Lord of Puro

Chapter 721 Fiefdom
Li Banfeng followed Ayi to Hulu Village and all the way to Ayi's residence. Next to her residence was the largest open space in the village. Ayi built a stage on this open space.

Ayi said to Li Banfeng: "See, this is the altar."

Li Banfeng looked at the stage carefully. The stage was quite large, with stone pillars at the bottom and wooden boards at the top, with a blanket spread on top of the boards.

"Is this the altar?" Li Banfeng looked at it for a long time, "Isn't it a little too rough?"

Ayi thought it was a good idea: "Why do we have to make it so elaborate? Didn't the peddler say that we don't need those red tapes?

You go to my house, have a good sleep first, and then get up tomorrow morning to drink with my wife. Don’t drink too much, because we still have things to do tonight.”

Li Banfeng shook his head repeatedly and said, "No, I'm married too. Besides, we two brothers can't let you do it alone!"

Aiyi spat, "What do you think you are doing? I have to take Hulu Village to Neizhou now. There will be a sacrifice ceremony tomorrow night. You should go and rest!"

On the second night, Ayi pinched Qiu Luoye's nose and calculated with her fingers, and found that Hulu Village had reached the right place.

If you don’t understand, just ask. Li Banfeng said, “Sister, what is a suitable place?”

Ayi said: "Bocheng is the right place. In Neizhou, only this place can produce soil. But you blew up the altar before, and Bocheng has stepped up its security. I dare not get too close to Bocheng.
But if it is too far from Bocheng, we won’t be able to grow anything, which would be a waste of effort, so we must find a place that is neither too far nor too close, the most suitable place! ”

Ayi calculated very carefully, and controlled every inch with his hands with great strength.

Qiu Luoye said sullenly, "Let go of my nose first!"

Ayi quickly let go of Qiu Luoye's nose and said softly, "It hurts, right? I really like your nose. I can pinch it to calculate the size very accurately."

Qiu Luoye rubbed his nose and said, "You have to think about your escape route. You almost failed last time. If you are caught by Neizhou, no one in the village will be able to escape!"

Ai Yi smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'm familiar with this road. Even if we are discovered by Neizhou, we can run away with our eyes closed."

After calculating the right position, Ayi jumped directly from the window to the downstairs, called Ayun and Along over, and asked them to gather people and prepare for the ceremony.

The sacrifice prepared by Ai was much simpler than the authentic sacrifice of the Shang Dynasty. The ceremony was as simple as possible, and the offerings were just some river fish, shrimps, corn and rice.

The most important part is dancing. Li Banfeng is quite familiar with the songs and dances of Hulu Village. Unlike those in Baishun County, most of the dancers in Hulu Village are women, and their dancing moves are very graceful.

But today's dance was contrary to the norm. Among the dancers, half were men and half were women, and their dancing was vigorous, powerful and majestic.

Li Banfeng was wondering who choreographed this dance, but he saw a strange man on the stage leading the dance for everyone.

This man's dancing posture was the most relaxed and his rhythm was very well controlled, but Li Banfeng always felt that something was not right about him.

After opening his golden eyes and carefully observing for a moment, Li Banfeng said to Ayi, "Isn't this man leading the dance a living person?"

Ayi didn't like what she heard: "How can he not be alive? We brought him back from Bocheng, and he is now a resident of Hulu Village."

Li Banfeng knew who it was, it was a stone monster.

The stone monster was originally a first-class weapon responsible for guarding the altar, but now he has eaten the puppet made for him by Ayi and turned into a handsome and strong young man. It was he who taught the sacrificial dance of the Shang Kingdom to the people of Hulu Village.

After dancing for more than half an hour, the carpet in the center of the stage suddenly cracked and dirt gushed out like a spring.

The villagers on the stage were so encouraged that they danced for nearly two hours, and the mud had piled up into a small hill.

Qiu Luoye looked happy and shouted, "Okay~"

Before he could even finish saying "OK", Ayi pinched Qiu Luoye's nose.

Qiu Luoye pushed Ayi away, rubbed his nose and said, "Crazy woman, do you want to suffocate me to death?"

Ayi felt that something was not right, so he asked everyone who was playing the piano and drums to stop, left a dozen people to prepare to unload the soil, and the rest went home.

Li Banfeng also sensed the danger: "Sister, have people from Neizhou discovered it?"

