Chapter 71 Lu Liang

"By the way, I've never been able to ask you why you want to kill Song Xian?"

Ning Yi had never mentioned this before, and he was a little familiar before asking. Lu Hongti's eyes narrowed slightly, the sky outside the window was gloomy, and the roasted chicken on the carbon stove in the room was dripping oil down hissing. Ning Liheng stood there and blinked innocently. It seemed that after thinking for a while, Lu Hongti's eyes slowed down slightly and looked at a piece of land.

With a loud bang, it started to rain outside, and in a blink of an eye, the entire Jiangning was rolled in.

"My family used to live west of Yanmen Pass and the other side of Luliang Mountain." After a long time, Lu Hongti said this.

"Since the loss of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun, the Hu people have been fighting grass valleys, and they have gone there every year, killing and looting people. There is no safe day, nine out of ten families are empty, living in farming, and moving around in the surrounding valleys every year, like wandering ghosts, but the older generation says that the hometown is hard to leave... You may not understand the feeling of being there..."

Ning Yi was slightly silent: "I am happy on the banks of the Fen River, gathered around Huhu and Jinzhongnan, cried and sang Luliang Mountain, and died even if I die..."

"Ha." She nodded and smiled, "In the early years, everyone had actually passed by the mountains. In fact, they had been going south all the way, but they couldn't move far away. The young people went up the mountain, and even the bandits of Luliang that had been endless for hundreds of years, were all Han people. The Wu Dynasty army did not come. The Hu people went south every year and did not treat us as human beings. They fought with the Hu people's troops every year. When they met a small group of people, they rushed forward and hid, and they also robbed Hu merchants. We all robbed the merchants who passed there. The Han people left one life, and the Hu people were killed..."

"Wu Chao did not regard us as our own people. Sometimes an official came over and said he wanted to recruit the police. He had recruited the police several times. In short, he still fought with the Hu people, just to work hard and give us nothing. Sometimes, he said that we were bandits and came to suppress them once..."

Lightning flashed through the window, and the rain became heavier. Ning Yi flipped the roast chicken and sprinkled something on it.

"When I was six years old, my father was killed by the Hu people. I learned skills with my master and walked around the world. When I was thirteen, I returned to Luliang. My mother was dead. So I went to the mountains. With my master, I fought every year... the knights wanted to serve the country and the people? I never thought that everyone lived... not like humans..."

She paused slightly: "Later... a few years ago, Song Xian led his troops into Luliang Mountain. He said at first that he wanted to recruit peace. He said it was very good. He gathered people from several nearby villages and surrounded them and killed them all... Liao Kingdom said that the thieves from the Luliang Dynasty were from the Wu Dynasty and asked the Wu Dynasty to deal with them. Song Xian used these heads to make a record and gave them to the superiors! Pleasing to Liao Kingdom! The old man and children did not leave any of them, and then they said that they were all bandits who killed people without blinking... He was promoted to the post because of this. Some relatives of people in the mountains died in the villages I knew were also dead, and some people... came out to seek revenge and were killed again. The blood was gone in vain, and some people were going out. I didn't allow it, so I could only do it myself..."

"So I must kill him. On Yuanxi, I was sure if I missed a single attack. A few days ago, I went to design and kill him, but he designed it. At that time, I thought, if this continues, I might not be able to kill him... A person has limited power after all..."

"If you want to learn kung fu, I have been with my master for so many years, and then fight every year, I don't know how many people I have killed. How many times did I crawl out of the pile of dead people? I don't know if I am dead or alive. Now I want to kill Song Xian or be injured like this. Scholars have the ability and can fight against all men, which is better than anything else. Why bother to do this blood-handed man slaughter..." She said, smiling with her lips pursed.

Ning Yi thought about it there and shook his head and smiled: "I'd better stick to my curiosity... Let's talk about this, let's go."

He said as he took off the roast chicken and cut it with a knife. The stronger aroma filled the whole room and handed it over with the sauce.

"How about it?"

“It tastes great…”

"I am preparing to launch a new product, and my technique is quite amateur, and these ingredients are well matched."

"Don't you sell cloth at your home?"

"Friend... If one day you can eat this kind of roast chicken in Luliang Mountain, I will give you some things..."

"Ha, what?"

"What are the evil ways... What are you calling the wind and rain? Sprinkling beans to become soldiers, and so on..."

"That's a matter of determination?"

"Um."

The casual conversation in the room was drowned in the roaring thunderstorm. At a restaurant on the other end of Jiangning City, Li Pin was also looking at the rain outside and talking to Chen Miao beside him.

"...Yan Zhen has been preparing for the past few days. He will leave Jiangning and leave for Raozhou within about half a month."

"Didn't it meant that July had just left?"

