Fu Shanhe

Chapter 159 Lobbyist
Lianzhou Prefecture.

"Things are getting troublesome!"

Looking at the information in his hand, Li Mu couldn't help but sigh.

While launching the Eastern Expedition, the rebels also started the Western Expedition and the Northern Expedition.

Although only a small force was sent out, they could not resist the cooperation of the local White Lotus Sect members.

The war spread from Guangdong and Guangxi to Yunnan, Guizhou, Huguang and other regions, and it was almost a foregone conclusion.

If the chaos spreads to five provinces, it will be the end of the dynasty and will seriously shake the ruling foundation of Dayu.

"Why, Guangzhou Prefecture fell?"

Jing Yifeng's words left Li Mu speechless.

"Uncle Qi, can't you just hope that the situation gets better?"

If the rebels split up, the war would spread to five provinces.

If Guangzhou falls, Fujian and Jiangxi will also be caught up in the war.

Throughout history, whenever there was a multi-province rebellion, the dynasty was not far away.

As vested interests, once Dayu collapses, both the Jing and Li families will have no hope of a good life.

"You scared me, you acted so serious, I thought Guangzhou had fallen.

Isn’t it just that the rebels are divided? The armies of Huguang and Yunnan and Guizhou can’t defeat the main force of the rebels, and they can’t even deal with a small group of troops.

Relax, the sky isn't falling.

If you are really worried about the situation getting worse, then send troops to recapture Nanning Prefecture and Xunzhou Prefecture to share some of the pressure for them.

After staying in Lianzhou for such a long time, the soldiers have adapted to the climate of Guangxi.

Now that winter plowing is completed, the army has nothing to do but sit idle.

We should take this opportunity to pull the troops out to fight a battle. When the imperial envoy arrives, our words will carry more weight."

After taking the information and taking a glance at it, Jing Yifeng said carelessly.

This is the mainstream idea.

Except for a few people who sensed the danger, in the minds of most people, Dayu's kingdom was still very stable.

In the eyes of many people, the current White Lotus Rebellion is not as destructive as the previous rebellion of the Huai River and Huai River families.

The losses caused by the rebels were simply ignored by the officials.

After all, Guangxi is a money-losing province these days.

The taxes paid to the empire each year are less than half of the administrative expenses.

No matter how violent the fight is, the damage caused to Dayu will not be that great.

If the rebels had not spread the war to Guangdong, the imperial court might not have taken it seriously.

"As for the Imperial Envoy, you can go and sell it on your own, and don't drag me into it.

Previously, when suppressing the Lianghuai rebellion, the Wucheng Bingmasi and Xu Ge Lao had a big fight.

Although the prime minister is a man of great generosity, I would rather not go there as it would be an eyesore."

Li Mu said with a depressed look on his face.

He followed Marquis Wuyang, so when the two bosses were fighting, he would definitely support his own boss.

When he was in Yangzhou Prefecture, he seriously offended Lord Xu.

At this moment, Lord Xu has been appointed as the governor of five provinces. He has not even had time to lower his presence, so how could he take the initiative to get closer?

Of course, it is not completely impossible to sell well in the past.

As one of the main forces suppressing the rebellion, he has elite troops under his command and is worth winning over.

In the face of interests, it is entirely feasible to temporarily put aside previous unpleasantness.

However, the most taboo in official circles is to play both sides. If he goes to please Lord Xu now, he will definitely offend Marquis Wuyang.

In terms of power, Lord Xu is definitely much stronger than Marquis Wuyang.

The problem is that no matter how hard Li Mu tries, he can never enter Lord Xu's core circle.

On the contrary, on the side of Marquis Wuyang, he has become a trusted and trusted subordinate.

Rather than ruining your reputation and seeking short-term benefits, it is better to stay where you are.

"You were recommended by Marquis Wuyang, so it's really not appropriate for you to get too close to Lord Xu.

But there is no need to worry too much, as you were not deeply involved in the conflict between Marquis Wuyang and Lord Xu.

With the respect of the Jing and Li families, I don't think Lord Xu will deliberately target you."

Jing Yifeng spoke to comfort her.

If you encounter something like this, you can only blame yourself for your bad luck.

It is difficult to have a smooth life in official circles, and encountering setbacks is inevitable.

Relatively speaking, Li Mu's situation is pretty good.

He led the troops alone to open up a new battlefield and avoided a meeting with Lord Xu.

In this context, even if you want to make things difficult for him, you have to consider the consequences.

"Uncle Qi, don't worry!
I can still bear some small things.

Besides, Lord Xu’s departure from the capital this time was not voluntary.

I guess what he wants most now is to clean up this mess as soon as possible and return to the power center in the capital.

If we fail to return to the capital before His Majesty takes power, we will surely suffer a great loss in this round of power reshuffle.

The current situation on the battlefield is not good. None of the governors in charge of military affairs knows anything about military affairs.

Unfortunately, Lord Xu himself does not know how to command troops, and it is still unknown whether he can quell this rebellion in time. "

Li Mu was speechless about Dayu's personnel appointments.

The situation in the south is dangerous, and we need to send a minister of importance to supervise the troops. At least send someone with strong military capabilities!

Lord Xu, who came from a clean family, was a well-known writer throughout the world.

Asking him to dispatch troops from various provinces to quell the rebellion seems like he is just trying to create chaos in the world.

However, this is Li Mu's personal opinion. In the eyes of outsiders, this is just an ordinary personnel appointment.

