In winter, the days are short and the nights are long, and it soon becomes dark.
That night, on the south bank of the Yellow River, countless Song Dynasty officials quietly settled their families, and then prepared to die to defend their dignity as men.
That night, from Huazhou to Bianliang, countless officials from the Song Dynasty quietly packed up their gold and silver, ready to leave at any time.
Rumors that the Song Dynasty court could not hide secrets and that the emperor was ready to escape soon spread from the officialdom to the army.
The three imperial troops of Pengri, Tianwu and Longwei were originally in panic because of the rebellion led by King Yong of the Divine Guards. The soldiers suddenly heard that someone from Shengzhou had been sent to pick up the officials for "relocation".
Where do you have the energy to distinguish the authenticity of rumors? In the blink of an eye, morale plummets!
The weather is cold and the ground is freezing, and people are terrified. If a camp roar is triggered, the consequences will be disastrous!
The commander in front of the palace, Gao Qiong, was frightened by the situation in the army. He quickly sent out all his cronies and tried his best to maintain the order of the battalions. Then he jumped on his horse and went straight to Tong Zhongshu's disciple Ping Zhang Shi Kou Zhun in the city.
temporary residence.
Kou Zhun had long known from different channels that the officials and soldiers in the city were in chaos without fighting. After hearing Gao Qiong's description, he felt even more nervous.
However, as the prime minister of a country, he did not dare to show any panic at this moment. He first ordered someone to pour hot tea for Gao Qiong, drank two sips slowly with him, and then said slowly with a smile: "
The lieutenant did the right thing, he took strict precautions, and after a few days when he sees that the officials have not left, the rumors will definitely be disproven."
"Then Liu Yuan, the governor of Shengzhou..." I really didn't know where Kou Zhun's confidence came from. Gao Qiong put down the tea cup and frowned as a reminder.
"If an official hunts south, he must first go through the court discussion before making a decision. Otherwise, how to arrange the escorts along the way and the supply of food and grass?" Kou Zhun smiled and made a calm gesture, and lowered his voice.
He interrupted with a loud voice, "What's more, neither Kou, Ping Zhangshi, a disciple of Tong Zhongshu, nor you, the commander in front of the palace, have received any news. How could the imperial edict of the official family directly bypass the two of us and be transmitted to the army?
Neutralization place?”
"This..." Gao Qiong frowned and was speechless.
The imperial edict of the Emperor of the Song Dynasty could be considered invalid if it was not endorsed by the Prime Minister. And the emperor had to mobilize the Imperial Guards through him as the commander in front of the palace.
In other words, if Kou Zhun and he insist on not agreeing to move the capital, the officials may not be able to leave.
The problem is that Kou Zhun was able to protect the official family from losing his position as prince, and he was still trusted by the official family for many years. Even if he occasionally refused the official orders a few times, the official family would not settle accounts with him.
But my "friendship" with the officials is not that deep.
If the official suddenly ordered me to summon three guards of the imperial army to protect him and leave Huazhou and go south, where would I have the courage and qualifications to carry it out?
"Don't worry, Lieutenant, Kou will not put you in a dilemma." Seeing all the expressions on the other party's face, Kou Zhun smiled and continued to comfort him softly, "It's been snowing these days, and the officials always have to snow.
Only after the weather clears can we decide whether to hunt south. As the government always pays attention to rules and regulations when doing things, it is necessary to hold a court meeting and ask us the opinions of several important ministers."
"That's true!" Gao Qiong pricked up his ears and listened to the rustling snow outside the window, and nodded with a wry smile.
Before he could breathe a sigh of relief, Kou Zhun suddenly put away his smile and asked seriously, "The Taiwei has been blessed by the country for a long time. If, if there ever comes a day when the Taiwei is needed to step forward, what will happen to the Taiwei?"
"This..." Gao Qiong shivered and almost pushed the coffee table in front of him with his hands.
Just now, you said you wouldn’t embarrass yourself, but Kou Laoxi’er didn’t mean what he said!
The question he asked was not to put himself in a dilemma, so what was it?
"Kou heard that the last time the Khitans invaded Bianliang, nine out of ten houses were empty." He had already guessed that Gao Qiong would react like this. Kou Zhun shook his head with a wry smile and continued to whisper, "The Taiwei family
, in Bianliang City, it is considered a wealthy family. I don’t know if the Khitans broke through the Yellow River and attacked Bianliang, how many of your Gao family would have time to follow the official chariot. I don’t know, the Taiwei family
How much of our property can be replaced with fine materials and brought to the south of the Yangtze River together?"
"Gao understands!" Gao Qiong's heart ached when he heard this. He gritted his teeth and stood up, holding his hand over to Kou Zhun. "There really is a day when Gao will have to die on the edge of the Yellow River in battle to avoid losing the reputation of his ancestors."
!”
"With the words of the Lieutenant, Kou felt relieved. The remaining matters will be left to Kou. The Lieutenant can go back to appease the brothers first." Kou Zhun's face immediately surged with some appreciation.
Then he stood up and handed Gao Qiong, the commander in chief, in front of the palace.
Gao Qiong saluted him, turned around and left silently.
Quickly walking out of the door, watching Gao Qiong's back disappear behind the snow, Kou Zhun's body suddenly bent down, followed by a series of violent dry coughs from his mouth, "Cough cough cough, cough cough, cough
cough……"
"Master!" Kou An, the housekeeper, was frightened to death and rushed over to give Kou Zhun a pat on the back. But the latter gently pushed him away with his hands, then tried to straighten his body and walked back to the study alone step by step, "It's okay.
, It's okay, I just choked on the cold wind. I..."
Before he could finish his explanation, he bent down again and coughed uncontrollably. Immediately afterwards, a stream of bright red blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.
"Come on, come on -" Kou An was so frightened that he shouted for help at the top of his voice. But Kou Zhun kicked him to the ground and coughed violently while scolding him intermittently, "Bastard, you still think there are not enough people in the city."
What's wrong? At this time, I can't be sick no matter what."
"Master——" Kou An woke up from his dream, got up, cried and held Kou Zhun's arm.
Kou Zhun raised his hand to cover his mouth, suppressed his cough, and looked around. He first drove away the subordinates and servants who came over after hearing the sound with his eyes. Then he threw Kou An away and continued to walk towards the study.
One step, two steps, three steps, each step left a deep footprint on the slippery and cold ground.
Having assisted Zhao Heng for many years, he knew this person's temperament and behavior very well.
Gao Qiong and other officials guessed correctly, Zhao Heng had indeed made up his mind to prepare for the southern hunt. Otherwise, Wang Qinruo and Shengzhou Governor Liu Yuan would not have been summoned alone.
Therefore, at this time, he cannot fall ill under any circumstances, let alone show any weakness.
As long as he can go to court normally, official Zhao Heng will still pretend to discuss with the officials even if he is in a hurry to leave.
At that time, he could join forces with Bi Shi'an, argue with each other, and give the "Nan Shou" faction headed by Wang Qinruo a blow.
Although even if Wang Qinruo was refuted in the court discussion, it would not completely stop the officials from thinking about escaping from the battle.
However, given the character of an official, he would definitely hesitate for two or three days.
Two or three days were enough for Chanzhou to launch a large-scale counterattack against the Liao army.
As long as Chanzhou can fight a good battle, even if it is eventually tied by the Liao army, it can greatly boost the morale of the military and the people, and at the same time make the officials more hesitant. At this moment, "Nan Shou"
