Luoshui Dongliu

During June and July of the fourth year of Tianyuan in Dongyan, civil strife broke out in Yecheng, the capital of Dongyan.The imperial physician ordered Yuan Yue to conspire to poison the food and drink served by the emperor for the banquet hosted by the prime minister Gao Yuanchong. On the same night, the imperial servants Zeng Gao and Tingwei Si Zhilu rebelled and set off a fire in the city. Shi's guard camp, the scuffle until dawn was finally put down.Yuan Yue was brutally murdered by Gao Yuanchong, Zeng Gao and Lu Taboo were beheaded, and all those who were rebels died.

When the news came out, the ruling and opposition parties were shocked.It was rumored that Yuan Yue and others rebelled because they were dissatisfied with Gao Yuanchong's arbitrariness.The scale of this rebellion that caused a turmoil in the world was actually very small. There were less than a thousand rebels, and the leaders were all literati.However, this incident made Gao Yuanchong deeply horrified. Although such a rebellion is harmless, it can be seen that it has been planned for a long time; an assassination occurred in the capital of a country and even in the forbidden area of ​​the emperor. How many such people are there beside him? No one can tell the secret of the person with a different heart.

Afterwards, the emperor's involvement in this matter was gradually revealed, and there were many secrets about the palace that were not known to outsiders.Gao Yuanchong was furious, and there was a bloody storm in Yecheng, and everyone was in danger.

At that time, soldiers and horses from Xudu and Luocheng were fighting fiercely with the Xiyan army at Sishui Pass.The two armies confronted each other for a month and a half, and there were victories and defeats for each other. At a critical juncture, news of Yecheng came.

When Pei Yu heard the news, he finally let out a sigh of relief.Although Gao Yuanchong is very powerful, there are many courtiers in Dongyan who are loyal to the royal family. Yuchi asked Pei Yu to arrange people in front of the courtiers of Dongyan several years ago, deliberately stirring up the rift between these courtiers and Gao Yuanchong.This time, it was Xi Yan who was beside Zeng Gao's words that moved him so much that he made a fuss.This is a cold chess piece for many years, and now it finally comes in handy.

Yu Chiyuan clapped his hands and said with a smile: "I'm really convinced of the supervising army. When such a chaos breaks out, will Gao Yuanan still be able to stay here safely?" After laughing, he sighed again, "But it's a pity they failed. If Gao Yuan is really favored, there is no need to entangle with the affairs here."

After hearing this, Pei Yu laughed and said, "With so many things, how could it be possible to achieve anything? Before I used this thread, it was just as an abandoned son. It's ridiculous that these scholars only want to help the royal family, but I don’t know that I’m already in the game. The lives of several of them, if Gao Yuan’an withdraws, I will pay for them.”

Hearing his calm words, Yu Chiyuan was quite shocked in his heart.Presumably it was just the eloquence of a few undercover counselors, not to mention the lives of thousands of rebels, which even stirred up the Dongyan court.As a result, how many follow-up waves were caused in Yecheng, and how many people were purged and beheaded because of exhaustion, in Pei Yu's opinion, it had nothing to do with him.

Yu Chiyuan couldn't help thinking to himself, is it only with such a cold heart that he can achieve great things in this troubled world?

Just as he was thinking about it, he heard Pei Yu say, "General Yuchi, don't be overjoyed when you're in such a trance. The game is set up, but whether Gao Yuan will give in or not remains to be seen, not to mention that Zhao Shen's side is also a variable. .”

Pei Yu watched the situation quietly and didn't mention it, but it was a different scene in Dongyan's army tent.A few days ago, Gao Yuan's Anbu had moved westward, and news of civil strife in Ye City suddenly came, and at the same time, there was a secret order from Gao Yuanchong.

After Zhao Shen heard the news, he had a premonition that the situation had changed, fearing that Gao Yuan's support for Luo City would be shaken, so he rushed to Gao Yuan's camp.When he arrived at the camp, he followed the guard who sent the message to the outside of the general's tent.After waiting for a while, the guard came out and said in a low voice, "Please." Then he blocked the guards following Zhao Shen outside.

Zhao Shen also didn't care about it, raised his hand and lifted the curtain to enter the tent, only to see Gao Yuanan sitting in the right seat, with no special expression on his face, and there was no one else around.Before Zhao Shen could speak, he raised his hand to stop him and said, "I know what you are here for." He pointed to the cushion beside him, "Talk nearby."

After Zhao Shen sat down, Gao Yuan'an said, "How do you know this news?" Seeing Zhao Shen hesitated, he replied, "I don't want you to look honest, but you are also a person who has eyes and ears outside."

