Fu Shanhe

Chapter 431 Stormy Weather in the Southern Frontier
The Marquis of Hanshui's Residence.

Looking at the intelligence in his hand, Li Mu instantly realized that he had made a huge mistake.

If nothing unexpected happens, his name will likely rank among the top five most disliked by Emperor Yongning.

This is the price that must be paid for being far removed from the political center.

The lag in information led to a serious distortion in his assessment of the situation in North Korea.

But there are some things that you just have to do.

It's both something done for the outside world to see and something to answer to one's own conscience.

Li Mu did not regret his previous actions.

If given another chance, that memorial that offended the emperor and the civil officials would still be submitted.

In officialdom, once you reach a certain position, you must shoulder the responsibilities that come with it.

Anyway, Annam is far from the capital, so even if the emperor and civil officials are unhappy, they can't do anything about it for the time being.

Impeaching a deceased high-ranking official is such a trivial matter that it's impossible to convict him.

Compared to a host of bizarre impeachments, this one can't even be brought up.

"My lord, a letter of appeal for help has been sent from Yunnan. Their army that was sent to conquer the south suffered heavy losses at Babai Dadiansi."

Lan Linjie hurriedly stepped forward to report.

The incorporation of the Three Xuan and Six Wei into the rule of Dayu was jointly facilitated by the Marquis's Mansion and the Duke of Qian's Mansion.

The Protectorate is making good progress. The local people along the way are not exactly surrendering without a fight, but their resistance is not very strong either.

The fall of Annam had a devastating impact on these local powers, and the chieftains lacked the courage to fight to the death.

The few stubborn chieftains were mostly wiped out in the first wave of the melee.

But the allies were in an awkward position; not only were their actions slow, but their achievements were also disappointing.

"Has the Duke of Qian's mansion fallen to such a state?"

Li Mu asked in confusion.

For generations, they guarded Yunnan, not only accumulating a great deal of wealth for the Duke of Qian's mansion, but also building an "elite household guard".

Under normal circumstances, even if they couldn't defeat the Kingdom of Myanmar, they wouldn't have lost so quickly.

"The Duke of Qian's mansion did not send troops; they merely ignited the flames of war. The governor of Yunnan was in charge of this war."

After hearing Lan Linjie's explanation, Li Mu immediately understood that it was the most common kind of factional strife.

Taking advantage of the young age of the current Duke of Qian, the Yunnan Provincial Governor's Office seized local military and political power and was naturally unwilling to return it.

As the beneficiaries, the Duke of Qian's government would certainly not tolerate the long-term loss of power.

If negotiations can't solve the problem, then create an even bigger one.

Essentially, the Duke of Qian's government participated in this war in order to seize power, and naturally would not allow the Governor of Yunnan to win on the battlefield.

His command ability was poor to begin with, and there were people sabotaging him from behind; it would be difficult for him not to suffer defeats.

"Tell the Yunnan governor's office that our army has approached the Kingdom of Burma and is about to launch an attack on their rear."

Let them hold out for a few more months, then we'll destroy the Kingdom of Burma together and eliminate this threat to our southern border.

Li Mu said expressionlessly.

Identity determines one's stance.

As the core of the noble group, he naturally had to side with the Duke of Qian's mansion.

As for the Yunnan Provincial Governor's Office, it was an institution controlled by civil officials, and thus considered a political enemy in the imperial court.

He doesn't stab people in the back because he has his bottom line; full support is impossible for him.

"My lord, according to our current route of attack, we are getting further and further away from the Kingdom of Burma, and I'm afraid we won't be able to help."

Lan Linjie offered a tactful reminder.

Limited by natural conditions, the Annam Protectorate did not focus its expansion inland, but instead advanced along the coastline.

While it was said that the campaign had pacified the Three Xuan and Six Wei, in reality, most of the time it was spent fighting with the Kingdom of Siam further south.

Without being deep inland, the war took place along the coast within 100 kilometers, and with the support of the navy, the Yu army held an absolute advantage in this round of war.

The Kingdom of Siam, which has suffered heavy losses, has sent delegations to the capital of Da Yu on several occasions to protest.

However, this is meaningless.

The court of the Great Yu Dynasty was in complete chaos; who had time to care about the lives of the Siamese?

A small foreign country offended the Annam Protectorate, so its destruction was no big deal.

Throughout history, which protectorate of a Central Plains dynasty didn't destroy countless states?

It's fair to say that if you don't conquer a country, you can't even call yourself a Protectorate General.

The army's advance was aimed directly at Malacca, just a step away from the Strait of Malacca.

Theoretically speaking, if we extend along the coastline for several thousand miles, we can reach the rear of the Kingdom of Burma.

Without a doubt, this is impossible in the short term.

It's not that Yu's army was incapable of fighting; the main issue was that their external expansion was for development, not simply for plundering land.

