Chapter 3 Wu Yi (Three times) An imperial edict has not arrived in the hands of the recipient after two and a half months from Yangzhou. The mystery of it can no longer be explained by the excuse of the rebellion in southern Hebei. The officials who came to greet it can no longer be explained.
They are all veterans who have been in the official career for many years. After a little pondering, they have already guessed the evil ways here. It is almost ten o'clock in the middle of winter, and the north wind is like a knife, but there are still people who open their mouths so much that their tongues are about to be cut.
It was so cold that they didn’t even realize it. Some people began to regret it, secretly asking themselves whether the flattery was worth it or not.
"That's fine. It's rare for us to meet again. You might as well stay in Qi County for a while. Anyway, there is still some surplus food in the treasury, so I won't be able to feed and drink your four thousand troops!" Xu Wenjing, the soldier cao, guessed that someone in the court was unhappy.
I hope that Li Xu can get this appointment as soon as possible, and simply suggest that he go with the flow. In his opinion, the purpose of dragging Li Xuwan to take office for several months is just to create opportunities for some people to control the children of Qijun. But there are Qin Shubao, Luo Shixin and the former
With the presence of Runfu, the son of Tongshou Jia Wuben, the wishful thinking of some people will not be easy to succeed. Moreover, the imperial court has passed the relevant appointment posts to all counties in Henan. No matter how powerful some powerful people are, they would not dare to carry out the plan more than two months ago.
The imperial edict issued was swallowed up, so instead of traveling thousands of miles to receive the edict, Li Xu might as well stop quietly and see how those people end up. If he can force them into eagerness and send the imperial edict to Qi County, it would be better to make a scene.
This bad breath
"That's right, General Li might as well wait in Qi County. The first-class imperial envoy Xu Yuanlang is making a big fuss in the south. If the general can easily disturb him, the elders in all counties in Henan will remember the virtue of a general!" Wang Shouren is a prudent person and thinks about problems.
The angle is very practical. He is the parent official of Qi County, and he does not have to worry about the rags in Dong County. The most urgent thing he needs to deal with right now is to prevent Qi County from being spied on by rogue bandits. As for how the imperial family and the bandits are making trouble at the foot of Wagang Mountain, after all, they are thousands of miles away.
Besides, there's no need to let him worry about it
"That's right. General Li has been fighting for several months, so he should take a break, at least after the New Year!" Similar views to Xu and Wang were the owner of the household, Bo Yangyuan, who also served in the war that year.
As an acquaintance with Li Xu who had many contacts, it was inevitable to think of some old friends when analyzing the situation. In his opinion, since someone dared to delay the imperial edict, it meant that His Majesty the Emperor's control over the government had reached a point where he could ignore it. In this case, Li Xu still rushed
Before going to Hulao Pass to work for the already shaky imperial court, it is better to wait and see for a few months and wait for the latest development of the situation.
"Brothers, I appreciate your kindness!" In a few words, Li Xu roughly guessed everyone's thoughts, smiled and cupped his hands, thanking him, "We will discuss these matters in detail another day. For now, I would like to trouble you to help my brothers.
Arrange a place to live, and then take my little brother to pay homage to General Zhang!"
"As it should be!" The local officials with their own thoughts agreed in succession, stopped being polite, and under the assignment of Wang Shouren and Wu Qi, began to arrange for the Boling Army to be stationed.
The school ground where Zhang Xutuo, Li Xu and others trained their troops is still there, and the nearby military camps are also well preserved. The officials at all levels are the old team of Pei Caozhi, so they are very familiar with the operation, so Li Xu doesn't have to spend too much time.
and energy, he quickly arranged the official affairs at hand and ordered Wang Xuba, Zhou Daniu and others to take turns on duty to restrain the brothers. Then, together with Wu Qi, the general guard of Qijun, he rushed to the Zhang family mansion located in the center of the city.
"If possible, please advise Mr. Zhang." Halfway through, Wu Qi sighed and suggested to Li Xu
"Brother Yulin, are you talking about Yuan Bei? What's wrong with him?" Li Xu was shocked when he heard this. He frowned and asked why he had come to Licheng in a big circle. In addition to paying homage to the memorial tablet of old general Zhang Xutuo,
Another very important purpose is to drag Zhang Yuanbei to Dongjun. Having the eldest son of the old general Zhang Xutuo here is equivalent to holding a righteous title. No matter how hard the backstage behind others is, in the
He will never be qualified to compete with Zhang Yuanbei for control of the county soldiers.
"Yuan Bei, hey, it's hard to say. It's really hard to say!" Wu Yulin sighed and shook his head. "Ever since the news of the old general's death reached the local area, he seemed to have changed. At that time, I persuaded him to recruit thousands more counties.
