Do you know: I am Xu Jiazi

Chapter 397: The people in Wulou want to enter the painting [Thank you! Goodbye! words are owed]

"intimidate?"

Zhang Fangyan nodded and said, "Let alone thousands of troops, have you ever felt the feeling of hundreds of cavalry charging towards you?"

Xu Zaijing thought about it and shook his head: "Not really. After coming to the front line, I mostly followed the scouts."

Zhang Fangyan sighed with a look of nostalgia in his eyes and said, "I experienced this when I was a young boy, serving as an infantry commander under my father, the Duke of Ying."

Seeing Xu Zaijing's curious eyes, Zhang Fangyan said, "They are not the cavalry of Baigao Kingdom, but the cavalry of Beiliao Pishi Army."

"At that time, less than 500 Northern Liao cavalrymen rushed towards my formation. The sound of the horses galloping was so loud that the ground beneath my feet was shaking."

"With such a strong momentum, and the cavalry with superb archery skills throwing arrows into the formation to cause casualties, anyone with less courage would be frightened and flee."

Xu Zaijing helped Zhang Fangyan fill his glass and continued, "Once the infantry formation is broken, the enemy cavalry will be like hungry wolves smelling blood, and groups of cavalry will sneak into the army formation to bite and drive them away! When the infantry are afraid and flee for their lives, the casualties from trampling on each other may be more than those from the enemy!"

Zhang Fangyan looked at Xu Zaijing with appreciation: "Yes! This is the effect of intimidation! How did Wulang know all this?"

Xu Zaijing smiled and said, "Some of my maternal grandfather's cousins ​​are lieutenants of the infantry army."

"Is your surname Sun?"

Zhang Fangyan asked.

Xu Zaijing nodded.

"Even if the enemy's formation does not disperse, there will be opportunities for battle during the movement. If the formation is tight, they will be surrounded by the cavalry and their food supply routes will be cut off."

"I won't say much about the role of the cavalry in covering the battlefield and blinding the enemy's eyes and ears. This is what Wu Lang did when he was under the command of Marquis Yongyi."

“Well done!”

Hearing this compliment, Xu Zaijing scratched his head happily and moved the wine glass closer.

After the two of them toasted, Xu Zaijing filled Zhang Fangyan's and his own glasses with wine, and used a serving chopstick to pick up a piece of good meat and put it in Zhang Fangyan's bowl.

Zhang Fangyan didn't hesitate and started eating with big mouthfuls.

Under the still bright candlelight,

A few chicken bones soon appeared on the simple wooden table in front of the two people.

"Wu Lang, what do you think is the most important thing for cavalry combat?"

Xu Zaijing was thinking while chewing the chicken. Zhang Fangyan did not urge him but just looked at him quietly.

suddenly,

"hiss!"

Xu Zaijing cried out in pain, covered his cheek, and said to Zhang Fangyan, "It bit my flesh."

"Hahahaha, drink some wine and calm down."

After drinking the wine and swallowing the chicken, Xu Zaijing said uncertainly: "Brother Zhang, I think the terrain is the most important."

"Wu Lang, did you hear what your elder brother said?"

"I also heard from my cousin from the Zhu family about the cavalry."

Zhang Fangyan nodded and said, "Infantry is good at obstacles, cavalry is good at flat land! Only when the terrain is flat can the cavalry charge! Cavalry that cannot charge will become a target for the infantry's bows and crossbows."

Seeing Xu Zaijing nodding and accepting his instruction, Zhang Fangyan said with a smile on his face, "However, the Hengsai Army under Marquis Tuoxi and the Jingsai Army under my father are not included."

Xu Zaijing looked at Zhang Fangyan in confusion, his eyes full of thought. After catching a glimpse of Zhang Fangyan's armor in the tent, he quickly said with understanding in his eyes: "Brother Zhang, you mean that the elite heavy cavalry of Hengsai and Jingsai are elite infantry even if they dismount."

