Plan to cut off the nine states

The eunuchs in the city sent people to send messages one after another, and there was no difference at all. Especially the four eunuchs around Pan Kai. They all said good things and did not doubt that Gao Shengze was ready to go and laugh at Xu Chu. At this time, a piece of news caused a stir. He had a glimmer of doubt.

To be precise, this was not news, but "no news": no one saw Guo Shifeng leaving the city.

There is an eunuch at every city gate in Dongdu. These are extraordinary times and there are very few people coming in and out. No matter where Guo Shifeng leaves the city, he will definitely be seen. However, all the eunuchs say that no one left the city today. The entourage sent by the eunuch specifically reminded Gao Shengze: "The King of Liang once issued an order that no one was allowed to enter or leave the eastern capital. Only when Gao Gong and others brought the order from the King of Liang were they allowed to enter the city. Guo Shifeng was the envoy of King Ning, so he was not allowed to enter. City, why come out of the city?"

Gao Shengze suddenly remembered that King Liang had indeed issued an order prohibiting entry into the eastern capital. He and Xu Chu entered the city smoothly, so he had never thought about it. Even when he saw Guo Shifeng, he did not wake up.

But this doesn't seem to mean anything. After all, Guo Shifeng is a good friend of King Liang. Maybe he got permission separately?

Gao Shengze hesitated for a long time before coming to see Xu Chu. It was almost the second watch, and Pan Kai was busy arranging a mutiny.

Xu Chu didn't sleep. When he saw Gao Shengze, he asked, "Is it still snowing outside?"

"Ah? It's stopped. It's not snowing heavily."

"It's a pity, maybe the snow can be heavier elsewhere."

"Yes." Gao Shengze was confused by the question. After waiting for a while, he said again: "Guo Shifeng did not leave the city."

"Of course he won't leave the city until he completes his mission." Xu Chu said with a smile.

"He may have just said it casually so as not to stay for dinner."

"Maybe there is an ulterior motive."

Although Gao Shengze flattered the victim, he was not a fool after all. Once he felt that Xu Chu's guess was reasonable, he immediately said: "What should I do? I will summon the Liang Jun generals now to strike first?"

"Pan Kai is the most trusted general of King Liang, and he is also the lord of the Eastern Capital City. How can General Manager Gao persuade the generals to oppose General Pan?"

"Honestly, I still don't believe it. That's Pan Kai, a survivor of Daliang. He has followed King Liang for a long time, and his whole family has been greatly favored. How could it be... why is it like this?"

"Although General Pan is loyal, he has no talent as a general. He was entrusted by the King of Liang with the important task of guarding the eastern capital alone and protecting the wife and children of the King of Liang. Under heavy pressure, his heart was changeable. The King of Liang happened to change frequently at this time. He planned to marry Zhang's daughter first and then attack Bingzhou, but he failed to explain to Pan Kai in time - Pan Kaiyuan was far away in Dongdu. Every change of Liang Wang's plan would make him doubtful and wonder whether he was also the same. Will be 'changed'. Pan Kai has become a person who can be persuaded. At this time, he only needs a bold, careful and eloquent counselor to break through this layer of paper."

"Guo Shifeng...he came just by chance."

"I guess he didn't do it by chance, but because he had to do it."

"Um?"

"Guo Shifeng persuaded King Liang to pretend to attack Huaizhou in order to protect the safety of Jiangdong. He thought he had succeeded in the plan and would claim credit from King Ning when he returned. But it turned out that he was the one who fell into the trap. King Liang led his troops north to Jizhou and ignored Jiangdong, which made King Ning suffer a lot. The obtained Stone City is in danger. As King Ning is, Guo Shifeng will be severely punished. If he does not come to the Eastern Capital to make meritorious deeds, he may not be able to save his life. "

Gao Shengze nodded repeatedly, "I will write a letter to King Liang and ask him to send a secret order to get rid of Pan Kai."

"It's too late. Guo Shifeng will definitely persuade Pan Kai to take action early, maybe tonight."

Gao Shengze was shocked, "Tonight!"

"If I were Guo Shifeng, I would definitely urge Pan Kai to take action tonight. Without it, Pan Kai's loyalty has not yet been exhausted. The longer he thinks about it, the more hesitant he will be. Once he takes action, there will be no way back, and only then can Guo Shifeng's plan succeed. ”

"There are less than fifty people in the mansion, and more than half of them are Pan Kai's subordinates. What...what should we do?"

"When the senior general manager sent someone out, he was not stopped?"

"No."

"Fortunately, it shows that Pan Kai is still hesitating. Nine times out of ten, Liang Jun generals trust Pan Kai more than General Manager Gao. The only solution now is to mobilize the Jizhou Army."

"Jizhou Army? There are less than 5,000 of them, and they are all stationed outside the city. Only less than 100 people have entered the city."

"That's enough. Guo Shifeng uses clever tricks to convince Pan Kai, but he won't dare to involve too many people. The senior manager can always find a hundred people and seize the opportunity to win easily."

"Why did the Jizhou Army listen to me?"

Xu Chu smiled and said, "It's all up to me. Please send me to the Jizhou Army, General Manager Gao. It won't take a moment or three to make them obey General Manager Gao's words."

Gao Shengze smiled, believing that Xu Chu did have such ability, "All the eunuchs in the city will obey my orders. With some guards, we may be able to gather another one or two hundred people."

"Very good, but don't tell them your intention yet, just gather together."

"Well, let me tell you something first. General Pan can only be captured alive, not killed. If there is a mistake, I will not be charged with death."

Pan Kai is a general of the Liang Army, and offending him is no different from offending the King of Liang. However, Gao Shengze was still thinking about "what if." "

"Alas, alas, why did I encounter such a thing?" Gao Shengze stamped his feet repeatedly, "I still feel a little uneasy. Mr. Xu can guess so many things just from Guo Shifeng's visit? When I first heard it, it was reasonable. When I think about it carefully, I feel that there are many loopholes.”

