The wind blows the grass low and you can see cattle and sheep.
At this time, the Houtao area was truly trapped by the Yellow River... The river came to the upper left corner of the J-shape and suddenly split into two. One branch turned along the traditional river channel of the J-shape, while the other chose to continue northward, and only changed its course when it encountered the Yinshan Mountains. It continued along the Yinshan Mountains until it returned south along the mountain, merged with the branch, and then continued to rush.
The river here is thousands of steps wide and the water flows slowly, making it very easy to divert water for irrigation. In addition, the Yin Mountains provide shelter from the wind and snow, making this place suitable for farming and grazing. The Jiangnan region on the Great Wall is no exaggeration.
At this time, in the heat of summer, the climate here actually makes people feel somewhat comfortable, which can only be attributed to the abundant water and the northern location of this place.
“It’s truly a blessed place.”
In the morning, 13 or 14 miles southeast of Wulahai City, Wanyan Wushu stood on a hillside and looked at the surrounding scenery for a long time before he sighed. "Who would have thought that such a place would have such a beautiful scenery? Before, I just thought this place was just geographically important."
The lame Wanhu Wanyan Tuhesu who was accompanying him looked back at the surroundings and had no choice but to bite the bullet and reply: "The King of Wei is right, it is really a good place, much better than our hometown."
Wushu nodded slightly and did not continue to speak... because he knew very well that Tuhesu was not the kind of person who could talk, and could not understand his sincere admiration for the magnificent mountains and rivers. Of course, he did not refute or ridicule the other party, because he knew that this feeling was a very personal thing, and others had no obligation to resonate with him.
In fact, it was only since that snowy night crossing at Huai River that Wushu began to feel a little sentimental about the mountains and rivers, but it was only a fleeting moment in his drunken state. However, after that crossing at Huai River, as he experienced more setbacks and difficulties, his intoxication and appreciation of the natural scenery became clearer and more common.
After the so-called wooden dragon crossed the river, Wuzhu had an illusion that compared to those people and things, the mountains, rivers, wind, snow, rain and thunder were more worthy of his approach, as if only by being close to these things could he better feel what strength and gentleness, momentum and subtlety, light and darkness were.
Of course, this is probably because people are more sensitive after being injured.
Be it physical trauma or psychological trauma, many people who have been frustrated or injured on the battlefield will become sensitive, sensitive in various senses.
For example, Wuzhu's third brother Wanyan Erlido became more and more devout in Buddhism. In the later period of Wanyan Loushi's life, his body was covered with wounds and he was extremely sensitive to weather changes. So from this perspective, it is very likely that Wuzhu suddenly opened the door to a new world after being stabbed.
Without further ado, Wuzhu finished his sigh and, considering the time, continued to move westward. Among them, Ada and Aer led two hundred armored cavalrymen on the left and right in front, while Tuhesu and the seven or eight hundred armored cavalrymen following behind moved slowly with Wuzhu himself.
They did not come here to see the scenery, nor to investigate the city of Wulahai, but to meet with the leader of the Kerait tribe, Huerzahusi, according to the conditions agreed upon the day before.
The Kereyid tribe was the largest Mongol tribe near Khatun City, and Huerzahusi accepted Yelu Yanshan's request because he was promised to control Khatun City. He also invited Kubula Khan, who was extremely anti-Jin, to join him in sending troops into the Houtao.
But to be honest, the whole battle was not smooth. First of all, it was mainly because Li Liangfu, the Xixia garrison commander in Yinshan, was very resilient. He arranged the troops properly and firmly controlled the various fortresses and Wulahai City. The Mongols were afraid of casualties and just kept fighting with Li Liangfu.
But suddenly, things took a dramatic turn.
The Western Xia emperor came, the Khitan army came, and then the Jurchen army came, so the Western Xia emperor escaped again under the protection of Li Liangfu.
At this time, the intensity of the war also changed dramatically... The Jurchens and the Khitans who had regained their courage to fight used iron and blood to make the Mongols, who had just gained some experience on the grassland, feel what real war was.
