Chapter 95 Youzhou
On the side of the post road, Shangguan Yunque tied up his horse, then sat in a tea stall and asked for a few bowls of tea, drinking it in big gulps while waiting for the food to be served. He had a strange make-up and wore only a low-cut red shirt that exposed his neck and chest. His behavior was quite coquettish, attracting the attention of the surrounding travelers.

He waved his hand in disdain, "What are you looking at? Haven't you seen a handsome man before?!"

The travelers immediately looked down on him and ignored him.

Shangguan Yunque naturally enjoyed the quietness. He had traveled all the way from Mount Zhongnan, so it was natural for him to keep a low profile. Moreover, he was about to reach Luoyang, so he didn't want to create too many complications.

But soon, an incredible piece of news came from the conversation of the guests next to him, which made him spit out the tea he had just drunk. Then, without bothering to verify the authenticity of the source of the news, he got up in a hurry, took off the reins tied to the wooden stake, and rode away.

At the back, the shopkeeper was carrying a few plates of side dishes that were about to be served, looking at the dust that had already drifted away on the post road with a look of astonishment on his face.

…………

It was not even 3 p.m., but Anle Pavilion was already packed with people.

The madam's smile seemed to be spreading from ear to ear. She waved her round fan and kept directing the servants to usher the noisy crowd to their seats. The lobby was already full, and the private rooms on the second floor had been booked long ago. The stage had even been laid out on the street.

Lanterns have begun to be hung, and the entire street belongs to Anle Pavilion today.

The "Spring Banquet of the Oiran" at night was attended not only by the Prince of Jun Zhu Youzhen himself, but also by the Governor of Henan Zhang Quanyi. It was a grand event, and the news had been out for a long time, and it had become a well-known event in Luoyang. And the most important thing was that all the wine shops and brothels in Luoyang, big and small, had to cooperate. Anyone who dared to object would have a knife put to his neck immediately.

At first everyone was reluctant, but until Anle Pavilion released the news that whoever's house the courtesan was chosen would have the "Spring Banquet" next year held in that house, this would be done every year, with notarization as the basis for confirmation.

That is why all the brothels in Luoyang City have been working hard these past two days, selecting the most dazzling and talented girls in their respective buildings to compete for the title of the most beautiful woman. Even the second-rate brothels want to get a piece of the pie. Anyone with a discerning eye can imagine that if they can win the title of the most beautiful woman, their business will be booming for the whole year. And this is just a small profit. With this grand occasion, the reputation of the brothel will even spread throughout Guanzhong. That is the real fame and fortune!

……

At this time, unlike the noisy front building, the small courtyard in the back building was very quiet.

Xiao Yan stood alone in front of the attic window, with his hands behind his back, admiring the beautiful scenery of the willows swaying in the spring breeze beside the small pond in the courtyard.

Behind him, Liang Zhi kept shaking his head, with a hint of anger on his face.

"Ridiculous! How could I, the Bad People, work for Zhu Wen? The late emperor and many ministers were killed by Zhu Wen. We have already been disloyal by not avenging the late emperor, let alone changing our allegiance and serving Zhu Liang!? Tian Anxing, what on earth are you thinking!"

On the other side, Duan Chengtian sat there in a daze, with no expression on his face, but he just said nothing.

On the other side, a bad guy from the Yanzhou branch crossed his chest and said coldly: "My captain has his own plans, and I haven't asked you to join Liang. If you are not interested, then don't join."

Liang Zhi finally couldn't hold back his anger and said, "You bastard, I really misjudged you from Yanzhou! If I had known this would happen, I should have driven you out of Luoyang. Without us, would you have been able to stay in Luoyang safely until now?"

"What a joke! My captain has been treated as a guest of honor by Zhu Youzhen. Even if you were not there, would there be no place for us in such a big city like Luoyang?"

"You!" Liang Zhi pinched his fingers until they made a sound, and turned to look at Duan Chengtian, "Old Duan, do you agree with this too!?"

After a moment, Duan Chengtian looked worried and sighed, "Now that things have come to this, let's listen to what Tian Anxing is planning... After all, the commander's order is in his hands."

Liang Zhiben paused as he was about to stand up, then snorted coldly, and stopped talking with a stern face.

By the window, Xiao Yan finally turned around, but there was not much fluctuation on his face, instead there was a hint of smile.

"Brother Liang, please calm down. This is Xiao's decision alone. I don't intend to drag you into this fire pit. Serving Zhu Wen is indeed contrary to the original intention of the establishment of the Bad People. But now that the Tang Dynasty has died and the world is in chaos, if the Bad People do nothing, what is the difference between that and waiting to die?"

"The Marshal will definitely lead us to revive the Tang Dynasty!"

"What I did was also to revive the Tang Dynasty." Xiao Yan smiled calmly.

Liang Zhi said coldly with a straight face: "Nonsense! If you become an official in Liang, don't you think the national hatred is nothing? Zhu Wen is a traitor who usurped the Tang Dynasty and established himself as the emperor. How can you talk about reviving the Tang Dynasty?"

