On the evening of the 16th, Zhang Hongfan led his horse off the merchant ship and rode his horse slowly eastward.
His eyes were a little lonely.
Not only was he thinking that today was the day for the eldest sister to get married, but he was also thinking of Zhang Wulang and his group that he had seen in the Han River Valley.
"It seems that Fifth Brother must have guessed it." He whispered again.
…
In the first month of the first lunar month, in Ximu Tu Nao'er, Kublai Khan's words "your fifth son is too clever" were not said to Zhang Rou, but to Zhang Hongfan who summoned Zhang Hongfan for a secret discussion in private.
At that time, the army was about to conquer Harala and Lin in the north, and Li Fen of Shandong might rebel at any time; Guanzhong had been captured by Li Xia; Lian Xixian defected; many news pointed to Shang Ting, Shi Tianze, Yi Shuan, Zhao Bi, etc.
It is also possible for people to collaborate with the enemy.
The situation was extremely serious for Kublai Khan.
Zhang Hongdao, who was in Bozhou, was secretive about his affair with Li Xia, and the evidence was conclusive.
Bozhou can join Li Fen in the east, and attack Heluo with Li Xia in the west. Once it is lost, it will be equivalent to opening a big gap in Li Fen's encirclement, allowing him to directly communicate with Li Xia.
Regardless of whether Zhang Hongdao acted on behalf of the Zhang family, he must be eliminated...
On the one hand, Kublai Khan sent Yan Zhongji to guard Taixingjing in the name of guarding Guanzhong and keep an eye on Baozhou to prevent Zhang Rou from rebelling. On the other hand, Kublai Khan showed favor to Zhang Rou and granted him the title of Rong? Doctor.
As for Bozhou...for the time being, Kublai Khan cannot ask Zhang Rou to get rid of Zhang Wulang, nor can he ask Zhang Rou to return to Bozhou.
One bad move will really kill Zhang Rouyu.
Some changes are needed.
Zhang Hongfan is the best candidate, deeply favored and loyal.
And even if things go wrong, the Zhang family will not be forced to take action.
Kublai Khan has given Zhang Hongfan too much grace, and he can give more.
Zhang Hongfan will not surrender to Li Xia.
Not to mention various reasons such as the fact that his family grew up in Baozhou, it was precisely because Sister Zhang wanted to marry Li Xia that Zhang Wulang had a tendency to secretly support her. After the Zhang family surrendered, Li Xia would definitely divide power among his brothers.
Only Kublai Khan could allow Zhang Hongfan to inherit the power of generalissimo in charge of more than 30 cities and 80,000 households in the Zhang family.
Mongolia is so wide that no one has ever seen it before and no one will come after it.
…
For Zhang Hongfan, this incident is both an opportunity and a test.
If it is done properly, all the power of the Zhang family will definitely belong to him in the future; if it is not done properly... the more grace Kublai Khan gives him, the deeper his hatred will be once he betrays him.
But Zhang Hongfan was unwilling and could not attack Zhang Wulang.
Family is the foundation of life in troubled times. If brothers fight against each other, the Zhang family will fall apart.
He was greatly favored, but also under great pressure.
In the end, it all fell on his shoulders.
In Baozhou, we have to take care of our young family, realize our future aspirations, and preserve our brotherhood. No matter what we do, it is difficult.
But Zhang Hongfan still plans to do it perfectly.
When he arrived in Bozhou, he tried a few words with Zhang Wulang.
Finding that Zhang Wulang had not changed and was still the conservative character of the Gu family, Zhang Hongfan decided to take back his eldest sister.
It is also the best way to cut off the contact between the Zhang family and Li Xia at the root.
In this way, the three brothers and sisters each make some sacrifices. Zhang Wulang will not die, but at most he will be a hostage; the eldest sister will give up some small love and find a lover; Zhang Jiulang is also willing to accept some punishment, even if he loses everything in the future.
opportunity to unify the Zhang family.
From now on, the Zhang family will still be the same Zhang family where brothers and sisters work together.
But he didn't expect that in the end, not only the eldest sister was unwilling to make this sacrifice, but Zhang Wulang was also unwilling.
…
This is what makes Zhang Hongfan most uncomfortable.
He thought of how much he doted on his elder sister when he left Bozhou to ask for books; he thought of how Wu Lang would rather be seriously injured to save the family...
