Shang Cheng didn't go directly to the topic, but first asked the people from the Yan Bo Division of the Ministry of War to bring the geographical map of Yanshanwei and related military materials, and asked the two important members of the Ministry of War to retreat left and right and arrange the guards, until everything was arranged, he said apologetically: "It's not that I'm too cautious, it's that the matter is big, and I can't be careless." He took out a small file from his pocket and handed it to the military department. This is our new idea, and I would like to ask you to consider it for us. I also want to trouble Lord Shangshu and transfer it to the Prime Minister's Office. ”

It was only at this time that the military department Shangshu understood that Shang Cheng's purpose of entering Beijing was completely different from their speculation. He was embarrassed and confused, and said sneeringly: "Look, look at us, we ...... Heh, hehe...... "I don't know what to say, my hand has already taken the file, my eyes swept over the title on the cover of the file, and I was so shocked that I was full of excitement - what he was holding in his hand was actually "Yanshanwei Autumn Grassland Battle Strategy (Draft)"?!

Xu Shilang also walked over, and when he caught a glimpse of the title of the dossier, he couldn't help but let out a low sigh. He didn't drag a chair or stool, but leaned over Shangshu and carefully reviewed the "Strategy" with Shangshu.

There is not much content in the "Strategy", but it is only a general description of Yan Shanwei's concept of the autumn campaign, which is not exhaustive; The stationing, repositioning, supply, targets, and advance and retreat routes of the various units of the Yanfang Army on the other side are only a brief description; The date of Yanzhong Yandong's dispatch of troops is also uncertain, and everything must be judged temporarily according to the progress of the preparation stage and the situation after the start of the war. The only content that can be determined in the "Strategy" is to request the military department to coordinate the relationship between the Dingjin and Sanwei of Bohai Yanshan in the center, and let Bohaiwei and Dingjinwei carry out strategic feints in the pre-war preparation period and in the course of the development of the war, so as to distract the attention of the Tuji. At the same time, Yanshanwei also hoped and implored the two Weizhen to maintain some mobile forces in the western part of the Bohai Sea and the eastern part of Dingjin, so that when the battle may undergo key changes, they can intervene in the battlefield in time to expand the results of the battle or cover the Yanshan Guards......

Although the "Strategy" is only a draft, the places that should be explained are very clear, and the strategic intentions and tactical requirements are also very clear.

Master Shangshu read the "Strategy" from beginning to end again, clutched the pages in his hand, and first asked Shang Cheng: "You Yan Shanwei, why do you come up with such a strategy at this time?" He was born as a jinshi, and although he had also led the army, he could never be regarded as a pure soldier, so the criterion for judging a military operation was not simply "victory" or "defeat", but the habitual perspective of senior civilian officials looking at the problem one by one. He couldn't help but think about a question: When the imperial court had just decided to go south, Yan Shanwei suddenly threw out such a military plan, was it an extension and intensification of the dispute between the north and the south in the court?

Shang Cheng spread his hands and said, "It's not that we want to come up with such a strategy at this time, but our situation determines our actions." "It's not that he doesn't know that the spring campaign has just passed, and all departments need to be adjusted and replenished, the soldiers also need to rest, and the ordnance logistics also need to be enriched and complete; But it takes time. However, the Turks did not give Yanshan time. The Yanshan Guard judged that the Turks were about to retaliate against Yanshan, and the war would not be launched later than early September; And the scale of this invasion is likely to exceed any in the past few years. He said anxiously and sorrowfully, "...... In fact, we also know very well that the current Yanshanwei needs time to cultivate internally, but the external enemy is eyeing each other, what we can do is to try our best to do a good job of defense. However, the all-round defense force is overstretched, and the key defense lacks reliable enemy movements, so it is impossible to be foolproof. In this case, we can only choose to attack. "As for the tactical goal of this operation, the retaliatory action of trying to destroy or crush the Tuqi people, and the strategic goal is Blackwater City and the King of Donglu Valley, because it has been clearly described in the "Strategy", so Shang Chengcheng did not repeat it. Moreover, because the prerequisites for the successful realization of strategic intentions are so numerous and complex that it is difficult to analyze them in detail in a short draft, Shang Cheng left the decision on whether or not to carry out strategic intentions to those who command operations at the front.

