With Zhaowu as the reign name, the intention of the new Northern Qi emperor is self-evident.
Shen Yi was just in a daze for a moment, and then said in a deep voice: "Zhaowu, Zhaowu..."
"It seems that my prediction is good. Zhao Kai has decided to fight. I am afraid there will be a big war this year."
Shen Yi clenched his fist slightly and said, "In one battle, we will determine the master of the Central Plains."
"Lord of the Central Plains..."
The emperor narrowed his eyes and said with a smile: "Yes, this battle will not only determine Shandong, but also Henan. Once Henan is restored, the Central Plains will be determined."
He looked at Shen Yi, still with a smile on his face: "After hearing this year name, I felt a lot happier."
The emperor touched his palm and said: "In the past, Zhenren Zhuli was a martial artist, and everyone rode and shot. Once the cavalry came out, the word "martial" was self-explanatory."
"Now the new emperor Zhao Kai is about to start showing off his power."
"this means."
The emperor chuckled softly and said: "It shows that Zhu Li's bravery has been covered with dust and needs Zhao Kai to show it again."
"However, human nature is like this, and Zhao Kai alone can change it."
The emperor said slowly: "Zhenren Zhuli has enjoyed so many years of happiness, how easy is it to get them back on horseback?"
After finishing speaking, without waiting for Shen Yi to speak, His Majesty the Emperor said softly: "The same was true for our Li family back then. For more than a hundred years, the martial arts that Taizu Taizong had swept across the world no longer existed. The clan was lazy and the generals no longer existed. "
He looked at Shen Yi and let out a sigh of relief: "No one can reverse this situation, so that my father, in desperation, could only use Yuan Du, who was a Jinshi, as his general."
When Yuan Du was mentioned, Mr. Shen's eyelids twitched.
General Yuan's situation back then was almost the same as his current situation.
It's just that General Yuan's end was very miserable.
Seeing the strange expression on Shen Yi's face, His Majesty the Emperor also realized that he seemed to have said something inappropriate. After lowering his head and taking a sip of tea, he smiled at Shen Yi and said, "I have read the archives of the memorials of the late emperor. Yuan Du went on the Northern Expedition that year. Ce, he deceived his father and claimed that he would be restored in five years. My father was eager to restore the country, so he was deceived by him. In two years, he was promoted from a fifth-rank official to a second-rank official, almost to the highest position."
"Father has high hopes for him."
Emperor Hongde lowered his head to drink tea and sighed slightly: "I looked through the documents of the previous dynasty and found that my father almost defied all opinions before appointing him as the commander-in-chief of the Northern Campaign."
"result…"
Emperor Hongde narrowed his eyes and said softly: "As a result, the family fortune that my grandfather saved for thirty years of hard work was wiped out by him in a few years. After the defeat of the Northern Expedition, my father was very angry for several days. I didn't close my eyes all night and stayed in the Ancestral Temple."
Emperor Hongde's grandfather was Emperor Xianzong. Emperor Xianzong was the most outstanding emperor in Dachen since the southern crossing. He not only defeated Northern Qi several times, but also worked hard to govern. The political situation in Nanchen was stable, largely because of this emperor. .
Of course, this is all in the past.
For now, among the emperors since the southern crossing, the most outstanding one is undoubtedly the current Emperor Hongde.
His Majesty the Emperor put down the tea cup and continued.
"Because of this, my father was furious and dealt a cruel blow to the Yuan family."
"After my father, he was depressed and died in his prime, mostly because of this."
Hearing this, Master Shen looked calm, but felt a little funny in his heart.
He was also an "old employee" who had been an official in the court for many years. It was not that he knew nothing about the affairs of the late emperor's dynasty. The late emperor was indeed deeply affected by the failure of the Northern Expedition.
However, after the blow, he did not die of depression, but began to give up on himself and indulge in women. In a few years, he had hundreds of beautiful women in the harem, and was eventually drained of his body and died in his prime.
Of course, as the son of a human being, Emperor Hongde naturally had to be kept taboo by his lord. Shen Yi did not have a low emotional intelligence to expose the emperor at this time, so he listened quietly.
"And Shen Qing, you are different from Yuan Du."
Emperor Hongde patted Shen Yi on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Shen Qing is young and mature. He takes things step by step when doing things. He has never had time to talk. Until now, he has given me too many surprises."
His Majesty the Emperor said seriously: "I can promise Shen Qing now that no matter what the outcome of the Northern Expedition is in the future, I will not incriminate you."
"Just treat me as my king and my minister, and try my best to win a game."
"Success or failure..."
The emperor's voice was low: "Leave it to God."
Shen Yi stood up and was so moved that he almost shed tears. He lowered his head and choked with sobs: "Your Majesty trusts me, and I will die for nothing in return!"
