Chapter 544 Father and son reunited
"Strong but not abusive, repaying kindness with gratitude, benevolent and courageous, Li Renyou is a good son!"
In Xiangyang City, when King Yueyang learned from Cai Dabao that Li Tai was willing to return the city garrison territory he previously occupied in return for his kindness to his father, he couldn't help but smile and praise Li Tai repeatedly.
The reason why he was so tolerant and eager to seek peace was because the loss of Hanbei territory caused him great psychological pressure.
Now that all the lost lands have been returned, there is no need for him to send a single soldier. He can influence the enemy generals with his benevolence and righteousness, and he can defeat the enemy without fighting. He is much smarter than those warriors who only know how to fight bravely and ruthlessly. If others want to attack him based on this, they will only help him gain fame.
Li Tai not only returned the lost land, but also presented King Yueyang with a beautiful image of elegance, respect for scholars, virtues, and prestige in foreign countries.
This will undoubtedly greatly enhance the personal reputation of King Yueyang. In the political ecology of the Southern Dynasty, which originally valued the appreciation of reputation, it is equivalent to a direct increase in King Yueyang's political capital.
Just for this point alone, King Yueyang was already very satisfied.
As Li Tai said, as a nobleman of the heavenly family, he does not look up to others for worldly things. However, the opportunity to obtain such political resources is extremely rare, especially with such an embarrassing status, it is difficult to obtain fame and qualifications. And much bigger than others.
After such an incident happened, it can be said that as long as he did not make any big mistakes as the governor of Yongzhou, or was targeted at any cost, the court would generally not consider revoking his position.
After all, Li Tai can now be regarded as a famous general in the imperial court. He is young and brave, can conquer the east and west, and has no taboos. His current record has to be added to his achievements. There are other people in the country to guard Xiangyang. Who dares to say that he can win? Only he, King Xiao Qing of Yueyang, can defeat the enemy with just one word!
Therefore, the gloom in King Yueyang's heart was gone at this moment, and his shame, annoyance, and annoyance were gone. When he heard that Li Tai expressed his willingness to send troops to help him control the powerful sect, he subconsciously ignored the sinister side of this proposal. He just sighed again: "Extraordinary people can achieve extraordinary things. Li Boshan surrendered to Kansai last year, and he was extremely poor. He became famous in just a few years, and it must be because of his upholding justice and justice. I Although he doesn’t use his strength, he respects his person.”
Speaking of this, he looked at Cai Dabao and said with a smile: "Li Renlue lives in this hometown, and Cai Canjun is the most friendly and caring. So Li Boshan, a man who values kindness and righteousness, will not neglect Cai Canjun, right?"
After Cai Dabao heard this, he did not hide anything and told how Li Tai planned to repay him.
"This Li Boshan is a true scholar of the country! Yan built a golden platform and sold horse bones for a thousand gold. This is what the ancients did when they were thirsty for talents. If he is not a man with a broad mind and an ambitious plan, how can he plan to build high-rise pavilions and Guangji's adverse journey? Human beings? If all you want to do in your life is to have two meals a day and enjoy the weather all year round, why should you extend your kindness to others and seek out the virtuous?"
King Yueyang was originally fond of recruiting talents and maintaining followers, and he had just received generous rewards for this. When he heard this plan, he couldn't help but praise him, and said to Cai Dabao: "Although this matter was caused by two people, This is a good thing for Grand Duke Shangyi. Xiangyang Benduo is living in poverty and is in urgent need of help. I will use the wisdom of two people to work together as a staff. Don't blame me for being troublesome!"
"How dare you, how dare you! Your Majesty is meant to reward the virtuous and loving scholars. If you have Meng Chang's style, you are willing to predict the event. It is a blessing for everyone in the world to die!"
After hearing this, Cai Dabao said quickly, of course he would not disdain King Yueyang's elegance on this matter. When he saw that King Yueyang was in a good mood, he asked for instructions again: "Although Governor Li of Northern Han Dynasty did not say it directly, he misses his family. My feelings are beyond words. Now that we have stopped the war twice and restored peace, I would like to ask you when can I send Li Renlue to the north?"
"The reason why people can conspire against each other is trust. Since Li Boshan made a bold promise, how can I care about it and refuse to return to his closest relatives? Tomorrow, I will ask Cai Canjun to make another journey and send Li Renlue to the north on my behalf. go."
Since the other party was so bold and open-minded, King Yueyang did not want to be looked down upon by the other party. Even though he expressed his stance, his expression soon changed and he sighed and said: "Oh, after all, I am still weak! Even if there are talented people who have defected to his subordinates. , and cannot be left for internal treatment.
This Li Boshan has a majestic spirit, impressive character, benevolence, courage, wisdom, and a gentleman. If he can join me, he may not be able to become my Wei Hu in the coming year. It’s a pity, it’s a pity…”
When it comes to this point, King Yueyang is really full of regrets and is definitely not lying.
Although they have not met each other yet, he already admires Li Tai very much just from what he knows and sees. His origin, age, behavior, etc., can be said to be in line with his wishes and impeccable. , if possible, he would like to exchange the thousands of guests in the mansion for Li Tai as his staff.
