After seeing the servants of the Zongren Mansion escort Yue Le away, Wang Xu and the others boarded the ferry again, and under the escort of ten small boats of the Qing army's naval division, they sailed south along the north wind and sailed towards the heavy city of Wuchang, which was occupied by the Wu army. Accompanying them, in addition to the two deputies sent by Kang Mazi to Wang Xu, Xiong Cilu and Kong Sizhen, there are also Zhou Chang, a talented son of the Qing Dynasty who volunteered to be Wang Xu's lobbyist debater, Zhou Peigong, the daughter-in-law of Wu Lao Han Jian, and Wu Shilin, the second grandson Wu Shilin, in addition to the sacrifice that Kang Mazi sent to Wu Lao Han to avenge and relieve his hatred, and the murderer who 'killed' Wu Lao Han's eldest son Wu Yingxiong - eleven wives and concubines!

Because they had already sent someone to inform Wu Lao Han Jian in advance, as soon as Wang Xu and others docked, Wu Yingqi, Hu Guozhu and Xia Guoxiang and other sons-in-law of Wu Lao Han Jian, as well as Wu Yingjing and Lu Fatzi and other relatives of Wu Lao Han Jian, had already rushed to the dock to greet the marquis - of course, it was definitely not Kang Mazi's envoy who had such a big face, Wu Lao Han Jian sent them to greet his daughter-in-law and grandson.

Prior to this, Princess Jianning had returned to Yunnan Province with Wu Yingxiong once, and Wu Lao Hanjian's son, niece and son-in-law were quite familiar with each other. It was also at this moment that Wu Yingqi, who was usually rude and rude, rarely showed some ordinary feelings, hugging his little nephew Wu Shilin and crying in public, crying bitterly for the death of his dead brother; and Princess Jianning, who did not leave a good impression on Lu Fatzi, also wiped her tears, and kept sighing that she could return Wu Shilin to Pingxi Palace, and she could give an explanation to Wu Yingxiong if she died, which made everyone in the Wu army present cry, and Lu Fatzi also pretended to howl a few times.

"Lord Shizi, Lord Shizi, why did you leave like this? You are called Xiaguan, you are called Little Nephew, what can I do in the future? The prince ............. ”

When the cat cried and the mouse lowered his fat head and pretended to howl, Lu Fatty's shoulder was suddenly gently patted, and Lu Fatzi wiped away a handful of worthless tears, and when he looked up, he was surprised to find that standing in front of him was his confidant friend, who had a life-saving grace for himself, Wang Xu!

"Brother Zishu!" Fat Lu shouted, without saying a word, and immediately bowed to the ground.

"Three good brothers." Wang Xu hurriedly returned the salute, also bowed to the ground, and said excitedly: "Three good brothers, hurry up and be exempt!" I haven't seen you for more than four years, and the three good brothers are okay? ”

When he spoke, Wang Xu couldn't help but have tears flickering in the corners of his eyes, this is a real sad and excited tear, not the kind of crocodile tears that Lu Fat can pour out at any time. And Lu Fatzi was also rarely a little emotional, the mung bean little eyes flashed with water, and said with a slight choked voice: "Brother Xie Zishu, the little brother is very good." It's you, brother Zi, who has lost weight again, and his braids have turned gray ....... ”

"Brother Sanhao, I'm not afraid of you laughing when I say it." Wang Xu also confessed, and said with a wry smile: "A small part of the braids of the foolish brother are because of the white brother of the virtuous brother." Foolish brother you follow the prince of Pingxi to the side of the Qingjun, foolish brother I was ordered to be transferred to the military department of Shangshu, each for its master, foolish brother has to work hard for how to defeat the virtuous brother during the day, transfer troops and generals, allocate money and food, and at night have to worry about the position and safety of the virtuous brother, and the night is not peaceful, this braid, think about it in vain. ”

Wang Xu's words were both frank and direct, full of sincerity, Rao is Lu Fatzi had a different position and concept from him, and he couldn't help but be moved, bowed down again, and choked up: "The younger brother is unjust, let the younger brother work so hard for the younger brother, and the younger brother is guilty of death." ”

