In August, the commander of the Sichuan-Shaanxi Xuanfu Disposal Department went to Xingyuan Mansion to hold a routine military meeting. At this time of year, if there is no war, a regular meeting is held, and the main topic is "autumn prevention". And this year, because of the end of the alliance with the Khitans, the meeting is particularly important. Jingyuan, Huanqing, and Yanyan all said that the Liao army did not act abnormally, and the border exchanges were as usual. It seems that Ma Kuo's personal visit to Yelu Tiege has made a difference. Yan Yanshuai Xu Hong arrived halfway through the meeting, and he went to Hangzhou for the funeral because of his mother's death.

Zhang Jiujiu and Zhu Jilan of Wuwei County Wangfu began to play in the afternoon, and in the evening, a rich banquet was already placed in the huā hall of the Junwang Mansion. Yang Yan was the first to come, and as soon as he arrived at the palace, he was pestered by Xu Hu to play. When Zhang Qing came, he happened to see him coming back with Xu Hu on his back, but the little thing was already asleep on his back.

"I wonder, you said they are all uncles, why does this kid like you so much?" Zhang Qing quipped.

Yang Yan handed the sleeping child to Zhu Jilan, and then turned around and said: "You have a black face, the doll is afraid when it sees you, and when it gets dark, I can't see you." ”

"Get out! I heard that you are asking for another room? Hey, when are you going to be the head? Zhang Qing asked.

"How do you know? I didn't do anything. Yang Yan asked.

"Don't talk about it, is there something I don't know about in Sichuan and Shaanxi? You haven't done anything yet? has no skin and no face, if you ask for ten rooms, we have to give you ten gifts? Zhang Qing said with a smile.

The two brothers were used to arguing when they were stunned in Xujiazhuang in the past, and now they perform their own duties, and it is rare for them to meet in Pingsuli, so they start to quarrel as soon as they touch. If you don't know, you think that they don't like each other, but in fact, people are enjoying it. Xu Wei also took this into consideration, so he took advantage of the military meeting to hold such a family banquet and gather the brothers.

"Zhang Qing's words are not right." Ma Kuo's voice came from outside. This person was upright, the person didn't arrive, the sound came first, Zhang Qing and Yang Yan twisted their heads and looked at it for a long time before they waited until he appeared in the light. came with him, as well as Xu Cheng, the pacification envoy of Jingyuan Jinglu and the head of the soldiers and horses, who had just been turned positive.

"Why not?" Zhang Qing asked.

"Who doesn't know that Chang'an City is now busy and all industries are thriving? If Yang Dashuai asks for ten concubines, don't we just go to play ten times? Why not? In Yang Dashuai's style, if we go to Chang'an, can he let you and me break the bank? Ma Kuo said deliberately.

Yang Yan laughed when he heard it: "I knew you didn't have a good heart!" ”

A few people talked and laughed, and Yang Yan suddenly said: "Hey, why hasn't Fifth Brother Xu come yet?" ”

At this time, Zhang Jiujiu, who was busy at the table, said: "The fifth brother has already come, talking to the king inside." When the people heard this, they stopped asking. Mrs. Xu died, and Xu Jing returned to the funeral, and there must be something to say between their cousins. Yang Yan circled around the table for half a circle, and sighed: "I love to eat the dishes of the king's house, and the restaurants in Chang'an City can't compare, when will the banquet start?" ”

"I said that you are also a town festival envoy, dignified and handsome, why is this deity? Ask huāzi to marry a daughter and say eat! ”

Under the melon shelf in the backyard of the palace, the two brothers Xu Wu and Xu Jiu were brewing a pot of tea, sitting on a cold board, and the tea had already been drunk. Among the brothers of the Xu family, Xu Jiu originally had the most ordinary relationship with these five brothers, and basically had no intersection. But later I found out that Xu Wu is a person who can be confided, he is the kind of person you can absolutely trust and can bare-ass with him.

"When I left, the sixth child was afraid that you would have ideas, so he repeatedly asked me to see you and explain it to you clearly. He was really forced to have no choice, and the official family had the queen to pinch him, and he was threatened by Ding Wei, so he had to bring King Lapin to power, and forced him to agree to negotiate peace. Therefore, as a last resort, I can only agree. Xu Hong said in a consistently low voice.

Xu Wei drank. tea, smacked his lips and said: "Although I am not good at the difficulties of the sixth brother, I can also understand it." It's just that I have no opinion on Zhe Yanzhi coming to power, and I have no opinion on the negotiation of peace, and it is really not considered to abandon the Song-Liao Alliance. ”

"How can the sixth child not know what is at stake? But he also knew that the last article in this peace negotiation was actually what the Jurchens cared about the most. If we do not agree to this article, there will be no way to negotiate peace. Xu Hong said.

