From that day on, Zhou's vitality plummeted. She stayed in Kunning Palace all day long because she firmly believed that she was missing a soul...
~
Jing'an Bo Mansion.
Li Qing was sitting, and He Yong was half lying down, looking very depressed.
It had only been a few years since I last saw him, and this former Tatar Grand Master was already approaching the end of his life.
Li Qing sighed, but He Yong looked indifferent.
He smiled and said: "I am over sixty years old. It is very rare that I can survive for so long after spending most of my life. There is nothing to regret. Even Shi Heng didn't survive me."
Li Qing's eyes narrowed, "Shi Heng is dead?"
He just came back and hasn't heard about it yet.
"Spring is gone this year," He Yong sighed: "Generals, especially generals like us who have been fighting all year round, once they get older, their bodies and bones will no longer work. It is not surprising that they eat meat today and cannot sleep tomorrow. "
Li Qing was silent...
After a long while, he said: "I am here this time to discuss something with you."
"With our friendship, we don't need to be so open-minded, right?" He Yong laughed, "Sir, if you are kind to me, just say so."
Li Qing nodded, "Then I won't beat around the bush. The situation in Mobei is unstable, the Wara situation is weak, and the Tatars have reappeared. I have asked the emperor to lead an army to disrupt the situation;
Well...let He Zhong be the commander-in-chief! "
After a pause, he added: "I'll go too."
He Yong muttered: "My son is just a member of the Imperial Guard. It's hard to let him handle cases. Let him fight...I'm afraid he's not the material!"
"I'll teach him," Li Qing said.
He Yong thought for a while and said, "Sir, can you tell me the details."
"Okay," Li Qing didn't hide it.
This was not a military secret, and besides, it was his own son who was being used, so Li Qing had no reservations.
After He Yong heard this, he couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
"Sir, this matter...it is risky!"
Li Qing nodded, "It is true that there are risks, but... the benefits are also great, right?"
"But the problem is..." He Yong smiled bitterly, "It's just because the benefits are huge that I'm worried."
"What do you think."
He Yong struggled to sit up, his sluggish expression became serious: "I believe in your ability, and I also believe that your army can stir up troubles in the grassland, but... gòйЪ.ōΓg
This army will definitely establish a foothold in the grasslands in the future and even survive for a long time. Only in this way will it be in line with the long-term interests of the imperial court. However, as time goes by, the tail will surely grow bigger! "
He Yong worried: "As time goes by, the wealth of those warriors will be concentrated on the grassland, including cattle, sheep, women, and even children... In this case, they will never come back, that is, the commander-in-chief Nor can he change the will of his men;
At that time, if the imperial court asked He Zhong to come back with his troops, he would simply not be able to do it;
If He Zhong implements it forcefully, he will face backlash. On the contrary, if he disobeys the court's orders, the emperor will be angry, and Jing'an Bo Mansion... may cease to exist. "
Li Qing chuckled and said, "I can't tell you, you've really grown a lot in these years!"
"Haha... Sir, please stop making fun of me." He Yong smiled bitterly, "I believe in Sir's character, but this matter is too risky for my descendants."
Li Qing said: "You are a little worried. Those are grassland people. Why did the court ask them to come back?
Staying in the grassland to disrupt the situation is obviously more beneficial to the Ming Dynasty. How could the emperor do that? Also, the Ming Dynasty was able to support Wala freely, so couldn’t it support this army?
In fact, the emperor and I have already thought about your worries. He Zhong will only work for three or two years, or even shorter. When I come back, he will come back. "
Hearing this, He Yong's expression softened greatly, he relaxed, nodded and said:
"In this case, it is beneficial and harmless to the He family, but... the problem of not losing the big tail still cannot be solved!"
He sighed softly: "Sir, you are a wise man. If you fail in this matter, it will really be more than you gain. There are too many people who want to find fault with you."
Li Qing did not take it seriously: "It is certain that Rijiuwei will not fall, but... so what? Anyway, those people are from the grassland, so they are not a loss to the Ming Dynasty. It is enough to help the Ming Dynasty and balance the situation in the grassland. , isn’t it?”
"But...what about you?" He Yong frowned.
Li Qing shrugged, "I don't care. I will be out of the wild by then. They can't find fault with me who can't affect them."
After a pause, "They may not dare to mess with me."
He Yong pondered for a while and nodded: "That's no problem for me. I'll tell Quanzi later about when to leave?"
"It should be soon." Li Qing said, "The household department is already preparing. You can ask him to come to my house later."
"No problem." He Yong agreed, and then sighed: "I'm afraid we will never see each other again after this farewell."
Li Qing was silent for a moment, "How about... some drinks?"
"Drink something." He Yong grinned...
Before leaving, Li Qing gave him a prescription and asked him to pay attention to taking care of his body. Maybe he would have a chance to drink again.
He Yong readily accepted.
~
After walking out of Jing'an Bo Mansion, Li Qing felt a little depressed. He did not go home immediately and went to find Shi Biao instead.
Shi Biao also showed signs of fatigue. The hidden illness he had suffered in the past had reached its outbreak stage. He was not yet sixty and was already on crutches.
He was very happy to see Li Qinglai and asked his servants to prepare food and drinks.
The two of them drank and talked freely, talking about the prosperous years in the past, and how they used to fight the Tatars together under the capital city...
