Of course I knew what Fang Ling meant. I would be willing to lose in a horse battle, but I would be slightly better in an infantry battle. I smiled and motioned for Fang Ling to sit down, and said to Meng Zhang: "Old sir, please continue."
Meng Zhang secretly glanced at Fang Ling and saw that at such a young age, he could point out the shortcomings of Meng Tianxiang's marksmanship, which impressed him. Meng Zhang quickly said: "Your Majesty, do you like Tianxiang?" ,"
I chuckled and immediately understood what Meng Zhang meant: "Old sir, General Hu Yande's martial arts are among the best among the generals of the cavalry army of our dynasty. Now that Mr. Meng can draw with him, of course I am very satisfied."
Meng Zhang said: "Although ordinary people are unable to go into battle, Tianxiang can."
Yuan Ji, who had been silent since entering the room, said: "Congratulations, Your Majesty, for gaining another general."
"Well, sir, when you have time, you can give me some pointers on the foot fighting skills of generals like Hu Yande and Meng Tianxiang."
"Yes, Your Majesty,"
Jiang Wanzai said: "Brother Meng Zhang, is the marksmanship practiced by Tianxiang the same as the Lieyan Marksmanship?"
"Exactly,"
"What weight is it at?"
"Brother Jiang, Tianxiang's flame marksmanship has reached the seventh level,"
Jiang Wanzai sighed: "I didn't expect that Tianxiang would finally master this flame marksmanship. I remember when I was serving in the Zhongshun Army with Brother Meng Gong. Whenever we had time, we would compete with each other. At that time, I was young and energetic. , I always thought that my martial arts skills were the best in the world, but every time I competed, I was only half as good. I remember clearly that when Meng Shuai was thirty-two years old, he broke through the third bottleneck of Lieyan Spear Technique in one fell swoop, and what I practiced We have also achieved some success in the Coiling Dragon Stick Technique. After a sparring session, we discussed our respective martial arts with each other. Meng Shuai said that only after practicing the Flame Spear Technique to the seventh level can it be considered successful. Today, Xiang is far beyond the Meng Shuai is truly an unparalleled talent in martial arts."
Meng Zhang smiled and said: "Brother Jiang, thank you for the award. Although Tianxiang can be called a genius, there is still a long way to go compared to the highly favored general back then."
I didn't know the reason, so I asked: "Why, Jiang Aiqing, is it difficult to practice the Flame Spear Technique? What does this have to do with Gao Chong?"
Jiang Wanzai said: "Brother Meng Zhang, it's better for you to explain the emperor's doubts."
Meng Zhang said: "Your Majesty, try this tea and let the common people bring it to you one by one."
I said "yes", raised my glass, blew on it, took a sip and said, "This tea is smooth in the mouth, sweet and mellow, thick but not greasy, it's a good tea."
"I didn't expect that the emperor is also good at tea ceremony," Meng Zhang said with a smile, "Your Majesty, when we talk about the flame marksmanship, we must first talk about the Yue Family Army more than a hundred years ago. Among the many generals under Yue Commander, there are The Four Divine Spears and the Eight Divine Hammers are called the Eight Divine Hammers. These eight admirals are highly skilled in martial arts and possess the courage that no man can match. They followed Commander-in-Chief Yue, conquered east and west, and made numerous military exploits. Your Majesty has heard of these eight people. Bar,"
"I know that the four spears refer to Gao Chong, Lu Wenlong, Yang Zaixing, and Zhang Xian, and the eight hammers refer to Yue Yun, Fu Tianliang, Di Lei, and He Yuanqing,"
"What the emperor said is true to every word. These eight people are all arrogant and have never been convinced by each other, but only Gao Chong was full of praise for Gao Chong's marksmanship. Therefore, under Yue Shuai, only Gao Chong is recognized as the number one There is no such thing as second or third place. Your Majesty, the marksmanship used by this high favor is exactly the Flame Marksmanship."
"Really, this marksmanship was originally taught by Gao Chong,"
Meng Zhang took a break and continued: "Your Majesty, Gao Chong is the descendant of Gao Siji, who was known as the number one marksman in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The Gao family's marksmanship passed down from their family is the Flame Marksmanship. This marksmanship is very difficult to practice. It needs to absorb the sun's rays and turn it into its own energy. This is why you saw Tianxiang practicing under the scorching sun when you came here. At the same time, the flame marksmanship is also very exquisite. The generals Gao Huaide and Gao Huailiang in the early days of our dynasty were just After practicing this marksmanship to the sixth level, he became the founding general. However, for a long time afterwards, no one from the descendants of the Gao family was able to practice to the fourth level. It was not until General Gao Chong was born that he Just like his ancestor Gao Siji, he practiced to the eighth level, and his marksmanship was so powerful that he was invincible."
I took a sip of tea and continued to listen to Meng Zhang's sermon: "It is said that General Gao Chong broke through the seventh level at the age of twenty-three, while Gao Siji entered the eighth level at the age of thirty-three. situation, it can be seen that General Gao Chong is an unparalleled genius in practicing the flame marksmanship. The Emperor, the ancestors of the grassroots Meng An and Meng Lin were all members of Marshal Yue. At that time, the ancestor Meng Lin was still young and was sent to serve as a commander in Gao Chong's army. He became a personal soldier of General Gao Chong. General Gao saw that his ancestor was very talented and liked him very much, so he taught all the moves of the Flame Spear to his ancestor. However, General Gao's time under Yue Shuai was very short and he did not have time to master the Flame Spear. He explained the subtleties to his ancestors and was unfortunately killed in a battle."