It turns out that an army can have so much armor?
It turns out that battles can be initiated without any specific spoils of war?
So war can cost warriors and beasts so much?
In just half a month, the casualties suffered by the Mongols may have exceeded those caused by their looting on the grasslands in a year. At this time, the two main Mongol leaders, Kubula Khan and Hurzahusi, both wanted to leave.
But it is impossible to evacuate easily.
Because Yelu Dashi would not let them go. If they left, how could the already struggling Khitans resist the fierce Jurchens? In fact, Yelu Dashi personally controlled Wulahai City, which guarded the entrance and exit of Yinshan Mountain in the north, in order to control the return route of the Mongols.
It was precisely because of this that Wanyan Wushu finally persuaded Huerzahusi by allowing the Mongols to leave the Hetao area from the east. As for Kubule Khan, the Qiyan tribe he belonged to was located in the east and was directly oppressed and influenced by the Jurchens. He was also elected as Khan by the eastern tribes and had been hostile to the Jurchens for a long time. Therefore, he was unwilling to go with the Jurchens easily, and he dared not accept the condition of crossing the river under the supervision of the Jurchens.
But even if Huer Zhahusi just defected, it was enough to shake the Khitans' courage to fight.
So on this day, Wuzhu decided to come in person and meet with Huerzahusi in the south of Wulahai City... This place is very close to the original camp of the Kerait tribe in the southwest of Wulahai City, and also very close to Wulahai City... In a sense, Wuzhu is very courageous.
Of course, it was another matter if Wanyan Balisu personally led an army of 20,000 and followed behind in the southeast direction, hiding behind the long grass and trees, preparing to carry out a trap.
The location was decided in advance. It was two small slopes with a place in the middle that could barely be considered the bottom of a valley, which was perfect for the meeting.
At noon, Wuzhu led his people to the north of the small hill in the east, waited for a while, and watched the sun reach the south before climbing up the hill. Then, as promised, he raised his flag... It was another five-colored flag holding the sun.
In fact, this flag is very common in Chinese history. It was used in both the Song and Liao dynasties. The Jurchens did not know the meaning of the five virtues holding the sun representing the holy monarch at first. They just saw that the status of this flag was much higher than other flags on the battlefield, regardless of the Song or Liao dynasties, so they simply used it. Now, after twenty years of fighting, this flag naturally has its own specific meaning within the Jurchens, which is that it represents the status of the Jurchen marching commander.
After waiting for a while, no flag appeared on the opposite slope, and no one came out to give an explanation. Something seemed to be wrong.
Wanyan Wushu and Tuhesu looked at each other, both calm... It was obvious that they wanted to form an alliance with the Kerait tribe, but it would be even better if the Kerait tribe played tricks and colluded with Yelu Dashi to surround them!
Time passed little by little, Wuzhu did not see any people from the Kerait tribe, nor did he wait for the expected ambush, and there was not even any extra movement. Even the distant Wulahai City was quiet... If there was anything abnormal, it would only be that the wind today was a little noisy.
The summer wind had already become cool after crossing the several miles wide Yellow River, but it was forced to stop at the Yin Mountains that blocked the north and south, so that the wind and waves repeatedly tossed under the mountains, bringing the movements of the Mongol and Khitan camps, which were neither far nor near, from afar.
But that was only brought from afar. Today, the wind was just a little louder and the movement was a little louder. There was no trace of any troops nearby.
After waiting for a while, Wuzhu was helpless and made a gesture with his mouth. Ada and Aer, two Xi servants, understood and each led a hundred cavalrymen to go around the back of the hillside, preparing to take a clear look behind the hill.
Seeing the two hundred cavalry disappearing down the hillside and reappearing on the opposite hillside, it was obvious that they had gained nothing... Wuzhu and Tuhesu were furious. It turned out that the Kerait tribe did not play tricks but simply stood them up!
