"I wonder if the Marquis still remembers someone?" Haotian was deep in thought when a powerful voice suddenly sounded in his ears, and then a burly man suddenly came into Haotian's eyes.
"General Xiang? It turns out to be you! How dare Hao forget the general?" Haotian looked up and saw that it was Xiang Xing, the deputy commander of the Empire's former Eastern Army, whom he had a friendship with when he regained Dingzhou. But since Tianji
After Gu Yi said goodbye, the two of them had not seen each other again. After Haotian came to Tiandu Shengjing this time, due to many affairs, he did not have time to inquire about Xiang Xing's whereabouts. Unexpectedly, he met here today.
Xiang Xing laughed: "The Marquis has now become the leader of the party. Xiang is afraid that the Marquis will forget me as a friend."
Haotian laughed quickly and said: "What are you saying, General? In front of the General, Hao is still the ignorant Qingyun Qianqi from before. General, please don't call me Hou Ye. Please call me Haotian as before."
.”
Xiang Xing is an extremely forthright person, and he doesn't care much about these red tapes. He no longer shirks: "General Hao, I heard that you came to Tiandu Shengjing, and I have always wanted to come to you. But recently, I have been too.
It was extremely busy and it was inconvenient to leave without permission. I just didn’t expect that the commander-in-chief was assassinated, and we met because of it.”
Seeing the lively conversation between the two, Li Xiaomo didn't interrupt. He knew that Xiang Xing had never had a good impression of the three aristocratic families, so he didn't come forward to talk. Instead, he saluted the two and left straight away. Today he
The purpose has been basically achieved, so there is no need to waste time here.
Seeing Li Xiaomo leave carelessly, Xiang Xing's eyes narrowed slightly: "General, are you familiar with him?"
Haotian shook his head: "There is no friendship. I just heard that Lord Shangshu was assassinated, and someone was about to come over to visit him. Unexpectedly, Prince Li came to visit and invited him to visit Lord Shangshu."
Xiang Xing nodded: "That's it. The general must be more careful with this person. The three major families have gone through three hundred years of hardships, and their power has reached its peak in these years. However, their next generation heirs and the current three
Compared with the feudal vassals, they have declined a lot. Only Li Xiaomo not only inherited Li Tieming's scheming, but also outdid others. If the three major families will still exist in twenty years, it will definitely be Li Xiaomo's world.
.”
"Oh?" Haotian was slightly surprised. He knew that Li Xiaomo was definitely not a thing in the pool, but he didn't expect that Xiang Xing had such a high opinion of him. But these have nothing to do with him now, so he
He just smiled slightly and then said: "Hao has not heard from the general since he came to Beijing. I don't know what the general has been busy with recently."
Xiang Xing sighed and then said: "We are not busy with the reorganization of the Eastern Army. That day, the Northern Expeditionary Army was defeated. The three major field armies of the empire were completely wiped out. Nearly 100,000 people were killed on the spot and more than 200,000 were captured. Haha.
, but fortunately, most of the captured brothers have gathered under your command, the general. Due to the emptiness of the troops, His Majesty has ordered Xiang to reorganize the Eastern Army, and Zhu Bingyang to reorganize the Northern Army. But now the treasury is empty and there is a serious shortage of soldiers.
There are not enough veterans at all, so the reconstruction of the Eastern Army is extremely difficult. Although a few months have passed, I have just put up a shelf, but the combat effectiveness cannot be guaranteed at all."
Haotian asked strangely: "General, I can understand you saying that the treasury is empty, but why do you say that there are not enough soldiers? I think my Qingfeng spans thousands of miles and supports hundreds of millions of people, even if I lose the Northwest Second Road and Youyun Shi
There are more than 40 million people in the six states, and there are still nearly 100 million people south of the river. Why does the general still say there are not enough troops?"
