Chapter 584: Behind the scenes

The next morning, the Anxi Army officially released an open letter to the Southern Tang Emperor Li Heng in the name of a Tang Dynasty border army, requiring him to release Gao Xianzhi immediately and unconditionally. The signature of the open letter was Li Qing'an, the governor of Anxi.

Within a few days, the letter spread throughout Guanzhong, becoming the second shocking news after Gao Xianzhi was imprisoned. It caused a sensation in the court and the soldiers of the three armies of Anxi were even more excited. Although Gao Xianzhi was no longer the commander of Anxi, he had been in Anxi for many years and treated his soldiers well. Many veterans in the army still remembered their kindness. They all hoped that Li Qingan could get along well with Gao Xianzhi, rather than turn against each other and meet on the battlefield. Now Li Qingan publicly rescued Gao Xianzhi, which made the soldiers of the Anxi army very pleased. This was exactly what they wanted to see.

However, an open letter was not enough to rescue Gao Xianzhi. Li Qing'an immediately ordered Li Guangbi to send troops to Jianghuai again and march into Yangzhou. The order was ordered to go immediately. Li Guangbi ordered his general He Jinqing to lead 10,000 elite cavalry to attack Yangzhou. Wherever the cavalry of the Longyou Army arrived, Li Lin's army fled in the wind.

On October 15, the cavalry passed by Fuli and wiped out the 1,000 Southern Tang troops stationed in Fuli; on October 16, the cavalry rushed to Hongxian County, and the garrison commander of Hongxian County led 1,500 people to surrender; on October 18, the army crossed the Huai River from Sizhou. Liang Feng, the garrison commander of Linhuai, was Li Lin's favorite general and was quite brave. He led 4,000 troops to guard Xuyi. When he heard that the Longyou troops arrived, Liang Feng wanted to intercept the attack halfway, but was attacked from behind by 800 cavalry crossing the river from another route. Liang Feng's army was caught off guard and was defeated. Most of the 4,000 defenders were killed and injured, and Liang Feng himself died in the chaos.

On October 20, the 10,000 cavalry's edge had reached Tianchang Town, which was only a hundred miles away from Yangzhou. At this time, there was chaos in Yangzhou. The Wu King Li Lin, who had just moved back to Yangzhou, feared the brink of the Anxi cavalry, gave up Yangzhou again, led his army to escape the Yangtze River, deployed a 100,000 army on the front line of Runzhou, and the northern anti-Anxi army headed south.

On October 21, He Jinqing led 10,000 cavalry to occupy Yangzhou. This prosperous city, second only to Chang'an, was occupied by Li Qing'an for the first time.

But Li Qing'an's pressure did not end. In the Jingwang Mansion of Xiangyang, there were faint sounds of silk and bamboo surrounding the palace. In the Qingguang Pavilion on the Jade Pond, Li Mao, who had just woken up from a nap, was lying on the brocade couch, holding a cup of jasmine tea in his hand and slowly savoring tea. In front of him, his beloved concubine Xiao Lian was dancing gracefully, with smoke in his eyebrows and eyes, looking at the clear waves, dancing in a swaying manner, and lotus step by step. His slightly resentful eyes fell on the romantic and dashing Li Mao from time to time. In the past, Li Mao would blow his seven-treasure white jade flute and dance with her with the sound of the flute, but today Li Mao seemed a little restless.

Li Mao did have something to do today. He just saw the open letter from Li Qing'an to Li Heng. At the end of the open letter, there was a sentence calling for the whole world to fight against righteousness, prompting Li Heng to release Gao Xianzhi. Li Mao knew in his heart that Li Qing'an's words were aimed at himself. There were five forces in the world. Of course, Li Qing'an would not appeal to An Lushan, but could only hope that he would put pressure on Li Heng with him.

A few months ago, Li Mao exchanged 300,000 s of grain for Li Qing'an's troops to suppress the Jianghuai River and Huai River, and eventually forced Li Lin to withdraw his troops and dismantled Li Heng's attempt to invade Jingzhou. Li Mao also understood in his heart that Li Qing'an did not care about the 300,000 s of grain. He actually didn't want to see Li Heng become a big shot, so he agreed to send troops to help him.

Now Li Qing'an also called on him to take action to put pressure. Of course, Li Mao also knew that he was not qualified to bargain with Li Qing'an. This was Li Qing'an giving him a chance to show off. If he was willing to help this time, then Li Qing'an would help him again when Li Heng invaded Jingxiang next time.

Li Mao knew very well that this was actually his opportunity. The key was how he should take advantage of this opportunity and how he cooperated with Li Qing'an to put pressure on him.

Just as Li Mao was thinking repeatedly, a report from the guard came from outside Qingguang Pavilion, "Your Highness, Ge Shuhan's emergency information."

