Lei Yue Longmen

She packed her bags overnight, and just as she was about to go out, she bumped into someone head-on, without raising her head, she said, "Senior Sister, you don't need to stop me, I have to go this time!"

"Where are you going?"

Hearing this completely different voice, Cen Zhu suddenly raised his head, and saw Jiang Hou standing there helplessly.Taking off the bamboo hat on his head, he said in a dusty manner: "Are you going to the northern border? This is not a good place at present."

Cen Zhu hadn't seen her for a long time again. During this time, she often went out, and each time she went out for a long time, sometimes she came back and didn't see anyone.I don't know what I'm busy with.

But?, there is still a sense of awe, and he hesitates while holding the package.

Empress Jiang sighed, "If you really want to find out about her, then follow me into the palace!"

"Enter the palace?"

Cen Zhu didn't understand what happened, so he got into the carriage with her in amazement, and walked all the way to the Xihua Gate of the Imperial Palace.Empress Jiang handed a token to the palace guard guarding the gate, and after about a cup of tea time, the palace gate, which was only opened at night in an emergency, was suddenly opened in front of Cen Zhuo.

Li Pinghong personally went out to greet Mrs. Li in the middle of the night. For Mrs. Li, she was almost treated like a junior to an elder, and welcomed her to the cabinet of Yaohua Palace.Cen Zhu had never received such courtesy.Feeling astonished and contradictory in my heart, I have always followed my wife, and I don't know what to say to the emperor when I enter the palace for the first time?

"At this time when the imperial court is in crisis, I have to bother my wife to go around in person. I feel so bad. I can't get rid of it." Li Pinghong's words also revealed an unusual politeness.

"Your majesty is serious. In fact, this has always been my grandmother's wish during her lifetime, but it's just that the women do it for her."

What rush?What grandmother?Cen Zhu was in a cloud of fog.

"However?, the women have really felt exhausted recently, and it is inconvenient for the women to come forward for the storage of assets. That's why I brought Cen Zhu here. I hope the emperor will not blame him."

Li Pinghong smiled and said: "This is what it should be, they are all from my own family. Even if my wife doesn't mention it, I will still use Cen Zhu."

Cen Zhu was puzzled, Li Pinghong smiled, "Look at this kid, he doesn't know anything!"

Mrs. Li took out an account book sealed with red paper from her sleeve, and handed it to the emperor with both hands, "This is the list of land assets put into storage this time, and the one here to receive is an adult surnamed Lu. Please preview it."

Li Pinghong also took the account book with both hands, but opened it in a hurry, "You don't need to look at it, I can always trust the things that Madam bought."

When returning from the carriage, Cen Zhu finally asked her long-standing doubts, "Madam, who are you?"

No matter whether it is Li Pinghong or Li Jingzhu, the most core members of the royal family respect her and have a family. If this is not enough to explain the problem, then she suddenly appeared in the restricted area of ​​Yuqing Tower that day and rescued herself in a grandiose manner. With all these inconceivable things, if she insisted that she has nothing to do with the royal family, Cen Zhu would not believe it.

The other party seemed to have no intention of hiding her anymore, and lifted the curtain of the car and said: "To tell you the truth, my grandmother's name is Li Yanying, and Prince Mourning Hui is my great-grandfather."

Cen Zhu seemed to think for a while before he remembered who the Prince Mourning Hui was.

"Back then Li Xingge, the king of Li, forced the palace, and the whole family of Prince Huihui was killed. The grandmother was eight years old, and was hidden in a dark cellar by the nanny. When the rebels set fire to the palace, the grandmother changed her clothes and took the opportunity to escape. Ask for help in the Lingtai Nunnery in the west of the city. She was blessed by Master Jingyun, the abbot of Lingtai nunnery, and sent to the south of the Yangtze River to avoid disaster. From then on, she lived in seclusion in the mountains and never set foot in the capital. When Qingzong suppressed the rebellion and wiped out Yunei, my grandmother settled down in Jingyang County."

According to a few words recorded in the history books, Mourning Prince Li Xingxiao, the prince of Chunzong Li Zhonghan, was murdered together with his father by Li Xingge, the second son of Chunzong, and the eunuch when the court was in chaos.His children were also exterminated.I didn't expect that there would be a "relict pearl from the sea".

