Chapter 323 Chapter 293: Good idea!

The farce in the auction house was finally over. Du Wei tried to figure out Prince Chen's intentions, but he didn't have a clue. The most important thing is that it has been the second day since I returned to the imperial capital, but I haven't seen this Prince Chen. According to the rules of the Roland Empire, when a "foreign minister" like Du Wei returned to the imperial capital, he didn't just meet the emperor immediately. He had to go through official procedures and hand over official documents, and then waited for the summoning of Prince Chen.It's not that you can just run to the palace and knock on the door to enter, and see you whenever you want.Although Prince Chen has not formally enthroned as the emperor, he is no different from the emperor now.

Of course, popular figures like Du Wei are often not so complicated, as long as they send someone to the palace to deliver the news, they can be summoned immediately.But this time when Du Wei came back, he had already sent someone to the palace, but there was no order to summon him from the palace. The meaning here is worth savoring...Prince Chen seems to be procrastinating and doesn't want to see himself right away? Thinking about the matter of today's auction, he was like being put on by this highness, and Du Wei felt a little uncomfortable in his heart. He wished to see this highness to question him face to face. One is caught off guard.

After the auction ended, many guests dispersed, and Du Wei didn't have time to worry about the 16 million gold coins.The first thing to do is to send someone to the palace to inquire about the news, and ask when His Royal Highness the Regent summoned him. I have spent my money, and I have done what you told me to do. If you still don't see me, it would be too much!After all, I was called back to the imperial capital by you!It's a little too unkind to always leave me alone like this. Before he finished thinking here, Zach had already come to report one thing: someone came from the temple.

Du Wei frowned when he heard this: "Why did the temple send people here? Isn't this a headache enough? What tricks are they trying to play?" Only then did Zach explain it. It turned out that the temple sent people this time for nothing else, but simply to ask for money. After all, it was Du Wei who "bought" the Pope's decree, and the amount of 16 million gold coins should be paid to the temple in full. Du Wei's face was even more unhappy: "The auction was only finished at noon, and you came to ask for money in the afternoon? How could it be so fast!" After finishing speaking, he pondered for a while, and said: "Go and tell the people in the temple, whoever wants to buy it again If you have money, more than 10 million gold coins, you won’t just pile them up in the warehouse like this. It will take me a few days to raise them before sending them to the temple together! Let them give me a few days to mobilize the cash, and then I Then send someone to deliver it in person.”

Zach went down to reply to the people in the temple, and after a while came to tell Du Wei that the people in the temple had agreed to leave. Before leaving, he said that he would give Du Wei three days to raise funds, and asked Duke Tulip to think about the south The people affected by the disaster had already raised all the money, after all, the money was used by the pope for disaster relief. After hearing this, Du Wei felt more useless in his heart. Come back by yourself, yesterday was just a flashy triumphant ceremony, although the ceremony is very face-saving, but this kind of face-saving project can't exchange a copper plate for real benefits.And returning the house of Luo Lin's family is nothing more than returning the property that was stolen from the house. Although the carrot seems to be very big, in fact, it has not benefited itself.Today, however, more than 10 million gold coins were stolen in one day... almost half of Du Wei's property.This in and out is really a big loss, how can Du Wei not be annoyed?

After waiting in the shop for a long time, Du Wei sneered in his heart, if Prince Chen didn't summon him again and give him an explanation, then he wouldn't be so easy to bully if he got angry! He was thinking fiercely in his heart, and finally the person sent to the palace returned in the afternoon, bringing good news: His Royal Highness the Regent sent an order to summon Duke Tulip. There was also an envoy from the court who came back, and this envoy was extremely polite when he saw Du Wei. After all, outsiders didn't know about today's auction. Respectfully. As soon as Du Wei heard that Prince Chen had summoned him, he immediately raised his eyebrows, and he was no longer polite to the court envoy, so he ordered people to prepare a carriage to go to the palace.

The court envoy was taken aback. He is an old man in the palace and knows the rules. It stands to reason that even if a courtier like Du Wei is favored, he is summoned by the court, especially this kind of foreign minister who returns to the emperor. The first "official" call to enter the palace to meet the king, always go back to take a bath and change clothes, put on the full formal attire of the duke, wear the staff and medals, and then enter the palace, which is also etiquette. But this Tulip Duke is fine, he just wears casual robes and looks displeased. When the court envoy heard Du Wei saying that he was about to leave, he hurriedly stopped him, and said falteringly: "Duke Tulip... It seems that there is no need to worry too much..."

