Neon Clothes and Iron Clothes

"What does Mr. Liu mean?" Zhang Wenguan asked puzzledly.

"A bowl of water must be leveled!" Liu Peiji said: "If you give General Wang a big cake, you have to give Pei Xingjian a small cake. If you just send him back without giving him anything, I'm afraid something will go wrong!"

Zhang Wenguan thought for a moment and nodded slowly: "What you said makes sense. I will tell the Holy One!"

While the two were talking, a civil servant ran over quickly and said repeatedly: "Ms. Zhang, why are you here? Something big has happened!"

"What's the big deal?" Zhang Wenguan asked, "What's the big deal?"

"The holy driver has left the Taiji Palace and is heading to the Suzaku Gate. King Pei is also with him!"

"Damn it!" Zhang Wenguan paused and cursed, then said to Liu Peiji: "Let's go to Zhuque Gate!"

On the city wall of Zhuque Gate, the gorgeous bright yellow royal umbrella is slowly moving directly above the city gate. Under the umbrella, Li Hongzheng is leaning on the chariot with a purple gauze crown on his bun. Four people A strong eunuch carried the chariot, with Concubine Yang on one side, a wet nurse holding a baby girl in her arms, more than a dozen personal palace maids and eunuchs, and behind them were imperial guards in brocade robes. Li Xian stood with a sword in front of all the guards. Front.

In the square in front of Zhuque Gate, more and more people have discovered the umbrella cover that represents the emperor. They are whispering to each other, but no one shouts loudly. Suddenly someone shouted loudly: "Your Majesty, we want food and the price of rice back to 20 cents per dou!"

"Yes, the price of rice is twenty cents per dou!"

Thousands of voices repeated, and more arms were waving. Even across the city wall, Li Hong could still feel the oncoming impact. He subconsciously turned his head and said to Concubine Yang: "It's too noisy here. Now, you and your children should retreat first!"

Concubine Yang's face was pale. She smiled reluctantly and left with her child. At this time, Li Hong noticed that Zhang Wenguan and Liu Peiji had also climbed up the city wall, and happily waved to them, motioning for them to come closer.

"Your Majesty, you shouldn't come here!" Zhang Wenguan complained in a low voice: "The wind here is too strong, you are not in good health!"

"I heard it all in the palace, how could I not come?" Li Hong smiled: "Ms. Zhang, you heard it too, what do you think?"

"We should lower the price of food in the city as soon as possible, and then resume water transportation!"

"Yeah!" Li Hong nodded: "What are your plans?"

"First of all, Pei Xingjian should be commended, and then he should be ordered to lead his troops to leave Chang'an and return to their base. Otherwise, it will be a big problem just for these tens of thousands of people to eat horses!" Zhang Wenguan said.

"Not bad, what else is there?" Li Hong said with a smile.

"The second step is to pardon Cui Hongdu, Yiji Lianbode, Heiji Changzhi and others first, and order them to return to Shaanxi Province. Water transportation should be resumed as soon as possible. They should be cooked and not raw."

"Well, I'm sure! What else is there?"

"Send trusted ministers to General Wang as soon as possible and order him to disband his troops and return to the capital to assist the government!" Zhang Wenguan hesitated for a moment after saying this: "Your Majesty, I also know that General Wang's loyalty can last through the sun and the moon. , but this time he has hundreds of thousands of troops around him when he goes south. If these soldiers and horses are not handled well, they will cause an uncontrollable mess. However, General Wang himself cannot survive on his own, so the choice of envoy must be carefully selected. Be extremely cautious!”

"That's true!" Li Hong nodded: "If I hadn't recovered and couldn't work too hard, I might as well have gone to Dongdu and brought Sanlang back to Chang'an." He thought for a while and turned his eyes to Li Xian. : "How about this! Let King Pei go on my behalf, and then you, Mr. Zhang, will be his deputy and take Sanlang back to Chang'an together!"

"King Pei and me?" Zhang Wenguan was stunned when he heard this: "Of course I don't care, but King Pei——"

"My brother is willing to go!" Li Xian on the side has already bowed down: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for giving me a chance to atone for my sins. I will do my best!"

"Okay!" Li Hong nodded: "Come here and tell the people outside Zhuque Gate what I just said, so as to relieve the worries of the head of Guizhou!"

