Bastards

Because Chang'an City needed to be far away for the time being, and the river course plan from west to south was not in a hurry to implement, Yang Xuan didn't leave and stayed in Cuimata's courtyard for the time being.Because the courtyard was too small and there were not enough rooms, Yang Xuan and Cui Yu shared one room.

Cui Yu is currently being grounded by the elders, and no one has power. He is considered an invisible person in the Cui family. It is impossible for him not to be a boring little fat man like Cui Jin.So few people knew about Yang Xuan's living here with Cui Yu, and those who knew would not talk too much about it.

Only Lan Qiao, who slandered Yang Xuan every day, obviously rich, why didn't he stay at the inn, "wronged" and lived in the same room with the master, and kept his eyes wide open, watching from the sidelines, for fear that Yang Xuan would overstep the bounds, He didn't even sleep well at night, and once even made a bed directly outside Cui Yu's gate, for fear that Yang Xuan would do something to his master!

Yang Xuan couldn't bear it any longer, and took Lan Qiao aside to teach him, "You think what I said makes sense, so you must listen to it, right?"

Lan Qiao didn't object to this point at all, Sha San's every thought and every suggestion was very good, and he was completely thinking of his master, why didn't he listen!He nodded solemnly without thinking: "Yes!"

"Then let me teach you a little bit more." Yang Xuan sullenly tried not to restrain himself from grabbing Lan Qiao's neck. "All of this must be based on Cui Yu's will!"

Lan Qiao didn't understand: "What... mean?"

"The meaning is that it all depends on Cui Yu's meaning!" Yang Xuan said in a deep voice, "If Cui Yu doesn't like it, if you hate it, of course you have to block it, but if Cui Yu likes it, you have to learn to read the atmosphere, and you can't block it. ?”

Lan Qiao pointed at her finger: "I understand this... If the master really likes a girl one day, of course I won't stop..." He quickly glanced at Yang Xuan, and did not retreat despite his murderous aura, "But master Didn't say I like you..."

Yang Xuan snorted coldly: "Didn't you say you like me?"

He took out a white jade hairpin from his bosom and showed it to Lan Qiao, with a look of color on his face: "You know this one, right?"

Lan Qiao's eyes widened: "It's the master's hairpin!"

"It's mine now." Yang Xuan's expression was calmer than before, but his voice slightly raised, "He gave it to me."

Lan Qiao was stunned.

"so what?"

"So this is a token!" Yang Xuan looked very reserved, "Do you understand?" I have an unusual relationship with your young master!

Lan Qiao: "But the young master often rewards me with things, such as hairpins, purses, jade pendants, and my pile."

Yang Xuan: ... angrily kicked over the stool again.

It was only after walking a long distance that he realized that what Cui Yu bestowed to his servants could not compare with his parting gifts!He is a very important and unique existence in Cui Yu's heart!

He shouldn't have shown off to that ungrateful boy!There's no way such an idiot can understand!

So in the days that followed, Yang Xuan still fought wits and courage with Lan Qiao, and by the way, he also raced against time with the little tiger, racing against time to get close to Cui Yu, seeking any time for physical contact.

At first he didn't understand why he was like this, so angry, and so eager and persistent. He thought it was just fighting with Lan Qiao, but later he gradually understood... He regretted not doing anything else at that time.

……

It happened that Yang Xuan was there, so Cui Yu asked him for help and paid attention to Zhao Ji's movements.

On this day, Zhao Fan and Wu Xian met again in a teahouse.And the day before, Zhao Fan had just issued an ultimatum to Zhao Ji, no matter whether Zhao Ji agreed or not, he would take Zhao Shuxue away in a few days.

When Yang Xuan heard the detailed feedback brought by his subordinates, his first reaction was: This Zhao Ji has nowhere to go, and I'm afraid he's going to take a desperate risk and make a fool of himself.

He said this to Cui Yu, but Cui Yu suddenly stretched his eyebrows, smiled like a spring breeze, and there was a flash of light in his eyes: "It's finally here."

Yang Xuan swept his eyebrows and narrowed his eyes, so this is the moment Cui Yu was waiting for?

Cui Mata straightened the corners of his clothes, seeing that the clothes on his body were suitable, so he didn't change any more, and walked out first: "Let's go!"

