After leaving the Yang Ding camp, Liu Xie remounted his horse.
Yang Xiu rushed over and took the opportunity to help Liu Xie mount his horse and said softly: "Your Majesty responded to the situation. I am ashamed of myself."
Liu Xie sat firmly on the horse and looked at Yang Xiu.
He knew what Yang Xiu was talking about. Everyone's expressions just now were so rich that he couldn't help but look at them.
"Dezu, I am not adapting to the situation, but I am speaking from the bottom of my heart."
Yang Xiu was stunned. "Your Majesty... Your Majesty?"
Liu Xie waved his hand, signaling Yang Xiu not to say anything further.
What he said to Yang Ding in front of all the ministers was naturally not a whim, but one of the results of many days of thinking.
It's going to rain, my mother is going to get married, some things won't happen unless you say them.
Rather than covering it up, it's better to put it in the open.
It is human nature for people to go to higher places and water to flow to lower places. It is unrealistic to require everyone to be loyal and willing to live and die with the Han Dynasty.
How many people in the DPRK are interested in leaving, but they just haven't found the right opportunity?
It cannot be less, one third is always available.
Rather than leaving them to eat for nothing, not work, and maybe still secretly inform the news, it would be better to get together and relax.
Then again, he may not be satisfied with those people, and sooner or later he will have to streamline some of them.
Let them leave voluntarily so that everyone will not look bad.
Specific to Yang Ding, if he wants to jump back, can you stop him?
Instead of everyone distrusting each other, it is better to make things clear. Whether it will be useful depends on God's will.
Yang Xiu opened his mouth, but said nothing, silently following Liu Xie's horse.
He has finally experienced the emperor's maverick behavior. As expected, the thinking of geniuses is unreasonable. It is said that a gentleman is magnanimous and a villain is always worried, but there are a few people who can really be so magnanimous, and they are so magnanimous to a capricious person.
Villain?
——
Liu Xie came to Dong Cheng's camp on the south bank of the Wei River.
Unlike Yang Ding who passively imitated Zhou Yafu, Dong Cheng showed some respect for the emperor and went out to the camp to greet him in person.
But his camp is worse than Yang Ding.
The security in the camp was relaxed, and the mental state of the soldiers was also very poor. Their armor was in tatters, and their faces were sallow and thin. When they saw the emperor coming on horseback, they still looked weak. Those who could barely hold up their chests could not hold on for long.
His true colors were revealed.
It is better to say that they are refugees than soldiers.
"Uncle, why are you here?" Liu Xie asked in a low voice.
Dong Cheng is the nephew of Empress Dowager Dong. Liu Xie was fostered in Yongle Palace as a child and raised by Empress Dowager Dong. He often met Dong Cheng and called him uncle.
Dong Cheng sighed, and the smile on his face disappeared. "Your Majesty, I am not an old member of Xiliang. I had no choice but to join the Niu Fu tribe, and then was made by Li Jue. I have never been accepted by the people of Xiliang. Over the years, my soldiers have suffered casualties.
It cannot be repaired, and the clothes and armor are incomplete and cannot be replaced. Over time, it has naturally become like this. Last time in Xinfeng, more than half of my troops were damaged, and my vitality was seriously damaged."
Liu Xie raised his head and looked at the soldiers on both sides, his nose felt sore.
It's too difficult for me.
Now that Dong Cheng has decided to move his camp to Pingshu City, it is just a formality to look at the layout of his camp. After a rough look, Liu Xie and Dong Cheng stood side by side by the Wei River, and Yang Xiu explained the battle plan to Dong Cheng.
.
Dong Cheng was not surprised, but felt relieved.
After Yang Xiu finished explaining, Liu Xie signaled Yang Xiu to step aside and planned to have a few words with Dong Cheng alone.
"Uncle, how many days can you hold Pingshu City?"
Dong Cheng stroked his beard and was silent.
He had served under Li Jue for several years and was well aware of the strength gap between the two sides. With his remnants of incomplete armor, the possibility of Guo Si facing Li Jue head-on was almost zero. Even if he retreated to Pingshu City, he still had no confidence.
Pingshu City is too small and the city defenses are in ruins. It is acceptable as a relic to commemorate ancient events, and fighting is better than nothing.
