young master in arms

But at this time, in the cliff mountain, in the temporary imperial court, the guards are heavily guarded, and the magnificent hall is majestic. Even if he is on the way to escape, the pomp and circumstance cannot be simplified, and the royal majesty is still displayed with great fanfare.

Above the main hall, all the ministers and officials stood in silence, and the atmosphere in the court was quiet. On the dragon and phoenix chair in the middle of the main hall, the young emperor Zhao Bing was playing with the memorial presented by Shicai Minister of the Ministry of War.

However, Empress Dowager Xie, who was listening to the government behind the curtain for a quarter of an hour, was furious, grabbed the memorial and threw it on the ground suddenly, the officials were in an uproar and panicked, Lu Xiufu beside Zhao Bing said in a deep voice: "Queen Queen, calm down." The civil and military officials also said: "Queen Mother Calm down." The Prime Minister Zhang Shijie was even more terrified, knelt down and said in a trembling voice: "The emperor and the empress dowager, now that Mongolia has not been calmed down, there is a new chaos, and all major business routes in the world are cut off from my Song Dynasty. Although your majesty has repeatedly promised After the opening of the trade routes in various counties, merchants were allowed to share with the imperial court. However, the rules established by the Mongol Tartars are business income, and they do not take any money. Now the imperial treasury is empty and there is no income. Please forgive me, the current situation There is no time to delay, and I hope His Majesty will rule!"

The empress dowager behind the curtain helped her sleeves, her anger was not trivial: "Since there is no income, then why are you ministers spending all day decorating their residences and accepting concubines and slaves? Don't think that Ai's family is ignorant because they live in the harem. The literati and ministers argue endlessly over trivial matters on weekdays, but now the treasury is empty, and the court has been driven out by the Mongols repeatedly, so they have to live in a corner in the south. Didn’t the court provide you with food and drink, and let you ask questions instead of trying to solve them?"

Standing out from among the hundred officials was a man who was tall and tall and could be seen as a military general. He said: "Please calm down the queen mother. It is rumored among the people that Prime Minister Chen Yizhong wants to seek peace with the Mongols. A few days ago, I saw him going around fighting with the Mongols." The foreign merchants from the coast are discussing trade matters, and what Doctor Lu said may have something to do with him."

Lu Xiufu knew that this person deliberately opened up the emptiness of the national treasury, in order to cover up the reality of the emptiness. A few years ago Song Duanzong lifted this person up to now, and the guards in the palace hall have changed one by one. It can be seen that this person's decision seems to have some meaning The intention of rebellion, but there is no evidence, so no one reported.

The Empress Dowager was indeed very concerned about Chen Yizhong's matter, she immediately asked: "Jiang Cheng, did you ever have any clues? Ai's family has not eaten for many days because of this matter, so I am really annoyed."

Jiang Cheng's eyes were slightly cold, and he bowed and said, "It is reported that Quanzhou, the largest maritime trading port in the country, has now completely surrendered to Mongolia. Since the death of the Arab, the Jin Mansion, He Taishou, and Bai Family Mansions of Quanzhou have been in town for trade. The Jin Mansion is in charge of the supply of ships, while He Taishou signs all the official documents for going to sea. As for the Bai Family, it is mainly about the import and export of goods. It was to provide warships for Kublai Khan to destroy our Great Song Dynasty, so the trade route was temporarily closed, so it involved all parts of Chaozhou."

After hearing this, the Empress Dowager hesitated a little: "Chen Yizhong is so loyal, it doesn't seem like he would do such a rebellious thing, you go down and pass on an imperial decree to him, ordering him to raise food for the three armies at noon tomorrow, if he can't even eat enough , isn’t it child’s play to regain the mountains and rivers?”

Jiang Cheng took the order and went down.

