"Shandong Xuanfu Envoy?"
Ding Yan's expression changed: "Is that Guo Ning who defeated the Red Coat Army? Is he going to send troops to help the king?"
Jiagu Alihe was stunned. In his eyes, the power of the Shandong Ding Navy lies in the fact that its troops defeated the Mongolian army three times. Most recently, they killed the Mongol general Zhebie. Such military exploits ranked them among the best in the army of Dajin. As for the Red Coat Army, it is nothing more than a rebellion by the ants, and the disease is not worth mentioning. The Song envoy's focus was completely different from his. Perhaps it was because they were far away in the south of the Yangtze River and didn't know how powerful the Mongols were.
But Jiagu Alihe didn't want to be troublesome and just nodded: "Yes, it's them! This time the imperial court is fighting Mongolia, all the commanders and ministers from all over the country have sent troops to support, and Shandong's soldiers and horses arrived from the sea, which is the fastest !”
Seeing Jiagu Ali happily leaving the high platform to meet the generals under the Ding Navy, the deputy envoy Hou Zhongxin closed his raccoon sleeves and came to Ding Zhan's side.
"Bachelor, when I was in Huainan, I heard about Guo Ning's deeds from the remnants of the Red Coat Army. This man was able to serve as the propaganda envoy of the Jin Dynasty with a small soldier in the Han Dynasty. He held a heavy army and was stationed in a vast territory. I want to come here. Not only is he extremely brave, but he is also somewhat extraordinary in military and political management. I will go take a look in a moment and inquire about the details of his department?"
Ding Yan was silent for a moment, nodded slightly, and then said: "Just asking, don't be too fussy. Our most important mission is still in Zhongdu City."
"Don't worry, bachelor, I don't have to worry about it."
"In addition, even if the two families are traveling together, we should not let those soldiers get too close to us... Since Guo Ning is a strong general, he must have many arrogant soldiers under his command, and most of his actions will be brutal. It will not be easy for us to travel all the way. If Being robbed by the insurgents under the city of Zhongdu will become a laughing stock."
Hou Zhong was confident that he understood the meaning, and shouted to the governor who was waiting behind him: "Do you understand?"
Nadujia was an envoy of the third class, and he was very smart and capable. He bowed slightly and said, "I will arrange soldiers to guard and defend to the death. Don't worry, two gentlemen, we have 60 soldiers on hand, as well as strong men recruited from the market along the way. More than two hundred. When we set out tomorrow, whether we encounter Mongols or Jurchen rebels, we will definitely repel them."
The so-called ancient warriors were involved in the war. During the hundred years since the Song and Jin Dynasties co-existed, the two countries had different peace and wars. The most important function of envoys traveling back and forth was to spy on each other's internal affairs in order to adjust their own national policies.
For example, when the new emperor of Jin Dynasty ascended the throne the year before last, Zhen Dexiu, a famous minister of the Song Dynasty, was sent to serve as the envoy to congratulate him. When Zhendexiu traveled to Xuyi, it happened that Mongolia was sweeping across the Central Plains and the roads were blocked, so he stayed at the border for two months before returning. During this period, he traveled through the situation in the Huaihe River and Huaihe Rivers, and recorded all the dangers in the mountains and rivers, the bravery and cowardice of the soldiers, the virtuousness of the defenders, and the sufferings of the border people.
When he returned to the palace and went to the palace to report what he had seen on the road, Zhen Dexiu described Jin's domestic and foreign troubles and tried to prove that the coins could be stopped, which won the praise of the ministers in the court.
Ding Yan and Hou Zhongxin were the people responsible for keeping an eye on Dai Jin's inside story after Zhen Dexiu. Before traveling, they had to be told by powerful people in the court that they must reach Zhongdu on this trip. They could not just go around the Huaihe River and leave like Zhen Dexiu did.
But this goal is really difficult to achieve given the constant battles within Daikin's territory.
In the Lianghuai area, the remnants of the Red Coat Army were scattered everywhere; on the Nanjing Road side of Kaifeng Mansion, Sui Wang Wanyan Shouxu and the Xuanfu envoy Guo Ning on Shandong Road also led their own troops to guard the territory, as if they were a country of their own. Ding Yan and Hou Zhongxin patrolled for a long time and were about to return disappointed.
At this time, a local official in Huainan who was the magistrate of Wan'an County suggested that although the land route between the two countries was blocked, the sea route was always open, and many maritime merchants had their own strength to ensure safety along the way.
