In the fourth year of Xuanhe in the Song Dynasty, on the occasion of winter, in the prosperous city of Yangzhou, in the magistrate's office, Liu Hao grabbed Han Shizhong tightly and said with a serious face: "Good minister, don't be impulsive. Although the Jin Kingdom is at war, Siege Bianjing, but their strength is limited, and they are not tolerated by the world. As long as Qi sends troops, Jin will be defeated, but if you lead your army away like this, what should you do once Chu crosses the Yangtze River!!"
After Han Shizhong's expression changed, he said resolutely: "Now that the official family is surrounded, life and death are at stake, and the generals from all over the country are called on to immediately go north for rescue. As officials of the Song Dynasty, how can we remain indifferent!"
"I understand your loyalty, but you must also consider the overall situation."
"The overall situation is that if the imperial capital is captured, the Song Dynasty will be destroyed. What's the point of me guarding Yangzhou?"
"How could it be meaningless? The people of the imperial capital are important, but the people of Yangzhou are not important. As I said just now, there are still all..." When Liu Haogang said this, he looked at Han Shizhong, whose eyes suddenly sharpened, and said with a wry smile: "Good minister, I know you are loyal to the imperial court and the Song Dynasty. We do have tens of thousands of elite troops in Yangzhou, but you can't go."
"Why??" Han Shizhong asked puzzled.
Liu Hao's eyes narrowed, and he suddenly said with a guilty look on his face: "Because, because Yingtian is already in my Daqi's hands."
"What did you say?" Han Shizhong trembled, then grabbed Liu Hao's collar and gritted his teeth and said, "You, you have decided to defect to Qi State."
"Let go, sir." Seeing this scene, several government officials immediately pulled out their swords.
"What are you going to do?" Han Shizhong's bodyguard also said angrily.
The scene became a lot more tense instantly.
After Liu Hao waved the officer to leave, he said seriously: "I didn't decide to surrender, but I have already surrendered to Qi. Otherwise, good minister, do you think that Yangzhou can continue to maintain stability and prosperity in such a chaotic situation?" , why do the elite soldiers you command never lack food, grass, money, and even prepare two thousand war horses for you? If it hadn’t been for the king who has always valued you very much and secretly ordered the marquis to constantly protect you in the imperial capital, how could the king of Chu treat you like this? Because of your fear, you have long been transferred back by the son-in-law of the King of Chu in the imperial capital."
"Then the Jin State's attack on the imperial capital was also planned by the Qi State." Hearing this, Han Shizhong gritted his teeth and said.
"That's not the case. All this is the fault of the officials themselves. Ever since the king regained Nanjing, the officials seemed to have lost their will. During this period of time, the imperial capital has been in turmoil. Many loyal ministers have been imprisoned by the officials. Even Duke Zong was forced to leave. Why was the Jin State able to siege the imperial capital? It was because the officials did not trust Zhang Shuye and instead replaced Du Chong, who was an armchair strategist, so the Jin State defeated them in one fell swoop." Liu Hao said quickly, He advised: "Good minister, your family is not someone who has been favored by the emperor in this life. Instead, it comes from poverty. If you don't go, no one will blame you!!"
Upon hearing this, Han Shizhong slowly let go of Liu Hao, and said with disappointment and unbearability: "What you mean is that King Qi will sit back and watch Jin invade Bianjing and go on a killing spree."
"No, the Jin State will not be able to control the imperial capital for long. In fact, your Majesty does not want this, but now that the Jin Kingdom's troops are at Juyongguan, most of the main force of our Qi Kingdom is restrained there. As long as the Jin Kingdom retreats, your Majesty will soon Return to attack, and you can rest assured that the king will never directly stand on his own because of this, and will definitely support a prince to ascend the throne as emperor after driving away the Jin Kingdom. This world will still belong to the Song Dynasty!!"
When Han Shizhong heard this, he mocked, "Is he trying to imitate Cao Cao?"
"Good minister, the world is like this. The Song Dynasty is hopeless. It is a kindness of the king to be able to survive for five to ten years."
"Think carefully about how the Chu State treats its people and aristocratic families. If you leave, once the Chu army crosses the Yangtze River and captures the Huaihe River, how many people will die miserably!"
Han Shizhong shuddered, and suddenly an official arrived in a hurry. Seeing the tense scene in front of him, he was startled, and then said anxiously: "Two adults, what are you doing?"
Liu Hao looked at it, shook his head and said: "It's okay, what's the matter?"
"Reporting to the state magistrate and manager, we have just received news that the Chu State is heading to Suzhou. Jiangning Mansion continues to increase its troops and seems to be taking action. In addition, a guy named Wang Qing suddenly appeared in Huaixi and gathered tens of thousands of bandits. The bandits burned, killed, looted and captured the state capital, and many places sent urgent letters asking for help."
Liu Hao's expression changed and he quickly looked at Han Shizhong, "Good minister, did you see that?? If you leave with the army at this time, you will plunge countless people into dire straits!"
Han Shizhong looked at it, clenched his fist tightly, and suddenly punched the tea table in front of him with a painful punch. Looking at the surprised people, he turned his head and said with tears: "Quickly order all the troops to assemble!!"
The guard was stunned and immediately said: "Yes!!"
"Good minister, don't worry about Wang Qing for the time being. I will send someone to contact the State of Qi. The key is the State of Chu. They must not be allowed to cross the river," Liu Hao reminded.
After Han Shizhong took a look, he left directly.
Seeing this scene, Liu Hao breathed a sigh of relief and finally stabilized the young God of War.
"Zhizhou, there won't be any accidents!" A man dressed as a master said with a pale face.
"No, although a good minister is loyal, he is also a person who values friendship and understands the overall situation. We treat him sincerely. He knows very well. Quickly, send someone to Yingtian immediately to inform the two princes about Wang Qing. I think this person is not simple," Liu Hao said seriously.
"Yes!!" Master responded and said curiously: "Zhizhou, how long do you think the Imperial Capital can support it?"
"I don't know, we can't get involved. Now we have only one task, which is to defend Yangzhou and prevent the Chu State from getting involved in this great change. As long as the Chu State does not get involved, with the strength of our Qi State, we can stabilize it." Liu Hao shook his head.
. . .
A few days later, in Daming Mansion, I saw a middle-aged man who was Confucian and elegant with a hint of sharpness. He looked at Song Yang and Song Hai who were sitting in the main seats and said respectfully: "Huaixi Wang Qing, the chief secretary under his command, Li Zhu, pays homage to the two princes!!"
It was Wang Qing of Huaixi, the last of the four great bandits in his previous life, who took action again when the Song Dynasty was in chaos.
After Song Yang looked at it, he said warmly: "Master Li, there is no need to be polite. We have already heard about Commander Wang Qing. I wonder why Commander Wang has asked you to come here this time?"
"I'm really just asking for a name," Li Zhu said with a smile.
"In name??" Song Yang said in surprise.
"Now that the imperial capital is under siege, it will be conquered in a short time. The King of Qi will regain Nanjing and destroy the Liao Kingdom. This is really the hope of the world. Just like the hegemon of the Spring and Autumn Period, the world is in awe. The leader of my family is willing to submit to the Qi Kingdom. A hundred thousand troops are at the disposal of the King of Qi, and at the same time, it also ensures that the Chu State will never be able to cross the Yangtze River," Li Zhu said seriously.
After the expressions of everyone present changed, Song Hai asked curiously: "I wonder what name Commander Wang needs?"
"Huaixi Jiedushi is the land of the two Huaihes. Huaidong belongs to the Qi State, and Huaixi belongs to the leader of my family," Li Zhu said seriously.
