Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 375
The golden crow hangs high, but Zhang Jun only feels cold all over.

Liu Chongwang swallowed, looked at the chaotic barracks again, and let out a long sigh.

The coach doesn't have any prestige, and the generals are all idiots. It's a fluke to force the generals to Jingzhou, so what can I say?

He suddenly thought of Li Zhuo.

Grandson of famous general Li Sheng, son of Li Ting.The family was born in the Anbeiting Army of Sun Zhizhi Fengxiang's lineage, and later joined the Shence Army and made many military exploits. After being a serious general of the capital, he served as the Henghai Jiedu Envoy and was good at leading the army.

When begging Li Guochang and his son, he brought three thousand shence troops into Hedong and commanded all Taoist soldiers to defeat Shatuo.

But what happened to Li Zhuo?
After making such a great contribution, he also added some honorary titles, and then did not give the Shence Army military power, but was released as the governor of Suizhou.

Ridiculous!For such a feat, it would be unreasonable not to reward him heavily, but he was actually demoted to another place, and could not return to Beijing until he died.

Shence Army, it's over!
"Shao Shude is a thief!" Zhang Jun, who had been silent before, suddenly said something.

"Huh? What does Zhang Shuai mean?" Liu Chongwang was taken aback, somewhat puzzled.

"Ah!" Zhang Jun sighed, and said, "I didn't expect the Shence Army to be so deserted. In the past, Yang Fuguang brought five thousand loyal soldiers into the Shence Army. He was originally an elite fighter, but unfortunately he was taken away by the Shao bandits."

Liu Chongwang was stunned.

The group of people that Yang Fuguang brought over from Henan were indeed capable of fighting. Zhongwu Badu had fought bloody battles with the Chao army head-on, but they were all kidnapped by Shao Shude. What are we talking about now?
But Zhang Jun's words also gave Liu Chongwang an idea.

In fact, the earliest Shence Army gradually became incapable of fighting after they settled down in Chang'an.However, the imperial court continued to recruit warlords to join the army, and at that time there were veterans to check in, and the recruits were all elite among the surrendered soldiers, who had combat experience, and the imperial court gave them generous rewards, so they could fight naturally.

In this way, the combat effectiveness of the Shence Army was maintained for 20 years.

Twenty years later, combat effectiveness has declined again.

The imperial court repeated its old tricks. Every time it conquered arrogant and rebellious vassals, it always paid attention to recruiting elite soldiers. It also incorporated all the descendants of Huren chieftains from the Western Regions and generals of the Anxi Army who were stranded in Chang'an into the army. This continued for more than [-] years. year.

Throughout the Xianzong Dynasty, the Shence Army was still able to fight, but it was also from this time that the combat effectiveness began to decline again.

In fact, to be honest, as the forbidden army of the capital, the Shence Army has maintained its combat effectiveness for nearly five or sixty years.

Falling after the peace may be a fate that the imperial guards of all dynasties could hardly change.

Liu Chongwang felt that if he wanted to restore the combat effectiveness of the Shence Army, perhaps he could only start by recruiting soldiers who could fight.

But it's useless to say anything now.

The sergeants fled with big bags and small bags, and the officers couldn't control them. Even the officers joined the fleeing team just because of a rumor that could not tell the truth from the false.

The army that can flee because of rumors can no longer be trusted.

Liu Chongwang suddenly wanted to cry, and the saint still had high hopes for the Shence Army. Before setting off for the expedition, he said excitedly that the recruitment in the towns of Hebei and Henan went well, and they had already gathered more than [-] strong soldiers and were heading to the capital.

late!
"Master Zhang, the army collapsed after hearing the news. Regardless of whether the rumors are true or not, this battle will definitely not go on. Let's leave as soon as possible. If the Jingyuan army gets the news and decides to kill the whole army, wouldn't we all be prisoners?" ?” Liu Chongwang persuaded.

Zhang Jun seemed to react suddenly.

"Where's the car?" he asked.

The general went to find it immediately.

"Forget it, it's too late, let's go on horseback." Zhang Jun didn't mind the pain in his buttocks, and said anxiously.

Outside Changwu City, the Jingyuan army was also a little chaotic.

"Everyone, just listen to me." Zhang Jun has led the main force of the Jingyuan Army to arrive, but he is facing a difficult problem, that is how to persuade the sergeants not to go to Chang'an.

"When Cheng Shuai was here in the past, our Jingyuan officers and men were loyal. We fought against Huangchao and defeated Tubo, and we never fell behind." Zhang Jun continued, "Why do you want to make mistakes now? You just need to guard the camp, and a certain So I sent Chen Zheng to go to the capital to tell the truth to the sage. After the sage knows our suffering, he will definitely not pursue it."

"Zhang Shuai's words are old-fashioned and prudent words. The sage is merciful, and there may be rewards." Zhang Jun's aide, Chen Na, the military mansion officer, chimed in: "There will definitely be no shortage of wealth."

"Zhang Shuai, the court has become like this, what are you afraid of him doing?"

"We don't commit crimes, but we just kill the stupid officials."

"That's right, so I lined up outside the hall. The saint said that I worked hard, and there must be comfort."

"There's also Chang'an's little lady!"

"Ha ha……"

The more Zhang Jun heard it, the worse his complexion became.

He knew how much he weighed, and he also knew what Jingyuan was like. If he went to Chang'an now, he would only die!
It's not because of the Shence Army, but because of other "loyal ministers".

