The Bad Guys: Everyone, let’s revive the Tang Dynasty together!

Chapter 369: Why did Your Majesty rebel? (Part )

As night fell, the wind blew strongly over the village wall.

Looking towards Fengxiang from the watchtower of the Shu army's southern camp, flames rose up from several places near and far, making the sky faintly red.

On the wall of the fortress, clusters of torches were burning, and the soldiers of the Shu army who were responsible for night guards walked around from time to time. As the main force of this expedition to Qi, the soldiers were all the imperial guards of the Great Shu Army directly transferred from Chengdu. They were well-equipped with armor and equipment, and they were all elite soldiers in the battle formation. At this time, they were patrolling on the wall of the fortress and even inside and outside the camp, which had a sharp aura.

A middle-aged man in his fifties wearing a cloak, with a serious face and decent armor, was obviously a senior general of the Shu army. He was staring at the outline of Fengxiang City in the night from afar, with a thoughtful look on his serious face. After looking for a while, he heard the sound of horse hooves from the east of the camp. He was displeased and immediately ordered people to go and inquire.

This middle-aged general was none other than Wang Zongkan, the governor of Dongchuan, acting grand tutor, guardian of grand tutor, minister of the Chancellery, and commander of the northern camp of the Shu Kingdom. He was the chief commander of the Shu Kingdom's expedition against Qi.

Two months ago, Emperor Wang Jian of Shu received a message from Yuan Tiangang, and learned that there was a civil strife in Qi. In addition, the two towns of Dingnan and Shuofang were invading the north of Wei in Qi. So he immediately raised an army of more than 10,000 and sent Wang Zongkan as the commander.

As expected, during this expedition, Wang Zongkan easily captured Qingniling, which had always been regarded as a strategic location by both Qi and Shu. After that, he had an easy journey and directly forced his way to the city of Chencang in Qi.

The battle went very smoothly from the beginning, but what was even more unexpected was that the Qi army eventually cut off its own retreat and became enemies with the State of Jin. The two sides fought fiercely in Cizhou for more than half a month, leaving the rear of the Qi State empty. Although the Jingnan Army stayed behind in Fengxiang, they had no choice but to shrink their defense line and guard Fengxiang.

As a result, the Shu Emperor Wang Jian successively sent Shu generals Wang Zongyou, Wang Zonghe and his favorite minister Tang Daoxi to lead troops from Chengdu and Hanzhong to Fengxiang. Up to now, Wang Zongkan has combined these three armies, with a total of more than 50,000 troops under his command. Together with the Hanzhong civilians and auxiliary troops who were recruited in large numbers, the number of 200,000 is well deserved.

Up to now, the Shu people have thoroughly regarded this war as a battle to destroy Qi. Wang Zongkan received the imperial edict a few days ago, and the emperor Wang Jian has personally moved to Xingyuan Prefecture (Hanzhong) to supervise the battle. It is obvious that he wants to take this opportunity to wipe out Qi, which has been fighting for many years.

Wang Zongkan's original surname was Tian. He served under Wang Jian during the reign of Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty. He changed his surname to Wang after he was adopted by Wang Jian as his son. Generals of the Shu Kingdom with the character "Zong" in their names, such as Wang Zongyou and Wang Zonghe, were all Wang Jian's adopted sons.

But among Wang Jian's many adopted sons, only Wang Zongkan participated in the whole process from his entry into Shu to occupy Xichuan until he proclaimed himself emperor, and made great military achievements. He was truly the leader of all the generals. Wang Zongkan was therefore given the title of founding minister of state and was promoted to Duke of Qi, and was highly trusted. Naturally, he took the lead in the attack on Qi this time.

However, from the initial battle to attack Qi to the current battle to destroy Qi, Wang Zongkan couldn't help feeling pressured. In addition, the empress led the Qi army back to Fengxiang City and summoned Qi's Tianxiong army for support. The combined forces of both sides exceeded 100,000. However, in just half a month, the Shu army had suffered thousands of casualties. The battle was fierce, and Wang Zongkan had to treat it with caution.

"With Qi Wang Li Maozhen leading the troops himself, the Qi army cannot be defeated for the time being. Some time ago, General Kan used the West Camp as a lure to annihilate the main force of the Qi army, but failed and was broken by the Qi army. Now, Fengxiang City cannot be attacked, and the Qi camp cannot be broken. The war is deadlocked for a long time. How should General Kan deal with it?"

