I am a Big Villain

Yan Chu did not take Zongzheng Qingqi back to the city immediately as he wished. Instead, he walked around the outskirts of the city for a long time and asked several local old farmers in detail about the crop yields this year and the The price at which they sell grain to rice grain shops.

In front of Zongzheng Qingqi, Yan Chu also focused on asking about the impact of the news of the drought in Eastern Province on the local food prices and the lives of ordinary people after it reached the capital. At this time, Zongzheng Qingqi did not care about talking to Yan Chu. When he got angry, he pricked up his ears and listened carefully, even putting aside the things he had just been struggling with.

After leaving the palace, Zongzheng Qingqi realized what kind of life the ordinary people lived outside the palace. He also had a meal at a nearby farmhouse, which was mixed with wild vegetable foam and was a must-have for every household during the winter. A pot of soup made from pickled vegetables, and chicken soup made from an old hen that the farmer had to kill because they gave him enough money.

That pot of chicken soup was almost boiled in its original flavor without skimming off the oil. The heat was not sophisticated enough, and not enough supplementary ingredients were added. Zongzheng Qingqi felt tired after just one sip. If it weren't for the grains that stuck in his throat, he would still have it. He didn't necessarily drink the bowl of chicken soup that the old farmer gave him. As for the overcooked hen's meat, he naturally didn't touch a bite. He barely ate one and a half steamed buns, and he felt full.

"Do not waste."

Yan Chu picked up the remaining half of the steamed bun and ate it without changing his expression. Every mouthful of rice and every mouthful of soup was eaten with great piety.

Under his comparison, and seeing the old farmer's half-grown children sitting obediently aside, eating their nests and looking greedily at the pot of fragrant chicken soup on the table, salivating but not daring to touch it, Zong Zheng Qingqi felt that she seemed to be a little too pampered.

"Thank you, uncle. Today's lunch was delicious."

For Yan Chu, today’s lunch tasted really good, pure and fresh wild vegetables, and the chewy corn nests. Except for the fact that the corn corn was not ground finely when grinding, the graininess was a bit heavy, and the corn nests were mixed with some corn noodles. In addition to the rougher taste, in modern times, it is completely a healthy and natural delicacy.

The old hen was not properly treated when making the soup, but it was simmered over firewood in the old stove. Although it was a bit greasy, the taste was rich enough, and if you taste it carefully, there is still something to be said for it.

After experiencing so many worlds, Yan Chu has long known how to accept everything you face calmly. He can discover the beauty of food from the subtleties. A meal that Zongzheng Qingqi thinks is unbearable, but Yan Chu can enjoy it calmly. , also for this reason.

"Hey hey hey."

After hearing Yan Chu's sincere praise, the old farmer couldn't help but smile, showing his yellow teeth with dirt still stuck on them: "To be honest, a few years ago, I never thought that I would be able to live such a good life. "

The old farmer is not stupid. Judging from the behavior of the young master Zongzheng Qingqi, he knows that the food of this family on weekdays must be much better than theirs. The young master may not be able to drink the old hen soup during the Chinese New Year. I don’t like it. I think every meal at home is full of delicacies. In this case, the handsome old man can eat the leftovers of his son’s food together and sincerely express his gratitude after finishing the meal. In the eyes of the old farmer , this is not an ordinary person.

He felt that the old man in front of him was more kind and approachable than all the old men he had seen before. It really made sense for God to allow such a man to enjoy great blessings.

Even though a loving father often loses his son, this young master seems to be spoiled at home. He is not bad-hearted, but he has some principles of life that his father does not understand. Moreover, this young master is very courageous and dares to inquire about the emperor and the imperial guards. I only hope that this master can be ruthless and take good care of his son when he goes back to prevent him from causing a big disaster.

These thoughts passed through the old farmer's mind in just a blink of an eye. Looking at the nest with lots of cornstarch and flour but little wild vegetables and cornstarch noodles in his hand, the old farmer sighed with happiness from the bottom of his heart.

"In the early years, as the main labor force in my family, I only dared to eat two Wowo in one meal, and then drank a large pot of water. I never dared to eat with an open stomach. I was afraid that if I was full after one meal, I would not have enough food for the next meal. , it’s different now. I can eat four wowo in one meal, and I can also drink a bowl of wild vegetable porridge. During the holidays, my family is willing to go to the pork shop in the town to buy some pig meat. The pork belly improves the food. I can’t even think about it.”

