I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 145: The Eastern Bandits, Immortal Xu!

In the next few days, Liu Ju and his party continued their journey eastward.

Gongsun Qing, following Liu Ju's orders, acted separately and, under the "escort" of a hundred Jianzhang cavalry, went to contact and recruit the alchemists and people who believed in alchemy in Qi.

In the end, the two sides will meet in Donglai County, which is the area south of Penglai District of Yantai City in later generations.

Before setting off, Liu Ju asked Huo Guang to give private instructions to these Jianzhang cavalry.

He ordered them to keep Gongsun Qing under close watch. If they found that this guy had the intention of escaping, they could just tie him up and bring him to Donglai County City without any scruples.

Besides.

Liu Ju had also been secretly preparing for his own "deification" plan.

Whenever he passed through a county town, he would give a work plan to his most trusted attendant and Zhongdun, whom he brought from the Prince's Palace, and order them to find a local blacksmith or carpenter to make something overnight.

And each time what is rushed out is just a part of the installation parts.

Neither these followers and Zhongdun, nor the blacksmiths and craftsmen who were working on it knew what Liu Ju was using these things for.

Now all these messy things have filled two carriages, covered with sackcloth, and are following in the convoy.

After entering the territory of Donglai County.

The county town gradually became more sparsely populated, and the distances between post stations also became much longer.

Huo Guang had previously analyzed the specific situation of Donglai County for Liu Ju.

The area of ​​Donglai County is not smaller than that of Taishan County and Beihai Kingdom that we passed through before, but even if Donglai County City is included, the number of county towns is only eleven, and the distance between each county town is relatively far.

This is because there was no demand for maritime transportation business in this era, nor was there a need for seaports.

The closer to the coast, the greater the impact of typhoons and high tides. The level and conditions of private housing construction at that time were truly unable to withstand these natural disasters.

Therefore, compared with the peaceful inland area, the coastal areas of this era were considered remote and poor by people.

And the fishermen in the seaside fishing village.

Basically, these people are the ones who have lost their land and have nowhere else to go, and have fallen into such a situation.

As for the seafood that was sought after by people in later generations, it is not very popular nowadays. Even in the eyes of some prominent families and rich farmers who own fields and land, those seafood are just feed for chickens and pigs, and only those who are desperate will eat them to fill their stomachs.

However, fish among seafood is an exception.

Although there was no condition for refrigeration and transportation in this era, most seafood would rot and stink after being caught. However, if fishermen dried the fish into salted fish, they could still be stored as food or used as commodities to exchange for something. However, the income was still difficult to compare with farming.

Of course...the prerequisite for farming is to have enough land.

Another ten days passed.

When Liu Ju and his party were still two days away from Qucheng, they arrived at a small village called Donggou.

This small village has less than a hundred households and there is a clear river next to it.

It was already late, so Huo Guang ordered his men to enter the village to investigate. With the local headman as a guarantor, they decided to camp outside the village and rest for the night.

As a result, they had just set up camp and had not had time to make a fire and cook when they heard a commotion outside.

Liu Ju has been very bored recently.

Seeing that something was finally happening, and hearing that the person who came was just a villager, no matter how Huo Guang tried to dissuade him, he insisted on going to see it in person.

When he came outside, he heard the head of the pavilion scolding him from ten feet away:

"Go back quickly! Do you know who this noble man is? How dare you come here and make trouble?"

"Uncle Shan, please be so kind as to ask the nobleman inside. If my mother is not sent to Huang County to ask the Immortal Xu for medicine and blessing, I'm afraid she will not survive!"

"That won't do! Listen to your uncle. This nobleman is not an ordinary person. Listen to your uncle and go back first. Wait for a few days for the convoy to come. I promise to help you ask. Hurry up, ancestor!"

"Uncle Shan, please be kind, my mother..."

Seeing a group of armored and armed warriors looking at him coldly, the sharp blade at his waist was already half unsheathed.

The headman, who was called "Shan Shu", kept dragging him back. The young man, who was about the same age as Huo Guang, became anxious and suddenly broke free from Shan Shu's hand. He knelt down deep in the tent with a plop and shouted at the top of his voice:

"My dear noble man inside, please be kind and save my mother. I kowtow to you, kowtow, kowtow!"

"quiet!"

The nearby Qimen warriors and Jianzhang cavalry drew their swords instantly.

"No, no, no, my superiors. This bastard has no bad intentions. His mother is dying, so he acted impulsively in a moment of anxiety. I will drag him away right now, immediately, and I promise not to cause any trouble for you."

The headman, who was called "Uncle Shan", was so scared that he waved his hands repeatedly, quickly covered the young man's mouth again, and forcibly dragged him away.

at this time.

"what's the situation?"

Liu Ju's voice finally came from not far away.

"Your Highness!"

Upon hearing the voice, the Qimen warriors and Jianzhang cavalry quickly turned around and bowed their heads. "Your Highness?"

The young man was also stunned when he heard this.

Although he could not read or write, he knew what the title of "Your Highness" meant.

Uncle Shan really didn't lie to him. This man was indeed a noble man, and a very important noble man. No wonder he could bring so many armored warriors with him when he traveled.

