Thief Emperor

Chapter 221 No Place for Peace in the World
Li Yun was stunned for a while, then he felt relieved.

He lowered his head and drank a sip of tea. After a while, he spoke again, "It's as expected. The Imperial Guards are fighting like this. If the Border Army doesn't join in, there's no way to deal with it. It's fine for the court to leave the Central Plains for a year or two, but if it takes too long, without the Central Plains' income, I'm afraid the court won't be able to sustain itself even without fighting."

Since ancient times, the vast plain of the Central Plains has been a battleground for military strategists and a sacred place for farming.

This place can provide a large amount of food and a large number of...people.

Now, although Wang Junping's troops failed to occupy the Central Plains, they occupied Henan Prefecture and Luoyang, making it impossible for the imperial court to collect taxes and grain normally from this land.

His Majesty the Emperor is also anxious.

If this continues and the situation becomes unmanageable, then it might be time for a change of dynasty!

And at this time, the Imperial Guards must not take action again.

The last time 30,000 imperial troops went out to quell a rebellion, they defeated the rebels in just half a month. This incident can be blamed on the commander Wu Zhong and the fact that most of the 30,000 troops were new recruits. However, if the remaining imperial troops go out again and still fail to win, the court will lose its last fig leaf.

A white, tender, naked, weak and delicious imperial court will appear in the eyes of many local forces, and then appear on the dining tables of various forces.

Li Yun took a deep breath and whispered, "But what does the fact that the Jiedushi went south have to do with General Su and his son? Last time, General Su also actively participated in the encirclement with the Imperial Guards and did not make any mistakes."

Du Qian also lowered his head and drank a sip of tea, and whispered: "No one can explain this matter clearly. I am afraid that only Your Majesty himself knows why he did this, but I have a guess."

He looked at Li Yun, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Does Sima Li want to listen?"

Li Yun nodded: "I'm all ears."

Envoy Du drank the tea in the cup in one gulp and said softly, "The Shuofang Jiedushi has made some moves. In order to prevent the difficulty of sending away the gods when inviting them, the court must make corresponding preparations, such as making some deployments of the troops of the nearby Jiedushis."

"For example, let General Su's troops be stationed on the flanks. When necessary, General Su can be used to restrict the Shuofang Army."

"At this time, the biggest threat to the imperial court is that the Shuofang Army has reached some kind of tacit agreement with General Su, or even joined forces, so the imperial court needs to hold a hostage in its hands."

Li Yun could not help but pound the table and said in a muffled voice: "The suppression of the rebellion in Yuezhou cannot prove the loyalty of the Su family father and son? If General Su had ulterior motives, the rebellion in Yuezhou might not have been quelled yet, and it would be even more impossible for you to come to Yuezhou and serve as the governor of Yuezhou!"

"This is the truth."

Du Qian poured more tea for Li Yun and said with a smile, "It seems that Sima Li has a deep affection for General Su and his son."

"It's not like I have deep feelings."

Li Yun shook his head and said, "It's just that General Su and his son have made great contributions to my current situation. Besides, I just feel unfair for them!"

"Since ancient times, there have been countless such incidents. As the Son of Heaven, you cannot act on emotion. Your Majesty, do this..."

Du Qian shook his head and did not continue speaking. Instead, he changed the subject and said, "I am afraid that right now, what the court wants to see most is not that the Shuofang Army quickly puts down the rebellion, but that the Shuofang Army also suffers a setback in Henan Prefecture."

"most…"

Du Qian narrowed his eyes and didn't continue speaking.

Li Yun took over and sneered, "It would be best if both sides were hurt?"

Governor Du sighed and did not respond.

Li continued, "Sir, in my opinion, things will not develop as you said. In my opinion, if the Shuofang Jiedushi had any selfish intentions, the Shuofang army would not quickly sweep through the Central Plains after arriving there, nor would they suffer any great losses in the Central Plains!"

Du Qian frowned at first, then suddenly opened his eyes wide and looked at Li Yun, muttering: "What Sima Li means is that the Shuofang Army...will stay in the Central Plains under the pretext of suppressing the rebellion?"

"What excuse is there for this?"

Li Yun said calmly: "They are following the orders of the court to suppress the rebellion. Doesn't it all depend on them whether they fight fast or slow? Besides, the lesson of the Imperial Army's loss is still before our eyes. It is reasonable for them to take steady steps at this time."

Du Qian also sat on the chair. The more he thought about it, the more he felt it made sense. He murmured, "I think the Shuofang Army will most likely do what Sima Li said..."

Li Yun took a deep breath, lowered his head to drink tea, and said nothing.