"The three good virtuous brothers have said it, each is his master, what is the crime of the virtuous brother?" Wang Xu hurriedly hugged Lu Fatzi, and said with tears in his eyes: "It's the virtuous brother, this time, you have surprised the foolish brother again, I can't imagine that the virtuous brother is not only virtuous and ancient, but also majestic, invincible, and invincible on the battlefield." Although the foolish brother and the virtuous brother are hostile, when they see and hear about the brilliant achievements of the virtuous brother, they feel sorry for the virtuous brother and fall into the mud, but they can't help but feel proud of the virtuous brother, and they admire the virtuous brother's talent even more. ”

"Brother Zi has won an award." Lu Fatzi replied modestly: "The little brother just won a few small battles by luck, and Zi Zhu, you sit in the rear and dispatch the money and grain army, and in the case of repeated defeats and losses of the imperial army, you can still keep the people on the front line undisturbed, and strive to make the front-line soldiers have enough food and clothing, and the support is endless, this is the real military and political talent." If my Pingxi Mansion could have such a great talent as Brother Zizhu, don't talk about Wuchang Mansion now, even Nanjing City, which has already been taken by us. ”

"Where?" Wang Xu shook his head and said sincerely: "Brother Fool just took advantage of manpower and material resources, which can barely keep the front-line soldiers from suffering from hunger and cold, and Brother Xian, you have repeatedly defeated the strong with the weak and broken the crowd with the outnumbered, this is the real genius!" The prince of Pingxi can get an all-round talent like you, a virtuous brother, which is the blessing of the prince, and it is also the fate of the old thief. ”

You praised each other with every word, and Lu Fatzi and Wang Xu couldn't help but burst into tears, thinking about the past, and they were even more emotional. But at this time, a delicate and charming voice suddenly came, "Ouch, isn't this Lord Lu Yifeng Lu?" I haven't seen you for many years, does Lord Lu still remember the concubine? ”

Hearing this familiar coquettish voice, the excited expression on Fat Lu's face was immediately swept away, replaced by a fierce and contemptuous face, and when he looked back, he saw that sure enough, Kong Sizhen and Zhou Chang, the two men and women who were smiling and wearing a second-grade official uniform, stood beside them, and there was a middle-aged man smiling and wearing a second-grade official uniform, his appearance was very handsome, but his eyes were very cold, staring at Lu Fatzi's appearance, it was like a poisonous snake staring at a fat frog, is so vicious that he may eat Fat Lu at any time. Judging from his official uniform, Lu Fatzi expected that he must be Wang Xu's deputy on this trip, and Xiong Ci, a scholar of the Mites Qing Cabinet and a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy, was undoubtedly satisfied.

"Lord Lu, it's been a long time." Zhou Chang also saluted Fat Lu with a smile on his face, and asked very kindly: "Lord Lu, do you still remember Zhou Chang, the little official of the year?" Five years ago, we met in the mansion of Lord Soetuso. ”

"Of course I do." Lu Fatzi, who has not had a chance to know that Zhou Chang is Zhou Peigong, snorted coldly, pointed at Kong Sizhen again, turned his head and asked Wang Xu, "Brother Zizhuo, who is this lady?" Why do you seem to know your little brother very well? ”

Wang Xu smiled bitterly and did not answer. Kong Sizhen was not angry, but she was used to throwing a wink at Fat Lu, and said coquettishly: "Lord Lu, you are really famous, and your eyes have grown taller, and even your old acquaintances have forgotten about it." Master Lu, do you still remember the poor weak girl Kong Sizhen Kong Si'er who was made to die by you, crying and laughing, and wanting to die? ”

"So it's four-square? In the end, there will be a disappointment, and there will be forgiveness of sins. A cold voice that looked like a woman came, and Yu Xuan, who was in Lu Fatzi's personal army, strode forward and walked between Lu Fatzi and Kong Sizhen, much like a woman's beautiful eyes breathing fire, glaring at Kong Sizhen.

