The third day of March.
Today is an exciting day for everyone in Yongan County.
Today, His Majesty the Emperor has issued an edict to inform all parties that the Crown Prince is frivolous and not worthy of ruling the world.
Everyone in Yong'an County knows that His Royal Highness the Prince is not as aloof as other nobles. He often goes deep into the people, and sometimes even eats and stays at farmers' houses. Of course, they are all paid.
In the past few years, many unjust and wrong cases have been uncovered in the hands of His Highness the Crown Prince. Corrupt officials have been punished a lot. The atmosphere in the entire Zhili County has improved a lot. Even the tax collectors who go to the countryside to collect taxes are friendly and kind. .
Everyone has a very good impression of the prince. A prince who can understand the sufferings of the people and put aside his body will certainly not be far behind even if he cannot become a great emperor.
How could such a good prince be so frivolous?
Not enough to rule the world?
Is it still Datong after leaving Zhili County? Isn't it good to be in Zhili Juntianxia?
Many people were secretly complaining, and some gathered together and murmured to each other. It's true that he has two sons today, but the younger one is less than three years old, so he is really not enough to rule the world.
The royal affairs are just a little more talkative for the common people, but the East Palace is simply explosive.
Although the Datong royal family is almost like a puppet, it is also the common master of the world. The future emperor and the subordinate officials of the East Palace will all be ministers of the Dragon. Even if Datong dies in the future, this is still a kind of capital, and they can rely on their status to be in the new owner's house. You can have a good future there.
Moreover, the imperial edict also announced that the prince would be renamed King of Jin, and it was also strictly ordered that he must go to the vassal state within five days.
Where is Jindi? Moreover, how many kings of the Datong clan are still alive and well after being granted the title of king?
In the palace, Guan Ze held a large seal in his hand, which was the seal of King Jin.
"Huang Er, have you really thought about it?"
Guan Cheng smiled and said: "Why are you so worried, father? The sky is as high as the birds can fly, and the sea is as wide as the fish can jump. My father also knows that we, father and son, have no other way to go. If that day comes, everyone in the court will There is nothing wrong with me, only my father and my sons and ministers are struggling to survive."
"Give it a try, maybe you can get everything if you give it a try, it's better than sitting here and waiting to die."
Guan Ze sighed: "It's just going to hurt you, kid."
"What did your father say? This country belongs to our Lao Guan family. My father works hard day and night, so naturally my sons and ministers will have to worry about it."
"It's just that I don't know when I will be able to return. Father, please take care of me." After saying this, a clear tear flowed from the corner of his eye.
The eighth day of March is a good time to travel.
Guan Cheng, who was renamed King of Jin, left the palace in a carriage, and the roads on both sides were crowded with people who came to see him off.
The sky was cloudless and there was no wind. The flag of Jin Dynasty looked a little sad with its drooping flag.
Behind him were thirty chariots and two thousand infantry on horseback, as well as dozens of carts of various supplies.
After all, he is the eldest son of the royal family, and he has to travel far away. It can be said that Guanze gives him all the support he can.
Wu Chengju and Guan Cheng stood on the same chariot. Unlike Guan Cheng, who was waving and saying hello everywhere, Wu Chengju's face was as wilted as an eggplant.
"Your Highness, how can you still laugh?" Wu Chengju couldn't help but ask.
Guan Cheng asked without looking back: "Look at how enthusiastic these people are. They come to see the orphans off, so the orphans can't be embarrassed."
Wu Chengju curled his lips and said: "They are just Guizhou heads. This time I went to the southwest and came back. I don't know what year or month it will be."
After hearing this, Guan Cheng turned around with a very serious look on his face: "General Wu, what do you mean by being just a Guizhou head? I want to ask you, the clothes on your body, the corn in the bowl, the long sword in your hand, and the carriage at our feet , is there anything in this official path that is not the result of the hard work of the common people?"
This was the first time Wu Chengju saw Guan Cheng looking so fierce, but he still muttered: "Even so, the maintenance of the ancestral temple relies on scholar-bureaucrats and weapons."