At this time, Di Bing got down from the dragon chair, picked up the memorial that the Empress Dowager had dropped on the ground just now, and raised his innocent face: "My mother, now that the country is in crisis, these memorials can still be written after they have been smeared with paste. It's the same for everything." He said, without waiting for the Queen Mother to react, facing the officials, his delicate and fair face showed a maturity and seriousness that a teenager should not have: "Put my will, from now on, Anyone who is extravagant and wasteful will be punished without mercy." The child's words were majestic, and no one dared to violate them. Even if some ministers disagreed, they did not dare to raise the issue in public, so they had to kneel down and say, "The minister waits for the order."

Satisfied, the young emperor showed the innocence of a child, and ran to the queen mother and took her hand: "The queen mother can sleep well tonight, and the ministers have just asked them to be diligent and thrifty. The army will return to the Central Plains."

He has a young heart, but he speaks such righteous words, many ministers in the court feel ashamed, and they are even more determined to fight the Mongols to the end.

The queen mother was even more taken aback, she touched Di Bing's face lovingly, and said softly and kindly: "The emperor has such determination, the queen mother can sleep soundly."

Suddenly I heard someone report: "Your Majesty Qizuo, the right prime minister Wen Tianxiang is asking to see you."

Hearing that it was Wen Tianxiang, the Queen Mother was overjoyed: "Hurry up and let him in."

Because Lu Xiufu, Zhang Shijie, and Chen Yizhong in the DPRK rejected Wen Tianxiang, most of the affairs in the DPRK were away from him, and he led the army alone to deal with the Mongolian army.

As soon as he entered the court, he bowed down: "My minister Wen Tianxiang, see Your Majesty and Queen Mother."

The Empress Dowager winked at Di Bing, and Di Bing immediately said, "Get up, Ai Qing."

Wen Tianxiang got up and walked to the front. Lu Xiufu, who was beside Di Bing, felt a little displeased with his move, but he couldn't say anything to stop him. Against him in major matters, there shouldn't be any conflicts between the two prime ministers, one on the left and the other on the right. Now that the country is facing a crisis, it is even more important to fight against the enemy and regain the country.

The queen mother stood up and asked, "Prime Minister Wen, have you gained anything from fighting the Mongols this time?"

Wen Tianxiang was dejected when he heard this, and knelt down on the ground: "I hope your Majesty the Queen Mother will forgive me, the minister is incompetent, Ganzhou fell, the army suffered heavy casualties, and even three of the 'Ten Swords' under the command of the minister have gone."

Hearing the uproar of the officials here, hearing that the Mongol soldiers went south to attack the Song Dynasty in four directions, the force would not be too concentrated, and the attack on Ganzhou was only [-] people. Wen Tianxiang ordered [-] soldiers to go to the rescue, but they all failed. How can everyone not be surprised? ?

Di Bing didn't understand very well. He looked at the queen mother, his cute little eyes were full of doubts. The queen mother smiled at him, stepped off the high platform herself, and helped Wen Tianxiang up: "What's wrong with the prime minister? I want to come to Mongolia that day. Prime Minister Wen was far away in Nanling when the news of the invasion of Ganzhou was reported, but the Prime Minister worked tirelessly and ordered the army to quickly support him. He did his best, so how could His Majesty blame him?"

Wen Tianxiang was flattered to be lifted up by the empress dowager herself, and stood up tremblingly. Seeing that he no longer blamed himself, the empress dowager returned to Di Bing and asked again: "According to Aiqing's estimate, when will the Mongols attack Yashan?"

The officials behind him were also very concerned about this question, and they all leaned forward, waiting for Wen Tianxiang to give the answer.

Wen Tianxiang bowed towards the Queen Mother, and said in a deep voice, "Not within a month."

Now that the first month has not passed, many people in Yashan are still in the joy of the New Year. They are far away from the Central Plains, so they can't feel the misery of the war. Wen Tianxiang's words, less than half a day after the dispersal of the court, have spread throughout the south. The Mongolian army may come here within a month.

Immediately, people panicked, and many people packed up their business and prepared to flee to Zhannan.

Zhannan is actually the southernmost part of the Central Plains, but blindly fleeing south is not a solution. The Great Yuan Dynasty was established at the beginning and was about to implement various policies, but suffered from the failure of the Song Dynasty to completely destroy it. More than half of the people in the Central Plains still refused to accept the Yuan Dynasty. Lie gave his life and decided to wipe out all the remnants of the Song Dynasty, otherwise all the generals would be punished.

