Yu Chuxi finally finished explaining the matter in a few words. After the people left, Yu Chuxi turned around.
He was wearing a scarlet silk shirt embroidered with gold patterns and a skirt made of satin with beads. He had a beautiful face and a noble temperament. When he raised his eyebrows slightly and glanced over, no one could look away at this moment.
Yu Chuxi couldn't help but ask: "Why did you think of coming here today?"
It's no wonder that Yu Chuxi is curious. Xie Shu has never been interested in these business matters and never asks him about them. Today is the first time he comes to the store to find him.
Xie Shu lowered his eyes and looked at Lang Jun and said softly: "Does Lang Jun not like me coming?"
Yu Chuxi naturally couldn't deny it, but he also refused to admit it. His thick and long eyelashes flickered, his lips were slightly pursed, and his eyes were like autumn water.
Xie Shu walked towards him, then put his arm around his waist and said with a smile, "I miss you."
It was a hot summer day, but Yu Chuxi didn't want to leave at all when he held her like this. His nose was filled with his cool and gentle breath, which made people happy and at ease.
Yu Chuxi also slowly put her arms around his shoulders and relaxedly buried herself in his arms.
Xie Shu gently stroked his smooth long hair, feeling his lover's dependence and closeness to him. At this moment, his heart was so peaceful and quiet, as if time was slowly lingering.
Yu Chuxi rubbed Xie Shu's neck affectionately. After a while, he felt a little embarrassed and raised his head quickly, trying to get out of Xie Shu's arms.
At this time, Xie Shu lowered his eyes and looked at him and asked, "My dear, I just heard you say that the water freight route is blocked and now we can only transport goods by land. What's going on?"
Yu Chuxi frowned slightly when he heard this and said, "Since last week, after the emperor's dragon boat blocked the canal, civilian ships have not been allowed to use the canal. But for some reason, today even ships from other places did not come. I asked someone to find out that the emperor had soldiers stationed at the checkpoints on both sides of Huai'an's branch river and the entrance of Qiaotou Village, and no ships were allowed to enter or leave. It is said that this is because they want to set up a towpath..."
Towpath?
Xie Shu was a little unfamiliar with this name, but he quickly recalled the terms from the book.
This towpath refers to the road for trackers to pull the boats. In ancient times, shipping was a very important means of transportation, but the ships in ancient times did not rely on power like today, but on manpower.
Since weather and river conditions have a great impact on shipping, whenever a boat encounters dangerous shoals or bad water or runs aground on the shore, it can only be pulled by people, so the profession of tracker came into being.
Thinking of this, Xie Shu immediately understood.
Because of drought, the emperor's dragon boat could not move forward on the canal, so he conscripted civilians to pull the towpath. For the sake of convenience and safety, the emperor did not allow anyone to interfere with the towpath he set up.
But how can a dragon boat be compared with an ordinary boat? An ordinary boat needs no more than a dozen trackers at most, and they just need to get out of the place where they are trapped. But even so, if the trackers are not careful when they frequently go into the water, they can still easily get sick and injured, and even worse situations may occur if they fail to keep their balance.
The dragon boat is so huge that it is hard to describe in words. It requires hundreds or even thousands of trackers. Not only that, it takes a long time to tow it. The hardships and sufferings involved are something that Xie Shu, a modern person, cannot imagine.
Xie Shu couldn't help but feel a complicated emotion in his heart.
Since crossing over to this world, Xie Shu has been living in the Yu family. The prosperity and wealth here and the peaceful atmosphere of Jinling gave Xie Shu a great illusion that everything seemed to be fine.
But in fact, the cruelty and bloodiness of this era had never been played out before his eyes, but now, a corner of the veil was unveiled to him.
Although this is just a trivial decision made by the ruler, it can affect millions of people.
No one had ever thought that a southern tour would involve him and his husband to such an extent...
Xie Shu's expression became serious. Yu Chuxi noticed this. He touched Xie Shu's back and comforted him, "It's okay. This happened suddenly, so I was not prepared at all. But I have already given instructions to focus on land transportation from now on. The missing goods will be replenished soon."
Feeling the fingers of the man stroking his spine, Xie Shu didn't say anything. He looked at him deeply for a while before whispering, "Thank you for your hard work, man. You have already taken care of the matter. Do you want to go home with me now?"
Yu Chuxi's heart pounded when he looked at her, so she had to bury her head in his arms again and said softly, "Okay."
The dragon boat, which had been trapped for many days, was tied with strong ropes.
Such a huge monster finally moved amid countless shouts and roars of all strength.
The migrant workers on both sides of the shore were like crabs crawling on the sand, with the reins tied around their shoulders, dragging the dragon boat along as they staggered.
It is midsummer now. Even standing in the sun will make people dizzy, let alone carrying such a heavy burden.
After a while, everyone was sweating profusely and exhausted, but no one dared to stop.
Because standing next to them were guards from the capital, watching them. These people lived a life of luxury and had no idea how hard they worked. Instead, they blamed them for walking too slowly and failing to complete their tasks. If they were not satisfied, they would scold them harshly, or even worse, whip them directly.
In this case, who would dare to complain?
At this time, Emperor Qing was sitting in the dragon boat, and Lu Shuo was accompanying him. Emperor Qing was looking into the distance through the window. The height of the dragon boat was enough to make everything in his eyes seem as small as an ant.
