Chapter 121: The sad song of Xihu in defeat

"Many people have persuaded me if I should persuade you, so there is no need to say anything more." Fan Xian smiled and patted Ye Ling'er on the shoulder. They had never cared about anything.

Ye Ling'er did not raise her eyebrows habitually, but her expression on her face was a little dim and said, "There are always discussions at home that will penetrate into my ears... Although I don't want to hear these, my father is very angry about the things in the north." She looked at Fan Xian, wanted to speak but stopped, and after a while, she said seriously: "After all, you and I are Qing people."

Fan Xian nodded, without saying anything, but his smile was a little bitter. After the Qi Nian team sent to Dongyi City met with Mu Feng'er, he passed on his will, causing the turmoil in Xiaoliang to rekindle, and thus find ways to resist the will of the court and allow the eldest prince to stay in Dongyi City.

However, the Northern Qi's reaction was beyond Fan Xian's expectations. Because, according to the time, Wang Qinian should have just arrived in the capital, and in the message he asked him to take him there, there was no intention of letting Northern Qi launch a large number of troops. He just asked the little emperor to help Dongyicheng for the sake of the two of them.

There are many ways to help, and the practice of Northern Qi is undoubtedly the most open and upright, and the one that makes Fan Xian’s situation the most embarrassing. He got rid of his meditation, while holding silver charcoal, while whispering to Ye Ling'er, wanting to learn from the words in the Ye Mansion whether there is any movement in the Privy Council.

Because the emperor in the palace had too indifferent to the war in the north, Fan Xian smelled a slight danger, but he didn't know where the smell was.

A few days after the winter solstice, the Fan Mansion held another family banquet. This time, the family banquet did not invite all the younger generation of the royal family in the royal family like the Prince's Mansion. It was a pure family banquet. Apart from the host family, there were only four sons of Fan's family.

Yang Wanli was sent to prison from the position of the Ministry of Works, and was severely sentenced in prison. After the Dali Temple was sentenced that day, she was taken back to the mansion to recuperate by Fan Xian. She was still a little inconvenient to move, but her resentful expression on her face had already faded, and she just sat quietly in the position where she was at her hands.

The fastest climb among the four sons of Fan's sect was Cheng Jialin. He had already become the governor of Suzhou, but now he was implicated by Fan Xian and collapsed miserably. The two crimes of visiting prostitutes and invading Ling in the palace were really too serious and were forcibly taken back to Beijing. In this month, Fan Xian ran around for him, refusing to save his life. Finally, he lost his official position and found that he had no future. Cheng Jialin sat under Yang Wanli in a little unconscious manner, sighing.

There were two tables in the flower hall, and the women were all on the table behind the screen. Only Fan Xian and Yang Cheng sat outside the table. They did not move their chopsticks, but were waiting for someone. Outside the flower hall, snowflakes were floating in the garden of Fan Mansion, waiting for those returning people.

Not long after, he walked into the flower hall under the wind and snow alone under the guidance of his servant. It was Shi Chanli who left Nanqing in the past few years, inherited Fan Xian's will, and unified the world's great cause of brothels.

Shi Chan entered the hall and before he could dust off the snowflakes on his body, he gave a deep bow to Fan Xian on the main seat, and then bowed to the master's wife on the table inside through the screen. Then he turned around, looked at Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin and smiled bitterly, stepped forward and hugged these two friends who had not seen for a long time.

Now he is co-chairing Baoyue Tower with Sang Wen, so he naturally knows the news in most of the world, and knows that the two friends have suffered in the miserable past few months. Everything is gone, and just a hug, he has already told all the separation and comfort.

"You are inconvenient. Don't get up." Shi Chanli sat consciously below Cheng Jialin. He said to Yang Wanli, who was about to stand up and talk from a distance. Although he is now a wealthy businessman in the world, he can be regarded as a hero in any place. However, the habit he developed when he devoted himself to studying the books of sages in the early years has not changed, especially the deepest regret in his heart, which made him naturally envious of Yang Wanli, Cheng Jialin, and Hou Jichang's three friends, and always think that his identity as a businessman should be at the bottom.

Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin looked at each other and smiled bitterly, too lazy to pay attention to this pedantic guy, so they turned around and talked about some gossip. No one talked about their miserable experiences in the past few months, and no one criticized the court because they did not want to let the sect teacher Xian be anxious about these things.

After waiting for a while, no one came again. The faces of several people on the table began to become a little awkward and ugly. Cheng Jialin looked at Fan Xian's face and murmured: "Maybe it's snowing, it's delayed on the road."

Yang Wanli pursed his lips tightly, sighed, picked up the wine glass in front of him and drank it all. Shi Chanli glanced at Fan Xian in confusion and said, "According to the news from me, Ji Chang should have returned to the capital seven days ago, but the court did not convict him, but just let him cool down."

