Chapter 387 Living in a Dream (Two in One)
"You two, follow me."
Mei Cheng'an nodded slightly and waved his hand.
The old lady didn't respond but turned around and waved to the middle-aged maids behind her. She smiled and said politely, "Okay."
Mei Che'an led the old lady to the rear of the convoy, and Fan Xian, who was accompanying Shen Zhong, caught up a little slower.
When he was still two meters away from Si Lili's carriage, Mei Cheng'an stopped in his tracks. Looking at the various things the maids brought, it was obvious that they were going to dress up Si Lili first before welcoming her down from the carriage, so it would not be a good idea to get too close.
When he stopped, the old nanny, Fan Xian and Shen Zhong naturally stopped as well. Mei Chengan raised his hand and pointed the direction to the old nanny.
"That's the carriage."
As he said this, he waved to the Bluebird and Green Ant who were waiting beside the carriage, signaling them to step aside and make way.
The old nanny immediately led a group of maids and walked straight towards the carriage. After greeting respectfully outside the carriage, the old nanny and two maids boarded the carriage.
Mei Cheng'an glanced at him and then looked at Shen Zhong, who was standing next to Fan Xian and chatting with him in a low voice.
"Master Shen, why don't you go over and take a look?"
Shen Zhong smiled and waved his hand.
"It's a small matter. Let Madam handle it. I heard that Master Fan has just arrived in Kyoto and has become the Supervisor of the Overwatch Council?"
"Well, that's about right."
"He holds a high position at such a young age. Sir Fan is indeed a man of great potential and has a promising future."
"Oh, I'm just lucky. Lord Shen, you don't have to be polite. I'm just a small supervisor. Lord Shen is the one who really holds a high position."
"Haha, Master Fan, thank you for the compliment."
"No, no, the truth."
When the two had almost finished flattering each other, Mei Cheng'an pointed at Si Lili's busy carriage and spoke.
"Master Shen, looking at their situation, I'm afraid it will take some time. Why don't we take care of other things first?"
When Shen Zhong heard this, he seemed to have just woken up. He immediately slapped his forehead and laughed.
"Yes, yes, what Master Mei said is right. It's just right for them to be busy with their work while we are busy with ours. This way, neither side will be delayed."
After a pause, he turned his head and looked at Fan Xian.
"Master Fan, may I ask where Sean is?"
Upon hearing this, Fan Xian didn't waste any words. He immediately waved his hand and took him to the back of the convoy. After the two of them passed by, Mei Cheng'an glanced at Si Lili's carriage and followed.
The three men stood on one side of the ferocious carriage. With the sound of clinking iron chains rubbing against each other, Sean, whose hands and feet were shackled, was escorted out from the back of the carriage by Gundam alone.
As soon as Shen Zhong saw Sean, he quickly took two steps forward and came in front of Sean, bowing to him with a very respectful gesture.
"Your subordinate greets Lord Xiao!"
Mei Cheng'an watched with great interest the reasonable yet weird scene before him.
It is reasonable because Sean, who is being saluted, is the first leader of the Jinyiwei, a secret service agency of the Northern Qi Dynasty. He can be said to be the founder of their industry, and the one doing the saluting is the current leader who inherited Sean's legacy. It seems natural for the younger generation to be respectful and polite to the founder.
And it is weird because of this, because the ancestor that Shen Zhong worships is not a portrait, but a living, old and strong person, which is a completely different matter. The succession of power in the Jinyiwei is a bit like the succession of imperial power, or the change of dynasties. When the new dynasty has replaced but the old emperor is not dead, the attitude of the new emperor towards the old emperor can be disdainful or tit-for-tat and he can't wait to get rid of him, but it should not be respectful.
Mei Cheng'an could understand that his respect couldn't be more fake, and he naturally knew exactly what kind of person Sean was.
After squinting his eyes and looking at him for a moment, Sean asked calmly.
"who are you?"
Shen Zhong stood up slightly, still bowing and nodding, and looked at Sean, answering respectfully.
"Your humble servant is Shen Zhong, the pacification envoy of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."
Sean lowered his eyes, as if thinking, and after a moment he uttered three words in a very calm tone.
"do not know."
Mei Cheng'an almost couldn't hold back his laughter when he heard this. This slap in the face was so loud, and it had to be you, Senior Xiao.
