Da Wei Chun

Chapter 677

Liu Fang was speechless, and it took a long time before he sighed sadly: "It is said in the secret memorial of the Yuan Dynasty that there has been no food and grass in Dunhuang for a long time. Therefore, Li Song, the general of the town, ordered several times to save food, even at the expense of horse feed, Wild vegetables are used as food for soldiers...

Also known as Uncle Xiao (Cui Guang) once discussed with him, saying that Li Chengzhi has only been in the dark for more than five years since he rebelled against his will.However, Hexi has been deserted for a long time and the land is barren. Even if Li Chengzhi worked hard to manage it, how many grain fields and grass can he cultivate in just five years?

What's more, because of their eagerness for quick success and quick profit, they wanted to swallow elephants with snakes. In just five years, Xihai people had nearly 400 million people (70 households, three generations per household, about six people), and more than [-] soldiers...

For such a gigantic creature, the cost of food and grass is incalculable. Whether it is the Empress Dowager, Gao Zhao, or I and Sikong (You Zhao), we all believe that the food and grass in the West Sea must be unsustainable...

However, looking at it today, the folks repairing the city wall actually provide three meals a day, and there is no sign of food and grass running out, so the old man is puzzled: why is there enough food and grass in the West Sea? "

After a short pause, Liu Fang said again: "The first thing...the second is that even if Li Chengzhi went all out with military force, the number of people who could be conquered from the West Sea would never exceed [-]. The number of troops has exceeded [-]. Based on this calculation, Hexi and Zhenyi must be empty.

Before, they were forced to do nothing and had to fight with their backs, so the army did what they could.But now that the army has been suspended, if it is common sense, Li Chengzhi will definitely withdraw part of the army to protect him.

However, it has been nearly a month, and there has been no sign of withdrawing troops, regardless of whether they are fertile or thin.What's more, Li Liang actually gave Qingshui to build the city and garrison fields, clearly regarded Longxi as something in his pocket, and never retreated half a step.So the old man is puzzled, why Li Chengzhi is not afraid that the court will take advantage of the emptiness inside him, highlight the strange soldiers, and attack his heart?What's more, Xihai's military strength is far more than [-]? "

Liu Fang couldn't figure it out, so how could Yuan Yuan figure it out?
But at least he knew that, according to what Liu Fang said, the peace talks would probably end in anticlimactic conditions.

The court's reliance is nothing more than the conclusion that Li Chengzhi has no food and grass and insufficient troops.Therefore, we must push the boat along the water and strike with the imperial court.

In this way, the imperial court can take back Longxi with great profits, and stick to the natural danger of the great river.It is also possible to test out the reality of the West Sea, and then plan, or attack or defend.

But now it seems that Li Chengzhi has no shortage of soldiers, let alone food.Liu Fang wanted to find a loophole, but she couldn't say anything, so where did she start?
After thinking for a long time, Yuan Yuan could only comfort in a gentle voice: "It's hard to guarantee that it wasn't Li Chengzhi who had expected it a long time ago, so he bluffed and tried to cover up the plan..."

Liu Fang shook her head and said nothing more.

It doesn't matter how many troops there are, it's just because the imperial court has been losing consecutive battles and retreating steadily, and now it is even shrunk to the east of Longshan Mountain, and the scouts and secret agents can't even cross the river.Therefore, I don't know the military situation in the West Sea, let alone whether Huangfu Rang, Li Feng, Li Liang and others have withdrawn their troops to the West Sea after the temporary truce.

But at least Liu Fang could see that the soldiers in Xiucheng were all fat and red-faced, so there was absolutely no shortage of food in Qingshui County.

And looking at the calluses on the soldiers' hands and the frayed linen shirts on their bodies, it can be concluded that these soldiers were definitely not recruited on a temporary basis, and they must have been moving stones through the wall in Qingshui for a full month.

It can be inferred from this that at least the soldiers under Li Liang's command must not be short of food.

