The Blood Crown

Before Yan Sikong returned to Qianzhou, Yuan Nanyu came to see him suddenly—with a bunch of things.

"Why did the wolf king suddenly allow you to come and see me?" Yan Sikong looked tired, but seeing Yuan Nanyu was probably the only time he was happy these days.

"I said you're leaving soon, you can't celebrate the New Year together, at least let me see you, and he agreed." Yuan Nanyu ordered people to move things into the house, and said, "When are you leaving?"

"Let the sun go down, I don't want too many people to watch me enter the city." Yan Sikong's mood, which had been low for several days, finally improved, and there was some color on his face.

Yuan Nanyu came over and looked at him: "You look a little haggard, but you're not feeling well?"

"It's okay." Aside from being depressed, Yan Sikong deliberately slept less and ate less, so that when he returned to Qianzhou, he looked like a tortured prisoner. Besides, he was indeed tortured in his heart. all the time.

Yuan Nanyu gave him a pulse: "You are a little weak, and you have lost a lot of weight. Is it because the food in the northwest is not to your liking?"

"No, I'm eating well." Yan Sikong smiled, "It's probably because I've been in the room for a long time, it's nothing serious."

"The wolf king didn't let you go out because he was afraid that people would know..." Yuan Nanyu coughed lightly, "I didn't mean to lock you up."

Yan Sikong smiled lightly and remained silent.

"By the way, I heard that Princess Wanyang gave birth to a little Princess." Yuan Nanyu's eyes lit up, "Have you chosen a name?"

"Not yet, I will write back to my family when I go to Qianzhou, and my baby name is Duo'er."

"Duo'er." Yuan Nanyu muttered the name, and slowly took off the mask, "It is said that a girl follows her father, she must look like you, then...then she looks like me, right?"

Yan Sikong nodded: "It must be very similar." He stared at Yuan Nanyu's handsome face, but from time to time his eyes drifted to the dazzling tattoo.

"You must really want to see her, and I want to see her."

"You like children so much, why haven't you married yet?"

Yuan Nanyu smiled: "I used to be a poor girl who lived in nowhere and didn't dare to drag other people's girls down."

"You are a great general now, how many girls are willing to give birth to you." Yan Sikong said softly, "Why don't you get married."

"Yuan Nanyu shook his head: "It sounds good to be a general, but in fact he is just a traitor. I might lose my head one day, let alone get married. "

Yan Sikong said with a smile: "Then when we accomplish great things, I will definitely make a good marriage for you."

Yuan Nanyu smiled embarrassingly: "Let's talk about it then. Hey, I brought you a lot of things. It's almost Chinese New Year. Some of them are kept for your own use, and some are given to the soldiers who came with you from the capital. The rest You can manage the officers and generals of Qianzhou."

"Okay."

Yuan Nanyu got up and opened a box, and took out a thick fur cloak from it. Only one cloak filled a box, which showed its weight.

"This is a good thing. You must keep it for yourself. It's a cloak made of bearskin. It keeps you warm. If you stand outside wearing it, you won't feel the slightest chill on your body." After saying that, she put Yan Sikong on it. Lie on the body, "Well, it really fits."

"Where did you get such a beautiful and precious bear skin?" Yan Sikong stretched out his hand and touched it. The cloak has delicate markings and smooth fur. It must be taken from the belly of a bear rather than its back. The material is huge, even if he is so tall, he can protect his knees, what a big bear it must be.

Those who can wear fur cloaks must be either rich or expensive. The most popular materials for fur cloaks are fox fur, mink fur, and wolf fur. These animals are small in size and need to be stitched together, followed by leopard skin and tiger skin. But these leather materials are too fancy. Men in the Central Plains don’t like to wear them. The best skin is bear skin. First, bear skin is thick and wide. It doesn’t need to be stitched together, and it can be made into a garment. Second, bears are the hardest to hunt. , Rare things are more expensive.Among the bear skins, the bear belly is the most expensive. The fur on the chest and back is thick but rough, and it looks a bit bloated when worn on the body. The bear belly is not only noble and majestic, but also smooth and light. Such a large piece of bear belly material, But it is hard to find.

Yuan Nanyu said casually, "I bought it."

Yan Sikong frowned: "You bought it? How much money did you pay for it?"

"Uh, 100 taels."

Yan Sikong took off the cloak and observed it carefully. The cloak had fine stitches and was tailored to fit. It must have been made by a very skilled craftsman, and how it fit his figure was obviously tailor-made. He said: "Such a cloak can indeed sell for hundreds of taels in the capital."

Yuan Nanyu nodded.

"gold."

Yuan Nanyu froze.

"I think you don't understand at all, 100 taels of silver can't even buy the leather of a bear's back." Yan Sikong stared at Yuan Nanyu, "Where did it come from?"

Facing Yan Sikong's scrutinizing eyes, Yuan Nanyu somehow became nervous for no reason, he hesitated and said, "...I snatched it."

"I'm lying, this cloak suits me so well, you started the incident in Sichuan, and you didn't go to Jingzhou in the south, where the gentry, elders, princes and relatives in that place, who would wear bearskin, wouldn't they be hot to death? After arriving in Qianzhou, you have committed no crimes, where did you snatch it from?"

Yuan Nanyu touched his nose and stopped talking.

"You gave me the leather cloak out of kindness, what's the point of lying to me?" Yan Sikong was puzzled.

"... Fengye prepared it for you, he won't let me tell." Yuan Nanyu said in a low voice.

