Yue Ziang lowered his head to toast and continued to apologize.

Ouyang Rong was reconciled by the jokes of Li Zhengyan, Wang Junzhi and others.

He raised his glass and took a sip.

Opposite Yue Ziang looked relieved.

Ouyang Rong's expression remained normal, but he was a little surprised in his heart.

He was not kidding, he really wanted Yue Ziang to continue to be unruly.

But now this apology looks like.

This is very unethical.

When something goes wrong, there must be a monster.

I noticed someone in the seat next to me was looking at him, as if looking at him intently.

Ouyang Rong turned around and saw that it was Mr. Zhu whom he had met once.

Whether intentionally or not, his seat was next to Ouyang Rong.

"Ouyang Changshi, I, Zhu Yuheng, have admired your name for a long time. I have witnessed your grace at the birthday party of the noble daughter of the Xie family before. I wonder if you remember me."

Zhu Yuheng toasted to Ouyang Rong.

Ouyang Rong nodded:

"Of course I remember. It's a pity that my ugly appearance that day made Mr. Zhu and everyone at the banquet laugh."

"How can you talk and laugh? It's obviously too late to envy you.

"Ouyang Changshi was admitted to the imperial examination at a young age, and he was able to win the favor of noble ladies of the five surnames. He was also recognized by the Xie family of Chen County, and he was able to win a beautiful woman...

"Ouyang Changshi doesn't know how much the young talents who attended the banquet that day admire you."

Zhu Yuheng sighed with emotion.

Ouyang Rong heard this and took a look at the eldest son of the Hongzhou Governor's Mansion.

The man in this life is tall and powerful, with wheat-colored skin that has been burned by the sun, but he wears a white shirt that looks better than snow, which is quite nondescript and arty.

Ouyang Rong glanced at Zhu Yuheng and saw some calluses on his tiger's mouth.

Ouyang Rong had seen this characteristic from Qin Heng.

It is caused by the habit of holding the reins for a long time.

He was not just a playboy, he should have had military experience...he judged in his heart.

However, most of the scholars in the Daqian and Zhou dynasties had strong martial virtues. They mounted their horses to ride on the battlefields in Xinjiang and dismounted from their horses to drink wine and compose poems.

In addition, his father Zhu Lingxu made his fortune as a military attache in the border army.

It’s not surprising that like father, like son.

Ouyang Rong nodded lightly.

Because since the Taizong and Gaozong dynasties, national power has been on the rise, and so has the territory.

Joining the army to expand territory and making meritorious service are the only promotion paths in the minds of great officials, second only to the imperial examination.

It's just that in the Zhou Dynasty, now ruled by the female emperor, the expansion of territory has gradually slowed down, or even been frustrated. The Yingzhou Rebellion is an example...

Ouyang Rong replied calmly:

"Master Zhu doesn't seem to be an envious person."

Zhu Yuheng shook his head and lowered his voice and said:

"I am also envious of Ouyang Changshi."

"oh?"

He said word for word: "Ouyang Changshi can win the respect of King Xunyang and the Crown Prince and be treated as a guest in the curtain. This is his real ability."

Ouyang Rong was silent and glanced at Yue Ziang opposite.

He brought the person here, Zhu Yuheng should have learned some details from Yue Ziang,

For example, last time at Yunshui Pavilion, Yue Ziang encountered a scene where Ouyang Rong and Li Dalang were chatting and having a close friendship.

"It's just a misinformation, don't take it seriously. As we all know, Corporal Lixian, King of Xunyang, is not just for the next person."

Zhu Yuheng was stunned for a moment, then smiled,

He toasted with a slightly apologetic expression.

Seeing the tacit understanding in the eyes of Master Zhu, Ouyang Rong had a slight headache.

The influence of King Xunyang as the former great emperor and deposed emperor was much greater than he imagined.

As the crown prince appointed by Emperor Gaozong before his death, he is the legal successor of Daqian and the elder brother of King Xiang Lilun.

