Standalone Northern and Southern Dynasties

Chapter 99: Really Fragrance (Update )
Today is the day of rest for the army. Su Ze takes gifts and prepares to go to Datong Bridge in the west of the city to see Liu Gui off.

Liu Gui had been running around these days and finally got the news that Erzhu Rong, the chieftain of the Xiurong tribe, had recruited him as a cavalry officer.

Erzhu Rong's recruitment document had been sent to the Ministry of Personnel and had been stamped by the court. Liu Gui was about to leave Chang'an and serve under Erzhu Rong.

Today is the day that Liu Gui sets off for Xiurong. From now on, we will be separated by time and no one knows when we will meet again.

Su Ze picked out a purple-quality gilded Buddha statue from Yongning Temple. This was Su Tong's most recent masterpiece. Erzhu Rong worshipped Buddhism, so this was the gift Su Ze prepared for Liu Gui.

The riding slave Su Da followed Su Ze, leading the horse. As soon as the two of them went out, Su Ze saw a low-key carriage in the corner.

Although the style of the carriage was very low-key, the horses were all top-quality horses. Just as Su Ze looked over, a familiar maid in green got off the carriage and walked towards Su Ze leisurely.

"Commander Su, I invite you to get in the car for a reunion."

Su Ze looked at the sky. Now that the sun was rising, it should be "safe" to get on the carriage. He followed Lu Zhu and climbed into the carriage.

There was a faint fragrance in the carriage. Princess Chen Liu was holding the snow-white cat, her body hidden in the shadow of the carriage. Su Ze could not see her expression clearly.

My father once said that hunters hiding in the dark are the most dangerous. Su Ze couldn't figure out the purpose of this crazy woman's visit, so he could only ask politely, "Your Highness?"

Princess Chenliu said: "I am not His Highness, I am Luzhu."

Well, this time I won’t even change my clothes, I’ll just change my name, right?

Su Ze said with a stiff upper lip: "Mrs. Luzhu."

"Lady Luzhu" said calmly, "The Queen Mother is going to change the reign title to Shengui. She will issue a general amnesty in a few days."

The rulers of the Wei, Jin, Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern and Southern Dynasties were most keen on changing the reign title and granting amnesty, as if bad luck could be dispelled simply by changing the reign title. These chaotic reign titles have become a nightmare for all historical researchers.

Princess Chenliu changed her usual madness and said dejectedly, "I always feel that the reign title of Shengui is not good. If it were my father, he probably would not have chosen it."

Su Ze said casually: "Although the tortoise lives long, it still has its end. The flying snake rides on the mist, but it will eventually turn into dust and ash."

Princess Chenliu's eyes lit up and she said, "I was also wondering why I thought the reign title of Divine Turtle was not good. So that's how it is. How could the dynasty's reign be prolonged because of the Divine Turtle?"

Su Ze didn't even need to think about it, he knew that the Divine Turtle that changed the era name must have discovered some auspicious sign somewhere.

But when you say that the reign of the Divine Turtle is not a good name, isn’t that also out of superstition?
Su Ze still couldn't figure out Princess Chenliu's purpose. The atmosphere in the carriage became silent again and awkward.

Princess Chenliu added, "Because of the change of the reign and the general amnesty, those guys you sent to the capital for trial have escaped death and have been sentenced to exile to the six garrisons to guard the border instead."

Su Ze had expected this result. Huang Yue and other Yulin officers could make money so arrogantly, so they must have backers in the court.

Drinking and soliciting prostitutes in the military camp was not a new thing in the imperial guards. If it had been during the reign of Emperor Xiaowen, the person would have been beheaded immediately, but nowadays, with a little bit of maneuvering and the death penalty avoided, the person could survive by waiting until the next change of the reign and amnesty.

Due to frequent changes of reign titles and general amnesty, there was even a group of local thugs in Luoyang who specialized in committing crimes before the change of reign title and general amnesty. As long as their crimes were not serious, they could be released from prison after the change of reign title and general amnesty.

