From the young man's perspective, there is no difference between the Yumenguan Guards House and the wealthy family's mansion in Chang'an.
The same carved beams and painted buildings, the same blue bricks and plain tiles, if you have to find any difference among them, it would be a hint of green Qiu air between the brackets and the eaves.
This is the Yumen Pass, which carries hundreds of thousands of banners and brilliant armor. It is the Yumen Pass that must be passed when heading west to kill the enemy!
I don’t know since when, Yumenguan has become an important border town guarded by the Central Plains imperial court in the northwest frontier, and it has also become a cultural symbol that many literati and poets place their feelings on.
Starting from the Han Dynasty, through the Southern and Northern Dynasties and even the Sui and Tang Dynasties, no matter whether the Central Plains dynasty was strong or not, Yumen Pass has become an inevitable topic of discussion.
"The Xirong dare not cross the Tianshan Mountains, but Dingyuan has achieved great success..."
"Three thousand willows are newly planted, attracting the spring breeze to the Jade Pass!"
Zhang Ziqian gently stroked his beard and continued what Li Kuo was saying.
"I didn't expect General Li to be so elegant even though he was from the army. Zhang admires him!" Zhang Ziqian smiled and nodded at Li Kuo, quite optimistic about this young general who had become an army commander at such a young age.
"Isn't Zhang Shoubei also a Confucian general?" Li Kuo was quick to wit, and the witty words came out of his mouth.
"Confucian general?" Zhang Ziqian was stunned for a moment, then raised his palms and laughed: "Yes, you and I are both Confucian generals, Confucian generals!"
"If you think about it, the last time I went back to Chang'an to report on my work was five years ago. Five years have passed in a blink of an eye. How many five years are there in life?" Zhang Ziqian shook his head with a wry smile, and the arrogance he had just felt disappeared in the blink of an eye.
In the creases at the corners of the eyes.
"You are in the year of making great achievements. I may not be able to be promoted to the commander-in-chief of the First Army next year. After that, it is not without hope that you will be promoted to deputy military governor!" Li Kuo couldn't bear to see Zhang Ziqian so pessimistic, so he said something
Even he himself didn't believe it.
Although the status of Yumen Pass is extremely important, the garrison position does not need to be too high. A Confucian general like Zhang Ziqian, if there is no noble person in the army to support him, Ding Tian'er can also be a guerrilla general. With such a rank, if he wants to be promoted to a
The military governor is nothing more than a fool's dream.
Now that I have said it again, if Zhang Ziqian really has a great background, why would he need to go out to seek fame? Although promotion in the army comes quickly, it is only for the young masters of aristocratic families who have taken a temporary job to gain experience. The children of ordinary families, if they do not spend a lot of money,
Even if you make friends with some high-ranking generals, you may not be able to become a fourth-grade general even if you grow old.
If you think about it carefully, for a general like him who fights on the front line, his military achievements are not easy to be wiped away easily.
"You don't have to comfort me, there are some things that we can't change." Zhang Ziqian waved his hand and said: "The more you experience, the more you can see. Take me as an example, I have thousands of soldiers to defend the country and guard the borders.
Wouldn't it be magnificent? Wouldn't it be beautiful to drink with the desert in your free time and enjoy the majesty of the world?"
Although he spoke forcefully, Li Kuo could indeed hear the helplessness in his voice. The position of Yumenguan garrison is really important but not reused. If you really think about it, it is indeed not as easy to be promoted as the secretary in charge of Uncle Gao.
After a slight pause, Zhang Ziqian poured a glass of wine into his mouth. Zhang Ziqian looked a little excited, with two blushes on his cheeks: "Back then, when I was your age, I joined the Hexi Army with passion. I always wanted to
With his own efforts, he was able to carve out a world and kill all the barbarians before returning home. But it took him most of his life to get to such a place as a guard...You are young and ignorant, you are young and ignorant!"
I don't know whether it was because of the alcohol or the emotion, but Zhang Ziqian felt dizzy for a while.
"Tell me about Chang'an City." Zhang Ziqian shook his head and said, "I haven't been back to Chang'an City for five years. I wonder if there is still the Children's Yaochi Tomb of Heroes there?"
"Ah!" Li Kuo was stunned by his metaphor. If you think about it carefully, it makes sense. The life in Chang'an City is too flashy. For young people, it is a good place for enjoyment. But for those who have the world in mind,
For those with lofty ideals, it is no different than a tomb.
"What do you want to ask about?" Zhang Ziqian talked so much that he really didn't know where to start.
"Well, I heard that the guy from An Lushan has joined the county king?" Zhang Ziqian seemed to feel that his question was not easy to answer, so he took the initiative to lead the young man out.
Li Kuo paused and smiled and said: "I don't know much about this matter. I only know that in recognition of his meritorious service in fighting the enemy, His Majesty made him the county king despite the objections of the ministers."
"Absurd!" Zhang Ziqian seemed to have really drunk too much, and shouted angrily: "Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, there has never been a practice of conferring kings with different surnames. As soon as this example came out, the border towns will follow suit and kill the enemy.
If I ask for credit, I, the Tang Dynasty, can’t be the prince who fills the streets?”
