"Gong Zhenguo, I'm glad to meet you. I'd like to thank you, Lao Jianhua."
Looking at Lao Jianhua, who had gray hair on his temples and was dressed in green robes and Confucian clothes, looking like an old scholar, it was difficult for Cheng Dong to associate him with the conspirator who stirred up the world and almost overturned the Shengtang empire.
Cheng Dong took a deep breath and snorted unkindly: "You really shouldn't be here. In any case, you were the chief culprit in my father's blood feud."
The expression on Lao Jianhua's face did not change at all, and he still looked as calm as ever. After a moment of pause, he sighed softly: "Mr. Zhen Guo, I am not shirking my responsibility. One day, you brothers and sisters will come to me to seek revenge. I have no complaints. But then again, the world was in turmoil back then. Even if your father did not die in our hands, he could not escape the swords of the Turks later, right? Each of us is swept up by the trend of history. We often have no choice but to do so, which is actually a result of fate.”
"What a man who can't help himself!" Cheng Dong said angrily: "Who is the instigator of that earth-shaking chaos? Isn't it you? There are Turks outside and Xie Guang inside, which turned a good Shengtang into pieces. , all thanks to your hard work. My father’s grievances, both public and private, will be recorded on your head!"
Hearing this, Lao Jianhua couldn't help laughing loudly: "People often say that Cheng Dong and Cheng Qingmu are heroes of the world. Although they are young, they have extraordinary knowledge. I never thought that you would have such a stupid husband. The naive thoughts of a foolish woman are really disappointing.”
"Am I right?" Cheng Dong stared at Lao Jianhua and asked word by word.
"I can't say it's wrong, I can only say it's completely wrong!" Lao Jianhua glanced at him and responded calmly: "The Holy Tang Dynasty lasted for more than 800 years and had thirty emperors before and after. They took the Holy Religion as their soul and relied on their strength. The foundation of the military is very deep, and its foundation is very thick. How can it be turned upside down and disorganized just because of a mere person's work? After all, you are just like ordinary people. Being able to see through the real reasons behind things is a shame, a shame.”
Cheng Dong was slightly startled when he heard the words, and was immediately affected by the other party's words. He couldn't help but start to think, and listened to Lao Jianhua continue: "The chaos in the Shengtang actually started with Li Chengwen. Although his reign was very short, , but it has laid huge hidden dangers for the next 20 to 30 years. You must have heard of the famous work by the poet Li Taixuan, the Duke of Zhenguo, right? In the misty mirror lake of the imperial capital, the phoebe is alone drunk with ruby red. The blade of the knife It has been beaten for thirty thousand miles, and the country has been soaked with nine thousand layers of blood. Everyone knows that the phoebe in the poem refers to the ghost desert in Western Xinjiang. And what really overthrew the Holy Tang Dynasty was the hidden danger in Western Xinjiang, and it was Li Chengwen who It was forged by the bloody storm."
Cheng Dong was a little puzzled: "When you talk about the bloody storm, do you mean that the rebellion was put down with swords and swords? How can it be said that it is a hidden danger?"
Lao Jianhua sneered and said: "I once stayed in Western Xinjiang and the Turks for a long time to avoid Shen Lie's pursuit, so I have deep feelings. Many people in Western Xinjiang have deep feelings about the massacre of the country more than 20 years ago. They were very dissatisfied with the war and the high-pressure rule of the Zhenjiang Protectorate, which led to the uprising in 821. And the Turks took advantage of this and had the idea of invading eastward."
Lao Jianhua paused for a moment and continued: "In addition, Li Chengwen made another mistake that also harmed Shengtang, and that was that his life was too short. Li Chengwen passed away not long after he succeeded to the throne, leaving behind your aunt. How could Queen Jingwen and the infant prince not be coveted by the ministers of the court? It stands to reason that no matter how young the prince is, he should inherit the throne. Queen Jingwen will first rule from behind the curtain, and then take over the personal rule when the emperor comes of age. However, Nian Jinsong, He Jingming and other rebellious ministers had ulterior motives, and secretly colluded with King Li Chengwu of Lu to usurp the throne. His Royal Highness, the King of Jin, was upright and resolutely opposed, but those people joined forces to suppress it. This grievance also led to the chaos in the country twenty years later. Foreshadowing. Lord Zhenguo, do you think Wu can control this?"
Cheng Dong pondered for a moment, then suddenly smiled coldly and said: "What a sharp-tongued person. What you just said is very confusing. Ordinary people will inevitably be confused after hearing it. But it is a pity that you can't deceive me. Xijiang also Okay, late emperor, those reasons and foreshadowings are all historical accidents, and they cannot be completely avoided no matter which dynasty or generation. The only difference is that you cleverly used these factors to cause trouble, which led to the chaos in the world. .”
Lao Jianhua laughed and nodded: "If you say that, you can't say it is completely unreasonable. The so-called taking advantage of the situation and taking advantage of the trend is the only way for Lao to avenge His Highness the King of Jin. Otherwise, how can I fight against the powerful Li Chengwu? ? But then again, it seems that Duke Zhen is not qualified to accuse Lao of disturbing the world, right? "
"Why are you not qualified?" Cheng Dong raised his eyebrows: "Isn't it enough that my father was killed by you?"
