Fang Jiefang held the march notes in his hand, and his mind was filled with the magnificent scenes of the Sui Dynasty's war to destroy the Shang Dynasty. Thousands of troops crossed the river and swept the southwest. The Shang Dynasty, which had a history of hundreds of years, trembled under the iron hoof of the Sui army. The mountains and rivers were torn apart and the royal family was destroyed.
Ning Yan¡¯s notes were very detailed, including where he went on a certain day, what he did, when the war started and when it ended.
Especially the battle against Yongzhou was recorded in detail. General Luo Yao's left vanguard took the lead in breaking through the gate of Yongzhou City, and the army poured into the city like a tide. The Shang people had actually completely collapsed at this time, and the soldiers guarding the city had no fighting spirit at all. Although there were passionate generals organizing the remaining soldiers to resist, how could they withstand the crushing force of the Sui warriors? The Sui soldiers who had killed people turned into an extremely sharp horizontal sword that no one could stop.
There is also a record in the notes about Luo Yao's incident of killing an eighth-grade Talisman master with one punch outside the gate of Yongzhou Palace, but for some reason it was only mentioned in passing without a detailed description.
Fang Jie closed the note and couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief.
"What do you seem to be worried about?"
Ning Yan sat aside and looked into Fang Jie's eyes and asked.
Fang Jie hummed and said, "I dare not hide it sir. The students know that the soldiers of the Sui Dynasty have not been defeated for more than a hundred years and are invincible in the Central Plains. But what the students are worried about is that in this Western Expedition, the army has already reached twenty They have not experienced war in years, and the soldiers in the army are all newcomers. The veterans from the time when the Shang Dynasty was destroyed should have already disarmed and returned to their fields. Such an army does not lack spirit, but it lacks experience I don't think the Sui Dynasty will lose this war. , I¡¯m just worried that the early stages of the war will not go as smoothly as people expected.¡±
"Once you encounter a setbackwill you lose your determination?"
Fang explained the question.
¡°When the Sui Dynasty destroyed the Shang Kingdom, the soldiers had not fought in a war for ten years.¡±
Ning Yan said calmly: "You are from the frontier army, so you naturally know the characteristics of the Sui soldiers. Once they go to the battlefield, they are no longer a group of people, but a group of wolves."
"Let me show you something."
Ning Yan took out a piece of tissue paper from his sleeve, and Fang Jie took it with both hands and read it carefully. There are not many words on it, but they are definitely enough. These are the twelve military regulations promulgated by the emperor during the Sui Dynasty's Western Expedition. Although it has not been made public, it is not difficult for the professors of the Yanwu Academy to obtain it.
"Those who run away from battle will be killed"
"Those who fail to rescue will be killed"
"Those who do not obey orders will be killed"
"Those who underestimate the enemy and rush forward will be killed."
There are twelve laws and twelve killings in total. Violating any one of them is a capital offense. It must be said that this military order is extremely solemn and strict. But Fang Jie couldn't help but frown slightly after reading it, and then read it from beginning to end again.
"Do you think something is wrong?"
Ning Yan asked.
"The Twelve Military Regulationsseem to restrict the soldiers in terms of tactics and warfare, and there are no restrictions on some things that will inevitably happen in the war. For examplethe soldiers robbed the property of the Mongolian people and occupied the Mongolian Yuan. Women, burning people¡¯s houses, none of these things were mentioned.¡±
Fang Jie was surprised and said: "There are no restrictions on these things, will it cause anything inappropriate?"
Ning Yan smiled and said, "Do you think His Majesty made an oversight?"
Fang Jie was silent for a while and shook his head: "Nohow could your majesty not think of this. Sir, I think I understand your majesty's intention. Although the Sui Dynasty and the Meng Yuan Dynasty have been at peace for a hundred years, your majesty even had a war with the Meng Yuan Dynasty. Khan Mengge signed a trade treaty, but there is no doubt that there is absolutely no friendship between the two countries. Once the war starts, both sides will bite each other like red-eyed wolves and will never give the other side a break. room."
"Because of such hatred, those Mongolian and Yuan people with strong folk customs are no longer common people. They are also soldiers when they pick up scimitars. Even women will bite Sui soldiers to death with their teeth if they have the chance. Tolerance is Victory cannot be exchanged, so His Majesty has never thought of being lenient to the Mongolian people. In the same way, if the cavalry of the Mongolian Yuan Empire rushes into the territory of the Sui Dynasty, the people will probably have the same reaction. So ¡Instead of being merciful, it is better to just let go and kill, so that the people of the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty feel afraid. Only fear can make a strong nation finally surrender. "
Ning Yan said: "Tolerance is a matter of the future, but it is definitely not a matter of war."
He paused and continued: "As you just said, the Sui Dynasty and the Meng Yuan Dynasty both have their own pride. This pride does not allow the other side to blaspheme, so the war will be tragic from the beginning. The soldiers rushed into the grassland When they go up, they can't control themselves. They will kill and loot like crazy. There is no way to stop this kind of thing. Military discipline depends on the soldiers.Powerless in the face of madness. So His Majesty simply allowed the soldiers to kill people. "
Ning Yan smiled and said: "Years ago, I had a similar discussion with General Luo Yao when we had nothing to do. At that time, the General asked me, what if the imperial court went to war against the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty, and the army went straight into the grassland and won the final victory? How to control the tens of thousands of miles of land firmly and properly to make hundreds of millions of Mongolian people surrender? "
"How do you answer, sir?"
Fang explained the question.