Seeing Master Shen's appearance, the emperor patted Shen Yi on the shoulder angrily, laughed and scolded: "Stop acting like this in front of me."
Mr. Shen stopped crying and forced a smile: "Your Majesty, I am not acting, but the atmosphere has reached it, so I won't cry if it's not good."
The emperor also smiled.
"If Shen Qing doesn't believe what I say, I will have someone carve an iron certificate for you after I go back."
He touched his chin and said, "The people seem to call it a death-free gold medal."
Mr. Shen's face turned pale with fright, and he waved his hands quickly.
"Your Majesty, you must not!"
The emperor said with a smile: "Why not?"
Shen Yi looked serious.
"That thing is bad luck."
………………
In the blink of an eye, another ten days passed in a hurry, and the time came to the fourteenth year of Hongde, which was also the Shangyuan Festival of the first year of Zhaowu.
On the night of the Lantern Festival, Shen Yi took his family to watch the lanterns on the bank of the Qinhuai River.
Early the next morning, Shen Yi packed his luggage and prepared to go north to Xuzhou.
In fact, he was preparing to go north a few days ago. Because the military situation in the north was urgent and the Qi people in Yanzhou Prefecture were making frequent moves, Shen Yi needed to go back to deal with it as soon as possible.
However, Shen Yi could not bear to leave his family behind all the time and spent the Lantern Festival in Jiankang.
The last time he left Jiankang, very few people sent him north, because at that time, most people in the court were not optimistic about the Northern Expedition.
This year, because Mr. Shen took over Nanzhili, he suddenly became a famous person in the court. Before he reached the city gate, countless officials came to see him off and sent him more than three miles outside the city.
And because he took over Southern Zhili last year, he became famous both in the government and in the opposition. Many Jiankang people also walked on both sides of the road to see each other, almost blocking the official road, and it was very lively.
In particular, officials from the Ministry of War, including Jiang Jian, Minister of War, were basically all present.
After Shen Yi said goodbye to all the officials, it was almost noon. He lost his patience, jumped on his mount with Jiang Sheng and others, and ran towards the outside of the city without saying anything.
Along the way, we ran for more than ten miles and arrived at Shili Pavilion outside Jiankang City.
Generally speaking, in big cities, pavilions will be set up along official roads of three to five miles and ten miles for pedestrians to rest.
Under the pavilion, a young man in green clothes has been waiting for a long time.
Seeing Shen Yi and his entourage running towards him, the young man stood up and waved violently: "Zi Heng, Zi Heng!"
Mr. Shen was very fast now. After tightening the reins, he ran forward for ten or twenty steps before stopping. He looked back at the young man behind him, then jumped off the mount and threw the reins aside. Jiang Sheng ran quickly.
"Your Majesty, I haven't seen you for a long time!"
The person who came was none other than Li Mu, the eldest son of the Jin Dynasty.
Li Mu smiled and returned the courtesy, and said: "Zi Heng is now in a high position, so it is not convenient to meet him."
"I was about to tell the prince this."
Shen Yi bowed slightly and sighed: "My family has an old relationship with Prince Jin's Mansion. I should have paid a visit at the end of the year, but due to some other reasons, I didn't come. Please don't take offense to Prince Jin and the Crown Prince."
"What are you talking about?"
Li Mu shook his head and said, "I shouldn't have come in the first place. If you come, it's not good for both of us."
As he spoke, he turned and looked at the followers behind him, who immediately brought over two wooden boxes, one long and the other square.
Li Mu opened the long box and took out a dark long sword.
The hilt is black, as is the scabbard.
"This is a long sword that I forged from a famous craftsman. To prevent slippage, the scabbard and hilt are wrapped in shark skin."
"It's very convenient to hold it in your hand."
"Zi Heng's Northern Expedition has achieved great results in the past two years, and I feel inspired in my heart. However, due to my status, I have no way to join in it. I will give this sword to Zi Heng for you to make a sword for me to kill the enemy on the battlefield and serve the country." stop."
As he spoke, he held the long sword in his hands and handed it to Shen Yi.
Mr. Shen hesitated for a moment, stretched out his hand to take it, and then cupped his hands and said, "Thank you for the gift, Your Majesty."
"A sword is given to a hero."
Li Mu turned back and pointed at the square wooden box and said, "Here is a set of armor. It was also customized by someone. It is much better than the standard armor in the army. I also gave it to Zi Heng."
He cupped his hands and said: "As long as the sword can hurt someone and the armor can block a blow, it can be considered that I have done something for the court."
Shen Yi was not pretentious. After being accepted, he returned the favor.
"The Holy Emperor is here, and the Crown Prince will be able to do many things in the future."
Li Mu smiled slightly.
"I hope so."
He faced Shen Yi and bowed to the ground.
"Take care, Zi Heng."
Shen Yi returned the gift.
"The same goes for the prince."
