Chapter 339 Trump Card
While Song Jiang sent people undercover, he also sent Dai Zong to Yanjing to meet Nianhan.

After receiving Song Jiang's instructions, Dai Zong crawled in front of Nianhan and pretended to be weak. He told Song Qing the intelligence he had found out and reminded him that unilateral action would not be very effective with Xiaolongnu in charge.

In order to show his sincerity in cooperation, Song Jiang invited the generals of the Jin army to go south to watch the battle (supervise). He had secretly mobilized troops to Xiangzhou, but hoped that the Jin army could verify the curse and send troops to Daizhou or Pingdingjun to provide support.

Nian rarely saw Song Jiang being so tactful, so he sent Gao Qingyi and Dai Zong back together and expressed that he would send troops to provide support.

As for Yang Chang's curse, since Nianhan is the son of the former high priest, he is sure that there will be no problem, but he will not let the two Jin armies attack at the same time, otherwise the Jin army will become the main force.

Zhao Gou's forces had stood aside several times, but this time Nianhan was determined to consume him. Moreover, war was a means of fighting for power and profit. Just like his predecessor, Marshal Xie, he would only pull out the army that was not under his control, consume it in battle, and then give his own people to the vacant positions.

As Nianhan's "private territory", the Western Army naturally waited behind to enjoy the fruits of victory. As long as Song Jiang made trouble in the south, the troops from Daizhou and other northern prefectures would be transferred southward for reinforcement. Wushi could then attack Yanmen, taking advantage of the opportunity and taking revenge at the same time.

As the Eastern Army was part of Aguda's faction, Nianhan took this opportunity to make adjustments. It was his duty to send troops to pacify the army, but mobilizing troops required preparing money and food, and logistics and transportation required the conscription of corvée labor, all of which took time to prepare, so the time for Song Jiang to send troops was relaxed.

While both sides were preparing for war, the Jin army was also frantically spying in various border states and counties, collecting intelligence for the upcoming annexation of Hedong.

The Song-Jin Allied Forces took the lead, and Wu Song, Hu Sanniang and others, who were kept in the dark, also took relevant countermeasures.

For example, Shi Qian was sent to reinforce the Pingding Army. Once any signs of invasion by the Jin Army were discovered, Zhao Fujin would rush there to take charge. Secondly, shortly after Song Qing and others left, the plan to fully recover Hedong was launched in advance.

First, Liu Tang led his troops to station in Ninghua Army. In March, Cai Fu was appointed as the military commander of Xianzhou, and the two northern states were included in the sphere of influence. The news was deliberately spread to the outside of the Great Wall.

Ninghua Army is located to the left of Daizhou and south of Wuzhou, which was inherited by the Jin Kingdom from the Liao Dynasty. It is the border between the two countries. Xianzhou is south of Ninghua Army and west of Xinzhou. The two states have only one county for defense.

Yang Chang's recovery plan is to gradually take over the remaining twelve states in a way that starts from the easy to the difficult and from small to large.

The news was passed from Wuzhou to Datong, and then to the ears of Nianhan in Yanjing. Nianhan was not worried but very happy, because Yang Chang's original military force was limited, and the larger the territory, the more dispersed the defenders would be. This was actually good news for the attacking side. Moreover, he firmly believed that Yang Chang was unconscious, and guessed that the people around him were bluffing at this moment.

Dai Zong would travel back and forth to Yanjing every few days to "ask for instructions and report". Nianhan would share the intelligence and inform the Jin army to send out troops on the tenth day of April.

Yes, because Song Jiang was "well-behaved and sensible", he flattered Nianhan so much that he decided to send troops first to lure out Xiaolongnu. After all, Guo Yaoshi and Wuzhu had experience, so he would be familiar with the way of dealing with them later.

Although Nianhan was easy to talk to, he set a deadline for Song Jiang, which was that troops must be sent to Fengyue Pass by the end of April, otherwise the friendship would be ruined.

In early April, Dai Zong brought back the news, and Song Jiang was like wearing a tight hoop and hurried to Wu Yong for advice.