If this is the case, according to the seniority of "Zhongxing Yanzuo, Taiping Jingzhou", her grandmother is a member of the royal family of the "Yan" generation, and she herself, the former emperor Li Taiyue, and the current royal patriarch Zongzhengyuan Zongzheng Li Taizhong's seniority is indeed Li Pinghong's elder.

"Madam, do you have a certificate?"

Mrs. Li seems to have known that she would have? She asked, "I hide a wooden box in a drawer in my room, and inside it is a handwritten letter written by Mrs. Jingyun, which records Li Yanying's troubles in detail. A pair of exquisite jade pendants were bestowed upon Prince Mourning Hui Li Xingxiao. Prince Mourning Hui gave them to my grandmother, who always wore them when she ran away. The jade pendants are archived in the palace, and the emperor has checked them and confirmed that they are correct. You can take it for verification."

Cen Zhu still couldn't believe it.But Li Pinghong's attitude towards them is beyond doubt.

"so……"

"So, my grandmother is Princess Qingping. And you are also a descendant of the imperial family."

"What!" Cen Zhu sat startled for a moment, his head accidentally touched the roof of the carriage, and he sat down again in pain, "Ma'am, this joke... can't be taken."

She hadn't thought of this level just now, the relationship between the wife and her is a nominal mother-child relationship, since she is a descendant of the royal family, she naturally cannot get rid of the relationship.

"Am I kidding you?"

"..." Cen Zhu was at a loss for words for a while, she just wanted a cheap mother, but she didn't want to marry the royal family, she wanted to live a few more years!

"You don't have to be surprised. There have already been millions of people in Yurui's lineage. It's rare. Maybe your ancestors were related to the royal family, but you don't know it."

Cen Zhuwu? There is nothing to say, can she not be surprised?Although there are many descendants of Emperor Yurui, those involved in the core layer are after all a minority.What's more, even today's Zhi Zhengshuo is also inherited from the Emperor Chunzong's lineage, but in fact it is not a descendant of Chunzong, but the bloodline of Li Zhongzhi, the younger brother of Chunzong.Comparing the two, the madam's branch is even closer in terms of blood relationship than today's.

The only thing that made her more fortunate was that Li Zuojun, Emperor of the Qing Dynasty who suppressed the civil strife later, was a very promising leader, and he reshaped Yurui Zhengzhi. About to be dragged out and put on the knife.

After calming down for a while, he seemed to understand something.

"It's no wonder that Madam came to summon me after the first meeting. I always felt weird. Madam must have revealed her identity to the emperor at that time. The emperor also thought I was your son."

"good."

Cen Zhu seemed to have suddenly realized, and laughed self-deprecatingly: "Sure enough, it's not the same for those who are related to each other. Even the emperor treats you much better!"

Jiang Hou bent the corners of her lips, "It may not be because of relatives."

Cen Zhu was puzzled.

"That day, I donated a sum of money to the national treasury in the name of Cen Zhongyu. These days, I have been working on it, and now only half of it has been put into the treasury."

Cen Zhu had noticed it a long time ago, and said: "Madam must have donated a lot, so that the emperor can treat him as a guest."

Empress Jiang gestured with her hand, "That's 6000 million taels of silver."

Cen Zhu was almost dumbfounded when he heard this figure. She expected that Empress Jiang would donate a lot, but she didn't expect that she would donate so much? It was almost equal to Yu Rui's annual treasury income.Looking at Yu Rui, I am afraid that there is no second person who can spend such money at once.

"Ma'am is really a big hand."

At the same time, she also understood why Li Pinghong had the confidence to fight this battle. It turned out that there was such a grandma, the God of Wealth, behind her.

Jiang Hou remained calm, "So, it's up to you for the rest."

"rely on me?"

"Yes." She nodded, looking a little tired, and frowned, "I will leave the capital for a while. The remaining 3000 million taels of silver will be transferred to the treasury for me by you."

After finishing speaking, without waiting for Cen Zhu's reply, as if that was what she was born to do, she continued to order: "This is not a small amount, and it may affect the success or failure of this battle. Fortunately, you used to do it This one, it shouldn’t be difficult. Later, I will list these deposit locations for you, and you will be responsible for cashing them out and transporting them back to the capital, or converting them into grain and transporting them directly to the front line. Next, you Might be busy."

As soon as Cen Zhu heard the word "front line", he felt enlightened, grateful and excited, and didn't know how to express it.

