"Is it too early?" A civil servant sneered heavily: "Now that the situation is in front of us, if we don't respond to it and put all our hopes on the arrogance of a little girl, I'm afraid it will be...
It’s too late!”
If they, all the civil and military officials, believed the "seventy-three days" theory of the Chang family girl, it would be extremely ridiculous, and I am afraid that the day of national subjugation is not far away!
"Lord Qu, what you said is wrong. She is not a nameless little girl——" Wei Shuyi ignored the other party's ugly expression and corrected him: "It is General Ningyuan."
As he said that, he bowed his hands slightly to the Holy Emperor above him and said, "This is General Ningyuan, who has repeatedly made military exploits and was personally conferred by the saint."
When the civil servant named Qu heard this, there was a hint of disdain in his eyes: "Just because she had the courage to kill the enemy in the past, we should blindly praise her and assume that every move she makes is right? If everything can be like this.
Confusing right and wrong means not distinguishing between priorities and priorities!"
Wei Shuyi's expression was indifferent: "The crisis in Luoyang is currently unsolved, and there is no way to deal with it. Instead, your lords want to use a legitimate crusade against the rebels and rush to judge the fault of a general who is chasing the rebels. I'm afraid that is the real weight."
There is no distinction between priorities.”
The civil servant who was more than a year older than him blushed: "Then I dare to ask Wei Shilang, whose fault is it for Xu Zhengye to go to Luoyang?"
Wei Shuyi looked at him, silently put away his indifferent expression, and said firmly: "It is the fault of the rebels, and it is the fault of Xu Zhengye."
He added: "If we fail to respond effectively and fail to formulate a good strategy to defeat the enemy in time, leading to the loss of Luoyang, it is the fault of Wei, Lord Qu, and the fault of all officials in the dynasty."
There was a slight silence all around.
Then I heard the young man say: "The situation of the war is not yet clear, so why are you so eager to judge others' crimes? If General Chang and General Ning Yuan really caused the fall of Luoyang and committed irreversible mistakes, there would be saints to judge their crimes afterwards, and everyone would be able to judge them.
There is no shelter. However, the situation of the war is not clear now, so you have to convict people based on a piece of paper. Will this move chill the 170,000 soldiers who are still fighting hard to pursue the rebels? In this battle, whether to fight or not, the rebels,
Should I pursue it or not?"
Qu Pingsheng's expression changed several times.
The few Cui officials behind him did not speak again for a while.
The empress saw everyone's reactions in her eyes.
There are different voices in the court, which is not a bad thing, but unfortunately, these voices often have other motives. They all have their own shady purposes, which are far from being as simple, shallow and high-sounding as they sound on the surface.
At times like this, she would need Wei Shuyi and others to suppress these voices with other agendas.
"What Wei Shilang said is reasonable. It is too early to judge someone's fault at this time, and it is not good for morale." Emperor Shengce said at the right time: "Although General Ningyuan is young, there is still General Chang by his side. Dear Sirs,
Living far away from me in the capital, I don't know the situation in Jiangdu. Perhaps General Chang has other ways to win at the right time."
These words were spoken to the ministers, and the rebuttal of doubts was also expected.
Did she really have no doubts?
of course not.
Listening to those who, after many analyses, were not optimistic that Chang Kuo and others could successfully pursue and intercept the Xu family's army, the empress' inner feelings were not optimistic either.
But what she was thinking was even more complicated than that of officials.
What she said just now is true - only those who were there before the war can truly understand the situation in Jiangdu.
Especially Ashang.
Ashang has profound combat experience and a keen sense of predicting war trends.
Her daughter, she knows very well.
Ah Shang acted like a chess player every step of the way. There was no possibility of acting impulsively. She must have thought about every possible impact of her essay in advance.
So...it's normal for others not to think that Xu Zhengye would change his route to Luoyang, but it's impossible for Ashang not to think of it, right?
In addition, all the troops had previously been used for defense, and Xu Zhengye was ordered to "see the difficulties and think of other ways"...
But they only defended but did not attack, and then allowed Xu Zhengye to gather his troops...
Then, a message appeared, causing Xu Zhengye to fall into the whirlpool of self-certification...
All these things settled in the empress' mind, like chess pieces, gradually connecting into a chess game.
She could almost conclude that Ashang was already playing chess from the moment he defeated Li Yi and joined the army.
Therefore, Xu Zhengye changed his route to Luoyang, which seemed to be unexpected, but in fact it was the result of Ashang's step-by-step plan!
The empress' fingers slightly tightened the edge of the wide sleeves of the robe embroidered with python patterns in gold thread.
Xu Zhengye has already entered the game, but is this chess game really aimed at Xu Zhengye?