"The senior executive thinks about Pan Kai and thinks there are many loopholes. But when he thinks about Guo Shifeng, he thinks it is reasonable and well-founded, right?"

"That's what I mean. Guo Shifeng is a strategist who is good at conspiracy and intrigue. I don't believe him, but Pan Kai..." Gao Shengze shook his head.

"General Manager Gao, think about it again. In terms of wisdom and strategy, who is stronger, Pan Kai or Guo Shifeng?"

"Of course Guo is stronger and Pan is weaker. Ten Pan Kais are not as good as one Guo Shifeng."

"But General Manager Gao still has doubts?"

Gao Shengze gritted his teeth again, "Okay, take a risk. If everything is as Mr. Xu guessed, this move can not only save my own life, but also make a great contribution to King Liang."

"It can be called a great contribution to change the world."

"If Mr. Xu guessed wrong... I must kill you before I die."

"General Manager Gao doesn't do it, Pan Kai and King Liang will not let me go. You and I will be killed at the same time."

"Hey, King Liang may not be. I have never seen him care about others as much as he cares about Mr. Xu. He may say it harshly, but he may forgive him in two days. I don't have this treatment... No more nonsense, Mr. Xu, follow me out now."

Xu Chu ordered Chang Yanzhi to stay in the mansion. If someone came to find him, try to delay the time. He put on a cloak and followed Gao Shengze out of the mansion.

The guards were extremely lax. When they saw Gao Shengze, they immediately bowed to see him off, not even noticing that Xu Chu was among the entourage.

"Pan Kai hasn't made a move yet, so we still have the upper hand." Xu Chu whispered.

"Yeah." Gao Shengze was preoccupied and didn't want to answer.

The Jizhou guest lived not far away. Gao Shengze took Xu Chu and two eunuchs on foot, hurriedly arrived with lanterns, and immediately summoned the Jizhou generals.

The Jizhou generals came from various counties and prefectures. The ten who brought the most soldiers were appointed as commanders. Five stayed outside the city and five entered the city. Their daily routine was to discuss the distribution of food and the location of the camp, and to argue with the Liang army generals.

They had all seen Gao Shengze and knew that he was a confidant of the King of Liang, so they were very respectful and came as soon as they were called.

The five generals lined up in a row, waiting for Gao Shengze to speak.

Xu Chu stepped forward and said, "I am Xu Chu, and I meet all the generals."

The five looked at each other, and it was obvious that they had all heard of this person.

"Well, I won't waste my words. I want to ask you generals: Are you going to launch a mutiny and flee back to Jizhou?"

The five generals were all surprised, and they argued that there was no such thing.

Xu Chu said: "You are all here. It is unreasonable that you are not opposing conscription in your hometown, but making trouble in a foreign land."

"That's the truth!" The five generals said in unison.

"But people's words are scary. General Gao and I believe in the soldiers of Jizhou, but some people don't. General Pan is the lord of Dongdu City. He is quite afraid of you. He said that the Jizhou soldiers did not arrive on time, and there must be ulterior motives."

"That's also the reason why those who didn't come have ulterior motives. We arrived on time, and many people arrived early." One general said.

"You are here, but did you say anything in private?"

Jizhou has been forcibly conscripted by He Rong's people. There are few men, and they are unwilling to go to the army. They were forced to come to Dongdu. Of course, there will be complaints. When Xu Chu asked, the five people lowered their heads and dared not answer.

Xu Chu said: "No one wants to go to the battlefield, especially in the cold winter. This is human nature. Let alone the soldiers of Jizhou, who can guarantee that everyone in the Liang army is willing to do so?"

The five generals nodded repeatedly, and one of them said: "Everyone says that Mr. Xu is reasonable and considerate, and his reputation is well-deserved."

Xu Chu smiled, "The problem now is to let General Pan know that you have no ulterior motives."

"With General Manager Gao and Mr. Xu speaking for us, the soldiers of Jizhou can rest assured."

"Words are not enough. It is not enough for the two of us to argue with reason. We must have your support. Please bring your soldiers and go to see General Pan with the two of us to explain the matter clearly."

The five generals were stunned. No matter what, they understood that bringing soldiers to see the general was no different from mutiny, and it was a capital crime if they were questioned.

Gao Shengze had been listening. He stepped forward and pressed his hand on his abdomen. "I have a secret order from the King of Liang. He allows me to act at my own discretion. You don't have to worry. All responsibilities will be borne by Mr. Xu and me."

The old eunuch spoke, and the five generals believed it a little more. One of them said, "Where is General Qu? Can he come out and say a few words?"

General Qu was the commander of Xiangyang appointed by the King of Liang, and all the generals were under his control.

Gao Shengze said, "General Qu is stationed in the camp outside the city. He cannot be called into the city at night, but I got the news that General Pan was bewitched by a villain and will be arrested tonight. Do you still want to wait until tomorrow?"

The five generals stared at each other and secretly cried out that they were unlucky.

Xu Chu said, "General Pan only needs to ask a few complaints from the soldiers of Jizhou to arrest you. It is enough to convict you and deal with you according to military law. Not to mention General Qu outside the city, even if the King of Liang is here, he may not be able to save you."

"We Jizhou people have never offended General Pan, why are we framed like this?" One general was very indignant.

"When the Jizhou army besieged the Eastern Capital, they killed General Pan's beloved son." Xu Chu made up a story, not knowing whether Pan Kai's family members really died in the battle that year.

The five generals no longer had any doubts, and they bowed at the same time. One of them said, "We swear to follow General Manager Gao and Mr. Xu until death."