Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 400: What Yu Shufang said

Hall of Mental Cultivation,
In the imperial study,

The bronze cauldron is burning with green smoke, exuding bursts of fragrance, with a long aftertaste, refreshing and refreshing, and it is the best spice.

The chambermaids and palace maids in the distance stood respectfully around, not a trace of movement was heard, and the atmosphere seemed a bit quiet.

Emperor Wu sat on the soft couch behind the desk, then took three memorials from the upper left corner of the desk and placed them in front of him. He looked at one red and two yellow memorials, sighed with emotion, and said in a deep voice,
"When I received Lin Aiqing's last wish, I was very sad. Such a loyal person to the court should end up like this. It is really undeserved. I agreed to Lin Aiqing's last wish. His only daughter Lin Daiyu hopes that Aiqing will treat her well. , I have the grace to promulgate it.”

"My lord, Zhang Jinyu will remember your Majesty's words and will definitely treat Yu'er well. He will also thank the emperor for his kindness on behalf of his father-in-law and Yu'er."

Zhang Jinyu stood up and continued to salute and thank him.

"Get up, sit down and answer."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Zhang Jinyu stood up carefully and took a seat. She thanked the emperor for his concern. She thought of Yu'er's condition and didn't know how she was going back home.

When he was distracted, Emperor Wu Zhou Shihong picked up Zhang Jinyu's "Pinglu Ce", opened it, and then asked thoughtfully;

"My dear, do you think this battle will be fought or not? If it is fought, how sure are you that it can be won?"

After asking, he picked up the memorial written by Zhang Jinyu and then put it down again. It was really difficult to make a decision.

When Zhang Jinyu saw the emperor asking questions, her face straightened and she did not reply. Instead, she turned to look at the eunuch and maid serving at the entrance of the imperial study room and replied,
"Your Majesty, please step aside."

Emperor Wu's eyes narrowed, he glanced at the servants and others around him, and said in a deep voice,

"Dai Quan, let them all go down."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Dai Quan immediately turned around and drove out all the serving eunuchs and maids, leaving himself and Queen Chunhe from Kunning Palace alone to serve here.

After Zhang Jinyu saw the people leaving, he stood up and went to the wall on the right not far from the bookcase. On it was a map of Dawu territory, from outside the pass to inside the pass, connecting to the south, and even the grassland and the southernmost night kingdom.
Zhang Jinyu pointed to the territory map and first said,

"Returning to your majesty, I will tell you the truth. I have never fought against the Donghu people. According to the court's past record, I am not sure that I can win. The victory or defeat is only [-]-[-], and there is only half a chance. If your majesty still wants to ask me whether to fight, , I just say one word, fight, fight hard, even if you really lose, you will fight!"

With this remark,
the house was silent,

The emperor, empress, three princes, Dai Quan and others were speechless and looked over in shock. Especially Emperor Wu couldn't believe such an answer. He thought Marquis Luo Yun would say that there was a chance of winning.

Hearing this reply, I was a little confused and asked,
"Ai Qing, do you mean that we may not win this battle?"

"Your Majesty, yes, but I can promise not to lose."

"how do I say this?"

Emperor Wu frowned and asked. He couldn't sit still. He stood up and walked down. He came to the territory map and looked at Zhang Jinyu.

"Your Majesty, please take a look,"

Zhang Jinyu pointed with her finger to the north of the territory map, where Jinbeiguan is located, and continued,

"This is the Northern Pass of Shanxi. It is alone in the gap between two mountains. It is easy to defend but difficult to attack. It is a decisive battle with the Youxian King of the Eastern Hu Dynasty, Jie Tihou. It is also a geographical advantage for our dynasty.

The main purpose of the minister in the early stage was to kill and injure the soldiers of the tribe under Qie Tihou's command, and then gather the elites of the imperial court to fight decisively outside the pass with Qie Tihou's main force, striving to inflict heavy damage on him.