Xu Shilang bowed slightly. Shang Cheng is right, now it is not whether Yan Shanwei wants to take the initiative to send troops, but the situation is forcing it. At present, there is a strong enemy outside Yanshan and no reinforcements inside, and neither comprehensive defense nor key defense can ensure the safety of Sanzhou, such a difficult situation, if you do not take the initiative to attack, the loss is likely to be even greater.

But he is also a Jinshi, and it is one thing to understand Shang Cheng's intentions and painstaking efforts, and decades of experience and career sharpening make him think about difficult problems but inevitably have some gains and losses, and he couldn't help but ask: "Yan Du, is it too risky for you to do this?" I look at the various measures of this strategy, involving the three guards of Yanshan and Bohai, counting the two guards of Bojin and Jin, which may participate in the war, it requires the participation of nearly 100,000 people, such a large scale, so many affairs to coordinate, but also to ensure that the various departments are in step with each other, in order to ensure the smooth implementation of the strategy, to be honest, this is very difficult. He walked to the map and pointed to the eastern end of Yan, and then entered the grassland to the Bailan River Valley. In particular, there were the largest mutinies along the way. The strength is far inferior to the opponent, and it is just a matter of hitting lightly and heavily, and it takes a lot of effort. If you are ruthless, you will inevitably retreat and fall into passivity, and you can't induce the king of Donglu Valley to be fooled, retreating too quickly will cause the enemy to be alert, and retreating too slowly may be entangled by a strong enemy and swallow one by one" He paced back and forth in front of the map a few times, thinking about it and thinking about it again, after all, he was still helpless, and sighed with a long sigh: "It's difficult, it's too difficult!" ”

The military department Shangshu nodded slowly. Take a closer look at "Strategy", although the battle in Yandong is a partial division, it is the key to the finishing touch in the whole war, but it is the most disparity in each other's strength here, and the development of the war is also the most difficult to predict. At that time, not only will the division not be able to be protected, but if the enemy follows Yandong into Yan with victory, Yandong will also be in danger; If the king of Donglu Valley used the Tang Post Road to attack Liuzhen again, Yanzhong's army of Liuzhen would be wiped out. If there is really that day, the situation in Yanshan will inevitably be out of control, and even the Central Plains and Shangjing will be shaken......

He thought too deeply, and couldn't help but mutter: "Among the generals of this dynasty, there are very few people who can fight this battle, unless ......"

"Unless it's Lao Yang Du!" Xu Shilang took his words and said.

The military department nodded. The one who can fight this battle can only be Lao Yangdu; The rest of the generals were embarrassed by the position. Xiao Jian is prudent and cautious in using his troops, and is good at suppressing people with power, but Yang Du, who is also the founding prince of Shangzhu State, is different, this person dares to fight and can maneuver, can anticipate the enemy before the war, and can be decisive when things change, what he is best at is to fight the Bailan River Valley, and it is most appropriate for him to go to Yandong. However, in the Northern Expedition the year before last, Lao Yang Du had several quarrels with Xiao Jian for military arrangements, and finally took some wrongs and faults for Mo Gan's defeat, and in a fit of anger, he said that he was sick and went home, and he didn't ask about the big things in the army. This person doesn't even care about the position of the coach of the Southern Expedition, how can he go to Yandong? Besides, if a Shangzhu country goes to Yanshan, what should Shang Cheng do? You must know that just three months ago, Shang Cheng was a stone's throw away from the title of the Duke of Guo, if it weren't for Li Shen's perverse behavior in Yandong by the ghost, relying on the results of the White Wolf Mountain alone, Shang Yanshan would have been promoted to the Zhuguo State and the Duke of the Kingdom, which would be an undisputed matter......

Shang Cheng said: "In the battle of Yandong Bailan River Valley, I will fight." ”

The eyes of the military department Shangshu and Xu Shilang lit up at the same time. Shang Cheng personally led the army to fight the Bailan River Valley to lure the people into the Bailan River Valley, so what else did he need to worry about? At worst, it won't hurt Yanshan's muscles and bones. Still, they were a little surprised. How could Shang Cheng give up the opportunity to lay the name of Blackwater City in the history of the city, and have to lead a partial division? The battle of Yandong broke the responsibility of shouldering a body, and the greatest credit for the battle was the army that left the town, which was both laborious and thankless, it was impossible for him not to know, right?

