I looked at the charcoal-blackened ship in the distance, and then looked at the river where the green smoke had been entrenched for a long time, and a large piece of helplessness welled up in my heart: "I don't know how Lord Sun gave birth to the illusion that he knows right from wrong, Gao Shu asked you to set up an ambush in the mausoleum, and you really did it, assassinating and burning the ship, dare to ask Lord Sun's brain is still on himself?" ”

Sun Zhiling also let out a wry smile: "I don't know if His Royal Highness has ever thought about the difficulties of the lower officials, we, the low-level officials, together with the old and young of the family behind us, are counting on the court's fortune to live, the adults in the imperial capital let us do this, where do we dare to disobey the order." ”

"Then the king is going to ask Sun a few questions," I pointed to the ten ships, "do you know how much silver these ten ships cost, where the money comes from, do you know how many people can't even eat a few meals a year after working hard to take out this silver, do you know how many families can't survive in order for your family to get a living?" The ten ships burned today will be made up next year, and the court will not let the king pay for it, nor will it let you pay for it, and in the end, it will have to be added to the people, and more people will not be able to live. ”

"The lower officials have to do it," Sun Zhiling put on the appearance that he had already done his best and had to resign himself to fate, and said, "But the lower officials instructed them not to hurt Your Highness, and the safety of the border of Jinguo in the future will depend on Your Highness, so can it be regarded as a conscience?" ”

I scoffed.

If it were at a young age when this king was strong, I would have broken his legs even if I didn't want his life, but now I have heard his words more than anger, but sadness. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't even know that the magistrates of my Dajin had become decadent and mediocre.

I wanted to turn around and leave, but after thinking about it, whether he understood it or not, he still had to tell him: "Scholars, the body is also." Sun Zhiling, the southern border line is 2,600 miles, this king is not Sun Wukong blowing a pinch of hair can transform three thousand monkey Sun, the two thousand soldiers who sink the river with the ship today are the king's right-hand man, and it is the strong fortress on the southern border, so today's feud, this king will be with you and the adults in the imperial capital in the future, and calculate it carefully. ”

Sun Zhiling stepped forward to stop the king who wanted to leave: "Your Highness, Lord Gao has sent someone to explain that if you escape this catastrophe, the collapsed river of the Lingtai River still needs you to repair." ”

I stared at him for three seconds until I lost my smile.

I'm afraid that Sun Zhiling himself felt ridiculous, so he added: "But Your Highness, the lower officials also understand that it is not easy for you to escape this catastrophe, so the lower officials of the Lingtai River section plan to use their own people to cultivate." Just ......"

"Just what?"

He leaned over and bowed: "It's just that the Dijing side will send someone over to take a sneak peek, so please leave the clothes of these soldiers in your army for my people to change into, so the lower officials must at least do something like it." ”

I became suspicious of Sun Zhiling at this time. It was probably the character of being wary of unfamiliar people that I had cultivated over the years, so when I heard that he was going to borrow the clothes of a lieutenant general in the king's army to help me repair the river, my heart was not happy, but vigilant.

"Your Highness is unwilling?" Sun Zhiling was cautious and tentative.

I straightened my sleeves and smiled lightly: "Yes, Lord Sun, this can be regarded as a conscience." Today, the king and his soldiers are tired, so we must stay with you for the night, and we will leave early tomorrow morning. ”

That night, I didn't close my eyes, stared at the picture that Qin Buxian gave me, recombined all the river-shaped strokes, and finally determined the location of the remaining two tribulations: one was Luochang City, nine hundred miles away, and the other was Yuzhou City, the end point where this king and the five thousand soldiers in the south converged.

At noon, I said goodbye to Sun Zhiling in a false way, rented a merchant ship from Lingtai and set off, and after the ship sailed for a hundred miles, I ordered the more than 100 soldiers who followed me to dive under the water and take the opportunity to go ashore and return to Nanguo Mansion by land as soon as possible.

Most of them were worried about my safety and refused to leave, so I waved my hand and said: "You also know that Yang Gongxing, the general of Ningguo, is on the way to the northern border of Ningguo for three hundred and sixty-five days a year, or on the way to the northern border of Ningguo. So you don't have to build the river, you have to go back as soon as possible, the southern border is more important than here. ”

Only then did the more than 100 soldiers refuse to leave.

When I arrived at Luochang the next day, I got off the boat alone, and before I left the dock, I was already trailing seven or eight shadows.

Despite this, this king did not give birth to the panic of the Lingtai River section, because the soldiers around me who worried me have all returned.

This king, I know that my time is short, so in the past three years, I have already passed on my lessons in marching and fighting to Xu Guangguang, and I believe that one day I will drive the crane immortal or fall into hell, Xu Guangguang can bear the safety of the south. So now, I walk alone in Luochang City, and I am not afraid at all.

When I walked into the market, there were as many as ten shadows in front of and behind me.