Let him no longer have the strength to attack the border in the next five years, and let the border pass recuperate. If I can't defeat him, I will return to the pass. If I can, I will directly pursue the border grassland. I originally planned to go to full-scale war, but considering that His Majesty and the court still have doubts, so We can only fight armies against armies, against generals, at the pass. "Emperor Wu's eyes were fixed on the Shanbei Pass, and he was also thinking about what Luo Yunhou said. The location is advantageous and the city defense is advantageous. However, after leaving the pass, there are only a few valley corridors, and after that there is a vast grassland. It is really There may not be much geographical advantage, and we don’t know what the outcome will be when the decisive battle comes.

Thinking of another method mentioned by Marquis Luo Yun, he asked doubtfully,

"Ai Qing has another plan. What is an all-out war?"

Zhang Jinyu did not expect that Emperor Wu would ask this question, so without hesitation, she stretched out her hand and continued pointing north, reaching the territory of the East Hu people in the grassland, and said;
"Your Majesty, please see that the Donghu people are divided into three tribes. To the north where the royal court is, they compete with the Yuezhi people for pasture water. On the lower left, there is the tribe of Zuoxian King Yizhi Huxie. The main force is all in the southwest, fighting with the Xianbei people. In the confrontation, only Jie Tihou's troops have been harassing Dawu. I feel that I can either severely injure Jie Tihou, or go straight into the tiger's den and enter the grassland to attack from behind. That is to attack from Pingyun City outside the pass, aiming at King Jie Tihou. The account goes straight to Huanglong."

After speaking, he slammed his fist on the map of the hinterland of King Donghu Youxian's grassland.

Having said that,

Emperor Wu Zhou Shihong's face turned red, his heart burst with pride, and his blood surged. He had such a bold idea that he couldn't help but pace back and forth in front of the desk, his face changing again and again.
"Marquis Luo Yun, let me ask you, how many troops and horses are needed according to the plan you mentioned?"

"Your Majesty, we need [-] elite cavalry, and each man has three horses. The men and horses will never rest."

Emperor Wu Zhou Shihong stopped and turned his head suddenly.
"Are you sure what will happen to them if they are discovered in the hinterland?"

Zhang Jinyu was silent. This plan was extremely risky. It was to follow Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty's Northern Expedition to the Huns. He sent General Wei Qing to coordinate the overall situation, attract the main force of the Huns head-on, and let Huo Qubing lead an army to raid the royal court, seize the wolf as a slave, and establish an unstoppable plan. The achievements of this world will be recorded in the annals of history, but I am really not sure about it. No one knows how the battle situation will change in an instant.

"Your Majesty, I'm not sure. It all depends on God's will. If the Donghu people really find out, they can run back as long as the main force is not around. If they are surrounded by the main force, the whole army may be annihilated. So I can't guarantee it, so I can only do my best. "

"I know that your fighting method is based on the fighting method used by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty when he fought against the Xiongnu. Dangerous moves are a good move, but today, the people on the grassland are not stupid, and the royal court also has heavy troops. Guard, although the [-] elite cavalry you want are powerful, the supplies cannot keep up. The situation on the grassland is unknown. The risk is too great. I can't afford to gamble. You know that [-] elite cavalry and [-] horses are the power of the imperial court. Part of the property was lost, and the courtiers were even hesitant about whether to fight or not.”

Emperor Wu Zhou Shihong also felt depressed in his heart, and he also envied the capable ministers and generals of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty at that time, as well as his luck. But now that times have changed, some things may not be possible, so he should be more cautious. Furthermore, there are still questions to ask. Be thinner.

"Your Majesty, since this kind of fighting style is too extreme, let's fight steadily. With great military strength and financial resources, we can directly kill and raise the marquis. No matter how rich the reserves are on the grassland, they will never be as good as those in the pass. I saw in Jiangnan that the people here are rich. It is huge, and there are also a large number of high-quality paddy fields, and some rice can be harvested three times a year. It is really the granary of the world. As long as the reserves are sufficient, Dawu can destroy any powerful country, even two Donghu people are not afraid."

Zhang Jinyu saw that Emperor Wu had always been cautious, so it was easy to handle. War depends on the strength of the country. As long as there is enough money, food, grass and weapons, we can fight at any cost. As for soldiers, people are not forced out.

Emperor Wu was also encouraged by Zhang Jinyu's words of encouragement. It was not bad when he thought about it, but the worry in his heart still lingered. It would be good if he didn't fight and settled for the status quo. Fighting might not be beneficial, but in his heart I wanted to fight, and for no other reason than to boost morale after taking the throne and weaken the power of some people to lead troops.

