Chapter 253 This is Impossible
After hearing Wang Anshi's words, everyone in the room understood what he meant.
But Lu Huiqing was not convinced: "Master Lu is not a disciple of my Confucian school, how can he be called a gentleman."
He personally had no opinion about Lu Sen, he just simply disagreed with Wang Anshi.
Why could a criminal official who was banished be more favored by the ministers in the court after returning than a diligent local official like him?
His official position was even two levels higher than his.
At this time, almost everyone's eyes were on Lu Huiqing.
Lu Huiqing, who was the center of attention, appeared calm on the surface, but was actually somewhat complacent in her heart, feeling that she had attracted the attention of everyone present.
However, he didn't know that when Master Pang, Bao Zheng and others looked at him, there was mostly scrutiny in their eyes.
Facing the aggressive Lu Huiqing, Wang Anshi said calmly: "Confucius once sought the truth from Laozi, and he was also a close friend of Zhuangzi. Confucianism can be said to have been born out of Taoism. Confucianism and Taoism are one family. I have had a serious talk with Master Lu. He has learned a lot. He is good at Confucianism and Taoism, and has a little knowledge of Buddhism. There are also some very transcendental thoughts mixed in. Moreover, Master Lu is a little weak in 'music' among the six arts of a gentleman, but he also understands music theory and can understand the music of elegance. He is not a gentleman, so who can be a gentleman?"
The idea that "Confucianism and Taoism are originally one" was recognized by the vast majority of people present.
The six arts of a gentleman...No one present here can draw a bow and arrow, or drive a chariot. But Master Lu can drive a flying vehicle. Isn't that much more elegant than driving a chariot?
So after Wang Anshi said this, all the officials present felt that Lu Sen deserved the title of "gentleman".
Lu Huiqing originally wanted to refute, but when he thought carefully, he realized that he was not convinced by Wang Anshi, not by Master Lu, so why bother to argue with Wang Anshi on this matter? He could talk about it later.
When the officials saw that Lu Huiqing did not refute again, they quietly withdrew their scrutiny. They were now more interested in something in Wang Anshi's words.
Fu Bi, who had been silent, could not help but ask, "What transcendental ideas does Master Lu have?"
Almost all those present were top scholars. They had a very good understanding of Confucianism and knew a little about Buddhism and Taoism. Although they had different political views, they all came from the same teacher and knew all the ideas that they should know.
Therefore, they were very interested in this 'transcendent idea'.
Everyone's eyes turned to Wang Anshi.
"At the time, I talked to Master Lu about the land annexation, and he said, 'There is no internal solution to land annexation.'"
Bao Zheng nodded: "He also said this to me."
The others did not hear this because they were all thinking about something.
Wang Anshi continued with a smile, "Then Master Lu said something very interesting. 'All class contradictions are caused by insufficient productivity.'"
Everyone was confused... These words sounded very simple, but the meaning behind them was very strange and seemed to be suggestive.
"Productivity?" Bao Zheng thought for a while and said, "You mean the reproductive industry? Master Lu means that we don't have enough people in the Song Dynasty? The output is insufficient?"
The others thought about it for a while and agreed that this was the meaning.
Wang Anshi shook his head. "It seems to be true, but it is not. The productivity that Master Lu refers to seems to have a deeper meaning. I later asked him what this word meant, but he had no desire to continue the conversation."
Everyone sighed.
When Lu Sen was an official in the capital, they had talked with Lu Sen more or less and knew that this man had broad knowledge and was worthy of the title of half-immortal.
Moreover, it can be seen from the "Xianjia Shadow Play" that the teachings that Master Lu received since he was a child are completely different from those of ordinary people like them.
It's not strange to know some 'avenues'.
"It would be nice if I could listen to Master Lu explain the principles related to 'productivity'. Maybe it's the way of the Great Sage." Fu Bi shook his head regretfully.
The others all nodded in agreement.
Having reached this level of officialdom and knowledge, they have almost reached the top, and what remains is a "breakthrough".
But it's not that easy to break through.
After everyone chatted for a while, Master Pang said, "No matter what, we should first find a way to repel the Western Xia. Now is a golden opportunity. We have enough money and food, and the Khitan is in civil strife and unable to invade our border. If we can't defeat the Western Xia in one fell swoop, there may not be another opportunity like this in the next thousand or hundred years."
Bao Zheng nodded in agreement and said, "That's true. Even if we can't capture Xixia, we have to take back Xingqing Prefecture."
"Then who should we send to support General Di?" Grand Tutor Pang felt a little worried: "It seems that there are only a few generals who are good at fighting, and they are all at the front line. It would be great if General Mu was still in the capital."
