Chapter 960: Secret Meeting with Yan Liu (Part )

Spring is blooming, and all things are revived.

In the new year, the Central Plains is still divided into two distinct "heaven and hell". In prosperous areas, there are cold food festivals every morning and Lantern Festival every night. In poor areas, there is grief and devastation everywhere.

Officials, gentry and wealthy businessmen, as usual, levied heavy taxes and plundered property, completely disregarding the lives of the common people. They were blinded by greed and indulged in luxury, with rooms full of wives and concubines.

The poor people were exploited and squeezed at every level. The lucky ones could still have a humble house and porridge and rice to barely survive. The unlucky ones were mostly penniless, with no clothes to cover their bodies and no food to fill their stomachs. They could not have a full meal for three to five days.

Some people could not bear the hunger and cold, so they sold their children on the street, just to exchange for a bucket of grain or a piece of clothing.

In one winter, countless people froze to death or starved to death. Mass graves were piled with bones, and wolves and wild dogs feasted on them. Even more pitiful was that the families of the deceased did not even have the ability to buy a straw mat to collect their bodies.

Of course, the suffering of the people was covered up by the government's whitewashing. Most of the disaster victims, famine victims, and refugees were excluded from the prosperity, and all major cities and towns were still thriving with prosperity and peace.

This scene makes "heaven and hell" reflect the world. It really fits two lines of ancient poetry. One is "The merchant woman knows not the hatred of losing her country, and still sings the song of the back garden across the river." The other is "The rich have wine and meat, but there are frozen corpses on the road."

During this period, regardless of whether they were from the Song, Mongolian, Liao or Jin dynasties, the lives of ordinary people were miserable.

After all, all crows are black.

March 1st, Luoyang City.

In the evening, after having a good meal and a few drinks, Xie Xuan, accompanied by four disciples from the Xianwang Mansion, swaggered through the bustling night market and came to Mingling Yayuan in the east of the city.

As the most famous, the most dazzling and the most profitable brothel in Luoyang City, Mingling Yayuan, from the madam to the waiters, is full of clever people. Not only do they have a smooth tongue that can tell different things to different people, but they also have a keen eye that can read people's expressions and identify them.

Therefore, when Xie Xuan and his party just turned the corner, the waiter who was watching recognized their identities and sneaked upstairs to inform the madam.

Before they stepped into the gate of Mingling Yayuan, the old brothel owner with a fawning smile on her face had already come forward with seven or eight beautiful brides in heavy makeup and thin clothes, chattering.

"Oh my! What happy occasion is today? Which immortal lord blew such a gust of wind that blew Lord Xie to our store?"

The madam spoke frivolously, but she did not dare to behave in a dissolute manner in front of the serious Xie Xuan. She came forward and just bowed respectfully to Xie Xuan, without any other action. If it were someone else, I'm afraid the madam would have ordered the girls to surround him and "touch him all over" and act coquettishly.

"This isn't my first time here, why make a fuss?" Xie Xuan was obviously uncomfortable with the sweet smell coming from the madam, and subconsciously covered his mouth and nose, "Where is Qiuyue?"

"Even if this is not the first time, Lord Xie is still a rare guest among rare guests." The madam waved her fan tactfully, fanning Xie Xuan while leading the way. The group of people entered the lobby one after another. "We have Spring Moon, Summer Moon, and Winter Moon here. Why does Lord Xie never tire of Autumn Moon?"

"Ok?"

Hearing the madam's teasing, Xie Xuan suddenly stopped, staring at the madam with his deep eyes. Although he didn't say a word, an invisible pressure made the smile on the madam's face gradually freeze. Feeling embarrassed, he couldn't help but feel a chill on his back.

"You are too talkative, and you deserve to die." Realizing that Xie Xuan was dissatisfied, the madam quickly slapped her mouth with the peach blossom fan and apologized, "Master Xie, you came at an inopportune time today. Qiuyue is chatting with a guest upstairs..."

"What guest?" The disciple following Xie Xuan glared at him and shouted, "How dare he snatch the woman from my master? Tell him to get out!"

As soon as these words were spoken, they immediately attracted surprised looks from the people around.

“No, no, no! Don’t ruin the relationship because of a girl!” Seeing the four Xianwang Mansion disciples about to draw their swords, the madam was frightened and turned her face pale. She quickly cast a pleading look at Xie Xuan, who had an expressionless face, “That guest is not a stranger either. We are all friends…”

"Friend?" Xie Xuan frowned and asked curiously, "Does Xie know him?"

"Of course I know him. You two were drinking together last time." The madam nodded repeatedly, "It's... that old man named Lei Zhen. He is different from Lord Xie. You don't come once a year or two, but Mr. Lei comes every now and then, and every time he comes, he spends money like water. I know Lord Xie likes Qiuyue, but Qiuyue also has to eat and wear clothes, she can't just sit there and not receive guests..."

"Alright! Since we are all friends, Xie will go up and talk to Master Lei himself."

"That's great! Everything can be discussed. We have nothing in Mingling Yayuan except a lot of beautiful girls who are considerate and considerate." Seeing the storm subsided, the madam couldn't help but show ecstasy on her face, and hurriedly led Xie Xuan upstairs.

"Wait a moment!"

Xie Xuan changed his mind and turned to the four Xianwang Mansion disciples and said, "Romance... is not dangerous, you don't have to follow me, it will save you from embarrassment, and I will feel awkward too."

"This……"

"Find some sensible girls to serve them well, and put all expenses on Xie's account."

"Thank you, Lord, there's no need to be so polite. I will make sure it's properly arranged."

Following the madam's cheerful promise, the four disciples who were caught off guard looked at each other in bewilderment. Then they looked at Xie Xuan, who had already walked towards the second floor with big strides.