How could a mere county magistrate have collusion with maritime merchants? There is something worth pursuing in it. However, Ding Zhan had to deal with the urgent matters at hand and could not care too much. He immediately asked the county magistrate to come forward and contacted a reliable person. maritime merchants. Then the fleet was organized and took this trip.
Of course, maritime merchants have to take risks and have their own requirements, and they want to obtain benefits in exchange.
On this matter, Ding Yan and Hou Zhongxin had consulted their seniors before setting off, and they were knowledgeable. As an envoy of the Song Dynasty, there are already customs and privileges for personal confrontation and entanglement. Therefore, while going to Zhongdu, he also has to do a large-scale smuggling business. It is really a trivial matter to satisfy the requirements of a maritime merchant.
From Ding Yan's point of view, the Mongols were only terrifying in legends, while the Jurchen soldiers were the enemies who had been constantly fighting against the Song Dynasty for the past hundred years. On the way from Zhigu Village to Zhongdu, it's really hard to say who should be more careful about.
After receiving Ding Yan's order, Hou Zhongxin came out of the military camp and headed to the dock in the south.
Since most of the merchants in Zhigu Village fled, many buildings were now used as military camps. Jiagu Ali, who had been working with the empty capital commander for nearly two years, now also used his family's assets to recruit a large number of soldiers.
At this time, many soldiers came out of the military camp, and there were noisy people on both sides of the road, mostly talking about the soldiers and horses of the Dinghai Navy.
When he arrived near the pier, he saw several groups of infantrymen with red flags lined up in order, entering various military camps like long black and gray snakes. A rough count showed that there were not many soldiers. There were about hundreds of people who disembarked from the ship, and many others remained on the ship.
Many people on the boat got out of the cabin and stood on the bow of the boat looking towards the shore, obviously envious of their companions who had landed. But since the officers had no orders, everyone continued to wait as a matter of course, without any restlessness at all.
The soldiers who disembarked first may not be free. In Hou Zhongxin's eyes, they entered the military camp, put down their weapons and saluted, and were immediately driven to work. Some are burying pots to make rice, and some are starting to repair camps, prepare defense facilities, and even move wood, etc.
The officers were running back and forth in the camp, shouting orders, and the cavalry and infantry who were disembarking came in one after another, looking for their respective gathering places. There was inevitably a little confusion in the process, and for a while people screamed. But Hou Zhongxin noticed that even in times of chaos, the soldiers did not complain, and once any chaos occurred, officers would arrive immediately and deal with it on the spot.
Hou Zhongxin even felt a particularly high energy among the grassroots officers and even the ordinary soldiers.
This kind of energy is different from the fierceness of the barbarians in the north as imagined by Hou Zhongxin, and it is also not as silent and heavy as the elite soldiers of the Song Dynasty. It seems that it is rarely seen in warriors, but is somewhat similar to the officials and gentry of the Song Dynasty, with pride and reserve in their bones.
How can these lowly Qiu Ba be compared with officials and gentry?
Hou Zhongxin shook his head, feeling that he might have been at sea for a long time and his mind was a little confused.
At this time, horns sounded again in various military camps, and then the navy's rangers and scouts were divided into groups and galloped out.
Behind Hou Zhongxin, a local guard from Zhigu Village saw their vigorous figures and couldn't help but praise: "What a horse, what a good riding skill, what a courage!"
Another soldier exclaimed: "They only ride in a group of three or five? Aren't they afraid of running into the Mongols and being slaughtered?"
"Where did the Mongols come from near Zhigu Village? They were all Tatars, Khitans, and Wanggu people... Weren't dozens of people killed by the Ding Navy just now? Aren't all those heads hanging on the dock? Let me tell you, Ding The navy in Shandong and Liaodong has fought fierce battles with the elite headquarters of the Mongolian army, so how can we be afraid of those miscellaneous tribes?"
"In the past two years, they are the only ones who can defeat the Mongols, right? They are really powerful."
"Isn't that because they have good land, equipment and training? If someone can give me a hundred acres, no, twenty acres of land, and a steel knife, I will kill a Mongolian too. .”
"You're a bastard, you wet your pants when you go into battle, are you worth twenty acres of land?"
The soldiers continued to talk nonsense, and someone noticed Hou Zhongxin, who was dressed as a Song official, and pulled his companions to signal them to shut up.
Hou Zhongxin stood there and continued to stare at Ding Haijun's actions.