Or……
Ah Shang wants Xu Zhengye to seize control of the Central Plains, occupy Luoyang, and confront her as an emperor?
Are you going to use Xu Zhengye... to deal with her and take revenge on her?
That's her daughter.
She doesn't want to doubt her daughter, and no one in this world wants to doubt her own flesh and blood...
But now her only flesh and blood refused to recognize her, tried every possible means to escape from her, and even refused to give her, the mother-in-law, a chance to speak.
Also, the A Shang in her memory is the A Shang before he went to Beidi to get married...
During those three years in Beidi, A-Shang suffered humiliation and suffering unimaginable to ordinary people. Such experiences...maybe enough to make A-Shang hate her, his mother-in-law.
This thought made the Holy Emperor fall into a cold pool.
She wanted A Shang back. She had thought about many possibilities, but she had missed this point. In other words, her understanding of A Shang had only stopped before going to Beidi.
In the past, apart from the people of Dasheng and her soldiers, the only people in the eyes of Ashang were her, A Niang, and A Xiao.
The Ashang who has returned now is probably no longer the same Ashang he once was.
Is it just a moment of anger, or will he hate her for a long time?
She had always wanted to sit down and talk with Ashang. Even though she failed to do so, she fulfilled her wish to continue joining the army and gave her the position of general... These are all signs of her being a mother.
Okay, but her daughter seemed to turn a blind eye.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! A mother should not be suspicious of her daughter, let alone a mother who feels guilty.
But she is more than just a mother.
The Holy Emperor looked at the officials in the hall.
She is also an emperor.
A mother can give her daughter unlimited tolerance and unreasonable trust, but an emperor cannot be recklessly emotional.
What's more, her daughter's name is Li Shang, her original surname is Li, and she is also a member of the Li family.
And if she, an "emperor with a foreign surname", wants to stabilize this turbulent country, she must not take any chances.
As an emperor, she was different from the officials. She did not question the ability of the seventeen-year-old young general. What she questioned was the "intention" of the young general.
And in her Luoyang, nothing could go wrong.
Therefore, we cannot place all our hopes in the hands of Ashang, who are full of variables.
On this day, the empress sent several urgent orders to Luoyang, ordering Luoyang and Bianzhou to deploy all their defenses to ward off Xu's rebel army.
Other officials suggested that troops and horses from various states around Luoyang should be mobilized to provide backup.
But this proposal was rejected by the empress.
"My dear friends, do you still remember Wei Jun, the governor of Chuzhou?"
The hall was silent for a moment.
At that time, the governor of Chuzhou had secretly defected to Xu Zhengye, but no one noticed this. It was not until Chang Kuo and others crossed the border of Chuzhou that Wei Jun set up a Hongmen Banquet to plot...
In the Luoyang area, the major gentry clans have deep and intertwined roots. The Changsun clan originated from Luoyang, and the centipede insect can die without becoming stiff...
If the states near Luoyang reappeared like "Wei Jun" and asked them to rush to Luoyang's aid, once they cooperated with the remaining gentry forces in Luoyang internally and externally, it would be equivalent to putting Luoyang's hands in front of Xu Zhengye.
Having learned from this experience, the empress, who became increasingly suspicious, did not dare to take risks.
Shortly after the morning court, the empress summoned other important ministers to go to Ganlu Hall to discuss matters.
The military strength of Luoyang and Bianzhou alone was not enough to resist Xu's rebel army.
She is also worried about other states near Luoyang.
Therefore, she needs to send additional troops to reinforce Luoyang.
"...Luoyang is different from other places. There must be no mistakes. If we want to send troops there, we must select elite troops." Zhongshu ordered Ma Xingzhou to say: "Your Majesty, there are still 70,000 elite troops available in the capital."
Everyone knows what the "seventy thousand elites" he refers to.
It was the most elite division of Dasheng, founded by His Royal Highness the former Crown Prince, and was called Xuance Army.
There are now a total of 150,000 Xuance troops under Xuance Mansion. Previously, Cui Jing rushed to the north and took away 80,000 troops. The remaining 70,000 troops are now staying at Xuance Camp in the capital.
At this moment, an official hesitated and said: "Your Majesty... these 70,000 Xuance troops are responsible for guarding the capital. How can they be easily transferred?"
Naturally, there are more than 70,000 Xuance troops guarding the capital, but these 70,000 Xuance troops here have erected a strong barrier, so that the capital can have real stability.
Normally, there would be no need to be so timid, but now there are troubles happening everywhere...
How could Ma Xingzhou not know this, but he just sighed: "The most urgent task is to defend Luoyang."
Some officials also sighed.
There is no two-way solution, and the pros and cons are all before our eyes, so it is up to the emperor to make the final decision.
