Chapter 362 The female Bodhisattva is here too!
Chapter 362 The female Bodhisattva is here too!
What is the relationship between my Dalang and the empress?
This is a sensitive topic in the Zhao family. No matter how popular the rumors are, they are ultimately just unconfirmed "rumors."
And because they are family, they know Zhao Duan better. Eugene Hua and Zhao Pan privately tend to think that this matter is not reliable.
There is a high possibility that misinformation may spread.
But today, Xu Zhenguan came to the Zhao family in person under the cover of night, and sat down to invite them to dinner openly.
The meaning conveyed by this behavior has slightly exceeded the boundaries between the monarch and his subjects.
Well, if the empress goes to a place like the Grand Tutor's Mansion and has a family dinner with ministers like Dong Xuan, it is an exception.
But Zhao Duan's official status was only a fourth-rank military officer at best.
"The dinner at Zhao Qing's house is quite sumptuous."
Xu Zhenguan was calm and composed. He picked up his chopsticks and looked at the table full of dishes with a little surprise.
Zhao Duan explained with a smile: "Today is a celebration, so we will have something more sumptuous."
Xu Zhenguan smiled and said, "In that case, it is time for me to come."
"Hahaha... is... is not..."
Eugene Hua was awkward and speechless, not acting like a mistress of the house at all.
Zhao Pan, who used to be fearless and brave, was overshadowed by Xu Zhenguan and became surprisingly obedient.
She just stole a glance at the female emperor and her eldest brother, and in a trance, she had a clear understanding of the words "fairy couple".
She used to think she was pretty, but because she had seen Zhao Duan so many times, she no longer thought he was handsome.
The little girl had also had this thought in secret, thinking that when she grew up, she might have the idea that the "sister-in-law" in the rumor was pretty.
But when he saw the real person today, Zhao Pan realized the huge gap between them.
It's not just the appearance itself.
When appearance reaches a certain level, what is better or worse is no longer determined by appearance but by temperament.
The empress's temperament is rare in the world.
This means that even if the "emperor"'s outer garment is stripped off, just a beautiful woman standing in front of them is enough to make everyone nervous and timid, and even give rise to feelings of inferiority.
Just as people would be afraid when encountering wild beasts, senior officials in government circles also have their own aura, and a woman's appearance also has a similar awe-inspiring effect.
Zhao Pan even felt that no one in the world was worthy of being called "sister-in-law", including his eldest brother.
Any trace of competitive spirit has long since disappeared.
"Is there something on my face?"
Xu Zhenguan looked at Zhao Pan with a smile. With her level, she could see through the girl's mind with just one glance.
"Ah... no..." Zhao Pan panicked, nervous and at a loss, feeling as awkward as a fan meeting his idol.
"Your Majesty is teasing you." Zhao Duan smiled and came to her rescue.
Xu Zhenguan seemed to be in a good mood today, and he was very friendly. He immediately smiled and agreed to ease the atmosphere, saying something like:
Zhao Qing mentioned to me how the women in his family are... Today I saw that they are indeed well-looking... and so on.
Eugene Hua finally came to her senses and continued to be humble.
With Zhao Duan's interjections and jokes to adjust the atmosphere, the atmosphere in the hall soon became visibly more relaxed.
Xu Zhenguan was also greatly surprised by some new and exotic dishes on the table.
When she learned from Eugene that these were all new dishes that Zhao Duan had "invented" in his spare time, she looked at him with a different look, and said quietly:
"Qing Zhao can also come up with new dishes? The surprises you give me are really endless."
This statement has some implications.
"These small fights are not as good as Your Majesty governing a big country and cooking small delicacies." Zhao Duan flattered smoothly... no, dragon fart.
When did Eugenia and her daughter ever dine with the emperor?
After reluctantly eating a few bites, Eugene Hua stood up, found an excuse that she was full, and dragged her daughter away from the table early.
Zhao Pan was still reluctant to leave, but he let his mother pull him out of the inner hall and into the courtyard.
Leave this place for the king and his subject to be alone together.
……
When there were only two people left in the hall, Zhao Duan served the empress a bowl of borscht and put it down before saying:
"Your Majesty, I am really surprised to see you here."
Xu Zhenguan didn't really come to eat. After tasting a few dishes on the table, she put down her chopsticks, her eyes full of mixed feelings of surprise, and she said softly:
"I should be the one telling you this. I heard from Mochou about what happened in the Plum Garden. Can you tell me in detail?"
"Your Majesty, please allow me to do so."
Zhao Duan immediately started to talk slowly, starting from how he saw the Zhengyang theory in Xiuwen Hall and found a loophole, to how he passed the message and lured people to Bailu Academy.
No matter how, the course of the two-day conversation was described in detail.
During the process, Xu Zhenguan listened quietly without interrupting.
"...I didn't expect that Zhengyang would suddenly admit defeat and hang me in public," Zhao Duan said helplessly, "This old villain must be killed."
You are still feeling wronged...Xu Zhenguan didn't say anything, but his lips tightened a little.
Even though she had already heard Zhengyang's version, Zhao Duan's retelling of the story from his own perspective still stirred up waves in her heart.
The inherent impression of this man who always smiles in front of her but is actually full of tricks and schemes was once again heightened. She was a little dazed. How many times has this happened?
In just over half a year, how many things has this guy been hiding that haven't been exposed?
