The earth dragon turned over three times, the first two times were less than a stick of incense, and the second and third were separated by nearly an hour, not only turning the previously crumbling house into a ruined wall, but even burying many people who had spent their lives in a hurry to take care of their families after the first two catastrophes.

The cries and cries for help are endless, there are scarred people everywhere, and the good Ba County is like a hell on earth.

Duan Jiqing confirmed that his wife was fine, sent away Duan Xiaoshan, Liu Shanyang and others who were in a hurry to go home, and grabbed Guan Bantou and said, "Lao Guan, don't worry about it here, hurry up and go to the horse, hurry up and help me see if Zhixing's father and mother are okay!" ”

Guan Bantou reacted and hurriedly said, "Okay, I'll go now." ”

In the face of this sudden natural disaster, even the provincial office, the government office, and the county government collapsed several houses, killing and injuring several people. The magistrates of Daotai, Futai and County were worried that the traitors would take advantage of the fire to make trouble against the robbers, and they could no longer take care of the Han family's congratulations, so they were busy summoning the green battalion soldiers and government servants in Chongqing Town to patrol the streets, and were busy sending people to Chengdu to report to the lords of the domain, Zhentai and even Taiwan, and were busy summoning the gentry to persuade them to donate and give relief.

Sent away the head of the team, Duan Jiqing didn't dare to let his wife and son into the house, he carefully went in to inspect it alone, and confirmed that the new home that he helped his son-in-law and daughter set up was very strong, and the beams and rafters of the roof were not broken or broken, but there were a few cracks in the west wall, so that his wife and son went in to clean.

Helping my son build half of the house because of the lack of wood support, several walls that had been built collapsed, but fortunately, the craftsmen who found him worked for three days to fish and two days to dry their nets, and none of them came today, otherwise even if no one died, someone would have been injured. If the wall falls, it can be built again, and the silver can be earned again when the silver is gone, and the top priority is that the father-in-law and mother-in-law cannot have anything to do!

Thinking of this, Duan Jiqing returned to the main hall of his son-in-law's house, wiped the incense case, took out three sticks of incense and lit them, and pulled his son to pray for the blessing of the gods.

Unexpectedly, after praying for the Buddha, the Jade Emperor, and Guanyin Bodhisattva, they were about to pray for the blessing of the city god and the land lord, and the guy of "Tongxingdang" stumbled in, and when he saw him, he howled and cried: "Master Duan, something happened, the shop collapsed, the shopkeeper died, and the flesh and blood were smashed so that he couldn't see the human appearance, and there were four people on the counter, and there was only the small one left!" ”

"You mean Pan's shopkeeper ...... him?"

"Shopkeeper Pan is dead, the death is so miserable, the small one pulled the body of the shopkeeper Pan out of the pile of tiles, look at the small hands."

The man's hands are full of wounds, all blood, and he can't tell whether the blood is from him or from the shopkeeper Pan!

A big living person who was still eating and drinking together last night was gone, and then thinking that Pan Changsheng's official could not be done, as soon as he received the bad news from his father, he had to petition to open the vacancy and return to his hometown, Duan Jiqing didn't mention how uncomfortable it was, he took a few deep breaths in a row, calmed down a little and pulled up the guy and said, "Go, take me to see." ”

Too many people died, and there were more than a dozen or twenty families in almost every street and alley to hold funerals, and there were not enough coffins at all, and many people who were crushed to death could only be buried hastily wrapped in straw mats.

Just when Duan Jiqing finally helped the shopkeeper Pan find a coffin, he couldn't find it for a while, so he could only let the guys who had survived the disaster help him hastily converge, and he was about to go to the county government to report that the father of Pan Changsheng, the ambassador of the Lianghuai Salt Transportation Envoy Division, had died, and asked the county magistrate to arrange a few officials to help with the funeral.

Duan Jiqing chuckled in his heart, stared at the two of them and asked, "Why did you come back so quickly?" ”

"We met on the road," Guan Bantou turned his head and glared at Han Da fiercely, gritted his teeth and said: "The last time I went, I told you thousands of instructions, how did you explain to your three brothers, you tell Duan Jingcheng by yourself!" ”

Han Da was so frightened that his legs weakened, and he knelt down and cried with a puff: "Master Duan, my father...... My father is dead, and I'm here to mourn you. It's not that I didn't take care of my father, I didn't think that the earth dragon would turn over. He lay down at home, we all worked in the fields, and suddenly the mountains shook, so I ran home, and when I ran to the entrance of the village, most of the houses in the village collapsed, and many people died, and my house also collapsed, and my father also ......."

