"The pillar of the country?" Ma Di sneered: "What a pillar of the country."
Li Yan looked at Ma Su with some schadenfreude, but said regretfully: "The Prime Minister's conduct in government is blameless, but his eyesight is somewhat lacking. How could Jiang Wei, an unfilial person, fall in love with him like this?
Where is the eye? The entire Liupanshan army was wiped out. This time Shangdang lost another general and returned without success. Jiang Weizhi is a mediocre person who is not very useful. Compared with Youchang and Wei Ba, he is really worthless.
It’s really puzzling that the Prime Minister thinks so highly of him and defends him so much.”
Ma Su snorted: "General, what's so hard to understand? It's just two geese leaning on each other."
Li Yan thought for a moment and nodded his head in agreement. "Yes, the Prime Minister is not from Jingxiang. He always wants to take advantage of the Jingxiang people, but also takes precautions, so he treats people like Jiang Wei and Jiang Wan as his confidants, but he
Talents like Youchang and Wei Ba were suppressed in many ways. However, a politician should care about the world, how can he care about the countryside? The prime minister's mind is still a little small after all."
Ma Su flattered him knowingly: "What the general said is true. If you want to achieve great things, you should be tolerant of the world and have the world in mind like the general. General, what do you think should be done with those responsible for the Battle of Luoyang?"
"There are too many people involved in this matter. It's difficult to draw a conclusion in a hurry. Let's wait until the court meeting. But, Youchang, I think this is an opportunity."
"An opportunity?" Ma Su looked at Li Yan blankly: "Please give me the general's instructions."
Li Yan leaned on the case, tapped his fingers on the case a few times, and prompted: "Youchang, do you still remember Wei Ba's suggestion?"
Ma Di was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized, and said with a smile: "The general is still wise. Yes, this is a good opportunity."
Li Feng went to Jiaozhou for several months and kept sending news back to Chengdu, but he never brought back the news that Li Yan wanted to hear most. Although Wei Ba was willing to rely on their father and son, he did not agree to launch an attack on Wu State now.
offensive. He was worried about two things. One was that he lacked strength and rashly launched a war against the state of Wu. He could not destroy the state of Wu, but risked being accused of destroying the alliance. Once the state of Wu was forced to form an alliance with the state of Wei, it would be detrimental to the Shu Han as a whole.
The situation is obviously very unfavorable. Secondly, he is worried that Zhuge Liang will leak technical secrets to Wu State, further narrowing the gap between the two sides and causing greater difficulties for Li Yan. In order to solve this problem, he hopes that Li Yan can also include Guanzhong led by Zhuge Liang.
The scope of this expedition was to avoid Zhuge Liang's interference and to use the troops in Guanzhong to contain Wei.
When Li Yan heard this suggestion for the first time, he almost laughed out loud. He thought Wei Ba was talking nonsense. Will Zhuge Liang obey his orders and act together? Zhuge Liang couldn't do this even if he was dedicated to public service, unless he had the brains
broken.
But now, Li Yan saw a glimmer of hope. Of course, it was not that he had confidence in Zhuge Liang's morality, but that after this defeat, Zhuge Liang would suffer another setback. Maybe he could take advantage of the situation and extend a hand to Guanzhong. If he could defeat Guanzhong,
Not only could Li Yan successfully defeat Zhuge Liang, he could even ignore Wei Ba. No matter how powerful Wei Ba was, he had a fatal flaw. He had no reliable source of war horses and had to rely on Guanzhong.
Li Yan revealed his intention to Ma Su, and Ma Su praised him. He then made another suggestion.
"General, there is a saying in the art of war. The first is to attack the enemy with troops. The second is to attack Jiao. For now, we are indeed not sure of victory against Wu, but it is self-evident that we have the advantage. Nowadays, Jiaozhou is changing with each passing day, and Guanzhong
It is also gradually recovering, and Yizhou is even more peaceful and peaceful. In three to five years, it will be easy for our great Han Dynasty to sweep across the world. Not just the Wu Kingdom. From this point of view, Wei Ba's considerations still make sense."
Li Yan nodded slowly: "As you often say, although Wei Ba's plan is a bit circuitous, it cannot be said to be unreasonable."
"What the general said is true. He is more than a step ahead of Wei Ba." Ma Di said flatteringly: "However, these three to five years cannot be easily let go. General, we can attack internally and attack externally."
Li Yan blinked his eyes and sat up: "Youchang, please tell me in detail, how are you planning to attack internally and attack externally?"
"Those who plan internal conquests gather military power in the hands of the generals to prepare for conquests across the world. Those who plan external conquests force Wu to break with Wei and become vassals of our Han Dynasty. This will first eliminate the possibility of an alliance between him and Cao Wei, and then divide and rule.
.Revise the covenant made by the Prime Minister before, and include Yingchuan County into the territory of our Han Dynasty, opening the way for Meng Da and Wei Ba to march into Luoyang, and destroy Wei first, and then Wu."
Ma Su walked to the map and explained it to Li Yan diligently. As he explained, Li Yan's waist became straighter and straighter, his eyes became brighter and brighter, and finally he couldn't help but clasp his hands and laugh.
"You Chang, what a wonderful plan, what a wonderful plan."
Ma Di's suggestion is indeed good. After his adjustment, the Shu Han did not need to use force against the Wu State. As long as they maintained pressure, they could force Sun Quan to bow. Sun Quan was now too weak to dare to proclaim himself emperor, and his King of Wu was granted the title of Cao Wei.
, from an orthodox point of view, he is still the vassal king of Cao Wei. Since he wants to alliance with Shu Han, this status is naturally somewhat nondescript.
