"Who?" Hearing the noise outside, Li Yuan's first reaction was to shout angrily. He is usually very kind to others, but he is also very rigorous in his work. When discussing confidential topics with a few absolute confidants, like the warrior Yu
No senior staff member was allowed to participate, and ordinary people were strictly prohibited from approaching within twenty steps of the meeting hall. Therefore, outsiders had no chance to eavesdrop on all secret discussions in the Tang Palace, let alone break them up if they were frightened.
The vessel was at fault.
No one responded outside the meeting hall, only the howling wind blowing through the curtains. In April, which alternately turns warm and cold, the direction of the wind is somewhat erratic, sometimes south and sometimes north, just like the future of the family at this moment.
"Whoever is outside, come in!" Li Yuan was really angry, and quickly pressed his hand on the handle of the knife at his waist. His martial arts skills were not outstanding, and he could easily deal with the siege of five or six guards.
If someone is really tired of living tonight, Li Yuan doesn't care to show off his power.
Chen Yanshou, Changsun Shunde and Ma Yuangui each took a few steps back and formed a triangle in front of Li Yuan. They were children of wealthy families. Although they were wearing civilian clothes, they had all received good fighting training. They only waited for Li Yuan's order.
The three of them formed a formation and rushed out, capturing the people outside the door directly.
"Reporting to Mr. Tang, it's Miss Fourth and Cui'er!" Just when the people in the room were about to go crazy, the guard on duty outside the door ran forward and responded loudly. After the words were spoken, the door was gently pushed open, and the two guards fought
A girl who turned pale with fright walked in.
"Going back to Mr. Tang, I just saw the fourth lady and Cui'er coming to deliver food to the adults, so I didn't stop them. I didn't expect them to disturb Mr. Tang. I know the crime and ask Mr. Tang to punish them!" On duty!
The guard put his hands to his forehead and begged for forgiveness with an apologetic look on his face.
Tang Gong's own family members are not included in those who are strictly prohibited from approaching the meeting hall, so there is nothing improper about his actions tonight. "You did nothing wrong!" Li Yuan waved his hand and ordered the guards to retreat.
Then he slowly approached the maid who was so frightened that she was about to cry, and asked in a gentle tone: "Is it Cui'er? How long have you and Qi'er been here? What have you heard?"
"Replying to the master, slave, no, the Fourth Miss saw that the lights were still on in the meeting hall so late, so she and the slave went to the kitchen to bring some ginseng soup!" The girl who was called Cui'er was very timid.
Holding back the tears in his eyes, he answered with a trembling voice.
"Slave, the fourth lady and the slave just arrived here, and then the fourth lady took the ginseng soup from the slave's finger and prepared to go in personally. Then, the slave saw the tray, and the tray fell from the fourth lady's hand to the ground. Then, then the fourth lady
The young lady ran away crying!" Cui'er's voice was broken, but like a needle, it made several grown men feel ashamed.
Two years ago, they considered using Qi'er to marry Li Xu instead of Wan'er. It was out of family interests and there was nothing wrong with it. Today, two years later, they considered giving up this arrangement that might bring disaster to the Li family and making arrangements for Qi'er.
There is nothing wrong with another marriage. Everyone is thinking about the future of the Li family, and every move they make is for the Li family. But as for Qier, who has ever treated her as a human being? Who has truly put themselves in their shoes?
Think about how she feels?
In an instant, all the anger on Li Yuan's face disappeared, leaving only deep tiredness. He waved his hand and ordered in a low voice: "Go down and stay with Miss Fourth. If, if she is unhappy, you, you
Find a way to coax her!"
"Yes!" Cui'er squatted slightly and walked out of the door backwards. She was a maid born in the family. The only sky she had ever seen since she was a child was the area between the four corners of the wall of the Li Mansion. The wind and rain outside were so fierce that she
I don’t know. I just feel that my young lady’s experience is very wronged and unfair.
"She is Tang Gong's daughter!" Cui'er thought as she closed the door in front of her. "Although she is not born to Mrs. Dou, she is of Tang Gong's blood after all. How can everyone treat her like this, as if she is...
