Between the vast sea of ​​clouds

The weather is getting warmer, and the snow is melting, flowing down the ridge to the eaves, tick-tock.

Chu Jun finished approving the memorial and sat in the hall. He had nothing to do for a while, and suddenly wanted to go for a walk.

The garden in the palace is taken care of by skillful craftsmen, and the beauty is beautiful, but it has lost its natural purity. She has lived here for two lifetimes, and the fresh throbbing that first entered the Zichen Palace has disappeared, replaced by numbness and boredom .

The imperial palace is so big, but how can it be compared with the six states and eighteen counties? After living for a long time, I just feel that it is like a cage of oppressive wealth. The people inside want to go out, and the people outside want to come in. .

Even she is bored with this place, not everyone likes to stay in this kind of place, she thinks a little self-deprecatingly, she doesn't like it, how can she force Qingping to be here too.

But thinking about it, it is absolutely impossible for her to let go.

She looked at the bowl lotus in the porcelain vat. Because of the warmth in the palace, the flower survived the winter and grew new leaves when it warmed up.Chu Jun stretched out his hand to fiddle with the little green bud, and turned to look outside the hall.

The glazed tiles on the palace reflected the dazzling golden color. Looking at it this way, it seemed that there was a sparkling lake in front of her. She remembered that lake in her memory, which was a common scene outside the study window when she was young, but now she wanted to see it again, but it was so difficult.

After a while, someone sent an excerpt, Chu Jun opened it and saw that it was a secret melody written by Zhong Yuan Sui, the servant of the Ministry of Punishment. He asked the Holy Majesty for permission to secretly investigate the families of He and Chen.

This kind of booklet is issued immediately after approval. She thought about it with her hands behind her back, and said to the messenger: "Tell Yuan Sui that the teacher must be famous, otherwise it will be difficult to convince the public. In this case, let her look up the batch of tributes from last year." Shangyang Porcelain in the palace."

There was a light rain in the morning, and all the flowers in Zhaoye City bloomed, breathing out their fragrance under the rain and dew.Vendors on the street have set up stalls and put pots on the stove to heat up.The water bearer walked past the door of the store, and when he yelled, the flower sellers and goods pickers responded together.A carriage ran over the stone road, leaving a faint rut.

The carriage walked slowly through the streets and alleys, and finally stopped in front of a house with the name He Mansion written on the plaque.

The steward opened the middle door, greeted the people in the car, and ordered the servants not to accept invitations today, but to close the door to thank guests.

Wu Yue followed behind Qingping and asked: "He's residence? It's Zhaoye's He's family. What are you doing here?"

Qing Ping went out in simple clothes today, holding a fan in his hand, and replied after hearing the words: "Come to see someone."

Wu Yue asked doubtfully, "Who?"

Walking through the corridor, the flowing water is gurgling, and the grass and trees are full of fragrance. Qingping paused and said: "My teacher."

The steward led the two of them into the courtyard. There was a small pond in the courtyard. An old man with white hair was sitting by the pond, wearing a bamboo hat. When he saw Qingping, he raised his head and said, "You are here. Your teacher has been waiting for you for a long time. Hurry up." Come in."

Qing Ping heard her words sound familiar, and when he took a closer look, it turned out to be He Yan, and immediately gave the disciple salute: "Master He."

A dragonfly was parked on the bamboo pole He Yan was fishing on. She lowered her head, looked at the water with all her attention and said, "Go, don't be too polite. Is the one next to you a child of the Wu family? Stay here and talk to me." stop."

Wu Yue saluted her and said, "Being respectful is worse than obeying orders."

Qing Ping entered the room alone, and the servant who opened the curtain knelt aside and said: "The guest comes here."

She walked under a plantain tree, and the flowers of the plantain were half hanging down, and a voice came out from the window behind the tree: "Is it Huaizhi, come in."

Qingping opened the door and went in. Mr. He sat at the desk and looked at her, which made her think that she had returned to the Yamen of Anping County.

She bowed to Mr. He. Mr. He was much older, and his eyes were a little cloudy. Seeing her, he said: "I am old and useless. I had a serious illness before, and now I can't go anywhere. I will soon." It's just wood, the oil is exhausted and the lamp is dry."

