Chapter 647 Elbow and Armpit
Why was Dong Zhuo so out of his mind? Without him, just because he regarded Liu Bei as his commander-in-chief, he was relieved of his major troubles.
There were two aspects of the defeat of the Guanxi Army in Dusuoyuan that Dong Zhuo did not expect.
One is that he didn't expect the Kansai Army to be defeated so simply. They didn't even have a decent decisive battle and collapsed in the night.
Another unexpected thing is that Liu Bei turned out to be the winner of this battle.
It turned out that after Liu Bei successfully connected with Gan Ning and other Yizhou military factions, the four Yizhou generals closely surrounded Liu Bei, but the left general followed suit.
The reasons are not complicated. Gan Ning and others were the first batch to break camp and leave the battlefield. According to normal military regulations, they were all sent to Cuncheng, Xishi.
He could only survive by relying on Liu Bei and the big tree of Han clan clan.
And what about Liu Bei? Perhaps because he couldn't bear the humiliation of a great general of the country, or because he wanted to build a group of his own troops, he actually incorporated the fourth battalion of Yizhou soldiers into General Zuo's army.
At the same time, relying on these four battalions, Liu Bei absorbed many defeated troops from Kansai and gradually built an army of about 10,000 people.
Liu Bei led this legion and was stationed in Yubi, Hedong. He formed a new line of defense with Li Jue, Guo Si, Wang Chang and other troops.
Dong Zhuo was originally very afraid of Liu Bei, but seeing Liu Bei swell up whenever there was a storm, he felt a headache in his heart.
It is of course easy to deal with Liu Bei. Just let Li Jue and Guo Si on the front line seize the troops directly with the edict.
But behind Liu Bei was the little emperor Liu Xie. Dong Zhuo didn't want to destroy the current status of him and the little emperor, so the matter was deadlocked.
And now it happened that since Zongzheng Liu Song promoted Liu Bei to be the commander in charge of countering the rebellion, he would take advantage of the situation and transfer Liu Bei back from Hedong and make him a short-term commander.
That's why Dong Zhuo had this attitude.
And here Dong Zhuo is worried about Liu Xie, but over there Liu Xie is not worried about Dong Zhuo?
So when Dong Zhuo made the decision, even though Liu Xie was reluctant in his heart, he still managed to smile:
"Zongzheng's words are very good. I also think that the emperor's uncle is the best choice."
Strange to say, before Liu Xie said this, he was unwilling in his heart, because when Liu Bei was transferred to Yizhou, the ten thousand troops he had finally grasped would be taken away. This It is undoubtedly a huge loss to the public.
But after Liu Xie said this, he thought about it in his heart, and he really agreed with what he said.
Why?
There is a saying that "what you lose in the east is what you gain in mulberry trees." Liu Bei's troops were on the front line of Hedong and were already facing the pressure of Taishan Army. Even though the troops seem to be in full order now, maybe after a big battle, they will be clean again.
It is better to use troops in Yizhou. If the situation is really opened up in Yizhou, the strength of the public will usher in a completely different change.
In this way, with the consent of Dong Zhuo and Liu Xie, Liu Bei was confirmed as the candidate to counter the rebellion.
The three men below also had nothing to say. After all, Liu Bei is also a kind man and I believe he will not kill indiscriminately in Yizhou.
But the matter did not end here. After mentioning Liu Bei, Dong Zhuo made another suggestion, which was to transfer Duan Xuan mentioned by Zhao Qi to Hedong to control all the armies in Hedong.
Then he asked Li Jue to lead his troops back and join Liu Bei's army as deputy commander.
It turns out that since Dong Zhuo was already on guard against Liu Bei, how could he let him go in Yizhou? Then put a noose on Liu Bei so that he can't turn over.
Liu Xie thought for a while and agreed.
And since there are already more Li Jue, it doesn't matter if there is one more, so he conferred Lai Min, proposed by Zhao Qian, as an emissary to supervise the army on behalf of the emperor.
As a result, the counter-insurgency candidates with Liu Bei, Li Jue, and Lai Min as the core were finalized.
