Qingpi Road is a long and narrow ancient road east of Yunzhong. Like the Yinshan Road in the territory, it is the road for sending troops. In February, Murong Yanzhao's army marched westward and Liu Chengyou came to Yunzhong along this road.
There was silence between the slopes, except for the occasional chirping of birds and the sound of the spring breeze blowing through the grass and trees, there was no other movement. It wasn't until a burst of intensive hoofbeats sounded that the silence here was broken.
At the end of the mountain road, a group of ten riders came at such a fast pace that the animals living in the vegetation and caves fled in all directions to avoid these uninvited guests. This team of knights is not a military cavalry, but the guards are equally powerful and strong, and judging from their clothing, they are also official figures.
"Your Majesty, we have been driving for almost two hours. We are almost out of Qingslope, and we are not far from Yunzhong. Let's rest for a while!" When we climbed to the top of a slope, a strong man with a strong body was accompanying us. He reined in his horse, pointed to the northwest, and said to a middle-aged scribe who was guarding the middle.
"Then take a rest!" The scribe was naturally not as strong as a group of strong men. He knew that the guards were also taking care of him, so he nodded and ordered.
The accompanying guards listened to the order, quickly dismounted, drank water and eaten, replenished their strength, and also gave the horses a rest. The group of people were all travel-stained and looked tired, obviously they had traveled a long way.
This scribe is Song Qi, the emperor's personal commissioner and the newly appointed envoy of Shanyang Road. After receiving the order from the camp, he quickly handed over the affairs at hand, without even taking care of his family members, and took up the post with only two domestic servants. These ten guards were specially sent to him by King Yan Zhao Kuangzan to take care of his safety. Along the way, Xiaoxing stayed overnight, so I didn’t dare to neglect it.
Even so, the nearly 600 miles of twists and turns, mountains and rivers had been a tough one for Song Qi. Standing on the high hill, blowing the wind and patting the dust on her body, Song Qi felt a little emotional.
"This official has been appointed to Yunzhong as a high-ranking official. He should be in high spirits, so why are he sighing?" The servant who was following closely couldn't help but ask curiously.
Of course, Song Qi's mood is a bit complicated. If it were his wish, he would not want to come to Yunzhong. For him, it would be best to work in Youzhou, or to become a capital official in the Central Government.
However, the emperor did not dare to complain about the appointment. Song Qi has no shortage of local political experience and qualifications. The newly established Shanyang Road is full of waste and is waiting to be renovated. Although it is a place for work and achievements, it is remote in northern Xinjiang and the situation is complicated. It is not so easy to play around. of. If there was any oversight, as an old minister of King Yan, if he wanted to go further, he didn't know how long he would have to suffer.
Of course, this idea is just a concern of the "surrendering minister" and it is inconvenient to express it. Instead, he said: "The emperor has great trust and such a favor, and it is so heavy on his shoulders. I feel like I have a heavy weight on my shoulders. How can I only see the glory and not consider the weight of my responsibilities?"
The servants were stunned for a moment after Song Qi pulled such words. It was not good to be a high official, but a newly established Taoist envoy like Shanyang had a lot of power. However, he basically understood what Song Qi said and asked: "Is it difficult to be a leader in this way?"
After hearing this, Song Qi said: "Let me ask you, apart from encountering the army returning from the east, have you ever seen any other rural fairs along the way? Since passing through Huai'an, how many families and villages have we seen? Just Today, for how long has it been a journey without seeing any human beings?”
“The county town is deserted, the villages are deserted, and there must be hundreds of miles without human habitation!”
"There is no one inhabited for a hundred miles!" Song Qi sighed: "The war in Yunzhou was more serious. I heard that the entire Yunzhong City was burned to rubble. I, the chief envoy, probably didn't even No decent official residence can be found. Do you think, under such circumstances, it will be easy to rebuild the city walls and bring order to the people? If you can't do it, how will you explain it to the court? Wouldn't you be living up to the emperor's expectations?"
Hearing what he said, the servant smiled and said: "Since this official position is so difficult, then I should ask the emperor for a separate official position!"
Before Song Qi could teach him a lesson, the servant murmured again: "No matter how difficult it is to do, he is still a high official. There are not many chief envoys in such a large court!"
Hearing this, Song Qi smiled and scolded him: "You little boy, you did tell the truth!"
"No need to say more, rest for a quarter of an hour and then start again!" Song Qi waved her hand and ordered.
"yes!"
After leaving Qingpi Road and driving for nearly thirty miles, Song Qi arrived at the foot of Yunzhong City. It was already evening. At this time, the number of people in the Yunzhong Camp was already much smaller. Gao Huaide and Murong Yanzhao led their armies in triumph one after another. In addition, several border troops were arranged to go to their respective stations. There were only about 100,000 people left in the Yunzhong Camp. The Forbidden Army is the main force.
The originally huge military camp was much empty, but it was still in good order. Without caring to observe carefully, Song Qi hurriedly went to pay homage to the emperor. When he arrived at the imperial camp, the person who received him was Zhang Jie, a close minister of the emperor.
"Song Ambassador, please let His Majesty wait easily!" Zhang Jie, who was a young man, said with some airs and some arrogance.
Glancing at Zhang Ji, Song Qi felt slightly unhappy, but with a smile on her face, she raised her hands and asked, "What does Zhang Ji's office mean by this?"
"The camp is ready to withdraw the troops and return to Tokyo. The reason why Your Majesty stayed here is to wait for the Song Dynasty envoy to arrive!" Zhang Jie said.
Hearing this, Song Qi immediately showed fear and nervousness, and said in an accusatory tone: "It's my fault for keeping your majesty waiting for a long time and delaying the withdrawal of troops. I wonder if your majesty is in the imperial tent, please introduce me to him!"
Seeing Song Qi's low posture, Zhang Ji felt very comfortable, his expression became a little prettier, and he responded: "Your Majesty is in the city, you can come on your own!"
"Thank you for the advice!" Song Qi cupped her hands, quickly walked out of the imperial camp, mounted her horse and headed towards Yunzhong City.
But when he turned around, his expression changed. He was a little angry and a little disdainful. He thought to himself, not all the emperor is surrounded by virtuous people. How dare a mere official to be so arrogant.
Of course, this kind of displeasure can only be kept in mind for the time being. Song Qi understood this very well and would not dare to offend such close ministers of the emperor easily. He would not even report this matter to the emperor.
Liu Chengyou was in the clouds, but he was doing his last inspection before returning to the south. After saying goodbye, he really didn't know if he would have the chance to set foot here again in this life. Liu Chengyou has some special feelings for Yunzhou. The special thing is that if history continues to develop along the current line, I am afraid that no one can understand what the Han government did to regain this place and what historical significance it has. This kind of emotion is something Liu Chengyou cannot express to others.
"Song Qing is here! You have worked hard all the way, sit down!" Facing Song Qi who hurriedly came to see him, Liu Chengyou behaved much more cordially. He called him and sat on the ground among the ruins.
Facing the emperor's attitude, Song Qi's depression was relieved a lot.
Looking at Song Qi, Liu Chengyou pointed to the ruins around him and said with emotion: "Yunzhong, and even the entire Shanyang Road, are in ruins and are in urgent need of reconstruction. All affairs are extremely difficult, and the burden placed on you is very heavy. !”
"With your Majesty's trust and given important responsibilities, I will shoulder the heavy responsibility and move forward to bring peace and order to Shanyang in order to repay Your Majesty!" Song Qi promised.
Hearing what he said, Liu Chengyou smiled, obviously very satisfied with his attitude, and said, "With Song Qing's words, I can return south with peace of mind!"