Li Mao was excited and immediately sat up and said, "Come in!"

He waved his hand to his beloved concubine and signaled her to go down. The beloved concubine Xiao Lian also saw that there was something wrong in the prince's mind. She did not dare to act coquettishly, so she quietly retreated. A group of Leji stopped Sizhu and retreated. After a moment, a report soldier was brought in by the guards. He knelt down on one knee and bowed, took out a letter and raised it high above his head, "Your Highness, this is General Geshu's emergency military information, please take a look!"

The guard took the letter and handed it to Li Mao. Li Mao opened the letter impatiently and hurriedly read it. He suddenly laughed and said, "It's really good, it's just my wish."

As Ge Shuhan said in the letter, Li Qing'an's elite cavalry had already gone south to the Yangtze River. Li Lin was forced to the south of the Yangtze River, and his troops were all shrinking on the front line along the river. The three states in the west of Li Lin were empty, and they just took the opportunity to occupy these three states. At the same time, they could also sell Li Qing'an to save face. This is a killing kill for two birds with one stone. Please seize this opportunity.

This messenger made the mystery in Li Mao's heart suddenly clear. He knew what he should do, so he immediately ordered: "Transfer my order and ordered Brother Shuhan to lead 30,000 troops into Shouzhou and send troops to Luzhou and Shuzhou!"

After giving this order, he spread out the paper and pen, and he also wanted to write an open letter to echo Li Qing'an. He had to let Li Qing'an understand that he was repaying his original aid.

On October 25, King Jing Li Mao also issued an open letter calling on Li Heng to release Gao Xianzhi. He responded to Li Qing'an's sending troops and ordered Brother Shu Han to lead 30,000 troops to Luzhou and Shuzhou to suppress Jiangnan. King Wu Li Lin was attacked from both sides. In desperation, within one day, he sent twelve urgent letters of help, urging Li Heng to release Gao Xianzhi and alleviate the crisis in Jiangnan.

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Chengdu is shrouded in night, with bright lights and bustling on the streets, and people are wandering around and having sex everywhere. In the past two years, Shuzhong has achieved good harvests, making it sufficient food and relatively cheap. Although the people don’t have much money in their pockets, they can still have some surplus in their families. In addition, a large number of royal families moved south, and they cannot change their spending habits of spending a lot of money, which has led to the prosperity of Chengdu’s business, with the ups and downs. In just two years, hundreds of new taverns and brothels emerged in Chengdu, and the nights in Chengdu became even more lively than during the day.

In the Zhuangyuanfang west of Chengdu, there is a large mansion covering an area of ​​40 acres. This is the house of Linghu Fei, the Minister of War of the Southern Tang Dynasty. There are several servants standing at the door, and two death lanterns as big as millstones are hung under the door, and the lights illuminate the door.

At this time, a horseman rushed over and dismounted, led the horse to Linghu Fei's mansion, and immediately a servant shouted: "This is a private important place, so you are not allowed to get close!"

The man riding a horse took out a letter and handed it to a servant and said, "I came from Chang'an. This letter was important to your master. It is related to your master's head. You must forward it immediately!"

The servant was stunned, "You are..."

"Don't ask too much, go and send a message!"

He turned over and urged the horse to leave, and soon disappeared into the darkness. The servants watched him go away. They did not dare to neglect and immediately ran back to the house to deliver the letter.

Soon, the side door of Linghu's house opened wide, and a carriage rushed out of the mansion, and as they got on the street, they drove quickly. Dozens of guards riding horses and knives were escorting around the carriage. The carriage was very dim and there was no light on it. It was just that the light from a family on the side of the road was reflected into the carriage, revealing Linghu Fei's thin donkey face.

Linghu Fei is only forty-five years old this year. He was a poor scholar more than ten years ago. He passed the Mingjing subject, but was wiped out by the Ministry of Personnel because of his ugly appearance and poor family. He had no choice but to go to a private school to teach children in exchange for a little bit of life. Finally, because his master was a friend of Xian Yu Zhongtong, a rich man from Shu, he was recommended to Xian Yu Zhongtong as a clerk. Two years later, because he was good at strategy, he was recommended to Yang Guozhong, who was demoted to the county magistrate because of the Yang Shenjin case, and became his aide.

Under Linghu Fei's planning, Yang Guozhong was promoted step by step and finally became the right prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, taking charge of the world. Linghu Fei himself was promoted to the Minister of War.

But in the end, Linghu Fei abandoned Yang Guozhong and climbed Li Heng, a sturdier tree. Now he is the Minister of War of the Southern Tang Dynasty and has become one of Li Heng's most trusted confidants.

Linghu Fei does have some skills and is good at planning, but his character is not favored by others. Many people behind his back criticized him for his profits. This is true. At that time, Yang Guozhong was as kind as a mountain to him, but for his own future, he abandoned Yang Guozhong without hesitation when Yang Guozhong was in the most unlucky way, saying that he was called "Birds choose good trees to live in."