Yan Sikong was stunned.

"When you were in the camp, you always kept the stove in your hands. Seeing that you were afraid of the cold, he went up the mountain to hunt a bear himself. He squatted on the mountain for four days before he found such a big bear." Yuan Nanyu said while secretly looking at Yan. Sikong said, "Then I found a craftsman to arrive overnight."

Yan Sikong tightened his grip on the soft leather, momentarily flustered.

Feng Ye, what is this, a combination of grace and power?It's ridiculous.

"These are all prepared by his order." Yuan Nanyu said, "You just don't know."

Yan Sikong didn't want to continue this conversation, so he said: "After I leave, don't forget to burn paper for dad during the festival. Since you are still alive, don't miss it once."

"I remember."

Yan Sikong looked at the tattoo on Yuan Nanyu's forehead: "It seems to be a little lighter."

"Maybe." Yuan Nanyu shrugged, "Actually, I don't care anymore, but I don't want to be pointed at. Besides, I look so similar to you, so it's even harder to show people at this time."

Yan Sikong couldn't help stretching out his hand and touched the tattoo: "One day I will let you show your true colors to others, and no one dares to say anything."

Yuan Nanyu nodded with a smile.

-

Yan Sikong set off at sunset and returned to Qianzhou, taking Yuan Nanyu, no, it should be a few big boxes that Feng Ye had prepared for him. His safe return and these gifts will be Feng Ye's initiative to show Qianzhou With a good basis, he will take care of it as a New Year's gift.

When I came back this time, I was no longer greeted in the same way as before. First, it was late at night, and Yan Sikong came back suddenly. Second, the situation is so severe now, even Xu Yong, who is so keen on flattery, I don't think so anymore.

But after they got the news, they couldn't wait to meet Yan Sikong.

Yan Sikong began to pretend to be sick. He purposely did not have a good rest and meal for a few days, and made his pulse weak, in order to let them see that he had become haggard under Feng Ye's hands.

After getting off the horse, Yan Sikong acted like his footsteps were flimsy, and was helped into the post house.

Xu Yong asked worriedly: "Master Yan, what's the matter, but the wolf king ... tortured you?"

Yan Sikong waved his hands and said sadly: "Wolf King treated me politely, but I failed to prevent him from attacking Maoren, he owed the king's favor and the common people, his heart was tormented, and even, even, he was ashamed to see your lords. "

Everyone sighed again and again, Xu Yongdao: "Lord Yan, don't blame yourself too much, that Fengye's actions are treacherous and elusive. Seeing that the court is trying to win over Chahar, he must have recognized that we were delaying time, so... But, I didn't expect to resist Mao Ren, who has fought against the army of the Wolf King, will be so vulnerable this time."

Wu Mang said: "The collapse of Maoren City is also expected. One is that Fengye took advantage of the night to attack and was caught off guard. The other is that in the previous battle, Maoren lost troops and lost generals. The city walls were not secured. It is indeed difficult to resist."

"How are Master Shen and General Wang?"

"They were all imprisoned. General Wang was injured and his life was not in danger for the time being." Yan Sikong asked, "How is the situation in Qianzhou?"

"Food and grass can barely meet a year's needs." Wu Mang sighed, "It's just that the Feng family's army has a high prestige among the people because of King Jingyuan. Taking civilians, coupled with their bravery and fighting skills, is quite popular, and there is an endless stream of people who come to join them. It is not that Maoren has just taken in [-] Yao people, and the momentum is getting bigger and bigger. I am afraid that I will not wait until the beginning of spring. , he will have the strength to attack."

"But he doesn't want to attack by force." Yan Sikong said, "Otherwise he won't let me back."

"Yeah, why was Master Yan released by him? But Zhao'an still has a discussion?"

Yan Sikong smiled wryly: "In order to convince him, I have worn out my lips. He temporarily agrees to His Majesty's conditions, to rectify the name of the Feng family, and to hand over Xie Zhongren to him, but he wants Hetao."

There was silence in the room.

"Rampant." Xu Yong said bitterly.

"Once the horse market opens, Hetao will return to its former prosperity in three to five years. By then, gold will grow in the fields. He has a big appetite."

"But..." Xu Yong analyzed, "If the Hetao is given to him, firstly it can keep him out of the Central Plains, and secondly, it can help me resist the invasion of wandering Mongolian tribes. It may not be a bad thing."

"Lord Xu's words are wrong." Wu Mang said solemnly, "If Hetao is given to him, it will be a threat to the tiger. Feng Ye is so warlike, and when he is rich and powerful, how can his ambition be possible? stop at the border."

Everyone was silent again, and they all looked at Yan Sikong.

Yan Sikong said: "General Wu is right. Territory is the foundation of a country. We can't give up an inch. We lost Hetao, fattened Wala, abandoned Liaodong, and strengthened Jin. We have learned enough lessons and must not Let Fengye become king in Dasheng's land, otherwise one day, he will devour the Central Plains."

"Then what should we do now?"

"I'll write a letter first, plead guilty to His Majesty, and explain the situation. If there is still a glimmer of hope for negotiating with Feng Ye, the court must express its position, so we can have confidence."

"Master Yan is right."

"Fengye has prepared a New Year's gift and gave it to you adults. I see that he doesn't want to fight in his heart. He also knows that if he wants to break through Qianzhou, he will suffer heavy losses. As long as he doesn't want to fight." Yan Sikong narrowed his eyes, "here There is a way not to fight."