The bottom cabin was dark and damp, except for the waves that passed overhead from time to time, I was the prince in the hearts of the subjects of Dakang, but I was a hostage in the eyes of the soldiers of Daqin. In the blink of an eye, everything has changed, and sometimes it is not necessary to wait for hundreds of years.
What I was most worried about was Caixue's injury, Sun Sanfen's defection at a critical moment, solved this problem for me, Caixue improved day by day under his careful treatment, the three of us began to talk about the Qin capital in the dark, talking about the future, but rarely talking about Dakang, from the moment we stepped into the Qin realm, we have become three prisoners under the rule of the King of Qin.
I didn't get the courtesy that a prince of a country deserved, and I didn't suffer too much humiliation, for these soldiers, it was only their duty to escort me to the Qin capital, and I was not much different from ordinary Kang people in their eyes.
Three days later, we finally arrived at the capital of Qin, the capital of Qin was formerly known as Luoyang, and Emperor Yan Yuan of Qin Xuanlong moved the capital here from Linjing six years after succeeding to the throne, intending to take advantage of the danger of the Yellow River and the Kangdu of the Great Kang Kingdom. On the one hand, after Emperor Xuanlong moved the capital, he re-established a military port in the river section adjacent to the Qin capital, vigorously developed the navy, and on the other hand, he reduced the taxation of merchants and attracted merchants from all over the world.
I stood on the deck with the railing of the ship, and there was a prosperous scene in front of me, unlike the port of Bandung, I couldn't see a beggar as far as my eyes could see, and the people who came and went all had a knowing smile on their faces, and I couldn't help but sigh in my heart, my father was the only one who respected the king, and all the high-pressure policies were finally proven to be outdated in this era.
Escorted by eight Qin guards, Caixue and Sun Sanfen and I walked off the ship. Judging from the pace of the snow picking, her injuries have recovered a lot, although it will take some time to fully recover, but there should be no difficulty in ordinary actions.
Not far from the ship, two four-car black carriages were waiting there. I had just stepped off the ship when a tall and thin middle-aged official wearing a seventh-rank uniform came to greet me with six subordinates.
"Yan Zimin, the deacon of the Great Qin Prince's Mansion, pays respects to His Highness King Ping, the thirty-first prince of the Kang Kingdom!" His voice was cold and arrogant, and the Qin Emperor was really too bullying, and he even sent a seventh-rank deacon from the Prince's Mansion to greet the prince of Kangguo, obviously not taking Kang Guo seriously.
Yan Zimin led me into the carriage on the left, judging from the markings of the vehicle, it should be for the royal family, but the interior of the carriage was extremely simple and completely different from the Dakang royal family's advocating luxury and luxury, which shows the pragmatism of the Qin people.
Yan Zimin and I rode together, Caixue and Sun Sanfen got into another carriage, I took one last look at 'Tongji Port', and my proton life in Daqin officially kicked off.
Yan Zimin said: "His Highness the Crown Prince has arranged a mansion for the proton, and I have already transported the gifts brought by the proton to the proton mansion first." "He has changed my name from King Ping to Proton, which is not only like my demonstration, but also reminds me of my true identity.
I tried to make a respectful appearance, under the roof of the people, I had to bow my head, as a proton of an enemy country, I showed too much edge, and I would definitely not get any benefits. In the Qin State, my identity is only a proton, and my status is not even as good as that of an ordinary Qin citizen.
The vehicle passed through the downtown of Qindu, and the hustle and bustle around it could evoke a scene of prosperity and strength, and although I was curious, I never lifted the thick cotton curtain.
An hour later, the carriage finally arrived at the Proton Mansion, an old mansion that should have been uninhabited for a long time, judging from the lush grass on the wall.
There were eight warriors lined up on both sides outside the door, they were obviously here to supervise me, and the corners of my lips couldn't help but smile bitterly, was it a bit of a fuss for Qin Huang to treat a proton who had no power to bind chickens in this way?
The gate has just been painted, and it still exudes a pungent smell, and the copper nails used for decoration on the door have just been replaced, shining, adding a bit of luxury to this dilapidated courtyard, but this kind of luxury appears here, but it makes the entire mansion seem more and more incongruous.
