Cao Yuanshen was pulled up directly while he was taking a nap at home.
When he saw it was Cao Yanlu, Cao Yuanshen became even more furious. He grabbed the wine bottle next to him and tried to throw it at Cao Yanlu.
'Snapped!'
However, Cao Yuanshen's wine bottle was smashed to pieces with a horizontal knife without being thrown out.
Broken porcelain pieces and remaining wine sprayed all over Cao Yuanshen's head and face.
Mr. Cao Erlang was stunned. He finally saw clearly that behind Cao Yanlu, they were not the original Cao family's tooth soldiers, but several impressive guys in brocade clothes.
The man in brocade who broke his wine bottle was looking at Cao Yuanshen with a playful look.
Cao Yuanshen suddenly realized that this was the envoy in brocade clothes, and it was Zhang Zhao who came to arrest him!
Cao Yuanshen, who was usually very loud, thought that Zhang Zhao did not dare to do anything to him, and thought that Zhang Zhao was ashamed of the Cao family and the Zhang family, was stunned, and then a look of fear inevitably appeared on his face.
"Hurry up and write a letter to the eleventh mother, and also write to the nineteenth mother. Cao Liu, are you crazy? Dare you bring Zhang Erlang's people to arrest your uncle?" Cao Yuanshen roared with a guilty conscience.
Eleven Niang was Cao Yuanshen's daughter who was married to Yin Yaozi by Zhang Zhao. Normally, Cao Yuanshen disliked Yin Yaozi's son-in-law the most, but now he remembered it.
Cao Yuanshen used to look down upon the Nineteenth Mother who married Zhang Zhao, but now it seems that he still knows in his heart who can save his life.
Facing Cao Yuanshen, who was forced to act harshly but with a soft heart, Cao Yanlu, who had been patient with him, couldn't bear it anymore.
When Cao Yuanshen was in Dunhuang, in addition to saying some resentful things about Zhang Zhao, he also made a lot of arrangements about his father, Cao Yuanzhong.
Of course, Cao Yanlu was even more afraid that Cao Yuanshen would continue to speak unabashedly and say other things that should not be said.
He shouted loudly, quickly pulled out the horizontal knife from his waist, and slashed down hard.
This knife was shot with hatred, and it was castrated very quickly, directly cutting Cao Yuanshen's...
A huge groove was cut out of the bed, and the broken wood chips even splashed into Cao Yuanshen's face.
"My father, do you want to cause the same harm to our Cao family as you? You still dare to say random words of resentment. If that's the case, you might as well end it yourself. So as not to implicate your descendants!"
Cao Yuanshen was immediately frightened. Looking at Cao Yanlu, who was usually cheerful towards him and even gave him words of advice from time to time, Cao Yuanshen felt this for the first time.
Things may not be as simple as he thought, and Zhang Zhao is not as indecisive as he thought.
By the time the pale-faced Cao Yuanshen was escorted over, twenty or thirty people were already kneeling in the Qingyuan Palace. They were all frustrated members of the Cao and Zhang families.
Originally, when Cao Yijin was here, they were all the leaders of the Guiyi Army Yamen.
When Zhang Zhao was replaced, their hope that Zhang Zhao would arrange for them to serve as governor and other high-ranking officials was completely in vain. Not to mention, Zhang Zhao even gave them an official position in Shazhou.
In fact, it is normal for them to have resentments.
However, this cannot be blamed on Zhang Zhao. If they were really capable, Zhang Zhao would have no reason to refuse the service of these close relatives!
This is his initial stage, and close relatives are always more reliable than outsiders.
But these Zhang family and Cao family are really unable to support themselves.
The older generation is sullen, and the middle-aged generation is like a fool.
Most of the younger generation grew up in Dunhuang, where the religious atmosphere was fanatical. They had no military power, and their ability to read and write was all focused on Buddhist scriptures. There were really not many that were useful.
Zhang Zhao glanced at Cao Yuanshen. Ever since he came through time travel, Cao Yuanshen had always given him a bad impression. Now he almost single-handedly led the resentful crowd in Dunhuang.
Although he couldn't kill him, Zhang Zhao was ready to give him a good look.
Yin Yaozi should not have been allowed to marry Cao Yuanshen's daughter in the first place, otherwise, Zhang Zhao really wanted to kill this guy.
Cao Yuanshen was glanced at by Zhang Zhao and suddenly became cold all over. Only then did he realize that Zhang Zhao was no longer the handsome second son of the Zhang family in his memory.
Instead, he became an extremely majestic superior with cold eyes, a true king who controlled the lives and deaths of millions of people.
"There are no outsiders here. They are all close relatives of me, Zhang Erlang. When you speak, you might as well be more direct. Haven't you always said that I won't give you the chance to be an official?"
