So everyone in the Hong family class had no choice but to reluctantly receive another sum of money and start touring everywhere with the Ming Cult people.
Everywhere I went, there were crowds of people. It was still one performance and one explanation, without exception.
My brothers have also heard about more human tragedies, which is much more efficient than in person and incognito.
However, what impressed them the most was a Fengyang Flower Drum poem sung by someone on the stage:
"Speaking of Fengyang, Dao Fengyang, Fengyang is a good place. Since Emperor Zhu came out, there has been a drought of nine to ten years.
Three years of drought followed by three years of floods, and rice was as valuable as pearls. Every family ran out of food. The founding heroes openly grabbed it and worked hard to build the country.
Rich people sold their mules and horses, poor people sold their sons and daughters, and the common people suffered.
Our family has no sons to sell, so we work as cows and horses as long laborers..."
The reason why this "Huagu Ci" impressed the brothers so deeply was not only that it described the sufferings suffered by the people of Fengyang, but also because it was so different from another version they had heard.
It's the song performed by the folks from Fengyang on New Year's Day...
~~
Throughout the hot month of June, the Hong Family Troupe was coerced by Mingjiao people to perform everywhere.
We continued to perform like this until the end of the month, and it seems that this June tour is finally coming to an end.
Now Shi Chenglu could no longer find an excuse to keep them, so he had to ask King Ming for instructions. Should he let them go, or should he simply put them under house arrest?
"Keep them here for a few more days, and there should be news from the south. We'll talk about it later." Prince Ming said, "Actually, I quite admire those brothers. It would be great if they could be used by me. But what if..."
He didn't say any more, but the meaning couldn't be clearer.
~~
Linhuai County Government.
Han Yike was reading at night again, but he was so restless that he couldn't read at all.
Chang Sui reported in a low voice that the severe short-sightedness was coming again.
"See you, see you." Han Yike, who had dark circles under his eyes, frowned. He felt like he was going to be tricked to death by Luo.
Ever since the five highnesses went to Fengyang County, County Magistrate Han had not had a good night's sleep. As soon as they closed their eyes, they were exposed, captured by the Ming Cult, and threatened to surrender.
He has already thought about it. If that day comes, he will just hang himself. Damn it, I won’t play anymore!
"Forget it, let him come in." Once Han Yike calmed down, he still had to face reality.
When Luo Guanzhong came in, he still cupped his fists and saluted according to his official uniform.
Zhixian Han coughed, and after helping Luo Guanzhong listen and identify his position, he said: "Mr. Guanzhong, you have the nerve to come. Did you know that the two highnesses almost had an accident in Zhongdu?"
"That's what I'm here for." Luo Guanzhong stretched out his hand to tentatively hold the table, looked down at Han Yike and said, "You two have been discovered!"
"When did it happen?" Han Yike couldn't help but sit up straight.
"That night, you and Ping Baoer reacted too much." Luo Guanzhong pointed at him and said, "Especially you, you opened the city gate in the middle of the night for fear that others would not know!"
"The situation is urgent," Han Yike said depressedly: "If something happens to your two highnesses, my whole family's lives won't be enough to pay for it!"
"Besides, didn't I manage to get over it the next day?" He muttered again in a low voice.
"Just to fool your boss. Those two brothers were rescued by Prince Ming. You two are out at the same time. Ping Bao'er is also Zhu Hongwu's adopted son. It's strange that people don't doubt you two.
." Luo Guanzhong said in a deep voice.
"Then what?" Han Yike swallowed hard.
"Then the Ming Cult began to investigate the true identities of the five of them. Through the believers around you, I found out that they had received your care when they first came here, and that you said their father was your old boss..." Luo Guanzhong
He said with a sneer.
However, Han Yike felt cold sweat break out on his back and murmured: "I didn't expect that there are people from them around me."
He only told two people about the term "old boss son", one was Secretary Li and the other was Tang Jia Chang.
There must be a young man among these two people.
"But they couldn't figure out which high-ranking official named Hong was related to you, so they decided that those guys were using pseudonyms." Then they heard Luo Guanzhong continue: "In addition, Ping'an is Zhu Hongwu's adopted son. They
They also speculated that the father of the brothers was someone Zhu Hongwu valued. Zhu Hongwu's actions were so outrageous that they speculated around the truth, but did not guess at the truth."
Although this guess was not successful, it was not far off, but it already made Han Yike's scalp numb and said: "I didn't expect them to be so meticulous! They are really careless."
