chun jie di xiao long

Chapter 630 Strip Him

Chapter 1 The Intricacies of Travel

The carriage was exquisite in appearance;

but its true distinction lay within. A mechanism inside, when triggered, would instantly transform it into a highly fortified iron cage.

Furthermore, the carriage's undercarriage contained a hidden compartment, large enough for a person to lie down in.

Therefore, the carriage was obviously very heavy.

Pixiu led six horses, all pulling the carriage together.

It wasn't that Marquis Zheng wanted to mistreat his steeds, but rather that this fellow wanted to experience being the boss, so he let it be.

So, sometimes Marquis Zheng found it amusing;

everyone was so busy, with so much to do, yet at this extremely hectic time, he first conjured up an honor guard for himself, and then this carriage, which was bound to take a long time to build;

in the end,

it could only be attributed to that damned aesthetic sense.

No matter how pressing things were outside, no matter how much work was at hand,

when it came to being a petty bourgeois, he still had to be a petty bourgeois.

Not bad,

Xue San must have added some shock absorption design to the carriage, so lying inside, with the small stove warming the tea, was quite pleasant.

It was just a pity, there was no Da Ze Fragrant Tongue tea.

Marquis Zheng didn't find any special distinction between other teas; it wasn't that he couldn't discern the flavor and aroma, but rather that they all felt pretty much the same, he could drink anything that was brewed;

only this Da Ze Fragrant Tongue was most suitable for this moment,

to sweetly sleep through the journey, what a wonderful thing that would be.

But reality proved that Marquis Zheng was thinking too much.

Although he didn't have to, like his brother-in-law, review memorials wherever he went, because Marquis Zheng had completely delegated his authority. Not to mention the Blind Man, Si Niang's power within the Marquis's residence could make Empress Lu, Consort Wu Zhao, and Empress Dowager Cixi willingly admit defeat before their men died.

However,

first, news from Ying Du kept pouring in.

Part of it was news from Xiao Liu Zi's people there.

Although Zheng Fan, ever since becoming a Marquis, hadn't been as interested in Xiao Liu Zi's side as before;

but after the seller's market turned into a buyer's market, Xiao Liu Zi's side became even more attentive to the Pingxi Marquis's residence.

The intelligence network was still structured there, and news would be transmitted here.

Another part was news subsequently sent by Sun Youdao from there.

The last part was news from the Marquis's residence's own establishments in Ying Du, but because the Marquis's residence's foundation in Ying Du was too shallow, this part of the news could be directly ignored.

The matter,

was far from being as simple as the assassination of a Fifth Prince;

the Fifth Prince was assassinated while attending a banquet. This banquet was convened to gather the heads of the major chambers of commerce and the spokespersons of large families in and around Ying Du;

not for eating, drinking, and having fun,

but to raise funds and grain to settle the disaster victims, equivalent to a charity gala in later generations.

Then,

during the banquet,

someone poisoned the wine.

In an instant, many guests fell, and even Mao Mingcai, the governor of Ying Du, was poisoned.

The Fifth Prince, however, wasn't poisoned by the wine, because he had once set up an altar before the New Year in his capacity as a prince to pray for the people of the Three Jin, praying for favorable weather in the coming year.

Therefore, according to etiquette, he had to fast and live like an ascetic during this period. Wine and meat were off-limits, at least, he couldn't touch them openly.

So, he probably substituted tea for wine at the banquet.

But when something happened at the banquet, and the Fifth Prince was being protected by his guards to leave, he was attacked by a group of assassins. The assassins were highly skilled, and the Fifth Prince, despite being protected, still took a knife wound.

It didn't matter if you didn't drink wine, the knife was poisoned.

So,

the Fifth Prince was seriously injured and unconscious, and hasn't yet turned the corner.

Now, the people from the Ying Du Secret Intelligence Division have completely taken over the prince's defense, and no one is allowed to visit.

So,

this was a premeditated and cleverly designed event;

leaving aside the Fifth Prince,

that night at the banquet, thirty-seven dignitaries ultimately died from the poisoned wine.

It should be known that the people who could attend that level of banquet certainly had high status and positions. Thirty-seven of them were poisoned to death at once, no wonder Prince Cheng's residence was sending official letters to this side in such a hurry.

