Chapter 265: Swords and Shadows, The Bourne Identity
Sang Hongyang cursed in his heart, his face showed an expression of worry, and his legs were ready to take action.

but.

Before he could even take a step or open his mouth to object, he heard the emperor say directly: “Since you think it is feasible, let’s discuss it.”

“General, General of Chariots and Cavalry, please tell me first how to use the troops to conquer Korea?” Liu Che looked directly at Wei Qing, Li Guang and other generals and asked in a deep voice.

Look at this situation, there is no chance for others to raise any objections!
In fact.

Among the ministers in the palace at this moment, the one who had the strongest objection was the Minister of Agriculture Sang Hongyang.

His opposition was not to the emperor’s use of war, but he wanted to suggest that wars should not be launched too frequently. The reason had nothing to do with people’s livelihood, benevolence, righteousness, morality, etc.

It’s only about money.

As the Minister of Agriculture cultivated by the emperor, Sang Hongyang certainly did not have such pursuits as “loving peace and practicing benevolent government” that violated political correctness.

Otherwise he would not have been able to hold the high position of Minister of Agriculture.

Out of his own responsibilities and the current predicament of the national treasury, Sang Hongyang wanted to step forward and suggest that Your Majesty should be cautious and wait until the national treasury has accumulated a few years of funds before launching an attack.

Unfortunately, the emperor didn’t give him any chance at all.

“General of Chariots and Cavalry, you were stationed in Youbeiping for many years, so you should know something about the Kingdom of Korea. You speak first.” At this time, the emperor simply called out Li Guang’s name.

Hear the words.

Li Guang was not polite and looked at the geomancy map. “The north of Korea is mountainous and has a rugged terrain. If I were to let this old minister lead the troops to attack, the best direction would be from the sea.”

North Korea has a small territory, no inland depth, and its capital is not far from the coast, so its weaknesses are too obvious.

“General Huoqi, what do you think?” The emperor looked at Huo Qubing again.

Huo Qubing had never been to Korea, and although he didn’t know the exact topography, he was able to tell the location just by referring to the geomancy map.

Huo Qubing raised his eyebrows and said sternly: “We will go around and attack the capital from the sea, and we will go out of Liaodong and attack the northern part of Korea head-on.”

“Whether it’s making a feint to the east and attacking in the west, or joining forces to attack from both sides, both are effective. The specific method of implementation still needs to be adjusted according to the actual situation after the generals are on the battlefield.”

kindness……

The emperor seemed to be thinking about something and turned his head to look at the general.

There was no need to ask this time. Wei Qing thought for a moment and said solemnly, “Attacking the city is inferior to conquering the heart. Korea is weak. Once the army is at the gates, the king and his ministers may waver or become timid. Then we can send envoys to sow discord and force them to surrender.”

With just a few words, the three generals outlined an offensive strategy. As the saying goes: It is easy to get thousands of soldiers, but it is difficult to get a good general.

It is nothing more than this.

Things had developed to this point, and there was no way to oppose it. Even if the ministers present had different opinions in their hearts, they swallowed them.

The generals discussed with the emperor and refined the strategy for sending troops. Immediately afterwards, the emperor ordered the prime minister, the chief censor and others to coordinate food and fodder and prepare logistics.

The question that puzzled Huo Qubing now had an answer. Of the 80,000 troops to be deployed in the spring, 30,000 would go north to the grasslands, and the remaining 50,000…

Attack North Korea!

“Uncle and cousin, do you know the resumes of those two generals?”

After the court was dismissed, Liu Ju sat in the center between the long walls of the Weiyang Palace, with Wei Qing and Huo Qubing on his left and right.

When asked, Huo Qubing shook his head: “I’m not familiar with it.”

Earlier in the Xuanshi Hall, the emperor decided on two generals to attack Korea, one was General Yang Pu of the Tower Ships, and the other was General Xun Zhu of the Left.

Yang Pu, currently serving as Zuo Fengyi.

Xun Zhui was not only unfamiliar to Huo Qubing, but Liu Ju had also never heard of him.

“Yang Pu is a tough ruler, but I don’t know his ability to lead troops.” Wei Qing said as he walked, “As for Xun Zhui, he once fought with me in several battles as a lieutenant.”

“The ability is… acceptable.”

Wei Qing hesitated a little when he said this, but he did not dwell on it. He turned his head to look at the crown prince and asked in confusion, “Your Highness, are you asking them about something?”

Wei Qing’s perception was undoubtedly sharp.

Liu Ju did not hide it and nodded, saying, “From what I saw from Sang Hongyang’s appearance, I think the national treasury is under great pressure. We should send troops to Korea as quickly as possible.”

