This story begins with a poem that Chang Suining heard in Luzhou City:
Chang Suining stayed in Luzhou for a few more days and went to the Luzhou garrison camp to check it out. Afterwards, she proposed to walk around and did not let the Luzhou governor accompany her.
Chang Suining walked around the streets of Luzhou very casually and relaxedly, but the governor of Luzhou was uneasy. Every hour he would send people to inquire about where Chang Suining had been, what he had done, whether he had met anyone, and what he had heard that he should not have heard.
In the eyes of the Luzhou governor, Chang Suining was blatantly on a secret visit, and he did not trust him in his heart... But there was nothing he could do, because he had a criminal record of falsifying accounts. He left the impression of being a fraud and liar in front of his superiors, so he was bound to be suspected.
But he had learned from his previous experience, and he had been very obedient recently, knowing that Chang Suining had the upper hand over him. However, at the beginning of the implementation of the new policy, there would inevitably be problems of one kind or another...
The governor of Luzhou repeatedly checked the existing problems with his subordinates, and for a time took self-correction and self-inspection to the extreme.
Chang Suining saw most of the current situation in Luzhou, and was unexpectedly satisfied with what he saw.
The governor of Luzhou was good at scheming, had a flexible mind, and was not a person who followed rigid rules. Under his rule, Luzhou had always been relatively prosperous. Now that he was willing to follow Chang Suining's arrangements and implement his orders seriously, the progress was faster than in other states.
As for problems, there are indeed some, but in Chang Suining's opinion, they are all within the controllable range. Chang Suining also does not want to use this as an opportunity to target and blame others, making them feel uneasy.
There are few people in this world who can do things perfectly in the true sense. On the contrary, the reason why most talents are useful and controllable is that they have some minor flaws that do not cause any harm to the overall situation.
In the afternoon of that day, Chang Suining randomly found a busy teahouse on the street, ordered a few pots of fresh tea, and listened to the excitement for half a day.
The news in the teahouse was the most complicated, but what Chang Suining heard the most since he sat down was his own name.
Most people were discussing Chang Suining's rush to Yuezhou to treat the infected people. Some well-informed people also learned about Li Xian's rebellion and said, "... Duke Han ignored the lives of the people in order to win the battle, and resorted to the sinister method of creating a plague and hurting the people. Later, the court wanted to make a decision on him, but after hearing the news, he directly raised his army to rebel!"
It was the first time for most of the people to hear about this incident. They were shocked and hurriedly asked the man about the follow-up.
"However, the plot was exposed and he did not succeed! He then fled to Yuezhou City, but was intercepted by Envoy Chang! Envoy Chang had him hung on the Yuezhou City Tower to appease the anger of the people of Yuezhou—"
There were immediate sounds of relief from all around.
Chang Suining listened to this and was about to praise this person for his accurate information, but then he heard the person say, "Even the heavens couldn't bear it. The Duke of Korea was hung on the city wall for seven days. During these seven days, the sun never set and there were thunders on sunny days! It was not until he died that it suddenly rained heavily..."
Everyone around sighed and lamented: "It can be seen that what our Chang Jieshi did was in accordance with the will of heaven!"
Shepherd's Purse laughed twice and echoed, "That's right!"
Who doesn’t like to hear their parents being praised?
At another table, someone brought up a hot topic: "...You said, our Jiedushi donated 7 million guan to the northern garrison without any hesitation. With such a generous donation, who was the ancestor of Jiedushi Chang?"
Many people gathered around and started to talk about it. A scholar stroked his short beard and said, "If you ask me, it must be..."
When the scholar said this, he smiled with a determined look and paused at just the right moment.
Everyone looked at him and listened attentively, only to hear him say, "That must be a wealthy or noble family."
There were "tsk" sounds all around, and someone waved his sleeves: "This is just nonsense!"
Some people burst into laughter, and the waiter came over to refill the tea and also started chatting with them with a smile.
At this time, a young scholar ran into the teahouse holding a piece of paper and shouted: "...Mr. Qian Shen finally has a new work!"
The scholar who claimed that Chang Suining's ancestors were either rich or noble quickly stood up and looked over with shining eyes: "Can I have a look?"
Luzhou is only 500 miles away from Jiangdu. Qian Shen’s name is well known and is highly sought after by literati here.
Many scholars came forward and someone began to recite the "Sacrificial Essay to Yuezhou" with ups and downs in his voice. When he read the angry parts, there was a boiling blood in his tone, and everyone around him was shaken.
Chang Suining listened to it and could not help but nod and said, "What a good poem."
Mr. Luo wrote this poem very quickly. Before she returned to Jiangdu, such a good poem came to greet her.
"It's more than just a good poem!" The scholar who brought the poem here said, "It's simply deafening and has the power to pierce the clouds and split the rocks!"
