Dark clouds, desert snow, and city walls.
Bianliang.
The city where millions of people gather, in this winter, no longer the hustle and bustle of the past. Separated by a wall, under the northern city wall, thick ice formed silently in the moat. During the cooling process, they gradually mixed into ferocious ice sculptures. At this time, together with the Jurchen camp in the distance, they also quieted down.
In the thick and towering city walls, the gray and white colors render everything, and the red with the occasional flame is not bright. The city was immersed in the grief of death and could not recover. Most of the bodies of the deceased had been burned at one end of the city. The families of the victims brought back a handful of ashes and put them in the coffin to make a spiritual place. Because the city gates were closed, there were more small households, and even coffins could not be prepared. The sound of the suona and the sound of the suona stopped, and every household was mostly crying, and when the sadness was so deep, it was impossible to even utter a cry. Some elderly people and women died quietly after the news of the death of their children and husbands at home, either cold or hungry, or too sad.
Such grief and desolation is a sight that the whole city has never seen before. And even though the battle of offense and defense has stopped, the tension shrouded in and out of the city has not faded away. Since the Western Army Division and Zong Wang were wiped out against the entire army, day-to-day peace talks outside the city are still going on. The peace talks have not ended, and no one knows whether the Jurchen will come to attack the city.
Back then, when everyone was ↑ Chang ↑ Feng ↑ Wen ↑ learning, the spirit of the child and the city died together has passed, and after a little relief, the pain has come up, and not many people have that kind of spirit anymore. The people in the city were uneasy, paying attention to the news in the north of the city, and sometimes even the footsteps could not help but slow down, for fear of disturbing the Jurchen beast over there. In this long besieged winter, the whole city. It is gradually turning into a giant ice.
The undercurrent is surging quietly.
The plum blossoms bloomed, lining the corner of the yard with a touch of delicate red. The servant walked past the porch as carefully as possible. In the main hall of the yard, the gentlemen were talking. The leader was Tang Ke, Tang Qinsou, and the guest next to him. It is Yan Zhengyan Daozhang.
The charcoal fire burned in the animal-patterned copper furnace, and the two spoke in a low voice, but there was not much disturbance.
"... Since the battle of Bianliang so far, countless people have been killed and wounded. Those who died cannot be worthless... Although Tang had tried his best to make peace before, he was in agreement with many of Li Xiang and Qin Xiang's ideas. Jin Human nature is as fierce as a tiger and wolves, and the war has already started. If we can force peace, we should not retreat from the peace talks. Otherwise, the Jin people will make a comeback... My brother Xi Dao and I have been discussing these days...
"... Master Tang, Master Geng, Yan naturally understands that the peace talks should not be hasty, but... Master Li, Li, is too cautious, and he is afraid that he only wants to do business. Respond to the lack of evidence. And this matter should not be too slow, if it is delayed Go on. The Jurchen ran out of food and grass, so they had to loot hundreds of miles away. At that time, the peace talks would definitely fail... It's not easy to handle..."
"... Cai Taishi has a clear view, but, according to what Tang thinks... There is Wu Rui army outside the city. Jurchen may not dare to act rashly, and now we are gathering the collapsed troops of the Western Army, I believe that Wanyan Zongwang does not want to stay here for long. The core of the peace talks, The other is still second, one is elite soldiers. The other is Taiyuan... I have elite soldiers, so I can cope with the Jurchen next time when he comes to the south, there is Taiyuan, this war, so that there will be no loss of bones, as for money, materials and coins, on the contrary Might as well follow the precedent of Wuliao…”
"Unfortunately, this matter is not what I have to wait for..."
"...Yes. In this war, those who have contributed a lot are the two prime ministers on the left and right, the western army, and the prime minister... I have nothing to do when I wait for the master and the first line. However, when this time comes, the court Up and down, the strength is going to be used together. Tang Mou went to Qin Prime Minister yesterday to discuss that in this war, the right prime minister's government contributed the most. This is the merit of the world. But the right minister seems to have the idea of retiring in order to avoid suspicion..."
