The First Great Ancestor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 169 Rescue Madam Fu

"I wonder if we can find out Madam Fu's whereabouts in Puzhou City?"

Zhao Kuangyin and Li Chongjin stopped talking, and Zhang Yongde hurriedly brought the topic back on track.

Fu Zhaoxin looked at Zhu Xiu: "I still need to trouble Brother Zhu to explain this matter."

"Brother Fu, you're welcome." Zhu Xiu said with a smile.

Zhang Yongde was a little confused, why was this guy involved everywhere?
Zhu Xiu pretended not to know Zhang Yongde's dislike, and said with a somewhat obscene smile: "May I ask Brother Zhang, what is Chai Shuai's attitude towards this matter?"

Zhang Yongde said suspiciously: "The rescue of Mrs. Fu is of great importance. After Guo Shuai received the letter from Wei Guogong, he entrusted the matter to Chai Shuai. Chai Shuai naturally took it very seriously! Not to mention that Fu and Guo Shuai were family friends, and the two families supported each other. We have been advancing and retreating together for many years. Back then, in Cangzhou, Chai Shuai and Madam Fu worked together to defend the city and formed a personal friendship. Regardless of justice or personal love, rescuing Madam Fu was the top priority in the hearts of Guo Shuai and Chai Shuai! "

Fu Zhaoxin sighed and said, "I, Mrs. Fu, will be deeply moved by the kindness shown by Privy Guo and Marshal Chai and will never forget it!"

Zhu Xiu smiled. Zhang Yongde's words not only answered his questions, but also spoke to Fu Zhaoxin to dispel his worries.

After all, the attack on the city is imminent, and Mrs. Fu is still trapped in the city. If Li Shouzhen tries to harm Mrs. Fu to vent her personal anger, she will be in trouble.

Zhang Yongde said this to tell Fu Zhaoxin that Guo Wei and Chai Rong would definitely pay attention to rescuing Mrs. Fu.

According to Zhu Xiu's speculation, Fu Zhaoxin came here on behalf of the Fu family this time. On the one hand, he was worried that his eldest sister would be persecuted by Li Shouzhen and his son, so he tried his best to rescue her and save her life.

On the other hand, in order to prepare for the worst, if Fu Jinzhan is killed, Fu Zhaoxin must find a way to cooperate with Guo Wei to eliminate the impact and avoid involving the Fu family.

After all, Fu Jinzhan is Li Shouzhen's daughter-in-law. According to the imperial court's principle of involvement in rebellion, Fu Jinzhan must be among them.

Even if Fu Jinzhan's life is not saved in the end, the court cannot use this as an excuse to attack the Fu family.

As the in-laws of Li Shouzhen's children, the Fu family's status is really embarrassing.

This two-pronged preparation is based on the love between father, daughter and brother and sister, and the other is to take into account the overall interests of the family.

Guo Wei and Chai Rong naturally wanted to save Fu Jinzhan's life and sold their favors to Fu.

But in the face of the general situation of countering the rebellion, Fu Jinzhan's personal life and death seemed insignificant.

Guo Wei will never delay his siege plan because of Fu Jinzhan.

These things are the subtext hidden under the words. Guo Wei and Chai Rong understand it, Zhang Yongde and Fu Zhaoxin understand it, and Zhu Xiu and Zhao Kuangyin can also understand it.

Only Li Chongjin didn't understand, and he didn't care either.

Zhu Xiu thought about it for a moment and said with a smile: "Ms. Fu had contacted me many times when she was in Chang'an. Li Shouzhen sent her back to Puzhou. I was worried that she would be coerced by Li and his son and put her life in danger, so I sent people to sneak in early." Get in touch with Madam Fu in Puzhou City. In an emergency, we should be able to ensure that Madam Fu escapes unharmed."

Zhang Yongde said in surprise: "Do you have any manpower in Puzhou City?"

Zhu Xiu spread her hands: "There are some, but they are only enough to protect Madam Fu. Brother Zhang, don't worry about it and let these people be used as internal agents when the army attacks the city."

