Since the peace talks were settled, the young emperor Meng Cheng personally issued an order to remove the shackles on General Geng Zhe, and wiped the edge of the sword for the Thunder Division stationed in the northern border. Relying on the pretext of the teacher, he finally ignited the ambition of "sweeping the world and building meritorious service".
　　It was also after this incident that the entire court was like a precision machine, running at high speed with each doing its job. But this time, as the helmsman, Meng Cheng was the first time to personally take charge of the matter while Dong Lingjiu was half-watching, and it was such a major event related to the fate of the country. He couldn't help but tremble with fear, worry day and night, and every time he made a decision, he must not be ashamed to ask questions and think twice before acting.
　　The consequence of this situation is that Lord Zheng, who is "gilded" in the Palace Front Department, can be said to be busy and busy.
　　He never expected that the young emperor would often ask him about family and national affairs! Didn't this difficult emperor think that he was a sinister and treacherous minister a few months ago and wanted to drive him out of the palace? Meng Cheng's words of "I won't associate with you" were still ringing in my ears, why did he turn his face and deny it today?
　　Zheng Yuheng muttered in his heart, but he didn't dare to neglect it. He was just talking in his heart. In fact, he and Meng Cheng both knew the reason for this change.
　　The young emperor frequently asked questions to him and gradually treated him with courtesy. It was not just because of Dong Lingjiu's recommendation. Zheng Yuheng was indeed neat and straightforward in doing things. Moreover, because of his nature and past experience, the possibility of accepting bribes was almost zero. Although Meng Cheng was young and impulsive, he was not too stupid. He knew that good steel should be used on the blade. Since he was a useful person, he, as an emperor, would not be eager to seek talents, but would he abandon them like a shoe? This is the first
　　reason. The second reason is what Dong Lingjiu also said. Although the generations of censors in the Zheng family were somewhat pedantic and ignorant, they were overcorrecting, so they were considered to have a clean background in the capital. Now, Zheng Shiyushi has returned to his hometown and has left Kyoto to be an idle old man. In addition, Zheng Yuheng has no interest in the Zheng family. He has a clean background but is not bound by family ties. Such a person can be regarded as a pure minister directly under Meng Cheng, like a sword, and is extremely useful at any time.
　　The third point, and the most important point... This is Meng Cheng's own reason. People are always full of fear when they take the helm for the first time. The little emperor did not dare to confide in his mother, for fear of highlighting his weak side. It happened that Zheng Yuheng was influenced by the teachings of the Cining Palace, and what he said and thought had a bit of the shadow of Dong Lingjiu. Meng Cheng was like a cripple who met a cane and could not let go for a while.
　　With the young emperor's intentional or unintentional use, Zheng Yuheng's reputation in the court was very high. Even though he was promoted to the position of the head of the Ministry of Revenue, the assistant minister, and the supervisor of grain and grass transportation... these frequent transfers and promotions were not as famous as the commander of the Purple Guard during this period. Every day, he met either the scholars of the six departments who had been in office for many years, or the old prime minister who was in the title of assistant minister of state affairs. If it weren't for the old man Feng Jin who was ordered to support him, Zheng Yuheng would probably be timid.
　　In mid-to-late April, military reports were issued frequently, and Zheng Yuheng was even more busy performing his duties in the Palace Front Office day and night, accompanying the young emperor to discuss politics in the Ministry of War. Even if he just waited silently, he became familiar to the important officials in the court and the public.
　　Naturally, after getting so familiar with him, it was inevitable that Minister Gan Wenyi would recognize his origin. This old minister had a direct encounter with Doctor Zheng outside the Cining Palace, and was deeply impressed. When he saw Zheng Yuheng, he couldn't help but think of the legacy of the previous emperor, so it was reasonable for him to recognize him. However, Minister
　　Gan was not an impulsive and straightforward person. The current situation was special, and in the war, Master Zheng was obviously the right-hand man of His Majesty. At this time, why bother with such a "dispensable" thing? So the Minister pretended not to know and continued to discuss politics as usual.
　　At the end of April, the Shenwu Army encountered the Beisu Left Cavalry Camp and fought in the wild. The Beisu Army retreated 150 miles and retreated into the continuous mountains within the border; on May 15, the Imperial Camp Left Army won a great victory in the Jueji Snow Mountain, annihilated more than 4,000 people, and captured and defeated soldiers, totaling more than 10,000; on May 30, the two armies faced each other in Huangshan City with an actual number of more than 50,000.
　　Once this city is passed, it is not only in the territory of Beisu, but also different from the outer cities with little people and wealth and no value. Inside is a real and prosperous city. It is the center of one of the tribes in the composition of Beisu's territory, and it is impossible to give in.
　　The two sides confronted each other for fifteen days, and all kinds of tricks for the supply of food and grass were used back and forth, with frequent and unpredictable tricks, which can be said to be the ultimate in military tactics... In this case, the soldiers in the front may just be dispatched, but the adults in the court are working hard, changing plans according to the situation, communicating with Geng Zhe and other generals at any time, and observing the overall situation.
