At the end of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, there was another small country located in the north of Guanzhong, the Northern Han Dynasty.
Baishui City is a small border town in the Northern Han Dynasty. Baishui City is also called Baishui Pass. The terrain is dangerous, like a natural chasm cutting between the Northern Han Dynasty and Khitan. On both sides of Baishui City are towering mountains. Baishui Pass is easy to defend but difficult to attack, so it is known as
The most strange and dangerous pass in the world, and Yanmen Pass, a large peripheral pass in the east, have the reputation of "double pass guarding the world". However, in later generations, Baishui Pass is far less famous than Yanmen Pass.
Baishui City is not only a military fortress, but also a trading city for Han and Khitan people. Markets are held in the city on Wednesday, Saturday, and September of every month, and on these days, the north gate of Baishui City facing north will also be open.
Open it and allow the Khitans to enter the city and trade with the Han people. The Khitans are located in a cold land in the north, with endless virgin jungles and grasslands with green fields as wide as the sea.
Ji Chou Day, the ninth day of November, happened to be the day when the market opened. The weather seemed to be very good, and the warm sunshine shone on the entire Baishui City.
Ling Tianyun was lying on a haystack not far from the market. He leaned his hands behind his head, put his left foot on his right foot, and held an unknown grass in his mouth. He looked lazy and had everything around him.
It was a sword.
Ling Tianyun squinted his eyes and felt the warm sunshine, seeming to enjoy this moment very much.
Ling Tianyun, seventeen years old this year, is a scout for the border guards of Baishui City. He also has another identity, he is the son and only son of Ling Duozhi, the general of Baishui City.
"Brother Yun, I didn't go to work today," Ling Tianyun was enjoying the warm sunshine when a person walked under the haystacks.
The man was wearing an ordinary government official uniform, with a strong figure and thick eyebrows and big eyes. The man landed on the haystack with a slight jump and sat down next to Ling Tianyun.
This person’s name is Guo Jian, and he is a government official in Baishui City. Today is the day of the opening of the market, and the government also needs to dispatch government officials to maintain public order around the market. Although Baishui City is small, it is in a relatively special geographical location, so
The Northern Han Dynasty established Baishui Prefecture here, which took charge of more than a dozen surrounding county offices.
Ling Tianyun did not answer Guo Jian's words. He spat out the grass roots in his mouth, sat up, and looked at the market not far away. There were noisy people in the market, and there were also some animal hides, cattle and sheep brought by the Khitans.
Some unknown rare herbs picked from the jungle were placed on street stalls waiting for people to buy them, and some were directly exchanged with Han people's ceramics, tea, and silk. However, at this time, it was a peaceful scene.
"Now that the Han Dynasty and the Khitan are in an alliance, there is no war," Ling Tianyun sighed, and fell silent for a while.
Guo Jian was also silent for a while. Although Ling Tianyun was the son of the general who guarded the city at the border, he usually got close to the government officials of Baishui Mansion. Perhaps he had a bold temperament and basically didn't have to go to work because he was the son of a general.
Drilling with the army. On weekdays, when I am bored, I drink wine with some government servants and brag.
The Northern Han Dynasty was built by Liu Yu, the younger brother of the former Emperor Liu Zhiyuan of the Later Han Dynasty. After Liu Yu proclaimed himself emperor and founded the Later Han Dynasty, he was afraid of the Emperor Guo Wei of the Later Zhou Dynasty, so he sent an envoy to the Khitan to seek assistance. The Khitan emperor Yelu Ruan sent an envoy to the Northern Han Dynasty and called it Zhou
The country was willing to send money of 100,000 yuan every year. Liu Min sent Prime Minister Zheng Gong to give him a lot of money, and called himself emperor nephew, called Yelu Ruan his uncle, and asked for canonization. Yelv Ruan then canonized Liu Min as the Shenwu Emperor of the Han Dynasty. Soon, Yelu Ruan was killed.
, Yelvjing succeeded to the throne. Liu Min also sent Wang Dezhong, a privy councilor, as an envoy to Khitan to borrow troops from Yelvjing. Yelvjing ordered Xiao Yujue to lead 50,000 troops to help Liu Min.
