Chapter 3597 Jealousy
Whether it was his true feelings in his heart or a public declaration of Fang Jun's contribution, Li Chengqian did not hesitate to give him the highest standard of kindness he could give.
He held Fang Jun's hand and walked with him all the way back to the inner gate to check in, surrounded by civil and military officials and hundreds of guards.
Xiao Yu and Cen Wenwen fell behind, looked at each other, and followed silently.
Previously, the two men emphasized that it would be difficult for Fang Jun to break through the rebel siege, but in the blink of an eye, Fang Jun forced his way across the Wei River and marched to the city, which was a severe slap in the face. But the effect of the two people's "thorn planting" was unexpectedly good.
With such powerful combat power, such outstanding achievements, and such support from the entire army, this is the standard equipment for a powerful minister...
As for the moment, naturally the more the prince pays attention to Fang Jun, the better. With Fang Jun's ability and prestige, supplemented by Li Jing's military strategy, the possibility of turning defeat into victory is increasing.
Although the Crown Prince will definitely continue His Majesty Li Er's national policy and continue to suppress and weaken the family members after he succeeds to the throne, the two of them have already stood on the side of the East Palace. In comparison, they will get more buffering opportunities. In the end, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
……
In the duty room, the chamberlains added several more lamp stands, dozens of candles were lit, and the lights were as bright as day.
Li Chengqian and Fang Jun entered hand in hand. Fang Jun took the opportunity to break away and invited Li Chengqian to take a seat. He also refused Li Jing, Xiao Yu, Cen Wenwen and others' invitations to take a seat. He insisted on not accepting it and sat down next to Li Daozong and Ma Zhou. .
Although Li Chengqian's act of kindness was obviously sincere and greatly benefited Fang Jun, who had traveled thousands of miles away, he also understood that everyone is jealous, and this treatment would definitely make some people dissatisfied and secretly jealous.
He doesn't care about this. If he is not envied by others, he is a mediocre person. The more capable he is, the more naturally he will be envied by others. But now is a critical moment, and everyone in the East Palace must unite to resist the rebels. If there is internal fighting due to jealousy at this time, things will not go well...
Everyone sat down one after another, and Li Chengqian asked what he was most concerned about: "How is the situation in the Western Regions?"
Everyone also pricked up their ears.
Although Fang Jun's march of thousands of miles to aid Chang'an has fully demonstrated his loyalty to the prince, if this leads to the deterioration of the situation in the Western Region or even complete loss, it will be like casting a haze on Li Chengqian's prestige and reputation.
Fang Jun naturally understood Li Chengqian's worries and said respectfully: "Your Highness, don't worry. The previous battle at Gongyue City severely damaged the Dashi army and made them frightened. They will be attacked by our army again and have to gather at the foot of the world to form a formation." The joint camp is heavily defended, but its initiative has been lost, and there is a lack of food and supplies, and the morale of the army is unstable..."
At that moment, Fang Jun described the situation in the Western Regions in detail. He said that the Tang army was broken into pieces, harassing the Hu people who supplied food to the Dashi army, and even forced many Hu people to move to the vicinity of Gongyue City. Li Jing praised: "This move very Seconds! Not only did it scare the Hu people from supplying food to the Dashi army, but they also took this opportunity to gather the scattered Hu people for easier management. Perhaps the great rule of the Western Regions would begin."
Since the Han Dynasty, the Central Plains dynasties have attached great importance to the strategic location of the Western Regions. Almost any capable dynasty has accumulated heavy troops in the Western Regions to maintain their rule. However, the Western Regions were too far away from the Central Plains, and the dynasty could maintain its governance when it was at its peak. Once the dynasty weakened internally, its national power was insufficient, and its control over the Western Regions was empty, the Hu people would rise again and erode the rule of various places.
The most important reason is naturally that the distance is too long, and the dispatch of food, ammunition, weapons and soldiers is often delayed. However, the Hu people in the Western Regions are numerous and live scattered, and they have never been able to control them all. This is also a major reason.
We can't station heavy troops everywhere where the Hu people live to guard them, right?
That would require more than 200,000 elite troops to be deployed in the Western Regions all year round. The resulting logistical pressure would not be able to be consumed even if the country's strength was at its peak...
At present, all the Hu tribes from all over the country are to be moved to the vicinity of Gongyue City. Then, when the situation in the Central Plains stabilizes, a large number of Han people will migrate to the Western Regions and fill the various places. It will take less than ten years to take root in the Western Regions, making the entire Western Regions completely under the control of the Tang Dynasty.
Therefore, Fang Jun’s move to forcefully relocate the Hu people from various places is of great significance...
