Fenghou

Sima Chun thought for a while and said, "What Special Envoy Lu means is to send Liu Kai to lead the army to stop the attack on the Qiantang River."

"Exactly!"

Lu Gang whispered a few more words to Sima Chun, and Sima Chun nodded repeatedly, "Do I understand what the special envoy means?"

……

Lu Gang left, and Sima Chun was pacing back and forth in the room excitedly. It had been his wish for many years to become an official. He had no chance with Zhu Shengfei, but he never expected it to come true with His Royal Highness King Yong. Can you not get excited?

At this moment, the wife walked in and said with a smile, "Why is my husband so excited?"

"How can I not be excited, look at this!"

Sima Chun showed his wife the recommendation form, and Liu was surprised: "You actually recommended your husband to be an official, and he is the county magistrate of Xinxiang, really?"

"It is estimated that our family will go to Jingzhao next month. Unexpectedly, when Sima Chun is 38 years old, I will finally become an official."

"Husband, could this be intentional..."

"will not!"

Sima Chun knew what his wife wanted to say, and interrupted her with a smile, "He is not an ordinary person, he is Princess Yong's eldest brother, and the future head of the Lu family. He will not ruin his reputation and credit. The county magistrate is nothing to him at all, it’s just a seventh-rank gun, he has the right to recommend, the key is that I want to play a role.”

"I think your husband's last sentence is right. If your husband wants to play an important role, the county magistrate will give you your reward."

"Yes!"

Sima Chun nodded and said with emotion: "The position of county magistrate is not easy to get, I have to think about it!"

……

The next morning, when Sima Chun arrived at the Marshal's Mansion, Wei Tong sent someone to look for him.

Sima Chun hurriedly came to the handsome hall, and saw that Wei Tong was full of anger, the ground was full of shards of the inkstone, he must have been angry just now, Sima Chun quickly winked at the attendant, and asked him to clean up the shards of the inkstone.

"Who made the Marshal angry again?"

"Who else?"

Wei Tong said furiously: "It's not that thief Liu Kai, I ordered his men to repair the city wall by the West Lake immediately, but he said that his army is not hard labor, and asked me to find someone else. Taiwan, hate me too!"

Speaking of which, Wei Tong is also difficult for him to wear a suit of armor. He is so thin, like a hemp pole, wearing armor as if hanging on his body. It is indescribably funny, without the mighty domineering that a general will have. In fact, he is a civil servant. , don't need to wear armor, but he just wanted to look like a marshal, and finally turned into a four-faced.

Sima Chun said coldly: "Yesterday the marshal asked me to go back and think about how to deal with him. I thought about it for a long time, and there is only one way!"

Wei Tong cheered up, and quickly asked: "What way?"

"Liu Kai has a lot of experience in the army. If the marshal kills him, it will definitely cause widespread dissatisfaction in the army, and even cause disease. I think the best way is to borrow a knife to kill someone!"

"You mean, let someone else kill him?"

Sima Chun nodded, "Use the hands of the Western Army to kill him, as well as those generals who are loyal to him, and give them to the Western Army to kill."

"Let me think about it!" Wei Tong didn't have the courage, he was a little hesitant.

Sima Chun continued to instigate: "Marshal, the soldiers are good but not many. Get rid of Liu Kai's 3 people, and the marshal can truly become an uncompromising coach. I guess we will negotiate to resolve the crisis in the end. The marshal has the capital in his hands. At that time, you can ask for more benefits, and if Liu Kai is here, he will definitely take away part of the marshal's benefits."

Wei Tong was finally persuaded, and he made up his mind, "I'll listen to the military adviser, when is the best time?"

"We have to wait patiently for the opportunity!"

The first thousand and 450 chapters and five borrowed knives

Chen Qing's fleet arrived in Huzhou, and the big ship was moored in Taihu Lake. Chen Qing personally led an army of 40 to Deqing County. This time to besiege Lin'an, Chen Qing mobilized nearly [-] troops. This is actually more of a deterrent. Let everyone see the strength comparison clearly.

Deqing County is only more than a hundred miles away from Lin'an, and is connected by the Guantang River through the canal, so it is very convenient to transport grain and grass materials.

