"Changbai, have you heard? Some people say that our northwest dynasty was defeated and all our elite troops were lost. Some people say that the Xixia bandits destroyed countless cities and marched more than 200 miles eastward. Most of the western Shaanxi Road has been lost..."
A few days later, after going to the Yamen, Sheng Hong hurriedly asked Sheng Changbai.
Although Sheng Hong doesn't like to care about political affairs that have nothing to do with him.
But the defeat cannot be said to have nothing to do with individuals; it concerns everyone.
"I've also heard that the war in the northwest is not going well." Sheng Changbai nodded in response.
After lunch, the messenger from the northwest came to Beijing with a war report and an eager, serious and heavy look on his face. Various speculations and rumors about the war in the northwest began to spread in Bianliang City.
Without modern communication tools, we don’t know how news could spread so fast.
From officials and nobles to peddlers and pawns, in just a few hours, everyone knew what had happened.
"There are all kinds of things, and some people say that Gu Tingye has died in the battle, and even King Huan has lost contact. The Xixia thieves not only want to occupy the northwest this time, but also want to plunder Bianliang."
The more the news spread, the more outrageous it became, the more serious the matter became, and the look on Sheng Hong's face became more and more panicked.
"Father, you are also an official of the imperial court, how can you imitate those ordinary people and follow what others say?"
Normally, Sheng Hong was not a person who liked to listen to rumors, so he was probably shocked by the news.
"I wonder if Chang Wu and your eldest brother-in-law encountered any danger?"
"Let's wait for tomorrow. After such a big thing happened, it's impossible for the officials to go to court. Wait until tomorrow to go to court to report the real battle report. After the court, I and you will go to the Ministry of War to find out if there is any Changwu Detailed information about my eldest brother-in-law."
Sheng Changbai has little confidence in the current information dissemination.
Even if a detailed battle report came from the northwest, in the case of such a defeat, the situation of the middle and low-level generals would probably not be detailed.
If you go and ask, you are doing your best to obey fate.
"Okay, let's go together tomorrow."
After dealing with Sheng Hong, Sheng Changbai came to visit Sister Rong again.
"Mother Chang, please let Sister Rong rest at home in the past few days, and don't let too many people come to this courtyard, lest someone spreads random news again, making Sister Rong worried and uncomfortable."
In order to prevent the child from hearing the news that Gu Tingye died in the battle and that his father was gone, the only option was to isolate the child from contact with the outside world as much as possible.
Now that the news of the defeat has come from the northwest, whether it is true or false, chaos will definitely follow in Bianliang. There is no harm in having children go out less.
The next day, because all the ministers were really concerned about the northwest military affairs, they all went to the imperial city early to wait for the emperor to hold a court meeting.
I just didn't think about it. When the time came, the emperor didn't come, only the eunuch came:
"The official is ill and there will be no court today."
"With the defeat of the Northwest Army and such a big event happening in the imperial court, are the officials still hiding in the harem?"
Those with a bad temper were already yelling at the eunuchs. A few days ago, Zhao Zongquan used sick escape and hid in the harem without seeing anyone. Many people knew it.
When there was no emergency, Zhao Zongquan would hide as soon as he could. If the emperor wanted to act rogue, the officials should not care too much.
Now when the emperor really needs to make a decision, Zhao Zongquan still doesn't show up, which will inevitably make people think that this is the emperor's negligence.
"How dare you slander the official family like this. After listening to the battle report yesterday, the official family was so angry that he collapsed several times. All the ministers knew it. The official family's body is really too strong to hold on. What do you mean by the official family hiding?
No one in sight."
The eunuch scolded eagerly. It seemed that this was a rare eunuch in the palace who was devoted to Zhao Zongquan and was very protective of Zhao Zongquan.
"Mr. Han, is this true?"
"Xiangong Han, how is the official's health? What disease is he suffering from?"
"Mr. Han, how is the war in the northwest going? Did you and the officials discuss countermeasures yesterday?"
I heard that Zhao Zongquan had another small meeting with several prime ministers yesterday, and everyone gathered around Han Zhang again.
"Your Majesty's health is not seriously ill. He is just short of breath and needs more rest." Han Zhang stood up and shouted to everyone: "In the northwest war, my great Zhou Dynasty only suffered a small defeat. As long as we can stabilize
To control the situation, I, the Zhou Dynasty, had many soldiers and hundreds of thousands of troops, and turned defeat into victory in the blink of an eye."
"Xianggong Han, since the official's health is not serious, how can he cancel the court meeting?"
