The rise of the prince

Chapter 825 Meeting + Scary

Nine is the number of extreme yang in the "Book of Changes", so September [-] is also called Chongyang Festival. On the day of Double Ninth Festival, young people climb high together, eat flower cakes in the palace, and the emperor leads all officials to worship heaven and earth. Grand day.

The frontline soldiers didn't have so much leisure time, they were still on their way.

On the way, Shi Zheng, the chief medical officer accompanying the army, reported to Li Xingzhou the casualties recorded by all the troops since the expedition.

"Your Highness, I have been planning all night, and I finally have a total." Chang Shi said with a smile on his old face, "So far, our army has suffered a total of 270 casualties, but this is just counting. "

Li Xingzhou was not surprised by this number. The so-called casualties are both casualties and deaths. Slightly or severely wounded are counted. Even if they catch a cold and are unable to fight during the march, they are also counted as wounded. The number will naturally be large.

"How many people died in battle?" Li Xingzhou asked directly on his horse.

"One thousand seven hundred and four people, Your Highness, this is simply unheard of before. It's so old and modern, tens of thousands of people are injured, but only so few people die!"

Before he spoke, Chang Shi wrinkled his face and felt that he had made a mistake, as if he was gloating, so he changed his words, "Your Highness, what I mean is"

"Stop talking, I understand." Li Xingzhou waved his hand.

Tens of thousands of casualties were injured, but only more than 700 died in the end. The biggest contributor was alcohol.

In the era of cold weapons, the number of people who died directly in battle was very small, because most of the time, whether it was long-range crossbow or close-range combat, most of the time it was impossible to directly cause fatal injuries that would kill people in a short time.

Not to mention the lack of kinetic energy of the bow and crossbow, the metaphysics of the head, and the flesh and bones blocking it after penetrating the armor, the penetrating power is limited, even in melee combat, it cannot be fatal in many cases.

Most of the time, trauma is caused to make the enemy lose combat effectiveness.

Therefore, many brave generals in ancient times had dozens of scars on their bodies at every turn.

But on the battlefield with poor logistics conditions, the general has a lot of people to take care of him, but ordinary soldiers don't.

From the perspective of later generations, first disinfect and sterilize to stop the bleeding, and then sew a few stitches, or do a minor operation to remove the foreign body in the wound, and then get back to life with anti-inflammatory injections. There is no need to worry about life-threatening injuries. Nowadays, it is a life gamble!
No disinfection, no surgery to remove wound residues, no anti-inflammatory needles, no tetanus vaccine.

Whether you die or not depends entirely on your face. Wound infection and ulceration are basically equivalent to death. If the bleeding cannot stop, it is also death. If foreign objects such as arrowheads and iron pieces left in the body cannot be removed, it is basically death.

So post-war downsizing is the big head of the dead.

Soldiers will also smear their feces and feces on the arrows, so that even if the person hit by the arrow is only injured, there is a high probability of wound infection.

There is also the golden juice, a sharp weapon for defending the city, which directly boils excrement and urine and pours it on the enemy's head.

It can be said that being injured in ancient times was very miserable. Most of the time, you can only resign yourself to fate and ask for blessings.

Moreover, watching comrades grow thinner and thinner amid wailing, while maggots grew from their wounds, there was nothing they could do but wait for death. It also dealt a huge blow to morale, and many new recruits who met for the first time could not bear such a sight.

Some soldiers, on the other hand, think about the blood galloping on the battlefield and the great achievements of sealing wolves and living in Xuxu, but in the end they are faced with such a powerless and tragic reality, and their spirits will collapse.

However, alcohol is an important resource in the logistics of the new army. Direct washing with alcohol is not good for wounds, but it can prevent infection and prevent these tragedies from happening. Almost no wounded people in the army were infected, leading to wound ulceration, and the body died of fever.

Although some were indeed too seriously injured to be treated, at least they died less painfully.

This has greatly reduced the reduction of army personnel and reduced the pressure on morale. Among the more than 700 people killed in battle, the frontline troops were not the bulk, but more of the auxiliary soldiers and rear supplies.

During the confrontation outside Ningyuan City, Wanyan Zongbi, as a veteran of the battlefield, was keenly aware that he could not defeat Jing Jun in a head-on confrontation, so he began to use light cavalry to go around and attack the grain roads and supply supplies, which once made Li Xingzhou very upset.

It was also during the confrontation at that stage that the army lost a lot of auxiliary soldiers and labor services.

While listening to Chang Shi's report, while thinking about the terms of the negotiation, the time to go north passed quickly, and the chill in the air became heavier and heavier.

On September [-]th, when it was almost noon, the former army of Li Xingzhou's northward army encountered the cavalry company sent by Liu Ji, and then they led the way and continued northward.

At noon, they arrived at the hillside thirty miles south of Shangjing. The highlands on the hillside were filled with Jingjun flags.

Liu Ji personally returned with his troops.