As soon as he said this, Du Wei immediately stared, thinking that he was not in a hurry?My sixteen million gold coins are gone, so how can I not be in a hurry! "This...according to the rules, are you first, first...have you got dressed?" the court envoy sighed. Du Wei stared: "Do you see that I am not wearing any clothes?" The court envoy was taken aback, and hurriedly said: "Of course not, it's just..." He saw Du Wei's impatience, and was about to raise words to remind Du Wei of etiquette, but Du Wei said angrily, "That's not right. Let's go, I am a magician, and I can't control the rules and the like."

After finishing speaking, he went out first.Seeing that Du Wei was very angry, the court envoy thought that it was none of his own business, why bother to offend the celebrity, so he bowed his head and followed out. I went all the way to the palace in a carriage, and got the order of the regent to enter the palace, and I was accompanied by the palace envoy. When I entered, the Imperial Forest Army recognized the carriage and horse of Duke Tulip's family, so they checked it casually, put on a show, and let it go. Du Wei went in. After entering the palace, Du Wei got out of the car, and someone came up to deliver an order saying that the regent was in the garden of the palace, and Duke Tulip was invited to meet him right away.

The garden of the Imperial Palace of the Roland Empire can be regarded as a strange sight on the entire continent.For rich and noble families, the garden is naturally decorated with colorful flowers and trees, and there are all kinds of precious flowers and trees.But as the emperor of the Roland Empire, the garden in the palace seemed extremely shabby. Not for anything else, just because in the garden of this majestic palace, only one plant is planted: Thorn Flower. This thorn flower is the totem of the royal family of the Roland Empire, but in fact this kind of flower is not very beautiful. The thorny thorny branches are dotted with some small white flowers, which is not really beautiful, the only thing worthy of praise is the tenacious vitality.