"So they sent a message to another protector with great magical powers, asking him to use the personnel deployed in the official department to find out which unlucky high-ranking official was valued by Zhu Hongwu and had five sons." Luo Guanzhong continued.
"Ah, what should we do if we don't find this person?" Magistrate Han wiped his sweat and said, "Would they think of the five people who studied in Houhu?"
"Don't worry, I'll take care of it for you." Luo Guanzhong gave a crooked smile.
"Are you so powerful?" Han Yike looked at the novelist with chrysanthemum eyes as if meeting him for the first time.
Luo Guanzhong said confidently: "That's for sure, don't even look at who I am!"
~~
Wuli Temple.
"King Ming, Protector Luo has replied." Protector Cao handed the letter from Beijing he just received to King Ming.
Prince Ming took it and opened it, he was shocked and dumbfounded and said: "Protector Luo said - those five brothers are the sons of Zhang Shicheng and Gao Qi!"
"Ah? How is that possible?" Guardian Cao and Guardian Shi's jaws dropped. Even if they wanted to give birth, they couldn't!
"Hufa Luo said that when Suzhou was besieged that year, Zhang Shicheng was worried about it, so he entrusted his three sons to Gao Qi. As nephews of the Gao family, they survived under the protection of the Suzhou gentry." King Ming then gave him a message.
The two read the letter:
"Unexpectedly, Gao Qi was involved in Wei Guan's case last year and was cut off in half. His family members were also implicated. As a result, Brother San and Gao Qi's two sons and five brothers were in trouble again."
"That's it." The two guardians suddenly realized.
This secret is unexpected and reasonable, making it easy for people to believe it to be true.
The most important thing is that Protector Luo was Zhang Shicheng's great military advisor back then. If he said yes, then it must be yes!
And once you believe this statement, the more you think about it, the more you think it is true...
"No wonder those brothers look so different." Protector Shi said, stroking his goatee: "I heard that King Cheng is dark, fat, and uneducated. Hong Hao, Hong Ji, and Hong E should be his sons. In addition,
These two scholars with delicate skin and tender flesh must be Gao Qi's sons."
"Yes, yes." King Ming and Protector Cao nodded repeatedly. You are not born to the same father, so this is only reasonable.
Guardian Cao also suddenly said: "No wonder Han Yike is so concerned. If he doesn't take good care of Zhang Shicheng and Gao Qi's son, he will be sprayed to death by the people of Jiangnan."
Needless to say, Zhang Shicheng. Lao Zhu and the Jiangnan gentry have fallen into a vicious circle. The harder he treats them, the more they miss Zhang Shicheng. The more they miss Zhang Shicheng, the harder he treats them...
Moreover, Gao Qi's status in the hearts of Jiangnan scholars and people was also extremely high.
At the age of 30, he, together with Song Lian and Liu Ji, were known as the "three great poets in the world".
To be honest, he was inferior to Song and Liu in terms of writing, but in terms of writing poetry, he was much better than the two elders.
Moreover, he had a very good character, disliked officialdom, and did not envy fame and wealth. In the third year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang proposed to promote him to the position of Right Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, but he refused and was given a gold and released.
He dared to challenge Boss Zhu, and now he was even more interested in the rebellious people of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. As a result, he became even more famous and became a super idol shared by Jiangnan scholars and people.
This was naturally resented by Zhu Yuanzhang, so he took advantage of Wei Guan's case to have him executed on unfounded charges.
It is said that when Gao Qi was executed, Zhu Yuanzhang personally supervised the execution. Although Boss Zhu killed many people, he personally supervised the execution just once. It can be seen that he hated this guy who refused to serve, did not give face, and wrote poems and compositions to satirize himself many times.
To what extent.
It is also said that after Gao Qi was cut in half, he dipped his hand in his own blood and wrote the word "miserable" three times in a row before he died.
Although they are just legends, the people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, who have deep resentment towards Zhu Yuanzhang, naturally believe it.
So on the day of Gao Qiming's birthday this year, the gentry and common people in the south of the Yangtze River all wore white clothes to commemorate him.
It is estimated that the entire Jiangnan Shilin secretly asked Han Yike to take good care of Gao Qi's son. That's why he was so nervous.
And Gao Qi, in a sense, was definitely someone Zhu Yuanzhang valued. This can also explain Ping An's reaction.
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