my wonderful zoo

Chapter 216 May
July [-], Xinzheng County.

Yesterday, Miao Fujun arrived here and borrowed grain from Xinzheng County in the name of Prince Zhao Chen. Unexpectedly, Xinzheng County Magistrate Toutie only recognized Zhao Gou and not Zhao Chen.

Moreover, this man was a scholar and regarded the [-] troops outside the city as if they were nothing. He even wrote to Fu Miao, saying that he was a rebellious minister and a traitor and wanted to imitate Cao's thieves, which made Fu Miao very angry.

After being confirmed by others, Miao Fu, who became angry from embarrassment, directly ordered to attack the city.

The newly developed explosive pack was used by Miao Fu in the siege. The effect was surprisingly good. The city gate was blown open. Less than an hour after the siege started, the magistrate of Xinzheng County was caught in front of Miao Fu.

This directly opened up Miao Fu's worship of gunpowder weapons. On the way south, he plundered local blacksmiths and Taoist priests along the way.

……

The easternmost part of the Shandong Peninsula is Chengshanjiao.

The Northern Expedition fleet, consisting of [-] large and small ships, circled Chengshanjiao and changed its course from northeast to west.

With the help of the moist and warm southeast wind (summer monsoon), the speed of the fleet increased a lot.

"Good dog!" Lang Qing put his front paws on the side of the sampan, jumped onto the boat with light force, and then put the sea fish in his mouth in front of Chen Xun.

This sea fish is an adult yellow croaker, one and a half hands long, estimated to be over two kilograms.

"Woof! Woof! Woof!!" Lang Qing's barking was full of requests for credit. Chen Xun understood what it meant, that he wanted to be cooked by it.

"I was so excited for nothing. I thought you gave it to me." Chen Xun pretended to be disappointed.

"Woof!" Lang Qing shouted after hearing this, then turned around and jumped into the sea.

"Captain, are you here to fish? Or are you here to walk your dog?" Ke Lei, who was sitting next to him and also holding a fishing rod, asked with a smile.

"Both. The main reason is that the cabin is too stuffy. Come down and feel the bumps of the waves and enjoy the sea breeze." Chen Xun replied, and then he felt the fishing rod in his hand pull. He quickly picked it up, and there was another yellow croaker. , but much smaller than what Lang Qing caught.

The front of the small sampan for two people is tied to the back of the big boat with a long rope. Without the effort of paddling, you can also feel the excitement of "surfing", which is very fun.

"Captain, I heard that the envoy from the Liao Kingdom has arrived in Kaifeng?" There is always something to talk about, and Ke Lei took the initiative to talk about the business first.

"Yes, after knowing that we went to sea, we stayed in Kaifeng and waited." Chen Xun replied.

"What are they here for?" Ke Lei was puzzled. In his opinion, the Liao Kingdom was already in ruins, so why did they send people all the way to the Central Plains?

"The envoy was quite tight-lipped. Li Gang didn't ask anything. However, Pei Ren sent someone to eavesdrop on their conversation. He probably came to form an alliance with the Song Dynasty." Chen Xun replied: "Before the envoy set off, he had not received any news about the destruction of the Song Dynasty. After arriving in Kaifeng after a long detour, I discovered that Kaifeng had already changed its owner."

"So, will they form an alliance with us?" Corey asked.

"Yes, but I don't care about it. These nomadic peoples are precarious. Their production is severely affected by climate conditions. They are also crazy about giving birth to babies. They plunder everywhere because there are too many people and they don't have enough food to eat. I can't believe it." Chen Xun shook his head.

"Yes, you can't trust them." Ke Lei agreed.

After Yelu Dashi killed Xiao Yixue and Polikuo and proclaimed himself king, he fled Yanjing with only [-] cavalry. Then in ten years, he migrated thousands of miles from Yanjing to Central Asia and established the Western Liao Dynasty.

In later history, Yelu Dashi did something very awesome, which made Chen Xun retain a slight impression of him.

That is, in the Battle of Katwan, the Xiliao army defeated the [-] Central Asian coalition forces with a small number and a large number, making Islam in Central Asia succumb to an unbelieving regime for the first time.The victory of this battle also made Xiliao the overlord of Central Asia and established Xiliao's rule over Central Asia.