Xiao Yan did not answer, but reached out to the bad guy standing next to him.

The latter immediately understood, then took out a map from his arms and handed it over respectfully.

Xiao Yan spread out the map and hung it on the wall, motioning Liang Zhi and Duan Chengtian to look at it.

This map was a bit sloppy, but it covered more than 40 vassal states and 11 territories. From the perspective of the structure, the vassal states were also marked out and divided into several areas with different colors.

"What do you mean?"

"Look, you two. Today, there are many towns all over the world. But compared to the time of Emperor Xizong and Emperor Zhaozong, it is no longer the era when a town or a state could rule a region. Now, the princes in the north and south each have several towns and hold heavy troops. They are on guard against each other. It seems that no one can do anything to anyone, but the fact is that Zhu Wen has dominated the Central Plains for more than ten years, and until now, almost no one can shake his position."

Xiao Yan's fingers slid slowly on the map, and then he said, "But if you want to revive the Tang Dynasty, Zhu Wen will be a direct threat that cannot be ignored. Otherwise, he will be regarded as a thorn in his side. In today's world, no force can stop Zhu Liang's military might alone, and they all have their own interests. They will never unite wholeheartedly for a completely dead Tang Dynasty..."

"What do you mean by saying this!" Liang Zhi interrupted in a deep voice, "Why are you worrying about this? When the time comes, when the Marshal shows up, which lord would dare not be respectful?"

"Marshal..." Xiao Yan laughed when he heard the voice.

What the Marshal cares about is not the survival or death of the Tang Dynasty. In his eyes, there is only the prosperous Tang Dynasty and the ruined Tang Dynasty, and he has always been dismissive of the ruined Tang Dynasty.

But he would not tell them this, instead he asked with a faint smile: "Have you ever heard of 'borrowing chickens to lay eggs'?"

"Borrow a chicken... to lay eggs?" Liang Zhi was stunned.

Duan Chengtian was scratching his head, as if he had some ideas.

"The most important reason why Zhu Wen was able to rise from a rebel like Huang Chao to power was that he had the support of the Tang court, which allowed him to annex the vassal states through imperial decrees. That's why he was called 'completely loyal'. Later, he exploited the Tang court and gradually grew stronger, even usurping the throne and establishing himself." Xiao Yan turned his back to the map, faced the crowd with his hands behind his back, and said slowly, "What I want to do is to follow his example..."

Liang Zhi opened his mouth in astonishment and didn't close it for a long time.

Duan Chengtian touched his round head and smiled, "Lao Liang, face the reality, we are all old..."

Then, he sighed and said, "Isn't the courage of these young people stronger than your thoughts?"

At one side, the bad guy from Yanzhou proudly crossed his arms, with a look of pride in his eyes.

Liang Zhi stammered in a daze and asked, "Is it enough for us?" "Of course not..."

Xiao Yan said slowly: "But there are quite a few people."

------

Hebei, Youzhou.

In the governor's mansion, which was larger than the existing structure and more like a royal palace, a middle-aged man came out with a loud laugh to greet them.

He was over forty years old, with a rather plump figure. He wore a robe embroidered with a python pattern and a gilded rhinoceros belt, giving him the air of a nouveau riche who had gained power overnight.

The mansion was still under expansion, with wood and stones being transported continuously past the street. Porters, either shirtless or shouting slogans, were transplanting several century-old trees whole-rooted into the newly built garden.

The Lulong soldiers outside the palace half-knelt with their halberds in hand, "Greetings, Marshal..."

Liu Shouguang ignored him completely and just laughed loudly. He spread out his hands and said, "Brother Shi, why are you so late?"

At the bottom of the long steps, a figure was bending down to get out of the carriage. When he heard the call, he humbly saluted beside the carriage with his sleeves tucked in, "Hedong Shi Jingtang, congratulations on your promotion to the new commander."

He was nearly thirty years old, dressed in a beige shirt, with his long hair tied back with a simple wooden hairpin. He did not seem to have a single valuable item on his body. He had a completely different temperament from Liu Shouguang and was extremely humble and polite.

Liu Shouguang couldn't help but feel proud when he heard this, but he pretended to be humble and went down the long steps to greet him: "Brother Shi is my good friend for many years, why are you saying these polite words, come on, come in and talk in detail."

His modest expression was extremely clumsy, but Shi Jingtang didn't care at all. He just bowed again politely and said, "General Jie is the pillar of the Tang Dynasty in Hebei. Jingtang is insignificant and can never be compared with General Jie. This time I came to Youzhou, I hope General Jie can help me a lot."

Liu Shouguang became more and more happy. He took Shi Jingtang's hand and was about to go in, but he was suddenly stunned and pointed at a stern-looking man wearing a fu hat, a dark black military robe with narrow sleeves and a cross collar, and a scar on his face, who was standing next to the carriage.

