Three thousand miles in exile

The imperial envoy of Daliang once again entered northern Xinjiang to convey the will of Emperor Liang.

This time, Liu Zhan didn't even wear official robes, so he met the imperial envoys at the Jinyang General's Mansion in ordinary clothes.

"Go and invite Mr. Song to come." Liu Zhan sat down and drank tea, without turning his eyes to the imperial envoy.

"If you have anything to talk about, let's wait until Mr. Song comes."

General Qi Yun said so, and the imperial envoy could only wait.

It took half an hour to go back and forth to the yamen, Liu Zhan just deliberately let people wait for Song Fenglin.

Song Fenglin entered in a green shirt, and Liu Zhan waved to him. "Come and sit down, I have someone prepare sweet soup, drink some to relieve fatigue."

"Give some to the imperial envoy." Song Fenglin sat down beside Liu Zhan.

Last month, Liu Zhan customized this Arhat table, which can be divided into two seats by placing a low coffee table in the middle. When meeting guests, one person can sit on one side, or take away the coffee table to form a main seat, and then two people can discuss matters. Song Fenglin no longer sat at the bottom.

"What is the purpose of Emperor Liang for the imperial envoy's trip?" Song Fenglin asked casually while eating without haste.

Liu Zhan leaned on the coffee table to watch him eat, and put a piece of watermelon into his mouth from time to time. He was completely different from Cai Cai just now, and the atmosphere in the room was harmonious.

The imperial envoy did not dare to take it lightly, thinking that General Qi Yun's moodiness was really unpredictable.

"Your Majesty specially sent a minister to greet General Qi Yun. Maybe it was because General Qi Yun felt ill at ease with his reward last time. I apologize to General Qi Yun." The imperial envoy's attitude was extremely low.

Song Fenglin put down the porcelain bowl. "We are all old ministers of the Great Chu, and we have been appreciated by the Emperor Wen of the Great Chu. The sudden incident of Lord Liang stealing the country, the general blamed himself very much, and only regretted that he could not help the young master when he was far away in the northern border."

The implication was that if it wasn't for the fact that Qi Yunjun was far away in northern Xinjiang and there was something about the Fang family, the imperial envoy would have been embarrassed when he heard the insinuation.

Song Fenglin's posture was graceful, and his cold voice was gentle but powerful.

"Our Qiyun army's illustrious military exploits are forged by the blood and sweat of the soldiers. The world can learn from the iron bones. On the other hand, looking at Daliang, the world knows that Emperor Liang has usurped the throne, stolen the country, and established himself. How can he comfort the army soul and convince the soldiers?"

What he said made the imperial envoy's face turn red, and he felt ashamed.

Liu Zhan's falcon-like sharp eyes fell on the imperial envoy. "Tell Emperor Liang that he took all the benefits by himself. There is no such thing as cheap. If you use a duke to fool the general again, next time it will be more than just cursing."

The imperial envoy understood the meaning in Liu Zhan's eyes, and felt miserable. "If the duke is not enough, the general means..."

Liu Zhan sneered. "What else is above the Duke, let Liang Tianzi decide for himself."

Sure enough, the three generals of the vassal army were all interested in the prince.

The imperial envoy was here to act as a lobbyist. Naturally, Emperor Liang would not grant titles to kings with different surnames, and Liu Zhan did not need others to assign titles. He just wanted to delay time on purpose.

Just putting it off until next year is enough.

Daliang replaced Chu, the new emperor ascended the throne, and the reign name was changed to Yuan Shengping.

When Emperor Liang ascended the throne, he not only pardoned the world, but also rewarded his relatives generously.

The wife of the first wife was made the queen, the son of the first wife was made the prince, and the five concubines, uncles and younger brothers were also named kings, and each had a place of food to enshrine the country.

According to the system, the land of a state can be obtained by the king as a feudal country, and the taxes and taxes in the feudal country are used to support the prince's mansion as a food town. Because the foundation of Daliang's founding of the country is not stable, the location of the feudal state has not yet been determined.

Aristocratic families are entrenched in various places, and places with big clans are not suitable for feudal states. The so-called one mountain cannot accommodate two tigers, and friction is inevitable.

For this matter, the Ministry of Rites drew up several proposals, all of which were rejected by Liang Tianzi. It was difficult to do so in remote places, and there were big clans in rich places.

