Chapter 302 Brother, Times Have Changed

Song Qing was shocked by Yang Zhi's attitude. Even though he had a lot of words to say, he felt powerless. Suo Chao had guessed the result in advance, so he didn't say a word the whole time.

The matter has come to this, and there is nothing that can be done about it.

Song Qing was worried that the night would be too long and that Biesuochao might also get into trouble, so he immediately resigned to Yang Chang.

Taiyuan is nearly a thousand miles away from Huaizhou, and if no one is sent to accompany him, there would be fears of something happening. Lu Zhishen has only been in Taiyuan for two days, and it would be unreasonable to assign him a task immediately. After all, he still has to reminisce with Yang Zhi and Wu Song.

After much deliberation, Yang Changsi decided to send Xuan Zan and Ling Zhen to accompany him, and they stayed in Zezhou to serve him afterwards.

Song Jiang keeps a close eye on his brothers. Yang Chang's forceful attempt to poach a great general might drive them into desperate situations.

Song Qing and others came in a hurry, and apart from being interested in the military facilities, they did not pay attention to the scenery along the way. When they left, they saw the farmers busy in the fields and could not help but ask Xuan Zan for advice.

"It's already summer, and the spring farming season has passed. What are they planting?"

"earth"

Xuan Zan opened his mouth and realized something was wrong, so he quickly changed his words and explained, "This land has been barren for a few seasons, and now it may double in size, so maybe we can plant some soybeans or something."

"If the land in Taiyuan is flat, why did it remain barren for several seasons? Was it because of a natural disaster? Also, I remember planting beans in late March or early April. Is it too late now?"

Although Song Qing was not engaged in production, the Song family was a wealthy family with land and fields in Yuncheng before, so he was not ignorant of farming.

After hearing these questions, Xuan Zan suddenly burst into laughter.

"Haha, we are the natural disaster of the Jin people. In order to lure General Yang to take the initiative to attack, they deliberately abandoned the land in Fenzhou and southern Taiyuan and adopted the strategy of clearing the fields. This fertile land was wasted, and in the end they failed to defend it. As for the fact that it is too late to sow seeds now, a low yield is better than no yield at all. After all, there are hundreds of thousands more people."

"I see."

Song Qing nodded and muttered to himself: "It seems that your food supply is quite tight, otherwise Yang Taiwei would not be so anxious to resume production."

"We rely on ourselves for everything, unlike you who have the imperial court to allocate materials, so we can save as much as we can."

Although Xuan Zan was not in charge of logistics, he knew that various places had accumulated some surplus grain after recuperation in the past two years. How could he tell outsiders the details at will?
Furthermore, Yang Chang attached great importance to production and repeatedly stressed that one should not live off the land. The reason why he was anxious to restore production in Taiyuan was that he hoped that local people could be self-sufficient. The key point was that the land in the Taiyuan Basin was fertile and it would be a pity to let it remain barren.

Song Qing was stunned after hearing this, and smiled awkwardly without saying anything more. He thought that the court's supply had both advantages and disadvantages, and the army was easily restricted by food and fodder, so it missed many opportunities. However, Song Jiang had never thought about farming, so he didn't care about the farming affairs under his jurisdiction.

Unlike Taiyuan which is busy reclaiming wasteland, spring plowing has already passed in Weisheng, Luzhou and Zezhou. Tender green seedlings of various crops have sprouted, dyeing the earth green.

On the way back, Song Qing met Tao Zongwang by chance. When he learned that the other party was in charge of farming, he admired Yang Chang even more.

When facing a strong enemy, don't wait or rely on others, be self-sufficient.

Even if he declared himself king, why not? No wonder Yang Zhi defected.

After Song Qing entered Zezhou, he wanted to follow Wu Yong's suggestion and go out of Taihang via Lingchuan and Baixing.

In this way, through this mission, they could find out the details of two attack routes at the same time. However, they did not expect that Lin Chong was so steady that soon after the delegation passed Huguan, they sent troops to greet them and said that Lin Chong would hold a farewell banquet in Jincheng.

