In Jiangning in early summer, it rains continuously, and green moss grows in the corners of the palaces and palaces due to the continuous rainy weather.
Yuan Yan was wearing a skirt and shirt, sitting by the window, looking at the green moss growing at the foot of the corridor in trance.
Although the She family fled across the Yangtze River and fled north, causing drastic changes in the balance of power in Jinghu, the situation in Jiangxi finally stabilized.
Huang Binghao, Chen Zishou and other rebel generals also intend to surrender in Yuanzhou. Next, Xiangtan will also get out of the predicament, which means that the chaos in the south that has lasted for nearly twenty years will completely subside this summer.
Huma is about to invade Jianghuai, and the tug of war in the Jinghu area may worsen the situation of the North-South confrontation, but it will not be more precarious than when Yanji collapsed. The imperial court started from Huaidong below, holding Huaixi, Jinghu, Nanyang, and Xiangtan
, Chizhou, Sichuan, Shaanxi, and the various tribes in Hezhong have six to seven hundred thousand troops. Even if Yan and Hu are asked to advance and capture Guanzhong and advance to the line of Huaihe River, the imperial court will have no worries about protecting half of the country.
These principles can be understood even by Yuan Yan who is deep in the palace.
However, the news that Lin Fu led his army to win a great victory in Shangrao came back to Jiangning, and the palace city was shrouded in dark clouds; the news that the Chizhou army was defeated in Songyang came back, and both the Queen Mother and the Emperor fell ill one after another, and no foreign ministers were seen.
This made the atmosphere in the palace even more strange.
The little maids with no background in the palace here were often scolded, and many were whipped. Yuan Yan tried to persuade her from the side, but also received a scolding from the Queen Mother, and she felt depressed for two days.
Yuan Yan also knew what was going on here. It was precisely because of this that she became more and more in a dilemma. Her intestines were tangled, and she could not sleep day and night. Her chin had become thin and pointed these days. It was just the worries in her heart that Yuan Yan was looking for.
No one can tell.
At this time, the sound of carriages and horses came from the front hall, and a palace maid came from the front hall. Yuan Yan asked: "Who came into the palace to visit the Queen Mother?"
Before Yuan Yan left the palace, she lived with Empress Dowager Liang in the Longevity Palace. She would naturally know what happened in the front hall.
"It's Lord Yuan, my servant, who has come into the palace." the palace maid replied.
Yuan Yan sighed softly. After the defeat of the Chizhou Army, Cheng Yuqian, Yu Xinyuan, and Zuo Chengmu in the Political Hall fell silent. Except for the day before yesterday, when they went to the palace to say hello, no one was seen for three days. In comparison, Yuan Yan
After returning to power, he frequently went to the palace to hold secret discussions. I don't know if the Privy Council is keeping an eye on this.
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When Yuan returned to the government, he entered the hall and attended the ceremony. He said: "The envoy from Nanyang has returned, and Luo Xiancheng and his troops have the tendency to shrink to the east..."
"The Shei family doesn't understand much about the military affairs, so just tell the Shei family straightforwardly." Empress Dowager Liang leaned down and asked Yuan Guizheng to speak. She was eager to know the situation in the north and wanted Yuan Guizheng to speak directly.
State his judgment without beating around the bush.
Except for Zhang Yan, the chamberlain supervisor, and Miao Shuo, the chamberlain chief minister, the Empress Dowager did not ask anyone else to come in, so there was no harm in speaking.
Miao Shuo didn't know much about military affairs, but when Zhang Yan heard the words about Yuan returning to the government, he felt a chill in his spine.
Yuan returned to the government and said: "Luo Xiancheng occupied the second mansion of Xiangsui, and his troops shrank eastward and gathered in Suizhou. He wanted to give up the Han River coast to the She family to attack Nanyang!"
"What should we do?" Queen Mother Liang said, anxious about the ants on the hot pot, "When will the Huaidong Army go north? Has anyone sent an envoy to Shangrao to ask?"
"The Privy Council's envoy entered Jiangning yesterday, and they have already moved him from Shangrao to Yuzhang." Miao Shuo reminded.
