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On the twenty-sixth day of March, at the afternoon of Shen, the southern patrol fleet finally arrived at the southern section of the northern Jiangsu Canal, and Yangzhou was already in sight.

At this time, on the canal, among the dragon boats, Emperor Deqing stood at the bow of the boat, watching the scenery along the way, it seems that because Yangzhou is not far away, Emperor Deqing's interest is quite high, and the scenery along the canal that has been tired of seeing is now full of fun.

As for Zhao Junchen, he stood behind Emperor Deqing, accompanying Emperor Deqing to enjoy the scenery while waiting for Emperor Deqing's orders.

"Seeing that Yangzhou is approaching, the scenery on this road is also much more beautiful, and under the leopard, it can be seen that Jiangnan is indeed a place where outstanding people and Zhong Lingyu are beautiful." Emperor Deqing said with a leisurely sigh.

When Emperor Deqing sighed, he had some smiles on his face, and he always deliberately maintained the majesty of the emperor as usual, and he was obviously in a very good mood.

Zhao Junchen knew very well that the reason why Emperor Deqing was in such a comfortable mood at this time was not only because of the proximity of Yangzhou, but also because of Li Jiamin's relationship.

Two days ago, Emperor Deqing issued a decree, citing "insufficient evidence" as an excuse, not only spared Li Jiamin's father Li Xin from prison, but even privately returned the confiscated property of the Li family - in this way, Li Jiamin was naturally grateful to Emperor Deqing, and was "willing to repay with his life". Then, Emperor Deqing also took this opportunity to disclose his identity to Li Jiamin, so that the good show of "The Emperor Saves Beauty" ended perfectly, so ...... The next development can be imagined.

As far as Zhao Junchen knew, Emperor Deqing spent the night in Li Jiamin's room for the past two days, and he had a happy expression when he left every day. It's like being ten years younger. In addition, Emperor Deqing has rewarded Li Jiamin with many pieces of imperial treasures in the palace in the past two days. Obviously, Li Jiamin is very good at "serving" Emperor Deqing, and Emperor Deqing is also very satisfied with Li Jiamin's service. And extremely pampered.

According to Zhao Junchen's speculation, the next matter of Li Jiamin entering the harem and becoming the favorite concubine of Emperor Deqing is already a certainty - because it involves the privacy of the emperor, Zhao Junchen has always pretended not to know about this matter, but quietly raised the level of Li Jiamin's clothing, food, housing and transportation on weekdays a lot, and let Chen Zhirong further befriend Li Jiamin, which can be regarded as an investment in advance.

Because of this, for Emperor Deqing, Yangzhou is approaching. It is a beautiful woman again, which can be described as a good thing, so Emperor Deqing is naturally in a good mood.

*

At this time, hearing Emperor Deqing's emotion, Zhao Junchen replied with a smile: "Your Majesty's rivers and mountains are vast and boundless, the north and south are thousands of miles apart, and the scenery is of course very different. Naturally, it has a different flavor. ”

Emperor Deqing nodded and said, "Yes, my country is too big, and there are differences between east and west, north and south. It's a pity that as an emperor, I'm always constrained by all kinds of rules, and I can't enjoy the tour at all. On weekdays, you can't even leave the capital, let alone anything else...... Speaking of which. If it weren't for you, Junchen, I wouldn't have been able to make this southern tour. ”

Zhao Junchen lowered his head and said: "Share worries for Your Majesty." It is the minister's business. This southern tour has been smooth so far, if you are willing, you can play in the south of the Yangtze River for a while, now the four seas are peaceful, the eight directions are peaceful, your majesty is finally a southern tour, and you don't have to rush back to Beijing. ”

Emperor Deqing nodded again and said, "It's a good thing, if all the officials in the court have such an awareness as you, I can also worry a lot." ”

Speaking of this, Emperor Deqing suddenly changed his words and said, "Junchen, you are bent on sharing your worries about me, and I will also give you some benefits...... I know that Yangzhou is your hometown, so I didn't send you to Yangzhou in advance this time, but let you stay by my side, just to let Junchen you arrive in Yangzhou with me, and accompany me to get off the boat and accept the welcome of Yangzhou local officials and squires, and take the opportunity to let everyone in Yangzhou see your current holy family and grace, which can be regarded as a grace, let you return home. ”

Zhao Junchen was moved, as if he was about to cry, and said in a slightly trembling voice: "Your Majesty, you are so considerate of the minister, the minister is both frightened and grateful......"

