Song Xiu

Chapter 117 Shared Desires from Above and Below Terrify People
Just when Li Hanqiong thought his bold words would be enough to move Tian Chongjin, he heard the following:

"Since you have this intention, you might as well go to the King of Taiyuan in person to report it."

Upon hearing Tian Chongjin's words, Li Hanqiong, who had just straightened her back, immediately bent over.

"Good brother, please don't go!"

Li Hanqiong, recalling Cui Yanjin's fate, spoke with fear in his voice.

That day, Zhao Dexiu's thirty strokes of the military rod left Cui Yanjin seriously injured.

Even now, Cui Yanjin remains paralyzed on his bed, unable to move.

The important point is that Cui Yanjin had many friends in the army in the past, but on that day, which general spoke up to plead for him?

Cui Yanjin was beaten so badly that he was almost crippled. Which general ever showed him any pity in private?

Zhao Dexiu is not Zhao Guangyi.

With two major victories under his belt, Zhao Dexiu's military prestige was now on par with that of Murong Yanzhao and others.

Li Hanqiong is straightforward, but he's not stupid.

After bending over, Li Hanqiong said to Tian Chongjin in a fawning manner:
"Our army is still undecided on whether to fight or make peace, so I have come to see my brother to express my feelings."

When Li Hanqiong said this, her tone was sincere, as if she was afraid that Tian Chongjin might misunderstand her in the slightest.

Seeing Li Hanqiong's ingratiating attitude, Tian Chongjin couldn't help but laugh and scold:

“You roughneck, when you were arguing with me for credit that day, didn’t you treat me like an elder brother?”

Today, you're putting on this show of weakness, trying to trick me into softening my heart?

After laughing and scolding, Tian Chongjin reached out and shooed them away:
"Go on, go on."

As an assistant general, if the Prince of Taiyuan inquires about the thoughts within the army, I will report truthfully.

As for whether to fight or make peace, that is a matter for the King of Taiyuan to decide.

Upon hearing Tian Chongjin's words, Li Hanqiong beamed with joy.

Li Hanqiong dared not disobey Zhao Dexiu's decision.

I came here today hoping that Zhao Dexiu could express his pro-war stance before a decision is made.

Driven away by Tian Chongjin, Li Hanqiong, feeling that he had achieved his goal, grinned and left the tent.

After Li Hanqiong left, Tian Chongjin shook his head helplessly.

It is likely that there are quite a few generals who share the same thoughts as Li Hanqiong.

These next few days will be quite busy!
Why did rumors circulate in the army about Zhou Xingfeng's disloyalty?

All of this was done intentionally by Zhao Dexiu.

After pacifying Huainan, Pan Mei returned to the army from the Hunan region.

As soon as Pan Mei returned to the army, he sought an audience with Zhao Dexiu and gave him a detailed account of the situation in Hunan and Hubei provinces that made it possible to conquer them.

After listening to Pan Mei's argument, Zhao Dexiu was greatly moved, but he did not immediately issue a general's order.

The army is exhausted and should not fight any further.

The fatigue here refers not to physical exhaustion, but to mental fatigue.

Zhao Dexiu knew that with his current prestige in the army, if he directly ordered an attack on Jingxiang, even if the generals in the army were already weary of war, most of them would not dare to speak out openly.

Although they wouldn't say it outright, their war-weariness would sow the seeds of future trouble for the southern campaign.

As the commander-in-chief, Zhao Dexiu had to consider this point.

Therefore, before setting out on the expedition, Zhao Dexiu needed to clearly understand the army's attitude towards the southern expedition.

To find out this, simply asking Tian Chongjin or Pan Mei is not enough.

Historically, after Zhao Guangyi destroyed the Northern Han, he planned to launch a northern expedition against Yan and Yun in one fell swoop.

At that time, military generals generally harbored war-weariness for various reasons, but most dared not submit petitions to stop it.

Zhao Guangyi then asked Cui Han about the matter privately, and Cui Han strongly advocated that Zhao Guangyi take advantage of the situation to launch a northern expedition.

As the saying goes, "Listen to both sides and you will be enlightened; listen to only one side and you will be misled."

Later, the Song army suffered a disastrous defeat at the Gaoliang River.

Admittedly, the defeat at Gaoliang River was caused by a combination of factors. However, among those factors, the discrepancy between the desires of those above and below was a very important one.

