Chapter 279: 5. Xunyang Night Plot

5. Xunyang Night Plot

Most of the prefecture cities in the Great Zhou Dynasty were planned and built according to the ward system of Chang'an and Luoyang for easy management.

Xunyang City was the same.

Inside, there were several wards such as Chaisang, Lianxi, Xiushui, Dehua, and Xingzi.

The size of each ward was almost equivalent to the core urban area of Longcheng County, where Ouyang Rong had served.

The wards were surrounded by high walls, each with a gate, called a ward gate. They were closed at night and no entry or exit was allowed.

But the living facilities within the wards were complete, and they could almost operate on their own in a closed state.

Between the high ward walls, on the streets, curfew was strictly implemented, and soldiers patrolled.

Closed at dusk, opened at the fifth watch.

However, within the wards, one could move freely and have some of their own nightlife, such as brothels, singing halls, and pleasure boats.

It was just that during the night curfew, one could not travel between wards.

Huaiye Lane was located in Xiushui Ward.

Unlike Chaisang Ward, where the mansions of nobles and the rich gathered, and Lianxi Ward, which was adjacent to the mountains and waters of Mount Kuanglu and loved by high monks, famous scholars, and literati.

There were many government offices in Xiushui Ward.

Including the Jiangzhou Main Hall, most of the power government offices of the Jiangzhou Prefecture were located in this ward.

Xiushui Ward, together with the adjacent Xingzi Ward, were also the two oldest ward areas when Xunyang City was first built.

The largest Xunyang Ferry in Jiangzhou was located between these two wards and could serve as their dividing line.

Xiushui Ward was on the left, and Xingzi Ward was on the right.

They were also the only two wards adjacent to the river.

However, in the eyes of most locals in Xunyang City.

Compared to Xiushui Ward, where the prefecture officials gathered and the high walls and mansions were high above.

Xingzi Ward, which gathered wharf boatmen, peddlers, laborers, craftsmen, and a large number of people from other places making a living, was clearly synonymous with dirt, chaos, and poor conditions, a depression in the public security and discipline of Xunyang City.

There were many old and broken houses in Xingzi Ward, and there were quite a few wild kilns and wandering prostitutes. Well, it could be considered an alternative urban village... let's not talk about it for now.

For these characteristics, Ouyang Rong had also walked the streets and alleys for more than half a month after taking office, and had visited the entire Xunyang City before he became familiar with it.

Tonight, Ouyang Rong and Xie Lingjiang gathered and left Huaiye Lane with ease.

Not long after, two figures nimbly climbed over the high ward wall and nimbly dodged the tired-looking curfew soldiers.

They deliberately bypassed the chaotic Xingzi Ward and rushed toward the direction of Chaisang Ward in the distance...

About an hour later.

In the clean and tidy Chaisang Ward, inside a grand Liang Wang Fu that had been newly established recently, there was a simple study with dim lights.

Familiar figures were gathering.

"Tanlang, you're here!"

Wang Lixian greeted him with joy, pulling Ouyang Rong to the upper seat. Ouyang Rong avoided slightly and turned to sit on the right side of the main seat.

The two sat down, and Ouyang Rong sized up Wang Lixian. He saw that he was wearing a gorgeous long red robe with various auspicious beasts and flowers embroidered on it, which was the official costume of a prince of the Great Zhou.

Ouyang Rong turned his head again. As the Princess, Aunt Wei Mei was also the same, wearing palace attire, with a graceful and luxurious makeup.

Only Li Fusu was still wearing casual clothes, because he had been living in seclusion for a long time and reading in the study, so he was relatively casual.

As for Li Guoer, as a princess of the Great Zhou clan, her makeup specification was not lower than that of her father and mother.

She wore a dark blue-purple pomegranate long skirt trailing on the ground, and a new plum makeup flower was drawn on the center of her snow-white forehead, which was bright and eye-catching.

Li Guoer had not participated in fewer afternoon tea parties held by the female relatives and young ladies of the dignitaries in Xunyang City these days, and she was brilliant and stood out from the crowd.

Now it was a private meeting in the study, and she didn't look as noble, cold, and rejecting people thousands of miles away as she did during the day.

