Chapter 221: This Journey Goes Thousands of Miles West

Chapter 221: This Journey Goes Thousands of Miles West

Chapter 221: This Journey Goes Thousands of Miles West
The residence of Chen Guangsong, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works.
It used to be crowded with people, but today it seems unusually deserted.

The autumn wind seemed to carry a bit of chill as it blew through the hall, taking away the noise of the past, but it could not blow away the heaviness and uneasiness that permeated the house.

The news that Chen Guangsong was ordered by the emperor to reflect on himself at home,
Like a huge rock thrown into a calm lake, it creates ripples.

The appointment of Chen Kui, the new Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, seemed natural.

But everyone knew that Chen Guangsong would not return to the Ministry of War.

Madam Li was sitting in the embroidery room at this moment. Although she was weaving brocade in her hands, her heart was already in a state of confusion.

The eldest son, Chen Yu, has a look of maturity and stability beyond his age.

He quietly came to the outside of the study, stared at his father's lonely figure through the crack in the door, feeling mixed emotions.

The young girl Chen Wan'er was innocent and did not understand the worries of the adults. She just asked:
"Why is Daddy at home today?"

At this time, Li always stroked her head gently.
There was a barely perceptible hint of bitterness in his eyes, and he forced a smile and said, "Dad is resting at home today."

As time goes by, the inky black of night slowly paints the sky.

In the study, the last ray of afterglow had disappeared, leaving only a dim candlelight flickering.

Chen Guangsong sat in front of the desk, looking a little gloomy. He had been sitting here for a day.

His hair shone lightly in the dim candlelight, unable to conceal the traces left by the years.

He placed his hands lightly on the table, his knuckles were slightly white, and the veins were exposed due to his old age.

Everything in the study was shrouded in depression, as if frozen, and even breathing became heavy.

Chen Guangsong looked forward with empty eyes.
The night is getting deeper and deeper; the candle is getting shorter and shorter.

Chen Guangsong seemed to have been forgotten by the Ming Dynasty and faced his inner struggle alone.

After an unknown amount of time, he spread out the rice paper, picked up the brush, dipped it in ink, and with a flowing stroke of the brush, three big characters appeared on the rice paper.

[Confession]
"Your Highness Guangsong, out of greed, passed inferior weapons off as good ones, thus tarnishing the weapons of the Holy Dynasty. I deserve death.

I am willing to sacrifice my life to atone for my past sins.

I hope the Emperor will take into consideration my past merits and forgive my family so that the family lineage can continue."

When Chen Guangsong was over 60, he had lived through three dynasties.
The slightly dry hands could not stop shaking, and the once elegant figure had become dry and thin.

Without power, he aged ten years in one day.

After writing his confession, he slowly stood up and walked towards the door with unsteady steps. He wanted to see his family again.

But when he got close, his staggering body stopped, and his outstretched hand stopped in mid-air. His eyes dimmed a little, and his palm dropped heavily, and he turned to walk towards the bookcase on the other side.

When the cabinet door was opened, a piece of white silk was particularly eye-catching. It had been placed here for eight years, so the white silk had turned a little yellow.

He took out the white silk and walked to the center of the study. He grabbed one end and swung it vigorously.
The white silk hit the main beam and fell down.
Chen Guangsong bent down and picked up the white silk with a bit of bitterness, a hint of self-mockery on his face.
He has forgotten many skills since he assumed the high position.

This time he rolled the front end of the white silk into a ball and threw it up with force, and it swung down swayingly.

He closed his eyes, and sparkling spots appeared in his deep eye sockets, as if he saw the smiling faces of his family, the solemnity of the court, and his own past glory.

With a heavy sound, the stool fell to the ground and Chen Guangsong's life came to an abrupt end.

His confession lay quietly on the desk.
In the almost frozen air in the study, time seemed to be infinitely stretched, and every passing second seemed unusually heavy.

In this moment of silence where only the crackling of candlelight can be heard,
A subtle and cautious sound of footsteps, like the lightest breeze in the night, quietly sounded in the corridor and gradually approached the study.

The door hinge turned slightly, making a subtle but clear creaking sound.

A figure with a stern face appeared silently at the door of the study.

His eyes were as sharp as an eagle's, scanning every corner of the room.
Finally, it landed on Chen Guangsong's motionless figure. The visitor was not surprised at all and walked straight into the study.

He walked to the table, gently picked up the confession letter and put it in his arms, then left without looking back.

A whisper seemed to come from far away:
"If I had known this, why would I do it in the first place?"

The next morning, just as the sky was turning pale, the city of Puzikou was already bustling with activity.

Five thousand soldiers of the vanguard scout unit, dressed in shining armor and holding sharp weapons, assembled in the morning light and left the camp where they had stayed for nearly a month!

On the city wall, the rising sun cast a warm and soft light, giving Puzikou City a layer of golden glow.

Below the city, at the wide ferry crossing, dozens of warships were lined up like sleeping beasts.

Each of these warships was extremely broad and huge.

