Yao Hong took the sword from the sandalwood shelf, shook the hilt hard, and reached out to brush the dust off the scabbard.

The scabbard is made of wood, wrapped in mackerel skin, and the tail is covered with gold and inlaid with red, blue, and green gemstones. The two rings and the hoop on which they sit are also made of pure gold.

Slowly drew the sword, and the sword body reflected the light, dazzlingly bright.

A roaring wolf's head was carved above the sword. The Qiang people are not as fancy as the Han people, and they do not carve any words such as Qingyu, Longquan, and Tai'a on the body of the sword, and the most common ones are carved eagles and wolves. There are also people who carve sheep's horn patterns. The sword, it doesn't matter what it's called, what matters is that it can be continuously chopped without curling the blade or shaking the hand, and it will make the enemy feel cold when it is revealed, and hold it in your hand to make yourself feel at ease.

This sword, passed from Emperor Zhaowu Yao Chang to Emperor Yao Xing, and then to Yao Hong, has been passed down for three generations. The whole country knows that seeing a sword is like seeing a king. According to the old guards in the palace, Emperor Zhaowu once used it to behead seven people on the battlefield, and his sleeves were filled with blood. However, since Yao Hong ascended the throne, he has been committed to Yanwu Xiuwen, and has always put it on the shelf and has not worn it with him.

Yao Hong carefully looked at the blood groove on the sword's body under the lamp, thinking of the land laid down by the ancestors and ancestors, which might be lost in his own hands, and couldn't help but sigh.

I had sworn never to let this sword drink blood again, but now it seemed that this oath was about to be broken.

The news of the loss of Wuguan was not blocked, and now the whole Chang'an City is panicking and passing on this heavy defeat. The fall of this fortress into the hands of the enemy meant that the Jin army could drive straight in from behind and form a pincer offensive with the Tongguan front.

It has been ordered that the guards of Wuguan, who retreat without a fight, will be executed on the spot.

The ministers argued with reason and wanted to add the Yi three clans, but Yao Hong did not let go. If more killings can be exchanged for Wuguan, then it is good to kill, but it is a pity that killing and defeating the old and weak women and children will not only be useless, but will also chill the hearts of the soldiers.

Now a good general is needed to turn the tide and recover Wuguan.

It's a pity that the few first-class generals who can be counted are all dragged to the garrison of Puban, Anding and Chang'an, and they can't be drawn out at all. If you insist on pulling it out, even if you take back the martial arts, it is nothing more than stripping the flesh and mending the sores, covering the navel and exposing the buttocks. The rest of the people were generous and willing to go on the expedition, but Yao Hong did not dare to send them to the direction of Wuguan except to praise their courage, and if they went, they could only let the Jin army reap greater results. Yao Shao's subordinate staff wrote a blood letter, saying that he was willing to organize 10,000 dead soldiers and "a pill of mud to seal Wuguan", Yao Hong laughed in his heart, and he couldn't hit his loyalty, so he had to publicly issue an edict to commend him, but in private he blamed him for speaking too loudly and too exaggeratedly, neither knowing where the 10,000 people came from, nor did he have the ability to seal the loopholes with a pill of mud.

After thinking about it, he only took advantage of the fact that the enemy army in the direction of Wuguan was not stable and the follow-up fortress had not fallen, and he personally led the team to solve this enemy and eliminate the trouble in Chang'an's waist.

A eunuch came in and told him that the man had arrived.

After the visitor entered the door, he knelt down and kowtowed, Yao Hong hurriedly stepped forward to help him up, and called the eunuch out.

It was not the ministers who came.

A middle-aged scholar.

Zhong Like.

Yao Hong let him sit down on a hu bed, carefully looked at his gray hair and the wrinkles on his forehead, and then looked at his white-washed cloth robe, and a sour feeling welled up on his nose:

"The teacher suffered!"