As if she had just finished the banquet and returned to the mansion, and had just finished bathing and smoking incense, her small egg-shaped face was plain, and she didn't look at Ouyang Rong, lowering her head and silently stroking the snow-white cat in her arms.

In the dim light, the expression of this stunning little princess could not be seen clearly for a while.

Ouyang Rong didn't care either, turned his head and said: "Congratulations to the Prince for returning to the throne."

Wang Lixian was a little panicked, grabbed Ouyang Rong's sleeve tightly, and shook his head vigorously:

"Tanlang, you are shaming your uncle. What prince or not, just call me uncle. Tanlang, and Xie niece, you are all the same as before with our family. It was like this in Longcheng, and it is like this now."

"Qilang is right, you must not change."

Wei Mei carried a plate of pastries and walked up, enthusiastically toward Ouyang Rong:

"Tanlang, don't be an outsider. Speaking of which, we should congratulate Tanlang for being promoted to Chief Clerk. Mr. Xie and Wanwan gave a residence in Huaiye Lane. How can we fall behind? A thin gift is prepared. Before leaving, Tanlang must accept it."

Ouyang Rong wanted to refuse, but was also grabbed by the sleeve by Li Fusu, his tone was intimate:

"Tanlang, just accept it, this is our little heart."

Li Fusu looked at his good friend Ouyang Rong, Miss Xie, and his happy family, his eyes full of smiles, and said again:

"When shopping the day before yesterday, in addition to picking formal attire for Miss Xie, my sister also picked a fox fur shawl for Tanlang to keep out the cold, the fur is snow-white..."

Li Guoer, who was sucking the cat quietly, raised her head and glared at her brother: "It was Mother who said to buy it, I just picked it up casually, and finally it was Sister Xie who said it looked good and decided on this one. Brother, speak completely."

Li Fusu scratched his head helplessly: "Isn't there also my sister's heart in it... Alright, alright."

Ouyang Rong laughed in spite of himself.

"Tanlang, taste this, this is the tribute flower cake sent from the imperial palace, rewarded by Your Majesty..."

Wang Lixian, Li Dalang, and Wei Mei surrounded Ouyang Rong enthusiastically.

Ouyang Rong had to pick up the silver spoon and taste it. It was greasy and sweet, but in the Great Zhou Dynasty, it was a tribute delicacy that ordinary people could not eat in their lifetime.

He smacked his lips.

Actually, he was a bit surprised by the atmosphere maintained by Wang Lixian's family. It seemed that the family affection of sharing weal and woe for more than ten years in Longcheng was indeed deep.

Ouyang Rong and Xie Lingjiang ate the pastries together.

He took the white handkerchief handed by Little Xiao Shimei, carefully wiped his fingers one by one, turned his head, looked calmly at the smiles on the faces of Wang Lixian and others, and suddenly said:

"It's not time to completely relax yet."

Everyone was stunned.

The atmosphere quickly quieted down.

Wang Lixian, Wei Mei, and Li Fusu showed some serious expressions, and Li Guoer, who was stroking the cat, also raised her head to look at him.

"Uncle, right now you only have one goal, and that is to return to the capital, return to the capital regardless of everything."

Wang Lixian's spirit was lifted, "Tanlang, teach me."

"Very simple."

Ouyang Rong shook his head, only spitting out one word:

"Wait."

"Wait?" Wang Lixian was puzzled, "We don't do anything, like showing auspicious signs?"

"What should be done has already been done. Uncle's heart, and the opening of the roundabout, Your Majesty already knows. Now Uncle just needs to stay put, don't make mistakes, and honestly 'wait'."

Ouyang Rong sighed: "And the person waiting is not just us, but also Your Majesty, she is also waiting."

"What does this mean?"

Ouyang Rong narrowed his eyes, "Ask, Your Majesty restored Uncle's title, and had an excuse for illness, why not directly recall him to the capital? Why come to this Xunyang City to recuperate?

"And why is it such a coincidence that I was arranged to serve here? Uncle, haven't you thought about these?"

Wang Lixian's face was stern: "What is Mother waiting for?"

"The reaction of the Wei family, the reaction of the Xiang Wang Fu, and the reaction of all the civil and military officials in the court, Your Majesty is also throwing stones to ask for the way, Uncle, you are this stone.

