Neon Clothes and Iron Clothes

"Master, do you mean that those women are trying to please you on the surface, but actually they are trying to please Mrs. Cui?" Pushan asked.

"That's right! To be precise, it should be said that he is the man behind Mrs. Cui!" At this point, Chongjing sighed: "Now you should understand why so many people want to change their religion, right? It's so hard to preach and spread Buddhism. , how dangerous it is! After decades of hard work, it’s not easy to find a situation. Once the government gets a document, it might be all over! But according to the new way of playing, as long as it satisfies the appetite of high-ranking officials and emperors, it only takes a few words As long as there are Taoist temples, wealth, women, and believers, whoever dares to deal with you is going against the court, and will be dealt with by the court's laws. You don't have to do anything, just show your hands in front of those big shots. , just make them happy!"

"Since the new way has so many benefits, why are you unwilling to change to the new way, master?" Pushan asked in confusion: "With your ability, master, this shouldn't be difficult, right?"

"Alas!" Chongjing sighed and said nothing for a long time. Just when Pu Shan thought he would never be able to wait for the answer, the old Taoist suddenly asked: "Pu Shan, do you still remember how you came to me? ?”

"Remember!" Pushan replied: "When you passed by our village, you were reciting Taoist scriptures by the well in the village, exorcising ghosts and treating diseases for people. I saw that you were reluctant to leave, and then you accepted me as your disciple? Take me away!”

"Were you reluctant to leave at first?" asked the old Taoist.

"Hehe!" The little Taoist priest laughed twice: "Actually, the family that was exorcised from the ghost sent boiled eggs, dried fish, and steamed rice to thank you, Master. I have many brothers and sisters in my family, and we can't eat these good things on weekdays. Look. I’m so greedy that I can’t bear to leave!”

"Yes!" The old Taoist sighed: "As you said, if I were to start a new Taoism, I would be able to live in fine clothes and eat meat, but in that case, the Taoism would become the property of a noble family! A person with a background like yours Who cares about the people in Guizhou?"

"That's true!" The little Taoist priest nodded: "Master is indeed a master, but if that's the case, then why did you accept the benefits of Mrs. Cui this time? Isn't this following the new way?"

"Shut up!" The old Taoist's face turned dark when his disciple hit him with a pole. "Is this for the benefit? Isn't it because I didn't cultivate in my previous life and accepted a waste like you who didn't eat enough and couldn't do anything?" Disciple? If you hadn’t frightened other people’s horses and horses, wouldn’t I have needed to show off my skills to please them?”

Pushan was speechless by the master's words. After a while, he said: "Now they won't ask me about my crime. Master, do you want to leave immediately?"

"Stupid!" The old Taoist's face showed the expression of "How could I have a stupid apprentice like you?" "Since this kind of people have treated each other with courtesy, can you leave if you want to? Even if you leave, then You have to leave only when the person is tired of you and no longer interested in you. If you want to leave at this time, you don't know how to behave, and you will lose your head!"

"Is that so?" Pu Shan looked at the old Taoist suspiciously, trying to identify whether the master was deceiving him again. He had suffered a lot in this regard in the past.

"Of course!" the old Taoist said loudly: "Who do you think this Mrs. Cui is? General Wang's wife, a daughter of the Cui family in Qinghe, if you dare not sell her face, no matter how much life you have, it won't be enough!"

"Then, what should we do? Just stay like this forever?" the little Taoist asked.

"You don't need to worry about this. Don't worry, for a big shot like Mrs. Cui, her interest will not last long. It won't take long for her to have no interest in our master and apprentice. By then It’s not too late for us to beg for money before we leave!”

"Are you asking for money for a pen?" Pushan looked at the old Taoist, and he became more and more suspicious that the teacher was trying to cheat him out of food and drink.

--------

The inner court.

"Welcome General!"

"Welcome General!"

"Welcome General!"

Wang Wenzuo walked through the long alley, and the alley paved with green bricks under his feet was swept spotless. The curtains of the surrounding houses were drooped, and there were still a few remaining leaves on the lawns and rocks on both sides. The maidservant wearing soft-soled shoes walked with her head bowed. When she got close, she knelt down to say hello. She didn't stand up until she was far away. Her footsteps seemed to evoke empty echoes everywhere.

"Is this the atmosphere of the Cui family in Qinghe that has been passed down for hundreds of years?" Wang Wenzuo looked at everything in front of him and couldn't help but feel a little dazed. Ordinarily, he had also seen the atmosphere of wealth. But over the years, most of my energy has been spent on fighting and killing. Although my family is dignified, the atmosphere of this aristocratic family that has been accumulated for hundreds of years has still deteriorated a lot.

