State Governor's Office.
Lou Rui looked at the many large wooden boxes placed in front of him, his mouth curled up in a wide arc, and his eyes narrowed into a slit.
"This is the property I captured when I was in Erhechuan. Xi Ren didn't have any valuable treasures, so he brought gold, jade, and some carved animal horns to present to the king."
Liu Taozi stood aside.
Lou Rui laughed, "Why is this necessary? This is what you have earned through meritorious service, how can you give it away to others? Just accept it yourself!"
"As a dignified general of the fourth rank, how can you not prepare some treasures to prepare for your funeral?"
Liu Taozi replied: "Without your Majesty's guidance, how could you have achieved such great success? This success depends entirely on your Majesty's guidance. Please accept it."
Lou Rui smiled and asked them to take away these things, and then asked them to close the door. After closing the door, the smile on his face disappeared. He looked at Liu Taozi seriously, and even felt a little guilty on his face, "My nephew , I almost killed you. I really didn’t know that Daqi’s army had become like this. When the army went out to fight, the main force of the Xi people could escape. Don’t blame me, don’t blame me.”
Lou Rui held Taozi's hand, feeling particularly guilty.
Liu Taozi defeated the enemy this time and soared into the sky, becoming a border general with real power.
But when Lou Rui learned about this, he was not happy at all, and his eyes went dark with fear.
According to his original thoughts, Xi Ren could definitely run away, but not too far. He killed thirty or forty thousand people and waited for work. It would not be a problem to defeat them. But who would have thought that the main force had escaped. If it weren't for Liu Taozi is so brave, I really can’t tell whether he will receive the reward or pursue the title.
Liu Taozi said calmly: "Your Majesty, this military merit can only be obtained by the one with the strongest troops and the victor."
"If you don't win, it's because you're not good enough. Why should you blame others?"
Lou Rui's expression softened a little, and he frowned, "I've heard a lot of news these days."
"People from Jinyang came to me and bribed you with a lot of money, hoping that I could secretly poison you in my house."
"Some people say that you are a Han and that you are the son of Governor Liu?"
"yes."
Lou Rui was silent for a moment.
"I told you that you look familiar. It turns out it's because of your father. I'm not very close to your father, but we have met before."
"My dear nephew, logically speaking, the people in our border town cannot distinguish between Chinese and Han. If we insist on making a distinction, then isn't my uncle also a Han from Bohai?"
"But, these idiots today don't think so. They all think you made a bad start and will let the Han people ride on them in the future."
"I won't hide it from you. In fact, I also have some concerns about my nephew. It's not like you don't know how arrogant Yang Min was when he ordered the dismissal of us people. That was to dismiss several people in one day. I wish I could have them all within a month. Drive us all away."
"You said, if these people have military power in the future, what will happen? It's not that I don't trust you. Of course you won't hang out with people like Yang Min. It's just that you've made a start, and they can follow suit in the future. "
Listening to Lou Rui's words, Liu Taozi suddenly asked: "So the king wants to poison me?"
"What bastard words!!"
Lou Rui reprimanded and said quietly: "The man who came to deliver the message has been beheaded by me, and his head is hanging on the city wall. Although I am greedy for money, I will not poison my own descendants for money."
"What I want to say is, my dear nephew, you are now half a Chinese. As long as you become a complete Chinese, no one will dare to talk nonsense."
"oh?"
Lou Rui grinned and said, "I have done a great job and will return to Jinyang."
"When I see the Queen Mother, I will ask the Queen Mother to find a little daughter. Whether her surname is Gao or Lou, it is naturally better. Once you have a family, who will dare to say that you are Han?"
Liu Taozi suddenly asked: "But I remember that Duke Yang also married the daughter of Emperor Shenwu, and the same was true for the participant, Duke Yan."
Lou Rui was stunned. He waved his hand quickly, "Don't mention these people. You are different from them! Different!"
"Mr. Yang's mother's surname is Yuan, and his wife's surname is Gao. He can't be considered a Chinese, so how can I?"
Lou Rui was immediately speechless.
