After dinner, Yang Ji and Xiao Ying walked hand in hand in the back garden. The moonlight in early November was not very bright, but the two of them did not light the lamp or ask the girl to leave. They just walked side by side in the quiet night.
When they arrived at a cluster of blooming orchids, they felt the fragrance fragrant and felt relaxed and happy. Yang Ji took Xiao Ying and sat down among the flowers. Xiao Ying was about to sit down on the stone bench next to Yang Ji, but Yang Ji, who sat down first, stretched out her hand and sat in his arms.
Xiao Ying is very tender towards Yang Ji, asking for and taking everything. She raised her hips and sat on her husband's lap. She just glanced around furtively, and when she saw no one was around, she put her hands around his neck.
"I haven't had such a peaceful life for a long time." Yang Ji put his hand around his wife's slender waist and gently stroked his smooth and strong thigh with the other hand. He looked at the sparkling lake not far away and said, "Since then Since I became an official, I have been caring about state affairs, participating in state affairs, leading troops to fight, calculating enemies, practicing martial arts and reading military books. Apart from these, my life seems to have nothing else."
It is often said that a boy becomes a man only after experiencing a woman. Marriage will make a man mature quickly, because he has to run a household on his own, take on the role that his father originally played, and grow into a towering tree to shelter his family from wind and rain. What about war?
A war that focuses on killing can change a man completely in the mountains of corpses and seas of blood. A war is like a new life. And each war also made this man understand the preciousness of life and the preciousness of relatives...
In the past, Yang Ji always had a sunny smile on his face. He was as tall and straight as a gun, giving people a sharp-edged, domineering and arrogant feeling. People could notice this energetic, handsome young man at a glance. Prince.
Now, there is still a smile on his face, but the smile is restrained and reserved. It is not as bright as the summer sun, but like wisps of soft moonlight. His waist is still straight and unyielding, but it is no longer a sharp spear, but a magic sword with the edge hidden in the sheath.
The change in Yang Ji's mentality made Yang Ji full of gratitude to his uncle who drove him to become an official and to fight on the battlefield. If his uncle hadn't forced him to do so, he would still be an ignorant and naive young man even after getting married.
"Mr. Lang, are you still worried about the military examination?" Xiao Ying was attentive. She felt that her brother Xiao Jue's visit made her husband a little absent-minded.
"Yes!" Yang Ji nodded lightly. Although he gave Xiao Jue a fairer selection method and solved Xiao Jue's crisis, the trouble was thrown to Yang Guang again.
Since ancient times, the emperor has played the role of a distributor of interests. Once the emperor can satisfy all the forces sitting down and talking, then the world will be peaceful; if he cannot satisfy all the forces, the world will be turbulent and undercurrent. But Yang Guang is obviously not such an emperor. His style is "I can give it to whomever I like. If I don't give it, you can't take it away."
Yang Guang's purpose in holding the military examination was to meritocracy, to dilute the muddy waters of the army with warriors from poor families, and then dilute the influence of the Guanlong nobles in the army, so that the majority of the generals changed from a simple Guanlong relationship to a Diversity of generals. When he heard that he had given Xiao Jian the recipe, he would definitely implement it like this.
The ministers who were dissatisfied with the small number of seats in the A list were originally looking for loopholes in the B list and tried every means to insert their own children. If they had no loopholes to exploit in the dark, they would turn darkness into light and play openly and openly with Yang Guang in the court. But Yang Guang had already given in on the A list, how could he give in again on the B list?
In the long run, non-compromise is to spread the awakening concept of meritocracy and equality to the whole world. It is to open a new door for people. It is also a huge progress in the employment system. In the end, no matter whether it is successful or not, People all know that there is such a thing, and based on this thing, they strive for fairness from generation to generation.
However, failure to make concessions will hurt the immediate situation and cause discord and conflicts between the monarch and his ministers. If after Yang Guang successfully held the martial arts examination, he couldn't wait to promote the imperial examination, he would suddenly become enemies with the famous families in the world.
"Didn't Lang Jun already tell brother the solution?" Xiao Ying hesitated and said in a soft voice: "Besides, this is a matter for the imperial court and the Ministry of War. Lang Jun is the shepherd of Liangzhou, why do you worry so much?"
Yang Ji pretended to be angry and said, "Are you saying that I am a dog chasing mice and meddling in other people's business?"
