When Fang Jie came back from the Hexing Building, there were no other pedestrians on the street, and the moon was high but very bright. The moonlight makes the night look like there is no such scary darkness. Walking alone on the quiet street, stepping on the long, long shadow that was dragged out by the moonlight.
Hexing Building is not far from his residence, only a five-minute walk. And now there are at least four thousand elite left guards in Anlai County, there is no need for Fang Jie to bring his entourage, unless it is Luo Yao who wants to kill him.
The meaning of what Luo Qiu said at today's dinner was already obvious, he was just lobbying for Luo Yao. At the beginning, the first emperor sent Luo Qiu to level the business road because this person was prudent enough to distinguish priorities. But now Fang Jie has reason to believe that if Luo Yao rebels, Luo Qiu may not necessarily stand by the court.
Ten years is enough to change a person.
As Fang Jie walked back, he thought about the words Luo Qiu said today, turning over and over in his mind, but actually it was only one sentence that made him hard to calm down.
If you get the guidance of the general, you will definitely improve by leaps and bounds in practice.
Luo Qiu's words were replayed back and forth in Fang Xie's mind, which made Fang Xie a little distressed. He thought that he was a person who could already resist some temptations, but only now did he realize that a person's greed is sometimes uncontrollable. In such an era, being a high-ranking official is not as good as being a peerless master.
Just as Fang Jie was about to walk to the door of his residence, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him.
Fang Jie stopped and turned his head, and then saw the man exuding a cold and arrogant manner under the moonlight.
"Is the general not resting yet?"
Fang Jie clasped his fists and asked.
Luo Yao looked at Fang Xie from afar, the moonlight seemed to be in his sight so that Fang Xie felt as uncomfortable as if he was not wearing any clothes.
"After thinking about it after going back, I suddenly felt that it is better to talk about some things openly and honestly."
Luo Yao said flatly, "I'm a soldier, so I don't really like that kind of tactful way."
"Then I will accompany the general for a walk?"
Fang Jie said with a smile.
Luo Yao nodded: "Okay."
After saying this, he continued to walk forward. Fang Jie waited until he walked over and followed him at a distance of two steps. The two of them also walked with their hands behind their backs, and there were some similarities in their backs. This small city is full of soldiers from the left avant-garde, and from time to time you can meet soldiers on duty patrolling the street. Whenever he met a patrol team, Fang Jie could feel the respect from the bottom of his heart when he heard the soldiers call out the general.
"You came to Yongzhou, this is the first time we met."
Fang Jie didn't really believe Luo Yao's first sentence, because Luo Yao had always been abnormal after seeing him. Fang Xie didn't know Luo Yao well, so he didn't know what a normal left forward general would look like, but Fang Xie could feel that Luo Yao's speech and behavior were far from that cold, arrogant and ruthless person in the legend.
"yes."
Fang Jie nodded.
"But I appreciate you."
Luo Yao continued: "I became interested in you when the news of the martial arts academy's entrance examination reached Yongzhou... You fought against that kid from the Xie family and even defeated him."
"Xie Fuyao kept his hand and didn't try his best."
Fang Jie answered truthfully.
"You don't know how to practice, you are born with a waste physique... But that boy from Xie's family is a well-known talent in the south of the Yangtze River. He has already entered the family by practicing at the age of ten. The old monster in Wudang Mountain regards him as a closed disciple. But why didn't that old monster decide to teach him something? So even if that kid from the Xie family kept his hand, your performance is still impressive."
"Thank you, General, for your compliment."
"This is the truth, not a compliment."
Luo Yao said indifferently: "I will never praise anyone hypocritically, even if you are an imperial envoy."
He stopped, looked back at Fang Jie and asked, "Why do you keep keeping a distance of two steps from me? Do you think you can get away with this distance?"
Fang Jie was slightly taken aback, then smiled: "It's just a habit."
Luo Yao hummed: "This is a good habit."
