Ji Tang

Chapter 887

Chang'an Ancient Road, beside the Ba Bridge, willows hammer the ground, and the waves are clear!
When Ji Song stepped onto this ancient bridge again, it was already the twelfth lunar month, and the willow trees were still there when he walked, but at this time, there were only branches left, stretching into the cold river water.

On top of Baqiao, Prince Li Chengqian led the officials of the East Palace and the officials of the Ministry of Rites, who had been waiting for a long time.

This time, in addition to himself, Ji Song also had tens of thousands of soldiers returning to Datang from the sea. This time they came to greet him on behalf of the imperial court.

Logically speaking, the Ministry of Rites and the Prime Minister should come, but the emperor appointed the prince to come in person. This meant that everyone understood it tacitly!
Ji Song saw Li Chengqian from afar and saw that he looked fine, so he felt relieved!

When he learned that the emperor wanted the prince to deal with Hou Junji, he understood what the emperor meant. It was nothing more than a test!

But as long as it is a test, it must have its purpose. It seems that this matter can just follow the normal procedures. Kill those who deserve to be killed, and exile those who deserve. As long as you uphold justice, you will not make a big mistake.

But if that was the case, there would be no need for the emperor to spend a lot of effort. He had already dealt with it himself, so why did he leave this matter to the prince?
If Li Chengqian really does this, although he will win a reputation for fairness, he will also lose the hearts of the people. Even if Li Shimin doesn't say anything, his position as crown prince will still be as secure as a mountain, but he will definitely be disappointed.

If he is a minister, then he should do this, but as Li Chengqian is the prince, he can't just take it at face value.

Who is Hou Junji?

That was the first veteran who followed Li Shimin to conquer the world. Over the years, he has become numerous disciples and former officials, as well as numerous generals under his command.

He also has friendships with most nobles, some of whom are life-and-death friends.

According to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, raising an army to rebel was an unforgivable crime, and the entire clan would be killed, and no one in the immediate family could escape.

Can those old ministers tolerate this?
It was a fateful friendship, but in the end they didn't even have a wife. Could this not make them feel like a rabbit was dead and a fox was dead?
It is a dilemma in itself to maintain the majesty of the imperial court and the laws of the Tang Dynasty, and to be reasonable at the same time!
After suppressing the thoughts in his heart, Ji Song dismounted and came to Li Chengqian, saluted and said: "Good Lord Ji Song has lived up to the emperor's order and successfully brought back the soldiers of the Eastern Expedition. I am here to pay my order!"

"Please give me your instructions, Your Highness the Crown Prince!"

Regardless of their private friendship, in front of outsiders, what should be done must still be done, otherwise Ji Song's reputation as a disrespectful and arrogant prince will have to be spread!

Li Chengqian also understood, so he said in a deep voice: "The army is now ordered to return to camp to repair. In three days, the meritorious soldiers will come to Tai Chi Hall to receive their rewards."

"Good Lord Jisong has worked hard and achieved great results. He will immediately remove his armor and go home to recuperate. In three days, we will go to the Tai Chi Hall to be rewarded!"

"Your Majesty, Jisong, accepts the order and expresses gratitude!"

After the official business was over, the officials from the Ministry of Rites went to reward the soldiers. Only a few close associates were left around Li Chengqian, and Ji Song breathed a sigh of relief this time.

"How did you handle the Hou Junji incident in the end?"

Ji Song asked softly.

When Li Chengqian saw the nervous Ji Song, he said angrily: "Am I that stupid? Can't you even see that?"

But unexpectedly, Ji Song nodded seriously, which almost made Li Chengqian angry to death!

"The crime committed by Mr. Hou is unforgivable, but in memory of following his father for many years, he gave Bai Ling. His family members were exiled to Tiecheng and made a living by mining. They will not be pardoned!"

"Iron City?"

Ji Song was stunned. Of course he knew that Tiecheng was built under the rule of Xuanzhou when he was the governor of Xuanzhou. At this time, it was already an important place for the imperial court, with thousands of black armor cavalry guards and tens of thousands of soldiers. .

It is said to be a city for blacksmithing, but it is already a key department of the imperial court, and it is also an important place for prisons, directly under the emperor's orders.

How is this an exile? When we get there, whether we want to embarrass them or not is not a matter of the emperor's words.

It's not so much exile or switching as it is protection. Otherwise, why not Lingnan or other border areas?
As for mining?

Ha ha!

The people guarding Iron City now are the emperor's cronies. As long as the emperor doesn't specifically issue an order, who would dare to really let them mine?

"This time, Hou Jie and others did not participate, and they tried their best to stop it. Hou Junji was grounded at home, and only then did the father let him go!"

"But the only one who could be saved was Hou Jie, and he still faked his death to escape. From now on, he will remain anonymous and can only live in Tiecheng for the rest of his life."

