The news that the Chuzhou army was killed and routed on the east bank of the Fanchuan River soon spread to Jinling City, like a boulder smashed into a lake, setting off earth-shattering waves.

In an inconspicuous tea shop in Jinling City, a large group of people in the market were discussing the latest news in a panic.

"The Chuzhou army is defeated!" A middle-aged man in a green robe, sitting in front of the window, said with a melancholy and shocked look.

Just a few days ago, the tea guests sitting in this tea shop were full of heated discussions and still expected the imperial court to send troops as soon as possible to recover Huaixi and revitalize the prestige of the Great Chu army with the Chuzhou army, and even many people were clamoring to join the army and serve the imperial court, but they didn't expect that in just a few days, a large basin of such cold cold water would be splashed in front of them.

"How is it possible, the Liang army has 20,000 soldiers and horses on the eastern front, and there are still a large number of soldiers and horses piled up in Tangyi City on the north bank, how many soldiers and horses can be used to fight against the Chuzhou army? King Xin is also one of the most brave generals in the Great Chu since the founding of the country, where could he be defeated so easily? "Some people still can't believe that this is happening, and the voices of skepticism are sharp.

The people of the city in Jinling City live on the root of the imperial city, and they are not rural villagers, even if they are defeated and pawned, they can more or less blow a few words about the current situation today.

"Can I still lie to you? Yang Asi was selling duck cubs in the village north of Gaoyou, and saw the Chuzhou army being killed and fleeing everywhere like dogs - Yang Asi was also robbed of several pieces of money by the rebels, and was slashed in the shoulder, and escaped with his life and returned to Jinling. "It's still gossip in the market, but some gossip is unbelievable.

"King Xin is so unbeaten, Liang Jun is really so powerful?" During this period of time in Jinling City, there were many people everywhere who preached the martial arts and ability of Yang Yuanyan, the king of letters, and the news at this time was too contrasting.

"Back then, when the Liang lord gathered a group of unarmed slaves and maids, he was able to fight with King Xin, think about how many battles the Liang army has fought with the Eastern Liang army and the Mengwu people in the north over the years, how can it be compared to the Chuzhou army, which has not experienced a war for almost ten years? I heard that King Xin himself was shot off his horse, and he lost a few loyal and brave soldiers around him to protect him and flee back to Dongyang City, otherwise his life would be lost on the battlefield, not to mention, Huaidong would be taken away by the Liang State. "Most of the tea customers in the tea shop are idle, and there are also people whose sources are closer to the upper class, and they can't help but participate in the discussion at this time.

"Then Liang Jun can't be so powerful?" There are still people who can't believe that the Chuzhou army will be defeated so badly.

"I heard that Lord Liang has been taught by gods since he was a child, not to mention kung fu, and he can also make all kinds of instruments, and he has not suffered a defeat in these years."

"Where is the Liang army fighting now, has it already taken Chuzhou City?"

"I don't know why, the Liang army suddenly withdrew when it hit Dongyang City, and they didn't attack Dongyang City."

"What's going on?"

"Who knows, I hope God protects it, and the Liang army won't concentrate its forces to attack Jinling......"

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In the main hall of Changxin Palace, the atmosphere was so oppressive that it seemed as if there was a heavy piece of lead pressing on everyone's hearts.

After Shen Yang learned the news of the defeat of the Chuzhou army, he immediately called Li Chaoqing to Jinling, so that the ministers could know the detailed process of the battle of Fanchuanhe in more detail.

In the battle of Fanchuan River, the Chuzhou army invested more than 26,000 soldiers in the west of Dongyang County, but it was broken by the Liang army four times before and after, and finally nearly half of the generals were killed or captured on the battlefield on both sides of the Panchuan River, leaving less than 14,000 remnants and wounded soldiers, and fled into Dongyang City.

The casualties of the Liang army are unknown, but they are expected to be no more than 4,000.