"General Liusan, why are you here?" Kong Sizhen, who had always been afraid of Yu Xuan, subconsciously took a step back and asked timidly.

"Not only am I here, but your husband, General Sun Yanling, is also in Wuchang City." Yu Xuan sneered and said, "After entering Wuchang City for a while, if General Sun knew that Sigege was so intimate with other men, he would definitely be so happy that he couldn't stand it, right?" ”

Kong Sizhen's pretty face changed suddenly, and he didn't expect that his official husband Sun Yanling was also in Wuchang City, although he didn't come to greet him in person, he must have sent someone to keep an eye on him, and he was afraid that he had already fallen into the eyes of his husband before flirting with Zhou Chang, Xiong Cixu and others. Yu Xuan smiled gloomily, and suddenly pulled the fat man's fat hand again, turned to Wang Xu and said with jealousy: "Lord Wang? The last general has long heard Yifeng say your name, and he also knows that you and Yifeng are close friends, and you are recognized by the government and the opposition as a clean official and gentleman. In this case, why did the adults walk with such a silver baby slut and lead her to Yifeng, so that the adults are not afraid of falling into fame? ”

Wang Xu's eyes widened, and he subconsciously stared at the hands of Lu Fatzi and Yu Xuan's ten fingers, and then saw Yu Xuan's moving face that was more beautiful than a woman, Wang Xu couldn't help but exclaim, "Brother Sanhao, this general, what is the relationship with you?" ”

"Good friends." Lu Fatzi was a little embarrassed, and hurriedly introduced: "Brother Zizhu, let me introduce you, this general is the famous Guangxi Third General, the third son of the old general of Guangxi Guoan, Xuan Yuxuan." ”

"Men? Three good brothers and the good of Longyang? Wang Xu was stunned, and goosebumps almost fell to the ground. Over there, Kong Sizhen, Zhou Chang, Xiong Cilu and others were also dumbfounded, and said together: "No wonder the four-grid beauty plan has never worked on Lu Fatzi, it turns out that Lu Fatzi is this hobby." If we had known, we should have sent a beautiful man to seduce Fat Lu. ”

"Fuck, I'm going to cut you guys!"

At this moment, Wu Yingqi's roar suddenly broke the embarrassment of the situation, and everyone looked back in surprise, but saw that the Qing army warship escorted down the eleven members of the Ao Bai family, and Wu Yingqi held his little nephew Wu Shilin in one hand, and grabbed the waist knife of the soldiers with the other, and wanted to rush up to kill the Ao Bai family to avenge Wu Yingxiong. Lu Fatzi didn't dare to slack off, so he hurriedly rushed up, and Hu Guozhu also rushed out over there, and pulled Wu Yingqi together with Lu Fatzi. Wu Yingqi was furious and shouted, "What are you pulling me for? I'm going to avenge my brother, get out of here! ”

"Brother in-law, calm down!" Hu Guozhu grabbed Wu Yingqi and said in a deep voice: "My father-in-law has issued an order, after the whole family is escorted, no one is allowed to hurt or abuse at will, and I must wait for my father-in-law to examine himself and find out the truth." ”

"What kind of trial is it still being tried?" Wu Yingqi pointed at the crying Aobai family and roared: "Who doesn't know that my brother was killed by the old thief of Aobai, and he still needs to be tried?" ”

"Second prince, if you want to kill them, you can do it at any time, anyway, everyone has already been escorted, so why rush for a while?" Fat Lu has always been the best at talking, and said with a smile: "Besides, the second prince, you cut them with a knife like this, isn't it too cheap for them?" Will the Heavenly Spirit of the Prince of the World be satisfied when he sees the second prince killing them so cheaply? ”

"yes." Hu Guozhu echoed: "Wait a minute, wait until your father-in-law interrogates and convicts you, brother-in-law, I will ask your father-in-law to let you do it yourself, cut it up on the mourning hall of the prince, dig out their hearts and livers to pay tribute to the soul of the son, so that others can say that the second prince has fulfilled your brotherly love." ”