Jincheng is the seat of Zezhou, so it is reasonable for Lin Chong to hold a banquet there. If Song Qing proposed to go through Lingchuan, it would seem suspicious.

At the end of April, Song Qing led the delegation south through Taihang Xing and returned to Huaizhou, the starting point.

Song Jiang was appointed as the Recruiting Envoy of Ze, Huai, Wei and Xiang states, but in reality he only controlled Huai, Wei and Xiang states. The three states surrounded Taihang Mountain like a trisection insect, and the Recruiting Envoy's office was located in Wei state in the middle, which made it convenient to dispatch and manage the military affairs of the three states.

At that time, Song Jiang had returned to Ji County, the capital of Weizhou, while Huaizhou was guarded by Guan Sheng, Xu Ning and others. However, Dai Zong had stayed in Huaizhou to rest since he came back from Yingtian last time.

The trip to Taiyuan encountered some twists and turns. Song Qing didn't want to travel slowly in a carriage, so he asked Suo Chao to stay in Huaizhou to rest, and he went ahead with the help of Dai Zong's magical speed, and arrived in Ji County in the evening of the same day.

Seeing Song Qing's heavy face, Song Jiang guessed that his brother's trip was not going well. When he asked, he heard that Wu Song had married the princess, which made Yang Zhi unhappy and he stayed.

Perhaps because the news was too shocking, Song Jiang stayed where he was for a long time without saying a word.

Song Qing quickly whispered to comfort him: "Brother, think about it, although Yang Zhi's betrayal is shameful, it is not without reason. After all, the one he married..."

"Isn't it just that she's a little ugly? Marry a virtuous woman!"

Song Jiang came back to his senses and was very excited. He slammed the table and added angrily: "If he wasn't the descendant of a general, this marriage would not have been his turn. I, a great general, would have married an ordinary widow. This is really shameless. If I had known earlier, I would have advised His Majesty not to grant the marriage and maintain the spirit of our Liangshan. Women are the easiest to do bad things!"

"Ahem." Song Qing did not comment, but coughed lightly and advised: "This is the situation, just forget it, don't be angry."

"Count? Does this count?"

Song Jiang became more and more angry as he spoke, and sneered, "As for Yang Zhi, he has lived half his life like a child. If I hadn't taken care of him all these years, would he have been able to gain a foothold in Liangshan? With his looks, can he be a seventh-rank official? By the way, what does the princess that Wu Erlang married look like?"

"Even though she is beautiful, she is still more beautiful than flowers. The key is that she is still young. Even if she was married once before, she was not even 20 years old."

"What? How can he be worthy?"

Before Song Qing could finish his words, he was interrupted excitedly by Song Jiang. Perhaps he felt that Dai Zong was present, so he quickly changed his words.

"As the saying goes, beauty is the root of trouble. Many brothers have been implicated in this. Wu Da also died for a woman. How dare he marry her? There will be no more heroes who fight tigers after this."

"It's hard to say. Brother, do you know that Wu Erlang has learned horse riding? His horse skills are amazing."

"Is it?"

Song Jiang himself was not very good at martial arts and did not understand the difficulty of turning a horse and walking. He thought that Wu Song was already very good, and maybe he was just hiding his weakness before? So he did not take it seriously and brought the topic back to Yang Zhi.

"Silang, were you deceived? Yang Chang is very calculating and cunning. If he had hired someone to coerce Yang Zhi, with his character and intelligence, wouldn't he have been in his hands? You should have been tougher at the time."

"It's useless." Song Qingzhi shook his head: "It can be seen that this is Yang Zhi's true intention, and the heroes of Erlong Mountain are all there. This kind of thing will happen sooner or later. After all, we know each other, so we should choose to help him."

"Fulfill your wish? What can Yang Chang give him? A princess? This green-faced idiot!"

Song Jiang clenched his fists fiercely, and calmed down for a while before continuing: "Silang is right. Since the incident has already happened, it is useless to scold. Just treat it as a sincere heart fed to the dog. Although Yang Zhi's terrible incident happened, your mission has been completed. You should go and rest now. The emperor is still waiting for news. Go back to Yingtian tomorrow to report."

"it is good."

