The rise of the prince

Chapter 269
At night, Li Xingzhou was lying on the soft couch in the attic. He opened the window, and the night breeze came in. From here, he could see the stars in the distance. The warriors in leather armor took turns to watch the night, presumably it was like this day and night before.

There is hardly any fire in the distance, which is very abnormal for a city like Luzhou.

Sometimes there would be screams in the dark, and the sound was far away, and the guards of the palace seemed to have gotten used to it.

Living in such a world, it is inevitable that there will be a sense of depression. Even Li Xingzhou has never experienced this kind of situation. Random murders on the street can kill people for food. This is the current security situation in Luzhou, and it is almost hopeless .

He couldn't help laughing at himself for taking it for granted. Although he has been in this world for so long, he still likes to use his own ideas to weigh. He has forgotten how important it is for the ancients to return to their roots and the love of the country.

After thinking about it, he has already made a decision in his heart, he will go back tomorrow, at least find out the situation in Suzhou and Luzhou, it is not like returning empty-handed, they have only been here for nine days, and it will probably be faster to go back, because the road is already familiar up.

My sister-in-law has her stand and decision, so I can only respect her.

As for the people of Luzhou
Li Xingzhou could only sigh, thinking silently in his heart, I am not a good person after all, and there is nothing I can do.
Some people know a little bit, and like to look at problems from a superior perspective. The so-called half bucket of water is probably like this. They like to criticize the ignorance of the people and slander the thinking and wisdom of the people at the bottom.

But a truly learned person is able to look at problems more deeply, and will not criticize and slander.

For example, those with a little understanding of psychology will laugh at the general rule that people only follow the trend and do not understand autonomy, but real senior psychologists will point out that herd mentality has always been one of the important strategies for human beings to make efficient decisions, just like instinct The general strategy, the instinct of human survival, is also of great significance to the progress of human beings.There is nothing wrong with following the crowd, only when you truly realize that you are following the crowd, you can treat it correctly.

Just like revolution, there are two kinds of revolutions. Most of them overthrow one kind of oppression and meet another kind of oppression. Unless the people can truly awaken, how can the people awaken?This is not within the reach of human beings and can be dominated by people. Even figures like Confucius and Jesus can only be said to guide.

Unless human beings become gods and become omniscient and omniscient as they imagined, the definition of right and wrong, black and white is constantly being rewritten, because we are not gods, and all we can do is make choices in suffering.

Therefore, things are not black and white, right or wrong, and we cannot just criticize and refute.

The same is true for the people of Luzhou. Although the people are bewitched by the Universal Immortal, they listen to heresies and do a lot of evil.

But if you think about it carefully, do the people of Luzhou still have a choice?

The rebel army is staring at them, the government can't protect them, they want to live and work in peace and contentment, but there are tens of thousands of troops stationed in Suzhou on the border, wanting to fight for their lives, the government has no intention of unifying everyone to fight to the death. .

Under such high pressure and despair, who can take it calmly?
The rich and powerful find ways to find connections and run away, and the rest of the ordinary people can only worry day by day, thinking about it and being afraid.

When the atmosphere of despair gradually permeates, when there is no light of hope in life, when people completely lose their psychological support, the defense line in their hearts will eventually collapse. suffering?

At that time, anything can easily sneak in and enter their hearts.

The Great Immortal Pu Shi grasped this point and gave the desperate people a little psychological support. He used deception to gain trust, and then attributed the cause of Luzhou's turmoil to his sister-in-law, turning people's expectations into slogans, not afraid of hunger, not afraid of cold, For the people in suffering, these are what they are most looking forward to, and he also showed that he really can't die of starvation or freezing for three days and three nights.

If you put yourself in that situation, how many people can stay rational in such a desperate situation?

Li Xingzhou sighed silently in his heart, so he said, "In prosperity, the people suffer; in death, the people suffer."

Tired of running around all day, he soon fell into a deep sleep, and woke up as usual the next morning before it was fully lit. He was already used to this routine.

The sister-in-law sent a maid to bring him a washbasin towel, and after washing, he put on his underwear, his outer shirt and soft armor. Although it was heavy and hot, his instinct told him that it was better to wear it.

After going downstairs, my sister-in-law was already waiting below with her maid. She still had dark circles under her eyes, and she didn't sleep well.

She still held a few letters in her hand: "Xingzhou, it's not too late, you take someone away quickly, sister-in-law can't keep you, if you delay for a moment, your life will be in danger, these family letters will be forwarded to my father and returned to you." There is a queen."

Li Xingzhou received several letters and knew that she wrote them overnight: "Are you really going to leave?"

The little girl nodded, then opened her arms to hug him, and finally couldn't help crying softly.

"You child, you have been lonely since you were a child, you have no father to care for you, no mother to love you, you already have a hard life, and you still have to come to this place to suffer.
When my sister thinks about it, I feel uncomfortable. If you get hurt a little bit, I will never forgive myself in my life. Let's go back to the capital. I'm afraid I won't see you get married and continue the incense for my elder brother, but No matter what, take care of yourself, you know?"