While Wang Zongkan was thinking and waiting, he suddenly heard a voice coming from downstairs. Looking down, he saw a forty-year-old man wearing the purple robe of an official of the Shu Kingdom. He had a fair complexion and a very feminine air, but his voice was not soft, but sonorous and powerful, which made people dare not underestimate him.

The person who was responsible for inquiring about the sound of horse hooves was following behind him. It was obvious that the noise just now was caused by this person.

This forty-year-old man is Tang Daoxi, who served Shu Emperor Wang Jian as a dancing boy when he was young. Because of Wang Jian's favor, he is now the governor of Shannan and the internal privy envoy. This time Hanzhong sent reinforcements to Fengxiang, and Tang Daoxi was the recruiting envoy of the Western Army. Although his status is one level lower than Wang Zongkan, if we really talk about favor, Wang Zongkan is really not as good as him.

Seeing Tang Daoxi's smiling face downstairs, Wang Zongkan was stunned at first, and then he immediately stroked his beard and invited Tang Daoxi to go up to the watchtower with a smile. After dismissing the attendants, he did not ask Tang Daoxi why he came at night, but just said: "What the envoy said is true. This battle has been stalemate for a long time. Not to mention that it will be difficult for me to explain to the emperor, I am afraid that the morale of the army will also be frustrated."

As he spoke, he looked at Fengxiang City from a distance with his hands behind his back and sighed, "If we want to transport military rations and supplies out of Shu, we need to consume a lot of manpower and material resources. With tens of thousands of troops fighting here, how much is wasted every day? Although our army was unstoppable in this battle, it ultimately gave Qi State time to fortify its walls and clear the countryside. Our army cannot replenish its food on the spot and has to rely on the rear for support... Prime Minister, the situation is difficult."

Tang Daoxi also had his hands behind his back, but he smiled and shook his head when he heard this: "What I just said was just a joke, why should General Kan take it so seriously? Our army is having trouble getting supplies, and so is the Qi army? Not to mention Fengxiang City for now, I'm afraid there isn't much food left in the Qi camp where the Qi King is, and there are only 10,000 people in the Qi army, and before General Kan, they were nothing but dead bones in a grave. General Kan, you must be worried about something else, right?"

Wang Zongkan laughed, then nodded solemnly: "To be honest with you, I do have some ideas about the Qi army. I have already learned all the details of the Qi army and the Qi king's troops. I have already revealed all the information about the battle of the West Camp a few days ago. If there is another battle, I dare to say that the Qi camp will be defeated!"

Tang Daoxi nodded without saying anything.

As expected, Wang Zongkan immediately became more serious in his tone: "However, today I have received a report that the Liang army in the east has made unusual movements. Two days ago, the number of Liang troops in Wugong County suddenly increased. Although we don't know how many there are, they are coming with great force. I'm afraid it's not just to defend against our army..."

"According to the spies, although Xiao Yan, the King of Song of Liang, seized power through a coup, his foundation is not as unstable as previously expected. He has already arrived in Luoyang with his troops. Although he is young, he has great ambitions. I am afraid he has also planned to fight... I am worried that if the war drags on for a long time, even if Fengxiang is finally captured, it will be difficult to stop the offensive of the Liang army."

Wang Zongkan stared at Tang Daoxi and expressed his worries, but he saw that the latter just paced back and forth, smiling but not saying anything. He was moved and asked thoughtfully, "What news did you get from the envoy?"

Tang Daoxi laughed loudly, patted Wang Zongkan on the shoulder, and said calmly: "General Kan has a far-sighted vision, and is indeed not comparable to those idiots in the court. I heard that there are even people in the court who encourage the emperor to take advantage of the situation to take a look at the strength of Guanzhong."

Wang Zongkan smiled and did not respond.

Tang Daoxi was sent to Xingyuan Prefecture two years ago to guard Hanzhong as the governor of Shannan because of his disagreement with the crown prince. However, Wang Jian still favored him, so Tang Daoxi had been involved in the struggle for the crown prince in the court and was also deeply involved with a certain lady in the harem. The words just now were obviously directed at the arrogant crown prince Wang Yuanying.

Although Wang Zongkan and Tang Daoxu would sometimes tacitly form an alliance in the court, they did not want to be involved in such matters while Emperor Wang Jian was in good health, so of course they would not respond.

Tang Daoxi glanced at Wang Zongkan. Although he was mocking this old fox for not taking the bait, he was not impatient. He just twisted his beautiful beard and said quietly, "The spy's report is ultimately one person's opinion. Liang State has undergone a great change. Emperor Zhu Wen of Liang was forced to leave the throne. How can the people of the world be calm while watching a scoundrel take power?"

