Warrior in Turbulent Han Dynasty

The hut next to the dining room was dimly lit and didn't even have a window. There were some tables and benches inside, and a lot of ceramic utensils on the cabinet. Fu Jinzhan pulled down the clothes and tidied it up a bit, then quickly pulled a strand of messy black hair that fell on her cheeks behind her ears, looked back at Guo Shao, her cheeks flushed, and she exhaled, Hurry up, I'll be there later.

After that, she glanced at the situation in the dining room through the crack of the door.

Guo Shao asked, Second sister hasn't come back yet?

Fu Jinzhan whispered: She is not feeling well. She usually asks the maid to send some hot water to wash her body and change her clothes. It will take a while. Her complexion was strange, I was too impulsive just now, I really shouldn't be like this, we...

Guo Shao was speechless, he pushed the latch, and slipped out the door with nervousness in his heart. At this moment, there is actually a feeling of being a thief... He has never been a thief, but if he imagines it, he feels like this, worrying about being caught at any time.

... When Fu Ermei returned, Guo Shao and Fu Jinzhan were already sitting on the stools in the dining room as if nothing had happened, talking without any sign of it. Second Sister Fu's eyes swept across the faces of the two, as if she had an intuition that something was wrong. Guo Shao paid attention to her eyes from the corner of his eyes, and felt that he and Fu Jinzhan seemed to be showing nothing.

Last month, the imperial court sent people to Nanping Kingdom to meet with the King of Nanping (the name granted by the Zhou Dynasty) Gao Baorong. The envoys of the imperial court persuaded him to accept the land and surrender, but he seemed reluctant. Fu Jinzhan said calmly.

During the festive season, she didn't intend to talk about serious business, but she brought it up. Guo Shao felt that Fu Jinzhan was deliberately covering up what happened just now, and when he saw her expression, he only felt dignified and calm. Not only did she act as if nothing had happened, but she also looked inviolable... If Guo Shao hadn't just kissed Fangze just now, she would have been almost taken aback by now. At the moment, I have to admire Jinzhan's performance.

Fu Jinzhan continued to speak softly: Places such as Nanping Kingdom and Wuyue Kingdom have small land and few people. They have always used the policy of 'serving the big', and they will serve whatever country is strong. If they want to wait for the unification of the Central Plains, they will rely on their great contributions and obedience to return the land to seek wealth. But they are still uncertain about the general situation, and they are making Nanping Kingdom rush to donate land, Gao Baorong is not very willing.

Guo Shao also said seriously: What the Empress Dowager said is very true. However, I believe that the national policy of Wuyue Kingdom is more consistent, and the system formed by the monarchs and ministers is more formal; Dazhou should face up to its diplomacy with Wuyue Kingdom. Nanping Kingdom does not have a long-term stable national policy, and it is not even a country. It’s not too obedient to please everyone.”

Fu Jinzhan was thoughtful: As soon as you reminded me, I remembered the Huainan battle. The Wuyue Kingdom did indeed send troops to attack the Southern Tang Dynasty, but the Nanping Kingdom did not move for a long time, and lied about the military situation many times. In fact, sending troops was just a pretentious and no actual record.

Guo Shaodao: Exactly. Although Gao Baorong is not the king of Nanping, he is not very flexible... Guo Shao pointed to his forehead. He originally wanted to say that he was mentally disabled, but in the end he said it more politely. All big and small matters are left to his brother Gao Baoxu.

Fu Jinzhan murmured, It would be a good thing if we could get that place. Jingnan controls the East Road of Shu State and the upper reaches of Southern Tang State. It is really the place to go.

Guo Shao laughed and said, Soldiers never tire of deceit. Since Nanping Kingdom is a minister of the Great Zhou, the Empress Dowager can issue an order to attack Shu. Once the army arrives, it's up to her whether she wants to or not. In the next year, according to Wang Pu Jinxian's general plan, attack Shu from Hanzhong and the Yangtze River, and take Shu in one fell swoop...The Ministry of Internal Affairs allocated a lot of money and food for me to forge armor.

Second Sister Fu's face was a bit confused when they heard about the state affairs. She didn't know much about these things, so she asked after hearing this: How long will my husband go to war next year?

Guo Shao said kindly: It must not exceed three months. No need to calculate. I also know that the imperial treasury does not have the strength to support tens of thousands of elites for a long-term battle. It must be resolved quickly, otherwise it means that the attack will fail.

Fu Jinzhan asked, How many troops does General Guo need?

Guo Shaodao: Xiang Gong has 20,000 town soldiers in Fengzhou and Gu Towns. He dispatched a group of troops from the Guard Division, and Xiang Gong's force reached 40,000. Attack the North Road. I need 20,000 cavalry to go upstream along the Yangtze River and attack Dongchuan.

General Guo only needs 20,000 people? Fu Jinzhan said.

Guo Shaodao: Too many people will increase the logistics burden. The road over there is difficult. I need 20,000 elite troops. The most elite and most effective part of the troops, I still use the Tiger Army and the Crane Army.

...war has risks, no matter which side it is on. The danger of the Zhou army did not originate from the Shu Kingdom, and it was impossible for the Shu army to counterattack the Zhou Dynasty; it came from within the country. The contradictions caused by the weak force shown after a long battle and the massive consumption of state treasury and people's resources will cause Guo Shao to suffer unpredictable backlash.

