Thief Emperor

Chapter 996 South and North

To put it bluntly, the dispute between Li Yun and Yuan Zhengming back then was about who should be the leader of Cangshan Village.

This might have been a big deal back then, but looking back now, it is no longer worth mentioning.

Li Yun is narrow-minded, but for Yuan Zhengming's family, they have watched Zhou Liang's family rise to prominence over the years but have not been able to achieve their goal. For them, this is already the best punishment.

What really bothered Li Yun was that when he was serving as an official in the court under the alias Li Zhao, someone did reveal his true identity in private. At that time, not many people knew his identity. Obviously, this was done by someone in the old village.

Later, after Li Yun became the King of Wu, his elder brother Li Feng was also sought out by these people. Their purpose in seeking Li Feng back was very simple, which was to hope that after Li Feng became successful, he would also lead them.

However, Li Feng was very sensible and did not cause trouble for Li Yun, nor did he contact these people in the old village again.

Yuan Zhengming had already shown his old age at this time. He looked at Li Yun, was silent for a long time, and then sighed: "Your Majesty, there are no outsiders here. This old man will still call you Erlang."

He paused and continued, "Some people did say nonsense in private back then, but it has nothing to do with those of us sitting here."

"As for looking for Dalang to come back, it was because at that time, Erlang was already in a high position and had great power, and we also wanted to find a helper for Erlang."

His Majesty the Emperor waved his hand, signaling Yuan Zhengming not to continue. He glanced at everyone and said, "After all, we are old family members. Many of you have watched me grow up. Now that we have reached this point, I should indeed give you a place to settle down."

He paused and continued, "I have discussed this with my uncle over the past two days, and we have almost reached an agreement. There are already quite a few people in the town at the foot of Cangshan Mountain, enough to build a city. Later, the court will order the establishment of Cangshan County and the construction of Cangshan County City."

He looked at everyone and said, "When the county town is built, you will all live in the city. When the time comes, the government will give your family a house."

"From now on, each of your families can send two people, one of whom will serve in the imperial mausoleum and guard it."

"Another person."

His Majesty the Emperor glanced at Zhou Liang and continued, "The other person can report to Third Uncle. Third Uncle will arrange for him to join the army. At least he will have a job."

"I dare not say anything else."

His Majesty the Emperor knocked on the table and said, "As long as the new court exists, your job of guarding the imperial mausoleum will exist and can be passed down from generation to generation."

"Although it's not a life of luxury, it's enough to ensure that everyone has a job for generations."

After Emperor Li finished speaking, the dozen or so people present looked at each other, and finally stood up and bowed their heads to the emperor.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Zhou Liang also stood up, hesitated for a moment, then bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, I would also like to ask for the job of guarding the mausoleum for generations."

Emperor Li looked at him in surprise and said with a smile, "Third uncle's family has been a duke for generations, why do you want this job?"

"It's not easy to work in the court."

Zhou Liang took a deep breath and bowed his head, saying, "I still have my son, so he probably won't make any big mistakes, but the future generations might get confused and make mistakes. When that happens, I beg Your Majesty to leave them a way out."

Zhou Liang knelt on the ground, bowed his head and said: "Even if the entire Zhou family is wiped out, please let my son return to Cangshan to guard the ancestral tomb for Your Majesty..."

Emperor Li looked at him, silent for a while, then reached out and helped him up, sighing, "Now is the time for our two families to get along well, Third Uncle really thinks long-term."

"That's all."

The emperor patted Zhou Liang on the shoulder and said sternly, "I've made note of this. When I return to Luoyang, I'll have someone write this down and keep it in the palace."

He thought for a moment and continued, “I will definitely be lenient to your family during this reign, but the affairs of future generations will have to be left to future generations.”

Li Yun meant what he said.

He knew very well that even though he was the supreme ruler of the world, and his word was final and he could accomplish whatever he wanted, he was still a mortal after all.

In the face of time, it is not worth mentioning.

When the day comes when he is gone and closes his eyes, he will not be able to control what others want to do in the future.

Zhou Liang shed tears and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, thank you, Your Majesty!"

"All right."

