When Yang Hao returned to Xingzhou, he was welcomed by the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, the powerful nobles, and even the noble families and celebrities of the Jin gentry, and he entered the city gate with great splendor.
Although Zhong Fang, Ding Chengzong, Yang Jiye and others were privately furious because of Yang Hao's irritation, this attitude could not be known to others, let alone what Yang Hao had done to ordinary people. In their eyes,
Under the propaganda, Yang Hao was strategizing, predicting the enemy's opportunity first, using his troops like a god, and being unstoppable... In short, his martial arts skills were unprecedented and unmatched. Only then could he achieve this great victory and be able to achieve such a catastrophic event.
They turned it into a great achievement of Yang Hao, which was widely publicized.
After the Uighur Revolution in Ganzhou and the two major events of Xingzhou's Hundred Ministries, Yang Hao's power has been highly concentrated. Through this extreme method, he has initially completed the transformation of the Xixia regime from a de facto alliance system to a centralized system.
The transformation of the country, the prestige and authority are the same for a while, and naturally they can be called upon by hundreds of people.
Dong'er, Yanyan and other girls were really worried about Yang Hao's recklessness. Fortunately, after Yang Hao broke through three levels angrily, trampled Li's house with his horse, and cut off Li Jiyun's dog's head with a knife, he immediately sent Qingqi back to Beijing to report the news.
Counting it all together, the time his lovely wives were worried about him was only half a day. Even so, when they saw Yang Hao come back in good health, they still couldn't help but burst into tears.
Yang Hao comforted his beloved wives with good words, and briefly explained the process of seizing Xiao Pass. Under Dong'er's personal service, he took off his military uniform, took a bath and freshened up, put on the king's crown and belt again, and then went to the main hall to participate.
All civil and military officials, dignitaries and ministers held a celebration banquet for him.
After a lot of hustle and bustle, when the banquet was finally over, Yang Hao remembered what Zhong Fang said to him, changed his clothes again, washed up, and was about to meet Princess Yongqing. When he left the hall, he saw a man...
Holding his hands, he was wandering around His Highness. This man was an old man, tall, with bronze skin, thick eyebrows, and white beard and hair. He only wore a thin summer military uniform on a cold day, but his face was rosy and he had no trace of anything.
chill.
Yang Hao took a closer look and recognized that he was Gu Daji, who was the number one killer of the Cui family in the Success Hall and is now the chief instructor of "Fei Yu Sui Feng".
As soon as Yang Hao saw him, he remembered that this person would be his father-in-law from now on. He couldn't help but hesitate a little, because he had just returned to Beijing and the matter had not been made public. When he met his father-in-law, he didn't know his attitude.
How to deal with it? You must know that although he has five princesses now, he has no father-in-law and mother-in-law, just the one in front of him. Yang Hao really has no experience in this area.
Just as Yang Hao was hesitating, Gu Daji looked up at him and hurriedly greeted him excitedly: "My lord Gu Daji, please see my king."
As soon as Yang Hao saw him crossing his arms and saluting, he quickly stepped forward, helped him up and said, "Ah, it turns out it's Gu... sir, please excuse me."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Gu Daji straightened up, glanced at Yang Hao, flexed his hands nervously, and said hesitantly: "Your Majesty, this... Your Majesty has just returned to Beijing and has been tired all the way. I don't dare to do it now.
Excuse me, my lord, but... there is one thing... Well, I think this snow should be the last one this year..."
Yang Hao didn't know what he meant when he suddenly talked about the weather, so he could only look at him inexplicably. Gu Daji chuckled and said, "In the blink of an eye, another year has passed. My little girl... has also grown one year older.
The girls in the neighborhood who are the same age as her are now mothers of three children. Zhuyun is not in a hurry. As a father, I really have to be anxious. This and this..."
He killed the assassin, his old face turned red and said: "When the little girl captured Tuoba Han Chan, the king promised that he would accept the little girl's request. Ahem, now... Tuoba Han Chan's grave is now
It’s time for grass to grow, my lord, do you think..."
"Ah...ah...ah...yes, this...I wonder what Mr. Gu wants you to ask for?"