Soldier, he went to Dongjun to inherit the mantle of the old general, but he refused to listen. Later, an imperial envoy came from the imperial court, and the old general Zhang was conferred the title of Kaifu Yitong Sansi, Shangzhu Kingdom, Hussar General, and Duke of Qi. He also refused to join.
Ben Xie'en spends every day in front of the veteran general's soul, as if he has lost his soul, neither willing to go out to organize manpower to avenge the veteran general, nor to come out to support the lintel!"
"Maybe Yuanbei has unspeakable difficulties in his heart!" Li Xu thought for a while and defended the other party in a low voice. In his impression, although Zhang Yuanbei, the eldest son of old general Zhang Xutuo, had experienced less hardships, he was not a good person.
The reason why the coward fell down after receiving the slightest blow may be that he has not yet recovered from the pain of losing his father. More likely, he does not want to give people the excuse to fight for power and gain because his father has been lost. Anyway, it should not be given to him.
The rogues were frightened by their fighting prowess and became a coward from then on.
"I don't know, but it's so decadent!" Wu Qi shook his head and responded.
The two bought some ingots and candles on the road, carried them on horseback, and walked to the Zhang family's old house. Because the head was still hanging on Wagang Village, the old general could not be laid to rest for the time being, so the Zhang family's mourning hall was also
It has not been demolished and is located in the main house where the old general once lived.
Li Xu and Wu Yulin handed the horse to the servants of the Zhang family, held the sacrifice and bowed to Zhang Xutuo with the courtesy of a junior. Zhang Yuanbei, who had a pale face, knelt beside the spirit and returned the favor with the courtesy of a filial son. The three pairs were red.
Their eyes met, but they couldn't say anything. They could only hear the whistle from the north outside the curtain, making the withered grass on the roof tiles make a sound like weeping.
After a while, Li Xu wiped away his tears and asked quietly, "I am going to lead troops to Dongjun. Yuan Bei and Yu Lin, are you two willing to go with me?"
"I will definitely go! Wu will never forget the life-saving grace of the old general!" Wu Yulin immediately straightened his body and agreed loudly
His martial arts skills were not very good, but he was indeed very courageous. When Beihai was plundered by thieves, it was he who forced his way out of the siege and rushed hundreds of miles to Qi County to ask Zhang Xutuo to send troops to rescue him.
Deep down, Wu Qi was very dissatisfied with Zhang Yuanbei's recent behavior and wanted to use all means to force him to go with him and go to the foot of Wagang Mountain to avenge the old general's shame.
"My father did not die at the hands of the Wagang Army!" Zhang Yuanbei hesitated for a moment, then looked at Li Xu and Wu Yulin who were full of expectations with dim eyes, and responded in a very low voice.
"How do you say this!" Li Xu was shocked, looking at Zhang Yuanbei's haggard appearance and asked. Under the dim sunlight shining through the window paper, he saw an old and haggard face. Compared with the young hero in Li Xu's memory,
The current eldest son of the Zhang family is almost twenty years older. His face is lined with wrinkles, and his once-straight waist is also bent, like a cooked shrimp. A martial arts practitioner has a big frame, but his bones have become
Too big to be contained by flesh and blood, with a protruding forehead and deep-set eyes. If we met by chance at night, we would really suspect that this person was a skeleton that had just crawled out of the soil.
"My father did not die at the hands of the Wagang Army. Before he asked me to return to Qi County to arrange the funeral for my mother, he had already expected this day!" Zhang Yuanbei had a trace of sadness on his face and confessed in a low voice, "It's not that Zhang is unfilial, my father is
Before I was ordered to return to Qi County, there was a strict order in advance, saying that if anything happens, I will not be allowed to come forward to avenge him, and I will not be allowed to continue to be an official of the Sui Dynasty. Therefore, due to the kindness of Brother Li and Brother Wu, I only
Ability to lead with heart”
"Then, then you just watch the old general's head hanging on a high pole and letting the wind blow?" Wu Yulin couldn't bear it, jumped up, pointed at Zhang Yuanbei's nose and asked
"My family has gone to Wagang with gold and silver to find Zhai Rang to redeem my father's head. After a few days of waiting for the results to be returned, I will evacuate the mourning hall and return to my hometown with the coffin!" Zhang Yuanbei
He behaved like a zombie who had lost his soul and was not moved by Wu Yulin's words at all.
"It's a pity that the old general lived a heroic life, but his head was lost, and his descendants actually had to pay for it to be redeemed by the enemy?" Wu Yulin was so angry that he was trembling. Regardless of the fact that he was right in front of the other party's soul, he sneered and scolded him if there was a way to do it.
Zhang Yuanbei regained his composure, and he did not hesitate to bear the bad reputation. Unfortunately, this provocative move fell into vain again. Zhang Yuanbei just sighed and stopped making any response or excuse.
