"Then what did you mean in your letter when you said chaos was everywhere and the situation was critical?"
"Hey, Lao Cao, you still don't understand!" He Bayong pulled Cao Wenzong aside and whispered: "Japan is different from Baekje. Baekje is only three or four hundred miles long from east to west and less than one mile from north to south. More than a hundred miles, it is a larger state and county in total. The Japanese country is four to five thousand miles from east to west, and four to five hundred miles from north to south. In our Tang Dynasty, it is not even a place, but what I really have on hand is How many soldiers are there? One thousand Baiji soldiers and five hundred Chang'an soldiers. The total is only one thousand five hundred people, just one Zhechong mansion? Can you teach me how to defend it? After all, most of our food is here, you Lao Cao also has a share, I, He Ba, am not defending the Japanese country for myself, but for everyone else!"
Cao Wenzong was surprised: "He Ba, what do you mean? Is the situation in Japan not critical? Are you lying about the military situation?"
"Old Cao, what are you talking about?" He Baoyong said angrily: "What is not critical? Is it critical that the thieves come to Nambajin? When I was climbing on the ice and snow in Baekje, I risked arrows flying Shi He fought for three years and had scars all over his body. What did he get in the end? A fifth-grade honorary officer, with half an acre of land in his hometown, this is still a favor to Saburo, otherwise it is just a empty promise. You also know that these days, honorary officers are Shit, if you throw a stone in the city of Chang'an, you can hit two Shangzhu countries, and the captain has to drive a donkey cart. The king of the Japanese country is Sanlang's biological son. I go to the palace to meet them on weekdays. The princess held her in her arms and called me Uncle Heba. I have been promised to serve as the minister of Sanhe Kingdom for three generations. The farm, restaurant, and town are going to race in the horse racing ring. If there is blood in our necks, don’t let it flow here. Why is the emperor of the Li family not shitting? Isn’t it stupid to stream somewhere else?”
"Okay, okay!" Cao Wenzong couldn't speak to He Bayong, so he had to smile bitterly and said: "I can't speak to you. If you have the ability, you can tell Duke Ming. Anyway, I only have a thousand people here this time, and they are all new recruits. But The armor is bright and the armor is wrapped in brocade robes. I intend to let the Japanese see the majesty of the Heavenly Soldiers of the Kingdom of Heaven!"
"A thousand people? Or recruits?" He Bayong was surprised. He looked back at the recruits on the deck who were adjusting their robes, and his face suddenly fell: "Isn't this a joke? The clothes are pretty but useless. This is going into battle! It’s not like being a guard of honor in the palace!"
"This is all the arrangement of Ming Gong!" Cao Wenzong took out a letter from his arms and handed it over: "This is what Ming Gong asked me to bring to you. It is not as good as Fujiwara. You can read it first!"
He Bayong took the letter and his face became better after reading it: "Okay, that's the only way it can be, but Sanlang still doesn't understand. The wheat field in front of his house has not been harvested yet, so he ran to help his master harvest wheat. Is there such a truth in the world? Well, anyway, the king is his son, and his father doesn't care, what can I, an uncle, say?"
"Ming Gong has profound thoughts, which are beyond the reach of you and me. If we do as the letter says, we will understand the truth in the future!" Cao Wenzong advised.
"That's all we can do!" He Bayong sighed: "By the way, you are going to stay in Japan for a while this time, right? I just happened to go see the baby you left here. He is a boy and can already walk! "
Cao Wenzong felt warm after hearing this. When he followed Wang Wenzuo in the Japanese country, he also took in a Japanese woman. The woman was pregnant when she left the Japanese country, but she didn't know whether she was a boy or a girl. "Okay, let's finish the things here first." !”
"Old Cao, you are still so diligent and careful. No wonder Sanlang sent you here this time!" He Bayong patted Cao Wenzong's shoulder affectionately and lowered his voice and said, "I still say what I said, there is no point in working for the court. If you have the strength, It is better to clean up the old places of Silla, Mohe, and Goguryeo as soon as possible. That is the place where our descendants will raise horses and grow wheat in the future! In the eyes of the court, our lives are worth only one stone of millet and five feet of silk. The more we give Half a liter is a loss! You really can’t do it!”
Cao Wenzong laughed twice. At this time, the gangplanks of the four large ships had been put in place. He waved to the officers at the bow and made a gesture to get off the ship. The understanding officer blew a brass whistle vigorously, and then shouted loudly: "Line up, and each team will disembark in turn!"
Following the scolding of the veteran who was the leader of the team, the recruits wearing iron armor and brocade robes walked along the springboard to the trestle. After each team assembled, they lined up in the open space on the shore. The onlookers around looked at these outsiders curiously, and made real exclamations of admiration at their tall figures and gorgeous clothes.
