The visit of the two waiters to Shang Cheng soon spread. Now is a sensitive period, and the slightest disturbance will make people guess about the west, not to mention big people like Pan Lian and Cao Zhang, their every move will always bring people infinite reverie.

The news that Shang Cheng would be appointed as the governor of Yanshan was like wings, and in the blink of an eye, it spread in the state city. Now, not only are officials watching the further development of this matter, but there are also discussions in the tea shops and restaurants on the streets. All the news related to Shang Cheng has become a topic of conversation. His origins, his stories, his relatives, his wives and children...... It has been rumored that the monk Yeyun of the sliao temple in Qingliang Temple in the west of the city was Shang Cheng's master when he received the novice ordination; There are also people who claim to be friends with merchants; Some even claim to be Shang Cheng's relatives......

The boiling rumors caught Chen Pu and Lu Ji off guard. They thought they were doing it very secretively, who knew that the recommendation form jointly signed by Xingying, the Wei Mu Mansion, the Inspection Department and the two squires had just been sent out for two days, and it was already in an uproar. In the face of inquiries from all directions, Chen Pu, who wears many hats and does not have much contact with the officials below, is better, and Lu Ji can only "refute rumors" to his colleagues and subordinates every day. Although he repeatedly insisted that he didn't know about such a thing, the more he explained, the more others doubted, and in the end he had no choice but to take advantage of the labor army celebration party to prepare for the counterattack, and simply hid in the Wei Mu Mansion and never came out.

As for Shang Cheng, the key figure in the whole matter, because most people have never dealt with him, and they don't even know him at all, but they haven't been disturbed by anything.

He continued to stay leisurely in the old official post, recuperating while reading. In addition to reading, he sometimes went to the three brigades stationed outside the city to take a walk to learn about the situation of the team and solve some practical problems by the way. However, he didn't go down to the barracks much. The newly appointed Governor Sima Duan Xiu was very capable and arranged everything in an orderly manner, which saved him a lot of worry.

In addition to reading and stationing, he was busy writing a policy essay in the last few days before the end of the year. This is a post-war review that the Ministry of War requires every senior general above the fifth rank to make. In order to write this thing, he almost scratched his scalp. He had never seen this kind of policy that stated his opinions during court deliberations, nor did he know the format requirements in it, so he didn't know where to write it at all; The most important thing is that he can't write concise ancient texts at all! Seeing that it was about to be time to hand in the essay, he was in a hurry and asked Duan Xiu to find an old clerk in the army for him, he dictated, the document was revised, polished, copied into the text, and finally he signed and sealed it, so that he coped with the errand.

On the twenty-fifth day of the lunar month, Li Shen and Ximen Sheng also arrived in Yanzhou.

The military review meeting was scheduled for the 26th and 27th. Chen Pu, Pan Lian, Cao Zhang, Lu Ji, Li Shen, Ximen Sheng, and Shang Cheng, as well as some high-ranking officers and the chief and deputy chief officers of each department at the time of the camp, all participated, and the generals and deputy generals of the various armies participating in the battle, such as the Hussar Army, the Right Shenwei Army, the Left Shenwei Army, and the Weiwu Army, who were detained at the eastern battle site for reconnaissance, were also ordered to observe. In the large council hall of the camp, thirty or forty generals from the fifth rank and above gathered together.

Before the start of the military meeting, Shang Cheng unexpectedly met Ran Linde outside the conference hall, and chatted with him about their respective experiences after Mo Gan's breakup.

Ran Linde's face was very haggard, and he didn't have a good time in the East School Yard; However, people are a little fatter than when they were on the grassland, which shows that three months of semi-house arrest are not without benefits. He told Shang Cheng that he had escaped back by himself, and after he came back, he was imprisoned in the East School Field, although he had already made it clear to the people from the military department about the defeat of the Alegu River, but he didn't know why, the military department still held on to it. He was not the only one, several generals in the Liyuan battalion had similar encounters with him, and they all passed the survey, but the military department just didn't let them go.

Shang Cheng asked in surprise, "What's going on?" Could it be that you have something to do with the defeat of Alegu? ”

Ran Linde said with a wry smile: "I am a clerk with the name of a counselor, and it is not my turn to command the battle before the war, what can I implicate?" ”

"Then why don't you let you out?"

Ran Linde took off the head of the head he was wearing, took it in his hand and slowly smoothed out a few wrinkles, looked at the generals who were walking in a hurry with gloomy faces, sighed abruptly, and said faintly: "I'm afraid General Zida doesn't know yet, in the middle of last month, Wang Xiang was sick...... There is news that the imperial court is ready to give the king and the princess. ”

Shang Cheng blinked and glared at Ran Linde. He couldn't understand what was hidden in Ran Linde's words. Is there a connection between being sick and giving a master?