It may be said that the pre-war preparations are too insufficient, or it may be said that the enemy is too underestimated, and he did not expect that the Liang army would cross the Fanchuan River to counterattack at the first time, and it may be said that King Xin was too hasty, and he was shot off his horse at the first time, so as to miss the opportunity to turn defeat into victory in the end, but there is one thing that no one in the hall can deny.

That is the combat effectiveness of the Liang army, which is much stronger than they imagined.

Or that they thought that the elite of the Chuzhou army had declined much more in combat effectiveness than they imagined over the years.

The strong combat effectiveness of the Liang army is also reflected in many aspects.

Nearly half of the Liang generals wore new-style plate armor, which could not be cut through by knives or arrows, but it was much lighter than the traditional full-covered armor; In addition to the large bed crossbow when raiding Ao Island, the Liang army was equipped with a large number of individual crossbows, with a very long range and strong penetration, and the king of letters, Yang Yuanyan, wanted to lead the elite to raid the key point of the Liang army, and was sniped off the horse by this kind of crossbow, and more than 2,000 elite silver halberd guards who charged with him were lost more than half in this battle.

Of course, the Liang army has a strong combat ability in small groups, which makes the more complex the terrain, the more significant the advantage of the Liang army.

Before the battle, Yang Yuan didn't even expect that Zhao Wuji would lead the main force of the Liang army to kill Fan Chuanhe in the first place, and the response in all aspects seemed hasty and disorderly; On the seemingly chaotic battlefield, the rhythm of the Liang army's advance and retreat was much more meticulous and orderly, and it was obvious that the Liang army was far stronger than the Chuzhou army in terms of command system.

It's sad to think about it, people like Cao Ba and Li Qi were all brave generals of Dachu once upon a time, but at this time they all became the pioneers of the Liang army.

Listening to Li Chaoqing's babbling about the many details of the battle of Fan Chuanhe, the faces of the ministers were ugly, and Shen Yang was also sitting on the embroidery pier with a thin body, pursing his chapped and bloodless lips, and said nothing.

During the Jinling Rebellion, the Chuzhou Army can be said to be at its peak in strength, but in that case, it was also blocked by the Chishan Army north of Langxi, so that it finally lost the initiative in the Jinling Chaos and was forced to withdraw to the north bank to divide the territory.

After that, the situation in Huaidong has been very difficult, natural disasters and man-made disasters in the territory have continued, and the Liang army has been lifted upside down, and the land on the north bank of the Huai River has been lost one after another.

The Chuzhou army has long been declining, and it is no longer the Chuzhou army before, and the generals' morale is becoming more and more defeated.

It's just that no one wants to admit such a fact until they have tasted the consequences.

Of course, if the Chuzhou army encounters an ordinary army of soldiers and horses, such as the Xu Si army and the Shouzhou army, accumulate a few small victories and recover the morale of the pawns, it may not be impossible to re-emerge as a strong army.

However, the first battle of the Chuzhou army in these years - Zhao Zhen's subordinate was organized as the Right Wuxiang Army once attacked Xiangbei and fought a tailwind battle - but the object of choice was the sharp Liang army, and it was also the elite of the hundred battles specially transferred by Han Qian from the northern front, perhaps at that moment, it was already doomed to the dismal end of the Chuzhou army.

Before September, Han Qian realized that Jianghuai was about to change, but he dared to simply deploy only 20,000 troops on the eastern front of Huaixi, obviously confident enough to predict such an outcome.

Thinking of this, Shen Yang was also full of powerlessness and helplessness, sitting in the main hall, and he didn't know what to say.

As for why the Liang army suddenly withdrew from Dongyang City, this is not incomprehensible to the people sitting in the hall.

To put it bluntly, the Liang army's garrison in Huaixi is really only so little, it is not enough to attack the city and seize the fortress in Huaidong, and after achieving the goal of severely damaging the Chuzhou army and deterring Jianghuai, the Liang army might as well withdraw neatly.

