Looking at Pei Zhixiu with a calm expression, Xiaohuan whispered with some envy:
"Madam, you have really good physical strength. You have nothing to do on such a rugged mountain road..."
Pei Zhixiu said calmly after hearing this:
"It's okay. You can do this if you walk often! The mountain road I took to collect herbs before was several times steeper than this Xiaofeng Mountain!"
Xiao Huan nodded with understanding, and while their master and servant were talking, Ye Cui, who was walking at the front of the team, asked Ye Cheng beside her:
"How far is the journey?"
Ye Cheng, who was following carefully, heard the words and said quickly:
"It's at the top of the mountain ahead, about two miles away!"
After speaking, looking at Ye Cui's face full of fatigue, he cautiously suggested:
"Old madam, should we take a break first?"
Ye Cheng also complained bitterly about Ye Cui's temporary change of heart. As Ye Mingsheng's attendant, he also served as the steward of Ye Mansion. This time Ye Mingsheng went to Hebei Province to conquer Hebei Province, he did not take him with him, but left him behind. The house takes care of the family.
After the matter of paying homage to the tomb was determined this time, Ye Cheng was also responsible for the specific implementation. Ye Cheng was a member of the Ye family, and Ye Cui, Ye Mingsheng's biological mother, could be said to be the Ye family member who was enshrining the tomb. The biggest backer in the military, so Ye Cheng can be said to be the one who cares most about Ye Cui’s desire to pay homage to her late husband...
He personally traveled around Yijing for more than ten days before finally deciding on Xiaofeng Mountain as the location of the tomb. Then he took the Feng Shui master and craftsmen to pick a piece of Feng Shui land that was prosperous and had beautiful scenery to build the tomb. For safety reasons, he specially coordinated with the military and asked them to send out troops to surround Xiaofeng Mountain and conduct a blanket search to kill all the wild boars and other large animals, just to prevent anyone from being killed during the memorial ceremony. These animals collided with the female relatives of Ye Mansion.
Ye Cheng thought that what he had done was foolproof, and he was waiting to praise himself when the matter was over. However, he never expected that Ye Cui would walk up the mountain in the end. This was really beyond Ye Cheng's expectation, because Previously, it was assumed that Ye Cui and other female family members would go up the mountain in sedan chairs, so when choosing the location of the tomb, he did not consider the factor of going up the mountain at all. Instead, he chose the best Feng Shui treasure spot on the top of the mountain. He never expected that now But it turned out to be a failure!
Faced with Ye Cheng's suggestion, Ye Cui didn't say anything. Although she wanted to walk to her late husband's tomb in one breath, she overestimated her physical strength. Now she was exhausted and very tired. When Ye Cui didn't say anything, An Miaoyi behind her also handed Ye Cui a step at the right time and said:
"Mom, all the sisters are already tired, please let them rest for a while!"
After saying this, Mrs. Ye Cui reluctantly allowed everyone to rest on the roadside for a while. After hearing the instruction to rest, Pei Zhixiu found a stone and sat down, took out the water bottle on her waist and drank, her eyes were It fell on a weak figure in the team...
After hesitating for a while, Pei Zhixiu walked over, took out a snuff bottle from his medicine box and handed it over and said:
"Smell it! It will make you feel better!"
Shen Yutong, who was pale, looked a little surprised when he saw Pei Zhixiu's actions. He hesitated for a moment, but followed Pei Zhixiu's suggestion. As a result, the snuff bottle smelled, and he didn't know what magic was put in Pei Zhixiu's snuff bottle. After Shen Yutong smelled the herbal medicine for a while, the pain on her face eased a lot.
Shen Yutong, who had recovered slowly, handed the snuff bottle to Pei Zhixiu and said softly:
"Thank you!"
Bae Ji-soo did not take back the snuff bottle, but said calmly:
"There's no rush, it's not too late to return it to my house and pay it back to me!"
After saying that, Pei Zhixiu turned around and left, not giving Shen Yutong a chance to refuse. Seeing this, Shen Yutong, who felt Pei Zhixiu's kindness, could only cast a grateful look at Pei Zhixiu. What happened between Pei Zhixiu and Shen Yutong did not matter. It attracted the attention of many people, but it was noticed by Murong Qingwu.
Since marrying into the Ye Mansion, Murong Qingwu wanted to find her good friend Shen Yutong, but Shen Yutong always said that she was ill and could not see her. This time, the female family members went out to pay homage to Ye Mingsheng's late husband. This was the first time since she entered the Ye Mansion. I met Shen Yutong for the first time.