Meng Zhang sighed and said: "After our ancestors obtained the Flame Spear Technique, they practiced hard day and night. Throughout their lives, they only stayed at the fourth level. In Cao Min's father's generation, they finally practiced the Flame Spear Technique to the fifth level. Brother Cao Min Among the four people, only Cao Min had mastered the fifth level of flame spear technique. Among the people of Meng Hai's generation, they were further regressed due to their mediocre qualifications. Fortunately, three months before his second brother died of illness, , Tianxiang came to the world. When Tianxiang was about three years old, he showed interest and talent in guns, so he lived under the Purple Mountain with the common people. Now, Tianxiang's marksmanship has entered the seventh level. According to the common people, It is estimated that as long as he practices more on the battlefield and uses the murderous aura on the battlefield, Tianxiang will be able to break through the seventh level and enter the eighth level."
After listening to Meng Zhang's detailed introduction, I understood the origin of the Lieyan Marksmanship. Since it is Gao Chong's Marksmanship, it can be regarded as the best Marksmanship in the world. If Meng Tianxiang can break through the seventh level, he will be the best. He is a high favorite.
Although firearms have come out, more than 90% of the Song army still uses cold weapons as their only weapons. Perhaps Meng Tianxiang will become the last cavalry general in the world in the cold weapon era.
Jiang Wanzai said: "Brother Meng Zhang, this time we are following the emperor to the Xiangfan battlefield. In my opinion, Tianxiang should go with us."
"Okay," Meng Zhang nodded, "I just don't know what the emperor's intention is."
"I couldn't ask for more," I laughed loudly, "I didn't expect that I would get another strong general under the Purple Mountain. It seems that Meng Shuai has appeared. It's getting late. Mr. Meng, let Meng Tianxiang clean up. , follow me to Ezhou,"
"Yes, Your Majesty," Meng Zhang said and immediately went out to inform Meng Tianxiang.
Meng Tianxiang's luggage was simple and he only had a few pieces of clothes to change with him. In less than a cup of tea, Meng Tianxiang had packed up and came to me with Meng Zhang.
"Meng Tianxiang, a grassroots citizen, meets the emperor,"
"Well, Meng Tianxiang accepts the title,"
"The grassroots are here,"
"Meng Tianxiang, I temporarily designate you as the Cavalry Commander, with the rank of sixth grade, equivalent to the commander of the military region. At the same time, I order you to rebuild the Zhongshun Army with 3,000 people. The Zhongshun Army will be at the same level as the military commander, and it will temporarily belong to Lin'an. Under the rule of the military region,"
"Last General Meng Tianxiang thanks the Emperor for his kindness,"
"Well, get up, Tianxiang. However, I have no troops to send at the moment. I can only provide military rations and money. You need to figure out how to build the new Zhongshun Army's horses and soldiers yourself. Of course, this can be improved gradually, and there is no need to do it immediately. In place, any questions?"
I know that there are many old subordinates of Meng Gong living in the Mengjiaqiao area of Zaoyang. These people were discharged and returned to their fields more than 20 years ago and have been living with the Meng brothers in Zaoyang. These people are already old and naturally They cannot go into battle to kill the enemy, but their descendants should be as old as Meng Tianxiang. Therefore, I did not limit the composition of the Zhongshun Army, but allowed them to develop. I think as Meng Gong's direct descendants, they should be very powerful. He has appeal, not to mention Meng Zhang and Meng Ying are still alive.
As expected, Meng Zhang took over and said: "Your Majesty, don't worry, the common people will immediately go to the old house in Zaoyang and discuss with the Fourth Meng Ying to organize a group of young men on the spot in Mengjiaqiao to go to Yingzhou to join Tianxiang."
Meng Tianxiang was overjoyed: "Thank you, second uncle,"
Meng Zhang nodded and said to me: "Your Majesty, the common people have one more thing to ask of me."
"Old sir, please speak,"
"Your Majesty, although Tianxiang is in his early twenties and has excellent character and martial arts, he spends most of his time practicing here, so he has very little experience in dealing with people. I hope that Your Majesty will give you guidance and give you more guidance despite your busy schedule. Teaching, strict discipline,”
"Haha, old sir, don't worry, my Xianchun Dynasty is very different from the past. What do you think, Master Jiang Aiqing?"
Jia Sidao and Jiang Wanzai said at the same time: "Brother Meng Zhang, you can rest assured that the government is now clear and clear, and as long as you have the ability, you will be reused and rewarded."
"Brother Jiang, Brother Jia, I have heard about this," Meng Zhang smiled, turned to me and said, "Your Majesty, as early as a few years ago, Li Tingzhi from Yangzhou sent a letter saying that your Majesty's sage is unprecedented. , Today, the grassroots people can see the emperor with their own eyes and believe in him, and the grassroots people firmly believe that the great cause of resurgence mentioned by the emperor will be realized soon,"
I laughed and said confidently: "Old sir, as long as the people I serve work together, I believe that this day will not be far away."
"Your Majesty, the common people will definitely wait for that day,"
"must,"
Meng Zhang took out a bag of tea and said, "Your Majesty, this is the only purple-gold tea that is acceptable in the mountains and wilderness. Your Majesty has been away from Xiangfan for a long time. This tea should be used to relieve your boredom."
I didn't refuse. I took the bag of tea and said, "Mr. Meng, please take care of yourself."
"Your Majesty, don't worry. The common people will send you your Majesty respectfully."
"good,"
After staying one night in Ezhou, we set off north early the next morning. From Ezhou to Yingzhou, which is about 600 miles away, the terrain is mostly flat. It was not until we entered the boundary of Yingzhou that the rugged mountain road appeared.
Three days later, in the evening of May 18th, more than 500 of us arrived at Yingzhou City.