The hull is made of solid wood and coated with waterproof tung oil, shining steadily in the sun.

When the soldiers first stepped into the Puzikou ferry and saw the rows of wide and huge warships,

Shock appeared on their faces at the same time.

The soldiers stopped and widened their eyes, so that the originally neat and orderly military formation began to become chaotic.

Lu Yunyi was at the front, also with a look of shock on his face, and he cursed in his heart!

He had never seen such a big ship before.
Even though I was mentally prepared, I still felt shocked.

Lu Yunyi turned his head to look and saw that Liu Heying, Wu Fuliu and the many Qingzhou soldiers who came with him were all like this.

"This...is this the ship we are going to take?"

A young soldier murmured to himself. Although his voice was soft, it revealed his inner excitement.

As more and more soldiers gathered at the ferry, voices of shock and admiration rose and fell, and the scene suddenly became noisy.

Not far away, several Beijing guards who went to the southwest together saw them like this and couldn't help but curl their lips with disdain on their faces.

As members of the Beijing Guard, they were already well-informed.
If there are any new weapons, they will be the first to experience them, which makes them feel superior for no reason.

But when they moved their sights and saw the two figures in the front,
I couldn't help but curl my lips again, feeling resentful.

If it were the other soldiers, they might even make some sarcastic remarks to show off their own strengths.

But the leaders of this army are Lu Yunyi, who made a big splash a few days ago, and Duke Cao. Only a blind man would go looking for trouble with them.

Beside Lu Yunyi, Duke Cao Li Jinglong smiled and said:
"The ferry at Puzikou City is too small. If we go to Yangzhou, we can dock treasure ships there, which are more than twice as big as this troop transport ship."

Lu Yunyi suppressed the shock in his heart.
He had seen a document which recorded, "Build a large ship, 44 meters long, 62 meters wide and 18 meters wide."

The treasure ship was 148 meters long and 60 meters wide respectively, and its displacement was estimated to be around 30,000 tons.
The troop transport ship in front of us is about half the size of the treasure ship, but its carrying capacity is far greater than that of the treasure ship.

This is because a large part of the space on the treasure ship is used for fighting the enemy and storing artillery and various military weapons, and the troop transport ship in front of them is only for transporting troops!
According to the court documents, a troop transport ship could carry about a thousand soldiers.

If we squeeze a little more, we can hold fifteen hundred.

But this trip to the southwest is only 30,000 people, so it doesn't need to be so crowded.

The court arranged more than 30 troop transport ships, six horse boats, and several transport ships for carrying military equipment, food, and military equipment.

The scene was magnificent. Lu Yunyi looked out from where he was standing.
The sight is occupied by the warships, and the appearance of Yingtian City can no longer be seen.
Not far away, soldiers from the garrison were already boarding the ship.

The front scouts were placed in the middle because of Li Jinglong's presence.

They were sandwiched between the two guard posts, and the real troop transporters, Sima Xu and Duke Shen, would also be on the ship of their front scouts. While waiting, the shock in the soldiers' hearts gradually dissipated, replaced by a trace of fear.

Most of the soldiers were from the inland garrisons, so they were inevitably a little uneasy.
At this moment, they held tightly in their hands the paper packages issued by the quartermaster.

There is a medicinal prescription and some ginger in it.
When they get on board, they will stick it on their belly buttons. It is said that it is used to prevent seasickness. It was prepared by the Shangguan.

At the same time, the quartermaster also gave them a huge leather bag for vomiting.
Seeing this scene, not only Li Jinglong was moved,

Even Duke Shen Deng Zhen, who had just arrived here, was a little surprised.

He just walked to the front.

When Lu Yunyi saw him coming, he became serious:
"I, Lu Yunyi, pay my respects to Duke Shen!"

Li Jinglong also bowed: "Brother Deng"

Deng Zhen laughed, his face was a little dark, and his long beard swayed in the breeze. He pointed at Lu Yunyi with his finger:
"You visited a lot of people yesterday. Why didn't you come to my house to chat? The food I had prepared for you was wasted."

Lu Yunyi's face froze. Not only did he go to see Liu Sanwu yesterday,

He also went to bid farewell to the general, Marquis Dingyuan, Marquis Wuding and others.
This time we are separated by thousands of miles,
The military officers all have their own military duties, so it might be a year or two before they meet again.

Lu Yunyi pursed his lips and smiled embarrassedly:

"Duke Shen, I thought we could meet today.

If I go to say goodbye in a pretentious manner, it will inevitably be a bit hypocritical. "

Deng Zhen, the Duke of Shen, laughed loudly, and his voice was particularly cheerful.

This attracted many soldiers to look at him, feeling jealous.

Deng Zhen raised his hand and nodded at Lu Yunyi:
"What I like most is your frankness."

Deng Zhen pointed to the soldiers in the rear and asked:
"I see that you have made a lot of preparations and you are very willing to do so.
Most of our Ming soldiers in the north have no experience in naval warfare, and this may be their first time riding a boat.
Vomiting and diarrhea are inevitable, but with some preparation, the soldiers can suffer less.