"Thanks."
"Answer my three questions first, it won't do you any harm."
Luo Yao sat down on the steps of a rich family's house, pointed to his side and signaled Fang Xie to sit down. Fang Jie didn't refuse, and sat down calmly.
"What does the general want to ask?"
"First... what does Your Majesty think about this marriage?"
Fang Xie was silent for a long time and then seriously replied: "Your Majesty doesn't seem to want to marry the eldest princess to the young general. The first reason is that the southwest is too far from Chang'an City, and the eldest princess is His Majesty's most beloved daughter. No one. The second reason is... because His Majesty knows more or less about the daily affairs of the Major General, so he is not very relieved."
"What about the third?"
Luo Yao asked.
"There is no third."
Fang Jie shook his head.
Luo Yao smiled: "Yes, it's just that you don't dare to say it. The most important reason why His Majesty asked you to come is because you want to use troops against the Northwest. You can't hide things about the Northwest... Your Majesty doesn't trust me. He is afraid that I will take advantage of the Northwest When you are in trouble, you will also make trouble. You come, but His Majesty sent you to investigate me by taking advantage of the eldest princess's marriage."
Fang Jie smiled wryly, but did not answer.
"second question… "
Luo Yao didn't seem to want to continue entanglement on this issue, he already knew what he needed to know.
"Is Xiao Yijiu dead?"
Fang Jie didn't expect Luo Yao to ask this question, so he was stunned for a moment: "He was not dead when I left the capital, but he shouldn't live long due to his felony. His Majesty should have waited for the day when the Ministry of Criminal Justice closed the case, and brought him together with Prince Yi." disposal."
What Fang Jie didn't know was the reason why Xiao Yijiu was not executed immediately. It was because the emperor wanted to test Wan Xingchen's reaction, and was also worried that Wan Xingchen would do something if he moved Xiao Yijiu. After all, that person... was too strong.
Luo Yao shook his head: "If you want to kill someone like Xiao Yijiu, it's better to kill him earlier. Your Majesty's matter... I'm afraid it has other meanings."
Fang Jie didn't know, Luo Yao was just curious, so this topic ended abruptly.
"The third question... If I sincerely invite you, would you like to stay in the left front to do things? If I give a memorial, His Majesty should not refuse my request. You should think carefully before answering this question, because for you Said it was a rare opportunity."
Luo Yao said indifferently: "I am not arrogant, but you should understand that I am the only one who can guide you in your practice now."
This... is really an irresistible temptation for Fang Jie.
…
…
"cannot."
Fang Jie took out a pipe from his buckskin pouch, lit it, and took a deep breath: "The general may think that I don't know how to compliment, but in fact, I also feel that I am a bit idiot in refusing. No one cares more about my body than I do." I understand better, so I know what you're talking about is an indisputable fact. Staying at the left half, I may break the shackles that I have been unable to break...but...even so, I still can't stay. "
Luo Yao tilted his head and glanced at him: "The reason?"
Fang Jie exhaled a thick puff of smoke, and under the moonlight he looked like a monstrosity swallowing the essence of the sun and the moon.
"I want to join the army, I want to pick up the horizontal knife again, jump on the horseback and kill the enemy on the battlefield... If I stay in Yongzhou... General, please forgive me, then the enemy I have to face is definitely not the enemy I want to face. I I lived in Fan Gu for three years, and those three years were the most stable and stable years in my life. Just to remember this stability and stability, I remembered the names and faces of everyone in Fan Gu for three years. Frontier soldiers There are almost 3,000 people together with the people, and I will not mistake anyone."
"But they died."
Fang Jie rubbed his sore nose: "If their death has something to do with me... I have to go back to Fan Gu to atone for their crimes. If their death has nothing to do with me, I have to go back to Fan Gu to take revenge."
Luo Yao said lightly, "You don't seem like an impulsive person."
Fang Jie said with a smile: "Sometimes it's not human to be impulsive."
