At the end of February, the sixth imperial examination of Daxia was held as scheduled.
This year's exam is different from previous years because Shao Shude personally presided over the palace exam.
This new thing, the palace examination, originated in the Tang Dynasty - "In February of the first year of Emperor Wu's reign, he asked the tributes to the Luocheng Palace for a few days. The examination of people in front of the palace began from then on."
But the palace examination is not a fixed examination. To be precise, it is held very rarely, and it all depends on the emperor's personal interests. Sometimes there is no palace examination for decades in a row - "it's up to the emperor to do whatever he wants."
The reason is also very simple. The ministers objected - "Since the tribute ministers have tried in Nangong, they have been selected carefully, and they have also tried in the palace veranda, does it mean that Nangong is not enough to believe in evil?"
The ministers think that the Ministry of Rites exam has been completed and the emperor will take the exam again. Do they not believe us?
Shao Shude said that the admission list of the Ministry of Rites remained unchanged and he just wanted to reset the ranking.
So the palace examination was added in early March, and Shao Shude marked the papers in person.
The talented ladies in the harem laughed and laughed, commented on the papers, and finally selected a few, saying that they were all of about the same level.
Shao Shude checked the candidates' information and finally selected Cui Chu (zhuō), a thirty-seven-year-old native of Anping, Shenzhou, as the number one scholar.
The list was released on the sixth day of March and caused a sensation.
There must be some shady secret behind the fact that a student from Chengde Town was admitted to the top exam! But the emperor is the examiner, so who can send gifts to the palace? With this relationship, why should he take the exam?
Cui Chao was also helpless.
Our family moved to Chang'an three generations ago. My grandfather served as the governor of An and Pu prefectures and later entered the imperial court. My father served as a doctor in the Ministry of Punishment of the Tang Dynasty. He himself lived in Chang'an most of the time. He could not even speak Hebei dialect and had an authentic Guanxi accent.
, Mao’s Shenzhou people!
Therefore, the number one scholar selected by Shao Shude is quite clever. He is a figure that can be accepted by both Guanxi and Hebei.
On the eighth day of March, the imperial edict was given to Cui Chao, Secretary Lang, from the sixth rank, the starting point for the number one scholar in the Eight Classics - everyone knows that the current Secretariat Province is almost the emperor's private person, and part of the power to draft edicts has been taken over by the Secretary Province
If you want to make progress, working under the secretary supervisor Lu Siye is a good way.
After handling this situation, Shao Shude's main focus was on perfecting the details of the strategy to conquer the Khitans.
In the meantime, he took the time to attend the wedding of his fifth daughter, Princess Shao Si of Quyang.
Shao Si was the daughter of the empress. He was born in October of the second year of Wende's reign in the former Tang Dynasty (889). At the age of nineteen, he was transferred to Tokyo Wukucheng (an official of Weiwei Temple, from the eighth rank) to serve as an official.
Ren Zhan is twenty this year. He is the legitimate son of Ren Yuji, the deputy envoy to the Privy Council of Beiya, and the younger brother of Ren Zhen, the governor of Xiangzhou. He was born in Yinguan. He once served in the Fuzhou Army in Henan and was transferred to the post of Chief of the Arsenal in Tokyo last year.
During the Longchi Palace period in Anyi, Ren Zhan studied with the princes and princesses as a noble disciple.
Shao Shude knows him quite well. His talent is not bad, but not much better. He is above average. He is more careful and strict. He is suitable for being an official in the arsenal. The chief officer of the Sanjing arsenal is the arsenal commander.
, "To keep the world's military equipment, identify their names, and prepare them for the country's use; the prime minister will be the second of them."
Of course, in addition to the friendship between classmates, good looks are also an important reason why he can win the favor of Princess Quyang. Otherwise, if there are so many classmates, why should they choose you?
The marriage of the Queen's daughter and Yuan Congxungui's son is a standard political marriage within the Kansai Group. In short, it's not bad.
Speaking of which, Shao Shude now has many grandchildren, mainly grandsons and granddaughters. Princess Shao Guoer of Huile and Liang Hanyong have four children, and Princess Shao Mu of Heyang has a son with the Forbidden Army general Ye Li Kecheng.
Princess Zhao Yueniang is also pregnant and will give birth in May.
The children worked very hard, and Shao Shude was not bad either. He had recently made Queen He pregnant, which was his first result in the new year.
However, his time was running out. King Shao Chengjie of Qin had just been appointed as the commander of the Andong camp. He took the land route to Andong Prefecture and commanded the Andong Prefecture soldiers, the government soldiers and the Qing Sai army of more than 30,000 who were heading to Zhigu by ship.
