"Master Gao, he was widowed seventeen years ago and his daughter fifteen years ago. Since then, he has never married again. He also dismissed the servants in the mansion, leaving only the old man to guard the house and provide for himself in old age. Although he has this mansion, sir, But he doesn't come back often, and sometimes he lives in the Privy Council, as if government affairs are everything to him..."
The old servant must have not spoken to anyone for a long time.
From the moment he walked in, he kept talking about everything around him. Under the dim light, his hunched back and depressed tone seemed to follow him all his life.
After being led into the living room and seated, the old servant wanted to make a cup of hot tea for the two of them, but found that the stove was not burning. When he came to the stove, he found that there was no charcoal fire. He took the charcoal fire to light it, and found that there was no water in the copper pot.
I thought he could fetch water, but unexpectedly he came back with an empty kettle and said with a bitter apology:
"The kettle is rusty."
If you have elderly people at home, you really can’t stand it.
"Old man, you don't have to be polite, just write a letter to call Mr. Gao back." Song Che advised.
The old man sighed, put down the kettle, took out a pen and paper from the drawer, wrote a note, and made two "coo" sounds out the window.
Soon, a carrier pigeon landed on the window sill. He tied the note to the pigeon's leg and let it fly. Then he said to the two young people:
"You guys wait a minute, I'll make tea."
Looking at the old servant's leaving figure, Jiang Daxia, who was bleeding but not crying, actually rubbed his eyes.
"What's wrong with you?" Song Che was surprised.
Jiang Yuntian took a deep breath and said: "When I saw him, I thought of my master. He is nearly a hundred years old. After I left, he was the only one left in Nantian Valley."
Song Che couldn't laugh or cry, "Don't you have a senior brother?"
Jiang Yuntian said: "I don't know where he died."
"Uh...sigh..."
Fortunately, he still has a master. Since Song Che traveled here, his father, his mother... he didn't dare to think about it, and it made his heart hurt when he thought about it.
Two quarters of an hour later.
Rapid footsteps.
"Mr. Song, General Jiang, please forgive me for not being able to greet our distinguished guests in time!" Gao Chen gasped, almost barging in.
At this time, the old servant also walked in with three cups of tea. After putting down the tea cup, he wisely exited the living room and closed the door.
"Why didn't you, two distinguished guests, say anything to Gao when you came to Luoyang? You came here unexpectedly, the house was cold, and no food or drinks were prepared. It's disrespectful." Gao Chen pushed the teacup towards Song Che and Jiang Yuntian: "Coarse tea Please drink."
"Master Gao, you are my immediate superior. How can you be so polite to me, a young general from this state?"
Jiang Daxia also learned to be polite.
Gao Chen waved his hand and said with a smile: "Hey, General Jiang and Mr. Song are both my saviors. I admire the general's bravery and Mr. Song's intelligence!"
"Okay, okay, let's stop being polite and let's get down to business."
Song Che asked Gao Chen: "Does Master Gao know the inside story of Prince Dijon coming to marry?"
"It must be known."
turn out to be:
Since the alliance between Daliang and Xiqiang, Dijon has suffered many setbacks on the battlefield. There was already a lack of food and clothing outside the northern pass. Coupled with the severe winter snow, Dijon had to give up the war against Liang;
Since they were no longer fighting, they just wanted to reap benefits. When they saw Daliang giving Sui coins to the Xiqiang attack, they wanted to get a share of the pie to make up for the losses in the war.
"Hmph!" Jiang Yuntian said angrily: "The hateful Dijon Tartars have failed to invade our Daliang territory, but they also want to make money and food from our country! How can we agree to this?"
Song Che shook his head, "If the court didn't consider this, how could it have allowed Prince Dijon to enter Luoyang?"