Li Chengqian felt a little emotional. As his brother-in-law, the two of them could be said to have played together since childhood. Seeing them dying and being exiled, it was impossible not to feel something in their hearts.

Hearing this, Ji Song patted his shoulder and consoled him: "This is Hou Junji seeking death on his own. Didn't His Majesty give him too few opportunities in the first place?"

"Anyone who commits unjust acts will be punished by his own death. This is his own fault, and he only suffers the consequences for Auntie Hou and others."

Hou Junji killed a lot of people this time. Now that the Hou family is gone, can those people let them go?

Fortunately, it was Iron City. If it had been anywhere else, he would have died before reaching the place.

"Okay, look at your outfit. How many days have you not showered? There is a sour smell all over your body. It's almost killing me."

"Hurry up and leave this prince's starting point!"

Ji Song had a dark look on his face, looking at Li Chengqian who was pinching his nose to stay away from him, he was so angry that he couldn't help but feel angry.

"Fuck off!"

"I will conquer the world for your Li family, and you still think I'm a bad person? Let's see if I don't smoke you to death!"

After Ji Song said this, he tucked Li Chengqian into his arm, making Li Chengqian roll his eyes.

When he saw that it was almost done, Ji Song let him go.

I can't let go. I didn't notice that the guards around me had already begun to draw their swords.

"You bastard, are you trying to smoke this prince to death?"

Li Chengqian finally escaped Ji Song's clutches and retched directly on the ground. He was obviously very badly smoked!

"Okay, okay, no matter how big the deal is, please leave it alone. Why do you look more and more like a little lady after not seeing each other for a few days? No one in Pingkangfang is as pretentious as you!"

Li Chengqian's face turned green after hearing this, and he hurriedly cursed: "Fart!"

"You are like a dog but can't spit out ivory, your mouth is full of excrement!"

The official who had just returned and wanted to ask the prince for instructions turned pale and blue when he heard the prince's words.

Is this still the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty?

What's the difference between this nonsense at the door and the ruffians in the market on weekdays?
Then he gave Ji Song a hard look, and immediately put the responsibility on Ji Song, a loser.It turns out that the prince was fine, why did he become like this when he saw Ji Song?
Anyway, he has thought about it. When he returns later, he must advise His Highness to stay away from this scourge and not to give up the perfect prince in his mind to Huo Huo!

When Ji Song saw the official from the Ministry of Rites with a dark face, he was confused and wondered where he had offended him.
"Your Highness, the soldiers have entered the camp one after another, and the rewards and supplies are all ready. I wonder if your Highness has any other instructions?"

After saying that, he glared at Ji Song and slapped him in disbelief.Damn it, is this sick?
Ji Song doesn't understand, why can't Li Chengqian understand?

Just say a few words and quickly send this tough guy away, otherwise he will really offend this bastard. He really dares to attack, so he better not break it!
When the man walked away, Ji Song pointed at his nose and said, "Did I offend him?"

Li Chengqian suppressed his smile and said, "It should be so!"

Ji Song also took it seriously and asked casually: "What's his name?"

"Shangguanyi was originally a monk. He was later recommended by Yang Gongren, the governor of Yangzhou, to participate in the imperial examination. He is a man of outstanding literary talent. He is now a secretary, drafting documents for his father."

After saying that, he felt something was wrong again, because he noticed that Ji Song, the bastard, had something wrong in his eyes!
"I'm warning you, this man is highly valued by His Majesty, and now he is an official in the Eastern Palace. He is sacrificing himself for the Crown Prince. Don't have any wrong ideas?"

Li Chengqian looked at Ji Song warily. He was too familiar with this bastard. Whenever he showed this expression, it meant he was interested in this person.

It took a lot of effort for his father to ask him to come over, but he couldn't let this bastard do anything to him.

Yes, it is true that the emperor and his ministers all have the same idea, and they are all worried that the other party will be betrayed by Ji Song.

"No way, don't you think the surname Shangguan is quite unusual!"

Then he said dissatisfiedly: "Besides, am I that kind of person?"

But Li Chengqian only gave him the look of your own understanding, and the meaning is self-evident!

Come on, I can't talk today!
Ji Song asked Cangtian speechlessly, who is provoking whom, why are they all treating me as if they are on guard against thieves?
"Oh, right!"

Li Chengqian seemed to have thought of something and said quickly: "Where are Ji Qing and the others? Why don't they see anyone?"

He has been coveting these people for a long time, especially after hearing their deeds in Liaodong, he was even more salivating, and he wanted to drink them into his bowl right away to feel relieved!
Ji Song rolled his eyes and said angrily: "They went back to Zhuangzi first. They haven't been home for ten years. How can any of them think about anything else?"

Li Chengqian nodded when he heard this: "Yes, it's been ten years, it's time to go home and take a look!"

Although it is a pity, it is human nature after all, so we can only wait until we have a chance!
"Okay, Your Highness the Crown Prince has many things to do every day, so I won't disturb you anymore and let's go!"

