His grandfather, who had lived to the age of seventy and was the Clan Master of the Yi Clan in Southern Dynasty, had passed away. His great grandfather, who was so old that he would be honored with the title of Yi Clan in a few more years, was still alive. Although he no longer cared about the affairs of the clan and even ignored the officialdom of Southern Dynasty for many years, he was still alive. It seemed very awkward for a white-haired person to send off another white-haired person. However, the Wang Clan, who had always been known as the fence-sitter in the Western Capital, was still prospering no matter how strong the wind blew. Wang Jingchong remembered that before the Melon Vine Rebellion in Southern Dynasty, many old people of Spring and Autumn Period had already started to prepare for their deaths. Wang Jingchong's great grandfather was not the first old man who wanted to be buried in his hometown in the Central Plains, and he was not the first old man who wanted to be buried in Southern Dynasty to show his goodwill to Norland. His great grandfather was always in a slow and steady manner when doing things. If one were to put it bluntly, he was following the trend and was a utilitarian. However, Wang Jingchong knew that if it weren't for his great grandfather's' slowness' in many matters and his trustworthiness in times of crisis, the Wang family would've been wiped out by a random storm, let alone climbing all the way from a D-class noble family to a second-class noble family.
Wang Jingchong had a feeling that the successor of the Clan Master was not someone else, but him.
As for why he and the other Ju Bo suffered heavy losses in Ji Bei, it was not because Wang Jingchong and the other man were really careless and slack, it was also not because their subordinates were weak, and it was also not because Yuan Tingshan's choice of timing and location was too wonderful, as Liyang Dynasty thought.
The truth was that the Imperial Decree of Peace had sent a message to both of them. In the battle of Ji Bei, they could only lose, not win, and they could only suffer a small loss.
While Wang Jingchong was riding his horse, he smiled.
Whether it was Yuan Tingshan or Gu Jiantang, just you wait, Liyang Dynasty.
— —
In the old palace of Da Chu.
He was no longer the man in a green robe who had been waiting for the Imperial Decree for many years. He walked alone into the courtyard that had been abandoned for many years. In the past, this place was filled with national chess players, and he was the most proud of it.
He searched for a long time, but he could not find the two chess jars that he used to place on the chessboard countless times.
Before he walked out of the courtyard, he could only settle for the next best thing. He took the other two old chess boxes that he was familiar with.
He said softly, "The next time I appear outside Tai 'an City, I will tell the world that Da Chu was not a femme fatale back then."
On this day, Cao Changqing's Confucian Saint Realm changed from the Way of the King to the Way of the Overlord.
— —
In the eyes of outsiders, Nanjiang was a barren land with raging miasma. Since the founding of the Great Qin Dynasty, it had always been regarded as a dangerous path to be an official. The Emperor liked to demote those officials who were disobedient but could not be killed here. Zhao Bing, who was lucky enough to come here to be the King of Yan Chi instead of the King of Huainan, had guarded the border conscientiously for so many years. He had strictly abided by the rules of the suzerain-vassal state and never complained. Even his eldest son, His Royal Highness, and other sons had never spread any absurd acts in the north. This was enough to win sympathy. In addition, Zhao Bing had always been kind to the officials in his jurisdiction. Many civil officials who came here with the heart of death but returned to the north alive all admired Zhao Bing greatly. Occasionally, there were scholars in Jiangnan who made jokes about Zhao Bing and Nalan Youci's homosexuality, but Zhao Bing did not show any anger or shame. If it were not for the disappointment of His Royal Highness Zhao Zhu, who had a good reputation, perhaps more people would be close to Nanjiang. After all, they had high expectations for Zhao Zhu. After all, this young man who joined the army liked to go to the barbarian tribes to kill people. Compared with the heroic death of the King of Huainan Zhao Ying, it paled in comparison. Not to mention, there was also the rescue of the King of Jing An, Zhao Xun, from thousands of miles away, which almost wiped out the whole army.
