Chapter 519 An Unexpected Meeting
It was still broad daylight, right at noon.
The atmosphere in front of the governor's mansion in Xunyangfang was eerily quiet.
Seeing that Ouyang Rong remained silent.
Qin Yanqing, the commander of the central army camp who had traveled a long way, looked around and then asked Lin Cheng, Wang Lengran, and the others, his face full of confusion:
"Why are you gentlemen silent? Could it be that you have other important tasks for Ouyang Sima and are reluctant to let him go?"
The spirited young man's voice echoed through the street, and the crowd that had been watching looked at Lin Cheng with slightly strange eyes.
The slightly chubby young man, who had recently extended an olive branch to Ouyang Rong, changed his expression slightly.
He felt that the strange gazes cast from all around him were more piercing than the midday sun overhead.
"Prefect Wang? Lord Lin?"
Qin Yanqing urged him again.
Wang Lengran's face had turned red without him noticing, while Wei Shaoqi's face remained gloomy. Both of them turned to look at Lin Cheng.
Qin Yanqing raised an eyebrow and, following everyone's gaze, looked at Lin Cheng, whose expression seemed a little off.
At this moment, Ali, the coachman who had been silently following behind Ouyang Rong, spoke up for his young master in a low, muffled voice:
"Prefect Wang and Lord Lin have just invited Tanlang to help with the construction of the Buddha statue in Xingzifang."
Qin Yanqing raised his eyelids slightly: "Oh?"
Lin Cheng immediately forced a smile and waved his hand: "No, no, it's just a discussion, a discussion with Commander Ouyang. It mainly depends on General Qin's side..."
"Okay, then there's no need to discuss it any further."
Qin Yanqing waved his hand, making a decision. His expression was calm and casual as he said:
“Sir Ouyang, don’t go and help make any statues. What’s so great about making Buddha statues? Just leave it to idle people or your subordinates. Don’t waste your talents on these trivial matters. This is a minor matter.”
"The Grand Marshal often said that Ouyang Sima has the demeanor of a national hero and is a rare talent in the southeast. He is proficient in administration, water management, and military affairs. He should devote all his energy to important matters, such as the war on the front lines. It is a waste of his talent to have his statue made in Jiangzhou City."
"So the Grand Marshal sent us here in person to invite Ouyang Sima to the central army camp to serve as his chief secretary. The Grand Marshal said that Ouyang Sima should just come, and he would handle the details such as the transfer of official positions, and he would give instructions to the court and His Majesty."
Qin Yanqing may have said this without intending to, but certain words that were easy to identify with still made Lin Cheng and the others, who were maintaining smiles, twitch their eyelids.
Wei Shaoqi's fist, hidden in his sleeve, bulged with veins. Especially when Wang Lengran cast a cautious, inquiring glance at him, Wei Shaoqi's face, which had been so confident and ready to welcome Qin Yanqing not long ago, felt a burning pain, as if he had been slapped hard across the face.
He simply couldn't understand what incredible luck Ouyang Lianghan had possessed! Could he be General Qin's illegitimate son or son-in-law, that he was being so highly regarded for no reason! And that people were rushing over to snatch him away, treating him like a treasure…
At this moment, all eyes were on Ouyang Rong, waiting for his response.
Many people looked on with envy and awe.
Pei Shisan Niang was also secretly glad that she had been respectful and polite when they first met. She glanced at Shen Bingqiang, who had already become docile.
Just as everyone was envious of Ouyang Rong's good fortune and wondering how he would agree in the next second... Ouyang Rong spoke.
"Thank you for your kind words, Marshal Qin. I am also flattered that Chief Secretary Qin, Brother Zhang, and Brother Qin have come all this way. However, the matter of taking over as Chief Secretary of the Central Army Camp is of great importance. May I have time to consider it further?"
Seeing the hesitation on Ouyang Rong's face, Qin Yanqing became a little anxious and said in a serious tone:
"Marshal Ouyang, the Grand Marshal is eagerly awaiting your arrival, and the soldiers have also been looking forward to it for a long time. Not only does the Grand Marshal often praise you, but General Qin Heng also speaks highly of you, and the advisors and strategists in the central army camp at the front have long admired your name..."
"If we don't bring you back this time, we won't be able to explain ourselves. To be honest, Ouyang Sima, our family rules... and military regulations are quite strict. If I return empty-handed, the Grand Marshal will definitely hang me up and give me a good beating..."
Seeing Ouyang Rong deep in thought, Qin Yanqing offered a hesitant suggestion:
"How about this, Ouyang Sima, could you spare some time to come with me to the central army camp at the front? This would allow us to give the Grand Marshal an explanation. We can then have Ouyang Sima speak with the Grand Marshal in person. What do you think? Ouyang Sima must come with us. Whether he stays or not is another matter. We can decide later."
"I really have to ask you for help, Ouyang Sima. Please make this special trip..."
Not only Qin Yanqing spoke up, but the accompanying quartermaster Zhang Zhong, transport officer Qin Yi, and others also joined in the persuasion, all with pleading expressions on their faces.
