Chapter 175: Fire Falls from the Sky Fire Falls from the Sky
In the 26th year of the Xuanwu reign, a halo appeared around Yunzhou, making the day as dark as night. A loud thunderous sound emanated from the sky, and suddenly a large star, like a large moon, appeared outside Yunzhou City. Initially, there was only one star, but many more appeared, until the number of stars was countless.
After a while, there was a loud bang, and a large star fell. It was visible from far and near. The fire illuminated the sky and burned all the Xianbei tents.
The winter thunder roared and meteors fell continuously. The Xianbei were terrified and blew up their camp. Only one tenth of their 300,000-strong army survived.
General Meng Kun led his army out, shot the enemy with ambush, and returned with a great victory.
At that time the fire went out, and the ground was covered with small holes, not deep, and there was nothing there, and nothing could be seen.
The emperor was overjoyed and said, "God bless you."
This battle of attack and defense of Yunzhou was not very notable in history, and in the end it was only mentioned in a few records in history books. But for the Great Zhou, everything started with this border war.
No one knows how Prince Cheng and Su Fengzhang were able to call the wind and rain and make meteors fall from the sky. When they returned home exhausted, they were greeted by the sound of triumph.
"A Fang!" He Jun was covered in blood, with one hand tied with a white cloth. If he had been there earlier, he would have seen the deep wound that could be seen to the bone. But this could not stop his excitement at the moment, "We won!"
When Prince Cheng dismounted from his horse, he stumbled a little, and Su Fengzhang quickly helped him up to stop him.
Prince Cheng stood firm naturally and said with a smile, "Yes, we won."
He Jun couldn't help but step forward and give him a tight hug. At this moment, the blood under their feet had not been washed away, but their hearts were at peace because they had already won.
"Thanks to your brilliant strategy, we were able to win so smoothly." He Jun sighed from the bottom of his heart. Just now, when the fire fell from the sky, the Xianbei people became chaotic and fled in all directions.
Su Fengzhang said that gunpowder was not very lethal. In fact, not many people actually died from gunpowder, and it was even less than the number of people who trampled on each other. But at that moment, the Xianbei people were like rabbits running around in front of the soldiers of the Great Zhou.
Prince Cheng smiled and patted him on the back, saying, "This is all thanks to everyone."
"Why can't I see General Meng?" asked Prince Cheng. Given General Meng's temper, he should be cleaning up the aftermath with the Zhenbei Army at this time. Why hasn't he been seen all the way here?
He Jun's face darkened and he said, "General Meng was injured and has been taken back for treatment. Fortunately, his life is not in danger for the time being."
Prince Cheng frowned upon hearing this. Given Meng Kun's personality, he probably wouldn't go back easily if his injuries weren't serious.
Sure enough, when they hurried to the general's mansion, they saw Meng Kun lying on the bed with a pale face.
"Prince Cheng." Meng Kun propped himself up and said.
"General Meng, there's no need to be so polite." Prince Cheng walked over to the bed and sat down. Seeing the wound on his chest, he frowned slightly and asked, "General Meng, how is your injury now?"
Meng Kun's voice was full of energy: "I won't die."
Prince Cheng smiled and said, "Then I am relieved. Although the war is not over yet, the Xianbei are no longer a threat. General Meng can rest assured and recuperate without worrying too much."
Meng Kun laughed out loud, looked at the people in the room, and his eyes fell on Su Fengzhang: "I heard that this strategy was proposed by Lord Su. I didn't expect that Lord Su, a civil official, is also proficient in leading troops in battle."
Su Fengzhang said modestly, "I really don't know much about marching and fighting. This time it was just a fluke."
Meng Kun said, "It's no fluke that I was able to come up with this idea. Seeing you, I feel like I'm seeing Military Advisor Gu from back then. It's a pity that Military Advisor Gu died young. Otherwise..."
"Look at me, I'm old now and I like to tell old stories." Meng Kun stopped talking.
Several people present had heard of Military Advisor Gu's name, but there were many different opinions about the reason for his untimely death. The most widely circulated one was that Emperor Taizu was suspicious of talented people, which led to Military Advisor Gu's early death.
The four of them tacitly passed over the topic. In front of Meng Kun and Prince Cheng, He Jun reviewed the losses of the Zhenbei Army this time and finally said, "The list of the dead is already being compiled, and I will personally oversee the subsequent compensation."
Meng Kun was relieved after hearing this: "Your Majesty is from the He family. With you here, this general can rest assured."
Prince Cheng also assured: "Whether it is the dead Zhenbei Army or the surviving soldiers, they are all brave and skilled warriors who defend our country. This time, I will definitely ask my father to order a reward for the three armies."
Meng Kun smiled upon hearing this and added, "I'm afraid the Fourth Prince has already sent a message eight hundred miles away."
He Jun sneered and said, "That requires people to leave Yunzhou."
Prince Cheng's eyes fell on He Jun, who smiled and said, "Prince Cheng has been away these past few days, so he probably didn't know about this. The Fourth Prince attacked Lord Song Wei, accusing him of neglecting his duties, indulging in excessive military spending, and leading him to be captured by the Xianbei."
"From what the Fourth Prince said, it seems he suspects Lord Song of colluding with the Xianbei people and treason."
Obviously these words were alarmist, but the expressions of the four people present did not change at all. Or perhaps it could be said that after the war, Song Wei's fate was already determined.