At this time, Zhang Hongfan was the most urgent. He was originally a lieutenant general of the Ashu Army. Because he was familiar with water warfare, Kublai Khan sent him a [-]-strong army, asking him to attack Yashan after the New Year, and capture Emperor Bing of the Song Dynasty. Escorted back to Dadu, completely cut off the Han people's idea of ​​recovery.

The general who was looking at the map at the side suddenly said: "Brother, the battleship has been completed seven to eighty-eight, and we are practicing the navy day and night. It stands to reason that we should be able to set off in a short time."

Zhang Hongfan looked at his compatriot brother and said with a smile: "Hongzheng, in war, it is not about whoever has more soldiers and who is better equipped will win."

Zhang Hongzheng showed doubts: "Brother, don't rely on the large number of people, can it be done by seeing whose layout is good?"

"Layout is one thing, but not all."

"What's all that?"

Zhang Hongfan put down the collection of poems in his hand, walked to his younger brother, pointed to the area of ​​Nanling on the map and said, "Look here."

Zhang Hongzheng nodded and said: "I know that Wen Tianxiang is guarding this place at this time, I have heard enough about the strength of the Governor's Mansion from the Emperor's side."

As if he loved his younger brother very much, Zhang Hongfan said solemnly: "In the beginning, we could immediately send troops to capture Emperor Bing of the Song Dynasty wherever he fled, but now that Wen Tianxiang is guarding here, we can't be careless."

"Is this Wen Tianxiang really so powerful?"

"Do you know why the Song Dynasty was able to hold back my Mongolian cavalry for more than 40 years?"

"Could it be because of these good generals?"

Zhang Hongfan shook his head, he stared at his brother's face with great interest, thinking about what kind of answer he would have.

Unexpectedly, he thought for a while, but still couldn't think of a reason, so he smiled wryly: "My good brother, you know I only know how to fight, how can I know these things."

Zhang Hongfan burst out laughing, walked to his younger brother, grabbed his shoulders and said as he walked out, "It's people's hearts."

"The people of the Great Song Dynasty have been stable for hundreds of years. What's more, the people of the Central Plains have always regarded themselves as Chinese people. All outsiders are foreigners. Their people have the same heart, and their people have the same national heart. People like Wen Tianxiang are exemplary. As long as there are such people in Song Dynasty, they will not be defeated by the Mongols."

Zhang Hongzheng stood still, his face was full of panic: "Why did brother say such a thing? If this word reaches the ears of the emperor, wouldn't it be a serious crime of beheading?"

Zhang Hongfan didn't care. He looked at the hazy night outside the tent, looked at the Mongolian soldiers standing upright, and sighed: "It is the trend of the times for me to seek refuge in Mongolia. If the people of the Song Dynasty want me, how can I be a dignified Han Chinese? Under the Mongols?"

"Hey."

I don't know who sighed, and actually sighed the bitter helplessness of my family and country.

The business girl doesn't know the hatred of subjugation, does she really not know, or is she aware but powerless?

Since it is already powerless, why do you need to shake it with your own strength?

The two walked slowly outside the barracks. Zhang Hongfan asked someone to bring a jug of wine. He filled it up for his younger brother. The two toasted, facing the bright universe and the northern part of the Central Plains, singing:

Chutian is thousands of miles away and autumn is clear, and the water goes with the sky and the autumn is endless.Yuan Cen Yuanmu, offering sorrow and hate, hosta snail bun.At the sunset above the building, in the sound of Duanhong, a wanderer from the south of the Yangtze River.I looked at Wu Gou, and patted the railings everywhere, no one would be there.

Don't say that perch is worthy of popularity, and when the westerly wind blows, the season eagle will return?Ask Tian to ask about homes, afraid of being ashamed, Liu Lang is angry.It's a pity that the fleeting years, sorrowful wind and rain, the tree is still like this!Qian who calls, red scarf and green sleeves, tears of heroes?