Chapter 536: Everyone is drunk and I am the only one awake
The sky is getting brighter and the morning light illuminates the earth.
A long figure moves in the front yard, as powerful as a frightening dragon, as powerful as a tiger, and it makes the sound of exhaling from time to time.
After calling a few times, smoke rose from the backyard, and the aroma of meat porridge filled the air. Li Chengzhi felt his index finger swell.
Seeing him put down his posture, Li Chengxue came over and asked, "What kind of punch did the second brother hit?"
Military boxing.
He learned this during military training in college. He was bored and decided to practice it on a whim.
It's useless in this era of throwing knives and guns, so Li Chengzhi didn't bother to say it.
"Want to have breakfast?"
"No, it's an urgent message from Jingzhou. My father ordered me to call my second brother!"
Jingzhou?
It should be Beizhen.
"Okay!"
Li Chengzhi responded and hurried to the middle courtyard.
It was a leader of Li Feng's men who came. He was unshaven and dusty, showing how anxious he was.
When he saw Li Chengzhi, he quickly handed over the leather envelope.
Li Chengzhi looked at it for a while and saw that the paint was intact and the code was correct, so he opened the envelope.
To others, it is undoubtedly a book from heaven, but this set of code words was created by Li Chengzhi, so it is natural to understand it at a glance.
The letter mainly said three things:
1. Not long after Gao Zhao led his army to Fertile Field, Beizhen, which was originally turbulent and undercurrent, suddenly became calm.
Second, Rouran is getting weaker day by day. If nothing unexpected happens, they should withdraw their troops before the beginning of winter.
Third, since Li Chengzhi defeated Chencang and stopped collecting and transporting kerosene from Jinming County, Gao Meng secretly took over this task.
Day and night, we race against time, fearing that a little bit of the oil will be missed, and we even want to dig through those large oil-producing lakes, not wanting to miss even a grain of sand.
But more than a month ago, Gaomengtu had people fill in several large lakes, leaving only one of them, and then diverted river water to fill it up.
Just when Li Feng was racking his brains to find out the truth, a group of strangers with unknown origins and suspicious behavior suddenly appeared by the lake. They claimed to be merchants, but what they received was a letter issued by Woye Town Government.<
/p>
I have nothing to do all day long, just boating on the lake. If someone asks out of curiosity, it is also said to be fishing.
Catching a hair?
If you put a whale in that lake, you'd be poisoned to death, and there won't even be a single piece of grass.
After counting the time, the truth is about to come out: that group of people are most likely spies sent by Gao Ying to collect kerosene...
The more Li Chengzhi watched, the more relaxed he became. Unknowingly, a sinister smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Li Shixian scratched his head and ears curiously, and took a look, but he looked confused.
He knew every word, but when put together, it made no sense.
Fortunately, he dared to ask: "What's the matter?"
It's not a top secret, and Li Chengzhi didn't hide it, he just told it.
"Nowadays, the six towns are deeply entrenched and cannot be solved overnight. It is just because they are frightened by the power of the army, whether they are military leaders such as town generals or local powerful people, they have to temporarily hide them.
According to his son's prediction, Gao Zhao would definitely use this opportunity to either win over or sow discord, intensifying the hatred between the court, the powerful, and the townspeople. When the time comes, with just a fire, the six towns will be destroyed.
It will explode like gunpowder."
"As for Rouran's retreat, it is inevitable. After all, the expedition is thousands of miles away, and there are two close enemies, Gaoche and Gaochang, behind it. Therefore, the ugly slaves do not dare to send all the troops to fight the imperial court to the death.
I can only accept it when it’s good..."
"But I have to remind my uncle and Li Song to prepare early, lest Rouran bullies the weak and fears the strong and attacks Xihai again on the way back to the army!"
"What about Xiazhou? Why did Gao Meng suddenly fill up the oil lake? Who was rafting on the lake after that?"
Li Chengzhi wants to laugh when he mentions this.
"The man who went boating must be Yuan Hui's secret guard. In all likelihood, he was ordered by the Queen Mother to collect kerosene. But somehow the news leaked out, and Gao Meng learned about it in advance, and he came to throw a brick.
Hidden jade!"
When it comes to flattery and cleverness, Yuan Hui is naturally a good player, but when it comes to conspiracy and planning, Gao Zhao can be regarded as his ancestor.
