The minister ordered Pei Qian to prostrate himself in front of the emperor Cao Fang and the queen mother Guo, bursting into tears.
Cao Fang was dumbfounded, her face a little pale. Queen Mother Guo clenched the fist hidden in her sleeve, and her nails dug into the palm of her hand, which was painful. However, she refused to let go. Only this pain could wake her up and stop her.
As for the crash.
The situation deteriorated much faster than she expected. Chen Tai, the governor of Youzhou, was defeated by Deng Ai. Now Deng Ai, with more than 40,000 infantry and cavalry, had entered Jizhou from Youzhou. Pei Hui, the governor of Jizhou, led his army to fight and was defeated.
In Yi County, they were defeated at Changshan. Now they have retreated to Julu and are defending the city.
Julu is among the Jizhous. Once Julu is lost, only Handan in the south will be left in Jizhou. Yecheng can hold on. Julu is a big city. It stands to reason that holding on for a period of time will not be a problem, but if you consider that they are facing Wei Ba.
Famed for its sieges, no one dared to have any unrealistic thoughts about Julu.
They all knew that if Deng Ai wanted to attack the city, Julu would definitely not be able to defend it.
Pei Hui is Pei Qian's younger brother. Pei Qian came to see him today, but instead of asking for reinforcements for his brother, he asked for forgiveness - for Pei Hui's loss of half of Jizhou. In less than half a month, Pei Hui asked twice
Defeated in battle and losing half of the territory under his control, no matter what, this is a sign of incompetence.
And the consequences of losing Jizhou are very serious.
For now, after the fall of Youzhou, the Wei State still controls the two states of Jizhou. The importance of merging the states lies in the geography and the strong force of the Qiang and Hu in the north, which allows the Wei State to maintain a certain degree of military strength.
However, Jizhou is the only grain bag and money string left by the Wei State, and it is the main source of the Wei State's grain wealth. Once Jizhou falls, the Wei State cannot support it just by merging the states.
From this point of view, Pei Hui's responsibility is naturally not small.
But Queen Mother Guo knew that this responsibility could not be entirely borne by Pei Hui. Whether it was Pei Hui or another person, they were no match in the face of Deng Ai's superior force. Pei Hui never surrendered like Chen Tai after losing a battle.
Deng Ai is already extremely valuable.
Queen Mother Guo listened to Pei Qian's suggestion without making any statement. After Pei Qian left, she immediately called Guo Xiu.
"Wei Ba's offensive is fierce. Yanzhou and Youzhou have fallen one after another. The army is besieging it on three sides. Luoyang is in danger. Why hasn't Jiang Wei made any move?"
Guo Xiu frowned and pondered for a long time: "He is waiting for news from me."
"Then when will you take action?" Queen Mother Guo lost her composure as before. At this moment, her eyes were full of bloodshot eyes, her face turned red and white, and her hair, which had been carefully combed, was also a little messy, which invisibly exposed the panic in her heart.
Guo Xiu bowed and said: "Queen Mother, it's not that I don't want to do it. It's just that I don't have the chance to do it. Wei Ba's army has arrived in Luoyang, and now it's unstoppable. If he wants to negotiate according to the previous conditions, it's impossible for him to agree. If he hadn't been moved,
Under such conditions, I cannot approach him."
Queen Mother Guo said sternly: "Then what conditions are needed to make his heart move?"
Guo Xiu was silent for a long time: "Surrender and ask for a marquis."
Empress Dowager Guo's breath was heavy. Her chest was heaving violently. She weighed it for a long time: "Xian Xiao, it is not bad to be granted the title of Marquis and inherit the blood of the ancestors. Compared with the assassination of Wei Ba, it should be an acceptable result. In case the assassination fails.
, not only will the late emperor’s last wish not be fulfilled, our Guo family will also suffer disaster, and the price must be too high."
Guo Xiu smiled bitterly: "Queen Mother, the price is indeed not small. If there are other choices, I am not willing to take this risk. However, does the Queen Mother have any other choice? There is no eternal secret in the world, there will always be a day when it is exposed. The Cao family
, the Xiahou family has an extremely close relationship with Wei Ba. Once they know that the emperor is not of the Cao family, can they still tolerate our existence? By then, the Guo family will also be in disaster, and the late emperor's last wish will also be in vain.
What’s even more frightening is that by then, even Jiang Wei will have no chance.”
Queen Mother Guo shook her head in frustration, "But Jiang Wei can't count on him now."
"Otherwise, Jiang Wei guards Tongguan and controls Guanzhong. It seems that he is not strong at the moment, but if I succeed in assassinating Wei Ba, the Shu Han will fall apart, and no one will be able to compete with Jiang Wei. He is enough to control one side. He
With Yongzhou, Yizhou and Liangzhou in hand, plus Bingzhou and Jizhou under our control, we still have half of the country and are capable of fighting."
Queen Mother Guo didn't say anything. She had considered this balance of interests countless times. Without her consent and cooperation, Guo Xiu would not have been able to reach this point. It's just that she is a little scared now. Wei Ba step by step
Pressing hard, Luoyang is in danger, and the possibility of Guo Xiu assassinating Wei Ba is getting slimmer and slimmer. If he fails, the remaining foundation of the Guo family will be completely wiped out.
God will not give you another chance to escape death.
"Go and tell Wei Ba that I can agree to such a condition." Queen Mother Guo turned around and stared at Guo Xiu: "You must be sure before you take action. Don't act rashly. If God doesn't give us a chance,
, at worst, it’s better for me to flee with the emperor than to have my family destroyed.”
Guo Xiu frowned, hesitated for a long time, stopped talking, bowed, turned and left.
