The imperial power is supreme and does not tolerate the slightest blasphemy or threat. As a general, he commands the troops to surround the emperor's central army... No matter what the original intention of this kind of thing is, it is difficult for the emperor to accept it, because this kind of move is already serious Threaten the safety of the emperor.
If His Majesty Li Er was fine, given his magnanimity, it would be understandable and acceptable for him to have this motive. However, if something really happened to His Majesty Li Er, Cheng Yaojin would probably be charged with "killing the king."
Of course, the biggest beneficiary of this is the prince. If the prince can successfully ascend the throne, everything will be easy. Cheng Yaojin is not only innocent, but has made great achievements.
If the prince fails to ascend the throne in the end, the successor will definitely use this as an excuse to purge Cheng Yaojin, and there will be no recovery...
Making such a decision not only requires the courage to "where righteousness lies, even if tens of thousands of people are there, I will go there", but also requires the courage to risk death and survive.
Li Ji raised the wine bowl and said with emotion: "Zhijie always humbles himself because he is a rough man. However, the government and the public are well-educated and Confucian. How many people are as profound as Zhijie who understand the righteousness and care about the common people? This bowl, I In honor of Zhizhi Festival, drink the holy drink!”
Cheng Yaojin has an extremely resolute character. Once he makes a decision, he no longer hesitates. He laughs and says: "Normally, you are a thief, and you cheat every time you drink. It's not easy to trick you. It's a pity. We don't have enough wine today, otherwise you will have to lie down under the table."
The two of them banged their bowls and drank the whole drink in one gulp.
Li Ji put down the wine bowl and said disapprovingly: "I know that Zhijie has a great capacity for drinking, but I am not good at drinking wine. Otherwise, if we really compete, Zhijie will not be my opponent."
"What?"
Cheng Yaojin's eyes suddenly widened and he shouted: "Mom! If you say you read more books than me and fight better than me, then I will admit it! How dare you brag that you drink better than me? Wow, oh, oh, I can't bear this, I have to fight you for three hundred rounds to let you know how powerful I am."
Li Ji looked weird, looked at the empty wine jar, then looked at Cheng Yaojin's dissatisfied look, and asked, "Don't you think you still have a lot of bars hidden away?"
Cheng Yaojin was shocked and said hurriedly: "What's the matter? Absolutely not."
With just this jar of wine, Li Ji would still care about everyone's face and just skip it without going into details. But if he knew that he had good wine hidden in his tent, with his stubborn character, he would have to send people to search it out and confiscate it all. Then he would have to notify the whole army and punish him according to military law...
Li Ji looked at Cheng Yaojin shaking his head like a rattle, and laughed angrily: "Military law is nothing but child's play. As a general in charge of the army, how can you take the lead in violating it and test the law yourself? This time I won't care about you as usual, but if I know You hide in the tent and drink, or even get drunk and cause trouble, so don't blame me for being unkind!"
Cheng Yaojin said helplessly: "Okay, okay, I know you are fair and strict in the UK, and you will definitely not mess up anything."
I didn’t say I wouldn’t “drink”, I just said I wouldn’t “get into trouble”…
Li Ji shook his head helplessly and ignored it.
The wine jar was empty, but there was still a lot of meat. The two of them chatted over the hot pot and the various situations in Liaodong and Chang'an.
Although Li Ji is the leader between the two, Cheng Yaojin seems to have a carefree and careless personality, but Li Ji knows that Cheng Yaojin has his own unique views on the political situation, and can always get to the point and make decisions that seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. , so he also attached great importance to Cheng Yaojin's opinions.
After eating all the meat, they asked the soldiers to make a pot of tea. However, before they drank a few cups, they heard the sound of bangs outside, followed by chaotic footsteps, and gradually became noisy.
It was already the fifth watch. During the fourth watch, the Huotou Army was living and cooking. At this moment, each army had a meal. Later, when it got brighter, they began to continue today's attack.
The Tang army was constantly experiencing storms and storms, and they attacked the Goguryeo army's positions every day, in order to continuously impose strong oppression on the Goguryeo army and undermine its morale and morale.
Cheng Yaojin muttered: "Actually, if the navy had participated in this battle, Pingrang City would have been captured before the water froze. After all, the navy's artillery was extremely powerful, and they bombed Goguryeo indiscriminately. Can you withstand it? Everyone is on guard against the navy, fearing that our achievements will be taken away by the navy. The result is that we are in this predicament. Countless grains and baggage are wasted in vain, and casualties are huge every day, but it is still difficult to capture Pingrang City. .”
Li Ji said angrily: "What's the use of saying this at this time? The matter has reached this point, we can only go all out."
