Red Mansion: Seizing Jiangdong, starting with pirates

Chapter 167: The Decline of Jin and Zhao

Emperor Longqing urged Wang Ziteng to speed up the march. Yesterday's report said that Wang Ziteng's army had reached Shanhaiguan, but the speed was still too slow.

Emperor Longqing issued an edict, ordering Wang Ziteng to put down his baggage and food supplies and lead the vanguard troops to rush to Juyongguan for support, with the rest of the troops following later. As for supplies, they could be directly obtained from the cities along the way.

After completing these two tasks, Emperor Longqing issued an order to confiscate the property of Gao Zhi, who had committed treason, and exterminate his entire clan!
Zhao Shihong was also implicated because he was Gao Zhi's uncle.

Although the whole clan will not be exterminated, demotion is inevitable.

Originally, Emperor Longqing wanted to remove Zhao Shihong from his position completely.

However, Zhao Shihong had a very keen political sense. After receiving the news of Gao Zhi's defeat, he immediately went to Guo's mansion in secret. After leaving Guo's mansion, he immediately knelt outside the Qianqing Palace to apologize.

Emperor Longqing was furious when he saw Zhao Shihong kneeling outside.

Originally, Emperor Longqing did not intend to forgive Zhao Shihong, but at this time Guo Bai came to offer loyal advice and advised Emperor Longqing that the court was now in a critical moment and the top priority was for the emperor and his ministers to unite and resist foreign invaders. Zhao Shihong was an important minister of the cabinet and should not be dismissed easily to avoid turmoil in the court and make the situation worse.

When Emperor Longqing heard this, he recalled the old story of Emperor Chongzhen of the previous dynasty and felt that what Guo Bai said made sense.

Therefore, he ordered Zhao Shihong to be demoted but retained in his post, and a decision would be made after the alien race was pacified.

After the incident with Zhao Shihong, Emperor Longqing summoned all his ministers to discuss who should be sent to guard Juyong Pass.

After all the discussions, there were only a few suitable candidates: Niu Jizong, Ma Shang, Shi Nai, and Jia She.

Regarding Shi Nai, when he was in Shanxi, Shi Ding once defeated the Jin bandits and died for his country. Although his death was heroic, it also showed his lack of ability.

Since Shi Nai was Shi Ding's brother, Emperor Longqing was somewhat uneasy.

As for Jia She, he was the former crown prince's man, so he should be used if possible, so in the end, he was the only one left...

Emperor Longqing had no choice but to call Niu Jizon and Ma Shang again.

Emperor Longqing handed over the troops in the capital to the two men and ordered them to guard Juyong Pass.

Wang Ziteng has now arrived at Shanhaiguan, and it will take him eight days at most to reach Juyongguan for support. They just need to hold on for eight days.

Niu Jizon and Ma Shang agreed.

The country is in danger, and as nobles who share the same fate with the country, they have the responsibility to defend their country.

However, while agreeing, Niu Jizong also put forward his own conditions.

"Your Majesty, I can lead the troops to defend the city, but there have been recent rumors that Your Majesty intends to move south. If this news spreads, the soldiers will surely lose their morale. Please order Your Majesty to suspend the plan of moving south to calm the soldiers!"

Emperor Longqing frowned when he heard this.

He was somewhat reluctant.

If we suspend the migration to the south, what if Juyongguan fails to stop the foreigners...

Seeing that Emperor Longqing did not answer, Niu Jizong said anxiously:
"Your Majesty, why are you hesitating? We are all willing to fight to the death for your Majesty, so why are you so anxious to move south?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Emperor Longqing's face instantly darkened.

What is the difference between this and "Your Majesty, we are ready to fight to the death, why do you surrender first?"

It's like pointing at one's own nose and scolding.

Emperor Longqing was naturally very angry.

How can you say that? Although it is a bit unkind of me to prepare to escape while you are fighting on the front line, there are many considerations for escaping!
No, this is not running away, it’s migrating south, migrating south!
After moving south, we will map the Central Plains again!
If there weren't only a few people who could be used now, he really wanted to dismiss Niu Jizong directly!

Compared to Niu Jizong, Ma Shang was more tactful. Seeing that Emperor Longqing looked unhappy, he quickly pulled Niu Jizong's sleeve and said,
"Your Majesty, Lao Niu can't speak. What he meant was that even if Juyong Pass is breached, there are still many passes in the capital that can be defended. Duke Zhongguo's army will arrive soon. There is no need to be impatient about moving south. Your Majesty, please think carefully before making a decision!"

