Chapter 237 Don’t Say I Didn’t Warn You

In early February of the sixth year of Jiayou's reign, Zhao Zhen issued an order, ordering Yang Huairen to lead 30,000 troops in Weizhou, and to attack Xia with Zhong'e, the governor of Yanzhou.

The reason was that Xia and Liao were suspected of plotting against Zhou.

In fact, the reason is not important. What is important is that this time the civil and military officials of the Great Zhou Dynasty all had unified opinions.

Liao Xia came too close and touched the bottom line of all officials in the Zhou Dynasty. If they did not express their attitude and position, I am afraid that the situation would become worse.

By the time the two countries jointly attacked Zhou, it was already too late.

Therefore, forcing Xia Guo to bow his head and admit his mistake is also a political priority.

When Yang Huairen went to Weizhou, Wei Yuan personally saw him off and specifically told Gu Tingye, who was accompanying the army, that

"Don't let your father's reputation fall. Ask General Yang for advice whenever you encounter problems."

The latter, wearing armor, bowed deeply and said, "Brother Wei's kindness in nurturing me will be unforgettable to me!"

He knew that without Wei Yuan's operation, he would not have been able to follow Yang Huairen to Weizhou.

Everyone knows that in the near future, a group of generals will receive military honors on the border with Xixia.

Who wouldn’t want to take advantage of this opportunity?

But it depends on whether Wei Yuan and Yang Huairen are willing.

"Going to Weizhou, we only need a few small wins. From now on, no mistakes will be made, and we will make careful decisions when encountering problems."

After Wei Yuan said these words, Yang Huairen and his party set off.

Two days later, Zhang Fu entered the palace to meet the emperor and recommended Wu Kui as deputy privy envoy.

After several months of recuperation, Zhao Zhen was able to move around a little with the help of others.

To be honest, even a normal person would suffer from a tough body if he lay on the bed for several months.

Fortunately, there are imperial doctors to help him move his muscles and bones on weekdays, so he won't be in too big a hidden danger.

"You recommend Wu Kui? Tell me your reasons."

Zhao Zhen glanced at Zhang Fu meaningfully.

The position of deputy privy envoy has not been decided yet because they are worried that the Wu Xun Group headed by Zhang Fu will be dissatisfied.

But if it was recommended by Zhang Fu, then these worries would not be a problem.

Zhang Fu said bluntly: "I am old and still unable to handle military affairs. The Privy Council is not just about military matters. If there is no one to help me, I will be unable to support myself."

"Wu Kuinai was recommended by Prime Minister Wen. He has been an official in the same dynasty for many years. I understand Prime Minister Wen and have always promoted talents rather than relatives."

"So, the old minister thinks that Wu Kui can be given a try in this position."

With the support of Manager Zhu, Zhao Zhen slowly walked outside the hall. He looked at the long-lost rays of sunlight shining on his face, and suddenly felt a sense of relief.

After a while, Zhang Fu stared at his back and heard his words faintly in his ears:

"Then let him try."

Zhang Fu stood up and held his hands, "No."

Zhao Zhen gradually let go of Manager Zhu's support, stretched out under the sunshine, slowly exhaled a breath, turned around and returned to the empty hall.

The only trace of sunshine outside the hall was covered by clouds.

I do not know how long it has been.

The sky above the entire Bianjing City seemed to be overwhelmed by black clouds. In an instant, there were lightning, thunder, and violent storms.

At this time Zhang Fu had left.

Zhao Zhen sent everyone out and sat alone on the bed, lost in thought. After an unknown amount of time, he murmured:

"old."

——

To celebrate Lin Zhaoyuan's wedding, Wei Yuan and his wife bought him a house on Baokangmen Street, which is relatively close to the Daxiangguo Temple.

Jiying Lane, where the Sheng family lives, is in the West City, and it happens to be one east and one west of Baokangmen Street.

That night, in Lin's house, after dinner.

