Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 3987 Premeditated retreat

The cloud is like lead, the river is rushing, and the "Xuanjia cavalry" with black helmets and black armor on the other side of the Bashui River stands solemnly, motionless like a forest.This army is His Majesty Li Er's imperial guards. They have been guarding His Majesty Li Er since the beginning of the Eastern Expedition. Since the withdrawal from Liaodong, they have been guarding the "comatose" His Majesty Li Er. Except for Li Ji, no one is allowed to see him... …

However, after traveling thousands of miles all the way, how could the coffins hidden under the tents and luggage pulled by horse-drawn carts, and the act of consuming a lot of saltpeter to make ice along the way, be able to hide the truth from many eyes and ears in the army?

Zhang Liang stared at the "Xuanjia Iron Cavalry" for a long time before withdrawing his gaze. He leaned against Li Ji and said in a low voice, "What exactly does the commander want to do?"

Anyone who has fought against Li Ji knows that he has a very distinctive personality and strong principles. He can clearly distinguish what should be done and what should not be done, and will never trample on his bottom line because of temporary interests.So no one believed that Li Jihui would send troops to attack Chang'an and depose the prince.

It is precisely because of this that Cheng Mingzhen, Zhang Liang and others will honestly wait for the military order all the way until this time...

However, at the last moment, Li Ji still refused to show his hole cards, which was unbearable—even if everyone was willing to follow you unconditionally, he couldn't lead everyone to rebel in a daze, right?
If you have a "legacy", you should take it out and tell everyone your majesty's last wish. As a subject, you should do your best to fulfill it; What's the matter with being so mysterious and secretive, keeping everyone in the dark?
Li Ji sat steadily on the horseback, the drizzle fell on the pocket and condensed into a stream, flowing down the neck guard and iron armor, his handsome face was calm, his eyes did not waver, and he said calmly: "I am the commander-in-chief. Doing things according to orders, why do you need to explain to anyone? You only need to know how to do things according to orders."

Zhang Liang was taken aback when he heard the words, then looked back at the "Xuanjia Iron Cavalry" on the other side of the river, and said with a wry smile: "Why should the commander-in-chief still keep such secrets at this time and place? Well, since the commander-in-chief keeps saying that he is acting according to the emperor's orders, then I dare you Let me ask you, where is the emperor's order, can we see it?"

The reason for his actions is very obvious: there is no impenetrable wall, we already know about His Majesty's death, otherwise why would you carry the coffin with you on the march?At this time, don't hide it, open the skylight and tell the truth, don't fool people...

Li Ji's expression froze, he looked directly at Zhang Liang, and said slowly: "Are you questioning the military order and thinking that the commander-in-chief is falsely passing on the order?"

Zhang Liang cupped his fists and said, "I dare not."

Li Jing stared at Zhang Liang for a while, then said coldly: "We are ministers, how can we be disrespectful to the king? Today, the commander-in-chief does not care about you, but there is no need to ask more questions about this matter, just obey orders."

Zhang Liang was stunned by his sharp eyes, and felt that something was wrong, he hurriedly said: "I don't dare, but the crown prince is Zhengshuo of the Empire, and now he is going out of the city to 'welcome the holy driver', we should go to Baqiao Waiting for you, how can you send troops forward like this, facing each other? This is disrespectful."

Although the rites have collapsed since the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the Sui and Tang dynasties unified the world, and both the government and the opposition vigorously restored the ritual system, and the ritual law was gradually restored and rigorous.The emperor collapsed in the wild, and since he came out to greet the prince and returned, although it is not possible for the prince to welcome him wherever the emperor collapses, he must at least go out of the city for a hundred miles to "kneel and greet" to show loyalty and filial piety, otherwise it is extremely Big faux pas.

The reason why the prince insisted on going out of the city to "welcome the holy driver" is precisely because of this. Everyone knows that His Majesty Li Er has passed away. If Li Ji has no intention of rebelling against him, he should wait for the prince at Baqiao and hand over his majesty's coffin. His Majesty Li Er passed away. Instead of announcing the details and asking the crown prince to go to Baqiao to welcome back the crown prince, Li Ji transported his majesty's coffin to Chang'an to meet the crown prince. This is to put the crown prince in a disrespectful place. He is disloyal and filial. What he did forced the prince to go to war...

Li Ji looked cold, unmoved, and said in a deep voice: "I will say it again, you only need to follow orders, you don't need to say too much, let alone question my military order, otherwise you will be dealt with by military law."

Although both he and Zhang Liang were ministers of Zhenguan and had fought side by side in those years, they have always been unfavorable to him and disliked his slippery personality, so they just warned him and didn't explain a word, hoping that Zhang Liang would not Be smart, otherwise you will be punished by military law.

Zhang Liang was startled, and hurriedly said: "Don't worry, the commander-in-chief, he will act according to the order, and dare not make mistakes."

Li Ji gave a "hmm" and said lightly: "You can do it yourself, don't make mistakes."

……

Cheng Mingzhen was commanding the army to assemble and press forward, putting pressure on the right Hou Wei. When he turned his head, he saw Zhang Liang riding from a distance, and when he arrived at the front, the two rode side by side. Surrounded by gold and iron horses, swords and guns, groups of soldiers slowly Pressing towards the Youhouwei camp, the momentum is desolate, and the sword is on the verge of breaking out.

