Liu Daogui raised his brows slightly, looked at Yanzhi, and said, "Yanzhi, what do you think we should do to pursue Lu Xun's thief army?"
To Yanzhi confidently said: "The demon thieves always rely on robbing women of gold and silk to stimulate the morale of their subordinates when they march and fight, and they rely on killing officials and defenders to make it impossible for the new recruits to turn back. This time is no exception. I heard that they The city that was broken would be plundered for a few days, and then the women would take the looted money to attack the next place. The reason why Lu Xun stayed outside Jiangling City for so long was to wait for him to divide his troops and plunder the soldiers and horses from various places. These plundered supplies and women came back. Now they have plundered almost everything in central Hunan. They also saw that Jiangling City was strong and our army was ready, so they did not attack Jiangling by force, but went to Jiangzhou. I guess they are not really I want to have a decisive battle with Brother Xile, but I want to plunder the states and counties in Jiangzhou and recruit bandits and stragglers scattered around."
Tan Daoji said thoughtfully: "Yes, if they really want to capture Jingzhou or attack Jiankang, they should make a quick move instead of dividing their troops into two places to plunder like now. Maybe this time it is because of Wuji Brother intended to attack Lingnan and let the thieves know the news, so he attacked Brother Wuji first. With their strength, one sneak attack was enough, but it was a fool's dream to make two more sneak attacks to defeat the armies of Jingzhou and Yuzhou. They returned to Lingnan with their plundered population and troops, or they bypassed Jiangling and plundered the northern part of Jingzhou, and that would be our fault."
Liu Daogui sighed, turned to Wang Zhenzhi, Deng Qianzhi and others and said: "Wang Sima, Deng Changshi, please step aside for the time being and make preparations for sending troops. I will discuss military matters with the Beifu generals. Let’s discuss it.”
Wang Zhenzhi and Deng Qianzhi looked at each other, bowed and left, and some middle and low-level generals of the Beifu Army also left. In the entire palace, only Liu Daogui, Tan Zhi, Tan Daoji, Dao Yanzhi, and Liu Yu's nephew were left. , and Liu Zunchao, the rising star of the Beifu Army.
When everyone disappeared outside the door, Liu Daogui sighed softly: "Did I say what I just said in vain? How long has it been, and you are still thinking about grabbing credit for success?"
Tan Daoji curled up his lips: "Brother Daogui, we generals can ignore this, but the brothers below are unwilling to do so. Brother Jinu has personally stipulated the rules of no reward for no merit, no nobility, no official. Otherwise, why would Brother Wuji be so anxious to attack Lingnan? This desire to make great achievements is the biggest motivation for our Beifu Army. If you want everyone not to fight, but only to serve as Wang Sima's bodyguard to appease various places, then you can't explain it to the brothers first. Go there."
To Yanzhi nodded: "Yes, Daoji is right. In the defeat of Jiangzhou, many of the soldiers' relatives and friends died in the battle. It is not only a matter of meritorious service. Everyone is thinking about revenge and killing thieves. You If we ask everyone to follow the rebel army at a distance and not fight when there are opportunities, then the public will not be convinced."
Liu Daogui said in a deep voice: "Didn't I just say that the demon thieves are always accustomed to using this trick, deliberately leaving the baggage and women behind to attract the pursuers. If they really catch up, they will probably be ambushed. Your five thousand The men and horses, more or less, are almost all the mobile forces I can use now. If there is a mistake, I will no longer have the power to attack, and I will not be able to form a real pursuit of the demon thief."
Tan Zhi sighed: "Brother Daogui, we can understand your thoughts, but how do you explain it to the soldiers? Are you telling them that the money and women stolen by these demon thieves are all bait? We You can’t save or fight, and you will be ambushed if you go?”
Liu Daogui frowned slightly and gritted his teeth: "This is why I let Wang Zhenzhi, a civil servant, lead the army this time instead of you. You are military generals and your men are hot-blooded men. If you don't fight when you encounter the enemy, there will be consequences. It will damage the military power, but Wang Zhenzhi is a local scholar. If he wants everyone to exercise restraint in the name of appeasing various places, no one can object. This is your protection."
Tan Daoji said sternly: "But Wang Zhenzhi doesn't know the military at all. What if he gives the command blindly? He fought with Fu Hong before, and even his five younger brothers and son died in the battle. Is it really okay to let him lead the army? ?”
Liu Daogui said in a deep voice: "It is up to you, as professional generals, to persuade him and tell him when the enemy is faking defeat and luring the enemy, and when there is a real opportunity to fight. As long as you are not out of the desire to grab power and gain. And how can Wang Zhenzhi be able to command you if you mess up your position?"
"There are many people in Jiangling City secretly communicating with demon thieves. My intelligence spies here have reported four or five times. If we don't make some gesture at this time and allow local powerful people like Wang Zhenzhi to have the right to lead the army, then I'm afraid it will further alienate the local nobles, and if they really turn to the demon thieves on a large scale, they will be in trouble."
Tan Zhi gritted his teeth: "Speaking of this, I have to say that Brother Jinu is really not familiar with these white-eyed wolves. The Jingzhou land he conquered was not given to the brothers who marched to the west. Instead, he pardoned these guys and returned Three years of tax exemption, these gentle policies did not win their sincere compliance, and now that a disaster is approaching, we have to guard against them."
Liu Daogui shook his head: "Azhi, don't say such things. If you go by what you said, what's the difference between it and Huan Xuan's massacre of our old Beifu army brothers? The contradiction between Jing and Yang in the Jin Dynasty has become more and more serious since the founding of the country. The deeper the contradiction, the more difficult it is to resolve it in a day or two. Although this is a difficult situation, it may in turn be an opportunity to resolve this contradiction. If it is resolved well, we can truly win the hearts of Jingzhou and let the Jin Dynasty win the hearts of the people. Truly unified.”
Tan Daoji and Dao Yanzhi looked at each other and raised their hands at the same time: "Then we really just follow and don't attack, and mainly let Wang Zhenzhi recover and appease the various places?"
Liu Daogui said sternly: "If the demon thieves join forces, they will be so powerful that our Jingzhou Legion cannot handle it alone. I only hope that Brother Xile's Yuzhou Legion can firmly guard the Leichi area and prevent the demon thieves from having the opportunity to advance eastward. When the demon bandits started their army, their momentum was fierce. However, if they cannot break through Yuzhou quickly, their vigor will inevitably decline. At that time, the eldest brother can lead the victorious army back to the country to put down the rebellion, and join forces with Brother Xile. Then our pursuers will threaten Recovering the lost ground behind the enemy's army will put them in a dilemma. Until then, it is the time for us to truly fight the enemy. This is Zhou Yafu's method of quelling the rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms. What we have to do is to be a good king of Liang. Hold on to the demon thief firmly instead of rushing for a fight, you two brothers must remember this!"
