Chapter 4898 On the verge of despair

Chapter 4898 On the verge of despair
Pei Xingjian only took a look at the battle report and thought about it for a while, then he understood Cheng Yaojin's methods and intentions. He couldn't help but sneer at it, thinking it was really crude and clumsy. But he had to admit that although this "frame-up" strategy was very low-level, Cheng Yaojin's timing was very accurate.

Chang'an City is in a state of turmoil right now, and all parties are ready to make a move. Your Majesty needs to enhance his prestige to achieve the goal of deterring all parties. The elimination of the "rebel" An Yuanshou can be used as a weak chicken to scare the monkeys...

Not only can it help Your Majesty remove the hatred in your heart, but it can also boost Your Majesty's prestige and deter the heroes from acting rashly. What Cheng Yaojin did perfectly fits Your Majesty's wishes, and the slightly crude means are of course irrelevant.

Sighing, Pei Xingjian stood up and walked to the Tibetan map hanging on the wall. He carefully examined it for a while and asked, "Can our spies in the six tribes in Nacang send back any news?"

Su Liangsi stood behind Pei Xingjian and said, "It has been reported back, and no unusual movements were found in the six departments of the warehouse."

Pei Xingjian frowned in confusion: "That means that the six tribes of the Cang clan were not instigated by Zan Xiruo to rebel... If that's the case, why did Lun Qinling dare to march alone and attack Luoshui City?"

Once they advance into Zishankou, there will be no turning back. Not only will Lun Qinling's troops be wiped out by the army mobilized by Songtsen Gampo, but the Tibetan army can also take advantage of the situation and attack directly on the former territory of Tuyuhun after annihilating Lun Qinling. Regardless of whether the Tang Dynasty intervenes or not, the Gar tribe will be in great danger and may be exterminated at any time.

No matter how you look at it, Lun Qinling shouldn't have made such a bad move.

Su Liangsi said: "But now Gongri Gongzan is dead, Songtsen Gampo has lost his successor, the situation in Tubo is turbulent, and the central power structure is facing collapse...Qinling's move is risky, but at present, it may not be impossible to stir up the situation and severely damage Tubo."

Pei Xingjian shook his head, turned back to the table and sat down, taking a sip of tea: "This matter cannot be judged simply by the result, but we need to confirm Lun Qinling's motives. There are some situations that we have not yet grasped. If we can't figure it out, it is very likely to affect our subsequent layout and strategy."

Su Liangsi said: "But the internal strife in Tubo is already doomed. Trisang Yangdon, Sairu Gongdon, and even Sambhota and other important Tubo officials may not be without ulterior motives. If Gongri Gongzan is still alive, the succession of power in Tubo will be stable and orderly, and all those loyal to Songtsen Gampo can guarantee their own interests. Now there is a problem with the succession of power. If anything happens to Songtsen Gampo, how can the prince, who is still in his infancy, lead the crowd and intimidate Tubo?"

The political systems of Tubo and the Tang Dynasty were completely different. Although it looked like a unified country, it was actually full of factions. The so-called "Zanpu" was not the same as the "Emperor", but was just the "common leader" elected by all tribes.

When the "Zanpu" can represent the interests of the vast majority of tribes, everyone will naturally regard you as the "common leader", but once the interests are threatened or even damaged, you have to change a "common leader"...

Pei Xingjian exhaled, nodded, and said: "Although there are still many unclear points, which may affect the implementation of future strategies, after all, as you said, this is the situation we most want to see. If Songtsen Gampo encounters another accident..."

At this point, he shook his head and smiled. The death of Gongri Gongzan had already had a huge impact on Tubo, and the Tang Dynasty had benefited greatly. At this moment, Songtsen Gampo must have paid more attention to his own safety in order to smoothly pass on power to his grandson. No matter who wanted to take Songtsen Gampo's life, it would be almost impossible.

"Pass the order down, gather the troops and advance eastward to block the roads to Fan and the west, so as to prevent the defeated troops from causing chaos in the Hexi counties. In addition, you personally lead an army out of Dadouba Valley to closely monitor Fushi City. If Lu Dongzan behaves honestly, it will be fine, but if he makes any unusual moves, strike him immediately without worrying about the consequences. He must be contained in the old land of Tuyuhun and cannot move without authorization. The entire Gar tribe must not be allowed to rush to Luoshui City to join Lun Qinling!"

No matter how fast Qin Ling charged forward and conquered every enemy he encountered, he could not turn the tables as long as Lu Dongzan and the Gar tribe were still under the control of the Tang Dynasty.

On the contrary, if Lu Dongzan took advantage of the Tang Dynasty's unpreparedness and led the elite of his tribe to abandon Fuqi City and rush to Luoshui City, it would be very likely that he would completely escape the control of the Tang Dynasty.

Lu Dongzan who entered Luoshui City was a greater threat than Songtsen Gampo...

"Here!"

Su Liangsi took the order, and although he had just returned from the icy and snowy Tubo and was about to send troops to the Dadouba Valley, he did not hesitate or shirk his responsibility. On the contrary, he was in high spirits and excited.

At that time, the Tang Dynasty conquered the world and swept across the eight wildernesses. There were no strong countries to the north, east, and south. The borders were stable and the seas were peaceful. Only the Tubo entrenched on the plateau in the west posed a threat to the Tang Dynasty's territory at all times.

Everyone knew that facing Tubo would be the only possible fierce battle for the Tang Dynasty within a hundred years. Being able to participate in and contribute to such a war that was destined to usher in a century of prosperity was an unparalleled achievement and honor.

This is the age of the soldier.

