The north wind blows across the ground, killing all things, which is the main theme of the grassland today.
Since returning to Xuanfu, Yang Hong seems to have become the veteran general in the bloody battlefield. Although there is no war, he almost always wears his helmet, shakes his armor, and patrols the city with his sword.
"How's the situation?"
Looking at the dark camp in the distance, Yang Hong looked solemn and asked Yang Xin behind him.
"Returning to the General Soldier, the officers and soldiers in the city have been counted. There is sufficient food, grass and baggage. The morale of the army and the people is stable. The morale of the troops is high. If there is a change, our army can respond at any time and will not be attacked in a hurry. Please rest assured, General Soldier."
.”
As an important border town of the Ming Dynasty, the importance of Xuanfu is self-evident.
No matter what the court's conclusion is, at least for now, the enemy is still looking at the enemy outside, so the defense of the city cannot be slackened.
However, although Yang Hong has now taken over the post of chief military officer of Xuanfu again, in fact, he does not interfere too much in specific military affairs.
The defense of the city is still in charge of Tao Jin and Yang Xin. As for Yang Hong himself, after years of accumulation of prestige, he has long become a presence like a sea-fixing needle to the Xuan Mansion.
He didn't need to do anything more. Just by patrolling the city every day, it could be seen with the naked eye that the morale of the Xuanfu and the people's morale were getting better day by day.
Yang Hong nodded slightly and continued to ask.
"What did Jin Shangshu say?"
The situation on the border today is not serious. Although Yang Hong arrived at the Xuan Mansion, he knew very well that the entire court was not willing to go to war.
Therefore, no matter how the army is prepared for war, the final result will come down to negotiations. In other words, this time, Jin Lian's side is the main battlefield.
When this matter was brought up, Yang Xin's face didn't look very good and he replied.
"Not too optimistic. People from these major tribes insisted that the deaths of Tuotuobuhua and Agadoerji were caused by their third brother. They said so categorically that they would take revenge no matter what. They also said that if the Ming Dynasty did not
If you are willing to hand over your third brother, all the tribes will definitely unite and go south to start a war."
"Go south and start a war?"
Yang Hong frowned and couldn't help but snorted, which seemed to instantly lower the surrounding temperature a lot.
"Then let them come!"
Yang Xin lowered his head, sensing that his uncle was not calm, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart and said.
"Uncle, don't worry. Jin Shangshu has already rejected this request. However, the other party insists on it, so the negotiations have reached a deadlock for the time being."
After hearing this, Yang Hong's mood became even heavier, of course, only for a short moment.
At this time, he is everyone's hope.
Yang Hong knew very well the attitude of the imperial court on this matter. The emperor was generous and felt guilty for the Yang family for the previous rectification of the army. Therefore, the emperor gave him full support in this matter.
Without even discussing with the court officials, they directly mobilized the Beijing camp and asked Yang Hong to lead the troops to Xuanfu.
This is kindness, but all kindness has limits.
Border stability is the bottom line. He is here to exert pressure, not to actually start a war. On this point, he and Jin Lian have reached a consensus.
But in this case, many methods cannot be used. Moreover, it is difficult to grasp the balance between being tough but not being too tough during negotiations.
Seeing this situation, Yang Xin thought for a while and said again.
"Uncle, I always feel that this negotiation is a bit weird."
Yang Hong turned around, looked at his nephew, who wanted to be steady, and asked.
"how you said that?"
So, Yang Xin hesitated for a moment and said.
"The first point is about their attitude, which makes me feel a little strange."
"Uncle, after having dealt with these Mongolians for so long, I understand their temperament. Many of them do understand Chinese and know classics, but most of them cannot afford to benefit.
morning."
"So, whether they are trying to avenge Tuotuo Buhua, or pursuing the third brother for inciting civil strife on the grassland, in fact, to put it bluntly, they are just excuses. What they want is nothing more than benefits."
"But until now, they have been clamoring for Daming to hand over his third brother every day, but they have not mentioned a word about asking for benefits. This is not in line with common sense."
After hearing these words, a trace of doubt flashed in Yang Hong's eyes, but it passed quickly, as if he had thought of something.
Then, he turned around and hesitated for a moment, but in the end he didn't say much, but said directly.
