The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 72 Dong Shoujiang City and Li Keyong
Dong Shoujiang City.

The high blue sky is cloudless and the sun is scorching but not hot.

From time to time, a strong wind blew across the vast wilderness, and the green grass as tall as the head surged, and the cows and sheep grazing leisurely mooed a few times.

"Get out of the way!" the warriors shouted loudly, driving away the livestock that were blocking the road.

"It went to the left!"

"Hey big bug."

Hundreds of cavalrymen charged forward, chasing a fat tiger until it was out of breath. The warriors were all wearing casual clothes - sleeveless short white robes, with scarlet headbands wrapped around their heads - the original maternity belts that were stolen by the Japanese and turned into "filial son belts".

"Block them!" The cavalrymen surrounded the tiger from all sides. The tiger, which had been chased for the whole morning, gradually ran out of energy. It crouched low, stared at these vicious warriors, and roared threateningly.

Hahahaha, the soldiers burst into laughter.

Li Keyong narrowed his one eye and threw the iron spear in his hand like lightning.

"Puff!" The tiger was unable to dodge and was stabbed in the left abdomen. The golden eagle hovering overhead swooped down like a meteor, scratched the tiger's nose with one kick, and bloodied it, then quickly flew back.

"Gee." Li Keyong patted his horse and took a few steps forward.

Suddenly, he supported himself on the silver saddle with both hands, stood up directly on the horse's back, then leaped up and landed in front of the tiger.

"Ah..." The tiger, panting and looking miserable, retreated repeatedly.

Li Keyong said nothing, but grabbed the tiger's ears with both hands—and kicked it with his hind legs!
The tiger screamed miserably, its body hanging in the air, and was actually held in Li Keyong's hand and spun rapidly. The warriors saw this, and although they were used to it, they still couldn't help whispering to each other.

"Wow, the prince's courage is not inferior to Tianzhu." The shogunate official rode forward and said with a smile: "Erzhu Rong of the Northern Dynasty fought a tiger with his bare hands, but he was not as fast as Situ, right?"

"The commander-in-chief has divine power and has captured another tiger."

"Qing Tianzi!"

"Alas." Li Keyong's mood did not improve at all, and he put the tiger down with a dull look. Two warriors rushed forward and dragged the tiger away, while the others cheered, built a fire on the spot, and washed and skinned the other prey they had captured.

"Oh." With another sigh, Li Keyong lay on his back on the grassland, his hands supporting his head, and swaying with his legs crossed.

The golden eagle folded its wings and landed beside its owner.

Stroking the golden eagle, looking at the clear green sky, with the breeze blowing gently on his face, Li Keyong closed his eyes slightly and said, "I really want to go back to Shenwuchuan to herd sheep. The sheep will eat the grass, and I can find a hillside to sleep. How nice..."

Only at this time will he release the anxiety, sorrow and even depression deep in his heart.

How not to worry!

The year before last, he inspected Luzhou. Because the food was not to his taste, he lost his temper and scolded his brother Li Kexiu, who was then the governor of Zhaoyi, and beat him twice. He thought it was normal for brothers to fight and quarrel. As a result, his brother became ill out of shame and anger, refused to take medicine, and died of illness...

As a result, the clan elders were very dissatisfied with him, saying that he was a master of violence. The younger nieces and nephews also thought he was fierce and did not want to get close to him. Moreover, whenever he drank, his wife would point at him and curse him. Li Keyong knew he had made a mistake, and he could only bear it when his relatives made him angry.

But it's not over yet.

The year before last, the imperial court launched an expedition against the rebels, and Li Cunxiao made great contributions. Afterwards, he thought that his father-in-law would let him be the governor of Zhaoyi, but he didn't get the job. Li Cunxiao was so angry that he refused to eat for seven days, and he was so hungry that he felt dizzy and used this self-destructive method to protest silently. By this year, the relationship between father and son had become increasingly strained. Li Cunxiao suspected that his father-in-law wanted to kill him, and Li Keyong also suspected that this most beloved adopted son had rebellious intentions.

Both father and son felt that they were not wrong - in Li Keyong's view, it was my right to appoint someone as a military governor. Li Cunxiao, on the other hand, believed that Li Keyong had made great contributions but did not reward them, and that the benefits were flowing to outsiders - so, neither of them was willing to give in.

If the bad family relationship was an internal problem, then the joint attack by the five towns of You, Zhao, Wei, Yun, and Bian was an external problem. First, You and Zhao sent 15 troops to attack his relative, Wang Chucun, the governor of Yiwu Army, so he had to personally lead troops to rescue him. In the battle of Chiri Ridge, more than warriors were killed! Most of them were elite soldiers he had trained over the years. How sad!
Then Zhu Quanzhong invaded Zhaoyi in the north, and the flags of the Bian people had already been planted on the bank of the Qi River. How could he not be anxious!

Last month, the Youzhou army launched a large-scale westward invasion of Yun and Dai states, almost treating this area as their backyard, and came to take advantage of them at any time. They plundered cattle and sheep, and looted children. The Hu and Han people in the north provided manpower and food for the "Qing Emperor", but Li Keyong failed to protect them, allowing them to be repeatedly swept by the Yan people.

