Between the vast sea of ​​clouds

It was raining lightly outside, and the sky was gloomy. The lights in the meeting hall were brightly lit. On the main seat sat a thin old man in red robes. Although she was wearing an official robe, she did not wear an official hat. The crane pattern on the robe clearly revealed her identity. There are two rows of pear chairs with bright wood color under her seat.

The jade beads collided with a crisp sound, and the officials filed in one after another, sorted by rank, and saluted her: "Meet Mr. Zhou Mu."

Liang Pu raised his hand and said: "There is no need to be too polite, I have called you here, but I have some things to discuss with you."

She took out a document from the drawer on the right, and said: "There is news from the court that His Majesty has given up the cabinet and ordered six ministers to discuss the affairs of the court together. Why the cabinet was dismissed? Rumors say that His Majesty has already obtained Hezhou's That ledger."

Sitting in the first row on the left was Pan Xiuwei. She cupped her hands and said, "My lord, if that's the case, why does His Majesty just let go of the cabinet and not attack the Hezhou government?"

A person on the right said: "I'm afraid the matter is not that simple, and the news from the imperial court is not very clear. It is too early to draw conclusions at this time."

Pan Xiuwei frowned slightly, and said: "There is no confirmation from Hezhou, Yuan Sui has unknowingly arrived in Zhaoye, Chenzhou, you don't know?"

The man also said: "Master Pan, don't you know how difficult Yunzhong County is now? Yes, it's not like your Qiannan County has a Taimiao as a security guard, and no matter how big the storm is, you can't get a piece of clothing. Sir, watching the fire from the other side, naturally you can Talking and laughing freely, easy to deal with."

Pan Xiuwei suppressed her anger and said angrily: "You——!"

Liang Pu turned his gaze to her, and said indifferently: "When is it, are you still arguing?"

The two had no choice but to stand up and salute to plead guilty, saying: "Yes, I am guilty."

"I have some friendship with the old man Shen Ge, but now the wind and rain are precarious, the cabinet has been dismissed, the elders of the cabinet can't protect themselves, and there are few people in the court who can speak for Chenzhou. I wanted to continue my tenure, but now it seems that, Your Majesty will definitely replace me from the position of Zhou Mu." Liang Pu sighed slightly, and said with some self-deprecation: "I should move my position to make way for the newcomer. He Zhou is already changing people. Chenzhou is probably not far away from this day."

All the officials lowered their eyes and said nothing, Yan Jinghan, who was sitting at the end, looked at the chief seat after hearing the words.

"Let's gossip, since it's a matter of discussion, let's follow the rules. First hand over the excerpts of Xia Fu from the three counties, and the details of the disaster relief funds separately. Let's talk about the situation of the rivers in the counties and towns affected by the flood?"

Yan Jinghan replied: "My lord, the river is already being repaired, but the recent heavy rains have delayed the progress." She looked around slowly, and said word by word: "But I don't want to be blocked by the river again." It was ruined, this point, the lower officials can still guarantee."

The envoy from Yunzhong County sneered and said, "Your Majesty Yan speaks very loudly. If there are any counties and towns under my jurisdiction that are flooded again, will you come to see me?"

Yan Jinghan glanced at her, and said: "The lower officials in Qiannan County can still guarantee that as long as the blocked dam is not damaged, it will naturally not affect both sides of the strait. And the young crops can be sown in time, so this season will not be missed." harvest."

Taichang of Qiannan County got up abruptly, and shouted: "Master Yan is right! I would like to ask you, 23 counties were flooded, ten thousand mu of fertile land was destroyed, how to grow young crops!"

Yan Jinghan didn't back down, stepped forward and said: "If you don't plant green seedlings, what will you grow? If you don't plant green seedlings, how will you have a harvest after autumn, what will the people eat, and what will they use to pay taxes? Is it true that Chenzhou will be destroyed as you said? A county replanted with mulberry trees and a silk spinning workshop?"

