The third emperor of the Sui Dynasty

Chapter 481 Solitary Resolution
Duguzhen did not participate in the following military discussion, and returned to the mansion on the grounds of being old and frail and counting his assets, and some family heads and representatives of the family left with him. Li Yuan agreed with reason, and he did not expect these never Those who have been on the battlefield give the recipe for victory.

Duguzhen's carriage was driving fast in the rainy night, and the flickering lights shone on Duguzhen's face from the gap in the curtain, making his thin and pale face very terrifying. Sitting on the thick blanket, the cloudy old eyes sometimes closed and sometimes opened vigorously, as if thinking about something.

Dugu is well aware of Li Tang's corruption situation, and understands Li Yuan's difficulties, but Li Yuan's rogue and hooligan methods are really not advisable. Now that things have happened, everyone can't turn back. They can only follow Li Tang all the way to the end. If Li Yuan changes A gentle way that can be accepted by everyone will make everyone feel better, and there will be hope for Li Tang to some extent, but Li Yuan's tricks in the hall are really too low-handed and too inconsistent with the way of an emperor .

Dugu is depressed and unhappy, and Li Yuan's approach of robbery reminds him of Gao Shida, Zhang Jincheng, Lu Mingyue, Zhai Rang, Zhu Can, Xu Yuanlang, Liu Wuzhou and other lost grass-headed kings. Who can make a living by taking a fortune and making a living, who can go to the end?It is true that Li Yuan did not exploit the common people like Caotou King, but once the blood of the family was drained by him, would the common people be able to escape the treatment of beating their bones and sucking their marrow?
It would be nice if Li Yuan died in Nanyang.In this way, Li Tang can be replaced by a promising king who can listen to good words and lead Li Tang out of the predicament and to glory. Otherwise, Li Yuan, a self-righteous and independent husband, will definitely ruin Li Tang's family fortune one by one.

Suddenly, a thought surged up from the bottom of his heart, even Duguzheng himself was startled, but he quickly cut it off. Li Yuan deserves to die, but not now. The chaos of Wang winning the championship will only accelerate Li Tang's demise.

Thinking back to Yang Tong, who is in full swing and has the blood of the Dugu family, Dugu sighed deeply.

He felt that he misjudged two people in his life: one was Li Yuan, who strongly supported the Tang army. The Tang army's repeated defeats against the Sui army had already shaken Duguzheng's confidence in the Tang Dynasty. His mood was like that of an investor. When my investment in Li Tang Dynasty not only failed to bring benefits, but also made him slide to the brink of bankruptcy, I was naturally very unhappy;

He used to think that the other person he misjudged was Yang Tong, but when he thought about it seriously, he didn't think it was Yang Tong. When he secretly planned to overthrow the Sui Dynasty, Yang Tong wasn't even a kid, so naturally he didn't catch his eye?How can it be regarded as the wrong person?He felt that his other person was actually Yang Guang who had been trying to overthrow him.Only now did he feel that Yang Tong was actually Yang Guang's first-choice successor, and he secretly focused on cultivating him. In view of the corrupt situation at the time, Yang Guang deliberately ignored it in order to protect this excellent successor, and pushed Yang Tan, who was the best heir, to the world. Right now, Yang Tan is not only marrying the Pei family to gain the support of the Guandong gentry, but also replacing Yang Tong's position in the eastern capital.Everyone was dazzled by Yang Guang's series of tricks, coupled with Yang Tan's outstanding performance, so they firmly believed that Yang Tan was the successor of the Sui Dynasty, and Yang Tong completely lost hope of becoming the main center, but in fact, Yang Guang did not. Treating Yang Tong badly, even though he was "distributed" miserably, he took away all the military supplies, food and grass hoarded in Luoyang, and all the rare treasures in Ziwei Palace, all of which were caused by Yang Guang's decree.It's just that the world thinks it's compensation for Yang Tong who has made great achievements.But after Yang Tong succeeded in gaining a foothold in Jizhou, Yang Guang continued to reward him. Not only did he give Linshuo Palace to Yang Tong as the palace, but he also awarded the Zhan Lu Sword and the Seven Star Dragon Yuan Sword as the Two Swords of the Son of Heaven, allowing Yang Tong to use the Zhan Lu Sword In the end, he gave Yang Yu the right to appoint and dismiss the military administration of Jizhou, Youzhou, and Bingzhou, and gave him the right to kill first and then play... Yang Guang is not supporting and cultivating heirs. What is it? ?It's just that everyone has preconceived ideas and is confused by Yang Tan's shield.

