Chapter 4209: Pressing for Position
Hangu Pass was first built in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty and was repeatedly abandoned. During the Warring States Period, King Qin Hui seized the land of Weihan from Wei and re-established Hangu Pass to shield the east and west. Hangu Pass is located on the plateau in the west, bordering Juejian in the east, Qinling Mountains in the south, and the Yellow River in the north. It is located on the ancient road between the two capitals, close to the bank of the Yellow River, and is closed in the valley. It is as deep and dangerous as Han. It leads to Luoyang in the east and Chang'an in the west. The throat has been a battleground for military strategists from ancient times to the present.
Groups of soldiers and horses crossed the mountain stream from west to east and arrived here, stationed at the city gate.
Qiu Xinggong put on his helmet and armor, rode with Yu Wenshi and directly to the city gate. When the guards greeted him, he got off his horse and asked his soldiers to hand over the official document from the King of Jin ordering him to take over Hangu Pass. After it was verified to be correct, the whole army entered. Guan took over the defense. Qiu Xinggong, Yu Wenshi and dozens of soldiers boarded Guan City, stood on the tower, and looked around.
It was already late autumn at that time, and the city gate was located in the Han Valley. The mountains on both sides were steep and continuous, undulating like waves, the trees were green and dyed, the autumn wind was rustling, and the wild geese were chirping in the sky.
The terrain is steep, and one man can guard the pass, but ten thousand men cannot open it.
Yu Wenshiji sighed: "Such a majestic pass can isolate the east and west and shield the two capitals. However, from ancient times to the present, breaches of the pass have been common. It can be seen that although the city of Guan is majestic, the defense against enemies depends on people, not on the pass."
As for the majestic Guancheng, it always needs people to defend it. If the army is not strong and the morale is not high, it will be nothing more than a pile of bricks and rubble, and it will be difficult to withstand the enemy's offensive.
Qiu Xinggong held the sword on his waist with one hand, looked at the rolling mountains in the distance with sharp eyes, and said in a deep voice: "Don't worry, Duke Ying, I will defend Guancheng until the moment you convince Zheng Rentai to come to support, if If the enemy dares to come, they will not retreat even if blood is spilled here.”
Tongguan Hedgehog gathered an army of more than 100,000, but they lacked elite troops, let alone senior generals who could take charge of their own affairs. On Li Zhi's order, Yu Wenshiji rushed to Xingyang to lobby Zheng Rentai. On the one hand, he asked Zheng Rentai to come to guard Hangu Pass, and on the other hand, he also Able to tie the Zheng family of Xingyang to the King of Jin's chariot.
Master Yuwen held the arrow stack with his hand, looked at the mountains and mountains in front of him, and explained: "It's not that His Highness doesn't trust you to guard Hangu Pass, but that His Highness needs you more to charge forward and lead the army to counterattack Chang'an. I'm going here, Even if Zheng Rentai can be persuaded to come back, the Zheng family in Xingyang may not be willing to face Chang'an directly. On the contrary, he will spare no effort to guard Hangu Pass. "
Nowadays, the Shandong aristocratic family and the Jin Dynasty are integrated into each other and advance and retreat together, but how can Yuwen Shiji not know the way of life of the aristocratic family? Even if there is no gap in the alliance, it will leave a way out and will never fight against the enemy.
Qiu Xinggong smiled and said loudly: "Don't worry, Lord Ying, the reason why I defected to the King of Jin is neither for wealth nor for power. I just hope that I can lead the army directly to Chang'an and have the opportunity to fight against the traitor Fang Jun again." Let’s fight to the death! If Your Highness really wants me to defend Hangu Pass, I won’t do it!”
"Haha, good! You are worthy of being my son from Guanlong. He is full of spirit and has a heart as high as the sky. I feel relieved and rush to Xingyang. I will convince Zheng Rentai and block the enemy troops outside Hangu Pass!"
Yu Wenshiji laughed twice, exchanged salutes with Qiu Xinggong, and then descended from the city gate. With more than ten followers, he rode out of the gate and disappeared in the winding and steep Hangu Road.
Qiu Xinggong stood alone on the city tower, with a face as strong as iron as the mountain wind blew in.
*****
British government.
In the study, Li Ji and Fang Jun were sitting across from each other drinking. Li Yulong, who was dressed in plain white and had a slim figure but with a woman's bun. Holding a wooden tray, she walked in slowly and knelt down in front of the floor mat, her waist and hips curved. With a graceful and gentle smile, he placed several dishes of side dishes on the tray on the table one by one, then held the pot in his bare hands and poured wine for the two of them.
Looking at Fang Jun with sparkling eyes, he asked with a smile: "Brother seems to have lost weight recently, but he is too tired and has a poor diet? The sisters-in-law are really careless. Why don't we wait for my brother to go to the office tomorrow to be on duty, and my little sister will be stewed?" I’ll send you some supplements to replenish your health.”
Fang Jun did not refuse politely, and said calmly: "I have been really busy recently, so I would like to thank my sister first."