Gao Chen sighed: "Your Majesty's dragon body is not in good condition, and the prince and prime minister oversee the country... The prince is deeply influenced by Grand Master Jia, and has always wanted to spend money and eliminate disasters. This time, Prince Wan Yanlie of Dijon comes to Beijing, and there is a high probability that he will be able to achieve political goals." The vision is, firstly, to get married to the princess, and secondly, to pay tribute with annual coins to ensure that there will be no more wars in the coming year.”
Jiang Yuntian scolded: "How can such a cowardly prince become the emperor in the future?"
"It was precisely in order to become emperor that he had the idea of getting married to Dijon,"
Song Che said: "The old emperor is old and his life is not long. The current political situation is changing. If the prince wants to sit firmly on the throne, Dijon, the biggest foreign trouble, must be appeased."
"Then you mean to say that it was right for him to sacrifice his sister and pay a dowry of millions of taels?"
"Hey, I'm just analyzing it temporarily. I haven't finished speaking yet. Why are you so anxious?"
Song Che continued:
"From a political point of view, marriage can indeed achieve short-term peace, but what kind of nation are Dijon? Can a woman and a yearly coin offset their ambitions? This is obviously not possible."
In front of Gao Chen, he pointed out seven fingers and warned:
"Master Gao, I have thought of six suggestions and one strategy. Remember it carefully and tell the prince when you meet him. After hearing this, he will definitely give up the marriage——
The first discussion is what I just said, Dijon is very ambitious, and an alliance with it is seeking the skin of a tiger, which must not be done;
Second discussion, the reason why Dijon came to make peace is not because they are sincerely convinced, but because they no longer have the conditions for war. You can tell the prince that Dijon is making peace on the surface, but in reality it is implementing a "delay strategy"; when the ice and snow in the north melts next year, When spring is warm and flowers are blooming, nomadic fishing and hunting resume, and Dijon has obtained the annual coins and money, he will definitely expand his army and invade our territory again;
The third discussion is that the Dijon Tartars invaded our Daliang. Whether it is the soldiers who defended the enemy from the north or the tens of millions of people in Daliang, they all hate them deeply in their hearts. If they humiliate and pay tribute to them now, they will send the princess away. Wouldn't it be true that a marriage marriage would lose the support of the people? How can he still sit firmly on the throne?
The fourth discussion is that we, the Liang Dynasty, are the orthodox superior country, and Dijon is no match for the Tatar slaves outside the customs. If we humiliate and pay tribute and then marry the princess to a foreign country, even though it is an alliance on the surface, it is secretly implying that our superior country and the lower country are professing vassalage. In this way, wouldn’t we lose the integrity of our Liang Dynasty?
The fifth discussion can be based on the literal meaning. Princess Ningguo, Ningguo Ningguo, corresponds to the four words "national peace". If Princess Ningguo is sent to a foreign country, how can the country still be peaceful? So the princess must marry one of her own—"
"Brother Song, you are so right!"
Jiang Yuntian was so excited that he wished he could kiss Song Che.
"Don't interrupt, I haven't finished speaking yet!"
Song Che solemnly said: "The sixth discussion is the most important -
Just imagine, our Liang Dynasty has already formed an alliance with the Xiqiang. If we form an alliance with Dijon again, how will the Xiqiang feel? Suppose further that if Dijon attacks Xiqiang next year, will we help or not? If you help, it will be like invalidating the alliance with Dijon, giving him a reason to invade our country again. But if you don't help, the national strength of the Western Qiang will definitely not be able to resist Dijon. If the Western Qiang destroys the country, it will be a shame! "
Gao Chen held Song Che's hand tightly and sighed from the bottom of his heart: "These six suggestions have clear advantages and disadvantages and are clearly organized. Mr. Song is truly an unparalleled national scholar!"
The next moment, he was worried: "But the Prince of Dijon and the envoy have been introduced to the capital. If we refuse directly, I am afraid it will violate the etiquette of the Celestial Empire."
Song Che smiled calmly:
"I just said that there are six proposals and one policy. The six proposals have been explained clearly, but there is only one policy left, but they are not able to have a sound basis and are speechless!"