Zhong Like is a Han Chinese, his ancestral home is Langya, he crossed to the south during the Yongjia period, settled in Xuzhou in the south, was full of knowledge, and once served as a guest of Huanwen. After the defeat of Huan Wen, he took refuge in the north and took in apprentices in the villages around Zhongnan Mountain. Once, the first emperor Yao Xing went to the mountains to hunt, rested in the middle, heard someone in the woods chanting poetry, felt that the artistic conception was majestic, not an ordinary village pedant could do, so he asked someone to come and chat. After talking, they hated to see each other late, and decided on the spot to let him teach the princes. Among Yao Xing's sons, Yao Hong is the only one who loves Han poetry the most and is the best at reciting poetry.

At that time, Yao Qin**, Yao Bi and Yao Hong had already begun to fight for succession. Both sides have their own henchmen and put each other's eyes and ears. One day, Yao Xing suddenly issued an order to expel Zhong Like from the palace gate and never use it.

Many years later, Yao Hong learned that when he talked with his teacher at night, he talked about a lot of things in the past, including the indispensable talk about the transfer of power to the reserve, and someone told Yao Xing that Zhong Like taught Yao Hong how to seize power and how to separate flesh and blood. What's more, a poem written by Zhong Like was not satisfied with it, so he crumpled it into a ball and threw it away, but it was also picked up and handed over to Yao Bi's uncle Murong Kuan. Murong Kuan's elegant and good poetry, coupled with the deliberate fabrication of charges, actually saw that Zhong Like slandered Yao Qin.

The poem says:

A month in Chang'an,

It is still according to the flowers of the Qin period.

The whipper,

The lonely soul is back at home.

If you are under the curtain,

Do not let the army go.

Hate the water,

The shaft is still boasting.

sighed that Fu Jian used Meng Lang as a soldier back then, and boasted that if he was a strategist under Fu Jian, he could not suffer that fiasco. Originally, this was just a scholar's talk and a word game, but Murong Kuan was like a treasure, and interpreted to Yao Xing that Zhong Like was worried about Qianqin, and secretly dissatisfaction with Yao Qin's betrayal of Fu Jian and stealing the artifact.

The Yao Qin clan knew that they had stabbed Fu Jian in the back, taking advantage of the chaos to seize his country and occupy his palace in the national capital, so they have always been taboo for people to say so.

Yao Xing was originally swaying between Yao Hong and Yao Bi's two sons, and when he heard that Zhong Li Ke had tried his best to teach his son the way of power, he had already become wary of him, and now after Murong Dao added oil and vinegar, in a fit of anger, he wanted to punish him heavily, but then he thought that after all, he was invited by himself, and it was not easy to use heavy codes, so he swept out the door with a broom.

Zhong Like returned to Zhongnan Mountain and started to be a teacher again, after all these twists and turns, he wore the hat of the prince teacher on his head, his worth rose sharply, and he had no worries about food and clothing, but there was no future in the officialdom. After Yao Hong ascended the throne, he wanted to ask him to come back as an official. Some people advised him not to do this, saying that people would think that the emperor was venting his dissatisfaction with the previous emperor. What Yao Hong is most worried about is that people think like this, and after careful consideration, he finally chose to compromise with the latter between the love of master and apprentice and the leisurely relationship of the public. What he can do is often send his henchmen and eunuchs to bring gifts to greet him.

But this time is extraordinary.

Zhong Like looked at the sword across the table, and already understood that eight or nine were not far from ten.

"Are you sure you want to go out in person?"

Yao Hong nodded.

Zhong Like shook his head.

"If you want me to say, Your Majesty is still going to go on the expedition, don't go in person."

Yao Hong knew that the teacher would say this, but when he really heard it, he was a little disappointed:

"Teacher, if there is a general to choose from, how can I leave Chang'an and do what generals should do."

