Fan Xian looked at him with an indifferent laziness in his eyes. "Although Qingzhou is at the front lines, it is, after all, under the control of the Western camp. There is no need to be so afraid."
Li Hongcheng used his finger to point at his nose and said angrily, "You are a high official and noble. You want to go to Qingzhou with just a thought. Don't you know how much trouble you will cause?"
Qingzhou was the furthest city in the Qing Kingdom. It was the land the Great Prince had forcefully taken when he first led troops. It was also the newest city. It hung on the edge of the grasslands and was empty on three sides. It was often at the point of conflict between the two sides. If Xi Hu knew that the Overwatch Council and Fan Xian had entered deep into Qingzhou, they would probably attack at all costs.
Fan Xian swatted away the finger that was about to point at his face and angrily said, "Are you not a high official and noble? Is Prince He not? Is Ye Ling 'er not? "
"But we are all in the military camp!" Li Hongcheng looked at him and angrily raised his voice. "You think I don't know you? You will stop when you reach Qingzhou? I know you too well. With the grasslands in front of you, would you not want to go in? You like to take risks. You like to be sneaky. You never follow the group forward or backward. "
"Can I just watch as you slip into the grasslands under my rule?" Li Hongcheng gritted his teeth. "I'm telling you, there is no way!"
Fan Xian was silent. He had not thought that Li Hongcheng would see through his plans at a glance. However, the dark fire in his heart was still burning. He had to enter Qingzhou and see what was happening, even if he didn't enter the grasslands.
"I promise you, I won't bring my subordinates into the grasslands." He gazed at Li Hongcheng and said seriously, "I just want to go to Qingzhou to investigate some things. If … if I don't come, no one will know exactly what has happened. Believe me, this matter is very important."
"What are you investigating in Qingzhou?" Li Hongcheng calmed down and looked at him. "If you have an edict, I will let you go. If not, then don't say anymore."
"If I had an edict, why would I be talking to you?" Fan Xian saw that he was being stubborn and couldn't help but become angry. "Don't forget, I am an imperial envoy! His Majesty has allowed me to act at my discretion. I am informing you because I respect you. If I really want to go to Qingzhou, what are you going to do to stop me? "
Hearing this, Li Hongcheng gritted his teeth but couldn't find any words to refute. A moment later, he said in a cold voice, "I must warn you, the border is not the same as before. It's easy to die. The Hu people have become more and more sinister … their methods are similar to yours. Why were you able to capture me when you brought the Overwatch Council into the city earlier? It is because many spies have infiltrated Dingzhou. The Western camp and the Governor's manor of Xiliang Road are both nervous about this matter. "
"Your disguises can't even fool me, much less those Hu." Li Hongcheng stared into his eyes and tried to persuade him. "Ye Ling'er is different from you. The Ye family is still respected by the Hu people in the west, but your reputation represents the face of the court. If the Hu people can kill you, they will pay any price."
"Spies … there are indeed many spies," Fan Xian let out a long breath and faintly said. Fan Xian let out a long breath and faintly said, "In the past 30 years, the Hu people have been unable to send spies into our territory because we look too different … in these two years, it has increased. I am also very curious as to where these spies who sell our intelligence to the Hu people came from."
A strange light flashed through Li Hongcheng's eyes.
Fan Xian gazed at him and said, "The most important purpose of my trip this time is to dig out that person, as well as everyone connected to that person. For this matter, I have prepared for four whole months! If you want to stop me, go ask the Emperor for an edict. "
Li Hongcheng raised his hands to indicate that he had given up. However, he continued to smile coldly and said, "Have you thought about what would happen to the Emperor if something happened to you? What would happen to the people of the Western camp? "
"You overestimate the Hu people." Fan Xian lowered his eyelids slightly and mockingly said, "You underestimate me."
Li Hongcheng was startled. Suddenly, he pulled him in and walked toward the study where the map was kept. After walking through the garden, they came to a room. Lighting a lamp, Li Hongcheng spread out a large map and slapped his palm heavily on a spot in the extreme west. In a cold voice, he said, "Look at the position of Qingzhou. It is 200 li away. If you want to go, I will send a troop of 1,000 people to escort you. If you don't want people to escort you … then I want to know, if the Hu people suddenly attack in the last 30 li of the flat desert, how will you deal with it?"
Fan Xian looked at the map carefully. Although he had studied this map many times in the Jingdou Council, looking at it again now, he still felt a chill. The road to Qingzhou was close to the edge of the grasslands. Using their ability to come and go unpredictably on the grasslands, the Hu people could indeed launch an attack at any time.
"I am a merchant. The Hu people do not kill merchants," Fan Xian said with his head lowered. In his heart, he was thinking about the agreement he had with Hu Ge.
