National color raw owl

Chu Huan rubbed his chin. Such a prominent family is no longer just described as powerful.

Pei Ji picked up the wine glass, took a sip, and then continued softly: "The sage established the country and rewarded meritorious ministers. The four generals of wind, rain, thunder and lightning are all named generals, and their foreign surnames are Dukes. This is An Guo Gong Huang Ju."

Chu Huan asked, "Xuanyuan Pingzhang? Brother Pei, what is the relationship between Xuanyuan Shao and Xuanyuan Pingzhang?"

Pei Ji smiled and said, "So you know Xuanyuanshao too."

Chu Huan said with a smile: "I've heard people say it before. It is said that Xuanyuan Shao was naturally brave. When Qu Chuli occupied the capital, Xuanyuan Shao was the first to attack the city and cut off Qu Chuli's banner. 13 years old."

"Xuanyuan Shao's bravery is famous all over the world." Pei Ji stroked his short beard under his chin and said, "Back then, the Holy Majesty fought from south to north. If Xuanyuan Shao was not too young, the four great generals might not have won the honor of bravery. Above him." He whispered softly: "Three knives and four spears break the bow of the sky, have you ever heard of this sentence?"

Chu Huan had known for a long time that Pei Ji was not an ordinary person. Seeing that he knew the affairs of the court like the palm of his hand, and even said the name of breaking the sky with three knives and four guns, he felt that there was something wrong in his heart, so he nodded and said: "I've heard people say that too."

"The Heaven-breaking Bow in this sentence refers to Xuanyuan Shao." Pei Ji said.

Chu Huan was taken aback.

Pei Jidao: "Duke Yiguo is different from Duke Anguo. The reason why Duke Anguo is here today is because of the money he provided back then. As for Duke Yiguo, Xuanyuan Pingzhang has followed the Holy Master since he was a child. Xuanyuan Pingzhang's four sons have three warlords. Xuanyuan Shao's father was among them, and Xuanyuan Pingzhang himself was shot and blinded in one eye on the battlefield, Xuanyuan's family can have today, and that is in exchange for blood." Speaking of this, he shook his head and sighed. He said: "Xuanyuan Shao and Huang Tinglang were both dukes of the kingdom, but their personalities are very different. At the beginning of the founding of the country, the Holy One attached great importance to Xuanyuan's family. If Xuanyuan Shao hadn't married a wife, I'm afraid Xuanyuan Shao would have become a son-in-law... But in recent days Over the past few years, An Guogong’s family has won the favor of the Holy One, and the scenery has already overshadowed Yi Guogong.”

Chu Huan said softly: "Xuanyuan Shao is such a character, even if his family is no longer prosperous, he will definitely not be idle with his own abilities."

Pei Ji smiled slightly, and glanced at Qin Lei beside him. There was only a plate of duck feet left. Qin Lei obviously liked the duck feet very much, and he was not interested in listening to Pei Ji's conversation with Chu Huan.

"By the way, Brother Pei, I was still talking about why Huang Tinglang's death was related to Yuan Tong's death?"

"Do you know Tongtian Palace?" Pei Ji asked.

Chu Huan nodded slightly, and said, "After entering Beijing, I've heard people talk about it occasionally."

Pei Ji said solemnly: "In a Tongtian Temple, countless people have died."

Chu Huan frowned and said, "How do you say that?"

Pei Ji pondered for a while before saying: "The Tongtian Palace was built in the northwest of the capital. It occupies a huge area. If you don't see it yourself, it's hard to describe it. It's just that tens of thousands of people have been recruited for the construction of the Tongtian Palace. This is just construction. There are more than [-] craftsmen in the Tongtian Temple, and the chariots and horsemen who transport stones, wood, etc.?"

Before Chu Huan came to Beijing, he had actually heard that the emperor was constructing the Tongtian Temple. At that time, he didn't have a deep concept of the Tongtian Temple. He only thought it was a new palace within the imperial palace. But according to Pei Ji, This Tongtian Temple is not a small palace, it can be built by tens of thousands of civilians, which shows its huge scale.

Chu Huan is not familiar with state affairs, but he understands a truth. The construction of some huge projects, if they want to be implemented smoothly, usually can only be completed in time of prosperity. Otherwise, once the national power is weakened, it is impossible to complete the implementation of the project. Forcing the construction will definitely lead to anger and resentment, the people will live in dire straits, and the foundation of the country will definitely be destroyed.

The Great Qin Empire was founded 18 years ago. In order to restore the stability of the country, the imperial court did promulgate a series of decrees to rest the people, and the national strength is indeed recovering. If this continues, the Qin Empire will usher in a prosperous and prosperous age. possible.

It's just that the people have just settled down and the national power is rising, but His Majesty the Emperor has begun to lose his enterprising spirit, obsessed with the art of longevity, and even increased taxes significantly. At this time, Chu Huan suddenly understood that the imperial court has continuously increased taxes over the years. The purpose of making the people miserable may be to build the so-called Tongtian Temple.

When the national power has not yet reached a strong level, such a big move to build the Tongtian Temple, I really don't know what His Majesty the Emperor thinks. It stands to reason that His Majesty the Emperor should be a very smart person to conquer the north and south to unify the world. How did he end up doing such a stupid thing? .

Pei Ji saw that Chu Huan's expression was serious, and sighed softly: "Every stone and wood used to build the Tongtian Temple were carefully selected. Many stones and wood materials were pulled from remote places. Hundreds of large fir trees were shipped from Liaodong. In Liaodong, a piece of wood was only worth ten taels of silver, but when it was transferred to the capital, each was worth 400 taels. The dozens of big firs were immediately discarded, and the heads of the officials responsible for transportation were also beheaded...Those big fir trees in the whole project are nothing more than a drop in the bucket, so you can imagine the vastness of the Tongtian Temple project!"

