On April 17, the first year of Wende, Shao Shude, the envoy of Shannan Road, arrived in Lisuo Tianxing County, Fengxiang Town, and set up his camp in the Qifangting area.
From Qishan County to Tianxing County, from Linyou County to Anrong Pass, more than 70,000 troops were gathered within an area of more than 100 miles.
Military flags are flying, covering the sky and the sun, and swords, guns, swords and halberds are all over the fields.
Since the Battle of Huangchao, Fengxiang Mansion has never seen an army of this size, the first time in five years.
As the Shannan Road envoy appointed by the imperial court, Shao Shude's heart was also full of ups and downs.
It is the supreme enjoyment of a warrior to have a large army sweeping across the world and conquering the enemy without any hesitation.
After more than ten years in the army, it is the first time to command an army of 80,000 people. At this point in my life, what more could I ask for!
"Uncle, after all these years, your body is still so strong." In the Qifangting camp, Shao Shude held a banquet in honor of Xing Ningjie, Marshal Zhe Zongben.
Zhe Zongben led 6,000 troops southward, which was already half of Xing Ning's strength. It was really interesting.
"My dear son-in-law, you are looking down on me. An ordinary young man may not be able to shoot a hard bow, so I don't care." Zhe Zongben took a sip of wine and said with a smile: "Just go out to hunt, go up the mountains and down the slopes, for several days, ordinary
It’s a matter of fact.”
"My uncle is getting stronger, so I feel relieved." Shao Shude said with a smile: "But Xingning is bitter and cold, and it is not a good place after all. If there is a chance, I still have to let my uncle move to a more comfortable place."
"The idea of a virtuous son-in-law..." Zhe Zongben's eyes narrowed, there was something in his words.
"We haven't decided on this matter yet. Let's have a drink today. After a while, when the matter is almost done, we can discuss it in detail with my uncle." Shao Shude raised the wine bottle and said.
At this time, there were two people sitting opposite each other having a banquet in Tianxing County.
"The imperial court wants to sue Chen Jingxuan of Xichuan. I wonder if Zhu Shuai is willing to lead his army into Shu to relieve the emperor's worries." After exploring Zhu Mei's talk, Shao Shude originally wanted to go out and interview him in person, but after thinking about it, if Zhu Mei refused, the two of them would be together.
Everyone is embarrassed, and the opportunity to turn things around has been lost. It is better to let the supervisor Han Quanhui come forward to see what Zhu Mei's thoughts are before making any calculations.
Han Quanjie had completely turned to Ximen Zhongsui, and this person was also showing his goodwill to Shao Shude along the way. He was very eager to join the camp, so it was most appropriate to send him to take action.
Zhu Mei glanced at this lieutenant general who had done cruel things to Chang'an and did not answer immediately.
He was not stupid. He knew that Han Quanjie was here to explore the way for Shao Shude. At the same time, he was a little annoyed. Shao Shude was too ignorant and greedy. After conquering Huangchao and being awarded the title of Jiedu Envoy of the Difficult Army, he started working non-stop.
expansion.
After pacifying Youzhou and subduing the opposition forces in the town, he then marched westward to Shuofang and captured Lingzhou and Yanzhou. Afterwards, he entered Guanzhong and commanded all four provinces in the north of Guanzhong.
Obtained control of the two towns of Tiande Army and Zhenwu Army, and then marched westward to Hewei to recover the five states.
We fight almost every year and never stop!
To be honest, Zhu Mei was a little scared when she saw Shao's expansion momentum. Fengxiang Town has three prefectures, which is far from being comparable to Shao Shude, who actually controls fifteen prefectures.
What's more, the Baosai Army, Baoda Army, and Yinning Town are also on his side. Jingyuan Town has a weak force and will only remain neutral. Zhu Mei counted it several times and found that there is no ally in the huge Guanzhong. Once they break up and fight,
At hand, the situation is very pessimistic.
Zhu Mei originally thought that Shao Shude would wait a few more years before taking action against Fengxiang. But now it seems that he can't wait any longer and wants to control this three-state area immediately. Considering that he has obtained the Shannan Road Recruitment Envoy
With his identity as the nominal supreme commander of the 80,000-strong army, there would be almost no suspense on Shannan West Road when Wu Ding's army was defeated. This force in the future may be even more terrifying.
How to face such a behemoth? Zhu Mei didn't know either.
