Everything starts from Menghualu

Chapter 374: Yangzhou War and Stalemate
"Where did you find this person? Do you know where he came from?" Wang Shanquan asked

"Father, this man came to my son on his own. He is the owner of Lanxiaofang. When my son went there that day, he was planning to leave, but he was invited to see him."

"When I met him, he told me about the situation in the capital. My son was very conflicted at the time, wondering whether he should bring him to see his father. Later, he took the risk and brought him here."

"Father, do you think his words are credible?" Wang Ai asked

"It doesn't matter whether it's credible or not. Now the court wants to take action against me. No matter whether the other things he said are true or false, at least this thing is true."

"As for the rest, we'll have to wait and see. Okay, you can leave first and prepare well. It's hard to say whether we can survive this time," Wang Shanquan said.

After hearing this, Wang Ai immediately bowed and left. Wang Shanquan looked at his son's leaving back and shook his head helplessly.

Then he said to himself with a gloomy face, "Do you really think that I, Wang, am easy to bully? If you want to fight, then come on. I want to see if you have what it takes!"

Time passed slowly, and as the prince finished his preparations, an imperial edict came out from the palace. The meaning of the imperial edict was very simple, requiring Wang Shanquan to go to Beijing to meet the emperor.

Yes, it is that simple. How could Wang Shanquan go to Beijing when he knew that he could not go back after going there? The final result was naturally that Wang Shanquan disobeyed the order.

At this time in the imperial study of the palace, Emperor Rong was discussing something with the Crown Prince.

"Chun'er, now everything is ready, it's time to go to war. This battle is very important to us. If we fail, then what will happen?" Emperor Rong said
"Father, please rest assured. I have made a lot of preparations this time. You have arranged capable generals. I think it will be absolutely foolproof. However, in order to avoid any accidents."

"I think we should also issue an order to several nearby states to ask them to send troops to assist. No matter what they do, they are a threat to Wang Shanquan." The prince said
"Okay, let's do it this way. Okay Chun'er, you go back and prepare and make sure there are no mistakes. You can go and see him off in person in three days." After Emperor Rong finished speaking, he waved his hand.

The prince knew that it was time for him to leave, so he bowed and left the imperial study.

And because at this time, the entire capital was once again in turmoil, but they did not think too much about it, after all, many things had been guessed before.

Three days passed in a flash. The army set out to fight and the prince saw them off. It can be said that everything went very smoothly. The prince looked at the army going away and couldn't help but feel excited.

At this time, Wang Shanquan had also made preparations. He was standing in front of the sand table in silence, not knowing what he was thinking.

"Father, according to what our people have secretly learned, except for Qingzhou, the other states have really not made any moves, and have not made any private preparations. It really let Luo Zishang do it."

"Father, what should we do next?" Wang Ai asked excitedly.

"The next step is of course to prepare for the battle. Okay, go and ask Luo Zishang to come. Remember to be polite. Since he really did it, I, as a father, cannot break my promise." Wang Shanquan said

After hearing this, Wang Ai felt even happier. After all, it was he who recommended Luo Zishang. Now that his father values ​​Luo Zishang, doesn't that mean that he also values ​​him?
He was now walking at the front among many brothers, but unlike his son's excitement, Wang Shanquan was not so happy at this moment, or rather, he was calm.

After all, this time it is a war against the imperial court, and he can be said to have rebelled now. And since ancient times, in such matters, the first rafter to stick out will rot first.

Now that he was forced to be the first, how could he be happy?

When Luo Zishang learned that Wang Shanquan summoned him, a bright smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. Then he got up and walked towards the Jiedu Mansion. He arrived at the mansion soon.

"Mr. Luo, we meet again. Let's forget about this. I never thought that you would actually do it. Since you did it, I will do what I said."

"From now on, you are the military advisor of my Yangzhou Army." Wang Shanquan said directly

"Luo Zishang, hello, my lord." After hearing this, Luo Zishang naturally stood up and saluted.

"Sir, please stand up. The imperial army has already set out. In your opinion, how should we respond?" Wang Shanquan asked directly
"My lord, there is no need to worry about this matter. Our Yangzhou army is superior in both combat power and weapons, so as long as we plan properly, there will be no worries."

