Matters involving life and death and the future were not something that Liu Chengyou could easily deceive. Of course, Liu Chengyou himself did not think that Zhao Yanshou would make it clear as soon as he said it and agreed easily.
After regaining his composure, Liu Chengyou quietly looked at Zhao Yanshou, whose face was gloomy and uncertain. With a very graceful look, he sat for a while and said softly: "This matter is not urgent. King Yan can think about it carefully!"
After getting up and making a salute, Liu Chengyou greeted the guards, put down Zhao Yanshou who was still deep in thought, and walked slowly. Before going out, he stopped and Liu Chengyou seemed to have thought of it accidentally and said: "By the way, I forgot to tell you King Yan. News came from the south that Zhao Kuangzan, the governor of the Ruzi River, has come to the emperor to express his surrender..."
Zhao Yanshou suddenly came back to his senses and his expression changed.
...
Dusk falls, and the Zhendingzhou Yamen on a summer night is dotted with not-so-bright lights, but the Yamen hall is brightly lit.
In the hall, several close generals gathered together to express their opinions on Liu Chengyou's proposal against Zhao Yanshou. However, Liu Chengyou had obviously made up his mind, and there was not much room for change, and he had considered it thoroughly. It was not so much that he had made up his mind. Listen to the suggestions of your subordinates, rather than explain your ideas to them.
Several generals looked solemn and silent for a moment, but Xiang Xun continued to reserve his opinion: "The general still thinks it's not worth it!"
"Zhao Yanshou cannot be trusted!" This was Ma Quanyi's opinion.
"The Khitan people's power in Youyan is still not weak. Even if, as His Highness said, the Khitan has internal strife to seize the throne, it will not be easy for Zhao Yanshou to occupy Youzhou alone!" Murong Yanzhao said.
"My purpose is not whether Zhao Yanshou can capture Youzhou, but how much trouble he can make in Youzhou and how much trouble he can cause to the Khitan people!" Liu Chengyou finally spoke.
"But, can the development of the situation really develop as expected by His Highness?" Xiang Xun shook his head and said: "Zhao Yanshou really dares to go against the Khitan people? Even if he goes north, what if he joins the Hulu again?"
Liu Chengyou finally showed a hint of contemplation. As Xiang Xun said, it is not impossible. Even though Zhao Yanshou seems not to be tolerated by the Khitan now, if something changes, if he joins the party again and leads the way, I am afraid there will be nothing. Too much psychological pressure.
In the Central Plains, it is not uncommon for towns to surrender and then rebel again, and to rebel and surrender again.
Liu Chengyou only paused for a moment, looked around and said, "You must have heard some rumors during this period of time. In the battle of Luancheng, Gu and Zhao Yanshou cooperated internally and externally, and exchanged ideas, and the Yan troops were mobilized internally. , our army can only achieve this great victory by attacking outside!"
"Now, this news has begun to spread to the land of Youyan..."
Hearing Liu Chengyou's somewhat abrupt words, the generals were stunned. However, Guo Rong and Wei Renpu, who had been silent, quickly understood Liu Chengyou's plan.
Liu Chengyou did not deliberately show off, and said directly: "Even if Zhao Yanshou dares to seek refuge with the Khitan people again, even if the Khitan people are willing to accept him again, I will make Zhao Yanshou himself feel guilty!"
The generals were not very sensitive to this, and their reactions were somewhat slow. However, there were always smart people who understood Liu Chengyou's thoughts, including Tao Gu, who stayed silently aside.
At this time, when everyone was silent, he glanced twice, saluted Liu Chengyou, and said cautiously: "Your Highness, when I was in Tokyo, I heard about it. Zhao Yanshou has the ambition to become the king of the country, and Yelu De, the Lord of Liao, Guang also promised him to take over the Central Plains and make him emperor. It was only later that the Lord of Liao broke the promise, which made him resentful and at odds with the Hu people."
"It remains to be discussed whether His Highness will grant him the fiefdom of Youyan."
