choke element

Chapter 503

"Shandong Xuanfu envoy?"

Ding Can's expression changed: "Is that Guo Ning who defeated the Red Coat Army? Is he going to send troops to serve the king?"

Jiagu Ali was taken aback for a while.In his eyes, the strength of the Shandong Ding Navy lies in the fact that his troops defeated the Mongolian army three times, and recently defeated the Mongol general Jebe.As for the red coat army, it is nothing more than the rebellion of the ant people, and the disease of slender mustard is not to be mentioned.The focus of the envoys from the Song Dynasty was completely different from his, perhaps because they were secluded in the south of the Yangtze River and did not know how powerful the Mongols were.

But Jiagu Alihe didn't intend to be troublesome, so he just nodded: "Yes, it's them! This time the imperial court fought against Mongolia, and all the commanders from all over the country sent troops to support them. The troops from Shandong arrived by sea, which is the fastest !"

Seeing that Jiagu Ali left the high platform happily, and went to meet the generals under the Ding Navy, the deputy envoy Hou Zhongxin gathered his raccoon sleeves and moved closer to Ding Yan.

"Bachelor, when I was in Huainan, I heard about Guo Ning's deeds from the rest of the Red Coat Army. This man was able to become the Xuanfu envoy of Dajin with a small soldier in Han Dynasty. He holds a heavy army and sits in a vast territory. Not only is he extremely brave, but he also has something extraordinary in his military and political affairs. After a while, I'll go and have a look and find out the details of his department?"

Ding Tang was silent for a moment, nodded slightly, and said again: "Just ask, don't worry about it, our most important task is still in Zhongdu City."

"Bachelor, don't worry, I will save it."

"In addition, even if the two families are traveling together, don't let those soldiers get too close to us... Guo Ning is a mighty general, so he must have many arrogant soldiers under his command, and most of them will act brutally. It is not easy for us to go all the way. If To be plundered by rebels under the city of Zhongdu will become a laughing stock."

Hou Zhong understood it confidently, and immediately shouted to the servants behind him, "Do you understand?"

Nadu was born in the third group of envoys, very shrewd and capable, and bowed slightly at the moment: "I will arrange soldiers to guard against death. Don't worry, my two gentlemen, we have 60 soldiers on hand, and two strong and strong men recruited along the way More than a hundred. Set off tomorrow, no matter if you meet the Mongols or the Jurchens' rebellious soldiers, you will definitely repel them."

The so-called military exchanges between the ancients were envoys.Since the Song and Jin Dynasties have been side by side for a hundred years, the two countries have been at peace and war, and the main function of envoys is to spy on each other's inside information, so as to facilitate the adjustment of their own national policies.

For example, when the new emperor of the Jin Dynasty ascended the throne the year before last, Zhendexiu, a famous minister of the Song Dynasty, was sent to serve as He Deng's envoy.When Zhendexiu traveled to Xuyi, it happened that Mongolia swept across the Central Plains and the roads were impassable, so he stayed at the border for two months and returned.During this period, he traveled through the situation in the two Huaihe Rivers, and he knew all about the dangers of mountains and rivers, the bravery and cowardice of soldiers, whether the guards were good or not, and the sufferings of border people.

When returning to the palace, when reporting on the journey, Zhen Dexiu described Jin's domestic and foreign troubles, and urged Chen Sui to stop, which won the approval of the officials in the court.

Ding Can and Hou Zhongxin were the ones who were in charge of keeping an eye on Da Jin's inside story after Zhen Dexiu.Before going out, they had to be ordered by powerful people in the court to arrive in the central capital, and they couldn't just go around Lianghuai like Zhen Dexiu did.

But this goal is really difficult to achieve under the condition of constant battles in the territory of Dajin.

In the Lianghuai area, there were remnants of the Red Coat Army scattered everywhere; on Nanjing Road, Kaifeng Mansion, Sui Wang Wanyan Shouxu, and Shandong Road's Xuanfu envoy Guo Ning also led troops to guard the border, as if they had formed their own country.Ding Cang and Hou Zhongxin lingered for a long time, and they were about to return disappointed.

At this time, a local official in Huainan who served as the magistrate of Wan'an County suggested that although the land route between the two countries was blocked, the sea route was always open, and many sea merchants had their own strengths, which could guarantee the safety along the way.