"Yes"

As soon as Song Qing and Dai Zong left, Song Jiang sent someone to invite Wu Yong. He had just spoken with certainty, but in fact he had not let it go at all.

Without someone to take care of himself, could Yang Zhi survive in the officialdom?
Yang Chang found a princess for Wu Song, so would he also arrange one for Yang Zhi? If a princess doesn't work, there are princesses and royal relatives. These resources are in Zhao Huan's hands, and he can't do without Yang Chang to protect his country. Maybe he will do something ridiculous. This side grants marriage to ordinary people, while the other side grants marriage to royal relatives. The result is self-evident.

And Su Yuanjing, why did you take my polite words seriously? My father is alive and well.

While waiting for Wu Yong, Song Jiang reviewed the report alone in his study and summarized a few important issues, intending to discuss them later.

About an incense stick of time passed before Zhiduoxing knocked on the door and was invited in.

Song Jiang then closed the door, sat down next to Wu Yong, and whispered to him that Yang Zhi had betrayed him and that he planned to march into Zezhou.

Wu Yong was surprised when he heard this, and quickly waved his hand to dissuade him: "I know the general is very angry, but now is really not the right time. Not to mention that Lin Chong is very stable in his use of troops, Yang Chang now has more than twice as many troops as us, and he has the advantage of being on the defensive side, so it is estimated that it will be difficult to succeed."

"So what if we have more soldiers?"

Song Jiang knew it in his heart, but he didn't want to admit it. "Tong Guan, Gao Qiu, Fan Zhixu, when did I not defeat the larger force with the smaller one?"

"My dear brother, times have changed."

Wu Yong stared at Song Jiang's eyes and reminded him earnestly: "Yang Chang is no longer a small leader of Liangshan, but a powerful lord who can shake the earth with a stomp of his foot. This time, the Jin army attacked from all four directions and returned in defeat. We must recognize ourselves clearly."

"Ugh."

Song Jiang sighed, picked up the bitter wine on the table and drank it all, muttering: "I really don't want to accept it. Yang Chang and Wu Song both married princesses. If Yang Zhi is arranged to marry one too, who can resist the temptation? I'm afraid that if Yang Zhi starts it, all the brothers below will run away."

"Taiwei, rest assured. How can the princess marry casually? If it weren't for the fact that Princess Xunde was abducted first, and then her husband died in Zhending, and that she was the younger sister of Princess Maode, and that Wu Song was indeed a handsome man, so many coincidences led to this marriage. I wonder if Yang Zhi's appearance is suitable for her?"

"Not a princess, but a princess will do."

"Even Xuan Zan is despised, not to mention that Yang Zhi is even worse than him. Let's not dwell on this matter any longer. If the general wants to take over Zezhou smoothly, he needs to wait patiently for the right opportunity. I guess it won't take too long."

After Wu Yong finished speaking, he waved his feather fan with an unfathomable expression.

Song Jiang looked over with suspicion and asked repeatedly: "Why did the military advisor say that? Are the Jin troops making another move?"

"The Jin army has just been defeated. If they want to make a comeback, they need time to prepare."

"Then why"

"If the Jin people don't move, will Yang Chang not move?"

Wu Yong raised the question with a smile, and then stroked his beard to analyze: "The Zhizhishisi is located in Taiyuan. If he doesn't attack, he will be beaten. In addition, the emperor of the Jin Kingdom will be angry and hold him accountable after the death of the prince Puluhu. He may punish a group of generals. The court struggles usually affect the front line. When the Jin army reveals problems, Yang Changding will not be able to resist attacking. That will be our chance."

"Taking advantage of the situation?"

Song Jiang frowned, shook his face and muttered: "If the Jin army's front line is unstable, wouldn't it be easier for Yang Chang to win? It would be easier for him to free up his hands, and how can we take Zezhou smoothly? Taihangxing and Baixing are long and narrow, and it is particularly difficult to supply food and grass. With Lin Chong's steady character, he will definitely choose to fight to the death. And have you forgotten Xiaolongnu? Our magician is gone."

"Don't worry, General. I have a plan to deal with Xiao Longnu, and I have a plan to attack Zezhou."

