The winter wind was biting, and the night brought peace back to the world. Behind a small hill, Lin Renzhao took two flints and banged them together for a while, occasionally flashing a spark, but the air was so cold and damp that the hay could not be ignited.
Suddenly, he threw the flint to the ground in anger, raised his head and yelled. Then he drew his sword from his waist and put it across his neck. The cold blade made him shudder. There was no one around him, no generals to save him or persuade him, but the sword in his hand did not move for a long time.
He felt unwilling in his heart, so he hesitated when he struck the sword; but how could he go back after being defeated like this
In this battle, although the enemy did not know the hidden ambush of Shipo Mountain, the enemy commander Guo Shao used his troops too strangely. Caishi Ferry was of great importance. If they did not rescue Caishi, they would attack Lin Renzhao's army. Moreover, in this battle, the Zhou army was so strong that they were almost invincible. They did not need to risk their retreat.
But it turned out that Guo Shao made the right bet. Huangfu Jixun was totally vulnerable and could not exert any pressure on Caishi Ferry.
Lin Renzhao felt that he was not wrong. The first mistake was made by King Li Yu. He made a mistake by using Huangfu Jixun as the chief general. Then he made another mistake by not stopping Huangfu Jixun's fundamentally wrong strategy.
And the direct responsibility should be held by Huangfu Jixun. He was a really incompetent man. With more than 40,000 elite troops under his command, they were only a few miles away from the important place of Caishi, but they hesitated to move forward. It was agreed that when Lin Renzhao attacked the Shu army, he would attack Caishi to tie down the Zhou army. As a result, a simple tactic of confusing the enemy at Shipo Mountain made him keep his troops in place. When the enemy troops at Shipo Mountain rushed out to attack Lin Renzhao, he should have taken advantage of the opportunity to attack Caishi. In this way, it is not certain which side will suffer greater losses in this battle.
Huangfu Jixun missed all the opportunities.
Lin Renzhao thought about it and decided that he was not responsible for the defeat. If he committed suicide now, people would take advantage of the situation and say that he committed suicide out of fear of punishment. He would be held responsible for someone else's mistakes. He also looked down on Huangfu Jixun from the bottom of his heart. This was unbearable.
He was determined to return to Beijing to clarify the facts and not die in such a cowardly way in a corner.
It was too cold at night, so he climbed up the hillside and observed for a while. He saw a faint light in the distance, so he led the horse over and walked in that direction in the dark.
After Lin Renzhao returned to Beijing, the first person he thought of was Chen Qiao, the assistant to the Guangzhengyuan. As long as he told Chen Qiao about the situation on the battlefield, Chen Qiao would definitely understand the key points.
However, Chen Qiao closed the door and refused to see Lin Renzhao, not even saying a word, treating him as a stranger. At this time, the court quickly learned that Lin Renzhao had returned, and sent eunuchs to easily find him in front of Chen Qiao's house, and ordered him to enter the palace to meet His Majesty.
He had no place to vent his grievances, and was very angry at people for ignoring the facts. He happened to have the opportunity to go to the palace, so he spoke out his thoughts to His Majesty and several ministers.
When Lin Renzhao mentioned the mistakes in employing people and the deviation in battle strategy, he was quite reserved. But Li Yu, who was sitting on the upper throne, had turned pale and blue in his face. The ministers below actually accused the king in person in the hall.
Li Yu was panicking and irritated at this moment. The battle of Cai Shi was fruitless and the losses were heavy. The Southern Tang Kingdom might not be able to retake Cai Shi for a while. This meant that the Zhou army would cross the river to the south without any pressure within 120 miles and directly threaten Jiangning.
He was not only panicked by this matter, but also felt that he had no prestige at all. He had just ascended the throne, and now even a military general dared to accuse the king like this.
Li Yu did feel angry and humiliated, but he held back his anger because killing people out of anger would not help and would only make things worse.
Li Yu said: The officials will investigate this incident in detail and punish you according to the severity of the crime. You should go home and wait for the court's reply.
Lin Renzhao bids farewell.
Not long after, Li Yu heard that Huangfu Jixun had returned to Beijing and asked for a meeting outside the palace, so he summoned him into the palace for questioning.
Huangfu Jixun kowtowed in front of the emperor and wept bitterly: "I am the commander of the army, and Lin Renzhao is my vanguard, but he did not obey orders and dispersed the troops on his own initiative. This arrogant warrior thought he was better than anyone else, but he was still defeated and his entire army was annihilated."
Li Yu glanced at Chen Qiao and said: I agreed in advance that Lin Renzhao could obey the court directly, but I did not expect him to be so incapable of fighting.
Huangfu Jixun hurriedly said: This person must have flirted with people in the Zhou court, and did not want to offend the Zhou people, so he used his troops carelessly.
Chen Qiao remained silent, not even a word to defend Lin Renzhao, let alone plead for him. Li Yu thought that perhaps Chen Qiao had figured it out, that a general who openly pushed the responsibility onto the monarch was too much and not a sensible person; so Chen Qiao recommended Lin Renzhao, but was no longer willing to plead for him.
In Li Yu's heart, Chen Qiao was still a minister who was very sensible and capable of taking on important responsibilities. There must be some reason why his father kept him as a regent.
