Plan to cut off the nine states

Xu Chu's neglect was just the beginning, and soon turned into abandonment.

He never received an audience from the King of Liang again, and even Guo Shifeng and Qiao Zhisu did not show up. He could not walk freely, and like other people, he could only walk back and forth between the tents owned by the envoys from Yecheng.

The King of Liang was obviously completely disappointed with him.

The person who replaced Xu Chu was Kou Daogu. Rather than being an envoy from Yecheng, he was now more like a confidant of the King of Liang. He ate and talked with the King of Liang from morning to night, and was even allowed to participate in the discussions of the Liang army generals.

The person who had never been taken seriously was the chief envoy Fei Bing.

Xu Chu then went to chat with him and took advantage of his wine and meat.

There were also transactions in the military camp. Money could buy good food and drink, and if you had no money, you could only eat the military meals supplied uniformly.

Xu Chu had no money, and he did not consider this issue at all when he set out. Fei Bing, however, brought a lot of silver, and he was old and had bad teeth, so he could not eat too hard food, so he paid someone to cook the meat and vegetables more tenderly.

When Xu Chu came in, the wine and meat on the table had not been touched. Fei Bing sat on the bed and hummed, and an attendant was massaging his shoulders.

"I really don't know why I am still alive." Fei Bing motioned the attendant to leave and said, "Please sit down, Mr. Xu. Have you eaten?"

"Yes, but I can drink a few more cups."

"Please."

Xu Chu sat on the attendant's bed, drank two cups of wine first, and then ate the meat and vegetables on the table. After a while, he felt embarrassed, put down his chopsticks, and smiled, "Master Fei, don't you want to eat?"

"I'm not hungry. Alas, I just feel jealous when I see you young people eating."

"Sorry, I didn't mean it..."

"Eat yours."

Xu Chu ate for a while and let out a sigh, "I'm full too."

There was not much meat and vegetables left on the table. Fei Bing said, "I don't eat leftovers. Since you've started eating, eat them all."

Xu Chu thought for a moment, picked up his chopsticks to clean up the last bit of food, and then poured two glasses of wine, "Master Fei can always drink, right?"

Fei Bing picked up the glass and took a sip, "Speaking of jealousy, Master Xu just watched Kou Daogu become the guest of honor of King Liang, while he was eating and drinking here?"

Xu Chu smiled and said, "This is a different time, it's Kou Daogu's turn."

"Hey, when will it be my turn?"

"If Master Fei can lower his posture a little bit..."

"No."

"Then it won't be Master Fei's turn."

"Convince Liang to withdraw It was your idea to send troops. If Kou Daogu takes the credit, you will be very embarrassed. "

"I hope Kou Daogu can succeed. I am willing to kowtow to him to express my gratitude."

"Hey." Fei Bing took another sip of wine, "Will Kou Daogu really persuade King Liang to withdraw his troops?"

Xu Chu shook his head, "Any advice to withdraw troops will not be appreciated by King Liang at the moment."

"I guess so." Fei Bing continued to drink, and after a moment of silence, he said: "The army passed by that post station today."

"Which post station?"

"It's the one you promised that King Liang would be persuaded to withdraw."

"Oh, remember, I said at the time that it was a sure thing, but there would be a chance of failure."

Fei Bing let go. He put down his cup and sighed, "It's only one day's journey to Yecheng. Even if we walk slowly, we will arrive the day after tomorrow. Judging from the situation of King Liang, we must launch an attack immediately."

"No, King Liang will wait a few more days."

"Again, 'sure as hell'?"

"Haha, a little more sure than sure, but not sure as hell."

"It's useless. The situation is over. Yecheng...can't be saved."

Xu Chu refilled the cup opposite him, "When Lord Fei was alone guarding the Eastern Capital, he was not as discouraged as he is now."

"Different, completely different..." Fei Bing did not explain what was different. Perhaps he was just depressed and no longer as generous and fearless as before.

Xu Chu felt a little sympathetic towards the old man, and couldn't help but say, "I have some guesses. If they come true, Yecheng may still be saved."

"It's just a guess... Then tell me about it, just consider it as a way to repay my favor for the wine and meat on the table."

"It's worth it." Xu Chu smiled and took a sip of wine slowly. "Princess Huanyan is not particularly nervous."

"The princess has always been calm and composed, and she is worthy of being the leader of a place. It's a pity..."

Fei Bing didn't say anything else. Xu Chu knew in his heart that he had heard similar words many times. Princess Huanyan's identity as a woman has become more and more of a major obstacle. Many people admit that she has great talents and strategies, but still think it is difficult for her to succeed.

"No matter what, Princess Huanyan's calmness is not just her personality, she must have been prepared."

"Really? If so, why didn't she say it out loud to comfort the people?"

"Maybe it's not worth telling outsiders."

"Defending Yecheng is an honorable thing, what can't be said?"

Xu Chu didn't answer directly, "When I went to Dongdu for negotiations, Lord Fei didn't kill me. Did you regret it afterwards?"

"I regret it until now: if I had killed you directly regardless of my reputation, maybe Dongdu could have been defended, maybe there wouldn't be so many things later, maybe the court could have moved back to Dongdu... But it could also be worse, and someone else would occupy Dongdu, and the people in the city might have suffered a catastrophe. So I regret it, but if I go back to the beginning, I still don't know how to choose."

Fei Bing drank a glass of wine, and his worries did not dissipate, but became more tangled.

"Princess Huanyan will." Xu Chu said.

Fei Bing was slightly stunned, "She can, you can, all the kings can, you are the same kind of people, when you didn't have any soldiers under your command, you took the world as your plaything, so when you have a chance..." Fei Bing was stunned again, "Mr. Xu is saying..."