“…… Wang Xiang is about to withdraw from the center. ”

In this way, Shang Cheng understands. The prime minister surnamed Wang is about to retire, and before he retires, the court will give him a vacant position. He glanced at Ran Linde with a smile. It seems that this person is quite capable, and he is under house arrest and better informed than himself. Looking at the gloom on Ran Linde's face, he knew that this matter must not be simple, and most of them had other hidden secrets. But it has nothing to do with him. Now except for leading troops to fight, everything else has nothing to do with him, even if he gives the false title of Taifu Taibao to Prime Minister Wang, it has nothing to do with him.

Ran Linde looked at Shang Cheng with a smile. Looking at Shang Chengyi's nonchalant look, he knew that this young man who was about to soar into the sky did not hear the meaning of his words. His gaze fell on the hard earth with frost flowers at his feet, and his lips squirmed twice, and finally he didn't make a sound. He sighed silently, changed the subject and asked, "I heard that you are about to be promoted to admiral." I haven't gotten rid of the matter yet, and I'm afraid that I won't be able to come to the Admiral's Mansion to watch the ceremony, so I'll congratulate you here first. ”

Now Yanzhou City is full of gossip related to the Admiral, although Shang Cheng rarely goes out, he has probably heard some rumors that he may sit on the Admiral's seat, Bao Kan and Zhao Shishi have told him. But he never took these rumors seriously, they were all nonsense. The matter is obvious, whether it is from the perspective of seniority and merit, or from the perspective of experience and ability to deal with military and government affairs, Li Shen is better than him, and the imperial court can't let go of the old man who is familiar with official affairs, but he just promotes a newcomer who doesn't know anything, right? Besides, even if the imperial court is afraid that Li Shen and Li Wei are brothers, isn't there still Ximen Sheng? Although Simon Kezhi is a newcomer, he is also an old soldier, and he has also served two terms of assassination, and he can pick military and political affairs, and he is also a good candidate for the admiral! He thought about it and smiled and said, "Old Ran, you won't take these words seriously, right?" How do you think I can sit in that chair? He took a step closer, leaned over and whispered in a low voice, "The exact news I only got last night is that the camp has recommended General Shoude, and Chen Zhuguo also nodded, and even sent a recommendation form to the imperial court, and it is estimated that there will be news around the tenth day of the first month." ”

Ran Linde also heard the exact news last night, but the content was completely different from what Shang Cheng heard. But he couldn't refute Shang Cheng about this matter, so he had to follow his words and pretend to be surprised and said, "Oh? Sure enough, it's Li Shoude? ”

Shang Cheng nodded firmly. The first night he was gossiping with Ximen Sheng in the post house, and this news was what Ximen Sheng told him. According to Ximensheng, the news was personally said by a member of Pan Lian's ministry, and it was absolutely reliable.

Ran Linde's face was abrupt, he bowed his hand to Shang Cheng, and said with a smile: "Li Shoude is indeed the 'expectation of everyone' as the governor of Yanshan. ”

Although Ran Linde did not insist on his statement, Shang Cheng still heard some clues from his words. But with people coming and going, he couldn't get to the bottom of it, so he had to hold back his doubts. As the meeting progressed, he gradually felt that Ran Linde's statement was not groundless. At the meeting, he clearly felt that others always looked at him with a hint of inquiry, but Li Shen's attitude towards him was always cold. At noon, in addition to him and Ximen Sheng, there were also several Yanshan officers at their table. He noticed that although the people at the same table were talking and laughing with each other, they all seemed to be a little respectful to him, and the most direct manifestation was that as soon as he opened his mouth, the people at the same table would invariably stop when they were eating, drinking, or talking, and although their eyes did not look at him, their expressions were very focused, as if his words were important. This is true not only of the few people at the same table, but also of the two tables next to them. He even felt that when he spoke, the whole main room was quieter. This discovery made him feel uncomfortable all over his body, and he couldn't eat well. Moreover, Li Shen had never been here during the entire meeting, and the seat next to Li Shen had been vacant. Obviously, Li Shen had already believed the news that he was about to take over as Admiral of Yanshan, so Li Shen was hostile to him......

Can you become the Admiral of Yanshan?

Shang Cheng felt that this rumor was also too unreliable.

But he couldn't explain it to anyone else.

For two whole days of military meetings, he endured the torment as if he had been sinned. God knows who made this rumor! If he finds the guy who spreads rumors, he'll definitely give that guy a good look!

Finally, at the end of the military meeting, he left the camp in a panic without even taking care of dinner.