The Southern Tang army did not encounter any obstacles along the way. Just like the scouts reported back, they arrived at Liling safely on the fifth day of October.
Liling is a small city located south of Tanzhou Prefecture, the capital of the Chu State. It has a small population, and the people in the city have been fleeing for months because of the civil war between the Ma brothers, and it has almost become an empty city. There is not a single Chu soldier here.
However, Bian Hao was still extremely cautious and ordered the entire army to be divided into two, with one half entering the city to rest and the other half stationed in the north of the city on standby.
In the handsome tent, people are gathering to discuss matters. A group of generals were surrounding Bian Hao, who was sitting on the throne, listening to the military aircraft.
At this time, a Tang army scout came to report: "Report to the border commander, twenty miles north of Tanzhou City, more than 10,000 Chu troops have been found, and the commander's flag bears the word 'Liu'!"
Before Bian Hao could say anything, Sun Zhen, the Marquis of Du Yu with a scabbard in his hand and a beard on his face, immediately reacted: "The flag with the word 'Liu'? Coming from the north, could it be Liu Yan's Langzhou soldiers? So Langzhou is not Ma Xihe's territory." What?"
Bian Hao sneered, and then said: "How many good things can the Ma family have? After Ma Xi'e came to Tanzhou to seize the throne last year, he still had the same virtue! He was debauched and unruly, and he was ruthless. Which of the state’s old generals can obey him?”
Sun Zhen had been stationed in Jiangning Mansion, the capital, and did not know much about the situation in Chu. He looked confused and said, "So, are these soldiers and horses reinforcements from Chu King Ma Xichong?"
Du Zhen, who had followed Bian Hao and sneaked into the Chu capital in disguise earlier, thought for a while and said: "The general thinks that they are definitely not the reinforcements of the King of Chu. The Langzhou generals Liu Yan, Wang Kui, and Zhou Xingfeng are so fierce. Very, even the old master is not convinced, how can he be convinced by a coward like Ma Xichong?"
Bian Hao's eyes were like torches, and he shot straight at everyone: "Since they are not reinforcements, we must be prepared to resist the enemy! The Langzhou soldiers are brave and have close ties with the Dongxi barbarians. We cannot take it lightly!"
All the generals replied in unison: "Yes!"
After thinking for a moment, Bian Hao asked again: "Can Ma Xi'e have an envoy to explain this matter? This time he asked for help from the Tang Dynasty. How can he not avenge such a major military incident?"
A general in charge of communicating with Hengshan King Ma Xihe hurriedly replied: "Back to the border commander, Ma Xihe did not mention the Langzhou soldiers!"
Everyone looked at each other, focusing only on the coach Bian Hao.
At this time, the situation has suddenly changed. Originally, the warring parties were Ma Xichong and the Southern Tang army who jointly besieged and besieged Ma Xichong in Tanzhou. Now there is another Langzhou soldier with unknown intentions. Whether they are taking advantage of the situation or deliberately coming, they have become the four parties. It's a warring situation.
Bian Hao has been worried since he entered the Chu Kingdom. As the commander-in-chief of an army for the first time, he is not only responsible for the safety of the entire army, but the victory in this battle will have a decisive impact on whether he can be reused in front of the emperor in the future. As the saying goes, the more you fear, the more you get. The unexpected change that I was worried about finally came!
Although he was a little hesitant, he still pretended to be calm and ordered: "It seems that those old generals in Langzhou are also here to get a share of the pie! I thought that Ma Yin was also the overlord of the generation, but he unexpectedly gave birth to a bunch of rebellious descendants, and Some evil soldiers have rebelled against the general! Pass on my military order, the whole army will continue to rest and reorganize, make smoke during the day, and lose fire at night. Do not act rashly until you have found out the enemy's situation!"