"You said it yourself, I didn't." Xiao Ying smiled sweetly, leaned against him gently, and pressed her cheek against his strong arm. She felt infinitely satisfied in her heart, and her peace and joy were indescribable. She said softly: "Langjun doesn't have the shackles of being a Beijing official. I think Langjun is like a fish in water in the local area. You should no longer think about the affairs of the court now, but should think about how you want to be a good pastor of Liangzhou."
Yang Ji hugged his wife's slender waist tightly, pecked her ear gently, and said with a smile: "Do you know why I made friends with Shan Xiongxin, Qin Qiong and others?"
Xiao Ying raised her head and looked at her husband with sparkling eyes: "I don't know them, but Rumei said that you seem to have a good conversation with them."
"There are so many people I can talk to now." Yang Ji smiled brightly, looked at Xiao Ying, and continued: "But why don't I talk to Yang Xuangan, Changsun Sheng, Shi Xiang, Tu Wanxu and others? ?To make friends with these low-level warriors?"
"Why?" Yang Jizhi asked, which was actually what made Xiao Ying curious. Although it is said that all the famous generals in ancient times were polite and virtuous corporals, but as a prince and Liangzhou shepherd, my husband interacted with unknown and ordinary warriors; today, even for these people who had conflicts in the past, he would not hesitate to She fell out with Yang Xian, the king of Yuzhang, which not only puzzled her, but also made her feel deeply unworthy of her husband.
To put it simply, she felt that the effort was not proportional to the gain; even if these people were loyal to their husbands, it was not worth it for Yang Ji to become an enemy of Yang Jian. What made her feel even more unworthy was that despite her husband's efforts, he was rejected by the white-eyed wolf named Qin Qiong.
"Before I became an official, my uncle told me in Ganlu Hall that the armed forces of the Sui Dynasty were mainly composed of two major forces. The armed forces here were not only the army, but also the anti-Sui forces lurking among the people. The people were young and tough. Folk customs and other aspects.”
Yang Ji said slowly: "The first largest armed force is the Guanlong force, and the second largest armed force is the Shandong force: Yuwen Tai first established the Guanlong group before the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and Gao Huan established the Northern Qi Dynasty after gaining the Shandong force. The Guanlong force In fact, it is today's Guanlong nobles. Although they no longer have any dazzling figures in the court, their disciples, former officials, and descendants of former officials have controlled the Sui army from bottom to top; at the same time, Guan The Long nobles were the beneficiaries of the unification of the world. They seized various resources after the war, resulting in about half of the world's wealth and local official positions being divided up by the Guan and Long nobles."
"The Shandong forces were the losers in the unification war. After the fall of the Northern Qi Dynasty, they have been scattered among the people in the old areas of the Northern Qi Dynasty. The former ministers of the Northern Qi Dynasty have also become our local tycoons in the Sui Dynasty, Qin Qiong, Shan Xiongxin, Cheng Yaojin They are the continuation of the Shandong forces, and my interactions with them are actually interactions with the Shandong forces lurking among the people."
"Ah? Lang Jun, you, you, are you going to rebel?" Xiao Ying was frightened by her husband's words. All she wanted was her husband's love and a happy life. Maybe everything could be better and better. If the husband has rebellious thoughts, it will definitely bring huge disaster to the family.
"Yang Liang is a warning to careerists. How could I be stupid? I just want to make more friends..." Yang Ji felt his beloved wife in his arms trembling with fear, and the love and affection on her back.
Xiao Ying felt a little relieved after hearing this, but her beautiful eyes were still full of worry and confusion. She said worriedly: "But why does Lang Jun want to make friends with these representatives of Shandong forces? Will he be regarded by the saint in this way? Suspicious."
"If you say they are representatives of Shandong forces, then you think highly of them. If the world is peaceful, they are just local tyrants and ordinary warriors, and the saint will not pay much attention to these people. But if the world is in chaos, these People's family background and their influence in the local area will make it easy for them to attract a group of followers." Yang Ji kissed her soft and sweet lips gently and said, "If one day, The world is in chaos, and I have to make some choices, but by then it will be too late. Madam, if you don’t worry about the long term, you will have to worry about the near future."
Xiao Ying's eyes were full of worry, and she asked nervously: "According to Mr. Lang, will the Sui Dynasty be in chaos?"
