Yang Mansion, in the courtyard near the bank of the Qinhuai River, Yang Lian was holding a fishing rod in his hand and was fishing. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

Fu Yanqing was half lying on the Taishi chair on the side, and he was also holding a fishing rod in his hand, but in a moment, a fish was hoisted up, and the fish basket next to Fu Yanqing was already full of fish, five or six with the width of a palm.

There was no fish in the fishing basket beside Yang Lian, and since the fishing rod was put down, Yang Lian's fishing rod has never been raised. Yang Lian was not nervous, with a comfortable look on his face, Fu Yanqing put down the fishing rod, frowned, and said, "Yang Lian, didn't you put the bait?" ”

Yang Lian smiled and said, "Naturally, there is." ”

Fu Yanqing is even more strange, there are bait, why can't the fish only hook Yang Lian's hook? Puzzled, Zhao Peng hurriedly walked over and said, "Master, then Guo Rong is here again." ”

Yang Lian smiled, put down the fishing rod, and said, "You take him to the study and wait for me." ”

"Yes!" Zhao Peng left in a hurry.

Fu Yanqing frowned, for Yang Lian and Guo Rong, his emotions were complicated, although Yang Lian had not officially married Fu Jinzhan as his wife, but he gave a lot of dowry back then. Whether it is Yang Lian or Guo Rong, they are both his sons-in-law, and the two are brothers-in-law, Fu Yanqing naturally doesn't want the two to have any disputes or even hostility, but now it seems that it is obviously impossible.

Yang Lian slowly stood up, stared at the sunset on the horizon, and said with a smile: "This fish has already been hooked." With that, he paced away.

Fu Yanqing looked at the willow branches in the river, stood up with some surprise, walked a few steps, grabbed Yang Lian's fishing rod, raised it to take a look, but found that Yang Lian's fishing hook was straight at all, where can I catch fish?

In the study, after Zhao Peng brought Guo Rong in, he said that he was going to make tea, so he retreated. There was no one in the study for the time being, Guo Rong looked around a little bored, Yang Lian's study was very large, a big bookcase was full of books, Guo Rong walked over, and found that most of the bookcases were military books, and the footers of these books had been rolled up, obviously Yang Lian often flipped through these military books.

Guo Rong glanced back, Yang Lian hadn't come yet, he carefully took out a copy of "Wei Zizi", opened it and looked at it, the book was full of words, it was Yang Lian's annotation, the more Guo Rong looked at it, the more frightened he became, and hurriedly turned over a book of Wei Yizi, Guo Rong put it down, and pulled out a copy of "Wu Zi's Art of War", the book was pulled out, Guo Rong felt a little strange, there was obviously something in it.

Guo Rong took it out and saw that it was a letter with a person's name written on it, which surprised Guo Rong. He couldn't imagine that this person would betray Da Zhou. But if you think about it carefully, it is not impossible, the change of the Central Plains court is like turning a book, for example, Feng Dao is a courtier of several courts, and this person is no exception. And Guo Rong knew that although this person had a conflict with Yang Lian, he later escorted Yang Lian back to China, perhaps because the relationship between the two had progressed during that time.

Guo Rong cautiously wanted to open the letter to see the contents, at this time, he heard the sound of hurried footsteps, Guo Rong hurriedly hid the letter in his sleeve, put the book back in the distance, took a few steps back, put his hands behind his back, and squinted at the few paintings hanging in the room.

It was Zhao Peng who came in, holding tea in his hand, putting it on the desk, pouring a cup for Guo Rong, and said, "Please wait, the master will be here later." ”

Guo Rong nodded, Zhao Peng retreated, and closed the door. Guo Rong hurriedly took out the letter, this letter was written by Yang Lian, Guo Rong could only look at it, but could not take it. Hurriedly opened the letter, Guo Rong's face changed, in the letter, Yang Lian told the person to stay in Da Zhou with peace of mind, wait for the opportunity, four or five years later, one or two years at the earliest, Datang will go north, at that time, if there is this person as an internal response, Kaifeng is not difficult to take.

