The setting sun gradually sets in the west, and the afterglow shines on the earth, and a layer of light yellow halo fills the sky.
The woods outside Linhuan Pass are sparse and have long lost their former prosperity.
The mountains in the distance have been hidden in the light mist. It seems that there was laughter and laughter there, but now they have become a lost distance.
As night fell, it became quiet outside Linhuan Pass.
Only the occasional rustling of leaves in the wind and the friction of dragging corpses occasionally tore through the desolate evening.
The war was over, leaving behind this desolate battlefield.
The Dashan army retreated a hundred miles and returned to the camp.
Linhuan Pass did not send troops to pursue them and allowed them to leave.
Both sides sent soldiers to clean up the remnants on the battlefield, and moved aside the corpses of their colleagues and discarded weapons.
They were serious and solemn, with no trace of joy on their faces, only heaviness and fatigue.
Those once close comrades-in-arms have now fallen down one by one, no longer breathing.
The remaining flames and smoke on the battlefield were still burning slowly, filled with a pungent smell.
The broken bows and arrows, broken shields and damaged walls were scattered on the ground, quietly telling the cruelty and tragedy of this war.
The city defenders dragged their tired bodies and carried the bodies of the Dashan soldiers who fell at the top of the city outside the battlefield, and then brought back the bodies of their colleagues.
Although they successfully defended the city wall, they did not feel the excitement after victory.
There was only a heavy sense of trauma that spread from deep inside.
Not far away, on the top of the city stood their beloved city lord.
At this moment, the expression on Wen Zhong's face was very heavy.
For him, is this not the first time he has seen such a tragic battlefield?
Seeing the haggard appearance of the soldiers, he could only try his best to let them persevere.
Only by persisting can we wait for victory.
Although they repelled the enemy's attack today, they did not take much advantage. Both sides paid a huge price and suffered heavy casualties.
Perhaps this is the cruelty of war.
But Wen Zhong was still very happy.
At least they fought a victory the first time they rushed into the battlefield!
Even if it's just a miserable victory, it's still better than a defeat.
After all, these soldiers in Linhuan Pass were all newly recruited. Not only were they few in number, but they had only experienced a short period of emergency training. They were able to persist to the end on the cruel battlefield and remained tenacious, leaving no opportunity for the enemy to take advantage of. opportunity.
This is already a very remarkable thing.
Moreover, after experiencing this victory, these soldiers will grow tremendously, from a rookie who has just stepped onto the battlefield to a veteran who is used to life and death!
These surviving soldiers will be an extremely valuable asset.
In the future, when recruiting new soldiers, we can use the method of old ones to lead new ones, which greatly reduces the difficulty of training and shortens the formation time. It can be said to be a cornerstone.
…
At this moment, in the merchant camp more than a hundred miles away from Linhuan Pass, there were also mourners everywhere.
A large number of wounded people were in urgent need of treatment, but in order to speed up the process, they only brought a small amount of supplies. At this time, they simply could not produce so many healing herbs.
In addition, some of them were even more panicked after suffering a defeat.
In the handsome tent in the center of the camp, Huang Feihu, the great merchant and martial king, was sitting behind the desk in a daze, not knowing what he was planning there.
Below, the four generals of the Demon family, Zhou Ji and more than a dozen other generals were quarreling fiercely.
Some of them proposed to withdraw their troops, go back first to prepare food and grass, treat the wounded, and then come back to attack the city; others suggested that they send out all the troops and attack the city in turns, attacking the city day and night, even if it requires human lives. At the top of the city, capture Linhuan Pass!
Both proposals are quite extreme, one is too conservative and the other is too radical.
Most of them have no intention of agreeing in the future, but hope that they can stand still and then ask the court for help again, waiting for the court's decree to arrive...
To put it simply, this mess was left to the Shang King Di Xin and the ministers of the court to solve.
All the generals had their own ideas, and they refused to give in to each other. They argued hard and their faces were red. They looked like they were about to start a fight. They were no longer as happy as when they first arrived.