"What a bastard!" Guan Cheng got angry and showed no mercy: "Without the support of the common people, how can the scholar-bureaucrats come to the Sheji Ancestral Temple? The world is supported by these common people. Soldiers defend their home and country and shed blood on the battlefield. I know it is not easy. , everyone says this is a great tragedy. Even history books will record who defeated the enemy in a certain month in a certain year, and where they took out a city. But where did the food and grass come from, and where did the city come from? The people can be water, but the king is Like a boat, how can a boat be built without water? I see that you have enjoyed it for too long. If you hear such remarks again, I will definitely punish you. If you feel aggrieved, General Wu, you can tell your father to let you stay. In this colorful world like Yong'an City."
Such a severe reprimand almost scared Wu Chengju out of his mind, and he quickly knelt down on one knee and apologized.
Guan Cheng sighed, there were too few available people, and Wu Chengju was only as talented as a school captain at best. But nowadays, people with great talents simply look down on the imperial court. Some people clamored that good birds choose trees to roost, and good ministers choose their masters. And things. As soon as these words came out, more than half of the Ph.D.s in the museum soon lost. Everyone regarded this sentence as a golden rule, and some even just hung up their seals and left.
"General Wu, I went to Jin just to express my ambition. I can't guarantee anything else, but as long as you live up to me, I will definitely not let you down!"
The young prince clasped his fists and made a promise to the no longer young general. Wu Chengju was still full of excitement when he recalled it many years later.
The chariot continued to move forward without stopping for a moment. Whether it was Guan Ze or Guan Cheng, both father and son felt that just one more moment would be enough time. For this reason, Guan Ze even gave away the donkeys in the palace.
There are more and more people on both sides of the official road, and this situation is even more obvious after leaving the city gate.
People from all over the country came together spontaneously. The scouts sent by Wu Chengju to clear the way reported that even the people from neighboring counties were rushing over. Many of them had baskets on their arms, containing some seasonal vegetables and other fruits. Someone brought a few of the treasured white-flour steamed buns over.
"Look at the human heart!"
Wu Chengju did not dare to object at this time, but he was also touched in his heart.
Guan Cheng continued to think about himself: "Both my father and the princes all think that this world is a world of scholars. I have read many books since I was a child and looked at the past and present. What I have seen is nothing but frivolous corvee. But in the middle Every hand passed by was a layer of shackles, and in the end it was still difficult for the people to have enough to eat and clothing to wear."
Wu Chengju agreed with this point and said: "What Your Highness said is true. When I was traveling, I saw a man taking a family of young people to hide in the mountains. I reminded him that there were tigers in the mountains, but the man said that if there were tigers, he could kill them. Then we will have no worries about food and clothing for a year. If we stay where we are, we will be worse than dead."
"A harsh government is stronger than a tiger!"
Guan Cheng looked at the people in front of him with mixed feelings, "General Wu, look at these people. Most of them don't even know their own names, have never read a book, and have been thinking about providing for their families since they could just walk." Parents share the burden, but they work all day long to barely make ends meet, and in times of disaster they even sell their sons and daughters.”
"I once read in a book that in the year of great disaster, people ate the soil. To be honest, I tasted it secretly. I grabbed a handful of soil and just took a small mouthful and found it hard to swallow. The book said that people who eat soil will My stomach was as bloated as a drum and I was eventually suffocated to death, but even though I knew I was going to die, I would still eat and even rush to eat.”
"There are also those who exchange children for food. Parents cannot bear to exchange children with each other. The orphan cannot even imagine it."
"They live in this world not seeking wealth, the world, or longevity. They just hope to live with enough food and clothing. If they can live to be seventy, it will be a great gift."
Wu Chengju stood silently behind him. Guan Cheng's words reminded him of a lot, a long time ago, and his childhood.
"Gu doesn't understand them, because Gu was born as the prince of Datong. Although Datong is no longer worthy of his name and the princes are not ministers, Gu still has enough food and clothing. He is guarded and served all day long. No matter how much Gu likes to run into the fields, Gu can't. If you are one of them, you will not be able to appreciate their hard work as long as you are not alone."
"But they live a hard life but they can see it much better than we do. Look at them, their world is very simple. Whoever treats them a little better will give everything they have. I will support you without hesitation."
"I'm glad that these are what I saw. If one day you all can understand, you will understand that Cheng Ju and Gu still have confidence."