At the same time, he is also one of the two direct descendants of the Li family who are most indebted to Taizong and Gaozong.

One of the biggest golden signs.

Scholars from all over the world came in large numbers, covertly and covertly.

Like a firefly in a dark room, it attracts promising people.

Ouyang Rong suddenly heard Zhu Yuheng sigh:

"To be honest with you, I have also sent a message to Prince Xunyang's Mansion on behalf of my father. I want to visit the prince and invite the prince to visit Kuanglu. Unfortunately, the prince and the prince are busy, and I am a low-key person. I have been wasting my time from Yuanzheng to now..."

While Zhu Yuheng was recounting his bitter experiences, he glanced at someone calmly.

Ouyang Rong's reaction was mediocre.

He seemed to be dizzy after drinking. He patted his red cheeks and put down the glass.

He lowered his eyes and took out his chopsticks to pick up some vegetables to relieve his hangover.

As the chief counselor of the Xunyang Palace, Li Xian is the "outsider" who has the most weight in speaking in front of Li Fusu and his son.

A person who monopolizes access to human resources.

Ouyang Rong inevitably realized the essence of something called power.

What is power.

From a certain perspective, power is a social node.

The reason why Li Zhengyan, Zhu Yuheng and others looked for opportunities to contact him was to be affable and treat him wholeheartedly.

Isn't it precisely because he is the important node in making friends with Prince Xunyang's Mansion?

Li Zhengyan, as a long-established Guanlong nobleman who inherited the British throne, although he behaved generously and eclectically,

But he has grown up in this system since he was a child. He has a deep understanding of the way power operates, and it is also the rule of this era:

He knows that when he comes to a place and does something, he needs to find the most useful person, that is, a social node.

Whether it's about money or feelings, both must be "implemented" with the most correct person.

Therefore, when Li Zhengyan and others were still far away in the capital, they noticed Ouyang Rong and followed the clues to find Xie Xun and Shen Xisheng first.

This process is so precise.

It's a pity that this time I met Ouyang Rong, who refused to take hard or soft advice and had a clear mind.

The teacher recommended that you are a guest from afar, so you can treat me warmly.

Talking about the introduction? Wait, what kind of wine is this? It can actually make me slightly tipsy...

When Zhu Yuheng approached Ouyang Rong to talk, many people at the banquet quietly stopped picking up food and listened.

At the moment, Ouyang Rong was smiling and silent. In order to prevent Zhu Yuheng from being embarrassed, Wang Junzhi interrupted the topic and asked with a smile:

"Brother Zhu, why did your Majesty ask you to visit King Xunyang?"

Zhu Yuheng immediately said:

"In the early Gaozong Dynasty, when King Xunyang was appointed as the crown prince and superintendent of the country, he presided over military merit awards and promoted Jia Yan to the rank of Imperial Servant Shaoqing.

"Jia Yan will never forget the kindness of knowing him. I recently heard that King Xunyang was ill. Jia Yan was worried and worried. He searched for precious medicinal materials and sent me to deliver them."

Ouyang Rong couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth.

Good guy, when Li Xian's family was demoted to common people and lived in seclusion in Longcheng, why didn't you, the Zhu family and his son, come over to send medicine to repay the kindness of your support?

Is it temporary amnesia?

Now that he has become King of Xunyang again and is qualified to compete for the crown prince, your father, Zhu Lingxu, immediately remembered it, right?

However, Ouyang Rong couldn't help but murmur in his heart when he saw Zhu Yuheng's high-spirited and red-eyed expression that was deeply moved by his father's persistence in the friendship between king and subject.

For a moment, I couldn't decide whether Mr. Zhu was pretending to be stupid or really stupid.

No, brother, it’s okay to lie to your buddies, but don’t lie to yourself. It doesn’t really matter if my buddies are deceived by you, just laugh and let it go, but you...

Ouyang Rong complained in his heart, but soon discovered that maybe because he grew up in a different era, everyone at the banquet except him seemed to like this narrative of friendship between king and minister.
To be continued...