In the sixteenth year of Jian'an, the fifth day of the first month.

Chang'an, Prime Minister's Mansion.

A white horse rushed to the gate of the mansion, and the knight turned over and dismounted, galloping into the prime minister's mansion. A soldier stepped forward to stop him, but as soon as he saw the red flag in his hand, he retreated one after another.

This red flag indicates that there is an emergency, although not the most serious, but it is also more serious, and must be reported immediately without delay.

The knight rushed all the way to the backyard and rushed to Zhuge Liang's bedroom before he stopped, panting heavily: "Prime Minister, Chengdu...... Urgent, General Zhao...... went. ”

In the bedroom, Zhuge Liang, who was closing his eyes and pretending to sleep, suddenly opened his eyes, turned over and sat up. This sudden movement immediately made him dizzy and his eyes were full of stars. He stroked his forehead in pain and whispered, "Present it." ”

The armor at the door immediately handed him the official document. Zhuge Liang opened the letter bag and came to his eyes, but his hands trembled, and the paper rattled in his hands. When the armor saw it, his nose was sore, and he hurriedly took it, glanced at it and said, "Prime Minister, the mud sealing is complete." ”

Zhuge Liang replied weakly: "Hmm." ”

The armor soldier glanced at it again: "Prime Minister, the seal is confirmed." ”

"Demolition!" Zhuge Liang snorted, and the armor hurriedly opened the envelope and handed the official document inside to Zhuge Liang. Zhuge Liang took it and came to his eyes, but sighed again: "Let Jiang Wan come!" ”

"Whoa." The armor hurriedly turned around and asked Jiang Wan to invite him. Zhuge Liang's vision has seriously decreased, and he can no longer see the handwriting clearly. Such an important official document, he is not qualified to be accessed by a guard. I can only ask Shang Shu to order Jiang Wan to read it on his behalf and study it by the way. However, both Zhuge Liang and Jia Shi intentionally or unintentionally ignored one person: Deputy Prime Minister Yang Yi.

When Jiang Wan arrived, Yang Yi had already gotten the news, but he didn't move, just sat in his public office, waiting quietly, his eyes were cold.

Jiang Wan hurriedly walked into Zhuge Liang's bedroom, picked up the official document and glanced at it, and breathed a sigh of relief: "Prime Minister." It was Zhao Yun and the old general Zhao died. It's not an accident in Chengdu. ”

Zhuge Liang was stunned for a moment, and muttered: "There is no accident in Chengdu, there will be an accident in the world." ”

Jiang Wan was puzzled. Zhao Yun will be eighty-one years old after the New Year, and he is dying again. What can happen?

Zhuge Liang smiled bitterly and shook his head. Repeat what Zhao Yun once said to him. He said in the end: "Zhao Yun once said. He and I are the two pillars of the last two pillars, and I hope I take care of my body, otherwise he will not be able to support himself. Didn't think about it. He still walked before me. Now, I'm the only one left, and I'm going to ...... soon. and they will follow him. ”

Jiang Wan changed color in shock. This was the first time he had heard of these things. According to this, isn't Wei Ba the opposite? No wonder the prime minister is in such a hurry, he must put Wei Ba to death before he dies.

"That'...... How is it good? ”

"Fine." Zhuge Liang squinted his eyes and looked at the foggy outside, his voice was very low, almost whispering. "From Chengdu to Qingzhou, no matter how fast it is, it will take more than 20 days, I think, Liu Min and they should be in front."

"What if you can't make it?"

"If you can't catch up, that's also the number of big men." Zhuge Liang shook his head gently, and his scattered white hair swayed, which made Jiang Wan's heart sour. He thought of Liu Min, who was his cousin, but as close as his own brother. His other cousin, Pan Jun, is now a close associate under Wei Ba, and the two have long since broken off contact. Now that Liu Min has gone to Qingzhou to proclaim the edict, he will die for a lifetime, and he doesn't know if he will have a chance to see Liu Min again.

Zhao Yun is gone, the prime minister is not a few days away, and all the obstacles in front of Wei Ba will soon disappear, who can stop Wei Ba's pace in the future. Jiang Wei, or Zhuge Ke? It won't be Deputy Prime Minister Yang Yi. Yang Yi and Wei Ba don't get along, but his temper ......

"Prime Minister, the old general Zhao passed away, and the Zhao family still has the support of Zhao Tong. If the prime minister has something to say......"

Zhuge Liang smiled silently: "Don't worry, I have already arranged it, and at that time, His Majesty will announce it." Gongyan, do you remember my book before the first Northern Expedition? ”

Jiang Wan nodded: "The prime minister's list of teachers will be passed down through the ages, and Wan Zi is in his heart." ”

"You, like Your Majesty, also have the shortcomings of being self-indulgent." Zhuge Liang patted the back of Jiang Wan's hand: "Have confidence in yourself." ”

Jiang Wan was taken aback and didn't say anything for a long time.

Zhuge Liang smiled.

……

Zhao Tong hurriedly came to Wei Ba's face.

Wei Ba showed Zhao Tong an urgent letter. Zhao Tong only glanced at it, and burst into tears.

Wei Ba walked up to Zhao Tong and rested his hand on Zhao Tong's shoulder. Zhao Tong's shoulders stiffened, his muscles bulged, and then he slowly relaxed. He raised his head and looked at Wei Ba with teary eyes.