To avoid repeating the same mistake, Zhao Dexiu first spread the word in the army to test their true attitude.

A few days later, Tian Chongjin, Wang Quanbin, and Pan Mei arrived together at the commander's tent.

After the recapture of Yangzhou, Wang Quanbin, who had always been honest and law-abiding, was transferred back to the army by Zhao Dexiu.

After exchanging greetings, the three men told Zhao Dexiu about the true thoughts of the military generals recently.

After listening to the report from Tian Chongjin and others, Zhao Dexiu smiled.

Although most mid-level generals in the army were not as straightforward as Li Hanqiong.

However, in these few days, many generals have hinted at their support for the southern expedition.

As the art of war says, "Those who are united in purpose will prevail!"

After learning the true thoughts of the military, Zhao Dexiu had no further hesitation:

"Beat the drums, summon the generals!"

A few quarters of an hour later, all the generals in the army gathered in the command tent.

Because of Zhou Xingfeng's recent disloyalty, which has become common knowledge in the army, many generals have guessed the purpose of Zhao Dexiu's summons today.

As expected, Zhao Dexiu made a move as soon as all the generals arrived.

Before the generals, Zhao Dexiu, his face contorted with indignation, raised the official letter submitted by Zhou Xingfeng and said:
"Zhou Xingfeng, knowing that his crimes had been exposed, sent an envoy with a letter in an attempt to make a false defense!"

After saying this, Zhao Dexiu angrily threw the official letter he had received on the ground.

The moment the official letter landed, the generals were immediately agitated.

Previously, most generals were unaware of Zhao Dexiu's true attitude and dared not openly express their opinions on the matter.

Now that Zhao Dexiu makes no attempt to hide his hatred for Zhou Xingfeng, what are we waiting for?
Li Hanqiong never disappoints.

As soon as the letter of credence hit the ground, Li Hanqiong stood up, pointed at it, and began speaking into his microphone:

“Wuping is a vassal state of our dynasty, yet it dares to disregard the summons of the Prince of Taiyuan.”

Zhou Xingfeng is showing contempt for our dynasty!

Li Hanqiong immediately accused Zhou Xingfeng of disrespecting the suzerain state.

No sooner had Li Hanqiong finished speaking than Cui Han refused to back down.

"The sorcerer Wu Ping once said that Zhou Xingfeng had the appearance of an emperor."

It's worth it!

There cannot be two suns in the sky. If Zhou Xingfeng were to consider himself emperor, where would he place Your Majesty?

Zhou Xingfeng's rebellious intentions are crystal clear!

After Cui Han finished speaking, Wang Quanbin couldn't sit still any longer.

Wang Quanbin pointed south and said:

"The traitor Zhou of Wuping was a wolf by nature and a snake by heart. He levied exorbitant taxes and oppressed the people."

The people of Wuping live in misery every single day.

I hope that the King of Taiyuan will not be misled by the Zhou traitors.

Your Majesty, I implore the Prince of Taiyuan to send troops on a southern expedition to rescue the hundreds of thousands of people in Hunan from their suffering!

After he finished speaking, several tears appeared on Wang Quanbin's face.

The thought of the people of Hunan being ruled by treacherous officials filled Wang Quanbin with sadness.

Wang Quanbin's "sad" mood successfully infected the soldiers whose hands were covered in blood.

"The crimes of the traitor Zhou are too numerous to count; only by punishing him can the people's anger be appeased!"

"Your Majesty loves the people, while the traitor Zhou oppresses them. To punish the unjust in accordance with righteousness is in accordance with the Way of Heaven!"

"The nation has nurtured us, precisely for this day!"
A chorus of calls for battle echoed fiercely within the commander's tent.

Amidst the indignant criticism of the generals, the southern expedition had risen to the level of a matter of divine will.

Seeing that "righteousness is hard to defy," Zhao Dexiu slammed his gavel on the command table and declared decisively:

“What you say makes sense! The way of Heaven is clear: those who follow it prosper, and those who oppose it perish.”

Today, there is a traitorous minister named Zhou Xingfeng in Wuping, whose crimes are heinous and violate the laws of Heaven.

"I will then follow the will of Heaven, and submit a petition to Your Majesty, urging the royal army to punish the traitor!"