..." Cui'er couldn't think of a suitable word to describe it. It was obviously not appropriate for the master to treat the fourth lady as a slave. Although Li Hao's status in the mansion was not as high as Miss Wan'er and Mr. Shimin, it was compared to
As slaves and slaves, there is still a difference between heaven and earth.
Suddenly, she saw the wooden spade placed by the gardener in the corner. Tang Gong didn't like darkness, so every night, lanterns and torches were hung everywhere in the mansion. At this time, the things that were piled up in the corner during the day were ignored.
Things are more likely to attract everyone's attention. "It's like a wooden shovel, put it in the corner after you use it!" Cui'er, Li Hao's personal maid, thought angrily, feeling desolate in her heart.
However, Miss Fourth was not someone willing to be a shovel. She wiped away her tears and a sneer appeared at the corner of her mouth.
"I didn't think carefully, and I made Mr. Tang suffer!" Hearing the footsteps outside the door walking away, Chen Yanshou and others made a slight bow and said apologetically. He felt that his mentality was a bit old, and today's result is everyone's
No one wants to see it, but no one can do anything about it.
"It's okay, Zhen'er is a smart child, she will figure it out. After all, she is my daughter, Li Yuan!" Li Yuan answered with a long sigh. There are no parents in the world who do not love their children, but in the chaotic current situation
Before, he could not satisfy his daughter's wish. "Xier, if you blame it, blame the ruthless nature." Li Yuan smiled bitterly and silently apologized to his daughter in his heart. Troubled times have come, and even His Majesty the Emperor cannot do as he pleases. He can do what he wants.
Yes, we can only take the overall situation into consideration.
After all, he is a person who has experienced many storms. After sighing, his reason quickly returned to him. Now is not the time to pay attention to whether a girl has a smile on her face every day. There are many imminent things that need to be calmed down to deal with.
, for example, the situation faced after taking office in Hedong is an issue that urgently needs to be discussed.
"Shunde, have you sent someone to inquire? How will the situation in the counties in Hedong be like after the spring of this year? What troubles will we have to deal with first after we get there?" After taking his mind away from family affairs, Li Yuan turned his attention to his eldest grandson, Shunde.
, asked solemnly.
Chen Yanshou was good at planning and had a long-term vision. Ma Yuangui had clear ideas and acted decisively, never procrastinating when making decisions. Changsun Shunde's talents were between those of Chen Yanshou and Ma Yuangui, but he came from a good family and had extensive connections, so he was always entrusted by Li Yuan to collect intelligence.
important responsibility.
This old staff member who has been working in the Li Mansion for many years has indeed lived up to Li Yuan's trust. After a brief pause, he recounted the situation of the counties in Hedong like a treasure. "In recent years, due to the imperial court's repeated forbearance, most of the people in Dingxiang County have
It has fallen into the hands of the Turks. To the north of Yanmen County and outside the Great Wall, horse thieves are rampant. Several large groups of horse thieves are like a gust of wind and half a sky of clouds. They ignore government orders and do not obey the jurisdiction of the Turks. They gather in large numbers at every turn.
Wan, looting everywhere. "But" Changsun Wuji paused, his tone suddenly changed to a relaxed tone, "according to the responsibilities of the imperial court, these troubles are all handled by Mr. Wang Rengong stationed in Mayi County and his Zuowuwei officers.
Therefore, headaches are Mr. Wang’s problem, we don’t need to worry about it!”
The atmosphere in the room was originally very dull, but Changsun Wuji stirred up the atmosphere in such a strange way. A little smile appeared on everyone's face immediately. "Wang Rengong is no longer the original Wang Rengong!" Ma Yuangui laughed bitterly and commented.
."If he comes to guard our north, he probably won't be very reliable!"
"General Wang was once a great hero, but the actions of the imperial court after the failure of the first expedition to Liao really chilled his heart!" Chen Yanshou understood the reason for General Wang Rengong's decadence and sighed to defend him.
