Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 406 Whose fault is it?
Wang Lin stood at the gate of the palace, his face puffing up and down with his breathing.

Wang Lin is not as serious as he appears, he is actually a very playful person with a cheerful and lively personality.

It was only because of a huge defeat that he became a little silent, but now, he is starting to return to his old self.

The soldiers on both sides looked at Wang Lin's appearance and did not know whether to laugh or cry.

"General, we are in front of the Imperial Palace. You cannot be so disrespectful."

Old man Wang looks gentle and refined, and looks like a romantic scholar no matter how you look at him. He likes to keep his hair long, which is so long that it hangs down to the ground. He looks like a celebrity and has a good family background, but he likes to hang out with people from the lower class.

He had been playing with the old soldiers since he was young. He despised money and valued loyalty. He never bullied others and could get along with anyone. He was on good terms with the old soldiers in the parade ground, gambled with the common people outside, and went to the countryside to chat with the wild people.

Therefore, a powerful prince emerged in the south. The soldiers were loyal to him and willing to fight to the death for him, and the people surrendered to him one after another, willing to become his soldiers and be ruled by him.

However, that was many years ago.

Despite his age now, Wang Lin still has a good reputation. Many of the soldiers who followed him and were burned did not even blame him, and the people who received his kindness still remember his kindness to this day.

Wang Lin sighed and pulled his beard again.

"what should I do."

Wang Lin was a little worried.

After Liu Taozi went to war, Wang Lin followed closely and sent troops from Guangzhou, making rapid progress all the way.

After he captured Gaoping, many of his confidants from the south advised him to stop.

They felt that reaching Gaoping and making great contributions would be enough.

Don't think about continuing the attack. If you continue the attack, firstly, you will need to recruit soldiers from all over the place, secondly, the area controlled by you will become too large, and thirdly, the credit will be too much to bear.

Given your special status, it’s better for you to stop here first.

Of course, Wang Lin couldn't help it.

Looking at the incompetent generals in those states and counties, he was really unwilling to miss such a good opportunity to attack. He directly divided his troops into multiple directions to attack, pushing all the way from Guangzhou to Luozhou. Many states and counties south of the river fell into his hands, at least for now.

"If His Majesty thinks that I was blinded by my military achievements and secretly recruited soldiers and attacked cities, how should I explain it to him?"

The officers on both sides were getting a little nervous. We have advised you so many times. Why do you need to worry only now?
The general said angrily: "General, just tell your majesty the truth and say that you are indeed blinded by your military achievements."

Wang Lin had a very close relationship with his soldiers. When he was a prince, he could remember the names of his soldiers. Whenever he met anyone, he would say the other person's name and have a cordial conversation with him.

He is like a good friend to the veteran players under his command and they trust each other.

Wang Lin was retorted by them, but she didn't get angry and just laughed.

"This is also my old habit. I can't sit still when I see an advantage. Your Majesty must trust me and is only worried about Zu Ting."

He still strode towards the palace.

The soldiers in the palace knew that he was coming, and someone took him all the way to a separate hall to the south of the temporary palace.

Liu Taozi and Zu Ting were sitting here with a map in front of them, and no one knew what they were talking about.

Seeing Wang Lin coming, Liu Taozi's eyes softened a little.

"Greetings to Your Majesty!!"

"Why should you be so polite, my lord? Please stand up and come here."

Liu Taozi was quite casual, so Wang Lin quickly walked to his side. Feeling Zu Ting's piercing gaze, Wang Lin put away his aura and sat down carefully again.

"The prince has recovered more than ten states and dozens of counties, and has made great contributions."

Zu Ting interrupted and said, "Yes, all the prefectures and counties along the way from Guangzhou were occupied by people sent by princes. This Guangzhou army is close to the sea on one side and Jinyong City on the other. Now it is finally considered the largest prefecture in the world."

Wang Lin stood up in a hurry, "Your Majesty, I am not greedy for military merit, but the situation in various places was chaotic at that time. The people arranged by Dugu Yongye were desperate and began to plunder and kill people crazily in the local area. These are the foundations of your majesty in the future. I can't watch them destroy them. That's why I recruited some soldiers in the local area before I had time to report to the emperor, and then went to attack various places to stop those people's destruction. I am not..."