But at this moment, Ada and Aer, who had just climbed the opposite hillside, just looked back. After a moment, they rushed down the hillside with their subordinates like crazy and came straight towards Wuzhu.
Wuzhu and Tuhesu looked at each other, not angry but happy.
Tu Hesu couldn't help but ride forward and asked, "How is it? Is there really an ambush? How many people are there?"
"It's not an ambush! It's a person!" Ada shouted from afar.
"If they are people, then they are an ambush?" Tu Hesu was furious. "Besides, why are you shouting so loudly? Who will be held responsible if you scare them away?"
"The person is not here!" Ah Er shouted on his horse. "Don't worry for the moment... Please ask the Fourth Prince and the Wan Hu to return quickly and join the army!"
Wushu was puzzled: "The person is not here, why are you so panicked? There is no need to worry for the time being, why do you want us to go back?"
As Ah Da was talking, he had already reached the small slope, but he rolled off his horse and bowed down, then he gasped and said, "Fourth Prince! There are too many people! Hurry up and leave!"
Ah Er also arrived, but with the same attitude: "Fourth Prince, let's go! Before they find us!"
Wuzhu became more and more angry, and whipped the horse whip in the air, saying, "What's going on? Tell me clearly!"
A Da and A Er looked at each other, and it was A Da who was the first to suppress his panic and said, "Fourth Prince, there is no ambush, and there are no enemy troops nearby. It's just that there are too many enemy troops in the Mongol camp and by the river. If we are discovered and caught up, we will not be able to resist at all."
"Balisu is leading 20,000 cavalrymen right behind us..." Tuhesu also became furious.
"If that's the case, it will be even worse. We must not let General Balisu come here." Ah Da almost cried. "Although I can't see clearly from a distance, most of the military uniforms are red and white. I'm afraid that the reinforcements of the Song army have arrived!"
When Wuzhu heard the last sentence, he was slightly startled, and then his face changed drastically, but he was still puzzled by Ada and Aer's panic... Even if the Song army accepted Yelu Dashi's invitation to come here, how many people could come at this time?
With this thought in mind, Wanyan Wushu did not hesitate, and actually reined his horse forward and headed towards the opposite hillside. Tuhesu was equally disdainful and reined in his horse to catch up.
A Da and A Er had no choice but to turn around and follow.
A moment later, under the bright afternoon sunshine and in the noisy summer breeze, as Wuzhu and Tuhesul rode up the eastern hillside, they all gasped in surprise in the middle of summer.
There is no other reason, just as A Da and A Er said - there are too many people!
From the outflowing waterway of the Yellow River under the Yin Mountains, all the way to the camp of the Kerait tribe more than ten miles away from the waterway, and then to the Khitan cavalry camp behind the Wulahai City, everywhere was filled with red and white, slightly flashing crowds of people, carriages, horses, and flags. Moreover, this red tide, like rolling waves, was still extending to the camp of the Qiyan tribe further south.
Going further away, although it is not clear what is on the distant river where vision gradually decreases, it is obvious that there should still be countless people and livestock coming here along the river, and countless supplies are constantly emerging from the river in the form of simple rafts and rafts.
This situation was as if the usually calm Yellow River water suddenly came alive, stretching out a three-fingered dragon claw and grabbing the Khitans and Mongols!
Under the sunlight, facing such a situation, Wuzhu and Tuhesu both felt an unprecedented sense of fear!
This was a fear they had never experienced before!
To be fair, the two men, who had experienced the war for the founding of the Jin Dynasty, were certainly well-informed.
If we say that there are many enemy troops on the opposite side, are they more numerous than the people in Bianliang City? If we say that they are all troops, it is not surprising, because the Liao people and the Song people have deployed large enough armies in front of the Jurchens. Are these people more numerous than the Song army that rescued Taiyuan?
Is it because the other side has more livestock and cavalry?
That's not true either. In the Battle of Hubudagan, the Khitan cavalry and livestock were as numerous as the sea.