You are good at poetry and you understand how to govern a country.
Nowadays, even the discussion of Confucianism has caused such a big commotion.
"Where did you get this so-called 'Xinxue' from?"
Xu Zhenguan stared at Zhao Duan and asked seriously:
"This is not something you can learn by studying on your own, or you shouldn't be able to do it at your age."
Do you believe me when I say I was dreaming and an immortal taught me... Zhao Duan muttered, but he had found an excuse for this. He said seriously:
"In fact, I am just proposing an idea. It is not as complete a theory as Your Majesty imagines. If there really is such a good thing, why would I test Zhengyang first?"
Xu Zhenguan was stunned for a moment, then hesitated and said, "You mean..."
"In fact, my theory of Xinxue was originally taken from Zhengyang's book. When I flipped through his works that day, I saw a few words that revealed a hint of establishing a new school of thought.
I will remember it. At first, I had no confidence at all. I just wanted to be a vanguard and test Zhengyang in private, so that I can know myself and the enemy, and find out more about the enemy's strengths and weaknesses for the Grand Master..."
"I didn't expect that I would inspire the other party. Rather than saying that I defeated Zhengyang, it would be better to say that he defeated himself. Haha... Sometimes, people may lack just a little bit of enlightenment.
The people of Zhengyang could not see clearly in the situation. Scholars like Master Dong and Han Zhou were also unable to break out of their fixed mindset because they had only learned the orthodox school since childhood. On the contrary, warriors like me were able to see clearly. With my guidance, they naturally understood. "
Zhao Duan talked freely.
According to him, Zhengyang was only one step away from understanding the philosophy of mind.
Zhao Duan, who was outside the situation, could see things clearly, so he picked out the contradictions in Zhengyang's own theories and works, and when the bullets were fired, they immediately opened up Zhengyang's mind...
This explanation is undoubtedly much more reliable than the Confucian theory that a warrior in his twenties who had not received much education came up with.
The former is so outrageous that it’s too fake.
So Zhao Duan had already made up a reason before he took action.
Once this explanation came out, it could barely be explained. Although it was still a bit outrageous, at least it sounded like that.
"Your Majesty, I even suspect that Zhengyang did this on purpose."
Zhao Duan continued to increase the stakes, with a mysterious look on his face:
“Perhaps, he had come up with the School of Mind, but knew that once it was made public, it would attract attacks from many Confucian scholars and would also offend Prince Mu… So this old villain was scheming and deliberately came to the capital to pass the blame on to me.
This way he will have an explanation when he returns... I think this man has a treacherous face, and his heart is black. I have suffered an unprovoked disaster this time, it is really..."
At first Xu Zhenguan listened carefully and thought along his lines, but the more he listened the more outrageous it became.
In the end, my face turned black, and I didn't know whether to laugh or cry:
"You are so shameless. Your first guess made some sense, but what kind of conspiracy is behind it? Would Zhengyang give up the opportunity to leave his name in history and give you the title of Kaixue School?"
Zhao Duan spread his hands, looking innocent:
"Who knows? There are many bad people among scholars. How can they be as pure-minded as a warrior like me who is loyal to Your Majesty?"
"..."
Xu Zhenguan was too lazy to pay attention to him.
As for the explanation given by Zhao Duan, she was still skeptical in her heart. Her intuition always told her that this was not the case as this guy said.
But the empress could guess now that Zhao Duan had some secrets or something special.
The fact that Emperor Taizu's dragon soul chose him already explains a lot.
She just didn't want to delve into it.
"You'd better say the same thing when facing other people's doubts." Xu Zhenguan said indifferently.
Zhao Duan said sincerely: "Everything I said is true."
"Hehe..." Xu Zhenguan sneered. The more this guy said this, the more she didn't believe it.
Just as they were about to say something, the king and his minister suddenly turned their heads at the same time and looked towards the main gate of the Zhao family's courtyard.
……
"Mother, His Majesty has such a powerful aura."
In the courtyard, after Zhao Pan left the inner hall, he felt that most of the heavy pressure on his body was suddenly dissipated.
He let out a heavy breath: "My palms are sweaty."
"What's wrong with being a mother?" Eugene Hua was almost exhausted. She sat on a stone bench in the yard. Regardless of the coldness of her buttocks, she turned her head and looked back at the brightly lit inner hall, and said worriedly:
"As the saying goes, serving a king is like serving a tiger. It's really not easy for Dalang."
"..." Zhao Pan couldn't help but ask, "Big brother and His Majesty might not be that kind of companion, right?"
Eugene looked at her daughter strangely: "Which one do you think it is?"
Zhao Pan hesitated for a moment, then realized that he had overthought. Just as he was about to explain, he heard the voice of the Empress's guards outside the courtyard gate:
"who?"
Then, the mother and daughter only heard a faint groan.
Then, in the night, a beautiful female Bodhisattva with plump white skin, long black hair and only a thin monk's robe on in the cold late autumn was seen approaching from afar.
Prajna Bodhisattva nodded to the mother and daughter with a smile in his eyes and said:
"Amitabha, I am here to look for Master Zhao."
After saying that, she raised her almost transparent eyes and looked at the dining room in front of her with a strange smile:
"It seems that I came at an unfortunate time."
……
Next chapter in the early morning
(End of this chapter)