Chu Huan nodded slightly, frowned and said, "I heard people say that Yuan Tong's murder was related to this Tongtian Palace."

Pei Ji said: "It's not just Yuan Tong alone? The construction of Tongtian Temple started two years ago, and the Ministry of Industry is mainly responsible for it. It is said that a time has been set. Within three years, Tongtian Temple must be completed. The progress was delayed for a while, and there were two The Minister of the Ministry of Industry was beheaded, and the officials of the Ministry of Industry who were in charge of the construction were not in the minority. This is just the project itself. Naturally, there are many people who persuaded the emperor to stop the construction of the Tongtian Temple, and they will either be imprisoned or Not a few were killed." Having said that, Pei Ji looked out the window, the sky was already dark, and Pei Ji's expression was quite solemn, and after a while, he said softly: "Someone advised to stop building Tongtian Palace, it is for the future of the empire, but naturally there are people who make profits from it."

Chu Huan frowned and said, "Brother Pei, what do you mean, Mr. An... is a profit-seeker?"

Pei Ji picked up the jug, filled himself with wine, and said calmly, "Brother Chu, what do you think? As we all know, the Holy Majesty trusts An Guogong very much now. This An Guogong is not only in the Zhongshu Province, but also in charge of the Ministry of Household Affairs. It can be said that the Holy Majesty's grace to him cannot be increased. The biggest expenditure of the household department is nothing more than two pieces, one is the Northwest War, and the other is the Tongtian Temple. This An Guogong was born in a wealthy family. The Holy One raised troops. He is the richest man in Anyi Road. After the founding of the country, in just over ten years, his property in the middle of the capital is already staggering. You said so much money, where did it come from? But there is dissuasion in the court If the Holy Majesty stops building the Tongtian Temple, he will naturally offend An Guogong, and if he offends An Guogong, what good will happen?"

Chu Huan nodded slightly, as if he understood something.

"Internal troubles and external troubles, I just hope that the Holy One will wake up soon." Pei Ji held the wine glass, looked out the window, whispered to himself, then shook his head, and muttered to himself: "It's not easy!" He raised his head and drank the wine in the glass.

……

……

When Chu Huan returned to the inn, his heart was somewhat dull. What Pei Ji said made Chu Huan deeply feel that the current imperial court was incompetent. Can such an imperial court survive the internal and external troubles? Can the people live and work in peace and contentment?

It doesn't seem like you need to go out of your way to find the answer.

He lay on the bed with his eyes slightly closed. He drank a lot of wine with Pei Ji in Jinmanlai. Pei Ji drank a lot and seemed not in a good mood. It was inevitable that he drank a lot. After arriving at the inn, the alcohol came up, but I felt a little dizzy.

He got up from the bed and wanted to go to the shop assistant to bring a bowl of hangover soup. He just opened the door, but saw a person standing in front of him. Chu Huan was startled, and recognized Chang Yi next door, and asked, "Brother Chang, what's the matter?" ?”

Chang Yi still had a friendly smiling face, carrying a small wooden box in his hand, very meticulous, and said with a smile: "Brother just came back now? I came here before, and you are not in the room."

Chu Huan said: "I'm bored at the inn, so I went out for a walk. Brother Chang, is there anything I can do?"

Chang Yi handed over the wooden box and said with a smile: "This is some souvenirs brought by Mr. Chang when he came to Beijing. If you don't mind, please accept it."

Chu Huan shook his head and said with a smile, "Brother Chang, you're being polite. You don't get paid for nothing, and you and I meet by chance. I really dare not be ashamed to accept it."

Chang Yi smiled and said: "All brothers in the world are brothers, brothers are seeing outsiders. By the way, I don't know the names of brothers?" Seeing Chu Huan frowned, he hurriedly said: "If it is inconvenient to ask, there is no need to ask. tell."

Chu Huan finally said, "My surname is Chu!"

"So it's Brother Chu." Chang Yi said with a smile, "Actually, there is one more thing I want to tell Brother Chu."

"Speaking!"

"Brother Chu was not in the house in the afternoon, and I saw a person wandering around in front of Brother Chu's door. I wondered if he was looking for Brother Chu." Chang Yi said, "I asked him a question, but he didn't speak, so left."

"Oh?" Chu Huan asked curiously, "Where is he now?"

"I really don't know that."

"Brother Chang, do you remember what he looks like?"

Chang Yi thought for a while and said, "With all due respect, that man doesn't have a beard, but he looks like... hehe...!" He didn't continue, but looked at Chu Huan with a strange look.

Chu Huan immediately thought of Sun Desheng, and wondered if it was really a coincidence that Sun Desheng came over when he went out today. Could it be that Yingren has news?

"Thank you, Brother Chang." Chu Huan cupped his hands and said, not wanting to talk to Chang Yi.

Chang Yi didn't intend to leave, and asked with a smile: "Brother Chu, do you have contacts in the palace? Actually, Chang came to Beijing to start a small business in the capital, but you also know that if you don't have a backer in the capital, you want to Doing business is very difficult. Chang is taking the liberty, I wonder if Brother Chu can introduce you?" Seeing Chu Huan frowning, he hurriedly said: "Brother Chu, don't misunderstand, Chang has no other intentions, and these days I have been looking for a backer , but there is no way out, if Brother Chu can help, Chang will definitely thank you!"

Chu Huan stared at Chang Yi for a moment, shook his head, and said lightly: "I'm really sorry, I'm new here, I don't have any connections, I'm afraid I can't help you." He nodded and closed the door without saying much.

Chang Yi narrowed his eyes, holding the wooden box, a weird smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and a weird look flashed in his eyes.