Life without meeting each other is like participating in business.
Tonight or any other night, we share the light of this lamp and candle.
How long will it take for you to be young? Your hair will turn gray.
Visiting the old man is half a ghost, and exclaiming is hot in the intestines.
How could I know that after twenty years, I went to the Junzi Hall again.
——Excerpt from "A Gift to the Eight Virtues of the Guard" by Du Fu
…
Lu Xi was quite surprised and looked at Yan Wu uneasily.
Yan Wu bowed to Suzong and said: "Your Majesty, I received a report yesterday from Wei Boyu, the envoy of the Shence Army's camp.
General Wei Boyu reported that the Shence Army camp had recently received an order from the Ministry of War to transfer a general named Ma Zhong to the Shence Army as the captain of Zhechong.
General Wei Boyu's personal soldier was Ma Zhong's township party, and he told General Wei that Ma Zhong was his pseudonym and that his real name was Pang Zhong."
"Pang Zhong?" Suzong searched in his mind and said, "Why does this name sound so familiar?"
Taiyuan Yin, Hedong Jiedu envoy and imperial censor Wang Sili returned to Beijing to report on his duties, and happened to attend the court meeting that day.
Hearing Pang Zhong's name, Wang Sili became furious and said: "Report to your majesty, Pang Zhong is Ge Shuhan's trusted general.
In the Battle of Lingbao, Ge Shuhan's troops were divided into two groups. He and his general Tian Liangqiu led 30,000 people across the Yellow River and marched on the north bank. The minister led 50,000 people as the vanguard and marched from the south bank. Ge Shuhan ordered Pang Zhong to lead the Tang army of ten.
The main force of Wan is the central army, following behind the ministers."
The minister was incompetent and fell into an ambush by the rebel general Cui Ganyou. The entire 50,000-strong forward army was wiped out.
Although the forward army suffered a disastrous defeat, the Tang army still had a main force of 100,000 in the center and 30,000 elite Tang troops on the north bank. Compared with the rebels, they still had an absolute advantage in strength.
Ge Shuhan divided his troops into three before the war in order to prevent unexpected events and preserve his strength.
As long as the Tang army stabilized its position and adjusted its tactics, even if it suffered a temporary defeat, it could organize its forces to counterattack.
However, as soon as the 100,000 main force led by Pang Zhong heard that the 50,000 forward battalion soldiers in front were defeated, their morale was immediately depleted and they collapsed without a fight.
Seeing that the 150,000 troops on the south bank were dying, the 30,000 elite men led by Ge Shuhan ran away without any intention of fighting, and dispersed in a rush.
As stated in the post-investigation memorial of the Ministry of War: "Seeing the defeat of the former army, the rear army collapsed. The Hebei army also collapsed. In an instant, both sides of the bank were empty."
The 180,000-strong Eastern Expedition Army disappeared in just one day.
Everyone knows what happened next: Tongguan failed, the rebels advanced westward, and captured Chang'an..."
Speaking of sadness and anger, veteran Wang Sili burst into tears.
General Wang Sili lifted his shirt, knelt on one knee in front of the palace, clasped his fists and said: "Pang Zhong escaped from the battle and caused great disaster.
Instead of committing suicide to apologize, he dared to change his name and return to the army as a general?!
Extremely abominable! Extremely shameless!
Please cut this man’s body into thousands of pieces to pay homage to the hundreds of thousands of soldiers who died in the battle of Lingbao!”
After Suzong heard this, he became furious, slapped the armrest of the dragon chair, and angrily shouted: "Who issued Ma Zhong's transfer order?!"
Lu Chi trembled with fright and hurriedly reported: "His transfer order was signed by me, but I really don't know that he is Pang Zhong?
This person was recommended to me by General Mastiff Guard immediately. He immediately told his subordinates that Ma Zhong was his brother from a distant clan, who originally served in the army in Qinzhou.
Because he is at odds with Wei Lun, the defense commander of Qinzhou, he hopes to be transferred to Shuofang's army to make great achievements."
Therefore, I helped him change his name, forge his military status, and transfer him to the Shence Army camp.
Because he immediately offered to act as a guarantor, the minister did not doubt his identity.
Now that the war is in full swing, it is the time for the army to recruit people, and I also hope to recruit some generals who are good at fighting for the Tang Dynasty..."
Before Lu Xiang finished speaking, Suzong picked up the golden tea cup next to his hand and smashed it at Lu Xiu. Lu Xi didn't dare to dodge, and his head was badly bruised and bloody.
