Chapter 120 Helping the Country

"We have guests arriving."

"Lord Zuntian of Luting County led all the officials of the county government to pay homage to Mr. Zhang once, twice, and three times!"

"A filial son answers the gift!"

"We have guests arriving."

"Li Jincheng, the manager of Jianghuai Lianwu Zhou, pays homage to Mr. Zhang on behalf of his young boss, once, twice, and three times!"

"A filial son answers the gift!"

"Hong Gang, the manager of the Yang family in Fengyang, pays homage to Mr. Zhang on behalf of the eldest son Yang Tiansheng..."

Liu Mang greeted the guests outside the mourning hall, while Yang Ge kowtowed inside the mourning hall.

Those who welcomed guests broke their throats with shouts, and those who kowtowed broke their foreheads.

Outside the mourning hall, in the wide open space where the courtyard wall was flattened, fifty tables of flowing mats were opened amidst the sound of sad music, and densely packed with people. The warm smoke and popularity of fireworks dispelled the late spring cold, and also dispelled the scent of ingot candles that filled the air. Pungent smell.

Outside the flowing water mat, the crowd who came to pay their respects lined up from the end of the village to the entrance of the village and then along the river embankment. It was so dark that it was impossible to see the end. Many people crowded outside the auditorium and did not even enter the flowing water mat. They formed spontaneously outside the mourning hall. He put down some thoughts at the unguarded altar, then bowed three times towards the mourning hall and left.

Someone put down a dozen copper coins.

Someone put down a small bag of corn.

The unorganized people still gathered together into two tall hills...

They are all people from Luting.

They knew that Zhang Mazi was kneeling in the mourning hall.

So they all came.

So they don't go in.

Hu Qiang put on the nine-cylinder mask, his original intention was just to find a reasonable reason for the abnormal behavior of hundreds of strong men from the Shangyou Institute who came to worship the old fisherman.

But all the officials from Shangyousuo are here, how dare the officials from Luting County not come?

Officials from Luting County all came, and the news spread throughout Luting...

Although it has been a year.

But the people in Luting still remember Zhang Mazi, who risked his life to snatch grain from the three major grain merchants to provide relief to them.

Maybe they will still remember it...

"The imperial edict has arrived!"

There were rising and rising shouts coming from afar.

The dark crowd of people hurriedly separated from left to right.

I saw a large group of embroidered warriors with bright flags and bright armor, surrounded by two figures wearing red python robes, striding across the flowing mat: "Where is Yang Erlang?"

In an instant, everyone at the table hurriedly dropped their chopsticks, stood up and bowed their heads to the group of angels.

Yang Ge, who was kneeling in front of the mourning soul, frowned in confusion when he heard the "imperial edict", but without any time to think about it, he quickly pulled up Hu Qiang, who was wearing a nine-tube mask, and walked out of the mourning hall.

He took a closer look and saw that it was Wei Heng who announced the decree and Shen Fa who was guarding them. They were both acquaintances.

He bowed his head to the ground and lowered his voice: "Young man Yang Erlang, take the order!"

This "grassroots" sound stopped Wei Heng, who had just launched the imperial edict.

After hesitating for several seconds, he pretended not to hear and read out loudly: "The Emperor of Heaven has decreed that: Xiuyiwei Beizhenfu Secretary, Yang Erlang, from the fifth rank of Qianhu, is loyal, filial, benevolent, wise and courageous. He supported the country, protected the country and the people, performed extraordinary feats, and protected his son and father. He was specially awarded to his adoptive father..."

Wei Heng paused for a second, looked up at the coffin in the mourning hall, and continued to read loudly: "Lao Zhang is awarded the ninth and fifth grades. I will give you half a funeral ceremony, an altar for sacrifice, and five hundred taels of funeral silver. I hope that Yang Erlang will give you my sincere thanks." Be careful in your words and deeds, guard against arrogance and impetuosity, make meritorious deeds, and serve the imperial court, I admire you for this!"

Yang Ge raised his hands in the air: "Caomin Yang Erlang thanks your Majesty for your kindness. Long live your Majesty! Long live your Majesty!"