"I know."

"How can a rebel bring hundreds of people to pay homage to the monarch?"

Liu Taozi comforted.

Zu Ting also hurriedly said: "I didn't say that the prince wanted to rebel, and I don't know why the prince was so anxious to explain."

"All right!"

Liu Taozi interrupted Zu Ting. He looked at him calmly and said, "The lessons of the Zhou people are right before our eyes. How can we not learn from them?"

"The Zhou Kingdom was powerful, occupying 60% of the world, and had countless famous generals and counselors."

"But, because the emperor didn't trust the general, and the general didn't trust the emperor, they suffered repeated defeats."

"If Yuwen Yong believed in Da Xiwu, and Da Xiwu also believed in Yuwen Yong, could Yao Xiong still reach Chang'an alive?"

"Grandfather, don't mention this again in the future."

Zu Ting looked solemn and stood up and said yes.

Wang Lin also hurriedly lowered his head, "Your Majesty, this will definitely not happen again in the future."

"No problem."

Liu Taozi waved his hand and said, "I know very well what kind of people these provincial governors and prefects arranged by Dugu Yongye are. It is right to get rid of them as soon as possible."

"As I walked along the way, I saw many villages in ruins. The city was filled with disaster victims. Several mountain passes nearby were full of thieves, and many wild animals dared to come down the mountain to look for food on the road."

"The sooner they die, the fewer people will die."

"Let's not talk about this matter for now. We were just discussing the Lianghuai issue."

"After the Kou Liu recovered Yuzhou, they encountered the army of Chunyu Liang of the State of Chen in Yongzhou and could not move forward."

"The Chen people are building forts and digging trenches along the east and west sides of Yangzhou, hoping to use this as a boundary to protect the two Huai regions."

"What does the prince think?"

Wang Lin lowered his head and looked at the map beside him. Sure enough, it was a map of Lianghuai and many surrounding areas. The map was drawn a bit roughly and not very delicate.

Wang Lin asked someone to bring a pen and made some changes and additions to it.

Put down your pen only when you’ve finished.

"Your Majesty, the affairs of Lianghuai cannot be rushed."

"We have acquired too much land now. If we want to take over Lianghuai in one go,

Wang Lin frowned slightly, "I'm afraid Hebei can't afford so many places."

"Dugu Yongye has turned Henan into what it is today. I rushed all the way from Guangzhou, and the scenes along the way were shocking. I informed Guangzhou Governor Lu Yao of the incident."

Wang Lin took out a letter from his arms and handed it to Liu Taozi.

"This is Mr. Lu's reply. He said in the letter that even with Guangzhou's wealth, it is not easy to help these people. We have to ask the government for help."

"Your Majesty, now that dozens of states in Henan have fallen into our hands, this will not bring us any benefits, but will instead cause a huge gap in terms of food, supplies, and even manpower. How many troops will be needed just to garrison these areas?"

“Hebei is just starting to pick up.”

Zu Ting had known all this for a long time. He even knew that this was Yang Su's evil plot, the purpose of which was to suppress the development speed of the Han State.

The Han Kingdom could send out armies from four states at the same time just by relying on the grain from Hebei.

But now, with so many more mouths to feed, I’m afraid we won’t be able to send troops easily anymore.

As Zu Ting listened to Wang Lin's talk, the anger in his eyes grew more and more intense.

He felt a headache just thinking about disaster relief, spring planting and this year's winter.

The appointment of officials and the stationing of troops are even bigger problems.

Everything was going according to plan, and nothing went wrong. It was all because of Yang Su, who messed up all the plans.
If I were to catch that guy, I would cut him into pieces!!!

Chang'an. "This will not bring any benefits to Liu Taozi, but will create a huge gap. From food, materials, and military strength, all aspects will become a drag. He will not be able to send troops for at least three or four years. It took him five years to govern Hebei. Now he wants to govern Henan. Even if he has previous experience, what can he do? Farmland cannot be planted in spring and harvested in autumn. It takes at least three years to cultivate a piece of farmland."

