Future library

Tianshui Grassland is the birthplace of the Northern Han Dynasty royal family and the headquarter of the An family.

In the past hundred years, although the Northern Han Dynasty failed to invade Daxia, relying on its powerful cavalry, it was still able to continuously expand northward, eliminate many small tribes, and gain population. The vast area between Zhanshui and Luoma River allowed them to turn to farming civilization. A large amount of food fed an increasing population. However, the vast grasslands including Tianshui Grassland are still their homeland and the breeding ground for them. Their warriors - the force that supports the empire and suppresses dissidents.

The fire in Tianshui Grassland and the killed and captured Daxia officers and soldiers made the whole Northern Han Dynasty angry. They easily forgot about the defeat a few months ago and desperately clamored to destroy Daxia.

However, An Jia, who had always been strong-willed, gritted his teeth this time and endured it.

Because they have more important things to do in Hanking.

Just half a month ago, the head of the An family, the Great Situ An Xiaofeng of the Northern Han Dynasty, died of a sudden illness in the palace. No one knew the reason, no one saw the body, and all the people accompanying him disappeared without a trace.

How could the An family not know what happened? The An family's personal guards immediately rushed to the palace and started a crazy siege.

However, a small number of troops loyal to the imperial court took control of the palace and the inner city. High walls and strong walls prevented the Anjia's counterattack. As time went by, various onlookers began to join the fighting group, making the situation in the capital chaotic. The Anjia began to rush to stop it. The news spreads.

Therefore, although Tianshui Grassland is the base camp of the An family, they have to concentrate their efforts on the central power struggle to avoid taking control of the orthodox royal family and uprooting the An family. In comparison, Daxia's harassment seemed inconsequential. It was just An Wenchang leading his cavalry, rushing left and right on the grassland, trying to hunt down the Daxia officers who had infiltrated.

The officers of Daxia also gradually grew up in being hunted, and learned to use high-mobility combat with one person and two horses, one person and three horses, or the resistance method of dispersed gathering.

The territory between the two countries instantly turned into a small cavalry fighting school. Soldiers from both sides fought back and forth. Daxia's officer corps was very excited about this, but the nobles did not pay attention to the small side conflicts.

They were not even aware that a military coup had taken place in Hanking.

The gentlemen who sit high in the court are like diners who have eaten their fill of meat and vegetables, staring intently at the snacks and fruits - Shaonan City is the snack that decorates Daxia, and the fruit is Cheng Jinzhou's birthday.

September 2nd is Cheng Jinzhou’s 15th birthday. In an environment like Daxia that respects the elderly but not the young, there is no need for a banquet on a young person's birthday, but 15 is a very interesting age, which means that a man has become an adult.

The three-star warlock's coming-of-age ceremony, even without any strings attached, is worthy of congratulations from the court. If it is calculated based on the fact that only a two-star warlock can advance in 20 to 30 years, it is really not inferior to the Olympic Games and the World Cup, and it can leave other events that have not received much attention behind.

The three star warlocks from Xingzhou, Taiyu, Hui Minren and Kong Wei, are also the targets of many people trying their best to make friends. With the surge in sales of "Science", the star warlocks who come here to attract the attention of the stars on the south bank of Jianhe River. Warlock Tower was overcrowded, with at least 300,000 people living in De'an. For this once small city, the world was changing too fast.

Even Warlock Liu Kuangxing and Warlock An Fengxing relaxed their attitudes and took an airship to Shaonan, completely forgetting about the Association Star Warlock who died at the hands of Warlock De'an Star.

Just like what developed countries do to underdeveloped countries, since Cheng Jinzhou has proved that "Science" is a valuable journal and a journal that can carry the hopes of the Star Warlocks, then the journal of the Star Warlock Association will no longer reject De'an Star. Applications from Warlocks.

However, after arriving in Shaonan, the two fourth-level three-star warlocks lived in the airship and hovered above the city wall. They neither met with other star warlocks in private nor came out to meet with others.

The imperial court sent Guo Jingping, the Minister of Civil Affairs, and from the perspective of a second-grade high-ranking official, the treatment was beyond the standard for the civil service group.

The largest number of people and the most troublesome are the various noble families. Some of them came on behalf of their families, some with official titles, and the messy in-law relationships. Only a few gentlemen from the Cheng family who specialized in this could figure it out. Even Lord Cheng Yun'an could only stand beside Cheng Jinzhou and stare blankly - he decided that if he wanted to find a way in the imperial examination, he could not waste time on badge studies and aristocratic genealogy.

For Cheng Jinzhou, his 15th birthday party was like a piece of fragrant barbecue, attracting jackals, tigers, leopards, eagles, eagles and buzzards from all over the place.

As the center of attention, Cheng Jinzhou gave people a feeling of being unfazed by honor or disgrace. In the past, everyone might have thought that the third-generation son of the Cheng family was too indifferent. Now, no one expects to see the three-star warlock standing at the door to greet them.

Cheng Jinzhou himself did maintain a wait-and-see attitude. When he was a child in the 21st century, he didn't even enjoy birthday parties, let alone now.

