In the sixth year of auspicious charm, at the end of February.

Lecture martial arts.

Spring has not yet awakened, and there is a cold winter in the air. The old courtier in the hall raised his slender whip, and behind him was a hanging topographical map of the Great Zhou. The territory of the Great Zhou Dynasty is vast, with a total of 16 states and 48 counties, and it is divided into general names due to various reasons such as orientation, history and customs.

"The area south of the Yangtze River, surrounded by mountains and rivers, generally speaking, Yangzhou, Changzhou, Binzhou, Qingzhou, and Yuezhou are all called Jiangnan, but the difference is just far and near." The old courtiers were overwhelmed, coughed a few times, glanced at the ignorant princes under the seat, and sighed, "Your Highness, do you know why Gyeongju raised the rebel flag first?" ”

The third prince dragged his cheeks, holding a brush between his lips and the tip of his nose, and looked back and forth at his brothers. The fifth prince was too young, and he wrinkled his face and pondered. Bai Ziche was as quiet and indifferent as ever, as if he was out of the matter. The Sixth Prince was not even old enough to attend the class, so he simply did not come.

"If you want me to say, it's all the fault of the New Deal."

The third prince spoke disdainfully, "Isn't Pei Cifu, the one who pleaded with my father to implement the new policy, not come to the court for a few days?" The ancestral system of the Great Zhou Dynasty for a hundred years, so far he has been safe and sound, and there is nothing going on, but he tossed blindly in order to sell his fame and reputation, causing a lot of trouble. ”

"Hey, Bai Ziche." The third prince raised his chin at Bai Ziche, "Didn't Pei Zhang give you a lecture alone?" Didn't the young master of the Pei family atone for the sins created by this unscrupulous son of their family? ”

Bai Ziche put down the pen in his hand and glanced at him lightly, "Brother Huang, be cautious." ”

The third prince was energetic, and he was about to argue with Bai Ziche by twisting his neck.

"Sir, may I answer?" Sun Yan, who poked behind Bai Ziche like a wooden stake, raised his hand in a daze.

The old minister was tired, and he was happy to have such a stunned young man to resolve the contradictions between the princes, and raised his hand to signal him.

"Because of poverty." Sun Yan said succinctly and forcefully.

The third prince sneered unceremoniously.

Bai Ziche didn't look at anyone, and said, "It's not wrong to say that it's because of poverty." ”

"Ridiculous, I'm a big country, can I still make people hungry?" The third prince raised his eyebrows and retorted, "It's clearly an excuse for ill-intentioned people!" ”

"Although Gyeongju and Binju both belong to the south of the Yangtze River, they are close to the land of Nanban, and the mountains are rugged and full of miasma, which is not easy to cultivate, let alone picking mulberry and raising silkworms, casting iron and drying salt." Bai Ziche calmed down and said, "In remote places, there are countless things that despise the king's law, what is the strange thing if you can't eat enough?" ”

"Bai Ziche, are you alluding to your father's lax rule of the country?" The three princes stared at him.

"It's not that Your Majesty is wrong in governing the country, it's that Your Royal Highness is too naïve."

This sentence came out of nowhere, and Qing Lingling's voice was like a slap in the face of the third prince. The corners of his eyes twitched slightly, and he looked at Chu Zhixia, who was standing under the hall at some point.

Chu Zhixia was wearing a simple plain robe, walked into the lecture hall with his hands in his hands, glanced at the prince under the seat with his head held high, and bowed slightly. She doesn't apply powder, and her face is a pure and even halo, like a transparent jade.

"Your Majesty ordered me to explain the Wu Guang Rebellion to the princes." Chu Zhixia helped the old courtier to sit down, and used cinnabar to drop a red circle between Binzhou and Gyeongju.

The three princes looked back, and the emperor and his ministers were standing outside the lecture hall not far away. Bai Zi Chewu lowered his head and pondered, and only looked up at Chu Zhixia for a long time.

Wu Guang is a resident of a small village called 'Yuzhuang' on the border between Gyeongju and Binju. The fishing village is not worthy of its name, the products are scarce, the arable land is scarce and occupied by the squire, and the local people mostly lease the fields to cultivate and live.

The squires colluded with the officials to manipulate the fish scale book and transfer the taxes to the poor people. Wu Guang couldn't bear it anymore, and after stabbing the squire to death with a knife, he unveiled the rod and got up, and the people of the fishing village responded one after another. The momentum of the prairie fire suddenly swept through Gyeongju, and now Gyeongju is already in chaos.