As a result, the imperial court's plan to make huge profits from Yi Xihai may have to be discounted a lot.Besides, what else can be used as bait to lure Li Chengzhi?

Therefore, Liu Fang was already afraid of difficulties even though he was thousands of miles away from Zhenyi.

After being silent for a long time, he sighed: "Now we can only take one step at a time. After meeting Li Chengzhi, we will adjust accordingly..."

Yuan Yuan nodded in agreement, and said in a low voice, "That's the only way, but fortunately Yuan Zhi is strong, I hope he can bear the humiliation, if forced to, I can only rely on him to turn things around..."

Liu Fang pondered for a while, then sighed heavily.Although he didn't speak, he said in his heart: Difficult!
……

Most of the missions are old and weak like Liu Fang, Gao Zhao, and Yuan Cheng.And because Liu Fang walked around to watch the flowers, he had to stop for half a day when he saw a city, so he didn't go very fast.It took ten full days to travel [-] li to Jincheng County (now Lanzhou) on the east bank of the Dahe River.

Li Chengzhi knew that Liu Fang was delaying time, and was more likely to spy on the military situation, but he didn't urge him, and let Liu Fang be like an old cow.

But after crossing the big river and reaching the border of Hexi, it took hundreds of miles to see a city.Moreover, the wilderness is vast and uninhabited. Even if Liu Fang wants to dawdle, it is no longer easy to make excuses, so he can only follow the steps.

On the day when the mission crossed the river, thousands of armored cavalry were waiting west of the ferry, guarding the mission firmly in the middle, but marching along the ancient silk road.

Asked the reason, Li Xiaoxian only said that there seemed to be a large number of Tuyuhun spirits riding around, so it was so.

That night, Yuan Zhi sneaked into Liu Fang's tent.

"Siqing, if what Admiral Naxi said is true, it must be that Fu Lianchou has responded to the Queen Mother's request and sent Jingqi to recover the Salt Lake. In this way, the completion of the Yuan Dynasty is imminent..."

Even though she was extremely hopeful in her heart, she told Liu Fang rationally: what the queen mother planned would never be so easy.

Although he doesn't understand military affairs, he understands human nature.

It is not difficult to attack east and west, but the difficult thing is that Fu Lianchou (the king of Tuyuhun) learned a lot from a fall, and would not be easily fooled.

Salt Lake was originally the land of Tuyuhun, but now it was invaded by foreign enemies. As a monarch, no matter how afraid Fu Lianchou was, he could not turn a blind eye and pretend to be deaf and dumb.

Therefore, soldiers must be sent, and lost land must also be tried to recover.

However, if it is said that as the Queen Mother wished, Jifu Lian raised avenge of humiliation and led the army to crusade against Hexi, it would be a bit taken for granted.

No matter how stupid Fu Lianchou was, he still had to think about it: nearly 20 Tuyuhun elite cavalry and [-] elite Han troops were defeated in just over ten days.How much does he need to lead to defeat such a large army?

It is clear that the Queen Mother wants to drive away tigers and devour wolves, and wants to use him as a spearman, how can Fu Lianchou get into the trap?

Liu Fang pondered for a long time, and sighed leisurely: "Zhiyuan, don't be in a hurry, and wait patiently. If you can really get your wish, Li Chengzhi will definitely respond..."

Yuan Yuan respectfully agreed, but secretly sighed inwardly.

Even if he is in a hurry, how can it help?
However, Liu Fang's speculations have messed up his mind a few days ago, and he has been restless and terrified for several days. When he closed his eyes at night, he dreamed that the Xihai army was overwhelming. Beijing.

Now when he first heard the Tuyuhun army suddenly appeared in the south of Qilian Mountain, Yuan Yuan forced himself to comfort himself, the good policy that the Queen Mother said before leaving must have been implemented, maybe he and Liu Fang will come to Zhenyi, and there will be good news.

But Liu Fang always talked about him, and Yuan Yuan's heart couldn't stop sinking.