"Military Advisor, Nianhan set a deadline and said that the army entered Ninghua Army and Xianzhou. This is the guilty act of Yang Chang's men. Isn't that referring to Wu Song? Wu Erlang has never been cowardly."

"Haha, Taiwei, you think too much."

Wu Yong couldn't help laughing before he heard the end, and said meaningfully: "Wu Song is indeed very capable and experienced in the martial arts world, but he is far from being good at politics. Have you forgotten that he was played around by a small eunuch in Enzhou?"

"But there are also people under Yang Chang who understand politics. Don't forget that Tang Ke was once a prime minister. Wen Huanzhang is also quite strategic."

"Knowing politics is different from playing politics. Tang Ke became prime minister because of the right time. The key is that he was dismissed after only a few months. Didn't Silang say that he had a very low sense of existence? He had no say under Yang Chang. Wu Song would never have planned with him. Wen Huanzhang has been an official in Zezhou, which is too far away from the power center Yangqu. It is probably Yang Chang who is guarding against us."

Seeing Song Jiang's worried face, Wu Yong continued to comfort him patiently, and finally saw Song Jiang relieved.

This guy has been envious and jealous of Yang Chang since he was recruited. Although he tried his best to suppress bandits and kill enemies, his official promotion could never catch up.

As time went by, he began to be appointed more and more. He felt that he was not as good-looking as Yang Chang and could not get the favor of a princess like her. No matter how hard he tried, he could not wear a purple robe. But suddenly, an opportunity came. Zhao Gou attacked Zhao Huan in Daming Prefecture and was ready to establish his own court.

In order to change his fate, Song Jiang immediately surrendered to Zhao Gou and became his loyal minister. Finally, he climbed to his current position as he wished. However, Yang Chang, whom he envied and jealous, suddenly acted like a god of war and beat up the arrogant Jin people.

Yin Shuke, Lou Shi, Wulibu, Buluhu, Xieye.
All the famous Jurchen names eventually became victims of Yang Changdao. Song Jiang thought to himself, what can he do to fight him? He probably will be trampled underfoot for the rest of his life. But who could have thought that "evil will be punished by evil"? He had offended the Jin people so deeply that they even used curses and evil magic.

Song Jiang had been expecting this for several years, and was extremely cautious at the critical moment. He hoped that the Jin witchcraft would work, but he did not completely trust the Jin people, so he sent Dai Zong to "report and ask for instructions" frequently.

At this time, Xiangzhou's preparations were nearing completion, and Nianhan had given less than a month to send troops.

Everything is ready, except for the chaos in Hedong.

Thinking of this, Song Jiang walked up to Wu Yong, propped his hands on the table, and said in a deep voice, "Zhu Gui and Bai Sheng have been undercover for more than a month. Should we start the second step of our undercover plan immediately?"

"Let's wait a little longer. The Jin army will send troops from Zhending on the tenth day and will probably arrive at Pingding Army to fight on the fifteenth day. Our people can go in before the fifteenth day. If we don't let them lead Xiao Longnu away, we won't be able to succeed."

"Well, you will be fully responsible for this matter. I will create some trouble in Weizhou and Huaizhou to give Lin Chong a false impression before the battle, and then go to Xiangzhou."

"That's how it should be."

Wu Yong twirled his beard and nodded.

The so-called second step of the undercover plan is to send a group of people under the guise of being the former subordinates of Zhu Gui and Bai Sheng, to surrender and cooperate in spreading rumors in preparation for the upcoming war.

The Song-Jin alliance was well-organized and progressed step by step according to the agreed plan.

Wu Song also followed the plan left by Yang Chang and sent Yang Lin to take over the defense of Qilan Army (to the left of Ninghua Army) in mid-April, but a few days later the Pingding Army sent back a battle report.

The right deputy marshal of the Jin army, Talai, personally led tens of thousands of troops to attack Pingding again. The second card left by Yang Chang (Zhao Fujin) was played at this time, as if he had mastered everything in advance.