Xu Wei snorted: "Zhao Guan's family wants to talk about peace like this? He is in the deep palace, does he really know the suffering of the people? ”

"What is the consideration of the people's suffering, it is for Liu Guangguo. I heard the sixth child say that in fact, the official family doesn't care whether to negotiate peace or not, all he cares about is the queen. And what the queen cares about is her mother's family. Liu Guangguo fought Shandong, let Yelu Ma Wu fight people on their backs, and retreated all the way back to Xuzhou. But he still thinks about the title of the county king, and this peace is actually negotiated between him and Yelu Ma Wuxian. As soon as the peace was settled, he was crowned the 'King of Beihai County'" Xu Hongdao.

Xu Wei smiled disdainfully and didn't say anything.

"The Zhao official family is probably afraid that you are emotional, and it is also written in the canonization edict that you are under the king of Wuwei County." Xu Hong added.

"Someone gave birth to a queen's daughter, so naturally he should be proud, I don't blush. Don't say that the king of the county, even if he is crowned king, I have no opinion. I don't know what King Lin thinks. Xu Wei said with a smile.

Hearing him mention King Lin, Xu Hong sighed: "The sixth child is very sad for King Lin, and now he and King Lin have overlapping powers, and two people have to decide everything together." The so-called one mountain does not tolerate two tigers, and this battle is inevitable. ”

When Xu Wei heard this, he also said: "Zhe Yan has some friendship with me, I know that this person is not easy to match." However, with what I know about him, it is unlikely that he will go toe-to-toe with the sixth brother in order to curry favor with the emperor. After all, he is the leader of the Anti-Japanese War, and on this general principle, he has the same position as Sixth Brother. It's just that the Xu family is now the two major generals, and the top intends to set our two families against each other, and there must be contradictions. ”

"Anyway, the sixth child just asked me to tell you, don't think about it, just manage your own land. There is our brother in Sichuan and Shaanxi, and he also has confidence in the court. Now it is temporarily obscure, waiting for the times to change. Xu Hong said.

"What does the sixth brother mean by time change?" Xu Wei asked.

"Between Song and Jin, there must be a war." Xu Hong said in a deep voice.

"He knows that, and I'm a little relieved." Xu Wei sighed.

The two brothers were silent for a while, and Xu Wei suddenly asked a clueless question: "Fifth brother, what do you say is the ideal destination for us martial artists?" ”

Xu Wu almost didn't think about it: "Since ancient times, the ideal pursued by those who lead soldiers is either a horse leather shroud, or after success, they will be unarmed and return to the field." ”

"If the Horse Leather Shroud were to fall, if you were to be disarmed and returned to the field now, would you be willing?" Xu Wei asked meaningfully.

Xu Wu didn't know if he understood what his cousin meant, and replied, "If it had to be so, I didn't say it." ”

Xu Wei said again: "What if it doesn't have to be like this? ”

"I am a handsome Yan, and the prefect of Yan'an, I am in charge of the army on the horse and the people on the horse, but it is also good." Xu Hong admitted.

Xu Wei laughed when he heard this: "Don't worry, fifth brother, it's not so easy for you to disarm." Let's go, the food and drinks are ready, and our brothers will definitely get drunk today! ”

After Song and Jin negotiated peace, the two countries fulfilled their responsibilities in accordance with the peace treaty, and they did not mention it. Wanyan Liang because of the merit of peace, not long after he concurrently served as the marshal of the capital, he was worshiped by the Jin Emperor as the Taibao, led the three provinces, and became a unique real power figure in the Jin court, and his momentum far overshadowed that of the left prime minister Wanyan Zongxian, and his power was extremely inflated! Among them, Queen Pei Manshi contributed a lot.

As the saying goes, the extremes of things must be reversed, the moon is full and the moon is lost, and the water is full and overflowing. Crawling too fast and falling hurts. On this day, it is Wan Yanliang's twenty-fifth birthday, as an upstart who leans towards the government and the opposition, his mansion is naturally full of guests, and the ministers of the Golden Court are attached to others and come to congratulate him on his birthday. Among them, there are many Han officials.

Wan Yan Liang is the same as Emperor Jin Wan Yan Liang, he reads Confucian classics, and he is good at chanting the wind and making the moon, so he is very repulsive to the original set of Jurchens. In full accordance with the habits of the Han people, the banquet is set up, and the guests are set up, and the door is like a market for a while, so it is not lively!

In the main hall, Wan Yanliang wore a brocade robe and a belt inlaid with gold and jade around his waist, if it weren't for the difference in hairstyle, he was really not much different from the Han people. He is only twenty-five years old, and he is extremely burly, dignified, and at a glance, he is really in his prime! At this moment, he was toasting from table to table, and when he met a Han official, he spoke fluently in Chinese. Quoting scriptures and witty words, it's really not half a jar of water.

