In the main hall of Jiang'an City, the banquet seemed to be going on for an extra long time tonight.
The dinner party, which used to end in an hour at most, actually lasted until the end of Xu Shi, and Concubine De did not seem to have the slightest intention of ending it.
Although everyone was surprised, they did not dare to say a word, for fear of offending His Majesty's favorite concubine, who has gained great prestige in Sishui Prefecture these days.
But after all, those here are somewhat experienced. Not to mention the question of whether they dare or not, their bodies really can’t bear it anymore.
So when it was past half-hour, someone finally couldn't help but stand up and said: "Madam, there is a luncheon tomorrow, why don't you rest early?"
Concubine De was noncommittal when she heard the words, and said calmly: "You are all confused, why did I keep you here for so long tonight?"
Everyone looked at each other, and the person who was qualified to speak respectfully said: "Please clear up the confusion, Madam."
Concubine De said calmly: "Everyone, listen carefully. Do you hear anything?"
After the words fell, the hall quietly became quiet. After listening attentively, a not inconsiderable noise came from far away.
"Mother, what is this?"
Everyone was immediately surprised and suspicious.
Concubine De glanced at the scene and picked up the wine glass calmly, "The governor of Jianning, Zheng Yuanwang, brought his son to cause rebellion and colluded with the bandits to rebel. He is currently leading the rebels to attack Jiang'an City."
"ah?"
"What!"
"No way!"
As soon as these words came out, all the dignitaries in the palace were shocked and stood up one after another, knocking over tables and chairs on the floor and spilling soup and drinks everywhere.
What's more, his eyes suddenly went dark and he fell over.
When everyone took a look, it turned out to be Zheng Tianyu's mentor, Zhou Xue Xue Zheng Song Yanzhi.
Feng Xiuyun took a step forward, raised her chest and raised her head and said solemnly: "Isn't the empress here with all the gentlemen? How can I be so embarrassed!"
The majestic tone, with the unique penetrating power of a woman's voice, spread into everyone's hearts, like a wake-up call.
Everyone also realized, yes, if the sky fell, there would be someone tall to hold it up. If it was really dangerous, would the empress still sit here?
So since the queen is not leaving, what does she have to be afraid of?
The place gradually became quiet, and Concubine De slowly said: "After all, it is a rebellion. I am worried that some thieves will take the opportunity to cause trouble. At this moment, there is no safer place than here in the city, so I leave you here, don't blame me." .”
"Thank you for your kindness."
Concubine De then slipped a piece of paper from her sleeve and handed it to Feng Xiuyun, "Xiuyun, take the guards and invite the people above to the side hall, where they can eat and drink, and wait until the matter here is settled. We will talk about it later. "
On this note that the three of them had discussed earlier, it was written that there were a large group of people who were closely related to the Zheng family, including Song Yanzhi, the governor of Zhou Xuexue, Zhao Hongfei, the magistrate of Jiang'an County, and others.
After finishing these tasks and looking at the many empty seats, Concubine De poured a glass of wine and said, "Gentlemen, please have a drink to calm down."
"Thank you for your kindness!"
It's a bit embarrassing that a group of big men actually need a woman to stabilize their morale.
But all the princes in the palace were unwilling to admit their weakness, so at this moment, the image of Concubine De in their hearts suddenly became taller.
Then, they began to denounce the Zheng family and his son one after another to express their position.
"Zheng Yuanwang is so ambitious! The court treats him well, but he actually raises an army to cause trouble. I really want to eat his flesh raw!"
"Normally, this father and son are always good at pretending, but now that the emperor's grace is great and the world is at peace, this pair of evil thieves have actually done something that is outrageous to both humans and gods!"
"What nonsense is the number one son of Sishui Prefecture? These people are only worthy of being cows and horses for generations! How can they be compared with us!"
"Without a king or a father, if you are unfaithful and unfilial, you deserve to be cut to pieces by a thousand cuts!"
Concubine De just sat upright, as if turning a deaf ear to all this.
After a while, the shouts of killing became louder.
A guard hurriedly came in from outside the hall and reported a few words to Feng Xiuyun.
Under the expectant eyes of everyone in the audience, Feng Xiuyun walked up to Concubine De and was about to speak in a low voice. Concubine De said directly: "Speak louder. Everyone here has the right to know the situation in the city."
Feng Xiuyun was a decisive person, so he did not hesitate when he heard the words, and said directly: "The rebels are powerful. Although Zou Jirong, the county lieutenant in the city, wanted to join forces inside and outside to offer the city and was captured and killed by General Jin on the spot, but the rebels were in large numbers and drove the laborers outside the city. The battalion workers attacked the city. Although the defenders at the top of the city suffered heavy casualties, the city walls were low and it was difficult to resist the enemy. Moreover, the army was not good at fighting in the field and was not good at defending the city to resist the enemy. Therefore, General Jin had decided to divide his troops and had already pretended to leave the city in the afternoon. One hundred cavalry and one hundred cavalry in the city will attack the rebels front and back, trying to overwhelm the main force of the rebels, reduce the rebels' combat power, and secure the city."
