The news that Feng's army had entered Guangning quickly spread to Liaoning. Many villagers not far from Guangning came out in droves and poured into the city to catch a glimpse of the world's best army.

At dawn, important officials from the Liaoning region, including Li Boyun, the Governor-General of Liaoning, Han Zhaoxing, the General of the Army, Qian Anrong, the Prefect of Guangning, and others, went to the South City Gate to welcome them with their civil and military officials. Yuan Mao and Yuan Shaoxu were also among them.

Although the rank of the Governor-General of Liaodong was higher than that of Feng Jianping, Feng Jianping was also granted the title of King and was the most meritorious general in Da Sheng. Therefore, these officials who usually drove carriages with four horses in each direction did not dare to complain even though they were fed with a cold wind.

It was almost noon when flags were seen rising on the ground. A snake-like cavalry column in front and infantry behind were marching towards Guangningwei in a safe and orderly manner.

"Here it comes, here it comes!" Yuan Nanyu shouted excitedly.

Early in the morning, the two of them ran to the top of the city wall to look out. On normal days, Yuan Mao would not allow them to go up the city wall, but today all the generals, both big and small, went to the city gate to wait for orders. The temporary guards did not know the rules, and when they saw that he was the son of a thousand households, they did not stop him.

Yuan Sikong pressed Yuan Nanyu's head and pressed him down: "Shut up, or you'll be scolded if Dad finds out."

Yuan Nanyu poked his head excitedly: "Look, second brother, that's the wolf flag of the Feng family army."

Yuan Sikong looked into the distance. At the head was a black flag with a bloody wolf head printed on it. The wolf head was roaring with its fangs bared. It must be Feng Jianping's flag. Behind it were banners of all sizes. Their shapes, colors, and numbers were all symmetrical and orderly. It was obvious that the army was well-organized.

It is said that Feng Jianping took wolves as his teachers, and wanted his soldiers to have wolf nature and learn how wolves cooperate and fight. Over the years, he rarely suffered defeat. The wolf flag of the Feng family conquered all of China and frightened the barbarians far away. He had already been deified in the eyes of the people of Da Sheng.

Yuan Sikong looked at the fluttering wolf flag, and a heroic spirit rose in his heart. Which man does not imagine himself riding a horse and fighting on the battlefield? Although he had already decided to pursue a career in politics, he could not help but feel excited when he saw this mighty army.

He couldn't help but wonder, if Liaodong had such a team, how could it have lost Qingzhou? If it hadn't lost Qingzhou, how could the court abandon Liaobei, and how could he leave his hometown and lose his family? In fact, Liaodong was by no means a weak force at that time, and the Liaodong Iron Cavalry was also famous all over the world. However, the Liaodong general at that time withheld military pay and misused the flag. When Han Zhaoxing was replaced, he was defeated within two years. He just felt that Han Zhaoxing was incompetent and wished he could grow up quickly.

Yuan Nanyu was just as excited as he was. He shook Yuan Sikong's arm and shouted, "Second brother, when I grow up, I want to be a great general. The Feng family army uses wolves, and I will use... leopards to scare the barbarians away."

"Then you should practice martial arts well, read more military tactics, and stop playing all day."

Yuan Nanyu muttered, "Second brother, why do you always lecture me whenever you get the chance? You're becoming more and more like dad."

"Because we have high hopes for you." Yuan Sikong knew Yuan Nanyu very well. Yuan Nanyu was gifted and intelligent, and a good candidate for martial arts, but he just didn't like studying. What's the use of only knowing how to wield a few swords? When it comes to leading troops in battle, the most important thing is the brain.

Yuan Nanyu perfunctorily said, "I know, I'll just read it." He looked at the Feng family army approaching with shining eyes, "I saw Prince Jingyuan, wow, so majestic."

Yuan Sikong looked closely and saw a man with a red scarf on his head, wearing golden armor and a battle robe on his back, under the general's flag. He was wearing a helmet and was still far away, so his face could not be seen clearly. However, the undercurrent of kingly and domineering aura still shocked people at first sight among the crowd of thousands. There was no doubt that he was the world-famous first general of Da Sheng, Feng Jianping.

Far away, the Feng family army began to divide its forces in an orderly manner. Except for a team of 100 light cavalrymen who followed Feng Jianping to continue advancing towards Guangning City, the rest of the troops set up camp outside the city.

When Feng Jianping arrived at the South City Gate, Li Boyun led the officers and generals to greet him. Only when Li Boyun walked to the front of his horse did Feng Jianping dismount slowly. The generals also dismounted and exchanged greetings with the Liaodong officials.

They couldn't hear clearly what the adults were saying, but they guessed that it was some greetings. Yuan Sikong's eyes were fixed on Feng Jiajun's horse.