Walking into the gate, you will see a courtyard overgrown with weeds, which should have been a garden, but it has been deserted for a long time without anyone taking care of it.
The courtyard was full of wooden boxes, which contained gifts I brought from Dakang. King Yong has already handed me the gift list, and all I need to do is find the owners for them one by one.
Yan Zimin's duty was to send me here, and he asked his men to exit the gate first and said to me: "Tonight His Highness the Crown Prince will hold a banquet in the palace to welcome the princes of various countries, and I will send a car to pick you up, and the proton must arrive on time." "I originally thought that this time I would be summoned by the Qin Emperor to come to the Qin Capital, and it seems that the Qin Emperor has already transferred the affairs of the protons of various countries to the prince, and I am afraid that I will not have the opportunity to meet the Qin Emperor in the short term.
After Yan Zimin left, I taught Sun Sanfen the gift list, asked him to count the gifts, and by the way, I found someone to move into the side room on the west side, and Caixue and Caixue took the lead in walking to the main hall in front.
Pushing open the door of the main hall, the sun illuminated the entire hall from behind us, the whole hall was covered with cobwebs and dust, and the tables, chairs and benches were covered with thick floating ash.
I smiled bitterly and shook my head: "Outside the gold and jade, the defeat is inside, but I didn't expect that all the superficial kung fu of the Qin state was done on the gate." "
Cai Xue smiled gently: "Your Highness, don't be upset, Cai Xue will clean up this place soon." "
I said with concern: "Your injuries have not fully recovered, so don't work too hard!" "
Sun Sanfen walked in from outside with a bitter face: "Your Highness King Ping, those guards guarding the gate are unwilling to help move the gifts into the west wing, and say that they are only responsible for guarding the door, and they have no right to ask about other things." "
I laughed, stomped two steps in the hall, turned around and said, "Qin Huang is more thoughtful than my father thinks, so as to sharpen my ability to be independent, Yinkong is really grateful to him." "I saw the adversity in front of me as a challenge, and this optimism immediately infected Caixue and Sun Sanfen.
Sun Sanfen nodded appreciatively and said, "Your Highness, would you like to move the gift into the west wing with the old man?" "
"Yinkong is trying to exercise his muscles and bones!"
Cai Xue Meimei looked at me with reverence: "Caixue stay and clean up the room!" "
I shook my head: "Wait until you recover from your injury, now you need to rest now!" "
When I was in a prosperous era, although I was not pampered, I had never done such hard work, and Sun Sanfen and Sun Sanfen completely moved the gift into the west wing, which took more than an hour, and my body was so tired that it was about to fall apart, and the sweat had completely soaked my coat.
Sun Sanfen and I took a short break and began to tidy up the room, and Xue Caixue did not join our labor at my insistence, and she found a kettle in the kitchen to boil water for us to drink.
Although Sun Sanfen is past the age of sixty, his good health is completely beyond my expectations, and he has worked all morning, but I have never seen him show any fatigue.
At noon, the guard led a short and fat middle-aged man in, he was the owner of the nearby Linxian Building, the prince gave him full authority over my diet, and every day when he ate, he would ask Xiao Er to bring wine and food, because today was the first day of food delivery, so he personally brought people over.
"Hello young master, my name is Yu Deli, and I am the shopkeeper of Linxian Building!" He first introduced himself to me.
From his cunning and greedy eyes, I immediately judged that the man in front of me was a mercenary philistine businessman, perhaps the reason for the first meal, the wine and food were quite rich, there were eight dishes with meat and vegetables, and a pot of flower carvings.
In his eyes, whether I am a prince or a prisoner, as long as I can bring him financial resources, I am his patron, and my attitude towards me is naturally much more humble.
After Yu Deli left, Caixue looked at his back and said, "I didn't expect there to be such a kind person among the Qin people!" "
Sun Sanfen smiled and said: "In the eyes of this kind of person, anyone who can give him money is his parents!" "
I couldn't help but laugh when I heard him say it so bluntly.
Xue Cai brought hot water and asked me and Sun Sanfen to wash our hands. Sun Sanfen said again: "A person who does business is thoughtful, he must think that although the young master comes as a hostage, there will be no shortage of treats in the future, and winning your favor is equivalent to winning a big customer." "
Cai Xue smiled and said, "Hearing Mr. Sun say this, there is some truth." "
During the meal, the two of them respected the way of respect and humility, standing on either side of me. I laughed: "In the Qin capital, we are all prisoners, there is no difference, everyone sits down to eat together." "
Cai Xue said: "Your Highness..."
