Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 674 Information Cocoon Room
"Move away, move away, take off your shoes!"

In the lobby of the mansion in Kaifeng County, Fang Zhongyong excitedly greeted Da Congming and others, and spread an extremely large map that was more than two meters wide on the ground.

The specifications of this map are unprecedented. Even if Brother Ji were to be resurrected, he would have to shout "Oh shit".

The map was too large to be hung up, so it could only be spread out on the wooden boards in the hall of the house for viewing.

“Sir, we still need to continue drawing this map. It’s just an outline now.

There are more details that I cannot handle by myself. I estimate that it will take... a long time to finish the painting."

Jia Dan saluted Fang Zhongyong with his arms crossed and said, being very modest and not boastful. Ever since the other party sent Li Sheng to bring his fiancée, Lady Su, from Chang'an to Bianzhou for the wedding, he had been wholeheartedly helping this Marshal Fang.

It is about doing things with your heart, rather than just doing them casually.

"Don't talk yet, let me take a look."

Fang Zhongyong looked at the oversized map on the ground with a smile on his face, and walked carefully on it, feeling extremely satisfied. When Brother Ji controlled the Tang Dynasty for decades, he had never achieved such a feat.

The main reason is that his mind is all on art and women, and after achieving some achievements, he begins to indulge himself.

As for whether the map is bigger or smaller, it doesn’t matter to Brother Ji, and it matters even less to other ministers.

It is easy to sketch a map, but to draw it in detail, the paper must be large, which is still difficult to produce. Once the paper size exceeds the normal specification, special technology is required to process it, and this is just the material for drawing the map, not to mention other things.

On the surface, it seems like a "simple task", but in fact it is a reflection of national strength. All states and counties are marked on the map, and there are mountains, rivers and roads.

Once completed, it will surely be a masterpiece that will be passed down from generation to generation.

Fang Chongyong thought to himself.

"You said that I can't see or touch this city, so I can only look at the map and imagine it.

It is said that the emperor is rich as the world, but in fact, when he sits on the dragon throne, what he hears are the words conveyed to him by the eunuchs, and what he sees are the documents and pictures conveyed to him by the eunuchs.

For the emperor, with such a vast territory, perhaps he would only be interested in seeing the products from various places in front of him.

The rest, the emperor can’t see or touch.”

Fang Chongyong suddenly waved his hand in a bored manner. When he thought of the helplessness of expanding the territory on the map, the excitement he had just felt quickly dissipated without a trace.

The map is good, but it’s just so-so. It’s okay to just take a look at it, but don’t fool yourself.

Having seen too many things in his previous life, Fang Zhongyong would not be too surprised by anything he saw now. As for the ambitions that the emperor had because of his wealth, he did not have even a fraction of them and was completely unmotivated.

It's just a map of expansion. What you see are maps, and what you hear are rumors from ministers and eunuchs. As long as you don't leave the palace, the emperor is just a poor creature wrapped in an information cocoon.

This feeling is like a person who stays in the house and does not go out, and cannot see the landslides and tsunamis outside. He will always fill in the unknown world according to his own imagination.

Whether it was the expansion of territory or the prosperous times, the emperor had never seen it with his own eyes, and could only hear about it from others.

Even if the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty was on the verge of the destruction of his country and the ruin of his family, as long as the people around him served him well and coaxed him well, and instilled in him the illusion that the world was still peaceful and prosperous, the Emperor might even believe that the country was peaceful and the Tang Dynasty's military had already swept across West Asia.

The joy of being an emperor obviously does not lie in this. At least Fang Zhongyong cannot feel any happiness or sense of accomplishment.

"Put the map away and work hard to complete it. Don't give up even if it takes you ten or twenty years. Just think of it as leaving a treasure for future generations."

Fang Zhongyong sighed, raised his hand gently and signaled Jia Dan to put away the map and leave.

He was obviously stimulated, and the mood that had just been raised fell again.

"I will do my best, please take care of yourself, Marshal."

After Jia Dan asked a few clerks to pack up the maps, Chong Yong saluted with his hands crossed.

Although Fang Zhongyong has not yet proclaimed himself emperor, almost everyone in Bianzhou regards him as the emperor. As for the "real" emperor Li Lin, no one cares what he thinks.

The dog emperor is of no use at all, he might as well be hung on a flagpole!

However, Jia Dan could never see Fang Zhongyong's "smug" look. If we really want to make an analogy, it's like a person who is used to eating big fish and meat and is not hungry, and today he is served a dish of pork elbow.

It’s not bad, but that’s it. You can choose not to eat it.

If everyone did not believe that Fang Zhongyong would change the dynasty, Jia Dan believed that it was not impossible for this powerful official to die of old age.

After Jia Dan left, Fang Zhongyong looked at Da Congming and asked, "How do you feel when you see this map?"

