"Chen Shaoyang has been hiding the news of the return of aid, and just now asked me to arrange a place for Yuan Zhi to stay." Wu Zilong, the head of the household department, and Zhao Xingde walked side by side and said: "The government office in the city, let you choose, as long as Yuan Zhi likes it, even if it is the Prime Minister's Mansion, I am willing to be a lobbyist for you and persuade Chen Shaoyang to move out." The two of them walked out of the south tower and stood on the top of Huanghu Mountain, with a panoramic view of the whole city.

Wu Zilong pointed to a number of government offices, pavilions and pavilions surrounding Huanghu Mountain, and said with a smile, "Where do you look, Qingjingtang?" Chu Lou? Or Caoyuan? "These places are all good places in Huanghu Mountain. The barracks of the Baoyi Army were originally outside the city of Ezhou, and now they have been occupied by the Xiangyang soldiers. The sub-city is small, and there are only a handful of places that can accommodate hundreds of thousands of people and horses, and since the establishment of the Prime Minister's Mansion in Ezhou and the Xiangyang Division, many new yamen such as the six new departments have been added, and the city is even more overcrowded. Wu Zilong is in charge of the household department and has the responsibility of governing Zicheng, if it weren't for Zhao Xingde, he would not be so generous.

Zhao Xingde pondered for a moment and discussed: "The Prime Minister's Mansion and the six ministries and government offices are big enough to use the state school, and now the school building of the state school is nearly half vacant, and Zhao is standing and his subordinates are settled there. Brother Wu, what do you think? "I didn't want to take the favor of others, let alone occupy people's houses, so I chose a semi-deserted state school.

Wu Zilong was stunned for a moment, then stroked his palm and smiled: "The Ministry of War has asked me several times before, and I want to seize the state student dormitory to establish a barracks, but the Ministry of Rites has not allowed it, which makes me very embarrassed. Since Brother Zhao wants it, Cao Liangshi and Uncle Wang Ying have nothing to say. ”

Zhao Xingde didn't expect that there would be this story, the state school involved the dispute between the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War, but as soon as he said it, he had no regrets, he smiled and said: "The matter is urgent, I will accompany Uncle Wang Ying." When the war is settled, our army will return the barracks to the state school. "The Ministry of Rites is responsible for coordinating the state and county schools and even preparing for the establishment of Taixue. Because the state and county schools have the authority to discuss political affairs and elect officials, the Ministry of Rites has a great influence in the Prime Minister's Mansion. Although now due to the critical military situation, everything is focused on the war, but Zhao Xingde does not want to have a grudge with Uncle Wang Ying, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites.

"Wonderful, Uncle Ying often says, it's a pity for Yuan Zhizhi to put pen to paper," Wu Zilong knew his intentions, and said with a smile: "I heard that Brother Zhao preaches and teaches every day in the army, and there are still twenty or thirty students in the state school, just listening to the teachings, these juniors are blessed." He paused and said apologetically, "Most of the state school students are recruited by various government offices, the school buildings are deserted, and the subordinates of the Yuan Zhi need to be repaired and cleaned before they are stationed. "This is also because of the dispute between the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War, the number of students in the state school is not enough, and the Ministry of War cannot send battalions to move in, and the Ministry of Household is even more reluctant to go into this troubled water.

"That's easy to say," Zhao Xingde said with a smile, "It's much better than camping in the wild." ”

Wu Zilong only saved it, Zhao Xingde joined the army, and the cleanliness of the house was far less picky than ordinary Confucian students, he looked at the other party's face full of wind and frost, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart. After the two parted, Zhao Xingde arranged for Ma Rui, Yang Zaixing and others to lead their cavalry to be stationed in the state school. There was a pond called "Smart Pond" in the school, which was used for drinking horses. After Zhao Xingde set up the government office, Xi was not warm and began to take over the defense of Ezhou. He divided the county and township soldiers in the city into six divisions, each of which fought for two hours, and the other battalions rested behind the city walls, as a long-lasting strategy for recuperation. Because the east was the focus of the attack of the Xiangyang army, Zhao Xingde sent Ma Rui to take charge of the defense of the eastern city, and Yang Zaixing selected 3,000 elites from the township soldiers, with the 600 elite soldiers who returned as the backbone, and imitated the system of the Baoyi Army to form the Ya Bing Battalion in the center.

