Her unintentional words made Emperor Yao think of Zhou Zhan.
"Get up."
He just thought of Zhou Zhan for the first time. If he was his son, if he was strong and decisive, he might really be the best candidate.
But... Emperor Yao was caught up in the past. When he had just ascended the throne, he couldn't wait to get rid of everyone who could threaten him. At that time, his subordinates told him that the Protector was preparing to support the young Zhou Zhan to become the prince. .
Just at that time, rumors happened to spread that before he got married to Concubine Jia, the Duke Protector's Mansion encountered flower pickers. It was also said that Concubine Jia entered the mansion after being harmed by flower pickers...
He preconceptionally thought that Zhou Zhan was not his kind.
And at that time, there were many conflicts between him and Concubine Jia.
Is there another hidden story behind this matter?
Emperor Yao fell into doubt.
Jiang Yun got up from the ground and noticed that his expression was still bad. She didn't dare to say anything more. The group of people walked forward silently until someone caught up behind them.
"Your Majesty, preparations for the afternoon competition have begun. Prime Minister Shen is looking for you everywhere. Please go back quickly!"
Emperor Yao came back to his senses and saw that the sky was foggy and it was going to rain at any time.
"Get ready to start."
The highlight of the afternoon was the competition between Xiang Xiao and Jing Ying. There were two competitions in total. The first one was a personal competition between his generals, and the second one was a competition of the leader's ability to lead troops.
The Ban Army is an army from the local area and is rotated once a year. Regardless of the personal ability of the generals or the overall combat capability, they are not as experienced as the army in the capital.
They trained under Xiang Xiao for a year, and overall they lost the first individual match by a narrow margin.
The second game is commanding operations.
Xiang Xiao was facing none other than Song Guogong Yu Cheng, who had just taken over the position of Duke.
There were many capable people and strangers under the opponent's account, and Xiang Xiao didn't even have an adviser. Under this situation, everyone thought that Song Guogong would win.
"Everyone might as well guess who will win!" Emperor Yao became interested, "Whoever wins, I will reward you with a jar of aged flower sculptures."
"My uncle must win!" Zhou Chen stood unconditionally on Song Guogong's side.
"I am not belittling the Duke of Song Dynasty. Prince Xiang is young and has been following the Marquis of Xiping to resist the Northern Liao Dynasty. He may be a formidable person in future generations!"
Xie Yun stroked his beard and expressed his opinion, and then the others started talking in a few words.
Emperor Yao asked: "Who does Si Qing think will win?"
Si Yiluo knew clearly what Xiang Xiao's abilities were, but she couldn't speak casually, so she clasped her fists and replied: "Guessing the winner or loser should be judged based on a sufficient understanding of both parties. I have some friendship with Prince Xiang, but I don't know Song Guogong, so I dare not False opinion."
Earlier, Zhou Chen blurted out that he would bet on Duke Song to win. Later, after Si Yiluo's remarks, Zhou Chen's face darkened, and he raised his lips and mocked: "Master Si, why should you spoil the fun? This is the emperor's will, are you going to disobey it? "
He did many things in secret, thinking that Si Yiluo didn't know about it.
Si Yiluo smiled and said: "Why does Your Highness need to go on the line? I just discuss the matter. What's more, when I serve the emperor, I must be fair and rational. Even if Prince Xiang has a good relationship with me, I can't be partial..."
After a few words, Si Yiluo dug another hole for him. Zhou Chen wanted to defend himself a few words, but seeing Emperor Yao's lack of interest, he had already done something wrong. If he continued to argue, he would end up losing a lot.
"I will not engage in verbal disputes with women, let's wait and see the results!"
The two of them quarreled, and the other princes were happy to see the result. They didn't care about the result of the game. At least they knew that Si Yiluo and Zhou Chen were not going to deal with each other...
The horn sounded, and the forward battalions of the two armies rushed out. Xiang Xiao stood on the chariot and looked at the scene in the distance. When the two armies were about to face each other, he ordered the soldiers around him to wave flags, the drums sounded, and the forward battalions rushing out instantly changed.
formation.
The thin forwards lined up in a row, turning into a long snake formation and advancing forward.
"What is this doing?"
There are many people who cannot understand the city tower. Anyone who has read the Art of War knows that the most important feature of the Long Snake Formation is flexibility. When the main forces of the two armies are facing each other, this formation can be used to adapt to changes and make adjustments at any time.
There are three variations of the long snake formation: first, strike the snake's head, move its tail, and roll; second, strike the snake's tail, move its head, and bite; third, strike the snake's body sideways, reach the head and tail, and twist.
But it is really puzzling that the forwards use this formation.
The basis for using this formation is sufficient strength. The long snake of the forward battalion is very weak from beginning to end. It only takes a light touch to break it at the waist.
Yu Cheng gave the order, the war drums sounded, and their forward battalion moved closer to the center, preparing to break through the long snake and directly attack the enemy's main force. At the same time, the army behind them rushed forward, preparing to annihilate the opponent's forward in one fell swoop.