Because this was no longer a simple assassination; the damage it caused was no less than another coup in Ying Du.

Just imagine, those dignitaries were originally high above, feeling aloof from worldly affairs;

suddenly, so many of their kind died at once, how could they not panic?

Who knew what the mastermind behind this would do next?

With over thirty major shopkeepers or family spokespersons suddenly dead, and many like Mao Mingcai lying in bed even though they hadn't died, even when Marquis Zheng took the opportunity to make trouble in Ying Du due to the imperial examination cheating case, leading the Jingnan Army into the city to arrest people, it seemed like he had broken up many families and beheaded many people, but in reality, most of them were middle and lower-level lackeys. The truly high-level people didn't bother to cheat for their children in the imperial examinations; they had other channels.

Therefore, it was possible that in the eyes of the people of Ying Du, this matter was much smaller than what that Earl, now Marquis, had caused last time.

But the elite circles of Ying Du were truly terrified this time.

They were now in dire need of a pillar of stability,

even if he did nothing upon arrival,

as long as he was there,

everyone could calm their nerves!

After roughly summarizing the news from Ying Du and learning that the dignitaries there were eagerly awaiting him, Marquis Zheng still remained unhurried. His pixiu was still happily leading a group of horses pulling the carriage;

because next,

Zheng Fan received the request to meet from Gong Wang and Gongsun Zhi.

Their respective units had also dispatched troops, partly to respond to Zheng Fan's advancing column, and partly to move closer to Jade Plate City. At the same time, according to the instructions given by the Marquis's residence in advance, they were to brush against Wang Jiang;

although it wasn't nominally their defense zone, they could slightly cross the border under the guise of paving the way for Marquis Pingxi.

Boundaries, if you don't brush against them, they will always be clear. If you brush against them often, they will become blurred.

After the meeting, the two commanding generals went to see their sons placed beside Marquis Zheng, and then returned to their respective units.

Zheng Fan's column continued to maintain its previous speed, heading west unhurriedly.

When the column arrived at Jade Plate City,

people from Prince Cheng's residence, the Prefect's residence, and many other government offices in Ying Du were waiting here. They were like fledglings waiting to be fed, eagerly hoping that Marquis Pingxi could arrive in Ying Du as soon as possible.

Marquis Zheng received the people from Prince Cheng's residence and the Prefect's residence, but didn't see anyone else.

Even for the former two,

Zheng Fan only listened briefly to what they had to say, didn't let them take any messages back, and waved his hand, indicating that they could leave.

Afterward,

the Pingxi Marquis's column stayed overnight in Jade Plate City;

Zheng Fan himself even took a bath.

This once prosperous city of Jin, known as "two-legged sheep," was gradually recovering some of its former glory after several years of recuperation.

The gambling houses and brothels in the city had once again become pillar industries.

The gathering of popularity was fast, and the money came quickly,

in many cases, this was the inevitable situation when there was no other choice.

Correspondingly, outside Jade Plate City, there were clusters of emaciated refugees huddled in the corners of the walls.

There should have been even more refugees, after all, the Pingxi Marquis's residence in eastern Jin was still working hard to absorb some of the remaining ones.

But perhaps the Blind Man himself underestimated the terrible impact of the floods and years of war on this area. Originally, he was happily thinking of raising more refugees to absorb, but in the end, he began to order Gong Wang and Gongsun Zhi's units to set up checkpoints to prevent the refugees from flooding into eastern Jin. At the same time, the original propaganda efforts were stopped, no longer instigating the refugees there to move east.

Because the Marquis's residence was already full.

In order to cope with this food crisis, the Blind Man had initiated a grain storage plan early on. Now, at least the people of eastern Jin could have two meals of mashed potatoes a day, but if there were more refugees, the Marquis's residence would no longer be able to accommodate them.

Population was extremely valuable wealth, but anything in excess was as bad as being deficient. If you absorbed too much population but couldn't accommodate and support them, all sorts of problems would immediately arise.

Therefore, it was still necessary to wait until the Marquis's residence's development of eastern Jin had entered the next stage, until the most difficult part had passed, and then slowly absorb them.

