Chapter 199 Character Design
Chapter 199 Character Design (Monthly Ticket Plus 6)
In the mulberry forest outside Yushanwu, tender buds have sprouted.
In the vegetable patch, the early chives have grown very tall.
Cows, sheep, horses and donkeys wandered at the foot of the mountain, sometimes lowering their heads to chew the tender grass, and sometimes raising their heads to look at humans with innocent eyes.
"Whose food do we eat...whose clothes do we wear..." The officers and soldiers of the Seventh Building of the Silver Spear Army shouted slogans and carried out arduous training.
Even the guards were pulled out for group training today.
When the woman was busy working in the fields and felt tired, she straightened up and looked at her father, brothers and husband who were training in the distance, with a gratified smile on her lips.
The children went to the river to fetch water to water the vegetables, went to the mountains to collect firewood, went to take care of the livestock, and occasionally played around, their cheerful laughter filling the air.
This is Yushanwu, and this is the hard and simple life of the people in Yushanwu.
Are we going to deprive them of their last hope of survival?
"My Lord, do you want to be a loyal minister?" Lu Zhi's words were so sharp and went straight to the point.
"I am not a loyal subject, you should know that." Shao Xun replied.
"What kind of subject do you want to be, my lord?" Lu Zhi did not let him go and asked directly.
Shao Xun did not dare to answer, and could only say vaguely: "I am willing to fight for the court."
Lu Zhi laughed and said, "If the court is still here, you can stay between Luoyang and Jingzhou without being attacked from all sides. If the court is not here, the world will be without a master and there will be chaos everywhere. Not to mention that the troops from Jingzhou and Nanyang may attack, the troops from Yuzhou and Guanzhong may also besiege you. You really need the court."
Shao Xun smiled awkwardly.
Even though the counselor had spoken so bluntly, he was still trying to evade the question and only revealed a little when pressed.
What is this? This is a lack of trust in Lu Zhi, after all, he has only been "working" for a few months.
However, Lu Zhi did point out the core.
The imperial court still has the title to appoint provincial governors, prefects, and governors, and the feudal lords throughout the country are still sending taxes, female musicians, and craftsmen to the capital for service, and some are even sending troops to defend the capital.
If he could find a collaborator in the court to help him stabilize other directions so that he could concentrate on development, it would be possible for Henan to become successful.
At the end of the Tang Dynasty, Zhu Wen settled in Bianliang under the pretext of exterminating Qin Zongquan in order to prevent the surrounding vassal states from attacking him. He even formed an alliance with the general and military supervisor sent by the court.
In the process of eliminating Qin Zongquan, Zhu Wen not only cleaned up the troublemakers in Xuanwu Town, but also took the opportunity to annex Yicheng, Dongdu, Fengguo, Heyang and other vassal towns. When the time was ripe, he turned against the two Zhus of Shandong, Shi Pu of Xuzhou, and Wang Shifan of Qingzhou, and focused on moving eastward to expand his territory.
In the early stages of his career, political support from the imperial court was extremely important. It helped him avoid countless disasters.
From this perspective, Shao Xun had a motive to maintain the Jin Dynasty court. At least, he wanted to prevent it from falling too quickly or seriously losing its prestige, which was not in his own interests.
"Since Zidao knows the truth, why did you ask me to withdraw the soldiers and civilians from Yushanwu? This fort is built on the mountain, not on a flat land. Even if Wang Mi wants to go north through this road, he doesn't necessarily have to attack Yushanwu, right?" Shao Xun said, "This beast has been on the road, and the prefectures and counties have just closed their doors and defended themselves, and Wang Mi has not stopped to attack anyone. In his eyes, there are probably only Xuchang and Luoyang, right?"
In Yanzhou, a prefect had already been dismissed by the court for watching the rebel army pass through the border.
Of course, the court could only vent its anger on the governors. Sima Yue left Xuchang with his army and fled to Juancheng, so the court could not remove him from office.
Lu Zhi thought for a moment and sighed, "Since you insist, that's fine. But Yushanwu Warehouse is not big and has limited food storage. It's best to evacuate the elderly, the weak, women and children to Liang County for temporary resettlement. The guards will stay and help the soldiers defend the city."
"Yes." Shao Xun said.
The farmlands, hemp fields and mulberry forests at the foot of the mountain may be in trouble. Regardless of whether the battle is won or lost, Yushanwu will suffer heavy losses this year.
"Do you know how many soldiers Wang Mi has?" Lu Zhi asked again.
"There were 50,000 or 60,000 people when we left Qingzhou and Xuzhou, but we don't know how many there are now." Shao Xun said, "Along the way, there were many powerful people, members of the Tianshi Dao sect, and even scum from the county soldiers who joined them. By the time we reach Xuchang, there may be 100,000 people, or even more."
