Jiuxi

Chapter 698 Chapter 696 [Husband and Wife Together]

January is gone, and February is here with warm spring breezes, and spring has also arrived in Jiangbei.

The courtyard at the back of the Governor's Mansion is filled with green, fresh and lively.

Wang Chulong came to the study accompanied by several maids, and then walked in alone.

Lu Chen was seen sitting at the desk with more than ten confidential letters piled on it.

His expression was very serious and a bit depressed. When he saw Wang Chulong come in, he just forced a smile.

Wang Chulong came closer, glanced at the contents of the letters, and said softly, "Husband, are you worried about the news in the capital?"

"This is a secret letter sent by Tan Zheng and Qu Zhong. It records most of the recent situation in the south. Chu Long, you have already read it."

Lu Chen put the papers with the most words on them aside, picked up a piece of letter at the bottom and said, "This is a secret letter that Su Yunqing sent me via a secret postal route."

"This is Uncle Xiao's handwritten letter."

"This belongs to Uncle Li."

"This is a letter written by Li Jingda."

"Even the Minister of Justice Gao was worried, saying that the atmosphere in the court was too fanatical and frightened him."

"This one……"

Lu Chen's eyes stayed on the bright yellow letter at the bottom, and he said expressionlessly: "This is a secret decree sent by the emperor. It just arrived. Take a look."

Wang Chulong leaned against the big case, picked up the emperor's secret decree and read it carefully. Finally, he couldn't help but sigh softly: "The emperor seems to have a sure win."

Lu Chen sneered, “Not only that, his tone this time was very gentle, and he was obviously prepared for me to refuse to lead the troops.”

Wang Chulong read the secret decree again and frowned, "My husband, the emperor has other intentions."

"What is the purpose?"

"From this secret decree, it can be seen that the emperor is trying to persuade you with both reason and emotion. In the final analysis, he wants you to be loyal to the country and is deliberately ignoring your worries and concerns. If I am not mistaken, once you refuse to lead the troops in person, this secret decree will become an open decree, and your statement will be made public."

"You want to control me from the perspective of justice?"

"He is the emperor after all, and the relationship between the emperor and his subjects is the right path today. According to the information provided in these letters, the Northern Expedition is inevitable, and a wave of public opinion is brewing in Jiangnan. As long as my husband refuses to lead the troops, you will be at the center of the storm. Of course, my husband has made great contributions to the Great Qi in recent years, and he will not fall into the situation of being criticized by thousands of people because of this matter. After all, you are acting out of caution, and it cannot be said that your selfishness is greater than justice."

Lu Chen stood up, took Wang Chulong's hand and walked to the couch to sit down, leaning against the soft pillow, and sighed softly: "Han Zhongjie is eager to make achievements and is eager to replace my position in the army. Li Zongben has a heart disease and just wants to prove that he is worthy of the expectations of the late emperor. The two of them are in power and their confidence is inflated. Coupled with the flattery of some treacherous people, they no longer take the heroes of the world seriously. Now that Jing is in civil strife, Dai has surrendered to them, which has further fueled their arrogance. In their view, defeating the Jing army and regaining their homeland is a piece of cake."

Wang Chulong asked seriously, "My husband, based on your experience, if the emperor mobilizes the Jing army and the Jingzhou army to start the northern expedition from the west, what are the chances of victory against the Jing army?"

Lu Chen pondered for a moment, shook his head and said, "There is no chance of winning."

Wang Chulong couldn't help but open her eyes slightly.

Although she absolutely believed in her husband's vision, she could not completely ignore the influence of Qi's victories in recent years. After all, Jing's army had almost never won, and she felt that Da Qi had some chance of winning.

Lu Chen patiently explained, "To be honest, the only direct confrontation between our army and the enemy was the Battle of Yongqiu, and there were too many factors involved in this battle. Not only did the late emperor and our civil and military officials work together, but there was also the struggle between the Emperor of Jing and Qing Yugong, as well as the stunning attack by my uncle in Heluo, and tens of thousands of soldiers from the capital army who traveled thousands of miles to attack from Shazhou. All these advantages were intertwined, and only then were we able to achieve the final victory."

"This battle has awakened the generals of the Jing army. Miss Li's previous predicament in the north of Jingzhou is a clear proof of this. More importantly, I never believe that Emperor Jing would cut off his own foundation. Maybe he will suppress Qing Yugong, but he will never force Qing Yugong into a desperate situation."

"It's just that... even if Xu Zuo and I explained these concerns to the people in the south, they would only believe their own judgment. Maybe Li Zongben thought that I didn't want any losses to my soldiers and was thinking of keeping the army strong for my own benefit."

"Another point is that Li Zongben, Han Zhongjie and others have been constantly testing and undermining Uncle Xiao, and have decided to exclude me from this battle. They simply want to weaken my prestige in the army, and it would be best if they could establish a new mountain to compete with me."

"hehe."

At this point, Lu Chen's brows showed a look of boredom.

Wang Chulong thought about it and said with some concern: "Husband, if that's the case, I'm afraid the emperor's secret decree has another purpose."

"You said."

"My husband strongly advised the emperor to postpone the Northern Expedition. In the end, the emperor will definitely appoint someone else as the commander of the army. If the war goes smoothly, it will be fine. But if the army on the western front falls into danger, what will my husband do then? Most of the ministers in the court will advise the emperor to let my husband lead the Dingzhou army to the west to rescue."

Lu Chen narrowed his eyes slightly and clenched his right thumb and index finger together.

Based on his understanding of the rulers and ministers of Jiangnan, Wang Chulong's prediction will definitely come true.