Lao Jianhua laughed and said: "Now that the queen is in charge of the government and exercises power on behalf of the emperor, and your Cheng family's children hold the power of military affairs, I don't know how many other people's dukes and marquises are going to die without a burial place. What? Could it be your father's fate?" Life, isn’t the life of others life? If you act like this, sooner or later it will trigger a new round of civil war in Shengtang. Isn’t that disrupting the world? "
Cheng Dong was speechless by the other party's words. He hesitated for a moment and then said with a slight embarrassment: "Don't talk nonsense. The emperor was poisoned and his dragon body was not healed. He was temporarily unable to handle government affairs, so he asked the queen to act on his behalf." No matter what. The outside world doesn’t know the truth, so it’s inevitable to make false assumptions and make malicious speculations.”
As if he had heard a big joke, Lao Jianhua couldn't help but laugh and shake his head: "Zhenguo Gong, fighting in the court has always been extremely dangerous, and on the battlefield it is even more difficult to make any mistakes. How can a person who achieves great things continue to do so? Secretive and timid? If you are still so ashamed to admit the facts today, then I can declare here that within three months, the Cheng family will definitely be defeated by Li Jiangyao, and the Zhenjiang Army will beat the Zhenguo Duke’s Mansion. Turn into ashes!"
Cheng Dong frowned and said in a deep voice: "You are a bit alarmist!"
"Let me take a guess. The Lord Zhen Guo went to the wilderness outside the city to see me this time. It was probably the Queen's decision, right?" Lao Jianhua said proudly: "The Zhenjiang Army responded with a thunderbolt Unable to hide their influence, they suppressed Cheng Nan, captured Tongguan, and the troops were 300 miles away from the imperial capital. The whole court was talking about it. Some people are afraid of Li Jiangyao, and some are looking forward to Li Jiangyao. If you have figured out If I don’t have a good way to deal with it, I’m afraid I’m too lazy to talk to Lao.”
Even a man as wealthy as Cheng Dong could not help but feel embarrassed and annoyed when the other party suddenly talked about the central issue. However, given the overall situation, he still tried his best to control his emotions and pretended to smile calmly: "Why do we need to deal with Li Jiangyao? It's just a matter of letting him leave smoothly and return to Western Xinjiang. In the plain field battle, I really have no confidence in defeating him." The Suppressing Army, but if we just rely on the city to defend it, the imperial capital plus 200,000 forbidden troops will be enough to protect the Cheng family."
Lao Jianhua smiled and nodded: "That's true. In that case, why did Duke Zhen Guo come to meet with me?"
Cheng Dong couldn't help but feel depressed when he saw that the other party actually used a move to retreat in order to advance. After sighing silently, he could only bring the topic back: "You sent someone to contact me last time, saying that you would join forces to deal with Li Jiang Yao, I don’t know what you have to say?”
Lao Jianhua smiled casually and asked without answering, "Is the Duke of Zhen Guo willing to cooperate?"
"Let's not discuss whether we can cooperate or not," Cheng Dong stared at the other party: "I at least want to see what magic weapon or bargaining chip you have before I can judge whether you are qualified to cooperate with me."
Hearing this, Lao Jianhua nodded slightly: "The Duke of Zhenguo has always been cautious, I can understand it. It is difficult to prove the qualifications at the moment, so let me analyze a few issues first."
He calmly picked up the teapot on the table, first filled a cup for Cheng Dong opposite him, and then poured it for himself. Then he said leisurely: "First of all, why is Li Jiangyao in a hurry to go back?"
Cheng Dong looked at the tea cup and did not move it easily. He only frowned and said: "I heard that because Persia attacked the Turks, the war might spread to the Ghost Desert in Western Xinjiang. Li Jiangyao was worried that his base camp would be lost, so he hurried back. .”
Lao Jianhua did not comment on this and continued to ask: "If it is true, as you said, that Li Jiangyao led his army back urgently to resist the Persian invasion, then what factors does he care about most at the moment?"
Cheng Dong thought about it seriously and responded: "Which ones are there? In my opinion, there is only one. Can we reach Zijin Pass smoothly?"
"That's true, but it can be divided into more details." Lao Jianhua caressed his long beard and smiled: "If Li Jiangyao is preparing to deal with the powerful Persians, he must ensure at least two things. One, time, and two , military strength. Is I right?"
Cheng Dong nodded: "Well, that's true. Time and troops are the most precious to Li Jiangyao now."
Seeing that the other party recognized his statement, Lao Jianhua continued: "So it is not difficult for us to understand what happened in Dongdu and Tongguan. Within one day, the White Tiger Army lost Tongguan Fortress. In three days, the entire Luoyi was suppressed to the point of being unable to move. However, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses from both sides had so many contacts and big moves in a row, and yet they didn't even fight a single battle. Don't you think it's interesting?"
Cheng Dong suddenly realized: "It's exactly what you said. Li Jiangyao and the others have spent so much thought on avoiding direct conflicts to a large extent. So..."
He looked into Lao Jianhua's eyes and said tentatively: "Actually, Li Jiangyao is more afraid of war than we are. Because once the two sides really fight, the waste of time and troops is what he least wants to see. ?”
Lao Jianhua stroked his beard and looked at Cheng Dong with a smile: "The Duke of Zhen Guo has found out the details of Li Jiangyao. I don't need to say more about what to do next."
