Under the winter night, the Chongzheng Hall is very quiet. The palace is solemn and solemn. The plaques are wide and thick, and they shine with awe-inspiring light. They all seem to convey the intimidation of the imperial power. Unlike the usual bright lights, there are only a few faint candlelights from inside. It has become a habit to explore and arrive at leisure.
Through the window of the side hall, a figure could still be seen. He entered with a little curiosity and found that Zhao Pu was sorting some official documents behind the desk. After noticing the movement, he raised his eyes and saw Liu Chengyou, and stood up quickly: "Your Majesty!"
"Today is the winter solstice. I and you are taking a break, and everyone has returned home. Why don't you go back home to spend time with your family?" Liu Chengyou waved his hands, sat down leisurely with his robe in hand, and asked.
"It's still early, and these memorials need to be sorted out for His Majesty's inspection. Although Your Majesty is gracious, you should not neglect it, lest Your Majesty make mistakes when he reads it!" Zhao Pu said: "I have already informed my family. It's late. Go back!"
Looking at Zhao Pu, Liu Chengyou's heart was filled with strange emotions. Regardless of whether he was suspected of showing off, Zhao Pu's performance was also rare. Exhaling a breath of alcohol, Liu Chengyou said: "Zhao Yao is cautious by nature. Although he does things thoughtfully, he is always restrained and his body is weak. It’s not good either. The affairs of Chongzheng Palace are complicated. From now on, if you are with me, you should share some of them for him!"
Zhao Pu was bright-eyed. Hearing what he said, it was obvious that he was going to put more burdens on himself. He felt a little happy and couldn't help but bow down: "Thank you for your trust, Your Majesty!"
Although he had been serving in Chongzheng Hall for a short time, he was already familiar with him. Except for Zhao Yao, none of the dozen or so Chongzheng ministers were looked down upon by him, and he had long thought of replacing them. However, Zhao Yao had the biggest flaw. , that is, he is in poor health and suffers from illnesses all year round.
In fact, Zhao Pu was conceited about his talent, and he didn't think highly of Zhao Huo, who was just a mere person. He was only trusted by the emperor, and his father was the Xuanwei Secretary who handed Zhao over, so he was just humble and humble, worked diligently, and kept a low profile, waiting for opportunities.
Moreover, after this period of time, Zhao Pu carefully studied it and found that the bachelors of Chongzheng Palace were all exposed to military and political affairs. They were of low status but powerful. The emperor obviously meant to use Chongzheng Palace to check and balance the political affairs hall. Judging from the current situation, As time goes by, the power will only become heavier in the future because he is closer to the emperor.
Zhao Pu himself has weighed that most of the prime ministers in power today are in their prime. If there are no drastic changes, it will be extremely difficult for him to ascend to the throne, and it will take ten or eight years to get there.
Therefore, he directly set his goal to be the bachelor of Chongzheng Palace. This position is relatively easy to win, after all, it is close to the water. And now, from the words of the emperor, it clearly revealed that intention. Although the drunkenness was revealed, how could the emperor be? Getting drunk so easily?
Seeing Zhao Pu's brows with a hint of joy and seeing him bowing solemnly, Liu Chengyou couldn't help but wave his hands and said with a smile: "We, the monarch and the minister, are the only two here, don't be so restrained, sit down!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Looking at the stack of compiled memorials, Liu Chengyou directly asked Zhao Pu who was sitting down: "What's important?"
"Your Majesty, the Song Dynasty Envoy, reported to you that Xi County is still at a stalemate and has been working hard for a long time. Please send an edict to your Majesty to arrange for the withdrawal of troops from Xiangdu!" Zhao Pu said.
After capturing Qinfeng, Liu Chengyou established the Qinfeng Road based on the four prefectures, and included Hanzhong, Minzhou, Taozhou and other unrecovered areas. In any case, in name and on the map, the territory was occupied first. He appointed his brother-in-law Song Yanwo as the chief envoy and took charge of Qinfeng.
Listening to Zhao Pu's words at this time, Liu Chengyou sighed and said: "I am considering this matter, what do you think?"
Zhao Pu said without thinking: "Now that ministers at home and abroad have reported this proposal, we should really think carefully about it. The envoy of the Song Dynasty is in Qinfeng, and he needs to be more familiar with the military situation ahead. His suggestions are worth listening to.
He said from the memorial that now the rain and snow on the Sanguan Road are non-stop, and the grain roads are almost cut off. It is difficult to transport and replenish the grain and equipment in Guanzhong. Feng, Cheng, Jie, Xingzhou and Xinxing, the treasury is almost exhausted, and it is difficult to support it. "
"It seems that you also suggested withdrawing the troops!" Liu Chengyou glanced at Zhao Pu.
Zhao Pu said: "Exactly! I heard that during the Southern Expedition, Your Majesty stationed troops under Shouchun City for several months due to winter. The cold in Qinfeng was even worse than in Huainan, and the food roads were difficult and dangerous, so the military strength was not as good as during the Southern Expedition. So. The current situation in Xi County, if it remains in the strong city for a long time, it may be taken advantage of by the Shu army defenders..."
