Zhou Jiuzhi: "This morning, Prime Minister Lu brought a letter to discuss peace, and was dismissed by the emperor on ......the spot."

Zhou Wei finally spoke: "The emperor is still a person who can tolerate compromises, as long as it is beneficial, he can negotiate peace with anyone, but he can't negotiate peace with Liao. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info”

Zhou Jiuzhi hurriedly said: "Yes, the slave maid looks at Lu Duan, who seems to be loyal, but in fact he is a person who sells his reputation and reputation!" ”

Zhou Wei stood for a long time, didn't intend to persuade anything, turned around and left the city tower.

…… The more things a person has, the greater the responsibility, the less courage, and the more he walks on thin ice.

Lu Fei fully understood the seriousness of the matter, and he didn't make a decision for a long time. But there is an unbearable unwillingness to block his chest, which makes him unwilling to give up.

Looking back occasionally, I may be a little prejudiced against Lu Duan, which is why I am so dissatisfied with him. At the beginning of the year, the Northern Expedition was a shallow stop, but it was not easy to try out the Northern Expedition, otherwise the result would not be a hasty retreat.

Lu Duan's suggestion was a bit harsh, but it was not a path, and perhaps it seemed to them to be a very pragmatic approach. In the current situation in the world, it is not difficult to unify at least most regions and establish a unified dynasty, and the general trend is inevitable; Sticking to the territory that has been gained and governing it well is beneficial to the emperor himself and the ministers and nobles who have received a lot of resources, at least it is okay to share the glory and wealth...... Historically, the Central Plains found it difficult to defeat the Liao State, and they did the same.

But Lu Fei was unwilling, and even more uneasy.

After practicing arrows for most of the day, he already felt a sore back and a weak arm, so he took his things and left Beiyuan. In fact, this kind of practice was practiced every day seven or eight years ago, and it has been a bit lacking in the last two years.

Back in the dormitory, Lu Fei did not call any concubines to sleep, and Qiao Niang took care of his daily life.

When Qiao Niang saw Lu Fei, she said, "Can the emperor let the concubine go to meet the princess......

Lu Fei didn't speak, he was slightly stunned.

She glanced at Lu Fei and said cautiously with some fear: "Did the concubine say the wrong thing?" ”

The woman was indeed very sensitive to some things, and looking at her well-behaved appearance, Lu Fei pretended not to understand, and said, "Huh? Oh, you can go if you want, she, she's changed, changed a lot, but it's not her fault, it's all me, I didn't protect her, she was wronged, you often go to talk to her when you have time. ”

"Hmm." Qiao Niang said carefully.

Lu Fei sat down on the Jin Nan chair in front of the bookcase, stretched out his hand and touched his forehead, his face became cold, as soon as he mentioned Li Sisi, he remembered her words, dominating the world, he had just started, and he let the Liao people knock on the door, and a sense of humiliation and anger came to his heart.

The more he thought about it, the more unconvinced he became, and because of this, his anger gradually subsided. Lu Fei understands that although he has always claimed benevolence and righteousness, for the sake of internal cohesion, what really wins is not benevolence and righteousness, but the more rational and cold-blooded he is, the easier it is to judge accurately.

He opened the file on the table and began to see the strategies of Xue Juzheng, Cao Bin, Yang Yanzhao and others.

After looking at it for a while, he picked up the brush and wrote and drew on the paper, drawing his own ideas, which were all circles and squares, analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of both sides, summing up lessons and lessons, and also deducing the strategies put forward by the ministers.

…… Lu Fei's life has become very regular, and he is hardly close to women. In the morning, I will meet with the central ministers as usual, and then pick some pieces to read. Then I went to Beiyuan to run, practice archery, and ride horses until I was sweating profusely and exhausted.

The situation in Hebei is urgent, like fire and water, and the ministers have all kinds of remarks. But Lu Fei ignored it.

