In the minds of Lu Xiangsheng and others, their impression of Xujiazhuang is that it is well-ordered, advanced and developed, extremely materially abundant, has numerous delicacies, and is invincibly powerful.
Before coming to Harbor City, they had disapproved of the power established by businessmen like Xujiazhuang and would not pay too much attention to it. They did not regard it as a threat that could not be eliminated. After all, businessmen, greedy and unscrupulous people, may be rampant for a while, but they must
self-destruction.
But now, everything they saw in Harbor City overturned their inherent views. Even if they subconsciously did not want to admit it, the facts before them made it impossible for them to deceive themselves.
Just like what was said in the news broadcast: Xujiazhuang is the most free, wealthy, developed and equal place. It is the place where all dreams come true and all hopes come true. The Ming Dynasty is incomparable, and the prosperous times of the Han and Tang Dynasties are incomparable. This is the happiest place.
The most prosperous and powerful place and will remain so forever!
When people outside Xujiazhuang heard such arrogant and arrogant declarations, they would just shake their heads and ridicule, thinking that if they were so arrogant, they would be close to destruction.
But Lu Xiangsheng and others in Harbor City heard it, and their reaction was - it was difficult to refute, and they could not find any contrary examples to refute, only examples that confirmed that these words were correct.
"Xujiazhuang is the greatest threat and powerful enemy of the Ming Dynasty!"
This is the conclusion they all came to.
But the most shocking thing is that they don’t feel strong sadness and pessimism. If the Ming Dynasty was destroyed by bandits or slaves, they would find it difficult to accept it and would fight to the death! But what if the Ming Dynasty was destroyed by Xujiazhuang? They might feel
Calm, may silently accept, only Lu Xiangsheng personally intends to die to prove his loyalty to the Ming Dynasty, but he will not choose to die together and drag more people to die to fight against Xujiazhuang.
Because they saw with their own eyes that compared to the Ming Dynasty, Xujiazhuang seemed to be a higher form of civilization. Most of the people here were happy, wealthy, more secure and dignified. This kind of world seemed... quite good.
Insomnia.
Although they were all exhausted, and the single beds in the hotel were very comfortable, Lu Xiangsheng and others inevitably suffered from insomnia, and they tossed and turned all night and could not sleep well.
It’s just that things that need to be done still need to be done.
Just because Xujiazhuang is too powerful, you can't be pessimistic and feel that there is no hope, and then you don't have to do anything. Lu Xiangsheng is not a calm character. Even if there is a glimmer of hope, he will fight for victory.
Moreover, as long as the bicycle army he conceived can really be established, he will first destroy the bandits, then the Hou Jin, and then enter the temple as quickly as possible to promote the Ming Dynasty to carry out reforms and reform, focusing on learning the various methods of Xujiazhuang.
In the advanced areas, we must race against time to make Ming Dynasty rich and powerful as soon as possible. By then, it may not be able to catch up with Xujiazhuang, or it may not be able to compete with Xujiazhuang.
Thinking of this, Lu Xiangsheng felt that he should not waste time and get out the bicycle army faster.
So on March 15th, Lu Xiangsheng and a group of five people searched for government departments in Harbor City, looking for high-level officials with significant influence in Xujiazhuang, and held discussions, hoping to achieve the goal of purchasing a car.
On this day, Lu Xiangsheng and others visited seven or eight management units from the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Industry, the Public Security Bureau, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, and educational institutions.
Someone with weight and the ability to make major decisions should ideally be able to have detailed discussions with senior officials of equal rank to reach important cooperation.
Faced with Lu Xiangsheng's outburst, five or six management units dismissed him as a mentally ill person.
There are also two or three management agencies that are more cautious and feel that they would rather believe the truth, so they arranged for a few office directors with lower rankings to talk with Lu Xiangsheng and others in the reception room, and then they were all surprised by Lu Xiangsheng's imagination.
