Hearing the knock on the door, he was flipping through the scriptures of a previous book "Kai Yuan Li", so the adult raised his head, put down the book lightly, straightened his clothes, and said calmly, "Come in."
The familiar figure pushed the door open and said to Li Gongde: "General Lingzhou, please refer to Master Jinglue Envoy."
Li Gongde's expression was complicated. After standing up, the second-rank official, who is famous for his proficiency in flattery and flattery, said in a deep voice: "Your Highness came down well, but he came later than Li Gongde expected. The reason for saying this is, It proves that the matter of the two secret letters was indeed secretly planned by His Royal Highness. Bei Liang needs such a king of Bei Liang, so there is a saying of "come well". If you come late, you are dissatisfied with the benevolence of His Highness's woman. After handing over a secret letter, he neither turned his back on him immediately, nor opened the letter immediately, knowing that the secret letter was the real letter, which means that His Highness has been hesitating these days, even if he mistakenly thought that Li Gongde had already Determined to take refuge in the imperial court, but still unwilling to kill, such a royal highness, that is, to be a Lingzhou general, Lingzhou governor, etc., is more than enough, kindness does not command soldiers, how will we drive 300,000 heroes in the future? The Beiliang iron cavalry?"
Xu Fengnian did not refute. Li Gongde smiled, moved out two chairs, and the two of them sat opposite each other. The adults looked at this increasingly angular young face and said softly, "Your Highness, you may want to ask why?" Li Gongde will do nothing more. Since he obviously did not seek refuge in the imperial court and was not seduced by Zhang Julu, why did he deliberately hide a 'fake letter'. It is very simple. His Highness has carefully planned this time, almost using fake ones to test the head of Beiliang Dao civil servants. Li Gongde, and Li Gongde also wants to know whether it is wise for him to stay in Beiliang. Your Highness..."
At this point, Li Gongde stopped talking. Unlike the previous time in the study, this time there were old tears from the bottom of his heart, and the tears continued. Li Gongde did not wipe it, and said slowly: "Your Highness is late, explain Your Highness is not the hero in troubled times who can kill everyone for his own achievements. Li Gongde has regrets in his heart, but he is more grateful. Hanlin was entrusted by me to such a king of Beiliang, and he will die in battle one day. Well, even if Li Gongde gritted his teeth, he would not complain. What is non-toxic and not a husband? Li Gongde has been an official for 30 years, and he has never seen a few people who are really devoid of conscience. The honor before death is also a disaster for the descendants. The upper beam is not upright and the lower beam is crooked. It has been natural since ancient times. His Highness is gloomy in methods, but he is also kind and mellow. He is exactly the same as the general. This is the Xinliang that Li Gongde really wants Wang. To be honest, His Highness may not believe it. It's not that Li Gongde is so cunning and cunning that he saw through His Highness's plan at a glance, but that Li Gongde recognized the son of the general and would not treat the Li family badly or Hanlin. I thought about going to the imperial court to be a bullshit first-rank official. If I go to the capital, Hanlin will have to break with my father and son and deny me as a father for the rest of my life? All the organs are exhausted, but they are only for the benefit of the descendants. The son is gone. Li The merits and deeds have been more than fifty, and he became a powerful eunuch in the temple. After a few years of glory, he has to go into the coffin. A posthumous title bestowed by the emperor is useful! Besides, to be an official in a capital city where he is not familiar, Can it be as comfortable as being an administrator in Beiliang? Li Gongde has been pondering the way of being an official all his life, studying the art of climbing. The old saying goes that Jiang is destined to be old and hot, and I will not take a step at this age. Stupid trick."
"Your Highness, don't worry, Li Gongde will never tell Hanlin about the secret letter. His Highness has a clear conscience for Beiliang about this matter, and he should not have a gap with Hanlin for this. Let Li Gongde implore His Highness, so as not to Hanlin is at the top of his horns, Your Highness, Hanlin will have to die at the border! If His Highness has any doubts about Li Hanlin alone, Li Gongde also begs His Highness to be considerate of Hanlin, and never tell this matter!"