"These Tang soldiers are so tall! Aren't they all seven feet tall?" a Japanese clerk sighed. (The ruler commonly used in the Japanese country at that time was still the length of the Three Kingdoms ruler, one ruler was about 24.2cm)
"Yes, almost a head taller than us! Are all Tang people this tall?"
"Impossible!" A merchant shook his head firmly: "You have also seen the soldiers accompanying His Highness the Minister of Taizheng. Some of them are tall and some are short. Although they are taller than us, they are not all alike. Seven feet!”
"That's true! Everyone has seen the Tang craftsmen in the Shitennoji Temple! There are some who are over seven feet tall, but not many, and not all of them are this tall!"
"Could this be the Yulin Army that guards the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty?" Someone exclaimed: "The elites selected from thousands of people are so tall?"
"Is it possible that you can clearly see the burqas they are wearing?" The Japanese merchant from before asked proudly: "If I am not mistaken, the burqas they are wearing are all made of Shu brocade. One piece of that stuff is at least You can also exchange it for a hundred stones of rice, or twenty silver coins!"
"What? You mean they wore a hundred stones of rice on their bodies?" There was a sudden cry of astonishment from all around: "Isn't this impossible?"
"What's impossible!" The merchant sneered, with a look of disdain on his face: "I am in the silk and satin business, and Shu brocade is priced at this price. The clothes of the emperor of the Tang Dynasty and the emperors of the sixth rank and above are made of Shu brocade. But this Shu brocade was made in the Shu region of the Tang Dynasty. It has many colors and patterns and is the best among brocades. You can see it if you look closely!"
At this time, as the horn sounded, the ranks of the Tang troops who came ashore began to move. The onlookers quickly got out of the way and stood beside the road. The Tang army's procession was like a dazzling river made of steel, bronze and brocade. It passed through the seaside road of Nambazu and headed towards Shitennoji Temple. The sea breeze blew the various flags above their heads and the large robes on their bodies. Their burly bodies wrapped in iron armor and brocade looked like those half-human and half-god heroes in ancient Japanese myths, making the onlookers let out truly envious sighs, until Decades later, there are still witnesses who proudly brag to others about what they saw at the time.
"Legend has it that in ancient times, Tiansun descended on the land of Tsukushi Hinata, accompanied by gods such as Tian'erwu Ming, Bu Dao Yu Ming, Tian Tian Nu Ming, Yishu Lidu Shi Ming, Yuzu Ming Wu Banxu, etc., carrying three artifacts ( The eight-foot magatama, eight-foot mirror, and Tian Cong Yun sword) must be the same as the situation that day!"
Of course, in the eyes of Fujiwara Bubi and He Bayong, these gorgeously dressed and tall recruits are just embroidered pillows. They can be used as guards of honor to scare people on the street, but when they are pulled out into battle, their true colors are immediately revealed. Of course, there is no need for them to fight in battle at the moment. There are many Japanese warriors rushing to do this kind of thing. The template for the system established by Wang Wenzuo was the Kamakura shogunate hundreds of years later. The standard for granting official positions and land was no longer the nobleness of blood, but meritorious service - the samurai served the Taizheng minister and the king, and then based on Their meritorious services were rewarded with territories and official positions. Having mastered the rightful name, they only need to wave the "reward" baton, and groups of warriors will run and jump for it.
"Cao Langjun came at the right time!" Fujiwara Bubi, wearing a round-neck robe and a black hat, already looked like an aristocratic official: "The ghost boy of the four countries, Yamato Chang'an of An Yunbei Kingdom have all raised troops, There is also instability in Ezo in the north, where Yuan Aolii went to the field to supervise the local samurai and fight fiercely with the Ezo people. There are also signs of instability in Kinki. With your arrival, people's hearts have calmed down, and people's hearts have naturally stabilized! "
"Ghost boy?" Cao Wenzong was stunned when he heard this: "What is this?"
"People who pretend to be gods and ghosts are just trying to confuse stupid people and women!" He Bayong sneered: "As soon as the army arrives, it will naturally fall apart, don't worry!"
"Brother Fujiwara, what's your plan?" Cao Wenzong asked.
"I plan to make Mononobe Renkuma the conquest envoy!" Fujiwara Fubi said: "Starting from Nara, we will advance by land and water. Starting from Nara, we will pass through Kawachi, Settsu, and Harima. We will recruit local samurai to pacify Yamato Chang'an first, and then cross the sea. Attack the Four Kingdoms!"
