Yan Qing's arrival significantly cheered up the morale of the troops in Izumo Prefecture. This is not to say how much military information and situation intelligence he brought, or how much supplies he brought. The supplies were definitely not available, and the intelligence he did have was lagging behind.
Mainly because of the appearance of the contact person and the direct response from the gang command organization, they got rid of their previous sense of isolation and uneasiness.【??????.??????5?2?0?.???
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And I don't know if it's a coincidence or not, but starting from the day Yan Qing arrived, the control of the military here in Izumo Prefecture has been significantly relaxed.
After Bai Yousi sent a request to Li Qiufan, the prefect of Izumo, and got the promise, and exchanged thirteen sets of armor for 800 guan in cash, the army began to take full rotational vacations with a scale of 500 people, and each person was given 50 guan half-day leave.
Go to the city and outside the city for entertainment.
As for the leaders, their scope of activities is even larger.
It is precisely because of this that next, the top and bottom of the army division were able to see many situations that they had not bothered to see before or had not seen at all, and they also gained some real understanding of Dongyi.
But that's all. It was just four or five days ago. Around the time when the Dongdu Forbidden Army crossed the river and occupied Xuzhou, this partial army finally ushered in a true master who could determine their fate in a sense, and it was also Dongyi's side.
A true nobleman:
The subsequent dialogue between Li Qiufan, the governor of Izumo, is written as uncle, marshal of the navy of Dongsheng Kingdom, Grand Master, Shizhong, General Anxi, Commander-in-Chief of Dongsheng Kingdom in the west, military officers of the seventeen southern states, Huayang County Duke, Dongyi
A nine-hundred-year-old noble family, the leader of the first-grade clan Li clan...
Of course, it can also be simpler, Li Ziqi, the only great master of Dongyi.
The meeting place was in Izumo Prefecture Castle, but we did not go to the governor's mansion, but in the back garden of a local family. There is a five-story building at the highest point in Izumo Castle. From the top floor, you can overlook the entire city, and then see the sea to the north.
, facing the mountains to the west, it is indeed a good place to go.
It's called Guichun Tower.
On the afternoon of the sixth day of April, Li Ziqi had just arrived here for an hour, and he held a banquet on the top floor of Guichun Tower to entertain the military personnel. Bai Yousi gathered up his sleeves, dressed in cloth, put on a long sword and a small warrior crown, and took Wang Zhen as promised.
Qian Tang, Yan Qing, and Ma Ping'er came to see... Yan Qing had just arrived, Wang Zhen, and Ma Ping'er were the accompanying leaders. It is worth mentioning that Qian Tang left Pingyuan County and transferred to
The purpose of the newly established Wudi County was essentially to establish a large river seagoing fleet. This time, Bai Yousi was dispatched to take charge of logistics. After arriving in Izumo, he was separated from the leading troops and was only responsible for guarding the ships in Izumo Port.
Team, it’s become easier to get around these days.
As for the other leaders, namely Tang Bairen, Wang Fubei and others, they stayed in the camp and were on duty.
The gray-bearded Li Ziqi, besides Wang Yuande and Li Qiufan, was accompanied by many local officials and aristocratic families...but there was no entourage from the governor, and I don't know how he came here.
In this way, after both parties bowed and took their seats, Bai Yousi came first and smiled: "I don't think it's the Governor who comes to see us in person."
Although the others did not say anything, they all had the same thoughts as Bai You, and then went to see the Grand Governor on the throne... After all, this person's arrival was unexpected, and everyone was still a little curious.
Li Ziqi, who was wearing a high crown and a cloth suit with wide sleeves, also twirled his beard and laughed when he heard the words: "If I don't come, in the fifty states of Dongsheng Kingdom, only the Qing Emperor descending to earth can control the White Snake.
Already."
Sure enough!
Everyone present in Dongyi was shocked, but they finally verified a certain idea.
Li Ziqi paused for a moment and then continued: "Of course, when I met General Sima at Luolongtan four years ago, I knew that the man was really unstoppable, so I kept thinking about how the White Snake, who is equally famous with him, was.
Style? We should meet today. And when we meet, it is just as I expected... I can only say that whether it is General Sima or Lady White, it is really frightening to become a grandmaster at this age... What about Chief Zhang? I
Although I haven’t seen him, but he helped such a powerful force, he must have cultivated a lot, right? Could it be that he is also a master?”
"That's not the case." Bai Yousi was honest. "My Sanlang is considered the Black Emperor's choice. A kind of lock was opened around the time of the Second Expedition. He has accumulated a lot of energy, but his cultivation progress is extremely slow."
