Chapter 61: The decisive battle is ahead?! [Two in one]
On the eighth day of May, a messenger rode a fast horse and rushed into Handan, the capital of Korea, and went straight to the residence of Han Wu, Marquis of Li.
After explaining all the reasons, the messenger was personally summoned by Han Wu, the Marquis of Li.
After seeing Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, the sweaty messenger took out a well-wrapped letter from his arms, presented it to him and said in a tight voice: "Marquis of Li, this is the 800-year-old Lord Julu Yanju." Riga is urgent.”
Lihou Hanwu's assistant took the letter, opened it and confirmed it was correct, and handed it to the former.
"Yankui's 800-mile express?"
Li Hou Han Wu's expression became much more solemn.
Among the "Top Ten Heroes of the Northern Plains", Julu Shouyan is the most important Korean general in the line of Lihou Hanwu. He is skilled in boat and water warfare. He has been fighting against Qi's famous general Tian Ao in Julu County all year round. Tian Wu's water Although the victory and defeat were mixed, considering the strength of the Julu Navy of Qi State, it is already a very remarkable thing that Julu Shou Yanjue can compete with Qi State's famous generals Tian Ao and Tian Wu and his son.
But Han Wu, Marquis of Li, felt a little puzzled. Why did Julu Shouyan crepe send someone to send an urgent and secret message eight hundred miles away? Could it be that Qi State had done something else?
With all kinds of speculations in mind, Lihou Hanwu opened the secret letter and glanced at the contents.
Immediately, a slight smile appeared on his lips, and he said to himself: "Hahaha, Qi State and Wei State are really at war."
Regarding the "enmity between Qi and Wei", Li Hou Han Wu was actually not surprised, because some days ago, when Xiang Yu, the leader of the Beibo Army, restored the Song Dynasty, he also sent an envoy to South Korea to seek South Korea's recognition.
At that time, Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, rejected Xiang Xuan's request.
The reason is simple: it does more harm than good.
You must know that the reason why Qi State helped Song State was to maintain the former's dominance in the eastern part of the Central Plains and increase its influence in the Central Plains. To put it bluntly, it was to brush off its presence, lest the world gradually forget about Qi State.
Apart from this, what benefits can the restoration of Song State in Tengcheng bring to Qi State? At most, it will give Qi State one more dispensable ally, so that when Qi State does something in the future, it can wave flags and cheers to increase its power.
If it were in the past, Li Hou Han Wu might have wanted to do what the Chu State did, shouting for the Song State without saying anything, just to add some trouble to the Wei State, but the problem is that the two countries are currently in a very tense stage of war, and each other They are all actively preparing for war to deal with the war that affects the dominance of South Korea and Wei in the Central Plains. Considering that the country is not fully prepared, how can Li Hou Han Wu dare to easily provoke Wei?
In today's Central Plains, everyone knows that Zhao Run, the crown prince of Wei State, is a very irritable person. What if he shouted a few words for Song State, but directly triggered a war between Wei and South Korea?
Therefore, South Korea, as Wei's current strong competitor, did not openly support Song. It remained indifferent to this matter and was not prepared to intervene at all.
Instead, Qi, a former ally of Wei, openly supported Song.
At that time, Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, speculated that Qi and Wei might turn against each other because of this.
But now, Julu Shou Yanju sent an urgent letter from 800 miles away, spreading the news that "a war broke out between the Wei State, the Qilu Allied Forces, and the Beibo Army in Song County" to Lihou Hanwu. This is completely in line with Lihou. Hou Hanwu’s previous judgment.
After thinking about it, Li Hou Han Wu stood up and took this letter with him to personally visit their Korean Prime Minister "Shen Buhai".
Shen Buhai, this person is a descendant of the Zheng people. He is the Zheng people who fled to South Korea for refuge before and after the Wei State destroyed Zheng. This person, like "Shanggu Shou Mashe", both came from a humble background, but with his own His intelligence and talent attracted the attention of "King Jian of Han" at a young age.
Originally, King Han Jian planned to promote Shen Buhai, but a serious illness destroyed the young hero.
When he was in danger, King Jian of Han passed the throne to his younger brother "Han Qi" and said to the latter: "This man (Shen Buhai) has great talents, and I can help him!"
After Han Wang Jian passed away, Han Qi, also known as Han Wang Qi, indeed listened to his brother's advice and promoted Shen Buhai from a minor official to a sergeant in the court. Countless people were shocked at that time.