The old farmer chuckled. This year the new emperor ascended the throne and also reduced taxes. In addition, the royal guards in the capital are the most closely watched. Who dares to commit crimes and treat ordinary people like them harshly? In this way, the money they can save this year will be reduced. If there are more, I can buy some decent dowry for my daughter when she comes out of the palace next year.

The old farmers are yearning for their future life, and their days are really getting more promising.

"Yes, I can also eat two wowotou."

The seven-year-old grandson of the old farmer raised three fingers and said with a smile, showing a gaping tooth and a dark and thin face, looking full of energy.

Two Wowotou, each one is about the size of a child's fist, but for a farmer's child, it is already the ultimate happiness and the greatest satisfaction.

It would be great if grandpa could let him take a sip of the chicken soup that the noble man drank. The little boy wiped the drool that came from the gap between his teeth, lowered his head and nibbled on the cereal nest obediently.

Zongzheng Qingqi's mood dropped a lot as he listened. While he was still picking and choosing about food that didn't suit his appetite, his people were so satisfied just because they could have enough food and clothing. It can be imagined that they were so satisfied before. How bad life is.

"Now we grow rice, wheat, and corn, potatoes and sweet potatoes introduced by the imperial court from the other side of the sea. They have high yields and don't have so many requirements on the climate. Now even the original wasteland on the hillside has been planted with these new crops. , we don’t have to go hungry anymore, and with those high-yielding grains, I think the famine in the Eastern Province will be alleviated soon.”

The old farmer noticed that many of the questions Yan Chu asked before were about grain output and grain prices. He thought that the other person was concerned about the drought in Eastern Province. He couldn't help but comforted the other person. Now that the people in the court are so wise, Eastern Province The drought will not last long. I believe the court will be able to come up with a solution.

After listening to the old farmer's words, Zongzheng Qingqi felt even more ashamed.

The introduction of corn, potato, and sweet potato seeds can be attributed to Xiao Chu. At that time, he organized a maritime caravan to conduct trade in the countries on the other side of the sea. At that time, no one was optimistic about Xiao Chu's decision. On the contrary, because of him The construction of large merchant ships was a waste of money and people, and emptied half of the national treasury. At that time, the former harem criticized his decision, and those who hated him privately accused him of being a traitor and harming the country.

Zongzheng Qingqi was even younger at that time, and under the influence of people around him, he was also one of the people who scolded Xiao Chu.

Facts have proved that his approach was correct. The changes brought by the opening of sea routes to large merchants are worthy of being recorded in history.

Zongzheng Qingqi couldn't help but fell silent. When he stubbornly believed that Xiao Chu was a traitor, to the people of Dashang, he, a traitor, might be more worthy of their trust than the former emperor of Dashang, his father.

Does he really have the right to slander Xiao Chu like this and disdain him?

****

"Do you still want to go shopping?"

After lunch at the old farmhouse, Yan Chu took Zongzheng Qingqi into the carriage and returned to the city.

He walked behind, letting Zongzheng Qingqi go to taverns, bookstores, and street vendors. For the next half day, he accompanied him and listened to the sour scholars in the tavern using obscure words to criticize the current situation of eunuchs. , and also accompanied him to listen to the street vendors' satisfaction with their current lives and their expectations for the future.

The look in his eyes as he looked at him changed from suspicion, to deep thought, and now to a mixture of contradictory and complex emotions.

Yan Chu knew that the little boy had been peeking at him, but he didn't do what he wanted. Even when he listened to the criticism and criticism from those sarcastic scholars, his expression remained calm.

Zongzheng Qingqi knew what he was thinking, and the other party must have seen through it a long time ago. As a result, the little emperor was frustrated, not to mention how frustrated he was. Compared with that man, he seemed to be separated by countless mountains. He even doubted whether he had any The day I climbed to the same height as him.

"You, hum."

Zongzheng Qingqi wanted to ask the other party why the people who talked about the emperor's Jinyiwei in private were arrested, but he, the governor of Dongchang and the actual master of Jinyiwei, was criticized so harshly by those slanderous scholars, but no one from Dongchang was seen. What's the reaction?

In a place as big as the tavern, Zongzheng Qingqi couldn't believe that Dongchang's eyes and ears had not noticed this scene. It seemed that for the man in front of him, his external reputation, good or bad, had never been within his scope of concern.

But before the question was asked, Zongzheng Qingqi felt a little regretful. The relationship between him and Xiao Chu was not so harmonious that he could ask such a question, so he took back the words and hummed with an arrogant voice. Ending the topic that hasn't started yet.