Li Ziqi was stunned for a moment, rarely nodded, but then shook his head: "In this case, no wonder you have to use the Fulong Seal, but it fits perfectly. No wonder your father retreated."
"I don't know about this," Bai Yousi said. "Although I have been informed by some members of the gang about this kind of news, it was a little earlier. The governor may not know it clearly."
Li Ziqi nodded and asked again: "It is said that Xiong Bonan is the first in the gang to be promoted to Grand Master, but I don't know how old he is?"
"The Commander-in-Chief is only interested in inquiring about our combat strength. Could it be that, as the rumors say, we are enemies rather than friends, and he is here to use force against us this time?" At this moment, before Bai Yousi could speak, Wang Zhen suddenly interrupted.
"Wang... the big leader is overthinking, he's just curious." Unlike the panic of the local disciples of Dongsheng, Li Ziqi didn't care at all.
"You're asking the Heavenly King and our chief, it's a matter of curiosity, but what about now? What does it mean that you personally came to take care of our grand master? It's just curiosity. Didn't you also personally admit that you came to 'control' our chief?" Wang Zhen almost said
sneer.
The atmosphere on the court, which had been relatively warm just now, suddenly became awkward, but because Li Ziqi and Bai Yousi were relaxed as host and guest, it could not be called tense.
But back to the present, Li Ziqi thought about it and wanted to refute it, but the word "control" was said by himself. In addition, Bai Yousi didn't answer and just let Wang Zhen go, but he had no choice.
Then he turned to look at his nephew: "Wu Lang, could it be that you didn't obey the military orders and didn't receive everyone well, so there was some misunderstanding?"
"There is absolutely no such thing." Li Qiufan, the prefect of Izumo, hurriedly avoided the banquet to complain. "My nephew has always followed his uncle's military orders, and White Snake's subordinates have always acted properly. Within a month, there have been no complaints. That's not all. Before.
I knew my uncle was coming a few days ago, and even relaxed the restrictions to make it easier for White Lady's subordinates to come in and out, but I don't know why the leader Wang said this."
"It is precisely because of the loosening of restrictions that I saw with my own eyes the indignity of you Dongyi people and knew that our more than ten thousand lone troops were forced into a corner, so I dared to ask!" Wang Zhen said plausibly. "Otherwise you are a big deal.
Grandmaster came to see you on his own initiative, am I crazy to make it difficult for you in public?!"
Li Ziqi was stunned for a moment, and then he became really puzzled: "What's wrong? Please tell me in detail."
Not only that, the Dongyi nobles present, including Wang Yuande who was originally watching the joke, also looked at Wang Zhen at this time.
"No need to elaborate, just one sentence." Wang Zhen stretched out his hand and pointed to the city and port outside the window. "After the restrictions were released, I realized that nine out of ten people in the street were actually slaves! Do you dare to ask Governor Li?
If we don’t do what you want us to do later, will we also be sold into slavery?!”
Li Ziqi was stunned for a moment, but still didn't react.
Not only him, but all the Dongyi people present were in a daze... The most important thing was that this "slave" made them a little confused, because they did not regard this concept that was usually immersed in daily life as something difficult to accept, and followed it.
Connect with the people in front of you.
What if there are more slaves?
However, before and after Wang Zhen's attack, the people below Bai Yousi were all silent, but it also showed their attitude of helping these people - they actually thought this was a big deal, and even started to hold grudges and worries.
So, slowly, everyone in Dongyi came to their senses, but Li Qiufan was still avoiding the table, so he had no choice but to smile and said: "Why did Chief Wang say this? You came here because you were hit by a storm, so we are polite
Treat each other..."
"If this is the case, please allow the Governor to allow us to return now... Our gang must remember the kindness of taking us in this time. When I came, the chief said that the money and food goods spent this time will be thickened and thickened from Dengzhou.
You send it back." Before the other party finished speaking, Yan Qing also stood up and held his hands in front of him.
This is to tell the other party that the gang has contacted here, and this is not a lone army that can be bullied by them.
Therefore, Wang Yuande, who had been distracted these days, was obviously stunned, and Li Qiufan was also panicked. However, although Li Ziqi realized what had happened, he just chuckled and maintained his dignity: "In this way, everyone
You don’t want to have a banquet, but want to get down to business?”
"I hope the Governor will be considerate." Bai Yousi finally spoke again, and gave a serious salute with his long sword. "We have been trapped for more than a month, and we are eager to return. However, we have been repeatedly blocked by the Dongshengguo. The morale of the army is fluctuating.