For these questions, he naturally had full psychological preparations before mobilizing troops.

Guo Shao and his second sister stayed in the palace for half a day, and went home that day...

Then it was time to prepare for the New Year. He was a bit busy these days, so he didn't bother with other things... After the New Year's Eve, he would visit every day. Fu's house in Hebei is too far to go, just write a letter and bring some gifts; Guo Shao first and Li Yuan'er went to Li Chuyun's house, and then several brothers and colleagues of Dianqiansi.

There will be more people to make friends with, he can't go in person, as long as he sends someone to send gifts and congratulatory messages, he really can't make it through. Because once you come to the door, you can't just sit and go, at least the host will prepare a table of food and wine banquet...you can only see one person a day, go in the morning; there are many taboos in the world, good things and festive days treat guests in the morning, and funerals only in the afternoon.

He personally went to the home of his righteous sister, Mrs. Gao; Dong's family not only had a righteous sister, Dong Zunhui was also Guo Shao's capable general, and Gao Huaide, the general of the bodyguard department, was Mrs. Gao's younger brother.

Guo Shao gave Dong Zunhui four sets of plate armor as a gift. Compared with the good horse from the Western Regions that Dong Zunhui gave last time, it is obvious that Guo Shao's gift cost is relatively low, so that's what it means.

Guo Shao felt annoyed and tired after surviving. Occasionally attending a banquet is nothing, it’s still a pleasure, but it’s unavoidable to be like this every day... The whole person becomes restless, and his appetite also drops, because every day the banquet is full of big fish and meat, and he drinks a lot of wine.

But there is no way. People in this world live like this. After a thousand years, the society has changed, and it is not much different. As the saying goes, relatives and friends also have to move around. If you don't go through this kind of cutscenes, and don't contact your relationship from time to time, the relationship will fade after a long time (if you contact suddenly, others will immediately be wary of you asking to borrow money).

Fortunately, there is no need to go straight, Guo Shao usually comes back early in the afternoon, and he prefers to be with his wife and concubine. Yulian will make dumplings and make all kinds of glutinous rice snacks by herself. Guo Shao and Fu Ermei will help at this time; they are also very interested in the new clothes they bought.

... In the fifth year of Xiande (958 A.D.), the spring came unknowingly amidst the busy schedule.

There is snow everywhere, but the red lanterns in the city and the mess left by the festive banquet make the atmosphere of spring come early. Inside and outside the capital city, it seems that there is no difference from the past few years. The emperor has changed, but it has little relationship with the people.

The streets were bustling, but it still couldn't cover up the various problems that were gradually exposed in the Zhou Dynasty...the population was too small, and the army was too large. In those cold corners, the Temple of the City God, and at the foot of the city walls, there are still some hungry and cold people who can’t even eat enough to eat during the Chinese New Year.

Yulian is very familiar with the affairs in the market, and in the first month, she also hired people to set up a porridge shed at the gate of the outer city to do charity. But Guo Shao didn't care about that kind of thing... Compared with what he has the power to do, the effect of setting up a porridge shed to let a few people have a full meal is simply negligible. He feels that there is a simple and direct way now. Because there has been no war for a long time, the Shu Kingdom has been peaceful and stable for decades, densely populated and very prosperous; he can persuade them to share their interests equally.

The people of Shu should also be willing to contribute to the northern defense line, but the Meng Chang regime failed to do so.

The sixteenth day of the first lunar month|After the Great Dynasty, each yamen opened their seals to resume government affairs. In the side hall of the Jinxiang Palace, a group of core ministers formally began to discuss how to persuade the Kingdom of Shu with reason.

Wei Renpu, who was tall and tall, was talking to a map: Order Gao Huaide to lead the 20,000 guards from the left wing of the Longjie Army, Zhang Guanghan, to go out of Beijing in early February and transfer to Fengzhou, and cooperate with the front battalion to deploy Xiang Gong to fight on the North Road. Hanzhong must be taken, and from here, we will advance to Jianmen Pass.

It is planned to inspect General Guo in the front of the palace as the general of the world's soldiers and horses and the envoy of the Eastern Route Army. He will lead 20,000 elite soldiers in the front of the palace to pass through Jingnan and march westward along the Yangtze River... Luo Yanhuan, the commander of the Guard and Infantry Division, mobilized the left side of the Hujie Army to station in the south in mid-March; Long Jiejun's right wing, Zhang Lingduo's department, was transferred to the three cities of Heyang to station...

The discussion ended near noon, and Guo Shao stepped forward and asked Wei Renpu, Why didn't the privy envoy Wang come?

Wei Renpu said: General Guo doesn't know yet? Wang Shijun wrote a letter to report his illness, and now he is recuperating at home.

Guo Shao hurriedly asked: When did it happen? What kind of illness did Privy Wang cause? Wei Renpu said: It's been almost ten days. I probably caught wind and cold first, and then I didn't cure it.

...

(I wish you all a Merry Christmas. I have some personal matters these two days, so I can only update one chapter a day, and I can resume two updates the day after tomorrow. Sorry.)

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