"Who is this……"

Shi Jingtang patted his forehead as if he had just remembered something, and said with a smile: "I haven't seen you for a long time, and I was so happy just now that I forgot to introduce you to me. I am the commander of Taiyuan Zhechong and a disciple of the Lizi Sect of Tongwenguan, Commander Barba, sent by the Holy Lord to Lulong to help you."

Liu Shouguang suddenly realized, and then he was surprised, "You are Bal?"

Sanqianyuan, who had been dressed as Bal for more than half a month, crossed his arms and said with a serious face, "Has the commander heard of me?"

"I heard that you killed the deposed emperor in Luoyang..."

"The emperor was killed by Zhu Wen, and he is trying to put the blame on me. Commander, don't be misled by others." Sanqianyuan interrupted rudely.

Seeing that he was not as considerate as Shi Jingtang, Liu Shouguang's face darkened slightly.

Shi Jingtang observed his expression and immediately tried to smooth things over with a smile. He then went into the Jiedushi's residence with him and then reminded him in a low voice, "Don't be surprised, Jiedushi. Ba Duwei has always been trusted by the Holy Lord and is a member of the Jin King's family. He has always been straightforward. Don't take it to heart."

Liu Shouguang then put on a good face and snorted coldly, but he couldn't help but become closer to Shi Jingtang.

After entering the hall, he asked someone to serve tea, and then asked with a smile: "Although you and I are more than ten years apart in age, we have always been brothers. The Holy Lord sent you to lead the troops to help, which is indeed what I want."

Shi Jingtang sat opposite Sanqianyuan, but he only sat halfway. He stood up when he heard the words and said with a smile, "Taishan has long seen that the commander-in-chief has the spirit of a hero. When he heard that the commander-in-chief needed me, he immediately asked the King of Jin to order me to lead the troops. But from what I have seen in the battle situation in Youzhou, it seems that the commander-in-chief no longer needs me?"

"Hahaha." Liu Shouguang couldn't help but show a smug look on his face, and said: "My brother, who has twice as many soldiers and horses as me, is actually just a bunch of straw men. Now he has been defeated in Lutai (today's Tianjin) and has fled to Liaodong. He really doesn't need Brother Shi's help."

Shi Jingtang had already known the news, but he still acted surprised, and then flattered the emperor again with great admiration.

Sanqianyuan sat opposite him, just drinking tea slowly without saying a word.

He has thoroughly studied that "Bal" these days. He represents Li Siyuan, so there is no need for him to be humble to Liu Shouguang. Moreover, he pays more attention to Shi Jingtang opposite him.

In the letter Xiao Yan wrote to him, he said that he should observe this person carefully, saying that he had some characteristics that were not easy for ordinary people to detect.

Now it seems that besides being very good at observing people's words and expressions, he seems to be courteous and polite to everyone, and is also flexible. Although he is Li Siyuan's son-in-law, he is extremely polite to him, the commander of the Zhechou Commandery, as if the identity of son-in-law is a shackle to him.

If this person is really as Xiao Yan said, compared to someone like Liu Shouguang who shows his emotions on display, he is extremely cunning.

interesting.

Sanqianyuan raised the corner of his mouth, hiding it with the teacup, but his expression was still indifferent.

The conversation between Liu Shouguang and Shi Jingtang finally got on track.

"Although my elder brother led a large number of troops to flee to Liaodong, I am not afraid at all. My only worry is about the people in Mobei..."

Shi Jingtang asked respectfully: "With the power of the general, how dare Mobei go south?"

"Alas, Brother Jing Tang lives in Yanmen Pass, Daizhou. Haven't you heard that Mobei is different now than before?"

Liu Shouguang sighed and said, "In the third year of Tianyou, the eight tribes of Mobei nominated a young man named Ren Yilijin (King). His name is Yelu Abaoji. He is very talented. In just two years, he has greatly increased the strength of Mobei. My men have gone out of the border several times, but they have never gotten any good results. My brother has fled to Liaodong, and I am afraid he will collude with Mobei. He also controls a lot of territory. If I let Mobei go south, I am afraid I can't bear it..."

Shi Jingtang blinked his eyes calmly, then crossed his arms and saluted: "Don't worry, General. Jingtang has arrived in Youzhou now. If you need anything, just send me."

"Hahaha." Liu Shouguang laughed loudly upon hearing this, then stood up and said earnestly, "I don't need you, brother Jingjian, to fight the enemy, but I have heard that you are very good at speaking. Would you be willing to go out on my behalf?"

"Commander Jie, please speak."

"Yelu Abaoji has a wife named Shuliduo. I heard that they are very affectionate, but Shuliduo is just a woman and may not have much experience. If you can bring all the treasures out of the border on my behalf and persuade her to postpone the time of the southern expedition of Mobei for one or two months, I can accomplish my goal!"

"How difficult is that? I will definitely fulfill your mission!" Shi Jingtang's eyes sparkled and he patted his chest to guarantee.

Both of them were very happy and made an appointment to drink together.

At the side, Sanqianyuan, who was unnoticed in the corner, also had his eyes flickering and chuckled softly.

(End of this chapter)