Chapter 40 Second-hand preparation

Chapter 40 Second-hand preparation

Chapter 40 Be Prepared
The next month or so was relatively peaceful.

On October 15th, Pei Shiliu came to Biyong and left after a secret conversation for half a day. That night, he took a cable car into Luoyang City and went straight to Sikong Mansion.

Sima Yue was hosting a family dinner to entertain several guests.

Those present included Pei Dun and Pei Xia, sons of the Pei family, He Lun and Wang Bing, generals of the Donghai State, Queen Pei, and Crown Prince Sima Pi.

Forget about the Pei family, the fact that He Lun and Wang Bing entered the house is very meaningful.

It should be said that Sima Yue regarded the two of them as his confidants, otherwise he would never let the princess and the prince come out to meet them.

To put it bluntly, if Sima Yue encountered a disaster in the future and asked for his wife and children to be sacrificed, He Lun and Wang Bing would definitely be the first people considered.

Therefore, they were very excited and behaved very respectfully, not daring to look at others for fear of offending the distinguished person.

Concubine Pei sat there leisurely, listening to everyone talking silently.

"The Grand Commander went on an expedition in accordance with the Emperor's orders and defeated Zhang Fang. Both the east and west sides won great victories. The situation in Luoyang really turned from danger to safety overnight." He Lun said with a beaming face.

Although he came from a large family, he had been hanging out in military camps for many years and did not have deep thoughts. He became excited when talking about fighting.

October was truly a dream month for the Luoyang royal army.

At the beginning of the month, the battle of Jianchun Gate was fought, and the Jizhou army was greatly defeated, tens of thousands of people were beheaded, and sixteen generals including Ma Xian and Jia Chong were killed. The dead piled up like a river, and the water stopped flowing. Lu Ji, Shi Chao and others fled overnight, not daring to look back.

Afterwards, the Grand Commander Sima Yi led his troops to the west of the city, defeated Zhang Fang again, and beheaded more than 5,000 people.

Since September, Zhang Fang has lost more than 10,000 troops, Lu Ji has lost 50,000 to 60,000 troops, while Wang's army has only lost tens of thousands of people, achieving an unprecedented victory.

Of course, there are hidden worries.

The casualties of the royal army were mainly the relatively elite Luoyang Central Army, rather than the temporarily conscripted Sizhou hereditary soldiers and Luoyang Ding men - no one cares about this part of the casualties, but upon closer examination, there may be no less than 1, so the actual casualty ratio of the two sides should be less than 3:.

There were only 50,000 or 60,000 soldiers left in the central army. Before the battle, 20,000 soldiers defected one after another, leaving only 30,000 soldiers inside and outside the city. As a result, one-third of the soldiers were lost in one month, which was really painful.

But in order to win the battle, we have to use them to death, which is a difficult problem.

Thinking of this, He Lun sighed a little. Once upon a time, the Luoyang Central Army had more than 100,000 people, well-armored, well-trained, and powerful, suppressing the local soldiers and the frontier Hu people who dared not move lightly. It has only been a few years, and the 100,000-strong army is almost exhausted by the civil war. It has to be said that it is a huge irony.

"I don't think it's that simple." Wang Bing said weakly: "The enemy army retreated and reorganized, and it seems that they want to fight again."

Wang Bing was a descendant of Wang Lang, the Minister of State, and a long-established family in Donghai. He was not comparable to the upstarts like the He family, so he shouldn't be so weak. However, he was defeated outside the city, and most of his 500 Donghai soldiers and nearly 1,000 Sizhou soldiers were defeated, which became Zhang Fang's military achievement. Therefore, he really had no capital to be proud of now.

Hearing Wang Bing's words, Concubine Pei glanced at him inconspicuously, with indescribable complex emotions in her heart.

When she retreated from Pan Garden, she planned to lure Mi Huang and Shao Xun's troops into the city, but ultimately failed.

This is nothing. Didn’t Wang Bing’s troops fail to enter the city?

But she sent Pei Shiliu to Biyong several times, and Shao Xun was respectful and had no complaints. He also said many words of loyalty in private, which made her feel a little guilty.

When Lu Ji mobilized a large army to besiege Luoyang from all sides, although she was reluctant to admit it, she was still a little worried in her heart - well, just like raising a cat or a dog for a long time, it is impossible not to have any feelings for them.

Fortunately, Shao Xun gave her a big surprise.

According to Pei Xia, he rode alone and killed the enemy general Meng Chao. Then he drew his sword and mounted his horse. Thousands of enemy soldiers hesitated to advance and finally fled in panic.

What bravery and heroism this is!
When she first heard the news, she was stunned for a long time. After repeated confirmation, she finally felt relieved.

In fact, she was a little confused.

Wang Bing was a veteran in the army, so why was he so weak in fighting that he couldn't even beat Shao Xun, a young man? It was really puzzling.

But now, when he saw Wang Bing's dejected look, he seemed to understand.

Shao Xun was a man who could really be unrestrained when he wanted to be unrestrained. He even dared to look at her rudely.

However, Wang Bing didn't even dare to look at her for more than a second. He was timid and cautious.

Perhaps, the army needs a bit of fearlessness - this was the conclusion she came to.

Of course, although Wang Bing, a veteran in the army, often didn't dare to look her in the face, Concubine Pei still found his gaze a little disgusting.

Shao Xun secretly cast his eyes on her chest. Concubine Pei thought that it was just the young man's admiration for her, which did not seem so dirty and could be forgiven.