"... Qin Xiangyi's hero, if he can retreat at this time, it will be a good story... "
"...For the sake of the country and the people, although tens of thousands of people come to me, and the country is at the forefront, how can I allow him to retreat lightly because of slander. What the right minister was thinking, Mr. Tang understands that when he was thinking of war and peace, I and him also There have been disputes many times, but the disputes are only for the family and the country, not personal grudges. Qin Siyuan avoided suspicion this time, but it was not a blessing for the family and the country. Brother Dao Zhang, the Wu Rui camp should not be easily changed, and Taiyuan should not be lost. All these things fall on the right minister. what… "
"...Since Brother Tang said so, Yan Mouzi and Brother Tang are advancing and retreating together..."
While the charcoal fire was burning, the whispered words gradually came to an end, Yan Zheng got up to leave, and Tang Ke sent him out. After saying goodbye to each other again, Yan Zheng smiled and said, "This year, the snow is heavy, and there are many things. I hope that the coming year will be peaceful, and it will be a year of auspicious snow."
"Rui Xue has a good year, I hope so." Tang Ke also folded his hands and smiled.
He sent Yan Zheng out, and then turned back. Under the eaves outside the hall, there was already another old man watching the snow with a teacup. This was Xu Xiangxuan, an aide in his house, a great scholar.
"Going forward and retreating at the same time, it is generous to say that Yan Daozhang is a boneless person."
"May he bring these words to Master Cai..."
In the courtroom, Yan Zhengfeng was very well-reviewed. On the one hand, he was upright and honest, and on the other hand, he always interacted with people with both talents and virtues such as Tang Ke, but in fact he was Cai Jing's pawn. On weekdays, I tend to favor the Lord and Peace faction, but at critical moments, I am nothing more than a messenger.
"Fang Cai, Mr. Geng and the others sent someone to send a message. There was also some hesitation on the side of the grandfather. This time, it seems that he is unwilling to come forward..."
"Recapture Yanyun, and retire after success. Duke Chu has a name for his predecessors and backs, and it is reasonable not to start."
The two chatted for a few words, and there was another silence. The charcoal fire in the room burst into a spark, and the snow outside was so cold. Tang Ke watched the snow scene for a moment and sighed.
"Winter isn't over yet..." He closed his eyes and let out a white breath.
"Jing Zhe is here..."
Xue Changgong was wrapped in bandages, sitting on a chair, and the two superiors who came to visit him in the army, one Hu Tang and the other Shen Jue, were both middle and high-ranking Japanese soldiers. Have been talking for a while.
"...Now. The Jurchen frontline has retreated, and the defense in the city can be rested for a while. Although Brother Xue's location is important, you can rest assured at this time to cultivate and not make mistakes."
"...As long as the peace talks are over, everyone can finally breathe a sigh of relief. Brother Xue will take the lead this time, but the field is rich and noble. At that time, Brother Xue's family will have to be replaced."
"Small households in the Han family rely on the love of Shangguan and brothers, and the things they send have not been clearly counted at this time. In a war, the brothers' bones are still cold, and I think of this. Xue Mou is very sorry." Xue Changgong was a little weak. smiled.
Hu Tang waved his hand: "Hey, that's not what I'm saying, my generation of warriors got their fame from the sword, and the heads are tied to the waistbands of the trousers. The brothers in the underground have no luck, and those who are lucky enough to survive should eat, drink, and enjoy. You have to enjoy it. The scholars who heard this made me scold me, but that’s what happened in the army. It’s a good thing that Brother Xue is thinking about his brothers, but you should enjoy it. Don’t give up. This way Ah, the brothers can also follow you to death."
Shen Jue said with a smile: "If I can survive this time, I will be promoted and rich. It's not a problem. When the time comes, Brother Xue, you have to invite Fanlou, and the brothers will definitely come. Haha..."
What they said was right, Xue Changgong smiled, nodded and said, "... But, what's going on outside the city? I've been in bed for a few days, and I've heard people say bits and pieces... After all, the peace talks can't be trusted. If I wait for the morale to weaken and the Jurchen come back, it will be a huge disaster... Also, I heard that there was an accident with Xiao Zhong Xianggong, and I don't know the specifics..."
