A thousand-year-old family that began with the Battle of Makino

Chapter 945: The concubine's request to the monarch, the emperor of Chang'an and the Wei Bo soldiers

Side Hall of the Governor's Mansion of Mingzhou

Bai Jian, accompanied by his personal servant Yuan An and secretary Liu Weirui, stepped into the hall with the gait of a tiger and a dragon.

Luo Hongxin, who had been waiting here for a long time, stood up hurriedly. He saw that the man was about twenty years old, with a face like white jade, bright eyes and sword-like eyebrows, lips as if painted with rouge, and a cloud pattern between his eyebrows. He looked mysterious when he moved. He was truly a noble man.

"Wei Bo General Luo Hongxin pays respect to you, sir."

Bai Jian stood in front of the main seat with a smile on his face, making people feel that he was close to him.

"You are from Wei Bo, I am from Zhao Yi, and you are not from the Bai family. We have never met before, so why do you call me Young Master?"

Hearing Guizi's question, Luo Hongxin did not dare to raise his head, but bowed his head and saluted with his hands crossed, and said:

"I would like to let you know, my lord, that although Wei Bo is a military town, the soldiers and officers are mostly kind and righteous, respect their teachers and honor morality, and set an example for gentlemen."

"Thirty years ago, the ancestor of the Gongzi clan, Bai Gongbing, traveled to Weizhou and felt that Weizhou had no culture and was full of killings, so he stayed for more than three months and taught our ancestors poetry and books. That's why there are gentlemen in Weizhou."

"Bai Gongbing is the ancestor of the prince's clan. We treat him as a teacher and that's why we call him prince."

Bai Jian's face became more friendly when he heard this. He took two steps forward to help Luo Hongxin up, patted the back of his hand and said:

"I see. Today I know that Wei Bo and my Bai family are old friends. Since we are old friends, please take a seat."

"Thank you, sir."

When both parties were seated, Bai Jian sat in the main seat facing south, and Luo Hongxin sat in the guest seat facing east.

Bai Jian leaned slightly towards Luo Hongxin, with his right hand on the tea table and his left hand on his waist. He rubbed the white jade on his waist and said:
"Although our two families are old friends, it's been too long since we met, and we don't have any contact with each other. I don't know why you came here."

After hearing this, Luo Hongxin stood up, knelt on one knee, clasped his fists and said, "Please come to Wei Bo and save our soldiers and civilians from danger. I am deeply grateful. I respect you as the master of Wei Bo."

Bai Jian raised his eyebrows slightly, but did not change his expression. Instead, he said quietly:
"Wei Bo has the land of Wei, Xiang, Bo, Wei and other six states, which is even larger than Zhaoyi. It has a vast territory and a large population, and its officers are both civil and military. Why would it abandon the near and go to the far?"

Luo Hongxin replied: "My lord, you don't know. It is because Wei Bo is so vast that the people there are so complicated. If we only rely on the military commanders recommended by the guards like us to guard it, we are afraid that if a mediocre and tyrant leader is elected, Wei Bo will suffer disaster."

"So I dare not choose randomly, I only choose the main officers. However, the bandits are powerful, and all the officers are terrified. There is no one who can be a hero. I am ashamed to be a real man."

"An Xianbin, a general, said that the prince is kind and righteous, and has always been frugal. He should be a wise leader in the world. Especially since he is the son of the Bai family, he has a good reputation and all the generals are convinced. If he is from a nearby state, he can lead his troops to come any day and break our siege."

"So we all want to elect you as the ruler of Wei Bo, to serve the country, to bring peace to the people, and to benefit the soldiers and civilians of Wei Bo. That's all. Please grant me your approval."

After saying this, Luo Hongxin knelt on both knees and kowtowed deeply.

Seeing this great gift, Bai Jian did not dare to make a decision easily. He stood up and helped Luo Hongxin up, looked at him seriously and said:
"I am deeply grateful that you have entrusted me with such an important task despite my young age. However, this is a major matter and cannot be decided in a moment. I would like to ask you to stay in my humble abode for a while while I discuss this matter with my subordinates. I hope you will not disappoint me."