Liu Xie looked at Dong Cheng and sighed secretly.
No matter how incompetent Yang Ding is, after all, he is a survivor of many years of war. He has fought his way through mountains of blood and corpses. Dong Cheng is a relative of a foreigner. He became a general in charge of the army because of nepotism. He has very little actual combat experience. Compared with Fu Wan,
Deng Quan is not much better.
"Li Jue and Guo Si are fierce, but they are not invincible." Liu Xie explained patiently: "Although Pingshu City is broken, fortunately there is terrain to use. My uncle can guard my right wing and prevent me from being attacked from the front and back.
Meritful."
Dong Cheng sighed. "Your Majesty, I am not willing to fight to the death. It is true that the combat strength of the two sides is far apart and we cannot be enemies. To be honest with you, your Majesty, most of the officers and soldiers under my command are from Guandong. They are not elite at first. They have been repeatedly defeated by Xiliang in recent years.
The soldiers are bullied and have no fighting spirit. How can they fight to the death with Li Jue and Guo Si? The last time they defeated Guo Si in Xinfeng, Yang Feng and Yang Ding helped them, and they were able to kill equally. Now..."
Dong Cheng sighed and shook his head repeatedly.
Liu Xie was also very depressed. What kind of celestial relatives were these? How could he not be as embarrassed as a dog if he placed his hopes in the hands of such a person?
Clothing belt edict? Might as well just use it to hang yourself.
Despite this, he still had to be patient and encourage Dong Cheng.
In any case, Dong Cheng is the uncle of the country and the face of the court. If he is defeated in one blow, can he expect others to fight to the death?
"I know my uncle's difficulties. I must also know my difficulties." Liu Xie said with a wry smile: "The reason for moving the camp to Pingshu City is because my uncle's troops are not good at field battles and can only rely on favorable terrain.
Hold on. But as Mencius said, favorable geographical conditions are not as good as good people. If you want to hold on to your position, you must also play the role of people."
Dong Cheng shook his head and let out a long sigh. "Your Majesty, how many of the captains and commanders do you think are available?"
Seeing that Dong Cheng was so afraid of war, Liu Xie was so angry that he wished he could directly replace Dong Cheng and choose another general.
But he knew very well in his heart that not to mention that there was no one available to him now, even if there was someone available, he could not change his general at the last minute.
The war is about to begin, and the soldiers are unfamiliar with each other. Sun Tzu, even if Wu rises up, he cannot win.
The baby is feeling miserable and can't express it yet.
He thought for a moment and suddenly had an idea and said to Dong Cheng: "Uncle just said that most of your subordinates are from Guandong?"
"Yes."
"Most of them were bullied by Xiliang soldiers?"
"Yes, some people were killed by Xiliang soldiers."
"Have many family members been killed by Xiliang people?"
Dong Cheng smiled bitterly. "Your Majesty, Luoyang was burned by Dong Zhuo, and Henan, Yingchuan, and Chenliu counties were plundered by Xiliang soldiers. How many of them could survive?"
Liu Xie nodded. "I have a solution. Uncle, you first move the camp to Pingshu City, build the position as planned, and strengthen training. After I inspect Yang Feng's camp, I will go to my uncle's camp.
Boost morale.”
Dong Cheng looked at Liu Xie suspiciously.
He knows that Liu Xie has been smart since he was a child, and his progress over the years has been obvious to all. Under his influence, the attitudes of the ministers have been very positive recently. But the battlefield is not the court, and the soldiers are not ministers who are knowledgeable in books and etiquette and can persuade each other with benevolence and righteousness.
. Trying to make the soldiers fight to the death with a few empty words is tantamount to daydreaming.
The only way to boost morale is to offer a large reward. The imperial court is now like a bereaved dog, relying on others even for food and clothing. What can we offer a reward for?
As for the official titles, after the Chang'an Incident, how many people still take the official titles of the imperial court seriously?
Dong Cheng was in a low mood and didn't even have the strength to speak.
Liu Xie didn't explain either. Even if he did, Dong Cheng might not understand.
These high-ranking dignitaries have no idea what the power of the people is, let alone how to unleash the power of the people.