Chapter 123: The Innate Holy Body (4k)
After hearing Princess Chenliu's words, Su Ze felt nothing in his heart.
It turns out that you, Yuan Ziyu, knew this trick when you were twelve years old!
But think about it, people in imperial families are generally precocious, so it is not surprising that he could come up with a plan to assassinate the King of Rourou at the age of twelve.
But Yuan Ziyou was so decisive that he even asked for help from a captain of the Imperial Guards in order to stop his sister from marrying into the grassland. It turned out that Yuan Ziyou was not an ordinary person.
In fact, before Su Ze traveled through time, when he read about Yuan Ziyou's plan to kill Erzhu Rong, he felt the tragic heroism of an emperor in his last years.
Killing Erzhu Rong was almost the only solution Yuan Ziyou could think of.
This action, which may seem childish to later generations, was a rare display of bravery in the last years of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
So many last monarchs chose to surrender in order to survive, but Yuan Ziyou chose to do the only thing he could do, which was to fight against the historical trend of that era.
Whether people say he was trying to stop a chariot with a mantis arm or that he overestimated his own abilities, at least Yuan Ziyou did not lose the backbone of the previous emperors of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
Su Ze looked at Princess Chen Liu and asked, "Does Your Highness agree to this?"
Princess Chenliu nodded and said, "I don't know how this kid found out that you and I have some friendship, and he actually came to me for help. Anyway, I have the same idea, so let's take it all in."
Su Ze asked, "What price did the princess's brother offer?"
Princess Chenliu smiled and said, "It's interesting to say that the Pengcheng Palace has long been in decline and can't produce anything valuable. The condition he offered was to promise me one thing in the future."
After saying this, Princess Chen Liu smiled and hugged Su Ze and said, "This is the first time in my life that someone has given me such a promise, and I'm still a twelve-year-old child, so I thought it was interesting and accepted it. What do you think, Su Lang?"
As expected of him, he is the innate emperor holy body. He can make promises to others at the age of twelve. Su Ze thought about how when he was twelve years old, even lying would be exposed by his parents. How could he have such calculations?
Yuan Ziyou's art of drawing cakes must have been top-notch, otherwise he would have been able to win over a group of loyal warriors who were willing to die for him in Luoyang controlled by Erzhu Rong in the future, and accomplish what Cao Mao had wanted to do all his life.
A promise from a future emperor?
Su Ze was also not sure whether Yuan Ziyou would succeed to the throne in this world that had deviated from its original historical course.
But Su Ze believed that with Yuan Ziyou's ability, he would be able to repay him in the future.
Su Ze nodded and said, "In that case, let's agree to it all!"
Su Ze put his arm around Princess Chenliu's waist and said, "Before you leave, Your Highness, would you like to pay me some 'deposit' first?"
"What deposit?"
"Of course it's this one!"
Only after Su Ze paid a large amount of "deposit" in return did he reluctantly leave the princess's mansion.
During this expedition, Su Ze was most worried about the safety of his younger sister Su Yuyao who was left in Luoyang.
Su Ze decided to leave Su Bai, the envoy of Bailu Cao, in Luoyang, so that he could continue to check the news of the court in Luoyang and also protect his sister's safety.
But Su Bai felt that it was not enough to rely on him alone. Li Tong's injuries had not healed and he was also old. Su Ze moved Su Yuyao out and used his sister's safety as an excuse to force Li Tong to stay in Luoyang to look after the family.
Su Cho and Yuan Fotto also offered to help Su Ze look after the house, but it was not so convenient for two young men. His newly sworn brother Erzhu Rong was even more polite and directly asked his wife Princess Beixiang to come to his house to take Su Yuyao to live in their mansion in Luoyang.
Seeing that his sister had suddenly become so popular, Su Ze finally chose Princess Chen Liu and asked her to help him take care of his sister.
Princess Chenliu naturally could not refuse, so she personally brought Su Yuyao to live in the princess mansion.
At this time, a month had passed since Pingcheng received the request for help. It was not until today that Commander Li Chong completed the training and assembly of the imperial guards, and the court raised food and fodder for the expedition.
And this was achieved at such a "lightning speed" because Li Chong had a high prestige in the court, the court had just experienced the Yulin Rebellion and was unprecedentedly efficient, and there was no disagreement among the top officials of the court about sending troops.
It was indeed very fast. Su Ze remembered that in the historical timeline before the time travel, after the Six Towns Uprising broke out, Wuchuan Town was besieged by the rebels. The Wuchuan people refused to surrender to the rebels. This group of Wuchuan warriors relied on one town to resist hundreds of thousands of rebels for half a year, and kept asking for help from the Northern Wei court. At that time, the court took half a year to gather reinforcements.
In comparison, this time it took only one month to complete the assembly and deployment of troops, which was indeed "astonishingly fast".
