Chapter 54: Farewell to the king and his subjects

The people of the capital saw the sky wandering around the imperial city, and had never eaten pork or even saw pigs running. Some of them were wearing new shoes and even the emperor had seen them several times from afar. Even those who had not met the emperor, and the officials in the court had always met a few. Therefore, their overall vision was higher than that of the people in other places - at least they thought so.

The formation today is really not small: Zhengyang Gate is open, the eight horses are riding, the emperor is traveling, the commander of the five cities is personally leading the way, the admiral of the Nine Gate is busy supervising security... This is all visible to the eyes, and what about those who have not seen it? The emperor is traveling, the great inner guard is an open bodyguard, and the Feiling Guard in the capital is secretly broken into pieces and hidden among the people... But this formation did not arouse much surprise in the hearts of the people in the capital. Because at this moment, the people watching on the streets in Zhengyang Gate were all stunned by another thing, and everyone's eyes were staring at the emperor's imperial guards - the emperor's imperial guards. Except for the driver, only the emperor can ride it. No matter how broadly it is, only the queen can barely be able to ride the same car.

But at this moment, there was another person on the dragon chariot representing the supreme imperial power. Most of the others were in the same carriage as the emperor, and most of them were trembling with their etiquette. And this person stood side by side with the emperor in full view of the crowd, chatting and laughing, as if there was no one around. He looked like Emperor Qiyuan next to him was just a foil, and he was the emperor of the Dajian Dynasty!

Emperor Qiyuan seemed to be dissatisfied, but in the eyes of the people in the capital, he was shocked! Some people were extremely dissatisfied with this situation: Who is this? He is so arrogant?! On the contrary, some people were envious: they could board the carriage with the emperor, chat and laugh calmly, and were a real celebrity! Some people were in a complicated mood, looking at their eyes and thinking: Look at this meaning, things are probably not simple...

No matter what these people think, there is a common question: Who is this person?

No matter when there are doubts, there are some people who can solve the doubts. Soon, the people on both sides of the long street knew that this person who was looking at the crowd was the uncle of the current emperor, who was rich enough to rival the country, and was more than ten thousand people! On the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the kings entered the capital, there were also many people watching. Therefore, many people had seen the King of Wu's pomp, and were already quite shocked at that time. Unexpectedly, when they left the capital today, the King of Wu brought more shock to everyone!

On the dragon chariot, the King of Wu held the carving railing in his hand, looked around, turned his head and said to Emperor Qiyuan: "The land of the capital is indeed extraordinary! The people are rich in resources and the people know the etiquette. Now it seems that it is much more prosperous than when I was in the capital."

Emperor Qiyuan smiled slightly when he heard this: "How can a country's capital be comparable to ordinary people? But if we only talk about the level of wealth, even though the capital is large, it is probably not as good as the territory under the jurisdiction of the emperor!"

Zhang Xiu was frightened when he heard this: "Hey——Your words can kill the old ministers. The world is so great, what place can be reached for the capital? Besides, is the king's land and the land under the jurisdiction of the old ministers still the emperor's land? Alas, I know that these old ministers are taking care of the emperor in the southeast, and many people complain behind their backs, saying that the old minister will take over the southeast half of the wall... "

"Nonsense!" Emperor Qiyuan shook his sleeves at the right time, and his face showed an unpleasant look: "It's simply nonsense!" Then Emperor Qiyuan advised him gently: "Uncle doesn't have to worry about these nonsense words. How can he know the heart of a swan?"

After hearing this, Zhang Xiu felt a little moved and hurriedly bowed: "The emperor... is a mistake."

Emperor Qiyuan raised his arm lightly and helped Zhang Xiuxu: "You Dao is not the leader of the family, but I don't know that the firewood and rice are expensive. I was like this back then... When I was young and energetic, I had been against him a lot. I always thought about it over the years and felt very moved..." Emperor Qiyuan patted Zhang Xiu's shoulder and said, "But the emperor can rest assured that no matter what others think or do, for me... I still believe in the emperor. No matter what rumors there are, it will disappear when I come to me. Besides, in my country such a big country, four or five out of ten of the annual income in the treasury comes from the southeast. This alone is the great achievement of the emperor! It is enough to block the mouths of those with ulterior motives! Haha!" Emperor Qiyuan laughed happily after he finished speaking.

Zhang Xiu looked at Emperor Qiyuan, and then smiled, then sighed and said, "The emperor is wise! Alas, ordinary people only say that the old minister is in charge of the southeast. Tea, salt, mulberry, and iron are under my jurisdiction, so they think that I have a mountain of gold and make a fortune every day. However, I don't know that the old minister looks glorious on the surface, but in fact, it's so miserable!" Zhang Xiu paused and continued, "In front of the emperor, I dare not speak nonsense. It's not the old minister's exaggeration. Sometimes, the old minister really can't think about it day and night! The emperor also knows that the pirates in the southeast have been suppressed many times, and bandits are often in trouble in the land of Wu and Yue. In the past few years, the floods in the south of the Yangtze River have risen, and even rioters have robbed the grain transport! Not to mention the salt road and tea ceremony..."

Emperor Qi Yuan frowned slightly: "It is abominable to fight against the court! It can be killed! I know these things..."

