After bidding farewell to the Queen Mother, Chen Chong rested at home for a few days. But what is different from usual is that after the news of his return to Beijing spread, many people came to visit him. People such as Guanglu Xun Fazheng, Zongzheng Liu Cong, Yanshi Ling Chen Su, etc., who were either old veterans of the previous dynasty or descendants of meritorious officials, all came specially to greet Chen Chong.
This is really weird. Chen Chong always liked to be clean, and except for a few people such as Guan Yu and Xun You, he did not take the initiative to make friends with others. The officials also knew that Chen Chong was an upright person and did not tolerate emotion, so they rarely interacted with Chen Chong except for the usual festivals. Although the visitors did not specifically explain the current situation, Chen Chong was able to detect their intentions through insinuations: These people heard the news from somewhere and thought that they did not agree with the war. At this moment, the army was in Jingbei. After losing to Huainan for a while, they already looked defeated, so I came here specifically to talk about my tone.
Chen Chong clearly saw the pros and cons: with Chen Chong's influence in the court, as long as he submitted a proposal to withdraw his troops and then forwarded it to the Huaibei camp from the Chancellery, Liu Xie would have to withdraw even if he was the emperor. . It's just that the emperor lost two battles in a row and lost his troops and generals. Withdrawing his troops in such an embarrassing situation will inevitably greatly damage his prestige. In order to give an explanation to the people of the world, Liu Xie may have to accuse and depose a group of people, and the government situation may also undergo major changes. Presumably Fazheng and others also took a fancy to this and came to test his own words.
Although Chen Chong was not optimistic about Liu Xie's arrangement, he had no intention of stealing the limelight. Now that troops have been dispatched, whether it is war or peace must be decided by the generals on the front line. From a military point of view, although the previous two defeats were not good-looking, the Han army was not exhausted, and there was still considerable strategic space. Chen Chong personally didn't like Sima Yi, but in terms of personal ability, he was enough to take on the important task of Jingbei, while Zhou Buyi had not yet dispatched in Huainan, and it was not time to decide the winner. At this time, he proposed to return to the army, but it really damaged his own morale and morale, and made it convenient for the Wu people. Therefore, when faced with the verbal provocations from Fazheng and others, Chen Chong mostly smiled and passed them by without leaking any words.
On the tenth day, Chen Chong couldn't bear the disturbance and simply closed the door to thank the guests. At the same time, he also thought that the former Taiwei Duan Xuan had died of illness three months ago. He was in Jinyang at the time and had not had time to express his condolences. It was really inappropriate to have been an official in the same dynasty for so many years, so he closed the door the next day. , he took Zhao Qiu and several others to ride horses to Duan Mansion.
Duan Xuan holds a high position, but his family is still simple. It was clear that he held the rank of Qigong and was worth tens of thousands of households, but in fact he had no wealth and was often exempted from fief taxes. When he died, his family only had 900 acres of land, which was the same as an ordinary county. After he became an official with Chen Chong, he did not stay in Dongdu. Instead, he took his family to the south of Yiqueguan to live in seclusion, and his tomb was buried on the hillside of Kongtong Mountain in Guanxi. When Chen Chong came, Duan Xuan's two sons married and mourned in front of the tomb, and there was only one Cangtou accompanying them. In this era, it was extremely difficult. It was three months later, and the person who should express condolences had already arrived, so Duan Yan's second son was unprepared, and his face looked very frightened. Chen Chong briefly exchanged greetings with them for a while, presented a plaque written for Duan Xuan, and then came to see Duan Xuan's tomb alone.
The tomb is very simple, just a small earthen bag next to a mountain stream. The location was chosen very carefully, facing the plain covered with fallen leaves at the foot of the mountain. When he looked at Yique Pass several miles away, Chen Zhan suddenly remembered that it seemed that it was on this plain that the Liang people had fought fiercely with the Jing people for a day, but unfortunately there was no winner. Duan Xuan chose this tomb here instead of Beimang, where wealthy people are usually buried. Could it be that he missed his days in the Liang army? After following Liu Bei for so long, can you still not forget the old kindness of Dong Zhuo? But thinking that Duan Xuan was dead and would not answer his questions even if he was alive, Chen Chong felt a little sad.
After paying homage to Duan Xuan, Chen Chong rode back to Luoyang. When he walked to the Imperial Academy, news of Chengde's great victory happened to come. The capital was extremely excited. Notices were posted at all the city gates. Some Tai students read them loudly, attracting people to gather and watch. They planned to put up lights and colors at night to celebrate the imperial court. After Chen Chong heard this, he was naturally very pleased. He first dismounted his horse and crowded in the crowd to watch the announcement. Then he didn't even bother to go home, so he went straight to Sili Xiaowei's mansion. He knew that Zhuge Liang must have a more detailed battle report.
When Kong Ming heard about Chen Chong's visit, he immediately went out to greet him. When he saw him, he smiled at Chen Chong and said, "I know that the teacher will be itchy when the news of victory comes out!" Chen Chong replied with a smile: "It's not just me. With such a great victory, the late emperor has a spirit underground. , will also be moved by it!" While the two were chatting and laughing, they immediately walked to the study. It can be seen that there is a map on the table, and there are letters and black and white chess pieces piled next to it. It can be seen that before Chen Chong arrived, Zhuge Liang was also reviewing the game. Military changes on the front lines.
The two of them played with the map chess pieces for a while, and they both felt that the emperor had mastered the opportunity of fighting: Liu Xie was able to size up the situation in front of him, and noticed that the Wu army was retreating, and ordered the whole army to follow them all the way to prevent the Wu people from escaping. On this occasion, success was achieved in one fell swoop. Chen Chong sighed: "Your Majesty doesn't often go to the battlefield, but his talents can be said to be given by heaven. Even if I were on the battlefield in person, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to do better."
