Chapter 233 Don't Ask Where You Came From

In the next few days, Xu Han had a very comprehensive understanding of the influence of the Long Night Division in the Great Zhou Empire.

He discussed several proposals with Mr. Lu and the others, such as allocating treasury funds to rebuild Big Yellow City, or expanding the Chang'an garrison to defend against any external or internal troubles that might occur at any time. But these proposals met with almost unanimous opposition from the court. The reason was nothing more than empty treasury.

Today, when Zhu Xian mentioned reorganizing the Azure Dragon Army, the various ministries of the Imperial Court even spontaneously began to raise silver taels, practically trying their best to flatter Zhu Shou.

Xu Han was not annoyed by this. However, the absolute control of the Great Zhou Imperial Court caused him to feel endless fear in his heart.

As for Yuwen Luo, he changed his previous attitude of admiring Xu Han in the court. Every time he saw Xu Han being defeated, Yuwen Luo remained silent, as if he was tacitly agreeing to Zhu Xian's suppression of Tiance Prefecture. Xu Han could not understand the emperor's thoughts, but he secretly felt that it should be related to the memorial to the dragon qi that Yuwen Cheng had handed over.

Helplessly, Xu Han had no choice but to find another way to raise money through the various gentry in Chang'an City, in order to expand the Heavenly Policy Prefecture Army and repair Big Yellow City. However, this method did not go smoothly either. The claws of the Longevity Division were spread all over Chang'an. Whether it was the gentry or the duke, they treated the recruitment of the Tian Ce Mansion like a primordial beast. They were afraid that the Longevity Division would take revenge if they had anything to do with it. These encounters caused Xu Han to truly realize that in Chang'an City, the Tian Ce Mansion was like an island without allies. They looked around and were filled with vengeful bandits.

The people of Tiance Prefecture were worried these days. They could clearly feel that there were so many pairs of bright and dark eyes staring at this lonely island in Chang'an City. They were like wolves waiting for an opportunity. As long as they revealed even a tiny flaw, those wolves would swoop up and eat them clean.

The calm before the storm was not good. Xu Han could also feel the oppressive feeling of the dark clouds crushing the city. However, as the Manor Lord, he did not reveal such emotions on his face like everyone else. He knew that the more he was in such a difficult situation, the more he needed to calm down as the leader.

On this day, while Xu Han was secretly pondering how to break the situation, an invitation card was sent to the gate of the Tian Ce Mansion.

It was an invitation from Zong Zhengyu Wencheng, one of the Great Zhou Nine Celestials.

This invitation seemed somewhat abrupt to Xu Han. At least in his memories, he did not even seem to have seen the other party. However, Xu Han did not intend to refuse this invitation. On the contrary, he readily accepted it. He had many questions that he needed an answer from Lord Zong Zheng, and this invitation was undoubtedly a good opportunity.

…

In the evening, Xu Han dressed in decent clothes and arrived in front of Lord Zong Zheng's mansion alone.

As the royal family of Great Zhou, he was also one of the Nine Celestials.

Yuwen Cheng's mansion really surprised Xu Han.

Great Zhou had a very strict hierarchy. From ordinary people to officials and kings, they had very clear rules on how much they could live and how much they could spend. This was even more vividly reflected in Chang'an City under the feet of the Son of Heaven.

For example, the entrance to this mansion was three zhang, three zhang, and three zhang, three zhang, three zhang, and nine zhang. The entrance to the world was insurmountable. Even Big Yellow City, the world's most powerful entrance, felt like it was three zhang, two zhang, and two zhang tall. As for the gates of ordinary courtyards, they were all very particular and depended on their status.

This manor was like a person's face. Even if they were so poor, they still had to cultivate the manor to their own status. With Yuwen Cheng's status, the mansion gate was only 15 feet away. However, the gate in front of him was only 7 feet tall and 4 feet wide. This made Xu Han, who was used to seeing the courtyard gate plaque in Chang'an City, have to look at the word "Cheng Qing" several times before he could confirm that he was not looking for the wrong place.