I'm afraid that as soon as Gao Ying made a decision and Yuan Hui didn't receive the secret edict, the person who informed Gao Zhao and Gao Meng was already on his way.
Gao Zhao is also brave, so why can he be sure that even if he finds out, he will never tell the truth?
Although he couldn't guess Gao Zhao's intention at the moment, Li Chengzhi at least knew that Gao Ying and Yuan Ying might have their noses twisted with anger.
After all the hard work and planning, in the end it was all in vain?
No, it’s time to shoot yourself in the foot and lose more than you gain.
Seeing that he was vaguely proud, Li Shixian secretly cursed: In terms of insidiousness and cunning, compared to Gao Zhao, you are not willing to give in much. You fish in troubled waters, make something out of nothing, and you are very skilled in the trick of killing someone with a borrowed knife.
Just a piece of fake secret recipe made Gao Ying, Yuan Ying and the court think that you were like a tiger that had lost its claws, a fly that had broken its wings and no longer a threat.
It's just a few oil lakes, but Gao Zhao is so excited that he takes risks and is willing to open the way for you?
Full of admiration in his heart, Li Shixian asked suspiciously: "When I came to Qizhou, you said that all the kerosene in Xiazhou was mined by you. It would take at least six or seven years before we could return to our former glory. After that, we dug ferociously.
What is it?"
Li Chengzhi sighed with regret: "What my son said at first was to rely on ordinary methods. How could he know that Gao Meng was so cruel that he would take human life as a human life and wish he could dig through the ground?"
Regardless of the rest: petroleum is volatile, and no matter what kind of gas is emitted, none of it is non-toxic.
The deeper you dig and the lower you are from the surface, the higher the density of toxic gases. With the methods of this era, it is impossible to effectively protect it, and the only thing left is to take human lives.
Li Shixian was horrified: "Doesn't it mean that as long as the secret recipe you handed over to the court is known to Gao Zhao, he can make a thunder weapon?"
How can it be that simple?
Li Chengzhi shook his head decisively: "In order to make lightning weapons, this material needs to be hidden underground and accumulated for many years. Only when the lightest oil floats on the water surface can it be refined many times to refine the clear oil.
But Gao Meng is eager to attack and gain immediate benefits, and he cannot wait long, so all he digs out is sand. Let him refine it in various ways, and what he produces is also heavy oil, which is mostly used to set fires or make rockets."
That’s pretty awesome too.
Li Chengshixian shuddered when he thought of the rockets that were like maggots attached to bones and could ignite even armor.
"Father, don't worry. Every time the oil lake is dug a foot deeper, thousands more lives will be wasted every day. Gao Zhao and Gao Meng can't afford it, so they can't extract much!"
How many thousand per day?
Li Shixian asked himself that his heart was as strong as iron, and his forehead was still sweating from shock.
"With such disregard for human life, Gao Zhao is not afraid of retribution?"
Who among the knowledgeable people would believe this?
Even my father was just expressing his feelings.
With emotion in his heart, he saw Li Shixian's trembling lips again, as if he was about to speak but didn't dare to speak. Li Chengzhi was suspicious for a moment and suddenly understood.
"It's not that my son regards human life as nothing, nor is he arrogant and scornful of Gao Zhao's power. It's that even if I swear and swear, no one will believe my words!"
Li Chengzhi sneered, with an expression of unspeakable sarcasm, "Now, both the Queen Mother and the ministers believe that I hold a grudge. Whenever I say that Gao Zhao will rebel, they will be regarded as my words of revenge...
If in the past, I was alone, I would have no scruples and would definitely write straightly. Even if the Queen Mother and the court did not believe me, Gao Meng could at least be restrained and less lives would be lost.
But now my parents and brothers are in Beijing, but my son is alone and weak. If Gao Zhao secretly attacks me, how can I defend myself? So I can only pretend to be deaf and dumb..."
At first glance, it sounds reasonable. It seems that Li Chengzhi is being dragged down by his family. But if you know your son more than your father, how can Li Shixian not know what Li Chengzhi’s intentions are?
This was clearly put on display for the court to see: Now that my parents, brothers, aunts, nieces and all other relatives are in the capital, what reason can be given to say that I have bad intentions or disobedient intentions?
