The prince is very fierce

On the eighth day of May, the scorching sun hung in the sky.

The earth is like fire, and the sea is steaming.

After days of torrential rain, the blazing sun scorched the earth. Thousands of willows hung down their branches and leaves. The scenery among the thousands of streets was a little distorted in the hot weather. The old dog wandering on the street lay panting in the shadows, saliva dripping in the air. The stone bricks will make a soft sound.

The hottest time of the year has arrived in Chang'an City.

It was difficult to go out in the weather, but at this time, the road outside the city gate was filled with common people, scholars, and people from all walks of life. They wore bamboo hats and held umbrellas in their hands, heading towards Chuilong Bend on the bank of the Wei River under the blazing flames.

A competition to determine the top ten warriors of Dayue will be held at Dragon Falling Bend, where it is said that "a dragon once fell from the sky and turned into a river." The arena has been set up, and the emperor will also come in person.

People in Jianghu are very concerned about face, and there is no greater face than the king of a country coming to observe in person. This can be regarded as a statement to the world's warriors - the imperial court still attaches great importance to warriors.

Such a grand event naturally attracted the attention of Dayue's government and the public.

In the Imperial College, there was a day off today, and most of the students went to watch the excitement, and all the school buildings were empty.

Thousands of peach trees were exposed to the scorching sun, and a wisp of green smoke rose from the peach blossom forest.

Song Yu, who had been imprisoned for ten years in the Imperial Academy of Painting, stood alone in the peach blossom forest, put a scroll in his hand into a brazier, and looked at the "Looking Back at the Peach Blossoms" that had been painted thousands of times, in the flames reduced to ashes.

"Xiaowan, I broke my promise back then. Today, I am making amends to you."

Liu Yunlin stood beside him and said in a deep voice: "Xu Buling has been poisoned recently and stayed in the ice room day and night. From the chat with Mrs. Lu's maid, I learned that Xu Buling had an extremely bad temper after being poisoned outside the city. Even if Mrs. Lu is not allowed to come close, Xu Bu Ling will definitely be unable to restrain herself as long as she is able to accompany Mrs. Lu out of the city."

Song Yu looked at the burned scroll in the brazier and sighed softly:

"That's good."

----------

"Tiger--"

"Tiger--"

"Tiger--"

The land of Sanqin is located at the foot of Longtou Mountain in Qinzhou, six hundred miles away from Chang'an.

Thousands of horses are galloping like the sea, and the royal flag is like burning black flames, ringing in the northwest wind.

The wind blows and the drums beat.

The military camps of 80,000 Xiliang troops were like countless black bunkers sprouting from the loess land, stretching to the end of the sky.

The soldiers wearing black fish scale armor drew out the four-foot-long sword from their waists under the scorching sun.

Thirty thousand light cavalry are behind, and 20,000 heavy cavalry are in front. They are all wearing heavy armor and holding long spears. This is the Dayue Zhenguo cavalry that Xu Lie spent his whole life saving. It is also the only one in the world that can stand head-on with the Northern Qi Iron Rakshasa. Hedging army.

Tu Qianchu, the general of the East Road, stands on the left with two hexagonal copper hammers on his shoulders, and Yang Zunyi, the general of the South Road, stands on the right, holding a long black spear.

Yue Jiulou held an oil-paper umbrella in his hand to protect the white-haired man in python robe and golden crown in front of him from the scorching sun.

Tap tap tap——

The scout hurried over and handed out the paper tube in his hand.

King Su unfolded it and looked at it for a few times, then threw the note down the stage and picked up the long sword from his side - the sword was three feet four long, with a red flower tassel hanging on it, which was a dowry given by the Lu family of the East China Sea. The name of the sword is 'Red Lady'.

Cha——

The long sword clattered out of its sheath, and the sword reached the blue sky and the white sun.

"All troops attack."

"promise."

Dong dong dong——

War drums resounded through the northwest wilderness.

The black front crushes the city like a sea of ​​knives, and the sound of thousands of horses galloping is like waves!

-----

Chencang is three hundred miles away from Chang'an, and is thirty miles east of Qianyang Pass, the first pass in the northwest. In order to guard against the counterattack of the Northern Qi Left Route Army's cavalry, a new pass was built in front of Jiazi, called Zhenhu Pass.

The two passes are only thirty miles apart, and there is not a single house or house in the middle area, which is densely covered with countless trenches, bunkers, horses, and pits.

The garrison at Qianyang Pass is the Xu family army, and the enemy they face are the remnants of the Northern Qi Dynasty who have firmly occupied Yuanzhou for a generation.

After the defeat of Chang'an in Jiazi, the Da Qi royal family fled to Mobei and lost the entire Central Plains territory. In order to revive the Central Plains in the future, the Northern Qi Dynasty kept a tight grip on Yuanzhou, like a horn on the territory, inserting itself into Dayue's territory. among.

Yuanzhou connects Longnan Liangzhou to the south, Mobei Plain to the north, Guanzhong across the mountains to the east, and the entire Hexi Corridor to the west. It is a hub that connects the east and west and the north and the south. Its importance is self-evident.

Relying on the dangerous terrain of Liupan Mountain, the Northern Qi Dynasty built Xiongguan in Jingyuan. The name was directly called "Wangnan Pass", and stationed heavy troops to guard it. They clung to this last piece of ground. They all tried to capture the last smelly rock at the door of the house, but unfortunately they were unable to do so due to the terrain. As time went by, the stalemate continued.

The enemies faced by Zhenhu Pass on the surface are also the Northern Qi soldiers and horses in Yuanzhou, but the actual role of Zhenhu Pass is to guard against King Su in the northwest.