People are the people who are marching to conquer Khitan.
Shao Shude will leave Beijing on the first day of April for Yingzhou and Longgong. Calculating the time, it will only be half a month.
****
Under the clear sky, military flags were flying and warriors gathered.
Shao Shude put on his bright red jersey again and rode his horse to inspect the Tianxiong Army, which contained thirty thousand soldiers with silver saddles.
The rewards have been distributed, and the morale of the troops is at an all-time high. Wherever Shao Sheng passes, shouts of long live can be heard.
"Having been stationed outside for a long time, do the Tianxiong soldiers have any complaints?" Shao Shude asked.
Military envoy Zang Dubao and deputy envoy Li Renjun looked at each other and smiled and said: "Your Majesty, if the Tianxiong Army still has complaints, it is no longer the Tianxiong Army."
Shao Shude also smiled and said: "I have hundreds of thousands of soldiers, but if I want to say which army is the most like an arm and a finger, only Tianxiong, Tielin, Wuwei, and Yinan are the only ones."
The Wuwei Army had been fighting abroad for a long time and had returned to Ruzhou to rest and recuperate. They were replaced by General Tu who had completed his rest and recuperation and was stationed in Zhenzhou.
Also leaving with him were the crane-controlling troops who were exhausted from long battles.
The two armies suffered some battle losses, so Shao Shude ordered two thousand elite troops to be selected from the Kelan Army and the Qing Sai Army to make up for the loss.
The requirements of the Jin soldiers have been lowered now, and it would be good to be a member of the imperial army. Two thousand people happily packed their bags and reported to Wuwei and the Konghe Army.
Kelan, the Qing and Sai armies had besieged Luzhou for a long time before, resulting in a lot of casualties. This time, two thousand soldiers were taken away, and now they only have eight thousand or nine thousand soldiers left each. Their strength has been greatly reduced.
Filling the gap of Tianxiong Army was Guan Kairun's Jinglue Army, which was only a few days away from Beiping Prefecture.
There is Zhili Road to the east of the river, and the Guanbei Province soldiers and native regiments are stationed there. Recently, the Youguo Army was also sent there to replace the native soldiers of the native regiment who had returned home after a long period of garrison.
Around Luoyang, there were Wuwei, Konghe, Tielin, Tiande, Yinqiang and other armies who had returned to rest.
In Hebei there were surprise generals, Jing Lue, Tian Cheng, and Kelan's four armies to suppress the attack.
Longxiang's army, Ge Congzhou's troops, had already gone to Shuzhong to replace the Yicong army who had been guarding Longjian for more than a year.
It is completely enough to keep so many troops and horses in the rear.
As for the conquest of Khitan, in the spirit of a lion fighting a rabbit, Shao Shude mobilized most of the more mobile troops to assemble in Beiping Prefecture - nearly 30,000 people from the Heijin and Flying Bear armies were about to arrive.
They will be led by Shao Shude personally, and together with Tianxiong Army and Yin Anzhi, they will march eastward to Yingzhou and wait for an opportunity to move northward.
If we include the 51,000 troops of Hengye, Datong, and Wansheng Huangtou, there will be 110,000 infantry and cavalry along the way, which is a well-deserved main force.
The scale of this expedition was almost the same as when Li Shimin conquered Goguryeo: "Send soldiers from all over the world, recruit 100,000, and march to Pyongyang to attack Goguryeo." - plus the accompanying Turks, Khitan, Xi, Mohe and even from the Western Regions
The number of soldiers and horses transferred from Jibin and other troops was almost hundreds of thousands.
This scale is just right, and it is best not to exceed 200,000. After all, transporting supplies from Youzhou to Liaodong is not that easy, and the losses are quite large.
"Zang Qing, I intend to attack Khitan in four routes. The first route will be led by Liang Hanyong, who will lead an army of 50,000 flying dragons, golden swords, and iron cavalry. They will drive cattle and sheep from the grassland to attack the flat pine forests; the second route will be led by King Chengjie of Qin.
, sent 15,000 Andong Prefecture troops, 2,000 state troops and 9,000 Qing Sai troops, totaling 26,000 people; the third route was the Bohai Army; the fourth route was commanded by Qing as the capital, commanding more than 100 troops.
One hundred thousand, such an important task cannot be ignored." Shao Shude said seriously.
"I accept the decree!" Zang Dubao felt heroic in his heart, knelt down on one knee and responded loudly.
There are only a handful of people in the world who can command an army of 100,000. He knows very well that this is the key step for the carp to leap over the dragon gate. If he crosses it, he will be a figure like Li Tangbin, Lu Huaizhong, or Ge Congzhou. If he cannot cross it, the Tianxiong Army will
Don't even think about becoming an envoy. He is "too old to be driven". Being able to go to the local area and take charge of state soldiers is already a sign of mercy from a saint.