Perhaps soon, when the world is at peace and the rivers and seas are calm, the weapons will be put into storage and the horses will be released to the mountains...

*****
The An family has lived in Liangzhou for a long time and has occupied the Hexi area for hundreds of years. They have already taken root here. Even if they evacuated Guzang City and went to Fanhe City to guard it, any movement in Guzang City could not escape the An family's eyes and ears. As soon as Cheng Yaojin assembled his troops and set off, Fanhe City received the news.

Along with the news that the Left Guard had mobilized its elite troops, it was also reported that An Yongda and his entire caravan had been detained by Cheng Yaojin...

In Fanhe City, An Yuanshou was both furious and puzzled: "Why did Cheng Yaojin seize our convoy and then lead his army to attack us? Although it was wrong to rush to Guanzhong without permission, it was not a serious crime of treason. Even His Majesty could do nothing about it. How dare Cheng Yaojin lead his army to attack us?"

Zhai Liuniang had a gloomy face, but she was not panicked. She said calmly: "Your Majesty sent Cheng Yaojin to Liangzhou, and his target is our An family. Since he dared to raise an army to attack, it means he must have enough evidence." The Tang Dynasty was a unified country. All domestic armies were nominally loyal to the emperor. No matter who they belonged to or who they obeyed, they were all the army of the Tang Dynasty. Under normal circumstances, it was absolutely not allowed to start a war without authorization.

Cheng Yaojin was sent to Liangzhou, and he wanted to go back to Chang'an. How dare he make such a big mistake?

The only explanation is that Cheng Yaojin had sufficient reasons to attack An's Left Guard and annihilate it.

But what is the reason?

Is it because the An family transported a huge amount of money and silk to Chang'an?
An Zhongjing, who was dressed in military uniform, was a little impatient. In front of his parents, he pressed the hilt of the sword on his waist and shouted, "Who cares what reasons or evidence he has? When the enemy comes, we will just stop him and when the water comes, we will block it with earth. I will lead the vanguard army out of the city to fight and dampen his spirit!"

In the Battle of Guanzhong, the An family was defeated by Cheng Yaojin and lost the battle. This was considered a great shame by the An family. An Zhongjing stayed in Guzang City at that time and did not participate in the battle. Therefore, he was still dissatisfied. Now that he had a chance to avenge the humiliation, he was ambitious and eager to fight.

"Please calm down for a while!"

An Yuanshou shouted, turned back and sat back in his chair with a sullen face, feeling depressed and slammed the table.

In the battle of Guanzhong, Zuo Xiaowei suffered heavy casualties and was completely defeated, which directly shook his morale. He was full of fear of Cheng Yaojin's Zuo Wuwei and had no confidence in defeating Cheng Yaojin in Fanhe City.

But Cheng Yaojin led his entire army and came with great momentum, clearly intending to uproot the An family in one fell swoop. How could he be willing to deal with him?

An Zhongjing was still unconvinced, and said with his neck stiff, "Let's put aside other things. Is it possible that the huge amount of money that our family has accumulated over generations will be swallowed up by Cheng Yaojin for nothing?"

An Yuanshou said angrily: "It's already this time, and you still care about money and wealth?"

In fact, he was also distressed. Although the money and jewelry worth hundreds of thousands of strings of cash were only one tenth of the An family's wealth, they were all cash! The rest of the real estate, fields, shops and other real estate would have to be sold at a discount, especially since the An family was now in deep trouble and on the verge of despair. If they wanted to sell these industries, they would suffer heavy losses!
But if there is no money, how can he lobby the powerful people in Chang'an to speak for the An family?
Zhai Liuniang said unhappily, "What's there for the two father and son to quarrel about? In my opinion, it's better to do this. On the one hand, we should find a way to contact the big families in Hexi to sell their family property. We will accept it no matter how much money it costs. Then we will send someone to Chang'an to lobby the important officials in the court with a large sum of money. On the other hand, we will explain our strength to Pei Xingjian who is in charge of Ganzhou. At the same time, we will gather all the troops in Fanhe City, continue to store food and medicinal materials, and fight Cheng Yaojin to the death!"

It is the severe winter season now, which is not conducive to large-scale combat. As long as Fanhe City holds out and tens of thousands of people guard the city gate, even if Cheng Yaojin is very strong, he will not be able to do anything to them for a while. As long as we defend the city, we can at least hold out until the beginning of spring, and the situation may change.

It may not be a dead end.

An Yuanshou thought for a moment and said happily, "My wife is truly a female Zhuge Liang!"

The most ingenious of these three strategies is to seek an audience with Pei Xingjian. Now, the Anxi Protector-General Pei Xingjian is stationed in Ganzhou and remotely controls Qinghai Lake. He is vigorously implementing the "Tubo Strategy". Although the outside world does not know the details of the so-called "Tubo Strategy", the Gar tribe entrenched in Fuqi City is the top priority anyway.

Therefore, Pei Xingjian absolutely could not sit idly by and watch Hexi fall into chaos!

Pei Xingjian is Fang Jun's lackey. As long as Pei Xingjian is persuaded, he can convince Fang Jun. As long as Fang Jun advises His Majesty, An will naturally have a chance to turn things around...

Then he said worriedly: "But the person who goes to persuade Pei Xingjian must be of certain weight, and there is no such person in the clan!"

Zhai Liuniang said decisively: "Why not? It is far away and yet it is right before our eyes. It is just right for your husband to go there as the head of the An family and the general of the Left Guard."

An Yuanshou: “…”

I am the head of the family. At this critical moment of life and death, you, a woman, are staying in Fanhe City, but you ask me to go to Ganzhou to persuade Pei Xingjian?
So it doesn't matter whether this company has it or not?