"What does Han Jianjun mean by this? I have been guarding the vassal for the emperor for several years. If there is no such person in the three prefectures of Fengxiang, the soldiers will probably be unhappy." Zhu Mei said: "The other one is going south to Sichuan.
To fight against rebellion, you need money, food, equipment, and soldiers and horses. What does the court say about this?"
"The imperial court will naturally respond to the concerns of Commander-in-Chief Zhu." Han Quanhui smiled and said, "Gao Renhou, the envoy to Dongchuan in Jiannan, was an old member of Chen Jingxuan's army. After leaving Zizhou, he still had a close relationship with Chen Jingxuan. The imperial court
Every time he orders a conquest, there is always a false story. How can such rebellious people be made to maintain integrity and maintain a strong town? If Zhu Shuai is willing to send his troops south to relieve the worries of the court, the position of commander of Jiannan Dongchuan should be vacant. "
Jiannan Dongchuan? Zhu Mei's expression changed.
The place is indeed a good place. Although it has been cut into pieces and only five states are left, it has prosperous households and abundant wealth. It is indeed much better than Fengxiang's three states.
But of course there are advantages and disadvantages.
The advantage is that there are more people and more money, but the disadvantage is that you may be stuck there for the rest of your life. Sichuan is a peaceful place, and once you enter Sichuan, it is difficult to get out. Even if you unify the east and west and the two rivers in the future, there is basically no hope of going north. The Shannan West Road is on it.
It's extremely restrictive.
Even if we occupy all the sixty prefectures of Sanchuan and Sichuan, it will probably be difficult to enter Guanzhong. That will be a relatively safe situation, and we will not have the qualifications to compete for world hegemony.
"Why is Marshal Zhu doubting it? Among the three rivers, Xichuan is the first, Dongchuan is second, and Shannan West Road is the last. Although Dongchuan now only has five states left, Suizhou, Qiongnan and other towns are occupied by Yang Fugong's fake son
, if you can bring peace to the imperial court, it will naturally be beneficial." Han Quanjie continued to follow the temptation and said: "The chaos in Sichuan is causing the people to live in dire straits. Zhu Shuai has the ambition to be compassionate and compassionate, so he should relieve the people from hanging upside down."
Zhu Mei did not answer. He still wanted to discuss it with his staff and generals.
In fact, one thing in Han Quan's words touched his heart, that is, the land of Dongchuan's five states can still be expanded. Zhu Mei is also a bit proud. Under his training, the more than 20,000 Fengxiang troops are confident enough to defeat
It is impossible for any opponent in central Sichuan to occupy both the east and west rivers.
But, I still want to go north to Guanzhong! What's the point of going eastward from the middle of Sichuan, attacking Kuixia, Jingnan and other towns, and then annexing the nearby Qianzhong town? Can we strive for world hegemony? No!
That night, Zhu Mei gathered the generals in her mansion and told them everything Han Quanhui had said.
"Commander, there is no way out from Guanzhong, so it is better to go south to Shuzhong. I heard that Shuzhong is extremely rich, with all kinds of goods and beauties, let us take it. At this time, going south has the name of the imperial court, and there is no need to go to war in the local area. Chen Jingxuan, Gao Renhou and
How difficult is it to attack the Yang family's hypocrites? They can be defeated with just one drum." Wang Xingyu was the first to agree, and it seemed that he was also very aggrieved by Fengxiang.
"A certain person is at Dazhen Pass. There are often distress sergeants crossing the border from Weizhou. Judging from their high morale and well-equipped soldiers, they are indeed powerful enemies. If a war breaks out, it is good to be able to protect yourself, but it will be extremely difficult to make progress."
Wang Xingyue also agreed with his brother's opinion, but he continued to say: "Shao Shude wants to conquer the Shannan West Road. If it is leveled, wouldn't Zhuge follow his lead? The commander-in-chief has great ambitions, where can he expand?
The general finally feels that going south to Shuzhong is the only way out."
"Sir." Zhu Shou stood up, cupped his hands, and said: "If we can really capture all the states in Shuzhong and the gorge, we can then go down the river, take Jingnan, and then map the east road to the south of Shanshan. In this way, we can
It has the pattern of ancient Yizhou and Jingzhou, where you can advance, attack, retreat and defend."
"We still have to capture Shannan West Road, otherwise it will never be stable." Zhu Xiu added.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Mei hesitated as her subordinates all agreed to go south to Shuzhong.