At this time, Huangfu Jixun kowtowed pitifully and said: "I was ordered to serve in a time of crisis, but I failed miserably. I know that I have failed your majesty's trust and deserve death."
Li Yu said nothing.
Huangfu Jixun continued to choke up and said: "But I am loyal and faithful, and heaven and earth can bear witness to my loyalty. Your Majesty, in view of the great contributions made by the ancestors of the Huangfu family to the country, and the fact that my father and brother died for the country, please spare my life. I am the only one left in the family."
When he said this, tears were already streaming down his face, he was extremely sad.
Li Yu did not want to kill Huangfu Jixun. Perhaps his ability to lead troops was indeed much worse than that of his father and brother, but he was still loyal and reliable. He was just not very useful, so there was no harm in keeping him.
But Li Yu still said coldly: The country has its own laws, and those who lose the war will be punished.
He only mentioned the punishment, and he would know the extent of it. The ministers present had served in two dynasties, so they should understand what the monarch meant.
Li Yu quickly left the hall, feeling depressed, as if there was a huge stone pressing on his heart, making it increasingly difficult to breathe.
Unexpectedly, two days later, a piece of news once again made him panic.
A eunuch came in hurriedly. Li Yu was still in his bedroom at that time. Seeing the eunuch's panic, he asked: What happened
The eunuch glanced at Zhou Xian, who was sitting on the couch, and said: Huangfu Jixun was killed.
Li Yu frowned and asked: Who killed
The eunuch said: Your Majesty, it is still unclear. This morning, Huangfu Jixun had just left the house in a carriage when a group of soldiers suddenly rushed up and killed all his guards. Then they hacked Huangfu Jixun to death in the carriage. Huangfu Jixun was hit by dozens of swords and guns, and his flesh and blood were blurred. He died immediately. When I went to see the situation, the carriage was full of blood, and the road was also full of blood.
The rebel soldiers did not stop after killing Huangfu Jixun. They rushed into his house, killing anyone they saw and almost wiped out the entire Huangfu family.
The officials were urgently investigating the matter. Jiangning Prefecture subsequently arrested two people on the spot, and the Privy Council also issued a military order, sending people to the military camp to ask the generals to hand over the criminals.
Li Yu was shocked and furious when he heard this. He thought, "If a brave and arrogant general can destroy the general's gate today, will he dare to rush into the palace tomorrow? Who ordered this?"
The eunuch quickly echoed: Your Majesty, those people are too lawless, we must investigate this matter thoroughly and find out who is behind it.
Come here, change your clothes, Li Yu said angrily.
But a moment later, a feeling of fear came over him again, and he suddenly felt a chill on his back. He paced back and forth in front of the soft couch for a few steps, turned his head and looked at Zhou Xian and said, "Maybe I shouldn't make the decision for Huangfu Jixun. He was defeated in the quarrying battle, and in the eyes of some people, he deserved to die. I can't go and provoke public anger."
Zhou Xian quickly sat up straight and said softly: Your Majesty is right.
Li Yu frowned and said: "But Huangfu Jixun was a general of the dynasty. He threw his body on the street without the court's permission and his family was exterminated. If we sit back and do nothing, where will the prestige of the court be? Who will listen to my orders in the future?"
Zhou Xian looked worried and seemed a little absent-minded, always distracted.
But Li Yu was hesitant and hesitated. He wanted to take people from the military camp. What if he handled them improperly and provoked a mutiny
Li Yu's face was uncertain, and his heart was sometimes full of anger and sometimes full of fear. After a while, he finally figured out something. At this critical moment when the country was threatened with extinction, prestige could no longer be taken into consideration; the most important issue at home was to guard against rebellion and selling out for fame.
Go to the Privy Council immediately to convey the order, stop the investigation, and behead those who have been captured. Li Yu said that Huangfu Jixun should be sentenced to death for his defeat, but his crime should not involve the whole family. The murderer must pay with his life.
The eunuch hurriedly received the order and hurried out.
Li Yu sighed deeply: Now we are facing internal and external troubles, I really don’t know what to do.
Zhou Xian said: I also want to share the king’s worries, but even the king is helpless about state affairs, and a weak woman like me can do nothing.
Li Yu suddenly raised his head and laughed, his face almost twisted: Does Ehuang secretly think I'm funny
Zhou Xian hurriedly said: "I dare not, why does the king say this
Li Yu said: "The blacksmith Guo always succeeds in his military operations. You have long believed that I am no match for him and that everything I do is in vain, so you are indifferent to the affairs of the country."
Zhou Xian shook his head vigorously: I don’t think so. Why does the king think of me like this? I am confused and don’t know what to do.
Li Yu's gaze stayed on her face for a while, but soon his attention was no longer on her. He sighed and said, "I do feel exhausted."
The two sat there thinking about their own things. After a long time, the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict came back to report. Li Yu ordered the eunuch to arrange to summon several close ministers. Those who instigated and instigated the rioters to kill the general's family, Li Yu did not want to tear his face with them immediately, but he wanted to secretly find out who they were.
Even if he knew, there would still be a chance to settle the score later. Li Yu held back his anger in his heart. At this moment, he suddenly thought of Lin Renzhao, who really deserved to die.
Declare that Lin Renzhao be arrested and monitored and then sentenced
I'm really sorry everyone, I will resume normal updates next month.