Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

The darkness of night does not fade away because of human activities, and the light of heaven does not shine into the world because of thick clouds.

On the third day after the Qi army entered the city, dark clouds covered the sky over Shangjing.

As the daylight faded, a feeling of depression rose to people's minds. However, on that day, a notice was issued from the Liaison Office to lift the ban on entering and leaving the city. Citizens in the city could enter and leave Linhuang Prefecture freely without having to check records. The only difference was that the city gates would be closed half an hour earlier than before. Even so, for the people inside and outside the city, the stability of the past had basically been restored.

Not counting the black-armored guards patrolling everywhere.

At present, the Qi army soldiers at various city gates are changing shifts. They are handing over the South City troops after Lu Yanlun's integration. Also because many people have escaped, the newly appointed Quan Shangjing Liaison Officer posted a notice to recruit soldiers. Along with it came the news of the establishment of the Qi Army Zhechou Mansion. The newly appointed Zhechou Duwei Sun Yanshou immediately began to train the original soldiers of Linhuang Mansion.

The military camp outside the city was also being built by young and strong men and soldiers of the Qi army. Many troops stationed in the imperial city had moved outside. The people in the south city could not see this movement, but there were many people living around Shangjing. Some of them saw it and passed the news on, causing some talk.

What followed was a thorough investigation of those who took advantage of the defeat and looted together with the defeated soldiers.

This time the action came very quickly. With the momentum of the Qi army breaking through the city, the officials in the garrison went down to various places to cooperate very well. Together with the integrated South City troops, it was a real battle. Many heroes in the city were caught red-handed. Some people tried to resist but were hacked to death on the spot by Yi Cicheng, who had just surrendered to Lu Yanlun, which made the people in the city cheer for a while.

The public's resistance to Qi's rule has slightly declined. Although there is still some resistance, it is not as strong as before.

This was an unexpected surprise.

Over the next ten days, police officers and constables began to appear in the streets, and the patrolling Qi army began to withdraw from the city. The absence of soldiers on the streets made many people breathe a sigh of relief, and the city began to gradually return to its original appearance.

However, Shangjing was the original imperial capital of the Liao Kingdom, and the people here naturally have their own pride. Now that it has been lost to Qi and the emperor is no longer there, they always feel that something is missing in their hearts.

But after a few days, many people in the city noticed that there were red and black cloths hanging on the branches of one of the oldest trees in the city. They fluttered in the wind in the morning and looked a bit strange. Some people went to find the servants to take the cloths away.

However, it would be hung up again the next day, causing people to be uneasy for several days in a row. Even if there were people guarding it, they would always doze off. When they opened their eyes, the cloth would appear on the branches. Many people were scared to death, and it became a strange story in the city for a while.

It was at this juncture that a nursery rhyme began to spread from somewhere, and gradually the streets were filled with the song: "The destiny is hanging in the balance, the couple compete for luck, the troubled times bring prosperity, the ninth imperial capital has a new emperor." Within just one or two days, it was like a plague, with children singing in the streets all over the city.

"Prophecy..."

Lu Yanlun stood in the lobby of the garrison, next to him was Yi Cicheng, who had recently defected. After a moment of hesitation, the new official turned around and looked at the Khitan man: "Tell the people below not to get involved, just pretend they don't know."

Yi Cicheng lowered his head, looked at him when he heard the words, lowered his head again to respond, and just as he turned around to leave, he heard a voice from behind.

"Just have people pay attention and don't let anyone take advantage of the prophecy to cause trouble. Don't do anything else."

"know."

The majestic figure nodded and strode away.

……

The wind and clouds surged, and the wavy clouds rolled away. Yelu Dalibo had been living a good life these days. Her skin became whiter and her demeanor changed from that of an ignorant girl to that of a charming woman. In addition to being allowed to walk outside the palace recently, she also often went to see Zhao Zhaorong. The two Liao women huddled together for warmth in this palace, which had changed its name.

The combat boots stepped on the bluestone brick road, and the horizontal sword kept colliding with the scabbard during movement. Yelu Daribo moved away from him and shook his head as he watched him run towards the imperial study. He didn't know what was going on at this time, and then continued to walk towards where Zhao Zhaorong was. She wanted to tell her about the prophecy outside.

Yu Cheng stood outside the imperial study, scratching his head as he watched the soldiers running over. Could there be some urgent matter in the army?

……

The sky was setting and it was already afternoon. For more than a month, there had been noises of hammering and banging in the Qi army camp, and several craftsmen were busy in the area with curtains drawn.

Some soldiers wanted to explore out of curiosity, but were stopped by the armored soldiers of the Xianzhen Camp guarding the place and were not allowed to approach this place for the time being.

This attracted the curiosity of more brave soldiers and officers, who gathered around and clamored to go in and take a look. The cloth wall over there suddenly opened, and Du Fu and Xi Sheng stepped out: "What are you all doing? Just do what you need to do."