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

Chen Dong's face was a little strange: "In addition to the meaning of peace, Deng Su also brought two sentences. ”

"Oh? Cao Liangshi asked, "What did he say?" ”

"Dead lips and cold teeth." Chen Dong said slowly, "The people are precious, the community is secondary, and the monarch is light." ”

"What is he doing, accusing me of ignoring the overall situation?" Cao Liangshi snorted dissatisfiedly, "Could it be that the envoy absconded, disregarded the mission of the imperial court, served the usurper thief, and colluded with the traitorous party, so that he was a righteous man and a gentleman?" Deng Su assisted Zhao Qi, and the elders in the society were quite embarrassed, and even talked about this person. Like Chen Dong, Cao Liangshi, etc., they read a nostalgia for the past, and sometimes regretted the secret investment of the pearl. Now Deng Su is in turn responsible for righteousness, which suddenly made Cao Liangshi deeply dissatisfied.

"Let's not talk about it." Chen Dong groaned, "The sentence of dead lips and cold teeth is not a lie. In the battle of Jiangzhou, Yue, Zhao and Han joined forces to narrowly defeat a partial division of the Liao army. Now that the army of Yelu Dashi is heading south, if the army of Xiangyang is defeated, we will not be able to support it alone. I have asked Xingzhi, the Liao army is mostly cavalry, as short as three days, as long as more than ten days, and then the army is under the city of Ezhou. Chen Dong sighed, "The situation is like this, if we fight with ourselves, we will let the Liao thieves sit and reap the profits in vain." You and I are both sinners of the Great Song Dynasty. ”

Cao Liangshi was silent for a moment and then said: "Yuan Zhi knows the soldiers, he is knowledgeable, why don't Shaoyang discuss with him?" ”

"Yuan Zhi?" Chen Dong looked at the waves on the river, and three gunboats were moored in the middle of the river. It was this ghost that sent the gunboats that came to the aid of the gods to prevent the Xiangyang army from conquering Ezhou in one fell swoop, and bought time for the reinforcements. However, to this day, Chen Dong does not understand the details of these three gunboats, although they are friends and not enemies, he is still deeply jealous in his heart. His face changed several times, he took a deep breath, turned his head to look around the pavilion, there was no one else, and said softly: "Each is his master, and Yuan Zhi's position is probably different from you and me." ”

"What?" Cao Liangshi was surprised, "How do you say this?" ”

"This is not a trivial matter, and no one else should know about it." Chen Dong looked left and right again, was silent for a moment, and said slowly: "For more than ten years, Yuan Zhi has been living in Guanxi under the pseudonym Zhao De, and he has already been out of the Xia Kingdom. Over the years, he fought for the south and north of the Xia Kingdom, made countless military achievements, made a marquis, and became a general. His sudden appearance in the southeast, in addition to being angry with righteousness, was also the meaning of the Xia State Protector's Mansion and the General's Mansion. ”

"Is that so?" Cao Liangshi's eyes widened, his mouth opened wide, and asked, "Zhao De fought against 100,000 Liao troops with 3,000 troops in Nanshan City, he is Yuan Zhi?" He paused and exclaimed, "No wonder,...... No wonder. He sighed a few times, but didn't say what it was, "no wonder."

"Although I can trust Yuan Zhi, each is his own master," Chen Dong sighed: "It is not appropriate to discuss peace with Xiangyang after all, and it will also make him embarrassed." The abacus of the Xia State to protect the country is to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, and first consume the strength of our dynasty and the Liao State. If I don't fight for myself and the orthodoxy is severed, Xia Guo will just send troops to Kanto to clean up the mess. ”

"But," Cao Liangshi pondered, "if my dynasty is overthrown, and the Liao army occupies the Kwantung River, I'm afraid it's not what the Protectorate wants to see, right?" ”

"But what if Xia Guo is too busy to take care of himself? It is said that the Xia Guo'an Western Military Division is suppressing the Rus rebellion, and they can't pull out their hands, otherwise, they should have sent troops a long time ago, and they wouldn't just help us through Shuzhong so painlessly. Chen Dong said, shook his head, and said, "Besides, what do we think about Xia Guo?" This is my Da Song business, we have done a good job, and outsiders will naturally have no gaps. We don't do well ourselves, so we fall into looking at other people's faces! There was an unpleasant hint in his tone.