Jiang Hou tacitly said: "So you must remember that your great-grandmother is Li Yanying, who started business with Cen's adoptive parents since childhood, and when my mother, your grandmother Li Zuowu, already had a family Yucai. 20 years ago, I used the pseudonym Cen Zhongyu as a businessman in the south of the Yangtze River. I accumulated a lot of land. Later, I recruited a husband-in-law who came to the door and gave birth to you incognito. You have inherited your mother's business since you were young. As an imperial family, I changed my surname to Cen. I haven’t revealed my identity to anyone so far, and I won’t reveal it to anyone in the future. The Cen family only wants to be a family of wealthy and idle people who have nothing to do with the world. This is very important.”

Afterwards, she elaborated on the life and deeds of her great-grandmother, Princess Qingping one by one. The logic was meticulous, and she could be self-consistent one by one, sounding like there were few loopholes.

Cen Zhu firmly remembered it in her heart. Although she had many unresolved things, she knew how many times the person in front of her had saved herself in times of crisis. So what if it was true or not?If people treat her with all sincerity, she is willing to shed her blood for them.As for the rest, she didn't really care.

However, she still wanted to ask, "Ma'am, do you really want to help the imperial court fight this battle by donating so much money?"

Cen Zhuo was contradictory in his heart, especially for this war, he was even more repulsed by the possibility of sacrificing Li Jingzhu as a price.

Empress Jiang pondered for a while, and seemed to be thinking about how to say it would be more reasonable: "I, like the empress dowager, do not support any senseless bloodshed and sacrifices, but if the time comes when bloodshed is the only way to solve the problem , we will all take sides without hesitation.”

Cen Zhu reacted for a while, "So, your positions are the same."

"Correct."

"So, she knew early on the danger she might face?"

"……Correct."

Cen Zhu couldn't tell what he was feeling, he was angry, desperate and helpless, if only she could stop Li Jingzhu that day, why didn't she stop her.

Empress Jiang seemed to know what she was thinking, "You don't need to rush to get upset. This is just a game, since it is a game, there will inevitably be winners and losers. If war is inevitable, no one can escape? It's the same everywhere .You just have to do what you should do.”

"What should I do? But I don't know anything, I don't know anything. I was kept in the dark like a fool from the beginning to the end."

Jiang Hou looked at her quietly,

"It's not that you don't know everything. You have lived and died together. You know her heart best. There is only one position for her, and that is Yurui. It is not the East Palace, nor the Cheng Palace, nor the Emperor. You want Keep that in mind and do what you can to help her win this battle."

Cen Zhu's throat choked, and tears filled his eyes.Unwillingly nodded, yes, she knew it from beginning to end.What is the most important thing in Li Jingbai's mind.This war is not a struggle between the East Palace and King Cheng, let alone a struggle between the East Palace and the Emperor, but a war concerning the future of the entire Yurui.She can not care about the gains and losses of the East Palace, her personal life and death, or even the comments of later generations, she only hopes that Yurui can win this war.

Li Jingchao, Li Jingchao, do you think that if you hold me on the same level as the world, I will be willing to help you defend your world?What a complete fool and dope you are!

The next day, Li Pinghong took down the two servants of the Ministry of War on the grounds that it was not good to raise food.Instead, Cen Zhu concurrently took the post of Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of War, responsible for the overall planning and transportation of grain and grass during wartime.In addition, in order to improve the efficiency of the six ministries' cooperation during the war, under the strong recommendation of Pan Suiyong and Wang Zhongxu, two cabinet elders, Cen Zhu also took the post of the right servant of the Ministry of Households and the Ministry of Industry.

It is extremely rare in the history of Yurui for one person to hold four important positions.At that time, Cen Zhuo was not yet 28 years old, and the high favor he received was already a height that no one else could match in a lifetime.Everyone knew that after this battle, she was only one step away from entering the cabinet to pay respects.

Even, she has actually participated in the affairs of the cabinet.

As the coordinator of food and grass after the war, she became one of the few? One of the few people who grasped the frontline secrets?All the elders in the cabinet were generally skeptical of her ability at first, but only Wang Zhongxu always supported her unswervingly.Cen Zhu knew that when she fell to King Cheng, it was actually very rare.

She did not disappoint, and she fully demonstrated her outstanding talents in the process of food adjustments.

Because she had no previous experience as a grain merchant, she was able to quickly raise grain and grass from all over the country, and even liquidated it on the spot without putting it in storage and sent it directly to the front line, which was no different from the final income of the front line.Relying on his experience when he was in charge of the national treasury at the Ministry of Households, and Li Pinghong's high trust in him, he is even more handy in dispatching money, food, and supplies.

