On another section of the Huai River, on a small embankment, Xie Xuanyi was wearing a fine silk gown, just like when he appeared in Jingkou. His hair was neatly combed and spotless, and he watched people whizzing by at his feet. The water of the Huaihe River looks calm.
Liu Yu's body was stained with a lot of dust, and he stood beside him silently. There were only two people on this small embankment, and the river wind was blowing their hairbands and uniforms. Two people with such sharp contrasts stood like this. Here, it seems to be somewhat indescribably harmonious.
Xie Xuan breathed a sigh of relief: "Xiao Yu, are you curious why I didn't wear armor today but dressed like this?"
Liu Yu smiled slightly: "This battle is over, Commander Xuan can relax for a while. You are still well dressed like this, looking elegant and noble."
Xie Xuan sighed and stretched out his big white hands. His slender fingers were like jade pillars and his skin was well maintained, like a woman's. He looked at Liu Yu: "How much blood is stained on these hands? Xiaoyu, do you know? A general who kills people like crazy, but you actually call him elegant!"
Liu Yu wanted to speak, but when he glanced out of the corner of his eye, he saw dozens of headless corpses floating up and down in the river. He immediately realized that after all, Xie Xuan was the commander-in-chief of an army, and he had killed tens of thousands of enemies this time. , even though he did not kill anyone personally, after all, tens of thousands of lives disappeared with his order. It is not wrong to say that his hands were bloody.
Thinking of this, Liu Yu was speechless. Xie Xuan calmly looked at the corpse floating in front of him: "Xiao Yu, do you want to say that it is not good for Liu Laozhi and other generals to kill prisoners and take credit?"
Liu Yu nodded: "If you kill the enemy on the battlefield, it doesn't matter how many you kill, but the surrendered enemy has given up resistance. You first deceive people into surrendering and then kill them. This kind of behavior, The subordinates can’t understand it.”
Xie Xuan shook his head: "Xiao Yu, there is a saying that I don't know if you have heard of. Compassion will not lead to troops, and justice will not lead to justice. This has been true since ancient times."
Liu Yu said seriously: "But killing and surrendering is unlucky, and this has been true since ancient times. Since ancient times, Li Guang, a generation of famous generals, all ended badly because of killing and surrendering."
Xie Xuan smiled slightly: "You have only seen the endings of Bai Qi and Li Guang, but have you ever thought that these two people could become famous generals in ancient times and make their subordinates willing to die, didn't they rely on this method? As a general, the first thing you have to think about is how to defeat the enemy, and the second thing is how to benefit your men. If you cannot do one of these two things, it will be difficult to win on the battlefield. "
Liu Yu shook his head in disbelief: "My subordinates didn't use this move. Didn't they also defeat the enemy? The friendship between brothers is not such a cold interest."
Xie Xuan sighed: "You can live with dozens, hundreds, or two thousand people like Tan Pingzhi day and night, but you can't live and eat with tens of thousands of soldiers like this. The human heart is the most difficult thing in the world to grasp. , especially in the army, soldiers come from all over the world and from all directions, and everyone has different ideas. Only those who win titles for their merits and achievements on the battlefield are common. You can be loyal to dozens or hundreds of people and be the big brother. But it can’t be the same for tens of thousands of people, you still have to come up with something worthy of their death.”
Liu Yu smiled slightly: "Then take these tens of thousands of brothers to make achievements, win battles, and win big battles. You can also behead the enemy's heads on the battlefield. Why do you have to kill and surrender?"
Xie Xuan didn't seem to expect Liu Yu's answer. He was stunned for a moment and then laughed: "Xiao Yu is Xiao Yu. This arrogance is really powerful. You are right. As a general, if you can command your subordinates to fight, A big victory can indeed bring enough benefits to the subordinates. But this time the situation is special, because the Qin army collapsed without a fight, and we cannot kill a large number of enemy troops on the battlefield, and if these people are captured, according to the large Jin's military system does not count as gains, but for ordinary soldiers, it is a huge loss."
Having said this, Xie Xuan paused and looked at Liu Yu: "Xiao Yu, you led thousands of soldiers in front and destroyed 20,000 hard-hit cavalry. These are real achievements. Even if you don't take it seriously, but The brothers who followed you got a lot of benefits. Even the blacksmiths were able to get rid of their status as craftsmen and logisticians and transfer to combat troops. So of course they are happy, but you have to know that there are nearly 80,000 soldiers who are not as good as you. With good luck, everyone can gain merit, so Liu Laozhi and the others use this method to find some benefits for their subordinates, and I can only turn a blind eye to military merit."
Liu Yu finally understood and sighed: "I finally figured it out today. As a general, you have to consider not only the outcome of the war, but also all aspects. It's really troublesome. Forget it, Marshal Xuan. , I still reserve my own opinion on this matter, but I always believe that today you can kill prisoners of war, but tomorrow you may be able to kill good people and take credit for your merits, but this trend should not rise!"
Xie Xuan's expression changed: "Liu Laozhi said he wanted to kill good people and take credit for their merits?"
Liu Yu shook his head: "No, but I think if this continues, if the Northern Expedition reaches the enemy's territory in the future, the soldiers who are red-eyed will not be able to hold back. Once they can't get their heads on the battlefield, they will kill the enemy." It is a matter of course that we, the Jin Dynasty, want to do the Northern Expedition in the future, we still have to win the hearts of the people in the north, we cannot treat them as enemies, let alone massacre them casually, please be sure to pay close attention to this, Marshal Xuan."
Xie Xuan said seriously: "I will definitely pay attention to this. This is a special matter. I also need to let the soldiers maintain this beastly instinct before the next battle. But after the next time, it may not be necessary. .”
Liu Yu's expression changed and he asked curiously: "The next war? Xuan Shuai means that the Qin army will come back soon? Not so soon. After all, our army destroyed 80,000 Qin troops this time. Even if Qin is strong, It’s not so easy to get over it.”
Xie Xuan smiled and waved his hand: "Xiao Yu, you still underestimated Qin and Fu Jian. You see, this time Fu Jian won a great victory in Jingzhou and captured Xiangyang, but he was defeated miserably in Lianghuai. Eight The whole army of ten thousand was wiped out. With his personality, he will never stop here. He will definitely raise an army that will overwhelm the country and fight with us. Be prepared. Next, the storm is coming, and you will definitely be useful. of!"
Liu Yu's eyes flashed coldly: "I can't wait for this day. Don't worry, Xuan Shuai, I won't let you down!" (End of Volume 2)