Cao Liangshi listened, nodded, and sighed: "The matter is big, the so-called sky has no two days, and there are no two masters in the country." Since we worship the saints under the name of 'respecting the Son of Heaven and not obeying chaotic orders', the orthodox title is the most important. If you talk about peace with Xiangyang, I am afraid that if the peace is discussed, most of the people's hearts will be scattered first. Cai Jing and Cao Di occupy the righteous position, just wait for the difficulties in front of them to pass, and then go back to clean up and wait for me, it is a man-made sword, and I am a fish. He paused and said bitterly, "Shaoyang, don't forget Hou Xiongfei's case and how the traitors dealt with us." ”

"I remember," Chen Dong took a deep breath, his eyes revealed a deep hatred, recalling when he absconded from Beijing for exposing the case, and was drenched in urine by the official who searched the ship on the way, he gritted his teeth and said, "Ice and charcoal are different furnaces, and good and evil are not separated." ”

Cao Liangshi breathed a sigh of relief, and Chen Dong said again: "The army of the Liao State is menacing, and since Deng Su is responsible for righteousness, it is inconvenient for us to turn a deaf ear." If Xiangyang wants to join forces with us, there must be a condition, the name of righteousness should not be confused, Zhao Qi went to the emperor to call himself the king of Song, and swore to the heavens that if the saint returns to the country, he will return to the throne, and he will not usurp the matter. He said word by word, very firmly, "What do you think?" "The so-called sky-high asking price, pay back on the spot. This condition is almost impossible for Zhao Qi to agree, if he can agree, even if Chen Dong respects Zhao Qi as the king, he will not lose his righteous name. Of course, if Zhao Ke has been trapped in the Liao State, or even died, then the country will naturally be owned by Zhao Qi, this is a later story, and people in the world can't say anything.

"Good!" Cao Liangshi high-fived and said, in this way, not only does not lose the name of righteousness, but also does not fall into the mouth of "ignoring the overall situation", if Zhao Qi is unwilling, he will become the throne of Lianzhan instead. Cao Liangshi pondered for a moment, and then said: "With the name of righteousness, we must also prevent traitors from disregarding honesty and shame and subduing us with military force." At present, the three armies of Baoyi, Zhenguo, and Henghai combined, there are only more than 20,000 elite soldiers. And Zhao Qi and the traitorous party have won the three major camps in Xijing, Hedong, and southeast, with no less than two or three hundred thousand elite soldiers. Liu Yanqing first scratched his way in, and then lost Xiangyang, such a mediocre general, and then let him take charge of the southeast camp, he could only miss the military affairs. If the two sides want to join forces, they must divide the military power of Xiangyang, remove Liu Yanqing's southeast camp and deploy the commandery, and change it to Yue Pengju. ”

"Yue Pengju?"

Cao Liangshi saw Chen Dong's brows furrowed, he didn't answer, and said in a low voice: "The general of the army, Zhao Yuanzhi is the general of the Xia Kingdom, Han Shizhong is used by Hou Huanyin, we have no one else to rely on except Yue Pengju." His tone was a little regretful, "It's a pity that many juniors in the society have joined the army, but none of them have become big weapons, and most of them are just commanders and heads." In the Baoyi Army, except for Yuan Zhi, there is no one who can take charge alone. ”

"Juniors in the army......" Chen Dong repeated in a low voice, he had also arranged for his soldiers to join the Zhenguo Army, but they were either taken in by Yue Fei for his own use or forced to withdraw. In the eyes of the ministers of the Society, only the Baoyi Army is truly reliable, and most of the scholars are willing to work under Zhao Xingde. However, Zhao Xingde did not deliberately cultivate wings, but he allowed the literature and martial arts, and the soldiers in the army were extremely heartbroken, and because of the preaching in the army, many scholars regarded themselves as disciples of Yuanzhimen. If this is the case, Zhao Xingde can also be regarded as a protégé. But Zhao Xingde has already come out of the Xia Kingdom. If he really investigates it, if he turns his back on Xia and surrenders to Song, he will become a second minister. Chen Dong sighed and slammed his fist on the windowsill, "If it weren't for the case that forced Yuan Zhiyuan to go to Kansai, why wouldn't it be like this!" He hated and said: "The traitorous party misleads the country!" ”

"Alas—" Cao Liangshi sighed, "It's a pity, Yuan Zhi. ”

The two of them did not make a loud voice, but they startled a few crows that had stayed on the eaves and flew into the distance.

