I was the heir in ancient times

At around [-] o'clock in the morning, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince in court clothes did not have to leave the palace through the main entrance like other ministers. He went to Jingyun Gate from the side, followed by Guixi, and the two stepped on the freshly cleaned floor tiles. After passing the threshold of Jingyun Gate, I turned around and prepared to go back to Nansan Institute.

It's just that when Gu Baoyu was turning a corner, someone pulled his wrist suddenly, and his whole body was dragged by inertia and almost bumped into the person hiding next to the Jingyun Gate.

"Huh?" Gu Baozhen looked at Bo Yanliang, his eyes were full of surprise.

Mr. Bo smiled slightly, followed His Royal Highness with a 'huh' sound, and said, "Today you have been in court for a long time."

Gu Baozhen stretched out his hand to help Bo Yanliang pat the snow on his head, and the latter bent down thoughtfully to make it easier for His Highness the Crown Prince who was slightly shorter than him, and his movements were so intimate that even the wind couldn't penetrate it.

"You also know Shang Chaojiu, why did you wait here?" Gu Baozhen took Bo Yanliang's hand, and found that his friend's hands were cold, so he quickly sent his own hand warmer up, just like taking care of some children Bo Yanliang, the hand-holding assistant, stuffed his hands into the rabbit-fur hand warmer, and then said, "Today, my father criticized the fact that the grandparents of the Zhang family, among the meritorious nobles, rode their horses through the street, and Mr. Zhang was so ashamed. So red."

His Royal Highness said with a smile: "There is also Liu Xiao, his father, Mr. Liu, is not as calm as he is. I don't know where Liu Xiaoliu learned that I asked Master Wen Hui to publicize the basic books of literacy education. Although the emperor did not mention my name, he talked about Master Wen Hui misleading his disciples, disturbing the wind of learning in the world, learning the wrong way, and learning to read from Confucius and Mencius."

"How did you come back?" Mr. Bo put one hand in the rabbit wool hand warmer, while the other left hand close to His Highness the Crown Prince was casually placed on the side of his leg. After brushing, the young man's fingers are occasionally warm, as if anyone who takes the initiative to move closer can easily interlock his fingers.

The little finger of Gu Baozhen's right hand trembled slightly, as if he had been deprived of all his strength, he neither dared to step forward nor retreated, so he continued to brush against his friend's left hand, without showing any signs of distress on his face. Such ambiguous and troubled emotions: "How else can I return? Anyway, I ignore him. By the way, many adults will start vaccinating this afternoon. I am afraid that there will be no one in half a month, and there is nothing to worry about. Report through a memorial."

"That's good."

Gu Baozhen lowered his head, nodded, and stopped talking. All the way to the South No. [-] Institute, he was only focused on ups and downs. After returning to the South No. [-] Office, he was not careless and bored with him in a room alone, watching him change clothes casually. Once the door is closed, Guixi and Guixi exchange back and forth in a pile of clothes.

Eunuch Guixi looked at His Highness the Crown Prince in such a cold weather, changed no less than ten sets of clothes but couldn't find the one he wanted to wear, he was really afraid that the Crown Prince would catch the cold, so he couldn't help but said: "Your Highness, let's just wear this set, it looks good Fabulous! Really!"

Gu Baozhen immediately covered Guixi's mouth with his hand, and put his finger on his own lips: "Shh! Keep your voice down!" Gu Baozhen didn't want Bo Yanliang sitting outside to hear him frantically changing clothes inside!That's so weird!It seems that I changed it specially for him to see, that's not it!

Eunuch Guixi couldn't understand His Royal Highness's abnormality for a moment: "Yes, please keep your voice down."

His Royal Highness, who has no silver of 300 taels here, coughed dryly, let go of the hand covering Guixi's mouth, slumped on the carpet, looked at himself in the bronze mirror, and felt that he was too easy to be swayed by thin and cold , it's not good, it's just me like this, but Bo Yanliang seems to be a dead straight man, what should I do if it's all his own imagination?

Gu Baozhen subconsciously squeezed the little gold nugget on his wrist, and when he calmed down, he finally decided not to change into other clothes, put his hair crown back together, and then left the bedroom with a smile on his face, to meet the long-awaited tea in the lobby. Brother Bo said, "Sorry, sorry, am I a little slow?"