Speaking of Mu Guiying, everyone felt embarrassed.
Honest people are easy to bully. The Yang family tried their best to protect the Northern Song Dynasty and almost became extinct, so they thought it was natural.
Now that the Yang family has quietly run away, they have realized… they seemed to have been a bit harsh on the Yang family in the past.
"Let the descendants of the Cao family take over. They are originally a family of generals. Cao You is not bad. Although he is a scholar, he has also learned the art of military formation." Yan Shu thought for a while and said, "Let's appoint him as the Luoyang Surveillance Commissioner and let him take troops and food to the north to support General Di and be under General Di's command."
"Should we send a military supervisor?" Ouyang Xiu asked.
Everyone was speechless for a moment, and then they secretly glanced at Wang Anshi.
Logically, they should be sent, but... first Wang Anshi, then Sima Guang, and others who dared to take command of military strategies, almost all the battles supervised by literati failed.
Afterwards, they were pointed at and scolded by Master Lu in the court. Even if these literati were broad-minded, they could not help but grumble in their hearts.
Could it be that the military supervisor really neglected military affairs?
Finally, it was Master Pang who said, "Let's not send him for now. If we want Master Lu to come back, we really need to win a few big battles."
Everyone nodded.
Thus, a new round of strategy to conquer Western Xia was decided.
If Zhao Zhen were still alive, they would naturally discuss with Zhao Zhen. Of course, the result would not change much, because Zhao Zhen generally would not refute the decision of the Secretariat.
What's more, the current emperor is still young. As for Empress Dowager Cao...what does a woman know about family and national affairs? Raising the young official well is a great achievement.
Soon, everyone in the world knew that the imperial court was going to send troops to Western Xia again.
Lu Sen was in Hangzhou, so of course he also heard about this.
But he didn't know that this incident actually happened in order to invite him back to the court.
He simply thought that the court had finally shown some courage.
When I was in a good mood, I wanted to find someone to share it with, so I went to find Su Shi to drink, chat and have a good time.
As a result, as soon as he arrived at the Hangzhou government office, he saw a large crowd watching outside. Lu Sen squeezed in and discovered that Su Shi was trying a case. Several people were kneeling in front of the hall. Because these people had their backs to him, Lu Sen did not know who had been arrested.
But then he listened to the discussions among the people around him and was a little surprised.
Because the people who were arrested were the King of Xiangyang and his sons.
I didn't expect Su Shi to find the clue so quickly.
If it were in other dynasties, it would be a big deal for officials to arrest a prince, and at least a lot of procedures would be required before they could do it.
But in the Song Dynasty, it was really nothing big. As long as there were solid clues and the official position reached a certain level, they could be arrested, especially princes who were sent to other places.
The King of Xiangyang sounds very impressive, but in reality, neither Lu Huiqing before nor Su Shi now really takes him seriously.
Lu Sen also heard the fat man Su Shi slamming the gavel in the court and shouting: "In the secret passage of your mansion, 375 pieces of iron armor were found. Your subordinates confessed that there are at least 3,000 pieces of iron armor placed in the caves south of the city. Now I have sent people to search. King Xiangyang, you still don't plead guilty?"
Prince Xiangyang was wearing a white prison uniform and had a messy hair. Although he was kneeling, he stood very straight. He laughed loudly when he heard the words, "You ignorant boy, this world belongs to our Zhao family. How dare you tie me up? When I go to the capital, I will definitely report you."
Su Shi also laughed loudly: "Once you enter the capital, it will be difficult for you to survive. You actually hid the armor and intended to rebel, who will protect you? The emperor, or the current queen mother? Come, take them all to prison and escort them to the capital in five days. Close the door!"
Seeing the door of the government office closed, the people around left after talking a lot.
Everyone was very excited.
The person captured is a prince. The new county magistrate is really bold and powerful.
Lu Sen stepped forward and said, "Please tell Magistrate Su that Lu Sen is here to visit."
The constable guarding the gate recognized Lu Sen and said quickly, "Master Lu, please wait a moment. I will go and report it."
About an incense stick later, Lu Sen went into the backyard and sat with Su Shi, drinking and chatting.
"I didn't expect you to catch him so quickly." Lu Sen said with some admiration: "I know that the King of Xiangyang seems to have rebellious intentions, but I have no evidence."
" It's not difficult ." Su Shi pointed to his head. "I'm very intelligent. After getting the advice from Master Lu, I started thinking about what I should do if I were a rebel. Following this line of thought, I soon found out where the missing supplies had gone from. Then I found a few people who seemed a little strange, captured them, interrogated them, and bribed them. Soon I had enough evidence."