In the blink of an eye, things and people changed, and they all changed.
My mind is desolate.
"Sunset, heartbroken people in the horizon……"
It was almost dusk, and the palace of the Prince of Pingling County was quite festive.
"Invite the guests to your seats."
The newlyweds bowed to each other, and Zhang Hongdao, who was watching the ceremony, looked at their well-matched appearance, and with added emotion in his heart, he turned around and entered the table.
"My mother-in-law, please sit here..."
The banquet was hurriedly set up with five or six more tables. Zhang Hongdao greeted the children and asked Zhang Yanxiong to arrange for his entourage.
"Wulang, why didn't Li Xia guard against us?"
"Call him 'King of the County', go and sit down, and drink if you want."
Zhang Hongdao sat at the table, closed his eyes and took a rest.
After driving for days, his whole body ached badly, but what was really tired was his heart.
He was no longer in the mood to pick up the food, so he picked up a glass of wedding wine and drank it, his eyes already feeling a little sore...
Zhang Jiulang really thought he couldn't understand.
After his eldest sister left, he analyzed it for four or five months and determined that Kublai Khan did not dare to touch the Zhang family at the moment before he dared to act.
Li Fen has been in trouble for many years without incident, so why did a small quarrel here turn into a big disaster when it got into Zhang Jiulang's mouth?
The catastrophe Zhang Jiulang mentioned was only related to his future!
This time, I made some small moves, fearing that Zhao Bi would find out.
It was Zhang Hongdao who admitted his failure because of his lack of ability.
So what if he ran away for his life? Did Kublai Khan dare to touch the Zhang family?
Back then, Liulang was willing to let Zhang Shijie go, but now Zhang Jiulang is not even willing to let go of his biological brother?
What do you mean by asking for mercy? This time Kublai Khan can show his superiority, but what will happen next? When the world is settled, will he be tolerated?
Yes, he is not as capable as Jiulang, nor can he inherit the family's burden, and he is willing to sacrifice himself for the family.
You can leave your body behind, but you can't just realize Zhang Jiulang's ambition!
During the conversation that day, Zhang Hongfan lowered his head and said, "I can save the life of my fifth brother by taking my eldest sister back." What was he feeling guilty about when he lowered his head?
Do you really think people can’t understand?
"My sister's lifelong marriage and my brother's lifelong freedom are not as good as your short-term future?! Are you, Zhang Jiulang, the only one capable? But I also have a wife and children!"
Just thinking about this, Zhang Hongdao turned his head and saw Li Xia coming over with a wine glass.
After looking at each other for a while, Li Xia clinked his cup with his cup.
"I will treat Wen Jing well."
"A happy marriage for a hundred years."
"We are very happy that Wulang can come."
Zhang Hongdao sighed again and said: "I abandoned Bozhou and ran away. I have no ability and made you laugh."
"No, it's not easy to face Kublai Khan and the Jinlianchuan shogunate. As long as everything is fine."
"I knew Jiulang couldn't take Wen Jing away from you."
Li Xia raised his hand, and the two of them turned to the backyard in tacit agreement.
Zhang Hongdao was holding an empty wine glass, but when he realized that he didn't bring the wine bottle, he smiled bitterly and asked, "Are you planning to be tall on purpose?"
"Well, only by muddying the water can you fish in troubled waters. I speak from experience. I didn't expect you to be caught out."
Zhang Hongdao smiled bitterly again and said: "As an opponent, you are still willing to help me do this..."
"Brother-in-law." Li Xia said, "As my brother-in-law, I help you do this."
"yes."
"Fundamentally speaking, Kublai Khan still didn't regard himself as a Han." Li Xia said: "Mongolia treats the princes too leniently. This is bad governance and there are omissions in the system. If there is a problem, it can only be filled with suspicion. It is better to deal with it from the beginning.
Establish a proper system.”
"These words have profound meaning. I have to think about it carefully."
"That's good. As long as Wu Lang listens to these words, it's enough. Nothing else matters. Today is my great joy, so I won't talk about this anymore."
Zhang Hongdao nodded, hesitated for a moment, and then said: "I apologize to you for what happened in Kaifeng back then..."
"At that time, everyone was his own master."
"Okay, I just want to say... I'm not as good as others, so I'm willing to be inferior."
