When Feng Yuheng returned to the hall again, people tacitly agreed not to mention the fish in the Four-Color Lake. Lu Shang nodded to Feng Yuheng with an apology. Xuan Tianming took the initiative to change the subject and said to Lu Shang: "This king appointed Zhao Tianqi, the former governor of Guanzhou, as the new governor of the Northern Territory. I hope Lu Bo can cooperate with him. The Northern Territory has been made a mess by Duanmu Anguo, and it really needs to be properly cleaned up."
Lu Shang nodded, "Don't worry, Your Highness. I understand this. I am old and can't work for a few more years. The Northern Territory still needs a younger commander-in-chief who can manage it for a few more years. Zhao Tianqi is a good official. Although he has been controlled by Duanmu Anguo before, he has not done anything harmful to the world. I have been to Guanzhou several times, and the people of Guanzhou have a very high opinion of him."
Xuan Tianming said, "I think so too. Originally, this task should be taken by Lu Bo. However, although the northern border consists of three provinces, Guanzhou and Songzhou are separated from this side by the Ghost Pine Forest. It is really inconvenient for you to come and go. If you put all your energy there, I am afraid that no one will be able to take over the political affairs of Jiangzhou for a while. What's more, Lu Bo, Jiangzhou is the real border after all. If you don't guard this border, your father will not be at ease."
Lu Shang waved his hand and sighed, "I will defend Jiangzhou for the emperor even if I die. Your Highness and the emperor can rest assured about this." He thought for a moment and told Xuan Tianming, "To reach Bincheng, the first city in Qianzhou, you must bypass the Four-Colored Lake and pass through the North Gate. There is no distinction between prefectures in Qianzhou. Each city has its own city lord, which is equivalent to the governor of our Dashun. The North Gate is more evil than the Ghost Pine Forest. Once you pass it, the weather will turn cold. We must prevent soldiers from freezing to death. This can be regarded as a kind of protection for Qianzhou itself."
Feng Yuheng frowned when she heard this, and the nausea caused by the fish in the Four-Colored Lake was finally suppressed. She asked, "Why is Qianzhou so cold?" It can freeze people to death when they are caught off guard. The North Pole is not that cold, not to mention that there is a pass in between. Doesn't it mean that there are two different worlds inside and outside the pass?
No one could answer this question. Lu Shang shook his head. He was a military general, defending the country and killing the enemy. Analyzing this kind of problem was not his strong point.
Xuan Tian thought for a moment and said, "I have read ancient books. According to the ancient books, more than 500 years ago, Qianzhou was not as cold as it is now. Especially in the cities in the south, the sun was shining brightly, and the surface of the Four-Colored Lake also had a season of opening. Of course, the southern cities referred to at that time must include the three provinces in the northern border today, but also the cities behind the northern gate. But in the next few hundred years, Qianzhou has become colder and colder. It seems that recently, the climate has changed drastically every fifty years. Until the past hundred years, this time node has been shortened to once every ten years. This year is another ten years, and the climate of Qianzhou will change drastically again within this year."
Feng Yuheng was still frowning in thought, but Lu Shang interrupted and said, "This kind of cold is not limited to Qianzhou. We are also affected. After the New Year, it is obviously much colder than before the New Year, especially in Jiangzhou. To be honest, Your Highness, people are freezing to death every day. It's not that the government is not doing anything, but those people may die early the next morning even if they are lying on the kang in their own homes."
As Lu Shang was talking, he suddenly seemed to remember something and quickly added, "By the way, there is something I wonder if you have heard of."
"What's the matter?" Xuan Tianming asked, "Songzhou has been trying its best to rescue the Winter Palace because it sank, so I didn't have time to inquire about it. I wonder what Lu Bo is talking about?"
Lu Shang said, "It's about the legendary Qianzhou dragon vein." Seeing that Xuan Tianming didn't interrupt him, Lu Shang knew that he must not know about this matter, so he hurriedly said, "Duanmu Anguo has been colluding with Qianzhou for a long time. It is said that a section of the dragon vein is in the northern three provinces. The people of Qianzhou have been asking about it for many years, but they really couldn't wait to start digging, but it was only in the past six months."
Xuan Tianming heard the words coming out of the door: "Duanmu Anguo let the Qianzhou people enter Dashun, which shows that the benefits he received from it should be enough to support his desires. Another point is, could it be that the Qianzhou people have an exact location of the dragon vein?"
Feng Yuheng glanced at him in confusion. The golden mask was still on his face. Even if the one in Feng Jinyuan's hand was unreliable, or had been obtained by Qian Zhou, it was unlikely that the map was divided into three parts and it could be accurately located with only two pieces.
Xuan Tianming also knew that it was unlikely, so he immediately rejected the idea, and then rolled his eyes and suddenly said, "Qian Zhou can't wait any longer!"
Lu Shang nodded, a little excited, and stood up from his seat, rubbing his hands constantly, walking around in the hall, and finally stopped, then said: "I think so too! The place where they are digging is between Songjiang and Songjiang. When the Qianzhou army entered the northern border, I gathered the forces of Jiangzhou to block it, but Duanmu Anguo took out the Northern Border mobilization order, forcing the soldiers to give up resistance. The Qianzhou people entered the northern border by the way, went straight to that place and started digging, and they dug for half a year. During this period, I went to that place to check it out myself many times, but I saw several quarrels between the officials in charge of digging for dragon veins in Qianzhou. Obviously, they were not sure about the location of the dragon veins."