To put it mildly, Wu Yingqi finally calmed down, threw down the knife and hugged his nephew and cried, accompanied by Lu Fatzi and Hu Guozhu to cry. Here, Kong Sizhen, Xiong Cizhen and the others were puzzled, and muttered in a low voice together: "What kind of fame? Wu Sangui is an old thief, why do you still interrogate Aobai's family? What can be tried? ”

"Sigege, Xiong Zhongtang, please be careful." Zhou Peigong said in a gloomy voice: "Wu Sangui old thief must already be suspecting the real murderer of Wu Yingxiong, so he deliberately left the surname of the whole family for the time being, if Wu Sangui old thief can find out the truth, make the real murderer public, and order to treat the whole family well, then not only the world will be shaken, but the inside of our Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty will soon be torn apart." ”

Xiong Cixu and Kong Sizhen's faces changed color together, and they didn't expect to kill the enemy at the moment, Wu Lao Han Jian could still remain so calm and lay such a big foreshadowing, if Wu Jun could really find out the truth about Wu Yingxiong's murder, then the foundation of Kang Mazi's throne would be shaken immediately, and the hearts of the army and the people would be in turmoil, even if it was within the Qing Dynasty, it would not tolerate Kang Mazi's despicable behavior to blame his subordinates.

"If Wu Sangui's old thief wants to check, then let him check it, as long as he has that ability." Kong Sizhen sneered hard, but her little hand couldn't help touching something sewn into her underwear - something that could save Kong Sizhen's life.

……………………

The second wave of negotiation missions sent by the Qing court came to Wuchang this time, in fact, it is far more than Lu Fatzi and Wang Xu, a pair of old friends who have been reunited for a long time, Yu Xuan and Kong Sizhen are also old friends who have been reunited for a long time, as well as Princess Jianning, Wu Shilin and Wu Yingqi, Xia Guoxiang, Hu Guozhu and others are also reunited after a long absence, in addition, there are Lu Fatzi and Kong Sizhen, and Zhou Peigong, and Princess Jianning's mother and son. After tossing for more than an hour, everyone finally ended the toss, left the dock and rushed to Wu Lao Han Jian's temporary trip to participate in the banquet prepared by Wu Lao Han Jian for them.

On the way to the inner city of Wuchang, Wang Xu had to move out of his old face, begging Lu Fatzi to look at his face, say more good things for himself in Wu Laohan, and help him complete his mission. Lu Fatzi told him in embarrassment, and said in a low voice: "Brother Zishu forgives his sins, because the friendship between the younger brother and Brother Zizhu is known to the world, in order to avoid suspicion, the younger brother has asked himself to withdraw from this negotiation, and he does not plan to participate in this matter, so he is really powerless." ”

Wang Xu was silent, his expression extremely disappointed. Over there, Kong Sizhen came over and said with a smile: "Mr. Sanhao, then you have to talk about it, to be honest, at the negotiation table, none of us are afraid, but the only person who is afraid is you, Master Lu." Fat Lu snorted coldly, twisted his face away, and didn't bother to look at Kong Sizhen, which made Kong Sizhen angry in his heart, "Dead fat man, what madness?" Sooner or later, the old lady will let you kneel in front of the old lady and kowtow to beg the old lady to you! ”

After arriving at Wu Laohan, Wu Yingqi, Hu Guozhu and others first led Princess Jianning and Wu Shilin into the inner hall to reunite with Wu Laohan's ancestors and grandchildren. And Wu Lao Hanjian met his daughter-in-law and young grandson again after many years, and he missed his deceased son, so he naturally had to hug his young grandson and cry bitterly, and he took a long break.