"There are already signs of this!" Yang Ji sighed and said: "In just a few months after he ascended the throne, the saint launched three major actions: post-war liquidation, capital relocation, and military training against the Guanlong nobles. This can be regarded as a complete victory over the Guanlong nobles There was a falling out. If after arriving in Luoyang, he immediately opened another subject to obtain scholars, then he would fall out with the gentry again; during this period, if he built big projects like Changqian and Xindu that consumed people's energy, then he would cause another falling out. It will reduce the dissatisfaction of ordinary people. In this way, it will be difficult for the world to avoid chaos."
Yang Ji thought about what Yang Guang had done in history, and then said: "Actually, the saint's intentions are good and his purpose is good. The key is that he is too anxious, and he can't wait to do things that will happen hundreds of years later in one day. Well, if it’s steady, that’s good.”
Xiao Ying was silent for a long time and said softly: "Mr. Lang can persuade the saint to go step by step instead of offending so many people at once."
Yang Ji smiled bitterly and said: "The reason why the saint trusts me is because I am on the same side as him in terms of major policies. He regards me as a like-minded comrade and sharp sword. If I oppose him in major policies, he will feel closest to me." People also betrayed him. How much they trusted me before, they hated me afterwards. If I try to persuade him on these important matters, you will be a widow! Besides, I am finished, and it will not have any effect. "
Xiao Ying thought for a while and said worriedly: "But if the king doesn't persuade him, no one will do it, and then the Sui Dynasty will really move towards chaos step by step."
"Don't worry, I will naturally try my best to persuade you!" Yang Ji nodded: "But the premise is to keep my own life safe. I don't want my mother to bear the pain of losing her father when she was young, losing her husband when she was young, and losing her son when she was middle-aged. It’s painful, and I don’t want my lover to lose her husband.”
"This is the best thing." Xiao Ying was very conflicted in her heart. She wanted her husband to be a critic of the country, but she was also afraid that her husband would die because of being a critic. She felt relieved when her husband said this.
She thought for a while and then asked: "Since Langjun is worried about the chaos in the world and is planning to make friends in advance, why not select the Guanlong nobles? Don't you say that the Guanlong nobles are stronger and more powerful?"
Speaking of this, Xiao Ying shook her head and laughed at herself: "Oh, I'm so stupid! Since the saint suppressed the Guanlong nobles, how could Lang Jun be friends with the Guanlong nobles? Besides, He Ruobi was killed, and the Dugu family Yuan family Dou The liquidation of the Guanlong clan and the liquidation of the sons of the Guanlong nobles who rebelled against Yang Liang are all closely related to Lang Jun. The Guanlong nobles have long been at odds with Lang Jun, so naturally we cannot expect them to turn enemies into friends!"
Yang Ji praised: "My wife draws inferences from one example. She is really a wonderful woman with ice and snow, smart appearance and wisdom."
Xiao Ying was praised by her husband, and she lowered her head in embarrassment, and whispered in a low voice as if she wanted to take credit: "I'm not stupid to begin with. Isn't it my job to solve all those messy account books?"
"So you will continue to help me and face all challenges with me in the future." The reason why Yang Ji told his wife was to prepare her mentally. After all, signs of troubled times were already emerging, so he naturally had to make some preparations. If his wife, who was sleeping with him, also kept it secret, then who could he trust?
Besides, Xiao Ying is not blind or stupid. Even if Yang Ji doesn't say anything, how can she not hear and see? If she was allowed to play freely and come up with a completely different answer out of her wild imagination, it would be over. So he felt that if he wanted Xiao Ying to be his wife, he had to let her know how to help in advance!
"Yeah!" Xiao Ying's two beautiful eyes were like a pool of autumn water, and the sweetness and happiness inside were almost overflowing.
The nobles of the Sui Dynasty could not help their wives discussing political affairs. In order to let their wives and daughters understand their own situation and who their friends and enemies were, they would even teach them the context of current affairs and interests and forces, so as to prevent them from making any big mistakes.
Perhaps the only people who always act like men are the nobles who regard themselves as authentic Han people and do not wear Hu clothes or sit on Hu stools. Xiao Ying is a woman who grew up in a noble family, so she used to be cautious when she was in the Xiao family. Be cautious in your words and deeds, dare not laugh loudly, you are pitifully humble.
But women in the nobility are actually deeply bound by the worldview of male superiority and female inferiority. Their status in certain things and certain occasions is very humble. Yang Ji's move of clearly using his wife as a staff advisor and military adviser is seen by the outside world as an incompetent weakling who relies on his wife, which is a shame for men, so few men do this.