After hearing Ma Shang's words, Emperor Longqing nodded.

This is not bad. Although the meaning is similar, it sounds much better.

He replied calmly: "I will consider it."

So he ordered the two men to leave.

Niu Jizong left with Ma Shang very reluctantly. They were going to lead troops to support Juyongguan today. Niu Jizong was very worried that he would suddenly receive news that the emperor had escaped while he was fighting. The result was predictable and the army's morale would inevitably be weakened.

After Niu Jizon and Ma Shang left, Emperor Longqing thought about what they had just said.

It was indeed as the other party said. Even if Juyong Pass was breached, there was still some distance from the capital. There were also some passes along the way that could temporarily block the advance of the foreign races. There was actually no need for him to move south too quickly.

Moreover, if the soldiers on the front line were still fighting and he, the emperor, ran away first, it might really have some impact on morale.

But I heard that the Huaiyin bandits have already headed north. If we delay any further, what if the Huaiyin bandits...

After thinking for a long time, Emperor Longqing could not make up his mind, so he called his confidants Guo Bai, Cui Shu and Cheng Fan to inquire about the matter.

Cui Shu and Cheng Fan naturally advocated moving south. They didn't care whether the morale of the soldiers on the front line would be weakened. They only cared about their own property and official positions, and only by moving south could they keep these!

In contrast, Guo Bai is different from these two.

He had other ideas about the matter.

So when Emperor Longqing asked him, Guo Baiyan said:
"Your Majesty, what you are worried about today is the Huaiyin bandits that are invading from the north. Although Guo Bai is not talented, I am willing to follow the example of Zhao Shuai of the Jin Dynasty and use my tongue to drive away the 600,000 Huaiyin bandits! If I fail, Your Majesty can talk about moving south again!"

Emperor Longqing was shocked when he heard this, and was overjoyed. He quickly shook Guo Bai's hand and said:
"Zi Sheng, be sure. Don't take any risks!"

Guo Bai said: "I will not fail in my mission!"

All parties are taking action now.

However, Niu Jizong and Ma Shang gathered the troops in the capital and headed straight for Juyong Pass overnight.

The two of them set out directly from the capital, unlike Gao Zhi who had to take a detour before, so they arrived at Juyongguan quickly.

At this time, the battle at Juyongguan was in its fiercest stage. Qi Jianhui led his troops to defend the pass, while the grassland troops attacked fiercely day and night.

The two sides fought and countless people were killed and wounded.

At this time, Niu Jizon and Ma Shang arrived with reinforcements, and the pressure on Juyongguan was greatly reduced.

Once this majestic pass has enough troops guarding it, it will be impossible for human power to break through.

After a day of fighting, the grassland soldiers returned in disgrace.

Juyongguan was really too strong. No matter how many casualties they had suffered over the past few days, the pass remained motionless and was not affected at all.

Today, there are many more reinforcements at Juyong Pass, making the battle even more difficult for them.

Gao Zhi's face was covered in sweat, and he lay on the ground gasping for breath in a very ungraceful manner.

He almost fell off the city wall and died!
Blood was oozing from the waist and the wound had broken open again!
Chen Zhengdu has been seeking personal revenge these days and has asked him to lead the charge several times. He has no martial arts skills and his injuries have not yet healed, so how can he take on such an important task?

"No, I will definitely die if I continue like this. I have to find a way to survive!"

Gao Zhi gritted his teeth.

At night, Bazin came to Gao Zhi to drink.

Gao Zhi and Bazin said, "I have a plan to break through Juyong Pass. Please present it to the Khan!"

Upon hearing this, Bazan hurriedly took Gao Zhi to see Kah Khan.

Kah Khan had already fallen asleep at this time, but when he heard that there was a plan to defeat the enemy, he got up in the night to listen.

In fact, Gao Zhi had no plan to defeat the enemy. He just wanted to save his life and give it a try.

Anyway, there are always those panacea strategies in Sun Tzu's Art of War, so I'll just offer them first.

If he didn't offer any advice, he would be killed by Chen Zhengdu!

"Great Khan, I'll offer you a counter-espionage plan!"

(End of this chapter)