Chapter 226 Let the Dog Go

"What do you think the Ming Dynasty should do in the current situation?"

There were still two figures on the top of the mountain, but after the conversation just now, Zhu Houzhao's mood was undoubtedly much calmer.

Li Wenzhong raised his head:
"The fall of Temujin gave Mongke the opportunity to integrate the country."

"In this way, the Mongol Yuan Dynasty will not decline. On the contrary, a Mongol Yuan Dynasty with only one voice and a leader who follows the example of others may become even more terrifying."

"However, the Battle of Xiangfan also brought a huge weakness to the Mongols."

Zhu Houzhao did not interrupt.

Li Wenzhong was one of the military gods during the founding period of the Ming Dynasty. Both his combat power and vision far surpassed those of the ministers in the court today.

Now that the other party has just come out of seclusion, he certainly wants to listen carefully to the opinions and suggestions of this ancestor.

"The Battle of Xiangfan destroyed the Thirteen Wings. Even if the Mongols had a strong foundation, they would still be frustrated. More importantly, Temujin led the so-called Four Heroes and Four Mastiffs, but they were also wiped out in one fell swoop."

"These were all the top commanders and generals of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. It is undoubtedly a huge loss to lose them all in one day."

“Now, Mongke is leading Kublai Khan in his personal expedition, although his momentum is overwhelming.”

"But it also proves one thing: the Mongols no longer have many capable generals."

"Of course, both Mongke and Kublai Khan should not be underestimated, but the Mongols have temporarily lost the ability to fight on two fronts."

"In Beiliang, we have Xu Xiao, in Beimang, Tuoba Bodhisattva, and now Wang Sui in Liyang. Although they cannot unite with each other, both Mengge and Kublai Khan must keep an eye on them and cannot get away."

Zhu Houzhao raised his eyes: "So what the ancestor meant was to accept the request for help from the other side, to lead the army to the north, and to stab them while the Mongols are focusing their attention on the Northern Liang side."

The Mongols were coming towards Beiliang with great momentum, so the Xu family of Beiliang certainly couldn't sit still.

The message for help had already been sent out.

However, there are only two directions from which Xu Xiao can seek help.

Beimang had long been completely separated.

A big thing has happened in the Sui Dynasty now, and Li Jing and others who are guarding the city will not pay any attention to them without Gao Changsheng's order.

The only others are Li Yang and Daming.

Although Li Yang and Bei Liang are of the same blood, the grievances between the Zhao family and Bei Liang are known to the world. Of course, Xu Xiao cannot put all his hopes on Li Yang.

So he put more of his energy on the Ming Dynasty side.

"If I didn't know the old ancestor well, I would have really thought that the old ancestor had also accepted the benefits of Beiliang. Recently, there have been more than one voice in the court saying that the lips and teeth are cold."

Zhu Houzhao smiled.

In order to seek help, Beiliang spared no expense in spending money and treasures.

In addition, the Ming Dynasty and the Mongols were sworn enemies, so a large number of ministers in the court called for sending troops to help.

The loudest voice among them all came from the Iron-hearted Divine Marquis Zhu Wusi.

Not long ago, Zhu Wusi turned his target to Beiliang because of pressure from Wang Yangming.

But at that time, it was Zhu Wusi who rushed to ask for help from Beiliang, and even disregarded his status to personally go and ask to see Xu Fengnian and Xu Weixiong.

But no one could have imagined that the situation would change so quickly, with the Mongols changing direction and it was Beiliang's turn to ask Zhu Wusi for help.

However, Zhu Wusi did not turn his back on him.

Now in the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Houzhao is becoming more and more powerful, and Zhu Wusi's life is becoming more and more difficult.

Beiliang is undoubtedly a strong ally for him. There are many experts in the country, and more importantly, there are 300,000 cavalry.

So in recent times, Zhu Wusi has been pleading for Beiliang and has become the leader of the pro-war faction.

Li Wenzhong chuckled.

If someone else heard Zhu Houzhao's remarks, they would surely bow down in fear at the first moment.

But Li Wenzhong is obviously not among them.

"We have to send troops. The strategy of the Mongols has been revealed. A small Beiliang will definitely not satisfy them."

"Beiliang, Beimang, and even Liyang must all be part of their plan."

"If they were allowed to swallow up such a large piece of territory, the Mongols would instantly expand into another formidable opponent."

“We must not sit back and watch.”

"But blindly advancing northward is absolutely not advisable."

Li Wenzhong shook his head before speaking again:
"The Mongol Khanate has a vast territory. Even if we gather all our strength, we can't swallow such a large area in one go."

"Moreover, of such a large area, only a part of it is truly valuable to us. The rest of the land, even if we take it, will only be a waste of manpower."

