The first Taoist priest of the Tang Dynasty

Xiao Hua was really puzzled, she sat on the stool in a daze, looking at the group of women holding their babies and wiping their tears.

He said something about his elder brother going to Songzhou to fight, which made these women start to cry.

Xiaohua was really confused at this moment.

Even Ren Zhu and the others sitting next to her were dumbfounded.

……

At this time, Zhong Wen, who had rushed back from Songzhou overnight, had already entered Chang'an City, and after a while, he had already returned to the gate of his mansion in Yongping Square.

But when Zhong Wen just returned to the gate of his mansion, he saw a group of no less than 20 people sitting around the gate of his mansion.

Zhong Wen was a little puzzled, and after glancing at the group of people, he went straight into the mansion.

Zhong Wen entered the mansion with some doubts, and found that except for those servants, no one else in the mansion was missing, feeling strange in his heart.

"Where are they?" Zhong Wen called a servant over and asked.

"Returning to Daoist, the young lady went out early in the morning; butler Xu is probably still busy in the restaurant at this time. Some time ago, I met a lot of things from the south, butler Xu has been busy recently; as for the master and the others, it seems I went to Guanli to burn incense and pray for blessings." Seeing that Zhong Wen had only come back for more than a month, the servant was very happy, and quickly responded to Zhong Wen.

As far as the people in the mansion were concerned, everyone was in harmony on weekdays. In addition, Zhong Wen's status was unusual, which made the servants of the mansion appear to be of high status when they went out or returned home.

However, after Zhong Wen went to Songzhou more than a month ago, the family seemed a little discouraged, and everyone couldn't get up much energy. They were afraid that something unexpected would happen to Zhong Wen's family in Songzhou.

Of course, the person in the family who is least worried about Zhong Wen is probably Xiao Hua who is still in Zhaoxingfang at this time.

In Xiaohua's eyes, fighting is just a war. To her brother, it is as simple as eating a bowl of rice. In her little heart, there is no worry or not. At most, she is just thinking about her brother.

But today, after finally seeing Zhong Wen come back, all the servants in the house, everyone's faces were filled with smiles.

If the master's family is fine, it means that the County Marquis's Mansion will not be dismantled, and their jobs will be kept.

No one wants anything to happen to the master's house. After all, with so many benefits, who would like to be dismissed?

After hearing the servant's response, Zhong Wen didn't think much, took a shower, and left the mansion.

After coming out of the mansion, the group of people not far from the gate had already left.

Zhong Wen didn't care, guessing in his heart that the group of people probably rested here for a while, and then Zhong Wen went to the restaurant in Changshoufang.

At this time, in Miyagi.

"My lord, Zhong Changshi returned to Chang'an a quarter of an hour ago." After receiving the report from the city gate, Li Shan hurriedly reported to Li Shimin.

"Oh? Jiushou returned to Chang'an? Hurry up and invite him here." When Li Shimin heard the news, he was also anxious, wanting to know how the situation in Songzhou was.

After all, the letter didn't arrive in Chang'an so quickly, it was much later than the time Zhong Wen returned to Chang'an.

When Zhong Wen entered Chang'an City, the soldiers guarding the city gate had already spotted Zhong Wen's figure, so they rushed to report to Li Shan.

This is also a person who must be known by the soldiers at the gates of each city.

Of course, in addition to Zhong Wen, who must be known, there are shadows, Li Shan, and other nobles, such as princes, heirs, county kings, and dukes.

If you really don't know each other and get involved, then the trouble is probably not small.

Besides, although there are quite a few of these nobles in Chang'an City, there are definitely not too many of them.

The nobles who have been knighted, besides having a title, naturally also have an official status, so they must also take office, but they will not stay in Chang'an City all the time.

At this time, Zhong Wen had arrived at the restaurant.

After beating Zhong Wen and entering the restaurant, Xu Fu saw Zhong Wen coming back suddenly, and he was stunned for a long time before he could react.

