Jiuxi

Chapter 971 969 [Luo Jiujiu's World]

More than 20 miles away from the northern suburbs of Heluo, there is a stretch of undulating gentle slopes called Yanziling.

In late April, the spring is bright and the breeze blows gently between the mountains and fields.

A team of more than 7,000 people moved forward slowly.

The team was composed of young and strong men. They wore black clothes, painted their faces with indigo, held standing stones and funerary objects in their hands, and uttered deep and long syllables from their mouths.

In the front row were dozens of men with solemn expressions, holding black flags in their hands, which swayed gently in the wind, creating a sad and solemn atmosphere.

Behind them were more than a hundred men carrying various offerings.

After climbing up Yanziling, the team stopped at an open space. Guided by the dozens of black flags, they formed a semicircle on the south side.

The green mountains are quiet and there are no old friends.

The two Shazhou leaders who had traveled to Qi State this time, Na Yan and Yang Jin, stood under the black banner, looking at the green mountains and fields in front of them. They were suddenly filled with sorrow and shouted, "Kneel down!"

The crowd fell to the ground like fallen wheat waves.

Just at this moment, a young man and woman in plain robes came together.

Na Yan and Yang Jin were slightly stunned. They originally thought that the other party was just here to accompany the sacrifice. After all, what happened back then had nothing to do with them, and the young man's status was too noble for him to do anything that was against his status.

"Your Majesty?"

Na Yan stepped forward to greet him, with a hint of inquiry in his eyes.

Lu Chen glanced at Luo Jiujiu, who was standing beside him with red eyes, and then said to Na Yan: "Those buried here are the elders of Jiujiu's clan, and naturally they are also Lu's elders. How can I stay out of this memorial ceremony that is more than 20 years late? Two leaders, please allow Lu to pay tribute in person to show my gratitude."

Na Yan and Yang Jin looked at each other and stepped aside. Na Yan said gratefully, "Your Majesty is thoughtful."

Lu Chen nodded slightly, then took a few steps forward, looking at the thousands of tombs built later on the gentle slope, and said in a deep voice: "Twenty-five years ago, eight thousand warriors in Shazhou learned that Heluo was in danger, and they ran over seven hundred miles on their own, loyal and brave to save the king. They are a model of righteous men in ancient and modern times."

"However, the tyrant emperor was in power and made peace with the enemy, which resulted in the death of eight thousand brave warriors, a tragedy that will be remembered for thousands of years. Now, Da Qi and Shazhou have joined hands again to kill Emperor Jing and destroy the Jing army, avenging the blood feud of the past. The tyrant emperor of Qi was also buried in the sea of ​​fire. I hope the eight thousand heroic souls in heaven can be comforted!"

"Lu Chen is the Prince of Huaian County of Da Qi, and the son-in-law of the seven tribes of Shazhou. Today, I come with my wife Luo Jiujiu to pay tribute to all the heroes. I hope that Da Qi and Shazhou will always be brothers, and that the people of both places will live and work in peace, and that the world will be peaceful and there will be no more wars!"

After saying this, he and Luo Jiujiu faced forward and bowed three times.

All the men in Shazhou looked up at each other. They were deeply moved by the figure of the young prince of Qi.

The bloody incident twenty-five years ago has always been a painful pain in the hearts of the people of Shazhou. However, since ancient times, the people of Shazhou have been clear about gratitude and resentment. At most, they will only hate the royal family of Qi, but will not vent their anger on Lu Chen who has nothing to do with that incident.

Not to mention that in recent years, thanks to the convenience provided by the Lu family business, the lives of the people in Shazhou have improved at a visible pace. At least they can have enough food and clothing, which is a very difficult thing to do for Shazhou, where daily necessities are relatively scarce.

Hearing Lu Chen's frank and sincere words again, these Shazhou warriors felt more identified with him.

Lu Chen did not delay the sacrificial process. He immediately took Luo Jiujiu's hand and came to the periphery, quietly watching Na Yan and Yang Jin lead the tribesmen to complete this belated memorial service.

After half an hour, the people of Shazhou began to walk down Yanziling in an orderly manner. The two big-headed men came to Lu Chen and saluted to express their gratitude.

Lu Chen shook his head and said, "No need to be so polite, the two of you. To be honest, if it weren't for the help of your warriors, the battle of Pingyang would not have achieved such a rich result."

Na Yan glanced at the extremely gentle Luo Jiujiu beside him, secretly amazed in his heart, and said: "Since the concubine went to Shazhou to mobilize troops, we will naturally go all out, and the prince has not treated us unfairly. The reward for this battle is really generous. Those young tribesmen can't wait to keep fighting."

"What the Qi army soldiers have, the Shazhou warriors will naturally have as well. This is what I should do."

Lu Chen smiled slightly, and then asked: "What are your plans next?"

Yang Jin, who was usually taciturn, took the initiative to speak: "Thanks to the prince's hospitality, we have been eating and drinking delicious food for more than half a month, and our lives are very comfortable. But now Shazhou is about to enter the busy farming season, and we should go back."

Na Yan also said, "From now on, if the prince has any errands, there is no need to trouble the concubine to travel thousands of miles. A handwritten order is enough. This is also what the leader Luo Da meant."

"Alright."

Seeing that they were determined to leave, Lu Chen did not force them to stay and asked, "When are you leaving?"

Na Yan smiled and said, "We will set out south early the day after tomorrow. Please ask the officials to prepare the documents to avoid misunderstandings along the way. We will restrain our people and will not disturb the people of Qi on the way."

Lu Chen nodded in agreement, and the two of them talked to Luo Jiujiu for a while before bowing and leaving.

