Wang Dai couldn't tell what Murong Fu was thinking, but he knew that if he showed any hesitation at this time, he would definitely not end well. At least under Murong Fu's hands, he didn't think he had any possibility of escape.
With such a balance in his mind, Wang Dai solemnly said, "No matter how big or small the matter is, as long as the young master says a word, the young master will never flinch."
"This is the best," Murong Fu nodded calmly, "I heard that you are doing well now. You sit in the position of commander in front of the palace, and you also lead the Horse Army Department and Infantry Army Department, commanding the three Imperial Guards with one person.
Yamen, you can be regarded as the first person since the founding of the Song Dynasty."
The military system of the Song Dynasty is quite special. Since the founding of the country, there has been no precedent for the three yamen of the imperial army to be commanded by one person. In other words, there has never been a true "marshal of the world's soldiers and horses". This is because Zhao Kuangyin came to power through mutiny and was extremely wary of military power.
, so he took many measures to strengthen the centralization of the military, control military force with culture, etc.
Not to mention using culture to control military force, Zhao Kuangyin and even every subsequent generation of emperors like to gather the world's elite troops and break them into the Forbidden Army. The Forbidden Army is divided into the Palace Front Division, the Horse Army Division and the Infantry Division, collectively known as the Palace Division.
The top commanders of the three yamen also had no right to mobilize troops. They could only mobilize troops through the emperor's imperial edict or the tiger talisman of the Privy Council.
In order to prevent the last possibility of mutiny, the supreme commander of the three yamen has never been allowed to be held by one person. Wang Dai was able to command the three yamen, and he was the first person to found the country. Of course, times have changed, and today's Song Dynasty
With the sun declining, the Forbidden Army is no longer the most elite in the world, and the value of commanding the three yamen has been greatly reduced.
Wang Dai hurriedly said, "I don't dare to deceive you. In name, I command the three yamen of the Forbidden Army. In fact, I don't really have many soldiers and horses to mobilize. I only have 30% of the full force. Looking at the entire Song Dynasty, I'm afraid it's only 15%."
Murong Fu was stunned when he heard this, and then showed a look of disbelief. He knew that Wang Dai commanded the three yamen to have some moisture, but he did not expect that there would be so much moisture. Naturally, the first thought in his mind was to suspect Wang Dai of lying, and asked in a deep voice,
"What does this mean?"
Wang Dai was shocked and explained, "Young master, you don't know. Today's Forbidden Army is far inferior to that of the past, and its strength is still inferior to that of the Xiang Army. The total number of soldiers and horses of the three yamen of the entire Forbidden Army only accounts for 30% of the country's total, and
Among the 30%, there are still some small commanders who cannot move."
Murong Fu suppressed the doubtful look on his face and said, "Tell me more specifically."
"It's like this," Wang Dai said, "Since the death of General Yue, General Han Shizhong has been dismissed, and old General Zhang Jun has no intention of entering the Privy Council with military force. When these three Zhuguo generals fell, the Jingxi Army under their command
Except for the Huaixi Army and the Huaidong Army, which defended the capital, the other two armies were dispersed and filled into the local army and the imperial army."
"In order to appease the old troops of General Yue and General Han, the emperor still allowed them to serve in various armies, including many in the Forbidden Army. Therefore, the current factions of the Forbidden Army are extremely complex. Don't think about it, I am not the commander of the palace, but also the leader.
In fact, the Ma Army Division and the Infantry Division cannot command them at all, otherwise the emperor would not have allowed me, an unknown person with no background, to be the supreme commander."
At the end of the sentence, Wang Dai had a wry smile on his face. In fact, this was the case. He, the commander in front of the palace, was just a product to balance the forces of all parties. He actually did not have much military power. After thinking about it, he added, "And
Now the most influential General Zhang in the army is still serving in the Privy Council. As long as he says a word, others can't mobilize the army at all."
Murong Fu suddenly understood after hearing this. He still thought too simplistically. Every generation of emperors in the Zhao and Song Dynasties kept in mind the lessons of their ancestors. How could they easily hand over all military power to one person, even if the building is about to collapse now?
, they will not let their subordinates take advantage of them.
"So, how many troops and horses can you mobilize now?" Murong Fu pondered for a while and asked this question.
"Including my old troops in the Dragon Guard, there should be thirty thousand people." Wang Dai calculated carefully and said with a slight hesitation, as if he was afraid that Murong Fu would go his own way and really want to do something "big", so he
Added, "Now the entire capital is defended by a total of 200,000 soldiers and horses from the Forbidden Army and the Huaidong Army. Only 30,000 soldiers and horses can't do much."
Murong Fu's face suddenly darkened, "So, you failed to fulfill the military order you issued back then?"
As he spoke, his whole body was full of energy, and a great pressure was pressed towards Wang Dai.
Wang Daiden felt his breath was suffocated, his legs were trembling, and dense beads of sweat were oozing out from his forehead. He begged for mercy in a trembling voice, "Please give me another chance, Master. The time has not come yet. I will just wait for the time to come. Little by little, I will give you another chance."
In a short time, you can control half of the country's troops."
Murong Fu's aura calmed down, and the clouds cleared up in an instant, as if nothing had happened, "What timing are you talking about?"
Wang Dai took a deep breath. Now he was somewhat glad that his previous judgment was correct. Under Murong Fu's men, he had no chance of escaping. He immediately explained, "In fact, the emperor was extremely worried about the old troops of Generals Yue and Han.
