"Sir, someone from Qingyang has come to visit you." Zhou Tinggui looked at the city guard Sun Yuanliang who was lying in bed with some worry. Looking at his thin face, he felt sad for no reason in his heart. He worked hard day and night, and In the struggle between the two major forces, as he grows older, the physical condition of the city guard is far worse than before. Now when he falls ill, almost no one in the huge city guard can help except himself.
"Oh?" Opening his dull eyes, a flush appeared on Sun Yuanliang's face. With the support of the maid beside him, Sun Yuanliang sat up with all his strength, "Tinggui, you have worked hard these days. I think my body may be very weak." It’s hard to get through this year.”
"Why do you say this, sir? You just caught the cold occasionally. You will recover with a little rest." Zhou Tinggui frowned and said, "If you really want to go back to your hometown to recuperate, you can also apply to the imperial court." Zhou Tinggui was deeply moved. He understood that he, the city guard, was eager to return to his hometown to recuperate. Decades of ups and downs had made him exhausted, and not much of the sharp edges of his youth had been worn away by the ruthless reality.
"Application? Then Situ Mingyue will peel off my skin?" After regaining his energy a little, Sun Yuanliang showed a self-deprecating smile on his lips, "He has been waiting for this day."
Zhou Tinggui was speechless for a moment. Sun Yuanliang and he were both major parties who had personally experienced the Yinchuan Incident twenty years ago. The tense situation that was about to break out at that time was still vivid in his mind. Although they avoided a sword-fight, they also gained enough autonomy. , but he was inevitably charged with treason and seeking glory. This has always been an eternal pain in the heart of the city guard who considers himself a traditional Tang people, and it is also a huge stone weighing on his heart.
"Twenty years have passed. Why do you care so much? What's more, Situ Mingyue hasn't done anything to us in the past twenty years?" Zhou Tinggui deliberately aroused Sun Yuanliang's lofty ambitions.
"Yes, even if Situ Mingyue owns the entire empire, he can't do anything to Sun. Sun is still living freely in Yinchuan Mansion." Sun Yuanliang's eyes lit up, but then dimmed, "But so what? What? I am old and just want to return to my hometown and live a quiet life in an ordinary way."
Zhou Tinggui sighed secretly in his heart. The city guard no longer had the lofty sentiments of the past. The passage of time had turned a once famous imperial general into an ordinary old man. He couldn't offer any more persuasion, so he had to say again: " Sir, Qingyang Li Wufeng has sent someone to visit you."
"Well, I understand, whatever is supposed to come will come." Sun Yuanliang's face was calm, but his vision was extremely far-reaching, "I think the Sisluo people will also send people, right?"
"My lord, the special envoy of General Kidman from Nuremberg has also arrived in Yinchuan City, and is now going to General Yuan Hui." Zhou Tinggui replied laboriously.
"Hmph, it seems that the Sisluo people have seen the situation very clearly!" Sun Yuanliang has returned to his usual dignity. Although he still looks a little haggard, his mental state is much better. It is obvious that these uninvited guests have stirred up the excitement. His fighting spirit.
"Go and invite Mr. Li's envoy, and tell me to meet him in the study room." Sun Yuanliang put on his clothes and got out of bed, motioning to the maid next to him to help him get dressed.
"Sir, how is your body?" Zhou Tinggui only asked and when the city guard frowned, he said no more and went out.
"It's time to put an end to it. I, Sun Yuanliang, have been carrying this reputation of betraying the country and seeking glory for twenty years. It's enough." Looking at Zhou Tinggui's back as he went out, Sun Yuanliang murmured to himself.
Stepping into the gate of the City Guards Mansion, Su Qin felt a different smell. Everything seemed so ancient. Everything was the original Tang architectural style. Even many places were somewhat damaged, but it could still be seen. How this building looked decades ago.
"Please." The middle-aged man raised his hand politely.
Su Qin nodded. He knew that this unspectacular middle-aged man was Sun Yuanliang's number one think tank in Yinchuan Mansion. He was indispensable for Sun Yuanliang's ability to successfully survive among the two major forces of the Sisluo Empire and the Tanghe Empire without being devoured.
Entering the hall, the old man with his back to the door suddenly stood up and turned around. Only the eyes on his weathered face showed the man's extraordinary spirit, but the slightly bowed back also showed that the old man felt a little powerless. .
"Su Qin of the Military and Political Envoy of Northwest County has met Mr. Sun." Su Qin greeted him with neither humility nor arrogance.
"Master Su, please take a seat." Sun Yuanliang's face looked particularly calm, as if he were entertaining an old friend, the guests and hosts took their seats.
"Master Li just returned to the northwest and heard that Master Sun was ill, so he asked Su Qin to come and visit you." A sincere smile appeared on Su Qin's face as he presented the things he had brought, "This is from the Green Sea. The golden shells from the swamp are very effective in curing your illness, and Master Li specially asked Su Qin to bring them."
"Medicine can cure diseases, and Buddhas can help people who are destined to be reunited. I would like to thank Mr. Li for your concern on behalf of Mr. Sun." Sun Yuanliang shook his head and replied with deep meaning.
"Why do you say this, sir? Now that you are in your prime, it is a good time to display your skills and make contributions. How could you have such an idea?" Su Qin followed suit and asked hypocritically.