"Daozhang, why did you come back only now?" Seeing Zhong Wen, Xu Fu was really happy and had a lot of bitter thoughts in his heart.

In the more than a month since Zhong Wen left, although the County Marquis's Mansion said nothing major happened, during this period of time, there were quite a few people who had participated in many of Zhong Wen's scriptures towards the current Holy Majesty.

Of course, Xu Fu didn't know about this at first, but Jin Shui couldn't stand the news he heard from somewhere, so he came to the restaurant from time to time to reveal the news of the court to Xu Fu.

Moreover, some time ago, many people ran to the gate of the County Marquis Mansion to make a fuss, even the Huilai Restaurant was not spared.

When Li Shan heard the news, he brought a lot of forbidden soldiers over, but when they arrived, all those people couldn't disappear.

But they always pop up from time to time, get together, and don't make trouble, just sit not far from the gate of the County Marquis Mansion, as if they are watching.

"I just came back, what? I heard that I came back from the south. Is it something that needs to be used for seasoning?" Zhong Wen responded, looking at the people in the restaurant in the backyard of the restaurant, who were helping to organize things.

"Yes, Taoist priest, I just came back a while ago, and it is drying. After drying, I will prepare the seasoning." Xu Fu led Zhong to the backyard, and introduced it to Zhong Wen.

"Where are Xiaohua and the others? Is today a holiday? Why is there no one here?" Zhong Wen didn't care about the seasoning, and asked Xu Fu about Xiaohua.

"Master Daoist, my lady has gone to Yongyang Square." At this time, Xiaolu, a servant who had been following Xiaohua, hurriedly explained when Zhong Wen asked about Xiaohua.

"Why did she go to Yongyangfang?" Zhong Wen's head was full of question marks at this time.

"Daoist, this..." Xiaolu dared not say anything, fearing that if she said what happened to Xiaohua, she would definitely be beaten up by Zhong Wen.

"What's the matter? Tell me clearly, why are you hesitating." Zhong Wen saw that Xiao Lu hesitated to speak, as if he was covering for Xiao Hua.

"Master Daoist, let me talk about this matter. The little lady said a month ago that the workshop was too dirty and messy, and she said that it needs to be rectified. I don't know what she said about this. The workshop is always like this, so what's the deal? I never imagined that the little lady is so bold that she brought those wild boys from Changshoufang and Yongpingfang to rectify the nearby Lifang. They are all clean and look very comfortable. of."

At this time, Xu Fu quickly took the words and explained to Zhong Wen.

Speaking of which, Xu Fu was afraid that Xiaolu's words would be too direct and make Zhong Wen angry, so he thought about using some tricks to make things about Xiaohua better.

"Rectify? Xiaohua and the others have gone to Yongyangfang to rectify now?" Zhong Wen heard Xu Fu's explanation, and knew in his heart that the word "rectify" came from himself.

"Yes, Taoist priest, the little lady went to Yongyang Fang early this morning, and she didn't let us follow." Xiaolu looked at Xu Fu, then at Zhong Wen and responded cautiously.

"This girl, the bigger she is, the less she looks like a lady. It's all right, you guys are busy. I'll go to Yongyangfang and take this girl back to the house." After hearing this, Zhong Wen felt helpless and said to Xu Fu and the others. After yelling, he walked out of the restaurant.

At this time, under the big banyan tree in Zhaoxingfang, the crying had already stopped.

As for Xiaohua's temperament, seeing so many women and girls crying, she naturally wanted to ask why. If these women and girls were really bullied, Xiaohua felt that this was something that could be done, even if it couldn't be done. , I also have to fight for these women and girls.

However, following the women's explanations, Xiaohua and the others understood why they were crying.

It turned out that the women and girls in Zhaoxingfang, their husband's family, or parents, all belonged to the ranks.

It's just that, because of the war, their sons and sons had already died in battle.

And they had nowhere to go, so they had to settle down in Zhaoxingfang and do some manual work to support their children.

