Hu Zhiyun couldn't remember how long he hadn't slept.
He was so sleepy that he couldn't even open his eyelids and his head kept falling. But every time he tried to fall asleep, someone would come forward and try their best to prevent him from falling asleep.
"Brother Gou'er, don't be like this... tell me what you want. Our national power is far greater than yours, Zhao Song."
"I told you, I'm here just to watch you and not let you sleep."
The figure in front of him was very far away, and Hu Zhiyun just wanted to sleep.
He lowered his head and his hair was pulled up by Wang Gou'er again.
"What do you want from me? Tell me...what do you want me to confess to?"
The door of the house creaked open and someone walked in.
"You go down first."
"Yes, Marshal."
Hu Zhiyun raised his head and became more conscious. He looked at Li Xia blankly and saw that the other person was so energetic that he seemed to be glowing.
"Ha, Song Kou Li Xia, you finally dare to come to see me."
"It's not that I don't dare." Li Xia said, "I've been busy with administration these days."
"Governance? That's not necessary." Hu Zhiyun shook his head and said sarcastically: "When you die, the honest prime minister will govern Shaanxi and Sichuan provinces."
"Even if I die, Lian Xixian will never be able to take office in Guanzhong again."
"It's ridiculous. You have no foundation. You rely solely on conspiracy and tricks to take advantage of people's danger. As long as you die, everything will collapse."
"Maybe, but Kublai Khan can no longer let Lian Xixian go. Look at what Lian Xixian did. He took the decision to seize military power without authorization and appointed Wang Liangchen as commander. He also made the decision to withdraw from Guanzhong without authorization... If you were Kublai Khan
, do you dare to let such a minister continue to be in charge of the province that he has been running for six years?"
Hu Zhiyun was stunned for a moment, as if falling asleep.
Li Xia was about to pull his hair when she heard him murmur.
"Your Majesty's magnanimity and trust in the honest Prime Minister are beyond your imagination."
"Maybe." Li Xia said: "When he sent someone to contact the court to kill Brother Meng, I also thought he was broad-minded."
"What did you say?"
Li Xia said: "I also know Kublai Khan and the Jinlianchuan shogunate better than you think."
Hu Zhiyun was a little suspicious. Then he thought about it and said "Huh?" and asked: "You are rebelling against me. Who are you trying to frame?"
Li Xia smiled and didn't answer.
Hu Zhiyun sneered: "It's useless, no one cares how the late emperor died."
"Okay, no more chatting." Li Xia said casually, "Tell me, where is Lian Xixian?"
Hu Zhiyu narrowed his eyes, as if he was looking far away.
He was very surprised that Li Xia should have asked about the burned letter and Zhang's daughter, but he didn't seem to be in a hurry.
"It's useless if you don't say it." Li Xia said, "Yelu Youshang plans to recruit."
"Boqiang?" Hu Zhiyuan was stunned for a moment, and then said angrily: "You want to deceive me?"
"Yes, that person is indeed Yelu Youshang." Li Xia asked, "Do you think he can escape my pursuit?"
Hu Zhiyun felt that everything was different from what he expected.
He pursed his lips and looked at Li Xia without answering anything. Although his eyes were open, it was as if he was in a dream.
Until Li Xia took out a few broken letters.
"What do these letters mean?"
Hu Zhiyu became more energetic and wanted to deliberately change his expression, while at the same time blurting out the words he had prepared.
"This! Why isn't this burned down?!"
"Clumsy. If you left it to me on purpose, why do you need to act?" Li Xia said.
"It's just that Prime Minister Lian suspected that the Zhang family was watching the situation and colluding with you."
"Colluding with me?"
"Li Xia, stop pretending, you just want to ask where Mrs. Zhang is, don't you?"
"Okay, where?"
"I don't know. When Prime Minister Lian withdrew from Jingzhao Mansion, he ordered me to sort out the official letters. I only read them once and then burned them."
"Tell me the original content of the letter."
Hu Zhiyun couldn't think anymore, so he just said it as he was prepared.
"After you attacked Longxi, Shang Gong sent a letter to Bozhou to ask for help. The Zhang family sent troops to reinforce. The Zhang family sent more than a thousand troops to Tongguan. After that, Zhang Hongdao sent a message to Shang Gong to inquire about the whereabouts of Zhang's daughter. The rest, I
I don’t know anymore…”
Li Xia asked: "Lian Xixian expected that you would be captured by me and deliberately let me know this?"
Hu Zhiyun shook his head and said: "I don't know..."
Li Xia suddenly said: "I have received a message from Zhang Hongdao, and the eldest sister is still in Bozhou."
Hu Zhiyun was stunned for a moment, then raised his head, doubts flashed in his eyes.
"It's impossible...even if you collude with the Zhang family, it's impossible to do it so quickly."
Li Xia looked at him for a while and said, "Okay, I just lied to you. Where is she now?"
"I only...only occasionally heard a word from Prime Minister Lian and Duke Shang..."
