In the next few days, other soldiers and horses arrived one after another. However, their treatment was the same as that of Zhu Meng's direct soldiers. They were still blocked outside Suzhou City. Except for the few main generals who could bring hundreds of soldiers into the city, other troops had to be stationed outside the city.
In this regard, the reaction of these Xiang army generals was much calmer. Anyway, their troops were not allowed to enter the city when they were in Jinling before. Now they are just stationed in another place. However, they also have something that they attach great importance to, that is, the supply of logistical food and grass must be kept up as soon as possible. After staying in Jiangnan for so long, many things happened in the middle. Now each army has very little food and grass left, and it is almost impossible to open the pot.
So when they entered Suzhou, they first went to see Zhu Meng, hoping that he could allocate the food and grass he had promised as soon as possible. These new generals who arrived in Suzhou didn't even know who was in charge of Suzhou now. Even Zhu Meng's own The people and horses are all locked up outside the city.
Zhu Meng, who had already wanted to kill Sun Tu, made a decision quickly after discussing with several staff. On March 17, he invited all these generals to his house on the pretext of arranging the allocation of grain and grass. Suddenly, dozens of generals with military power in the Jiangnan area gathered together, and the momentum was not small.
But this time, Zhu Meng lost the prestige he had in Jinling before, and even had a bitter look on his face when he met them. When everyone paid homage to him respectfully, he just waved his hand and said, "Generals, please sit down and talk. There is no need to be so polite. Anyway, in our opinion, we don't want this kind of fake glory. Maybe we will have it at some time." Got killed!"
These words immediately made all the generals startled. After a while, someone said uneasily: "Why did Zhu Shuai say this? Now our war situation is very good. We have captured Suzhou City. In two days, we can take advantage of the situation and go south. Where can we go?" danger?"
"If Commander Zhu is really worried, I would like to take my troops and go south now, and take care of how many cities we can capture. However, I also ask Commander Zhu to allocate part of the food and grass to me first, so that the soldiers can be free." To bring peace to the country." Then someone else took the opportunity to make a request.
The others all followed suit, reaching out to Zhu Meng directly or tactfully to ask for money or food, and by the way they also wanted to send troops to perform meritorious deeds. Sun Tu's victory over two cities this time still had a considerable impact on them. It turned out that they were less afraid of the Wu army.
After Zhu Meng listened to their words for a long time with a half-smile but not a smile, he sighed and said: "Zhu Meng was deeply moved by the generals' determination to serve the country, but this time I have to let you down. Although I have on hand There are still some grain and grass supplies, but they may not be enough to distribute to everyone."
"This... Isn't Suzhou a land of plenty, a land of wealth? Isn't it true that Zhu Shuai can't raise any money or food?"
"It's not that I don't want to, but that I can't do it." Zhu Meng said, his face darkening: "Have you not noticed by this time that I am no longer the one who can make the decision in Suzhou City? Not to mention asking the wealthy businessmen in the city to donate money and food, even the entry and exit of this city gate is beyond my control."
"Ah..." Everyone changed their expressions again. Although they had been blocked from leading the army into the city before, they really didn't know who ordered this. They just thought it was Zhu Meng who was following the same tactics as Jinling City.
Looking at everyone's surprised look, Zhu Meng's face also felt a little hot. As a high official appointed by the imperial court to seal the border areas from Jiangnan, he was actually the commander-in-chief of all the three armies who suppressed the rebellion. Having someone else have the final say is indeed embarrassing enough, just like being slapped a few times in front of everyone.
This feeling of shame and indignation made Zhu Meng's anger even stronger, and all this was thanks to Sun Tu. He must reverse the situation and let him die without a burial!
After being silent for a while and suppressing the shame and anger in his heart, Zhu Mencai said again: "Although it is very embarrassing to say it, I can't hide it from you anymore. In fact, when the Japanese army arrived two days ago, Sun Yat-sen was They were blocked on the way, and those who are now guarding the gates of the city to prevent your soldiers and horses from entering the city are Shandong soldiers. They regard Suzhou as their own territory, and they don't pay attention to me and you at all. "
"This is happening!" someone screamed.
"This is unreasonable, that Sun Tu is so bold!" Someone also shouted angrily.
People are afraid of comparison, thinking that their family has not made any achievements for so long, and all of them have been taken away by the Shandong Army. They think that their subordinates are suffering outside the city, but Sun Tu and the Shandong Army can be free and domineering in the city. , these generals immediately felt resentment and jealousy in their hearts. All of a sudden, there was a loud rebuke for Sun Tu's indifference and his reckless behavior.