The poor palace, in order to conform to the tradition of the "thorn flower family", according to the tradition, only such a plant is planted in the palace garden, which is really depressing: a large piece of thorny thorns, what's so good about it? When Du Wei came to the garden, he heard a series of clear and melodious children's laughter from afar.From a distance, I could see the surroundings of the garden, surrounded by a group of court warriors in golden armor. After the notification, Du Wei walked in alone. It was winter at this moment, and there was really nothing to see in the garden, and the withered thorns were in a state of decay.But in the garden, I saw two children in fancy clothes playing and chasing each other, and several maids from the palace watched nervously, fearing that one of the children would accidentally run into the flowers and be stabbed by thorns . Du Wei finally saw Prince Chen.The young regent of the empire, who cost him more than 10 million today, is dressed in a simple and elegant white robe, looking at the two children playing with a smile on his face. Du Wei looked at him twice, looking at Prince Chen's appearance... I haven't seen him for a year and a half, but this Prince Chen looks much more mature and stable.At the beginning, the two met a few days before the coup. Although Prince Chen was also unpredictable at that time, after all, the youthful vigor in him was still obvious.But I didn't expect to see him in less than two years. The young regent looked restrained and dignified. He didn't look like a young man in his thirties at all. Those eyes are still as bright as before, but the sharpness inside has completely become a kind of calmness after precipitation. The only thing that has not changed is the smile on the mouth, which is still as warm as before. Make people feel close. Seeing Du Wei approaching from afar, Prince Chen smiled slightly, and took the initiative to laugh loudly: "Du Wei, you are here. Come and let me see, um, I haven't seen you in the northwest for two years, but you seem to have grown taller again." Less." The tone of these words was extremely affectionate, like the tone of a good brother who hadn't seen him for two years.He greeted him in such an affectionate tone, which made Du Wei's original anger unable to vent immediately. Helpless, Du Wei had no choice but to suppress his anger, strode over, and then saluted and coughed: "Your Highness." Prince Chen looked at Du Wei carefully, then sighed suddenly, and his tone was even more gentle: "Du Wei... my friend, after two years of wind and frost in the northwest, you look darker than when you were in the imperial capital. Some." Du Wei smiled lightly, and said with a pun: "It's always cold and windy in the northwest, and the environment is harsh. Of course, I have to work harder." Prince Chen patted Du Wei on the shoulder, and then cast a slightly apologetic look.With Du Wei's current status, I am afraid that in the whole continent, apart from his elders, the only person who is qualified to pat Du Wei on the shoulder like this is the Regent. "Thank you for your hard work...I will remember your sacrifice in my heart." Prince Chen smiled lightly, and before Du Wei could speak, he pointed to the two children who were playing and said with a smile: "Come on, look Look, here are my sons and daughters." Most of the royal family and nobles married early. It is said that Prince Chen got married at the age of sixteen and became a father at the age of eighteen.Du Wei also knew this.Prince Chen is twenty-six years old this year. He already has a son and a daughter. The son is eight years old and the daughter is six years old.It's just that Du Wei has never seen it before, and only saw it here today. The pair of children saw Du Wei standing beside their father. They had lived in the palace for a long time and rarely saw outsiders. His Highness Chen rarely took them to meet those noble ministers. Moreover, they saw a handsome young man like Du Wei standing beside their father. , Both children stared at Du Wei curiously with a pair of big eyes. On the other hand, the boy on the left is a bit older after all. At the age of eight, he has already begun to receive court etiquette education. Step forward, and then slightly bowed to Prince Chen, although his face still had a childlike innocence, but he had changed a serious look, called Father to Prince Chen, and then turned his head to look at Du Wei. "This is Grand Duke Tulip." Prince Chen nodded, and the eight-year-old little prince immediately showed a typical smile trained by a court etiquette master, and bowed to Du Wei, but his immature voice Trying to look serious: "Your Excellency Tulip, hello, I am Charlie Augustine." Du Wei watched the eight-year-old child act like an adult, sighed inwardly, and bowed slightly: "Hello, Your Royal Highness." On the other hand, the six-year-old little princess next to her seemed a little timid, hiding behind the little prince, showing half of her body, looking at Du Wei, and suddenly said in a childish voice, sweet voice: " Are you... are you the magic duke who built a city in three months?" The child's speech was a little stuttering, and his tone was soft and sweet, but Du Wei couldn't help but think of his little wife at home. Looking at this beautiful little girl who looked like a doll, he couldn't help but reveal With a gentle smile, he said softly, "But it's that Duke, not some magical Duke." Little Prince Charlie frowned, pulled his sister out from behind, coughed, and said, "Karina, have you forgotten etiquette!" The little girl stuck out her tongue, but she stood up obediently and gave Du Wei a court salute.Although Du Wei didn't like these cumbersome etiquettes, he had to pay back half the etiquette in front of the regent. Prince Chen's pair of sons and daughters were born extremely beautiful. Little Prince Charlie inherited seven or eight parts of Prince Chen's appearance, and was born extremely handsome, especially the pair of eyes, which are deeply rooted in the essence of Prince Chen.I didn't feel it when I was playing just now, but now it's quiet, and at a young age, it has already shown a bit of