Chapter 243: The Strategy of Alienation, Please Confer a Title

At the end of May in the sixth year of Jiayou, Li Ninglingge, the crown prince of Xixia, attacked Weizhou without success and withdrew from Liupan Mountain.

The Zhong family army broke through the Helan Mountain Gate and marched northward all the way to Yanzhou.

Yang Huairen led an army of 10,000 to harass Kangle City, echoing the Zhong family army from a distance.

Gu Tingye led an army of 20,000 to chase and intercept Li Ninglingge's army from the place where they had to retreat, and the reputation of Gu's spear reappeared.

In early June, Li Ninglingge was defeated and fled to Xixia.

Before that, Wei Yuan ordered that the Zhou army was not allowed to hurt Li Ninglingge in the slightest.

Whether in the temple or the border troops, this order was puzzled.

Even Han Zhang personally asked about it, and Wei Yuan's explanation was very simple. A living Li Ninglingge would be more likely to cause trouble to Xixia.

First, there was the dispute between Li Liangzuo and Li Ninglingge for the throne, and then there was suspicion between father and son. Li Ninglingge suffered a great defeat. If he fled back to Xixia, he would face punishment.

At that time, if Xixia had internal strife, it would naturally have no intention of continuing the war with the Great Zhou.

In mid-June, Xixia was overwhelmed and sent envoys to Zhou to seek peace.

At the end of the same month, the Great Zhou army was stationed in Yanbian and continued to confront Xixia. Wei Yuan asked Zhong Yan and Yang Huairen to return to Beijing to accept the congratulations of all officials.

In any case, the two of them had a big fight in Xixia, which was a face-saving thing, and naturally worthy of celebration from the court and the public.

June 16.

The Mansion of the Loyal and Brave Marquis.

Wei Yuan was chatting and laughing with Zhang Guifen, Wei Shuyi, Minglan and others.

Now, Zhang Guifen is about eight months pregnant, her belly is gradually getting bigger, and she even needs someone to support her when walking.

Whether it is the Zhang family or Wei Shuyi and others, looking at Zhang Guifen's increasingly bulging belly, they are indescribably happy.

"The last two months are especially important. The family must prepare everything needed for the mother, the doctor, and the delivery."

"Guifen, you must rest more. Leave the family affairs to Aunt Zhang for the time being, and don't worry about it."

In a pavilion, Wei Shuyi said earnestly.

Zhang Guifen smiled and responded: "Don't worry, sister, everything has been arranged by mother. The imperial doctors and the maids who serve the ladies in the palace are waiting in the mansion."

Although it is not yet the month, Wei Shuyi has experienced the hardships of giving birth, and premature births also happen from time to time among the people, so he must be careful.

After all, the child in Zhang Guifen's belly is the future of the Loyal and Brave Marquis's Mansion.

It is also because her due date is approaching. In recent days, Wei Shuyi and others will come to the Marquis' Mansion to accompany Zhang Guifen whenever they are free.

After all, the Yanbian war has just ended, and there are many things that are complicated. Waiting for Wei Yuan to deal with it, it is difficult to accompany her for a long time.

"If there are not many things in the court, I will accompany Guifen more. The more it is at this time, the more Guifen cannot leave her side."

For women like Wei Shuyi, there is nothing more important than giving birth to a child.

Although I know that Wei Yuan is very busy, I still can't help but give him a few more words of advice.

Before Wei Yuan said anything, Zhang Guifen touched her belly and defended him:

"The affairs of the court are related to the country and the country. Brother Wei has no choice. Don't say anything about her, sister."

Minglan, who was sitting on the side, didn't say anything, but just stared at Zhang Guifen's big belly and smiled foolishly.

Wei Yuan said: "Sister is right. I will accompany Guifen and go nowhere after I finish this period of time."

As soon as the voice fell, a servant from the Marquis's Mansion came hurriedly,

"Marquis, the general of the Palace Front Department just sent a message saying that the Xia envoy Li Liangzuo has entered the capital."

