My life is like walking on thin ice

Chapter 108 Oath of Oath
The next day, the eastern suburbs of Chang'an.

It took a whole morning for the swearing-in ceremony of the counter-rebellion army to finally come to an end after Emperor Qi inspected the army.

After the swearing-in, the army did not set off immediately as Emperor Qi had previously instructed.

——Today in the eastern suburbs of Chang'an, those participating in the Heaven Sacrifice and Oath-taking Ceremony were naturally not the 400,000 people in the counter-rebellion army, but only 10,000 people as representatives.

At this moment, these 10,000 military representatives are being held by their relatives’ arms, or have eggs and dried meat stuffed into their arms, or are covered with thick clothes. Under the tearful instructions of their relatives, Reluctantly bidding farewell to my parents.

Emperor Qi did not return to the palace, but took Taiwei Zhou Yafu, General Dou Ying, and other generals to make the final explanation and communication on the general stage.

The emperor's eldest son Liu Rong, accompanied by his second brother Liu De, third brother Liu Yu, as well as the fourth brother Liu Yu, the sixth brother Liu Fa and other younger brothers, came to the fifth brother: Young Master Liu Fei who was about to go on an expedition.

He raised his head and looked at the tall fifth brother, riding on the maroon horse that he had begged from his uncle Li Ben. The already majestic body was made even thicker by a layer of mail and zha armor;
But there was still a touch of worry on Liu Rong's face.

Feeling the concern written clearly on his elder brother's face, Liu Fei felt warm currents rushing through his heart, so he got off his horse for the umpteenth time and grinned at his elder brother.

"Brother, don't worry!"

"Look!"

As he spoke, Liu Fei made a fist with his hand and hit his chest hard.

"One layer of soft armor, one layer of rough armor - even if I stand and be chopped down by Wu Chu's traitor, I can last three to five hours!"

The words were intended to appease Liu Rong, but they made Liu Yu, the fourth child beside him, suddenly widen his eyes and raise his hand...

Raising his hand wasn't enough, he even raised his toes before slapping Liu Fei on the back of the head.

"Say! What you said! What! What nonsense! Nonsense!"

The more he spoke, the more anxious he became, and the more anxious he became, the more speechless he became. Liu Yu simply stopped scolding him, only jumped up slightly, and slapped Liu Fei on the back of the head.

I don’t know whether Liu Yu is too weak, Liu Fei is really that strong in resisting beatings, or he is used to being beaten by his brother;
After being slapped twice on the back of the head, Liu Fei still looked playful and smiling, showing off his neat armor and majestic body to his elder brother Liu Rong.

To be honest: even without the two layers of armor here and outside, Liu Fei's figure alone is far from his peers, and even far from ordinary soldiers, which is enough to make people feel at ease.

The body and bones of a fierce general are already born, and two layers of armor are added here and there. The fact is just as Liu Fei said: even if you stand and let a dozen people attack you, it is difficult to hurt. and vital points.

But Liu Rong also knew: If armor equals 'invulnerability', then the wars of this era will not be won at the cost of human lives.

——Even if you have armor to protect yourself, once the battle is intense, the tens or hundreds of kilograms (hajin) of weight can easily be exhausted.

What's more, the soldiers are the focus of the battlefield.

Whether it is to gain the merit of "killing the armor" or to covet the priceless armor, the big soldiers on the battlefield will definitely rush towards every armor they can see within the field of vision. .

The risk is high!

But the benefits are even greater!
Realizing this, Liu Rong had just suppressed some worries due to the majestic figure of his fifth brother, only to surge up again.

He looked at Liu Fei again and again with worry, not forgetting to circle around the fifth brother, as if he was afraid that there would be some position that was not protected by the two layers of armor outside.

After watching for a long time, he still found nothing unusual, and Liu Rongcai finally stood in front of Liu Fei.

After looking up and down again, he couldn't hide his worry and said: "Be careful!"

"The place where soldiers kill each other, and the battle formations, are even more dangerous."

"If something cannot be done, your own safety must be the first priority, and don't show off!"

These words actually have a bit of a meaning of "if you can't fight, just run away, don't worry about reputation".

To an outsider, it would inevitably be a bit belittling or even insulting.

But the words came from Liu Rong's mouth, so the taste was different.

"The eldest brother really has nothing to say to us younger brothers."

——The second child, Liu De, smiled slightly, with a hint of sourness in his words.

"When I grow up, I can also lead troops on expeditions!"

——The third child, Liu Yi, was more straightforward, and he was obviously a little jealous.

The fourth child, Liu Yu, still had complex emotions mixed with anger and worry on his face. Seeing Liu Rong's behavior, he calmed down a little.

As for Liu Fa, the sixth brother, he was already timid and tight-tempered. Seeing that the fifth brother was so concerned by his elder brother, he only dared to lower his head and secretly cast envious eyes on Liu Fei's playful and smiling face.