Guanlong, Jiangnan, and Shandong, the three forces rarely unanimously agreed to exclude the navy from the main force of the Eastern Expedition. Everyone should share the military exploits of the Eastern Expedition. Not to mention the two of them, even His Majesty Li Er did not agree with this situation. Can you just hold your nose and admit it?
Fang Jun is the one who doesn't want to suffer the most, so he still stays in Chang'an...
The current situation is such that no one person can resist it.
Even if he forcibly participated in the Eastern Expedition, he would probably be suppressed and ostracized by all parties. Not to mention gaining military glory, being able to win a battle and return to Chang'an alive was considered to be Fang Jun's ability.
The strife in the army is no less than that in the court...
Cheng Yaojin nodded. He was just complaining. When all the forces excluded Fang Jun and his navy, he remained silent...
After drinking the tea in the cup, he stood up and wanted to leave. Although Zuo Wuwei was not participating in the battle today, he had to return to the army to control his subordinates and beware of accidents.
Suddenly remembering something, he walked to the door and turned back. He frowned and asked, "Then why has Changsun Chong been silent recently?"
Changsun Chong was in Pingrang City, and His Majesty Li Er had allowed him to return to Chang'an if he had committed a crime and made meritorious deeds. Naturally, they, the higher-ups in the army, knew about it. He is just a lost dog who has committed a serious crime of treason. His Majesty is willing to give him some mercy out of Queen Wende's favor. Naturally, everyone will not jump out to oppose without seeing anything and make His Majesty unhappy.
Li Jidao said: "The wind and snow have been raging recently, and the army has heavily besieged Pingrang City. Presumably Pingrang City is also heavily guarded and equipped with iron wires. How easy is it to deliver the message?"
Cheng Yaojin thought for a while and whispered: "When you are advising military aircraft by His Majesty's side, you must remember to be more prepared."
Li Jiqi asked: "Do you think Changsun Chongfei is sincere in his guilt and meritorious deeds?"
Cheng Yaojin shook his head and said: "That's not necessarily the case. You can return to Chang'an after committing a crime and perform meritorious service. Could it be that Changsun Chong still wants to stay in Pingrang City and be his son-in-law of Da Molizhi? However, Changsun Chong is certainly credible, but Yuan Gaisuwen is not an easy person, how can he easily let Changsun Chong steal military secrets? What if the Yuan thieves will take advantage of their plan and deliberately release a false message to lure Changsun Chong back to the army, and then fall into the trap of the Yuan thieves? Tricky, that’s going to be troublesome.”
Li Ji pondered for a moment, and realized that this possibility was indeed possible. He nodded and said, "I remember, but Changsun Chong is smart and sharp. Even if Yuan Gaisuwen has a treacherous plot, Changsun Chong may not be fooled."
Although he is now a lost dog, he is still the most outstanding son of the Changsun family at the beginning. He should be careful when he is in the enemy's camp. The possibility of him falling into Yeon Gaesumun's plan is very small.
Cheng Yaojin sneered and said disdainfully: "You're so smart and sharp! It's just an embroidered pillow. Have you forgotten how that guy was played with by Fang Er several times in the past? This person is useless. , cannot be entrusted with big things.”
He has never looked down on the children of the aristocratic family like Changsun Chong. They talk endlessly and make a lot of noise, and it is common for them to be good at what they do and have low skills. It is okay for people like this to hang out among the six ministries and nine ministers. After all, there are people who do practical things up and down, but if they are entrusted with important tasks alone , but it’s really unreliable.
What's more, such a major military event involving hundreds of thousands of troops?
Li Ji solemnly said: "Don't worry, I will pay special attention to this matter."
Cheng Yaojin said no more, nodded slightly, tightened his cloak, opened the door curtain and walked out.
A cool breeze swept in, blowing on his face, which refreshed Li Ji's spirits. Although he had not slept all night, he was not very tired. He asked the soldiers to bring warm water for a simple wash, and then ate a bowl of porridge. The armor was neatly dressed, left the camp, and went straight to His Majesty Li Er's main tent of the Chinese army.
As the prime minister, he is the natural second-in-command in the army. In every battle, he must accompany His Majesty Li Er to advise the military aircraft, and he even directly issues orders.
The sky outside was gray and not yet fully bright. The north wind swept the remaining snow and flew it freely between the tents. The snow crunched under their feet. Groups of soldiers walked out of their kitchens in neat rows and went straight to their respective positions.
When they arrived at the central military tent, Li Ji had just opened the door curtain and entered, when he heard His Majesty Li Er's very happy voice: "Maogong is here, come and see the news from Changsun Chong from Pingrang City."
