From the time Tong Yong left home and came back, it only took a cup of tea.
Xiang Ling didn't even react, he was still a little dazed.
He was so tough just now, how could he be so gentle and cooperative in the blink of an eye?
What happened in such a short period of time?
What could happen?
Xiang Ling couldn't figure it out, but there was no need to figure it out. As long as Tong Yong was willing to cooperate, it didn't matter what his reason was.
"It would be great if the Marquis is willing to mobilize troops to help."
Xiang Ling was overjoyed and bowed.
Tong Yong stepped forward to help Xiang Ling and said: "Your Highness, you are very polite. Since it is for the people, I am naturally obliged to do so. However, although I am in charge of all affairs in the southern border, I privately mobilize troops and horses, and they go to Liangzhou. Without His Majesty's decree or the order from the Ministry of War, this crime would be a crime that I cannot bear to bear."
Xiang Ling said with a smile: "Don't worry, Lord Marquis, this matter has affected several cities in Liangzhou. In order to avoid trouble, my father gave me the right to take advantage of it before leaving. Even though Lord Marquis dispatches troops, I will bear the consequences."
The cheap power given by Xiang Gan was just a convenience for Xiang Ling. Of course, it did not include the power to recruit troops and horses in the southern border. Fortunately, this provision was not explicitly stipulated. Xiang Ling's move was not considered over the top. I apologized for the last excerpt, saying that I obeyed the authority in urgent matters. The people from the Seventh Department will naturally report the whole matter. Su Chengwang will also help to speak. As long as the errand is done well and the matter has a good result, it will definitely not be a bad idea to welcome Xiang Ling. Xiang Qian's accountability is instead a reward.
So Xiang Ling is not worried about this at all.
"That's good." Tong Yong nodded after hearing this.
What he asked was actually nonsense. Xiang Ling was not a fool. If Xiang Ling hadn't dealt with it, it would have been impossible for him to come to him rashly.
However, the process still needs to be followed.
"In this case, I will gather troops immediately. Your Highness can take the first step to take care of everything. I will personally lead 50,000 troops and we will be able to reach Xiyang City in half a month at most."
The mobilization of the army cannot be done at once, it will naturally take time.
However, since they were not going to fight, they did not need to carry any luggage, so the marching speed was not slow. Although the snowy road was difficult, the vanguard cavalry would definitely be able to reach Xiyang City in half a month.
"In this case, I have troubled the Marquis. This matter cannot be delayed. I will leave immediately without any further delay. I will only wait for the Marquis to send troops."
"Farewell to Your Highness."
"Master Hou, stay."
After the two parties made an agreement, Xiang Ling felt like a spring breeze, and the fatigue of the journey was swept away. Instead, he was full of energy and was not prepared to stay in Shiyang.
Xiang Ling was anxious, Tong Yong was also anxious, and Xiang Ling was not spared.
When Xiang Ling left, Tong Yong immediately ordered his bodyguards: "Quickly send an order to Uncle Si Nan, and tell him that His Majesty the King of Liang, with your Majesty's decree, will mobilize soldiers and horses from all towns to open rivers in Xiyang and other cities, and ask him to send eight thousand soldiers to go north first." , as for the banditry in Zhuxi, we will put it aside for the time being. I will focus on defending the city and do not act without authorization."
"yes."
When Shen Xiong received Tong Yong's order, he was actually a little surprised.
It wasn't that this order surprised him, but that the order came too quickly.
Xiang Ling and Shen Xiong left Liangzhou City on the same day, but Xiang Ling went to Shiyang, which was further away, while Shen Xiong returned to Lu'an.
So Shen Xiong actually arrived two days earlier than Xiang Ling.
But when Shen Xiong received the order, he had just arrived in Lu'an for less than four days. In other words, Tong Yong did not bother with Xiang Ling at all, but agreed immediately.
This is not common sense.
Tong Yong is from King Cheng, would he give Xiang Ling face like this?
Even for Prince Xiang Ling's sake, isn't this too enjoyable?
I don't understand. Shen Xiong, like Xiang Ling, really doesn't understand...
"Someone's coming."
Shen Xiong called the deputy general and said: "The Marquis of Zhennan has ordered you to lead your eight thousand troops and set off immediately to Xiyang City to obey the orders of the fifth prince."
"The general will get the order at the end."
The deputy general left Shen Xiong but fell into deep thought.
"Now there are only two thousand defenders in Lu'an City, and they are no longer able to wipe out the bandits... Could it be that, as Qingyun expected, these so-called bandits were not only arranged by the Yan people, but also arranged by the Marquis of Zhennan There are relationships?"
If you think about it carefully, a group of bandits specifically robbed Chu merchants appeared on the border of Chu State. It is reasonable, legal and necessary for the Chu army to send troops to suppress the bandits. This is also within the responsibilities of the border guards.
But now it is the Marquis of Zhennan who is in charge of the southern border who is taking the lead in stopping the bandits. This is also unreasonable.
Could it be that Tong Yong wanted to raise the bandits’ self-respect?
It's possible, but it's a bit silly.
After all, Shen Xiong and Tong Yong are not in the same party, and Shen Xiong's status in the southern border is not much worse than that of Tong Yong. If Tong Yong does this, or has this tendency, Shen Xiong can report the matter without Tong Yong. The fake capital will inevitably lead to secret inspections from the Ministry of War and the Seventh Ministry. Regardless of whether something can be found out or not, it will be more costly than gain for Tong Yong.
The so-called self-respect of bandits is nothing more than asking for military pay and materials in the name of bandits.
But Tong Yong didn't do that. He just refused to go out and everything else was as usual.
This left Shen Xiong with no excuse, and the charge of raising a bandit to respect himself was no longer established.
And Shen Qingyun and Su Chengwang saw this very clearly.