Instead of becoming irritable and irritable, he was calmer and more patient than usual, and had a very good temper, and never rebuked the minister again. Only with a calm mind can we rationally examine risks and various factors!

**

The news that the Liao State had sent troops to the Southern Courtyard had only been known for two days. From time to time, there was an explosion of "bang ......" on the north city, which never stopped, it was the palace tent army training; Lu Fei has always been very strict against firearms, but it is still inevitable that something will flow out, I heard that now a discarded musket can be worth the value of a group of courtyard houses on the black market, money can make ghosts grind, no one can solve the greed in human nature from the root, there is always the mercenary risk of death to smuggle things out of the Ministry of Industry, no matter how you kill it, you can't ban it, for these, Dai Xiong has killed no less than fifty people, but it is still impossible to prevent it.

The Liao people bought firearms at a high price from Bianliang, and then found some Han craftsmen to make them, and they were stepping up the preparation of gunpowder, but it was far from Lu Fei's standard, they just stuffed the simple purified gunpowder into a hard bamboo tube and tamped it with mud, and it exploded at one point, and the camp was filled with gunsmoke, as if they were setting fire, not that they didn't use iron, but that the Liao people had not yet learned to smelt iron, and the Tang border was particularly strict on the control of copper and iron war materials.

When Yelu met at Xiao Daling's mansion, he said: "When Xiao Gong was the king of the Southern Courtyard that year, he hurriedly sent troops to the south, and the Great Khan was more suspicious. And now Yelu Hugh is knocking on the side, but he doesn't know whether it is merit or fault? ”

Xiao Daling said: "Merit is not important, everything is for Da Liao." ”

Yelu nodded after hearing this: "Although I feel that the Great Khan is a little unfair to Xiao Gong, Yelu Xiuge is still very relieved to break through Cangzhou of Tang State, and he has reported the evil breath of the previous (Battle of Hedong)!" Recently, the southerners have become more and more arrogant, and they really don't take Da Liao seriously, and there are rumors that the emperor of the Tang State intends to go north to use troops. ”

"Emperor Lu is the Son of Heaven immediately, crawling out of the pile of dead people, the sky is not afraid of the earth." Xiao Daling said quietly, "If I have a chance, I will go to the Queen Mother, and Da Liao will pay special attention to the southerners." ”

Yelu listened and muttered for a moment: "Xiao Gong thinks that if the southerners march north, where will they march from?" ”

Xiao Daling said: "Who can say for sure? But it never hurts to be on guard. ”

Yelu bowed obliquely and said, "Gong Xiao is far-sighted. ”

Xiao Daling said: "There is no need to worry too much, at the beginning of the year, the Tang State had just finished its expedition to Shu, and it had only been more than half a year.

In recent years, Da Liao has not been peaceful, I don't advocate attacking and provoking the Tang Kingdom without incident, but the matter has already happened, and we don't have to be afraid. The rules of the grassland still apply to the southerners, and after all, they still have to speak by force! ”

Yelu bowed obliquely and said, "What Gong Xiao said is extremely true. If the Great Liao is unbearable, how can the grassland tribes obey us? ”

Xiao Daling stood up and paced back and forth a few steps: "Let's not attack Brother Yelu Xiu in the court for the time being, in case the Tang Army takes the opportunity to go north, Brother Yelu Xiu can use troops, this person has some brains on the battlefield, and he will lose everything, and if he is defeated, it will still be the vitality of Da Liao." ”

Because Xiao Daling led his troops to invade the south back then, he did not break through the important town in Hedong, that is, he came back after plundering in the suburbs, but he didn't understand it, and he actually chose Tian Chongjin as an ally. And Yelu Hugo successfully won the gate of Cangzhou, but he was not a brute fighter, the Liao army's field battle was acceptable, and the siege of the city was really not a strong point, and the battle of Cangzhou also showed his superiority.

