The carriage was still moving quickly on the bluestone road, the wheels of the carriage made the sound of grinding stones, and the hoofbeats of the horses in front were loud and sonorous.

The car was very spacious, and an incense burner had been placed. After getting in the car, Xue Poye and others immediately felt extremely warm, as if they had gotten into a heater, and they were very comfortable.

Xue Poye and Lady Lu tried their best to suppress the shock in their hearts and stared blankly at Duan Kezhang across from them.

Duan Kezhang is dressed in rich clothes and prison clothes. At first glance, he definitely looks like a nobleman from Kyoto.

At night in Kyoto, there are very few people doing business. This is the time when shops are closing, so sitting in the car, you can hear the closing sounds coming from outside from time to time.

Duan Kezhang's expression was calm and composed, and the expression on his face looked unusually unfamiliar, as if Xue Poye was just an unrelated first acquaintance.

The green lady couldn't help but wanted to speak. Xue Poye had already reached out and patted her on the back. The green lady immediately understood what he meant and had to swallow the words into her stomach. Her beautiful and charming fox eyes were at this moment.

But he stared at Duan Kezhang with anger.

"It turns out to be Daxia Zhang!" Xue Poye touched his nose and said with a smile, "I don't know how to summon Xue. What advice can I give you?"

Of course, he has not forgotten Duan Kezhang's current alias. Prince Yin introduced him at the Huiying Pavilion that day. Today's Duan Kezhang's nickname is "Zhang Wuming"!

Duan Kezhang leaned on the car seat, closed his eyes, and seemed too lazy to speak. He only said calmly: "I will take you to see something!"

"What?" Green Lady said angrily: "What on earth are you doing?"

Xue Poye understood Madam Lu's mood, but he understood even more clearly that even if Duan Kezhang wanted to say something, there was a coachman outside. Prince Yin's subordinates were all-encompassing, and the seemingly simple coachman might also be a profound man.

The hidden master may even be spying on Duan Kezhang. In this case, the two sides really cannot say too much.

His hand slid to the green lady's waist again, patted it gently, and said with a smile: "Sister, don't worry, this Daxia Zhang is a general under Prince Yin, and he can be considered one of his own. Since he wants to take us to see

Things naturally have their own reasons, so let’s just follow them.”

Duan Kezhang crossed his arms and sat quietly in the car, refusing to look at Xue Poye, closing his eyes to rest.

The carriage rattled along the way, and after an unknown amount of time, the carriage finally stopped.

Duan Kezhang was the first to push open the door and go out. Xue Poye also picked up his armor and got out of the car.

When he got out of the car, Xue Poye was almost startled. He saw the carriage stopped in front of a large courtyard. The courtyard door was wide open and the lights were shining. In the place in front of the door, there was a large group of people standing in darkness.

Some of these people are dressed as maids, some are servants, and even servants such as chefs and grooms.

Xue Poye frowned, glanced at Duan Kezhang, and said calmly: "What do you mean? Is this what you showed me?"

Duan Kezhang stretched out his hand and said calmly and calmly: "Master Xue, please raise your head!"

Xue Poye followed his gesture and saw a brown plaque on the main entrance of the courtyard with the word "Xue Yuan" written on it.

Just listen to Duan Kezhang shouting to the group of people: "This is your master, the new Yulin Camp Deputy Chief Guard Xue Shitou Xue!"

The large group of people immediately prostrated themselves on the ground and shouted in unison: "Slave to pay homage to the master!"

Green Lady and Xiao Shitou were inexplicably surprised. They looked at each other, both full of doubts. Green Lady also looked up at the plaque on the front door, and couldn't help being surprised, thinking: "Could this garden be...?"

Xue Poye regained his composure in an instant and glanced around. As expected, he saw that the coachman was glancing here from time to time when he came. He immediately understood in his heart that the man was indeed a nail, and Duan Kezhang was indeed being watched.

No wonder this guy kept his composure. He was naturally worried that his identity would be revealed. In other words, when Duan Kezhang came to Prince Yin, he defected to Prince Yin under a false identity. Prince Yin did not know his true identity.