Wei Yuan knew that the envoy sent by Xixia to seek peace was still Li Liangzuo.

This person had a lot of dealings with the Great Zhou, so it was understandable that Li Yuanhao sent him here.

And the person in charge of negotiating with the Xia envoy this time was still Wei Yuan.

As soon as the servant finished speaking, Zhang Guifen's originally cheerful expression suddenly became disappointed.

Wei Yuan was busy with state affairs, and he hadn't sat down with her for a long time.

I thought I had this opportunity today, but who would have thought

Wei Yuan just noticed that something was wrong with Zhang Guifen, and gently held her hand, saying:

"I will try to go home early today, and let my elder sister and others accompany you first."

In order not to embarrass Wei Yuan, Zhang Guifen forced a smile and said:

"Sir, go quickly, business is important, and I don't have anything important here."

She has always been very sensible, but it was this sensibleness that made Wei Yuan feel a little guilty,

"I will go quickly and come back quickly."

Zhang Guifen nodded, "Sir, just go, and don't worry about the family and me."

Wei Yuan looked at Wei Shuyi, "Sister, I'll trouble you and Ming girl to accompany Guifen."

Wei Shuyi said, "You go."

Wei Yuan left.

As soon as he left, Wei Shuyi shook his head and smiled, saying:

"I'm busy with government affairs, and there's nothing I can do about it. It's just hard for you."

Zhang Guifen smiled with her hands covering her mouth, "What's the hardship? Outsiders may envy my little sister."

As soon as Wei Yuan left, Minglan dared to reach out and touch his belly, muttering:

"Aunt, I feel like he's kicking you."

He put his ear to her belly and said, "Little brother, come out soon, don't make your mother suffer too much."

Wei Shuyi knocked her head, "It's not the month yet, you're talking nonsense."

Minglan laughed and said, "Mother is right, dear brother, listen to your aunt, come out soon when the month is up, don't make your mother suffer."

Hearing this, Zhang Guifen and Wei Shuyi both looked at each other and smiled.

——

Wei Yuan went to Guanyi in person to see Li Liangzuo.

It had been less than half a year since the two last met.

That time, Li Liangzuo had lost face in the capital. This time, as an envoy from a defeated country, he came to sue for peace, and it would be difficult to save his face.

Wei Yuan originally thought that Li Liangzuo would treat him coldly. After all, this man became famous at a young age, and his reputation in the country was higher than that of Li Ningling. As the envoy of a defeated country, how could he easily let go of Wei Yuan? A proud man?

However, what surprised Wei Yuan was that when he saw Li Liangzuo this time, he actually lowered his posture and bowed deeply:

"Brother Wei, I haven't seen you in half a year, but you still look charming."

Wei Yuan looked at him. There were a few strands of white hair in his hair. The young man had gray hair. He might have experienced a great change.

"I heard that when Brother Li Ningling went deep into the hinterland of the Great Zhou Dynasty alone, you wrote to your father, asking Brother Li Ningling to withdraw his troops quickly, but your father refused?"

Hearing Wei Yuan's question, Li Liangzuo's expression did not change much. He just nodded calmly and smiled bitterly.

"My brother can't command the army, but he still volunteered for military service."

"From the moment he led his troops to resist your Zhou army, I have anticipated today's situation."

Wei Yuan frowned slightly and said, "In that case, you know that there will be no benefit in coming, so why do you still come?"

Li Liangzuo sighed, "If possible, who would be willing to come?"

There was a pause.

Li Liangzuo ordered someone to bring several plates of side dishes and drinks, sat opposite Wei Yuan, and said seriously:

"Let's talk about the conditions."

Wei Yuan nodded, "You sold 30,000 pairs of iron kite armor to the Liao Kingdom. The same number will also be given to me, Da Zhou. The Helan Mountain area will belong to me, Da Zhou."