The emperor waved his hand and said, "Drink, drink."

…………Just when His Majesty the Emperor returned home in glory and reminisced with his fellow villagers, a fierce battle was taking place on the front battlefield.

At this time, Meng Qing left a part of his troops to guard Yuguan Pass to ensure that the Khitans inside the pass had no way to escape. In addition, he also sent a part of his troops to the outside of the pass and was fighting the Khitans in Liaodong.

This time when the troops entered the outer reaches of the Great Wall, even Meng Qing did not think that he could wipe out the Khitans in one fell swoop, but the commander-in-chief of the Hebei Road Army also had his own ideas.

Regardless of whether the main force of the Khitans can be destroyed or not, it would be a gain even if we just set foot on the land outside the Great Wall.

After all, for a long time in the future, perhaps three to five years, or even ten to twenty years, their army will probably have to engage in a tug-of-war with the Khitans on the land of Liaodong.

At this time, knowing more about the terrain and situation in Liaodong will be beneficial for the future.

In the central military tent, Meng Qing sat in his seat and looked at the two Khitan women, a boy and two girls standing in his tent.

After watching for a long time, he turned his head to look at the Duke of England Liu Bo sitting in the tent, and said with a smile: "Ninth brother is really amazing."

Liu Bo was extremely thick-skinned. He didn't even blush or gasp when he heard the words. He just spoke a few words in Khitan to the two women and his children, and they nodded and went down to rest.

After they left, Liu Bo said, "The Wugu tribe has been dispersed by Yelu Yi, and the Shiwei tribe of the Khitan tribes outside the Great Wall has also been severely damaged by Yelu Yi."

"However, Yeluyi himself is not feeling well either."

Liu Bo said softly: "It's a pity that it's already autumn, otherwise this would be a great opportunity to destroy the main force of the Khitan."

Autumn may mean coolness for people inside the Great Wall, but for people outside the Great Wall, it means a sharp drop in temperature soon.

But when winter really comes, southern soldiers like those under Meng Qing's command will have no combat effectiveness at all.

We can only take a truce and continue fighting next spring.

Meng Qing also understood this truth. He nodded silently and asked, "Ninth Brother, how many people can you gather from the Wugu tribe?"

"A few thousand."

Liu Bo sighed and said, "Yelü Yi is too cruel."

The two chatted about the Khitans for a while. Liu Bo remembered something and said with a smile, "By the way, His Majesty has returned to Xuanzhou."

"At this moment, he is probably in Qingyang."

Both of them are from Xuanzhou. Until now, they are still not used to the name Qingyang Prefecture, so they have always used the old name.

Meng Qing was a little envious and said, "I also want to go back to Xuanzhou to take a look."

Liu Bo smiled and said, "After this battle, I will take you and my brothers back to our hometown to have a look."

Meng Qing smiled and said yes.

Liu Bo talked to him for a few more words, then suddenly remembered something and asked, "Where is the Second Prince now? Is there anything wrong?"

"The Second Prince is still in the scout camp."

Meng Qing praised, "Second Prince, you are really good. In just a few months, he has almost become the captain of the scout battalion with his own achievements. If he keeps working hard, it won't be long before he can become a lieutenant in the army."

"The general's son was also in his team. After the two of them got together, they even teamed up to kill several Khitans."

During this period, Liu Bo had been outside the Great Wall and had already left Meng Qing's central army. He was a little surprised when he heard this. He looked at Meng Qing and warned him, "Second Prince, please don't make any mistakes. Otherwise, when we go back, we won't be able to see His Majesty, let alone the Imperial Concubine."

Meng Qing nodded and was about to speak when the central army tent was suddenly opened and Su Zhan hurried in. He clasped his fists to Meng Qing and then to Liu Bo before saying, "General, the scout team that the Second Prince is with has lost contact!"

"They were ordered to advance deep into Liaodong, and there has been no news for a whole day."

Meng Qing stood up suddenly and looked at Liu Bo, who also stood up slowly.

General Meng was silent for a while, then looked at Su Zhan: "Brother."

"I'll give you a captain battalion..."

"You go find them."

(End of this chapter)