Huang Feihu was already used to such scenes.
Results always speak for themselves on the battlefield. If you win, you can say anything. But once you lose, no one will have an easy time.
Except for Huang Feihu, who was the head coach, no one dared to accuse him, and the other generals would more or less be muttered overtly or covertly.
There is no way, the army is straight-forward, and after the defeat, everyone is very angry, so naturally they will not be as polite as before.
Faced with this situation, Huang Feihu knew that changes must be made as soon as possible.
But what can he do?
If it were just a Linhuan Pass, and the tens of thousands of defenders with little battlefield experience, he was confident that he could capture this majestic city with thick walls and extremely strong walls within a month.
But this war is not limited to ground battlefields, but also battlefields involving gods and goddesses who come and go.
He can still be of some use in the battlefield on the ground, but he has no way to participate in the battlefield in the sky. He can only rely on the four generals of the Demon Family.
But the four generals of the Demon Family are not strong enough!
If you lose at first, that's it.
A group of experts were invited later.
As a result, these masters not only lost the battle, but also the people!
Yu Yixian, Liu Huan, and Qu Yangxian were all masters invited by the four generals of the Demon Family to help them fight. Now they all turned against the enemy and went to work for the opponent facing Huanguan.
All I can say is that these guys are so unreliable!
After he later reported it to the court, Taoist Kong Xuan, who was personally invited by Wang Shubigan, seemed reliable at first, but that was because the Immortal Yu Yuan did not show up.
When the Immortal Yu Yuan showed up, Taoist Kong Xuan immediately had his head blown off.
Later, there was no sight of people alive or dead, nor corpses.
According to what the four generals of the Demon Family said, the Taoist Kong Xuan was most likely dead.
After all, Master Yu Yuan would still show mercy to the disciples like them, but he had no need to be merciful to people outside the sect like Taoist Kong Xuan. He would definitely end up in death if he took action!
"well--"
Huang Feihu thought about it again and again, but still sighed, raised his head and looked at the generals in the commander's tent, and said solemnly: "What the generals said is reasonable. We are ordered to attack Linhuan Pass this time. We should cut the knot quickly. , we took it down in one go, but we were not prepared enough and it has been delayed until now.
Therefore, I decided to let the army rest where it was, and sent a team of soldiers to collect herbs and grain... In addition, I also reported the battle situation here to Chaoge! "
Upon hearing this order, most of the generals in the tent breathed a sigh of relief.
They were very afraid that the marshal, who had experienced many battles and was invincible, would not be able to accept the fact that he had been defeated and would take some drastic actions.
Deputy General Zhou Ji, as Huang Feihu's confidant, was the first to stand up, clasping his fists and saying, "I will obey the Marshal's order."
The other generals also stood up and clasped their fists, then took the order and left.
Zhou Ji was not in a hurry to leave. When only he and Huang Feihu were left in the tent, he whispered: "Marshal, I wonder how we should report this battle report?"
Huang Feihu glanced at him and naturally understood what he meant, and said calmly: "Just tell the truth."
A trace of surprise flashed in Zhou Ji's eyes, and he whispered: "Marshal, think twice. If such a battle report reaches Chaoge, I am afraid that both the king and the ministers will be dissatisfied with you, marshal!"
He knew the battlefield situation very clearly, and naturally knew that the reason why it was like this had nothing to do with the marshal and the soldiers.
But the king and the ministers in the court don't know this, so there's no guarantee they won't think too much about it.
After all, Huang Feihu was leading an army of 300,000 troops on this trip. Not to mention just a small Linhuan Pass, not even the four major princes could resist it.
In fact, the reason why Emperor Xin of the Shang Dynasty ordered Huang Feihu to lead an army of 300,000 people to go on an expedition was because he had some different thoughts behind it.
Firstly, it was to intimidate the various princes, large and small, to demonstrate the might of Dashang; secondly, it was a test for the four great princes to see if they would take advantage of the empty garrison of Dashang to invade Chaoge.
