Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 3965 Killing prisoners unknown

Zhang Xingcheng felt chills in his heart, afraid that Cheng Yaojin would really kill him later, so he hurriedly expressed his opinion: "Duke Lu has made great military achievements and has military power in his hands. Every family can only rely on it, how can they hide their filth and self-destruct the Great Wall? Lu Guogong, you are worrying too much! But I will bring back your thoughts verbatim, and I will also tell you that the current situation can be reversed without a deadly battle. You must let all the powers support you to become the head of the military department, and then control the Tang Dynasty in the near future All the troops!"

On this point, he is confident that he can convince the heads of the various families. Li Ji has almost parted ways with the Shandong family now. Cheng Yaojin is their last force in the Tang military. Why not do it for fun?

"Ha ha."

Cheng Yaojin sneered twice, was noncommittal to Zhang Xingcheng's guarantee, picked up the teacup, and said calmly: "Okay, I will act according to the camera, go back and let those old guys make no mistakes, otherwise the situation will collapse and no one will Know what it will turn out to be."

"Here! I will take my leave."

Seeing that Cheng Yaojin wanted to see off the guests, Zhang Xingcheng didn't dare to wait for long, he got up and saluted and left the big tent.

When the accompanying servants came over leading the horses, the group got on their horses and drove out of the barracks quickly.The oncoming breeze was accompanied by rain, and his body was icy cold. Only then did Zhang Xingcheng realize that his shirt had already been soaked in cold sweat.

At that moment just now, he truly felt Cheng Yaojin's killing intent...

As expected of the big boss known as the "devil king of the world", the masters of various families want to completely control him and let him be driven, which is simply a dream.Even if Cheng Yaojin is irritated by being confused about the situation, he may suffer severe backlash.

Dark clouds rolled in the sky, the breeze poured down with rain, the surrounding fields were vast and gloomy, it seemed that there was a group of fierce soldiers hidden in every forest, and when he got close, they would charge out... Zhang Xingcheng kept urging his horse Speed ​​up and run all the way to the south of the city.

*****
At the foot of Mount Li, inside the barracks.

Li Ji took a sip of tea, looked away from the drizzle outside the window, and bet on the battle report spread out in his hand, with a blank expression on his face.

Next, Zhou Daowu, who just arrived here, is full of travel and dust. His handsome face in the past is dark and thin, and his eyes are bloodshot.On the way back to Datang, he heard that His Majesty Li Er fell off his horse and was injured, so he knew that there would be a drastic change in power within Datang, so he hid in Liaodong for a winter.As a result, the situation was as corrupt as he had imagined, but what was even more unexpected was that due to the severe shortage of supplies for the winter, a large number of prisoners under escort died, and even those who survived were suffering from frostbite. Struggles and deep disabilities have become a huge burden, and they are cruel and simply killed...

Killing prisoners is a serious crime, so he procrastinated and refused to return to Chang'an before the situation became clear. The sins committed will be put down gently and will not be held accountable.

In the end, Donggong turned defeat into victory and completely defeated the Guanlong rebels in one fell swoop...

Immediately afterwards, Li Ji's military order arrived, telling him to hurry back to Chang'an to meet up.No matter how unwilling Zhou Daowu was, how dare he disobey Li Ji's military order?I had no choice but to leave the large troops behind and lead my own soldiers to travel day and night, arriving here exhausted.

On the other side, Zhang Liang stroked his beard under his chin, and said in a bad tone: "Duke E is crazy? He disobeyed the military order several times, and there were a lot of discussions in the army. The commander should punish him severely and correct the military discipline. Otherwise, everyone will follow suit. But I can’t take it.”

The most important discipline in the army is to demonstrate fairness and justice. Otherwise, how can countless men who are not afraid of life and death be able to do so?Yu Chigong first went to Dayun Temple in Zhongnan Mountain without authorization, trying to resist Zuo Wuwei to rescue the remnants of Guanlong, and then stationed in the east of Baqiao, confronting Zuo Wuwei on the west side of Baqiao across the river. Regardless, it caused an uproar in the army, causing the army's morale to be unstable and rumors to spread everywhere.

After all, after Guan Long raised troops and ravaged Guan Zhong, Li Ji held an army of hundreds of thousands but remained indifferent. Some people have long speculated that he either waited for the destruction of the Eastern Palace and took the opportunity to wipe out Guan Long and set up a new crown prince, or he had already concluded an alliance with Guan Long and reached a deal beforehand. Sit back and enjoy the success.Now watching Yu Chigong rush around under the order of Guan Long, it seems that there is a deal between Li Ji and Guan Long, otherwise why not punish Yu Chigong with military law?
Nowadays, there are very few people in the Eastern Expedition Army who have anything to do with Guan Long, and most of them are angry about Guan Long's rise of troops. Once it is confirmed that there is a deal between Li Ji and Guan Long, it will immediately lead to a loss of morale and division within the army.

Li Ji put down the battle report in his hand, glanced at Zhang Liang, and said, "I am very pleased that Duke Yun is so keen on military affairs. Why don't you let Duke Yun hold the military order of the commander and capture Yu Chigong, the Marquis of the Right? , severely punished by military law, to serve as an example to others.”

