The things Sun Kaidao prepared were basically useless. The rebels in Jiazigou were indeed a suspicious army, not many in number. After seeing the Sui army coming in, they quietly retreated without launching any offensive. This has nothing to do with Meng Wansui's conceit. Under such circumstances, he dared to take the road of Jiazigou. It can only be said that the leader of the Sui army is either very insightful or an idiot.
The Sui army had more than 40,000 horses, plus 10,000 cold cavalry from Beiliao. Even if Sun Kaidao had an army of more than 200,000, he would not dare to take it lightly, even if it was an ambush. The combat effectiveness of the 40,000-strong Sui Army cannot be underestimated. And the Hanqi in Northern Liao is even more invincible. If Meng Wansui wants to set up an ambush on the road, he must bring enough troops.
With an army of more than 200,000 people setting up an ambush on Mount Houwu, Meng Wansui is still not 100% sure of winning, let alone sending out a large group of troops to leave.
Of course, once this battle is won, Meng Wansui's name will immediately spread throughout the Northwest. Once he solves the problem that has plagued Li Yuanshan for three years, Li Yuanshan will definitely rely more on him. However, this is not what Meng Wansui is planning now. Originally, Meng Wansui was fairly loyal to Li Yuanshan, but since Li Yuanshan started nepotism, his mind was gradually changing.
After Li Yuanshan became king, all the people from the Li family were reused. Good weapons and equipment were also distributed to the teams led by these people. Although the original seven tiger generals were all named marquis and generals, their treatment was very different. In the past two years in Xidaying, after being in close contact with Li Xiaozong, he was gradually influenced by Li Xiaozong.
The two even agreed that once Li Yuanshan's defeat appeared, the two of them would join forces to attack Xiangzhou from the rear.
But
Now that Li Xiaozong is dead, the Sui army retreats. If he didn't take any action, I'm afraid Li Yuanshan would be suspicious immediately. And as long as this Sui army is taken down, there will be many benefits to Meng Wansui. If he can besiege and force the rebel army to surrender, his strength will increase greatly, and Li Yuanshan's attitude towards him will also change greatly. One must know that 40,000 elites plus 10,000 cold cavalry are enough to make Li Yuanshan's heart tremble.
And with this Sui army, he also had one more choice.
Once Li Yuanshan is defeated, he can still go to the court.
Unfortunately, things backfired.
After the Sui army crossed Jiazigou, their marching speed became even faster. The imperial army's offensive on Hexi Road has not slowed down because the army that conquers the west has no shortage of supplies. And it was the time of consecutive victories, and the morale was like a rainbow. But this Sui army can't do it. It is impossible to take away all the food and grass looted from the rebel camp, so they can barely survive this winter. Once Meng Wansui suffered a big loss and retaliated fiercely, even if the Sui army was not afraid, the loss would not be too small.
Moreover, it had been more than a month since they left the cottage, and there were Mongolian cavalry stationed three hundred miles away from the cottage. If the Mengyuan people took advantage of the emptiness of the cottage to attack and lost the cottage, the Sui army would have no place to stand.
Fang Jie didn’t ride a horse, but sat on a large cart that was used by the team to pull the luggage. There was no carriage, and he sat cross-legged on a sack full of grain, placed a tray, put some sunflower seeds, a pot of tea, and watched the scenery while walking. It seems to be at ease. It's just that the Chaolu Knife without a scabbard is beside him, and it seems to be colder than the cold wind.
Sun Kaidao sat next to him, leaning on the sack and squinting his eyes as if he was asleep or meditating.
After getting out of Jiazigou, go up to the official road. The road is very flat and straight, so it is not too bumpy. Fang Jie poured himself a drink and didn't speak. Sun Kaidao, who squinted his eyes, saw a majestic mountain in the distance and couldn't help but praise it, which attracted Fang Jie's attention.
"What does that mountain look like, General?"
Sun Kaidao asked.
"Pull it straight, like a scabbard."
"Um."
Sun Kaidao nodded: "The mountain is fierce, so even if there are tourists, most of them will look at it from a distance and dare not climb it. However, the few hills next to this mountain are beautiful and the mountains are slow. If it were me, I would choose Those who are shorter are unwilling to take risks easily. Even though the scenery on the high place is more beautiful, it looks too scary."
"What do you want to say?"
Fang asked.
Sun Kaidao smiled: "Because the mountain is too fierce, people keep it at a respectful distance. If you want people to get close to you, it's better not to be too tall. If a person is too imposing, it is not good, because people will be afraid of being attacked by him." Sharpness hurts. The more unfavorable the situation, the more mellow it is, so that not only the people around you, but also the opponents will feel easy to get along with."
He glanced at Fang Xie: "Being humble, let's put it bluntly. It's up to now. It's no good even if we leave immediately. Anyway, we've already arrived here. Why don't we just stay? Then use the same way to repay him? The general pretended to be indifferent, respected Mo Liangbi more, obeyed his words, obeyed what he said, and he will lose his guard against you in a short time... "
Fang Jie shook his head: "It's just a little dissatisfaction in my heart, not as indignant as you said. If I had made this matter clear to me before seeking the Lord, I wouldn't have cared if he wanted to gain authority."
"He doesn't believe you."
Sun Kaidao smiled and said: "Although I don't know Mou Liangbi well, I can see his character from this incident. He can attribute all the credit to the general to himself, which is expected from the seemingly confiding humility towards the general before." I can't count it. Nine times out of ten, he is testing the general's heart. From the very beginning, he has been plotting against the general. Why should the general be polite to such a person? The general and General Cui worked together to protect him, and it can be regarded as his life-saving If the benefactor is so calculating, what kind of favor is there to keep?"