In fact, reason told him that going south to Shuzhong was the only way out, and it was also the only decent territory the court could give him. Where could the others go? Five years had passed since the Chao Rebellion, and the number of places where the court could appoint Jiedu envoys became increasingly limited.
There are fewer and fewer people coming here. Some places are poor, some are far away, and some are in areas of four wars. Sichuan is relatively the most suitable.
It happened that the imperial court also wanted to take back the towns controlled by the remnants of Tian Lingzi and Yang Fugong. Going south could seek the justice of the imperial court and reduce a lot of resistance. After that, this village would no longer have this store.
But Zhu Mei was still a little reluctant.
In fact, he was very confused about the resistance in his heart. Where did this unwillingness come from?
"Yang Sheng, why don't you speak?" Zhu Mei looked at Dashanguan Town General Yang Sheng and asked.
"In fact, the general does not want to go south to Shuzhong. Prince Lingwu has great ambitions. After he dominates Guanzhong, he will definitely spy on Shuzhong. How will we deal with it then?" Yang Sheng said.
"Hmph, with the wealth of both rivers and rivers, and going to other towns to recruit more soldiers, are we still afraid of Shao Shude?" Wang Xingyu sneered: "Commander, the plan for now is to get out of trouble. Once Shao Shude controls the Shannan West Road,
Fengxiang Town is surrounded from all sides, what future is there? Why not take off now, use the wealth in Sichuan to recruit troops from other towns, and train them well, maybe they can go north to capture Shannan West Road. Sanchuan is in
With our hands, we will form one body, and then we can advance eastward towards Jingnan and take the east road from Shannan, and we will be able to achieve great success. Even if it doesn't work, we can still divide the world into one."
Yang Sheng frowned. This Wang Xingyu was so arrogant that he regarded the towns in Sichuan as if they were nothing. It seemed that as long as Fengxiang's army marched south, they could sweep them across. Chen Jingxuan was nothing, but Dongchuan Gao Renhou had some abilities. The strength of the Yang family's pretenders
It’s unknown, but it should be good. Of course there is a reason why they were favored by Yang Fugong and Yang Fuguang. They either have great strategies or are brave enough to win the three armies. Why do you think they can’t fight?
"Commander." The veteran general Zhang Xingshi, who had been silent until now, spoke up: "General, I will just say one thing. Shao Shude is quite capable of running an army. Yesterday, General Zhou had a close look at his army. He found that his troops were in good order, that their equipment was complete, and that their morale was high.
Look high, with such a strong army and tens of thousands of people, if we form a formation and fight in the field, our army's chances of winning are very low."
"Commander, I have been with you since I was fifteen years old, so I will say some things directly." Zhang Xingshi said: "Commander is over forty this year, Shao Shude is just thirty, and he is in his prime. As long as he lives, we will live together."
There is no way to expand, and the commander-in-chief must know it well. In this case, we might as well go south to Shuzhong, and we veterans can work hard to build a foundation, and maybe there will be a turn for the better."
The eldest son supported it, the adopted son supported it, the Wang brothers supported it, Zhang Xingshi also supported it, but Yang Sheng was the only one who opposed it.
Zhu Mei did not expect that so many people supported going south, which was a bit beyond his expectation. But Zhang Xingshi said something that touched him just now. At the age of forty-five, are you still waiting in Fengxiangku? What are you waiting for? Waiting for the army to decide the disaster.
Internal strife? Waiting for Shao Shude to die suddenly?
Thinking of this, Zhu Mei suddenly laughed. He had figured out the reason for his resistance in his heart. It turned out that he was waiting for the army to "defeat itself". It was ridiculous!
Shao Shude has a good reputation among the military, and almost no one in the town dares to rebel. He really grasped the essence of the problem, and did not blindly consolidate power by wooing generals. Instead, he used two methods at the same time, giving the generals wealth and honor while also finding new ways
, he did a lot of things that are difficult for everyone to understand and expanded his prestige among soldiers.
This kind of power is stable! A general may rebel at a thought, but if he has the hearts of the sergeants, the rebellious generals will not be able to pull away the troops. Instead, they will be tied up by the sergeants to perform meritorious service.
So what are you waiting for? Waiting for Shao Shude to be assassinated? Waiting for him to be besieged by the towns? Waiting for him to commit suicide for many unjust acts?
Zhu Mei burst out laughing, having already made a decision in her heart.