"Senior brother, the master is over eighty years old and is dying, although your brother is not in front of him, but he has a grandson by his side, which can be regarded as a wish. It's a joy and sorrow, so don't be too sad. ”

Zhao Tong bowed his head slightly and lowered his head.

"I asked you here to ask you a question." Wei Ba rubbed his nose, his voice a little muffled. "Do you want to rush back to Chengdu immediately for the funeral, or do you want to wait and wait until the matter here is over, and then go back to mourn?"

Zhao Tong sighed: "What do you say? ”

Wei Ba shrugged his shoulders and didn't answer Zhao Tong, but asked, "Do you know that I have a promise to Master?" ”

Zhao Tong nodded: "I know that when I left Chengdu, my father told me. ”

"Then you are still coming to Qingzhou?" Wei Ba smiled: "Don't trust me? Have I broken my word to you? ”

Zhao Tong shook his head: "Ziyu, my father believes that you will keep your promise, even more than me." ”

"Then you ......"

"It's better for me to come than for others." Zhao Tong looked at Wei Ba helplessly: "If you change someone else, maybe you will be cut on the road, isn't it?" ”

Wei Ba blinked and laughed awkwardly. As Zhao Tong said, if someone else came to be the prison army, he was afraid that he would not be able to see him, and he would be killed halfway. But in that case, he would be equivalent to tearing his face with Zhuge Liang. Whether he admits it or not, this incident will become his crime. Although he didn't care, he had to say that killing the prison sent by the imperial court and killing Wang Ping were completely different things.

"Even if he doesn't kill, will he be able to cooperate with your actions? Whatever you do, he thinks about it the other way around. Sooner or later, your conflict will turn to killing. Kill the prison army in vain, no matter how good the reason is, you will not be able to convince the public. ”

Wei Ba was stunned for a moment, took a step back, and bowed: "Thank you, senior brother." ”

……

At the end of the first month, the envoy group from Chang'an traveled thousands of miles and finally arrived in Linzi.

The atmosphere of the New Year has not yet dissipated, and the city of Linzi is full of joy. Last year, Wei Ba almost bloodlessly captured Qingxu and forced Xiahou Ba back, not only showing strong strength, but also showing the demeanor of a benevolent teacher. His army entered Linzi, and the autumn did not offend, and the people lived as usual, those who should do business continued to do business, those who should work continued to work, and even the other driving Wang Ji, who often appeared in the big city, worked as usual.

He stayed in office and did not withdraw from Qingzhou with Wang Ling, but stayed. He had already resigned and returned home, but was stopped by Yu Yan at the city gate. Yu Yan said that the general of the chariot cavalry had an order, and he must ask Wang Jun to stay in office in order to appease the people. Please Wang Jun for the sake of the people of Qingzhou and the people of Linzi, and work hard for a few more days.

Neither side said anything unpleasant, Wang Ji stayed, and was in charge of the work as a separate driver until the new Qingzhou Thorn Shi Buqi took office. Although Bu Qi received the Qingzhou Thorn History, he didn't take care of things, and most of the things were handed over to Wang Ji to deal with, showing his trust. For this trust, Wang Ji also has to work diligently and no longer mention resignation.

If there must be a change, it is that after Qingzhou was under the command of Wei Ba, some of the original taxes were exempted, and those who did business enjoyed obvious benefits. As a result, some commodities that are usually unlikely to enter ordinary families have also entered some homes, even those families who are not in sufficient condition and really can't afford luxury goods can cut two more catties of meat and sell a few catties of wine this year to have a slightly more prosperous New Year.

Although the monarch has just changed, this year is better than usual.

The people are the most easily satisfied, and even if it is a small favor, they will be grateful. When the leader of Qingzhou announced that he would be ordered by the general of the Che Cavalry to reduce the taxes of the people of Qingzhou for one year to compensate for the losses of last year's war, they were even more enthusiastic and shouted long live.

The people of the city all expressed their warmest welcome to the arrival of Wei Ba, the general of the chariot cavalry, and some people even had the honor to meet Wei Ba and said incoherently: "General, why did you come?" ”

It was in this atmosphere that the envoy group came to Linzi City.

Looking at the smiles of those people and listening to the words that occasionally floated through his ears, Liu Min's heart was very heavy. He knew what kind of responsibility he was shouldering. If it succeeds, what kind of benefits will it bring to him and his cousin Jiang Wan, and if it fails, what kind of disasters will it bring to them. Now, he's on a cliff with one foot on it, and he could fall to pieces at any moment.

After Liu Min arrived at the post house, he immediately closed the door and thanked the guests, and no one was seen, but he sent a deputy envoy to meet the chariot general Wei Ba.

The envoy of the Son of Heaven who announced the edict did not need to do this at all, it stands to reason that Liu Min should go straight to Wei Ba's mansion as soon as he arrived in Linzi, take out the edict and read it out in a grand manner, and then act in accordance with the edict. But Liu Min knew that the current situation was very tense, and he couldn't enjoy that kind of treatment, so he could only compromise and send someone to Wei Ba to ventilate first.

When Liu Min and the others checked into the post, he didn't pay attention, and there was a person on the side of the road who had been watching the team around him. Before he could settle down, the man hurried away.

This person is Guo Xiu

(To be continued......)