"Sun Yan is right, the rebellion in Gyeongju is indeed because of poverty." Chu Shixia said slowly, "But it's not just because of poverty. ”

"Gyeongju is adjacent to Binju, and the epidemic in Binju has also affected the fishing villages, and there are many displaced people in the local area who have escaped the plague. Wu Guang had already seen the tragic situation of the plague in Binzhou, there were wolves in front and tigers in the back, and it was a death anyway, so he simply reversed. Chu Shixia blinked and said, "It's as simple as that." ”

The third prince said contemptuously: "How is it possible, doesn't he want to live?" Someone must have instructed it. ”

"Chunxian Cao Jie died on the Xuanzheng Palace, did His Royal Highness forget it so quickly?" When Chu Shixia mentioned this name, everyone's hearts trembled, and they secretly looked at the emperor's face, but Chu Shixia was terrifyingly calm.

"Wu Guang rebelled, not because he wanted to die, on the contrary, he wanted to live. But he couldn't see a way to live. Chu Zhixia raised his knuckles and knocked on the red circle, stared at the third prince and said, "So the people in many places in Gyeongju support Wu Guang, and it is the same." ”

The third prince was stabbed by her sharp eyes, and stammered a little: "Ridiculous! Aren't they just a few rioters? Sending troops to suppress it is, could it be that the Chu clan in your cloud can beat the barbarians outside the border, and can't beat the homeless people who can't eat? ”

He was clearly one year older than Chu Zhixia, but he had a childish spirit that was not afraid of heaven and earth, and glared at Chu Shixia unruly.

"Wu Guang is not pulling the banner of being a king and hegemon, and the people who follow him are all homeless people who can't eat enough and can't survive. If it is suppressed by strong troops, it will arouse the desire of the desperate people to survive, and no one dares to say that they can win easily. ”

Even if Wu Guang fought the idea of "building high walls, accumulating grain, and slowing down the king", at least in the eyes of the people of Gyeongju, he was the savior of the rebellion against tyranny. Wu Guang's confidence is nothing else, it is the countless people in Gyeongju who are eager to live.

Chu Zhixia no longer paid attention to the three princes, but looked straight at the emperor under the court: "If you want to appease the rebellion in Qingzhou, first calm the epidemic in Binzhou, and then stop the scourge of corrupt officials and corrupt officials abducting and plundering the people." In this way, we can completely disintegrate Wu Guang's power, demonstrate the virtue of the emperor's good life, and consolidate the society of our dynasty for thousands of generations. ”

The emperor slowly walked into the lecture hall, and the red-robed officials stood quietly under the lecture hall, like a thick fire cloud. The emperor stood in front of the huge map, and looked down at Chu Zhixia again: "Leading the troops to fight is the origin of the Chu family in the clouds. This insight is also very accessible. Mo Xue thinks, who can solve this difficulty? ”

It's another epidemic, it's a rebel army, and it's a corrupt official. Any of these things alone is a hot potato, and a bad one is full of bags. If it's too soft, it can't be controlled, and if it's too hard, you'll be accused of cruelty.

No one dared to say yes.

Bai Ziche seemed to sense something, and the fingers on his knees curled slightly, almost standing up.

Chu Zhixia picked up the corners of his robe, knelt down on one knee in front of the emperor, bowed his head and said: "The minister is not talented, and he is willing to serve His Majesty." ”

The emperor pretended to be unbearable and said, "You are still young. ”

Chu Shixia maintained the etiquette of a military general, and said in a sonorous and powerful manner: "The Chu clan in the clouds should stop the killing and felling rebellion for the world." Father and brother are not afraid to fight outside, and Mo Xue has no reason to be greedy for life and afraid of death and retreat. ”

"I hope Your Majesty will grant permission."

Bai Ziche closed his eyes slightly, knowing that there was no room for turning around in this matter. Chu Shixia came to Wutang today, and it was not the emperor who wanted to convince him, but the civil and military officials—and even the king of Zhenbei, who was far away in the clouds.

This is just a scene choreographed by the emperor and Chu Zhixia, and the others are puppet spectators wearing red and green sitting in the audience applauding.

"Father."

Bai Ziche suddenly got up and bowed to the emperor for a long time, "Erchen admires Miss Chu and understands the righteousness, and is willing to go with her to share the worries and solve problems for the emperor." I beg my father's permission. ”

Chu Zhixia's long eyelashes couldn't help but be shocked, and his eyebrows frowned slightly.

The emperor's face was slightly distorted, and his eyes looked at Bai Ziche a little strangely. But the arrow has to be sent, if the emperor rejects Bai Ziche's request, the play will stumble.