I pretended to be angry and said, "What? Don't listen to me, do you? "
Caixue's pretty face turned red, and she had to sit down as she was told.
Sun Sanfen also sat on my left side, and I said, "We are in the capital of Qin, and the name of me needs to be changed in the future." "
The two of them looked at me in unison.
"Just call me my son in the future!"
In the afternoon, Sun Sanfen and I eradicated the weeds in the courtyard again, and Xue Caixue boiled water and made tea for us, and the entire courtyard gradually revealed its original outline under our renovation.
Because I had to go to the prince's mansion to meet the prince in the evening, I finished my work early, and Caixue prepared hot water for me to bathe.
Qin is not as good as Dakang, when I take a bath, I don't need others to serve me, a lot of blood blisters are worn out on my palms, and it takes a lot of effort to take a bath.
Changing into clean underwear and robes, a feeling of comfort arose spontaneously, and the comfort and comfort after work cannot be described in words.
Sun Sanfen rinsed it with the bath water I had washed, and said humorously after washing: "It is true that the old man chose to follow King Ping, and he can bathe in the emperor's grace every day in the future." I laughed, although I was in prison, but I was far more open-minded than in Dakang.
I found a gift for the prince of Qin from the gift list, this is a pair of ingenious jade horses, two horses galloping with four hooves in a vigorous posture, with a head held high, the head is slightly to the left, the three-legged soaring into the air, and only the right hind foot lands on the back of a winged dragon sparrow. The horse's thick and round body is full of strength, but its movements are so light, full of "imaginative" pride; Feiyan seemed to be looking back, stunned by the unexpected encounter with the galloping horse. It is a metaphor for the transcendent realm of "raising the whip and only competing with the birds".
Sun Sanfen and Caixue couldn't help but admire: "It's really ingenious!" "
I nodded, with this jade carving, I should be able to get a good impression of Prince Qin.
At dusk, Yan Zimin sent a car to pick me up, I boarded the carriage with a carefully selected brocade box, and Sun Sanfen and Caixue stayed in the Proton Mansion according to my instructions, accompanied by two guards.
Prince Qin, surnamed Yan Yuanji, courtesy name Chuqiu, is twenty-nine years old, concurrently serves as the governor of the Great Qin Navy, is one of the most powerful figures in the Qin state, Yan Yuanji is hospitable, with 3,000 diners under his door, and is famous all over the world because of his generosity.
The carriage that picked me up was much more shabby than the one that first arrived in Daqin, the carriage was broken in many places, and the cold wind blew in from time to time through the gaps, and it seemed that Yan Yuanji's generosity was not used on me.
The Prince's Mansion is located in the east of the Qin capital, less than three miles away from the Proton Mansion where I live.
When I got out of the car, it was completely dark, and there were many princes and nobles around me who were also walking towards the prince's mansion, and it seemed that Prince Qin invited many people to come to tonight's dinner.
Accompanied by two guards, I arrived at the gate of the house, first identified myself to the gatekeeper, and then walked in with a gift in their contemptuous eyes.
I am used to seeing the splendor of the Dakang Palace, and the prince's mansion of the Qin state gives me the feeling of only the word ordinary, and the only thing that can be praised is that the building is surprisingly tall, but the whole mansion does not have any exquisite decorations, which proves the pragmatic views of the Qin people.
Walking into the hall where the banquet was held, I met Yan Zimin, a seventh-rank deacon, who led me to sit down in the last seat on the left, but did not mean to introduce Prince Qin to me.
Qin Prince Yan Yuanji walked in through the side door in the attention of everyone, he was more than seven feet tall, strong, bronze-colored, handsome, and full of strong masculinity.
He nodded to everyone one by one, but his eyes never fell on me. The servants in the mansion served us wine and dishes, there were only four dishes, three vegetarian and one meat, and the wine was the most common sorghum roast, as the prince of Daqin, holding a banquet of this specification was a little shabby.
I raised my glass with the crowd and toasted, and it seemed that I didn't have a chance to talk to the prince tonight.
