Chapter 218 How does it feel to be the prey? Zhao Duan?
Chapter 218 How does it feel to be the prey? Zhao Duan?
"Ask me to apologize?" Zhao Duan had a strange expression, half-smiled, "Why, do you know you're wrong?"
He almost forgot about it.
That day, after the You family left, he also sent people to monitor them for a while. Later, after learning that they had tried to find other ways out but were blocked by him, they stopped.
I thought he would give up, but he actually had the audacity to come back to me again.
Eugene Hua looked embarrassed and said:
"The invitation said that they were not asking you to do anything, but simply apologized and asked for your forgiveness for what happened before."
Don't you want me to do anything for you?
Zhao Duan was finally a little surprised. He thought that You Zhande had realized the situation and wanted to get close to him again.
But the other party clearly said that simply apologizing would be interesting.
Well... there is another explanation. He really doesn't need her help, but she hopes he won't "set up obstacles" to stop her from finding other ways...
"Oh, if it's just for this, Auntie can just refuse it for me."
Zhao Duan said casually:
"Just tell them to leave the capital and return to Xiping. I won't make things difficult for him."
It is impossible to let the You family get things done smoothly, and Mr. Zhao also has a temper.
The stepmother hesitated and said:
"What they mean is that they are ready to return to Xiping and will no longer attempt to be the imperial merchant. They just want to treat you to a meal to apologize before leaving Beijing. Otherwise, they will feel uneasy."
Ready to go?
Zhao Duan was stunned for a moment, then thought about it carefully and suddenly laughed:
"They are not worried that they can't leave the capital, right? They are afraid that if they leave the capital, I will arrange people to cause trouble for them?"
This was the most reasonable explanation he could think of.
After experiencing many setbacks during this period of time, the You family deeply realized their own power and also realized their own petty character of "revenge for the slightest grudge".
Therefore, he was worried that once he left the capital, he would be intercepted and retaliated by Zhao Duan's men on the way... Well, this was in line with Zhao Duan's personality.
That's why he asked for an in-person apology. His purpose was nothing more than to seek peace of mind and to make sure that he would not be killed by Zhao Duan.
Eugene bit her lip, lowered her head, and ate her meal silently:
"If it's not convenient for Dalang, Auntie will just refuse. It has nothing to do with them anyway."
Zhao Duan pondered for a moment, weighed the pros and cons, and said:
"Forget it. What's the time and place? I've been feeling bored lately, so I'll just use this as a way to relieve my boredom."
He didn't want to pay attention to it at first, but since the other party had taken the initiative, he thought about warning the other party in person and completely cutting off his thoughts of clinging to his stepmother.
Once and for all.
To wrap up this matter.
Eugene Hua felt ashamed and touched, knowing that it was for her, and said:
"Tomorrow at noon, Zuiyue Tower in South City."
I'm not familiar with it... It should be a small restaurant... It's really a small place, and they don't treat guests generously... Zhao Duan curled his lips and took note, then turned around and reminded:
"I will go there by myself tomorrow. You should all stay at home during this period and don't go out. In case you are targeted by the rebels."
The main reason why Zhao Duan bought a new house was not to save commuting time, but to protect his family.
The current house is not far from the imperial yamen, and can receive attention from the officers and soldiers patrolling the streets in the inner city.
In the past few days, he has also used his authority to ask the imperial guards to look after his home.
Prevent the Thousand-Faced God from taking advantage of you.
After the agreement was reached, Zhao Duan returned to his room to practice.
Nothing happened that night. The next morning, he went to the yamen as usual and learned that there was still no breakthrough in the search for the Thousand-Faced God.
At noon, Zhao Duan rode a white horse and headed straight towards the south city.
……
……
Zuiyueju is a medium-sized restaurant that focuses on elegance.
Yesterday, a wealthy guest with a Xipingdao accent booked the entire restaurant for the day, saying that he was entertaining a distinguished guest.