Du Qian suddenly looked at Li Yun and asked, "Sima Li, if you were in charge of the court, how would you respond to Wang Junping's uprising?"

"First, we should provide relief to the Central Plains, advance steadily, surround Henan Prefecture, and then issue an edict to recruit and divide the rebels. In one or two years, we should see results."

At this point, Li Yun touched his chin and shook his head, "But I have no experience in serving in the central government, so I am just assuming things. If I were to do it, things might get worse. But there is one thing I can guarantee."

Li Yun sneered, "Leave the 30,000 imperial guards to me. I will never let them die inexplicably at the hands of the rebels." Du Qian smiled bitterly and did not respond.

Li Yun looked up at Du Qian and continued, "There is one more thing I want to report to you, Lord Envoy."

Du Qian nodded: "That's what you said."

"I have received accurate intelligence that Zhao Cheng, a subordinate of the traitor Qiu Dian, has begun to attack Wuzhou. I was once ordered to garrison Wuzhou for a period of time. The total number of troops in Wuzhou is no more than 500, and none of them have ever experienced a battle."

"Within a few days, the capital of Wuzhou will surely be breached by the rebels. By then, the rebels will occupy Wuzhou and may become another Qiu Dian."

At this point, Li Yun looked up at Du Qian and whispered, "Envoy, it won't be long before this news reaches you, and it won't be long before it reaches Zheng Guancha. If Zheng Guancha orders us to send troops from Yuezhou to rescue Wuzhou, Envoy, no matter what..."

"Drag it up!"

Du Qian was stunned and said, "How can I delay such an order?"

Li Yun smiled and said, "Others may not be able to do it, but Envoy Gu may be able to do it. That Zheng Guancha, no matter what, should give some face to Du Shangshu, right?"

Du Qian looked at Li Yun with a strange expression. After a long while, he shook his head and sighed, "Sima Li has even taken Du's family background into account."

"It can't be called calculation."

Li Yun said calmly, "Sir, you are the governor of Yuezhou, not the chief governor of Jiangdong. Your mission at this moment should first be to protect our Yuezhou. Zhao Cheng is from Yuezhou, and most of his subordinates are also from Yuezhou. He did not attack Yuezhou, but attacked Wuzhou. His intention is self-evident."

"He's aiming at Yuezhou!"

"At this time, if the envoy can't hold on, our Yuezhou will be forced to send troops to Wuzhou, which will be exactly what Zhao Cheng wants. Once the Yuezhou army loses its combat effectiveness, with Zhao Cheng's ability, the entire Jiangdong will find it difficult to stop him. At that time, to put it mildly, he will be another Qiu Dian."

"To put it bluntly, he might be another Wang Junping!"

Governor Du touched his chin, thought for a while, then nodded slowly and said, "Okay, if the Zheng government assigns this matter to me, I will try my best to fight for it. For us in Yuezhou, we should focus on self-protection."

Li Yun stood up and clasped his fists, saying, "In that case, thank you very much, sir."

"The war is coming, and I still have many things to do. I will not disturb you any more. I will take my leave!"

Du Qian stood up to see Li Yun off and accompanied him all the way to the gate of the governor's office. Then he watched Li Yun walk away before he put his hands behind his back and silently returned to his study.

In the study, Du Laian was grinding ink for his master. When he saw Du Qian coming back, he quickly closed the door and couldn't help saying, "This Li Yun, how could he come here to report something to the master? He's clearly assigning tasks to you, the master!"

"It's abominable, extremely abominable!"

Du Qian glanced at him and said calmly, "This governor's office is full of his people. If he hears this, he will capture you tonight and skin you alive."

Du Laian was startled, and quickly ran to the door to take a look, then heaved a sigh of relief and said with a wry smile: "Sir, why are you scaring people?"

"Since you are afraid, why are you still talking nonsense?"

Du Qian smiled silently, lowered his head and looked at the white paper in front of him, his expression calm: "In Yuezhou now, even if they are in charge, it is normal to assign tasks. After all, now the court..."

"It's no longer any use."

"At least, they are still calling us Envoy and not putting a knife on our necks."

Du Laian became even more nervous after hearing this. He moved a bench and sat next to his son, whispering, "Son, let's find a way to return to the capital. Living here is really scary..."

"Go back to the capital, so you don't have to be so scared?"

Du Qian glanced at his servant, then looked out the window and sighed, "Come on, An."

Du Laian responded quickly.

Du Qian was silent for a moment, and then continued, "There is no place in the world where people can feel at ease."

"Our Yuezhou's Li Sima..."

Du Qian suddenly looked up and out the window, muttering.

"It's very different."

(End of this chapter)