Every word Guan Cheng said caused huge waves in Wu Chengju's heart. He felt that what Guan Cheng said was very reasonable. He had also read some books, so-called sage books, but no matter what the book said, benevolence would always reach the common people. It will be ignored, and no one cares about these living beings, as if the people working in the fields are nothing more than grass.
The rich and powerful only want to look up to high places and climb higher. Their heads are too stiff and they cannot see the people in their eyes.
"What His Highness said made me enlightened. It is truly the most enlightening words in the world."
Guan Cheng smiled and said, "Didn't Cheng Ju also experience this when he was young?"
"What the people ask for is nothing more than food and clothing. Give it to them. As long as you can give them what they want, then they can give it to you and the whole world."
Guan Cheng's voice was not loud, and he didn't even look back at him. He was still the handsome young man waving to the crowd who came to see him off, but Wu Chengju saw a tiger cub in this demeanor, although his teeth were still immature. But there was already an aura on the top of the mountain that looked down on the world. He saw through the layers of clouds and mist. In his eyes, this land finally surrendered.
Maybe this is ambition. Wu Chengju thinks ambition is a very scary thing. He has seen a lot of things where people fight for position. Others can see it clearly, and the person involved also knows it clearly, but both sides have to hide it on the surface. I don't know what I'm wearing, and then I do something dirty, and I spend all my money on something that doesn't belong to me and doesn't belong to me.
But ambition is also a kind of power. The desire in the heart drives a person to move forward without fear.
Wu Chengju looked at the figure in front of him and suddenly felt that he had made a mistake. The King of Jin in front of him, the former crown prince, was the future heir of Datong.
The winner is the king and the loser is the enemy. The winner is the king.
It's just that the king's back is mostly disgraceful. Although the king's figure is tall, it blocks the sun.
Guan Cheng stood in front of him, dressed in rich robes. As the crown prince, even if he was demoted to the vassal king, it would still be decent. The sixteen-year-old boy's body has not yet grown up, but in Wu Chengju's eyes he is already as dazzling as the shining sun.
Wu Chengju looked back, but he happened to see the figure on top of the city tower. A father tried his best to hide his expression and looked indifferently ahead.
But he still stood there after all.
"Your Highness, Your Majesty is on top of the tower." Wu Chengju reminded carefully.
"I know."
"Your Majesty still has some love for His Highness."
Guan Cheng interrupted Wu Chengju's words and said: "I know it too. I don't know when I will return. The wind is rustling and the people are miserable. It doesn't matter if I don't look at it. I am no longer the prince. I have been alone under the wings of my father for long enough." .”
Wu Chengju turned around and took another look. He was alone, and he didn't have any worries other than his sweetheart in the drunken building.
The team gradually faded away with the morning light and disappeared from the sight of Yong'an City.
When they arrived at the outskirts, more people gathered in the suburbs. Wu Chengju was a little stunned. I'm afraid not all the people from the county were here. Many people even invited themselves to accompany them. Some even sent a son of his family to the horse. They firmly believed that the prince Even if His Highness went to the far southwest, he could still keep his children well fed. Some people came forward with their girls, saying that His Highness the Crown Prince was of noble status, and that their daughters were diligent in washing clothes, and were good at cooking and cleaning up.
This scene shocked Wu Chengju even more. Although he was helpless to kill me, how could he be willing to give his child away if he didn't trust him.
He suddenly thought of what Guan Cheng said just now. The common people are like water, and the princes and gentry are all boats. Even if you are a prince or an emperor, they are just bigger boats. When the wind and waves are calm, the world is peaceful, which is not a beautiful sight, but if the wind and waves are rough, then No matter how big the boat is, it will be in trouble or even capsize.
This is the power of commoners!
"General Wu."
Guan Cheng pulled Wu Chengju back from his thoughts.
"What are your orders, Your Highness?"
"We are about to arrive at Caojia Village. You personally bring a car to pick up Cao Ling'er and leave some money for his family."
"Isn't this bad? What if you don't agree?"
"If you don't agree, just ask Cao Ling'er what he means. If you don't agree, tell them that his two sons from the old Cao family were recruited according to the order."
ah?
Wu Chengju was a little confused. Was this a robbery of a civilian girl?
So familiar.