Mr. Bo sat peacefully in the seat of honored guests, with a calm posture, and his movements of drinking tea were flowing and graceful, and when he heard the movement of his friend, he lifted his eyelids, and saw the boy coming out of the bedroom in the hazy tea fragrance mist It was as if a magnolia flower had become a spirit, wearing snow-colored petals as clothes, and walking towards him with endless romance.

Mr. Bo blinked his eyelashes, the teacup in his hand gradually tilted, and accidentally spilled a few drops of tea on his clothes. Bo Yanliang immediately put down the teacup, stood up and said, "It's really slow. Let's go, you Didn't you say you were going to the ferry?"

"Exactly, go on a horse?" Gu Baozhen noticed that Bo Yanliang's strides were a little longer, and he didn't wait for him, so he quickly quickened his pace, and turned his head to Guixi, "I went out of the palace with Mr. Bo, You don't have to follow!"

As long as Bo Yanliang is around, Guixi and the other guards are useless, so Guixi saluted habitually, and watched the crown prince and Young Master Bo leave the South Third Office while talking.

There is only one ferry in the capital, called Shili Ferry, for Gu Baozhen and Bo Yanling to go to. The yard for making cement is also built near the ferry, so it is convenient to go here. It is Gu Baozhen’s most concerned thing to be able to see the progress of the cement factory. thing.

It's just that the ferry in the past is quite different from what you see today.

The ferry is divided into two areas, one is for ferrying people and the other is for ferrying goods.

There are few wharves for ferrying people, and the berthed ships are large and small, but they can't be seen at a glance. The ships are typical ancient ships, there are single-story ships, and there are also luxurious two-story ships. Sweaty workers are also busy carrying goods in the snow, and on the other side there are hard labor guarded by officers and soldiers jumping into the water to clean up the mud, sand and stones in the river. Dead fish and rotten shrimps are mixed in it, so the stench on the pier is suffocating. , there was mud everywhere, and the horses, donkeys and cattle pulling goods defecated everywhere, which really shocked His Royal Highness, who rarely came here.

Gu Baozhen and Bo Yanliang were stationed at Duren's pier, and they didn't know how to get there. Gu Baozhen looked at his clothes and Brother Bo's clothes, and said with a smile: "We're going to go like this? I'm afraid it's a bit out of place. "

"Little Seven, do you still want to get involved and go into the water with them to clean up the river?" Mr. Bo said lightly, "You and I don't have to communicate with those slaves in person, let the head catcher who manages the slaves find out what can be said. It’s just that the representative of the hard labor on the phone comes to meet us, or you can directly tell the head catcher the questions you want to know, and give him half a day, and he will be able to deliver the answers you want to your hands.”

Gu Baozhen shook his head: "Maybe you won't get the real answer that way."

Mr. Bo: "Whether it's real or not doesn't make any difference to you." The most important thing is Xiao Qi, whether you want the convicts to be vaccinated or not, in a word, as long as you want, they won't You must also do it. This is related to whether your purpose is to maintain stability or to buy people's hearts.

Bo Yan only said half of the sarcastic words, and there was no other reason. He knew Xiao Qi, and Xiao Qi came to want to contact the hard labor. Break it up to let everyone understand, but they don’t know that this is actually an excessive freedom, and it would be better to force all the hard laborers to be vaccinated.

Of course, this is all Bo Yanliang's meaning, he knew that there was a bet between Xiao Qi and the third prince, and the question was whether Xiao Qi could get these people to voluntarily receive the vaccination.

However, this bet itself represents the contempt of the third prince for these slaves. Presumably, no matter whether Xiao Qi can let the slaves receive vaccination, it will not change their ending.

"Xiaoqi, how about this, you wait here, I'll ask their leader to come over."

After Bo Yanliang finished speaking, he went to Jiama, Gu Baozhen waited obediently, looked around, found a clean straw shed to sit down, and ordered three more bowls of hot sugar water, the boss just brought the sugar water, Bo Brother came back with a thick-headed and thick-headed officer. The officer was still holding the whip and whipping the slow-moving hard laborer. In front of him, he didn't even know how to walk, so he came to him with small steps and saluted him.

