Long live the emperor, long live the emperor, long live the emperor!

Actually...it's not impossible to take it back.

The old emperor reacted quickly, and immediately thought about splitting the Uighurs.

Although the current Uighur king (the son of his younger brother) did not have the idea of ​​rebelling and independence, and he immediately led his ministers to the capital to express his loyalty as soon as he came to power the year before last, but...compared to loyalty, which depends on people's hearts, the old emperor believes that weakening the Uighurs with his own means can make it impossible for them to rebel.

For example, let this wild Uighur king return to his country, but do not allow him to seize the throne. If he still wants to be king, he can establish a new Uighur tribe.

Oh, and the current Uighur king is also not allowed to kill him.

- The Turks can have Eastern Turks, and the Uighurs can naturally have Eastern Uighurs.

Of course, someone has to be sent to watch.

Who should be sent?

The old emperor thought again and again.

The general had already gone to sea, and he would not want to let him go even if he did not.

Marquis Yongchang... He was reluctant to let him go either.

The old emperor's eyes moved to Li Shihu.

This one is fine.

This one is especially suitable!

He has been to the Western Regions and has been with the Uighur King.

It is better to do business with the familiar than to do business with the stranger!

Li Shihu didn't know why, but he suddenly felt a chill on his back.

...

Three or four days later, the group of people who came out of the mountains had another wild Uighur King.

——The reason why it took so long to go out was to avoid the possibility of running into barbarians.

＊

"Your Majesty..."

The Minister of Rites was the first to discover the old emperor and his entourage who had been missing for a long time. He couldn't hold back his voice and ran over in an almost ungraceful manner: "Where has your Majesty been all these days? Is he injured?"

He quickly reported the situation: "Your Majesty, don't worry. On the first day of your Majesty's disappearance, the prince blocked the news and only let the few ministers who accompanied him know. Even the prime minister didn't know. Now the official business is handled by the prince and the ministers. The outside world just thinks that your Majesty is reluctant to leave Shanhaiguan and stayed here for a while longer."

He took a breath and continued: "Your Majesty has not returned for several days. The prince asked the Jinyiwei to search everywhere, and he went to the surrounding prefectures to mobilize troops a few days ago."

The old emperor was relieved.

In the past few days in the mountains, he was also very worried about the situation outside. Now it seems...

The old emperor nodded slightly: "The prince handled it very well."

The Minister of Rites saluted, and in a blink of an eye, he saw Li Shihu winking at him. He was immediately surprised: "Why are you here--"

The old emperor was even more surprised than him, and almost opened his mouth to interrupt.

Li Shihu was recognized, and he could hardly hold back the smile on his face: "Tanhua Lang, I haven't seen you for a long time! Hey, you have also been rehabilitated and returned to the court? Great, what official position have you held now!"

Upon hearing this, the Minister of Rites immediately reacted-Li Shihu and his group, don't know the change of dynasties!

Looking at the number of the barbarian soldiers, and thinking about the distance of the local soldiers from here: "..." The Minister of Rites forced a smile: "Yes, yes. Fortunately, your Majesty has favored me and I became the Minister of Rites."

Li Shihu was very surprised: "You have become the Minister of Rites! The third rank! Great! Congratulations! It's a pity that I didn't have time to give you a promotion gift."

The Minister of Rites still forced a smile, and said dryly: "I am very happy to see you alive, and it doesn't matter whether there is a gift or not."

The words are sincere, but if they can be said without the scene in front of him, the emotions in the words of the Minister of Rites will probably be more sincere.

His Majesty's return is a surprise, and His Majesty's return with the soldiers of the previous dynasty is a shock.

The group walked towards the government office.

Li Shihu was very emotional: "I have been to Shanhaiguan, and I haven't been out for a long time. Even Shanhaiguan has changed. Before, there was basically one stage on each street. Now there is not a single one."

The Minister of Revenue laughed dryly: "Yes..."

The previous dynasty was extravagant, and the emperor liked gorgeous literary styles, which the emperor of this dynasty firmly opposed. Now there are more literati and poets reciting poems and writing couplets on the street. Of course, there are also opera singers, but they have to go to the theater to sing, and compared with the foolish men and women, the operas of this dynasty are more inclined to reflect the suffering of the people and expose the darkness of the bureaucracy. After all, a certain emperor who crawled out of the people likes to listen to this.

Some barbarian soldiers exclaimed: "Now we can actually gather together to drink?!"

The Minister of Rites covered his lips with his hand, coughed twice, and said: "It's a new change. Back then, when there were eighteen rebels, the people were naturally not allowed to gather together to drink. Now that the world is peaceful, the ban has been lifted."

Others hesitated: "But why are the ways of eating and drinking different? I remember that the cakes on the street used to be the size of the palm of your hand, which could be eaten in three or two bites, and a big man could eat more than ten at a time. Now the cakes are so big that a big man can be full after eating two cakes at a meal."

"Well... Now it's a peaceful time, the price of rice and flour has dropped, so cakes have become bigger."

- In fact, the customs of the people in the previous dynasty were more delicate and exquisite, while the customs of the current dynasty are more rough and bold.

