Chapter 205: The Vacation Before the Expedition

The uneasiness in my heart cannot be driven away. Xiao Xiao had to use heavy tasks to distract himself every day. It's a good idea, and it can be a little more soothing. At least there is work to do, so that it will not be cranky in the sky. Moreover, it also brought an unexpected gain: the renovation and reconstruction of Zuiyue Tower and the progress of various preparatory work have been much faster.

In a blink of an eye, it is December 20th, and the snowflakes have already fluttered in Chang'an, and it is another year of cold winter.

Although it is a cold winter, the east and west cities are becoming more and more lively, and from time to time there are bursts of crackling firecrackers in the streets and alleys, and the innocent and carefree laughter of children. The smiles on the faces of the pedestrians on the street are getting stronger and stronger, because the end of the year is approaching. There are three or two days left, and it is the New Year's Day!

On this day, Jiang Zhixuan came back as usual. In his hand, he held a small windmill bought for the tiger's head on Xishi Street, and two or three strings of rock sugar gourds. As soon as he stepped up to the cloister, he cried out:

"Tiger head, my precious son, come out quickly and see what Daddy bought you!"

The weather was too cold, and the snow was slippery, and Xiaoxiao didn't let the tiger head play in the yard. At this time, the tiger head is a rare and well-behaved mother. The younger siblings stayed together in the wing room to roast the fire. Hearing the call of his father outside, he immediately cheered, rushed to the door, and ran out of the heavy door with all his strength. I spent the whole day in the house, but I suffocated this stinky boy with ADHD......

Jiang Zhixuan's mood today is also rare and comfortable, originally seeing that the new year is approaching, everyone is happy, but he is becoming more and more anxious. Because when he was young, others could have a happy family reunion, but he had to put on a military robe and go on an expedition. It doesn't matter, the key is that after his beloved wife came to Jingshi, he added up before and after, and only spent a total of three days with his wife and young son. And after the expedition, it will take half a year to meet at the earliest. When he comes back, Yaya and Dandan will call people, but they will never know his father......

I don't know if my conscience found that after going to court today, His Majesty actually ordered someone to send a message, so that he didn't have to go to court again in the next few days, so that he could prepare for the expedition at home. Of course, this is just an excuse, he is a scholar, and he is only a supervisor of the army when he goes out with the army, so what is there to prepare, it is enough to bring a few sets of clothes to wash. He knew that this was just a benefit from His Majesty the Emperor, allowing him to go two or three days before the expedition. Spend time with his wife and children, no wonder he is in such high spirits today.

The tiger stumbled out of the yard, and leaped a step or two away. Jiang Zhixuan had already squatted down and waited with his arms outstretched, in a small word. As Hutou grows up, he is indeed getting closer and closer to his father, and Jiang Zhixuan does not hesitate to please his baby son, and the relationship between Hutou and his father is getting better and better. Sometimes when I get tired of it, I even have to be hugged by my dad all night before I am willing to sleep, and I can only roll my eyes when I look at it......

Holding a rock sugar gourd in his left hand and gnawing with relish, his right hand hooked his father's neck, and the tiger head was carried into the warm wing room by his father. After returning to the house, Jiang Zhixuan put down the tiger's head, leaned over to take the balls from Cui Qiao's hand, took a few mouthfuls on the pink and tender little face, and leaned over to put his head in front of the girl who was holding Xiaoxiao in his arms, and also popped a few times, and then looked up at Xiaoxiao:

"Madam" >, you have worked hard, why did you come back so early today? Are you done with the Drunken Moon Building? ”

Xiaoxiao had just finished feeding the girl, and before she could button it, she slowly sorted out her clothes and replied casually: "Where is it so fast." In the afternoon, the guards sent by the mother arrived at the house, and the concubine was not very relieved, so she came back and settled down in person. It's getting late these days, and the snow is too cold, so the concubine doesn't want to go out anymore......"

"Madam" >, didn't you say it for your husband? It is enough to have the guards assigned by His Majesty to the husband, Madame, ">, why bother your father-in-law and mother-in-law anymore......" Jiang Zhixuan touched his little hair lovingly, and said with a pretending of reproach and helplessness.