However, the withdrawal of the Liang army does not mean that the whole thing is over.

After all, the peace agreement was torn up by this side, after all, it was their side that sent troops to attack first.

Han Qian's attention is still on the northern front now, but after the Liang army captures Jinnan, what if he can transfer fifty or sixty thousand elites to Huaixi with his free hands?

Yesterday morning, Shen Yang sent Xue Ruogu to cross the river to Tangyi, hoping to meet Gao Shao and Yang Qin in person, but as soon as the boat came to Jiangxin, it was shot by dozens of strong crossbows from the warships of the Liang army's sailors, and several boatmen were shot and killed in the river.

If it weren't for the timely shelter of the people around him, Xue Ruogu might not have been able to pick up his life and escape back.

To put it bluntly, even if the Liang army withdrew to the west of the Fanchuan River, the war was not over, and the Liang army refused all forms of negotiation......

Empress Dowager Mingcheng shouted that her heart was sly, she hadn't participated in the court meeting for two days, Qingyang sat on the side of the imperial case, trying to straighten her back, looking at the ministers with sad faces, there was a fire in her chest, but she didn't know how to vent it.

One by one, not to mention Gu Zhilong, Zhang Chao, Du Chongtao, Zhou Bingwu and others, and even Shen Yang did not have a trace of expectation in his heart when the Chuzhou army invaded Huaixi, and he did not condone Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan to take risks?

Now that this situation has been made, one by one is speechless?

Seeing that Li Chaoqing, the commander of Dongyang County, told the details of the battle of Fanchuanhe, all the ministers were there without saying a word, and Qingyang waved his hand and signaled that all the ministers could retire:

"Since there is nothing to say, then we all retreat."

"Weichen is dull, and he can't share his ......worries for the Queen Mother and His Majesty," Zhang Chao, Du Chongtao, Zhou Bingwu, Gu Zhilong and others glanced at each other and stepped forward to ask for guilt.

"Let's go, let's go, let's go! The mourning family and His Majesty are orphans and widows, and they were bullied by others before, and no one said a word of justice, and now I don't expect you to do anything! Qingyang said.

After a stalemate, and then accusations were made again and again, Zhang Chao and the others withdrew first, and Shen Yang and Yang En continued to sit there.

The slender young man, his face was a little pale, his lips trembled, and he wanted to say something, but after all, he didn't open his mouth, like a frosted eggplant, and sat behind the imperial case.

"Princes and ministers, at this time, you don't even have the sincerity to catch a few dead ghosts to apologize, Shen Xiang, you and Marquis Yang stay, what else do you have to say?" Qingyang asked unkindly.

"It stands to reason that His Royal Highness King Xin sent troops to invade Huaixi without authorization, and he should be tied up in Jinling to punish the crime and give Liang Guo an explanation, but the problem is that Liang Jun is no longer giving us a chance to contact us at all. No matter how much we do at present, it will be difficult to alleviate the current situation, so sending an envoy to bind His Royal Highness King Xin will only make the situation in Da Chu more chaotic, and tell Liang Jun to watch the fire from the other side......" Shen Yang stood up and said in a hoarse voice.

Shen Yang sent Xue Ruogu to the north shore yesterday, just to prepare for Liang Guo's lion to open his mouth, and even thought that as long as Liang Guo's side put forward conditions, no matter how harsh Liang Guo's conditions were, he would try his best to persuade Du Chongtao, Gu Zhilong, Zhou Bingwu, Zhang Ji, and Zheng to come down.

As long as it is possible, even if it is to send troops to "suppress the chaos", he will find a way to arrest Yang Yuanyan, the king of letters, and bring him to Jinling to punish the crime, so that Liang Chu can return to the rhythm of peace talks.

The problem is that the Liang State put an end to negotiations, and they sent troops and horses to Chuzhou to "suppress the chaos" at this time, which would only cause chaos and make Great Chu even weaker.

