Chapter 711
April 29, morning.

Ding Qinghong led a group of palace guards to the Heavenly Prison and took Liu Xunyi away without saying a word.

There was no conversation along the way. After about half an hour, the carriage slowly stopped outside a mansion on the outskirts of Lin'an.

"Liu Xunyi, we're here."

Looking at the confused Liu Xunyi, Ding Qinghong's eyes flashed with a hint of teasing.

"Where is this place?" Liu Xunyi asked suspiciously, "Do you want to kill me and silence me?"

"What? The famous Liu Xunyi is also afraid of death?"

"I'm afraid I'll die without knowing why."

"Stop talking nonsense, you'll know once you get in."

After saying that, Ding Qinghong reached out and pushed Liu Xunyi's shoulder, forcing him off the carriage.

Because he was wearing shackles and leg irons, and his whip wounds had not yet healed, Liu Xunyi could only move slowly towards the yard. Ding Qinghong was not in a hurry and followed leisurely behind him.

"Brother Liu, you are finally here!"

As soon as he stepped into the mansion, Qin Wei came forward with an anxious look on his face. He ignored Ding Qinghong's contemptuous eyes and gave Liu Xunyi a big hug to show his excitement and joy.

"Why are you here?" Liu Xunyi never expected to see Qin Wei here. She was stunned and even more confused.

"I am here to accompany the Marquis."

"The Marquis is here too?" Liu Xunyi became increasingly confused. "Where is this place? Why are you..."

"This is Prince Rong's villa." Suddenly, Zhao Yuan's voice sounded from the center hall.

"Greetings to the Marquis!"

Seeing Zhao Yuan walking out slowly, Liu Xunyi hurriedly kowtowed, but because he was in shackles, his movements were very clumsy.

Seeing this, Zhao Yuan couldn't help but frown, and turned his displeased eyes to Ding Qinghong, asking: "Eunuch Ding, what does this mean?"

"The jailer accidentally lost the key to the shackles, so Lord Liu will have to endure it for a while." Ding Qinghong evaded the question.

"nonsense!"

Qin Wei muttered, suddenly pulled out a dagger, and under Liu Xunyi's astonished gaze, he swung the knife to cut off all the shackles on his body.

"Brother Qin, what are you doing..."

"Didn't Ding Qinghong tell you that the emperor has issued an edict to pardon your crime, and now you have been reinstated?" Qin Wei stared at the arrogant Ding Qinghong with a bad look, and explained, "Not only that, the emperor also graciously allowed you to go to Helin to send the bride. You were brought here today because the East and West Prefectures want to discuss the arrangements for sending the bride here."

"what?"

In the past few days, Liu Xunyi has been waiting for news of his death in prison. He never thought that the situation would be turned upside down in the blink of an eye. He was originally doomed to die, but not only did he escape with a small life, but he was also unexpectedly sent by the emperor to escort the bride.

If Qin Wei had not been so sure about this huge change, Liu Xunyi would rather die than believe it.

"What's going on?" Liu Xunyi asked in disbelief, "Why is this happening?"

"This is a long story. I will explain it to you later." Qin Wei winked at Liu Xunyi, suggesting that she should not ask more questions.

"This time, even I didn't expect that you could come back to life. Liu Xunyi, the emperor's grace is great, you must be grateful, and don't do anything ungrateful and stupid again." Zhao Yuan's tone was full of bitterness and helplessness. It seemed that Zhao Yuan was not too surprised that Liu Xunyi survived the disaster. Instead... a little depressed.

Faced with the sudden changes, Liu Xunyi was completely confused, with too many doubts lingering in his mind. However, due to Qin Wei's hint, it was inconvenient for him to get to the bottom of it, so he could only endure it temporarily and accept everything in a confused state.

"Come in! Don't keep you waiting too long." Zhao Yuan ordered and led them towards the central hall.

In the central hall, Lord Jia, the Vice Minister of the East Palace, Lord Qian, the Deputy Envoy of the Privy Council, Young Prince Zhao Xie, Bai Jin, the Vice Minister of the Privy Council, and a number of civil and military officials from the East and West Palaces were lined up.

Sitting at the end of the left row was an "old friend" whom Liu Xunyi had not seen for many years. His appearance really surprised Liu Xunyi so much that he could hardly believe his eyes.

