The prince is more stable

Chapter 217 The Capital is Empty
It is undeniable that Xiao Guangjing is an ambitious young man.

When a family reaches a height that ordinary people cannot reach, the power the family possesses can actually be inherited. It may not necessarily be a title, but the power will definitely be passed down in other ways.

Xiao Guangjing was originally a person waiting to inherit power. His family had high hopes for him and kept piling resources on him, trying every possible way to accumulate qualifications for him.

The last time Xiao Guangjing was sent as an envoy to the Song Dynasty, how could he, a young man with no experience in the art of war, be the chief envoy of the Liao Dynasty?

Because this was an opportunity given to him by his family, such a simple task as going on a diplomatic mission to the Song Dynasty was of course the easiest way to accumulate qualifications.

Unfortunately, he had a bad fate and unfortunately met Zhao Xiaoqian. What should have been a smooth and easy job was ruined by him.

This time, Xiao Wuna still stubbornly gave him another chance and piled resources on him again.

Zhao Xiaoqian is not easy to deal with. You won't cause any more trouble when you go on a diplomatic mission to Western Xia, right?
In the name of an envoy from the Liao Kingdom, he came to Xingqing Prefecture to mediate the Song-Xia War. Without a word, he showed his domineering face as the overlord of the Liao Kingdom, said a few strange words in a veiled manner, and arrogantly scolded the Queen Mother Liang. Then he pointed at the entire Xixia court and cursed them...

Sarcastic, arrogant and domineering, this is simply Xiao Guangjing's true character.

I just hope he can be more restrained during his performance and not go too far.

In the end, he quietly sided with the Song State, asked the two countries to cease fire, and made Western Xia pay a certain price. If possible, he would also teach that crazy woman, Queen Mother Liang, a severe lesson.

Is it difficult?
It’s not difficult at all. Xiao Guangjing was full of pride when he left the capital, and he was that sunny young man full of vigor and vitality again.

However, the high-spirited Xiao Guangjing suddenly remembered that Zhao Xiaoqian was also leading troops to fight in the territory of Western Xia, and he might meet Zhao Xiaoqian on this trip. Thinking of this, Xiao Guangjing's spirit suddenly sank.

Zhao Xiaoqian was his nemesis, he was very sure of that.

When facing Zhao Xiaoqian, Xiao Guangjing always felt that he was like an insurmountable mountain, and there was no other way but to surrender.

And this time, he will meet Zhao Xiaoqian again, and a familiar feeling of powerlessness comes over him.

"I will never gamble again this time!" Xiao Guangjing swore secretly.

Last time in Bian Jing, he was trapped in a gambling house by Zhao Xiaoqian.

Young people learn to grow slowly through countless experiences of failure, and the same is true for Xiao Guangjing.

…………

In the market of Xingqing City, a group of idle porters gathered together, watching the merchants and passers-by coming and going in boredom.

As the war between Song and Xia escalated, multiple Song armies entered the territory of Western Xia, and the atmosphere in the capital Xingqing Prefecture became inexplicably tense.

The number of Xixia soldiers patrolling the streets increased, and their frequency also increased. Officers stopped passers-by inside and outside the city gates and conducted strict body searches and interrogations.

But for the idlers at the Xingqingfu market, life was no different from usual.

Except for some minor changes.

My good brother Zhang Xiaoyi said he was going out of town to visit a friend in the next few days. He disappeared without a trace for three days.

Zhang Xiaoyi is definitely a good brother who values ​​loyalty. He particularly likes making friends and is generous and magnanimous. He especially likes to treat guests. Recently, he has treated many poor idlers to his treats, and Zhang Xiaoyi has successfully won their hearts.

After three days without any news from their good brother, the idlers began to miss him inexplicably.

At this time, in a desolate valley about a hundred miles away from Xingqing Prefecture, Zhang Xiaoyi stood in front of Zhao Xiaoqian with an excited look on his face, rubbing his hands with excitement.

"The Marquis is truly formidable. I've heard a lot about his deeds in Xingqing Prefecture. He single-handedly annihilated an entire military headquarters with just 5,000 soldiers. The Xixia people in Xingqing Prefecture were terrified. They've even guarded the city gates tightly these past few days, fearing a sudden attack from the Marquis."

Zhao Xiaoqian ignored Zhang Xiaoyi's flattery and looked him up and down.

"You seem to have gained weight..." Zhao Xiaoqian concluded after looking at her for a long time.

Zhang Xiaoyi was stunned for a moment, then laughed and said, "I sneaked into Xingqing Mansion and made a lot of friends. Eating, drinking and having fun with those people every day, I will eventually gain some weight."

Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly showed an uncomfortable expression.

I slept in the open air, ate dry food, drank cold water, and even fell seriously ill. Furthermore, I was pursued by 50,000 enemy troops. Every day, I tried every possible way to evade pursuit and engage in guerrilla warfare with the enemy.