As the eunuch read out the city in a high-pitched and elegant manner, the people gathered outside Zhuque Gate first knelt down one after another, and then shouted "Long live" in unison. Zhang Wenguan breathed a sigh of relief subconsciously. He cast an admiring look at the emperor, only to find that a layer of fine sweat had appeared on Li Hong's cheek.

"It seems that His Majesty is also very nervous!"

————————————————————————————————————

Heyang City.

Wang Zhaotang was not wearing armor and was riding a ginger mare. His guard was riding a black horse. Above his head, a large flag with the word "Tang" was flying high. Compared with a few years ago, Wang Zhaotang is much older, his beard has completely turned gray, and his hair is also a lot thinner. Wang Wenzuo's huge and spectacular pro-army had almost surrounded him, but there was no trace of panic or fear on Wang Zhaotang's weathered face.

Almost everyone in the guard looks taller, younger, stronger, and braver than Wang Zhaotang, and even the armor on their bodies is better. Whether they are Baekje, Goguryeo, or Japanese warriors, they all like to use gold, silver, and various kinds of armor. Decorate your helmet with precious stones to show off your wealth and prowess. And among this glittering crowd, you can easily find Wang Wenzuo. He just wore cowhide armor and a bronze helmet on his head. This man in simple clothes commanded an army of more than 100,000 people and has occupied the entire Hebei Province. The troops reached the foot of Heyang City. Behind this fortress is the famous Three Bridges of Heyang. After passing this pontoon bridge, there is Luoyang City behind it.

"Wang Wenzuo!" Wang Zhaotang's tone was the same as his words, just like the stones on the ground, cold and hard.

"Discourteous! How dare you call the general by his name!" a Hebei knight shouted angrily, pulled out his sword and waved it threateningly. Wang Wenzuo raised his right hand and motioned for him to step back: "It's nothing, people are called by their names. We are old acquaintances. Wang Xiaowei, do you still remember? When we first met under Pyongyang City, your beard There are not so many white ones!”

"That was many years ago!" Wang Zhaotang's eyes flashed: "You and I are different now!"

"Yes, time can always change a lot of things!" Wang Wenzuo sighed: "You should know the purpose of my visit this time. I have given you two days to think about it. As long as you hand over the three cities of Heyang and ensure the floating bridge Not to be destroyed. I can reward you with a large sum of money. How about one hundred thousand guan? If you want to be an official, then send a large state to be the governor. Your soldiers can also choose to go home or join our army. They will be given out when they go home. How about traveling expenses, stay here and I will treat you fairly?" "No!"

The smile on Wang Wenzuo's face disappeared, he tightened his jaw and said nothing.

"Captain Wang!" Cao Wenzong said, "You know you can't defend it! If it were anyone else, you might be able to defend it by relying on the city wall, but the general is different. You know it very well!"

"Yes!" Wang Zhaotang nodded: "I knew I couldn't hold it back in Dafichuan, but I still didn't hand over the village to the Tibetans because that's what I should do! It's the same today!"

There was an angry noise around Wang Wenzuo. People angrily criticized Wang Zhaotang for overestimating his capabilities and competed with Wang Wenzuo for the power of the vanguard. However, Wang Wenzuo remained silent, like a stone statue. After a few minutes, he raised his right hand and the noise quickly died down.

"You are right, Colonel Wang!" Wang Wenzuo said: "Since I have always hoped that my subordinates can be like you, then naturally I have no power to ask you to give up your responsibilities. See you on the battlefield tomorrow!"

"See you on the battlefield tomorrow!" Wang Zhaotang nodded to Wang Wenzuo: "Although I once hoped to avenge the Tubo people under your command, it seems that I can no longer do so!" After that, he picked up the reins and walked toward the city gate. Speed ​​away.

"My lord!" Cao Wenzong lowered his voice: "If we want to besiege, it will take at least ten days just to build the equipment. I will take twelve selected disciples and sneak into the city tonight to kill this old man. Life. Without this tough old man, the defenders would soon surrender!"

"You want to assassinate this old man!" Wang Wenzuo smiled: "I'm afraid things are not that simple!"

"What do you mean?" Cao Wenzong asked.

"Don't you understand?" Wang Wenzuo said with a smile: "My people from Hebei who have just come to seek refuge all want to make a contribution. If you solve the problem so easily, I'm afraid you will be the one they hate the most!"

