Jiuxi

Chapter 624 [Slight Wind and Waves]

Baishiyi, on the south bank of Hengjiang River.

This is the last posthouse before crossing the river in the northern part of Xinzhou. Baishishi Ferry is six or seven miles to the north. It can be regarded as a transportation hub for travelers traveling from the south to the north, and many officials come here to stay and rest.

When they found that most of the rooms in the post station were occupied, some people couldn't help but feel dissatisfied and went to cause trouble for the post station master.

One said that his elder was a certain big shot in the capital, and another said that he was leaving the capital on business under the order of a certain powerful official. In short, they asked the postmaster to find a way to vacate the house.

The postmaster only needed one sentence to make everyone shut up.

"My lords, those staying at the inn are all the personal soldiers of the Duke of Shanyang. You should find somewhere else to stay."

When they heard Lu Chen's name, the group of people retreated like frightened birds, not even having the courage to take the initiative to visit and get close to him.

It is now early July, and the news from the capital has already spread to the surrounding provinces.

Lu Chen was awarded the title of Duke of Shanyang County for his merits, and later he made a great contribution in saving the emperor at the funeral of the previous emperor. Now, as the remote military minister, he went north to take over as the Grand Commander of Dingzhou.

The emperor granted him special permission to take up his post after getting married in his hometown of Guangling, which showed that he was favored to the extreme.

Which official or son of a powerful official would dare to act rudely in front of such a high-ranking and powerful official?

But these frightened people didn’t know that Lu Chen was not in the inn at the moment.

On the bank of the Hengjiang River in the north, a young man and woman walked slowly among the green trees.

The man had a dignified demeanor and a handsome appearance. He wore a simple and refreshing round-necked robe, and his hair was pierced with white jade.

The woman had a slim figure, a dot of cinnabar on her forehead, a light red half-sleeved skirt, a flower in her hair, and pearls on her ears.

Compared with the past, her makeup today was obviously quite thoughtful, especially the white patch of hair exposed under her neck, which added a bit of elegance and charm.

The river breeze blows gently, bringing a cool feeling. When you look up, you can see the vast river rushing by and the magnificent mountains and rivers in the distance.

In such a charming atmosphere, Luo Jiujiu showed some sword intent as soon as he opened his mouth: "Have you set the wedding date?"

Lu Chen replied: "August 6th."

"Just one month left."

Luo Jiujiu turned his head and looked at the sparkling waves on the river, and asked again: "If I asked you to give up everything you have now and go back to Shazhou with me to live an ordinary life, you will definitely not agree."

"Ah."

"If I asked you to cancel the engagement, be a heartless and unfaithful person, and then marry me, you would definitely not agree."

"Ah."

"If I say that what happened in the past is just a dream, and nothing actually happened, and you are still the Duke of Daqi County who is devoted to the country, and I am an unknown woman from Shazhou, from now on, we will go our separate ways, and when we meet, we can just say hello in a friendly manner, how about that?"

"Uh-huh?"

Lu Chen's tone finally changed. He looked at Luo Jiujiu's profile with a little surprise and said decisively, "Of course not."

Luo Jiujiu sighed: "I knew it was like this."

Although her tone was melancholy, there was a kind of joy deep in her eyes that even she couldn't understand.

Lu Chen thought for a moment and said sincerely: "Give me a little more time, I will solve all the problems."

"It can only be the."

Luo Jiujiu counted on her fingers and whispered, "Who made you so powerful that even the powerful Jing army was defeated by you? How dare a small Shazhou disobey you? If I make you unhappy, and you just issue a military order, Shazhou will be swallowed up by the Qi army all over the mountains and plains. How can I afford such a price? I have no choice but to listen to you obediently. Don't say that you just want me to wait for a while. Even if you are really determined to make me a concubine, how dare I resist?"

"Hey."

Lu Chen said with a smile: "Who did you learn this kind of sad attitude from?"

Luo Jiujiu finally couldn't pretend anymore and smiled crisply.

She looked away, her eyes moving, and she said leisurely: "This is called self-taught, natural talent."

Lu Chen nodded quickly and said, "Yes, yes, Jiujiu is beautiful and intelligent, and has natural talent."

Luo Jiujiu joked, "You are becoming more and more good at sweet talk. Now you look like the kind of dandy boy who waves a fan in the middle of winter and flirts with women at every turn."

Lu Chen couldn't help but clear his throat and asked teasingly, "My beauty, where do you live? Do you have a lover?"

"Pooh."

Luo Jiujiu spat lightly and said with a half-smile: "If you looked like this when we met by chance in Mo Garden, I would definitely whip you in the face."

Lu Chen pretended to be frightened and said, "Thank you, lady, for showing mercy."

Luo Jiujiu rolled her eyes at him, then took his arm, leaned on his shoulder, and whispered, "I said at the beginning that liking someone doesn't require too much entanglement or too many promises. Women in the world are different, at least I am like that. I know you have great ambitions and will not stop because of someone. This is why I like you. I still remember that time in your palace, watching you stand in front of me, looking down on a group of ministers. Although I know you did this not entirely because of me, I really like you."

Lu Chen held her hand and asked curiously, "Is it just because of this?"

"What else?" "Is there no reason at all related to my face?"

