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Sun Deng held a porcelain cup, facing the candlelight, squinting his eyes and looking carefully, the bright candlelight seemed to have penetrated the thin wall of the cup, and the phoenix bird pattern on the wall of the cup was faintly visible. He smiled comfortably www.biquge.info gently put down the teacup, picked up the pen, carefully dipped some pine smoke ink on the inkstone, and wrote the three words "translucent cup" on the bamboo paper spread in front of him one by one, straightened his waist, and admired himself for a moment, then pushed the paper and pen aside, put the porcelain cup into a brocade box, buckled the jade farewell, and shouted: "Come on!" ”

Xie Jing walked in quickly, Sun Deng didn't look at him, pushed the brocade box forward, and said calmly: "Give this thin-tired phoenix cup fast horse to the king, just say that this is my gift to my brother." ”

Xie Jing glanced at the brocade box on the case and hesitated: "Prince, isn't this right?" ”

"Nothing bad." Sun Deng raised his eyelids and glanced at him, frowning slightly: "Next month is my brother's tenth birthday, what's wrong with me giving him a newly made phoenix cup?" ”

Xie Jing smiled helplessly: "Prince, the last time the general of the town army died of an inexplicable illness, someone wanted to climb the prince, the king was furious, and almost abolished the prince's position. This time in case ......"

Sun Deng's eyelids trembled, and his body seemed to have been sucked off his backbone, and he softened weakly. Last year, the general of the town army, Sun Xianguo, was born at the age of 20, and he sent someone to send some Yuzhang's native products to congratulate, and then Sun Xuan inexplicably became seriously ill and died soon after. Sun Quan was furious, and someone reported to Sun Quan that Sun Deng had sent things to Sun Wei, and Sun Wei had fallen ill and died after eating these things. Sun Quan was furious, and immediately ordered the arrest of Sun Deng for questioning, the general Bu Qi and the prime minister Zhuge Jin were too frightened to speak, but fortunately, Zhuge Ke stood up and advised Sun Quan to be cautious and not to leave a handle on people. Sun Quan pressed his surname at this time, but he still asked the school secretary Lu Yi to thoroughly investigate all the people who had been in contact with Sun Yi in the past few days. Fortunately, the sustenances sent by Sun Deng were restored and placed in the warehouse, Sun Wei did not touch them at all, and he did not even tear the cover, so Sun Deng escaped suspicion.

However, this time it also made people see Sun Deng's danger, although he has not been deprived of the position of the crown prince, but Sun Quan has no intention of letting him succeed to the throne, but he has not yet found a suitable excuse to act. Xie Jing and Zhuge Ke also meant this, not giving Sun Quan any excuses, and staying up until Sun Quan died. Now Sun Deng wants to give Sun He a gift again, Xie Jing feels that this is as stupid as killing himself, so he resolutely discourages him.

Sun Deng sat expressionlessly under the lamp, hunched back, and the few white hairs on his sideburns were very dazzling under the light. Xie Jing's nose was sour, Sun Deng was only twenty-five years old this year, but he was already showing his old age, compared to the look he had when he commanded the army in the southern campaign, Xie Jing couldn't believe that they were the same person, and there was only a ten years between them.

"Uncle Fa, write a table for me, just say that I am not in good health, please resign as the prince." Sun Deng suddenly raised his head, showed a miserable smile, and looked at Xie Jing quietly: "After resigning from the position of the crown prince, I don't have to be so cautious anymore." ”

"Prince!" Xie Jing exclaimed and shook his hand again and again.

"Uncle Fa, you go and deliver the letter in person, and then don't come back. You ask Yuan Xun again, let him not wait any longer, you all go to Yueguo, King Yue is plotting Tianzhu, you have a chance to make meritorious contributions there. Sun Deng said slowly: "You are all gone, father...... I'm relieved, and I'm safe. ”

"Prince!" Xie Jing couldn't help but fall to his knees, crying bitterly.

