Fu Song

Chapter 169 Why not take a step back
Tao Dayong bid farewell and left in a hurry. From the expression on his face, Xiao Cheng could guess the panic in the border warrior's heart at this moment.

He has been dealing with the Liao people all his life, the first time he flew to the core area of ​​the Huangsong Dynasty, he was given a lesson on what is called ulterior motives, and he stepped into the opponent's mouth without knowing it.

This is completely different from marching and fighting!

On the battlefield, it is basically impossible for Tao Dayong to fall into a trap.

Xiao Cheng sympathized with this general over fifty years old.

To be honest, a person like him should not come to Bianliang.

When you come to Bianliang, you should retreat bravely, quit the military, hand over your military power, and then return to your hometown with a reward from the official family to become a small landlord.

If you want to gain a foothold in Bianliang, you may not end well.

Huang Song has always been wary of generals.As the saying goes, if a scholar rebels, he will fail in three years.But the generals rebelled, but they could actually cause damage.

Hundreds of years ago, wasn’t the founder of the Emperor Song Dynasty dressed in the royal robe of Chenqiaoyi?

It doesn't matter that generals are greedy for money, but they must not be greedy for power, let alone rely on people like King Jing without any scruples.

It's a pity that Tao Dayong, who had just entered Bianliang, didn't understand.

I hope this frontier titan can wake up after suffering this dull loss.

The first time after he went back, he should not deal with the aide who gave him advice, but should quickly write a letter to the officials begging for bones and begging to be dismissed and returned to the field. In this way, the matter may be salvaged room for.

It's just that in front of His Royal Highness King Jing, Xiao Cheng can't give the other party such hasty advice.

Furthermore, even if he came up with this idea, why does Tao Dayong trust himself and think that what he said is right?
"Chongwen, tell me about the Northwest!" Zhao Zhe leaned over and looked at Xiao Cheng with piercing eyes: "You just came back from the Northwest and know the specific situation there. I only believe in four or five points."

Xiao Cheng nodded and said: "His Royal Highness, when I left Yan'an Mansion, in fact, Bachelor Ma had stabilized the situation. After all, Li Du's strength is limited, and he succeeded in a sudden blow. If he wants to move forward, he will not be strong enough. Li Dan The defense line set up by the general has firmly blocked Li Du from the outside of the Yan'an Mansion, and if there is no accident, Li Du's attack will come to an end here."

"But the loss in the Suide area is irreparable?" Zhao Zhe said.

"Yes!" Xiao Cheng said: "Li Du knows that he cannot occupy the Suide area forever. Unscrupulous looting, Your Highness, he didn't just rob money and supplies, he even robbed people. There are hundreds of thousands of people in the Suide area, and in the end, I don't know how many people can escape this hardship!"

Zhao Zhe's face was gloomy, and he said after a long while: "The Zhezi sent back by Ma Xing gave a general strategy of defending east and attacking west, but he was vague. I read the booklet, and I always feel that he didn't make it clear in the booklet. , but he must have said it in the secret note to his father."

Looking at Zhao Zhe's appearance, Xiao Cheng knew that he must be unhappy.

For a person like Zhao Zhe, if he can't grasp all the situation and understand the overall layout, he must be scratching his heart.To put it bluntly, this is a strong desire for power.

"Your Highness."

"You know the details here, right?" Zhao Zhe asked.

Xiao Cheng straightened up a little, and glanced at the people sitting across from him, but Zhao Zhe waved his hands and said, "Just say it, it's okay, here are all people I can trust."

"Does Your Highness know Yuzang Huama?" Xiao Cheng asked.

"Of course I know, there is a powerful Tubo nobleman in the land of Qingtang, doesn't it mean that he has been attracted by Li Xu?" Zhao Zhe looked at Xiao Cheng, and suddenly a flash of inspiration flashed in his mind, "Ma Xing is plotting against this person? "

Xiao Cheng smiled and said: "Exactly. Yu Zang's flower hemp was occupied by trees in the Qingtang, and he couldn't turn over due to blind medicine. He was in danger. Li Xu's invitation at this time was a life-saving straw for Yu Zang. The Tibetan tribe is extremely poor, he needs money, supplies, and weapons, otherwise he will be wiped out by wood or medicine sooner or later."

"So such a person can't talk about integrity or faith at all. He must be a mother if he has milk. Whoever gives more benefits, he will do it with whoever!" Zhao Zhe sneered.

"Exactly. Compared with Li Xu, the weight of Bachelor Ma is naturally much heavier!" Xiao Cheng said: "And Huang Song has always been extremely tolerant to foreigners who are willing to surrender. On this point, Yu Zanghua Ma is also clear. Why would he cooperate with a precarious Li Xu if he can climb Huang Song's ladder and embrace Huang Song's thigh?"