Xiao Daling thought of this and said: "Everything is based on the overall situation. If Emperor Lu Xiao wanted to go on a northern expedition, his situation would be even worse if he failed once. The old man waited for him to die first! ”

……

It is the late autumn of another year, and the autumn wind blows, blowing the dead leaves on the stone pavement in the palace, adding a bit of solemnity to the already extremely solemn palace.

The huge metropolis of Bianjing has woken up early. On the tower of Xuande Gate, a team of soldiers walked up neatly, and under the dim and white sky, there were several shadows of similar height. A military general stepped forward to report the name of the official, took the military talisman and checked it with the military general on duty at night, and the two faced each other and bowed with fists. I heard a short military order: "Change the guard!" ”

After a while, a long shout: "When the hour comes, open the city gate......"

As soon as the drums sounded, it immediately disturbed the sleeping dreams of a large number of surrounding neighborhoods. On the edge of the women's wall, the soldiers in neat clothes and armor held cherry spears, standing on it with their heads held high on their legs, yellow-colored, red, and cyan pennants fluttering in the air, and a military general walked on it with his sword, turning his head to look at the scene outside.

Outside the castle tower, there is another scene on the long royal street, a long bright light extends into the distance, like a huge lantern dragon, which is extraordinarily spectacular. Today is the day of the Great Dynasty, there is no special reason, the officials above the five grades in Beijing have to enter the palace to worship, these people are the officials who came to the court, plus the accompanying guards and entourage, the royal street is busy before dawn, and there are a lot of people.

......The heavy city gate rubbed against the brick floor, slowly opened, and the lights in the city shone out.

People got out of the car and dismounted, tidied up their clothes, and strode towards Xuande Gate.

Hundreds of civil and military officials came to the main hall of the Long Live Hall one after another, standing on the hall according to the high and low order, waiting for the court.

But today, the throne of the dragon chair above has been empty for a long time, and after waiting for a long time, the sky outside the hall has been bright, the sun is about to come out, and there is still no movement on the throne. The eunuchs stood on both sides of the steps, and no one came up to explain or give advice.

Gradually, some people finally noticed the abnormality of today, many seats in the front row were vacant, and some important ministers did not go to court.

However, the Beijing officials were quite calm, and everyone noticed that the atmosphere was wrong, but no one was noisy, just stood there and waited. At some point, even if these people don't eat or drink, they may be able to withstand it for three days and three nights, and what they fight for is perseverance and endurance.

…… Of course, Lu Fei didn't sleep, he was no longer in the palace.

On the school field of the forbidden army barracks, the door of the camp was wide open, and Lu Fei, who was dressed in armor and wearing a high crown, walked in on a horse with a sword, on the left was Pan Mei, a privy envoy with gray sideburns and beard, and on the right was Yang Yanzhao, a general with a tiger's back and a bear's waist. Behind is a group of brightly armored inner sanctum straight cavalry.

There is a large area of iron helmets on the school field, and the swords, guns and flags are like woods.

Lu Fei rushed into the barracks, and when the troops saw him, they raised their swords and guns one after another, and immediately shouted. Inspired by the atmosphere, Lu Fei pulled out his sword from his waist and pointed diagonally at the crowd to greet the soldiers.

The atmosphere was even more lively, with the crowd shouting: "Hurray! Hooray......"

The generals from all over rode over and knelt down on one knee in front of Lu Pegasus.

"The generals are flat." Lu Fei's voice was loud and powerful, full of energy, showing people that his body was healthy and strong.

Everyone said: "The last general will wait to thank the emperor!" ”

Lu Fei kicked the horse and ran out, and the generals hurriedly got up and turned over the horse and chased after him. A herd of horses galloped along the front of the army, shouts and hooves of horses rushing like a torrent.

He reined in his war horse and said loudly: "The people of the country are in trouble, only I and the Tang warriors are willing to fight to the end for the world!" ”

Zhang Jiang's voice said loudly: "Bloody battle to the end!" ”

The army was in an uproar, all staring and shouting, and the barracks were even more lively than the downtown area.