Luo Hongxin naturally knew that such a major matter could not be decided in a few words, so he clasped his fists and said:

"In this case, I hope you will make a quick decision. The bandits of Le Cong Xun have been besieging the city day and night. This is truly a critical moment for survival. The generals of Wei Bo are all waiting in the city. I dare not delay even a little bit."

After another bow, Luo Hongxin left under the guidance of his servants.

Bai Jian sat back in his seat, various thoughts running through his mind. Finally, he looked at the secretary Liu Weirui and asked, "What do you think?"

Liu Weirui bowed his head and said, "This is a major military and national issue, and it concerns the survival of the two towns. I am just a small secretary, so how dare I speak rashly? Perhaps you can call together important officials to discuss it."

Bai Jian nodded, left the side room and returned to the meeting hall.

Originally, everyone in the hall was still arguing about whether to fight or not, but when Bai Jian came back, the discussions gradually died down.

Standing in front of the commander's desk, Bai Jian pondered for a moment and said, "Zhang Nai, Bai Shijin, and Wang Cheng will stay. The rest of you will temporarily withdraw and wait for my order."

"Yes."

After everyone had left the room, Bai Jian sat behind the desk, looked at the two counselors and one general whom he valued, and briefly summarized Luo Hongxin's words and told them.

After listening to Ming Gong's explanation, Zhang Nai's expression suddenly became excited, and he said in a somewhat hurried tone:
"This is God's help to you, sir."

"What's the explanation?"

"Just now I opposed your sending troops to Luzhou. First, your army is small and you don't have a geographical advantage. It would be better for you to conserve your energy and wait for the situation to change."

"Secondly, although you are the deputy commander of the Zhaoyi Army, ever since the commander was killed and the court appointed Feng Ba as the commander, we have been out of line and have many complaints from the people under our rule."

"So if you leave Mingzhou, I'm afraid someone will soon raise an army to rebel and respond to the court, intending to seize an official position in the court."

"Although the imperial court is in decline now, its recognition is still very important to many people."

"If we welcome the lord into Wei Bo as Luo Hongxin said, we can first obtain Wei Bo's elite troops and secondly, gain the reputation of Wei Bo."

"Then, under the banner of Wei Bo, we will reorganize the troops and march north to attack Lu and rescue the Lord of Jin, and we won't have to worry about the rear."

Bai Jian was still a little hesitant: "I heard that there is a saying among the people that 'the emperor of Chang'an is the Weifu Yajun', which shows that the name of Wei Bo Yajun is known to the world. I am really worried that if I take control of the town, wouldn't it be like walking into a wolf's den?"

Bai Shijin stood up and said, "Your Excellency is obsessed with appearances. How can you compare with others with your status?"

"First, you are not riding alone into Wei. You are also accompanied by the remaining 3,000 soldiers of the Zhaoyi Army, who can be of assistance."

"Secondly, you are the grandson of Duke Bai, the son of Duke Song, and the deputy envoy of Zhaoyi Army. The name of the Bai family has been passed down for thousands of years and is known to the world. You are a famous scholar. How dare they risk the world's disapproval and harm you?"

"Third, according to what Naro Hongxin said, Bai Gongbing has done favors for Wei Bo, and the envoy is his clan grandson. Besides, the soldiers of Wei Bo are all known for their loyalty and kindness. The possibility of him being ungrateful is very small."

"Fourth, Lord Bai has the support of Hedong, Lord Song has Xuanwu, and Lord Qian has the support of Qiannan. These three are all powerful vassals. With such external support, your Excellency has nothing to fear."

"Fifth, as Mr. Zhang said, you should collect the troops of Wei Bo, take the land of the Nine Provinces, and attack the rebel Feng in the north to help the Duke of Jin."

"Otherwise, the Duke of Jin will perish, Taiyuan will be ravaged, the family will be damaged and retreat from the world, and the vast land of Hebei will have no external help. How can you survive alone?"

"If this is true, the result will be nothing more than abandoning your foundation and fleeing to Bianzhou. I personally think that this is definitely not your ambition."

"With these five benefits, I really can't think of any reason to refuse."

Bai Jian slapped his thigh, his admiration was evident in words:
"Great! Your five points are as beneficial to me as Guo Fengxiao's ten victories and ten defeats against Cao Cao. Isn't he my Zifang?"

(End of this chapter)