　　Fifteen days later, a battle recorded in history books broke out in Huangshan City.
　　General Geng Zhe, the first general of the Great Yin, faced off against Qiliehechi, the marshal of Beisu who had been famous for many years. They deployed troops and fought each other, and finally formed this battle... In the end, all the tricks ended in a head-on confrontation with blood splashing on the blades.
　　According to military intelligence reports, a new general under General Geng Zhe shined in this battle. He charged into the enemy formation alone, took the head of Qiliehechi's beloved son in the chaos, threw it to the ground amidst the layers of siege, drank strong liquor, roared wildly, and intimidated the Jurchen cavalry in front of him. In the end, although he was seriously injured, he escaped alive.
　　The effect on morale can be imagined.
　　The battle lasted about two and a half hours. In the end, blood flowed and corpses piled up like mountains. Qiliehechi was on the top of the city wall of Huangshan City, and he made a sad cry of unwillingness towards the place where the Lord of Beisu was, and then committed suicide.
　　A generation of famous generals ended in fragments.
　　This was the first time in recent years that the Great Yin had fought so deeply and entered Huangshan City for the first time. Although this place is not far from the rich and prosperous land, there are not many enemy civilians in this border city. Most of them are the people of the Great Yin who were captured here, herdsmen, women and children, as well as porcelain, gold, silver, silk utensils... The herdsmen fell into the hands of the barbarians and were abused repeatedly. Now seeing the army of the Great Yin, they couldn't help crying and almost thought they were dreaming.
　　If peace was negotiated, these people would also be sent back, but taking them back in person would have a completely different meaning.
　　Moreover, this is just the beginning.
　　When the battle report was transmitted to the court of the Northern Su King, the old king who didn't want to take his sixth son back and was even so stupid as to assassinate his life was extremely surprised and slid down from the throne in shock. Even though he was surrounded by a group of flatterers, who were spreading rumors and confusing the public, the king was so scared that he quickly handed over the real peace message and bled heavily.
　　But when this message was transmitted to the army, General Geng put it on the flames and burned it to ashes. He didn't even look at them, but said as still as a mountain: "From the court of the Northern Su King to the border of our dynasty, no matter how far you have traveled to plunder, I will report to you. Hundreds of miles, thousands of miles, we will pave the ground with war, and ask your lord to wash his neck and wait for his death!"
　　The Northern Su cavalry was outstanding, so he often felt that the generals of the Great Yin were just a bunch of embroidered pillows, but the chickens and dogs raised by the Meng family. But now that he met such a powerful general, he felt that even if he really had to talk about dogs, this was also a vicious dog mixed with wolf blood. Only a wise and holy lord could subdue
　　it, which was really terrifying. However, these people still didn't know that it was not the Meng family sitting on the throne who really subdued him. The little emperor who was giving orders now might not be able to make Geng Zhe stop and return to the court... There was only one person in the court who could hold this rope.
　　But it was this person who hadn't asked about the war for three days.
　　June 20th, late summer, violent winds and heavy rains.
　　Outside, there was a storm and thunder, but Dong Lingjiu was calm and relaxed, as graceful as a fairy, enjoying the chess game.
　　She was wearing a simple smoky blue long skirt, a wide-sleeved outer robe, a long shawl with floating gold and silver, a brocade on her temples, and long tassels on half of her hair. She looked dignified, gentle, and had a restrained aura of a superior. Her eyes showed care, like an ordinary female elder.
　　There were two chess players at the bottom of the steps, one was Concubine Li, and the other was naturally Queen Wang.
　　Queen Wang was seven months pregnant, and she would not be able to go out in a few days. She took this opportunity to find excuses to ask for advice on chess whenever she visited the Queen Mother, both because she loved it and because she was studying it. Who knew that she could not ask her mother to help, but instead let this difficult Gan Yuner come to play chess with her every day.
　　Concubine Li was straightforward and easily deceived, but she was really not very scheming. The "difficulties" she had done were just childish in Wang Wanrou's eyes. She even felt it was a loss of status to fight back, so she had to be pestered by her to play chess.
　　Dong Lingjiu happened to be watching, and from time to time he whispered to Mu Xuehua, the old princess of Lin'an Palace.
　　Mu Xuehua had been married from April to the end of June, and she did not leave even after the Emperor Meng Cheng's Thousand Autumn Festival some time ago. It seemed that she wanted to wait until the winter New Year, when Meng Shen and the young princess Zhu came to Beijing to pay homage to the Queen Mother, and then return to the fiefdom together.
　　Dong Lingjiu sat quietly drinking tea, watching his daughter-in-law play chess, while saying to Mu Xuehua: "You took someone's newborn baby to the Cining Palace to raise, and it has been several months. The child's biological parents must be anxious."
