Evening at Shitokuden in the Tokyo Imperial Palace.
Two palace maids in moon-white dresses and untied hair walked into a hall with lanterns in their hands, separated into two sides, and placed the lanterns on the lamp holders on the wall. Then Fu Jinzhan walked in gracefully.
The servants and other servants pay their respects to Empress Duanci. The ladies standing in attendance all kneel down to greet her.
Fu Jinzhan looked around and asked: The Queen hasn't come yet
Mu Shang Gong bowed and said: In reply to what the general said, the queen might be here later.
This huge hall is where the Zide Palace has its meals. At this moment, the room is filled with women in bright red and colorful skirts, making this place as beautiful as a painting.
There is another door opposite the entrance, and outside the door is an open hall. The view here is wide, and the dusk scenery of the imperial city is reflected in the hall through the doors and windows, making the prosperous scene even more prosperous; inside the hall, the light is warm and soft.
Three bonsai pots were placed neatly on the table by the wall, bringing a new lease of life to the room. When Fu Jinzhan was in charge of government affairs in Jinxiang Hall, she placed some irises there. Later, she heard from the eunuch Cao Tai that Guo Shao had not asked people to remove them after his return, so she also arranged plants in this place.
At this moment, an official sang in a long voice: The Emperor has arrived!
Guo Shao soon appeared at the door, and Fu Jinzhan could vaguely sense that the atmosphere here had suddenly changed. Not only was Guo Shao tall and strong, he was the only man here, but also the feeling of his movements was completely different from that of the eunuchs and women.
Guo Shao's movements were not at all sloppy. His steps were steady and his expression was gentle, but there seemed to be some kind of fire burning in his eyes, like a bowl of strong liquor, which immediately dispersed the soft breath gathered by the women here.
The two of them greeted each other politely in public and sat down on waist-sized stools next to a round table.
Fu Jinzhan inadvertently stroked her cheeks to her ears with her fingers, paying close attention to her appearance. Her feelings were completely different from usual, and it was strange that she did nothing when she saw Guo Shao, but when she was with someone she was interested in, she would fall into a more excited mood even if she did nothing.
Fu Jinzhan's eyes flickered. She didn't stare at Guo Shao all the time, but glanced at him casually from time to time. There were other people around, and some smart people could determine a lot of things from people's eyes.
Guo Shao waved to Mu Shanggong, and the palace maid beside her hurriedly left the room.
Only then did Fu Jinzhan look at Guo Shao's face carefully.
Guo Shao said softly: The big thing has almost been confirmed.
Fu Jinzhan heard his firm voice and knew that the important matter Guo Shao was talking about was the Northern Expedition. In fact, Cao Tai, the eunuch supervisor, was Fu Jinzhan's confidant and would often tell her about state affairs, so it was hard for her not to know; but she didn't want to mention such things to Guo Shao, as he had to take care of the military and national affairs.
The Liao Kingdom had been very powerful for decades, and the Jin Dynasty even considered itself a puppet emperor. At least the people of the Central Plains recognized that the Liao Kingdom was a powerful country. Fu Jinzhan originally wanted to persuade Guo Shao not to be impatient, but she didn't want to say it for a moment.
She liked to see Guo Shao's ambitious look, and she didn't like men who were gloomy and depressed.
Fu Jinzhan was tired of having no one to rely on, having to rely on herself for everything and having to worry about everything. She didn't want the man she had promoted and trained for many years to become depressed and decadent.
Because she never wanted to be like Wu Zetian, a woman should get what belongs to her, only a sad woman would only pursue power and wealth. Fu Jinzhan is proficient in documents and has the talent to govern. She was the queen in the previous dynasty and also has a reputation, but she is unwilling to take advantage of the situation to fight for power in the outer court.
She had a keen insight into all the men, and sometimes she felt that what men lived for was their spirit. Without that spirit, they would become lazy and indulge themselves, and even lose their dignity in the end.
Fu Jinzhan looked at Guo Shao now. He was already in a high position. If he just wanted to keep the throne and wealth, it would not be difficult to achieve his goal. He had everything. If he had no ambitions and desires, what would he do? Of course, he would indulge in sensual pleasures. Is she willing to see a man who indulges himself in the harem all day
She then opened her mouth slowly and softly: I'm waiting for you to return victoriously.
Guo Shao was slightly surprised for a moment, probably because Fu Jinzhan had advised him last time, so he changed his mind quickly this time. He pondered and said: What does Jinzhan think about this matter
Fu Jinzhan smiled softly and said tactfully: "If you can recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, it will be a great achievement. I am still waiting for you to make my promise to me legitimate."
She said it in a joking tone, but Guo Shao said seriously: This is indeed what I should do.
Fu Jinzhan stopped smiling after hearing this and said softly: Your Majesty is the king of a country, you should shoulder the heavy responsibility of the country and let all the people in the world receive the grace of the emperor. Your Majesty is also the head of a family, with a wife and children. I entrusted my second sister to you not only for marriage, but also because I wanted her to have someone to rely on.
Your Majesty wants to do great things and lead the army in person. Sometimes I feel reluctant when I think about not being able to see you, but I will not dissuade you. I will be very pleased if Shao Ge'er can achieve great things.