Cheng Mingzhen watched the reaction of the Youhouwei camp, and asked in a low voice, "How does the commander-in-chief say this?"

Zhang Liang looked around, smiled wryly and said in a low voice: "The words were extremely strict, and the intention was not revealed at all. I was going to threaten to lead the army to retreat, but I was warned by the commander in military law... I feel something is wrong. .”

Cheng Mingzhen frowned and said, "What's wrong?"

Zhang Liang hesitated, and said slowly: "I can't say it, but this matter is definitely not the style of the British government. Having said that, if he really ordered us to attack the prince's guard of honor, what should we do?"

Now the Eastern Expedition Army seems to be dormant under Li Ji's despotic power, and everyone dares not speak out, but in fact almost all the troops have different ideas, and the situation is chaotic.Zhang Liang must find a firm ally in such a chaotic situation, preferably the East Palace...

Cheng Mingzhen didn't think too much, heard the words without hesitation, and said decisively: "It is absolutely impossible to follow orders! The crown prince is the prince of the country, the emperor is Zhengshuo, and I mean that it is a death penalty for Liaodong to fail to protect His Majesty Zhouquan. How can I do another rebellious act?" ? Even if you die, you will not face the prince with swords, or you will be a servant!"

Zhang Liang picked out his ears and said helplessly, "You are the most loyal in the world, right? Why are you so loud..."

Looking around, seeing no one around, he felt a little relieved, and then said: "Don't worry, I will advance and retreat with you, and I will never break my promise! But in the future, if the prince pursues the various crimes of the Eastern Expedition Army, you can speak for me. It is stated that I am in Cao Ying and in the Han Dynasty, and I have not joined forces with Li Ji, and what I did was a last resort."

He knew Li Ji's temperament and style very well, coupled with his observation and estimation of the military's preparations for war, he did not think that Li Ji would go to war brazenly.But even if you don't understand what Li Ji is doing, you can still draw the inference that Li Ji will eventually surrender to the East Palace...

But it does not mean that the world will be peaceful after Li Jichen submits.

Hundreds of thousands of troops poured all their power into the eastward expedition, but they lost their troops and returned home under the city of Ping Rang. In the end, a mere navy seized the fruits of victory. Who will bear the responsibility?

His Majesty Li Er personally marched, but collapsed in the army. This is a drastic change, who will be responsible?
Undoubtedly, the person most responsible is Li Ji, and the fact that His Majesty Li Er collapsed in the army alone is enough to make him commit suicide and apologize.

But now that Li Ji has hundreds of thousands of troops in his hands, who can easily contribute to Chang'an and shake the country's foundation, who dares to let Li Ji take responsibility?However, even if Li Ji cannot be held accountable, this responsibility will not disappear out of thin air. Someone must shoulder the responsibility and give the world an explanation.

All the accompanying national-level generals in the Eastern Expedition Army may become the scapegoats that Li Ji launched to take responsibility...

The Cheng family had a close relationship with Fang Jun, and Cheng Wuting was Fang Jun's capable confidant, which made even if Li Ji chose Cheng Mingzhen as the scapegoat, Donggong would reject it.There are only a few who are qualified to act as scapegoats, and without one Cheng Mingzhen, Zhang Liang's own probability will naturally increase greatly...

Therefore, he had to plan a retreat and show his loyalty to the prince through Cheng Mingzhen, so as to ensure peace of mind in the future.

Cheng Mingzhen is straightforward, but he is not an idiot. He just turned his head and understood Zhang Liang's intentions. He said helplessly: "Now we should think about how to eliminate the possible disaster of war. Why should we care about our personal honor and disgrace? It's not a despicable person, you don't need to worry about it."

Zhang Liang was noncommittal, anyway, if he expressed his meaning, Cheng Mingzhen would always pass it on to the prince, even if it was an extra insurance.

Now he is under Li Ji's command and has colluded with Guan Long in private. If he expresses his loyalty to the prince and gets the prince's acceptance, no matter what the final situation is, he himself will be as stable as Mount Tai and will not be involved in the power struggle. be guaranteed...

He raised his finger and pointed to the direction of the right Houwei in the west, and said: "Look, the right Houwei has moved!"

Cheng Mingzhen looked intently, and saw the Eastern Expedition army slowly moving forward, countless soldiers lined up neatly in the field, advancing like a wall, putting great pressure on You Houwei.The array on the side of Youhouwei, which had been standing still, finally loosened, and began to be forced to march westward under pressure.

Facing the direction the prince is coming...

……

Youhou Wei didn't want to move, but he had to.

Yu Chigong rode on the horse, waving his whip resentfully, and cursed: "Li Ji is too deceitful! If you want to be a traitor, you can do it yourself. Why force me to be your pawn? It's insidious and vicious, I'm not a son of man! "

But scolding and scolding, in the face of the menacing Eastern Expeditionary Army, they had to quickly order to move west, otherwise, when the Eastern Expeditionary Army and the troops under its command come into contact, who knows if there will be an unexpected scuffle!

Yuwen Shiji put on an ordinary military uniform and rode beside him, his eyebrows were deeply frowned and it was difficult to untie...

"Marshal Qi, I have already seen the crown prince's guard of honor in front of me, and he is coming towards him!"

The marching You Hou Wei suddenly became nervous, everyone looked towards the direction of the central army, waiting for Yu Chigong's military order - should they stop on the spot or continue to move forward?
(End of this chapter)