Anton in the winter moon has completely transformed into a piece of cold sky and frozen soil, the sky and the earth are chilling, and everything is desolate. Under the power of nature, it seems that all things are equal. Not to mention humans, even animals have mostly stopped moving and are suffering silently, waiting for the arrival of spring recovery.
Anton has dense forests, vast black soil, and rich mineral resources. It can be said that Anton is uniquely blessed. The only thing that people criticize is probably the extremely cold climate.
Of course, compared to those advantages, the survival problems caused by the climate are not that serious. Just get used to it. It’s just that every winter, the development and construction of Anton inevitably comes to a standstill. There are both natural disasters and man-made disasters. The cold winter is always the time when the barbarians cannot bear to come out of the mountains and jungles, and invade the villages, towns, settlements, and manors of Anton in order to survive. ,market.
After all, the Duck River could not withstand the invasion of the severe cold, and it still froze. The Duck River was frozen for thousands of miles, and it has become a wonder in Anton. It happens every year, and there is never a shortage. In recent years, it has lasted longer and longer. Comes longer and longer.
A group of cavalry traveled westward along the river bed. The road was winding and appeared on the river bank from time to time. It was only occasionally majestic and eye-catching. There are hundreds of knights, probably a battalion of sergeants, which can be used as an independent combat unit in Han Dynasty, and their status and role in Anton are even greater. Of course, whether it is the dragon flag flying in the cold wind, or each knight The mink feathers on the helmet indicate their special identity. They are the guards of King Anton.
However, the leader was not King Anton Liu Xu, but Prince Liu Wenyuan. Just in the middle of last month, Liu Xu officially made Liu Wenyuan the prince, wrote a book and granted a seal, and presented it to the court. A canonization ceremony was also held for this purpose.
In the past month or so, the presence of Liu Wenyuan, who is officially the Prince of Anton, has obviously become stronger. In addition to the title of Prince, Liu Xu also gave him two titles, Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Commander of the Anton Army and Horses. , can be said to be both civil and military, especially the latter, who almost actually presides over Anton's daily military and political work (the commander of the capital is temporarily held by Liu Xu himself).
Liu Wenyuan was put on the stage and shouldered the political and military responsibility, while Liu Xu retreated to the palace to recuperate. Such an unusual move naturally attracted the attention of Anton's dignitaries. No one is a fool, the position is upright, power is delegated, and it is accompanied by a lot of publicity. Each of these incidents reflects the unusualness behind it.
To put it bluntly, this is preparing for the pass. Most of the current dignitaries in Anton are followers of Liu Xu, or they are favored by him. The key is that they all have a basic understanding of Liu Xu. The king is now very confused. He has always been young and full of energy. He wishes he could do everything by himself. How could he suddenly delegate so much power? It is obvious that something has happened. Following this line of thinking, I am afraid that there is news that the king is seriously ill. It's not just rumors.
As a result, Anton's political scene, which had just calmed down from the chaos of Anton's establishment, was in turmoil again. The eyes of those in power were fixed on the palace, and those in office were focused on Shangfeng. The threshold of the palace of Prime Minister Geng Jixun was almost blocked. Step through, intending to find out some news from Geng Jixun, even just a few words.
Of course, Geng Jixun was very tight-lipped and could not reveal anything. On the contrary, he reprimanded everyone who came to the door. At the same time, seeing the surge of favor and constant speculation, he suggested that Liu Xu show up and gave a brief speech before calming down. Of course, the fundamental reason is that the palace severely dealt with several officials who snooped around the camp and neglected their official duties.
Although there were stumbling blocks and rumors abounded, in the process, Anton Kingdom gradually completed the transfer of power. At least those civil and military officials in charge have gradually become accustomed to the signature of the order from the palace, which is Prince Liu Wenyuan.
The snow has stopped, but the wind continues, sometimes howling, sometimes whimpering. There is a world wrapped in silver around, but the knights wrapped tightly are not alone in the journey. Looking from a distance, the ducks are also driving on the river. There is a team, a caravan, and the sound of bells on the animal power is clear and melodious. They must have also spotted the marching guards, stopping to salute from afar as a sign of respect.
Liu Wenyuan and a dozen of his guards were left behind, stationed on the banks of the Ma Glacier, looking far into the distance. The cool air of this ice and snow world was easily breathed in. When he noticed the caravan walking on the ice, Liu Wenyuan showed a rare smile and teased He said: "Which caravan is this, dares to walk on the river with such a big fanfare, and is not afraid of stepping on ice holes?"
"It seems that the Zhou family's horse team can save a lot of time by walking on this ice. They have always been brave, and their servants have never been afraid of death. They dare to go anywhere! The business is very deep. It is said that every year Someone went to the deep forest of Yuanhai to trade with those East China Sea women." The accompanying guard officer was well-informed, observed for a moment through the snow and fog, and introduced to Liu Wenyuan.
Hearing this, Liu Wenyuan obviously became interested and said: "If it is as you said, there are some desperadoes in the Zhou family's caravan. Wouldn't it be a pity for such a warrior who is not afraid of death to be driven by some merchants?"
