"Oh?" Li Hongji was pleasantly surprised and embarrassed at the same time, because he knew that he was able to successfully see through Hu Ze's plot and save the army from danger, all thanks to the resourceful and decisive Li Yuan in front of him, and the thoughtful veteran Fu Hong. He was just It was a blind cat that bumped into a dead mouse, and he happened to suspect something was strange in the warehouse in the south of the city. If Li Yuan hadn't come to remind him late at night, he, Li Hongji, would have been buried in the raging fire.
It is true that this time Li Yuan and the generals attributed such a huge contribution to themselves. Li Hongji was happy to accept it, but he suddenly sobered up and suddenly thought that with Li Yuan's always shrewdness, this person would never show his courtesy for nothing. The reason that allows him to do this must be extremely beneficial to himself.
The only reason Li Hongji could think of at this moment was that Li Yuan must have wanted something from him. That is, in fact, this was not free humility, but a secret deal. Of course, he gave Li Yuan what he needed. A sense of peace of mind.
Li Hongji coughed several times, then frowned and said: "Li Yuan, you are the first to be able to see through the traitor's conspiracy in time this time, and Fu Hong, the commander of the Xiongwu Army, also reported that you have achieved success. Thanks to you, I can now stand unscathed." Here, I just wanted to write a letter and send it to Jinling, asking my father to reward you heavily, but why do you shirk this credit to me? How can this make me feel comfortable? "
"Your Highness naturally takes it calmly." Li Yuan chuckled softly: "Anyway, the memorial has been sent to Jinling immediately. It is difficult to collect it. Your Highness does not need to be too modest. Just wait for your Majesty's commendation and reward. After all, His Highness was the first to notice something strange in the warehouse in the south of the city. Ah! Besides, Your Highness, please don’t forget that you are the deputy marshal in the fight against the rebellion. Your Majesty’s meritorious service will definitely reward you and the entire army. You will also be honored!”
Li Hongji paused, then blinked his eyes and said with a sly smile: "Haha, then I really want to thank you..."
"Your Highness, please don't do this. I can't bear it."
"Why bother with this in front of me? Let's be honest, what do you want, a title, an official position, or money and food? But now that you are an envoy, you should have all these things, which makes me a little curious."
Now that the words have come to this point, Li Yuan certainly doesn't have to be secretive anymore. Although he doesn't want to speak about this matter too directly, he still thought about it carefully for a moment and said: "Your Highness, I do have something. I beg you, but as your Highness said, I have received great favor from the imperial court. I am in a high position and have a lot of troops. Naturally, I do not need any more vain names such as titles and official positions. Although the more money and food, the better, the court is currently in a bad situation. How can I ask for this now?
My only request is that after the rebellion of the Zhennan Army is put down, I would like to have your Majesty say a few kind words and let me return to Langzhou as soon as possible. The Chu region has always been troubled, so your Majesty also ordered me to attack Jingnan on another day. .....”
Li Hongji said suspiciously: "What can happen to the Chu land? With you, you have won several great victories in the past, the three states of Dongxi have returned, the Han army has retreated to Guiguan, and now you have been allowed to expand the army, it can be said that everything is calm, right? As for my father, the emperor Ordering you to attack Jingnan is obviously your cover-up. Now that the Zhennan Army’s Northern Expedition is fake and its rebellion is real, why do you need to send troops to go north?”
Li Yuan was helpless for a while, but he still said seriously: "Your Highness, although this time the Zhennan Army's Northern Expedition is fake and the rebellion is real, who knows what the Zhou Kingdom in the north is thinking? They don't know the truth. Although my Northern Expedition is kept secret, , but once the news leaks out, Zhou Guo will definitely take action.
The Chu Territory is the territory that we, the Tang Dynasty, finally obtained with great difficulty. It is also the western border of the Tang Dynasty. It has the Han Dynasty in the south, the Zhou Dynasty and Jingnan in the north. It is actually the land of the four wars. If the ministers stay in Jinling for a long time, Langzhou will be without a master for a long time. , no one can guarantee what changes will happen to Chu Di.