I was really afraid of something, Duan Jiqing's eyes darkened, and he collapsed to the ground like three souls and six spirits being suddenly withdrawn. Guan Bantou was so frightened that he hurriedly helped him up, pinching people while shouting to find Lang Zhong.

However, Lang Zhong in the city was as busy as he was serving, and he would go where to find it for a while.

Fortunately, Duan Jiqing woke up quickly, looked up at his wife who was crying, and then looked at his son who was frightened, and said weakly: "Don't be bitter, I'm not dead yet." ”

"Master, are you okay?"

"It's okay, so many winds and waves have come, what's the matter." Duan Jiqing sat up strongly, nodded slightly as frightened as the six gods and masterless Guan Bantou, and then looked at Han Da who was kneeling in front of the bed and sighed: "Child, get up, I don't blame you, this is a natural and man-made disaster, what kind of evil has I done in Ba County, God wants to bring such a big disaster, how many gentry and people will die in my Ba County!" ”

"Master Duan, I didn't take good care of my father, I'm sorry for you, I'm sorry for the fourth ......" Han Da knew very well that if his father died, the fourth official would not be able to do it, not to mention how uncomfortable and sorry he was, so he slapped himself.

"What is this for, if you don't blame you, I don't blame you, the top priority is to hurry up and handle the funeral, so that your father can be buried in peace."

"What is my brother doing there, do you want to bring him a letter?"

"Yes, Duan Jingcheng, what should I do over there with the four babies?"

Duan Jiqing took a deep breath, clenched his fists and said, "I'll write a letter to him, and if you write it, you will help me send Rishengchang to it, and the county government will also report it." ”

"But in this way, the four babies will not be able to become officials!" Guan Bantou said with a bitter face.

"What is called not becoming an official, only those who are dismissed and never used will not be able to become an official, and this is called Ding Wei, and it will only take three years. He is only twenty-four this year, and he is about the same age as him is still taking the Xiucai exam, isn't it just three years, and it can't be delayed! ”

"yes, it's not just three years."

……

At the same time, Han Xiufeng was "listening to Yuxuan" and chatting with Fei Erye.

The provincial hall not only ran a township school, but also hired two famous scribes to sit in the museum to teach, as long as the townspeople who were officials in Beijing had a baby at home, almost all the babies were sent, and the little guy also followed, Fei Erye enjoyed leisure, and lived a leisurely fairy life.

"Zhixing, do you know who I saw when I sent Shi Chang to the provincial pavilion in the morning?"

"Who have you seen all the time?" Han Xiufeng put down his pawn and said.

Second Master Fei picked up a chess piece and said with a smile: "Lord Lang Zhuo, the squire of the military department." ”

Han Xiufeng asked curiously: "What is he doing in the provincial pavilion, don't he and his father like to avoid suspicion?" ”

"Just like us, send the baby to study. As for avoiding suspicion, at this time and at that time, although his father is an official and a very popular minister, he has not been a director for a long time. Second Master Fei took a step of chess, and said meaningfully: "If there is no father, can he be a squire in the military department?" To put it mildly, if his father leaves and returns to the West, how long can he be a waiter now? Relying on the shadow of the father can only rely on it for a while, not for a lifetime. ”

"So I remembered my fellow villagers in the same year?"

"I think it should be, otherwise he wouldn't have pulled me for a while."

Han Xiufeng was surprised: "He dragged you to talk all the time?" ”

"Ask about you, say that I have heard your name for a long time, and I have never been able to make friends, and said that I will have to move around more in the future."

"He really looks down on me."

"You can't say that, no matter what you are, you're also a 'little military machine', one more friend and one more way, and it makes sense for him to put down his body and be willing to make friends with you."

