generation hero

In autumn and winter, when the water was exhausted and the waterway was blocked, Yuan Tang and the others first took a boat, then a carriage, and changed the waterway again before returning to Jiyang.The Yuan family had a large population and walked slowly. Yuan De was tasked with escorting Feng Cong and also transporting the coffin of General Yuan. Therefore, the group was divided into two groups. General Yuan's coffin walked in front, and the rest of the series escorted Yuan's family members and luggage behind.

There were 600 members of the Yuan family who followed General Yuan in Zerou. Excluding those who died in the war and those who voluntarily stayed in Zerou after being released, there were more than 500 people who followed Yuantang back home.

According to Yuan De, there are 200 people staying in the house.

Yuan Tang felt that hundreds of private soldiers were already a lot, but Yuan De said that it was not enough. After returning home, he had to recruit young and strong men to supplement. Many of the tribal songs of the rich clans were thousands of. General, a few more private soldiers can still afford it.

Yuan Tang secretly marveled, knowing that General Yuan brought only 2000 people to support Zerou's army in Jucheng, some of them were soldiers of the Yuan family, and some of them were private soldiers of Zerou's rich family—to join Zerou's army, including Zerou's soldiers, such as Captain Lu Some of the troops he led were locals recruited in Zerou.

Thousands of soldiers and horses are enough to occupy the city and become king.

Before the beginning of winter, Yuantang and the others returned to Jiyang first.

Jiyang City is located in the north of Jushui, at the confluence of Jian River and Jushui. It is connected to the capital by a waterway. It is also an important town in the northern part of Daxia. Because of the accessible waterways, Jiyang City is prosperous, with towering city walls, wide streets in the city, and boats coming and going from the wharf. , even if the waterways are difficult in some places in autumn and winter, it is very busy here.

The prefect of Jiyang, surnamed Zhou, named Xianpei, was Yuan Tang's biological uncle. He was in charge of a city in his thirties.

Seeing Yuan Tang, Zhou Xianpei took Yuan Tang's hand affectionately to look at him, and said with emotion: "I've grown taller and fatter." Zhou Xianpei wanted to pinch Yuan Tang's face while saying that.

Yuan Tang hurriedly avoided his uncle's clutches.

Zhou Xianpei personally sent Yuan Tang back to the Yuan family's mansion in Jiyang City. After arriving home, he walked away from the left and right, even Yuan De, and asked Yuan Tang about General Yuan's death and the situation along the way.

Zhou's family and Yuan's family are both wealthy families, and Yuan Tang's mother is Zhou Xianpei's older sister, so the two families can be described as well-matched.General Yuan used to place great importance on having a wife and son. After the wife left, he did not remarry, not counting those who were still in Ma's belly. Yuan Tang had only one younger brother in total.As soon as General Yuan left, Yuan Tang was the head of the Yuan family, except for a cousin next door, there was no brother to support him.

Zhou Xianpei knew that General Yuan had Yuan De in front of him, who was able to lead troops in battle and had served in the army. He was afraid that Yuan Tang would be controlled by others due to his young age, so he deliberately dismissed all inquiries.

Knowing that he cares about his nephew, Yuan Tang told the truth about all the things that happened before, and made sure that Yuan De was definitely not a perfidy, so Zhou Xianpei felt relieved.

Yuan Tang saluted Zhou Xianpei solemnly, and said: "The first gentleman is away all year round, thanks to my uncle's care at home, now my uncle still worries about me, Yuan Tang is very grateful."

Zhou Xianpei hurriedly supported him, and said: "Get up quickly, you child, and your uncle still pay attention to these trivial etiquette. Hey, it turns out that your father insisted on taking you to Zerou, but I won't let you go. Now it seems that it is true that you have gone out once. Become more stable, but it’s a pity that your father just left like this.” Zhou Xianpei felt a little disappointed when he said that, and he said, “I asked your cousin Yuan Xi to go home and take care of it when I received the news. I’ll see you later. He, he has made great progress in the county government these years, and his character is also good, you can rely on him more." Thinking of his nephew's family alone, Zhou Xianpei couldn't help explaining more.

