Prince of Song Dynasty

Chapter 846 The [-] Army Falling from the Sky

Meng Feiyang nodded seriously, and said respectfully: "Your official understands."

"It's good if you can understand." Zhang Bo smiled, and said again: "However, there are many skilled craftsmen in the Civil Research Department, and His Majesty has allowed us to choose people from them, but Jia Xian of the Ministry of Household Affairs will probably not give the best talents to them. After all, Xiangfu College has only been in operation for a year, so we can choose some to intern in our Agricultural Research Department, but it may be difficult to rely on for a while. Your Majesty said that there are many strange people in the market, and ordinary farmers may not be without talents. Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture Mr. Tian Jiu, Mitian, was originally excavated from the folks by the old man, so you can search more from the folks during the day, and you can even follow the example of the Civil Research Department to recruit people."

Meng Feiyang nodded in agreement frequently.

...

...

"[-] troops, how is this possible? I haven't heard any news about the movement of Xiangfu's troops from the detailed work I arranged in Xiangfu Kingdom." In the posthouse where Lu Yuqing lived in Qingzhou City, Dang Jin, who had just been invited, listened. After hearing the news that Lu Yuqing said that the spies of Songwei's mansion had inquired about it, he was shocked and said decisively.

Lu Yuqing looked solemn, and said: "The old man also thinks that Xiangfu Kingdom is mostly bluffing, but the matter is important and needs to be determined. The gang of wastes in the Songwei Mansion can't be counted on. Take a look at the situation. In addition, I also ask the general of the party to send capable spies to further investigate and verify."

Dang Jin nodded and said: "Lord Lu, don't worry, this matter is the responsibility of the commander. The two adults have to take care. I will send spies to follow the two adults. If there is anything, I can let the guards shoot arrows. I I will understand."

Lu Yuqing and Zhou Fagui clasped their fists in thanks.

...

...

The border of Huangwan Pass in Xiangfu Country.

Lu Yuqing rode a black horse and looked back.The majestic Dakou Village has been left far behind, and there are only a few staff members and a hundred soldiers following him.To prevent accidents, in the end he did not let Zhou Fagui, the magistrate of Gyeongju, accompany him. This was because he was always uncertain whether Zhou Fagui was from Zhao Pu.Therefore, he asked Zhou Fagui to meet him at Dakouzhai, the military stronghold of the Song Dynasty closest to Huangwan Pass.

Walking on the road, Lu Yuqing couldn't help thinking of the mission on his shoulders again, to protect the interests of the country, but also not to cause a war. Facing the aggressive Xiangfu Kingdom, the country and the emperor behind him seemed a little weaker !As for the personal enmity between himself and Ye Chen, others don't know, but he himself is very clear. Since more than a year ago, during the great change, Ye Chen first killed Zhao Guangyi, and then killed Chongzheng in front of the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty. A slap outside the palace slapped His Majesty the Emperor on the face, and the moment His Majesty knelt in front of Ye Chen, he suddenly felt how ridiculous he was, how out of control he was, and he didn't even have the qualifications to be Ye Chen's enemy .Sometimes he even suspected that Ye Chen had never taken himself seriously.

Just as Lu Yuqing was thinking like this, he suddenly heard a long blast of horns, a burst of dust rose from the northwest field, and the sound of roaring horseshoes approached from far to near. Raising his right hand, the subordinate sergeants immediately reined in their horses and marched forward.Sure enough, not long after, a well-organized Xiangfu army with more than a hundred cavalry appeared in the distance.Although Lu Yuqing had never led a soldier before, but looking at the opponent's military appearance, it was shocking to see.

Although Lu Yuqing didn't know which of the seven major armies of the Xiangfu Kingdom these cavalrymen came from, he also knew in his heart that this was Xu Xuan showing off his military power to him, and there was a hint of threat in it.When he turned his head to see the soldiers under him, he couldn't help feeling timid, and couldn't help frowning, thinking that the Northwest Frontier Army had suffered two disastrous defeats in Xiangfu Kingdom, and their momentum had already been taken away by the opponent.But despite this, Lu Yuqing still wanted to say sharply: "When you send envoys to the enemy country, you should not be afraid of the enemy, and you will lose the national prestige of our Song Dynasty! You are a good man, and you must let the enemy country know about our Song army. , and there is no one who is timid and afraid of death!"

These Song soldiers saw that Lu Yuqing was only a civil servant, but he was so impassioned and fierce, his voice was stern, and there was a little passion in his chest, but his morale did not improve much.But one of the commanders who led the team replied loudly with some lack of confidence: "Don't worry, my lord, the soldiers of the Northwest Frontier Army are not cowards! I will never dare to fall into the prestige of the country!"

The rest of the soldiers couldn't help but also bowed their horses and gave a military salute at the same time, and replied loudly: "I will never dare to fall into the prestige of the country!"

Seeing that the morale of Lu Yuqing has improved somewhat, although he can't compare with the other party, it is inconvenient to say more at this time, and he shouted: "Okay! I will meet people from Xiangfu Kingdom later, regardless of martial arts, if anyone is timid The look of fear, after returning to Qingzhou, I will let the generals of the party deal with it with military law! If the mission is fulfilled, after returning to the country, this envoy will also give you credit!" After finishing speaking, he turned his horse's head and shouted sharply: "Line up! Advance!" More than 100 people proudly headed towards the welcoming army from Xiangfu Kingdom.

In just a few moments, the people from Xiangfu Kingdom had already arrived in front of them, Lu Yuqing looked over, and it was still Tang Xingwu who came to greet him, not Xu Xuan.Seeing Lu Yuqing, Tang Xingwu laughed and said, "Lord Lu, welcome to Huangwan Pass!"

