newbobooks Chapter 197: Censor? What Censor? He’s just one of us!
Chapter 197: Censor? What Censor? He’s just one of us!
Qiandong City, Zhenxi Marquis Mansion.
After receiving the order, Hu Bufei headed west. It was not known whether he was a heavy drinker or was deliberately delaying time, but it took him seven days to reach his destination, which was supposed to be a four-day journey.
You should know that during these seven days, Baili Luochen and Baili Chengfeng had already split up their forces into two groups to collect taxes from the remaining three states.
At this time, large horses and small carts were transporting them to Qiandong City. Coincidentally, Hu Bufei's carriage had just entered the territory of Qiandong City, and the old marquis's Pofeng Army also returned to the Qiannan camp at the same time.
Baili Luochen, wearing golden armor and blood-stained clothes, rode on the fire dragon horse and watched the soldiers busy carrying wooden boxes full of silver.
He waved his whip and said to Baili Chengfeng:
"Feng'er, pass on my handwritten order. Order the four chief clerks, Zhang, Kan, Liang, and Chen, to work day and night to deposit the silver we collected this time into the treasury!"
"Also, have Captain Chen gather all the craftsmen in the city to build four treasuries to store silver at the abandoned training grounds on Boyue Mountain!"
"I believe that after so many days, Tianqi City has long known about the good deeds that my father and I and Zhao'er have done."
"I'll go back to the mansion first. Maybe someone is already waiting in the mansion to pronounce an imperial decree to punish me..."
Baili Chengfeng nodded and said, "As you command, son!"
……
Hu Bufei was lying drunk in the carriage. When the coachman saw the gate of the mansion getting closer and closer, he immediately got out and led the horse to a slow stop.
"Master Hu, we're here!"
The driver called softly.
Hu Bufei jumped up and leaned out of the car curtain with sleepy eyes:
"Are we there yet? We're here so soon... I thought we'd have to walk for a few more days!"
The driver complained, "Master Hu, you think it's too fast? It should have taken us seven days to travel a distance that should have taken three or four days!"
"You only stop when you come across a city, and every time you drink yourself unconscious... If Master Zhang and Master Gao knew about this, they would definitely blame you..."
Hu Bufei chuckled and said:
"Those two stubborn old men... Ignore them. Let's go meet some old acquaintances!"
As he said this, he spat on his hand, wiped his messy hair, straightened his clothes and jumped out of the carriage.
The guard at the gate saw Hu Bufei wearing the official uniform of the Imperial Censor, clasped his fists and asked:
"Are you here to see the old marquis?"
Hu Bufei nodded and said, "Indeed, I am Hu Bufei from the Imperial Censorate. I have been ordered to come and see the Marquis. I wonder if he is at home?"
The guard was a little embarrassed:
"This... The Marquis has been away for some business recently and has not yet returned home. Please allow me to report to the Crown Prince's Consort first!"
Hu Bufei did not make things difficult for the guard and waved his hand.
The guard immediately rushed into the mansion and reported the matter to Wen Luoyu.
When Wen Luoyu heard that it was the Imperial Censor from Tianqi City, his face darkened:
"It seems that he was sent by the Emperor to question me. Now the Marquis and the Crown Prince are not here..."
"Forget it, you lead the way, I'll go to greet him and see what tricks this censor has up his sleeve!"
Wen Luoyu followed the guards all the way to the gate of the mansion. Seeing that it was Hu Bufei, his expression immediately eased a lot:
"Master Hu, how are you? Come in!"
Hu Bufei was the son of Hu Cheng, the Grand Secretary of the current dynasty, and was also a family friend of the Baili family.
Wen Luoyu naturally recognized this person, so she enthusiastically led Hu Bufei into the guest hall.
After preparing the tea, Hu Bufei was not in a hurry to question Wen Luoyu, but instead chatted with her about family matters.
The two were talking halfway through their tea when suddenly the maid Rui'er came into the hall and whispered in Wen Luoyu's ear:
"Princess Princess, the Marquis is back!"
Hu Bufei, with his cultivation at the Free Earth Realm, had already heard Rui'er's words. He pretended not to hear anything and stuffed his mouth with almond cookies...
