"Who?" Hearing the noise outside, Li Yuan's first reaction was to shout angrily. He is usually very kind to people, but he is also very strict in his work. When discussing confidential topics with a few absolute henchmen, senior staff members like Takeshi Tong were not allowed to participate, and ordinary people were strictly forbidden to go within twenty steps of the council chamber. Therefore, all the secret discussions of the Tang Mansion were not overheard by outsiders, let alone the mistake of breaking the utensils due to fright.

There was no response from outside the chamber, only a howling wind blowing through the curtain. In April, when it was warm and cold, the wind direction was a little erratic, sometimes south and sometimes north, just like the future of the family at this moment.

"Who's out there, get in here!" Li Yuan was a little really angry, and his hand quickly pressed the handle of the knife on his waist. His martial arts were not too outstanding, but he could not deal with a siege of five or six guards. If someone is really tired of living tonight, Li Yuan doesn't care about showing his tiger power once.

Chen Yanshou, eldest grandson Shunde and Ma Yuangui each took a few steps back and formed a triangle in front of Li Yuan. They are the children of wealthy families, and although they are wearing civilian clothes at the moment, they are all well trained in martial arts. As soon as Li Yuan gave an order, the three of them rushed out in formation and directly captured the people outside the door.

"Back to Tang Gong, it's the fourth lady and Cui'er!" Just as the people in the house were about to go crazy, the guard on duty outside the door ran forward and responded loudly. After speaking, the door was gently pushed open, and two guards walked in with a frightened pale girl.

"Back to Tang Gong, just now my subordinates saw that the fourth young lady brought Cui'er over to bring food to a few adults, so they didn't stop it. I didn't expect them to disturb Tang Gong, and their subordinates were guilty, so please punish Tang Gong! The guard on duty threw his hands over his forehead and begged for forgiveness with an apologetic face.

Tang Gong's own family was not included in the scope of those who were strictly forbidden to approach the council chamber, so there was nothing improper about his actions tonight. "You didn't do anything wrong!" Li Yuan waved his hand and ordered the guards to retreat. Then he slowly approached the maid who was about to cry in fright, and asked in a friendly tone: "It's Cui'er, how long have you been here, and what have you heard?" ”

"Back to the master, slave maid, no, it was the fourth lady who saw that the light was still on in the council room so late, so she and the slave maid went to the kitchen to bring some ginseng soup!" The girl who was called Cui'er was very timid, holding back the tears in her eyes and answering in a trembling voice.

"Slave, the fourth lady and the slave maid have just arrived here, and then the fourth lady took the ginseng soup from the slave's finger and prepared to enter the door herself. Then, then the slave saw the tray, and the tray fell from the hands of the fourth lady to the ground, and then, and then the fourth lady ran away crying! Cui'er's voice was intermittent, but it was like a needle, stabbing several big men without embarrassment.

Two years ago, they considered using Ying'er to marry Li Xu instead of Wan'er, it was out of family interests, and there was nothing wrong with it. Now, two years later, there is nothing wrong with them considering giving up this arrangement, which may bring disaster to the Li family, and arranging another marriage for Ying'er. Everyone is thinking about the future and future of the Li family, and everyone's every move is for the Li family. But what about Qian'er, who regards her as a person, and who really puts herself in her shoes!

In an instant, the anger on Li Yuan's face disappeared, and only deep tiredness remained. He waved his hand and ordered in a low voice: "You go down, and accompany the fourth lady well." If, if she's unhappy, you, you find a way to coax her! ”

"Yes!" Cui'er squatted slightly, and walked out of the door backwards. She is a handmaid born in the family, and the only piece of the sky she has seen since she was a child is the one between the four corners of the wall of the Li Mansion. She didn't know how strong the wind and rain were outside. I just feel that what happened to my young lady is very aggrieved and unfair.

