The army was returning to the capital, and there were many people on the main roads, but Guo Shao always felt that there was no joy like the previous victorious return to the capital. There were many people, but there was a sense of loneliness.
Guo Shao and the ministers decided on some matters such as the rest and pensions of the imperial guards in Jinxiang Hall, and then went to the east side of Jinxiang Hall.
Fu Jinzhan is no longer with us, and as soon as Guo Shaoyi comes back, she takes the initiative to retreat to the harem, as if to show that she has no intention of being obsessed with power.
Guo Shao walked into the small room where the files were kept and sat down alone. The chaotic events of the recent period flashed through his mind. The battle in Youzhou was not successful and a brother died. When he came back, someone rebelled. He realized that this dynasty was not as strong and stable as he had imagined.
He reached out and rubbed his forehead, thinking about what to do next and who to meet. The person he wanted to meet most was Jinzhan.
Just then, Zuo You asked for a meeting.
Guo Shao asked Zuo You to come into the small room to talk. Zuo You talked about Yang Ye and Zhe Dejian, who Li Yun had contacted. Guo Shao just nodded from time to time, pretending to listen.
Guo Shao picked up the Go pieces on the table and played with them for a while, then suddenly said: Mr. Zuo
Zuo You hurriedly clasped his fists and said: “Your Majesty, please ask me.”
Guo Shao thought thoughtfully: After Li Yun's rebellion was leaked, he had no chance of winning, and his subordinates would die in vain. But why did he still drive his subordinates to attack Shi Yanchao and even set up an array outside the city
Zuo You was stunned for a moment and said: Perhaps it is because of Li Yun's daily prestige.
Guo Shao shook his head slightly and whispered: They are a small hill.
Zuo You suddenly realized: Yang Ye and Zhe Dejian
Guo Shao glanced at him, coughed, picked up a black piece with his fingers, and made trivial movements on the table. He thought: Small hills are inevitable, but this may also be considered a kind of team.
He was thinking not only of Yang Ye and Zhe Dejian, but also of Li Chuyun. Even Guo Shao himself had a small group of people, and Li Chuyun was a member of this team.
Li Chuyun has two characteristics: first, he has a sense of belonging and loyalty to the dynasty; second, he is capable. Although he performed poorly in the Wenyu River Battle and lost the initiative in the battle, and although he had the most elite troops, he threatened the emperor's headquarters, but his previous long-term performance was enough to prove his ability.
No one has yet taken the opportunity to criticize Li Chuyun and investigate the specific responsibility for the battle of Wenyu River. Most people can avoid it because Li Chuyun's daughter is a concubine and it is not good for them if Li Chuyun gets into trouble. Guo Shao thought of Shi Yanchao. If anyone is willing to take advantage of the issue, Shi Yanchao is the most likely to come forward.
Guo Shao glanced at Zuo You, sighed, and said in a deep voice: Since the Qin Dynasty, China has been the strongest, and the root of all problems is internal problems.
On that day, Guo Shao ordered the eunuch Cao Tai to go to Li Yuaner's residence first.
Li Yuan'er was happy and looked very surprised. Guo Shao had just returned to Tokyo today, so the court must have known about it a long time ago.
Perhaps she realized something, but she still happily took the little prince from the wet nurse and taught him to say: Father, call me father.
The child looked at Guo Shao with bright eyes. He was less than one year old. The child born by Li Yuaner was much quieter than the second son of her second sister. When Guo Shao was in Tokyo, both sides often visited him, but he never remembered the child crying.
Guo Shao couldn't help but say: I'm not a very good father. I haven't paid much attention to my son.
Li Yuaner said softly: Your Majesty is the father of the people of the world, so you should put the most important things first. We women should take care of our husbands and children.
Guo Shao nodded and said: I am building the empire now, but it will be theirs in the future.
He thought Li Yuaner would modestly say that her second sister's son was the legitimate son, because Li Yuaner was relatively docile.
Unexpectedly, Li Yuan'er said softly: The country belongs to your Majesty, but your Majesty has a successor.
Guo Shao was stunned after hearing this and looked at Li Yuaner. Li Yuaner lowered her head with a gentle look on her face.
That night, Li Yuaner served wholeheartedly.
Guo Shao occasionally lost his mind at night and recalled that when he was writing in the Jinxiang Hall during the day, the eunuchs ground the ink very thickly, and when the brush fell on the white paper, the contrast between black and white was extremely great.
In bed, Li Yuaner asked him, "You come here right after you come back. Wouldn't the queen be unhappy?"
Guo Shao couldn't answer.
Li Yuaner whispered again: I don’t understand your majesty’s way of governing the country, but I believe that your majesty must be doing this for the people of the world.