When I arrived, I didn't even have 500 silver dollars in my pocket, but I wanted to buy a bicycle worth 5 million silver dollars. I also said that I would first get a loan on credit, and then find a way to raise 5 million silver dollars. At the worst, I could pay it back in installments and divide it into ten years.
He said shamelessly: "Since Xujiazhuang can lend millions of taels to Your Majesty without collateral, can't you first lend me Lu Jiandou 10,000 bicycles? After I lead the Tianxiong army to destroy the rogue bandits, and then wipe out the Liaodong Jian slaves, the battlefield alone will
The seizure is enough to repay the money, why not try to cooperate?"
Then he was kicked out as a lunatic.
Hitting the wall, this is a day of constant setbacks.
but!
Lu Xiangsheng and others' behavior of visiting many management units in Harbor City today made them successfully targeted.
It came into the sight of Zhang Guoyan, the head of the intelligence system. After all, the behavior of these people was too weird and suspicious. They even pretended to be court officials and wanted to defraud tens of thousands of bicycles. Moreover, their perseverance and repeated defeats were an oath that failed to achieve their goals.
If you don’t give up, you should get focused attention and it’s best to crack down on this fraud gang!
While Zhang Guoyan was deploying the strike operation, out of caution, he ordered the telegraph personnel to contact the intelligence downline active in Damingfu, inquire whether Lu Xiangsheng was still there or had left, and called back to describe Lu Xiangsheng's appearance.
.
Soon, intelligence feedback came back: Lu Xiangsheng has disappeared recently and is suspected of going to Jiangnan. His appearance is...
Zhang Guoyan was immediately shocked because compared with the photo Lu Xiangsheng took when applying for a passport before entering Harbor City, it was basically consistent with the physical characteristics described by the intelligence informant.
"I didn't expect this person to be real. It seems necessary to report something to the owner of the village."
Zhang Guoyan nodded, temporarily canceled the arrest operation, and reported the matter to the White Castle attendant's office through the internal contact number. After a while, he received personal instructions from the owner of the village: no disrespectful actions should be taken. Tomorrow morning, the leaders will
They enter White Keep and I talk to them.
"yes!"
…
March 16th, morning.
Because of depression and anxiety, Lu Xiangsheng's dark circles tend to get worse. There is no way, even though he has a very strong heart. After so many obstacles and blows, he will still be a little discouraged, but it is far from enough.
Just to the point of giving up.
"Let's go to Mrs. Wu's breakfast shop for some breakfast first. Their crab roe buns are really good."
After washing up, Lu Xiangsheng said secretly that he was not a person who liked words, but in this huge harbor city, only the ubiquitous food could soothe his frustrated heart and regain his fighting spirit.
But I just walked out of the hotel.
I saw two electric three-wheelers parked at the gate. Standing there was a middle-aged man wearing glasses with a broad face and thick eyebrows and short beard. There was also a group of followers in casual clothes standing next to him.
"Master Lu, Governor of Lu."
Seeing Lu Xiangsheng appear, the middle-aged man took the initiative to greet him.
"Who are you? Why do you know this official?" Lu Xiangsheng took half a step back and said with a vigilant look on his face.
"Master Lu, are you going to have breakfast? The owner of my village has invited me. Do you plan to have breakfast before going, or should you follow us into the White Castle first, have breakfast in the canteen of the White Castle, and then follow me to see you?
Master of the village?" Zhang Guoyan asked.
"Do you want the owner of the village to see me?"
Lu Xiangsheng was overjoyed. He didn't expect the situation to turn around so quickly. He immediately said, "I'll go with you!"
He gave up his plan to go to Wu Po's breakfast shop for breakfast, and quickly called Sun Yuanhua, Zhang Huayu and others to board the back bucket of an electric tricycle. There were three seats around the back bucket, which was enough to accommodate ten people.
Quite spacious.
It started very quickly, and with a buzzing sound, it quickly passed through the red wall door and entered the interior of the White Castle.
…
After having breakfast in the agency canteen.
We walked a lot inside the maze-like White Castle.
I took the elevator for the first time.
