The war was put on hold. Outside the four cities of Chang'an, what replaced the chariots and ladders were the trenches and fences newly laid by the Han army.
Guo Xin was patrolling the camp on a light horse. Under the late-day sun, sweat was pouring out from his forehead under his iron helmet. The armor on his body was also hot from the sun, making him feel as if he was in a steamer. Looking up at Chang'an City from a distance, the city towers and walls are also suffering from the scorching sun, and the distorted light and shadow make people afraid to approach.
Guo Xin rode back to the camp. A soldier was waiting in front of the camp. When he came back, he came over immediately and said that Wang Jun was waiting to see him in the middle army. Guo Xin expected that Wang Jun would meet him in private, so he followed the military man to Wang Jun's tent without making any other preparations.
When Guo Xin came in, Wang Jun was writing something at his desk. Wang Jun was not wearing official uniform today, but a purple-brown diamond-patterned round collar robe. Guo Xin had seen many soldiers wearing armor in the army in the past few months. At this time, he couldn't help but stare at them twice, and immediately felt that the workmanship of the robes was very fine.
Seeing Guo Xin come in, Wang Jun immediately wrote and got out of his posture at the desk. He stepped forward and grabbed Guo Xin. He kept looking up and down, and then flatly praised: "What a great general Jiujiu! Ambassador Guo What a blessing it is!”
"I'm so impressed." Guo Xin was unprepared for Wang Jun's enthusiasm, but he still clasped his fists and said, other than that, he didn't know what else to say.
Wang Jun then pulled Guo Xin to sit down affectionately: "We haven't seen you for a long time. When that day came, I wanted to catch up with Erlang to catch up with the past. It's just a new arrival. I don't know many of the generals of the Xingjie army, so it's really inconvenient to meet them first." Erlang, I have been busy with military affairs for the past two days, so I specially invited Erlang to come over and talk about it."
Guo Xin was surprised when he heard this: "Your Majesty, do you still remember me?"
Wang Jun said: "How could you not remember? When Erlang ascended the throne first, that fellow Shi Hongzhao said a lot of good things in front of the late emperor. Wasn't it me who went to Daizhou to spread the emperor's decree that you should be the commander? Looking back on that day, I really It seems that I still remember it vividly, but I didn’t expect that Erlang would give me many surprises in just two years. Today, Erlang should be a tiger general in our army."
"You don't want to be a tiger general. A bad general just does his job well."
"Why are you still called the last general?" Wang Jun pretended to be dissatisfied, and then said with a smile: "I and Ambassador Guo are old acquaintances, Erlang, please don't be polite to me. I just entered Tokyo last year, and everything was messy, so I didn't visit often. The friendship between the two families has become estranged. But after the three towns are settled, we will have plenty of time to reconnect with old friendships when we return to Tokyo."
In a few words of reply, the gap between the two when they met alone for the first time quietly disappeared. Wang Jun's few words made Guo Xin, who didn't like being flattered, feel like a breath of fresh air. No wonder Liu Zhiyuan made Wang Jun the first guest of the Han Dynasty. Provincial envoy, Wang Jun is really good at talking, and he has a certain charm. It is really suitable for him to be the guest provincial envoy responsible for the reception of envoys.
The two talked about old things again. After the atmosphere was in place, Wang Jun brought the topic to the right track: "However, after all, there are few battles as easy as Daizhou. It is the military's best to be blocked in the city for several months without making any achievements like this." Zhong Changshi... Speaking of Erlang being here, does he know the situation of the camp in the north? "
"I don't know the details, but I only know that there are many generals in the north camp. I heard that Li Shouzhen has shrunk in Hezhong Mansion like Zhao Siwan. I expected it to be much smoother than this one?" In fact, tens of thousands of troops in the Hezhong camp have gathered in Guanzhong for several months, but there was no We have not heard of the big battle. Several troops from each family are stranded in the area from Tongzhou to Tongguan, and have not even crossed the river to go north. These military information have been mentioned in Guo Wei's letters, but Guo Xin still pretends not to know, and wants Wang Jun to continue talking. Go down.
As expected, Wang Jun curled his lips: "Erlang thinks too highly of those people. These feudal princes only care about protecting themselves, how can they really fight for the court like Shang Hongqian? At present, Bai Wenke is stationed in Tongzhou, and Chang Si is stationed in Tongguan. He was patrolling in fear of the enemy and did not dare to advance. Now that Guo Congyi has arrived at Chang'an City, tens of thousands of people and horses are still being lured away? When the Chinese army was planning military affairs, listen to what he said. He said he would live up to the officialdom. He has been entrusted with great responsibility, but he is doing the job of holding a soldier with self-respect, so why would he want to lose even one of his own soldiers under the city?"
Wang Jun then sighed quietly: "I should have reprimanded him in public that day, so that I could declare the justice of the court in front of the army. But after all, Guo Congyi is new here as the camp commander, and it is not convenient for me to kill his majesty as soon as he comes, let alone the next one All the generals praise him, and the people's hearts are with him, so what can I do?"
Guo Xin listened to Wang Jun venting his dissatisfaction and echoed: "Now it seems that the camp in Hezhong is afraid of war, and the camp in Yongxing is war-weary. Guanzhong really seems to be in a dangerous situation."