"Under normal circumstances, there would be no problem in taking steady steps, but now every second counts, both for us and the Mongols."

"If my guess is correct, even if Mengge knows that we are sending troops, he will not be anxious. As long as we do not attack their core area, they will definitely not fight our army with all their strength. They will only send troops to delay our attack."

"If we blindly march north, we will only fall into Mengge's trap and give him the opportunity."

"Then what do you think, old ancestor? How should our army send out its troops?" Zhu Houzhao looked at Li Wenzhong.

"We can't give up the Northern Expedition. Over the years, the Mongols have supported a number of small countries, such as Tatar and Wala, on our northern border to clamp down on the Ming Dynasty."

“In the past, it has not been resolved due to internal and external reasons.”

"The domestic problems of the Ming Dynasty are about to be solved, and the Mongols have also been distracted. We certainly can't let this opportunity go."

"In my opinion, the Northern Expedition should not be delayed but should be accelerated. We should remove the surrounding obstacles as quickly as possible. As for the future, we will see how the situation changes."

"That's one aspect." Li Wenzhong paused, "On the other hand, we can't just sit back and watch what happens in Liyang Beimang."

"In terms of regional value, even if we take down the two Mongol Khanates, they are still not as good as the fertile land of Liyang Beiliang."

"We must not let them fall into the hands of the Mongols."

Zhu Houzhao narrowed his eyes:

"Ancestor, do you mean that we should send troops to Beiliang at the same time?"

"There is no need to rush to send troops, but we can mobilize them first. However, we need to see the situation over there first."

"What's the situation?" Zhu Houzhao asked.

"Li Yang is like a bird hiding its head, and Bei Mang is completely trapped. But Your Majesty, don't forget that Gao Changsheng has stationed a large number of troops in Nanjing."

Hearing this, Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but be shocked: "Could it be that Gao Changsheng would intervene? Now the Sui Dynasty is..."

"I don't know either, but we must be on guard." Li Wenzhong waved his hand:

"Nowadays, there are few forces in that area that would provoke him. Even Mengge would not attack Nanjing unless he had no other choice, unless one day Beiliang Liyang and other places were all taken over by him."

"But even in this situation, Gao Changsheng still dispatched a group of elite troops to the city, which is bound to make people think deeply."

"Of course, this is a matter for the future. Even if Gao Changsheng hadn't happened, there's no need for us to act so hastily."

"The most anxious people right now are not us, but Beiliang. A business that comes first is never a good business."

"Doesn't Zhu Wusi have good connections with them? Why don't we use this to push them from behind and give Beiliang some more meat."

"Even if it falls into Zhu Wusi's hands, it will be like meat rotting in the pot. Your Majesty should be happy to see it happen."

"Let's see if we can take advantage of this opportunity to open a gap over there. If we can directly take over a piece of land and send troops to station there, that would be great."

"Beiliang, Liyang, and Beimang, this large area, the Mongols can covet it, so can the Ming Dynasty?"

"Hu~~"

Zhu Houzhao let out a long breath, nodded without comment, his eyes staring into the distance, looking absent-minded.

"Your Majesty, are you worried about the Great Sui?" Li Wenzhong asked. "Yes."

Zhu Houzhao nodded.

"Beiliang, Liyang, and Beimang are at best just localized chaos."

"Even if the Mongols really take over this area, it won't be the end of the Ming Dynasty."

"The generals from Huaixi are back. Even if the Mongols return to their peak, we have enough confidence to defeat them."

"But the Sui Dynasty..."

Speaking of this, Zhu Houzhao's eyelids twitched unconsciously.

"Over the years, I don't know how many people have doubted the Sui Dynasty."

"I don't know how many people have broken into the Daxing Palace. The reason why there are always groups of people who dare to die and break into the palace even though they know they will die is just to test them."

"It's a pity that no one has found out the specific situation, but the more this is the case, the more unsettling it becomes."

"What is certain now is that Yang Jian, Gao Jiong, Yang Su and others must have been planning something at the time, a plan that had been in place for decades." Zhu Houzhao took a deep breath.

"Temujin should have found out something." Li Wenzhong interjected.

"Yes, there must be a reason why Temujin decisively gave up other directions and decided to take on the tough challenge of the Sui Dynasty."

"Moreover, Yang Lin was willing to leave Yumen Pass and fight Temujin in the field. He even had no intention of retreating until he died in battle. This is obviously not normal."

"But who could have expected that Temujin would fall so easily in Xiangfan."

Zhu Houzhao sighed: "Gao Changsheng, oh Gao Changsheng, it is fate that such a man appeared in the Sui Dynasty."

"Gao Jiong and others have been planning for decades, which undoubtedly proves the difficulty of the matter. I think the possibility of failure is definitely greater."

