Eighty-nine
Liu Tiezhu had never been to school and could not write, so even if You Shu wanted him to write a letter for him, it was impossible. Fortunately, Madam Qi was a nice person and offered to help. You Shu considered for a while and still did not reveal too much information about Xiao Weixin, and only asked him to write a line of words.
'I'm still alive, come pick me up.'
Liu Tiezhu scratched his head and stared at the words on the letter for a long time. He couldn't recognize what was written on it, so he asked: "My benefactor, can you just write these few words? What if the recipient doesn't know your identity?"
"No, he will know." You Shu replied softly.
After hearing what he said, Liu Tiezhu stuffed the letter, which had neither a signature nor detailed information, into an envelope, and walked for most of the day to the town to find someone to help mail it.
The errand boy said that it would take at least a month to get from here to Beijing. Liu Tiezhu told You Shu the exact words when he came back. You Shu nodded, "One month is enough."
"Then my benefactor, you can live here without worry, I will take care of you!" Liu Tiezhu said readily.
You Shu looked at him gratefully. Although he couldn't move yet, he still stubbornly wanted to get up. Liu Tiezhu hurriedly helped him up: "My benefactor, if you have anything to say, just tell me. I'll be at your service!"
"Brother Liu, please don't call me your benefactor anymore. I... can't bear it." You Shu felt a little ashamed, because he had thought about killing him at first. After all, he was in the enemy camp at that time. But he didn't expect that he would remember the fact that I just let him go. Not only did he call him a benefactor, but he also pulled him back from the brink of death. Otherwise, he would probably be dead at the bottom of the river by now.
"I can afford it." Liu Tiezhu happily wiped You Shu's hands and feet with a cloth. Doctor Qi said that if he could help him wash and stretch his muscles, it would help him recover faster. Liu Tiezhu strictly followed the doctor's instructions and did it without delay. "If it weren't for your generosity, thousands of us brothers would have been beheaded."
You Shu shook his head: "That's because my prince is kind-hearted." He coughed twice and said, "From now on, I will call you brother, and you can call me by my name."
Liu Tiezhu was also a straightforward person. Hearing this, he did not refuse. "Then I'll call you Xiao You? That's how I call my brothers."
"Sure." You Shu leaned on the old wooden bed, with warm sunlight pouring in from the window. He looked up at the clear blue sky, closed his eyes and felt the breeze brushing his cheek. It felt so good to be alive.
I hope his prince can receive the message as soon as possible.
——
Half a month later.
Xiao Weixin had just finished his court session. When he was in court earlier, Xia Maoan had been threatening him directly and secretly to hand over the Zhenbei Camp. Seeing that the two of them were confronting each other, Xiao Weishen did not dare to say much. He knew that he was in the wrong regarding the five border cities. The people were now denouncing him, and he didn't know how future censors would write about him in historical records. So he simply stopped caring about the government and handed over full power to Xiao Weixin.
The Zhenbei Camp had already fallen into Xiao Weiming's hands, so how could he give it up so easily? Xiao Weiming ignored him.
After returning home, Yang Qixian came as soon as he entered the house.
After this incident, Yang Qixian was extremely disappointed with the entire court, especially the man on the dragon throne. He had no illusions about him. The old general was caught in the night rain and was furious. He had just passed away a few days ago. Yang Qixian was so sad that he didn't even have time to take off his mourning clothes after finishing Sang's funeral.
The most hateful thing was that Xia Maoan couldn't wait to seize the military power from his father before his father's body was even cold, and the emperor turned a deaf ear to it. He only sent people to express perfunctory condolences and gave him a flashy posthumous title as the last glory.
Yang Qixian didn't care about the false reputation of "Marquis of Might" at all. He knew that his father didn't close his eyes before he died, just because all the twelve border cities fell. So he hadn't been to court for more than a month, drinking and sulking at home all day. If his sister Yang Nanruo hadn't been unable to bear it and beat him up, he would have been even more depressed.
After listening to Nan Ruo's words, Yang Qixian knelt in front of the tablets of his father and ancestors all night. This morning, he came to Prince Ling's Mansion after the court session.
Xiao Weixin naturally knew his intention. To some extent, Xiao Weishen was a pig. He was able to push a general like Yang Qixian, who was originally loyal to the emperor, to his side without even spending a single soldier or even saying a word.
Yang Qixian didn't say much. He held the teacup in his hand and stared blankly in the hall for a while. Suddenly, he said in a hoarse voice, "Your Majesty, I am willing to follow you to achieve great things, but..."
"If the prince succeeds in the future, never forget the blood debt of the twelve border cities!"
Xiao Weixin followed his gaze towards the beautiful garden in full bloom in the courtyard, silently put down the teacup, and said in a cold voice: "This king will not forget."
"Don't worry, General."
Yang Qixian nodded. This was all he wanted. He put down his teacup and knelt on one knee in front of Xiao Weixin. "I am willing to risk my entire life and property to clear all obstacles for you, my Lord!"
Xiao Weixin raised the corners of his lips, "I will definitely not treat you badly in the future, you can rest assured."
