The drizzle fell on the Yangtze River, and the hazy scenery changed. Against the current, the weeping willows swayed gently, and the sunset could not be seen.
After lunch, it started to drizzle, and it was already dark before it was evening. There was no sound of apes crying on both sides of the river, and the speed of a light boat passing through thousands of mountains. Similarly, there was no feeling of being blown by the wind.
Li Xun covered his chest and found Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan.
"Xiao Bao, I'm sick. I think I won't be able to hold on until we reach the place. I'll leave the rest to you, but I still have a wish."
As soon as he saw Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, Li Xun gasped for breath and said.
Zhang Xiaobao moved closer to Li Xun, rolled his eyes, and asked doubtfully, "What's wrong with you? Didn't you see a doctor? "
"It's no use. My heart can't take it anymore. Xiaobao, we have to live a grand life. I feel that I don't have anything else except that I'm missing a chance to do something big. Xiaobao, look at our relationship over the past few years. You have to let me shine like a meteor in the sky."
Li Xun and Weiwei closed their eyes, and their breathing gradually weakened.
Wang Juan stood aside and watched for a while, then turned back to continue with her work. Zhang Xiaobao still looked nervous, but the corners of his mouth were curled up. When Li Xun slightly opened his left eye, Zhang Xiaobao quickly closed his mouth again.
He asked sadly, "Young Master Li, if you have something to say, just say it. I'll help you if I can. Rest assured, with our relationship, I won't let you die so easily."
Li Xun heard and opened his right eye, but his breathing was still not so smooth. He said weakly, "I hope that when we reach Yingzhou, your family will provide me with more sleeve arrows. I want to be loyal to the country."
"Well, do you want to kill yourself with sleeve arrows?" Zhang Xiaobao asked doubtfully.
"No, I want to kill the enemy."
"Oh! You want to kill Tubo, right? Will you recover after killing them? I'm sorry, but don't think about it. It's not up to you. Tell me, what did you get from them? "
Zhang Xiaobao thought for a while. If he wanted to kill the enemy in Wing Prefecture, he could only go to Tubo. It seemed that this had something to do with the transfer this time. However, Old Man Pi and the other two didn't want to tell him and insisted on waiting until they arrived. He had no choice but to ask Li Xun in a roundabout way.
Li Xun was stunned, and his breathing stopped. He stared at Zhang Xiaobao for a while and asked, "How did you know?"
"Do you think I'm stupid? I don't know anything. I've decided. Because the boat is on the river and my family is not feeling well, we'll postpone the trip. We'll stop at the shore and enjoy the delicacies of the river to recuperate."
Zhang Xiaobao thought of a way to get the news as soon as possible, and that was to delay. When the others were running out of time, they would naturally discuss with him.
"Then what about my aspiration to be like a shooting star?" Li Xun was still thinking about his matter.
"With your IQ, you can't be a shooting star. How about the moon? Wait for the sun to set before you appear." Zhang Xiaobao expressed his thoughts tactfully.
Li Xun still fought for it and said, "Then there's still the time when the sun and moon rise."
"Then I can leave the finishing work to you." Zhang Xiaobao compromised.
*****
Zhang Xiaobao did what he said. When night fell, the speed of the fleet slowed down and began to look for a place to dock.
Just as he thought, Old Man Pi and Old Man Yao couldn't stay still. They pulled Old Man Chang along and each of them held a small teapot in their hands. From time to time, they would sip and shake the tea in their mouths.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were playing games with a group of little guys. Some of the adults were seasick, but the little guys were still so active. It seemed that they were not affected by the ups and downs of the ship at all.
The group stood in a circle. In the middle was a big ball sewn with a float. They kicked it back and forth. If they kicked it, they would wait for others to kick it again. If they missed, they would chase with all their strength. Many times, two little guys would try to grab it at the same time, each wanting to kick it themselves.
"Xiao Bao, why is the ship so slow?" Old Man Pi asked Zhang Xiaobao after kicking the ball back to him.
"The little guys are not in good health, so they can't walk too fast. Also, my grandfather has to find a place to rest. If we don't do well, it will be many days late when we reach Yizhou. I don't know if the imperial court will blame me. But there's no other way. I can't get into trouble just to get there. At worst, I'll quit being an official and find a few acres of land to live a good life."
Zhang Xiaobao pointed at his younger brothers and sisters and replied.
The three old men couldn't tell which one of them was not in good health. They looked at each other. Old Man Yao sighed and finally spoke.
"Xiao Bao, there's something that I should tell you. Even if it's against the imperial favor, come with me."
"Grandpa Yao, please don't. How can I harm you? There's no hurry. But Commandery Prince Li seems to want to be a shooting star. It's difficult for him to charge and break through the enemy lines. He's not satisfied with being a moon. What's going on?"
