The emperor did not continue on Wu Daodao's topic. He turned to look at Mu Xiaoyao with undisguised admiration in his eyes: "You are the only person in the Ouchi Guards who has not disappointed me so far this year. In fact, before you came back, I already knew about the tragic defeat in the northwest. I am lucky to have not only loyal guards like you, but also loyal soldiers. "
He paused for a moment and then ordered Su Buwei: "Let Zhuge Zhan come in. The information from him and Mu Xiaoyao will complement each other. Then we will understand what happened in the northwest."
Fang Jie lowered his head and took a few steps back, thinking that it would be weird if Mu Xiaoyao had any loyalty to you, the emperor. But since the emperor said this, Fang Jie will not be stupid enough to say that it is all because of me and has nothing to do with you, the emperor!
Not long after, Zhuge Zhan, who had completely recovered, walked in quickly, saluted the emperor first, and then looked at Fang Jie and the others curiously.
The emperor pointed at Mu Xiaoyao and said: "She is the second person to come back from the northwest after you, and she is Qianhu from the Ouchi Guards. You two will tell everything you saw and heard in the northwest. Tell me, I want to know the clearest truth from your words.¡±
Zhuge Zhan said he obeyed the order, and then recounted what he saw and heard in the northwest. When he mentioned that every ten or even a few miles on the grassland, you could see a pagoda made of the heads of Sui soldiers, Fang Jie's expression couldn't help but change. He knew that this was the custom of the Mongolian people, who would cut off the heads of their enemies and pile them into the shape of a pagoda. Because they believe that if the heads are piled like this, the human soul will not be reborn, but will be suppressed by the pagoda forever. This is an extremely vicious method, although Fang Jie doesn't think it has such an effect.
Shen Qingshan nodded and said: "Perhaps we withdrew earlier than General Zhuge, so the ministers involved in the war are not very clear. We only know that the army was defeated very quickly, and almost the entire front was defeated within ten days. It all fell apart.¡±
"Less than ten days!"
Zhuge Zhan said: "Our left leading army guard was the one who persisted to the end, but it only lasted four days from the time when the right leading army guard was surrounded and defeated, to the time when our left leading army guard was surrounded, and our left leading army guard was defeated by more than thirty people." Thousands of men and horses were besieged and on the march, the enemy's cavalry had an absolute advantage. Many battalions of men and horses were overwhelmed before they could form formations We held on for four days. "
It only lasted eight days, and the 700,000-strong army collapsed.
But this is just a big battle. I believe that the disabled Sui army must have many small-scale troops dispersed after the defeat. Maybe there are still many Sui troops hiding on the grassland and unable to form a counterattack. After all, killing an army of 700,000 plus millions of civilians is definitely not something that can be accomplished in eight or nine days.
"Because I was aware of Li Yuanshan's conspiracy, I immediately sent someone to report to Hou Wenji, the governor of Qingya Town, but the person I sent never came back"
Mu Xiaoyao was silent for a while and said: "That night, I found that many people were surrounding the camp, and I immediately led my men to rush out to kill them. Most of the more than a hundred elite men I brought with me were dead and injured when they came out. I know that there must be something wrong with Hou Wenji I was sneaking along with the people and discovered Li Yuanshan's secret while avoiding the pursuers. "
"What secret?"
The emperor seemed a little impatient.
Mu Xiaoyao said: "Li Yuanshan discovered a large-scale iron mine in the northwest and sent heavy troops to guard it. I happened to find it when I was retreating and ventured in to check. I found that there were a large number of craftsmen gathered there, not just those who mined iron ore. Migrant workers There, I found a large number of weapons and armor that had been made, as well as heavy siege equipment. A heavy siege hammer weighing ten thousand kilograms had been assembled, as well as many ladders, catapults, and even There are also siege engines.¡±
The emperor frowned and his expression immediately changed: "Li Yuanshan has actually been planning a rebellion for a long time. I sent troops to the northwest, which gave him a chance If there was no battle in the northwest, with the strength of his right Xiaowei No matter what, he doesn¡¯t dare to make trouble, even if he has prepared so many things.¡±
His tone was very sad. Obviously, this man who could definitely be called a wise king regretted sending troops to the northwest for the first time.
"There are left and right leading guards in the northwest, and there is a left and right guard. If Li Yuanshan wants to cause chaos, he must first get rid of these three guards. I ordered the expedition to the northwest. It was originally a major event to open up territory for the Sui Dynasty, but he took advantage of it. Ohthis scum has forgotten that he is a Sui man, and he is actually groveling to the Meng Yuan barbarians!"
This sentence is exactly the same as Prince Yi¡¯s evaluation of Li Yuanshan.
"not only that"
Mu Xiaoyao said: "The three northwest roads have been blocked, and the official roadThey are all guarded by county soldiers. The Minister of War, Mou Liangbi, was in charge of the army's logistics supplies. However, most of the supplies were stored in Shandong Road, and it was difficult to carry out Lord Mou's orders. Most of the army's supplies were withheld by Yuan Chongwu and others. When the army annihilated Mandu Latu's troops and marched westwards, the supplies could no longer keep up. But no one thought at the time that Yuan Chongwu and the others not only wanted to force Mou Liangbi away, but also intercepted supplies for the rebellion. "
"I arrested several people in Li Yuanshan's iron mine for interrogation. They said that Li Yuanshan started secretly recruiting people as early as six or seven years ago. These people were recruited by him in the name of farming, but in fact they have been training."
"How many troops are there?"