Qing Ping said: "Sir, there is no need to say that."

Mr. He smiled suddenly, and said: "You are blaming me, right? What happened in Anping County has become a knot in your heart. Everyone is dead, but you and I are the only ones who are still alive. Don't you feel ashamed to face it? Master Sun who is going to die?"

Qingping was a little surprised, but answered honestly: "This matter is indeed a knot in my heart, but since people are alive, they should live well, so as to be worthy of those who died. It is wrong to be stuck in the heart. Save your life." You can do many things, but to talk lightly about life and death is to look down on yourself.”

Mr. He was dumbfounded, shook his head for a while and said: "You are more open-minded than me, and I am not as good as you."

She said with some regret: "In the first half of my life, I was ambitious and wanted to rule the country and the world, but my luck was bad, and I couldn't achieve anything. In a rage, I hung up the crown and left, and became an idler in the mountains, but my heart was still concerned about the affairs of the court. I have been busy for many years, but now I think about it, I still have nothing to do."

Qingping didn't speak, Mr. He looked at her and said: "What about you, why did you come to Chenzhou? If it's not for Anping and Master Sun, then what is it for?"

Qingping pondered for a long time, and then replied: "It's not easy for a person to do one thing well in this life, and I just want to do this one thing well. I came to Chenzhou, as my husband said, to understand the happy knot, Secondly, it is also my own original intention. It is my choice to follow my heart."

Mr. He asked, "What if your choice is wrong?"

Just now Qingping thought a lot, if Anping had not fallen, would she not have come to where she is today?She didn't know, and couldn't compare.But she resists this state of being pushed away without knowing anything, whether it is Chu Jun or Mr. He, they have never really asked her about her choice.It was inevitable that she would tire of this feeling sooner or later.

People are like fish in a river. Sometimes they are willing to go with the current, and sometimes they choose to go against the current. No one can tell what they want. Maybe it is futile to search for it all their lives.

Qing Ping said: "There is no distinction between right and wrong choices, I only know that every step I take will not be meaningless."

"Have you ever thought about what the consequences will be if you persist in doing so?" Mr. He said sharply, "At that time, the government and the public were shaken, and the aristocratic family jointly signed a petition. Even His Majesty would have difficulty keeping you. You have come here. If you can bear If you win for a while, it's not like you won't have a chance in the future. In the future, you will ascend the court to pay homage to the prime minister, and you will really give up all of this?"

Qingping asked calmly: "Mr. said that the merits of all ages are one step away. Didn't Mr. Sun understand this truth at the time? If she wanted to protect herself, she could leave before the city was destroyed. Presumably at that time, Mr. I persuaded her, so why didn't she leave?"

Mr. He's expression became gloomy all of a sudden, he shook his head, but he stopped talking.

Qingping was also silent, in fact, she had thought about this question a long time ago, why did Sun Congshan choose to die for his country in the end, instead of retreating south from the war and waiting for a chance to come back in the future.She couldn't figure it out all the time, until recently, she seemed to understand a little bit.

Maybe this is her choice, Qingping asked himself that he didn't have the courage, but he had a faint premonition in his heart that this would also be his choice.

Mr. He said: "It seems that you have made up your mind. In this case, I will show you a way."

She pointed her finger in the air, and Qingping knelt down slowly to greet Mr. He as a teacher.After returning from Yunzhou, she can live safely in the court. Among them, Mr. He has made a lot of contributions in secret Zhouxuan.Saluting now is the fulfillment of the master-disciple status.

Mr. He flicked his sleeves and accepted it calmly: "I don't regret accepting you as an apprentice, and I hope you will remember what I said today. You are different from your senior sister. You seem easy-going, but you are the most stubborn inside. I will repent. Since you do what you want, I will not stop you. Chenzhou’s root knot is only at one point, and if it is broken here, everything will be solved, and it is on the word 'field'."

The sky is high and the clouds are light. Looking from a distance under the clear sky, the fields are divided into small square pieces. It is the season of planting. Farmers are working in the fields, and the saplings in the fields are green and swaying with the wind.The sound of horseshoes came from far to near, and the leading official in green robes got off his horse with his guards, approached a field and asked, "What is growing in this field?"