After resting for a while, the women continued towards the top of the mountain again. This time they arrived at the top of the mountain in one go.
Although she was exhausted, Mrs. Ye Cui's eyes also shone with surprise when she saw the majestic, simple yet exquisite tomb of her late husband in front of her... ········
Because everyone was already very tired, the tools for the animals used in the memorial ceremony had been prepared, so the memorial ceremony began soon.
After going through some red tape, Murong Qingwu, Pei Zhixiu and other concubines knelt on the ground. Mrs. Ye Cui asked An Miaoyi to hold Ye Jingren and stand with her in front of the tomb, looking at the stone tablet of her late husband Ye De in front of her. , Ye Cui said with some moisture in the corners of her eyes:
"Husband, before you died, you told me to train Mingsheng well and let the Ye family produce a fifth-grade official named Guangzong Yaozu. Our family Mingsheng has now become the second-grade governor of Yanliao and a feudal official of the Great Zhou Dynasty. It’s a pity that you didn’t see this day. If you could see this, you would be very happy!”
After talking some more, Mrs. Ye Cui also introduced An Miaoyi and Ye Jingren. An Miaoyi also told her husband very respectfully that she should be a filial mother-in-law, assist her husband, love her young son, and promise to be Ye Mingshengxian's housekeeper. At the end, Mrs. Ye Cui turned to the topic and murmured to her late husband's tomb:
"Husband, Mingsheng went to fight in the Central Plains! Before he left, Mingsheng told me that the battle was very easy and he would be back in more than a month. He told me not to worry or be afraid, but I heard that Yu, who was in charge of Jiyu, The commander of the capital, Gao Zongchang, has been operating in Hebei and Henan for decades and is a difficult enemy, so my husband, your spirit in heaven, please wish Mingsheng everything goes well in this battle, and be sure to come back safely!"
The reason why Ms. Ye Cui insists on walking up the mountain, and even insists on raising an army to pay homage to her late husband, is mainly because her mother is worried about her son traveling thousands of miles away. What's more, Ye Mingsheng's trip is to march and fight, and Ms. Ye Cui is very worried about it. They are even more worried that Ye Mingsheng has a misfortune and will die in a foreign country.
In the past, when she was in Liaoyang, whenever she heard the news that Ye Mingsheng was about to go to war, she would want to pay homage to her late husband and ask him to keep Ye Mingsheng safe. But this time she also habitually used her own method... ·········
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Jiyu, in the General Military Mansion in Fengqiu City
"General, what should we do with these Henan prisoners in the city?" Cui Desheng, the deputy general of the third division, asked Guo Zhiping, who was in charge:
After learning through an emergency report two days ago that the Anqing Army was about to go north to join the war, Guo Zhiping immediately followed Ye Mingsheng's instructions and changed his battle plan and instead advanced to Fengqiu City in the southeast of Hebei Province.
In order to protect Yujing's home base, Gao Zongchang transferred more than half of the few Fengqiu troops. This made Fengqiu City, which was already under-guarded, even more empty because there was no surprise at all. The Fengwu Army would cross Yujing City to attack Fengqiu, so it was not until Guo Zhiping's third division appeared around Yujing that Fengqiu Commander-in-Chief Gao Peng hurriedly asked the servants and tenants of the big families in the city to help defend the city.
Because the predecessor of the Third Division was the cavalry team of the Fengwu Army, it has been dominated by cavalry since the formation of the army. It was mainly responsible for field missions and had almost no sieges. Therefore, neither the generals nor ordinary soldiers had experience in sieges. Secondly, as a field force, they also lacked the equipment needed to attack the city. Therefore, Guo Zhiping also found it very difficult to face a large city with complete fortifications like Fengqiu City this time.
Therefore, after careful consideration, Guo Zhiping also decided to take advantage of the resentment and dissatisfaction of the people of Hebei and Henan against the Gao family, and adopt Yuan Song's strategy of attacking Zhao Fuqu's heart first. First, he used the light red cannon he carried to attack Fengqiu City. The random bombardment mentally deters the enemy.
Then he used a trebuchet to throw simple and clear leaflets into Fengqiu City, telling the Henan Army and Qingzhuang who were defending the city to surrender to avoid death. They carried the leaflets to surrender and wait until the land can be divided after the war. This immediately destroyed the original strength of the soldiers and civilians defending the city. Low fighting spirit.