But Yang Ji, who has the soul of future generations and grew up in a family of strong women, thinks it is natural. The recognition and trust he clearly gave gave Xiao Ying a strong sense of mission, responsibility, and participation. She felt that she and her husband were truly one and the same, and her heart felt as sweet as honey. .
At this time, she remembered the banquet with Pei Shuying again, so she said: "Mr. Lang, I want to entertain guests, do you think it's okay?"
"You are the master of the back house, you can make your own decisions about these little things." Yang Ji's wife, Dugu Min, is fierce and domineering to the outside world, but within the palace, she is a sensible mother-in-law. Since Xiao Ying officially entered the palace , she gave up her positions as 'talker' and 'public relations manager' in the palace, officially pushing Xiao Ying to the front line of ladies' social occasions.
She herself took a back seat. On the one hand, she worked behind the scenes for Xiao Ying to train a new generation of heirs to the palace, and on the other hand, she devoted herself to running her business empire.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law have a clear division of labor and a tacit cooperation, which ensures the stability of the palace and business empire.
On the other hand, Yang Ji, the head of the family, had nothing to do all day long. Of course, it was not that he did not want to help, but that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law did not let Yang Ji get involved. They both believed that business was a lowly industry and running a family was a woman's business. Correspondingly, they thought that Yang Ji was a manly man whose duty was to control the officialdom and the battlefield. When he had nothing to do, he would read books and practice martial arts at home. If he was really free, it wouldn't hurt to invite a few friends to a brothel to listen to songs and pick up girls.
After Yang Ji showed his support, he asked casually: "Tomorrow?"
Xiao Ying said helplessly: "I originally planned to invite a few friends to a banquet tomorrow to reminisce about the past. It would be simple, but I found that it doesn't seem to be possible."
Yang Ji touched her head and said with a smile, "What's wrong?"
Xiao Ying sighed softly: "Since I married into the palace, others have invited us, the 'new couple'. When I wanted to return the invitation, I went to Liangzhou with you again. When I came back, first the late Emperor Bintian, and then the Yang Liang rebelled. Therefore, I, Princess Wei, still owe the female family members of each mansion a meal."
"Is there any talk of owing someone a banquet?" Yang Ji was both amused and surprised when he heard this. They, mother and son, have been independent and independent in these years. If someone invites others, it depends on their mood and the person they want to invite. If you drop it, you just eat it and don't pay attention to it. So he doesn't understand this stuff, and he doesn't even know that his wife still owes everyone a meal.
"Yes!" Xiao Ying also knew what happened between her mother-in-law and her husband in the past, so she explained: "My mother-in-law is the first generation in the Yang family and the Dugu family. It doesn't matter whether I return the invitation or not, but I am Juniors, there are elders above! So for the first time I, the princess, am hosting a banquet, I must invite the female members of my husband’s family and my natal family first, and then I can invite friends as I please, otherwise it will be unfilial and disrespectful.”
Yang Ji understood, and he asked with a smile: "But my mother-in-law is not in Daxing, aren't you afraid that others will say that our mother-in-law and daughter-in-law are at odds? The daughter-in-law is unfilial?"
"Afraid!"
"Then you still say?"
"I just want to ask you if there is any way for others to invite me."
"Madam, you are really good at it!" Yang Jili was happy and said with praise: "Obviously you want to treat a guest, but you want the guest to come forward and pay for it. As expected of my descendant, you can even think of such an idea."
Xiao Ying was annoyed: "It's not that I'm reluctant to give up money, and our family is not short of money, but it's just that I can't get through it."
Seeing that she was anxious, Yang Ji said, "We built a big house in a quiet and elegant farm with beautiful scenery in Lishan Mountain. It was also my previous summer resort. You can invite your little sisters to go there for an outing. "
Xiao Ying was very moved when she heard this. Lishan Mountain is a famous outing resort in Guanzhong, not far nor close to Daxing. She thought about it and asked with some worry: "Lang Jun, are the people in Zhuangzi reliable?"
"You can rest assured." Yang Ji said with a smile: "The people in the farm are all old soldiers of our family. They are either injured and retired, or they are old and retired. Some of the children of veterans work as errands in the palace. . It can be said that that village is the most reliable and safe nest for our family! If you, the young mistress, go there, I believe everyone will be very happy."
"Then it's settled." Xiao Ying responded happily, stood up and said with a smile: "Since he is the founding hero of our family, naturally I, the young mistress, cannot leave empty-handed. I will check the information about Zhuangzi first. Let’s buy some gifts tomorrow according to the number of households.”