Li Xingzhou sighed, then nodded. My aunt inherited the genes of their family. She was taller than ordinary women, about 1.7 meters tall, but she was still shorter than him. Seeing her cry, I couldn't help feeling sad.

At this time, he has no right to make a choice for my sister-in-law.

This may be my sister's last pen.

Li Xingzhou is not a sloppy person, he can only ask Shenjiying to leave more food for the mansion. After all, they have enough supplies, He Zhao sent them, sent them from various local officials along the way, Yang Hongzhao flattered him, all kinds of pickled meat , There are a lot of rice noodles.

Immediately after that, they began to order the Shenji camp to move out and prepare to leave.

The sister-in-law supported her mother-in-law and watched them at the door, but his useless uncle, who was the nominal head of the family, did not come.

At this moment, there was the sound of orderly footsteps in the distance, and when he turned his head, it turned out that the Luzhou Xiang Army was in command.

She was riding a tall horse, followed by a taller man who was also riding a horse. The hard leather armor on the man's body could not cover his strong muscles at all, so some places were exposed.

They played double flags, with the general and famous flags, followed by a large group of people, more than yesterday, and Li Xingzhou couldn't estimate how many people there were, but if they played the general and famous flags, that was The posture of going out!
Yan Shen and Di Zhi quickly stepped forward to protect him, and the soldiers of the Shenji Battalion around them also put down their work and quickly lined up.

In the distance, Qifang waved his hand to stop the team, and then rode forward alone, followed by a tall man.

Seeing her posture, Li Xingzhou also understood that she didn't come to find fault, so he also brought Di Zhi forward: "Miss Qi has something to do with this king."

They got off the horse first, she was not as aggressive as yesterday, she looked more sad, she didn't reply, but pulled the big man beside her to kneel down first: "Today my brothers and sisters are paying homage to King Pingnan, and they have something to ask for."

Li Xingzhou didn't expect her to say that suddenly, "Tell me."

"I would like to ask the prince to wish us a helping hand to resist the rebel camp." Qi Fang said.

"why."

"Revenge for my brother!" Qi Fang said firmly, looking up at him, anger could be seen faintly in his eyes.

Li Xingzhou frowned: "Can you elaborate."

Afterwards, Qifang talked in detail about their Qijia and Ding Yi in Suzhou. Li Xingzhou gradually filled in many details in his mind. The more he listened, the more he felt that Ding Yi was really a talent. .

No wonder he was able to plan such a seamless plan to assassinate the emperor. Just like his layout in Luzhou, it is also interlocking and makes people stunned. Li Xingzhou had wondered before why Luzhou was forced to this by the rebels. Unexpectedly, the masses were not mobilized to fight back. It is because people have tempers, and dogs will jump over the wall in a hurry.

At first, he thought that the prefect of Luzhou was weak by nature, had no desire for power, and had no desire to fight, so he resigned himself to fate, or was prepared to join the rebels from the beginning.

It seems that this is not the case now, not to mention how the prefect of Suzhou is, at least this Qifang is a person with a strong desire for power. The son was a hostage, forcing Luzhou to fall into internal friction.

"Actually, you can go and seek refuge with Ding Yi, so there is still a way out, right?" Li Xingzhou said.

Qifang looked at him in surprise, then shook his head: "King Pingnan is really quick to speak, and he has no taboo. Now that the matter is up to now, I will not hide it. I really thought about joining Ding Yi, at least I don't have to work hard to support him." , but he killed my elder brother!"

"You really are like brothers and sisters, but even so, if you endure the humiliation, you will still be rich and prosperous. If you are impulsive, you may all die." Li Xingzhou asked casually. He was considering and observing his words. Which ones are true and which ones are false, he is not a child, and he will not trust the words of a person who has only met twice.

Qifang smiled sadly: "In my Qijia mansion, since my mother passed away, my father has been obsessed with seeking immortals and Buddhas, ignoring government affairs, and usually the eldest brother takes care of the housework and takes care of us.

The second elder brother is as strong as a bear and a tiger. There is no rival in Luzhou. With him, no one would dare to bully our brothers and sisters. As for me, one of my two elder brothers taught me to read, paint, and behave in the world, and the other obeyed my advice. Who would dare If you bully me, you will fight with your fists."

She was talking with tears streaming from the corners of her eyes: "Everyone says that the Prince Consort's Mansion is actually the Princess Mansion, and the Huaihua Mansion is similar. Although my father is the magistrate, he does things in a muddle-headed way. The three of us, brothers and sisters, support each other and rely on each other for maintenance." continued to this day
His Royal Highness King Pingnan, although my family judges the situation, we will never bow our knees! "

She said it firmly: "They killed my eldest brother, the Qi family and the Ding family are incompatible!"

Li Xingzhou couldn't help but nodded: "You speak well, it's really admirable, but it has nothing to do with me."

