Aspiring to the Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 3 Ruined Capital
Luo Youdu took a donkey and strolled on the streets of Tokyo. The surrounding roads were deserted, and the houses on the left and right were mostly dilapidated. There was not even a little smoke from the kitchen at dusk. The occupancy rate of the entire street was only [-]%. In the weeds on the wall, mice, insects and ants can be seen everywhere, and there is no prosperity at all.

"Ugh!"

Accustomed to seeing the bustling high-rise buildings and the bustling crowds, Luo Youdu's face was a little uncomfortable, and there was also a touch of sadness in his heart.

In troubled times, human life is worthless!
This is the capital of the Zhou Dynasty. The capital city of a country is like this. It is obvious what the situation will be in other places.

In this era, the only place that can truly be called prosperous is Jinling in the south of the Yangtze River.

Luo Youdu felt emotional in his heart.

The defeat of Kaifeng in Tokyo was naturally not because of Guo Rong, but a problem left over from history.

Since Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Kaifeng has been valued by the imperial court because of its water and land hubs. After the development of the Sui and Tang dynasties, an economic zone no less than that of Chang'an and Luoyang has been formed around Bianshui.This also led to Houliang, Houjin, Houhan and now Houzhou all choosing Kaifeng as their capital.

In just over thirty years, Kaifeng has witnessed the rise and fall of the five eras of Houliang, Later Tang, Later Jin, Daliao, and Later Han.

This also means that the military disasters suffered by Kaifeng have hardly stopped in the past 30 years.

Especially nine years ago when the Daliao Kingdom ruled the Central Plains.

Yelu Deguang led the Liao soldiers into the Central Plains. After Kaifeng was established as the capital, he only knew how to indulge in pleasure.When the Liao soldiers were absent, the Prime Minister Zhao Yanshou asked for funding.

Yelu Deguang said directly: "I have never been in this category in Daliao. If the armies are short of sound, let them go to Caogu."

It is conceivable what the result will be as soon as these words are spoken.

The Liao soldiers were already brutal, but now they were ordered to plunder, looting the eastern and western capitals, namely Kaifeng and Luoyang, as well as many towns and cities in the surrounding Central Plains.

Yelu Deguang's style of behavior caused anger and resentment among the people. In the end, the rebel army was forced to flee northward to the Central Plains, intending to return to Liaodong.

Before he left, he plundered again, bringing thousands of promoted and demoted officials, hundreds of court ladies and eunuchs, and all the treasures of the treasury to the north.

So far, Kaifeng's vitality has been seriously injured.

Liu Zhiyuan of the Later Han Dynasty was not good at governing, not to mention he died of illness within a year after taking over Kaifeng.

Liu Chengyou, who came to the throne, was even more busy with internal struggles. He wanted to get rid of powerful officials such as Yang Bin, Shi Hongzhao, Wang Zhang, and Guo Wei, and he had no intention of political affairs.

In the end, it was destroyed by Guo Wei.

That is, after Guo Wei came to the throne, Kaifeng was considered to have a chance to breathe.

Unexpectedly, this Guo Wei is also a person of poor fortune. He died after being the emperor for three years.

His adopted son Guo Rong can be called wise and martial, but Fang Gang's prestige was insufficient when he ascended the throne, so he was attacked by Liu Chong in the Northern Han Dynasty.

Although Guo Rong defeated the Northern Han Dynasty in the battle between Gaoping and Jinyang, he lost a series of losses in the subsequent battle of Jinyang and the Xinkou blockade, which damaged a lot of soldiers and horses. Even the general Shi Yanchao died in the battle, and the economy suffered a lot. blow.

Kaifeng suffered a lot of ill-fated fate, with constant disasters and serious population loss in the past ten years, how could it be prosperous?

In the short term, if Kaifeng wants to show a prosperous posture, I am afraid that only by imitating the legendary sorghum river chariot god and using inhuman means to gather the world's wealth to support the city can it be achieved.

