Chapter 359: Ninety, Three-Surname Slave, Right?

Ninety, Three-Surname Slave, Right?

Three days have passed since Xiao Shimei went out of the city to supervise the Xingzi battle situation.

In these three days, the reinforcements sent by Wang Lengran on the front line would send a messenger back to the city every day to report, informing of the latest news,

Such as where they marched, such as what kind of supplies were urgently needed to be prepared by Chief Clerk Ouyang, such as the enemy's movements.

The latest news was sent in a hurry at dusk today.

Fortunately, the news was neither good nor bad:

Wang Lengran's reinforcements had arrived safely within the territory of Jishui County and were resting for a while, preparing to march to Guling Town, which was the closest.

The latest movement of the enemy sent from Jishui County was that the Hongzhou Restoration Army was surrounding and attacking Jishui County. Zhu Lingxu appeared in front of the battle to persuade surrender, but was instead despised and insulted by the defending general Zhao Rushe. Zhu Lingxu was furious and ordered the Restoration Army to increase the intensity of the attack.

In the main hall, after listening to the front-line battle report with Yan Liulang, Yuan Huaimin, Chen You, and other Jiangzhou officials, Ouyang Rong walked out the door silently.

The light in the

It's just that it had just gotten dark, and the government office runners of the Jiangzhou government office hadn't come over to light the lamps yet.

Ouyang Rong crossed the corridor to the stable to lead Dongmei.

Returning to the residence in Huaiye Lane after work.

Other officials were on duty at the Jiangzhou government office today, so Ouyang Rong didn't need to stay there all the time.

He went back a bit early today.

The latest intelligence from the front line just now was actually from a day ago.

So right now, the reinforcements led by Wang Lengran, who were rushing on their way, should have already arrived at Guling Town.

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips; this is the limitation of this era and the inconvenient aspect:

The transmission of news is sluggish.

There are no wireless or telegraphs to convey the latest military situation.

Extraordinary powers like cultivation, from what Ouyang Rong knows so far, do not fundamentally change productivity, thereby affecting the feudal system and the mode of war.

This also leads to the situation where "a general in the field is not bound by the monarch's orders,"

Even if you have the heart of a micro-management master, you don't have the opportunity to display it; at most, you send a eunuch to supervise the army, responsible for helping you carry out this unfinished mischief, otherwise, the only option is for the monarch to lead the expedition in person.

But emperors who love to study abroad are, after all, a minority.

So the worried Ouyang Rong sent out Xiao Shimei.

She is a cultivator, exerts effort to rush on the road, leaps several feet, and travels fast enough.

If an emergency like a defeat occurs on the Jishui front line, she can also pass it back at the first moment, much faster than an ordinary messenger, at least shortening the sluggish time by half a day.

Ouyang Rong is relatively at ease with Xiao Shimei.

This can prevent being caught off guard by the enemy using the time difference and information gap, like the night Guo Yu faked the news.

Thinking more is useless; Ouyang Rong returned to the residence in Huaiye Lane.

After dinner, he rested in the study for a while, then went out under the stars and moon, going to the Prince of Xunyang's residence as usual.

Recently, he would go there once every day.

Prince of Xunyang's residence, inside the Bamboo Forest Study.

Everyone gathered.

"The Imperial Younger Brother sent a letter again."

Wang Lixian said to Ouyang Rong and the others with a smile:

"Besides talking about court matters, the end of the letter mentioned the full-month celebration of his newborn young son. The Prince of Xiang's residence held a full-month banquet, and even the Empress Mother, who is recuperating in Shangyang Palace, personally arrived to enjoy the joy of grandchildren."

He couldn't help but sigh:

"Speaking of which, it's been many years since we met. I don't know if the older nephews still remember this uncle. Time really flies.

"Meiniang, you prepare a gift tomorrow, and Guo'er and Dalang also prepare one. As cousins, you can't break the friendship."

