Qian Song

Chapter 153 Tong Guan: Chief Governor, You Unscrupulous (Please ask for a monthly ticket!)

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After Tong Guan returned to Yangzhou, he saw that the Shengjie army was on high alert, as if they were facing an enemy.

The soldiers of the Shengjie Army were the best of the elite selected from various Western armies, and they were all burly and skilled in martial arts.

At the beginning, the Shengjie Army actually had only 5000 people, and even the Zhao Song court gave Tong Guan an establishment of only 5000 people.

But Tong Guan took advantage of various opportunities and used various methods to expand the Shengjie army again and again, until it expanded to the current 5 to [-] horses.

Others thought that Tong Guanzhen was only relying on his prestige to frighten those arrogant soldiers of the Western Army, but the real situation is that Tong Guan has the largest or even the strongest army in the Western Army, which makes Tong Guan only obedient. Among the strong Western Army, one thing is true, and even the veteran general of the Western Army, Zhong Shidao, dare not confront Tong Guan head-on.

Tong Guan is not a person with two sleeves. Over the years, he has earned as much as any corrupt official by relying on empty pay.

But Tong Guan didn't spend all the money he got from Tanmo on himself.

Tong Guan is an eunuch with no heir, and has been in the army all year round, how can he spend so much money?

In fact, most of Tong Guan's money was spent in three places.

The first one is used to pay the powerful.

In the harem, Tong Guan from the concubines to the lower ones are paid with property, so Zhao Ji can hear people in the harem praising Tong Guan every day.

The second one is used to buy strong generals and talents in the Western Army.

Tong Guan has never been stingy with talents, so that even the first-class talents in the world such as Wang Chi, Yang Keshi, Zhan Du, Ma Kuo, and Yuwen Huangzhong are willing to be used by the eunuch Tong Guan.

The third is to form this victorious army.

Over the years, Tong Guan no longer knows how much money and effort he has spent in the Shengjie Army.

Moreover, Tong Guan raised a private army, bought soldiers, and bought war horses, which actually seriously exceeded Zhao Ji's edict.

For this reason, Tong Guan is often impeached.

And it's not like Zhao Ji didn't doubt Tong Guan.

Once Zhao Ji even ordered Fang Shao to investigate Tong Guan's criminal evidence.

But Fang Shao's every move was detected by Tong Guan, and then Tong Guan first went to Zhao Ji to file a complaint and framed Fang Shao, but Fang Shao was convicted and executed instead.

Since then, no one has dared to check Tongguan again.

Many of Tong Guan's cronies don't understand why Tong Guan does these thankless things?

Tong Guan has never answered those people directly. The reason why he did this is because he has a dream - to recover the sixteen prefectures of Yanyun that have been lost for more than 200 years!

Who said eunuchs can't have dreams?
Tong Guan just wants to do things that men with kindness can't do.

Otherwise, based on the merits of regaining Qingtang and defeating Xixia, he can completely sleep on the credit book, and even the history books will have his childhood pen and ink.

But how can the recovery of Qingtang and the defeat of Xixia be compared with the recovery of Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures?

After recovering Yanyun sixteen prefectures, Tong Guan will be crowned king and become the most accomplished eunuch in history!

For that day to come, Tong Guan is willing to do everything he can.

Unfortunately, just when Tong Guan was about to touch his dream, Dongnan suddenly rioted, and Fang La and Li Cun led the crowd to rise up!

This forced Tong Guan to bring the 15 elite Western Army that he had prepared for many years to recover the Sixteen States of Yanyun to Jiangnan.

original--

Tong Guan thought, it's just a group of farmers, if they are wiped out, he can still go north to recover Yanyun sixteen prefectures.

But who would have thought that it was because he didn't think highly of it before, no, it was the farmer he had already looked up to before, who actually killed half of the elite army he was going to use to recover Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures.

It’s over.

It's all over.

Tong Guan knew very well that even if he could negotiate the terms of the peace, he would lose power.

His childhood dream of recovering the sixteen prefectures of Yanyun could only be a dream in the end.

Full of unwillingness, Tong Guan looked at the Shengjie army he had built with his own hands, and remained silent for a long time.

Knowing that Tong Guan has returned, all civil and military personnel from the Xuanfu Division came out to greet him.

Seeing this, Tong Guan pointed to the vigilant soldiers of the Shengjie Army and asked all the civil and military personnel in the Xuanfu Division: "What is this for?"

Liu Kai replied: "The ant thief's navy has been mobilized frequently these days. I am worried that the ant thief will attack across the river, so I strengthened my defense."

Tong Guan waved his hand: "Tell them to withdraw."

"?"

All the civil and military personnel in the Xuanfu Division were a little puzzled, what does Tong Guan mean by this?
Tong Guan shook his head secretly.

Tong Guan misses his old partner Wang Hou more and more.

On the way back, Tong Guan even thought more than once, if Wang Hou was the one who commanded the troops across the river this time, would he not have suffered this defeat, and he would not have to retire.

in fact--

Tong Guan has always had one regret.

That is, there was no general in the Song Dynasty who could command the army.

