Plan to cut off the nine states

"Who do you think is your real wife?" Zhang Shiqing suddenly asked this question.

Xu Chu was stunned for a moment, then smiled.

Zhang Shiqing shook his head and said: "As soon as you smile, I know what you are going to say. No, no, no, I don't listen to 'wait a moment', nor do I listen to 'if this' or 'if that'. I just want to hear a simple and direct message." answer."

"I have no idea."

"You don't know? How could you not know?"

"I did get married twice, but neither of them was my choice. Now one wife is thousands of miles away, struggling for life and death, and one... is by my side, but she once wrote a 'letter of divorce'... …”

"I knew you would bring this up." Zhang Shiqing interjected.

"I have to mention it, because your parents, relatives and friends still regard you as an unmarried daughter and have high hopes for your future husband. I have two wives, but it's the same as having none, so I don't know who to take seriously. If you There must be a simple and direct answer, and it can only be - I don’t take it seriously, you don’t take it seriously, and I don’t take it seriously either.”

Zhang Shiqing's face was gloomy, as if he was about to cry again, but the tears did not flow out for a long time. Finally, he smiled softly and said, "I understand, this is good, everyone feels relaxed."

"Yes, it's all easy."

"No matter who I marry, it's ultimately my business."

"It's your own business."

"I'm only living in the valley temporarily, and you're just helping me come up with ideas... just..."

"In Dongdu, you helped me escape. I help you now to repay this kindness."

Zhang Shiqing took a long breath, raised his hand and wiped it on his forehead, and said with a smile: "Although you are boring, you are... honest and not a hypocrite."

"Um."

The two of them fell into silence at the same time, neither of them had anything to say. It was okay at first, but gradually it became a bit awkward.

Xu Chu spoke first: "The officers and soldiers are not in agreement. As long as the Jizhou army uses all its strength, it is estimated that it will be difficult to capture Xijing. When the news comes, Princess Huanyan will reconsider the alliance..."

"If it's still too late." Zhang Shiqing said calmly. She, who had always been full of enthusiasm, seemed a little uninterested at this moment. "Even if Yecheng can form an alliance with the rebels, there is no need to fall out with He Rong immediately. My brother is already married. After marrying the little barbarian girl, it was natural to marry me. If I think about it carefully, it would be okay to marry outside the Great Wall. I have already fled from Dongdu to Yecheng, so why would I care about going further? With the benefits of having children and grandchildren, it’s time for me to make some contribution to the family.”

Xu Chu was silent.

Zhang Shiqing smiled again, "Why are you thinking so much? Anyway, it is Huanyan who makes the decision. She is such a smart person and must think more thoughtfully than me, so she will not make a big mistake. It would be best if you can push the marriage away, but if you can't push it away, I won't. I had to accept my fate.”

"When Princess Huanyan figures it out, she will never marry you to the He Rong Department."

"Who made my brother the future emperor? I should marry a more valuable husband, right?" Zhang Shiqing blinked, as if he had completely figured it out, but found it interesting.

"Um."

"Then please help me until the end. Think for me, what should I do if I marry into He Rongbu? If the marriage can be postponed, where will I most likely marry?"

Xu Chu didn't want to answer this question, but when he saw Zhang Shiqing's smile, he had to maintain his "calm", so he said: "When you marry into the He Rong tribe, your enemies are the generations of noble ladies who have married in Bingzhou, but don't fight with her." Fighting directly and waiting for the opportunity, King Shen Dan of Jin will soon reveal his ambition, and those ladies will also speak for him. He Rong Qiangji is also a very ambitious person. Once the noble lady of Bingzhou talks too much, he will. You will be wary, and this is your chance.”

"Well, 'wait a little longer' applies everywhere."

Xu Chu smiled and said: "When the time comes, you can fly up to the sky by the wind; when the time does not come, you can only reach the treetops by spreading your wings."

"What if the King of Jin takes action first and captures Ye City?"

"If the general trend is like this, no one will be able to come back to life. You'd better work hard to protect yourself."

"It seems that this is the only way. If I don't marry into the He Rong Department, where will I be sent?"

"The most likely one is Huaizhou, followed by Jingzhou."

"A group of heroes have risen together, each with their own ambitions. The Sheng family and the Xi family are slightly smaller. If my brother can successfully become emperor, these two families can be used as strong foreign aid. Huaizhou and Jizhou are connected, which is especially important."

"That's what it means."

Zhang Shiqing smiled and said: "I kind of understand what you said before. After all, in the end, the general trend is the most important. The general trend is overwhelming and the general trend is compelling. In the end, no matter whether you like it or not, you have to go that way."

Xu Chu nodded.

"Hmm... If I had to choose, I would rather go to the Sheng family. When I was in Dongdu, I didn't like the Xi family. Their family was too flattering and did not have the style of the founding father. I have never met the Sheng family, and their reputation is good. Yes, although they all sound boring, they are better than flatterers and are closer to Jizhou. "

“If the threat of annexation is lifted, that’s pretty much it.”

"What should I pay attention to in Huaizhou?"

"I don't know much about the Sheng family. According to rumors, the Sheng family values ​​filial piety. When you go there, you should pay more attention to the daily lives of your parents-in-law and the elderly people of the Sheng family. In short, the purpose remains the same, which is to recruit strong support to Yecheng."