Gu Daji perked up and said quickly: "Ma Zongqiang, the commander of the capital of Huaizhou, is young, promising and handsome. His wife just died of illness last winter. There are only two concubines in the family and they have not continued their marriage. Daji thought, if he could marry his little girl Yun'er
If you marry him, you will be a good couple, your daughter will be supported for life, and I will have no regrets in this life. This...this...if the king is willing to marry me, hehehe..."
Behind the pillars at the corner of the hall, a few people had just turned around. They were Dong'er, Ziyu and Zhuyun. In Yang Hao's heart, Dong'er was always the woman he respected and loved. He knew everything about her and never said anything to her.
Without hiding anything, he had told his beloved wife everything about the arrangements for Zhe Ziyu and Gu Zhuyun. Dong'er was the kind of gentle woman who was truly gentle, virtuous, and broad-minded. When Yang Hao entertained guests in the front hall, she told her everything.
The two people, who were about to become sisters, invited them into the harem to have a banquet and chat together. At this moment, they were just sent out when they happened to hear Gu Daji's words.
Dong'er heard this and glanced at Zhuyun. Zhuyun's cheeks were already flushed, and she heard Yang Hao hesitantly say: "Ah... Ma Zongqiang, this... Zhuyun... ahem, Zhuyun doesn't know if he likes it.
What about him?"
Gu Daji immediately slapped his chest so loudly that he said: "A wise daughter is no better than a father. The king can rest assured about this. Hehehe, my little girl... is actually not afraid of the king's jokes. The little girl actually fell in love with Commander Ma at first sight, and this... ah!"
By the way, we have been in love for a long time and have been privately engaged for life. Well...if the king personally proposes the marriage and it turns out to be a good thing, wouldn't it be a wonderful time and everyone will be happy?"
"Nonsense!"
Zhuyun was really anxious this time. She jumped out with a blushing face and said angrily to her father: "Dad, what are you talking about? I have only seen Ma Zongqiang occasionally. Who likes him? Don't do it to me."
The king is talking nonsense." Zhu Yun glanced at Yang Hao worriedly, fearing that her father's nonsense would anger him.
Gu Daji suddenly saw his daughter appear. He was startled for a moment, and then he laughed and said, "Look, Your Majesty, this girl is shy. Hahaha, I'm sorry to let Your Majesty know. Well, she's embarrassed. As for me, I'm her."
Dad, what do you think of your parents’ orders?”
Zhu Yun almost burst into tears. She finally managed to keep the clouds clear and see the moonlight, but her father came to mess with the relationship again. What if the king felt embarrassed and allowed his father to follow suit?
Zhuyun hurriedly denied it, but Gu Daji was annoyed and paused: "Look, your Majesty, my rebellious and unfilial daughter, her mother died early, and I was both father and mother, raising her with shit and piss."
,Is it easy for me?"
Being arranged like this by her father in front of her sweetheart, Zhu Yun was so embarrassed that she almost found a crack in the ground to crawl in. Seeing this, Yang Hao coughed and said first: "This... When Miss Zhu Yun was in Ganzhou,
She has already made a request to me, and I have already agreed to her, so it is hard to regret it now."
Zhuyun was overjoyed when she heard this, but Gu Daji was very surprised: "This girl...has already mentioned it? I just don't know...what she mentioned to the king."
Yang Hao said: "Well..., what my daughter's family cares about most is of course life-long events."
Gu Daji was overjoyed: "A lifetime event? A lifetime event, a lifetime event, ahahahaha..., uh... I just wonder whose dog this girl wants to marry?"
Yang Hao choked violently, feeling embarrassed that the rude man insisted on pretending to be the gentle Gu Daji, so he quickly changed his words: "No, no, I wonder whose son he is?"
Yang Hao said: "Well, Master Gu, please take your gold back to your home first. Later, I will have a decree from the king, and you will naturally know it by then."
Gu Daji was stunned. Since the king had said this, he had issued an order to expel the guest. Although he did not read poetry, he was a seasoned killer who was well versed in the ways of the world, so he still had some discernment. He quickly thanked him and left.
After leaving the palace, he couldn't wait to say to his daughter: "You stinky girl, you quietly found your husband's wife by yourself? Tell me, who is that person?"
Zhuyun was very shy, but also proud. Xiaoyao snorted slightly, raised her head and said, "I didn't tell you." After saying that, she got on her horse, raised her hand and rushed towards her home.