The next day, before dawn, the lights inside and outside Xuande Gate were bright, and the civil and military officials had to enter the palace with lanterns. People on the road looked sideways because Wang Pu was eating a pancake in his hand when he entered the palace. Wei Renpu, who was most familiar with him, was very calm, as if he was used to it, but Wei Renpu never did such a thing.
Most officials went to the government offices located in the imperial city, and only a small number went to the Jinxiang Hall first.
The eunuch Cao Tai personally went outside the palace to receive the ministers, but they had to be searched first. Everyone was used to it, it was just a rule, the generals handed over their swords, and then stood there for the eunuchs to search and then let them go.
Li Chuyun handed over the sword, spread his arms and stood there calmly.
At this time, Cao Tai walked forward and whispered: The emperor just returned to the court yesterday and was at the imperial concubine's place.
Li Chuyun said nothing, but his colleagues turned to look at him. It was obvious that although Cao Tai's voice was low, many people heard it.
After a while, Shi Yanchao came over after being searched, smiling and shouting: Congratulations, Inspector Li!
Li Chuyun flicked his sleeves, his thick black beard almost stood up, and he strode forward.
The civil and military officials did not go to the main hall on the platform, but walked eastward to a hall behind the study. There were neatly arranged chairs on both sides of the hall.
After a while, Guo Shao, wearing a yellow brocade robe and a fu hat, strode up to the upper position.
All the ministers knelt on the ground and shouted: Long live Your Majesty.
Guo Shao's voice said: Please stand up and take a seat.
Thank you, Your Majesty. Everyone said together, and then took their seats on both sides.
Normally, ministers would raise specific issues and proposals during daily meetings, and Guo Shao would not say anything at first. But today, as soon as Guo Shao sat down, he said: The Battle of Youzhou was the first time I have fought against the Liao army since I ascended the throne. We returned empty-handed because the siege speed was not fast, but we also found some problems. They were both cavalry, so why were the Liao army more flexible than us
In front of the emperor, everyone was very careful about their words and behavior, but Shi Yanchao turned his head to look at Li Chuyun, as if to signal him to speak. Li Chuyun said nothing and sat there in a depressed mood.
At this moment, Zuo You stood up, clasped his fists and said: I have a humble opinion.
Guo Shaodao: Shaoqing Zuo, please feel free to speak.
Zuo You said: I have talked with Lord Zan about the Liao cavalry. If we have the same 40,000 cavalry, the Great Zhou Imperial Army has only 40,000 to 50,000 horses; but the Liao army has more than 100,000 horses. When we compare the strength of the troops, we only count the cavalry, not the war horses. But it is precisely because the Liao army has more war horses than the Great Zhou, and the horses are better than the Great Zhou, that the Imperial Army cavalry is at a disadvantage.
After hearing this, everyone agreed and agreed that it was a fact that the Liao Kingdom was much stronger than the Zhou Dynasty in cavalry. If the Liao Kingdom mobilized all the cavalry in the country, it would far exceed the cavalry of the Zhou army.
Li Chuyun then said: I have failed your Majesty's trust and have not done a good job in commanding the troops.
Guo Shao said: Shunzhou, Danzhou and other places have food and grass prepared by the Liao people, but we don't have the time and energy to attack them one by one. In addition, the Liao Kingdom has an advantage in horses, which makes it difficult to defend against. The strategy of dividing troops to guard against the Liao army's reinforcements at the beginning was decided by me. The biggest responsibility for this matter is still mine. The strategy decided before the war was not wise.
Your Majesty Li Chuyun was moved and said, "We ministers are paid by the emperor, so we should share your worries."
Guo Shao waved his hand: "I personally led the army, and all decisions were approved by me. General Li did not make any mistakes in the battle, and the mistakes in strategy cannot be blamed on the generals on the front line."
Everyone said: We are guilty.
Guo Shao was silent at this time, and the generals began to discuss. Shi Yanchao said: There are good horses in the northwest, and we have soldiers and food. Why don't we go and grab some good horses first, and then settle accounts with the Liao army
Wang Pu exclaimed, "Your Majesty, General Shi is right. The fertile land of Hetao and Hexi is thousands of miles long, and it is a place that produces a lot of good horses."
After hearing this, Guo Shao said: If you have any good ideas, please feel free to offer them to us.
After Guo Shao ascended the throne, the overall national policy was to recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun and unify the world; it has not changed to this day, but an attempt was made at the beginning of this year and it failed. It seems that a surprise attack on Youzhou by taking shortcuts is unlikely to succeed, and we should indeed re-plan our approach.