Zhang Shiqing nodded, "You arrange other people's affairs properly, but what about yourself?"

"Those are not my arrangements."

"To figure it out, in your words, you are trying to figure out people's hearts. The general trend is like this for me, but what about you? Will you be a little more tolerant?"

"The situation is as violent as landslides, like turbulent waves, like burning fire cooking oil. It will not be tolerant to anyone."

"So you took off your royal title just to escape from the 'big trend'?"

"I never thought about it, but after you reminded me, it seems that this is really the case."

Zhang Shiqing sighed, stood up and walked towards the door, "There is a benefit in understanding the general situation and not having unnecessary hopes. For this reason alone, I should thank you."

"No need to say thank you, that would make me feel ashamed, being with you in Dongdu..."

Zhang Shiqing suddenly turned around, "Can I escape the 'big trend'?"

This was another difficult question to answer. Xu Chu thought for a while before saying: "If you need others to make decisions and find solutions for you - then you can't."

"Haha, you are so boring."

Zhang Shiqing left, Xu Chu picked up the book, but couldn't read it.

The old servant came in with the food. When he saw the leftover wine on the table, he knew that Princess Fangde had been here. He put the food on the table and without leaving immediately, he asked cautiously: "Young master and the little princess are at odds?"

"No, how could you have such an idea?"

"Because... there was no laughter and laughter from the little princess all of a sudden. I was a little unaccustomed to it. The little princess was originally very happy today. After leaving the young master's place, she suddenly became quiet. She returned to the house and never came out again, nor did she drink with everyone. , Binfen took the food and said he would eat it in the house.”

"She must be tired."

"Little princess? Even if she plays polo for a day in person, she won't be tired. Young Master... go and say nice things to her and coax her."

"What she needs right now isn't coaxing."

"Oh, I'm just saying it casually. The young master is becoming more and more difficult to see through. You let go of the people who assassinated you, but you don't take the people who care about you seriously."

"The princess is still young, and she only came to the valley to take refuge. Leaving her behind would be harmful to her. In the future, she will have someone she really cares about, and she will forget what happened here."

"Son..."

"Since I am living in seclusion, I have to accept all the consequences of living in seclusion: I no longer have thousands of troops to dispatch, I am no longer qualified to bargain with the heroes, and I no longer have the ability to protect... Princess Fangde, her identity is too important, It’s so important that Yecheng will never allow her to be too willful.”

"But the young master is very resourceful, so he can't..."

"I'm not as resourceful as you think. I just reluctantly found a way to keep her. Yecheng will be angry about it later, and she may regret it. Then it will not only be me, but also everyone in the valley who will be retaliated against. "

The old servant sighed, "Oh, maybe the young master is right. I just pity the little princess. She was born in a prince's palace and has never suffered since she was a child. Suddenly she has to bear such a heavy burden. How can she bear it?"

"She can bear it." Xu Chu said with certainty.

The old servant sighed and walked out, whispering outside: "Young Master is really ruthless, but you can't blame him..."

Xu Chu didn't eat much. He went to bed early and didn't fall asleep for a long time. He regretted that he spoke too harshly. He didn't think his words were wrong, but he spoke too early, like an overly strict parent. When the young children are having the most fun, they are suddenly told to support the family.

"It's not too early, only too late." Xu Chu murmured and finally fell asleep.

Early the next morning, not long after he got up, he heard laughter and shouting outside. Zhang Shiqing returned to normal and urged Chang Yan and others to eat quickly. She wanted to try whether the BMW "Juan Xue" was suitable for playing polo, although the horse had been donated. , did not diminish her interest at all.

Xu Chu felt a little relieved, so he read, carried water, chopped firewood, and continued reading as usual.

Zhang Shiqing did return to normal, except for one thing: she never came to Xu Chu again, as if she felt she had nothing to ask or say.

Feng Juniang's arrival broke the little deadlock. As soon as she entered the valley, she called the little princess, and they came to see Xu Chu together.

"What happened in the city? Sister Feng is so serious." Zhang Shiqing wiped away his sweat and did not look at Xu Chu.

"There's more than one big thing." Feng Juniang didn't notice anything unusual, "Tian Jiang was arrested."

"Huh?" Xu Chu stood up.

"They were captured directly by people from He Rong's department. I don't know how they found out about Tian Jiang's whereabouts. More than thirty people took action last night."

Zhang Shiqing said in surprise: "Where are the government officials? Just let them arrest people randomly in Yecheng?"

"How can the government dare to take care of it? But this is just a small matter. The barbarian king wants to take Tianjiang back to the outside of the wall. He will not be harmed for the time being. Another matter is a big trouble. Did the young master drive someone away from the valley yesterday?"

"Yu Zhan? It was indeed me who asked him to leave."

"Yu Zhan failed to assassinate Mr. Xu, so he was kicked out." Zhang Shiqing added, still not looking at Xu Chu.

"This is Yu Zhan. After returning to the city, he went to the Governor's Mansion, beat the drum and reported it, claiming that the young master had colluded with the King of Jibei and was going to assassinate the King of Xiangdong and his daughter. He said that he had heard it with his own ears."

Zhang Shiqing was furious and Xu Chu was shocked.