Yang Ronggui was eight feet tall and had a striking appearance. When he was young, he was also a well-known young master. Now that he was a little older, he had a small mustache, which added a bit of maturity and steadiness. His treatment of people was commendable, and his style of conversation was not shallow. He was different from the repulsive face Xu Ling had imagined.
However, at this time, the real Xu Ling had yet to meet him.
Yang Ronggui was very shrewd, and he rarely revealed what he was thinking. However, the Yangzhou prefectural magistrate, Zheng Kun, who had been serving him all this time, could see it. After respectfully sending off Yan Wang and his group, Yang Ronggui calmly stroked his mustache. Although there was no joy on his face, Zheng Kun knew that he was in a good mood, so he went up and said, "It seems that Official Yang and His Royal Highness Yan Wang hit it off very well?"
In other words, Yan Wang probably also knew that the officialdom was deep and did not want to pursue the matter to the end. He was just using this as an excuse to gather his own forces.
Yang Ronggui smiled and said, "His Royal Highness Yan Wang is young and talented. As long as he is trained, he will have great prospects in the future. Deputy Xu is upright and upright, a rare clear stream. However, I originally thought that the Marquis of Stability would go with them. I did not expect that Marquis would be so anxious about military affairs that he did not enter Yangzhou and directly went to Jiangbei Daying. It is a pity that I was unable to meet with the military god of Daliang."
Zheng Kun had been by his side for a long time and was a clever bootlicker. He immediately thought that he understood Governor Yang's meaning. Yan Wang was young and inexperienced, but his ambition was not small. With just a few words, he had already exposed himself and was easy to deal with. Yan Wang was a wooden club that had become stupid from studying, so there was no need to worry about him. The most wonderful thing was that, whether it was because of the rule that "military generals do not interfere in internal affairs" or because Yan Wang had deliberately sent the Marquis of Stability away, they could go all out.
Yang Ronggui and Zheng Kun looked at each other and smiled. Yang Ronggui said, "This time, rumors and slanders from the unruly people have spread to the capital. It is reasonable for His Highness to investigate. Tell your subordinates to prepare. We are upright and upright. There is no need to be afraid of investigation."
Zheng Kun understood and said with a smile, "Yes, rest assured."
After sending away the happy Zheng Kun, the slight joy on Yang Ronggui's face disappeared, and his eyes were full of malice.
He knew that Yan Wang was difficult to deal with. if it was not for Assistant Lü.......................... What kind of methods.. Prince........ How could he be a young and inexperienced person?
Even Zheng Kun had not revealed the great plan that they had secretly planned. It had always been kept a tight secret. If the Wild Goose King had acted swiftly and decisively, using his saber and sword as soon as he arrived, it would have been fine. But if he had braced himself to deal with the situation like this …
That matter had to be settled as soon as possible.
While Yang Ronggui and the others were taking the "official and deputy imperial envoys" to visit the "refugee shelter" on the outskirts of the city, Chang Geng and Xu Ling disguised themselves and went around to inquire about the situation of the refugees. What puzzled Lord Xu the most was that His Royal Highness Yan Wang was like a fish in water in the marketplace. He could chat with small merchants, peddlers, and people of Jianghu. He spoke to whoever he met. With the fake Yan Wang in front of them, no one cared about them. In a few days, Xu Ling had already followed Yan Wang and made a few friends who could go to other people's homes to eat.
They also gradually made progress in the matter they wanted to inquire about.
"That is to say, there used to be a lot of refugee shelters outside the city. Now, we don't know where they are, right? Wang... Innkeeper, be careful!" While Xu Ling was talking to the innkeeper, he stared at Yan Wang in fear. This was a small tavern on the outskirts of Yangzhou. The owner was a retired armed escort. His surname was Sun. He had a fierce face and a valiant temperament. If a guest made him unhappy, he would often beat them out. Thanks to this person's good wine and the support of many Jianghu people, the business was on the verge of collapse. For some reason, Boss Sun and Yan Wang's temperament were compatible. At this time, the tavern was already closed. Yan Wang, on a whim, carved a plaque for him on the spot and personally stepped on a stool to hang it on the door. The stool was missing a leg, so without anyone touching it, it still swayed in the air.
Boss Sun laughed and said, "Your innkeeper's martial arts are good. You don't need to worry. What's the point of asking about the refugees? Now that foreign dogs have occupied Jiangnan, there are many homeless people. It's worthless to die all over the place. "
Xu Ling said, "I heard that there are 100,000 refugees in Jiangbei. Our boss ordered the two of us to come and explore the banks of the canal. He wants to take in these refugees to build factories. We came all the way here, but we didn't see many people. Who else can we find to work?"
Boss Sun had already drunk half a liter of yellow wine. His face was flushed and his eyes were drifting. Hearing this, he looked at Xu Ling drunkenly and smiled with yellow teeth. "Why? Are you trying to get information from me?"