As Fei Erye said, some people don't look at the official and do a great job, but the foundation is not stable. For example, Zhuo Yun, the squire of the Ministry of War, and Du Han, the Minister of Military Aircraft, who are in a high position by relying on their father's shadow, have a really hard time without their father's care. Another example is Mu Yin, a cabinet secretary who is not even a lifter, and he is lucky to be the minister of military aircraft, if he doesn't take refuge in Su Shun, he won't be able to walk long in the military aircraft.

Thinking of this, Han Xiufeng couldn't help but smile and said: "Second master, when I heard your master say this, I suddenly found that although I am not a big official, I am more stable than them, at least I don't have to worry about being demoted and dismissed." ”

"This is natural, you are an official who relies on your ability to do it, and you rely on military exploits!"

Second Master Fei smiled, and then said: "Speaking of military merits, Zeng Guofan, the same year of Lord Duan, showed a big face this time, Hubei 600 miles to expedite the report, he led Xiangyong from Jinkou along the Yangtze River three roads, straight to Parrot Island, successively recovered Hanyang, Hankou, and wiped out the long-haired sailors on the river in one fell swoop. It is said that the thief generals Shi Fengkui and Huang Zaixing saw that the situation was not good, and they had withdrawn from Wuchang with the remnants of the defeated army! ”

"Lord Zeng has recovered Wuchang?" Han Xiufeng was taken aback.

"It should be, when I came back, I saw the Huguang Hall decorated with lights, and there were people setting off guns at the door. On the way back, I also met Master Jiang, who said that those Beijing officials in Hunan were not to mention how happy, and some people even bet that the emperor would let Zeng be the governor of Hubei or let Zeng be the governor of Huguang this time. ”

"Listening to what you always say, I think Master Zeng really has hope, when he returned to his hometown, he was already a squire when he returned to his hometown, not to mention making such a big feat." Han Xiufeng thought for a while, and then said: "Regardless of background or qualifications, Jiang Zhongyuan was far worse than Lord Zeng at that time, Jiang Zhongyuan could be the political envoy of Hubei at that time, and even the acting governor of Anhui, let alone Lord Zeng." ”

"Having said that, it's not as good as Jiang Zhongyuan now."

"Why do you say that?" Han Xiufeng pretended to be curious and asked.

Second Master Fei put down the chess pieces, picked up the teacup and said with a wry smile: "Jiang Haoxuan has many friends and is well-informed, he said that Wen Zhongtang and Su Shun seem to have recommended Lord Zeng, but Prince Gong, Prince Yi, Prince Zheng and other princes have no objections, but Lord Peng, Lord Zhou and Lord Weng feel that it is very inappropriate." The Manchurians didn't say anything, the Han officials objected, do you say it's ridiculous? ”

"So even if Lord Zeng has experienced so many great feats, it is not so easy to become a governor?"

"It's not that easy, so people are afraid of being famous, pigs are afraid of being strong. If Lord Zeng's previous official promotion was not so fast, his official reputation was not so good, and he was not as popular in Hunan Shilin as he is now, let alone being a governor, I think the governor can do it! ”

"You're really a bystander."

"What bystanders are clear, I also listened to Jiang Haoxuan, Master Huang, and Master Ji." mentioned Huang Zhongyin, Second Master Fei remembered something again: "Zhixing, didn't you ask Cao Yuying to help Prince Gong and Master Peng report their affection, the day before yesterday I heard Master Huang in the mansion say that Lord Su Shun seems to value Cao Yuying very much, every time he enters the palace, as long as he meets Cao Yuying, he will go up and say a few words, and even the title is different." ”

"What's different?"

"As soon as Lord Su Shun saw Cao Yuying, he shouted 'Master Cao', not to mention how affectionate he was, and Cao Yuying didn't seem to run to Lord Sushun's house."

Han Xiufeng has been living in seclusion since he was transferred back to Beijing, and he really didn't know this, but when he heard Fei Erye say this, he realized that Su Shun not only won over Mu Yin and Du Han in the military aircraft department, but even the foreman Zhang Jing and Cao Yuying were his eyeliners.

Thinking of what Eun Jun said last time, Han Xiufeng was really a little worried about Su Shun, because since ancient times, as long as he was a powerful minister, few people could have a good end. But these things can only be put in the heart, not only can not be said nonsense, but even can not be reminded, after all, people are proud, you are kind to remind, people may not think about it.