Sure enough, scholars always have different views on issues. Tao Gu bluntly reminded Liu Chengyou that Zhao Yanshou had a desire to dominate and should not let him go.
But Liu Chengyou's political sense didn't seem to be sharp, and he seemed not to understand Tao Gu's meaning. He waved his hand and said calmly: "As far as our dynasty is concerned, the land of Youyan is in the hands of the Khitans as much as it is in the hands of Zhao Yanshou." In the hand, there’s not much difference.”
With a confident and calm look, he added: "Even if Zhao Yanshou has a disobedient heart, so what?"
"If Zhao Yanshou can really capture Youzhou, it will be a great move." At this time, Guo Rong finally spoke.
He didn't say much, and although his attitude was biased, it seemed as if he had left half of his sentence unfinished. Obviously, even Guo Rong had some reservations about Liu Chengyou's decision.
However, again, the development of things may not go according to his ideas. It is too uncontrollable, and Liu Chengyou seems to take it for granted.
However, there are some things that are necessary to do even if you know that the risks are high. According to Liu Chengyou's idea, the worst result is that Zhao Yanshou goes north, directly surrenders to the Khitan, and then once again becomes the vanguard of the Khitan's southern invasion.
However, let’s not say how likely this is. Even so, after the heavy damage in the Battle of Luancheng, how long will it take for the Khitan to regain its national strength and have enough energy to go south again? Moreover, they must first resolve their internal conflicts.
After continuous in-depth analysis by Feng Dao, Wei Renpu and others, there is a high probability that there will be a fight between Yelu Ruan and the Empress Dowager Shu Luping of Liao.
If you can see the risks, you must also see the huge benefits behind the risks. If Zhao Yanshou can really capture Youzhou, it can become the northern barrier of the Liu family and relieve the defensive pressure in the north.
By then, it will be positioned as the "Northern Han Dynasty" and become a buffer zone between the two countries. Once the Central Plains is stabilized and its strength is restored, it will definitely be easier to recapture Youyan from the Zhao family than directly from the Khitan people.
No matter what happens, if Zhao Yanshou fails, it will cause trouble for the Khitan people, weaken Youyan's stability, destroy its development, and make it unable to continue to provide nutrients for the growth of the Khitan in a short period of time.
No matter how much he thought about it, Liu Chengyou couldn't help but sigh in his heart. The current military strength was still insufficient, the national strength was unsustainable, and the situation was not conducive to foreign war. Otherwise, taking advantage of the impact of the Luancheng battle, it was the Central Plains to retake Youyan and rebuild the northern border defense. It's the best time, instead of having Liu Chengyou here and having to do all these things.
Everyone probably saw Liu Chengyou's determination, and no one continued to dissuade him, because as he said, no matter whether it was successful or not, it would not have a big impact on the new dynasty, and it was just a try.
However, Zhang Yanwei finally raised an objection: "It is okay for His Highness to allow Zhao Yanshou to go north, but why should he give the Yan soldiers to him? The general cannot agree with this, for fear of raising a tiger to cause trouble!"
"How much trouble can Zhao Yanshou cause in Youzhou?" Liu Chengyou asked rhetorically.
Liu Chengyou had also considered the matter of the Yan soldiers. Again, this army is not easy to annex. His generation has long been a group of its own, and most of the family members are in Yan. Forced to stay. As for the country, unless it is completely broken up, chaos will occur sooner or later.
Instead of doing this, Mo Ruo let him go back to Youzhou and follow Zhao Yanshou to stir up a storm. These people are all the culprits of the Khitan's defeat. Their hands are basically stained with the blood of the barbarians. In a short time, we can still look forward to it. It developed after they returned to Youzhou.
I thought a lot, but in the end, the focus was still on Zhao Yanshou.
If Zhao Yanshou quits, Liu Chengyou will not be able to find a replacement for a while. By then, Liu Chengyou will have too many expressions...