Zhili, Shuntianfu, Wuqing Station.

Yicheng Zhang Fuan ate peanuts and half a bowl of roast duck and drank a little wine. This is about to enter the wax moon, snowflakes are sprinkled outside, and the weather is very cold. Fortunately, because this place is still under the jurisdiction of the Beijing government, and it is a big post station, the charcoal and silver money are abundant, and the room is hot.

Zhang Fuan is in his forties, because he has been doing this post for a long time, his vision is also bigger, and he can also distinguish between the officials who come and go. For those who look at the word "back", they are not easy to slacken, and there are many ups and downs in this officialdom. Just by virtue of his unpopular and unqualified little post man, he is not qualified to be snobbish.

As the door curtain was opened, a cold wind slammed in, Zhang Fuan shivered violently, and said to the young man in the clothes of a postman: "100 years old, close the door tightly, how can you freeze to death your uncle?" ”

This young man's name is Zhang Baisui, and he is Zhang Fuan's own nephew, because his brother and sister-in-law went early, he was raised by his side.

Zhang Baisui rubbed his feet hard, pulled the snow on his body, and said to Zhang Fuan: "Uncle, I just went to hang the lantern, and I saw someone coming from afar, coming from the south, or going to Beijing?" ”

"Damn, how do you say that?" Zhang Fuan couldn't help but scold his mother: "In this ghost weather, there is already a commander, a deputy general, two envoys, three general soldiers, and those prisoners in Jiangning, how can anyone still come!" Despite the nagging, he still dressed up and went out to greet him.

Zhang Baisui looked at the kang table, grabbed a piece of duck meat and stuffed it into his mouth, and then quickly chased his uncle out.

Seeing that the other party was just a carriage with a few cars, Zhang Fuan knew in his heart, such a shabby seemed to be a petty official. Sure enough, the other party got out of the carriage, and when he mentioned his identity, it was Chen Hongdao, the former governor of Qingyang Mansion, and now he has been dismissed.

If he encounters such an unlucky guy in Pingyue, Zhang Fuan will still be polite on the surface, but he will gloat in his heart. However, at this moment, he remembered that there was a person, and then looked at the two young men who were supporting Chen Hongdao who were wearing linen and filial piety, knowing that what he expected was good, he couldn't help but be in awe, and said: "It turned out to be Chen Futai, and I hope to forgive Xiao's rudeness, this is to go to Beijing to pick up Wang Gongren's bones?" ”

In fact, he didn't have to be so polite when dealing with a prefect like Chen Hongdao, but he just remembered the "knocking case" that caused a lot of uproar two months ago. Before the Wang family entered Beijing, he also played a post station to rest, and she was an extremely disciplined lady. It is already commendable to enter Beijing to sue the imperial court, not to mention the innocence of the cousin, how can it not make people admire?

Chen Hongdao heard the other party mention his deceased wife, his eyes were red, and he said in a dumb voice: "That's right!" I have been dismissed from the office, and I shouldn't have come to disturb the post station again, but now it's dark and I can't enter the county, so I have to come here to ask for convenience. ”

Zhang Fuan waved his hand: "Your Excellency is polite, but now there are more officials coming and going, and the upper room is occupied, please be wronged for one night, and if you leave, you will help the adult to change." ”

Chen Hongdao hurriedly thanked him solemnly, and Zhang Fuan just wanted to tell his nephew to take the Li family to the side courtyard, when he heard the sound of the horse's hooves of "Dede", and the shadow seemed to have come a lot.

Zhang Fuan couldn't help but want to scold his mother, what's wrong with this? Could it be that where did the general soldiers come from to enter Beijing, the most impatient with these martial arts, they all brought their own soldiers, and they were all coaxing, and they were the most uncles. If you wait for something that doesn't fit your heart, you'll be kicked.

Zhang Baisui stood behind his uncle, his heart was also up and down, and he couldn't help but reach out and touch his face, this slap print that had not yet faded was the "reward" given by the deputy general who came from Zhejiang before dinner.

Just because the deputy came late, the three upper rooms were occupied by the commander and the general soldier who went to Yunnan to take up their posts. His official position was lower than that of the three, and of course he didn't dare to provoke, so he spread his anger on the people on the post station.

Although Chen Hongdao wanted to urge the post guards to take his people to settle first, but he also saved the time when he could not speak, so he instructed his family to step aside and let go of the gate of the post station.