"She is the daughter of Tang Gong!" Cui'er thought as she closed the door in front of her. "Although it was not born to Mrs. Dou, it is the blood of Tang Gong after all. How can everyone treat her like this, like she is a ......" Cui'er couldn't think of a suitable word to describe it, saying that the master's family used the fourth lady as a slave, which was obviously not appropriate. Although Li Chen's status in the mansion is not as high as that of Miss Wan'er and Shimin's son, there is still a difference between heaven and earth compared to these slaves and maids.

Suddenly, she saw the wooden shovel that the gardener had placed in the corner. Tang Gong didn't like the dark, so every night, lanterns and torches were hung all over the house. At this moment, things that are piled up in the corner during the day and no one cares about them are more likely to attract everyone's attention. "It's like a wooden shovel, and when you're done, put it in the corner!" Li Qian's personal girl Cui'er thought angrily, and a desolation swelled up in her heart.

"I didn't think it through, so Tang Gong was tired!" Hearing the footsteps outside the door and walking away, Chen Yanshou and the others made a gesture lightly and said apologetically. He felt that his mentality was a little old, and today's result was something that no one wanted to see, but no one could do anything about it.

"It's okay, Ying'er is a smart child, she will figure it out. After all, she is my daughter Li Yuan! Li Yuan let out a long sigh and replied. There is no parent in the world who does not love his children, but in the face of the chaotic situation, he cannot fulfill his daughter's wishes. "Yu'er, if you blame it, blame it for being ruthless." Li Yuan smiled bitterly and silently apologized to his daughter in his heart. The troubled times have come, and even His Majesty the Emperor can't do what he wants, and all he can do is take care of the overall situation.

After all, he is a person who has experienced many storms, and after sighing, reason quickly returned to him. Now is not the time to pay attention to whether a girl has a smile on her face every day, there are many urgent things that need to be dealt with quietly, such as the situation faced after going to Hedong, which is a topic that needs to be discussed urgently.

"Shunde, have you sent someone to investigate? After the beginning of spring this year, what is the situation in the counties of Hedong? After we pass, what troubles do we have to deal with first? After retracting his mind from the family matter, Li Yuan turned his gaze to the eldest grandson Shunde and asked solemnly.

Chen Yanshou is strategic, long-term vision. Ma Yuangui thinks clearly, acts decisively, and never drags his feet when making decisions. The talent of the eldest grandson Shunde is between Chen Yanshou and Ma Yuangui, but he has a good family background and has traveled extensively, so he has always been entrusted by Li Yuan with the important task of collecting intelligence.

This old staff member who had been walking in the Li Mansion for many years really lived up to Li Yuan's trust, and with a little muttering, he brought the situation of the Hedong counties together like a few treasures. "In recent years, due to the repeated tolerance of the imperial court, most of Dingxiang County has fallen into the hands of the Turks. North of Yanmen County, outside the Great Wall, horse thieves are rampant. A few large groups of horse thieves, such as a gust of wind and clouds in the middle of the sky, ignored the government decrees and did not obey the jurisdiction of the Turks, and gathered tens of thousands of people at every turn to plunder everywhere. But," the eldest grandson Wuji paused, his tone turned relaxed sharply, "According to the division of responsibilities of the imperial court, these troubles are handled by Lord Wang Rengong stationed in Mayi County and the Zuo Wuwei soldiers under his command, so the headache is Lord Wang's business, so we don't need to worry about it!" ”

The atmosphere in the room was originally very dull, but when the eldest grandson Wuji was stirred up in such a strange yin and yang, a slight smile immediately appeared on everyone's faces. "Wang Rengong is no longer the original Wang Rengong!" Ma Yuangui smiled bitterly and commented. "He's here to guard our north, and it's probably not too reliable!"

"General Wang was also a hero of the world, but the actions of the imperial court after the failure of the first expedition to Liao really chilled his heart!" Chen Yanshou understood the reason for General Wang Rengong's decadence very well, and sighed to defend the other party.

