On this day in late autumn in the second year of Xiangfu, it was destined to evolve into countless strange legends. At the Imperial Astronomer, the sun and moon rose, the sound of Buddha rose in spirals, and many rainbows hung in the sky. The scene in the Jingji Southern Army's camp was also terrifying. The two immortals were like gods on earth, fighting against ten thousand people. Their figures were as fast as dragons entering the sea. In the process of the two sides fighting, the entire camp was torn into pieces. Everywhere they passed, they were unstoppable. In particular, the troops under the direct command of the new Minister of War, General Wu Zhongxuan, suffered the most. What normal people called not acclimatized to the climate was just physical discomfort. It was rare to see elite subordinates like Wu Shangshu lose their arms, legs, and even their lives. Most importantly, almost no one recognized the true identity of the two figures. This made the Jingji Southern Army feel even more vexed.
When the culprit, Hsu Fengnian, walked down from the Crop Altar, the armored soldiers of the Li family, under the leadership of Li Shouguo and Li Zhangliang, vowed to guard the gate with their lives. They looked like they would step over the corpses of more than a thousand people if they wanted to leave. In reality, more than half of the heavy cavalry outside the gate had quietly retreated out of the streets after Andong General Ma Zhongxian had frantically sent out a secret order. However, in order to not disturb the people in the inner and outer cities and not cause more panic, this cavalry that had been greatly weakened before entering the battlefield did not immediately head out of the city to their camp. Ma Zhongxian had hurriedly left his father's sickbed in the manor of General Zhenbei. He didn't even have time to put on the robes of a military official, much less put on the armor. This Andong General turned his head and looked at the remnants of the army shrouded in a tragic atmosphere. His heart bled.
In particular, Ma Zhongxian, who was familiar with the officialdom of the capital, knew that once the news of his family's death spread out of the manor to the court and the marketplace, everyone in Taian City would quickly say that his father had died at the exact moment the King of Beiliang was making a ruckus at the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Astronomer. He had taken his last breath because he had been scared to death by that young man surnamed Xu.
Ma Zhongxian clenched his fists tightly. His eyes were bloodshot. He wished he could turn his horse around and give the order to chop that Xu guy into mincemeat!
A plain-clothed old man walked through the Li family's' fragile 'infantry formation. Li Shouguo wanted to remind him, but the old man waved his hand with a smile and walked straight to the King of Beiliang who had stopped at the edge of the Crop Altar. The old man did not stand in front of the young man. The two of them walked side by side, but one of them faced north and the other faced south.
Hsu Fengnian said indifferently, "I originally thought that it would be Tantanon from the Menxia Province who came here to persuade us. I didn't expect that it would be the Head of the Secretariat who came here to play the villain."
The Head of the Secretariat, Qi Yanglong, looked up at the altar and chuckled. "It's a pity that the Imperial Astronomer was destroyed just like that."
Hsu Fengnian said, "Beiliang lost more than a hundred thousand men outside the Great Wall, and everyone died facing the north. Isn't that a pity?"
Qi Yanglong nodded and said in a low voice, "In my opinion, it's all a pity. As a scholar who likes to read history, I feel that it's a pity that the Imperial Astronomer was destroyed. As a citizen of Liyang, I feel that it's a pity that more than a hundred thousand Beiliang soldiers died in battle. However, I came to the capital to ask for a robe from the imperial court to wear, so I have no choice but to come here and nag at the King. "
Hsu Fengnian's blade-wielding left hand was pierced through by the long rope. His arm drooped down, and fresh blood flowed out of his sleeve and dripped down along his fingers to the ground. His face turned pale and bloodless because of the violent Qi in his body. In an instant, it turned into a dazzling purple-gold color. As for the crack between his eyebrows, fresh blood flowed down the bridge of his nose. It added a strong sense of viciousness to the handsome face of this young vassal king.
This young man who had shaken the entire capital twice by himself said expressionlessly, "Three thousand men. For each death, one thousand taels of Beiliang's grain will be deducted. This is what Zhao Zhuan said himself. Then I might as well tell the Head of the Secretariat directly that if one of the three million taels of grain is missing, there will be thirty thousand Beiliang cavalry going south into Guangling! Anyway, it's a matter of course for the vassal king to be in trouble. If the imperial court doesn't care about the lives of the people of Beiliang, I, Hsu Fengnian, am very easy to talk to. I don't mind letting you know what loyalty is! "
When Qi Yanglong heard these words, he didn't pretend to be angry. Instead, he smiled and said, "King of Beiliang, to be honest, no matter where my ancestral home is, I, Qi Yanglong, have always regarded the Shangyin Academy of Guangling Path as my home. Yang Shenxing and Yan Zhenchun have already messed around on my land once. That bastard Song Li and Kou Jianghuai have done it again. Next, it will be Wu Zhongxuan and Lu Shengxiang's turn to mess around. It's fine if they can end the battle quickly. No matter who wins or loses, as long as there is a winner, it will be a good thing for the people of Guangling Path. What I'm afraid of is a stalemate. It's fine if all the young men and old soldiers die, but if all the soldiers die, won't it be the same as using the lives of the people to fill the hole? Isn't that right, King of Beiliang? "
Hsu Fengnian didn't say anything.
Qi Yanglong did not look like an important official in the central government, but more like an old man who had a bellyful of complaints. Now that he finally found a young man he could confide in, he could not shut up. "Cao Changqing has a knot in his heart and can't get over his own threshold. Even Duke Yansheng can't persuade him, so of course I'm not willing to waste my breath. As for those who help the imperial court to lead troops to war, I, as the Head of the Secretariat, can't persuade them. Moreover, the martial artists in the world make contributions on the battlefield. Whether they die on the battlefield or be conferred the title of Marquis or become a general, it all depends on their own abilities. It's all up to their own destinies. It's all their reasons. I, Qi Yanglong, can't go and nag them just because I say I pity the common people in the world and say empty words like asking them to lay down their butcher's knife. At the very least, if I can persuade Lu Sheng and Wu Zhongxuan, there will definitely be Ma Sheng and Song Zhongxuan. After all, I can't stop the trend of the world.
Qi Yanglong suddenly turned his head and stared closely at the young man whose face was covered in blood. "But I think it's useful to tell you. I can't help it. You're Xu Xiao's son. Xu Xiao has always been very reasonable. Otherwise, why would he use gold and silver to build a ten-li long embankment for my family in order to let that little girl Wei Xiong enter the academy? Before I came to the capital, I had to go there every morning and night regardless of rain or shine! I don't know if Xu Xiao has told you before, but when he led troops to Jianghu, he passed by Shangyin Academy from Mount Longhu and made a secret visit. He blocked me in my room and took off that cold saber … Well, if I'm not wrong, it's probably the one you're hanging now. He slapped it heavily on my desk and asked me if the name 'Hsu Fengnian' was good. Of course, I gave him a thumbs up and said it was good. It was really good. Then your father immediately became amiable and said that I, Qi Yanglong, was indeed a learned scholar. He even turned his head and asked your mother to say that I was full of military strategies. I was very happy. Of course, it wasn't because of this low-level flattery, but because in the end, your father didn't cut me with a saber. "
Hsu Fengnian raised his right hand and wiped his face.
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