The effect of the banquet is not too good, everyone is very polite, Cao Shenxi sat there and really didn't say a word, Guan Changling and others also cherished the words like gold, King Wu asked what to answer, King Wu raised a glass, they also raised a glass, other than that, they just sat silently.

The atmosphere became more and more awkward, and in less than an hour, the banquet ended, and the generals were very respectful when they said goodbye, taking turns to bow to King Wu.

Cao Shenxi wanted to stay and clean up the mess, Xu Ji couldn't help but ask him: "Since the generals have surrendered, why are they so cold to me?" Am I doing something wrong? ”

Cao Shenxi couldn't bear it in his heart, sighed and shook his head, "King Wu didn't do anything wrong, but he didn't do it right. These people are all the old generals of the generals, and the king of Wu, whether he admits it or not, and what surname he changes, is the son of the general. If this matter is not explained clearly, they don't know how to face King Wu. ”

"The same goes for General Cao?"

"Me? Fortunately, after being in contact with King Wu for a long time, I slowly got used to it. ”

"So should I keep waiting?" Xu Ji said with a smile.

"King Wu can wait, but I don't know how long I have to wait. In fact, there is also a shortcut, King Wu finds a person who the generals admire and accepts it carefully, which may make the generals change their minds as soon as possible. ”

"Is General Cao recommending himself?"

"Hey, King Wu forgot too quickly, I have not been on good terms with the general for many years, how can I be admired by the generals? King Wu had to find someone else. ”

"General Guan Changling?"

"King Wu will find it himself, I can't help, I just care about wine and meat - one more thing, there is not much grain in the eastern capital, and suddenly there are so many people, and it is even more stretched." Cao Shenxi took his leave.

Liang Cao is like a pack of extremely patient wolves, chasing behind their prey, not far or close, but they refuse to give up.

Xu Ji couldn't run too fast.

Back in the camp, Xu Ji personally went to meet Guan Changling.

Guan Changling's health is not good, he has been running around these days, his body is about to collapse, he barely participates in the banquet, and when he returns to the room, he lies down, when King Wu comes, he is looking on his back and opening his eyes in a daze, unable to sleep, unable to move, quietly waiting for the oil lamp to go out.

Guan Changling wanted to sit up, but Xu Ji stepped forward to support him, "General Guan doesn't have to be polite, I'll sit down and leave." ”

Guan Changling sat on the bed, "King Wu is strange, everyone is a little nervous, after all...... After all......"

"Because I'm the son of a general?"

"To be honest, things are changing too fast, more than half a year ago you were the seventeenth son of the general, and now you are the king of Wu, but the general has ...... People who have seen all this with their own eyes are afraid that it is a little difficult to accept. ”

"If you have a better place to go, I will let you go, and I will not hinder you."

Guan Changling laughed, "King Wu, don't get me wrong, we are willing to stay, after all, our home is in the Eastern Capital, and King Wu is not a cruel person." ”

"Why didn't General Guan go back to his house?"

"There's no one at home."

"Huh?"

"The eldest daughter-in-law and grandson fled the Eastern Capital, and the second daughter-in-law and a few people left behind...... Killed by King Wu's subordinates. ”

Guan Changling is a famous general under the command of the general, and he is at the top of Wu Bing's revenge list, and his family will naturally not be let go.

"I'm sorry, it's my fault that I didn't take care of General Guan's family."

Guan Changling hummed for a long time, "It's no one's fault, the war is like this, I think when the Cheng army was killing in Wu State, I killed a lot of people, and it was fair to report it back and report it." ”

"I don't take revenge."

"Hehe, after King Wu occupies the Eastern Capital, he doesn't have the feeling that the power of life and death is in his hands?"

"Yes." Xu Ji replied, he did have such a feeling when he first entered the Eastern Capital, and his power was increasing, and the feeling became weaker, and now he was troubled by many things, and there was no such thing on his mind.

"King Wu didn't want to try this power?"

Xu Ji refused to speak.

Guan Changling moved his body to make himself a little more comfortable, "Everyone wants to try, I was doing the same thing back then, and now Wu people." Having a knife in your hand, killing people with impunity, and even getting a reward is a good thing that everyone wants to try. ”

"Someone told me that he killed people just to prove that 'I can.'"

"The one who said this is a person who understands, I have fought many battles, I have seen many cruel things, and I have done it myself, and it boils down to two words, it really is, 'I can'. Sometimes I feel like soldiers are like a bunch of kids who just know how to dominate their hands and feet, destroying everything they can just because 'I can'. ”

"Can't military law stop all this? Let the soldiers feel 'can't'. ”

"Of course you can, but then the commander will lose the morale of the army - soldiers are like children, which is a good thing, only in this way can they move forward bravely and not be afraid of death and injury. The commander needs his subordinates to get used to killing, like to kill, and the effect is best when killing red eyes, but you have to let them continue to kill afterwards and slowly pacify, otherwise, they will be unhappy, and they may not do anything immediately, and they will accumulate little by little, but it will cause a big disaster. ”

"But there are no rebels?"

"Yes, the food and salary are sufficient, never in arrears, those who have made meritorious contributions will be rewarded, and those who have died in battle will be received, this is a kind of righteous army. But such a righteous army could not withstand the war, when the army was formed to destroy the Five Kingdoms, it often only brought more than ten days of grain and grass, not more than a month, in order to encourage the soldiers to attack the city and seize the land as soon as possible - to seize the grain and grass from the enemy's hands is always the most economical way to fight, and it has remained unchanged since ancient times. ”

"Is there a different kind of rebel army?"