Nalan Youci had always been an existence that made people see flowers in the fog. Some people described him as a character that should only appear in novels. It was rumored that he was more beautiful than a married woman. He used his beauty and military strategy to enchant the King of Yan Chi, Zhao Bing. That was why he was willing to stay in Nanjiang for 20 years. There were also people who said with certainty that Mr. Nalan, the most luxurious person in Nanjiang, had five personal maidservants who could be said to be devastatingly beautiful. They were called Fengdu, Dongyue, Xishu, Three Corpses, and Cheng Lu.
There was no snow in Nanjiang in winter. As for the spring cold that could make famous people in Jiangnan feel cold to the bones, it was never chilly here.
On the top floor of a thirteen-story lofty bookstore, a handsome middle-aged scholar in thin clothes was letting a group of orioles and swallows help him move books to dry them. He sat peacefully on a small red sandalwood couch, leisurely holding a book and reading.
He sat up and put the yellowed book in his hand on his knee. He smiled and asked a young beauty with a plump figure who was closest to him, "I know that there are not many women in the world who are as beautiful as you, but it is easy for me to find a few more. But in the end, there are only five of you?"
The woman nicknamed Cheng Lu turned her head. Her eyes narrowed into two crescent moons as she smiled. "Mr. Nalan is so knowledgeable. How could I guess Mr. Nalan's thoughts?"
The scholar joked, "With your flattery skills, when you entered the palace, you were at most a small concubine."
The maid's smile became softer, and her eyes were infatuated. She was charming and natural. "But I really didn't mean to say good things for you."
The man smiled warmly, blinked, and said mischievously, "I know. You five don't work. Go downstairs and play. Let me, the knowledgeable Mr. Nalan, study alone."
The five people didn't hesitate at all and went downstairs with light steps.
This scholar who could be called a vassal king more than Zhao Bing, the King of Yan Chi, could only be Nalan Youci.
He looked down at the book that his old friend gave him. It was just an ordinary Confucian classic. It was not like the exquisite engraved book, which was more valuable as it aged. This book was more than twenty years old. No one would be willing to accept it even if he gave it away. In terms of extravagance, Mr. Nalan, who was the best in Nanjiang, carefully kept it for more than twenty years. In addition to drying the book himself, he only took it out of the sandalwood box two or three days a year to read it. Zhao Bing once asked in private. Xiaoyan, could it be that what he gave was not as good as an old book? Nalan Youci just shook his head. Fortunately, Zhao Bing never cared about this kind of detail.
Nalan Youci looked at his old friend's belongings that had no grave after his death and chuckled softly, "You are so poor that you don't even have a coin purse. You are so pitiful that you don't even have a coin purse. You and I traveled together to study in different countries. When we parted, you, who only had two books, gave me this book. How can the King of Yan Chi compare with you? Is he really willing to give me half of his property? "
Nalan Youci raised his head, narrowed his eyes, and looked at the sky. "Fengdu, Dongyue, Xishu, Three Corpses Riding Shoes, Ten Crosses. This is all of our hard work. Over the years, there have been three confirmed dead people. There are two missing people. There are five left, one more than you and I expected. It's enough. For these last five people, Zhao Bing killed tens of thousands of people in Nanjiang. Not to mention the refugees in Beiliang, nearly ten thousand people in the border army died. "
Nalan Youci stretched out his hand to touch his forehead. His expression was extremely contradictory, as though he was sad and satisfied at the same time. He smiled softly and said, "You said that since there were wanderers, after hundreds of years of evolution, the wanderers no longer wandered and turned into aristocratic families, country, country, country, the word 'country' in front and the word 'family' in front. You were just a poor scholar at that time. You told me that you wanted to try and let the scholars in the world put the country before the family again. For this reason, you set up this trap. In the end, except for those five people, only I know about it in the world. "
The tall building towered into the clouds, and wind came from all directions. A gust of wind blew, and Nalan Youci's hair was dazzled.
The book on his knee made a slight rustling sound.
Nalan Youci closed his eyes and listened carefully to the sound of the pages turning. The corner of his mouth curled up. "You once asked me seriously, 'One day, when you suddenly die, how will you fight against life and death?' I once answered, 'Life and death is a small matter, but a close friend is a big matter. Where my heart is at peace, there is a pure land and a lotus pond. '"
The spring breeze turned the pages of the book.
It was just like the dead person turning the pages of the book.
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