Li Gongde, who had never knelt before Xu Fengnian, knelt down slowly, and said in a deep voice: "If His Highness refuses to agree, Li Gongde will resign as an envoy!"
Xu Fengnian exchanged the secret letter with the envoy, and calmly said: "Uncle Li, Xu Fengnian made a promise to you. If there is still a chance to tell the last words to the descendants at the end of his life, he will promise that as long as the Xu family is prosperous, no matter whether the Li family's children are in the future or not." If you are loyal to the Xu family, even if you commit the crime of treason, you will keep the Li family safe, and the Xu family will never raise a knife to kill anyone."
Li Gongde's body trembled, lowered his head and choked with sobs and said: "The old minister first thanked His Highness for his great kindness!"
At the door, Li Chengzhen saw his father kneeling on the ground, and said sharply, "Xu Fengnian! What are you going to do?!"
Li Gongde, who was supported by His Royal Highness, shouted: "Zhener, don't be rude!"
Xu Fengnian smiled and said: "Uncle Li, I want to accuse you, from today onwards Xu Beizhi is the governor of Lingzhou."
Li Gongde wiped his face, and said with a chuckle: "This is such a big deal, it's not worth telling His Highness personally."
"Also, Hanlin has returned to Youzhou safely."
After Xu Fengnian said this in a low voice, he took his leave and left, brushing shoulders with Li Chengzhen. Li Gongde, who was ecstatic in his heart, carefully hid the secret letter, stared at his daughter and said, "I don't know the severity!"
Li Chengzhen said angrily: "Father, you are the envoy of Beiliang Taoism, you kneel to Uncle Xu, you flirt with Uncle Xu, why did your daughter talk nonsense? But he, Xu Fengnian, is just a general of Lingzhou, and he has not yet been hereditary. The King of Beiliang wants you to kneel down, why should he?! He keeps saying that Uncle Li sounds nice, but why did he really treat you as an elder?!"
Li Gongde stared at his daughter with squinted eyes, and said with a smile: "Why? Just because His Royal Highness is making troubles in Lingzhou, he has already made the adults stretched and flustered. Just because he dared to take the bell in the Beiliang army Hong Wu was the first to strike the knife, instead of picking up soft persimmons and pinching them to increase the laughing stock! He has survived to this day!"
When Li Gongde saw his daughter bursting into tears, he felt distressed, lowered his voice, approached her, and helped her wipe away the tears, but Li Chengzhen turned his head away, and Master Jinglue sighed, "Why don't you know him?" I didn't treat my father as an elder before, and my father didn't treat him as His Royal Highness at the beginning, but it will be different in the future. You, don't be angry with your father. The most stupid thing women do in the world is to be angry. .”
Li Gongde still seemed to feel that the words were too serious, and said with a soft smile: "Zhen'er, today is a double blessing for the Li family, and I am happier than my father becoming an envoy. Have a drink with my father?"
Li negative really remained silent.
The old fox Li Gongde said casually: "Father has recently learned some details about the Highness's trip to Beimang. Alas, it's a pity that the child in Hanlin is not there, and there is no one for Father to tell. Or is it true that you are reluctant to listen to Father's ramblings? Otherwise, Father is alone. Drinking is also really boring."
Li negative hummed.
…
In Lingzhou Zhizhong, Mr. Zhou went back to the mansion. When he got off the carriage, his face was still full of red. Zhou Jianshu's son Zhou Congwen, whose horse White-hoofed Crow was slapped to death by His Royal Highness, was waiting at the door for fear that his father would suffer misfortune in the general's mansion. After half an hour, seeing his father's happy face, the heart hanging in his throat was finally let go, and when he was about to ask, Zhou Jianshu smiled and said, "Go back to the mansion and talk."
