Zhang Xingcheng felt chills in his heart, fearing that Cheng Yaojin would really kill him later, so he quickly expressed his position: "The Duke of Lu has made great military achievements and has military power. Each family can only rely on them. How can they hide their evil deeds and destroy the Great Wall?" Mr. Lu Guogong, you are worrying too much! However, I will bring back your meaning verbatim. I will also tell you that the current situation can be reversed without fighting to the death. You must let all the powers support you to join the Ministry of War, and then control the Tang Dynasty in the near future. All armies!"
He is confident that he can convince the heads of various families on this point. Li Ji has almost parted ways with the Shandong family. Cheng Yaojin is their last force in the Tang Dynasty military. If Cheng Yaojin can be promoted to the position of Minister of the Ministry of War and control the world's soldiers and horses, Why not do it?
"hehe."
Cheng Yaojin sneered twice, making no comment on Zhang Xingcheng's guarantee. He picked up the teacup and said calmly: "Okay, I will act according to the situation. Go back and tell those old guys not to make any mistakes, otherwise the situation will collapse and no one will do anything. I know what it will become in the end.”
"Here! I'll take my leave."
Seeing that Cheng Yaojin wanted to see off his guests, Zhang Xingcheng did not dare to stay for long. He stood up, saluted and then exited the tent.
When the accompanying servants came with the war horses, the group got on their horses and drove out of the military camp at high speed. The oncoming breeze was carrying raindrops, and their bodies were cold. Only then did Zhang Xingcheng realize that his middle coat had been soaked with cold sweat.
At that moment, he really felt Cheng Yaojin's murderous intention...
He is worthy of being called the "Demon King of the World". It is simply a fantasy for the heads of various families to control him completely and let him be driven. Even if Cheng Yaojin is not clear about the situation and angers Cheng Yaojin, he may suffer a violent backlash.
Dark clouds rolled in the sky, and the breeze brought raindrops. The sky was dark and vast. It seemed that there was a group of fierce soldiers hidden in every forest. When he got close, they would rush out... Zhang Xingcheng kept urging his horse to increase his speed. Quickly, run towards the south of the city.
*****
At the foot of Lishan Mountain, inside the military camp.
Li Ji took a sip of tea, looked away from the drizzle outside the window, and focused on the battle report spread out in his hand, his face expressionless.
After getting out, Zhou Daowu, who had just arrived here, was dusty, his handsome face was dark and thin, and his eyes were bloodshot. On the way back to Datang, he heard that His Majesty Li Er fell from his horse and was injured, and he knew that a big disaster would come next. The internal power of the Tang Dynasty was undergoing drastic changes, so he hid in Liaodong for a winter. The situation turned out to be as corrupt as he had guessed, but what made him even more unexpected was that due to the severe shortage of winter supplies, large numbers of prisoners who were escorted died in large numbers. Even those who were lucky enough to survive suffered from frostbite, struggled to move, were severely disabled, and became a huge burden. In cruelty, they were simply killed...
Killing prisoners was a serious crime, so he was procrastinating and refused to return to Chang'an before the situation became clear. He thought that when the East Palace fell and the new prince came to power, he, the current prince-in-law and the commander of the army, would be coaxed into important positions. The sins committed will be gently put aside and will not be investigated.
As a result, the East Palace turned defeat into victory and completely defeated the Guanlong rebels in one fell swoop...
Immediately afterwards, Li Ji's military order arrived, asking him to hurry back to Chang'an to rendezvous. No matter how unwilling Zhou Daowu was, how could he dare to disobey Li Ji's military order? He had no choice but to abandon the large army and lead his own soldiers to travel day and night, arriving here exhausted.
On the other side, Zhang Liang stroked his beard under his chin and said in a bad tone: "Is the Duke of E crazy? He has disobeyed military orders several times, and there are a lot of discussions in the army. The commander-in-chief should severely punish him to establish military discipline, otherwise everyone will follow suit. This army will But I can’t take it with me.”
Discipline is the most stringent in the army to demonstrate fairness and justice. Otherwise, how can countless men who are not afraid of life and death follow orders and prohibitions? Yuchi Gong first went to Dayun Temple in Zhongnan Mountain without permission, trying to resist Zuo Wuwei's rescue of the remnants of Guanlong, and then stationed in Ba To the east of the bridge, there was a confrontation across the river with Zuo Wuwei to the west of Baqiao, and the situation was tense. This disregard of Li Ji's military orders caused an uproar in the army, which led to instability in the army's morale and the spread of rumors.
After all, after Guan Long raised his troops and ravaged Guanzhong, Li Ji held hundreds of thousands of troops but remained indifferent. Some people had long speculated that he was either waiting for the destruction of the East Palace to take the opportunity to destroy Guan Long and establish a new crown prince, or that he had made an alliance and reached a deal with Guan Long in advance. Waiting to enjoy the results. Now just sitting back and watching Yuchi Gong run around on Guan Long's orders, which seems to have confirmed the existence of a transaction between Li Ji and Guan Long. Otherwise, why not punish Yuchi Gong with military law?
Nowadays, there are very few people in the Eastern Expedition army who have anything to do with Guan Long. Most of them are angry about Guan Long raising troops. Once it is determined that there is a transaction between Li Ji and Guan Long, it will immediately lead to the disunity of the army and the division within the army. .
Li Ji put down the battle report in his hand, glanced at Zhang Liang, and said: "I am very pleased that Duke Yun is so keen on military affairs. Why don't you let Duke Yun hold my military order and enter the right Houwei to capture Chi Gong?" If he is brought to justice, he will be severely punished by military law to serve as a warning to others."