People have the ambition to travel all over the world, not just deer or pigs, but often gather in the Fu Jinzhan paused and chanted softly a sentence, reciting the words in her gentle and soothing voice, with a very different charm.
Only then did she feel like an older relative, but she was indeed older than Guo Shao, so she didn't want to care.
Fu Jinzhan noticed the light in Guo Shao's eyes and was somewhat moved.
The light in his eyes was the reflected light. At this time, the light outside was dim, and the gold and silver utensils on the table were smooth and high-quality ceramics reflecting light, like stars. Fu Jinzhan suddenly realized that the atmosphere of this scene was very warm.
Guo Shao moved his mouth and exhaled: "It is not enough to just protect ourselves. Now that the Great Zhou is rising, if we do not attack the Liao Kingdom, we will miss the opportunity. Even if we do not want to fight, the nomadic tribes in the north will seize the opportunity to move south in the future. How can we be so weak that we can be bullied?"
Fu Jinzhan looked at him with a smile. The aura emanating from Guo Shao was filled with positive hope.
Soon, Fu Ermei finally arrived, and the three of them continued to talk while eating. Fu Jinzhan thought Guo Shao's words were very knowledgeable, and she liked talking to him very much, even if they were not talking about romantic matters.
That night, Guo Shao stayed in the Zide Hall, but he stayed in Fu Ermei's bedroom. Fu Ermei was the real queen.
Perhaps influenced by some incognito movies and TV shows, Guo Shao did not like to bring the emperor's ceremonial guards with him when he went out of the palace for inspection. At this time, Li Chuyun accompanied him in the carriage, and the only guards were Lu Chengyong's cavalry.
However, even such a simple team can be recognized as royal nobles by ordinary people. Because Lu Chengyong's imperial guards are under the inner palace guards, their clothes and armor are very neat and bright, and it is easy to identify the people guarded by the palace guards. How could they be ordinary people
As soon as Guo Shao left the palace, although he stayed in the carriage, he immediately felt the atmosphere of the city.
There were many breakfast shops on both sides of Ma Xing Street. Many officials went to court too early and would not eat breakfast at home. They would go out to buy breakfast and eat while walking. There were stoves outside the gutters on the street, with steam rising from the steamers. People didn't even need to look at the signs to know that it was a place selling food.
There are also shops selling all kinds of goods. Their storefronts are very wide and paneled with wooden boards. Along the way, you can see shop owners and their assistants picking up wooden boards.
The group walked north, bypassing the imperial city to the northern parade ground. The imperial army parade grounds were mostly in the north of the city, with two of them. The south side of the city was the outer city, where the common people gathered. There were also hundreds of thousands of residents living in the city outside the city, so the space was not spacious and not suitable for the parade ground.
When they arrived at the parade ground, Guo Shao lifted the curtain of his carriage and saw the imperial guards marching out for drill. The soldiers were running in formation, and in the distance the cavalry was galloping, vigorous and powerful.
Looking around, there was no end to the well-disciplined troops, their armor shining brightly in the morning sun.
Behind the bamboo curtain, Guo Shao's face was calm, but he could not hide his excitement. His eyes were bright and he watched the scene outside intently.
Only the prosperity of the market is not enough, what we need is this. Guo Shao turned around and said to Li Chuyun casually.
Li Chuyun clasped his fists and said: The soldiers of the Imperial Guards have never been lax and are always ready to fight for Your Majesty.
Guo Shao's tone was very cautious: "At this time, there are only you and me. General Li thinks that we can win the battle of Youzhou."
Li Chuyun said expressionlessly: Your Majesty is the ruler of the world, and no one can disobey your holy will.
Guo Shao lowered the curtain, and Lu Chengyong asked from outside: Your Majesty, do you want to continue to inspect another parade ground
Guo Shaodan responded while sitting in his seat: Let’s try another place.
He closed his eyes and remained silent for a long time, and suddenly said: We might fight with some reinforcements from the Liao Kingdom.
Li Chuyun agreed and said: "Your Majesty is right. Once Youzhou is threatened by our army, the Liao cavalry will pass through Yanshan very quickly from Shangjing and other places."
Guo Shao said: However, if they want to reinforce Youzhou in a short period of time, they will not have time to mobilize the entire country's military. The first to arrive should be the regular cavalry from Shangjing and other places.
Guo Shao made this conclusion after a detailed analysis of the Liao Kingdom's various situations. The Liao Kingdom had a large number of troops, but the standing army that could be assembled in the capital was probably at most tens of thousands of cavalry. More than that was just a boast to intimidate other countries, or just a claim. However, because the Liao Kingdom's cavalry was fast and mobilized faster, they would generally mobilize troops from all over the country before a war.
The Central Plains dynasty had at least hundreds of thousands of soldiers, but even in times of frequent wars, the capital only had tens of thousands of cavalry on standby, and it was very difficult to maintain them. With today's transportation and economy, it was a very heavy burden.
Although the Liao Kingdom was large, its economic foundation was obviously far inferior to that of the Zhou Dynasty. The grasslands could support fewer people per unit area; a large number of cavalrymen were concentrated in one place for a long time, and there was not enough grass for them to eat.
Guo Shao noticed that after Jinyang of the Northern Han Dynasty was besieged, the Liao army rushed to provide assistance and also went through a process of mobilizing troops, otherwise it should have been faster.