It was the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month in the fourteenth year of Daye. At night, a very rare winter rainstorm (historical fact) fell in Luoyang, the eastern capital. The weather was so cold that several soldiers on duty at night froze to death. On the early morning of the 16th, the inside and outside of Luokou Cangcheng turned into a crystal world again, and the flowing rainwater froze on the city wall, forming a continuous ice waterfall, which was extremely spectacular.
"God, did you already have a premonition that something big is going to happen? That's why you brought down such a spectacle? Then please tell me, is it right or wrong for me to do this?"
Appreciating the miracle of the crystal ice waterfall, Li Mi sighed again and again, wondering if it was a coincidence that such a rare spectacle appeared on the day of the hands-on operation? Or does God already know what is going to happen today? I don't know what the heavens are expressing, and I don't know whether I am doing it right or wrong? What consequences will it cause in the future
It is useless to sigh and hesitate, the arrow has already been wound, and if you stop now, if the wind leaks in the future, the consequences will be even more unimaginable, so after shaking his head, Li Mi sighed again, and told Zheng Yu who was waiting next to him: " Go ahead and invite Brother Dongjun to come to my place for a drink at noon. Remember, you must invite both Di Mohou and Wang Ruxin, just say that the weather is cold, and I will invite them to eat hot pot."
Zheng Ting agreed, and immediately rushed to Zhai Rang's camp to invite them. Li Mi turned to Fang Xuanzao, Wang Bodang and other confidants next to him, and said calmly: "Accord with the original plan, go prepare."
Fang Xuanzao, Wang Bodang and the others agreed, and immediately went down to prepare, leaving Li Mi in a daze beside the spectacular ice waterfall. After a long time, Li Mi murmured in a low voice, "Don't blame me, Duke Dongjun, it was you and Your family forced me."
Brother Zhai Rang, who is fond of drinking and drinking, happily accepted Li Mi's invitation. Before noon, he was ready to go to Luokou Cangcheng for a banquet. In view of the recent estrangement between Zhai Rang and Li Mi, both Bing Yuanzhen and Shan Xiongxin Some were not at ease, and suggested that Zhai Rang should act cautiously and not take risks alone, but Zhai Rang refused to listen, and just temporarily decided to bring Shan Xiongxin, Xu Shiji and Pei Renji with him as guards, Bing Yuan really had no choice but to It could be that Zhai Rang was repeatedly told to be careful.
Bing Yuan was really worried that he seemed suspicious. After entering Cangcheng, Luokou controlled by Li Mijun, Zhai Rang, Zhai Hong and his son received the warmest reception from Li Mijun. Following Li Mi to go out to greet them, Zhai Rang and others were respectfully invited into the warm pavilion. A ceramic hot pot was set on the charcoal stove early on, and the broth was tumbling, exuding a mouth-watering aroma.
Very politely invited Zhai Rang to the seat, Li Mi took the initiative to drive away his personal guards, leaving only the captain of the personal guards Cai Jiande to guard by the side, and told that no one was allowed to come in to disturb him, and he wanted to get drunk with Zhai Rang today. , Shan Xiongxin and Xu Shiji continued to stand behind Zhai Rang very carefully, but Pei Renji, a professional cheater, was able to take a seat in the warm cabinet by relying on his age and status.
When the beautiful maid began to serve the wine, Fang Xuanzao, who was in charge of the banquet arrangement, smiled and said to Li Mi: "Wei Gong, today is a party for drinking, and there is no need for so many people to serve, so we might as well set up a banquet in the Nuan Pavilion next door, and let the Duke of Dongjun How about a few glasses of wine for your subordinates to warm up?"
"It depends on what Duke Dong wants." Li Mi replied with a smile, then turned to Zhai Rang and asked, "Mr. Dong, what do you think?"
Zhai Rang, who was admiring the maid's appearance, lost his mind until Li Mi asked again, Zhai Rang came back to his senses, nodded quickly, and told Shan Xiongxin and Xu Shiji who were behind him: "Go and have a few drinks too, it's none of your business here .”