Early in the morning, the other party arrived at the restaurant and waited, accompanied by a young man and a maid.
On the second floor of Zuiyueju, the Thousand-Faced God, who walked outside as "Lü Baifeng", was elegant and graceful. He stood by the railing with his hands behind his back, listening to a singer playing music in the hall on the first floor.
Her slender fingers tapped lightly on the railing, moving to the rhythm.
"Mr. Lu, it's still early, please sit down and rest."
Behind him, You Zhande came upstairs, followed by You's mother and son.
At this moment, the Xipingdao merchant said with a smile:
"I have to ask you to come in person for my matter. It's really..."
The Thousand-Faced God turned around, and a smile appeared on his handsome face:
"What are you saying, Patriarch You? I should be the one to say sorry. I wanted to help you smooth things over, but I didn't expect that Zhao Duan is indeed not someone you can mess with."
A few days ago, You Zhande came to ask Lu Baifeng for help in finding a way, and the latter agreed immediately.
You Zhande waited in the inn for several days, but finally received one good news and one bad news.
The bad news is:
Zhao Duan’s power in the capital is indeed terrifying, and even if the Lu family takes action, it will be difficult to deal with him.
The good news is:
Master Lu agreed to come forward and personally intercede with Zhao Duan on behalf of the Lu family to discuss the business of the imperial merchant.
But the prerequisite is that he hopes You Zhan De will come forward and host a banquet to invite people over.
You Zhande had no choice but to grasp the last hope and handed over the invitation.
I hope Zhao Duan will show mercy for the sake of the young master of the Lu family.
"What are you talking about, Master Lu? You are giving face to me, Old You, by coming forward to mediate. It's just... you didn't let me reveal in advance that you were there too. I don't understand the ins and outs here." You Zhande asked curiously.
The Thousand-Faced God said with a smile:
"If you say that I invited you to meet, then today is a matter between my Lu family and his Zhao family. What does it have to do with you? When Lord Zhao comes later, I will talk to him."
"Oh...okay."
You Zhande vaguely felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't find out what was wrong.
He turned around to look at his wife Youshi and his youngest son You Luer, and said sternly:
"When the time comes, both of you should behave yourself and apologize sincerely."
Yu Shi had lost her arrogant attitude and became humble and submissive:
"I will listen to you, Master."
The fat boy had been repeatedly warned by his parents, so he was listless and looked obedient.
They waited for a while until the agreed time came and the food and drinks were placed on the table. The beautiful maid came up the stairs carrying the big dark umbrella:
"Sir, the people are almost here."
The Thousand-Faced God's eyes lit up and he asked, "How many people are here?"
The blue bird replied, "He was the only one who came here on horseback."
"Okay." The Thousand-Faced God Lord closed the folding fan in his hand with a snap, and his eyes flashed with a gleam of choosing someone to devour.
It was like an old hunter who had set a trap and was waiting for his prey to take the bait.
He turned his head to look at You Zhande who was a little confused, and smiled:
"Master You, why don't you go and greet them in person?"
……
"Da da da……"
The horse's hooves slowed down.
Zhao Duan pulled the reins, slowly slowed down the horse, and saw the elegant "Zuiyue Tower" in front of him.
The quaint roof is surrounded by green bamboos, and the shop name on the plaque is written in exquisite handwriting, as if it was written by a calligrapher.
"Well. It's not very famous, but the environment is pretty good."
Zhao Duan felt better. When he arrived at the door, he found You Zhande was already waiting with his head bowed.
Zhao Duan dismounted and threw the reins aside. The waiter at the bottom of the building came forward and said:
"My dear guest, I will take your horse to the stable."
The parking doorman is a yes.
"Master Zhao! You are here."
You Zhande, who was of plump build and had the toughness of a warrior, bowed and smiled, without any of the arrogance he had that day.
Today he looks less like a householder and more like a humble businessman.
As soon as he opened his mouth, he started to apologize.