Pan Xiuwei lifted her lips, and said in a neutral manner: "I don't quite understand what Master Yan said, and now I only care about one thing, Li Qingping, the servant of the Ministry of Rites, when will he be able to decide on the selection of the Taimiao site?" ? Master Yan and she used to be classmates, and they went to school together, so why can't you talk to her about it, and let's settle the matter earlier so that we can feel at ease earlier."

Yan Jinghan frowned: "Master Pan said that, but it is a disgrace to the lower official. Although the lower official and Mr. Li had a classmate friendship, the public is the public, and the private is the private. The lower official was supported by the Master of the state, and lived temporarily. This person, dare not do anything that will damage your reputation." Her eyes flickered, "It's County Chief Pan, there are many murders in Gui County, and the murderer has not been caught so far. Should this kind of thing happen to everyone? What about an explanation?"

Pan Xiuwei snorted coldly and said, "What do you mean by saying these words to me? Li Qingping is a person sent by the imperial court and also a person of His Majesty. Can't what she said count? Master Yan, you really distinguish between public and private. Is it? Ever since you arrived in Chenzhou, this place has never had a day of peace. Is it because everyone here is not in control, or is it because you, Master Yan, betrayed your trust and sold the matter to others—"

Yan Jinghan didn't look at her, but fixedly looked at Liang Pu who was sitting on the chair, and said, "It's not up to Master Pan to judge whether I'm loyal or not. If you really want Li Shizhong to nod, you should put Qinglushan on the ground." Take out all the field atlases covered! You have concealed so much yourself, and you blame others for not being honest, what is the reason for this?"

Pan Xiuwei took a deep breath, raised two fingers together, pointed at Yan Jinghan and said: "Master Zhou! I am advancing and retreating at the same time. I don't know how many storms and waves I have experienced. Now that the waves are hitting the bow, some people see that the situation is not good, and this has already begun. Thinking of retreating! This kind of villain, do you want to stay here?"

Liang Pu's tone changed, and he said sharply: "Shut up! What time is it, and you still have to engage in these useless emotional disputes here! These are all officials of the imperial court, and the loyal ones are the imperial court, His Majesty, not you I!"

She said in a heavy voice: "Chenzhou is flooded, and I can't escape the crime of negligence. I'll wait for the matter... I'll go to the meeting and ask for my resignation."

Liang Pu was sitting in the room, staring at a table of food and wine, until a servant came in to inform her, and she said: "Please come in."

The servant opened the door curtain, and the wind wrapped in water vapor blew into the room, blowing her gray hair up.The visitor was also covered in rain, he took off his poncho outside the door and entered, when he saw her, he bowed to her and said, "My lord."

Liang Pu looked at her and pointed to the chair opposite, and said, "Sit down, if you're not in the government office, red tape will be avoided."

Yan Jinghan raised his robe and said, "Yes." Then he sat down.

As soon as Liang Pu changed his normal attitude, he smiled and said: "You have seen what happened today, I can no longer suppress them. Chenzhou is so big, although I am in a high position, there are many things that I don't fully know. "

Yan Jinghan was silent for a while, and said: "My lord has my own difficulties. You have been in the position of state shepherd for so many years. If it weren't for you, Chenzhou would not be where it is today."

Liang Pu sighed: "Everyone is envious of this position, I really want to go down. But when people come here, they can't take a step back. As long as they take a step back, the difference of one step will be irreversible."

Yan Jinghan raised his head and said softly: "How did you find out?"

Liang Pu picked up the wine cup, and said quite complacently: "Family and country are righteous, Xiaozhi uses emotion to move reason, their means are nothing more than these... But many things in this world are unreasonable, do it with your heart, and do it yourself. Some posterity commented, how important is the so-called reputation? It's just that I made a mistake in this move and harmed the people of Chenzhou. I will explain all this to Your Majesty in the secret memorial."

She looked at Yan Jinghan, but her eyes were tender and compassionate, and she put a chopstick of food in her mouth.Yan Jinghan's eyes fell on her trembling hands, and he got up to fill the wine cup for her.

"You are very smart. You are able to make such a choice when you are in the middle of the game. Don't those rich and powerful people ever tempt you?"