At that time, Wang Rengong succeeded Mai Tiezhang and led the elite Zuowuwei of the Sui Dynasty, which also achieved some glory. However, as the expeditions to the Liao Dynasty failed again and again, Wang Rengong's whole person sank like the national destiny of the Sui Dynasty.
He went down. At this moment, he was no longer the famous general who waved iron caltrops and shouted to rush into battle four years ago. Instead, he became a bad old man who was greedy for money, afraid of death, and lustful. General Wang Rengong wanted to commit suicide.
Many people who had seen him act said so. But the imperial court trusted such a general the most, and even handed over the defense of the most important section of the northern border to this person.
However, Wang Rengong's timidity also saved the court a lot of trouble. Although the Turkic pastures have now crossed Dingxiang County and extended to the edge of the Great Wall. Under the leadership of General Wang, the frontier defenders and
The Ashina family is also in peace.
"Tang Gong's duty when he went to Hedong was to inspect and eliminate officials, arrest thieves, and punish rogues. Matters on the border are not under Tang Gong's jurisdiction!" Changsun Shunde shook his head and continued. The imperial court did not have the guts to take the initiative to go to war with the Turks, so the Turks
It is natural that the encroachment on the borders of the Sui Dynasty intensified. Compared with the tolerance towards the Turks, the imperial court had a completely different attitude towards rebels from various places. "His Majesty asked the Duke of Tang to kill those who dare to rebel without mercy after he arrives in Hedong."
.For those who collude with the bandits, their homes can be confiscated on their own without the need to request an order from the court!"
"I'm afraid, those who can copy are no longer able to copy it by Tang Gong." Chen Yanshou sneered and added to the analysis. The order to confiscate was issued in the winter of the year before last. With this order, officials from all over the country quickly found a shortcut to make a fortune. They dealt with the people under the rule.
The powerless people plundered wildly, and those who disobeyed the slightest were arrested on charges of being a bandit. As a result, the local gentry either had to compromise or directly rebelled. Except for these two paths, almost everyone
There is no other choice.
"But after Tang Gong takes office, he can transfer the power of identifying bandits to the pacifying ambassador's house. On the one hand, it can prevent officials from continuing to disturb the people, and it can also take the opportunity to win people's hearts!" Ma Yuangui thought for a while and suggested.
"What Yuan Gui said is absolutely true. If you want to reduce banditry, you must first prevent officials from pushing the people too hastily!" Li Yuan nodded, stroking his beard in agreement. In most cases, he said to the staff in front of him
I am still very satisfied. Although everyone has gradually formed factions, and sometimes they are even suspected of forming cliques for personal gain.
"As for the bandits, they have not yet become a big phenomenon in the counties of Hedong. The more powerful ones include Mu Duan'er, a bandit near Longmen, who is said to have tens of thousands of people. In addition, Wang Xuba and Wei Dao from Shanggu County, Hebei
Occasionally, they will rush into Hedong to loot, but they dare not take the initiative to attack counties. Between Taihang and Wangwu Mountains in the south..."
At this point, Changsun Shunde's words were suddenly interrupted by his mastermind. "Shunde, please stop for a moment. Are you saying that Wang Xuba and Wei Daoer in Shanggu are the two thieves who call themselves King Mantian and Li Shanfei?"
?" Li Yuan frowned and asked loudly.
"When I get back to Mr. Tang, it's these two bandits!" Changsun Shunde didn't understand why Li Yuan suddenly became concerned about the bandits in Hebei. He was slightly stunned, and then answered cautiously.
"Shunde, do you know whether these two thieves have ever invaded Yixian County?" Li Yuan nodded and continued to ask.
"Although they both claim to have hundreds of thousands of people and loot everywhere, they are not as capable as Dou Jiande and Zhang Jincheng, and they have never captured a larger county town!" Changsun Shunde thought for a moment and suddenly smiled.
His face was full of words, "Is Mr. Tang afraid that he will attack the uncle's house in Chou County? Should we send some troops there to prevent Zhong Jian's family from having any accidents?"