Compared to him, who else holds such a coveted position, who else can control an army of 100,000? More importantly, in the eyes of the Fourth Prince, only Song Wei is qualified to be the scapegoat.
Meng Kun coughed and continued, "The Fourth Prince personally testified against Lord Song. Although I do not believe that Lord Song would collaborate with the enemy and betray the country, this matter is of great importance and is beyond our power to make a final conclusion."
"Because Lord Song might become desperate and use the Tiger Tally, I have no choice but to place him under house arrest in the General's Mansion. However, the Tiger Tally is still in his possession. Without the Emperor's order, I dare not make any decisions on my own."
With just a few words, Meng Kun seemed to be helping Song Wei to exonerate himself, but in fact he convicted him.
Prince Cheng sighed and said, "It should be so. If Lord Song is allowed to mobilize troops and refuse to plead guilty, wouldn't it cause civil unrest? The old general is very considerate."
When they came out of Meng Kun's room, Prince Cheng looked back at Su Fengzhang and said, "Sir Su, you must be tired after all the hard work these past few days. Why don't you go back and rest first?"
Su Fengzhang knew that he must have something else to do, so he nodded and said, "Then I will take my leave first. I hope Prince Cheng will also take some rest. After all, no one is made of iron."
Prince Cheng nodded, turned around and headed towards the Fourth Prince's courtyard.
On the other side, He Jun caught up with Su Fengzhang and asked, "Master Su, how did you manage to make the fire fall from the sky? Why don't you tell me more?"
"It's exactly the same as the plan in Yunshan City." Su Fengzhang said simply and clearly.
He Jun raised an eyebrow. If this had happened before, he would have been angry, but now they were brothers who had lived and died together. Instead, he said in a good-tempered manner: "How come you speak even more simply and clearly than A Fang? It's the same as not saying anything at all."
His eyes moved, and he asked again: "Master Su, don't you want to know why Master Song was imprisoned?"
Su Fengzhang smiled and said, "I really don't want to know."
He Jun didn't believe it. "He's the Minister of War, the commander of a hundred thousand troops, yet he's being held captive in the General's Mansion. Don't you find it strange? Don't you wonder what happened?"
Seeing his gossipy look, Su Fengzhang asked, "If I ask, will Prince Xi tell me?"
He Jun touched his chin and smiled: "I can consider it."
Su Fengzhang shook his head and said, "It's just a matter of the royal family. What will happen to Lord Song in the future is not something that a small civil servant like me can get involved in and worry about."
He Jun looked at him carefully and suddenly asked, "Master Su, from what you said, I feel that Master Song was wronged."
"I didn't say that." Su Fengzhang smiled and shook his head. Would Song Wei collaborate with the enemy and commit treason? The possibility was really small. You know, he was the Minister of War. Although he had lived without a sense of existence in recent years, there was really no need for that.
Compared to Song Wei's treason, it is more likely that he was framed by someone. Who could this person be?
In any case, most of the blame for the Fourth Prince being captured alive lies with Song Wei. Now that the Fourth Prince can't bite the person behind it to death, he can only vent his anger on him. It all depends on whether the emperor far away in the capital will protect him!
In Su Fengzhang's opinion, Captain Song was not strict in managing his subordinates, which gave those with ulterior motives an opportunity to take advantage of him. After the Fourth Prince got into trouble, he was irresponsible and tied up. He had neither the shrewdness and strength of a civil servant nor the bravery and fighting ability of a military general. The emperor didn't know how to vent his anger on him.
Even so, it is not easy for the Fourth Prince to accuse him of treason. Song Wei is not a small figure who can be killed casually.
However, this is a competition between Song Wei and the Fourth Prince, perhaps Prince Cheng and the Crown Prince, and even Emperor Meng Kun. Su Fengzhang is like a grain of sand in it, completely insignificant.
He Jun sighed after hearing this and couldn't help but say, "Sure enough, no matter how much time has passed, I still don't like talking to you literati. You can have a hundred different meanings behind each sentence, it's really annoying."
Su Fengzhang made a gesture of invitation and said, "Then Prince Xi, please go back. I need to rest as well."
He Jun said, "You don't even have anyone to serve you here. You can't even apply the medicine yourself. Why don't I stay and help you?"
"Thank you, Prince Cheng. I appreciate your kindness." Su Fengzhang refused.
He Jun insisted, "Come, come, let me help you. I'm experienced in applying the medicine. Hey, Su Ziqing, oh Su Ziqing, you're a fifth-rank official at least, but you don't bring any entourage with you on your diplomatic mission. Everyone else has three or five entourages, but you're all alone. Someone who doesn't know you would think you're alone."
"It won't change anything if I keep him here. Arong can help me take care of my family if he stays." Su Fengzhang was really afraid that he wouldn't be able to go back, so he kept Su Arong just in case. Because of this matter, Su Zhaoshi ignored him for several days.
"You are such a good son and brother." He Jun said with a laugh, and then said, "How about this, you slowly tell me about the incident of the sky-falling fire, and I will not only help you apply medicine, using the best golden wound medicine, but also help you take care of your younger brothers and sisters when you return to the capital. How about it?"
"Then let your brother go to the Imperial College and let your sister marry into a wealthy family. They can choose whatever they want... Hey, hey, hey, don't close the door, Su Ziqing, I just want to hear what happened!"
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The author has something to say: I will continue playing with the manuscript box today~~~~~~
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