Zhang Zhao clapped his hands as he spoke, and the chamberlain opened the door of Qingyuan Palace. When everyone took a look, the outside was filled with swords, guns, swords, halberds, axes, hammers, bows and crossbows, as well as some precious and high-quality white paper.
"The external assessment is exactly the same as the civil and military examination held in Liangzhou. You are asked to take the examination, but you don't go.
I want to take a look now to see how talented you are? It makes you feel so buried.
Guo Tiance, you will preside over it. I will hold an additional imperial examination for them and recruit all the males over twelve years old from these families and let them take the exam.
No matter whether they choose literature, martial arts or farming, as long as they pass the examination, they will be awarded an official title immediately. Those who fail will be humiliated!"
Zhang Zhao snorted coldly and said, "Then don't blame me for not caring about family ties. Anyone who fails will be deceiving the emperor. I will give you twenty sticks for each person."
As he spoke, Zhang Zhao looked at a trembling old man and said.
"Uncle, there is no need to panic. Erlang knows that you are old and weak and will not give you a stick if you fail the exam."
The old man tried his best to put on a smile and was about to say thank you when Zhang Zhao's expression changed and he raised his voice and roared angrily.
"But Juro and Shikiro have no problem with their bodies and bones. Let them do the work for these twenty sticks. This is the same for everyone over forty years old."
As soon as these words came out, the older people secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but the younger ones turned pale. They knew in their hearts that at least one person wouldn't be able to escape if they were given a beating.
Cao Yuanshen breathed a sigh of relief. Apart from the fact that he always liked to complain and didn't respect Zhang Zhao very much, his knowledge was pretty good. At least he had no problem in passing a mathematics course.
However, just when Cao Yuansheng felt a little calmer, Zhang Zhao turned around and stared at him, and said with a half-smile.
"I know that my second cousin is a great talent. I heard that you were in Dunhuang, and I often compare myself with the two on the left and right.
In this case, second cousin, please don’t take the exam and wait until you return to Liangzhou. I will teach you in person."
Zhang Zhao's word "kaojiao" has a bit of a gritty flavor to it, and it sounds almost like being burned.
At this time, Cao Yuanshen was really a little scared. He knew that Zhang Zhao would not let him go easily. He might as well burn him to death.
While they were talking, all the men in the family who were involved in the small group of Cao Yuanshen and Zhang Anxin were brought to Qingyuan Palace one after another.
However, no one from Zhang Anxin's family, who had caused the most quarrel with Cao Yuanshen, came. When Zhang Zhaozheng was confused, Li Xiaojie hurried over.
As soon as he saw Zhang Zhao, he immediately knelt on the ground and whispered.
"Reporting to your Majesty, when we went to Zhang Anxin's home, before we could pass the message, he locked the four doors tightly and seemed to be stubbornly resisting.
Before I could mobilize the soldiers of the 7th Battalion to the scene, cries came from the house. Zhang Anxin and his two sons, Liangjiu and Liangzhen, had all hanged themselves from the beam."
Zhang Zhao smacked his lips and was speechless for a long time. In fact, this Anxin was not his blood relative, but Zhang Zhao, the Dragon Snake Zhang family, and the Shazhou Zhang family.
In other words, Zhang Anxin is actually a member of the Zhang family in Shazhou and has no actual blood relationship with Zhang Zhao.
Perhaps because of this relationship, Zhang Anxin knew that there was not that much family affection between him and Zhang Zhao.
So when the brocade messenger arrived, he committed suicide out of fear.
To be honest, Zhang Zhao didn't understand why such a group of people existed in the world.
Although I obviously don't have much ability, I feel that I have great talents and great abilities that I haven't used yet. I look down on this and look down on that.
When someone is behind their back, they dare to say anything, but once they need to be confronted face to face, or when danger approaches, they often choose the most impulsive and irresponsible way.
This kind of person seems to be well-informed when he talks about it, but in fact he has no ability or responsibility.
Since Cao Yuanshen was relatively close to Zhang Zhao, he also heard the news of Zhang Anxin's suicide. He was already a little scared, but at this moment he finally couldn't hold it any longer.
Mr. Cao Erlang fell to the ground with a plop, but he still knew in his heart that if he continued like this, it is very likely that no one would bleed.
And once someone bleeds, it's hard to take back the killing blade.
However, his life should not be cut off. At this critical moment, Cao Yanjing, who had been keeping filial piety for Cao Yuande in Dunhuang, ran over.
He didn't even have time to pay homage, so he shouted loudly to Zhang Zhao.
"Your Majesty, please go to Li's house in the west of the city quickly. I'm afraid my great-grandmother, the fourteenth aunt, may not be able to survive!"
When Zhang Zhao heard this, he didn't care about anything else. He just let Guo Tiance continue to be responsible for conducting scientific examinations for these guys, while he quickly got on his horse and galloped away to the west of the city with Cao Yanjing.