It is really embarrassing for everyone to ask a group of gentlemen to celebrate the birthday of a 15-year-old boy. In the final analysis, all the forces in Daxia just chose the right time to hold a gathering. No one expects to see the birthday girl, nor does the birthday girl expect to receive blessings.

Only Cheng's mother cooked longevity noodles at home, quietly brought Cheng Jinzhou over, brought it to him and said, "The adults are having a banquet tonight, but you are not allowed to drink. Even if you can sit on the main seat now, That’s still a kid.”

The maid next to her had a sullen face and did not dare to laugh at all. Cheng Jinzhou couldn't help but laugh and said, "I don't usually drink."

"It's fine if you don't drink. It's best not to drink at all. You are now a star warlock, and you will have many opportunities to live your life in the future. Remember what my mother said, your body is your own." Mother Cheng said seriously.

She is in her thirties and looks middle-aged. Cheng Jinzhou put down the chopsticks in his hands and couldn't help but said, "Have you eaten all the real rice I usually give you?"

If you eat real rice for a long time, your health will at least be much better, not to mention the effect of extending your life. Given the living conditions in Daxia, the lower average life expectancy is inseparable from diseases. This shows that natural and pollution-free food cannot be ignored.

"Yes, I also gave some to the old lady." Mother Cheng held the chopsticks and put them in his hands, and said, "After eating the longevity noodles, you don't have to worry about us."

Cheng Jinzhou had no choice but to lower his head and start eating. The noodles are rolled out, and duck egg yolk is added to the extremely chewy flour. It cannot be kneaded well without a lot of effort. Just doing this will waste two chefs' time for a whole day. Coupled with the soup made from simmered beef bones, a bowl of clear water is also delicious.

After the maids had put away the dishes, Mother Cheng asked in a low voice: "Are you having a conflict with Qingshuang?"

"Where is it?" Cheng Jinzhou looked at her strangely.

Cheng's mother immediately said seriously: "Then why don't you take her with you? Our family was not a noble family before, and we are not now, so we can't do this..."

"Mom, what are you thinking about?" Cheng Jinzhou quickly interrupted my mother and said, "I was worried that the Northern Han Dynasty would come calling again, so I just asked her to avoid it."

"Beihan?"

"It's okay, I won't go to the battlefield, but the city defense may not be possible." Cheng Jinzhou didn't want to say too much, but just advised: "If you are okay, you can take Qingshuang back to your parents' home."

Hexi is more than a thousand miles away from here, and it can't be involved in an ordinary war. The Cheng family survived, and Cheng's mother returned to her hometown in fine clothes when she returned to the Zheng family.

"There's no reason for an unmarried daughter-in-law to follow me back to her parents' home. I'll take her with me to avoid worrying about each other. She just said not to worry about us." Cheng's mother said, hiding a little worry. She has been a civil servant's wife for more than ten years, which is equivalent to the politician's wife in later generations. She has supported her husband for more than ten years, so she naturally knows how to best support her son.

While talking, Cheng Yun'an also walked into the house.

His expression was majestic, and when he saw that classmate Xiao Cheng had not changed, he nodded and sat on the main seat minding his own business.

Mother Cheng smiled and ordered the maid: "Go and cook a bowl of hot noodles for the master. Don't add any shredded meat. Get some pickled vegetables and put them on a small plate. It's better to eat lightly."

After saying that, she set the bowls and chopsticks for Cheng Yun'an and said, "Master, let's have some Jinzhou longevity noodles today. Don't drink too much wine at the banquet tonight."

"You're fifteen years old." Cheng Yun'an felt a little emotional, patted Cheng Jinzhou, and said with a subtle smile: "I thought that when you were 15 years old, you must understand Zhuzi and then take the provincial examination. But you are ahead of the curve. Good."

Etiquette requires that a father be kind and a father be strict. A grandfather treating his grandson with joy is a symbol of family harmony, but a father and his son making friends with a playful smile is definitely something that is deeply discriminated against.

Cheng Jinzhou waited for him to finish speaking, then stood up and said politely: "Dad, from today on, I will devote all my strength to the church and work for the church. You also have the confidence in your heart. Maybe one day, I will We need to take action against the association.”

"Put all the eggs in one basket?" Cheng Yun'an frowned. He was naturally leaning towards the court. The relationship between the imperial court and the Star Warlock Association is also better.

Cheng Jinzhou shrugged helplessly and said: "Emperor Shenzong formed an inextricable relationship with the Star Warlock Association in order to resist the full-scale invasion of the temple, and supported it with all resources. In Daxia, the power of the Star Warlock Association has increased. , but after Daxia, the Holy Church is respected, and many countries in the far west are directly ruled by the Holy Church."

"You are in Daxia after all."

"I am the morning priest of the temple. If I don't take advantage of such a good condition, I can't figure out what's the point of breaking up with the Star Warlock Association." What Cheng Jinzhou had to say was high-sounding. In fact, if it weren't for the existence of some border crossers, through Taiyu and Kong Weixing It is still possible for warlocks to maintain good relations with the Star Warlock Guild.

Cheng Yun'an sighed and said, "It's up to you."

"This week, I will be doing rituals in Shaonan, and I will go to Nanling in the future." Cheng Jinzhou didn't seem to want to leave him alone, and then dropped a bombshell.

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