, but have been suffering from no excuse to deal with them, and now there is an opportunity to remove the commander of the Huaidong Army, Wang De, and capture the Huaidong Army's 50,000 troops."
"What opportunity is there? Let me tell you." Murong Fu looked at him with interest. He also wanted to know how deep the city was for this tall and thick-looking Wang Dai.
"Yes, this matter has to start with the floods in the Weihe River."
Murong Fu was stunned, "Was there a flood in the Wei River?"
Wang Dai paused and asked, "Young Master, do you know about the floods in the Wei River?"
"Okay, hurry up and tell me what's going on, and don't hold back anymore." Murong Fu urged impatiently. He remembered that last night Zhao Jinling used "Weihe River floods" to blackmail Prince Yuan Yi into letting him go. At that time, he was worried about Mu Jianping's safety.
, did not listen carefully. Now when Wang Dai mentioned it again, he couldn't help but be a little curious as to what could connect Prince Yuan Yi and Wang De, who were beyond reach.
Wang Dai didn't dare to make any further excuses, so he immediately told the whole story like beans poured out of a bamboo tube.
It turned out that a few months ago, there was a flood in the Weihe River. Prince Yuan Yi, who was in charge of the country at the time, was ordered to go to control it, but he was just a puss and had no ability to control the flood. Originally, this was not a big deal, and the emperor's original intention of sending him there was not
Let him gain insights and understand the sufferings of people's livelihood.
However, Prince Yuan Yi refused to accept it and insisted on taking command in person. He also sent local officials who were good at flood control to prison. In the end, the flood was not controlled. Instead, because he escaped from the battle, tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians were killed in the flood. If this matter was reported to the court
, is bound to cause huge waves, and even the emperor may not be able to protect him.
Fortunately, he was not stupid. He fled back to the capital as quickly as possible and told the matter to several ministers behind him. Several high-ranking ministers joined forces to suppress the matter, and all those who knew about it were killed.
So much so that the emperor still does not know the real reason for the failure of flood control in the Weihe River.
"Recently, the commander-in-chief of the Huaidong Army, Wang De, has been very close to Prince Yuan Yi. As long as this matter is revealed, Prince Yuan Yi will not say anything. With the old emperor's sophistication, he will definitely take the opportunity to remove Wang De. By then, the Huaidong Army will
We cannot be left without a commander for a day, the emperor will definitely let me temporarily lead it. Unlike the complex system of the Forbidden Army, once the Huaidong Army falls into my hands, I will definitely be able to subdue it."
At the end of the sentence, Wang Dai seemed to be afraid that Murong Fu would not believe it, so he made another promise.
Murong Fu was silent for a moment, and suddenly said something that shocked him, "This matter cannot be revealed. On the contrary, I want you to secretly send someone to approach Prince Yuan Yi in the past few days to show your kindness to him."
"What!" Wang Dai thought he heard wrongly and blurted out, "How is this possible? That pustule prince is not material to be the emperor at all. He might be deposed at some point. Isn't it too early to take refuge with him now?
, if the emperor knows, he will definitely get rid of me first."
Seeing his reaction so fiercely, Murong Fu couldn't help but feel a little funny, "Why are you so anxious? I haven't finished speaking yet."
Wang Dai also realized that he had lost his temper and complained, "Young man, I have lost my temper. Sir, please tell me."
Murong Fu's eyes flashed slightly, "If there is turmoil in the imperial city, how will your troops defending the capital react?"
Wang Dai pondered for a moment, "It depends on what kind of turmoil it is. If it is an invasion by a foreign enemy, our army guarding the capital will naturally protect the imperial city. If there is an internal turmoil, it is best to do nothing and stay put and wait."
The emperor's decree or the Privy Council's order to mobilize troops."
"What if the prince usurps the throne?" Murong Fu smiled and asked.
Wang Dai was shocked when he heard this, "How is this possible!"
"Don't worry about whether it's possible or not. According to normal logic, how should the Forbidden Army deal with it?"
Wang Dai glanced at Murong Fu with some fear. Could this man have hooked up with the prince? This thought flashed through his mind, and he said, "According to normal logic, the imperial army should stay put, but with
I don’t know about the soldiers and horses close to the prince, they will probably enter the city and take control of the imperial city immediately."
"Okay!" Murong Fu smiled while stroking his hands, "What I want you to do is to be the first person to control the imperial city."
"But...but..." Wang Dai looked at Murong Fu dumbfounded, but didn't say anything.
"So I want you to send someone to get close to the prince in the next few days and show your goodwill secretly. Then you can control the imperial city before Wang De and the other armies do." Murong Fu said with a smile, but what he said was shocking.
Creepy.
Wang Dai held it in for a long time before asking, "How do you know that the prince will definitely usurp the throne? With his current status, as long as he waits a few more years, the throne will still be his, and there is no need to take risks."
"A rabbit bites people when it is cornered, not to mention a prince with a lot of troops. Since ancient times, the emperor's family has been ruthless. There are not only one or two princes who can't wait to ascend to the throne. It's nothing strange." Murong Fu smiled mysteriously.
, without any explanation, "Anyway, be ready and wait for my order."
Wang Dai vaguely felt that Murong Fu had some big plan, but he couldn't figure it out. The only thing he could think of was that Murong Fu had colluded with the prince, otherwise he would not have made such a decision.