Seeing that Zhao Dexiu had finally made his decision, the generals in the tent showed joy on their faces.

The country is destroyed! The country is destroyed!
All the generals rose and bowed:

"Wang Yingming of Taiyuan".

News from the Song army camp could not be kept from Lin Renzhao.

When Lin Renzhao, who was in the Tang army camp, learned of this, he could not hide his anger, even though he had already guessed it.

Lin Renzhao kicked over the desk in front of him, saying resentfully:
"No wonder Zhao Dexiu wanted to transfer our troops to Yangzhou."

So his scheme was set in the Hunan region!

Thinking about this, Lin Renzhao found it difficult to calm his mind.

If Li Congjia's incident had not occurred, he would have been the one to lead the army to attack Hunan and Hubei while the Song army was suppressing the rebellion in Huainan.

The Hunan region, encompassing more than ten prefectures, is a prosperous land with a strong and capable populace.

However, this fertile land was about to fall into the territory of the Song Dynasty.

How could Lin Renzhao, who was wholeheartedly loyal to the Southern Tang, be willing to accept this?

But no matter how unwilling one is, it is ultimately useless.

The Song army is currently in high spirits, and with Li Congjia in command, he has elite troops at his disposal, leaving him with no opportunity to use them.

The feeling of being hesitant to act for fear of causing harm left Lin Renzhao looking ashen.

This was the first time Huangfu Jixun had met Lin Renzhao, and he had lost his temper like this.

Besides his surprise, he also had some doubts:

"The Song army's proclamation stated that it was attacking Wuping Kingdom, but did not mention Nanping."

Even if the Song army were to conquer Wuping Kingdom, with the existence of Nanping Kingdom, the Hunan and Hubei region would essentially be an exclave for the Song Dynasty.

"After the King of Wu returns to his country, why not wait until then to take it?"

Huangfu Jixun's words made Lin Renzhao feel even more depressed.

How could His Majesty appoint such an unwise person to a high position?
After looking at Huangfu Jixun with a disappointed expression, Lin Renzhao spoke:
Do you know why the states of Guo and Yu perished during the Spring and Autumn Period?

"Zhao Dexiu's proclamation did not mention Nanping Kingdom, not because he was unwilling to take Nanping, but because he did not want Nanping and Wuping to unite."

Zhao Dexiu's strategy for the southern campaign was to first divide and conquer, then defeat them one by one!

After realizing Zhao Dexiu's intentions, Lin Renzhao could no longer stay.

He wanted to write a letter to warn Li Jing.

"The alliance with Western Shu should not be delayed any longer."

Otherwise, within ten years, the Southern Tang dynasty will surely be destroyed!

Late September of the first year of the Jianlong era of the Song Dynasty.

After learning of Zhou Xingfeng's numerous crimes, Emperor Zhao Kuangyin of the Song Dynasty sent an envoy to Yangzhou to appoint Zhao Dexiu, the Prince of Taiyuan, as Grand Commandant.

At the same time, Zhao Kuangyin appointed Wang Shenqi as the military governor of Huainan and ordered him to lead troops to garrison Huainan.

After completing all these preparations, Zhao Kuangyin officially issued an edict ordering Zhao Dexiu to launch a southern expedition within a specified period to relieve the people's suffering and punish the guilty, with no room for error.

After receiving the emperor's decree, Zhao Dexiu did not delay any longer.

Zhao Dexiu personally led 45,000 imperial guards from Yangzhou City, heading west along the waterways towards Xiangzhou.

Taking advantage of the convenience of water transport, Zhao Dexiu personally led a large army to Xiangzhou in early October.

Xiangzhou is the same as Xiangyang in later times.

Xiangzhou is the northern barrier of the Jingxiang region. If Zhao Dexiu continues to lead his army south, he will be able to enter the border of Nanping.

However, after leading his troops to Xiangzhou, Zhao Dexiu did not rush into battle.

Zhao Dexiu ordered his army to rest and reorganize in Xiangzhou, awaiting the gathering of supplies and provisions.

On the other hand, Zhao Dexiu appointed Lu Duoxun, the Xuanhui Envoy, as his messenger to travel south to Jiangling Prefecture to pay homage to Gao Baoxu, the current Prince of Nanping.

In August of this year, a major event occurred at Nanping Junior High School.

