It was clear after the snow, and the sky and the earth were silvery and desolate, but colorful flags were fluttering above and below the Mingde Gate, and the crowds were surging, making it very noisy.
Emperor Li Yuan of the Tang Dynasty stood proudly at the top of the city. A group of civil and military officials stood respectfully behind him, and a group of people were looking to the south.
Today is the day to welcome the triumphant return of the Eastern Expedition Army, but it cannot be delayed any longer, otherwise it will delay the soldiers' return home for the New Year.
Xia Yu also stood behind Li Yuan, quite excited.
Today's welcome ceremony is to declare the great martial arts of the Tang Dynasty. This will be the beginning of the prosperous age of the Tang Dynasty, not the end.
Suddenly, Li Yuan turned his head and looked at Xia Yu with a smile: "Sir, your achievements in the Eastern Campaign are second only to those of the people. Why are you unwilling to join the soldiers and accept the cheers of the people?"
The eyes of all the civil and military personnel also moved over instantly.
Yes, early in the morning, all the heroes of the Eastern Expedition returned to the army, preparing to enter the city with the army and enjoy the glory of their triumphant return.
But Xia Yu refused to leave, insisting on staying at the top of the city and disappearing from the crowd.
This made everyone very strange.
Xia Yu smiled faintly and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, I am just talking with words, but it is not as difficult as the soldiers fighting in blood!"
"Therefore, I will not interfere with this honor."
"Furthermore, my Guigu sect is very particular about being indifferent to fame and wealth. As the saying goes, when things are done, throw away your clothes and hide yourself and your fame. This is my motto."
"Hello?"
Li Yuan's eyes lit up and he praised: "What a wonderful sentence! Mr. is worthy of being a literary master of the generation, and his words are well spoken, which is admirable."
His Majesty the Emperor was very happy, not only because he heard another wonderful sentence.
More importantly, he understood the message passed to him from Xia Yu's low-key words and deeds: Your Majesty, we are honest and timid, and we will not participate in the battles in the court.
Li Shimin's military exploits were so great that he could no longer reward him for his achievements. Li Yuan was deeply concerned.
If there were another generation of sage seekers like Xia Yu who would help him wholeheartedly, to be honest, Li Yuan would feel like he would have to open one eye while sleeping.
But now seeing Xia Yu being so understanding and expressing neutrality repeatedly, Li Yuan was very satisfied and felt more at ease.
His Majesty the Emperor felt that his repeated solicitations and hints had worked.
None of the civil and military officials were stupid, and they all thought: As expected of a disciple of Guigu, he knows how to protect himself wisely, he is really cunning.
It seems that everyone who says that Xia Yu is King Qin's loyal supporter is still wrong.
It was not easy for King Qin to win over such a smart man.
Li Jiancheng was even more happy.
It's okay for Xia Yu to want to be a pure minister. As long as he doesn't help Li Shimin, there won't be any conflict between him and Xia Yu.
After all, when he ascends the throne, he will also need the help of capable ministers like Xia Yu.
"Your Majesty, look, the Eastern Expeditionary Army is back." Suddenly, someone pointed in the direction excitedly.
Li Yuan hurriedly turned around, and sure enough he saw a giant black dragon leaping out of the sky in the snowy field, heading towards Chang'an.
"Bang the drum! Cheer!" Li Yuan looked excited and shouted loudly.
Immediately, the drums of the welcoming army roared like thunder, shaking the heaven and earth. The 108 drummers were divided into three groups and fought hard to beat the thirty-six giant drums.
Inside and outside the city gate, both sides of the street were already crowded with people watching the excitement. It was a huge crowd, more than tens of thousands of people.
"I'm coming!"
The sharp-eyed people also saw the vanguard of the Eastern Expedition Army and cheered one after another.
The Tang Dynasty has been established for a long time, and now it has won successive battles and conquered the north. The people's lives have gradually settled down, and their hearts have gradually recovered.
At the front of the Eastern Expeditionary Army, Li Shimin was wearing a golden helmet and armor, looking majestic.
Although he felt a lot of dissatisfaction when he looked back, at this time, facing the grand occasion of the government and the public welcoming him, he was still extremely excited.
This is his glory and the best reward for his bloody battle and invincibility.
Behind Li Shimin are the four generals of Xuanjia Bing, Wei Chigong, Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, and Zhai Changsun, and on the left and right are Li Yuanji and Li Daoxuan.
These people also looked excited. After all, they also had a share of the credit for the victory of the Eastern Expedition.