When it was almost noon, Wu Lao Han Jiancai stopped crying under the persuasion of his son, niece and son-in-law, and ordered someone to lead Princess Jianning and Wu Shilin to the room that had already been prepared to stay, and wait for the evening to have dinner together, while he led Hu Guozhu and Xia Guoxiang and others to the front hall to entertain the guests. Lu Fatzi was going to follow, but Hu Guozhu stopped Lu Fatzi and instructed Lu Fatzi in a low voice: "Yifeng, my father-in-law is old, and he cried like that just now, I don't dare to walk away at will, so I don't think you should go." You are a delicate person, take my people to set it up, and keep an eye on the people of the Mangou Mission, and they will definitely find a way to contact the Mangou who is ambushed in Wuchang City to understand the situation in the city. This is a great opportunity to wipe out all the dogs, so don't miss it. ”

"Understood." Fat Lu nodded, and hurriedly chased after him to whisper the reason to Wu Laohan, and asked for his life to leave. Wu Lao Han was also very satisfied when he heard this, and immediately nodded in agreement, and Lu Fatzi hurried away.

Not to mention that Lu Fatzi went to arrange for Hu Guozhu to arrange for Wu Jun's secret agents to monitor the mite Qing envoy group, just say that when Wu Lao Hanjian, Hu Guozhu and others came to the reception hall, Wang Xu and others were already waiting here hungry, so hungry that their chests were pressed against their backs. Wu Lao Hanjian was also quite reasonable in this regard, and he hurriedly confessed a crime to everyone, explaining that he had been reunited with his daughter-in-law and grandson for a long time, and he forgot the time and treated the distinguished guests slowly. Wang Xu and the others hurriedly humbled and even said that it didn't matter, and Wu Laohan hurriedly ordered the food to be served and the guests were entertained.

When the servant served the food, Kong Sizhen, who had been accepted as a righteous daughter by Wu Laohan, got up cheekily and kowtowed to Wu Laohan, calling him a father-in-law. And although Wu Lao Han Zhan had long been eager to cut the so-called goddaughter of this hardcore female Han Jian, he also pretended to politely tell Kong Sizhen to get up, and casually asked about Kong Sizhen's recent situation, Kong Sizhen replied: "Back to my father-in-law, my daughter has been pretty good recently, but she has been busy with official business in the capital some time ago, so she couldn't come to ask her father-in-law for peace, and I hope that my father-in-law will forgive her sins." ”

"Busy with official business? What are you busy with? Wu Laohan couldn't bear to snort coldly, "Are you busy dealing with Aobai?" Or are you busy helping Ao Bai deal with the old man? ”

"The father-in-law misunderstood, the daughter is bold, and she doesn't dare to help the thief and the father-in-law hostile." Kong Sizhen hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed again.

"Really?" Wu Lao Han sneered, and asked again: "In that case, why did you confess that most of the Ao Dang works caught by our Pingxi Mansion in the first half of the year when the Ao Bai soldiers committed Yunnan and Guizhou, confessed that you were sent to Guizhou in Yunnan to spy on the military situation for Ao Bai?" ”

Kong Sizhen was speechless, and was disappointed in his heart, knowing that Wu Lao Hanzhen had hated himself to the bone, and his wishful thinking of betting on both sides to ensure that his surname was safe was doomed. Fortunately, Kong Sizhen also had a lover Zhou Peigong who could speak kindly, and when he saw Kong Sizhen deflated, Zhou Peigong immediately stood up and said: "Lord Wang, forgive me for being blunt, you really can't blame Sigege for this." At that time, the face of the thief and the thief who defrauded the king had not yet been exposed, and he was an auxiliary minister, the commander of the whole army, and Sigege, as a courtier of the Qing Dynasty, naturally had to act on his orders. ”

"May I ask the prince, if Sigege did not do anything to Aobai at that time, and the prince's subordinates did the same, how could the prince break the Aobai, sweep Yunnan, and recover the three southwestern provinces that were entrenched by the Aobai annihilation party in one fell swoop? It is precisely because the prince is full of four-grid characters, loyal to the prince, born and died for the prince, and goes to the soup to fight the fire, that the prince has the glory of today's legend and has achieved immortal miracles. The student asked the prince again, are people like Sigege loyal or annihilated? ”