Everyone is suspicious."
"Okay, everyone, please step aside. Only Mrs. Bai and I will explain clearly." Li Ziqi waved his hand. "After a quarter of an hour, let's all come back and have a drink."
Led by Li Qiufan, everyone on the Dongyi side stood up and wanted to leave. Only Wang Yuande remained unmoved. Not only that, but Wang Zhen and four other people on the other side also didn't move. When Li Qiufan, the local prefect, saw this, he bitten
Gritting his teeth, he actually returned to his seat.
Li Ziqi became more helpless when he saw this: "General Wang, White Snake...what do you mean?"
Wang Yuande was still proud: "I am a general of the Dongsheng royal family. I don't know if there is anything in Dongsheng that needs to be avoided."
"To be honest, Governor." Bai Yousi, who was opposite Wang Yuande, also smiled. "Our gang system is about everyone making the decision together. Among these ten thousand troops and a fleet of thousands of sailors, there is General Ren Zheng.
The big leaders, the four leaders who lead the troops are generals, one is the prefect, and the other is in charge of the Xingtai. They are not my own private army. How can I be responsible for their life and death?
Is the Grand Governor conducting a discussion? Besides, I really can’t imagine that even our entire army has been detained, so what else needs to be said to avoid being heard?”
Li Ziqi pondered for a moment, then waved his hand towards Li Qiufan, signaling for these people to leave. There were only seven people left on the top floor, but he still did not give up: "White Lady, some of your words are not to avoid others, but to say that they are aimed at others."
Your personal information..."
"If that's the case." Bai You thought for a while and asked sincerely. "Can you let them leave now and set off the fleet to go back? I can stay here with peace of mind, speak to the governor, and listen to some private information."
Li Ziqi was silent for a long time this time, and finally sighed: "That's it...then I only have one thing to say now, White Snake!"
"Yes." Bai Yousi was still open-minded.
"My country's leader and I have been entrusted by others to ask you to go south. Therefore, why don't you go to the sea from Jeju, southeast of Dongsheng Kingdom, and leave our country." Li Ziqi made an incredible request.
"That's all? Why?" Bai Yousi seemed puzzled.
Wang Zhen, Qian Tang and others also looked at each other in confusion.
"Of course it's not just that, but our Dongsheng Kingdom doesn't have the final say on this matter, and you don't want to talk about it privately, and I can't force it into your ears. I can only say that you have led the army from Izumo into our territory.
, our Dongsheng Kingdom just wants to expel you from Jeju for some reasons..." Li Ziqi looked serious.
"Absurd!" It was Wang Yuande who spoke.
"What if we don't obey?" Wang Zhen asked coldly.
"Then just stay in Dongsheng Kingdom." Li Ziqi's tone was cold. "Didn't you say so yourself? Dongyi only has fifty states. With fifty states, we can still afford ten thousand soldiers. We
Don’t be afraid of wasting money and food.”
"What if we would rather die than obey?" Qian Tang also turned dark.
"That's okay. I can wait here and let my nephew burn your fleet first, or let your fleet leave directly. Anyway, our navy can escort you away by then; then I will personally go with you.
Together with General Wang, we will join forces to fight with you to see who wins and who loses?" Li Ziqi sounded helpless. "But if that's the case, I don't understand... I just want you to change places and leave. How can I do that?
Would you rather die than obey?"
Indeed, this is a problem.
Theoretically, this partial force has no room for resistance.
"Because this is ridiculous." Wang Zhen looked at the Grand Master on the throne and actually responded. "Detain us for no reason, and then coax us to pass through your hinterland. In addition to selling us into slaves, there are also
Any other way to put it?"
Li Ziqi was not angry at this time. In fact, after he glanced at Bai Yousi, who didn't react much, he immediately knew that Bai Yousi had probably guessed or knew what was going on, so he became more relaxed.
He got up, but let go of Wang Zhen, who had lost his composure, and looked at the others and asked: "Why do you all keep saying that you are slaves? Slave status has always existed in your Wei Dynasty... in the Central Plains? That is to say, the gang was officially abolished just now
How can you be so interested in someone who has become a slave?"
"Slave status is different from slave status." Qian Tang explained calmly. "In the Wei Dynasty, the official slaves and private slaves together only accounted for 10% of the world's population. At most, it did not exceed 20%...and
These days, I am in charge of the fleet at the port, and I can clearly see that, except for sailors and merchants from the North and Hebei provinces, among the locals from the Dongsheng Kingdom walking on the streets, 70-80% of them are official slaves and private individuals.
