Weiyang Palace, East Warm Pavilion.

The emperor took a sip of tea and his throat felt better, maybe the voice he shouted in the court a few days ago because of anger, his voice was uncomfortable in the past few days, and his voice became more and more hoarse, compared with the voice of the past when he spoke.

But this kind of hoarseness is still a little charming in the future.

"Kang Wei has already set off to Pingyue Dao, go and familiarize yourself with the things on Pingyue Dao in advance, let Ye Kaitai take him for a while, and then Ye Kaitai will go to Yunhai Dao...... Yesterday, Yuan Toshiba came to me to cry and complain, and said a lot, and I also felt a little, Kang Wei is indeed a capable person, but he is too rigid in form. ”

The emperor glanced at Lai Cheng: "I let Kang Wei go to Pingyue Dao, you came to be the first assistant, why don't you see your gratitude and loyalty?" ”

Lai Chengdao: "Your Majesty is a minister who was transferred from the Yushitai to the cabinet, and the salary has not risen. ”

Emperor: "I just remembered that the right side of the bus framed Shen Leng, and the people of the Imperial Historical Observatory made a lot of nonsense in the court without investigating clearly, have I not been punished for this matter?" ”

Lai Cheng: "Thank you, Your Majesty, and thank you." ”

The emperor snorted and handed a copy of the recital in his hand to Lai Cheng: "Look, this is a part of you, saying that you are not strict in your governance, reckless, and vain...... Think for yourself how I should punish you. ”

How dare Lai Cheng really look at it, and after taking it, he said with a bit of a scoundrel: "The minister deducted two years of money last time, and these days are all famine, and His Majesty doesn't want people to talk nonsense outside, saying that when the first assistant university is poor, he can't open the pot." ”

The emperor said: "Then you should think of a way to make me feel that I can not deduct money." ”

"The minister writes a review, and the minister takes everyone up and down the imperial history platform to write a letter of guilt, and he must be the kind that he can't really regret."

The emperor said, "I'll talk about it after seeing it." ”

Lai Cheng said with a hippie smile: "Long live Your Majesty, long live, long live." ”

As he was talking, Dai Fangzhou came in from outside, lowered his head and said, "Your Majesty, King Huaili, the king of the Ministry of Rites, wants to see you." ”

Wang Huaili is also a member of the cabinet, one of the second assistants.

The Emperor nodded, "Let him in." ”

Wang Huaili entered the door from the outside and bowed: "The minister greets Your Majesty." ”

He got up: "Your Majesty, I just received this. ”

He hurriedly handed the item he was holding to the emperor: "Emperor Galocleo sent someone to send it, saying that he wanted to send a delegation to meet His Majesty Emperor Daning, and he was willing to reconcile the two countries. ”

The emperor took the letter of state and opened it and looked at it, and the corners of his eyebrows raised slightly: "Repaired?" This kind of trick was just played by the Khan Emperor Samburu of the Heiwu Kingdom a while ago, and he was going to do something to the Rilang Kingdom, so he sent someone to send a letter of state, and seven or eight out of ten wanted to attack Rilang while sending someone to talk to Daning, and by the way, he could also let the envoy carefully look at what Daning looked like and inquire about some news. ”

Wang Huaili said: "Then reject them?" ”

The emperor pondered for a moment: "No, let them come if you want to." ”

Wang Huaili bowed his head and said, "The minister understands. ”

The emperor asked: "Speaking of Sambulu, yesterday you also sent in a letter of state, as well as Samburu's handwritten letter, he really wants to have a good talk with me this time, the situation in Heiwu's country is chaotic, he should also figure it out, Heiwu's national teacher Xin Fengyue just wants him to be a shield to block the Northern Expedition of Zhening, but this battle is over, Sambrü knows that he will die, he can't not resist, as long as he resists, the loss is all his strength and not Heiwu's, so no matter how he loses." ”

Wang Huaili said: "The mission of the Black Warrior Kingdom is waiting in the northern Xinjiang, and it has been waiting for three months. ”

"Send a message to Wu Xinyu and ask him to send someone to escort the mission to Chang'an."

