Chapter 4884 Military Position
The heavy snow was falling, and at the table by the window of Songhe Tower, Zheng Rentai sat on the chair with a serious face, and his mood was as cold as the cold winter outside the window.
Opposite him, Li Xiaogong drank tea slowly. He was dressed in a brocade robe and a futou, like a wealthy elder, but the words he spoke were as sharp as a knife: "The Zheng family in Xingyang is the in-laws of Prince Yin. At that time, he was the leader of the Xuanwu Sect. During the Revolution, he was openly hostile to Emperor Taizong, and when Emperor Taizong ascended the throne, he was not blamed for it. Today, there are rebels who want to rebel. Is the Zheng family in Xingyang going to rebel and avenge the blood of that year? "
Zheng Rentai was naturally aware of the current dangerous turmoil in the court, but he knew that he had not yet reached the core of power in the Tang Empire, so he followed Fang Jun's footsteps and did not try to get involved.
Who would have expected that Li Xiaogong would meet him here today and force him to express his stance straight to the point.
This made Zheng Rentai a little confused: Fang Jun is the most steadfast supporter of His Majesty in both the government and the public, and His Majesty also regards Fang Jun as a humerus and obeys his words. There is no doubt that Fang Jun is siding with His Majesty. But now Why did Li Xiaogong have to choose between His Majesty and Fang Jun?
Fang Jun wants to rebel and steal the throne of emperor?
This is absolutely impossible. Even if Fang Jun has such ambitions, the Tang Dynasty has experienced three emperors and prospered, and the political situation has long been stable. No one except the Li Tang royal family can get involved in the throne. If His Majesty is deposed and a new king is established... ...What does Fang Jun picture?
Zheng Rentai looked upright: "As the prince said, the Zheng family in Xingyang was deeply favored by the three emperors of the Tang Dynasty, and they should do their best to protect the orthodoxy of the Tang Dynasty, even if they are broken into pieces. As long as I, Zheng Rentai, am here, Tai Chi Palace It is as solid as gold, and if any rebels cause trouble, they can only enter the Chengtian Gate on my corpse!”
He did not believe that Fang Jun would rebel. He also had a vague guess about who the real rebels were. Even if the imperial power was in turmoil and rebels were in chaos, Fang Jun would still be the cornerstone of His Majesty. As long as he followed Fang Jun's steps, his future would be bright. No worries.
Li Xiaogong took a sip of the wine and said calmly: "To be honest, I don't believe you. I don't even believe any of the old men who followed Prince Yin during the Xuanwu Gate Incident. Of course, some of you are grateful to Emperor Taizong for not killing him. I have a great future and great power in these years, and there seems to be no reason to betray His Majesty and start a rebellion. But if there is someone in the government and the public who raises troops and joins the rebellion, it must be one of you."
Li Jiancheng was the eldest son and grandson of the "Tang Guogong". He was appointed as the prince when Emperor Gaozu founded Chang'an. He had a just and righteous name, and he was also outstanding in both civil and military skills. Countless people followed him.
Even after the Xuanwumen Incident, Li Jiancheng was executed, and everyone in the family was killed without any possibility of recovery. There were still countless people who vowed to avenge him, treating death as if they were home, and going forward one after another.
For example, Xue Wanche's people even clamored to enter the Prince of Qin's Mansion and massacre everyone in the Prince of Qin's Mansion to avenge Li Jiancheng...
Even though Emperor Taizong finally suppressed everything and cleaned up the mess, he also pardoned and pardoned these people with supreme tolerance. Most of Li Jiancheng's old troops were dormant under Emperor Taizong, but after all, they were forced by current events and had no choice. , who knows how many of them harbor hatred?
Many of Li Jiancheng's old troops were involved in the previous two military defeats. If there is another mutiny, there may not be those who are hiding deeper and suddenly arise...
Zheng Rentai shook his head and said in a deep voice: "What the king said is wrong. The reason why we followed Li Jiancheng back then was because of his status as the prince, where the royal orthodoxy and righteousness lie. Now the orthodoxy of the Tang Dynasty lies in His Majesty. As a minister, we You should swear to the death to serve. What's more, since Emperor Taizong pardoned our sins back then, we are innocent. How can the county prince hold us accountable for the sins that Emperor Taizong has pardoned? Is Emperor Taizong's order not worth mentioning in your eyes? ?”
"Ha," Li Xiaogong sneered: "Don't use the name of Emperor Taizong to put pressure on me. It's useless to talk nice. Only when things happen will you know the good and the evil."
Zheng Rentai nodded: "Let's wait and see!"
After saying this, he stood up and bowed to salute: "The general still has military affairs to attend to, so he won't drink with the prince anymore. I'll say goodbye."
Turn around and stride down the stairs.
Li Xiaogong took a sip of wine and watched from the open window as Zheng Rentai went downstairs and got on his horse under the guard of his own soldiers. A group of more than ten people galloped down the long street and disappeared into the wind and snow. He frowned slightly and sighed, He filled his own glass and drank it all.
Zheng Rentai is now the right-leading general Wei, commanding troops to garrison Chang'an, which is enough to affect the situation in Chang'an. However, although this person is nominally Liu Jie's man, in fact, he is secretly unclear about Fang Jun, and his position is actually unclear and difficult to argue with. .
