The military situation was urgent, and there were only three days left for Han Gang to straighten out his outfits.

Han Gang did not delay, he made all the preparations, handed over the official duties, said goodbye to his family, and three days later, his majesty resigned, and then left Beijing.

The reaction to Han Gang's appointment as the envoy of the Hedong Road in the capital tended to be positive, and there were only a few people who had enough ability and prestige to guard Hedong at the moment, no matter how it was calculated, Han Gang was one of them.

"Guarding the east of the river, any waiter can be competent in ordinary times. However, in today's situation, in addition to Guo Kui, Wang Shao and Zhang Dan, there is only Han Gang. Zhao Yu and Kumamoto are still a little close. ”

On top of Liu Lou in the west of the city, Zhao Tingzhi, who had just finished his first term of judgment and returned to Beijing, was also discussing recent current affairs with his companions.

"Han San went to Hedong, so he can sleep more steadily at night."

Qiang Yuanming looked down at the Bianshui downstairs by the railing, and the river was murmuring, which came from the West Water Gate.

Just yesterday, Han Gang and his entourage of dozens of people went out of the city from this gate, first along the Bianshui to the Yellow River, and then crossed the river to Taiyuan.

"I'm afraid you still can't sleep well in the hidden season."

A familiar voice sounded in the corridor outside the room. Liu Lou ranked last among the seventy-two main stores, and it was not for nothing that the sound of conversation in the room could be transmitted outside the door.

Zhao Tingzhi and Qiang Yuanming were not annoyed by this, but got up to greet each other with a smile. The door was pushed inward, and Cai Jing stepped in.

"Chief, you've finally arrived." Qiang Yuanming's cheerful Da Lu smiled, "It's been so late, I thought you weren't coming." ”

"It's okay for you to be strong and hidden, you can see your face familiar every day, but it's rare for your husband and brother to go back to Beijing, how can you not come?" Cai Jing waved his hand towards Zhao Tingzhi, "I haven't congratulated my husband and brother for getting a noble son." In the future, the princes will be blessed for a long time. ”

"Duo Cheng Yuan Chang Ji Yan." Zhao Tingzhi hurriedly returned the salute.

"Yuan Chief, you will be able to whet people's appetites." Qiang Yuanming is the same year as Cai Jing and Zhao Tingzhi, and they have a very good friendship, and they don't care about any etiquette, so they grabbed Cai Jing, "What do you mean by what you said earlier?" ”

"Is something wrong again?" Zhao Tingzhi also asked nervously.

Cai Jing glanced at the two of them on the left and right, and he didn't sell it, and said bluntly: "Wang Shao died of illness." ”

“…… Wang Shao is dead?! Zhao Tingzhi and Qiang Yuanming exclaimed at the same time.

"Hmm." Cai Jing nodded, "Wang Shao became ill not long after he went out. The abdomen was full of carbuncles, and gradually the skin festered, and the medicine stone was difficult to save. ”

"Insight into the five internal organs...... Zhao Tingzhi swallowed dryly, what kind of miserable situation should it be.

Qiang Yuanming's face was also pale, and he didn't know what to say for a while.

Cai Jing sat down with a golden knife, took a silver cup, and poured wine for himself, "The local horses are in a hurry to deliver the news to Beijing, and the younger brother also heard about it after an errand under the Zhongshu Gate, and his testament will take a while to arrive in the capital." He drank all the wine in the cup and took a long sip of wine: "The loss of a general in battle is a bad omen, but what about the loss of a handsome minister?" ”

Qiang Yuanming and Zhao Tingzhi were shocked, but also full of regret.

When it comes to military affairs, Wang Shao is the first in the art of war among the real civil servants, and even Han Gang is from his subordinates, and Zhang Dian is less old than him. Now that the war is coming, the Son of Heaven can let Han Gang go out, just because he has already issued an order to summon Wang Shao to Beijing. Although it has been rumored that Wang Shao is sick, everyone thinks that it will not be so simple to die.

"Cai Zizheng just passed away......" Qiang Yuanming sat down with a wry smile.

Zhao Tingzhi also sat down and sighed: "Wang Zichun and Cai Zizheng are gone, and the marshals of the two prefectures, who are good at using soldiers, now there is only one Zhang Dun left. After a pause, he added, "Guo Kui is actually not bad, but he is a military general after all!" ”

"Yuan Chang." Qiang Yuanming leaned over and asked Cai Jing, "Do you think the Son of Heaven will send an edict to summon Han San back?" ”

"Han San has left Beijing and gone north, where is it possible to recall him back?" Cai Jing laughed, "If it was three days ago, it would have been possible to send someone else to Hedong." But His Majesty resigned, and recalled him again, as if the court would not be able to do anything without him. Which Zaisuke is willing to lose this face? ”

"That's right." Qiang Yuanming smiled and sat up straight again, "Today, I also invited Yuandu [Cai Bian], but unfortunately he wrote a receipt and pushed it." Yuanchang, you haven't heard anything from Yuandu? ”

"What else can you do, Taixue case!" Cai Jing suddenly raised his voice, "The crime of the Taixue case is to take it privately when it is recommended to be exempted from the examination and the Ministry of Rites. This is tantamount to fraud, and it is not impossible to take a few people's heads out to warn future generations. ”

Qiang Yuanming shook his head: "Yu Zhuangyuan has been detained in the Imperial History Terrace, if he is taken away for crime, it will be the first time since the founding of the country." ”

"My little brother has heard about it." Zhao Tingzhi also said, "I didn't expect it to be so big, no wonder Yuandu wants to close the door." ”

Cai Bian once studied under Wang Anshi and was a descendant of the new lineage, so it was only a few years before he gave a direct lecture in Guozijian.