Cao Wenzong nodded. He also knew that under the current political system of Japan, the court's standing army was very limited. The main military force relied on warriors loyal to Wang Wenzuo and the son of Princess Qiyu, and these warriors were usually in their respective territories. Life was only in Kyoto during the last period. Therefore, the combat effectiveness of the army depends to a large extent on the appeal of the generals. The Monobe clan to which Monobe Lianxiong belongs is a well-known large family in the Japanese country. He himself was one of the first Japanese people to seek refuge with Wang Wenzuo. After defeating the eldest brother Prince, Dahai The human prince also made considerable achievements in the "War of Three Emperors" and naturally had great appeal among Japanese warriors. Let him go all the way west from the Kinki area, where the samurai loyal to the imperial court are most densely distributed, to recruit troops, then conquer Yamato Chang'an, and finally cross the sea to pacify the four countries. It is indeed a very good strategy to start with the easy and then the difficult.
"Actually, these traitors are nothing! They exist every year!" He Bayong picked up a piece of persimmon from the fruit plate on the table, stuffed it into his mouth and chewed it, then said: "The biggest problem is that Saburo is not here, the master is not at home, and the people around him are The thief is naturally worried about it, and the servants at home are not at ease! Lao Cao, you are the person next to Saburo, what is his intention? He led us to fight desperately to conquer Baekje, Wa Kingdom, Goguryeo, such a large territory, but he went to Jiannan Road is going to fight the Tubo people. What on earth can we say after thousands of miles away? Does he still need these things? Not only us, but also the two princesses are looking forward to his early return sooner or later!"
Cao Wenzong was stopped by He Ba Yong's question. He subconsciously turned his gaze to Fujiwara Fubi, who nodded: "General He Ba said exactly what I wanted to say. The king is still a child, and he must have authority. Ming Gong is of course The gods are powerful, but remote control from thousands of miles away is not a long-term solution. At present, the imperial court is defeated by the Tubo people in Dafeichuan, the east of the sea is shaken, and the trend of chaos has become great. The person who is responsible for the fate of the world is none other than Ming Gong! "
"Isn't there two people in Japan?" Cao Wenzong said with a bitter smile.
"The two of us?" He Bayong laughed: "Old Cao, you are joking again. Let me ask you, if something suddenly happens to San Lang and he disappears, will you be willing to sacrifice your life for me?"
Cao Wenzong was stunned, and then he slowly shook his head.
"That's it!" He Bayong said with a smile: "Don't talk about you, even I am not willing to sacrifice my life for myself. If Sanlang is gone, Shen Faseng, Yuan Aolie, Cui Hongdu and I will have to fight to the death. , Black Teeth Tsunezhi, Sha Zha Xiangru and Brother Fujiwara probably all have their own plans. To put it bluntly, our group of people are all convinced by Saburo and got together. If something happens to Saburo, we will This group of people must disperse the stall!"
"That's right!" Fujiwara Bubi nodded: "General Heba and I are just housekeeper dogs that temporarily guard the family property for the master. It's okay for a while, but if you want to show off your power and bring peace to Haidong, it must be your master! "
"Hey, it's useless for you to tell me this!" Cao Wenzong smiled bitterly: "I'm not the one who can make the decision. Besides, this is the will of the imperial court. How can Duke Ming not listen to the imperial court?"
"The decree of the imperial court?" He Bayong showed a disdainful smile: "Old Cao, you have forgotten what happened in the Japanese country. How many things did Saburo do to violate the decree of the imperial court? Which decree of the imperial court allowed him to do so? Turning the Japanese country upside down, even the queen of Japan fell asleep, and made his son the king? If he had done everything according to the will of the imperial court, where would we be today? To say that he did not take the imperial court seriously, Saburo But the first one!”
"Then what are you going to do? Let Ming Gong not be an official of the court, but go directly to the Japanese country?" Cao Wenzong asked: "Aren't you telling a joke?"
"As long as he thinks about it, he can always come up with a way!" He Bayong said with a smile: "Didn't he accomplish even more incredible things than this? Really, he shouldn't just think about being the leader of the Tang Dynasty. Loyal minister, please think of his own son, our old brothers, and the two princesses! Your Highnesses have been looking forward to his return!"
"Cao Langjun!" Fujiwara said with a smile: "In fact, it is not difficult to get the Lord back. He is the imperial court's trump card in Haidong. As long as the situation in Haidong is extremely bad and the imperial court has no other choice, he will naturally bring him back. It’s typed!”
"Fujiwara Fubi, what do you mean!" Cao Wenzong shuddered, and he heard an ominous flavor in Fujiwara Fubi's words: "What on earth do you want to do?" (End of Chapter)
