Chapter 146 There is a mine at home

Chapter 146 There is a mine at home

Chapter 146 There is a mine at home
As time passed, the wedding banquet ended, and the lights in the mansion gradually went out.

Only a few lanterns were left, swaying gently in the breeze.

It emits a soft and warm light, guiding the way for guests returning home.

The moonlight is like water, filling the entire mansion.
The outline of the building is made clearer, adding a touch of simplicity and solemnity.

The guests left drunkenly one by one, leaving behind their chaotic footsteps on the bluestone road, their shadows lengthened in the moonlight.

The servants hired temporarily began to clean up the aftermath of the wedding banquet.

Their movements were light and orderly, and the occasional sound of utensils colliding became part of the night.

As the guests left, the Lu Mansion gradually became quiet, with only a few soldiers still drinking heavily.

The military officers did not leave and were still drinking in the inner room.

The chirping of insects and birds and the sound of the night wind drift back and forth,

The atmosphere in the Lu Mansion gradually became more relaxed and was no longer as noisy as before.

Lu Yunyi was standing drunk at the entrance of the main hall, with his father-in-law Liu Zhizhou beside him.

At this moment, both of them were a little drunk, and their words were unclear.

"Yun Yi, you are a promising person. Treat my daughter well in the future."

Liu Zhizhou no longer had his usual composure, but instead acted like an old father, chattering on and on.

Lu Yunyi held the jar of wine, nodded continuously, and mumbled something.

"Don't worry, father-in-law..."

Liu Zhizhou was very satisfied, his eyes were hazy and confused, and he patted Lu Yunyi on the shoulder:

"Kid, if you have anything to say, tell me.

In Gyeongju, the elders and folks all support you.

My father-in-law... I have some connections in Liaodong. I can't help you with big things, but I can still help you with small things."

As soon as these words were spoken, Liu Heiying, who was eating and drinking not far away, brightened his eyes and raised his head suddenly!

Lu Yunyi did the same and blinked his eyes.
The drunkenness in his eyes flashed away, replaced by a deep look.
He pulled Liu Zhizhou aside and whispered:
"Father-in-law, I really need your help with some small matters."

"Just tell me, I won't refuse."

Liu Zhizhou lowered his voice, then laughed, his face flushed, shaking his head, looking drunk.

Lu Yunyi shook his head, pinched his thigh with his hand at his side to make himself sober, and tried his best to straighten his tongue when speaking.

"Father-in-law, we have captured a lot of grassland captives on this trip. My deputy general Liu Heiying has a business, and he wants to capture a few captives to do hard labor."

"I know, Liu's Trading Company, they sell fruits and vegetables."

Lu Yunyi nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, those fruits are too heavy, and ordinary work requires a lot of money.
So we wanted to use the prisoners to do the work.
They don't need to be paid, just given food.
We have already found the people, all of them are strong and selected, but we cannot solve their identities.
So I want to ask my father-in-law if there is any way to turn them into border residents of the Ming Dynasty so that they can be used more conveniently in the future."

Although Liu Zhizhou was drunk, he was still able to force himself to wake up a little bit of rationality at the critical moment.

He leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, frowned and thought deeply.
It was not until Lu Yunyi thought he had fallen asleep that he spoke:
"Then you have a stake in Liu's Company? I saw that you often gave them advice in the past."

Lu Yunyi's eyes widened slightly and he was shocked.

Liu Zhizhou opened his eyes hazily, and seeing his expression he knew he was right, and he chuckled.

"Liu Huaipu is a smart man. He came to me and wanted to give me some money, but I refused.

To be honest, I don’t even care about the money he has.”

As he spoke, Liu Zhizhou's tone was a little boastful.

Lu Yunyi had a strange look on his face as he looked Liu Zhizhou up and down, wondering if this father-in-law was a corrupt official.

Liu Zhizhou smiled and explained:

"My Liu family has been rooted in Liaodong since the Liao Dynasty, and has been passed down for hundreds of years.

Although not prominent, some silver and money are not worth mentioning. "

Lu Yunyi was stunned. He had guessed that his father-in-law might have the support of a famous teacher, or the help of someone among his classmates, so that he could get this meritorious position in Qingzhou.

I didn't expect that it was a family with hundreds of years of heritage in Liaodong, with a long family history.

"Yun Yi, do you know where I got this position?"

Lu Yunyi suddenly sobered up and said:
"Please ask my father-in-law to clarify my doubts."