"explain."
Hu Zhiyun asked: "I said it, will you believe it?"
"Believe it or not is my business, it's up to you."
"Before leaving Chang'an, I heard Prime Minister Lian and Duke Shang say, 'Whether she is released back to the Zhang family depends on whether Your Majesty trusts Zhang Rou, but Li Xia must not be allowed to see her.'"
"And after that?"
"Shang Gong said he would send someone to Lianping..."
"Lianping? Place name?"
"Maybe not completely." Hu Zhiyun said: "I walked to the public house and only listened to what they said up to this point."
Li Xia took a few steps forward and said, "Fake."
"Believe it or not, that's what I heard."
"She is not in Guanzhong at all." Li Xia said: "Lian Xixian only has that letter, and he wants to trick me into finding Lianping."
"Then don't look for it, there's no such thing as lunch boxes."
"If you don't look for it, you won't find it."
Hu Zhiyun glanced at Li Xia and remained silent.
However, some doubts arose in his heart. Li Xia seemed too sure. Why?
"I will let you leave Guanzhong, tell Lian Xixian, and say...there is no need to waste your efforts anymore, Guanzhong will be impregnable under my governance. If you don't believe it, just look at my political achievements."
After saying that, Li Xia turned around and left.
Hu Zhiyun felt even more confused. He lowered his head and felt sleepy.
I was still thinking about whether there were any flaws in my response, but my thoughts couldn't keep up with it at all, and I finally fell asleep standing there...
~~
Li Xia turned back to the lobby and saw soldiers coming to inform him.
"Commander, Mr. Yang said there is no need to rest and he wants to meet as soon as possible."
"Okay, please invite Mr. Yang to come..."
After Li Xia surrendered to Liu Heima, an urgent message was sent to Hanzhong to mobilize scholars to come to Chang'an.
He is a "literati" rather than a "civilian official". For the time being, he does not want Song court officials to take over the affairs of Guanzhong.
But in this case, there is a shortage of management talents, so we can only invite Wu Qian and Yang Guo to take charge of the overall situation, and then recruit talents in the north.
Today has finally arrived, and compared to Wu Qian, Li Xia really wanted to see Yang Guo first.
…
Yang Guo had obviously cried, his old eyes were red, and he walked slowly, looking up everywhere, as if he couldn't see enough.
"Commander..."
"Mr. Yang, please get up quickly. Don't be excited. Sit down."
"Commander." Yang Guo was supported by Li Xia and slowly sat down, "I remember back then... the words of the commander-in-chief were still fresh in my memory... When the country is strong, the people will not be insulted, and when the people are strong, the country will not be insulted."
"I remember. Back then, Duke Yang wrote a poem, 'A cup of chat is a gift for the expedition saddle, and the fallen leaves are all over Chang'an.' This autumn, we can see the fallen leaves in Chang'an again."
Yang Guo immediately burst into tears.
The old man pulled Li Xia's lapel like a child, wiped his tears and said: "I have been occupying Longxi and Guanzhong recently. I have too many things to talk about with the commander-in-chief, but the commander-in-chief is busy, and I am busy too..."
Li Xia's tone seemed to be coaxing him and said: "Yes, in recent years, either the situation has been critical or the opportunity has been rare, so I have been too hasty to have a good chat with Mr. Yang. When Kublai Khan became emperor, I I'm worried that Mr. Yang will feel regretful, but fortunately, he didn't have to wait too long, right?"
Yang Guo nodded repeatedly and said: "Soon... soon, when I think back to the situation in Kaifeng, it seems like it happened in the blink of an eye."
"Now that I think about it, it was not easy for Mr. Yang to make this decision."
Yang Guo was filled with emotion and murmured: "If one day I can see the commander-in-chief inherit the throne of heaven, I will live my life in vain."
After saying this, he let go of Li Xia's clothes.
"Yes. When the situation in Guanzhong is stabilized, it will not be as hasty as before. Then I will chat with Mr. Yang more."
"well……"
Yang Guo stroked the back of the chair and took a while to regain his composure.
The two then got down to business.
"I would like to ask Duke Yang to recruit some talents in Guanzhong to enrich the officials, instead of waiting for the Song court to send people."
Speaking of the Song Dynasty, Li Xia pondered: "The current situation is very delicate. If we don't report the recapture of Guanzhong, we will not benefit from the Song Dynasty. We have no soldiers, horses, money, food, or talents, but we only borrowed from the Song Dynasty." In the name of the court.”
"However, Song Ting's reputation may not be good in Guanzhong."
"The gentry and the common people do not know the strength of the Song Dynasty and are afraid of it, which is a benefit. But there is resistance, and the fear is not small. Fortunately, the prestige of the Liu family is keeping them in check."
Yang Guodao: "Commander, I'll forgive you. To tell the truth, remnants of the Jin Kingdom like me are probably more resistant to the Song Ting than fear. When the Song Ting allied with Mongolia to destroy the Jin, for the people in Guanzhong, this was the hatred of the country. Song Meng is the same as..."
