Thief Emperor

Chapter 728 Luoyang Night Battle
For the Qinghe Cui family, which had been glorious for a thousand years, Cui Shao was not really a promising person now. Therefore, when he went to the Cui family to ask to see Prime Minister Cui, he was not even able to see Cui Yuan.

It was not until the evening, when it was completely dark, that Cui Shao was brought into the Cui family's house from the back road and met Cui Yuan who was reading in the study.

"uncle."

Cui Shao bowed respectfully and said, "Nephew greets uncle."

Cui Yuan looked up at Cui Shao, was silent for a while, and sighed, "Let's talk about the matter."

Seeing Cui Yuan's attitude, Cui Shao couldn't help feeling unhappy. He looked up at the man with the highest status in the Cui family and whispered, "Uncle, the Qinghe Cui family has been scattered in times of turmoil for thousands of years. Why are you so cold to me?"

"Since the Shuofang Army entered the city, many wealthy families in the capital have suffered losses, but the Cui family is the only one that remains unscathed. Isn't this the child's credit?"

Cui Yuan said expressionlessly: "If it weren't for this, how could I let you in?"

"Fortunately, you were sensible enough not to break in during the day, otherwise..."

"As soon as you bring someone in, I will drink poison and commit suicide."

Cui Shao stood there in a daze, and said with a wry smile: "Uncle looks down on the Shuofang Army so much..."

"I just don't like the Shuofang Army."

Cui Yuan said slowly: "However, my vision may not be correct. Since you have identified the father and son of the Wei family, it is up to you. However, I still want to tell you my opinion."

"Wei Quanzhong has no qualities that would make him a ruler. Even if he were lucky enough to become emperor and rule a region, it would only last for 10 to 20 years, or one or two generations."

"Not for long."

Cui Yuan looked up at Cui Shao and said slowly: "Since you have chosen the Wei family, you can use this as a stepping stone. If you are in a high position and plan to move to another place in the future, you will have something to talk about."

"Otherwise, I can't see any benefit."

Cui Shao was silent for a long time, then lowered his head and said, "Uncle, please give me some advice. What will I do in the future?"

"I have made it very clear."

Cui Yuan said calmly: "You can't get away now, so just do what you have to do. If Wei Quanzhong asks you to kill my family tomorrow, don't hesitate."

"There aren't many people left in the Cui clan of the capital. I have basically sent them all away. Even if all of the remaining people die, they can only help to fulfill my posthumous reputation."

Cui Shao shook his head and said, "No matter how stupid General Wei is, he will not kill my uncle."

"It's his business whether to kill him or not. I'm just giving you an example."

Cui Yuan lowered his head to drink tea and continued, "Also, we need to find a way to leave some roots for ourselves."

"Send him back to Qinghe, or have someone find him a place without disputes to raise him well."

Cui Xianggong sighed and said, "My brother died early, and you are my only son. If he stops smoking, when I see him in the future, he will blame me for not taking good care of his children and grandchildren."

Cui Shao was shocked and whispered, "Uncle, Qinghe is not safe either. The world is so big, where is there no conflict?"

"Koto."

Cui Xianggong had a calm expression and said calmly, "Qi Lang and Ba Lang moved to Jiangdong last year, but they never served as officials in Jiangdong."

The seventh and eighth sons of the Cui family are both sons of Mr. Cui Yuan.

Cui Shao took a deep breath and lowered his head and said, "Uncle..."

Cui Yuan said silently: "If you have a way to send someone over, then go ahead. They are cousins ​​of the same blood, they will not ignore us."

Cui Shao knelt on the ground, bowed his head and kowtowed, saying: "Thank you, uncle. Thank you, uncle."

He took a deep breath and asked again: "Uncle, may I ask, in your opinion, what is the general situation of the world?"

Minister Cui closed his eyes and was silent for a long time, then he said, "Now, the struggle in the Central Plains continues and it is still unclear. If Li Yun can gain a foothold in the Central Plains and resist the rest with his own strength, then the world will be settled again. Your generation will definitely see it."

Cui Shao asked: "What if he fails?"

Cui Yuan shook his head slightly and looked up at Cui Shao as if he was looking at a fool.

"That makes it clearer."

"The Northern and Southern Dynasties are separated, and Li Yun will establish the Southern Dynasty."

Cui Shao was startled and murmured: "The Northern Dynasty..."

Cui Xianggong sneered: "If we don't fight for a hundred years, I'm afraid no one can sit firmly in the Northern Dynasty!"

Cui Shao sat down on the ground and looked back outside the room. The Qingyang captain who had challenged him, the governor of Xuanzhou, appeared in his sight again. After a long time, he came back to his senses and murmured, "If I succeed, I will rule the world. If I fail, I will establish the foundation of the Southern Dynasty."