Because Shen Xiong was originally Chu Emperor Xiang Qi'an's thorn in the southern border. His purpose was to contain Tong Yong and prevent Tong Yong from doing things like supporting the invaders to respect themselves.
As a supporter of the second prince Xiang Chen, Tong Yong plays an important role in Xiang Chen's camp. In fact, Tong Yong is Xiang Chen's only supporter in the Dachu military.
Therefore, Tong Yong must not make any mistakes. Even if there is no Shen Xiong, Xiang Chen will try his best to restrain Tong Yong and never let Tong Yong make any mistakes, leaving others with a basis for criticism.
Based on this, we can rule out the possibility of Tong Yong supporting the bandits, but if someone secretly smuggles gold and silver and makes Tong Yong turn a blind eye, that's a different matter.
Anyway, I guard the border conscientiously, and there will be no mistakes in changing patrol camps on weekdays.
As for the Zhuxi Bandits?
It's unfair. The area around Zhuxi City is a sensitive area between Yan and Chu. If I send troops rashly, what if I become an excuse for the Yan people?
So I could only send spies to track down the whereabouts of the bandits. But the spies were incompetent and the bandits were cunning. They never found the traces. Of course I couldn't send troops.
In short, as long as Tong Yong doesn't go out of his way, no one can pick on him and he will remain invincible.
The reason Shen Qingyun guessed from this was not because Tong Yong prevented Shen Xiong from sending troops.
On the contrary, if Shen Qingyun were Tong Yong, he would not hesitate to acquiesce to Shen Xiong's sending troops to suppress the bandits. Regardless of whether Shen Xiong succeeds or not, he would immediately label Shen Xiong for leading troops out of the country rashly and report this crime to the police. Even if Xiang Qian would be given a lighter sentence. If he puts it down lightly, he will be punished on the surface, and maybe he can remove the thorn in Nanjing Shen Xiong's side.
But Tong Yong had something in his heart and he didn't do this. This made Shen Qingyun sure that there must be something wrong with Tong Yong, and there was a high probability that he was collecting money.
Of course, it is impossible for Tong Yong to betray the country and surrender to the enemy. For Tong Yong, the money he received was sent by bandits.
If it was Sheng Yuanbai, even if Tong Yong was greedy for money, he wouldn't have such courage.
And if you want to bribe someone with Tong Yong's status, it's not just money that can do it.
Maybe Tong Yong also guessed that these bandits were not simple, but he didn't see the hidden danger, so he didn't care so much.
Chen Xiong hesitated for a moment, but then shook his head, "Although what the letter said is serious, it is not certain. Now that the Marquis of Zhennan has given the order, it depends on how the Yan people react.
Within a month, there should be results. "
What Shen Qingyun said in the letter shocked Shen Xiong inexplicably. Perhaps because he had not fully accepted Shen Qingyun's changes, Shen Xiong still could not fully believe Shen Qingyun's words.
But Shen Xiong trusted Su Chengwang. Since it was Su Chengwang who asked Shen Qingyun to send the letter, Shen Xiong would act on it no matter what.
Apart from Xiang Ling and Shen Xiong, there was another person who was also shocked by Tong Yong's cheerfulness.
That was the seven commanders sent by Su Chengwang.
Originally he was afraid that Tong Yong would embarrass Xiang Ling, so Su Chengwang asked people from the Seventh Department to give Tong Yong some advice and ask him to cooperate.
In fact, Tong Yong was indeed in a dilemma, but his attitude changed faster.
This surprised the commander in charge. He had originally thought about how to communicate with Tong Yong at night, but he didn't expect that all these preparations were in vain.
Come on, it was a trip in vain.
The commander followed Xiang Ling to Shiyang City and had not yet recovered his breath. Seeing Xiang Ling leaving, he could only follow him secretly and return to Liangzhou City to resume his life.
It's quite tiring.
In Liangzhou City, Shen Qingyun was not idle these days after Xiang Ling and Shen Xiong left.
Because people from the Ministry of War have arrived.
"Yang Keyong from the Ministry of Officers and Soldiers has met the old Prime Minister."
Yang Keyong, with his thin body, showed a slight courtesy to Su Chengwang.
"Master Yang, there is no need to be polite."
Shen Qingyun bowed to him from the side, "I have met Mr. Yang."
Yang Ke responded with a slight nod.
Su Chengwang said: "I remember that you should be the minister of the Ministry of War. Why did Your Majesty send you here for such a trivial matter?"
The Minister of the Six Divisions had a high position and was a real official in the imperial court. He was considered to be the most influential person in the entire Chu Empire.
As far as Shen Qingyun is concerned, he really wouldn't send out a person of this status.
Hearing that he was still a minister, Shen Qingyun was also shocked and speechless.
Yang Keyong heard the words and responded: "Your Majesty's will, I just have to obey it. As for your Majesty's deep intention, I dare not make any assumptions."
Su Chengwang snorted slightly and asked, "Besides asking you to come to Liangzhou, is there anything else?"
"Before leaving, His Majesty sent someone to inform you and asked your Majesty to keep the matter secret for the time being. Therefore, His Majesty's official intention is to have your Majesty inspect the military defense on the southwest border."
"That makes sense."
Su Chengwang and Shen Qingyun were stunned at the same time when they heard this.
Who is guarding the southwest border?
The British city of Gongyue.
The task of inspecting border defense is equivalent to the leader sending someone to inspect the grassroots level. No matter what the identity of the person assigned, he represents the leader.
And with Yue Cheng's status, ordinary unknown people do not have this qualification. They must be people with a certain status.
Yang Keyong said: "Your Majesty means to ask your subordinate to come to Liangzhou and bring some of the spirits directly to the British army. If it is indeed useful, the Ministry of War can purchase it later."