Yuzhang is geographically the center of Jiangxi. Lin Fu left Shangrao to go to Yuzhang to take charge, which means that he will stay in Yuzhang for a while and will not be in a hurry to return to Jiangning.
"Whether it is Shangrao or Yuzhang, we must send someone there," the Queen Mother said.
The Empress Dowager has also read Lin Fu's excerpts. It only contains the details of the Shangrao War and the various arrangements for handling the subsequent situation in Jiangxi.
"Gong Chongguo wants to send envoys to work for the army due to his extraordinary merits. The reward needs to be discussed first," Zhang Yan said, "Maybe we can wait until Master Shen comes back from Qiupu?"
The Chizhou Army was defeated in Songyang, and nearly half of its strength was lost. The only force on Jiangning's side that could check Huaidong was greatly weakened. More importantly, Yue Lengqiu disobeyed the Privy Council's military order, delayed the opportunity to fight, and had to bear the responsibility for defeat.
Responsibility.
Lin Fu wanted to use this to directly challenge Yue Lengqiu's military power. There were not many people in the court who could stand up and speak for him. If there was someone who didn't know how to commend him, there was no need for officials from the Huaidong clan to come forward.
A large number of officials who were angry at the defeat of the Chizhou Army and the scholars gathered in Jiangning City were able to drown them all with spittle.
Huaidong's soldiers and horses were victorious in Shangrao, and the rebels were so defeated that they could not even defend Jiangzhou. In such a good situation, Yue Lengqiu was defeated in Songyang, allowing the remnants of the rebels to cross the Yangtze River and flee north.
, causing the situation in Jinghu to suddenly deteriorate - this battle had completely destroyed the reputation that Yue Lengqiu had accumulated over the years.
The so-called success of a king and defeat of a bandit is also a reality in temples.
Yue Lengqiu violated the order of the Privy Council and delayed the opportunity to fight. If he loses, he will lose. No one will understand his difficulties.
Queen Mother Liang was also puzzled as to why Yue Lengqiu was defeated like this. She also hated Yue Lengqiu for failing to live up to expectations, which made the situation more complicated. But no matter how much she hated her, she couldn't just sit back and do nothing at this time. It was really called Chizhou Army.
He wanted to disband Lin Fu or give Huaidong a clean meal, so he sent Shen Rong to Qiupu to urgently discuss the aftermath with Yue Lengqiu in the name of questioning his responsibility.
Although Shen Rong had gone west to Qiupu for two days, Zhang Yan and others had no hope when Yuan returned to power.
Lin Fu and Yue Lengqiu have been entangled in their grudges over the years, and they want to get rid of them quickly. This time, they have such a good opportunity to knock Yue Lengqiu down with a stick, how can they let it pass?
First, the gossip in the court was extremely unfavorable to Yue Lengqiu; secondly, the strength of the Chizhou army was greatly reduced, and the remaining troops were surrounded by Huaidong soldiers and horses - Lin Fu wanted to remonstrate with Yue Lengqiu to seize the military power.
Yue Lengqiu didn't even have room to struggle.
Whether Yue Lengqiu's military power can be retained, and Lin Fu's reputation in the government and the public is even more difficult to shake, are all worrying. However, the immediate priority for the Yuan Dynasty to return to power, which makes Liang's heart skip a beat, is still what Hezhong Mansion and Nanyang Mansion currently focus on.
the crisis faced.
The Guan-Shaanxi crisis is in danger, and Liang Chengyi cannot finish his eggs in Hezhong Mansion under the overthrow of the nest; now the power of Jinghu has changed again, Luo Xiancheng may change at any time in Suizhou, and Liang Chengchong is in danger of laying eggs in Nanyang Mansion——
The two forces that the Queen Mother and the Yongchang Marquis Mansion could directly rely on were like a lonely boat in the raging waves, which could capsize at any time.
This can be said to be the most direct and serious consequence of the Chizhou Army's defeat in Songyang and the remnants of the She family being able to successfully cross the river.