We were about to finish walking the long path and arrive at the door of the back garden. Looking up, there was a cornice hidden among the rocks. More than a dozen maids came out and stood in two groups at the entrance of the garden. Cui Yunying was arranging her bun and walked out of the garden. She knelt down and bowed to Wang Wenzuo: " Why don't you send someone to inform me in advance when your husband comes back? I can greet you at the door of the house, so you don't have to be in such a hurry!"

"It was too late to discuss the matter with Lu Renji and the others, so I didn't bother to send someone to notify you!" Wang Wenzuo smiled: "Besides, this mansion is so big, why would you run to the gate to greet it again and again? Just in the flower hall. Just come forward and welcome me!"

"How can that happen! Etiquette and laws cannot be abolished!" Cui Yunying said very firmly.

"Okay, okay!" Wang Wenzuo shook his head helplessly. He had already experienced his wife's stubbornness in etiquette.

"Mr. Lang, the hot water is ready! Why don't you wash your face first and then order the meal to be passed on?"

"Yeah!" Wang Wenzuo nodded. With Wang Wenzuo's approval, the Cui family's servants and maids skillfully arranged copper basins, bronze mirrors, soap soaps, hot water bottles, scrapers and other items. They first washed Wang Wenzuo's face, then shaved his face, trimmed his beard, and picked out his ears. Each of them moved gently and skillfully, completing all the work silently. Finally, they gently patted Wang Wenzuo's shoulder twice: "Master, everything is fine!"

"Okay? So soon?" Wang Wenzuo, who was already half asleep and half awake, woke up with a start. This may be the most irresistible thing among the many things Cui Yunying brought from the Cui family in Qinghe. This made him Thinking of modern life before time travel: comfortable, safe, and wealthy.

"Mr. Sir, can you have lunch?"

His wife's voice brought Wang Wenzuo back from his memories of the distant past. He nodded and came to the dining table. The maids placed the hot meals on the table like running water. Although Cui Yunying had already eaten, she still Sitting at the table, he accompanied Wang Wenzuo with a smile.

Like most soldiers, Wang Wenzuo ate quickly. He quickly filled his belly, took a bowl of chicken soup from his wife, and drank it slowly. Cui Yunying gestured to the maid to clear the dishes and asked casually: "You came back so late today. What trouble has happened in the house?"

"Well!" Wang Wenzuo handed the empty bowl to his wife and motioned for her to fill another bowl: "Actually, it's still the same trouble!"

"Old trouble?" Cui Yunying said with a smile: "What's the matter? Are there still troubles that the general can't solve?"

"There are a lot of troubles in the world, and I can't solve most of them! There are only two things I can do: either drag it over and turn the trouble into a non-trouble; or simply solve the troublemaker!"

"Either delay or solve the troublesome person?" Cui Yunying covered her mouth and laughed: "Sanlang, you really know how to joke!"

"I'm not joking, what I just said is the truth!" Wang Wenzuo said with a wry smile: "So when I encounter troubles that I can't solve, I can only drag my feet. That's why I have this old trouble!"

"Old trouble? Can you tell me?" Cui Yunying asked.

"Okay, anyway, this matter will spread soon, and you will know it too!" Wang Wenzuo said: "You also know that I led the troops back to Chang'an before, and the Hebei nobles contributed a lot, like Lu, Zhao, and Li , and your family have contributed a lot. Since you have contributed, you must reward based on your merits afterwards, and the trouble lies in this reward!"

"This shouldn't be any trouble, right?" Cui Yunying said with a smile: "Lang Jun, with your current status and prestige, the imperial court will always give you accurate memorials? Is there anyone in the political hall who dares to refuse?"

"The trouble I'm talking about is not the court!" Wang Wenzuo smiled bitterly: "Did you know? They want the position of governor of fifteen states. There are only 24 states in Hebei Province in the Tang Dynasty. They asked me for the position of governor of 15 states. How do you ask me to promise them?"

"Is there such a thing?" Cui Yunying's eyebrows immediately rose: "These guys are too ignorant. Don't they know who allowed them to have people today?"

"Let's not talk about this for now!" Wang Wenzuo waved his hand: "The question now is not whether the court will allow it. Even if the court allows it, I will not tolerate this situation. Otherwise, I, the Hebei ambassador, will not do anything. Got it!"