The long snake formation was dispersed in an instant, Xiang Xiao was not in a hurry and issued the second order.
At the same time, the beat of the war drums behind him intensified, and the long snake that rushed to the front suddenly moved closer to the middle, quickly turned into a ball, and caught up with the enemy army that had just rushed past from behind, and their army also moved at this moment.
.
Xiang Xiao feinted, seemingly to send his forward to death, but in fact it was to annihilate the opponent's forward.
The striker turns into a defender and eliminates the opponent's forward in the blink of an eye.
Then, the rearguard became the forward again, merged into the main army, and once again lined up to form a long snake...
The number of both sides is the same, so the comparison is the general's ability to command and fight.
Yu Cheng lost a battalion when he went up. The morale of the troops behind him was unstable and was disrupted by sudden changes. Yu Cheng issued several orders in succession to temporarily stabilize the morale of the troops.
At the same time, Xiang Xiao also responded, and two groups of troops came out from behind to flank him from both wings.
Yu Cheng thought that the other party wanted to surround him, so he ordered to stop the two groups.
The shouts of killing were loud in the field, and the intensive drum beats hit the hearts of the officials, causing their eardrums to vibrate.
Everyone's eyes fell on the field.
Song Guogong successfully blocked the small group of troops who were outflanking him from both sides.
"Prince Xiang is young after all. Duke Song will definitely win this competition!"
Some people lamented, but no one was sure until the last moment.
Xiang Xiao was as steady as Mount Tai and continued to give orders.
Just when everyone thought Song Guogong was going to win, something suddenly happened on the field.
A group of men and horses broke through the barrier from the center and went straight to the enemy's camp. At the same time, a flanking team appeared again on both sides. The men and horses that rushed out instantly got rid of the enemy's pursuit behind them.
Capture the thief first and capture the king first. Xiang Xiao appeared in front of Yu Cheng in the blink of an eye. Before Yu Cheng could react, he looked across the melee crowd to the opposite side. At some point, Xiang Xiao, who was supposed to be sitting on the chariot and commanding, had already
Not there anymore…
"Song Guogong, I accept the concession!"
Xiang Xiao put away the long sword on Yu Cheng's shoulder and ordered his subordinates to blow the horn.
The other party's leaders have been captured, so there is no need to continue this battle.
Yu Cheng stroked his palm and praised: "Xiang Shizi is like a god in fighting at a young age, and I admire him!"
Both sides sounded gongs and retreated, and Xiang Xiao and Yu Cheng climbed onto the tower together.
After losing this game, Yu Cheng felt disgraced.
"Your Majesty, I have embarrassed you, please punish me!"
Yu Cheng's hair has turned gray, and although he lost, he still looks upright. The Duke of Song Dynasty also started his career through military service, and his merits were truly earned.
Xiang Xiao said: "Your Majesty, because I am younger than the Duke of Song Dynasty, I won this competition by luck. Victory or defeat is a common matter for military strategists. The Duke of Song Dynasty uses soldiers like a god, and I admire him from the inside out!"
The competition this afternoon was exciting to watch, and each one had its own highlights.
Song Guogong Shoucheng, Xiang Xiao has many clever ideas and many changes. It is inevitable to make different judgments at different ages. When Xiang Xiao reaches the age of Song Guogong, I am afraid he will be more biased towards Shoucheng.
"I saw the Marquis of Xiping's military tactics today, and it turns out that a tiger father has no dog sons. Xiang Qing, what reward do you want?"
Emperor Yao stepped forward to help Song Guogong and signaled Xiang Xiao to stand up as well.
With Xiang Xiao's status, it doesn't make much sense to be promoted to a higher position. He has no shortage of jewelry, silk and satin, but he has not yet been engaged.
"How about I reward you with a marriage?"
Xiang Xiao was afraid of this and hurriedly replied: "Your Majesty, I am a rough man. I am afraid that the ladies of the capital are not suitable for me. I want to ask the Emperor for something."
"whats the matter?"
Xiang Xiao scratched the back of his head and smiled innocently.
"I promise you freedom of marriage and let me choose my own concubine. I want to find a woman who is in love with me. Although it is not easy to find, I don't want to give in to this important matter of marriage."
Before Xiang Xiao finished speaking, Si Yiluo felt several eyes falling on him at the same time.
Emperor Yao also looked over, his eyes thoughtful.
"Xiang Qing and Si Qing usually have a good relationship..."
Si Yiluo glared at Xiang Xiao. Her behavior some time ago has been registered with Emperor Yao. If he messes around, it will be self-defeating!
Xiang Xiao received her warning and replied with a smile.
"Your Majesty, I and Mr. Si once fought side by side, so our friendship is naturally a little deeper than others. But, if I marry her home, my father will not be able to break my legs. With her reputation, let alone
Once she entered our house and made friends with her, I was afraid that my ancestor would crawl out of the coffin and beat me..."