Xiaodie was going to help Lin Zhaoyuan's mother, Mrs. Lin, go to the house to rest.

At this time, Lin Zhaoyuan was still in the army.

Mrs. Lin sat on the chair, smiled at Xiaodie and said:

"Stop working now. Take out the clothes I wore on the day you and Zhaoyuan got married and put them on for me."

Xiaodie didn't notice anything wrong at all, and responded subconsciously:

"Mom, it's not the New Year or the festival, why do you think of wearing those clothes?"

Lin said kindly: "Put it on for me."

Xiaodie did not dare to disobey her mother-in-law's order, so she took the clothes and put them on Lin carefully.

After Mrs. Lin put on her clothes, Xiaodie suddenly realized and said, "Mom, are you awake?"

Mrs. Lin smiled and nodded, took Xiaodie's hand and asked her to sit next to her. Mrs. Lin said earnestly:

"It is our Lin family's blessing that you can marry Zhaoyuan. You are a good boy. I have been stupid for half my life and have nothing to give you."

"I just hope that you can live a good life with Zhaoyuan. It is not easy for our Lin family to take root in the capital."

Xiaodie nodded slightly, "Mom, it's my blessing to be able to marry Brother Lin. Don't worry, I will definitely take good care of Brother Lin."

Lin smiled, looked at the heavy rain falling outside, and murmured, "Can Zhaoyuan come back tonight?"

Xiaodie said: "Brother Zhaoyuan said when he left this morning that he had some matters to deal with in the army, and he might come back later."

Lin nodded and said nothing more.

Xiaodie obviously felt that her hands were getting colder and colder, so she said:

"Mom, let me add more carbon to the house. You can't help but feel the cold."

Ms. Lin shook her head and said, "Don't bother, it'll be fine."

I don’t know how much time passed.

Lin asked Xiang Xiaodie, "Do you know where Zhaoyuan's barracks is?"

The latter said thoughtfully: "I probably know."

Mrs. Lin said: "Can we find him? Let him come back."

Xiaodie frowned and said, "Mom, you"

Lin said bluntly: "It is said that men are afraid of the dirty and women are afraid of the clean."

"You call me mother, and I feel in my heart that my mother has been demented for half her life. After dinner, her head has become much clearer. I am afraid that my end is coming."

As soon as she said this, Xiaodie heard the sound of lightning and thunder outside the house. She couldn't help but shudder. She quickly stood up and squatted in front of Lin, "Mom, don't scare me."

Mrs. Lin stroked her head and said, "Call Zhaoyuan quickly. I have something else I want to tell you two."

After saying this, Xiaodie panicked, "Mom, I'll go right away, you wait for me."

Then, without even wearing a raincoat or umbrella, he hurriedly ran outside the house.

But where is the barracks of the Danglu Army? She only knew a general direction.

It had been raining for several hours, and there was no pedestrian on the street. Even if she wanted to ask someone, she didn't know who to ask.

After wandering in the rain for a moment, I saw a carriage approaching from a distance.

She recognized that it was the carriage Mrs. Hou bought for them.

"Brother Lin!"

Xiaodie hurriedly ran forward.

Even on a rainy night, most of the sounds that came to my ears were the sound of raindrops hitting the ground paved with bluestone slabs.

However, Lin Zhaoyuan, who was sitting in the carriage, could vaguely hear Xiaodie's cry.

He opened the curtain and saw Xiaodie not far away, whose clothes were soaked by the rain. He quickly asked someone to stop the carriage, got out of the car, held Xiaodie in his arms, and said hurriedly:

"Why did you run out if you didn't stay home well?"

Xiaodie pointed in the direction of home and panted: "Mother."

mother?

Lin Zhaoyuan felt something bad for a moment, and without saying a word, he trotted towards home.

Fluttershy followed closely behind him.

When the two came into the room and saw Mrs. Lin looking at them with a smile, both of them felt relieved.