But now that things have come to this, he has no other choice but to bite the bullet and kowtow again:

"My Lord, I kowtow to you and ask you to be kind enough to give my mother a ride. If she is delayed any longer, she will die. I beg you."

"What's going on?"

Seeing that the young man could not explain the whole story clearly, Liu Ju looked directly at the head of the pavilion whom he called "Uncle Shan".

"Reply, reply to your Highness's words."

It was the first time for the head of the pavilion to speak to such an important person as the prince. He quickly bent his waist to 90 degrees and said in a trembling voice,
"This bastard is called Fatty Fish. His mother suddenly became seriously ill two months ago and couldn't get out of bed."

"In recent days, her condition has worsened. He was afraid that his mother could not hold on, but he had no money to treat her. So he sold himself to a wealthy family as a slave for 100 coins. He wanted to use the money to send his mother to Huang County, next to Donglai County, to ask for medicine and blessings from the Immortal Xu in Huang County."

"But now that he has the money, he has become a slave and cannot leave. He still has a younger sister at home, and there is no way to drag his mother to Huang County."

"So this bastard wanted to find a passing caravan, give some money and ask the caravan to take his mother and sister with him."

"It just so happened that these few days, there was not a single caravan waiting."

"Now that Your Highness has come here, he was anxious and offended Your Highness. Please forgive him this time for his filial piety."

"Fatty Fish, why are you still standing there? Come on, kowtow to His Highness and apologize, beg His Highness to forgive you this time!"

The head of the pavilion was obviously quite concerned about the young man named Fatty Yu'er, and he kept pressing his head, fearing that Liu Ju would be displeased and punish him for his offense.

As a result, after Liu Ju heard these words.

But he didn't care about Fatty Fish's offense, nor did he care about his mother's illness, nor did he care about the fact that Fatty Fish was not fat at all. Instead, he asked a question that seemed insignificant to most people:
"Captain, who is this Immortal Xu you just mentioned? Why do we need to ask him for medicine and blessings to cure our illnesses?"

The pavilion chief was also stunned for a moment, then he quickly said truthfully:
"I only know that his original name is Xu Bo. It is said that he is the great-great-grandson of Xu Fu, who went to the sea to seek immortality a hundred years ago."

"There is also a legend that Xu Fu had already found the elixir to become an immortal, and found a fairyland with vast plains and swamps outside the three fairy mountains of Penglai, Fangzhang and Yingzhou. This fairyland is like spring all year round, with no worries about food and drink, and is immune to evil spirits. The three thousand boys and girls who followed Xu Fu that year all enjoyed happiness there."

"Now Xu Fu was grateful for his descendants, so he sent a dream to Xu Bo, in which he taught him some prescriptions, spells and incantations for curing diseases, saving lives, blessing and exorcising evil spirits."

"As long as people believe in him, take the medicine he prepared, and receive his blessing, many diseases can be cured. Many people have been cured by him."

"And it's been widely rumored recently."

"This Immortal Xu has been guided by the great ancestor Xu Fu. As long as the right time comes, those who sincerely believe in him can follow him to the fairyland with plains and vast marshes to enjoy happiness."

"I heard that there are already more than 10,000 people following him. Even the governor of Donglai County is his believer. This is incredible!"

That’s all I have to say.

The young man named Fatty Fish immediately kowtowed and begged:
"My dear lord, only the Immortal Xu can save my mother's life. Please be kind enough to give her a ride!"

"I have nothing to repay you, my lord. Apart from the fifty coins that Immortal Xu gave me to buy medicine for my mother, and the twenty coins that he left for my mother and my sister, I will give you the remaining thirty coins after selling my body. Please be kind to me, my lord!"

"..."

After listening to Fatty Yuer's words, Liu Ju really couldn't laugh this time.

One hundred coins nowadays can only buy one and a half stone of rice at most, and the price is that this fat fish and his descendants will be slaves for generations...

Then fifty cents of it will be given to this Immortal Xu.

Not to mention whether the obviously fraudulent trick of Master Xu could cure his mother.

Even if his mother managed to survive, there would only be the mother and daughter left in the family. With only twenty coins, it was still unknown whether they could survive in the future.

This world!
Father, oh father, you also have an unshirkable responsibility!

And there is this Xu Immortal named Xu Bo...

Liu Ju always felt that this name sounded familiar, but for a moment he couldn't remember where it appeared in the history books.

"Xu Bo...Xu Bo..."

Liu Ju silently repeated the name in his mind, trying to search for related memories in his brain.

"Qi people...Xu Bo..."

"Could it be that Xu Bo?!"

Liu Ju suddenly had an idea and finally remembered the origin of the name.

——【During the Tianhan period, bandits arose everywhere. In Nanyang there were Mei Mian and Bai Zheng, in Chu there were Yin Zhong and Du Shao, in Qi there was "Xu Bo", in Yan and Zhao there were Jian Lu and Fan Sheng, etc., and they were called "the Eastern Bandits".】

　Sorry, sorry, this second chapter is a few hours late today.

　　This kind of holiday is really too busy, please bear with me...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)