Zhang Yongde's heart, which was just hot, was instantly cooled by a basin of cold water, and he glared at him rather annoyed.

Zhu Xiu said helplessly: "Although Li Shouzhen's rebellion has already begun, no one knows when he will raise the flag for rebellion. He blocked Puzhou City early, and I couldn't send more people even if I wanted to."

Zhang Yongde snorted coldly: "You really didn't calculate when Li Shouzhen would rebel?"

Zhu Xiu shrugged: "I'm not a god who can pinch and calculate, so how can I know?"

"Then why did you arrange for people to hide in Kaifeng City? You also wrote a petition to protest in advance. Just wait until Li Shouzhen's rebellion shocked the world and implicated your Zhang Yi Army, and then made the petition public to eliminate the suspicion that your Zhang Yi Army colluded with the rebels. , to show your loyalty to the imperial court?"

Zhang Yongde was a little annoyed. Zhu Xiu planned everything in advance, as if he was the only smart person in the world and everyone else was stupid.

But Zhu Xiu seemed to have missed a beat when it came to the arrangements for Puzhou City.

Zhu Xiu was speechless, touched her nose and laughed awkwardly, feeling a little guilty.

Originally, he only planned to ensure Fu Jinzhan's safety and had no intention of intervening in the Puzhou war.

Only save people, not join the war.

Therefore, the arrangements in Puzhou City are indeed only enough to save people, but it is impossible to cooperate with the inside and outside to help the army break the city.

The merits of the two anti-insurgency wars in Qizhou and Huazhou are enough for Zhu Xiu and Zhang Yijun to digest. If they make great contributions again, there is a risk of becoming too popular and attracting the attention of the court.

Zhu Xiu could not let Zhang Yi's army be affected by the rebellion, and he did not want Liu Chengyou to care about him. He just wanted to spend the war-torn second year of Qianyou in peace and stability.

However, judging from the progress of the war, Li Shouzhen was well prepared. Puzhou City was tall and dangerous, and it faced a large river to guard the dangerous points. It was very difficult to break through in a short time.

The Shu army was making trouble in Qizhou again. Uncle Guo was a little anxious and wanted to end the counter-rebellion war as soon as possible.

Zhu Xiu smiled and said: "Brother Zhang, don't worry. Although I can't count on the manpower hidden in Puzhou City, there are others who can help us. They may serve as a surprise force and help us break the city!"

Zhang Yongde frowned and said in a deep voice: "Military affairs are important matters and must not be trivial!"

Zhu Xiu said sternly: "Brother Zhang knows that I never joke about serious matters. I have already instructed Pan Mei to prepare. I wanted to see Chai Shuai before I reported it to him!"

Zhang Yongde thought for a moment and said: "In this case, without further delay, you all will immediately follow me back to Hexi Dazhai to meet Guo Shuai and Chai Shuai!"

"That's exactly what I mean!" Zhu Xiu laughed, but sighed bitterly in his heart. It seemed that there was no way to escape the battle in Puzhou.

Li Chongjin provocatively said to Zhao Kuangyin: "Zhao Da'er, when you and I get back, we will ask for orders to fight. Let's see who can climb to the top of Puzhou City first!"

Zhao Kuangyin raised his eyebrows and sneered: "As you wish!"

Zhu Xiu smiled wryly, and also felt quite a headache, it would be really uncomfortable to be caught between these two brothers in the future.

Immediately, everyone divided into two groups. Fu Zhaoxin and Li Chongjin went first. Zhu Xiu and Zhao Kuangyin returned to the town to pack their bags. Zhang Yongde went with them to lead the way to Dazhai, Hexi.

Puzhou City, Palace of the Prince of Qin.

As Wang Jingchong and Zhao Siwan were defeated and punished one after another, Guo Wei broke through Pujin Pass with a tactic of attacking east and west, and Tongguan was also trapped in front and back, isolated and helpless. Li Shouzhen's remaining forces had to retreat to the city to defend.

When things went wrong and the imperial army came to the city, Li Shouzhen became more and more frightened. He arranged the Prince of Qin's palace like an iron barrel for fear that assassins would enter the palace to assassinate him.