royal demeanor trained strictly. On the other hand, little Karina, probably still young, has a round baby fat face, pink and cute, with light golden curly hair, more like an elf angel, a pair of big blue eyes, innocent eyes It makes people feel a little bit of love in their hearts. "Grand Duke Tulip..." Karina looked at Du Wei timidly, and finally let go of her timidity under Du Wei's gentle smile, and tentatively whispered: "I, I heard that the Northwest is very fun, you Can you tell me the story of the Northwest? You...you built a city in three months, is it true?" Du Wei nodded with a smile, squatted down, couldn't help stretching out his hand to scratch Karina's nose lightly, and said with a smile: "It's true, if Your Highness is interested, when you grow up, You can go and see for yourself.” Little Karina was scratched by Du Wei's nose, and her pink face was a little red. She took a step back, looked at Du Wei with a pair of big eyes, but was a little disappointed and said: "Are you going to do it again?" When I grow up..." Prince Chen laughed, and then glanced at the attendant next to him: "Take them down, it's getting late, today's class should start, and Grand Duke Tulip and I still have time to talk." Afterwards, the attendants on both sides came up and were about to take the pair of princes and princesses down. Little Prince Charlie still performed enough etiquette, bowed slightly to the two, and then left.Little Karina looked at Du Wei curiously, with a look of reluctance, and was hugged by the court maid. After the child left, only Du Wei and Prince Chen were left in the garden, and the warriors guarding them stood far away. Prince Chen turned his head to look at Du Wei with a smile: "My pair of children How about it?" Du Wei nodded: "Smart and beautiful, Your Highness, you are very lucky." Prince Chen's eyes narrowed, and he suddenly sighed leisurely: "Being born into a royal family... may not be a blessing." After finishing speaking, he shook his head and smiled self-deprecatingly: "Looking at how close they are now, I remembered when I was young... Well, at that time, my eldest brother once took me to ride a horse... Hehe. " Speaking of the eldest prince who died on the day of the coup, Du Wei kept his mouth shut and said nothing. Prince Chen's tone suddenly changed, staring at Du Wei, with a very serious tone, said in a deep voice: "Du Wei... can you promise me one thing? In the future...you have to help me teach me well This pair of children, okay?" Du Wei was taken aback: "Your Highness, you mean..." A trace of confusion flashed in Prince Chen's eyes, and then he smiled easily as a cover-up: "My son Charlie is already eight years old, and he has already hired a court teacher to teach him. But, Du Wei, you are also a court scholar after all. , and I know that you are knowledgeable and talented, and you are not very old, and you are only seven or eight years behind him. If you are willing to teach this child, it will be much better than those old scholars with white beards. After all, the young Children are always somewhat resistant to those old guys." Du Wei's heart moved, and he was carefully considering what His Highness meant by saying this.Prince Chen has already continued: "My son is smart, and I have great expectations of him...Well, I want to ask you to be his teacher in the future." There are several meanings in this sentence. I have great expectations... Does Prince Chen want to make this little Charlie the heir to the throne? Let yourself be the prince's teacher, and you will be a generation of emperor's teacher in the future.This position is very lofty. Du Wei smiled: "If His Highness is at ease with me, of course I dare not refuse... However, I have been in the northwest all year round, so I may not have time to teach His Highness the Prince in the capital..." Prince Chen shook his head, and looked at Du Wei with a half-smile: "Hey, my Grand Duke Tulip... Have you decided to live in the Northwest for the rest of your life? In the bitter cold place in the Northwest, if you change any lord, you would have already chosen one by yourself." The governor is in charge, and I have an excuse to return to the emperor to enjoy the blessings. But you, as if you had a good time in the northwest, have been away for two years and haven't come back once." Du Wei looked at Prince Chen and said with a faint smile: "Your Highness, you are joking... With the current situation in the Northwest, even if I want to come back, will you allow me? Of course, some people probably wish I could come back." The two looked at each other and smiled, but neither spoke. Then Prince Chen and Du Wei walked side by side in the garden. Prince Chen was silent for a while, and then slowly said: "In the future, when the situation is stable, you will always come back. Du Wei, I have high expectations for you , you are in my heart, but you are far more than just a person who supervises a province." High expectations?Du Wei smiled wryly in his heart, I wish you had lower expectations of me!When I was in the northwest, the mountains were high and the emperor was far away, and Lao Tzu was the biggest. How could I be so carefree?Instead, when he returned to the imperial capital, he suffered a big loss in just one day. Looking at Du Wei's expression, Prince Chen guessed what he was thinking, stopped in his tracks, and said in a low voice: "Well... well, in fact, you don't need to say it, I also know what you want to say. What happened today, I I sent someone to do this without telling you in advance, and you are probably very dissatisfied with me now." Even if Du Wei is dissatisfied in his heart, how can he say it out of his mouth?He twitched the corner of his mouth, and said lightly: "Don't dare. You are the regent, and as a subject, I should share the worries of His Highness." Prince Chen laughed, then looked at Du Wei, and said, "Okay, I won't let you pay for the 16 million gold coins yourself, so you can rest assured. So, don't be so hard now Face. I ordered you to do nothing, so I will pay the money." Oh?Public money consumption?Only then did Du Wei look a little better, but he was still vigilant in his