"Old man, give me two bunches of candied haws."

Yan Chu took out four cents from his wallet and handed it to a vendor. From the target he was carrying, he selected two bunches of large, red candied haws.

How can such a grown man eat such a thing?

Zongzheng Qingqi didn't eat enough when he was at the old farmhouse. Now after walking around for a long time, his stomach has already begun to sing empty city tricks. It's just because of his face that he can't open his mouth.

Sugar-coated haws on a stick was a novel food that he had been eyeing since he left the palace. He just noticed that the people surrounding the candied haws-glued vendor were a group of four or five-year-old childish babies. Zongzheng Qingqi thought that he was already an adult. How dare you ask to buy these children's food?

Now seeing Xiao Chu coming back with two bunches of candied haws regardless of his image, his eyes widened.

Two strings, one of them must be for him, right?

Zongzheng Qingqi swallowed and couldn't help but glance at the candied haws in Yan Chu's hand from the corner of his eyes. He thought to himself that if Xiao Chu insisted on giving it to him, then he would just accept it. This was not because he was greedy. If you want to buy it, the majesty of his emperor is still preserved.

Contrary to Zongzheng Qingqi's expectation, Yan Chu gave him both bunches of candied haws in his hand.

"After all, the things outside the palace are not as fine as those made in the palace. Your Majesty, just taste it. If you like it, you can ask the royal chef in the palace to learn how to make it."

His eyes were indifferent, as if the two bunches of candied haws were bought by him casually.

Zongzheng Qingqi didn't care so much. Facing the cute candied haws, he couldn't help grinning. It took him a while to realize that this affected his image as an emperor. He quickly covered his mouth and looked around, as if he wanted to see Look at how many people saw the scene just now.

Two bunches of candied haws, one for himself and one for his mother. Speaking of which, the queen has not left the palace for more than ten years since she entered the palace. She must also be thinking about these little things outside the palace, so she gave her this Skewering candied haws on a stick might make her happier.

Although the queen mother never said it, Zongzheng Qingqi could feel that the queen mother was not happy in the deep palace.

Yan Chu glanced at the little emperor who changed his mood at any time and was very happy after getting two bunches of candied haws. He was completely unable to compare him with the one in his original memory who had grown up after countless hardships, was decisive in killing, resolute and courageous. The emperor connected with one piece.

In the previous life, it was hard to tell which one was more wrong, the original person or him. Due to the original person's position, he just wanted to kill everyone in the Zongzheng royal family, including Zongzheng Qingqi, the son of the woman he loved.

Due to Zongzheng Qingqi's stance, he served as a puppet emperor for several years. He watched the great merchants fall into dire straits due to the original person's deliberate revenge. The border towns were in chaos. Everyone wanted to get a share of the vast territory of the Central Plains. Geng, natural disasters were rampant and the people revolted. Under this situation, he made a prompt decision and faked his death to escape.

The original person fostered a new puppet, and under his control, the Zongzheng royal family gradually and completely perished. Similarly, the Great Shang Dynasty was torn into pieces, and the heroes were divided. War broke out in the originally peaceful land, and the people were displaced.

Ten years later, when Zongzheng Qingqi once again appeared in front of the original person who was about to complete his revenge, he was no longer what he used to be.

It was also at that time that the original person discovered that Zongzheng Qingqi was not dead. He was the northwest king who suddenly emerged five or six years ago and took over the Wanqi clan, conquering several small countries one after another.

In the harem, there was only one person who had the ability to help him fake his death and escape without him being on guard, and that was the woman he loved deeply but didn't dare to meet.

Between him and Zongzheng Qingqi, the woman chose her son after all.

At that time, the original body was no longer what it used to be due to old illnesses. The confrontation between the two did not last long. On one side was the decayed old court, and on the other side was the King of the Northwest, whose morale was high and the people's hearts had returned. Naturally, the original body was defeated by Zongzheng Qinghui.

After he came to power, he reorganized the court, put down the rebellion, and regained the country. He spent another ten years dealing with the mess left by his original self, and another twenty years to make the great merchants prosper and enjoy peace in all directions.

History books refer to that turmoil as the Qingning Incident, which is named after the Qing Emperor and the Jingning Empire. This war, which affected the Great Shang Dynasty for more than 20 years, is remembered by everyone, and Xiao Chu, the culprit who caused this war, also became a traitor who was criticized verbally and written by historians in the historical records.