"Erlang is absolutely right. If things go on like this, is this the way to win? The war in Guanzhong has dragged on for a long time. Even if they are not defeated here, the Khitan and the Southern Tang Dynasty are both powerful enemies of this dynasty. Even if the Khitan is currently in civil strife and the Southern Tang is newly defeated, when After he regained his composure, he started the war and invaded Hedong and Huaibei. How could the imperial court resist?"
Guo Xindao said: "If you are far-sighted, it is better to report to the court early and wait for the court's decision."
Wang Jun nodded: "This is natural. In addition, I have written a letter requesting the imperial court to send an important minister to supervise the war and control all the soldiers and horses in the pass, so that these people who can only eat corpses can work hard and contribute to the imperial court. Press Counting the days, the central government in Tokyo must be discussing this matter these days."
Guo Xin had already vaguely noticed something and asked, "Who do you think can take on this important task?"
Wang Jun smiled at Guo Xin: "I have been thinking for a long time in the past few days. Among the princes in the imperial court in Tokyo, Yang Xiang has not been in military formations for a long time. Su Fengji and Su Yugui only know how to lift a pen but not a sword. Shi Hongzhao is a fierce general. Unless they are handsome men, the rest are either old and decrepit, or have little qualifications, and cannot command the armies. After much thinking, only your Lord Guo Gong is young and powerful, and is familiar with military affairs. Not only is he famous in the army, but he is also a privy councilor. It’s the perfect time to come and command the armies! Who else, besides Mr. Guo, can be worthy of this important task?”
Maybe my father will come to Guanzhong to be the commander-in-chief of counterinsurgency? Guo Xin didn't know whether to be happy or worried for a moment. Naturally, he was delighted that his father came to take charge. This battle would surely bring huge benefits. During the period of countering the rebellion alone, he would be able to accumulate countless connections in the feudal town and the Forbidden Army, not to mention the reputation he would gain after winning the war. We must know that in these days, all glory and wealth are empty, but the recognition and support of the generals and soldiers can gain everything! Not to mention worries, Guo Wei really wants to control the military power. When the rebellion is successfully suppressed in the future, the narrow-minded Liu Chengyou will be even more afraid of his own family.
Wang Jun continued: "However, the outcome of this matter will not be known until the princes of the imperial court discuss it. I have come to Erlang to discuss something else."
Guo Xin hid his thoughts and put on a relaxed face: "I would like to hear the details, so that if you have any orders, I will never fail to follow them."
Wang Jun pondered for a while and then spoke slowly: "Although the armies have failed to achieve success, Li Shouzhen and Zhao Siwan have indeed been restrained in the isolated city. This is why I don't argue with Guo Congyi about whether to attack or not. But it doesn't matter. There were priorities, but Wang Jingchong of Fengxiang was different from Zhao and Li. Although the court had expected that he would be rebellious and ordered Zhao Hui to replace him in advance, who knew that Wang Jingchong not only rebelled with the two towns, but also secretly colluded with Shu. Now Zhao Hui has found out that the Lord of Shu is determined to mobilize his troops and will soon leave Sanguan to go north. However, Zhao Hui has only a few thousand men, so he may not be able to resist. He has sent people to ask for help several times in the past few days."
Wang Jun paused: "After I discussed with Guo Congyi, Guo Congyi was unwilling to divide his troops, and the other generals were also unwilling to go because it was unpredictable. I am really a coward. Although I have control over this army, I have no trusted followers. Foundation." After saying that, he raised his eyes and looked at Guo Xin.
Guo Xin suddenly realized that Wang Jun had been saying good things to him for a long time, but in the end he still wanted to do his best for him. But this is not necessarily a bad thing. There is nothing wrong with staying under Chang'an City. The next attack will have to wait until the Year of the Monkey, so it is better to follow Zhao Hui to Fengxiang as Wang Jun said. What's more, the news that Guo Wei might come to Guanzhong to supervise the war made him realize that he now needs real military achievements to obtain promotion.
However, he still has many concerns: "The general is just a commander, with only five hundred soldiers under his command. I'm afraid it won't help if these few troops are gone?"
"It's easy to say, those general commanders don't want to go in person, and those who transfer two commanders always want to give face to me, the guest province. When the time comes, the two commanders will be under your control, and you will be given the right to work at an advantage. When Erlang is gone, he will still serve as the camp and formation envoy here. In this way, as the commander, Erlang will actually have the strength of a general commander."
While Guo Xin was thinking, Wang Jun continued to encourage: "Don't worry too much, Erlang. The Shu army has always been weak. I haven't heard of any famous generals in Shu in recent years. Last year, Wang Jingchong was able to defeat the Shu army with only two thousand forbidden troops. Zhao Hui is also a veteran general on the battlefield, but with a small number of soldiers, he is a little out of his depth. After Erlang leaves, I believe that attacking and defending against the enemy will not be a problem."
At this time, Guo Xin also felt that there was no need to shirk the blame, and immediately clasped his fists: "Since I am worried about you, I will go there eventually."
"Erlang is not only good at fighting, but also dares to fight!" Wang Jun immediately looked happy and took Guo Xin's hand very excitedly. "Erlang is going not only for me, but also to share the worries of the officials and the court. After this battle, , I will personally write a letter to ensure your promotion to the capital commander!"