When sending an army on a long expedition, the most feared thing is delay. The longer it delays, the more food and fodder will be consumed.

There is no need to discuss whether to fight or not. Since the war has been decided, Liu Ju should do his best to ensure not only victory, but also victory quickly!
After handling more government affairs, Liu Ju had a general idea of ​​the court’s finances. It was completely a case of spending money before it is earned and borrowing from Peter to pay Paul.

Ugh……

At his uncle Wei Qing’s place, Liu Ju asked about the abilities of Xun Zhu and Yang Pu, mainly the former, after all, he had fought in several battles with Wei Qing.

After returning to the palace.

Liu Ju also ordered people to check the detailed resumes of Xun and Yang.

As Wei Qing said, Yang Pu is good at governing, but his ability to lead troops is still unknown because this is his first time leading troops into battle.

And Xun Zhu.

This person’s background is a little more complicated. He did fight in many battles with Wei Qing, and in terms of seniority, he can be considered an old subordinate.

However, before following Wei Qing to fight as a colonel, Xun Zhu was a former Shizhong!

He was good at driving and was therefore promoted by the emperor.

To summarize it simply: Xun Zhi, the driver who used to drive for the emperor!

Judging from the above experiences, it is hard to say whether he is a person secretly brought by the emperor or a former subordinate of the general…

Putting these aside, just looking at Xun Zhu’s ability to lead troops, it is just as Wei Qing commented –

Fair.

Or rather, a bit average.

The basis for Liu Ju’s speculation was very simple. He had fought with General Wei Qing for so many years, and he always followed him as a captain.

He followed the right person and had a good starting point, but now he is unknown? Most generals with some ability have risen to prominence by riding on Wei Qing’s coattails, right?
of course.

This speculation is too arbitrary. Whether a person can become successful or not depends on the platform and background, and sometimes, luck is also important.

In any case, Liu Ju felt uneasy in his heart. After much thought, he ordered Zhang He, the commander of the Water Conservancy Department, to do something.

Liu Ju instructed Zhang He to allocate some of the new bows and crossbows that had been strengthened in the Temple Works Institute in recent years, as well as the excellent war horses that had been bred with great difficulty, to Xun and Yang.

By the way, I’d like to say a word to both of them.

He said: “I am very concerned about the war against North Korea. The two generals should do their best and work together!”

The fifth day of the month of late spring.

Zhao Po Nu, the general of the Xiongnu River, led 20,000 northern troops and joined forces with 10,000 cavalry from Shanggu and Yuyang counties, totaling 30,000 cavalry, to attack the Xiongnu in the north.

The Left General Xun Zhu, with 13,000 cavalrymen from the Northern Army, and 30,000 infantrymen from Youbeiping, Liaoxi, and Liaodong counties, totaling 43,000 people, marched out of Liaodong county.

Attack North Korea.

General Yang Pu of the Tower Ships led 7,000 infantrymen from two counties in Qi, crossed the sea from Qi, and attacked the capital of Korea, Wangxian City!
……

On the same day that the army set out, in a mansion in Chang’an City.

“Should we warn the North Koreans? The marching speed is not as fast as riding a horse alone. It should still be in time to send a message now.”

“…Send it.”

In the secret room, a man’s gloomy voice sounded, “No matter whether the North Koreans can be stopped or not, it is good to delay the war for a while.”

The other person nodded, hesitated for a moment, and asked again: “Your Majesty, are you already on guard against us? There was no news of sending troops to Korea before!”

“That’s right, huh! We didn’t get any wind of it, but neither did Wei Qing?”

There was silence in the room for a moment.

The voice that had hesitated just now suddenly showed joy, “Are you saying that His Majesty has become alienated from the general?”

“Hey, who knows…”

Having said that, the atmosphere of the conversation in the room was noticeably relaxed, and the subsequent conversations became more light-hearted and soothing.

“It’s a pity that Huo Qubing couldn’t lead the troops this time.”

“It doesn’t matter. If it doesn’t work this time, there will always be next time. With the temper of our emperor, there will be no shortage of wars to fight…”

“Now that you mention it, I feel like there’s no need for us to incite the Huns?”

“Hmph, hmph…”

……

Hongnong County, Xin’an County.

It was the morning market season, and the main roads of the county town were bustling with people, and shouts could be heard from the shops along the street from time to time.

“Selling buns, big steaming hot buns.”

“Shopkeeper, give me four more, with meat filling.”

“okay!”

The shopkeeper skillfully took the meat buns out of the steamer and brought them to the table. “Our great Han prince likes this. Please serve more when you are satisfied.”