Curious, Yang Xuan followed behind him.

They soon arrived outside the teahouse agreed by Zhao Fan and Wu Xian.

Yang Xuan thought Cui Yan was going to go in, but the latter didn't, so he ordered a cup of tea from a small tea stall outside the teahouse, and slowly sipped it.

Yang Xuan was even more curious: "You now..."

"Wait." Cui Mata said concisely.

"Wait?" Didn't he go to the teahouse to negotiate with Zhao Fan and ask him to give up Zhao Shuxue?Yang Xuan couldn't figure it out.It wasn't until a quarter of an hour later that a familiar man turned the corner of the street, and Yang Xuan suddenly realized that it was him Cui Yu was waiting for!

It is to start from him!

Zhao Ji turned around from the street corner and stopped when he saw a teahouse not far away.He is tall and tall, with flat shoulders and a straight back. He is wearing a round-neck scholar's robe, and he has an upright temperament.But if you look closely, you can find that although the robe on his body is very clean, it is very old in color. It has been washed many times, and the corners of the hem have been carefully repaired, so that no traces of wear and tear can be seen. His current quality of life... Obviously very bad.His shoulders are straight, but there is a faint sense of stiffness. I don't know if it's stubbornness that doesn't want to bend over the oppression of life, or he is very nervous about something.

Yang Xuan looked at it for a while and thought that the latter was more likely.

Probably because of this, the person frowned, stared at the teahouse with persistent and strange eyes, clenched his fists, as if to cheer himself up, and was about to do something amazing.He couldn't help his throat trembling, and subconsciously swallowed... This was a sign of nervousness.

Cui Mata naturally saw it too.The smile on his lips faded, he immediately got up and walked towards Zhao Ji.

Yang Xuan followed.

Lan Qiao silently made tea money with the owner of the tea stall, and continued to silently stand behind the masters, not too far away, nor close, as long as the master gave orders, he would come forward to serve immediately with a little greeting.

Cui Yu strode towards Zhao Ji, and the moment the two of them brushed each other, he said clearly and quickly, "If I were you, I wouldn't do stupid things here."

Zhao Ji's eyes and pupils shrank, and the right hand inserted into the sleeve of his left hand was retracted immediately, squinting and staring at Cui Yu's back: "What did you say?"

"I said—" Cui Yu turned around slowly, with his slender eyebrows slightly closed, his eyes flicked over Zhao Ji's face, slowly slid towards his body, and finally settled on the cuff of his left hand.

Zhao Ji dodged subconsciously and put his left arm behind his back.

"You took the dagger, did you want to hurt someone... or did you want to hurt yourself?"

Cui Yan sighed softly, there seemed to be a stream of light flashing across the bottom of his clear eyes, showing pity.

"Who are you!"

"...people who don't want to watch you do stupid things."

Sweat suddenly oozes from Zhao Ji's forehead, his lips are tightly pursed, and his arms tremble slightly.His eyes slid across the corner of the teahouse not far away, and there were mixed emotions in his eyes. He was unwilling, unwilling, and didn't want to be blocked by others. He wanted to take out a dagger and rush over desperately, not allowing anyone to block him in front of him...

When this terrifying thought came to his mind, he suddenly noticed that there was another person behind the handsome young man in front of him.The man was thin, but full of strength, like a drawn sword, with sharp eyebrows, ready to go, staring at him like a wolf, as if if he dared to move, he would kill him on the spot , decapitated in different places.

Zhao Ji's eyes trembled, and his lips moved slightly: "Who are you, how do you know..."

Cui Yu smiled, the bottom of his eyes reflected the brilliance of the sun, shining brightly: "It seems that it is not convenient to talk on the street, let's go to another place?"

Zhao Ji had no choice but to look at the tea house again unwillingly, tightened the dagger in his sleeve, and followed Cui Yu away.

……

In order to avoid Zhao Ji's irritation, Cui Yu took him to another teahouse, which was some distance away from the teahouse where Zhao Fan and Wu Xian met.