Yang Zaixing, the northern commander who was stationed in Jiaxing, rushed to Deqing County to meet King Yong on the same day, and at the same time presented a letter from Lu Gang to Chen Qing.

In the big tent, Chen Qing read the letter and said with a smile: "This Zhu Shengfei is really caring. He actually recommended Wei Tong to be in charge of the military power. The last little army left by the imperial court will be lost in his hands."

Yang Zaixing also said: "The humble staff very much agrees with Special Envoy Lu's idea. First, we cannibalize the enemy army in pieces and remove Liu Kai, leaving only one experienced general in Yang Yizhong, and then alienate Yang Yizhong, plus 40 of us. The army is approaching the city, and I believe that the opponent's army will soon fall apart."

Chen Qing nodded, "Shock and awe are necessary, and what is more important is the combination of strength and softness in order to get the result I want."

Yang Zaixing was silent for a moment, and couldn't help but said: "Your Highness, we went all the way south, and what we felt was the warm support of the people. In fact, I feel that killing them directly will not have much impact."

Chen Qing smiled slightly: "Of course it won't have any impact now, but it may not be so in a few decades, so what I consider is to use the smallest cost to obtain the greatest benefit, which is why I support Queen Mother Wei's ascension to the throne." , Speaking of which, the Great Song Dynasty was not destroyed by my hands, and there was Queen Mother Wei who took the blame for me, so why not do it, that's why my army didn't enter Lin'an Mansion to create opportunities for her."

Yang Zaixing said shamelessly, "Your Highness has far-sighted considerations, not for a humble soldier with a humble job."

Chen Qing patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Soldiers have the duties of a soldier. The highest duty of a soldier is to obey the orders of the commander-in-chief and at the same time be able to unswervingly execute the orders. If he can do these two things, he is a qualified soldier."

Yang Zaixing sighed and said, "Actually, I also suffered from old wounds when I attacked Xixia, and I also left the roots of my injuries when I attacked Luoyang. In fact, my greatest wish is to completely wipe out the Hulu. I will have no regrets in this life."

Chen Qing nodded, "This day is coming soon, I might as well reveal a plan to you, I consider attacking Liaodong in the spring of the next year at the latest."

"Are you preparing for next year?"

"That's right, next year we prepare for a year, and the year after next will be when we will be completely elated."

After Yang Zaixing left, Chen Qing immediately gave Liu Qiong an order to pretend to cross the Qiantang River to create opportunities for Wei Tong.

……

In the morning of the next day, Wei Tong received news from the scouts that Liu Qiong's army stationed in Xiaoshan began to move northward, and the vanguard of the army was already preparing to build a pontoon bridge on the Qiantang River.

Wei Tong was shocked, and hurriedly called Sima Chun to discuss it. Sima Chun read the military newspaper and said with a smile: "God bless the commander, the commander can order Liu Kai to lead the army to stop the western army from crossing the river."

"I'm afraid he won't obey my orders!"

"He's a thorny head, he definitely won't listen to the military order of the commander in chief, the commander in chief can report to the queen mother, he can tell the queen mother like this..."

Wei Tong nodded again and again, "This is a good way!"

He immediately ordered: "Hurry up and call General Liu Kai to see me!"

Not long after, Liu Kai walked over quickly. Liu Kai had an upright personality and hated Wei Tong, who was ignorant and notorious. In addition, his backer Zhang Jun was dismissed by Queen Mother Wei, which made him very dissatisfied with Queen Mother Wei. But Zhang Jun advised him to focus on the overall situation and not to ruin his reputation at the last moment.

Liu Qi is almost 50 years old, and he can only endure the bad breath, but he has never had a good face towards Wei Tong, even if Wei Tong told him to stab his head, he didn't care.

Liu Kai came to the commander's tent, clasped his fists in salute and said, "When will the commander-in-chief look for me?"

Seeing the disdainful expression on his face, Wei Tong burned with anger. He gritted his teeth and said, "I just got the information from the scouts that Liu Qiong's army is going to cross the Qiantang River north. The army goes to the Qiantang River to intercept the northward west army!"

As Wei Tong expected, Liu Kai said to him: "Intercepting is a stupid idea. The opponent also has a large army in the west. If the retreat is cut off, wouldn't the entire army be wiped out?"