The emperor had no choice but to say, "Yes." ”

——

The people in the lecture hall scattered one after another.

Chu Zhixia leaned his back against the railing, tilted his head and asked, "His Royal Highness the King of Qi, what are you doing here?" ”

In the days when Chu Zhixia was grounded, Bai Ziche was suppressed by Bai Huan and retreated, although he had the qualifications to participate in the court's politics, he never said a word. Bai Ziche seemed to have given up completely, socializing with the poor scholars of the Hanlin Academy, and editing a collection of poems on strategy.

Even the candidates who rushed to the scientific examination have heard that if they are poor and unable to eat, and it is difficult to support the opening of the examination, they can go to the Qi Wang's Mansion to receive a copy of the money with the documents and barely survive.

"Now is the time when Bai Huan regards you as a thorn in the flesh, and you shouldn't leave the imperial capital." Chu Shixia shook his head and said, "The situation in the imperial capital is changing rapidly, if you are not here, I am afraid that something will happen." ”

For example, the emperor died suddenly, and Bai Huan, as the eldest son, succeeded to the throne logically. At that time, even if the Gyeongju rebellion has been quelled, Bai Ziche's life will still be a thing in Bai Huan's hands. Chu Zhixia has never been afraid to speculate on the Chen family with the most vicious thoughts.

"There are Mr. Pei and Yan Xiaohou here." Bai Ziche knew what she was thinking, "At least it won't be the worst-case scenario." ”

Chu Zhixia smiled and sighed, and asked again: "If you want to take advantage of this trip to win loyal ministers and good generals, it is too risky. Don't say that the sword on the battlefield has no eyes, it is a plague, and it is not easy to parry. If the gentleman does not stand under the dangerous wall, His Royal Highness should still find an opportunity to shirk this matter with His Majesty. ”

Bai Ziche also shook his head and said firmly: "Mr. Huo told me that people in high positions are most afraid of being deaf and blind, and it is difficult to see the size of the world if they are trapped in a corner. The country and the people, the mountains and rivers are magnificent, and the starvation is everywhere, and the people are also the world. ”

"I want to see with my own eyes, this huge world."

Chu Shixia was stunned, suddenly smiled, and said with relief: "Also, it is I who think of His Highness too fragile." ”

Bai Ziche is going to take the road of seizing power, he is destined to kill his father and brother, he is not a weak person. It's just that Chu Zhixia is often confused by his submissive appearance, and forgets that he is essentially a person who can carefully detect the identity of Shen Zhou in the assassination of Yuanjue Temple.

"If you don't see the suffering of all beings, how can you solve the suffering of all beings."

Chu Shixia looked at the palace wall in the distance leisurely, like layers of passes from mountain to water, and like a huge labyrinth, with twists and turns on the road, locked up small insects who knew nothing and struggled outward.

"What about you, you know that this errand is unlucky, why do you want to do it all at once?" Bai Ziche looked at her side face and asked seriously.

"Your Majesty told me that Yuezhou took the lead in quelling the rebellion and was defeated."

Chu Zhixia said lightly, "It's just to stabilize the hearts of the people in the DPRK, and there is no noise yet." It was pressed on the cabinet table, and it was kept secret. No one stopped me today, and I knew that if I continued to delay, the situation would be out of control. ”

"Therefore they have no objection to you going, but if you are even, the credit is not all yours; If you lose, this account will be counted on the head of the Chu family. Bai Ziche said with resentment, "This is my civil and military ministers of the Great Zhou Dynasty and the pillar of the country." ”

"Ever since I was able to read and write, I have read military books and learned the four characters of Yasukuni Pingjing." Chu Zhixia turned his head and looked at him, his eyes were calm, "War is a disaster for the country and the people. Although I was not awarded, I am still a general of the Great Zhou. ”

Bai Ziche was dumbfounded, and then smiled, "You are so confident that you can win?" ”

Chu Zhixia patted him on the shoulder, half frivolous and half juvenile and said, "I have only lost once in my life. Then he tied, and walked into the deep court.

Bai Ziche was stunned for a moment, and then followed behind her and asked, "You fought before you came to the imperial capital?" ”

Chu Zhixia just laughed and didn't answer.

In Chu Zhixia's life, only Yongxue Pass was defeated. She was defeated by the Erdan Khan of the Northern Diqing Eagle Division, or, rather, to a monarch who was more suspicious and less scheming. She only lost that once, and then she lost the Yongxue Pass, and lost the lives of millions of Li people in Yunzhong and behind the pass.

But Chu Shixia will never lose again.