"Not directly recalling Uncle's family to the capital, Your Majesty is also taking a detour."

"So that's it, I thought at first that Mother hadn't completely forgiven me..."

"Not completely forgiving is just an appearance. Your Majesty is a person who is very 'clear'. Who is beneficial to her and who is useless to her, she knows clearly in her heart. Otherwise, why tolerate the Wei family? Why reuse Master Di?

"This is not a muddled monarch, nor a wise monarch.

"So there is no question of whether to forgive or not.

"Whether it is really motherly love and filial piety is not important, what is important is whether motherly love and filial piety are needed."

Wang Lixian asked nervously: "Then... why is Mother observing the reaction of the Wei family?"

Ouyang Rong's tone was calm:

"Because the Wei family is the basic plate for Your Majesty to change Gan to Zhou and establish a new dynasty. It is not only her help, but also a hidden danger, like a vicious dog biting everywhere. Does the master not fear it at all? Before the Yingzhou Rebellion, there was a trend of being unable to get rid of the tail.

"But after the Yingzhou Rebellion, it is impossible to let the Baoli faction thoroughly clear the Wei family. This is also unfavorable to Your Majesty. How can she watch the Great Gan restoration? The position of the imperial heir must be passed to someone who agrees to continue the Great Zhou title, even if his surname is Li, it must be changed to Wei."

Wang Lixian suddenly realized.

Ouyang Rong said calmly:

"Right now, it is impossible to abandon the Wei family, and it is impossible to support the Wei family as the orthodoxy. So how to deal with the double-edged sword of the Wei family becomes extremely important.

"Even if there is already an optimal solution, it is to use Uncle to balance the two families.

"But Your Majesty is not convenient to tell the two princes directly, saying that they cannot get the position of the imperial heir.

"Because the Wei family princes before this, especially the Wei Wang, have fought with the Xiang Wang and the Baoli faction for too long, charging for the position of the imperial heir, and were hung by Your Majesty's hints, acting as Your Majesty's black gloves, not knowing how many things that angered people and complained.

"Your Majesty, who is proficient in the art of the emperor, naturally will not directly tell him, making him completely disillusioned.

"So right now, transferring Uncle to Xunyang City and restoring the prince, but not directly transferring him back to the capital, is to see what attitude the parties, especially the Wei family princes, have toward this trend.

"Sometimes, for one thing, if you push it into place all at once, the parties will react fiercely, but if you do it in steps, arching the ground every day, everyone will be divided and conquered, and finally, they will pinch their noses and reluctantly accept it."

Ouyang Rong sighed:

"Your Majesty now wants to see if the Wei family's reaction is fierce, whether to suppress Uncle or win over Uncle.

"Moreover, if you really want to win over, you have to give the Wei family some time to change. Right now, Uncle temporarily resides in Xunyang City, which is a buffer time for both sides to contact and build trust, rather than waiting until Uncle returns to the capital.

"So now, Uncle just needs to stay put, wait, wait until the situation is clear, see the reaction of all parties, and Your Majesty will naturally take the next step, transferring Uncle back to the capital!"

Li Fusu couldn't help but say: "Then... what if the Wei family refuses to change, chooses to suppress this sign, or even eliminates us?"

Ouyang Rong's eyes were meaningful:

"Then Your Majesty has to look back at our weight. We can't even get out of Xunyang City, let alone the court of the Divine Capital later.

"Of course, fighting like this is not good for us or the Wei family, but the Xiang Wang side might be happy to see it happen..."

Xie Lingjiang couldn't help but say: "But what if Uncle really has an accident? Wouldn't Your Majesty's optimal solution to alleviate the Li-Wei dispute be gone?"

Ouyang Rong sighed: "As an emperor, how can you put all your hopes on Uncle alone? Naturally, there are other spare tires."

"Xiao Shimei. Sometimes, what history chooses is not the optimal solution, but a spiral upward, and the same is true in the power field."

Li Guoer suddenly said: "To prevent accidents, that's why Grandmother transferred you to Jiangzhou City to serve as Chief Clerk. Does she know our relationship?"

Ouyang Rong thought for a while and laughed:

"That female official named Miao Zhen, I guess she 'praised' me a lot after going back last time."