"Go, if you don't want to go to Yue, you can go to Shu or Wei, with your ability, you will definitely live better than Wu." Sun Deng persuaded in a harmonious voice: "However, the territory of Yue Country is the largest, and the most opportunities are the most, if you want to talk about the wisdom of employing people, the four kings of the world, no more than my eldest brother, I think he will not treat you badly." ”

Xie Jing burst into tears, he knew that Sun Deng had collapsed, he couldn't support it anymore, he had been called the crown prince, but he was actually a prisoner under the ladder for five years, and he couldn't hold it anymore. He sent him and Zhuge Ke away, one is to let Sun Quan lift his guard, if Sun Quan can still have a little father-son relationship, let him be a prince in peace, then it is naturally better, if Sun Quan resolutely refuses to let him go, he only dies, in a word, he will not do this nominal prince, and he does not expect the day when he will make a comeback.

Xie Jing persuaded hard, but Sun Deng was undoubted this time, and finally wrote a letter asking for resignation from the prince and asked Xie Jing to send him away. Xie Jing had no choice but to rush to Jianye with letters and porcelain cups, he went to see Zhuge Ke first, and told the prince what he meant. Zhuge Ke was silent for a long time, and finally nodded, and only said two words: "It's okay." Then he didn't say a word, as for what he meant by "okay", he didn't explain, and Xie Jing didn't ask.

Xie Jing entered the palace to invite him, presented Sun Deng's resignation to Prince Shu, and then presented the porcelain cup, explaining that this was Sun Deng's congratulatory gift to Sun He, which he had just burned with countless efforts, and the phoenix bird pattern on it was painted by his own hand. After reading the book, Sun Quan gently put it on the table, opened the brocade box again, picked up the porcelain cup and looked at it carefully for a moment, and nodded slightly.

"Zigao is too worried, his health is not good, so he has a good rest, why bother to resign as the prince. Is he older than me, and in worse health than me? Sun Quan sighed, put the porcelain cup back in the brocade box, and handed it to Gu Li: "Go and give it to Madame, just say that this is a gift from the prince to Ah He, let him take it well, don't let down the prince's heart." ”

Gu Li answered, took the brocade box and turned to leave.

"The prince said, everything is going well in the Yuzhang Porcelain Factory, and you don't need to help there anymore, what are your plans?"

Xie Jing thought for a moment, and said: "I heard that the porcelain produced by Yuzhang Porcelain Factory is exported to the extreme west, and as a member of Yuzhang Porcelain Factory, although Chen has not made any contributions, he also feels honored. The minister was very eager to take a look along the voyage of these porcelains and see how popular the porcelain we fired was. ”

Sun Quan's eyes flashed, and then he regained his composure, he stroked the purple hair, muttered for a moment, and then showed a smile and said, "That's fine." You accompanied the prince to work hard in Yuzhang, but I don't know how many gold coins your hard work has earned for my Wu country. Why haven't I let the prince come back to Jianye? Outsiders have a lot of gossip, in fact, they don't know, this is because Yuzhang porcelain factory is too important. Now there are two pillars in my Wu country, one is the Yuzhang shipyard, the other is the Yuzhang porcelain factory, these two can account for more than forty percent of the taxes paid by my Wu country, and the porcelain factory can account for two to three percent, so I put the prince in the porcelain factory, and put the general of the town army in the shipyard, but unfortunately, the general of the town army does not live forever, and the prince is overworked, and he becomes ill. ”

Sun Quan let out a long sigh, looking very apologetic, and his face also showed a sad expression. Xie Jing couldn't see his face, but listening to his sigh, he felt that his nose was a little sour, fortunately, he had been an official for many years, and his temper towards Sun Quan was roughly clear, so he would not be deceived by these two sentences. The two true and false monarchs and ministers said a few words, Sun Quan rewarded Xie Jing with some money for his travel expenses, Xie Jing cleaned up a little, and after a few days, he left Jianye on a Wu merchant ship loaded with Yuzhang porcelain.

Out of the border of Wu State, the north wind on the sea became stronger, and he saw the endless sea again, Xie Jing, who had been holding back in Yuzhang for a few years, felt comfortable, and the sullenness accumulated for several years was swept away, but when he thought of the prince who was still in Yuzhang, Xie Jing was a little unbearable.

The merchants on the ship learned that Xie Jing was a close minister of the crown prince Sun Deng and a member of the porcelain factory, and they were very polite to him one by one. Xie Jing inquired about the sale of porcelain, and they immediately raised their eyebrows and enthusiastically introduced Sun Deng to the popularity of porcelain in Sasanian, Rome, and Kushan. They said that because this was produced by the crown prince Sun Deng, these porcelains were also known as prince porcelain, which in foreign countries were the best products used by princes and nobles, and ordinary people could only use some products produced by other porcelain factories.