However, Wuzhu and Tuhesu felt fear... because they knew that the dense crowds of people and military forces before them were probably the biggest enemy the Jurchen army had ever encountered!
The Khitans were incompetent, and the Liao army on Hubudagang was also incompetent, but who dares to say that Yelu Dashi and his followers, who have been fighting for so many years after the fall of the Liao Dynasty and have become stronger with each battle, are incompetent?
If they are incompetent, why haven't we seen the Jin Dynasty's Western Route Army, which has superior military strength, drive the enemy out of the trap after almost half a month?
The Han people were incompetent, the Song army under the city of Tokyo, on the Hebei plain, and outside the city of Taiyuan were incompetent, but who dares to say that the main force of the Song army's imperial camp, who gritted their teeth and fought back step by step from the Huai River, was incompetent?
The incompetent Song army would appear here?! They would appear under the Yinshan Mountain?!
This is Yinshan Mountain! Even Zhao Kuangyin has never been here!
Even if they were the Mongols, it had been several years. Could the Jin Dynasty really do anything to Kublai Khan?
Of course, the more important point is that while the other side has become increasingly powerful after the trials of war, it is also a fact that the Jurchens have become increasingly corrupt and their fighting power is declining.
But no matter what the reason, this is the first time since the founding of the Jurchens that they have personally felt fear from the perspective of military strength... Even if it is the Battle of Yaoshan, if they fight it again, they will not be afraid. Instead, the Song people dared to cry out for luck. This time, the Jurchens finally began to be afraid!
This also means that the combined forces of these armies finally overwhelmed the Jurchens for the first time.
In fact, when thinking of this, Wanyan Wushu had already realized why the Song army came here... They just wanted to gather a force that could overwhelm the main force of the Jurchens head-on!
Facing the Jurchens who had been rampant for twenty years, facing the Great Jin Dynasty which still controlled twenty million households, the Han people who were almost destroyed, the Khitans who had actually been destroyed once, and the Mongols who had just risen, the three coalition forces appeared here and then joined together, which in itself was a huge victory that was beyond words from both military and political perspectives!
"King Wei!"
Just as Wanyan Wushu was wavering, Tuhesu suddenly pointed his finger at a group of Song soldiers pouring out from the division point on the river bank. The armor of that group of Song soldiers was bright and their formation was neat. It was obvious that they had a special status, otherwise they would never have been wearing armor during the march.
And in the center of this Song army, there was an exceptionally conspicuous flag being escorted.
The flag was extremely large, and the pattern of its three tails fluttering in the wind was also extremely strange. Tu Hesu just pointed and Wuzhu immediately realized what it was... However, for some reason, there were suddenly two large banners, one black and one white, on both sides of the flag, which inevitably added a little extra momentum.
"Fourth Prince, let's go!" Ah Da carefully pulled up Wanyan Wushu's skirt armor while riding. "There are so many enemies. If we are discovered and then entangled by the Mongolian cavalry, and then followed by the Song heavy troops, we will be in real danger..."
"We can't leave!" Wuzhu came back to his senses, but his breathing became rapid. "The more we can't leave at this time..."
"Fourth Prince!" Tuhesu was also breathing heavily, but he immediately pressed down the whip in the opponent's hand. "I know what you mean. We can't show weakness at this time, but with so few people now, we will die if we run into them! We should be careful of the 20,000 ambushes behind us... What we are most afraid of is not us, but the 20,000 ambushes who mistakenly think we succeeded and charge at us!"
"You can't leave!" Wuzhu turned around, his face pale. "Go tell Bali to withdraw his troops quickly, I'll go meet the Song people!"
"Fourth Prince!" Tu Hesu suddenly flew into a rage. "This is not the time to argue. The other Wan Hu are right. You are fair and a good prince, a good king, but you care too much about the Zhao Song officials! You have been brooding over it since the Huai River incident... But what's the point of arguing like this?!"
"Fourth Prince!" Ah Er was almost crying. "The Song people have discovered us. The Mongols from the Kerey tribe must have told the Song army... Let's leave quickly!"
