Only then did Lu Boqi understand why Hou Sui suddenly showed favor to himself, he and Yang Sichang were on the same page in the court, but there was a great weakness - I don't know the soldiers, anyway, Yang Sichang single-handedly pacified the thieves and the internal and external troubles of the East during the period of the first assistant, and the merits of this hard state are placed here, as long as he does not commit the major crime of rebellion in the future, the honor and wealth before and after death will definitely not be able to escape. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 info Hou Sui wants to compete with such an important minister, and he is congenitally short of breath by three points. As Liu Cheng's best partner, Lu Boqi can be said to be the only one in the existing Wenchen who can be compared with Yang Sichang in terms of military performance, and it is not difficult to understand that Hou Sui came to woo him. But Lu Boqi has a little advantage, that is, he has self-knowledge, he has already cleaned up his fantasies in the past few months in the Jingshi, he really knows too well what he is in the eyes of these elites in the court, Yang Sichang and Hou Sui don't know who wins and who loses in the end, but one thing is certain, that is, if he gets involved, he will definitely not end up well.

Between the lightning and flint, Lu Boqi had already thought about the stakes, and his face had already shown a look of sincere fear: "If this is the case, then you should only be the head of the Lord in the future!" ”

Yangzhou.

In April, it is already late spring in Jiangnan, and the air is filled with the fragrance of peach blossoms and willows.

Lin He underwatered the boat, sat on the sea boat for almost a month, and he was still a little uncomfortable with his feet just stepping on solid land, so that his knees were weak, and if it weren't for a hand stretched out behind him to help him, he almost fell.

"Thank you, Captain Taylor!" Lin Heshui turned his head and arched his hand, Taylor smiled: "It's nothing, the sea boat has been sitting for a long time, and the legs will be weak just after going ashore." Also, don't call me Captain, I'm a nobleman now, noble Count Jeju! ”

"Yes, Count, Count!" Seeing Taylor's triumphant appearance, Lin Ha Shui couldn't help but hide his mouth and snicker, since Liu Cheng gave him the status of a senator and cashed in the territory on Jeju Island, he has become like this, and he also took it upon himself to convert the senator into the Earl, an English aristocratic title, and strictly required everyone to call him this way.

"That's right, Mr. Lin!" Taylor didn't notice Lin Heshui's appearance: "Your Majesty has also given you the status of a patriarch, where are you going to use it as your territory?" For example, how about a piece of territory near Dayuan Port? It is a fertile land with a suitable climate, and if it is developed, it will definitely become a very rich territory. ”

"Nearby?" As soon as Lin Heshui heard the name of the place, he shook his head like a rattle: "What is good about that desert island, there is nothing but the natives, if I have to choose, I would rather the Lord give me a thousand acres of good land here, wouldn't it be far better than the territory on that desert island!" ”

"Well, that's a good choice!" Taylor looked at the prosperity all around him and said with a smile: "The best raw silk and porcelain can be produced here, and you should be able to pay you more than 20,000 pounds a year in taxes, and you can live like a king on that alone." ”

While the two were talking, an officer ran over and saluted Lin Heshui's hand: "Mr. Lin, do you want to unload the goods immediately?" ”

"Don't unload the goods yet, send someone to the city to tell Lord Xu that we have arrived!"

"The last general obeys!"

The south gate of Yangzhou City.

Behind him there was a neighing of horses, and the impatient mount of a knight who was greeted by the lanes on both sides of the road. Xu Hecheng also heard Du Gu's cough, and it was obvious that his subordinate was also a little impatient.

Why did the righteous brother send Lin River water at this time? Isn't there anything extremely important that cannot be passed on by word of mouth through letters? Is it time for an uprising? This thought lingered in Xu Hecheng's mind. Since he went south to save the king of Tang, he has been prosperous, all the way to the top, and now he is the governor of Yangzhou, with more than 5,000 elites under his command, and occupies one of the richest places in the Ming Dynasty. He has experienced a lot, and he is very clear about Liu Cheng's background, knowing that his Yidi is extremely ambitious, and it is a matter of time before he raises troops to rebel, but now that his identity has changed, people's minds have naturally undergone subtle changes, and he naturally has a little more scruples in his heart.