At this moment, Yang Su was sitting in front of Yuwen Yong, talking freely.

What he said was almost the same as what Wang Lin said.

After Dugu Yongye was caught up, Yang Su was unwilling to follow them to die, so he mixed in with their families and fled the battlefield, leaving Dugu Yongye and Liu Taozi to fight to the death in the rear.

When the two sides were fighting, Yang Su abandoned his family and fled back to Zhou on horseback.

The first thing he did when he arrived home was to write a letter to inform the emperor of what happened in Luozhou. Then he changed horses and rushed to Chang'an at high speed.

Yang Su traveled almost day and night, changed several fast horses on the way, eliminated several bandits along the way, and returned to Chang'an alone.

Then he was arrested.

Because Yang Su had no evidence to prove his mistake.

Fortunately, when Yuwen Yong learned that he had returned, he immediately ordered him to be brought here.

At this moment, Yang Su had become extremely thin, without any flesh on his body. This made him look taller, but his sunken face also made him look even more frail.

He analyzed the current situation for Yuwen Yong very seriously.

"Liu Taozi will not seize Hedong, nor will he send troops to Chang'an. He will try to end the war in the north as soon as possible, and then govern the country internally."

"Yanzhou is not that important to them. What they value is Xiazhou. We can take this opportunity to recapture Yanzhou, but I'm afraid we won't be able to get Xiazhou."

"If we push too hard in the north, Liu Taozi might launch an offensive from Luozhou to reduce Gao Changgong's pressure. By then, we will be at a disadvantage."

"Therefore, we must also find a way to end the war. Duke Qi is too impatient and is determined to take back Xiazhou. I don't think he can do it, and it may even make the situation more critical."

Yuwen Yong just looked at Yang Su coldly.

After going through so many things, Yuwen Yong was still able to endure his temper and listen to his analysis instead of slapping him in the face. This proves that Yuwen Yong is indeed quite tolerant.

"Mr. Yang came all the way here just to tell me this?"

"It's not just that."

Yang Su could hear the emperor's displeasure, so he quickly cleared his throat and said loudly, "Your Majesty, we can no longer compete with Liu Taozi for supremacy in the north."

"From now on, we have to change our strategy and attack from the south."

"South?"

"Liu Taozi's generals in the north are brave and their soldiers are well-trained and difficult to defeat."

"Chen State currently occupies the Huai River and Huai River regions, and is particularly wary of Liu Taozi. Henan is Liu Taozi's new territory, and the troops are insufficient. If a provincial commander is assigned in the future, I'm afraid he won't be a difficult person to deal with. Liu Taozi's generals are already insufficient."

Yang Su first talked about the future, and then quickly changed his words.

"However, that is all in the future. There are two most important things at the moment. The first is to move the capital."

"The enemy has occupied Xiazhou and part of Yanzhou, so Chang'an is under the enemy's attack. The enemy also has a lot of cavalry. Chang'an can no longer be used as the capital."

"The second is the many domestic reform policies. This war has exposed many domestic problems."

Before Yang Su could finish his words, Yuwen Yong couldn't help but interrupted him.

"enough!"

Yuwen Yong stared at him, his eyes full of anger, "After so many things, you still haven't improved?"

"You say you don't worry about wealth, you're just afraid that there's too much wealth and it won't let you go."

"What qualifications do you have to be called rich?!"

Yuwen Yong stood up and angrily reprimanded: "I saw that you are brave, courageous, and daring, so I sent you to Luozhou as an envoy, but all your strategies were defeated by the enemy, leading to your current fate!"

"You always look down on others, only believe in your own opinions, and don't care about other people's opinions at all."

"You don't feel guilty at all after suffering such a huge loss, and you still have the nerve to talk about reforming the outdated policies?!"

Yang Su looked at the emperor calmly, without much fear in his eyes.

He said, "I did make a mistake. First, I didn't expect Liu Taozi to be so capable of deceiving the people. Second, I didn't expect Duke Zheng to watch the enemy pass by under his nose."

"But if I wasn't there, Liu Taozi's main force would not be in Jinyong City, but in Chang'an."

