Jiuxi

Chapter 901 899 [Drawing the Sword]

Tian Jue was in a heavy mood, which had nothing to do with Pucha's fate.

As the emperor's most trusted minister, and known as a living dead by the nobles, Tian Jue certainly didn't care about the lives of others. Many powerful people even died at the hands of him, the chief minister of the imperial court.

Tian Jue was worried about the national war that was about to break out.

Pucha would probably never guess until his death how difficult the news he brought back was for Emperor Jing, so Emperor Jing lamented that he should not have come back. Even if he died at Yaoshan Pass and was covered in blood, it would be better than him coming back so self-righteously to deliver information.

On the surface, Lu Chen's words were a sign of weakness, acknowledging the strength of the Jing army and the wisdom of Emperor Jing, so he put on a passive posture of being beaten.

In fact, it is not the case. At least in Tian Jue's opinion, Lu Chen's move can be said to be a deep understanding of the true meaning of military strategy.

As he said, Emperor Jing's injuries were difficult to recover and his life was coming to an end. Could he conquer the thirteen prefectures in the south of the Yangtze River in a year or two?
As long as Emperor Jing passed away, Lu Chen could definitely stage a great comeback while preserving his strength.

Based on this inference, if Emperor Jing insisted on continuing to conquer Southern Qi instead of using the last moments of his life to stabilize the internal situation, then there would only be one possibility - his physical condition was obviously not as bad as it appeared, and he was able to support a long war.

In short, Emperor Jing either had to stop or admit that all his previous actions were just a disguise, which would naturally make it impossible for him to confuse Lu Chen.

Looking at the emperor standing with his hands behind his back by the Taihua Lake, Tian Jue felt uneasy for a moment.

"Ah."

Emperor Jing gave a meaningful laugh and said with regret, "It's a pity that such a genius cannot be used by me."

Tian Jue pondered and said, "Your Majesty, perhaps Lu Chen is just bluffing, intending to stop our army from advancing south without bloodshed."

"The reason why I pretended to be dying was simply because I hoped to force Lu Chen to give up the important area of ​​Jiangbei and avoid a head-on confrontation with our army, so that our army could achieve its strategic goal at the lowest cost. When that time comes, I won't need to pretend anymore."

Emperor Jing remained calm and just sighed, "He did have this plan, which shows that my plan worked, but he was obviously unwilling to accept it. At the same time, he thought of the strangeness of my decision to do this, so he used Pucha to convey a message to counterattack me."

Tian Jue was silent.

Emperor Jing shook his head and said with a smile, "This young man is forcing me to guess his thoughts. If he has not thought of that and is just trying to use Pucha's words to discourage me, I can of course continue to send troops south and try to settle the situation within one or two years. But if he guesses that I am actually fine and plays a trick of pretending to retreat southward but actually harboring murderous intentions, then I will have to think twice before taking each step, which will inevitably delay the opportunity to fight."

Tian Jue quickly figured out the ins and outs of this.

The so-called intrigue and deception is probably the current situation between the emperor and Lu Chen.

Emperor Jing pretended that his life was about to end, and Lu Chen took advantage of the situation and acted in a misleading manner. Before the war broke out, the two sides had already started scheming against each other.

Emperor Jing turned his head and looked at him and asked, "What do you think I should do?"

Tian Jue said cautiously: "Your Majesty, I dare not discuss military affairs rashly."

Emperor Jing said calmly: "You can speak freely in front of me."

Tian Jue agreed, and then said cautiously: "Your Majesty, since Lu Chen is already alert, can we find another way and stop entangled with him, and use the strategy of removing the firewood from the cauldron."

"Oh?"

Emperor Jing immediately became interested and asked, "How do we remove the firewood from under the cauldron?"

Tian Jue replied, "I would like to make a bold suggestion. Your Majesty may as well order someone to draft a letter to the new emperor and queen mother of Southern Qi, stating that as long as Southern Qi is willing to dismiss Lu Chen from his military post and let him return to his hometown in Huaizhou to live a leisurely life, Da Jing will not invade Southern Qi."

Emperor Jing pondered and said, "Do you think those people in the south will accept it?"

Tian Jue said: "Your Majesty has millions of good generals under his command, and now more than 100,000 troops have marched south. The ruler and his ministers of Southern Qi must have felt heavy pressure. They seem to have no better choice, so they can only pin their hopes on Lu Chen. This has led to a situation where Lu Chen has all the power and no one can control him. If Your Majesty gives them some breathing space, there will definitely be people who advocate peace talks, and they will definitely be very afraid of Lu Chen's power, and may be willing to help Your Majesty solve the problem of Lu Chen."

"That is true."

Emperor Jing nodded slightly, but did not give a clear answer.

Tian Jue just wanted to give the emperor some reference, so he continued: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, the Queen Mother Ning of Southern Qi must be able to see that Lu Chen is ambitious. Your Majesty's request is essentially a hidden danger that the other party needs to solve urgently. Maybe they can hit it off."

"You have improved a lot compared to before."

Emperor Jing praised him, but the next moment he shook his head and said, "Although this is a good strategy, the timing is not yet ripe."

Tian Jue quickly responded, "Yes, Your Majesty."

Emperor Jing took a few steps forward, feeling the breeze blowing from the lake, and said leisurely: "Although the Queen Mother Ning is a woman, she is much better than her husband after taking power, not to mention that Xue Nanting and Xu Zuo are both capable ministers. Before they feel real pressure, not only will they not follow my wishes, but they will try their best to protect Lu Chen. If Li Zongben is still in power, your method may work."

