The mountain rain is coming, and the wind is full of buildings.

Xiang's family-led "tabloid" published an unsigned article "Heroes of the World, Still Troubled Ministers and Thieves", although it was not named, but it still pointed the finger at Liu Zhenglong.

One stone stirred up a thousand waves, and the originally peaceful capital once again fell into endless infighting, this time, almost all the civil and official fights did not join, even Cai Jing, who has always been biased towards Liu Zhenglong, has changed his tone this time, among many meritorious families, only the four major families unswervingly support Liu Zhenglong, and many other families are on the opposite side.

This time it can be said that it is menacing, which is very different from the past, and the key is that it is related to rumors, which is the core. It is rumored in the world that the civil officials of the Great Song Dynasty have a glass heart and a fragile machine, which has nothing to do with integrity or not, whether it is a great writer like Ouyang Xiu, Su Shi, Su Xun, or Wang Huang, Li Bangyan and other shameless people, they all have one thing in common, that is, if the generals have a little bit of momentum to raise their heads, they will pounce on them like mad dogs, and if they don't bite each other to death, they will not stop.

At the beginning, Di Qing fought against the Western Xia, made great contributions to the imperial court, and ensured that there was no war in the northwest, so he can be said to be an important minister of the country. But just because he served as the privy envoy of the Privy Council, in the eyes of the civil officials, it was the generals who moved their cheese and tore them like mad dogs one by one, which eventually led to the depression of a generation of war gods.

In comparison, Liu Zhenglong made the civil official group even more hostile, and the Great Song Dynasty never had a precedent for killing civil officials, but Zhu Mian was killed by Liu Zhenglong and Wang Hao was killed, which violated the taboo of civil officials. Not only that, greedy for money, lustful, domineering, and lawlessness have become Liu Zhenglong's exclusive labels. The civilian clique has always spared no effort to crack down on the excavation of black materials, and has continued to participate in the performance. If it had been replaced by Di Qing, he would have been killed a long time ago, but Liu Zhenglong is a demon, almost to the point of being invulnerable, no matter how the civil official group tosses, he not only stands, but also rises step by step in the officialdom.

Liu Zhenglong has always been smooth, not because of money, nor because of the support of the meritorious family, the most important thing is the support of the official family, which is the core.

This time, it is different, and the official family seems to be deliberately conniving at the civilian-official clique to attack Liu Zhenglong. It is rumored that the government and the opposition are rumored that the official family wants to take down Liu Zhenglong.

All of this still has to start with a rumor.

The recovery of Yunzhou was originally the most glorious stroke in Liu Zhenglong's career, but Xiang Zongliang raised objections, you must know that this nephew of the Empress Dowager Xiang is one of the few princes with different surnames in the Great Song Dynasty, he has a transcendent position in the court, and he has a very heavy weight in the hearts of the officials.

For a long time, the Xiang family and Liu Zhenglong have business dealings, and the Xiang family has children in Liu Zhenglong's Long Wei army, and the relationship between the two sides is still good. What caused King Yongjia to fire at Liu Zhenglong from Zongliang? It all started after the Battle of Rabbit Ear Mountain.

On the evening of December 28, the sixth year of Xuanhe, a mysterious guest came to the palace of Yongjia County, this person came from the Jin Kingdom, and entered the capital mysteriously, almost no one knew his origin, but it was the arrival of this person that set off a 'storm of falling Liu' in the capital.

This person is Han Li, the brother of Han Lie, the strategist of Jin Taizong's Wanyan Wu begging, this young man of the same age as Liu Zhenglong, who is both civil and military, and extremely strategic. He came to the capital this time with a special mission, that is, to get rid of Liu Zhenglong at any cost.

Xiang Zongliang and Han Lie were old friends, so they met with Han Li.

After greetings, Xiang Zongliang asked, "This time, what are you doing in the capital, and does your brother have anything to say?" ”

The Xiang family had been doing business with the Jin Kingdom, and Han Li had acted as an intermediary and had close contacts with the children of the Xiang family, but this was the first time he had talked to the King of Yongjia County.

Seeing that the other party took the initiative to ask, Han Li smiled and said, "Brother has a letter to hand over to the county king. ”

After opening the letter to Zongliang, he was immediately stunned, all this is too terrible, if it is true, then I don't know what kind of crisis it will cause.

