The New Year came unexpectedly, and except for a few battalions guarding the border, the non-commissioned officers on duty all took a seven-day holiday and returned home for reunion. The Kwantung villagers in Dunhuang also visited each other to congratulate each other on the New Year. Because Li Rui had no relatives in Dunhuang, Zhao Xingde invited him to his home for a banquet. Li Rui immediately agreed, and said that he would take a fellow villager from Luoyang, Chen Youyi, a bachelor of the Academy of Literature and Dictionaries, to visit together.

Zhao Xingde came back to tell Li Ruoxue that he would discuss with her and ask the aunt who usually delivers vegetables to help with the cooking. Speaking of Chen Heyi again, Li Ruoxue said with a smile: "It is the Chen Jianzhai who wrote 'Begonia does not hesitate to rouge, independent in the drizzle', and the concubine has heard of his name for a long time when she was in Luoyang." "Her belly bulge is not obvious, and she has been nausea and dizziness less recently. Whenever a guest comes, he treats the guest with Xingde, behaves calmly, talks elegantly, and does not seem to be pregnant at all. Li Rui and Chen Youyi are not married, and they don't even notice it.

As soon as Li Rui saw Zhao Xingde, he said: "Okay, I see that your Yin Tang is dark in the red, and you have to be careful of disasters recently." ”

Zhao Xingde touched his forehead and said with a wry smile: "This is gunpowder smoked." ”

Li Rui shook his head and sighed: "I think it is where blessings and misfortunes lurk, and misfortunes and blessings rely on." Zhao Xingde couldn't help but be dumbfounded, so he didn't take his stubble. Since Li Rui entered the Heavenly Machine Academy, he has calculated the trajectory of celestial bodies, and the original way of astrological divination has not been completely abandoned, but he is no longer as obsessed with it as before, and sometimes he jokes about it. I really don't know which of his words is true and which is false.

After the four of them sat down in the hall, Li Rui introduced Zhao Xingde and Chen Youyi to each other, and in order to avoid trouble, they still used Zhao De's identity.

Chen Yiyuan only planned to study in the Xia Kingdom for a few months, but stayed in Chang'an for three years and lived in Dunhuang for another three years. When he heard that Xingde was abandoning literature and martial arts, he sighed: "The way of civil and military affairs is one, and the modern world is divided into two ways." The scribes wrote and wrote the words, and the martial artists laughed at each other. Isn't it sad! It is difficult to return to the Kwantung region, the civil ministers lose the strength to defend the country, and the generals lose the wisdom of the enemy, which is the cause of the decline of the Central Plains. In the past few years, he has figured out the military and political secrets of the Xia Kingdom, and has thought hard about many strategies to cheer up the Kanto, which runs through the way of civil and military affairs, and restores the system of entering the prime minister in the Han and Tang dynasties.

Li Rui smiled and said, "Brother Chen is serious. The way of civil and military affairs has its own reliance, and there is a tendency of different paths, but it is too much. He said to Zhao Xingde again, "Brother Fei has been elected as a subordinate by the Relief Bureau, and he will go to Chang'an after the Lantern Festival." This relief office is specially set up to solve the problem of workers, and the last wishes of the two gentlemen of the East People's Society are about to be fulfilled. ”

Zhao Xingde picked up his wine glass and said: "The imperial court is doing a great good, and I wish Brother Chen success in advance!"

Chen Youyi picked up his wine glass and him, explaining: "Yuan ordered me to go to Chang'an with me, just because I was born in Kanto and it is easy to win the trust of others. Don't hide it from Brother Zhao, I am in Xia Kingdom, I only seek to solve my doubts, and I will return to Kanto when I am successful in my studies. But I never dared to shirk this matter. He paused and muttered, "The Guanzhong Workshop has been using homeless people as apprentices for twenty or thirty years, which can be described as deep-rooted. The local military officials were not ignorant, but most of the people imprisoned and exploited by the workshop were Kwantung people who were helpless in Guanzhong, so they turned a deaf ear and turned a blind eye, which can be described as unkind. It is unwise to covet temporary gains, not only lose people's hearts, but also sow the seeds of future troubles. Alas—" He sighed deeply.