Then he took a deep breath and knocked on Yuwen Cheng's door.

The servant who opened the door did not show the slightest surprise at Xu Han's arrival. He walked into Lord Zong's mansion with ease and familiarity.

Along the way, Xu Han carefully observed that the situation in Yuwen Cheng Manor was the same as the shabby manor gate, but it was worthy of that sentence.

Without the luxurious decoration that a royal family should have, there were only a few crooked-necked trees that Xu Han could not name along the way, as well as some flowers and plants that looked ordinary to the extreme. Other than that, there was nothing else in the courtyard.

When they stepped into the wooden house, the furnishings inside the house displayed the word'simple 'to the extreme. A few old imperial chairs and a few design tables, and then there was only a couplet hanging in the middle of the hall.

Right Book: The world is devastated, heroic never ruined.

Zuo Shu: The suffering of the people, the reputation of the descendants of the need to say.

Banner: Don't ask where you came from.

Xu Han did not know whether this calligraphy was good or bad. He just felt that these few tens of characters were refined in brush strokes, and the sharpness was not obvious. It seemed that they were all from the hands of everyone. Xu Han could not help but read softly.

At this moment, the door of the wooden house was suddenly pushed open.

"I have nothing to do with my leisure. What Little Elder wrote made Lord Manor Master laugh." An aged voice sounded from behind Xu Han.

Hearing this, Xu Han hurriedly turned around and saw an old man with a stooped body and a warm smile standing behind him. "I greet Lord Zong Zheng."

Needless to say, Xu Han guessed that this person was none other than Yuwen Cheng.

Yu Wencheng, who was born with kindness, sized Xu Han up and down at that time before nodding his head with a smile.

"Palace Master is too polite. Please come and have a seat." Yu Wencheng said this, then extended his hand to signal Xu Han to sit down by the side.

Xu Han was not polite and immediately sat down.

Seeing that, Yuwen Cheng clapped his hands, and two waiters walked in from outside the room, bringing some dishes for Xu Han and Xu Wencheng and placing them in front of their respective tables.

The dishes weren't rich, and it was said to be very expensive. However, it was clearly carefully prepared and had a full range of colors, fragrances, and flavors. Just a sniff made Xu Han secretly move his index finger.

"Prefecture Head, don't dislike coarse vegetables and light rice." Yuwen Cheng said with a smile, and then signaled Xu Han to move his chopsticks.

Hearing this, Xu Han smiled faintly. He picked up a dish with his chopsticks and put it into his mouth to chew carefully. Then, he said, "It has a different flavor."

This wasn't a compliment, but it was sincere.

"It's good that Manor Master likes it. Eat more." Seeing that the smile on Yuwen Cheng's face became even more intense, he hurriedly greeted Xu Han eagerly.

However, he only cared about greeting Xu Han for dinner, but he didn't say a word about why he had called Xu Han here on this trip.

Xu Han naturally did not think that this meal was just a simple meal. Seeing that Yuwen Cheng was deliberately silent, he put down his bowls and chopsticks.

"What's wrong? Why is Manor Master unwilling to use chopsticks, but this food is not to your liking?" Seeing this, Yuwen Cheng asked.

"Lord Zong Zheng invited him warmly. This meal is naturally delicious. However, I have one thing in my heart that if I don't understand, even the delicacies of the mountains and seas will taste like wax." Xu Han said sternly, but his gaze was fixed on Yuwen Cheng.

Yuwen Cheng narrowed his eyes. He looked at Xu Han with a smile and asked, "What is it?"

Xu Han did not respond. Instead, he slowly took out something from his bosom and handed it to Yuwen Cheng.

Yu Wencheng took the item and looked at it with a frown. Since it came from his hand, he naturally didn't need to look at it again. However, he couldn't help but shake his head and sigh bitterly, "Zong Zheng's secret music should only be appreciated by His Majesty, but now it is given to one person. The misfortune of Great Zhou is a great grief to the royal family."