Kong Ming also agreed, but he paid more attention to the changes in the subsequent war. He speculated: "Your Majesty's victory can be said to have clarified Huainan and raised the eagle to the north of the Yangtze River. As long as Hefei is broken, there will be no heavy troops in Jiangdong. With your Majesty's victory, I am afraid that the British strategy will not stop here, but will take advantage of the situation to go south, and actually reap all the success."
Chen Chong nodded and said: "This is indeed a good opportunity for fighting. Once Huainan is defeated, there will be no defense on the river. In a short period of time, the Wu people can only rely on the favorable geographical location of Moling. But the Sun family has lost tens of thousands of troops, and the people in Jiangdong are bound to be panicked and have no people to rely on. The geographical advantage is It’s not enough to defend, and the probability of conquering Jiangnan in one battle is always 80-90%.”
Kong Ming agreed with this judgment, but he was also worried. He said: "If we want to cross the river, we must use Wu people Deng to serve as various ships, but I don't know if there will be changes."
Chen Chong said: "If His Majesty hadn't personally led the expedition, there might have been a lot of variables. But now that the Emperor is here in person to recruit them, why would these Wu generals have any hesitation? I know what you are worried about. If His Majesty hadn't come to the front line in person this time, , I will not agree to cross the river."
He moved his finger away from the map of Yangzhou and pointed to Jingzhou outside the map. After clicking with his finger, Chen Chong continued: "The only variable is actually Zhou Yu in Jingzhou. If he chooses to abandon Jingzhou, the whole army will be destroyed." Rescue Moling. Maybe I can resist for a while, but in this way, Jingzhou belongs to me, the Bashu Navy can enter Jiangling, and the north and south of the Yangtze River can be freely controlled by me. As long as Your Majesty is a little more cautious and does not fight a decisive battle with the Bashu Navy, Once they reach Xiakou, the Wu people will lose their resistance, and Jing and Yang can be defeated."
Kong Ming looked at the map for a while, nodded and said: "What the teacher said is absolutely true. I will go back to His Majesty and persuade him to make such an arrangement."
After saying this, Kong Ming couldn't help but laugh a little. After all, he only received the battle report at this time. In fact, Liu Xie had not yet decided whether to cross the river or to return to the army. The two people in Luoyang finalized the arrangement first. In fact, It's quite a bit like taking over one's duties. But considering that the world could finally be unified, both the master and the disciple could not hide the relief and joy on their faces. That night, they drank together for the first time for the first time and did not part ways until midnight.
Twenty days later, the emperor issued an edict, intending to take advantage of the victory to cross the river and wipe out Sun Quan in one fell swoop. Then he sent a letter to the Chancellor, ordering Zhuge Liang to urgently use this year's autumn gifts to support the frontline war. At the same time, he was asked to give orders to Sima Yi, Chen Zhang and other troops, so that after the defeated troops in northern Jingzhou had gathered together, they had better take advantage of the situation to launch a counterattack to contain the Wu army in Jingzhou. , if they are unable to do so, they must capture the cities of Jiangling and Anlu after Zhou Yu leaves; Bashu West Prefecture also has tasks: Xun Ji and Li Hui's troops, after receiving military orders, should quickly recruit all the tribes in central Shu and lead them The division will advance by land and water to attack Yiling and Zigui, and be prepared for the navy to move eastward in one fell swoop. In order to show his determination to win the First World War, Liu Xie decided to stop even the scheduled immigration to Huaibei at this time and make full preparations for the war against Wu.
Officials in Beijing did not dare to raise any objections to this, and the proposal to withdraw the troops, which had been widely circulated in private, completely disappeared at this time. Everyone said that today's sages, gods, and warriors are like Shang, Tang, and Zhou Wu. The great achievements that the late emperors failed to complete will finally come to an end in the near future.
Time turned to mid-October, and the first batch of grain and fodder transferred from Kansai began to be sent along the river to Huainan. After hearing the news, the people came, some to say goodbye, and some to watch the excitement. For a time, they crowded in layers and surrounded the Heqiao Ferry. At that time, a sudden snowfall fell from the sky, and the people loaded the grain and fodder onto the boats. The surrounding area was covered with silvery white, which was really spectacular. Most of the people here moved from Guanxi. Some good people recalled: "Today's situation reminds people of the time when the late emperor ordered troops in Chang'an more than ten years ago. He said he would wipe out Hebei in one fell swoop. It took so long in the blink of an eye." Time passed by, it was like a dream!”
Coincidentally, there was a Taiping Taoist priest named Zhang De in the crowd, and he said: "Back then, the late emperor led 300,000 infantry and cavalry to attack Hebei, but he was defeated in the Bohai Sea. How many soldiers were displaced, as if it was yesterday." Soldiers escorting grain crops When the people heard this, they were very disgusted and drove the Taoist priest away. Then Zhang De walked on Luoyang Street, waving the flags and singing: "The big river flows eastward, the phoenix falls from the pine branches, the dragon returns to the shallow bottom, the man of the five houses, whether he goes or not." This attracted a lot of mischievous children, who followed. He laughed all the way.
Officials in Lantai also rumored that just a few days ago at the third watch, a soldier in Suzhi saw a group of white-robed men pouring into Lantai. They were shocked and rushed to the door, only to find that the door was still open. I knocked on the door and asked the people inside, but they all said no one had come in. They felt strange in their hearts, but they didn't dare to say anything publicly, so they could only discuss it privately.
On the day of Wushen in October, Queen Zhong's health suddenly deteriorated and she showed signs of premature birth. The transcoding has been serious recently, which makes us more motivated and updates faster. Please use your little hands to exit the reading mode. Thanks
