Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 453: Always a loyal minister

"His Majesty!!"

Xu Yuan trembled as he bowed to Liu Taozi.

This Governor Xu is the oldest governor under Liu Taozi's command and is already 76 years old this year.

At the same time, he was probably the most experienced governor under Liu Taozi, and was one of the people who followed Gao Huan to conquer the world.

Xu Yuan looked at the majestic king in front of him, smiled and shook his head, "They are similar in appearance but not in spirit. They are inspired by the master but are better than the master."

"Taozhi does have a good son."

Zu Ting immediately refuted, "How dare you! How dare you call the old man by his name!!"

Liu Taozi grabbed his hand again, looked at him cautiously, and shook her head slightly.

Zu Ting was scared.

It was the first time he saw Liu Taozi warn him so solemnly. The lord's eyes were sharp and frightening.

He fell silent instantly, took a few steps back and lowered his head.

Liu Taozi pointed to the distance and said, "Mr. Xu, can you come with me to another room to discuss this?"

The three of them walked over there together. Xu Yuan walked very slowly, so Liu Taozi asked Zu Ting to support him. Zu Ting did not dare to object. The three of them walked into the house. A guard lit a lamp and brought some soup. The three of them sat down.

Only then did Xu Yuan take out the document from his arms.

"After Your Majesty conquered Chang'an, the officials of the prefectures and counties on the border were extremely frightened. Six of them, including a governor and five county magistrates, secretly wrote to the emperor, wanting to surrender."

"This is the original letter. Your Majesty, please take a look."

Xu Yuan handed the documents to Liu Taozi, who lowered his head and began to read them.

Zu Ting was sitting not far away, angry but not daring to speak. "Mr. Xu, you know that documents like this should be submitted to me first, and then reported to Your Majesty. How can you report it directly to Your Majesty?"

"The provincial governor is the eyes and ears of the emperor. I have never heard that the provincial governor's report has to go through the minister."

Xu Yuan glanced at Zu Ting and said with a smile: "Besides, I don't trust you at all. You are a person with very poor morals. If these things fall into your hands, it will not be the Zhou officials who asked for surrender, but the merit of you, Zu Ting, sending people to persuade them to surrender."

Zu Ting was so angry that he started laughing.

At this moment, he was already thinking of ninety-nine ways to kill Xu Yuan.

Liu Taozi finished reading these and then handed them to Zu Ting who picked them up and looked at them.

Liu Taozi asked, "What do you think, Lord Xu?"

"These performances cannot be fake."

"After Your Majesty conquered Chang'an, Yuwen Xian was in a hurry to return to his army. He couldn't possibly have arranged any means of false surrender and counterattack. Moreover, I have also seen these people who wanted to surrender. They were all the targets of suppression by Yuwen Yong in the past. Yuwen Yong sent clan members to serve as local officials, which made these people who inherited their fathers' official titles extremely dissatisfied. Now that Chang'an has been conquered, they are in a hurry to jump out and express their desire to submit."

"Judging from Yuwen Yong's many methods, although they were beneficial to the prosperity of the Zhou Kingdom, they offended too many people. Apart from the royal family and important officials, there were not many loyal people in the Zhou Kingdom, and the local people were divided."

"These people are really not good people. They cheated and abused their power in the local area for personal gain. However, considering the current situation, Your Majesty should not reject their surrender."

"If Your Majesty wants to raise a large army to destroy Zhou next year, it is easy to attack and kill the army, but it is not easy to take over this vast country in one fell swoop."

"I know your Majesty's character. Your Majesty will never tolerate such a villain. However, if your Majesty refuses this time, then in the future when you attack the enemy army, the local officials of Zhou will certainly be frightened and cause chaos in the local area, just like the Henan area in the past. I don't know how many people will be killed or injured."

"I think that Your Majesty might as well tolerate these villains first, and wait until the Zhou Kingdom is destroyed and the land of Zhou Kingdom is completely taken over. After the situation stabilizes, you can take action to deal with these people."

"Your Majesty, just let Zu Ting handle this kind of thing. He is the best at it."

