Somewhere in the dark, perhaps some unknown god reminded Gu Dashuai who was far away in the world, telling him that his son was about to be abducted by a bald donkey. In short, a month after Xuantie Camp set off, Gu Yun actually remembered to give him a warning. When the emperor was writing the book, he also brought a letter from home to Chang Geng.

Chang Geng wrote several pages eloquently in the familiar handwriting that he had copied many times. First he sincerely admitted his mistake, then he rationalized it, emotionally explained the reason why he left without saying goodbye, and finally expressed it straightforwardly. He missed him and promised that if everything was safe in the northwest, he would rush back to the Hou Mansion to celebrate the New Year before the end of the year.

Chang Geng read it from the beginning and put it aside with a flick of his thumb, because he knew with his toes that this thing must not have come from the hands of Marquis Anding.

Nasty words such as "After a long separation, it's hard to have a good night's sleep", "Add more food and clothes, don't worry about my heart", it is impossible for them to sprout from the soil in Gu Yun's mind. The nagging energy between the lines is just obvious. Ghostwritten by Shen Yi.

The best the bastard adoptive father could do was to copy it himself.

However, Chang Geng sadly discovered that he thought so clearly in his heart that when he thought that these words really came from the pen in Gu Yun's hand, he still couldn't help but pick out each word and put it in his eyes.

Unfortunately, Gu Yun broke his promise.

Gu Yun knew he was guilty. This time he asked Shen Yi, who had casually promised on his behalf, to get out. He personally wrote a long letter to Chang Geng. After reading it, Chang Geng laughed angrily, although he felt that this time the letter The letter to his family was quite sincere - Gu Yun really had no talent for coaxing people, he was just sincerely adding fuel to the fire.

At first, Marshal Gu talked about a bunch of trivial things that he thought were interesting. He wrote thousands of words and digressed thousands of miles. It was not until the end that he firmly summarized the reason why he could not return to Beijing with the words "busy military affairs."

Chang Geng didn't care how to roast delicious scorpions in the desert, but he searched several times and never found the sentence he cared about most - if Gu Yun doesn't come back this year, when will he come back?

But there was nothing behind "Busy Military Affairs", and there was a long gift list attached.

Gu Yun may have felt that his apology in words was not enough, so he expressed it with actions - he transported all the good things he got this year back to the Hou Mansion and gave them to Chang Geng, including jewels and jewels, bits and pieces, etc. And enough.

That day, the fifteen-year-old Chang Geng locked himself in his room, and together with a Loulan dagger given to him by Gu Yun, he endured an attack of Ur bones, and then made a decision - he didn't want to stay like a useless person. Now that he was in the Hou Mansion, he didn't want to follow the old master and learn some armchair tactics and martial arts from his trembling master. He wanted to go out on his own and see the outside world.

On the first day of the new year, Chang Geng followed Zhu Xiaojiao into the palace alone to pay New Year's greetings to the emperor, just going through the motions as usual.

Then he stayed in the Hou Mansion until the 16th day of the first lunar month, asked the kitchen to cook a bowl of longevity noodles, took it back to the house and ate it himself, and then calmly announced a decision that once again blew up the entire Hou Mansion.

Chang Geng said: "I plan to go to Huguo Temple to stay for a while."

After saying that, he looked at the old butler's pale green expression and added: "Uncle Wang, don't worry, I'm not going to become a monk. I just want to practice with Master Lingran for a while and pray for my adoptive father."

Old housekeeper: "..."

What else could the old man say? He had to prepare some incense money, endure the pain in his chest, and send someone to take Chang Geng, Ge Pangxiao and Lady Cao to Huguo Temple.

This year, the old housekeeper of the Hou Mansion felt that the majestic gate of his house might have been cursed by some barbarian witchcraft. The children who entered this gate, regardless of whether they were born in his own family or recognized from outside, were more and more vulnerable to each other.