"Thank you, Duke Dongjun, for your kindness. There is no need for the last general." Xu Shiji, who had been instructed by Bing Yuanzhen beforehand, was loyal to his duty and refused to leave.
"Go, it's okay, I'm here." Pei Renji said, expressing his willingness to take on the important task of protecting Zhai Rang alone, but Zhai Rang urged him impatiently, Xu Shiji had no choice but to lead Zhai Rang's soldiers away with Shan Xiongxin Nuan Pavilion, followed Fang Xuanzao to drink next door.
In the Warring Pavilion, Zhai Rang's subordinates were only Zhai Hong and his son, Wang Ruxin, and Pei Renji, and Li Mi's subordinates were only Yang Jishan, Zheng Ting, and Cai Jiande. The cabinet was no longer crowded. At this time, Li Mi suddenly ordered Cai Jiande took out a jade wall and said it was a gift from the king of Xun Yang Qing after he surrendered. He asked Zhai Rang to appreciate and comment on it. Wanting to grab it for themselves, the same money-greedy Zhai Hong and Zhai Mohou's father and son had already fixed their eyes on the jade wall, and they didn't notice that Cai Jiande, who is famous for his bravery, had already stood behind Zhai Rang and quietly held his waist. between handles.
Seeing that the time had come, Li Mi covered his mouth with the back of his hand, and coughed heavily, which cost Zhai Rang's life. Cai Jiande, who had already made up his posture, suddenly drew his knife and slashed it with all his strength, hitting Zhai Rang's neck with blood During the splash, Zhai Rang's half-severed neck made a sound like a bull's roar.
The incident happened so suddenly, Zhai Hong and his son and Wang Ruxin were stunned, but Pei Renji immediately jumped up and drew his saber. Unfortunately, Pei Renji slashed down with his saber, but the person who beheaded was Zhai Mohou next to him, and then Yang Jishan also jumped suddenly. He jumped up and slashed on the head of Zhai Hong who had just got up, and then Cai Jiande, Yang Jishan and Pei Renji joined forces, and the three of them cut down three times, killing Wang Ruxin who had just jumped up and screamed. Then he quickly made up the knife, cutting off the breath of Zhai Hong and his son who were still dying.
Zhai Rang hadn't died yet, and stretched out his finger with difficulty, and pointed at Li Mi tremblingly. Li Mi understood what he meant, and said frankly: "Don't blame me, I was forced. If it wasn't for your brother and nephew making trouble for no reason, step by step Step by step, I also want to be friends with you forever, but there is no way, they are too stupid, and make you stupid too, if I don’t do this, sooner or later I will be killed by you. In order to protect myself , that's all I can do."
Zhai Rang turned his angry eyes to Pei Renji again, and Pei Renji said without any guilt, "Mr. Dongjun, you are the one who is sorry for me. I have sacrificed so much for your great cause, and my wife and daughter are still locked up I’m in the prison in Dongdu, but what did you give me? You betrayed me first, and Wei Gongshi respects talent, so of course I want to go with him.”
This was a well-prepared fire and seizure of power. While Zhai Rang died, although he had heard the screams of Zhai Hong, Wang Ruxin and others before they died, when Xu Shiji, Shan Xiongxin and other Wagang generals rushed over to check the situation, He was dumbfounded and suddenly discovered that outside their door, there were already heavily armed Li Mi's soldiers standing outside their door. Under the leadership of Wang Bodang, they aimed at them with countless hard crossbows that had already been stringed. At the same time, the back door was suddenly opened, and they also rushed in. A large number of Li Mijun soldiers surrounded them.
Surrounded by Pei Renji, Yang Jishan and others, Li Mi Shiran appeared and said to Shan Xiongxin, Xu Shiji and others: "My lords, I raised up a rebel army with you to get rid of violence and peace, and to overthrow the faint king Yang Guang. However, Gong Gong is arbitrary, greedy and tyrannical, and abuses his colleagues, which seriously shakes the foundation of our anti-Sui righteous teachers. In order not to waste all previous efforts in the anti-Sui war, and for the sake of the lives of hundreds of thousands of righteous teachers and soldiers, I can only kill his family. I hope you can Understand my difficulties."
