The rumbling sound of thunder seemed to come from the sky.

But the envoys from the Song Kingdom looked up and saw a clear sky.

"It's artillery."

In the interval between the cannons, Chong Jianzhong said softly.

The members of the mission came out of their tents, but no one took the words of the plant.

There will be no one in the mission who does not know what this sound is, when they were in the capital, they have seen too much, but they did not expect that the Liao people would be able to have artillery and show it.

Such a weapon regarded as a replacement for the eight-bull crossbow, many people in the Great Song Dynasty thought that it could continue to deter the Liao people for decades, but now it has appeared in the hands of the Liao people and has become a means for the Liao people to show off their strength.

Even though the Liao State stole the spaceship in the past, and rumors about the Liao State making artillery have been circulating, until this moment, no one wants to believe that the rumors are true.

Wang Cunqiang made a happy face, pointed to the surroundings and said with a smile: "Such stinginess, it can be seen that Father Shang is still weak-hearted. ”

"Neyhan is right." Xiang Ying replied in a trembling voice.

A palace army of more than 1,000 people surrounded the camp of the mission. Look at the flag, it is the one from Emperor Jingzong. Originally, there were medical officers in the mission who consulted for the dignitaries of the Liao State, but now they are all blocked in the embassy. Wang Cun said that this is because the Liao people are afraid that the members of the mission will steal secrets and expose the details, and it is not unreasonable.

However, this explanation is a little too much wishful thinking.

Xiang Ying recited Amitabha Buddha in his heart, no matter how good the truth is, he can't stop the Tartar from going crazy, who knows how arrogant Yelu Yixin will be after he gets the artillery? A group of barbarians, isn't it wishful thinking to speculate on their thoughts with reason?

Really killed these envoys, didn't the court have to take into account the overall situation? It's that the Queen Mother wants to cry out for herself, and the important ministers below will come out to persuade the Queen Mother not to make trouble between the two countries for the sake of the small people. It is nothing compared to the losses caused by the war.

Not only Xiang Ying, but many people in the mission were pale in the face. They can also figure this out.

Yelu Yixin used artillery precisely to further win people's hearts. And what kind of impact will the refusal of the Great Song Dynasty mission have on people's hearts, imagine it a little, you can know how serious the Dao is.

Yelu Yixin's usurpation of the throne is imminent, and if he refuses a powerful emperor and does not give him face, the result will be - whether Yelu Yixin is orthodox or not, but the power in his hands is real - everyone can figure out.

But it is impossible for the imperial court to deal with a usurper, unless it is completely shameless, or a small country that is not worth mentioning. For example, the Liao State is a big country on an equal footing, and the two heavenly families have concluded a brotherhood covenant through an oath, and it is reasonable that the imperial court will not recognize Yelu Yixin's usurpation.

The imperial court regarded Yelu Yixin as a thief who was a usurper, and their mission was in enemy territory, and the safety of dozens of people completely depended on Yelu Yixin's reason and mood.

"It's a pity." Chong Jianzhong said in a low voice.

"What a pity?" Wang Cun turned his head and asked, not a question, but an inquiring tone.

Chong Jianzhong is the nephew of Chong Ge and the deputy envoy of the mission, but after all, he is not as respected as Hengqu Men.

At that time, Hu Ying presided over Taixue, and his disciples were all known for their etiquette, and they knew whether they were stable people at first sight; Under the Hengqu Gate, it is famous for having both civil and military skills and being good at practical talents.

Han Gang, who has already lived in the temple, will not say it, You Shixiong has also entered the list of important ministers, and the second disciple Huang Shang is now in the southwest, and now Zong Ze, who is the champion of the department and is famous for knowing soldiers, is also said to be Zhang Zai's second disciple.

And the personal disciple of Chong Jianzhong, who was born in a family of generals, is far more famous than the rest of the generals.

Although it is not as good as the Jinshi department, this is also one of the serious literary backgrounds in the DPRK, and it is more respected than Yin Bu. In Wang Cun's eyes, Chong Jianzhong can still be regarded as a scholar who can speak together, rather than a vulgar martial artist. At the same time, the construction of the plant has experienced war, and today's official position also depends on military exploits. Now that everyone is in the Liao State and besieged by the Liao army, his judgment of the situation can determine the upward and downward movement of the mission.

"If Yelu Yixin can usurp the throne two years later, the imperial court will be able to send troops to crusade against the criminal ministers and set things right for the Liao people, and now most of them can only sit idly by."

Don't delay two years, one year will be enough!

Xiang Ying shouted in his heart that if Yelu Yixin only usurped the throne next year, it would definitely not be his turn to come to the north to suffer hardships and be frightened. As for how to pick up the cheap of Liao, that is the business of the princes of the two prefectures, and it has nothing to do with relatives like themselves.

Wang Cun smiled bitterly, "Uncle Yi, is this something you and I have to think about now?" ”

"It's superfluous to worry about the Liao." Chong Jianzhong said with a smile: "Even if you care about some things, you can't care about them." Now that I have nothing to do, I don't think about how to use soldiers, what else can I think? ”

There was helplessness in the smile of the plant.

Being under a low wall, I had to bow my head. If Yelu Yixin really wanted to send the mission to the northern frontier, they would have no room to resist at all.