The former Prince of Nanping, Gao Baorong, died of illness. Before his death, Gao Baorong considered that his son was young and that Gao Baoxu held great power in Nanping, so he bequeathed his throne to his younger brother, Gao Baoxu.

The Southern Kingdom is currently in a sensitive period of transition between the old and new regimes.

Before Gao Baoxu succeeded to the throne, he had a good reputation for governing in Nanping.

However, after assuming the throne, Gao Baoxu gradually neglected state affairs and engaged in many absurd actions.

Today, Gao Baoxu, as usual, ordered his men to summon the prostitutes from Jiangling City to his palace.

Summoning beautiful prostitutes to the palace was not Gao Baoxu's intention to enjoy himself.

When the prostitutes arrived, Gao Baoxu ordered all the guards in the palace to remove their armor and come into the hall naked.

After completing all this, Gao Baoxu ordered the guards and prostitutes to engage in lewd acts in broad daylight inside the palace hall.

As for Gao Baoxu himself, he and his concubines hid behind the curtains to watch this thrilling scene unfold.

Soon after, the once solemn hall of the Prince's mansion was filled with the sounds of flesh colliding and lewd laughter.

Listening to the intoxicating sound and seeing the various positions so close at hand, Gao Baoxu's breathing quickly became heavy.

The rush of blood to his head made Gao Baoxu laugh heartily as he freely caressed the concubines beside him.

Just as Gao Baoxu was about to personally take charge of procreation for the Nanping Kingdom, a panicked report was heard loudly from outside the hall.

"Your Majesty, an envoy from the Song Dynasty requests an audience!"

The report, once it entered the hall, was like a bucket of cold water poured over Gao Baoxu's excited head.

Why would an envoy from the Song Dynasty suddenly come to Nanping?

A sense of panic arose in Gao Baoxu's heart.

Subconsciously, Gao Baoxu pushed aside the concubine beside him, quickly pulled up his trousers, and came out of the hall with his upper body naked.

Upon seeing Sun Guangxian, who had come to report the news outside the hall, Gao Baoxu immediately asked:
"Why has the Song envoy come here? Who sent him?"

Sensing Gao Baoxu's panic, Sun Guangxian quickly replied:
The Song envoy came for reasons unknown.

However, the Song envoy was sent by the Prince of Taiyuan!

The words "King of Taiyuan" spoken by Sun Guangxian immediately shocked Gao Baoxu.

"Isn't the Prince of Taiyuan suppressing a rebellion in Huainan?"
Why would they send an envoy to Jiangling!
Could it be that that matter has been discovered?

Gao Baoxu was so anxious that he paced back and forth like an ant on a hot plate.

Gao Baoxu's behavior reflects his fear of the Song Dynasty, a trait he shares with his elder brother Gao Baorong.

After the establishment of the Song Dynasty, Gao Baorong felt deeply fearful and sent envoys to pay tribute three times in a few months.

Gao Baorong's fear of the Song Dynasty mainly stemmed from Zhao Kuangyin.

When news of the Battle of Funiu Mountain reached Nanping, Gao Baorong realized that Zhao Kuangyin's son was also a ruthless person, and his heart became increasingly panicked.

The constant fear gradually broke down Gao Baorong's body.

Having witnessed his elder brother's gradual descent into death, how could Gao Baoxu remain calm when faced with the title of "King of Taiyuan"?
The matter that Gao Baoxu mentioned was a decision he made out of fear after he ascended to the throne.

Gao Baoxu planned to build dikes to block the rivers around Jiangling, creating a "North Sea" in order to prevent the Song army from invading in the future.

Gao Baoxu believed that his "Beihai Plan" had been leaked, and Zhao Dexiu had sent an envoy to reprimand him.

This speculation completely broke Gao Baoxu's spirits.

No matter how afraid he was, Gao Baoxu could not possibly refuse to see Zhao Dexiu's envoy who had already arrived in Jiangling City.

Gao Baoxu said urgently to Sun Guangxian:
"Quickly escort the messenger to the main hall; I will be there shortly."

After receiving the order, Sun Guangxian immediately turned and left.

After Sun Guangxian left, Gao Baoxu looked at his disheveled appearance and shouted to his men:
"Quickly fetch me my proper clothes, and go now!"

　Chapter 2, 21:10.

　　Chapter 24 is being written faster and will be released before midnight!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)