Qin Jingqing stood on the bow of the ship. A strong wind blew in his face, rustling the corners of his clothes. He looked towards the other side with great ambition. The prosperous Luodu was right in front of him!
Along the way, Qin Jingqing's thoughts kept lingering on that night when Yingping suddenly visited. That night, Mr. Qin burst into tears. First, he worshiped three pillars of incense devoutly in front of the Bodhisattva at home, and then ran to the ancestor's memorial tablet to pay his respects to his ancestors. He kept chanting that the spirits of his ancestors and ancestors were in heaven, and finally blessed the descendants of the Qin family. Fuck a noble man.
Thinking of his old father's excitement, Qin Jingqing felt even heavier. In recent years, the Qin family has been deteriorating. Mr. Qin has been running around for the future of his only son, spending a lot of money to organize and move around, and even sold the shops left by his ancestors, but what will happen in the end? The money spent was worse than the stones thrown into the water, without even a splash rising.
Seeing his aging father always running around for him, Qin Jingqing felt deeply guilty, so this time Yingping came to ask him to come to Luodu, and he nodded and agreed without thinking.
Although he was working for the emperor, Qin Jingqing understood that things were not as simple as they seemed, and he was not as lucky as his father imagined. Although Yingping is the emperor, his current situation is very bad. Not only the officials in the court know this, but even the public is not shy about talking about it.
Then why would he risk his own career to work for a puppet emperor?
In fact, he has considered these things, and the reason that drove him to finally make the choice to follow Yingping is very simple, because if you want to bet, bet big! Nowadays, everything in the Tang Dynasty is decided by the Wang family. This pattern and the network carefully woven by the Wang family are almost impossible to break. In other words, if you want to integrate into this system now, it is even harder than climbing to the sky. Even if you integrate I'm afraid he is also a dispensable little person.
So how can Qin Jingqing get everything he dreams of?
Ying Ping's initiative to come to your door is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, because everyone knows how to add the icing on the cake, but it is rare to offer help in times of need! What's more, even if he failed during his trip to Luodu, there didn't seem to be much loss. If you want to be the best among people, you can only bet on Yingping's ability to change the current adversity.
Qin Jingqing believed in Yingping subjectively. During the time he spent with Yingping, he deeply felt the uneasiness in the status quo deep in Yingping's soul. Combined with Yingping's strong push for new laws later, Qin Jingqing could Yingping must have a great ambition - he cannot establish without breaking. Since he wants to be a master, he must take practical actions to help Yingping break the current unfavorable situation! Of course, the most important point is that the emperor of the Tang Dynasty was not the Queen Mother or Wang Yanqing, but Yingping! Yingping represents orthodoxy, and orthodoxy means the right way. If you do things for Yingping, you are doing justice for heaven!
Thinking of this, an unprecedented sense of responsibility and mission arises spontaneously, as if the future of the entire Datang Dynasty rests on his shoulders!
Qin Jingqing closed his eyes and took a deep breath. At this moment, in front of him was no longer the prosperous Luodu, but mountains of swords, seas of fire, and thousands of troops! But he was not afraid at all, because he knew that only by crossing these mountains and seas and killing these horses could he win everything he wanted! Only Yingping can regain power! Only then can order in the Tang Dynasty be restored! Only the pattern of the Central Plains will be...
"Brother—brother—"
The boatman's call with a thick accent interrupted Qin Jingqing's thoughts without mercy.
Qin Jingqing was quite unhappy that his lofty sentiments were abruptly interrupted. He opened his eyes and looked back at the dark-skinned boatman inexplicably. He suppressed the unhappiness in his heart and asked, "What are you doing!?"
When the boatman saw Qin Jingqing's sulky look, he became furious. He threw the oar hard and shouted loudly: "You still can't get off the boat? You can even burn incense and don't lift your feet even after reaching the shore!" Will it not delay me from picking up the next wave of boat passengers?"
"I'm leaving now...what are you yelling about...how can anyone do this kind of business..."
Seeing that the muscular boatman seemed to be rushing towards him, Qin Jingqing's momentum immediately waned. He involuntarily took a few steps back and almost tripped over the wood on the dock.
"Tch - crossing the river is like a naval expedition -" Seeing Qin Jingqing stumble away, the boatman shook his head disdainfully.
Qin Jingqing did not bother with the boatman, held his hat and left cursing, walking towards the city.
…
Qin Jingqing had no time to appreciate the prosperity of Luodu. After more than an hour of wandering around, Qin Jingqing finally arrived at the location Ji Si told him - a heavily guarded military camp. Perhaps due to the turbulent situation, the entire barracks was filled with a serious and tense atmosphere.
Where has Qin Jingqing seen such a battle? He calmed down and plucked up the courage to walk towards the barracks gate.
Seeing an unidentified person appear in front of him, the guard pointed his spear at the incoming man cautiously and shouted loudly: "Stop——"
Qin Jingqing was startled and froze in place. Seeing the fierce look on the guard's face, he put on a smile and shouted: "Master, I am..."
"Why are you laughing! Did I ask you to speak?" Before Qin Jingqing could finish speaking, the guard scolded him with a louder voice.
Qin Jingqing was extremely embarrassed, unable to stand still or walk away.
At this moment, a powerful general wearing armor came out of the camp. It seemed that the movement outside the camp attracted his attention. This person seemed to have a very high status, and the guards were extremely respectful when they saw him.