Zhang Xiaobao didn't give him any face at all. He hated to fight battles that he wasn't sure about. Since it was a secret, then he would keep it. "I won't leave. I'll see when you can transport the things to the destination. Otherwise, don't use Zhang Xiaobao's and Wang's fleets as a cover."
Li Xun already knew, but he still kept it a secret. This was unreasonable.
As he said this, Zhang Xiaobao followed Old Man Yao to a place where there was no one. Old Man Pi and Zhang Xiaobao also came over.
Wang Juan gathered the little guys and servants together and went to a place further away to play. She didn't want to disturb the four people's conversation.
Zhang Xiaobao and Old Man Pi sat down. Old Man Pi looked around and said, "Actually, the main reason for going to Yizhou this time is to deal with Tubo …"
"We're going to use force against Tubo, but we're afraid that they will find out. So, we're going to use our family's fleet as a cover and catch them off guard. My family has to take the risk and cooperate. Why didn't you tell us?"
Without waiting for Old Man Pi to finish his words, Zhang Xiaobao continued with a dissatisfied look.
Old Man Pi shut up. Old Man Chang then said, "Then do you know why we're going to use force against Tubo? It's mainly because … "
"It's mainly because they have something to do with the dam breach at Shuzhou's Wangjiang. The imperial court investigated and finally discovered that someone or a few people from the imperial court had been deceived by a spy. They didn't deal with the people from the imperial court because they wanted to numb Tubo. Once they started fighting, the imperial court would come back and deal with them.
But what does this have to do with my family? My father is going to Luoyang, not Yizhou. We've already exchanged benefits. When doing business, even people know how to be honest, let alone the imperial court. "
Zhang Xiaobao continued the conversation once again. What he meant was, "Don't think that my family doesn't know anything. Anyway, we have to continue the exchange."
Just as Old Man Yao was about to say something, Old Man Pi said angrily, "Why didn't you exchange with your family? Aren't your grandfather and Cuckoo's grandfather going to have official positions? When your family left, they gave you the salt pan you wanted. After the war, you had to return to Luoyang and delay things.
If not your family, who would go? How would you cover up such a big team? If you don't go by water, people will notice you on land. It's not like your family doesn't know the local people. Ordinary people won't be able to control them at all. If the logistics are not stable, how are you going to fight? "
"Moreover, this time, we have to borrow your family's power to allocate the provisions. If your family goes, no matter how big of a commotion you make, others will think that it's a business move. If someone else tries to mobilize there, Tubo will immediately realize it.
The most important thing is your family's organizational ability. The imperial court didn't send any other officials. When the war starts, it will all depend on your family's ability to transfer and transport. This is the result of the Emperor and a few ministers' research. Lu Zhou, when your family was fighting against disasters, running businesses, and taking care of the people, there was no mistake at all.
If you want to blame someone, blame it on your family's ability. The Emperor rarely praises others, but he praised your family once. He said that in terms of logistics, the Zhang family is the best. With your family there, it will save the imperial court a lot of trouble. "
At this time, Old Man Yao also spoke. He had to say it. The Zhang family's ship was about to dock.
However, Zhang Xiaobao was still not satisfied with this answer. "Then why didn't you say it in advance?"
"If I say it in advance, what if your family members can't control their emotions? If others see it, won't all your previous efforts be wasted? Originally, it's not suitable for war now. The country has just stabilized, and it will take some time to recover. I'm the one who is most against war, but your family has helped the imperial court obtain a lot of taxes.
Also, your family and Li Xun have a lot of money. Even if the imperial court can't gather it in time, we can use your money to deal with it first. "
When Old Man Yao said this, he seemed very embarrassed. He was not wrong. Back then, when Prime Minister Ren was still alive, he said that they should not go to war. However, he supported war now.
Zhang Xiaobao pondered for a while and said, "In that case, when the time comes and the imperial court can't transfer the provisions, my family will have to think of a way. If we can't support it financially, my family will have to fork out some money. If we lose, whose responsibility is it?"
Old Man Chang finally found an opportunity to say, "If we lose, it's naturally the responsibility of the general in front. He'll be the one fighting. As long as your family supplies the logistics, it'll be fine."
"What if we win? Doesn't the credit also count as the general's? My family is in the logistics. If we lose money, we'll have nothing. Also, let me say this first. Logistics is a regular supply. If he needs a lot of oil to attack with fire, then my family won't care. My family is responsible for transporting the provisions and military equipment to the first city to attack. Now, let's talk about how the delay will be calculated. "
Zhang Xiaobao asked again.
This time, the three old men were in a dilemma. They looked at each other and didn't know what to say. When they were stared at by Zhang Xiaobao, Old Man Pi said, "If you win, you'll have to win.
However, you can't give any reward in the imperial court. You can secretly compensate your father when he changes positions. In this year's imperial examination, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang family's villagers in Zhuangzi will do well. As long as they are of age and have indeed studied in the Academy, it's fine. We need to write a letter to discuss this. Basically, there's no problem. Yes, there's no problem.
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