I have to say that Zhao Junchen has been up and down in the sea for so long, and his acting skills have been honed, and no one can find a flaw with the moving look on his face at this time.

After Emperor Deqing smiled lightly, he waved his hand and said, "Not only that, I know that you have many relatives in Yangzhou, and you will inevitably have a lot of entertainment after arriving in Yangzhou...... Well, I will stay in Yangzhou for seven or eight days this time, and the itinerary is not in a hurry, so I will also give you a long vacation, so that you can move freely during this time, so you don't have to deliberately accompany me, if I have something to find you, I will also send someone to send you a decree one day in advance, so that you have time to prepare. ”

After a pause, Emperor Deqing said, "Besides, the promise I gave you at the beginning is still valid. You can choose some young children in the Zhao family to enter the Guozijian to become prisoners, the number of places is not limited, or you can choose a woman with good character in the Zhao family to send to the palace, I will give her a position, these are all considered graces for you, you should also hurry up during this time in Yangzhou, don't delay. ”

Obviously, Zhao Junchen's performance during the southern tour made Emperor Deqing very satisfied, so Emperor Deqing's grace was also continuous.

In fact, these mentions of Emperor Deqing were also very much in line with Zhao Junchen's wishes.

Zhao Junchen rarely came to Yangzhou once, and there are indeed a lot of things to do, selecting the children of the Zhao family to enter the Guozijian, selecting the right Zhao family women to enter the harem, and taking the opportunity to rectify the atmosphere of the Zhao family in Yangzhou, etc., is just one of them; In addition, Zhao Junchen sent Su Xiqing to Yangzhou in advance, in addition to letting Su Xiqing help the Zhao family in Yangzhou prepare for the drive, he also wanted to use Su Xiqing's connections to find a group of talented masters in Jiangnan, especially Shaoxing and other places, to form a staff team for Zhao Junchen, which is very important and also needs Zhao Junchen to personally inquire; In addition, Yangzhou is a place where giants gather, and it is one of the strongholds of Huizhou businessmen, and Zhao Junchen also wants to take this opportunity to win over the power of Huizhou businessmen and lay the foundation for his next plan.

These things are very important, long-term relationship, but also take a lot of thought, if Zhao Junchen is not only doing things, but also need to accompany Emperor Deqing, it is inevitable that he will be distracted and tired, take care of one or the other, and it will inevitably be half the effort, and it will be difficult to meet expectations, so even if Emperor Deqing does not say, Zhao Junchen will take the initiative to ask Emperor Deqing for leave.

However, now that Emperor Deqing has taken the initiative to speak, Zhao Junchen is secretly happy in his heart, but he has an embarrassed expression on his face, and said slowly: "Your Majesty, the minister still wants to be by your side, share your worries, and let others take care of Your Majesty, and the minister is not very relieved......"

Emperor Deqing smiled: "I know that you are reluctant to me, but it is rare for you to go back to your hometown in Yangzhou, so you can't patronize me, right?" Don't worry, it's just a few days, it's not in the way...... What's more, you are from Yangzhou and familiar with Yangzhou, and when you are busy with your relatives' affairs, I will still find you to accompany you and be a tour guide for me. ”

Zhao Junchen sighed and said, "Since this is the case, the minister will obey the order." ”

*

Next, Emperor Deqing and Zhao Junchen chatted with Zhao Junchen with great interest about the customs and historical stories of Yangzhou - although Zhao Junchen is nominally from Yangzhou, he is actually not familiar with Yangzhou, but fortunately, he had read some related books before the southern tour, so it can be regarded as a fluent answer and no flaws.

It didn't take long for an official from the Ministry of Rites to come behind the two and remind: "Your Majesty, you are about to arrive in Yangzhou, and the local officials and squires in Yangzhou are waiting for your holy car at the Yangzhou wharf, please prepare a little." ”

Hearing the reminder, Emperor Deqing and Zhao Junchen looked up at the same time, only to see that at the end of the river, Yangzhou Wharf was already visible, according to the speed of the fleet, there would be about another stick of incense to arrive.

Seeing that Yangzhou was about to arrive, Emperor Deqing's eyes flashed with excitement and interest, while Zhao Junchen lowered his head, his eyes couldn't help but fluctuate, full of planning and deep thought.

……

…… (To be continued......)