Seeing his promise, Li Yulong immediately beamed with joy, used serving chopsticks to put food on Fang Jun's plate, and said with a smile: "Brother, try this shredded white chicken. The recipe came from Jiangnan. My little sister pondered it for a long time before finally getting it right." Taste, I will cook it myself today.”
Li Ji's face was not very good, he coughed dryly, glanced at his daughter, and said calmly: "Erlang hasn't been here for a long time, and he happened to say something today. It's important to have a military aircraft. It's not good for it to fall into the ears of others."
Such an obvious intention to drive away made Li Yulong very dissatisfied, but it was not convenient for him to stay for a long time. He had to look at his father angrily and smiled sweetly at Fang Jun: "Brother, let's have a drink with father, and the younger sister will boil water later." I’ll make you some tea.”
In front of Li Ji, Fang Jun was also a little embarrassed by the girl's enthusiasm and said with a smile: "That's it, thank you sister."
Li Yulong smiled sweetly, stood up and retreated.
After he left, Li Ji raised his glass, Fang Jun hurriedly raised his glass and clinked their glasses together, and they drank it all in one gulp.
Fang Jun filled the wine glass with the pot and asked: "Military and national events are important, but sister Yulong's life events cannot be delayed. I wonder if uncle has any plans?"
Although Li Yulong had already reconciled with Du Huaigong, Du Huaigong died in Du Ling Manor, which had some impact on Li Yulong's reputation. She was also a divorced woman, so it was difficult to find a marriage. Li Ji has great prestige and power. There are countless people who want to cling to power. Those who are willing to marry his woman are naturally like a crucian carp crossing the river. However, it is difficult for a truly good family with a dignified family tradition and an outstanding son with a pure temperament to agree to this. Family affairs.
Li Ji was speechless and said impatiently: "You don't need to care about this matter, I will take it to heart."
Fang Jun simply shut up and toasted.
It is impossible for him to know nothing about Li Yulong's affection for him, but he only treats her as a sister without any filthy intentions. The more he cares about Li Yulong's marriage, the more Li Ji feels that he has bad intentions...
The two drank a few glasses of wine, ate side dishes, and chatted about insignificant things. As they were talking, Li Ji suddenly sighed and said, "I think back then, you and Siwen and others were rampant in Chang'an and were lawless. They were even called ' Chang'an pests', those censors I wish I could skin you and do harm to the people, but in the blink of an eye, within a few years, you would already be wearing a purple robe and serve as my minister, with great authority and outstanding military exploits. It is really impressive. Unbelievable.”
The more noisy a child is, the more promising he or she will be. This is an old saying, and it has some truth to it.
Noisy children tend to be quick-thinking, bold, and better at handling things. Once they take the right path, their abilities are generally higher than those who are usually obedient and follow the rules.
But like Fang Jun, growing up from a reckless and uneducated playboy to an important minister in the court is really shocking.
This child seemed to be possessed by something, suddenly enlightened...
Fang Jun said modestly: "My nephew used to be absurd, lazy and wanton. Fortunately, the late emperor and his uncles took care of him, so he was able to correct his evil ways and do something beneficial to the court and the world. I have made a little effort. Every time I think about it, I know I am lucky, but I am very grateful.”
In the early Tang Dynasty, the atmosphere in the court was indeed extremely harmonious.
All the Zhenguan ministers followed His Majesty Li Er to conquer the world, and fought against the odds to seize the throne. They achieved unparalleled achievements and were granted the title of wife, son, and wealth. Naturally, there was some turmoil between them due to the competition for interests, but His Majesty Li Er, with his strong leadership, came to the rescue, and everyone's fights were often stopped, and they would not become unrelenting enemies.
In addition, they should be tolerant of each other's nephews. Otherwise, Fang Jun would seriously injure the descendants of the ministers today, and beat the princes and princes tomorrow... one by one, one by one, who could tolerate him?
Li Ji drank and kept silent.
It is natural, but also inevitable, that the topic turns to His Majesty Li Er. Fang Jun came to visit the new emperor as soon as he ascended the throne, obviously on orders. Although he did not clarify Li Chengqian's original intention, he used this relatively gentle method to find out his position.
When Fang Jun saw that Li Ji was silent, he stopped beating around the bush and said bluntly: "Wen, uncle, you are Shangshu Zuopushe, the head of the dynasty's prime ministers and assistants, and the number one civil servant. In terms of martial arts, you have great military exploits and unparalleled reputation. It's appropriate." Military first Even Duke Wei was willing to accept the defeat. At that time, the imperial power was changing, the government was in turmoil, and the world was in turmoil. There were always wars and disasters in China, but I didn’t know how my uncle would deal with it. "
You are the head of the powerful ministers and have the ability to determine the world. How can you remain silent and stay out of the matter?
Others can watch the fire from the other side, but you cannot.
Now that the new emperor has ascended the throne and the dynasty has changed, you are still so indifferent and do nothing. Do you really not care about your wealth and life, let alone your reputation after death?
You need to take a stand. (End of chapter)