There is another detail, which is also a strong proof that Yang Tong is Yang Guang's first choice, that is, Yang Guang's different arrangements for the three grandchildren: the emperor's eldest grandson Yang Tan has always stayed by Yang Guang's side, and the euphemistic name is: cultivate, change In other words, it was actually Yang Guang who did not give Yang Tan the opportunity to get in touch with the local military and government, and to form gangs; Yang You stayed in Chang'an and sat in Guanzhong, which was indeed training and training, but don't forget that the number one minister who assisted Yang You was Wei Xuan, and Yang You Tong is Wei Xuan's grandson-in-law, and this is completely to make Wei Xuan stare at Yang You and help his grandson-in-law restrict Yang You's development.

As for the people who assist Yang Tong, Yuanwen is the representative of the Guanlong Group, Wei Jin is the representative of the Guanlong gentry, Lu Chu is the representative of the Guandong gentry, Huangfu Wuyi is the representative of the poor family, and Duan Da is the representative of the army...Everyone, They all have their own origins and backgrounds. These people seem to form a complete "little court". As the leader of various forces, Yang Tong needs to balance the forces of all parties. Isn't this what the emperor should do?That is to say, Yang Guang's training of Yang Tong was superficially laissez-faire, but in fact he was asked to recruit talents and form a system of his own.Facts have proved that Yang Tong is just another Yang Guang. The policy plan cannot escape Yang Guang’s three core ideas of eliminating the Guanlong Group, erasing the privileges of the gentry, and supporting the poor. It’s just that Yang Tong is more radical, but it is also in line with And the practice of being greener than blue.

Up to now, Dugu feels that Yang Tong is just walking along the road paved by Yang Guang. Of course, Yang Tong's excellence is unquestionable.Also at some point, Duguzhen suspected that Yang Guang had faked his death to hide his name, and was willing to be an inconspicuous green leaf beside Yang Tong, because no one saw that Yang Guang really died in the Jiangdu Palace fire, and Jiangdu Palace was Yang Guang's death. It's normal to have secret channels, but these are not important anymore. Yang Tong has been very effective in cultivating their Guanlong family, and he has done a better and more ruthless job than Yang Guang.

After thinking up to this point, Dugu let out a long sigh.

It was he who supported Li Yuan to overthrow the Sui Dynasty and establish a new dynasty to rule the world. In the current situation, he is not only worried about the fate of Li Tang, but also worried about the future of the Dugu clan. The family fell into his own hands, so it was really embarrassing to face his dead father, and the many dead brothers who made an exception for the youngest brother who entrusted the family to him.

If he was twenty years younger, no, as long as he was ten years younger, Lonely would have the confidence to fight Yang Tong, but not now.He is old and frail, and his energy has long been unable to deal with all kinds of emergencies, so he unloaded the burden of being the head of the Dugu family years ago, and officially pushed Dugu Cheng to the fore. Enjoy your old age with peace of mind?

He has been paying attention to the current situation, and he knows that Xiao Xian in the south is resting and recuperating, and he has accumulated a lot of money. He knows that Dou Jiande is struggling to guard the three counties of Qingzhou, struggling to the death; he also knows the actions of Du Fuwei, Lin Shihong, Shen Faxing, and Li Zitong; Compared with the other princes mentioned above, Li Mi has the brains, foresight, artifice, and strength. When he rises, he soars above the nine heavens, driving half of the southern country to defend against the powerful enemies in the north.

Dugu felt that he couldn't hang himself on Li Tang's tree. No matter how much he supported Li Tang, he had to find a way out for Dugu's family. Besides, Li Tang's prospects really made him look bad.Multi-party betting is also a tradition of the Dugu family, isn't that what father Dugu Xin does?I am just continuing this tradition.

……

"Old Patriarch! It's here!"

Just when Duguzheng thought about the countermeasures, the carriage stopped slowly, and the guards reported softly.

"Okay!" Dugu took a long breath, got out of the carriage, and found that the sky was bright while he was thinking.The heavy rain that has been dancing wildly for many days has finally become sparse.

"God's will is still on Li Tang's side!" Thinking of the army's expedition today, the heavy rain that had lasted for several days suddenly seemed to stop, and Duguzhen's mood improved a lot. Contact, but he still hopes that Li Tang will win, not only because he has invested too much in Li Tang, but also because Li Tang is his nephew and family, Li Tang wins, and the Dugu family will continue to be glorious. Unknown outsiders are unreliable.

Dugu shook his head to stop a domestic servant who was running towards him with an umbrella, climbed up the steps in the drizzle, glanced at the family members cleaning up the accumulated water in the courtyard, and said lightly: "Is the master here?"

This is the Patriarch's Mansion of the Dugu Clan, and it was also the former residence of Duguzheng. He let it out after he stepped down as Patriarch, but Dugu Cheng did not stay here to show his respect and respect for the old Patriarch.

"The Patriarch's time has come! I am reading in the study, please come with me, the old Patriarch." The housekeeper hurriedly walked towards the mansion with Dugu.