According to the Blind Man's saying,

after the most difficult winter and spring had passed,

the old, weak, sick, and disabled would be screened out in batches, and the rest would be easier to pick and choose from.

Was it cold-blooded?

It was cold-blooded.

But in eastern Jin, many of the migrants and refugees who had arrived early, after hearing that this mashed potato paste was from a blind strategist under the Marquis's command who had planted it in advance,

many people began to erect plaques for the Blind Man and make offerings.

In the refugee camps,

there was even a rumor that the reason why the "North Gentleman" had lost his sight was because he couldn't bear to see human suffering.

For this reason,

the Blind Man had specifically reported this matter to Zheng Fan, his lord.

This wasn't something he had created, he hadn't thought of shaping a light around himself.

Zheng Fan just smiled it off, and even asked the Blind Man if their temples would be spread here in a few hundred years?

He himself sitting in the first seat, with a solemn dharma appearance, and under the lotus platform, a group of attendants, the one leading the way was a blind attendant, with a compassionate appearance.

The Blind Man reported it specifically as a rule he believed in, a process that had to be followed;

but in reality,

neither Zheng Fan nor the Blind Man would be suspicious of each other because of this kind of thing, they only treated it as idle talk after dinner.



In the courtyard of the residence where they were staying overnight,

Chen Daxia asked curiously:

"The people on the other side of the river are clearly waiting for him bitterly, why is he still so leisurely?"

Chen Daxia rarely used honorifics for Marquis Zheng;

because in Chen Daxia's simple worldview, Zheng Fan was now not the world-shaking Yan state military merit Marquis, but still the small garrison officer in Yinlang County whom he had misunderstood, someone he had almost killed, but who had repaid him with kindness… um, a close friend.

The Swordsaint, wearing a bamboo hat, sat in the courtyard, Longyuan hidden under cloth wrappings;

then,

he watched his son, Liu Dahu, leading a group of young men, excitedly and earnestly chopping firewood, boiling water, and preparing a bath for Marquis Pingxi.

At this time, the Swordsaint and the Swordsaint at home were completely different in temperament, and since he wasn't showing his true face, Liu Dahu didn't know that the white-clothed swordsman sitting in the pavilion in the distance was actually his father, whose health had always been poor.

Watching his son so seriously and solemnly busy serving that man,

and feeling a sacred sense of mission,

the Swordsaint was extremely depressed,

and couldn't help but say:

"He's really stupid."

"……" Chen Daxia.

Chen Daxia lowered his head in shame. He would never talk back when his master spoke to him like that.

Gou Moli, who was sitting beside him, habitually liking to connect with the Swordsaint, smiled at this time;

"This is called status, this is called identity. If he rushed over in a hurry, he would lose that prestige. This prestige often seems useless, but at critical moments, it can actually solve a lot of trouble.

Moreover, this is the first time our Marquis has officially gone out after being conferred the title of Marquis. The style has to be set by himself first, and then it can become the rule in the future. There's absolutely no reason to lower your own style.

If you lower it the first time, it will be really difficult to raise it again in the future.

Furthermore,

so much time has passed since the assassination, if the assassins and masterminds could be caught, they would have been caught long ago. The people in Ying Du are definitely not just a bunch of good-for-nothings, and when it involves, no, when their own lives are already threatened, they are very smart.

So, our Marquis's trip to Ying Du isn't to catch the assassins, the Marquis is the Pingxi Marquis, not also in charge of the Ministry of Justice or the Court of Judicial Review.

Look,

rushing over doesn't do any good or serve any purpose, why not be more leisurely?"

Chen Daxia nodded upon hearing this, and said:

"What you said, I understand."

"Thank you."

Just then, He Chunlai walked over.

Before he could speak, Gou Moli stood up, left the pavilion, and walked into the room with him.

Inside the room,

Marquis Zheng, having already taken a bath, was wearing the leopard-print pajamas that Si Niang had made for him in Tiger Head City, and was reclining there, playing with a snuff bottle that Xiao Liu Zi had given him.

He couldn't use a snuff bottle, but it was nice to hold it in his hand and play with it.

He Chunlai stood to the side, while Gou Moli consciously sat down on a chair below.