Da Congming replied: "The emperor is rich and powerful. After seeing this map, I know why so many people want to be the emperor." Because Fang Zhongyong didn't like to make trouble, Da Congming answered casually and was not too nervous.

"Hehe, you are the same type as Kaishen."

Fang Zhongyong said something that made Dacongming feel puzzled.

"I am guilty and should be punished."

Da Congming quickly apologized, but he had no idea where he was wrong.

"Even if you have the money to buy 10,000 beds, you can only sleep on one bed and live in one room. It is true that the emperor is rich, but I have never seen an emperor eat dozens of kilograms of food in one meal.

"With only one room, one bed, and three bowls of rice, the emperor is still poor, and rich as hell!"

Fang Zhongyong couldn't help but swear.

When it comes to extravagance, no one in the Tang Dynasty can surpass Brother Ji. However, those are all meaningless decorations.

The money that Ji Ge spent on himself was negligible. Most of the time, it was just to maintain his own "respectability".

Specifically speaking, human greed comes from "face", "affection" and "scene". In many cases, kung fu is done for others to see, not for yourself.

The feudal system of hereditary rule distorts human nature, and the emperor himself is actually one of the victims. It's just that he and others often don't realize it.

"Go ahead. I want to be alone for a while."

Fang Chongyong waved his hand impatiently.

Da Congming didn't know what he had done wrong, nor did he know why the other party suddenly became unhappy, so he had to leave the door in embarrassment.

A lord like Fang Qing is relatively easy to serve, at least he won't kill people or demote officials at will. But some people are not so easy to serve, and some will kill people at will.

For example, after Shi Siming failed in his last attack on Yecheng and fell off the city wall and was injured, his temperament changed drastically and he became extremely cruel in his daily life.

Shi Siming always carried an oversized Tang Dynasty sword on his waist. Whenever his followers and ministers met him, they would draw their swords and kill anyone who said something wrong.

There was no warning beforehand.

Therefore, Shi Siming's notoriety spread far and wide, and even Fang Chongyong knew about it.

"The battle of Yecheng will change the world's situation. Who will take the first move?" Fang Chongyong paced in the main hall, muttering to himself.

He was calculating the battle situation in his mind, but he was always unsure who would take the first step! This dull feeling before the storm was suffocating.

The first move at the beginning is different, and the subsequent moves will be very different. Fang Zhongyong just can't figure out where and when this battle will start.

Li Baochen from Guanzhong, An Shouzhong from Luoyang, Li Guiren from Yecheng, Shi Siming from Hebei. If Li Huaiguang from Zezhou is also included, there are five players in this game besides Fang Zhongyong, and the relationships between them are complicated and their strengths vary.

Logically speaking, it is very likely that Li Huaiguang will take the first step, and his first stop may very well be Yecheng.

But this is just conventional speculation. Conventions are the least important thing on the battlefield. Any general with a bit of brains would hope to "win by surprise."

My head hurts. This is probably the price of not being a waste. A waste like Li Lin doesn't need to think about anything, but he can't do anything either.

Fang Zhongyong sat down on the main seat, crossed his legs, and rubbed his temples.

At this moment, Da Congming came in hurriedly again, looking anxious, as if something big had happened.

"Tell me what's going on."

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Fang Zhongyong waved his hands helplessly and asked.

"Sir, Lord Yan wants to see you. Urgent military information!"

Da Congming saluted Fang Zhongyong with his hands crossed, bending down but not daring to raise his arms.

"Don't be so nervous. Your half-sister is my concubine after all."

Fang Zhongyong helped Da Congming up and patted him on the shoulder.

Often, a person's aura and dignity are affected by their status. Even though Fang Zhongyong would never be cold to others, the people around him would still have an indescribable awe towards him.

Da Congming was as if he had been pardoned, and invited Yan Zhuang into the hall. As soon as they met, Yan Zhuang said worriedly: "Sir, the biting dog doesn't bark. An Shouzhong personally led the troops from the three cities of Heyang, attacked Huaizhou on a snowy night, and attacked the camp outside the city. The Konghe Army was defeated, and the remnants have retreated to Zezhou, and Huaizhou City has also been lost."

ha?
Fang Chongyong thought he had heard wrongly.

"An Shouzhong? How could it be him?"

The news that Yan Zhuang brought was far beyond Fang Zhongyong's expectations.

In fact, in his opinion, An Shouzhong should be the least anxious one. Because of Fang Zhongyong's arrangement, the battlefield has objectively been transferred from Luoyang to Yecheng.

An Shouzhong was definitely not the first one to be hit! He had no reason to attack first.

