"Miss Xu, a person's life should not be wasted on this kind of love, this is not the meaning of life."

Jiang Xinghuo looked at Xu Miaojin steadily: "If you want to know what the essence of human beings is and what is the meaning of human life, then come with me, maybe you will understand something and make your life different from before." ”

Xu Miaojin agreed without any hesitation.

Jiang Xinghuo took her to a tombstone in the wasteland of Fuzhong, and only five words were engraved on the tombstone

- "Ginger Starfire's Tomb"!

Xu Miaojin looked at the tombstone in surprise, and around this, there was a thriving leek field.

"This is, the tomb you left for yourself in the future?"

Jiang Xinghuo's answer was obviously beyond her expectations.

"No, it's me buried in it."

Jiang Xinghuo's gaze fell on the tombstone, as if through time and space.

Then he rolled up his sleeves, picked up a shovel from the vegetable patch, and began to work one shovel at a time.

Xu Miaojin was silent, she never imagined that the first time she was alone with Jiang Xinghuo was to watch him dig graves.

Jiang Xinghuo said while digging the soil: "I know that something must have happened to you, maybe the queen said something that made you change your attitude, I remember last time you still wanted to go to Jiangnan to see the results of the change." ”

Xu Miaojin wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Jiang Xinghuo raising his hand, Jiang Xinghuo put his boots on the shovel, temporarily stopped the movements in his hand, and looked back at Xu Miaojin's face.

"Don't tell me, I can guess."

"After the incident of the Flying Eagle Guard, the emperor became a little jealous of me, and the queen also had concerns when she saw this, so she persuaded you, right?"

Xu Miaojin nodded with some relief.

Jiang Xinghuo continued to dig the grave without any accidents.

With the deepening of the process of law change, the relationship between the leader of the law change and the imperial power is like two magnets that have changed from attracting each other to repelling each other, which will become more and more opposite, and more and more distant, which is not something that people can decide, Shang Ying, Wang Anshi, and Zhang Juzheng are like this.

And Jiang Xinghuo also knew that Queen Xu had done nothing wrong, and the greatest value of a top aristocratic lady to be married to the family was how much benefit marriage could bring.

The Emperor may have needed him to have a weakness before.

After all, only those who have a soft underbelly are easy to control.

It's just that Xu Miaojin knows that Jiang Xinghuo himself knows that what he needs is not a beauty who can become his weakness, but a warrior who can walk on the same road and give up everything.

And Xu Miaojin's words at the door, Jiang Xinghuo also knew that the other party could say and express it to the maximum extent for "liking".

It's not illegal to like people, but it's just liking.

Soon, the earth had been cut several feet deep, revealing the coffin hidden under the pitch-black dirt inside.

Jiang Xinghuo lifted the lid of the coffin, and the bones of a middle-aged man lay in the coffin.

"Everyone knows that I am an immortal, and this is who I was two hundred and sixty years ago."

The weather was very hot, Jiang Xinghuo just wanted to raise his arm, but Xu Miaojin took out a handkerchief, turned his back to the coffin, and wiped his sweat with trembling fingers.

Xu Miaojin looked up at him: "I don't dare to look at it." ”

Jiang Xinghuo didn't comfort her, but grabbed her shoulders with both hands and twisted it hard.

"If you were walking on the plains and suddenly you were confronted with a wall that was infinitely high upward, infinitely deep downward, infinitely far to the left, infinitely far to the right, what is it?"

"Death."

"yes, death."

Jiang Xinghuo asked again: "If a person can go through nine reincarnations of death and then live forever, is it a good thing or a bad thing?" ”

Xu Miaojin looked at the corpse in the tomb and fell into a short thought.

Death is the greatest fear of people, from ancient times to the present, how many emperors and generals, even if it is Qin Shi Huang, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, such a historical level of male masters, but still full of fear of death, always longing for immortality, and pinning their hopes on ethereal means such as asking immortals.

But is immortality really a good thing?

When there is only one person in the world, lonely and discovers that he can break through that wall, what will become of him?

Jiang Xinghuo patted Xu Miaojin on the shoulder, walked a few steps and leaned over to take out a small box from the tomb, the small box contained a diary wrapped in oilcloth, and Jiang Xinghuo handed it to Xu Miaojin.