As Wang Wenzuo said, Hebei Road in the Tang Dynasty was much larger than today's Hebei Province. Generally speaking, its area is bounded by the sea to the east, the Yellow River to the south, Taihang and Changshan to the west, Shanhaiguan and Juyongguan to the north, and It governs Huaizhou, Weizhou, Bozhou, Xiangzhou, Weizhou, Beizhou, Xingzhou, Mingzhou, Hengzhou, Jizhou, Shenzhou, Zhaozhou, Cangzhou, Dezhou, Dingzhou, Yizhou, Youzhou, and Yingzhou , Mozhou, Pingzhou, Guizhou, Tanzhou, Jizhou, Yingzhou and other 24 states and the Andong Protectorate. It is the part north of the Yellow River in present-day Henan Province and the land of Shandong and Hebei, including most of Hebei, Henan, Shanxi, Beijing, Tianjin, and parts of Liaoning. It is not difficult to see that even the Hebei gentry actually only had great influence in a part of Hebei Province. The price these people offered Wang Wenzuo was tantamount to demanding the autonomy of their states and counties, which was naturally impossible for Wang Wenzuo to allow.

"Lang Jun, you are so kind!" Cui Yunying said angrily: "We were able to defeat Chang'an this time. Although Lu Renji and the others also put in a lot of effort, without the elite soldiers Lang Jun brought from Haidong, they were just a ragtag group of people. The opponents of the Longyou soldiers led by Pei Xingjian? They have been killed long ago and no one is left. They want the position of governor of the fifteen states. How many states do your men occupy? In my opinion, these brainless idiots will be beaten hard. Give them a hard whip to let them know who is the master and who is the slave!"

After hearing his wife's words, Wang Wenzuo was surprised. He did not expect that his wife, who was also a member of the Hebei gentry, would make such a rude suggestion. He shook his head: "If you do this, you will tear your face apart from me." It’s not good for what you want to do next!”

"What do you want to do next?"

"Two things! One is to build a port at the intersection of the South Canal and the North Canal to connect the canal and shipping, and open up the connection between the Haidong Station and Hebei!"

"What about the second thing?"

"Through the Yuguan Road and the Liao Ze, people migrated from Hebei and opened up the Liao Ze, making it a land of villages and towns and the foundation of eternity!"

"Open up Liaoze?" Cui Yunying's beautiful face showed a trace of embarrassment: "Sanlang, I know that you have always acted very humanely, but the first thing is fine, you must think twice about the second thing! Since ancient times, migration has The common people's efforts to open up frontiers are met with more failures than successes. Even if a few can achieve something, they will harm the present and benefit the future. You have already made great achievements. As long as you maintain a profit and maintain peace, it will naturally be passed down to future generations. , why risk your life’s achievements?”

After hearing Cui Yunying's words, Wang Wenzuo also sighed. He naturally knew that what his wife said made sense. The main road to Liaodong in the Tang Dynasty was different from that in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, people traveling from Hebei to Liaodong usually passed through the Liaoxi Corridor and entered the Liaohe River Basin, that is, the Yuguan Road. But the road leading to Liaodong in the Tang Dynasty was not the Yuguan Road. There are two main reasons for this: first, the western Liaoning corridor in the Tang Dynasty was much narrower than that in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Once the tide rose, it was likely to be impassable; secondly, The existence of Liaoze, a swamp that stretches for more than two hundred miles from east to west, is actually the delta of the Liao River entering the sea, making subsequent roads impassable.

For Wang Wenzuo, as long as the correct water control methods are adopted, this huge swamp will be turned into a large area of ​​high-quality farmland and pasture. To carry out such large-scale water conservancy projects and road construction, it is inseparable from Hebei's abundant manpower. The support of the gentry. But Cui Yunying also has her own reasons for her opinion. In her opinion, Wang Wenzuo’s accumulated merits and prestige over the years are undoubtedly important bargaining chips for usurping the throne of the Tang Empire. At the critical moment of usurping the throne, Wang Wenzuo used his precious merits and prestige to It would be too stupid to do something that would only yield benefits after more than a hundred years.

Cui Yunying saw that Wang Wenzuo had not spoken. She knew that this meant that her husband had not changed his mind, so she couldn't help but panic: "Sanlang, you are not really determined to open up some Liaoze, are you? You are almost fifty now. Even if Liaoze really opens up thousands of miles of fertile land, can you still see it? If you have the strength, why not think more about other things and think more about our children!"

"Our child?" Wang Wenzuo laughed: "What to consider? He was born in Fugui Township, what else should he consider?" (End of Chapter)