Feng Yuheng continued, "Even if you are not sure, you still keep digging. This is a bit like hoping that a blind cat will catch a dead mouse."
"Yes." Lu Shang nodded.
But Xuan Tianming said again: "It can be seen that Qian Zhou is in urgent need of using the dragon vein treasure. The royal family must have encountered a problem that forced them to use the life-saving vein."
But no one could figure out what the problem was. Feng Yuheng said in confusion, "But along the way, I didn't see any Qianzhou people digging for dragon veins. I heard from the Lotus King that the Qianzhou army had all withdrawn."
"That's right." Lu Shang told them again: "They withdrew suddenly. Overnight, all the troops who were digging stopped what they were doing and quickly evacuated the northern border and returned to Qianzhou. I can't figure this out no matter how hard I think about it."
Not only Lu Shang couldn't figure it out, Xuan Tianming and Feng Yuheng also couldn't figure it out. However, everyone had a question mark in their mind for Qian Zhou. What accident happened?
The army rested in Jiangzhou for a few days. Lu Shang provided Xuan Tianming with a map of Bincheng, the first city in the Thousand Zhou Dynasty, and also described in more detail the strange climate changes after passing the North Gate.
Three days later, the army set out again, bypassed the Sise Lake in a mighty procession, and finally stood in front of the North Gate.
A spies from the front reported that there were about 20,000 soldiers from Qianzhou defending the North Gate, but the gate was not blocked with ice or rocks, so the army could break through.
Blocking the door with ice and sealing the wall with ice is the usual practice of Qianzhou city defense. The North Gate is the boundary between the two countries and both sides have large armies stationed there. Although it is impossible to seal the wall with ice, it is somewhat surprising that the door is not blocked either.
Xuan Tianming used his inner strength to command the three armies: "After closing the door, we will enter the icy zone. The cold air will hit our bodies and the temperature will drop sharply. All soldiers should take precautions and do what they can. If you can advance, then advance. If you can't advance, then retreat. Retreat is not defeat. Only by staying alive can we win in the end!"
On this day, the two armies faced off, and the Dashun soldiers fought the most satisfying battle since entering the Northern Realm. Under Xuan Tianming's command and Feng Yuheng's formation deployment, a large number of Qianzhou generals were led to the south of the gate, directly into the tiger's mouth. And those Dashun vanguards who rushed into the North Gate also had sufficient psychological preparation and sufficient warm-up, and no soldiers froze to death.
The battle came and went quickly. In just three hours, the north gate was breached.
Feng Yuheng entered the pass with the army, and the moment he passed through the gate, he was suddenly hit by a cold air. It was not cold, but the kind of icy cold that penetrated into the bone marrow, directly penetrating the clothes and seeping into the skin, sealing under the bones and flesh.
She couldn't help but shiver, and so did Xuan Tianming. She turned back to look at the soldiers of the three armies, some of whom were so cold that they had already squatted on the ground with their arms around their knees, and those who could barely stand were so cold that their faces were pale and their lips were blue.
"We can't go on like this." Xuan Tianming said, "The weather is the main reason why Dashun has not attacked Qianzhou for so many years. Few Dashun soldiers can still perform well in such weather, while Qianzhou soldiers are used to such severe cold and are not afraid of it when they start fighting."
Feng Yuheng also knew this truth. He looked northward and saw the vast ice field. He didn't know how many cities their army could advance to.
She began to take out a large amount of chocolate from the space, and the soldiers passed it to the back one by one. If there was anyone who was not in good health, she would leave two more. At the same time, she also used the loudspeaker to say to the generals: "Although this thing can't resist the severe cold, it can give you physical strength. Don't worry about what it is or where it comes from. Each of you should carry a few more pieces with you. Eat some when you can't hold on. Don't feel burdened. Let's go as far as we can."
Xuan Tianming also arrived: "I still say the same thing, staying alive is victory. Dashun never uses human wave tactics, and never uses heads to fill the holes of the enemy! After we take over Bin City ahead, we can discuss whether to attack or retreat."
On February 28, the 23rd year of Tianwu, Xuantian Mingfeng Yuheng led an army of 100,000 to attack the first city of Qianzhou. One thousand soldiers died, 6,000 were injured, including 5,000 who were frostbitten. A total of 30,000 enemy troops were wiped out and 20,000 were captured.
The lord of Bincheng was forced to surrender.
The army entered the city and still set up camp in the city. Feng Yuheng set up the city lord's mansion as a temporary clinic, distributing frostbite plasters and treating the wounded.
She took out a military temperature tester and placed it in the yard. When she checked again half an hour later, the temperature on the thermometer showed that the surface temperature was minus 26 degrees Celsius, and the perceived temperature was above minus 35 degrees Celsius.
This temperature may not be a problem for northern countries in later generations. The provinces in the northeast region closest to Russia usually reach around minus 40 degrees Celsius in winter.
But today is not comparable to the future. In the future, people travel with cars and various means of transportation, which can keep warm and move quickly. Moreover, the clothing in the future is more advanced, and the cold protection measures are more than a hundred times better than now. At present, there are no warmer clothes, and people are exposed to such cold weather, and frostbite is already a minor injury.
Just as he was thinking about it, at this moment, the people of Qianzhou who were watching the scene began to talk. "You can't bear it anymore? You still want to attack Qianzhou. In my opinion, if you can only advance two cities at most, all the soldiers of Dashun will freeze to death."
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