Soon, Guo Xiu left the city and went straight to Mengjin with new negotiation conditions. Wei Ba had already arrived at Ye Wang in Hanoi, and he would go directly to Ye Wang to seek an audience with Wei Ba for the last chance.
…
Changshan County, Zhending City, by the Hutuo River.
A large ship slowly docked at the pier, the gangplank was lowered on the ship, and Zhao Tong appeared on the side. Pan Ziyu and Sun Dahu were standing behind Zhao Tong, all of them were wearing linen and mourning. Zhao Tong was holding Zhao Yun's spiritual tablet in his hand, with his face
plaintive.
Behind them, sixteen strong men carried Zhao Yun's coffin.
Before Deng Ai invaded Jizhou, Pan Ziyu escorted Zhao Yun's coffin down the river, turned to the sea, and turned into the Bohai Sea. As soon as they arrived at the Bohai Sea, Deng Ai had already defeated Pei Hui and captured half of Jizhou.
Pan Ziyu then turned from the mouth of Qinghe River into the inland river and returned to Zhending by water.
It is everyone's dream to return fallen leaves to their roots. Even if it is a battle of thousands of miles, whenever possible, the government will transport the bodies of fallen soldiers back to their hometown for burial. Only when there is a huge rout that there is no way to recover, will they give up. Even if the bones are buried in a foreign land,
It is also an unsatisfactory ending for people who have achieved success and died in peace.
However, for the officials of the Shu Han Dynasty, returning to their roots after falling leaves was an unattainable dream. Especially for the veterans of the Yuan Cong Department, most of them were thousands of miles away from their hometowns, and their hometowns were all in the Wei Kingdom. If they wanted to go home for burial, it was simply impossible.
There is no possibility at all. Therefore, whether Liu Bei or Zhang Fei, they can only be buried in Yizhou.
From this point of view, Zhao Yun was lucky. Although he could not see his hometown again while alive, his soul returned to his hometown after his death and was buried in the Zhao family's ancestral grave. He also had a beautiful posthumous title: Zhen. This is the name of the emperor.
Give him a gift to praise him for his loyalty and unwavering loyalty.
For Zhao Yun, this should be a good ending.
Surrounded by fellow villagers who came after hearing the news, Zhao Guang and Zhao Tong, who had returned home early, carried Zhao Yun's coffin back to the Zhao family. They would set up a mourning hall here for people to pay tribute. Even though it has been more than half a year since Zhao Yun's death.
, returned to his hometown again, but the burial ceremony has not yet entered the agenda.
The reason is very simple. Jin King Wei Ba wants to come and offer sacrifices in person. However, Jizhou has not yet been completely conquered. He has sent troops to Luoyang and cannot come for the time being. Therefore, Zhao Yun has to wait for Wei Ba to capture Jizhou and visit the Zhao family in person.
He filled the soil with a shovel and sent Zhao Yun to his grave.
This is actually quite normal. The Han Dynasty valued filial piety, and it was normal to wait one or even three years after being buried. It’s just that in times of war, living people have to survive, and there are not many such etiquettes anymore. Now the unification of the world is in sight.
, the Zhao family has a special status, so of course it can be implemented accordingly.
…
After finishing their busy work, Zhao Tong and Zhao Guang had time to sit together and exchange information about their respective situations. Speaking of which, the two brothers had not seen each other for many years.
"You are the eldest son and the head of the family." Zhao Guang smiled: "With you at home, what should I worry about?"
"And you?"
"I will also take Xiao into battle. His Royal Highness the King of Jin has given me orders to assist Wei Feng, lead the heavy armored cavalry, and attack southward with Deng Ai."
Zhao Tong raised his eyebrows slightly. The heavy armored cavalry was the most elite cavalry under Wei Ba. Zhao Guang originally commanded the light cavalry formed by Liaodong miscellaneous men. Although they were considered elite, compared to the heavy armored cavalry, they were inferior in terms of strength.
Still, his status is undoubtedly weaker. Wei Ba transferred Zhao Guang to the heavy armored cavalry and assisted Wei Feng, so it was naturally a promotion for Zhao Guang.
"Then you take care of yourself. The battlefield is dangerous, so you have to be careful."
"I know." Zhao Guang laughed: "I am always an adventurous person, unlike my brother who seeks stability."
Zhao Tong smiled a little bitterly.
"However, don't be disappointed." Zhao Guang put away his smile and continued: "The King of Jin said that it is precisely because of your stability that you can take charge of your own business. You can not only govern the army, but also the people. Therefore, after observing filial piety, he
I will arrange for you to go to Liaodong. I heard what he meant, and it seems that he is planning to merge the counties of Liaodong and the three Koreas that were just conquered to create a new Haizhou as the base for the future Eastern Expedition."
"Are you going to march eastward?" Zhao Tong was surprised. "What else is worth fighting to the east of the Three Koreas?"
"There is also the Japanese country, and..." Zhao Guang scratched his head: "It is said that there is a large area of land to the east of the Japanese country, and the conditions are more favorable than those of the Han Dynasty. The King of Jin said that after the Shang Dynasty's remnants fell, they might go there
Got there."
Zhao Tong remembered it. He was also a participant in the meeting of buildings and ships, how could he not know about it. But he didn't know when, like others, he only regarded those things as conversation topics, but not as land within reach. He thought
After thinking for a while, he sighed softly: "I am indeed a little too steady, my pace is not decisive enough, and my vision is a little conservative."
Zhao Guang laughed, leaned over and patted Zhao Tong's hand: "Don't blame yourself. Among our brothers, you are the most like my father. However, Hu'er is a bit like a princess. You'd better hurry up and have another one."
My legitimate son, your stability combined with your sister-in-law’s intelligence is the next generation head of the Zhao family that I hope to have."
Zhao Tong also laughed.
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