Suzong pointed at Lu Chi and said angrily: "A general who is good at fighting? Bah! Do you still want another hundred thousand of my soldiers to die at his hands?!"
Come on, drag this common man down, put him in a prison, torture him severely, and investigate this matter thoroughly.
Anyone who touches the world will be severely punished!"
Lu's face was ashen, and she knelt on the ground with a bang, her head was like pounded garlic.
The two Qianniu Guards officers on duty neatly removed Lu's imperial crown and dragged her out of the hall.
"I'm wronged, I'm wronged..."
Bai Fu looked at Lu Xi's miserable appearance, crying like a ghost and howling like a wolf, and sneered secretly: "I, Bai, will retaliate for my anger, don't you know?"
After the Battle of Lingbao, Pang Zhong knew that he had caused great trouble, so he became anonymous and hid in the Qiang tribe of Longzhou.
At the beginning of the year, Cui Guangyuan, the military governor of the Fengxiang War Zone, defeated Jingzhou, and there were more than 100,000 Qiang and Hun tribesmen in Longzhou.
Pang Zhong was taken as a prisoner of war and escorted to Fengxiang. During the escort process, Pang Zhong took an opportunity to escape and hid in the Pingkangfang shantytown in Chang'an City, where he joined an underground gang.
Xiong Badou, a bad handsome man from Chang'an County, realized that this person was not a simple person. After some investigation, he found out his true identity.
When Bai Fu was determined to take action against Lu Chi, Xiong Badou devised a plan to kill two birds with one stone.
First, he found a master of disguise and disguised himself as Pang Zhong, and bribed the eunuch with a large amount of money to speak immediately. Then he used the overwhelming power of the mastiff guard to force Lu Chi to submit.
When the order from the Ministry of War came down, Bai Fu ordered people to send Pang Zhong to the Shence Army and let Wei Boyu take custody of him. At the same time, he reported Pang Zhong's true identity to the court.
Wang Sili, Hedong's military envoy and imperial censor, returned to the capital to report on his duties, and attending the court meeting was an unexpected surprise. The old general's accusation was like adding fuel to the fire, and the Mastiff Guard's backer, the eunuch Li Fuguo, did not dare to intervene in the matter.
Prince Li Chu and Li Fuguo watched helplessly as Lu Xi and Ma Yan were captured on the spot, and they did not dare to protect them.
This plan killed two birds with one stone, weakening the power of the Mastiff Guard and the Crown Prince at the same time. The ins and outs of this matter were clear, and the process was so seamless that no one knew that Bai Fu was planning it behind the scenes. Li Fuguo and Li Chu could only blame themselves for their careless hiring, and considered themselves unlucky.
…
The matter was so serious that Suzong ordered the three divisions to conduct a joint trial, and the truth was soon discovered:
The eunuch General Mastiff Guard immediately accepted Pang Zhong's bribe and found Lv Xi, a subordinate of Tong Zhongshu, Ping Zhangshi and Minister of War, and asked Lu Xi to help Pang Zhong get a position in the army.
Forced by the power of the Mastiff Guards, Lu Pei helped Pang Zhong change his name and surname, forged military status, and was transferred to the Shence Army Camp.
When the incident was revealed, Suzong Longyan was furious and issued an edict to have General Mastiff Wei and the eunuch beaten to death with sticks in the busy city. General Wei Boyu was ordered to display Pang Zhong's head to the public and hang it in front of the military camp as a warning!
At the court meeting, Suzong publicly denounced Li Fuguo and fined him and demoted him. Li Fuguo kowtowed to apologize and did not dare to argue.
Although Lv Ai was coerced by the Mastiff Guards and did not know about it, he abused his power and committed an unforgivable crime. He was immediately dismissed as prime minister and removed from his posts as Ping Zhangshi under Tong Zhongshu's family and Minister of War.
Thanks to the efforts of the prince's party, although Lu Xi was not imprisoned and was appointed as a guest of the prince (also a third-rank official), he had no real power and was reduced to a false position.
Bai Fu was not framed, but instead joined a prime minister. Among the prince's party, the only prime ministers in the cabinet were Miao Jinqing, Pei Mian, Wang Yu and others. After Lv Xi was dismissed as prime minister,
, the power of the prince's party has been reduced a bit.
Prince Li Chu saw that his status in the eyes of his father was greatly reduced, and he was restless and bored all day long...