Fan Xian raised his eyebrows, smiled, and said, "At the end of the year, the officials and colleagues have had many banquets, and it is normal for them to sit down for a while but the time comes."

Having said that, his mood was still a little gloomy. Hou Jichang returned to Beijing for several days, but did not come to Fan's house to pay a visit. The court also found the news. It seemed that the palace had no intention of punishing him. All this was obvious.

In such a country, it is not that there is nothing to say about the fact that the master is seeking honor, but it is just spread to himself. Fan Xian felt a little uncomfortable. His eyes slowly brushed across the faces of the three people on the table, and an extremely complicated emotion appeared in his heart. Shi Chanli was originally in the capital of Song State, but this time he took the risk to return to Beijing to see him. Needless to say, Yang Wanli said that he had already become the governor of Suzhou. Fan Xian always thought that he was a little weaker and dared not trust him. Unexpectedly, this person would rather be seized than deviate from him.

But Hou Jichang unexpectedly did not come.

"I heard that the banquet was also held in the Grand Secretary's Mansion today." Shi Chan's face looked a little ugly and said, "Before you entered Beijing, they were both called the top talents in Kyoto and had some personal relationships."

Yang Wanli gritted his teeth and said angrily: "What a Ji Chang, I'm doing things quickly. When I meet again, I must give up the people and praise them well." This is naturally ironic. Cheng Jialin only smiled bitterly after hearing this, and sighed quietly after a while: "I remember that in Tongfu Inn, Brother Ji Chang told me that even when I was walking, I should not notice that the rainwater on the umbrella dripped into the oil pan of the vendor's field. Such a person who loves the people is the object we should follow, but I didn't expect him to be now... Alas..."

Just a sigh. Fan Xian smiled instead, greeted the three of them to start eating, and said, "Everyone has their own ambitions. Besides, I can't do things in the court now. Ji Chang wants to do things for the people, so it is normal to get closer to Grand Secretary He."

No one could see the coldness in his heart when he was calm. Fan Xian actually knew that among the four sons of the Fan Sect, he was the most optimistic about Hou Jichang, but the world was always wonderful. I don’t know if it was Fan Xian’s arrangement that made a missed son. Or was it a matter of luck. Among the four sons of the Fan Sect, Yang Wanli made great contributions to the construction of the embankment, and his voice shook the world. Cheng Jialin was young and took the position of the governor of Suzhou, and was also one of the seven gentlemen who had summoned him to the palace that day. Although Shi Chanli did not enter the officialdom, the identity of the owner of the Yuelou was so glorious.

Only Hou Jichang, who is still living in Jiaozhou, cannot show his ambitions. Now Fan Xian is losing power to the end. This Lord Hou is afraid that he will be forced to find other ways to find some other ways when he is unwilling to accept it. Fan Xian did not understand this, but he was just unhappy, especially the Grand Secretary He who was also holding a banquet.

After three rounds of drinking, several people chatted about what they had done in their respective positions over the years. Yang Wanli talked about how the white silver turned into huge rocks and earthworks on both sides of the river. Cheng Jialin talked about how he protected the country and the people when he was in power. How to use the help of Lord Xiao Fan to clean up the land and obey the salt merchants, how to raise money for his teacher's wife to enter the Hangzhou Association. How many poor people have helped. Shi Chanli smiled and talked about his experiences in the world, as well as the miserable women in brothels. Now he was a little better than his life. He also told an interesting story. It is said that in some of the back pavilions of the Baoyue Tower, there are statues of Lord Xiao Fan, because Lord Xiao Fan blessed the lives and safety of many girls...

As soon as this statement was made, everyone except Shi Chanli himself squirted out the wine.

Although the three of them were chatting about their own affairs, they were actually related to Fan Xian. They talked about some things that Fan Xian did in his life that benefited the country and the people. Fan Xian was not a saint, but just a mortal, so naturally he was a little happy. He looked at the three people with a smile, paused for a while and said, "Wanli has been living in the mansion these days. Anyway, he has no serious house in Kyoto. Jialin, your family is still in Suzhou, so he might as well move to the mansion."

As soon as the sect master spoke, the three of them calmed down at the same time, put down the chopsticks in their hands, and looked at him.

"I have arrangements for the family affairs in Suzhou, don't worry." Fan Xian looked at Cheng Jialin and said gently, "Just get through these days. I'm calling you here today, because I'm afraid that you will have hatred and hate the court and hate me, and will harm yourself."

He smiled bitterly and said, "Of course, now it seems that I don't need to worry about Ji Chang."