Luo Yao was actually amused by his boring words: "You should know a lot about me, because I know you won't let yourself come to Yongzhou without knowing anything. Back then I was crushed I was lucky enough not to die when I was in a sea of anger, but I would rather die than live. I remember that when I gave up on myself, someone said to me such a sentence... Only with persistence in the heart can there be success. If I hadn’t heard this sentence at the beginning , maybe I'm either a dead bone or a disabled person now."
"You also have obsessions in your heart."
Luo Yao said: "That's good. You and I have very similar temperaments... Soldiers naturally have the bloodiness unique to soldiers. If I was powerless at that time, it doesn't mean that I will pretend to forget in the future. When I am capable, those who hurt me Do people who are friends still want to live freely?"
Fang Jie's heart was shaken when he heard these words, he thought of Fan Gu's folks. Each face appeared in his mind more than once, and it was never blurred.
"It's a very difficult and proud thing for a man to aspire to revenge. I won't stop you."
Luo Yao took the pipe from Fang Jie and took a deep breath: "Such fine shredded tobacco...is it from Nanyan?"
"It's... Huotong Tianxia trafficked it from Nanyan to Chang'an City."
Fang Jie answered.
Luo Yao hummed: "But haven't you thought about it, there is no conflict between you staying in the left front and your revenge?"
"ah?"
Fang Jie was surprised, as if he couldn't believe what he heard.
"I know what's on your mind."
Luo Yao exhaled a puff of smoke slowly, looking more evil than Fang Jie: "It's not just you, I'm afraid that many people including Your Majesty think that I will be unfaithful, and I will eventually do something that I am sorry to Your Majesty and the Sui Dynasty. It seems reasonable to think this way. I sit in one side with a heavy army in my hand. The sky is high and the emperor is far away. Why didn't I rebel after twenty years?"
He asked Fang Jie, but Fang Jie didn't know how to answer. Fang Jie didn't expect Luo Yao to tell this matter so straightforwardly, without any shyness.
"Because I never thought of rebelling."
Luo Yao took a deep breath and then let it out slowly, as if to vent his dissatisfaction.
"Everyone in the Left Front and I have never had the idea of rebellion. You don't need to believe it, but I don't need to explain too much to you. It will be clearly written in the history books in the future, and I will leave it to future generations to comment... So I'm pretending not to know about the defeat in the Northwest War because His Majesty doesn't want me to know. And I'm waiting for His Majesty's call, if Your Majesty says Luo Yao, you want to lead troops to the Northwest to counter the rebellion... I will immediately put on my armor and mount my horse!"
Luo Yao raised his head and looked at the bright moon in the sky: "Yongzhou has more than 400,000 horses, double the number reported to the court. This is one of the reasons why those idiot courtiers doubt me, and it is also one of the reasons why Your Majesty doubts me." But I can tell you that when His Majesty needs me, these 400,000 people will appear in front of His Majesty one by one, rushing forward without hesitation in the direction of His Majesty's finger."
"So, even if you stay in the left front, you can go to the northwest to kill the Mongolian and Kou rebels."
Fang Jie was silent for a long time, then shook his head and said seriously: "The general believes in himself, but others do not believe in you. Therefore, His Majesty will not easily mobilize the left forward troops. I am a person who pursues a comfortable life. To make myself comfortable requires The first thing to do is...don't push yourself against your will."
"Thank you for your love, General, but I can't stay."
His words were light but firm.
"That's such a pity..."
Luo Yao sighed and got up: "I'm very happy that you didn't tell a single lie today."
"The general didn't tell a single lie. Not only will I be happy, but His Majesty will also be happy."
Luo Yao smiled: "I won't force you, just think it over yourself."
He walked out slowly, and stopped suddenly after taking four or five steps.
"I know you are an ambitious young man, but I didn't expect you to be so ambitious...the left front guard with an army of 400,000 can't fit in."