Liang Tianzi's own clan has not yet been settled properly, but the matter of the feudal army making the king has caused a lot of trouble.

"These vassals dare to ask for the prince today, and they will rebel against Liang in the future. They absolutely cannot agree."

"Your Majesty, it is really taboo to be crowned king with a different surname! According to me, there is no need to pay attention to these vassal troops. They fight every year and are too busy to take care of themselves and have no spare time to compete with the court. They just want to take the opportunity to blackmail."

"That's exactly the case. The court should take a tougher attitude. The duke is already a top-ranking nobleman. If they don't want it, they don't want it. Let them wait for a while and see if they are in a hurry."

Several courtiers in the imperial study kept scolding, but no one noticed that Liang Tianzi's face became more and more ugly.

"Shut up, everyone!" Liang Tianzi suddenly exploded and overturned a table of memorials, scaring several close officials to stand still.

"The Qi Yun army occupied the northern border, the Qing army occupied Hanzhong, and the southern army occupied the coastal areas. This is half of our Great Liang!" Emperor Liang roared.

Before it was over, Liang Tianzi pointed at them and scolded them again. "If they refuse to accept me as the new emperor to death, how will the people of this world think of me in the long run! How will I make foreign countries surrender and make Daliang their superior state!"

The uneasiness that had accumulated in Liang Tianzi's heart these days finally burst out.

"I want the world to surrender, I want them to bow their heads and proclaim themselves ministers, and I want them to never advance the old affairs again! Is this a question of whether to be crowned king? Ah? Since I became the throne, you have not only quarreled and tried to push the blame, but have you solved the problem for me!"

"I don't need to be crowned king, you guys can figure out a way for me, and tell me now, if you can't think of it, you all get out of here!"

After Liang Tianzi roared, the imperial study was so quiet that a needle could be heard.

The Ming Lord, who was once regarded as a talented and respectful corporal in the eyes of his close ministers, now roared hysterically at them.

At this moment, these confidantes finally understood what Liang Tianzi was thinking. Compared with the hidden danger of being crowned king with a different surname, he was more eager to be recognized, and he urgently needed to get rid of the infamy of usurping the throne and stealing the country.

Liang Tianzi understands what the ministers said, but he can't bear to bear the infamy of a thief all the time.

Even Liang Tianzi himself didn't realize that he had changed, and his mentality had quietly changed qualitatively since he sat on the throne of the emperor.

The emperor's throne is a hot chair. Emperor Liang usurped the throne and stole the country, so he didn't have the confidence to negotiate terms with the three vassals.

How chaotic the court was, how angry Liang Tianzi was, none of these could affect Liu Zhan. At this time, he was leading Song Fenglin to race horses along the beach of Beihai.

"How can there be such a beautiful thing to set up a memorial archway after becoming a boss?" Liu Zhan sneered.

The two stopped and walked amidst the sound of waves.

"I guess Emperor Liang will regret his hasty accession to the throne at this time." Song Fenglin played with the whip in his hand, teasing the white horse from time to time.

The two horses, one black and one white, walked slowly with small steps, and the horseshoes stepped on the surging sea water and splashed water, and the two horses actually started playing by themselves.

Liu Zhan didn't look down on Shang Yuliang at all. "When the emperor's temptation is so great, he is naturally impatient, but he doesn't look at how much he has. The founding emperor of the Great Chu is at least one of the world, so why is this Liang Tianzi?"

He just got the right time, place, people and abolished the young master to steal the country. This word stealing fits him very well.

Not only did Liu Zhan look down on him, but the other two generals also looked down upon him. When Liu Zhan suggested that the king should not accept it, the two generals readily agreed.

Thinking of General Pingman along the coast of the feudal town, Liu Zhan suddenly said. "If there is a chance, I will have to ask General Pingman for a sea-going ship. There is a sky beyond the sky in this world, so how can I stick to one side."

Song Fenglin faced the sea breeze. "The other side of the sea is the island inhabited by pirates, it's just a barbarian land."

"No, no." Liu Zhan looked at him with a smile in his eyes. "Madam, this world is not the whole world."

Song Fenglin held the rein of the horse to keep the horse from moving, and asked a little teasingly but sincerely. "Excuse me, my husband, what else is there outside the world?"

This man shouted to Liu Zhan's heart, and the smile in his eyes deepened.

"Come on." Liu Zhan jumped off the horse and pulled Song Fenglin down again.