While he was talking, on the general-ordering platform in the distance, Emperor Qiye finally finished his final instructions, bowed to all the generals, and then got on the carriage back to Weiyang Palace under the watch of everyone.

After Emperor Qi left, Taiwei Zhou Yafu took the lead to step down from the general platform, along the outer wall of Chang'an City, and headed straight towards the Lantian Camp south of Chang'an.

——As a Taiwei, Zhou Yafu is responsible for the entire counterinsurgency army.

After the swearing-in ceremony, the natural next step was to head to Lantian Camp to prepare for the departure of troops.

It is said that the departure is today, but the final departure time will most likely be at dusk. The soldiers will set out from Lantian, walk a few miles symbolically, and then set up camp before officially setting off tomorrow.

Zhou Yafu went to Lantian Camp, and General Dou Ying returned to Chang'an City.

As a maternal relative, Dou Ying had to go to Changle Palace before going on an expedition.

After reporting to Empress Dowager Dou and listening to some instructions, he took his staff, subordinates, etc. to Lantian Camp to report to Zhou Yafu.

On the other hand, two old men, Li Ji and Luan Bu, looked around for a while and then headed straight towards the direction where the brothers were.

The young master Liu Fei, who seemed to be here to go on an expedition together, turned out to be Liu Rong's first words.

"I've met the eldest son."

"——Meet the Marquis of Qu Zhou and the General."

During this expedition, Li Ji, Luan Bu, and Liu Fei were sent to separate forces. In the end, Li Ji, the Marquis of Quzhou, was the main general, and his official title was the general of chariots and cavalry.

Luan Bu was appointed deputy general, and his official title was senior general.

Regarding these two veterans who have outstanding achievements and are nearly 60 years old, Liu Rong's attitude is very low.

But it was this extremely low posture that gave Liu Rong's next words a different meaning.

"With two generals present during this expedition, the Qi and Zhao thieves will have nowhere to hide."

"But my brother Fei's safety must be entrusted to these two veteran generals."

In fact, Li Ji and Luan Bu had noticed the situation on Liu Rong's side as early as before when they were watching the Emperor Qi leave at the general station.

I came here specially to 'pick up' Liu Fei, that is, I wanted to have a few words with Liu Rong and maintain such a friendship.

After hearing Liu Rong's expected remarks, the two of them laughed and clapped their chests.

But Liu Rong did not stop in time, but turned sideways worriedly.

Not far away were relatives of the Cheng and Li families, raising an army for Liu Fei, the fifth son of the emperor.

There are not many people, only about 200 people;

The equipment is also very ordinary, either infantry with long swords on their waists, or archers with long bows on their backs and arrow baskets on their waists.

Not to mention armor - they don't even have decent military robes, most of them are wearing 'operational training uniforms' that lieutenants and generals would wear during daily drills.

But on the battlefield, these two hundred personal guards will definitely block the open and hidden arrows time and time again for Young Master Liu Fei.

It is no exaggeration to say: If the young master Liu Fei dies in battle, then these two hundred people will die before Liu Fei, and they will die to protect Liu Fei.

"Son."

With Liu Rong looking at him from a distance, only one young general ran out of the pro-army formation and came to Liu Rong and bowed his hands.

Then Liu Rong looked at the young general with a sullen face, and then looked at the hundreds of soldiers not far away again.

Then, he raised his hand and pointed to Liu Fei beside him, and said to the young general seriously: "My brother, Liu Fei."

"If something goes wrong, I'm going to ask you, Kurucang."

As soon as these words came out, Li Ji and Luan Bu looked at each other for a moment, and they both saw a little surprise on their faces.

——Kurikura?
——Li’s nephew?
Looking at the luggage, it is obvious that he is a direct descendant? !
But when the young general Kurukang heard this, he handed over his hand again with confidence.

"Don't worry, sir."

"My father has told me: If the young master makes the slightest mistake this time, I won't have to come back. I will just die in Zhao."

Hearing this, Liu Rong finally felt relieved;

Then he promised, "Those of the Li family's servants who died in the war or were disabled will be generously compensated, and those who survived will also be generously rewarded," and so on, and then he waved his cousin Li Cang back.

Then he turned sideways, took a deep breath, and said sternly to Li Ji and Luan Bu: "In this expedition, the two veteran generals have been sidelined along the way, so it is not too dangerous."

"Even if this is the case, I still have to be bold and say something rude to the two old generals."

"——My fifth brother, Fei, is the only one among my father's sons who has the courage to fight for the country. He even volunteered to lead troops to quell the rebellion when he was less than fifteen years old."

"In the future, our Han family will inevitably have to fight with the Huns in the north; when that happens, my fifth brother may not be a border guard king."