The farmer raised his head, wiped his hands hurriedly and said, "If you go back to your lord, it's Sang Miao."

One of the guards said: "Mulberry seedlings? The fields here can only grow food, how can we change to mulberry?"

The farmer was at a loss and said, "My lord, this... the villain doesn't know, this is the Zhou family's field, and the villain is just hired."

The official came out and said, "This field belongs to the Zhou family? That is to say, you were all hired to grow mulberry seedlings?"

The farmer wanted to answer again. A well-dressed middle-aged woman in charge came from the ridge of the field. When she saw them, she cupped her hands and said, "I have seen several adults. The young one is the steward of the Zhou family. This place employs people to plant mulberry, if adults want to check the land deeds, they only need to wait for a while, and the younger ones will immediately send someone back to the house to fetch them."

The person dressed as a clerk next to the green-robed official held a booklet and whispered to her for a while. The official said sharply: "According to the laws of Chenzhou, this is a rice field, and nothing else is allowed except rice. Even if the land changes hands, This rule can’t be changed, you have to plant whatever you want!”

While speaking, the guards behind her had already stepped forward to drive away the farmers who planted mulberry seedlings. The governor of the state government saw that something was wrong, and was about to run away immediately, but was caught and tied up.The official waved his sleeves and said coldly: "Qingzhang Tianmu, put him in jail and take him back for trial!"

In the middle of the night, the government office of Chenzhou was brightly lit, and eight long tables were set up in the household room, with four household officers standing beside each table, quickly dialing the abacus with one hand, and writing down in the book with the other hand.In the back room, several large boxes were placed open, and people kept taking out blue and yellow booklets from inside, and sent them to the long table to open and hand them over to the household officer.

The door of the house was closed tightly, and there were heavy guards outside the door. The inspector of the Chenzhou house lingered outside for a long time, and the subordinate officials beside him said: "My lord, why did Li Shangshu suddenly check the fish scale book and also call out the yellow book?" ?”

The inspector also found it strange, and said in a low voice, "No matter what, what did you see inside?"

"The lower officials went in to deliver the boxes, only to see them... seeming to be settling accounts."

The inspector said: "Account? What account is it? What account is there in this fish scale book?"

The subordinate bowed his head: "This, the lower officials don't know."

After thinking about it, the inspector's face suddenly changed, and he lowered his voice and said: "You stay here and watch, if there is any movement, send someone to report!"

After saying that, she saw no one around, didn't even light the lantern, went out from the side door, and went straight to the state government.

Because the steward said that there was something urgent to report, Yao Bin hurriedly put on his robe and came to the tea room where the guests were received. Seeing that it was his old partner, the house inspector, he sat down and drank a sip of tea to refresh himself, and then said: "Old Mu , aren't you in Qiannan County, how did you come back? You came to look for me in the middle of the night, but what happened?"

The inspector said: "My lord, you don't know something. That Li Shangshu brought out the fish scale book in the house today, and even the yellow book. Now I can't even enter the door of the house. Tell me , what should I do?"

Yao Bin took a sip of bitter tea, smashed his mouth and said, "What can I do, let her go."

The inspector saw that she hadn't thought of getting involved, so he said bluntly: "Do you still remember that, last year, there was a flood that flooded so many fields, and the harvest was lost. The people below are afraid that the people will make trouble, and I don't know who thought of it." idea--"

Yao Bin sneered and said, "What's the trouble? Didn't the imperial court allocate funds for disaster relief? With the lessons learned from Hezhou, they dare to act recklessly and put the money for disaster relief into their own pockets. It's really daring! The Ministry of Justice serves Zhongyuan I'm still in Chenzhou, let's see who is unlucky this time!"

The inspector sighed and said: "Let's not talk about whether they are greedy or not, I heard in Qiannan County that at that time there was not enough money and food for disaster relief, so someone thought of an idea to let the common people sell the fields! "

"Selling fields?" Yao Bin frowned, his intuition was not good, "Selling fields at this time can only be sold at a low price, so the government just let it go? Wait, who are the people who bought the fields?"

The inspector's expression was a little subtle: "Tian, ​​all of them were bought by the family."