In addition, the imperial court also treated the women and girls in Zhaoxingfang leniently, exempting them from head tax and many other types of taxes. Even many houses in Zhaoxingfang were paid by the imperial court. given.

However, there is an unwritten rule in Zhaoxingfang.

When the men of each family grow up enough to support themselves, they will leave Zhaoxingfang on their own and go to other Lifangs to make a living.

As for the reason, according to these women and girls, it is because only women and children are kept in Zhaoxingfang, men are not allowed to stay.

The reason is unclear, maybe just like in Pingkangfang, there are several times as many women as men.

But this Zhaoxingfang is another extreme, and it is also the place where the imperial court treats these small families preferentially.

Chapter 438 The Shadow Breaks When the Face Is Holy

At this time, just as Zhong Wen came out of Changshoufang, he ran into Li Shan who was coming on a fast horse.

"Master Zhong Chang, I am honored by the Holy Spirit." Li Shan got off his horse and said after saluting to Zhong Wen.

At this time, Li Shan no longer called Zhong Wen the Xiaodao Master as before, but began to call Zhong Changshi.

After all, this is outside, when it is not a personal relationship between the two of them, it is understandable to call him Zhong Changshi.

However, after Zhong Wen saw Li Shan coming to explain his intention, he was still a little unhappy.

"I've just returned to Chang'an. Your Majesty won't give me a chance to catch my breath? I still have to go to Yongyang Fang to find my little sister." Zhong Wen complained.

In fact, not long after I returned to Chang'an, Li Shimin was about to summon me. Isn't this just looking for trouble for me.

Besides, it's been more than a month in my house, and my little sister hasn't seen him yet, so I'm going to see some holy majesty to see if there is any law.

"Zhong Changshi, how about I send someone to find my sister?" Li Shan understood that Zhong Wen was a little unhappy, and suggested to Zhong Wen.

"Okay, you send someone to bring my little sister into the palace. I haven't seen her for a long time, and I don't know how she is now." Zhong Wen had no choice but to agree to Li Shan's suggestion.

I went to see Li Shimin in the palace by myself, and I didn't know how long it would take me, so I thought about letting Li Shan take Xiaohua to the palace, so that I could see Xiaohua as soon as possible, and by the way, let Xiaohua go to see her shadow.

After all, Zhong Wen went to Songzhou on this trip, and he had many questions. He thought that when he talked with Ying Ying, he would let his little sister, let Ying take a good look at it. Whether something has been achieved.

Although, after Da Zhongwen brought Xiao Hua to Chang'an, Ying Ying had seen Xiao Hua once or twice, but he had never let Ying take a good look at it.

Afterwards, Li Shan went to Yongyangfang to find Xiaohua with the two guards accompanying him, while Zhong Wen rode on his horse, and followed Li Shan to the palace city.

……

"Your Majesty, you are in such a hurry to summon me, what important things do you need me to do?" Zhong Wen asked aloud after seeing Li Shimin and saluted.

Zhong Wen was not in a good mood, or rather impatient.

Li Shimin wanted to see him, and he could be summoned into the palace with a summons, but he had just come back not long ago, and he was summoned here without even seeing his little sister, so these words always seemed a bit out of place. People don't hear it so well.

"Jiu Shou, when I heard the news that you came back from Songzhou, I knew Jiu that you were all right, so please come into the palace and ask about the situation in Songzhou." Li Shimin was relieved when he saw Zhong Wenquan come back in full body. .

As for what Zhong Wen said, Li Shimin didn't take it to heart, let alone think too much. He only cared about the situation in Songzhou and whether Zhong Wen was safe.

After all, Zhong Wen went to Songzhou to deal with the masters of the Tubo Kingdom. If something went wrong, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Fortunately, Zhong Wen came back safely, and Li Shimin's heart that had been hanging on him finally fell to the ground.

Although Li Shimin is in Chang'an, the letter and newspaper from Songzhou has never been interrupted.

