Chapter 136 is coming
It was late November, the weather was freezing, and the city of Nanyang had been under siege for more than half a month.
On the evening of that day, Wanqi Xie and Wanqi Yuanzhong, who were serving as military advisers of the Privy Council, came down from the city wall. They just returned to the military quarters directly under the Privy Council next to the temporary palace and washed their faces with cold water. They were planning to take a rest for a while before going to the palace cafeteria for dinner, but his neighbor, the Palace Attendant Censor Li Guang, suddenly came to their door and took the initiative to invite them to go with them.
Wanqi Yuanzhong, who had always been kind to others, naturally had nothing to say about this, so he forced himself to be strong and followed him.
As the war progressed, Nanyang City, which had been preparing for a long time before the war, had already completely turned into a large military camp. All urban areas were divided into military quarters, with walls between each quarter. All of them were under military control, and non-military officers had to have badges to enter and exit.
Not only did each district have its own responsibilities and do its best to defend the city, but it also had a unified allocation of supplies, unified housing, and even unified meals for the personnel, making it truly just like a military camp.
In the past, some people would have found it hard to accept.
But at the moment, on the one hand, the elderly, the weak, women and children, as well as some idle bureaucrats who had been somewhat resistant to the decisive battle in Nanyang from the beginning, were driven to Xiangyang early, and there were relatively few unstable factors.
Secondly, Emperor Zhao was a bit particular. Even the temporary palace was divided into a block. The left hall was a canteen, the right hall a warehouse, and the Privy Council and the provincial government were all concentrated near the palace. Not to mention that the emperor himself had the same expenses as everyone in the block, even Madam Wu, who was only seventeen or eighteen years old, had to work with Grand Official Lan, Second Official Feng and others, along with the eunuchs and palace maids, to do laundry and cook for the people in the temporary palace block all day long.
Not only that, after the war broke out, the seriously wounded were also placed here in the harem. She had to lead people to spread lime, boil water, and check medicine every day... From morning to night, she was so tired that she didn't even have the strength to speak. Her job was not as easy as that of Madam Liang, who took over the duties of guarding the palace!
They are basically being treated like livestock by the government!
Since the Emperor and Mrs. Wu have set such an example themselves, what can others do?
Gentlemen are polite, and although they were already used to it, when they met Mrs. Wu and the guard Feng Yi, Wanqi Xie and Li Guang still bowed and greeted them first, then took their plates and sat down in the corner of the cafeteria. After sitting down, the two of them did not say much. They wolfed down two mouthfuls of food and took a few sips of hot water. Only then did they feel like they were alive again.
I have to say that there are special treatments here in Xinggongfang. The meals are all treated according to the treatment for wounded soldiers, with an extra portion of pickles compared to outside. What's even better is that there is unlimited hot water. It's just that the fresh meat jelly with ginger and fermented black beans in winter is not as much as the rewards on the city wall!
Back to the present, after the two of them recovered from their fatigue with the help of hot water, under the dim candlelight, Wanqi Xie was the first to smile bitterly and shook his head: "It's a pity that alcohol is now restricted, and I can't drink a glass with Brother Li to help cheer myself up..."
"What a bitter Xing." Li Guang couldn't help laughing when he heard that, but then he stopped talking and said seriously. "Brother Wanqi, you are coming up from the city. I wonder how the battle situation is on the city?"
Wanqi Xie's heart moved, but he picked up the bowl of water and took a sip slowly.
Originally, he just thought that he was becoming more and more useful and attracted the attention of this powerful neighbor, so he casually invited him today. However, he did not expect that the other party seemed to have other intentions, so he had to be careful this time.
After all, in Wanqi Xie's opinion, Li Guang was a close follower of Li Gang and Li Boji of Yangzhou, and in the current situation, Li Gang once again proved his magical ability that as long as there was no war, he was the most reliable minister, but as long as there was a war, the whole thing would be a mess... Before the siege of the city, Nanyang did not wait for Zhong Xiang to rebel, but received new information saying that the troops sent by Li Gang to lead the suppression of the rebellion had internal strife, and the military turmoil not only did not subside, but expanded?
So after this battle, it is still unknown what will be the fate of Li Boji, who has missed the big event?
It is unlikely that it will break down directly, but after the war, Prime Minister Lu Yihao will surely rise greatly, and both Lu and Li have such fierce temperaments, so I'm afraid there will inevitably be a fierce fight between dragons and tigers... Speaking of which, Wanqi Xie is still a member of the Privy Council, and theoretically he is a direct subordinate of Prime Minister Lu?
Of course, when he thought of this, Wanqi Xie found it funny, because he should have been the confidant of Wang Boyan, but who made Wang Xianggong go against the emperor's wishes and be expelled to Xiangyang? However, Wang Xianggong was a dual elder of Hebei and Bagongshan after all... It seemed that he would not necessarily lose power because of this, and the capital he left in Nanyang would be regarded differently by Wang Xianggong in the future.
In short, he could not think of anything after thinking about it, and it would be nothing more than a few sips of water if he put it outside, so he put down the bowl and smiled: "Brother Li has a question, how dare I not answer it? But Brother Li is the Imperial Censor in the Palace, and he has the power of supervision. He can check the situation on the city himself, why do you ask me?"
Let's say, Li Guang, a former member of the Tang royal family, a so-called well-dressed man, a literary official known for his uprightness, didn't know that in the blink of an eye, the other party's stomach was already spinning dozens of times? But he held the case and spoke frankly:
"To be honest, I am still worried about the war situation..."
Wanqi Xie laughed in his heart. Who in this city had not worried about the war situation? But now that they had already followed the government into the gamble, what was the point of worrying?
It's just a matter of getting through it or not getting through it.
If you can survive with the government, it will be a solid asset in the future. If you drink one more bowl of hot water here today, you will have endless wealth in the future. But if you can't survive, you can only take it one step at a time.
However, thinking this in his heart did not stop Wanqi Xie from looking serious: "Let Brother Li know that the city seems to be safe."
"oh?"
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!
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