"Those two really didn't give up." Sima Yue's low voice interrupted Concubine Pei's reverie.

She stood up and filled her husband's glass with wine. Sima Yue picked up the wine jar and said expressionlessly, "This war still has to be fought. However, I see that the Grand Commander seems to want to take advantage of the victory to negotiate peace."

"Peace talks?" He Lun was a little surprised.

After winning battles one after another, the Hebei army fled twenty miles to the east, and Zhang's army in Guanzhong retreated westward to Shisanli Bridge. The situation was so good, why did they still need to negotiate peace?
"I'm afraid there isn't enough food?" Pei Xia asked from the side.

Sima Yue's expression froze for a short time, then he relaxed again. He looked at Pei Xia and said with a smile, "Shu Dao is indeed smart. Wang Yifu has found a good son-in-law. It is true that food and grass are quite insufficient. The Grand Commander is very troubled. He does not know what to do, so he has made two preparations. If the two kings of Chengdu and Hejian are willing to negotiate peace, then it's fine. If not, then send envoys to contact the governors of Yongliang and order them to send troops to attack Chang'an with the imperial decree. First, retreat one route. Then contact Bingzhou, Youzhou and the various Hu people on the border, and order them to go south to harass the rear of Yecheng."

Pei Xia was very thoughtful and keenly caught the complex emotions that flashed across Sima Yue's face. It seemed to include displeasure and jealousy? He didn't dare to think too much and just said, "This is a great plan, well thought out."

Sima Yue nodded and said, "So, you must not slack off. You still need to organize your troops and recruit talented people. At this moment, one brave man who dares to fight is better than two empty talkers."

At this point, he turned his gaze to Pei Xia again and said, "Shao Xun, whom Uncle Dao mentioned last time, is indeed a military academy officer of the East China Sea. I didn't know he was so brave and almost buried."

Concubine Pei was quietly teaching the eight-year-old prince a lesson, and seemed to be completely unaware of the conversation.

Some things, if you bring them up yourself, will become superficial and not be beautiful.

When Pei Xia visited the palace and mentioned Shao Xun, Concubine Pei did not show too much emotion, but slowly led the topic, subtly deepening Pei Xia's impression.

It is appropriate to do so.

Because in her opinion, she was recruiting talents for the family and making good friends, and she had no selfish motives.

At the family dinner today, Sima Yue mentioned Shao Xun again, and it was obvious that Pei Xia had contributed.

That's good.

Having a talented general will provide us with an extra layer of security in Luoyang, a place as dangerous as dragons and tigers.

"That man - is really powerful." Pei Xia seemed to recall the situation on that day. Although there was the effect of the drumbeat from his own side and the influence of the overall situation on the front battlefield, it must be true that he killed the generals and the enemies, right?
The situation now is different from the time when we conquered Wu and Shu. The number of elite soldiers and generals has been greatly reduced. Both the Luoyang central army and the local hereditary soldiers have seen their overall combat effectiveness decline, and there is almost no talent, or in other words, there is an urgent need to discover it.

Wang Hu, the Sima of the Taiwei Mansion, killed sixteen enemy generals in one battle. I'm afraid he could stop children from crying at night in Hebei.

Gou Xi defeated the enemy troops successively in the north of the city and was also feared by the enemy troops.

Shao Xun defeated the enemy and killed the general with such bravery and heroism that people applauded him.

But there are only these few, and two of them have no family background, and one is from a poor family, which makes people speechless.

In an era when martial virtues are declining, it is hard to find a good general. No wonder Sikong attaches so much importance to him. What is even more amazing is that this person is born in the East China Sea, so he can be trusted.

"Haha." Seeing Pei Xia's envious look, Sima Yue laughed heartily: "Mi Zihui also told me about Shao Xun. He is from our country. He is only seventeen years old after the Chinese New Year. He is really young and promising."

"My husband has found someone. It's a cause for celebration. You should drink a glass." Concubine Pei filled Sima Yue's glass with wine at the right time and said softly.

Sima Yue became even happier and drank the wine in one gulp.

"My husband, Shao Xun is only sixteen years old. If he is well cultivated, he can be useful for decades. Not only will my husband benefit, but the prince can also use him." Concubine Pei continued, "The servants in the mansion heard that Shao Xun was taught civil and martial arts by a god, and he went to my husband. I think this is a blessing from heaven."

“Tian Zan…” Sima Yue paused, and his face slowly flushed.

God praise!

He had drunk some wine and was already a little drunk, so when he heard the word "Tian Zan", it was as if it had hit the nail on the head.

Is this God helping me?

Thinking of his past humbleness and fawning, Sima Yue suddenly felt a little sad. My life has been so difficult!

Do you think I'm so cheap that I have to flatter others? Even being laughed at by the nobles and scholars?
Do you think I'm so stupid that I have to keep changing jobs and be ridiculed or even looked down upon?
We are all princes, why should I be so lowly?
No, not anymore!
Sima Yue shook his head subconsciously.

Concubine Pei stood up again and gently stroked her shoulder, as if to comfort her.

Sima Yue was a little touched. After all, my wife still cared about me.

That Shao Xun, since he is a star general, let's test his loyalty. If he is really a loyal and righteous man, he may be of great use.

Sima Yue has already thought of something, which might be able to be handed over to this person in the future.

If he can even accomplish this, then his loyalty is commendable and he can be cultivated as a priority.

(End of this chapter)