He let out a long sigh, "My dear nephew, you don't understand that all the elites in the world are in Jinyang. In the Chinese army, the generals, big and small, are all distinguished. Even if your Majesty can replace the leader, you don't dare to say
He can fully control it. No matter how much he loves you, he may not be able to protect you. These people are vicious and have many methods that you have never experienced."
"They can write letters every day to report your faults, they can bribe and intimidate your subordinates, they can send people to assassinate you, they can withhold the grain and grass transported to you, they can plunder your villages and towns, they can even pretend to be outsiders and attack you directly. They have always been
They are accustomed to being arrogant and lawless. Even when Emperor Wenxuan was still there, he did not dare to say that he could completely subdue them. Otherwise, why would he promote those cunning Han people to work for him? "
"There is no one here, so I will tell you something real. His Majesty has only ascended to the throne of emperor with the help of everyone. He does not have the ability to confront everyone."
"I love my nephew very much. I am saying this for the sake of the world and for you. If you want to live and live a better life, you can only become a Chinese. Otherwise, what if you are Gao Aocao?"
Looking at Lou Rui with a sincere face, Liu Taozi did not refute him.
He nodded.
"I see."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Lou Rui breathed a sigh of relief. He patted Liu Taozi on the shoulder and said happily: "You are the smartest, how can you not understand this matter? Besides, you don't look like a Han. You are simply more Chinese than the Chinese.
No one who heard the news believed it."
"Don't worry!"
"After I went back this time, I went to my aunt and asked her to help. She is the best at protecting others, and she has a very high status among the nobles. Once she takes action, it will be fine!"
Lou Rui gave many instructions before letting Liu Taozi leave. He didn't even trust Liu Taozi to leave with only that group of people, so he specifically asked his confidants to lead the county soldiers to escort Liu Taozi back to Wuchuan.
Liu Taozi and others have walked this road from Zhaoyuan City to Wuchuan countless times.
But I have never walked so carefully.
Even though he was as reckless as Yao Xiong, he seemed to understand something, and his hand never left the knife at his waist, looking around to protect Liu Taozi's left and right.
"Brother, is the king leaving?"
"yes."
"Who will take over?"
"I don't know."
Yao Xiong complained: "It's better for the king to get along with me. If I give him some property, I won't be in trouble. If someone comes who has a grudge against my brother, I'm afraid things will be difficult to handle."
Liu Taozi thought for a moment, "Probably not."
As soon as the knights entered their defense area, they saw someone galloping towards them on horseback. The person who came was Po Dora Ku. He rushed in front of Liu Taozi, jumped off his horse suddenly, his face was full of ecstasy.
"Brother! Brother! What a happy event!!"
He pulled on the reins, his face flushed with excitement.
"Brother, three people came to Wuchuan today. They are all honorable men who have defaulted on military merit. They have sent many, many things. They are waiting for you in Wuchuan now!"
"Their attitude is very humble. They say they want to apologize to you in person, distribute military honors, and make corresponding compensation!"
"It seems that Murong Sanzang's incident still scares them!"
Hearing these words, Yao Xiong immediately scolded: "You idiot! How can those people bow their heads so easily? These envoys may have come to assassinate their brother! Or to set fire to the food, how could they let him go?"
Into the city?"
Liu Taozi glanced at Yao Xiong in surprise.
Podoluo Ku said helplessly: "It's Mr. Tian who gave the order. Can I still send someone to stop it?"
Liu Taozi ignored the dispute between the two and asked the county soldiers to go back first, while he quickly set off towards Wuchuan City with Yao Xiong and others.
Sure enough, as Podoro said, there were several 'caravans' outside the city at the moment. These carriages were filled with goods, and slaves were busy feeding the horses and unloading the goods. There were also a few knights staring at them, thinking they
When they found Liu Taozi, they quickly lowered their heads and ignored her.
When Liu Taozi led everyone back to the official office, they heard conversations coming from a distance.
Yao Xiong opened the door.
Several people in the room stood up in a hurry.
"Meet Liu Gong!!"
