Huan Rong

For several days in a row, it was snowing heavily in Pengcheng, and it was rippling.

The streams are frozen and the roads are covered by heavy snow. If you stray into the dense forest, if you are unlucky, you will encounter wild wolves. Even worse, you will encounter leopards and tigers.

However, no matter in bad weather, it can't stop the caravans coming from south to north.

For the sake of huge profits, whether it is the Han people transporting silk cloth and sea salt, or the Hu merchants carrying spices and colorful treasures, they all come in carts one after another in the wind and snow.

Looking from the top of the city to the distance, the winding caravan passing through the snow blanket is the only dark color in the silvery white everywhere.

The crisp sound of whips echoed in the wind, regardless of Hu Han, everyone would say hello when they met.The latecomers stepped on the footsteps of the former and insisted on opening a road in the heavy snow.

Pengcheng was built under the auspices of the Xiangli brothers. Archery towers were erected on all sides of the city wall, and secret passages were scattered throughout the wall, and organs were buried.A deep trench more than two meters deep was dug under the city, and it was buried by snow at this time, and it will become a big river in spring.

The city imitates Jiankang construction, the residential area is separated from the square city, and there are gates between them.There is no waterway running through it, and instead it is a wide road that can run four horses.

There are also differences in Fangshi.

The big market opens every ten days, which is convenient for long-distance merchants.

There is a small market every day, and the goods are divided into different categories and divided into different shops.

In addition to shopkeepers and peddlers carrying burdens, village hunters often bring their private goods into the city.Recently, it is common to see Hu people dressed as Han family, speaking fluent Chinese, holding tanned animal skins, and bargaining with different buyers.

A fire broke out in Yecheng, most of the wooden houses were burned down, and more than [-] households in the city were all relocated.

The Han people flowed into Xihe, Shangdang, Wuxiang and other counties and settled down quickly.The Hu people were divided into several groups. During the migration process, the divisions between each ethnic group and each tribe were clearly defined, and there were frictions due to accumulated grievances.

Murong Xianbei mostly traveled northward, mainly defecting to Murong Ping and Murong Chui.

Murong She and other Xianbei nobles were at odds with each other, and after eliminating Badi, they went to war with Zahu one after another, and they were still too busy to take care of themselves.After a few battles, most of the land in his hand will be lost, and the rest will not be kept. It is obviously not a good target for refuge.

After the heads of the various ministries were summed up, they all chose to detour to avoid encountering each other halfway and being drawn into this doomed team.

Zahu either joined the team to conquer the "old lord" and started all kinds of robbing; or imitated the Qiang and Jie people, tried to contact the Yandu caravan, and settled in the border near Youzhou.When the time was right, he dragged his family to Xuyi.

It is said that a Qiang tribe took the lead in Nantou, and now they are living very well.

You don't need to put your head on your belt to charge forward, and there is no harsh heavy tax. You can live in Youzhou as long as you have a low list in the state government.

If you don't want to continue herding cattle and sheep, you can change your career, take the tribe as a guarantee, and take Youzhou merchants to the north and south, and go deep into the Zahu land that you have never been to.The advantage of knowing Chinese is obvious. You can help Han people communicate with Zahu and get another reward.

Rumors spread among the miscellaneous people that this Qiang tribe is not tired of working, the danger is not great, and the oil and water are quite rich.

"I heard that people in the tribe don't raise cattle and sheep, and most of them turn to business. The leader moved to Xuyi City, where he lived in a big house with geothermal heat in winter."

What is geothermal heat, most people don't have a concept yet, but this does not hinder their imagination.

When I met Qiang people passing by with a caravan, and saw the other party wearing silk clothes with a shiny face, I felt envious, and the voice against Nantou became smaller and smaller.

Anyone with eyes can see the difference between them is too great.No matter how clear-cut the opposition is, it is obvious that it will make things difficult for the entire tribe. If there is a bad relationship, someone will be stabbed in the back and thrown into the snow to bury it.

It's not that no one thought of going south to plunder.

The problem is that there is Qin's Wubao in the middle.It was okay to say in the past, what should I do when I come back?When I went there, I was poor and white, but when I came back, I was pulling a carriage. Even a fool knew what he did.

If Wubao targets him, he will never have a good life.

If you think about it carefully, it is far less cost-effective than raising your troops to seek refuge.