"Mr. Su laughed. Mr. Sun is already over fifty-four years old. His health has been good and bad recently, and his energy is not as good as before. I have long wanted to resign to Mr. Li and return home to spend his old age in peace. But he is burdened with trivial matters and has never been able to have leisure time. , and I wonder if Mr. Li will allow Sun to resign and return to his hometown?" Sun Yuanliang glanced sideways at Su Qin, picked up the teacup and took a sip.
"Lord Sun, your words are serious. Lord Li has always admired Lord Sun for his ability to maintain the integrity of the sons and daughters of our Tang clan over the past decades and to protect Yinchuan, the inherent territory of our Tang River Empire, in such a harsh environment. He has repeatedly I praise you." Su Qin nodded and said.
"Oh?" Sun Yuanliang was greatly surprised. He didn't expect that Li Wufeng would have such a comment on him.
"It's absolutely true. Mr. Li has said many times that Yinchuan Prefecture was in a complex and harsh environment at that time. As long as it could try its best to maintain its territory, it would be a great achievement. As for outsiders who don't know the inside story, make irresponsible remarks or the central government. The opinions of people who don't know the details cannot be used as historical conclusions." Su Qin finished word for word with a very serious tone. He knew that Sun Yuanliang was very sensitive to how everyone viewed this matter, especially how Li Wufeng viewed this matter twenty years ago.
Sun Yuanliang was shocked. He did not expect that Li Wufeng had such courage and dared to comment on that scene twenty years ago in front of his subordinates. That was the conclusion made by the current emperor himself. For this reason, he He had to endure tremendous mental pressure for ten years, which was one of the main reasons for his mental failure and premature physical decline.
"Master Li, don't you think that Sun is colluding with foreign enemies to treason and surrender to the enemy for separatism?" Sun Yuanliang calmed down and asked again.
"That's wrong. To look at something, you must first look at its essence, not its form." Su Qin smiled and said: "Colluding with foreign enemies to treason? Yinchuan Mansion has neither become part of the Sisluo Empire nor fallen into In the clutches of the nomadic people, how can you rebel against the country and surrender to the enemy? Yinchuan Prefecture is still part of the northwest county of the Tanghe Empire, and the decrees of the Tanghe Empire still prevail. You, Master Sun, are not a loner, so how can you segregate yourself and rule the roost? "
Su Qin's words made Sun Yuanliang, whose face had always been gloomy, suddenly feel enlightened and his mood improved a lot. Even Zhou Tinggui, who was sitting beside him, had to secretly admire Su Qin's eloquence.
"I am old and don't want to go to the grave with the name of a traitor and rebellious minister. Now that I can get my husband to enlighten me, it can be said that I have wiped away twenty years of grievances. I think back then, I managed this Yinchuan Mansion smoothly and the people lived and worked in peace and contentment. But, The imperial court was going to remove me from my post with an appointment and dismissal order. It was just a matter of removal. The person who replaced me turned out to be the official whom I dismissed for embezzling public funds. Moreover, that person also had a shady deal with the Sisi Luo people. I petitioned, but No one paid attention to me, and I saw that the land I had worked so hard to build was about to be taken over by evil people. I was really not willing to do this, so I chased the villain angrily, but I didn't expect that it would lead to a huge disaster."
Having said this, Sun Yuanliang let out a long breath and looked at the distance of the door, as if remembering the glory and pain of that day. After a long time, he said: "Needless to say, everyone knows what will happen in the future. Mr. Su, Since you represent Mr. Li today, I will formally propose to you to retire and return home. Everything in Yinchuan Mansion will naturally be handled by Mr. Li, but I would like to make one last suggestion."
Seeing the firm look in the other person's eyes, Su Qin said politely: "Please tell me."
"Right now, the Sisi Luo people are watching with eager eyes. My useless brother has always been colluding with them. I am very worried that they will do some treacherous things during my illness. I would like to ask Mr. Li to immediately send troops to Yinchuan temporarily. Take over the defense of Yinchuan Prefecture to avoid accidents. In addition, I also want to recommend to Mr. Li that Zhou Tinggui should succeed Yinchuan Prefecture's city guard to ensure the stability of Yinchuan." Sun Yuanliang's tone was very firm and calm.
"Sir!" Zhou Tinggui stood up in surprise.
"Tinggui, Mr. Li is a wise master who can be trusted. I am old and this world belongs to young people. Follow Mr. Li well." Sun Yuanliang patted Zhou Tinggui on the shoulder and smiled.
Su Qin also said readily: "We have heard about Mr. Zhou's talents for a long time. I will ask Mr. Li to agree that Mr. Zhou Tinggui will serve as the new governor of Yinchuan Prefecture."
"Very good, Mr. Su, then please convey Mr. Li immediately and ask him to send troops to Yinchuan as soon as possible. I'm worried that I may not be able to control my younger brother now. He is a division of the First Guard Division. Commander, if the Sisluo people intervene again, the situation will be difficult to control." Sun Yuanliang said seriously and with some regret.
"Okay, then I will immediately send someone to Qingyang to inform Mr. Li, hoping not to see this unpleasant scene." Su Qin also felt the urgency of the matter. Sun Yuanliang must have sensed something in being so eager. Maybe the Sisluo people The army is already on its way south.