On New Year's Eve, the Prime Minister's Mansion was also decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, making it a joyous occasion.
But inside the Prime Minister's study, there was a solemn atmosphere.
Several of the Prime Minister's close ministers, including Dou Fan, the Minister of War, were in the study.
"The transfer order from the Ministry of War has been sent to General Tang." Dou Fan looked solemn, pointing his finger at a map on the drawing board, and said respectfully: "According to the plan, the Wu-Gui army blocked the imperial city in four ways and trapped them separately.
Chongxuanmen in the north of the imperial city, Anfumen in the west, Yanximen in the east and Danfengmen in the south. Among them, Danfengmen has the largest number of defenders, so the main force is deployed outside Danfengmen. If everything goes well, at dawn
Before, the Wu-Gui Army could reach the designated location."
A potbellied man next to him said: "If Tantai Xuanye really colludes with the rebels, we can only attack the imperial city by force, first deal with the Dragon Scale Imperial Guard, and then go straight to the imperial palace."
"The troops of the Wu-Gui Army cannot launch an attack and can only besieged." Dou Fan said sternly: "So the Shence Army must enter the city before dawn and provide support to the imperial city. There are two troops, the Shence Army and the Wu-Gui Army.
If the horses are put together and the soldiers are numerous, it will not be difficult to capture the imperial city."
Xiahou Yuanzhen sighed: "Our goal is not to rush into the palace, but to force the rebels in the palace to hand over the saint. As long as the saint is safe and sound, we will try our best not to bleed."
Dou Fan nodded and said: "The prime minister is merciful, I understand." After a pause, he said softly: "But the most troublesome question now is whether the Shence Army can really arrive on time. If the Shence Army does not move, the military will
-The Guards had no choice but to fire their arrows when they were on the strings, and then...!"
"I know your worries." Xiahou Yuanzhen was confident and said with a smile: "I can guarantee that the Shence Army will definitely enter the city before dawn."
An official was still a little worried and said: "Prime Minister, Zuo Xuanji is a eunuch. These eunuchs are different from us. They regard the palace as their home. Let him lead troops to attack the palace, he... he
Are you really willing to obey?"
Xiahou Yuanzhen shook his head and said: "Not only can Zuo Xuanji not lead troops to attack the palace, he can't even lead troops into the city."
As soon as these words came out, several officials present changed their colors.
"Although something must have happened in the palace, Zuo Xuanji didn't have the guts to take action before he determined who was causing trouble in the palace." Xiahou Yuanzhen's eyes were deep and he said calmly: "His mood is the same as ours, very contradictory. Like him.
The generals who were born in the palace have their roots in the palace, right next to the saint, so these people are absolutely unwilling to see the saint suffer." He sneered and said: "If something happens to the saint, the fate of those eunuchs will not be good either.
Where to go."
"What the prime minister said is absolutely true."
Xiahou Yuanzhen said again: "But he dare not lead troops into the city before confirming the truth." He raised his hand and stroked his beard and said: "If the saint is safe and sound, and he leads troops into the city without getting the saint's will, that is treason.
He cannot bear such a huge responsibility."
"Master Xiang, if that's the case, then Zuo Xuanji...?"
"He is a smart man!" Xiahou Yuanzhen said with a smile: "Smart people naturally have smart ways. I have sent someone to go and act with him in a play. I believe he should know how to do it."
The smart man Zuo Xuanji was looking at Wen Xitai with a smile, waiting for Wen Xitai's reply.
Wen Xitai didn't talk nonsense. He took out the Golden Sword Token from his arms and raised it high. Everyone present, including Zuo Xuanji, changed their eyes when they saw the Golden Sword Token. Without any hesitation, they all stood up and faced each other.
Wen Xitai knelt down on one knee and said in unison: "Long live my emperor!"
The golden sword token represents His Majesty the Emperor, and the token is like the Emperor.
"General Zuo, there are thieves in the palace. By order of the prime minister, General Zuo please immediately send troops to the city to protect the king!" Wen Xitai said in a deep voice.
As soon as these words came out, the colors of all the generals present changed.
The Shence Army enters the city?
This is something extraordinary.
The Shence Army is stationed at the foot of Guyun Mountain on the outskirts of Kyoto. The most important task is to defend Kyoto in case local rebels invade the capital. However, since the establishment of the Shence Army, Kyoto in the Tang Dynasty has been as stable as Mount Tai. There has never been an enemy to kill Kyoto.
Under the city, the Shence Army almost never actually participated in any battle to defend the capital.
In order to prevent the Shence Army from losing its martial arts skills, the imperial court would also mobilize the Shence Army from time to time to leave Beijing to put down rebellions in order to hone the Shence Army's combat effectiveness.
But the Shence Army was barely a step ahead of him at the gate of the capital.
At this time, Wen Xitai held the golden sword token and actually sent an order for Zuo Xuanji to lead the troops into the city. Many generals looked shocked.
Zuo Xuanji raised his head and frowned: "General Wen, where is the imperial edict?"
Wen Xitai turned his head and winked. An attendant behind him took two official letters and sent them over. Zuo Xuanji knelt on the ground and read the two official letters one after another before shaking his head and saying: "General Wen, this is not an imperial edict."
, you got it wrong."
"There are two official letters, one is a transfer order from the Ministry of War, and the other is a warrant from the Prime Minister, what can be wrong?" Wen Xitai looked sternly and said in a deep voice: "Without further delay, can General Zuo quickly mobilize the troops?