The fourteenth great-aunt mentioned by Cao Yanjing is Zhang Zhao's fourteenth great-aunt, Li Cunhui's direct great-grandmother, Zhang Yichao's fourteenth daughter who married Li Mingzhen, the general of the Guiyi Army, Zhang Li.
By the time Zhang Zhao rushed over, Li Cunhui and his father Li Shaozong had already fallen to the ground crying.
Zhang Li was lying on the bed, except for the slight rise and fall of her chest, she was no different from a dead person.
Zhang Zhao walked over slowly, put his hand on Mrs. Zhang Li's forehead, and gently called to her only remaining close relative, her great-aunt.
Don't look at Mrs. Zhang Li who is on her deathbed now. She is already as thin as only sixty or seventy pounds, and she looks like an ordinary old lady.
But Zhang Zhao knew that her life was not simple. As Zhang Yichao's favorite young daughter, when Zhang Li was five years old, Zhang Yichao began to raise troops to expel the Tubo people.
When she just grew up, she married Li Mingzhen, one of the three generals of the Guiyi Army together with Yan Yingda and Suo Xun.
Li Mingzhen was not only a general of the Guiyi Army, he was also from the Li family in Longxi, a branch of the Li and Tang royal families.
Although he is a little older than her, he is still a heroic figure and his family background is extremely noble.
Zhang Li witnessed the heroic rise of his father Zhang Yichao, and also witnessed the glory of his cousin Zhang Huaishen's second reconquest of Liangzhou.
He also witnessed the evil deeds committed by commoners, the murder of Zhang Huaishen by Suo Xun and others, and the rise of his younger brother Zhang Huaiding.
When Zhang Huaiding died of illness, Suo Xun usurped the power of the Zhang family. It was Zhang Li and his four sons who removed Suo Xun from his position as the governor of the Guiyi Army and supported his young nephew Zhang Chengfeng to resume his duties.
He regained the title of Jiedushi of the Zhang family.
At that time, a brother died and a brother died, and the country was in ruins. He supported the orphan with false hands, but he worked hard to avoid it. He relied on the gods of Taibao to seize the favor, kill him, and honor the heir.
This should be the highlight moment of Zhang Li's life. It was she who took back the Zhang family's business from Suo Xun.
However, later on, the Zhang Li family did not escape the control of the desire for power. She and her disciples were in charge of the various states, and they were arrogant for a while. At the height of their prosperity, Zhang Chengfeng was overthrown by Zhang Chengfeng with the support of the Shazhou clan.
Three of Zhang Li’s four sons were lost, but Zhang Li himself survived this coup.
After that, he witnessed Zhang Chengfeng calling himself the Emperor in White and then being beaten into dust by the Uighurs.
Now, she saw the rise of Zhang Zhao again, and brought the Gui Yi Army to a height that even Zhang Yichao could not reach.
It can be said that this woman's life was extremely rich and wonderful. She was the living fossil of the entire Guiyi Army, a living witness to the rise, decline and resurgence of the Guiyi Army, the solitary loyalist in the northwest.
Perhaps she heard Zhang Zhao's call. Zhang Li, who was already too weak to speak, opened her eyes. Looking back, she grabbed Zhang Zhao's hand and spoke vaguely.
"I'm so happy! I'm so disgusted!"
Although these two sentences were a bit confusing, Zhang Zhao understood what she meant. Zhang Li was happy to see Zhang Zhao leading the Guiyi Army to grow stronger again.
What I hate is that I was blinded by power in the past, which led to the tragic deaths of three of my four sons and a dozen grandsons.
Zhang Zhao patted his hand gently and said, "Grandma Fourteen, don't think too much about it. All that has passed, and our Zhang family will no longer kill each other."
Zhang Li nodded happily, "Erlang, forgive them, don't kill each other, you said so."
Zhang Zhao was stunned for a moment and nodded slightly. Not to mention that this was Zhang Li's last wish, even Zhang Zhao didn't plan to kill anyone in the first place.
"That's good!" Ms. Zhang Li's face was full of relief. Suddenly she raised her hand and stared blankly at the sky above, her eyes even fixed.
"Yeah! Yeah! Did you come to pick me up? You came to pick me up! You didn't blame me!"
In an instant, the child was relieved to see his father's adoring smile blooming on the face of Mr. Zhang Li, who looked like a withered man.
She got her final satisfaction when she saw her beloved father coming to pick her up.
Miraculously, Zhang Li's hand was raised so high, but suddenly fell down again.
Tears welled up in Zhang Zhao's eyes, and there was loud crying behind him.
This woman, who witnessed the rise of the Guiyi Army - cannibalism - decline - and then rise again, Zhang Yichao's only living heir, passed away.
The era that belonged to the older generation of rebels seemed to be ending at this moment.
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
The second update is to make up for today. If the code is correct, it will be updated five times. If the code is not correct, it will be four updates. I will make up for it tomorrow.
This chapter has been completed!