Prince! The political conspiracy is not a play, the show is real

At this point, Shi Yiqian, who has always been very concerned about his reputation, almost doesn't understand how to write the word "decent".

Zhou Yan, the head of the Jiangnan silk and textile guild, controlled the region's information. Shi Yiqian had his own considerations. The emperor had long assigned him to manage the frontier, and he had a good idea of ​​what he was doing. He could guess that the emperor did not want the Marquis of Zhenbei to set foot in the Central Plains.

Serving the emperor is like serving a tiger. It is always right to be more careful when working for the emperor. Shi Yiqian was an important general in the court. If he really stayed at the frontier for his whole life and ignored the affairs of the Central Plains, any civil official who came out to advise and slander him would have his entire clan executed.

General Zhenbei Hou had made countless military achievements in his half-life and was trusted by the emperor, which seemed to make him look very glorious - but the more so, the more cautious he had to be.

The higher you climb, the easier it is to accidentally fall to the bottom.

Shi Yiqian wanted to make friends with the businessman Zhou Yan so that he could get the news from the Central Plains.

Zhou Yan was only interested in two things: business and beautiful women. Shi Yiqian had spent half his life fighting wars and had no idea how to run a business. His only bargaining chip was his daughter.

Zhou Yan already had five wives and concubines, and was a playboy who flirted with everyone. Shi Yiqian knew Zhou Yan's character very well, so he definitely couldn't marry his precious daughter Shi Lanxin to him.

Although Shi Yiqian also felt that his thoughts were somewhat unfair to Tao Yao, he quickly found a reason for himself.

If a biological daughter were to be married off, there would have to be a grand ceremony, which would inevitably alert the emperor and arouse his suspicion. However, marrying off an adopted daughter could be done quietly and without alerting the emperor.

Shi Yiqian thought again that Zhou Yan's business had been doing quite well in recent years and he was considered wealthy. If Tao Yao was married to him, she would not have to live a hard life.

Tao Yao was originally an adopted child. She grew up in the Shi Mansion until her current age and enjoyed the protection that did not belong to her.

Now that Tao Yao has reached the age, Shi Yiqian thinks that if he can find a decent marriage for her, he can also make friends with Zhou Yan, a big businessman in Jiangnan. It won't be unfair to his adopted daughter, and it will also fulfill his own wish, which is killing two birds with one stone.

Before Shi Yiqian stepped into the side hall, he had thought that Zhou Yan must still be angry, and he had prepared countless words of apology in his mind. However, he did not expect that when he walked into the side hall carrying Tao Yao, what he saw was a peaceful scene.

At this moment, Zhou Yan was sitting comfortably beside the flower table in the living room, holding a cup of steaming wine in his left hand and a black chess piece in his right hand.

A chess game was being played on the table, and there seemed to be someone sitting across from the table. Zhou Yan was chatting and laughing with that person.

When Shi Yiqian took a step closer, he was suddenly surprised and froze in his tracks - the person sitting opposite him at the table was Chu Huanjun.

When she saw Chu Huanjun, Tao Yao's reaction was even greater than Shi Yiqian's. Her eyes widened into the size of walnuts, and she instantly scurried behind Shi Yiqian like a mouse, trying to hide herself.

Shi Yiqian didn't care about the surprise. He always paid attention to etiquette, so he grabbed Tao Yao's hand and walked straight towards her, bowing slightly to Chu Huanjun.

"Why didn't you inform me in advance that the prince was coming? I didn't even have time to prepare." Shi Yiqian had no idea why Chu Huanjun would appear here at this time, and he forced a narrow smile on his face.

At this moment, Chu Huanjun was concentrating on the chess game in front of him. He didn't look up, but said calmly: "Old Shi, we are old acquaintances. I just came here to relax. There is no need to mobilize a large force."

Compared to his arrogant demeanor at the dinner just now, Zhou Yan seemed like a completely different person at this moment. He was humble and fawning in front of Chu Huanjun. The expression on his face and the way he spoke were full of flattery.

When he saw Shi Yiqian and Tao Yao, he was not in a hurry to ask, as if he had forgotten about the agreed marriage, and the only thing in his eyes was the chess game in front of him.

"I didn't expect that Master Shi is also friends with the prince? We are truly destined to meet here..."

Zhou Yan finally turned his smiling face around, gave Shi Yiqian a subtle wink, and said, "Your Highness and I are old acquaintances. Two years ago, when my business hadn't even reached Jiangzhou Prefecture, it was thanks to Your Highness's help that I was able to grow my small business into what it is today."

Having said that, Zhou Yan poured another full bowl of hot wine to toast Chu Huanjun.

Chu Huanjun still kept his eyelids lowered and focused on the chess game, pretending not to see Zhou Yan's actions and not giving him any look.

Zhou Yan took a step back in frustration and drank the whole bowl.

Chu Huanjun frowned and pondered for a moment, then placed the last white piece in his hand. Finally, his brows widened and he smiled, "I win."

Zhou Yan then realized that he had been thinking about how to flatter Chu Huanjun, but Chu Huanjun didn't listen at all and was only thinking about how to win the game.

Although Zhou Yan put less than one-third of his mind into this game of chess, he was still confident that he could beat Chu Huanjun by several points in terms of chess skills - after all, he was a well-known "chess king" in Jiangnan, and he had played against Chu Huanjun several times before, and each time Chu Huanjun lost convincingly.