"Oh... when cooking meat, is it because meat is cheap now that they put it in chunks?"

"That's right!"

- In the previous dynasty, people preferred to slice meat thinner. Such bold actions as cutting meat with a knife were usually only done by soldiers in special occasions. Unlike now, even ordinary people on the street like to cut a large chunk of meat with a knife and put it in the pot.

"Can ordinary people drink tea now? When I left, I clearly remember that even in teahouses among the people, only people with a little wealth could afford it." The changes in the world

made these people who were isolated from the world dizzy. Even the customs of the people changed. All the changes made these people feel shocked. They even felt that this land was a little strange. When they arrived at the government office, many people almost ran in as if they were escaping. After sitting down, Li Shihu asked the Minister of Rites: "I don't know the year in the mountains, what time is it now?" "The Yongbao era name will only last for four years, and then it will be Tiantong. Now it is April 1, the 33rd year of Tiantong." The others cheered in their hearts. The third place winner is worthy of being the third place winner. He didn't tell a lie, but he made people misunderstand that Yongbao and Tiantong are two era names under the same emperor.

Li Shihu's face changed, and he turned around and bowed to the old emperor: "I deserve to die! I didn't know that today is the day of Your Majesty's longevity!"

"Huh?"

Today is not him... Oh!

The old emperor reacted and realized that he was talking about the last emperor of the previous dynasty.

Li Shihu was still shouting: "May our emperor live long, long, long!" He

was also upset: "It's a pity that the birthday gift I prepared can't be used now."

- After all, it was known in advance that the emperor had accepted the loyalty of the Uighur King, and it was not appropriate for him to use it as a birthday gift.

The old emperor was almost calm, helped him up, and smiled: "I am lucky to have such a great general."

The more he said it directly, the more grateful he was, and the more he wanted to die for the emperor.

After Li Shihu stood up, he was so excited that he asked others: "I think colleagues have prepared birthday gifts for your majesty in advance. I wonder what they are!"

Uh...

The government office was quiet for a moment. The Minister of Rites took the lead in breaking the deadlock and said solemnly: "I will recite a poem for your majesty!"

Then he improvised and made a proper birthday poem.

——No way, I thought of it now.

The one who wrote a poem in seven steps, don't worry about whether it is official history or unofficial history, at least he can walk seven steps! Li Shihu mistakenly thought that they had prepared a birthday gift long ago, and he didn't even have time to walk seven steps! The

Minister of Revenue immediately followed up: "I will sing a song for your majesty!"

The old emperor: "..."

Although the Minister of Revenue looked elegant and had a mellow voice, he also swung his sleeves and stepped on his feet when singing, and his demeanor was very natural, but...

it was so weird.

The Minister of the Ministry of Rites followed closely behind him: "I will write an article for your majesty!"

"I..." Yongchang Hou found that he had almost mentioned all the gifts that could be taken out on the spot, and his eyes darted around, and he pulled out his sword: "I will dance with the sword for your majesty!"

Only then did Li Shihu realize that he had done something very inappropriate, and he slapped his head immediately.

His colleagues had just returned, and even if they had prepared birthday gifts, they must have placed them in their respective rooms. Now that he had asked them about it, they could only use these poems, songs and dances to celebrate the birthday. As for the formal birthday gifts, they must wait until the formal birthday banquet before they would be taken out.

Oh, it's all his fault! He got a little carried away just now!

Li Shihu was feeling frustrated when he suddenly felt footsteps approaching, followed by a man's anxious voice: "Dad! The Jinyiwei said you're back! Are you not injured?"

The prince hurriedly walked in with a limp, and his steps were too fast. He stumbled and almost fell to the ground. He didn't notice the many unfamiliar faces here. After he was sure that his father and the ministers were safe, his face glowed again.

Can't wait to share the gossip he ran into before.

"Dad, let me tell you, on the way back from leading the troops, I encountered a group of rebels! Guess how they were exposed?"

"Wait--"

"Isn't today the birthday of that little bastard emperor of the previous dynasty? They captured a lot of women for this matter, saying they wanted to skin them naked and burn them for that little bastard to celebrate his birthday. Fortunately, I cleared them out in time--"

Noticing the difference in the atmosphere, the prince broke away from his excitement and asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"

The wind in the air had obviously stagnated.

The old emperor turned his head stiffly and looked at Li Shihu: "My dear, listen to my explanation..."

It would have been better if he didn't say anything. As soon as he spoke, Li Shihu reacted immediately.

"Clang——"

Li Shihu drew his sword and glared at the emperor: "So you are a traitor!"

The wild officers and soldiers who came out of the tribe with him were stunned by this sudden incident, but they still hesitated and stood behind Li Shihu.

The Minister of the Ministry of Rites rolled his eyes and pretended to be surprised: "Li Lang! You don't even want to avenge your father's murder?"

Li Shihu was stunned: "What?"

The Minister of the Ministry of Rites repeated the ridiculous things of the last emperor of the previous dynasty and the things that angered his father to death, without adding any exaggeration.

Li Shihu's eyes widened: "Is what you said true?"

The Minister of the Ministry of Rites said: "Why would I lie to you! Li Lang, these can all be found out."

