Xu Wenkai finally met Yang Yanzong on the Jin River.

No matter whether it was the new emperor Ji Zimu, or the generals under his command, or the important officials in the court, they would not allow him to go deep into the enemy camp alone.

Finally, the location was decided to be in the middle of the Jinshui River, where the two armies met. Xu Wenkai personally wrote a letter of appointment, and Yang Yanzong agreed.

This was the last day of late spring. The sky was a little cloudy, with drizzling rain, and the Jinshui River was covered with fog. At 9 o'clock in the morning, a two-story red-painted boat came out from the fork of a tributary with lush aquatic plants on the opposite bank. It came slowly and sailed to the middle of the river, where it stopped sideways.

Xu Wenkai took big steps, and the two bodyguards behind him followed closely and jumped onto the boat after him.

As for the other generals, personal soldiers, archers, etc. on the shore, everyone looked nervous and immediately pulled their bowstrings tight, guarding against any tricks by the enemy.

For today's meeting, rows of archers were deployed along both sides of the river, aiming at the other side of the river. The Jin River is very wide, so the arrows cannot reach the other side, but they can reach the center of the river.

It’s no wonder that Daqing is nervous, after all, the ship belongs to Yang Yanzong.

However, Xu Wenkai, the person involved, did not show any fear. He has been a soldier for half his life, and has fought against the Northern Rong countless times in wind and rain. This is not the first time he has taken risks alone. He does not mind taking risks, as long as the value is worth taking the risk, he will always take it without hesitation.

What occupied Xu Wenkai's mind at the moment was the content and outcome of the upcoming meeting.

The small boat cut through the water and slowly sailed towards the red boat. From afar, Xu Wenkai jumped onto the deck, while the two bodyguards were left on the boat. Although they knew that this was an agreed agreement, the people on the shore in Daqing suddenly became tense.

The bowstrings made a "clacking" sound and the soldiers' palms were sweating.

But in fact, the atmosphere on the ship was not as tense as they had imagined.

Yang Yanzong and Xu Wenkai were old friends. They were familiar with each other in the past and were not strangers now. Yang Yanzong did not even kill Xu Liulang who was captured in the battle, so he would not plan to kill Xu Wenkai.

When two armies are fighting, they do not kill envoys. Since Xu Wenkai asked for a meeting openly, he also accepted the invitation in an upright manner.

On the huge red boat, Yang Yanzong sat behind a large nanmu desk in the study, which was separated from the deck by a main hall and two layers of curtains. Xu Wenkai pursed his lips and followed Akang, who was leading the way, and walked around the curtains into the main hall and then into the study.

In the study, a long candle was lit. Behind Yang Yanzong was a row of huge windows. The summer gauze was thin and transparent. Behind him was a bright skylight, but his face was not dim. The same bright candlelight shone on his face. His nose was high and his eyebrows were handsome. He smiled slightly: "Meng Yuan, long time no see."

One of the two men was sitting and the other was standing, both wearing heavy armor. Xu Wenkai was also clean and tidy, but compared to Yang Yanzong's high spirits and lightness, Xu Wenkai had an lingering smell of gunpowder.

Xu Wenkai snorted coldly. Yang Yanzong had become a traitor, so naturally he disliked everything about him.

However, Yang Yanzong's attitude was not harsh, which made him feel a little relieved.

He really hoped that Yang Yanzong would not change.

However, Xu Wenkai just sat down and he immediately became unhappy.

He lifted the hem of his armor and sat down on the armchair opposite Yang Yanzong's desk. With a quick glance, he found a printed silk book lying on the clean desk.

——This is obviously for him to see.

Xu Wenkai took a closer look and was immediately furious. This was none other than the edict of granting land that Ji Zimu had signed earlier.

Xu Wenkai's face flushed red with anger, then turned black in an instant. He was not stupid. Even though Yang Yanzong didn't say anything, he immediately guessed what was going on. He was so angry that his eyes turned black.

His face turned red and black for a while, and he pushed the thing over there: "Why are you showing this to me? I have no right to decide!!"

Showing it to you is, of course, to prove the authenticity of the thing.

Ji Zimu has ascended the throne now, so it's time to legalize it. Even if Daqing doesn't recognize it, having this thing won't prevent them from sticking to their own opinions.

Ji Zimu ascended the throne in front of the coffin, but the coronation ceremony has not been held yet. However, Yang Yanzong is not afraid that he will be overthrown again. Anyway, the court must rely on force to recover the lost territory. No matter what, Ji Zimu is more suitable than Ji Zili and Ji Ziying. After Xu Wenkai was angry, he could only grit his teeth and continue to insist on him.

"Stop talking nonsense!"

Xu Wenkai cursed: "I didn't come here today to talk to you about this."

Yang Yanzong raised his eyebrows: "I would like to hear the details."

Now came the main topic. The latter's face became serious, Xu Wenkai's voice also became deep, and the atmosphere in the study changed immediately.

"The Northern Rong have invaded the border. You should have received the news, right?"

The Northern Rong also had ill intentions. They divided their troops into four groups and headed straight for the northern border and the northeast, but did not touch the northwest at all. It was clear that they wanted to attack Yang Yanzong from both sides.