"Besides, without me, Dugu Yongye in the south would have been killed by Duan Shao long ago. Duan Shao has always hated the Great Zhou, even more than Liu Taozi. If he knew that Liu Taozi had sent troops to Chang'an, would he send troops to attack Hebei, or would he take the opportunity to share the Great Zhou with Liu Taozi?!"

“Even if Duan Shao were to fight Liu Taozi, he only knows how to command troops but not government affairs. He is definitely not Liu Taozi’s opponent. He will not forcibly recruit a large army like Dugu Yongye did and impose forced labor. When Duan Shao is killed, Henan will remain intact and fall into Liu Taozi’s hands. Liu Taozi will own Hebei and Henan, with well-trained soldiers and sufficient food. Who in the world can compete with him?!”

Yang Su spoke in a loud voice to the emperor.

The eunuchs around were all stunned.

Yang Su was not afraid at all. He said loudly, "When I advised Your Majesty to use the army, I told Your Majesty clearly that you can let the Duke of Qi be the commander-in-chief, and let the Duke of Yun assist him. The two of them will go out together to attack Gao Changgong with a large force, and we will definitely gain something!"

"But how did your Majesty do it?"

"Your Majesty sent five dukes and more than a dozen generals at once. They fought against each other and no one was willing to give in."

"Even a mediocre person like me knows that a conflict among generals is a taboo in a war, but Your Majesty insisted on doing so and did not listen to my advice at all."

"Because the generals were not on the same page and could not make any breakthroughs in the face of Gao Changgong, the subsequent events occurred. Can this be said to be my fault?"

Yuwen Yong felt a black screen before his eyes, his forehead kept throbbing, and his hands began to tremble.

He picked up the document in front of him and threw it at Yang Su.

The document hit Yang Su right on the head. Before Yang Su could react, the guards on both sides rushed up and pressed him to the ground.

What he said was really exaggerated!

Almost all of them pointed the finger at Yuwen Yong and attributed the failure of the war to the emperor.

Isn't this courting death? ?
Yang Su was still not afraid and kept talking. The warriors were so angry that they blocked his mouth. Yang Su stopped talking then.

This is not the first time Yang Su has done this.

Previously, Yuwen Yong had said that he was not allowed to write any more letters, but he wrote three times in a row. Yuwen Yong was furious and wanted to kill him. He dared to shout in front of everyone: "I deserve to die for serving such an unjust and incompetent emperor like you!"

Later, Yuwen Yong advised him to work hard and seize wealth and honor. He said to the emperor arrogantly: "I am not afraid of not finding wealth and honor, but I am afraid that wealth and honor will come to force me."

And now this is the third time.

Yuwen Yong pointed at the treacherous minister and shouted, "Come here, take this bastard out of the palace and beat him to death with the hilt of a knife!!"

"His Majesty!!"

Gao Jiong rushed in hurriedly, gasping for air, and ran all the way to the emperor's side. Looking at Yang Su, whose mouth was blocked and who was whimpering, Gao Jiong felt even more helpless.

"Your Majesty, Yang Su has an upright character and is young and ignorant of etiquette. Please consider that his father died for the country and pardon his death penalty."

Yuwen Yong took a deep breath and forced himself to suppress his rage.

"Give him fifty strokes of the cane! Also, strip him of his official title, change him into soldier's clothes, and send him to the Duke of Qi as a foot soldier! Without my decree, you are not allowed to promote him!"

Gao Jiong breathed a sigh of relief, but he didn't dare to let anyone take the cloth out of Yang Su's mouth, so he took him away.

Yuwen Yong stayed where he was, still very angry.

How dare this guy say that all this is my fault? ?
Yuwen Yong sat at his desk, thinking for a long time, but the anger on his face became less and less.

It seems that he is not wrong.

At the beginning, he did suggest that Yuwen Xian go alone.

I thought Yuwen Xian was no match for Gao Changgong, so I sent so many people, hoping to kill Gao Changgong by sheer numbers.
"Someone is coming!"

"Restore Yang Su's position as the Chief of the Military Office, and lead the old soldiers under his father's command to fight the enemy under the command of the Duke of Qi."

(End of this chapter)