Zhong's way of being a teacher is actually okay, but he is too stubborn, and he doesn't know how to change it at all, so it is difficult to achieve great things.

Liu Yanqing knew how to adapt, but he was too timid.

Neither Zhongshi Zhong nor Yao Gu can do it.

These people are all more than enough to defend the city and not enough to attack.

None of them are the kind of generals that Tong Guan wants to cooperate with, who can regain thousands of miles of rivers and mountains.

Sometimes, Tong Guanzhen felt that he was born at the wrong time. If he and Di Qing could live in the same era, the two of them would join hands to recover Yanyun Sixteen States.

It's a pity that there is no second Di Qing in the Song Dynasty, at least not in this period.

Maybe because he was about to lose power, Tong Guan was very sentimental today.

Tong Guan felt that it was wrong for him to act like this. Now that the current situation is turbulent, even if he retires, he may come back in the future.

After thinking about it, Tong Guan lifted his spirits, and then explained to the civil and military members of the Xuanfu Division:

"Today Li Cun is only trying to separate the provinces of Zhejiang, Zhejiang and Fujian, and to take literati under his control. It will be unstable inside. Where does the money come from, and where does the food come from? I'm afraid he has nearly a million soldiers and tens of thousands of soldiers in his hands. With a thousand big ships and tens of thousands of war horses, how can we support them with only two roads?"

"However, Li Cun's foundation is not stable. If he rashly sends troops to attack the capital, it will only cause chaos in the world. A group of thieves will rise together, which will not benefit Li Cun at all. Li Cun is so smart that he will definitely stop his troops at this time and use peace talks to win the greatest possible victory." Benefits and a chance to recuperate.”

Speaking of this, Tong Guan said very firmly: "Li Cun's boats and horses are now forced to make peace, not to fight."

When Zhu Yantong heard this, he said happily, "What the enemy fears is what I rely on. Since Bandit Li wants peace, I, Song Dynasty, can't make him do so easily."

Upon hearing this, Tong Guan thought, "Don't take this idiot with you to negotiate a peace."

Thinking of this, Tong Guan walked towards Xuan Fusi.

The others also secretly laughed at Zhu Yantong's stupidity.

Only Zhu Yantong didn't know what everyone was laughing at?
Ma Kuo, who had a good relationship with Zhu Yantong, couldn't stand it any longer. He called Zhu Yantong aside, and said to Zhu Yantong: "It's war or peace, and it's up to me, Song Dynasty."

After being reminded by Ma Kuo, Zhu Yantong also reacted.

The Song army on the northern front was wiped out by Li Cun, and the Song army on the western front did not dare to fight Li Cun. Now it is not where Li Cun wants to fight, and it is up to Song to decide whether to fight or not.

Zhu Yantong immediately blushed with embarrassment.

Zhu Yantong fully understood, yes, Li Cun wants to make peace now, but what he wants to make even more is the Song Dynasty, which can't beat Li Cun at all.

Let's put it this way, as long as Li Cun is not satisfied with the conditions set by the Song Dynasty, Li Cun can take his own troops.

However, in that case, Li Cunke would have no time to solve the serious problems and developments existing within him.

So the two sides actually have a basis for negotiation.

However, how to negotiate the terms of the peace talks will still test the political wisdom of both parties.

October eleven.

Ma Kuo crossed the river and said that Tong Guan had asked to visit Li Cun and talk about the strike between the two families.

Kang Jian, the prefect of Zhenjiang, did not dare to neglect, so he immediately sent the Clippers back to Hangzhou to ask for instructions.

——Actually, Kang Jian has a faster way, that is, to use Feinu to transmit the book, but in order to avoid being discovered by Ma Kuo about his own communication secrets, Kang Jian did not use Feinu to transmit the book.

Two days later, Kang Jian replied to Ma Kuo, and the governor agreed to see Tong Xuanfu.

Tong Guan then led a dozen people across the river and came to Zhenjiang City.

The scars all over the city of Zhenjiang showed that Liu Yanqing and the others fought fiercely.

What puzzled Tong Guan was that the people in Zhenjiang City didn't seem to have experienced the sorrow of the war. On the contrary, many people still had satisfaction and joy on their faces? !

Ma Kuo saw Tong Guan's doubts, and took the initiative to say to Tong Guan: "Li Cun robbed the land that originally belonged to the gentry and nobles, distributed it to the people who supported the Huben army, and vigorously persuaded the farmers, and exempted the people from paying taxes for a year. , so that the people of Zhejiang and Zhejiang have a bumper harvest this year, so the people are all happy."

After listening to Ma Kuo's explanation, Tong Guan realized that Li Cun's rule was not as unstable as he imagined.

This made Tong Guan's heart feel heavy again.

After Kang Jian received Tong Guan and his party, he arranged a boat to send Tong Guan and his party south.

Along the way, Tong Guan carefully observed everyone he saw, and found that most of them were positive and sunny.

This made Tong Guan realize that Zhenjiang is not an exception, but in the area ruled by Li Cun, most of the people live a stable and happy life.

After confirming this, Tong Guan, who was full of confidence before, began to lack confidence.