"Correct!"

Xu Zaijing said nothing, but rolled his eyes and said, "Brother Zhang, if the elite infantry can have cavalry, wouldn't that be great?"

"Hahahaha! Wulang, you're really quick-witted! Come, have another drink!"

"I heard from my Sanlang and Shilang that you are very good at playing polo. There are some principles on the battlefield that are similar to playing polo."

Xu Zaijing nodded: "Then I'll think about it more when I play polo!"

At this time, the voice of Zhang Fangyan's personal soldiers came from outside the tent:

"General, there are officials from Bian Jing outside the camp, saying that they are sent by the Ministry of Works to pick up the craftsmen from Bai Gao!"

"Send someone over here!"

"Yes!"

Zhang Fangyan glanced at Xu Zaijing and asked, "Why are you so anxious?"

After saying that, the two walked out of the tent.
In less than half an hour,
An official in official uniform came to the outside of the tent led by his personal guards.

Zhang Fangyan checked the seal handed over and asked, "Why is the Ministry of Industry so anxious that they came here to pick someone up?"

"General, I don't know the reason."

Zhang Fangyan lowered his head and checked the seal.

Xu Zaijing stared at the official.

It was getting dark now.

You can get a rough idea even with a torch.

The official looked up at Xu Zaijing, then bowed and said to Zhang Fangyan, "When I came here, I heard a colleague say that it was the Chai family who urged us to come here in a hurry."

Zhang Fangyan nodded and said to the guard beside him, "Take a white-haired ironworker and his family to this Lord Zhen."

"Yes, General."

"Thank you, General."

Looking at the official from the Ministry of Works who left with a bow, Xu Zaijing exhaled the smell of alcohol and followed Zhang Fangyan back to the tent.

Time flies
It's October
The weather is getting colder.
On this day,

Before the beginning of winter,
Around 2 p.m.
Bianjing City

Xinzhengmenxi,

Wulou near Jinming Lake,

Looking out the window from the third floor of Wu Building, you can see chrysanthemums still blooming beside the polo field not far away.

The chrysanthemum branches trembled slightly from time to time in the north wind.

On the third floor of Wu Building,
(-Listen! Qin Wang Po Zhen Qu·Liu Qingyao·Humming after the sixth minute of the song-)

"Great, great, great~"

“Ah~~~~Ah~”

After the noisy sound of the pipa, there is a melodious female humming.

When humming,
A gust of north wind blew in through the open window.

Standing by the window was a noble lady wearing a white fox cloak.
The north wind comes in,
The white fluff on the lady's cloak swayed slightly in the wind.
The earring moved under the delicate earlobe.
It also blew the hair on the noble lady's forehead and the light-colored hairband between her bun, and her autumn-water eyes blinked under her long eyelashes.

The withered and bleak autumn scenery in the distance outside the window makes the girl's vital face look even more fair and beautiful.

After the female voice finished humming, the sound of the pipa sounded again, followed by drums, zither and other instruments.

A maid came to the window and said, "Young lady, please don't stay by the window all the time. The north wind is very cold!"

The maid said as she helped the girl tighten the collar of her cloak.

Hearing the maid's advice,

The noble lady at the window looked at the official road to the west leading to Bianjing, which was still motionless, pursed her lips, and said to the maid beside her: "Xi Bu, I understand."

"Girl, let's go over and continue listening to Wei Xingtou's pipa."

The noble lady smiled and walked towards the other people sitting on the third floor.

On the third floor,
"Zheng~"

Wei Fang, wearing a veil, played the pipa swiftly.
After the song was over, she stood up with her chest heaving, holding her pipa and bowed to the noble ladies who stood up behind the tables around her and were applauding her.

"Zheng Zheng, your female musician plays the piano so beautifully!"

Looking at Rong Feiyan walking towards the window, Chai Zhengzheng smiled and put the surprise and admiration in his eyes back into his heart.

