Chapter 477: The Secret Fragrance of Jiangnan

Chapter 477: The Secret Fragrance of Jiangnan

Chapter 477: The Secret Fragrance of Jiangnan
There were constant screams coming from the cabin, followed by sobbing and crying, and soon by begging.

Xiao Xia sat cross-legged in the next room, looking at the captured assassins' weapons, the exquisitely crafted swords, the military crossbows engraved with the Chen Dynasty's military weapons supervisory number, the thin and tough inner armor, the professional shark skin water support, and all kinds of exquisite gadgets, even their daggers were extremely sharp, and the reed pipes they used in the water had been soaked in oil again and again, as tough as rubber hoses.

Everything strongly suggests that the origins of this group of assassins are not simple.

At this time, the personal soldier Zhang Qing walked into the room and bowed, saying, "Your Highness, someone has confessed!"

"How to say?"

"Among the three assassins on board, the man in the iron helmet is their leader, named Gao Huaidao."

"Gao?"

Xiao Xia's eyelids jumped, "Are they from the National Security Council?"

"No! Gao Huaidao is the son of Gao Zhihui."

Xiao Xia was stunned. Gao Zhihui was the leader of the southern rebels in the tenth year of Kaihuang. He had tens of thousands of soldiers and thousands of warships. He was finally destroyed by Yang Su. This happened sixteen years ago. Gao Zhihui's entire family was beheaded. How come his son was still alive?

"And then? Where are they hiding? How many remnants are there?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, the person who confessed is a nobody and doesn't know much. He doesn't know how many people he has. He said that they returned from overseas two years ago and have been living in a mansion in Yuhang County, leading a very affluent life."

Xiao Xia was silent for a moment and said, "Go and ask again. They had these equipment and weapons overseas, and they started to equip them after they came back. Also, where are they hiding overseas? How many people are living with them?"

"I will interrogate you again!"

Zhang Qing bowed and left in a hurry.

Xiao Xia picked up the pen and wrote the three words "high wisdom" on the paper. He felt that the past two years were like summoning souls, and resurrecting the old monsters that died more than ten years ago.

Xiao Xia knew very well that it was not that Gao Zhihui had been resurrected, but that the forces that had supported Gao Zhihui in the past were beginning to stir again.

Not long after, Zhang Qing came back and bowed, "Your Highness, they live on a large island overseas. He is from Kuaiji County and was taken to the island when he was young. There are one or two hundred children like him, both boys and girls. There are more than a dozen instructors, and they have been trained strictly since childhood. Gao Huaidao is the leader of the instructors. However, the equipment on the island is very poor. These were delivered to them at night after they returned two years ago."

"Someone sent it."

Xiao Xia snorted coldly. During this trip to Jiangnan, he had to find out who was behind the assassination.

In Wu County, Lu Shenyan, the head of the Lu family, came to the governor's mansion to visit Xiao Lin. Xiao Lin and Lu Shenyan had a very good personal relationship. Both of them loved playing with stones. Their common interest in Taihu stones made them good friends, and they often drank tea and talked about stones together.

"I heard that His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin is coming to inspect Wu County?" Lu Shenyan asked.

"Brother Lu is very well-informed!"

Xiao Lin smiled and nodded, "Prince Jin is here to inspect Yetang in Changshu and learn about the spring farming situation in Wujun."

"How long will His Royal Highness Prince Jin stay in Wu County?"

"Two or three days at most! We might host a banquet for the Wu family. We mentioned it last time in Jiangdu."

Xiao Lin asked in confusion, "Brother Lu, do you want to see His Royal Highness Prince Jin?"

Lu Shenyan said somewhat embarrassedly: "If possible, can you arrange for His Royal Highness Prince Jin to stay in the Plum Garden of the Lu Mansion?"

The Plum Garden is the private garden of the Lu family and is extremely famous in Gusu City. Xiao Lin understood Lu Shenyan's meaning and wanted to take this opportunity to establish a good relationship with His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin.

Since they were good friends, Xiao Lin was willing to give the Lu family a chance. Xiao Lin nodded and said, "You came just in time. Tomorrow, the head of His Highness's guards will make security arrangements first. You should go back and check the safety of the Plum Garden to see if there are any loopholes. If there are any loopholes, fill them up immediately.

Lu Shenyan was overjoyed and stood up and said, "More envoys, please help me!"

Two days later, Xiao Xia's fleet arrived in Wujun. Governor Xiao Lin brought the civil and military officials of Wujun to the dock to welcome the arrival of Prince Jin.

Then he invited Xiao Xia to stay at the Plum Garden of Lu Mansion in the east of the city.

The Plum Garden covers an area of ​​about 20 acres. It is said to have been built by Lu Xun in his later years during the Three Kingdoms period. There are hundreds of ancient plum trees planted in the garden, all of which have a history of hundreds of years. There are also dozens of Taihu stones of various shapes and expressions, dotted with various elegant pavilions, towers and bridges.

