"Many people have already persuaded me to persuade you, so there's no need to say anything more." Fan Xian smiled and patted Ye Linger's shoulder. The two of them never had any scruples.
Ye Ling'er didn't raise her brows habitually, but instead had a gloomy expression on her face, and said, "There are always discussions at home that get into my ears... Although I don't want to hear these things, my father is very angry about those things in the north. She looked at Fan Xian, hesitated to speak, and said seriously after a while: "After all, you and I are from Qing."
Fan Xian nodded, didn't say anything, but his smile was a bit bitter. After meeting with Mu Feng'er, the members of the Qi Nian team sent to Dongyi City passed on his will, rekindling the turmoil in Xiaoliang Kingdom , so as to find a way to resist the imperial court's will, so that the eldest prince can stay in Dongyi City.
But Bei Qi's reaction was really beyond Fan Xian's expectations, because counting the time, Wang Qinian should have arrived in the capital not long ago, and the message he asked him to bring over did not mean to ask Bei Qi to send troops in a big way, just to invite the little emperor For the sake of their love, help Dongyi City.
There are many ways to help, and Bei Qi's way of helping is undoubtedly the most aboveboard, and it is also the one that makes Fan Xian's situation the most embarrassing. He got rid of his contemplation, and while holding the silver charcoal, he whispered gossip with Ye Ling'er, trying to find out if there was any movement from the Privy Council from the few words in Ye's mansion.
Because His Majesty the emperor in the palace reacted too indifferently to the war in the north, so indifferent that Fan Xian could smell a hint of danger, but he didn't know where this smell came from.
…
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A few days after the winter solstice, the Fan Mansion held another family banquet. This time the family banquet did not invite the younger generations of the royal family like He Prince's Mansion did. It was a pure and genuine family banquet. Apart from the master's family in the mansion, the only visitors were the four sons of the Fan family.
Yang Wanli was imprisoned from the position of Wai Lang, a member of the Ministry of Industry, and was severely punished in prison. After the verdict was pronounced in Dali Temple that day, he was taken back to the mansion by Fan Xian to recuperate. He still has some mobility problems, with a resentful expression on his face. His expression had long been calm, and he just sat quietly in the lower position.
Among the four sons of the Fan family, Cheng Jialin climbed the fastest. He had already become the magistrate of Suzhou, but now he was implicated by Fan Xian, and he collapsed miserably. Some were too heavy and were forcibly taken back to Beijing. During this month, Fan Xian ran back and forth for him, exhausted his energy, and finally saved his life, but he also lost his job, seeing that there was no future. Cheng Jialin sat under Yang Wanli in a somewhat dazed manner, hissing and sighing.
There were two tables in the flower hall, the women's family members were all at the table behind the screen, and only Fan Xian and Yang Cheng were sitting at the outside table. They didn't move their chopsticks, but were waiting for someone. Outside the flower hall, snowflakes were floating in the garden of Fan Mansion, waiting for those who returned.
After waiting for a long time, a person braved the wind and snow and entered the flower hall under the leadership of the servant. It was those who left Nanqing in these years, following Fan Xian's will, and became Shi Chanli, who ruled the brothels all over the world.
Shi Chanli entered the hall, and before he could brush off the snowflakes on his body, he first bowed deeply to Fan Xian who was sitting in the chair, and then bowed to the teacher's wife on the table inside through the screen, then turned around and looked at the Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin smiled wryly, and stepped forward to hug these two friends who hadn't seen each other for a long time.
Now he and Sang Wen are co-hosting the Baoyue Tower, so he naturally knows most of the news in the world, and also knows the miserable encounters of these two friends in the past few months. Divorce and comfort.
"You are inconvenient, so don't get up." Shi Chanli consciously sat under Cheng Jialin, and said to Yang Wanli who was about to get up and talk through the seat, although he is now one of the most wealthy businessmen in the world. He can be regarded as a hero in any place, but the habit formed by studying sage books in the early years has not changed, especially the deepest regret in his heart, which makes him naturally envious of Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin. , Hou Jichang and the journey of the three friends always think that as a businessman, he should sit at the bottom.
Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin looked at each other, smiled bitterly, and didn't bother to pay attention to this pedantic guy, so they turned their heads and chatted some gossip, and no one talked about their miserable experiences in the past few months, and no one went to speak loudly to the court. Criticize, because they don't want to make the sect master Fan Xian worry about these things anymore.
After waiting for a while, but no one came again, the expressions of the people at the table became a little awkward and ugly. Cheng Jialin looked at Fan Xian's slightly condensed expression, and murmured, "Maybe it's Xueda who is here. Delayed on the way."
Yang Wanli pursed his lips tightly, sighed, picked up the wine glass in front of him and drank it down in one gulp. Shi Chanli glanced at Fan Xian with some puzzlement, and said, "According to the information I got, Ji Chang should have returned to Beijing seven days ago, but the court didn't convict him, and just let him cool down."
Fan Xian raised his eyebrows, smiled, and said, "It's near the end of the year, officials and colleagues have a lot of contacts and banquets, and it's normal that they can't arrange time for a while."
Having said that, his mood was still unavoidably gloomy. Hou Ji often returned to Beijing for a few days, but he did not come to visit Fan Mansion, and the eyeliner in the court also found out the rumors. It seemed that the palace had no intention of punishing him. It has been explained clearly.
In such a country, it's not that there is no such thing as asking for glory from a teacher, but it's just spread on him, Fan Xian still feels a little uncomfortable. His eyes slowly flicked across the faces of the three people on the table, with extremely complicated emotions in his heart. Shi Chanli was still in the capital of the Song Dynasty, but this time he ventured back to Beijing to see him. Needless to say, Yang Wanli, He said that Cheng Jialin, who had already become the magistrate of Suzhou, had always been thought by Fan Xian to be a little soft-tempered, and he didn't dare to trust him. He never thought that this person would rather be deprived of his official position than betray himself.
But Hou Jichang unexpectedly did not come.
"I heard that there is also a banquet in He Dashi's mansion today." Shi Chanli's face was a little ugly, and he said: "Before you came to Beijing, the two of them were known as the top talents in Kyoto, and they had some personal relationships."
Yang Wanli gritted his teeth and said angrily: "It's been a good season, the matter of abandoning the dark and turning to the bright is done very quickly. When we meet again, we must give a good compliment." This is naturally ironic, and Cheng Jialin just smiled wryly when he heard it. After a long while, he sighed quietly and said: "I think back in the Tongfu Inn, Brother Ji Chang told us that even when Master Xiao Fan was walking, he should not notice that the rain on the umbrella dripped into the oil pan of the vendor. Among them, this kind of person who loves the people is exactly what we should follow, but I didn't expect him now... hey... "
After a sigh, Fan Xian smiled instead, and greeted the three of them to start eating, saying, "Everyone has their own ambitions. Besides, I can't do things in the court now. Ji Chang wants to do things for the common people. It's okay to get closer to Master He." normal."
He spoke calmly, and no one could see the coldness in his heart. Fan Xian also knew that among the four sons of the Fan family, Hou Jichang was the one he was most optimistic about. There was a mistake in the arrangement, or it was a matter of luck. Among the four sons of the Fan family, Yang Wanli made great contributions in repairing the embankment, and his reputation shook the world. Cheng Jialin took the position of Suzhou magistrate at a young age. One, although Shi Chanli has not entered the officialdom, his status as the owner of Baoyuelou is very glorious.
Only Hou Jichang was born, and he still lives in Jiaozhou, unable to realize his ambitions. Now that Fan Xian has lost power to the end, this Master Hou is probably forced to find other ways out of resentment. It wasn't that Fan Xian didn't understand this point, but he was just unhappy, especially with that Senior Fellow He who was also having a banquet.
