Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 359 I, Pei Yuan, never like to fight, but I like to end fights

(I revised the ending of yesterday and added more than 200 words. Those who read it earlier can read it again to connect with it.)
Lu Ting was a little panicked.

He asked himself.

I was the commander-in-chief of all the armies in the world, with an army of 200,000 men under my command. I was about to quell a rebellion that was sweeping the world and reach the peak of my life... How did I suddenly become a useless person that no one wanted?
The last time I felt this bad and outrageous was the last time.

Lu Ting closed his eyes tightly and opened them again.

The calm and serious face was still in front of me.

Just, just outrageous.

Lu Ting looked at Pei Yuan with some difficulty, not knowing how to express himself, "Brother, what is going on?"

Pei Yuan's harsh expression just now seemed a little unnatural.

Lu Ting is indeed a good brother, but the other party has paid money.

Moreover, preserving that small group of elite troops of the Bazhou Army would be of great benefit to Pei Yuan.

Pei Yuan could only sigh and say, "Eunuch Lu, the Bazhou Army is now at the end of its rope and has been forced to the riverside. If we push them too hard and they choose to escape directly from Tuanfeng Town, then the Bazhou Army will certainly be wiped out somewhere, and this war will come to an end."

"But what does this have to do with you?"

"In fact, the easier it is for others to win, the worse my father-in-law looks."

"Does Eunuch Lu want to be like Gu Dayong, who only worked hard but was questioned for wasting money and food and working in vain?"

Lu Ting was left speechless by Pei Yuan's repeated words.

The previous high spirits disappeared in an instant.

Lu Ting almost subconsciously asked Pei Yuan, "Then what do you think we should do?"

Pei Yuan said firmly, "The most important thing for us now is to seize the victory."

"Instead of letting those bandits run around and turn your achievements... into someone else's."

Lu Ting stood up and walked to the sand table on the ground, looking at it in silence.

At this moment, he suddenly remembered what he had heard before, about Pei Yuan, the Nanjing Ministry of War, and the Bazhou rebels.

Lu Ting changed the subject and asked, "By the way, did the Hangzhou vanguard commander cause you any trouble after he came to Beijing last time?"

Pei Yuan said, "He just said goodbye to me a few days ago and has now gone south. He is now working for me."

Lu Ting was slightly surprised when he heard this, but it was also within his expectations.

It is indeed unrealistic for a small commander to sue Pei Yuan.

Lu Ting thought about it and went straight to the point, "My dear brother, you have hurried all the way from the capital this time, I believe you have come here for more than just these things. Given the relationship between you and me, if you have anything to say, you can just speak to me."

Pei Yuan also knew that after this trip today, some things might be difficult to hide.

But he's not afraid either.

As long as Lu Ting can't control his selfishness and chooses to cooperate, Pei Yuan's secret will become their common secret.

Pei Yuan considered it for a moment and said cautiously, "I, Pei Yuan, have never liked fighting, but I like to end fights."

Lu Ting thought to himself that it was true.

Thinking of Jie Dou, he first subconsciously thought that Pei Yuan was here to intercede for the Bazhou rebels. But looking at what Pei Yuan said before, it was clear that he had the idea of ​​planning a complete victory for himself.

He simply stopped thinking about it and stared at Pei Yuan and asked, "So how do you plan to end the fight, brother?"

Who would have thought that Pei Yuan's first sentence would make Lu Ting a little confused.

"We must not let the Bazhou rebels escape again. The Bazhou rebellion must be ended by Eunuch Lu."

Pei Yuan looked at Lu Ting seriously and said, "Right now, right here."

Lu Ting's original assumptions and assumptions were suddenly disrupted.

He looked at Pei Yuan in surprise and asked uncertainly, "What do you mean, brother?"

Pei Yuan said to Lu Ting sternly, "Brother Lu, since we are being honest, tell me honestly, do you have a way to capture Tuanfeng Town before the Bazhou Army?"

Lu Ting looked at the map on the ground, thinking about the battle strength comparison between the two sides, and shook his head with difficulty, "I'm afraid it's not possible. They are closer. If we want to seize Tuanfeng Town, we have to hurry."

"The imperial army has been fighting for more than a year and has long been exhausted. It has lost the ability to advance quickly."

"If they really try to fight the Bazhou Army, they will just have to fight with their backs against the wall, and there is a chance that they will be overturned."

If Pei Yuan wanted to persuade Lu Ting, he naturally had to make him face the reality. "In other words, the expected result is that the Bazhou army may be destroyed in a very short time, but the credit is likely to be taken by the boat divisions and guards along the river. Eunuch Lu should agree with this judgment."