Wei Tong was speechless, but Sima Chun said from the side: "According to General Liu, any interception is dangerous, but why can other troops successfully intercept it? The key is intelligence. General Liu sent more scouts to keep an eye on the enemy army in the west." , Once the enemy army is found coming, they can immediately withdraw to the city, how could the entire army be wiped out?"

These words are very reasonable, and they are actually true. What do scouts do, they are used for early warning. Who can I blame if I don’t use scouts?

Of course Liu Kai didn't want an excuse to send troops, he said again: "Since we know that there will be troops coming from the west and north, what's the point of sending troops to intercept them?"

Sima Chun immediately sneered back: "Since the city of Lin'an is incomplete and cannot be defended, why should it be defended? General Liu, what do you think?"

"you--"

Liu Kai gave Sima Chun a hard look, turned around and rushed away angrily.

Wei Tong was happy in his heart, and he gave a thumbs up and praised: "Thanks, sir, for letting me out!"

Sima Chun said: "Liu Kai just took the opportunity to leave, he won't send troops, the commander-in-chief has to go to the Queen Mother, and ask the Queen Mother to order him to send troops, he dare not refuse!"

Wei Tong happily said, "I'll go!"

Soon, Wei Tong found the Empress Dowager Wei and told him about Liu Kai's disobedience to his military orders and fighting against him all day long. A few words to appease the brother, but what Wei Tong said next almost made her furious.

"This Liu Qi drinks with other generals all day long, and often goes to see Zhang Jun. I got some news that they gathered to discuss the cause of the emperor's death. They don't believe that it was the Xiang family."

Empress Dowager Wei's face turned cold, "What do you mean?"

"They said that the Queen Mother is the biggest beneficiary!"

"what!"

Empress Dowager Wei stood up abruptly, gritted her teeth and said, "Are they saying that Ai Jia is the murderer?"

Wei Tong didn't dare to see the eldest sister get angry, so he lowered his head and said, "It's just a rumor, I'm not sure!"

"Who does Liu Kai often hang out with?"

"He often drank with Yang Yizhong, and sometimes went to Zhang Jun's residence. I actually wanted to use the hands of the Western Army to get rid of him. Otherwise, I would never be able to gain military power, and my eldest sister's wish would never come true."

Empress Dowager Wei stared at Wei Tong for a while and said, "If you get rid of Liu Kai, you will be able to control the military power?"

"Except for Liu Kai, I have [-]% of the military power!"

"What about [-]%?"

"The other [-]% comes from Yang Yizhong. He is loyal to Da Song and has a lot of experience. I can't control him!"

Empress Dowager Wei took two steps with her hands behind her back. She remembered what Zhu Shengfei said, civil officials are not afraid of opposition, just send a few cruel officials to solve it. The key is the military, which must firmly hold the military power in its own hands.

Thinking of this, Queen Mother Wei immediately said: "The Ai family ordered him to fight!"

The first thousand and 450 chapters and six back roads

Although Liu Kai looked down on Wei Tong, he could not resist the Queen Mother's will in the end, and led [-] troops out of the city to kill the Qiantang River ten miles away. Teams of cavalry patrolled the river.

Deputy General Li Fuyuan said in a low voice: "Looking at the appearance of the Western Army, it doesn't look like they are going to cross the river."

Liu Kai said bitterly: "I wouldn't have crossed the river in the first place. The Western Army will advance into Lin'an Mansion together. They will not only advance to the south. That idiot Wei Tong doesn't understand himself, but he used the empress dowager to suppress me!"

Another commander, Zhang Rui, said: "There are rumors that the queen mother wants to ascend the throne, is it true?"

"It should be true. In fact, there are still a few Zhao clans in the city, but she doesn't think about the new emperor. It's obvious."

"Does she want to be the second Wu Zetian?"

Liu Qi sighed and said, "If she had Wu Zetian's great talent and strategy, I'd be willing to support her, but she has nothing but ambition, and she will bring Da Song into disaster!"

"Then it's better to support King Yong!" Deputy General Li Fuyuan said.

Liu Kai turned his head and glared at him, "Don't talk nonsense!"