Shang Cheng smiled indifferently and said, "It's because Yandong is not easy to fight, so I have to go by myself." I have to go there. Only I know the king of Donglu Valley the most and am familiar with this person's military habits; I don't feel at ease with anyone else. As long as Yandong fights well, the battle will be very easy in the future, and whoever fights will be the same. ”

The military department Shangshu heard the faint meaning of Shang Cheng's words, one by one, Shang Cheng was not even at ease with Lao Yang Du. But he could understand Shang Cheng's mood and thoughts. Generals, naturally have the temperament of generals, although they are perfunctory to each other, but in private, you don't look down on me and I don't look down on you, it's just ordinary. As for the last sentence "Whoever fights Blackwater City is the same", although it is a joke, the arrogance of the general and the famous general is still undoubtedly revealed, and he still looks down on the people in Blackwater City!

With Shang Cheng personally stepping out, the most difficult and unpredictable direction in "Strategy" was solved, and other details were insignificant. The secretary of the military department no longer hesitated, and immediately called someone to prepare the carriage, and he immediately rushed to the prime minister's office to discuss the matter. Before leaving, he said to Shang Cheng: "Wronged Governor Yan, sit here for a while." Then he said to Xu Shilang: "You will send someone to inform Xiao Jian and a few Zhuguo in Beijing to go to Zhuguo, and let them prepare." Don't tell them what is the matter, just say that the Prime Minister's Office may have military affairs to send them in for consultation at any time. After speaking, Chao Shang Cheng bowed his hand, and left the house without holding the "Strategy".

Xu Shilang immediately asked someone to hurry up to inform several generals in Beijing, and then withdrew the customs defense, then asked the small stove room to prepare a good meal, and then instructed his subordinates not to disturb themselves unless they were in a top secret military situation...... After explaining everything, I thought that there was nothing missing, and then I relaxed and wanted to chat with Shang Cheng and wait for the greeting of the Prime Minister.

But he really sat next to Shang Cheng, and he didn't seem to be able to find any topic to talk about with the young general.

Shang Cheng's rise was too fast, and in three years, he almost walked the road that others might not be able to complete in a lifetime, and he jumped from an unknown laborer in a remote town in northern Xinjiang to one of the few generals in Dazhao. It's because he gets up too fast, so others don't know anything about his past and temperament, and the few little knowledge he knows comes from the simple one-page resume he filled out when he was in the army. According to the resume, this person's ancestral home is Bohai ** County, when he went to the southwest with his uncle to earn money to make a living, he was lit by a high monk in the Jiazhou Big Buddha Temple, and since then he has entered the Buddhism, and later practiced in the Ganlu Temple in Shangjing for several years; After that, he couldn't stand the boredom of the green lantern scrolls, and he coveted the scenery of red dust, so he took off his coat and put on a brown jacket...... Herein lies the problem: this resume has been proved by the Prime Minister's Office to be all forged! Whether it is the Great Buddha Temple in Jiazhou or the Ganlu Temple in Shangjing, there has never been a monk or novice who looks like a businessman; The Prime Minister's men dug all the monasteries in the two places and the adjacent areas, and did not find the slightest trace of this man; This man has never been a monk before! Even his self-proclaimed ancestral hometown of Jin County, Bohai, was burned to the ground in March of the 17th year of the Eastern Yuan Dynasty by the Tuqi people in Koubian, and many of the residents were scattered, and all the household registration books in the yamen were also burned. Because of this, no one dares to say that Shang Cheng, who appeared in Yanshan Yi County, hundreds of miles away in April, must be from Jin County......

The identity is suspicious and there is no origin, this is the last assertion given to Shang Cheng by the Prime Minister's office. But at the same time, they also made another assertion to Shang Cheng: There is no doubt that they are Han people from the Central Plains!

Of course, there are also people who doubt that Shang Cheng will be a person with ulterior motives, such as he is an agent of Tubo Nanzhao.