"What about Yang Zhitang, who has been hiding behind the scenes and fanning the flames these days, do you still want him to continue to live happily?" Qingyang calmed the anger in his chest, and asked sharply in a suppressed voice.

"King Shou is fighting the battle, but his generals have not sent troops," Shen Yang said, "For the time being, the Queen Mother and Your Majesty should consider the future in the worst-case scenario, not hold anyone responsible!" ”

"You all know that there are checks and balances and mud, it wasn't your connivance at the beginning, the cheap maid in Mingcheng Palace, the Huang family hiding in the back, could collude with Yang Zhitang and Yang Yuanyan to do so many things?"

Qingyang couldn't suppress the anger in his heart, Huo Ran stood up, and the angry Shen Yang asked,

"Could it be that if Yang Zhitang, Yang Yuanyan, and the Huang family are punished and the dynasty is purged and the dynasty is purged, the Great Chu will definitely be torn apart, and it will definitely be completely vulnerable?"

"If there is a buffer of two to three years, Weichen will support the Empress Dowager to purge the dynasty," Yang En stood up and said haggardly, "However, according to the current situation, it is very likely that Han Qian, the lord of Liang, will move south after recovering Jinnan." In other words, it is very likely that by the middle of next year at the earliest, Dachu will face the crisis of the Liang army crossing the Yangtze River to invade the south, and I am afraid that there is no buffer time for the rectification of the dynasty. ”

"What should I do then, according to what you say? It's been all these days, and you should have discussed a solution in private, right? I wouldn't want to ask the mourning family to cross the river to ask Liang Jun for guilt, right? Qingyang stared at Shen Yang and Yang En and asked.

"Weichen went to Shou Wangfu last night, I saw Shou Wangye, Shou Wang Ye promised to retire to Hongzhou for retirement, and the prince Yang Fan will also resign from the position of commander of Runzhou Thorn History and Right Dragon Wu Army, etc., the Queen Mother can send him to which state and county to serve at will," Yang En said, "The Chuzhou army suffered heavy losses in this battle, and should be reduced to an army, and the king of Xin used troops without authorization, and he should also be punished, demoted to the king of the county, so that he can reflect on his ......mistakes in Chuzhou City."

Obviously, it is impossible for Yang Yuanyan, the king of letters, to go to Jinling to bind Jing and plead guilty, even if the remaining remnants of the Chuzhou army are only defeated generals, but it is definitely not an easy thing for the imperial court to capture Yang Yuanyan.

And Da Chu, who is facing an existential crisis, does not compromise with each other at this time, does he have the capital to fight a civil war?

Even if there is no Liang Jun staring at the side, can they force Yang Yuanyan, the king of Shou, and the Huang family to join forces to fight back, they will definitely be able to control the situation and not let the palace change happen again?

As far as the current situation is concerned, Yang Zhitang and Yang Fan's father and son are willing to accept the derogation, which is already a good result.

"That's it?" Qingyang asked.

"The Holy Communion of the Empress Dowager Mingcheng is not safe, she should be recuperated, and she should no longer be bothered with state affairs, and the flattering Xiaoxiao who has been by His Majesty's side recently should also be exiled," Yang En said, "Of course, these are still preliminary discussions with Shouwangfu, Du Hou, Lord Zhou, Zhang Xiang, and Gu Hou, whether it is feasible or not, and we must send envoys to Chuzhou and Yueyang as soon as possible......

Hearing Dong E's cheap maid promise not to jump out and interfere in the government, Qingyang reluctantly lowered his face and said:

"Since you have all arranged it clearly, then go ahead and do it, don't exile those Xiaoxiao around Your Majesty, one person will be beaten with a hundred rods, driven out of the court, don't get in the way of the mourning family, don't come to induce Your Majesty to learn badly."

Yang En glanced at Shen Yang hesitantly, those Shaozhuang faction officials who danced the most happily, if each of them received a hundred rods, they would be crippled if they didn't die.

