The Yunmeng Restaurant next to Renjia Lane in the south wing of the city is a restaurant that is too new. Although the food is well-known throughout the city and has a good reputation, it is still not one of the seventy-two restaurants in Kaifeng City.
Today is the 23rd day of the first lunar month. After more than half a month of celebrations, Kaifeng City’s military, civilians, officials and people have finally relaxed a little in their enjoyment.
The people on the street seemed a little colder and sparse. It seemed that many people had squandered all their money during the more than half a month of celebrations and needed to work to make money.
Zhang Guangshun was wearing an ordinary cotton robe and walked into the store with a smile.
When the shopkeeper saw the regular customer, he couldn't close his mouth with laughter.
"Zhang Sanlang is here. Please take care of the business. Please come inside!" The shopkeeper smiled and walked to the stairs, then turned back and stood in front of the counter.
The waiter who greeted guests at the door came in for some unknown reason and wandered around in front of the counter. The shopkeeper saw the look in his eyes and knew that everything was normal and there was no tail behind him.
His face changed, and he scolded: "What are you doing? You want to be lazy! That's not possible. Go stand at the door and shout as hard as you can."
The waiter muttered something and walked out of the store again.
Zhang Guangshun went up to the second floor, turned the corner, waited for a while with his back against the wall, and found nothing unusual, and then slowly walked to the private room B3.
After a few gentle knocks, a voice came from inside, "Come in."
Zhang Guangshun entered the door and was not in a hurry to say hello. Instead, he closed the door immediately and listened for a while. He found that there were no unusual footsteps outside. Then he turned around and walked forward, cupping his hands and saying, "Second Uncle
, I can finally see you."
The person in the room was none other than Zhang Yuanqing, deputy envoy of the Xixia Envoy.
He took Zhang Guangshun's hand and said with mixed emotions: "Sanlang, my second uncle has finally met you."
The uncle and nephew said a few words of greeting and sat down again.
"Auntie and Dalang, how are you doing with Erlang?"
"Your aunt is still like that. Dalang...sigh." At this point, Zhang Yuanqing burst into tears.
"What's wrong, uncle?"
"Dalang... last year he was ordered to escort grain to Xishou Army. Unexpectedly, before he returned, he encountered the Song Army attacking Xishou Army from three sides. Our army was defeated, and Li Mao, the commander of Xishou Army,
The deputy commander of the army, Wei Mingda Li, and the supervisor of the army, Liang Suiyu... were all killed in the battle. Dalang followed the defeated army across Huluchuan and went straight to Weizhou, but he did not expect that the defeated army on the way took a fancy to Dalang's horse and took advantage of the chaos.
Killing people and seizing horses..."
"It's God's will! Dalang served as an official in Xishou Military Division, but was defeated there."
Taking advantage of the chaos to kill people and seize horses? Still within their own territory, it can be seen that the Xia army suffered consecutive defeats in the past two years, which not only severely damaged the morale of the army, but also caused the deterioration of military discipline. In despair, those former brave soldiers and generals will naturally vent their tyranny.
on one's own people.
After a few words of advice to the second uncle, Zhang Guangshun asked again, "What about the second uncle?"
"Erlang was sent to serve in Youzhou. Originally, he was sent to guard Shizhou, the Xiangyou Army Division. But it is rumored that during the summer and autumn this year, the Song Army will send troops as usual, and the target is the Wuding River Basin. Your aunt cries with me every day. No.
I tried all my tricks and asked for countless favors, and finally transferred Erlang back to Youzhou in the Jiayou Military Division."
"Although it's not peaceful there, it's at least west of the Wuding River. Once a fight breaks out, with the support of the Xiangyou Army and the various states in front, we'll have more or less time to escape."
After listening to his uncle's words, Zhang Guangshun never expected that Xixia would be so frightened and discouraged.
Seeing the expression on his nephew's face, Zhang Yuanqing could guess what he was thinking and explained in a nonchalant manner.
"It's all your second aunt, her temperament..."
Zhang Yuanqing suddenly thought that if his mother-in-law hadn't been so temperamental and his parents had died young, his nephew, who had followed him since childhood, would not have signed up to join the army as soon as he turned sixteen.
For a while I couldn't say any more.
"Oh, forget it, let's not talk about it. Saburo, I heard that you are living a good life here?"
After listening to his uncle's questions, Zhang Guangshun had countless complaints in his heart.
It was agreed that Xixia Xiandaotang would be an undercover agent in the Song Dynasty. Not many people in Xixia knew the details. So how did my uncle know that I was in the Song Dynasty? Did he also know that I was living a good life here?
"Second uncle, how did you get the news about me?" Zhang Guangshun asked carefully.
"The princess told me." Zhang Yuanqing replied nonchalantly, "Before I set off, the princess quietly called me aside and informed Sanlang of your news. She also asked me to ask Li Furen for help after I arrived in Kaifeng City.
I want to meet you. The princess said, it’s not easy for you. You have been dormant in the Song Dynasty for ten years and made great contributions to Xixia. I should also let you know the news about your relatives at home to comfort your loneliness."