Luo Youdu thought wildly, the more people go north, the more popular it is, and it looks a little bit like a capital city.

His goal was Zhao Kuangyin's mansion. Compared to him who lived in a civilian area, as Guo Rong's number one confidant and beloved general, his place of residence was naturally the north of the city, which was the most popular place near the imperial palace.

Luo Youdu, one man and one donkey, attracted a lot of attention.

People passing by all give way three feet.

It's not because Luo Youdu looks vicious, but because the donkey he's leading has a heavy shackle on one side, so you can tell it's not good at first glance.

Relying on memory, I came to Zhao Kuangyin's residence, looking at the two drum-holding stones in front of me, and thinking about my own dilapidated house, I was really angry.

These two stone decorations are worth more than his entire house.

After a little stamping, Luo Youdu stepped forward and knocked on the door knocker.

The person who opened the door was a middle-aged man with a broken arm. He was tall and straight, his eyes were resolute and spirited, and he showed no signs of disability at all.

The middle-aged man saluted very politely, and then invited him in.

Luo Youdu was startled for a moment, and wondered, "Don't ask me why you came here, just let me in?"

The middle-aged man smiled modestly and said, "My Du Yuhou has always been hospitable and has special instructions. No matter who you are, if you have a visit, you will be treated equally. Please come to the living room to entertain you."

Luo Youdu thought "Good guy", this Zhao Kuangyin is really extraordinary.

Luo Youdu did not accept the invitation, and said: "Thank you for your kindness. It's just that as a villain, I still have some self-knowledge. I came here today to arrest the murderer Zhao Kuangyi, and I hope you will report to Marquis Zhao Duyu and let him Hand it over."

A trace of anger flashed in the eyes of the middle-aged man, and there was a hint of murderous intent on his body.

Luo Youdu smiled suddenly, and said: "I have heard for a long time that Zhao Duyuhou is great, and you can get a glimpse of one or two with your demeanor. The soldiers are proud and the generals are proud, and their reputation is well-deserved."

The middle-aged man's complexion changed slightly, and he hurriedly said with a smile: "I am only a concierge, and Mr. Xiaolang is serious. Please wait for a while, and then I will go to Du Yuhou for instructions."

Not long after Zhao Kuangyin came down to court, he rubbed his slightly aching forehead, thinking that when he went to get close to Wei Renpu today, the other party left directly and ignored him, so he couldn't help frowning.Now that the new emperor is on the throne, the old and new civil and military officials have their own thoughts. As a new military general, he is too popular. Not only the old and new civil servants in the temple are hostile to him, but even those veteran generals have other thoughts.

In this situation, he really didn't dare to hand over Zhao Kuangyi.So as not to cause him to be implicated for his own sake.

"If it's really not possible, simply ask your Majesty to guard one side and stay away from this dirty temple!"

Zhao Kuangyin seemed to have made up his mind.

It is true that Guo Rong is the master of ZTE. For the reform of the military and government, the Forbidden Army controlled by Zhao Kuangyin is the most important link, and the future is limitless.But facing his own younger brother, Zhao Kuangyin didn't hesitate at all.

Just thinking about how to take Zhao Kuangyi out of this wrong place, I got the news that Luo Youdu came to arrest someone.

Zhao Kuangyin was furious instantly, and shouted: "Good boy, I don't want to make things difficult for him, but today he came to the door?"

Who is Zhao Kuangyin?
From a military family, with extraordinary talent and high martial arts skills, he can be said to be invincible in the world with a fist and stick.How can it not be seen that the strangle mark on Luo Youdu's neck is a new injury?Just don't want to explain it.

Thinking of fighting with gods, he really can't do anything as a pawn, and when he went to the door, he was in a hurry to go to the doctor.

It's only been a day's work, and the bully came to the door?

He didn't know that the injury was from a real suicide, and he thought it was a bit more realistic acting.

(End of this chapter)