Li Rui said in a low voice: "Yesterday, Brother Chen has a lot of hardships and twists and turns, and he has to take care of himself." ”

Chen Youyi's face was calm, and he said slowly: "Brother Dongyan, you don't know the details of the darkness in that workshop. Mencius's so-called cannibalism with beasts is similar. I have been studying in Chang'an for three years, and I often hate that I can't solve this dilemma. Now that the two loyal men have fought with their lives, and finally in exchange for the imperial court's determination to rectify the workshop, I am broken bones, so what's the matter? He clenched the glass tightly in his right hand, and there were slight ripples in the glass.

Zhao Xingde said in a deep voice: "It is well said, if the country lives and dies, how can it be avoided with good and evil." Come, Brother Chen, I'll toast you too! ”

When Chen Youyi heard him say the word "country", a complicated look flashed in his eyes, but he finally raised his glass and said with a smile: "Zhuangyan!" "After drinking this cup to the fullest. In this way, after three rounds of drinking, the three of them were all drunk, Chen Heyi was surging in his mind, patting the table while hitting the edge of the porcelain bowl with chopsticks, and singing loudly, "Qing Shang is with the wind, and Zhongqu is wandering." Sigh again and again, generosity and sorrow. does not hesitate to suffer the singer, but the wounded acquaintance is scarce. ”

Zhao Xingde and Li Rui were infected by him, their mood was agitated, and they said in unison: "I am willing to fly high for Shuanghonghu." The three of them looked at each other and laughed. Li Ruoxue sat quietly on the side, her eyes slightly moist.

The sound of crackling firecrackers had already sounded in Dunhuang City, but the Linquan Palace outside the city was very quiet. Prince Chen Zhong served in the hussar army and returned to Beijing on leave this year. The environment of the Mobei armies is the worst, but the soldiers and civilians are hard-working, and the cavalry is called the elite. The royal family attaches great importance to the Anbei Military Division. It was almost customary for the crown prince to serve in the hussars to observe the hardships of the soldiers in the border court. It's just that due to different personal qualifications, the length of service varies from long to short. Chen Zhong is stable and serious, generous and wise, not only the eldest son, but also the most loved by Chen Xuan and his wife. He spent last Chinese New Year's Eve in Xiaohai. Therefore, the family had to wait for the return of the crown prince before starting the Chinese New Year's Eve dinner, and the empress also specially told the courtiers not to set off firecrackers and fireworks first.

Emperor Chen Xuan, Empress Kang, Second Prince Chen Kang, Third Princess Chen Wan, Fourth Princess Chen Wei, Fifth Prince Chen Zhao, Crown Princess Zhang, Emperor Sun Chen Si, eight people sat around the big round table, and there was an empty seat on Zhang's side. There are snacks such as cheese and preserved fruits on the table. Seeing that the queen frequently looked back towards the palace gate, Chen Xuan smiled and comforted: "Don't be anxious, although it is thousands of miles away from Mobei to Beijing, the second half of the journey is a gallop, and you will not miss the return date." ”

Empress Kang gave him a blank look and complained, "Where is Chong'er in the army, is it not good?" Why do you want him to go to Mobei? He turned around, and stopped looking at the window as if he was angry. She grabbed the hand of the crown princess Zhang and sighed: "Pity our mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, it is also the same hardship." Zhang is the daughter of the Duke of Chu, and she has always been knowledgeable and courteous, not as straightforward as Queen Kang, as if saying: "The son has thanked his mother for her love." Empress Kang sighed, patted the back of her hand, remembered the years when she had stayed in Dunhuang and waited, and secretly thought: It was because of this that the first emperor realized the pain of the separation of the soldiers and their wives, and issued an edict that the soldiers should be reunited with their families after three years of exile.

The queen has a straightforward temperament, and Chen Xuan knew that she was thinking about her eldest son who had not been seen for a long time, and it was unreasonable, so she glanced at Chen Kang.

Chen Kang understood, and said with a bitter face: "The queen mother misses her eldest brother, but she has no eyes, and she can't even see me." After speaking, he raised his left hand and shook it a few times in front of Queen Kang's eyes, and gaged: "Queen Mother, look here, look here!" The two younger sisters were amused by him, and the twelve-year-old Chen Zhao also seemed to understand how to coax, pulling his little throat and shouting: "Look here, look here!" "The little emperor's grandson, Chen Si, was young, and he looked at his two uncles and grandmother for some reason.

