On the night of August 26, Lu Duosun told Yang Gun a perverse theory that selling out one's own people was actually for the good of the country. Whether the perverse theory is reasonable or not depends on whether the listener is willing to believe it.
Lu Dosun also said that both sides had a common expectation, which was to see Xiao Siwen overthrown. As long as Xiao Siwen was still around, no one knew when he would settle accounts with Yang Gun. Yang Gun had to admit that this was the truth.
General Yang carefully considered the matter. Lu Duosun stood up. If General Yang helps us this time, the court will probably let you disappear for a while. Xiao Siwen will be finished sooner or later. This is just the beginning. After a while, we have a way to let General Yang return to Shangjing and resume his post.
What method? Yang Gun asked.
Lu Dosun said: This is the business of the Privy Council of Daxu.
Yang Gun said calmly: If I say hypothetically, if one day I am trapped in a siege, as long as your army opens a gap and lets me take a few people back, I don’t have to hide.
Lu Dosun immediately agreed: This is not a difficult matter. I will discuss it with the generals of the Xu army as soon as possible. Goodbye.
Soon, Yang Ye and Fan Zhongyi came back. Yang Ye said that he had gotten rid of the general's officials and asked Yang Gun if he wanted to go and see. Yang Gun said no, for some reason.
Later, it was learned that Fan Zhongyi went to see the body that night and had no doubts at all, because from the beginning, Fan Zhongyi did not think that the officials of the Qianying Military Office were fake. It was night, the light at the murder site was not clear, and the blood was everywhere. The scene was very horrible, so Fan Zhongyi confirmed that the body was wearing official uniforms.
On the battlefield west of Pingxingling, Yang Gun and his men escaped from the Shura Field. He led a group of men and horses through the mountains for a day, wounded, and indeed found a path to cross the mountainous area. After that, they only encountered some Xu Jun cavalrymen, who might be scouts of Gao Yanchou's Wuzhou Army.
They finally returned to Yunzhou.
Xiao Siwen immediately summoned them to meet, and asked with a sullen face: What happened behind Yanmen Pass
Yang Gun fell to the ground with blood all over his clothes and armor. Yelu Huer came forward to check and said hurriedly, "Quickly find a doctor to save General Yang!"
Yelu Huer then reported to Xiao Siwen: Xiao Gong, Hedong is a complete trap.
Xiao Siwen was not too surprised. He should have received some bad news in the past two days. He just asked anxiously: Where is Xiao Duli? What happened to his troops
Yelu Huer said: Xu's army of 100,000 or 200,000 men ambushed Yang Ye's army in Hedong. When they met, they turned hostile. The cannons fired indiscriminately and the cavalry rushed forward. Dong Zunhui's imperial guards rushed forward to cut off our retreat. We were forced to go east. At Pingxingling, we met Liu Renzhan's Pingzhou army. Gao Yanchou was waiting to intercept us from the north of Yanmen Mountain.
Xiao Siwen clenched his fists, his teeth were clenched, and his eyes were bloodshot.
Yelu Huer's tone was filled with resentment. It was obvious that he did not think that the defeat was the fault of the frontline soldiers. It was considered lucky that one out of ten of our troops survived. Fortunately, Yang Gun fought desperately to break through, and he knew the road to Hedong. We were lucky enough to return after overcoming numerous difficulties and dangers.
Xiao Siwen was shaking, his hair and beard were all messy, and he looked haggard. He stood there without saying a word. At this moment, it was too late to do anything. It would take at least one or two months to gather enough troops to compete with Xu Jun for the rescue.
Xiao Siwen suddenly looked at Fan Zhongyi coldly. Fan Zhongyi noticed it and fell to his knees on the ground: "Mr. Xiao, please save me!"
"Detain Fan Zhongyi and Yang Gun, and never let them leave the central army," Xiao Siwen said coldly.
Yelu Huer said: Yang Gun fought desperately and was seriously injured. Please save his life first and wait for the court to judge his crime. Is it okay
Xiao Siwen was annoyed and anxious, and said to Yelu Huer: You are just a defeated general who fled from the battlefield.
Yelu Huer bowed his head and did not dare to provoke Xiao Siwen.
Xiao Siwen immediately left the camp and climbed to the south city of Yunzhou to have a look. There was nothing to be seen but a vast wilderness in the distance.
Standing on the top of the city wall, Xiao Siwen felt a chill all over his body as the cool breeze of late autumn blew.
Fan Zhongyi and Yang Gun alone could not shoulder the responsibility for such a complete failure. Even greater dangers from the Xu Kingdom and the Liao Dynasty were still to come. Xiao Siwen had to desperately suppress his unbearable frustration and anger, and consider the serious consequences that would follow.
He looked up to the sky and let out a long sigh, then he saw the flag on the top of Yunzhou City flapping against the flagpole in the wind.
The central army flag was blown loudly, and Xiao Duli, who was in a daze, suddenly heard a huge noise from his ears. He trembled all over, staring at the horrific scene in front of him with bloodshot eyes.
There were corpses of people and horses everywhere. The whole land seemed to be filled with the dead and their weapons, as well as countless crazy living people.
Bang bang bang! A dozen people took muskets and fired at a Liao soldier. The Liao soldier was covered in blood. He fell to his knees on the ground, then fell forward and became one of countless corpses.
It seemed like they were still fighting two days ago, but I don't know when it turned into a massacre. Now there are not many Liao soldiers left. There are still a few over there, being pinned to the ground by the swarming enemy soldiers and stabbed desperately, screaming.
