There are two masters in the Jinyi Guard in the capital, known as "South Sun and North Xue", which is the commander of the South Hall Sun Duhe and the commander of the North Hall Xue Yuan.

Xue Yuan and Sun Duhe are of the same rank, and they are also four-grade guards with swords, with the rank of "General Xuanwu", and they are well-known figures in the area of Beijing, but Xiangjing is thousands of miles away from Beijing, and Xue Yuan is the first time he came to Changsha, and he was recognized, which really surprised him.

Therefore, he couldn't help but have a hint of doubt in his eyes when he looked at Hua Bushi.

Hua Bushi also saw Xue Yuan's expression, and said: "When General Shicai fought with Second Brother Meng, he only took seven steps, and he blocked all the routes of Second Brother Meng. ”

The young man said: "Brother Hua really knew Commander Xue's sword technique, so he guessed his identity. But I don't know what speculation does Brother Tai make about the identity of the younger brother?"

Hua Bushi said: "Before entering this lobby, Xiao Ke can only be compassionate, in this casino may be the dignitaries in the court, until standing here, Hua Bushi can guess your name in vain, but I don't know if it's right." ”

The young man said, "Brother Hua, please speak." ”

Hua Bushi was silent for a while, and suddenly put his hands behind his back and chanted a poem: "How many new ghosts are crying in battle, and the old man is sorrowful......"

The eldest young master shook his head, pacing square steps on his feet, but he also had a bit of the charm of a poor scholar.

The young boy said: "The turbulent clouds are low and twilight, and the snow is dancing back to the wind." ”

Hua Bushi chanted again: "The abandoned bottle is empty, and the furnace is as hot as a red ......."

The young man continued: "The news from several states is broken, and I am sad to sit on the empty book. ”

With a smile on his face, he said, "Brother Hua is really smart, and the younger brother is Cao Duyun." ”

Hua Bushi hugged his fists and said, "Hua Bushi has seen Duyun Gongzi!"

What Hua Bushi did was a gift of fellowship between peers on the rivers and lakes, if you want to follow the official etiquette of the Ming Dynasty, Hua Bushi's identity as a grass person, when he saw Cao Duyun, I am afraid he would have to kneel down and kowtow.

Just because of Cao Duyun's identity, he is the son of the current Ming Emperor Zhu Youzhen.

Of course, Cao Duyun is not the emperor's own son, but a righteous son. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, most of the emperors of the past dynasties like to adopt their sons, with the founding emperor Zhu Yuanzhang being the most, and he has received more than 20 sons, the most famous of which is Mu Ying, the "Duke of Qianguo".

In contrast, the adopted son of Emperor Chongzhen Zhu Youzhen is very few, only Cao Duyun.

As a righteous son, Cao Duyun is of course impossible to inherit the throne, but he is also a powerful figure in the capital, even if he is a prince and noble, an important minister of the court, and when he sees the "Duyun Prince", he must be polite and give three points. And it is not without reason that Emperor Zhu Youzhen loves Cao Duyun, his literary talents and martial arts are all the best choice, and many people even believe that this Duyun prince is likely to be like Mu Ying, the "Duke of Qianguo" in the future, who was entrusted by the emperor to be reused and become a feudal official of one party.

In fact, even if Cao Duyun does not have the father-in-law of Emperor Zhu Youzhen, his background is still prominent enough. His biological father, Cao Huayu, was the governor of the rear army who was in charge of the soldiers and horses of the Beijing Division, and he was also a senior officer with military power, and he also had an even stronger uncle, Cao Huachun, the factory commander of the East Deacon Factory.

Honorable family background, famous, all-round talent, smart and witty, and so handsome in appearance, this "Duyun Prince" is simply born to make others envious, and even jealous!

It's just that Cao Duyun treats people so gently and elegantly, and speaks so politely that others can't hate it if they want to.

He stretched out his hand to hold Hua Bushi's hand, as if he was pulling a close friend, and there was no shelf for His Royal Highness the Prince.

"It is really an honor for the younger brother to get acquainted with Brother Hua, and Brother Hua must not be polite. But I don't know how Brother Tai guessed the identity of the younger brother?" Cao Duyun said as he pulled Hua Bushi to the table and sat down.

Hua Bushi said: "Actually, this matter is not difficult to guess, General Xue Yuan is the leader of the 'Jinyi Guard', and the friend by the door must be a master of the East Deacon Factory, who can protect the two of them together, except for the 'Duyun Gongzi' in the Beijing Division, who else can there be?"

In the Ming court, "Jinyiwei" and "Dongchang" were both under the jurisdiction of the emperor, and they were both extremely powerful spy agencies, but they were separated and systematic, and even had some mutual restraints in terms of power. Cao Duyun is the prince, and he can mobilize the Liliang of Jinyiwei, and his uncle Cao Huachun is the prince of Dongchang, so he can support the masters of Dongchang to accompany him, and he can let Jinyiwei and Dongchang masters work together to protect at the same time, I am afraid that only this Duyun Gongzi.

Hua Bushi said again: "Although Xiao Ke can guess that the friend in the flower robe is from the Great Inner Forbidden Palace, he doesn't know his name at all, I don't know if Brother Cao can see it?"