The weight in his heart became heavier and Yuan Yuan became more irritable, but there was nothing he could do, let alone get angry at Liu Fang.

After holding back for a long time, he said anxiously: "If something cannot be done, what should I do?"

What else could it be?

Liu Fang's eyes were serious, and his tone was calm: "The so-called do your best and obey the destiny. If you fail to do what you can, it's not your fault, it's nothing more than a death and martyrdom..."

Yuan Yuan was stunned subconsciously, and after a few breaths, he was shocked again.

There is great terror between life and death, such as Yuan Cheng, how strong the first emperor was, he would not submit no matter how he suppressed him, it can be said that he would rather die than surrender.However, when the new emperor ascends the throne and the queen mother proclaims the rule, Yuan Cheng will be under two people in one dynasty, and above tens of thousands, should he be more loyal?

However, when the catastrophe was approaching, he was uncharacteristically greedy for life and afraid of death?

As Gao Zhao said, Yuan Cheng in the time of the first emperor had nothing to retreat, nothing to lose, only the name behind him, so he would rather bend than bend.But now that Yuan Chenggui is on the stage, he is the top of his ministers, he can enjoy endless glory and wealth, how can he give up so easily to die?
Compared with Yuan Cheng when he was not losing power, although Guangyang Wang's lineage is slightly inferior, it is not far behind.Moreover, Yuan Yuan is only in his thirties, and when he is full of ambitions and shows his ambitions, he is even more unwilling to die.

Feeling terrified in his heart, Yuan Yuan was actually sweating profusely for just a moment.

"Zhiyuan... Zhiyuan?"

Liu Fang called several times before he woke up suddenly, collected his mind, pretended to be calm and said: "After running around for a day, the minister of the temple must be exhausted, and the night is late, please rest early!"

"Alright!"

Liu Fang replied, got up again and sent him out of the tent.

It is the time when the willows are on the moon.Yuan Yuan dragged a long shadow, seeming extremely desolate.

Liu Fang looked up at the sky, with mixed feelings in her heart.

He has been ups and downs in his official career, and he has spent half his life in honor and disgrace, how can he look down on Yuan Yuan's timidity?

First there was Yuan Cheng, then there was Yuan Yuan, and even the clan was like this. It can be seen that the hearts of the people are fluctuating?

That's all, just like what I said just now, it's nothing more than doing my best and obeying the destiny!

Liu Fang sighed sadly, and went back to the tent...

……

Just like that, we only stopped in Wuwei and Zhangye for one night each, and there was no delay in the middle.Although the speed is not fast, but it takes twelve hours a day, so it doesn't take much time.

On the eighth day after crossing the river, we arrived at Biaoshi County.

Thousands of soldiers greeted at the foot of the city, only to see banners and flags everywhere, and the cold light flickered.Knowing that there are living people in front of him, but all of them are like sculptures, motionless.There was silence all around, and there was no sound except for the rustling of flags and flagpoles.

Although Liu Fang has never commanded troops and horses, she has seen many military formations that accompanied Yuan Hong and Yuan Ke to review, and they were all elites.

It's like a feather forest, like a tiger's ben, and even more like a tiger ride, but Liu Fang always feels that it seems to be worse than before.

While feeling emotional, several riders came up to greet him, and Yuan Yuan reminded in a low voice: "Siqing, the person here is Yuan Guanglucheng, since Li Chengzhi is from his father Li Shiliang..."

"Guang Lucheng, Li Shiliang?"

Liu Fang squinted her eyes, trying to take a closer look.However, his old eyes are dim, but he can't see clearly.

He asked suspiciously: "Could it be that he is the father of Li Xiaoxian, Taile Chancellor of Taichang Temple? How do I remember that he died violently in Beijing three years ago, and Li Chengxian even wrote a letter to bury him back to Jingzhou in violation of the regulations, but was reprimanded by the queen mother?" , the old man who killed me, this Shangguan, also suffered a meal..."