Chatted for a long time...
When Li Qing arrived home, it was Shen Shi.
A burly man was still waiting at the door. When he saw him coming back, he hurriedly stepped forward, cupped his hands and said:
"Xiaoguan Hezhong, I have met Marquis Yongqing!"
"No courtesy, no courtesy," Li Qing smiled, "I kept you waiting for a long time, go in and talk."
"Hey, Mr. Marquis, please." He Zhong obviously got his father's guidance. He didn't have any psychological burden, but was full of enthusiasm.
The two of them sat down next to the stone table under the tree in the small courtyard.
He Zhong cupped his hands and said, "My father has told me about the expedition. The specific deployment... please give me your instructions."
Li Qing said 'hmm' and said: "We have only one purpose in sending troops this time, and that is to break the existing pattern of the grassland and slow down the trend of grassland unification;
The number of troops sent is roughly around five thousand, and the equipment and other equipment are top-notch..."
After briefly introducing the configuration, Li Qing asked: "If you have any questions, just ask, there is no need to worry about anything."
"I would like to ask...who should we fight?"
"There is no fixed goal in the early stage. We need to develop and grow first." Li Qing said, "Five thousand people say more, but they say less. If you want to really disrupt the situation, you must develop."
"That's it...pick up the weak ones first and beat whoever you encounter?" He Zhong asked.
Li Qing chuckled and said, "That's understandable."
He Zhong nodded slowly and said thoughtfully: "The Marquis's plan is a good one, but... I'm sorry to say it bluntly, but it will be difficult to implement it."
"Tell me about it." Li Qing said with a smile, "You don't have to be reserved, just say whatever you want."
"Hey, yes." Seeing that Li Qing did not express his dissatisfaction, He Zhong relaxed and said, "Xiaguan spent his youth on the grassland. He is well aware of the habits of grassland tribes. It’s good to knead the persimmons well, but I’m afraid… the gains outweigh the losses.”
He smiled bitterly and said: "The location of the small tribes on the grassland is erratic. Just finding them would take a lot of effort."
Li Qing smiled and said: "You can rest assured, I have planned the route, and I won't do any wasted work."
As early as the Hongwu Dynasty, when he was the governor of Jinyiwei Town, he had a rough idea of the Mobei grassland and made a summary.
Afterwards, he copied it and stored it in Yongqinghou Mansion.
Before coming this time, he had already planned the development route.
The grassland tribes seem to have no fixed settlements, but in fact they have certain rules. They only stay in places with abundant water and grass.
Li Qing, who has mastered the terrain of most of the mountains, rivers and rivers in Mobei, naturally has no worries in this regard.
General He Zhong is doubtful, but a person's name is like the shadow of a tree; Li Qing's ability is obvious to all, so he can't question it.
"Now that the Marquis has a plan in mind, I can rest assured," He Zhong said. "I wonder how the Marquis... specifically arranges for the subordinates?"
"You will be the commander-in-chief and lead the troops in battle!" Li Qing said, "You will lead this army. I will only take care of the general direction."
He Zhong was startled for a moment and said hesitantly: "Master Hou, this official has no battle experience!"
Being a commander-in-chief is great, but the responsibility is also huge. Putting him at this height all of a sudden, he really has some stage fright.
"I do!" Li Qing smiled and said, "I will control the general direction, and you will do the details."
He Zhong pondered and said: "In other words, the army obeys the command of the subordinate officer, and the subordinate officer obeys the command of the Marquis?"
"You can say that." Li Qing nodded: He Yong's son has quite a strong understanding.
"Huh~ I'll be relieved then." He Zhong said sarcastically, "If I were to let a thousand households of Jinyi command five thousand or even more soldiers, I would be really frightened."
Li Qing nodded amusedly: "Don't worry, I'll give you the full scoop. Your father and I have been friends for a long time, so I won't trick you."
"Hey, yes." He Zhong laughed sheepishly.
He couldn't see that this was simply the result of being delivered to his door.
When something goes wrong, Li Qingding has a share in the meritorious service. It can be said that he is guaranteed to make money without losing any money.
Here, Li Qing was talking about strategic deployment.
Over there, the household department was also very busy, apportioning money and food.
They didn't want to delay even a day, they just wanted Li Qing to get out of here.
By the way, for a person in his early sixties, it is not impossible for him to die on the way to such a difficult mission as an expedition to Mobei, right?
Marquis Yongqing, Marquis Yongqing, don’t die before you leave the army!
It took only three days to get everything done for Li Qing. In order to prevent Li Qing from making excuses, they even asked the Ministry of Industry to borrow more grain trucks to speed up the journey.
At the same time, not even a grain of grain or a penny of silver was taken away from Li Qing, which can be said to be a great help.
…
Qianqing Palace,
The monarch and his ministers sat opposite each other, toasting and drinking.
"Sir, when will you be back soon?"
"Let's talk about two or three more years. If everything goes well, we can develop a disruptive force in more than a year." Li Qing said.
"This couldn't be better." Zhu Jian felt relieved, raised his glass and said with a smile, "I wish you success, success, and an early return to the DPRK to serve the country..."
"No, no, no, Your Majesty, you are overthinking." Li Qing waved his hand and said, "After finishing this job, I will wash my hands."
Zhu Jianshen: (⊙_⊙)?