"My lord, here they are!" The sound of detachment came from behind, Xu Hecheng raised his head, and the flag appeared from the side of the small hill not far away, accompanied by a burst of dust. Countless legs kick up the ashes in the sky, and then a forest of steel spears, what is this for? Xu Hecheng felt a feeling of unease, he turned his head to Totobuhua and asked, "Look at that big flag, do you recognize it?" ”

Totobuhua squinted his eyes and observed carefully: "It seems to be an eagle, it's strange, it doesn't seem to have any impression!" General Du, you and the adults are earlier than me, can you come and see? ”

Du Gu lazily hit his horse and began to observe carefully: "That's right, it's an eagle, it's strange, I haven't seen a flag either!" ”

At this time, this strange team was close enough for Xu Hecheng to see the dress of the soldiers at the front, since most of the soldiers did not wear heavy iron helmets, but hung them on the belt around their waists, Xu Hecheng could clearly see that these soldiers had almost shaved their hair, leaving only a small piece on the back of their heads, and then knotted it into one or two braids and coiled around their necks. This strange dress immediately reminded Xu Hecheng of a name that made most people shudder - Dongyu.

"Lord Xu, General Du, General Du!" There were still more than twenty steps away, Lin Heshui got off the horse and arched his hand enthusiastically: "I haven't seen you for a long time, the three of them are so healthy, I'm really happy!" ”

Xu Hecheng returned the salute: "Mr. Lin, what's the matter with these soldiers behind you?" How do you dress up like that? ”

"Oh, after your lord pacified the Eastern Captives, he selected elite warriors from among the beggar charms and the Eight Banners, a total of 10,000 people, and organized them into an army, called the Baturu Army. When I went south, he sent 200 men to accompany me, and I made you laugh. ”

Xu Hecheng turned his gaze to those braided soldiers, only to see that they were stout, dark-skinned, and many of them had scars on their exposed skin, with cold expressions, and more than 100 people stood aside without even coughing, and they were really first-class strong soldiers. After Liu Cheng defeated the Eastern Captives, he did not break them up and migrate, but incorporated them under his command, and his ambition was already extremely obvious.

Du Gu and Totobu on the side didn't think about it so much, especially Du Gu and Lin Heshui are old partners, he stepped forward with a smile and patted Lin Heshui's shoulder: "Dongyu has overwhelmed me for twenty years, but let the adults die so easily, it's really relieving." We are all honored to have such great achievements, but unfortunately we are not there, we missed it! ”

"You can't say that!" Lin Heshui said with a smile: "General Du, you have also made a lot of contributions under Lord Xu!" ”

"That's still different!" Du Gu pointed to the braided sergeant on the side, and said to Totoku Buhua: "Totoku Buhua, look at these Dongyu, compared to them, the thieves we fought are simply child's play." Hey, I don't know what kind of corpse mountain and sea of blood I have experienced outside the plug in the past few years to break through such a strong enemy. It's a pity that I don't kill the enemy in front of his horse! ”

"Yes!" Tokh Buhua nodded: "I heard that these Dongyu are extremely resistant to hard fighting, but they have repeatedly clashed dozens of times in heavy armor, and everything is destroyed. ”

Xu Hecheng stood aside, and the words of Totobu and Du Gu reminded him that whether he wanted to or not, the loyalty of his two right-hand men to Liu Cheng had not changed. And Du Gu will step, take off and not spend on riding, these two people have set the tone, what else can they say?

"Mr. Lin came from afar, it must have been hard, I have prepared thin wine in the house, and please go to the capital to pick up the wind and wash the dust for Mr." Xu Hecheng stretched out his right hand, made an inviting gesture, and at the same time instructed Du Gu: "General Du, you can place Mr. Lin's guards in the barracks outside the city!" ”

The dishes on the wine table are very good, especially after staying in the bitter cold of Liaodong for more than a year, it is really nice to return to Yangzhou City. Lin Heshui put down his chopsticks and couldn't help but sigh with satisfaction.

"What's wrong? Doesn't the wine and food match Mr.'s appetite? Xu Hecheng, whose attention had been on Lin Heshui, asked.

"No, it's not, it's great!" Lin Heshui laughed: "Lord Xu, do you know. When I was in Liaodong, I used to eat mushroom stew and fish every day for three or four months, and until now, as soon as I smell it, I want to vomit! ”

"Fish stew with mushrooms, that sounds pretty good!" A Qingke who was accompanying him smiled.