A mere county magistrate, how could he have a relationship with a sea merchant? There is something worth pursuing, but Ding Yan wanted to deal with the urgent business at hand, so he didn't care too much, so he immediately asked the county magistrate to come forward and contacted a reliable person. maritime merchants.Only then did the fleet be organized and take this trip.

Of course, maritime merchants want to take risks, so they have their own requirements and want to obtain benefits in exchange.

On this point, Ding Wei and Hou Zhongxin had consulted their seniors before they set off, and they knew what to do.As an envoy of the Song Dynasty, he already had the practice and privilege of being private, entraining, so when he went to the central capital, he also had to do a big smuggling business. It was a trivial matter to meet the requirements of a maritime merchant.

At this time, from Ding Yan's point of view, the horror of the Mongols is only in the legend, and the soldiers of the Jurchens are the enemies who have been fighting against the Song Dynasty for the past hundred years.On the way from Zhigu Village to Zhongdu, it's really hard to say who should be more on guard.

Hou Zhongxin got Ding Wei's order, so he left the army camp and went to the wharf in the south.

Since most of the merchants in Zhigu Village have fled, many buildings have been requisitioned as military camps.Jiagu Ali has cooperated with Dutong, a short seller for nearly two years, and now he has also used his family's assets to recruit a large number of soldiers.

At this moment, many soldiers came out of the barracks, and there were noisy voices on both sides of the road, mostly talking about the soldiers and horses of the navy.

When he got near the pier, he saw several groups of infantry with red flags lined up neatly, entering various barracks like black and gray snakes.Roughly counting, the number of soldiers is not many, there are about hundreds of people who disembark, and many people stay on board.

Many of the people on the boat went out of the cabin, stood at the bow and looked towards the shore, obviously very envious of the companions who landed.But since the officers had no orders, everyone continued to wait as a matter of course, without the slightest restlessness.

And the soldiers who disembark first may not be idle.In Hou Zhongxin's eyes, they entered the barracks, put down their weapons and saluted, and were immediately driven to work.Some are burying pots for cooking, and some are starting to repair the camp, prepare defense facilities, and even move wood and so on.

The officers were running back and forth in the camp, shouting for orders, and the cavalry and infantry who disembarked came in one after another, looking for their respective assembly points. There was inevitably a little confusion in the process, and people shouted and neighed for a while.But Hou Zhongxin noticed that even in times of chaos, the soldiers did not complain, and once any chaos occurred, officers would arrive immediately and deal with it on the spot.

Hou Zhongxin even felt a particularly high-spirited energy in those low-level officers, and even in those ordinary soldiers.

This kind of vigor was different from Hou Zhongxin's imagining of the ferocity of the northern barbarians, nor was it like the silent and heavy soldiers of the Great Song Dynasty.It seems that it is rarely seen on warriors, but it is somewhat similar to the officials and gentry of the Song Dynasty, with pride and reserve in their bones.

How can every lowly Qiuba be compared with officials and gentry?

Hou Zhongxin shook his head, thinking that he might have been at sea for a long time, and his mind was a little confused.

At this time, horns sounded again in various barracks, and immediately the rangers of the navy were divided into groups and galloped out.

Behind Hou Zhongxin, a local guard from Zhigu Village saw their vigorous figures and couldn't help but praise: "Good horses, good riding skills, and good courage!"

Another soldier gasped: "They only ride in groups of three or five? Aren't they afraid of colliding with the Mongols and being slaughtered?"

"Where did the Mongols near Zhigu Village come from? Those are all Tatar tribes, Khitans, and Wangu people... Didn't the Ding Navy kill dozens of people just now? Aren't those heads hanging on the pier? Let me tell you, Ding The Navy has fought vicious battles with the elite headquarters of the Mongolian army in Shandong and Liaodong, so how can they be afraid of those miscellaneous tribes?"

"In the past two years, they are the only ones who can defeat the Mongols, right? It's really amazing."

"Isn't that because they got the fields, equipment and training? If anyone can give me a hundred acres, no, give me twenty acres of land, and give me a steel knife, I will kill a Mongolian too. .”

"You little bird, you pee your pants when you go into battle, is it worth twenty acres of land?"

The soldiers continued to talk nonsense, and someone noticed Hou Zhongxin, who was dressed as a Song official, and pulled his companions to signal them to shut up.

Hou Zhongxin stood where he was, only continuing to stare at Ding Haijun's actions.

(End of this chapter)