After his death, a statue of a kneeling eunuch was erected in front of many mass burial tombs in Dashang. Everyone who went to visit the tomb would spit at the statue and throw mud. The prototype of this statue was that of the traitor Xiao Chu. , even if the world changes, the story about Xiao Chu is still passed down orally from generation to generation, and it cannot be shaken off forever.

The culprit who caused everything was Emperor Chengqing, but it was the people of Li who endured all the suffering on his behalf.

In this mistake, the original person was innocent, and so was Zongzheng Qingqi. One of them has endured tens of millions of years of infamy, and the other has become an emperor for eternity, but no one knows that during those years when he became a puppet , how much pressure he endured during the years when he faked his death, just because he was born with half of the blood of Emperor Cheng Qing.

Zongzheng Qingqi was eating candied haws when he felt the complicated gaze of Yan Chu. This seemed to be the first time that the other party showed such an uncontrollable expression today.

What is he looking at?

Zongzheng Qingqi looked down and saw that he had only eaten one candied haws in his hand. The sour and sweet sugar haws were so sweet that he loved it. He reluctantly put the candied haws in front of Yan Chu.

"You gave this to me."

Zongzheng Qingqi muttered in a low voice, he is really a stingy person, since he wants to eat, just buy another bunch himself, he will not laugh at him.

"Just one." Seeing that Xiao Chu didn't move his mouth, Zongzheng Qingqi put the candied haws in front of him again and emphasized.

"Kacha."

After biting through the outer sugar coating, the hawthorn inside is slightly pantothenic. This acidity just balances the sweetness of the outer sugar coating. It is sour and sweet, stimulating the taste buds and whetting one's appetite.

Under the pained eyes of the little emperor, Yan Chu bit off the top candied haws as he wished. It seemed that he was afraid that he would eat more. After he bit off the candied haws, the little emperor quickly took the candied haws back.

We went shopping together and shared the same bunch of candied haws together. Zongzheng Qingqi felt that after spending this day together, he seemed to have a different view on Xiao Chu, the eunuch he hated so much in the past.

This change seems not bad either.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom..."

The grievance drum outside the palace was beaten ten times, and it would only be sounded when serious grievances required Li Lai to face the abyss.

You must know that since the founding of the Great Shang Dynasty, the drum of grievance has only been sounded twice. It is not that these two grievances are the only ones in the world, but the price of being beaten is very high.

Today is not an easy day. Since you have a grievance to express, you must prove your determination to redress your grievances.

Beating the grievance drum is only the first step in redressing grievances. After ringing the grievance drum, the person who avenges grievances has to go through the "Mountain of Swords" and the "Sea of ​​Fire" before he can see the emperor and express his grievances.

The "Mountain of Knives" is a nail board made up of a thousand sharp iron nails. Each nail is one inch long. The person who avenges an injustice needs to wear a thin spring shirt and roll across the nail board which is about three feet long.

The "Sea of ​​Fire" is a long road paved with a pile of burning coals. The person who avenges an injustice has to walk barefoot through the "Sea of ​​Fire". Only by completing the above two tests and staying alive can he get this precious face. A chance for justice.

It is also because such a challenge is almost impossible to complete. Unless there is a serious grievance, most people will not even think about it and do not have the courage to sound the drum of grievance.

At this time, Zongzheng Qingqi was following Xiao Chu back to the palace. When he heard the grievance drum being beaten, he immediately opened the curtain of the carriage and jumped out of the carriage.

For every emperor, the drum of grievance being beaten outside the palace gate means that something big has happened. How could Zongzheng Qingqi not care.

At this time, a crowd of people had gathered outside the palace gate after hearing the grievance drum and came to watch the excitement. Zongzheng Qingqi still had to use all his strength to walk through the crowded crowd and walk to the innermost part.

"Do you have any grievance against me?"

The steward guarding the palace gate came out and looked at the young man kneeling outside the palace gate holding a drumstick and asked.

"The grassroots man is Yan Chu, the son of the former general Yan Zhaonan. I am suing the current emperor for sending people to pretend to be bandits to massacre all members of my Yan family and falsely accuse my father of treason and conspiracy. I also want to ask the new emperor to return a member of my Yan family who was killed in vain. Justice, give justice to all the loyal ancestors of my Yan family."

All the buzzing voices around him suddenly stopped.

The author has something to say: I just sent a red envelope to the little angel who left a message on the last chapter yesterday. I don’t know if it is because of the system convulsions. The fifth to ninth pages in the background cannot be opened, and errors always appear. I will try again tomorrow. Let's see if it can be opened normally. I will send you a small red envelope when the time comes.