Xiaoxiao waved her hand to let the maids prepare dinner, leaving Cui Qiao and a personal girl waiting next door, noncommittal to her husband's words, and diverted the topic:

"Husband, what is happening at today's court meeting?"

Jiang Zhixuan didn't care about Xiaoxiao asking such a question, this is a common thing, and after he went home every day, he was also happy to tell his beloved wife about the strange things and major events that happened in the court. But today everything is too peaceful, and there is nothing to say. Because during this time, the whole court was in full swing preparing to go on the expedition, and all kinds of contradictions were temporarily covered up by this militaristic event.

"It's not just about going out to the mountains, the counterinsurgency army is ready to go out. The Ministry of Rites has also arranged the ceremony of going out to sacrifice to the heavens, and on the twenty-third day of the lunar month, the army can go out to worship the heavens. It's our family, and there is another little happy event, hehe! ”。 Thinking that he could accompany his wife and children carefree for two or three days, Jiang Zhixuan's heart was happy.

"Hehe, could it be that Your Majesty has rewarded your husband again?" Xiaoxiao chuckled and asked, who doesn't love happy events?

"Your Majesty let her husband not have to go to court these days, so that he can accompany his wife at home" > and children, is this a happy event? Jiang Zhixuan didn't sell anything, and said it directly.

A joy in a little heart. This is indeed a happy event. Since he came to Jingshi, his husband has been busy all day long, and he rarely has time to really spend with himself and his children. Although Xiaoxiao has never said or complained about anything in order to support her husband, she is indeed very disappointed in her heart.

She is a woman, in addition to her mother, only Li Qin's good friend Wu Huihuan can walk around, but she can't say anything to her heart. In addition, the preparations for Zuiyue Tower are so heavy, and the most important thing is to worry about the safety of my husband after he goes on the expedition. Sometimes she really feels physically and mentally exhausted, and I hope that her husband can always be by her side, so that when she is tired, she can quietly lean on her husband's shoulder......

Unexpectedly, a few days before the expedition, this wish came true. Although it was only two or three days, Xiaoxiao was already very satisfied. Today is different from the past, the husband has sold himself to the court, where can he do whatever he wants so casually.

……

In the Taiye Pool, Empress Changsun held a bowl of steaming glutinous rice balls and handed it to Li Shimin:

"Erlang, have you done what the concubine entrusted you with?"

Li Shimin took the rice balls, scooped one up with a spoon and put it in his mouth, chewed while nodding his head and replied vaguely: "Don't worry, after going to court today, I have already asked someone to pass a message to him, so that he doesn't have to go to court in the next few days, so he can stay at home!" ”

Empress Eldest Sun frowned when she heard this. The tone of his voice raised slightly: "You only told people today?" ”

Li Shimin didn't raise his head: "Well, ......." Then he felt that something was wrong, raised his head to take a look, and sure enough, he saw that his beloved Guanyin maid was a little unhappy on her face, and hurriedly said:

"Well, I can't get here. During this period, the DPRK and the central government were preparing for the expedition. As a military supervisor, he needs to be familiar with many military affairs. If I give him such a great achievement, he should always make some effort! ”

Empress Eldest Sun sighed helplessly: "Alas, too, he is a weak scholar and has just entered the court." He is holding such an important position as supervising the army, so he should learn more. It's just that I pity my sister and tiger head of the Xiao family, who spend all year round with her husband and father and ...... less and more separation."

A small bowl of rice balls and dim sum, Li Shimin wiped it out cleanly after dividing it by two in three times, put down the bowl and spoon, wiped his mouth and said:

"It's not always like this, I know that you have a deep relationship with that Xiao Xiaoxiao, she saved Guanyin and your little son, and sacrificed her life to save the life of the pheasant slave, why don't I be grateful to her in my heart? Because of this, I favor Jiang Zhixuan. Otherwise, will I hand over to him the post of overseer of the counterinsurgency army? Do you know how many people are looking forward to this errand......"

