Volume VIII: The North-South Controversy

Chapter 1: Looking down on the 800-mile Dongting and looking back at the 3,000-mile mountains and rivers (1)

In the first year of Changxing, the beginning of autumn. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

Dongting Lake Yueyang Tower, someone climbed the building.

Eight hundred miles of Dongting with Yueyang magnificent, two thousand years of red cliffs to see the yellow crane flow.

It is the so-called Baling Sheng, in a lake in Dongting. Connecting the distant mountains, swallowing the Yangtze River, the vast soup soup, the endless horizon, the morning glow and the sunset, the weather is thousands, it is the grand view of Yueyang Tower.

The person who climbed the stairs, Xu Zhihe, the prime minister of Wu Guoda. Behind him, more than a dozen scribes accompanied him, and Song Qiqiu and Zhou Zong were impressively listed.

The autumn breeze is blowing, the clothes are fluttering, these people point to the country, talk about the past and the present, and from time to time there are poems and songs blurted out, which attracts everyone's applause.

It's a scene of gentlemen and high spirits.

To the top floor, look at the railing, and the eight hundred miles of cave court are in front of you.

Up and down the sky, a blue expanse, sand gulls soar and gather, brocade scales swim, shore Zhi Tinglan, lush green, long smoke empty, waves are not alarmed. It can be said that the autumn water is the same color as the sky, and the sunset and the lonely bird fly together.

There are so many delicate rivers and mountains.

Xu Zhihe was poor and keen to learn when he was young, and now he doesn't say that he is eight buckets high, but he is also rich and has five cars, and now he is taking Wu Guocai to look at the country, and he is these Jiangzuo romantic figures, talented people, and he will not think he is vulgar.

On the contrary, Xu Zhihe, who is in a green shirt and leather belt, has a convincing elegance in front of Dongting Lake.

It's just because of him that he trampled this country under his feet.

"The king of Chu is defeated, less than half a year, half of the wall of Chu has been in the bag, the Chu soldiers are in the west, a thousand miles in a day, the king of Chu has fled, his wife is difficult to take care of, the so-called Chu country is already a country general. It is said that Chu is beautiful, three points are in Dongting, three points are in Changsha, and now the eight hundred miles of Dongting are in my hands, Changsha is my big Wuzhou County, and if I want to destroy Chu State, it will not be far away. The prime minister is like a god, strategizing, and winning thousands of miles away, no one in the world can match, and we admire it very much! Da Wu has a prime minister, just like Da Zhou has Jiang Taigong, it is really a great blessing! ”

A scribe watched the scenery for a long time, and couldn't help but feel it, and bowed his hand to Xu Zhihe, expressing a little admiration and admiration.

Xu Zhihe was not arrogant at all, and turned around to salute back, "Master Wang has today's results, not because of one person's achievements, but because of the unity of thousands of people. Moreover, now that the Tang army is attacking, the war is far from stopping, and it is really arrogant. ”

Dealing with this group of scribes, Xu Zhihe, Song Qiqiu, and Zhou Zong walked a few steps to the side, a little away from those coquettish people, Song Qiqiu said: "Although there are dozens of states and counties in the Chu State, which can really be relied on, but the several states around Dongting Lake in the north, especially Yueyang and Changsha in the east, and Langzhou and Lizhou in the west. The three major towns of Chu State, Changsha Wu'an Jiedu Envoy, Langzhou Wuping Jiedu Envoy, Guizhou Jingjiang Jiedu Envoy, to this day, Changsha Wu'an Army no longer exists, Guizhou Jingjiang Army is widowed and less generals do not need to pay attention, and now there is only Langzhou Wuping Jiedu Envoy. ”

"After the king of Chu Ma Xisheng fled to Langzhou, he held on here to wait for the Tang army, Langzhou is only about five hundred miles away from Jiangling, and there is Lizhou in the middle as a response, my Wang division has been attacking Langzhou for many days, failed to overcome, and the battle situation is quite stale."

Xu Zhihe looked in the northwest direction, and there was a mountain named Jun Mountain there, which was lush and green, and the grass and trees were not yellow.