"Even if we don't tell them, with such a big flag standing here for half a quarter of an hour, the Song people will send troops to investigate!" Tu Hesu became more and more angry. "Fourth Prince, leave quickly!"
Wuzhu looked at the several light cavalry groups rushing towards here from afar, and it was hard to tell whether they were Song people, Mongols, or Khitans. Then he looked at Tuhesu, gritted his teeth and shook his head.
"Fourth Prince!"
Seeing this, Tu Hesu was not angry, but sighed and his tone slowed down a bit. "I really understand what the Fourth Prince wants, but let's go now and let A Da and A Er deal with the enemy for a while, as long as they don't lose morale... If I hadn't been lame, I would have stayed and dealt with the enemy myself... But now is different, me, you, and the overall situation."
Wuzhu sneered, and it was unclear whether it was disdain or self-mockery.
But no matter what, the usually vulgar Tuhesu was not annoyed this time. Instead, he just continued to speak earnestly: "In fact, I have the same temper in my heart, Fourth Prince. In the past two years, I often hate that I can't be on the battlefield in Yaoshan. I often think that if I were on the battlefield and led two or three thousand more soldiers, would I be able to pull down the dragon flag in one fell swoop? Then Guanxi would be in our hands. Are we besieging Tokyo now?"
Looking at the coalition forces in the distance, Wushu was finally moved.
"But how can we take things for granted in this world just by taking a breath?"
Tuhesu pulled Wuzhu's hand and continued to speak sternly. "If Huo Nu can't swallow that breath, will it be helpful or harmful to the Great Jin? If you, the Fourth Prince, can't swallow this breath today and die here, will it be helpful or harmful to the Great Jin? Fourth Prince, you are also a military expert, you should know that the terrain of Hetao is a dead end for cavalry... You can see this from the performance of the Menggu people before. We have the advantage, they are frustrated, and it is difficult for them to leave. Now a large number of infantry of the Song army has come, and they have the advantage in strength! If I were the commander of the Song army, after knowing the inside story of our troops, I would definitely arrange the army properly, with infantry in the middle and cavalry on the left and right, pressing from west to east... At that time, what should we do?"
Wuzhu was neither angry nor happy when he heard this, but he didn't know if it was an illusion, but there was a hint of pleading in his eyes when he looked at Tuhesu.
Seeing this, Tuhesu's tone softened completely: "No matter what, Fourth Prince, what we have to do now is to leave quickly. If we see Balisu, we should make him turn around and retreat. Then we should go back to the camp and quickly withdraw from this place surrounded by water. Then we can make plans! Fourth Prince, now is not the time to fight to the death! We should not fight in vain!"
Wuzhu stared at Tuhesu, and Tuhesu also stared at Wuzhu. The two looked at each other for a moment, but as the cavalry in the distance got closer and closer, Wuzhu finally sighed to the sky.
In fact, the Fourth Prince understood this truth. But it was precisely because he understood that he was unwilling to retreat, because retreating from this land surrounded by water would be equivalent to a complete withdrawal of troops, which would also mean that after being deployed by the owner of the dragon banner on the opposite side, he would be restricted and passive in every way for several months, almost being played around by the other side.
Even if he had been thinking about strategic contraction from the beginning, abandoning both ends and retreating to the traditional Hebei and Hedong regions, how is retreating by himself different from being driven back or forced back?
But what can I say?
Is what Tuhesu said wrong?
In a sense, the problem is unsolvable, just like when he saw the big banner coming down from the mountain at the foot of Yao Mountain, he was completely helpless. This time, the appearance of the big banner here has already suppressed him strategically.
The best strategy is to attack the enemy's plans, the next best is to attack his alliances, and the next best is to attack his troops.
What the Zhao Song emperor did this time was more like an attack on the strategy and diplomacy, but Wanyan Wushu had chosen a conservative strategy from the beginning, so he didn't think about it at all. Of course, if he had the ability and courage of Wanyan Loushi, he could have used an attack on the army to counter the attack on the strategy and diplomacy, but the problem was that he didn't.