"Everyone, disperse. After today's training is done, go for additional training. Starting tomorrow, the training volume will be doubled."

Amid the shouting, the arrogant and brave generals of the Qi army surrounding this side suddenly shouted, "I have something to do, so I'll leave first." "I didn't say I wanted to go in, it was Luo Qinghan who said that." "Dong Zhongsun, you thief Sun, stop!" In an instant, the onlookers scattered like birds and beasts.

The two generals looked at each other, smiled, shook their heads, turned around and walked back. In the enclosed open space, a dragon throne had been carved and was being worked on by a craftsman skilled in gilding. Wang Zheng sat lazily on a stool, with his head tilted, one hand supporting him, staring at the chair in a daze.

"Military Advisor, we have already asked the people outside to disperse..." Du Fu came over and hesitated to speak. Seeing that the young man was still sitting there, he spoke again, "Can we do this without telling the king?"

"Of course not."

The sunlight shone on the gilded skin, causing Wang Zheng to squint slightly, but he was too lazy to move, and lowered his gaze: "Now the prophecy in the city is spreading fiercely, and the king is not deaf, so he will naturally know. Zheng thinks that you and I will be summoned today at the earliest, and the day after tomorrow at the latest."

Xi Sheng circled the dragon throne twice before coming over: "Military Advisor, if the king wants to punish you..."

"Admit it." The short and powerful voice made the two generals look at each other. Wang Zheng finally moved and stood up on his knees: "You and I did this without telling the master. Although it was for the king's consideration, it was still the old way of Chenqiao. Naturally, the emperor would not like it. From now on, just push everything to Zheng."

There was a gleam in his raised eyes: "Zheng will take on this responsibility."

The wind blew past, causing the curtains around to ripple slightly. The craftsmen were busy and carefully doing the finishing touches. The burly and majestic figure stared over there in a daze for a while, then turned around and took a closer look at the young man who had given him a feeling in the past.

"I'm afraid that the military advisor will be overwhelmed." Du Fu suddenly smiled, as if he had figured something out, and he relaxed. "Let me go with you. The military advisor is the only one who can make decisions in the army. I, Du, seem to have some weight and can take on this position."

Xi Sheng frowned and was about to speak, but Du Fu stretched out his hand to stop him, saying, "I was a person who was badly cheated by my superiors in Xiangzhou. Fortunately, the king did not abandon me and rescued me. He also allowed me to wander around the world as I pleased. I lived in a daze for a while, and finally I got a moment to breathe..."

He heaved a sigh of relief: "I finally found some goals in Liaodong, but I have been living in confusion all along. If it weren't for the king who kept pulling me back, I'm afraid I would have rotted away somewhere long ago."

He turned to look at the shining dragon throne: "It's a pity that it's not made of pure gold."

"It will be." Wang Zheng stretched his body lazily: "It is time to let the officers and generals in the army know about this, otherwise it will be too late."

Xi Sheng's mouth twitched, and he held his forehead with some helplessness: "You two, don't talk like you are going to die. Even if the king is angry, he will only scold a few words, not behead you."

"Hehe..." laughter sounded not far from the craftsman, causing the person who was working to look up in surprise. He glanced at the even larger construction site in the middle, then shook his head and continued with the work at hand.

They have also lived in this military camp for nearly a month, but the money given by the Qi army is enough. Not to mention living here and having a good time, even if they want him to sell his ass...

That has to be after he washes himself. It would be impolite if he is too dirty.

The sky was filled with clouds, and the three people who were talking had no idea of ​​the messy thoughts in the craftsman's mind. They were just admiring the newly made chairs.

However, just as Wang Zheng expected, around 3 p.m., the order to summon Lu Bu came down.

……

Liushousi. Lu Yanlun put down the pen in his hand and put the written document aside. Now many affairs in the city need his approval before they can be implemented. This is the first time that the former Liao palace guard has tasted such a taste, and he has become more attentive to the Liushousi.

"Stay, stay." Yi Cicheng, who had returned from outside, walked in quickly and said, "Someone is coming from the palace. Please stay and go quickly."

"Hmm?" Lu Yanlun raised his head, then quickly stood up, straightened his clothes, and stretched out his hand: "Follow me."

Hurry out.

……

In late summer, the weather is dry and the sound of insects begins to rise.

The northwest sky seemed to be casually painted with a layer of bright red. Lu Bu stood in the imperial study with his hands behind his back, looking at the famous paintings hanging on the wall. However, his eyes were scattered and he was obviously absent-minded. He didn't know what was painted on the paper.

After nearly a month of rectification, Linhuang Prefecture finally recovered. Lu Yanlun in the Liaison Office did a good job and recommended many Han and Fan people to fill the vacancies in the Liaison Office.