Li Xingzhou looked north from Meixue's back, and at the foot of the hillside a few miles ahead was the post station where Li and Li met for an appointment.

The small civil post station stands alone beside the muddy road. According to Liu Ji, it just rained last night.Many people in the Kingdom of Jin were dressed in formal attire and were waiting on the avenue outside the post station. They should be their lord and important civil and military ministers.

And five or six miles behind, the flags of the Golden Army were also fluttering on both sides of the avenue, and it was hard to see how many there were, but just looking at the flags, I thought there were tens of thousands of horses.

But Liu Ji just told him that it is impossible for Jin Jun to have so many people at the moment.

The main force was scattered in Liaodong, and Wanyan Zongbi led the remnants to flee to the snowy forest in the northeast. The imperial guards in the capital were defeated more than three times by Liu Ji's Eighth Battalion of Black Cavalry, beheading more than [-] people.

Now all the main roads around Shangjing are under the control of the black cavalry. People in the imperial city cannot leave Shangjing, and there is no way to organize a large number of people. 3000 people are the highest estimate.

Li Xingzhou nodded. They started from Shanhaiguan and divided their troops to stay in various important towns along the way.

Later, Yang Hongzhao and Wei Yubai took away another group, but now the people he brought together with the fourth battalion of black cavalry brought by Liu Ji still had a strength of over [-].

The mountains to the south of the post station are full of their people, and all the commanding heights are occupied by them. If the Kingdom of Jin repents, it is not impossible for them to take advantage of the situation and attack Shangjing.

Li Xingzhou looked at the ministers and the emperor of the Kingdom of Jin who were still waiting, and said, "Pull some new cannons to the high ground and get ready. If the negotiation fails later, or if they want to be stubborn to the end, they will directly blow up the Emperor of the Kingdom of Jin to the sky." .”

The people around were stunned for a moment, and immediately started to act.

Li Xingzhou had already made up his mind that if he brought the emperor out to negotiate today, either the other party would compromise or send him back to the west, and then the army would go to take Shangjing, no matter what.

"The matter will come to an end today, Liu Ji, get ready." Li Xingzhou said.

Liu Ji nodded, "I understand." He turned his horse and began to gather cavalry behind the hillside. If the negotiation failed, they would rush down from the high ground, and neither the emperor nor the ministers of the Jin Kingdom would even try to escape.

Li Xingzhou ordered a group of people, all of whom were generals in the army, and six personal soldiers to escort them, and headed for the post station at the foot of the hillside.

The sun was shining brightly at noon, and the flags of the people of Jingguo were fluttering on the hilltops in the distance. There were everywhere on the hilltops, and people could not be seen clearly from a distance, but everyone was frightened.

There was a golden army to meet them in the rear, and everyone present knew in their hearts that there were only more than 1000 people who came together from here and there, and the Prime Minister Liu Xu asked them to carry more flags and bluff.

But no matter how much they bluffed, even if they had an advantage in numbers, they were still no match for Jing Jun, especially now that Jing Jun had a lot of power.

Pu Chaling was as nervous as everyone else.

Since one wants to meet Jingguo with the etiquette of seeing the suzerain, both the monarch and the mother of the nation must be present. She wears a grand empress costume and is by the emperor's side. Behind them are all civil and military officials.

Only a few princes were not present. They had already left the north gate of Shangjing with the eldest prince. If there was a problem here, they would flee north with the prince.

Everyone has been waiting since early in the morning, and it has been several hours now, but the emperor and all the ministers are afraid of offending the butcher Li Xingzhou, so they dare not complain about anything, but keep sending people to Jing Jun to ask when he will arrive.

It is said that Li Xingzhou beheaded tens of thousands of defenders who dared to resist him in the south, piled their heads into mountains, and the moat overflowed with blood.

I am also afraid that the army on the hillside in the distance will suddenly attack them, and it will be unstoppable.

After suffering until noon, a huge yellow dragon flag appeared on the hillside, everyone was shocked, Li Xingzhou had arrived!
Many people present have never seen Li Xingzhou himself, but these three words are already a common psychological shadow for everyone, including the emperor.

In the distance, dozens of people rode down the distant hillside and came towards this side.

Pu Chaling was taken aback for a moment, and found that the emperor was holding onto the corner of her clothes tightly, his knuckles turning white.

The emperor is afraid.
In fact, she was also afraid, and quickly grabbed the emperor's hand with her backhand, and the emperor also held her tightly. This was the first time since Liaodong came to Shangjing that the emperor felt so close to her.

Now that things have happened, Pu Chaling also somewhat understands why the emperor has alienated her in the past two years.

At the beginning, the Kingdom of Jin was at war with the Liao Kingdom in the area of ​​Zhongxing Mansion in the west, and almost all the men in the Liaodong area went to the battlefield, and all kinds of supplies were sent to the front line. Life was very hard.

A large number of injuries and illnesses on the front line kept sending to the rear, and she couldn't take care of them at all. She had just married into Wanyan's family at that time, and she was only thinking about how to contribute to her husband's family. Doctors look after sick and wounded soldiers.