"But you know that I have never had any other requests from you, but those eight words. So even if the court wants to catch my crime from you, it is impossible. Ji Chang has his own considerations, but I don't think he will betray me out of nothing." Fan Xian's expression calmed down and said slowly: "You four follow me as officials in the world, but it is a peaceful season, so you need to work hard. But today is not peaceful, so you need to endure. I know you want to help me, so I have also found some colleagues with good friends in private, but don't do this in the future. My affairs are not a problem that the officials in the court can solve."

Cheng Jialin responded with a wry smile. They all remembered clearly that when they were out of the ground, Fan Xian left the eight words for them - be a good person and be an official.

"Since you can't be an official now, then be honest." Fan Xian's eyebrows were a little painful. His Majesty knocked everyone around him out of dust, which really made him look around and feel a little anxious. This hand was really too cruel.

After the family dinner, Yang Wanli and Cheng Jialin went to the Houyuan residence to rest. Fan Xian kept Shi Chanli. He summoned Shi Chanli back to Beijing for thousands of miles, so it was not as simple as just having a meal. There were only two of them left in the study, and Shi Chanli no longer had to hide anything, and angrily scolded Hou Jichang.

Fan Xian shook his head and said, "Ji Chang is just a scholar and an official after all. Even if he only learns to do something now, how can he know that he has made a big mistake?"

Shi Chanli felt cold in his heart. He knew that there were too many secrets from the sect master, so he naturally knew that the sect master was not just a simple powerful minister. The sect master's power was even more powerful than the official position. Hou Jichang's betrayal actually angered a king in the dark.

"Don't worry that I will kill him. I don't have the leisure time." Fan Xian lowered his eyes slightly and said, "How did the matter I asked you to investigate?"

"There is nothing strange between Dongyi City and the north. It does not conflict with the war on the surface." Shi Chanli added first, and then answered Fan Xian's question seriously. "The incident of the palace diary you are going to investigate is indeed a bit strange. The Privy Council issued a transfer order to Nanzhao two months ago, but the secret level was extremely high, and the building only found the news. Now there is no cooperation from the courtyard. Many news can only touch the surface."

"Nanzhao? What's the problem there?" Fan Xian asked with a frown.

"Master Ye's son is on the front line of Nanzhao. According to the court's practice, there is no war in Nanzhao now. The new lord has been assuming the throne for three years. The roadside should be halfway back to Beijing to save his merits..." Shi Chanli glanced at him and continued: "Based on time, he should have arrived at Kyoto at this time, and then returned to the major camps, but the roadside army has never arrived."

"What do you mean... they may have gone to the west?" Fan Xian was shocked. Suddenly he thought of an extremely terrible possibility, and shook his head and said, "How can he hide it from the world's people by such a large amount of military power?"

"If we focus on the south side at the beginning, even on the southern line of Weizhou, we might be able to find out the news." Shi Chanli blamed himself: "But Baoyuelou has been paying attention to Kyoto, Dongyi, and Northern Qi in the past few months, and has not carefully sorted out the information there."

"It's not your business, it's the center of gravity of my point." Fan Xian rubbed his temples with a headache and said to himself: "Ye Ling'er's brother... This guy has not been in Kyoto for many years, and I have forgotten that there is such a person. According to time, if the Nanzhao border army really retreats and passes through Kyoto and fails to enter, if he really goes west... wouldn't he have arrived in Dingzhou?"

Fan Xian raised his head and took a deep breath. His eyes were filled with uneasiness and fatigue. He knew that he had made a big mistake. However, he had been under house arrest in Kyoto these months, and the Supervision Bureau was under the supervision of Yan Bingyun. He could not accurately grasp the military power of Qingguo by relying on the Baoyue Tower.

"Ming Dian left Beijing and went to Dingzhou to summon the prince Hongcheng to return to Beijing... and took away 10,000 Kyoto garrison troops and 2,000 imperial guards." Shi Chanli reminded: "This is something that was found out before."

"I know this." Fan Xian felt a sense of frustration in his heart, and his palm gently slapped the desk, sighing: "I never thought that His Majesty was so big that he actually dispatched troops from the south, crossing thousands of miles, and changing defenses. Wouldn't he be afraid of chaos in the world?"

Shi Chanli understood this sentence, and his body became cold, and he tried to analyze calmly: "For the court, the new lord of Nanzhao was young, and the powerful officials in the country were very concerned about the Daqing people, so there was no need to be wary of it. It was enough to leave half of the border troops in the south. Yanjing City and Beidaying deal with the situation of Beiqi and Dongyi City. Although it seemed that due to the subsequent influence of the rebellion that year, the Beidaying had no commander and commander, there was actually no danger... So for Your Majesty, as long as you can pacify Xiliang and there is no cause of chaos in the world, he could fully prepare for the Northern Expedition."

