Three thousand miles in exile

"General, you have brought them back." Several personal guards looked exhausted.

"Thank you for your hard work, go down and rest, there will be a big reward tomorrow." Liu Zhan sent them down, turned around and opened the curtain of the car, and saw a thin boy lying in the carriage.

"Too much fate, good luck tricks people." Song Fenglin glanced at it and let out a long sigh.

"That's right, I went back to Northern Xinjiang after going around for a while." Liu Zhan put down the curtain of the car and called for someone to come. "Take it in and find Lin Yidian to have a look, don't say anything."

I don't know how much the little boy suffered so much that he became skinny and skinny. Li Asan carried him out so lightly that he didn't even need to exert any effort.

The personal guard quickly invited Lin Xiuyan to come. He was taken aback when he saw the little boy, and immediately took the pulse and took medicine without asking any further questions.

Li Asan is taking care of him, he will stay here tonight, Liu Zhan has given an order not to make any mistakes.

It was late at night, the lights were on in the study, and neither of them felt sleepy.

"Xu Muyuan has a heart, and it can be regarded as an explanation to Emperor Wen." Liu Zhan thought of many things far away.

"I didn't expect that in the end, it was General Xu who fulfilled the friendship between monarch and minister." Song Fenglin held the book in his hand and hadn't turned the pages for a long time.

"The caravan brought back news that Emperor Liang had approved Xu Muyuan's proposal to return to his hometown, and planned to make him the hereditary replacement of Duke Jing." Song Fenglin recalled this, and it was the news brought back by Liu Chenggang.

Liu Zhan smiled. "Jiang is still old and spicy. Instead of being a great Sima with no real power, it is better to retire bravely. Besides gaining both fame and honor, he must be respected by Emperor Liang."

The Forbidden Army Camp is full of members of the Fang family. When Xu Muyuan succeeded Fang Shouting as the Grand Sima, he was only in command of the Fang family.

Now that Fang's surname has become the imperial surname, Xu Muyuan knew that he had retired on his own initiative, and Emperor Liang would remember his kindness.

"That child, how do you plan to arrange it?" Song Fenglin asked.

"It can't be kept by your side, and it can't be placed too far away." Liu Zhan thought. "I have to spend a little time to make him think it's just a dream. Fortunately, I'm not old enough to be able to deceive him."

Who would believe an eight-year-old child who told others that he had been an emperor? As time passed, even he himself did not believe it. Let him think it was just a dream.

"I'll handle this matter." Liu Zhan got up and led Song Fenglin back to his room. "Come on, go to sleep."

Early the next morning, Liu Zhan brought people to Yan's mansion. Yan Qixiu was still awake in the gentle village, and was hurriedly pulled up by the housekeeper to meet Liu Zhan in the front hall.

"Brother, why are you here so early? What's the matter?" Yan Qixiu was still hungover and his brain was hurting.

"Put the person in the room and lie down first." Liu Zhan signaled, and the housekeeper of the Yan residence immediately led the way.

"This is?" Yan Qixiu's sleepy eyes dimmed, and he vaguely saw Li Asan carrying a little boy on his back.

A group of people entered the guest room, Li Asan put down the little boy lightly, and carefully tucked in the quilt. Liu Zhan stepped forward and touched his forehead. He didn't have a fever, but he was too weak and fell asleep all the time.

"I'll let Lin Yidian take a look and take care of it." Liu Zhan personally appointed two servants to take care of him, and the two servants hurriedly agreed.

"This?" Yan Qixiu's hangover brain suddenly opened up, and his whole body was shaken. "Brother, is this your son?!"

"You...you are, are you outside behind Mr. Song's back?? No, why is it not like you? Have you confirmed it? It is indeed your son?"

Liu Zhan was so angry that his teeth itched, and he slapped the back of his head. "This is your father's son!"

"What? My father's??" Yan Qixiu only felt that the weather was sunny, drought and thunder.

"His name is Yan Qirui. He is the youngest son born to your father and his wife. You will take care of him from now on." Liu Zhan said without doubt.

"When he grows up, I will buy an estate for him, and I won't touch Yan's things. You just need to treat him like your own brother and take good care of him."

Seeing Yan Qixiu's foggy expression, Liu Zhan angrily grabbed him aside and whispered.

For a moment Yan Qixiu's eyes widened, he was very shocked.