Hearing this, there was a man in the commander's tent who couldn't sit still. This man was completely different from the other generals. He was not wearing armor, but was wearing an incompatible and luxurious official robe. His pale and pointed face looked weak, but he was different from the commander. Bian Hao was present at the table just because he was the military supervisor sent by the emperor, Chen Jue, the Privy Councilor at that time.
I saw a trace of gloom sweeping over his face, and then he looked calm and calm again, and he said with a flattering smile: "Commander Bian, in my opinion, this little Langzhou soldier is nothing to be afraid of! Are you afraid, Commander Bian?" No? Your Majesty has already made a decree. Our purpose in this battle is to use Ma Xi'e's request for help to find an opportunity to destroy Chu! This civil strife in Chu is a God-given opportunity! Our army has arrived, how can the border commander hesitate? In my opinion, Change will happen if it's too late, the best is to make progress in Tanzhou as soon as possible!"
Speaking of Chen Jue, no one in the Southern Tang Dynasty knew about this man. He just had a bad reputation. Over the years, by flattering the powerful Prime Minister Song Qiqiu, he has prospered all the way to the center of power, and now he is the leader of the notorious "Five Ghosts and Four Evils". ("Five Ghosts": Chen Jue, Feng Yansi, Feng Yanlu, Wei Cen, Zha Wenhui and other five people in the Southern Tang Dynasty at that time. These five people were corrupt, perverted the law, and acted recklessly. The people of the Southern Tang gave them the nickname "Five Ghosts". ", excluding Zha Wenhui, they are the "four evils")
How can sycophants like Chen Jue understand military affairs? However, due to his official rank, Bian Hao could only suppress his attack and said with cupped hands: "Mr. Chen, it's not me who is afraid of the enemy. Langzhou soldiers are famous for their bravery. Liu Yan and others are also famous generals of Chu. They should not be underestimated! I am Your Majesty has personally appointed the Hunan pacification envoy to command the army, and he will definitely live up to His grace! I have special skills in my profession, and I have my own sense of proportion when it comes to marching and fighting, so the envoy does not need to worry too much."
Although his tone is sincere, who is Chen Jue? How could the most powerful person in the court, except the emperor, allow others to question him even a little bit? What's more, he also heard a hint of sarcasm from Bian Hao.
Chen Jue stood up with a flutter of his sleeves, blushed and roared harshly: "Bian Hao! That Ma Xichong has been trapped in Tanzhou, a turtle in the jar! Our army is the king of the Celestial Dynasty, and we have the King of Hengshan as our reinforcement. The battle will be won! How can you be afraid of the enemy just because of a Langzhou soldier?! I'm warning you once again, as the commander of an army, you must not forget your responsibilities and live up to the emperor's favor!"
After all, he was a high-ranking official. Chen Jue was angry. All the generals in the handsome tent suddenly didn't dare to breathe, and they all lowered their eyes to dodge.
Just when Chen Jue showed a hint of pride, Bian Hao said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, I would like to ask you, what should I do if the Langzhou soldiers suddenly attack when our army is attacking the city?"
Before Chen Jue could think about it, he raised his head and said with great confidence: "You are a small state soldier, why should you be afraid of them! Just wipe them out together!"
Bian Hao asked again: "What if Ma Xie breaks his promise and turns sides in front of the formation, and joins forces with his brother Ma Xichong to surround our Tang army?"
Chen Jue swallowed unconsciously and waved his hand: "Nonsense! This is impossible! The King of Hengshan has already sent an envoy, and he is willing to bow his head and obey the orders of the Tang Dynasty! How can you betray your trust!"
"Treachery? Now the state of Chu is in chaos, and the two kings are fighting for profit! Soldiers are also deceitful. Prime Minister, it's not that I look forward and backward, but that the battlefield is full of emptiness and reality. How can we talk about war on paper? The situation has changed at this time. The lives of the entire army are entrusted to my hands, how can I attack rashly? Whether it is the Langzhou soldiers or Ma Xi'e, if either party attacks from behind when our army is attacking the city, our army will definitely be attacked from both sides!