Of course, there is also the credit of Sun Shao, the king of Yue, who spared no effort to promote these porcelain. In the first period, the envoys he sent out used porcelain for gifts, first let those royal families use porcelain, establish the noble reputation of porcelain, and hoist the appetite of those nobles, and then began to supply. Now all the porcelain as long as it is ashore, it does not take much effort to sell, it will soon be snatched up, and even some ships have not yet landed, and the goods have already been ordered.

Xie Jing's eyes were wide open when he heard this, he dealt with porcelain every day, but he didn't know that porcelain was so popular. Porcelain is also sold in the Han Dynasty, and many nobles in Wu will go to Yuzhang Porcelain Factory to customize, and many people have taken the path of Xie Jing. Perhaps because there are many people in Wu Guo, almost every noble person can see porcelain in their homes, Xie Jing felt that it was not unusual, he never thought that these porcelains were the same as silk abroad, and only the best people could afford to use them.

At this time, he somewhat believed in what Sun Quan said about the important surname of the porcelain factory, of course, this does not mean that he believes Sun Quan's excuse, no matter how important the porcelain factory is, does it need a prince to take charge? Sun Shu was in charge of the shipyard and the academy at the beginning, but his main task was to lead the army and guard against the Shu Kingdom.

In a good mood, the speed seemed to be quickening, and it took only more than twenty days for the fleet of ships down the wind to reach the city of Temu, where the merchant ships anchored at the port of Dunxun, reloaded, and sailed west on seagoing ships suitable for long voyages. Seeing the tall supports in Dunxun Port and the long poles that kept lifting and unloading goods like giant hands, and watching the steam engines with white smoke dragging long trailers and gliding briskly on two parallel tracks, Xie Jing was as curious as a countryman who had just entered the city, constantly looking around, and met several loading and unloading workers one after another.

"New here, huh?" A shirtless, sweaty worker wiped his sweat with a towel and smiled politely. He saw that Xie Jing was wearing a deep coat, and his walking posture was also quite majestic, and his tone was naturally a little more humble.

Xie Jing looked at the black worker, and looked surprised: "What kind of place are you, you speak a good Chinese language." ”

"I'm Egyptian." The worker bared his white teeth and said with a humble smile: "If you speak a good Chinese language, you can get more wages, I have been here for five years, so I naturally speak very well." ”

"Can I speak Chinese and get more money?" Xie Jing was even more strange, "Don't you all work the same, why do you say that we can get more money?" ”

"If you can speak Chinese, you don't need to translate." The worker took it for granted: "If we can write Chinese characters, we can also apply to be Han Chinese." ”

"You're not Han now?"

"Not yet." The worker's eyes narrowed yearningly: "I'm looking for my husband to learn to write, as long as I can write a hundred words, I can apply for permanent residency, and then I can enjoy the king's grace like you Han people." He glanced at Xie Jing and said with a smile: "You have traveled to Yue Kingdom?" Are there any plans to teach people to write kanji? ”

"Write Chinese characters?" Xie Jing was angry and funny, and said in his heart, Am I very down, I actually want to fall to the point of teaching these people to read?

"Hahaha...... I'm really sorry, I was wrong, you are a noble person, not bad for those little money. Seeing that Xie Jing's face was wrong, the worker hurriedly apologized: "In fact, many people who come here to travel earn money by teaching people to speak Chinese and writing Chinese. ”

Xie Jing thought it was quite interesting, and chatted with the worker again, when a person in the car pulling the goods asked him loudly if he wanted to go to the city, saying that he could take him for a ride, it was very cheap, only ten yuan. Xie Jing saw that the car driving on the track was very novel, so he readily agreed, said goodbye to the worker from Egypt, and entered the carriage, the front of the car let out a long roar, spewing out a thick white, and the convoy full of five carriages slowly started.

Leaving the dock, the car went faster and faster, almost on par with riding a horse, Xie Jing was very curious, he asked this and that from time to time, there were several other people in the carriage, and when they saw Xie Jing like this, they all smiled in unison, and their faces showed that kind of condescending arrogance. A scholar who was almost dressed in Confucian clothes like Xie Jing came over to explain, he said a lot, but Xie Jing only understood one sentence, with these two tracks, the steam engine that could only pull one or two carriages can now pull five to ten carriages, depending on the different loads of goods.