Other military states around Shangjing also surrendered one after another. It was also the idea of ​​Wang Zheng, Lu Yanlun and others to keep the surrendered officials unchanged. They wanted to stabilize these newly surrendered people first, and then decide whether to continue to employ them after everything was settled.

This was also something Lu Bu was familiar with. In the past, Yanzhou and Xuzhou both relied on the local noble families. Unfortunately, the rituals and music had collapsed, and people were not as greedy as they were at the beginning of the country. Those noble families finally chose the side that was beneficial to them, completely ignoring the fact that the emperor was still suffering. If...

"Your Majesty, the military advisor, General Du, General Xi, and Governor Lu have arrived."

Yu Cheng's voice came from outside the door. Lu Bu fixed his eyes, glanced at the picture of thousands of horses galloping, walked to the table and sat down, then said, "Let them roll in."

"Yes."

Yu Cheng responded outside, then turned to look at the others and said quickly in a low voice: "The king is not really angry."

Push with both hands.

squeak-

The door was open to the inside. Wang Zheng and the others glanced at him with grateful expressions, then lowered their heads and walked inside. They did not dare to look up at Lu Bu. They all knelt in the middle and bowed with great respect: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you."

Lu Bu leaned back in his chair, looking down with a neutral gaze, without saying a word.

The kneeling people looked at each other quietly, wondering why they were still not speaking. However, they did not dare to look up and bowed their heads again.

"Hmph..." Lu Bu snorted softly, knocked on the table twice, stood up, and strode out from behind the table: "My king? Do you still think I am the king? You never tell me anything before you do anything. Why don't you take this throne?"

Wang Zheng, Du Fu, Xi Sheng, and Lu Yanlun did not argue and said in unison: "We dare not!"

"I dare not..." Lu Bu frowned, walked around the few people with his hands behind his back, and then stood behind them: "You dare to spread prophecies and do things of ghosts and gods in the city without telling me."

Lu Yanlun lowered his head and smacked his lips silently, without explaining that he had not participated.

Lu Bu walked back to the table and sat down. "Who put that cloth there?"

Wang Zheng bowed his head and spoke respectfully, "Marquis Shi Qian of the Scouting Camp."

"What about rumors?"

Wang Zheng spoke again: "We will send our personal guards to teach the children on the street, give them ten coins each and let them go out to sing. We will give them two coins for each child they teach, and ten coins for each street they sing. There will be many children to do it."

Seeing his angry look, Lu Bu laughed. "Pa!" He slapped the table with his big hand and said, "Now you've said everything."

"I never thought I could hide this matter from the king." Wang Zheng looked up and chuckled.

"Who told you to look up? Lower your head!"

Wang Zheng quickly stopped smiling and lowered his head.

Lu Bu poked his finger at the table: "Who else is involved in this?"

Du Fu and Xi Sheng in the back had just straightened up and were about to speak, but Lu Bu waved his hand and said, "No, I should ask, who was not involved in this matter?"

Du Fu and Xi Sheng bent down again. Wang Zheng's eyes rolled around in front of him, while Lu Yanlun kept his mouth tightly shut and said nothing.

bang——

"Speak!" Lu Bu slammed the table again and pointed at the military advisor who had just answered: "Wang Zheng, you were quite talkative just now, why are you silent now?"

"Your Majesty, please calm down. I don't know anything about this." Wang Zheng lowered his head, raised his hands high, and suddenly prostrated himself on the ground: "We all hope that Your Majesty will ascend the throne and be crowned emperor. The nine provinces will look up to you and the four seas will all be loyal to you. Now is the time for destiny and the people's will. If Your Majesty agrees to our wishes, we will do our utmost to help Your Majesty create a prosperous era and pass on the blessings to future generations."

He paused for a moment and said, "As for the fact that I have done this act of coercion, I am willing to accept the king's punishment."

Du Fu and Xi Sheng also clapped their heads to the ground and said, "I am guilty and I am willing to be punished!"

Lu Yanlun also kowtowed: "I am guilty!"

The room fell silent for a moment. Lu Bu looked up at the four people kneeling below, tapping the armrests with his fingers very quickly.

I don't know how much time passed before he spoke: "I have also heard about the incident at Chenqiao Station. You don't think I really dare not punish you?"

"We dare not think so." The four people below spoke in unison.

Lu Bu closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he stopped tapping the armrest with his fingers: "Anyone involved in this will be fined one year's salary and all titles will be revoked."

The four of them relaxed a little: "Thank you, Your Majesty."

"Get out of here, everyone." Lu Bu waved his sleeves and said, "Don't show up in front of me for ten days."

"My minister retire."

The four people slowly got up from the ground, bowed and stepped back, then went out, and Wang Zheng, who was at the back, closed the door.

Yu Cheng looked at them worriedly: "How is the military advisor?"

Wang Zheng turned around, with a bright smile on his face, and said softly: "Everyone, we still have ten days to prepare." (End of this chapter)