Shan Xiongxin, Xu Shiji and others looked at me and I looked at you, and they all remained silent. In the freezing weather, Zhai Rang's subordinates were still sweating profusely on their foreheads. Li Mi checked his words and took the opportunity to say: "Masters, now that Zhai Rang and Zhai Hong are dead, and their sins have been wiped out, although you are his subordinates, I will not implicate you. If you are willing to come with me, Not only will I not be able to treat you badly, but I will also hand over all Zhai Rang's troops to your commander in chief to further reuse you. Having said that, you decide."
The short-sighted Zhai Rang is really not good at winning over his subordinates. Zhai Hong and Zhai Mohou, the idiot father and son who are jealous, jealous and insatiable, have also hindered Zhai Rang a lot. After learning of the death of Zhai Rang's family, Shan Xiongxin and Xu Shiji Not only did the others not have any intention of avenging them, but after listening to Li Mi's persuasion, Shan Xiongxin first threw away his weapon, knelt down and kowtowed to Li Mi, and respectfully said: "I am willing to listen to Wei Gong's order."
Shan Xiongxin took the lead, Xu Shiji and other Zhai Rang subordinates also put down their weapons and knelt down and surrendered to Li Mi. Li Mi was overjoyed and comforted Shan Xiongxin and Xu Shiji with his own hands. He rushed back to Zhai Rang's camp to appease the morale of the army, and then Li Mi went to Zhai Rang's camp alone, and personally stabilized the morale of the army and incorporated Zhai Rang's army.
Slightly different from history, after Li Mi rode into Zhai Rang's camp alone, his tongue-twisting words quickly stabilized the morale of Wagang's army, but Mulan, who wanted to avenge Zhang Xutuo, took the opportunity to encourage Shan Xiongxin to kill Li Mi in one fell swoop. The two enemies who killed Zhang Xutuo, but Shan Xiongxin, who was a bit of a bad character, flatly rejected Mulan's request. Mulan wanted to assassinate Li Mi herself, but considering her special status, she hesitated and could only grit her teeth and give up. Watching helplessly Li Mi spitting nonsense in Zhai Rang's camp, inspiring people's hearts.
Li Mi's eloquence is also very good. Not long after he killed Zhai Rang, he convinced tens of thousands of generals and soldiers under Zhai Rang's command that he killed Zhai Rang for the sake of the world. For the sake of hundreds of thousands of rebel soldiers, they sincerely expressed their willingness to serve Li Mi and accept Li Mi's orders. Li Mi was overjoyed, and issued an order on the spot to let Xu Shiji, Shan Xiongxin, Pei Renji, Wang Bodang and others divide up the elite left by Zhai Rang, quickly stabilized the morale of the army, and controlled the Wagang elite soldiers. Unwilling, Mulan could only accept Li Mi's appointment in order to keep her useful body, and continued to assist Shan Xiongxin to be Li Mi's ox and horse.
Although it came a little late, what should come will come after all. On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month in the fourteenth year of Daye, Li Mi, who had gradually intensified the conflict with Zhai Rang, couldn't bear it, and finally plotted to kill his ally Zhai Rang and annexed his allies. Ministry public. When the news reached Dongdu, Wang Shichong, who had already retreated to the city to rest, was taken aback, and couldn't help cursing, "Traitors! No wonder they suddenly retreated on the fourth day of the first lunar month. This is the purpose for a long time! If you do something in Shangluocang , My chance has come!"
Although it was a bit late, Wang Shichong, who is indeed relatively loyal to Emperor Sui Yang, still refused to let go of this opportunity. He hurriedly asked Yang Tong to replenish his army and rotate the tired troops under his command. Let him lead the new force to take the opportunity to launch an attack against Li Mijun who is in a period of turmoil, and promise that even if Li Mijun cannot be defeated, he can win one or two battles to boost the morale of the army and weaken the overall strength of Li Mijun.
