Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 352 The Shocking Central Plains

what happened?
Li Shiji's mind was full of question marks.

Just judging from your Majesty's expression, something must have happened in the country and the situation is not optimistic.

"The Central Plains is in danger, the Jianghuai River is in danger, and the country is in jeopardy."

Li Shimin put the silk cloth on the torch and burned it, and said lightly.

what what what? !

Li Shiji felt like he had missed an entire season.

I was just thinking about how to work my way back to the Ming mainland.

How come the Tang Dynasty is suddenly going to end after just a few words?
Your Majesty, where did you get this bad habit?
"That guy did a great job! It makes me look narrow-minded and limited to the present!"

Li Shimin gritted his teeth and squeezed out these words, as if he was very reluctant but had to admit it.

Li Shiji was confused and didn't know what to say, so he carefully reminded:

"Your Majesty, the war ahead..."

Li Shimin did not answer immediately, but signaled Li Shiji to help him get out of the car, standing on the top of the hill looking towards the front line.

Although it was dark, the camps of Ming and Tang were still clearly discernible.

The Tang army had torches that were in perfect alignment and could make people with obsessive-compulsive disorder ecstatic.

On the contrary, the scattered and fleeing torches belong to the Ming army.

At first glance, the torches of the Ming army looked very messy, but upon closer inspection, it was not difficult to find that those tiny dots of fire were like trickles, gradually converging into several streams and flowing towards the Taihang Mountains in the east.

"Shiji, do you think... the Ming army is deliberately fleeing into the deep mountains and forests?"

Li Shimin murmured, as if talking to himself.

Li Shiji nodded quickly:
"Your Majesty, you have a good idea. Once the remaining soldiers go up the mountain, they will temporarily lose their combat effectiveness. There will be no force to stop our army from advancing to Hebei!"

"No, that's not the case." Li Shimin shook his head slowly:

"Once we advance beyond Hebei, we will fall into his trap. Our army will be caught in his trap and there will be no chance of breaking out...

"Although judging from the current strategic situation, our army is already like a turtle in a jar."

These words made Li Shiji even more confused, so he mustered up the courage to ask:

"Your Majesty, why do you say that? What exactly happened in Zhongyuan and Jianghuai?"

Li Shimin did not answer him, his expression was strangely cold:

"After taking Shuozhou, we will replenish our supplies for two days and then set off immediately.

"Return to defend Puzhou."

Puzhou is the southernmost prefecture in Shanxi, further south than the base camp Jinzhou. It is the place where the Fen River merges into the Yellow River.

A few months ago, when Li Shimin's army left the Central Plains and went up the Yellow River into Shanxi, Puzhou was the first stop.

After going around in a big circle, why go back to the starting point?
Li Shiji had no idea what His Majesty's intention was.

He suspected that His Majesty was confused again, but he had no evidence.

"Hurry up and convey my order!"

Li Shimin raised his voice.

"Yes... yes!" Li Shiji didn't dare to say anything more and immediately retreated and delivered the order.

Alas... Li Shimin let out a long breath, looked up at the starry sky, and a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth, it was unclear whether it was a bitter smile or self-mockery.

"You want the throne so badly, are you really here to take it?"

…………

Central Plains, Zhengzhou.

"Yawn~"

Zhengzhou Governor Xu Jingzong drank a little wine and was slightly tipsy. He lay leisurely on the bed, yawning lazily.

The study in the state government was very spacious and was occupied by him alone. His yawns almost echoed.

In this battle between the Ming and Tang dynasties, the Central Plains, and Zhengzhou, the geographical center of the Central Plains, played an irrelevant role.

Whoever sends out his army will first slap Zhengzhou twice.

When two elephants fight, the grass beneath them suffers the most.

Zhengzhou, as the core of this grassland, changed hands several times, causing great harm to agricultural production.

This made the court in Chang'an a little overwhelmed, and they had to set up the post of "Governor-General" who combined military and political power here.

According to common sense, this position is most suitable for the prince.

But... the Rebellion of the Eight Kings, right? Those who understand will understand.

The princes have proved their reliability, and proved it in reverse.

No matter how magnanimous His Majesty Li Chengqian is, he can't allow those dishonest younger brothers to regain control of the military and political power.

Just be a vase prince in your local area and raise pigs until you are old.

After so many twists and turns, the title of Governor of Zhengzhou was finally placed on Xu Jingzong's head.

Who is Xu Jingzong? He is the former Prince of Jin, the current Crown Prince, and the mentor of His Royal Highness Li Zhi.

"Tsk, so boring." Xu Jingzong turned over in the bed and looked absent-mindedly at the plum blossoms outside the window.

As a provincial governor of an economic center and strategically important area, Lao Xu had no sense of pride at all for being entrusted with such an important task.

