Different from the cramped pattern of the small courtyard that the people of Youzhou are most accustomed to, the living room of the room where the right general Luo Jingyun lives is very spacious, enough to accommodate seven or eight people to move around at will, plus the windows on the front and the walls on both sides are big enough, even if they are not deliberately opened, the early morning sunlight shines in from the outside, making the whole room bright and warm.

After Gu Cang entered the house, he didn't choose to sit on the two high stools in the middle of the room, in order to make it more convenient to keep warm, he chose to sit on a small wooden bench very unsightly, because he was slender, and he looked at it like squatting, and put a pair of hands that only saw green tendons, without the slightest blood, like white jade with dark green bone marrow lines, on the side of the charcoal stove, as if he couldn't feel the temperature, it was very close to the fire, and the old man on the side was shocked, and wanted to remind the other party not to burn his hands several times, but he silently endured it.

"Will come to this point, and even never go back, it is his own choice Xu Jintang, but it can be regarded as me forcing him. ”

Gu Cang sighed lazily, and explained as if muttering: "About fourteen years ago, at the gate of the Guozi Supervision Palace, I took the opportunity of Xu Jintang's own son to beat my fifth brother, and beat the Xu family, Xu Qianzhong took the initiative to resign after that incident, and after returning to the capital, he never left until he died of depression in the Xu family's compound. ”

After hearing these words, the old man on the opposite side raised his head suddenly, looked at the other party with an incredible face, and a bone-chilling chill instantly jumped up from under his back along his back, and then quickly exploded in his mind, spreading, making his whole person feel a great fear, as if he had eaten a piece of ice in the cold winter of counting nine, and the whole person was cold from the inside out.

Luo Jingyun has always stayed in Youzhou, conscientiously doing his part, staying away from the disputes in the capital, of course he won't know what happened back then, but if he connects everything he knows with what the other party just said, isn't everything clear, and everything has not changed since then?

Xu Qianzhong was one day fourteen years ago, without warning, he suddenly summoned all of their old subordinates to drink together, and the words he said at the banquet were full of feelings of reminiscing about the past, and entrusting them to help him take care of Xu Jintang, the only son, after he left, and assist him to guard Youzhou.

Think about it, at that time, they had tried their best to keep each other, but the old general seemed to have made up his mind, but he kept saying that he was tired and didn't want to stay in this kind of bitter cold place on the border anymore, and was ready to go to the capital to retire, with the help of the imperial doctor to recuperate, maybe he could live a few more years or something, which was completely inconsistent with his character and temper, and even he didn't say when he would come back to visit these old subordinates again, it seemed that before he went, he already knew that he would not be able to come back alive.

Later, the matter was simple, Xu Quanzhong took the initiative to resign, wanting to return to Beijing for retirement, and His Majesty the Emperor approved it after politely resigning, and then, Xu Quanzhong soon went to the capital with a few old servants, and Xu Jintang, who was still young at the time, was also transferred directly from Yongzhou to Youzhou, ready to take over the position of the hereditary generalissimo of the Youzhou soldiers and horses of their Xu family, and his ambition began to grow from that time, but now it is not ambition at all, it is hatred, but also a kind of fear!

Young man, hating the hypocrite posture of the imperial court, let his father die depressed in the capital, and even he couldn't see him for the last time, and at the same time, he began to fear that the imperial court would eventually unload the mill and kill the donkey, even if the Xu family has always been a single lineage, even if he has put his only son in the capital as a hostage, but the court still can't trust him, all kinds of emotions piled up, he began to live in seclusion, hiding in the capital of Youzhou, and began to plan today's turmoil.

And who would have thought that the beginning of all this was just a young and ignorant six-year-old child, the punch handed out at the gate of the school palace?

Gu Cang waited until the other party had digested the shocking news before he continued: " Of course, he didn't have to be like this, as long as he could take a step back and hand over the military power, then the Xu family would still be the first prominent family in Da Liang, hereditary first-class pillar Guogong, and maybe even go further, he Xu Jintang will be the uncle of His Majesty the Emperor in the future, as long as they can keep to themselves, no longer involve in any party disputes, and always remain neutral, then I dare to say how many years of national fortune in Da Liang, how many years of prominence their Xu family has, but unfortunately, he is unwilling to put his fate in the hands of others, but this is also human nature。 ”

This is also why Gu Cang said that sentence to Gu Xuan back then, the third child may be a family, and a family may be defeated.

Gu Li's biggest advantage is the monstrous power of his mother's family, the Xu family, who holds the military power, but because of this, as long as his mother's family can't let go of this power, then he won't want to be an emperor in his life, because Gu Yi can't leave such a big hidden danger to the descendants of Da Liang, and let his relatives dictate power!

"But I still have to thank him, because without him, how could this new policy be carried out?"

The old man looked at him quietly, his mouth was slightly open, and his expression had become a little sluggish, he had just suddenly realized that all of this was calculated in advance by the young man in front of him?