After drinking for three rounds, several people chatted about what they had done in their respective positions over the years. Yang Wanli talked about how the white money turned into huge stones and earthworks on both sides of the river. Cheng Jialin talked about how he was in Zhizhou. Protecting the environment and keeping the people safe, how with the help of Mr. Fan, how to subdue those salt merchants and imperial merchants, how to raise money for the teacher's wife to enter the Hangzhou Association, and how many poor people have been helped. Shi Chanli smiled and talked about what he had seen and heard in the world, as well as the slightly easier life of those miserable women in brothels. He also told an interesting anecdote. Lord Fan's statue, because Lord Fan has blessed the lives and safety of many girls...
As soon as this remark came out, everyone except Shi Chanli spit out the wine.
Although the three of them were chatting about their own affairs, they were actually related to Fan Xian. They were all talking about things that benefited the country and the people that Fan Xian had done in his life. Fan Xian was not a saint, but just a mortal. I am also a little happier. He looked at the three people with a smile, paused for a while and then said: "Wan Li has been living in the mansion these days, anyway, he doesn't have a proper house in Kyoto, Jialin, your family is still in Suzhou, so you might as well move to the mansion."
As soon as the gate master spoke, the three of them fell silent at the same time, put down the chopsticks in their hands, and looked at him.
"I have arrangements for the family affairs in Suzhou, so don't worry." Fan Xian looked at Cheng Jialin and said gently, "Just get through this period. I'm calling you here today because I'm afraid that you may feel resentment towards the imperial court. If you have resentment towards me, you will harm yourself instead.”
He smiled wryly, and said, "Of course, now it seems that I don't need to take care of Ji Chang."
"But you all know that I have never asked you for anything other than those eight words, so even if the court wants to catch my crime from you, it is impossible. Ji Chang has his own considerations. , but if you think about it, you won’t betray me out of nothing.” Fan Xian’s expression calmed down, and he said slowly: “The four of you will follow me as officials in the world, but it’s the Taiping Festival, so you need to contribute. It's not peaceful, so I need you to be patient, I know you want to help me, so I went to find some good colleagues in private, but don't do this in the future, my matter is not a problem that court officials can solve."
Cheng Jialin complied with a wry smile. They all remembered clearly the eight words Fan Xian left for them when they were on the outside - be a good person, be a good official.
"Since you can't be an official now, you should be an honest man." Fan Xian's brows felt a little pained. His Majesty knocked everyone around him into dust, and made him look around, feeling a little anxious. This move was really too vicious. .
After the family banquet, Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin went to rest at the back garden apartment. Fan Xian left Shi Chanli behind, and he summoned Shi Chanli back to Beijing. Naturally, it was not as simple as just eating a meal. There were only the two of them left in the study, Shi Chanli no longer had to hide anything, and scolded Hou Jichang angrily.
Fan Xian shook his head and said, "Ji Chang is just a scholar and an official after all, even if he has only learned how to make money now, how would he know that he made a big mistake."
Shi Chanli felt a chill in his heart. He knew too many secrets of the sect master, so he naturally knew that the sect master was not just a simple minister of power. king in.
"Don't worry that I'll kill him, I don't have that leisurely mind." Fan Xian lowered his eyes slightly and said, "How did the investigation I asked you go?"
"There is no difference between Dongyi City and the north, and there is no conflict with the war on the surface." Shi Chanli first added a sentence, and then answered Fan Xian's question seriously, "The fact that the palace code you want to investigate is indeed a little bit Strangely enough, the Privy Council issued a transfer order to Nanzhao two months ago, but the secret level was extremely high, and there were only rumors in the building, and now without the cooperation of the court, many news can only touch the surface."
"Nanzhao? What's the problem there?" Fan Xian asked with a frown.