Instead, he felt that he was being retaliated against and was exiled to a remote frontier.

He felt that he could get the position of the Prince's Grand Tutor, or at least the Prince's Groom, the Left Guard Commander of the Eastern Palace, and he could have the prospect of becoming the Prime Minister.

As a result, he was kicked out of the political core of Chang'an and "exiled" to Zhengzhou.

In his opinion, compared with the capital, even the Central Plains is a remote place!

"Was it Liu Ji who excluded me? Or was it Ashina She'er? One is from a poor tribe, the other is from a barbarian tribe. They both have no moral principles and attacked me, the only descendant of the Xu family in Jiangnan!
"Or is it because His Majesty the Emperor is afraid of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and is therefore wary of me as well?"

Out of boredom, Xu Jingzong started a belly lawsuit.

When people are bored, they tend to think too much.

And at the critical moment of the world war, the military and political leaders in the Central Plains region could still do nothing, which was also a great wonder of this war.

It’s not that Xu Jingzong didn’t do his job, but that he really had nothing to do.

Don’t be fooled by the impressive title of “Grand Commander”, which seems to be in charge of the military and people’s livelihood of a place.

However, for well-known reasons, neither the Ming nor the Tang forces deployed any troops in the Central Plains.

Only civilians under the guise of "army" were engaged in infrastructure construction and repairing city walls in various cities.

This is equivalent to cutting off the left hand of the "Grand Commander".

And for reasons that are well known to all, the people's livelihood in the Central Plains is in a mess and there is no money to be made.

This also chopped off the "Grand Commander's" right hand.

"I have no power or benefits. I am persecuted by a tyrant and treacherous ministers. My talent is not appreciated!"

Xu Jingzong couldn't help but start complaining like a scholar, blaming everyone and everything sourly.

Regardless of whether he is talented or not, it is true that he is "unlucky".

His Majesty Li Chengqian sent him to Zhengzhou, which was indeed intended to send him away and demote him.

Young brother Li Zhi did not try to bring back his former teacher.

But Lao Xu felt that it was all other people's fault that he was ignored. It was definitely not because he almost corrupted Li Zhi and castrated the prince into a puppet of the aristocracy.

It was not because he was a bit extreme in treating civilians. When Li Ming opened the Chang'an newspaper and incited public opinion, he openly demanded in the court that a heavy blow be taken against the citizens of Chang'an.

"How can I return to Chang'an? How can I regain the favor of the two saints?

"Before I left Chang'an, I heard that the finances had run into serious problems. If I could raise money to help Your Majesty out of this urgent need..."

In the face of the war, Xu Jingzong racked his brains to figure out a way to gain advantages, and soon he came up with a good idea and shouted at the top of his voice.

"Envoy Li, Xu has something to discuss."

With hurried footsteps, a middle-aged man with noble looks came to the door of Governor Xu.

"What's the matter, Governor Xu?"

He was the governor of Zhengzhou, Prince of Zheng Li Yuanyi, served by Di Renjie's father Di Zhixun.

The Rebellion of the Eight Kings and the fact that his son Di Renjie was suspected of being in contact with the "Ming Dynasty" added to the two layers of debuffs, and the thirteenth unlucky son of Li Yuan was completely wiped out.

The current King Zheng only holds an honorary position, and all his real power has been taken away by this shifty civil servant in front of him.

Even the study room currently occupied by Commander-in-Chief Xu Jingzong originally belonged to him.

"I wonder what Governor Xu is doing?"

The situation was stronger than the person, and Li Yuanyi could only serve this southern nobleman humbly.

"I dare not bother you, but I am unsure about something and hope you can give me some advice."

Xu Jingzong spoke politely, but he was not polite at all. He just let Li Yuanyi stand at the door and did not invite him in for a cup of tea, while he himself was still lying lazily on the couch.

Even the address for Li Yuanyi was "Envoy" for a governor, rather than "Your Highness" for a prince.

The scoundrels are so arrogant and arrogant, they are even taking advantage of others... Li Yuanyi couldn't help but feel angry and sad, but he suppressed it and said politely:

"Please tell me, Governor. I will help you with all my heart."

Xu Jingzong supported his head with his right hand, without opening his eyes to look at the other party, and said in a very indifferent manner:
"Xu wants to increase taxes on Zhengzhou and its three subordinate counties, but he doesn't know how much. 10% or 20%?

"I think it would be more appropriate to raise it to 30%. What do you think, Your Excellency?"

Li Yuanyi's eyelids twitched when he heard this, and he immediately retorted:

"Didn't the governor just postpone the taxation of the entire Zhengzhou for ten years? Why are you increasing the tax again?"

Even if you exhaust all the fish, you still have to pay attention to sustainability! Are you afraid that the people will not run to the other side?