At this moment, heavy footsteps were heard outside the hall. As soon as Baili Luochen arrived at the door, the guard informed him of Hu Bufei's arrival.
He was still wearing his armor, and walked straight into the hall, smiling and heading straight towards Hu Bufei:
"Nephew Hu, how come you have time to come to Qiandong City?"
Hu Bufei quickly swallowed a mouthful of almond cake, stood up from his seat and saluted:
"My nephew Hu Bufei greets Uncle Baili!"
Wen Luoyu was immediately relieved when she saw Hu Bufei actually called Baili Luochen "uncle".
Since Hu Bufei called Baili Luochen "uncle", it means that he came here as an imperial censor and would not make things difficult for the Baili family.
Baili Luochen patted Hu Bufei's shoulder and said with a smile:
"Your status is different now. You are a doctor of the Imperial Censorate. Aren't you afraid that I won't be able to complete my mission when I return by addressing you like that?"
Hu Bufei also laughed and said:
"Well, look at what Uncle Baili said. Public is public and private is private. I am just your nephew now. What's the point of being an imperial censor?"
Baili Luochen laughed loudly upon hearing this:
"Okay! In that case, let's put aside official business for now. Luo Yu, tell the kitchen to prepare a feast. I want to get drunk with my nephew Hu today!"
Wen Luoyu responded and left the side hall.
At this time, the only two people left in the hall were Baili Luochen in armor and Hu Bufei in the uniform of a fourth-rank official. The old and the young looked at each other and expressed their thoughts to each other.
Hu Bufei knew very well that Xiao Chongjing sent him to investigate Baili Luochen, so he must be aware of the relationship between the Hu family and the Baili family.
Knowing that Baili Luochen would not make things difficult for Hu Bufei, Hu Bufei no longer had to worry about his life.
Letting him come was just to send a signal to Baili Luochen that the emperor was extremely angry about his actions.
All that remains is to see whether Baili Luochen is sincere in his rebellion. Xiao Chongjing's move was also a helpless one.
During the dinner, Baili Luochen and Hu Bufei had a great time chatting with each other, and only talked about family matters while drinking.
After the banquet, the two sat opposite each other and drank tea. Baili Luochen finally broke the news:
"Nephew Hu, His Majesty the Emperor didn't ask you to come to the Zhenxi Marquis's mansion just to drink, did he? Now that you've had enough, it's time to talk about your business at the Censorate."
Hu Bufei laughed and said:
"Business? When has the Censorate ever had business? Uncle, you're joking!"
Baili Luochen laughed when he heard this:
"No need to hide it, but it's okay to tell it, otherwise you won't be able to report back."
Hu Bufei could only sigh:
"Alas... This mission is not easy to handle. His Majesty sent me here because he is well aware of the relationship between our two families. If he had sent anyone else, I'm afraid they wouldn't even be able to enter the Marquis' Mansion!"
Baili Luochen picked up the teacup, took a sip and said nonchalantly:
"So what are you going to do?"
Although Hu Bufei drank five or six kilograms of Qiandong wine during the meal, there was no sign of drunkenness on his face at this moment.
He thought for a moment and said softly:
"After I return, I will submit a memorial stating that the Marquis of Zhenxi sent troops to suppress the rebellion of the local tyrants and evil gentry in the southwest, and collected taxes out of fear that the mob would plunder. Your Majesty should credit the Marquis with this achievement!"
Baili Luochen was stunned for a moment after hearing this, then shook his head and smiled:
"You are going to piss the emperor off to death by saying this. No way!"
Hu Bufei said, "Then what should I write? Should I write according to the Emperor's wishes, saying that the Marquis of Zhenxi mobilized troops without authorization and withheld tax silver in defiance of the Emperor's order, indicating that he was disloyal? Wouldn't that put you in an unjust position?"
Baili Luochen stared at Hu Bufei with a pair of sharp eyes and said:
"My dear nephew, there is no need to worry. I will personally present this memorial to the Emperor."
"Just take this memorial of mine and present it to him in person. Don't worry about the rest!"
……