The generals who sent off the meeting, several vice ministers each had a lot of things to deal with, so they just asked Shang Cheng's illness and asked him to recuperate carefully, so they left one after another. Only Zhu Xuan, who did not have any specific affairs for the time being, stayed and let Shang Cheng into a hall with Zhang Pu.

Like the other halls and wings of the public house, the furnishings in this room are also quite simple, that is, two long tables and a few chairs, and there is a large bookcase by the window in the southeast, on which there are all pen, ink, paper and inkstones, and two black and shiny stone paperweights are placed side by side, which seem to be prepared for people to write records temporarily. In the corner of the bookcase is a vivid bronze three-legged toad, with its legs bent and puffed out, and a wisp of blue-white smoke from its mouth, rising straight like a pen. A faint smell of medicine in the room refreshed the stomach, and couldn't help but make people's spirits lifted.

Zhang Pu invited Shang Cheng to sit first, and he also sat down at the top of the long case, and Zhu Xuan accompanied him at the bottom. Waiting for the deacon of the public house to serve the tea soup, Zhang Pu took a sip of the tea, put down the teacup, and asked, "Is Zida's illness good?" ”

Shang Cheng held the lamp and said, "That's it." ”

Zhang Pu's eyebrows couldn't help jumping. Shang Cheng spoke in a loud voice, and his tone was very indifferent, as if he was talking about something irlevant, but he didn't mention any "worry about work", nor did he say anything "thank you for worrying", and it was an ambiguous sentence, obviously with the intention of coming to the public to say that he was not fair and seek justice. Oh, that's a joke! The imperial court cared about his Shang Yanshan's poor health, and specially transferred him back to Shangjing to rest and recuperate, what is the grievance? Besides, this is because he himself can't be a director due to illness, so he asked to go to his post and recommended Guo Biao to replace him, and now that Guo Biao has fallen, the court does not re-employ him but appoints someone else to act Yanshan, which itself is also taking care of him, where can we talk about unfair disposal? Moreover, it was the resolution of the imperial court that the southern expedition was made, not the arbitrary decision of Zhang Pu alone, and in the short period of calm in the north, he quickly dispatched elite soldiers and good generals to strike a thunderous blow at the Nanzhao, completely swept away the internal and external troubles in the southwest, and at the same time shocked Dayue and Tubo while attacking the Nanzhao, and at the same time reviewed the military training of the Liyuan battalion in the past two years.

If the person sitting with him in the next case now was not Shang Yanshan, but someone else, Zhang Pu would probably have asked "what's the matter" directly, instead of sitting here. Of course, if the person who came was not Shang Yanshan, he would probably not have thrown away the official documents at hand that would never end up and came here to drink tea and talk to people. What's even more frustrating is that in the rest of the conversation, he probably can't get the upper hand yet. Shang Yanshan has something to ask him, how can he not have something to ask Shang Yanshan......

He smiled and said to Shang Cheng: "It's just that considering that your health is not very good at the moment, so no one will notify you of today's meeting." ”

Shang Cheng was silent. He could hear that there were several meanings in Zhang Pu's words. In a hurry, he only came up with four meanings. "Consideration" is one layer, "not in good health at the moment" is one layer, "today's meeting" is one layer, and there is another layer of coherence. The fundamental reason why Zhang Pu did not let him participate was not because he was not in good health, but because he did not want him to make a big deal at the meeting and interfere with the progress of the meeting. But there is another obvious reason for not letting him attend the meeting today, that is, his health is not very good, that is, when it is not "now", when his condition improves, it is not impossible to let him participate in this kind of meeting. This is obviously Zhang Pu showing favor to himself. But he couldn't figure out for the time being, whether this was Zhang Pu's personal meaning, or was the southward faction vaguely shaking an olive branch to himself?

He looked at the slightly white tea soup in the tea cup, and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly. There are several meanings in one word, and eight turns in one sentence, and the clues in these civil and official words are so complicated and the content is so rich, they themselves are not too troublesome? He definitely couldn't learn this way of talking, so he put down the teacup, sat up straight on the chair, and waited for Zhang Pu's next sentence with blazing eyes.