Li Hongcheng did not respond to his words. Pointing at the map, he said, "These two years, the Hu people have come out of the grasslands every day to sweep through the fields behind Qingzhou. Do you know how many people have died? Once the Hu people get into a killing frenzy, who cares if you are a merchant or not? Even if you are a ninth-level ace, if you are faced with hundreds of roaming riders, what way do you have to escape? "
Without waiting for Fan Xian to respond, his finger continued to move on the map. "Look at this area. This is the direction the Hu people are mainly attacking. In these two years, over a thousand Field Army soldiers have died."
Fan Xian knew of the tragedy on the border and said, "Is there no way to solve this problem?"
"I can guarantee that the Metal Riders under my command will not lose to the Hu people's roaming riders. However, this is like two people stabbing knives at each other. Both knives are sharp, but the target is different. They don't dare to touch my main force, but I can't catch their main force."
Fan Xian said thoughtfully, "The Hu people's camps are moving, but our people are tied to the ground because of the fields. The damage they do to us is greater than the damage we do to them."
Li Hongcheng nodded his head helplessly.
"That is why I have to go to Qingzhou. I have to see just who the master who invented this kind of bastardly tactic is." Fan Xian's eyes were cold. An underworld fire began to burn amidst the coldness.
Knowing that he could not convince Fan Xian, Li Hongcheng stared into his eyes and asked, "Why is the Overwatch Council paying so much attention to the Xiliang matter?"
"It's not Council business, it's my private matter." Fan Xian's mood was clearly terrible. Looking at the red dots on the map, he said, "Of course, it's not just a private matter. I have to stabilize the situation in the West before next year. I need your help. At the same time, I also have to cut off the support the Hu people have."
"Before next year?" Li Hongcheng looked at him with confusion. He didn't know why he was so anxious about the situation in the West.
"Next year, Sigu Jian can, at most, hold out until next spring," Fan Xian said with his head lowered. Fan Xian lowered his head and said, "The Fourth Bureau put most of its attention on observing Sigu Jian's injury. This Great Grandmaster is really good at enduring … He actually managed to endure this much longer than expected. Although he has not seen any outsiders in these two years, we know that he is still alive, and we also know that he will die next year. "
"What does Sigu Jian's life and death have to do with the West?" Li Hongcheng asked angrily.
Fan Xian raised his head and looked at him. "Because if Sigu Jian dies, the Emperor will send me to Dongyi. I will no longer have time to resolve the problems in the West."
Li Hongcheng laughed coldly and said, "Do you think you can resolve everything in the world by yourself? I acknowledge your ability, but I hope you don't think too highly of yourself. "
Fan Xian knew that the other party's words did not have any ill intentions. He spread out his hands and said, "After Sigu Jian, Dongyi will always lean to one side, regardless of whether it is the Qing Kingdom or Northern Qi. The biggest problem is how do we smoothly transition Dongyi into our hands?"
"Or if the two sides fight, Dongyi can still maintain a neutral position."
"That's impossible." Fan Xian smiled self-mockingly and shook his head. "Once Sigu Jian dies, the conflict between the Master of the City and the Sword Hut will explode. What right does Dongyi have to be neutral?"
"But, you still haven't explained what this has to do with you rushing to Xiliang."
Fan Xian glanced at Li Hongcheng helplessly. After a moment of silence, he said in a low voice, "The reason is simple. I have to prove to the world that I can resolve the problems of Xiliang and Dongyi."
"And then?" Li Hongcheng looked at him suspiciously.
"Then, I want to prove to the Emperor that if … I'm saying if, if we truly want to unify the world, we don't necessarily have to fight. Even if we have to fight, it doesn't have to be a martial battle. A civil attack is also possible. Even if we have to fight, if we can, we will."
Fan Xian's voice grew quieter and quieter. It was so quiet that even he didn't believe these words. Li Hongcheng was also dumbfounded. He sat silently to the side, wondering if he had heard incorrectly.
Li Hongcheng suddenly stood up and quickly paced back and forth in the study. It was as if he was digesting the news he had just heard. A moment later, he stood by Fan Xian's side and laughed uncontrollably. His laughter was filled with absurdity.
"Are you an idiot?" Li Hongcheng let loose a torrent of abuse at him. "How can you think of such a childish idea? Do you think you're an immortal who can resolve the Hu people without using a single soldier? Without using a single soldier, you can resolve Dongyi and Northern Qi? "
Li Hongcheng's entire body shook with anger. Pointing at Fan Xian's face, his fingertips shook wildly. "I thought you had some great idea going to Qingzhou, but it's such a childish and chaotic battle!"