Gu Daji chuckled and said: "Finally you realize you are in a hurry, right? You actually asked the king for a man, tsk tsk tsk, you are worthy of being my Gu Daji's daughter!"
Gu Daji hurried home and chased his daughter to ask about the identity of the "wild man". Zhu Yun was shy and proud, but did not say anything. The father and daughter were making a fuss, and Mu Sheren had a look on his face.
A blessed smile appeared at Gu Daji's house, followed by four palace servants.
After listening to the conferment brought by the Mushe people, Gu Daji was speechless. After a long while, he slapped his thigh and said to his daughter with admiration: "Good girl, good job. This is what we killers have to do. If we don't take action, we will do it."
If you attack, go straight to the vital point and take his head!"
Mushe said in shock: "Who are you going to kill?"
There was silence in Xinuan Pavilion, and Yang Hao stopped in the yard.
At this time, sporadic snowflakes were floating in the sky again. Yang Hao stood in the snow for a while, stretched out his palm, and watched the crystal snowflakes falling straight into his palm, and then turned into a tear-like drop of water. Then he walked towards the pavilion.
Come out.
"The king is here."
Ding Chengzong was in the pavilion. When he saw Yang Hao, he smiled lightly and pushed his car to greet him.
This is the Xinuang Pavilion. It was originally warm as spring, but when Yang Hao came in, he felt a little cold. When he glanced around, he found that the window was open, revealing a piece of ice behind it and a small pavilion. In the summer, there were rippling waves there.
There is a pool of clear water, with vines hanging from the rockery, and the scenery is very beautiful. However, at the moment, everything is deserted. In the distance, you can see several young palace ladies playing on the ice near the shore.
Yang Hao only glanced at it, then withdrew his gaze and focused on another person. There were only two people in the palace, one was Ding Chengzong, and the other was naturally Princess Yongqing.
Yongqing had grown her hair again. She was no longer a monk, but was wearing a moon-white robe. Yang Hao glanced at her as she slowly stood up. Her temperament was demure, just like a lotus. It was hard to imagine that this
The girl was the little princess who innocently asked for the white fish and the parrot. But her facial features were clearly that of little Yongqing, only a little older.
"I excuse myself." Ding Chengzong took the opportunity to retreat, quietly slipped out of the Nuan Pavilion, and closed the door gently.
Yang Hao took two steps forward, and Princess Yongqing had already gathered her clothes and saluted: "I have met the king."
Yang Hao was silent. Once upon a time, he wanted to salute Yongqing, but now the emperor and his ministers have changed positions, and Yongqing has to bow to him. For a moment, Yang Hao felt as if time and space had changed, and people had experienced vicissitudes of life, as if he had just arrived. When I come to this world, I look at the vast sky and the earth, the sun and the moon in the sky, and I have a feeling of eternity, things are different and people are different.
"Your Highness the Princess."
Yang Hao returned the gift solemnly, and Yong Qing smiled faintly: "Yong Qing, now she is just a weak woman under the wings of the king who has a family that is difficult to return to, and a country that is difficult to surrender to. What kind of princess is she?"
Yang Hao sighed, was silent for a while, and then said: "Here, the princess cannot publicize her reputation, but we, Xixia, will still treat the princess with the respect of the princess of the country. The princess can live here with peace of mind. As long as Yang Hao is here, Xixia Here, Princess Yongqing is here!"
Princess Yongqing stared at him for a long time, then breathed softly, with a bitter smile on her lips: "Don't you want anything else? You went through all the trouble to rescue me just to support me?"
"I want to help the princess just because...the princess cares for Yang Hao, the late emperor knew Yang Hao well, and Yang Hao has nothing to ask for from the princess."
Princess Yongqing's eyes were slightly closed, and two strings of tears fell from her eyes.
Yang Hao comforted: "Princess, the death of the empress and His Highness Prince Qi was not the fault of the princess. The deceased are gone, princess, don't be sad or blame yourself. From now on, princess, please live here with peace of mind. If there is any If you need anything, please ask Yang Hao, no need to be formal."
Princess Yongqing shook her head slightly, opened her teary eyes, and said to Yang Hao: "But this is not what I want!"
