Li Xiuyuan's sudden arrival immediately attracted the attention of the soldiers on the ship.
"who?"
The patrolling and guarding soldiers immediately drew their sabers and rushed over at the sound of patrolling.
Li Xiuyuan had just jumped on his horse and landed on the ship's board. Within a short time, he was surrounded by a group of soldiers.
"Yes, I am very alert. You did not disappoint me." He got off his horse and nodded.
"Meet the General."
The soldiers were shocked, hurriedly clasped their fists in salute, and put away their weapons.
"Everyone has worked hard along the way. You can feel relieved that your escort general is not here. By the way, where are Han Meng, Wu Xiang and the others?" Li Xiuyuan asked.
"Back to the general, Han Dutong and Wu Dutong are in the cabin. I'm going to inform the two commanders now," said a soldier.
Li Xiuyuan said: "No need for the moment, you all go down and prepare. If nothing goes wrong, you should be able to arrive in the capital today."
"Yes, General." All the soldiers responded.
"Go and get busy." Li Xiuyuan had just dismissed everyone when he heard a somewhat joyful woman's voice behind him.
"Is Mr. Li back?" A graceful and beautiful woman was walking out of the cabin at this moment, looking at Li Xiuyuan with some shame.
Li Xiuyuan looked back and said with a smile, "It's Miss Qingfeng. Last time I left without saying goodbye, I made Miss Qingfeng worried."
"I hope Mr. Li comes back safely." Fu Qingfeng blushed and did not ask where Li Xiuyuan went.
When Fu Yuechi heard the noise, he hurriedly ran out; "Brother-in-law, brother-in-law, you're finally here. I've been suffocated lately. The ship is moving so slowly. It's been more than two months and I haven't arrived in the capital yet. Let's go up."
This time we encountered strong winds and waves. My sister, my father, and I almost drowned.
It scared me to death."
As soon as Fu Yuechi ran out, he pestered Li Xiuyuan: "Brother-in-law, where did you go to play this time? Tell me quickly."
"Yuechi, please be careful. Mr. Li is now the governor, so don't be too old or too young." Fu Qingfeng said.
"I know." Fu Yuechi pouted, she listened to Fu Qingfeng's words the most.
Li Xiuyuan smiled and said: "I'm not going to enjoy the mountains and rivers. I'm going to the mountains to cultivate myself. The master said that my killing spirit is too strong and my sharpness is too strong. I need to temper my sharpness a little, so as not to offend others and cause trouble after I go to the capital."
, how is Mr. Fu? Are you still locking yourself in the cell? "
Fu Qingfeng said helplessly: "Master Li, it's not like you don't know your father's temper. The imperial court regarded him as a criminal and wanted to escort his father to the capital. My father took it seriously and really locked himself in a prison car for two months.
Not even taking a step out, not locking the door, not even taking a step out, Mr. Li
You should also go and persuade him."
"Master Fu has a stubborn personality. If he had been persuaded, it would be him. However, it is indeed appropriate to greet him after not seeing him for more than two months." Li Xiuyuan nodded.
Fu Qingfeng and Fu Yuechi took Li Xiuyuan to the cabin.
The person protecting Fu Tianchou here is Zuo Qianhu.
As soon as Li Xiuyuan arrived, Zuo Qianhu immediately stood up and knelt on one knee and said, "I humble myself to pay my respects to Mr. Li."
"Zuo Qianhu, you are an official in the capital and are not under my control. Why should you be so polite? Get up quickly." Li Xiuyuan said.
"Thank you, Sir." Zuo Qianhu stood up and said, acting as if he was following the rules.
There was nothing else in the spacious cabin except a prison van.
Sitting in the prison van was a middle-aged man with graying temples. He was wearing a prison uniform, but he was neatly dressed. The interior of the prison van was even more clean, with several desks, oil lamps, pens, ink, paper and inkstones. At first glance, he didn’t look like that.
He is a prisoner, but he seems to be cultivating himself and experiencing life inside.
"I've met Mr. Fu." Li Xiuyuan saluted.
Fu Tianqiu seemed to have not heard anything and was lying in the prison car as if sleeping soundly.
"Father, Young Master Li is here to pay homage to you," Fu Qingfeng said.
"Is father asleep?" Fu Yuechi said, "Let's just leave it alone and let father sleep first."
Zuo Qianhu said: "Master Fu was still reading and memorizing just now, and was not sleeping soundly."
"" Li Xiuyuan twitched the corner of his mouth, so he was deliberately sleeping on him?
"Since Mr. Fu is still sleeping soundly, I will come to visit you later."
But when he was about to turn around and leave, Fu Tianchou said again: "You want to leave as soon as you come here? Do you not take me seriously? Young people have no patience at all, or do you think you can be arrogant now that you have become the governor?"
?”
"I should be talking about you. You also know that I am the governor. You must know that you have been dismissed from office. In terms of official position, you are not as senior as me." Li Xiuyuan complained secretly in his heart.