Ning Yan said calmly: "I answered the general at that time If the people of Meng Yuan Dynasty surrender, there is no need to talk about how to stabilize thousands of miles of mountains and rivers. And the simplest and most effective way to make the people of Meng Yuan Dynasty surrender is to Those who don¡¯t surrender will be killed. Five or six out of ten will be afraid.¡±
"Kill half"
Fang Jie repeated it in a murmur, feeling a little chilly in his heart.
Ning Yan smiled and said: "Now the people in Jiangnan consider themselves Sui people and are proud of it You must know that a hundred years ago, the general named Li slaughtered not half as many people in Jiangnan, but he still had 30% of them. . Kill first, then appease, kill until people are frightened, and then implement benevolent policies. The living people will benefit from it, and they will be happy and satisfied for the rest of their lives. It only takes a hundred years for them to remember the good and not the bad. The people of Yongzhou now wear Sui clothes and spend five baht. Children under the age of fourteen attend Sui schools, and elderly people over sixty years old receive money from the court for only twenty years They have adapted to the current situation. Life. You see, it¡¯s not that long, isn¡¯t it?¡±
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It is true that prison can change a person.
Although the prison where Fang Jie sat was somewhat special, this kind of life still had a great impact on the change in his thinking. And it is precisely because of this environment that Ning Yan can understand more clearly what Ning Yan said about killing half. If it were in the past, Fang Jie would definitely disapprove.
He would even argue hard, telling Ning Yan that only if you treat people with kindness, will they treat you with kindness. But the current Fang Jie would never say such a thing. His Majesty, the Emperor, who is in charge of the national artifact, has far more things to consider than the common people. And these things are difficult to define in terms of simple good and evil. You can have your own likes and dislikes, but you cannot forcefully label the emperor's decisions as a tyrant.
Ning Yan and Fang Jie did not discuss military discipline too much. After all, if someone found out about their private discussion, they might be labeled as disrespectful.
In a world where imperial power is supreme, it is immeasurable how many people have been crushed to death by this hat.
The floor was littered with books, and the map on the wall was sketched beyond recognition. There is one missing stone lock on the ground, embedded in the wall. On the stone bed were Ning Yan's marching notes, and the flying fish robe at the door seemed to be shouting something. When Fang Jie recovered from his deep thoughts, he heard the flying fish robe calling him to take the food.
A meal for two people, including meat and wine.
"This place is nice."
Ning Yan did not disturb Fang Jie who was deep in thought before. He knew that he needed to give Fang Jie time to digest what he had said before. Although this young man is in prison, since he is sitting here giving lectures, no one can firmly believe that this young man will not see the light of day again. Speaking of which, His Majesty's treatment of Fang Jie was very contradictory. He was imprisoned, but professors from the Yanwu Academy were asked to travel across several streets to give him private lessons.
He is not allowed to be free, but he appears to be very free in confinement.
"Quiet, no one disturbs you, you can learn many things."
Ning Yan poured himself a glass of wine, without using chopsticks, pinched a piece of cooked beef, put it into his mouth and chewed it slowly: "In these pure days of wine, meat, and reading, I would like to enjoy it if I have the chance. ¡±
Fang Jie smiled helplessly and said: "It seems that you are not the only one who said this is a kind of enjoyment. Maybe the students are not mature enough, so now they think it is torture and do not find anything comfortable."
"It has nothing to do with realm."
Ning Yan took a sip of wine and breathed out comfortably: "There is a realm in martial arts, but there is no realm for literati. Saying a few words that seem to have profound truths, and writing a few prosperous and beautiful articles is the realm? The realm of speaking, The realm that is written, or even the realm that is seen by others, is not realm, but pretending. The higher the status, the better it is to pretend. Everyone in the world has thoughts, and when everyone accidentally realizes the truth, this is realm. ? Then aren¡¯t all people¡¯s realms the same?¡±
"Some people look for a place with beautiful scenery to live. What do they write about picking chrysanthemums in the southern mountains and planting peaches in the northern mountains? This is their realm? That is the realm of the hunters in the mountains and the old farmers in the fields. Everyone has a higher realm than him."
"It's the mentality"
Ning Yan said lightly.
"Mindset"
Fang Jie was startled for a moment, then nodded.
"The four walls of this prison are unbreakable. Even if the torture instruments on the walls are replaced with maps, and there are more books and professors around you, the prison is still a prison and has not changed. The prison cannot be changed, so you can only change it yourself. Qu. When you bend your head and feet in half, you will be a grandson, and when you stand straight, you will be a man with your head held high. If you can do both, you will be a hero."
"The Sui Dynasty does not need heroes."
Fang Jie said seriously.
"What the Sui Dynasty does not need is a hero, not such a heart."
Ning Yan said: "Who has great power and no ambition?"
"Sir, if someone listens to what you said, it would be a crime of great disrespect."
"What kind of disrespect is this? And I am already guilty, so I am afraid of more? Your Majesty also knows my nature. Those who say these things bluntly are not necessarily thieves, and those who are full of flattery are not necessarily loyal ministers. If you can do it in the future, When you get out of here, you will definitely join the army. I am just telling you something you must understand as a general."
"As long as you can win in the end, why do you care about the means? Although life seems a bit miserable now, which makes you unwilling, but if you can't even bear this, how can you pretend to be a war in your heart? A victory or defeat. ? If you can't even pretend to win or lose, what qualifications do you have to talk about future success or failure? It's not a pity to die for a coward and an idiot."
"You are a school in your heart, but this is not a prison. You are a prison in your heart, and there is a prison everywhere. You are unwilling to accept it. Even if you walk in broad daylight, your heart will always be filled with darkness and coldness. If your heart is calm and broad, how can you run like thousands of troops? When you learn now, you don¡¯t learn willingly and comfortably, but you force yourself to learn. Although both are studies, what you get is vastly different.¡±
Fang Jie murmured a few words: "The mentality the student understands."
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