With this thought in mind, Wuzhu glanced at the red tide again, then turned around and rode away.
Tu Hesu followed immediately, but A Da and A Er looked at each other and then got on their horses instead. Then A Er hid for a while at the back of the hillside, while A Da pulled up the five-colored sun-holding flag and stood on the hillside, motionless.
Besides, Zhao Jiu certainly wouldn't be affected by the small-scale battle ahead, and even the specific outcome of the battle might not be known to him.
After arriving here today, the Song army, which had already contacted the Khitans and Mongols as reinforcements, did not stop for a moment and immediately set out for the three camps to reunite with friendly forces. Then the official followed the army to the south side of Wulahai City... That was the location of the camp that Yue Fei had chosen on the way yesterday. The Song army had already agreed in the letter to the two Mongols that they were going to set up a camp between the two camps so that they could link up with them and then fight the enemy together.
Of course, he appeared in the rear without waiting for a reply and took direct action. Moreover, it is obvious that he now intends to control these two forces and further ensure the right to speak when facing the main force of the Khitan.
Not to mention those, for some reason, halfway through the journey, the dragon banner of Emperor Zhao and the accompanying black and white ox banners stopped. The original plan to turn the tables and meet the three allies at the Kerait camp was also changed - now, Emperor Zhao was going to meet the leaders of the three families in this wilderness, surrounded by his own army.
This seems a bit overconfident.
But the accompanying generals would certainly not raise any questions. On the contrary, after receiving the oral order, the generals were excited and took their own steps to invite the three.
Huer Zhahusi agreed directly. He dared not refuse because his camp was very close to the Yellow River and was exposed in the wilderness. He would be rushed to the camp by the Song army's front cavalry. In this case, he had to maintain his identity as a "friendly army".
Kublai Khan's performance was very interesting. When the Song army first appeared, he, who was the farthest away from the camp, led his troops directly out of the camp to hide outside, as if he was going to escape when he saw the situation was not good.
But seeing that the Song army was friendly enough and even provided him with some food and gifts, the leader of the Qiyan tribe and the Khan elected by the eastern Mengwu tribe probably knew that he could not easily escape in such a place surrounded by water and with complicated military conditions. After all, he was a man who had pulled Wuqimai's beard and had courage, so after a little thought, he actually agreed directly and came alone.
However, Yelu Dashi, who was closest to the city, did not leave the city immediately. He only sent Yelu Yudu and Zhao Heda to pay a visit to the Zhao Song government.
Then the two were stopped by the Song army more than a hundred steps away from the dragon flag.
Then, more than a thousand armored cavalrymen of the Song army, led by Qu Duan, the commander of the imperial cavalry, went straight to the city of Wulahai without waiting for the two men to go back and report the news. Then they circled the city and shouted the name of Yelu Dashi... Of course, they called him Dashi Linya, as if they still maintained a certain degree of respect.
"I'll go for you!"
On the city wall, hearing the noise of "The government invites Dashilinya to a moment", Xiao Wulila whispered to his own king.
“No need.”
Yelu Dashi, who had been lying on the battlements, looking down at the Song army formation for a whole afternoon, suddenly laughed and stood up. "After all, he is the legitimate emperor of Zhao Song, and the most powerful soldier here. I should have gone out of the city to pay him a visit... In fact, if I didn't trust him, I wouldn't have easily crossed over to trap him after knowing that Xingling Land had changed hands... At that time, we handed our lives to him, let alone now? Now he is also the reinforcement we invited by the official clerk, and he is the one who saved our lives this time!"
As he spoke, following Yelu Dashi's signal, several personal guards stepped forward and helped the Western Liao ruler to take off his armor directly on the top of the city wall.
