The remaining clouds cover the sky gently like mist, and a hazy light shines down from the sky. A breeze blew by, bringing up pieces of loess and flying sand on the ground.
"The sand in the desert is like snow, and the moon in Yanshan Mountain is like a hook. How can I be like a golden person, and walk quickly to enjoy the clear autumn."
At this time, Zhao Yong looked at the snow-like wind and sand in front of him, and he couldn't help but recite this famous frontier poem in later generations, although the last two sentences of the poem did not describe the characters at that time very appropriately.
Last year, there was a battle between Zhao State and Zhongshan State, which ended with Zhao State's tragic victory.
The Zhongshan Army then withdrew fifty miles to the north and retreated back to the Zhongshan Great Wall.
Zhao Yong and his ministers met with each other and felt that they could no longer allow Zhongshan Kingdom to come and go as they pleased.
He decided to build a city in Hadi (today's Gaoyi, Shijiazhuang). Zhao would use this as a springboard to build it slowly until Zhongshan was completely destroyed.
Now that the national policy has been decided, it must be implemented. Zhao Yong's plan is to win over Lin Hu and Lou Fan first, and wait for an opportunity to destroy the Zhongshan Kingdom embedded in the hinterland of the Zhao Kingdom.
If this poison sac in the hinterland of Zhao State is not completely resolved, Zhao State will have no chance of going south to fight for supremacy.
This time he went north in person to make an alliance with King Lou Fan and King Lin Hu.
The meeting place is on the border of Zhao State, Dai County.
On the tall green-maned horse, Zhao Yong held the reins and leaned forward slightly on the horse's back. His legs tightly clamped the horse's belly to prevent it from falling due to bumps. At this time, Zhao Yong was not wearing armor, but was covered with a hood similar to a power fence.
In this era, there were no saddles, let alone stirrups. Riding a horse was basically riding naked, which was difficult for ordinary people to control.
At this time, the main force of the war was still infantry and horse-drawn carriages, while the cavalry was mostly used as scouts to deliver messages, and was rarely used in regular armies.
"Your Majesty, if we go more than thirty miles further, we will reach the Hutuo River. After crossing the Hutuo River, we will reach the territory of Dai County." A horseman not far in front of Zhao Yong suddenly turned around and shouted loudly, fearing that Zhao Yong could not hear him. .
The person who spoke was wearing the same outfit as Zhao Yong, and by the sound of his voice, he knew it was his personal guard Pang Nuan.
Zhao Yong looked at the sky full of yellow sand in front of him, and really didn't know how he could identify the distance.
"Your Majesty, you have been rushing for half an hour. Stop and rest. You can enter the city around evening time. There is no need to rush." Fei Yi beside Zhao Yong said.
Zhao Yong raised his head and glanced at the sky, which was still hazy.
"Yu..."
The dozen riders behind him saw their king reining in their horses and hurriedly stopped their progress.
Fei Yi waved to the riders at the front of the team, gesturing for everyone to gather around.
When Zhao Yong dismounted the horse, a guard immediately came forward to hold it and led the horse to the side to feed the horse feed and water.
Another guard came forward and placed a soft ball under Zhao Yong.
Zhao Yong shook off his long sleeves and loosened his crotch. At this time, he felt that there should be calluses on both sides of his thighs.
Riding a horse in this day and age is a real ordeal.
If he hadn't been in a hurry, if he hadn't been a wise king, he would have been sitting in the carriage, accompanied by beauties and beautiful scenery all the way.
"Bah, bah, bah." He took off the sand-blocking hat from his head and let out a breath of filthy air.
"Where is the boundary here?" Zhao Yong sat down and asked Fei Yi beside him.
He could faintly see undulating mountains not far away.
After leaving Handan City, everyone headed north. After passing several big cities such as Yanyu and Qiuyou, the crowds became sparse as they headed north.
At this time, the wind can be regarded as a frequent visitor in spring. The most powerful time of the year is during the Qingming Festival or Grain Rain solar term in March and April, and the yellow sand can spread hundreds of miles along the way.
