Egrets fly in the desert paddy fields, and orioles sing in the overcast summer trees.

The beauty of Jiangnan lies in the unique charm of the water town, just like the melodious lotus-picking song in the sound of oars and lights. The climate here is pleasant and the land is fertile, so the towns are densely populated and prosperous, unlike the desolation and majesty of the Gaoyang Plain in the west of the mainland.

When Xu Ziping once again saw the familiar and friendly scenes in his hometown, he couldn't help but feel as if he had lived in another world.

When Xu Shi reached middle age, he would inevitably have complicated thoughts. Recalling what he saw and heard in Kyoto, Beiliang, and the deep conversation he had with Xie Xiao, the Duke of Zhenguo, when he left Muyang Mansion on the south bank of the Tiancang River, Xu Ziping couldn't help but

He looked solemn.

In fact, he at least fulfilled his mission this time. Even if the Northern Liang court stepped on his bottom line and entered into an alliance, compared to the strength gap between the two countries, such humiliation was completely self-indulgent.

But can marriage really prevent war?

Once upon a time, Xu Ziping was a supporter of this view, but now he is increasingly doubting the feasibility of this matter.

The carriage was driving on the flat official road, and pedestrians chatting and laughing occasionally came from outside. Even if he didn't open the curtain, a harmonious picture of peaceful times still appeared in front of Xu Ziping's eyes.

"Uncle, Beiliang has too much time to take care of itself now. Maybe they just want to take advantage. This is not a delaying strategy." Xu Churong said softly. This trip to the north not only gave her more knowledge, but also made her understand Xu Ziping's difficulties.

Xu Ziping said slowly: "Are you referring to the drought in Qinzhou, Beiliang and other places?"

Back and forth, the Southern Zhou Dynasty delegation passed by Qinzhou twice. Even if it was not convenient to investigate carefully, they could get a rough idea just from the conditions along the road.

Xu Churong nodded and said: "I think this should be the most important reason why the Beiliang court agreed to sign the alliance."

Xu Ziping sighed softly: "It has been delayed for a while, but it cannot be delayed forever. The Emperor of Beiliang asked Pei Yue to serve as the emissary to welcome the bride, and then left Kyoto with us. It might not be a plan to kill two birds with one stone."

Xu Churong was slightly startled and asked in confusion: "Uncle, does Pei Yue know how to provide disaster relief?"

Xu Ziping said with a complicated mood: "It doesn't matter if he doesn't understand. The Emperor of Beiliang only needs to use his murderous nature. After all, it is a problem that they should worry about. Chu Rong, I thought you can no longer hear the name Pei Yue.

I didn’t expect you to remain calm, which shows that Huiyan’s words and deeds over the years have been quite effective.”

What happened in Qinyuan was obviously not a secret. Xu Churong was still young after all, and there was still a bit of anger in his eyes until he left Beiliang Kyoto.

She has been the apple of Xu Huiyan's eye since she was a child. It is not an exaggeration to say that she grew up in an environment surrounded by stars. When did she ever experience such humiliation? The dandies in Jian'an City did not even dare to talk about her behind her back.

Some people are not afraid of Xu Huiyan's power, and they don't want to provoke a famous poetry and book family like the Xu family in Qinghe.

After all, the Xu family is most in need of great scholars and literary figures. If I scold you in an article, I'm afraid the entire family will be infamy for thousands of years.

Xu Churong listened to his uncle's joke and curled his lips slightly: "Of course I was very angry at the time, because I didn't do anything, and it was obviously those Northern Liang dudes who took the initiative to provoke me. Later I realized that Pei Yue was from Liang, how could I still count on him?

Can you help me out?"

Xu Ziping was slightly surprised. In his impression, this little niece was not so easy to talk to.

Xu Churong continued: "He is from the Liang Dynasty and I am from the Zhou Dynasty, and our respective positions are very clear. I was humiliated in Kyoto, Beiliang, and I can understand why he beat me up, even if I am very angry. When he comes to Jian'an City, he will have to pay some price.

"

I see.

Xu Ziping smiled and asked: "Then what are you going to do?"

Xu Churong said calmly: "It's rude to come and not return."

Xu Ziping did not say anything to dissuade him, because in his opinion, Pei Yue was indeed too biased in this matter, and he did not give any face to the Xu family in Qinghe. It was natural for Xu Churong to want to take revenge and go back.

There was also a deeper reason. He thought about it repeatedly on the way back, and gradually understood Xu Huiyan's true intention in letting Xu Churong go north.

At this time, he couldn't help but think of what Fang Xiexiao said very solemnly when he left Muyang Mansion.

"Brother Xu, if you want to reverse the situation between the two countries, this is the best and last chance."