When Emperor Wu of Liang stayed in the Plum Garden, he was full of praise for it. When Emperor Chen Houzhu toured the south of the Yangtze River, he was so fascinated by the garden that he stayed there for half a month.

Xiao Xia moved into the plum garden, and suddenly the whole garden was filled with fragrance. The red plum blossoms competed to bloom in beauty, which made him feel relaxed and happy.

"Thank you for the hospitality, Master. I am sorry for the trouble!"

Xiao Xia turned around and nodded to Lu Shenyan with a smile.

Lu Shenyan bowed and said with a smile: "Your Highness is willing to stay at my humble home, which also brings honor to the Lu family. The entire Lu family feels deeply honored!"

Xiao Xia came to the stone boat used to entertain distinguished guests and asked Xiao Lin to sit down. Lu Shenyan tactfully took his leave. Although he was the host, it was better for him to avoid conversations between officials.

The maid came in and served them tea. Xiao Xia took a sip of tea and said slowly, "I encountered two major events during my tour this time. First, I encountered thousands of farmers petitioning in Jiangning, Danyang County. The reason was that the charity granary was in big trouble. There was a serious shortage of grain in the granary. It was supposed to have 38,000 dan of grain, but in fact it was less than 7,000 dan. There were various reasons for the shortage. Some legal reductions can be explained, such as the court's taxation, but most of the reasons cannot be explained. The problem of the charity granary is not unique to Jiangning. The three counties in Danyang County are all very serious. Do you understand the situation in Wu County?"

Xiao Lin hesitated for a moment and said, "I knew two years ago that the problem of the charity granary was very serious, but the severity of the problem varies from place to place. Rich counties like Wu County, Piling County, and Yuhang County are better off. The government has a lot of income, so there is no need to cut the wool of the charity granary. At most, the management is chaotic. I don't know the specific situation of the charity granary in Wu County. I will ask County Magistrate Li later. He may know!"

Xiao Xia nodded and said, "The second major event is that I was assassinated in Piling County!"

Xiao Lin was shocked. "Who assassinated His Highness?"

"According to the interrogation of the captured prisoners, they claimed to be the sons of Gao Zhihui."

Xiao Lin frowned, "Gao Zhihui was captured in Quanzhou and his entire clan was exterminated. I haven't heard that his son escaped!"

Xiao Lin thought for a moment and said, "Or maybe he was his adopted son. Gao Zhihui had nine adopted sons. It is said that some of them ran away on ships and went overseas."

"Yes! They just returned from overseas. They came back two years ago and have been living in Yuhang County ever since. Someone secretly sent them money and weapons. I want to know, after 16 or 17 years, who is still supporting them?"

Xiao Lin said slowly: "In the tenth year of Kaihuang, someone spread a rumor that all southerners would be relocated to the north, which triggered a strong rebellion among the southern tyrants. The tyrants in Kuaiji, Gao Zhihui, Wang Wenjin, Shen Xuanqian, Cai Daoren, and Wang Guoqing, all had armies ranging from a few thousand to tens of thousands. Some of them proclaimed themselves emperors or great commanders.

The emperor sent Yang Su and Li Jing to lead the army to suppress the rebellion. Yang Su was very cruel and killed people like crazy. He beheaded all the families of those who participated in the rebellion, so that hundreds of thousands of people were killed, blood flowed like a river, and heads piled up like mountains. The officers and soldiers passed through the border, raping, burning and killing along the way. It was like hell on earth, horrible to watch.

It has been less than 20 years since the great rebellion, and many survivors are still alive. Your Highness asked who supported them. Let me put it this way! The powerful landlords in Jiangnan Road were the ones who were killed the most back then, and even today, they are the ones who support the anti-Sui forces behind the scenes. "

At night, Xiao Xia stood with his hands behind his back in front of the window of the Magnolia Pavilion, looking up at the moonlight. Under the attic was a pool of spring water full of lotus flowers. It was early spring now, and there were only the remaining lotus leaves from last year in the lotus pond. On the opposite bank was a plum forest, with mist lingering in the forest and a faint fragrance floating in the air.

Suddenly, a melodious sound of piano came from a distance, faintly like the flow of spring water, and as ethereal and clear as in a dream, which immediately attracted Xiao Xia.

The sound of the piano did not come from the Plum Garden, but from the Lu Mansion next door to the Plum Garden. Xiao Xia did not move, but stood in front of the window, quietly listening to the piano music under the moonlight. The sound of the piano was sometimes passionate, as if accusing the injustice of fate, and sometimes sad, as if pitying the misfortune of her life. At this moment, Xiao Xia's heart was quietly moved by the sound of the piano, and he felt a little sympathy for the woman playing the piano.

Suddenly, there was a roar and the sound of the piano stopped abruptly.

(End of this chapter)