"Yes, after the army destroyed Shu, the grain and grass were sufficient, the court accumulated countless money, and after that, every battle must be won, every battle must be rewarded, and the soldiers actively participated in the war, and there was no need to grab food from the people, which was regarded as having the appearance of a righteous army."

"Sounds ...... It doesn't seem to be any different. ”

"It's very different, the first kind of righteous army is only available when the world is stable, this Taiping army, although it is not brave, there is a reward for victory, and there is a salary for not winning, so people have no fighting spirit. The second type of rebel army has high morale, thinking that the battle will be won and the reward will be heavy, so they can fight without being driven, and they are righteous and brave. ”

Xu Ji understood, "After the army destroyed Shu, it was already a 'righteous army', why did it kill indiscriminately again when it destroyed Wu in the future?" ”

"Because the battle was unexpectedly tragic, the Cheng army suffered many casualties, and everyone hated the Wu people, so after taking the city, we must take revenge. And it was the last battle, and they all thought that there would never be such a chance to indulge in the future, and the general said that everyone had followed him for so long, and there must be a perfect ending. ”

Xu Ji was silent, the ending of the general was not perfect at all.

"That's it, even a great general can't go against the will of the people in everything. Especially the general, he especially knows how to encircle the soldiers, although his temper is short-tempered, he has won the hearts of the soldiers, and everyone is willing to die for him. ”

"What's his trick?"

"Hehe, King Wu asked me, I can only say...... The great general knows when to be harsh and when to indulge. I can't do it, I'll just lead the troops to fight, and I don't care about anything else. Now, I can't lead any soldiers, let alone fight. I am very grateful that if I am ten years younger, I will repay the service, but now I can only talk nonsense, and I am powerless. ”

"General Guan's words have benefited me a lot. Please General Guan have a good rest, and tomorrow I will send someone to send General Guan back to his home. ”

"No need, the house is deserted, but it's better to live comfortably in the camp."

Xu Ji got up and asked, "Isn't there a real rebel army?" ”

"It's in the history books." Guan Changling slowly lay down, and suddenly got tired of speaking carefully, "King Wu is the king alone, and he will ascend the throne and be the emperor in the future, but he wants his subordinates to be selfless 'righteous soldiers', how difficult is it?" The way of the emperor has always been made of flesh and blood, I have experienced it once, and I don't want to go through it a second time. Why should King Wu care about the so-called 'righteous army', when King Wu expands his land for thousands of miles, supports millions of people, and can afford to raise soldiers, the 'righteous army' will become its own, and it is useless to think about it now. ”

Xu Ji was silent for a while, "No matter what, I still have to apologize for what Wu Bing did." ”

"The second daughter-in-law is an honest person, and her husband asked her to wait at home, but she didn't leave. Heavenly Dao Cycle, Heavenly Dao Cycle......" Guan Changling really hopes that he can close his eyes and never have to open them again.

Xu Ji returned to his room, and Tang Weitian immediately made the bed, yawning in his mouth, thinking that King Wu could rest earlier tonight.

"Tang Weitian."

"Hmm." Seeing that King Wu intended to chat, Tang Weitian was greatly disappointed.

"When I let Ning Hug into the city, do you think I'm not ruthless enough?"

"Huh? I didn't think about that. Tang Weitian sat on the couch and blocked a yawn with his hand, "This kind of thing, the governor can decide on it, don't care what others think?" ”

"You think now, and then tell me what you think."

Tang Weitian's face was embarrassed, but King Wu's order could not be disobeyed, and he looked up and thought for a while, "To be honest? ”

"Of course."

"Hmm...... The Metropolitan Governor allowed King Ning to enter the city, I didn't think there was anything, and I didn't think the Metropolitan Governor was not ruthless enough, but when the Metropolitan Governor asked like this, I think you are indeed not ruthless enough. ”

"It's nothing to open the door and accept King Ning, but it's not ruthless enough to ask?" Xu Ji smiled, thinking that this answer was interesting.

"That's right, you are the governor of the capital, and you have hundreds of thousands of soldiers under your command, whoever you want to die must die, and whoever you want to live can live. General Meng is dead, and the Tian craftsman who killed General Song is still alive, and everyone didn't say anything, knowing that it was arranged by the Metropolitan Governor. But when the Metropolitan Governor asked—" Tang Weitian frowned, "as if he couldn't make up his mind." ”

"I only ask you, not outsiders."

Tang Weitian shook his head, "Don't ask, I'm stupid and can't think about too many things." And I'd rather the Metropolitan Governor decide to live and kill alone, I just do it, if you hesitate, I will hesitate, I will hesitate...... I can't figure it out. ”

Xu Ji laughed, "Okay, don't ask, it's me who let Ning Baoguan survive, and the person who let Ning Baoguan die will also be me." ”

"That's right, this is the Metropolitan Governor, kill what should be killed, live what should be lived, whoever dares to oppose will chop whom, see who dares to talk nonsense? The Metropolitan Governor just thought too much and didn't come up with anything, but delayed eating and sleeping. The Governor hasn't slept for two days, so rest early, recuperate, and get up tomorrow morning without worrying at all. ”

Tang Weitian yawned at the end, closed his eyes, sleep was his second favorite thing, like a gift, he said sleep when he said it, deep and sweet.

Xu Ji still couldn't sleep, and like Guan Changling, he opened his eyes on his back, and said for a long time: "Only killing can stop killing?" ”