At that time, Wang Rengong succeeded Mai Tiecane and led the elite Zuo Wuwei of the Great Sui Mansion soldiers, and also created a brilliant record. But with the failure of the conquest again and again, Wang Rengong's whole person sank like the national fortune of the Great Sui. At this moment, he is no longer the famous general of a hundred battles who waved the iron thistle bone in his hand and shouted and rushed into battle four years ago. Instead, he became a bad old man who was greedy for money and afraid of death, and was lustful. General Wang Rengong wanted to commit suicide, and many people who had seen him do so said. But the imperial court trusted such a general the most, and even entrusted this person with the most important section of defense on the northern border.

However, Wang Rengong's timidity also saved the court a lot of trouble. Although at present, the pastures of the Turks have extended beyond Dingxiang County to the edge of the Great Wall. But under the leadership of General Wang, the border guards and the Ashina family were also fine.

"Tang Gong's duty to go to Hedong is to inspect and eliminate officials, arrest thieves, and crusade against rogues. The affairs on the border are not under the jurisdiction of the Duke of Tang! The eldest grandson, Shunde, shook his head and continued. The imperial court did not have the courage to take the initiative to start a war with the Turks, so it was not surprising that the Turks were encroaching on the border of the Great Sui. Compared with the tolerance of the Turks, the attitude of the imperial court towards the rebels in various places was completely different, "Your Majesty asked Tang Gong to kill those who dared to rebel after arriving in Hedong." For those who collude with bandits, they can confiscate their homes by themselves, and there is no need to ask the court for orders! ”

"I'm afraid, those who can copy it can't be copied by Tang Gong." Chen Yanshou sneered and added analysis. The order was issued the winter before, and with this decree, officials in various localities quickly found a shortcut to riches. They plundered the powerful people under their rule, and if they disobeyed at all, they arrested a gangster and arrested him. As a result, the local gentry either compromised or simply pulled the pole to rebel, leaving few options other than these two paths.

"But after Duke Tang arrives, he can collect the power to screen out bandits in the ambassador's mansion, and on the other hand, he can prevent officials from continuing to disturb the people, and he can also take the opportunity to win people's hearts!" Ma Yuangui thought about it and suggested.

"What Yuan Gui said is that if you want to alleviate the bandits, you must first prevent the officials from pushing the people too quickly!" Li Yuan nodded and stroked his beard in response. Most of the time, he was still very satisfied with the few staff members in front of him. Although the people have gradually become factions, and sometimes there is even a suspicion of forming a party for personal gain.

"As for the bandits, they haven't had a good climate in the Hedong counties at the moment. The momentum is relatively large, and there is the thief mother Duan'er near the Dragon Gate, which is said to have tens of thousands of people. In addition, Wang Xuba and Wei Dao'er of Shanggu County in Hebei Province occasionally went into Hedong to loot, but they did not dare to take the initiative to attack the county. ...... between Taihang and Wangwu Mountains in the south"

Speaking of this, the words of the eldest grandson Shunde were suddenly interrupted by his mastermind. "Shunde, you stop for a while, did you say that Wang Xuba and Wei Dao'er in Shanggu are the two thieves who claim to be the King of Heaven and Lishanfei?" Li Yuan frowned and asked loudly.

"Back to Tang Gong, it's these two thieves!" The eldest grandson, Shunde, didn't understand why Li Yuan suddenly cared about the bandits in Hebei, so he paused slightly, and then replied cautiously.

"Can Shunde know that these two thieves have ever invaded Yi County?" Li Yuan nodded and continued to ask.

"Although the two of them claim to have 100,000 people and plunder everywhere, they don't have the ability of Dou Jiande and Zhang Jincheng, and they have never captured a larger county seat!" The eldest grandson Shunde thought about it, and suddenly smiled with a smile on his face, "Is Duke Tang afraid that he will attack in front of the county uncle's mansion?" Shall we send some people over to prevent anything from happening to Zhong Jian's family? ”

"Yan Shou, early tomorrow morning, you let Jiulong select twenty good players in the mansion. I made it clear to everyone that I wanted them to guard Zhong Jian's mansion like guarding my mansion. If the situation is urgent, we will escort Master Li and Mrs. Li to Taiyuan, since they are the same clan, our family naturally can't watch their relatives being harassed by thieves! ”

"If Zhong Jian knows about this one day, he will definitely not live up to the righteousness of Tang Gong's protection!" Chen Yanshou gave up his hand and admired. Although today's Li family is far less powerful than it was back then, in terms of tapping talents and attracting talents, the Li family has done much better than several other wealthy families. In the eyes of outsiders, Li Yuan's behavior may not be strong enough, but at least, his family has never been disgusted.