Fang Chongyong thought it was normal for Li Guiren to attack Li Huaiguang. After all, Li Huaiguang himself said that he wanted to attack Li Guiren, so why shouldn't others take the initiative?
"Marshal, I heard that the morale of An Shouzhong's men is high. Could it be because of the money we sent?"

Yan Zhuang thought of something and his expression turned strange.

Many things seem to have no rules, but in fact they are full of mysteries.

Luoyang has a large population and money, so An Shouzhong's troops are not short of food and fodder. In addition, they have recently recruited soldiers and rewarded soldiers, so they are not short of morale.

Finally, there is one more point. Huaizhou is located on the north bank of the Yellow River, and Luoyang is directly opposite to the south. An Shouzhong's troops have been stationed in Luoyang for several years, so they would not be unaware of the terrain of Huaizhou.

On the contrary, the Konghe Army under Li Huaiguang was a foreign army and was not familiar with the geography of Huaizhou. In addition, the money from looting Chang'an had been almost used up, and the land in Zezhou was small and the output was limited. I think these soldiers were not living a comfortable life.

It seems that all the right time, right place and right people are on An Shouzhong's side.

"It seems that my deployment has done more harm than good."

Fang Zhongyong smiled helplessly and nodded to Yan Zhuang. The two of them quickly went out and headed towards the Privy Council. The unexpected situation of the war forced them to redeploy.

……

Handan City is just a small county under Mingzhou. Its scale is incomparable to Handan, the capital of Zhao State during the Warring States Period.

This is where the vanguard of Shi Siming's army is stationed, and the purpose is to provide early warning. They can attack Yecheng if they advance, and they can buy time to defend Mingzhou City if they retreat.

It was an ordinary move, but it showed the commander's experience in using troops.

Tian Qianzhen, the main general in the army, was a general under Shi Siming, both wise and brave. In the process of conquering Shi Chaoyi, Tian Qianzhen made many contributions. But later Shi Siming was suspicious of him and feared that he would defect to Shi Chaoyi, so he sent him to defend the south of Youzhou and no longer be responsible for attacking Pinglu Town.

Tian Qianzhen waited in Handan for so long that he was almost bored, but no major war broke out. As the end of the year approached, he also relaxed his vigilance.

In Tian Qianzhen's opinion, the possibility of Li Guiren attacking Handan was very small. As for Li Huaiguang, he was just a wild dog that anyone could kick, so there was no need to be afraid of him.

On this day, Tian Qianzhen waited for the envoy sent by Bianzhou in the county government office, and then he happily took the envoy to the signing room of the county government office for a secret talk.

Now the Bianzhou court is powerful, governing dozens of wealthy states and counties, and can be won over by any means. Don't offend them unless it is absolutely necessary.

Tian Qianzhen had a clear understanding of the current world situation. Shi Siming asked him to be a worker, so he also wanted to "make his own decisions".

"General Tian, ​​this is the emperor's sincere gift, please accept it."

The envoy Yuan Zai opened a wooden box, which contained a thick stack of paper, which was somewhat similar to the Jiaozi of the past.

The originally amiable smile on Tian Qianzhen's face disappeared at a speed visible to the naked eye!
"I heard that your officials are very good at dealing with people, but I didn't expect that you would look down on Tian so much. Someone, show me away!"

Tian Qianzhen didn't even ask any questions and just drove the person away!
Yuan Zai shouted: "General Tian, ​​you misunderstood..."

Before he could finish, Tian Qianzhen's personal soldiers had already picked up sticks and beat Yuan Zai out!

There is a reason why Tian Qian was really angry.

In order to carry and hide his valuables more conveniently, he exchanged all the cloth, gold and silver for Jiaozi.

He thought he was smart at that time, and then... nothing happened.

Now Fang Qing actually used Jiaozi to bribe him. This is simply too much!
Tian Qian felt as if he had eaten a plate of green-headed flies and was extremely disgusted.

It is particularly hateful when a guy who knows how to behave and do things pretends to be stupid and gives "wrong gifts". He does it on purpose to disgust people!

Tian Qianzhen thought about it and didn't understand why Fang Qing did this. Logically, he had never offended the other party before, right?

At this time, a trusted aide hurried into the signing room and said as soon as they met: "General Tian, ​​An Shouzhong launched a surprise attack on Huaizhou, and the Konghe Army was defeated and retreated to Zezhou."

ha?
Tian Qian was stunned. Thinking about Yuan Zai's visit just now, he shouted to his staff, "Quick! Go and call back the envoy from Bianzhou!"

Li Huaiguang's defeat has thrown the situation into chaos. If he offends the people in Bianzhou, he won't be able to play this game any more.

After all, Tian Qianzhen had never thought of helping Shi Siming to capture cities and territories. He wanted to learn from Li Guiren and establish his own vassal state! To offend Fang Qing at this time would be courting death!

(End of this chapter)