Northern Dynasties

The team of envoys sent by the imperial court to the south was very large, with over a thousand people. The leader was Tuoba Yu, the king of the royal family and Huai'an, followed by Lu Tong, a confidant of the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office, and Liu Min, an old friend of Li Tai. , as well as Su Chuo's younger brother Su Chun and others.

In addition to the hundreds of armored soldiers who accompanied the team, more than half of the team had officers and nobles, and most of them were inextricably linked to the generals who went on the expedition.

When the people left behind in Mianbei sent the list of envoys from the south to Li Tai in Jiangling, Li Tai tasted very rich information from the list, knowing that this time the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office was planning to start an attack with him. It is no longer a tough confrontational posture, but based on emotion and reason.

Although Li Tai was far away in Jiangling, some key information was also obtained through quick channels, such as the death of Director Yu Wen in Longyou.

Just seeing that Yuwentai sent such a large team of envoys, he understood that after being hit by repeated changes, Yuwentai had actually lost his accurate grasp and judgment of the current situation, so he sent such a large team of envoys. The purpose of many people is to figure out where people stand and decide what kind of concessions should be made so that things can at least end amicably on the surface.

The purpose of the arrival of so many personnel is to have extensive and comprehensive contact with the soldiers on the expedition and to observe the personnel in Jiangling. If the soldiers are distracted and the situation in Jiangling is unstable, then Yuwentai will naturally not be able to tolerate and win over Li Tai by lowering his attitude. If the situation is exactly the opposite, then Yuwentai will have to make huge concessions in order to continue to maintain the Western Wei Dynasty.

The soldiers at the grassroots level did not have a deep understanding of the power struggles at the upper levels, but they couldn't help but become excited when they heard that the mission sent by the imperial court was coming south to Jiangling to reward and condolences the soldiers.

Although General Li had given them generous rewards before, who would think that the reward was too much? Since the previous expedition to Shu was mainly carried out by troops from the capital, and the final result was not very good, this expedition to Jiangling can be regarded as the first glorious achievement since the formation of the army. The imperial court sent envoys to express condolences, and it will definitely be Show something!

With this thought in mind, all the soldiers in the camp eagerly awaited the arrival of the envoy. When the envoy officially arrived, almost all of them rushed to the camp gate to watch and welcome. However, when they saw that although there were many people in the mission, there was almost no conspicuous luggage accompanying them, all the soldiers could not help but be disappointed, and each returned to the camp in depression.

Unlike the battalion soldiers who only care about the amount of gifts, the generals naturally have higher demands. When they see the high standard of the mission sent by the imperial court, they all feel that the imperial court attaches great importance to Jiangling's contribution. In their hearts, they were full of expectations for the rewards and titles they would receive based on their merits after returning to the court.

Although the rewards given by General Li were equally generous, they were just the icing on the cake for them. The reason why they put aside other calculations and followed General Li to attack Jiangling was mainly for political progress, promotion of official positions, and promotion of titles. Granting the title of wife and son, thus honoring the clan and honoring the ancestors.

"The general left the camp early in the morning to patrol the city, but has not returned yet. I have ordered you to greet the king, Duke Suide and all the envoys of the court and government here. Please enter the camp to rest first. After the general returns to the camp, we will summon the generals. I’ll host a banquet in honor of you all.”

Although the size of the mission was not small, in front of the Chinese army camp, only Pei Hong, who had joined the army, and other camp commanders were there to greet them. As for General Li and other important generals of the Jingzhou military government, they were all missing.

After hearing this, the envoys looked at each other. Although they had not seen the rightful owner yet, they had already felt the pressure. After their group left Wuguan, almost all their itineraries were exposed under the nose of Jingzhou Military Mansion. If General Li planned to treat him with courtesy, why didn't he arrange his military itinerary in advance?

King Tuobayu of Huai'an was selected as the envoy for this trip to the south because of his status as a nobleman of the clan and his in-law relationship with the Li family in Longxi. Of course, he knew what the situation was and would not care too much about his personal feelings. After hearing the words, he nodded obediently and said: "The Duke of Taiyuan is here, and he has worked hard and achieved great results. I have been ordered to go as an envoy to condolences the meritorious servicemen. The matter is not important. Naturally, I cannot interfere with the military affairs willfully. Please invite Pei to join the army to lead the way."

However, after he finished speaking, Lu Tong, who followed closely behind, spoke again: "It is indeed hard work for your Majesty to arrange the itinerary and take care of everything. It is just right to go to the camp to rest for a while before issuing the edict. I still have a humble position. I have enough energy left, and I sincerely admire Duke Taiyuan for his great achievements. Now that he has arrived at the gate of Jiangling City, he is already impatient to enter the city and take a look!"

After saying this, Lu Tong stepped sideways and left the team, and some other attachés also made similar statements, hoping to go to Jiangling City to visit and appreciate it before entering the camp.

Hearing these different voices, Pei Hong knew that they were probably worried that they would be restricted once they entered the camp and would no longer have extensive contact with people here.