First to arrive were two young men dressed in long suits, both dressed in thick cotton clothes, and jumped off their horses. Because of the lantern at the door of the post station, the young man looked around at the door, recognized Zhang Fuan's clothes, and said: "My uncle is the newly promoted Lord Cao of Dongyan Road, Shandong, and today he is taking his family back to his hometown to visit relatives, and he is tired of arranging a clean place for Lord Yicheng!" ”

Hearing that it was a Taoist platform, Zhang Fuan put his mind at ease, responded with a smile, and saw that Chen Hongdao and others were still standing aside, looking very weak in the cold wind, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart. What if it's a clean official? Since such a big case has been turned over and several governors have been removed, who will allow him to be an official again? Hurriedly asked his nephew to lead them to settle in.

After standing under the lantern for a while, the convoy arrived.

Looking at the entourage of thirty or forty guards, escorting seven or eight carriages, Zhang Fuan couldn't help but scold in his heart: "Damn, a four-grade Taoist platform is bigger than the pomp and circumstance of the governor?" ”

Looking at the two noble sons in fur clothes getting off the horse and coming over, their appearances were vaguely similar, Zhang Fuan secretly said in his heart, look at this dress, this platform is either a big corrupt official, or it is not from an ordinary family.

Since he is going back to the south to visit relatives, is it from the family of the two Huai salt merchants? Although he was thinking crankily in his heart, he had a smile on his face, and said: "Presumably these two are Daotai sons, Xiaguan Wuqingyi Cheng Zhang Fu'an, and ask the prince to help introduce Daotai adults!" ”

"Daotai Gongzi?" The young man next to him, who looked more stable like his brother, had not yet spoken, and the young man next to him had already laughed: "You want to see Lord Daotai, isn't it in front of you, where do you still need to be introduced?" ”

Zhang Fuan was stunned when he heard this, and looked behind the two brothers, and a carriage was parked a few feet away. It seemed that the Daotai Lord was in the car, and he nodded to the two "Daotai boys" and trotted to the carriage.

The two "Daotai boys" were surprised, and when they turned around, Zhang Fuan had already bowed his head in front of the carriage and said: "Wuqingyi Zhang Fuan has seen Cao Daotai!" ”

This "Cao Daotai" not only caused the "Daotai Prince" who spoke just now to burst into laughter, but even the guards on both sides of the carriage couldn't help laughing.

Zhang Fu'an was so uneasy by the laughter that he didn't know what was wrong, and he was still pondering, when he heard a female voice from the carriage: "Forehead!"

Where did the "forehead" come out? Zhang Fuan was still confused, and he heard someone behind him respond: "I'm here, let's go to Wuqingyi, if you bear with it, I'll ask Yicheng to help us arrange it immediately!" ”

Zhang Fu'an's mind came to his senses, this "forehead" is the title of the royal and clan noblewomen, so isn't this carriage a nobleman? Look up, don't you? The vermilion wheeled car, the red cover, the red curtain, the red curtain, and the cover corner are exactly the cars regulated by the county lord.

Zhang Fuan was thinking about whether to kneel down immediately and ask for peace, so he heard the man who responded: "Zhang Yicheng, down is Cao Hao, who guards the road on Dongyan Road, returns to his hometown with his family, and arranges a place to live!" ”

A county lord had already surprised Zhang Fuan, and now that he saw this young man who was not yet the weak crown claiming that he was a four-grade Daotai, he was becoming more and more confused. Suddenly, as if he had been initiated, he thought of a possibility, that is, this group of people came from unknown sources, pretending to be royal princes, but they didn't know what they wanted. After thinking about it, I felt that it was impossible, this has not yet come out of Shuntianfu, from the capital to here, it is all official roads, and it is really a villain who can't be so rampant.

But Zhang Fuan was a little uneasy after all, and said with a smile: "The lower official has seen Lord Cao, this is because there are many officials coming and going, and all the rooms are full, or you look at this, you will borrow the lower official first, and the lower official will go to discuss with the admiral in the upper room, and see if you can let the two chief soldiers who came with him give up a courtyard, and save the nobles from being wronged!" ”

This "nobleman" refers to the person in the carriage, if it is really the county lord in the car, not to mention the second-grade general soldier, even if it is from the first-rank commander, he should let it go; If the car is not the county lord, then everything must be arranged by the admiral, and he will not do anything with this little post man.