Since the establishment of the three-way method, Taixue has expanded its enrollment, and the number of scholars in the Guozijian has increased day by day, and they are basically all new students. Under their teaching, the new school has continued to grow. Nowadays, the direct lectures, lectures, and teaching assistants in Guozijian have been involved in the Taixue case one by one, and now only Cai Bian and a few other people are left to support the overall situation. Most of the scholars involved in the Taixue case will not escape the derogatory reprimand, and in serious cases, they will even chase down the words since they were born, and the scholars who take their place will not be Xinxuezhong.

"Didn't Lu participate in politics have news that he would soon be Xuanma? Why did you make the momentum of the Taixue case so big? ”

"Li Ding wants to clear himself, and it is impossible for his subordinates to show mercy. Shu Yan wants to make a name, but he will only torture him. In fact, it was more because of Su Shi, if it weren't for the release of the Son of Heaven, Yushitai would be disgraced, and he would not be in a hurry to save face on the Taixue case. Cai Jingha smiled, "Even if Li Ding and Shu Yan are biased towards the new law, they have to think about themselves, and Lu Xianggong will become Lu Xianggong when he participates in politics, and he can't hold back his position." ”

……………………

As time passed, the news from the northwest became more and more depressing.

Huanqing Gao Zunyu and Jingyuan Miao, the two abandoned Weizhou and led the remnants to withdraw to the territory. Wang Zhongzheng, who commanded the two roads of Qin Feng and Xihe, was unable to support it alone, and also led his division back through the Hulu River. Li Xian led the Hedong Army to leave Yinxia and stationed at Mida Cave.

The mighty six-way launch two months ago has vanished after a rout under Lingzhou City. At this time, only Yan Yanlu was left, trying his best to maintain the face of the imperial court. The officers and troops led by Chong Ge were entrenched in the land of Yinxia, and they looked like they were going to fight to the death with the iron harriers of the party. It's just that he himself has returned to Yinzhou, and this contrast makes people feel very puzzled.

The atmosphere of Hedong and Hebei roads is becoming more and more dignified, although the Liao people have not yet moved, but everyone knows that Lu Dao is equivalent to a bow and arrow, although it is peaceful, but the undercurrent is turbulent in private. If you are not careful, you are likely to be counterattacked by the party.

As the situation in the northwest is becoming more and more tense, it attracts everyone's attention. Continuing to march forward, Wang Sunchen, who had already captured Ganzhou, did not set off a ripple in the capital with his exploits. Even if he can recover Hexi, under the pressure of the Liao people who may go south, he may be captured by Western Xia in the blink of an eye.

But the situation in the world in early July was unusually calm.

Western Xia did not move, and the Liao State also did not move. During this time, the war seemed to have ceased to exist.

Until July 11, Hedong and Hebei came to report at the same time that the palace tent of the Liao lord had left Yuanyang Luo and began to march in the direction of Nanjing Road.

The Liao lord moved to Qiushan in July to hunt, and in September to Yanjing to observe the military and political affairs of Nanjing, such a patrol route was often seen in the past. But now, the taste has changed.

It is quite possible that this will be the beginning of the war. But some people think that this is Yelu Yixin bluffing, just trying to extort more coins from the imperial court.

However, no one dared to clearly stand up and say that Yelu Yixin would never raise troops to the south. It's easy to make a judgment, but it's undoubtedly not difficult to be sure of oneself, and the difficulty is to put all one's net worth and life on it.

No one dared to gamble, and the Son of Heaven was shocked from then on. Along with the Tokyo castle, it is also average.

A few days later, the envoys sent by the Liao State knocked on the pass in Xiongzhou, claiming that they were ordered by the new emperor of the Liao State and the Shang's father Yelu Yixin to persuade the Southern Dynasty to collect troops.

It is not to congratulate the Son of Heaven and the Queen Mother of the Two Palaces on their birthdays, nor is it to celebrate the New Year's Day, and the temporary envoys must obtain the permission of the Son of Heaven before they can be allowed to enter the mainland.

After learning the identity of the envoys of the Liao State, Zhao Ji and every Zaizhi had plans to turn them away.

It was an old friend, Xiao Xi, who was very familiar to the monarchs and ministers of the Great Song Dynasty.

However, the new monarch of Liao was named Yanxi, and in order to avoid secrecy, Xiao Xi changed his name to the name of the table and changed his name to Xiao Haili. It's just that here in Tokyo City, he still habitually uses his old name.

Back then, Xiao Xi forced Zhao Ji to cede the land of Daibei, and there were even rumors outside that he gave up 700 miles in one go, which made Zhao Ji sulk for a while. Now that Xiao Xi has returned, he doesn't need to think about it to know the Tao, it must be Yelu Yixin who wants to use his rich experience in blackmail.

With the current situation in the world, it is impossible to turn away the envoys of the Liao State and show bitter hostility, but if it is too conniving, it will also appear timid, and it will make Xiao Xi, a greedy person, gain an inch.

Before they could discuss what to do, at a banquet, the drunken Xiao Xi revealed the contents of the letter of state—of course, deliberately—that the guards of Xiongzhou used gold medals to expedite the terms demanded by the Liao people to the capital.

It's very simple, just two.

But each one made Zhao Ji angry:

First, withdraw troops from Western Xia, a subject state of the Great Liao. Second, the annual coin increased by 100,000 taels of silver and 100,000 pieces of silk. In addition, there is also a bypassing requirement to teach the pox method to Daliao.

If you don't follow, please hunt in the Central Plains.