The simplest way to deal with a hypocritical and smiling tiger like Shen Zhong is to slap him in the face with your big mouth until he can't hold it anymore.
Of course, Sean was too lazy to flatter him because it was useless. Whether he offended him or not, the outcome would not be good.
Shen Zhong's expression froze when he heard that, and his eyes subconsciously flickered to look at Gao Da, the only bystander nearby. Seeing that the man had no expression on his face, and no mockery or ridicule in his eyes, Shen Zhong secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but he was still very angry in his heart. Although he quickly forced a smile on his face again and his tone was still respectful, his body posture changed significantly, and he slowly straightened up his originally hunched body.
"Yes, yes, when Lord Xiao was a leader in both countries, I was not even in the same league. Lord Xiao's reputation spreads far and wide, and today I finally get to meet him. I can't hide my excitement."
Sean looked calm and didn't even look at him, pretending to hear him.
Shen Zhong smiled and said no more. He turned his head to look at Fan Xian and Mei Chengan who were standing on the side.
"Master Fan, Master Mei, Master Xiao will be escorted by us."
Fan Xian nodded slightly.
"That's natural."
Mei Cheng'an waved directly to Wang Qinian who was holding the handover documents and seal.
Wang Qinian and a Jinyiwei who was holding the same thing came up to Shen Zhong. Shen Zhong took out his own seal and stamped it on the handover document held by Wang Qinian. Then Wang Qinian and the Jinyiwei each came to Fan Xian with a tray. Fan Xian followed suit and stamped his seal on the handover document from the Northern Qi side.
The handover ceremony was completed, which meant that the Qing Kingdom no longer needed to be responsible for Sean's safety. The first small stage of the mission was completed, and Wang Qinian and the Jinyiwei each retreated.
"Hey, Mr. Fan, I heard from those civil servants that..."
Shen Zhong glanced at Sean.
"Your family's journey to escort Master Xiao was not smooth. Did someone try to rescue Master Xiao during the journey?"
Fan Xian nodded and said casually.
"We stopped them back."
After saying that, he smiled and looked at Sean. He did not mention the protest to Shen Zhong. There was no need to. That matter was not his responsibility. Apart from getting a few perfunctory apologies, there was no point.
Shen Dian nodded and turned to look at Sean, then paused and walked forward slowly, with a serious look on his face as if he was thinking about how to persuade him. After standing in front of Sean, he looked up at Sean, with no smile on his face and only scrutiny in his eyes. Although he seemed to be speaking in a serious and consultative tone, there was also a hint of sarcasm.
"Master Xiao, this is wrong. Look, you are going home now, why are you trying to escape? If you think of escaping again during the journey, my job will be in trouble."
After saying this, he suddenly leaned forward.
"What do you think?"
Faced with the strong threat in his words, Sean, who had been keeping a calm and silent look, finally looked up at him. His eyes were very calm and indifferent, even with a hint of contempt. His dry lips moved slightly, and his tone was calm.
"How are you doing?"
He slowly straightened his body, which had been leaning forward, and spoke calmly.
"We are all doing our job, so we must always be attentive!"
After saying that, he raised the corners of his mouth and gave Sean a perverse and cold smile.
Sean's eyes fixed for a moment, then quickly returned to normal.
He shouldn't have ended his words like this. Since he had ended, it proved that he didn't intend to say the rest. Sean obviously realized it, Mei Cheng'an and Fan Xian also realized it, and they all narrowed their eyes. Even Gundam, who didn't realize it, felt that the coldness in the air was getting thicker, and his eyes became more solemn.
Sure enough, after looking at Sean for a moment, Shen Zhong suddenly attacked. No, he kicked. He suddenly kicked Sean's knees hard.
There were two muffled bangs followed by two clear sounds of broken bones, "crack, crack". Sean's knees were broken and his legs were twisted. He groaned and fell down with the sound of rattling iron chains. The pain of broken bones was heart-wrenching, but Sean kept his teeth clenched throughout and did not utter a single scream.
Even though he had expected this, Fan Xian was still shocked by this scene and widened his eyes and took a breath.
Hiss~ This Shen Zhong was much more ruthless and decisive than him. He did what he had always wanted to do but was hesitant to do.
