"Master Li, there is a young man outside who wants to see you. He is also holding a few ancient objects. I would like to ask you to weigh his value."
When Li Gongfu heard this, he suddenly felt strange and muttered in his heart.
"The current government is not upright and people's minds are unpredictable. Who is still interested in exploring the classics and studying the classics?"
Then Li Gongfu asked rhetorically.
"Didn't the young man outside say his name?"
"He only said he wanted to see Mr.!"
Li Gongfu said again.
"Then did he come to the door alone or was he accompanied by guards?"
"That young man is riding a big bay-red horse. His face doesn't look like a kind person."
Li Gongfu became more and more surprised and quickly ordered his servant.
"Invite him in quickly."
The person who came to see Li Gongfu was Li Shun, the chief steward of Yang Mansion. He threw the cloth bundle on the table in the living room and unwrapped it, revealing two finely bound flower-faced porcelains.
Upon seeing this, Li Gongfu glanced at the people in front of him, then picked up one of the porcelains and asked.
"Is this object not from the capital?"
Li Shun nodded silently.
"this is yours?"
"No, this porcelain belongs to our master."
"Then you are?"
"Oh, we are the stewards of the master's house."
Li Shun refused to tell Li Gongfu who the master was and was too embarrassed to ask any questions, so he said.
"Go back and tell your general that although the workmanship of this porcelain is a bit rough, it can still be sold at a good price."
When Li Shun heard that Li Gongfu didn't even entertain him, he wanted to let him go home. Li Shun said with a blush.
"Master Li, why do you call him General when you don't know who our master is?"
"Did we make a mistake? Based on our experience and one look at you, we know that you, the housekeeper, are also a martial arts practitioner, right?"
"Master Li, you just said that this porcelain is worth some money, so shall we give it to you?"
Li Gongfu seemed a little impatient when Li Shun's words were neither negative nor positive.
"I think your master sent you here to ask for directions, right? If you have any questions, please tell me that you don't have eyes and ears in this house."
After being seen through, Li Shun's face suddenly started to turn red. Since he was a child in Shamen, his master, Zhixian, has always focused on teaching martial arts to his disciples. Therefore, Li Shun has been focusing on martial arts and despising literature since he was a child, and he looked down on Confucian scholars who had the power to bind chickens by mistake. .
Yang Jian often felt depressed at home, so he chatted with Li Shun while drinking.
"We heard that there is a great bachelor who is very capable. We would like to ask you to visit this gentleman. You can also take a few antiques and give them to him. Maybe this person can really be used by us in the future. "
Li Shun, who was greatly surprised, said to Yang Jian dismissively.
"Brother, they say that a useless scholar is a scholar. What do you think of a scholar who is so refined?"
"Brothers, you and I have grown up in the spirit of martial arts. You must know that just having strength and good kung fu will not make a difference without the help of wise men."
No matter how much Yang Jian said, Li Shun didn't take it seriously and deliberately went around and whispered.
"We want to see what the wise man mentioned by my brother is capable of."
What Li Shun never expected was that this old man was really extraordinary and he could clearly understand his purpose in just a few words. Li Shun said sheepishly.
"We were assigned by Yang Jian, the general of Shangzhu Kingdom, to come to see your lord."
Upon hearing Yang Jian's name, Li Gongfu quickly bowed and said.
"I don't know if the father-in-law of the country sent you here. Brother, please don't be familiar with us."
Seeing this funny scene, Li Shun quickly helped him up and continued.
"Shangzhuguo would like to meet with you to ask for advice. I wonder if you can give it to me sir."
"If the father of the country is capable of governing the country with military skills, I would not dare to ask advice from a villain. I am afraid that the villain will not be able to solve the worries of the father of the country."
"Our master has admired Mr. Li for a long time. If you don't go, how will we deal with you when we get back? I hope Mr. Li will give me some face and follow the villain to meet Shangzhuguo."
