It was the beginning of Kangxi's return to the Forbidden City in the snow, and the sound of hitting the sword faintly came through the snow curtain, which added to the tranquility of the surroundings. Suo Etu was already waiting under the Danqi, and saw Kangxi and a team of people coming over with lanterns from a distance, and hurriedly shouted into the house: "Mingzhu, the master is back, please take over the prince!" In it, Zhuo Suotu, who was having a ride with Horqin King Zhuo Suotu, hurriedly agreed, and Zhuo Suotu came out with his waist bent, and the three of them knelt down together to take over.

Kangxi only glanced at the three of them, didn't squeak, stomped under the corridor, Li Dequan removed the big gun, walked into the glorious Qinzheng Palace, sat on the dragon chair in the middle, slowly drank a cup of hot **, and said: "A few of you come in!" ”

The three of them rushed in, Suo and Ming only hit a thousand children and silently retreated to both sides, Zhuo Suotu walked forward three kneels and nine bows, knelt on the ground, muttered a few words of Mongolian, and said loudly in Chinese: "Slave Zhuo Suotu congratulates the son of the saint!" Then there was another string of Mongolian words. Kangxi listened blankly, and then couldn't help laughing, leaned over to help Zhuo Suotu, and said, "I don't see you, so good at flattering!" Your Chinese is quite beautiful, get up! ”

Zhuo Suotu stood up, and Wei Dongting, who was standing beside Kangxi, couldn't help but look at the Mongolian prince curiously. Five short figures, dark complexion, and a stubby neck. Two thick eyebrows are upside down like brushes, wearing a golden dragon three-layer crown, eight eastern pearls and rubies are shining, and the four dragon robes are dazzling and bright - a fierce and brave temperament, only two legs look a little loopy. Wei Dongting couldn't help but think: This person must be good at riding! was thinking wildly, but heard Kangxi ask, "Do you know why I called you here?" ”

"The minions don't know." Zhuo Suotu bowed and replied. Just now in the courtroom, he took a lot of effort to ask Mingzhu and Suo Etu about Kangxi's intention to summon him, but as soon as these two ministers mentioned this, Wang Gu talked about him. It's been a lot of anxiety in my heart. He didn't know that even Suo and Ming were also in the dark.

Kangxi stared at Zhuo Suotu tightly, and said with a smile: "I want to take Taiwan, and I lack military salaries." I heard that you have been really prosperous in the past few years, and you have dug another gold mine, and you want to borrow a little for national use temporarily, how about it? This made everyone look at each other, and no one could have imagined that Zhuo Suotu had been called in the middle of the night for this was just this. Zhuo Suotu was stunned for a moment, glanced at Kangxi quickly, and said: "Entrusted to the lord Hongfu, the Horqin grassland has had enough rain in recent years, the grass is fat and the horses are strong, and the cattle and sheep have more than doubled. But there is no gold mine in the slave territory, and it is not known if it is a false rumor - the emperor said that the military salary, this is also a matter of the slave's share, please open the number, and the slave should do his best to serve! Kangxi didn't say a word, got up and paced a few steps, turned around and approached Zhuo Suotu, his eyes became aggressive, and said with a smile: "I know that you can't get gold in Korqin, but Zhun Geer has it, what is Geerdan's is yours, and yours is Geerdan's, isn't it the same?" I want to know how many times he's sent you, how many times each time, and why don't you have the Ming court—huh? ”

There was tremendous pressure in his voice, and King Korqin's stocky and powerful figure was also shaken, and he fell to his knees with a "plop" and said hurriedly: "Go back to the emperor, since the fifteenth year of Kangxi, Geldan has sent it every other year, a total of four times, forty-five thousand taels each time——"

"I'm afraid it's 50,000 taels, right?" Kangxi cut him off coldly.