Zhang Liang was startled and quickly shook his head: "You can't do it! The Duke of E is now ignoring military orders and obeying orders from Guanlong. If anyone rushes to Youhouwei, won't they be on his knife's edge? I'm not afraid of death. It is really meaningless to die in such a way, we should think about it in the long term, think about it in the long term..."
He was really afraid that Li Ji would issue a military order asking him to rush to the Youhou Guards to capture Wei Chi Gong...
Fear of death was one thing, but he also had a private agreement with Changsun Wuji. If he captured Yuchi Gong and was finally punished by Li Ji, causing the last army of Guanlong to collapse, Changsun Wuji wouldn't be able to fight against him?
Li Ji took a sip of tea and said: "The Duke of Yun is a sensible person, and this is exactly the truth. Although the Duke of E has disobeyed military orders, if he uses strong methods to punish the crime at this time, it will inevitably lead to violent conflicts and inflame the already tense situation. As the situation becomes more and more difficult to control, we must focus on the overall situation."
Zhang Liang nodded repeatedly and did not dare to say more.
Li Ji then looked at Zhou Daowu and said in a cold tone: "General Zhou escorted the prisoners back to the Tang Dynasty first. Why did the commander-in-chief refuse to set off from Liaodong despite the urging of several military orders, and now he is so late?"
Zhou Daowu quickly stood up and knelt down on one knee: "The general evacuated from Pingrang City and chose to return to Datang by land through Liaodong. Unexpectedly, he encountered a heavy snowstorm halfway. It lasted for several days. The road was impassable and countless soldiers suffered from frostbite. We had to stay in Liaodong City temporarily. When the road is clear in spring, we will set off again."
Killing prisoners is a taboo. Once the royal censor in the imperial court makes an uproar among the world's celebrities, Li Ji is likely to throw him out to quell public anger, which makes him frightened.
However, what we fear most often comes...
Li Ji stood up, put his hands behind his hands and stared down at Zhou Daowu, and said slowly: "I have received dozens of letters reporting that you abused prisoners, and even killed them in order to reduce the burden. I wonder what General Zhou's explanation is for this?"
Zhou Daowu was shocked, his face turned pale with fright, and he hurriedly defended: "Commander Mingjian, this is slander! It is true that the prisoners escorted by the last general suffered heavy casualties, but they were all due to heavy snowfall in Liaodong, natural disasters, and serious shortages in the army. Overwintering supplies, this led to a large number of casualties among the prisoners. Not only the prisoners, but also the soldiers in the army suffered a lot of casualties. The general cannot kill his brothers, right? Such accusations are simply crazy, I hope the commander will understand clearly! "
Li Ji sighed, stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder, speaking in a gentle tone: "General Zhou was ordered to escort the prisoners, which is a hard job. I also believe that the heavy snowfall caused the prisoners to suffer heavy casualties... But you have to know that this time Although the Pandong Campaign destroyed Goguryeo, our army of hundreds of thousands was completely defeated. It was the Royal Navy that was responsible for the destruction of the country. The army of hundreds of thousands was massive, wasted countless money and food, and ultimately failed... This kind of thing always has to happen. Someone has to take responsibility."
"Uh..." Zhou Daowu was stunned for a moment.
He grew up in a palace and came from a noble family. He was used to seeing political battles and struggles for power, so he agreed with Li Ji's statement. In the end, someone must bear responsibility for everything, whether it is merit or demerit, like this for the whole country. The battle ended in defeat, and His Majesty Li Er was severely injured and comatose, and he did not know whether he was alive or dead. Someone must bear the responsibility.
But the problem is that Zhou Daowu is not even a general in charge of the army, and he only accepts the task of escorting prisoners. No one will put the responsibility for the defeat on his head, right?
Zhang Liang, who was standing aside, quietly added: "Torturing prisoners harms the peace of heaven, which is something a saint would not do... Now many people in Chang'an City are clamoring, saying that God has the virtue of good life, just because our army tortures prisoners, this This led to the wrath of heaven, causing sudden changes in this must-win battle, and ultimately falling short... What's more, some people said that it was because General Zhou tortured and killed the prisoners, so he suffered karmic retribution and suffered divine punishment, which made His Majesty accidentally injured and fell from his horse. Zhou General, these public opinions are very unfavorable to you."
"What?!"
Zhou Daowu felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He was stunned, his face turned pale and he was at a loss.
I was just escorting a few prisoners, but how could I be involved in the defeat of the Eastern Expeditionary Army? Can I be blamed for Your Majesty's fall from the horse?
After being stunned for a long time, Zhou Daowu finally came back to his senses, squeezing his neck and shouting: "Commander, the general is unjust! How can your majesty's rich body be punished by God because of the weak general? Not to mention the large number of casualties among the prisoners. It was after winter, and by that time the army had already begun to withdraw from Pingrang City, so it had nothing to do with it!"
He understands the power of public opinion very well. There is a saying: "A lot of words make gold, but accumulation destroys bones." When everyone accuses you with one voice, it doesn't matter whether you did it or not. What's important is that senior management will often regard you as Deal with it to calm public grievances and eliminate public opinion.
So what if he is the current prince-in-law?
There are countless princesses and countless princes-in-law. In terms of the stability of the political power and the direction of public opinion, they are simply not worth mentioning...
Li Ji sighed and said: "You are my subordinate, how can I not protect you? It's just that the killing of prisoners has a great impact and cannot be quelled silently. How about this, you return to Chang'an immediately and see His Highness the Crown Prince to explain." Military affairs, please ask the prince to come forward and clear your name, so that you can be safe and sound."