Xu Zhihe said: "The Tang Army's rescue of Ma Xisheng is nothing more than two routes. First, through Lizhou to Langzhou, and the Chu army to join forces, a total of rejection of the Great Wu Wang Division, this is a frontal use of troops, is a dignified array, step by step for the battalion; Second, from Jiangling down the river through Shishou, directly approaching Yueyang, destroying the grain and grass transportation route in the rear of our Wang Division, forcing me to retreat from Yueyang to Changsha, and then the Tang army went south from Xiangshui, Ma Xisheng counterattacked from Langzhou, and the two joined forces in Changsha, which is a strange strategy. ”

Zhou Zong thought about it and felt that both were possible, "Chu has always used Jiangling as a barrier to defend the Central Plains, and the Central Plains has always used Jiangling as a barrier to defend Chu, and Jiangling has also been used as a barrier. Now that the Tang army is attacking, we have no way to stop each other. ”

Song Qiqiu said coldly: "With Dongting Lake as the center, the battle between the north and the south is in Hubei. The danger of Hubei lies in three places, North Xiangzhou, Zhongjingzhou (Jiangling), and East Wuchang, which are like three legs, supporting the topography of Hubei. Get these three towns, then get the center of the world, from the west of the river to Bashu, through Xiangzhou to the north of the Central Plains, from Jingzhou to the south of Chudi, along the east of the river into the left of the river, no way to disadvantage; Therefore, the land of Hubei has been a 'country of force' since ancient times, and those who have fought for the world throughout the ages have all fought for Hubei and Jingxiang. ”

The so-called Hunan and Hubei, the north and south of Dongting Lake.

"In the past, Gao Jixing was entrenched in Jingnan, according to the danger of Jiangling, he knew that Jiangling was coveted by the princes of the Quartet, and had to flatter the princes of the Quartet many times in order to protect himself, and he relied on Jiangling as the center of Hubei, and the princes of the Quartet did not allow others to take each other and did not dare to take it easily, so he invited the princes of the Quartet to take credit, and every time there was a heavy wealth crossing the border, it was necessary to rob and seize it, which was no different from a robber, so everyone called it a 'high scoundrel'."

"Now Li Tang is based on Jingxiang, and south to the south of Dongting Lake, Hunan has to guard against the Tang army in Jingzhou, which is even more difficult." Song Qiqiu thought of the old incident of the failure in the battle for Jingzhou, and he was angry, "At present, I am a big Wu and Chu, according to Yuezhou, and I rely on Dongting Lake to prevent the Tang army from Jiangling going south." Otherwise, he would go to Jiangzuo along the east of the Yangtze River with Li Tang Shuishi, and it would be difficult to resist with only one town in Wuchang. ”

What Song Qiqiu said is the truth, Wu failed to fight for Jiangling first, and now he is in a hurry to attack Chu, that is, he wants to destroy Chu to strengthen Wu at the same time, in military geography to have Yuezhou, control the Dongting Lake Water Division, and make some confronts with Jiangling in the future, otherwise once the Tang Dynasty attacks Wu, the Tang army will go down the river, although the eastern line of Wu has a Jianghuai defense system, and there is only a town of Wuchang on the western front, and the door will be wide open if there is a slight carelessness.

Xu Zhihe knows a truth very well, Hubei is located in the upper reaches of the southeast, based on the southeast regime, all rely on Jingxiang as the upstream barrier, when the north and south are confronted, Jingxiang is a strong feudal giant town, in order to protect the upstream. Since ancient times, there has been no loss of Jingxiang and can keep the southeast. The Western Jin Dynasty destroyed Sun Wu and the Sui Dynasty destroyed Chen, and the situation was opened from the upper reaches of Jingxiang.

It can be said that today's Wu State, although it is the largest country in the south, has a rich land in the southeast, thousands of ships, 200,000 fine armor, and 5 million people, which can be compared with other princes, but in the military competition with the Central Plains, it is at a disadvantage everywhere.

Xu Zhihe looked at Dongting Lake from afar, "The Tang army is menacing and cannot be underestimated, but I, Dawu, may not be afraid of him." No matter which path Li Congrong chooses, how can he not cope with it? ”

Zhou Zong leaned over and said yes, Song Qiqiu's expression softened, "Don't forget, Bian Hao is Li Congrong's military advisor." ”

Xu Zhihe's expression did not see the depth of the face, and he bowed slightly, "Since going north, Bian Ho has been doing well. ”

Song Qiqiu finally showed a hint of a smile, "Bian Hao has been in the north for more than half a year, and now Li Congrong and Li Congjing are competing for each other, which can be described as a sword and a sword." Whether Li Siyuan wants to balance power to ensure that his power in his lifetime is not challenged, or because he loves Li Congrong, or he is full of thought that everyone in his Li family should be heroic, and everyone should fight for the world, it is an indisputable fact that Li Congrong's power has now become a force. This time, Li Congrong went south to fight, and Li Congjing sat in Luoyang, which seems to have a reasonable division of labor, but isn't it a big opportunity for Li Congrong? ”

Xu Zhihe was noncommittal, the cool breeze was blowing, and he said: "Li Congrong's wings are all corrupt officials and unscrupulous envoys and generals in feudal towns. ”

