Jiuxi

Chapter 123 Chapter 122 [Thousands of gold to buy horse bones]

"I am your Majesty's servant, not a disciple of the Prime Minister's Office."

If this sentence came from the mouth of an old official in the court, Li Duan would only find it disgusting, but the young general in front of him would not give him this feeling. On the contrary, it was particularly consistent with his identity and upright temperament.

He smiled and reminded: "It's okay to talk in front of me, but you should be more cautious when leaving the palace."

Lu Chen felt a little surprised.

His words were not just flattering, but actually had a testing purpose.

Several elders had different views on the emperor.

Li Tianrun only chatted with him twice, but it was a simple and deep friendship. His trust and expectations for the emperor were clear, and he firmly believed that the emperor who had been on the throne for 12 years could solve the worries of the border soldiers and smoothly promote the Northern Expedition.

Xiao Wangzhi maintained a reserved attitude. He believed that the emperor was trustworthy, but there were too many constraints from the rear, and the Northern Expedition would probably still be trapped in endless wrangling and internal strife.In short, he believed in the emperor's character, but doubted that the emperor did not have the ability to make decisions.

As for his father, Lu Tong, there is no doubt that he has no good impression of the Tian family. If Lu Chen had not come to the fore by accident, he would never have let Lu Chen go south to Yongjia. His only thought or responsibility was to help Xiao Wangzhi build a stable And the rich Huaizhou can be regarded as fulfilling the last wish of Marshal Yang.

Before leaving, he specifically told Lu Chen not to get too involved in the disputes in the court, let alone become a knife in the hands of others.

Even if this person is the emperor.

Of course Lu Chen didn't have any rebellious mentality, but he wanted to keep a low profile but trouble came to him. Through the tricks he told Song Yun and Li Yunyi, plus the information he had, he could roughly judge the power structure in the capital.

It is true that the Tian family is superior, but the Jiangnan family headed by the Jinlin Li family is the foundation for the royal family surnamed Li to maintain its rule. The two parties are in a complex state of cooperation and struggle.

Now that the emperor wants to promote the Northern Expedition, he must use the power of the border army system to fight against the conservative ideas. That's why Lu Chen said that. He just wanted to see what the emperor would do and whether he would take advantage of the situation to resolve the conflict between him and Li Yunyi. Make it public.

Unexpectedly, this would be the answer.

"I thank your Majesty for your teaching, but -"

Lu Chen hesitated for a moment, and seeing that Li Duan was still smiling, he plucked up the courage to ask: "Your Majesty, I really don't understand the rules and etiquette in the capital. If that Li Sanlang can't swallow this, he will still want to find me in the future." I'm in trouble, can I fight back?"

When Li Duan asked before, Lu Chen's answer was decisive, but now he raised such a question.

Li Duan immediately understood that this young general was asking for a decree to relieve him of worries.

He didn't feel annoyed, but found it interesting and novel.

In fact, this is the right thing to do. A reckless man who just shouts and kills doesn't have a very bright future. Only if he knows how to take advantage of every opportunity can he be worthy of the respect Li Tianrun and Xiao Wangzhi place on him.

Therefore, Li Duan said leisurely: "The first thing is to be reasonable, and the second thing is not to go too far."

Lu Chendeng laughed immediately and said understandingly: "Just like that time two years ago, Jingzhou Captain Li beat up Li Sanlang and made him lie in bed for two months?"

Li Duan couldn't help laughing and said: "You are really different from the ministers in this court. I am not siding with Li Sanlang, but the Li family has a deep foundation in the capital, and there are countless masters in the hospital. If it were not for the unbearable situation, , you'd better endure it to avoid suffering a big loss. I suddenly remembered that you haven't been engaged yet?"

This sentence set off alarm bells in Lu Chen's heart. Although the emperor in front of him seemed to be a good person, if the other party had a hobby of being a moon elder, it would be a little troublesome once he opened his mouth. After all, the emperor had good words, so he hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, I still return the favor. I’m young and don’t want to start a family and get married for the time being.”

Li Duan heard what he meant and just smiled slightly and did not continue.

After chatting for a while, Li Duan finally turned to the topic and said gently: "The great victory in Jiangbei is inspiring, and the court must reward the meritorious officials. This time you made suggestions for the border army, and you risked your life without fear of life and death. In addition, in addition to the previous Guangling City has made so many contributions, I will definitely reward you heavily."

Lu Chen had already thought about this issue before and responded calmly: "I thank your Majesty for your kindness."

Li Duan stared into his eyes and asked, "Do you want to stay in the capital or go back to the border?"

Lu Chen said without hesitation: "I want to return to the border."

This answer was within Li Duan's expectation.

Before today's summons, he had similar thoughts, so he did not directly agree to Qin Zheng's proposal.

Whether it is the court or the Beijing army, the internal relationships are as complicated as a pool of muddy water. It is difficult for a few young captains and captains to make waves if they are thrown into it.Unless they are given enough time and Li Duan continues to pay attention and promote them, it will be possible for them to gradually take over part of the power of the Beijing army.