After the defeat of Chang'an, Qianyang Pass was garrisoned by the Xu family's army. The Xu family's contribution to the expansion of the territory was unrewardable, and it was able to frighten the Northern Qi Dynasty. There was no reason for Xu Lie to withdraw his troops. When Emperor Xiaozong died, the Qianyang Pass defenders would not be able to withdraw. The Xu family's army's defense against the Northern Qi Dynasty was naturally impregnable, but if King Su rebelled, it would basically be a flat road all the way to Chang'an City.

In order to solve this embarrassing situation, the imperial court built three passes between Chencang and Chang'an during the Jiazi period, followed by Tianwang Pass and Xingping Pass. It was said that they were afraid of a counterattack by the remnants of the Northern Qi Dynasty. In fact, even the blind knew that they were guarding against King Su. .

Qianyang Pass was an enclave for King Su. The Western Army of Dayue was stationed in Chencang. There were 200,000 soldiers in the three passes from Chencang to Chang'an. The leader was Guo Zhongxian, the "General of the Northern Expedition". The soldiers and horses of the Liu family Also gathered in it.

Under the scorching sun, Liu Chang'an, the eldest son of Taiwei Liu Pingyang, put on his armor and ran quickly to the top of Zhenhu Pass. His face was slightly nervous. When he came under the dragon flag, he raised his hand and said solemnly:

"General Guo, King Su has been training troops in Qinzhou recently. It seems to me that something is wrong. General, please don't be careless..."

Guo Zhongxian was in his sixties. He was able to command Dayue's Western Army and fight against Prince Zuo of the Northern Qi Dynasty and even Xu You, Prince Su. He was certainly not an ordinary person. At this time, he pressed the imperial golden sword with his hand, looked at the north, and said coldly:

"I have been standing here for half my life. When have I ever been so careless that I need a little kid like you to teach me?"

Guo Zhongxian has always had this temper. Liu Changan did not show any dissatisfaction and took a step forward:

"King Su is training troops in Qinzhou, which is only three hundred miles away from Qianyang Pass. If..."

Guo Zhongxian kept his eyes on the north: "Xu You is not a fool. Why did he go to Chang'an for no reason? Even if he breaks through three passes and breaks into Chang'an, he can't defend Guanzhong Road with only 200,000 people. His son is also in the capital, crazy. That’s when he rebelled.”

Liu Pingyang pursed his lips, but didn't know much to say. He bowed and said, "Please don't be careless, General Guo, and strengthen your war preparations. Even if King Su keeps to himself, it can still be regarded as military training, which will have a hundred benefits and no harm."

Guo Zhongxian thought for a moment and raised his hand:

"I know, beat the drum."

"promise!"

Dong dong dong——

War drums then sounded through the head of Zhenhu Pass...

——————

Thousands of miles above the yellow sand, there is a black city where the Northern Qi army gathers.

Prince Zuo Jiang Ruo stood on the top of the city, looking at the huge map in front of him. He placed a small flag at the location of Shazhou and looked towards the direction of Suzhou City, which was facing far away:

"Chen Xuan, you said that there will be changes in Chang'an. It has been a few months. Xu You has been training troops. Looking at the weather, it is almost time to return to camp. I have transferred half of the troops and horses from the south. In such hot weather, "Dozens of people died from the heat during the march. If your journey is in vain, I will cut off your head."

Chen Xuan wore a scholar's robe and stood next to the map, looking at the location of Chang'an:

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. According to the news from the spies in Chang'an, there will be a competition there today, and Emperor Dayue will also go there. Judging from his humble position, there will be news soon that will allow the army to break camp."

Prince Zuo Jiang Ruo looked at the endless military camps behind the Black City and raised his hand:

"Don't disappoint me, go and deliver the order."

"promise!"

Chen Xuan bowed and retreated from the city...

——————

At this moment, in Chang'an City, there was still singing and dancing, and there was no movement at all.

People in the streets and alleys rushed out of the city with their families to watch the excitement. The wealthy people took advantage of the early morning sun to get on the carriage and go to the Weihe River to get a good seat.

Only Xiao Ting, who had finally defrauded two aunts of money to make a fortune, was locked in the room, banging on the door and crying:

"Aunt, I was wrong, please let me out. Tang Jiao will definitely win today's martial arts competition. Please let me take a look and come back after taking a look..."

It's a pity that no one paid attention to it.

Within the majestic imperial city.

After the court meeting dispersed, the imperial study room behind Tai Chi Hall was filled with incense.

Song Ji took off the imperial crown of his dragon robe and sat on the couch wearing a civilian robe, leaning on a small case with his elbows. He turned the white pieces over on his fingertips and frowned as he thought about the endgame on the chessboard.

Eunuch Jia sat opposite the chessboard with a humble smile on his face. He looked at the sky and reminded softly:

"Your Majesty, the time for the competition outside the city is coming soon. The ceremonial guards and chariots have been prepared. When will we leave the palace?"

Song Ji likes to play chess, and he was scolded by the old man Qi for several years because he delayed his time to go to court by playing chess. At this time, he was stroking the chess pieces, looking a little disappointed:

"It's time to wrap things up, let me think about it again."

Eunuch Jia nodded slightly and sat quietly in front of the chessboard to wait.

Song Ji carefully looked at the endgame in front of him, frowning in thought. It wasn't until three o'clock in the morning that he placed the chess piece in his hand on the chessboard:

"I will leave the palace without any regrets."

"promise!"

After a while.

Outside the Taiji Palace, the emperor's chariot with six horses riding abreast came out of the palace gate.

Song Ji, crowned in dragon robes, sat on an imperial chariot and walked through Zhuque Street.

Thousands of people on both sides of the street bowed their heads, and the courtiers and chariots followed closely behind, slowly driving out of Chang'an...