"Young man, Niu Zhong, a servant of Mr. Chen in the yamen of the Ministry of Water, pays his respects to the young master." Niu Zhong knelt on the ground with a thud, making a loud noise.

Gu Baozhen hurriedly helped him up, and said, "Brother Niu, you don't need to be polite." Then, he looked at Brother Bo, he didn't know what Bo Yanliang told Niu Zhong about his identity.

Bo Yanliang understood, and interjected: "Niu Zhong, you don't need to be polite. Brother Xiaoqi and I came here just at the order of the prince. I want to come here to find out if the slaves have any ideas about the vaccination of vaccinia. You If you say it fifty-fifty, you don’t need to hide it for anyone, if there is something inconsistent with the facts... Niu Zhong, you should know what to do."

Gu Baozhen glanced appreciatively at Brother Bo, who was so threatening that he seemed to eat everyday food, and said to Niu Zhong: "But brother Niu, don't be afraid, come here, there is freshly heated rock sugar water, warm yourself up, if you don't If you are in a hurry to go back, you can talk slowly, we are not in a hurry."

Niu Zhong was terrified by Mr. Bo's words at first, but he couldn't help but burst into tears when he saw the fairy-like young man in white clothes being so kind. The little daughter-in-law usually sits on a short stool, with most of her buttocks falling out of the stool. Holding the sugar water in his hand, he sipped it in small sips, and said honestly: "Master Chen has ordered that someone from His Highness the Crown Prince will come to ask questions after the Third Prince has explained. Naturally, I dare not lie to the young ones. I don't know what His Highness the Crown Prince wants Want to know what?"

Bo Yanliang said, "Just tell us, how are the physical conditions of those slave laborers?"

"What?" Niu Zhong said with question marks all over his face, he didn't know what to say, and tentatively said, "Master Chen said that those hard laborers are animals with the souls of the dead of Shu Kingdom on their hands. Naturally, it can’t be too good, you have to pull the rope tied around their necks all the time, and when they get used to it, loosen it occasionally. At that time, not only will they not be troubled by the rope around their necks , but would be grateful that we let them breathe a little easier."

After finishing speaking, Niu Zhong blinked his ox eyes again, and said in a low voice: "But these are what Mr. Chen said, and the villain doesn't quite understand, so he just obeyed."

Mr. Bo sat beside Gu Baojin, looked at Niu Zhong, and said, "That means you don't care about their physical condition?"

Niu Zhong nodded: "It's always been like this. Like death row prisoners who murdered and set fire, if they died of illness while doing hard labor, it would be easier."

Gu Baozhen looked at the skinny convicts who were carrying huge boulders not far away, and his eyes met a skinny old man, but he quickly looked away, not daring to look again.

"Seventh Young Master, can you hear me?" Bo Yanliang glanced at the table with his fingers, reminding Gu Baozhen to regain his senses.

Gu Baozhen nodded, forced a smile, and said, "I heard that, since this is the case, do you know how many people died in hard labor?"

Niu Zhong shook his head: "Every day, there are four people who will be directly piled on a cart by the government officials who specialize in handling corpses and dragged to the mass graves outside the city to be buried."

When Gu Baozhen heard this, he knew that these hard labors were not suitable for vaccinating at all, and regardless of their own wishes, just because of their living environment and high-intensity labor, there was no need to ask any more questions. The third brother asked him to ask about these hard labors. Like it or not, did you know that would be the answer from the beginning?

Gu Baozhen was silent for a while, not knowing what to do. These hard laborers had to do these hard jobs, even though some of them had never killed anyone, even if there were some cooks who only cooked for the soldiers, they still just wanted to do it. Can become hard labor, these cannot be changed.

Gu Baozhen smiled at Niu Zhong, and said, "I see, Brother Niu, you can go back to work after drinking this sugar water, Mr. Bo and I will leave first."

After finishing speaking, Gu Baozhen followed Bo Yanliang back to the horse, and was about to get on the horse when he saw a sudden riot not far away. Niu Zhong, who was still drinking hot sugar water, exclaimed, and rushed over in three steps at a time , Facing the hard labor of the rebels is a whip service!

Gu Baozhen couldn't hear those screams, but felt his scalp go numb, as if his head was going to explode, and he hurriedly tried to dodge, but he saw that among the screaming slaves, they were shouting one after another: "My lord, stay away!" !Young master stay behind!”