"This place still belongs to Qiyou territory." A guard beside him replied respectfully.
"Is there a resting place nearby?" Fei Yi asked.
This time Zhao Yong met with the Loufan and Linhu tribes, and his distinguished ministers brought Fei Yi and Li Dui with him.
"Two miles further east, there is a village." the guard replied.
"Then let's go to the countryside and rest for a while."
"Remember! Don't disturb the villagers or call me a prince in front of the common people." Zhao Yong stood up and said to everyone.
"Here."
…
A quiet and peaceful mountain village will welcome a group of distinguished guests today.
After checking everyone's identities, the mayor of Zaolin Township personally led the group to the Guanyi Station in the village.
Zhao Yong did not expect that this remote small village also had a Guanyi.
But he didn't know that Zaolin Township already belonged to the border of Zhao State. According to Zhao Lu, all townships, counties, and counties within a hundred miles of the border need to set up pavilions and posthouses. One is to deliver military orders quickly, and the second is to receive reception. An 'inspection' official from the 'central government' came down.
Zhao Yong was walking on the rugged road in the countryside. From time to time, he could see a few naked children playing in the mud on the side of the road. He also saw an old man with a missing arm squatting at the door of a thatched hut, basking in the sun. , and also saw a rough-skinned mountain girl wearing civilian clothes breastfeeding a baby.
But the only thing I didn't see was the strong young labor force...
Zhao Yong saw them, and they also saw Zhao Yong and his party.
The eyes of the old man and the woman showed surprise, while the young children followed behind everyone when they saw the stranger.
The township chief tried to rush away, but Zhao Yong smiled and waved his hand, indicating that it was okay.
After walking for a while, the group was led into a spacious wooden house by the mayor.
"Dear gentlemen, this is my residence in Zaolin. Please rest for a moment, I will order someone to bring you food." The township head bowed to Pang Nuan in front of Zhao Yong and said.
He thought Pang Nuan was the leader.
"No need to bother, mayor, I'll leave after taking a short rest." Pang Nuan replied.
"The distinguished guests have come from far away from the capital. It's not too late to have some food and wine before leaving." After saying this, the fellow village head exited the room.
Pang Nuan tried to stop him, but was stopped by Zhao Yong.
After the mayor went out, Zhao Yong looked around the hut and found it was clean.
There were several soft objects on the wooden floor of the hut. Zhao Yong stroked the hem of his clothes and then sat cross-legged on them.
"Everyone, please give it up and rest for a while before rushing on. Don't let down the old man's good intentions." Zhao Yong said to everyone standing.
"Here."
With his permission, everyone sat cross-legged around Zhao Yong.
...Not long after, two young ladies walked in outside the hotel door, holding some fruits and cooked grains in their hands.
It seemed like they were seeing a stranger for the first time, and they were too timid to step forward.
"What are you doing so stupidly? Why don't you hurry up and get the food to the noble man?" the fellow village chief behind him scolded.
When the young lady heard the mayor's loud scolding, she timidly walked to the crowd and handed over the grass pot in her hand.
"You noble gentlemen, use it with caution. I will leave first."
"Wait a minute, old man." Pang Nuan suddenly called out to the mayor who was about to go out.
"What's the matter, noble man?" the mayor asked doubtfully.
"Sit down, sir. My young master has something to ask me." Pang Nuan said and pointed to Zhao Yong aside.
"Sir?" The mayor murmured in confusion.
Then he came to his senses, turned around and bowed, "Young man, I don't know Mount Tai. I don't know that the young master is visiting me in this humble abode. Please forgive me for my sin."
(In the pre-Qin Dynasty, the son of a duke was called Gongzi, and the grandson of a duke was called Gongsun. For example, Wei Yang, who was originally a clan member of the Wei Kingdom, was called Wei Yang, and was also called Gongsun Yang. It generally refers to the son of the clan.)
"No need to be polite, please get up quickly." Zhao Yong stretched out his hand to support him.