Wei Heng's eyes twitched a few times when he heard the sound, and he looked at Shen Fa silently.

Shen Fa pushed him gently without leaving any trace.

Wei Heng sighed softly in his heart, stepped forward and handed the imperial edict into Yang Ge's hands with both hands, and said warmly: "Master Yang, you are the one who can receive a half-funeral ceremony from a fifth-grade official and your father's fifth-grade title. You are the first person that Your Majesty has been in charge of for fourteen years, you must not let down His Majesty’s favor!”

Yang Ge looked at him expressionlessly and whispered: "How about... father-in-law, take the imperial edict back?"

Wei Heng's fists hardened when he heard these rebellious words.

Seeing the opportunity, Shen Fa shouted loudly: "Long live my emperor!"

The guards in embroidered clothes and the guests eating the banquet all around heard the voice and said in unison: "Long live my emperor, long live long live!"

Three long live shouts announced the completion of the decree.

Shen Fa breathed a sigh of relief, clasped his fists and bowed: "Eunuch Wei, can you rest for a while while I lay the incense sticks on the old man?"

Wei Heng glared at Yang Ge, gritted his teeth and whispered: "I'll deal with you later, you bastard!"

He led the team announcing the decree and stepped aside.

They are the servants of the Heavenly Family. They cannot offer incense to the ministers and their relatives without instructions, which is inconsistent with etiquette.

Shen Fa stood outside the mourning hall, took off his black gauze hat and four-clawed python robe, and walked into the mourning hall wearing only a moon-white lining. He picked up the incense bouquet on the offering table, and carefully performed a ritual on the body of the old fisherman. Junior ceremony.

Fang Ke, who was approaching the mourning hall, saw this and quickly shouted loudly on behalf of Liu Mang who was greeting the guests outside: "Commander of the embroidered clothes guard, Mr. Shen, pays homage to Mr. Zhang, and pays homage..."

"A filial son answers the gift!"

These two ups and downs of the voice shouted so loudly that they almost exploded in a radius of ten miles.

Are all the commanders of the Xiuyi Guard here in person?

Mr. Yang is really capable!

In the mourning hall, Shen Fa helped Yang Ge, who was kowtowing to him, and whispered: "My condolences."

Yang Ge wanted to say something, but when the words reached his lips, he swallowed them back. He sighed lowly, cupped his fists and said, "Thank you very much."

Shen Fa narrowed his eyes and said with a smile: "I really want to thank you, just don't beat me up in the future!"

Yang Ge resisted the urge to punch him in the face and replied angrily: "Don't act like a good boy when you get an advantage. Do you really think I don't know what you are doing all this for?"

Shen Fa had no shame on his face and said plausibly: "If you learn martial arts and become a good person, you can be with the emperor's family... This is for your own good, brother!"

Yang Ge gritted his teeth and squeezed out a sentence from between his teeth: "You will never change your destiny!"

Shen Fa said with a smile: "You mean you?"

Yang Ge: "I'm talking about you!"

Shen Fa: "You and I are both born to be stubborn. No one should laugh at a hundred steps."

Yang Ge was silent.

Shen Fa patted his shoulder: "We all want to do something practical for the country and the people. Although you and I have different ideas and methods, we are the same people. Your Majesty reuses me and will never forget you. You , just live your life down-to-earth first, and when the time comes, you will definitely shine again!"

His words of "live a down-to-earth life" made Yang Ge laugh: "Didn't you hate me the most before because you were always thinking about eating and waiting to die? How can you persuade me to live a down-to-earth life now?"

Shen Fa: "Well, hehehe... How do you become the master of the house? I haven't even had breakfast yet, and you still haven't arranged for me to sit down at the table?"

Yang Ge pointed at Hu Qiang next to him, who was trying hard to bend down and pretend to be transparent: "He is Zhang Mazi. I am a waiter in a shop, how can I be qualified to arrange for you!"

"Snapped."

Shen Fa slapped Hu Qiang hard on the shoulder, pointed at Sang and scolded Huai, and said, "Oh, you're the only one who is fucking Zhang Mazi?"