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

In the Ezhou official school, many scholars rushed to tell each other, and the students originally wanted to go to the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Rites to petition and drive away the soldiers stationed in the state school, but soon learned that the leading general was Zhao Yuanzhi, who everyone had admired for a long time, and the students suddenly changed their minds. Whenever Zhao Xingde goes to a place, he must preach and solve doubts, and there is no class of teaching, and the scholars have heard of the name for a long time, and they usually only hate to listen to it without a chance.

"Sword, sword?" Ruan Zhongdu was so anxious that he was sweating profusely, raised his head and asked, "Brother Zhang, Brother Bao, did you see my sword?" ”

Zhao Xingde was both civil and military, and all the soldiers thought about it, if they wanted to go to the army to listen to him preach, it was best to hang up their swords and make a show. The sword is a gentleman's weapon, and it is also worth wearing. Ruan Zhongdu had also bought a sword before, but he hadn't danced for a long time, and he didn't know where he had lost it.

"Ruan infantry, you can't wronged a good person like this." Zhang Weizhou said with a smile, he straightened the crown belt on the surface of the copper basin, "Besides, even if you find that sword, it will definitely rust to the point that it will not be shaped, and it will be slowly polished, and the sky will be bright." He looked outside and it was getting late, and it was nearly dusk, which was the time when the legendary Zhao Yuanzhi preached. Zhang Weizhou stood up and greeted his classmate Bao Guang.

"Wait," seeing the two Shi Shiran go out, Ruan Zhongdu hurriedly shouted, "Wait." Seeing Zhang Bao and the others walking in front and not stopping, Ruan Zhongdu couldn't help but sigh, "Two ungrateful guys, if I hadn't persuaded you to stay and study, how could you have the opportunity to listen to Mr. Zhao's preaching." He grumbled a few words, and couldn't help but quicken his pace and catch up.

The moon rises in the east mountain, the birds return to the forest, and the insects sing. Zhao Xingde knelt in front of several cases, looking at the state bachelors who were looking forward to it below. There were many soldiers in the Baoyi army, and some officers learned from them. But this time, most of the cavalry brought by the flying soldiers to aid Hubei were not good at this, so most of the people who sat down to listen to the lecture were the students of Ezhou.

Zhao Xingde cleared his throat, and the first thing to talk about this night was Mencius. His eyes were faintly clear, and his voice was a little hoarse.

"What is righteousness? Yi Qianwen said, the righteous, the sum of benefits. The sages also said, the righteous should also. Knowing right from wrong, standing up for it or not, and saying it is righteous. How is righteousness appropriate, and how can it be the sum of benefits? Look at the righteousness of husband and wife, the righteousness of friends, and the righteousness of kings and ministers. We are all ordinary people, each with a heart of self-interest, but with righteousness as a sword, we can judge the interests from it, so that each of them can get what is suitable. This is the original meaning of righteousness. Mencius's so-called sacrificing one's life to take righteousness is to take what is appropriate and walk in a straight way. However, righteousness has a big and small, if the two are weighed, we should give up the small righteousness and the whole righteousness, which is exactly what the principle of 'the people are precious, the community is secondary, and the monarch is light'. ”

Zhao Xingde slowly quoted the commentaries and comments of the famous masters of the past dynasties, and did not pretend to be dazzling, and then quoted the figures of the present to explain the gist of "sacrificing one's life for righteousness". The so-called "the higher must be based on the below", he is well-informed and does not stick to the theories of his predecessors. Song Confucianism is the most important Mencius, and this passage is extremely proficient by state scholars, and it is still listened to with relish. When Zhao Xingde talked about Zhang Bing's death in prison, all the scholars seemed to have experienced it, and even if some people wept with their wrists. More than 20 state students listened quietly until the explanation was over, and no one asked questions.