"The special envoy of the Zhou Dynasty, Prime Minister Zong Huan, pays homage to His Majesty the Emperor of Qi!"
"The special envoy of the Zhou Dynasty, the national counselor Lin Hu, met with the Emperor of Qi!"
After seeing Jiang Cong, the two of them saluted together, but the old Zong Huan knelt on one knee, while Lin Hu just bowed his hands and made a deep bow.
"Bold Lin..." Tang Taicheng was about to get angry when he saw Jiang Cong waving his hand and saying: "General Lin is the King of Bohai, so it's not disrespectful. Please watch."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Zong Huan took out a piece of sheepskin from his sleeve and said, "This is the handwriting of the Emperor of the Zhou Dynasty. Your Majesty, please read it."
Jiang Cong took the sheepskin handed over by Eunuch Tang and scanned it roughly. The thousands of words in front of it were all empty words to put gold on both sides. It meant that both countries were great powers inherited from China, and the previous battle was just
As the troubled times continue, the two countries have wasted their lives, lost money, and damaged their national strength due to war. It is better to amend the treaty and make peace and share peace. But the last two sentences are worth pondering:
"The rebellious ministers of this dynasty have been causing trouble for a long time and have often harassed the Qi territory. Both countries have suffered greatly from it. Now I have sent Zong Huan and Lin Hu to discuss with your country the revision of the treaty and the suppression of the bandits. These two people can represent me with full authority.
I hope that the two countries can establish a peace treaty and create peace for a hundred generations. Sincerely, Helian Chenwu."
Jiang Cong smiled slightly and said: "I heard that you have lost Bailong Port. It will not be easy to get here."
Zong Huan pondered for a moment and said: "It's just to lure the enemy deeper..."
"Master Zong, time is pressing. You see, His Majesty the Emperor immediately invited us into the palace as soon as we entered the capital. Let's get down to business." Zong Huan just opened his mouth to reply when he was interrupted by Lin Hu.
Zong Huan's face turned red and he said, "Then please let the prince speak."
Lin Hu didn't say anything angrily and said: "It seems that the Qi State's eyes and ears in the Northern Zhou Dynasty are still very powerful. Yes, Bailong Port was abandoned half a month ago, and I, the King of Bohai, have also lost all my fiefdom. We are
He came here on a Silla merchant ship pretending to be a merchant, so he was seven or eight days late."
"You two insisted on entering the palace directly instead of resting for a night in the guild hall. Are you worried that there are spies from the Northern Zhou Dynasty in the mission? Or can't you afford to delay even this half day?" Jiang Cong asked.
Lin Hu replied: "Then His Majesty skipped the Privy Council and asked us to go directly to the palace because he doesn't believe that the officials below are of the same mind."
Jiang Cong looked at Lin Hu with a pair of kind eyes. His eyes suddenly shone brightly, and his expression was majestic, sweeping away his old demeanor: "General Lin must also look like this in front of Helian Chenwu, right?"
Lin Hu looked directly into Jiang Cong's eyes and said without any timidity: "I hope your majesty will forgive me. The general is a rough man and his speech is so straightforward."
Jiang Cong said: "General Lin is too humble. Everyone knows that Lin Hu is both wise and brave. He can support half of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty with just one hand..."
"The defeated general must speak out bravely." Lin Hu interrupted.
Jiang Cong said: "It seems that the commander is really dead. If it hadn't disrupted the morale of the army and the people, the Eastern Zhou Army would definitely not have been defeated so quickly."
Lin Hu said: "Yes, my master has passed away for ten years, and we have kept it a secret for ten years, but one day we will be discovered. The only reason to blame is that the Tianlong Sect has too much influence in our Zhou Dynasty. Once the leader dies, I will
The Tianlong Sect of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty lost its orthodoxy, and many officers who moved westward to the Bohai Sea began to have secret connections with the Northern Zhou Dynasty. How can we remain undefeated?"
"It's no wonder that the Tianlong Sect's main altar, two deputy leaders and three guardians are all in the Northern Zhou Dynasty. You are really at a disadvantage when the old leader dies."
"Your Majesty must be laughing out loud in his dreams! As soon as the family master dies, Helian Qingfeng will definitely send troops. Once the balance between our three families is broken, it will be a good opportunity for you to fulfill your long-cherished wish." Lin Hu said.
Jiang Cong said: "General Lin's words are indeed straightforward. In fact, I still prefer to lead the army. Everyone in the army speaks readily, unlike here in the court, where you can't hear a word of what is in your heart. You are right, I almost didn't do it back then.
He died at the hands of your master. However, your master is enough to be counted as one of the three people I admire the most. Can you please General Lin to offer me a stick of incense when I get back?"
"good!"
"My conditions have been made clear to you by the Privy Council. If you continue to dwell on the minutiae, it will be in vain," Jiang Cong said.
"Yanbei is a country that was conquered by the late emperor. How can we let it go without hesitation? How can it be down to the smallest detail? If we agree directly, why are we coming here?" Lin Hu was secretly angry.
Jiang Cong said in a muffled voice: "If it wasn't for the whole territory of Beiyan, why would I have to go on many expeditions?" The atmosphere in the imperial study became tense for a moment, and the little eunuch waiting beside him couldn't help but tremble slightly.
Seeing that the two of them were at war with each other, Zong Huan hurriedly said: "We don't need the hometown of Beiyan, we just need to keep Zhenyuan Pass."
Jiang Cong said: "No! Without Zhenyuan Pass, how can we stop riding north and south?"
Lin Hu said: "Then trade your Anxi racecourse for Zhenyuan Pass! Since our horses can't go south, you don't need to keep so many war horses!"