"If you want to choose a general who is good at fighting and can attack, like Yao Shao, it will be difficult to get your wish. However, in my opinion, the Jin army that entered Wuguan should not be the main force but a partial division, and the number of people will never exceed 5,000. Liu Yu did not have so many troops to allocate to the front line of Wuguan, so he should have sent a suspicious army so that the southern defenders could not support Guanzhong. With the danger of Wuguan, if it weren't for the panic of the guards, this enemy army could be blocked. Now, His Majesty only needs to send an honest general, relying on the dangerous pass after the Wuguan, deep ditches and high bases, and strong walls to clear the wilderness, which takes a long time, and the Jin army is short of food, so it can only withdraw its troops in disgrace. When the time comes, we will follow and pursue, and Wuguan will naturally be recovered. His Majesty's personal conquest, the generals in the army cannot be self-dictatorated, and they have to take care of His Majesty's safety, and if they can't let go of their hands and feet, it is easy to be frustrated. I also hope that His Majesty will think twice. ”

Yao Hong faintly felt a trace of unhappiness in his heart, feeling that the teacher was hinting that he was not good at military strategy.

This bit of mental activity actually didn't escape Zhong Like's eyes:

"Don't blame the minister for not believing in His Majesty's martial arts. The length of His Majesty, in the wide and simple imperial generals, benevolent and benevolent to support the people, the people of Daqin are also grateful for this, there is no need to show their ability between the blades of the sword, that is done by the martial arts dogs, not by the Holy Monarch. ”

Yao Hong has a lot of use in his heart, but he has already made up his mind, and he will not be swayed because of the teacher's dissuasion, but will change the topic.

"Teacher, to be honest, I am not optimistic about resisting Liu Yu's invasion this time."

Zhong Like lowered his head. In fact, he also knew that Yao Qin was facing the most severe crisis since the founding of the country, and the slightest carelessness would be a catastrophe. He was not optimistic about Yao Hong's ability to control this complex situation. This emperor, placed in the peaceful and prosperous era, is a rare master of the industry, but in the current situation of soldiers coming to the city and strong enemies knocking on the door, all the advantages of weekdays have become disadvantages. Yao Hong was known as the Bodhisattva Emperor by the people, and what Yao Qin needed now was King Kong, not a Bodhisattva.

But he couldn't put any more straw on the camel's back. The only way to do this is to do your best to share Yao Hong's worries. Thinking of this, he cleared his throat and said with a casual demeanor:

"Your Majesty is too worried, you only see our difficulties, but you don't see Liu Yu's difficulties. He worked far away, fought to the death, and if he was careless, he didn't even have a way to retreat. Your Majesty should relax at the moment, and you must not let the government and the opposition feel your anxiety. ”

Yao Hong nodded, and said that the reason why I want to go to the army in person is also to let everyone see that I am not decadent. But inviting the teacher here today is really a private matter.

Zhong Like was a little surprised.

The Son of Heaven is rich all over the world, and he actually has private affairs!

Yao Hong walked to the door and pushed open the door to let the moonlight shine in. It was already early summer, and the fragrance of flowers and plants in the garden had seeped into the house, and Zhong Like felt refreshed. The eunuchs thought that the emperor had an explanation, so they hurriedly came over, but Yao Hong didn't say a word and closed the door again.

"Teacher, I would like to ask you to design a design to quietly take someone away from me."

Zhong Like was stunned:

"Who to take?"

"Take a concubine."

Zhong Like knelt down in a panic:

"Your Majesty, how dare the minister blaspheme the imperial concubine and bring the body of a thousand years old to the desolate grass!"

Yao Hong bent down to help the teacher up:

"Teacher, listen to me. This concubine should have just been pregnant, but the rest of the palace didn't know about it yet. I want to ask the teacher for help to take her out of the palace and find a safe place to raise her for childbirth. If Daqin can withstand this storm, I will take her and the child back; If Yao Hong is incompetent and can't keep this country, there must be no eggs under the nest, and I can keep a bloodline among the people! Supposedly, I could send her straight back to her parents' house, but his father was timid and afraid, and I was afraid that he would not dare to take this hot potato. ”

Zhong Like sighed inwardly. After talking for a long time, in fact, the emperor was still pessimistic in his heart. But he was a scholar, and he didn't dare to pack a ticket to say that Great Qin would win, so he could only help Yao Hong fulfill this wish.

After a little groaning, I already have an idea.

"Your Majesty, since this is the case, you have to sing a bitter trick in front of everyone."