Liu Zhizhou chuckled, waved his hands unconsciously in front of him, and whispered:

"I have given the court two iron mines in Dingliao Youwei.

Let them build weapons and protect the trade routes with Korea.
Mei Yi, the commander-in-chief of Liaodong, was the eldest son of Mei Sizu, the Marquis of Runan.
He came to my house specially and transferred me to Qingzhou, waiting for the great achievement, so that the credit for staying behind could fall on me. "

Lu Yunyi was shocked, his eyes widened, and the last trace of drunkenness seemed to dissipate silently.
He was extremely rich. Two iron mines in exchange for a fifth-rank prefect and a bright future. The money was well spent.

"I'm telling you this because I want to tell you that if you need money, just tell me.

Although not as good as those people in Lianghuai, it is still more than enough for ordinary people.

People in the military are bound to be criticized if they act like businessmen, so be careful.

The people in Liaodong were extremely cautious when doing business with North Korea, for fear of being discovered by the imperial court.

You should withdraw your share of Liu's Company as soon as possible. It's not worth it for such a small amount of money."

After a moment's silence, Lu Yunyi lowered his voice:
"Please rest assured, father-in-law, I have no stake in Liu's firm.

But Liu Hei Ying is my deputy general and a close confidant.

Since he said so, I will help, and I also ask my father-in-law to help me take care of it."

Liu Zhizhou then nodded with confidence and said with a smile:

"How many people are there? Liaodong is still registering them, so it won't be finished in a short time. But there can't be too many people, otherwise it will be hard to explain."

Lu Yunyi's eyes flashed, and he changed his mind and said:

"Father-in-law, there are more than 20 people."

"So little?" Liu Zhizhou frowned, a little surprised.
He suddenly remembered something and explained:
"You are not in Liaodong, so you don't know the chaos there.

There were countless wild people in the Liaodong Mountains. The guards often captured them to work, and there were also some Koreans.

In the Dingliao Right Guard that I told you about earlier, there were nearly a thousand barbarians and Koreans.
They used Koreans and barbarians to replace the Ming army, using the dead to collect empty salaries.
Compared with them, the twenty of you are nothing compared to them. It is not a big deal."

Lu Yunyi was stunned. He didn't expect that there is always someone better than you.

I thought there were enough dirty things happening in Gyeongju Zhongwei, but I didn't expect Liaodong to directly capture able-bodied men to work for free.

"Father-in-law, they are too bold."

"You are too young.

If the water is too clear, there will be no fish. Liaodong is a place even colder than Gyeongju.

If the imperial court doesn't give people benefits, who would want to go there?

What's more, those wild people and Koreans look similar to us.

If you don’t tell me and I don’t tell you, do the imperial censors know who he is?
The people in the garrison said he was Li Si, so the court recognized him as Li Si.

The world is just beginning to settle down, we want to take care of the grassland people, and of course we want to take care of the Koreans and the wild people, as long as they work hard and give them a bite to eat, it won’t be a big deal.”

Seeing Liu Zhizhou shaking his head,

Lu Yunyi's face was full of doubt. Is this true or false?
He originally thought that if things became difficult, he would only give Yarong and Ortai border residents status, and make the rest of them illegal residents and work illegally, and keep them outside.

Today, I learned that my father-in-law has great magical powers, so I increased the number of places to 20.
But I didn't expect that his courage was still a little smaller than those people in Liaodong.

After a pause, Lu Yunyi knew that he should not be greedy, so he whispered:

"Then, father-in-law, the more sons-in-law I have, the better. The key is to save you trouble. If I sell a favor for such a small matter, it will be more trouble than gain."

Liu Zhizhou closed his eyes and thought for a while, then shrugged his nose:
"Fifty people, maybe. If there are more, we have to submit it to the Metropolitan Command, which will be troublesome and may leave traces."

"Okay, then it will be forty people. I will give you the list tomorrow?" A gleam of light flashed in Lu Yunyi's eyes, and he felt a little excited.

"Give it to me now. The military officers are drinking here, and there is a riot in the camp. Sending people out of the city now will be silent and will not leave any traces."

Liu Zhizhou showed a meaningful look on his face, and said slowly:
"You guys are not just here to transport fruits and vegetables, right?" Lu Yunyi remained calm, showing some hesitation at the right time, and then nodded slightly:

"I can't hide it from my father-in-law. I will go to Liaodong to lead the troops in a few days.

