The people under the altar are of all shapes and sizes, each with their own thoughts.
Zhao Mengqi, however, had no distracting thoughts, and stepped to the top step by step.
It's extremely cold at high places, and the wind is so strong that it's difficult to walk.
Standing in the center of the altar, there are no walls in all directions, and the wind penetrates his heart. If it were not for the blessing of more than 60 kilograms of armor, Zhao Mengqi would have been swept up into the sky by the strong wind at this moment.
The rain was like thorns, hitting Zhao Mengqi head and face, looking for every gap in his armor, getting in, and frantically plundering the heat from his body.
Zhao Mengqi held back his chills, endured the constant beating of raindrops, and tried his best to open his eyes and look into the distance.
The sky and the earth seemed to be hanging upside down, and there was chaos, trapping his sight within three miles.
The walls on all four sides were filled with soldiers, densely packed and motionless, as if they were integrated with the walls.
Surrounded by his feet were tens of thousands of people with their heads raised. Although he couldn't see their faces clearly, Zhao Mengqi could feel their ardent and ardent gazes.
The reason why they believe that sacrifice is feasible is not because they are ignorant, but when faced with a disaster that they cannot resist, they can only place their hope in the gods or people who can communicate with the gods.
Zhao Mengqi slowly raised his hand above his head and waved violently, "Qi!"
The horn sounded long, through the rain, through the clouds, swaying the sky for nine days.
The war drums beat in unison, creating ripples that shook the earth and resounded throughout the earth.
The officers and soldiers of the three armies shouted in unison, "Honor the heaven and the earth, be strict...in the country! Do it...in the outside world!"
The sacrificial ceremony officially started. At this moment, no matter what they thought in their hearts, everyone became solemn and solemn.
There seemed to be an inexplicable force emerging from the depths of his soul, driving away the coldness in his body. Zhao Mengqi's spirit was greatly boosted.
"Gu, Zhao Yu of the Great Song Dynasty!"
"Today, I offer sacrifices to heaven and earth on behalf of my father, and I only pray for peace in the world!"
"But the world is impermanent, so how can we have peace? Pray? Wish?"
"Heaven moves vigorously, a gentleman strives for self-improvement, the terrain is good, a gentleman carries his wealth with kindness, and God helps those who help themselves!"
"Humans are born in the world and stand on the ground with their heads above the sky. The so-called peace can only be achieved by sharpening one's hands and moving forward, throwing one's head and spilling blood in order to achieve it..."
Every sentence was uttered by Zhao Mengqi with an angry roar. After the sound of the wind and rain reached everyone's ears, many people were shocked.
King Yan, what does this mean?
As promised, he seems to be saying that peace is not a gift from God, but something people strive for.
This is too deviant! ?
Everyone in Zhenze Tower shook their heads.
"Isn't our Highness a little too arrogant?"
"Haha, you are not afraid of the changes in the sky. I think His Highness Prince Yan wants to follow Wang Jiefu's example."
"So, the rumor that King Yan has a desire for change is not groundless?"
"Judging from his past behavior, he is not a person who follows the rules. From now on, our Song Dynasty will be in trouble."
"In my opinion, His Highness is young and ignorant, and is too self-righteous. Sooner or later, he will fall into trouble."
"Hehe, I think it won't be too late. It is said that His Highness King Yan made a public vow that if the hurricane cannot be driven away, he will not be named Zhao from now on.".c
"Is this useful? It's just empty talk. If he cheats and doesn't keep his oath, who can do anything to him?"
"That's not necessarily the case. There are quite a few people in the court who don't like King Yan. If you seize this opportunity, even if you can't bring him down, you can still make him stink."
"Haha... a person who breaks his word, even if he sits on the throne, what can he do!?"
Under the altar, Wu Qian frowned. He couldn't understand what King Yan wanted to do, but he couldn't stop it at this time. His heart began to feel heavy and he became uneasy.
The other officials and generals also had different expressions, and the old men in the awning were stunned and surprised.
Only Wanwan knew about Zhao Mengqi's plan. She couldn't stop admonishing her, so she could only pray silently, but the worry on her brows continued unabated.
On the contrary, most people do not understand the key points and only regard Yan
The king was reciting a sacrificial inscription, and everyone listened carefully with bated breath, fearing that they were not pious enough and would offend God.
"...The first contributors to our peace in China are the countless heroes who sacrificed their lives and fought bravely against the enemy. In the far north, we chased Hunzhou, and in the south we defeated Chiyou. Nearby, we fought against the Mongols and resisted the rebels."
"The heroes are gone and never return, leaving only their heroic souls in the world. All the nine states share the sorrow and the sky is colorless, and the four seas roar together to sacrifice the heroes!"
"Things that have passed through the ages, the clouds are flying and the smoke is extinguishing. The heroic and tragic songs have not yet been completed. Here, I would like to ask that everyone mourn in silence to pay tribute to the heroic soul!"
After finishing speaking, Zhao Mengqi took the lead in kneeling down on one knee, holding his hands, and bowed his head in silence.
The soldiers from all over the world shouted in unison, "The heroic spirits are always here to protect China!"
Immediately, they all knelt down on one knee.
On the city, on the altar, and on guard duty all around, nearly ten thousand soldiers acted in unison as one person. After the loud sound of armor, there was silence, but the heart was churning.
The people seemed to understand something, and gradually they all bowed in mourning.
But in Zhenze Tower, everyone's expression changed, as if they had suddenly swallowed a bite of flies.
"this……"
"King Yan is trying to win over the morale of the army!"