Dugu Cheng was probably informed by someone, and when they arrived at the backyard, they were already waiting in front of the courtyard gate. After the salute and meeting, the two uncles and nephews did not exchange many greetings, and walked into the study in a tacit understanding one after the other.

Dugu Cheng consciously let Duguzhen sit on the head seat, and sat down himself. In front of this uncle, he never put on airs as the head of the family. The person who can become the head of a big family is naturally not the lawless second generation ancestor, on the contrary. , They are humble and polite, respect their teachers, and respect their elders, unless the elders rely on the old to sell the old and violate his interests. In addition to good conduct, they also set a good example for the tribe and the younger generations.

A maid came in with a tea tray, and after Dugu moistened his throat, Dugu Cheng said worriedly: "Uncle Qi, how is the discussion going in the hall?"

Dugu Cheng has been running the family, so he did not serve in the Li Tang Dynasty. Although he has a title and vacant position, he has never participated in the early court and discussed state affairs.

Duguzhen sneered: "The emperor decided to search Xiangyang for soldiers who could fight, and gathered a hundred thousand soldiers for them to drive."

Dugu Cheng was taken aback: "In this way, there will be no soldiers in Xiangyang to fight. If our army is disadvantaged in the front and falls into a stalemate, Xue Wanjun will raise troops from Shangluo Shangjin along the Jiashui River Valley, avoiding the heavily guarded Wuguan, the outer Wuguan attacked Xun Township of Xiyang by force, and came straight to Xiangyang. What would Xiangyang do to resist? What's more serious is that if Xue Wanjun made a dangerous move and captured Fengli in Xicheng County along Jiashui, he would penetrate the empty Fangling. County, and finally occupied Badong Zigui, then Jingshu was cut in two by the Sui army, and fell into a predicament that could not be connected end to end. At that time, it would be impossible to retreat into Bashu. Even if the emperor could not think of such a simple matter, could there be no one with thousands of civil and military personnel? see through?"

"Hey!" Dugu smiled bluntly: "Don't you think it's incredible?"

Dugu Cheng pondered for a while, then suddenly said: "Seventh uncle is saying that the emperor is worried about staying in the imperial capital, Li Deliang and Dou Gui who are in charge of the military, so he took away all the soldiers who could fight?"

"The emperor always valued military power, so the main generals of the major forces are not Li Shimin, Li Yuanji, Li Xiaogong, Li Shentong, Li Deliang, Li Daozong and other Li family members, but also Chai Shao, Feng Shaoshi and other sons-in-law. Even he is not at ease with his family members. From this Eastern Expedition, it can be seen that Li Yuan has always controlled the entire army in the overall situation. Although this so-called overall situation led to the annihilation of Li Xiaogong's entire army, Li Yuan did a good job and left the responsibility to Li Xiaogong... Now that the Eastern Expedition failed, let alone, The Li Tang Dynasty was in a very bad situation. The emperor was worried that when he went out to fight, the people who held the military power would have a different heart at this time, so he ignored the national conditions and drained all the soldiers who could fight in Xiangyang!" Said At this point, Duguzheng guessed uncertainly: "I suspect that the emperor has long wanted to conquer himself."

“How come you see?”

"I'm not sure either!" Dugu shook his head and expressed his doubts: "I guessed it from the prince's action to help the king of Jin. Not to mention that the prince has no experience in leading troops, and he has a relationship with the king of Jin." Isn't the emperor worried that the prince will harm the king of Jin? But he still does this, which shows that the emperor is quite dissatisfied with the military, and the voice of "the court interferes too much in the military" not only did not make the emperor put down his military power, but also angered him. Let him give birth to the ambition to directly control the army. The imperial conquest is the best excuse to seize military power, but he is not worried about the prince who is in the imperial capital, so he sent the prince away."

Dugu Cheng took a deep breath: "If, as Uncle Qi said, he doesn't even believe his sons, then who else would he believe?"

"He only believes in himself." After Dugu Zheng made his assertion, he recalled: "Maybe it has something to do with his personal experience. When he succeeded the Duke of Tang, the emperor was less than ten years old. Him? Even so, his situation in the Li family is actually very bad, and he has been restrained and humiliated by the elders of the clan for a long time, which has also cultivated him to be very cautious."

Dugu Cheng was silent for a moment, and said, "Where does Seventh Uncle think the hope of our family lies?"