A dark face, a sturdy figure, rough skin full of pits, and a face full of beard... This man was none other than Feng Tianba, the former commander of the Quanzhou camp, an upright man who had an affair with Liu Xunyi and it was unclear whether it was a favor or a grudge.

When Feng Tianba first learned about Liu Xunyi's true identity, he was also shocked. Unfortunately, he was working in the Prime Minister's Mansion, so he never had a chance to "reminisce" with Liu Xunyi.

In fact, Feng Tianba is where he is today thanks to Liu Xunyi's secret help. Otherwise, he would still be a small constable in the Pingjiang government office.

Opposite Feng Tianba, at the end of the right row, there was also a burly man sitting.

He is about forty years old, with thick eyebrows, big eyes, a strong back and strong shoulders, a majestic and dignified appearance. When he sits there, he gives people a sense of calmness and domineering aura that comes from his intimidation without even being angry.

With a body as solid as a rock, an aggressive gaze, and calloused hands, it is not difficult to tell that this man must be a veteran who has practiced martial arts for many years and has been through many battles. He is Feng Tianba's former superior, the commander-in-chief of the Quanzhou Camp, Xu Guangsheng.

Once, Feng Tianba opposed Lu Tingxiang, and was therefore squeezed out of the Quanzhou camp by Xu Guangsheng. Later, he was transferred by the prefect Li Jiyuan to the Pingjiang Prefecture government office as a constable.

Come to think of it, there is quite a bit of grudge between Feng Tianba and Xu Guangsheng.

It is worth mentioning that Zhao Xie's behavior today was very abnormal. Based on his previous temperament, he would be the first to rush up and ask about Liu Xunyi's well-being when he saw that she was safe and sound. However, today he was surprisingly "aloof". Not only did he not take the initiative to say hello, he didn't even look at Liu Xunyi.

Although Liu Xunyi noticed something strange, he didn't dare to ask more questions due to the current situation. He could only quietly walk aside and sit down at Zhao Yuan's signal.

"The emperor has entrusted the wedding to the East and West Houses to jointly host the event. His intention is to use this opportunity to resolve the political differences between our two families." Seeing that everyone had arrived, Lord Qian was the first to break the silence, "I hope that Minister Jia and the gentlemen of the East House can understand the emperor's good intentions."

"Of course." Lord Jia smiled sarcastically, "The marriage was originally promoted by the West Mansion with great efforts, and it went through numerous difficulties and obstacles. Now that it has finally been accomplished, the emperor has called us from the East Mansion to participate. It is hard for us to bear to enjoy the credit of the West Mansion. As for the emperor's grace and love, this official is in tears and is very grateful."

Lord Jia's words were full of sarcasm, which made Lord Qian, Bai Jin and other Western Palace officials look even uglier.

The marriage between Song and Mongolia, from negotiation to bride reception, all matters were handled carefully by the West Palace. Sending the bride was the last link of the whole thing. However, the emperor suddenly ordered the East Palace to join in. His real intention was to balance the merits and demerits of the East and West Palaces.

If all the credit for the "marriage" was attributed to the West Mansion, the position of the East Mansion in the court would inevitably become weaker and weaker. In this way, the West Mansion would undoubtedly be the first meritorious official in the continuation of the lifeblood of the Song Dynasty. It would inevitably be a threat to the emperor and monopolize the military and political affairs of the Song Dynasty, which would be of no benefit to the imperial power.

In fact, the West Palace was extremely dissatisfied with the East Palace's interference, but under the pressure of the emperor's order, it did not dare to oppose it openly, so it could only compromise and cooperate reluctantly.

"Excuse me for being blunt, but we have already agreed on the date, route, and personnel for the wedding." Bai Jin said with a hint of meaning, "As for the gentlemen from the East Palace, you can just drink some tea and chat with them, which will be enough to share half of this great credit..."

"Bai Jin!" Lord Qian pretended to be displeased and scolded, "Minister Jia and Marquis Tianji are here, when is it your turn to talk too much?"

"That's right!" Bai Jin looked aggrieved. "They just need to follow our plan. What's more, the bridegroom is just around the corner. If we renegotiate, I'm afraid it will be too late..."