But this time must be very long.Li Duan believed that allowing these young frontier generals to return to the frontier, promote them to military positions, and then let generals with great merit and maturity such as Chen Lanyu and Huo Zhen enter the Beijing army would have the effect of getting twice the result with half the effort.

But after meeting Lu Chen today, Li Duan's thoughts changed.

He thought for a while and then asked: "Just now you said that under the current conditions, the Northern Expedition has almost no chance of winning, so where do you think the biggest constraint lies?"

Different from the previous temptation, this time his question had a very obvious meaning of testing.

Lu Chen knew this very well and said calmly: "Your Majesty, I am lying, the biggest obstacle to the Northern Expedition is not the vast number of wealthy families in the south of the Yangtze River, but the fact that the imperial court does not have a clear plan for this matter."

Li Duan's eyes narrowed slightly: "Plan?"

"Yes, I often heard it when I was in Huaizhou. The imperial court said many times about the Northern Expedition to regain the homeland. But I never understood which step the imperial court wanted to achieve and how it would be implemented in several steps. I believe there are more than Yes, most people in Daqi don’t quite understand. Over the years, the word Northern Expedition has gradually become a vague concept. It seems that we should do this, but we don’t know how to do it specifically. Even if we want to support it, There was nowhere to focus, which gradually led to the current situation.”

He knew that these words were a bit out of bounds, even questioning the court in person, but thinking of Xiao Wangzhi, Li Tianrun and the countless passionate men in the border army, he felt that he should take this precious opportunity to express his feelings as much as possible.

Li Duan's expression gradually became serious: "Go on."

"I dare not make rash comments about the court, but judging from what I have seen these days, His Majesty faces a lot of resistance. Many people just talk about compassion for the Holy Father and still have small calculations in their hearts. But in this vast land in the south of the Yangtze River, Is it true that everyone thinks this way? Is it true that no one among the hundreds of powerful nobles wants to regain their homeland and return to the old capital? Is it true that none of the generals who command hundreds of thousands of elite Beijing troops want to conquer the world and make achievements? "

Lu Chen straightened his back and said loyally, "Your Majesty, I don't believe it."

These six words speak volumes.

Li Duan nodded slightly.

Lu Chen continued: "The Northern Expedition is a huge and general goal. If we divide this goal into several steps, can we get the support of more people? Perhaps in the eyes of most people, fighting against Jing Chao is a very arduous task. And difficult tasks are far inferior to maintaining the status quo and enjoying the peaceful years. Anyway, no matter how hard the frontier fights, it will not affect the romance in Beijing."

Li Duan asked solemnly: "In your opinion, what is the first step for the court to take?"

Lu Chen said slowly: "The Jiangbei victory is not the end. Puppet Yan and Jing Chao will not give up. I think the adults in the court can understand this. For Da Qi, the idea of ​​​​being in a corner cannot guarantee long-term peace. It is very dangerous to set the defense line on both sides of the Hengjiang River. The only way to ensure that Hengjiang is safe is to push the defense line forward and keep the battlefield in the north of the Yangtze River."

He paused and said loudly: "To be precise, they are Moyang Road and Dongyang Road of Puppet Yan. The terrain north of the old capital is flat and open, which is very suitable for Jingchao cavalry to maneuver. But Moyang Road and Dongyang Road are different. This The water network in the two places is densely covered with ravines and ravines. Although the Jingchao cavalry will not be unable to move even an inch, their strength will be greatly reduced."

Li Duan stood up and said to the eunuch next to him: "Get the map of Jiangbei."

"My slave obeys the order." The eunuch immediately accepted the order and left.

After a while, Li Duan stood next to the wooden frame, staring at the Jiangbei terrain on the map, and had a clearer understanding of Lu Chen's proposal.

"You are right. Just mentioning the word Northern Expedition will greatly increase the pressure on some people, because they are worried that once the war starts, it will not be able to stop, and sooner or later everyone will be dragged to death. If you settle for the second best, Moyang Road and Dongyang Road are set as clear goals, and I believe we can win the support of more people.”

Li Duan showed approval, then turned to look at Lu Chen and said: "Li Tianrun is not wrong about the person. Although you are still very young, your view of the problem is not weaker than that of some ministers in the DPRK."

Lu Chen's thoughts were not tactical details, but strategic judgments, just like his planning before the Battle of Jiangbei broke out.

Xiao Wangzhi didn't mention much about this matter, but Li Tianrun reported Lu Chen's role in detail in the memorial.

Lu Chen lowered his head and said humbly: "Your Majesty is so complimentary."

Li Duan looked at this young face, and the thoughts in his heart began to waver again.

"Lu Chen, if I allow you to enter the palace of the Imperial Guards and stay with me for consultation, would you be willing?"

After pondering for a moment, the ambitious emperor finally gave him a favor that ordinary people could not refuse.

It is true that accompanying you is like a tiger accompanying you, but it is a great favor to go straight to the center and follow you. As long as Lu Chen can keep his sharp eyes and clear mind like today, it is not a fantasy to soar into the sky and rise to the top.

Even if the emperor just wanted to set an example for the soldiers on the border, Lu Chen's future would definitely be bright.

He lowered his head slightly and thought calmly.

(End of this chapter)