"The Song State and the present dynasty have been in confrontation for hundreds of years, and the society and the traitorous party have also fought viciously for ten years. Chen Dong and others are unwilling to submit to the Cai Party and have doubts about our dynasty, which is a natural thing. However, the southeast is in chaos, but the relatives are painful and the enemies are happy. I heard that in Hebei, the people were forbidden to wear Hanfu and forced the people to cut their hair, so that the Khitan soldiers killed those who did not cut their hair when they saw it. He also plundered the people of Hebei, tattooed big characters on his face as a mark, and sent them to the north as slaves, because he drove too many Han people, and as a result, the slave price of Nanjing Road on Jingdao fell sharply, and many Khitan dealers saw that it was unprofitable, so they killed the Han people in the middle of the pit. The Liao army kills people like cutting hemp, the countryside is barren, the corpses are staggered everywhere, the cooking smoke is cut off, although in autumn and winter, it still smells for hundreds of miles. General Zhao should know that the most important thing at present is to prevent the Liao army from moving south and sweeping the southeast. The scholars discussed and attacked the traitorous party, and could not make the Liao army retreat. Blindly guarding against our dynasty will not make the Liao army retreat. ”

Chen Qianli sighed, his words turned from solemn to painful, and continued: "General Wangzhao told Chen Dong and others that there are priorities, and the Khitan entry into the Kou is not limited to the death of the Zhao and Song dynasties, but the death of my Chinese clothes. Our dynasty is sincerely helping, just to save the people and stop killing, and has no intention of getting involved, put aside the old feud between Song and Xia for the time being, and do not make the tragic scene reappear in the southeast. ”

Zhao Xingde nodded, took a deep breath, and asked, "When will you leave?" ”

Wu Jie said in a deep voice: "The Liao army is approaching Jinling, without further ado, General Zhao will go to Ezhou first and negotiate an alliance with Chen Dong. The Eastern Expeditionary Army will be transferred to Shuzhong, just waiting for everything to be ready, and the army will set off from the White Emperor City and go down the river to Ezhou. "Zhao Xingde did not have many personal soldiers with him, only more than ten old troops such as Du Fujiao. Although it was possible to sneak over the Hangu Pass, and then rush all the way to Ezhou, but the northern part of the Song State was in chaos, in order to prevent mistakes, the General's Mansion arranged for Zhao Xingde to go south to Bashu first, and then go to Ezhou by water, so as to avoid the threat of the Liao army to the greatest extent.

After explaining everything, Chen Qianli and Zhao Xingde retreated together, and the two rode slowly. The White Feather Army was stationed on the outskirts of Chang'an City, and as far as the eye could see, the fields were full of farmers who were busy, driving horses to plow the land, spring plowing and sowing. The air was filled with the unique aroma of Guanzhong earth, a scene of serenity, peace and vitality. Thinking of the devastation of life under the iron hooves of the Liao army, Zhao Xingde was preoccupied, and he only cared about walking with his head down. Chen Qianli frowned, thoughtful.

"I think that the politics of the Kanto region are superior to the politics of our dynasty, how is it?" He asked suddenly.

Zhao Xingde was silent for a moment, shook his head, and said in a low voice: "It's not as good." ”

Chen Qianli nodded and added: "Guandong Zhao Song, if you talk about population wealth, there is no one in the world, and it is several times that of Liao. But such a court, no matter how much it puts benevolence, righteousness and morality in its mouth. It can't even protect its own people, and no matter how many reasons there are, this court can be regarded as a dereliction of duty. Okay, you say? His tone was heavy.

Zhao Xingde sighed, nodded, and did not speak.