When Tong Guan and his party arrived in Hangzhou, they did not see Li Cun coming out to greet him in person.

—— Zhang Shi, Chen Kuutong, and He Shi, Minister of the Honglu Temple, were welcomed out.

After learning the identities of these people, Tong Guan was quite satisfied, knowing that Li Cun did not despise him, and also had a certain degree of sincerity in the peace talks.

To Tong Guan's surprise, Zhang Shi and others did not lead Tong Guan and his party to the post house in Hangzhou, but directly to the main city.

This is obviously not in line with the rules for receiving foreign guests.

If Zhang Shi and Chen Kuutong don't understand these things, Tong Guan believes that, but He Shi is a famous Confucian, how could he not understand this rule?
Tong Guan did not hide his own puzzlement.

Tong Guan said bluntly: "This doesn't seem to be the way to the post house?"

When He Shi heard this, he couldn't help laughing bitterly: "The governor of my family gave the post house to his concubine, Mrs. Chen, as an Anji square. My Honglu Temple can only work in Licao. Now I will take Tong Xuanfu and you to the big house in the city for a while. Stay here, the governor will meet Tong Xuanfu tomorrow."

Tong Guan was surprised and said, "Your family is also setting up Anji Fang?"

Zhang Shi said with a smile: "Not only Anjifang, but my family is also building a nursing home. Now there are Hangzhou, Muzhou, and Quzhou."

Tong Guan secretly said: "The Anji Square and the Nursing Home both win the hearts of the people and benefit the government, and their ambition is not small."

Not long after Tong Guan and his party lived in the mansion arranged for them by He Shi, Zhang Shi, Chen Kuutong and He Shi left.

The next morning, Tian Maung came to invite Tong Guan and his party to meet Li Cun.

To Tong Guan's surprise, Li Cun met him at home.

When Tong Guan saw Li Cun, Li Cun was holding a baby at most two or three months old in one hand, and playing chess with several young women in the other hand.

Seeing Tong Guan coming, Li Cun handed Li Biao to Fang Baihua, put down the chess piece at the same time, and said: "The guest is here, let's play later."

After speaking, Li Cun stood up and looked at Tong Guan.

Tong Guan is tall and well-dressed, with a beard under his cheeks, and his skin and bones are as hard as iron. He is not like an eunuch, but like a general.

Li Cun was very curious, why did the eunuch grow a beard: "Could it be fake?"

While Li Cun was looking at Tong Guan, Tong Guan was also looking at Li Cun.

Tong Guan would not have believed it if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes. He was defeated by such a child.

Correct.

Just children.

In the eyes of 67-year-old Tong Guan, Li Cun, who is only about 20 years old, is too young, just like a child.

But Tong Guan knew that Li Cun must not be treated as a child, because this child not only defeated him, but also held the lifeline of Song Dynasty.

Li Cun said with a smile: "I have been fighting against Tong Xuanfu for more than half a year, but this is the first time we meet. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Tong Guan also smiled and said: "The matter between the two families needs to be resolved urgently, Tong Guan came here uninvited, forgive me."

Li Cun and Tong Guan met in a very harmonious atmosphere, and the host and guest greeted each other.

Soon, Tong Guan took the initiative to say: "Commander Li, how about we talk about it?"

Li Cun said with a smile: "Xuanfu has such a taste, how can I spoil Xuanfu's interest?"

Hearing the words, Tong Guan sat down familiarly, then grabbed the chess pieces in an anti-customer manner, and said, "Great governor, let's guess the pieces."

Li Cun didn't have the same knowledge as Tong Guan, so he guessed directly.

As a result, Li Cunzhi went first.

Li Cun picked up a white chess piece and put it on the chessboard.

Seeing that Li Cun didn't seem to have any intention of speaking while playing chess, Tong Guan picked up the sunspot and played with it.

In this way, you have one son, I have one son, and the two of them probably made more than a dozen moves.

At this time, Tong Guan frowned slowly: "Who did the governor learn this chess from?"

"Self-study." Li Cun said.

Seeing that Li Cun didn't seem to want to say more, Tong Guan couldn't ask further.

The two continued to play in silence.

The lower he went, the longer Tong Guan thought about it, the deeper the wrinkles on his head became.

Slowly, Baizi became more and more powerful, while Heizi was gradually killed to pieces.

After more than half an hour, Tong Guantouzi conceded defeat: "The chief governor is superb at chess, but it's just that in order to win, it's a bit... unscrupulous."

"It's fine if you win, is the means important?" Li Cun said with a smile.

Tong Guan was startled, then shook his head: "It's not important."

A game of chess gave Tong Guan a clearer understanding of Li Cun: "In order to achieve the goal, use any means, it's not easy to deal with."

Li Cun asked: "Another game?"

Tong Guan shook his head: "I'm no match for the governor, so let me get back to business."

Li Cun nodded, and then said bluntly: "Then tell us the terms of the peace that your family has prepared."

……

……

It took me another night to finish writing. I beg my brothers to reward me with a monthly pass for my hard work!

(End of this chapter)