This is an era of internal strife. Originally, Wang Shichong had the hope and ability to seize this precious opportunity and deal a heavy blow to Li Mi's army whose morale had not yet been completely stabilized. However, what made Wang Shichong angry and helpless was that Yuan Wendu once again persuaded Yang Tong not to delegate power too much, and refused to hand over the military power of Dongdu to the apologetic Wang Shichong, and urged Yang Tong to send Duan Da to lead the army to attack, but Yang Tong also refused He was willing to hand over all the military power to a courtier, refused Wang Shichong's acceptance of Yuan Wendu, and arranged for Duan Da to lead an army of 60,000 to march eastward to attack Li Mi's army who was in a weak period.
Sometimes loyal ministers are often more wrong than treacherous sycophants. Yuan Wen objected to letting Wang Shichong take charge of the army alone. When they arrived at Luokoucang, Li Mi, whose total strength exceeded 300,000, dispatched 200,000 troops to fight against him. Before fighting, the cowardly Duan Da and a group of his generals, Shan Xiongxin, Xu Shiji, etc. In order to show their loyalty, everyone led the army to fight bravely. The Sui army in the eastern capital was defeated. Wei Anshi, the deputy commander of the Ministry of Minbu, was beheaded by Shan Xiongxin himself. The army surrendered, and the 60,000 army was wiped out. Duan Da led less than a hundred cavalry and fled back to the Eastern Capital.
Stealing chickens won’t cost you a lot of rice, not to mention the loss of 60,000 troops, and even the acropolis of Jinyong City. Yang Yu and Yuan Wen almost felt like vomiting blood to death, and then Yang Tong didn’t dare Adopting Yuan Wendu's harsh advice, he quickly appointed Wang Shichong, the most capable man in the Eastern Capital, as the commander-in-chief of the entire army, and handed over all the Eastern Capital troops except the Yulin Army to Wang Shichong, and let Wang Shichong be in charge of defending the city. Although Wang Shichong was full of resentment and dissatisfaction, he still took over the mess for the sake of the overall situation, and quickly reorganized the army to organize the defense of the city to resist the upcoming attack by Li Mijun.
Under such circumstances, Yang Tong, Yuan Wendu and the others immediately thought of Chen Sangliang who was far away in Daxing. At that time, Yuan Ji, the precious son of Yuan Wendu, hurried back to Luoyang City, and gave Yang Tong and Yuan Wendu the shocking news that Chen Sangliang was planning to rebel. It is definitely not wronged Chen Sangliang.
It is conceivable that both Yang Tong and Yuan Wen were shocked and terrified when they heard the sad news, and Yuan Wen was so anxious that he cursed in front of Yang Tong, and angrily scolded Yuan Ji: "Little beast! Do you understand? Did you misunderstand and lie? Chen Liushou has always been loyal to the court, how could he do such a thing?"
"My child dare not lie." Yuan Ji shook his head, and said in a deep voice: "On the night of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Chen Liushou deliberately asked about the origin of the Lantern Festival, implying that the emperor would be abolished and a new emperor would be established. You can testify. In addition, Chen Liushou has appointed a large number of civil and military officials, including many civil and military officials from the bandit army who previously collaborated with Li Yuan in the rebellion. … ,and also… ."
"What else?" Yuan Wendu hurriedly asked.
"Also, it is very likely that Chen Liushou is still staying in the harem and committing adultery with the people of Daxing Palace." Yuan Ji hesitated, reporting what he saw when he first arrived in Daxing to both Yang Tong and Yuan Wen, and then, Yuan Ji He also said: "At that time, I saw very clearly that the pregnant woman was very similar to Princess Yang Yu, but because of reason, I didn't dare to ask her face to face."
With a bang, Yang Tong slapped the desk in front of him heavily, with an ugly expression on his face, he said to himself: "Chen Qing, this king married you to Jinlan in front of his mother and concubine, and respected you as a brother. My aunt, if you really committed adultery with her and became pregnant, wouldn't you become my uncle?"