Hearing this, Li Liangzuo looked troubled, "Master Wei, General Wei, can you do it?"

Before he finished speaking, he saw Wei Yuan shaking his head, "This is already the minimum requirement, not too much."

"This year, your Xixia tribute can be reduced or reduced a little, so that your people can have a good New Year."

If Xixia is really pushed into a hurry and the people cannot eat, they will have no choice but to invade Dazhou.

No one wants the war to continue.

Li Liangzuo said seriously: "Ten thousand pairs of iron kite armors, Helan Mountain, Changcheng Ridge, and Shilijing are all yours, Dazhou."

The three places he mentioned were originally the borders of Xixia. They have little practical significance, but they are better than nothing.

Losing the natural barrier of the Helan Mountains is definitely not an easy thing for Xixia.

"Brother Wei, you Zhou Dynasty did not suffer much losses. If this war continues, it will be detrimental to both you and me."

"Don't forget that there is a Liao Kingdom in the north that is eyeing us."

"If a national war really breaks out, the only winner in the end will be Bei Liao!"

Li Liangzuo said this and looked at Wei Yuan quietly.

I do not know how long it has been.

Wei Yuan stood up, walked up to him, patted his shoulder, and said seriously:

"It's not easy for you."

Li Liangzuo sighed again.

Xixia is suffering from internal and external troubles. Not only is the disaster situation severe, but there is also a wild profiteer who has turned against a beggar.

As long as the fighting continues, once Yeli Yuqi rebels, it will definitely be a fatal blow to Li Yuanhao's regime.

"Just do as you say."

"Li Liangzuo, I'm looking forward to fighting you now, but I don't know if you still have this chance."

Wei Yuan stood with his hands behind his back.

Li Liangzuo frowned and blurted out: "What do you mean?"

Wei Yuan said seriously: "I will order people to spread the news about Xixia's compensation for 30,000 pairs of armor, but it does not include the territory of Helan Mountain."

"At the same time, I will also make the reduced armor compensation and your initiative to cede the territory of Helan Mountain public to the public after having a good drink with you."

"Furthermore, there will be rumors that you feel that you have no hope of seizing the throne and intend to surrender to me, Da Zhou."

"Of course, you can also refuse the compensation that I, Da Zhou, ask for, but the price of doing so is the continuation of the war, and your father will hate you for not living up to expectations."

"It's hard for you to take this opportunity to trample your brother Li Ningling to death."

"After thinking about it, it seems that you have no choice."

After saying that, Li Liangzuo wanted to stand up suddenly, but Wei Yuan held his shoulders tightly.

"Don't worry, it's just a rumor, and rumors stop with the wise."

"But what a coincidence, both the advance route and the retreat route of Brother Li Ning were known to me, the Great Zhou Dynasty. Do you think there is a spy in Xixia?"

"Or is that mole all you?"

As soon as these words came out, Li Liangzuo's face suddenly turned gloomy.

"Master Wei, you are too despicable!"

The reason why Zhou Jun was able to control Li Ningling's marching route was because the Imperial City Division paid a huge price.

Even the commander Gu Qianfan was seriously injured.

It can be seen that the Imperial City Division has indeed put a lot of effort into spying on the battle reports.

When Wei Yuan went to the Imperial City Division to meet Yanda, he asked the Imperial City Division to spare no effort to spy on the military situation. In fact, he also thought of paving the way for this step.

But what he didn't expect was that the envoy coming to the Great Zhou Dynasty was Li Liangzuo.

"Go back early."

"Otherwise, if the rumor reaches Xixia before you do, do you think that after the defeat, Li Ningling will jump over the wall and start fighting with his roommates?"

Wei Yuan said this and strode away from the inn.

Li Liangzuo was in despair, and the sadness in his brows could not be dispelled.

Now that he has arrived in Dazhou, he has thought about the consequences a lot.

But I never expected that Wei Yuan could be so poisonous.