"Mr. Han, if the Northwest War was just a small defeat, how could the officials be so angry?"
"Xiangong Han, is it true that Gu Tingye died in the battle? What is happening to King Huan now? Has he encountered any danger?"
Han Zhang's explanation was regarded by the ministers as Han Zhang's novel about major events, so as to appease people's hearts, and they began to question it one after another.
"Don't quarrel anymore. How can there be such quarrels in the imperial city? Since there is no court today, everyone should go to their yamen to handle errands. The chief officials of each yamen and officials above the two systems will follow me to the political affairs hall to discuss matters."
Han Zhang is not without any ability. Being able to climb to the position of prime minister means that he is more capable than most people.
He is a master of tricks, and he can easily end this noisy scene by leaving a chief official of the yamen behind.
Although Han Zhang made some efforts to control the news.
But after all, dozens of people were summoned, and there were many people talking.
The private discussion from the higher-ups still came out without any surprise.
This time, the news spread by the authorities is more authentic and credible than the previous one.
All kinds of news about the military situation in the northwest and the emperor's physical condition have been confirmed.
"King Huan led his troops into an ambush and suffered a serious defeat. He suffered heavy losses."
"Many people, including Gu Tingye, are certain to die in the battle."
"Countless cities were broken in Xixia, and the war in the northwest was a mess."
"As soon as a hundred thousand troops were mobilized, the imperial court mobilized another army to rush for reinforcements."
"Zhao Zongquan was bedridden after hearing the military situation of the Northwest Army. He became angry and became critically ill several times."
After the news was confirmed, people in Bianliang City were panicked, and there were frequent changes from all parties.
At night, I heard the sound of soldiers and horses entering the city.
"What's going on outside? Who has sent troops into the city at this time?" Sheng Hong asked slowly.
"Father, can't you see, these are rebels?" Sheng Changbai replied speechlessly.
Although they are essentially the same army, originally the Forbidden Army of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the rebel soldiers are still easy to distinguish from the normal army.
Although the military discipline of the Great Zhou Forbidden Army is not very good, after a normal army enters the city, there will not be so many cases of blatant arrests, beatings, smashing and looting.
Only soldiers who have rebelled will have complete lack of military discipline.
The leaders in power may rebel for power or wealth, and there may be various reasons.
But these ordinary big-headed soldiers are willing to follow the rebellion just to get rich.
Just for the sake of property, these rebels dare to do whatever they want.
Already fighting for their lives, these people have no fear at all and are not afraid of punishment by military discipline.
"Why would there be a riot at this time?" Sheng Hong said in a panic. There would be a riot at this time, which was not what Sheng Hong expected.
This time when faced with a military disaster, Sheng Hong's performance was far inferior to that of two years ago.
"Father, let's go home first. If we have anything to say, we'll talk about it at home." Sheng Changbai directly took Sheng Hong home.
Although the purpose of the rebels is to control various intersections, they are generally heading towards the imperial city.
However, it is normal for a small group of rebels to be disobedient and only go to the houses of wealthy families, thinking only of making a fortune.
"Changbai, what happened outside?" When the two returned to the gate of Wei Ruixuan Courtyard, Wang Ruofu also came out to greet them.
"Mother, there are rioters in the city, something may happen. I will arrange for people to guard the entrance to the house now, and I will explain it to you in detail when I come back."
The security force in Sheng Changbai's family is still sufficient.
In this era of poor security, Sheng Changbai has always attached great importance to the protection of his family.
In addition to practicing martial arts, there are dozens of strong men who have received military training, dozens of strong servants, and more than ten wolf dogs.
Relying on the courtyard wall of Shengzhai, it is not a problem to resist hundreds of insurgents.
Some unscrupulous people who want to take advantage of the chaos and make a fortune should not even try to steal the attention of the Sheng family.
After Sheng Changbai and his people arranged the defense of the home, they saw the main members of the family. Haishi took the baby, Lin Jiaoshuang took Chang Feng, Wei Xiaoniang took Chang Tong, and the old lady took Rong, who was closest to her yard. Sisters, all gathered in Wei Ruixuan.
Seeing Sheng Changbai's surprised look, Sheng Hong explained: "I called everyone here so that it would be easier for protection."
"My father is still very considerate."
Although Sheng Changbai already felt that his home was safe enough and there was no need to gather everyone in Wei Ruixuan, Sheng Hong's arrangement had to give face.
After all, Wei Ruixuan is the main courtyard of Shengzhai, the largest courtyard.