Chang Suining nodded, her praise was too shallow.
The scholar started chatting with her: "I see that you have a good temperament, and I think you are well-read. Do you also like Mr. Qian Shen's poems? Have you ever heard of the poem "Watching Jiangdu Sacrifice to the Sea and Giving Books to the World"? "
Chang Suining was dressed simply, but if you looked closely, you could tell she was a woman. Nowadays, because women were doing work in Jiangdu, many women wore robes and tied their hair for the convenience of traveling. It was not uncommon to see women dressed like Chang Suining.
When the scholar looked at Chang Suining, his eyes were slightly narrowed. It was obvious that he had poor eyesight and could only roughly judge a person's age and temperament. He preconceived that the person in front of him was a young man, so he regarded the less than strong voice as that of an overly gentle young man.
Chang Suining smiled and nodded: "I've heard of it."
"That book I gave to the world and this one today are both very different!" The scholar raised his hand and began to analyze it incessantly: "... This "Sacrificial Essay to Yuezhou" is based on the innocent suffering people, comparing the evildoers to tigers and wolves. Every word is like a knife piercing the bones, making people feel gnashing hatred, but after reading it, I feel refreshed. There is still a righteous way in the world!"
The "right way" expressed by Luo Guanlin in this poem was not spared from being completely attributed to Chang Suining.
The scholar continued, "What is even more valuable is that what Mr. Qian expressed in his poem is completely realistic, without any exaggeration, and it is really meaningful..."
Chang Suining felt that there were some exaggerations, especially her contributions.
But Chang Suining didn't feel guilty at all, she just felt relieved in her heart - the gentleman finally met her proposal, what a good man he was.
The scholar was still savoring it: "Brilliant, wonderful..."
Chang Suining nodded in agreement. It was obvious that the facts were exaggerated, but it still made people feel that it was completely practical. He firmly believed that the poem contained the whole picture and it was indeed brilliant.
"Your accent sounds like Mandarin, but are you from the west?"
Chang Suining nodded: "That's right."
"Little brother, you must have heard a lot about Envoy Chang Jie's deeds along the way!" The scholar simply sat down next to Chang Suining and talked.
At the table next to Chang Suining, She Cai and others immediately became alert, silently staring at the scholar's movements, and a guard had quietly reached for the arrow in his sleeve.
Chang Suining did not notice anything unusual, but instead casually poured a cup of tea for the scholar.
"Thank you, little brother." The scholar picked up the cup and drank half of it to quench his thirst before continuing, "Did you hear on the way that the people of Yuezhou wanted to build a temple for Envoy Chang Jie in gratitude for his kindness?"
Chang Suining really didn't know, so he shook his head and commented, "There is no need to build a temple. Yuezhou has a lot of things to be rebuilt, so it's better not to be extravagant."
The scholar disagreed and said, "How can we call it extravagance when it comes to what the people want?"
Perhaps it was because he was drinking someone's tea that he was not polite. The scholar responded, coughed lightly, and said in a much calmer tone: "Little brother, you don't know that the people have someone to rely on... This is a good thing."
"Besides, perhaps the people of Yuezhou don't have to pay for this money." The scholar said, "I heard that a wealthy businessman in Suzhou is willing to invest... This wealthy businessman is also a rare gentleman. It is said that the medicinal materials used to treat the people suffering from the epidemic were all provided by him, and he didn't charge a penny!"
Chang Suining suddenly realized that it was Dai Zifa.
He sent medicinal materials in advance and covered the temple afterwards. He is such a good man.
In this way, Mingjin's death was indeed appropriate. Although one person died, the blessings continued. How could it be said that it was a worthwhile death?
Seeing that it was almost dusk outside, Chang Suining asked someone to pay the bill, stood up to say goodbye to the scholar, and when he walked out of the teahouse, he passed by a scholar who had come in a hurry.
The scholar was stunned for a moment, and his feet suddenly stopped. He looked back and saw Chang Suining's back disappear. He was stunned for a long time, his mouth moved, and his eyes gradually widened.
At this time, the scholar also came out. Seeing that it was his friend, he asked, "Yan Ming, why are you here?"
"I came to look for you. I just now..." the scholar said, "I think I saw Envoy Chang Jie!"
"Chang...Chang Jieshi?!" The scholar was very surprised: "Really? Where is he?"
"Right here! He just came out of the teahouse and passed me by!" The scholar pointed in the direction where Chang Suining left. "He was wearing a green robe and looked about seventeen or eighteen years old... His aura was exactly the same, there's no mistake!"
Just left, green robe, seventeen or eighteen years old...
The scholar was suddenly stunned: "I can't..."
It can't be the "little brother" who just had tea with him!
"Yan Ming, are you sure you didn't see it wrong?!"