It was difficult to deal with. The old housekeeper still remembered how cowardly Gu Yun was when he was a child. He was like a hurt little wolf, hating everyone around him indiscriminately.

That one finally grew up and was able to start a family.

Here comes another one who is even more difficult to figure out.

After Gu Yun left, Chang Geng spent all day running to Huguo Temple.

Who do you want to play with? He goes to the temple every day. His Highness Li Min, the Fourth Highness, never goes out. Once he goes out, his destination is extraordinary.

The old housekeeper was very worried and worried every day that Chang Geng would have to be tonsured.

But he knew that young people aged fifteen or sixteen were the least likely to listen to the old man's advice, not to mention that Chang Geng was not brought up by him. The old housekeeper did not dare to interfere with him too much, so he had to go to Madam Cao and Little Ge to knock the gong.

side.

When Mrs. Cao heard this, she stared at the powder from her eyelids and said angrily: "What? That bald donkey wants to seduce my elder brother Chang Geng to become a monk?"

There are very few decent-looking men in the world. The commander-in-chief left as soon as he asked. So far, not a single person has been seen. Only Chang Geng is left by his side. At this age, Chang Geng still has no sign of becoming disabled, which is so shameful.

It was so easy, and there was actually the danger of becoming bald. Immediately, Madam Cao became the old housekeeper's ally.

The next day, he deliberately put on men's clothes and shamelessly insisted on going with Chang Geng to pay homage to the Buddhist Holy Land. When he was leaving the house, he rolled up his sleeves to a pair of iron puppets at the door and made a determined gesture.

The iron puppet had no understanding of human nature and stared blankly at his snake-like twists and turns and bizarre back.

However, when she came back from Huguo Temple that night, Mrs. Cao never mentioned the matter of "letting the demon monk appear" again, and from then on she joined the team that studied Buddhism every day without hesitation - for no other reason, the "monk" was too handsome.

.

Although the handsome man is also handsome, he is unfortunately too aggressive and cannot sit quietly and let others admire him. The master is different. Lady Cao thinks that he is simply an Ubala walking in the world.

In the bonsai, it will be famous forever. One more look at it will make you feel relaxed and happy for several days.

The old housekeeper didn't know what kind of ecstasy the monk Ming Ran had given to the two of them, so he had to find Ge Pang's little head.

Ge Pangxiao obliged and accompanied him there.

A few days later, Ge Pangxiao also switched sides.

Because Monk Mingran not only only knows how to chant sutras, he is also very proficient in the various existing purple-liujin-driven fire engines and puppets. Ge Pangxiao even met people from the Lingshu Academy in his place.

Ge Pangxiao, who had dreamed of flying a giant kite to the sky, didn't say anything and just prostrated himself under the monk's lotus platform.

Over the past year, the old housekeeper has actually become accustomed to Chang Geng and the others going to the monk temple every three days. At first, he didn't take it very seriously.

Unexpectedly, His Highness the Fourth Highness followed the example of Gu Yun the next day after arriving at the Huguo Temple, and played the golden cicada-escaping trick before leaving without saying goodbye.

He first followed the guards and told him that he would follow Master Mingran behind closed doors for a period of time to practice meditation, so that other people would not disturb him. Of course, the guards did not dare to disturb him and only stayed outside the door.

That night, Chang Geng took his two free-spirited followers and followed Master Lingran to travel south of the Yangtze River.

After a few days, the guards realized something was wrong and went to look for someone. All that was left in the meditation room was a flimsy letter.

The old housekeeper wanted to cry but had no tears, so he had to ask someone to report to the emperor while sending someone to deliver a message to Gu Yun.

After hearing this, the emperor was very tolerant. Firstly, he didn't care much about this cheap brother. Secondly, he believed in Buddhism and had blind trust in the monk Mingran. When he heard that Chang Geng followed him to travel, he felt a bit envious.

——I just regret that I am burdened by worldly things and cannot follow the light of the eminent monk.