Chen Qianli said again: "In the regimental training army, there are many displaced people from the Kwantung region. I was shy as a regimental training envoy, and after talking with these soldiers from the Kanto region, I knew what it means to be poor and have no way to walk. The husband who ploughs the land cannot guarantee two meals a day, and in a famine year, he will have to sell his land and borrow money to live. I've heard that customers in the Kanto countryside can rent up to 80% of their land if they borrow cattle and farm tools. Zhenzhen Valley has not left the scene, the silk has not gotten off the plane, it is no longer his own, hunger and cold are pressing, the day is precarious, and the smell is heartbreaking. I have heard people say that the so-called official households and situation households in the Kanto region can hide their fields and evade taxes, so that sixty or seventy percent of the land in a county does not pay taxes. The so-called scholars and doctors are not only invisible, but complacent, thinking that they are benevolent and benevolent, and the benefits are left to the people. However, as a result of the abolition and chaos of the country's laws, can the court officials actually do good things? You see that as soon as the Kwantung Imperial Court said that it would re-measure the tax per acre, Haoqiang would obstruct it in many ways, so it can be seen that the benefits of its chaotic law were obtained by whom. Agriculture is the foundation of the country, and the Kanto region has abolished the law because of people, which can be seen from this. The office is poor and weak, the court has an indispensable fee, and the people who use the matter do not dare to provoke the scholars and doctors, so they can only set up another name to scrape it off from the ordinary people, which can only make the burden of the poor heavier. Coupled with all kinds of requisitions, the loyal and loyal families are ruined, and they are even like soldiers. Straight, this is the so-called benevolent government? ”

Zhao Xingde sighed heavily. What Chen Qianli said, he also heard and witnessed, but he always thought that he was weak and couldn't change this, and gradually became numb. Hearing Chen Qianli mention it today, Zhao Xingde was not only surprised that Chen Qianli, a Xia countryman, knew so much about the maladministration in the Kanto region, but also felt worried. The imminent danger is the invasion of Liaokou, but the law of the eastern part of the country is relaxed, and the disadvantages are like the valley of Taicang. Sima Wenzheng once said that governing the world is like a living room, and if you do it, you will repair it, and you will not make it worse if it is not a big evil. But now, like a magnificent palace, the pillars and beams have long been hollowed out by silverfish. It has reached the point where the building is about to collapse and must be rebuilt.

"I don't think so. When it comes to the weight of taxes, our dynasty is far greater than that of the Kanto. Our dynasty was founded in the land of four wars, with Rus and Lumei in the west, Dashi and Turkic princes in the south, Mobei barbarians in the north, and Song and Khitan in the east. Since the founding of the country, there has been no war. Although the population of our country is only half that of Kanto, the cost of the state is not less than that of Kanto. However, because of the strict implementation of the law and the uniform tax burden, the life of ordinary people is better than that of Kanto. ”

Chen Qianli's face did not have the slightest look of self-restraint, and he muttered: "Kanto is known as the scholar and the emperor to rule the world together, but Huangzhoushan in Kanto also said that the world is the world of the world, not the world of one person. I will add another sentence to his painting of snakes, the world of people in the world, not the world of scholars. You can bring this sentence to Chen Dong. ”

Chen Qianli said in a deep voice: "If they can't save the people of Kanto, I will save them with a sword." He paused, then added, "You just need to know this." He looked at Zhao Xingde and asked, "Whether you are straight or Yuanzhi, when that day comes, for a better world, I hope you can stand on the side of the people of Kanto." ”

Zhao Xingde's heart was touched, and he looked at Chen Qianli, but Chen Qianli didn't wait for him to speak, so he patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile: "The time to get together is short, and there will be a period later." He stretched out his hand and pointed to Zhao Xingde's house in front of him, "I'm going to go on the expedition tomorrow morning, let's arrange my home first." ”

Zhao Xingde nodded, and said goodbye to Chen Qianli: "There will be a period later." ”

Chen Qianli's speech and demeanor were very unusual, which made Zhao Xingde feel that he was probably not so simple as a simple Chang'an regimental training envoy. Maybe like Wang Yan back then, on the surface he was just an officer of the Hebei battalion, but under the bottom, he controlled the meticulous work of the Imperial City Division in the entire Hebei and even the Liao Kingdom. It's just that Chen Qianli didn't say anything, and Zhao Xingde naturally didn't go to the bottom of it, and quickly put this matter in the back of his mind.

