In Luzhou, Hedong, a general hurried into the military mansion and said at the door: My lord, the envoy has passed Zezhou and may arrive tomorrow.
The messenger was an official sent by Tokyo to deliver the imperial edict. Li Yun already knew the contents of the imperial edict. The edict was read in front of thousands of people in the imperial city and distributed to various government offices. Li Yun had no choice but to know it. At this time, he was squatting in the upper position, so he said without raising his head: I know, you can go down.
Here. When the general clasped his fists, he stretched his head to look over here. He might be curious about what the two people above were doing.
Li Yun squatted, and opposite him was an old man in a robe, who was also squatting. In the middle was a copper basin with a lot of wood ash in it. The old man picked up a brush and swept it carefully for a while, and then he saw a piece of burnt turtle shell.
Is this thing useful? Li Yun frowned and asked.
The aide said: The ancient Shang Dynasty used tortoise shells for divination, and they have been doing so for hundreds of years, so there must be something credible about it.
Li Yun stared at the crack on the tortoise shell with a questioning look on his face and asked: Then take a look and tell me whether it is a good or bad omen.
The staff looked there for a long time, pondering and looking up books, and after a long time said: It's bad. My lord, you shouldn't act rashly, otherwise it will be extremely dangerous.
Li Yun shook his head and said: I still think this thing of yours is ridiculous.
The aide stroked his gray beard and said calmly: My lord should have an idea of whether this is absurd or not.
Oh, Li Yun looked at the aide's face with interest. You said something that is not absurd. What does this tortoise shell have to do with me
It does matter. The staff said, the lord personally selected the shells, put the charcoal and lit the fire.
So what? Li Yun shook his head.
The staff said: "We have taken many tortoise shells before. The lord chose which one to put in how much charcoal and where to light the charcoal. Any difference in any part will make the cracks have different textures. But the tortoise shell ended up like this, and that was its destined fate."
Li Yun still shook his head: "I don't mean to offend Mr. Zhong, but your mysterious talk really can't convince me. You didn't tell me how this tortoise shell has anything to do with my affairs."
The staff member was not angry and asked calmly: Why is the water flowing downwards
Li Yun was stunned.
The staff asked again: Why do the sun, moon and stars rise in turn
Li Yun:
The aide stroked his beard: "In the universe, there is something that is everywhere." He turned around and pushed a stool with his hand. It fell down with a clang. He said, "The stool fell down because I pushed it." The Buddhists made this kind of karma even more mysterious. The suffering in this life is caused by the sins committed in the previous life. These are not right. I have observed the stars at night and meditated for many days. I think that all things in this world have a relationship that is not cause and effect. From the sun, moon and stars to this tortoise shell, they are all closely related in the dark; so I have read the books of sages, but I am still willing to use tortoise shells for divination.
Li Yun was confused and felt that it made some sense, but it seemed like he was just talking nonsense. He asked casually: Even if you are right and there is indeed a connection, how do you know what kind of connection it is
Forget yourself. The staff said calmly, sincerity is the key to success.
Just then, a young man walked to the door and bowed, saying: "Son greets father."
Li Yun turned around and asked: What's the matter? But seeing that Li Shoujie didn't answer, he stretched out his hand and waved. Seeing this, the staff stood up and bowed: I will take my leave first.
Li Shoujie walked up and whispered in Li Yun's ear: Han Chongyun wants to see you.
Take him to the inner room. Li Yun stood up, no longer caring about the basin and tortoise shell on the ground, and walked straight in through the door on the wall. Not long after, Han Chongyun came in to pay his respects.
After the greetings, Han Chongyun asked impatiently: "Guo the blacksmith has blatantly usurped the throne and proclaimed himself emperor. If Lord Li doesn't start a rebellion now, when will he start a rebellion?"
Li Yun pondered for a long time.
Han Chongyun said anxiously: "I just heard that Guo the blacksmith wants to let Li Gong go to Hebei. This is a strategy to lure the tiger away from the mountain. What's more, that place is surrounded by the sea on the east and important towns on three sides. If Li Gong really goes there, he can't move freely and there is no reinforcement nearby. How can Guo the blacksmith deal with Li Gong then? Brother Zhao sent a letter with an idea for you. When someone from Tokyo comes, Li Gong will set up the spirit tablet of Taizu, cry and kowtow to tell of Taizu's kindness in the past. The world will praise Li Gong's loyalty."
Li Yun said: But Guo Shao also recognized the Great Ancestor Emperor, so isn't it a bit far-fetched for me to cry like this
It's not far-fetched, Han Chongyun said solemnly, Taizu made the decision on his deathbed for the late emperor Chai Rong, who passed the throne to his son, so who is Guo the blacksmith
Li Yun said with a sad face: "I just asked an expert to use the turtle back to tell a bad omen. The expert said that I can't act rashly now."
Han Chongyun's face twitched after hearing this: "Mr. Li is a hero, but you believe that thing. I know you are afraid of the strength of the imperial army and you are hesitant.
Don't provoke me, Li Yun said calmly.
Han Chongyun said: "Don't worry, Lord Li. If you raise troops, the Northern Han army will openly go south to reinforce Lord Li in the name of an ally. Not only that, the Liao Kingdom also agreed to send troops to attack Hebei to support Lord Li.
The Liao Kingdom can now send troops, Li Yun sneered.
Han Chongyun said: "It is rumored that the ruler of Liao is incompetent, but the King of Youzhou Nanyuan has a strong army and is willing to go south to lend a hand. If Li Gong does not believe it, he should immediately send someone to Hebei to investigate. The Liao army should have already set out by now."
Twenty miles west of Dingzhou City, Hebei Province, countless Liao cavalrymen really appeared on the banks of the Juma River.
Many floating bridges were built on the river, and the cavalry rode directly across the river to the south. The Liao army spread across the river like a flood. On the plain on the north bank, there were not only Liao cavalry, but also many infantry formations. They were the vassal troops of the Liao army, mainly Xi people, and some Jurchen slaves as miscellaneous soldiers.
The Liao army marched across the river without encountering any resistance.
A general wearing a cloak and a fur hat rode his horse to the riverside, surrounded by people in front and behind. He looked at the countless people and horses on the river bank, then looked to the east and asked in Khitan: Is there any movement in Dingzhou City
The general said: The scouts just reported back that Dingzhou Jiedushi Sun Xingyou is hiding in the city, strengthening the city defenses, and dares not come out to fight.
The general stretched out his finger, smiled and flattened the beautiful beard under his nose, and said loudly: Even if he comes out, the brave Khitan warriors can defeat him.
The general echoed: The Khitans are wolves, they have been hibernating in the snow forest for a long time, and they are also fierce wild wolves; Haner is a sheep, he can only hide in the sheepfold and shiver.
Haha! All the Liao army soldiers cheered happily after hearing this.