Gu Yun was even more out of reach and couldn't count on him. He heard that there were so many bandits in the Western Regions that he chased them all day long. Even if the messenger arrived at Xiliang Pass, he would not be able to find Gu Shuai immediately.

Personally, it all depends on luck.

Although Ming Ran is an eminent monk, he seldom lectures on scriptures, and never talks about those obscure Buddhist Dharma and verses. Most of the time, he talks face to face about folk knowledge. As a monk, he seems to be very unprofessional and even a little too much.

He has joined the world. He will even talk about some current affairs in a very treacherous way, but he usually writes and burns as he goes.

More than half a month later, in a small tea shop in Jiangnan, three teenagers and a monk were sitting around a table.

Spring plowing has begun in the south of the Yangtze River, but looking around, there are not many people working in the fields. There are only a few old farmers wearing bamboo hats, idly looking at the working iron puppets from a distance.

Compared with the evil spirit of the guards of the Marquis Mansion and the puppets serving swords, this iron puppet that cultivates the fields in the mist of apricot blossoms is not human in shape. It looks like a small car, running back and forth in the field, with a carved wooden buffalo head on its head, and it looks very naive.

These were the first batch of farming puppets allocated by the imperial court, and were first tried out in Nanjing.

When Ge Pangxiao returned to the small town, he had an extraordinary interest in the scraps of metal owned by Shen Yi, and his eyes lit up when he saw them.

Miao Ran knocked on the table and drew the attention of Chang Geng and others. After a year, Chang Geng and others could understand his sign language, and the monk no longer had to write word for word.

"I have seen the farming puppets promoted in Jiangnan in the West. One puppet can easily cultivate an acre of land. Although it still needs to burn some purple gold, after several improvements, the coal is enough to support most of the power. In this way

Once the cost is very low, it is said that a puppet is more economical than an ever-burning lamp."

Ge Pangxiao: "That's great. In the future, you don't have to get up early and work late at night to work on the farm?"

The iron puppets to be implemented on a trial basis were allocated to Nanjing by the imperial court. The squires took them after registration and were responsible for subsequent maintenance. If the tenants are willing to farm their own land, they can farm it themselves. If they are not willing, they will give up their leased land to the puppets. They will have a good harvest next year.

When the time comes, the rent will be increased by 10% to compensate for the coal burned by the farming puppets and a small amount of purple gold.

In the first year, few people did it because the rent had to be increased by 10%, but it was promoted in the second year - the people could see that this thing was indeed easier to use than people. Even after the rent was increased, the food left in their hands was still less than that of people.

We had a lot before, and we didn’t have to work from dawn to dusk. Who wouldn’t agree to such a good thing?

This is the grand scene where no one is seen in the fields in the south of the Yangtze River.

Ming Ran smiled and said nothing.

Chang Geng suddenly said: "I don't think it's necessarily a good thing - if iron puppets can completely replace people, what use will they have? The land rented by the tenants' families also belongs to the squire. In the first few years, the gentleman missed the old friendship and was willing to keep these people.

How many years can an idle man take care of them?"

Ge Pangxiao was obsessed with all kinds of lighters. He thought about it day and night and dreamed about it at night. He immediately said: "They can stay as long-arm masters!"

Mrs. Cao: "I know this. The total steel armor of all the defenders in Yiyanhui City is enough for two long-arm divisions. At that time, they only occasionally found themselves too busy, so they went to find Mr. Shen... General Shen, we don’t need that many long-arm divisions.”

Ge Pangxiao: "They can find other things to do, such as..."

For example, he couldn't tell at the moment. After all, the life of the butcher's family was easy back then. In Ge Pang's eyes, besides farming, there were so many things to do in the world.

Mrs. Cao struggled to pull her eyes away from Mingru's face and asked: "Then if everyone can't find something to do, or most people can't find something to do, will they rebel?"

Ming Ran lowered her eyes to look at him, and Madam Cao's face suddenly boiled.