Wang Zongkan could not help but be moved. He looked around and lowered his voice: "At this critical moment, please let the prime minister speak frankly."

Tang Daoxi snorted and chuckled, then took out a letter from his bosom, but did not hand it to Wang Zongkan. He just held it between his fingers and raised it slightly, narrowing his eyes and saying, "General Kan, do you know where this letter came from?"

Wang Zongkan couldn't help but frowning. He had some vague guesses but didn't dare to be sure. So he stroked his beard and remained silent for a while, but his eyes were shining.

Tang Daoxi smiled lightly, patted Wang Zongkan on the shoulder, and finally stopped keeping the secret, and said softly: "Chang'an, it was written by Yang Shihou himself."

Even though Wang Zongkan was somewhat prepared, he was still shocked when he heard the news. His eyes widened slightly involuntarily. After a moment, he asked in a deep voice, "What's the matter?"

Tang Daoxi handed him the letter, then walked around with his hands behind his back, saying calmly, "The so-called Daliang Song Wang Xiao Yan is just a kid, his identity is unclear. If he comes to power, how many people in Liang can obey him? Yang Shihou has always been a faction in Liang, and only Zhu Wen can suppress him, let alone a kid like Xiao Yan?"

He laughed and said, "Xiao Yan sent troops here, under the pretext of attacking Qi, but it was obvious that he wanted to take advantage of the situation to suppress Yang Shihou and secure his position. Yang Shihou is also a tyrant, how could he surrender?"

Wang Zongkan quickly scanned the letter and thought, "Are the troops that arrived at the Wugong front line a group of Xiao Yan's personal troops led by Li Sian? Master Yang wants us to take the initiative to attack Wugong and trap Li Sian?"

"Wugong is under siege, and Yang Shihou is just standing by and watching. Then the remaining troops of Xiao Yan in Chang'an will surely come to help. In this way, all the troops under Xiao Yan's command will be dragged to the west of Chang'an."

Tang Daoxi said calmly: "In return, Yang Shihou will suppress the Liang army behind him and prevent them from passing Tongguan. In other words, the Liang army will not interfere in the war in Fengxiang."

Wang Zongkan frowned and said, "How could Yang Shihou be so kind?"

"This is the reason why Commander Kan doesn't understand." Tang Daoxi smiled playfully: "If my guess is correct, Yang Shihou asked us to use our military force to trap Li Si'an in order to make Xiao Yan have no troops to use. And Yang Shihou is sitting in Chang'an and isolating him. Isn't it a good opportunity to take advantage of the situation to raise troops and seize power?"

As he said this, Tang Daoxi couldn't help but sneer: "In front of the power of Liang State, what does Fengxiang mean? Although I have never dealt with Yang Shihou, I have seen too many people like him."

Wang Zongkan was stunned for a moment, but he quickly recovered and said in a deep voice: "I don't want to care whether there will be a struggle for power in Liang State. This letter looks good, but can the envoy guarantee that after Yang Shihou achieves his goal, he will not be free to continue to send troops to Fengxiang?"

Tang Daoxi put his hand on the wooden railing, glanced at Wang Zongkan, and sneered: "General Kan is worrying too much. Even if such incidents succeed, Yang Shihou will have to spend a lot of time to stabilize the situation. How can he have the energy to worry about the west? I am afraid that the first thing Yang Shihou will do after he succeeds is to immediately take Zhu Wen or another emperor of the Zhu family back to Bianliang and completely consolidate his power..."

Wang Zongkan frowned and thought for a long time, unwilling to respond easily. He was the commander-in-chief of an army and had to consider everything. He would not believe the so-called Yang Shihou so easily.

Tang Daoxi was not in a hurry either, he just said slowly: "In this case, whether the Liang army will fall into civil strife or not, the Xiao Yan army, which is the first-line martial arts, will definitely be in chaos. If General Kan takes advantage of the situation to accept the surrender of this army, he can even take advantage of Yang Shihou's lack of time to take care of the west and directly march into Chang'an to threaten Tongguan. If all goes well, he may occupy the entire Guanxi and even Guanzhong.

Before, if someone said that he wanted to take a look at the strength of Guanzhong, I would just call that person a fool, but now that I have this opportunity in my hands, I can really take a look at the strength of Guanzhong..." Wang Zongkan was finally tempted.