"What exactly do you want to do? Have you really been flattered by the Imperial College students to the point of forgetting your own name? Do you really want to be a saint? "
Li Hongcheng abruptly grabbed Fan Xian's clothes and gritted his teeth. "Are you crazy? No one in the world will obediently do as you say just because of what you think! "
The two of their faces were very close. Li Hongcheng looked at the darkness in Fan Xian's eyes and roared in a low voice, "Prove to the Emperor? What exactly are you thinking about? "
Fan Xian lowered his head and said in a low voice, "What am I thinking about? If I said I hoped for the world to be peaceful and without war, would you think this idea was absurd? "
Li Hongcheng let go of his hands. Fan Xian sat back down in the chair.
He looked at Fan Xian and shook his head for a moment. He was so shocked he couldn't speak. As a man of the Qing Kingdom, how could he hate war so much? Fortunately, he knew how many times Fan Xian had experienced life and death situations in his life. He was not a person who craved life and feared death.
"This idea is not absurd," Li Hongcheng said each word clearly. "Rather, it cannot even be considered an idea."
Fan Xian raised his head and said fiercely, "Why not? If I can use my own power to unify the world, why would the Emperor need to go to war and let tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions of common people die for this glorious goal? For the sake of so many lives, why can't I think like this? "
"Fine, fine, fine." Li Hongcheng nodded his head repeatedly. "You can think like this, but you will never be able to do it. Furthermore, I advise you not to let the Emperor know of your thoughts. Otherwise, he will certainly think you are crazy."
"I have been crazy to begin with." Fan Xian closed his eyes and faintly said, "You don't know how I've lived these two years. Every day, I think about this problem. It seems that in the next moment, a great battle will erupt. Those common people who don't understand anything will die under horses or under knives and spears. I want to change all of this, but I don't know how to do it. No one can help me. "
"No one can help me!" He suddenly became angry. Opening his eyes, he stared at Li Hongcheng and extended a finger. In a loud voice, he said, "They've all left! Chen Pingping doesn't care anymore. Father has retired. Lin Ruofu has been scared into an old rabbit by the Emperor in Wuzhou! And the boss? He'd probably be happy to go to war and not stay in Jingdou … "
Uncle Wu Zhu had also left. It was only him, Fan Xian added in his heart.
"It's only me." Fan Xian's lips trembled slightly. He gritted his teeth and said fiercely, "It's only me who thinks and struggles at night. I am not satisfied. I know that this is a difficult goal to reach, but I still have to try."
"Absurd! Laughable! Childish! " Li Hongcheng shook his shoulder as if he wanted to shake this madman awake. "The Emperor used 30 years of time to create such a wonderful situation … Xi Hu? If the Emperor is prepared, he can beat them into trash at any time! In the current situation, you want to go against His Majesty? Let me tell you, the Emperor doesn't need you to do these things for him. He has enough power to do it himself! "
Li Hongcheng looked at Fan Xian like he was looking at an idiot. "In these two years, you had the Overwatch Council purposely reduce its power in order to stabilize the court. You allowed the palace treasury to regain its former glory, replenished the national treasury, and replenished military expenses. If you truly helped him pacify Xi Hu and take back Dongyi, you would have already made all the preparations for the Emperor before a great battle. Yet, you want the Emperor to give up on the idea of starting a war at this time?"
"Do you think the Emperor is crazy, or are you crazy?"
"What exactly happened? What has happened to you these two years? "Li Hongcheng looked at Fan Xian in disbelief." The world is at peace? This sort of thing has never happened before. "
"At least while I am alive, I hope for world peace. This can be considered my life's dream."
Fan Xian smiled self-mockingly. After a moment of silence, he said seriously, "Ever since I was young in Danzhou, I had always thought about what I wanted to do in this life. Later on, I gradually understood that if the world could be at peace, that would be for the best."
"Two years ago in Jingdou." Fan Xian raised his head and looked at Li Hongcheng's closely bearded and concerned eyes. Faintly, he said, "I watched the Second Prince vomit blood and die, the Eldest Princess stab herself to death, and so many rebel soldiers, imperial soldiers, and subordinates of the Overwatch Council. Because of the goal of unifying the world, they became sacrifices on the Emperor's path. It was at that time that I solidified this dream. Is it laughable?"
"I've also seen dead people." Li Hongcheng glared at him. "In these three years on the grasslands, I've seen more dead people than you, but what can I do? History is always like this. Your dream has always been laughable, do you know that? "
"A laughable dream is still a dream." Fan Xian crossed his hands in front of his chest and recovered his calm. Quietly, he said, "If a person doesn't have a dream, then what difference is there between them and a salted fish?"
"In the entire Qing Kingdom, no one will support your so-called dream." Li Hongcheng gradually calmed down. He shook his head and said with pity, "Including Director Chen and Minister Fan, no one will support your thoughts."