Xu Han did not have the mood to sigh at the decline of the Great Zhou royal family. He asked Chen Sheng, "Is what was said in this memorial true?"

When the old man heard this, he smiled as if he felt that Xu Han's question was not a problem.

"Successive Zongzheng would connect Qi and blood to the Dragon Cauldron when they took office. Only then would they be able to obtain the Dragon Seeking Technique. Everything can be falsified, except the Dragon Seeking Income presented to His Majesty. Everyone in Chang'an knows about this matter, so the Manor Head can go and ask."

Hearing this, Xu Han frowned. Seeing Yuwen Cheng's calm expression, it was obvious that his words were not false. He couldn't help but ask again, "Then why is there such a rich dragon qi lingering in the Tian Ce Mansion?"

Hearing this, the smile on Yuwen Cheng's face became even more intense. He took a deep look at Xu Han and said in a deep voice, "Tiance Prefecture has dragon qi. If Manor Chief Xu doesn't ask him, then what's the use of asking me?"

When Xu Han heard what Yuwen Cheng said, he couldn't help but recall his previous conjecture, and his brows furrowed even deeper.

"Eighteen years ago, when Yuwen Luo ascended the throne, in case the imperial throne was not honorable enough, and another emperor was established, he simply slaughtered all the princes and princesses with the exception of his twin brother Yuwang Yuwen Yang. Only a child born to a side concubine in the past was nowhere to be found." Yuwen Cheng looked at Xu Han, who was frowning silently, and continued to speak indifferently. "If I remember correctly, then if the child lives to this day, he should be the same age as the Manor Master, right?" He said in a low voice. He paused abruptly when he spoke of the child, and then said in a low voice, "If I remember correctly, then the child should be the same age as the Manor Master."

Xu Han's heart skipped a beat. His eyes widened as he looked at Yuwen Cheng and asked, "What does Zong Zheng mean?"

"It's just a casual remark. Prefecture Head, don't mind it. The young elder is old, so he can naturally say whatever he thinks of." Hearing this, Yuwen Cheng smiled embarrassedly and perfunctorily explained the matter.

Xu Han naturally couldn't believe that Yu Wencheng's words were just casual words. He looked at the gentle and smiling Lord Zong Zheng for a while before asking again, "Since Lord Zong Zheng invited me here, I don't think it was just for this casual word, right?"

Xu Han was not a weak person, but it was related to his own background, especially the Great Zhou Imperial Clan. Even Xu Han was a little distracted at this moment. He simply avoided this topic and asked.

"Of course not." The 60-year-old man squinted and smiled. "I just heard that Lord Prefecture Head's life seems to be not good recently. Zhu Xian's ability is indeed great. I guess he has let Lord Prefecture Head suffer quite a bit, right?"

"What? Is Zong trying to help me?" Xu Han raised his eyebrows and temporarily recovered from the previous topic.

"This old man has such intentions. However, my martial arts cannot calm down the country, and I am unable to rule the country. However, I am powerless. All this old man can do is give some advice to the Prefecture Master."

"What advice?"

"Everyone in the world wants something. What does the Manor Lord want if he insists on coming to Chang'an to gather the muddy waters?"

Hearing this, Xu Han was about to say something when the old man suddenly interrupted him.

"Palace Master, you don't need to answer me. You only need to ask yourself this question. Only by finding out what you want can Palace Master understand who your true enemy is."

The old man smiled as he finished his sentence and drank the glass of wine before the case.

At that time, Xu Han's body trembled, and his expression changed. It was not until several dozen breaths later that he regained his senses.

Then he stood up and bowed respectfully to the old man, speaking with a solemn expression.

"Thank you for your guidance, sir."

Seeing this, Yuwen Cheng stroked his beard and nodded, "Shall I send Manor Master another sentence?"

"Huh?" Xu Han was puzzled.

At that moment, the old man stretched out his hand and pointed at the top of his head. Xu Han looked in the direction he pointed, only to see a horizontal plaque hanging there. It was the banner of the couplet.

It was written in two simple words.

Don't ask where it came from.

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