He had already received the order from the general, so he said with a smile: "In front of Jiangling is the capital of a country. It is a place where the country has never visited. Since it is here, it is human nature to be curious. However, now that Jiangling has been decided, there are still hidden stubbornness inside and outside the city. Thief, Li Hou, the former general’s brother, was attacked in the city and had a near-miss. You are all distinguished guests from afar, so it would be disrespectful to interfere, but you must be careful when entering and leaving!"

After hearing this, everyone showed a somewhat unnatural expression on their faces. Lu Tong smiled and said: "I have been working with the Taiyuan public for many years, and I know that his actions are always thorough and proper. If other members of the town are here, they will inevitably have such worries. But now Taiyuan Gong is here, so there is no need to worry about this!" Even though he said this, he no longer mentioned the matter of entering the city to inspect, but looked at the welcoming generals and said with a smile: "I said goodbye to Weinan a few days ago. The scene is still before our eyes. See you again today. You have become heroes of the country who are powerful in neighboring countries! If you are not abandoned, please describe in detail the beginning and end of your achievements, so as to comfort some of you who regret not taking part in this matter."

The generals knew that Lu Tong was an important staff member of the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office and a confidant of Grand Master Yuwen. Seeing that his expressions were so humble and courteous, they all felt proud. They said they must be sure, and then they enthusiastically welcomed everyone into the camp. .

After entering the camp, Pei Hong did not order the camp soldiers to restrict the freedom of the people coming from the south. They could interact and talk with the soldiers in the camp as much as they wanted. Even some people who were eager to see their relatives made requests, even if their relatives Even if they are not in this camp, they will soon be called here.

Seeing this, Lu Tong and others secretly breathed a sigh of relief. They felt that their worries before entering the camp were a bit petty. If General Li really wanted to embarrass them, they would probably not be able to go smoothly. Arrive at Gangneung.

But this is no wonder for them. After all, in the game between the Zhongwai Mansion and the Jingzhou Military Mansion, the Chinese Foreign Mansion is now completely passive due to successive changes. Even King Yuwen was already a little helpless. They had no good solution. The only thing they could do was to be careful and try their best.

Although they were not restricted from removing the people here, the information they obtained through communication made them unhappy. Of course, if you stand from the standpoint of the imperial court, then the various developments here will make people happy, but if you stand from the standpoint of the Chinese and foreign government, it becomes not so wonderful.

"Mr. Taiyuan is indeed a genius. He has firmly controlled the situation in Jiangling in such a short period of time. No wonder he dares to directly seize the situation... In the eyes of the people in Jingzhou, the previous personnel arrangements of the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office may really be just chaos."

After having a preliminary understanding of the situation here, Lu Tong couldn't help but sigh.

Although he is Yu Wentai's confidant and now serves as the director of the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Bureau, he did not have much say in the personnel planning for Jiangling. When it comes to seniority, ministry, and relationship with Yu Wentai, Changsun Jian is no worse than him. As a result, he was ostracized because of his slightly ambiguous attitude on this issue.

In this matter, Yu Wentai lost his previous magnanimity in making decisions and taking all sides into account, and instead became a little paranoid under the instigation of his relatives, so that the situation became so passive.

Originally, from the perspective of the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office, Lu Tong felt that Li Boshan was too unruly. Even if the fate of Shangfeng was not in line with his wishes, couldn't he communicate and persuade him and insist on being so radical? But when he came to Jiangling and learned about the development of the situation, he couldn't help but secretly feel that the people in the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Bureau were indeed a little bit behind-the-scenes about the situation in the southeast.

Even before leaving for the south, Yu Wentai seriously told Lu Tong to carefully check whether there were any personnel disputes and unstable factors that could be exploited after entering the country. But after having a preliminary understanding of the situation here, Lu Tong felt that their Zhongwai Mansion seemed to have become an evil force that hindered the further development of the country!

Lu Tong was not the only one who had a lot of feelings, other people who came here were also shocked after learning about the situation here. They originally thought that Jiangling would only be in chaos at best, but they didn't expect that order here was so good.

In the evening, Li Tai returned to the camp, but he was not in a hurry to meet these people from Guanzhong. Even if you see many things with your own eyes, it takes a process to fully accept them.

The game between him and the Chinese and foreign government is far from over, and Jiangling's current stable situation is also an important bargaining chip for him.

Previously, the army came south to Rangcheng without entering, which has proved that the idea of ​​using Guanzhong soldiers to attack the Miobei area where their assets are concentrated is unrealistic. Even if Yu Wentai can mobilize his old soldiers in Beizhen and rush out of Wuguan, Jiangling is now qualified to become Li Taixin's army base.

The more chips you have, the greater your voice will naturally be. The longer this issue lingers, the greater the loss to Yuwentai's prestige. At the moment, Li Tai has plenty of time to wait for the Chinese Foreign Ministry to take the initiative to offer a price that satisfies him. He has already taken care of Xinhe Liansheng!