Wu Guizheng also imagined what would happen if Yue Lengqiu could follow Lin Fu's plan and gather heavy troops on the north bank to seal the way for the remnants of the She family to cross the river——
As a result, the Chizhou army will not be defeated; in the end, it will form a force to encircle Jiangzhou with the Huaidong and Jinghu families.
By this time, Chizhou will be able to equally share the victory in regaining Jiangxi. The three families will divide and rule Jiangzhou, so that Huaidong cannot monopolize Jiangxi. Secondly, Huaidong will not have the opportunity to reach out to Jinghu, which can limit the further expansion of Huaidong's power.
.
Even if the Cao family fails to defend Guanzhong, Liang Chengyi can lead his troops to withdraw from Hezhong Prefecture into Nanyang, while Luo Xiancheng has no chance of struggling. Either they can be incorporated or destroyed, which will benefit the surrounding Jinghu, Chizhou, Nanyang and Huaixi.
Be further consolidated - all these changes can cause the structure of the temple to change in a direction that is beneficial to the imperial line.
It's a pity that the above are all illusions of Yuan Guizheng. Chizhou's army was defeated in Songyang, and their dream of Yuan Guizheng was shattered to pieces.
After Songyang was defeated, the remnants of the She family crossed the river and headed north, directly approaching the north bank of the Han River. Jing Lake was under great pressure along the Han River, and Hu Wenmu had no confidence to say anything wrong with Lin Fu.
After the She family crossed north, Luo Xiancheng lost a lot of scruples and began to make moves, which made the situation in Nanyang critical and Dong Yuan's defense line in Huaixi became weak.
Once the Cao family abandons Guanzhong and retreats to the east of Sichuan, Hezhong, and Nanyang are likely to collapse in an instant, and the Huaixi general will be the first to lead the troops of the Northern Yan southward. In this case, Dong Yuan will never offend Lin Fu.
Because of the situation, this is also the fundamental reason why Cheng Yuqian, Zuo Chengmu, Yu Xinyuan and others have become silent in the past ten days. In the past, with the support of Chizhou, Jinghu, and Huaixi, they could still compete with Huaidong on some matters.
One or two, at this time, I could only watch helplessly as Lin Fu and the Privy Council covered the sky with their hands in the temple.
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It was already May 12 when Shen Rong returned from Qiupu to see Yue Lengqiu.
Shen Rong, who could not bear to return to Jiangning, was tired and tired all the way. When she learned that he had returned to Jiangning, the Queen Mother summoned him to the palace to discuss matters.
Even Emperor Yongxing, who had been ill for a long time, braced himself for his illness and came forward to summon Shen Rong. He wanted to know if Shen Rong had gone to Qiupu to discuss any countermeasures with Yue Lengqiu.
For Emperor Yongxing, Yue Lengqiu and Dong Yuan were always the two foreign ministers he could rely on, and he also pinned his hopes of regaining control of the government on Yue Lengqiu and Dong Yuan.
The Chizhou army was defeated in Songyang, which caused Emperor Yongxing to feel the pain of having his arm broken, and his dream of returning to power was half awakened, which also made him feel even more painful.
In the Chongwen Hall, all the ministers were called in. After all, Shen Rong went to Qiupu on behalf of the imperial court to take responsibility for the defeat of Yue Leng's army.
Shen Rong stood in front of the palace and said: "The casualties of the Chizhou navy were particularly heavy. There were no warships or generals left. In addition to the navy, Yue Prime Minister and his son Yue Duming died on the battlefield. Conongyang was defeated.
From Yue Duming down, more than 13,000 soldiers were killed, and the Chizhou army still had 30,000 soldiers, gathered in Qiupu and Yicheng..."
Listening to Shen Rong's oral description of the casualties of the Chizhou Army, Cheng Yuqian, Yu Xinyuan, Zuo Chengmu and others were frightened; Lin Xuwen just stood aside with his arms folded, with a half-smile on his lips. Emperor Yongxing looked at it and wished he could throw away the tea cup in his hand.
But Emperor Yongxing did not dare to insult his ministers for no reason, which was a breach of morality for the emperor.
In comparison, Liu Zhi, Huang Jinnian and other Huaidong ministers were more restrained and did not want to tease the sensitive nerves of Emperor Yongxing and others.