The emperor asked in a deep voice.
Mu Xiaoyao said: "It is said no less than one hundred thousand."
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The emperor sighed, holding the teacup in his hand but forgetting to drink it: "I think that when Yuan Chongwu sent his son Yuan Chengshi to Chang'an, it was just to paralyze my methods. He may have already made plans. Once the incident in the northwest starts, When he got up, he would take Master Yuan Cheng back from Chang'an, but he did not expect that Master Yuan would be killed It was precisely because of this that he was determined to rebel. "
He took a deep breath and tried his best to calm down. He is an emperor and does not want to show uneasiness in front of his ministers.
"Yuan Chongwu has been writing to me asking me to allow him to rest for three more months due to the pain of losing his son I originally thought that he was just testing my bottom line towards their northwest officials, but now I understand that he is still paralyzing by writing to me. I am very calculating, and all my ministers are very calculating. "
Fang Jie didn't know whether to interrupt or not, so he glanced at Su Buwei subconsciously. When he looked up, he found that Su Buwei was also looking at him.
Su Buwei signaled Fang Jie, who did not leak any traces. Fang Jie was startled, then nodded.
"I think Your Majesty doesn't need to be too angry."
Fang Jie cleared his throat and said.
The emperor glanced at him and said: "You mean, they rebelled and conspired against me, and I should still feel happy?"
The words were cold, and it was obvious that the emperor was in a bad mood.
Fang Jie sorted out his words and said: "Your Majesty please give me an analogy. The Great Sui Dynasty is a towering tree. Emperor Taizu planted the seeds back then. More than a hundred years later, this big tree has become The highest existence in the world. But the people and courtiers are all insects attached to this big tree. Most of the insects only use this big tree as their home, relying on the big tree to protect themselves from wind and rain. But there are too many bugs. Naturally, there are pests too. They drill holes in big trees to try to make a profit thinking that the tree is too tall and too big for you to see everything clearly from the top of the tree.¡±
"Northwest, just like a branch of this big tree, many holes have been eaten out by pests, but they hide it very well. You can't find anything from a distance. If these pests don't jump out on their own , you may not see it at all.¡±
Fang Jie paused and continued: "Your Majesty, you are angry because a few pests destroyed a large branch. But since the branch is broken, just cut it off. After cutting it off, Some parts of the tree will definitely look bare and unsightly, but it won¡¯t take long for new branches to grow and become stronger and stronger.¡±
The emperor understood what Fang Jie meant. After being silent for a long time, he sighed and said, "I know what you meanbut that is three whole rivers and mountains. If you cut it off, I will feel pain."
Fang Jie lowered his head and said: "The long-term pain is worse than the short-term pain If these insects don't jump out in a hurry, they will bore more and more holes in the big tree. By then, what will be broken will not be a branch. Maybe it¡¯s the trunk. If it takes a little longer, it might bite the roots.¡±
"What do you think of the war in the northwest?"
The emperor couldn't help but ask.
Fang Jie walked to the map and pointed at a thick line running north-south on the map: "This is the Weishui River, which is like a knife mark, cutting the northwest. Even if the rebels have been preparing for a long time, they have no shortage of food, soldiers and supplies. , but they lack warships If your Majesty decrees, mobilize all the navy to block the river, and not allow anyone to sell grain and grass to the northwest, and then send elite troops into small teams to enter the northwest, burn the granaries, grain fields it only takes one. Years later, the rebels in the northwest will be short of food. If the Mongolian people are not rewarded for a long time, they will not continue to support the rebels. It can be as short as two years or as long as three to five years. The rebels will be defeated. "
"But there are millions of my people in the northwest"
The emperor frowned.
Fang Jie said: "In one or two years, after the dilemma in the northwest has formed, the people will be angry. They will think that if it weren't for the rebellion by Li Yuanshan and other rebels, theyHow could he suffer like this? The climate in the northwest is cold, and there is little food production. The people usually have enough to eat and drink, but there is little food left. And if the three northwest roads are sealed, people's hearts will be in chaos. If people's hearts are in chaos, the rebels will have no soil for rebellion, and the branches will wither. "
The emperor was silent for a long time, then shook his head: "If you follow your plan, at least hundreds of thousands of people in the northwest will starve to death in two years!"
"I also feel sorry for the people, but if the war is not controlled within the three northwest roads, more people will suffer. If the grain roads are not blocked and the rebels in the northwest offer benefits, no one among the people will resist."
"I will order the navy to block the Wei River, but I will not prevent the people from crossing the river."
The emperor thought for a while and said: "Fang Jie, I know that you are planning this for the Sui Dynasty. But I am the king of a country, and all the people in the world are my subjects. They have made mistakes, and I have to forgive them. If forced The people are anxious, how do you know they won¡¯t join the rebels in rebellion?¡±
"As long as we can't cross the river"
Before Fang Jie could finish his words, he was interrupted by the emperor: "Am I still afraid of those clowns? When the matter in Chang'an City is over, I will go on a personal expedition. If I want to bring back the three northwest territories, why would it take two or three years? ?¡±
Fang Jie was startled and remained silent.
He knew that his strategy was indeed cruel. No one had done this in ancient times Nian Gengyao was ordered to put down the Qinghai rebellion. This Nian general just surrounded and refused to fight, blocking all roads and not allowing a grain of food to enter. In Qinghai, they sent people to sneak in and burn down the pasture and granaries. More than 100,000 people died of starvation?
But, did His Majesty personally conquer the northwest in an instant?