Guo Rong's face changed and changed, if this is the case, this person can't be unguarded. Guo Rong had just finished reading the letter when he heard the sound of soft footsteps, Guo Rong quickly walked to the edge of the bookcase very alertly, sandwiched the letter in "Wu Zi's Art of War", and then pretended that nothing had happened.

This time it was Yang Lian who came in, Yang Lian glanced at Guo Rong unhurriedly, and said lightly: "Brother Guo, you and I have met again." ”

Guo Rong remembered the scene in the Great Xiangguo Temple, couldn't help but nodded, and said: "Time is fleeting, I can't imagine that after a farewell, there will be two or three years." ”

Yang Lian walked to the desk, glanced at the bookcase casually, the corners of his mouth curled slightly, and after sitting down, he said, "Brother Guo still came to me so late, is there something wrong?" ”

Guo Rong's face cramped, thinking that the Tang Emperor had already ordered, don't you really know what I came to you for? But at this time, he was anxious to reach an armistice agreement with Datang, so he had to smile and say: "I heard that the emperor of Datang asked Yang Jiedu to be in charge of peace talks with Da Zhou, so he came to visit." ”

"Peace talks? Since it is a peace talk, I wonder what sincerity Brother Guo can have? Yang Lian's question was very direct.

Guo Rong was stunned for a moment, and he couldn't imagine that Yang Lian was so straightforward, and asked him directly about his interests, these **** had discussed with Li Hongji, the king of Yan, Sun Sheng, the prime minister, and others, and already had a general idea, he believed that if he put forward these conditions, even if Yang Lian did not agree, as long as he managed to let the Son of Heaven know, let the Tang courtiers know, Sun Sheng and others would support him.

Guo Rong coughed and expressed his willingness to provide fifty war horses every year, one thousand gold for iron and five thousand for cloth and silk to the Tang Dynasty, and in addition, the two countries were open to discussion and trade.

Yang Lian glanced at Guo Rong in some surprise and said, "What you said is this condition?" ”

Guo Rong couldn't see Yang Lian's attitude for a while, so he had to nod yes.

"Humph!" Yang Lian snorted coldly, his eyes raised, his eyes were like blades, scraping on Guo Rong's face, making Guo Rong a little unbearable.

"Guo Rong, are you calling Hanako?" Yang Lian asked.

"No, this is Da Zhou's sincerity." Guo Rong said busily.

"Sincerity, this is sincerity?" Yang Lian stood up, his eyes were full of banter, and said: "The Great Zhou is a big country, giving fifty war horses and 1,000 catties of iron every year, this little thing is not as much as a caravan, isn't the Great Zhou Empire as good as a mere caravan?" ”

"The Great Zhou has just been established, and the wealth is insufficient, I hope Yang Jiedu will forgive me!" Guo Rong said.

Yang Lian waved his hand and said, "Guo Rong, you and I have known each other for a while, you should know me." If Da Zhou's wealth is insufficient, then exchange it for land! Datang is not called Hanako, and will never accept this condition! This is an insult to Datang! ”

Guo Rong shook his head, he definitely didn't want to.

Yang Lian ignored him, pointed to the map hanging in the corner, and said: "I don't want much, now the Han still occupies Hedong, SD and other places, and the Tang Dynasty only needs Xuzhou and Suzhou, and Songzhou is not allowed to garrison more than 5,000 troops." In addition, the Great Zhou is not allowed to form alliances with Nanping, Wuyue and other countries, and I think it is easy to do a few requirements, right? ”

Guo Rong almost blurted out and said, "This can't be done." "Send the land to people, this is ****, it will be recorded in history, leaving infamy, no matter how you wash it, you can't wash it off.