After the father and son were seated, they waved away several Shui Ling servants who were good at serving. Zhou Jianshu tugged at the collar of his official uniform, and Zhou Congwen hurriedly asked, "Father, what did that man say when he entered the mansion this time? Will our Zhou family be hated? "
Zhou Jianshu frowned, but since only the father and son were whispering secretly, he didn't bother to go online with his son in the address of His Royal Highness, and said slowly: "Why are you so restless? How did dad tell you in the past? Yes, with a smile on his face, he said with a calm mind that he can achieve great things and become a high-ranking official. Father won’t tell you anything, the matter of Wenquan Street, Lingzhou General’s Mansion has no intention of pursuing it. Intrigued with this gang of reckless soldiers who don't know what to do. At the banquet, His Highness grandly introduced Song Yan from Huangnan County and Xu Beizhi from Longqing County to serve as Lingzhou Biejia and Lingzhou Governor respectively. This is a good thing and also Bad thing, dad will test you, tell me what is good or bad?"
Zhou Congwen, who is no stranger to strife in the officialdom, began to think carefully, remained silent for a long time, and said: "The good thing is that Dad is the first batch of officials to walk into the general's mansion. In this Lingzhou government, we also have to weigh His Highness's eyes. The new official took office three fires, and it seems that none of them can be burned on Dad's head. The bad thing is that His Highness doesn't settle accounts with Dong Yue and those old men. For the time being, it is still stable, the connections that my father has cultivated in the Lingzhou military, according to my father's instructions in this Lingzhou turmoil, most of the captains have been holding back their heads, and it seems that they have no chance to take advantage of the situation. I'm afraid that my father will have to make amends to them in order to appease them. At least a few hundred taels or thousands of taels of silver. The family has no harvest at all. Since Dad became an official, it is the first time that he does not earn money during the Chinese New Year."
Zhou Jianshu twisted his beard and smiled and said, "Not bad. Dad never cared much about money or anything. As long as he continues to be an official, there will be no shortage of people who should fall into his pocket. Many idiots, even if they have a good family background, but once they see Spending money, just like a hungry man seeing a pretty girl, eating too poorly, it's tantamount to throwing away everything, and it won't last long in the officialdom."
Zhou Congwen sneered angrily: "The three Dong Yueqi are really ridiculous. That person just said a word, kneeling, crying and beating each other. These generals who have never read books are not too shameful. But I finally know how to adapt to the wind, but it's too blunt, far less smokey than my father."
Mr. Zhou, who was flattered by his son, smiled brighter, and the corners of his mouth curled up, "These bastards have their nostrils up all day long because of their accumulated military achievements. Don't look at my father being friendly with them in the past, in fact, how can I think highly of them? Others don't talk about it, but they say that the soldier Cao was engaged in Huangzhong, and only now did he know the ten or so characters including his name after turning over and over again. This old man can manage Lingzhou's political affairs well? His four sons, a bunch of grandsons, No one is promising, bullying men and women, doing all kinds of evil, the key is to do bad things, and do it so blatantly, isn't this stretching your neck and begging the Xu family to chop off his head? It's also because His Highness is still thinking about old love , I’m too lazy to care about it, if it’s another master, I would have chopped off my head and strung it into candied haws to stand up.”
Zhou Congwen sneered and said: "This general of Lingzhou is too merciful. If it were me, I would have killed chickens and monkeys in Lingzhou long ago. He killed several generals and hundreds of people from his family. Anyway, they are all people who have not deserved to die. When the time comes, the city will be full of people." Fear, who is not convinced! You can also gain a good reputation among the ignorant people."
Zhou Jianshu laughed loudly, then restrained his smile, and said in a deep voice: "During this period of time, don't show your face outside the palace, His Highness will leave Lingzhou soon, and then when you go to get together with those general seed brothers, remember Hold on, you are only allowed to say good things about His Highness, if anyone contradicts you, you will turn against them on the spot!"
Zhou Congwen hesitated for a moment, and said with a smile: "Just listen to me, the group of general seed brothers who call me brothers and sisters used to be of some use, but the more they go on, the less they are worth much. Sooner or later, they will turn against them." .”
Zhou Jianshu looked relieved.