Wei Mei frowned slightly: "Tanlang, do you think these Wei family people are obsessed? After the Yingzhou Rebellion, the situation has become like this, and they still don't give up on the position of the imperial heir. Don't they know that once the Xiang Wang takes the throne, the Wei family will die without a burial place?"

Ouyang Rong stretched out two fingers:

"If I'm not mistaken, the Wei Wang is very entangled now. The situation is indeed not good, but he is unwilling to accept his fate easily in his heart, and is even expecting some life-saving straw."

"Life-saving straw?"

"It is the new tripod sword. The Wei Wang Fu has used the Liu family to cast swords in Longcheng County for many years, just to use this greatest auspicious sign symbolizing the prosperous age to gamble on a chance... but right now, this fantasy doesn't seem to have been broken yet."

Ouyang Rong and Li Guoer looked at each other and suppressed their laughter.

"In addition, the Wei family has been arrogant for so many years, where can they bow their heads so easily, living under Uncle's family? Especially since they are very strange to Uncle and don't trust him. Uncle also has the surname Li. Who knows if he will be closer to the Xiang Wang?"

Ouyang Rong asked directly: "Uncle, if you can return to the capital in the future, how will you treat the Wei family?"

Wang Lixian's face hesitated, paused, and said seriously: "I listen to Tanlang. Do you have any grudges with them?"

"They are a bit stupid, don't be 'smart' enough to provoke me." Ouyang Rong, who had intercepted many benefits, shook his head and said again:

"For the sake of the overall situation, we must walk in a direction beneficial to Your Majesty, and we need to roughly achieve two points. First, follow Your Majesty's heart and accept the Wei family's olive branch; second, express an attitude."

"What attitude?"

"The attitude of maintaining the orthodoxy of the Great Zhou. Uncle, don't think about restoring the Gan rule first. Even after we return to the capital, we must stay away from Master Di."

Ouyang Rong said lightly: "This is what Your Majesty is happy to see."

"This..." Wang Lixian, Li Fusu, and Wei Mei were all stunned. Li Guoer looked at Sister Xie and found that she was sitting upright with her eyes lowered, as if she hadn't heard Ouyang Rong's shocking words.

Ouyang Rong immediately switched topics:

"This is still far... Uncle, from now on, we must not leave Xunyang City for a single step. This is the 'place for recuperation' Your Majesty chose for you."

"As long as you are in the city, you are safe."

"The eyes of all parties are staring here. If you have an accident, it will be thoroughly investigated. Once you are splashed with dirty water or evidence is found, the harming party will definitely be thoroughly cleared by the other party."

"Understood, Tanlang!"

Wang Lixian nodded vigorously.

Ouyang Rong turned his head to look at the night scenery outside the window.

"Calm and peaceful..."

Everyone turned their heads, only to see the weak-crowned strategist continue to mutter: "This is the most nervous thing. Always be on guard, but how can there be a reason to guard against thieves all day long..."

Wang Lixian remembered something: "By the way, a small piece of news came from the capital, Mother seems to want to build a Buddha statue in Jiangzhou..."

"I already know about this." Ouyang Rong interrupted.

"What does Tanlang plan to see?"

Ouyang Rong sighed: "How else can I see it? Choose the site in advance, and then squeeze some silver from Jiangzhou Prefecture's purse to be prepared."

"Tanlang is prepared, that's good."

In the study, everyone chatted for a while.

Li Fusu grinned and said: "It's almost New Year's Day, Tanlang, have you thought about how to spend the holiday?"

Ouyang Rong smiled.

The New Year's Day of the Great Zhou Dynasty is spent together with the Winter Solstice, totaling seven days of holidays, similar to the New Year's Eve of the previous life.

Not far away, Xie Lingjiang, who was stealing pastries, glanced at Ouyang Rong, who was about to have a holiday, without moving, her eyes flickering slightly...

After a cup of tea, the lights in the study went out, and figures left.

The next day.

In front of a residence in Huaiye Lane.

Under the farewell of the beautiful woman in the skirt and the silver-haired girl, Ouyang Rong walked out of the gate in his scarlet official uniform and headed to the Jiangzhou Main Hall to start a new day... 92wx ===== CHAPTER 280 =====