Xu Ling: "..."
Changgeng took the hammer and neatly nailed the steel nail into the door of the tavern. He jumped down. The three-legged stool didn't move from beginning to end. He smiled and shook his head. Lord Xu didn't pay attention to the outside world since he was young. He grew up reading books and then became an official in the imperial court. He had been mingling in the capital all this time. How could he have dealt with these Jianghu people who had their heads on their belts?
Boss Sun looked at Changgeng and said with a big tongue, "White dragon clothes. The shopkeeper is not simple."
Xu Ling was so scared that he broke out in a cold sweat. Changgeng took the wine pot that Boss Sun handed over and drank half the pot in one gulp. "What white dragon or black dragon? Some people walk at night too much and will meet ghosts. I am that ghost."
Boss Sun looked meaningfully at Changgeng for a long time and said with a smile, "How did the imperial envoy find me?"
Chang Geng's identity was exposed, but he still said without a change in expression, "Nothing. I just feel that Boss Sun's small tavern business is too good. There are only two or three tables of customers every day, but the wine and vegetables are like an endless stream. Can you finish it?"
Boss Sun raised his head and looked at him. There was no sign of drunkenness on his face. His eyes were fierce. Xu Ling's eyes were sharp. He saw that there was a ferocious-looking short knife hidden under his robe.
Xu Ling suddenly stood up. "Prince!"
The people who were napping in the restaurant, the accountant, and the waiters all stood up. Their eyes were sharp and they seemed to have weapons at their waists. They were all martial artists.
Two guards from the Black Iron Battalion blocked the door. Xu Ling subconsciously tightened his grip on the sword that he used to defend himself.
Chang Geng gently put the wine pot on the table. "On the way here, I was thinking about where they could hide with so many refugees. The worst case scenario would be that Yang Ronggui was crazy to the extreme. He gathered all the refugees together in the name of the epidemic and killed them all …" Chang Geng said with a clack. "That's right.
Boss Sun sneered. "His Royal Highness Yan Wang really understands the thoughts of the dog officials under you. He is indeed the leader of the dog officials."
"The dog officials' leader is my big brother, not me," Changgeng said lightly. "But no matter how crazy Yang Ronggui is, he doesn't necessarily have that much ability. If he really forced the refugees out and killed them, there would be riots everywhere. It would be impossible not to alert the garrison in Jiangbei."
Boss Sun looked at him coldly. "Yang Ronghui claimed that he had already built a manor to settle the refugees. The manor was next to a mountain. He wanted to take this group of refugees to develop land and slowly settle them down. He also sent people to register them and gave each refugee a number plate. Based on the number plate, they were sent to different villas. He explained clearly how to divide the land and how to collect rent. He also let the groups of refugees choose their own leader. If they didn't want to go, then they were free to go. There was no more porridge outside Yangzhou. The people who were infected were isolated and isolated to other courtyards. There were doctors to treat them. All the doctors in Yangzhou were there that day. "
If they were Jianghu people, as long as they had a little bit of contact with the black and white sides, they would have already found a place to go. Most of the refugees were honest and poor people. These people's lifelong wish was to settle down and live a good life. As long as they could live, as long as they lived better day by day and had something to look forward to, they would never cause trouble.
If Yang Ronghui said that he wanted to build a better shelter somewhere, someone would definitely feel that something was wrong. But Yang Ronghui clearly said that he wanted them to develop land and cultivate land. He even said the rules in a down-to-earth manner. He even said that the rent might be a little higher than the landlord's in the past. In this kind of precarious situation, it was enough for these refugees to take care of themselves and follow his pace.
Xu Ling was very confused when he heard this. He originally thought that Yang Ronggui was a good-for-nothing who didn't do a single thing. His subordinates had caused an epidemic, so in order to shirk responsibility, he had lied to his superiors and concealed the truth. Who would have thought that after hearing this, he felt that he was quite organized — if he had done this earlier, how could there be so many refugees in Jiangbei?
Xu Ling said, "Developing land can also be considered a good method. Since Governor Yang has managed the refugees well, why did he hide the fact that there was an epidemic?"
Boss Sun darkly mocked, "Imperial Envoy Daren eats the monarch's salary. He is truly carefree and naive. I wonder where the money came from."
Xu Ling was stunned for a moment. Suddenly, he reacted. "You're saying that Yang Ronggui embezzled the life-saving money that the court had allocated to settle the refugees!"
As soon as these words escaped his mouth, Xu Ling regretted it because he had said it too unworldly. As expected, in the next moment, Yan Wang and Boss Sun laughed at the same time. Xu Ling's face turned red and he hurriedly added, "I just didn't think that Yang Ronggui would be so daring. The enemy territory is just across the river, and it's right next to Jiangbei Daying. How could he dare …"
"Jiangbei Daying can't be casually moved," Changgeng said in a low voice. "Once there is a change in the enemy, no one can take responsibility. If Yang Ronggui wanted to hide it, Elder Zhong and the others might not be able to know the situation here."