…
Dong Mansion, Dong Yue, who had lost face on Wenquan Street, closed the door to thank guests. Dong Zhen just watched her father, who could talk and laugh in front of General Zhong, become depressed, put on clothes and stop showing his chest. back, but is always staring at the armor of the Yueqi school lieutenant. Dong Zhen urged her father to eat several times, but she didn't listen, so the meal had to be reheated over and over again.
Dong Zhen, who was still somewhat stubborn and unwilling to admit her mistake, cried and knelt at her father's feet.
Dong Hongqiu sighed heavily, and stretched out a right hand full of calluses and scars. Even in sleep, he had to hold the Beiliang knife with both hands to sleep peacefully. Dong Hongqiu touched his daughter's head, and said softly: "You think the six hundred veterans sent His Royal Highness out of Beiliang to the capital, but Dad is blind? It's just that Dad doesn't want to admit it. You think it's rumored that His Royal Highness is single After wandering through Beimang, did my father not believe it even if he was beaten to death? It’s just that my father didn’t want to believe it. Not only in Lingzhou, but also in the whole of Beiliang, the old military officers like my father are almost the same. The young son is kneeling down to the great general, kneeling down on those Beiliang robes who have died in battle. If it wasn’t for removing the armor today, even dad would have forgotten how many arrow wounds and knife scars he had on his body. Do you still remember what dad told you before? ? The reason why Dad joined the army, tied his head to the waistband of his trousers to fight with others, was not because Dad was full to support himself. Dad’s ancestors were also officials, and the officials were not young. I also worked as a county magistrate, and they were all well-known upright officials. Later, the whole family was killed by the bandits who took advantage of the turbulent situation. Officials, it seems that as long as they kill the officials, they are good people. When I first joined the army, my father just thought that he had hoped to vote for the Xu family army, which has clear rewards and punishments and strict military discipline. , Maybe it can make the Dong family famous again. Maybe there are some things that my father never told you. I used to think it was unnecessary. The daughter’s family, even the general said back then that the son should be poor and the daughter should be rich. Since you There is an old man who is an official, so he is born to enjoy a good life, and he will not talk to you about those words. Only after today's accident did he realize that he was wrong. Knowing how to look down on those rich and powerful children who bully others, why in the blink of an eye, my daughter became someone my father didn't like? Do you remember Meng Ya who grew up in our family? She is the orphan of your uncle Meng. Darling, but you are unwilling to live or die, because you think he has no fame or family background, even if your father is treacherous, you will admit it for your sake. If it wasn't for you, Uncle Meng, who blocked the knife in the back of Chunshan Pass in Xishu for your father, I'm afraid it would have been you who sent him under the fence Twenty years. I said this not to persuade you to marry Meng Ya, but to tell you that Uncle Meng, who was born in the market, told me that if he became a high-ranking official in the future, he must be A good official who doesn't bully the people, who dares to do evil in his territory, he sees one to kill, if the general refuses to agree, he dares to scold the general, hey, once he and his father and his old subordinates were bragging , was caught by the general who was inspecting the barracks. Your Uncle Meng was still a small captain at that time. I was so scared that I peed my pants. Guess what, the general not only didn’t teach this outspoken and arrogant little captain, but also squatted down and chatted with us about the daily life, saying that it must be good for you, Uncle Meng, to become an official in the future. Officer, the general also said that he was not willing to scold him. Zhen'er, tell me, why did your father become the bastard he would kill first as long as your Uncle Meng is alive? "
Dong Zhen, who was used to being arrogant and unruly in Lingzhou, just cried, as if the sky was falling, and she couldn't cry.
Dong Hongqiu walked up to the mottled old armor, his eyes were lonely, and he said in a low voice: "Zhen'er, don't cry. Dad will take you to the tomb of clothes. You can offer a few glasses of wine to Uncle Meng. If Dad doesn't I remember wrongly, you haven't been there since you were eleven years old. You have looked down on Meng Ya all these years, how could he have looked down on you?"