It takes time to digest the spoils of war, and the Annam Protectorate's current expansion has effectively come to an end.

Currently, they are digesting the territories of Champa and Zhenla.

These two territories were once occupied by the Kingdom of Annam, and were restored after the fall of Annam.

They were too busy assimilating the former territory of Jiaozhi to attend to these other regions, and temporarily allowed them to become independent.

The strategic objective of the southern expedition was these two unfortunate foes; dealing with the Kingdom of Siam was just a side effect.

Every husband is not guilty, and he is guilty of his crime.

The Indochina Peninsula Plain covers an area of ​​approximately 50 square kilometers and is mainly composed of the Mekong River Plain and the Chao Phraya River Plain.

It is equivalent to 50 Pearl River Delta plains, 12 Yangtze River Delta plains, and 2 North China Plains, almost matching the total area of ​​the plains in the hinterland of Dayu.

It's impossible not to eat such a big piece of fatty meat when it's right in front of you.

"Don't worry, the imperial court is busy and has no time to deal with us."

That's good. Let's get the troops on the front lines moving and continue to give the Kingdom of Siam a good beating.

After we destroy the Kingdom of Siam, we will border the Kingdom of Burma, and the crisis in Yunnan will be easily resolved.

There is no need to worry about a Burmese invasion that could threaten Yunnan's security.

The Duke of Qian's mansion has been operating in the area for two or three hundred years. If they can't even withstand the Burmese army, they might as well give up.

If they can't hold out, then they should petition the imperial court.

"As soon as the imperial court issues an order, I will immediately send Guangxi troops into Yunnan to assist."

Li Mu said calmly.

In normal times, anyone navigating the officialdom would certainly have to be mindful of their public image.

The Yunnan governor's office asked for help, and as a neighbor, we certainly had to lend a hand.

However, this is a critical period of struggle between civil and military officials, and the conflict between the Duke of Qian's mansion and the Yunnan Provincial Governor's Office is a microcosm of it.

Once the Duke of Qian's government wins, the last thorn in the side of the civil official group south of the Yangtze River will be removed.

Guizhou, the last remaining province, can be completely ignored.

No action is needed; local officials will naturally curry favor with the elite.

This process caused a negative impact, and at worst, the censors would criticize them a bit.

The mountains were high and the roads were long; no matter how fiercely the curses were directed at him, Li Mu couldn't hear them.

……

The Duke of Qian's Mansion.

"The governor of Yunnan is still stubbornly holding on; it seems he won't shed a tear until he sees the coffin."

Or perhaps we could arrange for one of our people to be given to him at a crucial moment…

"Third brother, this is absolutely unacceptable!"
Most of the troops in the province are currently concentrated on the front lines. If we are defeated again, the consequences will be unimaginable.

Without these troops, our private army alone can't clean up this mess.

Before Meng Xiuren could finish speaking, Meng Xiuyuan hurriedly stopped him.

The Duke's Mansion was vying for power; they never intended to devastate Yunnan. As the biggest beneficiaries of the local power structure, they would be the biggest victims should the Burmese army invade.

Perhaps it was precisely because he understood their weaknesses that the Yunnan governor dared to cling to military and political power.

"Second Uncle is right. At a time like this, we really cannot afford to suffer another major defeat."

Third Uncle, please be patient for a while.

We have already reported the heavy losses suffered at the front to the imperial court.

His Majesty is an impatient man and cannot tolerate failure for long. With the pressure from the court decreasing, it will be difficult for the Yunnan governor to refuse to relinquish power.

Duke Meng Lixuan of Qian said with a smile.

Reporting on others is something that not only civil officials can do, but military officers can do it too.

Regardless of the reason, the fact remains that we suffered heavy losses.

As the governor of Yunnan who was in charge of the operation, he had to bear the corresponding responsibilities.

"Lord Duke, things are not that simple."

Given the style of civil officials, if they cannot defeat the enemy on the battlefield, they will consider negotiating to resolve the issue.

Our army is at its peak, having first destroyed the Kingdom of Annam, and then occupied Champa and Zhenla.

The army of the Marquis of Hanshui is currently giving the Kingdom of Siam a good beating, and all the forces in the Indochina Peninsula are terrified of it.

If the Yunnan governor, wielding the authority of the imperial court, were to negotiate with the Burmese and secure a respectable ceasefire treaty, it would be entirely possible.

If we get them to reach an agreement, not only will we have wasted our time, but we will also alert the civil servants.

The current situation in the central government is very favorable to us, and it is the best time to seize power.

At a different time, when civil officials hold real power in the court, it will be much more difficult to plot against them!

Meng Xiuren shook his head and said.

Civil officials may lack military leadership skills, but they are definitely good at thinking.

Problems that cannot be solved by military means can be solved by diplomatic means.