Linghu Fei is actually a pragmatist. All decisions he made were pragmatic, and his vision was superior. When Yang Guifei was deposed, he knew that the prosperity of the Yang family had ended. Although Yang Guozhong had not yet fallen, it was because Li Longji had not found a suitable replacement. Sure enough, after the Li Wan case, Li Longji raised his butcher knife without hesitation and killed the Yang family's children. Even Yang Guozhong's later aide Liu Sheng was killed. If Linghu Fei was still by Yang Guozhong's side, he would not be able to escape death.

When he surrendered to Li Heng, Li Heng had just become the governor of the Northern Tang Dynasty. Linghu Fei realized that Li Heng would have a future development. Sure enough, Li Heng finally ascended the throne in the Southern Tang Dynasty and eventually became an emperor. Linghu Fei also rose to the forefront and became the third person in the Southern Tang Dynasty, second only to Wang Gong and Cui Yuan.

Inside the carriage, Linghu Fei sighed, and took out the letter he had just obtained. There was no word inside and outside, but a bright red seal was stamped on the blank letter paper: the seal of King Zhao.

Although there is no word, Linghu Fei knows it well. In fact, not only Linghu Fei will understand, but old politicians who have been in the officialdom for many years will understand that this letter without word is like a wink of Li Qing'an. How to guess the thoughts of high-ranking people is the code of the officialdom.

To understand what the superiors think, the key is to know what the superiors are paying attention to recently? What is his attitude towards this matter? From which angle will he solve this matter?

If you understand these three premises thoroughly, it is not difficult to guess the thoughts of high-ranking people. For example, Gao Shiqi, the favorite minister of Kangxi, prepared a bag of golden melon seeds all year round. Every time he went to court, the young eunuchs flocked to tell him what books the emperor was reading recently? Why is it troublesome? Gao Shiqi rewarded the eunuch with golden melon seeds, and then he went back to study it carefully. When Kangxi summoned him to countermeasures, he could answer them in a sequel to solve Kangxi's confusion. After a long time, it would be difficult for him to not be favored.

The same is true for Linghu Fei at this time. Although Li Qing'an did not write a word, Linghu Fei knew it clearly that Li Qing'an was looking for him for Gao Xianzhi's affairs. Of course, it was not begging him, but giving him a chance. Whether Linghu Fei would like to seize this opportunity depends on himself.

Li Qing'an's letter hit Linghu Fei's vitality. He saw through Linghu Fei's pragmatic nature, but his approach was very clever. If Li Qing'an really wrote a real letter and asked Linghu Fei to cooperate with him to save Gao Xianzhi, Linghu Fei might not be willing, because there will be a second time when there is a first time. Yang Guozhong's bloody lesson will be there!

Therefore, the letter without words is the most obscure. Linghu Fei can do it or not. Even if he does it, Li Qingan cannot threaten him with this matter. Both parties know it well. This is actually a one-time transaction. The seller is Li Qingan. The price he received is Gao Xianzhi's release, and the buyer is Linghu Fei. One day when he buys, Li Qingan will spare his life, and the reason why Linghu Fei must buy it is: this day will come sooner or later.

The carriage stopped in front of Nanming Palace, and Linghu Fei took out a gold medal and waved it. This was a gold medal that could enter the palace at any time. The Yulin Army did not dare to stop him and let Linghu Fei enter.

Although it was already dark, Li Heng was still in the imperial study room. He was worried and paced back and forth in the imperial study room with his hands behind his back. On the imperial desk, there were neatly placed twelve golden pigeons. These were the twelve letters for help sent by Li Lin. These twelve golden message tubes were like twelve heavy iron rods, pressing against Li Heng's heart, making him breathless.

Especially Li Qing'an's army easily occupied Yangzhou, which made him both angry and worried. Yangzhou is the second largest commercial prosperity in the world and one of Li Heng's important sources of wealth. Three months ago, Li Lin brought two million jin of coins and one million shi of grain from Yangzhou, which greatly alleviated the financial difficulties of the Southern Tang Dynasty. Moreover, Li Lin promised that this would be the case every year, but Yangzhou was lost less than three months after the speech was finished. It would be fine if Yangzhou was lost in a bloody battle. Li Lin actually led 50,000 troops to escape the Yangtze River, and there were only 10,000 people on the other side, which made Li Heng very angry. This was really a shame and humiliation.

Li Heng also knew that Li Qing'an's purpose of attacking Jianghuai was to force him to release Gao Xianzhi, but if Gao Xianzhi was really released and he could not come out of Taiwan, how could he explain to the world? When he captured Gao Xianzhi, he spoke concisely and wanted to deal with Gao Xianzhi strictly. But now in a blink of an eye, he was afraid of Li Qing'an's pressure and let go of Gao Xianzhi. He was the dignified Emperor. When the matter was spread, where would his face be put?