Fu Tianchou sat up, straightened his back, looked at Li Xiuyuan and said: "As the governor, I went to Beijing to report on my duties. I disappeared for more than two months and delayed my trip to Beijing. Do you know that your actions are irresponsible to the imperial court?"
, being irresponsible to the people, committing dereliction of duty, and deceiving the emperor?"
Li Xiuyuan said, "Master Fu is wrong in what he said. I delayed my entry to Beijing just to be responsible to the people."
"What do you mean by this?" Fu Tianchou said with a raised brow.
Li Xiuyuan said: "If I don't report on my duties, the land of Yangzhou will be under my jurisdiction, ranging from the commander-in-chief, the prefect, to the county magistrate, and the village leader. If I go to Beijing to report on my duties, something may change, and I may be retained.
The capital may be re-arranged, and the position of governor of Yangzhou may change."
"It's ridiculous. The imperial edict has been issued, how can it change? Do you think the imperial court is a child's play?" Fu Tianchou said angrily.
Li Xiuyuan smiled and said: "Really? Since Mr. Fu doesn't believe it, he will find out after a while, and if I don't go to Beijing or report on my work for a day, then my policy in Yangzhou can be carried out smoothly.
Whether it is reconstruction after the war, resettlement of the victims, elimination of rebellions, recruitment of soldiers
Neither the horses nor the horses will be interfered with by anyone."
"What are the officials most afraid of? It's just that orders will be changed overnight and people will go out of power. It won't be long before the unrest in Yangzhou subsides. I don't want to see such a thing, so I estimate that it will take half a year to come and go.
That’s about it.”
"I have half a year to govern. Even if there are changes in my official position, I will not be afraid, because by then everything that needs to be settled will be settled and everything that needs to be done will have been done."
"You are acting like a villain." Fu Tianchou said angrily, "This is not the magnanimity a gentleman should have."
Li Xiuyuan said: "Everyone in the court is a villain. Mr. Fu is a gentleman, but what is the fate of a gentleman? He is just a criminal in a prison car, while the villain is enjoying the high salary, singing and dancing in the capital."
.”
"It's not that I don't have a gentleman's mind, but a gentleman's mind is used to treat gentlemen. To treat villains, you have to be even smaller than villains. Maybe I'm better versed in the rules of the court than Master Fu."
He studied for many days with Li Linfu, a man of sweet talk and a sharp sword, and he learned a lot from what he heard and saw.
"I won't tell you this anymore. Let me ask you, how long do you plan to delay and when will you enter Beijing?" Fu Tianchou said.
Li Xiuyuan said: "Today."
today?
Fu Tianchou said: "Are you fooling me into being stupid? This place is at least two days away from the capital by water. Are we going to arrive today? Unless your ship can fly."
"The good wind will send me to the sky with its force. It will take two days to sail against the current. If the wind goes smoothly, it will not take that long." Li Xiuyuan said.
Fu Tianchou said: "You know some of the tricks of gods and ghosts. I understand in my heart that relying on ghosts and gods for help will not last long after all."
"Of course I understand that."
Li Xiuyuan said that he agreed with Fu Tianchou on this point.
"The ship is full of soldiers and cannot enter the capital directly, otherwise it will lead to the impeachment of the officials. You are a new official and a military officer, so you will be squeezed out by the officials. You can't make a mistake at this time. You can leave the soldiers at the ferry in advance and arrange them
Go to Zhengqi Villa, which is the manor of my good friend. Although it is somewhat abandoned, it is
The servant is still here, and I will definitely accommodate you if you send me a letter. Your subordinates can be repaired there, and you can ride in a light chariot and ride with me to the capital."
Fu Tianchou said, handing over a letter he had already prepared.
"Master Fu is very considerate. Thank you very much, Master Fu." Li Xiuyuan signed the letter and bowed.
Fu Tianchou said with a cold face: "You are really brave. You brought two thousand troops into the capital. I don't know, I thought you were here to rebel."
"I heard that there are hundreds of thousands of forbidden troops in the capital. Are you still afraid of my two thousand troops?" Li Xiuyuan said with a smile.
"Hundreds of thousands of forbidden troops are just numbers in the military register. There are less than 30,000 capable soldiers, and only 5,000 elite soldiers. If you lead the troops, use some tricks to increase their momentum, and falsely claim to be a hundred thousand troops, then
Supplemented by the strength of the few warriors under your command, you can kill people all over the capital."
Fu Tianchou said.
"So it's no problem for me to capture the capital, capture Zhao Guan's family, and sit on the dragon's throne?" Li Xiuyuan interrupted him and said immediately.
When these words came out, Zuo Qianhu next to him was startled and looked at Li Xiuyuan in shock and fear.
"How dare you say that."
Fu Tianqiu was so angry that he almost exploded: "I am not telling you this to make you rebel, but to let you know how weak the Song Dynasty is, and to let you understand that once the barbarians from the north invade in the future, the capital will fall in a few days.
I want you to worry about the country and the people, but I don’t want you to take over the country. If you rebel, I will
One of them hit his head on the ground to show his determination to death."