"The first time is 50,000 taels ......" Zhuo Suotu swallowed helplessly, and said, "Because it is to celebrate the birthday of his mother, the slave is stupid, and thinks it is a private relationship, so he did not make it clear in time, and asked the emperor to punish the crime - the gold received, the slave is willing to pay all the gold to the treasury to help the emperor pay for the army!" "Oh? Oh! Kangxi couldn't help laughing: "I am rich for the Son of Heaven, where can I beat your idea of gold?" Let's just talk about your heart. There is a saying in your steppe: Money without a reason is like a lamb without a mother, you know? Zhuo Suotu stared at Kangxi for a long time, and said: "Geldan is lawless, does not obey the imperial court decrees, robs and kills people in Khalkha without authorization, and calls himself the Great Khan, and the servants all know." But after all, he still paid tribute to the emperor, and he was very friendly with the kings of Eastern Mongolia, and the slaves were unwilling to easily turn their faces with him, so he ...... received his gold. ”

Kangxi sighed softly and said, "You're not smart enough!" He turned around and opened a gold-skinned folding box, took out a few folds and handed them to Zhuo Suotu, "This one belongs to the Xicun Gol League, this one belongs to the Zhaowuda League, this one belongs to the Jelimu League, and Öndörkhan's...... They are all secret recitals of the kings of Eastern Mongolia. Then will Geldan not only give gold to your family? They all have them, but the Mongol kings who are near Dzungar will not give them a single copper! Do you think about why? ”

At this time, Mingzhu and Suo Etu knew Kangxi's true intention to meet Zhuo Suotu, and they admired it so much that they threw themselves to the ground. Suo Etu said: "He is now befriending your kings of Dongmeng, I am afraid that in the future, when he attacks Monan and fights with the kings of Yikezhao, Ulanqab, and Kulun, you will send reinforcements to resist!" Mingzhu also said: "When you clean them up, it's your turn!" Is it worth it to be greedy for his little profit, forget the righteousness of the monarch and the minister, and die and die for his family? ”

Zhuo Suotu muttered, "Really? ……”

"Not bad at all!" Kangxi sat back firmly, stilted his legs up, and when he saw Gao Shiqi coming in with the curtain, he smiled and said, "I really let Zhou Peigong say it!" Zhuo Suotu, because you are too far away, the whip is beyond the reach of the whip, so you will rest with your children's jade silk, let him toss in the west, and wait until the army comes to Korqin, you understand that it is too late! ”

Zhuo Suotu frowned and thought about it, and after a while, the heavy cowhide boots suddenly turned red, and roared loudly: "This evil wolf of Western Mongolia, he doesn't think about it!" ”

"I can't let him run rampant on the grassland!" Kangxi said coldly, "Back then, Prince Niebuhr rebelled, and I showed my military might, and it only took twelve days to put down the rebellion - you have seen it!" What's more, the world is unified today, and millions of Eight Banners are pillowing the Central Plains? Zhuo Suotu, don't forget the benefits, you have to make up your mind! Although the words were not clear, the meaning of one of the two rings was heard, and Zhuo Suotu hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed: "The slave was confused, and he accepted his gift, thinking that he meant well." The master dialed this, and the minion's heart was clear. Kangxi smiled: "What I want is your heart, just understand." When Gerdan gives a gift again, you still receive it, you know? ”

All of a sudden, a new thought surged into Kangxi's heart, since Geldan is a "distant friend and close attack", why not lure him to the east with a plan? Is it better to annihilate in the near than to travel far away? Gao Shiqi was born with a crystal-like cleverness, and he had already figured out Kangxi's thoughts, and bowed his body and said with a smile: "The slave was just at Zhou Peigong's place, and I heard him point to the map and talk for a long time, which is also the reason." According to the minion, it is not as deep as the master's thinking and thinking far. Kangxi heard Gao Shiqi say the word "map" loudly, and his heart lit up, and he sighed: "When I saw you tonight, I thought you would do everything possible to get rid of the cover-up, but I didn't expect you to be so happy, it can be seen that you didn't really hook up with Geerdan." This is not only a blessing for the community, but also for your creation. Zhuo Suotu, the first king and many concubines, and the current empress dowager, are all people from your Horqin grassland, I trust you like my own siblings, you have to contribute more to me! Zhuo Suotu was surprised why Kangxi called him "take it right", and after listening to Kangxi's confidant words, he was very moved, straightened up, and said proudly: "There are 30,000 heroic warriors in slaves, as vigorous as eagles, all of whom are the emperor's most loyal servants!" From now on, the minions will never take a penny from Geldan! ”

"I told you to do it, and you will do it! Eat grandson and wear grandson and don't thank grandson, why don't you do such a good thing? Kangxi Gege smiled and said meaningfully, "You have to find a way to convince Geerdan that you have fallen for him!" ”

"Wow!"