"When I first arrived here, I persuaded the general to directly seize the military power. I'm afraid that at that time, Mou Liangbi was most worried about you, the general. This person's drama is better than anyone else's."
"At the beginning, he was very close to the general, as if no one in the Sui army could be trusted, and only you and him, the general, were on the same path. The general wanted to kill Li Xiaozong, and he tried his best to help him. They all prefer to see Li Xiaozong die... Then General Cui strongly supports you to take charge of military affairs, I am afraid that it is beyond Mou Liangbi's expectations. So he deliberately stood with Cui Zhongzhen, and it seems that he is willing to let you lead the team , In fact, one is to test the general's thoughts, and the other is to test the thoughts of the generals of the Sui army."
"Thinking about it now, he hesitated on whether to kill Li Xiaozong's cronies on the first day, and it was also intentional. In the battle a few days ago, he killed 16,000 prisoners without frowning. Could it be that he really couldn't bear the fact that Li Xiaozong's cronies were also soldiers? The moment he ordered the execution of all the prisoners of war, the humble officer knew that this person had a sharp knife hidden in his heart."
"Everything is within his calculations, and the man who was called the second good minister back then really has a lot of troubles in his heart..."
Sun Kaidao sneered: "The general will go to him and tell him the whole plan. I'm afraid he will be happy immediately. The general asked me to go to Jiazigou to test how many ambushes the rebels have. Of course, the humble officer also understands the general's move." It is to let Lu Fenghou and Chen Qianshan no longer target the low position. Let Lu Fenghou take the Yangziying to guard the mouth of the Jiazigou Valley, to protect the retreat for the army. The cavalry marched, what does all this have to do with Mou Liangbi? But now, the generals of the Sui Army think he arranged it."
Fang Jie knew that Sun Kaidao was right, and he had indeed underestimated Mo Liangbi.
To be precise, he underestimated the desire in a person's heart.
King Xujun is dead, not only Li Xiaozong wants this amazing team, but Mou Liangbi also wants it!
But, he couldn't compete with Li Xiaozong.
Mou Liangbi was a literati, and Li Xiaozong was from a military background. The generals of the Sui Army were more likely to accept the latter. However, Li Xiaozong held high the banner of avenging Xu Junwang from the beginning, and Mo Liangbi had already fallen behind. Afterwards, Li Xiaozong emptied him of his power. Even if he had a plan, but he had no strength, he could only submit to others. But at this moment Fang Jie came and killed Li Xiaozong, how could Mou Liangbi not be tempted
…
…
On the carriage, Mou Liangbi poured a cup of tea for Cui Zhongzhen with his own hands: "General Cui... I know you are feeling a little unhappy, so I came to you. Some things, I have to say it myself."
He glanced at Cui Zhongzhen, but the latter didn't bother to look at him at all.
"I know this matter, I did a little too much, but it is really a last resort, and it is also for the sake of this team, not all out of selfishness. At this juncture, we need our sincerity and unity. Once we are divorced, ruined What matters is the team of tens of thousands of people and the hard-won situation.”
Cui Zhongzhen remained silent and turned his gaze to the outside of the carriage.
"It's true... I'm really selfish."
Mou Liangbi sat down, was silent for a while and said: "But General Cui, you should know that if I don't make some achievements, how can I have the face to go back to the court to see His Majesty? The 700,000 army was almost wiped out, but the prince and I are also to blame. The prince is gone, and now I am the only one left... I need this team, and I need to fight some beautiful battles, otherwise I will wait until the day when the imperial army triumphs , what will happen to me, General Cui, you know very well."
"I am different from you. I have been sitting in prison for more than ten years. I thought this life would be over, but His Majesty released me from prison and entrusted me with a heavy responsibility. No one can understand how excited I was at that moment. What I have learned in half my life , how can I be unhappy when I finally have the opportunity to perform it? However, just because of a defeat, I have to bear the consequences. Is this fair? Even if His Majesty spares me the death penalty, at most I will only end up returning home for the elderly. "
"Why? Why?"
Perhaps because of excitement, Mou Liangbi's hands trembled slightly: "I am indeed sorry for General Fang, and I will go to General Fang to clarify later. But now the matter is a foregone conclusion, only you and I Only by working together can we lead the team well and create a good situation. General Fang... General Fang has won His Majesty's trust, and he has already reached this position at a young age. The future is bound to be limitless. I am different... I have already five years old Ten years old…”
He paused for a moment and said, "I'm speaking to General Cui with all my heart today, just to ask General Cui to understand."
Cui Zhongzhen's hand holding the teacup froze in the air, and he didn't know how long it had been. He put down the tea he hadn't drunk, looked at Mou Liangbi and said seriously: "My lord has worked so hard, I understand. It's just that my lord has ignored it from the beginning to the end. One thing... Fang Jie, if he wanted to compete with you for this seat from the very beginning, how can he wait until he uses this trick?"
"He is an imperial envoy, entrusted with the emperor's order... The reason why he supports His Excellency to preside over the military affairs is firstly because His Excellency is the right candidate, and secondly... Fang Jie told me that he is very grateful to you for your kindness to him when he was in Chang'an." Take care, he is a person who knows how to be grateful, and my lord, don't you think that this relationship will be gone after this time? My lord got this team, but what I lost... I'm afraid it's more important."
After saying these words, Cui Zhongzhen jumped out of the carriage without even turning his head.
Mou Liangbi stared blankly at Cui Zhongzhen's leaving back, and was silent for a long time.