Mei Cheng'an's focus was not on Shen Zhong's ruthlessness and decisiveness, nor on the fact that he finally revealed his true face, but on Sean's ability to endure pain. He could even hold back from screaming, how powerful!
An extremely strong, slightly sweet smell of blood emanated from Sean's twisted knees. The blood slowly soaked through his pants and flowed onto the relatively flat earth and stone ground.
Shen Zhong placed one hand across his abdomen and one hand behind his back, and paced around Xiao En who was lying on the ground. He hummed lightly and nodded. "That's all. I'll take Master Xiao to the car!"
After saying that, he took a step forward, grabbed the hair of Sean who was struggling to get up, and suddenly lifted it up. Sean's face seemed to be in more pain than a broken leg. He groaned again, and Shen Zhong grabbed his hair and dragged him towards the pass. Fan Xian and Mei Cheng'an who were blocking the way hurriedly made way. Looking at the clear dragging marks on the ground and the long bloodstains left on the ground by the blood oozing from Sean's knees, Fan Xian's mouth twitched, and for the first time he had a clearer understanding of Shen Zhong's ruthlessness.
Mei Cheng'an glanced at him and saw that his mouth was twisted with a look as if he had a toothache, so he couldn't help but smile.
"Do you feel a dull pain in your knee?"
Fan Xian shook his head and touched the back of his head.
"That was before. Now my scalp is aching. This guy chose to attack us in front of us. Was he doing it on purpose?"
Mei Chengan shrugged.
"obviously."
Fan Xian raised his eyebrows.
"Compared to us, Sean is one of their own. Is it necessary to be so cruel? Northern Qi is his territory, and he has brought a lot of people with him. They can't be really worried that Sean will run away halfway, right?"
Mei Cheng'an pointed forward and walked forward.
"Of course not. There must be other purposes."
Fan Xian followed.
"You know? What's the purpose?"
Mei Cheng paused and glanced at him.
"Forget about being lazy, just go if you want."
"Tsk, if you know, just tell me, please."
Fan Xian rolled his eyes and complained quietly. His brain started working and he had a guess in a short while.
"Uesugi Tiger?"
Mei Chengan snapped his fingers.
"It seems that Uesugi Tora's life is saved."
Fan Xian sighed.
"pity."
Mei Chengan smiled.
"It's not a pity. When we get to Shangjing, we may need to cooperate with him to complete the mission."
Hearing this, Fan Xian was stunned for a moment, glanced at Shen Zhong in front of him and Sean on the ground, then he quickly figured it out and changed his words.
"I hope my brother Uesugi Tiger can recover soon!"
"..."
Mei Chengan said nothing and just rolled his eyes.
……
Mei Chengan and Fan Xian stopped at the intersection of the fence.
Shen Zhong dragged Sean all the way to the carriage covered with black cloth before letting go. He walked to the side of the carriage and pulled the iron chain hanging on the side. With a swish, the black cloth fell off, revealing the true appearance inside, which was a square iron cage.
Mei Cheng'an and Fan Xian looked at each other. My goodness, although they were all cages, the one in Qing Kingdom at least pretended to make them look like carriage compartments. But Northern Qi was so lazy that they didn't even bother to put on a show and directly treated Sean as a serious prisoner.
"This time when Lord Xiao comes back, the Jinyiwei has specially prepared this pure iron carriage for you."
As he said this, he raised his hand and knocked on the cage, making two clang sounds.
"Tsk, this honor is unmatched."
After saying this with a smile, he waved his hand casually. Two Jinyiwei came forward in a muffled voice, lifted Sean and started loading the car. Shen Zhong walked towards Mei Chengan and Fan Xian again, bowed and nodded slightly in front of them to express his apology, then looked up and smiled embarrassedly.
"Master Fan, Master Mei, please forgive me for making fun of you."
Fan Xian smiled without saying anything. Mei Cheng'an, on the other hand, tilted his chin towards Sean and asked curiously.
"Master Shen, this cage is full of holes. If someone hides in the dark and shoots arrows at you, how are you going to protect yourself?"
Hearing this, Shen Zhong smiled and waved his hand.
"It's okay. I have a lot of people with me. The guards are tight and there are black cloths covering the area. It won't be a big problem."
It’s not a big deal!