Xiang Xing smiled bitterly: "Although the general has lived in the imperial army for a long time, he doesn't seem to know the empire's military system very well. It's not surprising to have this question. The empire originally had four border defense corps in the southeast, northwest, and Qinglong#
## The four major field legions of the Xuanwu Suzaku, the two Tiandu Shengjing left-behind legions of the Dragon Cavalry Guards, and the Navy Jiaolong Legion have a total strength of 1.2 million, as well as about 800,000 local garrisons stationed in important areas.
Since the regular legions of the empire are stationed in different areas, their troop locations are generally relatively stable. The people in the north are strong and skilled in bows and horses, so the Sixteenth Prefecture of Youyun has always been a fixed troop location for the Northern Legion and the Xuanwu Legion.
Anxi Road and Hexi Road and Hetao Road are where the soldiers of the Western Army are located. The soldiers of the Eastern Army and the Qinglong Army are located on Yuzhou Road and the adjacent Yangzhou Road. South of the Dajiang River, due to the dense network of hills and rivers, Jiangnan Road and Dahu Road are the main
It is the place where the soldiers of the Southern Legion and the Suzaku Legion are located. The soldiers of the Dragon Cavalry Legion are mainly from the Blood Clan on the Blood Plateau and the sons of the powerful in the Imperial Capital. The soldiers of the Imperial Guard Legion are mainly from the Imperial Capital and the adjacent Yuzhou Road area. Now Youyun
The Sixteen Prefectures fell, and the northern part of Yangzhou Road was occupied by the Ji Le rebels. Now the Northern Army is also rebuilding on Yuzhou Road, so our troops are almost exhausted."
Haotian also frowned. He had never expected that there would be so many troubles in recruiting soldiers. When he was in the six states of Hetao, due to the ravages of aliens outside the Great Wall, the people actively joined the army, and the Northern Expeditionary Army
The soldiers who volunteered to stay, although there were only six million people in Hetao, Haotian had never worried about the more than 200,000 soldiers under his command. After a pause, he said doubtfully: "Then why didn't the general leave?
Are there recruiting troops on the prefectural roads? Someone remembers that Jiangnan Road has a population of more than 10 million. Why doesn’t the general choose to recruit troops from these places?”
Xiang Xing shook his head: "General, you don't know something. The physique of the southerners is relatively weak compared to the northerners, and Jiangnan is rich. It is difficult to get these people to join the army. As for other places in Qingfeng, like Qinchuan San
The road is the home of three major families that have been around for hundreds of years. To put it too much, the people here probably know that there are aristocratic families but don’t know that there is a court. Who can guarantee that the soldiers recruited from here will not have different aspirations?
?The imperial court has already had a precedent of the defeat of the Northern Expeditionary Army, and it absolutely does not want it to happen again."
Haotian just smiled bitterly. There were separatist families in Qingfeng, and there were powerful enemies waiting outside. It was indeed on the verge of a storm. Although there were good ministers such as National Master Pang Ye and Grand Master Sima Danggui in the court, and they had Tie Zhen and Xiang Xing.
Ouyang Jingzhong and other generals, but the empire has been weak for hundreds of years, how can it be restored in a short period of time?
Xiang Xing paused and then said: "Although these are also difficulties, as long as we can persevere, the empire is not without hope. It's just that now that the country is in crisis, there are still villains in the court who are obstructing it. That old man An Yongchang
A common man actually made things difficult in every possible way during the reconstruction of the Eastern Army, but he tried his best to provide convenience to the Northern Army that he controlled. For my Eastern Army, he not only deducted military pay and supplies, but also robbed our emperor.
The slanderous report was made, saying that all the senior generals of the Northern Expeditionary Army died in the battle, and I was the only one who returned safely. There must be some inside story. The target was not only pointed at someone, but even the national division wanted to frame him as well. Fortunately, I
Huang Shengming was not deceived by his slander."
"An Yongchang? That's An Yongchang, the Minister of Household Affairs?" Haotian asked curiously.
"Yes, it's this old man." Xiang Xing nodded heavily and said angrily: "I'm afraid you haven't seen this old man. This old thief is cunning and has ulterior motives. He is actually a serious problem within Qingfeng. The late emperor is still alive.