"The Western Army is a man, different from those outside our city." Hu Tang shook his head, "In the last battle at Wuzhangling, Xiao Chong Xianggong was seriously injured, and he personally led his soldiers to attack Zongwang. In the end, Xiaoshou was killed. The young cavalry and guards could have escaped, but in order to save the body of Xiao Chong Xianggong, they rushed into the formation five times in a row. In the last time, there were only more than 30 people left, all of them were seriously injured, and their horses were all red. In the end, the entire army was wiped out... Xianggong Zhong is also tough. According to reports in the army, Xianggong Xiao Zhong came with his army. He once sent someone to ask the capital to send troops to harass him. Later, he was defeated. He also asked his own soldiers to ask for help. Come down... Now at the Jurchen camp, the heads of Xianggong Xiao Zhong and hundreds of people who rushed to the formation are all hanging outside the tent, and peace talks outside the city, this is one of them... "
"I heard someone say that Xianggong Xiaozhong fought until he died, and he still believed that Xianggong Laozhong would lead troops to rescue him. He used these words to boost morale several times on the battlefield. But until the end, the five armies in Beijing did not move." Shen Jue said in a low voice, "There is also a saying that Xianggong Xiaochong knew the outcome of the incident before he could escape after confronting Zongwang, but he just told some lies and deceived everyone..."
Shen Jue paused: "After the death of Xianggong Xiaozhong, Wu Ruiying came with troops, and after that, Wu Sheng Wuwei and several other troops came over, and Chen Yanshu, Fang Lian, Lin Hetang and others had more than 100,000 men to advance... In fact, if there is no attack from the Western Army, I am afraid that this peace talks will not be so fast..."
I have been defending the city for nearly a month, and I have seen many tragic and solemn things, but at this time, there is still some silence in the room when it comes to this matter. After a while, Xue Changgong coughed a few times because of his injury. Hu Tang smiled.
"Speaking of military merit, Xia Village's gang repelled Guo Yaoshi, and now they are facing off against Jurchen outside the city. If they are rewarded for merit, maybe they are the ones who have the most credit."
Shen Jue lowered his voice: "The government of the country has always been led by civil servants. I was in the army and suffered countless constraints. In the end, everyone couldn't beat them. They said that the soldiers were incompetent. ... he is the son of the right minister, and he is naturally unfettered in his actions, so he can defeat the hostile army. This is a good thing, but ... alas, in short, it is always a good thing to be able to win ... "
"It's not easy for them outside the city." Hu Tang laughed, "Xiacun army, said to be headed by Wu Rui camp, in fact, the army outside the city was disbanded long ago, and now they are confronting Jurchen, while wrangling. Those commanders The envoy, Chen Yanshu, Fang Lian, and Lin Hetang, which one is the fuel-efficient lamp? I heard that they go to Wu Rui Camp every day outside the city of Chen Bing to ask for people from above and below, and send their brothers out to lobby. Xia This group of people in the village have more or less made some bones. If they make bones, it will not be ugly when they fight. Everyone has no one in their hands, and they all want to borrow chickens to lay eggs..."
"I haven't been in contact with the outside of the city right now. When the Jurchen leaves, I'm afraid there will be some friction. The people brought by Brother Xue are the best in the Japanese army. We are right on the front of the Jurchen. They are outside the city. Zhou Xuan, it was Guo Yaoshi who was playing, it’s hard to say who is more difficult. When the time comes, our team in Beijing will not be bullied by power, and their military merit will be rewarded, but they can’t lose their prestige…”
"Don't worry too much, their troubles outside the city are not over yet. Sometimes. Mu Xiu Yulin is not a good thing, but it is a person who makes a fortune in silence..."
Several people were talking about things outside the city, but it wasn't really gloating. It was just that the army was fighting for merit, and friction was a common occurrence, and each other was prepared.