Yan Jinghan shook his head with a wry smile, and said: "It is a lie to say that you are not tempted, but if you are tempted, you are tempted. Those high-sounding words are just listening. I am born rebellious, and I just like to confront others." She suddenly After drinking a glass of wine, his face was flushed immediately: "As your lord said, you can find the words of saints for the great truth. But to be an official, you have to practice it yourself to know the truth. Family affairs and state affairs are world affairs. Everything is seen from the small to the big, and the small is seen from the small, and it is not enough to just talk about it."

The sound of the rain outside the window became more urgent, as if it was urging them.The room was getting dark gradually, only a beam of dim light was cast by the window, Liang Pu couldn't see well, he groped on the table for a long time but didn't touch the fire pocket, so he sat and sighed.After sighing, she was startled again, she didn't know how many sighs she had already sighed today, but this time, she suddenly felt physically and mentally exhausted, the huge Chenzhou was on her body, and she had been an official for decades, even though she knew everything, Some things are still powerless.

The two sat face to face in the dark room, but each had their own concerns.Liang Pu said: "Before you were the one who persuaded them to transfer Shan Le to Zhao Ye. Since then, have you made such a plan? If the imperial court didn't send someone to investigate, this move, but will kill you."

"No." Yan Jinghan said, "Deng Jie and I have made a deal a long time ago. When Mr. Yuan Suiyuan was the governor of Hezhou, we set up this plan to try to use that rumor to tell her and guide her to investigate this case. Once Deng Jie dies, this case is an unsolved case. She will definitely find out about me, and I have also arrived in Chenzhou at this time. They also used this method to tamper with the water patterns that are presented to the court every year, but it is a pity that no one in the court has noticed it for decades."

Liang Pu smiled when he heard the words, and said: "There is a cabinet in the imperial court. I don't know how many news can't reach His Majesty. Is it true that no one found out? This is the skill of the two cabinet elders, Yan and Chen. You see, they single-handedly win over officials and cultivate power. They can also separate their minds, pay attention to the aristocratic families and businessmen, and want to get a share of everything. Starting from the cabinet, the court is rotten into a mess, but they still want to draw more people into it. When they are in this muddy pond, their goal will be achieved, how good is it?"

"What do you think is the difference between them and Bahuang?" Liang Pu asked suddenly, flicking his sleeves.

"No, it's just an extra layer of protection. Under the guise of the cabinet, to deceive the world, steal the name, mess up the government and misuse the country. The so-called loyalty and traitors are just a gangster." Yan Jinghan put down the wine glass in his hand, and said with some relief: "A good rider Falling into a horse, those who are good at water are drowned, those who are good at drinking are drunk with wine, those who are good at fighting are killed... Those who thrive on this will surely end like this.”

She doesn't remember when she passed out, but she only remembers that the rain seemed to stop and the dishes were cold at last, Liang Pu took her hand and said slowly: "You don't have to think about life and death, as long as you Hide that roster, they will always be afraid of you. The imperial court can't kill you, and the world will not dare to touch you..."

Yan Jinghan closed her eyes, she wanted to say life and death, she couldn't help herself.But for some reason, she never said it out. Taking advantage of her drunkenness, she checked the past two or three times, and suddenly came up with a thought——

If living like this is really the case, what is the difference between dying and dying?

The sky was gloomy, and the rain began to intensify at noon, and the water level of the river rose at a speed visible to the naked eye. The soldiers of Guan could barely open their eyes in the violent storm, and the armor on their bodies was washed brightly, reflecting the occasional flashes of lightning in the black clouds, which made people suddenly feel astonished.

In the evening, it was completely dark, and the heavy rain covered all the sounds, so when the group of people walked to the gate, the sergeant who guarded the gate could clearly see the clothes of those people. They were wearing bamboo hats and rain capes, and they all held Something, looked carefully through the rain curtain, only to realize that it was a glass lamp that was extinguished.

