Horse on the World

Chapter 764 The Secret Covenant
Li Qing did not meet Xiao Yuanshan in his own meeting hall of the original Marshal's Mansion, but on that night, he let Iron Leopard secretly bring him close to his private residence, and met his former boss, Xiao Shi, in his study. The patriarch, and also his first famous defeat.

"Marshal Li, I, Xiao Shi, are willing to start negotiations based on the two premises you put forward." Xiao Yuanshan bowed deeply and said dryly.The form was compelling, people had to bow their heads under the eaves, Xiao Yuanshan was filled with bitterness.

Li Qing smiled all over his face, "That's great, I'm very welcome. Patriarch Xiao understands righteousness, and it's really a great achievement to save millions of people in Youyan from the flames of war. I will never forget Xiao's contribution to this end." On the basis of the two premises, it is easy to talk about other things, and Patriarch Xiao may wish to put forward any conditions as much as possible."

Xiao Yuanshan cleared his throat and said: "First of all, it is the safety of my Xiao clan."

Li Qing nodded, "Over the years, each of the major aristocratic families has owned territory and gathered heavy troops to protect the continuation of their family. The Xiao family handed over the military power and worried about their personal safety. I am very clear. Yes, but Patriarch Xiao can rest assured, take a look, under Dingzhou's jurisdiction, whether it is the surrendered barbarian aristocrats, or the former Luzhou Marshal Xu Hongwei, they have all found their place in Dingzhou again, Qiyu, Jingpo You are not only my senior minister in Dingzhou, but also an important businessman in my Dingzhou. I, Li Qing, treat the barbarians like this, let alone your Xiao family? Moreover, the Xiao family has a century-old family, and there are many elites in the family. I, Li Qing After the Qing Dynasty, there are many places to borrow, such as your Patriarch Xiao, who is a good fighter in war!"

Xiao Yuanshan snorted, "Don't mention that. In recent years, Xiao Yuanshan has fought one battle and lost another, so he has no face to say that he is a veteran in the battlefield."

Li Qing smiled slightly. Xiao Yuanshan has indeed had a bad time these years. First, he was defeated by himself, and he had the upper hand. Then he met King Ning, and then he met Qiu Zhi. These few people Whether in terms of intelligence or military strategy, he is indeed far superior to Xiao Yuanshan, but it would be very wrong to belittle Xiao Yuanshan because of this, his military thinking and tactical thinking all have their own unique features. With the size of the Great Chu, with tens of thousands of generals in command, Xiao Yuanshan can still be firmly in the forefront.

"Patriarch Xiao only talked about the personal safety of your Xiao family. Let me talk about the political treatment I give you in Dingzhou! First of all, in the two prefectures of Youyan, Patriarch Xiao can choose one of the prefectures to be the magistrate, and the other prefecture will be the prefect. I will appoint another person to take charge. Of course, officials at all levels below Zhizhou will have some corresponding adjustments according to the appointment procedures of officials in Dingzhou. After these matters, Patriarch Xiao can discuss these matters in detail with Master Lu Yiming."

Lu Yiming slightly nodded at the side.

"Since the Xiao family has decided to join me in Dingzhou, then, according to the usual practice, we have to invite Lord Qi Xiao Haoran and the Xiao family to live in Dingzhou." Li Qing said slowly, "I don't know if Patriarch Xiao has any opinion on this. What do you think?"

What can Xiao Yuanshan think?In Xiao Haoran's letter to him, this point has been clearly mentioned. In the past, some important figures who surrendered in Dingzhou were kept in captivity in Dingzhou. How could the Xiao family be an exception?
"I agree."

Li Qing was very satisfied with the other party's straightforwardness, and couldn't help admiring that Xiao Haoran is really an old bachelor, he really can afford it, he can let it go, and with the dignity of his country, he is willing to come to Dingzhou to be submissive to a young boy like himself.

"After the members of the Xiao clan arrive in Dingzhou, as long as they have talents, Dingzhou will definitely use them accordingly, and will not let their talents be buried. Moreover, if the members of the Xiao clan are willing to join the army, I, Jimingze Military Academy, will treat them as well." Open the door. Of course, whether they are officials in Dingzhou or join the army, they have to compete with other people, Patriarch Xiao should understand these things in Dingzhou, so I don’t need to say more.”

For this point, Xiao Yuanshan really didn't think about it, and Xiao Haoran didn't mention it either. From what they thought, if the Xiao clan surrendered, they would definitely be shelved. Li Qing doesn't care about this at all. If the competition is as fair as Li Qing said, the century-old Xiao family has a profound foundation. Whether it is an official or an army, the starting point is much higher than other people. Compared with ordinary people, they have a great advantage. If Li Qing succeeds, maybe decades later, the Xiao family will re-emerge as a big family and occupy an important position in the new empire.

"Thank you Marshal Li for your generosity!" Xiao Yuanshan stood up, but this time he bowed deeply to Li Qing sincerely.

"No, it's my Dingzhou's national policy to use talents regardless of pattern. As long as you have talents in the Xiao family, I dare to use them!" Li Qing said boldly, but his tone was extremely confident.