"He, is he crazy? He is the legitimate crown prince, what is his intention to win over the military?"
"Who knows?"
In the awning, a group of old men looked at each other with horror in their eyes, flashing the same words.
The Son of Heaven is the one who has strong soldiers and horses!
This sentence is a rule in the troubled times of the Five Dynasties, but now King Yan's behavior seems to be intended to implement this rule.
Why did the Song Dynasty use culture to control military force? It was precisely because it came out of that troubled times and was afraid of repeating the same mistakes, so it overcorrected.
The throne of King Yan can be said to be as stable as Mount Tai at this time. Even if he lies in the palace and does nothing, the throne will fall on him sooner or later.
If there is no need for soldiers and horses to compete for the throne, then who does he want to guard against and deal with by winning over warriors?
No, in the Song Dynasty, the scholar-bureaucrats and the emperor shared the world. Could it be that what King Yan wanted was to dominate the world? ?
The old men were thinking, their hearts beating with fear, and their bodies began to tremble involuntarily.
Wu Qian and other civil servants also had their eyelids twitching, fearing that King Yan would go astray and bring endless military disasters.
The common people would not have thought of this. They only knew that if it had not been for the heroic sacrifice and tenacious persistence of the soldiers defending the city the day before yesterday, they would have fallen to the butcher's knife of the rebels and thieves.
Therefore, they were sincerely grateful and mourned the heroes, and did not feel there was anything wrong.
After a moment of burning incense, Zhao Mengqi stood up, and then the others followed suit, raised their heads, and once again looked at him through the rain curtain.
At this time, the wind and rain became less intense. Zhao Mengqi stood up with his sword in hand. After slowly looking around, he spoke again.
"The day before yesterday, nearly ten thousand rebels attacked Wujiang. The city was in danger. Fortunately, the soldiers served and the people worked together. After several hard battles, the danger was averted and peace was preserved."
"This peace was obtained by the hard work of thousands of soldiers and civilians at the cost of huge sacrifices. I believe that all those who participated in the war, regardless of soldiers or civilians, are heroes!"
"Here, I have one thing to say: A nation without heroes is unfortunate; a nation that has heroes but does not know how to respect and cherish it is hopeless; a country that has great figures but does not know how to support, love and admire them is hopeless. A slave state of hope."
"You think, we, the great Song Dynasty, are descendants of the Yan and Huang Miao people, and are orthodox in China, can we become a slave state?"
After shouting these words, the world seemed to be silent.
"No! No! Long live the Song Dynasty!" The soldiers of the three armies shouted in unison.
The common people were also excited, "No! No! Long live the Song Dynasty!..."
Afterwards, the army and the people merged into one, "Long live the Song Dynasty! Long live the King of Yan!..."
Amid the noisy roar, everyone's power seemed to converge on Zhao Mengqi, making the golden armor on his body shine.
Oops!
King Yan is overstepping his bounds! That's disrespectful!
Wu Qian's face turned pale. King Yan's method of inciting people was too terrible. I am afraid that if he proclaimed himself emperor at this time and sent troops to attack Lin'an, these people would also act blindly.
Of course, he also understood that King Yan would not do such a stupid thing, and there was no need to do so.
It's just that this matter cannot be concealed. After this, there will definitely be people in the DPRK making a fuss about it.
Hey, my lord, why are you always causing trouble for yourself? ?
In fact, Zhao Mengqi's cheeks were beating wildly at this time. He did not expect that people would actually shout "Long live King Yan". Although he was confident that he could solve the trouble caused by this matter, he was not full and liked to find trouble.
He quickly stretched out his hands and pressed them in the air to stop everyone's shouting.
After the voice stopped, he continued, "Since we must respect the heroes, we must not let the heroes bleed or shed tears. Before, I promised that I would never treat anyone who contributed to the country badly. At this time, I want to reiterate again, The previous promises will be fulfilled twice as much!”
"In other words, regardless of soldiers or civilians, those injured in this battle can receive subsidies ranging from 20 to 200 guan, while those who are killed in battle will receive a pension of 600 guan and six acres of fertile land. All participants in the war will receive a pension of 600 guan and 6 acres of fertile land. Everyone will be rewarded based on their merits!"
hiss!
Many people gasped.
Especially Wu Qian and others who knew the details were shocked by King Yan's generosity.
There were three armies participating in the war, the Imperial Guards Ban Zhi, the Wujiang garrison, and the Fenghua Army. The total number was less than a thousand. Including the ineffective treatment, more than 400 people were killed in the battle, and basically everyone was injured, even if some skin injuries were not counted. There were also more than 400 lightly and seriously injured people.
Of the 1,500 minzhuang who assisted in the battle, nearly 200 were killed and more than 300 wounded. This ratio was not small. Many armies could not afford this casualty ratio.
The death benefit alone is 350,000 guan, and there are 3,500 acres of land. Add in the allowance for the injured and merit rewards, and a little less than 1 million guan is gone...
When Wu Qian was shocked, Zhao Mengqi continued, "Then I planned to build a martyrs' cemetery at a location specifically for the burial of heroes who died for the country. And here, I built a Martyrs' Shrine to worship the fallen soldiers and civilians. This altar will also be built in the future. Preserve and transform it into a permanent monument, engrave the names of all the soldiers and civilians who participated in the war, and compile a book to commemorate it! Moreover, it will gradually become a permanent rule in the future, and no one who sacrifices his life for the country will be treated unfairly!"
Everyone roared again, and the soldiers of the three armies took the lead in shouting, "Long live! Long live King Yan! Long live! Long live!..."