Everyone present was stunned upon hearing this.
Looking at the warriors who had recently returned from the front lines, still carrying a murderous aura, he sincerely invited someone.
Just as the situation between the two sides was at a stalemate, Prince Li Xian of Xunyang hurriedly arrived from the street not far away.
He also brought his eldest son, Jiangzhou Biejia Li Fusu, Jiangzhou Zhoushi Yuan Huaimin, and Judicial Advisor Yan Liulang, among others.
When everyone arrived, they stared at each other in bewilderment.
Then, belatedly, I introduced it.
After Li Xian inquired about the situation and exchanged a few pleasantries, the awkward atmosphere was finally eased.
A short while later, Li Xian, Wang Lengran, Lin Cheng and others invited Qin Yanqing and others into the mansion to hold a wartime meeting as usual.
However, this time, Ouyang Rong, as the Sima of Jiangzhou, was naturally indispensable.
Wei Shaoqi, Pei Shisan Niang, Shen Bingqiang, and others left in a hurry.
Inside the governor's mansion, during the entire wartime meeting, Lin Cheng and Wang Lengran clearly felt like each day was an eternity, as if they were sitting there feeling extremely uncomfortable. Only Lin Cheng managed to maintain a smile throughout the entire meeting, preventing himself from losing his composure.
After the meeting ended, the two hurriedly left...
Night, the moon hangs like a hook.
Inside a study in the Xunyang Prince's Mansion.
Everyone gathered together again.
This time, however, the atmosphere in the study was somewhat quiet, lacking the usual familiarity and casualness.
Ouyang Rong was sitting in his seat, taking a sip of hot tea.
Li Xian, Li Dalang, Li Guo'er, Wei Mei, and even Xie Lingjiang... all eyes were silently fixed on him.
Ouyang Rong was a little embarrassed by the amount of tea he drank.
The wartime meeting in the afternoon went on very late, close to dinner time. Qin Yanqing and his group had not left yet. In the evening, they directly invited Ouyang Rong to dinner and drinks. The group of martial artists were indeed generous.
However, the familiar attitude towards Ouyang Rong left Wang Lengran, Lin Cheng, and the others with no chance to interject.
That night, Qin Yanqing and his party stayed overnight at the Zhechongfu military camp outside the city, still waiting for Ouyang Rong's reply... or rather, waiting for the Jiangzhou government to "release them".
Unable to refuse their hospitality, Ouyang Rong had a headache the whole way back that night.
"Don't look at me like that."
Inside the study, Ouyang Rong put down his teacup, looked up helplessly, and addressed the crowd.
Li Dalang said with admiration in his eyes, "Tanlang, General Qin can't do without you. He's asking you to come over for such a big event."
Li Xian also said with delight, "Doesn't that mean that General Qin is still on our side? Was it all just a false alarm?"
"Thank goodness Tanlang is here! This time, Wei Shi and Lin Cheng are even more upset than if they swallowed a fly."
Wei Mei beamed with joy.
Li Guo'er suddenly interrupted them, her tone calm:
"General Qin may not be on our side. He may simply admire Ouyang Lianghan. If he could, he might not even want to let him come back after inviting him over."
The expressions of Li Xian, Li Dalang, and the others, who had been beaming with joy, all changed:
"No...you're not letting Tanlang come back? What does that mean?"
Li Guo'er pursed her lips tightly. Xie Lingjiang's eyes were somewhat complicated. She reached out and handed a pear to her senior brother, sighing softly as she said:
"It's obvious that Elder Qin doesn't want to take sides in the conflict between the Xunyang Prince's Mansion and the Wei family, nor does he want to create any rift with the Empress of Luoyang. However, perhaps... he greatly admires his senior brother, and out of a love for talent, he accepted the olive branch from the Xunyang Grottoes in the first place. Keeping Qin Ying is probably for the same reason..."
"This time, my eldest brother was idle in his position as the Sima of Jiangzhou. General Qin saw an opportunity and chose to help him out of his time of need. But what he was actually offering was not the Xunyang Prince's Mansion, but my eldest brother alone... It was like turning around and extending a sincere olive branch to my eldest brother."
Li Xian and Li Dalang immediately looked troubled, as if they wanted to say something but stopped themselves.
Judging from their expressions, it was clear they didn't know whether to be happy or worried.
Li Guo'er bit her lip, her clear eyes fixed on Ouyang Rong as he drank tea for a while, her tone somewhat incredulous:
"I had always thought that the Qin family wanted to profit from the statues in Xunyang Grottoes, and that they were showing some sympathy for our lineage, which is why they released the signal of cooperation. Now it seems... I was really wrong."
"So it turns out that from the Qin Xie family banquet onwards, what General Qin really valued was... you as a person, not the small amount of profit or political capital from the Xunyang Grottoes statues."
Upon hearing this, everyone understood, and their expressions turned strange.
Li Dalang cautiously inquired of his friend, who remained calm and silent:
"My love, what are you going to do now? Answer or not...?"