Li Shouzhen had to guard against not only enemies outside the city, but also hidden arrows from inside the city.

As an old military leader who has spent most of his life on the battlefield, Li Shouzhen knows very well that loyalty is worthless these days. Whoever can ensure that the soldiers have food, clothing, clothing and money will have the confidence and a strong fist. Big enough, as the saying goes, a mother is a mother if she has breasts.

Now the mighty King of Qin's army was the only one left in Puzhou City. The soldiers and civilians in the city were panicked and their morale was low. No one knew what would happen if the food in the city ran out.

The imperial court has offered a price to kill Li Shouzhen, take over as the military governor of Hezhong, and reward him with tens of thousands of gold.

Under such temptation, there is no guarantee that the soldiers under his command will not be ready to take his head and surrender to the court to claim credit.

Li Shouzhen returns home every day, and can only sleep peacefully under the guards of dozens of confidantes.Li Shouzhen imprisoned Fu Jinzhan in the mansion, and now Fu Jinzhan has little effect on him, and it is impossible for Guo Wei to order to stop the siege just because Fu Jinzhan is in his hands.

Li Shouzhen had already made up his mind that the day Puzhou city was destroyed would be the day Fu Jinzhan died.

Even if he is defeated, he will let Guo Wei and Fu's family live in peace.

Li Chongxun cared about the couple's affection and asked Li Shouzhen to relax his imprisonment and allow Fu Jinzhan to move around the house freely.

Li Shouzhen didn't believe that Fu Jinzhan could escape from the heavily guarded Qin Prince's Mansion, so he agreed without much thought. In his opinion, this was a kind of mercy for the dying person.

Fu Jinzhan would go for a walk in the back garden every morning and afternoon to relax. All the maids and slaves serving her were Li Shouzhen's, keeping an eye on her every move.

Except for Pan Mei, all the servants brought from the Fu family had been executed.

In the afternoon of this day, Fu Jinzhan was walking in the back garden as usual, with three maids and three sword guards following behind him.

At the turn of spring and summer, the garden is lush with vegetation and flowers are in full bloom. Everywhere you look, you can see a beautiful scene of greenery and colorful colors.

Fu Jinzhan, who was wearing a silk skirt, was walking among them, but she had no intention of admiring the scenery.

She pretended to be playing with the flowers and plants, but in reality she was looking around for someone.

Suddenly, a thin flower farmer was trimming weeds by the pavilion not far away.

After Fu Jinzhan saw him, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief, casually walked into the pavilion and sat down, staring at the lotus leaves in the pond outside the pavilion, seemingly lost in admiration of the scenery.

The flower farmer stood up and saluted her, then knelt down and continued working.

This man was wearing a linen shirt stained with mud, his hair was disheveled, and he was wearing a crooked scarf. He had some black and gray mud marks on his face, making him look dirty and disgusting.

But if you take a closer look, you will find that this person has a narrow face, delicate features, and a flat throat. It is actually a woman.

This person was Bi Hongyu who sneaked into Puzhou City nearly a year ago on Zhu Xiu's order.

In the past, Bi Hongyu pretended to be a tomboy and hung out in the salt warehouse, serving as the internal agent for Pirate Salt in Bi Town.

Now she is repeating her old tricks, pretending to be a man and sneaking into Prince Qin's palace to work as a flower farmer, which can be regarded as returning to her old business, and she seems to be very familiar with it.

Li Shouzhen recruited young men and women aggressively in Puzhou City, including the servants and attendants in the Prince of Qin's palace. Anyone who had the strength to hold a sword or a gun was recruited to defend the city.

Such a large palace cannot be left unattended and can only recruit some old women and thin people. Bi Hongyu took this opportunity to successfully sneak in.

After entering the palace and lurking for several months, Bi Hongyu finally had the opportunity to get in touch with Fu Jinzhan.

She carried Zhu Xiu's letters, and Fu Jinzhan could tell by looking at the handwriting.

Fu Jinzhan walked in the garden every day and had the opportunity to meet Bi Hongyu.