There were six people in the room, apart from Tian Zili, there were five strangers. These five people stood up and bowed to Liu Taozi with frightened expressions on their faces.
Liu Taozi looked at the people in front of him. Tian Zili sat on the upper seat to welcome him. Everyone still maintained their saluting posture and stood in front of him.
"Get up."
Liu Taozi spoke, and they raised their heads just now, but their faces were still filled with fear.
One of them said: "Mr. Liu, I am the chief official of Mo Duolou Gong. This time I commanded 400 white horses and 600 Huaishuo garrison, but the rewards were not distributed in time. I learned that General Liu was furious because of this.
My master blamed himself very much, which made me
We came here with our things to see you, and asked Duke Liu to forgive our crimes and allow us to make up for our mistakes. In addition to the rewards, my general also gave you three carts of silk cloth, ten carts of wheat grain, two hundred slaves, and beautiful Chinese women.
Ten people.”
He saluted again, "Please forgive me, Mr. Liu!!"
Tian Zili suddenly narrowed his eyes, wondering what he was thinking.
Another person saluted, "Mr. Liu! I am the eldest official of Hou Mo and Chen Gong's family. I am leading the three garrison troops of Hujiao, Yicheng and Wenhou, including 1,200 people. They have just arrived in Yecheng and have not yet waited for His Majesty.
Order a reward,
Therefore, he did not dare to distribute them easily. When he learned that Liu Gong was angry, he sold his property and collected the rewards. In addition to the rewards, he also gave the general two sharp swords, ten strong bows, three precious horses, and four fine chariots.
"
The others also saluted one after another, until the last person, the man said: "General, I am sent by Dugu Gong. The soldiers Dugu Gong used this time are Youyan soldiers, not your army, but he admires you.
For a long time, I was worried that I might have offended you in Erhe River, so I sent you a gift to show my closeness."
Everyone told the story one by one, with sincere expressions and humble words.
Potaro Ku and Yao Xiong looked at each other. Potaro Ku was a little proud, as if to say, look, I said it right, right?
Although Yao Xiong was a little confused, he was still very happy and seemed to feel that he had made a fortune this time.
After they finished speaking, Tian Zili hurriedly walked out and stood in front of them. He smiled and said: "Everyone, my general has just returned from the Dong'an Prince's Mansion. He is still tired. Please allow him to rest for some time before welcoming him again."
Gentlemen, how are you doing?"
The envoy was shocked and quickly knelt on the ground, "Mr. Liu!! When I set out, my master told me that you must accept it. If you don't accept it, what will I do when I go back? I am willing to die on my knees.
In front of Mr. Liu!!"
The other people knelt down one after another.
Tian Zili still had a smile on his face, "Have you ever said that you won't accept it? Aren't you all willing to let my lord rest for a while?"
They looked at each other for a few times, then stood up and reluctantly left the official office.
Tian Zili personally sent them to the door, arranged for someone to take care of them, and then returned to Liu Taozi.
Yao Xiong laughed loudly at this moment, "Brother, I thought he was some tough Xianbei, but this is the case. The county princes that brother killed before must have frightened them!"
Tian Zili ignored this guy, walked quickly to Liu Taozi, frowned, "Brother, there is a trick."
"oh?"
Yao Xiong stopped talking at this moment and just looked at Tian Zili in shock.
Tian Zili said seriously: "Brother, I don't need to tell you how powerful these nobles are. You know very well that in these days, I don't know how many people have come here. How come the people under our command suddenly changed their attitude?
Xingzi, what kind of reward can you give me for coming here? Besides, there are those who have not led our frontier soldiers on expeditions, so they all want to send gifts. If things are abnormal, there must be fraud!"
"Perhaps the Queen Mother came forward? The Queen Mother even gave her brother a dagger. They must be afraid of the Queen Mother!"
"Impossible. If the Queen Mother came forward, they would not be embarrassed at most. How could they take the initiative to give gifts?"
Liu Taozi asked: "Then what do you think you want to do?"