"But Pei Ren also said that the Imperial Seal might be in the hands of Yelu Dashi." Chen Xun stared at the fish float on the sea, not knowing what he was thinking.

"Is it Qin Chao's Chuanguo Yuxi??" Ke Lei asked in surprise.

"Yes, it's the imperial seal." Chen Xun nodded.

The Chuanguo Jade Seal, referred to as the Chuanguo Seal, was engraved with Lantian jade by the Prime Minister Li Si of the Qin Dynasty on the order of the First Emperor. It is the certificate of the orthodox emperors of China.

It is four inches in diameter and has five dragons on it. The front is engraved with the eight seal characters "Ordered by Heaven, and you will live forever" written by Li Si as a token of "the imperial power is granted by heaven, orthodoxy and legal".

After the Qin Dynasty, emperors of all dynasties regarded this seal as a talisman and regarded it as a rare treasure and an important weapon of the country.

Getting it symbolizes that it is "destined by the sky", and losing it means that it is "exhausted".

Anyone who ascends to a high position without this seal will be ridiculed as a "white emperor", showing lack of confidence and being despised by the world.

According to later historical research, the imperial seal was lost during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, and then the last emperor of the Tang Dynasty, Li Congke, burned himself in Xuanwu Tower and disappeared.

"Is it true?" Ke Lei asked. The status of the Chuanguo Jade Seal in Chinese history is too special. If Chen Xun can get it, it will really be a gift from heaven to Yongchang. It is absolutely justified and no one can take it. Chen Xun's identity as a traitor is telling.

"Who knows." Chen Xun shook his head. Ever since the real imperial jade seal disappeared, all kinds of real and fake jade seals have emerged one after another.

The most recent one was in the third year of Shaosheng in the Song Dynasty. Duan Yi, a native of Xianyang, said that he dug out the jade seal from the ground when he was building a house, which was "green as blue, warm and lustrous", and had "five plates of buttons on the back". According to Cai Jing, a Hanlin scholar, etc. 13 An official "researched" it and determined it to be the "genuine national seal made by the Qin Dynasty".

However, Chen Xun came from a later generation and knew that this was a trick played by Cai Jing and others to deceive the emperor, and that the jade seal was a fake.

In history, there are too many edicts and books stamped with the imperial seal that have been passed down. Careful comparison can tell whether they are genuine or not. With current technology, it is still difficult to distinguish the authenticity with the naked eye.

"Regardless of whether it is true or not, if it can be obtained from the Liao Kingdom, then it can be true." Ke Lei's tone was a little harsh.

"It's also possible that Yelu Dashi made a fake one and planned to trick the Song Dynasty into helping him restore the country." Chen Xun didn't care much about this.

In his opinion, to build a country upright, the ultimate thing is strength and popular support. Otherwise, why did so many dynasties with imperial seals in history eventually perish?

This shows that this thing is just a thought. It may have a certain bonus to people's hearts, but it is very limited and cannot play a decisive role.

But people now believe this, so this thing still has some effect in publicity.

"When we finish this battle, we will go back to see the envoy. What if it is true?" Ke Lei's words perfectly demonstrated the importance that people of this era attached to the word "orthodoxy."

"Don't worry, we have to exhaust his patience. Then we can talk. It's best if the news of our victory spreads throughout the land of Kyushu. Then it will be easier to talk." Chen Xun mentioned the fishing rod again, but this time It was a big fish, bigger than what Lang Qing had caught before, and it was a species that was not even included in Chen Xun’s zoo.

"Woof! Woof!" Lang Qing, who returned empty-mouthed, barked crazily at the violently struggling big fish.

"Don't bite it, I'm useful." Chen Xun pinched Lang Qing's neck and threw it to the stern of the boat. He stepped forward to hold down the still flapping fish and began to hypnotize himself.

After taking the fish into the zoo, Chen Xun lost interest in continuing to fish and relax. He ordered the people on the big boat to pull the small boat over and board the big boat.

(End of this chapter)