Kangxi continued: "I want to issue an edict to reprimand you for accepting bribes from foreign vassals privately, and to disguise wrongdoing in the previous text of me, and immediately take away the Dongzhu in your crown!" ”

This is a not light punishment, tomorrow the princes will meet, and there is no Dongzhu on the head of King Horqin, where to put his face? Kangxi saw Zhuo Suotu's face red, laughed, his eyes flashed, and said, "Reluctant? Otherwise, it is not enough to make my plan great! Don't feel that you have suffered too much, I still have something for you—" He walked to the side of the desk, took up his pen and thought for a while, and said quickly:

King Zhuo Suotu is a national Ping Domain, known for his loyalty, love for the people, and his merit is in the community. In addition to the great rebellion, he will avoid death twice, and his children and grandchildren will not die once, and the world will guard Horqin and rest with the country. Chin this!

After writing and reading it, he used the seal, approached Zhuo Suotu, and said, "I have never given people such a special favor. But Korqin was the first Mongol king to enter the customs from the dragon in the Qing Dynasty; When it was difficult to serve the 'three feudatories', Horqin took the lead in sending 4,000 iron horsemen to help the country clear the wolf atmosphere, and it was appropriate to give this grace. You go back and cast iron coupons in the same way, so that your descendants will always defend the northern part of the Qing Dynasty! ”

Zhuo Suotu was shocked and received special grace, his heart was boiling, he didn't know what it tasted, he fell to the ground and kowtowed and cried: "The emperor is so loving, and the grace is eternal, Ze has been broken for thousands of years, and the slaves are broken to pieces, and it is not enough to repay the holy grace in case ......."

"And." Kangxi's pupils were black and bright, "Assign the land of the left, middle and right three banners of Karaqin to your department." The place is full of Mongolian and Han military camp flags, garrison armor people and green camp generals, all under the command of your king Horqin - this grace, how is it compared to a few eastern pearls and hundreds of thousands of taels of gold? ”

The land of the Three Banners of Karaqin is 500 miles from east to west, 450 miles from north to south, and there are more than 70,000 garrison soldiers, all of which were given to Zhuo Suotu at once! This is a reward that you never dreamed of! Zhuo Suotu's blood seemed to be pouring all over his face. Compared to this, what gold pearls, precious stones, gold and jade, all turned into dust and mud, for the Mongols, what is more precious than grasslands, pastures, and military horses? Zhuo Suotu shook his body as if he was drunk, and his eyes were fixed on Kangxi. Kangxi looked at this Mongolian king kindly, the corners of his smiling mouth and his clear and flawless eyes were without the slightest hypocrisy and fraud. Zhuo Suotu slurped, suddenly pulled out the dagger in his waist lightly, looked at it in his hand, and grabbed his left index finger, and the gurgling blood immediately flowed out.

"Your Majesty, the supreme of all things in the world!" Zhuo Suotu's voice trembled slightly, "I swear by the blood of my Zhuo Suotu family tribal ancestors: even if the sun and moon never rise from the grassland again, even if the storm fills the world, all the eagles in the sky over Horqin will not lose their way, and they will always be loyal servants of the Qing Emperor......"

It wasn't until the end of the day that Zhuo Suotu kowtowed and knelt down. Gao Shiqi has prepared several edicts. Kangxi saw that the first part was about "eating", so he only smiled and put it aside. I also looked at the Ming Fa and the iron coupon book given by King Dongzhu of Horqin, as well as the secret decree of the Three Banners of Karaqin, but I read it very carefully. After a long time, he breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile: "It's okay." Tell me a few of you, how about dealing with Horqin in this way? ”

