Half River Autumn Moon and River Spring [Rat and Cat]

"Cat," Bai Yutang asked casually while lying comfortably on the bed eating the apples that Zhan Zhao had peeled and handed over one by one, "I feel like you are quite free on errands, and come to the Eight Princes' Mansion every day."

Zhan Zhao sighed and said, "It's not for you, I prepaid next year's vacation with Mr. Bao, but Mr. Bao didn't agree."

"Then how do you..."

"So he deducted one month's salary from me." Zhan Zhao finished speaking and fed himself a piece of apple, "Get well soon, rat, or my salary for next month will be in jeopardy."

Bai Yutang looked at Zhan Zhao: "Mao'er, are you short of money?"

"Tsk tsk, it's not a question of whether there is a shortage, but... well, anyway, a young man like you who lost his money at birth doesn't understand." Zhan Zhao frowned, peeled a piece of apple and handed it over.

Bai Yutang was not annoyed, took the apple and asked, "How do I know if you don't tell me, if you are short of money, just tell me, I will naturally not be stingy."

Zhan Zhao stroked his chin and thought for a while, before he could speak, someone stepped in at the door, and said with a smile, "Young Xia Bai, you don't know, what Zhan Weiwei lacks is not money, you will find out in the future, what Zhan Weiwei lacks, That's the eye of the heart."

Bai Yutang looked at a certain cat that was dumbfounded because it was suddenly interrupted by the Eight Sage Kings and was said to be heartless, took the apple in his hand, and gnawed it slowly.

After a long time, Bai Yutang discovered that his cat was, indeed, very careless.

The Baxian King walked in and said: "You two are in good spirits. I was worried that Zhan Weiwei would not take good care of him as a man. Now it seems that this king is worrying too much. I didn't expect Zhan Huwei to be like this." The 'virtuous' side."

Hearing the word virtuous, Bai Yutang, who was biting an apple, nodded silently in his heart.

These few days at the Eighth Prince's Mansion, Zhan Zhao came here every day, busy up and down to serve him, so thoughtful that Bai Yutang felt that he had begged for a wife, and wanted to drink water, but Zhan Zhao blew it cold and handed it over; When eating, Zhan Zhao immediately went to the kitchen to pick out dishes; when he wanted to take a walk, Zhan Zhao accompanied him to walk around the garden... In short, everything was done in detail, and most importantly, Bai Yutang not only did not dislike Zhan Zhao treating him like this, Even, there are some enjoyments...

Zhan Zhao sighed and said, "Eighth Prince, you don't go to court, and the first thing you do when you come here every day is to bury me."

The Eight Virtuous King smiled and said: "This statement is wrong, how can it be said that you were buried, this king is clearly praising you."

Zhan Zhao laughed twice, and said, "Then I really have to thank you, my lord."

The Eighth Sage King waved his hand: "It's not necessary, but I have something to do today and I need to ask the two of you for help."

"My lord, please speak."

The Eighth Sage King found a stool and sat down, then said: "Li Deming of Western Xia is about to come to see His Majesty, I heard that he will bring his son Li Yuanhao with him when he comes this time..."

"Li Yuanhao?" Zhan Zhao frowned, "I heard Mr. Gongsun mention that this son is young and old, proficient in Chinese and Tibetan languages, and has quite a talent for writing. Mr. said that he has strategy in writing and courage in martial arts. He is an outstanding talent, but Xixia has always treated him I am friendly with the Song Dynasty, and I have never neglected the annual tribute, why did the prince suddenly mention this person?"

The Eighth Sage King said with a "tsk" and said: "As far as this king knows, although Xixia has treated my Great Song Dynasty with respect and courtesy all these years, he has not only bowed his head to my Great Song Dynasty, but also flattered and attached himself to Liao Kingdom. .”

Zhan Zhao said: "Song and Liao are the most prosperous in today's world. The territories of Xixia, Tubo, and Uyghur are worthless. It is understandable to show affection to Song and Liao."

The Baxian King smiled and said: "No, no, Zhan Huwei looks down on Xixia a little bit. Although Li Deming has a low eyebrow to our Song Dynasty and Liao Kingdom, he has been secretly waiting for opportunities to develop westward. According to what this king sees, Tubo and Uyghur will soon be in Xixia's pocket. Once Xixia's power in the west rises, it will inevitably lead to a three-point situation in the world. Xi Xia, a fierce tiger that has sprung up suddenly, will definitely swallow us alive."