Empress Changsun smiled reluctantly: "The concubine knows Erlang's intentions, come, lie down, the concubine will massage you for a while, these days, Erlang is also tired, right?" Fewer words"

This is his favorite, Wen Yan quickly lay down obediently, closed his eyes and enjoyed Guanyin's refreshing massage to the bones, while saying like a dream: "It's worth being tired, as long as I can successfully quell the rebellion in one fell swoop this time, I will be able to be idle in the future, and the time will come...... Let's take a closer time......"

……

Since the Zuiyue Building was seized, the most famous restaurant in Chang'an, Beijing, is located in the East City. At this time, at the door of Qingyiju, a luxurious carriage stopped. Dozens of big men dressed in the uniforms of the Right Guards gathered around the carriage to stand guard.

Soon, a burly man in civilian clothes and over half a hundred years old came down from the carriage. I saw that his face was full of beards, his eyes were like electricity, and there was a momentum of looking at the world. This person is Qi Shanxing, the general of the Right Weiwei, the deputy commander of the imperial court's expedition to the mountains. Tonight, he will be in this Qingyi residence, and feast the ministers of the DPRK and China who are related to the expedition of this army, as well as Yu Linwei and the Shenwu army. And the main generals of his own right guard!

In the flower hall, all the guests he invited had arrived, and among these people, there was one person who was particularly eye-catching, and that was Wu Siyuan, who would be a young craftsman.

In order to achieve the purpose of rapid mobility, the counterinsurgency army of the imperial court marched lightly. Because of the early battles, most of them will not be attacked, and most of them are field battles, and there is no need for large-scale siege equipment. It was not until later that the base camp of the mountain warriors was attacked, and all kinds of large equipment were needed. Therefore, the imperial court decided that the household department and the general would be sent as a prisoner. Where the counterinsurgency army needed siege equipment, the household department and the general worked together to send the equipment to the army......

What is strange is that Qi Shanxing invited so many people, but he did not invite one of the three leaders of this counterinsurgency - the champion of the new section, the provincial living lang of Menxia, and Jiang Zhixuan, the supervisor of the counterinsurgency army!

Duan Zhixuan, the general of Zuo Xiaowei, is the commander of the counterinsurgency army. But by this time he was already far away in the southwestern frontier, leading his army to confront the mountain wings. Qi Shanxing did not invite him, which is understandable. But Jiang Zhixuan is in Jingshi, and he lives in Xishi, which is not far from here, but Qi Shanxing did not invite him, why is this?

It needs to be said here that since there has been Tang. Every time such a military operation occurs, the imperial court will send a prison guard. Supervising the army and supervising the army, as the name suggests, is actually to monitor the army's every move. Because there is a saying that "the general will be outside, and the king's order will not be affected!" His Majesty the Emperor was worried that his army would not do things according to his wishes, so he added the role of a superintendent. The main function is to monitor and supervise the leading generals and do what His Majesty the Emperor wants. Although he has no command authority, he represents His Majesty the Emperor. Therefore, the position of the superintendent has always been held by the emperor's most trusted person.

However, this position is absolutely not welcomed by the commanders of the army. Obviously, the situation on the battlefield is changing rapidly, and if something happens, you need to temporarily change the established strategy. There is such a nasty fly buzzing in the ears and shouting about the established strategy of the imperial court, the original intention of His Majesty, how can this battle be fought? Listen to the prison army, it is you who lost the battle and was beheaded. If you don't listen, even if you win, you will have to bear a charge of disobeying military orders, or even disobeying holy decrees! So, how can these commanders like the prison army?

Therefore, Jiang Zhixuan did not appear in Qingyiju, which became a matter of course. As for why Qi Shanxing entertained the main generals of these armies and the senior officials of the DPRK and China before the army was about to start, his intention is self-evident. The orthodox leaders are now far away in the sky, and whether the 100,000 troops drawn from the imperial court can hold them firmly in their hands depends on these generals......

During the banquet, Qi Shanxing naturally inevitably asked for words of encouragement. A group of generals and officials are also very good-looking, and after receiving a "thin" gift prepared by the families of the generals and left-behind officials of Qi Shanxing, they all said that only Qi led the horse, and naturally ignored the word "deputy".

