Prince of Song Dynasty

Chapter 847
Xu Xuan narrowed his eyes, and said sharply: "Then what will you say when your country invades the border of our Xiangfu country while I am fighting with the Liao army?"

Lu Yuqing's face was flushed with anger, and he said angrily: "Master Xu, stop talking nonsense. When your country fought the Liao army, our Song country did not send a single soldier. Why did you invade the border of your Xiangfu country?"

Xu Xuan sneered and said, "Lord Lu, don't be fooled. Before the battle between our Xiangfu Kingdom and the Liao army, Liujiazhai, Matou Mountain, and Wushi Mountain were all owned by our Xiangfu Kingdom. Why do you Song Dynasty appear in these places now?" State officials and people."

Lu Yuqing was pissed off by Xu Xuan's nonsense, but after thinking about it again, the other party obviously wanted to use the Liao army as an excuse to extort a sum of money and land from Da Song.It’s just that the four places Xu Xuan mentioned, except for Liujiazhai, although there are some villages in the other three mountain ranges, they are really barren mountains and wild mountains, which can almost be ignored compared to the things discussed at this time.He thought about it for a while, recalling His Majesty's intentions, and thought that if he could settle the matter with these three useless barren mountains and save money, it would be a great achievement to go back.Taking advantage of the situation of Xiangfu Kingdom, the most important thing is to wipe out all the civil and military officials of Zhao Pu's family in Jiazhou.

Thinking about it this way, Lu Yuqing said: "For the sake of the Liao army, His Majesty the Emperor of the Song Dynasty will punish the officials of Jiazhou who committed the crime of deceiving the emperor. The Matou Mountain and Wushi Mountain will be sent to your Xiangfu Kingdom. As for the matter of Liujiazhai and the indemnity, that is absolutely impossible."

Xu Xuan and Tang Xingwu looked at each other, feeling relieved, but they did not expect the task assigned by His Majesty to be accomplished so easily.They know that Xiangfu country is in financial crisis now, and the army is tired, so it is really not suitable to use troops in a short time.If the State of Song refused to agree to their 'Unequal Treaty of Land-cutting and Compensation', at least they would have to wait until after the new year and the beginning of spring, and whether they would use troops at that time was only a matter of debate.

However, the two of them couldn't just agree with what Lu Yuqing said, so naturally they had to fight for it again.

Xu Xuan was afraid of the case and said angrily: "Master Lu thought we didn't know that Matou Mountain and Wushi Mountain were barren mountains and wild mountains, so he sent us Xiangfu Kingdom with these two useless places. As for the emperor's handling of Jiazhou officials? Your Song Kingdom's own affairs cannot be regarded as an explanation to us."

Lu Yuqing also said angrily: "Master Xu refuses to give up a step, why? Could it be that he really wants to start a war?"

...

...

Nearly a hundred miles northwest of Gyeongju, there is Dakouzhai.

The setting sun was slanting to the west, and the burning clouds hung on the other side of Wushi Mountain. Zhou Fagui walked up and down in the village uneasy. After Tan Ma reported that Huangwanguan had several miles of camps overnight, Dangjin had ordered all the people in Gyeongju to The village strengthened its guard.In Dakouzhai, it looked as if it was facing a great enemy. All kinds of defense materials and equipment began to be prepared. The bows and crossbows in the hands of the soldiers were already filled with arrows, and they were all focused on staring at the northwest.Here, the avenue leading from Xiangfu Kingdom to Qingzhou through Huangwan Pass is blocked here. If there are police, Dakouzhai must be the first to ignite the flames.When the people in the Walled City got the news, they began to move to Qingzhou City with large carts and small bags. Obviously, they did not have much confidence in the defenders.

"Where did the tens of thousands of troops come from? Is it a conspiracy of suspicion, or does this army really exist?" This question continued to torment Zhou Fagui and Dang Jin. Lu Yuqing had been gone for a day and hadn't returned yet. , although Zhou Fagui believed that there would be no major accidents, but he had the responsibility of guarding the land, but he had to take precautions.

"Send another group of people fifty miles away to meet Mr. Lu!" Zhou Fagui ordered Chen Tengfei, the guard of Dakouzhai.

"The Humble General will send someone there immediately."

As soon as Chen Tengfei finished speaking, the guarded soldiers shouted loudly: "Master Lu is back! Master Lu is back!"

Zhou Fagui walked up to the watchtower quickly, saw from a distance that it was indeed Lu Yuqing and his party, and immediately ordered: "Quickly, open the gate of the village and welcome Lord Lu!"

...

...

After half a stick of incense, inside the post house in Dakouzhai.

"Lord Lu, what's the result of the negotiation? There really is fifty thousand troops from the Xiangfu Kingdom at Huangwan Pass." Zhou Fagui asked anxiously before Lu Yuqing could rest after he took Lu Yuqing into the posthouse.

Lu Yuqing said solemnly and solemnly: "That's right, there are at least [-] troops. The old man negotiated this time in the barracks of the [-] troops, and he also saw with his own eyes that the commander of the White Tiger Army, Han Hu, and other generals of the Xiangfu Kingdom The officer is in the camp."

Zhou Fagui and Chen Tengfei, the guard of Dakouzhai, couldn't help but change their expressions. Their expressions were extremely serious. Could it be that they really want to fight Xiangfu Kingdom again?
But Lu Yuqing immediately said: "Fortunately, the old man did not disgrace his mission, so Xu Xuan did not live up to the name of a great Confucian. He was argued by the old man on the basis of reason, and he was speechless because of the way of getting along in a civilized country. In the end, just send the useless Horse Head Mountain and Wushi Mountain to the other party, plus 20 taels of silver and 20 bolts of silk, and this disaster of war can be resolved."