It's nothing more than clichés like "failure to recognize the great man" and "many offenses".
Zhao Duan didn't care whether he was sincere or not. He came here today just to settle the matter.
He nodded slightly and agreed.
After being led into the restaurant by You Zhande, he asked curiously:
“So few people?”
You Zhan De smiled and said:
"Today, we are entertaining guests. I, Old You, have specially booked the entire building to avoid the presence of outsiders and the chaos. My wife is upstairs, and I dare not let her come down to annoy you."
Tsk... you're really spending a lot of money, I misunderstood you... Zhao Duan was slightly surprised, nodded, and said generously:
"It's all a misunderstanding."
"Yes, yes, it's all a misunderstanding," You Zhande smiled widely and led him upstairs:
"Please come in. We have a distinguished guest here today, specially invited to accompany you."
Distinguished guest? Accompany me?
Zhao Duan was stunned. These days, he was busy hunting down the members of the Kuangfu Society. He did not waste manpower to keep an eye on the You family, so he was not sure who they had invited.
While wondering, the two went up to the second floor to the sound of music.
The first thing I saw was Mrs. You and the fat boy, who were waiting at the stairs with their heads down, looking humble.
The two men called out to others with a respectful look.
Then, Zhao Duan saw a graceful young man holding a folding fan, sitting next to a large banquet table.
He met the other person's eyes with a cold smile.
It was not until this moment that Zhao Duan's martial arts warning was suddenly triggered, and a strong sense of danger suddenly surged into his heart.
At this time, the maid beside the young man had already opened the big black umbrella in her hand.
The black umbrella, which was half a person's height, was just opened.
On the umbrella surface, bloody handprints appeared, mixed with strange and twisted blood-colored runes.
With the umbrella as the center, circles of faint yellow-brown ripples spread out in all directions, covering the entire Zuiyue Tower.
Outside the building.
The sunlight was faintly distorted, and it seemed as if the entire building was confined by a mysterious force field.
The second floor.
Zhao Duan suddenly felt dizzy, his whole body went limp, he felt dizzy, his nose was blocked, his throat was dry and itchy, his eyes were tearful, and his skin was hot and flushed...
The qi energy that was subconsciously stimulated suddenly weakened.
It was just like having a severe cold in my previous life. I felt weak all over and had a strong urge to vomit.
"I have been poisoned!"
Zhao Duan staggered and grabbed the railing with one hand to prevent himself from falling.
The sleeping dragon soul in the sea of qi showed a slight movement, but did not wake up.
It's just that the movement of inhaling and exhaling Qi is quietly speeding up, constantly purifying the Qi that has turned yellowish-brown.
However, the symptoms of poisoning cannot be relieved immediately.
"Pfft!"
"Pfft!"
……
Amid the sounds of heavy objects falling, You Zhande's family, the singer downstairs, and the shopkeeper and his employees were all poisoned and fell straight to the ground.
The weak ones fainted directly.
Some of the stronger ones, such as You Zhande, were still awake, but they were also weak all over. They looked at "Lv Baifeng" in astonishment, as if they realized something:
"You...you're not..."
The maid named Bluebird carried a huge black umbrella covered with blood-colored talismans, and kept spinning the umbrella with an arrogant and cold look on her face.
The nobleman beside her stood up and ignored You Zhande. Instead, he looked at Zhao Duan with a smile and said:
"How does it feel to be the prey, Lord Zhao?"
Zhao Duan supported his body and blinked hard to make his blurry vision clear again.
His expression was extremely ugly, and he uttered a name:
"You are... the Thousand-Faced God!"
……
royal palace.
In the Imperial Garden, next to a pavilion, the midday sun is shining brightly.
The Queen of Dayu, Xu Zhenguan, stood by the pond and sprinkled some bait into the water, attracting goldfish to swarm for it.
"Big Ice Tub" Mochou stood aside, looking towards the south city, and said:
"Your Majesty, aren't you worried?"
(End of this chapter)