In fact, among the four troops that can directly influence the situation in Chang'an, the left and right Jinwu guards are direct descendants of Fang Jun. Even His Majesty would find it difficult to get involved. This is why Fang Jun would rather relinquish his official position and only serve as the right servant of the minister. As long as With these two armies in hand, no one can challenge their power and status.
General Liang Jianfang, who led the army on the left, was an honorable minister of Zhenguan. He followed the path of Li Ji. If something happened, his stance might not be on His Majesty's side.
None of the four armies, the left and right Jinwu guards and the left and right leading guards, either outside the city or inside the city, were completely loyal to His Majesty. This also made Li Xiaogong wary.
In the past few years, he has not paid much attention to the situation in the DPRK, and this has unknowingly formed the current situation in Chang'an. Now it is too late to regret it if he wants to turn the tide...
*****
Liang Jianfang went straight up Lishan Mountain along the mountain road under the protection of a group of troops. Along the way, there were many greenhouses in the fields and ravines on both sides of the mountain road. Many farmers and handymen were clearing the snow from the roofs of the sheds despite the heavy snow. In the wind and snow, It doesn't seem so lonely.
These are all farms of the Fang family. To this day, almost 90% of the vegetables that Chang'an City needs in winter come from the greenhouses of the Fang family farm. The income from this alone in one winter is a huge figure. I don't know how many people Envious and eager to imitate.
Although Fang Jun does not "protect food" in this regard, he will give some technical advice to anyone who has some friendship. However, cultivating vegetables in winter requires not only huge financial and material resources, but also exquisite cultivation techniques and sophisticated management experience. You can learn it by studying, so until now, other people's greenhouses are just a small operation, not even enough for their own consumption, let alone supplying the market.
As we walked along the mountain road towards the depths of Lishan Mountain, we gradually became increasingly crisscrossed by mountains and densely covered with ravines, becoming increasingly unsuitable for farming and living, and sparsely populated. From time to time, wild animals galloped past the snow, but Liang Jianfang was not in the mood for hunting at all. Just ride your horse forward quickly.
After turning around a mountain ridge, there was a piece of slightly flat land in the valley. This Taoist temple was built against the side of the ridge. There were soldiers from the British government waiting here to lead Liang Jianfang there.
Li Ji had never been a Taoist priest, but he did advocate Taoist culture, so he built a Taoist temple surrounded by mountains and rivers in the fiefdom of Lishan Mountain. When his affairs were not complicated, he would go out of the city to stay here for a few days. It is very leisurely and comfortable to enjoy the rain and snow in winter, which is consistent with his relatively indifferent nature.
In fact, because Emperor Gaozu regarded Laozi as his ancestor, Taoism naturally became the state religion, and everything about Taoism became popular. For example, it has become a common practice for Tang princesses to marry into female crowns...
After getting off his horse before arriving at the Taoist temple, Liang Jianfang strode into the temple and saw Li Ji in Taoist robes in his cell.
After seeing the ceremony, Liang Jianfang sat cross-legged on the futon opposite Li Ji and asked respectfully: "I wonder if your father-in-law has summoned me. What are your orders?"
As soon as he arrived at the military camp today, he was told that Li Ji had summoned him. He hurriedly came to see him without even returning home...
Li Ji poured him a cup of tea and asked, "How is the situation in the city?"
Liang Jianfang held the tea, considered it, and said in a low voice: "The general is stupid and does not understand the subtle changes in the situation. However, there have been some changes in the imperial army recently, which is quite unusual. Although the general has the responsibility of guarding the palace, he does not dare to act rashly. Intervene in the affairs of the Imperial Guard.”
Li Ji nodded and said calmly: "As long as you remember your duty to stay in the imperial palace, keep the safety of the people in mind at all times, and go through fire and water for the safety of your majesty, even if you die, that's all." br>
"Don't worry, Commander, the general will know what to do."
After accepting, Liang Jianfang thought for a moment and then asked: "The Duke specially summoned the general to give instructions, but is there a possibility that something unexpected has happened in Chang'an City recently?"
Although he didn't know how the situation was going, he naturally paid attention to the situation as he was responsible for the imperial palace. The movements of the clan, the imperial army, etc. indicated that a huge storm might be brewing, and he had to know where to go in advance. Be considerate.
He is Li Ji's man, so he naturally stands on Li Ji's side, but he doesn't know which side Li Ji is on...
Li Ji raised his eyelids and glanced at him, and said in a slightly stern tone: "You are a military general, you just need to do your job well, stay away from politics, remember to be loyal to the emperor, patriotism, and obey the emperor's orders at all times. Don't worry about other things."
Liang Jianfang's heart tightened. He knew that something was about to happen, but he did not dare to ask any more questions. He solemnly nodded and said: "I will obey the commander-in-chief's order!"
"I'm no longer a commander, so how can I talk about orders? It's just a few words that I have been nagging for many years because I am worried that you will make a mistake. You must remember that you are a soldier, and the position of a soldier is to always be loyal to the empire. , Be loyal to His Majesty, not the so-called justice and welfare of the people, let alone interest disputes and factional fights, which are things only civil servants do. ”
Li Ji drank tea and taught him earnestly.
Today, the empire has a vast territory and a prosperous national power. There are fewer and fewer enemies, and there are fewer and fewer pure soldiers. More interest disputes have penetrated into all aspects of the army, causing soldiers to forget themselves when something happens. original intention. This won't work.