Cao Hao glanced at this Yicheng, and instructed the two elders who arrived before: "You two, follow Zhang Yicheng to visit the Admiral!" ”

The two elders replied, and saw another noble son and said, "Why are you so verbose?" It's not easy to live in a broken post station, I knew it was like this, and I should have rested in the county town in front! Wu Mao, Wu Sheng, you two make it clear to the admiral, hurry up and vacate the house! ”

Hearing that the other party didn't even pay attention to the admiral, Zhang Fuan was a little convinced that it was indeed the county lord who was sitting in the car, otherwise how could he be so big?

Leaving the door, Zhang Fuan took the Wu brothers to the backyard and walked to the room, and asked as he walked: "Dare to ask the two little brothers, which noble person is this out of Beijing?" ”

Wu Sheng was surprised when he heard this, and replied, "Hey, why can't you listen to the words?" Didn't we just say that? It's my uncle, the newly appointed Shandong Dongyan Road Daotai! ”

Zhang Fuan laughed twice and said, "The lower official asked the person in the car!" ”

Wu Sheng couldn't help but roll his eyes: "Then you don't need to ask, naturally it is the housewife of our mansion!" ”

Wu Mao heard Zhang Fu'an's inquiry, and this was not something that could not be said to outsiders, so he said: "We are the second-class Earl's Jiangnan Cao Weaving Mansion, and our lord is the county lord of the Earl's Mansion, and he has the title of a first-class man. In the car is our hostess, the big Gege of the Chunwang Mansion, the lord of the royal seal and the county lord of Rui. ”

Zhang Fu'an's heart trembled when he heard this, Chunwang's Mansion is the Emperor's Mansion, this Da Gege is the emperor's own granddaughter, the real golden branches and jade leaves, I can't complain that Daotai is so young, from the Earl's Mansion, and married the county lord, it seems that he is getting the favor of God.

He was just about to regret it, was it a little rude to kneel down and ask for peace just now, and thought about it wrong, this post station came and went from south to north, gossip the most, the Cao family in Jiangnan was prominent a few years ago, and I heard that it was declining in the past two years, how can it still be so beautiful?

In the upper room of the post station, Zhang Guzhen, the governor of Yunnan, was sitting cross-legged on the kang, drinking around the hot pot with his two subordinates, Wang Yigui, the general soldier of Yunnan Yongbei and the general soldier of Yunnan Kaihua.

Speaking of fate, these three people were all newly appointed a few times ago, Admiral Zhang turned out to be the chief soldier of Huguang Town, Wang Zongbing was originally the deputy general of Yizhou, and Yan Zongbing was originally the deputy general of Yongchang. The three of them happened to go to the military department to lead the way, and they were colleagues, and the warriors were not as particular as civilian officials, so they made an appointment to go to work together.

I heard that the person who came was the big Gege and the forehead of the Chunwang Mansion, and the three of them all got off the kang. Admiral Zhang and General Yan didn't have anything yet, they just thought about letting go out of the room and asking for peace; Wang Zongbing was a little at a loss, and when he saw that the big guys were looking at him, he said: "There is a white flag inlaid below, this Chun Wang Ye is the serious master below, and he drinks wine and asks for peace now, but it is a little disrespectful!" ”

Admiral Zhang is a Shangguan, so it's hard to say anything; Yan Zongbing was at the same level as him, and scolded with a smile: "Look at your cowardice, we are just asking for peace from afar, who else can we smoke?" ”

After Wang Zongbing finished speaking, he regretted it, because this wine was invited by Shangguan, so it seemed like a complainer, looking at Admiral Zhang's face as usual, Fang smiled and said: "Hehe, it is a gaffe, a gaffe, since the master has arrived, it is naturally necessary to vacate the house in the next place, Brother Yan, but I am going to squeeze in your yard for one night!" ”

Mr. Yan hurriedly said, "It's okay", Mr. Wang summoned a long entourage and sent him to the courtyard next door, so that the entourage and others who followed him hurriedly made room for the nobles.

After Admiral Zhang and them arrived at the gate of the post station and greeted the county lord and Cao Hao, they hugged the two of them to the upper room.

Suddenly, a woman's voice was heard not far away: "Help, help!" The voice was so miserable that it was unbearable to hear.

What is the reason for this? Everyone changed color, and when they heard the sound of hurried footsteps, Zhang Baisui ran over with a bloody face and said to Zhang Fuan: "Uncle, it's not good, the kitchen is ......" Before he finished speaking, he "plopped" and fell to the ground.

(To be continued)