"Who are you?"
The general's voice was very calm, giving people a feeling of calmness and authority.
"May I ask if this is General Meng?" Seeing that this man was not as fierce as the guard, Qin Jingqing relaxed a little.
The general did not answer, but stared at Qin Jingqing coldly, his eyes so sharp that Qin Jingqing felt uncomfortable all over.
"I'm asking you a question! Who are you!?" The guard yelled again.
"I...I came from Chang'an...I have something important to come to see General Meng Yong..."
"Do you understand what people say!? My general is asking you -"
Before the guard finished speaking, the general's cold eyes shone with a glimmer of light. He raised his hand, and the guard immediately shut up.
"What are the people from New Tang doing here?" the general asked in confusion.
"May I ask where General Meng is? If I see General Meng, I will tell you."
"General Meng, can you just meet him whenever you want?" the general said lightly, his tone full of disdain.
"No? Well, farewell -"
After saying that, Qin Jingqing turned around and left.
"Stop! Isn't this the center of the barracks where you can come and leave whenever you want!?" Seeing that Qin Jingqing was about to leave, the guard stepped forward and stopped him with a spear.
Qin Jingqing laughed angrily and said: "Humph - if your master hadn't asked me to come here, even if he invited me in a big sedan chair, I would not have come to this damn place! Get out of the way -"
Qin Jingqing wanted to push the spear away, but the guard was so strong that he couldn't push it away at all.
"Master? Who do you mean by 'master'?" The general's eyes became suspicious.
"Who else could it be? Isn't it your wife Zhou Chen who is in exile..."
Before Qin Jingqing could say "Prince Ji Si", the general's eyes suddenly widened. He stared at Qin Jingqing, drew out the sharp sword from his waist and pointed it at him, shouting inexplicably——
"Here comes someone! Take this person and take him to the camp!"
Before Qin Jingqing could react, he saw a group of soldiers rushing out of the camp. They pushed Qin Jingqing to the ground with all their hands and feet. They first stuffed his mouth with a piece of rag, then tied him up and restrained him. Finally, this group of soldiers put Qin Jingqing on the ground. He shouldered his whole body and ran towards the barracks.
Qin Jingqing struggled as hard as he could, but no matter how hard he tried, there was no effect except the sound of "woo woo".
After a while, the soldiers took him into a tent and threw him heavily to the ground. The general looked at the disgraced Qin Jingqing and kicked him several times without saying a word. The sound of "Woo" in Qin Jingqing's mouth instantly changed from struggling to moaning.
Seeing that Qin Jingqing was a little scared, the general bent down and pulled out the rag from his mouth, stared at him with cold eyes, and asked in a low voice: "Say! Where is Ji Si?"
Qin Jingqing coughed twice and said with difficulty: "If I don't see Meng Yong...I won't tell you until I die——"
"You still have a tough mouth." The general's eyes became colder. He looked at Qin Jingqing who looked like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered and smiled coldly. Suddenly, he stood up, picked up the sharp sword in his hand, and said to the soldier next to him: "Pick him up! Press him on the table -"
Qin Jingqing felt that something was wrong. At this moment, he ignored the pain and shouted loudly: "What are you going to do!?"
But why would these soldiers care so much about him? Without saying a word, he lifted him up and then pressed his body firmly on the table, leaving only his head hanging in the air.
"I will count to ten. If you still don't reveal Ji Si's whereabouts, then your head will be -"
Qin Jingqing looked at the general in horror, as if a human head was like killing a chicken or a duck to him.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven——"
"General Meng! General Meng! I want to see Meng Yong!" Qin Jingqing sat struggling for the last time. He only hoped that Meng Yong could suddenly appear and save him.
"Six, five, four——"
It's over, it's over... Qin Jingqing was completely devastated, thinking that this was probably where his life would end.
"Three! Two! One!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the sharp sword in the general's hand struck Qin Jingqing hard!
Qin Jingqing's expression was distorted and he was about to cry. All the past flashed through his mind at this moment. His parents, his wife, his daughter...as well as Yingping and Ye Changshan, etc., he thought During this trip to Luodu, he could seek wealth and honor in danger, but he didn't expect that he would lose his life here. Thinking of this, Qin Jingqing couldn't help but feel sad and angry, and two lines of hot tears flowed down his cheeks.
'Clang--'
Qin Jingqing was awakened by a crisp sound, which seemed to be caused by a sharp sword hitting the ground.
Qin Jingqing closed his eyes tightly and felt that the surroundings were completely quiet, as if his soul had separated from this world. But then, he suddenly felt the rope that bound him loosen, and then his whole body was lifted up by a pair of strong hands.
"Meng Mou was offended just now. I hope you will forgive me."
Qin Jingqing opened his eyes in disbelief, and saw the general looking at him with a smile, with an indescribable kindness in his eyes, which was very different from the ruthlessness just now.
"You...you are..." Qin Jingqing was in shock. If someone hadn't supported him, he might not have been able to stand up.
"I am none other than Meng Yong."
"Then...then why did you just...just now..."
Meng Yong sighed heavily and said helplessly: "Hey, there are changes in the country, officials are usurping, the rules are often out of line, and the prince is displaced. In such troubled times, how can a general be careless?"