Hu Qiang's body trembled, and he hurriedly pulled up his mask and pointed at his face: "Fake pockmark, fake pockmark..."

Shen Fa stretched out his hand and put the mask on him squarely, then slapped his head sideways: "If you say you are Zhang Mazi, you are Zhang Mazi, do you understand?"

Hu Qiang was submissive: "Yes, yes, I am Zhang Mazi in a humble position!"

Yang Ge couldn't stand it anymore and rolled up his sleeves: "You talk so much, how about I put on the nine-tube mask and chat with you?"

Shen Fa grabbed Fake Mazi's head and walked out quickly: "There's no need, he chatted with me very well!"

I can't bully the real pockmarked ones, so why can't I bully the fake pockmarked ones?

Yang Ge watched him go out, turned around and solemnly presented the imperial edict to the soul, and tried his best to put on a smile: "Is this a good time? This is a fifth-grade official. When the county magistrate sees you, he has to bow to you. When you look back and see Zhang Laoshuan and Ma Gou’s father, you should show off your authority with them and envy them to death..."

The more he spoke, the softer his voice became, and the image of the old man curled up in the corner appeared in front of his eyes, smiling "hehe" with a few old teeth in disarray in the sun.

The sunlight dissipated, leaving only a few curls of smoke in front of my eyes.

Taking away where he came from...

…

"Dad, you are looking for me."

Yang Tiansheng walked briskly into the main room, grabbed the teapot on the table and drank it in one gulp.

Yang Yinghao slapped his paw distressedly: "Put it down for me, these are the eighteen Longjing trees of Lingyin Temple..."

"Snapped."

Yang Tiansheng slapped the teapot on the table, raised his sleeves and wiped his mouth: "Hey, you are stingy!"

Yang Yinghao took a deep breath, took the letter on the side and handed it to him: "Take a look at this."

"Um?"

Yang Tiansheng took the letter, glanced at the signature, and immediately shouted: "When did Yang Laoer write you a letter? Why didn't I know?"

"Snapped!"

Yang Yinghao slapped the nanmu round table and said angrily: "Sit down!"

When Yang Tiansheng saw the veins on his father's forehead, he immediately sat down obediently, took out the letter and read it quickly. He was overjoyed and wanted to shout loudly.

Yang Yinghao slapped the round table again and yelled angrily: "Look at you, you have been crazy for two years. You have forgotten all the etiquette. You don't stand well, sit well...sit up straight!"

Yang Tiansheng swallowed back the word "awesome" that he was about to spit out. He sat up straight and muttered in his heart, "You can't change the past." He said with a sincere face: "Dad, I will take someone to do this. I promise not to degrade the prestige of our Ming Cult!"

Yang Yinghao rubbed his forehead, tried his best to suppress the irritability in his heart, and spoke to him calmly: "Did you only read half of it? This matter is risky!"

Yang Tiansheng: "My child knows that there are risks. Didn't Yang Lao'er make it clear that this matter is taboo and may attract attacks from the imperial officers and soldiers... Are you still afraid of this?"

"It's not a matter of fear."

Yang Yinghao breathed out a breath: "It's about whether it's worth it! Today's Emperor Xiping is young and powerful, and his mind and skills are not bad. At the moment, the frontier army has won a big victory in Northern Xinjiang. At this juncture, the situation is up and down. It would be unwise to go against him..."

"What's unwise?"

Yang Tiansheng tilted his mouth and sneered: "The left and right are just sending troops to fight again. Is it possible that if we just hide our heads and hide our heads, the court will give us a shit? We will fight on the left and right, and it can be done." Now, the people of Jiangsu and Zhejiang can still remember our Mingjiao as a good person, even if it dies down for a while, it will still be worth it!"

"If you are even afraid of this, then don't mention any rebellion in the future. Let's discuss how to change the doctrine. From now on, everyone will just be a rich man and make money peacefully. You don’t have to bear the name of a rebel, get beaten and can’t eat meat!”

Yang Yinghao automatically ignored his rebellious words and said hesitantly: "Having said that, when the emperor and the powerful ministers are fighting, we Mingjiao will not just sit back and watch the fight between tigers and reap the benefits, but also mix in and take the initiative to calm it down. The dispute between the two parties is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and both parties are offended... This account cannot be settled no matter how you calculate it!"