Han Li seemed to know the contents of the letter, and he said unhurriedly: "The Jin army swept through the Liao army by millions, and I don't need to repeat how strong the combat strength is. Yunzhou, which has worked so hard, how can it be easy to give up, you must know that there are 20,000 Jin cavalry and 35,000 vassal soldiers stationed, in the face of such an army, how many Jin troops in the Great Song Dynasty can take Yunzhou? ”

Xiang Zongliang is not a military general, and he is not very familiar with the army. However, based on the history of the Song army's century-long struggle against the Liao army, it is impossible to defeat the Jin army without more than 100,000.

"Maybe a hundred thousand, maybe more."

"160,000, it's 160,000 cavalry, how many war horses and how many cavalry does the Great Song Dynasty have?"

160,000 cavalry is an astronomical number for everyone, a number that every Great Song official can't even imagine.

In the entire Great Song Dynasty, if you don't count the 30,000 cavalry of the Zhejia army, there are not even 50,000 cavalry, and they are 50,000 infantry on horseback. There are definitely not 10,000 cavalry that really form combat effectiveness, or even less, after all, the situation of the forbidden army eating empty salaries is so serious that Xiang Zongliang is not very familiar with the specific number, in fact, even the Privy Council does not have an accurate number.

Where did these 160,000 cavalry come from, and why is there no record in the Privy Council? At this time, without Han Li fanning the flames, Xiang Zongliang had already thought of Liu Zhenglong. In the whole world, only Liu Zhenglong can do it.

The forbidden army given by the official family to Liu Zhenglong is no more than 100,000, and it is an infantry plus water army, there are 30,000 water troops in it, and the remaining 70,000 should be infantry, and now it is right to quell the rebellion in Jiangnan. So the question is, where did these 160,000 cavalry come from, who were not reported to the Privy Council?

"The king of the county, among the Song laws, those who raised more than 300 private soldiers without authorization were regarded as complicity and rebellion, and Zhu Mian was secretly executed because he raised thousands of dead soldiers. So what does Liu Zhenglong's 160,000-strong army mean. You must know that with his military talent, there are 160,000 cavalry, plus the naval army and infantry, the total strength should be close to 300,000, which can be said to be one-third of the Great Song army, which indicates that he has the conditions to tear the earth and seal the king, your majesty the emperor really tolerates the existence of such a huge private army? ”

Xiang Zongliang didn't know very well and didn't dare to say anything, so he didn't want to get entangled on this topic, so he asked on another topic: "It is rumored that the emperor of your country intends to recruit me as a concubine of the Qin State of the Song Dynasty and crown the king of Song, but there is such a thing." ”

"Yes, the premise is to help me Dajin recover Yunzhou and destroy Western Xia. Yunzhou will be used as the dowry of the Golden Leaf Princess, and it is also the foundation for Liu Zhenglong to split the soil and seal the king. ”

Han Li himself came to the Great Song Dynasty to sow discord, even if he didn't ask Zong Liang, he would find a way to say it. In Jin Guo's view, the Great Song Dynasty has neither elite soldiers nor good generals, as for Liu Zhenglong, it is just an exception, after stripping this person from the Song State, then the plan to invade the Song Dynasty will definitely be implemented smoothly.

Xiang Zongliang shook his head and said: "The official family is as kind to Liu Zhenglong as a mountain, and now he can be said to be rich and rival the country, the beauties around him are like clouds, and he is a high-powered overseas propaganda envoy of the Qin State, how can he accept the canonization of your country?" As long as he doesn't make mistakes, it's only a matter of time before he enters the political hall, so how can he isolate himself from his ancestors and go to treason? ”

"In the Great Song Dynasty, it has always been a cunning rabbit walking, a lackey cooking, a flying bird, and a good bow hidden. According to rumors from the outside world, Liu Zhenglong has repeatedly emphasized that he is unwilling to be the Di Qing of the Great Song Dynasty, what does that mean, when there is nothing to reward and nothing to seal, it will go to the point of no return. He really doesn't need to be treasonous, but with the wealth of the country and the beautiful women around him, he will definitely not choose to be dealt with because of his high merits. It's not the same to return to my Dajin, in Yunzhou, the king of the land, the hereditary territory, with the wealth of the rich country, don't worry about becoming Wu'an Jun Bai Qi, becoming the Marquis of Huaiyin Han Xin, and not becoming Di Qing's second. ”

Yes, throughout the ages, when there was no reward and no seal, most of the generals were dealt with because of their high merits. Everyone understands this truth, but there are a few people who can really retreat with their whole body.