When the guest was enjoying himself, a servant hurriedly rushed into the hall and said beside him: "Taibao, the Holy Lord has sent a close shì." ”

When Yan Liang heard this, he quickly put down the cup and pot and walked out quickly. The news spread among the guests, and everyone stopped feasting and got up to wait. After a while, I saw several inner courts dressed in Jurchen costumes rushing in, followed by a long group of retinues carrying rewards. One of them, it is the emperor's dormitory small bottom of the great rejuvenation of the country, after seeing Yan Liang ran out, greeted the first birthday congratulations, then promulgated the will of the Dajin Emperor, Taibao, the right prime minister, the marshal, leading the three provinces to complete Yan Liang in the state of labor, today is the birthday, special gift of the inner house treasures.

After Yan Liang gave a big gift of thanks, all the guests came to see what good things the emperor gave Taibao. Looking at this, I can't help but be a little disappointed, and even a little incomprehensible. In their minds, what is a good thing? It's a yellow and white thing, no matter how bad it is, it has to be a pearl and jade. But among the things that the Golden Emperor rewarded Yan Liang, there were not a few yellow and white ones, but boxes of books and scrolls of paintings, what is the use of this thing? I can't eat, I can't drink, and I'm afraid of getting dirty when I wipe my buttocks! How do they know that this gentleman and the minister are good at this mouth, people play poetry and singing, and rough people don't understand it at all.

But then again, it's just a twenty-five-year-old scattered student, and the emperor sent someone to reward him, which shows the status of the Taibao in the eyes of the saints.

Wan Yanliang likes it very much, especially a portrait of Sima Guang, which is also written by a famous artist, which makes him love it. Just when he could see the surprise, the little bottom of the big Xingguo said: "The queen also has a number of gifts, please ask the Taibao to receive them." ”

This time, the guests muttered in their hearts, is the queen's move too much? On the minister's birthday, the emperor rewarded him with a gift to show the grace of heaven, which is normal. As the queen, you should be in charge of the middle palace for the Son of Heaven, what reward are you here to reward? Could it be that you and the emperor are not a family? Or are you going to be the emperor's home? Wan Yanliang was probably overjoyed, he didn't expect this layer at all, and happily accepted the queen's reward, thanking him a thousand times.

It's a lively birthday celebration here, but someone with a heart spread the news to the ears of Prime Minister Wan Yan Zongxian.

This Wanyan Zongxian is also the Jin State clan, but it is only a side branch, not a line of Jin Taizu. But this is a battle exploit on the battlefield, with very strong qualifications, and now he is falling below a junior, and he is somewhat unhappy in his heart. But he doesn't care about more than this, he doesn't feel at ease with Wan Yanliang.

Hearing the news that the queen had rewarded Yan Liang alone, he was very uneasy. Speaking of which, he is still related to the queen Pei Manshi, and it stands to reason that he should belong to the "Hou Party", but this person has the demeanor of a direct minister, and he refuses to be attached to Pei Man's family and goes alone. After thinking about it again and again, he immediately entered the palace to face the saint.

Although Emperor Jin was devoted to Sinicization, this literati had a strong habit and did not like to deal with the government and politics. Therefore, he did not learn all the items of the court meeting in the Han system. When there is something to do, the ministers are called to consult, and when there is nothing to do, they are busy with their own affairs. Therefore, if Wanyan Zongxian wants to see the emperor, he must enter the palace to see the driver.

He came by coincidence, Wan Yan was drunk at the time, quite drunk, and when he saw Wan Yan Zongxian, he asked with a mouth full of wine: "What happened to Zuo Xiang?" ”

Wanyan Zongxian knelt on the ground and said, "The minister has a matter, or a taboo, but he doesn't dare not come to report it to the saint!" ”

"Say it!" Wan Yan said. He has just been established, but because of excessive drinking, his body has been hollowed out, his face is yellow, and he has no sè color, and he seems to be not even emotionally stable.

"Today is Taibao Wanyan Liang's birthday, but Your Majesty has sent someone to reward you?" Wanyan Zongxian asked.

"How's that going on?" Wan Yan asked.

"That's weird, since the saint has a reward, why does the queen also send someone to give it?" Wanyan Zongxian said.

Wan Yan didn't seem to understand, and said suspiciously: "What did you say?" ”

"The queen also gave a gift, and the minister felt that it was inappropriate, so he came to report it to His Majesty!" Wanyan Zongxian said first.

The Golden Emperor was suddenly furious! After a period of silence, he shouted: "Call Xiaodi Daxingguo!" ”

After a while, the palace official who had just gone to reward Yan Liang trotted into the palace, and as soon as he saw Yan Zongxian kneeling on the ground, he felt that something was wrong, and he bent down neatly: "Your Majesty." ”

"I ask you, did the queen also ask you to give gifts to the Taibao?" Wan Yan's voice sounded terrifying...