As a close confidant of Huang Feihu, Zhou Ji also knew this.
Now that Huang Feihu has led an army of 300,000 people and failed to capture a small Linhuan Pass, let alone frightening the princes, I am afraid that if word spreads, it will immediately become a joke!
At that time, how will the King of Shang and the ministers in the court view Huang Feihu who leads the army?
At this time, Huang Feihu glanced slightly, looked at Zhou Ji and said coldly: "Win is victory, defeat is defeat! I, Huang Feihu, have gone through more than a hundred battles, big and small, and I have always been upright. Have I ever done anything like deceiving my superiors and hiding things from my subordinates?"
This is not the first day you have followed me. How could you have such thoughts? ! "
A hint of helplessness flashed in Zhou Ji's eyes, and he quickly explained: "The last general is also thinking about the Marshal..."
"You don't need to say anything."
Huang Feihu waved his hand and said seriously: "I can pretend that I didn't hear what you just said, so you can take care of yourself!"
"I will obey your orders!"
Zhou Ji cupped his fists and saluted, then retreated helplessly.
Huang Feihu pondered for a moment, then pulled out a jade slip and personally engraved the battle situation on it, then called Qing Ji, who was specially responsible for delivering the letter, and handed the jade slip to the other party.
Within a few days, the jade slip came to Chaoge and was delivered to the desk of Shang King Di Xin.
The next day, in the magnificent Shanhe, all the civil and military ministers of the Manchu Dynasty were present.
Standing at the front was Wang Shu Bigan, who played an important role in the Shang court!
He was the son of the previous Shang King Wen Ding. He was smart, diligent and studious in his childhood. When he became an adult, he assisted the previous Shang King Emperor Yi in the high position of Taishi. After Emperor Yi died, he was entrusted to assist Emperor Xin.
As one of the ministers of Tuogu and Di Xin's uncle, Bigan did not control the government with one hand, but served the king loyally and taught Di Xin how to be a kind and caring monarch.
Emperor Xin, the king of Shang, and even everyone in the government and the public respected him.
At this moment, the loyal and courageous Uncle Wang looked solemn, with a hint of depression between his eyebrows.
He had already read the battle report sent by Huang Feihu, and after hearing the news that Master Kong Xuan had been defeated and had probably died, despite his amazing determination, he couldn't help but feel a little gloomy at the moment.
He personally invited Taoist Kong Xuan to come out.
He had vowed before that he could easily solve the problem by just asking for a preacher.
Unexpectedly, the problem has not been solved yet, but the person who is going to solve the problem is gone.
How could this not make him depressed?
On the throne at the top of the Shanhe Palace, which symbolized the supreme authority of the human race, Emperor Xin was sitting there, scanning the civil and military ministers below the steps.
In the end, he didn't say anything, but ordered his attendants to take down the pre-recorded battle report and distribute it to the ministers for viewing.
"My dear friends, please take a good look at it."
A group of civil and military ministers took the bamboo slips without knowing why, and spread them out in groups to read. Their expressions suddenly changed, and from time to time someone would exclaim in disbelief.
"Have you all finished reading it?" Shang King Di Xin looked around at the ministers and said calmly: "If you have finished reading it, tell me what you think of this matter?"
"this……"
All the civil and military ministers looked at each other and were unwilling to speak first.
In the end, it was Prime Minister Shang Rong who took the lead and said: "Old minister, I remember that Linhuan Pass was originally an outpost for our great merchants to open up frontier wasteland. However, because of the Beihai rebellion, large armies were mobilized from various places to go north to quell the rebellion. After that, Linhuan Pass was Abandoned.
Logically speaking, Linhuan Pass should be just a small place, but King Wucheng had many soldiers and generals, and personally led 300,000 elite soldiers to conquer, but he could not conquer the small Linhuan Pass for a long time!
King Wucheng was afraid that he was suspected of dereliction of duty, so the old minister begged the king to order a thorough investigation into the matter! "
"Your Majesty, your words are wrong!"