Bo Yanliang turned a deaf ear to it, but Gu Baozhen stopped, looked over there, and couldn't help saying to Brother Bo, "Are they calling us?"

Bo Yanliang was silent for a while, then said, "If yes, do you want to go there?"

Gu Baozhen asked back: "Will there be a piece of meat missing in the past?"

Bo Yanliang smiled, really had no choice but to take Gu Baoyu seriously, so he had no choice but to get off the horse, tied the horse worm to the stake of the straw shed where the sugar water was drunk, and said, "No, but I'm afraid you will make things difficult."

Gu Baozhen also knew that those hard laborers might be some smart people who had guessed his identity correctly, so he called them over at the risk of being beaten to death.

But after the past, all they heard were begging for mercy and crying. Gu Baochen thought that he would indeed be embarrassed, and the most correct way should be to pretend that he didn't hear people like Bo Yanliang, and leave directly.

"Let's talk after listening, I don't know what they want to say yet." Gu Baozhen comforted himself, walked a little behind Bo Yanliang, and was habitually blocked by Brother Bo, his voice cheered himself up post-optimism.

They approached the group of convicts who were whipped and bruised, naked in the cold weather, skinny and covered in water droplets, and when they were only ten steps away from the convicts, Gu Baozhen saw the previous one who had looked at him for a moment. The old man knelt down suddenly, and led an unknown number of hard laborers behind him, knocking their foreheads on the ground together like throwing themselves to the ground.

Only now did Niu Zhong see Mr. Bo and others actually coming, and he said nervously, "Why did you come here? It's very dirty here!"

Gu Baozhen waved his hand and said, "It's okay, I'm just curious. I don't know who this old man is? Why did you ask me to come?"

Niu Zhong said first: "How can they have anything? It's just because you are a bodhisattva who is easy to bully, and you want to get some cheap benefits. How can there be such a good thing in the world?! Young masters, how can you Don't be fooled by their illusions, there are too many poor people in the world, let alone these people, they deserve to die!"

Niu Zhong looked like a simple and honest person, but at the moment he showed a little attitude towards hard labor, which was normal. Anyone who saw the enemy prisoners would either be afraid or hate them.

Just like Mr. Bo, he still hates the Huns to the core, so he is so harsh on Brother Yanliang.

Gu Baozhen understood everyone, so he just came over to take a look. He never felt overwhelmed with love when he saw these hard laborers crying. He just nodded to Niu Zhong and said, "Thank you, Big Brother Niu, for reminding me."

Seeing that the two sons who were obviously in high positions were really curious why these slaves suddenly told them to stop, Niu Zhong could only let the sons talk to the slaves, looking around all the time as a child, pulling the whip tightly in his hand , as long as there is someone who dares to rush out to be an outrageous nobleman, he will immediately become the soul of his whip!

Seeing this, all the river officials stopped yelling and whipping, and all stared at the old man in the lead, but the old man never raised his head, as if he was going to bury his head deeply in the soil, and the voice came from the soil. Coming out, with hoarseness and sporadic self-esteem that is hard to give up, he said: "The sinner Ke Guangzong, the prefect of Zhao Guoyong City, pay homage to the young master."

Gu Baozhen looked down at the old man, his words turned around in his stomach, he chose his words, and then smiled and said: "So it's the prefect Ke, I don't know what the prefect has to do to stop me?"

Prefect Ke paused for a moment: "Is the son here because of the cowpox?"

"So what?"

Prefect Ke hurriedly said: "I don't know what the son came here to investigate? Do you think sinners like me can be vaccinated?"

Gu Baozhen heard the urgency in the old man's words: "Prefect Ke wants to be vaccinated?"

Prefect Ke's body, which was whitened by the river water, was covered with frost like all hard laborers. Hearing Gu Baozhen's calm question, Prefect Ke suddenly raised his head. The prefect said: "Young master, it's not that the old man wants to be vaccinated, but that the old man knows the horror of smallpox. Now that the war is coming to an end, it is because cholera, smallpox, and other diseases have taken advantage of it. Although we are sinners, we are also A person who does not care about life and death for the country! Now that the country is broken, I am willing to be a hard laborer, but I hope to have a chance to get a pox!"