Especially Zhai Changsun, he felt lucky to survive the disaster.
After being warned by Xia Yu, although he said he would not care about life and death, he was still extremely careful when charging into battle.
Unexpectedly, the war was about to end, but he was still hit by an arrow, and his fate was inevitable.
Although I lost one eye in the end, which looked a little scary, and I had to wear an eye patch to cover it up, at least my life was saved.
Therefore, Zhai Changsun has nothing to be dissatisfied with. After all, only if you have destiny, you have everything.
Seeing that they were about to reach the city gate, listening to the thunderous drums of war and the crowds coming together to welcome them, Cheng Yaojin was happy but said with some regret: "This scene is quite exciting! It's a pity that the military advisor refused to come, so there are inevitably some flaws."
The atmosphere around me suddenly became tense.
Everyone has been able to mix up to this level, no one is stupid, and they all feel that Xia Yu seems to be distanced from Li Shimin?
Everyone saw Li Yuan's various little moves, and it was not difficult to understand Xia Yu's choice.
However, except for Li Yuanji who secretly rejoiced, Yuchi Gong and other generals felt a little uncomfortable in their hearts.
After all, these warriors are all straight-minded, and they are determined to defeat the King of Qin.
"Shut up!"
Before Li Shimin could react, Qin Qiong glared at Cheng Yaojin, who was speaking so freely.
Cheng Yaojin laughed happily and fell silent.
He seemed reckless, but was actually cunning. He always felt that there seemed to be a tacit understanding between the King of Qin and the military advisor, and that the superficial alienation was not that simple.
But he is not stupid either. He will only keep such questions in his mind and will not talk nonsense.
Will Li Shimin explain?
of course not.
Xia Yu is his hidden secret hand. He hopes that everyone will think that Xia Yu protects himself and deliberately distances himself from him.
In this way, a fatal blow can be delivered at the critical moment.
Therefore, Li Shimin just pretended not to hear, and his face was still full of joy and excitement.
In a moment, the Eastern Expedition army approached the city gate. When they saw the heroic King of Qin Li Shimin with golden helmets and golden armor, as well as the majestic Xuanjia soldiers, the people who greeted him were excited.
"Your Highness, King Qin, is a thousand years old! A thousand years old! A thousand years old!"
"The King of Qin is victorious!"
…
The common people knelt down on the roadside in excitement and cheered enthusiastically. They are simple people who always respect heroes.
Amidst the cheers like a tsunami, the Xuanjia soldiers were also excited and raised their arms to echo.
Immediately afterwards, the enthusiasm quickly spread to the rear, and in an instant, the entire Eastern Expedition army responded, shouting for Li Shimin's thousand years.
On the top of the city, Li Yuan's original smile froze somewhat.
He knew that Li Shimin was extremely popular among the military and the people, but he never expected that it would reach such an extent that everyone would follow him.
Undoubtedly, this is a huge threat to the imperial power!
If this continues, will he, the emperor, be able to sit still?
Even though Li Shimin is his son, aren't there still too many stories about imperial power struggles, father and son killing each other, and brothers killing each other!?
There must be restrictions! Li Yuan looked gloomy, took a long breath and exhaled again.
On the side, Xia Yu immediately felt the change in Li Yuan's mood keenly. Although his face was expressionless, he became more alert in his heart.
Seeing that the Eastern Expedition army was gradually entering the city, Li Yuan suddenly composed himself, put on a smile again, turned around and said: "My dear friends, let's go to the Ancestral Temple."
"promise."
All civil and military personnel responded to the order.
The next step is to offer prisoners to the Imperial Ancestral Temple, and then spend money, titles, and awards to the three armies, so that all the soldiers can go home happily for the New Year.
At the moment, Li Yuan took the lead, followed by all the civil and military officials, and walked down the city.
When Xia Yu walked down the steps, suddenly, someone approached her and smiled and cupped her hands: "But in front of the military advisor? The counselor of the Prince of Qin's Palace, the three guards, Li Jing are polite."
Li Jing!
Xia Yu was stunned. He was looking for an opportunity to visit this military god brother, but he didn't expect that it would be better to meet him by chance than by chance.
"It turns out to be Mr. Li, whose name I have admired for a long time." Xia Yu quickly handed over his hand.
Facing this great man who has been mythologized in history, no matter how arrogant he is, he cannot stand up and must be treated with 100% respect.
"The military advisor is so polite, I don't deserve it." Li Jing was a little flattered.