After Li Shun's repeated requests, Li Gongfu was embarrassed and refused again.
"Then the villain will go with you to see the abbot and untie the knot in his troubles."
Li Shun said with a smile.
"No, it is our master who asked you to come and visit us."
"We are from a remote country, and we have nothing to entertain the emperor when he comes to visit us."
From time to time, Yang Jian did not bring a bodyguard but walked into Li Gongfu's house in the moonlight under the leadership of Li Shun. After the two met, Li Gongfu said bluntly.
"Now that the opposition to the state leader has been eliminated, I don't know what you have to worry about."
These words struck a chord in Yang Jian's heart that he wanted to do but didn't dare to do, so he lowered his voice and said.
"Actually, I have always respected Wang Guiyu, Wenxian, Yuwen Xiaobo and Yuwen Shenju. The death of several imperial uncles one after another is a tragedy and a blessing for the Zhou Empire. If one of them was alive, the imperial court would not be in trouble. It’s such an irreversible situation.”
Li Gongfu glanced at Yang Jian and saw how sincere his words were, so he let down his guard and got down to talk.
"We don't know whether the Holy One is fatuous or not, but since Yu Wen ascended the throne, he has raised taxes and raised food so that the people cannot go hungry."
Yang Jian said directly without covering up.
"Sir, what you said is true, but now that the people are revolting, our Shangzhu country is not easy to do. We have seen that even a scholar like you in the entire court is idle at home. How dare we act like a fat man? Is it worthy of the important task?"
"Each emperor and his ministers are in different situations. Each dynasty has a different situation."
Yang Jian sighed as he spoke.
"At present, ministers from all walks of life in the imperial court are crowded with each other and there are conflicts. In name, I am the head of the country and the general in charge of the army. However, my son-in-law is moody and often sends us to suppress uprisings. On the one hand, it is because of the emperor's orders and on the other hand, because of lack of food. Innocent people who are rebellious, sir, tell me, are we obedient or disobedient? Besides, we are too jealous and cannot bear the treacherous ear. Otherwise, the Holy Father will think that we are disobedient."
Speaking, Li Gongfu also sighed.
"Well, now the imperial court is suffering from internal and external troubles. Both Chen Baxian of the Southern Dynasty and the Turkic army in the north are eyeing the Great Zhou Dynasty. Since I am a general of the Zhu Kingdom, why don't you take this opportunity to stop interfering in the affairs of the imperial court and lead troops to attack the invading enemies? This way the prince can stay away from the court and avoid being framed."
After Yang Jian finished speaking, he stood up and said goodbye. Li Gongfu pointed at the ancient objects on the crime case and reminded Li Shundao, who was sitting aside and remained silent.
"Don't forget to take these things back."
Li Shun smiled sheepishly.
"These porcelains are our brother's request for your advice. Mr. Li, please accept them."
Only a few days later, the court received news that Chen Baxian and the northern Turkic army broke into the border to massacre officials and people and rob food and property. Yu Wenyun was so frightened that he even thought of fleeing the capital.
Seeing that his son-in-law was so nervous, Yang Jian took the initiative to step forward and ask for help.
"Jiujiu's army is fighting for the national calamity together, and I am willing to lead the army to the border to annihilate Chen Baxian and the Turkic army in one fell swoop."
Yu Wenyun didn't want to see Yang Jian at first, so he quickly said when his father-in-law took the initiative to invite him.
"Since my father-in-law is so loyal to protecting the country, then let's go."
For several days, Yang Jian selected the staff and bodyguards for the marching marshal to prepare for a tough battle. At this time, he saw Li Shun bringing a young man to Yang Jian and introduced him.
"He called Yuchi and Sun Sheng had a good bow skills and wanted to follow his brother to the border to make achievements."
Yang Jian took a look at the young man next to him and saw that he had a pair of bright eyes and a slightly thin waist. He was a energetic young man less than 20 years old, so he asked Li Shundao.