Xie Jing was very surprised, after seven or eight years of promotion, the steam engine is no longer a rare thing, Yuzhang porcelain factory used the steam engine to dig and transport goods, but no one has ever thought of laying tracks, of course, no one will know that two tracks can have such a big effect.

"It's all up to the talented people at the Academy of Arts." The gentleman laughed: "I heard that those people also thought about putting the track in the air, and the steam engine and carriage were hanging underneath, but then it seems to have failed, and it didn't work." ”

"It's really cranky, can something so heavy be erected?" Xie Jing was a little disdainful: "Is there such a person in the world-famous Funan College?" ”

"That's not right with you." The gentleman shook his head: "What's wrong with thinking nonsense?" Without thinking nonsense, can you think of these tracks? It's not terrible to think wrong, but it's terrible to dare not think about it. When you get to the city, you must not say that, or you will know that you are a foreigner. ”

After the scholar finished speaking, he twisted his head to the side and stopped talking to Xie Jing, acting like I didn't know this person. Xie Jing was angry and funny, he had long known that the Yue people were arrogant, but he didn't expect the scholars who came to travel to be so arrogant.

About half an hour later, the steam engine drove all the way into Temu City, stopped at a wide and prosperous unloading of goods, Xie Jing got out of the carriage, asked someone the direction of Zhou Xunfu, and went straight to Zhoufu. When I asked at the door, I was lucky, Zhou Xun and Princess Sun Luban happened to go back to Temu City to report on their work, and when they heard that Xie Jing had arrived, Zhou Xun was very surprised and hurriedly greeted them in person.

"Uncle Fa, how are you ...... So coming? Zhou Xun saw that Xie Jing was alone, with only an entourage carrying luggage behind him, and couldn't help but ask in surprise.

"I can't get along in Wu anymore, so I came to Yue to join the general and the princess." Xie Jing said half-truthfully.

When Zhou Xun heard this, he immediately understood that there was something here, he hurriedly let Xie Jing into the inner hall, sat down in the hall, served tea, and put a bunch of fresh fruits, Xie Jing tasted a few bites and praised it. After a while, Sun Luban strode in, raised his eyebrows when he saw Xie Jing, and said angrily: "Xie Jing, what's going on, is there something wrong with Zigao?" ”

Xie Jing hurriedly bowed to the ground and saluted: "Chen Jing pays a visit to the eldest princess." ”

"That's it. You are not a courtier of the Yue Kingdom, and it doesn't matter if the eldest princess is the eldest princess or not. Sun Luban sat next to Zhou Xun with a tiger face, and urged impatiently: "Tell me quickly, how is Zigao, you are his close minister, why did you suddenly run to Yueguo." ”

"The prince didn't have an accident." Xie Jing shook his head, and then told what had happened. Before Sun Luban could finish listening, he raised his eyebrows, stood up with a "Teng" sound, stomped his feet and shouted: "Father Wang Wei is confused, what kind of person is Zigao, how can he have the heart to kill his own brother?" There are annihilators around my father, and I will go back and kill them. ”

Zhou Xun smiled bitterly, pulled the edge of Sun Luban's clothes, and signaled her to be calm and wait for Xie Jing to finish speaking. Although Sun Luban was angry, seeing that Zhou Xun was not in a hurry, she also held back. Zhou Xun has made many meritorious contributions in Ceylon in recent years, and he has been promoted quickly, this time Sun Shao called him back, and he may have to be entrusted with a heavy responsibility, Sun Luban admires Zhou Xun's calmness and wisdom very much, even if there is a lot of anger, as long as Zhou Xun makes a look, she can calm down.

Xie Jing finally said: "Zhu Zhang and Gu Lu of Wu County have left, and the few families of the original Huiji are basically gone, and now there are only some families with average strength left in the Wu Kingdom, and they can't balance the ministers of Huaisi nationality alone, and the ministers of Huaisi nationality can only rely on the king if they want to gain a firm foothold in Jiangdong, so whether they are from Jiangdong or Huaisi, they are now tightly pinched in the palm of the king's hand." Although Zhuge Ke is devoted to the prince, he is controlled by Prime Minister Zhuge (Zhuge Jin), and he can only bow down to his fate at present, and dare not make any rash moves. Last time he was relieved of the crown prince, I heard that he also took a great risk, and the king reprimanded him fiercely in front of many people. ”

"What is he going to do now?" Zhou Xun remembered that when he was preparing for the Battle of Yuenan, Sun Deng used Zhuge Ke to put him aside because he had an opinion about him, and now he is smooth sailing in Yue, but Zhuge Ke is idle in Wu, which is really providential. When he thought of Zhuge Ke's talent and surname, he felt very pity.