At that time, she simply thought that the sooner these people recover, they can return to the front line as soon as possible, and the pressure on her husband and father will be less, and they will work for her husband and the family.

Unexpectedly, within a few days, rumors began to spread, such as she had an affair with a certain soldier, she couldn't bear her husband's absence and had a private meeting with a soldier, etc. Rumors and rumors began to spread everywhere.

At first, she still felt that those who are innocent are self-clearing, so let them go, until her mother-in-law found her and sternly warned her not to do things beyond her status, and seriously said that it might harm her for the rest of her life.

Because she didn't want to intensify the conflict with her mother-in-law, she agreed angrily, but she couldn't figure it out. She just wanted to help her husband more.

But many years later, she finally understood her mother-in-law's kindness to her at the beginning, and also understood why her husband became more and more alienated from her after moving from Liaodong to Shangjing.

He is the emperor, not a man from an ordinary family, and has never been short of women, even if it is just some rumors, she has long been "not clean" to the emperor.

For the emperor, there are so many women in the world, the big deal is to get another one, but for her, she can only have one husband in this life.
In the past few years, she tried to make amends, but there was no result. The emperor was always calm and kept a sense of distance. If it wasn't for her father, her queen might not be able to sit still.

Maybe today will be an opportunity.
Pu Chaling thought in her heart that when the emperor was so frightened, she was by his side. As long as she worked together to overcome the difficulties, the emperor might change her view and get closer to her. Then she would find an opportunity to explain the original misunderstanding.
Thinking this way, I have the motivation to overcome the difficulties in front of me.

In fact, Pu Chaling was also very scared, her slender thighs under the long skirt were trembling, facing the legendary Li Xingzhou, who in this world would not be afraid?she asked herself.

Soon, the figure got closer and became clearer. It could be seen that Li Xingzhou was very tall, and his crotch was a little white between the eyebrows. The majestic tall horse was condescending, like a hill pressing down on everyone's heads.

There are many generals behind him, there are about 30 to [-] people.

Seeing Li Xingzhou approaching, everyone's heartbeat accelerated involuntarily. The legendary murderer is a frightening and invincible evil spirit.
Soon, a tall young man dismounted from his horse. He was fully armored and was a full head taller than the emperor, requiring everyone to look up to him.

Afterwards, many generals behind him got off their horses and followed him, their armor rattling as they walked, coming with a sense of oppression.

The opponent stopped three steps away from them.

Pu Chaling felt that the emperor's hand was gripping more and more tightly, and even pinched her a little, but she dared not make a sound, for fear of offending the murderer in front of her.

He only dared to look up quietly.

at a glance.
Immediately amazed, in front of him is the grandson of Emperor Jingguo who is said to kill people without blinking an eye, can eat children, and is invincible like a martial arts song. How young is he?
She was about the same age as her younger brother. If you think about it carefully, if the rumors are true, this person should indeed be four or five years younger than her.

But because of his astonishing actions, I and the people around me subconsciously think of him as older, thinking that is reasonable.

When I saw him now, he was just a young man in his twenties!

The pressure is not reduced by half, on the contrary, it is about 20 years old, just kidding!

Moreover, young people are moody, irritable and impulsive, and may be more difficult to serve than calm elders.

There seemed to be a frightening smirk on the corner of Li Xingzhou's mouth.I don't know if it was an illusion, but even with her head down, Pu Chaling felt that the devil in front of her was staring at her, and her heart beat faster.
He spoke, and then the people around him translated, "Is this your etiquette?"

Only then did the crowd react, the emperor took her hand, knelt down in humiliation, and the ministers behind him also knelt down, and then said loudly: "The lord of the small country, Wan Yanli, welcome the envoy of the upper country!"

The emperor's voice was trembling, and even Pu Chaling felt deeply humiliated.

It used to be the etiquette for the Tatars, Xia Guo, and Gao Li to see their emperors of the Jin Kingdom, but now they bowed their knees to Jing Guo.

"Excuse me." Li Xingzhou stroked the hilt of his waist with one hand, without even lifting his hand.

With such arrogance and contempt, Pu Chaling hated the devil in front of her even more, hated and feared, and dared not show it, so she could only keep silent and suppress it in her heart.

"You know my reason for coming, don't talk nonsense, I have limited time, I only negotiate with three people, your lord Wan Yanli, your prime minister Liu Xu, your Qi king Pu Chayi, come forward and speak. "When this sentence was translated, many people quietly lowered their heads.

Pu Chaling was also nervous for a moment, the devil on the opposite side called his father by name, and he immediately named three people.

The emperor did not say that his father Pu Chayi was the most prestigious person in Liaodong, and Liu Xiang was the most prestigious person in the court, so he obviously knew the situation of the Jin Dynasty very well.

This is even more frightening, he can't fight a war, and the affairs of the court and the court are still clearly handled by others. This person is so young, but he is really terrifying!
(End of this chapter)