Before Shang Rong finished speaking, an old minister came forward and said: "Your Majesty, I cannot agree with the Prime Minister's words! King Wucheng has been loyal and good for generations, has been in battle for many years, and has always been loyal to the great merchants and the great king. Geng Geng will never do anything harmful to Dashang!
According to King Wucheng's battle report, Linhuanguan City has thick walls and is aided by Jiejiao Immortals. Even the four generals of the Demon Family and others are no match for it. This shows that Linhuanguan Pass is indeed not an easy place to win!
I hope your Majesty will learn from it! "
Emperor Xin glanced at the person who spoke. It was Du Yuanxian, the Imperial Heavenly Supervisor, who was also a veteran of the three dynasties and a loyal minister.
After Du Yuanxian spoke, many civil and military ministers spoke one after another.
Some wanted to severely punish Huang Feihu, while others defended him.
Don't these guys understand the point? !
Di Xin frowned secretly.
What he wants to know is how to solve the current situation, not to hold him accountable!
However, after becoming the King of Shang, his character has become much calmer, and he did not get angry because of this. His face is still as calm as ever. He looked around at the civil and military ministers and said: "What you dear sirs said is very reasonable, but the top priority right now is to Find a way to solve the scourge of Linhuan Pass!
Dear friends, what can you do about this? "
"this……"
The civil and military ministers who had just been arguing over whether to severely punish Huang Feihu suddenly looked at each other, and the entire Shanhe Palace was silent for an instant.
Seeing this scene, Di Xin frowned even deeper.
"My dear friends, is there nothing you can do?"
Many ministers quickly lowered their heads, not daring to look at him.
On the other hand, Wang Shu Bigan sighed, raised his tooth wat high, and bowed: "Don't blame me, my king. This matter actually involves immortals and gods. How can we mortals go against the immortals and gods?"
At this time, Prime Minister Shang Rong stood up again, held up his tooth wat and bowed, saying: "Since the matter involves immortals, why not let the immortals handle it!"
Di Xin's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he quickly asked: "Ai Qing, do you already have a solution?"
Shang Rong nodded slightly and said in a deep voice: "I heard that the Immortal God of Jiejiao is a disciple of a saint. It is naturally difficult for ordinary Immortal Gods to be hostile to them, but our human race is protected by three Humane Saint Emperors!
Now that there are immortals and gods disturbing our human society, your Majesty, why not go to Huoyun Palace to worship sincerely, and respectfully ask the three humane saint emperors to kill the immortals and gods who are causing trouble in Linhuan Pass. "
"Three Holy Emperors?"
Di Xin frowned slightly. He had also heard of the legend of the Three Emperors, but he only regarded it as a legend.
But seeing Shang Rongyan's confident look, he nodded and said with a tentative attitude of believing it: "Do you know where the Fire Cloud Palace is and how long the trip will take?"
"This..." Shang Rong shook his head and whispered: "I don't know the location of the Fire Cloud Palace. I only know that if the human race encounters a disaster, the Fire Cloud Palace will reappear in the world, and the three Holy Emperors will We will continue to protect the human race until the crisis is resolved... Your Majesty, why not send more people to spread out to find the whereabouts of Huoyun Palace."
Di Xin waved his hands in disappointment and turned to the other ministers, "Dear ladies, do you have any other ideas?"
Still no one spoke.
However, the Prime Minister Shang Rong stood up again and said with some excitement: "I have remembered it, there is a Temple of Emperor Wa fifty miles south of Chaoge City. It happens to be the birthday of Empress Nuwa in a few days. Your Majesty, you might as well come to Wa." Incense falls from the imperial temple to pray for blessings for our human race.”
"Empress Nuwa?" Di Xin frowned slightly, "Why don't I remember this god? I have never offered sacrifices to it in the past years."
"Report to your majesty." Shang Rong replied respectfully: "Empress Nuwa is not the ancestor of my great Shang, but the supreme saint! This temple was also built recently, and it coincides with the birthday of Empress Nuwa. Your majesty also invites you to go I drop the incense to express my human race’s respect, and also to allow my empress to protect me, the great merchant.”
