One after another, the ministers and generals of the Liao Kingdom in the imperial tent retreated, and each of them subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief. Then they hurriedly dispersed and returned to their respective camps to convey Yelu Deguang's will and execute his orders. .
Yelu Ruan was the same. He walked hundreds of steps before he looked up at the small crescent moon hanging high in the night sky and sighed quietly. There was worry on the face of the Chinese character with a thick beard. His mind was filled with the situation in front of the emperor just now, and he felt the danger.
"Your Majesty!" While thinking, a figure stood beside Yelu Ruan and called.
The low voice made Yelu Ruan tremble. The person who came was obviously a Khitan general, about the same age as Yelu Ruan, and there was something strange about his face illuminated by the open fire. This man's name is Yelv An Tuan, who was also in the tent just now. His father once supported Yelu Bei and maintained close contact with Yelu Ruan secretly.
"An Bo!" Yelv Ruan glanced at Yelu An and responded, asking, "What's the matter?"
After hearing the question, Yelu An glanced in the direction of the imperial tent, leaned closer and lowered his voice: "Your Majesty, something is wrong. You should prepare early!"
Hearing this, Yelu Ruan's expression changed. He subconsciously looked at the brightly lit imperial tent, then quickly took Yelu An's sleeves and walked towards the dark place beside him, glaring at him: "What do you mean?"
Seeing Yelu Ruan's performance, Yelu An was worried that there would be no reaction from King Yongkang. Pretending to be normal, Yelu'an Tuan walked with Yelu Ruan who was accompanying him, and narrated in a low voice: "Since returning from the north, your Majesty's temper has become more and more violent. If you are not satisfied, you will be severely punished. Especially recently, you have been killed." What a good servant and minister. The difference between this and His Majesty's usual behavior is too obvious!"
"What are you talking about!" Yelu Ruan's face already showed a nervous look.
Yelu Antuan seemed more cautious: "Your Majesty, I have secretly investigated and found out that your Majesty has secretly summoned several medical officers to his account in the past few days. Judging from their performance, there seems to be something wrong with your Majesty's body... "
"You are so courageous! How dare you secretly inspect the imperial tent? You will die!" As soon as he finished speaking, Yelvruan suppressed his voice and stared at him fiercely. His face was swollen, probably because of excessive force. It has to be a little red.
Yelu'an Tuan looked very calm and continued: "Your Majesty, can't you still see the situation in the tent just now? Your Majesty still has hidden suspicion towards you! After all, you are the son of King Dongdan, and His Majesty How can we treat each other sincerely? If you don't take precautions, I'm afraid your life will be in danger sooner or later!"
Hearing what he said, Yelu Ruan clenched his fists subconsciously, glanced at him with a frown, and said nothing. His face was thoughtful, and he looked calm, but his heavy breathing betrayed his nervousness.
After a long silence, Yelu Ruan finally spoke and solemnly warned: "Don't say such rebellious words again, otherwise, I won't be able to protect you."
"Your Majesty——"
Without giving Yelu Antuan a chance to continue speaking, Yelu Ruan gave him a stern look. After walking a few more steps, he lowered his voice and said: "Right now, protecting yourself is the most important thing, don't act rashly. You, find an opportunity to see Yelu Jieli and comfort him for me..."
"Yes!" Yelu An was not stupid. Hearing this, his eyebrows lit up and he immediately replied: "I understand. Please rest assured."
Separating from Yelu An Tuan, Yelu Ruan looked even more gloomy, obviously thinking about his words, hesitating between his brows. Yelu Ruan can be regarded as a somewhat virtuous person, he is generous inside and strict on the outside, and is quite popular among people. In addition, coupled with the Khitan's noble background and historical issues, how could he not have any ideas in his heart.
Yelu Deguang's eyes in the tent just now appeared in his mind, and Yelu Ruan couldn't help but trembled, feeling an inexplicable sense of urgency in his heart. However, among the current army, Yelu Deguang is still the emperor who can decide the life and death of thousands of people with one word. If there is no accident, he does not dare to make any changes at all.
