Volume 2 Clouds Chapter 33: Humble Room
It was already dark when we left the palace.
Thinking about the detailed conversation with Guo Rong, Luo Youdu felt heavy in his heart.
Before, Guo Rong had higher expectations of him than he valued him, but after attacking Shu and forcing it to surrender, Guo Rong obviously treated him as his own and trained him with all his strength, intending to use him to control the arrogant and powerful generals.
This kind of treatment reminded Luo Youdu of General Wan who promoted him back then.
The kindness of being recognized and appreciated can be seen with the naked eye.
He is a profit-oriented person, but he is not heartless. He is just more rational when it comes to feelings.
Thinking of Guo Rong's fate, Luo Youdu felt upset. The history books did not record what disease Guo Rong had or how he died.
The moment before, he was full of vigor and vitality and led his troops to the north, conquering three Khitan states in a row. Then he fell ill and returned to Kaifeng and died.
There is absolutely no way to prevent this.
The situation in the temple today also made Luo Youdu notice some clues.
Guo Rong's suppression of the military generals did have some impact, but Guo Rong had already gained power, and was both kind and powerful, so they did not dare to show it.
Once Guo Rong encounters an accident, the resentment suppressed in his heart will burst out. Even if there is no Zhao Kuangyin, there will be Zhang Kuangyin and Li Kuangyin.
By then, I, who was brought up to suppress the generals, will definitely be the first to bear the brunt.
If Guo Rong can really escape his fate, that would be fine.
But if it is really unavoidable, you must be prepared for both situations.
We must not sit idly by and wait for death.
Otherwise, if you face a completely unreasonable and reckless man, you might even be skinned alive .
Four months is the time Guo Rong gave.
Four years, I don’t know if it was given by God.
When Luo Youdu saw Zhang Qiong napping against the wall outside the city gate, he felt much more relaxed and patted him on the shoulder.
Seeing that it was Luo Youdu, Zhang Qiong rubbed his cheek and said, "The government has given a lot of money as a reward for merit. I can treat you to a good meal."
Luo Youdu said: "You should save your money to marry a wife. If you follow me, will it be your turn to treat me? Let's go home!"
Zhang Qiong smiled innocently and followed behind.
The two walked one after the other on the star-filled road.
Luo Youdu said: "The court asked me to form an imperial camp, and you will be my captain."
Zhang Qiong's eyes lit up and he said with a smile, "I knew that following my elder brother would give me a good meal. Now I have become a captain. I must be so envious of my brothers in the imperial guards."
Luo Youdu looked at Zhang Qiong, who had no worries, and suddenly felt a little envious. Maybe it was good to live like this.
You don’t have to think about anything and you don’t have to be so tired.
But then he remembered Zhang Qiong's fate and came to his senses instantly.
Zhang Qiong saved Zhao Kuangyin's life, but in the end he was beaten and executed by Zhao Kuangyin?
In this world, if you don’t have the confidence and capital, even your breathing will depend on other people’s wishes.
Luo Youdu said, "Don't think it's that easy! The first thing to solve is the problem of soldiers. Now we are the only two commanders without troops. My name is Yu, your name is Ying, and together we are not even enough to form the three characters of Yuyingsi. If you count my old donkey, it's not bad."
I've been with Lao Lu for a long time and I have some feelings for him, so I often talk about him.
Zhang Qiong complained: "The government only gave us officials, but not soldiers?"
Luo Youdu said, "The Imperial Camp Division is a brand new organization, and it has no structure. It is given the power to recruit soldiers, but the source of soldiers is mostly in the hands of generals. If I ask them for soldiers, it would be ok if I give them some missing limbs, but if they send some with broken skin and act like a sissy, it would be disgusting to me."
Zhang Qiong nodded after hearing this and then said, "Call Cao as well. He's silly, but he's reliable."
"What are you talking about? I am a very honest person who appears foolish despite my great wisdom..." Luo Youdu looked at the foolish man laughing at the fake fool and couldn't help but laugh: "He won't call me that. Guohua was born in a military family and has many relatives and friends. Calling him that will only embarrass him. We are acquainted and won't do this. But Pan Mei can give it a try..."
He has his own principles in dealing with people and will not force others to do things for his own benefit.
Pan Mei's father was just a small soldier with no background. It was not difficult or not, but if he followed him, he would not be well received by the generals.
He will explain the details in detail, and the choice is up to Pan Mei himself.
We arrived at North Street where he lived. It was night time and there were only a few lights on in the street.
For a moment, Luo Youdu thought he had returned to the South City of his early years.
With the help of moonlight, Luo Youdu discovered that many houses around him had been leveled, some were preparing the foundations, and some had already been built.
Thinking about Guo Rong expanding Kaifeng Prefecture, he muttered in his heart: "Is this North Street being demolished?"
His eyes lit up. He wondered if there was any compensation for demolition in this era.
Although Guo Rong advocates frugality and his food, clothing and daily expenses are very shabby, he is also prepared to follow the boss and not live a luxurious life. But having no money and having money but not using it are two different concepts.
When I got home, I found that the houses of my neighbors on both sides had been demolished, and I was left with only my own small yard.
A black line inexplicably appeared on Luo Youdu’s forehead. Could it be that the demolition perfectly avoided his home?
After sending Luo Youdu home, Zhang Qiong said goodbye and prepared to leave.
Luo Youdu shouted, "Tell your brother to report to Kaifeng Prefecture on time tomorrow. I have something to discuss with him."
Zhang Qiong responded and disappeared into the night.
Old Hu heard the shouting and trotted out of the house.
"Uncle Hu!" Luo Youdu shouted.
Lao Hu said excitedly: "Husband, come in quickly. The food is heating up in the pot. I'll bring it to you. The bath water is ready and the tub is clean."
Luo Youdu felt warm in his heart. Even though he had eaten dinner in the palace, he couldn't wait to say, "I've long missed Hu Bo's cooking. What we eat outside is a mess. Compared with your old cooking, it's almost like pig food."
Regardless of whether he offended Guo Rong or not, Luo Youdu ate his meal like whirlwind.
By the way, I went to the warehouse to take a look at the old donkey.
The old donkey was obviously pregnant, her belly had grown bigger as she lay on the haystack.
Luo Youdu asked: "How long has the donkey been pregnant? I thought I could see the baby donkey when I come back."
Old Hu said, "Normally it takes a year to get pregnant, so if you calculate the date, it's only about a month."
“That’s good!”
Luo Youdu was smiling and chatting with Lao Hu about family matters, enjoying a rare moment of leisure.
I took a hot bath and slept comfortably until dawn.
He walked out of the house and looked at the situation around him, and was stunned for a moment.
I felt something was wrong last night, and when I looked around this morning, there was no familiar sight on West Street except my own house. The original stalls and vendors were gone. They were either being renovated or on the way to renovation.
"Uncle Hu, I wanted to ask you last night, what happened to this street? Aunt Zhang's soy milk and Uncle Niu's Hu Bing are both closed?"
Lao Hu said: "Someone bought their house for six times the price, and they all moved to the newly expanded South City."
Luo Youdu was stunned: "This street doesn't have any special features, right? Six times the housing price?"
Lao Hu said meaningfully: "This street is ordinary and has no special features. If there is anything special about it, it is that you, my husband, live on this street."