The young man was speechless, but in the face of Qingyang's cold eyes, he sat down again.

"Obey the Empress Dowager's decree." Shen Yang said in a loud voice.

He knows very well in his heart that Da Chu is not chaotic and can stabilize the situation, and there may be a trace of peace talks in the future; Of course, according to the worst-case scenario, this is the time to start thinking about moving the capital.

Of course, moving the capital involves a wider range of aspects, and it cannot be rushed to be directly raised in such a chaotic situation......

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Shen Yang and Yang En retreated and left, Zhang Ping and a group of eunuchs also hugged the young emperor back to Chongwen Hall to rest, Qingyang sat behind the imperial case, the wide phoenix robe was gorgeously spread on the wool blanket, looking at the flickering candles in the hall.

Lei Cheng became more and more old, walked into the main hall with his body bent, and said: "It's not too early, the Queen Mother should also rest......"

"The mourning family summoned Cai Chen back to Honglu Temple three days ago, but he is still bedridden today and can't get up, is it that the mourning family sent someone to cross the river to Tangyi to spread a word, and he will also be shot by random arrows?" Qingyang looked at Lei Cheng and asked.

"How to deal with the follow-up matters, the king has not yet sent an edict, and we dare not make any claims," Lei Cheng said, "Maybe the status quo will be maintained for a period of time for the time being." ”

"So, when Han Qian frees his hand from the north, it will be difficult for Liang Chu to fight in the end?" Qingyang asked.

"Since the fall of the previous dynasty, the world has been divided for nearly 30 years, I don't know how many people have been displaced and died in the war. Does the Queen Mother really hope that this chaos will continue endlessly? Lei Cheng asked, "No matter how others criticize the monarch, but if the monarch can be trusted by the emperor Shizu with his family and country, what is the queen mother to worry about?" ”

"The mourning family, a woman's family, where is the qualification to consider such a far-reaching matter?" Qingyang waved his hand tiredly and motioned for Lei Cheng to retreat.

Lei Cheng bowed, bent up, and retired from the hall.

Although there is a hole for hot air in the wall of the main hall, even in the cold winter season, the hall is as warm as spring, but sitting in the empty hall, Qingyang inexplicably felt cold in his body, and tightened the wide phoenix robe tighter in order to warm up, but the lonely cold in his heart could not be discharged......

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When Gu Zhilong returned to the mansion, it was already completely dark, dark clouds were thick, and the wind was roaring, making people suspect that the first snow of the year in Jinling City would fall at any time.

With such a strong wind, for fear of causing a fire, the yard did not dare to hang lanterns, and it was dark everywhere, Gu Zhilong got out of the car, and several attendants carefully carried lanterns to light the way, passed through the weeping flower hall, and walked from the mezzanine road to the back house, feeling more and more cold and lonely.

The defeat of the Chuzhou army poured a basin of cold water on the noisy and lively Shaozhuang faction in Jinling, and the Gu Mansion has suddenly cooled down in the past few days, and even the father and son of the Xijia family did not come to visit them.

Countless people were panicked, who could not see how the situation would develop at this time, and it was not clear when the army of Liang would cross the river to kill.

Taking off his court clothes and putting on a light and warm shirt, Gu Zhilong sat in the study, thought about things for a while, listened to the knock on the door, and suddenly woke up, and saw his son Gu Xiongchang pushing the door and looking over.

"Father, the rich man is here."

Seeing that the Chuzhou army was slaughtered and defeated, Gu Zhilong certainly would not have the slightest schadenfreude, but after all, he was not directly involved in it, and he was still glad in his heart.

Hearing that Fu Gengwen came to visit overnight, he hurriedly stood up and wanted to go to the front hall, but then he ordered Gu Xiongchang and said, "Please come to the study here to talk......

Although the Gu Mansion is not extremely luxurious in Jinling, the front hall and the inner mansion are still very clearly divided, and there is also a hall dedicated to acting in the mansion - this is an exclusive service that can be enjoyed by a first-level person who is a minister.