Yang Hao raised his eyebrows slightly and asked, "What does the princess want?"
Yongqing didn't answer but asked instead: "Your Majesty really wants to settle down with me, is it unintentional?"
Yang Haodao: "Central Plains? After conquering the Central Plains, where else do you want to conquer? The desire is endless, but no matter how great a person is, it is impossible to conquer everything. Endless conquests can only destroy himself in the end. If I say He cares about the common people in the world, so he doesn't want to build weapons. That's nonsense. If he is so great, I will just give Xixia to Zhao Guangyi.
The first thing I want to do, Yang Hao, is to protect my family and hope that they can be safe and happy. The second thing I want to do is to have a career of my own, whether it is farming, doing business, working, or serving as an official. , or have a piece of my own foundation. But I have never been so arrogant that I forget about it. The Song Dynasty is a behemoth, and I can't eat it. Once we fight, even if we are undefeated, it will only end in mutual consumption. for the benefit of others.”
Yongqing nodded lightly: "If I had known that you thought so, and believed you thought so, maybe the queen mother and the king's brother would not have died."
She smiled sadly and said: "At that time, I might be happy to accept your help, live in Xixia with peace of mind, and selfishly take advantage of your kindness. But it can't be done now, so I will tell you , It’s good for you to do this, but this is just your idea. Liao Dynasty would not think this way, and Song Dynasty would not think this way. If you don’t want to hit others, others will hit you. The peace you want, unless you It can destroy the other party or be more powerful than it, otherwise it will not be possible at all."
Yang Hao opened his mouth, but did not reveal his plans for Longyou. There was no need for him to discuss these military and national affairs with Princess Yongqing.
Yongqing said: "Do you think that by occupying Longyou and forming a larger force, you can curb my second uncle's ambition and achieve peace with each other? From ancient times to the present, you have seen two powerful countries.
Is it possible for a big country so close to us to live in harmony and live in peace and harmony?"
Yang Hao changed his color slightly: "Does she know about my plot against Longyou?" For a moment, Yang Hao thought that Zhong Fang and Ding Chengzong must have talked to Princess Yongqing first, understood her intentions, and reached some kind of agreement.
, and then told her such an important thing. Of course, Princess Yongqing is now in Yang Hao's hands, and she doesn't worry that she will leak it out.
However, this kind of behavior clearly shows the thoughts of the important ministers and confidants on whom he relies as his right-hand man. They are also full of enthusiasm for expansion, expansion of territory, and achievement of achievements. No matter they are merchants, they not only hope to prosper their family
His eldest brother Ding Chengzong, who had no desires and desires, or Zhong Fang, a great scholar of Hongxue who was well-read in poetry and literature, all had the same mentality, not to mention what happened to those generals.
Yongqing said: "It is true that a person's life span, talent, military strength and national power are all exhausted. It is indeed impossible to fight and expand endlessly. But this reason should not be the reason for you to be content with the status quo. At least, there are some things
It is within your ability, so why don't you do it? Now you have a strong army, a cloud of soldiers under your command, and a rain of generals.
In any country, the civil servants and military generals at the beginning of the founding of the country are the most honest and talented. If you don't take advantage of this opportunity and do what you can do well, then what will you leave to your descendants? Can you solve it?
Are we going to leave them with the problem and get them involved in more wars?
Yes, the sun and the moon are empty, and they take turns. No matter which country, there is a process of beginning, prosperity, and decline. No matter how wise you are, you cannot guarantee that all your descendants will be wise. If you want to last for thousands of generations, arrange it for ten thousand years.
Everything in the future is nothing to worry about. But if you can arrange everything in one hundred, three hundred, or even five hundred years, why do you only care about the past few decades of your life?"
Yang Hao's heart skipped a beat when he heard this. His mind was clear for a while, like an enlightenment, and then suddenly he was confused, heavy, and uncertain about choices. He didn't expect that the little princess who was inexperienced in the world could actually say such a thing.
Come on, your will has been shaken.
Princess Yongqing glanced at his face and felt very nervous: "What Zhe Ziyu taught me really worked. It seems... he is no longer so calm and peaceful."
