After listening to his words, Liu Chengyou pondered for a while, suddenly smiled, and asked curiously: "As the commander-in-chief of the army, you led the army to destroy the country, captured its monarch, and achieved great success. You are also famous among the people of the stars. Why are you now? Are you belittling yourself and speaking lightly?"
"To be honest with you, Your Majesty, this time we conquered Shu and broke through the narrow pass, there were countless casualties. I saw corpses scattered in the fields and blood stained the sky, and I couldn't bear it. It can be seen that people's hearts soften as they age..." Xiang Xun responded.
"This is not like the words coming from the mouth of a general who has killed countless people!" Liu Chengyou opened his eyes, turned his head to look at Xiang Xun, changed the subject, and said in a sentimental tone: "I still remember the fall of Shi Jin in the twelfth year of Tianfu. , China was in ruins, barbarians were raging, and you surrendered to Jinyang alone, how heroic, generous and heroic you were at that time!"
Xiang Xun also looked at the emperor, recalling the past events, his expression was finally not so "lifeless", and his face was moved. He smiled bitterly and said: "I have always been proud and arrogant, but I am still mediocre in my late forties." Mediocre. When I went north to Jinyang, my temper did not change. I spoke nonsense in front of the late emperor and talked about the general trend of the world.
If Your Majesty had not treated me with contempt, kept him under his account, followed me personally when I came in and out, and sent my heart and soul to him, I would still be wandering in the world, and how could I talk about today's honor and achievements..."
"You are complimenting me again!" Liu Chengyou seemed to be in a good mood: "However, with your talent as Xiang Xingmin, sooner or later you will meet Bo Le and become rich and powerful. I just happened to be at the right time!"
"I treated you with a small kindness, but you repaid me with ten times your achievements. After all, I have made a profit, and a big profit!" Liu Chengyou's mouth filled with a smile: "In the past few years since we came out of Hedong, we have defeated the enemy. , attack Liao, quell the chaos, cut down the vassal vassals, level the other countries, and gradually unify them. Among them, in the credit book, you have to write a lot to the people of the stars!"
"Your Majesty is so ridiculous!" Xiang Xun said seriously: "Twelve years after leaving the east, the world has changed. When the great ancestor founded the country, I followed your majesty and went eastward, but I never thought that in just twelve years, the country has changed. The world will be unified again. For eighty years, the world has been in chaos, with feudal vassals and towns separated, and all countries standing side by side. There have been many heroes and heroes in troubled times, but only Your Majesty is the one who can truly wipe out all parties, reform old evils, and create a legacy for all generations!"
Xiang Xun adheres to a few principles and keeps complimenting and saying nice things. However, this does not make Liu Chengyou feel flattering. After all, he has been deeply involved in the great changes of the Spring and Autumn Period for twelve years. He has deep feelings and naturally seems to be sincere.
However, Liu Chengyou's mood became more and more complicated. He slowly propped up his body, raised his fingers, and told Gong E to step back. Rourou, a beautiful girl in thin clothes, left the imperial couch and bowed her waist to leave. Only the monarch and his minister were left on the couch, and Xiang Xun also sat up.
Liu Chengyou looked at Xiang Xun, his calm eyes made him dare not look at him, and his tone became serious: "I know what you are worried about, and I also know what makes you so cautious. Maybe I am stubborn? Suspicious? Cold? Let me Are you scared?"
Hearing what the emperor said, Xiang Xun didn't dare to put on any airs. He knelt down on the couch and said seriously: "Your Majesty's words frighten me. I don't dare to have such an idea of deceiving you!"
Seeing this, Liu Chengyou seemed to become a little excited. He waved his hand and spitted: "I tell you, put your heart back in your stomach. I will treat those rumors in the court as nonsense. If I don't I trust you, why did I leave the Southwest Army in your hands for six years? I will never be suspicious of meritorious ministers.
You and I, the monarch and my ministers, have known each other for twelve years, and I consciously confide in you. You might as well be more honest now, and you don’t have to be afraid of your great achievements. Although I am not the founder of the country, I am the master of entrepreneurship, and I think I can suppress everything! "
The emperor's words came to this point. While Xiang Xun felt palpitations, he also understood that he should not do this again, otherwise he would really arouse the wrath of heaven. He bowed his hands and bowed again, touched it with his head, and said with a surrendering attitude and a tone of admiration: "Your Majesty is as powerful as the mountains and the sea, I can only bow my head and obey you!"
Stretching out a hand to lift him up, Liu Chengyou breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Now you and I, the emperor and my ministers, don't have to stick to these common etiquette, it seems to be normal!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
In fact, during the six years that Xiang Xun led the Southwest Army, there were many rumors in the court. At that time, he was ordered to reorganize the troops in Guanzhong and gather their elites to prepare for the invasion of Shu. It can be said that Xiang Xun formed the Southwest Han Army by himself. of.