Among them, Wu Siyuan's statement was the most positive. And he is responsible for the allocation and delivery of very important equipment. This made Qi Shanxing very happy, and raised his wine glass and touched him several times in a row. When he put down the cup, no one noticed that Wu Siyuan's eyes were fleeting with madness and resentment!

Since entering the East Palace, Wu Siyuan has been loyal to Li Chengqian, the crown prince of the current dynasty. In his opinion, Li Chengqian, who has been established as the prince of the country, is orthodox and will inherit the throne sooner or later. When the time comes, a courtier like him, who has served early, will definitely be reused. Now although he is no longer a subordinate of the East Palace, he will first ask Li Chengqian for instructions on everything he does, and do it according to Li Chengqian's instructions!

And a veteran like Qi Shanxing, although it is impossible to serve any prince, will only be loyal to the emperor of the dynasty. However, he had already shown a very obvious inclination to be close to Li Tai, the king of Wei. In this way, he was naturally resented by the crown prince Li Chengqian and his henchmen. However, a person like Qi Shanxing is a good hand at leading troops into battle, and he may also have two brushes to make friends. But his political sense of smell was really poor, so bad that he didn't even notice that Wu Siyuan was from the East Palace......

Since he got the errand of preparing munitions for the counterinsurgency army, Wu Siyuan was instructed by the East Palace. Let him find a way to create some trouble, so as not to let Qi Shanxing's counterinsurgency army go so smoothly. Wu Siyuan was overjoyed after receiving this order.

He already had that idea, and he was even more vicious. You must know that among the three leaders of the counterinsurgency army this time, there is one person who makes him grit his teeth with hatred. He had already begun to plan, to use this rebellion to completely eliminate this father-killing enemy from the world and avenge his father's death......

……

After the kitchen prepared dinner, Cui Qiao went to the room to invite the lord and the lady to "> dinner." The weather is cold, and the hot pot invented by Xiaoxiao when he was in Huayin has a market again. Today, because of the snow, the kitchen is preparing hot pot.

A special copper basin is set on the charcoal stove, and the bottom of the red and white mandarin duck pot keeps tumbling. Around the charcoal stove are a variety of ingredients and dishes: fresh lamb, chicken, fish, and a few vegetables, unfortunately no beef.

Xiaoxiao almost made a big oolong for this, and when Huayin made a hot pot for the first time, Xiaoxiao urinated around to see where there was beef. After many inquiries, she couldn't find it, so she wanted to buy a cow to slaughter and eat meat. Unexpectedly, as soon as these words came out, everyone in the Jiang Mansion was stunned. It wasn't until the end that she realized that at this time, eating ploughing cattle was actually a crime......

Close the door, completely isolate the cold outside, sit around the roaring fire, eat steaming hot pot, the warmth of "home" is particularly strong. Because the two little ones can't eat such things yet, and this is the time for them to sleep. Therefore, there is only a family of three in a huge flower hall, which seems to be somewhat quiet. However, the couple are in a good mood today, and Tiger Head has never seen such a way to eat, so they are curious to ask this and that, and they have a good dinner.

After dinner, the tiger head was taken by the maid to bathe and rest. Xiaoxiao and Jiang Zhixuan also went back to the room early, got into the warm quilt, hugged each other and whispered. This is the moment that Xiaoxiao is most looking forward to every day in recent times, hugging her husband's waist that is not strong but not weak, feeling his heartbeat and body temperature. Only at this time can I give her a sense of safety and steadfastness!

"Madam> what has happened to you all these days? Why does your husband always think that something is wrong with you? Holding his beloved wife tightly, Jiang Zhixuan asked faintly. He had already discovered a little wrong, and taking advantage of the two-day holiday, he naturally had to ask about it, in order to unravel his beloved wife!

Xiaoxiao curled up in her husband's arms, and whispered lazily: "Husband, the concubine is fine, just thinking that the husband is about to go away, she is a little reluctant, and she is worried about her husband's safety......"

Jiang Zhixuan was moved in his heart, turned over and looked down at his beloved wife's pretty face:

"Silly girl, stop thinking nonsense, okay?" While talking, without waiting for small words, he sealed his beloved wife's red lips with his mouth......

Chapter 205 Vacation before the expedition, to the website