Yuan Xi is Yuantang's only cousin who has reached the crown, he is also a martial arts practitioner, entered the Jiyang Mansion a few years ago, and is currently the Jiyang City Captain.

At this time, the big clan often had a large population, with the eldest son or eminence as the suzerain. General Yuan's house was originally the eldest son, and General Yuan also had a title of title, so he was the suzerain of the Jiyang generation with the Yuan surname.After General Yuan left, everything about him was inherited by Yuan Tang.

Zhou Xianpei was not afraid that someone from the Yuan family would bully Yuan Tang. Yuan Tang was the eldest son, and it was only natural to inherit the family and title. Besides, with the support of the Zhou family, no one in Ji Yang could compete with Yuan Tang.

What worried Zhou Xianpei was another thing. He said: "The capital asked you to escort Prince Wenxi's heir back to the south?" He also heard Yuan Tang briefly explain how they returned to Jiyang, but he didn't know much about the inside story.

Yuan Tang was most concerned about this matter along the way, and said: "Yes, Lu Changshi said that Beijing will send people to Ji Yang, have they arrived yet?" .

Zhou Xianpei said: "Not yet. Will Jingzhong ask you to escort the envoy back to Beijing, or just go back to Jiyang and wait for the envoy?"

Yuan Tang said: "Just send it to Jiyang, and wait for the people in Beijing to pick up His Highness."

Zhou Xianpei breathed a sigh of relief: "It's very good."

What a treat!Yuan Tang almost blurted out.

He blamed himself all the way. If he was the only one, the Yuan family wouldn't have to bear the blame. He would have let Feng Cong go halfway. He was worried about what to do when people from the capital came. He wanted to be with Feng Cong. After discussing it, Feng Cong refused to talk about it with him, making him act like the emperor was not in a hurry with the eunuchs, but he couldn't help it.

Zhou Xianpei had other considerations, so Yuan Tang naturally couldn't tell the truth.

Zhou Xianpei expressed a serious expression, and said: "I just heard from you that you still had some friendship with this highness when you were in Jucheng? Don't blame your uncle for being so sophisticated. Your majesty has always been unclear about his attitude towards this highness. He is a royal heir. We cannot Disrespect him, but you can't get too close to him. When people from Jingli come, don't mention your things in Jucheng." After thinking about it, he said: "It's better not to let him live at home. , I will prepare a residence in the county mansion, and I will send him to the county mansion with all the servants."

Yuan Tang panicked in his heart, and said, "I just got off the boat and I already asked him to invite him back to the residence."

Zhou Xianpei said: "It's okay, I will send him to the county mansion in person later, you have a thin skin, wait for me to invite him."

Yuan Tang took a deep breath, and Zhou Xianpei saw his reluctance, and said, "Erlang, uncle knows that you value friendship, but this His Highness involves a lot, which is beyond our control. You should try your best to escort him and prepare a place for him to stay. Treating each other with courtesy, you have exhausted all the friendship you can, and there is nothing you can do about the rest. Jingzhong sent a minister, Xiao Shanzhi, to Ji Yang. He and Xiao Xiezhi, Xiao Shizhong, are brothers. Your Majesty may come to discuss important people. Xiao came here to express condolences to General Yuan on behalf of the imperial court, and issued a decree for you to inherit the title. The most important thing for you to help your soul return to your hometown is to manage the family affairs, attend the funeral for General Yuan, and prepare for the death of General Yuan. Xijue, put the others aside first."

Zhou Xianpei put himself in Yuantang's shoes, and Yuantang couldn't refuse his kindness, but on the other hand, he didn't want to send Feng Cong away just like that.

Letting Feng Cong live in the county mansion, and waiting for Xiao to bring him here, would never treat Feng Cong more politely, it would be tantamount to putting Feng Cong in danger alone.