The group is under the control of the Liao people, and whether they want to live or die depends on the words of His Royal Highness Shangfu, except for insisting on the attitude of not colluding with the Liao people, the mission has no other way.

If the imperial court wanted to take the opportunity to attack the Liao State, the reasons were ready-made; If the imperial court didn't want to fight, even if the Liao people killed all the envoys, Kaifeng would only pretend to be deaf and dumb.

It's better to think more about how to lead the army in the future and defeat the group of palace divisions outside.

But the imperial court will not send troops!

Coming from Kansai, having friends in Hedong, and knowing Jingshi very well, Chong Jianzhong knew very well what the imperial court would do.

Yelu Yixin was in a hurry to usurp the throne, but it was difficult for the current Great Song Dynasty to seize this opportunity.

If the track connecting the capital and Baozhou had been repaired, it would now be possible to take the land of Yan Ji directly and expel the Liao people to the north of Yan Mountain. If the track from Guanzhong to Taiyuan has been connected with the parallel railway, Guanzhong's wealth can also support Hedong to use troops to recover Yunzhong. In the future, if there is a chance, he can continue to the north and completely conquer the Khitan, Jurchen and other foreign races under the chariots and horses of the Han family.

However, just over a year has passed since the last war, and the dilapidated Hedong Road, not to mention the lighter Hebei Road, is not enough to store enough grain for military use. And the track capable of transporting military funds in large quantities is still on the drawings.

This is by no means the right time to send troops, and Chong Jianzhong is half regretful and half happy.

Now in the decisive battle with Liao, only the successful generals who can lead the army, Li Xin, Wang Sunchen, and Zhao Long, have already proved themselves on the battlefield, and they can still have the opportunity to lead an army, but they have not had time to accumulate military exploits and experience, how can the imperial court reuse it? No matter how full of scheming, you can only sigh. But in a few years, I will finally have time to take my turn.

Even the most knowledgeable soldiers and Liao people are not optimistic about the future, and many members of the mission are really desperate.

It had been a long time since the artillery fire had ended, and the mission camp was still dead silent.

The silence was broken by the embassy envoy who had not been there for a whole day. After he saluted Wang Cun, he said: "On the orders of Father Shang, this evening, I invite Ambassador Wang and the second deputy envoys to the banquet. ”

Xiang Ying's face suddenly turned pale, and what he was most afraid of now was a head-on encounter with Yelu Yixin.

Don't talk about the Zen ceremony, even if it is an ordinary banquet, if Yelu Yixin comes to the banquet wearing the clothes of the Son of Heaven, they Song ministers will not be able to enter the banquet, and they must turn around and leave.

Wang Cun returned the salute to the embassy envoy and accepted the invitation. After sending the embassy escort away, he turned back to Chong Jianzhong and Xiang Ying, "Let's go and prepare." ”

Xiang Ying smiled miserably, "I'm afraid the imperial court still doesn't know anything at this time!" ”

"Nope." Chong Jianzhong shook his head, "Most of them already know the way." ”

……………………

The Great Song Dynasty had already received the news at this time.

Almost at the same time as receiving an urgent report from the Hebei border, a secret letter passed through the gold medal and traveled all the way south from Daizhou, and it took three days to arrive in Kaifeng.

It was a letter from within the Liao State. Not through Hebei, but through Hedong.

The Song army once entered Xijing Road, and also left some seeds along the way.

There are many Liao people who covet the Great Song Dynasty, but there are even more people who hate Yelu Yixin.

Once a son of heaven and a courtier. And although Yelu Yixin is surnamed Yelu, he is not Taizu Abaoji, and he came to power as a new force, and if he wants to cultivate his own power, he must clean the court that has long been intertwined.

Although Yelu Yixin had controlled the government of the Liao State for many years, the Liao State was still a loose state system to a large extent, with many local tyrants and powerful forces, and it was not so easy for him to reconquer it.

In the Liao Kingdom, there are not many high-ranking officials and nobles who are convinced by Yelu Yixin, and now the Great Song Dynasty is strong, and Yelu Yixin Bingzheng is also unjust, and there are still many people who are willing to cooperate with the Great Song Dynasty. No matter what, it's not a bad thing to leave a good fate on the side of the Great Song Dynasty.

The Liao State is always more sensitive to changes in the situation, and Yelu Yixin has just made some moves in Shangjing Road, and someone immediately began to contact the Great Song Dynasty.

The gold medal who went south from Daizhou was in a hurry, and it also came with a secret letter from an important minister of the Ministry of Liao State. The content of the letter is nothing more than inviting the Great Song Dynasty to send troops to set things right for the Liao State. On the second day, it was the second letter, and on the third day, it was the third letter and the fourth letter.

With so much evidence, there are changes in Liao, and this matter is undoubted. There are just two things in front of the Great Song Dynasty monarchs and ministers-

whether to admit Jerodethin or not; and whether to send troops to Liao after refusing to admit it.

does not admit that Yelu Yixin is the common understanding of the Zaifu, and Han Gang's attitude is particularly strong in it - if he is not the identity of a Confucian master, he can still talk about flexibility, but once he advocates it, should he talk about the three outlines and five constants? Even if Han Gang scoffed at this, now was not the time to openly abandon it.

However, when it came to whether or not to send troops, all of them were opposed, with one exception.