As Yelu An Tuan said, prepare early. As long as Yelu Deguang is around for a day, no matter how much preparation you make, what's the use? Yelu Ruan's mind is still very clear...
...
Yelu Deguang obviously meant what he said. He followed the order and slowed down the marching team and executed the execution. Under the threat of life, the efficiency of the northward migration was greatly improved, but the price was that countless corpses were added along the way.
Under such high pressure, even the Khitan soldiers complained. In less than three days, the army moved hundreds of miles all the way to Zhenzhou. It stopped and set up camp on the side of Luan City on the edge of the Ming River.
This time, Yelu Deguang's body really couldn't bear it anymore, and the news of his illness spread.
In the imperial camp, Yelu Deguang was leaning on the couch with "ice packs" placed on his head and chest to absorb the heat. From time to time, he would ask someone to change them. This seemed to relieve the poison in his body. .
Beside the couch, Yelu Ruan and several others were waiting respectfully to report the situation.
"Where is Liu Jiazi's Han army now, still hanging behind?" Yelu Deguang's voice was full of anger.
"According to reports from scouts, the enemy has entered Zhaozhou and stopped in Zhaoqing County. The purpose is unknown!" Yelu Ruan carefully observed Yelu Deguang and replied: "Your Majesty, the enemy has not underestimated its own capabilities and has been following. In the meantime, we can simply send a large number of troops back south to completely annihilate them and put an end to this troublesome disaster."
The "ice pack" covered Yelu Deguang's eyes, and his expression could not be seen. He seemed to have thought for a while before asking: "Who do you think is suitable to lead the army?"
After hearing the question, Yelu Ruan suddenly became energetic. He lowered his head slightly and did not dare to show any abnormality. He said calmly: "I am willing to go."
Taking off the "ice pack" from his forehead, Yelu Deguang turned his head, looked at Yelu Ruan with his misty eyes, blinked slowly a few times, and waved his hand: "That's it, the Liu family has less than ten thousand soldiers. It’s nothing to worry about. He took a different route and kept such a long distance from my army, probably because he was afraid of our army’s attack. We have already reached Zhenzhou, and the most important thing is to return to Shangjing. Just ignore him!"
"Yes!" Yelu Ruan responded calmly, unhurriedly and respectfully.
Looking away from Yelu Ruan, Yelu Deguang put the "ice pack" on his forehead to continue absorbing heat, and continued to ask: "What news is coming from Kaifeng, what is the situation at Uncle Guo's place, and where is Liu Zhiyuan?"
"Return to your majesty!" This time it was Zhang Li who spoke: "The puppet emperor led his army south and has not yet entered Heluo. My uncle sent someone to report that in order to prevent the Hedong army, he has been ordered by you to kill the youngest son of Emperor Mingzong of Li Tang Dynasty. Duke Li Congyi became emperor and rebuilt the Tang Dynasty. In the name of Li Tang, he gathered troops and horses to fight against Liu Zhiyuan."
"I'm afraid that I still can't resist Liu Zhiyuan!" Yelu Deguang didn't look very optimistic.
"Even if he can't resist it, it will still be enough to cause trouble to Liu Zhiyuan and prevent him from easily occupying the Central Plains!" Zhang Li replied.
Breathing out a hot breath, Yelu Deguang touched his dizzy head and suddenly changed the subject: "After shrinking the military strength, the resistance against me in the Hebei states is probably getting higher and higher..."
No one dared to answer this for fear of angering Yelu Deguang. It is said that a tiger is most dangerous when it is injured. At this time, Emperor Liao was in this state and would get angry if he was touched.
Seeing the reaction of his ministers, Yelu Deguang also understood. He endured the unbearable heat and pain in his body and sighed: "When we crossed Liyang, I said that there were three mistakes in this southern expedition. I sent my troops to plunder millet and plunder the people's private property. If you want money, don’t rush to send all the governors back to the town. Now it seems that we have to add another one, an act of massacre of the city in anger..."