"The emperor... In the final analysis, the bandits in the southeast are all the mistakes of the old ministers. When it comes to crimes, the crimes cannot be forgiven. However, I do not hesitate to die, but I cannot bear to follow the soldiers who follow me to be wronged. The emperor clearly understands that over the years, the ministers have always believed that the matter of bandit suppression is the first priority and spares no effort to do it. However, due to the limitations of the conditions, the bandits in the southeast cannot be eradicated. The pirates in the southeast come and go like the wind, and if they fail to hit the blow, they will escape far away. There is no place to live, so it is difficult to suppress it!"

When Emperor Qiyuan was about to speak, Zhang Xiu said again: "In addition, the emperor may not know that the southeast army is old and the new people lack equipment. The old minister wanted to rectify his military and strengthen the coastal defense, but he was helpless... Most of the taxes in the southeast were handed over to the national treasury for the purpose of the imperial court's northern expedition. A small number of them were allocated to help the flood victims, and the rest... It's really not much... Unfortunately, the emperor knew about this, but others didn't know about it. The old minister worked hard to come and go, but he still had to bear the infamy! Haha! Looking back, it was ridiculous, it was a pity!"

Emperor Qiyuan smiled and said, "I can say ridiculous and lamentable words, but I don't care about it anymore. I have saved my consolation words. This is the open-minded, open-minded, tough and domineering emperor in my memory! The words of the emperor before almost made me think I had recognized the wrong person, haha!" After a pause, Emperor Qiyuan continued, "I know the hardship of the emperor, and I don't blame you for these things. Wars are constantly happening in the north, and there are many floods in the south of the Yangtze River... I have to use money to fight, and I also have to use money in internal affairs. There are many places to use money, so I worry every day! Fortunately, I have the emperor in the southeast, otherwise I will be worried about my hair white, and I don't know what to do!"

Zhang Xiu bowed again: "The emperor praised it wrongly... I don't ask for any reward, but I ask the emperor to understand my hard work, which is a great grace..."

"Haha, the emperor is too worried." Emperor Qiyuan looked around and pointed at the people on both sides of the long street, and smiled and said, "Maybe only I and you know about the suffering of the emperor, but the achievements made by the emperor are seen by everyone. Not only the people in the southeast know, but the people in the capital also praised the emperor's merits." Emperor Qiyuan said this and slapped the carving railing in front of him: "This time I issued an order to open the Zhengyang Gate and personally climb the dragon chariot to see him off, so that the people in the world can see that I not only reward the emperor for this merit, but also trust the emperor from beginning to end!"

When Zhang Xiu heard this, he immediately lifted his robe and bent over. Emperor Qiyuan hurriedly reached out to support him, and the King of Wu did not kneel down. "Your Majesty is like this, you really kill the old minister! Such a generous encounter, the old minister is ashamed of suffering!"

"Hey——" Emperor Qiyuan took the conversation loudly: "Others can't be called, but the emperor's uncle deserves it. I can only let people know that if they can make great contributions, become pillars of the country and the cornerstone of the court, let alone be the kings and princes, even if they are the Eight Horses, they will still be able to ascend to the Eight Horses!"

"The emperor is wise, I am very impressed!"

Emperor Qiyuan looked at the King of Wu and said, "Don't think I'm too long-winded. This time I went to the southeast. The mountains are high and the road is long and the road is rugged. I hope the emperor will take care of me. I only sigh that the time is still short, and even if I want to talk to the emperor, I don't have much time. But in the future, in addition to the official report of the court, the emperor will also send a few more letters from the family. The empress dowager and I are looking forward to it!"

While speaking, Bu Yan had already passed Zhengyang Gate and was about to leave the city. Emperor Qiyuan and King Zhang Xiu of Wu held hands with each other, and their faces showed emotion and reluctance: "If possible, I really want to send the emperor's uncle a few miles, but I just send you a thousand miles away. We must part with each other. We don't have to be like those daughters..."

Zhang Xiu's eyes turned red and he smiled happily, "Your Majesty, don't worry. The old minister was accustomed to archery and horses when he was young. Although he is old now, he is not inferior to ordinary young and strong. Moreover, there are many entourages on both sides and entourage along the way. After the Han River, it is the place where I am in charge. When I get there, I feel more at ease. The only thing I am worried about is the empress dowager and the emperor. The empress dowager is old. This time I go back to Beijing to see her, and this time I see her old man. Alas... The emperor has a lot of things to do, so I should pay more attention to the dragon body!"

The dragon chariot moved slowly. After the heartfelt words of the king and his ministers in the car, they bid farewell to each other. When they were farther apart, they showed their affection. Although they were farther apart and could not understand what the two were saying, they could guess with their expressions and movements. Therefore, after the drama "Zhengyangmen Dragon Chariot Sending King of Wu" came to the scene, the people around them were moved and praised the emperor's merits and the righteousness of the king and his ministers.

In autumn, it was as hot as fire. In this weather like the human flesh was blowing out oil, the Emperor Zhang Yu of the Dajian Dynasty watched King Zhang Xiu leave the capital and turn to the southeast. Except for the two on the dragon chariot, no one knew how true or false this period of conversation between the king and minister was. But even King Zhang Xiu of Wu had never thought that this Mid-Autumn Festival visit was the last time he saw the hometown of the capital in his lifetime...
Chapter completed!