"But with the addition of Gao Changsheng, it's hard to say. It seems like this person was born to overturn other people's preconceived impressions of him. He is always beyond other people's expectations."

"Sun, Moon, if they are really those two people, Gao Changsheng plus these two, the Great Sui Dynasty, I can't imagine it."

Li Wenzhong did not speak immediately, but spoke after a while:
"Your Majesty, do you want to take action against the Sui Dynasty?"

Zhu Houzhao shook his head, but then nodded:

"It is impossible to send troops. Not to mention the distance, even if the Ming Dynasty was next door to them, they would never send troops."

"None of the countries surrounding the Sui Dynasty will send troops."

"The sun and the moon are in the same sky, hanging over the Great Sui Dynasty. This is definitely not the power of an individual, but a formation, and a terrifying formation at that."

"Sending troops at this time, no matter how many troops or what kind of troops are used."

"I dare to say one thing. Even if we can break the plan of the Great Sui Dynasty, none of the troops that have entered will be able to withdraw safely."

Zhu Houzhao exhaled and spoke again:
"But not mobilizing troops doesn't mean not taking action."

"To be precise, not only the Ming Dynasty, but all the surrounding countries, including some forces in the Sui Dynasty, will take action."

"This is not a battlefield."

Zhu Houzhao's words of not using the army to take action within the Sui Dynasty made Li Wenzhong stunned for a moment, but he quickly reacted.

"What does your majesty know?"

"Someone sent a message, and I know some details." Zhu Houzhao nodded.

After saying that, he turned and looked at Li Wenzhong:
"The Great Sui Dynasty has been planning for decades, isn't the ancestor curious?"

"Would you like to come with me and go and see it in person?"

After these words came out, even Li Wenzhong rolled his eyes unconsciously:
"Your Majesty, don't forget that you have no children yet."

If it were someone else, in response to Zhu Houzhao's words, the first thing they would say would be the dragon's body and the country.

"Hahaha."

Zhu Houzhao was not angry, but laughed out loud instead.

In the past, he was very dissatisfied with the ideas of the Huaixi generals in Fengyang.

But at this time, he obviously discovered a benefit of this behavior of loyalty to the Zhu family.

That's freedom.

They really didn't care that much about the safety of Emperor Zhu Houzhao. As long as the Zhu family's kingdom was not lost, even if Zhu Houzhao died, it would not be a big deal in their eyes.

"Ancestor, are you willing to join me?" Zhu Houzhao's eyes lit up and he said with a smile.

"No need for that. I am too old to have the same taste as Your Majesty. Your Majesty should ask Wang Yangming to protect you." Li Wenzhong shook his head.

"Forget it, Shouren has important things to do. Since the ancestor is not interested, I will go alone." Zhu Houzhao obviously did not give up his idea.

Li Wenzhong looked at Zhu Houzhao deeply, and after a long while, he suddenly sighed and said:
"Forget it. The current situation is indeed very strange. How about this? I will introduce someone to Your Majesty."

"Oh?"

Zhu Houzhao's eyes lit up: "Is he also a member of Fengyang's background?"

Of course he knew that the person who could be sent out as a guard would definitely not be the one mentioned before, but the one who could be left behind as a foundation must be a famous figure.

"I guess so." Li Wenzhong said softly.

"I wonder which one it is?"

"Dog."

"what?"

Zhu Houzhao blinked, and for a moment he seemed a little unable to believe his ears.

.........

It was in the territory of the Ming Dynasty when Zhu Houzhao and Li Wenzhong were communicating.

In Luoyang, in the restaurant, Lin Lingsu and Qilin Zhenren were also looking at Gao Changsheng in confusion.

"Master Chun Yang?"

"Why is the prince suddenly interested in him?" asked True Man Qilin.

Lin Lingsu also looked puzzled.

"Does the prince have any grudge against Quanzhen?" Lin Lingsu frowned.

Lu Chunyang is one of the Five Northern Patriarchs of Quanzhen Taoism and holds a very high status in Quanzhen Taoism.

The power of Quanzhen Taoism is extremely strong among Taoists.

Now that Gao Changsheng suddenly mentioned this person, he couldn't help but think about it.

"This prince has no connection with Quan Zhensu, I am just curious."

Gao Changsheng waved his hand and smiled.

"Lü Chunyang is one of the five northern ancestors of the Quanzhen Sect of the Great Song Dynasty, but I heard that he also established the Zhenwu Sect in Liyang. Is this true?"

The two were stunned for a moment. Although they were still confused, they still spoke:

"It's a long story."

"Just as I said before, it can be said to be Lu Chunyang, but it is not Lu Chunyang."

"This also involves a secret within the Taoist sect."

(End of this chapter)