Chapter 483: Near to a Demon

A few days later, this evening, Du Gou came personally to ask Chen Yan to go to his house for a meal.

He naturally had no reason to refuse.

After telling Li Lizhi and the others, he left with Du Gou.

On the way, Du Gou casually asked, "Brother Chen, a few days ago I heard Fang say he saw His Majesty and Her Majesty outside. Did they come again?"

"Yes." Speaking of it, Chen Yan felt depressed.

He had finally managed to grow potatoes, reaching a scale of over a thousand jin as a food crop, intending to hand them to Li Shimin, to get rid of this trouble and stop worrying about them.

He never expected Li Shimin to say, "You have experience growing potatoes; grow them again," and then allocate a plot of land in Weinan County for him.

In the end, he still had to plant the potatoes himself.

However......

Chen Yan did see from this that Li Shimin probably wanted to know when he would return to Chang'an.

He guessed he could stay in Weinan County comfortably for a few more months.

"Brother Du, we don't have many days left in Weinan County; we need to start making arrangements."

Hearing that, Du Gou understood Chen Yan's meaning and said, "Don't worry, today I called Fang and Li Yifu and the others; we'll set things up preliminarily, and gradually hand over the official duties to them, so there won't be any troublemakers."

"I'm not worried about troublemakers," Chen Yan clicked his tongue, "I mean we should prepare for returning to Chang'an; otherwise, a rash return could bring unforeseen accidents."

"We've offended quite a few people in Weinan County."

Du Gou was startled for a moment and, jokingly, said, "Surely not? Brother Chen! When we return to Chang'an, if we don't say the fierce tiger returns to the mountain, at best it's like an old lady wiping her nose, hand holding a pinching tool, right?"

"No matter how the court situation in Chang'an is, could anyone dare to set traps for us?"

Chen Yan: "......"

Good fellows, after staying with these people so long, why do they keep spouting proverbs at every turn?

Gao Yang is like that, and Du Gou is the same.

How come you all are so good at learning this?

"They probably wouldn't set traps for us," Chen Yan mused. "After all, we have people behind us; ordinary folks wouldn't dare to provoke us with bear's heart and leopard's gall."

"But the problem is, our edge is too sharp; returning to Chang'an and trying to secure a foothold, I think, won't be easy."

"A tiny Weinan County can be stirred up into a storm by us; who knows what will happen when we return to Chang'an?"

Du Gou, hearing this, fell into thought, finding the words sounded odd.

It seemed odd for Chen Yan to say such things; it would make sense if those who didn't want to see them succeed said it.

Nevertheless, Du Gou also understood Chen Yan's meaning.

After thinking, he said, "Then why don't we scout a few people, and after returning to Chang'an, build a team to quickly help us secure our footing?"

Chen Yan paused, "You mean we should be more forceful?"

Du Gou nodded lightly, "Exactly. As the saying goes, a new official lights three fires; we aren't just one official, but four, so the fire must burn brighter."

"Isn't His Majesty just now inclined to clean out another batch of deadwood?"

Honestly, Du Gou's proposal seemed fine in ordinary times, but after pondering, Chen Yan slowly shook his head and declined.

"No, our influence is already large enough. Li Yifu and the others may stay in Weinan County for now, but they'll eventually go to Chang'an; they already count as our team. If we still create another group, the combined speaking power of you, me, and those behind us would be too great; that won't work."

"Your consideration is too one‑sided, not deep enough, and lacks long‑term vision. Being strong is good, but not overly strong."

Chen Yan made a point, and Du Gou instantly cleared up.

Indeed, as the son of Fang and Du, in the situation where Wang Gui is about to step down and Changsun Wuji is making moves, he is already a representative of the civil officials.

Meanwhile, Chen Yan has the backing of a group of military generals.

Even a peripheral figure like Ma Zhou, if he returns to Chang'an, could likely become the representative of this generation's humble‑born youths.

From the current perspective, their power is indeed massive.

Not to mention, if the previous generation steps back and this generation rises one by one, with Li Yifu and the others also going to Chang'an, and Cheng Chu Mo and others maturing, their future influence will grow even larger.

Li Shimin might not care about this, because he has the confidence to keep it in check.

But it's uncertain what he'll do in his later years, perhaps paving the way for the Crown Prince.

Chen Yan himself has absolutely no problem, but those people might not be so certain.

Du Gou's eyes flashed, and he nodded heavily, "Brother Chen, I've learned."

Chen Yan glanced at him, "Let's set aside future circumstances for now, because the situation will keep changing, and no one knows what the future holds; we'll adapt as needed then."

"As for now, after we return to Chang'an, we must clarify what we should fight for and what we shouldn't. Our speaking power is already large enough, so that can be set aside; securing our foothold is the top priority."

"Also, the court isn't about fighting and killing; the court is about human relations and worldly affairs!"

"Even if we have a background, we still must make the appropriate displays!"

"Later, write a letter to your father, feel out the situation, and ask which people are worth befriending and which need to be kept at a distance."

"One more thing, we've been away from Chang'an for a while—maybe a year or two—and we must clearly understand the current court situation, especially the Secretariat and the Ministry of Revenue…"

Chen Yan said a lot, and Du Gou noted everything one by one.

Having spent so much time with Chen Yan, Du Gou has long been convinced of him.

Usually everyone can get along like brothers and friends, but on serious matters, he follows his heart and listens entirely to Chen Yan.

Du Gou is very self‑aware, knowing that currently he is far inferior to his own father, and also cannot match Chen Yan, whom his father calls 'Near to a Demon.'

Indeed, that's 'Near to a Demon.'

In many people's eyes, Chen Yan truly is very demonic.

This has almost become an unspoken consensus among everyone.

Before long, the two arrived in front of Du Gou's house.

As soon as they entered, a beautifully graceful woman immediately came forward to greet them.

"I, your humble servant, pay respects to the Duke of Wei; my husband has already set a seat before the hall. Duke, please take the seat."

"Sister-in-law, no need for excessive courtesy; given my relationship with Brother Du, there's no need to be so polite." Chen Yan waved his hand, turned his head and asked: "By the way, have Brother Fang and the others arrived?"

Du Gou shifted his gaze to his wife; she understood, and said softly: "Brother Fang and Young Master Li have just arrived; they are sitting idly in the main hall."

"They're also quite quick." Du Gou smiled, "Brother Chen, since that's the case, let's hurry over so we don't keep everyone waiting."

"Alright, let's go!"

"......"