"How can we ministers understand His Majesty's thoughts?" Li Kuo also didn't like An Lushan very much. Although they only met once, from the cunning look in his eyes, Li Kuo could tell that they were not
Fellow people.
"Hu'er pays most attention to strength!" The red candle in the room flickered, casting tiny golden particles into Zhang Ziqian's eyes. "If our Tang Dynasty were prosperous, there would be no need to reward him, and he would laugh to the death for our Tang Dynasty.
.But if there is turmoil in the Central Plains, even if you regard him as your grandfather, they will be the first ones to jump out and bite you!"
"Forget it, forget it, let's not talk about him... Where's that guy Yang Zhao? This guy has been using women's skirts to sneak around faster than anyone recently, but is there any information about him?" Zhang Ziqian leaned on the back of the chair,
He raised his forehead lightly.
"He, he was made the Right Chancellor by His Majesty!" The young man always felt a little awkward when he mentioned Yang Zhao. Regardless of whether the news released by Yang Zhao was true or false, he had already listed him as an imaginary enemy. His former ally had become an imaginary enemy.
It's a strange feeling to be enemies who are at odds with each other. "I, by the way, His Majesty also changed his name for him and called him Guozhong."
"Bah! Is he worthy?" Zhang Ziqian's eyes turned cold, he shook his head slightly and said: "He is just a street gangster who relied on women to get into power. Can he support the reputation of the Prime Minister?"
Yumen Pass is too far away from the capital, and the royal court's official reports have not yet reached here. Zhang Ziqian naturally had no way of knowing that Yang Zhao changed his name and became the prime minister.
"It's not that I'm jealous." After a slight pause, Zhang Ziqian sighed: "That guy has some talents, but he can only be a lieutenant. If he gets promoted further, no matter how hard he works, he won't be able to hold on.
That scene!”
"I heard that you and him don't get along?" For some reason, Zhang Ziqian talked a lot today, and the incident involving Yang Zhao was brought to the attention of the young man.
"Ah, no...actually..." The young man didn't know how to explain this to Zhang Ziqian, so he rubbed his hands to stop talking.
"You don't have to be afraid. If he dares to say those words, he just thinks that everyone in the world is a weakling! But I just don't get what he wants!"
Zhang Ziqian stood up tremblingly, walked to an ink box, and took out a brochure bag and a letter.
"Child, do you know what is written on this letter?" Looking at the handsome young man in front of him, Zhang Ziqian couldn't bear it and shook his head.
"I don't know, junior." At this moment, the young man had already regarded Zhang Ziqian as a respected elder, and he could feel the care projected in his eyes.
"You are stupid, so stupid!" Zhang Ziqian suddenly became furious, walked to the red candle in disappointment, and set the letter on fire.
As soon as the young man reacted and wanted to say something to stop him, the letter was already burned into a pile of ashes.
"Uncle, why are you..."
"You came to my house without any personal soldiers." Zhang Ziqian sighed and said, "Do you know what is written on that piece of paper? It is the commander's handwriting ordering me to kill you. If I were to
I'm so cruel, I'm afraid that your head is now in a different place!"
"Ah!" Li Kuo was shocked. Brother Shuhan wanted to kill him. Why? Although he was not his direct descendant, he grew up under him. Why did he want to put himself to death? Is it because of Yang Zhao? No
, No! Isn't Ge Shuhan a member of Li Linfu? Now that Yang Zhao is in power, they should be like fire and water.
Seemingly seeing the young man's doubts, Zhang Ziqian sneered: "Do you think that Marshal Ge Shu, as a member of Li Linfu's party, should fall out with Yang Zhao, or at the very least not do anything for him? Let me ask you, Brother Shu
Why did Shuai join Li Linfu in the first place?"
"ah!"
Yes, didn't Ge Shuhan join Li Linfu just to find a backer in the court? Since Li Linfu can do it, Yang Zhao can naturally do it too. After all, no matter who is the prime minister or minister, it will be difficult for them to guard the border.
It doesn't have any big impact.
"so......"
"So, your head has become a meeting gift from Brother Shuhan to Yang Zhao!" Zhang Ziqian sighed slightly.
"But uncle, you clearly..."
"My bones are not that cheap!" Zhang Ziqian's beard trembled, and his rickets back straightened.
Yes, all his troops are in Nancheng now. If Zhang Ziqian really wants to kill him, he only needs to arrange a hundred axemen outside this house, and now he has been chopped into pulp.
A cold sweat broke out on Li Kuo's back. Ge Shuhan was so vicious that he didn't take any precautions. If Zhang Ziqian had really had the intention to kill just now, he would have no chance of surviving.
"You are Dafu's nephew!" Zhang Ziqian emphasized to himself, with a gleam in his eyes: "Don't trust others so easily in the future. Remember, the only person you can trust in this life is yourself... This
He asked me to give it to you, you can open it and read it when you get to Shule!" Zhang Ziqian handed the bag to the young man as if he was instructing his own child, and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.
"It's just an official robe of the fourth rank. What do you want in the world? Oh, it's just an official robe of the fourth rank. I don't care. I don't care..."
The swaying red candle cast its firelight onto Zhang Ziqian's sword, and the silver-white scabbard was immediately coated with a fine layer of gold.