"This Yuzang tribe has been harassing the Song Dynasty's borders all these years, and the crimes they committed are too numerous to record." Zhao Zhe said fiercely: "I think this time Ma Xing will definitely promise him great wealth. "

"It's not considered a great wealth." Xiao Cheng said with a smile: "An empty official position, no matter how high the grade is, what's the use? Yuzang Huama himself doesn't care, but we are willing to provide him with materials and comprehensive business with him." , is what he wants most.”

Zhao Zhe nodded. Huang Song has always restricted the trading of these local powerful tribes. They can buy whatever they want for daily necessities, but when it comes to strategic materials, it will be difficult.Apart from exchanging war horses, they didn't have anything of value at all. With the rise of Li Xu, the trade of war horses was cut off, making life even more difficult for these people.

If Li Xu is defeated this time, the territory controlled by Yuzang will be directly connected to Qinfeng Road in the Emperor Song Dynasty, and the transaction will no longer be restricted. In the battle with Muzhan and Blind Medicine, Yuzang could at least keep his current territory, not to mention winning.

"As long as Yuzang turns against the water, Xiao Changqing can go straight to Xingqing and defeat Li Xu." Zhao Zhe said with a chuckle: "If Li Xu is captured alive or killed, Changqing's contribution will be great, let alone one action. On the horizontal shift, the commander in front of the top one is in his hands. At that time, Changqing can be transferred back to Bianliang to be Zhang Chao's deputy, so as to rectify the upper fourth army."

When it comes to the Fourth Army, Zhao Zhe still looks like he hates iron but not steel.

"Chongwen, you are also clear, not only the upper fourth army, but also the troops stationed around Bianliang are in bad shape. The current Emperor Song army is typically strong in branches and weak in the center. This is the root of the disaster. Why is it declining? Isn’t it because the military strength of the central government is weak and the military strength of the feudal towns is strong? If this continues, our Emperor Song Dynasty will embark on the old road of the Tang Dynasty. It is urgent to rectify the central forbidden army.”

It is absolutely impossible to transfer my elder brother back to Bianliang.

Xiao Cheng said something in his heart, but said in his mouth: "Your Highness, this matter is easy to say, but it is not easy to do. Li Xu has occupied the northwest for many years, and his power is not weak. It is easy to defeat him, but it is easy to uproot him." It's difficult. And it's a matter of mobilizing the whole body, if our side fights, Li Du is afraid that he will go crazy."

"Didn't you just say that Ma Xing has a perfect plan? What's more, at this time, the imperial court will inevitably mobilize the Hedong army." Zhao Zhe said: "The officials can't see this, and the gentlemen of the two prefectures won't see it. Less than that."

"Your Highness, have you forgotten about the Liao people?" Xiao Cheng said, "Do you think the Liao people would just watch us deal with Li Xu without doing anything? Yelujun, Yeluzhen, which one is kind?"

Zhao Zhe looked at Xiao Cheng with piercing eyes and said, "Do you think there must be something wrong on Hebei Road this time?"

Xiao Cheng said word by word: "His Royal Highness, I dare not promise. The only thing I dare to say is that once something happens, it will be a big deal. I am afraid that Prime Minister Cui Shu is too optimistic. If possible, I hope that the ongoing rotation will first Stop, leave the experienced troops on the border, and talk about it after a while."

Zhao Zhe was silent for a moment, then shook his head and said: "Including the Xin'an Army, I'm afraid they have already left now, and Cui Ang is considered an old military officer, so I think it will be properly arranged."

Hearing what Zhao Zhe said, Xiao Cheng fell silent immediately.Hearing this tone, I'm afraid that Cui Ang has reached some kind of tacit agreement with the Highness in front of him.King Jing was also anxious to bring his confidants to Beijing in rotation.

If I wanted to stop this big ship that was already moving, I'm afraid it would be impossible.

"Your Highness, why don't you slow down?" After a long while, Xiao Cheng said: "To be too sharp is not necessarily a good thing, sometimes showing weakness is also a strategic choice, take a step back, the sea and the sky will be brighter."

"This statement is absurd!" Before Zhao Zhe could speak, an old man in Tsing Yi who was sitting on the right stood up with disdain, stared at Xiao Cheng and said: "In the current situation, Your Highness can only move forward bravely and sail against the current. Retirement is already like this, and if we retreat now, it will be a big defeat."

Xiao Cheng sighed: "So what if it's a big defeat? This is a loss to the officials, not to the king of Chu! No shame."

This time Xiao Cheng simply tore away all the camouflage, and directly stated the current predicament Zhao Zhe was facing.

In fact, the king of Chu is not afraid.

Those who are afraid are only the ears of officials.

What's the point of admitting defeat to the officials?
Zhao Zhe held the back of the chair with both hands, his veins were exposed, and he said to Xiao Cheng after a while: "Chongwen, I know what you think, but time is not waiting for me. I don't want this situation to go on like this. This will only ruin the state affairs. If Shaanxi Lu Susheng, can this situation be avoided?"

Xiao Cheng shook his head: "Your Highness, I don't think it's possible. More importantly, I think Hebei Road will collapse first."

(End of this chapter)