The third year of Yuande, winter

"Sister-in-law Qin, I'm going out early today, this is ......"

"This is not a child's uncle to visit the door, I came out to buy something, but the Tao boy doesn't stop at home, he wants to go outside to play, people go crazy and don't know where to run, tired brother to look at a little, I will go back to East Street immediately." Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ”

"Okay, old sister-in-law, where is the little egg?"

"Well, under the big tree opposite, a group of them are playing, so I'll go back as soon as I go. ”

After saying that, the sturdy sister-in-law Qin went to the market, and the neighbor Wang Tiehammer carried a broom to clean the first thin snow of this winter in his small yard, while keeping an eye on the children who were playing in the distance.

"Hahaha, you didn't jump to the right ......"

"Again, again—"

The king built a tomb between the ancient mountains, and the glazed jade tiles overlapped. The ancient gods will not worry about it, and the hammer will sweep across the southwest.

Today, there is no fame and fortune, if you want Qingshan to rely on that. There are thousands of soldiers who want to visit Jinchuan Mountain.

…………

Wang Tiehammer watched, watching gradually come out of his mind with a broom, remembering that he was like this when he was a child, he danced and sang this nursery rhyme with Liu Er and them, and the days at that time were really carefree. Decades have passed, and my childhood playmates either fled to their relatives and left the capital in the past few years to avoid heavy taxes, or their lives were unsustainable.

Fortunately, Wang Tiehammer was born with a big heart, and after listening to the children's rhyme for a while, he gradually became happy again.

It turned out that he remembered his name, and it was taken from the nursery rhyme here. I don't know what my father thought at the beginning, so he took the word hammer. It also made his father say that what he is doing now is striking iron. If my father had given himself a name like Jinshan, would he have been able to hold Jinshan now? That would not have been as tired and bitter as now, and he should have been able to take a beautiful daughter-in-law, not as lonely as he is now.

Thinking about it, Wang Tiezhu couldn't help but laugh. attracted the eyes of passers-by who got up early to pass by, and then stepped up their steps to bypass Wang Tiehammer's yard. Maybe some of them will also feel bad luck this morning.

It's just that this doesn't affect Wang Tiezhu's good mood to daydream.

On the other side, Sister-in-law Qin hurried to the market, thinking that there were not many people who came early, and she could buy the freshest things, but before she reached the main street, she had already seen a crowd of people on the east street at the corner.

Sister-in-law Qin sighed secretly in her heart, but she was also ready for a fight.

The early morning of winter is always difficult for people to wake up, and when Qin's sister-in-law, who was a little tired from the road, walked towards the main street, she unconsciously thought, if it was a few years ago, let alone early in the morning, there were few people selling and buying goods on this East Street. In the whole capital, only Jinrong Street can be seen that this is still the capital, and the new emperor has only been on the throne for a few years, and the days are different.

Thinking of those hard days in the past, and looking at the remaining copper plates in her hands, Sister-in-law Qin's heart was already happy, if it weren't for the fact that the imperial court issued a document this month and picked up a 10% poll tax, she didn't have so much wealth in hand now.

Therefore, in order to celebrate and entertain her younger brother, Sister-in-law Qin was ready to fight, and rushed to a stall in stride.

A group of soldiers standing on the morning shift by the city gate were slumping with their weapons on their hands, and they didn't want to sleep lazily on a winter morning? Therefore, the head of the officers and soldiers guarding the gate, Captain Wang Kai, only squinted at them and did not make a sound, as if he had not noticed. Anyway, here at the east gate, there will be no important people passing by at this time, as long as the people under his hands do not lie on the ground and sleep in the dark, they are too lazy to do the thankless thing and be scolded by the people below.

Who knows, some people are so uninteresting, and they want to break their rare time to catch up on sleep. I only heard the regular sound of horses' hooves from far and near, and after a few moments, from a red horse came down a herald wearing a blue-gray felt cloak and a clear gray armor. The action was done in one go, and it was very capable.

After the person stood still, he saluted Wang Kai with a fist next to the wide city gate, and took out a document and said: "I am tired of everyone to pass a word to Yin Tong of the Jingshi Mansion, and the general of the northern part of the city will enter the city from the east gate at three o'clock." I'm going to go to the military department to spread the word, so I'll leave. ”

After saying this, I saw that the soldier saluted again, turned on his horse, and in a blink of an eye was gone.

