Chapter 364 "May we be as loyal and devoted as brothers today, and even in the face of fire and water, we will stand together as comrades!"
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Li Shiyue, wearing an overcoat, opened the window, and a blast of cold air rushed in.
She looked down and saw a long funeral procession!
"It's the Zhenbei Wang family having a funeral!"
When Li Shiyue saw Liu Tan, dressed in mourning clothes and walking at the front, her mind immediately cleared up.
Although Li Shiyue had already gone to the Prince's Mansion to pay her respects with gifts more than a month ago, she had simply mingled with a group of low-ranking military officers and went with many other people.
Funerals for noble families are inherently complicated, and the coffin can stay at home for anywhere from three to five months to half a year or even a year.
Therefore, Li Shiyue really didn't expect that Liu Tan would choose to hold a funeral for the Zhenbei King's family on the 16th day of the first lunar month, just after the Lantern Festival!
Of course, Liu Tan is the only one whose words carry the most weight in the Prince's mansion right now.
He said this day was a good day, suitable for a funeral, so it was a good day.
From the main gate of the Prince's Palace to the city gate of the prefecture, the road was closed to traffic, with only funeral processions occupying the central avenue leading out of the city.
The music was very loud, solemn yet tinged with a touch of sorrow.
Li Shiyue stood at the window and saw that many of the shopkeepers in the vicinity of her paper shop lived on the second floor. They, like her, had opened their windows and were looking down at the street.
The road was covered with paper money, which flew everywhere with the swirling wind.
A ray of light from the rising sun shone on Liu Tan's face. From Li Shiyue's perspective, Liu Tan's brows were furrowed, and his solemn expression showed no trace of sadness. But who could say that Liu Tan wasn't heartbroken?
A little over fifteen minutes later, the funeral procession had gone quite far, and Li Shiyue was standing by the window when she could no longer hear the sounds of drums and trumpets.
The funeral of the Prince of Zhenbei's mansion eventually became the subject of gossip among the people in the city.
Because of this funeral, Liu Tan's reputation in the prefectural city improved more and more.
Li Shiyue also heard Manager Qian say to her, "Fortunately, we still have the Great General in Andong!"
"Otherwise," Manager Qian glanced at the door and, seeing no one come in, turned back to Li Shiyue and whispered, "the old prince, the old princess, and the heir are all dead. There's no one to support us in Andong."
The Turks are right beside us, waiting for their chance.
Li Shiyue looked up at Manager Qian, a hint of surprise in her eyes.
She really didn't expect that Manager Qian was someone who shared her concern for potential dangers even in times of peace.
As soon as Manager Qian saw Li Shiyue's expression, he immediately said "Hah!" and then began to speak rapidly, like firecrackers going off during the New Year.
“Master, although I, Qian Dongcai, have only studied for a few years and am not even a student, I have at least worked as an accountant in a business and have some knowledge.”
When the Turkic barbarians attacked the city gates, I was already over twenty years old.
If the general hadn't driven the barbarians away, and the city had fallen, those barbarians would have done anything—burning, looting, and so on!
"Master, don't be fooled by the fact that these barbarians haven't come to rob us for a few years and are even doing business with us, as if they're on good terms with us."
But seeing that the weather is getting drier every year, I'm worried that this summer might be even drier than last year!
At that time, the grass on the grassland will not grow, and their cattle and sheep will not have enough to eat. Isn't that the barbarians not having enough to eat on the grassland?
What can they do?
Won't they make a comeback?
They look different from us Han Chinese, and they speak different languages, so how can their hearts be the same as ours?
"Master, this man is not of our kind; his heart must be different!"
After hearing what Manager Qian said, Li Shiyue immediately gave him a thumbs up.
"Oh my, I understand what the boss means, I understand!"
But this is a truth that not only I understand, but everyone knows it;
However, we don't have the same abilities as the great general;
If I could ride a horse and fight the enemy, I would definitely join the army and fight for my future!
Manager Qian could only make a living as a paper shop owner in the prefectural city.
Li Shiyue, with a sword at her waist, mounted her horse and truly joined the army, determined to fight for her future!
February 29th was a day that had been planned in advance as an auspicious day for travel.
Li Shiyue was standing in the courtyard of the government office, watching Zhou Yiran and his clerk carefully count the gold and silver they were going to take to the Turks.
The amount of gold and silver brought to the Turks this time was not small, although Liu Tan directly gave Li Shiyue two squads of a hundred soldiers.
But in fact, Li Shiyue, who holds the military rank of sixth-grade Zhaowu Xiaowei, is capable of commanding a force of two hundred men.
However, this time, Liu Tan only gave her one hundred people.
Li Shiyue had already guessed this in her heart. This was Liu Tan's test, to see if she had the ability to lead troops!
From early morning until late morning, Zhou Yiran finally completed the handover.
Thus, Li Shiyue summoned the two captains of the hundred-man team and instructed them to arrange for people to load the wooden chests containing gold and silver onto the carts, as well as the gifts that Liu Tan had sent to the new Khan of the Turks for this mission.
Besides these, there were actually two more carriages outside the government office, which were filled with items that Consort Zhou had asked Liu Tan to give to her sixth sister, who had married into the Turkic Khaganate.
It wasn't until nearly noon that Li Shiyue rode out of the prefectural city with his delegation of over a hundred people, onto the official road, and headed towards Sanshan County.
As evening approached, the group settled into the official post station in Sanshan County, and Li Shiyue was finally forced to sit down at the same table with Zhou Yiran.
Although the two had some past conflicts, generally speaking, Li Shiyue and Zhou Yiran were both respectable people.
Even though she hated him to death, Li Shiyue wished she could just slap Zhou Yiran across the face twice.
But at this moment, she was smiling happily at Zhou Yiran.
She not only smiled, but she also got up and poured tea for Zhou Yiran.
Although Li Shiyue's official rank was higher than Zhou Yiran's seventh-rank military advisor, the matters to be handled on this mission were ultimately Zhou Yiran's responsibility.
It can be said that Li Shiyue played the role of a "bodyguard" on this trip.
In addition, Li Shiyue's sixth-rank Zhaowu Colonel position was ultimately just an honorary title.
For Zhou Yiran, a former official of the Prince's mansion who had served by the side of the Prince's heir, she was indeed not as noble as him.
Therefore, Li Shiyue had no choice but to lower her head.
However, Li Shiyue was always flexible and adaptable; she would simply be humble and offer someone a cup of tea.
She, Li Shiyue, can do it!
Therefore, after Li Shiyue poured tea for Zhou Yiran, she also poured herself a cup.
Then, she raised her glass, stood up, and solemnly raised it to Zhou Yiran, who was looking at her with some surprise, saying, "Commander Zhou, we each went our own way in the past, and we will not talk about the grudges between us."
Today we are in the same boat, and I offer this cup of tea instead of wine to General Zhou!
Before Zhou Yiran could say anything, Li Shiyue tilted her head back and drank the warm tea in her cup in one gulp.
May we be as loyal and devoted to each other today, and even in the face of danger, we will be comrades-in-arms!
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