If you try to persuade the Liao King, Huining King and Marshal Duoyan to surrender, there might be a fight.

So he planned to recruit some Northern Yuan people into his army.
With them around, things are easier to handle.
If this matter is accomplished, the son-in-law will always give them some benefits afterwards.
They don’t want to go to the border to build the Great Wall, and the identities of the prisoners are also troublesome, so my son-in-law plans to get some identities for them.”

After hearing this, Liu Zhizhou suddenly understood.

Except for some nobles, these grassland captives would be taken to the interior of Ming Dynasty to be raised.

The rest of the people will build the Great Wall in the border states.
Although they were also Ming people, they only did the work of common people. Only the next generation were true Ming people.

"I understand. Since we are going to send troops to persuade them to surrender, the more people the better. Fifty people will do."

A hint of joy flashed across Lu Yunyi's eyes, and he quickly waved to Liu Heiying.

But Liu Zhizhou frowned, and quickly reached out to pull his hand down, and said in a low voice:
"This matter should not be made public, it's enough for you and I to know about it.

When dealing with others, you have to talk about the twenty people. The remaining thirty people are your own strength and you have to hide them well.

Although the Ming Dynasty had been established for twenty years, there were troubles everywhere, and some things were difficult to handle without one's own strength.

As for the list, you don't need to give it to me.

I have ordered people to prepare travel permits and ivory cards for fifty people. Their names will be recorded in Liaodong's yellow book. You can decide who to give them to when the time comes."

Lu Yunyi blinked, his face full of astonishment.
He felt his throat was a little dry, and he remembered some jokes that had been circulating in the army.

There are no good people among the border residents of the Ming Dynasty, and they are especially belligerent.

Look at yourself and then look at your father-in-law, this is absolutely true.

Taking a deep breath, Lu Yunyi bowed:
"I would like to thank my father-in-law. With your help, I will be able to achieve success in Liaodong."

Liu Zhizhou smiled and nodded repeatedly, becoming more and more satisfied with his son-in-law.

He said earnestly:

"Yun Yi, you are a man who values ​​friendship and loyalty.
You have performed great service, but the first thing you did after returning was to propose marriage. I was totally surprised."

Liu Zhizhou sighed: "You are still young, and you have made great contributions early on. It is inevitable that you will rise to a high position in the future.

If he were in the capital, he would definitely be sought after by the officials in the court to be his son-in-law.
I didn't expect that he would marry the daughter of a small prefect. Wanyi didn't make a mistake in choosing her."

"Father-in-law, please don't make me feel bad. Wanyi and I are childhood sweethearts. I would be worried if I handed her over to someone else."

"Hahahaha, not bad, not bad!"

Liu Zhizhou turned around and patted his shoulder vigorously:

"Go and see the lords. I'm drunk and I have to leave first."

After a while, Lu Yunyi walked into the Lu Mansion with a strange look on his face. The drunkenness in his mind had almost dissipated.
Even he didn't expect that things would go so smoothly.

Not only that, the gains far exceeded his imagination.

At least he knew some things hidden in Liaodong.

There was some fear in Lu Yunyi's eyes. The Ming Dynasty was just beginning to be established. There were hidden people everywhere, as well as nobles and powerful families from the previous dynasties.
He can't afford to offend any of these people.

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes,
It is hard to imagine that a fifth-rank prefect has such great capabilities in Liaodong.

At this time, Liu Heiying, who had been impatient for a long time, ran over excitedly, with a few traces of wine red on his dark face, and asked in a low voice:
"Brother Yun'er, it's done. Hu Kui sent a message saying that the prisoners in the camp rioted, more than 3,000 were killed or wounded, and Jiang Li's body was not found."

As he spoke, a trace of fear flashed in Liu Heiying's eyes:
"As we expected, the one who stayed behind in the camp was Yu Tongyuan. He was the one who ordered those grassland people to flee. He is indeed ruthless."

Lu Yunyi listened quietly, a sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth, and his eyes were deep:

"Has Jiang Li's body been cleaned up?"

"Has been cleared away along with the bodies,
Those grassland captives went crazy and didn't care about their lives. There were broken limbs and blood everywhere.
Even if Jiang Li came in person to identify it, he might not be able to find it.

However, the news of Jiang Lin's death could not be concealed. The stable guard was still alive, and other soldiers might have seen Jiang Lin enter the stable.
When the army discovers Jiang Li is missing tomorrow, they may learn that Jiang Li died in the stable."