"I think what we should consider now is how to take advantage of this opportunity to swallow up Qingzhou. If we can accomplish this, then we will be able to move forward and backward freely." Luo Zishang said

"Hmm? Sir, your ideas are really different from ordinary people. The imperial army is right in front of you, and you have already started to consider the affairs of Qingzhou." Wang Shanquan said

"My lord, some things require preparation, but if you don't, they will fail. In fact, you have never worried about the imperial army, right? After all, our Yangzhou navy is unrivaled in the world."

"The imperial army is made up of northerners. They can never be our opponents." Luo Zishang said

"Haha, that's true. I really don't take them seriously. But our navy can't do anything in Qingzhou, right?" Wang Shanquan said.

"My lord, although the navy of Qingzhou is not very effective, they also have many problems of their own and have been suppressed before."

"As long as they send out troops this time, their problems will become more serious. At that time, if there is just a little spark, they will definitely be in chaos."

"Don't worry, my lord. I have made all the necessary preparations. As long as Qingzhou dares to send troops, we can take advantage of the situation and capture Qingzhou directly." Luo Zishang said.

"Okay, okay, then I'll wait and see what you can do, sir." Wang Shanquan said

"My lord, rest assured. I will never let you down." Luo Zishang said

As time passed, the imperial army finally arrived in Yangzhou, but was blocked by the navy, so they had to stop and think of a solution.

Finally, they thought of a solution, which was to send troops from Qingzhou to attack from the front and back. However, what they didn't know was that Qingzhou had already been under surveillance by Li Luo Zishang's people.

As soon as the court people arrived, Luo Zishang received the news, so he told Wang Shanquan directly.

"Oh? You are right, sir. The imperial court is colluding with Qingzhou. So, in your opinion, what should we do next?" Wang Shanquan asked.
"My lord, all we need to do next is delay time and wait for Qingzhou to fall into chaos." Luo Zishang said that Qingzhou had the worst relationship with Wang Shanquan. After receiving the news of the imperial army, it immediately sent out troops. Luo Zishang knew about it as soon as their army left.

So Luo Zishang began to use his tactics. He first mobilized the manpower that had been prepared long ago and had them attack the county town everywhere, causing panic among the people.

Then he joined forces with merchants to hoard grain and raised the price of grain. At the same time, he bribed several incompetent sons of the Qingzhou Jiedushi and let them take the lead.

After this set of tactics, Qingzhou suddenly fell into chaos. The Qingzhou Jiedushi was so angry that he fainted. When he woke up again, he only ordered the army to withdraw and eliminate the banditry.

The imperial army was busy fighting with the Yangzhou army at this time and had no idea that the Qingzhou army would suddenly retreat, which put them in a dilemma.

Because they knew very well that without Qingzhou's help, they would not be able to enter Yangzhou at all, so the battle situation fell into a stalemate, but this stalemate did not matter.

But at the same time, other states realized the weakness of the imperial court, naturally including Sichuan Province.

"Father, I feel that the court has no chance in this battle. Wang Shanquan will definitely be able to defend Yangzhou. By then, I'm afraid that other states will no longer be willing to be loyal subjects." Liu Changsheng said

"Yes, father, I think what my eldest brother said makes sense. We should also prepare ourselves, in case something really goes wrong and we miss it." Liu Changyuan followed.

"Well, Changfeng, you've been to Yangzhou and fought with Wang Shanquan. What do you think? Can he stop the imperial army?" Liu Xing knew

"Father, in my opinion, it's not surprising that Wang Shanquan was able to stop the imperial army. What's strange is that the Qingzhou incident didn't seem to be Wang Shanquan's work." Liu Changfeng said

"Well, this is definitely not something that Wang Shanquan would do. Based on my understanding of him, he would never be able to come up with such a brilliant plan."

