During the summer, the heat stopped and the autumn air gradually turned serious. The eagles felt the air and hunted down flocks of birds.
Every year at this time, the Beiliang Frontier Army would perform a ceremony that had been passed down for a long time. It was the eagle sacrifice ceremony. Some of the eagles that were carefully cultivated by the Fu Shui Room to serve as the crossbowmen's arms would be released outside Liangzhou Pass. Hundreds of riders would go out and the eagles would soar high into the sky. It was a spectacular sight.
Because the crossbowmen on white horses outside Liangzhou Pass had all been transferred to the battlefield in Liuzhou, the North Jiebei City's manor was replaced by He Zhonghu's Left Cavalry. First, the old commander was seriously ill and only had the title of Left Cavalry in name. This eagle sacrifice ceremony was also the end of the old commander's career. Second, a new Left Cavalry deputy commander named Lu Dayuan, who had been away from the border army for more than ten years, happened to be leading the hundreds of riders north of North Jiebei City to release the eagles.
On the day of the eagle sacrifice ceremony, the sun was setting in the west. The North Jiebei City's horse path was crowded with people. The Right Cavalry commander Jin Partridge Zhou Kang, accompanied by Li Yanchao, slowly walked to the top of the city wall with a straight face. When he saw the old commander He Zhonghu who had to wrap himself in a thick fur coat after taking off his armor, his expression became slightly better.
The fierce border army general Li Yanchao, who 'betrayed' the Left Cavalry and joined the Right Cavalry, had an indifferent expression. Only in the depths of his gloomy eyes was there a bit of guilt. However, he was still ashamed but not regretful.
The young lord with a cold blade at his waist stood in the middle of the city wall. He looked into the distance and saw a flock of eagles soaring in the sky. He felt relaxed and happy.
After seeing Lu Dayuan leading hundreds of riders back to North Jiebei City, Hsu Fengnian turned his head to look at He Zhonghu beside him. His old body could no longer bear the bumpiness of the horse's back. Even hanging a blade and hanging an armor had become an extravagant hope. After the eagle sacrifice ceremony today, the old commander would officially leave the battlefield. However, the old commander had no children and had no residence within the pass. Hsu Fengnian originally thought that based on the old commander's temperament, he would choose to retire in North Jiebei City. After all, he could hear the familiar sound of horse hooves closer. Hsu Fengnian had even personally asked people to set up a quiet residence near the manor. However, in the end, the old commander actually wanted to take advantage of the fact that he still had some strength to go to North Jiebei City to take a look around. He said that North Jiebei City was Jiangnan beyond the Great Wall of Beiliang. He had long heard that it was rich and populous there. He had been dealing with horse dung outside the pass for twenty years. No matter what, he should go there to enjoy life and eat a few good meals.
Hsu Fengnian was well aware that the old commander was lying when he said that he wanted to enjoy life. He did not want the Left Cavalry's commander-in-chief to meet him, the Retired Emperor, face to face from time to time. Even if the successor did not think this way and would not feel that his hands and feet were tied, the old commander still insisted on his opinion. Hsu Fengnian had no choice but to let Chen Yunchui, Lin Doufang, and the other elders of the Xu family, who were of the same generation as the old commander, come forward to persuade him. However, it was useless. He Zhonghu, who had spent his entire life on the battlefield, was suddenly determined to leave.
He Zhonghu suddenly sensed the young vassal king's line of sight. With a carefree laugh he said, "Wangye, don't try to persuade me. I, He Zhonghu, admit that my talent in leading troops in war is mediocre. The reason I was able to win those battles was because of the former Xu family's old soldiers and the current Beiliang Frontier Army. I relied on being able to listen to other people's opinions. I am ashamed to say that I have been in the military for nearly fifty years. During the Spring and Autumn War, I don't dare to say that I led the troops in every battle, but I did not do any less than Liu Yuanji, Wei Tieshan, and the other old fellows. I don't know why, but in the end, I was the least injured, and I could not compare to the Great General. I remember when the Great General brought us to Beiliang, no matter how good our friendship was, in order to be able to fight for the position of a strong and powerful general, each and every one of us did not even care about face. Wangye, do you know how Wei Tieshan mocked me in front of the Great General? "
Hsu Fengnian smiled and shook his head.
