Chapter 74 Governor-General of Liangjiang
After listening to what Master Li said, Li Daoxuan asked the reason out of curiosity. Then he realized that Master Li was afraid that he would encounter another misfortune, so he was going to go to Mount Maoshan to invite a deity back to worship.

"Dad, which god do you want to invite?" Li Daoxuan asked curiously. After all, there are many gods in Taoism, and the system is complicated. In addition to the various sects, which family does not have a ancestor who has ascended to heaven? They are all related to the above.

Mr. Li shook his head and didn't know which god he wanted to invite, so he asked Li Daoxuan which god could bless him with peace?
"How about inviting the Three Mao Zhenjun? The founders of the Maoshan Shangqing sect are three brothers." Li Daoxuan told Master Li about the Three Mao Zhenjun, and Master Li nodded happily after hearing it.

"Okay, I'll listen to you."

Mr. Li was a man who listened to advice, especially his son's advice. Not to mention that after this incident, his doting on Li Daoxuan was beyond belief. Even Mrs. Li couldn't stand it, saying that she was afraid of spoiling Li Daoxuan.

Mr. Li didn't care about these words at all. After experiencing life and death, he finally understood. He let go of the things he was obsessed with before and didn't bother with Madam Li.

Perhaps anyone who walks through the gates of hell and witnesses the scene where human life is worth less than that of pigs and dogs will have a change of mentality.

Li Daoxuan went downstairs and saw the house busy with decorations.

Mr. Li said that this was to celebrate the new life and to welcome Li Daoxuan. After all, he hadn't held a proper banquet since he came back, so today was the chance to make it more lively.

There were banquets in the front yard and the courtyard, with a total of more than 30 tables. All the relatives and friends of Lijia Village were invited to attend, making the party a great blast.

Li Daoxuan took off his white clothes and put on a red coat. Now he was fair and tender, and he was popular when he went out. The Li residence was very lively, and everyone was celebrating. Master Li raised his wine glass to toast at every table, and received many praises. This was the only way to get satisfaction in the village in the old days.

After two rounds of drinks, Mr. Li laughed happily. A stage was set up in front of the door and a big play began to be performed. The scale of this stage was not smaller than that of Wang's family. The person on the stage had a stern face and curly beard, and his appearance was strange. The play was the big play of Zhong Kui catching ghosts.

"How is San'er? Are you satisfied with the opera troupe that your father invited for you?" said Master Li.

"..."Li Daoxuan then remembered that his cheap father had said before that he would invite a troupe to perform for him, and he didn't expect that he would actually do so.

In fact, he was not very interested in opera, probably because there were too many entertainment options in the old days, and watching opera was not as comfortable as watching TV series. In addition, he could not understand what was being performed, and only felt that it was babbling, and did not understand what was being performed. So the adults watched with relish and applauded, but Li Daoxuan was listless.

The opera was just going on when a group of officials came outside. They bowed respectfully to Mr. Li and said they wanted to invite him and Li Daoxuan to the government office for a chat.

Mr. Li knew that he couldn't escape this matter, but he didn't expect that he would come so early. He let Mrs. Li take charge of the situation, and he took Li Daoxuan and followed the officials to the government office.

After a bumpy ride, we arrived at the government office and opened the door to see that there were already quite a few people sitting inside.

Jiang Baiwan, who had been chatting and laughing happily with Master Li last time, was also there, and the two masters who ran away with Master Li that day were also there.

Sitting down to drink tea and talk, Master Li was not flustered. Let Li Daoxuan calm down, and muttered to himself that this matter had little to do with our family.

Not long after, an official wearing a patched jacket embroidered with cranes, wearing court beads and a flowered feather on his head, came in and bowed to the crowd with a smile on his face, saying, "Everyone, polite."

"It's the Governor himself who's here. I'm ashamed."

"I am really flattered that you would come here in person during the Chinese New Year."

The visitor had a kind face and although he was middle-aged he had a pair of clear eyes.

He put his hands behind his back, his lower body was as steady as a rock. He walked with the momentum of a tiger. Even an ignorant person could tell that he was a master of external martial arts.

Li Daoxuan didn't know the man, so he quietly asked Master Li. Master Li told him that the man's name was Liu Kunyi, and he was a student of the imperial academy. When the Taiping Army conquered Wuhan and besieged Nanchang, Liu Kunyi joined the Chu Yong and conquered the Taiping Army. This man was extremely brave and repeatedly defeated the Taiping Army and recruited the Taiping Army general Li Nengtong to surrender.

The Taiping rebel general Shi Dakai was besieged by him and fled to Guizhou. Later, he became even more famous for his military exploits and was called Liu Bingshen.

He is now the Governor-General of Liangjiang, and some time ago he was appointed the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi. He is truly extremely powerful.