But the facts have proved that Han Wangjian's vision is indeed unique. Ma She and Shen Buhai, whom he valued, have now become the pillars of Korea, especially the left prime minister Shen Buhai. Regardless of the internal fighting between Li Hou Han Wu and Kang Gong Han Hu over the years, Despite how fierce it was, South Korea still gradually became stronger and did not weaken because of it. In this matter, Zuo Xiangshen played a huge role.
Speaking of which, Shen Buhai also had considerable power in the court and was a representative figure of the gentry, but there was no direct conflict between him and Lihou Hanwu.
After all, no matter Kang Gong Han Hu or Li Hou Han Wu, although they were fighting for power, they never considered pulling Shen Buhai down. Firstly, Shen Buhai was now very powerful, and secondly, this person had never participated in the cooperation. As for the struggle for power between the royal family and the public clan, he is just a minister of South Korea, and he is conscientiously governing South Korea - as long as Han Wu and Han Hu do not interfere in internal affairs, Shen Buhai has always viewed these people with a disdainful attitude. The attitude of not seeing is pure.
After sitting in the front hall of Shen Buhai's Prime Minister's Mansion for a while, he saw an old man with gray hair and beard walking slowly to the front hall, smiling and saluting: "What a rare visitor... Lihou" Why do you have the leisure to come to my house today?"
Li Hou Han Wu stood up and returned the courtesy, and said with a smile: "Xiao Hou came here specifically to ask for advice from Zuo Xiang."
"Can I ask for advice?"
Zuo Xiangshen Buhai squinted his eyes, looked at Lihou Hanwu for a few times calmly, and said with a chuckle: "Now that Lihou is so precious, and one word can decide domestic affairs, is there anything else... that needs to be addressed to him? Can I ask for advice?"
Li Hou Han Wu was also very quick-thinking. When he heard Shen Buhai's words, he knew that the old prime minister was implying that he could not rebelliously interfere with the throne, or that he was rejecting the matter in disguise, and he smiled bitterly in his heart.
It's no wonder, after all, since Duke Kang Han Hu had to withdraw from the court, and Duke Zhuang Han Geng also made concessions knowingly, Marquis Han Wu is now almost a king in Korea. The only thing he lacks is a title.
Because of this, the people under Li Hou Han Wu, including Julu Shou Yanjue, privately supported him to replace his younger brother Han Wangran.
You must know that Li Hou Han Wu was the adopted son of King Han, and his real father was the previous hero Han King Jian. If Han King Jian had not passed away too young, so that Han Wu was still young at that time, he would not have been the king of Korea. If you see it, you will pass it on to King Han.
It's just that King Han was not kind enough. After his brother's eldest son Han Wu grew up, he did not pass it to him, but to his biological son, who is now Han Wangran.
Therefore, in fact, Lihou Hanwu is also qualified to inherit the throne. However, he and his younger brother Han Ran grew up together, and Han Ran was a man who concealed his secrets and deliberately showed weakness, which made Lihou Hanwu never have the heart to take away his younger brother. of the throne.
Otherwise, if he was cruel and tried to kill his younger brother Han Ran and seize the throne, even if Bao Yuan, Li Mu, Ma She and others were dissatisfied, they would not be able to do anything to him.
Including the left prime minister in front of me.
Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, who was suddenly in a waning mood, smiled openly and said directly: "Master Zuo Xiang, Xiao Hou came here because he learned that Wei State was at war with Qi State and Lu State, so I came here specifically to ask the left minister whether I, Korea, can profit from this."
"..."
Shen Buhai glanced at Lihou Hanwu with some surprise, and suddenly seemed to have thought of something, and said: "Lihou, seeing my memory, he actually forgot to ask someone to serve tea to Lihou." After that, he quickly called for the family. The servants replaced the tea with good quality tea. At the end of the day, they met Marquis Li Hanwu again and said, "I hope Marquis Li will not take offense to this rudeness."
Li Hou Han Wu naturally understood what Shen Buhai was referring to when he said "Don't be offended", so he laughed it off.
After a while, when the servants of the house brought tea, Shen Buhai had already carefully read the eight-hundred-mile urgent secret letter from Julu Shouyan Crepe, and was stroking his gray beard, as if he had something to say. think.
After a while, Shen Buhai asked Lihou Han Wudao solemnly: "Does Lihou intend to form an alliance with Qi to jointly deal with Wei?"
"Exactly." Li Hou Han Wu nodded and said: "Although we have many soldiers and generals in Korea, Wei is not weak. If we start a war easily, it is still unclear who will win... Since Qi and Wei are now at odds, we might as well Make peace with the state of Qi, join forces to deal with the state of Wei, and share the pressure of our country."