"Therefore, after this expedition, after the chaos is settled, if the two generals cannot bring my brother Liu Fei back to Chang'an..."

"Even if my father doesn't care too much, the two old generals and I will probably fight to the death..."

After a rather abrupt "threat", Liu Rong bowed to the two veterans in a polite manner. He turned around again and looked at his fifth brother Liu Fei solemnly, with indescribable concern in his eyes.

Finally, he walked to the bay-red horse and stretched out his arm to Liu Fei: "Come here."

"I personally helped Lao Wu mount his horse."

"When Lao Wu returns home in triumph, I will pick him up from his horse outside the palace and go to the celebration banquet at Xuan Shi Hall."

What Liu Rong wanted to say was actually: outside the crown prince's womb.

But after all, he is still not the crown prince, his name is not right, and his words are not right...

"Brother, you keep what you say!"

"When my brother returns home in triumph, I will get drunk with my eldest brother before we break up!"

As he said this, Liu Fei did not hesitate. He supported Liu Rong's outstretched arm with his hand as big as a cattail leaf fan, and then he got on the horse.

After adjusting the two layers of armor on his body, he hung the fine bow Liu Rong paid for and asked the young master to make on the side of the horse, and then handed it over to the brothers.

Then, under the watch of all the brothers, he rode his horse towards the Baishi guards not far away.

Liu Fei had already said goodbye to his brothers. Li Ji and Luan Bu also had some complaints in their hearts because of Liu Rong's words just now, so they also said goodbye and headed towards Lantian with Liu Fei's hundred and ten men. Go in the direction of the camp.

Liu Rong was not in a hurry to go back.

He just stopped and looked into the distance, watching Liu Fei and his entourage gradually disappear, and then finally withdrew his worried gaze.

"Let's go."

"Go back to the palace and wait for the good news from Lao Wu."

After the eldest brother gave the explanation, all the brothers quickly moved out of the way. After Liu Rong passed by with his hands behind his back, they quickly followed him.

However, Liu Rong did not get on the carriage, but raised his hand to greet his brothers, then stepped forward and walked toward the city gate on foot...

·
·
·
"Today I swear my oath, I will not see Chao Cuo, the internal history officer."

The five brothers were walking on the straight road outside the city gate. Liu De, the second brother, said something softly, which made Liu Rong sigh leisurely.

"Yesterday, Chao Cuo went to see his father."

"My father asked Chao Cuo about the policy, and he implicitly accused Chao Cuo of concealing the seriousness of the situation that might be caused by the "Cecution of Fans", and intended to get Chao Cuo to plead guilty."

"But Chao Cuo looked at him and said that the current situation of the Qi and Huainan cliques was within Chao Cuo's expectations;"

"Excluding Zhao, who is destined to be unable to make trouble, Wu Chu is the only one raising troops now, which is not much different from Chao Cuo's previous expectations."

···
"Then my father asked for advice, and Chao Cuo was even more outrageous, saying that my father should lead the expedition himself in order to boost the morale of the frontline soldiers."

"As for Chao Cuo, he will guard Chang'an for his father, just like the story of the founding of the People's Republic of China, when Emperor Taizu Gao traveled to Guandong and Xiao Xiangguo guarded Chang'an..."

"Ah;"

"This Chao Neishi is really getting more and more unpredictable, isn't he?"

Such words made all the brothers lower their heads, as if they did not dare to comment further on this topic.

But Liu De, the second child, Liu Yu, the fourth child, and even Liu Fa, the sixth child, all heard the deep meaning behind Liu Rong's words.

Liu Rong said it nicely, saying that Chao Cuo was "elusive", but in fact he was insinuating that Chao Cuo was so whimsical that he actually wanted to imitate Xiao He back then?
Not to mention Chao Cuo, did he have Xiao Xiangguo's ability to "regulate the country and care for the people, provide salaries and supplies, and never cut off the food supply", which made Emperor Taizu Gao feel ashamed?

Even if there is, Chao Cuo is not the prime minister!

The old prime minister Shen Tujia is here, and there is even a "sub-prime" imperial censor-Kaifeng Hou Tao Qing;
Even if the emperor Qizhen planned to personally conquer the country, the people who stayed behind in Chang'an would not be able to take the turn of Chao Cuo, the internal historian.

"Chao Cuo, you should have noticed something."

"What we are doing now is just a final struggle to see if we can find any changes."

"——After all, the current situation is far different from what Chao Cuo expected of 'making policies for the country' or even 'sacrifice one's life for the country.'"

"If my father's warriors cut off my wrist like this, I'm afraid that if the Fa family tries to revive themselves in the future..."

The second son of the emperor, Liu De, was still on the line, and he revealed Chao Cuo's current situation with just one sentence.

The fourth child, Liu Yu, was a little out of sorts, and was obviously still thinking about his younger brother Liu Fei, who was leading the army on the expedition.