Then Chai Zhengzheng smiled at Gu Tingyi who was speaking. Another girl said, "Sister, I will hold a banquet at my home in two days. Please leave this female musician in your home to me!"

"Okay! I must keep it for you, Wu Niang."

Li Jia Wu Niang, who seemed to be even more myopic, squinted her eyes and squatted towards Chai Zhengzheng with a smile: "Thank you, Sister Zhengzheng."

in the field,

Wei Fangzhi walked aside holding the pipa.
A little girl holding a drum walked to the place where she had just sat and started to beat it softly.

The drum beats were neither too loud nor too soft, and the rhythm was brisk.

The ladies left their seats and talked to others.

Zheng Ni, the daughter of General Zheng's eldest son Zheng Jun, walked up to Chai Zhengzheng, followed Chai Zhengzheng's line of sight and looked at Rong Feiyan, then said, "You should have brought a paintbrush today."

Chai Zhengzheng looked over with a puzzled smile.

Zheng Ni and Chai Zhengzheng looked at each other and said, "Didn't you also see the beautiful scenery just now?"

Chai Zhengzheng was stunned for a moment, then looked at Rong Feiyan and nodded in agreement.

"I don't know how you two gave birth to each other, but even though I'm a woman, I love you so much."

As she spoke, Zheng Ni curiously took Chai Zhengzheng's hand.

A head with jewelry popped out from beside Zheng Ni: "Sister Zheng Ni, what are you looking at?"

Zhang Jia Wu Niang stretched out her beautiful hands and said, "Sister, let me see them too."

Zheng Ni looked at the two equally beautiful hands in front of her and said, "Wu Niang, why are there a few blood spots on your fingertips?"

"Ah? Is there any?"

Zhang's Fifth Lady hurried over and said, "This was left by accident when I was practicing needlework."

Zheng Ni pretended to understand something: "Oh, needlework."

Zhang Jia Wu Niang seemed to have no idea where to put her eyes. After she pulled her hand back, she saw Gu Tingyi talking to someone not far away and said, "Tingyi is looking for me, you two can chat."

Chai Zhengzheng looked at Zhang Jia Wu Niang who seemed to be running away and asked, "What happened?"

Zheng Ni curled the corners of her mouth and said nothing more.

"By the way, Sister Zheng Ni, I heard that you and the young master of the Shen family have moved up your wedding date?"

Hearing this, Zheng Ni looked around shyly and nodded, saying, "Well, Lord Shen said that the north is in turmoil right now, with Northern Liao and Jin fighting each other, and we don't know if there will be any changes next year, so we want to get married at the end of the year while Lord Shen is back in Beijing to report on his work."

"I have met Brother Shen twice. He is really handsome!"

When Chai Zhengzheng said this, Zheng Ni couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth: "No way."

Zheng Ni looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to them, so she continued, "Mother said that although the war in the northwest is now settled, the north looks very unstable. In any case, the status of military officers like my family is rising."

"Mr. Shen's idea is to secure the prize."

Chai Zhengzheng smiled and teased, "Madam Zheng is of noble birth, and is well-known in the capital for her virtue and integrity! The Zheng family has a very upright family tradition, and you are afraid that Mr. Shen will be snatched away by someone else."

Zheng Ni patted Chai Zhengzheng a little embarrassedly.

"I heard that Lord Shen has an unmarried little daughter? How old is your future sister-in-law?"

Zheng Ni thought for a moment and said, "Yes, I heard her name is Zhen'er. She is about the same age as the young master of the Duke of Qi's mansion."

Chai Zhengzheng nodded.

"What about you? When I came here this time, I heard that my grandparents asked Madam Wu to go to your house to mediate!"

Zheng Ni looked at Chai Zhengzheng with inquiring eyes.

Chai Zhengzheng looked toward the west-facing window on the third floor, as if looking at the western sky, and said, "How can I have the final say on matters of marriage? It's all decided by my parents!"