Ayi shook his head and said, "Not yet, but we'll find out soon. With this soil, we can make two hundred-li boundaries. Let's not be greedy today, let's withdraw first!"

Li Banfeng and Qiu Luoye returned to Ayi's room, and they drank a whole jar of wine.

Qiu Luoye smiled and said, "Seventh Brother, you must be happy now!"

Li Banfeng nodded and said, "It's great! Sister Ayi's work is really great!"

Qiu Luoye sighed, "Ayi is a good person. I respect her from the bottom of my heart. If she doesn't treat me as her daughter-in-law, it's okay for me to live with her for two years."

Ayi suddenly jumped in from the window and poked the elephant's forehead with her finger: "Is it not okay for me to treat you as my wife? I love you so much, what else can you complain about?"

Qiu Luoye smiled and took a leg of lamb for Ai.

Ai held the lamb leg and ate it clean in three or five bites. Then he wiped the grease from his mouth and waved at Qiu Luoye: "Bring the wine!"

Qiu Luoye quickly filled Ai's glass.

Ayi also drank a jar of wine, and when he was full, he prepared to take his men to unload the soil.

Qiu Luoye said, "Do you want to keep this land in Hulu Village? How big is Hulu Village? If you keep doing this, it will become the second Pro Province."

Upon hearing this, Ayi got angry: "Women, you have a long nose and little knowledge!"

Qiu Luoye was dissatisfied: "How can you say you are short-sighted?"

Ayi put down the wine bowl and said, "I made our family big, why? It's for you to follow me and enjoy the good life in the future!
Besides, I can’t keep all these lands. I have an agreement with the peddler that I have to give him half of them in the future. Now when I think about it, I feel sad!
This is all the wealth I saved for you, but you think it's too much. What's the point of marrying a spendthrift like you?"

The autumn leaves lowered their heads and said nothing.

Li Banfeng still couldn't understand: "Sister, you built the altar by just setting up a stage. There are so many capable people in Neizhou, but you said that this altar can't be repaired in a year, and it may even take three to five years. What's the reason?"

Aiyi scratched his head: "I don't really understand this either."

Qiu Luoye smiled and said, "You are short-sighted this time, aren't you? Neizhou is very particular about sacrifices. The ancients said that rituals are to the governance of a country like a scale to weight, a ruler to straightness, and a compass to squareness."

Ayi exclaimed: "My wife, this poem is well written!"

Qiu Luoye frowned: "What kind of poem is this? This is the Book of Rites, which says that etiquette is very important."

Li Banfeng was very surprised. In his impression, Qiu Luoye had a limited vocabulary, so how could he speak such a sentence so fluently?
"Brother Qiu, when did you read The Book of Rites?"

Qiu Luoye shook his head and said, "I can't understand it by looking at it, but I have heard from others that when I was in Neizhou, I worked as a laborer in Bocheng and learned a lot about the rules of etiquette.
Neizhou attaches great importance to etiquette. They have a lot of particularities in sacrificial ceremonies. It is not enough to just set up a platform.
The altar was blown up, and I guess they have to rebuild it exactly as it was, otherwise it would be against the etiquette and laws of their ancestors.

Think about the craftsmanship of their altar, every brick and tile, every stroke and every painting, if everything needs to be restored, three years is not too much time. "

Ayi poured Qiu Luoye a glass of wine, pinched Qiu Luoye's nose, and said softly: "My wife, the way you study is really pleasing."

Qiu Luoye drank the wine, and his face felt a mixture of emotions.

When it comes to studying, he is very happy.

But calling him "wife" doesn't sound pleasant to him.

Qiu Luoye’s explanation does make some sense, but Li Banfeng feels that things are not that simple.

No matter how much Shangguo cares about etiquette, Qiao Yi is a pragmatic person after all. The new land is the core means for Neizhou to control Prozhou. Logically, he should make an altar first.

Now he is almost driving himself sick because of the altar. Can't there be a workaround for this matter?

Is the news that Luo Lijun got from Neizhou true or false?
If it is fake, take precautions early.

If it's true, here's the opportunity!
Ayi looked at the fallen leaves and liked them more and more: "I'll go unload the soil now, you wash up at home and wait for me to come back."

Qiu Luoye choked on the wine, shook his head and said, "It's not convenient today."