　　Mu Xuehua said: "Being able to raise a child in the lap of the emperor's sister-in-law is a blessing that cannot be achieved in several lifetimes. They are a newlywed couple, and it is the time for them to say sweet words and dislike the child's noise. Why not let them have a few more sweet days."
　　Dong Lingjiu glanced at her: "From your tone,
　　you seem to be very lenient to the little princess." Mu Xuehua said: "Although she is a daughter of a small family, she is kind and intelligent. She is actually a rare good child. She can let me go without being picky about family background. It must be our family's good fortune."
　　"Our family..." Dong Lingjiu smiled, "Is it your family, or the Meng family?"
　　"Well," Mu Xuehua said, "It's all the same. Even if they both miss their child, can't they come to Beijing to pay their respects to you, the Empress Dowager? This is a matter of course. When the child grows up in the future, I'm afraid they will come to Beijing less often."
　　Dong Lingjiu understood what she meant.
　　Now that the child is still young, it is for the sake of friendship to come to the palace frequently to keep in touch, or even to say that she is raising him in her lap, which may be useful in the future. But if the child grows up and their lineage has a legacy, it will be difficult to come to Beijing frequently. At least once every three to five years, so as not to arouse the emperor's suspicion.
　　Both parties knew this simple calculation, so Mu Xuehua came to accompany her sister-in-law more often while the prince was still young, and it was also to fill the gap that might be difficult to see each other often in the future. Based on these various factors, Dong Lingjiu also acquiesced.
　　At this moment, the chess game changed suddenly. Concubine Li lost another hand. Thunder sounded in her ears again. She was even more uneasy and irritated. She said in a spoiled tone, "I don't want to play anymore. Your Majesty always uses her strengths to suppress me. Why don't you just bully me?"
　　Queen Wang was magnanimous and used to dealing with her: "Then what is Concubine Li good at?"
　　Gan Yun'er rolled her eyes, held her face and looked up and said, "I can cook delicious dishes. Your Majesty is not in a position to cook at this time, so I can't force a competition."
　　Queen Wang was speechless and only responded perfunctorily.
　　Concubine Li continued with great interest, "In that case, why don't the Queen call all the concubines in the palace, and we will cook a specialty dish for the Queen Mother together, and then have a meal together, taste and compare each other's dishes, and finally decide who has the best cooking skills based on the Queen Mother's opinion, and I will give her a prize."
　　Queen Wang thought for a moment and thought, "It's raining so hard outside, it's surprising that you come here to make a noise, wouldn't it be troublesome to call them?"
　　Concubine Li said, "The Queen is high above, and her love with His Majesty is naturally different from us. She doesn't know that we, who are not loved by anyone, are playing and chatting together to relieve boredom. Anyway, they stay at home to sleep, and when it comes to eating, they will definitely come. , it's nothing if it's just raining, even if it's hail, you have to run here with a head full of dust."
　　She was quite eloquent, Wang Wanrou almost laughed out loud, and was about to be helped up by the maid to sit down to ask Dong Lingjiu for instructions, when she suddenly turned back and asked lightly: "You came so early today, and you don't usually get up early. Did you miss breakfast and feel hungry now, and have selfish thoughts?"
　　Concubine Li, who was full of confidence and talked freely just now, blushed, her cheeks flushed, and she said in a low voice with her neck stiff: "No...no. Can eating...be selfish?"
　　Wang Wanrou laughed a few times, then sat down below the two elders, repeated Concubine Li's words, and asked her mother if it was okay.
　　Dong Lingjiu was just about to say, "You've been led astray by her. You just follow Yun'er in making trouble." However, before she could finish her words, Mu Xuehua on the side was very curious and said quickly, "This is quite interesting. You see, once your mother-in-law stops caring about state affairs, she becomes bored and only knows how to read books. All day long, she either talks about metaphysics or the rule of law. She can't get along with us ladies at all. She is not good at embroidery or cooking. Now she's a reviewer, who only eats and doesn't cook. It's not bad."
　　Dong Lingjiu glanced at her and said expressionlessly, "You talk too much."
　　"Amitabha, I've said something wrong." Mu Xuehua became bolder. She first apologized and then joked, "Who dares to say anything wrong about the queen to her face? The queen is a perfect person. The gods and Buddhas in heaven can't find any fault with her."
　　Dong Lingjiu held his forehead and sighed, and said, "Yuanyuan..."
　　Mu Xuehua was called by a nickname. She knew that her eldest sister-in-law was her mother and half an elder. When she showed the airs of an elder, she immediately shut up and covered her face with a fan.
　　Dong Lingjiu then told the queen: "You are not in good health, so don't participate. The small kitchen in my palace is well equipped. Since you are willing to do so, send someone to call them. However, the weather is bad, so don't force them to come."
　　Wang Wanrou immediately agreed and said, "It's a storm, it won't last long, why not wait until the rain stops before calling them."
　　Dong Lingjiu nodded immediately.