At the same time, Wu Song also warned Yang Zhi and Zhu Wu of Daizhou, Lin Chong and Wen Huanzhang of Zezhou, asking the two states to strengthen border defense and guard against thieves cooperating with the enemy in Pingding.

Soon after, rumors spread from Weisheng and Luzhou, saying that Yang Chang was cursed by the Jin people and was seriously ill, and hoped that the people would pray for the Guangming Tianzun together.

Yang Chang governed Hedong for several years, distributed land equally, promoted the production of potatoes, defeated the Jin army, and recovered the mountains and rivers.
Everything he did was loved by the people.

Many people enshrine the tablet of "Guangming Tianzun" in their homes, which provides Yang Chang with a lot of popularity points, so even if he knows that people are worshipping it among the people, he will forbid it.

Once Wu Yong spread this rumor, it was like the Yellow River flooding, and the people spontaneously prayed for Yang Chang, and the rumor spread at an incredible speed.

By the time the chief officials of each state reported to their superiors, Hu Sanniang had already learned about it in advance through the Sparrow Army, so she urgently called Wu Song and Qiu Qiongying, preparing to use her last trump card, that is, Qiu Qiongying would wear Yang Chang's armor and ride a white horse to inspect the states.

This was also the best solution Yang Chang could think of before leaving.

After all, the Jin people had plotted against him first. If the other party took advantage of his absence to deliberately spread rumors about him and cause trouble, thereby causing chaos in the border troops, the best way would be for him to show up and dispel the rumors.

Yang Chang has a handsome appearance without a beard, and his most important feature is his outstanding martial arts skills. However, not everyone has seen him in person. Qiu Qiongying only needs to put on her armor, show off her pistols and sticks when she goes to the county where the incident happened, and then have the commander of the county cooperate with her in praising him a few times, and basically she can "cure the disease".

However, Yang Chang underestimated the influence of the rumors and the strength of Tianzhuanxing Wu Yong.

If he had simply spread rumors that he had problems, it might not have caused such a big stir, and the spread would not have been so fast. However, if he called on everyone to pray for Yang Chang, ignorant people would not be able to withstand the slightest instigation.

Qiu Qiongying put on golden armor, held Yang Chang's phoenix-wing gilded halberd, and demonstrated in the office of the Imperial Guards. Suddenly, Wu Song's personal soldiers rushed in with a letter to report that the court envoy Su Yuanjing was already at the post station.

Wu Song was stunned when he received the invitation, and murmured, "Why is he causing trouble at this time?"

"General Su's family is settled in Weisheng. Perhaps he came here to visit his family and to visit my husband?" "Sanlang is away, and there are rumors in Weisheng. I'm afraid he has heard about it. How should we deal with it?"

"or."

Hu Sanniang hesitated for a moment, then asked, "You said that the Jin army in Hebei was invading the border, and your Excellency went to pacify the enemy?"

"good idea."

Wu Song was as nervous as a chick pecking at rice. He then said goodbye to her and Qiu Qiongying and hurried to the post station with his personal soldiers.

Soon, he rode to Yangqu Posthouse.

When he saw Su Yuanjing, Wu Song bowed as usual, clasped his fists and said, "Wu Song greets the general."

"Don't do that."

Su Yuanjing hurriedly supported him, flattered and said: "The status of the son-in-law is noble, I am ashamed to accept it, may I ask Yang Taiwei?"

"The commander came at an unfortunate time. The Jin army invaded Pingding Army and he went to the front to fight the enemy."

"is it?"

Wu Song responded to Hu Sanniang's words, but Su Yuanjing showed a puzzled expression. He looked around and asked in a low voice: "I passed by Weisheng a few days ago. The people said that General Yang was cursed by a demon and was in danger. This can't be true, right?"

"Of course not. Commander Yang is in good health. What demon could curse him? These are all nonsense. They must be rumors spread by Jin Gou in an attempt to confuse people."

"General Yang is a master at using troops. The battle should be over soon, right? When can we return to Yangqu?"

Hearing Su Yuanjing's words, Wu Song immediately became alert and asked back: "What do you mean?"