Speaking of this, Zhang Yuanqing also praised, "The princess is so benevolent and righteous!"
Zhang Guangshun is no longer able to complain.
He knew that Li Qingluan was really thinking about him and wanted to use family affection to win over him. But doing so could easily expose him.
Fortunately, he had surrendered to the Song Dynasty a long time ago and became an espionage officer of the Military Intelligence Bureau. Otherwise, under the pervasive control of the Privy Council Bureau and the Security Bureau, he would have been left in the cold.
What a gap. Although Li Qingluan is indeed talented in intelligence work, compared with the intelligence system of the Song Dynasty, it pales in comparison.
Zhang Guangshun didn't dwell too much on this topic and asked instead.
"Second uncle, how is the situation at home now?"
Zhang Yuanqing let out a long sigh, full of sadness.
"Starving people are dying all over the land, and the people are in dire straits. People's hearts are wandering, and everyone is thinking of ways out."
"How could this happen? Last year's autumn harvest was not a bumper harvest. Has it been relieved?" Zhang Guangshun asked in surprise.
"Oh, it was indeed a great harvest, and the warehouses were full of grain. But the wheat grains in the warehouses were not yet warm, and a group of Liao merchants came from the north to buy grain at high prices. At that time, the Song Dynasty opened up its borders and provided fine wine, tea, silk, and porcelain.
The items that the nobles have been coveting for a long time flooded in."
"The dignitaries couldn't help themselves, and sold grain on a large scale to obtain money to buy those luxury goods. When His Majesty discovered that something was wrong, the dignitaries had already sold part of the military rations in the warehouse. However, despite repeated strict orders, the dignitaries still asked
Liao merchants secretly sold grain, cattle, sheep and even fine horses."
"Especially the chiefs of the Dangxiang tribes were the most rampant. They even sold slaves from the Song Dynasty and other tribal slaves captured in previous years to Liao merchants. The king and princess sent people to sneak into the Liao territory, and then they discovered that the Liao merchants
Transport the grain, cattle, sheep, horses and people back to Dongsheng State and resell them on the spot at a high price to the Song merchants who are waiting there. Then they will be transported down the river directly back to the Song Dynasty Hedong."
Having said this, Zhang Yuanqing looked around and lowered his voice and said: "We have lost several games in a row, especially Liangzhou, which has caused grief all over the country. The biggest problem now is that Liangzhou, the largest source of finance and taxation for the Xia Kingdom, has been lost;
The land of Henan, the largest grain producing area of the Xia State, was completely exposed to the military peak of the Song State."
"It was as if someone had cut off his right arm, and held a sharp knife against his chest... The morale of the soldiers and civilians was gradually losing, and their hearts were gradually dispersed. Everyone was thinking of their own way out. Either they ran north to the Liao Kingdom and took refuge under their wings;
After surrendering to the Song Dynasty, everything was over. There are people with all kinds of thoughts, especially those chiefs of various parties..."
Zhang Yuanqing leaned back and said meaningfully: "Sanlang, it's a good thing that you are in the Song Dynasty. I heard from the princess that only Li Furen and her know your identity. If there are changes in the country, you can find an opportunity to
Li Furen..."
After making a gesture of wiping his neck, Zhang Yuanqing continued, "Isn't it true that no one knows your identity? When the time comes, my uncle's family will come to seek refuge with you, so don't dislike it."
Zhang Guangshun lowered his head and thought for a while, and couldn't help but sigh: "I can't believe that China has declined to this point. Don't worry, uncle, if the day comes, you can just come over. I have a nephew to eat, so you won't be hungry."
A complicated expression flashed across Zhang Yuanqing's face, and he was about to say a few words of gratitude when he suddenly heard the faint voice of a newsboy downstairs.
"The news on the front page of "Donghua Chaobao" said that at 17:00 yesterday afternoon, the Gyeonggi Judicial Court ruled that 11 people including Laizhi Shao, Ma Sijun, Lin Dawei, Quan Zongyuan, Wang Yu, Zhao Xiaoqian, etc., had solid evidence and were found guilty of conspiracy.
, sentenced to death. Li Qingchen and other twenty-five people were sentenced to twenty years of hard labor or exiled to Lingnan, with no pardon for life... The ruling will be reported to Dali Temple for review on the same day."
"The latest news from the Tokyo Times is that Wang Yu, Zhao Xiaoqian and others who received the ruling committed suicide by hanging themselves from their belts in prison last night. The Department of Legal Affairs of the Ministry of Justice issued an urgent notice today that all prisoners in prisons and detention centers will be checked and no one will be allowed to carry them with them.
Carrying cloth tapes and other items that may cause suicide..."
After hearing these two pieces of news, both Zhang Yuanqing and Zhang Guangshun were attracted.
"Wang Yu, Li Qingchen, Zhao Xiaoqian... the officials of the Song Dynasty really dare to attack!" Zhang Yuanqing murmured. This chapter has been completed!