Tian Jue was not stupid. He understood after thinking about it and said in awe, "Your Majesty knows people's hearts very well. I am not even a fraction of that."

Emperor Jing smiled, stopped and said, "Sowing discord can certainly work wonders, but you have to choose the right time, otherwise it will only backfire. After several internal struggles in Southern Qi, the power of the weak and selfish people has become very weak, or they are forced to hide under the surface and dare not easily come forward in a short time. Speaking of this matter, Lu Chen's real purpose should not only confuse my eyes, but there is another possibility, that is, to delay my trip to the south as much as possible." Tian Jue asked, "Does he want to buy more time to prepare?"

"This should be."

Emperor Jing breathed a sigh of relief and said slowly: "In fact, he knows very well that even if I am really pretending to be sick, it will not have a decisive impact on the overall situation. This is just a tactical choice. If I follow his pace and waste time on these speculations, he can continue to strengthen the defense line of the Qi army. Another point-"

He paused for a moment, his expression slightly solemn. "From previous battles, this young man can always come up with unexpected means, such as the strange kerosene and gunpowder that broke through Heluo, and the strange method he used to deal with Pushan Si'en in Baotai Mountain. I am not sure how many more unexpected killing moves he has, but I know I can't delay any longer."

Tian Jue's heart trembled. At this moment, he became more and more aware of the gap between his vision and that of the emperor, so he said sincerely: "Your Majesty is wise."

"As for this first round of confrontation, I admit that he won."

Emperor Jing said calmly: "No matter how deep his scheming is, the truth will eventually be revealed on the battlefield."

Tian Jue understood the deep meaning of this sentence, and his usually wooden and dull face showed excitement.

Emperor Jing raised his eyebrows and said, "Pass on my oral order. All civil and military officials shall enter Kaiyuan Hall at 2:30 am tomorrow morning."

"The minister obeys the order!"

Tian Jue bowed.

……

The sun rises and the moon sets, and a new day arrives.

Hundreds of officials from the Jing Dynasty gathered in the spacious and solemn hall.

After all the ministers shouted "Long live the emperor", Emperor Jing slowly stood up, took a few steps forward, and looked around at all the officials in the hall.

On his left were the Jinglian nobles and military officials headed by Qing Yugong, on his right were the civil officials headed by Shangshu Ling Zhao Siwen, and the Regent Prince Wu Yan stood aside.

Emperor Jing cleared his throat, and his majestic voice echoed throughout the palace.

"Nineteen years ago, I ascended the throne in accordance with the will of the late emperor. At that time, I was full of ambition and only hoped that Dajing would pacify the world as soon as possible."

"In the past 19 years, I have been diligent in governing the country and have not dared to slack off. You have all done your best to assist me, and the great Jing emperor and his ministers have become increasingly powerful. Whenever I think of this, I feel deeply moved. On the one hand, I am glad that I have not let down the late emperor's high hopes, and on the other hand, I am pleased by the loyalty and ability of you."

Although the emperor had not yet made it clear, all the officials were already excited when they heard this and puffed out their chests.

Emperor Jing smiled and continued, "In the past few years, Dajing has conquered Zhao, Yan, Dai and other places step by step. Now Dajing's territory has occupied most of the world, leaving only Qi in the south and its vassal Shazhou. I know there is a saying called giving up halfway. Dajing is destined to unify the world, so how can we allow anyone to block the way? Do you agree?"

Sagai was the first to shout: "I am willing to sacrifice my life for your majesty's great cause!"

All the officials immediately echoed: "We are willing to sacrifice our lives for your majesty's great cause!"

"very good."

Emperor Jing raised his right hand and said firmly: "I know that you are not afraid of difficulties. I also know that the Southern Qi is a tough nut to crack, but I will never retreat in the face of difficulties, and you are not cowards. Conquering Southern Qi and incorporating the fertile and rich land south of Hengjiang into the territory of Dajing will not only fulfill my long-cherished wish, but you will also be remembered in history forever! Today, in front of all the ministers, I promise that everyone will be rewarded when Qi is destroyed!"

"I am willing to die for Your Majesty!"

Loud and uniform shouts rang out in the hall, especially from those powerful nobles with shining eyes. They wished they could fly to the battlefield in the south immediately and use their military achievements to exchange for several lifetimes of wealth and glory.

Although Qing Yugong was not as passionate as the others, he did not raise any objections.

Emperor Jing was quite satisfied with the reaction from below, and said loudly: "I will announce to the world from now on that I will personally lead a million troops to the south, and personally lead the army to attack Southern Qi! Send a letter to the court and the people of Southern Qi, and anyone who voluntarily surrenders will be spared death and rewarded. I will never treat those who surrender sincerely unfairly! If you resist stubbornly and do not repent, the Great Jing Iron Cavalry will crush all stubborn enemies into powder wherever they go!"

"Long live your majesty!"

Hundreds of officials knelt on the ground like waves of wheat, and the excited voices almost blew away the roof of the hall.

Emperor Jing looked around the room, and when the noise died down a little, a fierce look flashed in his eyes. He raised his arm and his voice was as loud as metal and stone.

"Fuck Qi!"

……

……

(Today's 3rd update is completed.)
(End of this chapter)