Slave. Isn’t this scary?”
"Actually, there are not so many." Bai Yousi suddenly interrupted. "After we talked yesterday, I paid special attention to the streets in the city and the fields outside the city. In fact, the shops and fleets here in the city are all owned by nobles, and seven out of ten locals.
Eighth refers to slave status, but outside the city, just looking at the boundaries of the fields, you will know that there are still some commoners, so in the entire Dongsheng country, the slave status and civilians are almost half and half."
"That's scary enough." Ma Ping'er's face turned pale. She knew she wasn't good at dealing with it, so she didn't plan to speak today.
"It's really scary." Bai Yousi nodded. "In the Central Plains, we don't say that we helped abolish the slave status. We only say that the slave status of the Wei Dynasty is only 20%. This shows that 70% to 80% of the people in the world are still good people, so the Wei people
Basically, they are still ordinary people under the land grant system; but here in Dongsheng Kingdom, half of them are slaves... In this case, as long as Dongsheng Kingdom does not want to cause chaos in its own country, it should try its best to treat slaves and civilians as much as possible. "
"Isn't this a good thing?" When it came to this topic, Wang Yuande finally stood on the same position as Li Ziqi.
"I didn't say whether this is good or bad. It's just that if this is the case, the common people in Dongsheng Kingdom will lose their own things, making Dongsheng Kingdom completely different from the Central Plains. On the other hand, the common people in the Central Plains will be used to it.
People are naturally afraid of becoming slaves of Dongsheng Kingdom or even becoming common people of Dongsheng Kingdom." Bai Yousi explained briefly.
"But if that's the case, why did so many refugees come to Dongyi from Dengzhou after the Three Expeditions?" Wang Yuande immediately retorted.
"Because it was a matter of life and death at that time." Qian Tang immediately retorted. "I was just worried about being killed by the rebels."
"Old Qian and I have discussed this matter in detail." Wang Zhenye sneered again. "You Dongyi... Dongsheng people must have made a big mistake in the slave registration, otherwise we wouldn't be here.
After gaining a foothold in Dengzhou, he sent people to the coast to abduct Dingkou... For this reason, the gang even had a fight with you, right?"
"Yes, there is such a thing." Li Ziqi nodded. "After the Three Expeditions, we lost many young people, and naturally we also lacked some official and private slaves to do production."
"Did you hear that? Manager, this is fate. These people became slaves because of God's will!" When Wang Zhen heard this, he suddenly became ferocious and turned to stare at Bai Yousi.
"What do you mean?" Bai Yousi frowned slightly. She could see that Wang Zhen was really in a mood, and he was not playing the role of the bastard as previously discussed... But that's not the point. The point is that these words are very important.
It's strange, it conflicts with his attitude during the discussions a few days ago.
Why is it life?
"What did Chief Wang say?" Qian Tang couldn't help but frown, and then scolded Wang Zhen. "In my first year in Hebei, I saw with my own eyes how the powerful people built forts to gather the people after the situation went bad. If I didn't help
He went there to clear out the Wubao. He only followed Xue Changxiong's example and accepted those powerful people. Didn't he also get many slaves out of thin air? They were also the official and private slaves before the imperial court. Although they were poor and sold themselves more, none of them were forced by the rich.
?No matter how strange it is here in Dongsheng Kingdom, the status of slaves is still lower, and they are forced. No one wants to be sold into slavery."
"That's fate too!" Wang Zhen waved his hand in reply, but then he realized. "The manager and Lao Qian may have got it wrong! I mean, they didn't make any mistakes. They only blame God for becoming a slave! It's Sanhui Si's fault!
I don’t have eyesight!”
Only then did Bai and Qian realize that Wang Yuande wanted to see the internal strife, and Li Qiufan immediately felt bored.
And for some reason, Li Ziqi, who had already seen through the opponent's strategy, suddenly began to regret letting the resentful military leader talk nonsense, because he vaguely realized that what the opponent said next would be a bit... strange.
Sure enough, Wang Zhen's face turned ferocious again: "Actually, it's not just them. Let me tell you, everyone in the world is the same. They are all born and raised. There is nothing wrong with a person's life. Whatever he wants in his heart and what he wants to do, he can do it.
It’s in line with God’s will! Otherwise, why would humans be born into the world? It’s true that there are no mistakes, but they are not caused by people themselves. All mistakes are given by fate! It’s all God’s will that didn’t arrange it well! It’s the three radiances and four emperors who don’t have long-sightedness!