"How do you recognize him?"
"The day before yesterday, we competed in kung fu at the imperial altar, including many generals, and all of them were defeated. He and I were the only ones left. In the end, we also lost to him."
"This is the first time we see you, Li Shun, admit defeat."
Yang Jian joked with a smile.
"Are you convinced that you lost?"
Yang Jian asked in confusion when he saw that Li Shun admired this little brother so much.
"How old is my brother?"
"We are 17 this year."
"Where can I find my job now?"
Yuchi and Sun Sheng replied proudly.
"We serve as the guards in the East Palace."
Yang Jian continued.
"You will have to suffer a lot if you follow us to the border. It is not worth losing your life if you don't have good weapons on the battlefield. I think you haven't asked for a wife yet."
Yuchi Sun Sheng was afraid that Yang Jian would refute again and hurriedly knelt down and said.
"We have been practicing martial arts since we were young and have no place to use our skills."
"OK."
Yang Jian patted the dust on his little brother's clothes.
"Go and talk to Master Zheng Yi. As long as he agrees, everything will be easy for us here."
A few days later, Yang Jian led Li Shun, Wei Chi, and Sun Sheng led an army to march north. This was the first time Li Shun traveled with Yang Jian on a long journey. After several days, the mighty army finally arrived at the boundary of Bingzhou and met Yu Qingze who was stationed there. The soldiers led by the general gathered together.
Sha Bolue's Turkic Army and Chen Baxian's Tiger Wing Army, led by the two soldiers in two groups, attacked the area of Guzang and Zhangye in Liangzhou with overwhelming force.
At this time, the defeated army and refugees heard that reinforcements were coming to help, and they came all the way along the dilapidated post road like a rolling flood. When Yang Jian saw the endless troops, he hurriedly turned to Li Shun.
"Hurry up and send someone to resettle the refugees and get them some vegetarian food. It looks like these people may not have eaten for several days."
He asked tentatively to the dispersed sergeant Yang Jian.
"Why are you like this?"
"The Turkic army is so powerful. They led us into the encirclement and surrounded us like iron barrels. We fought our way out and escaped. General, please let us join your team and wash away the shame."
Yang Jian did not have time to think too much and placed this group of scattered sergeants in his own team. Shabolu Khan's cavalry entered the rugged mountain road with complex terrain from the flat desert to completely eliminate the fleeing generals and soldiers.
The two armies came unexpectedly and looked at each other. Yang Jian's army took the lead in a fierce attack and blinded the leading troops of the Turkic general. After that, Yang Jian and Yu Qingze divided their troops to pursue the victory, only to hear Yang Jian suddenly shout.
"Shabo Luo, we know you are nearby, so please listen carefully. Zhou and Tu have been fighting for many years with neither side getting any benefits. We advise you to join forces with us to resist the Chen Dynasty. The Chen Dynasty is located in the southern part of the Yangtze River. Minfu, do you think that joining forces with Chen Baxian to attack our Northern Zhou Empire is just like your idea of joining forces with the Khitan? Just now when you and I were fighting, we saw that every soldier of the Chen army came to help you?"
The Turkic cavalry fought bravely on the grassland and moved quickly. Now they reached the rugged mountains and were at a loss as they were unfamiliar with the route. Their combat effectiveness was greatly reduced and they couldn't run even if they wanted to. The Turkic army abandoned their helmets and armor along the way, throwing away baggage vehicles and weapons that stretched for hundreds of miles.
Li Shun led a group of light cavalry in hot pursuit from the rugged mountain road to the grassland, and finally captured the main territory of Shabolu Khan. At this time, the two armies were facing each other on an unnamed creek. Li Shun suddenly discovered that the enemy on the other side was there. The military tent in the camp could not be seen at a glance, but Bian Shao said there were tens of thousands of surprise troops.