But this time, Li Qingan seemed to be really attacking Jianghuai and Li Mao's joint attack. If he did not compromise, half of the southeastern country would be lost.

‘What to do?’ Li Heng was so anxious that he paced back and forth like an ant on a hot pan.

At this time, the guards' report came from outside: "Your Majesty, Secretary Linghu is urgently requesting him!"

"Ah! Let him in quickly."

Li Heng was overjoyed. He was like a drowning person suddenly grabbed a life-saving straw.

After a moment, Linghu Fei hurried into the imperial study room, bowed and said, "I, Linghu Fei, please see Your Majesty!"

"Linghu Aiqing, don't be polite, come! Come! Come! Please sit down quickly.

Li Heng pulled him down. At this time, Linghu Fei glanced at him and saw the twelve golden message tubes on the imperial desk. He couldn't help but be secretly surprised. Is the situation in the southeast so serious?

Li Heng noticed Linghu Fei's gaze pointing, and he sighed and said, "Now it is not only Li Qing'an's army that threatens the southeast, but even Li Mao's bastard has taken advantage of the situation and occupied Shou, Lu, and Shu. The King of Wu was attacked from both sides and asked me for help. Yiling was guarded by Gao Xianzhi's subordinates. My army could not advance eastward. The situation is now critical!"

"Your Majesty, does Your Majesty understand Li Qing'an's intention?"

"I know that he just wants me to release Gao Xianzhi, Humph! Is it so easy for me to be coerced by force Southeast?"

Li Heng's voice was very high and he waved his arms angrily. Linghu Fei sighed in his heart, "This harsh and bold king!" He actually said something so bad. How could he persuade him?

"Your Majesty, in fact, Li Qing'an has to concentrate on dealing with An Lushan. He is not really trying to take the Jiangnan. The key is King Jing Li Mao. He is an ambitious person. It is obvious that he wants to take the opportunity to annex the King of Wu. This is our biggest threat now. Your Majesty, concessions to Li Qing'an are not to show weakness, but a strategy. As long as Gao Xianzhi is released, this crisis can be temporarily resolved. I believe that Li Qing'an does not want to break the current balance. He will definitely not allow Li Mao to annex Jiangnan. Your Majesty, as long as Li Qing'an does not interfere with the situation in Jiangnan, we can eat Li Mao in one fell swoop and connect Jiangnan, Jingxiang, and Bashu together. Our strength will be greatly strengthened. We may not be able to compete with Li Qing'an in the future. Your Majesty, let Gao Xianzhi go! We will win time and opportunity."

In fact, Li Heng wanted to release Gao Xianzhi, but he couldn't save face. This was the key to the problem. He sat down and sighed: "I'm very worried that if I let him go, what will others think of me!"

So that's the case. Linghu Fei's eyes turned, and it's no longer difficult to persuade Li Heng to release Gao Xianzhi. The key is to let Li Qingan know that he has put in the middle, so he must use his Linghu Fei's style to release Gao Xianzhi.

"Your Majesty, I will take a secret plan to overcome Chen Cang."

"Tell me quickly! What's the secret way to conquer Chen Cang?"

Linghu Fei smiled slightly and said, "You might as well sentence Gao Xianzhi to exile."

"Exile?" Li Heng didn't understand, "What do you mean by exile?"

"Your Majesty, exile is just an excuse. Your Majesty might as well let the Grand Third Department sentence Gao Xianzhi to exile Wenzhou as the army. Then Your Majesty secretly sent someone to send Gao Xianzhi to Hanzhong, and then dismissed the position of Zhang Baoling, the prefect of Wenzhou, saying that he was not strict in control and was escaped by Gao Xianzhi, and asked him to take the blame. Then a few months later, Gao Xianzhi was forgotten and sent his family away quietly, and the matter was successfully resolved."

"good!"

Li Heng raised his thumb and smiled: "I am worthy of being my military advisor. As expected, I will adopt your suggestions."

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Two days later, the Grand Third Department concluded the review. Gao Xianzhi's other two thousand acres of land were privately donated by the Northern Tang Dynasty. Although it was not forcibly occupying the land, the evidence for the crime of colluding with the enemy was conclusive. Considering that he had made contributions to the country, he was exempted from death, deprived of all official titles, and was granted the military of Wenzhou. However, not long after, news of Gao Xianzhi's escape from Wenzhou to Chang'an was heard. Li Heng was furious and removed the position of Wenzhou Prefect Zhang Baoling for the crime of lax supervision. He also ordered the investigation of the matter strictly and must give an explanation to the people.
Chapter completed!