In the martial arts, there are only a few people in the world who can practice the internal strength of the innate qi, and there are few people in this world who can really cultivate the internal strength to the innate realm. Hua Bushi had never heard of such a peerless master in the Ming Dynasty, and his curiosity suddenly rose, although he knew that he was a little presumptuous at this time, he couldn't help but ask.

Cao Duyun didn't care at all, and said calmly: "His name is Qiu Hengbo, it's normal that Brother Hua hasn't heard of it, just because he has always been in the Forbidden Palace, rarely comes out, and has never fought with others, so he has no reputation outside." ”

Hua Bushi nodded and said, "I see." ”

He nodded yes, but in his heart he didn't think that Qiu Hengbo had really never fought with others. When he entered the door, Hua Bushi had already felt a faint killing intent from the chill to his bones, and this kind of momentum was definitely not something that a person who had been practicing in retreat could have.

This Qiu Hengbo must have killed many people, and he will leave this kind of killing intent in his true qi, and the reason why his reputation is not obvious is only because the people who fought with him have already been killed, so no one in the rivers and lakes knows how powerful this person is.

Hua Bushi smiled and sat opposite Cao Duyun, but he was quite surprised in his heart.

The behind-the-scenes boss of "Happy Island" turned out to be a well-known prince of Duyun in the imperial court, which was already a very shocking thing, and why this Cao Duyun quietly came to Changsha City, hiding in the gambling house and not wanting to see people, was accompanied by masters such as Xue Yuanqiu Hengbo, which was even more incomprehensible.

Could it be that with Cao Duyun's power and Xue Yuanqiu's martial arts, is there anyone who is enough to threaten them?

Cao Duyun said: "The famous sentence of 'facing the snow' chanted by Brother Shicai is made by Du Weng in Chang'an, the imperial capital, and he is worried about the national disaster.

Hua Bushi said: "Xiao Ke is a commoner, in addition to making money on weekdays, he only thinks about some things of the Jianghu sect, and he really has no knowledge about state affairs." ”

Cao Duyun said: "With Brother Hua's intelligence, he knows how to protect himself, and he is unwilling to intervene in political disputes, of course the younger brother knows." However, in the younger brother's view, the rivers and lakes and the imperial court are both dangerous places of swords and swords, and there is not much difference in fact. ”

Hua Bushi said: "The dangers on the rivers and lakes, Hua Bushi still knows a thing or two, and I don't know anything about the affairs of the court." With Brother Cao's family background, does anyone in the court dare to harm you?"

Cao Duyun said: "In fact, the status of the younger brother is far less prominent than that spread outside, the saint accepted me as a righteous son, most likely because of the loyalty of the father, the title of His Royal Highness is in name only, the younger brother has no position and no power in the court, if there is no maintenance from his father and uncle, I am afraid that it will not be easy to save his life." ”

Hua Bushi said strangely: "Is it so dangerous in the imperial court?"

Cao Duyun said: "Brother Hua doesn't know, there are many parties in the court today, and the parties attack each other, there are many shili such as Donglin, Qi, Zhejiang, Chu, etc., and the sinister means of fighting are more than the tearing and killing between the sects in the rivers and lakes, which is really dangerous." ”

He sighed slightly, and said: "Our Cao family has been a minister for generations, loyal to the Ming Dynasty, and has received the grace of the saints, so we will not be threatened. It's just that now the country is in turmoil, traitors are everywhere, and my father and the government are at odds, which has caused dissatisfaction among some officials, and the saint has also been slandered, which makes the situation dangerous. Not only me, but even Dongchang's uncle was implicated, and the day was precarious. ”

In recent years, the internal and external troubles of the Ming court have been very serious, and the emperor Zhu Youzhen was worried, but he was not a very assertive person, and he was very suspicious when employing people, and he often vacillated between the various parties in the court, and his mind changed very quickly.

Hua Bushi didn't care about the government, these things had nothing to do with him, of course he didn't know anything, he just sat on the chair at this time, but didn't answer.

Cao Duyun is also a person who is very good at checking faces, seeing Hua Bushi's expression, he knew that he was not interested in such topics, and suddenly said: "Brother Hua, do you know how much this long shirt on the younger brother's body and the cloth boots under his feet are worth?"

Hua Bushi said: "Brother Cao's clothes are all made by famous clothing workshops, and the price is probably always in the amount of 1,000 taels of silver." ”

Cao Duyun said: "Brother Hua's vision is really good, this gown is sold for four hundred and sixty-eight taels in the 'Chunhuaxiang' silk village, and this pair of cloth boots is sold for seven hundred and ten taels in the 'Guangshengfu' shoe factory, totaling one thousand one hundred and seventy-eight taels of silver. ”

"Brother Cao has a noble status, so he should wear some expensive clothes. Hua Bushi replied casually, but he didn't understand why Cao Duyun asked this, this Duyun prince shouldn't be the kind of shallow person who likes to show off his clothes.

But Cao Duyun said: "In fact, these two clothes, even if the materials are exquisite and the workmanship is fine, their cost is not more than 100 taels of silver at most, but they have to be sold for a price of more than 1,000 taels, is this business very profitable?"

Hua Bushi said: "That's true. If Xiao Ke has the opportunity in the future, he will definitely do the clothing business, and he can make a lot of money in the future. ”