Before the defeat of Shu, everything was relatively balanced, but after the success of defeating Shu, rumors started to fly. The emperor Liu Chengyou was still sitting firmly on the Diaoyutai, but the imperial censors and officials could not bear it anymore and repeatedly asked Liu Chengyou to recall Xiang Xun.
After all, Xiang Xun had tens of thousands of elite soldiers and surrendered 100,000 Shu soldiers. Coupled with the special geography of Sichuan and Shu, although some practical conditions were deliberately ignored, on the surface, Xiang Xun at that time was really very good. "Danger".
Those who talk about it far away have Zhong Hui's affairs, but those who are close can learn from Meng Zhixiang. How can the courtiers not think more about it. Especially after the news of the Shu Rebellion was officially announced, the courtiers who did not know the details became even more excited, and they almost directly questioned Xiang Xun's loyalty, saying that he was disobedient.
How could Xiang Xun not hear about those raging remarks? Although he is the commander-in-chief of a large army and is decisive in killing, he is still afraid and worried. Over the years, as the Han Dynasty continued to grow stronger, the process of unification was accelerating, people's hearts and minds were uniting, and the generals' sense of awe for the imperial power was also increasing.
In the past two years, there are still many arrogant and capable generals in the army, and there may still be people who act wantonly, but they dare not offend the emperor's authority. Xiang Xun is also a mortal general, always capable of making decisions, and it is normal for him to have a sense of worry in his heart.
Precisely because he knew something about the emperor and had heard about the personnel changes and power changes in the upper echelons of the Han Dynasty over the years, at this moment, even if Liu Chengyou spoke frankly and openly, he did not dare to take it completely seriously.
After thinking for a while, Xiang Xun also said to Liu Chengyou in a calm manner: "Your Majesty regards me as a bastard, and I am grateful. However, I have been leading the army in the southwest these years, far away from my family, and do not know my relatives. After the success of pacifying Shu, I have I am exhausted both physically and mentally. All I want now is to rest, relax and have fun. I hope Your Majesty will be considerate and grant this!"
"How can a general with such talent be in his prime and let him go to Nanshan like this?" Hearing what he said, he smiled casually, but added: "Let's talk about this later!"
Turning over and lying down, with his head resting on his hands, Liu Chengyou said: "We did a good job in pacifying Shu this time. We lived up to our years of preparation and captured all 200 prefectures and counties. It can be said to be the greatest achievement since the founding of the People's Republic of China!"
Xiang Xun was now afraid that the emperor would praise him. When he heard this, he said solemnly: "I am just about to plead guilty to your majesty. The land of Shu has returned to chaos. It is actually my incompetence and mishandling. I failed to correctly implement your majesty's will, which led to the disaster." Rebellion. The bandits suddenly appeared and failed to respond in time, causing the disaster to last for hundreds of days and severely damaging Shu. Not to mention the fatigue of the soldiers, the Shu people died as a result, more than 100,000 people! Every time I think about it, I feel careless. Dereliction of duty!”
"You don't have to be burdened!" After listening to what he said, Liu Chengyou waved his hands and said angrily: "I speak from my heart, the rebellion in Shu is caused by me and has nothing to do with you. Furthermore, such a mess The market is not without its benefits! Aren’t those traitors with ulterior motives jumping out and wiping us out in one fell swoop?
It was less than forty days before the army entered Chengdu. The advance was too smooth and it was too easy to destroy Shu. Reminds me of the story of the Sui Dynasty's destruction of Nanchen. Although the situation is different, the approach is the same. It would be better to start a rebellion after winning and rebelling! Not being in chaos is not enough to understand its disadvantages. Now the soldiers and people of Shu should know the majesty of the imperial court. Even if Shu is destroyed, it will be easier for the imperial court to clean up again..."
The emperor's words were a bit ruthless, and there was no hint of love for the people. He was ambitious and obviously only cared about his rule. As for hundreds of thousands of people killed or injured, what does it matter?
As for Xiang Xun, despite his appearance of being "soft-hearted" and worried about one thing and jealous of another, in his heart, he was not so compassionate. He just showed that kind of behavior. He led his troops to attack the country, killing countless people, but his heart was hard. As for Liu Chengyou's words, he actually agreed with them and immediately praised the emperor's majestic appearance.
"In this attack on Shu, the imperial court recounted the merits and deeds. Who do the people of the stars think is worthy of being number one?" Liu Chengyou asked again.
Xiang Xun: "I am the commander-in-chief and it is not appropriate for me to make unreasonable comments!"
"As the commander-in-chief, you should take credit for your subordinates' suggestions. If you don't speak up, who in the court can decide?" Liu Chengyou asked.
After hearing this, Xiang Xun pondered for a long time and said seriously: "Since entering Shu and fighting the rebellion, in summary, Zhao Kuangyin should be the first!"
"Well..." Liu Chengyou responded softly without showing any surprise.
Immediately he ordered: "There are many soldiers from the southwest of the victorious army that I have never seen before. Make arrangements and I will conduct a review at Qionglin Garden tomorrow!"
"The soldiers must smile with joy and admire the beauty of the sky!"