Gu Zhilong thought about talking to Fu Gengwen in the study of the inner house, and seemed closer.

In any case, it was Fu Gengwen who dissuaded him from participating in Yang Zhitang's conspiracy at a critical time.

Otherwise, even if the Yongjia army has no chance to dispatch from beginning to end, as long as it prepares for war and makes abnormal movements, it is impossible to hide it from the eyes of those who have a heart.

At this time, depending on the meaning of Shen Yang and Yang En, in order to avoid civil strife, they have no intention of pursuing the responsibility of using troops without authorization and sabotaging the peace agreement more harshly for the time being, but the aftermath of this matter is absolutely endless.

Fu Gengwen walked into the study with Gu Xiongchang, and also asked with concern about the movement of the court: "Gu Hou and the adults entered the palace to meet the Queen Mother today, can you discuss any countermeasures?" ”

Fu Gengwen, as an official at the middle level of Lang, was of course not qualified to participate in the Privy Council.

"Xue Ruogu crossed the river to the north bank yesterday and was shot back by a random arrow, at this time the Liang army had no intention of contacting at all, what countermeasures can the imperial court discuss?" Gu Zhilong no longer regarded Fu Gengwen as an outsider, and he didn't speak so carefully, so he asked him to sit down and said, "When we entered the palace today, we didn't talk much, so we retired and left Changxin Palace, and Shen Xiang and Yang Hou stayed behind to play secretly. I think the Queen Mother has been through the wind and waves, and she should accept the advice of Shen Xiang and Yang Hou - now it is time to see if Chuzhou and Yueyang can accept such conditions for the time being. ”

"King Shou has accepted it, Lord Huang and King Xin should be able to see the situation clearly at this time," Fu Gengwen said, "It's just that even if the Huang family and King Xin can compromise, but when the Liang army defeats Jinnan, tens of thousands of elites will follow Lord Liang to the south, and that situation may not be easy to deal with......."

"Yes......" Gu Zhilong sighed lightly and said.

"The Liang army may not be able to take Jinnan easily," Gu Xiongchang said, "The Mengwu people left so many old and weak women and children in Jincheng and Luzhou because they wanted to fight the Liang army in a bloody battle—if the Liang army was defeated on the northern front, my father and the lords would no longer be so disgraced." ”

Gu Zhilong glanced at his young son, sighed lightly, and told him: "The reason why the Mengwu people left such old and weak women and children in Jincheng and Luzhou is mainly in the hope that we can recapture Huaixi and inflict heavy losses on the Liang army from the southern front, thus forcing the Liang army to withdraw from southern Jinnan—who could have the Chuzhou army be so vulnerable?" Whether the Mughal people can stay in Jinnan until the autumn of next year is still difficult to say! ”

Fu Gengwen smiled in his heart, and pretended to be anxious and asked, "Is there a decision on the matter of your lord replacing Zhou Bingwu in charge of the Privy Council?" ”

"The Privy Council is now a fire pit, it seems that the Queen Mother should continue to keep Zhou Bingwu to support her for a while, of course, it is okay to change Du Chongtao or Zhang Ji to sit in this position, I will not fight for this fire pit." Gu Zhilong shook his head, changing his previous eagerness, at this time, he couldn't wait to recuperate in the house for a while.

The Liang army is now in a state of non-stop fighting, and whoever wants to replace Zhou Bingwu as the Privy Council at this time will have to assume the responsibility of organizing defensive operations against Liang along the river.

No matter how you look at it at this time, this is all a fire pit.

Gu Zhilong can still jump into the fire pit by himself at this time?

Fu Gengwen mainly tried to test the changes in the minds of Gu Zhilong and others, before the soldiers and horses on the northern line of the Great Liang could get out, there would be no other rash moves in the south for the time being, he said some words of relief at the moment, and then left the Gu Mansion......