serious man in the red chamber

Chapter 317
Dark clouds were gathering, and snow was falling from the sky.

In the wind and snow, the mighty motorcade drove out of the gate.

Arutai led the way, leading hundreds of Zhaowuda League guards.

The carriages filled with loot made deep ruts in the snow and drifted away.

A group of Mobei Mongolian cavalry followed behind several blue-roofed carriages.

There was a thick hemp rope tied to the handlebar of the first carriage, and in the carriage sat the depressed Governor of Eastern Siberia, Nicholas.

In the remaining carriages sat Rakshasa ladies, who were going to the capital to perform ballet.

Walking at the end were the Zhou cavalry wearing large-brimmed winter hats and cloaks, with blazing guns slung on their backs and sabers hanging on their waists.

Jia Hu and Eunuch Zhao stood side by side in front of the camp gate, watching the retreating team without saying a word.

There was a sound of horse hoofbeats, and a group of military envoys galloped towards the gate.

Jia Hu turned around and looked.

The cavalry galloped to the camp gate, and the leading envoy jumped off his horse and handed a letter to Jia Hu with both hands.

Jia Hu quickly tore open the seal and read the letter.

Suddenly, Jia Hu's face turned solemn.

Eunuch Zhao asked Jia Hu anxiously: "What's wrong?"

After Jia Hu read the letter, he was silent for a while: "The Rakshasa people invaded Tangnu Ulianghai from the west and defeated the army of King Zhasaktu. The entire western area was occupied, and the Rakshasa people's forward Already entered Khovd.”

Eunuch Zhao was surprised: "Didn't you say that the Rakshasa people have no main force in Siberia? Could it be that the Rakshasa people have transferred troops from the mainland again?"

Jia Hu was stunned for a moment: "Who knows."

"According to the plan, it's time for us to return to Beijing. Commander, what are your plans?" Eunuch Zhao looked at Jia Hu with burning eyes.

Jia Hu looked at him: "You mean to hand over the imperial land to the Rakshasa people?"

Eunuch Zhao was anxious: "The Za family doesn't mean this! You can't accuse someone unjustly!"

Jia Hu glanced at the letter and said: "The letter from King Zhasaktu said that the number of Rakshasa bandits is about thirty to fifty thousand. Fifty thousand is a bit exaggerated. I estimate it to be around thirty thousand."

Eunuch Zhao's face also became serious: "The army of Prince Zhasaktu cannot withstand it. The Yike Zhao League and the Mongolian coalition forces outside the Pass are scattered everywhere. We must break camp immediately. However, it is snowing heavily again."

Jia Hu pondered for a while: "This is a good opportunity. Let King Zasaktu's army resist in front first, weaken his strength and repel the Rakshasa people, and then we can station a large army in Khovd."

Eunuch Zhao's eyes lit up.

Jia Hu turned around and walked towards the camp while saying, "Immediately send the cotton clothes and grains sent by the court to Yang Dayong."

Eunuch Zhao hurriedly followed and asked, "Excuse me, Marshal, how should I write this official document to the court?"

Jia Hu paused for a moment and said, "Tell the truth. Also urge the Ministry of Household Affairs to bring the grain, grass and military pay immediately."

Eunuch Zhao: "Should we ask the Ordnance Bureau to bring in some more ammunition?"

Jia Hu ignored him and walked quickly towards the Chinese army's tent: "You can figure it out yourself."

An hour later, waves of loud horns sounded, and then groups of Zhou troops wearing red cotton armor walked out of the camp under the leadership of officers and marched toward Ulia Sutai.
It was snowing heavily, and the sky was covered with snow. Everything inside and outside the capital was shrouded in white snow.

There were many people, people waiting to buy beef, mutton and sheepskin jackets lined up in dense snow, and the shops were even more crowded.

In the blink of an eye, it was the tenth month of the lunar calendar, and heavy snow suddenly fell in the capital early yesterday morning. This made everyone panic, especially the court. It was only October, and a snowstorm in the north was a certainty.

