turning point

Yan Song and his son racked their brains to prepare to deal with Xia Yan, but to their surprise, Xia Yan came to their door before they could take action.

What happened is that Yan Shifan was probably too greedy and annoyed many people, so he was sued. Today is different from the past. When the complaint letter fell into Xia Yan's hands, this dear friend naturally said nothing.

Once you have prepared the materials, you should report to your leader.

Yan Song panicked. When he heard the news, he immediately called his embezzler son to discuss countermeasures. At the critical moment, one of the three talents in the world was so frightened that he pinched himself several times before he recovered.

Then he proposed a seemingly absurd solution: go to Xia Yan to intercede.

Yan Song disagreed because he believed that he knew Xia Yan's personality very well. This man had strict requirements on his friends, not to mention that he was his mortal enemy.

Yan Shifan insisted on his opinion:

"This is the only way to survive!"

So the father and son brought all the equipment, including gifts, money, silk cloth to wipe tears, etc., and arrived at Xia Yan's door. The guard informed him and asked for help.

After a long time, a response came: Xia Shoufu was unwell, and the two of them would come back another day.

Come back another day? Don’t be ridiculous, I don’t know if my head will still be there by then!

So Yan Song used the first piece of equipment - money.

Of course, this money was not given to Xia Yan, but was put into the hands of the doorman. It is not easy for everyone. Brother, please let me go.

After paying off the concierge, Yan Song and his son walked into Xia Yan's residence.

Xia Yan was lying on the bed pretending to be sick when he heard the two men coming. He pretended not to wake up and turned over to continue sleeping.

It doesn't matter, nature will find a way to get you up.

Yan Song and Yan Shifan, who were standing in the room, were suddenly grief-stricken. They burst into tears on the spot, and the sound of wailing and weeping shook the heaven and earth.

Although this trick has been seen many times in history, it has always been tried and tested. However, it is not feasible for ordinary people to use this trick. You must know that suddenly sadness starts in your heart, and your nose and tears fall down without any ambiguity, which is very harmful to your face.

The control of muscles and central nervous system has reached a level of perfection that is still astonishing a hundred years later.

Xia Yan couldn't bear it any longer. After finally resting for a day, two living treasures suddenly came in and cried in mourning. He couldn't sleep. Moreover, he was lying on the bed and they were crying in front of the bed. It was really unlucky.

So, he stood up.

His destruction started from this time.

Xia Yan walked up to Yan Song, helped the old man who was two years older than him, kneeling on the ground and crying bitterly, and sighed:

"Fenyi (Yan Song is from Fenyi, Jiangxi), why are you doing this?"

Why bother? If it weren't for your head, the devil would kneel down on you!

Yan Song immediately stopped crying, blew his nose, pulled Yan Shifan, and stood in front of Xia Yan solemnly, pretending to be a grandson.

We are all understanding people. I know very well what you are here for and what you want.

So Xia Yan sighed and waved his hand helplessly to express his attitude.

Yan Song and Yan Shifan were overjoyed and immediately kowtowed again to express their gratitude and left.

History has proven that if a drowned dog is not beaten, it will turn into a vicious wolf.

Xia Yan is really a nice old man. Although he looks old-fashioned, he actually has a broad mind and a benevolent heart. He is an out-and-out good person.

But in the arena of power, good people who are out-and-out are doomed.

Soon after, this good old man ran into trouble. When he was reviewing the official documents of the imperial censor (letters of complaint), he unexpectedly discovered a familiar name - Lu Bing.

Brother Lu Bing is really a person who can't stand loneliness. Although he still has some principles, he also likes to engage in trivial matters, collect some black money, and engage in corruption. Slowly, things became more and more troublesome, and finally the censor was stabbed.

There.

So Xia Yan got angry. Although he had a good relationship with Lu Bing, it was still necessary to punish this person for his illegal behavior. However, not long after he made up his mind, Lu Bing came to his door.

Lu Bing is not a jobber, he is a spy. Under his wise leadership, the Jin Yiwei has become the most terrifying intelligence machine. Whenever there is any trouble in the capital, he is always the first to know. This time, too.

exception.

There are very few people in the capital who are afraid of Lu Bing, and Xia Yan is the only one. This Lord Jinyiwei knows very well that Xia Shoufu is a fool, he doesn't recognize people when he turns against them, and he is also very good at fighting. No matter what your background is,

No matter what, as long as you look for it correctly, they will all be knocked to the ground and they will be stepped on hard.

Panicked, Lu Bing couldn't think of any other way, so he had to follow Yan Shifan's old path and come to plead for mercy.

He didn't go empty-handed, he also sent someone to take three thousand taels of silver to go with him. He knew that Xia Yan had been in the battlefield for decades, and talking was a waste of emotion, so he might as well get something practical.

From this incident, it is enough to conclude that Lu Bing's level is not as good as Yan Shifan's because he has been dealing with Xia Yan for many years and does not even know that this man does not accept illegal money.

So when Xia Yan saw Lu Bing and the things he brought, he only said two words - get out.

And add another sentence - Wherever you brought it from, you will take it back.

Lu Bing was also stunned. In his desperation, he had to use the same trick that Yan Shifan had used - crying bitterly and kneeling down to beg for mercy.

Of course, the result was still the same. Xia Yan still forgave him. This seemed a bit hard to understand. Since you weren't prepared to deal with him, why did you bother him so much?