If the Northern Army really takes advantage of the situation and goes south this time, what will happen then? There are ministers who lead the Wu Ping army to guard the Chu region, which can fend off foreign enemies and help the country in times of crisis. "
Li Hongji pondered and said: "You are right. If after pacifying the Zhennan Army this time, the imperial court has to deal with the Northern Army again. Not only will the national treasury be unable to bear the burden, the soldiers will be even more exhausted and difficult to fight, which will easily form a vicious Cycle. If you go back to guard Chu, it will be a shock to the Northern Kingdom. However, since your request is beneficial to the country, why don't you wait to return to the capital to report it to your father in person instead of borrowing it from my king's mouth?"
Li Yuan smiled bitterly and shook his head: "No, Your Highness, please don't forget my identity. I am a local envoy with a heavy army, and he is already feared by the court. If I take the initiative to return as soon as possible in front of His Majesty, it may cause criticism. Besides, Also at this juncture of the Zhennan Army's rebellion, His Majesty is already sensitive, and I do not want to lose my position and go to jail to seek death, so I can only ask His Highness to speak on my behalf."
Li Hongji nodded slightly and said: "You're right. You really can't talk nonsense at this time. My father is very angry right now. If you say anything wrong, you will indeed get into trouble. But why are you so sure that your father will listen to me? Suggestion? Do you think my father doesn’t know about your relationship with me?”
Li Yuan smiled and said: "Your Majesty is so wise, and he naturally knows everything. But because of this, it would be best if His Majesty raised this matter, and His Majesty would definitely agree. Because after returning to Beijing this time, there is no doubt who the government belongs to. Your Highness, you will be able to fulfill your lifelong ambitions from now on, so I would like to express my congratulations to you first."
Li Hongji turned his head in disbelief and responded perfunctorily: "Well, I will say this for you in front of my father. But now you have to concentrate on working with me to suppress the rebellion of the Southern Army. Once the matter is settled, Hu Ze is just a sideshow. Li Zhenggu and Song Mojie’s 100,000-strong Zhennan Army is just five miles away from the camp. When are you planning to launch all the troops?"
Li Yuan smiled and said: "Your Highness, we have 200,000 forbidden troops in our hands. Now that the river is frozen in the middle of winter, the Zhennan Army is in a dilemma. It is a doomed situation. There is no suspense in this battle. The key issue is that we must let the Zhennan Army It only counts how many soldiers of the Confederate Army survived.”
Li Hongji raised his eyebrows and said, "What do you mean by this?"
Li Yuan sighed and said, "Your Highness, please don't tell me. You don't know that His Majesty has a secret decree for me. That day, Shaojian Liu came to announce the decree in person..."
"Stop it." Li Hongji smiled awkwardly and said, "I do know about this."
"That's it." Li Yuan then nodded and said: "Your Majesty has already made a decree. There is no need to kill everyone in this battle. If we can capture Li Zhenggu and Song Mojie, it will be a success. After all, the 100,000 Zhennan Army officers and soldiers are all Jianghuai Children, try to protect them as much as possible."
Li Hongji said: "Since my father has an edict, then you can just do it according to the edict. However, wars are inevitable according to God's will. Deaths and injuries are inevitable. How can one estimate the survival rate? You don't have to worry too much. You must put down the rebellion first." Do not be wary when fighting, lest your hands and feet be tied up."
Li Yuan said in a deep voice: "It is true that your Majesty has a decree, and it is true that the casualties in the war are determined by God's will. However, as His Highness just said, if our army attacks together and causes the Zhennan Army, which is on the verge of despair, to rise up and resist, those soldiers will inevitably die or be injured." Almost exhausted.”
"So what?" Li Hongji tapped his fingers nonchalantly and replied softly: "If they dare to resist, they will die unjustly. Don't worry, I will be able to bear witness to you if I go to the battlefield with you. Even if it's a hundred thousand. It doesn’t matter if all the Zhennan Army dies, as long as the rebellion is put down, my father will not be able to blame you."
Li Yuan was speechless and subconsciously touched his neck, thinking to himself that if this was really the case, then he would probably never want his head again. Why is he the head coach this time, while Li Hongji, as the eldest son of the emperor, only holds the position of deputy head coach? The emperor's intention is self-evident.
The greater the responsibility, the greater the credit, but the greater the blame that may be placed on one's head.
Dear book friends, the author has finally recovered. He will slowly adjust his status and will continue to update every day. Thank you all.