He really couldn't feel at ease for Feng Cong's identity to be exposed.

Zhou Xianpei was afraid that Yuan Tang would hesitate, so he simply proposed to see Feng Cong immediately. Yuan Tang was looking for reasons to shirk, but Feng Cong came.

Zhou Xianpei treated Feng Cong with great respect. Although Feng Cong was of royal blood, his status was embarrassing. He had no title or title. Zhou Xianpei treated him like this as a county guard, which was already very courteous.

Feng Cong didn't say anything else, just said: "I heard that the envoy is here, so I came directly, so I don't need to pass it on again. Later, I will use the envoy's carriage to drive me to the county mansion." He actually offered to leave Yuan Home.

Yuan Tang subconsciously wanted to keep him, but Zhou Xianpei had a complicated expression on his face. He paused for a while, bowed to Feng Cong, and said, "I will serve Your Highness." Then he asked Feng Cong to pack his luggage.

Feng Cong didn't have any luggage. When he left Jucheng, he didn't find any more clothes. Yuan Tang helped him prepare them later.

When going out, Zhou Xianpei led the car himself. Yuan Tang wanted to say something to keep Feng Cong, but he couldn't keep Feng Cong, and it was useless. After thinking about it, he could only say to Feng Cong: "Take care, what do you need?" Just tell my uncle, or send someone to tell me, I will help you prepare, if you are bored, you can come to me, and I will come to you when I am free."

Feng Cong smiled and said, "Thank you, little general."

It seemed to be back to the day when they bid farewell, the two of them had nothing else to say, Feng Cong got into Zhou Xianpei's carriage without looking back.

Yuan Tang could tell that Feng Cong didn't want to get involved with him too much, whether it was because he blamed him for breaking his escape, or to avoid suspicion, it made Yuan Tang very uncomfortable.

After sending Feng Cong away, Yuan Tang felt chest tightness and shortness of breath, and almost thought that his old injury had relapsed.He Tong reluctantly met with his family, recruited the manager and asked about the situation at home, then he was in no mood to do other things, and only said that he was tired from the journey, so he closed the door and fell asleep.

On the third day after they returned to Jiyang, Xiao Shanzhi arrived.Zhou Xianpei pulled Yuan Tang's ear to remind him to deal with Xiao Ge carefully.

Zhou Xianpei greeted him at the city gate early in the morning.The day before General Yuan's death was over, Yuan Tang and the others set up a mourning hall for General Yuan after they returned home. Many people in Ji Yang village came to pay their respects. The family still asked Yuan Tang's cousin Yuan Xi to wait at the city gate with Zhou Xianpei, and sent people to follow Yuan Xi to deliver news to the family at any time.

Xiao Shanzhi went northward from the capital, and traveled by water against the wind. In order to speed up, he did not take a boat, but took a horse-drawn carriage instead.Yuan Tang did not see Xiao Shanzhi enter the city in person, but learned a thing or two from the servant's description.There were [-] or [-] horse-drawn carriages accompanying Xiao Shanzhi, and the convoy stretched out, accompanied by hundreds of servants. When they entered the city, many people came to watch along the street.

Yuan Tang thought to himself: Oh, such a big battle.

After Si time, when I heard that Xiao Shanzhi was coming to Yuan's house from the county mansion, Yuan Tang hurriedly summoned his family's servants to greet him outside the door. From a distance, he saw dozens of carriages and horses coming from the main road, and when the first carriage arrived at Yuan's house The gate of the house, the last carriage has not yet turned into the intersection.

An elegant man in a wide-sleeved robe took Zhou Xianpei out of the car. He was supposed to be Xiao Shanzhi. My son."

Yuan Tang led the two of them to the spirit of General Yuan, and as envoys, Xiao Shanzhi first read out the will of Beijing, to the effect that he praised General Hu for his sacrifice for the country and his devotion to the country. Burning incense in front of General Yuan's spirit.