Wang Lixian exhorted carefully.

Li Guo'er and Li Dalang looked at each other and nodded.

Xiao Shimei was not there, Ouyang Rong ate a pear and listened.

A soft snort came from Wei Mei beside him:

"The little Imperial Uncle has been living happily in the capital all these years. Mother-in-law still loves him. No matter how much he is grounded in the deep palace, isn't he still by her side? Unlike our family, exiled to the south to suffer...

"Qilang, before when we were in Longcheng, we didn't see him writing letters every day, and there wasn't necessarily one letter during festivals, but now it's good, he finds you to reminisce every day..."

Wang Lixian looked embarrassed and explained:

"That was because we were exiled as commoners, it was easy to implicate the other party. Princess Princess Changle and the Imperial Younger Brother actually have their difficulties, and it's hard to say in Luoyang. Besides, for Guo'er's birthday, didn't they, as uncle and aunt, send gifts every time? Meiniang, don't you think? Past matters are all in the past, why bring them up? Look forward, relax your heart..."

"You are the one with a relaxed heart." Wei Mei curled her lips: "But people might have a narrow heart, with many eyes."

Wang Lixian's face suddenly became somewhat awkward:

"Actually... actually, the Imperial Younger Brother also hopes that I will return to the capital early. When the time comes, we can reunite. It might not be as we guessed in the worst direction...

"This time when the Imperial Younger Brother mentioned the little nephew's full-month banquet, he also discussed some methods in the letter to help us return to the capital."

Li Guo'er first looked at Ouyang Rong, who was surprisingly calm, withdrew her gaze, and suddenly interrupted to ask:

"What method did the Imperial Uncle say?"

"It's borrowing this rebellion in Guizhou and Hongzhou. The Imperial Younger Brother said that if he can win the position of Grand Marshal of the Jiangzhou Circuit Expedition, and finally succeed in suppressing the rebellion, with this merit, then he and Princess Princess Changle can speak before the Emperor and request the Empress Mother to take our family back. The chance is very high... The Imperial Younger Brother still thinks of us."

"Thinks of us?" Wei Mei sneered:

"I'm afraid they will use the momentum of a great victory to solve the Wei clan as well, and we won't even have time to react. When that time comes, the little uncle's prestige will be sky-high, and there will be no share for you, the elder brother. Even if he pleads before the Emperor and lets us return to the capital, so what? Can Qilang fight against his schemes?"

Everyone fell silent.

Seeing Ouyang Rong never speak, Li Guo'er had to remind him:

"Father, don't forget why Grandmother kept us, and why she started using us now. The struggle between Li and Wei is fierce but neither can do anything to the other; this is the best. Only then can Father benefit from both sides, and both sides have to win us over.

"Although the Wei clan deserves to die and even dreams of a snake swallowing an elephant, the more this is the case, the more generous we must be before Grandmother. We cannot show too much preference for either side, and even less can we completely fall to either side."

Wang Lixian sighed upon hearing this.

His wife and daughter were strong, and after a thorough analysis of the pros and cons and a lecture, he couldn't refute them and was somewhat submissive.

Li Dalang intervened at this time, smiling:

"The kinship relationship is always there, Father values affection and it's hard to cut it off for a while... But Sister, Mother, what you said makes a lot of sense. Father, kinship also has distance. Some words are for the good of our family, so you should listen to them.

"How about this, the cousin is born, the gift must still be sent as usual, and it must be the best. The relationship with the Prince of Xiang's residence cannot be broken. But Father, in the future, every letter the Imperial Uncle sends, you must take it out and let Tanlang and us see it, and everyone will advise you.

"Regarding the traitor faking the news last time, the Imperial Uncle was indeed somewhat derelict. He might have no malice, but it's inevitable that there are poisonous scholars inciting him. We must take precautions."

Wang Lixian looked left and right, everyone agreed with this, so he had to nod and let his wife, children, and strategist make the decisions.