"To be honest, I was sent by His Majesty to announce the decree."

"Announcement? What does he want to do?"

Wu Song frowned after saying this, thinking, "Does Zhao Huan not know what's going on? Can your Western Court still control my brothers? I'm lucky I didn't go south to fight with you for the throne."

Su Yuanjing smiled and explained: "General Yang defeated the Jin army and successfully recovered the old territory of Hedong. Your Majesty will naturally promote him to a higher position and encourage him."

"If it's just the imperial edict, then General Su can just leave it to me to pass on. Who can tell the duration of this war? So it's hard to say when General Yang will return."

"this."

"correct."

Wu Song saw Su Yuanjing was in a dilemma, so he asked curiously, "What did the court confer?"

"Grand Tutor, Duke of Jin, Co-director of the Privy Council"

"Oh, it seems like he's quite an official."

As soon as he finished announcing the dish, Wu Song responded in a joking tone, and then Su Yuanjing added: "It's almost as good as Tong Guan back then."

"Tong Guan?" Wu Song looked disdainful and sneered, "He bought back Yanshan and was made a king, but my brother defeated the Jin people and recovered Hedong, and the emperor only gave him a duke? Isn't that too stingy?"

"Don't say that, my dear consort. Tong Guan was made a king by the will of the late emperor. As for Yang Taiwei, no, Yang Taifu, there is no precedent. Your Majesty has made him a high enough official. He is almost the highest official in the country, higher than Prime Minister Li Gang."

"Li Gang doesn't have such ability, but my brother doesn't seek fame, so let's do this. The commander-in-chief, please leave the imperial edict and I will pass it on for you."

"Uh," Su Yuanjing hesitated for a moment, then added, "Your Majesty, in addition to bestowing titles, actually has something else to ask for."

"Ok?"

"In the past two years, Zhao Gou has rebelled and put pressure on the surrounding areas of Bianjing. His power has begun to penetrate into Jingxiang. Xixia has also taken advantage of the situation to encroach on the northwest. Guanzhong is now in turmoil. If Guanzhong is occupied by Xixia, the Western Court will not be able to stop Zhao Gou. Your Majesty hopes that Taifu Yang will help Guanzhong."

"what?"

Wu Song looked incredulous and muttered, "Although Sanlang is called the Bright Heavenly Lord, he is not a real god after all. Isn't it enough to deal with the Jin people? Now he wants to take care of Xixia too?"

"Don't get excited, Prince Consort. I also support the Grand Tutor in my heart. Even my family members are all in Weisheng. If the Western Court is gone, Hedong will be surrounded in the center of Gai. At that time, there will be enemies on all sides. How can he fight for the world?"

"This"

"So I want to see the Master and get his opinion."

Su Yuanjing told Wu Song his true purpose, and Wu Song didn't know how to respond for a moment. Just as he frowned and thought, a familiar voice appeared behind him.

"Brother, Prince Consort Wu, you are indeed here!"

"Brother Wen?"

"Mr. Wen? You are not in Zezhou, what are you doing here?"

Wen Huanzhang stroked his beard and stared at Wu Song, saying meaningfully, "The rumor that the Grand Commandant was cursed is spreading all over Zezhou. Chief Steward Lin asked me to ask about the situation. I just went to the Yamen of the Zhizhishisi, and the eldest lady said that he went to Pingding Army?"

"Ah."

"Don't lie to me. The rumors are almost unstoppable now. Telling the truth can still make up for it!"

"Ah this."

Wu Song was still hesitating, and Su Yuanjing frowned and asked back: "Is there really a hidden story? In fact, when I passed through Pingbei, there were some rumors over there."

"Even Pingbei has it?"

“Not much, but there is some!”

"Prince Wu, this is very dangerous!"

Wen Huanzhang and Su Yuanjing sang the same tune. Wu Song could not bear the pressure and confessed: "To be honest, Sanlang was indeed cursed by the Jin people. Fortunately, Master Lu was able to alleviate it with Buddhism, but the master could not completely eradicate it, so they went to Shangjing!"

"what?"

(End of this chapter)