It's almost night in Chang'an City, and the lanterns are starting to go on.
In the dimly lit hall of Shangshuling's mansion, Xun Yu was staring at the map hanging on the wall, lost in thought.
After pondering for a long time, Xun Yu shook his head, sighed, and murmured to himself: "I thought that everything in the world was beyond my control, but I didn't expect that an anomaly like Yan Liang would appear. It was completely beyond my plan.
"
There was a deep sense of helplessness in Xun Yu's sigh.
While he was meditating, a servant came to report that it was the head of the country who asked to see him.
"Fu Guozhang, it's so late, why did he think of getting up to visit me?" Xun Yu was curious, but didn't think much about it, and hurriedly asked Fu Wan to come in.
Not long after, they had finished lying outside the hall, and Xun Yu personally went to greet him outside the house.
The guest of honor met and greeted the guests. When they entered the hall, the guest of honor took his seat and exchanged polite greetings with each other.
"I don't know if the father-in-law of the country has something important to do when he comes to the humble residence?" Xun Yu asked, cupping his hands.
Fu Wan sighed and said: "I recently heard that Prime Minister Cao was in a difficult situation due to the unfavorable war in Luokou. I was worried, so I wanted to come to Wenruo to get some news."
Luokou City is the last barrier in Chang'an. The news of the unfavorable battle in Luokou has spread in Chang'an. No matter the dignitaries or ordinary people, everyone is panicked.
"The Yan thief has frozen Luokou, and our army is indeed at a disadvantage. However, the cold winter is approaching, and the lower reaches will soon be flooded again. The prime minister's army will definitely support the Yan thief to retreat, so the emperor does not need to worry too much."
Xun Yu behaved very calmly and seemed to be full of confidence in Cao Cao.
Fu Wan said: "Why did Wen Ruo hide this from me? I heard that more than ten thousand soldiers in Luokou City were frozen to death. There were countless people with frostbite. Even Guo Fengxiao had typhoid fever and could not afford to fall ill."
In such a situation, can the Prime Minister really hold on until Yan Liang retreats?"
After Fu finished exposing the truth, Xun Yu's expression changed slightly, and his confident expression suddenly became half empty.
After a moment of silence, Xun Yu said: "Even if there is a loss at Luokou, the prime minister will lead his army to withdraw to Chang'an. He will defend himself in the city and fight to the death against the Yan thieves."
"The city of Luoyang is as strong as Chang'an. Yan Liang can conquer Luoyang, but can't he conquer Chang'an?" Fu Wan asked with a sneer.
Xun Yu was speechless for a moment, but suddenly, he seemed to hear different meanings from Fu Wan's words.
He raised his head and looked directly at Fu Wan: "The abbot seems to have a hidden meaning, so you might as well say it clearly."
Fu Wan also looked directly at Xun Yu, his originally indifferent expression gradually becoming solemn.
"Since Dong Zhuo's rebellion, His Majesty first moved from Luoyang to Chang'an, then moved from Chang'an to Xudu, and then moved from Xudu to Chang'an. I don't know how much suffering he suffered along the way. If Chang'an is lost again, how could it be possible?
Can Wen Ruo bear to see His Majesty suffering from exile again?"
Xun Yu was shocked and frowned slightly, but he said: "If Chang'an is lost, the Prime Minister will ensure that your majesty moves to a safe place. Now that the country is in trouble, it is inevitable that your majesty will suffer some displacement."
.”
"The north of the Yellow River is already occupied by Liu Bei, and the south of the Yellow River is owned by the King of Chu. Where else can Prime Minister Cao move His Majesty? Is it possible that he wants to move His Majesty to a bitter and cold place like Xiliang?
"
Fu Wan's tone suddenly became more serious, almost like a question.
Xun Yu said silently: "If it really comes to a last resort, I'm afraid this will be the only way."
"That's all I have to do." Fu Wan sneered, "Even if Prime Minister Cao moves His Majesty to Xiliang, if Yan Liang leads an army to pursue him, then where can Prime Minister Cao escape? Does he want to escape with His Majesty?
Can we go outside the Great Wall and attach ourselves to those Qiang and Hu people?"
Xun Yu's body was shaken, but he seemed to be stopped by Fu Wan's question. His expression was gloomy, and he didn't know how to respond for a moment.
After a long while, Xun Yu managed to pull himself together and said: "Of course the Prime Minister will not let the Emperor of Han live in exile. One day, the Prime Minister will of course wipe out the rebels, regain the lost territory, and welcome His Majesty back to the old capital."
"Haha~~"
Fu Wan burst out laughing. The laughter was full of sarcasm, as if he was mocking Xun Yu for his arrogance.
Xun Yu frowned secretly and looked a bit sullen. He knew Fu Wan was laughing at him, but he didn't know how to fight back. It seemed that he didn't have much confidence.
"Xun Wenruo, you are known as the wisest man in the world, so please think about it rationally. Does Cao Cheng really have a chance to defeat Yan Liang and turn defeat into victory?" Fu Wan asked with a sneer.
A thunder struck Xun Yu, and a deep shock surged from the bottom of his heart.
Xun Yu had asked himself Fu Wan's question more than once a long time ago.
When he was in Guandu, Xun Yu firmly believed that Cao Cao would defeat Yuan Shao and unify the world.
Then, he miscalculated that time, and the defeated Cao Cao fled to Guanzhong. He did not know how much effort it took to get a foothold in Guanzhong.
Today's Yan Liang is much stronger than Yan Liang in terms of resourcefulness, magnanimity, and strength. On the contrary, Cao Cao at this time is far weaker than he was in Guandu.
If one thing goes down and the other goes up, how can Cao Cao have any chance of winning?