"I saw it from afar when the plaque was hung at Wueryuan last year. Although I couldn't see it up close, the momentum... must be correct! And if you calculate, the envoy Chang Jie rushed back from Mianzhou and must have passed through Luzhou!" The scholar regretted it so much: "Just now I stayed where I was for a while, and didn't even greet or salute!"
"..." The scholar's expression fluctuated, and he was about to cry: "Your behavior is nothing..."
When it comes to missing out on opportunities, it’s still him!
He talked to Envoy Chang Jie for such a long time, and he even drank the tea that Envoy Chang Jie poured...but he didn't even introduce himself!
Opportunities came to him like a rainstorm, but he dodged swiftly and was not touched at all!
The scholar suddenly ran out, trying to chase the green figure, but to no avail.
As he was filled with remorse, he suddenly ran to the corner of the street without knowing what he was thinking of.
Seeing that the figure was no longer there, the scholar hurriedly asked the old man selling sesame cakes nearby: "Excuse me, sir, where is the Taoist who was telling fortunes here this afternoon?"
The old man just said, "He left a long time ago."
The scholar stood there in despair. His friend followed him breathlessly: "…Why are you running so fast? Who are you looking for?"
"Yan Ming, you don't know..." The scholar's face was full of tears: "Today at noon, I passed by here, and a Taoist priest called me. He said that by looking at my forehead, I will meet a noble person today..."
Hearing this, he became interested, and seeing that the Taoist had an elegant temperament, he took out a few copper coins from his pocket and asked the Taoist to explain in detail.
The Taoist told him not to be careless and to be more careful, otherwise the opportunity would be gone in a flash.
He frowned immediately, thinking that he had met a liar. If he was so ambiguous and could make up a story about gains and losses, what else could he be but a liar? If he had not met the noble man, wouldn't the other party be able to interpret it as he had not paid attention and missed the opportunity? His demeanor made him resist the urge to take back the few coins, and he left immediately.
But who knows...
If he were a little more fragile, he would really sit on the ground and cry at this moment.
After hearing the whole story, the friend was also stunned, and immediately felt endless regret - now the introduction of talents in Jiangdu City has been tightened, and it is difficult to squeeze in easily... Today, meeting Envoy Chang Jie in person was a perfect opportunity to recommend himself.
But he could only pat his friend on the shoulder to comfort him: "It's okay, as long as we seek work in Huainan Road in the future, we will also be working for Envoy Chang..."
The two of them left together with a sigh of loss, while the Taoist with white hair and beard who was not found was watching the sunset under an old jujube tree. After a moment, he smiled and walked away with his hands behind his back: "It's time to leave..."
Chang Suining left Luzhou City early the next morning.
Chang Suining had her last "simple meal" at the Luzhou governor's residence last night. During the meal, the Luzhou governor suddenly confessed his faults to her, talked about all the problems existing in Luzhou in detail, and promised to make up for the shortcomings as soon as possible and live up to the cultivation and expectations of the governor.
Chang Suining felt that striving for excellence was not a bad thing, so he nodded with satisfaction.
The governor of Luzhou secretly wiped his sweat in his heart, and later said to his staff: [She is indeed waiting for me to confess. ]
After sending Chang Suining away, the governor of Luzhou felt so relieved that he even ate an extra bowl of lunch.
At noon, the sun was blazing hot and it was no longer suitable to continue the journey, so Chang Suining led his men to find a tea stall along the way to rest and cool off, and to feed the horses water.
Half of the cavalry led by Chang Suining led the way, and the other half followed behind. Although there were only a dozen people around him, they all had swords on their waists, and they looked very imposing. Seeing this, other passers-by in the teahouse did not dare to approach, and only occasionally took a look from a distance, but always quickly looked away.
But there was soon an exception.
A Taoist priest in a grey robe, leading a green donkey, came slowly and asked with a smile, "My lord, you are on a long journey. Do you need a fortune?"
Shepherd's Purse was about to wave her hand to let people leave, but Chang Suining was slightly startled when he heard the voice. He turned his head unexpectedly and immediately showed a look of joy.
She put down the tea bowl, stood up, raised her hand to signal the guards not to stop her, and walked forward herself.
Looking at the approaching girl, the Taoist asked again with a smile: "My dear lady, do you need a fortune telling?"
Chang Suining smiled and said, "Today I have met an immortal, so everything must be auspicious. Why should I ask more questions——"
"Death and rebirth", how can he not be considered an immortal?
Tianjing laughed loudly, then quietly stared at the girl's brows for a moment. The aura of a traitor that was already clearly visible between her eyebrows seemed to have changed silently. He raised his hand and bowed deeply: "I am late for the appointment, and I am sorry to have kept you waiting for a long time." (End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