This made Xue Poye feel more relieved. In this way, Duan Kezhang was not a spy placed by Prince Yin in Qinglianzhao.

"Master Zhang, what does this mean?"

Duan Kezhang pointed to the garden calmly: "From now on, this is your Xueyuan." He also pointed to the more than 20 people kneeling on the ground: "From now on, these are also your slaves."

"I don't understand." Xue Poye shook his head: "No reward for no merit, and the gift from Master Zhang is too expensive."

Duan Kezhang shook his head and said: "Master Xue misunderstood. Zhang is not capable of this. This was purchased by Prince Yin and given by His Majesty the Emperor."

"Wait a minute!" Xue Poye was a little confused: "You mean this was purchased by Prince Yin?"

"yes!"

"But you said it was sent by the Holy One?"

"yes!"

"Can you explain, I...I really don't understand." Xue Poye touched his nose and smiled bitterly.

Duan Kezhang was silent for a moment, and finally said: "The Second Highness has asked His Majesty the Emperor to intercede for you, saying that you are not familiar with the place in Kyoto and have family members. If you go to take office, it will be difficult for your family to arrange it. I sincerely ask His Majesty the Emperor to give you permission."

His Majesty the Emperor agreed to a house and ordered His Highness to take care of it, so His Highness chose this elegant house to give to Mr. Xue." After a pause, he continued: "Kyoto is different from other places.

If you don't meet the requirements, you won't be able to open a palace, so I can only buy a garden for you. His Highness specifically asked me to explain it on your behalf."

Xue Poye frowned, and it turned out that there was such a saying in the middle.

Little did he know that gifting the courtyard was an idea proposed by Prince Yin's general, Mr. Mo.

In the court, the fourth prince Liu Zifu petitioned the emperor to approve Xue Poye's appointment as the deputy chief guard of Yulin Camp in Kyoto. He unexpectedly got the emperor's permission. This is a strange news in Kyoto.

, but it also boosted Prince Fu’s reputation and gained many unexpected and huge benefits.

Naturally, the second prince failed in this move and suffered considerable losses.

Of course he wanted to get back a win, or at least minimize the damage caused to him by this incident, so his confidant, Mr. Mo, who was known for his strategic wisdom, came up with a very simple idea, which was to ask His Majesty the Emperor for a gift.

A garden by Xue Poye.

This seems to be an ordinary thing, but the hidden mystery is very mysterious.

Prince Yin's biggest worry is of course that he is afraid that Xue Poye will be attracted by Prince Fu. In this way, his plan to infiltrate the Yulin Camp will not only be destroyed, but also his most direct competitor, Prince Fu, will be greatly benefited.

benefits.

There are only two ways to prevent this situation.

Killing Xue Poye is the most direct and pleasant way, but it will have endless consequences. After all, Xue Poye is now the hottest topic in Kyoto. If he really kills Xue Poye, the purple clothes of Kyoto Prefecture and the ghosts of the Metropolitan Procuratorate will definitely be able to investigate

If he comes out, Prince Fu will definitely use this as an attack, which will be very detrimental to him.

In addition, the best way is of course to win over, and try your best to win over, and gifting a garden is naturally a good way to win over.

Not only that, Prince Yin, at Mr. Mo's suggestion, went directly to His Majesty the Emperor and asked His Majesty to take the decision on this matter. This is also a matter of profound significance.

Although there is no explicit prohibition, the officials of Hanlin Camp rarely set up gardens outside the palace. Even if they do, it is extremely hidden. Therefore, many people have the illusion that officials of Hanlin Camp do not allow gardens outside the palace.

Houses are the same.

Prince Yin begged for a garden to be rewarded to Xue Poye. If successful, this precedent would definitely be broken. After all, no officers and soldiers from the Yulin Camp had ever been rewarded outside the palace before, but Xue Poye broke this rule. However, this suggestion

It was Prince Yin who proposed it again.

Then everyone will feel that His Majesty the Emperor still values ​​Prince Yin very much. This is a decision made for the sake of political balance. Everyone will only think that His Majesty the Emperor bestows face on Prince Yin. No one will understand that it is His Majesty who appreciates Xue Xue.