Ayi's face darkened: "In the first three years, you were inconvenienced every day. In the next three years, you said it was inconvenient again. Now that you are married, you are inconvenienced every day. When are you going to be inconvenienced?
You asked me to let the White Crane Gang go, why didn't I say it was inconvenient? You asked me to help you save Qiqiu City, why didn't I say it was inconvenient? I'm telling you, if you say it's inconvenient again today, don't blame me for being ruthless to you! "

Qiu Luoye drank the wine in the bowl and said to Li Banfeng: "Seventh Brother, you heard what I said. If I risk my life here today, you must give me justice in the future!"

Seeing that both of them were serious, Li Banfeng quickly advised Qiu Luoye: "Brother Qiu, just give in."

Qiu Luoye waved his hand and said, "Don't worry about it. It's not what you think. You don't know what she is going to do!"

……

The next day, Li Banfeng left Hulu Village. When he walked downstairs, he saw Ayi washing clothes.

Qiu Luoye was injured and couldn't get out of bed for the time being.

Ayi also felt wronged. While washing clothes, she complained: "What's the point of marrying a wife who is not allowed to be touched?"

Li Banfeng left quickly. He really couldn't understand what was going on here.

After leaving Hulu Village, Li Banfeng went straight to the General Administration of Customs. He had to get to the bottom of the matter at Santoucha.

"General Liao, you sent so many people to Santoucha, what are you going to do?"

Liao Zihui poured a cup of tea for Li Banfeng: "Did Dean Li ask this question? Or did Master Qi ask this question? Or did my brother ask this question?"

"Brother Liao, please tell me the truth."

Liao Zihui smiled and said, "Brother, the reason why I sent people to Santoucha is because I heard that something happened in Neizhou."

"What happened?"

Liao Zihui drank tea and said, "The altar in Bocheng was blown up, and Qiao Yi was so angry that he is now seriously ill and I am afraid he will not live long."

People in other states also got news about Qiao Yi, so it seems that this matter is true.

Li Banfeng made some tentative attempts to find out how much information Liao Zihui had. "How could Qiao Yi be forced to this extent? The altar was gone, why didn't he build a new one?"

Liao Zihui shook his head slightly: "I don't know much about this matter. Logically speaking, brother, you are the prince of Neizhou, so you should know more.
I think Qiao Yi must want to build another altar, but he may not be able to control this matter. I am afraid that the situation in Neizhou will change.
A new official has three things to do when he takes office. I am afraid that Neizhou will attack Purozhou if the master changes. I sent people to Santoucha to step up the guard. I also sent more people to Tiewangang. "

Liao Zihui, this old fox, really thinks long-term.

Qiao Yi is almost losing control of the situation in Shang State.

"This might actually work!" Li Banfeng smiled.

Liao Zihui was stunned: "Brother, what's going to happen?"

"Good news!" Li Banfeng smiled even more happily.

After returning to Suishenju, Li Banfeng picked up Honglian and said, "Hua Jiuer, help me make a deed. It must be the most ruthless one."

Honglian opened her lotus leaves and stroked Li Banfeng's cheek: "It's not easy to make a contract like this."

Li Banfeng touched Lian Xin and said, "I know it's not easy, but as long as you do it well, I will definitely not treat you unfairly."

Honglian smiled and said, "I believe you. I'll be waiting for the delivery in three days."

Hong Ying looked at the scene with a bad taste in her mouth: "Xiao Wan, are they hooking up?"

The record player just laughed it off and didn't take it seriously.

Tang Dao also laughed: "My lord, you don't have enough Yang Qi, even if you hook up, it won't work. It's just a pity for the marshal and the general, I'm afraid they will have a hard time in the future."

Hong Ying was silent for a moment, then started a fire and placed the Tang sword on the fire, burning it red. Li Banfeng took out some white paper, wrote and drew, and made a mind map.

"Madam, can you understand this?"

The lady looked at it for a long time, and used a stylus to sort out her thoughts on the picture: "My husband, this is a good method, but there are still some hidden dangers."

Li Banfeng nodded and said, "There are indeed hidden dangers. The key is not before the event, but after the event is completed."

The wife agreed: "After the incident, it is indeed difficult to deal with. It is not that it is difficult for my husband to deal with it, but it is difficult for them to smooth things over. Please let me think about it carefully."

……

That night, Li Banfeng ran back to Yuezhou.

He didn't go to the Dark Star Bureau, he returned to his residence.

