Chapter 721

Zhou Ke sent plain‑clothed men to protect Baili Hu; without the mysterious‑armored troops they would die, so Wei Shen also had to join the fight. After all, if someone were seized in Secluded Prefecture, the King's face would be trampled on the ground…… He had to go to heaven.

Upstairs they were already slashing each other with drawn swords, while the King downstairs was stopping the young ladies who wanted to enter the milk‑tea shop to sell flowers, and for this he offered up his younger brother's cheeks to be pinched at random.

The two young ladies who were stopped really went along with it; the Seventh Prince's cheeks immediately suffered, being pinched left his face completely dazed.

Seeing Old Seven sacrifice so greatly, the King blurted out, 'Five hundred cash per flower!'

The customer enjoyed the benefit but complained about the price; the two sides were tugging when a strange sound came from behind, and in the next instant the glass of the second floor of Oolong Sound was smashed by a stool; the King stared at the flying stool leg, dazed for a moment……

What a partner, he's having his venue smashed?!

No!

In broad daylight, under the clear heavens, with everyone watching, someone actually smashed his shop!

The two potential customers in front of him shouted and bolted; Old Seven had sacrificed his cheeks for nothing!

The staff and customers on the shop's first floor also shouted and fled outside, but the King wasn't afraid; he only regretted that poor Old Seven had his cheeks pinched for nothing, not even getting the five hundred cash back……

He grabbed Old Seven and pulled him aside; immediately some burly bystanders pushed forward to gawk, naturally surrounding the two of them. The vegetable seller nearby whispered to the King, 'The Fourth Prince is upstairs.'

Originally, since the King was stationed here, their people had immediately deployed around the area; those monitoring and protecting Baili Hu were also theirs, and the two groups had run into each other right then. Everyone thought such a minor matter need not be specially reported to the King, but who knew that people from Thorny Prefecture had slipped in and chosen to strike here.

How could they know how long the Thorny Prefecture people had been mixed in? The King had taken Baili Hu out on campaign without announcing it, so these people had waited in Secluded Prefecture for almost a month, growing anxious, with not a scrap of news about Baili Hu—even approaching the Purple Subtle Palace was difficult, let alone storming it.

This was the first time they had seen Baili Hu leave the palace; facing repeated urgings from Thorny Prefecture, they decided to take a risk and strike at the milk‑tea shop.

Baili Hu came out with eight guards openly escorting him, completely surrounding the group; they found no chance to pass a message. Finally, hardening their hearts and relying on their numbers to seek a quick victory, this could not be delayed.

Everything about the plan was fine; although the Thorny Prefecture rescue operation had spared no expense, the numerical disparity meant striking the enemy unprepared gave an overwhelming advantage, but today, because of the two stone lions crouched downstairs, the Oolong Sound setup was also super luxurious.

Today the Oolong Sound had suffered misfortune; the King downstairs heard the crackling sounds, which pained him greatly.

"……Even if we plucked every flower from the Purple Subtle Palace bald, it wouldn't be enough to compensate!"

The two brothers had been crouching outside for less than a quarter hour? When the Secluded Prefecture guards arrived, the sounds inside had already begun to fade. The Secluded Prefecture guards first surrounded Oolong Sound, driving away the bold‑hearted spectators who were waiting outside to watch the fun; when they reached the King's little group, someone lifted his clothing to show them his waist tablet, and the guards' shouts died down.

Sure enough, on Vermilion Bird Avenue nothing is trivial; they didn't know where to look, and they simply didn't want to guess who those two were crouching underground……

After the Secluded Prefecture guards rushed in, Wei Shen was the first to come out.

Just moments ago he had been a white‑clad handsome young man, but now his white clothes were stained with blood, his hair was disheveled, and as he walked he kept twisting his shoulder—obviously he had been struck in the shoulder.

Wei Shen saw the King still calmly squatting there guarding his flowers and said, 'You aren't going up to look? Aren't you curious who wins?'

"If we lose today, we won't go south either; we'll pack up, I'll abdicate, and take you all to sell sweet potatoes!"

Wei Shen: ……

Palace guards: ……

The second group to emerge was none other than the intact Baili Hu; as soon as he stepped outside he saw Third Fat bringing Old Seven to crouch at the doorway……

He immediately rushed over and asked, 'Did you get the news in advance?'

The King felt he had been insulted.

"You think, if I'd gotten advance warning, would I still need to sacrifice a shop for you to smash? Look at what you've done to the Chief Manager's shop! I'm telling you, Fourth Fat, you're wholly to blame!"

The King looked at the trembling shopkeeper who dared not flee and said, 'Remember this: the bill for the renovation will be sent straight to the Jing King, and the Jing King will foot the cost!'

The shopkeeper knew him, knew the rules, and though trembling with fear he didn't dare kneel, he kept bowing and nodding repeatedly; from afar it looked as if he were apologizing to a customer.

Fourth Fat had his breath caught in his chest, half‑choked, he was both furious and anxious, 'So many people are lying down up there, and you care about this?!'

The King gave him a meaningful glance and said, 'You also know this is a pointless sacrifice. When Xie Tu came to you, what were you doing?'

Having said that, he no longer looked at him and ordered, 'Someone, send the Jing King back to the palace!'

The palace guards who had accompanied Baili Hu out of the palace immediately went to support him and tried to pull him away, but Baili Hu refused to go, 'Let go of me! Don't kill them, I haven't finished speaking……'

The guards didn't listen to him; they swiftly dragged him away, and in the blink of an eye he vanished from the main street.

Once the people had gone far, the King immediately commanded, 'Let Xie Tu go see Baili Hu.' He wanted to strike while the iron was hot—there was no better time to discuss terms.

Seeing the guards still circling him, the King complained, 'Hurry up and rescue the people! Send anyone with breath to the Northern Border Medical Bureau, and make Old Zhang save them! Don't you understand? Even experts sent to dig sweet potatoes would be faster than others……'

Wei Shen: ……

The king's stall today is just a bunch of trifles; continuing like this isn't realistic, and he's lost interest. You say just forget it? How could that be.

He sold Minister Xie's beloved Everlife Crown wholesale to a wooden hairpin stall at two wen per flower, and only then, feeling bored, did he walk back.

He doesn't even need to wait until the Wei hour; the street isn't even crowded yet, and he already has to pull back. With so many shops around, any observant person should have long guessed his identity.

Tsk, next time I go out I still have to wear makeup! The expedition got off to a bad start.

As he walked, the king again wasn't willing to go back, and he turned a corner before entering the South Hua Gate.

"I'm going to inspect the work."

Originally, the plan for the New You King's residence also included government offices; now that the king has ascended the throne, the You King's residence has been upgraded to the Purple Wei Palace, and the offices under it have likewise been upgraded to central government offices.

They are located at the southwest corner of the Purple Wei Palace, with a separate entrance/exit generally called the Public Vehicle Gate. On the east side of the central government offices, there is also a separate large gate connecting to the Purple Wei Palace.

The king had never entered these offices from outside; this guy quickly regained interest, his eyes darting—"That's... a good idea."

He wants to view things from the common people's perspective to see how the officials do their work.

【Good news! Good news! Good news!

Important things bear repeating—our king is going to be adapted into a dynamic comic!

In the near future we'll be able to see it!

I don't watch Douyin and Redguo; if you see it, give me a shout—I'm not as up-to-date as everyone else~

Moreover, the side story will be updated; I also want the side story to catch up quickly. Writing both worlds together saves effort, but I'm afraid that rushing the main text's accumulation of chapters will affect update data and income—I'm having a tough time……