Early September, the eighteenth year of the Apocalypse.
Autumn is crisp and the weather is pleasant. In ancient times, this was supposed to be a critical time to rush to repair river embankments and canals to prepare for the smooth progress of farming work in the coming year. However, we did not see a large number of people working on the land of Zhongzhou.
The reason is naturally due to the activities of the White Lotus bandits. The main force of the White Lotus bandits entered Jingzhou and began to attack the city and agitate the people. Those in Zhongzhou were just some branches and miscellaneous fish, but the people of Zhongzhou did not know it, and officials such as Lu Wei and the Zhongzhou prefect did not dare to act rashly.<
/p>
So there was a strange scene of officers and soldiers from all walks of life gathering in the southern part of the state, flags fluttering but never setting off south to suppress the bandits.
Magistrate Ding has not seen the White Lotus bandits invading Zhongzhou for a long time. Even though his colleagues in Jingzhou were being tortured by the White Lotus bandits, he was not too worried. Instead, he was glad that he had not suffered such a misfortune. Adhering to the principle of doing more, making more mistakes, and doing less, Ding
The prefect is only thinking about how to survive this crisis and keep his black hat.
And Chen Ping and others are not just sitting around during this period, gathering strength and inquiring around for information. Except for the situation of the White Lotus thief, it is the capital.
Bianliang Mansion, camp in the south of the city.
Chen Ping held a newspaper in his hand and slowly put it down. He really did not wait in vain.
"Senior brother, the envoys from the Hulu from Northern Liao Dynasty came to Beijing, and they said they wanted to discuss some annual coins, tsk!"
"Taking advantage of others' danger is what Hulu loves to do most."
Chen Ping shook his head. You can't say that. There is no morality between countries. To put it bluntly, when others are in danger, wouldn't it be better for you to expose your flaws to others?
He pointed to the Di report: "Bei Liao has always coveted the Central Plains. They will not give up after failing to go south last year. This year, my reputation is unstable. Do you think they will take the opportunity to start a war again?"
Li Feng frowned when he heard this. He was not a talented general, but the position of this guerrilla general was not obtained by random people, but was forged with real swords and guns on the battlefield.
After just thinking about it for a moment, Li Feng felt a shadow cast over his heart. He said with a difficult expression on his face: "The Hulu are very ambitious. Even if they are given money and food, they are just drinking poison to quench their thirst."
Chen Ping nodded heavily and said: "On the surface, it seems that I am here to ask for some old coins, but in fact, it is to test the authenticity of my reputation. If I give it obediently, it will only encourage the greed of the barbarians and damage our morale." p>
"Having said that, last year the Hulu were repulsed when they went south, and they will have the same result if they come again this year."
Chen Ping disagreed with Li Feng's optimism. He pointed out with a serious look: "No, today is different from the past. Not to mention that His Majesty the late Emperor Bintian came to the throne, the regent formed gangs and fought endlessly in the court, which greatly weakened our side.
In terms of strength, take the White Lotus Thief in front of you as an example."
"Senior brother, are you sure you can defeat this thief quickly?"
Li Feng was silent. He was not sure about this. He also knew a thing or two about the White Lotus thief Li Feng. This group of cults can be said to be a wildfire that cannot be burned out, and spring breezes will revive them.
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the White Lotus Sect has appeared, lingering around Dayu like a nightmare. Now that it has raised a flag of righteousness, it means that it has been prepared for a long time.
Just looking at the response from the White Lotus Bandits in Daozhou, Jingzhou, and Zhongzhou, we can guess that this rebellion will not be put down in a short time.
"Could it be that a catastrophe is coming?"
Li Feng frowned and exhaled a breath.
Chen Ping shook his head again. It is not advisable to be optimistic or pessimistic.
"It's not that serious. There are so many heroes in the world. There are five barbarians in the distance and five dynasties and ten kingdoms in the near future. The people of the world will not be willing to be ruled by barbarians. The worst is just an Anshi Rebellion."
"Senior brother can be regarded as an outstanding figure in the world. He can be said to be both civil and military in order to calm the people and run the army. If there is no opportunity to display his talents now, it does not mean that there will be no opportunities in the future. It is your destiny to support the building when it is about to collapse, and to turn the tide when it is already falling!
”
Chen Ping's words were impassioned and his eyes were bright. Li Feng couldn't help but trembled when he heard this, and looked at Chen Ping in surprise.
The two of them looked at each other in silence, and each of them understood the other's thoughts when their eyes met.
"At first I thought you were a child prodigy, and then I thought you could be a good minister to help the country. Now I think you can be a capable minister to save the world!"
Chen Ping did not explain too much about Li Feng's evaluation. It is best for him to think like this. His truest thoughts must not be easily shown to others, not even the people closest to him.
This is the most important way to survive in the field of power.
Beijing.
In the Yamen of Honglu Temple, in a room specially prepared for foreign envoys, several men in Hu costumes were gathering together and whispering something.