Zu Ting seemed to agree with what he heard at first, but when he heard this, his face turned gloomy again.

"So, Lord Xu hopes that I can accept these people's surrender and let them continue to hold local official positions?"

"No, we will just accept their surrender. After they surrender, Your Majesty will just need to make proper arrangements for them, even if it means sending someone to replace their governors, and they will not rebel."

"Now is the best time to cool down and wait for the best weather."

"Yuwen Xian is too busy to take care of himself, and there are traitors in these two states who are willing to surrender. We only need to send a brave general with light cavalry to pacify these two states immediately."

Xu Yuan spoke very carefully.

While he was speaking, he started coughing from time to time, very frequently, and his voice became increasingly hoarse.

Even Zu Ting noticed something was wrong at this moment.

Xu Yuan said very sincerely: "Your Majesty, the East and the West have been confronting each other for many years, and we have never had such an advantage. Chang'an has been destroyed, and the Zhou people are about to perish. The more at this time, the more cautious we should be. When we followed King Gao, we had many opportunities to pacify the bandits, but each time we were defeated miserably at the most critical moment when we were about to succeed. I hope Your Majesty can remember these things and tell the generals not to be careless and to attack with all their strength to destroy the pseudo-Zhou!! "

Looking at Xu Yuan who started coughing again.

Liu Taozi said softly: "Okay."

There are still important matters to discuss, but Xu Yuan's health can't take it anymore.

Liu Taozi wanted to send someone to send him back, but Xu Yuan wanted Zu Ting to send him back, so Liu Taozi agreed.

Zu Ting narrowed his eyes and supported Xu Yuan as they walked out little by little.

The man walked very slowly, but Zu Ting said nothing.

"Is Zu Xiaozheng thinking about how to deal with me?"

Xu Yuan suddenly asked.

Zu Ting replied indifferently: "It seems that there is no need for me to take any more action."

"You have a good eye."

"Three months ago, the doctor said that my time had come. I have managed to hold on until today. Who knows, I might collapse and never get up again. It could be today or tomorrow."

"That's why I asked you to send me off. If I don't say anything while we're walking, won't you be in trouble?"

Zu Ting was not afraid either, he just laughed again.

"I really can't remember when I offended you"

"At the beginning, King Gao held a banquet and invited you to attend as a soldier. He valued you so much. But you stole something at the banquet. King Gao was furious and the banquet ended unhappily."

"But you forgot?"

"If you say so, there is not a single official in the world that I have not offended."

Xu Yuan's expression suddenly became solemn.

"These days, I have been taking medicine and seeking medical treatment constantly. Do you know why?"

"The public is afraid of death."

"No."

"I have also killed enemies and made great contributions on the battlefield. Why should I be afraid of death?"

"But the situation in the world has come to this point. Your Majesty is leading the army in the front and I am in the rear. I have to protect my life and provide food and supplies. I can't have any shortages. I also have to be careful about the letters from all over the country and collect them in time."

"Zu Xiaozheng!"

Xu Yuan said in a stern voice: "When I was under the command of King Gao, King Gao once said: I dictated thirty-six things to Zu Ting, and Zu Ting wrote them down in a memorial after leaving the palace, without missing a single thing! He is indeed a great talent, a minister who assists the king!"

"He told us about it as a show-off."

"You have such talent, why don't you want to make great achievements and accomplish great things, but instead do these trivial evil things all day long?"

"Your Majesty is a man of extraordinary talent and a great ruler. He has promoted you and placed you in important positions, but you still don't know how to restrain yourself. You just arrived in Xiazhou, and I have received several reports of crimes. You have deceived people and brought them to Xiazhou?!"

"you"

Xu Yuan looked at Zu Ting with an extremely complicated look, and his breathing became rapid.

Zu Ting quickly spoke up, "Calm down, calm down, you haven't finished scolding me yet."

Zu Ting helped the other person into the car and got in himself.

The carriage drove away slowly.

Xu Yuan looked at Zu Ting, quite disappointed.