"Does Tanlang want to go there?"
Wei Mei asked tentatively:
"To be honest, the position of Jiangzhou Sima is indeed too low. The position of the Central Army Camp Chief Clerk is much more powerful and definitely more capable than that of the Jiangzhou Chief Clerk, but... it's too far away and might be inconvenient."
Ouyang Rong was silent for a moment, then stood up, his tone calm yet clearly audible throughout the room:
"The front line is too far from Jiangzhou. Not to mention that if the war goes smoothly and the front line advances all the way to the southwest, the distance will be even greater, making it difficult to take care of the safety of the Prince's Mansion. If something like the fake messenger from the Prince's Mansion happens again, someone will need to make a decisive decision at that time... This matter is worrying."
"But I can't refuse General Qin's kindness, so I sent Qin Yanqing instead..."
"It's a good opportunity to pick up that plan from a few days ago. Now that we have a legitimate reason, I'll leave the city and personally go to the front-line camp to meet General Qin first."
The crowd, their gazes fixed intently on Ouyang Rong, all breathed a sigh of relief and nodded in agreement.
"good."
"Tanlang, you make the decision."
"Be careful on your way to Tanlang..."
...
The next day.
Following formal discussions between Xunyang Prince Li Xian and Jiangzhou Governor Wang Lengran.
The Jiangzhou government issued an order to send Ouyang Lianghan, the Jiangzhou Sima, to the front lines under the pretext of escorting grain supplies.
In reality, Ouyang Rong and Xie Lingjiang had already set off early in the morning, lightly dressed.
Together with Qin Yanqing and the others who were also eager to return, they retraced their steps.
The group first took a fast boat, passing through several counties including Jishui, Longcheng, and Anran, and arrived in Hongzhou City a few days later.
They disembarked and rode horses instead.
The group rode swiftly to the front lines.
Along the way, Qin Yanqing and his soldiers were very friendly to Ouyang Rong, frequently chatting with him and occasionally asking him about military matters, to which Ouyang Rong answered fluently...
However, Ouyang Rong discovered that although Qin Yanqing appeared straightforward and carefree on the surface, he was actually quite tactful. On the way, he directly called out "Prefect Ouyang," and the generals accompanying him, such as Zhang Zhong and Qin Yi, also called out to him.
The generals and soldiers all seemed to think that Ouyang Rong, who had returned with them, had already agreed to take up the position of Chief Secretary of the Central Army Camp.
Ouyang Rong neither agreed nor disagreed.
The central army camp was temporarily located in a village inside the mountains, serving as a temporary encampment.
It was afternoon that day.
Ouyang Rong hurriedly arrived at the village located in the central army camp.
I had expected to see Qin Jingzhen in full military uniform, walking with his hands behind his back, looking majestic as he strolled through a warm tent with a huge sand table later on.
But before he could even take a sip of water, he was pulled to an unexpected place by smiling Qin Yanqing and his soldiers.
The group traveled without stopping, passing directly through the central army camp where they should have been resting.
Ouyang Rong was dressed in a light blue-white robe, with a white fox fur shawl wrapped around his neck, and rode Dongmei.
Xie Lingjiang, dressed in a red dress, rode a crimson steed with her head held high through the monotonous and monotonous military camp. In the withered yellow of late autumn, she stood out conspicuously.
The two walked side by side, a handsome couple who attracted many eyes.
They followed Qin Yanqing, who kept his eyes straight ahead, as he turned left and right. Just as they were wondering what was going on, the group passed through the village and arrived at a field ridge at the edge of the village.
He looked around curiously.
In the distance, on the square plots of land, many burly soldiers had taken off their shirts and were working hard, helping the villagers with planting.
Golden sunlight shone on their dark or bronze backs, and mud splattered everywhere.
A bustling and lively scene unfolded.
The autumn harvest is over, and the White Dew season has only just begun. Now is the best time to plow and sow before winter.
Perhaps the fighting on the front lines had subsided, on a ridge near the dirt road, Qin Jingzhen, the Left General of the Martial Guard and the Grand Commander of the Jiangnan Road Army, was shirtless, and together with a large group of young and strong staff officers and strategists from the central army camp assisting him, they were plowing forward. The burly old man would stop from time to time, grab the towel hanging around his neck, and wipe away his sweat.
Ouyang Rong stared in slight surprise as he looked at one of the most powerful military men in the court, who was working on the ridges of the field like a farmer.
It seemed like I saw him from a great distance.
"Lianghan? Come on, lend a hand."
The old man waved.
She even seemed to smile at him.
Ouyang Rong came to his senses, and without saying a word, tore off his scholar's robe and threw it to Xie Lingjiang. He then took off the clean, snow-white fox fur shawl from his neck and carefully wrapped it around the small section of Xie Lingjiang's slender, porcelain-like neck, where her hair was fluttering wildly in the autumn wind.
He turned and walked towards the ridge of the field, plunging headfirst into the mud.
(End of this chapter)
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