Eastern Jin Dynasty: My powerful father

Chapter 364 General of the Zhu Kingdom
Jingzhou, Xiangyang.

Huan Wen said doubtfully:
"General Zhuguo?"

Xi Chao nodded and said:
"Exactly, the imperial court awarded the crown prince the title of Zhuguo."

Speaking, Xi Chao explained:

"During the Warring States Period, both Chu and Zhao established Zhu Guo, which was subordinate to Ling Yin and Xiang Guo."

Huan Wen nodded slightly and said with emotion:

"This matter is difficult for the princes in the court. Now that Xi'er has taken over Hedong County, he needs to be rewarded. But he is blocked by me, so he can only think of this way."

After that, Huan Wen put the matter behind him and changed the subject:
"The tree wants to be still but the wind doesn't stop. I want to rest and recuperate, but Xi'er refuses to stop.

"Last night, Chang'an sent a secret message. Xi'er claimed that after the spring plowing next year, he would send troops from Hetao to attack the country of Dai, luring Fu Jian to go north."

Xi Chao was not surprised, he smiled and said:

Although Murong Ke returned in vain in two battles with the Huan family, his troops did not suffer any losses.

Murong Ke had already returned to the capital of Yan State, but Murong Jun still did not blame him.

However, after that battle, due to the huge investment, Huan Wen now has to tighten his belt and live a life.

Youzhou, Ji County.

As for the battle to rescue the Yu State, it was because the leader of the Yu State was captured, and the friendly soldiers were panicked and completely lost their fighting spirit. Murong Ke had no choice but to retreat.

"Now that Liang is prosperous and Yu is declining, Yanchi changes hands, which has aggravated the situation. The prince has forced Fu Jian to use troops for many years. Even if he cannot win, as long as there is no major defeat, the Yu Kingdom will be dragged down first."

Of course, Huan Wen only talked about it and did not dare to really look down on Murong Ke. After all, neither he nor Huan Xi actually took advantage of Murong Ke.

When Xi Chao heard this, he couldn't help but frown secretly. Murong Ke must not be underestimated. Before he captured Ran Min alive, he had already gained a huge reputation in the wars with Goguryeo, Yuwen Xianbei, Duanbu Xianbei, Hou Zhao and other forces. .

Xi Chao worriedly said:
"Although it is a decisive battle in Monan, Yan State will definitely not sit back and watch Yu State perish."

During the battle for Luoyang, the reason why Murong Ke withdrew his troops was because he could not use up Huan Wen. Huan Wen had rested for seven or eight years, while the Yan State was fighting in the north and south, and was constantly fighting and wasting away. Huan Wen was not weak at all.

Anyone with a discerning eye knows that the defeat in the Hedong battlefield was due to Queen Mother Gou not understanding military affairs and blindly urging the frontline generals to use troops, which led to Li Wei's capture.

"Those who have gained a false reputation were just trying to bully the few and managed to capture Ran Min alive by chance."

Huan Wen shook his head and said:
"How can he have such patience? According to my understanding of Xi'er, he wants to finish his work in one battle and fight Fu in Monan."

Huan Wen didn't take it seriously and said:
"Murong Ke is nothing more than that. He failed in the battle for Luoyang with me before, and now he has withdrawn his troops from Hedong in embarrassment.

If we really want to talk about Huan Xi's first contribution, Empress Dowager Gou is definitely a contender.

In the side hall, Murong Ke suggested to Murong Jun:

"Your Majesty, I would like to ask you to send troops again after the spring plowing next year. This will definitely not allow Huan Xi to gain a foothold in Hedong." Murong Jun certainly understood the reason. He nodded and agreed:

"At the beginning of next year, I will issue an edict to move the capital to Yecheng and personally lead the army south. By then, my fourth brother can use the army with confidence and boldness, and no longer need to worry about insufficient troops or lack of food and grass."

Murong Jun led his army southward under the guise of moving the capital, which also meant that Yan State had the ability to mobilize an overwhelming number of people to compete with Huan Xi for Hedong County again.

Since they were rescuing the Yu State, even if Huan Xi was defeated, Hedong County would still belong to Fu Jian.

But if Hedong County could be snatched from Huan Xi's hands, Murong Jun would naturally not spit it out and return it to Yu State after swallowing the meat in his stomach.

Although he is located in the prosperous Hebei area, Murong Jun is also attracted by the salt pond in Hedong County.

When Murong Ke heard this, he was overjoyed. Not only was he finally able to go all out, but also because of his second brother's support. Murong Jun did not lose trust in Murong Ke because of the two previous efforts in vain.

He was very aware of the talents of his fourth brother. If anyone other than Murong Ke and Murong Chui were to lead the army, it would be difficult to escape from the Hedong battlefield unscathed.

Compared to Murong Ke, Murong Jun did not like, and even secretly hated his fifth brother Murong Chui. Therefore, if he really wanted to take the initiative to attack Hedong County, he could only have Murong Ke lead the troops, or let Murong Jun lead the expedition himself.

As for Murong Jun's decision to move the capital to Yecheng in the spring of next year, this was a plan he had already made and was not an impromptu decision.

The Yan State had previously used Jixian as its capital. Although it was safe, the location was remote and not conducive to the use of troops. It was obviously inappropriate for an enterprising emerging regime.

At the same time, being in Jixian County and out of reach was not conducive to Yan State's control of the Central Plains.

Yecheng, by this time, had recovered and had the conditions to become a capital city.

It has been five years since the fall of Ran Wei and the State of Yan took over Hebei. During this period of hard work, Jizhou has regained some of its vitality.

Although the Xiangguo regime of Ran Min and Shi Zhao destroyed the southern part of Jizhou to a state of ruin, this place has a large population and a solid foundation.

Back then, Shi Hu forcibly moved people from all over the north to Hebei, so when Ran Min and others fought, they often had more than 100,000 cavalry.

And Huanxi did not achieve such a scale until recently, after conquering Xianbei, Hexi.

At the end of the Later Zhao Dynasty, although many refugees fled Hebei due to the war, not all of them were gone. As long as Jizhou restored its ruling order, its population base and natural conditions were right, it would not be difficult for Jizhou to revive.

At least it was easier than Guanzhong. Before Huanxi's Northern Expedition, Guanzhong allowed Shihu to move to a vast area with sparsely populated areas. It was not until Huanxi brought people from Jingzhou and captured people from Luoyang that it prospered again.

Huan Xi, Murong Jun, and Murong Ke unanimously chose to take a short rest and wait for next year's spring plowing to use troops again.

In troubled times, you have to fight for population and territory. Those separatist forces that are stubborn and waiting for death, such as Bingzhou Zhangping, Qingzhou Duanggeng, etc., have disappeared in the long river of history.

Therefore, Fu Jian certainly would not let Huan Xi occupy Hedong County, but the real problem is that Yu State fought on two fronts this year, and suffered defeats on both the northern and southern fronts.

The soldiers needed a period of adjustment to recover. This is why Fu Jian led 100,000 infantry and cavalry south, but did not dare to fight Huan Xi. He only used bluffs to lure Huan Xi north and create conditions for Lu Po Lou to break out.

In the Jinyang Palace, Queen Mother Gou had been in a bad mood for the past few days. She called Fu Jian and said:
"Gong Jianning is your father's sworn brother, and he was a close friend of his. Now he is trapped in the enemy's country, and you don't know whether he is alive or dead. How can you remain indifferent."

(End of this chapter)