a dejected expression.

  Long Zhenwu looked at his sister and brother-in-law, shook his head and said: "I'll come again in two days." He also left in a hurry.

  Xiao Siyi was in a fog, thinking of all the people she knew, but still couldn't guess who had hooked her up with Princess Nanyang and Princess Jincheng.

  Yu Linglong still felt as if she was in a dream and didn't dare to believe that the "bandit communication" case had been settled like this.

  Geng Shaohua sighed, "Luckily, if the two princesses hadn't arrived in time, we would have been in a precarious situation today. The whole Tongbao Bureau would have been finished too. This Chang'an City isn't a place where anyone can easily get by. We had it easy escorting the convoy on the road from Bashu, thinking that everything would go smoothly once we reached the capital, but it turns out we were just being arrogant."

  Mrs. Geng wanted to speak but stopped and said: "Shaohua, I'm sorry, my elder brother he..."

  Wan'er, still angry, said: "Mother, why are you mentioning Uncle again?"

  Mrs. Geng let out a soft sigh and said no more. Xiao Si secretly rejoiced, thinking: "From now on, unless Long Zhao Yuan grows horns on his head or claws on his feet, Ruan Er will never pay attention to him again."

  While everyone was talking, Ji Yun rushed in to report that all the guards outside the Liu Garden had withdrawn, not a single one remained.

  Yi Bo laughed and said, "This time, Duan Zhen Tian that old man will not be able to sleep well. He thought that after being the chief instructor of the Yuwen family for a few years, he could dominate the capital with one hand, but unexpectedly, the two princesses would take our side!"

  Wan'er stared at Xiao Si, hesitantly saying: "You really don't recognize Princess Jincheng?"

  Xiao Si's eyes narrowed as he spread his hands and let out a bitter laugh: "I'm still trying to figure out who sold me out to her."

  He suddenly remembered something and exclaimed, "Ah no! I forgot to smash Long Zhenwu's skull earlier. Now I'm afraid I'll have to change my surname to Long later on. That would make Siye (Fourth Master) become 'Killed-by-Grandpa' instead - what a fine mess!"

  Turning his head again, everyone including Mrs. Geng and Yu Linglong rolled their eyes at him.

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