If this trip to the west was not urgent, I would never have boarded this big ship. "

Li Jinglong's eyes lit up and he joked with a smile:

"Brother Deng still gets seasick?"

Deng Zhen, the Duke of Shen, sighed softly and nodded helplessly:
"I have been dizzy since I was a kid, and there has been no improvement.

So I would avoid this ship if I could, but now I can’t avoid it.”

He looked at Lu Yunyi and raised his chin towards him:

"Can you give me one of the medicine packs you prepared for the soldiers?"

Lu Yunyi quickly looked at the quartermaster behind him and waved.
The quartermaster understood and took out a few medicine bags from the backpack behind him and handed them over respectfully.

Deng Zhen took it and looked at the backpack on the quartermaster's back. He took out several medicine bags.

The backpack was still bulging, and Deng Zhen couldn't help but show admiration:
"No wonder such a good thing can cause a stir in the capital."

Lu Yunyi and Li Jinglong looked at each other silently, smiled helplessly, and both let out a sigh.

They had heard about the disturbance in the capital yesterday.

I heard that all the workshops in the capital were turned upside down.
Even some of the sneaky people who usually hide very well were found out.

All of a sudden, the front scouts became the target of public criticism.

After all, this matter was caused by the front army scout department, which has offended many weapons workshops. The weapons of the front army scout department will still be a problem in the future.

Seeing the two of them looking dejected, Duke Shen couldn't help but laugh secretly and reminded them:

"Yesterday, Chen Guangsong hanged himself at home."

"What?" Lu Yunyi was shocked, his eyes widened.

A minister is a real high-ranking official in the imperial court, a person who ranks at the top of the Ming Dynasty.
He died so easily? Just because of some weapons?
Lu Yunyi felt that things might be more complicated than that.

This was even more so for Li Jinglong. As the Duke of Cao, how could he not know about this?

Duke Shen Deng Zhen also looked a little serious:
"The news was blocked by the Royal Guards, and I only learned about it this morning.
He wrote a letter of confession, confessing to embezzling money from the military, and took all the blame.”

As a result, Lu Yunyi felt even colder all over!
He was almost certain that this Chen Guangsong was also a pawn.

Li Jinglong, Duke of Cao, had a gloomy expression, his eyes flickering constantly.
Although he was young, he already had some understanding of court affairs and had guessed some things.

He turned to look at Deng Zhen, lowered his voice and asked:
"Brother Deng, is this the end of the matter?"

Deng Zhen's face became more serious and he shook his head slowly:

"You know your Majesty's character better than I do. The Jinyiwei, the Ministry of Justice, and the Dali Temple are still investigating. Unfortunately, you and I will not be able to see the results."

Deng Zhen sighed and turned to look at Lu Yunyi:
"I came to see you today because the general ordered me to tell you something?"

Lu Yunyi's expression suddenly became serious: "Yi is all ears."

"Fight well and save your life. Don't try to be stubborn. If you are wronged, remember it firmly. When you return to the capital, I will take care of it for you."

Lu Yunyi's eyes were a little dazed, and he stood there in a daze.

Deng Zhen's figure swayed like water waves and gradually disappeared. Instead, the general stood there with a serious face.

Near noon, all the more than 30,000 soldiers heading west boarded the ship.
The heavy and low sound of the horn sounded from both banks, and the ship slowly started moving.
More and more people gathered on both sides of the strait, staring blankly at the troop transport ships sailing away.
There was neither happiness nor sadness on their faces, only some unknown emotions.

Most of them were from Zhili and had traveled no more than a hundred miles in their lifetime. They could not imagine what it would be like to travel thousands of miles just to fight a war.

Lu Yunyi stood on the deck, feeling the gentle sliding of the ship and the breeze blowing on his face, his face looking comfortable.

The scene on both sides of the river faded away very slowly, allowing Lu Yunyi to see more of the splendor of the capital.
Suddenly, his eyes froze.

He saw a group of people standing on the south bank. The leader was tall and dressed in an indigo robe. He stood quietly under the shade of a tree with his hands behind his back.

There were several young people behind him.

They were so far away that Lu Yunyi couldn't see their faces clearly.
But he just knew that it was General Lan Yu.

Lu Yunyi walked forward a little, stuck his head out of the ship, and waved his hands vigorously.
I tried hard to see the figure clearly, but the Puzikou River was too wide and I couldn't see it clearly.

At this moment, Liu Heiying, who was standing on the side, hurriedly took out the telescope and stepped forward:

"Brother Yun'er, here you go."

Lu Yunyi took the telescope.

Although the ship was shaking, he could still see the figure clearly.

At this point, a smile finally appeared on his lips.

They were General Lan Yu, Marquis Dingyuan Wang Bi, and Marquis Heqing Zhang Yi.

As if noticing his gaze, General Lan Yu smiled and waved his hand outward.

It seems to be saying: "Go ahead."

(End of this chapter)