It's just that she is closely guarded and has to be careful about everything.

Bi Hongyu immersed herself in trimming the weeds in the corner of the pavilion. From the corner of her eye, she glanced at the slave guard standing outside the pavilion. She crossed the pavilion with a pile of weeds and prepared to go to the pond.

As she walked past Fu Jinzhan, the haystack she was holding in her hands fell to her feet.

"Ma'am, forgive me!" Bi Hongyu said in a low voice, bowing her head timidly.

Fu Jinzhan said calmly: "Just clean it up."

"Yes~" Bi Hongyu crouched down and tied up the haystack again. When the slave guard outside the pavilion was not paying attention, she flicked a paper ball to Fu Jinzhan's feet, and she stepped on it gently.

The two exchanged glances inadvertently. Bi Hongyu hugged the grass pile, bowed and walked out of the pavilion, squatting by the pond to clean up the mess.

Fu Jinzhan bent over to arrange his shoes and socks, held the paper ball in his hand, sat there for a while, stood up and left, following the path back to the bedroom in the back house.

After the maids helped her change clothes and lie down to rest, they left the house one after another and waited outside the door.

Fu Jinzhan hid in the quilt, unfolded the paper bit by bit, and looked at the writing on it carefully.

Bi Hongyu told her in the message that Guo Wei's army was already stationed outside the city. Once the city of Puzhou was defeated, the palace inside the city would be in chaos. At that time, there would be an opportunity to escape. She was asked to rush to the agreed place to meet up, and then wait for an opportunity to leave the mansion. , fled into the city, and then found a way out of the city.

Fu Jinzhan read it several times, and firmly remembered the agreed meeting place in the letter.

That place was in an abandoned old courtyard to the west of the palace, still some distance away from where she lived.

Fu Jinzhan lit the note with an oil lamp, crushed it into fly ash and inspected it carefully to make sure there were no traces left.

The latest contact between Bi Hongyu and Zhu Xiu was one month ago. At that time, the imperial army had just breached the Pujin Pass. Li Shouzhen gathered his troops in a panic and retreated to Puzhou City. There was chaos inside and outside the city for several days. get in touch.

Since then, Puzhou City has been blocked again, and Bi Hongyu has lost contact with Zhu Xiu.

According to Zhu Xiu's previous arrangement, the opportunity to rescue Fu Jinzhan came when Puzhou City was broken.

That will also be Fu Jinzhan's most dangerous moment, and Li Shouzhen will definitely use his final madness to kill her.

Bi Hongyu didn't know when or how to break through Puzhou City, so she could only remind Fu Jinzhan according to Zhu Xiu's plan and let her prepare.

Fu Jinzhan was lying on the couch, staring blankly at the roof, his hands and feet feeling a little cold.

From the moment she refused to write a letter home and persuaded her father to follow Li Shouzhen in revolt, she knew that Li Shouzhen would not let her go.

If Li Shouzhen's affairs go smoothly, her troops leave Tongguan and form a confrontation between east and west with the imperial court, she may still have some hope of survival.

In order to continue to win over and appease the Fu family, Li Shouzhen would not harm herself.

But once the battle is defeated, Li and his son will be cornered, and she will undoubtedly die.

Fu Jinzhan is not afraid of death, but she also doesn’t want to die. She is only in her 20s and in her prime. Although she is a woman, her husband and wife have never been truly loving and they have no children. She really wants to die in such a depressing way. , she was unwilling to do so.

However, Fu Jinzhan also knew that Li Shouzhen's rebellion had implicated the Fu family.

She could either prove her innocence with her death certificate and clear away the suspicion of Fu's involvement in the rebellion, or she could survive and plead guilty to the crime to the court.

Dying inexplicably will become an excuse for those who are interested in criticizing the Fu family in the court.

Fu Jinzhan clasped her cold hands tightly, and Bi Hongyu's appearance gave her hope of survival.

She believed in Bi Hongyu, and she believed in Zhu Xiu even more. She could only believe in Zhu Xiu.

(End of this chapter)