Tang Tiehan, Tang Tiecheng, and Tang Qingxuan had truly come to know Hu Xiaotian through crossing blows. By now, the three siblings admired him enough to prostrate themselves before him, especially Tang Qingxuan. She had gone from regarding him as a lecher to seeing him as both her dream lover and her idol. Unfortunately, Hu Xiaotian was already engaged to Princess Yongyang, and that had left Tang Qingxuan heartbroken for quite some time.
Even so, seeing Hu Xiaotian still made her blush and her heart race. Tang Qingxuan felt as though she had fallen under a spell, one she feared she would never escape for the rest of her life.
Hu Xiaotian received the three siblings in the Flower Hall and said with a smile, "What brings my three old friends here? Have you some advice for me?"
"Lord Hu, I heard the emperor has exiled you to Eastern Liang Commandery?" Tang Tiehan asked. He never thought before speaking and had gone straight to the word "exiled." Tang Qingxuan coughed softly, clearly reminding her eldest brother to watch his tongue.
"It isn't exile," Hu Xiaotian said with a smile. "The emperor has granted Eastern Liang Commandery to Princess Yongyang as her fief, and I'm going there to manage it on her behalf. You've misunderstood, Brother Tang."
"Lord Hu, everyone knows what sort of place Eastern Liang Commandery is," Tang Tiehan said. "The emperor can't have any good intentions in sending you there."
Hu Xiaotian burst out laughing. Though Tang Tiehan had a fiery temper and a rough manner, he was not bad at heart. During his diplomatic mission to Great Yong, Hu Xiaotian had saved the siblings several times, and they had regarded him as their lifesaving benefactor ever since. "Whatever the emperor may be thinking," Hu Xiaotian said, "once