"I understand," Fan Xian said. "I have always been different from most people in the world. I just want to use facts to convince the Emperor."
"The Emperor will never be convinced by others!" Li Hongcheng emphasized his tone.
"Who knows what hasn't happened?" Fan Xian stood up. "Don't forget, I am now the father of two children. You will have to get married and have children in these two years. We have to leave something for our descendants. At least, I hope it won't be a chaotic world filled with endless war and corpses."
"You don't think the Emperor will unify the world?" Li Hongcheng asked after a long silence after hearing Fan Xian's words.
"It is easy to conquer the world, but difficult to rule it." Fan Xian tidied up his messy clothes and slowly said, "Back then, the Northern Expedition broke up the Wei Kingdom and allowed the Zhan family to inherit the throne. The people of Jiangnan, Jiangbei, Shandong, and Yanjing easily submitted, but the people of the Wei Kingdom will not so easily lower their heads. Even if the Iron Riders of the Qing Kingdom break into Shangjing, it will take decades for the people to acknowledge the rule of the Li royal family. "
"Accurately speaking, it will take decades of suppression and slaughter." Fan Xian walked toward the outside of the room. "I don't want Xiaohua and Liangzi to not see the beautiful scenery of West Lake and the East Sea, but instead see blood flowing and iron chains crossing the river. Thus, I want to try to change it, at least in a different way."
"But decades of blood and iron can be exchanged for 10,000 years of peace." Li Hongcheng still could not accept Fan Xian's way of thinking.
"The situation of the world will unite after a long time and separate after a long time. Unifying the world may bring more benefits to the people, but I can't think that far ahead," Fan Xian said. "I once said this to Yan Bingyun. I can only think about the moment I am alive and the moment my children are alive."
"I just don't want to be a salted fish. I don't want to be a saint." After saying this, Fan Xian walked out of the room. Inside the room, Li Hongcheng's palms pressed against the map and suddenly said, "Why are you telling me this?"
Fan Xian didn't turn around. He smiled and replied, "We are friends. I won't hide my thoughts from my friends."
Then, he thought of his friend in the flowery dress. His heart throbbed with pain.
…
…
A few days later, the imperial envoy of Xiliang Road, the Commissioner of the Overwatch Council, and the Duke of Danbo, Fan Xian, entered the city to patrol on behalf of the Emperor. The Governor of Xiliang Road and the General came out of the city to welcome him. The entire city celebrated for three days. At the end of the three days, the General's manor investigated the case of the spies in the mutton shop. They found that Jiangnan merchants had secretly colluded with Hu bandits and smuggled salt and iron. A total of 14 people were executed.
After the banquet, the imperial envoy left the city to send him off. On the same day, the imperial envoy, Fan Xian, had already disguised himself as a merchant and boarded a carriage headed toward Qingzhou, beginning his journey to investigate the case.
Just as he had said to Li Hongcheng that night, he had to calm the situation in Xi Lake and peacefully subdue Dongyi before the world went to war. Only then could he prove his ability to the Emperor and the feasibility of his methods. However, this trip to Xi Lake was not only a step for Fan Xian to break away from his salted fish life. More importantly, he was going to resolve a matter, a matter that made him very angry. This matter could not be explained clearly to Hongcheng.
The carriage moved forward on the road between the boundless fields. In front and behind the carriages, Overwatch Council subordinates were watching everything cautiously to prevent the Hu people's grass-clearing troops from suddenly attacking.
Fan Xian hoped that a small group of Hu people would come. Unfortunately, after that night, Li Hongcheng had first launched the autumn attack in the ninth year of the Qing calendar. In an instant, the Xi Lake riders had killed their way back to the foot of Tianshan. On the grasslands, the empty rear of Qingzhou immediately became quiet.
Fan Xian drew back his gaze from outside the window. He knew that the large movements of the Western camp were completely to ensure his safety. Although Hongcheng had not said it explicitly, he was using his actions to help him.
His gaze landed on a knife in his hand. The style of this knife was normal, but it was made of very good material. It was definitely not something the Hu people's level of craftsmanship could make. The problem was, this knife was the Hu weapon they had seized from Qingzhou five months ago.
The officials of the Fourth Bureau in Qingzhou had cautiously sent this knife back to Jingdou and presented it in front of Fan Xian's eyes. This knife did not have any markings that could be used to investigate its origins, but Fan Xian recognized it at a glance because this kind of knife was made by a secret workshop on the side of the North Sea.
Fan Xian's eyes were filled with a fire of anger that was difficult to suppress. The zhenqi in his body released and, with a crack, snapped the knife in two.
…
…
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