Since the Qing Dynasty, there have been three most important regions. The first is Zhili, which is an important area around the capital and has a governor-general of Zhili. The second is Liangguang. Guangxi and Guangdong are the windows of foreign trade of the Qing Dynasty, bringing a large amount of commercial income to the Qing Dynasty every year. They are governed by the governor-general of Liangguang. Another region is Liangjiang, which has a governor-general of Liangjiang.

The Governor-General of Liangjiang governed the two provinces of Jiangnan and Jiangxi. Jiangnan Province was the Nanzhili region of the Ming Dynasty. It was later divided into JS Province and Anhui Province, including the current Shanghai. It can be said to be the fundamental place of the Qing Dynasty's finances. The power and status of the Governor-General of Liangjiang were second only to the Governor-General of Zhili, and he was the richest governor among the nine governors of the Qing Dynasty. In order to control the Green Camp soldiers in the jurisdiction, the Qing court granted him the title of Minister of the Ministry of War. In order to supervise the officials under his jurisdiction, he was also granted the title of Right Censor of the Inspectorate. The Qing Dynasty established a governor of the grain transport to manage the grain transport. Whether the grain transport was smooth or not directly determined whether the regime was stable. After all, since the Song Dynasty, the economic center has shifted to the south, and the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties have established the political center in the north. Even so, the Governor-General of the Grain Transport can only have half the right to speak in front of the Governor-General of Liangjiang. After all, several important grain transport towns on the Grand Canal, such as Yangzhou, Zhenjiang, and Suzhou, are all within the jurisdiction of the Governor-General of Liangjiang.

During the reign of Emperor Daoguang, the Governor-General of Liangjiang also directly managed the Lianghuai Salt Administration, which was originally located in Yangzhou. In the late Qing Dynasty, the central government was weak, and the Governor-General of Liangjiang not only obtained the title of Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace and Prince Taifu, but also served as the Minister of Commerce in Nanyang, responsible for the five ports of trade, handling foreign affairs, and having a great say in diplomatic affairs.

Therefore, when other governors-general were still of the second rank, the Governor-General of Zhili and the Governor-General of Liangjiang were already of the first rank.

When the Liu family held a banquet, the Li family also sent gifts. The Liu family's housekeeper put the thousand taels of silver into the warehouse without even looking at it. If we talk about who is the most powerful person in Jiangning, it must be this person.

It's just that such a big shot would actually come here today, and his attitude is quite humble.

Li Daoxuan knew about Shi Dakai, because he had just been beaten up by the remaining Taiping people. Shi Dakai was honored as the Righteous King by the Taiping people. It was said that he was extremely brave and was more powerful than the strong man Wei An.

I didn't expect that today there would be a more powerful person, a fierce general who could chase Shi Dakai and fight. In fact, Li Daoxuan didn't know that Liu Kunyi was just not well-known.

After Liu Kunyi exchanged questions with everyone, he lifted up his robe and sat on the high hall. His eyes were blazing, like sharp swords. He looked around, and no one dared to look him in the eye.

"Do you know why I asked you to come here?" Liu Kunyi asked slowly.

"I don't know, I don't know. Please tell me clearly, Governor." The servant responded hurriedly, fearing that he would offend others if he was a little late.

"I called you all here for only one thing." Liu Kun looked at everyone, and his gaze finally fell on Master Li and a few others.

When Li Daoxuan saw this, he knew that the visitor had ill intentions.

It was obvious that Liu Kunyi, the governor-general of Liangjiang, had already made preparations and came here just to ask questions.

"I heard that the Taiping bandits are still alive in this world and are trying to resurrect the Stone Bandit. Is this true?" Liu Kunyi asked slowly.

“This… I’ve never heard of it.”

"Wasn't the Stone Thief dead a long time ago? Why was he able to come back to life?"

"The Governor is saying that Shi Dakai crawled out of his grave? How is this possible? Is there really a god?"

"Yes, yes. This is too absurd. Confucius said, 'A gentleman does not speak of strange things. It is better not to believe these folk rumors.'"

Liu Kunyi listened to the conversation of the people sitting below him, picked up his teacup and took a sip of tea. Then he looked at the people and said with a smile: "Don't worry, I'll show you something."

As he spoke, his expression became serious. He shouted to the outside, "Bring those things in!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw soldiers coming in carrying several boxes.

Liu Kunyi walked to the box and knocked on the lid. He looked at the people sitting down and said, "Do you know what's in this box?"

"This……"

Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads. Liu Kun put one hand on a box and suddenly opened it.

A man's head was placed on a wooden barrel, his face was hideous, and he was shaking and struggling. This horrible appearance frightened many people, and one or two elderly people fainted on the spot.

The others sat in their seats, looking at the head in shock.

"Does anyone know who this person is?" Liu Kunyi asked as he looked around.

(End of this chapter)