"Since we arrived in the capital of Dayu, we have heard a lot of news about the fight between their emperor and the regent. It can be seen that Dayu has really fallen into internal fighting!"
"Yes, in addition to fighting among themselves, a rebellion broke out internally. This is really a blessing from the Immortal God!"
"Hehe, it depends on whether Dayu agrees to our request. In my opinion, with Dayu's character, people can quarrel just for the money. The more violent the chaos, the greater our profits will be!
”
These people are the envoys sent by the Hulu of Northern Liao Dynasty. However, they are said to be envoys, but they should actually be spies.
Because their mission on this trip was not to ask for some coins. Indeed, if they could get a sum of coins from Dayu every year, and open up the market to exchange what they had, it would be a good thing for Beiliao.
.
But today's Northern Liao Emperor, Yelu Tiancong, the Khan of the Grasslands, wants more than just these petty profits.
Beiliao and Dayu have a feud. They fought a battle last year but failed to win. How could Dayu be indifferent now as he watched the turmoil unfold?
While the Bei Liao envoys at Honglu Temple were having a secret conversation, in the palace, the King of Chu also guessed Bei Liao's intentions.
"What a bunch of immature wolf cubs, spat!"
"Your Highness, Bei Liao has strong soldiers and horses. Isn't it bad to have a conflict with Bei Liao now?"
King Chu squinted his eyes and groaned: "Of course it's not good. Isn't it just a little money? Just give it to them, and they can be used as beggars!"
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"As long as we get rid of that brat Jia Chi and get the power of the world into Gu's hands, what does it matter to just the northern Liao Hulu?"
After saying that, he turned around and urged: "Find the Minister of the Ministry of War and the Minister of Honglu Temple. I have something to discuss with them."
At the same time, in the Qinzheng Hall, Emperor Yongxing gritted his teeth and looked at the map on the table in front of him. It was still the map of the world presented by Chen Ping. He stared directly at the vast area above Dayu that firmly occupied the eastern part of the grassland and the north of Liaodong.
land country.
"Bei Liao? They are obviously a group of barbarians!"
Emperor Yongxing cursed angrily, as a well-known emperor, the son of God, and the master of hundreds of millions of people in the thirteen states of the world, he could not bear the barbarian envoy standing arrogantly in front of him, saying something like asking for annual coins.
Insulting words.
"Tomorrow, when the court starts tomorrow, I want to see if these barbarians really have the courage to challenge you and me!"
Emperor Yongxing's voice reached the ears of the cabinet ministers working nearby, making them look at each other in shock.
This day is the fourth day of September, the eighteenth year of the Apocalypse.
The two supreme rulers of Dayu each gave their own answers to the sudden visit of the Northern Liao envoys.
The death of Emperor Tianqi is like a big curtain. Before the curtain, there is peace and tranquility, but behind the curtain, there are turbulence and storms are coming.
The fight between the uncle and nephew, the Prince Regent and Emperor Yongxing, has spread rapidly, affecting countless people in both the government and the public. The resulting butterfly effect is numerous, and the most dangerous thing is how to deal with the envoys from Bei Liao.
.
Domestic problems are easy to talk about and can be solved no matter how big they are, but when it comes to foreign matters, it is not that simple.
Bei Liao, which has been regarded as an old enemy since the founding of Dayu, has now sent an envoy to the capital. Although they have not yet made a clear request, their attitude and posture have clearly revealed their greed. p>
Even the regent and Emperor Yongxing only knew that the Bei Liao envoys came here to ask for annual coins and open the market for negotiation, but no one would think that the Bei Liao Hui, who had just fought with Dayu last year, only had such a simple request. p>
No one knows the true purpose of the Northern Liao envoys.
The unknown is the greatest fear and uneasiness!
Of course, everything that happened in the capital has nothing to do with Chen Ping in Zhongzhou for the time being, because he has more important things to do now.
Bianliang Mansion, camp in the south of the city.
Adhering to the philosophy of valuing elite troops rather than large numbers, Chen Ping did not want to bring too many troops into Jingzhou. In fact, he himself did not need to go into battle. After all, as a civilian official, he could command and dispatch from the rear.
However, Chen Ping knew very well that troubled times were coming, and the glory of the Liuyuan Ranking he was originally proud of would soon be gone. He needed both civil and military skills to gain a foothold in troubled times.
It seems that it would be good to be a Confucian general.
Chen Ping himself has little commanding experience. Although he has played many military strategy games before and is somewhat good at talking about military affairs on paper, he still knows how much he weighs in a real war, so he needs to bring Li Feng and Luo Li with him.<
/p>
As for the men and horses, he gave half of the approximately 2,000 elite cavalry from Li Feng and the Prince of Qin to Lu Wei for self-protection. The remaining half, or 1,000 men, were taken with him, and the rest were drawn from the soldiers and horses of Zhongzhou.
There are about 1,500 capable people, and then there are hundreds of people who heard the news and hope to get a part-time official position by defeating the White Lotus thief.