Zhu Meng didn't mean to stop him at all, he just listened quietly. When they had finished scolding him, he said again: "Then Sun Tu has always been known for his boldness, otherwise he wouldn't have caused so many troubles in Jinling. It’s coming. In fact, if it’s just like this, I can tolerate it. Even if I am suppressed by him, as long as the chaos in Jiangnan can be put down as soon as possible, I will admit it. However, what I am most worried about is whether this person is really trustworthy? "
Seeing that everyone was a little confused, Zhu Meng continued to explain in a persuasive manner: "You have also fought against the rebels. How do you think they compare to the local troops like us?"
"This..." The generals suddenly didn't know how to reply. In fact, they knew very well that although the Wu army had just risen, its combat power was already superior to that of other Xiang armies. Several groups had suffered heavy losses at the hands of the enemy before. This was why they had stayed in Jinling. One of the reasons why he dared to go south easily. However, due to their own reputation, they did not want to tell the truth, so they all immediately became nervous.
Zhu Meng sneered in his heart, and then actually told the truth: "Actually, everyone knows very well that our various armies are no match for the rebels. We must fight steadily to defeat the thieves." He paused and did not wait for the rest. When someone raised objections, he added: "Then the performance of the Shandong Army is too strange. How virtuous and talented Sun Tu is, he can actually lead an army of more than 20,000 to win many times, and now even a strong city like Suzhou has been defeated. It’s taken down, isn’t this worth thinking about?”
"What Zhu Shuai means is that there is some secret behind this?"
"Hey, judging from my many years of experience in leading troops, it is impossible for tens of thousands of people to not only defend a small county town, but also to take over a big city like Suzhou. If it were you, you, you can guarantee that Can you do it yourself?”
The faces of several generals who were pointed out by Zhu Meng turned red.
They all shook their heads, they still had this bit of self-awareness.
Zhu Meng saw that the effect had been achieved, so he threw out the key points: "So I have always suspected that Sun Tu used other methods to continuously win. For example, he had colluded with the rebels early on. Together, all the previous things were just their collusion to paralyze us!"
What it means to be a thief, to catch a thief, and what it means to seek to inflict a crime, has been vividly demonstrated by Zhu Meng at this moment, and many generals have believed what he said. Just because Sun Tu's various achievements are indeed so hated by others, and the miracles he created are completely inconsistent with these people's ideas, so just a few words can quickly make them prejudiced, and there is indeed a big problem with Sun Tu.
"In my opinion, Sun Tu's attack this time is to attract us to Suzhou, and then block all the troops outside the city. In this way, we have no city to rely on, and it will be difficult for us once the enemy attacks. Parry. If his soldiers and horses come out of the city and attack from both sides, we will really die in Suzhou City!" In order to convince everyone, Zhu Meng really used alarmist tactics to the extreme this time.
But don't say it, these statements really made many people believe it, and everyone's face showed a look of vigilance and thoughtfulness. Zhu Meng threw out the final evidence: "Do you know that Peng Yongzhen, the commander of the Huainan Army, is dead? How did he die? According to Sun Tu, he was killed in a battle with the rebels. But he was the commander-in-chief of the army. , could he really die so easily? And looking at the Huainan Army now, which has been completely controlled by Sun Tu, the cause of his death is worth investigating. Sun Tu seems to be selfless, but in fact he is extremely insidious. This is our biggest hidden danger. If we don’t make plans early, I’m afraid you and I will soon follow in Peng Yongzhen’s footsteps.”
Putting the example in front of you is more effective than Zhu Meng's hundreds of words. This time everyone is really in danger. Once they thought that Sun Tu would kill the general in order to seize military power, they felt a chill down their backs.
Because according to what Zhu Meng said, the entire Suzhou is now completely under Sun Tu's control, but they only have a few hundred personal guards around them. Once the other party really makes a move, they will definitely die.
What should I do? Everyone looked at each other in fear, and finally turned their attention to Zhu Meng: "Zhu Shuai, please ask Zhu Shuai to make the decision for us..."
"The current plan is that if we want to protect ourselves, we have to stand up and resist, and get rid of Sun Tu before he attacks." Tu Qiong saw that Zhu Meng finally revealed his true purpose at this time.
"But... all of us together can only use less than two thousand soldiers and horses. How can we compete with Sun Tu?"
"If we are just outnumbered by soldiers and horses, of course we are no match. But now Sun Tu also has to divide his troops to station in various places in Suzhou, and he has to guard against the army outside the city. This is an opportunity for us. In addition, I have already made plans. This time we will be able to catch him off guard. But before that, we need your full support. As long as you secretly order the troops outside the city to cooperate with the attack, we will kill Sun Tu inside the city first, leaving the Shandong army without a leader. The situation will be Just twist it!" As he spoke, Zhu Meng leaned forward and glanced at everyone: "Everyone, do you have the courage to work with me to eliminate evil for the country?"