When Wang Kai held the document and reacted, he could only vaguely see a gray-red figure galloping on the street in the early morning. Immediately slapped the table and roared:

"Hey, I haven't allowed him to enter the city yet, why is this man gone? What are you doing to eat?!" Wang Kai knew that in an emergency, even if he did not pass through his own defenders of the city, he could directly break through the city gate without punishment. But he is the steward here, and the anger that is regarded as an ornament burns in his chest, and then he looks around at his crooked subordinates who are standing one by one, and Wang Kai's anger is even stronger. But what should be done cannot be delayed.

"Go, take the document to Lord Yin's mansion. At this time, I'm afraid he is not in the yamen. …… Tsk, according to the distance, won't it be there until the middle of this month, this general is in a hurry enough......"

The nearest officer and soldier immediately took the paperwork, turned around and trotted to carry out the task, as if he was afraid that he would be robbed by others if he walked slowly.

It was also the officers and soldiers who were sleepy before, hearing that General Shubei was going to pass through this gate today, and was roared by his boss, and they were all scared to wake up, and they were all silent and cautious, for fear that they would suffer from the pond fish, and they couldn't wait to leave the place immediately, but their position was not good and they couldn't grab this errand.

Speaking of this great general, he was famous when he was young in Beijing, his style of action was eclectic, and he was extremely strict in governing the army, and his prestige in the army was also very high when he commanded the Praetorian Guard. But that was all in the early years, although the current officers and soldiers guarding the gate are not under the command of this general, but in the end the power is still there.

The officers and soldiers who came to their senses sighed in their hearts when they looked at the rider who had gone away, and secretly thought that it was not a person who came out under the command of General Li, looking at the action body. Although they privately envy the capable and sassy posture, they are quite annoyed by their formlessness. But when I thought about how hard it was to exchange for this smooth action, they all secretly rejoiced in their hearts that they were not serving under the general.

The efficiency of this herald creep is really commendable. In just two moments, all relevant institutions in the capital, large and small, received the news that the general and his entourage had arrived in the suburbs of the capital and would enter the city before noon.

You must know that this general of the Northern Garrison is a tiger general who guards the frontier, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is a living Zhenguo jade seal. The treasury is empty, and the turbulent dynasty can hold on to the present, and no one dares to intrude, nor has it been invaded by foreigners, all thanks to the help of this person.

Therefore, although the court is iterating, the situation is unstable and surrounded by strong enemies, this general has not returned to Beijing for the first time to meet the new emperor until now.

He also attached great importance to this meeting of the little emperor who had just ascended the throne. Although as soon as he took power, he was headed by the imperial palace and strictly ordered the whole country to be thrifty and virtuous, especially the officials of all ministries should be diligent in their work, and they should not hold banquets or participate in amusement without reason. And the various activities established by the previous dynasty in the palace were also eliminated by two-thirds. The preparation for this meeting can be said to be open, and the funds prepared are the largest since he ascended the throne.

In the past, the emperor's appropriation of funds for the empty treasury could be said to be astronomical, but after the strict decree was issued, the country seemed to suddenly wake up from the dream of poverty and luxury, and began to accumulate strength for tomorrow. Although the yamen were barely supporting, they were able to reduce and reduce the harsh taxes and miscellaneous taxes left over from the previous dynasty.

As a result, countries that are in ruins are becoming more and more vibrant. Nowadays, not only the business on Jinrong Street is very prosperous, but even the withered East Street and West Street have also reopened.

In the same way, at the beginning of the year, the plan and allocation of funds for the recall of General Shubei to the DPRK and China at the end of the year can be determined.

This plan can be regarded as a courtesy to make up for the emperor's accession to the throne, but it is also the intention of the royalists. If the tiger is not harvested for a long time, it is afraid that the tiger will be raised, which is also a problem that the royalists worry about day and night. Therefore, the general's return to the imperial court this time can be said to be the expectation of everyone, and it is also a constant speculation and prying eyes.

Ministry of Imperial Rites

“…… But we're still a lot away here, didn't we say it was expected to arrive in mid-October, why did we arrive today?!"

"Who said no, and I heard that it was the Donghua Gate in the east, and we arranged the Suzaku Gate, where are we going to prepare for the things at this time?"