As the dragon boat gradually moved forward, the scenery in front of us suddenly became clear. There was thick shade, lush green trees, and fragrant grass in front of us. The scene of silt and sand flooding the embankment was no longer seen.
Emperor Qing couldn't help but feel in a good mood. He still liked Lu Shuo the most. If he handed the work over to him, it would be done within a few days. So he let him take charge of the boat trip this time.
After holding the imperial edict written by Emperor Qing himself, Lu Shuo slowly retreated.
When seeing Lü Shuo coming out, Shao Zhen, who was waiting outside, looked at the bright yellow handwritten note in Lü Shuo's hand. Then Shao Zhen stepped forward and said with a smile, "Lord Lü, is my father free now?"
When the Third Prince, who was now very popular in the eyes of many people, took the initiative to greet him, Lu Shuo just shook his head with a distant look and said, "I don't know, Your Highness, just wait."
When Shao Zhen heard this answer, he remained calm and nodded slightly. After Lu Shuo left, a hint of deep meaning flashed across Shao Zhen's eyes.
Now Lü Shuo is deeply favored by the emperor. During this southern tour, the emperor summoned him the most times. This time, he didn't know what he was responsible for. There are countless benefits to working during the southern tour. There are many ways to receive and offer sacrifices to officials from all over the country. Lü Shuo was originally a Ziwei Ling, helping the emperor to handle court affairs, and now he is handing over everything on his behalf.
Originally, Shao Zhen planned to take this opportunity to win over some people, but now with Lu Shuo in front, there are very few people left in his hands.
Shao Zhen even wondered with some dissatisfaction, was it his father who was on tour in the south, or was it Lu Shuo who was reviewing?
In fact, Shao Zhen had thought about winning over Lu Shuo, but doing so would violate his father's taboo. Even if Shao Zhen was bold, he would not dare to do so.
What's more, Lu Shuo's attitude towards him and the prince has always been distant, so Shao Zhen suppressed his feelings. But now, Shao Zhen found that if he could really make Lu Shuo favor him, then the position of crown prince would be much easier to obtain.
But Lu Shuo is a difficult person to figure out, and no one knows how to impress him.
Shao Zhen couldn't help but think of another person, and his mood suddenly became a little unhappy.
Lu Shuo was at least a second-rank Purple Star Order, but Xie Shu was just a white-clothed man, yet he was so ignorant that he dared to go against him. Although these two were brothers from the same school, they were definitely not the same kind of people. For Lu Shuo, what kind of friendship did he have with this junior brother?
At this time, a young eunuch next to him interrupted Shao Zhen's thoughts and said, "Your Majesty has summoned you, Your Highness, please go in quickly."
Shao Zhen came back to his senses, straightened his clothes, and walked in with a smile.
While playing chess in the evening, Xie Shu told Langjun that he was planning to invite friends to a party.
Yu Chuxi paused for a moment, immediately understood, and his eyelashes drooped slightly.
Xie Shu did not notice the change in Langjun's mood. He always told Langjun everything.
At this time, Xie Shu was not afraid of being laughed at by his husband. In fact, he had no experience in ancient gatherings. He had neither many friends nor was good at socializing.
When Xie Shu said this, he looked quite helpless.
Yu Chuxi had never seen him so confused before, and couldn't help but burst out laughing. The bitterness in her heart just now gradually faded away. Yu Chuxi thought for a moment, raised her eyelids and asked him: "What kind of party are you going to hold?"
Xie Shu smiled and said, "I originally thought of a poetry gathering or a literary gathering. There is a saying that goes 'make friends through literature, and build kindness through friends'. But nowadays, although there are elegant gatherings, elegant things are indispensable.
If it were just a literary gathering, it would probably be a bit boring. I heard that there are five popular leisure activities nowadays: burning incense, hanging paintings, vase offerings, playing the zither, and ceremonial tea. Among them, tea parties are the most popular. But to be honest, my dear, I know nothing about these five things except hanging paintings."
Hearing this, although a hint of surprise flashed across Yu Chuxi's eyes, he quickly smiled and looked at Xie Shu and said, "In my opinion, although this hanging painting is good, not everyone is good at it. If you want to make friends, it is best to choose the tea ceremony. Haven't you heard of this saying?
"Tea is not ancient. It originated from Jiangzuo, spread all over the world, and has been popular in modern times. Gentlemen and villains alike, rich and poor alike, all use it. "This tea ceremony originated in Jinling. Almost everyone knows how to drink it. The princes and officials are all drinkers. Moreover... it is also very easy to learn."
Langjun's last words seemed to have a hidden meaning. Xie Shu looked at Langjun with a warm smile, only to see Langjun's lips slightly raised, with a proud and playful smile, but he turned his eyes away a little, looking at the chessboard, not at him.
Xie Shu saw Lang Jun's smooth fingertips resting on the jade chess piece, which made his skin look white and his knuckles look slender. Xie Shu slowly placed his hand on the back of Lang Jun's hand, grasped his fingertips, and rubbed them carefully: "Lang Jun, can you be my master and teach me?"
Yu Chuxi's face turned slightly red after hearing his disturbance. She couldn't get her hands free, so she just nodded randomly and agreed.
Suddenly, he snorted softly and said, "He is not your master..."
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