Fu Shanhe

Chapter 405 Digging the Yellow River

Wenyuan Pavilion.

"Everyone, what should we do now?"

Xu Wenyue asked with a frown.

The results of the investigation must be announced to the public.

But the information we have found out now is simply not satisfactory to the outside world.

"Just announce it to the public!"

“Whether you are willing to believe it or not, this is all the information we have found so far.

The officials come every day to ask for results, and it is not a solution to keep dragging it out like this."

Gu Jiaxi said calmly.

The current investigation results are much better than he expected.

Although no one knows which bastard did it, at least the emperor was not blamed.

It would be best if there are follow-up results. If nothing can be found, then we can just put the blame on the Northern Tartars.

"Lord Gu, it is not appropriate to make the case public for the time being.

There is still no answer to how the murderer sneaked in and why a group of officials in Shuntian Prefecture committed suicide.

I don't think the enemy can fall from the sky, and it is even more impossible for the five officials and twelve clerks of Shuntian Prefecture to commit suicide collectively out of fear of punishment.

If the culprit behind this is not caught, everyone in the government and the public will be unable to sleep or eat in peace."

Qiu Ruiyang said with a serious face.

It’s just a matter of mentioning the name of Shanxi merchants directly.

The Shanxi merchants were definitely one of the groups that had the closest ties with the Northern Tartars and had considerable influence in the court.

However, the Shanxi merchants were only seeking wealth, so there was no reason for them to risk the execution of their entire clan and collude with the Northern Barbarians to kill a retired prime minister.

The subsequent operation of silencing people was even more incredible.

Killing so many officials at once at the feet of the emperor and in front of the imperial city was clearly a challenge to the Dayu Dynasty.

No sensible group would do such a stupid thing.

“Perhaps there are not so many culprits in this case, and it was just a sudden idea and improvisation by the Northern Tartar spies.

The suicide of a group of officials in Shuntian Prefecture was purely a maze deliberately set up by the enemy to divert our attention.

According to the news from the grassland, the northern barbarians are preparing for war and may march south at any time.

At this time, using the case of Prime Minister Wan to stir up disputes among the various factions in the court will facilitate the invasion to the south."

Lu Ze'an took the opportunity to put forward his own guess.

Analyzing purely from the perspective of interests, both the emperor and the civil and military officials were losers in the Wan Junhui case.

Unless he is a lone man, even if he has a life-and-death feud with Wan Junhui, he will not take such extreme measures to retaliate.

As long as a crime is committed, clues will be left behind.

Once the imperial court is determined to conduct a thorough investigation, no one can guarantee that it will not be discovered.

“Mr. Lu’s guess makes sense.

At a time like this, we cannot afford to lose our composure.

Just report it to His Majesty and let him decide whether to make the case public."

Xu Wenyue thought for a moment and said.

Deep down, he was devastated.

When we were suppressing the rebels in the local area, there were a lot of messy things happening, and as soon as we returned to Beijing, we encountered more difficult problems.

If he had known that Wan Junhui would have an accident, he would have stayed in Shu for a few more days to avoid the political storm.

It's too late to say anything now. Leading the officials and the emperor to resist, he directly offended Emperor Yongning to death.

When the matter is over, these people will become thorns in the emperor's side.

In the future, any incident that occurs may be used as an excuse by the emperor.

Even though he knew there would be endless trouble, he still had to take the lead when faced with such a situation.

Offending officials in the court is much more serious than offending the emperor.

To the leaders of the Qingliu movement, the spit of intellectuals is more lethal than the emperor's sword.

……

As soon as winter began, a cold wave swept across the northern land.

Under the howling cold wind, a scattered team came to the bank of the Yellow River.

"Your Majesty, the grain harvest in Guanzhong has failed again this year.

If we fight back to Guanzhong now, I'm afraid our brothers will all starve.

I think we should go south to Henan!
The land of the Central Plains is fertile, and if we can capture a few counties, we can have a good New Year for our brothers."

The young scholar spoke up to give advice.

The rebel army had a hard time getting by. They started their rebellion in Guanzhong, fled all the way to Shanxi, and now they are being driven out again.

Judging from the current situation, no one could have imagined that just two years ago, the Dayu Dynasty was on the verge of death.

Seeing that the building was about to collapse, everyone gambled their fortunes, hoping to gain wealth and honor in the chaotic times.

Unfortunately, the massive White Lotus Rebellion eventually followed the same fate as peasant uprisings throughout the ages and became the sacrifice that ushered in the chaotic times.

Now that the Dayu Dynasty has recovered, life has become even more difficult for these defeated rebel armies.

If it weren't for the numerous internal conflicts within the government army, they would have been buried in the land of Shanxi long ago.