Zhao Ji was suspicious and anxious. He wanted to talk to Cui Yu all the time, but Cui Yu just smiled and didn't respond much.He also called Dr. Tea to come over to make tea, watched other people's flowing movements, admired and praised them very much, and even chatted with people from time to time, never leaving the tea.

Zhao Ji...that heart is like fried.

Waiting and waiting until others confess, and his behavior has already fallen into the eyes of others, and he will not be able to do what he thinks anyway... He also stopped talking to Cui Mata.

The seat is near the window, and the late autumn sun in the afternoon is shining brightly and warmly on the body.There are not many tourists outside the street, but there are also many. They are in small groups, with smiles on their faces, meeting to play and enjoy the beautiful autumn scenery. The golden yellow leaves are swirling and falling around them, and the years seem...warm and leisurely.

Zhao Ji watched quietly, and his frozen heart seemed to quiet down...

"Calm down?"

A clear sound came from his ear, and Zhao Jimeng came back to his senses, only to realize that Dr. Cha had left at some point, leaving only the handsome young man and his fierce-eyed companion in front of him.

"My name is Cui Yu, and this is Sha San, my good friend." Cui Yu introduced himself with a smile, "Maybe you don't know me, but there is one person you must be familiar with."

He clapped his palms, and the door of the box opened, and a handsome young man walked in: "Master, what are your orders?"

Zhao Ji looked shocked: "You are that... Lan Qiao!"

Lan Qiao smiled with his arms tied: "Meet you again, Mr. Zhao."

"I don't have any special instructions, I just want to be busy here for a while, you don't have to guard, go out and wander around on your own." Cui Yu waved his hand and let Lan Qiao go out to play.

"Yes."

After Lan Qiao left, Cui Yu looked at Zhao Ji who was stunned and surprised: "Now you know... who I am?"

Zhao Ji nodded in a daze: "You are my brother's teacher... Mr. Wang Laoshan please take care of me."

"So I have no malice towards you."

"I know..." Zhao Ji felt quite ashamed when he thought of the moment when he was stopped just now.His face was reddish, and he looked at Cui Yu apologetically, "I just... I'm sorry."

Cui Yu smiled: "It's okay, you were just a little emotional just now."

Yang Xuan snorted coldly, and glanced at Zhao Ji rather threateningly.

After the shock, Zhao Ji returned rationally, and sighed a long time: "Lanqiao came that day, and he did what the master ordered, and came to visit me and my nephew and niece on behalf of Mr. Wang. I asked a few words and learned that you just returned to Yicheng ...You may not know that the situation in my family is different from others, and I don't want to involve you. "

Cui Yu had already guessed this: "I know."

"But how do you know about me...I am today..." Zhao Ji couldn't guess how Cui Yu knew his plan, "I'm sure I didn't tell anyone." The dagger was also hidden quietly.

Of course, Cui Yu would not tell him that he had been following him for a long time, and with Yang Xuan as a god-like help by his side, it was easy to figure out his behavior.He just picked up the teacup gracefully, took a sip, and his smile was full of mystery: "Because I knew a long time ago, you will be in great trouble!"

Zhao Ji was taken aback.

Cui Yu looked at Zhao Ji, pointed to his face, and began to fool around: "Whatever you will encounter, it's all written here."

Zhao Ji didn't realize it for a while, but after a long time, his fingertips trembled slightly: "You...do you understand numerology?"

"A little dabbling."

Cui Yu's voice was light, but Huang Huang's self-confidence under the dazzling smile was not as humble as his words!

Zhao Ji looked at Cui Yu seriously for the first time.This young man is not as good as the weak crown, with a frail figure, red lips and white teeth, picturesque eyebrows, and a red mole on the center of his brow, which is as red as cinnabar, which adds a bit of elegance to him, like... a master outside the world, with a fairy-tale character.

People in the world, no matter men or women, are not ugly when they are teenagers, they are most youthful and full of vitality.But people of this age are blooming and good-looking, but they are also awkward and young because of their lack of experience in the world, but there is no embarrassment and youthfulness in Cui Yu. He is like a mature elder, talking and laughing. Yan, with every gesture, exuded the charm that only grown men have!

Zhao Ji's chest was thumping, he was the one who misread the wrong person!

Cui Yu's smile was on the corner of his lips, and the expression in his eyes became more mysterious and unfathomable.