"I think Li Mi is a good choice. We might as well have a secret contact with Li Mi. If Li Mi can satisfy us, we can let the power hidden in the south give him support! If he occupies half of the southern country, even if he can't defeat Yang Tong, he can protect himself." There is more than enough, since then the confrontation between the North and the South has reappeared in the world. At the critical moment, we can emulate the clothes of the Eastern Jin gentry and move to the south to recuperate. I think we can go to Jiangdu and Dongning to buy some properties now, what do you think?" In terms of major family decisions, Duguzheng has always given the new patriarch a lot of face, and also attributed some of his good strategies to the other party, trying to help Dugu Cheng establish the authority of the patriarch, so that the Dugu family, which has a large family and business, has achieved a change from the old to the new.

"I think it's feasible!" Dugu Cheng nodded, and said with a smile, "I have some good news or bad news to tell Uncle Qi."

"you say!"

"The children of the Buzai family in Yecheng sent a piece of news as quickly as possible. If this is true, we may not have to travel south in the future."

"What time is it, are you still rambling?" Seeing his nephew showing off, Dugu stared with extreme dissatisfaction.

Dugu Cheng said slightly excitedly: "The head of the Wei family, Wei Kuangbo, did not give up on the Sui Dynasty, so he let his second son Wei Siqi stay in Yecheng, and kept lobbying the Queen Mother Wei of the Sui Dynasty, and Wei Yunqi, the servant of Shangshu... However, Wei Siqi repeatedly hit the wall, but he couldn't help it. Speaking of Empress Dowager Wei, even Wei Yunqi won't be able to see her..."

This is a fair secret, and it is not uncommon. Many spies from aristocratic families are watching this son, and Dugu's is no exception. As soon as his nephew said this, Dugu knew that there must be something to say.

Dugu Cheng continued: "The news said: Wei Yunqi suddenly met Wei Siqi in the middle of the night and brought him into the Shenwu Palace. After Wei Siqi quietly returned to his place of residence, he was very excited... I think Wei Siqi, who represents Wei Siqi, has succeeded. "

Dugu's eyes sparkled: "I think so too."

Dugu Cheng nodded, and said dubiously: "But Yang Tong regards the world's aristocratic family as an enemy, and has been suppressing him all the way. Does Uncle Qi think he will change? What is the original intention of the change?"

"When Yang Tong started, the Guanlong family supported Li Yuan, the Guandong family supported Yang Tan, and the southern gentry scattered around. Yang Tong knew that no matter how well he sold, he would not be able to gain the power of the family. If so, why waste time on the family ?So he put all his eggs in one basket, fell to the poor family, became the leader of the poor family, and the support of the poor people in the world...Let him achieve today's hegemony...But today is different...As Chai Shao said: Yang Tong divides his troops everywhere, and the follow-up is weak , he adopted a steady offensive, which is seriously different from his previous style. He cannot be defeated, dare not be defeated, and is in the same difficult situation. He needs to unite all the forces that can be united in order to win this battle of unifying the world. Besides , Even if all the current aristocratic families are wiped out by him, those civil and military officials under his command will grow into aristocratic families in a few decades."

Seeing that Dugu Cheng was thinking, Duguzheng continued: "I always think that people who don't know how to compromise can't make a big climate, and Yang Tong is obviously not such a person! He was in a bad situation before, and he needed to shout some slogans to attract talents. Now The general situation is under control, and he is ready to do what the emperor should do. It's just that he was very cautious, for fear of chilling the hearts of his subjects, so he let Queen Mother Wei come forward!"

"Who should we look for? The empress dowager, the empress dowagers of the two palaces, or the empress?" Dugu Cheng smiled wryly.

"That's a problem!" Duguzhen also felt a bit of a headache. Judging from Wei Siqi's incident, Yang Tong obviously didn't want to show up, so Wei Siqi was asked to take the harem route. Dong's big plan, the Dugu family is completely doing things like stealing chickens without losing money.

After thinking hard for a long time, Duguzhen suddenly thought of one person, raised his head and said, "I remember you and Fang Xuanling traveled to Liangzhou together and admired each other. Fang Xuanling has won the trust of Yang Tong, and now he is one of the important figures in the Central Plains. You Why not just go to Luoyang to find out. By the way, it is said that Fang Xuanling is gentle, elegant, and suave! But she has a very high vision, so so far she only has one wife, you might as well pick ten of the most outstanding singers from the clan and take them with her."

"Okay!" Dugu Cheng thought for a while, and also thought that Fang Xuanling was a breakthrough, and felt that sending beautiful women was very high-end. Although the case of 'jealousy' caused a sensation in the world, he definitely did not believe it... think that the world is exaggerating and spreading rumors... the world There is really such a jealous woman who has long been given up by the "seven outs" rule.

These days, which promising man doesn't have three wives and four concubines?Look at this old man in front of you... er, look at Yang Tong, surrounded by thousands of beauties, who can ask for anything!Therefore, embracing beauty in one's arms is not lustful, but elegant and fashionable, which fits Fang Xuanling's identity very well!
(End of this chapter)