Upon hearing this, the bearded man swallowed the buns one by one, then stood up and shouted at the shop owner: “You are such a black-hearted guy!”

“The buns have thick skin and thin meat. The food sent by the nobles has been ruined by you black-hearted bastards!” “Hey, what are you talking about…”

The shop owner wanted to argue, but the bearded man threw down a few coins, pulled up his trousers, and swaggered away from the stall.

Walking onto the main street, the sturdy man picked his teeth and looked around.

If you see a pretty young wife, you’ll look at her a few more times. If you see a beautiful older girl, you’ll also look at her a few more times.

Just walk and see along the way.

When they arrived at a guesthouse, which was in front of an inn, the bearded man spat and walked in.

There were no diners in the hall, but there were seven or eight men standing there. All of them were strong and had sharp eyes. When they saw the bearded man coming in, one of them knocked on the counter.

The shopkeeper standing behind the stage said timidly, “There are five of them in the group, living in the innermost room in the east wing.”

The bearded man waved his hand.

Seeing this, a group of men drew their swords and surrounded the backyard.

The shopkeeper’s eyelids couldn’t stop twitching. He wanted to squat down and hide to avoid being implicated, but the bearded man was leaning against the counter, talking incoherently.

“Those guys in the inner room took my master’s things and tried to run away. We are just here to recover the property. Is that not too much?”

“Not too much, not too much!”

The shopkeeper nodded quickly. He had been running the inn here for a long time and had seen this kind of revenge killing before. He just hoped that it would not affect him and his…

Bang! Ding!
There were sounds of swords clashing and tables and chairs falling apart in the backyard.

Before the shopkeeper could speak with a sad face, the bearded man comforted him, “Don’t worry, if the item is damaged, I will compensate you at the original price.”

Just at this moment, a shrill scream suddenly rang out.

next moment.

Bang! The sound of a window being broken was heard again in the inner room. A figure jumped out of the window, and with just three or two moves, he climbed over the courtyard wall.

The already trembling shopkeeper immediately bent down and retreated behind the counter when he heard the scream. The bearded man who was originally chatting away was nowhere to be seen…

call!call!
The sounds of panting and running shuttled back and forth in the alley. He didn’t know how many turns he turned or how long he ran. Even the man himself lost his direction, but he still didn’t dare to stop.

Because he realized that there was always a tail hanging behind him!
His heart was beating violently, his breathing was as rapid as a blower, the man had a ferocious look on his face, and his figure quickly swept through the alley, constantly changing routes, but the tail behind him stuck to him tightly, getting closer and closer.

at last.

When running into a narrow alley, the man suddenly stopped. It was not because he didn’t want to or couldn’t run anymore, but because there was someone standing in front of him.

“Whoo~”

The bearded man stood up, raised his hands, smoothed his hair, exhaled a long breath, and then…

“Fuck you, you run again!”

The blocked man grinned grimly. He never thought of surrendering. He spun on his toes, pushed hard, turned around and ran backwards. However, he had just taken two steps when he stopped abruptly.

Because at some point, a person, a middle-aged man in embroidered clothes, stood at the alley behind him.

“The Embroidered Clothes Envoy!?”

The man’s pupils suddenly shrank, and he took two steps back, turning around to look at the bearded man, “You are also the emperor’s lackey!”

“Hey, hey.” The bearded man walked forward and said unhappily, “What do you mean by hawks and dogs? The ones I admire most are the brothers in embroidered clothes. Please don’t slander them…”

“stop!”

The trapped man shouted loudly, but his words were of no use. The bearded man walked faster and faster, and at the same time, the sound of clothes tearing in the air came from the other end of the alley.

It’s too late to say it, but it’s too late to say it.

Two cold rays flashed at the same time. Xiuyi drew his sword, a ring-handled sword. The bearded man also drew his sword, a scimitar with a slightly curved blade, which was non-mainstream at the time.

Two knives, three people.

Only one life!
The scimitar suddenly accelerated, passed through the left armpit, and slashed upwards. With a “swish” sound, blood spilled along with the flying arm.

At the same time, the ring-handled sword flashed, flew over, and stabbed into the man’s back, directly piercing through the man’s right shoulder and neck. In a moment, the man’s arms were completely disabled!
However, it was still too late.

“Hahahahahaha, you bastard!” Due to the severe pain caused by the broken arm, the man staggered to the ground and roared heartbreakingly: “You want to catch me? Wait for the next life!”

His left arm, which had fallen to the ground, held a dagger with a green tip.

poisonous.