Yang Shu snorted: "Even Li Chengzhi can feign death to escape, and it's not surprising that there is one more Li Shiliang!"

Liu Fang was taken aback, with a strange look on his face.

The so-called groundless rumors are not necessarily without reason.

It was Gao Zhao who was ambitious, bewitched the queen mother with sweet words, and cleverly used tricks to persuade Yuanying and Yuanying, so that he secretly swayed Li Chengzhi from top to bottom.

If Li Chengzhi was wronged, he would be joking.I don't see that when he didn't have an official position, he had already planned for a rainy day, so that all the old Baijia troops were hidden in the West Sea.

As soon as Fang gained power, at the beginning of leading the army to go abroad, Li Daitao stiffened and sent his relatives to Xihai to control the overall situation.

But now the city is full of wind and rain, and the world says that Li Chengzhi was forced to helpless, so he raised his troops angrily.Instead, it was all the fault of the queen mother and the court?

It is absolutely impossible to say that there is no handwriting by Li Chengzhi.I just don't know, is someone spreading rumors for him in Beijing, or someone in the court is fishing in troubled waters and fueling the flames?
Thinking to herself, Liu Fang raised her head and looked at the few riders approaching.When he was still ten feet away, Li Shiliang got off his horse and took a few steps forward.

Seeing Liu Fang sitting on the horse, standing still, Li Shiliang thought to himself that it was true.

Before leaving, Li Chengzhi gave him some advice, saying that the Yuan and Wei dynasties are now in Pingyang, and the sun is declining.But even if you ask someone for it, you will definitely assume the attitude of a donkey who will not fall down.

You don't need to care about it, just be respectful and treat me like Xihai has the way of hospitality...

Thinking secretly, Li Shiliang bowed to Liu Fang: "Welcome Siqing!"

The etiquette is quite enough, and the attitude is respectful, but the greeting is nondescript and vague.

If Li Chengzhi has established a country and proclaimed himself king, Li Shiliang should have called Liu Fang an "angel", if not, at least he should have called him a "shangshi".If he is called an official, it shows that Li Chengzhi has not torn the last bit of shame, and still regards himself as a courtier of the Great Wei.

But the strange thing is that Li Shiliang is not called "Chen" or "Xiaguan", which is a bit intriguing.

Liu Fang smacked secretly, not daring to make any progress, and motioned to her attendants to help him off the horse, and bowed from a distance: "May I ask the envoy's name, and what is his official position?"

Li Shiliang was stunned.

Is Liu Fang pretending to be confused?
Guanglu Temple handles court meetings, palace banquets, wine and delicacies, and also handles sacrificial matters, and has frequent exchanges with the emperor's temple and etiquette.

Although the rank of Guanglu Cheng is not high, he is the directly subordinate officer of Guangluqing and Shaoqing, and Li Shiliang is also in charge of Qingzhang, which is in charge of ice affairs. It can be said that there are many humble things, and most of them are related to Taichang.So when I was in Beijing, not to mention seeing each other once a day, at least in three to five days, I could still see Liu Fang for the last time.

What's more, Li Xiaoxian is still working too often, and Li Shiliang will bring his son to visit Liu Fang from time to time, how could Liu Fang not remember him?
Not to mention that Yang Shu and Yuan Yuan are on the left and right, even if he is too old to recognize himself, could they be blind too?
Maybe there is something waiting for me.

Although with Liu Fang's temperament, he would not humiliate him under the eyes of the public, Li Shiliang still kept his mind on it.

He smiled loudly, and cupped his hands again: "No one is worth mentioning. I think the nobles of the temple forget things, so let's not mention them..."

As Li Shiliang said, he pointed forward again, "Traveling thousands of miles, the hardships can be imagined... I have prepared hot soup, water and wine in the city. If you don't give up, you can go to the city to rest for a while, and then go to Zhenyi tomorrow. It's not too late!"

Seeing that he didn't respond positively, Liu Fang was a little disappointed.

(End of this chapter)