But he couldn't point it out, so Li Shixian just cursed him bitterly.
"In your opinion, when will Gao Zhao start an uprising?"
Li Chengzhi shook his head: "The world is unpredictable and ever-changing, so it's hard to say for a son. But if nothing happens, there will be chaos either at the beginning of winter, or at the beginning of spring next year, or in the northern states, or in the six towns.
..."
Therefore, if Gao Zhao really wanted to be rebellious, he would not want the court to rest and recuperate, but the more chaos the better.
Just as he was secretly guessing, he heard Li Rui say outside the door: "The master of the house, Mr. Lang, Cui Shangshu is here to visit!"
Cui Guang?
What is this old man doing here?
If you don’t go to the Three Treasures Hall for nothing, you definitely have nothing good to do.
Li Shixian also had the same idea, and mused: "As a father, I just go to see him, and I will say that you have been ill for a long time and cannot see anyone else!"
"Today is the sixth day of the lunar month, when the court meeting is in full swing. As a minister, how can he abandon attending the court and run out of the city? Therefore, he must have come with an imperial edict. If he can't see his son, he will not give up.
!"
Li Chengzhi let out a long breath, "If we really let him return without success, I'm afraid he won't be the Minister next time!"
Li Shixian couldn't help but sneered: Could it be possible that she could still be the Queen Mother?
"Then go ahead and call your father sick!"
"That's fine!"
……
Cui Guang wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief, feeling very angry.
Li Chengzhi is simply a demon. He has left the Duke's Mansion in the inner city alone, but he has to come to this mass grave?
He was afraid that if he arrived too late, Li Chengzhi might run into Mang Mountain to look for monks and find paths to explore the secluded areas, so Cui Guang got up before the fifth watch.
After another dozen or so miles of jolting, my bones were almost falling apart.
So when he saw Li Chengzhi, he first complained loudly:
"It's just a funeral, so why move outside the city? If you really have filial piety, why don't you build a house in front of Li Shiliang's grave?
Don't give me the excuse that you are disheartened and don't want to be an official again in this life, so you asked to resign three times. Not only did you move out of the Duke's Mansion, but you also resigned from Lord Ying. You are obviously pretending to be wronged, for fear of the Queen Mother
Isn’t it embarrassing enough to show off to the imperial court? It’s so unbecoming of a man to be pretentious and pretentious..."
Just like a bloody dog, Li Chengzhi was speechless and stunned by the scolding.
Has this old man taken some gunpowder?
You think I'm just showing off, but I'm just afraid of chaos in the capital and don't have time to run away...
Li Chengzhi secretly slandered, still smiling, and asked Cui Guang to take a seat.
Hmm?
Cui Guang discovered something was wrong again.
There was a handwriting posted on the nave, and he could recognize it as Li Chengzhi's handwriting at a glance. But compared with before, it was much less sharp and a little more smooth.
Cui Guangben is a master in this field. He firmly believes that words are used to understand people and cultivate one's character. When he looked at the content, he even frowned:
If the mountain is not high, it will be famous if it has immortals.
If the water is not deep, there will be a spirit if there is a dragon.
This is a humble house, but I am virtuous.
The upper steps of the moss marks are green, and the grass color enters the curtain green.
There are great scholars when talking and laughing, but there are no idle people when interacting.
You can tune the plain qin and read the golden scripture.
There are no messy ears of silk and bamboo, no labor of writing documents.
Zhuge Lu in Nanyang, Yunting in Western Shuzi.
Confucius said: What is so shameful?
The words are good words, and the poems are even better poems. They can be called masterpieces. But why does Grandpa become more and more depressed the more he reads it?
The whole article conveys the meaning of "Everyone is drunk, I am alone drunk, everyone is muddy, but I am alone pure".
That's all, there seems to be a hint of indifference, tranquility and far-reaching hidden in it.
To put it bluntly, it’s just accepting your fate...
Thinking again about Li Chengzhi's experiences in the past few months and his behavior after returning to Beijing, Cui Guang's brows couldn't stop beating: Is this little thief really feeling cold?
After enduring it again and again, Cui Guang finally couldn't hold it back. Cui Guang opened his mouth and cursed: "You are capricious and go back on your word. Are you really a shameless kid?"
Are you lighting up your house, or are you digging into your ancestral graves? Wouldn’t you like it so early in the morning?