The more fiercely the Marquis of Hanshui fights in the Indochina Peninsula, the more bargaining chips he has in negotiations here.

The Burmese have limited understanding of the internal struggles in Dayu, and the Yunnan governor could very well succeed if he resorts to political blackmail.

"A ceasefire is impossible!"

We've made so many preparations to get to where we are today.

If we end the war now, all of this will have been for nothing.

Besides, those civil officials weren't stupid; they must have been alerted by the sudden outbreak of this war.

If we investigate further, we will be exposed very quickly.

Once this matter is brought to the forefront, not only will regaining power be impossible, but the Duke's mansion's very position will be threatened!

Meng Lixuan said with a hint of excitement.

Perhaps to the nobles in the capital, Yunnan was a desolate and impoverished backwater.

But for the Duke of Qian's Mansion, which has been rooted in Yunnan for nearly three hundred years, the situation is completely different.

Here, one not only possesses vast industrial wealth, but also enjoys a supreme status.

Once they lose this base of operations and move to the distant capital, they will be left with nothing but an empty title.

It won't be long before it declines.

"Um!

The war certainly cannot stop.

If the civil servants want to negotiate, we can sabotage the talks.

If there's really no other way, then just let the Yunnan governor die suddenly!
Everyone knows the situation in Beijing.

The six ministers and the cabinet ministers all died, yet the civil service group couldn't stir up any trouble. The death of another local governor probably isn't a big deal either.

The moment Meng Xiuyi spoke, the atmosphere in the room became heavy.

Disrupting peace talks is one thing, but killing a governor is a matter of life and death.

The nobles in the capital dared to do that because they took advantage of the civil officials' schemes and played a trick on them.

Behind this was an internal power struggle among civil officials, and the support of the empress dowager's relatives and the empress dowager was also secured.

The imperial guards dared not continue their investigation halfway through.

Everyone is pretending to be ignorant, but once the truth is revealed, no one will be able to salvage the situation.

In comparison, killing the governor of Yunnan seemed like a much smaller problem, but it was a scheme devised by their family without prior support from nobles and relatives.

Once the news leaks out, and the imperial court holds them accountable, all the political consequences will fall on that one family alone.

"Fifth Brother, there are some things you can't say carelessly!"

"We only intervened to stop the signing of the traitorous treaty because we couldn't stand the fact that some people were colluding with the Southern Barbarians and betraying the interests of the Great Yu."

This has nothing to do with preventing peace talks.

Even if there's going to be a commotion, it will be the people of Yunnan making a commotion, not the Duke's mansion.

The southwest is prone to miasma, so it's entirely possible that the governor could accidentally contract the disease.

It was all an accident, and has nothing to do with the Duke's mansion!

Meng Xiuyuan immediately rebuked him angrily.

There are some things you can do, but you can't say.

Preventing peace talks is necessary, but doing so is not so easy.

The Kingdom of Burma didn't dare to fight the Great Yu head-on; if they hadn't intervened secretly, the war wouldn't have even started.

There's not even a need for peace talks; once they've vented their anger, Myanmar will voluntarily cease hostilities.

Judging from the current situation, in a few months, the territory of the Annam Protectorate will officially border them.

With a powerful neighbor on its side, what the Kingdom of Myanmar needs most is self-preservation, not a northward expedition to the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau.

In comparison, it would be simpler to kill the governor of Yunnan.

With the death of the military and political leader, the Duke of Qian stepped forward to take charge of the overall situation, which was entirely in accordance with the rules.

"Second Uncle, why don't we discuss this matter with the Marquis of Hanshui?"
If we can get his support, the pressure of handling the aftermath will be much less.

Meng Lixuan asked nervously.

Killing is easy, but cleaning up the mess is difficult.

If a high-ranking official dies unexpectedly, the imperial court will conduct a thorough investigation.

No concrete evidence is needed; as long as the court suspects them, trouble will come knocking.

For the Duke of Qian's family alone, shouldering these troubles would be far too risky.

If they could gain the support of the nobility, or even just a portion of them, their situation would be much better.

There's no time to spare.

Sending people over to communicate would take a lot of time, and by then the war might be over.

Besides, some things are not suitable for outsiders to know.

There's no need to worry too much about leaks.

The imperial court can't take care of us for the time being. As long as we don't leave any obvious evidence, the imperial court can't punish us.

If it's just suspicion, we can simply deny it.

"Now that the nobility could regain power at any time, no matter how powerful those imperial guards are, they wouldn't dare to use torture to extract confessions from us."

Meng Xiuyuan shook his head and explained.

In his view, as long as the Duke of Qian's mansion could control Yunnan, these problems would be insignificant.

The imperial court has too many troubles; their problems don't even rank in the top ten.

Even if the emperor knew the truth, he would not make a big fuss over a dead governor.

……

(End of this chapter)