People who have lived in the Kingdom of Jin for generations regard the Song Dynasty as their enemies... Li Xia can understand, but it is really difficult to embody it, so he listens silently.
Yang Guodao: "Hate is equal, but fear is not. The people in Guanzhong fear Mongolia far more than they fear the Song Dynasty, a hundred times more, especially after Duanping entered Luo. And Guanzhong has been under the Mongolian rule for twenty-five years. Generation! In recent years, Shang Mengqing, Lian Shanfu and others have been in charge, and this year Kublai Khan became emperor again..."
"I see."
Yang Guo shook his head and sighed: "The commander-in-chief said that this is the 'subtlety', right? If you don't ask Song Ting to mobilize troops and money, you will not benefit from Song Ting's good in Guanzhong, but will get Song Ting's bad."
"According to the thinking of the gentry and the common people, I am afraid that 'this Song army is here again and will be driven out like before.'"
"Yes, taking advantage of Liu Heima's power has great advantages but also disadvantages." Yang Guo said: "The Song Dynasty was too weak and had been weak for too long. From the perspective of those who don't know, it was Liu Heima's rebellion that led to what happened today. I'm afraid it was like Li Quan then."
"This is the people's will. It just depends on whether I can govern properly and restore the people's support." Li Xia said: "So I say that this is the most difficult time. Lian Xixian left a lot of details to stir up the situation."
"When I entered the city today, I heard someone say... that the commander-in-chief was assassinated?"
"It doesn't matter." Li Xia said: "But I told Yang Gong privately that if Lian Xixian fails to kill me and assassinates Liu Heima instead, even if it is just destruction for many years, now this 'subtlety' will become 'dangerous'. I still have to do it before entering Chang'an." I told Liu Yuanzhen, ‘Don’t be afraid of Lian Xixian’. I have recently seen his ability to use spies, and I have been disturbed again... I have gradually become worried.”
This is also one of the reasons why Li Xia has been avoiding Liu Yuanzhen recently. Liu Yuanzhen talks too much, which leads Li Xia to talk too much. If he talks too much, sometimes he will leave something that he cannot take back.
"How does the commander want to crack it?"
"We can only start comprehensively, including public security, people's livelihood, economy, urban defense, public opinion... we must not relax in everything."
"Understood, don't worry, Commander-in-Chief, I will definitely assist Commander-in-Chief in governing Guanzhong with all his strength."
Li Xia added: "When the time comes, when Duke Yang and Wu Qian work together, it is inevitable that..."
Yang Guo said: "The commander-in-chief has said this, and he will never have a quarrel with Mr. Wu."
"In addition, you should be more careful when going out on weekdays. I will send people to protect you at all times."
"Oh, that's fine."
"To stabilize the hearts and minds of the people in Guanzhong, the first step is to clear out the hundreds of thousands of hectares of land that were used as pasture by the Mongols. Liu Heima is still clearing it..."
For a long time, we talked about political affairs.
Li Xia knocked on the table and thought deeply, and asked: "I heard... Yang Gong and Shang Ting are on good terms?"
"Yes, when we were young, Shang Mengqing often traveled with me and Yuzhi."
Speaking of Yuan Haowen, Yang Guo felt a little sad and sighed: "Meng Qing is also good at writing lyrics and music, 'A little blue lamp can lead people thousands of miles away, who can send the brocade'?"
"Can you ask Mr. Yang to write a letter to Shang Ting?"
Li Xia recalled the conversation he had with Hu Zhiyu today and spoke slowly.
"First thank Shang Ting for helping us kill Brother Meng...then ask him, at that time we agreed to escort the eldest sister of the Zhang family to Hanzhong, where has she gone now? Finally, tell him that Lian Xixian discovered our contact
, it is appropriate to kill Lian Xixian and offer Tongguan."
~~
After talking to Yang Guo, Li Xia rubbed his forehead, picked up a pen and wrote the word "Lian Ping" on the paper, thinking endlessly.
Lian Xixian wanted to lure him to find this "Lianping". If he dared to go, there was nothing he dared not do, but he had to make all preparations.
In short, dealing with spies is much more difficult than being a spy, but the idea is very simple.
The first is defense. Guanzhong must be managed well in order to have a complete defense system. This is true. "Establishing" is of course difficult, but fighting for the world cannot avoid this step;
The second step is to deal with the situation and take advantage of it. For example, if you follow this clue, you may be able to find Zhang Wenjing and eliminate Lian Xixian's subtle work, or even backhandedly alienate Shang Ting.
So far, Lian Xixian has only made one move...
Li Xia just thought of this and saw Lin Zi coming in a hurry.
"Commander! Liu Yuanzhen was attacked! He was hit by two arrows in his back and was injured and fell into a coma..."
"With so many soldiers around him, why was he attacked?"
"This...he was attacked when he was in Pingkangfang..."