Xiao Wulila thought about it and sighed again: "I'm afraid that the other party is young and hot-tempered, and will force himself to suppress you! The people here may not know that you have already become the Khan in the Western Regions. Even if they know, they will probably pretend not to know. What will happen if they ask you to become their vassal?"
"Yes, so what?" Yelu Dashi, who was wearing a cloth robe under his armor, suddenly changed color when he heard this. "But what if I don't go?" Without waiting for Xiao Wulila's reply, Yelu Dashi turned around and went down the city, leaving only a few words. "This city is the key point of the rear set, you come to defend the city!"
Xiao Worila could only nod towards the back of his king.
On the other side, after taking down the city, Yelu Dashi did not call for any extra guards, nor did he dispatch troops. He just wore a cloth robe and carried a sword, then jumped on his horse and ordered the city gates to be opened.
When they got out of the city gate, the Song cavalrymen who were calling out to Dashilin Ya in front of the gate had already stopped their horses. They thought it was the envoy coming out, so they surrounded him and asked directly: "Where is Dashilin Ya? Our emperor wants to see you!"
Yelu Dashi immediately raised his head and laughed, and then he calmly answered: "I am Yelu Dashi, brothers, please lead the way!"
The surrounding Song army riders were stunned for a moment and could only hurriedly call Qu Duan. When Qu Duan arrived a moment later, he did not expect that Yelu Dashi had already gone alone towards the direction of the dragon flag in front of the Song army cavalry... and they did not dare to stop him at all.
Even Qu Duan could only sneer a few times and ignored him.
In this way, they tossed around for an entire afternoon. The sun had already changed color and dimmed slightly, but the summer wind was still howling as before, bringing countless noisy sounds. It was under such circumstances that Yelu Dashi rode his horse to the famous dragon banner.
Frankly speaking, he had been deeply impressed by the dragon banner since before he set out on the expedition, following Yelu Yudu's words.
But it was obvious that there was no particularly young nobleman under the dragon banner. Dashi turned his head and asked frankly, pointing directly to an extremely tall tree on the side of the road. There, there really seemed to be several circles of armored soldiers surrounding it.
Although there are trees in Houtao, they are still rare compared to the south, especially this tree which is extremely tall and quite old, and its crown is like a pavilion or a canopy... Therefore, Dashi did not take it seriously. He just thought that this Zhao Song official was used to enjoying it and was taking a rest there. Or perhaps it was because the tree had some charm that aroused the poetic inspiration of this official who was said to be very good at writing poems and lyrics.
But no matter what, Dashi was too lazy to think about it. He just got off the horse and walked to the tree.
However, when he arrived at the tree, he still did not see the nobleman, only the armored soldier pointed again. Yelu Dashi then discovered that there was a pool of water more than a hundred steps behind the tree, where people were busy, and outside the crowd, there seemed to be someone standing solemnly in gorgeous clothes.
Dashi had no choice but to move forward again. When he was a few dozen steps away, he no longer saw Hebula, who was the farthest away, but only saw Huerzhahusi, who looked a little nervous, coming towards him. It was obvious that he had greeted the Zhao Song officials, and when he saw him arrive, he was asked to leave.
Suddenly, Zhahusi bowed slightly to Yelu Dashi, then turned his head and nodded to a plain cloth figure standing solemnly by the reeds. At the same time, several Han and foreign officials dressed in gorgeous clothes saw this and knew who had arrived. Although they were surprised by the other party's attire, they still rushed forward and prepared to say some polite words.
Yelu Dashi ignored these people and walked through them with his hands behind his back. Then he stepped forward and said with a smile, "Emperor Zhao was thoughtful. He knew that the reeds were about to bloom here, so he specially called Dashi over!"
Unexpectedly, the young man, that is, Emperor Zhao, turned around, looked at the visitor slightly, and then slowly shook his head: "Dashilin Ya thought too much. I stopped here without any extra thoughts. I just passed by here and dismounted to relieve myself. Unexpectedly, I saw dozens of floating corpses in the reeds. They were all dressed as Xixia people. They should be the work of Dashilin Ya's subordinates, but they were all rotten... I was afraid that they would pollute the water and soil, so I stopped here to supervise the laborers to collect the corpses and bury them, and clean up the water. As for the reed flowers, although they look the same as the reed flowers in Dashilin Ya's hometown, they will be burned later."