Waving his hand to interrupt him, Liu Chengyou sighed and ordered: "That's all, let the Privy Council issue an order to withdraw the troops!"
"It's just a pity that after this winter, it will give the Shu army a chance to breathe! It will cause greater obstacles to the capture of Hanzhong!"
Zhao Pu had a calm and confident smile on his face, and he cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, there is no need to worry about it. Just imagine, all the best soldiers of Meng and Shu were lost to Qin Feng. Even with the difficulty of the old way, it is difficult for them to stop the advance of our Han army. Now Xingzhou Already down, Xingyuan Mansion is in sight, how can the Shu army stop it? Besides, our army also needs to rest and reorganize!"
"In addition, in order to support the frontline operations, the recruitment of state and other states was frequent, which caused the resentment of the people in the state and county to boil, and several civil unrests occurred. Although they were quickly extinguished, they are worthy of vigilance and the people need to be appeased!"
While the monarch and his ministers were talking, Zhang Dejun walked in, bowed and said: "Your Majesty, the Privy Council has requested to see Li Chuyun. It seems there is something urgent."
"Oh?" Liu Chengyou was a little surprised and frowned: "It's so late... Xuan!"
"yes!"
Soon, Li Chuyun hurried in, holding a memorial letter in his hand. Without him having to salute, he asked directly: "Are you taking charge of the Privy Council tonight? You came here in a hurry. Tell me, has the military situation changed?"
"Your Majesty, the military report from Xixian County is that Xicheng has been destroyed!" Li Chuyun said with a bit of joy on his face.
"What!" Liu Chengyou became energetic and almost jumped up. He stepped forward and grabbed it from Li Chuyun's hand, opened it and started reading quickly.
From the emperor's somewhat rude behavior, we can see that he was concerned about the military situation on the front line. For Liu Chengyou, this military report was a blessing from heaven.
According to the reports before and after Xiang Xun, he led his troops to the city, built siege equipment, hoarded grain and fodder, and gathered tens of thousands of men. However, for several months, it was hampered by rain and snow, making it difficult to attack the city. He tried to attack. It also ended in failure and has been postponed to this day.
Xiang Xun reported this. Four days ago, the wind and rain suddenly stopped, the snow fell, the sun rose, and the weather was clear. Seizing this opportunity, Xiang Xun ordered the elite soldiers and civilians to go out, leaving no effort behind, and attack the city with all their strength.
The Shu army in the city did not have high combat power. Due to the weather conditions, the Han army was blocked below the city and was paralyzed. The Han army attacked the city violently and used all their strength as soon as they attacked. Although they were under the supervision of Li Tinggui, they were somewhat unprepared. He was in prison and tried his best to resist, but was attacked by the Han army for three consecutive hours and was unable to stop him.
The cost of destroying the city was not low. Tens of thousands of civilians suffered nearly 4,000 casualties (of which more than 300 were killed by Xiang Xun's temporarily deployed supervising battalion). The Han army's soldiers also suffered more than 1,000 casualties. Five battalion generals and three lieutenant generals. In order to live up to the sufferings of the past month, Xiang Xun fully demonstrated his ruthlessness in using troops, not caring about casualties. The Shu army was not strong in will, so how could they stop it.
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The defenders in the west county city also suffered many casualties. According to reports, more than 8,000 enemies were killed, and most of the remaining surrendered. Only scattered defeated soldiers escaped to Nanzheng.
"God bless the Han army, God bless your majesty!" After learning about the results of the battle, Zhao Pu was a little excited and said to Liu Chengyou.
Liu Chengyou couldn't help but reveal a cheerful smile: "I just prepared and ordered the troops to retreat, and the good news will come. It seems that Xiang Xun is not willing to waste all his previous efforts! Judging from the battle report, it was a bloody battle!"
Li Chuyun, who was standing by, chuckled and said, "What's interesting is that the Shu general Li Tinggui repaired Xi County so well that it was impregnable. Before the war, he also promised that he would live and die with the city. After the city was destroyed, he wanted to draw his sword and kill himself, but he never dared to do so. , made a bloody mark, abandoned the sword and surrendered..."
"Haha!" Liu Chengyou couldn't help but laugh, and said: "This person is indeed interesting. Is he afraid of pain?"
"Definitely!" Zhao Pu agreed, with a joking tone in his tone.
Although his expression was slightly restrained, Liu Chengyou regained his seriousness and said: "I will entrust him with the edict to Xiang Xun and the war in Hanzhong. Since Xixian County has been defeated and Hanzhong is difficult to defend, it is up to him to make a decision on the spur of the moment whether to continue the march to Nanzheng!"
Under this order, Zhao Pu and Li Chuyun glanced at each other subconsciously. The emperor's trust in Xiang Xun was somewhat surprising.
"yes!"
"And!" Turning around and looking at the two of them, Liu Chengyou said with a smile: "Now that I'm done with it, I'm going to take a break from my worries and have a good sleep. As for you, I also give you an order to go home and have a good rest! "