"
Zuo Xuanji shook his head and sighed: "Commander Wen, it seems you don't know that mobilizing the Shence Army requires not only the order of the Ministry of War, but also the will of the saint. I made it more clear. Do you have the troops in your hands?"
Tiger Talisman?”
"No!"
Zuo Xuanji smiled and said: "Without the tiger talisman, please forgive me for not being able to obey orders." He actually handed the two official letters in his hand back to the attendant.
Wen Xitai frowned and said: "General Zuo, there is a golden sword token here, do you want to resist the order?"
"The Golden Sword Token is indeed extremely majestic. If you hold the Golden Sword Token to the local states, you not only have the right to mobilize troops, but you can also appoint and remove local officials." Zuo Xuanji said seriously: "But the Golden Sword Token alone cannot mobilize the Shence Army.
, must have a tiger talisman. The duty of the Shence Army is to protect Kyoto, which is unusual. Now Commander Wen wants to send troops into the city with only the golden sword token, which is naturally impossible. If Commander Wen wants this general to lead his troops to the capital to protect him,
, you must take out the Tiger Talisman, otherwise I will not be able to obey your orders."
Wen Xitai said coldly: "General Zuo, don't you mean to disobey your orders? If the saint can issue the decree, you will not need to enter the city to escort him. It is precisely because the saint is in trouble that we have to protect him from King Qin, so we are here to protect him. The Golden Sword Token is used to mobilize troops."
Zuo Xuanji still shook his head, obviously refusing to accept the order.
When Wen Xitai saw this, he sneered and asked fiercely: "Are there any loyal ministers?"
"The last general will be loyal!" With a low roar, a figure flashed beside Zuo Xuanji. When everyone came to their senses, the man was already standing behind Zuo Xuanji, holding a big knife and holding it on Zuo Xuanji's neck from behind. This change was so sudden that all the generals were startled at first, and then they all stood up like a conditioned reflex, and pulled out the sabers from their waists. There was a staggering sound, and most of the generals pointed their swords at the man. Everyone looked at it. Arriving, the one who suddenly took action was Zhuang Zhaoyang, one of the three lieutenants of the Shence Army.
The deputy general is second only to the general in the Shence Army, and they all hold military power.
Zhuang Zhaoyang was born into a family of soldiers. Three generations of his family were in the military. His father was also a Zhonglang general in the Shence Army. During the rebellion in the three states and seven counties, he followed the army to put down the rebellion and died in battle. Zhuang Zhaoyang inherited his father's legacy and was transferred to Shence Army, after many years, step by step, has also reached the position of deputy general.
Although he is one step away from the general of the Shence Army, he cannot take this step again. The reason is very simple. The position of the general of the Shence Army can only be filled by people sent from the palace.
Zhuang Zhaoyang has always been taciturn, but he is proficient in horseback riding and archery, and has a great reputation in the army. After all, he has served the country in the army for three generations, and his prestige is also very high in the hearts of the Shence Army officers.
At this time, they saw Zhuang Zhaoyang holding a knife on Zuo Xuanji's neck. The generals all changed their colors. Soon, the generals saw that not everyone's blades were pointed at Zhuang Zhaoyang. There were actually five or six generals who moved quickly and held their swords. Hold it in your hand and protect it by Zhuang Zhaoyang's side.
"Vice General Zhuang, do you want to rebel?" Zuo Xuanji sighed: "Do you know what you are doing?"
"The general has no intention of rebellion." Zhuang Zhaoyang said: "If it were not for protection, the general would never dare to treat the general like this." Looking around, he said: "Everyone, the purpose of setting up the Shence Army is to protect Kyoto and protect the capital. Saint, now that the saint is in trouble, but the Shence Army is standing still, how can this be regarded as being loyal to the saint? The banker has received the emperor's favor for three generations, even if his body is shattered, he must go to the city to protect him."
All the generals looked at each other.
Although Zuo Xuanji promoted many eunuchs from the palace to become generals in the army, if the army was full of eunuchs, it would definitely make the army officers feel disgusted. Therefore, among the more than 30 generals in the account, only seven or eight of them were from From the palace.
These people were naturally Zuo Xuanji's confidants, but although the other generals were in awe of Zuo Xuanji, they also respected Zhuang Zhaoyang. At this moment, sudden changes occurred, and most of them didn't know what to do.
Although Zuo Xuanji had a knife held to his neck, he still said calmly: "There are so many military regulations. How can we mobilize our troops without the Tiger Talisman?"
"In extraordinary times, extraordinary things are done." Zhuang Zhaoyang said solemnly: "There is a golden sword token from the saint, an order from the Ministry of War, and a warrant from the Prime Minister. Aren't these enough to prove that the saint is in trouble? Reinforcement is like putting out a fire.
If we delay and the saint is injured, who will take care of it?"
Everyone present will look at each other in shock.
Suddenly, footsteps were heard outside the tent, and then a man entered the tent, whispered a few words into Wen Xitai's ear, Wen Xitai nodded, and then said: "General Zuo, the tent has been occupied by the officers and soldiers of the Ministry of War that I brought with me.
Wei, if you disobey, I will only be offended." He shouted in a deep voice: "Here comes someone!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a group of soldiers rushed in from outside the tent.
"Commander Wen, this is a military camp." Zuo Xuanji said with a smile: "There are 30,000 troops here. With so few people under your command, if you really dare to hurt a hair of this general, do you think you can get out of the camp?"
Wen Xitai looked solemn and said calmly: "In order to protect the saint, what are you afraid of being shattered into pieces?"