Li Chengzhi squinted his eyes: "It means beheading for questioning, but also a canonical punishment. Is it unreasonable for Ping Enhou to curse like this when he comes in?"
"The truth? Okay, I will explain the truth to you..."
Cui Guang shook his beard, rolled up his sleeves, and his tongue seemed to be equipped with springs.
"Where has 'Heaven behaves unfavorably, and a gentleman should strive for self-improvement'?
Where has the phrase "Don't lose hope if your fortune is shallow, and don't rely on current events" gone?
Where has the perseverance gone? Where has it gone? Where has it gone? Where has it gone? Where has it gone? Where has it gone? Where has it gone? Where has it gone? Where has it gone? Where has the wealth gone?
The saliva was sprayed out in random directions, and his finger almost poked Li Chengzhi's nose.
He couldn't laugh or cry: Just because this "Inscription on the Humble Room" is contrary to the "Ode to Determinations" I wrote in the palace on Chinese Valentine's Day last year, you want to scold me for being capricious?
What was the situation then and what is the situation now?
He originally wrote it casually because of his feelings. But both his parents and brothers said it was well written, and all the aunts and sisters-in-law were full of praise. For a moment, he was so happy that he simply hung up in the middle hall.
Who would have thought that we could even summon a squirt?
Knowing that Cui Guang was well-intentioned and somewhat resentful that iron cannot become steel, Li Chengzhi was not annoyed and just smiled and let him scold him.
The calmer he became, the angrier Cui Guang became. If he hadn't still had a trace of reason left and knew that he couldn't even defeat Li Chengzhi's hand, he would have taken action long ago.
The more he scolded, the angrier he became, but Li Chengzhi was so thick-faced that he remained completely indifferent.
On the contrary, he scolded Cui Guangqi till the end. He simply waved his sleeves and turned around to leave: "A strong man can't make a plan, and I can't be angry with you..."
Hey, why are you leaving?
"Shang Shu stays!"
Li Chengzhi hurriedly stepped forward and asked with a smile: "Is it possible that the Queen Mother sent the minister away just to scold Li?"
How could this little thief guess so accurately?
Cui Guang stopped and squinted his eyes angrily: "Will you tell the truth if I ask?"
"If you didn't ask, how would you know I wouldn't tell the truth?"
Li Chengzhi pulled his sleeves and pushed him down on the chair: "Shang Shu and I haven't seen each other for a while, so it would be good to just have a drink and catch up on old times!"
Cui Guang seemed to be angry and sat down reluctantly.
"The Queen Mother asked me to ask you, apart from Jinming County in Xiazhou, where else produces kerosene? If you say yes, I will listen. If you say no, I will not go into details. Then go back to the palace and tell the Queen Mother the truth.
Ming..."
Is this why you came here?
Li Chengzhi became a little annoyed when he thought of what Li Feng said in his urgent report.
Even if one general succeeds and many bones wither, Gao Zhao and Gao Meng are too unscrupulous.
He pondered for a moment: "To be honest with the minister, I looked through ancient books and found only two mentions. One of them is "Yi": Xiang said, there is fire in the lake, and the fire is in the lake. The second is in "Han Shu"
》: Gaonu (belonging to Jinming County, Xiazhou) has water, which is flammable!
The former cannot be traced, but the latter points directly to Gaonu County, and other than that, there is no trace."
Cui Guang's eyes widened: "So, doesn't it mean that there is no such thing elsewhere?"
"Shang Shu, don't be impatient!"
Li Chengzhi looked around and saw the writing on the case, so he took it over and showed it to Cui Guang.
"Please see, Your Majesty, although the Mishui River is hidden underground, it is like an underground river, flowing in all directions, so Gao Nu is just one of them. But in my estimation, most of it is buried under a thousand feet, so it cannot be extracted by manpower." "From what you say, it's Jinming County, so the kerosene isn't limited to just this lake?"
"A lake?"
Li Chengzhi frowned in a pretentious manner, "There should be seven or eight lakes, and they are spread over three or four townships. How can there be a limit to one lake?"
"Then why did Yuanhui send people to investigate and only found this place?"
"Then I don't know!"
Don’t you know a bird feather?
When he saw Li Chengzhi smiling like a fox, Cui Guang knew that he was not telling the truth.