Shen Buhai nodded after hearing this, then shook his head, stroking his beard and saying nothing.
Seeing this, Li Hou Han Wu asked in confusion: "Master Zuo Xiang, is it possible that Xiao Hou is wrong?"
I saw Shen Buhai stroking his beard and exhaling a long breath, and said solemnly: "The Marquis Li said that it is a great kindness, but... the people of Qi will not form an alliance with me, Han." After saying that, he saw Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, showing his face. With a look of confusion, he explained: "Don't forget, Marquis Li, that the fundamental reason for the enmity between Qi and Wei this time is because Qi interfered in the affairs of Song Dynasty. Why did Qi rather risk offending Wei?" This unprofitable thing? You know, since Wei Gongzi Zhao entered Qi eight years ago, Qi and Wei have always been allies. Why are they turning against each other now? "
"Because now Wei is strong and Qi is weak." Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, said seriously.
"Correct answer!" Shen Buhai praised, and then said in a deep voice: "Back then, during the alliance between Qi and Wei, the Wei State regarded Qi as its leader. However, over the years, the strength of the Wei State has grown day by day. On the other hand, the Qi State, although it has pacified the princes It recovered slightly after the civil strife, but its momentum in the Central Plains was still not as good as that of Wei... In the past two years, the "Five Parties Conquered Wei" failed to defeat Wei. How many people in the world were stunned? "
"..."
Li Hou Han Wu nodded slightly.
To be fair, although he was the beneficiary of this matter, which allowed him to kick away the powerful enemy of Kang Gong and Han Hu, it cannot be denied that he did not expect that the five forces of Chu, Han, Qin, Sichuan, and Nangong They jointly attacked Wei State, such a huge offensive, but Wei State was able to withstand the pressure.
Because of this battle, the Wei State now has unparalleled momentum in the Central Plains, overwhelming its former hegemon Qi State.
"...the Qi people were too proud to give up the title of overlord, so they tried to suppress Wei's momentum. However, the Wei people were by no means weak, and they competed with Qi. That's why the two countries The old allies have become strangers." After a pause, Shen Buhai said seriously: "Just imagine, the Qi people intend to prove to the world through this war that their Qi country is still as powerful as it was back then. Lihou feels that the Qi people Will you form an alliance with me, Korea?"
Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, nodded: If Qi forms an alliance with South Korea, even if it defeats Wei later, what honor will there be for Qi if they fight one against the other?
Unless South Korea is willing to accept Qi as its leader to satisfy the self-esteem of the Qi people.
But the question is, if South Korea is dominated by Qi, how can it qualify to dominate the world?
Therefore, the Qi-Korean alliance is doomed to fail.
After touching his chin and thinking for a moment, Li Hou Han Wu frowned and said, "What Zuo Xiang means is that only when Qi is defeated at the hands of Wei can those arrogant Qi people form an alliance with me, Korea?"
"That's not possible." Shen Buhai shook his head and said firmly: "With the arrogance of the Qi people, how can they bow to my country after the defeat?" As he said, he blinked and added: "But having said that, even if Qi State does not ally with Korea this time, Qi State will most likely stand on our side and put pressure on Wei State. Only when our country overpowers Wei State and breaks the balance will Qi State regain its position. Over there in Wei State."
After hearing this, Li Hou Han Wu narrowed his eyes and whispered: "In other words, Qi can be used."
"It depends on how to use it." As he said that, Shen Buhai asked Lihou Han Wudao: "Is Lihou preparing to declare war on Wei early?"
Li Hou Han Wu nodded and said: "I have pondered for a long time and thought that this might be an excellent opportunity. If we miss this opportunity, we, Korea and Wei, may have to remain in a stalemate until the Year of the Monkey and the Moon of the Horse."
Shen Buhai nodded.
Indeed, the current situation between South Korea and Wei is very awkward. Both sides want to fight, but are afraid of losing, so they can only stand still and wait for the opportunity.
Such a stalemate is actually very hurtful to both countries.
But now that the Wei Kingdom is at war in Song County, this may be a God-given opportunity.
The question is, can the Qilu Allied Forces and the Beibo Army of the Song State stop the Wei Army? What if South Korea is ready to launch troops against the Wei State and the Wei State has already solved the Song County problem? Embarrassed.
On that day, Li Hou Han Wu and Zuo Xiang Shen Buhai had a long secret conversation.
After leaving the Prime Minister's Mansion, Li Hou Han Wu sent many agents and spies to the mainland of Wei and the Song Dynasty to inquire about the situation.