Lu Yuqing replied indifferently: "Your kindness will welcome you from far away."

Tang Xingwu looked at the Song envoy's team, and seeing that Zhou Fagui was not there, he pretended to be surprised and asked, "Why didn't Master Zhou come?"

"Lord Lu is the magistrate of Qingzhou, and he has the responsibility to guard the land. He should not leave the jurisdiction lightly. This envoy is the negotiating envoy appointed by the emperor of Song Dynasty. When going abroad for a meeting, this envoy can hold the festival alone. If he is in Qingzhou, he will Lord Lu will negotiate with you." Lu Yuqing replied loudly.

Tang Xingwu would not bother with such trivial matters, so he said: "So that's the case. How does Master Lu look at my Xiangfu country's army?"

Lu Yuqing snorted coldly and said: "No matter how strong the army is, it is only a few hundred thousand people. Thinking that my Song Dynasty has an army of one million, the world will not be afraid of any enemy."

Tang Xingwu sneered, and said: "If the military strength of a country depends on the number of troops, then the Song State has already taken back the sixteen prefectures of Yanyun from the Liao State, and even wiped out the Liao people countless times. The previous two wars were expensive. The country sent out two or three times as many troops as our Xiangfu country, but it also returned in a disastrous defeat, losing troops and generals, and losing the land and village."

Lu Yuqing's face turned red and pale for a while, and was rendered speechless by Tang Xingwu's words, but knowing that at this time, he must not be at a loss for words, so he began to refute in an ambiguous manner, and so on, the two of them kept fighting with each other, talking and talking, Soon, Huangwan Pass was in sight.

Lu Yuqing looked into the distance and couldn't help being surprised!It turns out that in front of Huangwan Pass, there is actually a camp for several miles with dense flags and banners!After discussing with Dang Jin and Zhou Fagui, he thought Xiangfu's claim of [-] troops was just a bluff. Looking at the situation, there are at least [-] to [-] troops in Mayi alone!How can Lu Yuqing not be startled?

Lu Yuqing kept his composure, his face still calm, chatting and laughing with Tang Xingwu all the way, but secretly thinking in his heart: "Xiangfu Kingdom is so laborious, how could it be possible to fight for the one million taels of money, more than 100 miles of uninhabited territory? The income is far from enough to compensate for the loss. Could it be that they have other plans? Dangjin said that the detailed work did not know that there was a sign of Xiangfu's army mobilization, but why did tens of thousands of people suddenly appear in Huangwan, which is only a hundred miles away from Qingzhou? Close the border?" He thought about it, but he couldn't figure it out, and it was hard to figure out all kinds of unreasonable things.Since ancient times, it has been known to know oneself and the enemy, and to be victorious in a hundred battles.Before negotiating, it is very important to know more about the opponent's hole cards.At this time, Lu Yuqing had to think twice when he suddenly saw this kind of army with a battalion for several miles.

However, Tang Xingwu secretly noticed the changes in Lu Yuqing's expression, and at the same time did not give him a chance to think carefully, and kept chattering with him. The camp got closer and closer. Not long after, hundreds of horns blared together, and the sound echoed throughout the world. The door was wide open, and two guards of honor ran out neatly and stood on both sides of the camp gate. Xu Xuan and another general in armor led the officials under the tent to welcome them to the camp gate.

When Lu Yuqing saw the general walking out side by side with Xu Xuan, his complexion changed slightly, and he thought to himself: "It turned out to be Han Hu, the commander of the White Tiger Army of Xiangfu Kingdom. He is here. Could it be that the White Tiger Army has really come here?"

Lu Yuqing took a light breath, suppressed the fear in his heart, withdrew his thoughts, got off the horse, straightened his clothes, and went forward.

Xu Xuan smiled all over his face, clasped his fists and said: "Emissary Song came here to work hard. This is General Han, the commander of the White Tiger Army of Xiangfu Kingdom. I know everyone here, so I won't introduce you. Please, Mr. Lu!" Welcomed Lu Yuqing and others into the room In the tent, the guests and the host sit down.Lu Yuqing looked at the officials of Xiangfu Kingdom, Xu Xuan was the leader, Han Hu was the second, and Tang Xingwu and others followed.

Seeing that Lu Yuqing was sitting still, Xu Xuan immediately put away his smile and asked, "Your envoy came here at the order of the Emperor of the Song Dynasty. I think he has agreed to our country's request? But I don't know when to hand over the money and when to draw the border ?”

Lu Yuqing replied boldly: "I came here at the order of the Emperor of the Song Dynasty to explain to your country that the fact that Jiazhou gave the Liao army an excuse was done by local civil and military officials in Jiazhou. This official has issued a secret decree, and I will deal with the relevant people for the crime of deceiving the emperor. It is also an explanation to your country, and the claim for money is still unreasonable. I hope that your country will be self-respecting, handle it carefully, and don't cause trouble .”

Xu Xuan's face sank immediately, and he said in a cold voice: "It's ridiculous, how could a small civil and military official in Jiazhou dare to let [-] Liao troops enter the country without the secret instructions of the Song Dynasty emperor and the court, and cover up for the Liao army? Or maybe you, the emperor of the Song Dynasty, can't control even a small local official in Jiazhou?"

Lu Yuqing's face was ashen, but it was inconvenient for him to talk about what Xu Xuan said, so he stood up and said calmly: "Master Xu, don't get angry. Since the Great Song Dynasty sent this envoy here, I have already recognized the existence of Xiangfu Kingdom. However, if your country makes unreasonable demands such as losing money or property, our country of Song will definitely not accept it."

(End of this chapter)