Tang Daoxi took the opportunity to move closer, lowered his voice and laughed: "If General Kan is unwilling to make a decision, you can report it to the emperor and let the emperor make the decision, right? But the opportunity is fleeting, who knows if there will be any changes in this trip? If we seize this opportunity to expand the territory, it will be enough for General Kan to go down in history..."

Wang Zongkan clenched the letter in his hand, put his hands behind his back, and looked out at Fengxiang. The reflection of the fire flickered in his eyes, but he was no longer indecisive. He said in a deep voice: "No matter what, this battle should focus on Fengxiang. I cannot get away. Are you willing to go there?"

Tang Daoxi laughed loudly and saluted solemnly: "General Kan has given an order, how dare I disobey it? General Kan can rest assured to defeat the Qi army. I will lead the western army to the east and will never let General Kan worry about the east..."

Wang Zongkan heaved a long sigh of relief, turned around and helped Tang Daoxi up, and said in a strong voice: "Leave it all to the envoy."

Tang Daoxi smiled, bowed and left immediately. After a moment, he looked downstairs and heard the sound of horse hooves heading eastward.

Watching the man leading his personal soldiers disappear into the night, Wang Zongkan frowned in thought.

The envoy was determined to achieve this feat, not just for the sake of this battle. After the Western Army left Shu, it had only been used as a reserve army and had never been deployed. In the Battle of Fengxiang, unless a regular army of Qi State was annihilated, Tang Daoxi could not be considered to have made a great achievement.

But Yang Shihou's invitation was different. Tang Daoxi was the leader and he was the one leading the Western Army. If things went well, the big share would naturally go to the commander-in-chief Wang Zongkan, but all the other credit would be taken by Tang Daoxi himself.

In this way, the prince would not be able to stop Tang Daoxi from returning to the central government. He could even use this great achievement to contact his allies in the court and encourage the emperor to replace the prince.

Tang Daoxi and the prince were at odds with each other to the point where they were incompatible. Wang Jian was over sixty years old, and the prince would ascend the throne sooner or later. By then, Tang Daoxi would have been liquidated. Even for the sake of the future, Tang Daoxi had to return to the court as soon as possible and join forces with the empress in the harem to defeat the prince.

Wang Zongkan understood this truth, but he also could not ignore this opportunity to resolve the threat of the Liang army. The Fengxiang Qi army was already alone and would be defeated sooner or later. If there was no Liang army as a threat, Wang Zongkan would be able to achieve great things and it would not be impossible for him to take over the entire Qi state.

After thinking it over, he just pounded the wooden fence in front of him and spoke coldly.

"You little boy Xiao Yan, you didn't want to enjoy yourself in Bianliang, but came here. You asked for this kind of suffering!"

------

The two Shu generals finished their plan, but things were still going on in Qi camp.

The torches in the big tent were burning fiercely, and the empress and her generals were all there. The empress didn't mention it, and she always looked calm and indifferent, but most of the generals of the Qi army had solemn expressions. The tent was completely silent, and only the slight crackling sound of the torches could be heard.

Ji Ruxue stood in the corner with her arms folded and her eyes closed to rest. Next to her was Dingbadu's cavalry general Pei Chongwu. The latter was even more relaxed, with his hands on his belt and his chin slightly raised, a hint of pride on his face.

It is said that when the King of Song was in the tent, he often put his hands on his belt to show his domineering attitude. Although Pei Chongwu had never seen it with his own eyes, he knew that all the generals in Dingbadu were secretly imitating this attitude. As the commander of a battalion, he naturally followed suit. Now in the Qi army tent, seeing these guys looking like they couldn't hold back their breath, he put on this attitude to the fullest, full of arrogance.

After a long silence, a general from Qi finally spoke up: "King Qi, our army suffered a setback a few days ago and the soldiers have not recovered yet. It is right to defend the main camp and respond to Fengxiang from afar. How can we take the initiative to start a field battle again? The Shu army has several times more troops than ours in the south, and they are enough to attack our main camp. What can we do if the main camp is lost?"

The generals on both sides remained silent, obviously having the same thought.

The empress nodded calmly and said, "General Li's words make sense. The main camp is where we can take care of our rear. However, General Li may not have understood what I just meant. This attack is not a simple field battle, but a decisive battle. I have also made arrangements for the Fengxiang garrison."

General Naqi couldn't help but be stunned, and his comrades on both sides also looked at each other in confusion.