"Shunde, you go on, what is the trouble at the junction of Taihang Mountain and Wangwu Mountain?" With a precise chess piece laid out, Li Yuan easily pulled the topic back to the original place as if he hadn't made any decisions. "Isn't that already close to the Eastern Capital? Why is there still something to do in our Hedong? ”

"Tang Gong is right, the trouble does come from the south of the Yellow River!" The eldest grandson Shunde first slapped the head of the family on the back, and then continued. "The trouble is mainly in Hanoi County, which borders Ji County in Hebei Province. And at present, except for Zhisu and Liyangcang, almost all other regions of Jijun have become the sphere of influence of the Wagang Army! ”

"The power of the Wagang Army is expanding so fast? The last time our people came back from the message, didn't they report that the Wagang Army was accustomed to Taoguang and obscurity? Hearing the news of the Wagang Army again, Li Yuan's eyes were obviously condensed, and they were full of anxiety and worry.

At that time, the Wagang Army was mainly led by its big boss Zhai Rang and military advisor Xu Maogong. And now, more than 20 surrounding bandits are under the orders of Wagang, the strength of the Wagang army has increased fivefold, and its core figures have also changed from Zhai Rang and Xu Maogong to Li Mi and Fang Yanzao. When it comes to the changes in the Wagang Army, the eldest grandson Shunde's answer is not without regret. For Xu Dayan, whom Li Xu once mentioned, he and Chen Yanshou and others admired his vision and talent. At that time, the Wagang Army was in the hands of Xu Dayan and Zhai Rang, although the momentum was not as big as it is now, but it faintly looked like it could do something. Today, the size of the Wagang Army has indeed swelled rapidly, but its good and bad are uneven, and its military discipline and combat effectiveness are no longer the same as they were at the beginning.

"I see!" After listening to the report of the eldest grandson Shunde, Li Yuan shook his head again and again with regret. "Those thieves are also stupid, and they were actually stolen by Li Mi so easily. Are they stupid? Or does Li Mi really have any outstanding strengths? ”

"As Tang Gong said, Li Mina has no strengths except for being able to speak big. But this person is surnamed Li! ”。 The expression on the face of the eldest grandson Shunde was suddenly solemn, and he took half a step back, arched his hand, and replied.

Without waiting for Li Yuan to figure out the meaning of the other party's words, Chen Yanshou, the first strategist of the Tang Mansion, also stood beside the eldest grandson Shunde, and said solemnly: "Everyone in the world believes that the deceased Sui will be Li's, and there are nursery rhymes among the people. Therefore, although Li Mi himself does not have any conformity, because of his surname Li, he is considered by the thieves to be a folk song and the king of ending the troubled times! ”

"Joke, he is not the only one in the world, Li Mi, surnamed Li!" Li Yuan snorted coldly from his nostrils and said contemptuously. Suddenly, he realized that the two henchmen were behaving strangely today, so he took half a step back in fright, leaned back against the red lacquered giant pillar supporting the roof, and asked in a trembling voice, "What do you mean, what do you mean, what do you mean, Li Mi is so popular with everyone, just because his surname is Li?" ”

His voice was low and tense, barely audible. The answers of the three staff members were unusually resolute, without the slightest hint of hesitation.

"Yes, please make a decision as soon as possible!" The eldest grandson Shunde, Ma Yuangui, and Chen Yanshou stood in a row, their eyes full of expectation.

Alcoholic's note: There are too many story backgrounds involved in this chapter, so it cannot be described from Li Xu's perspective alone. Besides, everyone will get tired of fighting and killing all day long, right? Canvassing again! The support of everyone is the motivation for me to update.

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