Lu Bing left Xia Yan's home with tears, but his heart was full of anger. Reputation was no longer important, and principles were no longer important. No matter what, he must avenge this arrow!

When the news of Lu Bing's humiliation spread, Yan Shifan found his father and said this:

"Xia Yan's death is not far away."

Yan Shifan was confident in what he said. He had found an excellent opportunity and would be able to eliminate Xia Yan in one fell swoop.

Yan Song was still confused. There were people from Xia Yan in the court, so it was difficult for them to get involved. How could he take action?

However, Yan Shifan told him that there was no need to form cliques or cultivate cronies. There was something going on right now. As long as a little trick was used, Xia Yan would definitely die.

The incident Yan Shifan mentioned happened a year ago.

In the twenty-fifth year of Jiajing's reign (1546), the Minister of War and the Governor-General of the Three Borders Military Affairs Zeng sent a memorial to Jiajing, which started the drama.

Zeng Mian was a general with great military ability. Although he was a civil servant, he liked military affairs. After serving as a county magistrate for several years, he was appointed as the censor of Liaodong. From then on, he began to roll around on the battlefield and showed his talent.

military talent.

It should be said that Zeng Mian is a strange person. The reason is that others do not want to fight, but he is addicted to fighting. As long as there is an opportunity, he will never let it go.

The most damaging thing he ever did happened on New Year's Eve. Everyone had been fighting for a year and was finally getting ready to celebrate the New Year. Then Zeng came.

"Everyone pack up and prepare to send troops to fight!"

It's the Chinese New Year, so let's all stay quiet for two days. It's unlucky to use knives or guns at this time, and no one wants to go out and fight. Moreover, the Mongols are elusive, and you may not be able to find them if you go out.

But we had to listen to the coach's orders, so everyone discussed a way and found a person to intercede with Zeng Xian's wife, hoping to postpone it.

Less than a cup of tea later, the news came that the man who went to intercede had been beheaded and his head hung out.

Then stop fighting and just go out and fight.

Coincidentally, not long after the army set off, they actually discovered their long-lost old Mongolian friends. They chased them fiercely, beat gongs and drums, and returned to camp victorious.

But everyone has the same question in their minds: It's the New Year, and even the scouts are taking a break. How do you know the Mongols are nearby?

"Have you not noticed that the magpies and crows nearby are particularly noisy today?" Zeng Mian smiled proudly.

His life was ruined by his pride.

Zeng Mian was destined to be a restless person, so he decided to continue his efforts and make greater contributions to the country in his position. So he put forward a suggestion in that memorial - to recover the Loop.

The Hetao area, today's Ningxia and the Helan Mountains in Inner Mongolia, was originally owned by the Ming Dynasty, but this area was right at the doorstep of the Mongolian tribes. Mongolian neighbors came to visit from time to time to "take" some things. The government began to return the

Guan Guan gradually became unable to do what he wanted. Over time, this area became the sphere of influence of Mongolia.

At first, people didn't care much about the place where birds don't lay eggs, so just throw it away. But later, people discovered that abandoning the Loop was a serious mistake.

This is because the Mongols did not occupy this land to open shops or develop real estate. They occupied the Hetao just to better complete their robbery mission.

The Ming Dynasty that lost the Loop was like a hawker setting up a stall on the street. He had no peace of mind every day and had to be punished several times. Either his people would be killed or his goods would be robbed.

Zeng Mian finally couldn't bear it anymore. He may be impatient, but he is a person who cherishes the people and is determined to serve the country. How can the world allow barbarians to wreak havoc!

Therefore, he wrote the article vowing to restore the Loop with full passion for serving the country: This once-and-for-all strategy will be relied upon by the country for all generations. This is Zeng Mian's beautiful ideals and passion.

After the article was submitted, Mr. Jiajing was also excited. This was really unprecedented. You must know that although this Taoist priest was refining alchemy and reading scriptures every day, he was only part-time, and he still had some blood. He immediately expressed his agreement with Zeng Xian.

opinions and send a letter to the cabinet for discussion.

The problem lies with the cabinet.

When Xia Yan saw this memorial, he immediately applauded it and expressed his absolute support. Then he wrote another article and wrote a letter expressing his approval. Of course, as usual, he did not consult the other supporting actor Yan Song for his opinion.

But he ignored a very strange phenomenon: in the past, even if he didn't say hello, Yan Song would already come up to express his support or approval, but this time, this toady just sat aside, closing his eyes and concentrating, as if

Didn't know this at all.

The impatient Xia Yan ran to Xiyuan excitedly to express his excitement. But Yan Song, who was sitting in the dark corner, smiled.

Xia Yan was finally confused for a moment - Yan Song made this judgment.

As the saying goes, Xia Yan, who has been in officialdom for more than ten years, has not yet figured out the emperor's thoughts. Recovering territory is naturally a good thing for the country, but Mr. Jiajing may not necessarily think so.

You know, this Taoist brother is a person who doesn't like to cause trouble. His wish is very simple. He just wants to burn incense, recite sutras, and make some chemicals (so-called elixirs) in his spare time, so that he can live a few more years.

If the retrieval of territory goes well, it is naturally good. But what if it does not go well? If the battle is defeated, it will be troublesome. We will lose troops and lose generals. We have to read battle reports every day, transport food, recruit troops, and discuss countermeasures. It will be troublesome even if we don't die from exhaustion.
To be continued...