The main room, plus the corridors and side rooms in the courtyard, will not accommodate so many people.
If you are willing to squeeze in, even the Sheng family's servants and handymen can be arranged to come and live there.
"There are rebels in the city, and I don't know if Rulan will be in any danger."
After listening to Sheng Changbai's explanation and sitting down, Wang Ruofu began to worry about Ru Lan.
"There really aren't many nursing homes at Rulan's house. I'll go out and pick them up later."
Considering that Ru Lan has never encountered such a thing, there is no one else in the family who can take charge.
Not to mention encountering riots, a large house with only a teenage woman in charge is indeed susceptible to the attention of some bad people.
Sheng Changbai responded and went out to pick him up.
"My lord, Mo'er has never encountered such a situation. I wonder if she will encounter any danger. If she encounters any danger or encounters any accident, how will I survive?"
Hearing that Sheng Changbai was going to take Ru Lan home, Lin Jiaoshuang immediately thought of Mo Lan, looked worried and pitiful, and acted towards Sheng Hong.
"Changbai..."
In this situation, Sheng Hong would definitely not be able to pick up the person, so he looked at Sheng Changbai.
"Father, my fourth sister's family is not a high-class family. It is a wealthy family and it will not attract the attention of any evil people. With the number of servants in the family, it is enough to protect ourselves."
Sheng Changbai explained that he didn't want to care about this matter, and Lin Zongshuang was worried a bit unnecessarily.
"Brother Bai, and your sixth sister, I don't know if your sister is safe." The old lady also spoke at this time. The old lady was worried about Minglan.
Of the several Lans who have married into the family, except for Hua Lan, who married into a noble family and has enough ability to protect herself, the other three Lans really have their own concerns.
"Old lady, the He family is also an aristocratic family with many servants. Brother Hong also sits in the hall for consultations and practices medicine to save people. He is respected by people. I don't think he will encounter any danger. I will drop by their house to have a look. If they are not enough If it's safe, I'll pick him up too."
The He family is relatively safe.
Occupations like Taifu will receive preferential treatment even in the eyes of bad people.
"(Changbai) Langjun, be more careful after you go out." Before leaving, I also received warnings from everyone.
Then Sheng Changbai took a few people out. It wasn't that he couldn't take more, but the Sheng family only had so many horses.
The average family has two or three horses, which is enough. The Sheng family has seven or eight horses, which is already a sign of luxury.
"This is really a carnival of gangsters. If it hadn't been for the military disaster, we wouldn't have known that there was so much filth hidden under the bustling Bianliang City and so much filth."
Sheng Changbai casually picked up a gun and stabbed two rebels who ran out of a house with emotion.
The last time there was a military disaster in Bianliang, Sheng Changbai was trapped in the palace.
I really didn’t know that Bianliang City could be so chaotic.
By this time, the damage caused by the young man's insurrection was done.
Taking advantage of this turmoil, all kinds of ghosts and monsters in Bianliang City jumped out.
Some steal, some rob, some rob, some commit crimes alone, some act in gangs, some murder, some set fires, all kinds of unscrupulous people have jumped out, taking advantage of the chaos to make a fortune, seek revenge, and seek revenge. .
The damage caused by these people far exceeded that of the initial rebellion.
Along the way, Sheng Changbai collided head-on with three groups of thieves and got justice.
After arriving outside the Li family's house, I saw that the Li family's courtyard was relatively peaceful, so I felt relieved.
"Bang bang bang, Ru Lan, it's me, your second brother Sheng Changbai."
The attendant went to knock on the door, but Sheng Changbai shouted from outside.
"Second brother...Second brother, you are here. Some vicious people tried to break into the house just now. Fortunately, the housekeeper has experience. When the rebels entered the city, he closed the courtyard door, so no one took advantage of it.
If you come home, you will be scared to death."
Seeing Sheng Changbai, Ru Lan had tears in her eyes and was really frightened.
Although she is married, she is still a little girl.
It is impossible to ask such a child to be as stable as an old lady.
"It's not safe here, you'd better go home with me..."
Two people are left behind. These two people can take the lead in helping Ru Lan look after the house. With these two people with battlefield experience, the Li family can be more secure.
Sheng Changbai took Rulan back.
Fortunately, the daughters of the Sheng family can ride horses. At this time, it would be too inconvenient to travel with a carriage.
Then on the way back, I made a detour to the He family. I asked outside the door that the He family had made thorough preparations and it was generally unlikely that there would be any danger.
Sheng Changbai didn't waste any time and took Ru Lan back to Sheng's house without even entering.
