"Many people have already persuaded me to persuade what should be persuaded, so there is no need to say anything more. Fan Xian smiled and patted Ye Ling'er on the shoulder, the two of them have always been afraid of anything.

Ye Ling'er was not used to raising her eyebrows, but the expression on her face was a little gloomy, and she said, "There are always discussions at home that will get into my ears...... I didn't want to hear about it, but my father was angry about what was going on in the north. She looked at Fan Xian, stopped talking, and said seriously after a while: "After all, you and I are Qingren." ”

Fan Xian nodded, didn't say anything, but his smile was a little bitter, after the members of the Qi Nian team sent to Dongyi City met with Mu Feng'er, they passed on his will to the past, and let the turmoil in Xiaoliang Kingdom burn again, so as to find a way to resist the will of the imperial court, so that the eldest prince could stay in Dongyi City.

But Northern Qi's reaction was really unexpected by Fan Xian, because counting the time, Wang Qinian should have just arrived in Shangjing, and in the message he asked him to bring over, he did not mean to let Northern Qi send troops in a big way, but just asked the little emperor to help Dongyi City for the sake of the relationship between the two.

There are many ways to help, and a practice like Beiqi's today is undoubtedly the most open-minded, and it is also the one that makes Fan Xian's situation the most embarrassing. He got rid of his contemplation, and while holding the silver charcoal, he whispered gossip with Ye Ling'er, wanting to find out if there was any movement on the Privy Council side from the few words in Ye's mansion.

Because the emperor in the palace was too indifferent to the war in the north, so indifferent that Fan Xian smelled a hint of danger, but he didn't know where this smell fell.

............ After a few years after the winter solstice, the Fan Mansion set up another family banquet, this time the family banquet did not invite the younger generation of people in the royal family as in the Prince's Mansion, it was a pure and pure family banquet, except for the master of the house, the only guests were the four sons of Fan Men.

Yang Wanli was sent to prison from the position of a member of the Ministry of Labor, and was severely punished in prison, and after the sentence was pronounced in Dali Temple, he was taken back to the house by Fan Xian to recuperate from his injuries.

The fastest among the four sons of Fan Men is Cheng Jialin, he has made it to Suzhou Zhizhou, but now he is implicated by Fan Xian, and he is also very miserable to fall, and the palace gave him the two major crimes of invading the tomb, which is really a bit too heavy, and he was forcibly taken back to Beijing. In the past month, Fan Xian ran back and forth for him, worked hard, and finally saved his life, but he also lost his official position, and saw that there was no future. Cheng Jialin sat a little blankly below Yang Wanli, sighing for a long time.

There are two tables in the flower hall, the ladies are on the table behind the screen, and only Fan Xian and Yang Cheng are sitting at the table outside, they are not moving, but waiting for someone. Outside the flower hall, snowflakes fluttered in the garden of Fan's mansion, waiting for those who returned.

didn't wait long, a person braved the wind and snow and entered the flower hall under the guidance of the servant. It was these years of leaving Nanqing, inheriting Fan Xian's will, and establishing the history of the great cause of unifying Qinglou in the world.

Shi Xianli entered the hall, and before he could dust off the snowflakes on his body, he first bowed deeply to Fan Xian on the main seat, and then bowed to the master and wife on the table inside through the screen, and then turned around, looked at Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin and smiled bitterly, and stepped forward to hug these two friends who had not seen each other for a long time.

He and Sang Wen are now co-hosting the Baoyue Tower, so he naturally knows most of the news in the world, and he also knows that these two friends have been miserable for several months.

"If you are not in good health, don't get up. Shi Xianli consciously sat down under Cheng Jialin, and said to Yang Wanli, who was up to speak, that although he is now one of the richest businessmen in the world, he can be regarded as a hero everywhere, but the habit of reading sage books hard in the early years has not changed, especially the regret in the deepest part of his heart, which makes him naturally envy Yang Wanli, Cheng Jialin, and Hou Jichang, the three friends, and always thinks that he should sit at the bottom as a businessman.

Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin glanced at each other, smiled bitterly, and didn't bother to pay attention to this pedantic guy, so they turned their heads and said some gossip, and no one talked about their miserable experiences in the past few months, and no one criticized the imperial court, because they didn't want to make the disciple Fan Xian anxious because of these things.

After waiting for a while, but no one came again, the faces of several people on the table began to become a little embarrassed and difficult to look at, Cheng Jialin looked at Fan Xian's slightly condensed face, and muttered: "Maybe it's because of the heavy snow, and it's delayed on the road." ”

Yang Wanli pursed his lips tightly, sighed, and drank the wine glass in front of him. Shi Xianli glanced at Fan Xian with some puzzlement, and said: "According to the news I got here, Ji Chang should have returned to Beijing seven days ago, but the imperial court did not convict him, but just let him stay cold. ”

Fan Xian raised his eyebrows, smiled, and said: "At the end of the year, officials and colleagues have a lot of banquets, and it is normal to not be able to schedule time for a while. ”

Having said that, his mood is still inevitably a little depressed, Hou Ji often goes back to Beijing for a few years, but he does not come to Fan's Mansion to visit, and the eyeliner in the court also finds the rumors, it seems that the palace has no intention of punishing him, this qiē has been explained obviously.

In such a country, it is not that there is no such thing as betraying the teacher to seek glory, but it is just spread on himself, and Fan Xian's heart is still a little uncomfortable. His gaze slowly brushed over the faces of the three people on the table, and his heart was filled with extremely complicated feelings, Shi Xianli was still in the capital of the Song Kingdom, but this time he ventured back to Beijing to see him, Yang Wanli needless to say, he said that he had already achieved Cheng Jialin in Suzhou Zhizhou, Fan Xian always thought that he was a little weaker, and he didn't dare to trust, but he didn't expect that this person would rather be robbed of his official position, but he would not deviate from himself.

But Hou Jichang unexpectedly did not come.

"I heard that there is also a banquet in the palace of the university scholars. Shi Yanli's face was a little ugly, and he said: "Before you entered Beijing, the two of them were called the first of Kyoto's talents, and they also had some personal relationships. ”

Yang Wanli gritted his teeth and said angrily: "It's a good season, and I can do things that are done quickly and change to meet him, and I must praise it well." Cheng Jialin only smiled bitterly when he heard this, and said with a faint sigh after a while: "I think that in the Tongfu Inn back then, Brother Ji Chang said to us, Lord Xiao Fan is on the road, and he should not pay attention to the rain on the umbrella dripping into the vendor's oil pot, this kind of person who loves the people is the object that we should follow, but I didn't expect him to ...... Hey......"

With a sigh, Fan Xian smiled instead, beckoned the three of them to start eating, and said: "Everyone has their own ambitions, and now I can't do things in the court, Ji Chang wants to do things for the people, and it's normal to get closer to Scholar He." ”

The words are calm, no one can see the yīn cold in his heart, Fan Xian actually knows that among the four sons of Fan Men, he was originally the most optimistic about Hou Jichang, but the world is so wonderful, I don't know if Fan Xian's arrangement is leaky, or a matter of luck, in the four sons of Fan Men, Yang Wanli has made meritorious contributions to repairing the embankment, and the sound shocks the world, Cheng Jialin sat in the position of Suzhou Zhizhou at a young age, and he was also one of the seven gentlemen of the New Deal who was called into the palace by His Majesty Xià, although Shi Xianli did not enter the officialdom, but the identity of the owner of Baoyue Lou is so glorious。

Only Hou Jichang is partial, still living in Jiaozhou, unable to show his ambitions, and now Fan Xian has lost his power to the end, this Lord Hou is only afraid that he will be unwilling in his heart, and he will be forced to find some other ways. Regarding this, Fan Xian was not unincomprehensible, but he was just unhappy, especially unhappy with the He scholar who was also having a banquet.