Ji Song greeted his guards and prepared to mount his horse and go home. Being so disgusted by Li Chengqian, he now wished he could soak in the water for ten days and nights.

He was a bit of a germaphobe, but he didn't expect that a battle would turn into a stinker.

No, thinking of this, he couldn't wait any longer.

Li Chengqian also knew that he was anxious, and it was difficult for him to talk to him for so long, so he waved his hand.

"get out!"

Anyway, with this bastard, my royal education is over.

Ji Song didn't take it seriously either. After handing over his hand, he led everyone into Chang'an through the east gate...

Just when Ji Song returned to Chang'an, Ji's Zhuangzi also welcomed a group of familiar and unfamiliar people.

When I left, I was young and high-spirited.When he returned, he was already a young man and had already grown a few inches of beard!

Looking at the familiar scene in front of them, they hesitated for a moment, feeling excited and scared at the same time!
Near the nostalgia, I am even more timid, afraid to ask people!
This is the most true portrayal of their hearts at this time!
The original Jiangjia'ao was already very prosperous before they left, but the scene they saw now pales in comparison.

The former col is now a small lake, which was formed after the diversion of Jishui River. It is nearly one mile in diameter. The surrounding highlands are basically parallel to the water surface, and the surrounding area is surrounded by quaint small courtyards hidden among the trees.

It’s bigger than before, and there are more than before.

When he left, there were only about five or six hundred households here, and most of them were members of the Ji clan.But now at a glance, it seems that there are no less than [-] households.

They stood on the high ground outside the village and overlooked the entire village. For a moment, they were afraid to go down.

"Hey! Who is that? What kind of thief dares to spy on my Ji family's village? I'm so tired of living!"

Ji Hu was the one who jointly opened the slaughterhouse with Ji Shan.In recent years, they have relied on Ji's connections and backed up areas with large populations such as Chang'an and Guanzhong to open slaughterhouses all over Guanzhong.

Wherever there are cities in Guanzhong, there must be their slaughterhouses. The meat of at least three cities in Chang'an is produced by them, and they make a lot of money every year!
In the past few years, as the business has stabilized and meat cannot be stored for a long time, they have stopped expanding and started to pamper themselves!
On this day, he had just come from Chang'an. Before he entered Zhuangzi, he saw a group of horses appearing at the intersection. Those horses looked like war horses, and they were high-quality war horses.

But except for a horse watcher, no one else was seen.

Just when he was surprised, he saw his angry side. A group of more than a hundred people who looked young were standing on the high ground outside Ji's Zhuangzi to peek?
How great is this?Are all Zhuangzi’s guards dead?

So he yelled loudly without thinking.

As for whether it will be dangerous?

Ha ha!

This is Ji's Zhuangzi, and their people are everywhere, both openly and secretly. As long as you send a signal, someone will arrive in less than a cup of tea.

But what surprised him was that this highland was a place Zhuangzi must defend. How did these people get up there?
This has to be said about Liu Laoer and Daniu. These two people returned to Zhuangzi one day in advance, saying that they were reporting the news in advance, so Ji Qing and others didn't think much about it.

But who would have expected that after these two people came back, they didn't mention a word about the return of Ji Qing and others. They just said that it would take a few days, and everyone believed it.

In the early morning of this day, the two of them dismissed the guards here and said that they would guard it themselves.

So, when Ji Qing and others came up, there was no one here.

It’s not that Liu Laoer and Daniel have any bad intentions, they just want to give everyone a surprise!
Ji Qing and others heard someone yelling and scolding, and the familiar voice made them tremble.

When Ji Qing turned around, Ji Hu was stunned. He just felt that the person in front of him was familiar, but he couldn't remember who it was?
So he frowned and asked: "Who are you? Don't you know that this is the fiefdom of Hao Jiehou? If you spy on Ji's Zhuangzi at will, even if you are killed, the government will not bother you!"

Just when Ji Qing was about to open his mouth, Wang Xuance suddenly rolled his eyes, pulled Ji Qing, stepped forward and cupped his hands and said: "Brothers have always lived in no fixed place, aren't they going to Chang'an? I heard that Chang'an is a big residence. It’s not easy, brothers are a little tight on money.”

"I heard that Ji's Zhuangzi is the fiefdom of the current Marquis Hao Yu? I think that Marquis Hao Yu is so rich that he can rival the country and support his brothers. I guess he won't refuse to give it, right?"

Wang Xuance is an undisciplined kid. He was in the market when he was a child. He talks about all kinds of nonsense in the world!
Ji Hu was stunned at first, but when he understood what they meant, he immediately laughed in anger.

"Okay, are you here to rob our Ji family? Why don't you keep your eyes open to see if this is where you can come?"

After saying that, he blew a copper whistle, and then looked at Ji Qing and others as if they were looking at dead people.
(End of this chapter)