Zhang Pu stopped talking. A wave of unhappiness welled up in his heart. He said everything so clearly, why didn't Shang Yanshan give a clear answer? Did he think that he could stop the imperial court from marching south on his own? Hmph, it's just a mantis arm as a car! The Southern Expedition is the proposition of the Southern Advance faction, which is true, but behind the Southern Expedition there are various factions in the army except the Yanshan faction supporting and promoting, and there are still people in the court who are helping to wave the flag and shout. You Shang Yanshan is also a calculating and meticulous person, and you have also been the commander of Yanshan for two years, and you have never seen or experienced the right and wrong in the officialdom, can't you understand the truth? Not letting you attend the meeting is actually for your own good, because you don't want to have a direct conflict with others!

Zhang Pu didn't think badly, but in fact, Shang Cheng was not politically dull. If he could sit down calmly, he would have thought about the rights and wrongs in the court as seriously and carefully as he had considered the war between Da Zhao and Tu Quanci, and he would have come to the same conclusion as Zhang Pu. It's a pity that he refused to do this from the bottom of his heart. He felt that he was a soldier and a high-ranking general, and he only had to deal with the civilian officials to get involved in something north, south, and east. A soldier's primary duty is to fight a war, and when he does not make such a principled mistake as a strategic direction, he will certainly stick to his own opinions and do everything possible to persuade others. As for what others would think of him, he didn't want to know, and he wasn't interested in inquiring. it! Although he is not a southerner, he is not a northerner—he still doesn't know what the core political ideas of these two factions are, and who will find fault with him? Even if someone wants to get along with him, they have to grasp his handle before they can say anything. The question is, what handle does he have to grasp?

Shang Cheng has no handle that he can handle, which is the fundamental reason why Zhang Pu and the officials of the Nanjin faction can't do anything about him. Xiao Jian wants to regain his prestige, Yang Du is waiting to see Xiao Jian's jokes, the people of Poyang Hou and Yiguo Gong want to strengthen their power and hope to have an opportunity to make their voices heard, no matter whether the imperial court goes south or north, as long as they ensure that the annual military expenditure does not fall, they all have their own goals and pursuits, so they hit it off with the southward faction. Negotiable and different. This man also has a goal, but the goal is very simple, that is, to defeat the king of Donglu Valley and the left wing of the Tuchuci; This person also has a pursuit, and his pursuit is to completely remove the long-standing threat of the Turquoise to the northern frontier of Dazhao. These two things are highly consistent with Da Zhao's fundamental national policy for a hundred years, and no one dares to use this as a handle against him. The Nanjin faction originally thought that Shang Cheng had been a commander in Yanshan for two years, holding the military in one hand and the civil affairs in the other, and accepting a few favors to promote and appoint a few henchmen, which was the normal situation of people sanctions. is Zhu Xuan, a university scholar, who is the most proficient in agriculture and mulberry in the imperial court by virtue of his qualifications, and his trip to Yanshan also feels a little disgraced. But this is not to say that Shang Cheng has no mistakes and omissions, at least one of which he can't escape: Yanshan Yushi has submitted documents many times, directly pointing to the false governor privately accepting the spoils seized from the battlefield by his subordinates, and two documents even record by name who the giver is, and each time he gives a few carts of gifts, among which there are several gold and silver geometry, and a few swords and swords worth thousands of gold...... But this matter is not a handle, let alone publicity. Shang Cheng is not the only one who takes the spoils of war privately, and he has to pursue this crime, basically there are only a few generals left in Yanshanwei, and there are definitely not many people who can slip through the net in the various Wei towns of Dazhao and Xiao Jian and Yang Du; And those who slip through the net have no chance to go to the battlefield, and they don't have the ability to win the battle.

Shang Yanshan has the ability to win battles, there is no doubt about it. But this person always opposes the southward faction, which is a headache. Even if Zhang Pu is used to seeing strong winds and waves, he feels that he has nothing to grasp. If it was someone else, he would have abandoned Shang Cheng for an idle position, but Xiao Jian repeatedly told him that if he wanted to be completely sure of the Southern Expedition, it was best to transfer Shang Cheng to Jiazhou Xingying. But why the southern expedition had to be Shang Yanshan, Xiao Jian couldn't explain the reason, and finally explained that Shang Cheng was a monk in Jiazhou and was familiar with the local conditions, which would definitely be of great benefit to the southern expedition of the army.

This reason is simply ridiculous!

The prime minister's office and the generals in the army knew in their hearts that the monk experience that Shang Yanshan filled in the resume archived by the ministry was a fabrication, and most of this person had never left home. But this matter has never been made public, so no one can refute Xiao Jian's words. At the military meeting just now, Xiao Jian also said that although most of the preparations for the southern expedition are now ready, the generals leading the troops from all walks of life seem to be insufficient.