As the saying goes, you don't deserve the credit, but you deserve the rescue. Wang Chulong continued, "If your husband stands aside and does nothing once the western front is in danger, I'm afraid it will really hit your prestige in the hearts of the Jiangbei army and civilians. As the saying goes, people's words are like knives. Most people don't know the entanglement here. They only know that the great governor Lu, who wanted to recover his homeland, became conservative after taking power, and was indifferent when his comrades fell into the trap. In this way, your husband will have no way to defend himself."

This time Lu Chen did not think for too long, and said calmly: "If such a situation really occurs, I will still lead the troops to rescue without the calculations and coercion of those people in Jiangnan."

Wang Chulong couldn't help but be stunned.

Put yourself in their shoes. Knowing that this war was started because the emperor and his ministers were eager for glory and success, and that they were wary and suspicious of each other, and in the end you have to clean up a mess for them, I'm afraid only a saint could be willing to do that.

Looking at his wife's confused expression, Lu Chen suddenly felt better and said with a smile: "I'm not a saint."

"Then why did my husband..."

"Because after all the messes that happened over the past year, I'm completely disappointed with those people in the south. If I didn't want the Jinglian people in the north to take advantage of me, I might have given up long ago. What does their life or death have to do with me?"

Lu Chen held her hand and said calmly, "During the surprise attack on Heluo, I asked Song Shifei and Duan Zuozhang to follow me firmly and lay the foundation for me in Dingzhou Governor's Office. In the Battle of Yongqiu, I got more soldiers to follow me because they knew I would not abandon them. At least they would not die in confusion on the battlefield if they followed me. Since Li Zongben and Han Zhongjie are determined to do what they want, after this battle, the military power of Jiangbei will have nothing to do with them anymore."

Wang Chulong suddenly understood.

Lu Chen whispered, "Of course, I am not a god, and it is impossible for me to turn defeat into victory with just one move. I can only try my best to preserve the backbone and fire of the army on the western front. The most important thing is that I want to let those people in the south understand that all they can do is take care of the various places in Jiangnan, and the war has nothing to do with them."

Wang Chulong's eyes flickered, and after thinking for a moment, she said, "Husband, I think this matter can actually be done more perfectly."

"Ma'am, please speak."

"Since the Northern Expedition is bound to fail, and you are unable to stop the emperor from going his own way, you should make your position clear in advance. It would be best if you wrote a moving memorial, which you can just show to the ministers in the court for now. When the army on the western front is about to be defeated, you can save your comrades regardless of the consequences, and the memorial sent to the court in advance can be circulated everywhere."

When Lu Chen heard this, his eyes suddenly brightened.

Wang Chulong said slowly, "My husband tried his best to dissuade the enemy before the war, and he turned the tide after the war. With this memorial as evidence, any normal person can understand my husband's good intentions. Most importantly, the emperor did not accept my husband's advice, which led to the defeat of the army and the critical situation. My husband did not sit back because of personal grudges, which proves that my husband is a true loyal minister and gentleman. At that time, there will be no need for my husband to rack his brains, and there will be countless scholars to help my husband become famous."

"That's very appropriate indeed."

Lu Chen nodded repeatedly, and then said with some embarrassment: "But you know how little knowledge I have. I can write a plain-language memorial, but I really can't write that kind of article."

Wang Chulong said softly, "If my husband doesn't mind, how about letting me write for you?"

"That's great."

Lu Chen didn't hesitate at all.

Wang Chulong stood up slowly and sat down at the desk, while Lu Chen took the initiative to help her grind the ink.

Wang Chulong pondered for a moment, then picked up his brush and started writing, finishing it almost in one go.

Lu Chen picked up the paper that had not yet dried, his eyes fell on it, and he couldn't help but read it aloud.

"Since the Jianwu era, a total of 16 years have passed. The weather has been mild, the harvests have been good, the people have not suffered from floods or droughts, and the country has not suffered from famine. The former emperor took credit for his achievements and sacrificed himself, and gave up his virtue. Hundreds of millions of people are fascinated, but the ceremony of announcing the completion of the project has not yet been carried out; the Yunting Pavilion has not yet been used to pay homage, and the ceremony of ascending to the throne has not yet been carried out."

"This merit is enough to be chewed by hundreds of kings and cover thousands of generations. However, the ancients said that even if you rest, don't rest, and there is a good reason for it. It is rare for a sage to be able to protect the beginning and the end. It is easy for those who have great achievements to be arrogant, and I hope Your Majesty will not let them be arrogant; it is difficult for those who have made a good start to finish, and I hope Your Majesty will let them be easy."

"It has been more than two decades since the war. Great Qi has received the mandate from Heaven. Your Majesty is a saint and should promote the rule of the generation and follow the footsteps of the previous kings. Although there are bandits who have secretly occupied the old land, the army has to be used, so it is restrained and sometimes mobilized. It is known that a vast territory is not a way to maintain peace, and human fatigue is the source of chaos. I sincerely hope that Your Majesty will pay attention to the way of governance first, and leave conquest for later..."

Lu Chen finished reading it in one breath, then turned to look at Wang Chulong's smiling face and said with emotion: "This is the real way to persuade people with reason and emotion. Compared with Chulong's article, Li Zongben's secret decree is just full of nonsense."

"It's just a first draft. Let me think about it."

Wang Chulong blushed a little when he praised her.

Lu Chen put down the paper in his hand, suddenly leaned over and kissed Wang Chulong hard on the cheek.

Wang Chulong glanced at the study door nervously and said softly, "Husband, don't mess around."

Lu Chen smiled and said, "Okay, okay, let's talk about it tonight."

Wang Chulong pushed him away and said as if coaxing a child: "Okay, go and do your work, I'll make some changes."

Looking at his back as he left happily, she couldn't help but smile.

Then he picked up his pen and began to write, his expression extremely focused.

(End of this chapter)