Yang Tiansheng glanced at his own father and said seriously: "Dad, please say a few words to the child. Don't be angry and don't hit the child..."

"Children sometimes look down on those stupid and bad rebels in our religion. They shout loud slogans on weekdays, help the world, and save the people from misery... But how many things have they done? A real thing?"

"When discussing matters, we talk about the overall situation, priorities, pros and cons!"

"When we really get something done, every one of us either pushes four, five or six, or is completely hindered."

"Look at Yang Laoer again. Doesn't he know what the overall situation is? What are the priorities? What are the pros and cons?"

"You only know that guy is fierce and reckless, but I tell you, that guy's brain is better than most people I have ever seen... At least those idiots in our religion who are always shouting about the overall situation, priorities, pros and cons, No one can compare to Yang Laoer!"

"He understands everything and sees everything clearly!"

"Keren was stunned that he did what he felt was right despite the overall situation, priorities, pros and cons they said!"

"That's why people all over Jiangsu and Zhejiang remember him. When he mentions his name, the biscuits they buy are bigger than others!"

"Believe it or not, if he goes to Jiangsu and Zhejiang and shouts rebellion, most of the people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang will follow him and rise up!"

"What if we and I, or those idiots in the religion who have been rebelling for generations, try to go to Jiangsu and Zhejiang to see how many people recognize our Mingjiao brand?"

"Our Mingjiao is a time-honored brand that goes back hundreds of years!"

"It's no match for Yang Laoer who has been staying in Jiangsu and Zhejiang for three months!"

"Don't you understand why?"

When Yang Yinghao looked at his stupid son, the word "bastard" on his lips slowly turned into "awesome".

Is this still my stupid son?

How did he understand these things?

I didn’t even understand it!

Facing his father's direct gaze, Yang Tiansheng leaned back with a guilty conscience and whispered, "Hey, let's make a deal first. No slap in the face, no head in the head..."

Yang Yinghao raised his hand, and when Yang Tiansheng closed one eye and prepared to be beaten, he gently patted his forearm and said warmly: "You are right, you see the problem more clearly than your father and I... But, What’s the benefit?”

He tapped the table gently and said calmly: "This is not a trivial matter. Under the covert obstruction of the Zhejiang Party and Prince Ning's Mansion, we must use at least four to five thousand troops to resist the troubled Japanese invaders. "

"If we succeed, if the emperor wants to attack us, the Zhejiang Party and Prince Ning's Palace will also attack us. We will have no choice but to stay silent and stay away from the front for a long time."

"If we can't do it, not only will we suffer heavy losses, but we will also lose face as the golden brand of Mingjiao. We and I will never be able to raise our heads as human beings in the sect in the future."

"Taking such a big risk and expending so much effort is just to let the people of Jiangsu and Zhejiang remember our Mingjiao as a good thing."

"Is it worth it?"

Yang Tiansheng shook his head: "Dad, you can't say that. No matter whether this thing is done or not, it is still an attitude. I, the Mingjiao, want to do our best to make this world a better attitude!"

"As long as we do this, who in the world can point our noses in the future and call us a demon sect?"

"We fought against the Japanese pirates but they were still demons, so wouldn't they, the righteous people, have to conquer the barbarians?"

"Furthermore, after this incident, no matter whether our Mingjiao rebels in the future or not, we have the foundation for rebellion!"

"If the Zhao family can really stabilize this world, we will live our lives in a down-to-earth manner."

"If the Zhao family cannot hold the world firmly, then we will swarm in and overthrow the Wei Dynasty!"

"It's better than us continuing to carry the name and not being human inside and outside, right?"

"If you are really concerned, we will not use the troops in the church. I will only take my men to the coast. I can do as much as I can..."

Yang Yinghao picked up the teapot and slowly poured out two cups of hot tea. He pushed one of them in front of Yang Tiansheng. He took a small sip of the cup and thought for a long time before making up his mind: "My son If you are willing to make progress, you should give your father your full support!"