After three rounds of drinking, several people chatted about what they had done in their respective positions over the years, Yang Wanli talked about how those white flowers of silver turned into boulders and earthworks on both sides of the river, Cheng Jialin talked about how he protected the territory and the people during his tenure in Zhizhou, how he used the help of Lord Guò Xiaofan, the obedience of those salt merchants and imperial merchants, how to raise money for his wife to enter the Hangzhou Society, and how many poor people he helped. Shi Xianli smiled and talked about what he had seen and heard in the world, as well as the slightly better off of those miserable women in Qinglou, and also told an interesting anecdote, it is said that in the back cabinet of some Baoyue Towers, there are now statues of Lord Xiao Fan, because Lord Xiao Fan has blessed the lives and safety of many girls...... As soon as these words came out, everyone except Shi Yanli himself squirted out the wine.

Although the three of them are chatting about their own affairs, they are actually all related to Fan Xian, and they are all talking about some things that Fan Xian has done in his life to benefit the country and the people, Fan Xian is not a saint, just a mortal, so he is naturally a little happier. He looked at the three of them with a smile, and after a pause, he said: "Wanli has been living in the mansion these days, anyway, he doesn't have a serious family house in Kyoto, Jialin, your family is still in Suzhou, so just move to the mansion." ”

As soon as the door master spoke, the three of them quieted down at the same time, put down the chopsticks in their hands, and looked at him.

"I have arrangements for things at home in Suzhou, don't worry. Fan Xian looked at Cheng Jialin and said gently: "Just get through this rì." I called you here today, because I was afraid that you would have a grudge against the court and a grudge against me, and you would harm yourself. ”

He smiled bitterly and said, "Of course, now it seems that Ji Chang doesn't need me to take care of it." ”

"But you know that I have never asked for anything else from you, just those eight words, so even if the court wants to catch my guilt from you, it is impossible, Ji Chang has his own considerations, but he will not betray me out of nothing. Fan Xian's expression calmed down, and he said slowly: "The four of you follow me as officials in the world, but it is a peaceful season, so you need to contribute." And if it's not peaceful today, so you need to be patient, I know you want to help me, so I went to find some good colleagues in private, but don't do it in the future, my matter is not a problem that court officials can solve. ”

Cheng Jialin responded with a wry smile, they all remembered clearly that when they were released, Fan Xian left them the eight words - be a good person, be a good official.

"Now that you can't be an official, you have to be an honest man. There was a faint pain between Fan Xian's eyebrows, and his majesty knocked everyone around him into the dust, really letting himself look left and right, a little anxious, this hand was really too vicious.

After the family banquet, Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin went to the back garden apartment to rest, Fan Xian left Shi Xianli behind, and he summoned Shi Xianli back to Beijing thousands of miles, naturally it was not as simple as just eating one meal. There were only two of them left in the study, and Shi Yanli no longer had to hide anything, and scolded Hou Jichang angrily.

Fan Xian shook his head and said: "Ji Chang is just a scholar and an official after all, even if he has only learned to drill the camp now, how do you know that he has made a big mistake." ”

Shi Yili's heart was cold, he knew too many secrets of the door master, and naturally knew that the door master was not a simple minister, and the strength of the door master was even more in the power position, Hou Jichang's betrayal actually angered a king in the dark.

"Don't worry I'll kill him, I don't have that idleness. Fan Xian lowered his eyes slightly and said, "How did I ask you to check?"

"There is no difference between Dongyi City and the north, and there is no conflict with the war on the surface. Shi Xianli added a sentence first, and then answered Fan Xian's question seriously, "The matter of the palace canon you want to check out of Beijing is indeed a little strange, the Privy Council issued an order to Nanzhao two months ago, but the level of secrecy is extremely high, and the building has only detected the rumors, and now without the cooperation of the court, a lot of news can only touch the surface." ”

"Nanzhao, what's the problem there?" asked Fan Xian with a frown.