"Let's go, go sit over there for a while."

In the back garden of the mansion, you can see two trees, one is a jujube tree, and the other is also a jujube tree.

There was a swing between the two jujube trees, Jiang Xinghuo sat on it, and Xu Miaojin sat next to him flipping through the old diary.

As the diary flipped through the pages of the past, Xu Miaojin's expression gradually changed from stunned to solemn.

"What does it feel like to die?"

"Death is the end of life for everyone, but not for me, death is reincarnation, a new life, the joy and pain of drowning in the deep water of boundless darkness and suddenly rising to the top and gasping for air."

Jiang Xinghuo leaned his back on the swing and looked at the blue sky and marshmallow-like clouds.

"Miss Xu, I am a passerby, and all feelings for me are scars branded in endless years, and they will always be painful in a certain year and place."

"You like me because I have so many things that are different from ordinary men, but for me, these are the scars and calluses that I have accumulated over time."

"The reason why I avoid or even reject you is not because you are not beautiful enough, not smart enough, in another time and space, we may be very suitable, but what I have to do now is not allow myself to be bound by feelings, this is a lonely road that thousands of people have been waiting for."

Xu Miaojin closed the diary, put her hands on it, and looked down at the yellowed cover.

"Then did Mr. Jiang have a favorite person in the past?"

"Yes."

Jiang Xinghuo was silent for a moment: "It's just that I was in a hurry at the time, so I forgot to tell her." ”

"What kind of person is she?"

"She is a person who sees her ideals as bigger than the sky."

"Ideal." Xu Miaojin chewed on this unfamiliar word.

"Everyone has ideals that are not necessarily the same, and ours is like this."

"A person's life should be spent in such a way that when he looks back, he does not regret that he wasted his time, nor is he ashamed of doing nothing. In this way, when I am dying, I can say: My life and all my experience are dedicated to the most magnificent cause in the world—the struggle for the happiness of a greater number of people. ”

"Did you succeed then?"

"It's going to work out."

Jiang Xinghuo stood up, and the light seemed to be foggy on him.

Ideals may fail, idealists will not, the body will eventually perish, and the will will will be immortal.

"I understand Mr. Jiang's ideals." Xu Miaojin smiled and said with some bitterness, "But I'm afraid I can't become a person like her." ”

Jiang Xinghuo turned his head and looked at her seriously.

"You are yourself, Xu Miaojin."

"The meaning of life is to do what you feel is meaningful, so that you will not regret it at the moment of death."

Xu Miaojin's white fingers wrapped around the silk silk of her clothes, and she also looked at Jiang Xinghuo.

"But I don't know what is meaningful, from childhood to adulthood, I have been arranged by my family."

"Then try to live for yourself." Jiang Xinghuo said softly.

Jiang Xinghuo stood by the grave, watching Xu Miaojin go away, not knowing whether the next goodbye would be here for years, or the old man with a red face, or a lonely grave with nowhere to talk about desolation.

"It's not good to listen to the corner, boy."

Jiang Xinghuo picked up Yu Qian from behind the wall in the corner.

"Master, how do you know?" Yu Qian was surprised, he felt that he had hidden enough to hide.

"The agent's memories have awakened for the time being."

"Did you say that to me just now?"

"You can understand it that way."

"Then I seem to understand the meaning of life again."

The two of them made their way to the dining room.

There was one more person in the dining room at this time, Cao Afu, the housekeeper of Cao Guogong's Mansion.

Looking at the round Cao Afu, before Jiang Xinghuo could speak, the other party had already nodded and bowed first, and then handed over a handwritten invitation from Li Jinglong.

"Master Guoshi, my grandfather invites you to enjoy the light and visit Mochou Lake after dinner, or the painting boat, which is parked at the pier of the Qinhuai River."

Li Jinglong didn't say what it was, but obviously if there was no important thing, he would not look for himself at this time, how could he have so much leisure to travel in the mountains and rivers.

"Okay, tell Cao Guogong that I will go."

——————

In the evening, on the Qinhuai River.

The sunset stained the river red like blood, and in the sparkling water, the painting boat slowly drove on it, the smoke willows in the distance, and the lanterns on the shore exuded a soft and warm light.

