Queen Flower

As the banquet continued, Li Ming wielded his beard and said, "Master Xia has been heavily used by the emperor this time, and he was sent to Nanman as an envoy. When the master returns, the emperor will naturally reward him for his merits and deeds. I believe that the time for the return of the master is not far away."

Xia Henqiu nodded, "Actually, I have been very comfortable this year, staying away from the capital and staying away from right and wrong, but the emperor's grace, I naturally have to do my best to share the emperor's worries."

"That's that." Li Ming raised his glass.

Jiang Lan was about to vomit when he heard it. He was trying his best to share his worries for the emperor. He was an official, and he had a set of mandarin. The little people can't bear it, and if they mix with them, they will only suffer unwarranted disasters. You will be the one who will die, and he will be the one who will profit.

Li Ming put down his glass and suddenly said seriously: "For the safety of the frontier, General Yan has been guarding the barracks so he can't take care of him. This old man urges Master Xia not to care about his absence this time."

Xia Henqiu chuckled, "General Yan is loyal to his duties, guards the frontiers, and defends the great country of our heaven. The lower officials admire him very much."

Jiang Lan felt excited when he heard this, saying that the beloved general has returned to the southern border, and the people of Xiangcheng must have died of joy. It's a pity that this person didn't come to the banquet, otherwise she would be able to witness the style of a generation of famous generals with her own eyes. Come to think of it, if I can't see Wang Jian and Li Mu, I can't see Wei Qing Huo Qu Bing, I can always see Yan Zhan, but things don't go as expected. It's a pity. I probably won't come to Xiangcheng again in the future. I don't think I will see it again. Jiang Lan regrets it in his heart.

A staggered banquet was finally over. Jiang Lan's feet were numb and his stomach was hungry again. In addition to the effect of the glass of wine, it was always a bit cloudy. So as soon as the banquet was over, she happily climbed into the carriage.

When he arrived at the inn, after drinking the hangover soup, Jiang Lan hadn't completely woken up, and was still thinking about Yan Zhan.

She grabbed the servant at the inn and asked, "What does General Yan look like? Isn't he very powerful in fighting and winning every battle?"

The servant nodded and said proudly: "Of course, General Yan is mighty and heroic, and he beat the Nanman boy to the bottom of his mouth, crying for his father and mother."

Jiang Lan was very curious, "Never lost a battle? Changsheng general?"

The servant said: "Of course, how can a general defeat a battle, that is, the battle is invincible and invincible."

"Sure enough." Jiang Lan nodded in praise. Since she was a child, under the influence of her father, she especially liked the Three Kingdoms and the Romance of the Sui and Tang Dynasties, so those famous generals of the past dynasties became her idols. These heroic complexes did not finally let go until she grew up. Unexpectedly, due to the effect of alcohol, there is a trend of emerging.

Jiang Lan added, "But, didn't you hear that he was framed? That prime minister likes to plot against him behind his back. He's really a sinister villain. We spurn him, right?"

The little servant suddenly turned pale, glared at her, and ran away without saying a word.

Jiang Lan was thinking about what she had said wrong, and Xia Zi's eyes swept gloomily, and then she saw Xia Henqiu standing behind her expressionless.

Well, the people talking behind it are not authentic, especially if it is the prime minister of a country, and she is not someone who can talk nonsense casually, so Jiang Lan wanted to bow and retire.

"Stop." Xia Henqiu walked in front of her and stood still, "Don't you know who that prime minister is?"

"I know." Jiang Lan nodded, she heard the common people say, "A bad person."

Xia Zi was no longer calm, and was about to step forward with anger, but was stopped by Xia Henqiu's eyes.

Xia Henqiu's lips pursed slightly, and his voice was low and slow, "Didn't anyone tell you that the prime minister's surname is Xia?" He looked down at her, his condescending eyes filled with mockery and coldness.

summer? Jiang Lan suddenly sobered up, she looked at Xia Henqiu, pointed at his nose and was speechless. She always thought that the so-called prime minister must be a high-ranking official who enjoys glory and wealth in the imperial capital, and an old fat man with a big belly and a drooling head. This is the standard face of a traitor, isn't it?

"But aren't you an inspector?" Jiang Lan finally got his tongue back.

"A year ago, I was implicated by Yan Zhan and was demoted to an inspector." Xia Henqiu said lightly.

Jiang Lan stood there, feeling very embarrassed, and being scolded behind her back was heard face to face, but in fact, through her observation for so many days, she didn't realize that Xia Henqiu was a minister who corrupted the society. In fact, he is very honest and indifferent, and he is really not like the person in the mouth of the common people. Of course, insidious is right, this person is indeed insidious, but other words may not be true.

"But you don't look like a courtier?" Jiang Lan still asked. Now that he has said it, he will break the casserole and ask to the end.

Xia Henqiu waved the angered Xia Zi to step back, paced to the window and looked up at the sky.

The night is already deep, and on the dark and boundless night, the moon is desolate and lonely, and the silver light sprinkled by it reveals infinite indifference and alienation.

Xia Henqiu's pale face flushed red, with a slight hint of alcoholism. He turned his head slowly, "Actually, many years ago, we were good friends. At that time, he was the leading general, and I was the supervisor."

It was only after Jiang Lan thought about it that he realized that the good friend he was talking about was actually Yan Zhan.

"That time, I was fighting against the northern countries." His eyes blurred, as if recalling the past, "It was a winter, very cold, due to the long-term battle, the logistics could not be guaranteed, and the soldiers were short of clothing and food, and finally we finally won the victory. , captured 100,000 enemy troops."

Jiang Lan remained motionless, pricked up his ears to listen.

"Although the war has been won, there is not enough food and grass. We must quickly withdraw to the inland, otherwise we will starve to death. But what should we do with the 100,000 captured enemy troops?" Xia Henqiu's smile was a little cold.

Jiang Lan looked at him with a vague understanding in his heart.

"We reported to the emperor and waited for the decision above, but it was too late." Xia Henqiu turned around, "He advocated taking the prisoners to evacuate, and I..."

He suddenly stopped and looked at Jiang Lan, "What do you think I would advocate?"

Jiang Lan completely understood, and her eyes were a little frightened, "Could it be that you..."

Xia Henqiu smiled, with an ice-like smile, "I propose to kill all the 100,000 prisoners on the spot." He looked at the night sky, "Later my proposal became the final decision, and the emperor completely agreed."

Jiang Lan was a little stunned, because Xia Henqiu killed 100,000 captives with ruthlessness, so he and Yan Zhan parted ways since then, and they are different. And all the people and officials were also afraid of his cruelty. From then on, they were afraid when they saw him, they were afraid, and they stayed away, but they did not dare to offend him. So he finally became a minister, and only the emperor liked him, but even so, when he wanted to demote him, he did the same, and when he wanted to use him, he thought of him again.

Xia Henqiu stood up straight, he was tall, but a little thin, his slightly pale face was elegant and indifferent, his body standing by the window was straight, as if invincible.

"He's right," Jiang Lan sighed, "but you're not wrong either."

Xia Henqiu suddenly turned around and stared at her.