"Ye Shuai's son is on the front line of Nanzhao, according to the practice of the imperial court, there is no war in Nanzhao now, the new lord has succeeded to the throne for three years, and the side of the road should be half turned back to Beijing to report his merits......" Shi Yanli glanced at him and continued: "According to the time, it should have arrived in Kyoto at this time, and then returned to the major battalions, but the border army along the way has never arrived. ”

"You mean to say...... Is it possible that they have gone to the west?" Fan Xian's heart was shocked, and he suddenly thought of an extremely terrifying possibility, shook his head and said, "With such a large military mobilization, how can it be hidden from the rest of the world?"

"If we had focused on the south at the beginning, even on the southern line of Weizhou, we might have been able to detect the movement with the help of the charming women. Shi Yanli blamed himself and said: "It's just that Baoyuelou has been paying attention to Kyoto, Dongyi, and Northern Qi in the past few months, and has not been careful enough to sort out the information over there." ”

"It's none of your business, it's my focus. Fan Xian rubbed his temples with a little headache, and said to himself, "Ye Ling'er, his brother...... This guy hasn't been in Kyoto for many years, and I forgot that there is such a person. According to the calculation of time, if the Nanzhao border army really pulls back, it passes through Kyoto and does not enter, if it really goes west...... Haven't you already arrived in Dingzhou?"

Fan Xian raised his head and took a deep breath, his eyes were full of uneasiness and exhaustion, he knew that he had made a big mistake, but he had been under house arrest in Kyoto for these months, and the Supervision Yuan was under the supervision of Yan Bingyun, relying only on Baoyue Tower, he really couldn't accurately grasp Qingguo's military mobilization.

"Gong Dian left Beijing and went to Dingzhou to summon the prince Hongcheng back to Beijing...... Took away 10,000 Kyoto garrisons and 2,000 forbidden troops. Shi Yanli reminded: "This is something that was found out before. ”

"I know that. Fan Xian's heart gave birth to a feeling of frustration, his palm gently slapped the desk, and sighed: "It's just that I never thought that His Majesty would actually transfer troops from the south to the south, cross thousands of miles, and change the army, isn't he afraid of chaos in the world?"

Shi Xianli understood this sentence, his body was cold, and he forcibly analyzed calmly: "As far as the imperial court is concerned, the new lord of Nanzhao is young, and the domestic ministers are mostly interested in Daqing, so there is no need to be wary at all, leaving half of the army all the way in the south is enough." And the situation of Yanjing City and Beida Camp dealing with Northern Qi and Dongyi City, although it seems that because of the subsequent impact of the rebellion that year, the commander of the Beida Camp has some influence, but in fact there is no danger...... Therefore, for His Majesty, as long as Xiliang can be pacified, and there is no cause of chaos in the world, he can make every effort to prepare for the Northern Expedition. ”

"Pacifying Xiliang is to deal with those people on the grassland...... Fan Xian's brows furrowed, and he sighed softly, knowing that he was still counted dead by Emperor Lao Tzu, after all, he didn't turn over the other party's palm, and an indescribable sense of exhaustion and disappointment filled his body, making him sit on the chair indifferently and unable to move.

He finally knew why His Majesty maintained such an indifferent attitude towards the war in the north, and was not angry at all because of the possible collusion between Northern Qi and Fan Xian, it turned out that Emperor Majesty had already sorted out the possible actions of his own bastard son, and concentrated all the power of all the gods to the west. His Majesty the Emperor did not dance with Fan Xian's layout at all, but instead took advantage of the situation and smashed his fist into Dingzhou City.

"The prince must be informed immediately. Shi Xianli said in shock.

Fan Xian sat on the chair tiredly, and said after a while, "It's too late." ”

............ In the winter grassland, there is a chill everywhere, the wind comes from the north, and the slight humidity carried by the North Sea has long been in the desert Gobi in the northeast of the grassland.

