Zhang Xiaoyuan quickly ran into the study room of the inner house, looking slightly excited:
"Father, do you know that your Majesty reprimanded Na Huo Qubing, saying that he committed a crime like this and fought with the princess, and that he would be fined for half a year to see the consequences. This matter spread throughout Chang'an in the morning, and we all heard about it.
Huo Qubing has always been arrogant, he should have been like this a long time ago..."
Zhang Dangju was sitting on the low mat in the house, with a calm posture, and glanced at his eldest grandson:
"He should be punished for his fight with the princess, but if you want to be valued by His Majesty, you still have to rely on your own ability. It's not that Huo Qubing was reprimanded by His Majesty, so you have a chance.
Regarding the death of Lieutenant Liu Huai of the Northern Army, Taichang and I have recommended you to take charge of the investigation. Is there any progress?"
Zhang Xiaoyuan perked up slightly: "Just as I was about to tell my eldest father about this matter, my grandson has found out that the murderer Xia Jie that day was able to obtain a biography, and there was also a secret secret in the eldest princess's house about why she found out about it. The involvement of this will only be revealed later.
After informing the eldest father, please tell me what your grandson should do."
Zhang Dangju nodded: "This is the business. You have to do your best to show off your talents. Only then will you have the chance to overshadow Huo Qubing and be valued by His Majesty."
…
Huainan Prince's Mansion.
Liu Qian sat in the main hall and remained silent.
"I heard from the attendant that my brother has been sitting here for a long time and his face looks scary. What's wrong?"
Liu Ling, wearing a brown Hanfu with red stripes, walked in from the outside with a graceful step.
This young daughter of the King of Huainan is twenty-five years old, unmarried, and has always been smart and strong in memory.
She has always had the habit of getting up late and yawned when she came out.
Liu Qian threw a bamboo slip in front of him on the low mat where Liu Ling was sitting: "How dare Huo Qubing reply to me, telling me not to have Zhuo Qingke as my concubine, ha!"
Liu Ling glanced at the reply and said with a sneer: "Brother, what's the point of sending a message to someone but not allowing them to come back?"
Contrary to outsiders' inherent understanding of Liu Qian, although his face was gloomy at this time, his eyes were shining and he looked shrewd: "I'm annoyed that he dares to be so frivolous and unrestrained!"
Liu Ling curled his lips and said: "But this is Chang'an. Whoever makes me gain power now is the queen behind me and the general in charge of the army.
My brother must not confront him directly or cause trouble for my father."
"I don't know what you said."
In front of his sister, Liu Qian had a different impression than what outsiders had of him. His thin face had sunken eye sockets, and his body, which originally seemed to have been hollowed out by wine and sex, exuded an intimidating aura.
"Brother, it's good to know."
Liu Ling said: "But, brother, can you really bear this tone?"
Liu Qian sneered and said: "Even if I don't have the same experience as him, I still have the means to deal with him. What's more, with my character in the eyes of others, if I can bear this tone, it is abnormal, then I might as well teach him a lesson and beat him back."
Let him know his true identity."
Then he said: "And that Zhuo family, I don't want to give him face."
"Brother, it is better to be cautious. Huo Qubing is not an ordinary person to be favored by His Majesty."
Liu Qian glanced at his sister: "Don't worry, I won't attack him directly. However, the Zhuo family is not only a merchant family, but they dare to disobey me. The Zhuo family has many properties in various places. I see how he can keep it."
————
In the independent courtyard on one side of Weiyang Palace, on the wooden tower, Ru Bohu was painting with his head down.
The painting is a black and white outline of an old man, with one hand spread out, with the five fingers corresponding to the five elements, and the two sides of the palm corresponding to yin and yang. It is only one hand, but it has an artistic conception that encompasses all things in the world.
Although it is a figure painting, it has an indescribable majestic atmosphere.
"What you are painting is Tan Tianyan, the founder of Yin Yang and Five Elements?"
A deep and powerful voice sounded, and beside Ru Bohu, Liu Che suddenly appeared in royal robes.
Ru Bohu's face was calm, and he had finished the last stroke of the pen in his hand. He raised his head and saluted: "It's rare for Your Majesty to come to my place when you have time."
Liu Che said slowly: "I have some happy things, and I want to talk to someone. No one else is suitable, so I can only talk to you."
"Although the world is peaceful, there are barbarians outside and there are people inside who are plotting secretly. Is there anything exciting that you should come to me to tell me about?"