"With over 100,000 people, we can't just attack them head-on." Lu Zhi said, "We don't know how strong they are. We can only wait and see, and then make plans."
You can't not fight, just get out of the way. After all, you are a general of the court, enjoying many benefits from the court, sucking blood from the court to raise troops. If you can't show your value and can't fulfill your obligations, what's the use of you?
You can't fight too hard and consume a lot of your own strength, otherwise the imperial court might take revenge on you later.
The right balance in between is not easy to grasp.
Just wanting to get benefits but not willing to pay the price is too idealistic.
"Zi Dao, what good advice do you have?" Shao Xun asked humbly.
"Since you are unwilling to evacuate Yushanwu, I have no choice but to adopt the middle strategy." Lu Zhi said, "The main force will advance to the territory of Jiacheng and Xiangcheng and station on the west bank of the Ru River. If the enemy comes, we can block the river and resist them. It will be closer to Yushanwu and more convenient to respond."
"If the enemy enters Luoyang through Liangxian and Yique Pass, we must fight them at Rushui River. We must not let them break in, otherwise our foundation will be destroyed."
"If the bandits enter Luoyang via Yangdi and Huanyuan Pass, we will follow them and attack them from both sides together with the Huanyuan Pass garrison, and annihilate them in the valley."
"Wang Mi crossed the state and the governors and prefects closed their doors and guarded themselves. He must be arrogant, so let the valley of Luonan become his burial place."
Mountains and rivers have been very important factors in war since ancient times. Being separated by a river and facing each other directly are two completely different concepts.
To deal with Wang Mi, excluding the people who stayed behind, Shao Xun could mobilize about 10,000 troops. If he could cooperate with tens of thousands of imperial guards, he could indeed fight a beautiful annihilation battle, or at least a crushing battle.
"Now that I have a son, I don't have to worry about anything." Shao Xun said with a smile.
"I am only offering some suggestions. How to fight is up to you, Your Highness." Lu Zhi said modestly. Then, he said seriously, "Wang Mi's rebellion is a great crisis, but there are also many opportunities. Your Highness should think carefully about how to appear in front of the emperor and the nobles in the future."
Shao Xun nodded slightly.
This is packaging his personality and solidifying his image in order to gain benefits.
"Honest people suffer losses." Shao Xun said only one sentence.
Lu Zhi smiled when he heard it, then looked at Shao Xun with a slightly admiring look and said, "Your Excellency has known this well before. If you are too honest, even if you have made great achievements, you will not get many benefits. I know that Your Excellency is not a person without sense of propriety, but sometimes being a little domineering does make people hesitate."
Gou Xi was an honest man. When the court asked him to leave Yanzhou, he left. He could not take any soldiers with him and had to go to Qingzhou to reorganize his troops.
Gou Xi must be sad too. From now on, he will probably obey the imperial orders on the surface, but he will definitely make small moves in private. In other words, the honest man Gou Xi disappeared, and now it is the warlord Gou Xi.
Compared with Gou Xi, Shao Xun has both disadvantages and advantages. The disadvantage is that he is too young and it is difficult for him to be promoted. At the same time, he does not have the decades of experience that Gou Xi has accumulated.
The advantage is that he is right next to Luoyang and is also a general of the imperial army, so he is bound to be restrained in dealing with it. In addition, he is really good at fighting and has solved many problems for the court, demonstrating his value.
Domineering is his protective color. He can use the excuse of "young and hot-tempered" to evade the question of snatching land, money and women.
He made many small mistakes but never made big ones. He firmly obeyed the orders of the imperial court. He went to Guanzhong when he was told to go and to Hebei when he was told to go. He even brought his private troops to fight for the imperial court. Isn't this a great loyalty?
He can also use connections. If you were in a higher position, facing such a thorn in the side, you would really have no choice but to love and hate him.
"Since Your Excellency has already made an overall plan, I feel that in this battle against Wang Mi, you should demonstrate your loyalty and at the same time build up your military achievements so that the court will not be able to find fault with you. Finally, you can take advantage of the situation and make the court, caught in a dilemma, eventually lean towards Your Excellency and accept it..." Lu Zhi then explained in detail.
Shao Xun nodded repeatedly after hearing this.
The two foxes, one big and one small, decided on the general strategy in a few words.
******
Three months passed in a flash. As Wang Mi was able to move freely in Yan and Yu provinces, and the Grand Tutor Sima Yue fled to Juancheng, the knowledgeable people in Luoyang finally realized that something was wrong.
So no one is stopping Wang Mi, so he's just allowed to rush over like this?
So, starting from the end of March, scholars began to leave Luoyang one after another. They first moved their families to the suburbs temporarily, and then began to think about their next escape direction.
Some fled westward into the mountains, while others fled southward to Nanyang.