"Why, you can't call the shots? Since you can't call the shots, then you go back first, wait for me to raise troops, and hunt with Guo Wei. Yang Lian said.

Guo Rong's chest rose and fell rapidly, and Yang Lian called Guo Wei's name, which seemed to him to be disrespectful, but he knew that at this time, he must not be angry, otherwise he would fall for Yang Lian's tricks. Guo Rong thought about it carefully, if Datang had room to send troops, he would not have accepted his father-in-law's request at the beginning, and Yang Lian, as a northern envoy, could not easily return to Jinling, and if he returned to Jinling, the offensive would inevitably come to an end, and it would be impossible to attack in a short time.

Yang Lian saw what Guo Rong was thinking, smiled, took out a book from the desk, handed it to him, and said, "Take a look." ”

The excerpt was written by Yang Lian to Li Jing, the Son of Heaven, in the excerpt, the details of the battle to the north, and to Chen Tie, Li Jinquan, Huang Fuhui and other generals of the three armies to ask for credit, Guo Rong looked at it quickly, especially when he saw the battle of Rencheng, his face couldn't help but change, he went south early, I don't know the detailed process of Guo Wei leading his troops to storm Rencheng after leaving.

According to Yang Lian's excerpts, the battle of the Great Zhou lost soldiers, there were 20,000 people, Lin Renzhao appeared in time to change the situation of this battle, Yang Lian especially for Lin Renzhao to ask for credit, hoping that the Son of Heaven appointed him as the Shuntian Festival envoy of Haichu and Chu Prefectures, and presided over the military affairs of the two states.

20,000 Great Zhou soldiers fell into the sand under the mere city, which Guo Rong did not expect, he originally thought that the more important reason for the retreat of his father-in-law came from the Khitans, but he did not think that Yang Lian's tenacity was also one of the important reasons. Guo Rong was a little hesitant, although the results of this excerpt were exaggerated to a certain extent.

Thinking of his father-in-law asking him to make peace quickly, this excerpt seems a little real and credible. Guo Rong definitely did not want the nascent Great Zhou regime to collapse, otherwise his imperial dream would be shattered.

Guo Rong pursed his lips, there was no result for half a sound, Yang Lian didn't care, waved his hand, and said: "Since you haven't figured it out, you might as well go back and think about it again, but I have to tell you that you don't have much time, three days, I will only give you three days, otherwise, I will meet Brother Bing." ”

Yang Lian said, called Zhao Peng and asked him to send Guo Rong out of the house.

Guo Rong left with a hesitant expression, and when he returned to Honglu Temple, he immediately repaired a book and sent it back to Da Zhou as soon as possible.

Yang Lian also didn't wait long, he wrote a letter, and proposed to the Son of Heaven the ten strategies for crusading against the north, Li Jing immediately took it out and discussed it in the court, and some of the ministers agreed and some opposed.

Those who agree believe that Guo Wei rebelled and lost the hearts of the people, and now the Son of Heaven of the Han Kingdom is in Jinling, he is here to move the rescue soldiers, as long as he is in his name, he will be famous and invincible. Moreover, the Great Zhou is being invaded by the Khitan and Liu Chong in Hedong, Kaifeng, Luoyang, Xiangyang and other places are empty, and the envoys of various places are also in harmony with each other.

Those who oppose it believe that although the Great Zhou is facing a strong enemy, the same is true of the Tang Dynasty, the war between Changzhou and the Wu Yue people is becoming more and more intense, and it is not yet known who will kill the deer, if the Tang Dynasty draws troops to the north, Jinling's troops will be more empty, once Changzhou changes, Jinling will be in danger.

The opinions of the ministers are reasonable, but most of those who support Yang Lian's Northern Expedition are the courtiers of the party of King Qi, and those who oppose it are the party of King Yan, represented by Prime Minister Sun Sheng. The debate in the court lasted for a full day, and the ministers who argued for a day did not get a result, and Li Jing was undecided.

