Second minister and thief

The story of Yushi Zhongcheng admonishing bitterly in the court hall and fainting from anger spread quickly throughout the streets and alleys of Taodu, and became a topic of conversation for many aristocratic families and Confucian scholars after dinner.Whenever you enter a certain teahouse or restaurant, you will inevitably hear some hidden words.Along with this incident, of course, there was also the "joke" about General Xiao's rioting in the Chu Mansion that day.There were even a few people who watched the excitement and didn't think it was a big deal, set up gambling games in the wing rooms of Chu Pavilion in many brothels, and secretly speculated on several so-called truths.

One of the most widely circulated sayings is that Master Chu caught a glimpse of the young hero who returned triumphantly that day, and he used the saint's honor and favor to obtain this will, which forced General Xiao to marry him.And General Xiao heard about it from nowhere, so he came to the door with a knife and asked Master Chu to settle the score.The two had a big fight in the Chu Mansion, and in the end Master Chu was seriously injured and lost, lying down in the garden and vomiting blood for several liters.

This version has been described vividly and wonderfully by interested people. If you really don't know the inside story, you may immediately believe it.On this day, someone deliberately mentioned this matter while drinking, intending to ask Xiao Cen for confirmation.

But the person who spoke really doesn't know how to look at people's faces, he is a stunned young man.As soon as he finished speaking, the air in the private room suddenly froze, and everyone turned their eyes to the person in the guest seat in unison.

Xiao Cen held his chopsticks in one hand and rested his chin in the other, seemingly in deep thought, but he was actually observing the reactions of the others present.

"Brother Zhong, how can you take the rumors in the market seriously?"

"Then my brother is so willing..."

"Brother Yuanshan, you haven't been in Beijing for a long time, so you don't know what Chu Linqiu is like. Brother Yu, you are very clear."

"Then please tell me in detail, Brother Zhong, what kind of person is this Chu Linqiu?" Xiao Cen's pupils narrowed slightly after hearing these remarks just now, and his expression was slightly weird.He secretly thought, the fathers of these people were all officials in the court, and they must have had a lot of contact with Chu Linqiu on weekdays, so their evaluation of him should be much more objective, and they would not follow others' opinions.That being the case, let's hear what they have to say.

However, to his great disappointment, the Chu Linqiu they were talking about was actually a villainous, arrogant, and unscrupulous image of a traitor who fought fiercely, whipped servants, rode horses in the street, rode in cars, and relied on himself. Eun Bong completely ignored the royal son... what he did was beyond words.

"For this reason, the elders of Yushitai often impeached him in front of the saint. But he still did his own thing and thought highly of himself. Once he even had a big fight with the prime minister in public. It is precisely because of his behavior that the The popularity in the court is very poor, and almost no one wants to be with him."

"The most important point is, brother, do you know what happened to the once heroic and upright Xuanwu Guard under his leadership?"

"..." Xiao Cen pondered for a long time before he said cautiously, "I heard it a little bit."

"Emperor's ears and eyes, court eagle dog. Brother Zhong," Mr. Zhong held a bamboo chopstick between two fingers, and kept tapping on the edge of the table in front of him, as if he wanted to reconcile and arouse the resonance of other people." How can a man with a wicked mind like him be worthy of our great hero?"

"Not worthy, not worthy."

"..." Xiao Cen had already poured himself a few cups when they were talking "everything you say" with enthusiasm. rise.But this Mr. Zhong was fanning the flames without any regard for other people's feelings, so Xiao Cen had to interrupt, "Brother Zhong, what's wrong with you and this Chu Linqiu?"

Mr. Zhong was stunned when he heard the words, and said eagerly after a long time, "Nothing. But brother..."

"Then he whipped the servants and rode on the imperial road, but you saw it with your own eyes?"

"Neither..."

"Since that's the case, let's stop fooling my brother with these market rumors." As soon as the words fell, the expressions on everyone's faces froze, and the atmosphere dropped to freezing point in an instant.But Xiao Cen didn't seem to realize it, he still lowered his head and stared at the small silver pot in his hand, and sighed after a while, "It's just because I'm in this mountain."

"My dear brother, what do you mean?" Mr. Zhong suddenly got up, pointed at Xiao Cen with a bamboo chopstick, and after a while felt that something was wrong, he put it down again embarrassingly, "This Chu, is it for you?" What kind of ecstasy soup did you drink?"

"I do not know."

General Xiao fell into deep thought. In his mind, the pale and bloodless face appeared for a while, and the scene of seeing him off in the suburbs yesterday reappeared for a while.He didn't understand whether Chu Linqiu secretly sent escorts to make the Mobei cavalry leave Beijing smoothly, was it intended to show favor to him, or was it purely kind?He didn't believe it was the latter, nor did he think it was the former.

Master Chu, what kind of person are you?

"Good brother? Good brother?"

"Huh?" Xiao Cen woke up from his own thoughts after shouting loudly from the people around him.He was in a trance, and looked around in a daze. He was so dazed for about half a cup of tea before he jumped up, and after saying a word, he disappeared without a trace.

"Brothers, I have to take a step ahead!"