For ordinary people, after the battle is over and the victory is over, that's it. For them, after the fight, many things after that are also predictable. They were curious about the team that defeated Yaoshi Guo, but after all, they had never seen it before, and they didn't know what it was like. Now that I think about it, their confrontation with the Jurchen still took advantage of the Western Army's life-threatening blow. If they do fight, they are bound to be defeated. Just facing hundreds of thousands of people outside the city. Guo Yaoshi left again. Even if Jurchen could win, after seeing Bianliang's resistance, it was of little significance. When they talked about these things, their hearts were relieved.
after all. The real wrangling and insider information are still in the hands of those big men. What they need to care about is only a few points of interest that they can get.
After discussing this for a long time, Xue Changgong was injured after all. The two left, and they also rejected Xue Changgong's farewell. Looking out from the courtyard outside the door, it is a cold winter shrouded in dark clouds, as if to confirm the fact that the dust has not yet settled.
Back in the backyard, the maid told him that the teacher girl was here.
In the bedroom, Shi Shi took some precious medicinal herbs and came to see He Leier, who was still lying on the bed and couldn't move. The two talked in a low voice. This is her second visit after a few days of truce.
The fighting ceased and peace talks began. The help of the teachers in the wounded barracks has also come to an end. As an oiran in the capital, she has become thinner and thinner after working in the army for a while, but that period of experience has also accumulated for her. With more fame, the past few days must have not been leisurely, so that her face was still a little tired.
Even though it was out of breath, Shishi's position in Fanlou was still separated from He Leier. Xue Changgong didn't know why she came to see He Leier. Right now, this section is still the time when martial artists are popular, but even so, Xue Changgong is not worthy of such a courtesan, so he doesn't think too much about it. When the teacher came out, the two greeted each other and exchanged a few words.
Xue Changgong remembered the reputation of Fanlou, and couldn't help but asked the teacher a few words about the peace talks. Several people at the level of generals and deputy generals were talking in private. It was impossible to see the current situation, but in Fanlou, They will know more about receiving various high-ranking officials.
"...Listen to the voices of several adults in the DPRK, and the matter of peace, when there are no major incidents, General Xue can rest assured." After a moment of silence, the teacher said, "It's the Japanese army who takes the lead in this battle, and I hope that the general will flourish. In the end, don't blame my sister."
Li Shishi didn't have much time, so he left here after he finished speaking. When the carriage drove through the long snow-covered street, noises from the surrounding cities came in from time to time, and the curtains were opened. These noises were mostly crying. People who met on the left side of the road said a few words, couldn't help sighing, and faintly mourned, A small piece of white cloth hangs over the door of the house where someone died. The child runs across the street in confusion. Inside the half-closed door of the blacksmith shop, a child wields a hammer, making a monotonous blow. Not showing any anger.
These days, time has flowed like a sticky paste.
The news with Xue Changgong was monotonous and optimistic, but the truth was naturally not that simple. In a battle, hundreds of thousands and hundreds of thousands of people died. Sometimes, the simple victory or defeat is almost irrelevant. What really makes people tangled is that in these victories and defeats, people can't figure out some simple tragic or solemn things. When joy comes, almost all feelings cannot simply find sustenance.
Before the war was over, all kinds of messy things had already begun.
In the courtroom, one by one the senior officers operate in the dark, in private series and scheming. Fanlou was naturally unable to see these clearly, but the clues in private were easy to find. Cai Taishi's will, His Majesty's will, Chu Guogong's will, left and right will, the Lord and the sect's will... In the flowing dark river, these things vaguely become the main body, as for those who died, their will , is not important, and it seems that it has never been important.
Shishi is also a person who knows all kinds of inside stories, but only this time, she hopes to have a little bit of simple things in front of her eyes, but when everything goes deep into the past, those things. It all ceased to exist.
The Western Army's impassioned, the head of the seed division is still hanging in the Jurchen camp, and the peace talks between the DPRK and China are still unable to welcome him back. The negotiation between Mr. Li Cha and Zong Wang is even more complicated. What kind of situation is it? All can appear, but behind the mix of various wills, people can't see anything exciting. During the battle of defending the city, the Right Prime Minister's Mansion was in charge of logistical deployment and concentrated a large number of manpower to defend the city, but now it has begun to quiet down, because there are some ominous clues in the air.