A breeze blew and lifted the curtain.

Jiang Xinghuo sat on the soft couch, with a few plates of delicate pastries in front of him, and tea and wine next to him.

The window of the painting boat was pushed open a little, and a slightly drunken night breeze poured in.

"National Teacher ......"

At this time, the little maid walked in with a tea tray, with a smile on her cheeks, and said, "The slave maid has just made the flower tea." ”

Jiang Xinghuo turned his head to look, only to see that the maid had clear eyebrows and beautiful eyes, slender and slender figure, she placed the tea tray on the table, then rolled up her sleeves to reveal her snow-white arms, and took a fan to fan Jiang Xinghuo.

"No need, what about Cao Guogong?"

Jiang Xinghuo didn't drink tea, his eyes swept around.

"Cao Guogong was delayed because of some things, and asked the national teacher to wait." The little maid said softly.

Hearing this, Jiang Xinghuo nodded, then kept silent, and continued to look out through the window.

Not long after, Li Jinglong hurriedly arrived.

"Why, I heard that I'm obsessed with lifting guns again? Just got back from the mountains today? ”

Li Jinglong is now not only playing with the handcuff given to him by Jiang Xinghuo, but also getting a handful of handcuffs from the War Bureau, which is the thing used in the air battle of the Flying Eagle Guard, which is six feet long, rifled, has an accurate head, and is powerful.

The generals are nothing more than drinking wine and eating meat together, or going out on a safari, and others also use bows, Li Jinglong directly lifts the gun, and stands in place to point where to fight, which is much more convenient and lighter than the bed crossbow, and it is really a great scenery.

"How can you still be in that mood."

Li Jinglong smiled bitterly and said, "I'm in trouble." ”

"This is strange, there is still trouble in front of Cao Guogong, the head of the hundred officials?"

Facing Jiang Xinghuo's ridicule, Li Jinglong told the matter one by one.

"I have a friend."

Well, Li Jinglong is really not a friend out of nothing, his friend Jiang Xinghuo has also heard that Japan's "King of Kyushu" Imagawa Rytoshi is a good hand in diplomacy and a rare "wise faction".

Imagawa did run into some trouble.

"You said that the goods brought by the Japanese merchants who followed the Japanese mission, because there is no tributary relationship, the Ministry of Rites does not approve them now, so these goods are illegal, and the merchants in Nanjing City cannot accept them?"

"Yes."

Li Jinglong nodded and said, "The Ministry of Rites is now Zhuo Jing as the Shangshu and Song Li as the right attendant, can you think of a way to be accommodating?" ”

"What you mean is that this matter is caused by Wang Jing, the left waiter."

Jiang Xinghuo took a sip of flower tea and thought thoughtfully.

"I don't know what madness he has, I have no grudge against him in the past, no enmity in the near future, why bother to pinch me in this kind of thing? It's a pity that I can't interfere in the affairs of civil officials. Li Jinglong sighed.

Jiang Xinghuo said, "Coming at me." ”

"Huh?" Li Jinglong was slightly stunned.

Seeing Li Jinglong like this, Jiang Xinghuo asked instead:

"I really don't know, I don't know, I don't know?"

"I don't know."

Seeing that Li Jinglong really didn't know, Jiang Xinghuo told him about Liang Zi, who had formed a relationship with Wang Jing in the "Assault Case of the Champa Mission".

Li Jinglong heard Jiang Xinghuo refute Wang Jing's face, which made him look wide-eyed, and Wang Jing's protégé, Shaoqing Xun of Honglu Temple, was also demoted to Guozijian as a director, and he was a little helpless for a while.

However, Li Jinglong didn't want to say anything, after all, Jiang Xinghuo helped him too much, he could return to the core decision-making level of the Ming Empire, it was impossible without Jiang Xinghuo's help, and it was impossible for him to complain about Jiang Xinghuo because of this little thing.

And when he was sent to Japan before, no one had spoken for him at that time, so now he has no other choice but to stand with the Fa Sect.

This little wind and wave is not a monstrous wave, Li Jinglong feels that it is still very easy to deal with.

"But in this way, things are really not that simple, Wang Jing is not a fool, since he dares to make trouble, he will not think that Zhuo Jing, as the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, has the power to bypass his approval."