Tie Hammer jumped off the horse, hugged his fists and said straightly: "Just as the Liao people have entered the Kou, please be the striker!" ”

Seeing this, the generals expressed their attitudes one after another: "What the emperor is pointing to by the sword, even if it is a mountain of swords and a sea of fire, the last general will never frown......" "The emperor wants to use troops, and the ministers are ready to follow the emperor at any time." "The ministers are warmed and fed by the emperor, and they only serve the country by fighting to the death......" "I am willing to drive forward for the emperor and repay the emperor's kindness with my life......"

Lu Fei sat on the horse, feeling the attitude and breath of the army. Either way, he was at least sure he had the support of the military.

With the current system of the Tang Dynasty, Wufu is quite supportive of war, and only when there is war can they rise and get rewarded, and can be relied on, otherwise their right to speak and status will decline. There are also middle and low-level generals, everyone knows that people will die in war, but it is better to fight a big battle than to be in the army for ten years, and the low-level soldiers are old for ten years! Just like the battle of Sanchuankou in the previous dynasty, how many people started in the first battle.

Only many civil officials may not be very supportive, they are different from military generals, it is not good for them to fight, to maintain the operation of the imperial court in all aspects, the consumption of resources is too large, the increase in taxes and forced labor, the levy of the people and the strong are not conducive to stable rule, which is not conducive to stable rule, is something they do not want to see.

The timing is also very appropriate, usually just through the military establishment of the country, the emperor personally led the army to win the world, in the army prestige and familiarity is relatively high, it is easier to personally mobilize the army to start a war. If the emperor of later generations cannot directly lead the troops, and the military power is divided in the hands of the ministers, it will not be so easy to start a war, and it will be a very complicated and troublesome matter.

Moreover, the powerful ministers around Lu Fei, such as Pan Mei and Cao Bin of the Privy Council, Xue Juzheng, Lu Duan and other prime ministers, and even the cabinet minister Kou Zhun who participated in politics, have all been rallied to him, he must do something, and it is easy to get the support of his confidant ministers.

This is the situation in front of Lu Fei, he can mobilize the entire forbidden army with a single sentence, and his control is still very strong.

Lu Fei led his men and horses to inspect several forbidden army camps, and the morale and situation of the army were relatively good. After half a year of rest, the forbidden army basically regained its combat effectiveness.

After three poles in the sun, Lu Fei returned to the imperial city.

He first went to the east hall to discuss with more than 20 ministers, and Cao Bin hung up the map to explain to the ministers and generals the strategy that the imperial court had come up with in advance. The proceedings continued until noon. As for the civil and military officials in the main hall, they were still standing there for a long time.

At noon, the emperor finally walked onto the dragon chair in a military uniform. Hundreds of officials in the main hall shouted long live.

Lu Fei asked the eunuch to issue an edict. The Liao army entered the Kou, and the people of Hebei were desperate and looked forward to Wang Shi, and the emperor decided to lead the forbidden army to the north to patrol the border; During her trip to Beijing, Zhou Wei, the Empress of the West Palace, acted as the agent for state affairs, and the Privy Council and the Government Hall were in charge of state affairs.

The emperor issued a direct order, and the group of most powerful officials who were obviously absent this morning were all discussed, and no one from the following officials objected...... According to the pattern since the end of the Tang Dynasty and the fifth dynasty, ordinary officials are powerless to object, because during this period for military purposes, the imperial court pattern is very centralized. This time is different from the last Northern Expedition, the result of the last time is completely unknown, but this time with experience and the situation is clearer, many people are not very optimistic about the recent Northern Expedition.

Now the start is relatively low-key, nominally not claiming that the Northern Expedition is a decisive battle with the Liao army, and it seems that the initial intention was to expel the Liao army from Cangzhou.

However, this was the beginning of the war.