Some Liao soldiers clung to the mountain wall as if they were some wild animals, and from time to time someone would fall down from the rock wall with a loud cry.
The hillside where Xiao Duli was standing was surrounded by Xu's army. At this time, a group of people finally came up the mountain.
The personal guards stepped forward with weapons to stop the group of people, but Xiao Duli just stood there in a daze, his voice already hoarse from shouting.
In the air filled with gunpowder and dust, a few puffs of white smoke rose again with bangs. After a while, a dense group of people gradually approached the top of the mountain. The personal soldiers who had just gone down were no longer moving.
A big man in heavy armor came up with a group of soldiers in armor and sharp weapons. The big man said: "I am Yang Ye, you all put down your weapons."
The only people left around Xiao Duli were holding swords and guns, but they were slowly retreating. He himself also retreated in fear and listlessness, his round red eyes seemed to reflect a sea of blood.
The night in the capital of Daxu was still so quiet. Guo Shao, with a tired face, propped up his head with his arms, leaning on a table, half asleep and half awake.
He suddenly saw a strange scene.
The old floor tiles were inlaid on the ground. The square tiles from the kiln were originally very rough, but now the surface has been polished smoother. There is a crack on one of them. A wooden strip is inserted straight between the floor tiles. There are marks of knocking on both sides of the wooden strip, as if a stone or some heavy object was knocked into the gap between the bricks little by little, but the knocking avoided the sharp end in the middle of the wood. Whoever made this thing seemed to have spent a lot of effort.
Bang! Suddenly, a man rushed straight to that place. The man groaned, his teeth clenched and clenched, gasping for breath, and occasionally inhaling with a hiss. A pool of blood seeped out from under his body. His limbs began to struggle, his nails scratched bloody marks on the stone bricks, and finally he groaned in pain.
Guo Shao shuddered all over, opened his eyes, and found that the eunuch Wang Zhong was holding a blanket and draping it over him.
Guo Shao stared at Wang Zhong, who stepped back and stood by him. Guo Shao then realized that there was another person standing in the bedroom, Xiao Chuo. Her hair was still a little wet, with black hair edges, fair skin, and bright red ears.
Your Majesty. Wang Zhong followed Guo Shao's gaze and turned to look at Xiao Chuo.
Guo Shao then remembered that when he grabbed Xiao Chuo's hand in Wenhua Hall that day, Wang Zhong was standing behind him.
At this time, another eunuch came outside the palace. Wang Zhong bowed slightly, walked out of the door, and said something in a gibberish. After a while, Wang Zhong came back and leaned over to whisper in Guo Shao's ear: Your Majesty, the Privy Council has just received an urgent report from Hedong. The Liao general Xiao Duli was captured by Yang Ye, and the battlefield was a river of blood. There were countless casualties, most of which were corpses of Liao soldiers.
After hearing this, Guo Shao let out a long breath and said, "Last time, I confiscated many houses in Tokyo. I picked the best one in the inner city and left it to Yang Ye. I will give it a name, and you ask someone to make a plaque for it, and call it Tianbo Mansion."
Wang Zhong bowed and said: “I obey your order.”
After Wang Zhong finished speaking, he cautiously left the bedroom.
The exquisite paintings of ladies on the lampshades hanging on the wall were illuminated by the candlelight, making them more vivid. Many candles were lit on the copper lampstands, and the entire palace was reflected in the warm yellow light. Guo Shao looked at Xiao Chuo in the candlelight. The height of a girl in her teens was almost the same as that of an adult woman, but her body always looked very thin.
Your Majesty, Xiao Chuo looked up at him and said, "I heard that women who have slept in the Zhongyuan Palace can never leave the palace again. For the sake of the royal family's reputation, is that true?"
Guo Shao said casually: It depends on the time. In recent years, there has been no particular emphasis on it.
Xiao Chuo said timidly: Can I still see my father
Guo Shao finally understood what Xiao Chuo meant and said, "You will see her." He pondered for a moment and said, "It won't be long."
The emperor's words are golden, so he obviously won't lie to anyone.
Guo Shao stroked the light hair on his head and said with a long sigh: Go back to your room and sleep. Wang Zhong should still be in the Wansui Palace. Go out and find him to take you back.
Xiao Chuo was stunned for a moment, then asked again: Your Majesty, did I say something wrong to make you angry
Guo Shao said gently: "No, don't think too much. If people can say the wrong thing in front of me at any time, I will be even more lonely. It's just that I don't want to let myself get entangled. I'm thinking about other things recently, and I'm in a bad mood. Let's talk about it in a few days."
Xiao Chuo knelt down and bowed in a proper manner, then quietly left. She had learned the art of greeting well, but she still didn't like to talk while bowing.
Guo Shao watched her thin figure as she left, still sitting steadily on the chair, without moving at all.
The bedroom of the Wansui Palace was tall and large, with a large bed. Although the furnishings were luxurious, it still looked empty, and now that Guo Shao was the only one left, it felt even more empty. The emperors even made their sleeping places like this for the sake of prestige. Sleeping in a room that was too big did not make one feel safe.
Guo Shao suddenly felt that everything was very absurd, and he didn't know why. But after sitting for a long time, he gradually realized that he had everything and controlled everything, and as long as he was careful not to be ambushed, he would have a long life to enjoy everything, and his mood gradually improved. The key is that no matter what he did, it was legal, and he would not be judged by anyone. His fate was completely in his own hands. Isn't it for this that he has come to this point step by step