The Holy Emperor was also hesitant. She summoned additional officials from the Ministry of War and several military attachés to analyze the situation in detail and repeatedly confirmed the situation in the capital.
Finally, she made a decision: "Pass on my order to order 70,000 Xuance troops to go and defend Luoyang, and order everyone in the Xuance Mansion to prepare for the dispatch of troops immediately!"
No matter what, she can't give up Luoyang!
If Luoyang is lost to the hands of Xu Zhengye today, the monarch's power will be lost, and the monarch's power will be gone. The change of ownership will only happen in a moment!
The Holy Emperor ordered Yu Zeng to go to Xuance Mansion in person to convey the decree.
Yu Zeng agreed and immediately led the people out of the Manlu Hall.
After leaving the inner palace, Yu Zeng got on the sedan chair, followed by a group of chamberlains, walking quickly.
Yu Zeng was sitting in the sedan chair, holding the oracle in his hand, his narrow phoenix eyes drooping down, hiding the color inside.
Yu Zeng hurried through the Shangshu Province with a group of internal servants. When passing by Liubu Front Street, Chu Taifu was leading a group of officials from the Ministry of Rites out, accompanied by imperial guards with swords.
Tomorrow the Chunwei Headquarters will begin. They will escort the imperial examination papers to the examination hall. The roads will be cleared along the way and no one will be allowed to approach.
Under the solemn and tense atmosphere, Chu Taifu did not hesitate to express his dissatisfaction. He glanced at Yu Zeng and others who were hurried away: "What a state of urgency..."
"..." The other officials looked at him and did not dare to speak. They even wanted to step forward and cover the Taifu's mouth.
They don't dare to speak casually. If any word is used to make a fuss about secretly leaking test questions, it will be a serious crime that requires beheading.
Most of the others walked, but the elderly Master Chu sat in the sedan despite being an exception. He sighed comfortably, picked up the health tea prepared in the sedan, and took a leisurely sip.
He was naturally aware of the news that Xu Zhengye had changed his route to Luoyang, but the old lady was not panicked at all.
With his students here, what are these people worrying about?
Regarding his students, according to his secret observation and analysis these days, he thought that the empress probably knew something...
Even though he knew it, he was so anxious to deal with it... just couldn't believe it?
After a while, Master Chu held the tea cup and let out a disapproving sneer.
Some people, the higher they stand, the more they are afraid and the less they can understand.
"Weird." Mr. Chu whispered, whether sarcastically or sighing, "It's so sad, so pitiful."
But the most pitiful thing is his unlucky student.
The first time his student appeared in front of him, he looked like a small chess piece.
At first, the little chess piece was so stupid that he thought he had deceived the person on the dragon throne and thought he was the one who lied. Little did he know...
Thinking of this, Mrs. Chu put the tea cup on the pear wood table with a bang.
"None of it is good."
That's why he paid special attention to the little chess piece from the beginning, trying to see what kind of stupid and unlucky little thing it was.
Later he discovered, hey, this little chess piece is not stupid.
Later, the little chess pieces grew up and turned into big chess pieces.
Be smarter this time and don't get caught playing pawn again.
Taifu Chu whispered in his heart.
Otherwise, stop saying you are his student, it would be embarrassing.
…
After Emperor Shengce decided to order Xuance's army to send troops, he immediately began to discuss the candidates to lead the troops.
The choice of leader is very important. No matter how good the sword is, once it is handed over to an incompetent person, it will be no different from a broken sword.
Besides...
An official said: "Xuance's army has always been unique... If the selection of personnel is inappropriate, it may arouse rebellious intentions."
After he finished speaking, he seemed to feel that he had made a mistake, so he quickly calmed down.
Uncle Wei frowned almost imperceptibly.
Does this statement imply that Xuance Jun easily disobeys discipline?
He opened his mouth and said at the right time: "The Xuance army inherited the ambition of the late prince and was loyal to the great prosperity of the country. It has always been strict in running the army. It is precisely because of this unique and proud morale that it can be undefeated in the face of the enemy and its ambition to protect the territory remains unchanged.
"
"If an army is full of people who follow others' opinions, once they meet a commander like Li Yi, they will become a knife in the hands of the rebels." Wei Shuyi said: "Wei dares to say that if Li Yi led Xuance back then,
The army, it is absolutely impossible for everyone in the army to be deceived by it, and it is possible to make a big mistake."
The official said hurriedly: "This is exactly what Minister Wei said."
Wei Shuyi smiled with him: "But Mr. Fang's concerns are not unreasonable. If you want to make good use of the Xuance Army, you must have a general who is truly worthy of this good sword."
As he spoke, he faced the Holy Emperor, clasped his hands and said, "I believe that at this juncture, Governor Cui should lead the troops, which is the truly foolproof choice."