Liu Zhan put his hands behind his back. "If he wakes up and talks nonsense, you tell him that the Yan family has suffered an accident, and he was frightened and sick, and he was thinking wildly. How should I put it, do you have a bottom line?"

Yan Qixiu nodded blankly.

After explaining Liu Zhan, he left Yan's mansion, leaving only Yan Qixiu staring blankly at the younger brother who suddenly appeared.

"Master, this child..." Butler Yan was troubled.

Yan Qixiu collected his expression. "From now on, this child will be the second master of the Yan family. He is the son of my father and his concubine. Who dares to criticize behind his back and directly kill him."

"Obey." Yan Butler immediately agreed not to say more.

At that time, it was the annual spring plowing in northern Xinjiang.

During the war in Hanzhong, the number of refugees from Hanzhong increased as soon as the roads in northern Xinjiang were opened.

This year, many new villages were opened on the Cangxia Plain, and the refugees were resettled as soon as they arrived, just in time for spring plowing.

The snow in the wasteland has not yet fully melted, and the refugees are building ridges and plowing barefoot. Although they are tired, their faces are full of anticipation. As long as they survive until the autumn harvest, they will have a good life.

The field was full of enthusiasm, and the barracks did not slack off.

Liu Zhan planned to use troops against the Songliao Mountains in the early summer. During this time, he was playing with the sand table to study the strategy.

In the meeting hall of the General's Mansion, Liu Zhan was fiddling with the sand table, chatting absently with Cao Zhuang and the others. "The Qing army has nearly 30 troops, and Hanzhong is rich and well-populated. As long as the decision is correct, it can be defended."

Since last year, the Qing army and Xirong have been in constant conflict. General Tang Chongjian of Wuwei has fortified the walls and cleared the fields outside the pass. The Xirong people were unable to grab food, so they aimed at the two important passes of Yumen Pass and Ziwu Pass. The war was imminent.

"According to reports from scouts, this time Xirong is coming in a menacing manner, I'm afraid it's going to be serious." Cao Zhuang rubbed his saber with his big palm.

Li Xiaolian pecked at the tea. "Xi Rong has a large number of people. If they break through the defense line of the Qing army, the hinterland of Hanzhong will be completely flat. If they go back and forth to Hanzhong, they will be seriously injured."

"How can such a vast plain be defended, it can only be attacked." Jiang Changlin said.

"When the two armies fight, even if they win, it's a disastrous victory. It's hard to recover after losing their vitality. Just like the Yan family back then, they lost step by step." Li Xiaolian said.

"The Tang family is much stronger than the Yan family," Cao Zhuang said.

"How are the Yanren and Xianbei?" Liu Zhan asked without raising his head, interrupting their excessive attention to Hanzhong.

Li Xiaolian answered. "There was a battle in the beginning of spring, and Xianbei won. Now they occupy the grassland outside the Uragan Forest, and the Xianbei people have already started cutting trees to build the city."

In the battle last year, the entire elite army of Yan State was wiped out. Since then, Yan State has been broken.

Liu Zhan raised his head while supporting the edge of the sand table with both hands. "Unless the Xianbei people are defeated, there is no need to intervene otherwise. Has the Yan State elected a new king?"

"Not yet. Old King Yan's sons are all fighting over it." Jiang Changlin replied.

"What's going on in Lone Bamboo City recently?" Liu Zhan asked again.

Cao Zhuang answered immediately. "A few days ago, Guzhu City absorbed two tribes, both of which were small tribes driven away by the Xianbei people."

"The people of Yan can't be idle." Liu Zhan straightened up and patted the dust in his hands, Cao Zhuang, Li Xiaolian, Cao Ming and the others immediately sat up straight.

"Guzhu City is located in the Songliao Mountains. Compared with the mud city in the capital of Yan, Guzhu City is a veritable city. Zhucheng attacked the Cangxia Plain again for the pedal."

Liu Zhan looked at them with dark eyes. "The thousands of miles of fertile land on the Cangxia Plain are the lifeblood of the common people. The battlefield between us and the Yan army cannot be in the Cangxia Plain."

Everyone looked solemn.

"Then we will enter the Songliao Mountains!" Cao Zhuang stood up and bowed to Liu Zhan with both hands clasped. "I am willing to lead my troops to fight the Yan army!"

"No rush." ​​Liu Zhan patted him on the shoulder.

"Warning in the mountains is different from fighting on the plains. Right now, our troops are all designed for fighting on the plains. The troops, equipment, and equipment for attacking Guzhu City must be improved."