Lu Ting nodded with difficulty.

Pei Yuan then asked Lu Ting, "Eunuch Lu, do you think that those bandit leaders of the Bazhou Army can't see through what we can see through?"

"When they were in Huaibei, they resisted the siege of Gu Dayong and Lu Wan and refused to move south for a long time in order to avoid being forced into the Huaihe River Basin, which has a complex water network."

"Anyone with a discerning eye can see clearly what the current situation is like."

Lu Ting thought to himself, that’s hard to say. I was happy before you came.

As I thought about it, I felt a little depressed.

However, Lu Ting still agreed with Pei Yuan's judgment, so he said, "Liu Liu and Liu Qi may be ruffians, but the deputy commander Zhao Sui is a man of strategy. It should be as you said."

Pei Yuan said, "Then let's look at this matter from the perspective of the Bazhou rebels."

"Whether they leave or stay, they are basically dead. And as long as they choose to go to Tuanfeng Town to seize the warships, it basically means that they will abandon the tens of thousands of auxiliary soldiers and their families who follow them and flee."

"But no matter how they decide, the difference is only a matter of dying sooner or later. What do you think, Eunuch Lu?"

Lu Ting thought about it and nodded, "That should be the case."

Pei Yuan said in a matter-of-fact tone, "Since they are going to die anyway, what difference does it make in whose hands they die? In this case, why can't we help Eunuch Lu?"

Lu Ting couldn't help but nod his head after hearing what Pei Yuan said.

Indeed!
I've put so much effort into this, and if the Bazhou Army just goes looking for someone else to kill them, I'll be so frustrated.

Pei Yuan then revealed a little bit of his purpose, "In this case, the two sides can actually talk about it."

Pei Yuan spoke tactfully, and his words were all in favor of Lu Ting, leaving no room for any evidence.

If you want to reveal more, it depends on what response Lu Ting gives.

Lu Ting subconsciously asked, "How do we talk?"

Seeing Pei Yuan was silent, Lu Ting was also a smart man and knew that it was time to express his attitude.

If you want others to talk about such a serious matter, you must of course give a clear attitude.

Lu Ting immediately said, "I have always regarded Brother Pei as my confidant, and I have just said it to everyone. What Brother Pei thinks is what I think. What Brother Pei means is what I mean. Just speak your mind."

Pei Yuan then said to Lu Ting, "I plan to let the Bazhou army surrender and help Brother Lu achieve his goal!"

Lu Ting was surprised when he heard this, "How is this possible?"

Pei Yuan looked calm, "Well, I also think it's impossible."

Then he smiled and said, "Then let's discuss something possible."

Lu Ting cursed inwardly.

However, Pei Yuan's words also led him to lower his unrealistic expectations.

He has already begun to think about what conditions he can offer.

But the situation is like this, many things are no longer something he can decide.

Lu Ting reminded Pei Yuan, "The bandit leaders must die. This is what His Majesty specifically requested."

"Oh?" Pei Yuan was silent after hearing that.

The result was already within his expectations, but Pei Yuan didn't mind putting some more pressure on Lu Ting.

Lu Ting did feel some pressure. No matter what conditions he offered, those vicious bandit leaders would never accept them if their lives could not be guaranteed.

Could it be that this unprecedented achievement was lost just like that?

Lu Ting was just worrying about the outcome when he heard Pei Yuan ask, "Which leaders does the emperor want?"

Lu Ting was stunned for a moment, thinking that this was not a secret. With Pei Yuan's ability, how could he not know it?

So he said casually, "It's those people, Liu Liu, Liu Qi, Zhao Sui, Qi Yanming..."

As Lu Ting was talking, Pei Yuan suddenly stopped him and said, "Wait a minute."

Lu Ting stopped and looked at Pei Yuan in confusion.

Pei Yuan looked at Lu Ting and said, "Qi Yanming is dead."

Lu Ting frowned and directly retorted, "How is that possible? A few days ago, Qi Yanming led a large group of cavalry to cut off the rear supply route."

Pei Yuan smiled and said, "Qi Yanming is really dead. Now Qi Yanming is just a bandit who calls himself Qi Yanming."

Lu Ting was surprised, "Brother, what nonsense are you talking about?"

Pei Yuan looked at Lu Ting, "The Nanjing Military Department reported to the court that they had killed the great bandit Qi Yanming during the counterattack against the bandit army in Huainan. An imperial censor has confirmed the merit and sent Qi Yanming's head to the capital."