At the beginning of April, the elderly, the weak, the women and the children in Yushanwu had packed up everything for the move, and then some of them, carrying the elderly and the young, or riding in carriages and horses, headed west to Liang County.
Wang Situ summoned Shao Xun, and he hurried and arrived at the palace before nightfall.
Wang Yan personally hosted a small banquet to entertain them.
"The emperor used to be the General of the Left Guard and led troops in the Battle of Dangyin. He plans to intervene in the war." Wang Yan was not very happy when he said this. After all, he was the commander-in-chief of the imperial guards, and the emperor's interference showed that he obviously did not trust him.
Shao Xun agreed casually.
The old man's house was a grand occasion, with the sound of stringed instruments and fluttering sleeves of dancers, which distracted Shao Xun, whose self-control was getting worse and worse.
"How does the emperor intend to intervene?" he asked, looking around.
There was a female musician in the palace who was both talented and beautiful, with an outstanding temperament. Although she was a "high-class prostitute", she still attracted a lot of attention from him.
"The last time I went to the palace to ask questions, the emperor agreed to keep the enemy out of the pass." Wang Yan said, "At present, there are three generals who are most favored by the emperor. The first is Miao Bo, the second is Miao Yin, both of whom are former ministers of the Grand Tutor and his son, and are now employed by the emperor. The third is Zhu Dan, the commander of the three divisions of the Right Guard, who often goes to the palace to ask questions."
What a new generation to replace the old!
Shao Xun was somewhat emotional. Has the emperor forgotten me? Or is it because of the prophecy that he dares not use me or does not want to use me?
Shao Xun was not quite sure that the emperor had served as the General of the Left Guard and had led troops in the Battle of Dangyin.
He only knew that Sima Yue brought all the princes with him when he went on the Northern Expedition, but he didn't know what they did specifically.
"The brothers of the Miao family may each lead a part of the imperial guards to guard Yique Pass and Huanyuan Pass to stop the bandits." Wang Yan continued: "I will stay in Luoyang, take charge of the overall situation, and dispatch all the troops. Your Excellency..."
"I am willing to obey Situ's orders." Shao Xun said in a resounding voice.
"Okay." Wang Yan was somewhat happy.
He knew that Shao Xun might not accept the assignment readily, but this statement was better than nothing.
The two smiled at each other and drank from their glasses.
After putting down the wine bottle, Shao Xun noticed from the corner of his eye that the beautiful woman in palace dress passed by not far away last time and seemed to stay for a while, paying attention to what he was doing.
When Shao Xun turned around, the fragrance was gone.
"Where is Chu Zhong?" Shao Xun asked casually when he saw Wang Yan looking at him.
"In the past two days, the emperor has frequently summoned his ministers for questioning. Chu Zhong, as the Secretary General, is always there. He stayed in the palace last night and was busy until late at night." Wang Yan said.
"I see." Shao Xun nodded.
Wang Dun was originally the Grand Herald, and later served as the Governor of Qingzhou. After he returned to Luoyang halfway, both of these positions were no longer available, so he was appointed as the Secretary General.
This third-rank noble position was probably operated by Wang Yan. In order to help his useless brother, Lao Bi Deng was very worried.
The two then talked about many other things and did not part until midnight.
Wang Yan invited Shao Xun to stay overnight and go to the palace with him to meet the emperor the next day.
Considering that he had his personal soldiers with him, Shao Xun agreed.
Wang Yan couldn't handle the alcohol and left early.
Wang Dun was also away, so Princess Xiangcheng Sima Xiuwei sent someone to arrange accommodation for him.
The room is not big and is decorated in a simple and elegant style, which is completely different from the style of a nouveau riche.
The palace also specially arranged people to serve.
Shao Xun took a closer look and found that it was the female musician he had seen at the banquet. He was immediately overjoyed: Old bitch really knows what I mean!
Such a face makes me feel pity for her, and her temperament is no worse than Lan Ji's.
But why is there a slap mark on the face?
Shao Xun, who had been abstinent for more than a year, was too lazy to think too much. He simply blew out the candle and carried the beauty to the bed.
Today I will also investigate the quality of the maids used by the aristocratic families to entertain their guests.
Tang Jian was dressed neatly, ignoring the unfriendly looks of the palace servants, and he took a group of brothers to stand guard outside, meticulously.
Soon, a long and gentle "hmm" sound was heard from the woman's throat.
The night passed quickly.
When Shao Xun woke up in the morning, he found tears in the corners of the beauty's eyes and could not help but feel pity for her again.
After walking out of the room refreshed, he found Wang Dun coming back with a tired look on his face.
Shao Xun saluted him, and then, surrounded by his personal soldiers, went to wash and have a meal. After a while, he drove away with Wang Yan.
(End of this chapter)