Under her overall planning, food can always be transported to the front line at the fastest speed, and silver can also be converted into food, ordnance, clothing, medicinal materials, etc. with the highest efficiency, and sent to the three armies in a steady stream.She is almost non-stop around the clock, like a top spinning at high speed.After her unremitting efforts, finally, Zhou Xuan got a chance to go to the front line with food in person.

At this time, it has been a month and a half since the imperial court sent troops.The 60 troops of the imperial court have successfully crossed the Zhuohe River in three routes, reached the northern border, and quickly besieged the main force of the enemy in the three major towns of Pingyang, Songyin and Dangzhou.The defenders of the three cities all stayed behind closed doors, and the Imperial Army and the Northern Army fell into a confrontation.

Feeling uneasy and even a little apprehensive, Cen Zhu came to the position closest to Li Jingzhu in the past few months.

At the foot of Pingyang City.

After handing over the food and supplies to the eldest princess's department, she was dragged into the big tent by the enthusiastic Lou Ren.At that time, there were other generals in the account. When they saw such a red-faced and white-toothed man, they all stopped their errands. One of the young generals widened his eyes and asked curiously, "General Lou, Who is this?"

Lou Ren deliberately sold off: "Guess?"

Another older man, who looked like a military adviser, smiled and stroked his beard and said, "Is it still necessary to guess? Among the three armies, the one who can have such a style must be the well-known 'censor' in the capital." Saburo's here. Sorry, sorry!"

"Really? Yours, Master Xu." Lou Ren punched him, and pulled Cen Zhu over to introduce him.

"That's right, this is our food and clothing official, Master Cen Yu Shi Cen, and the youngest servant of the three departments in the court! Since she became the grain adjustment officer, our food has been booming, and many brothers have grown fat." Everyone laughed and came over one after another to see the ceremony. Lou Ren helped her resist part of it, and said rudely: "Go, go, don't mess around like this, hurry up and serve tea." Then he said to Cen Zhu: "These boys have been stationed in the county for many years, and they were all urgently transferred by the eldest princess. I haven't seen them much? Don't be offended by the world."

Cen Zhu was quite embarrassed, and he returned the salute one by one with everyone, "General Lou is serious."

She unexpectedly found that the atmosphere in the army was much more relaxed than she expected?Cen Zhu briefly asked about the situation. It turned out that the generals had just fought a battle with a small group of enemy troops who broke out of the city last night.Inevitably there will be some contentment.

However, as soon as the war was brought up, Lou Ren was full of confidence, "Now the three cities in northern Xinjiang have been surrounded by our 60 army regiments, and not even a fly can fly out. The princess' current strategy is to encircle but not attack. We have to wait until the ammunition and food in the city run out, and then come and catch the turtle. Haha, as long as our brothers have enough food and drink, this Pingyang City will be in our pocket sooner or later."

Cen Zhuo saw the eldest princess only at night, when she was discussing the military situation with Lou Ren, Xu Junshi and others, Cen Zhuo could not stay for a long time, so he said goodbye and left the big tent.Unknowingly came to the gate.Looking at Pingyang City ten miles away, he was startled.

At that time, although the towers of Pingyang City were brightly lit, it was as lonely as a dead city.The camps of the imperial court's 20 troops were densely packed under the city, densely packed like hills, and even the people themselves felt a sense of suffocation, not to mention the tens of thousands of ordinary people in the city.

The beloved is in the city at this time, perhaps, watching a bright moon with her.

Did she know she was surrounded?A small encirclement within a large encirclement.

Things are sometimes so paradoxical.Obviously our side has the upper hand, but we can't save her alone.Cen Zhu clenched his fists, his heart ached like a knife.

At this time, in the big tent, the eldest princess was sharing the information she obtained from the city with everyone.

"According to the detailed reports in the city over the past few days, there are only 2 defenders in Pingyang City, which is far lower than our expectations. Moreover, the main defender of the city is Tu Yuanshan's second son, Tu Yunba. Tu Yuanshan has been in the General's Mansion from the beginning to the end. , did not show up. According to you, what is going on?"

Master Xu stroked his beard and said, "There are two situations in this matter."

Everyone turned their attention to him, "First, Tu Yuanshan may be dead. The control of Northern Xinjiang is now in the hands of Tu Yunba."