"The question of the reorganization of the army!" After talking about the arrangements for the Xiao clan, Li Qing turned to the most important issue, "The Xiao clan now claims to have 2 soldiers, but in fact there are only [-] to [-] capable fighters." Even with the [-] people, their combat efficiency is also worthy of consideration." Li Qingdao, "Most of these troops must be disbanded, and the rest will be assessed by Dingzhou personnel to weed out the inferior and keep the excellent ones, and then they will be unified into Dingzhou order of battle."

"What Marshal Li said is very true, but if the troops are suddenly disbanded on a large scale, once the Luoyang side finds out, they will inevitably march into Xiegu, and Youyan will be in danger." Xiao Yuanshan said.

"This is the question we will discuss next." Li Qing waved his hand,
"The matter of Mr. Xiao's surrender to our Dingzhou must be strictly kept secret in the near future, and there must be no leakage." Li Qing said slowly: "Our strategy in Dingzhou has undergone some changes. Regarding the southern issue, Youyan maintains an independent status, which can effectively buffer the conflict between us and Luoyang."

"It's just such a big move, it might be extremely difficult to keep it secret, and Luoyang's secretary is also extremely powerful." Xiao Yuanshan said.

"For this, we already have a complete set of plans." Yan Nanfei on the side took up the conversation, "My lord has drawn up a plan, and I will briefly discuss it with Patriarch Xiao."

Xiao Yuanshan turned his head to look at Yan Nanfei, cupped his hands, "I would like to hear more about it."

"Patriarch Xiao's coming to Dingzhou is an extremely secret matter. I believe it will be difficult for the staff to find out. After we sign the treaty, the Xiao family can gather large-scale troops to Xiangshan Mansion, and pretend to attack Xiangshan Mansion on the surface. And we will also transfer Yang Yidao's troops to Xiangshan Mansion at the corresponding time."

Xiao Yuanshan suddenly realized, "Military reorganization will be carried out in Xiangshan Mansion."

"That's right. On the surface, we transferred to Yang Yidao Group to reinforce Lu Dalin's department, but in fact, we will gradually withdraw Lu Dalin's department and send them to the north during a series of troop transfers. And Yang Yidao's department is in The actual task of the Xiangshan Mansion is to reorganize the Youyan army, weed out the bad and keep the good, and the retrenched personnel will return to their respective residences in small groups, so that the scale is small and it is not easy to attract attention."

"At the same time, during this process, we will successively send troops to pretend to be the Youyan army to take over Xiegu Fortress and strengthen Youyan's defense. Of course, the troops we send out will also take care of the task of reorganizing the Xiegu garrison. During the whole process, if If it is to be fully completed, it may take about a year."

"In principle, I agree, but I'm afraid it's hard to be thorough in the secrecy work!" Xiao Yuanshan said with a frown.

"The confidentiality work will be handed over to the Dingzhou Supervisory Council." Li Qingdao, "As long as we get through the initial stage safely, it will take some time for Luoyang to verify and implement it."

"Marshal Li, what food and other materials are urgently needed by Youyan?" Xiao Yuanshan asked about this big issue related to Youyan's stability. The food problem in Youyan area is already urgent, and this is also the biggest one that prompted Youyan to surrender to Dingzhou reason.

"Don't worry about this. After we sign the treaty, the first batch of food will be used. I believe that when you return to Youyan, you will be able to get this batch of supplies from Lu Dalin. To solve the urgent need, of course, we hope After you get the first batch of supplies, Duke Xiao will also be able to set off to settle in Dingzhou, I have been looking forward to Duke Xiao for a long time!" Li Qing said with a smile.

Xiao Yuanshan nodded, "Don't worry, Marshal Li!"

After finalizing the big deal, Li Qing got up and left. For the rest of the details, Lu Yiming and others will negotiate with Xiao Yuanshan. Anyway, since the Xiao family is willing to join, there is no need to worry too much about some trivial matters up.

On the Black Water Ocean, a huge fleet was breaking through the waves. They had entered the waters completely controlled by Dingzhou. Seeing the rolling hills in the distance, many sailors from Dingzhou rushed onto the deck and cheered loudly.

"We're back, we're home!"

The shouts spread from one ship to another, and in a short while, the entire fleet cheered. Except for the sailors who could not leave their posts, most of the other soldiers rushed onto the deck, and many of them were wounded. Bing, with the support of his companions, looked at the familiar coastline of his hometown with tears in his eyes.

Naval battles were more brutal than land battles. Most of the dead soldiers couldn't find their bodies, but this time the battle in the storm was even more cruel. When everything calmed down, there would be no corpses of any comrades in arms.It is really exciting to be able to survive and return to my hometown.Almost all the ships in the entire fleet were scarred, and the same was true for the two huge ships Qiyuan and Kaitai, and ten ships were dragged behind the giant ship by cables. Although it did not sink, it lost the ability to sail, and after emergency repairs, it could only be dragged home.

A patrol boat flying the flag of the Dingzhou Navy saw the fleet and rushed up to meet it.The signalmen on board repeatedly waved the semaphore, "Welcome home to our hero!"

(End of this chapter)