My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 52 Return
For a fleeting moment, Li Jiancheng felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave, instantly chilled to the bone.

He shuddered instinctively, curled up, and his lips trembled as he called out in a strange tone, "Grandpa."

Li Yuan was introducing Guancheng to Zhang Xutuo and Zhao Yuanshu when he saw his son coming out and said with a smile to those around him, "This is my good-for-nothing eldest son!"

Manager Liu coughed lightly, and Li Jiancheng finally broke free from his stiffness. He quickly jumped off his horse and bowed deeply to his father, followed by the others.

Li Yuan led the two men forward, about to say something, but immediately noticed his son's extremely unpleasant expression.

Li Yuan's smile faded slightly. "Jiancheng! What's going on? Why aren't you paying your respects to your two elders?"

Li Jiancheng reacted quickly, bowing to the two men beside Li Yuan and saying, "I haven't seen my father for a long time, and I miss him dearly. That's why I was distracted and failed to pay my respects in time. Please forgive me."

Upon hearing this, a smile appeared on Zhao Yuanshu's face.

This Duke of Tang has been being sarcastic and sarcastic all the way here!

He didn't respect me, a court official, at all. He knew perfectly well that I was sent out by imperial decree, yet he still mocked me in every way. His knights followed his example and were mostly rude to me.

It's rare to see such a son of the Duke of Tang; he's quite polite, unlike his father.

He returned the greeting with a smile and praised, "Young master, you are indeed a man of great appearance; you are sure to achieve great things in the future!"

Zhang Xutuo didn't speak, but he returned the greeting.

Li Yuan, in a fit of excitement, shouted, "I'm returning!!"

He then dismounted and invited everyone to follow him into the mansion. Li Yuan grabbed a knight beside him and said, "Go and summon all those managers in the city! If they don't arrive within half an hour, they will be punished!"

"Here!"

The knight hurriedly departed.

Li Yuan smiled and led everyone into the mansion, arriving at the main hall specially for welcoming guests. As soon as Li Yuan returned, the entire mansion became lively, like a dense forest welcoming spring after hibernation. Suddenly, there were many more servants in the mansion, moving around everywhere, and the silence was instantly broken.

One after another, people from the mansion came to pay their respects. Li Yuan even brought gifts for some of the people in the mansion, which he had the knights distribute. Everyone thanked him profusely.

Li Yuan sat in the seat of honor, with Zhao Yuanshu and Zhang Xutuo sitting to his left and right respectively.

Li Jiancheng sat a little further away, instructing his servants to slaughter livestock to reward the distinguished guest.

Li Yuan looked at Zhang Xutuo and said, "I have the finest mutton in my residence. I must make sure you eat your fill before you leave!"

"I've also hidden some good wine. Just give the order!"

He looked at Manager Liu in the distance, waved, and gestured for him to come over.

Manager Liu quickly walked to his side.

Li Yuan still wore a smile, but asked in a low voice, "What happened at the manor?"

Sitting at a distance, Li Jiancheng saw Manager Liu whispering something to his father. He had good eyesight and could see that every time Manager Liu spoke, his father's eyes would twitch.

Manager Liu clearly knew how to report more quickly and accurately; he finished speaking in a short while and stood aside.

Li Yuan smiled and nodded, "Okay, then there's no need to buy any more. Go and fetch me the best wine from the manor!"

Manager Liu agreed and then quickly left.

Li Yuan smiled as he looked at Li Jiancheng.

Li Jiancheng clearly saw the hidden 'murderous intent' in that smile. For a moment, Li Jiancheng felt a chill run down his spine and his hair stood on end.

This is completely the end!

Li Yuan simply smiled and looked at Li Jiancheng for a while, but said nothing. He then pulled Zhang Xutuo aside and started talking loudly, laughing and chatting.

After waiting a short while, a large group of people rushed over.

These people were all dressed in official robes; they were all officials from within the city, from Wang Zanwu to the county magistrates—almost everyone was present.

Led by Wang Zanwu, the group lined up neatly and entered the main hall, where they then paid their respects to Li Yuan.

When Li Yuan saw these people, his smile vanished instantly.

He had a stern face and a somewhat displeased look in his eyes.

Wang Zanwu bowed, but received no response for a long time. He slowly raised his head and saw Li Yuan with a displeased expression. Wang Zanwu did not dare to speak first, so he could only maintain his bowing posture.

The same applies to officials.

