The First Great Ancestor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 431
In the southern suburbs of Dingtao County, Caozhou, on a high hill on the south bank of the Wuzhang River, the grass slopes are withered and yellow. Several old cows are munching hay with their heads down. The cows' tails are wagging to drive away mosquitoes, and they make melodious "moo" sounds from time to time. .

Autumn is getting thicker, the grass and trees are withering, and the mountains are no longer green. What you can see is the chilling atmosphere of late autumn.

"Woo~"

Several horses with bright coats rushed up to the high hills and reined in their horses. The horses lowered their heads and sneezed, competing with the old cows for food on the bare grass.

The old free-range cow was used to seeing strangers. It raised its head and barked "moo" as if to express its dissatisfaction.

The tails of the cows were swaying, and several old cows walked down the shady side of the hillside one after another, unwilling to stay with this group of uninvited guests.

"Where is this place?"

The man on the horse jumped off the horse, the leader took off his turban, looked around, and asked in a hoarse voice.

He is tall and straight, with pointed eyebrows and starry eyes, handsome and strong facial features, and his skin color shows a metallic bronze color due to the wind and sun.

This person turned out to be Chai Rong who quietly traveled south from Chanzhou.

A middle-aged scribe walked forward with a black cloak in his arms and said softly: "This is Dingtao County, Caozhou. The river under the hill is five feet wide, so it is called the Wuzhang River."

The middle-aged scribe put the black cloak on Chai Rong and tied the chest tie.

Chai Rong gathered his cloak and his body gradually felt warm.

The middle-aged scribe suddenly stretched out his hand and pointed to a towering mountain in the northwest: "That's where the Wenling Mausoleum where Emperor Taizu of Liang Dynasty buried Emperor Ai of Tang Dynasty is located!"

Chai Rong was stunned, and looked in the direction of his finger. The black ridge line was undulating under the sky, and it was really a dangerous mountain.

"The place where the mausoleum of the fallen king is located is not an auspicious place. Mr. Wenbo told me to let me know, but it made me feel a little depressed."

Chai Rong sighed bitterly.

"Haha~" Wang Pu twisted his beard and smiled, "The monarch has a great fortune, which is definitely not comparable to that of the last deposed emperor like Emperor Ai, Li Nao."

Chai Rong murmured: "Even if it is a real dragon, trapped in the shallows for a long time, it can only stay with fish and shrimps all day long. When will it be able to ride the wind to the blue clouds?"

Wang Pu suppressed his smile, remained silent for a moment, and said with a slight solemnity: "I am sorry that I cannot answer this question for you."

"Hey~ Who can know my thoughts, solve my knots, and share my worries?" Chai Rong sighed melancholy.

Wang Pu said softly: "The king already has a candidate in mind, otherwise he would not take the risk of hiding from Chanzhou and heading south."

A slightly frivolous face appeared in front of Chai Rong's eyes, with a smile on his lips.

"I hope I can meet Zhu Xiu before he enters Kaifeng City. Only he can tell me the answer I want to know."

Chai Rong murmured.

A general of medium height and strong build rushed up to the high hill with a few soldiers. The general dismounted and ran to Chai Rong. He cupped his fists and said, "For your information, sir, the general has already purchased dry food in nearby villages and towns." The horse feed is enough for me and my party to reach Kaifeng."

Chai Rong said: "Very good, let the brothers feed the horses quickly, rest for half an hour, and then continue on the road."

"General, take your orders!" The general resigned with clasped fists and ordered the soldiers to feed the horses fodder and water.

If you look closely, you can see that the little finger of this general's left hand is completely broken, leaving only four fingers.

This person is none other than He Hui.

When he was expelled from the Xingzhou Anguo Army by Liu Ci, he was desperate and did not hesitate to kill his old friend Liu Zhu and his family, and even cut off one of his own fingers to win Chai Rong's trust.

Chai Rong stayed in Chanzhou, and He Hui also joined the Chanzhou Zhenning Army and became the commander of Xiangdu.

This time he took the risk of going south to Kaifeng privately. Chai Rong only brought with him two close confidants, Wang Pu and He Hui, and a few confidants.