It is the tradition of Dayu to control the military with civil power. Only when the military and political power of the five provinces is handed over to a civil official can the emperor sleep well.

……

"What's going on outside? Why is it so lively?"

Xu Wenyue, who was lying on the hospital bed, asked doubtfully.

In order to save time, he did not dawdle on the road this time. He traveled south by boat, and finally fell ill on the eve of arriving in Wuchang due to the heavy burden.

"Sir, we have arrived at Wuchang Prefecture. Officials from Huguang are waiting to greet us at the dock."

Hou Huaichang opened his mouth and answered.

For Xu Wenyue personally, moving south from the capital was a failure in his struggle for power.

But to the outside world, he is still a powerful minister.

This time when he went south to lead the army, he not only served as the governor-general of five provinces, but also carried the imperial sword bestowed by the emperor.

He has the power of life and death over civil and military officials below the third rank.

“Let them all go back.

The country is in a difficult situation, but everyone is not thinking about being loyal to the country and is doing these useless things. What a joke!"

Xu Wenyue said with a frown.

As a representative of the Chu Party, this time he went south to lead the troops, which was considered a return to his hometown.

Precisely because he was back at his old lair, he needed to avoid suspicion.

Especially now that he is still in bed, meeting everyone in this state would undoubtedly damage his own dignity.

"My Lord, it would be a bad idea to send them all away!
Otherwise, leave a few people behind to understand the situation first.

From the look on the face of the Huguang governor, it seems that there is something important that he needs to report to you."

Hou Huaichang made a suggestion.

There are also close and distant relatives in official circles, and one should always show more preferential treatment to one's own people.

Xu Wenyue's condition is not serious.

According to the doctor, the main reason was that he had caught a cold from sailing for several days and he would recover after resting on land for a few days.

"Then let the governor, provincial governor, and provincial judge stay, and send the rest away.

Tell the Huguang governor to arrange accommodation nearby. I like the view of the Yangtze River."

After saying that, Xu Wenyue got up from the bed, and two maids came over to help him dress.

……

Hengzhou Prefecture.

"Brother Zhou, you have come from afar. I wonder what you are doing here?"

Meng Zeyang asked with concern.

He really didn't want to see the person in front of him.

Ever since the White Lotus Religion in Guangxi rebelled and proclaimed itself emperor, the imperial court has stepped up its crackdown on the sect.

Once the bureaucrats take it seriously, their combat effectiveness will instantly rise to several levels.

In recent days, many White Lotus Sect members have been arrested and imprisoned in Hengzhou area.

For the sake of their lives, a number of White Lotus sect leaders chose to lie in hiding.

As the leader of the White Lotus Sect in Hengzhou, Meng Zeyang went into the mountains early.

He was avoiding both the imperial court's pursuit and the lobbyists from Guangxi.

It's not that he didn't have ambitions, it's simply that the court's pursuit was too strict and the time was not ripe for rebellion.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard I tried to hide, I was still found.

If nothing unexpected happened, it must be that one of his trusted subordinates could not resist the temptation and revealed his whereabouts to the visitor.

"Brother Meng, why do you have to ask when you already know the answer?
We are in the business of rebellion, and this time we came here to invite Brother Meng to join us in overthrowing the rule of the pseudo-dynasty."

Zhou Zekai replied calmly.

In the White Lotus sect, the presence of the Guangxi branch is not strong.

However, with the outbreak of the Guangxi Uprising, the situation suddenly reversed.

The Guangxi White Lotus Sect, with an army of one million, suddenly became the most powerful faction.

According to the current developments, there is already a possibility of taking over the world.

Strength determines the right to speak.

When meeting believers from other regions, a sense of superiority suddenly emerged.

"Brother Zhou, the situation in Huguang is different from that in Guangxi.

This is the granary of the world, and the imperial court attaches much more importance to Huguang than to Guangxi.

The power of the local gentry is not comparable to that of Guangxi.

If we make the slightest move, we will be reported to the authorities.

It is so difficult to start an uprising! "

Meng Zeyang complained decisively.

As a member of the White Lotus Sect, he naturally wanted to raise an army and overthrow the rule of Dayu.

However, the imperial court was keeping a close eye on them, and rebelling at this time would be a dead end.

“Brother Meng, there are indeed many risks if you rely solely on your strength.

But this time it’s different. The Holy Emperor sent Prince Dongping to the north to fight, and now he has reached Yongzhou Prefecture.

If Brother Meng responds now, we can send our elite troops to infiltrate and lend a helping hand.

By then, we can cooperate with the Northern Expedition Army and capture Yongzhou and Hengzhou Prefectures with almost no effort.

After pacifying the two places, the army went straight to Changsha Prefecture, and half of Huguang was ours.

The Holy Emperor is clear about rewards and punishments. If Brother Meng can accomplish such a great feat, it will be no problem for him to be made a marquis or a prime minister."

Zhou Zekai tried hard to make a promise.

It is not easy to be a lobbyist. Not only do you have to be able to make promises, but you also have to be able to make the other party believe it.

"Brother Zhou, has the Northern Expedition Army really reached Yongzhou?"

Meng Zeyang asked with concern.

Hiding in the mountains is certainly safe, but there will inevitably be delays in intelligence gathering.

He didn't have the courage to start an uprising alone.

But when Guangxi sent out the Northern Expedition Army, the situation was very different.

More than a month ago, the White Lotus Sect in Guangxi defeated the government troops in Huguang, which greatly boosted their fighting spirit.

(End of this chapter)