"Let's go to the inn to meet Jin Shangshu!"
"I'm really sorry for bothering you late at night."
Not long after, Yang Hong brought Yang Xin to the inn, bowed to Jin Lian in front of him, and apologized.
Jin Lian did not expect that the two of them would come at this time. Looking at the uncle and nephew who were still wearing armor, he smiled bitterly and said.
"The Marquis and General Yang are working hard day and night, patrolling the city every day. They are working very hard. Naturally, if you have anything to do, you can come at any time. There is no need to disturb you. Please come."
Because I came unexpectedly and had no preparation in advance, I could only prepare plain water and some simple pastries. Fortunately, no one present cared about this.
After entering the hall and taking a seat, Yang Hong mentioned his purpose of coming and repeated what Yang Xin had just said.
After listening, Jin Lian also frowned, but he didn't say much. After pondering for a moment, he turned to Yang Xin and said.
"General Yang, apart from this, have you noticed anything else strange?"
So, Yang Xin continued.
"Yes. In addition to their tough attitude, there is also the fact that the demands of these tribes are too consistent this time."
Seeing Jin Lian's confused look, Yang Xin continued to explain.
"Now that both Totuobuhua and Agadolji are dead, Tatar is in a state of leaderlessness. In this case, if the ministries want to ask for benefits, or there are a few loyal people who want to make peace for the past,
The Lord wants revenge, so it makes sense to come to Ming Dynasty to ask for someone."
"But no matter what, these tribes should fight on their own. Even if they come at the same time, they cannot be of the same mind. But now these tribes have killed them all, leaving Ming Dynasty to fight
This is not normal for Yang Jie to appear."
"Also, why did the Karaqin tribe and the Wengliguot tribe suddenly raise troops?"
Having guarded Xuan Mansion for many years, it should be said that Yang Xin had a fairly good understanding of various tribes, especially some of the big tribes on the grasslands.
Relatively speaking, Jin Lian knew less, but under Yang Xin's description, he seemed to have vaguely thought of something.
However, Yang Xin didn't notice this, he just continued his analysis.
"Not to mention that these two tribes are now competing for the throne of Khan, why did they suddenly unite? Just because of time, it would be too rushed."
"They just sent envoys here less than half a month ago. Even if they really want Ming Dynasty to hand over Yang Jie, they should at least wait until the court comes to a conclusion."
"But now, the negotiations have just begun, and these two tribes are eager to invade the border with their troops. This is not in line with common sense."
"Besides that, in terms of military strength..."
After a short pause, Yang Xin stood up and looked around. Then he suddenly remembered that he was not in his deputy general's headquarters here and there was no map to point to. So he simply started to draw with his hands.
"Xuanfu is an important border town no less important than Datong. It has more than 20,000 permanent officers and soldiers. Once a war breaks out, troops can be mobilized from various passes at any time, even if we don't talk about the two men brought by the General Soldier from the Beijing camp.
The army of ten thousand, even the official army in the city alone, cannot be captured by the thirteen thousand people of these two groups combined."
"In that case, what exactly does the leader of these two groups, Chen Bing, want to do outside Xuanfu City?"
This shows why among the four sons of the Yang family, only Yang Xin is regarded as Yang Hong's successor.
The points just mentioned are things that can only be noticed by people with extremely careful minds.
Looking at Yang Xin approvingly, Jin Lian pondered for a moment and asked Yang Hong.
"Marquis Yang, what do you think of what General Yang just said?"
Relatively speaking, Yang Hong seemed to be more cautious. He glanced at Yang Xin and said.
"These places are indeed suspicious. As for the negotiation conditions, I tend to think that they want to ask for benefits and do not really want Ming Dynasty to hand over Yang Jie. However, they have been reluctant to put forward conditions.
, it is indeed a strange thing, of course, it is also possible that they feel that the time is not right."
"As for the alliance of the various tribes, we have speculated before that there may be the shadow of Wala behind this, but we don't know what kind of strategy Ye Xian used and what he promised them, so for now, I still
I feel that we should first find out what these tribes want, so that we can have a clear target."
"That's all it can do now."
Jin Lian nodded, but didn't say much, just said.
"An official document has just arrived from the imperial court, instructing all sides to take strict precautions and not to allow thieves to take advantage of them. During this period, Marquis Yang still needs to worry about the defense of the city."