"My dear, tell me about this battle. Why do you insist on fighting?"

Zhang Jinyu saluted again, then stood in front of the Dawu Territory Map and said;

"Your Majesty, please see that King Youxian of Donghu has become more and more powerful. In recent years, he has been testing various passes in the north. His troops, including the Eagle Division, Tiger Division, Wolf Division and Bear Division of the Wang Zhang, are the four elite wolf divisions. The cavalry remained motionless. They were all soldiers and horses from the tribes under King Youxian trying desperately to test.
As a result, the defenders in some places in Dawu were exhausted. It is inevitable that the defenders in some places were negligent. If Tihou noticed it, he would definitely send a large number of troops to attack this place and raid the pass.
Breaking through the city pass and entering the pass, at that time, with the mobility of the Donghu cavalry, the pass would be full of smoke. Furthermore, Your Majesty, you must maintain a high-pressure posture against the grassland people at all times. Years ago, the Jurchens believed that Dawu was weakening. As a result, he disobeyed the emperor's orders and then rebelled and became self-reliant. Therefore, to boost the morale of the court and the various armies was to support war with war, forget Confucian etiquette, and fight with all his strength. "

Seeing that Emperor Wu was still listening, Zhang Jinyu did not stop and continued,
"Your Majesty, all the dynasties in the past dynasties declined due to internal and external troubles, but the Han Dynasty was the only one that died by force. This is really a sigh. This just shows that the court must maintain sufficient combat power and deterrence. If you want to suppress them, There is only one battle, your majesty. If we continue to fight, we will inevitably suffer chaos. Your majesty has made up his mind long ago and starts preparations now. I believe that when the time comes, Jie Tihou will be caught off guard. This battle is related to the fate of the court and the country, and it also buys time for your majesty."

After Zhang Jinyu finished speaking, he stepped back and stood aside. What he said was true. If Emperor Wu wanted to get rid of the influence of the Supreme Emperor or those nobles, he would definitely establish a new military title. Only for himself, then no matter it was for himself, Still for the emperor, he must fight.

Zhou Shihong silently walked back to the desk, sat down, and weighed it over and over in his mind. He understood what Marquis Luo Yun said, and his meaning was even more straightforward. If he won, he would be able to implement his secret plan earlier, and the time would be up. abundant,
Even if it is defeated, I am afraid that the court will be unstable. However, since Luo Yunhou seems to be so sure, this battle can be fought, but he cannot express his position on this. Baoning Hou still needs to inquire.

"Okay, I have remembered Aiqing's words. This matter is not urgent. I will think about it again. I plan to open a mansion for the three princes outside the palace in the past few days. Does Luo Yunhou have anything to say?"

Zhang Jinyu was stunned for a moment, why had the topic changed? He secretly glanced at the three young ladies not far away. They were quite handsome and not short anymore. He was afraid that they were already over ten years old. If he opened the palace, he would just get out of the palace. I've passed it by myself, isn't that good?
"Returning to your Majesty, I agree with your Majesty's decision. It's time for the three princes to go out and build a mansion. This is also a rare opportunity for the three princes to gain experience. I congratulate the three princes."

Zhang Jinyu pretended to be overjoyed and saluted the three princes standing on the other side. The three princes didn't know what they were thinking. They were at a loss and didn't know what to do. They stayed there until Zhang Jinyu took back the gift. He stood up, realized what he was doing, and hurriedly returned a salute, which made Emperor Wu frown.

"It's time to go out and experience it. I even forgot about etiquette."

Queen Jiang Yuqing was also a little angry that the three of them were so ignorant of etiquette today, but she was concerned and anxious and couldn't help but speak,
"Marquis Luo Yun, I also want to ask you. The three princes have gone out to open a mansion, and I have been worried. I wonder if Marquis Luo Yun has time to come over and help."

Zhang Jinyu didn't quite understand what the so-called "helping" meant. Three princes were helping three others. Isn't this a nanny? They were still rich princes. They were looking for trouble. But how could they refuse? She felt a little embarrassed for a moment.

(End of this chapter)