Jiang Xinghuo followed and analyzed:

"If you approve it, you must be caught, Wang Jing is waiting for us to let Zhuo Jing approve, if Zhuo Jing can be dragged down, Wang Jing will be able to promote the Ministry of Rites, this is probably his purpose."

Li Jinglong groaned: "It's better for me to go and meet him directly, and don't let Zhuo Jing come forward." ”

"Don't worry, let's have a cup of tea first."

Jiang Xinghuo stopped him and said, "And since he is here for me, there are naturally ways to target me, but I am not worried about Wang Jing." ”

"What do you mean?"

Li Jinglong seemed to think of something, a trace of surprise flashed between his eyebrows, and his eyelids couldn't help jumping a few times.

Jiang Xinghuo dipped the tea and wrote a few words on Li Jinglong's palm with his fingers.

"It's taboo to do the things of the Flying Eagle Guard."

"It's normal, I also have a thorn in my heart, I can't sleep well, I'm afraid that a few people will stab in the middle of the night or directly smash down the oil can."

"So Wang Jing is so confident?"

"Not really, just a guess."

"Then you said it wouldn't."

"No, it's just checks and balances, beating, how to do it, at most the process is tortuous, otherwise the power of one side is getting bigger and bigger, and the arbiter won't be able to sit steadily? Let's wait and see what happens. ”

Li Jinglong hesitated: "Is this good?" ”

Jiang Xinghuo said "hey", and felt a little bored for a while, but he was not a child, so he naturally understood that every peck and drink had cause and effect, and since he did it, no matter what the motive was, he would inevitably have to bear the corresponding consequences.

"Of course it's not good, it's just a shrunken turtle."

"No, I'm afraid that he will spill his anger on you, after all, you caused trouble for my meritorious service." Li Jinglong said seriously.

Jiang Xinghuo rolled his eyes and said, "Don't worry, I promise it's okay." ”

Li Jinglong shook his head, and wanted to persuade again, but he heard movement outside, and then a middle-aged man walked in.

This middle-aged man was wearing a samurai costume and a long and short sword at his waist, he was handsome and elegant, but his expression was gloomy, and one arm was bandaged with a white cloth.

Imagawa handed the katana to the general Cao Ah Da who was guarding the door, and then bowed respectfully to Jiang Xinghuo.

"I've seen the Master of the Ming Dynasty."

"Imagawa-kun, long admiration."

Jiang Xinghuo still appreciates this Imagawa Ryokjun who is willing to take the initiative to be a leading party and a comprador just to return to the throne of the "King of Kyushu".

"There is an old Chinese saying that those who know the times are the ones who are handsome, and in my opinion, Imagawa-kun is such a handsome man."

"Don't dare to be, ashamed!"

"Ahda, let's sail."

Imagawa said a few words of humility, and after a moment's attention, he talked about the goods carried by the Japanese merchants who came with the mission.

Of course, the pressure on Imagawa Rytoshi is also very great, because in Japan, the status of merchants is completely different from that of the Ming Dynasty, and is independent of the elite class, Japan's guardian daimyo and even the shogun, whether it is a war or daily expenses, the money is not enough to borrow from the merchants, and it is also a mortgage, the kind of Japanese merchants who are not low in interest rate are very powerful, and they also have their own arms, and many Japanese groups are the big merchants of the feudal states of Shikoku Island, especially the sea merchants who are supported behind them, and the monks are one of the upper classes in Japan, They are the kind of people who hold the handle of a knife in one hand and a money bag in the other.

Therefore, these Japanese merchants came from afar, brought goods and could not sell, and the loss of profits was still a trivial matter, and most importantly, it would shake their confidence in free trade between the Ming Dynasty and Japan.

At times like these, faith is more precious than the gold in Sado's gold mountain.

In fact, it's not just a matter of "some cargo".

The things in the temple can be used to make a fuss, there are no small things, small things the size of sesame seeds, put them under the microscope to be seen, it is also a big thing, not to mention that this matter is already very big.

"This is a direct reflection of the official attitude of the Ming Dynasty towards free trade, if the Ming and Japan can not carry out free trade normally, I am afraid the consequences will be very serious, you know what I mean."