"By the way, Sister Zheng Ni, I didn't have the chance to ask you during the previous gatherings. If Wu Niang marries into the Zheng family in the future, won't you have to call her Little Aunt?"

Zheng Ni sighed helplessly, looked at Zhang Jia Wu Niang not far away and nodded.

At this time,

At the stairs on the third floor, the housekeeper of Wu Building walked up hurriedly.

The smiling housekeeper bowed to the ladies who were looking at her, and said in a very festive tone: "Ladies, the post horses along the way shouted that the King of Bai Gaojiang had arrived in Zhongmu, sixty miles away, and he cannot enter Bianjing today!"

Hearing this, a noble lady walked to the window again and looked west across the polo field.

"Ah? Then we have waited in vain and won't be able to see my elder brother today!"

Zhang Jiawu Niang shouted softly with some disappointment.

Gu Tingyi smiled and said, "Didn't we listen to a lot of good music?"

Zhang Jiawu Niang nodded.

"Mother, has it been decided which gate the Baigaojiang King will enter the capital from tomorrow?"

"To the noble lady, I don't know about this matter."

Li Jia Wu Niang, who was standing beside the crowd, narrowed her eyes and said, "Grandfather never told me. I think it should be at Mingde Gate, the south gate of the inner city. The book records that the surrender was accepted at Mingde Gate before!"

Hearing this, everyone looked at Li Jia Wu Niang.

The fifth wife of the Li family, who was the center of attention, smiled and nodded towards the blurry figure in front of her.

"But I heard from my brother that it seems to be in Jinglongmen!"

Rong Feiyan on the side spoke up.

"Let's go ask quickly, otherwise all the good spots on the street will be taken."

Gu Tingyi looked at everyone and said.

Zheng Ni listened to what they said, looked at Chai Zhengzheng who was standing aside and said, "Zhengzheng, why aren't you in a hurry? If you don't have a good seat, you won't be able to see the excitement."

Chai Zhengzheng smiled and said, "Don't worry, we will definitely have a good seat!"

After all, the Chai family has businesses on several main streets in Bianjing.

"If not, let's find a ladder and go up to the roof to have a look!"

Hearing this, Zheng Ni covered her mouth and laughed.

"Okay, then it's settled. I'll go to the Chai family first tomorrow!"

Other noble ladies nearby also came over. Some said that if they were really in Mingde Gate, they would go directly to her restaurant, and if not, they would go to find Chai Zhengzheng.

Chai Zhengzheng smiled and said yes.

Subsequently,

The ladies left Wulou.

After getting on their own carriages at the door, they went back home.

The sun is setting,

Rong family,

When Rong Feiyan returned home and went to her mother's yard, she saw her brother Rong Xian stroking a set of armor on his body.

Seeing Rong Feiyan coming in,
Rong Xian waved the red cape on his armor and said, "Sister, what do you think? Does your brother's armor look good on you?"

When Rong Xian was speaking, Marquis Fuchang and the eldest lady of the Rong family, who were sitting behind him, nodded in agreement.

Rong Feiyan looked Rong Xian up and down and said, "Brother, it does look good, but can you please take off the chrysanthemum pinned on your helmet?"

Hearing this, Rong Xian looked up and said, "I think this chrysanthemum looks great on my hairpin!"

Rong Feiyan shook her head and ignored her brother, and said to Marquis Fuchang, "Father, has His Majesty decided where to accept the surrender?"

Marquis Fuchang nodded and said, "It's settled. A senior minister suggested Mingde Gate, but His Majesty said that the surrender should be accepted at Jinglong Gate."

Rong Feiyan nodded: "Father, do you know why?"

Madam Rong interrupted, "Your sister sent someone to pass on a message that His Majesty said that our ancestors had accepted surrender in the south, and this time His Majesty will accept surrender in the north of the inner city."

Hearing this, Rong Feiyan's eyes were full of thought.

(End of this chapter)