"Back then, Yelu Xin first said that if I join forces with him, we might be able to deal with Wei Yuan, but I don't think so."

"I didn't expect that he was right."

"Wei Yuan, when I put down the internal troubles and ascend the throne and proclaim myself emperor, I will definitely fight with you in an upright manner!"

——

Li Liangzuo did not stay in Bianjing for too long. As Wei Yuan said, if the rumors arrived in Xixia before him, he would be completely passive.

After he left, Zhao Zhen summoned Wei Yuan in the Xuanzheng Hall.

After listening to his thoughts, Zhao Zhen nodded and said:

"If it can trigger a fight for the throne in Xixia, that will be the biggest gain for our dynasty from this battle."

Then, he handed a secret report to Wei Yuan,

"When Li Ning was defeated, Li Yuanhao vomited blood and fainted. His body is probably going to die."

Zhao Zhen has been fighting with Li Yuanhao for his whole life. Now his body is incurable, but the same is true for Li Yuanhao. How can he be unhappy?

The old rival must go with him, and let the descendants of the future generation fight for it again!

The Great Zhou Dynasty is full of talents, but in Xixia, both military and political circles are full of talents. How can they fight against the Great Zhou Dynasty?

In fact, if Li Yuanhao was not too suspicious and often killed ministers, it would not have reached the point where no one would dare to sacrifice their lives for him.

Li Yuanhao likes wives, and Cao Cao also likes wives. Li Yuanhao is suspicious by nature, and Cao Cao is also suspicious by nature.

Li Yuanhao likes to steal the wives of important ministers, and Cao Cao has always been very respectful to the wives of important ministers.

Li Yuanhao likes to kill his right-hand man, and Cao Cao likes to pamper his right-hand man.

Li Yuanhao was defeated and was so angry that he vomited blood. Cao Cao was defeated and said with a smile that he would come back one day.

From this point of view, there is a qualitative difference between the two.

"Wei Qing, among Li Yuanhao's sons, are you most worried about Li Liangzuo taking over?"

Hear the words.

Wei Yuan nodded without breaking the rules and said: "Li Liangzuo is a young eagle. In time, he will become a nuisance to my inner circle."

Zhao Zhen looked a little excited, "Can I kill him with this divorce plan?"

Wei Yuan thought about this question seriously, but in the end the answer he got was no.

"Please rest assured, officials, I will definitely kill him as long as there is a chance."

Late June.

Yang Huairen and Zhong E went to Beijing.

Wei Yuan personally greeted him outside the city.

This is the first time Zhong E and Wei Yuan meet.

The former was so surprised that he even became stunned.

Wei Yuan smiled and said: "General Zhong, why did you lose your mind when you saw this prince?"

Hearing this, Zhong E came back to his senses and bowed quickly: "I have long heard that Marquis Zhongyong is young, but I never thought that you are actually so young."

"In front of you, how dare a junior general be called a great general?"

Wei Yuan laughed loudly and said, "How can you not say that?"

"As long as you serve the country well, you will be the general of our dynasty."

After that, he grabbed Zhong E and Yang Huairen by the wrist and got into the chariot together.

"Let's go, follow me into the palace to meet the Holy Spirit."

"Tonight, the official family is hosting a banquet for all the officials in the capital at the Daqing Palace. We will not return until we are drunk!"

not far away.

Above the city.

Wang Anshi put one hand behind his back, stroked his beard with the other, and asked the person behind him,

"Do you think Zhong E and Yang Huairen will be given titles by the officials?"

The man responded respectfully: "The official's holy will, students don't dare to speculate on it."

Wang Anshi said with a smile: "Your uncle has already entered Zhazi and would like to ask the officials to grant the two of them titles."

Sheng Changbai responded: "Uncle has always valued our generals very highly."

Wang Anshi added: "When your uncle came to greet these two people, I told the officials that there are enough hereditary nobles in the Zhou Dynasty, and the situation is more serious than redundant officials."

Sheng Changbai was silent.