If it weren't for the objections of the five prefectures, the succession to the throne of the Xia State would be in the order of the eldest and youngest, and after ascending the throne, it would also be restricted by the five prefectures, and it would not be as arbitrary as Emperor Song Liao. This prevented the brothers from turning against each other for the throne. Chen Kang heard and witnessed his father working hard for state affairs every day, and in his heart he felt lucky to have a brother on his shoulder. So make a few jokes, so that he is not misunderstood, he wants to compete for favor and reserve.

Empress Kang was so angry that he was amused, her eyes widened, and she scolded: "It's really conscienceless." I knew that I would let you go to Mobei to blow the wind and sand on behalf of my eldest brother. ”

As soon as the words fell, the door of the temple was pushed open at once, and a loud voice laughed: "That's not possible!" Chen Zhong stood at the door, dusty, and before he could change out of his uniform, he first bowed to Chen Xuan and his wife and said, "The child has seen his father and mother." By this time, several of his younger siblings had already stood up and gathered around him. Chen Zhong showed favor with his eyes, and Zhang lowered his head in shame. Chen Chong smiled, touched Chen Zhao and Chen Si's heads, patted Chen Kang's shoulder, and took out the gifts for his two younger sisters. ”

Empress Kang was suspicious: "Why do you want to go to the Protector Mansion to hand over, isn't it possible to return home after reporting to Lu Cao?" The Protector Mansion handed over the document to the ...... of the leading lieutenant or above" She suddenly came to her senses and said in a lost voice, "Chong'er, have you been promoted to the captain?" There was a lot of surprise in his voice. It was not easy for Chen Zhong to be promoted to the rank of hussar captain when he was in his thirties. Except for General Anbei who knew his identity, everyone else only said that he was the son of the Chen family in Lingzhou, and the Chen family was a side branch of the imperial family, and there were many children in Mobei in each generation, which was considered a small general.

Empress Kang turned her face to look at Chen Xuan, and when she saw that Chen Xuan also smiled and nodded, she came to her senses and said, "Okay, you guys will work together to hide from me." ”

Chen Kang shouted beside him: "Queen Mother, I was also hidden in the dark by them." Chen Xuan said with a smile: "Xiang Shi entered the Zhuguo Mansion, the hussar general Zhu Yanheng was promoted to the general of Anbei, the military captain was promoted to the hussar general by the General's Mansion, and the captain was re-elected in the battalion, which was not long ago." I asked him to hide it and leave you with a surprise. He didn't worry about his wife Xingshi asking for guilt at all, because Empress Kang's eyes were already full of her mother's joy and pride. Outside, without waiting for the queen's orders, the servants who knew that the prince had returned to the palace rang off firecrackers and fireworks.

On the night of Chinese New Year's Eve, most of the servants of Linquan Palace took leave to reunite with their families, this night should have been the most deserted time of the year in the palace, but this night was also the happiest time for the royal family, Chen Xuan and his wife sat around the fireplace with their seven children and grandchildren, waiting for the arrival of the new year with great interest like ordinary people.

After the New Year, just after the New Year, Chun Yuzhen, who returned from Chang'an, brought a newly forged horizontal knife to Zhao Xingde. This knife is a good knife, but it is not a treasure knife in the world without a thousand hammers. Zhao Xingde felt the cold and shining blade with his fingers, and looked at Chun Yuzhen with some puzzlement.

"According to Mr. Zhao's instructions, this is a horizontal knife made of iron made from charcoal from Jinhua Mountain, high-grade iron ore, and iron tested in a small furnace." Perennial iron, so that Chun Yuzhen's palms are covered with thick calluses, he carefully grasped the two ends of the knife body, a pull of luck, the knife body is slightly bent, showing good toughness, Chun Yuzhen praised: "I really didn't expect that the quality of the iron made with charcoal is almost the same as that made of charcoal." "The price of charcoal in Guanzhong is only one-fifth of that of charcoal, and the price difference between good and bad iron is also huge, and now they have this shortcut, which is almost the same as turning stone into gold.

"If we want to expand production, we need to do some experiments, but it's the same as casting cannons, as long as we do it, sooner or later we will succeed." Zhao Xingde gently stroked the cold blade, he suppressed the excitement in his heart, and said in a deep voice: "This is just the beginning. ”