Ming Ran gestured and said: "It won't happen these years."

The three teenagers were silent for a while, then Chang Geng asked: "Is it because of my adoptive father?"

Ming Ran glanced at him with a smile.

"I remember that on New Year's Eve the year before last, the tiger brought by the foreigners escaped, and the people in the street were in chaos. It was only when they saw my adoptive father that they calmed down." Chang Geng paused and said, "I later heard people say that the kite is flying There was a huge crowd of people near the building, and if my foster father hadn't stabilized the flow of people, he would have trampled many people to death."

Ming Ran gestured and said: "I took His Highness out privately, which offended Marquis Anding badly. If the Dongchuang incident happens in the future, I will forget that His Highness saved the monk's life from the Marquis's sword."

Both Ge Pangxiao and Madam Cao laughed, thinking that the monk was joking - after all, in their impression, Gu Yun had always been kind and cheerful.

He smiled bitterly, skipped the topic, and then gestured: "There is still a legend among the people that the old marquis used Xuan Tie to make Bei Lang bow down with thirty people. They all say that Xuan Tie Ying is a magic weapon and a god general. It is invulnerable to both heaven and earth, and is supported by the great beam of the Black Iron Camp. Although there are some thugs among the people who cause trouble, they are never able to reach a large scale."

Chang Geng sat up straighter: "But I heard people say that if you want to demolish a house, the first thing to do is to smash the beams."

Looking at the young man in front of him clearly, if Gu Yun comes back, he probably won't recognize Chang Geng anymore. In just one year, he has grown a few inches taller, and the childishness that was originally flowing in his brows has disappeared.

Back then, the young man who went out on New Year's Eve would feel his scalp numb, but now he is sitting in a tea shop in the fields in the south of the Yangtze River, chatting with monks about people's livelihood.

Ming Ran: "Your Highness, don't worry, the Marquis has already known these things."

Chang Geng thought of the "unavoidable world" in Gu Yun's room, and was slightly stunned. Suddenly, a flood of longing arose in his heart. He sat quietly for a moment, letting the longing rush for a moment. He smiled bitterly and picked up the cup. The tea roots on the table were cleaned in one gulp.

Gu Yun, who was still in Chang Geng Ji's heart, was still in the vast desert of the Western Region and had been confronting the largest group of bandits in the area for more than a month.

At this time, Xiliangguan was no longer as depressed as it had been in the past. Since Daliang and the Pope signed the Xiliangguan Treaty, the entire Xiliangguan line has become a treasure land for collecting wealth. Businessmen and tourists quickly gathered, and several The population of the town has skyrocketed, with Westerners and Central Plains people mixing with people from small countries in the Western Regions.

Loulan, located at the entrance of the ancient Silk Road, became an important trading center and quickly transformed from a little-known small country into a land of gold.

Loulan people are warm and happy, live and work in peace and contentment, and don't like to make trouble. At that time, there was no rebellion in the Western Regions. The relationship with Daliang has always been very friendly, so the emperor specially placed the entrance to the ancient Silk Road here.

"Commander, Xiao Jia has taken down the den of thieves, do you want to do it?"

Gu Yun: "Then what are you waiting for? After arresting the bandit leader, let's go to Prince Loulan's for dinner tonight!"

As he spoke, he gently pressed his eyelids.

Shen Yi: "Are your eyes again..."

"No," Gu Yun muttered, "My eyelids keep twitching, maybe..."

When he finished speaking, a personal guard suddenly came forward and took out a letter from his arms: "Commander!"

Gu Yun: "Well, where did it come from?"

Guard: "The family letter from the Marquis Mansion was sent to Xiliang Pass, but my family could not find you, so they asked someone from Loulan to send it to you."

Maybe it was Chang Geng’s reply.

Gu Yun thought, opened it and looked at it expectantly.

Then Shen Yi saw Gu Yun's expression change.

Shen Yi: "What's wrong?"
Chapter completed!