"Chang Feng, do you know if there are any masters from Yangzhou?" Liu Xing knew

"Father, there is indeed a master in Yangzhou. His name is Luo Zishang. He is a descendant of the Luo family in Jinzhou. At the same time, he is also the owner of the Lanxiaofang in Yangzhou." Liu Changfeng said

"Hmm? Jinzhou Luo family? Didn't they say that there was a fire that killed everyone? Where did this Luo Zishang come from?" Liu Changsheng asked

"Brother, I asked someone to investigate this issue at the time. It seems that Luo Zishang is a bastard. Back then, the eldest daughter of the Luo family had an affair with someone without a matchmaker and gave birth to Luo Zishang." Liu Changfeng said

"Fifth brother, did you realize that something was wrong with him a long time ago? You took action early enough?" Liu Changsheng said

"Brother, I met him once when I was in Yangzhou. In fact, he knew everything about my plan, but he didn't say anything."

"I thought it was a bit strange at the time, so I asked someone to check it out. Surprisingly, they actually found out something. His father seems to be Gu Langhua." Liu Changfeng said

"What? Fifth brother, what did you say? Gu Langhua? His father is Gu Langhua?" Liu Changsheng said

"This is just my guess, because Gu Langhua was indeed in Jinzhou at the time. Combined with his performance in Yangzhou, I have to doubt it."

"He is a gloomy and scheming person. The events in Qingzhou were probably caused by him. The reason why he wants to help Wang Shanquan is probably not just revenge." Liu Changfeng said

"Okay, no matter what his real purpose is, we just need to be more careful in the future. The key right now is whether we should prepare in advance?" Liu Xingzhi suddenly said
"Father, I think we can prepare now. After all, judging from the current situation, the imperial court is doomed to fail. Even if we don't move, Lingzhou will not be able to sit still." Liu Changsheng said

"Well, Changfeng, how is the food supply? Is there any problem?" Liu Xing knew

"Father, there is no problem with food and fodder. I have already exchanged most of the silver I brought back for food before the chaos."

"As for the weapons I brought back last time, they are all first-class stuff. The Gu family did not tamper with this batch of goods, so they are very fine." Liu Changfeng said

"Father, I've seen the weapons that my fifth brother brought back. They are really good stuff." Liu Changsheng said

"Okay, now that we are ready, let's start training. Once the battle of Yangzhou has a result, we won't have to wait any longer." Liu Xingzhi said directly.

After hearing this, the brothers nodded and left the study.

After returning to the room, Liu Changfeng was quickly entangled by Yun'er.

"Husband, what have you been busy with recently? You haven't come back so early in a long time." Yun'er said
"My dear lady, I brought back so much silver before, doesn't that mean I have to spend it? So there are a lot of things to do, and they are not over yet?"

"Once the battle of Yangzhou begins, the whole world will be ready to move. Sichuan Province cannot remain immune, so we will be busy from now on." Liu Changfeng said helplessly.
Yun'er didn't say anything after hearing this, but gave her beloved husband a massage to relax. Liu Changfeng enjoyed his wife's massage, but gradually he was no longer satisfied with it.

Finally, the massage method changed and Liu Changfeng began to massage his wife.

Just when all the states in the world were gearing up for a big fight, Emperor Rong was furious.

"Useless, all useless. After fighting for so long, they haven't made any progress!" Rongdi said angrily.
"Father, please calm down. Father, please calm down. We had prepared everything before, but we didn't expect something to happen in Qingzhou, so we are stuck in a stalemate."

"But please rest assured, father. I am confident that we will win this battle." The prince said
"Chun'er, have you forgotten that our silver can be compared with that of Yangzhou? Yangzhou can afford it, but can we?" Emperor Rong asked back.
After hearing this, the prince was silent for a while. In fact, he understood this truth, but now he was in a difficult situation, so why bother saying anything?

"Father, we may not be incomparable to Yangzhou. The Gu family only donated half of their property, and they hid the other half."

"As long as we ask them to hand over their other half, we won't have to worry." The prince said
"Chun'er, it's easy for you to say that, but have you ever thought about how we can get them to hand it over? They took the initiative to hand it over at the beginning, and now they are our relatives."

"Gu Jiusi is your sister's consort. What do you plan to do with him?" Emperor Rong asked

"Father, I know this is a difficult matter, but they are all in the capital now, and we will share the same fate in the future. I believe they can figure it out." The prince said
"Okay, then I'll leave this matter to you. Remember, don't make it too ugly." Emperor Rong said
(End of this chapter)