After three rounds of wine, the eyes of the Qin prince Yan Yuanji suddenly turned to me: "Your Highness King Ping, are you satisfied with your stay?" As soon as these words came out, I immediately realized that he had seen me for a long time, but he had just pretended not to see it.
I replied respectfully: "The prince's arrangement is quite thorough, and Yinkong is grateful!" "
Yan Yuanji laughed, he raised his glass and said, "Since you are satisfied, you will accompany me to drink this cup!" "
Naturally, I didn't dare to refuse his request, so I happily raised my glass and drank the spicy wine in one gulp.
Yan Yuanji smiled and said: "King Ping is really refreshing, today you have just arrived in the Qin capital, this cup is for you to wash the dust!" He picked up the wine glass again.
I had to have another drink with him.
Yan Yuanji said: "I was holding this brocade box in my hand when King Ping entered the door, and I don't know what is inside?" His words reminded me.
I stood up and said, "Inside is a gift from Yinkong to the prince!" "
"Oh! The prosperous country is rich and the people are rich, and King Ping's shot must be extraordinary, open it and take a look! "
My heart was proud, in addition to the Qin royal nobles and princes from all over the world, it was also a face-showing thing to show the treasures of Dakang in front of them.
I came to the center of the hall with the brocade box in my arms, took out the pair of horse stepping Feiyan, and there was a burst of admiration in the hall, obviously seeing that the gift was unusual.
Yan Yuanji didn't even glance at the gift, he said to the crowd: "Brother Jingyan, you have a lot of experience in jade treasures, so it's up to you to evaluate how it is." "
A chubby young man sitting on the right stood up, he was Zhang Jingyan, the second prince of Zhongshan Kingdom, which had long been reduced to a vassal of the Qin State, and he was no different from an ordinary retainer in front of the Qin prince.
Zhang Jingyan came to me with a smile, looked the gift up and down, and then let out a contemptuous sneer: "Your Highness the Crown Prince, in Jingyan's view, these two horses stepped on Feiyan, although the workmanship is exquisite, but they are shoddy fakes imitated by Liuli." "
I was shocked in my heart, I didn't expect him to talk nonsense, and I was about to tell the difference, but I saw an extremely complicated look flashing in Yan Yuanji's eyes. Did they collude in advance and deliberately humiliate me in front of others?
Several of the guests with impatient temperaments couldn't hold back and roared loudly: "Long Yinkong, you are bullying people too much, and you actually use this kind of counterfeit thing to deceive the prince, don't you want to live?" "
I hurriedly knelt on the ground, pretending to be extremely frightened, my body couldn't help but tremble, and my voice trembled: "Yinkong... True... Is... I don't know ..." In the eyes of others, I was so frightened that I was so frightened that even tears were about to fall.
Yan Yuanji laughed and said: "How can you be so rude and disturb the distinguished guests!" He personally came over from the upper seat and lifted me up from the ground, and I trembled, "Prince... Don't kill me..."
"You are my distinguished guest, how could I kill you?" Yan Yuanji looked contemptuous, he patted me on the shoulder and said, "Go back and sit down!" "
I walked back shiveringly, deliberately pretending to be tripped halfway through, and fell to the ground in great embarrassment, which caused another burst of harsh laughter.
Yan Yuanji looked at my embarrassed appearance, shook his head helplessly, he picked up the pair of horses on the ground and said: "The ancients had clouds, sent goose feathers thousands of miles away, and the etiquette was light and affectionate!" King Ping came from thousands of miles away, his heart is commendable, and his intention can be expressed, as for what gift he gave, why should you study it deeply! "
His eyes were fixed on the Pegasus: "What this king cares about is not this pair of gifts, but a piece of King Ping's sincerity!" "
Everyone cast respectful glances at him.
My eyes were red, tears of excitement flashed in my eyes, but I scolded Yan Yuanji a thousand times in my heart, this bastard not only insulted me and Dakang, but also let go of this precious pair of horses stepping on Feiyan.
Because of what happened just now, everyone was full of disdain and contempt for me, the prince of the Kang Kingdom, and I didn't mind such a result, the more cowardly I was in the eyes of others, the less threatening it was.