Ouyang Rong finished the pear, wiped his hands, and finally said a sentence:

"Dalang's words make sense."

Li Guo'er frowned:

"If we look at it this way, if this position of Grand Marshal of the Jiangzhou Circuit Expedition is obtained by someone from the Prince of Xiang's residence, wouldn't it be not so good..."

Ouyang Rong:

"Actually, for this kind of thing, the one who should worry most is not us, but the Emperor. How could the Emperor not see the intentions of both sides in the court? Both sides fighting without falling is also her bottom line.

"There is too little we can interfere with, just wait patiently. If I'm not wrong, in the end, they might choose a relatively neutral general who has a good relationship with both sides, or is not familiar with either."

Everyone's eyes lit up, and they relaxed.

"Tanlang's words make sense."

A while later, the discussion ended, and everyone left one after another.

Ouyang Rong tucked his hands in his sleeves and walked on the way back.

Having been with Wang Lixian for a long time recently, he gradually learned some details of the past that are easily overlooked.

The husband-and-wife relationship between the Great Gan Emperor Gao Zong and Empress Wei was actually very loving.

Although the common people like to dig into some wild history.

But the two saints did have a deep relationship, and Gao Zong trusted Empress Wei greatly.

Don't look at how the old officials in the court now all insist that they were loyal ministers of the Great Gan, but during the Great Gan Dynasty, there were no fewer abuses in the court. Empress Wei helped Gao Zong settle many meritorious old groups left over from the founding of the country.

The two saints joined forces, but unfortunately, the former died early, and the latter lived long...

Sometimes power pushes people forward.

In the words of Xiao Shimei, who is a cultivator, this is called alienation.

Regardless, the parents were so loving in the past, and Wang Lixian, Princess Princess Changle, Li Lun, and other brothers and sisters were influenced by what they saw and heard, naturally valuing kinship.

So even now, Wang Lixian's feelings for Empress Wei Zhao are very complicated...

Only the old classic of "Zheng Boke Duan at Yan" mentioned by Ouyang Rong can be savored a little.

The family affairs of the imperial family are so bizarre.

Ouyang Rong knew deeply that his identity was just a strategist, and no matter how close he was, he never forgot his self-positioning.

So when talking about the Prince of Xiang just now, he didn't interrupt.

It wasn't until Dalang spoke that Ouyang Rong expressed his stance as usual and stood on his side.

Returning to Yinbing Studio, Ouyang Rong didn't read, and it was rare for him to sleep early tonight.

For the past few days, he was busy like a dog during the day, and he slept quite soundly at night.

Before going to bed, Ye Weilai was still reading by the lamp, and Ouyang Rong didn't bother her.

Just like that, he fell into a daze, and after an unknown amount of time, he suddenly noticed his arm being shaken hard, and Ouyang Rong immediately woke up.

Turning his head to look.

It was Ye Weilai's worried little face; before the bed in the inner room, there was also a red-clothed figure pacing back and forth.

It was Xiao Shimei.

"Tanlang, wake up quickly, Sister Xie is back, there is an urgent matter to tell..."

"What happened over there?"

Ouyang Rong's sleepiness was thrown to the nine heavens, he quickly rolled off the bed, didn't even have time to put on his outer garment, grabbed the soft hand of the beauty who returned by the bed, looked her up and down, and found no injuries, so he breathed a sigh of relief first.

"Big Brother, I... I'm fine."

Xie Lingjiang's tone was helpless, but Ouyang Rong found that the expression on her pretty face was a bit strange.

He couldn't help but frown.

He thought it was an urgent matter of defeat, but looking at Xiao Shimei's expression... there was an indescribable strangeness.

"What exactly happened?"

"Wang Lengran... he seems to have won."

"Ah?" Ouyang Rong was slightly stunned, "Win? How did he win?"

"A great victory."