In the shady room, several ghosts were playing cards to kill time. When they saw Li Banfeng coming back, they quickly put away the cards.

These ghosts were brought back by Li Banfeng from the nightmare cultivator Jin Shunying. They have been living in Li Banfeng's house for some time, and occasionally go to the black market to do odd jobs for Tang Changfa.

Li Banfeng signaled everyone to relax: "You guys play, the play recruits women, come with me."

When they got to the room upstairs, Li Banfeng took out two Jinyuan Pills and handed them to Xi Zhaofu: "I have an important matter to ask you for help. This is my deposit for you."

Xi Zhaofu looked at the pills and said in surprise, "Is this a deposit? Master Qi, I can't afford this!"

"I can bear it. This is not an easy task. Let me show you the characteristics of this man first."

Li Banfeng first played a video on the projector.

……

After staying in Yuezhou for three days, Xizhaofu was taught very well.

Li Banfeng picked out some details and was directing the actress to practice recruiting women when the projector took out a simple phone and it was Ma Wu calling.

The Luo sisters asked Li Banfeng to go to Wubian City again, saying that they had important matters to discuss.

Li Banfeng had already guessed what was going on. He asked Tang Changfa to get a top-quality ghost servant container from Yin Si Niang. He took Xi Zhaofu with him and went to the soda kiln.

When he arrived at Wubian City, Li Banfeng met Nian Shangyou again.

Compared with the first time we met, Nian Shangyou has changed a lot. His cheeks are thinner, his wrinkles are deeper, and he looks a little haggard.

The light in his round eyes had dimmed a lot, his thick and long beard curled and drooped, and his temperament was much more humble than before.

"Your Highness, I have told my master about the price you proposed, and he said it is negotiable." Nian Shangyou's way of speaking has also changed a lot, and is now much more straightforward than before.

Li Banfeng sat on the chair, pinched his chin, nodded and said, "Then let's discuss it."

"Three first-class weapons, I agree."

"That's good." Li Banfeng was very satisfied.

"Twenty pieces of new land still need to be raised. Before the matter is completed, I will give you ten pieces first, and the remaining ten pieces will be supplemented after the matter is completed."

"It can be considered." Li Banfeng was a little dissatisfied.

"There is really nothing we can do about the matter of Master Train. This concerns the safety of the Great Shang State. I hope Your Majesty will be flexible."

Li Banfeng frowned and asked, "How do you want me to be accommodating?"

Nian Shangyou lowered his head and said softly, "Can you give me another price?"

Although Li Banfeng looked unhappy, this was actually within his expectations. If he wanted to exchange the train master, Li Banfeng did not have enough chips in his hand.

He was well prepared, but he still acted as if he was considering it over and over again.

After more than ten minutes, Li Banfeng spoke up: "Since I am the Prince of Pingyuan of Shang State, it is not too much to ask for a fiefdom, right?"

Nian Shangyou's heart tightened. This request was quite excessive.

The title of Prince Pingyuan was originally used to restrain Li Qi, but now that Li Qi asked for the fiefdom, it was like cutting a piece of meat from the Shang State.

But this is much better than letting the train father-in-law go. Nian Shangyou nodded slightly and said, "I will take note of this matter and discuss it with my master tomorrow."

Li Banfeng waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, I haven't said which fiefdom I want yet."

Nian Shangyou's beard trembled: "My Lord, which one do you want?"

Li Banfeng said: "I want Xiaocheng."

"Xiaodu?" Nian Shangyou opened his mouth wide, and all eight whiskers trembled together.

Xiaocheng, once the capital of the Shang State, was an immovable city not far from Chaoge and Bocheng.

"My Lord, can you please change this place?"

Li Banfeng didn't want to change: "What's wrong with Xiaocheng?"

"This..." After hesitating for a long time, Nian Shangyou simply spoke his mind, "Your Majesty, it's ok for you to hammer the nail, but you can't hammer it into the eye! Xiaocheng was once our capital!"

Li Banfeng thought it was quite appropriate: "Now it is no longer the capital, it would be quite suitable to confer a title of prince on me."

"This can't be said to be a good match..." Nian Shangyou's voice trembled, "How about this, can you consider having a moving city, like Wubian City."

"Moving the city is also good," Li Banfeng nodded, "We can discuss this."

Nian Shangyou showed a delighted look on his face: "You agreed?"