"Dutong, I'm not talking nonsense. King Yong led his army to the Northern Expedition and regained the Han family. He treated the people leniently and benevolently. The whole world has long since returned. The brothers all want to join the Western Army. This is everyone's heart."

"Have you finished?" Liu Kai glared at him.

"I didn't say anything. I've kept these words in my heart for a long time. It's obvious that the Song Dynasty is dead, and there is no heir to the throne. It's obvious that Webster wants to usurp the throne. The elder brother wants to be loyal to Wei Tong and the Wei family. We don't want to do it!"

Zhang Rui also persuaded: "Brother and Wei Tong are fighting against each other. Once Webster usurps the throne, Wei Tong's son will be the heir to the throne. Will Wei Tong spare Big Brother? Will he spare us?"

Liu Kai was shaken. He knew that what everyone said was right. Wei Tong sent him out of the city to fight. He just wanted to use the hands of the Western Army to get rid of him. Even the Queen Mother Wei ordered him to fight. Wei Tong wanted to eradicate himself and completely grasp the military power. His intentions were obvious, and he was momentarily at a loss.

He himself was from the Western Army, and he was allowed to return to the Western Army in the end. He could accept it emotionally, but he couldn't save face.

At this moment, there was a commotion in the rear army, and the soldiers ran one after another. Liu Kai asked in amazement, "What's going on?"

Some soldiers came to report, "Tens of thousands of western troops came from the east and cut off our retreat."

Liu Kai was taken aback immediately, how could it be possible to kill him from the east?

He changed his mind, and suddenly understood that the camp on the other side was empty. In fact, the Western Army had already crossed the river. This was obviously a trap. Could it be...

Of course Wei Tong would not be a spy of the Western Army, it is very likely that there is someone around him, Liu Qi thought of Sima Chun, it was very likely that he had secretly surrendered to the Western Army, and encouraged Wei Tong, an idiot, to let him fight.

For a while, Liu Kai was extremely disappointed. What kind of idiot was sold and counted the money for others.

At this time, a soldier came to report, "Someone from the Western Army came to deliver a letter, saying that it was a letter written by King Yong!"

All the generals stared at Liu Kai together, Liu Kai nodded, "Bring it up!"

After a while, a letter delivery soldier was brought up, knelt down on one knee, saluted, and handed over two letters, "This is a letter from His Royal Highness King Yong and Liu Dutong!"

Liu Dutong is Liu Qiong, the younger brother of Liu Qi. Now the entire Liu family has surrendered to King Yong, and there is only one Liu Kai left. Willing to betray, now that the emperor has passed away and Webster shows signs of usurping the throne, Liu Kai naturally has no worries.

He read the two letters, especially His Royal Highness King Yong's letter twice. In the letter, King Yong still recruited him as before, inviting him to destroy the gold together, and to wash Jingkang's shame with a soldier's sword.

The last sentence deeply moved him, and Chen Qing also gave him enough face. Liu Kai glanced at the expectant eyes of the generals, nodded and said to the soldier who sent the letter: "I will tell you, Liu Dutong, that I accept His Highness King Yong's invitation." , Willing to pledge allegiance to him!"

Dozens of generals around him immediately cheered. According to rumors, [-] soldiers also cheered together.

Liu Kai immediately ordered that the whole army put down their weapons and surrender to the Western Army.

……

The news that Liu Kai's army surrendered to the Western Army soon spread to Lin'an City. Instead of feeling that he had done anything wrong, Wei Tong was very grateful. Liu Kai must have secretly surrendered to the Western Army long ago. See it out by yourself and drive out of Lin'an City, otherwise the consequences will be disastrous.

But what Wei Tong didn't expect was that the news of Liu Qi's army surrendering to the Western Army caused huge waves in the army, and the morale of the army was completely shaken. In fact, most of the soldiers were not from Lin'an, and their parents, wives and children were already the sons of King Yong. The newspapers also published the news that the Western Army had committed no crimes and treated the common people kindly, which had already spread among the soldiers.

Although the morale of the army has gradually disintegrated, the superiors still have the ideas of the superiors. They don't care much about the army and think more about their own interests.

As soon as night fell, a special guest came to Zhu Shengfei's mansion. The guest was Lu Gang, the special envoy of King Yong.