Dahan first prince

Chapter 407 Pingyang Houshen, about to die

In Longcheng, when Shanyu Maodun was discussing the strategic plan with his son Tongjiji porridge, "I will fight the Yue clan with King Youxian, and you will fight the Han people", Chang'an, thousands of miles away, Now, the emperor Liu Ying is also working with the ministers of the DPRK and China to make a seemingly aimless strategic plan.

——As for the fact that the Xiongnu soldiers were divided into two groups, the right wise king attacked the Yue family, and the left wise king went south to invade, the Han monarchs and ministers naturally knew nothing;
After all, no matter what, the only eyeliner of the Han family in the grassland: King Donghu, or the "Marquis of Chang'an" family, is not purely undercover in essence, but more like a double agent, taking both sides.

On the side of the Han Dynasty, the 'Marquis of Chang'an' family would naturally reveal the internal news of the Xiongnu;
Such as customs~
Situation~
general terrain, etc.;

But it is difficult for this 'rebel' to disclose the military mobilization of the Huns in advance.

——Tuan Maodun, I'm not a fool~
Like the Han's family, Mao Dun knew very well in his heart: this Lu's family just wants to step on two boats.

On the Han side, he wore the hat of "the Marquis of Chang'an went deep into the enemy's rear to investigate the news of the northern barbarians", while on the Xiongnu, he wore the mask of "the king of Donghu pretended to return to the Han, but actually spied on the south of the Great Wall".

Therefore, his attitude towards this family is exactly the same as that of the Han Dynasty.

——As much as you are willing to say, you can tell me as much;
You say a little, I earn a little;
The more you talk, the more I earn.

As for the opposite side, you can bring some news to the past, and I can occasionally reveal false news to you to trick the other side into moving;
But the important military transfer on my side, sorry, it is impossible for me to let you know.

That is to say, the Marquis of Chang'an/King of Donghu are well-known double-faced spies for both Han and Hungarians;

Or it is more appropriate to say that it is an 'intelligence transaction intermediary'.

When necessary, both parties can deceive each other with false information, or intimidate the other party with true information;
But in any case, neither side will disclose important information about themselves through this channel.

And at this moment, the strategic plan being carried out by the monarchs and ministers of the Han family is not because they knew the movements of the Huns in advance;
It was an accidental transfer of personnel that caught Liu Ying's attention...

"I would also like to ask Marquis An Guo to explain in detail: So how is Meng Shu guarding Yunzhong?"

Above the imperial steps, the emperor Liu Ying asked in a deep voice, and below the imperial steps, the Neishi Royal Tomb rose up.

"Your Majesty."

First bowed to Liu Ying, and then bowed to the rest of the people in the hall: "Success, gentlemen."

"—Meng Shu, the guardian of Yunzhong, was originally the disciple of Zhang Ao, the former king of Zhao and now the Marquis of Xuanping;"

"In the seventh year of Emperor Taizu Gao, the case of Guan Gao occurred. Zhao Wang Zhang Ao recalled Chang'an for Emperor Gao of Taizu for some reason, and wanted to punish him with 'conspiracy';"

"It is also clearly decreed: Anyone who has a Zhao person who dares to go to Chang'an with Zhao Wang will be from the Yi tribe!"

"Even so, there are still more than a dozen of King Zhao's disciples who are willing to be imprisoned and shaved, calling themselves 'Slaves of King Zhao' and coming to Chang'an, willing to die with King Zhao."

In the middle of the sentence, a look of admiration could not help but appear on Wang Ling's face;
At the same time, a little admiration quietly appeared on the faces of the officials in the palace.

"After the Gao case was passed, Zhao Wang was released, and he was demoted to Xuanpinghou for Emperor Gao of Taizu;"

"And go to Chang'an together, willing to die with King Zhao. Only a dozen or so disciples will be summoned by Emperor Taizu Gao, and each will be appointed as the two thousand stones of the county according to his ability."

"Among them, Uncle Tian is the guardian of Hanzhong, and Meng Shu is the guardian of Yunzhong..."

As Wang Ling's words fell, there was a burst of praise in the huge proclamation hall.

On the imperial steps, Liu Ying only took a deep breath and thought secretly when she saw the admiration of everyone in the hall.

Speaking of this matter, it can be regarded as a good talk in the reign of Emperor Taizu Gao.

——The Guangao case is actually about the treason case that led to Zhang Ao being demoted from "King of Zhao" to "Marquis of Xuanping".

According to the folk version, or the version circulated inside and outside the court, it is said that in the seventh year of Emperor Taizu Gao, Taizu Liu Bang went out to suppress the rebellion and passed through Zhao Guo.

The father-in-law, Mount Tai, is also the emperor and the founding king passing by his feudal state. Zhao Wang Zhang Ao is naturally respectful and serves Liu Bang comfortably;

But Liu Bang seemed to be ignorant of good and evil, and he would scold and even beat Zhang Ao at every turn!
Seeing his king being humiliated in this way, Zhang Ao's courtiers and retainers were naturally furious, and they didn't dare to attack in person, so they could only find Zhang Ao in private.