Hearing that he was still talking teasingly, Zhao Shen felt even more confused, so he could only laugh and said: "The general can talk and laugh as usual at this moment, so it can be seen that he cares about this matter."

Gao Yuan'an looked at him for a moment, and suddenly said: "I knew about this yesterday, you know today, and tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, I'm afraid the whole camp will know about it."

Zhao Shendao: "I dare not doubt the general's method of controlling the army's mind."

Gao Yuan'an shook his head and said to himself: "If it's my own soldiers and horses, it's no problem, but this is a government army, and the soldiers and generals don't know each other."

Zhao Shen listened to Huatou, only felt that the tone was wrong, but Gao Yuanan couldn't see the way, so he had to keep silent.

Gao Yuan'an looked at him for a moment and said: "The general came to see me in a hurry, and he should have understood the critical weight of this matter. I will not beat around the bush. I will bear the responsibility of the general for this rescue entrustment."

His voice was not high, but Zhao Shen only felt a thunder in his ear, and blurted out: "General Gao..." After that, the words were stuck in his throat, and he couldn't utter another word.

Seeing his frightened face, Gao Yuanan felt depressed, and said: "The situation in Beijing is unclear now, the rear is unstable, the morale of the army is fluctuating, and the front is forced to fight on its own, which is of no benefit."

Zhao Shen stabilized his mind, finally calmed down, and said: "The rebellion was only a thousand people, and it has been suppressed; the people fighting here are from Xudu, and have nothing to do with Yecheng; the most important thing is that the general said that it is not good to fight. , but the situation has already been opened and the troops are withdrawn, is there nothing wrong with that? There is no point in throwing yourself into disarray because of trivial matters, please think twice, general."

Gao Yuanan was silent for a while, and said: "You are right. Now that I have said this, I will tell you the truth - my withdrawal is a secret order of the prime minister, and it is for me to return to Yecheng Qinwang immediately."

After saying this, Zhao Shen was stunned.If it was just Gao Yuan'an's heart wavering, he could still state his interests, but looking at it now, the root cause of the matter lies in Yecheng.The prime minister issued a secret order, Gao Yuanan had no choice but to obey no matter what he thought about it.But at this time, if Gao Yuan An Ruo withdrew his troops, there was no hope of aiding Luocheng. If the retreat was not arranged properly, the Xiyan army would be defeated afterward.What worries him even more is that this move will put his more than 1000 cavalry in a desperate situation.There are more than [-] troops in Xiyan. No matter how strong he is with a thousand cavalry, what can he do?Even if he rushes back to Los Angeles, he will lose a lot during the day and night.Before leaving Los Angeles, he had indeed prepared a retreat in case of any eventuality, but now that the battle has not yet been serious, and he is asked to hand it over to others, how can he live with it in his heart?

After a moment of confusion in his mind, he only had one thought, which was to persuade Gao Yuanan not to withdraw the army no matter what, so he said: "The general misses His Majesty and the Prime Minister, but the war here is also related to the safety of the country, and this withdrawal... ..."

Gao Yuan'an interrupted: "I don't need to explain the truth to me, but the prime minister's order is here, and there is no turning around." Without waiting for Zhao Shen to speak, he said: "It happened suddenly, it was unexpected. The situation At this point, I am also annoyed."

Zhao Shen didn't accept what he said, and hurriedly said: "General Gao, don't do that." Gao Yuan'an looked unwilling, and hope filled his heart, and said: "Although the prime minister has orders, the art of war also says that the city has them. If you don't attack, you don't fight for the land, and you don't accept the emperor's order. The prime minister has an iron hand, and the chaos in the capital will be properly quelled. When the general returns, it will be all right. However, the current war here is related to the situation in the Central Plains. The priorities, the general must When you understand."

Gao Yuan'an sighed and said, "You are still young, and you only thought that Yecheng would be calm after the rebellion was settled? Yecheng is the residence of the emperor, and if it is not properly suppressed, it will stir up chaos in the world. Besides, the prime minister's safety is in danger. I would rather be careful than make a mistake."

It was only then that Zhao Shen understood that Gao Yuan'an had already understood the benefits, and talked for a long time, it was for the "safety of the prime minister".All kinds of things from the old days come to my heart together, and I feel chilly in my heart.He couldn't help sneering, he couldn't hold back for a while, and blurted out: "Could it be that the fate of a meat eater is fate, and the fate of Luocheng soldiers and Xudu's army is not fate?"

Hearing this, Gao Yuan'an suddenly turned cold, and shouted: "Zhao Shen, you are presumptuous!"