On the one hand, we understand how many troops Wei sent to conquer Song Dynasty this time, and on the other hand, we pay attention to the battle situation in Song County.
Nearly a month passed like this. During this period, information about Wei and Song Dynasty arrived like snowflakes at the house of Han Wu, the Marquis of Li.
At this time, Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, learned that it turned out that Wei Gongzi Run, who had become the prince of Wei, personally led the army to conquer the Song Dynasty this time, and the army used was the "Shang Shui Army" that has become famous over the years. ” and the “Yanling Army”, two elite Wei armies with a total strength of 50,000 people.
What is unbelievable is that Wei Gongzi Run, who has been invincible in hundreds of battles in the past ten years, actually suffered a setback in the Song Dynasty - in fact, he was only blocked by the famous Qi general Tian Dan in the "Ningyang" area, but in the eyes of Li Hou Han Wu, this was not the case. It's a very incredible thing.
He was inexplicably excited and couldn't help shouting: "What a Tian Dan! He has the ability to compete with Mr. Wei Run!"
Thinking of the happy place, he ordered his surroundings: "Invite the two generals Jin Mao and Bao Yuan, and tell them that I have urgent military affairs to discuss with the two generals!"
"Yes!" left and right echoed.
About half an hour later, Jin Yao and Bao Yuan, who had arrived late, arrived at the residence of Li Hou Han Wu one after another.
Among the old "Top Ten Heroes of Beiyuan", Jin Yao, Yan Kuai, and Feng Ting all supported Lihou Han Wu. It was a pity that in the "Battle of Shanyang", Wei Gongzi Run killed Ju Xin, the governor of Daijun, in anger. As a result, Feng Ting, the former Shangdang guard, surrendered to the former and begged for his life, so that Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, now had only Jin Pao, his confidant who could be entrusted with important tasks, besides Julu guarding Yanju, and the new deputy currently in Daijun. Sheriff Sima Shang.
That's why he invited Bao Yuan, a general from the royal party.
To be honest, in Handan at this time, there was actually another general who could be entrusted with important tasks, and that was Han Yang, the Marquis of Dangyin. However, this man was the cousin of Kanggong Han Hu. Therefore, Han Wu, the Marquis of Li, would rather invite Bao Yuan to participate in the discussion. I don’t want to invite Han Yang, the arrogant queen.
At first, Bao Yuan didn't take Lihou Hanwu's invitation seriously, simply because he wanted to keep his promise. But when General Lihou Hanwu explained the purpose of the invitation, Bao Yuan's expression became much more solemn. .
"Marquis Li plans to start a war with Wei in advance?" Bao Yuan asked in shock.
Li Hou Han Wu nodded and said in a deep voice: "The two Wei armies, Wei Gongzi Run, Shangshui Army and Yanling Army, are currently confronting Tian Dan of Qi State in Song Dynasty. They are in a stalemate with each other. I think this may be an attack. Wei’s God-given opportunity!”
Hearing this, Jin Fu frowned and reminded: "Lihou, even if Wei Gongzi Run is in the Song Dynasty, there will still be "Nanliang King Zhao Zuo" and "Yu King Zhao Ke" in Daliang of Wei State. The former is powerful, Lihou believes You also know that the latter single-handedly defeated the Chu State's millions of troops, and even Lord Shouling Jingshe and Lord Diyang Xiong Shang were defeated by this person..."
"But we in Korea also have Li Mu and Le Yi!"
Li Hou Han Wu said in a deep voice.
Jin Mao and Bao Yuan looked at each other, not knowing what to say at this moment.
In fact, they understand that the war between South Korea and Wei is destined to be fought. It is very hurtful for both countries to be facing each other like this. The problem is that there is no turning back when the bow is fired. Once it is determined that South Korea and Wei The country set off this unprecedented war in advance. When the time comes, whether it is South Korea or Wei, it will not be so easy to escape.
Just like when two tigers fight, one of them will be injured. Once the war between Korea and Wei begins, the war will either continue until both countries are scarred and exhausted, ending in a lose-lose outcome for both countries, or one side will surrender to the other. There may even be a danger of the country overthrowing.
For a period of time after that, Li Hou Han Wu discussed with Zuo Xiang Shen Buhai and generals Bao Yuan, Jin Mao and others every day.
However, during this period, he took the lead in sending people to inform the border garrisons in South Korea of the news that "we may use troops against Wei in advance." After all, the battle between South Korea and Wei was a full-scale war that determined the status of both sides in the Central Plains. Therefore, as the name suggests, South Korea would dispatch its own troops. All elite frontier garrisons.