Lin Zhaoyuan said quickly: "Mom, what's wrong with you? Are you feeling uncomfortable? I'll go ask the doctor."

Mrs. Lin shook her head and said, "Zhaoyuan, both you and Xiaodie kneel down."

Kneel down?

The couple looked at each other.

Xiaodie was the first to kneel down.

Lin Zhaoyuan took off his armor and knelt down in front of Mrs. Lin.

Lin said earnestly: "You make two oaths to my mother. First, you will never leave me and we will depend on each other for the rest of your life."

Hearing this, Lin Zhaoyuan had a bad premonition and wanted to say something, but saw Xiaodie shaking her head.

He simply followed his mother's wishes and swore.

Later, Mrs. Lin added: "This second oath, Zhaoyuan, Lord Marquis has been very kind to our family, and we will never be able to repay him in this life."

"Mother wants you to swear not to betray the Marquis, but to be loyal to the Marquis to the death. If a person is not loyal, he will not stand. Do you understand what I mean to you?"

Lin Zhaoyuan said: "Mom, please don't worry. The children will remember Brother Wei's great kindness to our family."

After he finished his oath.

Lin personally helped the two of them up, looked at them, and said with a smile:

"It's a pity that I can't wait until the day my sweet grandson is born."

"It's been a tiring day, you all should go and have a rest."

After saying that, Mrs. Lin went to her room.

Xiaodie said what Lin said before taking Lin Zhaoyuan away.

At this point, neither husband nor wife dared to sleep, and stayed outside Lin's house.

Early the next morning.

Xiaodie opened the door and prepared to wait for Mrs. Lin to get up.

After calling several times, there was no response. I couldn't help feeling anxious, so I stepped forward to check for breath, but saw that Mrs. Lin had passed away.

——

Mid-February.

After Wei Yuan and others helped Lin Zhaoyuan arrange Lin's funeral.

Xixia sent envoys to reprimand Zhou for his unprovoked attack on Xia.

It is worth mentioning that the Xixia envoy who asked Da Zhou to withdraw his troops this time was Li Liangzuo.

That is, the Prince of Xixia, who is hailed by the world as one of the three most famous generals among the younger generation.

Wei Yuan was also one of the three famous generals in the world, so Zhao Zhen asked him to be responsible for dealing with Li Liangzuo.

Neither of them expected that two years later, when they saw each other again, they would be completely opposite.

Wei Yuan hosted a banquet at Honglu Temple to invite the Xixia envoys.

The two sides had a confrontation here.

Li Liangzuo said: "Since the First World War in Daizhou, the three countries have reached an alliance to trade with each other. You, the Zhou Kingdom, still have no control over the exchanges between Daxia and the Liao Kingdom!"

Wei Yuan responded forcefully, "Although I, the Great Zhou Dynasty, agree with your founding of Xixia, you still pay tribute to me, the Great Zhou Dynasty, every year as usual. You are a dependent country of our Celestial Dynasty. Why is it called 'Great Xia'?"

"If you have normal business dealings with the Liao Kingdom, I, the Great Zhou Dynasty, will naturally have no control over it. But what you, Xixia, are selling to the Liao Kingdom are armors and weapons. The Three Kingdoms Trade Contract has already stated that there is no arms exchange between the countries."

"We, the Great Zhou Dynasty, can withdraw our troops, provided that you will not sell arms to the Liao Kingdom from now on and should compensate you accordingly. After all, it was you who violated the Three Kingdoms Trade Covenant."

Li Liangzuo slammed the table and lifted up all the food in front of him.

"Compensation? Tell me, what kind of compensation do you want?"

Wei Yuan said calmly: "How much armor you have sold to the Liao Kingdom, you must compensate me as much as the Zhou Dynasty, and declare to the outside world that you admit your country's fault."

Li Liangzuo frowned deeply, "As far as I know, after the Battle of Daizhou, you introduced a group of war horses to the Liao Kingdom. Is that considered a weapon?"