Di Xin frowned and looked at Bigan, asking, "What do you think, Uncle Wang?"
He had not been on the throne for a long time, and when he was in doubt, he would still habitually ask Minister Tuogu for his opinion.
Hearing Di Xin's question, Bigan did not dare to neglect, and hurriedly stepped forward and said respectfully: "I heard that Nuwa, the empress, is an innate god. She once made humans from clay, refined stones to mend the sky, and is the holy mother of our human race. The kindness to our human race is like the ocean.
If your Majesty can receive the blessings from Empress Nuwa, the Great Shang Dynasty will be prosperous and the country will last forever!
This is the virtue of a blessed country protecting its people. Your Majesty should go and pay incense. "
Di Xin nodded when he heard the words and said with a smile: "Uncle Wang is indeed very knowledgeable and knows so many ancient rumors. Since Empress Nuwa is the Holy Mother of our human race, I will go and pay incense."
At this point, he turned to look at Shang Rong and said sternly: "I will leave this matter to Aiqing. In addition, he sent an order to Huang Feihu, asking him to withdraw his troops temporarily without returning to Chaoge, and stationed in the southeast area to guard against Linhuan Pass The rebels are attacking!”
Shang Rong quickly bowed and said, "I will obey the king's order!"
Di Xin stood up, flicked his sleeves and said, "I'm lonely, please retreat from the court!"
After saying that, he turned around and strode towards the back hall.
All the important civil and military ministers bowed down and said: "Best farewell to your Majesty!"
…
March 15th is the day of Nuwa’s Christmas that is passed down orally by the human race.
In the early morning of this day, the sun had just risen, and in Chaoge City, every household was already burning incense and setting up fires, and every household was laying colorful knots and carpets.
Firstly, it was to celebrate Nuwa's Christmas, and secondly, it was also a ceremony prepared for the king's trip.
Of course, this is not a spontaneous behavior of the people.
After having breakfast, Di Xin burned incense and took a bath before boarding the Luan Yu and heading out of the city.
His king, accompanied by three thousand elite soldiers and a group of civil and military ministers, came to the Wahuang Temple in a mighty manner.
At this moment, the Wahuang Temple was already surrounded by guards. Many ministers could not squeeze in and could only wait anxiously outside.
Emperor Xin stepped down from the chariot, entered the temple surrounded by a group of ministers, and came to the main hall where the statue of Nuwa was enshrined.
This hall is extremely spacious and bright. There is only one statue of Nuwa enshrined in the hall. Except for a statue of a maid on the left and right sides, there are no other statues.
The rituals of sacrifice are very complicated.
However, Shang Rong has already prepared everything, and Di Xin only needs to follow the prompts.
Even so, by the time a set of rituals such as burning incense and praying were completed, the sun had already begun to set towards the west.
Fortunately, Di Xin was young and energetic, so he didn't feel tired at all. On the contrary, he was still interested. He didn't rush back to the palace and just wandered around in the temple.
Poor Shang Rong was old and frail. He was exhausted from all the rituals, but he still had to be patient and dragged his tired body to accompany Di Xin as they toured the Wahuang Temple together.
After walking around, Di Xin returned to the main hall. Looking at the statue of Nuwa, he suddenly laughed and said, "Come here, bring me some pen and ink!"
All the civil and military officials looked at each other, somewhat confused.
However, the king gave the order, and even if they didn't understand it, no one dared to disobey it.
Soon someone came running quickly with a tray. On the tray were a wolf hair and a polished inkstone, as well as a roll of white silk.
Without saying a word, Di Xin directly picked up the wolf brush and filled the inkstone with ink.
The attendants on the side quickly unfolded the silk and laid it out.
However, Di Xin held the wolf hair and did not look at the silk. He just stared straight at the statue of Nuwa in the hall.
Seeing his appearance, Wang Shubi Gan felt a sense of uneasiness in his heart for no reason, and quickly spoke out to persuade: "Your Majesty, the incense tour is over, it's time for you to return to the palace."