"Bang, bang bang..."

"Which blind bastard disturbs my pleasure?"

"squeak!"

Before the knock on the door ended, a cursing voice suddenly sounded from the room.

Then, the tightly closed door was violently opened. Lei Zhen, with dishevelled hair and messy clothes, appeared in front of Xie Xuan and the madam angrily. Looking inside the room, a young and beautiful woman was nestled in the quilt, putting on her dress leisurely, and occasionally casting a charming glance at Xie Xuan.

"You... Lord Xie?" Lei Zhen was stunned when he saw Xie Xuan. He quickly swallowed the dirty words that were about to come out of his mouth and quickly changed his words, "Why are you here?"

"What? Did I disturb your fun?" Xie Xuan asked sarcastically.

"No! No!" Lei Zhen's anger disappeared, and a knowing smirk appeared on the corner of his mouth. "Thank you, Lord Mansion, for coming at the right time."

"Humph!"

Facing the grinning Lei Zhen, Xie Xuan snorted and walked into the room.

"Madam, go and prepare the wine and food!"

As if sensing Xie Xuan's displeasure, Lei Zhen's face turned serious. He urged the madam to prepare wine and food, while pushing Qiuyue out of the room.

"You turn hostile as soon as you pull up your pants. You are really a dog..."

"Get lost! Why does a bitch have so much to complain about?"

When Qiuyue was mumbling and complaining to the crying and laughing madam, Lei Zhen, who could not wait any longer, suddenly raised his foot and kicked the defenseless Qiuyue out of the room, almost knocking the madam down.

"you……"

"boom!"

Before the indignant Qiuyue could step forward to argue, Lei Zhen waved his hand and closed the door tightly again.

"Since you came to Luoyang City, you seem to enjoy life better and better every day."

Xie Xuan looked around the room, picked up an apricot-red bellyband rolled up in the quilt, examined it with interest, and then threw it back on the bed.

"I have to admit that it's only after coming to the Central Plains that I've really seen the world." Lei Zhen hurriedly fastened his belt, then walked to the table to pour tea for Xie Xuan, grinning, "The Central Plains is as prosperous as its reputation, the food is good, the clothes are good, the things are good, even the women... are more charming than those outside the Great Wall. Hehe... Now think about it, what's the point of having power and influence outside the Great Wall? No matter how much money I spend in Qingzhou, I can't buy the 'good things' in Luoyang City..."

Looking at Lei Zhen who was still unsatisfied, Xie Xuan's mouth twitched slightly, and he said calmly: "You are just curious about things you have never seen. When you live in Luoyang City for a while, you will find that there is not much difference between here and the outside of the Great Wall."

"That makes sense." Lei Zhen handed a cup of tea to Xie Xuan and nodded seriously. "Although women in the Central Plains are charming, women from outside the Great Wall also have their own unique features. I just don't know... the legendary beauties from the south of the Yangtze River..."

"Cough cough!"

Before Lei Zhen finished speaking, Xie Xuan coughed twice impatiently and reminded him, "Master Lei, please don't indulge in wine and women and forget the important things Xunzhen told you to do."

"Hehe, Lei was just joking with Palace Master Xie just now!"

Having said this, the teasing look on Lei Zhen's face gradually disappeared until it was completely gone, and was replaced by a mysterious cunning look.

At the same time, Xie Xuan, who had been showing resentment, suddenly changed his attitude and his gloomy eyes flashed. The two looked at each other and raised a hint of intriguing smile at the same time.

"Luoyang City is full of spies from Prince Xian's Mansion, and Prince Xian's Mansion also has Ling Xiaoxiao's spies everywhere. As a last resort, Lei can only resort to this last resort and ask Palace Master Xie to meet in a place like this. I hope Palace Master Xie will not blame me." Lei Zhen reported with a serious expression and bowed to Xie Xuan.

"Eh!" Xie Xuan waved his hand nonchalantly, "Since the first time we met, I've said 'better safe than sorry'. It's rare that Master Lei is so attentive, I can't thank him enough, so how could I blame him?"

"How is it?" Lei Zhen glanced at the door and asked meaningfully, "Did you bring your 'tail' today?"

"What do you think?" Xie Xuan said with a wry smile, "Qingfeng and Ling Xiaoxiao have long suspected me, so how could they not send a 'tail' to monitor my every move? Recently, Ling Xiaoxiao recruited a group of new people from somewhere to join the Xianwang Mansion. These people are stubborn and only follow Ling Xiaoxiao's lead. Xie suspects... 80% of it was arranged by Qingfeng."

"That……"

"Don't worry! I have just asked the madam to find someone to serve them downstairs." Xie Xuan said with a smile, "The land of gentleness is the tomb of heroes. Even a man as experienced as Mr. Lei can't stand the 'tenderness around the fingers', let alone young people who are full of vigor and vitality? While we are talking, I'm afraid they have already had a lot of fun downstairs, how can they have the leisure to stare at me?"

"Ha ha……"

Maybe it was because he heard the sarcasm in Xie Xuan's words, but Lei Zhen's expression became a little unnatural, and he laughed out loud to hide his embarrassment.

"There will definitely be no Ling Xiaoxiao's eyes and ears here, so you can tell me boldly why you are in such a hurry to meet me?"

Xie Xuan sat leisurely at the table with a cup of tea in his hand, looking at Lei Zhen with a hint of curiosity in his eyes.

"Lei knows that the situation in Luoyang City is complicated. If it is not an urgent matter, I dare not easily alarm Lord Xie."

Having said this, the smile on Lei Zhen's face gradually faded. He looked around cautiously, then quickly walked to Xie Xuan's side and whispered in his ear, "Master Xie, the eldest lady and the deputy sect leader... are back!"

……

(End of this chapter)