The old man laughed and said, "Liu Yuanji and Wei Tieshan, those two old bastards, were actually aiming for my position at that time. Liu Yuanji, who had studied for a few days, had a lot of evil ideas in his stomach. He did not want to be a bad person, so he urged the old coarse Wei Tieshan to tell the Great General that I, He Zhonghu, suffered very few injuries on the battlefield, but I did not suffer any major injuries. However, I, who never got sick, might get sick and die. Therefore, when we fought the Beimang barbarians, He Zhonghu should not lead the cavalry to charge and break through the enemy lines. If He Zhonghu was careless and died, not only would he lose his life, but he would also lose the face of the border army. How could this be tolerated? Of course, I couldn't tolerate it. So, in a fit of anger, I went to the Great General and pulled out the third-generation Xu family's saber that was hanging at that time. I left behind a ruthless sentence. Either I become the Deputy Commander of the cavalry, or I take the saber and chop that bastard Wei Tieshan to death. The Great General had no other choice but to agree. "
Hsu Fengnian could not help laughing.
The terminally ill old man no longer spoke. Together with the young vassal king who was not yet 30 years old, he gazed into the distant north.
Back then, Zhao Gou had meticulously collected a sea of intelligence related to the Northwest Border Army. The Li Yang Ministry of War had used this to come to a conclusion. The Beiliang cavalry was divided into mountains, and there were many conflicts between the cavalry and infantry. The relationship between the cavalry outside Liangzhou Pass and the Liangzhou cavalry outside Liangzhou Pass was even stiffer. The generals outside the pass and the military officials inside the pass also had mediocre relations. Therefore, the so-called three hundred thousand Beiliang cavalry could be united only because Ren Tu Xu Xiao was not dead, enough to intimidate the heroes, and also because Chen Zhibao, who had great prestige, was standing behind the old man. But during the transition period between the two generations of cavalry, it was very likely that there would be great turbulence. Yan Wenluan, as the head of the Beiliang infantry, would be determined to have Beiliang Protector-General Chen Zhibao take the position. Zhong Hongwu, He Zhonghu, and the other important mountain leaders who controlled the cavalry outside Liangzhou Pass might not be willing to lower their heads. Hutou City's Liu Jinu would listen to Ren Tu's last wishes. Li Yanchao, Li Mofan, and Cao Xiaojiao were young and strong generals who were famous in Beiliang for being rebellious and difficult to tame. The Beiliang Protector-General Chen Zhibao and His Royal Highness Hsu Fengnian were mostly dishes.
Among these generals, the existence of the Spring and Autumn Old Man He Zhonghu was rather special. While he and Yan Wenluan had once been Zhao Changling's Supporting Dragon Sect general, and thought highly of Chen Zhibao, he was publicly recognized as the most loyal to the old Prince of Liang, Xu Xiao, and the least selfish.
Even the Great Peace City Ministry of War, thousands of miles away, could see this scene. The Tide-listening Pavilion naturally saw it even more clearly. So Yan Wenluan's two deputy commanders, Wei Tieshan and Liu Yuanji, left the infantry. The Spring and Autumn Old Generals like Zhong Hongwu and He Zhonghu, who were of similar age and seniority, firmly held the border cavalry. Then Chen Zhibao rode alone to Shu and betrayed Beiliang. The arrogant Zhong Hongwu lost his integrity. The power of the Beiliang cavalry was transferred to Yuan Zuozong, Jin Partridge, Zhou Kang, and the others. At the same time, the outsider Great Ancestor Gu was like a nail hammered into the infantry mountain as a deputy commander. Then, with His Royal Highness's approval and the secret support of Mount Qing Liang, Chen Xiliang, a poor scholar from Gangnam-do, suddenly took power. While there was great resistance to the reform of salt and iron, causing Chen Xiliang to stumble and die, before some people could clap and cheer, Chen Xiliang started to set up fourteen captains with real power. Hsu Fengnian, who had just been crowned as the King of Beiliang, was especially decisive. After Yan Wenluan met Hsu Fengnian, she maintained her silence. This caused the military reform that involved half of Beiliang Road to proceed smoothly.
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