Xu Wenkai looked solemn and said in a deep voice, "The military situation in the northern border is critical and we need reinforcements urgently. Ji Lin in the south of the Yangtze River is ready to move, so the troops over there cannot be moved."

Daqing absolutely cannot withstand a war on three fronts, so Ji Lin must intimidate and suppress it at this moment.

Xu Wenkai closed his eyes and opened them again: "I know you are good at fighting. Once the garrison on the north bank is withdrawn, it will be a great opportunity for you."

"But if you refuse to cease fire, the North Bank Camp can only dispatch 100,000 elite soldiers at most."

For the Daqing court, there are enemies on both sides. They absolutely cannot fall into such a crisis situation where they are attacked from both sides.

But one hundred thousand troops are not enough to be sent to the northern border. One hundred and fifty thousand is the minimum reinforcement.

"I don't think I need to tell you all this, you know it very well."

Xu Wenkai looked at Yang Yanzong steadily and said, "This time, your majesty and the civil and military officials tried their best to stop me from coming, but I still insisted on coming."

"You have been stationed at the border to fight against the enemy for many years. You should know what kind of life the Han people outside the Great Wall live."

"Once the country's gates are opened, the people will suffer, the Han Dynasty will no longer exist, and the country will be shattered."

It is different from their current civil war. After all, their current civil war is just a war between soldiers, and both sides have tacitly agreed not to touch ordinary people.

And in the final analysis, they are all from the same pot. The Ji family of Daqing is Han Chinese, Xu Wenkai and all the civil and military officials in the court are Han Chinese, and Yang Yanzong is also Han Chinese.

This is different from being broken through by foreign invaders. In history, whenever foreign invaders successfully broke through the pass and occupied the land, it was definitely a devastating disaster for the Han people in the Central Plains.

"I don't ask you to join me in sending troops north to fight the enemy," Xu Wenkai said, as this was impossible to implement under the current circumstances. "I only ask you to give up the fight and withdraw your troops for the sake of the foreign invaders outside the pass and the people inside the pass!"

This conversation didn't last too long. We had said everything that needed to be said and there was no point in saying more.

Before leaving, Xu Wenkai took out a letter from his arms, placed it on the desk, turned around and left quickly.

…

The wind blew away the dark clouds, and the sky became brighter. The long-burning candle next to the large desk was blown by the breeze and kept flickering.

Yang Yanzong stared at the letter for a while, then reached out and took it.

——The handwriting on this letter is very familiar, and the edge of the envelope is also frayed, obviously it has been often stroked by the preserver in remembrance, but the wax seal and sealing wax have never been opened. There are four large characters "Yang Shenxing, Qi" written in iron-stroked strokes. The strokes are a bit weak from long-term illness, but the style is still there.

This is a letter General Xu wrote to the future Yang Yanzong before his death, and left it for Xu Wenkai to keep temporarily.

——General Xu had no choice but to push Ji Yuanhao to the throne before his death, but he was still worried that the future situation would eventually go in the direction he was most worried about.

Unable to close his eyes before his death, he finally wrote this letter and gave it to Xu Wenkai for safekeeping.

Yang Yanzong opened the letter, which was also written by General Xu, but to his surprise, there was not a single word about loyalty to the emperor and the country.

——In the letter, General Xu recalled the first time he met the young Yang Yanzong. He admired Yang Yanzong very much back then. Yang Yanzong also had an outstanding and stunning performance in the joint fight against the invaders by the western and northern armies. General Xu carefully recalled the battle of that year, from the beginning, the turning point, to the end, all kinds of details. Then he talked about Yang Yanzong's military exploits over the years, as well as his own hatred for the cruel treatment of Han people by the Northern Rong during his many years of fighting with them.

He told the story slowly and finally said one last sentence to Yang Yanzong, "Since the beginning of the Yanhuang Dynasty, the dynasties have risen and fallen, and have continued to this day. The Qin Emperor and Han Wudi did not last forever, and the Ji family is probably the same. I only hope that you will not forget the ambition of 'not allowing the Hu horse to cross the Yinshan Mountain'. We, the Han people, have a great land and rivers, and we must not lose them to the iron hoofs of the northern barbarians, otherwise the people will wither, the lives of the people will be charred, and the mountains and rivers will be stained with blood..."

General Xu not only did not impose his own ideas on Yang Yanzong, but he was very open-minded. Dynasties rise and fall, and that was how the Ji family came to power. If Yang Yanzong really took this step, he would have nothing to say. He only hoped that he would remember that no matter how they fought, they should not Don't forget to not let foreign invaders enter the pass.

This old man was so admirable throughout his life.

Yang Yanzong sighed lightly, folded the letter, put it back in the drawer.

He sat for a while, then stood up and summoned Li Shengen, Jiang Qingping, Yang Yanzhen, Cai Yinghua and other military and civil officials, and threw Ji Zimu's edict to them, "According to this, there is also the half of Jiangling under our feet, with Jinshui as the boundary. Let the court send people over. They are not allowed to take the initiative to send troops within ten years!"