As soon as the words fell, everyone was shocked, and Lou Ren said: "Mr. Xu, are you kidding me? How could Tu Yuanshan die?"

The eldest princess said: "Isn't it impossible? It's possible. People who are injured under the claws of the white tiger guard will probably die one out of ten. What's more, if Tu Yuanshan dies, Tu Yunba will be the first thing to do." The most important thing is to firmly control the northern border army in his own hands, so it is more reasonable for him to suddenly issue a kill order at that time, just to help him entangle the northern border army and avenge his father."

"That's right, the imperial court sent troops to crusade against northern Xinjiang at this time, in fact, it just gave him an excuse to stir up trouble."

Lou Ren thought for a while, "But this is not justified at all? Go! If he really wants to avenge his father and attack the imperial court for no reason, why doesn't he just announce that Tu Yuanshan is dead? Wouldn't that arouse the army of northern Xinjiang even more? Enraged?"

"This is the appeal of Tu Yuanshan himself." Xu Jun said: "A dead Tu Yuanshan can certainly arouse the common hatred of the generals in Northern Xinjiang, but the significance of a living Tu Yuanshan to Northern Xinjiang is not the same. It can even play the role of Dinghaishenzhen. Don't underestimate this deterrent power. Even if Tu Yuanshan is here for a day, our army dare not say that it can take Beijiang by a single bite, but if he is gone, Beijiang will not be able to Same day."

"This is only the first case, Master Xu went on to talk about the second." Li Pingzhu said.

"Yes. The first case mentioned just now is just a rough guess. This second case is the most worrying."

"What is it?"

"That is, not only is Tu Yuanshan not dead, but he is not in the city right now,"

"Not in the city, where is he then?"

Master Xu pointed to the three locations on the map, and Lou Ren was dumbfounded, "You're not mistaken, these are all by the Zhuohe River." The eldest princess also looked deeply.

"The Northern Xinjiang Army originally had 15 people. According to the current seizures by the three armies, the Northern Xinjiang Army is fighting and retreating. At present, the number of casualties is less than 2. Pingyang City is the head of the three cities, and there are only [-] defenders in the city. Well, if there are the same people in the other two cities, then there are [-] troops in northern Xinjiang, which is equivalent to disappearing under our noses."

"According to my understanding of Tu Yuanshan for many years, once he decides to raise troops, he will definitely make all-out preparations. The killing order must be the key link to anger the imperial court. Since he chooses to do this, he must be prepared for the imperial court to use troops on a large scale. Let me ask you, under such circumstances, how could he allow the imperial army to enter the northern border and trap himself to death in the isolated city?"

Li Pingzhu agreed: "Mr. Xu is right. With his character, he must have a backup player. We have to guard against it."

"If I were Tu Yuanshan, it would be very difficult to eat the entire Yurui in one go. Then I only have two options. One is to control most of the territory north of the Zhuohe River and have a long-term confrontation with the imperial court. Waiting for the opportunity to strengthen the forces, in order to plan the overall situation. But we have also seen the result, the northern army has no other way except to be trapped to death by the imperial army. The second is to find another way out and give the imperial court a bottom line."

He drew three circles on the map and circled three locations.

"The Zhuohe River is the only way to go west or south. No matter whether you are going west to seek help from Zhou Hanshan in the northwest, or going southwest to seek help from Cheng Gongjiang, or going south to Jiankang City, you must pass through the Zhuohe River. So , he will definitely go to these three places.”

"Go straight to Jiankang?" Lou Ren was almost terrified when he saw the easternmost circle, "Is this possible?"

"It's entirely possible." The eldest princess said, "When Qingzong went south to quell the chaos, he took this route. It is entirely possible that Tu Yuanshan led a group of surprise soldiers, bypassing the frontal confrontation with the imperial army, and took this route to take the building directly. Kang. Most of the Imperial Forest Army in Jiankang City has been sent to the front line. It is equivalent to an empty city. There are only [-] Shenwu troops and [-] garrison infantry. If Tu Yuanshan leads an elite raid, the court will be in danger." Li Pingzhu The more I thought about it, the more frightened I became, "No, we must make a decision immediately."

The author has something to say:

Sorry, the process of this chapter is a bit complicated, and there are too many things to consider. I thought I could finish it overnight, but I overestimated my own strength.No more talking, I was too sleepy to keep my eyes open.Fix it again tomorrow morning.