Salihe was stunned, his face gradually turned red, but he just said nothing.

Emperor Zhao also lost interest at this time. He just waved his hand and someone took him away. Countless officials then carried out what Emperor Zhao said.

However, this matter was just a minor episode and did not seem worth mentioning in the great cause of the Northern Expedition.

In fact, Han Shizhong, the Prince of Yan'an, who was also near Taiyuan City, Li Yanxian, the commander-in-chief of the imperial camp, Ma Kuo who was in charge of supervising the logistics camps of the entire army, and even President Wang Yan, the chief of staff accompanying Emperor Zhao, the so-called high-level generals, almost none of them came to watch the fun... and Zhao Jiu knew what they were busy with.

Moreover, from the overall perspective, Salihe's handling of the matter is not as meaningful as the fall of Xihe City.

The fall of Xihe City meant that the Song army, at least the Hedong front army, no longer had a large Jin stronghold or a complete Jin army to maintain its combat effectiveness. Because of this, the logistics line from Henan to Taiyuan was completely worry-free, and the main force of the Song army in Hedong was able to calmly gather in the Taiyuan Basin... The fact that Niu Gao and Dong Xian, two generals who gradually emerged in this Northern Expedition, gathered here with Salihe was a clear proof.

At the same time, considering that Datong in the north has been opened, and the north and south of Yanmen Mountain and the front and back of Hutuo River have all fallen into the hands of the Song army, it can be said that Jundu Xing, Puyin Xing, and Feihu Xing are also in the hands of the Song army. Even with the advancement of Longde Prefecture, Fukou Xing should be about to fall into or has already fallen into the hands of the Song army... The strategic significance of the Jin army's control of Jingxing is constantly weakening.

This seems to have been verified based on the intelligence that Yelu Ma Wu at the front showed signs of withdrawing his troops.

It can only be said that the Black Dragon King won despite his defeat at Pingxing Village, but it cannot be said that his military deployment there was worthless in itself.

In short, logistics have been restored, troops have been regrouped, and the enemy's control over the most important military passages has fallen into a somewhat helpless situation. At this time, the necessity of the next military action has become apparent.

The only thing to worry about is Emperor Zhao's decision.

Many people speculated that several generals would probably wait until the Lantern Festival was over before joining forces to request war and urge Emperor Zhao to send troops... In any case, as one of the most important festivals in the Song Dynasty, they could always wait for just one day.

“Are you going to make dumplings?”

On the day of the Lantern Festival, Emperor Zhao did not stay in the city, nor did he go to the bank of the Fen River to read the newspaper or fish to avoid the danger. Instead, he took the rare opportunity to inspect the military camp, and after a brief tour, he decided to make the kitchen camp his main destination.

As for Li Yanxian and Ma Kuo, their relevant levels might be a little higher, but they had limited time to spend with Emperor Zhao in private, and to some extent they were quite proud, so at this moment they also felt their scalps tingling and their faces stiff.

"So that the officials know."

The poor kitchen camp had hundreds of cooks and thousands of auxiliary civilians. They were already dumbfounded when Zhao Guanjia, dressed in plain robes, led hundreds of civil and military dignitaries in gorgeous clothes and shining armor. At this time, several cooks who were watching the chopping of stuffing were questioned in person, and they were even more stunned and speechless, forcing the flat-headed monk Dahui, who was helping to collect the pig blood, to come over and join in the conversation. "Isn't this the Lantern Festival? General Manager Ma has a military order to release some meat in the warehouse as a snack... This is making dumplings."

Zhao Jiu didn't recognize the other person at all. He just thought he was the smart manager in the cook camp, so he nodded slightly, but soon shook his head again and again.

Monk Dahui was quite knowledgeable. He had been chatting and laughing with the emperor at Phoenix Mountain in Hangzhou. Seeing this reaction, he just did nothing. Ma Kuo was a little flustered and hurriedly turned around and bowed: "Excuse me, emperor, is there anything wrong?"

“It is indeed inappropriate.”

Zhao Jiu was somewhat helpless. "How can we eat dumplings during the Lantern Festival? During the Chinese New Year, don't northern dumplings and southern rice cakes come out together?"

"Your Majesty is right." Ma Kuo was relieved, but helpless. "But in such a hurry, and in the military camp, I really don't know how to follow the customs..."

"How about launching a hot air balloon?" Han Shizhong, who was extremely bored, suddenly interrupted from behind, patting his belt.

Everyone was speechless and turned around to look.

Even though it was Han Wu who was being splashed with water decades ago, he still felt a little embarrassed at this moment and could only look on awkwardly.

However, Emperor Zhao, who was standing in front of a pile of stuffing, thought about it and nodded: "Yes, and we can also hang some big words under the hot air balloon... Liangchen will do it himself!"

Han Shizhong was stunned on the spot, and after a while he came to his senses and asked again: "Do you want me to write a poem as a lantern riddle?"

"How can you write a poem or riddle?" Zhao Jiu turned back and was speechless. "There are so many words in the poem or riddle. If you write it small, it's not clear. If you write it big, it won't hang up. I remember there are eight hot air balloons in the camp. They will all fly up today. You can write eight big words... Happy Lantern Festival, good luck to the world... Write it on a big wooden board. It must be neat and stable. It must be as big as a bucket!"

Po Han Wu traveled far and wide, dominated the world, and claimed to be the best in the world, but at this time he could only nod blankly, then turned around and left to work as a laborer.

Emperor Zhao turned back to talk to the cooks and stewards again: "Let's continue. I'm not saying dumplings are bad. I'm talking about customs... Why do I remember eating floating dumplings and noodles during the Lantern Festival?"

"So that the emperor knows." At this time, Ma Kuo was helpless and appeared again. "According to the custom, it is indeed so, but today the army cannot do this, because the rewards in the army must be realistic. If there is meat, it must be given, and it cannot be spread out. It must be seen with the eyes... Floating dumplings are sweet fillings, it is not easy to put meat... Putting meat in noodles, the soldiers can't see how much meat other people have in their bowls, and they will be suspicious."

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