"Hmm? Tell me quickly!"

"Does the commander still remember Bao Xu and Li Li?"

Wu Yong suddenly changed the subject. Song Jiang was stunned for a moment before he remembered and then showed an unhappy expression.

"Didn't they die a long time ago? Military advisor, please stop talking nonsense."

"The deaths of these two people are strange. I came here to ask many brothers, and they all said that when Elder Zhizhen was preaching, they felt more or less uncomfortable, especially the brothers who had done many evil things. I suspect that Bao Xu and Li Li died under the elder's secret method."

"Huh?" Song Jiang was surprised at first, but soon waved his hands in relief: "It's been so long since the incident happened, what's the point of talking about this? Aren't we dealing with Xiao Long Nu? Why are you bringing up Elder Zhi Zhen? Are you asking him to come out of the mountains to subdue the demon?"

"Why not?"

Wu Yong smiled mysteriously and replied solemnly: "Elder Zhizhen kills people invisibly. I think his cultivation is not inferior to Luo Zhenren!"

"Overestimated, right? Even if he is really that powerful, Lu Zhishen is now under the command of Yang Chang. What can we use to invite him?"

"We don't need to invite you. Mount Wutai is in Xinzhou and is now controlled by the Jin people."

"Isn't this crazy? The old monk has a noble character. If he is really that powerful, the Jin people would be destroyed without even raising a hand?"

Song Jiang was impressed by Zhizhen and did not believe that he would work for the Jin people.

Wu Yong was very confident. He closed the windows of his study to quiet down the insect noise outside. Then he said meaningfully, "Except for Elder Zhizhen, the other monks in Wenshu Monastery are like insects outside the house. If the Jin army threatens with force, can the elders protect everyone? Buddhists practice compassion, so maybe they are willing to get rid of the monsters?"

"It makes some sense. You can give it a try."

Song Jiang muttered to himself, and then asked: "What do people in Zezhou say? According to the information Silang brought back, Lin Chong has been guarding against us. How can we break through Taihangxing and Baixing?"

"This is easy, just bypass it."

"What did you say?"

"It's hard to break through Zezhou, so let's change the attack point. There are only 3,000 Jin troops left in Cizhou, so Luzhou will definitely be relaxed. We might as well openly repair the plank road and secretly attack Chencang. Now Huaizhou and Weizhou are bluffing, and secretly transfer the main force to Xiangzhou, and then use Cizhou to attack Fengyue Pass directly. It is easier to advance there than Taihangxing and Baixing."

After Wu Yong finished speaking, he pushed the window open again, just like he was pushing open Feng Yue's closed door.

Song Jiang's eyes lit up when he heard this plan. He excitedly held Wu Yong's fanning hand and waved it in compliment: "Great! Even if Zhuge Liang were alive, he would not be much better than this. You are worthy of being Mr. Jialiang. Once we successfully capture Fengyue Pass, we can ask Erliduo to send troops to help us. This dilemma will be solved immediately."

"If you want to be absolutely sure, you can send a spy to assist you first."

"Send spies? I'm afraid it will be difficult to infiltrate, and it might alert the enemy. That's not good, not good."

"The news that Wu Song married the princess and Yang Zhi switched to Yang Chang should spread quickly. If a brother follows suit, don't you think it makes sense?"

Looking at the smirk on 'Tian Zhuan Xing's face, Song Jiang immediately understood what he meant.

But he didn't have many brothers he could use. Yang Chang would not believe that his confidant would betray him, and the others were afraid of being beaten by a weak opponent, so they frowned and said nothing after hearing it.

Seeing Song Jiang's hesitation, Wu Yong threw out a candidate: "How about Bai Sheng? He has friendships with the three Ruans and Liu Tang, and he doesn't have much ability, so he should be able to get away with it. As long as the commander makes a promise, there is no need to worry that he will not do his best."

"It's no problem to pay a fortune for horse bones and keep a promise. Bai Sheng is smart, but he won't stand a beating and even betrayed his brothers. Forget it. I don't trust him. Let me think about it again."

(End of this chapter)