After a long time, Yang Hao took a long breath and then said: "I was almost... persuaded by Her Royal Highness, haha... What you said may make sense, but... the problem is, what you said, I
It can't be solved. On the contrary, if I try to solve it, I will leave a bigger mess for the current people and the people who will come later. Moreover, of the flesh and blood of the late emperor, only the princess is left. Yang Hao... I just want you to be safe.
, and don’t want to take advantage of you.”
Princess Yongqing said: "You are wrong, Yang Hao! It's not that you are using me, but that I want to use you!"
Yang Hao was dumbfounded: "Use me?"
Princess Yongqing said: "To be precise, it should be mutual use. What you have, combined with what I have, can actually generate power that far exceeds your estimate. What you can give me is something I cannot
The power I have, and what I can give you, is something you never thought of."
Yes, not only Yang Hao couldn't think of it, but even she, without Zhe Ziyu's advice, would never have thought of it. On her way to Xingzhou, she kept pitying and hurting herself, feeling that she was a useless person.
A useful woman, she thought that what she could give Yang Hao was just a righteous name, but now, she is full of confidence.
She turned around and walked slowly to the window. The snowy light reflected her skin, which was like jade and porcelain. She said in a strong voice: "Why don't you try it? How can you know if you don't try it at all?
Is it possible to succeed? Just walk to the ice near the shore and try its thickness, isn't it?"
Yang Hao stared at her back and said in a deep voice: "What will happen if I really succeed? That kind of ending is not what your father, your mother, and your brother in heaven want."
"I know what they want!"
Princess Yongqing turned around. The wind picked up her long hair. Her hair was messy and her eyes were silky. She looked like a beautiful succubus in the wind: "So, you can get everything from this cooperation. I only need you to do it."
One thing, something very easy, is just a promise to you!"
"kill!"
With a roar of a tiger, many knights covered with felt scarves and with only a pair of eyes showing suddenly rushed out from the forest on the roadside. They were holding a variety of weapons, including knives, forks, and even a sharp ax for chopping firewood. At first glance, it was not official.
's army.
"Ah" screamed, and the ax blade was stained with blood. A road-building slave who bore the brunt of the attack had his head split open with a sharp ax, and his brains and blood spattered, which was shocking.
"Who is so bold! How dare you hurt the people who built Ying Road in Daliao?"
A Khitan general rushed forward, drew his sword and roared.
What answered him was a cold arrow, which shot like lightning. The arrow flew through the air, carrying a blue light. It was obviously quenched with poison. These people were obviously tricked and did not want to leave anyone alive.
With a "pop" sound, the sharp arrow penetrated the throat, and blood spurted out along the blood groove, turning black in an instant. At this time, those people had already rushed into the road construction team, whether they were slaves and migrant workers building the road, or Liaoning workers supervising the work.
The generals of the national soldiers just greeted them with their swords. For a moment, swords and swords flashed, blood and flesh flew everywhere, and the unprepared enemies fell down like grass.
The knights fought with blood and were invincible. They just cut a bloody path from the road construction team, rushed out dozens of steps, circled the horse, and charged again. They chopped with knives, chopped with axes, picked with forks, and shot with arrows.
To the extreme, until all the enemies were lying in a pool of blood, the knights jumped off their horses one after another after the leader shouted, checking each one one by one, whether they were dead or not, they had to stab them hard, and emptied them of all valuables.
The thing looks like a horse bandit who ransacked something.
When everything was done, the leader put two fingers into his mouth and let out a sharp whistle. All the knights immediately mounted their horses and galloped away, quickly disappearing into the vast jungle.
The snow was falling, first covering up the bloodstains, and then starting to cover up the human body. At this moment, two more horsemen suddenly jumped out from the roadside. They looked around alertly, and then one of them stood guard, while the other quickly dismounted and carried his body on his back.
Wearing a robe, he quickly rummaged through the pile of corpses, looking for the murderer's accomplices, and then stuffed something into their arms.
Although their unexpected sneak attack gave them an absolute upper hand, more than a dozen people were still killed. These murderers came and went like the wind, and all they wanted was speed. Of course, they couldn't take a bunch of corpses on the road, but they were not worried.
There wasn't anything iconic about them, but now there is.
In the distant Liaodong, under the leadership of the remote Western Frontier, the flames of the Three Kingdoms War were quietly ignited...