……
In the second year of Taiwu, the third day of the twelfth lunar month.
Liu Bei, who had just returned from the front line, led Zhang Fei, Chen Dao and others into Chang'an City, rolling in the frost and breathing in the heat.
Liu Bei was quite surprised to be promoted as the counter-insurgency coach.
To be honest, when the edict was delivered to him, he was inspecting the Jade Bi front line. After seeing the jade wall and the iron wall, Liu Bei was confident that he would defeat the Taishan Army here.
Liu Bei knew very well that since he could not defeat the Taishan Army in terms of absolute strength, he would choose a battlefield that he had preset and fight with the favorable terrain.
But just when Liu Bei was complacent, he received news from Chang'an, asking him to return to Chang'an to discuss the matter of quelling the rebellion in Yizhou.
Liu Bei also knew a thing or two about what happened in Yizhou. Liu Zhang established himself as Yizhou Shepherd. Although it was a bit crazy, the timing was undoubtedly very good when the court was surrounded by enemies on three sides.
Therefore, Liu Bei initially felt that the imperial court would admit the facts and wait until the pressure on Hedong was relieved before taking action. But he didn't expect the court's reaction to be so big and decisive this time.
At this time, Liu Bei was also reflecting in his heart, had he been in the Guandong court for a long time, and his whole body and spirit had been tainted by the jealousy of those corrupt ministers?
Compared to the Kansai Imperial Court, they are more like the Han Dynasty in their dealings with people and things, being strong and decisive.
Liu Bei's background can only be said to be okay, but his ability to grow to this point depends on his ability to continue learning. After accepting the reality, Liu Bei discussed the defense line of the jade bi with Wang Chang, and immediately went straight to Chang'an with Zhang Fei and other followers.
We still cross the river from Longmen, but this time we no longer use boats, but ride horses.
In the twelfth lunar month of winter, this section of the Yellow River was already covered with thick ice. Liu Bei and the others could break through the natural chasm of the Yellow River on horseback.
As soon as he crossed the river, Liu Bei found the Longmen Order and asked him to cut ice on both sides of the river immediately. Once this place is known to the Taishan Army, with its sudden cavalry maneuvers, they will not miss this opportunity.
After finishing this matter casually, Liu Bei and his party drove all the way and finally arrived in Chang'an on the third day of the twelfth lunar month.
Before entering the city, Chen arrived and asked Liu Bei:
"My lord, do you want to go back to your home to see your wife?"
Yes, Liu Bei got married, and it was Liu Xie who granted him the marriage.
Liu Bei's wife is the daughter of Yang Biao, who can be said to be from a truly famous family. It was only because Yang Biao "made trouble" in the front hall and his family was in turmoil and precarious that he agreed to the marriage with Liu Bei.
After getting married, Liu Xie specially gave Liu Bei a large house as his new residence. It can be said that he treated Liu Bei very well.
And Liu Bei is also a man who knows how to repay his kindness, otherwise he would not have received Liu Xie's edict, so he gave up his accumulated troops and hurried back to Chang'an.
At this moment, Liu Bei was startled when he heard the general asked about his wife. He showed rare tenderness. He took out a golden hairpin from his arms and handed it to Chen Dao:
"Ada, if you give this to Madam, just say that the military situation is urgent and I will not return home."
Chen Dao nodded, then turned his horse around with his two followers and ran towards the village outside the city.
The houses of all the ministers are basically outside the city of Chang'an, and inside the city are palaces and administrative agencies, so it is only when Chen arrives that he has to turn around.
As soon as Chen Dao left, Liu Bei led Zhang Fei and other generals on horseback from the Qingming Gate in the west of the city, and then drove straight to Weiyang Palace.
When Liu Bei hurried to the front hall of Weiyang Palace, the young emperor Liu Xie was already waiting there.
……
When Liu Bei took off his shoes and walked into the hall, Liu Xie was correcting the proclamation. This is a document drafted by the ministers to conquer Yizhou, and Liu Xie is finalizing it.