After a while, Lu Chen and Luo Jiujiu walked down Yanziling, and surrounded by the eight hundred guards led by Qin Zilong, they mounted their horses and headed south.

The spring breeze is slightly intoxicating and the scenery along the way is just right.

Lu Chen rode slowly, looking at Luo Jiujiu who seemed to be worried, and said softly: "I asked the housekeeper to prepare 100,000 taels of bills. When you go to see them off the day after tomorrow, give them to the clansmen. It is a small token of our love."

Luo Jiujiu's temperament was indeed simple, but she was not ignorant of the ways of the world. Hearing this, she couldn't help but smile sweetly and said, "Thank you, husband."

Lu Chen also asked with a smile: "Are you worried about something?"

Luo Jiujiu thought for a moment and said slowly: "It's not really a worry, I just think it's really not easy for you, and you have to think carefully about every aspect."

Lu Chen was slightly surprised.

When he had free time, he would talk about the beauties around him. He always felt that Luo Jiujiu was like a clean piece of white paper. From the time she resolutely went to Yongjia to assassinate Hou Yu, to later when she confessed her feelings to him decisively, and was even willing to bear the unclear relationship and give him the most precious innocence of a girl, she never cared about worldly prejudices from beginning to end.

But I didn't expect that she would also start thinking about these things.

Luo Jiujiu noticed his expression and said unhappily: "If you don't want to listen, forget it." After all, she still showed a bit of straightforwardness.

Lu Chen nodded quickly and said, "I want to hear it, go ahead."

"Okay, then I'll talk nonsense. Don't laugh if I'm wrong."

Luo Jiujiu set up an ambush in advance, and then said: "Although I don't really understand the twists and turns of you Qi people, but I have heard some sayings. Your current situation should be called second to none, right?"

"Correct."

"It does look very glorious, but you have to worry about a lot of things. The military has countless trivial matters. Now you have to manage such a large territory and arrange officials from all over Jiangbei before the court. These are just external things. Although your family has always been harmonious, you also have a lot of troubles, such as the forces behind your sisters. If you don't handle them well, you will definitely have big troubles in the future."

"Then tell me, what should I do?"

"I do not know."

Luo Jiujiu shook her head and said with emotion: "I can see that you like Wang's sister very much, but you are worried that her family's power will become too powerful and you will not be able to deal with it in the future, right?"

Lu remained silent but did not deny it.

As the saying goes, life is not even a hundred years long and one always has worries about a thousand years. At his current position, there are some things he has to prepare for.

Over the years, his several wives have given him great help, but this may not be a good thing in the future.

Of course, Lu Chen hopes that his family can be peaceful, everyone can live in harmony, and everyone can get what they need without fighting or competing for anything, but he also knows that this is just a beautiful expectation.

When he and their children grow up, the Lin family's powerful strength in the martial arts world and the increasingly powerful Seven Star Army, the Li family's small half of the army, the Wang family's thousand-year-old heritage, and the seven tribes of Shazhou that can interact with Da Qi on an equal footing will surely become the support behind his children.

It would be fine if there were no conflicts of interest in the future, but once there was a conflict among family members, Lu Chen would feel a headache just thinking about it.

Luo Jiujiu looked at his gradually furrowed brows and couldn't help but let out a crisp laugh.

Lu Chen raised his hand and pinched his brow, then asked, "What's wrong?"

"You are such a smart person, why would you get stuck in a dead end?" Luo Jiujiu said leisurely: "Not to mention that the situation you are worried about is at least ten years away, will we become ignorant and stupid women after marrying you?"

Lu Chen said seriously: "I have never thought about it this way, and I will never think about it this way."

"You are just used to carrying everything on your shoulders. That's how it is for a real man. I can understand that."

Luo Jiujiu turned to look at him and said softly, "But you have to get used to trusting us. Apart from other things, Sister Wang invited her family to come to her house today while we were out of town. Isn't it to help you warn those people, so that they won't get carried away after becoming officials and start those cliques and power struggles?"

Looking at her clear eyes, Lu Chen's worries disappeared and he said with a guilty conscience: "Jiujiu's words are truly thought-provoking."

The corners of Luo Jiujiu's mouth curled up slightly.

Lu Chen calmed down and asked curiously, "What about you? Have you ever thought about the future?"

"Why think about that?"

Luo Jiujiu looked up at the clear and vast sky and said slowly: "When I was in Shazhou before, the world in my eyes was this big."

She stretched out her hands and drew a big circle in front of her.

At this moment Lu Chen couldn't help but think of the time in Yongjia when he asked her how big the territory of Shazhou was, and she made this gesture.

Memories of the past surged, and his heart softened, so he asked, "What about now?"

Luo Jiujiu pursed her lips and smiled, then turned to look at him, and crossed her hands in front of her body, with her ten fingers connected in sequence, forming a circle slightly larger than her fist.

Through the circle, Lu Chen saw her sweet and smiling face.

"so small?"

"Yeah, it's that small."

Luo Jiujiu blinked and said, "It's so small that I can only see you, but it's enough for me."

Lu Chen was slightly startled.

Luo Jiujiu smiled and said, "Are you touched?"

Lu Chen nodded and sighed: "Jiujiu, I suddenly realized that you are the most powerful person in the family. Just one sentence can make my heart beat faster. Don't worry, I won't cause trouble for myself in the future."

"So, I have some credit?"

“It’s a huge credit.”

Luo Jiujiu turned her head and looked behind her. Seeing that the guards were quite far away, she said softly, "Husband, I like children too."

"Okay, let's have five!"

"Bah, I don't want to have so many children."

Luo Jiujiu smiled and gave him a blank look, then whipped the horse and galloped away.

The grace is still the same as before.

(End of this chapter)