Song Qiqiu smiled even more, "Why do you have to last a long time, as long as it is enough for a while, now that Li Congjing is rectifying the rule of officials, the feudal town boasts that Li Congrong can rely on, how can he be arrested?" Now that the Xuanwu Army, the Yicheng Army, the Tianping Army, and the Pinglu Army are in turmoil together, almost half of the rivers and mountains have been chaotic, isn't this the opportunity for us to wait? ”

"Let Li Congjing work hard and put his mind on the country, lest he fight the crooked ideas of the south again. When I clean up Li Congrong, it can be regarded as a favor for him, and I don't know if he will thank me in the future? Speaking of this, Xu Zhihe smiled, it was actually a little childlike naughty, and he immediately corrected, "What has Li Congjing done recently?" ”

"I didn't see any unusual movement." Zhou Zong shook his head, he hesitated for a moment, his expression was a little gloomy, "Since the head of Lin Sitou was captured in Luoyang, the Tsing Yi Yamen has been fiercely attacked by the military intelligence department, and the strongholds of all parties have been pulled out one after another, and our personnel have suffered heavy casualties. ”

Xu Zhihe lowered his head and was silent, his eyes sharp.

After all, Henan and Luoyang are the hearts of the Tang Dynasty, and the Tsing Yi Yamen is deeply involved in the enemy's activities, once it is hit hard by the military intelligence department, there is indeed no way to resist, and it is an extravagant hope to even resist.

Song Qiqiu saw that Xu Zhihe's face was not good-looking, and sighed: "Lin Sishou is indeed a little reckless, if he hadn't been arrested for trespassing on the martial arts academy, the Military Intelligence Department would not have been so annoyed, so he didn't care about the cost of attacking my Tsing Yi Yamen." Now it is even a burden, and we can't know about Li Tang's movements in time. ”

After a long time, Xu Zhihe waved his hand, "After all, Director Lin has meritorious service to the country, and this time he is a martyr rather than a loss in performing his duties, so he should not be too harsh." As for Li Tang, let's wait until they calm down the domestic turmoil first. Right now, you and I entertain Li Congrong. ”

......

Li Congrong boarded the building ship again.

He seems to have a special hobby for building boats.

This time he brought a pickaxe with him.

The two of them were on the deck at the top of the three-story boat, overlooking the river.

"Mr. saw the Jiangling Sailor drill today, what do you think?" Li Congrong's long hair fluttered, and he asked Bian Ho with a smile.

Bian Hao said solemnly: "The banner is clear, the advance and retreat are orderly, the battle formation is skillful, the cooperation is appropriate, the generals are strict, and the soldiers are brave, it is indeed a rare elite division!" ”

Li Congrong laughed, looking very proud, as if the Jiangling Sailor was trained by him, "I am a Tang soldier, naturally I am the best in the world!" ”

After laughing, Li Congrong asked Bian Hao again, "Mr. Jinling, have you ever seen Yang Wu Shuishi?" Compared with the Jiangling Sailor and the Yang Wu Sailor, which is better or worse? ”

Bian Hao bathed in the river breeze and said: "Yang Wu Shui Shi, who claims to be the first in the world, used to think so, but now that he has seen General Ma's Jiangling Water Master who has spent several years and carefully compiled, Ho's opinion has changed. ”

"Oh? Could it be that the Jiangling Sailor has already defeated the Yang Wu Sailor? Li Congrong was full of expectation and a hint of pride.

Bian Ho said with a smile: "It's hard to say whether you will win or lose, but you can fight, there is no doubt about it." ”

Li Congrong was greatly disappointed, Buddha was displeased, and seeing that Bian Hao never changed his words, he snorted coldly: "Yang Wu Shuishi? No. 1 in the world? Hum! Can you believe it alone, living in a corner, a small country, hundreds of thousands of small boats, and dare to claim to be the first in the world? It's really unbelievable! ”

Bian Hao immediately persuaded: "Your Highness's words are a little arrogant. ”

Li Congrong's eyes widened, and an evil fire rose in his heart, but he endured it, and then said coldly: "Don't hide it, Mr., this time in Chu, the lone king intends to go down the east of the river and pass through Yuezhou." ”

He looked at the endless boats in front of him, and sneered: "Eight hundred miles of Dongting Lake, it is a natural battlefield, the Lone King just destroyed the Yang Wu Navy in one fell swoop, so that they can no longer transport grain and grass from the river, then the Lone King and the King of Chu will work together to destroy the Yang Wu army in Changsha, it is not a problem!" ”

Bian Hao's face changed drastically: "Your Highness must not be reckless!" ”

Li Congrong glanced at Bian Hao, turned around and disembarked, "Gather the generals, the lonely king will arrange the war!" ”