Although he knew this, Xun Yu didn't dare to face this cruel reality. Until today, he was pressed like this by Fu Wan.
There was silence in the lobby.
Suddenly, there was a loud noise outside the hall, vaguely like shouts of killing.
Xun Yu's expression changed, and his mind was immediately awakened from the pain.
At this time, the servants hurried in and said in surprise: "To inform my master, there is a sudden rebellion in the city and they are attacking the arsenal and the city gate. The guards from various places sent people on flying horses to report, please master to quickly take charge of the overall situation and put down the rebellion."
Someone is rebelling!
Xun Yu jumped to his feet. All the conversations he had just finished with Fu were immediately forgotten in his mind, and he was about to walk out.
"Where are Wen Ruo going?" Fu Wan also got up and grabbed Xun Yu.
"Didn't you hear it, Zhang? There are rebels in Chang'an City. The Prime Minister ordered me to take charge of Chang'an. Of course I have to take charge of suppressing the rebellion." Xun Yu looked anxious, trying to get rid of Fu Wan's shackles.
"Wen Ruo, let's stay." Fu Wan didn't let go, and there was a hint of weirdness in his tone.
Xun Yu seemed to sense something was wrong. When he turned around, he suddenly felt a chill on his neck.
Looking down, Xun Yu was horrified to find that Fu Wan had put a bright dagger on his neck.
"Fu Guozhang, you..." Xun Yu was shocked and suddenly realized, "Could the rebellion outside have something to do with you?"
Fu Wan said coldly: "I won't hide it from you now. Following your majesty's secret order, we have gathered the ministers loyal to the Han Dynasty. We have decided to rebel tonight, seize Chang'an, cooperate with King Qin of Chu, and kill Cao Cao in one fell swoop.
thief."
Fu finished word by word and coldly revealed his plan.
"The Yan thief is more cruel than Dong Zhuo, and your conspiracy with him is tantamount to inviting a wolf into the house!" Xun Yu shouted in horror.
Fu Wan snorted coldly, "By colluding with the King of Chu, your Majesty and the Han Dynasty still have a chance of survival. Otherwise, the country of the Han Dynasty will be usurped by Cao Cao's thieves sooner or later."
"Stupid, you are really stupid." Xun Yu stumbled and cursed, looking deeply regretful.
After Fu finished, he turned a deaf ear and said coldly: "I have always known that Wen Ruo is also a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty. Now that you have reached this point, I advise you to just sit here and stop doing anything about this matter, so as not to cause trouble for yourself."
The dagger was placed on his neck, so Xun Yu's blood would be splattered on the spot with just a slight move after he was lying down. At this point, what else could Xun Yu do.
"Oh, if you do this, you will regret it sooner or later..." Xun Yu sat down helplessly, simply closed his eyes, and just sighed.
After he finished lying down, he sat cross-legged next to Xun Yu, his head never leaving Xun Yu's side, his ears straightened up, and he listened carefully to what was going on outside.
Outside the hall, the shouts of killing became louder and louder, and there were faint flames rising into the sky.
In Chang'an City, a violent mutiny is underway.
…
Several hundred miles away, Luokou.
In the Chu army's camp, Yan Liangzheng was drinking wine while listening to Fazheng's report.
"Fu Wan has sent a secret message from Chang'an City. The Han Emperor has approved his plan. Within a few days, he will unite all the ministers who support the Han to launch a mutiny and seize Chang'an."
"Okay, if we can capture Chang'an this time, you, Xiaozhi, will be the first to contribute." Yan Liang was happy and praised Fazheng greatly.
Fazheng only said a few words of modesty, and there was a bit of pride in his brows.
After joking for a while, Fazheng suddenly remembered something and asked, "If the city of Chang'an is destroyed, I wonder how your Majesty plans to treat the Han Emperor, Fu Wan and others."
"Do you even need to ask?" Yan Liang sneered and said eight words: "Those who follow me will prosper, and those who go against me will perish."
Shunchang is defeated!
Fazheng's figure trembled slightly, and he felt that Yan Liang's body was exuding a fierce murderous intention.
At this moment, the curtain was raised, and a red-faced female general entered from outside the tent. That female general was none other than Lu Lingqi.
When Fa Zheng saw Lu Lingqi arriving, he stood up and left. As soon as he left, only Yan Liang and his sworn sister were left in the tent.
"Lingqi is out of cold, come and sit by the stove." Yan Liang called.
Lu Lingqi smiled and sat down around the fire. The red color of the fire made her originally red face look even brighter.
"Brother Wang, the newly compiled Three Thousand Divine Walkers and my little sister have all been brought to Brother Wang." Lu Lingqihui reported.
"You came just in time." Yan Liang nodded and said, "Brother, I have made a plan. We will defeat the Cao thieves and capture Chang'an within a few days. Your three thousand divine cavalry will come in handy."
Hearing this, Lu Lingqihua suddenly showed joy, and was so excited that she almost burst into tears.
After waiting for so many years, this time, she was finally only one step away from avenging her father. How could she not be excited.
"Little sister, I have something to ask Brother Wang to agree to." Lu Lingqi suddenly raised her hands and said seriously.
"Tell me what's going on."
Lu Lingqi gritted her teeth and said bitterly: "If we can defeat Cao's thieves and capture Chang'an in this battle, I beg Brother Wang to hand over the entire Cao family to my disposal."
It was indeed not as good as Yan Liang expected.
Yan Liang did not agree, and only asked with a smile: "Then what do you plan to do with the Cao family?"
"Nothing can be done. What Cao Cao did to my father back then, I will do to his Cao family today!" Lu Lingqi replied angrily. (To be continued...)