If in the winter of previous years, birds looked down from the sky, and might have been able to find some touching and alluring green beside some lakes, but today, even these poor habitats, they could not find them, because these hardy birds that did not want to go to the south for the winter had blood red in their eyes, the frozen dry grass roots were blood red, the round gravel was blood red, and the sand that crumbled when pinched was blood red, and even those voles that came out of their burrows seemed to be blood red.

This is the Red Mountain Pass, a place that must be passed through from the grassland into the territory of Daqing, the mountains and rocks are all red sè, but today's red is not a different sè given by God, but is dyed red by the Hu people on the grassland, and the soldiers of Daqing.

There are corpses everywhere, there is blood everywhere, the earth-shattering killing sound that scared the vole out of the cave and shocked the big bird has gradually stopped, but next to some barren hills, there is still a cruel battle, and some stubborn Hu warriors gathered into a few small circles, throwing the last blood in the siege of the Qingguo soldiers who are dozens of times their own.

A year ago, Li Hongcheng, the general of Dingzhou and the son of King Jing, was in the Red Mountain Pass to meet the black cavalry and Fan Xian who escaped from the grassland, and he was expecting to be able to fight a beautiful ambush here, but the Hu people were not stupid, and they never gave Qingjun such a chance.

In previous years, when it was so cold and frozen, the countless tribes of Xihu would follow the banner of the king's tent, slowly avoiding the cold air, and marching deeper into the grassland, until they reached the bottom of the high mountain that could not be climbed, and after surviving the bitter cold of the year, the entire grassland would be re-covered at the beginning of the second year.

Xihu rarely chooses to attack Qingguo's Xiliang Road in the thick of winter, and in previous years, there has never been a major military operation unless those tribes who have lost their ground in the fighting inside the grassland will try to cross the border and loot the winter food of the Qingguo Tuntian army and civilians like crazy.

But this year is different, I don't know what's going on, Lord Hu Ge, who inherited most of the cattle and sheep warriors of King Zuoxian, suddenly brazenly led the tribe to move to the east, and bravely or recklessly launched an attack on the territory of Qingguo.

What made the Xihu people even more puzzled was that the great Shan Yu, the far-sighted Shan Yu, after pondering in the king's tent for a night, expressed his appreciation for Brother Hu's behavior, and braved the severe cold to dispatch the sharpest grassland iron horseman, trying to cross the Red Mountain Pass, bypass Qingzhou, and attack the inner abdomen of Xiliang.

No one could have imagined that in the wilderness near the Red Mountain Pass, there were actually 20,000 Qingguo iron cavalry and 70,000 Dingzhou troops in ambush! These Qing** people seem to have known the direction of the Hu people's attack on the grassland, the number of people attacking, and the time of attacking, in fact, the most terrifying thing is that they expected that Xihu would brave the cold to attack this year!

The attack of the Hu people was completely unreasonable, and the ambush of the Qing army was even more unreasonable, these unreasonable things came together in one place, and this Qingzhou victory recorded in the history books was achieved, and this Shura field where tens of thousands of people sacrificed their lives.

Beside a barren hill, already filled with corpses, blood flowing in the sand, this group of Hu warriors had fought to the last man, surrounded by the Qing army. From the previous battle, the Qing military officer knew that this person must be a master of the grassland, so he no longer urged his subordinates to step forward, but slowly raised his right hand and indifferently prepared to fire arrows.

"To descend or not to descend?" The cold voice echoed in the cold air of the grassland, Hu Ge, who was covered in injuries, breathed heavily, his eyes were full of crimson, he stared at those Qingguo's cold soldiers, suddenly screamed, and stabbed himself in the chest, so deep that he had no handle.

Hu Ge is dead, his eyes are still open, looking at the sky with resentment, even if he is dead, he will become a resentful spirit, and ask the young man in Kyoto who caused this qiē to be bloody, why?