Ru Bohu was quite satisfied with the painting, but his words were straightforward.
"You asked someone to send me a message before, connecting several recent events, with Lujiang County as the core, and spreading to the surrounding areas.
Qu Bing came to me yesterday and took the initiative to ask for punishment. I think he seems to have seen something, which is similar to your opinion."
Liu Che walked up to Ru Bohu, took the pen from his hand, and also bent over his desk to paint.
"You came here to tell me that Huo Qubing's mental calculation is better than expected, and that he has received the most teachings from you since he was a child?" Ru Bohu said.
Liu Che laughed: "That's not the case, it's because of his extraordinary talent. I can only guide him at most."
"There is also Wei Qing. He knows soldiers well, but he is not as good as Qu Bing in terms of tactics."
Ru Bohu nodded and said: "With his talent, I am quite looking forward to what kind of weapon talismans he can revive when he is promoted to the Heavenly Realm."
Liu Che changed the subject: "What do you think of the recent trends of the Huns?"
Ru Bohu is in charge of the secret reconnaissance, and he has the world’s news at his fingertips:
"The royal court of the Xiongnu is sending orders to all the tribes. When the harvest season of lush vegetation has passed, all tribes will gather together. It is obvious that they are going south again. Last year, the Xiongnu was defeated at the hands of Wei Qing. This year, they will gather heavy troops to suppress the border. A war is inevitable."
Liu Che laughed and said: "The Huns want to take revenge on us Han people. Don't you know that I, the Han people, do the same thing?"
"The next battle is very important. If we win, it will definitely affect the countries in the Western Regions."
Ru Bohu's eyes fell on Liu Che's writing.
When he spoke, he kept writing and his mind was divided between two things, and he actually sketched the magnificent scene of thousands of troops and horses on the "paper".
That's right, it's paper. As mentioned before, the emergence of the First Emperor promoted many changes in this world, including the early application of paper.
It’s just that paper is still not popular today, although it is much better than at the same time in history.
"Recently, the Huns have frequently tried to bring up marriage..." Liu Che looked at an animal skin map hanging on the wall.
It depicts the Han Dynasty, the countries in the Western Regions, and the territory of the Xiongnu.
Each of the three takes one side.
"I have received a secret report that the Huns may send envoys over."
The two were talking when they suddenly felt something and looked out the window one after another.
In the direction outside the city, there was a breath, making a faint clanging sound. The white clouds in the sky rapidly changed and dispersed under the impact of this breath.
There seemed to be a fierce tiger outside the city, roaring all the way, quickly moving away to the southwest.
"It's the Huben Guards... Qu Bing has mobilized troops outside the city and is marching to the southwest for training. Did you give him the right to mobilize troops?"
"Well, I grant him the right to mobilize troops within a thousand people."
"Your Majesty keeps him close to you and has allowed him to participate in internal and external disputes over the years. I'm afraid he has suppressed it and wishes he could fight on the battlefield as soon as possible." Ru Bohu said.
At this time, outside the city, Huo Qubing was leading his army to the southwest for training.
This Chang'an Guards are all fine cavalry, and they are connected with each other during the march, changing their divisions and combinations, and skillfully showing the interweaving of battle formations.
The sound of horse hooves trampled the earth, and the mountains shook.
It was not until the evening two days later that Huo Qubing led his troops back to Chang'an. When he returned to his house after a long journey, he saw Song Ran, Qu Jun, Yue Rao, Xiao Ying and others returning from Lujiang County to report their work to him.
"You're back just in time, there are other things for you to take care of," Huo Qubing said.
Several people immediately followed him into Huo Mansion and followed the arrangements.
It was getting late, and the few people dispersed and went about their own business.
The next day Huo Qubing went to the military camp to train with the soldiers and practice the art of changing military formations.
The next day, he suddenly remembered the banquet hosted by Bowang Marquis Zhang Qian, so accompanied by Yao Zhao, he left the mansion and went to Bowang Marquis Zhang Qian's residence.
The residences of Zhang Qian and Huo Qubing were only two streets apart. After walking for a quarter of an hour, they saw a lot of traffic and horses outside a mansion in front of them, which was very lively.
Most of the dignitaries in the city received invitations.
Zhang Qian's mission to the Western Regions brought considerable changes to the Han Dynasty, stimulating the rapid development of merchants and border trade.
Chang'an was a noble place, and many wealthy households benefited from it, so a banquet was held at Zhang Qian's house, and many people gathered there.