"No hurry, no rush." Di Xin smiled and waved his hand, "It's rare that I get up today, so I'll write a poem for you."
After saying that, Di Xin picked up the wolf hair full of ink and raised his eyes to look at the statue of Nuwa in the hall. His eyes became increasingly blurred, as if he was in a trance.
Bi Qian felt even more uneasy. He frowned and took two steps forward, saying in a deep voice: "Your Majesty! It's time to return to the palace!"
"Don't rush, don't rush, I've already thought about it!"
Di Xin seemed to wake up from a dream, walked to the wall with a big smile, and wrote a poem without any delay:
The scenery of Feng Luan Bao's tent is very special, and it is full of intricate decorations made of gold and gold.
The mountains in the far distance are emerald; the sleeves are dancing gracefully to reflect the clouds.
The pear blossoms are blooming in the rain; the smoke in the peony cage is full of beauty.
But you can act charmingly and take back Changle to serve the king.
Only the beginning of this poem was written, and the faces of all the ministers present changed drastically, and they all shouted: "Your Majesty, you must not do it! You must not do it!"
But Di Xin turned a deaf ear to the dissuasion of the ministers, as if he was immersed in his own world. Even if Wang Uncle Bigan stepped forward to pull him, he was taken away with a slight flick.
When he was young, Emperor Xin was able to defeat tigers and leopards, and his power was extremely amazing, which was beyond the reach of a civil servant like Bi Gan.
After finishing the erotic poem in one breath, Di Xin threw away the wolf hair in his hand and laughed loudly: "My dear friends, what do you think of this poem?"
Bigan had a dark face and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, this poem is blasphemous and has no piety. It will only offend the sacred. Please ask your Majesty to have the ink stains washed away, and then pray incense. Please forgive me!"
Di Xin heard the words and said displeasedly: "I just praised the beauty of the empress, how can it become blasphemy?"
He turned to look at Prime Minister Shang Rong and asked in a deep voice: "My dear, do you think this poem has become a blasphemy?"
A look of hesitation flashed across Shang Rong's face, and finally he said solemnly: "Although your original intention is to praise the empress, I feel that the empress Nuwa is an innate god, so I am afraid that I may not be able to understand the meaning of your poem..."
He carefully considered his words and said respectfully: "If I misunderstand your Majesty's meaning, I'm afraid she will become extremely angry!
Your Majesty, you come to burn incense and worship, just to pray for good fortune, so that all people can enjoy their careers, the rain will flow smoothly, and the war will calm down. Why bother with this matter? "
"Huh, even you think it's wrong to be alone?"
Di Xin snorted coldly, flicked his sleeves and robe, turned around and walked outside.
Obviously, he was extremely displeased by being refuted by Bigan and Shang Rong one after another.
All the civil and military ministers present looked at each other with panic on their faces.
Shang Rong sighed and quickly chased out without caring about anything else.
Bigan also wanted to follow, but when he remembered the poem on the wall, he stopped again and quickly called the guards to fetch water to wash off the erotic poem.
But the poems on the wall were written by Emperor Xin himself. How could the guards dare to take action?
Seeing this, Bigan had to do it himself, rolled up his sleeves and washed away the erotic poem.
As for whether this move would offend Di Xin, he no longer cared.
Although he is a mortal, he has close friendships with many capable people and strangers in the court, and he has some understanding of things about immortals and gods that are unimaginable to ordinary people.
He knew very well that Empress Nuwa was one of the few saints in the world.
Therefore, he agreed to Shang Rong's suggestion and came here to offer incense to Empress Nuwa, hoping that he could use the great merchants to worship Empress Nuwa and seek the protection of Empress Nuwa.
What he never expected was that his own king, as if lost in his mind, actually composed an erotic poem regardless of his dissuasion.
Although this poem has been cleaned by him, the empress is a saint. Who knows if she has already sensed that someone is disrespectful to her?
(End of chapter)