"Okay!" Shao Shude helped him up with his own hands and said, "I don't trust people when I doubt them, but I don't trust people when I employ them. Please let me do what you want."
****
Yelu Quanzhong stared blankly at the spear in his hand.
He had been recruited as a Tu Tuan villager and escorted grain and grass to Yingzhou. Considering his identity as a Khitan, he couldn't help but smile bitterly.
"Let's go! Let's go!" Xiang Ye, a junior high school student from Puzhou, brandished his scabbard and roared loudly.
He was not in a good mood either.
Before the first month was over, he followed Shangguan and took more than 3,000 Puzhou concubines across the river to the north, escorting tens of thousands of bundles of arrows to Peiping.
He likes to fight, because he can gain wealth and honor, but the problem is that he probably won't have a chance to show off this time - escorting grain and grass, there is no chance of doing anything!
Therefore, at this moment, he was really holding his breath, and when he saw the master standing stupidly, he would hit him, whether he was a local Puzhou native or a native of other places, he would hit him without fail.
"Pah!" Yelu Quanzhong was hit on the back, which caused a burning pain.
He didn't dare to cry out in pain, so he could only follow Dongfang Ye and stride forward.
Not only the state soldiers escorted the grain and grass, but also the best among the Tu Tuan villagers. Yelu Quanzhong was eighteen or nineteen years old, tall and strong, and performed very well in Tu Tuan training, so the county issued a leather armor and a long
The spear freed him from hard labor and became a member of the escorting soldiers.
Xingfang Ye had 500 soldiers under his command, including 300 soldiers from Puzhou Prefecture, plus 200 strong local troops from Youzhou, who were responsible for patrolling along the route and supporting the grain transport team that might be attacked.
Yelu Quanzhong really didn't want to do this job, but fate was playing tricks on people, so what could he do?
"Flying Bear Army!" A huge team came from the north, causing the knowledgeable people to exclaim.
Yelu Quanzhong turned his eyes and was stunned.
The warriors were riding horses and strolling around.
Behind each warrior, there are two attendants walking with several horses.
Some horses run empty.
There are horses carrying harnesses, armor, short blades and other equipment on their backs.
Some horses are loaded with luggage, which is bulging and hanging on both sides of the saddle.
What a luxurious team this is!
The key line is still very long, and the end can't be seen at a glance.
"Stop counting, three thousand soldiers, six thousand auxiliary soldiers, and twenty thousand horses." Xingfang Ye's expression was no longer irritable. He looked at the troops walking past proudly and said sourly: "Actually, it's
It's just a flower show. If you can't fight a battle all year round, the saint will suffer a huge loss in maintaining equipment, armor, and cavalry."
Western Ye is not alone. In fact, many soldiers of the Forbidden Army commented on the Flying Bear Army in this way.
This army is stationed in Ruzhou, and the family also lives there. Ruzhou has Guangchengze Ranch, which is vast and has rich water and grass. Only this kind of place is suitable for the station of the Flying Bear Army - it can usually graze horses.
Son, save money.
The three thousand soldiers of the Flying Bear Army, equipped with men, horses and equipment, charge with great majesty.
But the Forbidden Army officers looked down upon this team very much, because no matter which Forbidden Army or state soldiers went to that station, he could not rush them, so only the peasants who lacked courage might be overwhelmed by them.
Their mobility is very poor, and long-distance marching is slower than that of infantry. In fact, they are wronged. In fact, the long-distance mobility of all cavalry is not as good as that of infantry.
The usage scenario is also very simple. The enemy cavalry will turn around and run away when they see it, and you can't catch up. If there are no Fan soldiers and light cavalry to guard the flanks, the opponent's cavalry will even dare to provoke you with their cavalry bows. The only way to win is in head-to-head confrontation, but this
There aren't many opportunities.
It's better to give everyone a reward for raising such a "trash".
But Yelu Quanzhong didn't understand this. He only saw that this army had excellent armor and high morale. If the thick and long horse poles were lifted up, which Khitan cavalry could bear it?
This time, the Eight Tribes of Khitan are really in danger.
Daxia's war machine was launched, with light infantry, heavy infantry, mounted infantry, light cavalry, military armored cavalry, armored cavalry, and even a steady stream of sidecars being built. Liaodong might also have a navy participating in this.
The overwhelming force was enough to destroy the entire Khitan.
Forget it, I am already from Xia, what kind of care do I have? Yelu Quanzhong laughed at himself, shouldered his spear, and followed the convoy with heavy steps.