Zhan Zhao was taken aback by the words of the Eight Sage Kings. He had never been in touch with court affairs before, so he really knew very little about it. Besides, he was still young now, so naturally he might as well be scrambling around in court. The ten-year-old fox came with great forethought.

Bai Yutang at the side saw Zhan Zhaoleng there, so he answered, "The eight kings should analyze the words of the courtiers, the country will take precautions before they happen, and we, the people, naturally have no objection."

King Baxian said: "Those courtiers have eaten too much soft food, and never felt that they were feeding tigers. Instead, they persuaded my nephew to worry about the small countries of Ryukyu and Koryo. They took the rare treasures that Xixia paid tribute to, and they were ready to move other countries against Xixia. But I turned a blind eye to this matter, ah, there is a saying among the people, yes, lard ointment has blinded my heart."

Zhan Zhao nodded: "No wonder the Eighth Prince doesn't like going to court, so they don't pay any attention to you."

The Eight Worthy King shook his head and said: "No, no, first of all, they didn't say they didn't want to talk to me, it was just because of political disagreement; secondly, there were many reasons why I didn't go to court, not just because of political disagreement. The fact that the first emperor allowed me not to go to court is to protect me on the one hand, and to guard against my disobedience. If I don't respect the will of the late emperor to go to court every day and propose too much, those courtiers with ulterior motives will join me One said that I wanted to seize power; and if I made no achievements in the court every day, those people would think that I was useless and useless, so I might as well learn from the current situation and only show up when necessary. The so-called icing on the cake is not as good as giving charcoal in the snow, I say that, you two should understand, right?"

"There are too many ways to be an official, I'm afraid I won't be able to learn it in my lifetime," Zhan Zhao said, "I don't know what the Eighth Prince wants us to do?"

The Eighth Sage King looked serious, and said, "I would like to ask the two of you to help me investigate Li Yuanhao."

"Li Yuanhao?"

"Exactly, this king heard that Li Deming has reached the age of knowing his destiny, and his body is often ill. I'm afraid he won't be able to last for a few years. If he dies, the throne of Western Xia will definitely fall into the hands of Prince Li Yuanhao. That is to say, if My king's predictions are correct, then what we will deal with in the future is not Li Deming, but Li Yuanhao. I heard that Li Yuanhao is better at planning than his father Li Deming, and he is better than Lan. If it is true, this person must be my Song A big danger."

"Then how does the prince need us to investigate him?"

"It is said that Li Yuanhao is also a first-class master, so if he arranges other people to go, I am worried that it will be self-defeating and cause Xixia's dissatisfaction, so I thought of asking the two to help. You only need to observe this person secretly, and his words and deeds, as well as yours. What kind of person do you think he is, just let me know if his desire for power is inflated, and then I will naturally think of a way to deal with him."

Bai Yutang said: "My lord never thought of asking us to kill him directly?"

"It's absolutely impossible," said the Eighth Sage King, who was sitting in danger, "If Li Yuanhao is killed in our country, then no matter how much Li Deming keeps a low profile, he will definitely turn to the Liao Kingdom for help. The Liao Kingdom has always been eyeing our Song Dynasty. , even if you die without you, it will definitely cause great damage to our country, and it is not worthwhile to waste people and money."

Zhan Bai and the others remained silent, not because they were unwilling to help, but because neither of them expected that under such a cynical appearance, the Eight Sage Kings had already thought long and hard for the country and the people, and they couldn't help admiring them.

The Eighth Sage King sighed, and said with a slightly sad face: "This Xixia, if it is handled properly, it will be a great help to our Song Dynasty. If it is not handled properly, the situation of three parts of the world will not be far away."

Then he stood up and said again: "However, we can only do our best and obey the destiny."

After the Eighth Sage King finished speaking, he walked out of the room. Zhan Bai and the two felt a little bit embarrassed after hearing the prince's words. They never imagined that a few years later, just as the Eighth Sage King said, the world will be divided into three parts, and the three legs will stand together. The person in power of the Tigers is Li Yuanhao, the overlord of Xixia whom they are about to meet.

(Note: Due to the needs of the author, some of this history is fabricated, and the time does not match the historical facts. Please do not delve into it, thank you)