Chapter 300: People’s hearts are in mourning

Style: Historical Author: rifle bulletsWords: 5650Update Time: 24/01/11 16:54:09
Yang Erya stroked Yang Peng's head, a moving smile appeared on her pretty face, and she felt particularly warm and happy in her heart. Yang Peng suddenly opened his eyes and asked with a smile: "My little sister kicked everyone out, is she going to have a bridal chamber with my elder brother?" Yang Erya was embarrassed, but thinking that she had already been canonized as a princess, the bridal chamber was unavoidable. , so he looked at Yang Peng with a blushing face, with a moving look in his beautiful eyes, as if he was shy and timid, but also as charming as a spring flower.

Yang Peng was just joking at first, but when he saw her looking like she was in love for the first time, he couldn't help but twitch his index finger. Gently pulling Yang Erya with both hands, Yang Erya sat on Yang Peng's lap. Her beautiful eyes looked at Yang Peng with trembling eyes. Maybe she had felt something. She was so nervous that her breasts heaved violently. Yang Peng smelled the quiet fragrance, his heart was filled with emotion, and he couldn't help but kissed her warm red lips. Yang Erya felt a surge of electricity rushing through his body, his head buzzed, and all the scenery in front of him seemed to disappear in an instant, and he and his eldest brother flew up into the clouds. Yang Erya was shy and excited at the same time. She couldn't help but responded to Yang Peng's kiss awkwardly, lingering and lingering for a long time.

Suddenly Yang Erya thought of something, pushed Yang Peng away, sat on Yang Peng's lap and held Yang Peng's chest, gasping for breath. He raised his head again and again to see his elder brother looking at him with a smile, and couldn't help but feel embarrassed. , quickly lowered his head and whispered: "We haven't officially married yet, no, it can't be like this!" Yang Erya, like Han Bing, was just canonized and did not hold a wedding. This is equivalent to You are just engaged, but not married yet. According to the habits of people in this era, if you are just engaged, you are not allowed to have a wedding.

Yang Peng smiled slightly, "Brother, I won't force you." Yang Erya glanced at Yang Peng gratefully.

That night, in the dead of night, Yang Peng was still working in the study, looking at the reports sent from various places. Putting down the report at hand, he leaned back in the chair and rubbed his temples. Standing up, walking to the map, his eyes fell on Xixia, showing his thoughtfulness. The most critical issue with Xixia has been settled, but there is still one major issue that the two sides have not yet settled on, and that is the exchange of hostages and prisoners between the two sides.

Xingqing Mansion in Xixia, the capital city by the Yellow River, has been immersed in panic and worry during this period. There seem to be fewer pedestrians and merchants on the streets, and there are only a few guests in the taverns and tea shops. The Yellow River Tower is the capital of Xingqing Mansion. It is a famous place for its wine and food. In the past, it was so crowded that it was difficult to find an empty seat, but now there is only one table of guests on the second floor. The only guests at this table were chatting about the current situation. They were dressed gorgeously but lacked a touch of nobility. They must be merchants doing business, not noble families. The fat middle-aged man said: "Hey, I didn't expect that our Daxia would be defeated so miserably! Not to mention the heavy losses, even the whole of Shaanxi and Gansu was lost!" The man with a sinister eyebrow next to him sighed: "I originally thought that The legends about Yan Yunjun were just rumors, and now I know that the rumors are true!"

The companions at the same table nodded, and the handsome man said in an unbelievable tone: "It's fine that Li Yuanzhong was defeated, but what kind of person is General Li Zongdao? It's unexpected that an army of 300,000 people entered northern Shaanxi." They ended up with almost the whole army annihilated! I don’t understand, everyone is raised by their parents, why can Yan Yun’s army be so fierce!?”

The fat man said: "If we knew the reason, wouldn't we all become prime ministers and marshals, and why would we still be talking nonsense here!" The two companions laughed. The man with sinister eyebrows and stern eyes said worriedly: "It's really unsettling for us, Daxia, to be neighbors with Yanyun! If Yanyun comes to attack in a big way in the future, I don't know whether we can hold it or not!"