"Really?" Lin Heshui sneered: "No matter how delicious things are, you can't eat them for three or four months in a row, not to mention that we didn't have ginger and garlic at all, and even the salt was not enough, and many times we had to eat it lightly, you can think about what it tastes like!" ”

"Yes, the most delicious thing in the world would be hard to swallow without salt!" Tokh Buhua said with a smile: "But sir, you have made a great contribution this time, and you will definitely leave a name in history in the future, and you will have no regrets in this life!" ”

"Yes!" Du Gu sighed: "It's a pity that I couldn't eat the boiled fish with mushrooms without salt, ginger and garlic like my husband at that time, which is really a pity in my life!" Liu Cheng sent him to the south to satisfy his desire to establish meritorious deeds, but he did not expect to miss the great achievement of pacifying the eastern captives, and saw that the world was already peaceful, where there was still an opportunity for martial artists to make meritorious contributions, which made him feel more and more uncomfortable.

"General Du, you can't say that, there will be opportunities for meritorious service in the future!" Lin Heshui smiled mysteriously, took out a letter from his arms, got up and walked in front of Xu Hecheng and said, "Lord Xu, this is a letter from the Lord to you!" ”

Xu Hecheng took the letter, but Lin Heshui didn't walk away, just stood aside with a smile. Xu Hecheng was puzzled, but he heard Lin Heshui say in a low voice: "The Lord has ordered, this letter is very important, please destroy it immediately after reading it!" ”

Xu Hecheng was slightly startled, nodded, he opened the letter and read it, his face suddenly changed greatly, he took two deep breaths before calming down, and said in a deep voice: "You all retreat!" ”

The maidservant and the accompanying guests retreated, Xu Hecheng took a candle from the side, lit the letter, and threw it on the ground until it was about to burn out, and only sighed after half a ring: "Mr. Lin, the virtuous brother sent you here to be responsible for this matter, right?" ”

"Don't dare!" Lin Heshui said with a smile: "The Lord said, you are in a high position, you have more eyes to stare at, and it is better to do it in the future when you hoard food!" ”

"Then why let me know? The less people know about such things, the better, right? ”

Lin Heshui said with a smile: "Presumably the Lord thinks that no matter how you count, you are among those few people, right?" ”

Hearing this, Xu Hecheng couldn't help but feel warm in his heart, and nodded: "Since this is the case, this matter will be handed over to you, I just don't know anything!" ”

Matsue, South Building.

Chen Zilong climbed upstairs in three steps and two steps, and shouted loudly while climbing the stairs: "If it is, if it is!" ”

"Zilong, is there something wrong?" Liu Ru turned her head from the mirror, her right hand was arranging her hair in a bun, and the sleeve slipped off her arm, revealing a white lotus-like arm. When Chen Zilong saw it, his heart couldn't help but waver, and he hurriedly collected his thoughts: "If so, I'm afraid something big is about to happen!" ”

"Big deal? What's the big deal? Liu Ru casually pulled her long hair into a bun, stood up and poured Chen Zilong a cup of hot tea: "Could it be that there is any news from Jingshi?" ”

"It's not Jingshi, it's the price of grain!"

"The price of food?"

"Yes, you also know that I have two weaving mills at home, and I keep a hundred and ten weavers, and every three months I have to buy some grain and rice to feed them. But yesterday, when I checked the accounts, I found that I spent a lot more money to buy grain, and at first I thought it was because my subordinates were greedy for ink. But a check found that this was not the case, but that the price of food had risen! ”

"Oh, that's what happened, look at what you're fuss about!" Liu Ru said with a smile: "You don't look at what time it is, it's the time when the summer grain hasn't been on the market yet, it's the time when the grain price is the highest in the year, what's so strange about it's higher!" ”

"How could I not have known this!" Chen Zilong said in a deep voice: "In previous years, at this time, the highest was only one stone and one or two silver, and at most one or two points more. But this year, before the time of the most food shortage, the price of grain has been as high as one stone, two or five cents, don't you think it's strange? ”

"Maybe it was a bad harvest last year?"

"I know this very well, most of the local food comes from northern Jiangsu, Jiangxi and other places, although it was not considered to be on the top last year, there is still a middle and upper one, how can it rise to this point? Besides, there is a cao warehouse in Zhenhai, which contains at least 100,000 stone grains, and those officials will throw out old rice at this time of year, and then buy new rice at a low price after the summer grain and autumn grain are on the market, so as to make a profit from it. ”