Seeing that Xiang Zongliang was silent, Han Li said unhurriedly: "Since the matter of the yellow robe has happened for the first time, who dares to guarantee that there will not be a second. At this point, you must know that Liu Zhenglong is by no means a good type. ”

The yellow robe seems to have become a thorn in the hearts of officials, which has become the most effective means for civilian officials to fight against military generals. No one knows if it will happen again, at least Xiang Zongliang doesn't know, and he doesn't want to know.

Obviously, when Xiang Zongliang heard the addition of the yellow robe, the whole person felt bad. He is a relative of the emperor, and all the glory and wealth come from the stability of the imperial court. Once the yellow robe reappears, then the Xiang family will completely lose everything, which is definitely not allowed by Xiang Zongliang.

The eye drops were also on, and the pit was dug, on this issue, Han Li was not prepared to let Xiang Zongliang have room to think, he lowered his voice and said: "The rebellion in Jiangnan, with Liu Zhenglong, the god of war, should be able to be pacified quickly, why has it been delayed until now, don't you think something is strange?" Not only that, Fang La is not dead, Fang Tianding is not dead, why did this guy risk the crime of bullying the king, but also leave two thieves, what is the reason. ”

These questions are clichés and nothing, but once they are connected, they are terrible. This is what Han Li wants, it doesn't matter if these people can bring down Liu Zhenglong at all, the key is to complete the cutting, then Liu Zhenglong will never work for the Great Song Dynasty again.

Seeing that Xiang Zongliang was silent, Han Li decided to throw a bombshell, and he said mysteriously: "Li Bangyan has been completely hollowed out in the northwest, you know, this is the prime minister of the political affairs hall, and he is also the envoy of Xuanfu, what does it mean to be elevated." Whether the Western Army did not obey the discipline, or was it erected under Liu Zhenglong's careful layout. Once the Western Army takes refuge in Liu Zhenglong, then half of the Song State will not be solid, these privy councils don't know, what does it mean, it means that Liu Zhenglong has the strength to plot the dynasty and usurp the throne, does your court have a plan to deal with it? ”

At this time, Xiang Zongliang was completely silent, he knew that it didn't matter whether Liu Zhenglong would rebel or not, the key was that after having that strength, the people below would push the whole incident forward, just like the Chen Qiaoyi mutiny back then, as long as he had the strength, everything would fall into place.

Seeing that Xiang Zongliang was silent, Han Li knew that the other party had already taken care of what he said, and that was enough, saying too much would cause the other party to misunderstand.

Xiang Zongliang, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly said: "The weasel gave the chicken a New Year's greeting, and he didn't have any good intentions, and the jade-faced god of war of the Great Song Dynasty was destroyed, what good will it do to your Jin Kingdom." Isn't it the battle of Yunzhou that annihilated 20,000 Jin troops, but this is the life and death on the battlefield, it is the embodiment of strength, if you want to kill Liu Zhenglong because of this, it is too far-fetched, what is the benefit to you, it is best not to pull around, otherwise, you can please go back. ”

Han Li didn't expect Xiang Zongliang to ask such a question, and he reacted very quickly and said without thinking: "The world is bustling, all for profit, the world is bustling, all for profit." We dig out our hollow thoughts to let your country bring down Liu Zhenglong, of course, it is not as simple as revenge. It is because Jin is a country on the grassland, although the Liao country was destroyed, but there are still countless tribes on the grassland that do not obey the Jin country, as well as the Western Xia, and the distant Western Liao, you must know that the Western Liao does not want to return to the country all the time. We should concentrate our efforts on solving these problems. If one day, your emperor sends Liu Zhenglong to send troops, we will suffer the enemy on our backs and fight on two fronts. Therefore, if Liu Zhenglong is executed, it is a great thing for the Jin State, if the removal is not necessary, our Jin State will invite him to come over and let him send troops to destroy the Liao State, of course, the Western Xia will be at your fingertips. You will not understand the barrenness of our country, let alone the importance of the vast grassland to the nomads. ”

"Liu Zhenglong will not serve your Jin State, a Western Xia who surrendered to the Great Song Dynasty is far more meaningful to the Great Song Dynasty than a Western Xia occupied by the Jin State. As for the execution of Liu Zhenglong, it depends on the meaning of the imperial court, what you said is all chasing after the wind, it is best to have some actual evidence, otherwise it will not be easy to bring down the powerful Liu Zhenglong. Xiang Zongliang finally relented, but he is not a fuel-efficient lamp, how could he do such a thankless thing, you must know that the meritorious family behind Liu Zhenglong is not so easy to deal with.