His Qingqi, a total of only more than 3,000 people, had long been separated from the large troops in the rear because of the excessive pursuit. At this moment, Li Shun had entered the Turkic territory and reached the grassland where the enemy displayed their combat power.
At this time, Shabolu Khan realized that the situation of the two armies had undergone a great reversal. If he led his army to counterattack the weak brigade led by Li Shun, the consequences would be disastrous.
Li Shun immediately rode to the riverside, seemingly majestic but broke into a cold sweat. Just as Li Shun was secretly complaining and unable to do anything, on the other side of the river, Shabolius Khan, who was riding a horse surrounded by a pair of entourage, let out a cry. There was a burst of laughter and he shouted in the river.
"If we are not mistaken, you must be Li Shun, the steward of Yang Jian, the Great Sima of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, right? If you have the guts, just come over and challenge him. Do you dare?"
Li Shun was anxious and wise, and said to his follower Yuchi and Sun Sheng.
"If we can shoot them, the Turkic army will be in chaos."
Yuchi Sun Shengdao.
"What's so difficult about this?"
Yuchi Sunsheng said and reached behind him to take the bow.
"Wait a minute."
Li Shun continued.
"You can only scare them and extinguish their arrogance."
I saw Yuchi and Sun Sheng looking towards the other side and saw that he was wearing a pair of iron armor. A pair of bright bronze mirrors were inlaid on the chest, which can be used as decoration and to protect the vital parts of the body intact. They are commonly known as {heart mirrors}.
Yuchi Sun Sheng said to Li Shun.
"Brother, this request is actually more difficult than taking your own life. To ensure nothing goes wrong, can we stay close to him?"
"OK."
Li Shun agreed and shouted to the other side.
"Chabolio, listen, we don't need to take action personally when we fight in a one-on-one fight. It's more than enough for us to send a guard to deal with you."
Yuchi Sunsheng was riding on a horse with a hard bow in his hand. Li Shunze personally commanded the soldiers to beat the drums, wave flags and shout. In the cheers of the ground shaking, Yuchi Sunsheng rode forward to the other side. One of Li Shun's troops was about to cross the river. Shabolo also kept waving flags and shouting to cheer for his profuse performance in the one-on-one competition.
Seeing Yuchi and Sun Shengshu drawing the bow, an arrow flew out from the string like a meteor. By the time Sabillo lowered his head to inspect the armor again, the breastplate had been hit to pieces.
Shabolu was shocked and shocked. Then he heard a sound and a flying arrow hit his helmet. Suddenly, he had a splitting headache and his eyes went dark, so he fell off his horse. Li Shun's soldiers immediately cheered when they saw this.
Li Shun's expression darkened and he whispered.
"Why did Yuchi Sun Sheng kill Sha Boluo?"
Just when Li Shunzheng was worried that the Turkic army on the other side of the river would launch an attack, Shabolius Khan actually stood up from the ground. He pushed away the guard who came to help him. He took off his helmet and looked at it. It was also hit by a flying arrow, so he abandoned it. He stubbornly took the reins of the mount from the guard and wanted to mount the horse again.
Just as one of his feet stepped on the horse stool, the third flying arrow hit the boot he had just lifted firmly. Shabolu Khan heard this.
"Ouch"
With a sound, he fell to the ground again. Because the riding boots protected Sabolo Khan's legs from being disabled, he still suffered a burst of pain. Finally, he was carried away under the strong persuasion of the accompanying guards.
That night, the tens of thousands of Shabolou Khan's cavalry all withdrew under the cover of night. The confrontation across the bank, which was extremely disparate in strength, was resolved in this way!
Yuchi and Sun Sheng caught Shabolu off guard with a few flying arrows. At that time, the news began to spread among the armies on both sides of the Zhou Dynasty.
"That brat Yuchi Sunsheng is really awesome."
The officers and soldiers of the Great Zhou Dynasty all admired Yuchi and Sun Sheng. No matter it was day or night, anyone who saw him would look at the magic bow in his hand. After seeing and touching it, everyone commented.