The leaders are Zhao Guo's left and right ministers: Zhao Wu and Guan Gao.

After finding Zhang Ao, Zhao Wu, Guan Gao and Zhang Ao said: "The king treats 'him' very respectfully, but 'he' treats the king very unreasonably. Why does the king have to be patient?"

If the king is willing, we are willing to kill 'him' for the king!
Hearing this, Zhang Ao replied in shock: "What you said, sir, is absolutely wrong!"
Thanks to Your Majesty, the former king was destroyed, and it was restored, so that the kindness can be passed on to future generations. All this is His Majesty's gift!

Now, I have married Princess Lu Yuan and become His Majesty's son-in-law. Do I want to kill my father-in-law Taishan because of such a trivial matter?

Gentlemen, please stop talking.

Seeing Zhang Ao's reaction like this, Zhao Wu and Guan Gao decided to give up, but they got together again after leaving Zhao Palace.

Zhao Wu and Guan Gao discussed: Your Majesty is too weak and too kind, and he refuses to betray morality. This is the quality of a loyal elder;

But as the saying goes, "the emperor humiliates the minister and dies" - the king has been insulted, we as the courtiers can't ignore it, we should kill your majesty!
If it succeeds, let the king be the emperor, if it fails, it has nothing to do with the king, and we will bear the consequences ourselves.

In this way, Zhao Wu and Guan Gao, who were supposed to monitor Zhao Wang Zhang Ao for the court, unanimously decided: Assassinate the emperor and establish Zhao Wang!
But it didn't take long for the conspiracy of the two to be reported by Guan Gao's enemies. Before the plan of "assassinating Liu Bang" could be implemented, it became known.

Upon hearing the news, Taizu Liu Bang was furious, and immediately ordered that all those involved in the rebellion be escorted back to Beijing together with King Zhao and Zhang Ao.

After arriving in Chang'an, Zhao Wu, Guan Gao and the others refused to let go of their mouths, and finally took Zhao Wang Zhang Ao out of this "Guan Gao case".

Of course, this is the version circulated outside.

But as the emperor, what Liu Ying knew was another version that was more realistic and more in line with the interests of the Han Dynasty.

Today, the "Uncle Meng" mentioned by Liu Ying at the court meeting was at that time, after Liu Bang ordered that "anyone who dares to enter Chang'an with Zhang Ao will die with a single household registration book", he still insisted on following Zhang Ao to Chang'an, willing to One of the dozen or so disciples who lived and died with Zhang Ao.

Let's not mention the real internal reasons of the Guan Gao case, nor whether the former Zhao Wang Zhang Ao is really suspected of treason;
In the course of this case of "Guan Gao Assassination", the only thing that does not need to be suspected is the dozen or so disciples who are willing to come to Chang'an with Zhang Ao.

In the end, Taizu Liu Bang was also happy to have more than a dozen "loyal men" serving the country, so according to the talents of these dozen people, they were divided into various parts of the world to serve as county guards and county captains.

——Of course, it also somewhat implies "separate them and keep them away from Zhang Ao" in it.

And Meng Shu and Tian Shu are the best among the dozen or so people.

The reason why these two people are said to be the best among the dozen or so "loyal men" is not only because it was their proposal to go to Chang'an with Zhang Ao;

It is also because of the talents of these two people.

Uncle Tian, ​​the guardian of Hanzhong, is still a "loyal elder" admired by the court in Chang'an. There are many circles inside and outside the court, but there is not even one person who speaks ill of Uncle Tian around Liu Ying!

Compared with Uncle Tian who is very popular and virtuous, Meng Shu, the guardian of the cloud, is another extreme.

——Meng Shu, the guardian of the cloud, is equally popular, and also has impeccable virtues, but compared to Uncle Tian, ​​he has one more "soldier talent";
Meng Shu is very good at commanding soldiers!
Unlike today's Han Dynasty, and even most generals in history either maintained the army with friendship or regulated the army with strict laws, Meng Shu governed the army with the word "benevolence".

And the word "benevolence" is also the reason why Meng Shu, the former cloud guard, has become the current "Gu Yun Zhongshou Meng Shu"...
"Meng Shu is the guardian of Yunzhong, so why did Emperor Gao give it up?"

Liu Ying asked again, and the courtiers and officials who had just praised Meng Shu suddenly quieted down strangely;
After a while, Wang Ling stood up again and bowed to Liu Ying.

"In the tenth year of Emperor Taizu Gao, the prime minister Chen Xi turned against Dai and Zhao;"

"Although the Xiongnu did not overwhelm the territory with a large army, small groups of various tribes in the south of the curtain continued to plunder."

"At the time of Chen Xi's rebellion, Emperor Taizu Gao ordered Meng Shu: If you can't keep it strictly, you must protect the city of Yunzhong!"