Imagawa Ryotoshi did not exaggerate, the deal between himself and Jiang Xinghuo in the exclusive monopoly of Songjiang cotton textiles was another matter, and the more direct consequence was the resurgence of the Japanese invaders.

The history of Jiang Xinghuo's previous life has fully proved that whether it is the current Ming Dynasty or the future "I Daqing", the more closed the country, the more rampant smuggling and piracy will become, and it will be repeatedly prohibited, even if there are famous generals and ministers like Qi Jiguang and Lin Zexu, they cannot completely stop it, and it is very easy to rebound.

Since the Hongwu Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty began to rely on setting up coastal guards to fight against the Japanese invaders, and the results were useful? Not the entire coastline has been repeatedly disturbed.

In fact, the main force of the Japanese was not the Japanese at all, but the people along the coast of the Ming Dynasty, who relied on the mountains to eat the mountains and the sea to eat the sea, and they were not allowed to eat the sea, and they were not allowed to fish and trade, and they could not survive, and this was the crux of the problem.

"That's true for you Japanese, but for us, the trouble goes far beyond that."

Jiang Xinghuo and Li Jinglong looked at each other and smiled bitterly.

The Tomorrow's Unarmed Free Trade Zone on the islands of Tsushima and Iki is the testing site of the new foreign trade model of the Ming Dynasty, and this experiment is actually to pave the way for subsequent North Korea, Annam and other countries to copy the same model, which is directly related to the positive cycle of Jiang Xinghuo's entire set of foreign strategies formulated for the Ming Dynasty.

And those who followed Imagawa to Daming were all big businessmen who supported free trade on the Japanese side.

If these Japanese merchants are not allowed to sell their goods, they will lose money the first time they come to Daming in a hurry, what will be the consequences?

Daming has no business reputation at all.

Even if the follow-up unarmed free trade zone of tomorrow is established, I am afraid that the effect will be much slower than expected, this is something that I can't wait for, how can Jiang Xinghuo have so much time to delay?

Therefore, Wang Jing grasped this key little thing and set up this game of killing two birds with one stone.

If Jiang Xinghuo intervenes and lets Zhuo Jing forcibly pass through his authority, then Zhuo Jing will be easily taken to the handle and attacked, and Wang Jing may become the secretary of the Ministry of Rites; If Jiang Xinghuo does not intervene, then the first informal trade of Yongle Dynasty tomorrow will be considered a waste, and it will be extremely difficult for Jiang Xinghuo to engage in an unarmed free trade zone in the future.

As for whether Zhuo Jing can not come forward and let Song Li do this?

No, the first is that Song Li is the right waiter, his position is lower than that of Wang Jing, the left waiter, and his qualifications and connections are also very poor, and he is not in charge of this business, so he is objectively incapable of doing it; The second is that Song Li is not necessarily willing to wade into this troubled water, although Song Li established a good friendship with Jiang Xinghuo during his trip to Jiangnan, but the original purpose of his standing in line with the law change faction was to be promoted, and it was impossible to risk losing his official position to do this.

Wang Jing has been up and down in the temple for many years, and now he has guessed the intention of Emperor Yongle, thinking that Emperor Yongle plans to beat Jiang Xinghuo and let Jiang Xinghuo put himself in the right position, and don't touch things that should not be touched, so he took the initiative to be this hammer, and by the way, he took a breath that he held back for a while.

Li Jinglong said: "It's easy to pretend to be dead, but I'm afraid the consequences are difficult to accept. Do you want to fight back? How do you fight back? ”

Li Jinglong couldn't be sure that if Emperor Yongle did have the meaning of this, then whether Emperor Yongle would raise his hand at the last moment and directly let the Japanese merchants trade, but in fact, Emperor Yongle didn't do it for his reasons, and the result of the whole incident would be very bad.

Seeing that Jiang Xinghuo didn't speak, Li Jinglong took a sip of tea and said:

"And there's the question of if we fight back, and if we succeed, will there be more serious consequences?"

Jiang Xinghuo understood what Li Jinglong meant, and what he meant was that if Wang Jing really had the acquiescence of Emperor Yongle in this matter, then the more beautiful he solved it, the more it would make Emperor Yongle feel uncomfortable, and he felt that he could solve similar problems independently by bypassing him.