The Minister of Rites also immediately responded: "Do you know how the last emperor died? He went out to shoot arrows at the people for fun, and stayed in a temple at night. The prime minister and the last emperor's personal guards took advantage of his deep sleep and chopped off his head with a knife."

After saying this, he deliberately concealed the fact that the prime minister neither ascended the throne himself nor supported the royal family to ascend the throne, but only defended the capital without an emperor and finally died for his country.

He was afraid that his former colleague would find the target after listening to it and directly cut his neck.

Li Shihu was stunned: "So that's the case, but..."

Taichang Shaoqing gritted his teeth and stood up: "Brother Shihu! If you don't consider yourself, you should also consider your mother, your ex-wife and your son! You are a loyal and righteous man, they haven't seen you for decades, but they want to be buried with you?"

Li Ying rushed forward and hugged Li Shihu: "Dad! If grandma knew you were still alive, I don't know how happy she would be!"

"Ying'er..."

Li Ying cried, "Dad! Grandpa was so angry that he died! The last emperor of the previous dynasty was a beast! Not only did he insult his father's corpse, he also forced his cousin into the palace. He also toyed with the ministers at will. He forced the prime minister to eat pig food in public. The Minister of Personnel smelled fishy one day. He was very curious and asked someone to cut open the Minister of Personnel's stomach. If the minister disobeyed his will, he would draw his sword and chop randomly!"

Li Shihu was shocked: "How could it be!"

Seeing that his attitude had already loosened, only the last point was left, the emperor winked at Li Ying.

Li Ying understood: "And, and, he also likes to play with boys!"

All officials were at a loss: huh? This is also considered heavyweight?

Li Ying: "..." The words had already been spoken, but he gritted his teeth and shed tears, "I was summoned to the palace once. My grandfather was mad to death afterwards!"

It was true that the last emperor played with boys. It was also true that Li Ying had been to the palace before - just to be rewarded, nothing else. It was also true that my grandfather was mad to death.

But it was not on the same day at all. There was no need to tell Li Shihu about this.

Under the shocked and admiring eyes of the crowd, under the surprised and loving gaze of the old emperor, "Li Qing is actually a great loyal minister!", Li Ying closed his eyes in despair.

Damn Xu Yanmiao, if he hadn't heard too much gossip about his bottom line, how could he blurt out this at this time!

And Li Shihu...

he widened his eyes.

*

Li Shihu was silent for three days, sitting on an attic, watching the people coming and going below. The wind and sand in Shanhaiguan were very strong. When a hurricane came, the yellow sand was everywhere.

The border has always been a bitter and cold place, but the people of Shanhaiguan had smiles on their faces. It proved that the new emperor did a good job.

He remembered that before he left, even in the heart of the Central Plains, the people were sad.

On the fourth day, Li Shihu went to see the old emperor.

On the fifth day, Li Shihu took the official seal of the Shandong commander and the leave note approved by the emperor and went to find his son: "Ying'er, I want to see your grandmother. I heard that she is in Shanhaiguan."

- As for his soldiers, after he was willing to surrender, they all received rewards for their rescue. After being disbanded and reorganized,

they happily went to their respective barracks. Li Ying was overjoyed: "Dad! You have figured it out! Let's--"

Li Ying paused.

"What's wrong with Ying'er? Let's go! I've asked around the mansion. Let's go see your grandmother!"

Li Ying pulled the corners of his mouth, and his smile was uglier than crying.

In addition to grandma, there is also... my mother.

He didn't dare to imagine what the scene would be like at that time.

*

The scene was very warm.

The mother and son hugged their heads and cried bitterly.

Even though he knew his mother had remarried, Li Shihu said nothing. He just called his stepfather "Father" according to etiquette.

"Dad! My son is back!" The voice of the Minister of Rites came from outside.

As soon as they entered the room, the Minister of Rites and Li Shihu stared at each other.

Li Shihu was very surprised: "So we are colleagues and brothers! I am two years older than you, and I have the audacity to call myself your elder brother."

"Brother."

The Minister of Rites looked a little uncomfortable.

Li Shihu didn't notice that he said "Hey" forcefully and was about to take out the animal tooth necklace he had sharpened from his pocket to give to his new brother.

As luck would have it, another voice came from outside: "I just heard a shout. Is my husband back?"

Hearing the familiar voice, the Minister of Rites was terrified: "Wait!"

Hearing the familiar voice, Li Shihu was surprised: "Madam!"

However, the woman had already walked in.

When she met Li Shihu's eyes, she was stunned, and Li Shihu was also stunned. After

Li Shihu was stunned, he looked at Taichang Shaoqing.

Taichang Shaoqing coughed and said, "Brother, this matter... I can explain it."

Li Shihu turned his head to look at his mother and stepfather, and his stepfather smiled kindly: "Huzi, are you having dinner at home tonight?"

Li Shihu looked at his son Li Ying, who silently covered his face and didn't look at him.

Li Shihu: "...Is this what you said, remarry together???"

Li Ying replied in a low voice: "Doesn't it count?"

Li Shihu held his forehead and shook his body.