Tian Zili frowned, "I don't quite understand. Maybe I want to trick my brother and let him relax his vigilance, or maybe I want to flatter my brother and make more nobles hate my brother. Now, those nobles who hate my brother
, most of them are second-generation Qihu, and there are also many nobles who are good friends with their elder brothers. I can't tell them their specific thoughts, but you can get the rewards that you should get, but the extra gifts, in the end,
It’s better to retreat.”
Yao Xiong hurriedly said: "Why did you retreat? I just saw it when I passed by, and they are all good things. Those horses are not inferior to the blue lions. If I can get one, I will die."
regret!"
"There are also those carts of silk cloth. If they were used to make clothes, I don't know how many people could survive the winter!"
Tian Zili glared at him, "Short-sighted!"
"They sent these just to lure the lord and force him to take it."
"Although I still don't know their intentions, if my brother accepts them, I'm afraid there will be endless troubles!"
At this moment, someone suddenly opened the door, gasped, and broke into the house.
The person who came was none other than Cui Gang.
Cui Gang quickly saluted Liu Taozi.
Tian Zili was a little surprised, "Cui Jun? Aren't you outside registering military merit?"
Cui Gang looked at Liu Taozi, "Brother! I heard that an honorable person came to give a gift, so I hurried here! This thing must not be accepted!!"
Tian Zili nodded, "That's what I just said."
Cui Gang said hurriedly: "Brother, this is a trap for those villains."
"They have no reason to attack my brother, so they want to use this method to slander him. Today my brother accepted the gift, and tomorrow they will cry to Your Majesty, the Queen Mother, and everyone else, saying that my brother extorted nobles, insulted the people, and demanded property.
!!”
"Firstly, I will ruin my brother's reputation, and secondly, I will recruit the rest of the people to deal with my brother!"
"These villains are really vicious and hateful!!"
Cui Gang's face turned red and his eyes were full of anger.
Since following Liu Taozi, he has done many useful things. He helped resettle many civilians in the frontier fortress, letting them find places to live and distributing food to them.
Many villages and towns have appeared in the frontier fortress, and the situation of the civilians has greatly improved. Although people die every day, the frequency is finally no longer as exaggerated as before.
When he rode through those villages and towns, people often stopped by the roadside to thank him.
They rectified the border soldiers together, and the entire county was in awe. There were no more soldiers and bandits going around plundering and killing people. Whenever he thought of this, Cui Gang was full of energy.
But when he learned that a distinguished person had sent a large number of gifts, causing an uproar, Cui Gang became extremely angry.
Do these thieves hate us so much?
At this moment, his face was red and he felt like his whole body was burning. He was trembling and suddenly cursed: "Fuck you."
Yao Xiong was shocked.
stunned.
Tian Zili was silent for a long time.
Liu Taozi looked at the extremely angry Cui Gang, smiled suddenly, and looked to the left and right, "Did Mr. Cui just curse?"
Everyone laughed immediately.
Liu Taozi then said: "It is enough for a gentleman to curse loudly, which is enough for everyone to know the character of these traitors."
He looked at Cui Gang and said, "But Mr. Cui, if I don't accept these gifts, won't they do this?"
"They are the most powerful among the government and the public, and they are the most powerful everywhere."
"Even if I didn't accept it and only took the reward, they would still do the same thing."
"As for the evidence, I am working in Daqi, so I have never seen any evidence."
When Liu Taozi spoke like this, Tian Zili suddenly murmured: "Brother, what you mean is"
"Collect them all, seize their carriages, horses and slaves for transporting supplies, beat their envoys ten times, and let them go back and tell their lord that these gifts are too few. They really look down on me. If you don't want to die, let them go."
They sent some more."
"ah??"
Everyone was shocked.
Cui Gang said blankly: "Brother, isn't this just giving someone a handle?"
"If your Majesty believes in me, other people's words cannot change him. If your Majesty does not believe me, I can't prove my innocence even if I don't take anything."
"Therefore, whatever the handle is, just give it to them. Use the things they give to reward the soldiers and settle the civilians. If they feel something is wrong, just let them come to Wuchuan to question the crime."
Chapter completed!