"Ye Shuai's son is on the front line of Nanzhao. According to court practice, there is no war in Nanzhao now. The new lord has been on the throne for three years, so he should return to Beijing to report his merits in half..." Shi Chanli glanced at him, He continued: "According to the time, it should have arrived in the capital at this time, and then returned to the battalions, but the frontier troops along the way have not yet arrived."
"You mean...they might have gone to the west?" Fan Xian's heart shook, and he suddenly thought of an extremely terrifying possibility. He shook his head and said, "How could such a large troop mobilization be hidden from the world?"
"If we had focused on the south at the beginning, even if it was the south line of Weizhou, we might have been able to find out about the help of Meimei and the others." I have been paying attention to Kyoto, Dongyi, and Northern Qi for a month, and I haven't sorted out the information carefully enough."
"It's none of your business, it's my focus." Fan Xian rubbed his temples with some headaches, and said to himself, "Ye Linger's brother... this guy hasn't been in the capital for a long time, I forgot that there is still Such a person. Calculated according to the time, if the Nanzhao frontier army really pulls back and passes through the capital without entering, if it really goes west...wouldn't it have arrived in Dingzhou?"
Fan Xian raised his head, took a deep breath, his eyes were full of uneasiness and exhaustion, he knew he had made a big mistake, but he had been under house arrest in the capital for these months, and the Overwatch Council was under Yan Bingyun's supervision again. Under supervision, it is really impossible to accurately grasp the mobilization of Qing's military power only by relying on Baoyue Tower.
"Gong Dian left the capital and went to Dingzhou to call his son Hongcheng back to the capital... and took away ten thousand defenders of the capital and two thousand imperial troops." Shi Chanli reminded: "This is something that was found out earlier."
"I know that." A feeling of frustration arose in Fan Xian's heart, he patted the desk lightly with his palm, and sighed, "It's just that I never thought that His Majesty would have such a big hand, that he would dispatch troops from far away in the south, and go across the border." Traveling thousands of miles and changing the defense of the army, isn't he afraid of chaos in the world?"
Shi Chanli understood this sentence, his body turned cold, and he forcibly analyzed calmly: "For the court, the new master of Nanzhao is young, and the powerful officials in the country are interested in the followers of Daqing, so there is no need to be wary at all, and half of the troops left behind It is enough to be in the south. As for Yanjing City and Beidaying to deal with the situation of Northern Qi and Dongyi City, although it seems that because of the follow-up impact of the rebellion, the Beidaying has no master commander, but in fact there is no danger... so it is not dangerous for Your Majesty In other words, as long as Xiliang can be calmed down and there is no cause for chaos in the world, he can fully prepare for the Northern Expedition."
"To pacify Xiliang, we need to deal with those people on the grassland..." Fan Xian frowned, and sighed softly, knowing that he was still counted by the emperor, and he did not turn over the opponent's palm after all. An indescribable sense of exhaustion and disappointment filled his body, causing him to sit numbly on the chair, unable to move.
He finally understood why His Majesty maintained such an indifferent attitude towards the war in the north, and was not angry or vigilant at all because of the possible collusion between Bei Qi and Fan Xian. It turned out that His Majesty the Emperor had already sorted out what his illegitimate son might do Move, and concentrate all the spirit and all the power to the West. His Majesty the Emperor did not follow Fan Xian's plan at all, but took advantage of the situation and slammed his fists hard at Dingzhou City.
"Your Majesty must be notified immediately." Shi Chanli said in shock.
Fan Xian sat on the chair wearily, and said after a while, "It's too late."
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The grassland in winter is filled with a chill, the wind comes from the north, and the slight dampness carried by the North Sea has long been barren and dry in the desert Gobi in the northeast of the grassland, blindly dry and cold, the autumn grass on the ground has long been No, the only thing left is sand, the endless, frozen soil so hard that the horses' hoofs feel uncomfortable.
If the birds looked down from the sky in previous winters, they might be able to find some moving and attractive green colors beside some lakes, but today, even these poor habitats, they can’t find them. Because the eyes of these hardy birds who are unwilling to go to the south for the winter are full of blood red, the frozen dry grass roots are blood red, the round gravel is blood red, and the sand that shatters when pinched is blood red Yes, the voles that came out of their burrows seemed to be blood red.