"There is a long way to go, probably to go earlier, so as not to delay any accidents on the road... In addition, after arriving in Leping, I'm afraid I have to handle some in advance and take over the position smoothly."

"Okay." Li Pin smiled and nodded.

Chen Miao took a deep breath: "Some time ago, I heard that you had some disagreements with Yan Zhen, so I came here to ask. After all, they were all friends in the past and there was nothing big. I don't want you to keep things in mind."

Li Pin thought for a while: "This matter is not a disagreement. I understand Zishan's good intentions. But it's not that I'm angry with him, but that he has some of his own worries."

Chen Miao frowned and thought for a while: "So that's it... By the way, what do Dexin thinks about Yan Zhen?"

"It's not good to say this behind the scenes."

"Haha, it's okay. He is about to travel, and I'm afraid he won't see him for many years. If he has a knot with others, I won't be worried. However, I have always believed in Dexin's character, and you have always had a very accurate understanding of people. Therefore, I really want to know one or two. This matter is just a chat and will never be passed on to the three of you."

Li Pin thought about it and shook his head: "It's not a big deal. Yan Zhen has known each other for many years. He has knowledge, ability and vision. If we talk about it, we are inferior to you and me. But over the years, have you ever seen him suffer any losses in any matter?"

"Uh, there are several things that have suffered... In fact, there are also several things, but Yan Zhen is also an open-minded person and does not take it to heart..."

"What if I say...he has never suffered a loss?"

"Um?"

"Brother Zishan, Gu Hong is... arrogant. Of course, he also has reasons and talents for this arrogance. Over the years, he has had extremely high requirements for himself, and many times it is really amazing. The style of a gentleman is like this. But sometimes, his views are a bit too extreme and he pursues his purpose too much. However, it is hard to say whether it is good or bad."

Chen Miao smiled and nodded: "Dexin is really accurate in knowing people. Yan Zhen has such a bias. A few days ago, he told me that you should face your true heart directly. In fact, I think it is reasonable. He once said that in the future, he needs to be a county magistrate. What he needs is to solve the problems in front of him. In these matters, he should be selfless and only seek purpose. Compared with the virtuous official who is actually bound by many rules in his heart, he would rather be a capable official who does not seek appearance, good or evil but only needs to do things properly. His idea is actually admirable..."

Li Pin looked at him and then laughed: "That's true. Nowadays, there are many corrupt scholars in the world, but few people do things. If Yan Zhen had this idea, it would be a blessing for the people..."

He actually admired Gu Yanzhen a little, and he vaguely noticed that he had done something here, just to eliminate it. If he took out the false things to blame, it would be really over. Chen Miao was not here for discussion today, but just to be a peace dealer, but he didn't understand that this time, there was indeed a grudge on Gu Yanzhen. This grudge may not be for his own concealment, but because of the saying "I know you are a human being." Although Gu Yanzhen was aggressive that day, he might not have said this.

Whether the "king" is important or the "saint" is important, the two forms have been debated for many years. Of course, the doctrine of the mean is not extreme, and the judgment of everything is actually quite complicated. Over the years, capable officials are indeed much more useful than corrupt scholars. If Gu Yanzhen proves that he is indeed capable officials in the future, he should come to the door to apologize for this... I hope so.

After that, the topic naturally followed Chen Miao. At the same time as the two were talking in the restaurant, in the Zhuji Main Store located outside several streets, Gu Yanzhen was taking a servant in his seat and quietly tasting various dishes. The servant next to him was tall and had a scar on his face. He was called Lao Liu and was actually his bodyguard. In the past three months, this was his first time to approach the place related to Nie Yunzhu, of course not to lead people to smash the store. At this time, he was just waiting quietly for the other party to appear.

Because it was raining outside, the business in the store was not very good, and the light was not bright in the heavy rain, so the oil lamp was lit and the lights were swaying in the store.

Nie Yunzhu was actually in the store at this time, but as a woman, she didn't need to be open-minded and open-minded in these things. In this era, there were actually not many men and women's open-mindedness. Of course, she used double standards in dealing with Ning Yi. Thinking of the last time that the other party forced her to hold her hands, she was unwilling to go out again. He shouldn't hold her own hands, and he shouldn't hit him with his backhand, so he quietly waited for the passing of time. However, until it was approaching the evening, the dishes in front of him were completely cold, and Gu Yanzhen sat there steadily, and she had no choice. Finally, she walked out and bowed to the table: "Young Master Gu."

Gu Yanzhen looked up at her and smiled. He had always been gentle and elegant. His smile at this time was indeed very good, relaxed and open-minded.

"I'm leaving for a few days and going to Leping, Raozhou, to take office, so I feel like I'm coming to say goodbye to you."

Nie Yunzhu thought for a while: "There is nothing else to give to Yunzhu. I just hope that the young master will have a smooth sailing and a prosperous official career."
Chapter completed!