Zhao Shen showed no signs of fear, stood up abruptly and said, "At this moment, the general knows in his heart which is the most important thing. I respect the general because he is the leader of the army, not a politician."

Gao Yuan'an raised his head slightly, and saw Zhao Shen's eyes sparkling. He sneered for a while and said, "Do you think that all gains and losses in this world are based on swords and guns? How dare you argue about which is more important? Based on your wild words just now, I can kill you right away." .”

After finishing speaking, without looking at Zhao Shen, he turned his body and said with his hands behind his back, "Now that's all you can do if you can't figure it out, it's useless to scold me in your heart. I can't untie you, so naturally I can't ask you to come Forgive me, but it’s okay to say something. Yu Chiyuan is eyeing him, and if I withdraw my troops at this time, if I am not careful, the main force will retreat, which is far more dangerous than fighting with him here. If I had to, why would I I am willing to take this step. It’s just that you don’t understand, it’s a child’s talk to completely separate the war situation from the political situation, which is not only ridiculous, but also dangerous.”

Zhao Shen listened to him silently for a long time, his heart became colder and colder, and he couldn't help smiling wryly when he heard the last sentence.What Gao Yuanan puts in his heart is different from him. In this world, it is easy to persuade others, but if you keep it in your heart, you can't get relief with a few words of enlightenment.When he walked behind Gao Yuan'an, he felt his whole body was stiff as if a mountain was pressing down on him. No matter how straight his shoulders were, he couldn't bear it any longer. He paused for a while and said, "General Gao, the last general... I beg you... "The word "begging" came out, and it seemed that there was no aggrieved or unwillingness in my heart, but I was at a loss, and I didn't know what to say after that.

Gao Yuanan heard the voice behind him, turned his head and saw Zhao Shen's expression, he changed his expression slightly, "I haven't made it clear yet? Are you going to play tricks on me like a village woman in the market?"

Zhao Shen's lips were tightly pursed, his pupils were getting darker and seemed to be bottomless, his mouth was silent, but his heart was overwhelmed, like thousands of iron hooves whistling past his ears.After a moment of silence, the thought in my heart was like a rock, never to turn back.With a slight smile on his face, he said: "Everyone in the world has difficulties. If I am the same, so is the general. The general has made it very clear that the world belongs to the prime minister, but this Luo city is also the Luo city of my Zhao family. There is no need to say any more."

When he finished speaking, his expression was upright as usual, without impatience, he stood upright with a clear air.Seeing him like this, Gao Yuanan was silent for a moment, and said: "I failed to do what I promised you, and now I'm tired of you, and I feel sorry for both public and private." After saying that, he raised his hand and bowed.

Gao Yuan'an's condescension at this time is not all a pretentious gesture, but also a bit of a sigh.He saw what Zhao Shen had done for half a day, and he still spoke properly when he was in a hurry, he was not as unscrupulous as when he was in Woye Town, and compared to when he met Xu Du more than a month ago, he also had a more calm style.He said in his heart that he was progressing, and he couldn't help flashing a hint of emotion that Liangju had never met the hero, but he couldn't say more, and felt depressed.

Gao Yuan'an is the prime minister's younger brother, and he has been a soldier for many years. The third division of the court should be polite when he sees him. Now he is like this to a young general. If he sees this scene, he will make others sweat.Seeing him like this, Zhao Shen didn't seem to be surprised, he just stepped back and bowed his head, "Why bother, General," he knelt down and nodded, and said in a deep voice, "Zhao Shen doesn't dare to be that."

Immediately he got up and bowed again: "Some things have to be arranged back to the camp, and I will not accompany you."

Without another word, he turned around and left.After a long while, Deputy General Gao Yuan'an lifted the curtain lightly and entered the tent. He saw Gao Yuan'an's face was gloomy, and he was hesitating to leave with one foot outside the tent, but Gao Yuan'an stopped him and said, "What's the matter?"

The deputy general hesitated for a moment and said: "The news from Yecheng, in the army..."

Before the words finished, Gao Yuan'an said coldly: "You go to pass the order, whoever dares to talk about the teacher will be executed immediately for shaking the morale of the army."

The lieutenant general was stunned for a moment, but then he knew what the general was thinking, and hurriedly declared that he was about to step down, and then Gao Yuanan said: "You have finished this matter, follow me to Sishui Pass, I have something to inform Wei Quan."

