After rebirth, I joined forces with my mortal enemy to seek revenge.

The autumn in the south of the Yangtze River is covered with rain, and the coldness and desolation are gradually getting stronger. The sound of rain was falling, and raindrops continued to drip from the eaves, forming a tight rain curtain.

The window is half open. Pei Jiaoran held the purple hair full of ink in his hand, and the tip of his pen touched the snow-white paper, and the ink blossoms spread on it. The blowing wind stirred the "Collection of Poems of Yu Fensheng" lying aside, revealing a dog-eared page.

It is Li Yishan's song "An Ding Tower." 》

With his peripheral vision swept away, Pei Jiaoran took up his pen and wrote the last three lines of this poem on rice paper, "Jia Sheng shed tears when he was young, and Wang Can came to travel further in the spring." I will always remember the rivers and lakes and return to my white hair. I want to return to heaven and earth and enter the boat. I don’t know what it’s like to be a rotting rat, but I guess the chicks are still alive. '

Pei Jiaoran put down his pen when he heard footsteps coming from the door.

I only heard the servant reporting outside, "The Yu family's carriage is already waiting at the post house."

"Got it. I'll be right away."

The day before yesterday, the Yu family and several other Jiangdong aristocratic families jointly sent invitations, inviting her to attend the banquet. Let’s discuss the abolition of obscene sacrifices together.

Today is the day they agreed to attend the banquet.

After changing into sky-blue clothes after the rain, Pei Jiaoran came out of the house. I happened to meet Li Xiujing at the door who had returned from doing errands.

"Where are you going?" Li Xiujing asked.

When asked, Pei Jiaoran smiled and said, "Let's go to the banquet. Do you want one?" She approached him and said in a soft tone, "I heard it is the old building of the former Sui Dynasty, and the scenery is great."

After looking at Pei Jiaoran, Li Xiujing nodded.

The two of them went out together. Beside the carriage, the servants sent by the Yu family came up to greet the two of them with eager faces.

The furnishings inside the carriage were not much different from the carriage the Shen family had arranged when they came to the dock to greet her that day. Everything reveals the nobility and elegance engraved in the bones of the Jianghuai family.

He lifted the curtain and looked outside. Rows of autumn willows beside the embankment were caught in the autumn rain wrapped in the cold wind, swaying gently, as empty as nothing.

Passing by Qili Port, Li Xiujing also lifted the curtain. Those craftsmen who should have been busy in the river were also affected by the sudden rain. I had to stop what I was doing and rest in the shed. White smoke was rising from the stove nearby.

Some craftsmen saw Pei Jiaoran and stood up to salute the carriage.

Seeing this, Li Xiujing smiled and said: "When I was in Guazhou, I didn't agree with your reduction of troops, but I didn't expect that you had already considered their follow-up arrangements. Even if you are not in the military, you can live a stable life as a civilian and be useful. . The predecessors said, 'Those who gain the strength of the people will be rich, those who gain the strength of the people will be strong, and those who gain the reputation of the people will be honored.' Jiajia's dedication is a blessing to the country."

Cen Xi told her in the letter from Chang'an this morning. Although she reestablished water transportation in Yangzhou, which was a policy that benefited the country and the people, some people in the court criticized her various actions on the grounds that the court was in continuous wars and the national economy was in trouble, but she was carrying out large-scale construction projects.

It's not that Pei Jiaoran didn't understand the principle of recuperation. It’s just that the disadvantages have been growing for a long time. If they cannot be cut off, they will be overthrown. Temples and temples are rampant, water transportation is in chaos, and powerful families from all over the country are trying every means to annex land. Rest and recuperation may not bring benefits. The common people have no land to cultivate, and over time they become tenant farmers and runaway households, and the court has no taxes to collect. In the end, it is still the powerful people of the aristocratic families who benefit.

At that time, the powerful people can sit back and watch, and then hypocritically negotiate terms with the court in times of crisis.