Zahu had a good idea, but he couldn't fulfill all his wishes.

Although Huan Rong intended to recruit Miscellaneous Hus and take the opportunity to strengthen his power, but due to the small number of soldiers in the state, the opening could not be too large, and stopped when the number reached [-].

The reason is simple, I don't want internal chaos.

The brutality of the barbarian is engraved in his bones, and he cannot guarantee his loyalty until he finds a solution.A small number can still govern, but there are too many people, what if something goes wrong one day and there is a disturbance in Youzhou?

"If I had a hundred thousand soldiers, I wouldn't be afraid of these at all!"

This sentence can only be said in private.

The reality is that if you take stock of the entire territory of Youzhou, you still can't get a population of tens of thousands.Wanting to recruit [-] soldiers is tantamount to wishful thinking.

Refugees?

Don't even think about it!

Since Qin's Wubao sent troops to attack Yan, they successively occupied the three prefectures of Jing, Yu, and Xu, completely cutting off the north and the south.

Although this move stopped the Yan soldiers who were running around and ensured the safety of Youzhou, it also stopped most of the refugees and forced Huan Rong's plan to expand the population to abort halfway.

Huan Rong didn't know what other overseas Chinese states thought, but he was indeed a little anxious to get angry.

If you go to the door, you will inevitably be suspected of being good-looking after getting a bargain; if you don't tell the other party, it will be difficult for Youzhou's population to increase in the short term, and it will be very unfavorable to Huan Rong both now and in the long run.

The most direct impact is that the number of state soldiers is stuck at [-], and the Yandu private soldiers and Yuan's servants are also less than [-].It's okay to solve small problems, but one day when you meet an established government army, you may only be beaten up.

After discussing with Xun You, Huan Rong racked his brains and spent two hours before he wrote a letter, carefully stuffed it into the bamboo tube, and tied it to the goshawk's leg.

If you can’t ask for it, just buy it directly.

He is not short of money!

Due to the heavy snowstorm, Goshawk arrived in Pengcheng later.

After reading Huan Rong's letter, Qin Jing fell into deep thought and sat alone for a long time.

As night fell, the servants lit the lamps and delivered the prepared meals.

Qin Jing had something on her mind, so she had no intention of eating, so she just moved a few chopsticks, and had someone evacuate her.

Qin Jue received the news from Xihe and was planning to come to him to discuss it.Seeing the bowls and plates removed by the servants, he couldn't help showing surprise.

"Brother, have a bad appetite?"

The servant girl nodded.When asked the reason by Qin Jue, his face was full of bewilderment, he shook his head and didn't know.

"Forget it, you guys go down."

Qin Jue waved his hand and stepped into the inner room.

As soon as I walked around the screen, there was a cold wind blowing in front of me.

"Ah!"

Sneezing unexpectedly, Qin Jue said, "Brother, it's so cold, why don't you close the window?"

"Wake up." Qin Jing's voice was a little low.

Qin Jue sneezed two more times and sat down away from the window.I knew that I should wear a cloak, but now a long robe can't block the cold wind at all.

"Brother, there's a letter from Xihe."

"En." Qin Jing combed her forehead with one hand, and smoothed a strand of black hair to the back of her head.The slightly rude movements are extraordinarily chic in the eyes of the viewers.

Qin Jue's eyes were hot, and he muttered to himself, but he didn't dare to complain to his face.

It's also a matter of brothers looking too good!

Do you treat birds differently if you don't see them?

"Father will become king next month and decide to set up Xihe as his capital."

"Xihe?" Qin Jing looked slightly surprised. Seeing that Qin Jue started sneezing again, he closed the wooden window and asked sternly, "Didn't you mean Yecheng before?"

"I heard that someone recommended a warlock to my father. It is not a good place to leave Yecheng. Otherwise, Cao Wei would not move the capital to Luoyang, and Murong Xianbei would not die in a short time."

"absurd!"

Qin Jue nodded vigorously, expressing his approval.

"Brother once spoke out against it, but it's a pity that the sorcerer's words are convincing. My father seems to have other considerations. He decided to establish the capital of Xihe first. Whether to move the capital will only be discussed later."

later?

Squeezing between her brows, Qin Jing suddenly realized.

Xihe is the place where the Qin clan rose up, and now it is only the king, and it can indeed be the capital.Going further in the future, it is not impossible to choose the capital again.