The decline of the Xu family is just a move he used to achieve his goals?

What is the loyalty of the Xu family for several generations?

And what are the lives of these people who died in the war?

Do not hesitate to cause chaos in the world, just to complete what you want to do, and play with the fate of others in the palm of your hand, is this the emperor's mind, is this the king's mind?

Cold-blooded, ruthless, unscrupulous in order to achieve the goal, as long as you can satisfy yourself, then everything can be sacrificed.

No wonder, no wonder, no wonder His Majesty the Emperor of the dynasty loves this son so much, yes, yes, yes, such a madman is indeed the best choice for Da Liang in the future!

When the old man thought of this, his heart suddenly became a little panicked, he had countless things to say, he had countless questions to ask, but he couldn't open his mouth, he had all kinds of helplessness, but he was helpless, because even if he was unwilling to nod, he had to admit that a strong empire never needed a weak and incompetent leader.

Gu Cang watched the look in the old man's eyes gradually dim, knowing that if he continued to talk, he was afraid that he would completely collapse, so he put away the words and said, "Okay, come today, Cang just wants to ask the old general a word, dare to ask the old general, can you stabilize the situation in Youzhou afterwards?"

The old man trembled, and instantly understood what the other party meant, this is the imperial court is going to launch a counterattack, and once they succeed in Xu Jintang's move, Youzhou will inevitably have chaos, and at this time, a respected person is needed to stand up and suppress all the chaos for the imperial court, who can this person be, it can only be him Luo Jingyun!

The old man's face became very sad, and he felt a dilemma, he hesitated for a long time, but finally couldn't help but muster up his courage and whispered: "Tai, prince, I don't know, this, the Xu family, they 。。。。。。 ”

In fact, the question Gu Cang asked just now, to a certain extent, gave him some courage and let him know that for the time being, he was a useful person to the imperial court, so he dared to ask about the fate of the Xu family at such a time, and the reason why he wanted to ask was because of the grace of knowing the situation, but also because he, as an elder, would never want to watch the Xu family die again after Xu Duzhong returned to heaven.

Gu Cang lowered his head and rubbed his hands gently, even though they were all a little painful from the charcoal fire, his fingers were still bloodless, and they were as numb as ever, so numb that he even felt that it was not a part of his body.

"In two days, after the situation is clear, for the sake of the merits of the ancestors of the Xu family, I will personally go to Xu Jintang and give him one last chance, as long as he no longer struggles, his son who is still in the capital is still the Zhuguo Gong of the imperial court, and their Xu family is still my Da Liang's family tycoon, rich and noble, as long as Da Liang is still there, there will be no shortage of them. ”

After the old man was silent for a long time, he suddenly stretched out his hand and touched the ground at Gu Cangchang, but this time it was not the popular etiquette of military generals, but the etiquette between the most orthodox literati.

"The criminal minister, I am willing to be used by the prince, and I will not give up from birth to death!"

"Alright, alright. ”

Gu Cang waved his hand a little helplessly, then took out a neat letterhead from his sleeve, handed it to the other party, and said with a smile: "Before leaving, I drafted a list, these are the available people in Youzhou in the future, please help the old man to take a look, check and fill the gaps for me, and also select talents for Youzhou." ”

The old man lowered his head, stretched out his hand, and took it respectfully, then straightened up, opened it, and just glanced at it hurriedly, and his face immediately changed.

Above, the beginning is written that the imperial court will be the future of the Youzhou Army, oh no, it should be the reorganization and thorough reform of the entire army in Daliang, what positions have been abolished, what positions have been added, and what positions have been merged with the original positions, including the specific jurisdiction and responsibilities, there are special notes.

Next to the future positions on the Youzhou side, the names of the people who will hold this position in the future have been written, from top to bottom, covering almost the entire middle and upper level officials, and many of them were originally his subordinates in the Yuyang Army, but the content and comments displayed on this piece of paper seem to know better than Luo Jingyun who knows where these people's abilities or strengths are, what is the specific upper limit, and what is the specific lower limit.

Among them, it is true that there are some people whose position he thinks is a little higher, but there are also some people who he thinks are available, but they are not on the list, or their positions are not high enough, and some are condescending, based on the words "check and fill in the gaps" just now, he said bluntly: "Well, prince, please see, these people, the old minister thinks, is really embarrassing!"

As he spoke, the old man stretched out his finger and pointed out the names of these people in turn on the paper, and began to tell some of their life and history according to their own understanding and memory.

Gu Cang listened carefully, nodded in agreement from time to time, and when the other party finished speaking, he said: " Well, sure enough, Jiang is still old and spicy, according to General Luo, these people do need to be discussed, and they need to be further assessed, but Luo Chen, I think he is still worthy of a big responsibility, the so-called virtuous do not avoid relatives, don't deliberately suppress because he is a relative of your own family, every talent, for Da Liang, is a rare and valuable asset, I think they are also willing to play their role in a position that suits them, besides, young people need a little pressure to burst their potential, so I think this position can be allowed to him first。 ”

The words have all been said about this, and the fact is that as the prince said, Luo Jingyun neither dared to shirk nor shirk, so he hurriedly said: "The old minister thanked the prince for his cultivation on his behalf!"