"What do you mean?" Cao Wenzong asked.

"Leave these things to them!" Wang Wenzuo sneered: "What we have to do next is to stay calm and preserve our strength!"

"Conserve your strength?" Cao Wenzong asked in surprise: "You don't believe these Hebei people?"

"They are borrowing my power to achieve their own goals. Once they achieve their goals, they will kick me away!" Wang Wenzuo said coldly: "But I am the same, so I have nothing to complain about!"

"Then what do they want to do?" Cao Wenzong asked in surprise.

"I'm not very clear yet!" Wang Wenzuo smiled: "But when the army enters Chang'an, many things will become clear. Mr. Cao, I have one thing to leave to you!"

"What's the matter?" Cao Wenzong asked.

"Go to Chang'an and find a way to ensure His Majesty's safety. If His Majesty is unfortunate, then you will find a way to preserve his bloodline. Do you understand?" Wang Wenzuo whispered.

"My subordinate understands!"

"Go do it! The sooner the better!"

After sending Cao Wenzong away, Wang Wenzuo returned to his tent with a solemn expression. What he just said to the people from Hebei who had taken refuge in him was not said casually, but from his personal feelings during this period. Wang Wenzuo's purpose of sending troops back to Chang'an was to restore Li Hong's throne. If Li Hong was no longer here, then he would choose a child from Li Hong's bloodline to support him; Choose one of them to inherit the throne as Li Hong's heir. All in all, Wang Wenzuo did not want to destroy the Tang Empire. But these Hebei people are different. A considerable number of them have a deep hatred for the Guanxi Empire. After they invade Chang'an with the help of Wang Wenzuo, will they still support the existence of the Tang Empire? This is a very delicate issue. Even if they agree to the existence of the Tang Empire, they will carry out a disemboweling and dismemberment reform. The Hebei gentry as a whole will definitely get a share of the political cake of the new empire. A big piece.

Wang Wenzuo has always maintained a very cautious attitude towards the opinions of these new supporters. He wrote down every attitude they inadvertently revealed, but tried his best to refuse to express his position prematurely. Of course he knows that the demands made by the Hebei nobles are reasonable to a certain extent, but like all interest groups, these Hebei nobles will never be satisfied with only getting what they "should" after winning. On the contrary, they They will try every means to seize a larger share of the benefits and solidify them to ensure that their descendants can last forever. This is the nature of all human beings, and the Hebei nobles are no exception. All Wang Wenzuo can do is to use its power first, and at the same time keep a backup plan in case of emergencies.

So in the next military meeting, Wang Wenzuo rarely agreed to a smooth and mediocre military plan - divide the army into several parts, attack Heyang City from several directions at the same time, and line up to attack the city by boat. Zhongli City was located on the sandbank in the river to ensure that the limited garrison forces were dispersed. This was rarely seen in the past, because what Wang Wenzuo hated most was to deploy troops evenly in several directions, lacking focus. But this time, he readily agreed and agreed with the competitive order of "the first to enter the city will be the general".

After the military meeting, Wang Wenzuo sat in the tent and ate dinner alone indifferently. The sound of horns and the neighing of war horses could be heard from outside. If it had happened in the past, his blood would have boiled. But now, Wang Wenzuo was as calm as water. He just carefully chopped up the roasted beef with a dagger, and then put it into his mouth piece by piece, as if Eating in a palace is normal. For the first time in his life, he became uninterested in the ongoing war, as if he were a spectator rather than a participant.

"General, good news, good news!" Acton came in from outside the tent.

"what's up?"

"There is news about General Cui and the others!" Actun's face turned red: "The scout met them in Wen County, and Mr. Ijilenbode and General Black Teeth were also with him!"

"Wen County? Are Yiji Lianbode and Hei Te Changzhi okay? That's great, God bless you!" Wang Wenzuo put down the dagger excitedly, clasped his hands and prayed a few words: "What about Murong Mu? He is also with them. ?"

"I don't know about this, the messenger didn't say anything!"

"Bring the person here first! I want to inquire in person!"

Wang Wenzuo stood up and rubbed his hands excitedly. The original boredom and boredom disappeared from his body. He finally had the opportunity to get first-hand information about Chang'an. Even if it was a bit outdated, it was better than not knowing the first-hand information. (End of chapter)