Yelu Dashi, who was walking slowly forward, was startled for a moment, but soon he stopped and stood more than ten steps away from the other party, then smiled again with his hands behind his back: "Your Majesty is kind-hearted and compassionate. I heard that you believe in Buddhism?"
"Those bald donkeys should believe in me!" Zhao Jiu also stood with his hands behind his back, but his feet did not move at all.
Dashi also did not move, but smiled again and again, "The Zhao official is indeed exactly the same as the rumors say... He is nothing like the officials of the Zhao and Song dynasties in the past."
Zhao Jiu also laughed: "Dashilin Ya hurried to Lanzhou, and then headed north to here. How could he have time to listen to my rumors? Can he rely on Yelu Yudu and Zhao Heda alone? You must know what kind of person I am. If you don't come forward in person, you will not be able to see clearly."
Yelu Dashi was still laughing, but after he finished laughing, he moved forward with his sword under the watchful eyes of Liu Yan and the others, until he was two or three steps in front of Zhao Jiu, then he stopped. He first looked at the young official carefully with his head held high, and then he bowed his head solemnly:
"Liao and Song are brotherly countries. Dashi has come to pay his respects to His Majesty. Your Majesty has played tricks on the world, manipulated the overall situation, and easily destroyed Xixia, but Dashi has not yet congratulated His Majesty."
Zhao Jiu finally took two steps forward and stretched out his hands. He held the other party's hands beside the water where the corpse was being excavated, and then said sincerely: "I have known for a long time that Dashilin Ya is a rare hero and great hero in this world. I am honored to meet him today... After we defeat the Jurchens together, we will burn incense and offer sacrifices to heaven and earth with Dashilin Ya, and re-establish the alliance between our two countries!"
Yelu Dashi raised his head and nodded happily.
On the other side, Zhao Jiu held the hands of the person in front of him tightly, and turned his head to look at an official dressed in brocade. "Zheng Qing, I am just going to use your reputation among the countries to suppress the prestige of the Jurchens... You go to see the Jurchens and tell Wuzhu that, thanks to his cooperation, I have already annihilated the Western Xia, and brought 60,000 troops from the front army, the central army, the left army, the rear army, and the cavalry of the imperial camp, as well as 60,000 surrendered Tangut soldiers. And after seeing the big stone forest here, I have a coalition army of nearly 200,000, and there are Western Xia reserves to supply until the autumn harvest... As the saying goes, I have never heard of a person who is afraid of 200,000 people, and as the saying goes, with a sharp blade in hand, the desire to kill arises... Since I think that I have a well-trained army and sufficient food, and am not inferior to the warriors of the Jurchens, of course I will ask him to lead the Jurchen army to hunt with me here!"
Zheng Zhichang, a famous Goryeo scholar and international friend, felt nervous when he heard this, but after thinking about it, he suddenly understood. He nodded heavily and then held his head high and said, "I am willing to serve you like a dog or a horse...but can we set a date for the hunting party with the Jurchens?"
"No need to set a date." Zhao Jiu still held Dashi's hands tightly, and then gave the order calmly. "Because starting from tomorrow, the 200,000-strong coalition army of Song, Liao, and Mengwu will set out together, uniting from south to north, and then pushing forward from west to east... If Wanyan Wushu wants to fight, he can go straight to the battle or stand still, and I will naturally be able to meet him... Then let Dashi Lin Ya accompany him."
At the end, Zhao Jiu looked at the person in front of him as a matter of course. Yelu Dashi, whose hands were held, had been smiling the whole time, and now he just smiled when he heard the words. But after just a smile, he became serious again, and then nodded heavily:
"Your Majesty is the one who knows the great stone!"