"Wang Chang, the Nanjing Minister of War who made this great contribution, has been promoted to Right Censor-in-Chief and transferred to the post of Governor of Shandong."

Pei Yuan looked at Lu Ting meaningfully, "Eunuch Lu, Qi Yanming is already dead, otherwise it would be difficult to end it."

Lu Ting was furious, "How can this be possible."

According to Pei Yuan's original idea, when the time came to protect Qi Yanming, he would use his own face to protect him.

Lu Ting’s current success is inseparable from Pei Yuan’s help, and Qi Yanming alone cannot affect Lu Ting’s great contribution.

There is a high probability that Lu Ting will do a favor.

Pei Yuan had other intentions at the moment, so naturally he was unwilling to use his favors to make this happen.

So he said to Lu Ting, "Eunuch Lu is naturally angry, but doesn't Eunuch Lu have anything to gain from this matter?"

Lu Ting was a smart man, and he quickly realized what was going on. "You mean, we can do this, too?"

Now that things have come to this, Pei Yuan has nothing to hide anymore.

"Indeed. As long as we kill the fake Bazhou thief commander, those real things will become fake."

Lu Ting quickly shook his head, "No, no. Liu Liu and Liu Qi are well-known bandits. How could the court treat such a thing as a joke? Besides, if Liu Liu and Liu Qi show up again in the future, we will be in trouble."

Pei Yuan advised Lu Ting, "What is there to worry about? Liu Liu and Liu Qi are in such a bad situation now, isn't it because they are so famous that they attracted 200,000 troops to chase them and fight them?"

"They should have given up those unrealistic fantasies by now. How can they have the courage to do things under such a name in the future?"

Seeing that Lu Ting's brows were still furrowed, Pei Yuan continued, "Besides, even if we killed the real Liu Liu and Liu Qi, can you guarantee that there won't be thieves who want to make a big splash and come out one after another to impersonate them?"

"The Chu general Xiang Yan and Prince Fusu have been dead for many years, but aren't they still being used as a banner to recruit soldiers?"

"This kind of thing is unavoidable. If that's the case, why not use it to seek benefits for you, my father-in-law?"

"This..." Lu Ting hesitated and whispered to Pei Yuan, "I'm just afraid that I can't hide it from everyone in the world."

Pei Yuan laughed and said, "Why do we need to hide it from the world? As long as the emperor believes it and the court believes it, isn't that enough?"

Lu Ting felt a little annoyed after hearing this, "It's so rare that it's here. It's hard to explain to the court and the emperor."

Pei Yuan thought about it, then asked Lu Ting from a different angle, "You defeated the Bazhou rebels, and the military commanders who followed the army will be rewarded according to their merits, and even many of them will be given titles of marquis. Will they question you?"

Lu Ting followed Pei Yuan's line of thought and answered, "Of course not."

Pei Yuan said, "Not only that, they will also do their best to protect the results of this rebellion."

Pei Yuan continued, "I just heard you say that the court promised the county officials in charge of logistics that as long as the Bazhou Army was pacified, there would be additional rewards. Would these people jump out and question you for no reason?"

Lu Ting said, "Neither will I."

Pei Yuan said, "The Minister of War Lu Wan is leading the troops in the army. Has he ever seen Liu Liu, Liu Qi, Zhao Sui and others?"

Lu Ting thought for a moment and said, "The Chief Censor is a civil servant and has never been on the battlefield, so he probably doesn't know."

Pei Yuan said, "As the military commander and chief censor, Lu Wan's contribution this time can be compared with that of Eunuch Lu. If he steps out to question his victory, will he allow people who don't know the truth to slander him?"

Lu Ting shook his head.

Pei Yuan counted on his fingers and said, "The generals of the front army, local officials, and the Ministry of War will all protect the results of this battle..."

Seeing Pei Yuan so confident, Lu Ting couldn't help but think that although his brother's plan was thorough enough, it was still immature.

So he interrupted and reminded, "Brother, you forgot the most crucial point. The Censorate is also keeping an eye on this matter!"

"All the military achievements of the front army must be reviewed by the censors of the Censorate before they can be recognized. Although Lu Wan is now called the Right Censor-in-Chief, that is just an honorary title, in order to prevent being hindered."

"Once we want to verify our achievements, we need the Supervisory Censor of the Metropolitan Censorate or the Recorder of Merits to personally confirm it. If they find any clues and pursue us relentlessly, I'm afraid we will be exposed immediately. By then, let alone being credited, I'm afraid we will be in trouble because of this."

(End of this chapter)