"Brother, there is one more thing."

"what?"

"A Ke sent a letter, saying that the Nanyang Yin clan sent another beauty to my father."

"Nanyang Yin clan?" Qin Jing raised his eyebrows.

"Yes, it was the one who made Ah Ke fall into the water and almost became a fool!" Speaking of this matter, Qin Jue was full of anger.

"Father took it?"

"Take it." Qin Jue said angrily.

"The Yin family is so shameless, not only my father, but also my elder brother and second brother! If my mother didn't stop me, they would have already been sent to Wu Township and Shangdang!"

The more Qin Jue spoke, the more angry he became, and he gritted his teeth for a while.

"What are they doing?!"

"What?" Qin Jing was not angry, but smiled, "Xianbei Duan, do you remember?"

"Xianbei Duan family?" Qin Jue thought for a moment, "The one who betrayed Yan with Murong Chui?"

"Exactly." Qin Jing said in a deep voice, "All Xianbei royal families, such as King Wu, King Fan Yang, etc., have their back houses controlled by daughters of the Duan family. If it weren't for the Kezuhun family's vicious methods, the harem of the two generations of Yan masters will also be determined." There are many daughters of the Duan family."

Murong Chui led troops to conquer Goguryeo, and left Princess Kezuhun in Yecheng, but specially sent someone to pick up Concubine Duan.Of course, Murong Ling's birth mother is due to Duan's family, and she also attaches great importance to this family.

"Brother, you mean?" Qin Jue seemed to understand, but he was not sure.

"Neil relatives."

"A relative?"

"Officials should be regarded as Jinwu, and wives should be regarded as Yin Lihua. You should never forget how prosperous the Yin family is."

Even in the past hundreds of years, this good story about the founding king of the Eastern Han Dynasty is still circulating in the world.

Qin Jing lifted the corner of her mouth, half of her face was illuminated by candlelight, and half of her face was hidden in darkness.The contrast is sharp, and the lip color is more bright red.

There was a moment of silence in the room, and Qin Jue snapped at the table suddenly.

"They dare!"

"Of course I dare, otherwise I wouldn't have given it away at this time." Qin Jing lowered her eyes slightly, suddenly losing interest.

"Ayan, since my father decided to become king, Wubao is no longer the same as before. There will be more and more Yin clans. Can you stop one, ten or twenty?"

"Brother..."

"Now it's Father and Elder Brother, and soon it will be you and Alan." Qin Jing looked at Qin Jue with a meaningful smile, "Speaking of which, you and Alan are also at the age when we should be engaged."

"Brother!" Qin Jue blushed, "Brother is not married yet!"

"Me?" Qin Jing raised her voice, her dark eyes reflected the firelight, and the smile on her lips deepened, "Aunt once asked someone to make a cup for me, have you forgotten?"

Qin Jue opened his mouth, his expression froze for an instant, and he was suddenly discouraged.

"Brother, the words of a magician may not be trustworthy, you can't stay married forever, can you?"

"Why not?" Qin Jing said indifferently, "In this way, the brothers can be harmonious as before, and my mother won't be bothered."

"But..." Qin Jue frowned, "Brother is not that kind of person!"

"I know." Qin Jing turned her head and listened carefully to the whistling of the wind. There was deep meaning in her words, "I have made up my mind and I will not make any changes. Besides, with the lessons learned three years ago, there must not be anyone who can't think about it."

Qin Jue was speechless.

Buji is one, and it is hard to say whether it is true or false.But that matter really has nothing to do with my brother.

The person who sent it was in Xihe all the time, brother didn't even touch it, no matter what, he couldn't touch the side of the hexagram.In the final analysis, it was the two families who had their own ghosts and committed suicide, and ended up in the end of personal death and family annihilation. Can you blame brother?

In the end, it was going to fall on my elder brother's head, and the rumors spread for half a year!

"There is no need to mention this matter again." Qin Jing changed the subject and said, "No matter what Yin's plan is, with Grandma around, it will never make her wish come true. Now there is another matter, I want to leave it to you."

"Brother, just say, I will do it!"

Is it going out to chase down the remnants of the Yan State, or to capture the Di people who were spying on the caravan?

All are fine!