Finally arrived at the thirteenth floor of the White Castle and waited in a medium-sized living room.
Around ten o'clock in the morning, the sound of trampling footsteps came. Under the protection of several guards and attendants, Xu Yuan, the owner of Xujiazhuang, entered the living room.
Hua Hua Hua~
Zhang Guoyan and others stood up at attention one after another and said: "Master Zhuang!"
Lu Xiangsheng and others also stood up from the sofa chairs, bowed their hands and saluted: "I have met Master Xu!"
"Sit down, everyone, sit down."
Xu Yuan focused his eyes on Lu Xiangsheng, a historical celebrity, and found that in appearance, he was not a super general, but more like a Confucian scholar and civil servant. In addition, his right arm was indeed thicker than the normal arm.
, proving that a certain rumor is true, it is with this unicorn arm that Lu Xiangsheng fought the bandits howling and screaming, and achieved the name of "Lu Hell King", but because he was too upright and could not change, in the original historical time
During the battle, he was defeated in the Battle of Julu and died in Jiazhuang.
He is a very individual and regrettable tragic figure.
Xu Yuan also admitted that he took the initiative to summon this Lu Xiangsheng today because of the influence of the celebrity halo. Although this Lu Xiangsheng is dead or alive, a lonely and loyal minister loyal to the Ming Dynasty, and his regrettable fate, they all have nothing to do with Xu Yuan.
It doesn't matter, and it won't have any impact on the development of Xujiazhuang. Just keep a normal mind and treat him as an NPC that pops up regularly.
Even so, out of the slightest curiosity, Xu Yuan summoned him and wanted to see him with his own eyes. His mentality was like someone knowing that a certain scenic spot is famous in history and then running to see it. It is a very normal thing.
mentality.
Naturally.
Lu Xiangsheng, who was being sized up by Xu Yuan, was also secretly sizing up the owner of Xu Village, who mysteriously controlled the entire Xu Family Village, was one of the most powerful people in the world, and had the most wealth.
Young, tall, and steady, he seems a bit ordinary at first glance, but in fact he is naturally noble, and there is some kind of coercion in his movements.
In addition, the owner Xu, who is only two or three years younger than me, looks at him with a certain familiarity, understanding and regret, like an old friend he has not seen for a long time, but he can still see through him at a glance.
This kind of gaze that looked through destiny made Lu Xiangsheng feel chills running down his spine and brought tremendous pressure. It was somewhat difficult to bear such a gaze.
Thinking of all the rumors about Zhuang Zhu Xu, Lu Xiangsheng, who originally scorned the children's song "Xu Zhuang, the saint comes out", now saw Zhuang Zhu Xu himself, and actually began to believe the saying "the saint came out" for two or three times.
point.
"Lu Jiandou, I heard that you want to buy a bicycle from Xujiazhuang?" After sitting down, Xu Yuan asked straight to the point.
"Yes!" Lu Xiangsheng nodded.
"Planning to buy as many as 10,000 vehicles?" Xu Yuan asked again.
"yes!"
"Do you have money?"
"No." Lu Xiangsheng shook his head.
"Can your Tianxiong Army join Xujiazhuang? If you concentrate on serving Xujiazhuang in the future, not only will you get enough food and salary, but each Tianxiong Army will be equipped with a bicycle." Xu Yuan said.
"Lu is a minister of the Ming Dynasty in life, and a ghost of the Ming Dynasty in death. This life will never change!" Lu Xiangsheng pointed to the sky as an oath and expressed his attitude directly.
"Then within three years, we will provide Shandong and Shanxi miners (there are several Shanxi miners now) with one million young miners, and we can also give you 10,000 bicycles."
"It is absolutely impossible for Lu to do such a cruel and cruel thing!" Lu Xiangsheng shook his head again and again, saying with great resistance.
"How dare you want to take away 10,000 bicycles from me with just your words? Lu Jiandou, are you here to amuse me on purpose?"
Xu Yuan's face darkened and his expression was very unhappy.