When the store closed, the young man was kicked out and walked drowsily on the street with a bottle of wine.
It was raining heavily in Youzhou, it was getting late, and the streets were already deserted.
Lu Zhong staggered into an alley, sat under the eaves of a roof to take shelter from the rain, and stared blankly at the opposite door.
Occasionally, someone passed by and looked at him strangely.
The young man lowered his gaze uncomfortably.
After a while, a pair of shoes stopped in front of him.
"My child, it's raining so hard, why don't you go home?" The person who stopped opened his lips hoarsely.
"I am homeless." Lu Zhong lowered his head and tightened his grip on the wine bottle in his hand.
He didn't know how to face Xie Yuan or Qi Yan.
There was a feud between their two families, and now Qi Yan had beheaded his father with his own hands, and Huo Qubing's father had beheaded his entire family. He couldn't stay with them like before.
"Then don't you want to avenge your family?" the man asked slowly.
"Revenge..." Lu Zhong stared blankly.
"Kill Xie Yuan, kill Qi Yan and Huo Qubing, and avenge your people-" The man continued to speak, his hoarse voice tempting.
Kill them...
Lu Zhong's eyes slowly became dazed.
In the middle of the night, the lights of thousands of houses were extinguished, but the fire of hatred in the young man's eyes was quietly ignited, illuminating his confused heart.
Kill them...
Kill them...
Kill...them!
There seemed to be countless sharp voices screaming from all around, asking him to take action, asking him to kill the three people he once regarded as brothers.
A muffled thunder pierced the sky in the distance, awakening the dazed young man.
Lu Zhong came to his senses in a daze, and suddenly noticed an umbrella falling on top of his head.
"Little sir..." Lu Zhong murmured as he met those familiar eyes.
Xie Yuan patted Lawrence Lu on the shoulder: "Let's go home."
go home……
The young man's eyes turned red.
As if a thread in his heart was suddenly broken, Lu Zhong suddenly hugged Xie Yuan and cried loudly.
He cried so much that he looked like a lost dog.
Oh no, the young man at this time has long been a lost dog.
Lu Zhong cried loudly and then fainted.
Xie Yuan carried Lu Zhong back to the mansion. Huo Qubing glanced at Lu Zhong with a worried look on his face: "Master, what's wrong with him?"
"Caught in the rain and caught the wind and cold."
Huo Qubing heard this and was about to grab medicine. Qi Yan, who had returned from delivering ginger soup to the soldiers, heard Xie Yuan's words and silently placed the last bowl of ginger soup in his hand on the table.
Then he turned around and left.
Huo Qubing gave Lu Zhong some ginger soup, changed him into a set of clean clothes, and then sat next to Xie Yuan and read a book together.
There was silence in the room.
"Lord, what should he do?" Huo Qubing asked gently after a long time.
"Look at himself." Xie Yuan put down the ancient book in his hand and glanced at the frowning young man on the couch.
Although they all know that the grievances between the seniors will not necessarily involve the descendants, they all know that from today on, their relationship will never be the same again.
"If one day, Shaohan wants to take revenge on my lord and Brother Wangshu, what should my lord do?" Huo Qubing raised his head and looked at Xie Yuan.
Xie Yuan didn't answer, just shook his head.
When will the injustice be repaid?
The next day, Lu Zhong woke up holding his head.
The stranger's words yesterday seemed to be engraved in his mind, making him remember them very clearly.
revenge……
The dark light in the young man's eyes flashed away.
…
After the three states were recaptured, the news spread to the remaining states.
The remaining princes were in panic.
This Governor Huo took back the three states without saying a word. With the main army gone, wouldn't they be the only ones left to suffer?
They immediately prepared to unite against the Huo family army.
And Governor Huo was indeed prepared to continue the Northern Expedition and regain all the lost territory.
Just as the army was preparing to leave, the imperial decree arrived unexpectedly, disrupting their original plan.
"Your Majesty has summoned Governor Huo and Sanlang Cui to withdraw their troops immediately and lead their troops back to the court! If there is any violation, you will be punished for the crime of treason!"
After the person who delivered the imperial edict finished reading the edict, he looked at the solemn-looking Governor Huo with a smile——
"The governor has not accepted the order yet."
Everyone looked at each other in confusion.
The Northern Expedition was going so well, why did we suddenly withdraw our troops and return to the North?
As a result, the lost territory they regained would soon be annexed by other kings.
Then their Northern Expedition has no meaning.
"Did you know that the purpose of forging the imperial edict was to harm the Yi tribe?" Governor Huo raised his head and looked at the man coldly.
The man trembled for a moment, then lowered his gaze and said sternly: "Bold! The seal is here, how dare the Sa family forge the imperial edict!"
Governor Huo didn't believe it, so he grabbed the imperial edict and stared at the seal, his hands shaking slightly.
Everyone's heart sank.
It looks like this is an imperial edict from the imperial court.
"I obey the order." After a while, Governor Huo sighed and slowly bowed his head.
The waiter got on his horse proudly, and suddenly a whip was whipped out. The horse was frightened and raised its front hooves, causing the waiter to fall onto his back, causing the people around him to burst into laughter.
The chamberlain spat out a mouthful of grass and stared at the young man holding the whip in shame.
"Oops, my hands were slippery and I hit the wrong place with the whip." Huo Qubing smiled as if he was harmless.
The waiter was about to say something when he suddenly felt a cold gaze. He turned his head and met the expressionless face of Governor Huo.
There seemed to be a bit of anger hidden in the eyes on his face.
He trembled and hurriedly got on his horse and left.
Huo Qubing laughed so hard that his stomach hurt.
"Go and get the ten army sticks from me!" Dudu Huo glared at him angrily.
Huo Qubing: "...father."
"Twenty military sticks!"
"I'll go right away!"
When Huo Qubing left, the anger in Huo Dudu's eyes receded, replaced by a deep sense of powerlessness.
"Uncle Huo, it was clearly the imperial decree to call for the Northern Expedition before, so why are you told to withdraw the troops now?" Qi Yan looked puzzled.
"Emperor Yongkang is weak and incompetent, and the Queen and his relatives have exclusive power." Xie Yuan said warmly,
"They probably thought that the Huo family and the Cui family wanted to use their achievements in the Northern Expedition to check and balance their relative Wang family, so they came up with this strategy."
Governor Huo nodded.
In fact, he and the young man of the Cui family really wanted to use the achievements of the Northern Expedition to check the Wang family and prevent his family from becoming dominant.
After all, this is the Jin Dynasty of the Sima clan, and their world belongs to them. No matter what, the Wang family, a relative, cannot be the dictatorship of one person.
"Then after we go back, won't these lost lands have to be divided up by the princes again?" Luo Chen was a little unwilling.
But where is the other way?
After all this, the imperial edict said that the Northern Expedition will not be allowed. If they continue the Northern Expedition, they are plotting against the Holy One and wiping out the three tribes.
No matter how unwilling they were, Dudu Huo and Cui Heng could only withdraw their troops and rush to restore their health.
Xie Yuan and others led the army back to Longxi with Luo Chen.
Their words were quickly confirmed.
Without an army, the three states without an owner were quickly annexed by other princes.