"Last year, when the kings confronted the officers and soldiers led by the Lan family, the officers and soldiers suddenly collapsed for no reason. Afterwards, there were many different opinions and no conclusion was reached. The kings benefited from this, and Yecheng was able to take the opportunity to gain a foothold. After the battle of Dongdu ended, He Rong's cavalry was unwilling to return to the frontier immediately, and was quite willing to cross the river to the south. Suddenly, news came from the frontier that the old Chanyu had died, and his sons were vying for the throne. The cavalry in the south was established. He immediately turned back home. "

"Master Xu, do you think these two things were not Yecheng's luck, but someone arranged it? I won't say much about the death of the old Chanyu. The officers and soldiers were defeated, and the biggest beneficiaries were the Jiangshi Army and the kings. Yecheng just got a short break."

"Looking back, the beneficiaries were the Jiangshi Army kings. How many people at that time thought that the kings could become stronger because of this?"

Fei Bing didn't say a word. One of the important reasons why he dared to defend the Eastern Capital at that time was that he thought the kings were not in harmony. He only needed to hold on for a few days, and the enemy army outside the city would naturally collapse. Yecheng probably thought so too, so it sent a large army to fight for the Eastern Capital when it just gained a foothold.

Xu Chu smiled and said, "I think Yecheng will have 'good luck' again."

"Will King Liang be assassinated?"

Xu Chu shook his head, "King Liang attacked the two kings unexpectedly. Yecheng was unprepared and did not pay special attention to him. It is estimated that no arrangements were made in advance."

"Kou Daogu..."

"He is not that kind of person, and Yecheng does not trust him."

"That's you!" Fei Bing raised his voice and immediately lowered it, "For you, assassinating the king is much easier than assassinating the emperor, right?"

"I won't do this again."

"Hey." Fei Bing seemed to believe it, " You said Yecheng will have "good luck" again, but it's not King Liang - that's Huaizhou. The Sheng family has many brothers, and three of them are in power now. The death of any one of them doesn't seem to affect the overall situation. The three of them died together... Yecheng's luck is not so good, right? "

"It may not be a death, but something will happen in Huaizhou anyway."

"I don't believe it. The two things you said are more like accidents. Although Princess Huanyan is a woman, she has always acted openly and honestly. I have never seen her use any conspiracy or tricks."

"Then let's look forward to another "accident." Xu Chu smiled.

"I thought you could really guess something, but it turned out to be a guess."

"I have another guess, which is more reasonable. It is said that Lord Yin did not fall into the hands of the Liang army, but set out in advance, and now he may have arrived in Xijing."

"I have also heard that although Lord Yin is a civil official, he acts with the style of a military general. If the two kings can... Well, let's not talk about it. Xijing is too far away, even if the Jizhou army is intact, it will not be able to return to Yecheng in time."

"Yecheng also sent Mr. Sun Yalu to Xijing to negotiate peace. If he can meet with Lord Yin and work together to form an alliance with the Jiangshi Army, even if he cannot return to the east in time, it will be enough to shock the heroes. , King Liang and the Sheng family of Huaizhou need to think more about it. "

Fei Bing thought for a while and nodded slightly, "This guess is somewhat plausible, but it is hard to predict what the impact will be. The Liang army may also rush to attack the city, which will cause Yecheng to fall faster."

"So we have to wait a little longer." Xu Chu stood up, "I can only guess this much. Thank you, Lord Fei, for your hospitality."

"Come over tomorrow. I will prepare more wine and food, and we will have a good drink."

"I will obey your order."

The next day, the march suddenly accelerated, and camped in the evening. Not far from Yecheng, the army in front had gathered under the city, waiting for King Liang to issue an order to attack the city.

When the matter came to an end, Yu Zhan became more and more panicked. As soon as he stopped, he went to guard Kou Daogu's tent, just to find out a few words. Fei Bing was not in a hurry, but really prepared a table of sumptuous wine and food, and sent his followers to invite Xu Chu.

The two chatted while eating, not mentioning military and national affairs, but only talking about the past of the Eastern Capital and discussing academic matters.

After three rounds of wine, Fei Bing said, "If Yecheng is breached, what will Master Xu do?"

"I will find a way to escape, go to the Valley of Repentance to call the people there, take them to find a place to hide, and then go to Yuyang."

"Why go to Yuyang? After the Liang army attacked Yecheng, they must go north, and Yuyang is not a safe place."

"Dealing with some private matters."

Fei Bing stared at Xu Chu, "Where is Master Xu who cares about the world?"

"Retired with the assassin."

"Why?"

"Because there is no 'world' to be held in mind, or it can be said that there is a world, but no one can 'hold it'. When a scholar talks about caring about the world, he talks about gods and Buddhas with monks and Taoists, and talks to fortune tellers. Bringing up the will of heaven is almost the same thing, just to cover up one's own incompetence. "

Fei Bing shook his head, "Mr. Xu is quite insightful, but I cannot agree with this statement at all. Caring for the world is a kind of attitude, which may never be achieved, but those who have this heart can practice the great way, fulfill the great justice, and do great things. "

Xu Chu smiled and said, "Mr. Fei said this, he must want me to do something, I am afraid this wine cannot be drunk in vain."

Fei Bing did not deny it, glanced at the door, and lowered his voice and said, "I have carefully considered what Mr. Xu said yesterday. Yecheng does need a little luck. Instead of waiting, it is better to do it yourself."

Xu Chu was stunned. He did not expect that his words would lead to such a result.