Boss Sun laughed coldly, disagreeing with his explanation.
"As long as he controls the courier station in the north, he can cover the sky with one hand." Changgeng turned to Boss Sun and said, "Since Brother Sun knows so clearly, you must have helped a lot of refugees. Let me guess, there are a lot of fishermen in the area between the two rivers. Behind them, there is the Sandsea Gang that is both on land and water. Which group is Boss Sun's friend?"
On the side, Xu Ling didn't understand at first. He only felt that the three words "Sandsea Gang" were familiar. Suddenly, he saw Boss Sun turn his head and smile, revealing a hideous scar from his ear to his jaw. Only then did he suddenly remember that the Sandsea Gang's power spread throughout Jiangnan and Fujian. It was a big bandit gang!
This Boss Sun wasn't an escort, he was a bandit! The restaurant wasn't Apricot Flower Village, but a place that sold human meat buns!
Xu Ling suddenly became nervous. He tried in vain to use his weak scholar body to block Yan Wang behind him. "You … you are …"
Changgeng cupped one hand in the other before his chest and said, "Every dog butcher is righteous. There are also people with good temperament in the Lulin. Sorry for the disrespect."
Boss Sun glanced at the several guards of the Black Iron Battalion behind him and said bluntly, "Yan Wang, you don't have to be so polite. You came to investigate openly and secretly this time because you want to know how much Yang Ronggui embezzled, where the refugees were harmed by him, and whether there is an epidemic. I don't mind telling you directly that the patients who were brought to the other courtyard to save their lives received a bowl of herbal medicine as soon as they arrived at the other courtyard the day before. As a result, there was a big fire in the villa that night. None of the people inside ran out, and the corpses were destroyed. The others have either been imprisoned in the so-called 'villa' in batches, or have followed my brothers and joined the gang."
Changgeng's expression didn't change as he said, "From the sound of it, if we didn't come, I'm afraid a riot would have happened sooner or later."
Boss Sun sneered, "It's normal for officials to force the people. But speaking of which, when Yang Ronggui killed the refugees, Jiangbei Daying didn't hear a single rumor. If the refugees rebelled, Jiangbei Daying would certainly have acted immediately. Don't look at how they can't beat corrupt officials or foreigners. They can't beat us ordinary people. All roads lead to the sky, but none of them can survive."
Xu Ling had seen the Jiangbei Daying's military camp tidy up, and had also seen the battlefield on both sides of the river with his own eyes. He was about to refute when Changgeng raised his hand to stop him.
Changgeng said, "If there is really no way to survive, why is Brother Sun waiting for us here?"
Boss Sun said, "I am waiting here just to see if the imperial envoy in the court is in charge. If the esteemed envoy is just a snake and a rat's nest, then even if we have to endure the gunfire of Beidaying, we can still fight with our lives on the line! I just don't know if the imperial envoy dares to come. I can't lead a wolf into the Gang's house. If you want to investigate, then take this pretty boy and come with me. Leave those lackeys who are following you in the open and in the dark here. "
Xu Ling said, "Prince, you can't do that!"
Changgeng smiled and said, "I couldn't ask for more. Please."
Boss Sun cupped his hands and said, "Please."
After he finished speaking, he took the lead and walked out. After walking a few steps, he suddenly turned his head and glanced at the signboard His Royal Highness Yan Wang had carved for the little tavern that sold human meat buns. The old bandit's expression finally changed. He saw that on the signboard, there were four words carved without any fancy words — — "Righteousness for a Thousand Years."
At this time, if someone saw the "Yan Wang" in the Liangjiang Governor's Manor, they would definitely be shocked.
They saw the elegant and graceful "Yan Wang" close the door to his room. In a few moments, he became a coquettish idiot.
Governor Yang was very devoted to them. The room was elegant and luxurious. There were several small gold objects that were made of purple gold. In the inner room, there was a mirror that was as tall as a person. When a person stood in front of the mirror, they could see everything. The "Yan Wang" who was standing outside like a pine tree swayed his hips and swayed in. His two long legs were twisted together, but it wasn't enough for him to express himself. He came in front of the mirror and looked left and right. He winked for about the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn. No matter how much he held his face, it wasn't enough.
The "Xu Ling" next to him was like a wooden person. He didn't know if it was because he was numb or something else, but he really couldn't look at him.
The "Yan Wang" clicked his tongue and praised, "Not to mention anything else, just my big brother's face, no matter how much I touch it, it's not enough."
The "Xu Ling" sneered and said, "If you have the guts, go touch the real one."