These words were scoffed at by the two prime ministers on the spot. Although Zhang Pu, the right minister, is different from Shang Chengdao, he still speaks for Shang Cheng at this time: Yanshan Shangzida, the upper horse can govern the army, the lower horse can govern the people, and the army dares to use the power of just one guard of Yanshan to shake the entire right wing of the Tuchu Ci, and the people can take care of a Yanshan Sanzhou located on the border to flourish, look all over the world, and break through the Southern Zhao of Tubo and even the Western Regions, who has so much courage to send such a person to do the thing of chickens and dogs? Even if it is Da Zhao, who has many outstanding heroes, he will never dare to do such a cheap and heroic thing!

Shang Cheng's ability, no one will question it. But Shang Cheng has no background, and he is also a heart disease in the prime minister's office. This is what happened after the spring campaign, but the business was successful but not rewarded......

In March this year, Yanshanwei marched into the grassland, and there were frequent good news all the way, not only the prime minister's office and the military department were excited all night, but even the Son of Heaven frequently urged the progress of the war day and night. By the end of April, the latest battle report of the Mogan front line was copied by the Yanshan Weifu for 800 miles, and Shang Cheng had blocked the king of Donglu Valley and thousands of large tent soldiers at the White Wolf Pass, and he could build immortal feats as soon as Li Shen's army arrived. For three days and four nights, several prime ministers and deputy ministers all stayed in the public hall waiting for further news. is the Son of Heaven, and he has also been to the public office several times to wait for good news. In those days, he had to run back and forth between the military department and the public office countless times every day, and he had seen the old minister Tang Xing, who had always been respectful, like a teenager when he grabbed the military report, and he had seen Zhang Xiang, who was smiling freely and freely when he went to work a few years ago, and kept sighing in circles in the courtyard with his hands behind his back, and he had seen several deputy ministers who had boiled their eyes red and argued endlessly about whether the king of Donglu Valley had the possibility of breaking through, and he had also seen the Son of Heaven in the public party giving words to all the Xiangguo but putting his pen into the teacup on the spot......

Everyone was nervous and tormented for three days and four nights, but what they were looking forward to was not the victory of the thousands of miles of red flags, but Li Shen's failure to advance in Duanzhou; As a last resort, after Shang Cheng personally broke off, the army had safely withdrawn to Luhe and was waiting for an opportunity to retreat to Yanshan.

When the bad news came, the Son of Heaven folded his pen and left in a daze; The rest of the crowd all sighed.

But while everyone was sorry, everyone's faces also showed a little relieved and relaxed look. Even he felt a little relaxed in his own heart. If you really want Yan Shanwei to annihilate the Donglu Valley Wang's department at the White Wolf Pass, then according to Shang Cheng's original strategy, the next step is to put on a posture of waving the army to the north, forcing the Tuqi people to gather in Heishui City to take a defensive position, and then take advantage of the gap to the west, sweeping the three tribes of Alegu, the Da Tengliang tribe and the Wannuer department; At this point, the entire right wing of the Turks from east to west has been hit hard, and under such a situation, the right wing of the Turks can only suspend the active attack on Dazhao, shrink to the hinterland of the northern desert in order to stabilize, and then the left wing of the Turks can only abandon the existing area of activity and retreat north for the safety of its own flanks. As a result, the left and right flanks of the Turks were shaken across the board, and the transfer and migration of various tribes was bound to be full of flaws, which was an excellent opportunity for Da Zhao to counterattack...... If this battle really makes Shang Cheng win, what kind of credit will it be? The founding prince of the tenth generation is not enough to praise his merits, and the promotion to the pillar country is even more indisputable! But Shang Yanshan is a person with no background, can he be crowned the prince of other countries? Do you dare to promote him to the pillar country? "Flying birds do their best to hide their bows", Da Zhao can't do it; If there is merit but not reward, Da Zhao can't do it either. Alas, fortunately, in the end, it fell short, which saved everyone from embarrassment.

As for the threat of the Turks...... Hey, what are you afraid of? As long as there are blind businessmen, sooner or later it can always be solved.

So later, when the war ended, the court rewarded meritorious deeds, and a tacit understanding was formed in the prime minister's office, and no one mentioned that the time for the appointment of the governor seemed to be too long. A fake Admiral is also a Admiral, isn't it? Besides, when the blind man entered Beijing, he didn't mention that he didn't want to take a fake job, and he didn't say anything dissatisfied with the current "fake job" in his usual official correspondence, so why should everyone bother?