This clearly refers to Shang Cheng.

Speaking from the heart, Zhang Pu was reluctant to talk to Shang Cheng about this. He was reluctant to go to the southwest to participate in the southern expedition. The Southern Expedition was a major event that he had been preparing for two years, and he was concerned about the selection of the commander of the army and the logistical supply, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that he had worked tirelessly, and he wanted to use this battle to make a big splash, and then fully implement all the ideas in his heart. Seeing that the two years of hard work were about to bear brilliant fruits, suddenly a Shangzhu country that had nothing to do with the Nanjin faction wanted to share the credit, he didn't say anything, but his heart was as greasy as eating a fly. However, the southern expedition is a major event, which is related to the fate of the southern advance faction and his personal career, so he can't ignore Xiao Jian's opinion...... After being silent for a long time, he asked Shang Cheng and said, "Zida," and he specially called Shang Cheng's cousin to show his closeness. “…… I shouldn't have bothered you to recuperate, but there's one thing I can't afford not to ask. He paused.

Shang Cheng said: "Please make it clear." ”

Zhang Pu was silent for a moment, and then he considered his words and asked, "Do you think that with your current situation, you can still return to the army to be in charge?" ”

"No problem!" Shang Cheng replied without hesitation. But there was no joy on his face. He had already realized that what Zhang Pu was going to talk to him about would never be to let him return to the Yanshan army.

"That's right, we will use troops against Nanzhao next year, but the situation in the southwest is more complicated. There are bureaucrats who advocate chaos inside, and there are heavy troops of Nanzhao outside, and Tubo has gathered nearly 10,000 horses on the front line of Qiongyali, and in the middle of last month, after receiving an urgent report from Pingzhou, the border garrison of Dayue has been frequently mobilized, and it seems that it is also a little ready to move. Therefore, the imperial court has a consideration, if your condition improves, it wants to transfer you to the southwest......"

"General Xiao is not going to Jiazhou?" Shang Cheng grabbed Zhang Pu's words and interjected and asked. Without waiting for Zhang Pu to answer, he said happily, "In the summer, when the real servant of the military department was in Yanshan, I told him that if General Xiao didn't want to go to the southwest, why not take a trip for him?" Nanzhao is just a clown who jumps off the beam, as soon as the army of my Celestial Dynasty arrives, he will be taught to be wiped out immediately! As he spoke, he turned his head to look for the geographical map of the southwest and Nanzhao, but he had no choice but to dip his finger in the tea soup and draw a map on the long case. Zhang Xiang, Zhu Xiang, please see, this is Jiazhou, this is Rongzhou, this is Rongzhou, this is Luzhou, all of which are the gathering places of our army. Our army used one part to contain the Tibetans, and the other to suppress the Nanjiang bureaucrats and the Xijiang seven bureaucrats of the Nanzhao, and went straight to the old city in the middle to fight and quell the rebellious tribes. Then the troops divided into two routes, all the way to the south to Pumi, all the way to the southeast to Mangbu, the battalion commanded to advance to Wacheng, making a joint encirclement of the two salients of Wumeng and Sheqi......"

As he gushed endlessly, Zhang Pu's face became more and more ugly. Zhu Xuan is an old pedant, and it is rare to have the opportunity to participate in this kind of military discussion, watching Shang Cheng draw with tea on most of the cases, interspersed with the left and surrounded by the right, imagining that tens of thousands of Zhao soldiers are constantly waving their banners and singing triumphantly, and can't help but bow their heads frequently, and say in admiration: "I look at Ying Bo's painting of using soldiers, which is quite similar to General Xiao's, and they all use soldiers to stabilize the cloth as a battalion. If the war can get three-five out of ten, Nanzhao should no longer exist. Even if it is Tubo Dayue, how dare you have a thief's heart again? ”

Shang Cheng clapped his hands and smiled: "Zhu Xiangyu praised it." How can I dare to compare with General Xiao? It's just a little cautious about this battle. If I don't go to Jiazhou, I will teach Nanzhao to remember this lesson! ”

Zhu Xuan praised him wholeheartedly, but Shang Cheng was pretending to be humble, Zhang Pu was so hateful that he secretly gritted his teeth, and he couldn't help but say two good words: "Zida uses soldiers, which is the same as General Xiao, the heavenly army is thunderous, and Nanzhao dares to have more than bravery?" He can see that although these marching routes that Shang Cheng casually talked about are very different from Xiao Jian's actual planning, they are cautious in their use of troops, and people from all walks of life are pushing straight forward and responding to each other, which at first glance is from Xiao Jian's handwriting. But it's commonplace. There are so many generals in the court who can lead troops to fight, Xiao Jian and Yang Du's art of war has long been pondered over and over again, not to mention that Shang Cheng can learn seven or eight points, that is, the generals who broke through the southern Zhao and Tubo, how many will be unfamiliar with this? This is not surprising.