This time they went abroad to fight and went deep into enemy territory. The Ma brothers only knew how to fight for power and gain, but had no faith at all! The so-called reinforcements are just speculators. Our army is fighting alone. If there is a mistake, the entire army will be annihilated. It is understandable that our soldiers serve the country and die on the battlefield! I don’t know what the envoy is, but are you prepared for your body and head to be in a different place? "
As soon as these words came out, all the generals in the tent were shocked. No matter how much they had criticized Bian Hao in their hearts before, they all secretly admired Bian Hao's courage.
Chen Jue only felt blood rushing to his face, and what Bian Hao said just now made him somewhat panicked. When he was depressed, his face turned red, and he held back his breath and angrily shouted: "You, you, Bian Hao! I am the Privy Councilor." Envoy, you are supervising the army under His Majesty's order, how dare you violate it? Threate me?"
"To tell you the truth, how dare I threaten the Prime Minister?" After saying this, Bian Hao felt extremely complicated at this time. In the past, he had always said little and rarely offended anyone in the court, but this war has a real impact on his future. It is very important! Even if Chen Jue is his superior, he will never allow it as long as it is detrimental to this battle!
Chen Jue was very angry. He looked around and saw that there was silence in the commander's tent. No one among the generals spoke for him. He seemed to have acquiesced to Bian Hao's words. At this time, he was even more furious: "You, you! Arrogant! A group of ungrateful people. The reckless man!"
When he was anxious, Bian Hao was already upset and kept doing nothing. He raised his hand and said: "General Sun, please go down and rest first!"
Sun Zhen bowed his head in embarrassment and said, "Yes!"
This farce finally came to an end when Chen Jue, the powerful official of the dynasty and the Privy Councilor, left cursingly.
The generals dispersed and everyone returned to his duties.
At dusk, a general paced in front of the commander's tent for a long time, with a tangled look on his face. Finally, he mustered up the courage, informed the soldiers in front of the tent and walked in.
"Bian Shuai! The last general Zhang Yao met Bian Shuai first!"
On the couch, Bian Hao was busy writing something. He raised his head and glanced at it, then responded coldly: "Oh? Commander Zhang, do you have anything to report?"
Zhang Yaoxian's rank in the army was not high, so he was somewhat trepidated when he reported to Bian Hao: "Excuse me, Bian Hao, when the general was patrolling the camp today, there was a soldier who claimed to have a plan to defeat the enemy. He said he wanted to offer it to the border in person. Handsome! I don’t know whether it’s true or not, so I came to report to the commander-in-chief!”
Bian Hao had no expression on his face and continued to write with his head lowered. He said with a hint of anger: "Pawn? What kind of plan can a soldier have? Do you think there is no one in our army? Or is it a joke that the commander is incompetent? Missing!"
Zhang Yaoxian couldn't help but bend his waist a little at this moment. He was so frightened and embarrassed that he almost scratched the ground with his toes. He just heard that Ambassador Chen had a conflict with Commander Bian in the commander's tent. Even a fool would imagine it. Now Commander Bian is obviously there. In the midst of depression, why do I have to hit the tip of a knife...
At the same time, I secretly regretted why I wanted to covet that boy's few coins...
Suddenly he remembered the uninformed words that boy said to him, and then he mustered up the courage and gritted his teeth and said: "Commander Bian, this person told the general that if Commander Bian doesn't see him, just say three words to Commander Bian! "
Bian Hao suppressed his anger, but still responded: "What three words?"
"Langzhou soldiers!"
Time seemed to have stopped for a moment, until a gust of cold wind hit the tent. Zhang Yaoxian saw that Bian Hao had not spoken for a while, and it was as if he had knocked over a pot of dog blood and felt it in his heart. It was so cold! He trembled all over and knelt down to accuse him: "Commander Bian, the general is not strict in his rule. Please punish him, Commander Bian!"
"It doesn't matter, just step back and let the pawn come in to see me!"