The army was going to march out. Yuan Yi, the Prince of Qinghe and the head of the prime ministers in charge of the Menxia Province, could no longer stay in his mansion to edit documents. He put on military uniform, held the imperial edicts of the empress dowager and the emperor, and offered sacrifices to heaven and earth in the southern suburbs. Finally, the commander Li Chong offered the sacrifice to complete the final offering. Led by Li Chong, the entire army swore to march out.
Su Ze was the Lieutenant General of the Xingtai, but he was also the captain of the Tunqi Battalion. The Tunqi Battalion was the first to set out as the vanguard. Looking back at the towering Luoyang City, Su Ze looked at the central army again.
The central army was escorting not only the commander-in-chief Li Chong, but also a wedding team, which was the team that escorted Princess Shouyang to the grassland for marriage.
Because according to the order of Empress Dowager Hu, Princess Shouyang had to go to the Rouran royal court before she could officially marry the Rouran King, so Li Chong arranged the Rouran King to be by his side. In name, it was naturally to "protect" him, but in fact it was also to control the other party.
Before going on the expedition, Su Ze saw the Rouran King from afar. Despite being imprisoned for many days, he did not look haggard. He still had that warm smile on his face, but he looked much more serious.
Su Ze would never take Anagui lightly. Although there is not much historical data about him, he was also a ruthless character.
Anagui was able to unify the already divided Rouran and Gaoche, and was still the dominant ruler in the north from the end of the Northern Wei Dynasty to the Northern Qi and Western Wei Dynasties. He possessed the resilience unique to all grassland warlords - he would give in when the enemy was strong, and show his fangs when the enemy was weak.
His current state is just that he is temporarily dormant, but Anagui has moved into Li Chong's tent, so it would be difficult to assassinate him.
It was impossible near Luoyang, so Su Ze planned to wait until the army arrived in the northern border before taking action.
-
Huaishuo.
Gao Huan was riding a horse, followed by Sima Ziru. They were about to reach his hometown, and Gao Huan was getting excited.
However, the journey became increasingly dangerous. Gao Huan encountered Rouran cavalry several times. If he encountered a small group, he and his companions would go up to hunt them. If he encountered a large group, he would take a detour.
The two set out from Pingcheng, and all they saw were ruined grasslands. The lower classes of the six towns were small tribes that half farmed and half grazed near the town. These tribes could not defeat the Rouran cavalry at all. Burnt tents and fallen bodies of men could be seen everywhere. As for women and children, they were all forced into the team by the Rouran people. When the Rouran people retreated, if they could return to the grassland alive, they would become slaves and population of these Rouran tribes. If they died on the way, their bodies would be thrown into the wasteland.
Although Gao Huan was a Han Chinese, he came from a lower class background. His ancestors were exiled to the border because of crimes. When he was a child, Gao Huan often traveled among the tribes around Huaishuo Town and could even call out the names of many of them.
Seeing the miserable conditions of these tribes, Gao Huan became even more worried about the safety of Huaishuo City. He forced himself to cheer up, as his wife Lou Zhaojun was still waiting for him in the city.
However, it was already late today, and it would be dangerous if they encountered the Rouran people if they continued on their journey. At Sima Ziru's strong request, Gao Huan decided to rest outside the city for one night and return to Huaishuo City tomorrow.
The group didn't even dare to light a bonfire, for fear of attracting the attention of the Rouran people wandering outside the city. Gao Huan wrapped himself in a blanket and huddled together with Sima Ziru, talking about what he had seen and heard in Luoyang.
"He Liuhun, is Brother Su really that powerful?"
Gao Huan curled up in the blanket and said, "Brother Su is the person I admire most in my life."
Sima Ziru said, "Isn't it General Heba that you admire most in your life?"
"That was in the past, now it's Brother Su!"
Sima Ziru naturally knew Gao Huan's temper. This good friend was quite capable, but he was always unstable in doing things.
Logically speaking, Gao Huan married a daughter of the Lou family, which was a prominent family in Pingcheng and could help Gao Huan in his official career. However, after the marriage, Gao Huan only managed to get a job as a courier between the Six Garrisons and Luoyang. He often took the opportunity to travel to Luoyang to sell private horses, or stayed in Luoyang to be lazy and enjoy himself. He also had a bad reputation in Huaishuo Town.
The only people who had contact with Gao Huan were middle and low-level military officials like Sima Ziru. Only his wife Lou Zhaojun stayed with him and never left him. She went from being a rich girl in Pingcheng to a military household wife in Huaishuo. When Gao Huan went to Luoyang to deliver a letter, she stayed in Huaishuo Town to take care of the housework.
Sima Ziru also wanted to ease Gao Huan's tension, so after the atmosphere relaxed, he said:
"He Liuhun, the town is safe, and my sister-in-law is fine at home."
Gao Huan sighed and said, "I know that with the ability of Heba Junzhu, Huaishuo Town will be safe, but if the Rouran people continue to plunder, I don't know how many people will starve to death this autumn and winter."
Sima Ziru also fell silent. Even if the tribes that were looted now survived, they would not be able to survive the coming winter in the north. By then, the scene of the townspeople gathering in the town to ask for food would happen again.