"Oh, that's right. I thought Master Fu was inciting me to rebel." Li Xiuyuan said, "But Master Fu, don't worry, I have no interest in being the emperor. I have more important things to do.
"
Fu Tian was so angry that he wanted to rush out of the prison and beat up this ignorant guy.
If this word gets out, he will be dismissed from office and beheaded for sure.
Moreover, Li Xiuyuan's words were frivolous, as if the world was at his fingertips.
Do you really think that the Song Dynasty, which has been raising scholars for three hundred years, is really vulnerable?
While talking, the ship began to shake a bit violently. Everyone's feet were unsteady, but they could feel that the speed of the ship had begun to increase rapidly.
A headwind blows the sails of the ship, causing it to move upstream, while an undercurrent envelops the ship and pulls it forward.
It took just over an hour to enter the capital city.
"Go, give the order, Mao Wu, you take two thousand soldiers and horses to the ferry in front, and take this letter to that Zhengqi Villa. Wu Xiang and Han Meng are the heroes who quelled the chaos this time, and they are going to receive the reward.
We can't go together." Li Xiuyuan handed a letter to Mao Wu.
"Yes, sir." Mao Wu, who was a guard, responded and immediately carried out the order.
"You can't leave fifty people without any guards around you," Li Xiuyuan said.
After seeing Mao Wu leave, he said to the lake outside the boat: "The Eight Kings will give you a little time, so you can follow."
"Wow~!"
There was a huge wave on the river, and immediately a strange wind blew up from the lake, hovering at the ferry, following the soldiers such as Mao Wu.
Although there are nearly two thousand soldiers who are not afraid of all ghosts and ghosts, they lack the ability to prevent ghosts and gods. Li Xiuyuan does not want to make the same mistake as the King of Nine Mountains. He was transformed by a fox spirit and deceived into rebelling, killing his entire family.
Forget it, maybe even relatives and friends will be affected, and the nine tribes will be killed.
After putting down all the soldiers, the remaining ship continued to move forward with light carriages and simple riders.
After an hour, the river here became completely lively.
There were countless boats of all kinds on the river, and all kinds of shouts came one after another.
There were trackers pulling ropes, laborers carrying goods, and all kinds of businessmen, scholars, and officials.
The flow of people on the pier shows the prosperity of the capital.
"The capital of a country, after all, has a prosperous scene." Li Xiuyuan stood on the bow of the ship, looking at the bustling dock, and couldn't help but sigh.
It's just that the flowers are blooming here, but when you leave the capital, there is a withered scene everywhere.
"Draw to the shore and get off the boat." Li Xiuyuan ordered.
"Yes, young master." Han Meng answered with clasped fists and immediately went to prepare.
There are many ferries at the wharf here, some for merchants, some for common people, and some for imperial officials.
Li Xiuyuan was going to Beijing to report on his duties. He could take the official road and enter the official ferry, so he didn't have to wait like other ships.
There was a clerk guarding the ferry. After verifying the document, he bowed, respectfully called "Sir, Your Excellency," and then ordered the officer to call the ship to the shore.
The governor of a state holds real power, which the civil servants dare not make things difficult for him.
If it is a small official such as a county magistrate or a thousand households, the civil servant will probably have to seek some favors.
"Miss Yuechi, this chicken of yours looks so familiar. It looks like the one I raised in my house. Why did you bring it here?" As soon as he got off the boat, Li Xiuyuan saw Fu Yuechi carrying a big rooster with golden feathers.
Walked down.
That's right, this is the rooster in his house, called Lei Gong.
"I didn't bring it, it followed it on its own. I only discovered it when I heard it crow the next day after getting on the boat." Fu Yuechi hurriedly explained.
Li Xiuyuan looked at the golden rooster and said: "It seems that you are not worried about me coming to the capital alone. But since you are here, don't wander around. I heard that the capital is quite chaotic. If you are caught and eaten,
I can't do anything about it."
After speaking, he touched the rooster's head.
"Haha, haha, God's will, God's will, I feel something in my heart today, I am proud of the hexagram, I came in accordance with God's will, I didn't expect to see the legendary grebe, the country is about to perish, the country is about to perish, this Song Dynasty
The fate of our country has come to an end."
Suddenly, a crazy voice sounded from the crowd, and a passing Taoist priest lost his temper when he saw the rooster next to Li Xiuyuan. He laughed sadly and turned away, blending into the crowd and disappearing.
Li Xiuyuan didn't even see his appearance clearly.
"Um?"
He looked along the sound, but he was already at a loss.
Looking at the rooster again, I saw that the rooster was clucking and clucking as if nothing was wrong. There was nothing abnormal at all.
"It's not a demon, but an ordinary Taoist?" Li Xiuyuan asked: "But what is a grebe? Isn't this a rooster?"
Forget it, he's gone, maybe you don't need to take such prophecies too seriously.
It was just comforting in his heart, but Li Xiuyuan always felt that these words were a bit scary.
Will the Song Dynasty die?
If this is the case, then whose hands should it die?