Xu Hu, the horseman of Guangning Guard, once told him that the best horses in the world belonged to the Northwest horses. Unfortunately, since Emperor Shengning lost the Hetao area fifty years ago, Northwest horses were once extinct in the Central Plains. Later, they relied on trade and spent a lot of money to buy them back, but the number was always insufficient for war. Horses like high altitudes and cold weather. Healthy horses can only be bred in plateaus with vast land, abundant water and grass. The Central Plains lacked such a natural environment, and they suffered a lot from the nomadic people in terms of war horses. Their Liaodong horses were already rare good horses in the Central Plains, but they were still in short supply.

Currently, the best horses in the Central Plains are the improved Qin horses that were bought at high prices and bred with Qin horses in the Huaixi area. Most of them are supplied to the Feng family army, so the horses standing in front of Yuan Sikong are the best group of horses he can see.

Those horses were obviously stronger than the Liaodong horses, with strong muscles and shiny fur. Especially Feng Jianping's mount, with shiny black fur and a straight and slender body. It was obviously one of the best horses picked from thousands.

Yuan Sikong was almost drunk from watching, so much so that Yuan Nanyu called him for a long time before he came back to his senses: "Ah?"

"What are you thinking about? Look, there's a kid there, drooling while sleeping." Yuan Nanyu laughed.

Following Yuan Nanyu's direction, I saw a boy who was no more than seven or eight years old. All the soldiers had dismounted, but he was the only one who was sleeping soundly on the horse's back with his butt sticking up. The flesh on his face was squeezed into a ball, and there were some suspicious saliva stains on the saddle.

Although the child's appearance could not be seen clearly at this distance, he was wearing a custom-made soft armor, which was very expensive, so he must be of noble status. Chasing the enemy for hundreds of miles, and bringing a child with him, is this not too ridiculous? The only one who dared to do this was King Jingyuan himself, and the child's status was self-evident.

"Second brother, could he be the son of King Jingyuan?"

"Most likely."

"Bringing a child to fight, Prince Jingyuan must not take the Tartars seriously."

"A veteran general like Prince Jingyuan would never underestimate the enemy, but bringing a child with him... is indeed not serious enough."

Over the past few hundred years, the Oirat tribe had expanded from a barbarian tribe outside the Great Wall that paid tribute to the Central Plains to a serious threat to the Dasheng Kingdom. The fierceness and bravery of the Oirat cavalry were terrifying, and they were undoubtedly the number one enemy of Dasheng. King Jingyuan had been fighting with them for more than 20 years, and if he underestimated the enemy, it could lead to a disaster. Because of this, the two were even more puzzled by King Jingyuan's move to take his young son deep into the important area.

The adults probably finished their greetings and turned to walk into the city. Yuan Mao turned around and looked up at the city wall out of habit, and saw two young men sneaking around and peeking their heads out. They were none other than his sons.

Yuan Mao's eyes widened, and Yuan Nanyu was so scared that his legs went limp: "It's over, Dad has seen us, second brother, run!" After saying that, he ducked and ran.

Yuan Sikong was also startled and chased after Yuan Nanyu with a guilty conscience.

Yuan Nanyu ran to the stairs. Perhaps because he was frightened, his feet slipped and his grip on the ground was unstable, so he fell headfirst.

Yuan Sikong screamed: "Yu'er——"

——

"The city wall is a key defense point, not a place for entertainment. Prince Jingyuan is here and the governor is here to greet him in person. How dare you be so presumptuous on such an important occasion? How disrespectful!" Yuan Mao slammed the table in anger. His voice was not loud, but the threat was even greater. Yuan Sikong knelt beside him, not daring to breathe.

Yue Qingshuang whispered at the side: "Grandpa, forget it, look at Yu'er, he has fallen like this..." She stroked Yuan Nanyu's bruised face with heartache, it was almost impossible to recognize his original appearance.

"He deserves to fall like this!" Yuan Mao glared at Yuan Nanyu fiercely.

Yuan Nanyu shrank his shoulders and said aggrievedly, "Dad, I was wrong."

"And you." Yuan Mao looked at Yuan Sikong and said in a stern voice, "You have always been a calm person. Yu'er was naughty, but you didn't try to stop him and instead followed him in making trouble."

Yuan Sikong lowered his head and said, "I know I was wrong." He really wanted to see Feng's army, and he was lucky enough to see them...

Yuan Shaoxu also scolded, "You are the elder brother, Yu'er has always obeyed you, you should set an example. Now Yu'er broke his leg and can't get out of bed for two or three months. He is a martial artist. If he is left with any illness and regrets for the rest of his life, what will you do?!"

Yuan Sikong pursed his lips, feeling full of self-blame.

Yuan Weiling hurried forward to smooth things over: "Shao Xu, please stop talking. Doctor Liang said that Yu'er's leg can be cured in a hundred days if he takes care of it. Besides, he jumps up and down like a monkey all day long, and Kong'er can't be blamed for it all." She touched Yuan Nanyu's head. Although there was pity in her eyes, she said harshly, "Let's see if you dare to be so reckless in the future."