The handsome man frowned and said: "I think there should be no problem. Didn't we hold on this time? If Yan Yunjun could march straight in, they wouldn't come to negotiate with us!" The fat man picked up the wine glass, took a sip of wine, and put it down. Wine Glass said: "This is right or wrong! It is true that the Yanyun Army did not march forward, but it is not that they do not have the ability, but that they were distracted by the Tubo people and could not concentrate! In fact, our army of more than 800,000 people can only It is not a good thing to be tied with our opponent with more than 200,000 troops! This time they only came with more than 200,000 troops. We can resist it. Next time they come with an army of 500,000 to 600,000 troops. what to do?"

The handsome man and the man with sinister eyebrows and rat eyes were both silent and looked very worried. The man with sinister eyebrows and rat-eyed eyes said angrily: "It's all the trouble caused by the bullshit ministers in the imperial court! If they hadn't coveted the Shaanxi-Gansu region that originally belonged to the Han people, how could they have caused such a trouble?"

The handsome man shook his head and frowned and said: "I can't see it. King Yan is not a master who is content with the status quo. Even if we don't want Shaanxi and Gansu, I'm afraid he will do it sooner or later! The court's approach is not wrong. If we can include Shaanxi and Gansu, , our country’s strength has undoubtedly been greatly improved, which will be of great benefit to future development! It’s just that the generals are too incompetent, and their troops are obviously larger than Yanyun, but they have been defeated again and again, and in the end they lost both Changcheng Ridge and Yinzhou! Hey, the current situation can be said to be very unfavorable for our country, I really don’t know what will happen in the future!”

The three of them were silent for a moment, and then the man with the sly eyebrows raised his glass and said, "We, ordinary people, have nothing to do with those trivial matters. What do you want to do? We are asking for trouble in vain! Drink, drink!" The two companions felt the same way and picked up the wine glasses. They clinked their wine glasses with the man with the sly eyebrows and rat eyes, and the three of them drank in one gulp.

"Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo......", that, that's that, the sound of crying father and daughter suddenly came from the backyard of the restaurant. The three of them were already in a bad mood, and they were even more upset when they heard such noise. The man with a sinister eyebrow and rat-eyes slapped the table and shouted: "Come on, buddy!" A junior brother came trotting over, bowed and asked, "What are your orders, sir?"

The sinister-looking man pointed at the back of the restaurant and said angrily: "Is your restaurant still open for business? We are drinking and chatting in the front, but you are crying in the back. You are obviously causing trouble for us!" The waiter said quickly: " Forgive me, sir! As businessmen, how dare we make our customers unhappy? Wouldn’t that make us uncomfortable?” Then he lowered his voice and said, “The one crying behind is the shopkeeper’s wife.”

The three guests were surprised. The fat man asked curiously: "Why is the boss's wife crying?" The man with a sinister eyebrow and rat-eyes smiled obscenely and said: "It's probably the boss who has fallen in love with the goblin outside, and the boss's wife is crying with the boss!" The two companions laughed. The second brother said: "The guests are joking, how can this happen! The reason why the landlady is sad is because of the young master in the family!"

The three guests were even more strange. The handsome man asked: "Has something happened to your young master?" The waiter sighed, "It's not just our young master who has had an accident! After a series of defeats, we in Daxia may not have more than 200,000 people." You have been captured by Yan Yun!" The three guests suddenly realized, and the fat man said: "It turns out that your young master is a soldier."

The waiter nodded, "It's a general under General Li Yuanzhong. I heard that he was captured along with General Li Yuanzhong! Hey, the Yanyun Tiger and Wolf Army is cruel and ruthless. I'm afraid he won't be able to come back! The boss lady These days I can't eat, I can't sleep, and I worry about the young master's safety all day long!" The three of them couldn't help but sigh. The waiter said apologetically: "Three of our guests will be forgiven if they give me tens of millions of letters of guarantee!"

The handsome man waved his hand, "It doesn't matter, I don't have to say that, little brother." "Thank you three guests. I don't know what else the three guests need. I will prepare it now." The handsome man said, "No need. ." The waiter said: "The little man will leave now. If you need any guests, just ask!" Then he went down.