…… Zhou Wei went to the west hall and saw Lu Fei waiting there on the stone steps of the back door, wearing armor and a sword. She looked up at him, as if she saw the figure of the six guards.

She lifted the hem of her skirt lightly and walked up the stone steps. Spotless embroidered shoes, gently stepping on the old stone slab, Zhou Wei's mood fluctuated a little.

Hearing the ministers' remarks, together with Zhou Wei, he also had little confidence in this war, because in just half a year, the strength of the Tang army has not changed much, and I heard that the Liao army was completely defeated in Hedong last time, and was completely caught off guard by Lu Fei.

Some failures have serious consequences that cannot be easily afforded.

In just a short section of stone steps, Zhou Wei seems to have gone through the ups and downs of these years, and how many times she has escaped from death, Fei Ge'er from above has accompanied her. It was not easy for them to get to where they are today.

"Your Majesty." Zhou Wei's body was slightly shorter, and she took the lead in making a gift. Her voice was still so soothing and unwavering.

Lu Fei hugged his fists and said: "I have always been a guard, a guard guarding the Tang Dynasty. ”

Zhou Wei raised her head with a shallow smile on her beautiful face.

Lu Fei said in a deep voice: "I know the feeling of life and death, and everyone in the world has their own family, so it is unbearable for people to watch their loved ones being robbed and killed. After weighing it repeatedly, I decided to go on the expedition again, and the soldiers were willing to fight for the people of the world. ”

Zhou Wei smiled: "The emperor will definitely be able to win, you will never let me down." ”

Lu Fei was really relieved when he heard this, and hugged his fists and said: "This time, Zhou Wei only needs to wait for my good news in Bianjing!" ”

Zhou Wei nodded and said, "I will bathe and fast every day, pray for the emperor and the soldiers in front, and wait for the forbidden army to return to the court as soon as possible." ”

She walked up, reached out and grabbed Lu Fei's sword hilt, pressed it lightly, and heard a metallic sound of "bell", and slowly pulled it out. The blade is new, bright as a mirror, and very sharp. The person who dares to hold the unsheathed sword in Lu Fei is probably only Zhou Wei. Lu Fei didn't move, he was like that, I'm afraid that even if Zhou Wei really wanted to stab him, he wouldn't hide.

Zhou Wei looked down with a calm smile on her face, lowered her eyes to look at the hilt of the sword, but the moment she lowered her head, she revealed a trace of gentleness and shyness.

She very gently pulled out a piece of red silk embroidered with gold thread patterns from her sleeve, and Ruyu's hand slowly wrapped the red silk around the hilt of Lu Fei's sword, then tied it with a button, and put the sword back into Lu Fei's scabbard.

After Zhou Wei finished doing this, she looked up at him, her face was crimson, and she was very nervous.

There were also many palace people who were bent over behind her, and this was the first time she had done such an intimate thing in front of Lu Fei in public. Lu Fei silently looked at the bright red on the hilt of the sword, behind the quaint and heavy hall, it looked extremely beautiful.

This time, in the words of wishes, somehow, the breath is inexplicably a little tragic.

...

On the surging Yellow River, herds of horses slowly crossed the river from the pontoon bridge. Lu Fei Lema stood by the river, facing the wet autumn wind for a long time, watching the herds of horses like long dragons. The sound of "...... bang" seems to be pouring out countless past events here.

After Lu Fei's western tour, the forbidden army was adjusted. The vast majority of the mounted infantry was abolished, and the cavalry of the infantry was allocated to the cavalry; In addition, several thousand good horses were obtained from the northwest, and now the cavalry of the forbidden army has a relatively sufficient number of war horses, which further improves the power of the cavalry.

The disadvantage is that the speed of the infantry is completely unable to keep up with the cavalry.

This time, Lu flew out of Beijing, mobilized more than 50,000 elite cavalry, and dispatched almost all the forbidden army horsemen.

Yang Yanzhao and Cao Kemingce came up immediately, and the horses separated from Lu Fei's left and right, and the two followed Lu Fei's gaze to see the group of human cavalry on the river like marching ants.