Fang Jun continued: "Duke Wei praised...all the prisoners of Dashi's army are currently being imprisoned in Gongyue City awaiting disposal. Before Wei Chen left, he ordered Pei Xingjian to report to the King of Hejian County in Jiaohe City at any time, and urged Tumi At present, it seems that the coalition forces of various ethnic groups led by Du have been defeated and suffered heavy casualties, and it is difficult to launch the next attack as soon as possible because Damascus is too far away. This was a retaliatory attack. The Turks also suffered heavy casualties due to the Uighur rebellion, especially because of their internal instability. Many tribes showed their willingness to divide and rule. Yibi Shekui wanted to appease the tribe, let alone invade at this time. There will be no large-scale wars in the Western Regions within three to five years, and the imperial court can focus on stabilizing the situation in Guanzhong and the country. ”
Hearing what he said, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Again, the Western Region is too far away. Even though its strategic position is extremely important, once there is discord between the DPRK and China and the national strength is insufficient, it will be difficult to take care of both. Since no foreign race can threaten the security of the Western Region within three to five years, all energy can be focused on clearing up the domestic situation.
Xiao Yu looked happy and appreciative on his face, but he was worried in his heart. Without the restraint of the Western Regions, if the East Palace defeated the rebels to maintain orthodoxy, then the next stage of national policy must be to attack the domestic clans with all its strength.
Although the focus of the attack must be on Guanlong, who rebelled, and the clans in Hedong and Hexi that later relied on him, how could the Jiangnan gentry stay out of it? Once the Guanlong, Hedong, and Hexi clans that suffered heavy losses during the military remonstrance were successively weakened by the imperial court, the natural next step would be the clans from Jiangnan and Shandong who are still watching the fight from the other side...
By then, the current relationship with Donggong fighting side by side will come to an end, and the struggle between them will be inevitable.
When the imperial court is weak, the clans provide support and grab benefits; when the court is strong, the clans fight back to protect themselves... This is the relationship between the clans and the central government, and the cycle is endless.
Therefore, even the relatively peaceful patriarchs such as Xiao Yu and Cen Wenwen know that the existence of clans is like a cancer in the empire, attached to the body of the empire and sucking flesh and blood. When the empire is weak and declining, they will bite it to death. Then start over again, and the cycle repeats.
However, we are all vested interests in clan politics. In addition to trying our best to maintain the interests of the clan, we can't pick up the bowl to eat and put down the bowl to smash the pot, right?
That is an act of cutting off one's own roots...
Therefore, Xiao Yu's real intention is that the East Palace can turn defeat into victory, but its strength is seriously damaged. In the process of stabilizing the court in the future, it will have to rely on the Jiangnan nobles, or even the Shandong aristocratic family. It is always just to share some profits, but it must not be allowed to Taking advantage of the power of victory, the East Palace cleared the court in one fell swoop and took full control of the government.
In the past, when Fang Jun came back thousands of miles away, this intention was almost achievable. But now, Fang Jun is too strong and his achievements are too outstanding. If he really defeats the rebels in one fell swoop, he will expel all the Guanlong clan. After leaving the court, can the Jiangnan clan or the Shandong family still enjoy the benefits they deserve after following the prince through life and death?
……
Li Chengqian has not been able to think that far for the time being. The top priority now is to defeat the rebels and turn defeat into victory. If he cannot secure his position as crown prince and successfully ascend to the throne of God in the future, how can he talk about continuing the national policy and supporting poor families and attacking wealthy families?
He looked at Li Jing and Fang Jun and asked: "Both of you are the pillars of the empire and the only humerus. May I ask if you have any good strategies to defeat the enemy now?"
Fang Jun and Li Jing looked at each other and said humbly: "I have little qualifications, how can I dare to do anything for my job? As long as His Highness and Duke Wei decide on a strategy, I will go through fire and water, even if I die!"
He had already sensed the jealousy that had been inadvertently shown by the East Palace official before, and it was time to keep a low profile at this moment. Moreover, he would not be arrogant after just a few victories, claiming to be the best in the world. When it comes to military strategy, troop formation, and how many people in the world can compare with Li Jing?
All he needs to do is keep a low profile and obey Li Jingzhi's arrangements.
Both clumsy and humble...
Li Chengqian was very satisfied. Fang Jun's achievements this time are unparalleled. If he really takes advantage of the situation, even Li Jing will not be able to suppress him. That is definitely not what he wants to see.
Naturally, he favored Fang Jun, but he never wanted to see Fang Jun's family become the dominant one, which would incur the jealousy and rejection of the East Palace officials. He regards Fang Jun as a humerus, and hopes that Fang Jun can keep a low profile, put the interests of the East Palace first, and unite the entire East Palace.
Mr. Yuan was placed at the level of a saint in ancient times, right? An ancestral hall or temple should be built so that Mr. Yuan can enjoy the incense of Chinese descendants.
(End of chapter)