The handsome man sighed and said: "After this bloody battle, we are afraid that every household in Daxia will hear cries!" The fat man said: "These are lucky, at least their relatives are still alive. There is still a little hope. The ones who are really suffering are those whose relatives have been killed. They are already dead and there is no hope!" The handsome man nodded with deep sympathy. The sinister-looking man picked up the wine glass and said, "Brothers, let's not talk about these bullshit things. It's useless. It will ruin our mood in vain!" The two sighed, picked up the wine glass, and drank it in one gulp.

Just then, hoarse cries came from the street outside. The three of them felt very strange. They immediately left their seats and walked to the window to look towards the street. They saw piles of linen clothes and white flags. It was a funeral procession. A large group of men, women, old and young were walking in the middle of the procession wearing linen and mourning. Everyone was grieving. Desperate, he kept crying.

The handsome man frowned and said: "This seems to be General Baduo's family. I heard that General Baduo was killed by the enemy's warriors in the battle with Yan Yun!" The two people next to him nodded, and the man with sly eyebrows sighed: " It can be considered that his life is miserable! Yan Yun is invincible, and his life will be at risk if he encounters him!" The handsome man glared at the man with a sinister eyebrow and rat eyes, and said angrily: "General Baduo died on the battlefield for the country, which is a big deal. Hero, you can really say something like this!" The man with a sinister eyebrow and ratty eyes didn't think so, but he didn't refute him.

Looking back to the street, the funeral procession walked along the long street. Many people came out of the houses on both sides one after another. Infected by the atmosphere of the scene, they couldn't help crying. They were probably thinking of their relatives. Their relatives have either died on the battlefield, or been captured by Yan Yun, and their lives and deaths are now uncertain.

In the Xixia Palace, the old emperor heard the cries on the street and couldn't help being upset. He got up and walked out of the study. He looked in the direction where the cry came from and asked displeasedly: "Why is the city so noisy?" The guard next to him was about to answer when a woman's voice as touching as an oriole came, "Father... "

The emperor followed the sound, and the boredom in his heart disappeared instantly, and he saw a very beautiful girl coming. She is dressed in a gorgeous traditional party costume. She has a graceful figure, graceful like a fairy, brisk steps, fluttering clothes, her hair is tied into a bun and hangs down on the back of her head, with a pheasant tail inserted diagonally on top of the bun. She was like a lark flying down from the snowy mountains in the distance. Her name is Li Qingxia, she is the emperor's favorite apple and the little princess of Xixia Kingdom.

The girl came to the emperor and saluted: "My daughter pays homage to the emperor!" The emperor smiled, stepped forward to help the girl, and said lovingly: "As soon as the emperor sees you, all the worries in his heart will disappear!" The girl was happy! smile.

At this time, there was another annoying cry outside. The sound was very sad and made people feel very uncomfortable. The emperor frowned and said angrily: "I don't know who is so unlucky and crying and shouting!"

Li Qingxia said: "Father, you shouldn't be angry. It's the members of General Baduo's family who are attending his funeral!" The emperor was stunned, sighed, and blamed himself: "It's all my fault! It's my fault that I shouldn't be greedy for Shaanxi. Gan’s land, and became an enemy of Yanyun, resulting in the death of many loyal ministers and righteous men! It’s all my fault!”

Li Qingxia said: "How can you blame father?" She frowned and said with great resentment: "This is all caused by Yan Yun!" The emperor frowned, "Speaking of Yan Yun, there is something that makes it difficult for me to make a decision. !" Li Qingxia asked angrily: "Did Yan Yun put forward harsh conditions again? Huh, they are really pushing their limits!"

The emperor said: "It's not that harsh, but the ministers continued to argue." He glanced at Li Qingxia, held her hand and walked down the steps, walking in the garden. At this time, the cry from outside came again, and the emperor frowned slightly and said: "We previously proposed to exchange with Yan Yun by exchanging a captured Han commoner for a captured soldier. But Yan Yun But they proposed a total exchange method, using the more than 210,000 captives in their hands to exchange for all the nearly 600,000 Han people we captured. To this, some ministers opposed and others agreed, and they all said very well It makes sense, my father is really in a dilemma and doesn’t know what to do!”