Xiao Shanzhi caressed his lapel and sighed: "In the past, when General Yuan was ordered to march to the north, he was so high-spirited, and His Majesty also praised him for his bravery. Now we have lost another pillar in Daxia, which is sad and deplorable."

Yuan Tang thought he had heard it wrong. If he remembered correctly, it was Xiao Shanzhi's elder brother who joined General Yuan at the court, and he was one brother. Xiao Shanzhi's appearance of sighing for General Yuan's death was a bit unsightly. Understand.

Xiao Shanzhi said to Yuantang again: "I heard that Mr. Xiaolang was in danger in Jucheng, and he tricked Di Ren into being fooled by a trick of surrender, and beheaded thousands of enemies. Today, I saw him. He was really a young man. Wait for me to return to the court. You must speak well in front of His Majesty, so that Mr. Xiaolang can inherit his father's will and continue to serve the country."

Hearing what he said, the faces of the Yuan family members present all brightened a little.

Before his death, General Yuan wanted to lead Yuan Tang to make military exploits, so that he could be named a general for him, and it would be better to have a military post in Zerou, so as to continue the style of the Yuan family's generals. Unfortunately, these plans did not come true, and General Yuan died in battle.Apart from being able to descend to a township marquis, Yuan Tang has no title of general or official position.

The title of title is descended from generation to generation. If there is no meritorious service to consolidate, the Yuan family will decline sooner or later.

If Shen Shangshu was still in court in the past, thinking of the friendship between the Yuan family and the Shen family, most likely he would ask Yuan Tang to be named a general, and then recommend Yuan Tang to take a position in the military mansion of the outer town. Hope to revive.Now there is no one in the Yuan family court, and some old friends from the past have gradually faded out of the court, or switched to the Xiao family, no one can make connections, and Yuan Tang can't even get an official position.

Xiao Shanzhi's words seemed to mean to help Yuan Tang open a way to find an official.

Yuan Tang didn't forget that the Xiao family joined General Yuan, and he didn't forget that General Yuan had long been assigned to Shen Shangshu's camp. He didn't agree easily, but said: "It's all thanks to General Ze Rou. I'm really ashamed. Don't dare to take credit."

Zhou Xianpei nodded slightly behind Xiao Shanzhi, which meant that he agreed with Yuan Tang to deal with it cautiously.

Xiao Shanzhi didn't take it seriously, and followed Yuan Tang to the main room to rest with a relaxed expression.Xiao Shanzhi is a senior official and an envoy sent by the imperial court. The Yuan family will not neglect him at all. Yuan Tang stays with him in the main room. Only when the elders of Dewanggao in the village or the local prominent family send someone, he will go out to meet the guests for a while. .

Xiao Shanzhi seemed to be acquainted, he brought dozens of child servants with him, and the front yard of Yuan's family was crowded as soon as he arrived, Yuan Tang personally ordered the steward to arrange for Xiao's servants to rest, but Xiao Shanzhi said it was fine, he just asked himself to bring People serve nearby, and they don't call the servants of the Yuan family when they have something to do. They don't even need the Yuan family to intervene in the tea.

At noon, Xiao Shanzhi asked people to get the brocade quilt, incense burner, etc. from the car, and slept in the room prepared by Yuantang. Home.As the prefect, Zhou Xianpei had prepared to entertain Xiao Shanzhi and welcome him to live in his home.

The entire Yuan family was stunned by Xiao's request, but even Zhou Xianpei could not object to him in Jiyang City, so of course the Yuan family could only agree and treat him wholeheartedly.

Yuan Tang hadn't seen Feng Cong for several days, so he asked Zhou Xianpei about Feng Cong's recent situation when he was alone, and Zhou Xianpei said, "I saw His Highness as soon as I came here, and then sent someone to guard His Highness's residence. But don't worry, the residence His servants are still from the county government, and I will tell them to take care of His Highness."

Hearing that Feng Cong was being guarded again, Yuan Tang was unavoidably worried.