"That little Qingyang captain back then." Cui Shao took a breath of cold air.

“It’s really that bad!”

…………

Outside Luoyang City, the Jiangdong Army was launching another round of attacks. Li Yun and Meng Qing were watching the battlefield in Luoyang with binoculars. After watching for a long time, Li Yun put down the binoculars, patted Meng Qing on the shoulder, pointed in a direction, and said, "Look."

Meng Qing looked in the direction of Li Yun's finger, and saw a man on that section of the city wall, observing the battlefield with a telescope.

Meng Qing put down the telescope and looked up at Li Yun. Li Yun said slowly, "Looking at where he is standing, the clothes he is wearing, and the mirror in his hand, this man is most likely Wei Yao. He escaped from the previous battle in Yuzhou, but the two sides fought fiercely, so it is inevitable that some telescopes fell into their hands."

This was something Li Yun had anticipated early on. No matter how advanced and powerful something was, once it was put on the battlefield, a part of it would definitely fall into the hands of the enemy.

This was also the reason why he agreed to sell the telescope to the Xiao father and son in Fan Yang.

Meng Qing lowered his head slightly and said, "It's a pity that he is too far away and can't see his appearance clearly."

Li Yun glanced at him and scolded him with a smile: "Who told you to remember his appearance? I want to tell you to call a meeting with the generals of the scout camp. You must be more cautious when gathering information in the future."

"As more and more of these things happen, we will lose some of our advantage in looking further than others when we are scouting for information."

Meng Qing bowed his head and agreed, then looked at the sky and said, "My Lord, it is already evening, and today's siege is almost over."

Li Yun hummed, and said calmly: "After nightfall, they will definitely find a way to send someone to pass the message out. Keep an eye on it and try not to let anyone send the message out."

"Yes!"

Meng Qing nodded his head and went downstairs to make arrangements, while Li Yun went all the way back to his own tent and glanced at Zhang Sui who was handling paperwork.

"Scholar Bai has been following me for a few months and has turned into a black coal ball."

Zhang Sui stood up quickly and said with a wry smile, "I haven't been out much before, and I've seen the sun a lot recently, so it's inevitable that I'm a little darker."

"However, following the king has also helped me gain a lot of knowledge."

"At this point, many things that I didn't understand in books before are now self-explanatory."

Li Yun looked at him and said slowly, "This is a good thing. Go out more and see more, especially to see the sufferings of the people. When we return to Jinling this time, I will arrange for you to be a county magistrate to hone your skills."

At this time, no official in Jiangdong had risen from the bottom to the position of Zhongshu, but the rule that only officials from prefectures and counties could enter the Zhongshu had been clearly recorded. Zhang Sui naturally understood what Li Yun meant. He stood up, bowed deeply and said, "Thank you for your support!"

"Sit down, sit down."

Li Yun pressed his hand towards him, then sat at his seat to handle official business. He didn't realize that it was completely dark. When it was midnight, he finally finished reading all these miscellaneous things. Li Yun stood up and stretched, and said, "Write to Yao Zhongxing and tell him to prepare a group of talented and courageous young officials and send them to the vicinity of Luoyang. I want to use them."

Zhang Sui was startled, then immediately bowed his head and said, "I obey your command."

Li Yun rubbed his temple and was about to speak when a messenger suddenly trotted in from outside, half-knelt in front of Li Yun, and said with his head down: "Your Majesty, someone has broken through in Luoyang!"

"Breakout?"

Li Yun was stunned for a moment, then smiled happily: "How many people broke through?"

"It's too dark to see clearly, but there are definitely several thousand people. They are all advancing in one direction. Our encirclement is too evenly distributed, so it's hard to stop them. General Meng has already rushed to the battlefield."

Li Yun then frowned slightly and asked, "In which direction did you break out?"

"Southwest."

Li Yun thought for a moment and said, "The camps besieging Luoyang, those close to the southwest can provide support, and the rest of the battalions will remain stationary and continue to surround Luoyang."

"Immediately inform the Nine Departments and tell them to keep an eye on the marching route of this Shuofang army at all times, and then coordinate with the various armies and camps along the way."

At this point, Li Yun reached out and knocked on the table, saying in a cold voice: "Even if we can't eat it all, we have to eat most of it. I want to see how many people they are willing to die and how many people they can die in order to communicate with the outside world!"

"Yes!"

The messenger responded loudly, then bowed his head, clasped his fists and left.

Li Yun also stood up, looked back at Zhang Sui who was still writing, and said with a smile: "You black guy, stop writing and take a rest!"

Zhang Sui looked up at Li Yun, feeling a little helpless.

Li laughed heartily, left his tent with his hands behind his back, swiftly mounted his horse, and rushed to the battlefield.

At this time, the night was getting darker.

The fight intensifies!

(End of this chapter)