In total, there are more than 3,000 people, a little less, but they are all elite soldiers, and the weapons and equipment they are assigned are as complete as possible.
When these three thousand elites, nearly armed to the teeth, lined up in front of Chen Ping, a sense of oppression came over them.
"The White Lotus thieves are so vicious that they coerce the people to kill officials and rebel, turning the sacred land of Jingzhou into a hell on earth. The people cannot produce with peace of mind, the fields are abandoned, and everyone has to kill them!"
"You are all my loyal and brave men with great reputation. I am recruiting the deputy envoy Chen Ping from the southwest. I have been invited by the people under the emperor's order and vowed to destroy the White Lotus bandit!"
"After listening to the order, you will immediately set off to Jingzhou to fight against the thieves. If you kill a real thief, you will be rewarded with ten taels of silver. All casualties will be compensated. I will pay for it myself before the court money arrives! Twenty taels for the injured and a hundred taels for the dead!" p>
"Kill the thieves to pacify the people and make achievements today! Let's go!"
After Chen Ping's voice fell, the three thousand elites suddenly became emotional, raised their weapons high and roared.
"Kill the thief, kill the thief!"
For a time, the school grounds were filled with murderous intent. Everyone had only one goal in mind, and that was to kill the thief!
Seeing that the morale was so high, Chen Ping was in a good mood. To these big-headed soldiers, all the nonsense was nonsense. It only took one word to make them burst into astonishing combat power.
Money!
It just so happened that what Chen Ping lacked the most was money. He didn't dare to spend any money he earned from Jiulong Hall and Tianxiang Pavilion over the years. He had no choice but to be poor.
Not only was he poor in later generations, Chen Ping was also poor in this life, so apart from investing the money he earned into expanding production, he basically saved the rest. As for daily expenses, it was nothing to him.
Just copy two lines of poems and you can do it. Who said that the Song Dynasty no longer exists? Let alone the poems of the Qing Dynasty, Chen Ping could copy them just from the great masters of the Song Dynasty.
So now, Chen Ping is very generous and generous in throwing money, so that the combat power of this elite three thousand cavalry can be improved to a higher level. The head of a real white lotus thief can be exchanged for ten taels of silver. Why don't you rush to death?<
/p>
You must know that the reward for the Western Army and the Northern Army was only twenty taels, and they were deducted at all levels. The twenty taels given to their hands turned into twelve, thirty taels or even less. Besides, the barbarians are no more difficult than the White Lotus Thief.
Too many kills?
"It's really yours. You have saved a lot of money over the years, right?"
After the team set off, Li Feng approached Chen Ping and asked with a smile. Chen Ping just smiled and said nothing, and did not reveal his wealth. Even if Li Feng asked him, he would not tell him.
Besides, he is not in charge of Tianxiang Pavilion and Jiulong Hall. He really doesn’t know how much money he makes by just turning away the shopkeeper.
"Tsk, I've only been in the officialdom for half a year and I've already learned everything. I'm worthy of being the number one scholar with a rank of six yuan."
"Mr. Ye will definitely be very happy to see your current style in Tianzhiling."
Seeing that Chen Ping didn't even hide it from himself, Li Feng was surprised and felt relieved at the same time. This is the right way. If he is not careful, he will only continue to stumble in the officialdom, and he will not even know how he died.
Hearing Li Feng mention Master Ye, Chen Ping's eyes flashed, and he truthfully told Li Feng that he didn't know how much money he had.
Li Feng was stunned when he heard this, then laughed and cursed: "You kid, are you kidding me?"
"It's really not true, senior brother, forget it if you don't believe it..."
........
What are elites? Elites are those who can do things that ordinary people cannot, such as running two hundred miles in one day.
It may not sound like much, but what if it is based on the fact that there are no civilians to help transport the baggage?
Chen Ping's three thousand men, without any civilian husband, galloped southward with weapons, equipment and three days' rations, covering two hundred miles day and night.
Even with one person and two horses, the soldiers were exhausted, not to mention Chen Ping himself, who almost died.
"Damn, this is still in the plains. If we march in the mountains, will we die?"
When he set up camp to rest at night, Chen Ping couldn't help but feel scared. Compared with marching and fighting, reading shouldn't be too easy!
Moreover, studying mainly consumes the brain, while fighting not only consumes the brain, but also consumes the legs.
"Marching and fighting have always been like this, and this is just the beginning."
There was a sound outside the tent, and Chen Ping knew it was from Luo Li without even thinking about it. He sighed. The burden on his shoulders was so heavy, but he had no way to stop. He could only keep moving forward, otherwise he would be killed.
Devour.
"After ten years of hard work, this little hardship is nothing. Brother Luo, don't worry."
"I know that I have reached this point not only for myself, but also for my relatives and friends, because if I fail, they will also be implicated because of me."
Chen Ping didn't say the last sentence, he just said it silently in his heart.
As Luo Li said, this is just the beginning, not only the beginning of the suppression of thieves, but also the beginning of the future.
Dayu Chao has reached a crossroads, and so has Chen Ping.