Because of this, there is also a time problem in mobilizing troops. Therefore, regardless of whether South Korea will go to war against Wei in advance, it is definitely correct to inform the various county guards in advance and let them prepare.
As a result, countless messengers poured out from Handan and headed in all directions.
Due to the geographical location, Li Mu, the guardian of Yanmen, was probably the last of the "Top Ten Heroes of the Northern Plains" to receive a letter from Han Wu, Marquis of Li.
In the letter, Li Hou Hanwu ordered Li Mu: If it is confirmed that South Korea will fight against Wei in advance, then Li Mu will join forces with Taiyuan to defend Wei and lead an army to attack Wei's Hexi and Hedong, and then approach Wei's Liang County.
After briefly reading Lihou Hanwu's letter, Yanmen Keeper Li Mu let out a long breath.
Of course, he had already expected that the war with Wei would be inevitable, but he really didn't expect that it would come so quickly.
After a while, he smiled bitterly, shook his head, and murmured: "Hexi, Hedong... Lihou really thinks highly of me, Li Mu."
It’s no wonder he said this. After all, the ones guarding the west and east of the river in the Wei State are Wei General Sima An and Lintao Lord Wei Ji. Which one is easier to get along with?
Not to mention, there is also the Wei Wujun of Wei State General Shao Hu in the Hetao area.
Maybe, Li Mu will have to fight against three famous Wei generals, Shao Hu, Sima An, and Wei Ji at the same time this time. Fortunately, Taiyuan Shou Lecheng is there to help him. Otherwise, even Li Mu would inevitably feel a little uneasy.
At that time, the deputy general "Yan Feng" was nearby. When he heard this, he said: "Marquis Li asked me to send out all the Yanmen Army. Our army must expel the aliens in the "Western Land" as soon as possible, otherwise, I am afraid that they will be killed." They took advantage of the lack of troops in Yanmen to lead troops to invade."
The "Western Land" he refers to is the land to the west of Yanmen County (Dingxiang). Since the Wei State initially stopped at Hetao, some of the Linhu, Xianbei, Xiongnu and other foreign tribes in the Hetao area fled north to Dingxiang made Yanmen County very vigilant.
These days, Li Mu, the guardian of Yanmen, is busy expelling these alien races and driving them further north.
After listening to the words of Lieutenant General Yan Feng, Li Mu took it seriously and stepped up the action to expel the aliens.
On this day, Li Mu led three thousand Yanmen cavalry out of the customs and headed for the West (Dingxiang).
The Yanmen Cavalry can be called the top cavalry in South Korea. Since they are stationed on the front line of South Korea's resistance to foreigners all year round, the Yanmen Cavalry are all strong and brave. Even the Sanchuan Jie Cavalry and Hetao Linhu are outstanding among the cavalry. The cavalry, the Huns cavalry, may not be the opponent of the Yanmen cavalry.
As a result, this time the Yanmen cavalry moved out in full force to expel the foreigners in the West (Dingxiang) territory. For the Yanmen cavalry, this seemed like a pleasant outing.
Although we encountered some foreign cavalry or warriors on the way, when the latter saw the Yanmen cavalry, especially the banner with the words "Han, Yanmen Guards Li", they were frightened and fled.
No, while he was talking, three thousand Yanmen cavalry led by Li Mu personally defeated a group of knights from a foreign tribe again.
However, when the battlefield was being cleared, someone on the left and right said to Li Mu: "General, there are people standing and watching over there."
"Huh?"
Li Mu was slightly startled, then turned to look in the direction he was pointing to the left and right. Sure enough, he saw about three or four hundred feet away, about a dozen people on horseback standing there, watching them clean up the battlefield.
What surprised Li Mu was that after the opponent stood still and watched for a moment, instead of retreating, he rode his horse slowly toward this side.
Li Mu was a little confused at first, but when he saw the person coming clearly, a look of surprise appeared on his face. He also rode his horse forward and came to the dozen riders. He cupped his hands and said with a smile: "We've been apart for a few days."
Nian, stay safe and sound, General Lian Pi!"
Among the dozen riders opposite him, the leader was nine feet tall and extremely burly. He grinned: "You too, Li Mu."
It turned out that this man was actually a fierce general who had defected to the Wei State and was appointed as the "Yunzhongshou" by the Wei State Crown Prince Zhao Hongrun. He was one of the ten tycoons of North Korea's North Plains. He was honest!