On the other hand, Liu Rong's eyes lit up a little bit when Liu Fa, the sixth man, who had always been honest and even a little overly reserved.

"The rebels of Wu and Chu have taken up the banner of punishing Chao Cuo and clearing the emperor's side. Obviously, they do not want to bear the name of treason."

"To my father, Chao Cuo is already a sword stained with blood and broken, and can be discarded at any time."

"——If my father kills Chao Cuo, everyone in the world will be able to see clearly the face of Wu Chu's traitors: they are not trying to bring order to the chaos and straighten the country, but they are raising troops to rebel and plot against the country."

"It's just that if Chao Cuo dies, as the scabbard of Chao Cuo's sword, the old doctor Yuan Ang..."

After saying something that seemed to indicate something, Liu Fa only carefully observed the changes in Liu Rong's expression, and then lowered his head.

Pretending to be thinking, he turned his head and asked Liu Rong, "Brother, do you think my father will kill Chao Cuo?"

"What would be the crime if he killed?"

Seeing Liu Fa's behavior like this, Liu Rong also vaguely understood in his heart: This sixth brother was implicitly expressing to himself that "I am not useless, and I can also help if big brother needs it";

It's just that Liu Fa's foresight is no less than that of the second brother Liu De and the fourth brother Liu Yu, but it is really different from his usual submissive appearance.

Soon, Liu Rong was relieved.

——On ordinary days, Liu Fa needs to maintain the persona of "I am just the sixth son of the emperor born by a maid, and I have no ability at all" to hide his clumsiness, or even deliberately lower his sense of existence.

At present, the chaos in Wu and Chu is rising. After the rebellion is put down, it is still unclear whether Liu Rong will be granted the title of Crown Prince, but the other princes will most likely be granted the title of king or vassal.

At this juncture, Liu Fa obviously wanted to fight for it.

At the very least, we must strive not to be banned by the current emperor, and to the Changsha Kingdom, which had just exterminated its heirs last year and urgently needed a clan king...

"Chao Cuo, his death is not far away."

"As for the charges, there's nothing worth paying attention to - they're groundless."

"As for Yuan Ang~"

Having said this, Liu Rong couldn't help but turn sideways and took a deep look at his sixth brother Liu Fa.

Then he smiled casually and shook his head indifferently.

"It has nothing to do with my brothers anyway, just wait and see what happens."

···
"In recent days, there have been many interesting things happening inside and outside the court?"

As he said that, Liu Rong couldn't help but look at his second brother Liu De beside him, obviously asking him to report the recently collected intelligence.

Then I saw the young master Liu De nodded slightly and said: "My uncle received a thousand gold gifts from the emperor, so he put all the gold in the house and let the staff and retainers take it for themselves."

"Think about it, with the support of the Eastern Palace, my cousin will not have to worry about military expenditures this time, so he will be happy to spend that thousand gold to win over his subordinates."

···
"On the other hand, Taiwei Zhou Yafu seems to have a headache about military expenses. He wants to borrow money from wealthy businessmen in Chang'an, but no one is willing to lend it to Taiwei."

"In the end, it was Ziqian merchant Wu Yan who borrowed a thousand gold coins, but also agreed on a tenfold profit..."

"--ten times?!"

Hearing this, Liu Rong couldn't help being surprised even though he had expected the evil intentions of the money merchants, that is, loan sharks.

After Liu De nodded with a wry smile and confirmed that the news was correct, Liu Rong looked back thoughtfully.

After a while, he told his second brother Liu De: "After returning to the palace, you go to the Shaofu's studio and ask Cen Shaofu to 'borrow' a thousand pieces of gold in my name."

"I'll send it to my cousin before he leaves Chang'an. I'll ask my cousin to take it to Lantian Camp for me and give it to Captain Zhou."

Liu Rong made the explanation calmly, and without forgetting to smile, he tilted his head and explained to his sixth brother Liu Fa, who had just joined the team: "The Shaofu's porcelain business is now making money every day."

"He, Mr. Cen, promised me a share earlier, but there has been no news yet."

"——If we don't remind him like this, Mr. Cen, I'm afraid he would like to pretend that there is no such thing."

···
"As for Captain Zhou~"

"The general went out to fight the rebellion, but he was struggling with military expenses - if this word spread outside the customs, wouldn't he make Liu Bi, the old thief, laugh out loud?"

"Besides, even Lao Wu can lead troops to fight and serve his father."

"If I, the eldest son of the emperor, am not even willing to do this little thing, then when there is chaos in the future, how can I have the dignity to live in that building..."

"Cough, cough, cough, cough..."

　Second update today.

　　I'm going to visit my father-in-law and mother-in-law on Sunday. I've only had two updates in the past few days. I'll save the extra for Sunday.

　　Good night, dear readers.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)