Seeing Liu Bei come in, Liu Xie put aside the wolf hair and looked at Liu Bei carefully. Seeing Liu Bei's messy temples and disheveled beard and hair, he felt distressed and said:
"Uncle Emperor, thank you for your hard work."
Liu Bei felt warm in his heart and hurriedly fell on the ground and replied:
"Your Majesty's hard work is more important than your hard work. Your Majesty has the important responsibility of the Han family, so you should pay more attention to the Holy Eucharist."
Liu Xie smiled, and then asked Xiao Huangmen to give Liu Bei a seat.
After Liu Bei sat down, Liu Xie formally asked:
"Uncle Emperor, now the mountains and rivers are broken, and the Han Dynasty is in decline. I and Liu Zhang are one, and we should be in the same boat, but Liu Zhang has failed me in the end."
Liu Bei explained something to Liu Zhang in a low voice:
"Liu Changshi should not be able to decide."
Liu Xie shook his head and said:
"Forget about this, uncle, what are your plans for this expedition to Yizhou?"
Just when Liu Xie was about to listen to Liu Bei's opinion, he saw Liu Bei shaking his head:
"Your Majesty, I am ashamed that I have not been able to come up with a specific strategy. I am from the north and know almost nothing about the situation in Yizhou. Therefore, I need the help of Yizhou locals to consider the actual situation and formulate a strategy."
Liu Xie was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect Liu Bei to say that. Although he was impatient, he also knew that Liu Bei's words were mature words, so he suppressed his restlessness and said with a smile:
"Yes, I still have a lot of Yizhou scholars in my pocket. They are all temporary figures. They will be used as counselors in your shogunate later. In short, I will not be stingy as long as the emperor's uncle needs it."
Liu Bei thanked him, but still raised his head and replied:
"Your Majesty, I would like to invite Xiyuan General Gan Ning, Zhang Ren, Yan Yan, and Shen Mi to serve under the curtain. They are all local generals in Yizhou and are familiar with the mountains and rivers. They will be of great help to me when I go south."
But Liu Xie was in a dilemma. He rubbed his palms and sighed:
"These four people are the four generals who abandoned the army before the battle in Jiesoyuan?"
Liu Bei nodded slowly.
Liu Xie stood up from the dragon table and paced back and forth:
"Uncle Emperor, it's not that I won't help you. Did you know that these four generals are the ones that the Grand Master must kill? Just because of their cowardly behavior, the Grand Master lost many of his beloved generals. These people can be said to be dead. Ten times is not enough.”
Liu Bei was anxious and wanted to explain to Liu Xie, but before he could speak, Liu Xie interrupted him. He said in a deep voice:
"Uncle, you don't need to say more, I just want to ask you, are these four generals necessary?"
Looking at Liu Xie's eyes, Liu Bei was silent for a while, and finally insisted:
"With these four generals, I will surely be able to quell the rebellion in Yizhou for Your Majesty."
As a result, Liu Xie also fell silent.
After a long while, he said to Liu Bei:
"Uncle Emperor, since you said so, these four generals will be with you."
At this time, Liu Bei didn't know how much pressure Liu Xie was under. He looked excited and fell to the ground again:
"Even if my body is shattered into pieces in this battle, I will definitely wipe out the rebels and live up to your Majesty's wishes!"
Liu Xie laughed, got off the platform, and personally helped Liu Bei up.
Without Dong Zhuo by his side, Liu Xie not only smiled more, but also felt more at ease with his youthful heroic demeanor.
When Liu Bei sat down this time, he did not mention Yizhou directly, but told Liu Xie what he was thinking about on the road:
"Your Majesty, I have thought about a lot of things along the way, and I feel that there are a few things that can benefit the country, and I want to share your worries for Your Majesty."
Liu Xie said oh and asked Liu Bei to speak.