The leader approached the closed door, and the door was opened a crack to let her in. The person took out the intact customs clearance document wrapped in wax paper from the soaked clothes. After passing through the gate, he found something behind the document. Just looking at it, it is a silver plate, and it is not light in weight when it is lightly weighed in the hand.This quiet filial piety made people feel at ease. The gatekeeper only glanced at the document and said, "The one who delivered the lamp? It's not easy for you to go on your way in such heavy rain."

She was a bit unfamiliar, the woman was slightly taken aback, and then said in a low voice: "Master Lao, please remember that the previously transferred Master Bai and I are old acquaintances, so I should have mentioned it to you...there are a lot of people this time, and you too knew……"

The newly appointed city gate commander frowned and said, "How much more?"

The woman stretched out three fingers, and the gatekeeper thought about it for a while, then paused for a while before stamping the document, glanced left and right and said in a low voice, "30 people? That's too many!"

The woman said: "My lord, please be accommodating. It's not peaceful recently. The people who walk the lamp are also looking for a blessing. I have been a lamp holder for so many years. Do you have anything to worry about?"

She pulled a bracelet from her wrist and stuffed it into the hands of the gatekeeper, and said softly: "I know your lord's difficulties, and the new official has to take care of many things when he takes office. This is just a little thought..."

The gatekeeper glanced at the bracelet by the light of the fire, the thumb-sized emerald was inlaid on the silver flower, and the cold green light flashed by, extremely alluring.She pinched the bracelet and gritted her teeth for a while, then said harshly: "Remember! Walk faster!"

The thunderbolt was missing, the lightning flashed through the black clouds, and the rain suddenly illuminated. The gate of Qiannan County was slowly opened. The soldiers stationed in the wind and rain watched a group of people pouring in. As usual, identity checks should be carried out in the inner city of the pass, but they didn't know. Why, there is no one in the inner city, and the last gate leading to Qiannan County is also half open, as if waiting for something.

When the last person stepped in, the city gate slowly closed.A row of bows｜crossbows and crossbows were quietly set up on the city wall, and the crossbows｜arrows broke through the rain, and the surrounding fires lit up instantly. Without waiting for anyone in the inner city to react, the previous batch of bow｜archers had already bent down quickly, and another A group of people connected, and this was repeated nearly dozens of times.At first, some of the hundreds of people avoided the rain of arrows, and the guards of honor tried to climb up the city wall with their hands, but they didn't know what was painted on the city wall, and their hands slipped down as soon as they touched it, and then they were shot by bow|arrows and fell to the ground.

After a long time, the ground in the city was stained red with blood. Immediately, a soldier stepped forward to drag the corpse away and took off the rain cape and bamboo hat.Standing in the city was a young female general in silver armor with three phoenix feathers on her shoulders, and beside her was the city gate order just now.

Half of the sleeves of the city gate order were wet from the rain, and just as she was wiping with a dry cloth, she said calmly, "Thank you, General Ming."

The female general is Ming Yuyan under the command of Zhou Gan, the commander of the Yunce Army. When the Chenzhou flood first broke out, she followed the secret order and led her men to sneak into Chenzhou among the disaster relief soldiers.Later, he was dispatched by Zhong Yuansui, the servant of the Ministry of punishment, and waited for several months at the Qiannan pass to prepare for the ambush of the rebellious party.

Ming Yuyan wiped off the rain on his face, ordered his men to change into the ponchos of these people, picked up the lamps, and said: "As expected, this group of people really came to Qiannan, but why did they come here? do what?"

The city gate order took off his robes, and put on a sapphire blue official uniform and an official hat, obviously it was Yuan Sui.

She said with a blank expression: "This is your majesty's ingenious plan, and Yuan dare not take credit for it. Just as soldiers admire Zhou Shuai's camp, believers naturally yearn for the place where gods live. Those who use the name of ghosts and gods must prove that legends are not only It's just a legend..."

The catcher puts the letter on the letter box, and the original pinches the lacquer seal, reads it and then lights it.She made a bow to Ming Yuyan: "The dark guards have already mixed in with them, please send someone to pretend to be like these people just now, and continue to move forward in the direction of Qinglu Mountain."