After careful consideration, Li Banfeng agreed: "As a prince, a piece of land is indeed a little too little for me. I will accept Xiaocheng and Dongcheng as well. Only in this way can I be worthy of the status of a prince."

Snapped!
Nian Shangyou slapped himself in the face.

Li Banfeng was stunned: "What are you doing?"

Nian Shangyou smiled bitterly: "It's okay, my palms are itchy, so I scratched them with my face. Your Majesty, is this matter really not going to ease up?"

Li Banfeng picked up the teacup and said, "If you don't want to give me the fiefdom, then release the train master. Isn't the relief I gave you enough?"

Nian Shangyou clasped his fists and said, "Goodbye."

Seeing Nian Shangyou leave in anger again, Luo Lijun didn't know how to persuade him.

Luo Yanjun was more open-minded: "Sister, there's no need to persuade him. He will definitely come back."

Luo Lijun was puzzled: "How can you be so sure?"

Luo Yanjun looked back at the East Courtyard: "I'm not sure, but Seventh Brother is sure."

Luo Lijun shook her head and said, "How can he be sure? He is just asking for an exorbitant price. He doesn't even know who Nian Shangyou belongs to!"

Luo Yanjun said: "I think Seventh Brother already knows."

……

Qiao Yi, Zhu Jin and Xie Gong took a boat to Bocheng.

When he arrived at the Nine-Layer Gate and took a look at the altar, Qiao Yi almost fainted.

Compared to the last time he came to see it, the altar was still in ruins, with almost no changes.

He had been planning for decades to take over Prostate, and the key to taking over Prostate was the new land.

Now that the altar had been blown up, he had accepted the fact.

However, he ordered the altar to be rebuilt, but the Ministry of Works has not started work yet, and he cannot accept this result.

"Is the Ministry of Industry openly defying orders?"

Zhu Jin said nothing.

Xie Gong explained: "The Ministry of Works did a lot of work. They counted the stones, measured the land, and found the construction method of the altar..."

"Thank you for the hard work of the Ministry of Works!" Qiao Yi gritted his teeth in anger, "Ask the Minister of Works to come to Bocheng to see me."

Zhu Jin lowered his head and said nothing.

Xie Gong said, "Brother, don't you remember? The Minister of Works was summoned the day before yesterday, but he said he had caught a cold and didn't come to see you."

"Cold?" Qiao Yi smiled. "This excuse is so casual. He really underestimates me!"

Xie Gong sighed: "The altar was destroyed, and many people in the court have criticized my brother."

"It's not their turn to tell me what to do, it's not their turn!" Qiao Yi coughed for a long time and passed out.

Xie Gong and Zhu Jin each took over half of the body and returned to their residence.

After sending the others away, Zhu Jin said to Xie Gong, "Second brother, didn't you go too far with the altar?"

"If you don't do something, will you still be able to see this letter?" Xie Gong handed the letter to Zhu Jin.

Last night, Zhu Jin and Qiao Yi both fell asleep, and Xie Gong was the only one awake. Nian Shangyou asked someone to give him the letter.

After reading the letter, Zhu Jin frowned and said, "Li Qi is getting more and more aggressive. We can't let him go!"

"What will happen if we don't let him go? Is there anyone else who can accomplish it?"

Zhu Jin was shocked: "Second brother, are you really going to give him the title of Xiao?"

Xie Gong said expressionlessly: "Otherwise, should we let the locomotive go? If he takes away a few first-class weapons, how can we fight against Prozhou in the future?"

While speaking, Xie Gong coughed a few times.

Zhu Jin hesitated for a moment and said, "I think we need to think about this matter carefully."

Xie Gong said angrily, "Do we still need to take the long view? He is so stubborn. If we delay any further, our lives will be in jeopardy."

While speaking, Xie Gong's breathing became a little rapid, and Zhu Jin also felt a little dizzy.

Because of Qiao Yi, their physical condition was extremely worrying.

"Forget it, I'll just listen to my second brother, but when it's done, how are we going to face the ministers?"

Xie Gong took a breath and said, "After the matter is done, we will use illusion to cover it up for a while. When we ascend the throne, we brothers will jointly rule the country. At that time, the ministers will not be able to say anything!"

PS: Thanks to the leader Naya, this is my second leader. Cuitik stood on the top of Daogui Ridge and blew the horn of war for you.

(End of this chapter)