Half an hour later, after resting, the group mounted their horses and rushed down the grassy slopes of the hills, heading towards Kaifeng along the south bank of the Wuzhang River.

~~~
Zhu Xiu was once again deeply aware of the terrible road conditions at the county and township levels near Kaifeng.

The muddy dirt road was riddled with bumps and bumps from the carriages and horses. The carriage he was riding in was swaying all the way, and his internal organs felt overwhelming. When he finally entered the border of Caozhou, he couldn't bear the pain and lay down by the window, "vomiting." The ground spit it out.

He had experienced plane sickness, boat sickness, and car sickness. This was the first time he had suffered from carriage sickness, and the pain was similar.

Zhu Xiu leaned weakly in the carriage, feeling dizzy due to tinnitus and heavy eyelids.

He left Songzhou and traveled for several days, changing horses three times at various stations along the way, day and night, but he was exhausted.

Even Hu Guangyue, who was thick-skinned and thick-skinned, couldn't bear it. He had been riding a horse for days, and his buttocks and thighs had already worn out a layer of skin.

Zhu Xiu missed his gray donkey and black egg very much, and his horse, the horse red boy.

As long as he has one of these two great mounts, he won't have to work so hard.

The gray donkey and black egg are raised in Anding County, Jingzhou, and are in a state of complete retirement.

Ma Qing specially hired three experienced grooms to take care of Red Boy at Shenghe Dishe in Kaifeng. They rotated continuously twelve hours a day, giving him ancestral-level treatment. "Master Marquis, there is a small village ahead. Let's rest for a while before leaving."

Hu Guangyue's voice sounded outside the carriage.

Zhu Xiu responded with difficulty. He didn't want to think about anything now. He just wanted to find a flat place and fall asleep.

Just as the carriage was about to turn into the village, a man driving a mule passed by them and said in a low voice:
"Taiyuan County Justice is stopping at Baiwangzhuang, fifteen miles northeast, and please Lord Zhu to set off as soon as possible!"

Zhu Xiu stuck his head out of the car window and glared at the man with a displeased face. The man smiled meaningfully at him and drove the mule cart away.

"Master Marquis, these Wude Department inspectors are really pervasive! Especially near Kaifeng, I'm afraid they can't tell whether a fly is male or female." Hu Guangyue said with emotion.

Zhu Xiu gritted his teeth: "Let's go and rush to Baiwangzhuang."

Ever since they left Songzhou City, these Wude Division inspectors had followed them along the way, reporting Chai Rong's whereabouts in a timely manner and constantly correcting the direction of Zhu Xiu and his party.

Whether Zhu Xiu and Chai Rong can meet each other smoothly, Wu Desi seems to be more anxious than them.

As Wu Desi represents Guo Wei's will, it is clear who is more anxious about this matter.

More than half an hour later, at the west entrance of Baiwangzhuang, a lonely wine shop stood beside the road.

The wine shop is not big, but there are several tables of guests sitting under the shed. Some of them are idle people from the village, and some of them are foreigners.

Zhu Xiu suddenly felt her stomach growl, and the strong urge to defecate appeared without warning.

After asking the store owner where the latrine was, Zhu Xiu trotted all the way, holding his buttocks. Hu Guangyue arranged for the accompanying sergeant to tie up the horse and follow him leisurely.

There were several warriors wearing swords outside the latrine, looking at Zhu Xiu warily.

Zhu Xiu didn't think too much about it, he just secretly cursed, who would lead people to stand guard when going to the latrine in such a grand manner.

The smell of the rural hut was touching. Zhu Xiu pinched her nose and dove in, bumping into people face to face.

"No eyes!" The man cursed viciously.

"I'm sorry, I'm so anxious. Don't blame me, brother!" Zhu Xiu said in a low voice, bowed perfunctorily, turned sideways, bypassed the man, and hurriedly entered the toilet.

Glancing at it, Zhu Xiu noticed that the man didn't have a little finger on his left hand, and his face seemed familiar.
Without thinking too much, Zhu Xiu found an empty pit in the middle, closed the half-height fence door, untied his trousers and squatted down. After a faint splashing sound, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"He Du Xiao, who did you talk to just now?"

Suddenly, a deep and powerful voice came from the pit next door, which sounded familiar.

Outside the hut, the man just now hurriedly reported back: "There is a wild boy without eyes. He rushed in in a panic and bumped into someone."

Another voice came from the pit next door: "Well~ the villagers are rough and simple, there is no need to care."

"Your Majesty taught me a lesson." The man said respectfully outside the hut.

The more Zhu Xiu listened, the more surprised she became. The voice coming from next door was so familiar.

It's a pity that this hut was built very carefully. The bamboo strip fence was woven very densely, with separate compartments, and the adjacent pits were not visible at all.

Zhu Xiu listened intently, swallowed her saliva, and said in a low voice: "Are you a visitor from Chanzhou?"

After a moment of silence, the deep, manly voice responded with a hint of hesitation and surprise: "Are you Zhu Xiu?"

Zhu Xiu was overjoyed. Now he could determine who the person squatting next door was.

"Zhu Xiu pays homage to the Duke of Taiyuan! Uh~ The environment is special, please forgive Zhu Xiu for not being able to pay full respect!"

"It's okay! I didn't expect to meet here! Zhu Xiu, please solve it as soon as possible, and we'll talk about it outside."

"Very good, very good! Well~ Well~ Please take the first step and allow me to squat for a while~~"

There was a rustling sound coming from the next door. Chai Rong pushed the door open and walked away in a hurry. He seemed to be overwhelmed by the smell in the latrine.

Suddenly, another burst of laughter came from the pit next to the right: "Master Zhu Hou, it's been a long time!"

Zhu Xiu took a breath and said in surprise: "Who are you?"

"Hehe, I'm Wang Pu, who lives in Chanzhou Jiedu as the secretary. On that day in the Chanzhou Jiedu Mansion, the official family served as a general, and I was lucky to have a relationship with Lord Zhu. I don't know if Lord Zhu still remembers it?"

Zhu Xiu couldn't laugh or cry, "Remember! It turns out to be Mr. Wen Bo. Haha, we are really destined!~"

"It made Lord Zhu laugh. I was in a hurry this morning and drank some raw water. As a result, the Lord and I both suffered from diarrhea in varying degrees."

Zhu Xiu took out a piece of rough paper and kneaded it hard to soften it. After finishing, he stood up and tied his belt: "I'll take a step first. Mr. Wen Bo, please help yourself."

"Master Zhu, please~"

　Thanks for the tip from the guy who is too lazy to think of new names! ! !Thanks for the support! !

　　Ashamed, ashamed~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)