At this time, Gao Peng also noticed the existence of the leaflets, and he immediately ordered them to be collected. During the collection process, he also had conflicts with the young officers and soldiers at the bottom. The ordinary officers and soldiers demanded to make up for the owed military pay, and the young men recruited Zhuang asked for a tax reduction. Just when they were arguing, Guo Zhiping seized the opportunity and captured the city in one fell swoop... ·
In response to Cui Desheng's inquiry, Guo Zhiping said without hesitation:
"The Anqing Army may appear at any time. We don't have the energy to look after them now. Let's let them go like before!"
After capturing 15,000 Henan troops after the Battle of Sanchaling, Guo Zhiping originally wanted to follow the usual practice and deal with these prisoners of war after trial. "
However, Naihe received an order from Ye Mingsheng to capture Fengqiu and guard against the Anqing Army. Due to the urgent situation and heavy task, the Third Division could not spare the troops to escort so many prisoners of war, so Guo Zhiping was also very courageous and moved towards these After the prisoners of war publicized the Fengwu Army's policy, they released all the prisoners of war and asked them to go back to their homes to find their mothers. Then they marched eastward and captured Fengqiu City.
After receiving Guo Zhiping's order, Cui Desheng nodded and went down to do things. However, as soon as he took a few steps, Guo Zhiping stopped him again and asked;
"Have the scouts been deployed?"
Cui Desheng said without thinking:
"Everything has been deployed. All the scouts have been sent out to cover all the bordering areas of Fengqiu, Bozhou and Anqing. As long as the Anqing army enters the border of Hebei and Henan, they will send the news back as soon as possible!"
After hearing the news, Guo Zhiping nodded with satisfaction and asked Cui Desheng to go down to work. Because Xu Zhaojie, the Marquis of Zhenyuan, was so famous, Guo Zhiping, who had always been known as bold in the Fengwu Army, also changed his mind. He became cautious and didn't want to give Xu Zhaojie any opportunity to take advantage of!
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Qilu, Licheng
In the palace of Sun Jing'an, the prefect of Licheng, six singers danced with graceful figures for the master and the visiting guests!
"Director Su! Let's have a drink! We won't go home until we get drunk tonight!"
The smiling Sun Jing'an raised his glass and said to the handsome young man beside him:
Su Yi, who was sent to Qilu on Ye Mingsheng's order, also raised her wine glass and responded with a smile. After three drinks and five dishes, she saw that Sun Jing'an still did not mention business, Su Yi couldn't help but sneer in her heart.
This Sun Jing'an was originally just a down-and-out scholar who worked as a bookkeeper for the county magistrate. However, because the wife he married was the biological sister of Cao Changping, the envoy of Qilu Economic and Strategy, and Cao Changping lost his mother when he was young, the two siblings depended on each other since childhood. The relationship is very good.
Therefore, after Cao Changping rose to power in Qilu by suppressing the uprising, Sun Jing'an also relied on his brother-in-law's status to rise with the tide. In less than ten years, he sat down as the prefect of Licheng and became the leader of Cao Changping's regime. One of the core figures, he has considerable influence on Cao Changping's important decisions.
Because of this emphasis, the Coordination Office also regarded Sun Jing'an as an important breakthrough point and put a lot of effort into him...
Su Yi took out a small bottle from her arms, pushed it in front of Sun Jing'an and said meaningfully:
"Master Sun, this thing can solve some of your little troubles, but it's best not to take it often!"
After listening to Su Yi's words, Sun Jing'an immediately became excited, picked up the bottle, weighed it, frowned and said:
"When did Director Su become so stingy? Why are there only so many?"
Su Yi said helplessly:
"Master Sun, this medicinal material is very precious. Our Fengwu Army sent many people into the mountains to search for the medicine, but they are rarely found. The few pills made were obtained by hundreds of people searching in the mountains for several months. In addition, the medicinal effect is extremely volatile. Quick, remember to close the cork, and don’t expose it to sunlight or moisture! Don’t take the pills after more than two months!”
After hearing Su Yi's explanation, Sun Jing'an's expression softened a little, and he wrote down these precautions one by one, and then put the small medicine bottle into his arms very preciously. No matter as Cao Changping's brother-in-law, Still the prefect of Licheng, Sun Jing'an, who holds great power, is never short of money and women.
As long as he coughs, people who are willing to give him gifts can be sent from his home to the gate of Licheng. Sun Jing'an prefers women to gold and silver... ····