Yang Xuan...Yang Xuan almost threw away the teacup in his hand, that's fine too!

He raised his eyebrows and looked at Cui Yu, as if he was meeting Cui Yu for the first time. When Zhao Ji was distracted, Cui Yu quickly blinked at him like a cunning fox.

How to win people's trust, how to win people's trust quickly, has always been a difficult problem, especially when you are young and the other party is older than you.Cui Yu didn't want to explain in detail to Zhao Ji how he knew about his recent situation, and how to analyze his behavior pattern from the news and stop him in time, which would take a long time.

And if he wants to explain, he has to recruit Cui Ying, and Zhao Shuwen and Zhao Shuxue's plan will also be revealed.Not to mention whether these children's behavior is right or wrong, things like reputation must be maintained, he can't get the news of others and sell them out.Although little fat Cui Jin is a bear, he still knows that he is sincerely protecting his sister's reputation, how could he be worse than a bear?

The ancients were superstitious, and this is also the case in this dynasty. The poor learn Confucianism, and the rich learn metaphysics. The two old men of the Xie family have studied metaphysics, and Mr. Wang is the best among them. , the status is a bit higher than others, and it is easier to get promoted.Learning to be rich, full of economics, knowing astronomy at the top, geography at the bottom, and harmony between people, this is the dream of a scholar, and the family is sought after, let alone the world?

It's just that due to the difference in personal spirituality, there are really too few people who are capable of metaphysics, and Taoists with real abilities rarely appear, so the world is extremely eager for the best in the world.

Cui Yu had thought before that at his age, it would be very difficult to gain a foothold in the imperial court. A group of old foxes with beards would not be willing to play with him, but if he wanted to help Yang Xuan, he would go there sooner or later. Fair respect, that's the problem.Since he has abilities, why not use them?The ability is not harmful to him, and his health is not damaged, but he can tolerate a little side effect.

And he has a brain, so he doesn't have to use abilities.For example, regarding Zhao Ji's matter this time, as long as enough information is provided for his analysis, he can guess the development track of the matter, and he does not need to inform him of the preliminary work.

Use the result obtained with 'very hard work', and the performance of 'look effortless' in front of others... that's it.

As soon as the metaphysics comes out, only look at spirituality, not age, as long as what you say is right, what you do is good, and you have a deceptive face... Whatever Cui Yu thinks, this path is very suitable for him.

Zhao Ji's fingertips trembled slightly, and he swallowed involuntarily: "You really... saw that?"

"Otherwise?" Cui Yan narrowed his eyes, and his eyes slipped to Zhao Ji's left sleeve again, "Could it be that I watched you insert the dagger?"

This is impossible.Zhao Ji shook his head, he stuffed the dagger into his sleeve in his room, the doors and windows were closed, no one could see it!

"Your uncle, Zhao Fan, made a private agreement with the county lieutenant, Wu Xian, to donate Zhao Shuxue in order to seek an official career. And you, because of your failure in the early stage, have almost no status in the Zhao family and cannot fight against Zhao Fan. Zhao Fan has set a final date. You can't change it if you are forced to retreat, so you want to die..."

Cui Yu lightly tapped the table with his fingertips, once and for all, as if touching Zhao Ji's heart.

Zhao Ji's body was tense and his teeth were clenched.

"But have you ever thought about... what will happen to you if the county captain Wu Xian is injured here? The Wu family will let you go, and Zhao Fan will let you go? If Zhao Fan is injured or dies... Based on your family's inheritance habits, it won't happen. What happened, but in your heart... you might be able to pass that test? If you have a conscience in your heart, let these two wicked people go in the end, and use suicide in exchange for public opinion coercion, people's words are terrible—" Cui Yu knocked on the last On the desktop, "It might be possible to avoid this time, Zhao Shuxue may not be sent by Zhao Fan, but what about next time?"

"You're dead, and Zhao Shuxue has no elders to protect her. Do you think Zhao Fan will plot against her again? Will Zhao Fan hold a grudge and find a home for Zhao Shuxue that is worse than this time? Public opinion, rumors, it won't take a few months. It will be able to drift away, Zhao Shuxue is less than eleven years old this year, and there are still many years to come when he grows up!"