The deputy general took the order, Gao Yuan comforted the hilt of the sword under his ribs, his face was calm, and his heart was overwhelmed.Facing the current situation, he was also really depressed.Xiyan is about to move, but the preparations for the Western Expedition are still not enough.Now that he is helping Los Angeles, he originally came here with the idea of ​​fighting for a stable Central Plains and a few years of peace. As a result, he hastily withdrew his troops before a serious battle was fought. How could he not hold his breath, let alone return Worried that the Xiyan army would take advantage of the fire to loot.Wouldn't it be even more unlucky if he really wanted to get away with it at that time.At this time, Zhao Shen was not happy and could still show his face to him, but who could he turn to when he was holding his breath and worrying.But now that things are up to now, what's the use of only blaming others, after all, they still have to find a way out.

Thinking of Zhao Shen, Gao Yuan'an felt a little worried.Luo City has no foreign aid now, even if Zhao Shen retreats by chance, he will be trapped in the isolated city, which is no different from throwing himself into a dead end.He led this cavalry army outside, if he was cornered in a hurry, he would come at him anyway, but it would be a big trouble.

As he was thinking silently, the deputy general had returned to report, Gao Yuanan brushed off the corner of his robe, and said, "Come with me to see Wei Quan."

Wei Quan also got the news of Yecheng, he came to Gao Yuan'an, and dismissed the idlers in front of him.

Seeing that there was no one else around, Gao Yuanan asked: "You know everything?" Seeing that Wei Quan nodded silently, he added: "I will withdraw my troops in a few days."

Wei Quan didn't seem surprised when he heard this. Seeing Gao Yuan'an's gloomy expression, he said, "General, you don't have to worry too much. Who would have expected it to happen suddenly. It's just that something like this happened next to the couch, even if there is no serious problem, it is really shocking." I think the prime minister wants to take the opportunity to clean up the king's side. I'm afraid it's not sloppy. If there is no such trusted commander as the general at that time, how can he have the confidence. At a critical moment, the general can't half-heartedly protect the king. .”

He is Gao Yuanan's confidant, and he doesn't shy away from speaking.These words were partly a relief, partly a reminder to Gao Yuanan.In such an extraordinary period, the last thing that can make Gao Yuanchong suspicious is loyalty, otherwise even the closest brothers will not be free from suspicion.Gao Yuanan nodded and said, "I understand what you mean."

Wei Quan pondered for a while, and said again: "I have sent people to gather the boats secretly along the river, and three thousand government troops will be enough to carry them. Once the general boards the waterway, the Xiyan army will have nothing to do, just retreat. The general has to be more cautious about the arrangements—now the people on the river bank are the people of Los Angeles."

Gao Yuan'an said, "What do you want to say?"

Wei Quan smiled and said: "What I thought of, the general must have been several times more thorough than I thought."

Gao Yuan'an said: "If he really wants to turn back, I can't help it." After a moment's pause, he sighed and said, "I broke my promise after all."

Wei Quan frowned slightly and said, "General, why should you blame yourself? He, Zhao Shen, only cares about the gains and losses of a city and a place, but he doesn't know whether a city can be lost or gained again; if there is a mistake in the prime minister's affairs, it will be difficult to deal with it. Don't be sloppy." Speaking of this, he said in a low voice, "He is occupying the ferry, and it would be very difficult if he wants to get into trouble. To be safe, why not lure Zhao Shen into the city," he said with his hands towards his neck He made a gesture and said, "His cavalry has also been brought under the general's tent."

Gao Yuan'an glanced at him, without saying yes or no, he just said indifferently: "You have come out of my hands, and your methods have become more agile."

That night, Gao Yuanan left Sishui Pass.The lieutenant general asked from behind: "Why did the general leave in such a hurry?"

Gao Yuan'an sneered and said: "The matter is settled, what are you doing staying there? Don't hurry up, if General Wei is in the way for a while, I think he can even kill me."

The lieutenant laughed and said: "The general is paranoid. When he said that he took care of Zhao Shen, he really thought of the general."

Gao Yuan'an said: "He's right, and I didn't refute him face to face. It's just that I'm getting old, and I always have to touch my conscience when I do things, so I don't dare to hurt the cunt."

The lieutenant general has been with Gao Yuan'an for many years, when did he talk about accumulating virtue and doing good deeds before?Hearing what he said at this moment, he felt in a trance that his general's eyes really had such deep wrinkles, seeing this, he didn't dare to say any more, a group of people galloped on horses, and in the moonlit night, the horse's hooves smashed into the ground, and the ground was bright.

After returning to the camp, guards had already come to sign horses, and someone reported: "General Du Rong is asking to see you in the camp."

Gao Yuanan stared blankly, "Which one?"

The guard reported again: "General Du Rong, I have been waiting for half a day."