Liu Heiying spoke slowly, with some excitement in his tone.

He had been secretly planning for nearly two months and now it had finally come to fruition, which made him very excited.

Lu Yunyi also showed a smile:

"It's okay, this is what we expected.

This is a success. I will give out the rewards to the brothers tomorrow. Thank you for your hard work these days.
In addition, Hu Kui needs someone to treat his leg, and he is a capable person.

As for Chen Jingyi, find him a new wife as soon as possible. His talent must be passed down. He is also a capable man. "

"I understand, Brother Yun'er. What does Governor Liu say about the matter of Yarong and Ortai? Will he help us?" Liu Heiying widened his eyes with some expectation in them.

Seeing him like this, Lu Yunyi patted his belly with the back of his hand:
"Of course it's done. You can send someone to pick them up now.

As for where to place them, you decide for yourself, either Beiping or Daning will do."

"That's great!" Liu Heiying looked happy and laughed.

"Okay, I'm going to go see the military officers. You have to handle this matter properly and no written records can be left."

"Got it, Brother Yun'er, you can rest assured that I will do the job!"

Liu Heiying patted his chest loudly.

Lu Yunyi smiled and nodded, then walked into the inner room.
As soon as he entered the house, the overwhelming smell of alcohol hit him in the face, almost suffocating him.

The mess before him was beyond Lu Yunyi's imagination, with wine jars toppled all over the floor.
Wuding Hou Guo Ying was holding a wine jar, curled up in a corner with his back to the crowd, as if he was thinking about his mistakes with his eyes closed.

Wang Bi, Marquis of Dingyuan, was lying on the ground with a wine jar on his head, and a loud snoring sound came from the jar.

Geng Bingwen, Marquis of Changxing, was slightly more normal. He sat there with a smile on his face, stroking his beard constantly, and ignored everyone who spoke to him, like an old monk in meditation.

Deng Zhen and Xu Zengshou snuggled together and fell into a deep sleep.

Lan Yu, Marquis of Yongchang, and Zhang Yi, Marquis of Heqing, were whispering with their heads down. These two were the only ones in the room who seemed to be somewhat sober.

At this time, Zhang Yi also saw Lu Yunyi standing in front of the door and immediately shouted:
"Hey! What are you doing here if you're not going to the bridal chamber?"

Lan Yu also turned his head, his face flushed, his eyes a little drunken, and he also spoke loudly:
"Lu Yunyi, what are you doing here?"

Lu Yunyi was stunned and blinked his eyes. He had almost forgotten that today was his wedding day.

"I came to see if you lords have had enough to drink." Lu Yunyi quickly spoke up to make amends.

"Hahahaha, I haven't had such a good drink in a long time.

I haven't been this drunk since His Majesty asked us to march north last year, and it's been half a year now."

Heqing Marquis Zhang Yi laughed loudly, then staggered to his feet and pulled Lu Yunyi over.
Then he patted Lu Yunyi's shoulder and looked at Lan Yu:
"General, this kid is good, he's a good candidate, we have to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't get assassinated."

Lan Yu's smile paused, and his face turned serious:
"What nonsense you are saying. The world is peaceful, so why are there so many troubles?"

Heqing Marquis Zhang Yi looked a little unnatural, scratched his head and smiled:

"Look at me, I'm old and my brain isn't working well anymore. Don't be surprised, kid. Just be careful."

Lu Yunyi took the wine jar with a smile, picked up a bowl from the ground and filled a cup, then raised the wine bowl towards the two marquises:

"Thank you for your presence, my Lord. I am very grateful."

Lan Yu smiled, picked up the wine bowl on the table and drank it first:

"Why are you talking about this? It's getting late. We have to go back.
You should get married soon, as you have important things to do tomorrow. The military equipment sent from Liaodong will arrive tomorrow morning, and I will be the first to replenish your troops."

"Thank you, General!"

Heqing Marquis Zhang Yi also picked up the wine bowl and said with a smile:

"The war in the Northeast must be resolved quickly.

If we let someone else go, we would be a little worried. If you go, we are ready to hear the good news.
Work hard, fight hard,
Let those grassland people have a good look at our Ming army, and also let them see the ability of our Ming youth."

After saying this, Heqing Marquis Zhang Yi drank the wine in the bowl.

He stood up shakily, went to support General Lan Yu, and waved to Lu Yunyi:
"Okay, you don't have to worry about it, go ahead."

(End of this chapter)