Zhao Yuanshu was somewhat surprised. Wasn't Li Yuan supposed to have an excellent relationship with officials at all levels? Why would he deliberately humiliate them like this?

Li Yuan pointed to the people in front of him and looked at Zhang Xutuo beside him, "Lord Zhang, please don't think I'm being rude. Do you know how these people have governed the area since I left?"

"I've only been gone for a little over forty days, and they've made a complete mess of Xingyang!"

"A gang of notorious thieves has emerged, but instead of fighting them, they've hidden in the city, watching the bandits go out and wreak havoc!"

"Even my sons couldn't stand it anymore. My sons are kind-hearted. When they learned that a bandit was causing trouble outside the city, they organized local militia to go out and suppress him. But do you know what happened? This group colluded with the powerful local Zheng family and dared to attack my sons!!!"

“My son was studying at the Zheng family's school. They kidnapped my third son and made my eldest son go to ransom him. They even tried to attack my eldest son. Luckily, my son was good at martial arts, so he managed to save his life!”

Wang Zanwu was dumbfounded when he heard this nonsense.

what? ?

Not only him, but the officials around him were also dumbfounded, staring at Li Yuan in disbelief.

Not only them, but Zhao Yuanshu and Zhang Xutuo were also taken aback. Zhang Xutuo, in particular, was no longer as calm as before and asked, "How could this be?"

"Ha, the local militia used to be controlled by the Zheng family. These militias weren't really used to fight bandits; they were just there to make money for themselves! They were afraid that the militia organized by my son would cut off their interests!"

As Li Yuan spoke, he suddenly stood up and glared angrily at Wang Zanwu and the others.

"My son was attacked by these local militia outside the city!!!"

"What exactly do you want?!"

"Treason?!"

Wang Zanwu and the others knelt on the ground in fear, hurriedly begging for forgiveness, "We know our sins! It was our fault for failing in our duties!"

Li Yuan threw his wine cup to the ground and shouted, "Wang Zanwu! If I don't see the commander who attacked my son kneeling here within an hour, I will charge you with treason!"

"Here!!"

Upon receiving the order, Wang Zanwu jumped up as if his pants were on fire, gathered a few men, and rushed out like lightning.

Li Jiancheng sat at a distance, watching in stunned silence.

After learning what his brothers were about to do, he was thinking about how to suppress the matter and prevent it from having any impact. But his father was determined to make things bigger!

Li Yuan watched as Wang Zanwu rushed out, and his expression softened somewhat. He smiled at Zhang Xutuo and said, "I apologize for making you laugh, Zhang Jun."

Zhang Xutuo quickly shook his head, then sighed, "I previously reported to the Emperor that the disadvantages of local militias outweigh their advantages. The local militias are more vicious than bandits; how can they be expected to protect the people?"

As if she had heard the key words, Zhao Yuanshu quickly straightened up and subconsciously replied, "There is nothing wrong with the Fubing system. It was promoted by the sage. The problem with the local militia is mainly due to the local people, not the problem of the imperial court."

Li Yuan glanced at him and said, "Who the hell asked you that?"

He ignored the fellow and continued chatting with Zhang Xutuo. Meanwhile, many of the officials in the city, who were of the same rank as Zhang Xutuo, knelt in the main hall, not daring to utter a sound.

Li Yuan chatted with the other party for a few words, then gestured for Li Jiancheng to come over and offer a toast.

Li Jiancheng didn't dare to delay and hurriedly came over to offer a toast.

This was the first time Li Yuan had introduced this valiant warrior to his son. Upon hearing the man's name, Li Jiancheng was greatly surprised! Zhang Xutuo? Qi County?
I remembered!

Is this the person who arrested Qin Qiong's family? They seem to have some conflict with Luo Shixin?

Thinking of Qin Qiong and Luo Shixin, Li Jiancheng felt a surge of excitement. Although these men were not as powerful as his third brother, they were still fierce generals!

Li Jiancheng was about to inquire when Li Yuan made him stand beside him. He chuckled and squeezed Li Jiancheng's hand, "I truly didn't misjudge this son! He was willing to storm the Zheng family for his brother's sake, and out of concern for the people outside, he sent his own brother to risk his life to fight the bandits! Putting public duty before private interests! Excellent!"

While praising Li Jiancheng, Li Yuan gripped Li Jiancheng's hand tightly.

Li Jiancheng's face turned red with pain, but he dared not cry out.

It's none of my business!
Sin! ! !
(End of this chapter)