I picked one of the most lively noodle restaurants, walked in and ordered a bowl of Yangchun noodles. The shopkeeper's eyes swept over me from time to time, and I noticed his slightly convulsive gaze, and I raised my head and smiled at him, and the shopkeeper coughed dryly a few times and looked away.

Luochang's Yangchun noodles are very level, the noodle soup is clear, the noodles are glutenous, the green onion is sprinkled along the edge of the bowl, and there is a poached egg with the yolk exposed in the middle, the color is pleasing to the eye, and there is the taste of Huangli Cuiliu.

In addition to Yangchun noodles, the shopkeeper also sent a stack of sour bamboo shoots side dishes that I hadn't ordered.

This little dish reminded me that if I were one of those shadows, I would definitely not do it to a person in the street, so that the sword and blood shadow would fall into the handle, and the better way to kill people and kill people should be to poison the meal while he was eating.

But this thought instantly dissipated when the shopkeeper spoke—

"Childe, the shop has newly imported osmanthus wine from Nanguo Mansion, do you want to try it?"

I shook my fingers and quickly pressed the chopsticks, and when he approached, I lowered my voice and asked, "Who are you?" ”

He didn't answer me, but found a new one to talk about, and said with a smile: "It's easy to say, if you want to smell it first and then buy it, it's piled up in the shade of the backyard, and the son comes with me." ”

I got up and followed him into the backyard, and I already thought that it was probably not osmanthus wine in the backyard, but the person who used osmanthus wine as an introduction and wanted to fish it into the backyard.

But no matter what I thought, I didn't expect that it was actually him who was standing in the backyard waiting for me-the secretary of the Ministry of Rites in the imperial capital, Wei Tian's cronies and loyal ministers, and Qin Buxian's heart moonlight, Zhao Mengqing.

He stood at the door of a study in the backyard, and when he saw me, he leisurely shook his fan and smiled gently: "What a coincidence that I met His Royal Highness King Chong'an here." ”

The shopkeeper next to me had already withdrawn from the yard and disappeared, I put down the sleeves of my shirt that I was about to eat noodles and rolled up, and said with a laugh: "Isn't it a coincidence, from the beginning of this king's disembarkation, there is your eyeliner behind him, these eyeliners are all extraordinary, and there has never been a sound when walking, if you put away the sharp and alert eyes, pretending to be harmless and innocent, this king is afraid that he will not be able to walk to this noodle shop." ”

He didn't refute, took the fan and invited me to the study: "I'm afraid I'll snub Your Highness by standing outside, there is osmanthus wine in the room, let's talk while drinking." ”

The study was very shabbyly furnished, with a desk, two chairs, and only a dozen books on the shelves against the wall.

Zhao Mengqing poured me a bowl of wine, the shopkeeper didn't lie to me, this wine came from Nanguo Mansion, but what he didn't know was that in this world, the person I don't like to drink osmanthus wine with the most is his master Zhao Mengqing, Zhao Mengqing who once intimidated Lu Shu with osmanthus wine.

Zhao Mengqing naturally thought of this matter, he lowered his head and poured himself a bowl, drank two sips first, and then said to me: "Your Highness, Gonggong Lu has an accident, and the lower officials are also very sorry, this matter is the fault of the lower officials, and today I take this opportunity to apologize to His Royal Highness." ”

I squinted at him and said, "Do you admit that you framed Lu Shu?" Qin Buxian didn't say that, she defended you at the time. ”

Zhao Mengqing smiled helplessly: "It's right not to envy the defense, in fact, Father-in-law Lu's death really has nothing to do with it." But the matter of osmanthus wine, if it weren't for the fact that I thought the osmanthus wine was delicious, and mentioned it to Grandpa Lu, he wouldn't have thought too much, and then panicked and made such a big deal. What the lower official wants to apologize for is that his unintentional act shocked Gonggong Lu, as for His Royal Highness's speculation that the lower official conspired with the emperor to kill Gonggong Lu, I have never done it, and I will not carry this pot. ”

Every time I mention Lu Shu, my mood becomes very heavy, there is a danger outside, and I have to find a helper as soon as possible to solve the repair of the river section here, so I don't want to entangle with Zhao Mengqing too much, so I asked directly: "Why did you appear in Luochang City?" What did you bring me here for? ”

He smiled slightly, picked up the bowl and took two more sips, before he said leisurely: "Xiaguan doesn't want to come, so it's much more comfortable to take sick leave in the imperial capital, lie on a mat, and read books and learn characters than to come to Luochang quickly." It's just that he doesn't envy me, if I don't come, His Highness won't almost leave Luochang City alive. ”

I was slightly surprised: "Qin Buxian asked you to come?" ”

He nodded: "Yes, I don't envy that I have been married to His Highness for less than a month, and if His Highness has three longs and two shorts, she will be a widow." ”

I sneered, "You should be looking forward to the death of this king?" As soon as this king dies, you will be able to marry Qin Buxian home openly. ”

Zhao Mengqing's eyes lit up, put down the wine bowl, and said with a smile: "I really think so." ”