"Did you do it on purpose? Zhao Ji, because you were under too much pressure and didn't want to live anymore, you simply let go, so you left the two children to be tortured and suffered!"

Zhao Ji covered his eyes with his hands, his voice trembling: "I don't...I..."

"If you couldn't raise your child well, you shouldn't have sworn at your brother's grave!"

Tears leaked from between Zhao Ji's fingers, he turned his back, rubbed his eyes and wiped away his tears: "It was my fault...but I can't help it!"

"Isn't there still me?" Cui Yu's voice fell softly in his ears, "Trust me, accept my help, and that's all."

Yang Xuan looked at Zhao Ji, who was crying so badly, and then at Cui Yu, who had a pure and sincere face and a sly smile in his eyes, and took a deep breath.

Only this fox in a good-looking rabbit fur can come up with such a tricky way of deceiving people and taking pleasure in torturing people!

Cui Yu noticed Yang Xuan's gaze, tilted his head and smiled at him, very bright and warm.

Yang Xuan's heart tightened, and he immediately recalled vigilantly, if he had done anything to make this rabbit unhappy recently.After thinking about it, he was relieved to find that he hadn't, and reminded himself, in the future, never, never mess with this rabbit casually!

When Zhao Ji calmed down again, Cui Yu smiled again and said: "I can solve your problem, first treat the symptoms and then the root cause."

Since his brother's death, Zhao Ji never cried in front of others again. He was very embarrassed and did not dare to look at Cui Yu, worried that his voice would vibrate, so he did not reply in time.

"You have too much burden on your body, it's normal to vent, don't worry about it." Cui Yu comforted him softly, "Do you want to... talk to your brother? Mr. Wang Laoshan said he is a very outstanding person, but I have never seen him , I am truly sorry.”

Zhao Ji could hardly refuse this topic.He grew up with his elder brother, and he liked and admired his elder brother the most in his life, but for a long time, he didn't remember his elder brother well with others.

Holding the teacup in his hand, he spoke slowly, talking about the past.

The Zhao Zhong in his mouth is a man with a hot temper and a sense of justice. He was obviously born in a small family with bad morals, but he has the world in mind and has the ambition of a nobleman.Zhao Zhong was very smart, learned everything quickly, was willing to help others, made many friends, and was appreciated by Wang Fu, the old mountain leader, and was able to become a disciple, and then entered an official career smoothly.

He has encountered many people, many things, and many troubles in his official career, but he has never been afraid, and with the momentum of "coming out of the mud without staining", he tries to influence and change the people around him.When he became the head of the house, the atmosphere in the house changed.

At that time, Zhao Ji firmly believed that under the influence of his elder brother, this family would slowly get better, just like those aristocratic families, it was not an aristocratic family at the beginning, and only by gradually developing and stabilizing the foundation can it achieve today's success.

But his brother died at this time...

Zhao Ji talked a lot about Zhao Zhong's ambition, Mr. Wang Laoshan's love and care, his inner gratitude, and his desire to inherit his brother's behest.It's a pity that he is not as good as his elder brother, even his uncle Zhao Fan... He is obviously the direct descendant of the Zhao family, and Zhao Fan is just a bastard with an unknown mother!

"It's not that I look down on the bastard. The important thing about family inheritance is to spread the branches and leaves. Everyone has their own responsibility. The success of the bastard is also the honor of the family. If you are really outstanding, there is nothing wrong with branching off from the main branch! You can be insidious and cunning, It is really dirty to have ulterior motives and always want to count blood relatives! The ancestors left the heirloom inheritance system to prevent internal strife and maintain stability, but there are always people who regard it as nothing, not their own, so they just look at it greedily, go lie, go Rob!"

"I don't understand. Is it so difficult to obey the rules! And not only my family is like this, I heard that many nobles, clansmen and royal relatives are also..." Zhao Ji's eyes froze when he said this, as if he remembered something, full of Looking at Cui Yu with a serious face, "Pearls and jade will never be dusty, you have such a skill, you will be famous in the future, and you will be recruited by the royal family, you..." He looked around and lowered his voice, "Don't give in to others , support the prince's orthodoxy, okay?"