…

Daliang has assembled heavy troops on the north bank of the Tiancang River. From east to west, they are Gulei Camp and Yaoshan Camp in Yaozhou, Zhennan Camp and Qinian Camp in Dingzhou, Changping Camp in Sizhou, and then

Together with the Dingzhou Navy built by Gu Liang, they formed the main force of the entire Southern Army.

Among them, the Zhennan Camp and the Yaoshan Camp were the most powerful, especially the Zhennan Camp behind the water village of Dingzhou Navy, which was a nightmare in the minds of many soldiers in the Southern Zhou Dynasty.

In terms of inheritance and history alone, Zhennan Camp can be said to be the best among the millions of troops in Daliang. Pei Yuan, the Duke of Dingguo, personally led the army to the south and cleared thousands of miles of territory in more than a year. It was a pity that he was preparing to cross the Tiancang River south.

,

Suddenly, news came from the capital that Emperor Gaozu was seriously ill. Duke Dingguo had to leave his most elite 30,000 troops in Dingzhou to prevent the Southern Zhou Dynasty from coming back, and then rushed back to Kyoto with hundreds of soldiers under the stars at night.

.

These 30,000 people were the predecessor of Zhennan Camp.

The wind is always blown away by the rain and the wind, so Zhennan Camp cannot maintain its glory in the past hundred years. Especially thirty-six years ago, Xian Chunqiu, then the coach of Yaoshan Camp, defected to the Southern Zhou Dynasty, and then under his leadership

Under the suggestion, the late Emperor of the Southern Zhou Dynasty decided to take Puqi City, guarded by Zhennan Camp, as the main direction of attack.

That period of time was a humiliation that the old people in Zhennan Daying did not want to recall.

Xian Chunqiu's understanding of the Southern Army of Daliang was as good as that of Gu Liang. He knew the military styles of all the generals in Daliang very well, and in the past ten years, he had defeated Liang's army steadily.

If Wang Pingzhang and Gu Liang had not taken over the Southern Army and retaken Dingzhou and Yaozhou, today's Cangjiang River would have become an inland river in the Southern Zhou Dynasty.

Because of this, the training of the soldiers of Zhennan Camp was cruel.

The sun was scorching, and in a military stronghold southeast of Puqi City, nearly a thousand soldiers were practicing battle formations.

A young sentry officer stood in front of his subordinates. Big beads of sweat kept sliding down his face. However, even though the sweat flowed into his eyes, he remained motionless. His romantic and elegant peach blossom eyes looked at him sternly.

The originally handsome faces of the soldiers in front of them had been tanned, and they now looked more brave.

Half a year ago, this handsome young man became their colleague.

Because he looked so handsome, some rough guys in the army always liked to ridicule him verbally, but he never argued. Until one day, a sentry officer wanted to bully him arrogantly because of his status, but he was bullied by this young man.

One punch sent the person flying several feet away.

From then on, no one in the military camp dared to act arrogantly in front of him.

Everyone thought that this guy would be kicked out of the military camp, but they didn't expect that the commander of the camp sent someone to talk secretly with the commander of the military camp for a while, and then nothing happened.

Two months later, this young man with unfathomable martial arts skills was naturally appointed as a sentry officer by virtue of his excellent performance in training, and was in charge of a hundred soldiers.

The sun was setting, and the day's training was finally over. After arranging the team as usual, the young people returned to their homes.

"Brother Gu, I'm going to the city to buy ingredients tomorrow. Do you want me to bring you something?" The quartermaster walked into this simple camp with a familiar face and said with a smile.

The young man looked up at him and said calmly: "No need."

The quartermaster rubbed his hands and whispered, "How about I bring you two pots of soju?"

The young man shook his head and said, "Thank you, no need."

The quartermaster had no choice but to give up. At the same time, he secretly murmured in his heart, is this young man really the son of Lord Gu? It seems that he has a similar demeanor, but how can the son of Lord Gu be a small sentry? Well, this kind of person

It must have an extraordinary origin, just be careful.

Just as he turned to leave, the young man suddenly said: "If it is convenient, please help me inquire about something."

The quartermaster smiled very cordially and said, "If there is any trouble for us brothers, please do not hesitate to give us your orders."

The young man said: "Last time you said that Southern Zhou sent people to Kyoto, please help me find out the follow-up to this matter."

The quartermaster responded respectfully.

After he left, the young man did not rest. Instead, he sat at the ordinary table and took out a piece of paper from a military book, on which the map was gradually sketched.

But it is not a topographic map of the territory of Daliang.

His name is Gu Fan, the son of Guliang, the Marquis of Guangping, and he is now an ordinary sentry under the Ninghaiwei Right Army in Zhennan Daying.

The light of the past has all shrunk, like a famous sword hidden in a sheath.

Waiting for the day to see the light of day again.
Chapter completed!