Lu Fei ignored them and didn't say a word for a long time.

He opened his mouth to take a few deep breaths against the wind, but still couldn't relieve the inexplicable stuffiness in his chest. He felt very heavy, as if something was pressing on him, and his heart was beating fast, and he was a little nervous before he went into battle, and this time he almost dispatched the elite of the whole country.

As the emperor's personal expedition, he could not fail.

Or maybe the consequences of failure are too serious for him to bear; Expecting too much to win is almost a must-win mentality. All of this made him feel heavy.

Lu Fei jumped off the horse, picked up a handful of soil with both hands, put it in front of his nose and sniffed it, there was a fresh smell of earth. The soil stuck between his fingers, and he twisted it lightly with his thumb and forefinger, and the touch was very real. This is not a dream, this is the place where he really depends for his survival, he doesn't believe in God too much, inexplicably he actually prays to the gods and Buddhas in secret, God bless the Tang Dynasty!

……

In the lobby of the Cangzhou Military Mansion, a large plaque that has been skewed has four big characters on it, "Officials and Qingming", and there is an arrow nailed to it. There was a mess in the hall, a "quiet" wooden sign was burning in the fire, a leg of lamb was roasted and yellowed, and the grease on the skin exploded softly on the flames.

Jerehugo was sitting on the public seat above, took a knife from his belt, and rubbed it back and forth on the leather cuff a few times.

The soldier below cut off the cooked layer of the leg of lamb and put it on a plate, and bent down with both hands on the table in front of Jeruxiu. Jeruhugo took a knife and cut off a piece and put it to his mouth, licked his tongue on the blade, and chewed it.

A nobleman sitting around pointed to the Han woman who was serving the plate and said a few words, his eyes looking at the wine jug on her plate.

At this moment, a Khitan hurried in, walked straight to the public seat, bowed his head and whispered a few words next to Yelu Huge.

After hearing this, Jeruxiu immediately stopped chewing, then began to chew again, and after a while asked, "Where is it?" ”

The Khitan said: "I crossed the Yellow River two days ago. ”

The nobles and generals below turned their heads to look at the superiors.

Yelu Xiuge looked back and said: "Emperor Lu Xiao is here, he can reach the border of Cangzhou within five days after crossing the Yellow River, and the cavalry can arrive in a day, so fast." ”

Everyone was immediately in an uproar, and Zhai Shigui hurriedly said: "The forbidden army of the Tang State is very strong, and my Youzhou army has few major generals, so I can't fight in the territory of the Tang Kingdom." Please ask the marshal to immediately order the abandonment of Cangzhou City and lead them to a decisive battle in the wilderness around the Juma River. ”

Brother Yelu Xiu sneered: "Yellow-haired child, the emperor's seat has not even been firmly seated before he has hit a wall, very good!" Don't worry, sleep for the night first, and leave tomorrow morning. ”

Zhai Shigui said: "Don't be rash, beware of being besieged in Cangzhou, the southerners are not only good at defending the city, but also good at attacking the city." ”

Nonsense, all the cities in the world are built by the Han people, how to attack the city, the Han people are the ancestors.

Yelu Hugh was a little displeased when he heard this: "This commander doesn't need to be taught by anyone to use soldiers. Ben Shuai is not stupid enough to fight with Emperor Lu Xiao to win or lose, just to tease him, the people came from Bianjing, and he is also an emperor, so he has to give him some face, and wait for him. ”

Zhai Shigui had no choice but to say: "Handsome and wise." ”

Brother Yelu Hugh ate meat and drank wine with the generals in a hurry, and after getting drunk, he said: "Didn't you say that you caught a group of Han girls in Cangzhou?" Bring it in and accompany the guys. ”

Early the next morning, Yelu Xiuge's troops withdrew from Cangzhou several times and stationed troops in Zhuozhou.