"Brother is right." Zhang Ji, who led the army to win the first round, interrupted suddenly, and only heard him say: "A certain family still has some property, so let's take it out and distribute it to the brothers. The matter of breaking the rules is still Do not do."

"Go away!" A small school suddenly said angrily: "When I respect you, I call you the backyard general, and if I don't respect you, I call you Zhang Yu. How are you doing? I have already agreed with everyone to go to Chang'an, and now Repent, and use the brothers as monkeys?"

"This man broke his promise, so let's kill him now!" A sergeant suddenly shouted.

Soon, more than ten sergeants responded and drew their knives.

Zhang Xie's soldiers also drew their swords, and their slightly hostile action aroused the anger of more sergeants. Someone had already strung the bow, and their eyes were full of murderous intent.

Seeing that mutiny was about to happen on the spot, Zhang Jun's forehead also broke out in cold sweat.

"Put away all the equipment, they are all my brothers, what does it look like to use a knife and a gun?" He said to Zhang Ji's personal soldiers.

But the sergeants ignored him at all, and more and more people clamored.

"Go now!"

"If you don't leave, your whole family will be killed!"

"Why are you talking nonsense with him? Without us, he's nothing!"

"Who wants to be a Jiedu envoy? Take me to Chang'an."

There are a few people who are eager to try, with no ambition in their eyes.

In this day and age, there are a lot of small military officers or even ordinary sergeants, bandits and bandits who serve as governors and commanders-in-chief.

It is good to have a family background, from a dental school family, but it is not necessary.

There was a military disturbance in the area under the jurisdiction of the Hunan Observatory, and the bandits on the mountain entered the city. They directly called me to be the governor, and promised the soldiers a certain amount.

Randomly win over a wave of people who are slightly capable of fighting, and occupy the empty state city. If you are lucky, the imperial court will also seal you an official.

It's good to have a family background, but it doesn't matter if you don't have a family background, as long as you have many friends.When the army is in chaos, with a wave of arms, wonderful things unimaginable in other dynasties will happen.

This is an important feature that distinguishes the late Tang Dynasty from other last dynasties.

The collective domineering of the sergeants not only ravaged the common people, but also the masters of other dynasties such as the generals' families were also devastated.

Corruption of military pay, ignorance of people's merits, and humiliation of soldiers are all taboos for generals in this era. If you are not careful, you will be chopped into meat.

Wei Bo's Jiedu envoy passed away, and everyone elected a new Jiedu envoy, why did the rich and powerful families give in so much to those low-ranking officers and soldiers?The atmosphere is like this, there is no way.

It will be difficult for you to be a Jiedu envoy if you have a bad reputation among the big soldiers.Even if you are elected, you will not be able to sit still, and it is likely to end in tragedy.

In today's Jingyuan army, the Zhang brothers are not the only ones with prestige.

Some low-level officers who are known for their bravery can win over many people.Usually there may be no way, but now is the opportunity?
Zhang Jun also realized the seriousness of the problem, and even more realized the helplessness of Cheng Zongchu back then.

So he said bluntly: "That's all! There are indeed traitors in the court, so I will take everyone to Chang'an to ask for an explanation. If the saint blames me, I will tie myself in front of the steps to plead guilty. It has nothing to do with you. If there is a reward, I don’t take a penny, I pay you all.”

The audience burst into warm cheers.

The sergeants brought the horses, hurriedly helped Zhang Jun up, and then marched forward with his arms.

Everyone was beaming and elated.

Wealth is one thing, and everyone likes it, but they also want to taste the taste of Chang'an's ministers and noble daughters.

"Go! Go! Go!" All the sergeants called their friends, as if they were going on an outing.

……

In the Penglai Hall, the sage just fell asleep, but was woken up soon.

"Officials, there is an urgent report from the army five hundred miles away. Zhang Jun's enlistment in Jingyuan was defeated, and the whole army was disbanded. The rebel army has already killed Chang'an." The female official of the inner court said anxiously.

The official family is limited to the private title of the emperor, concubine and family members, and some senior officials and princes are also acceptable.But in formal occasions, no one calls it that.

"What?" The saint sat up directly from the bed, completely drowsy.

His eyes widened, as if in disbelief.

Beads of sweat slowly formed on his forehead, dripping down his cheeks and the tip of his nose.

His face was pale, even faintly blue.

Gradually, the wide-open eyes also lost focus, as if caught in some extreme emotion.

"Officials, the most important thing now is to appease the rebels." Concubine Shu He also sat up, stroking the saint's back.

The saint came back to his senses a little bit.

"It's all Zhang Qing's fault!" The saint's voice was a little hoarse at first, but soon became clear: "If Zhang Qing is relegated to Lingnan, can you appease the rebellious army and make them retreat?"

Mrs. He shook his head and said: "Officials, now you can send a member of the prime minister to bring gold to the rebellious army and give rewards. Besides, the imperial court has transferred Jinshang, Tonghua, Shuofang and other soldiers to King Qin, and all the troops Gathering in Chang'an, shouting long live. The rebellious army has no heart to fight to the death after receiving the reward, and fears that other soldiers will retreat."

"Yes! Yes! This strategy is very good!" The saint said excitedly with a little blood on his face.

He's hands hurt a little from being squeezed, but he still looked at him with a smile: "Officials, the Tang Dynasty has a long history. It's not once or twice that the soldiers are domineering. Which one of the saints has not experienced it? And relax. However, it is still necessary to send troops from other towns to help, otherwise it will be useless. The rebellious army entered Chang'an not only for money and silk."

The saint settled down, and a series of ideas slowly emerged in front of his eyes.

(End of this chapter)