"Are you guys bargaining with me?" Gu Baozhen frowned deliberately.

Prefect Ke kowtowed a few more times and said, "No, I'm just begging."

"Do you believe that cowpox can prevent smallpox?"

"Believe it!" Prefect Ke's trembling voice was even louder at the moment, "Everyone in Shu Kingdom grows, why don't we believe it? It's just that we knew that we were sinners and had no chance, but now His Royal Highness is treating others generously and with a bodhisattva heart. Only sinners have the courage to have such extravagant hopes. Sinners are human beings. Hard labor is hard, but they are always alive. Whether it is clearing rivers or building roads, one day we can wait for the day when His Majesty Shu Kingdom will show mercy. When that day comes, we may I can still go back and reunite with my family. Before that, if smallpox comes, there will be ten deaths and no life! I only hope that the son and the prince will be merciful!"

Hearing this, Gu Baozhen understood that the prefect Ke must know his true identity, but the prefect didn't say it clearly, he just begged him, and what he said was very sincere. Actually fell into the situation that Brother Niu just said.

There is a rope tied around the necks of these hard laborers who does not know when they will die, but as long as they can work, they feel that they can live for a while. The relatives of these captives are far away from the original site, and they have become new residents of Shu Kingdom, and these hard laborers The hope that they think about day and night allows them to endure all kinds of hardships and to live, and the cowpox in my hand is a sharp weapon that allows them to loosen the rope around their necks. As long as it is given to them, they will be grateful...

He couldn't tell them that the third brother might not allow any of them to be acquitted and go back to reunite with their families. They would always dedicate everything in the most tiring and hardest jobs until they died.

"But after the vaccination, you need to rest. I'm afraid you don't have much time to rest. If the vaccination is serious, it will probably be done in batches. The progress is very slow, and it may be dangerous."

Prefect Ke only needs this sentence: "Thank you, young master! Thank you, young master!"

Some of the hard laborers in this area were grateful together with Governor Ke, and some seemed to not know what happened, but since Governor Ke was kowtowing, they kowtowed.

When Gu Baozhen and Bo Yanliang got on their horses and left, they looked back at the hard laborers who had started working again, and said to Bo Yanliang, "Do you know Governor Ke?"

Bo Yanliang nodded slightly, and said, "I heard that when I was in the army, Zhao Guo's reinforcements did not arrive for a long time in the battle of Yongcheng. Prefect Ke defended the city for three months. Many people in the city starved to death and did not surrender until the king of Zhao was captured. It is said that he vomited blood and died from crying, probably because he thought that everyone in the city would die... But the third prince didn't do that, he just brought back all the soldiers as prisoners of war."

"He was a patriot."

"It's true that he has some integrity, so he also has some right to speak in the hard labor." At this point, Bo Yanliang stopped his horse suddenly, "Xiaoqi, someone from the palace is here."

Gu Baozhen looked at the prince's guards who came galloping on horseback. They were a little surprised that they found this place. When the guards dropped off their horses and bowed on one knee, Gu Baozhen heard the guards seriously and nervously say before asking what happened: I am under the order of the Sixth Prince to come and inform you, General Dongwu is dead!"

Before Gu Baozhen could react, he heard Brother Bo beside him say coldly, "How did you die?"

Guard: "After being inoculated with cowpox in the afternoon, I held up a water tank at home. The water tank was thrown into the air and failed to catch it. I smashed... I died!"

The corners of Gu Baozhen's mouth twitched, and his heart was not good. This Dongwu general had experienced many battles. He had been fighting outside for so many years without any accidents. When he was in good health, he was inoculated with cowpox and died. Even if it was an accident, it is not certain What do the relatives of General Wu think?Maybe the death of General Dongwu will be placed on his head!It's all written in the novel!

"Sick of the cold..." Gu Baozhen subconsciously called out to his friend.

Bo Yanliang didn't know what he thought of, his eyes were as sharp as a knife, but he smiled at Gu Xiaoqi: "Xiaoqi, you go back to Nansan, don't worry about anything, I'll go to Dongbu General's house."

"Don't I have to go together?"

"No, you are the prince. The prince only needs to sit in the palace and doesn't have to go anywhere."