Yao Bin's eyes widened immediately: "Aren't you joking?"

Yao Bin and the inspector rushed to the government office of Chenzhou, all the way was unimpeded, Yao Bin was puzzled: "Didn't you say there are guards, are there people?"

The inspector was also confused, and said: "There are still some just now, ah, my lord, don't talk about this, go to the household room."

Yao Bin came to the household room and saw the door was wide open. He raised his foot to go in and saw that there was nothing on the eight long tables. Qingping sat on the head seat, flipping through a new book in his hand. Li Yan stood aside, There is a thick stack of yellow books on the left hand side.Hearing the sound, Qing Ping raised his head, looked at her pretending to be surprised and said, "Master Yao, why are you here?"

Yao Bin managed to force a smile, walked over and said, "I heard that Mr. Li was looking for something, and there was a bit of a commotion, so I came here to have a look."

"Check things?" Qing Ping put down the booklet in his hand, and said with a smile: "Master Yao misunderstood, I just want to clear the land."

The inspector kept his eyes on the few booklets on the table, Yao Bin took a deep breath and said, "This seems to be a household matter, so why bother your lord, besides, it takes time and effort to clear the land, and it won't be done in a while. clear."

This is a slippery person, since Yao Bin can sit in the position of Zhouzheng, he must not be offended anywhere.Qingping said casually: "Trouble? No trouble, isn't it already done? As long as you put your heart into it, there is nothing that can't be done. Don't you think so, Mr. Yao?"

Yao Bin's face changed slightly, and he still smiled and said tentatively: "It is true, but then again, it is not a one-time effort to exchange a thousand-year field for eight hundred masters."

Qingping said slowly: "Naturally, it's not a matter of day and night. The procedures for buying and selling land are complicated, and the government needs to issue a certificate. Then why can someone buy a hundred acres or a thousand acres of fertile land overnight? What adults call 'eight hundred masters' It’s not entirely true, I’m afraid they all belong to the same surname now.”

Yao Bin's heart sank, knowing that this matter was more serious than what she thought before coming, and his face was cloudy.Qing Ping had a panoramic view of her expression, and glanced at Li Yan, Li Yan put down the things in his hands, and went to close the door.Yao Bin was full of doubts, standing in front of Qingping hesitantly, unable to figure out what she wanted to do.

Originally, she thought that His Majesty wanted to sharpen the newly appointed Minister of Rites, but Chenzhou was just a springboard for her performance evaluation.But the letter from the teacher Yan Minghua made her a little strange. In the letter, she was asked to assist Li Qingping and make things easier for her, and promised that after Li Qingping left, she would take over as the state pastor.It was for this reason that she simply closed her eyes, pretending she didn't know anything, and only ordered her to cooperate in secret. On the surface she was confused, but in her heart she was like a mirror.

Qing Ping said to her: "Master Yao, please sit down, and Inspector Mu, please sit down. Things can always be discussed, right?"

When Yao Bin met Qing for the first time, he only felt that this person was too young, and being young in the officialdom is not a good thing, she felt a little contemptuous.But now she didn't dare to take it lightly at all, and replied cautiously: "What is the discussion that your lord is talking about?"

"Just a few days ago, I ordered all counties in the three counties to re-acquisition the land. The reason why I called up the fish scale book and yellow book of the state government households today is just to check again and see if these fields are cleared. Who are you?" Qing Ping casually picked up a yellow book, the book only had a few pages, it was too thin, and said: "Master Yao, please take a look, this is the current household register, and this is the household register from ten years ago."

The thick book was outdated, but the new one was only a few pages thin. The inspector understood it, and he couldn't help sighing. Yao Bin gritted his teeth and said, "My lord, what do you mean by this? Buying and selling land is a matter of your choice and my wish." ..."

Qingping looked at her amusedly and said, "Buying three times lower than the market price can be regarded as your wish? Lord Yao, don't fool me. Two years ago, I presided over the opening of the mutual market in Anping County, Yunzhou. Well, regardless of the account book, it’s all too far to read, can’t you even see this tricky thing?”

She went on to say, "I know that there is a phrase 'one population|insert a few keys' after 'a thousand years of land for eight hundred masters'. I don't know if Master Yao's words mean what I understand. If not, what exactly is it?" ?”