Then, the old man cheered up and said again: "There is also this person, he was originally a captain of the local army, named Yang Fan!"

As soon as he mentioned this person, the old man couldn't help but show disgust and disdain, and he completely made no secret of his disgust with him.

"This person is so happy, he never knows how to do his own thing, he will only drill those flies and dogs all day long, fantasizing about how to be promoted, in order to please his superiors, he even does not hesitate to use his wife as a bribe gift, and even sold the house where his parents live to give gifts, such behavior is really despicable, and in Xu, well, in this matter, he almost immediately stood there, willing to act as a pawn to coerce Liangzhou, there is no position at all, and you made up this' The post of major general, leading tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, is the same as the general, how can it be easily given to such a person?"

But he didn't want to, Gu Cang shook his head and said: "Your words are wrong, this person just wants to show what he has learned, get ahead, and glorify his ancestors, he used his wife as a gift to bribe his superiors, sold his property, and let his parents borrow a relative's house, all kinds of behaviors are certainly despicable, but tracing back to the source, isn't it because no one gave him a chance to prove himself?" He has real talent and learning, just because he came from a humble background, and accidentally offended his superiors, so he has been deliberately suppressed, he obviously has a handsome talent, but because of this, he was aggrieved to be a small soldier for ten years, he couldn't wait, so he made such a helpless move, as for whether this person's position is firm, it all depends on who can give him a position he wants, as long as the court trusts him, I believe he will not hesitate to die to repay him, to be honest, if you still want to polish him again, with his ability, being a major general is wronged。 ”

The words dissected the cause and effect, including this person, clearly, the old man was speechless, stunned for a moment, and had to divert the topic and said: "Since the prince knows in his heart, then for this person, the old minister will not say much, but there is another person, the old minister wants to recommend, this person is the former Yuyang Army's Qianhu Ma Zhang, he 。。。。。。 ”

Before he finished speaking, Gu Cang directly stretched out his hand, stopped what he was going to say next, and then sighed: "Alas, old general, this person doesn't need to mention more, he has always been jealous of your godson Cao Yan, and secretly has secretly done a lot of black hands, I'm afraid you don't know about these, this person is actually narrow-minded, very vicious, what is bright and fair, upright, in fact, it is just pretending to be for outsiders, for this person, not only will I not hire him, but after everything is settled, I will also liquidate his sins!"

The old man was stunned, he was not stupid, out of trust in the prince in front of him, he put a lot of things in his mind, and he understood in an instant, several times Cao Yan was embarrassed to flee back outside, he thought it was all bad luck, or his own ability was not enough, but he also doubted whether this godson could be up to the task, but he didn't expect that under his nose, there were still people who did this kind of thing, but after thinking about it, he instantly felt a chill and fear.

I don't even know what my subordinates have done, how did the other party know?

How many eyeliners did the imperial court arrange in Youzhou to be able to explore these bits and pieces so clearly?

No wonder the other party has been so calm and confident, this is the same as marching and fighting, if we even know how many noodles the other party has eaten at night, then we are still worried about not winning?

As soon as he thought of this, he didn't say anything more, pushed the envelope back respectfully, and then said, "In this way, there will be no other problems." ”

As he spoke, he bowed to the ground again, and said in a deep voice: "Prince Gaoyi, please accept the old man's worship." ”

Gu Cang did not stop it, but accepted it calmly.

Luo Jingyun didn't dare to get up, but lay on the ground and continued: "I want the old man to be a criminal minister, but the prince does not care about the past suspicions, and does not pursue it, but he has to be the king and entrust him with a heavy responsibility.

At this point, what needs to be said has been said.

The charcoal fire in the stove had become dim, and although it was still emitting wisps of heat, it was time to extinguish it as the topic progressed.

Gu Cang propped up his knees, made a little effort, and slowly stood up from the ground, Rao is so, there was still a feeling of dizziness in his head, he shook it gently, and almost fell, fortunately, Luo Jingyun on the ground noticed it, and quickly got up from the ground to help him.

"Too, prince。。。。。。 ”

He shouted in a hoarse voice and some surprise, because he really didn't expect that the prince of the country, the future emperor of Da Liang, would be weak like this, but the means were so terrifying, it was terrifying.

"Thank you. ”

Gu Cang said and pulled it gently, and the latter let go of his hand in a playful manner.

"I still have something to do, so I'll go, but General Right。。。。。。 ”

He looked into the old man's eyes, and after a few pauses, he slowly spat out thirteen words.

"Knowing that mistakes can be changed, good is great, you, do it yourself!"