"What a pity! Your talent will be ruined by your evil deeds sooner or later."

"Mr. Xu, you are looking down on me." Zu Ting said calmly, "I know who those people you mentioned are. After I came to Xiazhou, the officials here wanted to bribe me and ask for a good logistics position and food and grass distribution, which I thought was a good job."

"I pretended to agree, took their things, and informed His Majesty of the matter on my way back in triumph."

"If nothing unexpected happens, they will lose their heads tomorrow. Even if they don't lose their heads, I'm afraid they will have to go home."

Xu Yuan was stunned for a moment, "Is it really so?"

"Seriously."

"Mr. Xu, if you can see that things are changing, how can I not see it?"

"I am not a flatterer, but in Qi, I am talented but cannot be promoted. I come from a noble family and I have to spend a lot of money to get people to speak well of me in front of King Gao. Those nobles are arrogant and don't care about the Han people or the famous people."

"To be an official, you need to display your talents. First, you need fame, and second, you need money. I have nothing, so I have to find a way to get it."

"As for now, I am in a high position as the Minister of the Court, and His Majesty has great trust in me. If I want to embezzle, who would know it?"

"It's just that I don't want to, and there's no need to."

"I am truly a loyal subject!"

After hearing this, Xu Yuan felt both angry and amused.

"It turns out that Zu Xiaohui is actually a loyal minister."

"exactly."

Xu Yuan laughed and scolded: "You are just lucky."

"Mr. Xu is not bad either. Before he died, he left a legacy to establish Lianggan. Now, no matter how much I contribute in the future and how much I help to pacify the two states, the credit will be yours and no one can take it away from you."

When Zu Ting brought Xu Yuan back to his house, Xu Yuan was in high spirits and looked quite happy, chatting and laughing with Zu Ting.

Those who came here with Xu Yuan to take care of his young son were stunned when they saw this scene.

He remembered that his father scolded Zu Ting all day long. What was going on here?
Zu Ting sent Xu Yuan to his doorstep.

Xu Yuan couldn't help but sigh: "Your Majesty is majestic, but too strong-willed. Having someone like you by his side can complement him."

"From now on, you must always keep an eye on them. There are many villains in this world, and Your Majesty is young, so you might be deceived by them. Your behavior is enough to make you the ancestor of villains, so don't let them do harm to you."

"After hundreds of years of war, the chaos is finally coming to an end. I am really looking forward to it!"

“Don’t miss it.”

"take note of it."

Zu Ting did not refute. He looked at the old minister in front of him with a flushed face and full of energy.

"Farewell."

"Take care of yourself."

The next day, Zu Ting was discussing the issue of Lianggan with Liu Taozi in the government office when Xu Yuan's youngest son came in mourning clothes to report that Xu Yuan, the governor of Xiazhou, had died of illness at home the night before.

Liu Taozi was obviously surprised and didn't speak for a long time.

Zu Ting, on the other hand, was not too surprised. He comforted Xu Yuan's youngest son and asked him to prepare for his funeral.

After comforting him for a long time, they sent someone to send him back.

He returned to Liu Taozi again and said, "Your Majesty, although Xu Yuan has only been in Xiazhou for a short time, he has made some contributions. Your Majesty can posthumously confer a title on him."

Liu Taozi nodded.

"I've heard about his condition from the doctor before, but I never thought it would happen so suddenly."

"He has been holding on all the time. On the way back, he told me about his symptoms and said that the pain was unbearable. Even though he took medicine, it could save his life but it couldn't stop the pain. He was afraid that if something happened to him, it would delay His Majesty's crusade against the Pseudo-Zhou, so he has been holding on until now."

"The world has been at war for a long time, and everyone in the world longs for the days of peace."

"This is true for Xu Yuan, this is true for me, and this is true for millions of ordinary people in the world."

"Your Majesty, do not worry about this matter first. Just take care of the affairs of the two northwestern states, fulfill the wishes of the people of the world, and unify the country. Then you can remember him."

Zu Ting's words sounded a little cold. He pointed at the map in front of him again, and in an instant he turned his attention from Xu Yuan back to the important event at hand.