"I'm the real one." The Wild Goose King shook his head and wagged his tail. "I can pass off the fake as the real one. Sigh, tell me, why can't he let me be a little more perfect? Since Marquis also came, just make one up. Why did he make up the lie that he went straight to Jiangbei to avoid suspicion? "
The "Xu Ling" said, "Not letting you make it is for your own good. I'm afraid you will blaspheme Marshal Gu's face. When the time comes, you will be killed by the Black Iron Battalion."
The "Yan Wang" rolled his eyes and ignored him. He concentrated on admiring his masterpiece face in the mirror. Suddenly, an accompanying bodyguard came to report, "Your Highness, Lord Xu, Governor Yang has something important to see you about. He is waiting outside."
The "Yan Wang" and the "Xu Ling" looked at each other. The "Yan Wang" said, "We have acted out the play, and both the guests and the host have enjoyed themselves. The next step should be to drag us onto the pirate ship and bribe us, right? There must be boxes of gold, silver, and beauties waiting outside. Forget about the female beauties, but can the male beauties stay? Our big brother told us to keep the physical evidence well, but he didn't say what to do with the witnesses. "
"Xu Ling" turned around and glanced at King Yan's well-defined and handsome face. Coupled with the words "male beauty" dripping with saliva, he suddenly felt a stomachache. However, before he could make any sarcastic remarks, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside. There were guards outside the courtyard who shouted for them to stop, but the people who came barged in without any care. Soon, the sound of soldiers fighting could be heard.
The "Xu Ling"'s face suddenly changed. He whispered, "Did we expose ourselves? Or … "
Before he finished speaking, the "Yan Wang" who had a wretched face just now suddenly looked serious. His expression was no different from the real one.
He took a step forward and suddenly pushed open the door. He put his hands behind his back and looked down at the group of armored men led by Yang Ronggui who had barged into the courtyard.
"What does Governor Yang mean?" The "Yan Wang" asked with an accent. The "Xu Ling" behind him imperceptibly put his hand into his waist. He was ready to rush out after his identity was exposed.
Who would have thought that in the next moment, Yang Ronggui, who was originally full of murderous intent, suddenly took a step forward and knelt on the ground with a "plop" sound. He loudly said, "Replying to Wangye, this lowly official did not do a good job. The local bandit gang rebelled and blocked the road from Yangzhou Prefecture to Jiangbei camp. This lowly official had no choice but to gather the soldiers and soldiers of the nearby cities to protect Wangye! The situation is critical. Your Highness, please be prepared to move. "
The "Yan Wang" looked back at the "Xu Ling". The "Xu Ling" shook his head imperceptibly. He didn't understand what Yang Ronggui was doing. The "Yan Wang" could only say, "I understand. Governor Yang, please stand up and reply …"
Yang Ronggui turned a deaf ear and continued to say in a clear voice, "I have one more thing. The current Emperor is muddle-headed and incompetent. The country is about to decline. There are internal and external troubles. There are barbarians eyeing the country covetously. Internally, there are mobs rebelling. The army is without a leader. I am willing to risk universal condemnation and follow the example of the predecessors.
I am willing to follow the Emperor! "Before he finished speaking, the group behind him split in half. The four people in the middle carried a piece of clothing out of the crowd. The" Yan Wang "eyes almost popped out. It was actually a dragon robe that could be passed off as a real one!
Yang Ronggui said, "I have worked hard for Daliang. In this time of national crisis, I don't dare to hide anything. I can only destroy my family. I have already handed over some of my family's wealth and my wife's dowry to the imperial court and exchanged them for Fire Beacon tickets. However, I am still suspected by the muddle-headed Emperor. I am truly wronged. If there is a wise Emperor, I am willing to use my life to assist him!"
These words sounded sonorous and powerful, as if they were an impassioned speech. In reality, there were three layers of coercion and bribery. First, I took bribes and perverted the law. It was all because of your Fire Beacon tickets. I am guilty. Yan Wang, you are the instigator.
Second, there is no need to talk about the bandits rebelling. If I say that he rebelled, then he rebelled.
Third, it is up to Your Highness to decide whether or not he will die in a rebellion.
When they came, the real Yan Wang only told them to stall for time and deal with the traitor surnamed Yang. He didn't tell them that there would be such a scene!
The pair of fake imperial envoys were stunned for a moment.
After a while, the "Xu Ling" took a deep breath and shouted, "Governor Yang, you are openly rebelling. Have you lost your mind? The Marquis of Stability is in Jiangbei Daying. Do you think that my Daliang's tens of thousands of elite soldiers are all dead? "
Yang Ronggui smiled and said meaningfully, "The Lord Xu's words are too serious. As a subject, how could I dare to rebel? It's just that the Emperor was killed by Japanese assassins. Now that the country is in danger and the Crown Prince is still young, we can only do this and ask Your Highness to ascend the throne. "
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