heart. Based on his understanding of His Highness Chen, it was not a good sign that the other party took the initiative to offer benefits! Sure enough, the two walked a few more steps, but Prince Chen changed the topic to the situation in the northwest. "The last time I had a friction with the prairie people, I heard that you defeated the cavalry of the prairie people under the city of Giliat. The golden wolf head led 20,000 elites, plus a big shaman, and you beat them to pieces. You It really surprises me to win such a big victory with less battles... Du Wei, I have discovered another advantage of you. People from the Luo Lin family are indeed talented in military affairs. Although the battle reports I I've read it, but after all, the things on paper are not detailed enough, so please tell me about the battle under Gilliat." Mentioning the "Luo Lin family", Du Wei couldn't help being a little embarrassed. After all, he has now changed his clan to the Tulip family in name. Fortunately, he knew that Prince Chen didn't use this matter to mock himself, so he pondered for a while, and then told the story of the prairie people's sneaking in and the battle under Gilliat's city, one by one. Speaking of the Northwest Army's collusion with the prairie people, the first soldiers surrounded Roland, the capital of the Desa Province, and the prairie people took the opportunity to sneak in. How did they force the Northwest Army to retreat ten miles, and how did they disguise themselves, leading the troops out of the city in several groups, and defeated the small grassland halfway? The cavalry learned that the city of Gilliad was besieged, and then how to fight against the city... Speaking of these experiences one by one, Du Wei himself has a good eloquence, and his speech is very exciting.Prince Chen listened intently and did not interrupt. After finishing speaking, Du Wei added: "Your Highness, this victory actually had a lot of luck in it. If I hadn't accidentally defeated a small group of prairie cavalry on the way and got the news, I'm afraid it would be too late to rescue the city of Giliat." , then the city may have been breached. And...Governor Bohan of Nulin Province also sent reinforcements in time. In that battle, the reinforcements sent by Governor Bohan also served the empire and sacrificed their blood..." "I know these things." Prince Chen waved his hand, interrupted Du Wei, and suddenly asked, "But I've always been a little puzzled... the grassland people are fine, why did they sneak in? Why is their target the city of Gilliat?" ?” Du Wei was taken aback for a moment, he knew well that the prairie people came to look for the monster under the order of the Daxue Mountain Witch King.But he didn't intend to tell Prince Chen the truth about this matter. After thinking about it, he found an excuse to fool the past: "I don't know about this, it must have something to do with the collusion with the Northwest Army. I want to take advantage of the Northwest Army's siege When we are in Loulan City, sneak attack us and plunder us." "If it's just for looting, they won't send their main warrior, Golden Wolf Head, and 20,000 elite cavalry." Prince Chen shook his head, thought for a while, and said: "This matter is a bit strange, we must investigate it." Du Wei didn't answer the words, and stood quietly aside. After being silent for a while, Prince Chen suddenly smiled and looked at Du Wei: "Also, I heard that you used some powerful new weapons when you defeated the grassland cavalry in the city of Giliad. Hmm ...That is a kind of can that can explode, right? I heard that when it explodes, the flames are so powerful that it can be used by ordinary people. Such a weapon is also an important reason for the defeat of the prairie people, right?" As he spoke, Prince Chen squinted his eyes and looked at Du Wei with a smile. Du Wei's heart sank, and he thought it was bad.But that kind of gunpowder pot was watched by tens of thousands of people on both sides of the enemy and us during the battle under the city of Gilliat, and they couldn't hide it, so they had to smile wryly: "That's right...it's indeed a new gadget, but it's powerful. It’s not as big as the legends say, but it’s just that it was used suddenly, and the light and movement of the fire were a little frightening, which frightened the horses of the grassland people.” "I'm afraid...it's not that simple." Prince Chen smiled lightly, and glanced at Du Wei with a half-smile. Du Wei's heart moved, and he heard Prince Chen continue: "I heard that the thing you made can be thrown in the crowd, and the power of the explosion can kill the surrounding enemies. The grassland people ate a lot that day. What a pity! And...and you got a team of magicians on broomsticks, throwing this weapon down from the sky, and the effect is surprisingly good, right?" The more Du Wei listened, the more he frowned secretly. He vaguely understood what Prince Chen meant, and he felt a little dissatisfied in his heart, so he simply closed his mouth and did not speak. "Ugh……" Prince Chen suddenly sighed faintly, then looked into Du Wei's eyes, and said with a sincere voice: "Du Wei, I know, it's like you asking for this new weapon when I speak like this, it's a bit too much. But you You are a smart person, you should understand the current situation... The situation in the Northwest is imminent. Within three to five years, there will be a big battle! At that time, facing the Northwest Army and the prairie people, you and the Tulip family will not be able to do it alone. I can withstand it! I have been secretly rectifying my armaments since last year. If your new weapon can be equipped by the army of the empire, it will definitely have the greatest effect in future wars! Moreover, with such a sharp Advanced weapons can also reduce the casualties of soldiers of our empire a lot.” How could Du Wei not know these truths? It's not that he refuses to give gunpowder to Prince Chen to equip the army. After all, in the northwest, he has already given a batch of gunpowder to Governor Bohan. Since he can give it to Bohan, it's not that he can't give it to Prince Chen... but I am really angry!