"Places like Lianggan have never been places where large armies are stationed. We have never taken action in the past because it is easy to capture them but difficult to stay there."

"Its food supply route is not under our control. After we take it, it is difficult to garrison there, and the effect is not great. But it is different now."

Zu Ting pointed at the map and said, "Now that Chang'an has been captured, I predict that the Pseudo-Zhou will definitely move its capital and dare not stay in the front. Xiangyang is too close to us, and Hanzhong is just right."

"Your Majesty, please take a look. If the enemy retreats to Hanzhong, then the significance of Gan and Liang states will become extraordinary. If we get Long, we will want Shu."

"If the enemy occupies this place, they can draw our forces and counterattack Guanzhong at any time. If we can take the initiative to occupy these two states and then occupy the necessary food route, then after the enemy retreats to Hanzhong, they can only guard the dangerous place and will no longer be able to look to the north."

Zu Ting drew lines on the map.

This guy has even begun to predict the enemy's next move and is preparing in advance to deal with Hanzhong.

After determining the strategic significance of these two places, the most critical issue becomes how to solve this problem.

Zu Ting believed that the most suitable person to go on the expedition to Liang and Gan was Hulu Xian.

Although Gao Changgong was brave and virtuous, he was not as good as the seemingly rough Huluxian in winning over others, pacifying the local people, and engaging in social activities.

Zu Ting commented that Huluxian was a scholar who had the face of a military general but also happened to be good at fighting.

With the help from within, Liang and Gan cities were not large and had lost contact with Chang'an, so it was not a problem to take them down. After taking them down, governing them would be easy for Hulu Xian.

Liu Taozi followed Zu Ting's advice. He asked Huluxian to lead his light cavalry to Lianggan under the guidance of a guide to meet with the officials who were preparing to surrender and seize these two states. After seizing them, they had to quickly seize the grain routes, and Gao Changgong would cooperate with them.

After making the arrangements, Liu Taozi sent people to bring the captives back to Yecheng in batches.

Liu Taozi himself would not leave. He wanted to stay in Tongwan City. The current strategic focus was basically here. The rest of the matters would be discussed after the Zhou Kingdom was destroyed!
Nanyang.

Chunyu Liang, who replaced Huang Fachi, was now selecting his generals.

This time, not only Chunyu Liang came to the front line, but also a large number of familiar people came here.

After these people arrived, they were given many titles, such as participating in the military, or being stationed around Chunyu Liang, or being responsible for logistics and other tasks.

Anyway, they have basically occupied all the good places.

Once again, they looked forward to the achievement of destroying a nation, and came here from thousands of miles away, brave and fearless.

Chunyu Liang was wearing armor, but his expression was extremely solemn.

"Since I have received your majesty's order to send troops to attack the enemy, I must first reiterate the military law to make the people listen!"

"Anyone who dares to withhold food and fodder, embezzle military merit, fear the enemy and do not advance, or humiliate soldiers will be severely punished!!"

"Someone is coming!"

"Bring it up to me!!"

When Chunyu Liang gave an order, he saw a soldier carrying a thing walking forward. The man was quite young and his legs were weak with fear at the moment. He was shouting loudly.

"You can't kill me! You can't kill me!"

"I am a royal family member!! I am a royal family member!! Only the emperor can kill me!!"

"You just took up the post of Chief Registrar of the army, and you dare to secretly store winter clothes and try to resell them! This is a heinous crime!!"

"kill!!"

"Pfft~~"

The man hadn't finished speaking when the soldier's sword had already fallen.

Blood spurts.

Chun Yuliang said loudly: "Today, I am sacrificing this traitor to the flag. The whole army should take this as a warning and must not disobey! Conquer Jiangling with me to repay the country! "

The soldiers were excited and shouted loudly.

And those guys who came from afar were now pale with fear and terrified.

Isn't Chunyu Liang the most flexible? What's going on? After sending away Huang Fachu, how come a more ruthless one came? ?
(End of this chapter)