At that time, this man repeatedly tempted the late emperor to carry out large-scale construction projects around the world, which depleted the national treasury. He also withheld military pay and misappropriated military supplies. Once, the soldiers on the northern Great Wall defense line did not receive normal military pay for more than a year. He was also extremely hostile.
Under his single-handed operation, the Navy's Jiaolong Legion dropped from 200,000 naval troops twenty years ago to one hundred thousand now. If this were not the case, how could the Japanese be allowed to run rampant on the East China Sea? The Imperial Guard
Everyone hates him, but the late emperor has special trust in him, so there is nothing he can do to him."
Haotian asked strangely: "But hasn't my emperor ascended the throne? Why haven't you touched him yet?"
Xiang Xing sighed helplessly: "Although this old man is despicable, he does have some abilities. He has been in charge of the Ministry of Household Affairs for more than 20 years, and the Ministry of Household Affairs has long become his own territory. Although His Majesty has repeatedly arranged for
He had many manpower, but as soon as he arrived at the Ministry of Revenue, he was immediately dismissed. Moreover, he was very close to the auxiliary king, and he also secretly flirted with the three major aristocratic families. General, you don’t know, when the two kings competed for the throne, An Yongchang stood firmly on the side.
After all, His Majesty is the eldest son of the Emperor, and he has the support of the three commanders, so he successfully ascended the throne. Now is the time of internal and external troubles, even the Emperor must rely on his ability. But
Thousands of people on the Yangzhou Road suffered. Under the continuous advance of the Japanese Japanese, the three coastal areas were basically in ruins. At least four million people died tragically under the butcher knives of the Japanese. The tragedy was so great
The real situation can only be understood by those who have been there personally.”
Haotian was suddenly shocked: "The harm caused by the Japanese is so great? Who hasn't heard of it before?"
Xiang Xing gave a long sigh: "This is because the imperial court deliberately blocked the news. Our Qingfeng is now in a state of turmoil. If this news is allowed to spread everywhere, the country will definitely be panicked and the people will be even more panicked. These Japanese people
Not only are they cunning and cunning, but they are also greedy. It can be said that they commit all kinds of cruelty and killing, and their level of beasts is even worse than that of the Three Northeastern Kingdoms. However, the fighting power of the Japanese is indeed extraordinary, and their navy is also extremely powerful. Although the Japanese are all over the country,
With a population of only six million, we have an army of 300,000 and a navy of 200,000. When our Qingfeng navy was at its peak, we could overwhelm them, but now, our navy has been concentrated on the Dahe defense line and Xijiang River.
The defense line and the thousands of miles of coast in the East China Sea and South China Sea are almost undefendable, so they are even more rampant. Their Japanese pirate group composed of wandering warriors often come to my Qingfeng coast to rob. Until now, Zhoushan Island above the East China Sea
, Ryukyu Island, and Qiongya Island above the South China Sea, have now become the territory of the Eastern Japanese."
Haotian was silent for a moment, and then said: "Is there really nothing our navy can do?"
Xiang Xing shook his head bitterly: "Our navy is now at a disadvantage in terms of overall strength. Although Commander He Huairen is the empire's leading water general, Dongwa's Kato Taka is also troublesome for the weak. I, Qingfeng's He Huairen, Dongbo's
Japan's Kato Takashi and Goryeo's Fu Jianglou are the three famous generals who keep pace with each other on the East China Sea. If we can cooperate with Goryeo, there is still a chance to regain the situation, but Goryeo, well, let's not talk about it."
Haotian also sighed. He had no idea that the harm caused by the Japanese was so serious, and that Qingfeng's ills were so serious. If it is true as Xiang Xing said, then the harm done by the Japanese to the empire far exceeded that of the Three Northeastern Kingdoms.
.And Xiang Xing also felt that the atmosphere was a bit dull, so he changed the subject and said, "I wonder what the general's future plans are?"