"Yuan Bei, what's going on? Can you tell me in more detail why General Zhang died? What did he tell you?" Seeing that Wu Yulin was eager to grab Zhang Yuan Bei's collar and beat him severely, Li Xu hurriedly
Separate the two people and ask in a low voice
"Since you went to Yanmen, our Qijun children have only received two supplies. One was from you asking Brother Qin and Shixin to send it back, and the other was from the Li family in Hedong! Brothers are short of food and pay, and they are still hungry.
He fought with the thieves on his stomach and became weaker as the war progressed. The soldiers and horses from Dongdu were nominally under the command of his father, but in fact they never obeyed his orders once." Zhang Yuanbei shook his head with a smile, his eyes seemed to have seen through all the illusions in the world. "Father began.
He also submitted excuses to the court to ask for food and salary, and impeached Liu Changgong and others for disobeying orders, but he never received a real response. Later, he himself did not have the strength to vent his anger on others, so he turned from offense to defense and led his brothers to defend Wagang.
The military continues to expand its sphere of influence.”
The imperial court did not believe in the thieves' fighting power, and was also afraid that there would be a force near Dongdu that was so large that it could not be restrained. Li Xu, who had been in the officialdom for so long, quickly deduced the truth behind the scenes from Zhang Yuanbei's words. However, he did not expect that they would always fight endlessly.
The hundreds of officials who were on guard against Zhang Xutuo were able to work together like this. Not only did they cut off the old general's supplies in one fell swoop, they also didn't even give the old general a chance to appeal.
I remember when I was under the command of the old general, when did I not chase and beat the bandits, and when did I show weakness to the enemy? However, the old general Zhang was forced to bow his head by the treacherous ministers, giving up his best field battle, and was beaten by a group of people.
What a humiliation it is for a warrior who has been fighting for half his life to fight his defeated generals until they are exhausted!
But this humiliation is far from over. Some people fail to do things, but they still find faults. It is because of his understanding of the court. Li Xu knew what would happen next, and Zhang Yuanbei's words also confirmed his speculation.
!
"But the orders from Dongdu and Jiangdu kept urging my father to clear the Wagang as soon as possible." Zhang Yuanbei's words made Li Xu and Wu Yulin feel cold all over. If they were taken out of bed early in the morning,
Pouring a ladle of ice water in their pockets and filled with indignation, they heard Zhang Yuanbei continue to say, "I remember the last time the imperial edict came. The wording was very severe. After that, my father asked me to lead the only son of the county soldiers back to Qi in the name of my mother's funeral."
The county, and asked me to make a solemn oath that I will never have any thoughts of revenge!"
"Old general, didn't the old general tell you who was setting him up behind the scenes?" Wu Yulin, who couldn't care less about his guilt, asked while shivering.
Zhang Yuanbei was right. The old general did not die at the hands of the Wagang bandits. Behind this, there was a very clear force pushing him to a dead end step by step. From this point of view, why did the always cautious old general stay in Qin?
The act of rashly leading troops to chase down the enemy when Luo and Luo were no longer around also made it very clear that he wanted to prevent Qin and Luo from accompanying him to death in battle, so he specifically chose the opportunity when his two favorite generals were not around.
!His last battle was not to kill the enemy at all, but to use his own life to protest against the mastermind behind the scenes.
"My father wrote to me in a letter home that the Sui Dynasty was seriously ill. He was favored by two generations of His Majesty and died for the Sui Dynasty. It is natural for me to die for the country. However, I have no obligation to die for the country, so I can no longer serve the Sui Dynasty."
"Officer" almost gritted his teeth, and after Zhang Yuanbei finished speaking the old general's final instructions, a stream of blood dripped down from the corner of his mouth.
Li Xu felt that he was completely frozen. He felt the whooshing wind in the mourning hall. It was cold, ten times colder than the snowy fields outside the Great Wall. This was the last experience in the life of the old man who once supported half of the Sui Dynasty with a pair of shoulders.
He had already seen clearly the end of the road. He could no longer protect the court. He could only protect the belief in his heart that he was indeed not killed by the Wagang army. When the old man rushed into the siege to rescue the fallen Paoze again and again, he was afraid that
It has long since lost its vitality, and all it has is grief, anger and despair.
"After burying General Zhang, where are you going?" At this moment, Li Xu no longer had any reason to ask Zhang Yuanbei to accompany him. He could only do his last bit for his former mentor and invite his descendants to the six kingdoms under his rule.
The county lived a relatively peaceful life.
"They say that everything in the world is predestined! I want to spend ten years to find out what are the hidden rules in this world?" Zhang Yuanbei sighed softly, speaking in a way that did not belong to him.
After the voice answered, he took off the linen mourning hat on his head, revealing his bald forehead and several scars.