Zhou Yan hurried back to the table to look at the chessboard. An expression of amazement appeared on his face, and he couldn't help but exclaim, "Good! This is a great move!"

Chu Huanjun smiled, tapping the edge of the table slowly with his slender index finger, and said nonchalantly, "Mr. Zhou, you let me win."

Zhou Yan waved his hands repeatedly: "Absolutely not! Your Highness is an exceptional chess player. Beating me is easy. Why would I need to let him win?"

Looking at all this, Tao Yao couldn't help but think: This Zhou Yan is a first-rate person at flattery and fawning. As long as he has something in mind, even if the person in front of him is a pig that can only eat, drink, defecate and urinate, he can still praise him to the skies.

Thinking of this, Tao Yao's eyes couldn't help but fall on Chu Huanjun, and she couldn't help but connect him with a pig. Even if Chu Huanjun was just a pig, a pig with high official titles and a fortune, Zhou Yan, who coveted the wealth and glory this pig might bring, could still praise him as the Marshal of the Heavenly Peng.

Tao Yao couldn't help but imagine Zhu Bajie's face on Chu Huanjun's extremely exquisite clothes, and suddenly she was tickled. Although she covered her mouth instantly, she couldn't help but burst out laughing because it was too difficult to suppress.

No one was talking in the room to begin with, and Tao Yao's smile made the whole room even quieter, making her previous sneer seem particularly harsh.

Shi Yiqian immediately gave Tao Yao a warning look, and Tao Yao quickly lowered his head, not daring to look up again.

At this time, Chu Huanjun rolled up his sleeves, stood up from the table, and slowly walked to Tao Yao's side. He cast his full gaze on her without any reservation and said, "Is this the second daughter of the Shi family? Mr. Zhou, is she the concubine you were planning to marry?"

Zhou Yan also hurried over, secretly observing Chu Huanjun's expression from the side, probably trying to guess what Chu Huanjun was thinking. Unfortunately, Chu Huanjun's face was covered with a fake smile that hadn't changed for a hundred years, and ordinary people would never be able to tell what he was thinking.

"Yes, that's right." Zhou Yan replied.

Shi Yiqian exerted force on his hands and pulled Tao Yao from behind him to in front of Zhou Yan. Tao Yao instinctively took a half step back. The movement was small, but it still caught Chu Huanjun's attention.

Tao Yao still had a fish bone stuck in his throat and couldn't speak, so he just continued to play dumb and looked at the people in front of him with an idiotic look on his face.

She looked completely different from the Second Miss Shi whom he had just met at the dinner party. Zhou Yan couldn't help but wonder if Shi Yiqian didn't want to marry this daughter off either, and took the opportunity to switch things up, replacing her with a fake Second Miss Shi?

Zhou Yan's mouth twitched, and he asked suspiciously, "Master Shi, what happened to Miss Shi Er?"

Shi Yiqian quickly tried to make amends, "Perhaps she was frightened and hasn't recovered yet. My daughter's wedding to Mr. Zhou cannot be delayed. I'll arrange for some of the city's best doctors to come and see her in the next few days. I'll definitely cure her, and then we can discuss the marriage with Mr. Zhou."

"Uh, this..." A look of embarrassment appeared on Zhou Yan's face.

Obviously, he didn't want to marry a fool.

Chu Huanjun's reaction was different. He had just seen Tao Yao and knew that she was not unconscious. So he quickly noticed Tao Yao's slightly twitching neck and throat, and immediately understood.

"Old Shi, what dishes are being served at home tonight? Are we having fish?" Chu Huanjun asked.

"Fish? There is a dish of braised fish in vinegar... Your Highness wants to eat fish? It's not good for you to eat leftovers. I'll ask the kitchen to prepare it." Shi Yiqian was slow to react.

Chu Huanjun walked straight up to Tao Yao and grabbed her neck without any hesitation, which scared everyone.

"Your Highness! What are you doing..." Shi Yiqian said in surprise.

Tao Yao was suffocated by him, and felt a sudden surge of air in her chest, forcing her to start coughing violently.

Chu Huanjun loosened his grip a little when he saw Tao Yao's face flushed red. He used some skillful force so as not to make her feel too uncomfortable.

"Are you in such a hurry to eat? Are you in a hurry to get married?" Chu Huanjun deliberately lowered his voice so that only the two of them could hear it.

Tao Yao was pinched by Chu Huanjun's chin, forcing her to look directly into his playful eyes. She was coughing non-stop, feeling short of breath and uncomfortable, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

Suddenly, Tao Yao felt a chill on her neck. Chu Huanjun was slowly caressing the delicate skin of her neck with his cool fingertips. His nimble fingertips slid along her delicate jawline, delicately touching her sensitive earlobe, and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

His action was hidden in the dark, and others could not see any clues. Only Chu Huanjun and Tao Yao knew how ambiguous the atmosphere created by this action was.

Chu Huanjun looked at Tao Yao with an extremely tender gaze, as if he was sending her some kind of dangerous signal.

Suddenly, Tao Yao felt the air in her chest rushing even harder. She stumbled and knocked Chu Huanjun away, falling to the ground. After a violent coughing fit, she finally spit out the fishbone stuck in her throat.