"The so-called world is nothing but a continent." Liu Zhan picked up a branch and drew the outline of a continent on the sand. "You can regard the continent where the world is located as Dongzhou."

Song Fenglin put his hands behind his back and bowed his head, listening carefully.

"The island where the Japanese pirates are located is roughly here, attached to Dongzhou." Liu Zhan drew another long island.

"There are many large and small islands in Dongzhou, so I won't list them one by one. There are several continents besides Dongzhou, and each continent is ruled by Fanbang."

Soon there were a few more irregular continents on the sand, because Liu Zhan didn't know whether the world was still seven continents and five oceans, so he omitted it.

"These continents are blocked by the sea and do not communicate with each other." Finally, Liu Zhan drew a circle to enclose these continents. "This is the world beyond the world."

Song Fenglin gradually became engrossed in listening, and Liu Zhan would tell him some weird theories from time to time, which sounded absurd at first glance, but made sense after careful consideration.

Song Fenglin pondered for a long time, he neither questioned nor blindly believed, after thinking about it, he felt that this cognition was worth discussing.

Suddenly, he thought of something. "You want to cross the sea?"

"Of course not." Liu Zhan smiled. "Crossing the sea has high requirements for sea ships. If you go without a sea ship, you will die. Maybe one day you can let others go."

The two were walking by the seaside, Liu Zhan wanted to hold his hand, Song Fenglin glanced at the guard not far away and quickly retracted his hands into his sleeves to not let him hold.

"It's still early, why don't we go to the woods..." Liu Zhan stopped him suddenly with a smirk in his eyes.

Song Fenglin opened his phoenix eyes, and almost immediately turned around and boarded the white horse Juechen, and he was frightened at first sight.

"Hahaha!" Liu Zhan looked up to the sky and laughed.

This year, all the land reclamation and construction in the north of Qiyun Mountain, Cangxia Plain, and Songliao Mountains have been properly arranged.

The two went to inspect the construction progress of Beihai County, and then raced south along the Beihai beach, passing Baoping County, Lufeng County, and Hecang County all the way, staying at each place for two days.

At this time, it was the autumn harvest in various places, the land in the Cangxia Plain was black and fertile, and the rice grown was of good quality.

Song Fenglin controls the price of grain in northern Xinjiang, and there are prices for buying and selling.

If a businessman forcibly collects grain below the price, it is a serious crime in northern Xinjiang, and he will directly confiscate his home and exile, and go to the north of Qiyun Mountain to open up wasteland.

With the support of Mr. Song, the farmers have the confidence to sell grain every year after the autumn harvest. If the price is not suitable, they turn around and leave. The grain dealers can only speak politely.

After the autumn harvest, it is the busiest period of time for the large and small markets in northern Xinjiang. There are big markets almost every day, and the people are very lively buying new year's goods.

Especially the big market at Luming Ferry is the most famous, and even the people on the other side of the Huangchuan River specially crossed the river to attend the market.

I saw that the dirt roads of the past were replaced by long stone streets. The wide roads are lined with two-story shops facing the street. There are many vendors and crowds on the street.

Afterwards, northern Xinjiang entered winter, and the ground was covered with heavy snow, and the people went back to their families for the winter, and the whole northern Xinjiang also fell silent.

General's Mansion in winter.

Zhang Xiaoman came to deliver the latest news from Hanzhong.

"The eldest son died suddenly?" Liu Zhan leaned on the Arhat couch and held the cigarette rod.

Zhang Xiaoman sat down and spoke enthusiastically. "General Wuwei intends to establish himself as king, and these few sons all want to be princes."

Tang Chongjian's second son teamed up with the third son, and tricked the eldest son to go hunting in the wild and took the opportunity to kill him. When he came back, he said that he had met the Xirong army to evade him.

But the paper couldn't contain the fire, and it happened to be seen by a few farmers who were out that day, and soon it spread.

"General, guess what? That General Wuwei didn't dispose of his two sons, so forget about burying the eldest son."

Liu Zhan twitched the corner of his mouth. "Ever heard of nine dogs and one mastiff?"

Zhang Xiaoman shook his head in a daze.

"In order to breed the best hunting dogs, the hunter put nine puppies in the cellar without food and drink, let the nine puppies kill each other, and the remaining one is a mastiff." Liu Zhan took a breath of cigarettes and said. lay bare. "Tang Chongjian is raising mastiffs."