Wei Yuan bit back, "Who told you that they were war horses? The people of Zhou Dynasty love to ride horses. Those horses are not used by the army."

Li Liangzuo snorted coldly, "No matter what, your Zhou Kingdom refuses to withdraw its troops? Only tens of thousands of people, do you think they can break into my territory of Xixia?"

Wei Yuan said: "I heard that Xixia suffered a disaster last year and many livestock froze to death. How will you Xixia people survive the winter this year? Have you thought clearly?"

Li Liangzuo gritted his teeth, "Are you really not afraid of the Liao-Xia Allied Forces crossing the Great Wall?"

Allies?

Wei Yuan laughed twice and said: "When you Xixia suffered a disaster, the situation in Liao was better? Do they dare to risk offending me, Zhou Dynasty, and send troops with you Xixia?"

"Ten thousand steps back, if they really dare to cross the Great Wall, I, the Great Zhou Dynasty, will make it impossible for them to come back!"

Hearing this, Li Liangzuo sat on the chair again, his eyes showing a bit of worry and confusion.

If it were not Wei Yuan who came to discuss this matter today but some civil servants, there might still be something to discuss.

However, Wei Yuan is too strong.

Moreover, Wei Yuan was responsible for the fact that Emperor Zhao Zhen of the Great Zhou Dynasty ordered two soldiers to attack Xixia in order to put pressure on the border of Xixia.

In other words, Wei Yuan is the one who hopes that the war will happen.

How could he be so willing to die down?

"General Wei, people with knowledge don't speak secretly."

"What exactly are you going to do to make me, the Xia Kingdom, so that you are willing to withdraw your troops?"

Li Liangzuo asked in a deep voice.

Wei Yuan said something very clearly. The internal situation in Xixia is relatively complicated. The people survived last winter, but what about this year?

For Xixia, they need to accumulate grain widely. Otherwise, if disaster strikes this year, Li Yuanhao's ruling regime will be full of variables.

"I have just made it clear what Xia needs from you." Wei Yuan said slightly casually.

If Zhao Zhen hadn't given the order, he wouldn't have met Li Liangzuo at all.

The imperial court's intention to go to war has been notified, but now you just want to withdraw the troops?

is it possible?

Li Liangzuo said seriously: "Both you and I know that it is difficult for our country to comply with the demands you have made."

Wei Yuan stood up slowly, "Then there's no need to talk. Let's get ready for war. Whether you Xixia want to fight a big fight or make a small fuss, I, Da Zhou, will accompany you to the end."

Li Liangzuo's face was extremely ugly, and he clenched his fists tightly, wishing to kill Wei Yuan.

However, he knew very well that even if he was fighting alone and Wei Yuan gave him a hand, he might not be able to win.

Wei Yuan came to the door where the banquet was being held, stood with his hands behind his hands, and said in a stern tone:

"Li Liangzuo, if I were you, I would not come to my great Zhou Dynasty to humiliate myself."

"From the moment you decided to sell the armor to the Liao Kingdom, you should have thought about the consequences you would face."

"Don't say it. You don't predict what you said."

As soon as he finished speaking, he strode away from here.

Li Liangzuo fell into deep thought and murmured: "What do you mean by saying you didn't predict it?"

A Xixia official who was proficient in the culture of the Central Plains tried to translate: "This sentence should mean that we have been notified in advance. If we still do it, we will bear the consequences."

Li Liangzuo said angrily: "When did he notify me in advance? Didn't he take the initiative to request an order to use troops against me, Daxia?"

The Xixia minister carefully reminded: "What General Wei said should be the Three Kingdoms Trade Covenant, which included the prohibition of selling weapons. It is true that we violated the covenant first. The Zhou State's use of troops is justified."

Justifiable?

The more Li Liangzuo listened, the angrier he became. He kicked the Xixia official directly and said angrily:

"Did Zhou people give you money?"