"I will go to Youzhou in the near future, and Pengcheng will be entrusted to you for the time being. Murong Xianbei is no longer a climate, and there are not many government affairs in the city. You only need to lead troops to patrol every other day to block the remnants of the soldiers and gather the refugees."

Qin Jue petrified on the spot.

Going south at this time?

"For a business." Qin Jing rarely began to explain.

If you don't need an explanation, Qin Jue will start to crack from petrification with this explanation.

The battle is not over, and there are a lot of things in the Wubao. At this time, go south to discuss business?

Brother, please stop making trouble!

Xihe

Compared with Pengcheng, the snow in Xihe is heavier and the wind is colder.

After several heavy snowfalls, the whole world was covered with silver.The ice edge under the eaves is as long as a palm, crystal clear, and can clearly illuminate the figure.

Under the winding corridor, several servants walked by. One group held silk jewelry in their hands, while the other group embraced bamboo slips.

When they saw each other, they all had bad expressions, raised their chins, and looked at people through their nostrils.

It's not because of the rules, we must argue a few words.

Even so, they still tripped each other on the road, two servants were stepped on the corners of their skirts, one of them hit the pillar when he fell, and a layer of oily skin was scratched on his forehead, and the other cut his palm, which was dripping with blood immediately.

Seeing blood, things will naturally not be good.

The two beauties who hadn't dealt with each other for a long time were first angry and then happy. They both thought they had seized the opportunity and rushed to Madam Liu to cry.

It's a pity that both of them made a wrong calculation.

When he came outside the main room, he was reprimanded even before he saw the real Buddha, and he stood in the corridor with his personal servant, and dared not to leave when he wanted to leave. The cold wind blew for two moments, his face turned pale from the cold, and he was shivering all over. .

Hearing the maid's report, Madam Liu didn't lift her eyelids, she looked at the newly dyed Kou Dan, as if she was in a trance.

Aunt Liu put down the tea soup, glanced at the concubine's room, and asked, "Tell me, who did it?"

"Mrs. Hui, I'm a concubine." Mrs. Zhou stepped forward and knelt down, with her upper body leaning slightly, her hands clasped in front of her belly, and her posture was respectful.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Mrs. Liu finally spoke, without much accusation in her words.

"Returning to Madam, these two are nothing, the ones behind them are really outrageous." Zhou said seriously, "I don't like my concubine, she acted recklessly, please punish me, Madam."

"That's all." Madam Liu shook her head.

Thinking back to the beginning, the Yin family relied on their beauty and family background, they acted very arrogantly, and they often offended people in the back house.Not to mention the heights of heaven and earth, which caused Qin Zhen to fall into the water, and finally angered Mrs. Liu, and ended up "death of illness".

The Yin clan didn't remember their lessons, and after a few years, they began to reach out to Qin Ce's back house again.Not to mention that, even Qin Jiu and Qin Yu didn't intend to let it go.

It's just that Qin Ce doesn't care, Madam Liu will never let her go if she dares to plot against her son.

"Let's forget about today's matter, don't be so reckless in the future."

Mrs. Liu said seriously: "Next month is a major event in Wubao, so don't make any trouble. You have to wait for a few days for anything, do you understand?"

"promise!"

Liu Wei and all the concubines agreed together.

From now on, these "old men" are the united front.Those newcomers to the mansion had better have their skin taut.It's okay to be honest, if you are not honest, you can't blame others for dying early.

Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Liu exchanged glances, and they both knew very well that if Qin Ce wanted to become king, someone would definitely enter the back house.It can't be stopped.

What they can do is to hold everything that comes in, and whoever dares to stab them can throw them to these "old people" to clean up.

The two of them were most concerned about Qin Jiu and the others.

Qin Ce's back house is unstoppable, but the sons are not.

As the mistress of the Qin family, Qin Ce's first wife, who also gave birth to Qin Ce's first son, held considerable power in her hands.Who dared to give away someone without her consent, without even making excuses, just pulled them out and killed them on the spot.

Anyone who doesn't remember the lesson and dares to defy the law, you can give it a try!

The cold wind was getting stronger and stronger, and the two delicate beauties finally couldn't hold it anymore and fainted one after another.After sending them back, they couldn't survive the wind and cold, and died within half a month.

Qin Ce didn't ask, maybe he didn't even remember their faces.