"It should!"
When Yang Hong saw this, he stood up and said.
"It's so late and I'm disturbing Jin Shangshu from resting. If there's nothing else to do, I'll go back first."
"Marquis Yang, wait a moment..."
Jin Lian also stood up to see each other off, and they each bowed before saying goodbye.
However, just when Yang Hong turned around and wanted to leave, Jin Lian seemed to suddenly remember something and said.
"One more thing. In recent times, desertions have been serious in various parts of the border. Now the situation on the border is tense. I have reported to the court, hoping that your majesty will allow it, so that the guilty and deserters can be included in the army, and they can be punished and serve.
, if someone can make a contribution on the battlefield, you can consider the merit to be equal to the fault."
After the words fell, Yang Hong's body froze. Then, he turned around and looked at Jin Lian with complicated eyes. After a moment, Yang Hong sighed softly, clasped his fists and saluted again, and said.
"Thank you Jin Shangshu."
Jin Lian didn't say much, just returned the greeting silently, and then the two of them dispersed.
Watching Yang Hong leave the inn, Jin Lian did not go back to rest. Instead, he came to the corridor and looked at the moonlight in the sky, speechless for a long time.
I don’t know how much time passed until the night was as cold as water and the cold dew started to rise. Someone suddenly came to report from outside.
"Master Shangshu, we just came from the city gate to report that a small group of people has left the city."
"I see……"
After hearing the news, Jin Lian took a deep look outside the city. Then, he turned back to his room, picked up a pen and wrote a secret letter. After carefully sealing it with wax, he handed it to the person next to him and said.
"As usual, we will rush it 800 miles away and send it to the palace!"
…………
At the same time, in the British government.
Zhang Xi and Zhu Yi were sitting opposite each other. It could be seen that Zhang Xi was in a good mood and said.
"As expected by Duke Chu, the emperor's performance this time was really good. Now, everyone in the government and the public is talking about it, feeling that the matter is not over yet, and they are all thinking about how to persuade His Majesty to stop it completely.
The desire to start a war.”
"However, these officials have learned a lot this time. What they handed over was dense and sparse, and it was a little less lively."
Although in the end, both Zhang Ying and Li Xi were transferred out of the capital, but after this incident, the officials restrained themselves a lot and stopped causing trouble in the court.
However, anyone with a discerning eye can see that a large army is pressing in on the border. Although the emperor has been persuaded, it is only due to various factors. Deep down in his heart, the emperor still has the idea of starting a fight.
Therefore, since this period of time, the discussion about this matter in the court has not stopped at all times. The officials are writing secret notes, and the content is naturally invisible to outsiders. However, whoever handed the secret note to the palace,
This can still be found.
After all, whether it is an open memorial or a secret memorial, it must be sent to the General Affairs Department as usual, but the difference is that the clear memorial must keep a copy with the General Affairs Department, while the secret memorial only records the person and time for inquiry.
In addition, the officials still rely on reputation to make a living. Although they cannot see what others write in their secrets, it does not prevent them from bragging about it. Therefore, the public opinion in the court is quite lively during this time.
Of course, these are not important to Mr. Zhang. What is important is that this time he finally "guessed" the next development of the court in advance, which is rare. This feeling is wonderful, although it has not been brought to the attention so far.
There were no substantial benefits, but it made Mr. Zhang change his previous decadence and become more confident.
Seeing Zhang Shi's appearance, Zhu Yi also smiled and said.
"It's a pity that something unexpected happened and I was blocked by Uncle Zong in the end."
"After the court meeting that day, I went to ask Uncle Da Zong. He didn't pay much attention to the matter in advance. He only realized it later."
"But that's fine. If all the important ministers say nothing, the great drama of the emperor will not be able to continue."
"The heat is just right now. If our guess before was good, then after the news has fermented for a while and spread to the border, the emperor should find a way to 'admit defeat'."
"At that time, it's time for us to play our role..."
"Of course, before that, the Supreme Emperor must also report the situation. Otherwise, it will cause him to misunderstand, which will be bad."
Zhang Xi nodded and said.
"My lord, I have always thought carefully. Please rest assured, lord, I have been waiting for so long. I am not lacking in patience and will definitely not act rashly."