"Putting Xiliang is to deal with those people on the grassland..." Fan Xian frowned and sighed softly, knowing that he was still determined by the emperor, and he did not turn over the other party's palm. An indescribable sense of fatigue and disappointment filled his body, making him sit on the chair barely and unable to move.

He finally understood why His Majesty maintained such a cold attitude towards the war in the north, and was not angry and alert at all because of the possible collusion between Northern Qi and Fan Xian. It turned out that His Majesty the Emperor had already sorted out the possible actions of his illegitimate son, and concentrated all his spirit and all his strength to the West. His Majesty did not dance with Fan Xian's layout at all, but instead took advantage of the situation and smashed his fist hard towards Dingzhou City.

"The prince must be notified immediately." Shi Chanli said in shock.

Fan Xian sat tiredly on the chair and said after a while: "It's too late."

In winter, there is a chill everywhere. The wind comes from the north and passes through the slightly wet feeling carried by the North Sea. It has been deserted and cold in the deserts and Gobi in the northeast of the grassland. The autumn grass on the ground has long disappeared, and the remaining ground is sand, which is endless, and the hard ground makes the horse's hooves feel uncomfortable.

If in previous winters, birds could look down from the sky, they might have found some moving and attractive green color next to some lakes. However, today, even these pitiful habitats can't be found, because these cold-resistant birds who are not willing to go to the south to spend the winter in winter are covered in blood red. The frozen dry grass roots are blood red, and the round gravel is blood red. The broken sand is blood red when you pinch it, and the voles that have crawled out of the cave seem to be blood red.

This is Hongshankou, a place that must be passed from the grassland to Daqing territory. The mountains and rocks are all red. However, today's red is not a strange color given by God. It is dyed red by the Hu people on the grassland and the soldiers in Daqing.

There were corpses everywhere and blood everywhere. The field mice were shocked out of the cave before. The sound of killing the big birds that shocked the sky and the sky had gradually stopped. However, there was still a cruel battle next to some deserted hills. Some Hu warriors who were fighting stubbornly gathered into several small circles, and the last blood was thrown in the siege of the soldiers of Qing Kingdom who were dozens of times their own.

A year ago, General Jing, the Crown Prince of Jing, Li Hongcheng, was at Hongshankou to connect with Heiqi and Fan Xian from the grassland. At that time, he hoped to fight a beautiful ambush here. However, the Hu people were not idiots and had never given Qingjun such a chance.

If in previous years, when the weather was cold and cold, countless tribes in Xihu would follow the banner of the king's tent to slowly avoid the cold air and head deeper into the grassland. They would go all the way to the bottom of the mountain that could not be climbed, and wait until after the bitter cold of this year, the entire grassland would be filled again in early spring of the next year.

Xihu rarely chooses to launch an attack on Xiliang Road, Qingguo in the dark winter. In previous years, unless the tribes that lost their power in the fight within the grassland would try to cross the border and plunder the winter food of the military and civilians of Qingguo's military farms, there has never been a military operation on the ground in previous years.

But this year is different. I don’t know what happened. Lord Hu Ge, who inherited most of the cattle and sheep warriors of Zuo Xianwang, suddenly led his tribe to migrate to the east and launched an attack on the territory of Qing Kingdom bravely or recklessly.

What made the Xihu people even more puzzled was that the great Shanyu, the far-scheming Shanyu, contemplative, expressed his appreciation for Brother Hu's behavior after pondering in the tent for a day and night, and braved the cold and dispatched the most elite grassland cavalry to try to cross the Hongshan Pass, bypass Qingzhou, and directly attack Xiliang's inner abdomen.

No one expected that in the wilderness near Hongshankou, a total of 20,000 cavalry of Qingguo and 70,000 Dingzhou troops were ambushed! These Qingguo soldiers seemed to have known the direction of the attack of the Hu people on the grassland, the number of people attacked, and the time of attack. In fact, the most terrifying thing is that they expected that Xihu would attack in the cold this year!

The Hu people's attack was completely unreasonable, and the Qing army's ambush was even more unreasonable. These unreasonable things came together and made this great victory in Qingzhou, which was recorded in history books, and this Shura field where tens of thousands of people sacrificed their lives.

Aside a deserted hill, it was filled with corpses and blood was flowing in the sand. The group of Hu warriors had fought to the last one and were surrounded by the Qing army. The Qing army officer knew from the previous battle that this person must be a master on the grassland, so he no longer urged his subordinates to step forward, but slowly raised his right hand and coldly prepared to fire an arrow.

"Do you want to descend?" A cold voice echoed in the cold air of the grassland. Hu Ge, who was covered in wounds, breathed heavily, his eyes full of blood. He stared at the cold soldiers of Qingguo, suddenly screamed and stabbed into his chest with a knife, so deep that he had no handle.
Chapter completed!