"Go ahead."

"yes!"

Li Shengen and others took the imperial edict and knelt down in response.

In fact, they also received the news that Beirong had invaded the border. Everyone was quite conflicted. It was clear what Beirong was planning. If they didn't fight, they would suffer a loss; if they fought, they would feel uncomfortable.

Now that they had received Yang Yanzong's clear instructions, everyone looked at each other and felt relieved at the same time.

Li Shengen and the others raised their heads and said in unison: "Master is so righteous!!"

The voices were quite loud and everyone was quite emotional. It was obvious that although they felt regretful, they were also quite willing to do it.

Yang Yanzong said angrily: "Okay, let's go back."

"yes!"

Everyone scratched their heads, shrugged their shoulders, and then smiled.

…

The boat broke through the water and returned to the Jinnan camp. After all the generals had left and only he and Su Ci were left, Yang Yanzong spoke.

“After all, I am a Han Chinese.”

He said so.

After more than ten years of fighting, some things are engraved in my bones.

Besides this, there is another more important reason. Only when the two of them were alone, facing Su Ci, did Yang Yanzong reveal all his true thoughts.

He let out a long breath, "Daqing is not doomed after all."

"If I continue to attack, I may be able to take down half of the country, but the casualties will be huge."

It was far greater than expected at the moment. At least half of the veterans who had followed him for many years had died.

Yang Yanzong always thought three steps ahead. Although he had the upper hand in the previous battle, he could say with certainty that things would not be so easy again once the imperial court gained a firm foothold and re-established its defenses.

——The emperor's death will create a golden opportunity for war, which will never come again.

After all, Daqing is a country with all its strength, which is different from the situation when Yang Yanzong first established the southwest and northwest. The former now has a military force of about 500,000. Even if 150,000 are transferred away, there are still 300,000. Yang Yanzong now has more than 300,000 soldiers under his command.

Although Yang Yanzong was quite confident of winning if he continued the fight, he was also well aware that the casualties would be extremely huge.

Daqing's luck has not yet ended. Even though the emperor is not very good, he still has a group of loyal ministers and generals headed by Xu Wenkai. They are usually unwilling to participate in party struggles and stay out of the spotlight, but once the enemy is at the gates, they are willing to sacrifice their lives for Daqing.

The next battle will not be so easy. In his camp, everyone is actually a little too optimistic.

Yang Yanzong was very sober.

Yang Yanzong was unwilling to exchange half of the country, which was about one-third more territory than it has now, for heavy casualties of soldiers who had loyally followed him for many years.

"They entrusted their lives to me, so I should treasure them."

This was taught to him by an old veteran when he was fourteen years old and was promoted to captain for the first time for his military merits.

Over the past decade, Yang Yanzong has never forgotten these words.

When he was appointed a general at a young age and waved his sword to charge forward for the first time, he shouted: "Soldiers, your parents are my parents; your children are my children. If you die in battle, I will take care of you!!!"

So from the very beginning, he has done his best to provide relief and care for the soldiers under his command who died in battle, and this continues to this day.

Behind an ordinary soldier, there is often a family. They have followed him for many years and fought for him. Yang Yanzong said: "My achievements, my name in history, and some opportunities should not be exchanged for the lives of the soldiers."

He pulled her together to look down at the surging water in the distance, the endless imperial camp on the opposite bank, and the neatly organized faces of the young and middle-aged men on their own side, some familiar and some unfamiliar.

The river breeze was sharp, and his bright red cloak fluttered in the wind. A ray of sunlight poured down and fell on his deep, straight face.

Su Ci looked at him without blinking, as if she had only truly known him today.

This man.

Yang Yanzong tilted his head, she was staring at him, he collected his thoughts, looked back at her, and smiled: "Isn't this a little funny?"

It is said that those who achieve great things do not pay attention to trivial matters. Do you think he is old-fashioned?

"No."

Su Ci shook her head and glared at him: "No way!"

Can you please stop misinterpreting me?

After giving him a sidelong glance, Su Ci suppressed her anger and said seriously, "You are very good, really very good."

She looked up at the man and felt that he was taller and more handsome than ever before.

She said softly: "This is a blessing for the Han people."

"It is a blessing for all the soldiers in the army."

"It's my luck."

No one knew better than Su Ci how huge the expense was to provide pensions and support for the disabled soldiers and the families of fallen soldiers over the years. But even in the most difficult times of the past, Yang Yanzong never reduced spending in this area. He would rather take the risk to increase revenue and never shirked his responsibility.

Su Ci suddenly remembered a saying: the higher the position, the greater the responsibility.

Yang Yanzong deserves this sentence.

He may not be a good person and there are many things that people criticize him for, but he can definitely be called a heroic leader. Su Ci can fully believe that he will be able to protect the people in the future.

With his strong arms, he holds up a sky for the people behind him.

Including her, the children, his father and brothers, all the soldiers under his command, and the people under his rule in the future.

Such a man is so outstanding and wonderful that people can't take their eyes off him.

Su Ci actually always knew that he was very responsible, but she had never seen it as clearly as today. At this moment, she sincerely admired and respected him.

He is really awesome!