"King Qi's intention is to abandon the camp and attack with the whole army!" Pei Chongwu got the permission from Ji Ruxue beside him, and strode out. He first clasped his fists to the empress, and then shouted to the people around him: "The food in the camp is less than ten days' supply, why should we be trapped? In the next few days, everyone in the camp should fill their stomachs and prepare for the battle. What if the Shu army is several times larger than us? Don't you dare to follow King Qi to defeat it!?"

The Qi general was called Li Jichong, and was Li Maozhen's real nephew, but he was ten years older than the empress. He was also one of the few senior generals in Qi who knew the identity of the empress. Now he was appointed as the commander of Qinzhou Tianxiong Army, and his status was only one level lower than that of the empress in the tent. He was stunned when he heard this, and then immediately became furious and said, "Who are you? How can you have a say in the discussion in the tent?"

"General Li, calm down." The empress smiled and said, "This is General Pei Chongwu, the foreign aid that I borrowed. He just entered the camp two days ago, and General Li is unfamiliar with him. General Pei is right. You all know that the food in the camp is already insufficient. Even if we save on food, it will only last for more than ten days. If we are trapped in the camp, it will collapse sooner or later."

Li Jichong and the empress were legitimate relatives, so Li Jichong gave the empress face and snorted coldly, refusing to confront Pei Chongwu. But when he was about to say something, he was stunned and asked in astonishment, "Foreign aid?"

At this time, Li Jicong finally seemed to remember, pointed at Pei Chongwu, and asked hurriedly: "Are those 100 riders with three horses yours?"

Pei Chongwu laughed loudly and clasped his fists in salute: "More than a hundred cavalrymen? General Li may not know, I..."

But just when he said this, Pei Chongwu paused, then laughed dryly and said, "In short, it is true. I have been ordered to rush to Fengxiang to serve King Qi."

Ji Ruxue breathed a sigh of relief. It was a close call that Pei Chongwu leaked the secret. It was not that she did not trust the generals in her camp, but Ding Badu's support was extremely important and she wanted to keep it a secret for as long as possible. There were many people in Qi camp and if the news was leaked in advance, the effectiveness of this back-up plan would inevitably be greatly reduced.

Li Jicong was unaware of the situation, so he sighed and said to the empress, "Prince Qi, those 100 cavalrymen are indeed elite, but what good are they? I don't want to dampen morale, but the best option right now is to temporarily retreat north and summon Baoda, Baosai, and Yisheng to the south, so that we can have a decisive battle with the Shu army."

Pei Chongwu had a stern face and did not interrupt at this time. He just obediently retreated to Ji Ruxue's side, like one of Ji Ruxue's bodyguards.

The empress smiled without saying anything, and then waved to Li Jicong.

Li Jichong didn't understand, but he immediately strode over and saw the empress casually writing a line of words on a piece of paper on the commander's desk. Li Jichong glanced over and was suddenly startled, then immediately raised his head and stared at Pei Chongwu.

"There is actually..."

Li Jicong was surprised and delighted, but he noticed the gazes of the generals behind him, so he held back his words, but still slammed the desk heavily in his excitement.

The empress glanced at him, and Li Jichong immediately calmed down. He did not even look at Pei Chongwu, but retreated back to the tent. Facing the confused and curious eyes on his left and right, he did not look away, but just said: "King Qi has already made arrangements, and I will cooperate with it!"

The generals on both sides were still in shock, but the empress nodded and gave the order: "Starting tomorrow, the soldiers will have four meals a day, and the food they have stored will only last for three or four days. Each camp should prepare its equipment and wait for the military order... With that, the military discussion is over."

At this point, how could the generals in the tent dissuade him? Looking at Li Jichong's inexplicable self-confidence, what choice did they have? So they all bowed and said, "Yes."

The footsteps faded away in a disorderly manner, and Pei Chongwu also said goodbye and left. However, the empress called Ji Ruxue to stop her, looked at the generals who were leaving, and said calmly: "You will stay by my side for the next few days, and you are not allowed to go anywhere."

Ji Ruxue was stunned for a moment, then just nodded quietly and turned to leave the tent.

The empress was the only one left in the big tent. She looked at the words written on the desk for a long time, as if a string in her heart relaxed a little, but at the same time, it seemed as if nothing had changed.

She picked up the paper with the writing on it and watched it slowly burn in the flames, with a faint light reflected in her phoenix eyes.

The storm is coming, the building is about to collapse, will it be you and me who end it all?

(End of this chapter)