Dr. Liu didn't have time to deal with it, so Liu Wei sent two servants to deliver the letter. It was simply impossible for him to be decent, or to be buried in the ancestral grave. It would be fine to send a pair of thin coffins out of the house.

The Yin family encountered this setback and sounded the alarm for others.

However, a few human lives could not hold back the ambition, and within a few days, the Yin family gave away the beauty again. The few families that were ready to make a move before gritted their teeth and followed Yin's footsteps, planning to make a bet.

Qin Ce accepted all the orders, but Qin Jiu and Qin Yu didn't see them, so they returned them all.

Mrs. Liu sat in the back house, watching a group of Yingying, Yanyan and Yan Fu salute, respectful and obedient on the surface, trying their best behind the scenes, staying out of the matter with Liu Yu, it's all like watching a big show.

This scene will not end in the short term, but it will change roles halfway.

For every replaced character, there is only one way in front of him, and that is death.

The north wind howled, Qin's Wubao looked like a giant beast, entrenched on the West River, roaring against the wind.

The roar shook the northern wilderness, swallowing mountains and rivers with anger, indicating that history will turn a new page, and a new Han regime will rise up in the north and compete in the Central Plains.

The Jin Dynasty, which is partial to the southern land, will also usher in a turmoil.

In November, Bingzi, Huanda Sima once again made an application, requesting that Sima Yi be abolished as emperor and replaced by Prime Minister Sima Yu.It doesn't count if the form is handed in, and the "Decree of Abolition and Establishment" is drawn up as a draft and sent to Taicheng.

None of the civil and military officials in the Manchu Dynasty raised any objections, apparently acquiescing to this move.

Xi Min then went up to the table and also recommended Sima Yu, saying, "Wang Yu of Langya is from Zhongzong, handsome and virtuous, and is favored by people. It is appropriate to follow the heart of heaven and man, follow the wishes of the people, and inherit the emperor's line."

The two bigwigs expressed their opinions one after another, and the whole court was full of echoes.Even the noble family of Wang Xie would not stand up against Huan Wen Ximin at this time.

Under such circumstances, it has become impossible for the Empress Dowager Chu to make a comeback.

Taicheng, Empress Dowager's Palace

Two volumes of bamboo slips were thrown on the ground, one volume was a petition to abolish the emperor, and the other volume was a petition to elect a new emperor jointly by hundreds of officials.

Empress Dowager Chu's face was gloomy, her temples were grizzled, and she seemed to be ten years older than before.

Ana knelt down on the ground, and did not make any sound of comfort as in the past.

Since returning from Youzhou, he has changed his old style, becoming taciturn and acting more cautiously.

Empress Dowager Chu really wanted to kill him, but she couldn't find a suitable opportunity.

The ten years of Dachangle is not a fraud, even if it cannot interfere with the government, it is not a problem to cultivate a group of confidantes in the palace.

With the help of contacts accumulated over the years, grabbing the olive branch offered by Langya Wang, and trying to connect with Da Sima Huan, Sun Na gradually spread a big net in Taicheng. It is not so easy for the Queen Mother Chu to move him.

If she insists on doing her own way, Empress Dowager Chu will find that without Sun Na, she will become "deaf" and "blind", and will no longer be able to easily learn the news outside the palace.

After losing her temper for a while, the Empress Dowager Chu calmed down, ordered someone to pick up the bamboo slips, and then prepared the pen and ink.

"Anne."

"The servant is here."

"You said, did I do something wrong?"

"The Empress Dowager is for the Jin Dynasty."

For the Jin room?

Empress Dowager Chu picked up the pen, a sneer flashed in her eyes.

Yes, for the Jin room.

The bamboo slips were spread out, and a line of small seal script landed on the slips. The pen was sharp and sharp, which was somewhat similar to Emperor Kangdi.

"The royal family is in a difficult situation, and the first emperor was short-lived. The survivors unfortunately suffered from this worry, and the memory is alive, and the heart is like a cut."

After writing this passage, Empress Dowager Chu stopped writing, took her private seal and sealed it, and immediately handed it over to the eunuch, ordering it to be sent to the three provinces immediately.

When Sima Yi heard the news, he suddenly threw away the wine cup, drove away all the servants and eunuchs, and sat alone in the empty hall, first laughing and then crying.

The cry was hoarse, accompanied by the cold wind that swept through, as if it could pierce a person's eardrum.