Mingzhu was seen from the beginning to the end, seeing that Kangxi was calm and caressing, even rubbing and rubbing, and treated Zhuo Suotu like a child, he admired it to the extreme, and was about to speak. Suo Etu smiled early: "The slave was dazzled, and he didn't have time to think about it at the time. Now that I think about it, the emperor is going to lure the enemy deeper! However, the slave thought that after all, Taiwan's affairs were gone, and it seemed a bit too hasty. Mingzhu hurriedly said: "The emperor used both grace and power to subdue King Lierqin, this effect is really wonderful, not only is he not afraid of Geerdan's eastward advance, but he also has no worries about the affairs of Heilongjiang." Killing two birds with one stone, wonderful! According to the minions, it is not too hasty, Taiwan can be taken this year, and it will take a few years of preparations. ”

"Hooray, the disposition is extremely clear." Gao Shiqi groaned. He suddenly thought that it was he who said the "map" that led to the gift of Karaqin, afraid that Kangxi would think that he was too smart, and he was afraid that he would be affected by future changes, so he was busy and said, "But according to the minion, it is enough to give iron coupons." Why add such a heavy reward? The eagle can't be fed too much, and when it is full, it will think about it, and there is a training in ancient times. This is a little bit of a minion's thought. ”

Kangxi smiled and listened to their discussion, turned his face and asked Wei Dongting: "Huchen, what do you say?" ”

"What insight does the minion have?" Wei Dongting was stunned for a moment and said with a smile, "But I think what Gao Shiqi said seems to make sense." Horqin is known as rich, with a territory of thousands of miles and tens of thousands of military horses. Coupled with the people of the three banners of Karaqin, there are more than 100,000 cavalry alone. If there is a gap, I am afraid that it will be difficult to fall off the tail, and it will be so close to Beijing......"

Kangxi laughed but didn't answer, got up and yawned, and said, "Kneel down." Xiao Weizi has to hurry tomorrow! Passing by the Karaqin Left Banner, the decree was sent to the wolf. From now on, like Wei Dongting, he also has the right to perform secretly! ”

After stopping in Shenyang for four days, Kangxi ordered to drive back to Beijing. This trip to Fengtian can be described as complacent, with a living map and guide for westward expansion, and he is beautiful and talented. The Mongol princes of the north and south of the desert swore allegiance to the imperial court in the Qin'an Palace, fought against Geldan with the same enemy, and jointly discussed the construction of a palace in Chengde, Rehe, which was the place where the Chang Dynasty was stationed in Beijing. Grasp the line of King Korqin, if you can lead the big fish of Geerdan to the east, and you can unite the three armies of the Han and Mongolian forces to gather and annihilate it, Geerdan is not a native grandson, can he enter the ground and go?

After the Xifeng Pass, it is the spring of March - although there is only one Great Wall inside and outside the Guan, the weather and the earth are very different, and the two sides of the post road are already willow silk spitting yellow, tender grass and fragrant flowers. Returning from the white mountains and black waters, it is really like changing the world. Kangxi was happy in his heart, he actually got off the public opinion, ordered Axiu's sedan chair to follow far behind, pretended to be a merchant left and right, talked and laughed with the guards on the horse, sometimes released eagles to hunt, sometimes traveled to the lucky city to sell a small shop, visited the people's customs, and had its own post station along the road to greet and send, but it was also very happy.

This day to noon, Kangxi felt a little hungry, on the horse hand pergola, saw a village mash shop, near the river by the road a willow, a bay duck head blue water murmuring eastward, in front of the store on the old acacia on a long bamboo pick a disguise, on the top of the crooked diagonal writing two lines of words:

Taibai smelled the fragrance and got off the horse, so don't ask Xinghua Village here.

While running on the reins, he asked, "Suo Laosan, where are we on this ground?" ”