Sun Quan was asked to surrender to the Shu Han, and the Emperor Liu Chan of the Han Dynasty came to consecrate Sun Quan and turn him into a vassal king of the Han Dynasty. Although it was just a procedure, it was related to the name. The Han people valued Confucianism, and Confucianism valued the rectification of names first. The so-called righteousness of names. Since Sun Quan wanted to reconcile with
How could the Han Dynasty form an alliance with Cao Wei as the vassal king?
This reason was something that Sun Quan could not refuse. By incorporating Sun Quan into the Shu Han system, many things would become much more convenient.
For example, reducing the vassal status and asking Sun Quan to pay tribute.
For example, attacking Wei, since there is a relationship between monarch and minister, then the two sides jointly attacking Wei is no longer an alliance, but his obligation. If he turns against him again, it is a rebellion, and Li Yan can justifiably attack him. The vassal king rebels.
, then why not crusade?
Or... granting a king with a different surname. Since Sun Quan can grant the title of king, is there anyone else who can grant the title of king?
These are all tacit subtexts, and Li Yan, who has been in the court for so long, naturally understands it when he hears it. Sun Quan can separate himself as king by force, why can't Li Yan? According to the news sent back by Li Feng, Lian Wei
Badu expressed similar thoughts. He wanted to use Zhuya Island as a fiefdom. Doesn't that mean he wanted to be king? Zhuya used to be a county establishment. Naturally, only kings could own a food town of this level.
Although Wei Ba didn't say it explicitly, his meaning was made very clear. This was his price. Only by agreeing to this condition could Li Yan gain his allegiance.
Sun Quan's act of professing vassalage to the Han Dynasty opened the door for someone with a different surname to be crowned king. If Li Yan could accomplish this, it would be a major diplomatic victory. Although he would not be crowned king immediately, it would be enough for him to suppress Zhuge Liang.
One head.
Li Yan was so excited that he patted Ma Su on the back and laughed and said, "You Chang, you are really my ovary."
Ma Su bowed respectfully and said: "I am willing to serve the general with all my hard work."
…
Li Yan quickly arranged for someone to submit a letter, believing that Sun Quan's appointment as king of Cao Wei was inconsistent with etiquette. He should be asked to proclaim himself a vassal to the Han Dynasty, and the Han Dynasty would make him king and serve as a barrier to the Han Dynasty. In this way, everyone can communicate with each other, coordinate steps, and more
Good cooperation.
Liu Chan was helpless and pushed the issue to the Prime Minister's Office as usual. Jiang Wan and Zhang Yi were shocked when they received this letter. This memorial looked like it was proposed by a pedantic scholar, but there was something hidden behind it.
Needless to say, the murderous intention was definitely instigated by Li Yan, and the person who came up with this idea was most likely Ma Su and Ma Youchang.
Jiang Wan and Zhang Yi believed that they were no match for Ma Su. They could not think of a way to crack Ma Su's move, so they had to quickly send the news to Guanzhong.
However, this time Li Yan did not wait for Zhuge Liang's reply. He took the initiative and publicly expressed his support for the proposal at the court meeting, and reminded Emperor Liu Chan that this was a major matter related to the orthodoxy and could not be taken lightly. Considering that Fei Yi had always
He suggested that Fei Yi should still be in charge of this negotiation, but in order to show the determination of the Han Dynasty, he hoped to send another envoy to go on a joint mission with Fei Yi.
This messenger is his son Li Feng.
At the same time, he proposed that General Zhennan Wei Ba and General Zhendong Meng Da should provide support. Especially Wei Ba, who had many dealings with the state of Wu and had a thorough understanding of Sun Quan. If he were to preside over this important matter, he would definitely succeed.
Success can be achieved immediately.
Jiang Wan objected to this. His reason was that since it was a diplomatic matter, the Prime Minister's Office should send envoys. As a member of the General's Office, it seemed inappropriate for Li Feng to send envoys to the State of Wu. Dahonglu Du Qiong should be sent.
Make it more appropriate.
Faced with Jiang Wan's insistence, Li Yan did not object. He simply proposed that Du Qiong be the chief envoy, Fei Yi and Li Feng be the deputy envoys, and Meng Da and Wei Ba would provide backup support. At the same time, he also proposed that if
Sun Quan's refusal of this request is tantamount to rebellion and should be punished. Therefore, while negotiating, he should be prepared to attack Wu.
Jiang Wan was stunned. He knew that he had been fooled. Li Yan didn't care who was the mastermind at all, or even whether the negotiation could succeed. Perhaps, he had no intention of succeeding at all, so that he could have an excuse to launch a war.
Jiang Wan regretted it and blamed himself endlessly. On the one hand, he immediately reported the news to Zhuge Liang, and on the other hand, he notified Fei Yi and asked him to inform Sun Quan in time. In his opinion, Li Yan was a precursor to using force against Wu, and
The use of force against Wu was also a lie, but the real target was Prime Minister Zhuge in Guanzhong.
Li Yan was so overbearing this time, which also aroused Jiang Wan's vigilance. Before this, although the General's Office and the Prime Minister's Office were fighting openly and covertly, Li Yan still maintained a respect for Zhuge Liang and had to wait for Zhuge Liang's reply before doing anything.
Decision. This time, he made the decision by himself without considering Zhuge Liang's opinion at all. This is a very bad sign. It may indicate that Li Yan will tear off the last layer of fig leaf and launch the most direct attack on Zhuge Liang.
.
Especially when Jiang Wei had just defeated the Shangdang.
.
.(To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com to vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile phone users please go to m. to read.)