Qifang stared at him, his eyes were full of anger and unwillingness, then he gritted his teeth and said, "Prince Pingnan, don't you think about it any more? Think about what benefits I can do for you by getting up."

At the end of March, the hot discussion in the capital about Li Xingzhou's appointment to the south has passed a lot. After all, talking is nothing but scolding, and what can be changed.

After the tea talk, the topic returned to the weather, trivial matters of life, or a masterpiece of a talented person. Talk about elegance and common things, and you can’t feel the war disasters and people’s troubles in the south here.

Although the south sends back a lot of battle reports from time to time, most of them are irrelevant. In fact, apart from a few court officials, the emperor is still in a state of distress. For ordinary people, it is just more talk after dinner. But forget about it when you wake up.

In March, grass grows and warblers fly, everything grows, a vibrant scene, the streets of Kaiyuan are bustling with people hawking, storytelling, fortune-telling, three religions, traffickers, bustling.

From the beginning to the end, there is a lot of traffic, people come and go, elegant young masters, beautiful women in colorful clothes, a scene of grand events, Jingguo is full of prosperity, and people are immersed in this prosperous scene.

But at this moment, a fast horse passed through the street, causing a burst of cursing, but the horse did not slow down at all. It entered through the south gate and went straight to the north of the street, and the pedestrians on the road hurriedly gave way.

After a while, the fast horse passed the market, directly entered the outer city of the imperial city, passed the Meridian Gate, and headed towards the inner city.

In Kunning Palace, the emperor, empress and concubines are all there.

The four concubines are Gui, Shu, De, and Xianzhong. The noble concubine has died of illness, and Concubine Shu has passed away. Now only Concubine De and Concubine Xian are left, but there are still 30 to [-] concubines and beauties left, varying in age.

"Since we are a family, I am not afraid of any taboos, so I told you directly." The emperor rubbed his temples and said, "The imperial doctor told me that the queen mother will not survive these few days. As the royal inner chamber, you are both women. Take more time to spend with her old man."

As soon as he said those words, the people below all sobbed softly.

Afterwards, the emperor dismissed everyone, leaving only the tired-looking queen to stay.

"All the palaces and courts have already made preparations. Let the inner court secretary prepare for the funeral. White cloth and silk, candles, and sesame oil will bother you." The emperor said and took the queen's hand, "I know you have worked hard these days, but I'm really worried about other people, and it's taboo to tell others about it, so I can only tell you no need."

"What did your majesty say? This is the job of a concubine." The queen laughed.

The emperor nodded, and then sighed: "The only one who works in the palace can make me feel at ease."

The Queen laughed: "Your Majesty has a great reputation, but Mao Luan is really capable. I thought he was going to do something bad, but I didn't expect him to rush to build the Queen Mother's Mausoleum so that the Queen Mother can rest in peace."

"Hmph, I've asked about this before. He doesn't have any skills, but he's just asking for the right person."

"Pray for the right person? Who did he go to beg for?" the queen was curious.

The emperor gave a rare smile: "He, I went to ask Xingzhou. There is a strange person in the Xingzhou mansion, who is his favorite girl. She can use a few iron wheels and a rope to make two or three men lift a thousand catties. , I went to see the imperial mausoleum in person, it is indeed amazing."

"There is also this matter." The queen was amazed.

The emperor nodded, and then seemed to remember something mysterious, frowned and said: "Also, the crown prince will go to the capital tomorrow. If the people of the capital see them, they will probably curse and hurt my family's face. Dukou secretly picks him up and enters the palace."

The queen shook her head and said: "Your Majesty, the prince is the foundation of the country after the Tian family, how can he be so hasty, even if he makes a mistake, he can't be so cold, the concubine will go out of the palace to pick him up tomorrow, just keep it secret, then It's not easy for children to travel all the way."

The emperor nodded and didn't say much, "It's up to you."

At this time, Wei Li, the commander of Shangzhi's personal guards, hurried in: "Your Majesty, the southern battle report is an urgent report. Yang Hongzhao, the son of the commander in front of the palace, sent it urgently, and it is waiting outside the palace."

The emperor frowned, Yang Hongzhao asked his son to send the battle report, it must be no small matter: "Let him in!"

The dusty Yang Hongzhao came in, he still had the armor on his body that was too late to go back to the mansion. After kneeling down, he quickly presented the report in his hand. Fu An, the head of the inner court department, took it and sent it to the emperor. down.

After reading it, he handed the report to the curious queen next to him, and said to Fu'an, "Hurry up, call Wang Yue, call Zhong Daoyu, Yu Chengan, Wen Daoli, Zhao Guanghua, Tong Guan, Xue Fang, Tang Zhou Wei, Lu Jie, Mao Luan, Chen Yu, enter the palace to discuss matters!"

The queen who had read the report over there was stunned for a moment, and tears rolled down her face silently. The surrounding maids and eunuchs were frightened and knelt down one after another.
(End of this chapter)