The officer smiled and shook his head and said: "Your Highness, the most indispensable thing in Anton is brave and ruthless people. If they can pass the military examination, who will be willing to work for a mere merchant? Either the physique is not up to standard, or It's because he can't stand the constraints of military discipline. As far as the general knows, many of Anton's famous caravan retinues are soldiers who have retired from the army."
Hearing what his counterpart said, Liu Wenyuan's brows relaxed a little. He really hadn't paid attention to this in the past. After all, even in the army, he only led troops to train and fight. He never paid attention to the source of troops and the renewal mechanism of the army.
As the opponent said, Anton never lacks warriors, but the best of them are absorbed by the army, and the number of soldiers in the army is fixed. Even if they are eliminated, they are not mediocre. In terms of martial arts, Anton is definitely second to none in the country. After all, people here cannot stand if they are not ruthless. Even the farmers who work on the land can kill people with a knife.
In recent years, Liu Xu has been attracting people to Andong like a glutton, and he has spent all his efforts to increase the population. However, among the many factors that restrict Anton's population growth, one is the prevalence of private fighting, which was once more serious than accidental death in a harsh environment.
After the establishment of the Andong Kingdom, one of the most stringent iron laws was that private fights between people were prohibited, and violators would be punished with death. In this regard, one could only fight fire with fire. However, this only prohibits large-scale private fights. Personal grievances like that are still prohibited repeatedly, not to mention the national situation of "the people do not take action and the officials do not investigate".
Therefore, even though Anton is exposed to ice and snow for several months a year, its folk customs are very explosive. Of course, this is also caused by the special humanistic, geographical and historical environment.
Liu Wenyuan could not imagine that it was so deep at the moment. His piercing eyes wandered between the ice of the Duck River and the Zhou caravan, and finally said with emotion: "When the river is frozen, it becomes a smooth road. In an emergency, transporting goods through the river can be done." Soldiers can also save a lot of effort!"
"What His Highness said is true!" The team officer is obviously an elite in the Anton army. Although he is in a humble position, his knowledge is outstanding: "Most of the cities in the Andong states are built near the river. Going along the river, you can directly reach all the cities. Towns. However, unless it is an emergency, it should not be used lightly. The ice surface is difficult to call even, and it is even more dangerous when running on horseback. Once it falls under the ice surface, it will be a disaster."
"Maybe we can try it out. After returning to Suihua, we can gather these caravans who often travel on the ice for consultation!" Liu Wenyuan ordered, but then he sighed: "If it is necessary to use the glacier as the route, I will arrange it for you." What kind of crisis must Dongyou be facing?"
Without further discussing this topic, Liu Wenyuan turned his horse and galloped away. Seeing this, the guards followed closely, and the group soon caught up with the group. From here, we are still more than two hundred miles away from the royal city, and we still have to drive for a while.
Liu Wenyuan has been very busy recently, managing politics, controlling the people, and running the army. This has refreshed the Anton government and people's understanding of him as a prince in many aspects, and also demonstrated his talents and responsibility.
This return to Suihua was a triumph. In the former, in Meituozhou in the southeast, local women rebelled, harassed officials and people, and even broke into a town, killing 132 Han people.
It is common for barbarians to cause chaos, but it has not happened for many years that they have attacked a town, killed so many people, and caused serious damage.
Regarding the riots in Meituozhou, the palace paid great attention to it, so much so that the prince Liu Wenyuan personally led the army to quell the rebellion.
Liu Wenyuan's tenacity was once again reflected in this incident. He led 500 cavalry to Meituozhou in person, regardless of the dissuasion of Prime Minister Geng Jixun.
Of course, the rebellious female straight people had already escaped completely, but the prince took action, how could he return without success. Regarding the barbarians in Anton, Liu Xu had always used both kindness and force to suppress them. In the case of the Meituozhou incident, it was obviously time to use force.
Liu Wenyuan's approach was to capture 1,320 unnaturalized barbarians from Meituo Prefecture and its surrounding areas and execute them all.
As for barbarian riots, over the years, Anton has actually developed a set of standards for judgment and countermeasures. Stealing, robbing, and even general killings can now be treated as general public security incidents and handled by local officials.
But like this time in Meituo, destroying towns and killing Han people is regarded as rebellion, and the army must be sent out to suppress it, and severe revenge must be taken back. If the offender is cunning and can escape quickly, he will seek compensation from other places. What Liu Wenyuan adopted this time is the most serious and cruel method of revenge, "kill one and pay ten for it."
Of course, there is also the intention to establish authority. In Anton, Liu Xu's authority cannot be challenged. Liu Wenyuan has never had such an idea, but it does not mean that he can tolerate some people looking down on him. In the past, During this time, Liu Wenyuan felt some constraints that made him very uncomfortable.
Probably because of the massacre in Meituozhou, Liu Wenyuan still gave people a cold feeling when he returned. Only when he looked in the direction of Suihua, his hawk-like eyes showed a hint of worry.
(End of chapter)