Lu Sen smiled and said, "Great! You are good at writing poetry and you are also good at being a parent official."
Su Shi laughed triumphantly.
When ordinary people flatter him, he will only feel it is hypocritical.
But Master Lu was different. In Su Shi's eyes, Master Lu dared to point his finger at all the officials in the court and scold them. Such a person would never flatter himself for fame, fortune and wealth, so his praise was absolutely sincere.
After he finished laughing, he asked, "Did Master Lu come to see me just to drink?"
"Just drinking." Lu Sen took a sip of plum wine and said with a smile: "The court finally dared to take the initiative to attack Xixia. It sounds happy, so I drank to celebrate."
"Master Lu has a pure heart." Su Shi raised his glass and said, "Although he is not in the court, he still cares about state affairs. I admire you, and I toast to you!"
The two of them drank for nearly an hour, and Lu Sen got the fat guy drunk.
"It's not drinkable." Lu Sen said with a smile.
Then, still a little drunk, he walked towards the cave, intending to leave Hangzhou City and fly back to the cave in a flying vehicle.
But halfway through the journey, they saw Ouyang Chun and several knights, escorting two people in strange clothing, coming towards them from the front.
Lu Sen looked carefully and found that both of them were Semites, and both had swollen noses and faces.
Lu Sen walked forward and asked with a smile: "Master Ouyang, I haven't seen you for a while."
Ouyang Chun was also very happy to see Lu Sen. He clasped his fists and said, "Hello, Master Lu. By the way, you came just in time. I was thinking of asking Mr. Zhang from the Bitian Pavilion to send you a message!"
"Oh, is it urgent?"
"These two people sneaked into the city last night, and used slingshots to throw stones tied with ropes onto the deck of your golden ship." Ouyang Chun looked back at the two people with a cold expression: "This golden ship is a sacred object, and they actually wanted to steal it. Then our spies found it, and we spent some time chasing them, and finally caught them."
Want to steal the solar boat?
Lu Sen stared at the two Semu people for a while, then turned to Ouyang Chun and said, "Thank you for your help, hero Ouyang. I will thank you in the future. As for these two people, send them to the disabled relief hall in front. Someone will come to take over as soon as you say the word."
Ouyang Chun clasped his fists, picked up the two Semu people and turned away.
And Lu Sen also went straight back to the cave.
Not long after, Alice personally brought two Semites to the cave.
The only difference was that the two Semites were tied up like silkworms and their eyes were blindfolded.
Alice looked a little ashamed. She bowed and said, "My dear, I was careless. These two people are members of the Assassins. They have been in Hangzhou for half a month. They have two goals. One is to find you and find out where the garden is. The other is to steal your sun boat."
Lu Sen was a little surprised: "I heard from Alliance Leader Ouyang that they used a trebuchet to throw the stones up. The trebuchet is so huge, how did they transport it in?"
"Break things down into components, bring them in one by one, and then find an opportunity to assemble them."
"That's unlikely!" Lu Sen shook his head. "Even if the parts can be shipped in, assembly will be a very troublesome task, especially for two Semu people, who are very conspicuous in Hangzhou."
Alice was stunned for a moment, then she said: "My dear, do you mean that they have their own people to help them?"
Lu Sen nodded: "And he must be an important person, otherwise they would not be able to hide such a troublesome thing as assembling the trebuchet. Where was the trebuchet found?"
"Yang Mansion?" Alice's expression was strange.
"Yang Mansion?" Lu Sen was stunned: "Jinhua's mother's home?"
Alice nodded.
Lu Sen leaned back subconsciously: "This is impossible. The Yang family and I have a very good relationship. How could the catapult be found in the Yang family?"
"But that's it."
Lu Sen took a deep breath and said, "I'll go to Yang's house to take a look. Please ask Jinhua to come out for me."
Yang Jinhua was cooking in the room. When she was called out, she was still confused and didn't understand what was going on.
Lu Sen pulled her onto the aircraft, then flew to the door of Yang's house, landed, and walked in.
The doorman was still Lao Qi. When he saw Lu Sen, his face suddenly became sad: "Son-in-law, you are here as expected. Marshal Mu is waiting for you in the inner hall."
Lu Sen nodded and took Yang Jinhua in.
When she entered the inner hall, she saw Marshal Mu holding his grandson sitting in the main seat. When she saw Lu Sen, she smiled and said, "The trebuchet is in the martial arts field. Go and see it yourself. Come and tell me if you find anything."