Originally, I thought I could get through this banquet quietly, but I didn't expect Zhang Jingyan, the second prince of Zhongshan Kingdom, to take the lead in toasting me, and I was extremely angry with him, and in what happened just now, he obviously acted as an accomplice of Yan Yuanji. The reason why he took the lead in toasting me was obviously to make me embarrassed again in front of everyone.
Although I saw through his sinister intentions, I couldn't break it on the surface, pretended to be flattered, and drank three glasses with him in a row, and under his leadership, other guests began to scramble to toast me, and if I accepted them all, I was afraid that I would die at the wine table of the Prince's Mansion before I could realize my ambitions.
I pretended to be overwhelmed by alcohol and stammered, "Yinkong... High... Happy ..."
At this time, two maids came over to pour wine, and I looked at them in confusion, reached out and grabbed one of the women's sleeves, and pulled her into my arms with a little force.
The maid exclaimed, I buried my head between her waist, and my fingers reached into my throat very discreetly under the cover of her body.
"Wow!" With a thud, I vomited all the food and wine I had just eaten on her.
Everyone saw my embarrassed appearance and burst into laughter, and the maid broke free from me crying, hiding her face and running out the door.
Yan Yuanji laughed and said, "King Ping is drunk...
I made a drunken hazy look: "I... Not drunk... I... I can still drink ..." I took the initiative to fill the wine, my hands were so shaky that I couldn't even hold the wine jug steadily, and most of the wine was spilled outside.
I picked up my wine glass and staggered up and walked towards Prince Qin: "The prince is very kind... Yinkong... Grateful... No... Endless... There is nothing in return... Only with this wine... Come... to express my ... I was grateful... I shivered and took the wine glass to my mouth.
The originally lively and noisy scene suddenly fell silent, and I heard a cold voice say, "Who bullied Yun'er just now?" "
I smirked and raised my head, but I saw a beautiful girl in red walking towards me, she was dressed in a red palace costume, her melon-like delicate face was by no means impeccable, the contours were clear and unadorned, she was incomparable, about seventeen or eighteen years old, and her black hair was pulled sideways in a falling bun, which set off her jade face and red lips even more moving.
Although this girl is extremely beautiful, her eyebrows are full of traces of arrogance and ferocity.
Yan Yuanji smiled and said: "Lin'er, King Ping is just overwhelmed by alcohol, unintentional fault, why should you care about him!" "
I was stunned, I didn't expect that the girl in front of me turned out to be Yan Lin, the ninth princess of the Qin Kingdom, listening to her words, the maid who was vomited by me just now should be her personal palace maid.
Yan Lin glanced at me coldly, and suddenly raised her hand and slapped me in the face, this slap had no warning, and I was caught off guard, if I was really drunk, it would be fine, I was just pretending to be drunk, and five finger marks immediately bulged on my face, I didn't expect her to be so vicious.
I smirked, and at this point, I had to carry out the performance to the end, and reached out to grab her slender hand: "Little ... Beauty... Come and accompany me... Drink... A glass of ..."
"Lewd thief!" Yan Lin's willow eyebrows stood upside down, raised her slender feet and stepped on my lower abdomen, I sat on the ground, and the wine glass in my hand flew out, and the wine was splashed all over the ground.
Everyone has no misfortune and misfortune, you must know that this Yan Lin is a famous unruly girl in Qin, ordinary people don't say that they speak like this to her, even if they take a second look, they will be severely punished by her.
Seeing that the scene had developed to such a point, Yan Yuanji hurriedly stopped Yan Lin and persuaded bitterly: "Lin'er! You must not be so rude!" While asking someone to help me out the door.
As I walked, I kept muttering: "Little beauty..."
Someone in the crowd sighed in a low voice: "No wonder the Dakang Kingdom is declining day by day, if the throne is passed to this son in the future, there will be few days of destruction of the country...
I can still clearly feel the hot pain of Yan Lin's palm on my face, and her unexpected appearance has easily won the name of lust, and I want to use this good start to let everyone accept me as a mediocre and indulgent proton of Kangguo.
Sun Sanfen wrapped the snowball in a cotton cloth and covered my face, the pain suddenly weakened a lot, Cai Xue silently brewed a cup of fragrant tea for me, although I didn't tell them what happened, from my embarrassed appearance, they could also guess the humiliation I had suffered.