After Yang Qixian stood up, he didn't say another word. He turned around and strode out of the flower hall.
Xiao Weixin admired the flowers alone in the flower hall. Although the military power of the Yang family had been weakened again and again, so many years of fighting could not be wiped out in a day or two. Their Yang family still had a very high prestige in the army. The surrender of the Yang brothers and sisters would be like adding wings to a tiger for him.
With the 100,000 soldiers under their command, plus the 30,000 men in the Zhenbei Camp, they are more than enough to fight against the manpower under Xia Maoan.
But all this is not enough. Xiao Weixin's eyes are gloomy. What he wants is for Xia Maoan to be disgraced, cursed for all eternity and die without a burial place. Now is not the last moment. Let him live for a few more days. When he closes the net, no one in the Xia family can be left alive!
No matter how Xia Maoan died, his Xiao Shu would never come back...
Xiao Weixin sat there dejectedly, thinking that if Xiao Shu was by his side, he would have someone to talk to about his troubles.
At this moment, Wangchen stumbled in from outside, holding an envelope high in his hand and shouting, "Prince! Prince!"
"What are you arguing about!" Xiao Weixin cursed impatiently, "Get out!"
Now he just wanted to sit alone for a while and didn't want to deal with anything. This bastard Wangchen was becoming more and more ignorant.
Wang Chen felt a little aggrieved, but he still ran all the way over, panting slightly and said, "Your Majesty, there is a letter for you!"
"No." Xiao Weixin didn't even raise his eyelids, "I don't have the heart to look at it. I'll just throw it away no matter who it is."
Recently, because of his rising power in the court, many people with ulterior motives began to target him, and tried various ways to ask him to pave the way for them to get an official position. However, Xiao Weixin didn't think highly of those mediocre and stupid people, and he burned them all.
Wang Chen looked down at the cover and said awkwardly, "But it says on the envelope that you must open it in person."
"What's written in the signature? Liu Tiezhu."
When Xiao Weixin heard Liu Tiezhu's name, he thought about it in his mind and then remembered who this person was. "Why did he write to me?"
At the beginning, he took into account what Xiao Shu had said and released Liu Tiezhu and his group halfway. After all, they were just puppets and would be of little use if they were brought back. So he simply let them go and considered it as a good deed for Xiao Shu. Maybe the gods would see his kindness and allow Xiao Shu to return safely.
Xiao Weixin finally kept the letter. He couldn't understand what important matter Liu Tiezhu could have that would warrant him writing to him. After carelessly tearing open the wax seal, only a piece of paper fell out.
Although he didn't want to look, Xiao Weixin still glanced at it casually. But just this one glance made him shudder all over, and the blood in his body seemed to freeze, and his hair stood on end.
'I'm still alive, come and pick me up.'
Although this sentence did not point to anything and the handwriting was not familiar to him, Xiao Weixin understood it at that moment.
The hand holding the note was shaking violently. He stood up from the chair abruptly, pulled Wangchen over and asked him excitedly: "Who sent this letter? Where is he?"
"Let's go, let's go." Wang Chen didn't understand why his expression suddenly changed, and he stammered to explain: "That man is a messenger in the city, and he probably doesn't know where this letter came from."
"Isn't there a source on this letter?"
This sentence reminded Xiao Weixin. He immediately took the envelope and read it over and over again. Suddenly he stood up and was about to go out: "Get the horse ready! I want to pick up Xiao Shu!"
Wang Chen was scared to death. Didn't the guy say he had been dead for more than a month? Was the prince crazy
He hurriedly followed him out and met Shen Qingyu on the way. He immediately told Lord Shen about this and asked him to persuade the prince not to be impulsive.
Shen Qingyu was also startled, and immediately turned around and followed. As expected, he saw Xiao Weixin who was riding a horse and preparing to go out to pick someone up. He stepped forward and said, "Wait a minute, Your Majesty!"
He stepped forward to stop Xiao Weixin who was in a hurry to go out. Xiao Weixin was so anxious that he didn't care about anything else. "Tingshan, I don't have time to listen to you now. Xiao Shu is still alive! I have to go pick him up!"
"I know." Shen Qingyu said hurriedly, "but you don't have to be too anxious."
"Why was there only one letter sent back? Why didn't Master You return home himself?"
Xiao Weixin was stunned, and then Shen Qingyu said firmly: "He must be seriously injured and unable to walk, so he had to ask someone to pass the message. It is not appropriate for you to go like this, Your Majesty."
These words made Xiao Weixin suddenly realize, "Yes, he must need something else."
After saying that, he got off his horse and hurried back: "I'm going to find Huachun and ask her to prepare a carriage and horses, and I'm going to take her with me!"
"Xiao Shu must be seriously injured and needs a good doctor."
Xiao Weixin couldn't calm down at all now. He wanted to fly away immediately and didn't want anything anymore.
Shen Qingyu followed behind him, sighing in his heart.
The prince was so impulsive and reckless about Master You's matter. I'm afraid that he will really become the queen in the future.