The four people on duty in the Ministry of Rites were still surprised, they had come to the Ministry of Rites early to wait for the court, and Lord Jing, who planned to deal with two more affairs before the court meeting, had already pushed the door in.

"Quarrel something, quarrel something. It doesn't stop coming in the morning, isn't there still half a month, let's hurry up, we can finish it two or three days in advance. ”

Lord Jing, who is in charge of the affairs of the Ministry of Rites to greet the general of the Northern Guard, has recently been unable to sleep well. Now it's a headache as soon as I enter the ceremony, let alone someone shouting in my ear. But then it is estimated that if he stays in Yaque's silent quiet room, this Lord Jing's headache will not be able to get better.

An official timidly came to Lord Jing, and after putting the soaked dragon well in front of him, he whispered: "My lord, the military department came to inform him this morning, saying that the general will enter the city from Donghua Gate at three o'clock today......

If it weren't for the fact that this little official was on duty today, he wouldn't have touched this brow, but who knows how to be lucky and unlucky. The little official had a sad face, and the whole person seemed to have turned into a bitter melon.

"What?!Today!Three o'clock?!Are you mistaken?" The little official looked at Lord Jing's big bronze bell-like eyes, and couldn't find his tongue for a while, so he could only nod subconsciously.

After a while, he added: "Just before you came, the messenger just left." ”

Lord Jing, who was about to get angry and say why he didn't tell him earlier, was suffocated for a while, and his face turned red for a while. After slapping the table two or three times in a row, he calmed down the stuffiness in his chest, and pointed to the door with some weakness and said: "Go and see, if Zheng Shangshu is here, if he doesn't come, immediately go to his mansion to report the news that the general has entered the city from Donghua Gate at three o'clock today." I can't take care of this. ”

The little official nodded frequently, and almost ran away from Lord Jing and this land of right and wrong, which might explode at any time.

Recently, the Ministry of Rites is in the end of the year and various affairs are complicated, although the matter of General Shubei to return to Beijing has been decided at the beginning of the year, but until the deadline is approaching, Lord Jing is still not fully prepared here, some are due to Lord Jing's own reasons, and some are the cooperation of various departments. Lord Jing's emotions were already extremely anxious, but at this moment, they finally exceeded the critical value.

Lord Jing, who had a calm face, was angrily scolding the culprit who gave him a headache in his heart, "Bastard, the itinerary has been decided at the beginning of the year, and he will change it if he says it?! The lawless Li Hui, no one can cure him yet?!

It was originally a great achievement but it became a disaster because it was not completed on time, not to mention that the benefits should be lost in vain, it is estimated that this year's assessment of Lord Jing will also be recorded in the Ministry of Officials, especially thinking of how the emperor attaches importance to this meeting, Lord Jing feels that his head is no longer painful, but numb from the inside out, and the scalp can no longer feel the force exerted on the hair when he pulls his hair.

Just when he was about to explode again, a man came to refill him with a teapot. While pouring water, he said softly: "Why should your lord be so troubled, wouldn't it be better for the general to come at this time." Although our preparations were not set according to the general's itinerary, they were built at the Suzaku Gate according to the will of the Holy Lord, not to mention that the original scheduled schedule had not yet been reached at this time. ”

The implication is that even if the Ministry of Rites is really poorly prepared now, it is not the responsibility of the Ministry of Rites, and the general did not arrive in the capital at the specified time, so he can completely cover up the mistakes of the Ministry of Rites until the last date, and have not completed the preparations for various things.

After refilling the cup, the person who came saw that Lord Jing's expression seemed to have improved a lot, and then continued: "It's just that my lord, I'm afraid that tonight's banquet will be a big deal for adults." After speaking, he turned around, and Shi Shiran left Lord Jing's position to refill the cups for the others elsewhere.

Lord Jing's mind was a little overwhelmed by emotion, and after some tidying, the corners of his mouth rose irrepressibly.

After thinking about it for a while, Lord Jing immediately refreshed. Thinking about what this Tsing Yi Xiaosheng said, not only did he pass the crisis safely, but even if there was something inconsiderate when the general entered the city today, the Ministry of Rites, especially Lord Jing himself, was completely understandable.

And if tonight's banquet is ready to stop, maybe you can make a good impression on yourself in front of the emperor - neat and improvised. The more he thought about it, the happier he became, and immediately began to deal with the unexpected situation in front of him.