Princess Chen Liu put down the raccoon slave in her hand and suddenly threw Su Ze to the ground. She looked at Su Ze with a dazed look and asked:

"If anything happens in Luoyang, can you take me away?"

Feeling the breath of Princess Chen Liu blowing on his face, Su Ze did not answer her question directly, but asked back:
"Should I take you away as 'Green Pearl' or 'Princess'?"

"Does it make any difference?" Su Ze's nose was tickled by Princess Chen Liu's hanging hair. He thought of the "passive" situation last time and simply picked up Princess Chen Liu and took the initiative to press her under him.

"I'll take you as 'Green Pearl' now."

"It will take some time to take you away as a 'princess'."

Princess Chen Liu blushed instead. She turned her head away from Su Ze's gaze and asked, "How long will it take?"

"It could be as short as two to three years, or as long as four to five years."

"Okay, I'll wait."

Su Ze couldn't help but feel funny. He discovered last time that this seemingly crazy princess was a virgin, but she insisted on pretending to be a slutty mature woman.

In this case, Su Ze didn't hesitate. He was just worried about the lack of funds for the cavalry camp, and now a rich woman came to his door.

The carriage was shaking so much, should we use the "wave-following method" or the "wave-following method"?
After half an hour, Lu Zhu looked at Su Ze with complicated eyes as he got off the car. Then Lu Zhu heard Princess Chen Liu's weak instructions in the car:

"Send twenty horses from my horse farm in Tangmuyi to the Tunqiying camp, and go back."

Su Ze looked at the sun and hurriedly took Su Da on the road, quickly heading towards Datong Bridge.

When Emperor Xiaowen moved the capital from Pingcheng to Luoyang, he entered Luoyang City from Datong Bridge in the west of the city. The name Datong was given because Emperor Xiaowen wanted to rely on Luoyang's foundation for hegemony to complete his ambition of unifying the world.

It is a pity that Emperor Xiaowen died suddenly in his prime and passed away during the Taihe Reform. Now this place has become a farewell place for officials and merchants heading west and north.

"Brother Su! Brother Gao!"

Liu Gui wore a travel cap, and behind him was a convoy guarded by capable servants. Liu Gui's cousin Liu Bozhi wore a white robe and stood by the Datong Bridge. By the bridge were relatives and friends who came to see Liu Gui off.

Su Ze presented a purple-quality Buddha statue. Liu Gui had also done his homework and knew that his future master was a devout Buddhist, so he was naturally very moved to see such an exquisite Buddha statue.

When Gao Huan saw Su Ze presenting such a valuable gift, he did not feel any inferiority complex. He took off the longbow on his back and said:
"Agui, this is the longbow passed down from my family. I am a warrior from the border town, and I can't help you make decisions like Brother Su can, but if you want me to help you kill someone in the future, I will definitely do it!"

The three of them laughed loudly. At this time, Liu Bozhi stepped forward and said:

"Guizhen, I envy you. If I could have met Brother Su earlier, I would have wanted to leave Luoyang City."

Liu Gui looked at his cousin in confusion. Ever since he entered the Qinghe Palace, he had been proud of his identity as a white-robed scholar. How could he suddenly become so depressed?

Liu Bozhi said:
"Last night, Princess Lanling killed two maids in her mansion and also cut open her baby's caesarean section to kill him."

Such a horrifying thing even made Gao Huan from the Six Towns open his mouth in amazement.

Liu Bozhi added: "Prince Qinghe entered the palace this morning and persuaded the Queen Mother not to punish Princess Lanling, and even put the blame on the Prince Consort, saying that Princess Lanling had been wronged."

Su Ze and Liu Gui looked at each other, both speechless.

Gao Huan had the lowest status among the crowd. He threw his whip and said, "What a damn world!"

After Liu Bozhi finished speaking, he changed his expression and said, "I will be returning to the palace soon. I also got some information that some merchants are smuggling southern goods in the south. The Wushisan that appeared in Luoyang should be related to these merchants."

(End of this chapter)