The great victory of the summer village army. When it first came, it was exciting and exciting, but by this time, all kinds of forces were reaching out to this team. More than a hundred thousand people outside the city are still confronting the Jurchen troops. In the camp of the Xiacun army, a lot of wrangling has begun every day. There was news yesterday that there was even a small-scale battle. According to the adults who came to Fanlou, these things. It was clear that someone with intentions was behind it to prevent the soldiers of Wu Rui Battalion from being so happy.
And the caring people among them are not just high-level people among the more than 100,000 people outside the city. Fanlou's news network could vaguely sense that the will of the people in the city, including Taishi Cai and Tong Guan, had already stretched out to the outside of the city.
In contrast to the tentacles and undercurrents behind these, the more than 10,000 troops that are facing off against the Jurchen. And they couldn't be fierce without fighting back fiercely. Separated by a high city wall, Fanlou couldn't get too much news from it. For the teacher, all the complicated undercurrents seemed to flow past. For negotiations, for truce. For the value and meaning of all the dead, she suddenly couldn't simply find a place of sustenance and refuge.
She watched these things carefully. When she returned to the dream at midnight, she also had a small expectation. After all, in the Wu Rui Camp at this time, there was still the existence of the person she knew. With his character, he should not sit still. After the reunion, he has repeatedly made many incredible achievements, and this time she also hopes that when all the news is connected, he may have launched a counterattack and gave all these messed up people a sharp slap in the face even though this hope Slim, at least for now, she can still look forward to it.
After she returned to Fanlou in the carriage, she heard special news.
"On Zhuji's side, Su Gongzi just came over and handed us some things."
Her mother, Li Yun, called her over and gave her a small book. The teacher flipped through it a little and found that it recorded what happened to some people on the battlefield. In addition to the battle in Xia Village, there were other things including the Western Army. Some people in the army are mostly simple and heroic, suitable for propaganda stories.
"Bamboo Jili actually started arranging storytelling a few days ago, but mom can tell you something, the wind is not right, I don't know if this treasure is suppressed or not. You can help them talk, I don't care about you ."
Li Yun poured her a cup of tea to warm her hands, and seeing Shishi raised his head to look at her, his eyes were calm and complicated, he also sighed and turned to look at the window.
"It's hard for you and me to talk about these big people." She sat down on the chair opposite, raised her head and sighed, "This time the golden man goes south, the sky will change, whoever has the final say in the future will see it. I don't understand... In the past few years in Beijing, some people have risen and fallen, and some have been successful for decades, but they have never fallen, but every time there is a major event, there must be people who go up and down. Daughter, you know, I know, they are all there In this bureau. This time, Mom, I don't know who's on and who's off, but things are coming, that's for sure... "
The teacher held the book and was slightly silent.
"Stop talking about this." Li Yun waved his hand, and then lowered his voice, "I heard that Young Master Ning secretly returned to Beijing and is seeing people secretly. This must be his handwriting. I know you can't sit still, let you go. If you have a spare day, go look for him. What is he going to do, what does Lord Qin of the Right Prime Minister's Mansion want, if he can give you an accurate word, I will feel more at ease... "
The teacher's eyes lit up. After a while, he got up and bowed. After thanking him, he asked the place again and went out.
The carriage drove through the streets of Bianliang, and the snow gradually fell. The teacher instructed the coachman to take her to find several places, including Zhuji's branch and Su's house. When helping, the carriage came to a stop when it passed the small bridge on the side of Wenhui Building. down.
The teacher got off the carriage in a white sassy. On the second floor, by a window with warm yellow lights, Ning Yi was sitting there, quietly looking at something out of the window. He grew a beard, and his expression was quiet and indifferent. He seemed to sense the gaze below. He turned his head and saw the woman who was putting down her hood by the carriage below. Snowflakes are falling slowly.
It seemed that someone had entered the room upstairs, Ning Yi looked over there and stood up, then turned to look at the teacher, he closed the window, the blurry silhouette in the window greeted the guest, and then there was only a faint light left.
In the evening, the teacher crossed the road and walked into the restaurant… (… )
...