"That makes sense!" Zhao Yuan could not deny it. "Before coming here, the Prime Minister has repeatedly reminded us that we must do our best to cooperate with the West Mansion and must not take over the main position. Therefore, we must comply with the arrangements of the West Mansion."

"We are all old friends, so there is no need to be polite." Lord Jia interrupted, "May I ask Lord Qian, who does the West Mansion plan to send to escort the bride?"

"The commander of the Quanzhou camp is Xu Guangsheng." Lord Qian pointed at Xu Guangsheng and said quietly, "The emperor has agreed that General Xu will be the commander of the guards for this wedding. He will lead 300 elite soldiers of the Imperial Guard to protect the princess. General Xu is both wise and brave, capable and cautious. He has never made any mistakes in commanding troops for many years. The Quanzhou camp under his command is also the elite among the soldiers, and he is highly appreciated by the Privy Councilor. Whether it is strategizing or fighting on the battlefield, General Xu is outstanding. This time, he was sent to escort the bride, one, to protect the princess. The second is to show the Mongolians the power of our Song soldiers. As for the third... it is to let him familiarize himself with the mountains and rivers from Lin'an to Helin, in case of emergency."

Xu Guangsheng suddenly stood up, bowed to everyone, and said solemnly: "Please rest assured, my lords, I will definitely live up to the emperor's grace and swear to send the princess to Helin safely."

"Very good." Lord Jia said with satisfaction, "With General Xu here, the princess will be safe."

Lord Qian did not respond to Lord Jia's praise, but asked directly: "Regarding the arrangements for the bride's escort, what is the East Palace's opinion on?"

"I dare not talk about high opinions, but just send more people!" Lord Jia said calmly while holding up the teacup, "Feng Tianba led fifty guards from the Prime Minister's Mansion and General Xu's three hundred guards. In addition, the emperor personally appointed Liu Xunyi as the 'Song Dynasty Marriage Envoy' to escort the bride, and Eunuch Ding also represented the 'Eunuch Department' to escort the princess to marry."

Judging from Lord Jia's tone and words, he acted like a close minister of the emperor, which made Lord Qian and Bai Jin dissatisfied.

"Originally, you committed a capital crime and were thrown into the Heavenly Prison, but now you have become the 'Song Dynasty's Marriage Envoy'. I have to say that Lord Liu is really a blessed general. I am very impressed by your brilliant method of bringing the dead back to life." Lord Qian cast an interested look at Liu Xunyi and said with a smile, "If there is a chance, I hope Lord Liu can give us some advice and broaden our horizons."

After these words were spoken, Liu Xunyi's reaction was calm, but Qin Wei, who was sitting next to him, changed his expression and a hint of panic flashed in his eyes.

Liu Xunyi was completely confused about what happened today. Facing Mr. Qian's hidden meaning, he didn't know how to respond. He could only sit there stupidly, stunned by the unexpected news one after another, and smacked his lips repeatedly.

The inexplicable meeting lasted for three hours. When the hungry people left the villa one after another, Liu Xunyi still couldn't believe that what had just happened was real.

"Brother Qin!"

Outside the mansion, Liu Xunyi dragged Qin Wei, who was saying goodbye to the others, to a secluded place and asked anxiously, "What happened? Why was I suddenly pardoned? And why was I sent to escort the bride?"

Looking at the anxious Liu Xunyi, Qin Wei hesitated for a moment and said frankly: "Because a noble person helped me."

"Noble? Could it be Xin'er..."

"Not a princess!"

"Who is that?" Liu Xunyi was stunned, and then asked, "Could it be the young prince?"

"He is not the young prince. Brother Liu, don't make random guesses. The people who helped you only wanted to save your life and did not seek any reward." Qin Wei said with emotion, "To be honest, this is the first time I, Qin Wei, have met such a righteous hero in my life."

"Brother Qin, you know my temper. I will repay a drop of kindness with a spring. Today, if you don't tell me the truth, I won't let you leave." While speaking, Liu Xunyi's right hand that was holding Qin Wei's arm tightened a little more.

"you……"

Qin Wei felt abrupt and seemed to be hesitant. Under Liu Xunyi's almost eager gaze, he hesitated again and again, but in the end he could not resist Liu Xunyi's obsession. He sighed and slowly uttered three words: "Ban Jingguan."

……

(End of this chapter)