Jiang Cong sneered and said: "Without war horses, our army is no different than a lamb. Even Helian Chenwu and Baicheng can't defend it. Are you still wishful thinking?"
Lin Hu said: "If we can't withstand it anymore, do you think Qi can still defend Yanjing? Can it stop the Helian Qingfeng Iron Cavalry, which has no constraints? Is your military strength stronger now or when Yang Zheng was here?"
The implication is that even Yang Zheng cannot defeat Helian Qingfeng, let alone the current Qi State!
"Lin Hu is indeed Lin Hu, but it's a pity that you are not the emperor! Even if we lose the land of Yan, our Daqi still has the Yellow River and the Huaihe River to defend. Our Daqi is still Daqi, but Helian Qingfeng, the orthodox emperor, will have nothing! Besides, I
Daqi is based on farming. If you don't invade the border, how can we covet your pasture? I'm not here to bargain with you. I have already expressed enough sincerity by summoning you in person. The north wind is about to start. In another month
Your Heilong Port will also be frozen, and the ship must be shipped within ten days, otherwise it will have to wait until next spring. Can you still afford to wait?"
Lin Hu, Zonghuan and the others looked extremely ugly, because as Jiang Cong expected, Helian Chenwu no longer had much strength to bargain with Da Qi.
"The fact that Helian Chenwu asked Lin Hu to come over in person at this juncture shows his anxiety. I am willing to give you enough face. Although our waterlogging disaster is very serious, as long as it is not too excessive, I can try my best to satisfy you with food and military equipment.
You can even send troops a little earlier. You will discuss the specific matters with Mo Dezheng and Chen Yu tomorrow afternoon. I am a little tired. Tang Taicheng, please see the guests off!"
…
"Look! It's a huge snowfield, it's so spectacular!" Xiaoxue, lying on the back of He Qizhou, who had just climbed up a hill dozens of feet high, shouted excitedly, facing the traceless Gobi desert.
road.
He Qizhou looked up and saw that it was indeed a shocking and magnificent scenery. The wasteland in the east was covered with a thin layer of snow. The setting sun shot down thousands of golden lights through the clouds, covering the endless snow-white Gobi with another layer of gold.
yarn.
"It's so beautiful! This is the last hilltop. We are finally out of the Altai Mountains! Alas..."
"Hey, drink porridge, I haven't hit you once today. Why are you frowning when you see such a beautiful scenery?" Xu Mu was in a good mood when he saw the snowy scene.
"Can beauty be used as food? Look at how big this deserted beach is! It's better if it doesn't snow, but now you might not even be able to find any grass along the way! If it weren't for the fact that there are more snow dragons and horses than camels now,
I really want to pick up another two hundred kilograms of firewood to carry with me!" He Qizhou was carrying Xiaoxue on his back, with a large bundle of sticks hanging on his chest, while Xue Longma had two more large bundles of firewood on his back.
"I can't control that much. Come down and build a snowman with me!" Xiaoxue shouted.
"Okay, okay." He Qizhou turned around and glanced at the snow peaks behind him again. He felt that the weight of the snow on the Qianshan Mountains was not as good as the boneless Xu Muxue behind him. No matter what, he had to take her out of this dead place in front of him!
Walking to the bottom of the mountain, both men and horses were exhausted. The snow on the gravel was only half an inch thin, which could not withstand Xiaoxue's screams. He Qizhou collected a lot of snow for him. The snow-cleared ground covering a radius of several feet revealed black gravel.
There are big and small stones. The big ones are taller than a person, while the small ones are like fine sand. Looking around, the deserted beach is like this. It is far from as flat as it looks on the top of the hill. He Qizhou can't help but worry.
You know, walking on such a road is several times more difficult than in the desert.
"What are you doing? Come here and help!" Xu Mu shouted.
The so-called help was just to ask He Qizhou to hold his hands on his chest and stand motionless, and then Xu Mu concentrated on making He Qizhou's appearance with snow.
"It's getting dark, I'm going to light a fire and set up a tent!" He Qizhou couldn't laugh or cry, and he stood motionless for almost as long as a stick of incense.
"Well, hurry up and come back soon. Your body is almost ready. I'll do some more repairs and then reshape your face when you come back!" When Xu Muxue thought of her favorite game as a child, she thought about completing her masterpiece regardless of the cold hands.
"Forget it, let's wait until you get it done. Move quickly and don't freeze."
Xiaoxue's movements were very quick, and it took almost another stick of incense to finish the job. Half of the time was spent looking for black pebbles on the ground to use as eyeballs. "Let's take a look, how about it?" Xiaoxue finally let He Qizhou go.
, holding the other person's hand, came to a place three feet away opposite the snowman.
He Qizhou, who was standing next to the snowman, had actually been stealing glances at the snow statue. He had long been muttering in his heart that it didn't look like it at all. Unexpectedly, after getting a little closer, he discovered that the snow statue actually looked a bit like himself. The most incredible thing was that
With his hands folded across his chest, his demeanor of arrogance towards the Gobi exuded an aura of looking down on the world.
"How did you do it? You were able to portray half of my invincible handsomeness! It's amazing."
Xiaoxue kept rubbing her hands together and spat: "How shameless? The look is based on the portrait of Emperor Taizu. Not to mention my brother, even Xiao Ping's momentum is stronger than yours!"
"Just pull it down. Even if Emperor Taizu stands here, his momentum may not be as strong as mine, hahaha..." He Qizhou was extremely satisfied with the snow statue.
"Ugh..." Xiaoxue couldn't think of anything to describe He Qizhou's shamelessness other than making a vomiting gesture.