Li Qingxia said coldly: "Most of the Han people who were taken captive have become the private property of the noble ministers. Naturally, they do not agree to the overall exchange, and it is entirely out of selfishness! Now that the country is in crisis, these people are still You’re making your own little plans, you really deserve to die!”

The emperor frowned. Li Qingxia said: "Father, what is Yanyun's attitude? Is it because we don't agree to this condition that they will refuse to replace us?" The emperor frowned and said: "Looking at the envoy's words and attitude today, it seems that this is the case. "

Li Qingxia lowered her head and thought for a moment, then raised her head and said: "In this case, we can only do this loss-making business!" Looking at the emperor, "Father, in fact, we have no other choice but to agree to their conditions. First, our Daxia population is not large to begin with, and these prisoners are very important to us. Only by exchanging them can our army regain its strength; secondly, if we do not agree to the replacement, the morale of the people will be greatly affected. Father, The prestige of the soldiers will also be greatly affected. The harm will not be seen in a short period of time, but the impact will be reflected over time. A country that has never lost the support of the people from ancient times to the present can still last, and if they are replaced, the soldiers will We, the common people, will definitely be grateful to His Majesty, and will join us in the future to fight against the enemy and resist foreign humiliation! There are pros and cons in this, my father is wise, I don’t need my sons and ministers to say more!"

The emperor nodded in agreement, stopped, took his daughter's hand, patted the back of her hand, and said with emotion: "Your words made my father suddenly enlightened! You are right, now is not the time to care about everything. , since Yan Yun wants to exchange the whole body, then let’s exchange the whole body, as long as my more than 200,000 soldiers can come back!" Li Qingxia worshiped: "Father is wise!"

The emperor chuckled, helped Li Qingxia up, looked at the beautiful daughter in front of him, and said with emotion: "If only you were a man, my father would pass the throne to you!" Then he showed a sad look, "Hey , if your brothers were half as good as you, my father wouldn't have so many worries!" Li Qingxia said nothing.

The emperor lowered his head and thought for a while, then asked: "What suggestions do you have for Yan Yun's policies in the future?" Li Qingxia thought to herself: "It was rumored before that Yan Yun is the master of tigers and wolves, the elite of the world, invincible in battles, and invincible in all attacks! We didn't believe this at first, but now that we have tasted its power, we can't believe it anymore!" The emperor nodded, "There is an old saying, 'Know yourself and the enemy, and you will be victorious in a hundred battles.' We took it for granted before, so that's why we To end up with such a huge defeat! This lesson must be very painful!"

Li Qingxia said: "The Yanyun army is difficult to match, so we must give up the illusion of fighting them alone. To defeat Yanyun, only by uniting the Jin people and the Song Dynasty! Only with the power of the three parties can we defeat or even destroy them!..."

The emperor nodded with deep sympathy and asked: "If you don't talk about Tubo, do you think that the Tubo people are unreliable?" Li Qingxia's eyes showed contempt, "The Tubo people were frightened after a defeat. Princess Gesang, who they call a 'national treasure', was given to Chen Xiao. How can I rely on them? I'm worried that if I talk to them about this matter, it won't be long before the relevant information is sent to Yang Peng's desk. superior!"

The emperor frowned and nodded, "This is very possible!" After a pause, he frowned and said: "Uniting with the Khitans is a matter of course and easy to do, but it is not easy to unite with the Song Dynasty, and it is also difficult. There’s no guarantee that the news won’t be leaked!”

Li Qingxia thought: "Now we have to be very respectful in front of Yan Yun and not let them have the slightest suspicion of us. At the same time, we need to send reliable people to the Liao Kingdom to secretly discuss with the Khitan people about jointly destroying Yan. This matter After that is done, I will find a way to convince the Song State. I have thought about this matter carefully and it is not impossible to convince the Song State. The Song State is very suspicious of Yan Yun, so it has carried out many Northern Expeditions before. Now it is just that it is afraid of being beaten. Don't dare to act rashly. As long as you find a suitable entry point, I think it won't be too difficult to convince the Song Dynasty!" The emperor nodded.