Yuan Wendu was also very upset, he couldn't believe his son's words, but he knew that his son could not lie to him, so he was at a loss for a while. Over there, Yuan Ji urged again: "Your Highness, father, this matter must be reported to His Majesty as soon as possible, and a countermeasure must be taken as soon as possible, otherwise, once Chen Liushou really raises the flag to rebel, the Great Sui Dynasty will really be over. "
Yang Tong nodded repeatedly, feeling that Yuan Ji's words were reasonable, but he didn't know how to respond. Yuan Wen over there quickly calmed down. After thinking for a while, Yuan Wen said: "Your Highness, it must be too late to report to His Majesty. One is that the road is impassable, and the other is that the distance is far away. His Majesty Emperor Zou Ming asked him to make a decision." , I’m afraid I’ll miss a big deal. Your Highness, you can only make a decisive decision and decide the punishment yourself!”
"How to determine the sanction?" Yang Tong asked quickly.
"Confiscate Chen Yingliang's military power, detain him, and then investigate his treasonous crimes in detail. Once the evidence of the crime is obtained, he will be punished immediately, and the future troubles will be eliminated forever!" Yuan Wendu replied decisively.
"Yuanqing, Chen Yingliang is far away in the Eastern Capital, how can I confiscate his military power and detain him?" Yang Tong hurriedly asked.
"If Your Highness is willing, we can imitate Li Mi and kill Zhai Rang." Yuan Wendu suggested: "Chen Yingliang still has some officials and generals who are loyal to the court. Your Highness might as well use an excuse to ask Chen Yingliang for help and send envoys to Daxing again. Of course it would be best to let Chen Yingliang return to the army to save Dongdu, His Highness can bear with him for the time being and use his hands to relieve the crisis in Dongdu first, and then slowly deprive him of his military power, just act according to plan."
"If Chen Yingliang still refuses to send troops, or only sends a few reinforcements to cover the matter, it will prove that he has indeed objected." Yuan Wendu continued: "At that time, the envoy you sent, Your Highness, will contact you secretly. Loyal ministers of the imperial court follow the example of Li Mi and invite Chen Yingliang to a banquet, capture him during the banquet, and then present your Majesty's order to take over the Daxing army, eradicate Chen Yingliang's party members, and lead the Daxing army back east to Luoyang for rescue."
After all, Yuan Wendu looked at Yang Tong's expression, saw that he was only thoughtful and did not object, so he said, "This envoy can be taken by General Youwuwei Huangfu Wuyi. Although General Huangfu has always been in poor health, But he is loyal to the imperial court and His Majesty, and he deserves to be entrusted with important tasks. At the same time, he was Chen Yingliang's boss, and also the boss of many Chen Yingliang's subordinates. Even the generals of the Nationalist Army have a deep relationship with him. It is much easier than others to present the Jun decree to take over the Daxing army."
Yang Tong nodded slowly, and after pondering for a while, Yang Tong asked: "Among the generals under Chen Yingliang, who can cooperate with Huangfu Qing?"
"There is a person who has a close relationship with Chen Yingliang, like brothers and sisters, and is loyal to the court, so he can be entrusted with a heavy responsibility." Yuan Wendu said darkly: "Your Highness only needs to give him a secret decree to cooperate with General Huangfu, and he will come forward to invite Chen Yingliang. Chen Yingliang must have been tricked into having a banquet in the palace!"
Yang Tong hurriedly asked the man's name again, Yuan Wendu answered three words in a low voice, Yang Tong was startled and said, "How is it possible? What is his relationship with Chen Yingliang, how could he capture Chen Yingliang for the king?"
"Your Highness, don't worry, he will." Yuan Wendu said confidently: "He has a friendship with Chen Yingliang, but he is more loyal to the court and His Majesty. He ordered, as long as he promises to capture Chen Yingliang but not kill him, he will definitely not refuse!"
Yang Tong made some calculations, then nodded after a long time, and said: "Okay, let's just him, he succeeded, the king named him Youwuwei General, to succeed Chen Yingliang and lead the army back to the Eastern Capital!"