The Marquis didn't speak,

the atmosphere was a bit silent,

a big shot could have the power to create awkwardness, but those below couldn't sit back and watch the scene become cold.

So,

in order to liven up the atmosphere,

Gou Moli looked at He Chunlai and asked;

"Little He, do you think your people did this assassination?"

"……" He Chunlai.

"Huh?" Gou Moli asked again.

He Chunlai said; "I've already broken ties with that side."

Earlier, when the Yan state annexed the Three Jin lands, the Jin land righteous men began a resistance movement, which was similar in nature to the Heaven and Earth Society. He Chunlai came from there.

It was just that when he was disguised as a hawker selling candied haws and handing over intelligence in Ying Du, he was casually captured by Fan Li and made to make candied haws for Jian Bi to eat.

"Hiss, why did you break it off? What a waste." Gou Moli said with heartache, "Think about it, our master is a Marquis of Great Yan, and he's holding a line of Jin land rebels in his hand. It's so pleasant to be both an official and a bandit."

"I……"

He Chunlai wanted to say that he disdained to do such a thing, but he couldn't say it.

Some things could be thought in his heart like that. The North Gentleman and the Marquis lying there who weren't speaking actually knew what he was thinking, and they didn't mind;

but if he stupidly said it, it would be his own lack of tact.

He Chunlai could only say:

"I think it shouldn't be them. The last time the Marquis was in Ying Du, their hidden forces in Ying Du were already badly damaged. This time, the scale is very large. Poisoning aside, just the group of experts who assassinated the Fifth Prince shouldn't be something they can prepare now."

"Not necessarily, I've always heard that there are many heroes in the Three Jin lands," Gou Moli said.

He had dealt with Jin people for half his life.

"But among us, there are many factions, and it's impossible to integrate them. Some are the remnants of the Situ family, who want to restore the Situ family. Some are the remnants of the Helian family, some are the remnants of the Wenren family, and some want to support the Yu family. And each faction's remnants are further divided into small factions. They can't gather together at all, and sometimes when they meet, they will fight each other over which family to support."

"Heh…"

Marquis Zheng, who was lying there, laughed. There was really nothing new under the sun.

Looking at this campaign against Chu, the Great Yan raised the power of the entire country, but only took Zhennan Pass, seized Shanggu County, and plundered for a while after taking the initiative in offense and defense, then had to withdraw;

Back then, when they fought the Qian kingdom, they fought to the bottom of the Shangjing city, didn't they withdraw in the end?

Only the Jin kingdom was beaten to collapse. Ultimately, it was because the Three Families Divided Jin, which led to internal disunity and inability to unify.

Now,

the Jin people still maintained their good tradition of internal strife.

After Marquis Zheng spoke, Gou Moli stopped teasing He Chunlai.

"Prince Cheng?"

Marquis Zheng said.

Gou Moli said, "It's not appropriate. We have to leave some face, and it's too abrupt. It's best to proceed gradually."

Marquis Zheng nodded, "Prefect's residence?"

"Marquis, Mao Mingcai is still lying down."

Marquis Zheng shook his head.

He Chunlai, who was standing on the side, tried hard to listen and think;

then,

he suddenly felt that cooking seemed more suitable for him.

At this time, a guard came up to report that the governor of Jade Plate City, Ma Changshan, had arrived.

Zheng Fan pointed at He Chunlai,

He Chunlai understood and went out to see the situation.

Not long after,

He Chunlai came back.

"Marquis, Ma Changshan is requesting an audience."

"Don't see him."

"Marquis, Ma Changshan brought gifts, seven young girls, saying that the contracts of sale were all obtained through proper channels, and that he had carefully selected them from the refugees outside the city."

With refugees, selling children was normal.

Zheng Fan waved his hand,

"Whip them ten times and throw them out."

"In addition to the seven young girls, there are also their mothers, all washed clean and dressed in new clothes, kneeling outside, also to be sent along."

Zheng Fan smiled and looked at Gou Moli,

Gou Moli also smiled, "Just right, Marquis."

Zheng Fan nodded,

and said to He Chunlai:

"Thank Ma Prefect for this Marquis."

"Yes, Marquis."

"Then strip him naked and hang him on the city wall."