"Truly a treasure." Zong Ze said helplessly, and could only carry the box to the desk full of messy documents. Then, he carefully opened it and took out a heavy silk scroll from it. He carefully spread it out on the couch beside him before beckoning. "Pengju, come and see... This is a battle formation diagram left by Emperor Taizong, not to be given to anyone but a great general. I found it in the palace and am giving it to you today!"

Yue Pengju instinctively felt it was absurd just hearing the words "battle formation diagram," but out of respect for Emperor Taizong, he skeptically went forward and squinted at it in the lamplight for a while. However, after only looking at half of the diagram, he couldn't bear to look any further.

"Lord Zong!"

"How is it?" Zong Ze asked expectantly. "Do you want to take it back and look at it slowly, and then come back and give me a few essays on your心得 (xinde, insights)?"

Yue Fei sized up Zong Ze's face, forcefully swallowing many words for the sake of his superior's feelings... To be honest, if it were any other time when he happened to be resting in Dongjing, he probably would have held his nose and agreed to appease him. But he was leaving for Shouzhou on a long journey tomorrow, where would he find the time to deal with this?

Therefore, Yue Pengju could only勉强 (mianqiang,勉强) argue: "Emperor Taizong's battle formation diagram is certainly excellent, but to form such a formation requires tens of thousands of elite soldiers and tens of thousands of specific military weapons. I am just a small统制 (tongzhi, military rank), leading three thousand soldiers, and even our armor is incomplete. What use is this formation to me?"

Zong Ze was no ordinary person, how could he not understand Yue Pengju's meaning? He immediately said sadly, "You're directly saying this thing is useless, and that I, Zong Rulin, don't know anything about military matters, making me a laughingstock!"

Yue Fei rarely didn't persist, and was about to quickly comfort him.

However, Zong Ze casually put away the formation diagram, but then said something else:

"But Pengju, you are the most rare talent I have seen in my life. Under my command, you win every battle, and the number of captives and beheadings is always the highest. Moreover, your determination to resist the Jin is the strongest. Otherwise, would I and the previous Zhang Longtu, and Wang Yan, who even wrote a statement to spare you, be crazy, going out of our way to protect you and promoting you beyond the usual ranks every time? Even if I don't know anything about military matters, I know the difference between a brave warrior and a great general. Now that I expect you to become a great talent as soon as possible, to become a famous general like Wei Qing, Huo Qubing, Li Jing, and Xu Da, I can only ask the blind and grasp at straws..."

Yue Fei was slightly stunned, and also rarely sincere: "Lord Zong, please rest assured, I have my own calculations and measures when it comes to the art of war."

"What measures?"

"To form a formation before battle is the normal method of warfare. The ingenuity of its application lies in the heart. The key to military strategy lies in surprise, in being unpredictable, so as to achieve victory!"

Zong Ze was stunned for a moment, then shook his head slightly: "I don't understand..."

Yue Fei was about to explain again.

"You don't need to explain. After all, you are much better than me in the art of war. It's enough that you have a plan in mind!" Zong Ze waved his hands repeatedly, then put on his fur robe and got off the couch. "Let's leave it at that. I'll see you off!"

Yue Fei quickly declined.

"It's not that big of a deal, just seeing someone off, it won't cost me my life. If you can be loyal to the country on this trip, kill more enemies and resist the Jin, I might be able to extend my life by a few months..."

Yue Pengju reluctantly nodded in agreement.

And when Zong Rulin put on his wooden clogs and came out of the door, he first saw Ma Kuo and Zong Ying. The Tokyo Prefect couldn't help but frown slightly and rebuked, "Why are you still carrying human heads? Don't you find it disgusting?"

Zong Ying had no choice but to quickly put the bloody human head on the ground.

And Lord Zong didn't bother to pay attention to it at all, but raised his hand again, pointing at Yue Fei and said to Ma Kuo, "Young Master Ma, you also pack up a bit and join統制 (tongzhi) Yue's army tomorrow to see the Emperor in Shouzhou."

Ma Kuo couldn't help but be overjoyed, and quickly bowed to Zong Ze and Yue Fei outside the door.

After explaining this, Zong Ze didn't say much, but under the escort of the three men and a few guards, he walked all the way out of the Prefect's Mansion and stopped on the street where Yue Fei's servant Tang Huai and others were.

That said, during the Jingkang Incident more than half a year ago, although the Jin army never entered the city from beginning to end, allowing the buildings to be generally preserved, artisans, wealth, military equipment, and grain storage were all lost. In addition, after hundreds of thousands of imperial troops and rescue soldiers were defeated and scattered as bandits, the entire city was almost reduced to a ghost town!