The emperor smiled: "Let the people of the Black Martial Arts Mission eat and live well in Chang'an City." ”

Wang Huaili reacted: "It's good to eat, live and have fun, but you can't talk about it, and you can't even talk about it, Samburu is still waiting for his people in the north to send back the news, Daning's Northern Expedition army has set off." ”

The emperor snorted: "Let's arrange it like this, if nothing happens, the rest people should be waiting outside the southern Xinjiang, let them come too, and come to Chang'an to have a look." ”

Wang Huaili said: "The minister obeys the order, and the minister retires first." ”

The Emperor said, "Go ahead." ”

After Wang Huaili went out, the emperor looked at Lai Cheng: "The rest people want to come to explore the details, and the black warriors want to come to explore the details, and suddenly, I have a sense of pride, those so-called strong countries, still have to look at Daning's face." ”

Lai Chengdao: "The minister and Shen Leng had a careful chat the day before yesterday, and he specially mentioned to the minister the matter of the strait of the Rilang country, he said that if he can control the strait, it is a huge income to collect some tolls from passing merchant ships every year, and the most important thing is that if the strait is choked, it is equivalent to choking the throat of the southwestern countries, so he suggested that if the matter of the Annan Metropolitan Protectorate is really decided, the location of the Metropolitan Protectorate is selected close to the strait, the first is to control the economic lifeline, and second, it is easier for our sailors to respond. ”

"I don't know the terrain over there, I've seen the sketch drawn by Shen Leng, the location of the Rilang Strait is really important, just do what he said, the level of the Annan Metropolitan Protectorate is set at the fourth grade, and it has the right to arbitrarily make the seal as soon as possible, select personnel, try to get the personnel in place before the summer, and negotiate with the Rilang people as soon as possible."

Lai Chengdao: "The minister is already arranging." ”

The emperor got up and moved: "How is the matter with the military department?" It is now the month of Layue, and I will rest for two months after the New Year, and I decided to go to the north at the beginning of March, which lasted several years, and the soldiers from all walks of life were drawn from all walks of life, and the grain and grass of the past were transported, and other things were already prepared, I set off in March, go faster, and I could go to the north in May, from May to October, it was the most suitable time to start a war, and it was not good to enter the army after October......"

Lai Chengdao: "Your Majesty, the minister still wants to persuade Your Majesty again, the royal drive is a personal expedition, the stakes are very important, if it is not necessary......"

"Don't persuade."

The emperor smiled: "I am bound to go to this battle. ”

Lai Cheng lowered his head: "The minister knows...... The affairs of the military department, the squire Du Gaochun made overall arrangements, all the armies, grain and grass supplies, have been arranged, the recruits trained by Meng Chang'an in the northeast have the strength to fight with the black warriors, and the northwest side, the recruits trained by the Tang family can go to the battlefield at any time, and there are more than 150,000 troops in the northern Xinjiang, Meng Changan and the Tang family can provide 200,000 soldiers and horses for the northern expedition, plus the coordination of the guards, the forbidden army that His Majesty will bring to the northern expedition, the total strength is not less than 800,000, if you count the 100,000 cavalry transferred from the grassland promised by Da Ai Jin Yun Sangduo, The first batch of troops assembled was 900,000, and the dispatch of the military headquarters was tight but not chaotic and orderly. ”

"Du Gaochun is a good person."

The emperor glanced at Lai Cheng: "What do you think?" ”

Lai Cheng opened his mouth, but finally didn't say anything, just nodded.

The emperor said, "What do you want to say?" ”

Lai Cheng shook his head: "It's nothing, Lord Du's ability is indeed very strong." ”

The emperor looked out the window: "Lai Cheng, I still choose to believe in everyone, you are all my courtiers." ”

Lai Cheng's heart moved.

