As the sun sets in the west, under the rays of the setting sun, the desert is as bright red and silent as the embers in an iron furnace.
Guo Ziyi stood by the window of the inn, looking at the endless camel caravan at the gate of the inn, thoughtfully.
Guo Yao held Hu cakes in one hand and sheep roast in the other, walked up to the second floor of the inn, put the food in his hands on the table, and said to Guo Ziyi: "Father, it's time to eat."
Guo Ziyi did not look back, but asked Guo Yao: "How many days has it been since I came to Anxi from Liangcheng?"
Guo Yao: "It seems like half a year."
Guo Ziyi sighed: "It's been half a year."
Guo Yao sat down and was about to take a bite of Hu Pancake when he suddenly heard footsteps coming downstairs.
Not long after, a soldier of the Guo family came upstairs and announced again that Kong Changshi was here.
Guo Yao swallowed the crumbs in his mouth and was a little surprised: "What is he doing here?"
Guo Ziyi turned around and said to Guo Yao: "Go and get some wine. I want to have a few drinks with Kong Changshi alone."
Guo Yao responded, turned around and left the second floor.
When Kong You entered the room on the second floor, there was not only wine on the table, but also a lot of delicious food.
Guo Ziyi sat beside the desk and stretched out her hand to Kong You: "Bo Hong is here, sit down."
Kong You cupped his hands and sat down.
Guo Ziyi: "The Prime Minister invites you and me to return to Liangcheng to attend the great court meeting on the first day. I'm afraid he will launch an army against the capital."
Kong You: "What the governor said is absolutely true. Both the east and west capitals fell into the hands of thieves. Chang'an and Luoyang will not be restored for a day, and the dignity of the imperial court will not be preserved for a day."
Guo Ziyi glanced at Kong You: "I have always had a doubt, and I hope Bo Hong can answer it."
Kong You: "Please tell me, Protector."
Guo Ziyi: "The prime minister demoted you from the position of minister to chief minister and moved you to Anxi. Did he already know that I wanted to become an official, so he kept a backup plan?"
Kong You took a small sip of his drink and said calmly: "I don't understand what the Protector meant by this."
Guo Ziyi: "At first, I was worried that the Prime Minister would imitate Huo Guang, so I had the idea of resigning. The Prime Minister ordered Guo to replace Chang Qing as the governor of Anxi and Beiting. He said that he wanted me to observe the people's sentiments in Anxi, but in fact it was also to see if I could change my mind.
...If after I go to Anxi, I change my mind and follow the Prime Minister's wishes, then I can be safe. If I still persist in my stubbornness, I am afraid that Kong Changshi will have to carry out "correction" on behalf of the Prime Minister."
Kong You slowly put down the wine glass and said to Guo Ziyi: "If I said that the Prime Minister did not give any secret orders before leaving, nor did he order me to monitor and murder the governor, would you believe it?"
Guo Ziyi looked into Kong You's eyes and saw that the latter's expression did not seem to be fake. He hesitated for a moment and then asked: "Although the Prime Minister did not give the order, if trouble occurs in Anxi, Kong Changshi will not hesitate to repeat the night in Liangcheng.
Is not it?"
Kong You didn't speak, just smiled slightly.
Seeing this, Guo Ziyi sighed softly.
Kong You filled up the wine for himself, looked out the window, and said, "The Protector has been working in Anxi for half a year. Has the answer you have been looking for found?"
Guo Ziyi was silent for a while, drank a glass of wine, and said to Kong You: "In the old city of Qiuci Town, I met an old soldier who was nearly seventy years old. He had a good skill in mending felt. The old soldier was here
In the forty-fourth year of Shuofang's reign, he served in the Anbei Army, Zhenwu Army, Hengsai Army, and Yanran Army. He fought for the Tang Dynasty against the Turks, Xueyantuo people, Sijie people, Geluolu people, and the ancient people of Bare.
It can be said that they are all over Mobei."
"His five sons were drafted into the army one after another, and all died in the war on the frontier; because his family could not raise enough rent, the land had to be given to powerful men, and the whole family became tenants; in order to save food, the landlord later cleared the country
Being dependent on tenant farmers, the six members of his family could only become refugees and went to Guanzhong to seek a living."
"After that, Guanzhong suffered from continuous floods and droughts, and every household was without food. In order to beg for a bite of food for his grandson, his daughter-in-law went to the door of the grain store to secretly pick up millets. She was discovered and hit in the head with a stick, killing her on the spot. On the way to escape,
His old wife starved to death on the way, before she could be buried."
"Among his remaining grandchildren, some died of starvation and some died of illness... After all his efforts, in the end, he could only save the youngest grandson."
"Fortunately, he finally followed someone else to Anxi..."
At this point, Guo Ziyi drank the wine in the cup and continued: "The old soldier told Guo that he lived in Shuofang, Guanzhong, Henan and other places. If he summarized what he saw and heard,
The Tao is that there are three, six or nine levels of human beings, and the lives of ordinary people are like ants, but they live outside the lowest level and are not as good as livestock."
"But in Anxi, there is no longer a distinction between good and bad. No one cares about the superior or the inferior. The government does not bow to the powerful, and the people do not have to grovel and feel ashamed. Anyone who has the ability can make a living wherever he goes."
Guo Ziyi took a long breath and said: "Not only this old soldier from Shuofang, Guo also met many people in Anxi, including craftsmen, literati, and businessmen. Everyone said that compared to the Central Plains, Anxi has a completely new atmosphere...
...Before coming to Anxi, the Prime Minister once reprimanded Guo, saying frankly that the current chaos in the Tang Dynasty had been planted decades or centuries ago. At that time, I did not understand the meaning of this statement, but now I gradually understand it.
"
Kong You: "Protector, although you were born into a slave family, you were very ambitious. You were willing to follow the prime minister back then, not because you wanted to be popular, but because the prime minister was different from the power seekers of the past dynasties... The power seekers of the past and present have been eliminated.
In the old days, when things changed, the only thing they wanted was fame and fortune. But the Prime Minister is different. He has ambitions and determination in his heart, and his only obsession is to return power to the people and eradicate injustice."
Hearing this, Guo Ziyi was stunned for a moment, then smiled bitterly: "Return power to the people and eradicate injustice... There has been no one since ancient times, so how difficult it is."
Kong You: "It is precisely because no one does it that it becomes so precious. If not, it will be like the Tang Dynasty now. Even if Hebei is in chaos, it won't be long before the people can find no way to survive, and the good and the bad will still be at odds.
The world will eventually usher in a great chaos..."
Guo Ziyi closed her eyes and fell silent.
Kong You knew that the other party was hesitating in his heart, and asked loudly: "In the protector's heart, are you loyal to the crumbling Li Tang, or are you loyal to the suffering people in the world?"
Guo Ziyi's body trembled and she opened her eyes suddenly.
Kong You: "Li Tang is like a flash in the pan, and a hundred years can last but a blink of an eye. However, if the source of the world's chaos is not eliminated, it will be the innocent people who suffer in the end. There are immortal talents in the imperial guard, how can we continue to be stupid like this?
Stay loyal and sit back and watch the world fall into evil ways?"
Guo Ziyi held the wine glass tightly, and the joints of her fingers turned white from the exertion.