But from the perspective of interests, don't do anything, pretend not to know, eat a deflated fact This matter is over, maybe at the last moment Emperor Yongle will raise a hand, after all, from the fundamental interests, Emperor Yongle still supports the reform of the law, and the change has just begun, and there is no reason to change the course.

In fact, although there is some intrigue in this, Jiang Xinghuo feels that if Emperor Yongle acquiesces, then in essence, Emperor Yongle, as the embodiment of imperial power, will be a kind of counterattack after being touched on the sensitive topic of military power.

Jiang Xinghuo mobilized the Flying Eagle Guard without an order, of course, out of good intentions, in order to avoid Emperor Yongle being burned into a burning man by the hot air balloon of the Tyrant Zhao, but the things in the temple are not counted like this, one yard is one yard, Emperor Yongle is grateful to Jiang Xinghuo and wants to reward him for his contribution to stopping the conspiracy of Tyrant Zhao, but at the same time, he will also be dissatisfied with Jiang Xinghuo's touch on military power After all, people's hearts are unpredictable, this time it is kind, next time it is kind, next time, what about next time?

Therefore, even if Emperor Yongle really used Wang Jing to beat himself, Jiang Xinghuo could understand it, and he would do the same if he thought about it from his own position.

But if you can understand it, Jiang Xinghuo doesn't intend to swallow it.

Why?

Looking out the window at the painting boat and entering Mochou Lake, Jiang Xinghuo just sneered against the railing.

In the matter of changing the law, either don't hold me back, or just break up, I am not your vassal, I am not considering your interests, I, Jiang Xinghuo, do these things for the sake of the righteousness of the family and the country, but it just happens that the interests of the two sides in this paragraph are highly overlapping.

Therefore, if it is purely Wang Jing's plan, he has to fight back.

If there is Emperor Yongle's abacus in this, Jiang Xinghuo must also smash him.

This is not a matter of unbearable anger and no pattern, but a fundamental position and attitude problem, since cooperation must draw a clear bottom line, the same principle as military power, there may be a second time to hinder the change of the law, if you don't fight back this time, you will use the change of the law every time to jam Jiang Xinghuo, in order to pinch him, then the days will not pass?

Jiang Xinghuo asked: "Imagawa-kun, what are the approximate categories of these goods, and what is the valuation?" ”

Imagawa Ryojun frowned slightly, he really didn't know, after all, in a sense, this thing is also a trade secret, and all the big businessmen are hidden in the ship, and they will definitely not easily tell others what goods they have brought and how many they have.

Li Jinglong probably guessed what Jiang Xinghuo meant, and when he saw Jiang Xinghuo speak, this was the meaning of fighting back, but he still had some drums in his heart, and couldn't help persuading: "Jiang Lang, otherwise I will package all these goods, and then sell them slowly, there should not be many goods that are difficult to store, so that the return on investment will take a long time at most, and there will be no loss, so that the matter will be solved, the Japanese businessman got the money, and Wang Jing's trap does not need anyone to jump, do you think it is feasible?" ”

Imagawa nodded, he thought this was indeed a good way, after all, Cao Guogong's family had money, and he bought all the goods of Japanese merchants and hoarded them, and no one could say anything about spending his own money, right?

As for the approval of tributary trade? Sorry, these merchants and ships are helping Cao Guogong to transport goods, as early as in Japan signed the deed, we believe in Cao Guogong's reputation, so first bring the goods over and wait for Cao Guogong to return home to get the money and then trade on the spot.

"You're so rich?"

Jiang Xinghuo was a little surprised, but he heard that at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet last year, Li Jinglong donated tens of thousands of taels of silver at once, which was not a small number at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, and now in less than a year, Li Jinglong's money bag has swelled again?

What is his family doing? Printing Da Ming treasure banknotes?

Li Jinglong smiled shyly: "I have a little family resources." ”

"Okay, I know you have money, but I can't let you pay it."

Jiang Xinghuo shook his head, and then summoned Li Jinglong and Imagawa Lijun over, and whispered in his ear.

The two looked at each other, both in disbelief.

"Can you still play like this?"

"And this kind of operation?"

(End of chapter)