"The bows and arrows are no different. They are the same as those used in the military. But in this kid's hands, it's like he has eyes and he can point where to hit."
The Turkic army, including Shabolu Khan, who had suffered consecutive defeats, felt that the weak brigade led by Li Shun was extremely magical. Shabolu healed his wounds and turned to the Turk general who came to visit.
"Our Turkic army is originally a people on horseback. No one can beat us in horseback archery. The Northern Zhou Dynasty actually produced such a powerful marksman. Where can we put the face of our Turkic army?"
After Yuchi Sun Sheng successfully executed the order, he was very puzzled by Yang Jian's statement and asked in a low voice.
"General, we know that the confrontation between the two armies can kill the enemy leader, wouldn't it be more efficient? Why did you and Brother Li Shun let the tiger go back to the mountain? We had already injured him at that time. General, why don't we send people to eliminate the root of the enemy."
"That's not the case."
Yang Jian asked with a smile.
"Think about it carefully, what will happen if the enemy and we set up camp on the river?"
"Then there's no need to ask? Won't we eliminate the enemy when we can take a breath and cross the river?"
Li Shun said a little doubtfully.
"You're really talking about it. Don't you see the difference in strength between the enemy and us? After we set up camp, if Chaboleau sees that we only have a small number of troops and he leads his army to fight back, you and I still have the right to talk now." ?"
Yuchi Sun Sheng was really shocked when he heard this, but he argued.
"Just to scare him into withdrawing his troops, why not let us shoot him through the chest with one arrow?"
"If the Turkic army sees their leader shot to death, it will definitely inspire the masses to fight against us, so it is best to treat him as a frightened bird and destroy the fighting spirit of the Turkic army."
When Yang Jian's squadron returned to Bingzhou, he immediately summoned the army and generals at all levels to discuss the matter with General Yu Qingze.
"For many years, there have been frequent wars with the Turks and the northern frontier of Tuyuhun. The vast territory has become sparsely populated. The land in the north of the Great Wall has been abandoned all year round, but the sunshine is abundant. Day and night are very graceful. As long as water can be irrigated in a large area, so much The wasteland can become a good place to sow melons and get melons. It is hard to say that this war with the Turks will bring peace of mind for at least half a year. We must seize this favorable opportunity to plant crops so that we can use the food next year. No need to worry. If there is no war next spring, we can plant another grain and we will not be short of food for at least two consecutive years. Now even the troops in Guan are often suffering from famine. Can we still expect the court to allocate enough food to us? ? Even if the imperial court allocates grain to us and plucking layers of hair, there will be nothing left in our hands in the end."
Yang Jian spent a lot of military expenditures to buy a batch of cattle and rice from the pass, and turned the ordnance workshop into an agricultural processing workshop. The weapons and chariots captured in this war should be refurbished by Yang Jian. They should be refurbished and transformed into vehicles for farming and transporting food. Several times more.
Just when the work of farming and producing grain was in full swing, an imperial edict suddenly came from the capital.
"The great emperor was busy with state affairs and fell ill, so he took the throne as the new emperor and announced it to the world. Thank you for this!"
In order to better ignore state affairs and do evil, Yu Wenyun passed the throne to his 8-year-old son Yu Wen Chan. As soon as he ascended the throne, Yu Wen Chan relayed his father's oral instructions to Yang Jian and gave the order.
"The official worships Yang Jian as the Grand Master of the imperial court. He must return to the capital as soon as possible to assist the new emperor without delay."
So Yang Jian had no choice but to leave the farming affairs to Yu Qingze, but he hurried back to Chang'an with Li Shun and his personal guards. Yang Jian whispered on the way.
"It's really out of control. We came to Saibei just to avoid the sharp edges of the court. I didn't expect that the Supreme Emperor would still find out what we were thinking."