Here in Dongyi, the Qing Emperor failed to be a good Supreme Being! He made good people suffer for nothing!"
The rest of the people who originally wanted to appease this person, whether they were Dongyi people or people who were helping, were all stunned, but they were speechless. The Grand Master Li Ziqi was even more surprised in front of everyone.
He looked at the leader Wang and remained motionless.
And Bai Yousi looked at this subordinate who was half an old subordinate, and then suddenly realized that these words were so in line with Wang Zhen's temper. This big leader who was born as a Fulongwei officer was recognized as the most gangster and the most loyal.
, that is, fearless, willing to do anything, and never feel that he is wrong, otherwise he would not have left his job as Fulongwei to follow Saburo that day.
It is this kind of person who can say such absolute and obvious lack of reverence!
If such a person is not suppressed by a powerful person, whether he is in a gang, in the Wei Dynasty, or even becomes a bandit, he may not be able to survive in the end... and he will definitely not end well.
But at the same time, for some reason, Bai Yousi still felt that the other party's impromptu words had a wild vitality of her own, and she couldn't help but agree with them.
People are right, and God is wrong!
"It's all their lives! It's all God's will!" After thinking this, Bai Yousi turned his head and looked at the bustling crowd on the street. After thinking about it, he couldn't help but repeat it. There was a trace of ridicule in the corner of his mouth, and he looked again.
Li Ziqi said nothing. "Grand Governor! Don't blame him for talking nonsense, but after seeing the situation in Dongsheng Kingdom in the past few days, the military is really uneasy. Almost everyone is worried that once they are controlled by you, they will end up for nothing."
The fate of slaves!"
"What about you?" Li Ziqi withdrew his gaze from Wang Zhen and looked at the woman in front of him. "White Lady, what do you think?"
"But they are my soldiers. I brought them from Dengzhou. Whether I believe it or not, I have promised them. I will never let them fall into slavery!" Bai Yousi answered confidently.
"Then what do you want?" Li Ziqi nodded and asked seriously. "What do you want before you leave? Do you want a guarantee? Do you want me to write to you? Release it to the world?"
"No." Bai Yousi smiled calmly. "You still misunderstood us... We are helpers. Even if we die in the final battle, we will never be slaves. This does not need to be guaranteed by the Governor himself. Our own
Determination is the best guarantee.”
"and you……"
"Please return our former Dengzhou slaves who are now slaves to Dengzhou, and also release the slaves who were captured by Xuzhou's defeated soldiers who crossed the sea from the south during the Three Expeditions and go to sea with us." Bai Yousi said solemnly.
"In this way, we are willing to go out to sea from Jeju in the southeast."
Wang Yuande wanted to say something, but when he saw that all the silent gang leaders looked at Li Ziqi, they simply shut up.
Li Ziqi was silent for a moment and replied: "In the fifty states of Dongsheng Kingdom, many places have their own rules. I can't control them myself. Only the thirteen states in the seventeen southwest states where I am in charge can.
Promise you! About 30,000 refugees and 10,000 captives, that’s all... No matter how many there are, I’m sorry I can’t agree to it.”
"That's enough." Bai Yousi stood up, pulled out his long sword and inserted it into the gap between the glasses on the table in front of him, and proudly promised. "As soon as Mr. Li says, I will obey your orders! Let's set out tomorrow!"
Unexpectedly, when Li Ziqi saw the other party's promise, he shook his head and sighed: "White Lady, do you know that once you go to sea again, there will be huge waves again?"
"That won't stop me from leading my troops to return from Xuzhou." Bai Yousi lowered his head and sheathed his sword. "Everyone's life, good is cultivated by oneself, and bad is given by God! Wang Zhen looks like a fool.
This is a good thing to say today, but if it is so, man and nature will have to decide the outcome at all times to avoid disaster, do you think so, Grand Governor?"
At the end of his words, he raised his head, and a pair of eyes like autumn water met Li Ziqi's gaze.
Li Ziqi nodded: "Last time I knew Sima Zheng's sharpness, today I know Bai Sanniang's sharp edge, and maybe I could vaguely feel a little bit of Zhang Sanlang's thickness through the curtains. The Central Plains is really full of talents...
It's raining."
Everyone looked outside Guichun Tower and waited for a few breaths before they vaguely noticed drizzle starting to fall from under the clouds.
The rain in early summer started in Dongyi and gradually appeared.