Sima Ziru was the one who saved the trouble in Huaishuo Town. He had witnessed with his own eyes the previous few times when the townspeople asked for food. Fortunately, the Huaishuo Town Commander Yang Jun was a capable commander who could control the situation and squeeze out some food to appease the townspeople.
Sima Ziru heard in Pingcheng that in Huaihuang Town, there had been several conflicts, and blood had even been shed on some occasions, because the town commander refused to open the granaries to provide relief to the townspeople.
Gao Huan looked in the dark towards the direction of Huaishuo Town. He told Sima Ziru about the Yulin Rebellion he had seen in Luoyang. After he finished speaking, Gao Huan suddenly asked, "Ziru, do you think the people in our six towns are similar to the Yulin?"
Sima Ziru was startled when he saw Gao Huan's bright eyes in the night. He wanted to refute Gao Huan's words, but in the end he could not give a reason to refute.
Gao Huan added: "After I come back this time and the Rouran retreat, I will spend all my wealth to make friends with the tribal leaders around Huaishuo, and also seek a military position in the town."
If Sima Ziru had heard Gao Huan say this before, he would only be happy for his friend. But now, after listening to Gao Huan's description of the situation in Luoyang, Sima Ziru fell into confusion and worry about the future.
This also reflects the difference between Sima Ziru and Gao Huan.
After seeing the situation clearly, Gao Huan was able to stick to his ideas without hesitation, but Sima Ziru thought more than Gao Huan and hesitated more.
In history, Sima Ziru had the same dilemma. On the one hand, he served as an important official in Gao Huan's group, but on the other hand, he still had feelings for the Northern Wei Dynasty. His ending was similar to that of Xun Yu of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period.
The two of them had their own thoughts. As soon as dawn broke the next day, Gao Huan and Sima Ziru and their group crawled out of their blankets and continued on their way to Huaishuo Town.
Just when they saw the city wall of Huaishuo Town, the two men saw a group of Rouran cavalrymen chasing a lone rider. The rider on the horse looked very young. He was calm and composed in the face of the pursuing cavalrymen. He turned back from time to time and shot arrows. Every arrow he shot could knock a Rouran cavalryman off his horse.
Gao Huan and Sima Ziru saw the extraordinary bearing of this young rider and rushed out with their men, immediately dispersing the pursuing Rouran cavalry.
When Gao Huan saw the rider, he was younger than he had imagined, probably only fifteen or sixteen years old. He was clearly being chased by a group of Rouran cavalry, but his clothes were not messy, only his hat was crooked. He had an outstanding appearance, and the crooked hat reminded people of the unruly celebrities of the Wei and Jin Dynasties, showing a unique temperament.
Gao Huan also gained a lot of knowledge in Luoyang and met many influential figures, but when he saw this young man, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly that there was such a person in the Six Garrisons.
"I am Dugu Ruyuan, and I am following the orders of the commander of Wuchuan Town to ask for help from Governor Yang!"
It turns out he is from Wuchuan.
But why did the people of Wuchuan send such a young boy to ask for help?
Dugu Ruyuan clasped his fists and said, "We were chased by the Rouran people just after we left Wuchuan. I was the only one who broke through. Are you two from Huaishuo? Can you take me to see Commander Yang?"
Looking at the bloodstains on Dugu Ruyuan’s clothes, one could tell how dangerous this breakout battle was, but he had a calm demeanor and it was obvious at first glance that he was not an ordinary person.
Gao Huan and Sima Ziru looked at each other, then said, "We are about to return to Huaishuo. Come with us."
Although the Six Garrisons are collectively referred to as the Six Garrisons, they are actually divided into defense zones.
Woye, Huaishuo and Wuchuan are the three western towns, with Huaishuo as the governor's town. Yang Jun, the commander of Huaishuo town, is also the governor of the three towns.
Fuming, Rouxuan and Huaihuang are the three eastern towns, with Rouxuan as the commander-in-chief, and Rouxuan will be the commander-in-chief of the three towns.
Since Wuchuan was besieged, it would naturally send people to ask Huaishuo for help first.
Gao Huan also knew that the military commander Yang Jun, the commander of Wuchuan, relied on a general named Heba Duba, who was transferred from Wuchuan to Huaishuo by Yang Jun. Heba Duba and his three sons Heba Yun, Heba Sheng, and Heba Yue were all brave and good at fighting, and were very famous in Wuchuan and Huaishuo.
In fact, the Six Eastern and Western Garrisons form a very long geographical area, but they have long been treated as a whole and have been discriminated against and excluded by the high-ranking officials of the Northern Wei Dynasty. They have also encountered the same survival difficulties, so they have been able to watch out for each other and help each other.
Wuchuan and Huaishuo are not far from each other. Gao Huan and Sima Ziru took Dugu Ruyuan and immediately headed towards Huaishuo town.
We are about to reach Liuzhen!
(End of this chapter)