"I don't know." Xie Jing shook his head and said, "He has always been scheming, I can't see it." ”

"Buzishan is now a general?" Zhou Xun took a sip of tea and asked again.

"Well, after General Lu's resignation arrived in Jianye, the king was very angry, and it was only because of Zhuge Jin's persuasion that he calmed down, and then worshiped Buzishan as the general and Zhuge Jin as the prime minister."

"Hey, hey, hey......" Zhou Xun smiled a little wickedly: "Does the king know that Zhuge Jin's granddaughter Zhang Yu is the princess of Yueguo?" ”

Xie Jing was stunned: "Is there such a thing?" "Zhang Cheng's wife Zhuge is Zhuge Jin's daughter, he knows this, but Zhang Cheng's daughter is the princess of Yueguo, but he has never heard of it at all. If this matter is true, then the relationship between Zhuge Jin's family and King Yue will be close, and when Sun Feng succeeds to the throne in the future, Zhuge Ke will be Queen Yue's uncle, I am afraid that Sun Quan is unlikely to let Zhuge Ke govern with peace of mind.

"Absolutely." Sun Luban said hatefully: "I'll send the news back right away to see if Zhuge Jin's father and son can live in peace in the future." ”

Xie Jing smiled bitterly, in that case, I am afraid that Zhuge Ke will follow in his footsteps, so he can only come to Yueguo. However, Zhuge Ke is talented, coupled with this family business, it is not difficult for him to rise again.

"How are my mothers?" Sun Luban asked again.

"It's okay." Xie Jingqiang said with a smile: "Queen Xu and Mrs. Bu are content with their duties, and the king is also good to them. The third princess married Zhu Ju a few years ago, and Zhu Ju worshiped General Zuo, Marquis Yangxian, and her career was smooth. ”

"Zhu Judu is in his forties, is it too bad for Xiaohu to marry him?" Sun Luban shook his head again and again, "They are at least twenty years old, what can they mean." ”

Xie Jing smiled bitterly, and said in his heart, you think you can be as husband and wife as you and Zhou Xun. You also have a younger sister who is married to Liu Ji, and the age difference is even greater, and you yourself don't know how to be blessed in the midst of happiness. Speaking of fate, among Sun Quan's three daughters, Sun Luban is the most pungent one, but her life is the best, not only married a good husband, but also a general, leading troops to fight, not letting Xu Mei go, it seems that the luck of the three people is all concentrated on her alone.

"When you come to Yueguo, you won't leave, right?" Zhou Xun saw that Sun Luban was sulking, for fear that she would say something without holding back, so he quickly changed the topic and said: "If Uncle Fa is interested in the military, you might as well take any position in our army, and when you have the opportunity, I will recommend you to the king." ”

Xie Jing was overjoyed, as soon as he arrived in Temu City, he came to see Zhou Xun, on the one hand, he wanted to inform Sun Luban of Sun Deng's situation, hoping that she could help Sun Deng, and on the other hand, he also wanted to climb Zhou Xun's old friend, Zhou Xun is Sun Shao's aunt and cousin, and now Zhou Yu is Sun Shao's wife, his position in Yue is very unique, and his future is limitless.

"Jing is really grateful to have Bo Ying's help."

Zhou Xun smiled, Xie Jing and Zhuge Ke were Sun Deng's cronies at the beginning, he was excluded, and Xie Jing looked down on him a little. Now that Sun Deng has become a waster, Xie Jing has asked him in turn. However, he is generous, although he is a little proud in his heart, he can't see any clues on his face, and hurriedly helps Xie Jing up and says: "What is Uncle Fa talking about, I am eager to seek talents from the country, and it is also our duty to be a courtier." I only hope that Shufa can get familiar with the officialdom habits of my country as soon as possible, and recommend more talents in the future. ”

Although Zhou Xun said sincerely, Xie Jing felt a loss in his heart, and he couldn't help blushing when he heard it.

(To be continued)