Sun Sanfen put the gift list in front of me: "Young master! According to the gift list in advance of Emperor Xinde, we still need to visit these people! "I have long been familiar with this gift list, and since the incident that happened tonight when I was denounced as a fake by Yan Yuanji, I suddenly changed my plans, even if I gave these gifts to the Wang Qing nobles on the list one by one, I will not achieve the predetermined effect now, and it may make the Qin people think that I have ulterior motives. But it is not advisable to stay around, there is a saying that a man is innocent, and he is guilty, if he is spied on my treasures, I am afraid that he will be hit by a disaster, and I have to find a way to disperse them as soon as possible.
Whether it is Kangdu or Qindu, in addition to power is money is easier to gain the respect of others, I am a prisoner in the eyes of some people, there is no power to speak of, I want to be respected, the key to winning popularity depends on money, but in the current situation, I do not have enough ability to control money, and I must use them to achieve the best results in the shortest possible time.
I waved my hand lightly: "I want to keep all these gifts, tomorrow you will follow me to visit Qindu, and by the way, find a reputable shop to sell these gifts." "
Sun Sanfen and Caixue didn't know the purpose of wanting to sell the gift, and looked at me in confusion.
I smiled and said, "It takes money to repair the mansion and buy slaves, if we don't be flexible, how can we improve the existing conditions as soon as possible!" "
Fortunately, Prince Qin does not have too many restrictions on me as a proton, and the only inconvenience is that there are always two guards with me when traveling.
The next morning, the three of us went to the most prosperous Guanqian Street in Qindu under the supervision of the guards, which is located in the center of the old city of Qindu, and with the continuous expansion of Qindu, it has long deviated from the central axis of Qindu City and has become a street in Xicheng, but it is a blessed land for merchants, and merchants from all over the world gather here, and there is a lively scene everywhere.
I visited several shops in a row and stopped in front of a shop called 'Jubaozhai'. According to the two guards, 'Jubaozhai' is the most reputable shop in the capital of Qin.
The interior furnishings of Jubaozhai are simple and elegant, and there is no philistine vulgarity of other shops. The owner, a white-haired old man in his seventies, was introducing a coral tree more than three feet high to two guests.
I walked over: "Shopkeeper!" Help me see the price of this thing! "I put a gem-encrusted canary bird on the counter, which turned out to be a gift for Zhuge Qing, the right prime minister of the Qin state.
The old man's eyes lit up, he picked up the bird and looked at it for a long time, and then said, "This canary should be a court thing, I don't know where the young master got it?" "
I praised: "The shopkeeper really has good eyes, the source of this thing is innocent, you can rest assured to estimate the price!" "
The old man pondered for a moment and stretched out three fingers: "Three thousand taels of silver!" "I have long known the true value of this treasure, there are eight canary birds, three years ago the eighth emperor's brother Mu Wang Yinshang was given one, and later resold to King Qin, who paid a price of 10,000 taels for this, and this old man clearly gave me an extremely low price.
But I happily put the bird on the counter: "You give me three thousand taels of cash, and this bird belongs to you!" The old man didn't expect this good thing to fall on him so easily, and he was afraid that I would return, so he grabbed the bird firmly, and said in a trembling voice: "Ah Fu, go to the warehouse to withdraw three thousand taels of silver!" "
At noon, I invited everyone to have a big meal at the 'Hongyan Tower' on Guanqian Street, and in the afternoon I went to the largest casino in Qindu, 'Yiyifang', to gamble, and when I left the casino, I was left with less than one or two taels of silver.
Caixue said worriedly: "Young master! There is no money available to repair the mansion! "
I laughed: "It seems that what we brought from Dakang is not just this canary bird, I will exchange for more silver tomorrow!" "
For five days in a row, I had to sell a treasure almost every day, but I didn't even bring back a piece or two of silver, but my reputation spread unknowingly in the court and the opposition in the Qin capital.
On the sixth day, even Sun Sanfen was a little disgusted with my actions, and he was unwilling to continue to go out with me to mess around.
What I was going to sell this time was a pair of gem palace lamps, and the attitude of the guards guarding my door towards me had changed a lot.
When I was about to go out, I saw a luxurious eight-carriage slowly parked in front of the Proton Mansion, and I didn't know which dignitary was sitting inside.