However, Ling Duozhi, the general who defended the city, did not agree with the approach of Emperor Liu Yu of the Northern Han Dynasty. He not only led his troops to defend Baishui City, but also built various military strategic locations. He believed that conspiring with the Khitans was like conspiring with a tiger. The Khitans had
The ambition of the wolf is even more unpredictable. During this period of time, the security of the whole city was not relaxed, but became more stringent. It was just that fewer scouts were sent to the north of the city.
"Sir, the general invites you." Just as Ling Tianyun and Guo Jian were silent, a soldier walked to the edge of the haystack and saluted Ling Tianyun with clasped fists.
"Is the general in the military camp or at his residence?" Ling Tianyun jumped down from the haystack. Because Ling Tianyun was also a soldier, his father's subordinates also called Ling Duozhi the general.
"Back to you, sir, the general is at the general's residence." Bing Jia replied.
Ling Tianyun said hello to Guo Jian and followed the soldier to the general's mansion.
The General's Mansion is located in the south of Baishui City. It is not very grand. It is a simple courtyard with several rows of houses. The front row is the main room, the main room is the hall, and there are wing rooms on both sides of the hall. There are also two or three rooms in the middle row.
The house is where the kitchen, handymen and maids live. Behind it is a small house for keeping handymen. Next to the small house is the stable. After passing the courtyard gate, walk about thirty steps to the main house. From the market
It’s not a long journey from the city to Jiangjun, it takes about two sticks of incense to walk.
The general was originally the head of the Ling family. Due to the fall of the Tang Dynasty and the advent of troubled times, the ancestor of the Ling family led the Ling family to move here from the Central Plains. By the time of Ling Duo's generation, the family had already declined and the population was not prosperous.
Only three members of Ling Duo's family and an old housekeeper were left.
As soon as Ling Tianyun entered the house, the old housekeeper Pang Lao greeted him. There were no servants or handymen in the house at this time. There was only one loyal old housekeeper Pang Bo. Ling Tianyun's mother died when he was four or five years old.
He passed away suddenly, so Ling Duozhi also dismissed all the maids in the family. At this time, the courtyard seemed particularly deserted.
"Master, the master is waiting in the living room."
"Uncle Pang, do you know why my father called me back?" Ling Tianyun respected the old housekeeper Pang Lao very much.
"I don't know, but the master's expression seems to be very anxious. The young master should go in quickly," the old butler replied.
Seeing that he couldn't ask anything from the old housekeeper, Ling Tianyun had no choice but to walk quickly to the living room.
Ling Duozhi turned his back to the main entrance of the living room, looking at the memorial tablet of his wife Ling Tianyun's mother placed on the central wall of the living room, standing with his hands behind his hands, looking solemn.
"Father, you are looking for me," Ling Tianyun quickly saluted Ling Duozhi and asked after entering the door.
Ling Duozhi turned around and looked at his son, filled with joy in his heart. He had grown up. At the age of seventeen, he was almost taller than himself. His strong body began to shed his youthfulness.
With his childish look, sharp eyebrows and starry eyes, coupled with that resolute face, he concentrated all the advantages of himself and his wife in appearance.
In Ling Tianyun's eyes, he was both afraid and respectful of his father. Looking at Ling Duozhi's frosty white temples, Ling Tianyun couldn't help but feel sour in his heart. His father was only in his forties and was in his prime.
However, his face is full of vicissitudes of life, and his temples have begun to turn gray. Maybe the death of his mother has hit him hard. Or maybe it is because the current situation has made his father mentally and physically exhausted.
Ling Duozhi was a pure soldier. In his early years, he followed Liu Zhiyuan, the leader of the Later Han Dynasty, to fight in the north and south. He killed all his life and had the courage to be invincible to ten thousand men. Later, the Later Han Dynasty was destroyed by Guo Wei of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and he followed Liu Yu, the current emperor of the Northern Han Dynasty. But he was very
He was disgusted with Liu Yu's practice of bowing to the Khitan and calling him his nephew. After repeated rumors to no avail, he voluntarily transferred back to Baishui Pass to guard this pass.
Ling Duozhi poured a cup of tea and motioned for Ling Tianyun to sit down.