“Originally, I wanted to take my brothers back to my hometown to spend a reunion year.

Under the current circumstances, we will not cause trouble to the people of Guanzhong.

The order was passed down, and the entire army marched south to Henan.

Once we capture the city, the whole army will have a feast together!"

The mighty king said with a heroic look on his face.

The biggest problem of the rebels is the lack of strategic planning, and they often take one step at a time.

No one knows where the future lies.

Faced with the government troops chasing and blocking them, the only thing they could do was to run.

From the time he started his army to the present, he has experienced countless battles, big and small.

More than 80% of the battles ended in the defeat of the rebel army.

Compared with the well-trained government troops, these farmers with hoes were no match at all.

Even if some border soldiers were recruited to join, the fighting effectiveness of the rebel army was still worrying.

It’s not that they didn’t try hard, but they lacked a stable rear base to train their troops.

In this context, we can only use cruel means and take advantage of the survival of the fittest on the battlefield.

Soldiers who survive more than five battles can be selected into the old camp.

After simple training, they will become the main force of the rebel army.

It is more than enough to deal with ordinary government troops.

Unfortunately, the imperial court increased its encirclement and suppression efforts, not only dispatching cavalry from Liaodong, but also drawing elite troops from the southeast to participate in the war.

The powerful rebel army suffered heavy losses in the Battle of Jinzhong.

In order to save their lives, the rebel kings had to break out on their own.

King Weiwu was lucky. He found the weak point of the government army and successfully broke out.

As a result, the rebel army, which originally had 80,000 people, is now reduced to less than a thousand.

With such a small force, it would be difficult to attack the county town.

Especially at times like this, the boss needs to remain calm and collected.

This is nothing to the mighty king.

Whether it is escaping or making promises to his subordinates, it is all easy for him.

The difference is that a few days ago, the big picture drawn was: conquer the Forbidden City and make everyone a king or prime minister.

Now I can only promise to capture the city and give everyone some meat.

"My lord, don't worry!
We have already rushed over the Liaodong cavalry and the elite troops from the southeast, and it is no problem at all to take care of some garrison soldiers.

As long as the brothers are fast enough, the main force of the government army will not be able to catch up.

If we really push them to the limit, we will just break the Yellow River and make Emperor Yongning cry!"

The speaker may not mean it, but the listener may take it seriously.

According to the current situation, the government troops will catch up sooner or later.

With their limited military strength, they are no match for the pursuers. "Cui Laoliu, you are right, let the Yongning kid cry!
Pass the order down, and have all the troops take action immediately to find a suitable location to dig the Yellow River."

The mighty king slapped his thigh and said.

In troubled times, if a person is not ruthless, he cannot stand firm.

From the moment they embarked on the road of rebellion, they had no way back.

Either they overthrew the rule of the Dayu Dynasty or they were wiped out by the government army.

According to normal operations, no matter how hard they try, they cannot shake Dayu's foundation.

But you can dig the Yellow River!

Once the Yellow River bursts its banks, millions of people downstream will be displaced.

Given the government's organizational capabilities, it is almost impossible to accomplish disaster relief on this scale.

When the time comes, there will be starving people everywhere and corpses of starving people everywhere, and there will naturally be brave men who will rise up in rebellion.

"My Lord, this is inappropriate!"

"I'm just saying, don't take it seriously.

If the Yellow River were really dug up, our reputation would be ruined.

By then, not only will the imperial court want to kill us, but the people downstream will also regard us as their mortal enemies!"

Cui Laoliu hurriedly persuaded.

Talking big is one thing, but actually doing it is another.

He could do murder and arson without blinking an eye.

However, he was still a little nervous about digging the Yellow River, a job that would be infamous for eternity.

"General Cui, since the prince has accepted it, let's quickly implement it!"

The young scholar at the side said with a smile.

In fact, digging the Yellow River was also his plan.

After all, the anti-Yu cause has reached a low point, and if nothing happens, the world will soon be at peace.

For these traitors, peace in the world means doomsday.

It's just that this matter is of great importance, and he doesn't want to bear the eternal infamy, so he has not yet made any suggestions.

Now that someone has said it, we should naturally go with the flow and make the matter a reality.

"Master Liu, you can't hurt me!"

Cui Laoliu said in a panic.

He had no good feelings towards Liu Nian'an, the military advisor.

He loves to play tricks and schemes, and is not straightforward at all. You will be tricked if you are not careful.

"General Cui, are you questioning the prince's decision?"

Liu Nian'an immediately questioned.

He was able to gain a foothold in the rebel army as a scholar because he relied on his brain.