Zhou Fagui and Dakouzhai Chen Tengfei were startled at first, while the former heaved a sigh of relief, said without hesitation and from the bottom of his heart: "Master Lu is a talented man, and he solved a military disaster with his own power. This great achievement is no less than The military merits of attacking and defending a city." Zhou Fagui, as the prefect of Gyeongju, could not understand that Matou Mountain and Wushi Mountain are barren mountains and wild ridges, and bandits are rampant in them, and most of the villages are also Qiang villages. In his opinion, Compared with not letting Xiangfu country send troops to attack, it can be ignored directly.As for the 20 taels of silver and 20 bolts of silk, think about it. If there is a fight, the Northwest Frontier Army and the tens of thousands of troops on the Yongxing Army Road will definitely be dispatched, let alone escorting tens of thousands of people to raise food and grass. .The food, grass, and money consumed in this process are more than ten times the money and goods lost.

On the contrary, the guard Chen Tengfei breathed a sigh of relief, and his expression was dark and annoyed that the court was so afraid of fighting with Xiangfu Kingdom.

...

...

Longzhou, Ping'an County, Zhongjia Village.

It has been six days since Zhong Sanhe returned to the village. Just like when he left quietly, when he came back, he didn't disturb anyone except his wife, children and old father.

In the small farmyard, Zhong Sanhe drank the wine made by his wife in the bowl in one gulp, sighed comfortably, looked at the dilapidated three-room house and the narrow courtyard, and said to his wife who was still busy cooking: " I don’t think this place will last long.”

The wife was concentrating on cooking, she didn't hear what Zhong Sanhe said, she kept her hands in her hands, and asked, "What did you say?"

Zhong Sanhe said, "It's okay."

The wife said: "You drink less, drink after eating, it's not a problem to drink on an empty stomach."

Zhong Sanhe hummed, and continued to drink. The more he drank, the more he thought of his battle with Liao thieves in the past month, thinking that the reward from the court should have arrived, and that he should be No. 1 in the list of good people this time. As for nailing the nails, according to the imperial court's previous reward order, the top ten will be awarded official positions, and it is unknown what kind of officials the imperial court will appoint.He also remembered that Bai Canghai, the king of killers, once asked him if he wanted to join the special brigade. He could see the appreciation for him from the other party's eyes at that time, but he hadn't thought it through at the time, so he didn't reply right away.

After not hearing any movement behind him for a long time, his wife turned her head and found that Zhong Sanhe looked a little strange, and asked suspiciously, "What's wrong?"

"Didn't Fourth Uncle Zhong always want our small courtyard and ten acres of vegetable fields? I want to discuss the price with him these days and sell it."

The wife was stunned for a while, then laughed, holding rice in her hands, and said, "Dad, you went to kill Liaogou this time, and you really killed the most? The imperial court will appoint you an official? How do I feel that you are doing this?" Just kidding!"

Zhong Sanhe smiled and did not speak. He knew that his wife was just a very ordinary village woman. He killed the king of the South Courtyard of the Liao Kingdom. He was invited by the legendary murderer king and the court made him an official. It would definitely make his wife unbelievable for a while. .

Seeing that Zhong Sanhe didn't speak, his wife thought he was playing drunk again, so she lowered her head and continued to serve the meal, muttering: "Every time I drink a little wine, I like to talk nonsense. But if I can come back alive, I will give two more I will be satisfied if my child earns back the tuition fee for going to school."

The two children ran back home at this time, the younger brother was out of breath and flushed, and ran into the back room to call for grandpa, while the older sister helped mother with the dishes and said to Zhong Sanhe: " Father, the schools in the city will start in the spring after the Chinese New Year, and you promised me to let me go to school, but mother said that the money in the family is only enough for my younger brother to go to school, so I don’t care, I want to go to school too.”

Zhong Sanhe pinched his daughter's rosy cheek fondly, and said, "Don't worry, Daddy earned a lot of money this time, not only let you go to school in the county, but also let you go to middle school in the state city, and let you go to school in the city." You go to Xiajing to go to Xiangfu College Women's College."

The daughter jumped up happily, threw herself into Zhong Sanhe's arms, and said coquettishly, "Daddy is the best."

...

...

The next day, a big man in the eyes of the villagers came to Zhongjia Village, who was said to be the head of the Zhong family in Ping'an County.It is also the elder of Zhong's family, Mr. Zhong, who used to be the county captain of Ping'an County when Longzhou was still in the Song Dynasty, and had some influence in Ping'an County.He came here today because he heard some news, knowing that Zhong Sanhe actually entered the top ten in the list of rewards for benefactors during the war with the Liao Kingdom.But that's all he knows.

During the most difficult days in Zhong Sanhe's house, the old Mr. Zhong never showed up. According to the old man, he quietly watched Zhong Sanhe hone in the hardships, and in the end he really lived up to his expectations.

In this era, the patriarchal clan has a great influence. Although as a side branch, they seldom communicate with each other, the influence is still there, not to mention the status of Mr. Zhong.Therefore, Zhong Sanhe's father and wife were very happy to see Mrs. Zhong coming to their home. Although Zhong Sanhe was like a mirror in his heart, he had no choice but to entertain him with a smiling face.

(End of this chapter)