If it weren't for Li Chengzhi, no one in heaven would have thought of this water... Oh, this kerosene can be used in war, and can even be used to make sharp weapons like thunder. And it was he who went to Jinming County in person to investigate and discover the talent.
Make the best use of it, so there is no one in the world who knows it more thoroughly than Li Chengzhi.
He said there are seven or eight places, so there must be seven or eight places.
Today, Yuanhui cannot protect himself, so he does not dare to deceive the Queen Mother. If he says that he has directly investigated one place, then he will definitely only investigate this one.
What was the difference then?
A flash of inspiration flashed in Cui Guang's mind, and Cui Guang suddenly thought of Gao Meng.
He suddenly realized why Li Chengzhi smiled so treacherously.
This little thief was clearly hinting to himself that Gao Meng had done something wrong.
But what is the use of Gao Meng?
Thinking of this, even though Cui Guang was about to become a master in cultivation, his face couldn't help but change: Now everyone in the court knows that Li Chengzhi gave the Queen Mother a secret report, and Gao Zhao will definitely rebel...
Seven or eight thoughts ran through his mind, and even Cui Guang was not sure for a moment. Was Li Chengzhi deliberately inducing him to frame Gao Zhao? Or was it really just like the hidden meaning in the poem on the wall: everyone was drunk on him
Awake alone?
Meeting Cui Guang's scrutinizing and suspicious gaze, Li Chengzhi sighed secretly.
Even Cui Guang, who has the closest relationship with him and trusts him the most, is like this. Can it be seen that the Queen Mother, Zhu Fu, and the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty?
He blames himself: It's as if the actor is possessed by him, the acting is too realistic, and now he can't even find a flaw to expose it.
It’s also strange that Gao Zhao was able to dominate the government and the public, and the Yuan clan now hates him to the core, but he still stands strong. How can he be an easy person?
When it comes to skill and scheming, I am ultimately better than Gao Zhaocha.
Otherwise, why would we always miss one step every time?
That's all, you should accumulate some shady virtues and think that there are fewer obstacles. As for whether anyone is willing to believe it, it's not up to you.
Li Chengzhi sighed sadly: "That's all I have to say, I just ask the Minister to say one thing to the Queen Mother: As long as there is no chaos in Guanzhong, the sky will not fall!"
Having said this, Cui Guang had no intention of staying for a long time. He said goodbye and left in a hurry.
Along the way, he was suspicious: Could Li Chengzhi be blaming Gao Zhao again?
Even he is like this, let alone Gao Ying, Yuan Cheng, Yuan Jia?
Even Liu Fang and You Zhao were dubious, and the others were even more disapproving, and even sneered at him. They even bluntly said that Li Chengzhi would never change his traitorous nature, and his desire to kill Gao Zhao would never die.
"Whether it's true or not, we should still send secret guards to visit Jin Ming again. Well, let Yuan Hui go in person this time, so be sure to be careful!"
Yuan Cheng repeatedly promised: "The Queen Mother is wise, and I will deliver the edict to Yuan Hui as soon as I am alive!"
Gao Ying nodded slightly and looked at Cui Guang again: "How did the minister see that Li Chengzhi really wanted to retire?"
Why do you need to see it?
Cui Guang was secretly angry and read the poem in the middle hall of Li's mansion again.
You Zhao blurted out praise: "What a poem!"
Liu Fang also deeply agreed and kept nodding her head.
Yuan Cheng and Yuan Jia looked at each other. The former had a look of pity on his face, while the latter had a hint of worry.
Poems are naturally good poems, but the hidden meaning is self-evident. Anyone who has a little knowledge of poetry will know it as soon as they hear it.
And this is much more useful than three requests and three resignations.
Looking further up the hall, I saw Gao Ying letting out a long sigh, as if he was deeply regretful. However, he no longer seemed to be vaguely angry like yesterday, but rather seemed to be at ease.
"Since he is loyal to the country and has strong moral integrity, he will be appointed king of the city as he wishes!"
"I'm here!"
"I will issue an edict later to take Liu Teng's old residence back to Taichang and give it to the chosen ministers!"
Cui Guang's heart skipped a beat: If we take the next step, will the Queen Mother take back the marriage contract?
Li Chengzhi, Li Chengzhi, I wonder how long it will take you to wake up?