"Stop being so pretty."

"I'm not being conceited, but making the most normal inference. If the person who spoke up for justice at that time was not me, but an average-looking old man in his 50s, would you not only be moved and admire him, but also feel fond of him?"

"..."

Luo Jiujiu was furious and stretched out her free right hand to find the soft flesh on Lu Chen's waist. She gritted her teeth and said, "Yes, I was bewitched by your beauty and fell into your trap accidentally. Are you satisfied?"

Lu Chen did not use any strength to resist, and said with gritted teeth in pain: "I was wrong. I coveted Jiujiu's beauty and straightforward personality, and had evil intentions for a long time."

"That's pretty much it."

Luo Jiujiu slightly raised her smooth chin, quietly spread out her right hand, and gently pressed the place where she had pinched.

After a while of laughter, the slightly strange melancholy finally dissipated, and Lu Chen turned to the main topic and said, "Your Majesty and I have discussed how to reward the warriors of Shazhou."

Luo Jiujiu also put aside her feelings for her children after hearing this and asked with concern, "What did the emperor say?"

Lu Chen said: "Your Majesty will naturally not object to my proposal. First of all, the reward for the Shazhou warriors who cut down the heads will be paid by the court at the standard of fifteen taels per head."

Luo Jiujiu's eyes lit up. Qi Chao was indeed very generous this time, because the rule in their Shazhou was ten taels of silver for one head.

Lu Chen continued, "In addition, the court will give Shazhou 300 carts of grain, 20 carts of salt and good seeds, and 2,000 kilograms of wrought iron."

Luo Jiujiu couldn't help but smile, these were the things that the people of Shazhou needed most, especially the two thousand kilograms of wrought iron, which was a good that was difficult to buy even with silver, because ordinary merchants did not dare to violate the court's ban and trade privately.

She held Lu Chen's arm and said happily, "You are so thoughtful."

"And one more thing."

Lu Chen spoke in a gentle tone and smiled, "Your Majesty will personally write a letter to congratulate your father on becoming the co-lord of Shazhou."

Luo Jiujiu was stunned.

Although this letter is not as practical as the previous ones, its symbolic significance is extremely important.

Although Luo Jiujiu's father, Luo Yaozong, is now the nominal lord of Shazhou, he is still somewhat embarrassed to the outside world. After all, Shazhou is just a loose tribal alliance.

This letter from the Emperor of Qi meant that Da Qi and Shazhou would have equal relations, and Shazhou would not always be a vassal of Da Qi as it had been for the past hundred years. The public recognition of the Emperor of Qi was very important for consolidating Luo Yaozong's position.

After the Battle of Yongqiu, Shazhou had cut off the possibility of making peace with the Jinglian people, and they could only rely on Da Qi. However, there were still different voices within Shazhou on this matter, because the impact of the bloody incident fifteen years ago had not faded.

If the two interact on an equal footing, the opposition from the various tribes in Shazhou will not be too strong, and Luo Yaozong's situation will be more relaxed.

Luo Jiujiu's eyes were like water, and she murmured, "I never thought your emperor would be willing to write this letter."

Although she didn't quite understand the twists and turns, she knew that with the Emperor of Qi's statement, the Great Qi would not be able to order Shazhou around in the future, and everything could only be discussed and negotiated, which was equivalent to adding a restriction to the Qi Dynasty itself.

Lu Chen smiled and said nothing.

Luo Jiujiu responded and smiled sweetly: "Okay, knowing this is your credit. Tell me, what reward do you want?"

Lu Chen coughed lightly and said pretentiously: "I am not doing this to please Jiujiu deliberately. I just hope that Da Qi and Shazhou will be friends for generations, help each other, and never repeat the mistakes of the past. Peace and tranquility in the world, and everyone living and working in peace and contentment, this is my ideal."

"As expected of the man I've chosen, he really cares about the people."

After Luo Jiujiu finished speaking, she couldn't help but turned her head and vomited, shaking her head and said, "It's just that you are too shameless."

Lu Chen joked, "Why are you retching? Are you pregnant?"

A blush crept up Luo Jiujiu's cheeks. She gently hit Lu Chen's arm and said, "You only know how to bully me."

Lu Chen couldn't help but sigh, and said leisurely: "Just now he was still praising me, but someone changed his attitude faster than turning the pages of a book."

"It's good to know."

Luo Jiujiu snorted, then stroked her hair and said softly, "Although we have been together for a short time, I am very happy because you are still the same as before. I have to go back to Shazhou. There are still many things to do at home. My brother is too young and my father can't handle it alone. I don't understand the general situation in the world, but I just want to tell you one thing, no matter what the situation outside is, Shazhou will always have a way out for you."

Lu Chen stopped and nodded solemnly.

Luo Jiujiu looked up at him, blinked and said, "Perhaps it won't be long before I leave Shazhou and come back to find you."

Lu Chen said: "Remember to have someone notify me in advance."

"I will."

Luo Jiujiu's eyes gradually showed tenderness, and she whispered, "I will miss you."

Lu Chen looked into her eyes and said, "Me too."

The river breeze blew past, creating ripples on the water surface and the waves surged, moving eastward without stopping.

(End of this chapter)