"Let's meet Wenjing first. I don't want her to be worried when she gets married. You came at a good time."
"I made arrangements as soon as Kuro left, and I got here quickly..."
In the new house, Zhang Wenjing walked around with a round fan in hand, pushed the window and took a peek outside.
From now on, this will be her side princess’s courtyard, and she will have to decorate it once it is empty.
It would be better to use the dowry to decorate the entire palace. Li Xia is too poor and has lost the dignity of a county king...
Hearing voices outside, Zhang Wenjing quickly sat down on the couch, adjusted her phoenix crown, covered her face with the fan again, and assumed the appearance of a well-known lady again.
"Wen Jing came to meet fifth brother."
Zhang Wenjing quickly stood up while holding the phoenix crown, picked up the round fan and walked around outside the screen. She first glanced at Li Xia, covering half of her face, then looked at Zhang Hongdao and sighed slightly.
"Fifth brother is tired and I'm so worried."
"You look a little shabby. As a wife from now on, you must support your husband and raise your children, be virtuous and virtuous, neither jealous nor jealous, and don't lose the reputation of the Zhang family..."
Zhang Hongdao clasped his hands behind his back and showed no joy in meeting his brother and sister, so he started lecturing him with a straight face.
The father is not here, but the eldest brother is like a father, and he must explain clearly what he should explain.
Zhang Wenjing was willing to listen at first, but when Zhang Wulang kept talking, she became a little impatient. She glanced at Li Xia secretly, and finally took a moment to respond: "Thank you, brother, for your teaching."
"Um."
Seeing that he had lowered the atmosphere again, Zhang Hongdao looked at the empty wine glass in his hand, feeling a little embarrassed and said: "Fifth brother came in a hurry and didn't prepare any gifts... In this regard, I'm not as good as your ninth brother. I always treat you the same."
Not as good as your Ninth Brother."
Zhang Wenjing lowered her head, thought for a while, and said: "Fifth brother, don't say that. I have a strong balance in my heart. Who cares about the long-term interests of the family more, I know. We are really happy that fifth brother can come."
Zhang Hongdao was stunned for a moment, feeling warm to his heart.
"Don't listen to your ninth brother's suggestion of expelling you from the house. My father has not expressed his position on this matter, but I don't agree. Although I... I don't know who will have the final say in the family in the future."
Zhang Wenjing smiled, raised her head and said, "I've already said that I have a steelyard in my mind. I'm getting married today. Let's go out."
The guests dispersed and the Prince's Mansion became quiet...
The red candle swayed.
Li Xia sent someone off and came back, bolted the door and sat down on the couch.
It's quiet outside.
"Are you relieved now?"
"Well, I feel relieved."
Zhang Wenjing agreed in a low voice and did not want to talk more about the situation. She only felt that her wedding had been delayed too much due to family matters.
"Fifth brother is also annoying. How can I be so shabby in my appearance?"
She slowly put down her fan, looked at Li Xia, and asked in a low voice, "What do you think?"
“It’s always appropriate to wear light makeup and heavy makeup.”
Where Li Xia looked, he saw that she was dressed carefully today, and a touch of rouge on her lips made her look brighter than usual.
I don’t know if the blush on my cheeks is caused by makeup or blushing.
He then lowered his head and kissed her.
Zhang Wenjing seemed to have thought of a lot, but also seemed to have thought of nothing.
Five years ago, the figure of a young man galloping towards me on horseback with a sword leapt into the air from a high tower... Scenes of the past flashed by, my heart was beating hard, and I didn't know whether it was because of that time or the past.
That year in the withered grave, he held her tightly in his arms, and it was only tonight that he could finally embrace her freely.
The phoenix shoes fell to the ground.
The swaying curtains were reflected on the wall by the candlelight. After a long time, even the red candles were extinguished...
"Bad guy..."
There was a sob in Zhang Wenjing's voice, as if she had bitten Li Xia on the shoulder.
"You made me wait...for five years...um...bad guy..."
A piece of colored paper was picked up by the wind from the curtain and fell to the ground.
"The title contains several lines of lovesickness, and when I rise, the tung leaves cover the screen window. The autumn light is about to rain, and the sound of chess is heard, and the pink curtain cannot tolerate the fragrance of flowers and dew..."