Xu Jingzong did not respond to his question, but asked:
"Now the Ming bandits are rampant, the imperial court has exhausted all its efforts to protect the country and the people, and the national treasury is empty.

"At this point, King Zheng is in the ancient and prosperous Central Plains, but he doesn't want to share the country's worries, but wants to keep a low profile. What's the meaning of this?"

Who can bear this big hat?

The logic of "If you don't listen to me, you are a traitor" is indeed very rogue, but for Li Yuanyi, the "King of Zheng" who has his pants dripping with mud, there is really no way to refute it.

"...彳庍口巴."

Li Yuanyi was originally a powerless prince who was sidelined by the governor. He had neither the courage to petition on behalf of the people nor the ability to stop the other party from doing wrong. He could only agree and leave in disappointment.

"Please issue this decree as the governor to instruct the ignorant people of Zhengzhou to share the country's worries."

Xu Jingzong made sarcastic remarks to Li Yuanyi from behind.

Originally, he was the one who had the final say in Zhengzhou. The reason why he took the trouble to call this "Envoy Li" over was not to respect his opinion, but to pass the buck.

The order to increase taxes was issued by the governor Li Yuanyi. What does it have to do with my pure and innocent governor Xu Jingzong?

“Although these unruly people can’t squeeze out much money, they can still amass thousands or even tens of thousands of strings of cash.

"How should we use this money? We shouldn't pay too much to the court at once, or we'll have to pay more next month.

"You can first hand over about a thousand strings of cash to the court. With the remaining money, half will be used to manage the relationship in Chang'an, and the other half will be used for other purposes..."

Xu Jingzong is planning a grand future.

A clerk suddenly rushed in, shouting in panic:

"Commander-in-chief! The Ming army is coming!"

Xu Jingzong's face suddenly turned from sunny to cloudy.

"What Ming army? Are bandits worthy of being called an 'army'?!"

He rebuked harshly.

This unromantic clerk's words are so politically incorrect.

The clerk was stunned for a moment, and had to change his words according to the governor's intention:
"Report to the governor, the Ming invaders have invaded Zhengzhou and have already formed their battle array outside the city!"

"Bullshit."

Xu Jingzong turned over on the couch and turned his back to the anxious clerk.

"The Ming bandits are nothing more than a bunch of bandits, a mob. How can they defeat the fortified city of Zhengzhou?"

He knew that the Ming army was fighting a desperate battle with the retired emperor in Shanxi, so the Central Plains was empty.

There were no soldiers with guns on the opposite side, only civilians swinging hammers.

What is there for the common people to be afraid of?
The retired emperor was too cautious. When he handed over the defense of Zhengzhou to Xu Jingzong, he also specifically instructed him to preside over the repair of Zhengzhou's city defenses.

is this necessary?

Can the civilians on the opposite side still attack the city?
Therefore, Xu Jingzong took it upon himself to "save" the funds originally allocated for city defense construction and use them for more important aspects.

For example, opening up connections with the imperial court and inviting famous scholars.

If they had the ability, could the Ming Dynasty's civilians use hammers to knock down the city walls?
Boom~Boom~
There was a dull sound coming from the distance, like rolling spring thunder.

"It is going to rain?"

Xu Jingzong raised his head in confusion and looked out the window.

The sky is high and the air is clear, and the sun is shining brightly.

Where does the thunder come from?

boom!
This sound was particularly loud, accompanied by rustling sounds, like the sound of earth and rocks falling.

"It's... it's a catapult. Li Ming is coming in!"

The clerk turned pale and ran away.

If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beams will be crooked too. Xu Jingzong's subordinates were all a group of sophisticated literati, and they had absolutely no intention of sacrificing their lives for the country.

"Hey, where are you going?"

Xu Jingzong looked at his men's backs in confusion.
That kid was really paranoid. He was actually frightened by the thunder in the distance and ran away as if there were bandits chasing him from behind.

"Oh, Li Ming? Xu is just thinking of meeting him. If he has the guts, come!"

Xu Jingzong stretched lazily.

Although Lao Xu had never had direct contact with Li Ming, he had indirectly received a lot of "favors" from that boy.

For example, it was Li Ming who made Emperor Li Shimin determined to suppress the gentry and led to him being kicked out of the center of power.

"If that fatherless and kingless person really dares to come, I will scold him in front of the battle line until he can't even raise his head!
"As long as you capture him alive and present him to Your Majesty, the position of Prime Minister will be mine."

Xu Jingzong yawned leisurely and decided to take a nap.

"It's a pity, they are just civilians at most. Li Ming will not dare to attack us."

thump~
There was another dull thud, and Xu Jingzong felt that the couch beneath him seemed to shake.

(End of this chapter)