And the reason why she wanted to use Wang Yu's hand to reduce the army was because she didn't want to bear the first wave of trouble. The purpose of reducing troops is to reduce revenue and increase expenditure, but these sergeants also have to be appeased. In the name of imperial fortifications, they can live and work in peace. With a way to survive, these people will naturally not rebel and will protect her interests.

But the reason why Pei Jiaoran dared to do this. Or because it knew that there were internal and external troubles, the imperial court needed a lot of money to maintain the operation of the country. Waging war is certainly effective, but Sebari is poorer than themselves. If we really want to fight, I'm afraid we won't get any benefits.

This kind of thing that does no good to you is not worth doing.

"The common people just want to live in peace and contentment. They have a roof to shelter them from the wind and rain, and a hot meal to keep them from going hungry. These are all things the court can do, so why not do it?"

Just as he was talking, the carriage suddenly stopped. The servants of the Yu family were outside the carriage, tapping on the wall.

"Mr. Pei, General Li. We've arrived."

Upon hearing this, Pei Jiaoran stretched out his hand to lift the curtain. I saw several familiar faces waiting at the door.

Looking around, Pei Jiaoran stepped out of the carriage with a smile.

After chatting with each other, everyone walked into the small building facing the lake in tacit understanding.

"This is an old building from the former Sui Dynasty. It has been abandoned for many years. It was only repaired a few years ago." Yu Fang said with a smile while leading the way.

Pei Jiaoran nodded and said: "The former Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was very fond of building construction projects and was eager for quick success. This building was built in quite a style."

Zhou Yuheng smiled and answered, "If this were not the case, His Majesty Emperor Taizong Wen would not always learn from the Sui Dynasty."

Hearing this, Pei Jiaoran smiled and said nothing.

Everyone sat down according to their official ranks, with Pei Jiaoran at the top. As soon as they were seated, the servants came up to serve tea.

He sipped his tea and moistened his lips. I saw Yu Fang signaling to the servant to bring a red lacquered wooden plate.

There is a white jade tube placed in the wooden tray. One hundred and thirty-six dominoes and eight flower cards engraved on ivory chips stand neatly inside.

"You guys are so happy. Are you playing leaf play today?" Pei Jiaoran asked in surprise.

Zhou Yuheng smiled and said, "Yes, has Mr. Pei ever played with it?"

"It's slightly involved. However, the court does not allow courtiers to gamble with others in private." Pei Jiaoran looked apologetic.

"I'm not betting on real money. How about elegant things like calligraphy and painting, pens, inks, paper and inkstones?" Gu Xun on the side said with a smile while stroking his beard.

After thinking for a moment, Pei Jiaoran did not refuse. However, he still got up and walked to Li Xiujing, whispering a few words to him.

There are only four people playing Ye Zixi, so the others sat behind them and watched.

Pei Jiaoran said that he had not played for a long time, so he was unskilled and did not sit in the bank. He pushed Yu Fang out again.

Everyone took out thirty-six chips each and held them in their hands. Starting from the dealer, and then to the next player, each player will play out the chips according to the situation of the opponent's cards.

It was raining heavily outside the house.

Rubbing the white jade chip in his hand with his thumb, Pei Jiaoran smiled slightly. Today's banquet was much more exciting than she had imagined.

"What will we do if we lose?" Li Xiujing asked in a low voice.

He is not good at this and can only understand a little bit. Seeing Pei Jiaoran having so much fun now, he couldn't help but feel a little itchy.

"Let's talk about it after we lose." After saying this, Pei Jiaoran knocked out the white jade chip in her hand. The agate-colored rope made her fair skin stand out.

"General Li is worried that Mr. Pei will lose. I am also worried that we will lose miserably."

Zhou Yuheng answered the question with a smile, but the speed of playing cards was clean and neat.

Hearing this, Pei Jiaoran licked his lips.