Mei Cheng'an nodded and said no more. Sean's life was of great importance and he had to keep it to lure Shangshanhu, so there was no way he didn't care. If he cared about it and still made such arrangements, there was only one explanation, this cage was just a bait, once on the road, Sean would definitely be quietly transferred to other carriages by him. Sean's legs were broken by him himself, so there was no need to worry about him causing any trouble or escaping.
Every sip and every bite may be predestined. He is worthy of being the one Chen Pingping personally named to be careful of. Every move he makes is not in vain. Even one move can hide several mysteries. It is quite interesting.
……
On the other side, the maids from Shangjing had already boarded Si Lili's carriage. They used the various ornaments and utensils they brought with them to give Si Lili a fragrant bath in the carriage, and then changed her clothes, put on makeup, and were busy for a long time. The door finally opened slowly, and Si Lili stepped on the soft embroidered cushion and got down from the carriage.
Everyone's eyes lit up, except Mei Chengan, whose eyes dimmed slightly for a moment before quickly returning to normal.
A pair of slender jade hands lightly hung outside the light blue wide sleeves, and the voluptuous curves were perfectly set off by the gorgeous clothes. Her black hair was lightly tied up and bound by an extremely beautiful dark golden hair accessory. On each earlobe hung a string of earrings that sparkled faintly when she walked. Her lips were red and her eyes were full of rosy red. Her eyebrows were as black as distant ink, and she was charming in all directions.
This is Si Lili, the peerless beauty who stood by the Crystal River and easily captured the heart of the emperor.
Fan Xian glanced at his fellow villager, trying to see something unusual on his face or in his eyes. Just as he had said before, after all, once Si Lili left now, she would be locked in the deep palace forever, and he was afraid that the two would never have the chance to meet again.
Unexpectedly, Mei Cheng'an's face remained calm, and his eyes were as still as a clear pond. When Si Lili was about to approach with the support of the women and maids, he suddenly smiled and raised his hand to wave at Si Lili. He had no intention of going forward, nor of getting close, nor of saying any meaningless farewell words. However, some people did not think so.
Suddenly, a pair of extremely contemptuous eyes stared at him and then did not move away.
Mei Cheng'an felt a little unhappy and looked sideways. It turned out that the one who was looking at him with contempt was the old lady who was leading the group.
Before he could open his mouth to ask the reason, the old lady had already stopped not far in front of him, staring at him with a pair of sinister eyes, and spoke in a very cold and contemptuous tone.
"You Southern Dynasty official, Miss Si has now set foot on the territory of Northern Qi. I don't need to listen to your scolding anymore, right?"
Mei Cheng'an looked at the old lady with a frown on her face, wondering where did this come from? When did I... Only to hear the old lady muttering to herself in a contemptuous tone.
"These Southern Dynasty officials are really barbarians. They actually dare to stare at a girl. They have no manners at all."
Mei Cheng'an raised her eyebrows. She didn't intend to argue with him about his previous words because she was wholeheartedly protecting Si Lili's reputation. But the latter sentence, which escalated to discriminatory remarks against a group of people, was a bit too much. She wasn't angry, but it just felt weird.
Although he studied in the south in his previous life, he was a genuine northerner. When he was a child, he often heard people call people who came from the south to work "barbarians". At that time, he laughed it off and didn't take it seriously. He didn't expect that now it was his turn to be called a barbarian. This really made him laugh and cry.
Fan Xian was particularly unhappy and he glanced at Shen Zhong.
"Who is this?"
Shen Zhong said "oh" and introduced it casually.
"He is an old man in the palace."
Upon hearing this, Fan Xian snorted, and the contempt in his eyes was obvious. However, before he could say anything, the old lady suddenly became crazy and turned her target to Shen Zhong who was watching the fun.
"Lord Shen, there is no need to be so flattering to these Qing people. Our great country, Great Qi, cannot be compared to these Qing people."
Shen Zhong stretched out his hand and pressed it down towards her, just about to remind him to be careful with his words.
Fan Xian, who was laughing in anger, snorted coldly and spoke.
"Are you living in a dream, old woman? Do you know that the great country you mentioned was beaten and forced to cede territory and beg for mercy?"
The old lady became anxious when she heard this. Her face wrinkled, her eyes drooped, and she pointed at Fan Xian and scolded him.
"What are you saying, you southern barbarian?"
……
(End of this chapter)