"Humph!" Wu Laohan snorted coldly, "Even if you can speak, step back and sit down." Kong Sizhen was like being amnestied, and hurriedly retreated to Zhou Peigong's side and sat down. Over there, Hu Guozhu and Wang Shirong glanced at each other, and the same feeling rose in their hearts, "How can this little white face be so similar to a certain fat man on our side?" ”

The banquet was set up, and he said nonsense such as welcoming the angel of Qincha, Wu Laohan took the lead in raising a glass and invited everyone to drink together, and everyone thanked for drinking, and then Hu Guozhu and Wang Xu came forward in turn to invite everyone to drink together, and after three rounds of wine, everyone began to play freely, or drink and eat, or talk in a low voice. It was also taking advantage of this opportunity that Kong Sizhen gave Wang Xu a look, and Wang Xu, who had been instructed in advance, immediately raised his glass and got up, led Zhou Peigong to Wu Lao Han to annihilate in front of him, and said respectfully: "Lord Wang, the lower official Wang Xu has been ordered to go south this time to negotiate with the prince about the payment of military salaries, grain and grass. Please allow the official to toast the prince first, and have the right to make a prior accusation. ”

"Negotiate the payment of military salaries, grain and grass?" Wu Lao Han was not stupid, and immediately asked in surprise: "Lord Wang, aren't you sent by the emperor to escort this king's daughter-in-law and young grandson to the south?" Why do you still have to talk about the payment of military salaries, grain and grass? ”

"Yes, Lord Wang, what else is there to talk about on this issue?" Hu Guozhu also stood up and asked with a surprised expression: "When Ji Zhongtang signed the peace treaty with the lower officials, wasn't the peace treaty already clearly written?" 35 million taels of silver and 5 million stone grains, 70% of which will be paid within three months, and all of them within a year? What's the matter, the music sent by the Zhongtang to the capital for 600 miles was sent to the capital urgently, but Lord Wang didn't see it? ”

"Of course the lower officials saw it." Wang Xu nodded helplessly, and said in a low voice: "It's just that the amount of grain, grass and military salaries that the Emperor agreed to pay on behalf of the Emperor is really huge, and the Qing Dynasty can't afford it for a while, so there is no way, the emperor sent the officials here this time, just to ask the prince to understand the difficulties of the court and give some grace appropriately." ”

"This is not easy to do." Hu Guozhu said in embarrassment: "Lord Wang, you must also know that Yunnan and Guizhou are poor provinces in the Qing Dynasty, and their financial resources are thin. So far, he still owes countless money and food to the people and businessmen, and he owes countless pensions to the fallen soldiers, and it has been agreed to repay it within three months. ”

Wang Xu is an honest man, and when he was so topped by Hu Guozhu, he was immediately speechless, but Zhou Peigong next to him immediately said: "General Jinwu's words are wrong, according to his humble opinion, if the prince of Pingxi agrees to the grace period, not only will he not be ashamed of the people of Yungui and lose his trust in the world, but on the contrary, he will win the hearts of the people of Yungui and the world." ”

"How so?" Hu Guozhu asked with a sneer.

"General Jinwu, don't worry, please listen to the humble post and speak slowly." Zhou Peigong smiled gently, cleared his throat, and said loudly: "Dare to ask General Jinwu, what is the matter with the prince of Pingxi raising troops?" On the side of the Qing monarch, kill the thieves and destroy the party! Who is the perpetrator, the current saint, the Qing court, and the Qing people all over the world! Humble again, please ask General Jinwu, the people of Yunnan and Guizhou are businessmen, but the emperor's people, the people of the Qing Dynasty? ”

"So what?" Hu Guozhu sneered and asked, but he secretly raised his vigilance in his heart, because Hu Guozhu has such a good niece and son-in-law, and every time he goes around like this, he uses strong words to reason, making Hu Guozhu dizzy, speechless, and forced to act according to his words.

(To be continued)