Yuan Nanyu also said: "Dad, don't blame my second brother, it was me who suggested going up the city wall."

Yuan Mao glanced at Yuan Nanyu and said, "You broke your leg yourself, but both of you sons were at fault for climbing the city wall. The military has its own laws, and the family has its own rules. You have violated both. You have already accepted the punishment, so I will not punish you again. Kong'er, go to the ancestral hall and reflect on yourself for a night."

"Yes." Yuan Sikong kowtowed and stood up to go to the mourning hall. He walked to the door, turned around and took a look, and saw Yuan Mao frowning and checking Yuan Nanyu's leg injury. Yuan Nanyu secretly made a face at him. The swollen and bruised face made a very strange expression. Yuan Sikong couldn't help laughing, and turned away.

Walking into the mourning hall and closing the door, Yuan Sikong lit a stick of incense, then knelt in front of the ancestral tablet with his knees resting on a mat.

The ancestors of the Yuan family were laid out in front of him. Yuan Sikong's eyes scanned them one by one, and finally landed on the spirit tablets of two people of different surnames in the corner.

Those are his biological parents.

He had no blood relatives in this world, so Yuan Mao moved his parents' spirit tablets into the Yuan family for him to worship.

Although the Taining Yan family was not a prominent family, they were a family of scholars and were moderately wealthy. One of their ancestors had achieved Jinshi (a jinshi degree) and served as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites.

His father passed the imperial examination in the ninth year of Zhaowu, but failed in the subsequent three provincial examinations. Although people who passed the imperial examinations could become officials, they could only be small-time officials such as county magistrates and county chancellors. Their official careers were narrow and promotion was difficult. To pass the imperial examination, enter the Hanlin Academy, assist the court in government affairs, and bring peace and order to the country was the ambition of scholars all over the world.

His family had no worries about food and drink. His father studied and taught at the same time, and spent a lot of time cultivating him. Like his father, he inherited the teachings of the ancient sages, was well-versed in Confucius and Mencius, and regarded using his expertise to be loyal to the emperor and serve the country as his highest ideal. He studied diligently day and night.

Now his father's ideal has turned into a handful of yellow earth, and he is the only remaining bloodline of the Yan family. One day, he will definitely enter the cabinet and become a prime minister, benefit the country and the people, bring honor to the family, fulfill his father's last wish, and repay the Yuan family for their great kindness to him.

Yuan Sikong kowtowed to the spirit tablets of his parents and the ancestors of the Yuan family, reflecting on his mistakes.

Yuan Mao treated him as his own son, but he always remembered that he was not a biological son. He was cautious in everything, filial to his parents, friendly to his brothers and respectful to his younger brothers. He did not want to cause any trouble to the Yuan family. He had never made any mistakes in the past four years. But now, due to a moment of negligence, Yu'er broke his leg. He was extremely ashamed and secretly vowed to be more self-disciplined in the future.

——

Yuan Sikong knelt until midnight, his knees were already numb and painful, the coldness all around penetrated and chilled his bones. He was so sleepy that his eyelids were drooping, but he did not slack off at all, even though there was no one around, he believed that the spirits of his parents in heaven were watching over him.

The night was long and no one knew when it would end. Just when Yuan Sikong was about to fall to the ground due to sleepiness, the door of the mourning hall was quietly pushed open.

Yuan Sikong came to his senses and looked back. It was Yue Qingshuang who walked in with a cloak and a bowl of noodles.

"mother……"

"Hey, why are you just kneeling like this?" Yue Qingshuang wrapped her cloak around him, put the noodles in front of him, touched his cold face, and said distressedly: "You must be frozen, hungry, eat something."

Yuan Sikong shook his head: "Dad punished me to kneel before the spirit for one night. I cannot be disrespectful to the ancestors. Besides, if Dad knew about this, he would be even angrier."

"Silly child, your father would wake up even if a mosquito flew over him. Do you think he wouldn't know I'm here? Take a rest and have some noodles."

Yuan Sikong shook his head again, his attitude firm: "Mom, I am reflecting on myself. I am not cold or hungry. You should go back and rest."

Yue Qingshuang said helplessly: "Your temper is really like your father's."

Yuan Sikong felt a little ashamed: "Mom, don't you blame me?"

"Children make mistakes all the time. Besides, Yu'er is fine." Yue Qingshuang looked at Yuan Sikong's handsome and charming face, her eyes becoming softer. "My Ying'er died at the age of four, which cut a hole in my heart. It wasn't until you came to our house that the wound healed. You are my son, so never treat yourself as an outsider. You can make mistakes, do you understand?"

Yuan Sikong felt a lump in his throat and choked up with a "hmm".

Yue Qingshuang stroked his face and said, "You are as stubborn as your father. I will not force you. Come over for dinner tomorrow morning."

"yes."