Gao Yuanan had some qualifications and recognized Du Rong. He was a little surprised when they heard that he was a little surprised. Gao Yuanan snorted and said: "The people who go out here are a bit interesting now. Now that he is here, let's see you." After saying that, he went straight in. tent.

After a while, a guard led Du Rong in.Gao Yuanan accepted his gift, and after waiting for a while, Fang asked, "Why did you come here?"

Du Rong's expression was serious, and he didn't show any apology, he just said: "Under the order of General Zhao Shen, I will report a military matter to General Gao."

Hearing this, Gao Yuan'an was concerned in his heart, and he didn't feel suspicious, but kept his face, and only asked: "What's the matter?"

Du Rong said: "General Zhao said that he is willing to help the general arrange the withdrawal of troops. Make arrangements, but follow orders."

Gao Yuanan rubbed his fingers together, and said lightly, "Oh? How can I repay such a favor?"

Du Rong said: "I just ask General Gao to take in these more than 1000 cavalry soldiers and drive them for the general from now on."

Hearing this, Gao Yuan'an froze his hands, rolled his eyelids and just stared at Du Rong without speaking for a while.Du Rong only faced him calmly, without averting his gaze.In the end, Gao Yuanan smiled lightly and said: "I don't believe this. General Zhao is willing to take this step? He followed me and went straight back to Yecheng. He forgot what he did back then, and now he wants to meet the prime minister, how would he say it?" ? You helped him to coax me, in fact, you have other intentions."

Although he said this in his mouth, it was actually just to deceive the truth, but he still believed it in his heart.He thought that Zhao Shenxu was judging the situation, and saw that returning to Luo City to stick to it would be dangerous, and he had to find a way out early.It is certainly a way to rely on Xiyan, but it is inevitable that people will be criticized for its reputation; the second best thing is to retreat with yourself. Although you lose Luocheng, you can still save a lot. Gao Yuanchong brought all the hesitation in front of him in one stroke, and since then he has obeyed the prime minister's orders, and he chose according to the trend.This way, Gao Yuanan was also happy to see the results; suddenly he thought of Zhao Shen's stubborn appearance when he was in Xudu dozens of days ago, and now he has taken this step in order to save himself after weighing the pros and cons.For some reason, I sighed slightly in my heart.

But Du Rong suddenly laughed and said: "The general misunderstood, Luocheng is still under siege, General Zhao will naturally still have to go back. It's just these cavalry, please take care of General Gao."

Gao Yuan Anben sat firmly, and after hearing this, he couldn't help but straighten his upper body suddenly, and said in disbelief, "He wants to go back with the state of Luocheng?" After a while, he looked Du Rong up and down and said, "Tell me, I can believe this Is it?"

Du Rong said: "General, don't you believe that there are honest gentlemen in this world?"

Gao Yuan'an sneered and said, "Are you really confused or pretending to be confused?"

Du Rong got up and walked directly opposite Gao Yuan'an, bowed solemnly: "No matter how stupid I am, I dare not forget the general's benefits to me, and I will never do anything to harm the general. Now the situation is so urgent, I just ask the general not to Hesitation and suspicion." Seeing that Gao Yuan'an remained silent, he said again: "The general is afraid that Zhao Shenyang will violate the law, so he called me overtly, and secretly attacked the general so that he can use his merits to bring down the enemy. The general is thoughtful, and I can't match it in my life, but How can the leading generals be victorious on the battlefield if they are only suspicious and infighting like this every day?"

Gao Yuan'an was annoyed when he heard him speak so bluntly, and couldn't help laughing out loud, "You've been here too, and you've learned a lot, but don't you know how to deal with it?" He sneered, "I let you go to Los Angeles back then, it was really a good match. You and Zhao Shen are in the same temper, right?" Seeing the discontent on Du Rong's face, he sighed and said, "What else do you want to say? Let's talk."

Du Rong didn't hesitate, so he explained how Zhao Shen dealt with Gao Huai and rescued Yang Dutong when he was in Luocheng, and how he explained to him, he just looked at Gao Yuanan.

Gao Yuan'an listened silently, and said for a long while: "But I just don't understand, since he also knows that returning to Los Angeles is inappropriate, why does he still do this?"

Du Rong said: "I'm a rough man, but I know that people in the world respect my master because they know that they can't do it. In this world, apart from calculating interests, there are always other things."

For a moment, both of them were speechless, only hearing the crackling of the candle wick in the tent.Gao Yuanan nodded and said, "I can save it."

The author has something to say:

At the beginning, it was Dong Cheng's attempt to assassinate Cao Cao. Please don't dislike it if it's too direct...