In Tang Chongjian's heart, the eldest son who was killed was the abandoned son who failed to seize the throne. He married four wives before and after, and each wife gave birth to multiple sons.

With so many eleven sons, it's no wonder Tang Chongjian didn't care.

"The general can see clearly." Zhang Xiaoman suddenly realized.

However, Liu Zhan does not agree with this method from the bottom of his heart. Now that Hanzhong is facing the attack of Xirong, and there are wars every year, it is time to work together.

As a result, as the head of the family, the commander-in-chief of the army actually acquiesced that his sons would kill each other. How would his subordinates think about it?

"The Western Army has a huge force, and the situation in Hanzhong is unpredictable." Liu Zhan pondered for a moment. "Cenzhou borders Hanzhong, so preparations must be made in advance just in case."

Two years earlier, Liu Zhan had thought of setting up a pass at the Taoshui River, but at that time the situation in northern Xinjiang was not stable, so he put it aside because he didn't want to cause trouble.

"Letter to Zhizhou Lu, asking him to build Taohe Pass together with Colonel Cenzhou, and start construction immediately in the spring of next year."

Zhang Xiaoman got the order and immediately went down to write a letter, and then sent someone to Cenzhou.

As soon as Zhang Xiaoman left, Song Fenglin entered the room on his back. Seeing his smiling face, Liu Zhan couldn't help but smile too.

"What is madam so happy about?" Liu Zhan motioned him to come and sit down.

Song Fenglin was indeed happy. "A letter from home says that Xi'er is pregnant for four months."

Because Song Fengxi's fetal image was unstable in the early stage of pregnancy, according to the custom, she couldn't announce it to avoid shocking the fetus and not being able to conceive, so she dared to write to tell the two when she was not stable.

Liu Zhan laughed out loud. "That kid still has a little bit of patience."

This year, the two took Liu Youning to spend the winter in Jinyang. Liu Mingcong just set off to reunite with his wife a few days ago.

"Ma'am, give me a baby too." Liu Zhan smirked and hugged her to lie down on the couch, but Song Fenglin elbowed him away.

"Bullshit."

"Teasing you." Liu Zhan still hooked his waist and pulled him in. "Where are you going in a hurry, stay with me for a while."

There was nothing important in the winter, Song Fenglin spent most of his time looking at the files, and he had to go through the new important cases in various places, so it was only Liu Zhan who could let him put down the business and waste it here.

"Do you want to have a sip?" Liu Zhan put the cigarette in his hand to his mouth.

This time, the shredded tobacco that Liu Cheng brought back was very good. It was light and mellow without losing its fragrance. It is said that hundreds of taels of silver can only be bought for one penny. What Liu Zhan didn't know was that Song Fenglin specially sent someone to Sichuan to find it. top grade.

"No." Song Fenglin avoided, he never smoked or drank alcohol.

In the early years, I would occasionally have a drink with Liu Zhan, but in recent years, I have become more self-disciplined.

Mr. Song, who doesn't drink or smoke, has always only had the scent of ink on his body.

Seeing him dodging, Liu Zhan felt itchy in his heart, laughed and leaned forward to kiss and bite.

This kiss is full of a touch of tobacco fragrance.

Firewood was burning in the brazier, making crackling noises, and the snow was covering the ground outside the house, and it was getting late.

"General, Mr. Song, do you want to serve dinner?" Li Asan asked outside the house.

The wind and snow became heavy, and the movement in the room could not be heard clearly. After a long time, Liu Zhan's voice came. "Put it in the room, we will use it in the room later."

In the end, Song Fenglin was pestered and messed around a lot. His clothes were still intact, but his pants were thrown somewhere by Liu Zhan.

This is the place where the generals discussed their affairs, so Liu Zhan was allowed to mess around while there was nothing to do in winter.

"Go and find it for me!" Song Fenglin was extremely annoyed.

"Don't look for it." Liu Zhan hugged him recklessly, breathed with his lips against his ear, and whispered something in a low voice.

Not knowing what Liu Zhan said, Song Fenglin's face flushed suddenly, and his ice-like pupils trembled.

Liu Zhan's eyes were dark, and he suddenly pushed him down again.

The winter is absurd, and the room is warm and fragrant.

In the end, the food placed in the room was useless even after enjoying the coolness, so Li Asan had no choice but to return it to the pot to heat it up.