Han Li's wisdom immediately understood Xiang Zongliang's intentions, and he lowered his voice and said, "Evidence, we'll provide it." Liu Zhenglong's huge family business did not fall into the hands of the Xiang family in the end, in addition, in the future, our Jin Kingdom will only do business with the Xiang family, you only need to convince the emperor of your country, you can, we will do the other things, as for the meritorious family, we are sure to make them collectively silent. ”

In order to show his sincerity, Han Li still took out a gift list, the treasures on it were all from the Liao Imperial Palace, and there were countless of them, which made Xiang Zongliang's heart bloom, and the core was the last sentence, Liu Jiajun's belonging was what really moved this guy.

The poor dream of being rich, the rich dream of power, the power of the people dream of nobility, and the noble people have the heart to covet the world. Xiang Jia's wealth is rival to the country, and Xiang Zongliang is the king of Yongjia County, he originally had no ambition to reign over the world, of course, that kind of fantasy is still there, there is no military power, of course he will not think about seeking a dynasty to usurp the throne. However, Liu Jiajun's three words made everything impossible possible.

"If I accept it, what is your ultimate condition?"

"Shi Jingjiao, Youyun Sixteen Prefectures, Western Xia, Liu Zhenglong, one million years old per year." Han Li finally said the ultimate goal, he said, "We only need Liu Zhenglong, the only way to take down Western Xia without bloodshed, and he can lead the army of Western Xia to deal with Western Liao." We can clear all the obstacles for you, don't know what the conditions are? ”

Xiang Zongliang didn't speak, but just carried the gift list into his arms, after all, so many big things, I still have to discuss with my younger brother and son, and if I am not careful, it will be all over the plate. If you succeed, you will rule the world, and if you lose, you will be uprooted, which is not a decision that can be made all at once.

"Mr. Han, you should take the initiative to Yuntianlou first, and give you an answer in three days."

"Thank you, King of the County."

Yongjia County King Xiang Zongliang never dreamed that his Xiang family's property Yuntianlou turned out to be a stronghold of the Golden Wolf Guard, in fact, there were many places he couldn't think of.

The Golden Wolf Guard was not originally the intelligence organization of the Jin State, but the Liao State, since the beginning of the Later Jin Dynasty, it has infiltrated Bianliang, Tokyo, and the sedimentation of more than two hundred years has long penetrated into all corners of the capital, from the high-ranking officials and magnates, down to the beggars and homeless people, and even the Imperial City Division, the six doors, and the palace have the shadow of the Golden Wolf Guard.

It's just that after the fall of the Liao State, the Golden Wolf Guard was completely taken over by the Jin State, and the huge size of the Golden Wolf Guard has reached an outrageous level, which is far more than the dragon group and more than the shadow. It's just that the outside world doesn't know much, and if the outside world does, I'm afraid the emperor won't be able to sleep well.

The Jin army destroyed the Northern Song Dynasty, and the Golden Wolf Wei made great contributions, otherwise the great Song Dynasty would not have collapsed.

Xiang Zongliang, the king of Yongjia County, never dreamed of his concubine, the maids in the family, and the family members all have golden wolf guards, and even the housekeeper Xiang Fu is a golden wolf guard.

The Golden Wolf Guard is mainly composed of Khitan people, of course, there are also Xi people, Bohai people, Liaodi Han people, Jurchens, Goryeo people, Han people, especially in the Great Song Dynasty.

After Han Li moved into the Cloud Sky Tower, he immediately secretly met with Xiao Qi, Ye Luzhi, and Yan Beiqing, the three major persons in charge of the Golden Wolf Guard in the capital.

Among the Golden Wolf Guard, the most hidden is Yan Beiqing, the top master in the Great Song Dynasty, the eldest disciple of the old immortal Lin Lingsu, who has always seen the head of the dragon and has not seen the end, and he is low-key and terrifying. No one knew that he played for the Golden Wolf Guard, and no one knew his true strength.