This is the Red Mountain Pass, a place that must pass through from the grassland to the territory of Daqing. The mountains and rocks are all red, but today's red is not a different color bestowed by heaven, but is dyed by the barbarians on the grassland and the soldiers of Daqing Red.
There are corpses and blood everywhere. The screams that scared the voles out of the cave and the big birds to the sky have gradually subsided, but beside some barren hills, brutal battles are still going on. The stubborn Hu warriors gathered in a few small circles and shed their last blood under the siege of soldiers of the Qing Dynasty who outnumbered them dozens of times.
A year ago, Li Hongcheng, the great general of Dingzhou and Prince Jing's son, was at the Red Mountain Pass to meet the black cavalry and Fan Xian who escaped from the grassland. However, the Hu people are not idiots, and never gave Qing Jun such a chance.
If in previous years, in such a freezing season, the countless tribes of Xihu would follow the banner of the Wangzhang, slowly avoid the cold air, and march deeper into the grassland, until they could not climb At the bottom of the high mountain, after the bitter cold of this year, the whole grassland will be covered again in the early spring of the second year.
Xihu would rarely choose to launch an attack on Xiliang Road in the Qing Dynasty in the thick winter. In previous years, unless those tribes who lost power in the grassland fighting would try to cross the border to plunder the winter food for the soldiers and civilians in the fields of Qing Dynasty, There was never a major military operation.
But this year is different, for some reason, Lord Hu Ge, who inherited most of the cattle, sheep and warriors of King Zuo Xian, suddenly led the tribe to move eastward, and boldly or recklessly launched an attack on the territory of Qing Kingdom.
What made Xihu people even more puzzled was that the great Chanyu, a far-sighted Shanyu, after meditating in the king's tent for a day and a night, expressed his appreciation for Brother Hu's behavior, and braved the severe cold to dispatch The most elite prairie cavalry tried to cross the Red Mountain Pass, bypass Qingzhou, and directly attack the interior of Xiliang.
No one would have imagined that in the wilderness near Hongshan Pass, a total of 20,000 Qing Guo cavalry and 70,000 Dingzhou troops were ambushed! These soldiers of the Qing Dynasty seemed to have known the attacking direction, the number of people attacking, and the timing of the attacking on the grassland. In fact, the most frightening thing was that they predicted that the Xihu people would brave the severe cold to attack this year!
The Hu people's attack was completely unreasonable, and the Qing army's ambush was even more unreasonable. These unreasonable things came together to achieve this Qingzhou victory that was recorded in the history books. Thousands of people sacrificed their lives in the Shura field.
The side of a barren hill was already filled with corpses, and blood was flowing in the sand. This group of Hu warriors had fought to the last and were surrounded by the Qing army. Colonel Qing knew from the previous battles that this person must be one of the best experts on the grassland, so he stopped urging his subordinates to step forward, but slowly raised his right hand, coldly preparing to shoot the arrow.
"Surrender or not?" The cold voice echoed in the cold air of the prairie. Hu Ge, who was wounded all over his body, was breathing heavily, his eyes were bloodshot. With a loud cry, a knife stabbed into his chest, so deep that he couldn't handle it.
Hu Ge is dead, his eyes are still open, looking at the sky with resentment, even if he dies, he will become a resentment, go ask that young man in the capital who caused all this unreasonable and bloody, why? Why all this
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(I want to swear, I took the medicine for several days, but I haven’t seen any improvement, I’m dying of fainting, I’m dying of coughing... I reached out to ask everyone for a monthly ticket, I want money to buy medicine, cough cough, no one should believe me, right? The reason for canvassing for scolding... Cough cough, I really coughed this time.) (, If you want to know what happened next, please log in, more chapters, support the author, support the original version!)