It really was a ghost town. You must know that in the heyday of Dongjing, the population was 1.4 million, and the streets were shoulder to shoulder. But now, the ordinary people inside and outside Dongjing, added together, only number 200,000... And everyone is poor and desperate, and there was even a famine at one point. Fortunately, Zong Ze came here last year to sit and guard, comforting the people, recruiting defeated soldiers, organizing resistance against the Jin, and painstakingly fighting with the central government, which barely gave it some semblance of order.

And back to the present, tonight is the Lantern Festival. In previous years, Bianliang City would have been a city of lights that never sleeps, but now it is萧萧索索 (xiaoxiaosuosuo, desolate and bleak). Although there are sporadic lights, they are only for the patrols of soldiers. Only a bright moon hangs high in the sky, evoking reverie... It can only be said that the former prosperity of Dongjing is now just like a dream.

Among the four people, three had experienced such a盛世 (shengshi, prosperous age), so naturally they were silent and filled with emotion. And although Yue Fei had not seen the prosperous scene at that time, he could tell from the expressions of the other three, coupled with the fact that it was a festival day, how could he not understand? So he stood silently.

"Disperse!"

The night was cold and the moon was bright. The slender Zong Ze looked at the street for a long time in a杂色 (zase, motley) fur robe, but suddenly took the initiative to wave his hand. "You have to set off tomorrow."

Yue Fei and Ma Kuo quickly bowed their heads, and Zong Ying originally wanted to reach out and help his father back, but when he thought that he had been carrying a human head for half a day, he could only follow closely.

However, Zong Ze slowly took a few steps in the杂色 (zase, motley) fur robe, but suddenly turned his head and called out to the two who had already mounted their horses: "Come back!"

Yue Fei and Ma Kuo did not dare to neglect, and dismounted again and turned around, bowing respectfully.

"Pengju." Zong Ze indeed spoke to Yue Fei first. "I thought about it, what you said before is very right. My set of methods can't last long, and I really don't know anything about military matters... If we really want to recover Hebei and welcome back the two Emperors, we have to do it as you said, with strict military discipline, well-trained soldiers, sufficient supplies, and complete military equipment, and fight fairly!"

Under the gaze of the others, Yue Fei quickly bowed his head: "This humble general is ashamed, this humble general is not criticizing Lord Zong. Lord Zong has won people's hearts and rectified military preparations in Dongjing, and is already a model for帅臣 (shuaichen, commander). What this humble general said about the art of war refers to the small techniques used in battle..."

"I know, I know, I didn't admit my mistake either." Zong Ze stepped forward to help him up and said, "I am just a last-ranked Jinshi, and I have spent half my life as a county lieutenant and magistrate. How would I know how to use troops and fight battles, and learn from Zhuge Liang? It's just that the country has fallen, and no one else cares. Only an old man of nearly seventy is in this ruined capital, trying his best to repair and patch things up. It's already good enough, why should I be expected to be as good as a擎天玉柱 (qingtian yuzhu, a pillar supporting the sky)? Isn't it okay to be an iron pillar?"

"Lord Zong is right."

Yue Fei replied sincerely.

That said, although Yue Pengju thought Zong Ze was a hundred times wrong inside the house, at this time he also really thought Zong Ze was a hundred times right... Just think about it, when the situation was bad, everyone from the Emperor down was in the south, and it seemed reasonable to stay in the south, but Zong Ze stubbornly stayed in Dongjing alone, and worked hard until his death, single-handedly supporting such a big situation. Saying that he doesn't know how to use troops at this time, saying that his actions have no system, if it is a person with a sincere heart who hopes that Zong Ze will do better, of course, it doesn't matter, you can use this to attack the other party, then what is the difference with the blood-sucking flies on the battlefield?

Zong Ze was able to gather these defeated soldiers and volunteer armies so quickly in Dongjing, and make everyone willing to die for him. Was it based on his godlike military skills?

Being able to achieve today's situation, this Commander Zong is already worthy of being called the number one帅臣 (shuaichen, commander) in the world at this time! Because at this time, there is simply no second person in the world who can break through the various restrictions of the previous 行在 (xingzai, temporary imperial court) and the current terrible situation, and work hard for the country, to be another qualified 帅臣 (shuaichen, commander)!

A slender iron pillar is also a擎天之柱 (qingtianzhizhu, a pillar supporting the sky)!