Everyone in the Great Song Dynasty knows that there is Lin Lingsu in the north and Wang Yin in the south, but no one knows that there are only champion apprentices in this world. Yan Beiqing has always been very low-key, it doesn't mean that he can't beat Master Lin Lingsu, this guy is hiding too deeply, too deeply, so that he has deceived everyone.

Yeluzhi is the leader of the Golden Wolf Guard, no one has ever seen him make a move, and those who don't know think he is an amiable businessman, but if he doesn't have skills, how can he lead the huge Golden Wolf Guard?

Xiao Qi is the king of killers above the three legendary killers, mysterious and unpredictable, and his assassination skills are unparalleled in the world.

The division of labor between the three is very clear, Ye Luzhi is the boss of Yuntianlou to the public, responsible for managing the daily affairs of the Golden Wolf Guard, and making friends with dignitaries.

Yan Beiqing is Lin Lingsu's disciple, mainly responsible for some peripheral affairs, especially the infiltration of the Imperial Palace, the Imperial City Division, the Six Doors and the courtiers, all of which are done by him, after all, these people are all through him to befriend the old immortals.

If the powerful want to raise masters, they often take the initiative to find Yan Beiqing, which is convenient for him to install people.

Xiao Qi is a person who has not seen the light, and the actions of the 'stab' organization he led have always been secretive, but he has never missed a shot, and the outside world does not know.

Han Li had come to inspect the Golden Wolf Guard on behalf of the Emperor, so the three giants of the Golden Wolf Guard came to visit at the same time.

Han Li didn't come to review the work, so he didn't need the three of them to report to the work, he said bluntly: "There is only one task this time, and that is to take down Liu Zhenglong. ”

When they heard that Liu Zhenglong was taken, the three of them looked at each other, and the three of them faced Liu Zhenglong, and no one was sure of winning.

Han Li shook his head and said, "Didn't you let you assassinate Liu Zhenglong, as for fearing the enemy like a tiger?" To launch the Golden Wolf Guard, it is necessary to collect evidence unfavorable to Liu Zhenglong. Then it is very reasonable and natural to throw it out, as for the matter of killing Liu Zhenglong, it is better to leave it to their emperor. ”

When he said to Xiang Zongliang, he asked Liu Zhenglong to serve the Jin Kingdom, which was just a rhetoric, in order to make Xiang Zongliang willing to die. In fact, the order Han Li received was to completely destroy Liu Zhenglong and uproot him, at all costs, but it really couldn't be done, and the three masters were dispatched to carry out the assassination at the same time.

Hearing that it was not the time to assassinate Liu Zhenglong, the three of them were somewhat relieved, after all, Liu Zhenglong was famous. The three of them are not afraid of Liu Zhenglong, but they are not sure of victory. is loyal to the Golden Wolf Guard, and is willing to die for the Golden Wolf Guard, but no one wants to die in a duel with a top master.

Han Li saw that the three of them were quiet, so he said, "Ye Luzhi, you are in charge of collecting the commercial aspects, because in the end we still have to accept Liu Zhenglong's wealth, so you will do this work." Yan Beiqing, you are responsible for passing on rumors among the civil and military officials of the imperial court, suggesting that Liu Zhenglong will eventually be added to the yellow robe. In addition, find out the relationship between those people and Liu Zhenglong, and find a way to cut it off. Xiao Qi, you are responsible for three things, the first is to find out where Liu Zhenglong's secret weapon is abundant, and then find a way to get it. The second thing is to find out the power of Liu Zhenglong in the army, find a way to cut it off, and the third is to assassinate Li Bangyan and blame Liu Zhenglong. ”

Finally, Han Li continued, "Yeluzhi, when it's time to spend money, all the money in your Golden Wolf Guard industry will be withdrawn and used to corrupt those officials. If you want to create public opinion that is enough to kill Liu Zhenglong, in addition, you can arrange that I want to meet Liang Shicheng, the sooner the better. ”

Yeluzhi not only manages the business of the Golden Wolf Guard, but also helps countless court officials take care of their business, including Liang Shicheng. Although Han Li didn't say it very straightforwardly, his meaning was very clear, that is, to pull Liang Shicheng into the water and let the Imperial City Division serve the Jin Kingdom.