Gyeonggi-do, Ui-gun.

Yixian is the station of Jiaziying in Gyeonggi Province, 300 miles away from Chang'an, Yixian is the largest grain producing area in Gyeonggi Province, the land here is fertile, and the yield per mu is higher than that of the surrounding counties every year.

Xingyicang is on the side of Bao'an Mountain in Yixian County, and next to Xingyicang is the Jiaziying camp.

There are still more than fifty miles away from the camp, a team of cavalry escorting the carriage is galloping forward, this team will go all the way west after the sunrise in Chang'an, and only stop once on the way, in the carriage is the current Daning Military Department Squire Du Gaochun Du, a rising star in the imperial court, he is just thirty-three years old this year, no one will doubt that he can become a member of the military department before the age of forty, cabinet.

Since the beginning of the previous year, An Yuanzhi has gradually pushed Du Gaochun to the front, which is an inevitable replacement of the old and the new, he let Du Gaochun show up more and have more contact and more operations, which is to pave the way for Du Gaochun to take over as the secretary of the Ministry of War.

In the carriage, Du Gaochun listened to the middle-aged man sitting in front of him with his eyes closed, and his brows would frown slightly from time to time.

Sitting across from him was Xun Zhi.

"Elder Ge is gone."

Xun Zhi said in a flat tone: "But the general trend of the Pavilion Elder has been decided, so we just need to continue to move forward in the direction set by the Pavilion Elder, you are the person that the Pavilion Elder values the most, and this period is the most important time for you, so you have to be extra careful." ”

Du Gaochun opened his eyes: "Mr. Xun Zhi, there are some things I have always wanted to say and endure, but I can't bear it today...... I can probably guess what your ultimate goal is, although you have not told me to this day that your plan is too big and may damage the foundation of Daning, are you not afraid in your own hearts? If the black army is counterattacked, the north of Chang'an will be a battlefield, the people will not be able to survive, the national strength will decline, and tens of thousands of people will die in the war. ”

Xun Zhi smiled: "This is the inevitable situation of the old and the new, what's the problem?" ”

Du Gaochun was silent for a moment: "I am Ning Chen." ”

Xun Zhi frowned: "You should understand that it is the favor of the elder of the pavilion that you can have today's status." ”

"I don't think it's all."

Du Gaochun's face turned a little pale: "You are saying these words to me over and over again, emphasizing over and over again that there is no Ge Lao and I would not be here today, then let me ask you once, if there is no queen and no Ge Lao, will you be the person you are today?" ”

Xun Zhi was stunned: "Lord Du, are you a little presumptuous." ”

"It's you who is presumptuous."

Du Gaochun said: "What I have done before, without involving Your Majesty or violating the foundation of the Daning Kingdom, even if it is against my own conscience, I have done it to repay my kindness, but I don't want anyone to threaten me." ”

He leaned forward and looked at Xun Zhi's eyes: "I am Daning's military squire, the backing of the success or failure of millions of people in the Northern Expedition, the elder of the pavilion instructed you to arrange for me to do some small things that do not hurt the country, I will do it, but if it involves a million army and involves the foundation of Daning, I'm sorry Mr. Xun Zhi, you can try to get rid of me, if you can, I Du Gaochun is always waiting, if not, then shut up." ”

"Also."

Du Gaochun looked at Xun Zhi's eyes and said: "Don't mention anything over and over again, everything I have now is because of Ge Lao, even if I admit that this is the favor of Ge Lao, what does it have to do with you, where are you condescending?" ”

Xun Zhi's face turned pale, and he was silent for a moment: "Stop, Master Du, do it yourself." ”

"Thank you Mr. Xun Zhi for your kindness, please remember one sentence, although I am a literati, I have been preparing for death since the day I put on the military uniform, and the big deal is death."