Moreover, in the letters written by Yuchi Jingde and Hou Junji, they were not very specific, but only gave a general idea.

Moreover, there has been no movement for a while, which makes Li Shimin even more worried about the situation in Songzhou.

"Returning to the Holy Lord, Songzhou is fine, and the Tubo Kingdom has withdrawn its troops. Presumably there will be no more wars." Zhong Wen reported back to Li Shimin.

"Is it true?" Li Shimin was happy after hearing this.

In fact, he had already received the news of Tubo's retreat two days ago.

However, the news only said that Tubo may temporarily withdraw its troops, and it needs to be checked to confirm.

But now, with Zhong Wen's official response, the Songzhou incident can be regarded as the most accurate news.

"Your Majesty, the soldiers and horses of the Tubo Kingdom have retreated, and all the ministries have been disbanded. It is basically impossible to gather them together again. Of course, if the Tubo Kingdom really wants to fight again, it will take some time to form a large number of soldiers and horses. Food and grass are here, not to mention, this confrontation lasted for two months, which is too long, and they can't afford it." Zhong Wen said slowly.

Zhong Wen is not familiar with fighting, but as far as the current situation in Tubo Kingdom is concerned, most of them are told by Yuchi Jingde. After all, Yuchi Jingde will have much more news than him.

Furthermore, Yuchi Jingde was a general after all, and the leader of the army who fought in the war naturally knew the situation in Tubo clearly.

On the other hand, Zhong Wen, the Tubo Kingdom has not yet entered, and the news of the soldiers and horses also comes from the scouts.

It's not that Zhong Wen didn't want to enter, but Zhong Wen remembered what Ying Ying said before, so he chose not to enter Tubo Kingdom for the time being. If he really didn't know it before, he might have entered Tubo a long time ago.

After Li Shimin listened to it, he already had a clear general message in his heart, and then asked Zhong Wen: "Nine Poems, what happened to those masters in the Tubo Kingdom?"

"Returning to the Holy Lord, I have killed five people, and some others have returned to Tubo. There is no news at the moment, and they probably will not enter my Tang country again." Will he enter the Tang Dynasty again?

According to what Zhong Wen saw and heard, he always felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't think of anything, so he could only attribute it to the matter of Huishen Yinhun.

And from beginning to end, Huishen Yinhun didn't get a clear answer, which made Zhong Wen always feel as if something was wrong.

"That's very good. It's good if there is no war. As long as the Tubo people dare to enter our Tang territory again, our Tang soldiers will definitely be blocked from Songzhou." After hearing this, Li Shimin said with great joy in his heart.

These days, he, Li Shimin, has been worried a lot.

Every day, all kinds of news gather together, and it is always impossible to see through the motives of the Tubo Kingdom.

Let's talk about war. Although the Tang Kingdom is not afraid, if there is a war, it will have a great impact, and countless people will die.

But now, the war can't afford it, that's a good thing.

As for the next step of the Tubo Kingdom, it depends on how the Tubo Kingdom responds.

At this moment, when Li Shimin was talking to Zhong Wen, somewhere in Miyagi, there was a 'boom', which made Li Shimin tremble.

"Protect Your Majesty." After hearing the news, the nearby guards all gathered around and guarded Li Shimin's surroundings.

"What happened?" Li Shimin was startled by the sound and stood up, shouting loudly to the outside.

"My lord, I don't know, I have sent people to investigate." A guard responded to Li Shimin.

At this time, Zhong Wen was also somewhat baffled by this sound.

According to Zhong Wen's guess, this movement was either the sound of some object collapsing, or the sound of being exploded by some foreign object.

However, in this palace city, it is impossible for such a thing to happen.

Of course, this does not rule out that Li Shimin invited some strangers into the palace to refine some pills, which would lead to some gunpowder being made by this person.

Not long after, a guard rushed over and reported to Li Shimin: "Return to the Holy Lord, it was the shadow that made the movement in the Sanqing Hall."