After the dispersal of the dynasty, it was already dark, Sun Sheng and Zhou Zong hurried to the Yan Wang's mansion and told the Yan King about the matter. While several people were discussing, Guo Rong came again.

Guo Rong really didn't sleep well in the past two days, the huge pressure made him have wrinkles on his forehead, his originally clear and bright eyes also became a little cloudy, his eyelids were blue, and he didn't rest well at first glance, and the whole person looked very tired.

When Sun Sheng saw him like this, he said, "Guo Rong, who are you?" ”

"Alas!" Guo Rong sighed and told him what had happened.

Li Hongji pursed his lips and didn't speak, Yang Lian's heart was too ruthless, but it was very much in line with Li Hongji's appetite, if the two were not enemies, Li Hongji wanted to make friends with Yang Lian based on this alone.

Zhou Zong lightly knocked on the case table and said, "Life in the world is not for money, or for power. Yang Lian, as the envoy of the festival, is also the quasi-son-in-law of the king of Qi, and it can be said that he has great power, so thinking about it, he must also be interested in money. Guo Rong, you might as well bribe him with money. ”

After all, Li Hongji is a member of the royal family, and he knows some inside stories, so he shook his head when he heard the words, and said: "Yang Lian, he is not short of money, and this king got the news that he gives his father hundreds of loads of salt every year." ”

Zhou Zong gasped, he knew that the Son of Heaven had sent someone to sell a batch of very good quality salt, and he made a lot of money, but he didn't know the origin of the salt, and he didn't expect that it was provided by Yang Lian. Since Yang Lian can give the Son of Heaven hundreds of loads of salt, then he will inevitably have more in his hands, and he will not be short of money.

Sun Sheng's eyes lit up and said, "The old man has a way." Although Yang Lian said that he was not short of money, Guo Rong pretended to be a bribe, no matter whether Yang Lian accepted it or not, we can't bring it down if we let people impeach, but if it can make the Son of Heaven angry, and then seize the right to negotiate peace with Da Zhou, it is also excellent. ”

Zhou Zong stroked his beard, he was not sure if this plan would work, but this plan seemed to be the most likely to be realized, as long as the Son of Heaven changed to let others preside over the peace talks, things would be much easier.

Guo Rong pursed his lips, thought about it carefully, sighed, stood up, and said, "No matter what, you have to give it a try, and at that time, I will ask you for help, Guo is grateful." Thank you so much! ”

Zhou Zongdao: "You can rest assured of this. ”

Guo Rong bowed deeply to the three of them and retreated.

Li Hongji smiled bitterly and said, "Jian is in the emperor's heart, I am not optimistic about this method. ”

Sun Sheng shook his head, he couldn't make up his mind, and several people discussed for a while, but they never had a good idea. The sky is getting darker and darker, Zhou Zong and Sun Sheng stood up and said goodbye, if they don't leave, they will have a curfew, although the two are first-class officials in the imperial court, but if the Son of Heaven knows that they have a close relationship with King Yan, it is also very bad.

Li Hongji sent the two away and paced around the room. He is really unwilling to be taken away from his rights, during this period of dormancy, he has secretly raised more than a hundred dead soldiers, all of whom are fierce men who can fight one against ten, if there is really such a day, he doesn't mind fighting to the death.

Guo Rong returned to Honglu Temple, asked Zhao Kuangyin to prepare money, and went out to buy a lot of gifts on the second day, pulled by a carriage, and walked towards Yang's mansion in a mighty way.

The group stopped at the gate of Yang's mansion, Guo Rong walked up quickly and knocked on the door, Zhao Peng soon appeared, and saw Guo Wei coming with seven or eight people, as well as a carriage, and couldn't help but smile.

Guo Rong took out a silver ingot and stuffed it to Zhao Peng, who happily took Guo Rong into the mansion and went straight to the study. (To be continued.) )