But this is destined to be just a thought. Regardless of his status as a grandson king, Li Tai's power and position in the Western Dynasty is no less than him. No matter how enthusiastic he is, he knows that it is almost impossible to recruit the other party for his own use.
Out of the importance he paid to Li Tai, the King of Yueyang personally held a banquet for Li Xiao in the palace that night. He hoped that after he went north, he would not forget the time he lived in Xiangyang and could continue to contribute to the good relations between the two sides. own strength.
Facing the warm reception of King Yueyang and the compliments of the people in the palace that hinted at envy and jealousy, Li Xiao couldn't help but feel a little at a loss.
He knew that these people's attitude towards him was all because of his son who was stationed in Hanbei. Although he had asked Li Quji to ask and listen to many stories about his son's rise in Kansai in the past two days, he still felt very 's unreal.
He didn't know much about the Kansai personnel regulations, and he couldn't accurately judge what level of power his son had reached now. But when he saw King Yueyang, the king of the Southern Liang clan, and the chief of the Yong Mansion, they all complimented him very much. , a sense of pride arose in my heart, and everyone was welcome to toast, and soon I was drunk by the enthusiastic crowd.
Despite a night of hangover, Li Xiao woke up early the next day, packed his bags and prepared to go north.
People's footsteps and whispers were heard outside the room. Li Xiao opened the door and went out. In addition to the dozen family members who had followed him here, there were dozens more soldiers and maids in the courtyard. After asking, he found out It was a gift from King Yueyang.
In addition to these soldiers, there are also some large and small boxes and cages stacked in the yard. The boxes and cages contain everything from daily eating utensils to gold and jade ornaments, and they are all very exquisite and valuable.
"This, this is..."
An official of the royal palace came forward and said with a smile: "Your Majesty personally gave the order. Although Xiangyang is not Li Xueshi's hometown, people are not grass and trees, how can they be ruthless? Li Xueshi lives here not only for a short time, but also uses everything in this hometown. As a gift to the bachelor, he will miss it in the coming year. Looking at these things can help him feel better."
After Li Xiao heard this, he waved his hands and refused. He was not greedy for wealth and enjoyment, and he was afraid that his son would be criticized for corruption and bribery, so he naturally did not dare to accept these gifts. But the palace official only said that the king was famous and did not dare to respond to Li Xiao's refusal, which made the situation somewhat deadlocked.
At this time, Li Quji, who was standing on the side, walked up quickly and signaled the palace official to leave first, and then said to Li Xiao: "Since it is hard to resist the enthusiasm of the king here, my lord might as well accept the gift. How much is given here, I guess I can get it from A Lang." Gain more.”
After Li Xiao heard this, he shook his head and said seriously: "It is difficult for your son to make meritorious deeds. How can you destroy your relatives as much as you want! The long embankment collapsed in the ant nest. Why did the high envoy in the old year not tolerate Guandong? This is enough to serve as a warning to the present! Guanxi also controls people and governs the country. Accumulate The money is destroyed and the crowd competes to peck it, don’t let temporary greed lead to long-term disaster!”
He still refused to accept these gifts, so the guards moved the belongings into the room and sealed them up. They also asked the men and women to stay in the courtyard, and left with only a dozen of his entourage.
Soon the King of Yueyang also knew about Li Xiao's stubbornness. Although he admired his character, in the final analysis, these gifts of human goods were still shown to Governor Li of Hanbei, so while arranging personnel to escort Li Xiao to board the ship to the north, he They also arranged for boats to load the donated people and goods and travel with them.
Li Xiao stood outside the cabin and looked at the north bank of the Han River. His mood was so agitated that he could not sit down at all. Since Fancheng was still under lockdown, they could not land through the Fancheng Water Gate and had to bypass Fancheng and dock at the east river embankment.
As the ship rounded Fancheng, the view suddenly became clearer. There were many soldiers standing on the river embankment, flags fluttering, and it looked like a solemn and majestic scene. Behind the ranks of these soldiers, there was a majestic banner.
Under the strong wind, there was also a group of majestic guards wearing armor. Among these soldiers, their leader was wearing silver armor and holding a saber in his hand. He looked straight at the river, his eyebrows The room is full of expectations.
Li Xiao, who was standing on the boat, was even more excited now. Regardless of the shaking of the boat, he stood on tiptoes and looked towards the shore in hope. When his eyes saw the figure of the silver-armored general, he could no longer move away. There was even more in his field of vision. There are no other sights.
The ship slowly docked, and Li Tai strode forward, jumped onto the ship with a single stride, and supported his father, who was shaking due to the collision with the ship's hull, with both hands.
Li Xiao firmly clasped Li Tai's arm armor with both hands, his eyes fixed on the familiar yet unfamiliar face, he opened his mouth and took a few deep breaths, and finally made a sound: "Ah, Ah Pan, you are Ah Pan ? It's my son Apan... Is this a dream or is it true? "
When Li Tai heard the trembling voice, his nose couldn't help but feel sore. He held up his father's still trembling arms with his backhand, lowered his head and shouted softly: "Yeah, I'm home!"
"Go home, go home! I have a good son to lead you home..."
When Li Xiao heard this, tears burst into his eyes instantly, but he was so embarrassed that he burst into tears in front of his son. He turned to face Hanshui, covered his face and began to sob.