Ouyang Rong frowned even more.

Xie Lingjiang took the water cup handed by Ye Weilai, took a sip, took a deep breath, and finished:

"That Zhu Lingxu, defected halfway, helped Wang Lengran, and surrounded Cai Qin's army from front and back!

"Originally, Cai Qin ambushed Wang Lengran's reinforcements halfway to Guling, but the Hongzhou surrendered soldiers who were besieging the city, under Zhu Lingxu's leadership, stopped the siege, released the army of the defending general Zhao Rushi, and let them attack, sandwiching Cai Qin's army from front and back...

"Then they won a great victory. Cai Qin fled in defeat with hundreds of cavalry, the ships were burned by General Qin, and the river was full of ashes and wreckage... Wang Lengran is currently pursuing the defeated enemy..."

Xie Lingjiang said with a complicated expression.

"It can be like this?"

Ouyang Rong was speechless.

This time he really didn't expect it; it wasn't that he didn't expect to win, but he didn't expect to win in this way.

He had calculated countless situations before, and even started to prevent the possibility of Wang Lengran surrendering, but looking at it now, he found that he had miscalculated one thing.

That is the bottom line of human shamelessness.

"Zhu Lingxu... Ha."

The next afternoon, news of Wang Lengran's great victory came.

The whole city cheered.

However, Ouyang Rong and the Prince of Xunyang's residence had complicated feelings, and didn't know what to say.

But in general, the siege of Jiangzhou was temporarily lifted, which was good for everyone.

At least before Li Zhengyan's Restoration Army advanced to Hongzhou, Jiangzhou was temporarily worry-free.

Even Cai Qin and the others who fled, after going back, it is estimated that they will have a hard time defending Hongzhou City. Of course, these are all later stories...

Three days later.

On a sunny morning, Wang Lengran led his army back in great victory, and Zhu Lingxu and his son followed him into the city swaggeringly.

Wang Lengran rode at the very front, his old face full of joy.

Behind him followed the Zhu Lingxu father and son who had turned over a new leaf; their faces were solemn, and they couldn't see any complacency, especially the eldest son Zhu Yuheng, who kept his head down the whole time.

The former Hongzhou Governor Zhu Lingxu was more composed.

Ouyang Rong stood on the city wall with everyone, looked at the thick-browed, big-eyed, square-faced Governor Zhu who was slowly approaching the city gate, and his mouth twitched.

Good for you, Zhu Lingxu, a three-surname slave, right?

First hugged the thigh of the Prince of Teng's residence, then surrendered to Cai Qin, responded to Li Zhengyan's Restoration banner, and now defected to the Wei clan to "turn over a new leaf."

Ouyang Rong shook his head, patted his sleeves, and went down the city to welcome them.

The reason was already very clear; it wasn't a defection on the battlefield at all, it was clearly that Zhu Lingxu had been colluding with the Wei clan for a long time.

It seems that when he was in Hongzhou, he was forced to surrender, greedy for life and afraid of death, pretending to follow the Prince of Teng to follow Li Zhengyan and Wei Shaoqi,

Li Zhengyan and Cai Qin thought they were paying a thousand gold for a horse's bones, but didn't expect that Zhu Lingxu was just playing both sides. Even if the Prince of Teng and his eldest son tried hard to drag him into the water,

He had long determined that the court would win. This person didn't have any intention of restoring the Great Gan, and had secret contact with the Wei clan. Yes, it was very likely that the Persian merchant Li Li was secretly connecting them.

Ouyang Rong couldn't help but look south toward Guizhou and Hongzhou.

Although he is currently an enemy of Li Zhengyan and Cai Qin, Li Zhengyan and the others are at least men, daring to hang their heads on their belts, fighting if they are not convinced.

It's a pity that they seemed to have bumped into a rare three-surname slave.

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips and couldn't help but mourn for Li Zhengyan for three seconds.

(End of Chapter)