"Meng Shu complied with Emperor Gao's order, and he couldn't bear to command his soldiers to fight to the death, so he ordered the gate of Yunzhong City to be strictly closed. The soldiers in the city don't need to climb the wall to fight, but only need to guard against the ladders that the barbarians climbed on the wall."

"—Unexpectedly, Meng Shu's actions were interpreted by Yunzhong as 'I can't bear the death of soldiers', so the soldiers in the city spontaneously climbed up the wall and fought to the death with the people outside the wall!"

"Three days later, there were 5000 soldiers in the capital of Yunzhong, and more than [-] people were killed in battle, and thousands of people were injured or disabled."

"Emperor Taizu Gao was furious upon hearing this and ordered Meng Shu to be dismissed..."

Telling the story of the past without any personal standpoint, Wang Ling bowed again, returned to his seat and sat down.

And above the imperial steps, the emperor Liu Ying couldn't help showing a look of distress on her brows.

Ordinarily, during the process of this matter, Meng Shu himself did not have much fault;

If there is any mistake in principle, that is, at the beginning, they failed to prevent the soldiers from climbing the wall to fight spontaneously, and then they failed to stop the soldiers in the city, but were fooled by the fighting spirit of the soldiers, and directly ordered to fight on the wall to the death!
In the eyes of outsiders, this may be a clear proof of Meng Shu's "listening and understanding", knowing how to follow the trend, and cleverly using the morale of the army to fight;

But in Liu Ying's view, Meng Shu's performance in this incident can be called a disaster...

"Righteousness does not govern wealth, compassion does not govern soldiers..."

"—even the soldiers under your command can't control it, and they are even coerced by the army into the war?"

Slandering secretly, Liu Ying couldn't help but shook her head, completely denying Meng Shu's ability to 'manage soldiers'.

As a visitor from later generations, Liu Ying's position on the army is extremely firm: Only those who take obeying orders as their bounden duty can be called 'army'!
Conversely, those who don't even understand "obey orders and obey commands" cannot be counted as troops at all;

At best, they are grass bandits and the like.

And in that incident that year, Meng Shu showed the ability of 'as long as you give me a soldier, no matter what he is, I can make him into a mob'.

Thank you, Liu Ying, for such ability...
——A total of 5000 Lieutenant Yunzhong died hundreds of battles and thousands of casualties in just three days!

Nearly one-third of the battle damage, Yunzhong City was not breached, Meng Shu has to thank the Yunzhong soldiers and civilians for their will to fight to the death and never retreat!
But what if at that time, Yunzhong City was broken?

What about the former emperor Liu Bang who suppressed the rebellion in Dai and Zhao Dai?
Continue to quell the rebellion?

Or fight another Pingcheng battle with the Huns?
So to put it bluntly: Meng Shu may have a way of winning people's hearts and boosting the morale of the army;
But the strategic vision and the overall situation can almost score zero points!
In particular, the complex strategic environment and important strategic significance of Yunzhong, a lonely city that hangs outside the Great Wall and is inserted into the grassland for hundreds of miles, does not allow Confucian generals like Meng Shu who "rule the army by benevolence" to continue to control it.

And Liu Ying's worries, and the reason why the name 'Meng Shu' was mentioned again today, are precisely here...
"—Yunzhong was established by Emperor Taizu Gao in the old Qin 'Yunzhong', and it is the military base of our Han family!"

"However, since Meng Shu was dismissed by Emperor Gao, the position of Yunzhong County Sheriff has not been appointed..."

Said a word in a deep voice, Liu Ying's complexion also faintly brought a little gloom.

"Yunzhong is hundreds of miles away from the wall, hanging alone outside the Great Wall; as soon as the Hu barbarians approached the city, they immediately fell into siege, and there was no foreign aid."

"With such an important place, there has been no county guard for a long time. I'm afraid that if Beiman finds out, the Yunzhong City will be destroyed soon."

"That's why today's court meeting, I want to ask all the gentlemen, is Yunzhong guarding the post, is there any worthy choice?"

When today's question was raised, Liu Ying's face was sullen, and her eyes swept across the officials in the hall in sequence.

And when Wang Ling struggled again and again, and finally had no choice but to stand up again, Liu Ying's heart finally fell to the bottom.

"His Majesty."

"The reason why Yunzhong guards the position and has been idle until now is not the Emperor Gao, the Empress Dowager, or ministers, etc., who don't know what Yunzhong wants."

"——It is really the key in the cloud, and it cannot be settled by the ministers of the Zhu Kingdom..."

"According to my opinion, there may not be such a minister of the "Pillar Kingdom" in the court today..."

Hearing Wang Ling's unexpected explanation, Liu Ying couldn't help but take a deep breath, and her face was a little irritable.

It was also at this moment that a high-pitched cry came from outside the Xuanshi hall.

"Qi Zou Your Majesty~"

"The Imperial Physician's Order: Prime Minister Pingyang Hou Shen, lying on the couch in critical condition, is about to die..."

While being depressed, hearing this long call sign, even though she had been mentally prepared for it, Liu Ying's face couldn't help but sink completely...
(End of this chapter)