At this time, Yao Bin looked up several times, and said to the inspector beside him: "Master Mu, you go out for a while, I have something to talk to Master Li."

Qing Ping also said to Li Yan: "You also go down to the meeting with Inspector Mu."

The door of the household was closed again, and there were only the two of them in the room, the usual smile on Yao Bin's face disappeared, and he said in a deep voice, "What does Master Li mean?"

She stopped laughing now, and it made Qingping think of someone for no reason, Yan Minghua, Yao Bin's teacher, through the person in front of her, she seemed to see the old Yan Ge when she was young. Come Mr. He, do you have any similarities with her?This thought flashed across her mind, and she immediately replied: "Master Yao, instead of asking me what I mean, it's better to think about what Elder Yan Ge means."

Yao Bin was puzzled, Qing Ping continued: "Mr. Yan Ge is almost 40 years old. He has been in the position of chief assistant for [-] years. The veteran ministers of the two dynasties, and now the former Minister of Rites Wen Tianfu who is younger than her has already passed away. She has retired, why is she still in this position?"

Yao Bin was startled when she heard her mentioning her mentor. It's not like she hasn't thought about this question.There are rumors in the officialdom that Yan Shoufu is addicted to being an official. Shen Mingshan is even better, not to mention she is so old, no matter how greedy she is for power, she won't be able to hold onto it for a few years.After a moment of silence, she said: "Don't be afraid that Mr. Li will think otherwise. I am the last disciple accepted by my mentor, but I don't think she is willing to continue to be the chief assistant. She wanted to be an official early. For some reason, she is still the first disciple." in the auxiliary position."

Qingping asked: "Is it because she refuses to leave, or is she unable to leave?"

Yao Bin was startled, looked up at her and said, "Master Li, what do you mean by that?"

Qingping smiled, and said in a leisurely manner: "Yan Ge is an old employer, and you must know that she would not recommend unimportant people to Chenzhou for no reason at this time. Now that the assistant has left, everyone It is said that Yan Ge always wants to cover the sky with one hand, but in my opinion, Ge always intends to become an official. But it is not so easy to leave. 'One population | Insert a few keys'. If she wants to save her reputation after being infamous forever, she has to do a big thing."

Yao Bin was fascinated by what he heard, and blurted out: "What's the big deal?"

Qingping looked at her calmly and said: "At the beginning when the new law was implemented in Yunzhou, it was Mr. Yan Ge who did not avoid party disputes and recommended capable ministers from the two parties. Master Yao should have heard some rumors, the imperial court is going to push the new law again. This time is not only in Yunzhou..."

Yao Bin realized that he was covered in cold sweat, and murmured: "Then Chenzhou..."

Qingping stood up from her seat, walked past the long table and opened the door, the sky outside was already bright, the morning breeze was cool, blowing on her face, and also blowing away the stagnant depression in the room, she said: "Master Yao wants to be Shangzhou Mu, relying on both sides is not enough. If you don't have courage and skill, avoid things, pretend to be confused, then stop here. If you are willing to work hard and do this thing, even if it doesn't work, but At least there is a chance to rise to the top."

Yao Bin was blown by the wind, calmed down immediately, and asked, "What does Master Li want me to do?"

Qingping turned around and replied: "Three days, within three days, the taxes owed by the Chenzhou family will be settled, and the farmland will be cleared."

Yao Bin's thoughts turned quickly, hesitantly said: "I'm afraid this time is not enough?"

Qingping didn't understand her worry, so he said: "This kind of matter doesn't need an adult to come forward, it can be dealt with directly in my name. Even if I offend someone, it won't affect the adult."

Yao Bin frowned, coughed a few times and said, "Then it will be as Master Li said, and I will do it right away. Let me ask one more question, sir, you know the consequences of doing this, and you are not afraid..."

While talking, Qingping had already stepped out of the door, Yao Bin only saw a corner of the official uniform, which looked like coagulated blood in the morning light, and it disappeared in front of her eyes, and she only heard the man's voice from outside: "Yao Bin Don't worry, my lord, no matter what the consequences are, I can afford them."