Liu Zhan already had an idea in his mind, and his eyes were bright. "I have decided to send troops to the Songliao Mountains in the early summer. You should go back and train your subordinates well. Don't slack off."

Everyone stood up and clasped their hands together, agreeing in unison.

How could someone else be allowed to sleep soundly on the side of the couch? Even if the Cangxia Plain was regained, Liu Zhan's pace would not stop.

In this way, in June, Qi Yun's army officially deployed troops to the Songliao Mountains.

"City Lord! Qi Yun's army has entered the Songliao Mountains, and it is roughly estimated that there are tens of thousands of people!"

The Lord of Lone Bamboo City turned pale. "Is this true?"

"It's absolutely true! The forward of the Qiyun army is stationed at the mountain pass."

"The king of Yan died for his country, and the king's army was torn apart. What can I do! Who can help me!" The city lord was in a hurry.

At this time, the old priest heard the news and came. "Don't worry, the city lord. Guzhu City is built on the mountain and is easy to defend and difficult to attack. There are [-] people in the city. As long as they can't hold on, the Qiyun army can only return in defeat."

The city lord salutes. "Please teach me the old priest."

"City Lord, our Unger tribe is the son of the mountain forest. Qi Yun's army is good at fighting in the plains, but they don't know how to fight in the mountains. As long as they enter the mountains, they will never come back. Whether it is a sneak attack at night or an ambush on the mountain road, we have an absolute advantage. .”

The aged and mottled face of the old priest with an ebony staff gave off a sense of both mystery and wisdom, and the city lord was very convinced.

"God bless Dayan, this battle must be won." The old priest said firmly.

The Unger tribe lived in the Songliao Mountains for generations, and the tribal people grew up in the mountains and forests. Even a few-year-old children have the means to protect themselves when they enter the mountains. They are tribes who are good at jungle field battles, and they are natural hunters.

However, Qi Yun's army did not carry any siege equipment, and even only 5 cavalry out of [-] people, and the rest were all lightly armored infantry.

Just when Anger's troops were gearing up, Qi Yun's army camped on the flat ground at the junction of Songliao Mountain and Cangxia Plain.

"Cut down all the trees within ten feet around the camp, and tie the cut trees into horses." Jiang Changlin personally supervised the soldiers to set up the camp.

"Brother, why did you cut it so wide?" Jiang Changlin's cousin came forward.

"The general has an order, which is to prevent the company from being burned." Jiang Changlin explained with a straight face.

"What is the burning company?"

Jiang Changlin gave him a look that I wouldn't bother to explain if you weren't my younger brother.

"Fire Company Camp is an allusion. Once a general ordered the entire army to camp in the forest, but the enemy soldiers set fire to the forest. The fire burned the forest and also burned the barracks stationed in the forest."

The soldiers eavesdropping on the side all showed a look of sudden realization.

"Go, move, all these trees will be cut down within today." Jiang Changlin kicked his cousin's ass.

The felled trees were quickly tied up into rows of horses, and a circle of horses was placed in the ten-foot-wide fire belt. At intervals, there were platforms built of big tree stumps, guarded by sentries in turn.

All Qi Yunjun's movements were reported to Guzhu City Lord.

I thought that Qi Yun's army would come directly, but the city lord set up an ambush along the way according to the old priest's intention, but Qi Yun's army camped at the border of the forest.

After the whole army set up camp, General Qi Yun issued the second military order.

"Investigate all the roads in and out of the Cangxia Plain, and destroy all these roads, so that people and horses can't get through it!" Zhou Zimin personally led 5000 people to destroy roads along the periphery of Songliao Mountain.

"Dig out all the roadbeds for me! Then attract boulders to stop them. If there are no boulders, dig a trench and dig a few more sections."

The scene of the road destruction was in full swing. Several sections of trenches were dug to cut off the road on the flat ground, and the road beside the cliff was blocked by falling rocks. Various trails in the forest were also investigated one by one.

Ten days later, the only way in and out of the Cangxia Plain in the Songliao Mountains was the official road directly opposite the Qi Yun Army's garrison.

"Digging?" The city lord's expression was indescribable. "Is this General Qi's brain hard to control?"

There was a burst of laughter in the room.

The city lord has been worried from the beginning to now talking and laughing, and he is more and more sure that Liu Zhan is not really attacking Guzhu City, but just pretending.