Li Qingxia looked at the emperor and said, "This matter can be put aside for the time being. Let's do a good job of uniting the Khitan people first." The emperor sighed with emotion: "My father was originally full of dark clouds, but your words seemed to clear the clouds and reveal the sun! My father knew what was going to happen next. What should we do!" After thinking about it, he said to Li Qingxia: "I really can't feel comfortable leaving this important mission to Liao to someone else. Why don't you, my daughter, make the trip?"

Li Qingxia was so happy that she immediately saluted and said: "I have long wanted to do my best for my father and Xixia! If my father trusts me, I will definitely live up to my mission!"

The emperor smiled heartily and said: "Okay, okay!"

His eyes turned to Jingzhao Mansion. Jingzhao Mansion, which is today's Chang'an, is an ancient capital of all dynasties. Although Jingzhao Mansion no longer has the prosperity of the past, the majestic atmosphere is still there. The ancient west wind and the majestic city make people feel as if they have traveled through thousands of years and returned to Qiang. During the Han Dynasty, it returned to the prosperous Tang Dynasty.

As the sun sets, on the long bluestone street of Jingzhao Prefecture, pedestrians are returning home one after another. The hawkers carrying their burdens are humming ancient Qin opera tunes while swaying their burdens; smoke rises from thousands of households. Da da da da da... With the rapid sound of horse hooves, a group of knights in armor, surrounded by a general-like figure, galloped from the city gate and went straight to the residence of the Shaanxi-Gansu envoy and stopped. Down.

The group of people got off their horses one after another, and several guards immediately came down to hold their horses. The general climbed the steps alone, walked through the door, and walked straight into the hall. As soon as he saw the middle-aged man pacing back and forth in the hall, he immediately clasped his fists and said, "Sir!" The man looked up at the general, smiled and said, "Here you are? Sit down!"

The general sat down on a chair casually, while the middle-aged man did it next to him. The maid brought two bowls of tea, put them down, bowed and retreated. The general came all the way and was very thirsty. He grabbed the tea bowl and drank it in two gulps. Putting down the tea bowl, he cupped his fists and asked, "Sir, why are you calling me here so urgently?"

The middle-aged man asked with a smile: "I heard that General Sun often complained about returning to the imperial court!" The general was stunned and said quickly, "These are all rumors, please don't believe them!"

The middle-aged man chuckled and said, "You and I have worked together for many years, but I still don't know you? I asked you to come for no other reason than to hear what you have to say!" When the general heard what the middle-aged man said, he couldn't bear it. He couldn't help but say: "Since the Lord asked, I won't hide it!" He raised his thick eyebrows and scolded: "I don't want to work for those cowards in the imperial court! Even if I work hard to achieve military exploits, How about it? I’m afraid that what awaits me will be the end like Gao Hu!”

The middle-aged man sighed: "Having said that, as ministers, what can we do? We can't go and seek refuge with foreigners again, right? This is something that our ancestors have not been able to live in peace for eighteen generations! How can we do what we don't want you to do? !" The general couldn't help but said: "Sir, I think the world will return to Yanyun sooner or later. Why should we work for that useless Song Dynasty? Why not just go to Yanyun! I heard that Yanyun is completely different from the imperial court and is extremely loyal to the generals. We take it seriously, but don’t like to see literati. If we go there, we will definitely be able to achieve great things!"

The middle-aged man seemed to be moved, but he was very hesitant, frowning and thinking deeply. When the general saw this, he became anxious. He stood up and clasped his fists and said, "Sir, don't hesitate! It is wise to go to Yanyun. No matter how bad you get there, it is worse than being scorned by those civil servants here! I I heard that King Yan is in Yan’an Mansion now, which is not too far away from us, so why don’t we send someone to express our sincerity to King Yan!”

What happened after all, let’s see what happens next.