The tribes are increasingly dissatisfied with Li Keyong!

Li Keyong's resentment towards the various towns in Heshuo quickly increased - he had always been the one who robbed others, but now he was being robbed by others! Therefore, after leading his troops to the north to repel the Youzhou bandits, he did not rush back to Taiyuan, but stayed in Dongshoujiang City - summoned the leaders of the foreign tribes, comforted the Han elders, and trained the troops. He tried to prove to the people that he was still powerful and it was right to follow him.

All these things made Li Keyong very worried. He couldn't help but doubt himself - was he really as Zhu Wen said, not fit to be a prince - occupying Hedong would only bring endless harm...

"Alas." With another sigh, Li Keyong hummed a pastoral song. If it weren't for the military affairs, he really wanted to visit his hometown in Jincheng Town.

"Why should Si Tu be discouraged?" Du Ya Ya and Jian Sue Gai Yu came over with a plate of roasted lamb.

"I don't want to eat it." Li Keyong was not in a good mood and felt bored.

My father-in-law's ability to withstand pressure is not even a little bit worse than Zhu Wen's.

Gai Yu was familiar with Li Keyong's personality and knew that he could not persuade him, so he did not waste words and took out two cylinders from his arms: "New reports from the Jinzouyuan were just delivered to Dongshoujiang City last night, and among them was the princess's family letter."

Hearing this, Li Keyong snatched it away, as if the cylinder contained some treasure.

"I haven't communicated for a long time. I miss you so much."

"I heard about the battle of Chiri Ridge, where many of our clansmen were killed and wounded. I also heard that the Yan people invaded Daibei, and the Bian bandits invaded Zelu. I was very sad! I expressed my sincere condolences to the Tang Palace."

"You are blessed in Jingzhao. The saint treats me with love, my attendants respect me, and officials both inside and outside the country honor me. Aye, you can be at ease, be at ease. You have seen the saint's words and deeds. He is generous on the outside but deep on the inside, and sharp as a sword. Internally, he killed the eunuchs, and externally, he killed 20,000 bandits in Qibin, stabbed their faces and chopped off their toes, and made them do hard labor. His foundation is just beginning to solidify, and he has his own authority. You must not take him lightly. He is close to Jin and wary of Bian, so he can be a good son-in-law. If you keep him for a long time, your father will have nothing to worry about!"

"Looking at the officials in the court, it is indeed as Aye said. Except for the few people in the imperial court, most of them are indecisive and servile..."

"After years of conscription and military campaigns, Hedong has become weak. But the people of Guanzhong are now in high spirits. Men are farming and women are weaving, and the mulberry and wheat are growing green. The poor are given land, and the rich are demanding taxes. Countless people have entered the Guanzhong area to follow the saints and become gangsters. Over time, the area can be called prosperous. Aye, you should stop the war and let the people resume production. If the granaries are full and the people are at peace, then with the military power of Hedong, how can the bandits in Bian be a match for us?"

"The sage wanted to take Tongzhou, but fearing suspicion in Hezhong, he told you that he would send 50,000 dan of grain to Taiyuan."

"Bamboo cannot bear the weight of words, please take care of yourself. I would like to express my deepest feelings and hope you will write a letter. On a certain day of a certain month in the first year of Jingfu, I bow my head and pay my respects to you, sir."

——Is that all? Li Keyong touched his rough lips, feeling somewhat unsatisfied. He read the letter over and over again.

Seeing Li Keyong's old face beaming with pride, Gai Yu wiped the oil from his mouth and asked, "Why is Situ so happy?"

"It's all thanks to my good son-in-law." Li Keyong sat up, took the wooden plate from Gai Yu, took out a dagger, cut the mutton and ate it: "You underestimated him. He killed many eunuchs, pacified the Three Feudatories, and took power on his own."

He also said that he would send 50,000 shi of grain to Taiyuan to relieve the urgent need. Although it is not much, but apart from this son-in-law, is there anyone else willing to help? If the daughter and son-in-law can continue to be in harmony, the girl will marry the right person, and her life will be much better in the future.

Of course he understood the implication of the last sentence in the letter - his good son-in-law wanted to recapture Tongzhou, but was worried about making enemies with the two towns of Pu and Shan, so he wanted him to act on his behalf, otherwise why would he go and tell his daughter about this.

He was the only one who could be approached for this matter. Ever since Wang Chongrong and Wang Chongrong joined forces to attack Huang Chao, the relationship between the two families had always been good. After Wang Chongrong was killed by his subordinates, his brother Wang Chongying returned from Shanzhou to Puzhou to take over the position of commander of Hezhong, while his son Wang Gong presided over the overall situation in Shanzhen. In general, the power of the Wang family was quite strong. Therefore, he originally planned to marry Zhu Xiewusi to Wang Chongrong's son Wang Ke, and then marry Wang Chongying's daughter to his eldest son Li Luoluo to strengthen the alliance between the two families. However, after weighing the pros and cons, he chose the court.

Now that the son-in-law has set his sights on Tongzhou, how can Wang Chongying and the others not be worried about what is happening right at their doorstep?

　I am on a business trip, so I will probably only update once for at least the next week. I will write more if I have spare time.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)