Zhao Zhuo and Zhao Yong were playing in the courtyard, and when they saw Zhao Xingde, Zhao Zhuo threw himself into his arms first and asked his father to lift him up, and Zhao Yong also stood aside and shouted that he didn't obey. Zhao Xingde met the children's requirements one by one before putting them down. With a feeling of guilt in his heart, he stepped into the back kitchen.

Li Ruoxue is lifting the lid of the pot with one hand, and sandwiching the steamed white jade cake in the pot with the other, cutting it into pieces, and serving it in a celadon plate, stacking it like a white jade pagoda. The white jade cake is the flavor of Bianliang, it is corn starch, sesame, pine nuts, walnuts, dill after grinding into powder, adding white sugar and red yeast rice to mix, rolling into a roll and then steaming out in a pot and then cutting into pieces, its color is snow white, the taste is extremely beautiful, it is the children's favorite food. These are the tastes of the hometowns of Bianliang and Luoyang.

In the white mist, Li Ruoxue was wearing an orchid cloth skirt around her waist, and her figure was graceful, she heard the sound at the door, turned around and saw that it was a virtue, and smiled, beautiful and delicious. Zhao Xingde walked behind her, gently hugged his wife, and did not speak, but tenderness and reluctance continued to surge in his heart. Li Ruoxue seemed to feel something, her body stiffened slightly, and she asked in a low voice, "Is the husband going to go on the expedition again?" ”

"No," Zhao Xingde said in a low voice, "I'll leave tomorrow morning, go to Shuzhong first, and then go down to Ezhou by water to see Chen Shaoyang." After everything was arranged, the lady took the child and came with the Eastern Expeditionary Army. ”

"Well," Li Ruoxue's nose was slightly sour, but the corners of her mouth smiled, "Then it won't be long before we can be together." Her mind was clever, and Zhao Xingde usually explained the situation in Kanto to her, so she immediately guessed Zhao Xingde's intention to find Chen Dong. She said in a low voice: "Husband, don't think of concubines when you go here." "The intestines are soft, but the corners of the eyes are not wet.

The two breathed in each other's scents quietly, the boiling water in the iron pot gurgling, and the white mist steaming filled the room.

............

The south wind is getting warmer, and the cold in the Liao army camp is still bone-eroding. The captured monarchs were kept in a row of wooden houses, and Song officials in Bianliang sent food and clothing, and the Liao guards also gave permission. Although he didn't suffer much humiliation, Zhao Ke lived a miserable life in captivity. After learning that Cai Jing and others supported King Jing Zhao Qi as the emperor, and after Xingyingzhou County heard the wind and fell to Zhao Qi, he was even more like falling into the ice valley.

On this day, when the news came that Chen Dong and Yue Fei advocated respecting the Son of Heaven and not obeying the orders of chaos and instigating the King of Qin in the world to welcome back the holy car, Zhao Ke couldn't help but be greatly moved, and cried: "Now that the country is in a difficult situation, the so-called Bandang knows loyal ministers, and only Chen Yue and the two Aiqing are only. It's hateful, I can't reuse it sooner. He felt that the day was precarious, and he could be killed by Yelu Dashi at any time, and the throne was unstable after his death, so he immediately bit his middle finger and wrote on the belt of his underwear, "Feng Chen Dong is the prime minister and the prince and the prince, Yue Fei is the generalissimo of the world's soldiers and horses and the prince and the prince, and I hope that the two ministers will work together to expel the northern captives and restore the mountains and rivers of the old days of the Great Song Dynasty." If I am not lucky, in order to avoid the assertion of the temple, Chen Yue's two auxiliary ministers can choose the merits in the Zhao clan and succeed to the throne. ”

Zhao Ke was in a stirred mood, and wrote this edict. Looking at the bloodstains on the silk belt and the stinging pain in his fingertips, Zhao Ke was a little afraid. He didn't dare to give it to others easily, so he only kept the ribbon inside and kept it by his side. If you don't stay until you are about to die, or if you meet a courtier who is enough to entrust, you will never dare to let people see it easily.