But you're living it up in Xingqing City, eating and drinking the best food, maybe even sleeping with a Xixia girl...

I haven't slept at all!
Do you know how I've been spending these days?
I almost fell in love with the ewe!
We are all serving the people, why am I so miserable?

"Marquis, Marquis! You look a little off, what's wrong?" Zhang Xiaoyi asked with concern. Zhao Xiaoqian came back to his senses and rubbed his face vigorously: "Nothing."

"The Marquis doesn't look well. He must have had a hard time these days," Zhang Xiaoyi continued to ask with concern.

It’s really good at judging people. It’s not only hard work, but also miserable.

But the Prince of Chu would never admit that he was living a miserable life. His damn self-esteem would not allow it.

"What nonsense are you talking about? I've been living a very comfortable life these days. Every day I have endless amounts of roasted lamb legs, roasted lamb kidneys, roasted leeks, and soaked wolfberries... and I also have endless amounts of beautiful women to sleep with. Every time our army plunders a place, the generals send the most beautiful woman to warm my bed..."

Zhao Xiaoqian pounded his waist pretentiously: "...I've been overexerting myself. I can't take it anymore."

"But why are there tears in your eyes..." Zhang Xiaoyi was full of curiosity.

What the hell is this “tiger eye”!
Zhao Xiaoqian couldn't act any longer and said coldly, "Is there something serious going on? Hurry up and tell me! What nonsense are you talking about?"

Zhang Xiaoyi smiled and said, "I have some serious business. I haven't been idle since I got into Xingqing City. Besides making many friends, I also got to know the steward of a powerful mansion."

"Which dignitary?"

"The commander-in-chief of the Xixia cavalry, Wei Mingsha, is a member of the Xixia royal family."

Zhao Xiaoqian immediately became interested. As the commander-in-chief of the cavalry, he had considerable power and was a big shot.

Zhang Xiaoyi continued, "I've learned a lot from the steward of his mansion, including the current strength of the Xingqing City garrison, the defenses at the city gates, and the future movements of Empress Dowager Liang's 300,000-man army."

Zhao Xiaoqian's eyes lit up. This was indeed the information he lacked.

He had been chased by 50,000 Western Xia troops in the past few days. Although they had burned, killed, looted, and destroyed many villages and tribes along the way, and had sufficient morale and food, a highly mobile army often lacked satisfactory intelligence. After all, the soldiers ran too fast and the intelligence could not be delivered to him in time.

"Tell me in detail." Zhao Xiaoqian sat up straight.

Zhang Xiaoyi whispered, "Besides everything else, I have a piece of very important information. Although Xingqing City is heavily guarded, the steward told me privately that there are only 6,000 soldiers and horses in the city..."

"The over 100,000 imperial guards originally assigned to protect the capital have all been withdrawn by Empress Dowager Liang."

"Empress Dowager Liang's original intention in raising 300,000 troops was to attack the Song Dynasty's Yan'an Prefecture, then negotiate with the Song Dynasty from there and plunder the Song Dynasty. However, the county marquis and the Song Dynasty commander's deployment of troops exceeded Empress Dowager Liang's expectations, forcing her to urgently retreat to defend the city."

"I heard that Empress Dowager Liang realized something was wrong and was worried about the loss of the capital. She has mobilized 30,000 troops back to Xingqing Prefecture and will arrive in two days."

Zhang Xiaoyi slowed down his speech, staring into Zhao Xiaoqian's eyes, and spoke seriously, "I dare not speak nonsense on matters of national importance. If the Marquis intends to capture Xingqing City, he and his soldiers still have two days."

"Two days later, 30,000 Xixia troops will return to the capital. The county lord must not attack the city."

Zhao Xiaoqian was silent.

The meaning of Zhang Xiaoyi's words was very clear. If they wanted to capture the capital of Western Xia, they should take advantage of the fact that the capital's defenses were weak in the past two days and capture it quickly.

If you have no plans to attack the capital, you should get away as soon as possible. The 30,000 Western Xia troops will be returning to the capital soon.

There are only 6,000 defenders in the Xixia capital now. Do you want to take action?
Zhao Xiaoqian fell into deep thought.

If we can really capture the capital of Western Xia, this military achievement will be simply...

The military significance of capturing the Western Xia capital was actually not that great. Even if it was captured, the city would have to be abandoned and left immediately.

But its political significance is immeasurable.

Why did Huo Qubing offer sacrifices to heaven at Wolf Mountain?

Because he was here.

Simply because he had been there, "sealing the wolf at Juxu" became the loftiest ideal of Chinese military commanders in the past two thousand years.

This is the political significance. It is a blow to the enemy's psychology and dignity, which is tantamount to digging up one's own ancestral graves.

Conquering the capital of Western Xia, even if one only stayed in the city for an hour, would be an extraordinary achievement, worthy of being recorded in history.

Zhao Xiaoqian had to admit that he was really moved at this moment.

(End of this chapter)