Playing this kind of debate game, ten Cui Laoliu would not be his match.

With just a little effort, the conflict was diverted.

It's okay to question his military affairs, but if you question the decision of the mighty King, that would be a fatal matter.

Being able to stand out among many rebel forces, King Weiwu is also a ruthless man. He always has the final say in the army and what he hates most is doubts from his subordinates.

"you……"

When Cui Laoliu found himself being held up, he was so angry that he was speechless.

"Okay, Lao Liu, I know exactly what you are thinking.

Isn't it just that you are worried about becoming the target of public criticism?

To tell you the truth, I’m afraid too!
Therefore, this operation cannot be carried out under our banner.

Among the rebels, Prince Taiping had the greatest influence, so he had to take the blame this time.

From now on, take down my flag and replace it with that old guy King Taiping's.

After this battle, I don’t believe that old guy can continue to be so successful! "

The mighty king said indignantly.

A dead Taoist friend is not a poor Taoist.

In order to fight against Yu Dayu, he could also offer sacrifices to his sworn brothers.

……

"Sir General, we are all on foot, and we will definitely not be able to catch up with the cavalry in chasing the rebels.

Since the mission of blocking the enemy has been assigned to the Liaodong Cavalry, we don't need to join in the fun!"

Qin Tianrui frowned when he heard his subordinates' persuasion.

In order to revive his family business, he almost went crazy.

Unfortunately, the struggle between civil and military officials is at a delicate moment, and the civil service group will not allow the noble faction to have another giant.

Unless someone like Li Mu had made great contributions on the battlefield and the court had to confer him an honor, it would be possible for his family title to be restored.

In fact, the civil officials were not determined to remove the title of Duke Xingguo.

Seeing that Qin Tianrui was showing signs of rising, the Ministry of Rites proposed a plan to select a close bloodline to inherit the title.

He wanted to cut the Gordian knot and select a successor as soon as possible to put an end to Qin Tianrui's thoughts.

However, on this issue, civil servants only have the right to make suggestions, and the decision-making power lies in the hands of the emperor.

With Li Muyuan enfeoffed as Duke of Annan, if Qin Tianrui could inherit the title of Duke of Xingguo, he would very likely become the core of the next generation of the noble family.

If he makes a few more great achievements, another giant will be added to the noble family.

When the ball was kicked in front of the emperor, Emperor Yongning was very hesitant.

On the one hand, he wanted to select talented people for his own use, but on the other hand, he was worried that the noble faction would become more powerful.

In such a dilemma, the matter was put on hold for the time being.

In this context, the vacant title became Qin Tianrui's greatest motivation for struggle.

As long as the military achievements are great enough, sooner or later there will be a day when they can no longer be suppressed.

“There are so many rebels, how many can be stopped by the 10,000 Liaodong soldiers alone?

Judging from the rebels' escape route, they are basically heading towards Henan. We can just go around to the front and block the road.

Once the Liaodong troops have defeated the rebels, we will be able to capture the fleeing rebel king.

The imperial court does not care about the lives of ordinary rebels. The merit of capturing a rebel king is better than defeating 100,000 rebels!"

Qin Tianrui refused decisively.

After these rebels were wiped out, the war inside the Great Wall was over.

If he wanted to achieve military merit again, he could only confront the Northern Barbarians head-on.

During the Battle of Jinan, he had fought against the Northern Tartars and knew very well how terrifying the enemy was.

At that time, he was leading elite troops who had experienced many battles, and he could fight the enemy head-on without losing the upper hand.

The situation is different now. The troops under his command are all expanded.

Although their combat effectiveness exceeds that of ordinary Yu troops, there is still a big gap compared with the Northern Tartars.

"General, something terrible has happened!"

"There is a big flood ahead, it seems the Yellow River has burst its banks!"

Along with the scouts' shouts, the surging Yellow River water also roared towards the army's location.

"Pass the order down, abandon all baggage and move the entire army to the northern high ground immediately!"

Although he didn't know why the Yellow River burst its banks during the dry season, Qin Tianrui immediately gave the order to evacuate.

In the face of the flood peak, individual strength is fragile.

Soon after the army left, the camp was swallowed up by floods.

Fortunately, the water level was not high in this season and they were some distance away from the Yellow River, giving them a chance to escape.

After successfully evacuating to the high ground, Qin Tianrui's face became terribly gloomy.

In less than half an hour, thousands of soldiers lost contact, which was a greater loss than the loss in the encirclement and suppression of the rebels.

What’s worse is the missing soldiers, most of whom are elite soldiers wearing armor.

The weight of the armor affected their escape speed.

The supplies in the camp that were swallowed up by the flood were countless.

(End of this chapter)