Zhang Liang was taken aback, and shook his head quickly: "It's absolutely impossible! Duke E is now disregarding military orders and obeying orders from Guanlong. If anyone rashly goes to Youhouwei, wouldn't he be sent to him at the knife's edge? It's not because I'm afraid of death, It is really meaningless to die like this, we should think about it in the long run, think about it in the long run..."

He was really afraid that Li Ji would issue a military order to rush to You Hou Wei to capture Yu Chi Gong...

Fear of death is part of it. In addition, he has a private agreement with Changsun Wuji. If he captures Yu Chigong and is punished by Li Ji, causing the last army in Guanlong to collapse, why should Changsun Wuji fight him for his life?
Li Ji took a sip of his tea, and said, "Duke Yun is a sensible person, that's exactly the reason. Although Duke E disobeyed the military order, if he punishes the crime with strong means at this moment, it will inevitably lead to violent conflicts, which will make the already tense situation worse." Oil is becoming more and more difficult to control, we should focus on the overall situation."

Zhang Liang nodded again and again, not daring to say more.

Then Li Ji looked at Zhou Daowu, and said in a cold tone, "General Zhou escorted the prisoners back to Tang Dynasty first, why did my commander refuse to leave Liaodong under the urging of several military orders, and now he is late?"

Zhou Daowu hurriedly got up and knelt down on one knee: "The final general evacuated from Pingrang City and chose to return to Datang via Liaodong by land. Unexpectedly, he encountered a snowstorm on the way. The road was impassable for several days, and countless soldiers were frostbitten. We had to stay in Liaodong City temporarily. After the road is clear in spring, we will set off again."

Killing prisoners is a big taboo, once the court censors and celebrities all over the world clamor for it, Li Ji is likely to throw him out to appease the public anger, which makes him terrified.

However, what you are most afraid of is often what comes...

Li Ji stood up, stared at Zhou Daowu condescendingly with his hands behind his back, and said slowly, "I have received dozens of letters reporting that you abused prisoners, and even killed prisoners in order to reduce the burden. I wonder how General Zhou can explain this?"

Zhou Daowu was shocked, his face turned pale with fright, and he hastily argued: "Master Mingjian, this is slander! It is true that the prisoners who were escorted by the last general suffered heavy casualties, but it was all due to the heavy snow in Liaodong, natural disasters, and the serious shortage of soldiers in the army. Supplies for overwintering lead to a large number of casualties among the captives. Not only the captives, but also the soldiers in the army also suffered a lot of casualties. The last general can’t torture and kill his own brothers, right? Such accusations are simply insane, and I hope the commander-in-chief can see clearly!”

Li Ji sighed, stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder, his tone softened: "General Zhou was ordered to escort the prisoners. It was a hard job. I also believe that the heavy snowstorm caused the heavy casualties of the prisoners... But you have to know, Although this Eastern Expedition destroyed Goguryeo, our hundreds of thousands of troops were on the verge of failure, and the achievement of destroying the country was the work of the Royal Navy. The hundreds of thousands of troops were mighty and mighty, and they spent countless money and food, and finally fell short... This kind of thing always Someone has to take responsibility."

"Eh..." Zhou Daowu was stunned for a moment.

He grew up in a palace since he was a child, and he was born in a family. He is used to seeing political struggles and power struggles, so he agrees with Li Ji's statement.In the end, someone needs to take responsibility for everything, whether it is merit or demerit. It seems that this kind of national battle ended in defeat, and caused His Majesty Li Er to be severely injured and comatose, and he did not know whether he was alive or dead. Someone must take responsibility.

But the problem is that Zhou Daowu is not even a general in charge of the army, and what he accepts is the task of escorting prisoners. No one will hold the responsibility for the defeat on his head, right?

Zhang Liang, who was on the side, interjected quietly: "Torturing and killing captives hurts the peace of heaven, and the saints will not do it... Now many people in Chang'an City are clamoring, saying that God has the virtue of being good at life, because our army tortured and killed prisoners. This led to the wrath of the heavens, which caused the sudden change in the battle that must be won, and finally fell short... What's more, some people said that it was because General Zhou tortured and killed the prisoners, so karma and the punishment of heaven made His Majesty accidentally injured and fell off the horse. Zhou General, these public opinions are very unfavorable to you."

"What?!"

Zhou Daowu was stunned as if struck by lightning, his face was pale and he was at a loss.

I was just escorting a few captives, how could it be related to the failure of the Eastern Expeditionary Army?Can His Majesty fall off the horse and blame Lao Tzu?

Dazed for a while, Zhou Daowu finally came back to his senses, and shouted, "Marshal, the last general was wronged! How can your majesty's rich body be punished by the gods because of the last general? What's more, the large number of casualties among the captives It was after winter, when the army had already withdrawn from Pingrang City, it had nothing to do with it at all!"

He understands the power of public opinion too well. There is a saying that "people can make money, accumulate and destroy bones". When everyone accuses you with one voice, it doesn't matter whether you do it or not. Deal with it to quell public grievances and eliminate public opinion.

So what if he is the prince's son-in-law?

There are countless princesses, and there are also countless concubines, which are nothing compared to the stability of the regime and the direction of public opinion...

Li Ji sighed and said: "You are under my commander, how can I not protect you? It's just that the killing of prisoners has a great impact, and it's impossible to calm it down without a trace. Why don't you go back to Chang'an immediately and see His Royal Highness the Prince to hand over military affairs , I implore the crown prince to come forward and rectify your name, so that nothing will happen."

(End of this chapter)