"Gentlemen, you've arrived in Sanhe Town!" Without waiting for Suo Etu to answer, a middle-aged woman in the store came out with a spring breeze on her face, "Come down and rest, eat a bowl of Sanhe old mash, don't miss your walk at all - Tailai's family, scald wine, wash the dust for the guests, ask the guys to lead the horses to the backyard, mix the best ingredients and feed them!" "It's been a blessing to say it. When Gao Shiqi looked at this woman, she had a pair of half-sized feet under her green cloth wide robe and embroidered trousers, wrapped around her legs early, and her sleeves were slightly pulled up, revealing her snow-white lining. Gao Shiqi dismounted and threw the reins to the man, and said with a smile: "Xiaoqiao Liushui family, you are a good shopkeeper, don't you believe that your wine is comparable to Fenjiu?" "You old Mingjian! Just smell and smell to know, this taste is sweet and mellow, where does the Fen River come from such good water! The proprietress spoke concisely and neatly, and was busy taking care of Mingzhu and the others, and saw that Kangxi was the host and guest, so she let go of the upper seat, and arranged for the guy to fetch water to wash his face, and kept saying in the door, "Don't look at my small storefront, I have more than 20 small shops like this!" More than 100 years old, all with good wine and good scenery, guests have this Yaxing! It's not my Cui family boasting, I came to the door and my grandfather is still there, and I said, these words on the front of the guise are still written by the former Ming Zhengde! Emperor Lao Tzu is also a human being, and if you are good, you have to say good! ”

Kangxi sat down with a smile and said, "What a good mouth-since you said that Zhengde came to your house to eat, didn't your ancestor say what he looked like?" ”

"Your Majesty, is that pie still small?" The proprietress saw that Kangxi was extraordinary, graceful and luxurious, and knew that there was a situation, so she was busy with the dishes, put the big copper kettle for boiling wine on the burning fire, sifted the wine and teased, "Grandpa said that the emperor Lao Tzu has a gold ingot in his left hand, a silver ingot in his right hand, and a donkey on his butt is full of ginseng, and he eats ginseng when he is hungry...... As soon as it's time to go to the toilet, ask someone to get goose yellow satin and prepare it......"

Before the words were spoken, Kangxi and his party were already laughing. Seeing that Kangxi was in great interest, Mingzhu pretended to be puzzled and asked, "What do you want goose yellow satin for?" "It's so assy!" The proprietress clapped her hands and laughed, "Your Majesty, that's it!" Kangxi couldn't help laughing, coughed and said, "...... Good! Good! You describe it well, this is a good emperor! The guards leaned back one by one, covering their mouths and laughing.

was in chaos, but saw an official sedan chair on the official road outside. Then there is a four-by-small warm sedan chair, which seems to be an inner family, there are fifty or sixty people hugging each other before and after, the clothes are very mixed, the girl is an old woman, a master, a secretary, and a large group. Behind the back, more than a dozen mules carried sundries such as cages, makeup tables, thrush cages, etc., and wandered westward. Kangxi thought that it must be a vassal of which province passed by, and he didn't care. The proprietress looked at the official sedan chair, and in the blink of an eye, she saw a middle-aged man outside getting off the donkey, and the little Xi slave followed behind, and said with a smile: "There are guests here - the wine and food are all ready, please use them for your own use - hey, old guests!" Please sit inside, clean and bright, and hurry again......" he said, and greeted him.

The middle-aged man got off the donkey, ordered Xiao Xi Nu to tie it to the willow tree, and only said to the proprietress: "We are in a hurry and will not go in." Blanch two bowls of wine, bring a plate of dried tofu, stand outside and finish eating—" As he spoke, he stepped forward and grabbed the companion who was walking at the end of the official sedan chair, and asked softly, "Hey, brother, which adult just passed?" Kangxi couldn't help but glance at the middle-aged man, although he felt a little familiar, he couldn't remember when he had seen it. You ask us? The companion glanced at the middle-aged man, swallowed melon seeds, ignored it and said, "The new county magistrate, sign the Sanhe County Order!" Mao Zongtang Mao Daling! With that, he staggered and went. The middle-aged man was stunned for a moment, and then nodded after a while: "Oh-what a momentum!" ”

Kangxi was shocked in his heart, a small county order, the top of the eight grades, actually brought such a large group of cows, ghosts, snakes and gods when he took office! Thinking about it, I couldn't help but glance at Mingzhu. Mingzhu saw that his face suddenly gloomy, for fear of having a seizure on the spot, so he said loudly: "The order of a county, Baili Hou, can you still not be a little powerful?" ”

"Bailihou?" The middle-aged man had finished drinking outside the store, handed the proprietress twenty coppers, wiped his mouth and sneered, "This is a hundred-mile tiger, eating the people with a bloody mouth!" So saying, he went away. Wu Dan watched it for a long time, and he recognized him, and when he saw that Kangxi was distracted, he hurriedly approached and whispered a few words.