Shang Cheng lowered his gaze and stared at the green bricks in front of him, but did not speak.

Zhang Pu said: "The consideration of the imperial court is that General Xiao Jian is still the head of the Jiazhou camp, and you are the deputy head of the ......."

"I'm not in good health and can't go."

Zhang Pu didn't seem to hear Shang Cheng's words, and he didn't look at Shang Cheng, so he continued to say to himself: "...... You are the deputy chief, and you lead the team all the way ...... alone."

Shang Cheng raised his eyes at him and asked, "The imperial court still wants to increase troops to the southwest?" ”

Zhang Pu shook his head. Just to deal with a small Nanzhao, the southwestern states and counties have already amassed 57,000 troops, and if they want to increase their troops, even if they win, what face does the imperial court have? After thinking about it, he added: "Don't consider the increase of troops for the time being." ”

Shang Cheng grinned and said, "The Jiazhou camp is less than 60,000 soldiers and horses, and it needs two Shangzhu countries to take command?" Excluding the troops who stayed in the garrison, and then put aside the men and horses who maintained the grain route, could there be 40,000 people left? I have 20,000 old generals and 20,000 old generals, and there are only a little more people under my command than an army...... I'm not in good health, I want to recuperate in Beijing, and I don't want to go to Jiazhou. ”

Zhang Pu didn't care. He didn't plan to let Shang Cheng go to Jiazhou to be the deputy manager. He said: "How about letting you sit in Pingzhou?" ”

Shang Chengleng paused. The southern expedition could not be stopped, and he could only revise his plan. But now he has to help Zhang Pu Xiaojian pick up Nanzhao two or three times, and then go to find the bad luck of the king of Donglu Valley. He definitely didn't want to go to Jiazhou. However, it seems that it is not bad to be a deputy governor to sit in Pingzhou, and you can use Dayue to fight Nanzhao, and by the way, you can destroy Yu on a false path...... Forget it, the geographical conditions of that place are complicated, the weather is changeable, and the combat effectiveness of the local garrison is not clear, and it is impossible for Zhang Pu to transfer 30,000 troops from the Liyuan battalion to him one by one, and it is too late to send him 30,000 troops one by one, as well as the supply of grain, armament, medicine, manpower, etc., etc., the problems are simply endless, just planning and calculating for so much time has taught him to feel dizzy in his head. Well, that's it, he doesn't want to be a deputy for others, either he will preside over the Southern Expedition, or Xiao Jian will go to fight the Southern Zhao, just choose from the imperial court......

…… On the way back to the post house, Duan Si, who couldn't figure out the reason, said to him: "Blind people can see that Xiao Jian's southern expedition next year is something that no one can change." You're still bent on trying to get others to fight the Turks, but they don't take you as a general seriously. I just didn't figure it out, you jumped up and down on the ground one by one, are you tired? ”

"You know!" Shang Cheng scolded him with a smile. "It's tactical, understand? It's tactical! ”

Duan Si shook his head. He really didn't understand which tactic it was, let alone what it was.

"I know you won't understand! If I don't jump a few times, everyone will think that I am a soft persimmon when I look back, and I have to pinch a few times if I have nothing to do. This time I had a fight with Zhang Pu, just to give others a wake-up call and say hello, if you want to pinch soft persimmons, you must first see if your means are hard. ”

Duan Si grinned and said, "That's the truth. Then he asked, "Then what do you do next, continue to make trouble?" ”

Shang Cheng put away his smile and said, "I may not be able to go back for a while." You ask among the brothers, see who wants to go back to Yanshan, write it down, and I will go to the military department. If you don't want to stay, go back to lead the troops. ”

Duan Si immediately said, "I want to stay!" ”

Shang Cheng also smiled and said: "If you want to go back with the original title, if you want to stay with me, if you don't say anything, I will ask the military department to find a place for you to hang a vacant post by the way, and then move your Xun up a little bit and become a guerrilla general." The military department still owes me a lot of favors, and if you dare to say a word, I will smash their yamen! ”