The Ministry of War and the Ministry of Household Affairs were extremely busy. The imperial court had received an official document from Eunuch Zhao. The first batch of 20 stones, grains and rice had been transferred to the new city outside the customs ten days ago, but Eunuch Zhao wanted four months of military rations. They wanted Transport all the required military rations before heavy snow blocks roads.The sudden heavy snow also brought a lot of trouble to the people in the city. Not only was it difficult to travel, the biting cold wind was unbearable, but many people had to go out in order to survive.

At this time, the sheepskin jacket that had been disliked by everyone a while ago became a hot commodity.

Although the sheepskin jackets sold in the General Store of the Ministry of Internal Affairs have a strong taste, they are windproof and cold-proof, and are better at keeping warm than cotton-padded jackets.And the cotton-padded jacket can't stand the wind, a biting cold wind makes my heart cool!
Suddenly, there was a noise and commotion in the street:

"I'm coming!"

"Come and see! Come and see! Governor Rakshasa has been taken to Beijing!"

No matter how big the event was, it could not stop curiosity. People who had been queuing just now ran towards the street, and soon both sides of the street were crowded with people.

The infantry yamen had already sent officers and soldiers to maintain order.

"Look, the one at the front is the Khan of Zhaowuda League who has come to receive the title."

Riding on the front horse was none other than the dusty Zhaowuda League Khan King Alutai. After nearly a month of trekking through mountains and rivers, he finally arrived at the capital of the Zhou Dynasty. Since entering the customs, he was shocked by what he saw and heard. After seeing the city of Beijing lying like a giant dragon on the earth, he completely surrendered and made a decision to live in the capital from now on.

Behind him, all the Mongolians were also deeply shocked.

Someone in the crowd of onlookers shouted: "Every time this army goes out for an expedition, the money is transported to the capital one by one. I heard that after the battle in Liaodong, the emperor's internal treasury was increased by tens of millions."

As soon as these words came out, everyone turned their attention to the endless motorcade, wondering what treasures were on the carriage.

One carriage after another slowly drove towards the imperial city.

Someone whispered, "Here we come!"

At this time, the window of a private room in the east tea house opened, and a head stuck out. It turned out to be a Xiyi man, and then two more people stuck their heads out.

The prison car approached, and Nicholas changed to this prison car prepared by the Superintendent of Ceremonies in advance outside the city.

Looking at Nicholas with his eyes closed, a Xiyi man spoke: "It's Nicholas."

The two Xiyi people looked at each other, and then looked at the Xiyi people who spoke.

The Xiyi people continued: "This is a good opportunity! We can persuade the Zhou emperor to attack Moscow together and eliminate the Rakshasa people! As long as there are common interests, Nanyang affairs can be easily solved."

The eyes of the two Xiyi people lit up.

They came to see the emperor on behalf of the Nanyang Xiyi people.

In July and August, they had three naval battles with the Guangdong Navy in Nanyang, all of which ended in failure.

Of course, as long as they gather their scattered warships, they can defeat the Guangdong Navy.

But they also knew what kind of behemoth they were facing. With a vast territory, endless wealth, and a huge population, this empire had huge war potential.

They traveled across the ocean and came to Nanyang to seek wealth and did not want to have a war with this big Eastern country.

After some discussion, the three of them were appointed as special envoys and followed the caravan to the capital. They wanted to meet the Emperor of Zhou Dynasty, sit at the negotiating table to discuss Nanyang affairs, and sign a reasonable contract to ensure the interests of both parties.

When they arrived in the capital, they learned that this great eastern country was at war with the Rakshasa people in the north and had captured Nicholas, the governor of Eastern Siberia of the Rakshasa country.

What surprised them even more was that the army that defeated the Rakshasa people was just a frontier army of this great eastern country. They had nine other frontier armies like this.

At this moment, they were thankful that the commanders who were addicted to alcohol and sex had made the right decision, otherwise it would have been a disaster.

At this time, the door of the box was pushed open, and a Han man wearing a Xiyi costume came in and said to the Xiyi man who had just spoken: "Major William, there is news from the Ministry of Rites that someone will meet you tomorrow. "

Hearing this, Major William's eyes lit up and he turned to the two of them: "Let's go back and discuss how to persuade the Zhou people to send troops to Moscow together."

(End of this chapter)