"What?"
"Empress! No!"
"Your Majesty, this is absolutely impossible!"
One by one, the frightened people stood up, spoke one after another, and issued panicked dissuades.
Concubine De looked calm, "Why not?"
Everyone was making a fuss, and finally a county guard stood up, "Madam, when attacking and defending a city, the defending side can occupy a convenient location to maximize the damage and consumption of the enemy's troops. Although Jiang'an City has low walls, it still has walls. We just have the advantage of relying on them. The geographical advantage is such that one can equal ten, and we can kill and injure the rebels. Why would we go out of the city to fight? Isn’t it to use our shortcomings to attack the other’s strong points?”
Someone else immediately echoed, "What Mr. Liu said is true. Now we have thousands of people defending the city. It is difficult for the rebels to break through the city unless there are five or six thousand rebels. There is no need to leave the city and lose the troops and generals!"
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Concubine De shook her head slightly, "You are wrong, yesterday another 600 Wudang troops went to support the suppression of bandits, and now there are only 400 troops in the city."
The buzz in the hall instantly became louder.
The originally calm atmosphere suddenly became flustered, just like the hearts of the people present.
"Then it's even more time to defend the city and wait for backup!"
"Yes, there are only so many people. It's not enough to defend the city. How can we go out to fight in the field!"
"Field combat sounds refreshing, but once something goes wrong, it will be too late to regret it!"
At this time, unlike before, everyone still cared about their seniority and seniority, and spoke in all directions, as if this could relieve the fear in their hearts.
"enough!"
At this time, a cold shout came, but it did not come from Concubine De, but from Wei Yuanzhi.
After many long talks with Concubine De in the past few days, this important minister who expressed that he still wanted to consider slowly stood up and took a look at everyone, "There are so many people talking, how can I make a decision?"
Then, he walked to the field and bowed his hands to Concubine De, "Your Majesty, what you said is not unreasonable. Now our small number of soldiers is a disadvantage, and it is an advantage to occupy the city. We should use our strengths and avoid weaknesses to resist the rebels and go out to fight in the city. In fact, It's too risky. Once there is a loss, the city is lost, and the rebels enter the city, the impact will be so far-reaching, and everything will be lost. Please be wise and stop General Jin as soon as possible!"
His words were very cryptic, but after previous exchanges, he knew that this first-grade imperial concubine, who was beautiful and intelligent, could understand him.
Concubine De did indeed understand and nodded slightly, "I understand what Master Wei means. But I want to ask you, if we talk about knowing soldiers and fighting well, who will be stronger than the golden sword, you or me?"
Wei Yuanzhi sighed, "General Jin is far better than the empress and the official."
"Then if that's the case, we know the soldiers well and have been on the front line personally, why should we overstep our authority and interfere in battlefield decisions?"
Concubine De looked at the crowd and said, "I have little talent and little knowledge, and I also know that my manpower is limited. Therefore, I am entrusting government affairs to court officials, paying money and food to merchants, and relying on military troops. I am just in the middle to take charge of the overall situation. Otherwise, it cannot be done like this." Give full play to the wisdom of the officials. The same is true this time. I believe in General Jin’s decision when the opportunity arises, and then, no matter what the result is, I also recognize it!”
At the end of the sentence, Concubine De was resolute and resolute.
Wei Yuanzhi looked at the elegant and dignified concubine sitting behind the desk, and in a daze, it seemed that there was an emperor sitting there who looked like a wise emperor.
He quickly collected his thoughts and said respectfully: "This is an old minister who is not thinking carefully, please don't blame me!"
Just as he was about to retreat, an old man stood up and came out with tears in his eyes and said, "Your Majesty, Holy Ming! However, the lives of all the important ministers and gentry in the palace depend on the hands of a warrior. If he has second thoughts, we will lose our lives." It’s such a small matter, how can I take risks with my daughter’s body?”
Concubine De's almond-shaped eyes widened, "If he has second thoughts, why not just come with his troops? Is there anyone here who can stop him?"
"But if it fails, there are only two hundred defenders and dozens of soldiers left in the city. How can we defend ourselves?"
Concubine De's willow eyebrows stood up, and she shouted angrily: "I am here, and your lives are worth more than mine!"
The hall fell silent for an instant, and no one dared to speak.
Concubine De hid her trembling hands in her sleeves and forced a smile on her face, "Xiuyun, take a few palace ladies to help me pour a glass of wine for you all to calm down your shock."
"yes!"
Feng Xiuyun also suppressed the deep worry in her heart and led people to walk around the hall.
"Gentlemen, please drink!"
"Thank you, empress."
This time, for the first time, it was not so neat and loud, just like the wine sloshing in the glass at this moment, with anxiety and trembling.
"Report!"
boom!
With a loud shout, the door of the palace was suddenly knocked open, and many people's wine glasses fell to the ground.
A sergeant of the Wudang Army with blood stains on his body said excitedly: "Mother, General Jin and Captain Li defeated the bandit army, beheaded hundreds of people, and completely dispersed the bandit army!"