Liu Bei sorted out his thoughts and said in a deep voice:
"In my humble opinion, the country's current deployment of troops on all sides is not a long-term solution. In the past, there was no priority in using troops, so we fought fiercely for several years, but could not clear one area. After several years, our morale was exhausted, and we wasted countless money and food."< br>
At this time, Liu Xie had returned to the couch and was sitting upright, listening to Liu Bei continue to speak:
"Your Majesty, I am now facing these four enemies in Guanxi. Let me tell you in detail for Your Majesty. Let me talk about the puppet dynasty in Guandong in front of Wei Han. In my opinion, they are already dead bones in the grave and no longer threaten. And those in the west are The Huangshui Qiang and Barbarians are just a bunch of house-keeping dogs and have no ambition to conquer the world. Only the Taishan Army in the north and the Yizhou rebels in the south are threats to me in Guanxi."
Liu Xie listened to every word of Liu Bei's words in his heart and couldn't agree more. He nodded and motioned for the emperor's uncle to continue.
"But there is a difference between the thieves in Taishan and the thieves in Yizhou. If Taishan is a serious trouble for the confidants, then Yizhou is a trouble for the elbows and armpits. Serious troubles for the intimates can be dealt with slowly, but the troubles for the elbows and armpits cannot be stopped for a moment, otherwise they will be terminally ill. And the princes in the court also saw it, so they were prepared to be commander-in-chief. However, the minister was stupid and did not deal with the pain of his heart and soul first, so he could spare no effort to deal with it. "
At this time, Liu Xie was already very serious. He asked:
"Uncle Emperor, please explain in detail."
Liu Bei nodded, and then said this situation:
"Your Majesty, the Taishan Army is currently maintaining an offensive on the east side of Hedong. As winter has passed most of the time, the Taishan Army will inevitably continue to move south next spring. And by then, our army will be in Yizhou and the Taishan Army will press the border. These troops will be withdrawn. Not withdrawing? I think we will definitely withdraw, but when the time comes, won't Yizhou's troops be in vain? And if things go on like this, whenever our army deploys troops elsewhere, how will our army respond by threatening to move south? ”
Liu Xie pondered:
"So..."
"Yes, Your Majesty, the top priority now is that our army needs to deal with the Taishan Army."
Now Liu Xie smiled bitterly:
"Uncle Emperor, aren't you teasing me? If the Taishan Army is so easy to deal with, will it be a serious problem for me?"
Liu Bei shook his head and said seriously:
"I am not teasing, nor do I dare to tease His Majesty, because what I call solving the Taishan Army is to negotiate peace with the Taishan Army."
Liu Xie was stunned for a moment:
"Peace negotiation? Peace negotiation with the rebels? This..."
Liu Bei also knew that this was very difficult for Liu Xie. It can be said that half of the reason why the late emperor has been exiled to this day is the Taishan Army. Even since the Taishan Army disaster, countless noble officials and noble families have died at their hands. Among the officials in the court, which one has no blood feud with the Taishan Army?
But as he said, without reaching peace and balance with the Taishan Army, the Kansai court would be unable to develop. Liu Bei thought that most of the Taishan Army would agree, because the Taishan Army also wasted most of its military strength in Hedong. Reaching peace between the two sides would also be beneficial to the Taishan Army.
Precisely because it was too complicated, Liu Xie pondered for a long time and finally said:
"This matter is too important, let me think about it carefully. Uncle Emperor, today's words are limited to you and me."
Liu Bei nodded.
The front hall was silent for a while.
Suddenly, Liu Xie knocked on himself with a smile and said with a smile:
"Uncle Emperor, I almost missed the point. Now that you have been assigned a lieutenant general, how many troops do you plan to have?"
At this time, Liu Bei smiled and stretched out his hand.
But Liu Xie couldn't laugh anymore and asked:
"Uncle Emperor, you want 50,000 troops. Although the court has them, I'm afraid the food supply is tight. Can it be less?"
But Liu Bei smiled and said rather narrowly:
"Your Majesty, when did I say that I wanted 50,000 soldiers? If I give you 5,000 soldiers, I will definitely live up to your Majesty's expectations."
Seeing Uncle Liu Huang, who was slowly getting excited, saying such big words, Liu Xie opened his mouth wide and expressed deep doubts:
"Have I failed to entrust you to someone else?"