"Yan Shou, tomorrow morning, you ask Jiulong to select twenty good men in the mansion. I have made it clear to everyone that they will guard Zhongjian's mansion just like they guard mine. If the situation is urgent, they will protect Mr. Li.
We came to Taiyuan with Mrs. Li. Since we are from the same clan, our family cannot just watch our relatives being harassed by thieves!"
"If Zhong Jian knows about this in the future, he will definitely live up to Tang Gong's guardianship!" Chen Yanshou handed over his hands and praised. Although the Li family today is far less powerful than it was back then, in terms of discovering talents and attracting talents, the Li family is worse than others. Several wealthy and prosperous families have done much better. Li Yuan's behavior may not be strong enough in the eyes of outsiders, but at least his family has never been objectionable.
"Shunde, please continue talking, are there any other troublesome places at the junction of Taihang Mountain and Wangwu Mountain?" After laying out a precise chess piece, Li Yuan easily brought the topic back to the original point as if he had not made any decision.
"Isn't that already close to Dongdu? Why are there still things happening in Hedong?"
"Tang Gong's prediction is absolutely correct. The trouble does come from the south of the Yellow River!" Changsun Shunde first flattered the head of the family, and then continued. "The trouble mainly comes from Hanoi County, which borders Ji County in Hebei. And now Ji County
Except for the government office and Liyangcang, almost all other areas in the county have become the sphere of influence of the Wagang Army!"
"The power of the Wagang Army has expanded so fast? Didn't our people report that the Wagang Army was accustomed to hiding its capabilities and biding its time?" When he heard the news about the Wagang Army again, Li Yuan's eyes visibly focused.
It is full of anxiety and worry.
"At that time, the Wagang Army was mainly controlled by its leader Zhai Rang and military advisor Xu Maogong. But now, more than 20 bandits in the surrounding area are under the orders of Wagang. The strength of the Wagang Army has grown more than five times, and its core figures
From Zhai Rang and Xu Maogong, they became Li Mi and Fang Yanzao." Speaking of the changes in the Wagang Army, Changsun Shunde's answer was filled with regret. Regarding Xu Dayan, whom Li Xu once mentioned, he, Chen Yanshou and others
I admire his vision and talent very much. In the past, the Wagang Army was in the hands of Xu Dayan and Zhai Rang. Although it was not as powerful as it is now, it vaguely looked like it could do something. Today, the scale of the Wagang Army is indeed rapid.
It has expanded, but its numbers are mixed, and its military discipline and combat effectiveness are no longer the same as before.
"That's it!" After listening to Changsun Shunde's report, Li Yuan shook his head with regret. "Those thieves are also stupid, and they were stolen away by Li Mi so easily. Are they stupid? Or is there something special about Li Mi?
Strengths?"
"As Duke Tang said, Li Mi has no other merits except his ability to speak big words. But this person's surname is Li!" The expression on Sun Shunde's face suddenly became solemn, he took half a step back, cupped his hands, and answered.
Before Li Yuan could understand the meaning of the other party's words, Chen Yanshou, the first counselor of the Tang Dynasty, also stood beside Changsun Shunde and said solemnly: "Everyone in the world believes that the one who will lose the Sui Dynasty must be the Li family. There are also nursery rhymes sung among the people. So although Li Mi himself
He doesn’t follow any crowd, but because his surname is Li, he is considered by the thieves to be the king who will end the troubled times because he is consistent with the folk songs!”
"What a joke, Li Mi is not the only one with the surname Li in the world!" Li Yuan snorted coldly from his nostrils and said contemptuously. Suddenly, he realized that his two confidants were behaving strangely today. He was so frightened that he took half a step back and leaned against the support.
He pointed at the huge red-painted pillar on the roof and asked in a trembling voice, "What do you mean? What do you mean? The reason why Li Mi is supported by everyone is just because his surname is Li?"
His voice was low and nervous, and could hardly be heard clearly. The answers of the three staff were extremely decisive, without any hesitation.
"Yes, please Tang Gong to make a decision early!" Changsun Shunde, Ma Yuangui and Chen Yanshou stood in a row, their eyes full of expectation. (To be continued)