But in doing so, everyone is not without worry. If the blind man is provoked by the fact that the court continues to let him "take a false post", I am afraid that it will be difficult to end up at that time. Although this person seems to be well-read, he is always from the military, and it is not impossible for him to overturn the military department and then run to the prime minister's office to make a fuss. What's worse is that the court is not reasonable in this matter, and the blind businessmen really want to make trouble, and others will only accuse the court of being unfair.

Thinking of this, Xu Shilang also secretly wiped a cold sweat. Fortunately, Shang Cheng didn't come to Beijing to make trouble, otherwise, a deputy minister of Shangshu and a squire would really not be able to persuade him. The key is that this person is young and very capable of fighting, and after Xiao Jian and Yang Du, it seems that the first one should be his turn; This kind of sharp weapon for the town, no matter how much trouble he makes, even if he smashes the military department, as long as he does not rebel, the court will not be able to seriously treat him. What Shang Cheng has no background and suspicious identity and the like, sit in the room and say that it's okay, but if you take it out, I'm afraid that no one can believe it, it can only make people laugh off their big teeth, and if you don't want to be promoted to someone else's official, you just say you don't want to, why fool yourself with this kind of nonsense? Shang Cheng can pretend to supervise Yanshan for a year or two without an identity, what did the imperial court do before?

However, he was still very curious about why the imperial court did not give him a regular governor, and Shang Cheng was not angry. Is there really something wrong with his origins? Of course, he didn't ask the latter question. It's useless to ask. Shang Cheng must turn his face on the spot: What do you mean by this? My resume is in the double record of the military department and the official department, and I have been promoted many times and reviewed and audited, and I have not heard of any problems. When you say this, can't you trust me, or can't you trust the court and the six departments?

"I'm angry." Shang Cheng said bluntly. He was really angry. The reason why he was angry was not because he coveted the extra salary after his main job, nor because he was greedy for the vanity, but because he felt that he had done so many things in Yanshan, he had to have an acknowledgement, right? Could it be that he did something wrong, or maybe he shouldn't have done so much? He frowned, sighed and said, "Knowing that I didn't get promoted, I didn't sleep well all night, lying on the kang and thinking over and over again, why everyone else was promoted and promoted, and I only received a hundred copper coins and a few rags." He had forgotten about it, but when he was suddenly mentioned, he couldn't help but feel a wave of resentment in his heart. The more he spoke, the angrier he became, and his voice grew higher and higher. "I'll be honest with you, Lao Xu, that night, I wanted to quit several times. I am both a father and a mother in Yanshan, grinding with civil officials and talking with military attachés, and every day just talking to people can be tired of knotting my tongue, and I have to mix some messy and bad things. …… Guo Biao's bastards are still afraid that I will have a leisurely life, so I will find something to do if I have nothing to do! I'm tired and angry, and the court won't give me a promotion to a position and a half-honor, and I'll fuck it! Even if you feed a dog, the owner will often lose a bone, right? ”

Xu Shilang couldn't help but laugh when he heard him say that it was funny and vivid. It's not that he doesn't know that Shang Cheng has a very high prestige among Yanshan's civil and military officials, who dares to make him angry?

Shang Cheng shook his head: "Don't listen to those rumors, you can't believe them." I have the prestige of fart. My two military horses, Sun Huan and Sun Zhongshan, can swing their fists and feet in front of me for a few horses, and they can't stop shouting one by one, you say, this is also called prestige? ”

Xu Shilang was worried that he couldn't find a topic to talk to Shang Cheng to grind time, and when he heard about this, he immediately climbed down the stalk: "Is there such a thing?" You speak, I'll listen. ”

"Isn't this what I want to turn the brigades of the Left Army into cavalry brigades or mounted infantry? I greeted your military department in advance, and you also agreed, and rowed 5,000 horses from Hedong Horse Farm first. The first batch was 3,000 horses, when crossing Fangzhou, Ximen Sheng felt that the horses were good, not to say that the road tax should be levied, according to the highest tax rate of Weizhen salt and iron transit, every ten draws, first deducted three hundred, and then Sun Huan that guy didn't know where to hear the news, so he came to me, saying that he couldn't favor one over the other. That's ......"