The man drew out the dagger not to fight back, but to commit suicide immediately in the hopeless situation. However, the bearded man “saved” him just before he stabbed himself, but he did not “save” him completely.

There was a bloody mark on the man’s neck.

I don’t know what kind of strong poison the other party used, but in just a few breaths, the roaring man lost his voice, only his heavy breathing remained. His legs were kicking wildly, and his wide-open eyes still vented his resentment, anger, and unwillingness.

Saw this scene.

The man in embroidered clothes knew that he was hopeless, so he bent down and drew his knife. “I thought he was a coward who had fled all the way, but I didn’t expect him to be so straightforward.”

“Tsk.”

The bearded man sheathed his sword and smacked his lips. “Brother Xiuyi is right. I think so too.”

The man lying on the ground was still struggling in his death throes, but the two people standing seemed to have completely ignored him and started chatting as if no one was around.

Xiuyi asked, “How about giving your name?”

The bearded man replied, “Haha, you are too polite, brother. I am not talented. I just beg for food in the east house. My last name is Zhang, and my given name is Guang.”

“May I ask your name, brother?”

“…I am working as an official in the west house, in charge of Xiuyi, Ranlou.”

Upon hearing this, Zhang Guang, who had a full beard, immediately cupped his hands and said in a carefree manner, “I’ve heard a lot about you, Brother Ran, you are really skilled. I admire you!”

The embroidered-robed messenger, Ran Lou, had no intention of getting close to him. He looked cold and kept a certain distance.

after all.

The identities are very different depending on the “house” you hang out in.

The group of colleagues who were kept by the Crown Prince’s Palace in the east were not allowed to see the light of day, but the embroidered robe envoys who followed the Weiyang Palace in the west now have official status!

There are very few Embroidered Robe Envoys. Note that there are very few people with the title of “Embroidered Robe Envoy”. Each of them is appointed by the emperor.

It’s like… Embroidered Spring Knife.

There are many members of the Jinyiwei, but not everyone can wield the Embroidered Spring Sword.

Only high-ranking officials of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the court officials around the emperor could wear it during important ceremonies. Moreover, the Embroidered Spring Sword was an artifact bestowed by the emperor and was on the same level as the Scarlet Python Robe and the Flying Fish Robe.

It is almost impossible for ordinary Jinyiwei strongmen, small flags, centurions, etc. to own such items.

The Embroidered Robe Messenger is similar.

There may be many subordinates in the Xiuyi agency, but there are very few people who are chosen by the emperor and can be called “Xiuyi Envoys”.

Wearing embroidered clothes, she can directly enter the palace to meet the emperor!

There is one here right now.

Ran Lou glanced at the man on the ground who was breathing out more than breathing in, and said indifferently, “Where do you think he came from?”

“The assassins of the aristocratic families?” Zhang Guang pulled his beard and thought.

“Not like.”

“how to say?”

“He doesn’t have the same temperament. If he was a warrior trained by a powerful family since childhood, he would have committed suicide decisively and would not have said any nonsense.” Ran Lou said coldly, “He talks too much.”

Zhang Guang seemed to have thought of something when he heard this. He lowered his head and took a closer look at the man who had already become a corpse.

Ran Lou asked, “But the Ranger?”

“Do not.”

This time it was Zhang Guang’s turn to deny. He curled his lips and said, “Ranger, Ranger, there is a certain amount of chivalry in your heart. How can someone who tipped off the alien race and sold out military intelligence be a Ranger?”

“Hey!”

Zhang Guang sneered, “This guy has a bit of gangster spirit. How could they choose such a person as a death warrior to pass on the message…”

He didn’t say anything else, just glanced at Ran Lou. He now had a general idea of ​​the assassin’s identity, and how to track him down would depend on his own ability.

At this time.

There were dense footsteps coming from outside the alley. Soon, several men came over. After getting Zhang Guang’s permission, the other party whispered in his ear:
“Jia Cheng, catch someone alive!”

After hearing this, Zhang Guang turned around and was about to leave, but Ran Lou and the people behind him stopped him with their swords drawn. The leader in embroidered clothes said calmly:

“You have targeted him, and so have we. It’s just that you acted earlier. We all work for the court, so you don’t mind sharing information, right?”

Hearing this, Zhang Guang turned his gaze towards him and stared at him for a long time. During this time, the air in the alley gradually stagnated, and several pairs of hands slowly reached for the hilt of the knife. Just before the temperature dropped to freezing point…

“what!”

Zhang Guang grinned and said cheerfully: “Brother Ran is right. We all serve the court. Let’s go and try them together!”

(End of this chapter)