In the eyes of the city lord, digging the road is really stupid.

Soon the Lord of Lone Bamboo City knew that General Qi Yun never did anything meaningless.

The beginning of summer is the season when caravans from all over the world gather in northern Xinjiang, and a large number of caravans going north come to the entrance of Songliao Mountain.

"My military order is to detain these caravans on the charge of collaborating with the enemy, confiscate the goods, and no one is allowed to let go. I want to see how many companies in the Central Plains do business with the Yan people."

Liu Zhan casually wiped the Mo knife in his hand, and one sentence decided the life and death of these businessmen.

The continuous northward caravans are like fish in a trap, and they are all big fat fish.

In just half a month, Liu Zhan withheld a huge amount of grain goods. Due to the huge amount, Song Fenglin finally had to lead the officials to record the accounts and store them in person.

For the camp tent at night, Song Fenglin showed Liu Zhan the account books that had been sorted out during the day.

"It's these people who support half of the Yan Kingdom." Liu Zhan flipped through the account books and sneered. "Food, cloth, silk, porcelain, medicinal materials, hmph, I did not wrong these people by arresting them for collaborating with the enemy."

Song Fenglin said coldly: "Of all the goods, the amount of grain is the largest. The caravan brought the grain to the country of Yan in exchange for iron stones, and then brought it to the Central Plains to resell it. The profits in it are astonishing."

The price of food in the Central Plains has been soaring for two consecutive years due to the severe drought. The common people still cannot afford to buy food. These merchants hoard food for profit and then sell it to the State of Yan. The Central Plains lacks iron, and the value of the iron and stone exchanged from the State of Yan can be doubled when transported back to the Central Plains.

"In the past, I turned a blind eye. I thought that there would not be many things, but I didn't expect to underestimate these people." Liu Zhan put down the account book in his hand, with murderous intent in his eyes. "Actors are ruthless, businessmen are ruthless."

"How do you plan to deal with these people?" Song Fenglin also closed the account book, and the situation has been reported to Liu Zhan. Now it's up to Liu Zhan to make a decision.

"It's cheaper to kill these people." Liu Zhan thought about it. "Quan Fa went to serve in corvee. If someone finds their business, it will be said that the Lord of Gu Zhu City detained the caravan in Zhongyuan, and the life and death of the businessman is unknown."

It was a good plan, but Song Fenglin thought of something else and couldn't help laughing for a moment.

"Huh? What are you laughing at?" Liu Zhan stretched out his hand and pulled him into his arms.

Everything in the front-line barracks was kept simple. Liu Zhan's middle tent just spread out a few blankets to sit on the floor, and only the sleeping place was covered with mattresses.

Song Fenglin was pulled against his chest by Liu Zhan, and the strong tendons were still a little painful when they hit hard.

"In addition to framing the Yan people, we also need to publicize the crimes of these merchants, and let the people in northern Xinjiang know the right and wrong." Song Fenglin found a comfortable place to lean against Liu Zhan.

"People in the Central Plains can misunderstand General Qi Yun, but the people in Northern Xinjiang cannot misunderstand their savior."

When they were displaced, it was not a savior who gave them household registration land, food and rice seeds, and gave them a new life.

Xintian tax exemption for two years, who in the world can do it?

Liu Zhan hugged his tight waist, ironing it in his heart. "It's still my daughter-in-law who knows that she loves me."

The candles in the tent flickered on and off, illuminating Song Fenglin Qingjun's profile. "I know you don't care what other people think, but if you want to advance to the next level, a good reputation is so important."

"It's fine if we have you. The people in northern Xinjiang regard you as their parents." Liu Zhan's words are true, not joking.

Song Fenglin attaches great importance to farming and people's livelihood, and handles affairs fairly and strictly. He is in charge of prices in northern Xinjiang, but he never buys low and sells high.

In the past two years, the price of food in the Central Plains has skyrocketed, and the purchase price of Liu Ji Trading Co., Ltd. has also risen accordingly. This alone has won the love of all the people in northern Xinjiang.

Liu Zhan's prestige and vicious reputation coexisted, and his killing and punishment were decisive and ruthless. The people in northern Xinjiang respected and feared him, and they all avoided him when they saw him from a distance.

Only when Song Fenglin went out, the common people took the initiative to come to salute. Even if Liu Zhan killed people like hemp, as long as Song Fenglin was around for a day, the hearts of the common people would not be shaken.