The house was rewarded at night.

In this way, Prince Yin, who was originally suppressed by Prince Fu, instantly took advantage of this moment and greatly improved his prestige, exerting a certain influence on the entire political situation.

"Master Xue, the wages of these servants will be divided by His Highness every month. Master Xue does not need to worry about it. In addition, if Master Xue needs anything, he can always ask his servants to go to Liuheyuan to collect it." Duan Kezhang said slowly: "Yin

The prince will come to visit you in person after finishing the matters at hand."

Xue Poye sighed, shook his head and said, "Xue really dare not accept such a generous gift."

Duan Kezhang turned around, fixed his sharp eyes on Xue Poye, and said slowly: "Master Xue should understand that if a person wants to refuse some things, it depends on whether he has the strength to refuse!"

Xue Poye's body was shaken.

Yes, rejecting the Second Prince at this juncture will of course offend him greatly. With his current strength, he is not even a fly in the eyes of the Second Prince.

Xue Poye turned around, smiled faintly at Lady Green and Xiao Shitou, and said warmly: "It's always good to have a place to live."

Xueyuan is not big, and it is not comparable to the spaciousness and grandeur of the Prince Consort's Mansion, but it is very exquisite and the decoration is obviously very careful. The leader of these servants is named Hu, and everyone calls him "Manager Hu". It seems that

It was also Prince Yin who was preparing to be Xue Poye's general manager.

After Xue Poye entered the garden, Manager Hu ordered his servants to carefully accommodate a few people, and he personally led Xue Poye into the main room.

Duan Kezhang didn't take much rest. After Xue Poye entered the garden, he quickly left here and took the carriage away. He was so angry that the green lady clenched her silver teeth and her body trembled.

After the arrangements were made and the washing was completed, the maid brought another supper for Xue Poye to eat before closing the door and retreating.

Xue Poye closed his eyes slightly, and relied on his facial features, which were several times more sensitive than ordinary people, to make sure that no one was eavesdropping around him. Then he sat next to Jintan and took out a small note from his sleeve.

This was given to Xue Poye by Duan Kezhang the moment he got off the carriage. The two of them passed it back and forth quietly without anyone seeing it, not even the green lady was aware of it.

There was only a small line of handwriting on the note: "Never have two hearts, you should be in harmony!"

Xue Poye swept the paper slightly and immediately held it up to the light, and the paper instantly turned into ashes.

This was the message from Duan Kezhang, which seemed to show his loyalty. He did not write a word about other topics. This note made Xue Poye fall into deep thought.

Just relying on a piece of paper, of course, cannot confirm that Duan Kezhang has not betrayed, but judging from the current situation, Duan Kezhang definitely did not reveal Xue Poye's identity. This alone can prove that the attitude on the paper is very clear. Five or six is ​​true.

But again, the water in Kyoto is too deep and anything can happen. Maybe this is just a trick of Prince Yin and Duan Kezhang.

Who knows!

The Yulin Camp is the Royal Guards, a first-class elite, and they are the armor and sharp blades that protect the royal body.

In addition to the east side of the palace, there are Yulin camps on the south, west and north sides. They are located directly outside the imperial wall and are only separated from the palace by a wall. The inner gate of the palace and the Yulin camps are directly connected to its throat. Whatever happens in the palace, Yulin The camp will arrive in no time.

The imperial palace is so large that it is spectacular. There are thirty-six large palaces and seventy-two small palaces in the imperial palace of Da Chu. They are built according to the number of 1808, and each palace has a number of palaces.

Just to take Chude Palace as an example, there are Qianlin Hall, Kunyuan Hall, Yangxin Hall, Rihua Hall, Yuehua Hall, Ziwu Hall, Fengxian Hall, Cabinet Hall, Piaoyun Hall, Yulong Hall, Taiji Hall, etc. Thirty-six palaces, including Langya Palace and Shanhai Palace, are luxurious, wealthy, and majestic.
To be continued...