Hearing that the Queen Mother suddenly arrived, Princess Taiping, Xue Yi and others hurriedly greeted her, and Li Duozuo was also ready to leave, and where did he come from and where he returned, wanting to avoid the Queen Mother.

Xue Shao kept Li Duozuo and said that we Mingren don't do dark things and don't have to avoid it at all, and we will welcome the Queen Mother with me.

Today, Wu Zetian's pomp and circumstance were not big, just let his good nephew Wu Yougui bring a team of thousands of cavalry armor to open the way, and even the honor guard was not complete, obviously in a hurry. Xue Shao and the others went to meet them, but Wu Zetian didn't say much except to deal with some etiquette, and only asked Xue Shao to sit down and talk alone.

Xue Shao invited Wu Zetian to a quiet study, and when Wu Zetian saw Li Duozuo, he called him in together.

"General Li knows that Xue is recuperating from his injuries in bed, did he come here today to ask for a meeting?" Wu Zetian still asked.

Li Duozuo hurriedly replied, saying that he did not pay attention to military affairs, but had not seen the general for many days, and had a private meeting.

Wu Zetian nodded and didn't ask any more, Xue Shao said: "Since the Queen Mother asked, why should General Li speak out?" ”

"Uh......" Li Duozuo hesitated, and had to report to Wu Zetian truthfully.

After Wu Zetian heard this, he smiled and said: "The soldiers of the right guard have really worked hard recently, and it is normal for people to have a little affection. You can report such things directly to the court, so why hide them? ”

"Queen Mother, the minister didn't plan to hide it." Xue Shao said with a smile, "The minister is preparing to enter the palace to ask the Queen Mother for a reward of money, silk, wine and meat, to appease the feelings of the soldiers." ”

"It should be." Wu Zetian was very generous and said, "Tomorrow, the Japanese Palace will order you to handle the affairs of the army." The Right Guard Army is the main force of the royal division guarding the eastern capital, and the internal situation of the army must not be ignored. Xue Shao, Li Duozuo, in the future, you can raise this kind of thing in the court, or directly to the palace, you don't have to hide it. ”

"Yes!"

Li Duozuo secretly sighed, thinking to himself, how can I open my mouth for this kind of "begging for a reward"? There is still a tacit understanding between the general and the queen mother - it seems that he is really not an ordinary person, and he can be qualified for the post of general of the right guard!

Li Duozuo's matter was finished, and soon he retreated with great interest. In the study, only Xue Shao and Wu Zetian were left.

"As you expected, the Northern Turks have rebelled!" Wu Zetian really opened his mouth to see the mountain.

Xue Shao's brows tightened, "Queen Mother, did they attack Fengzhou?" ”

"You're half right." Wu Zetian's expression was very stern, and he took out a military intelligence report from his cuff and handed it to Xue Shao, "This is an hour ago, and the palace just received the eight-hundred-mile expedited forward military report. Except for Pei Yan in the service, the other prime ministers and important ministers haven't seen it yet, you take a look first. ”

Xue Shao hurriedly took the military report and looked at it, and suddenly his heart tightened, and his expression changed slightly!

Wu Zetian said: "The suspicious plan you offered still worked, and the Turks did not dare to disturb Fengzhou after they went south to Yinshan. But they were very cunning, and they didn't dare to approach the suspicious soldiers in Fengzhou, so they turned around and hid on a small road, and went to raid Ulzhou, which was not far from Fengzhou. Ulju did not have many troops, and after encountering the enemy, he warned him with wolf smoke and sent people to break through the siege and ask for help from neighboring states. Cui Zhibian, the governor of Fengzhou, hurriedly sent troops to rescue, but unexpectedly fell into the Turkic ambush. In this way, Li Sijian, the assassin of Ulzhou, was killed, and the chickens and dogs in Ulzhou were not left, and the soldiers and civilians were either slaughtered or taken captive by the Turks. The governor of Fengzhou, Cui Zhibi, was wiped out, and he was also captured alive! ”

Xue Shao smashed his fist on the table, "Since you are a suspicious soldier, why do you want to take the initiative to attack and expose yourself?" The Turks are obviously besieging the city to send reinforcements, seducing Fengzhou soldiers and horses to attack and then diverting the tiger from the mountain - Cui Zhi's plan to defeat the battle, harming others and himself! ”

"Indeed!" Wu Zetian also sighed very annoyed, "If Cui Zhibi doesn't attack, even if Ulzhou falls, at least he can keep Fengzhou's troops from losing!" ”

Xue Shao glanced at the military newspaper again and said: "Queen Mother, fortunately, Fengzhou Sima Tang Xiujing turned the tide and led the few remaining men and horses to resist the fierce attack of the Turkic rebels, otherwise the country of Fengzhou would also be lost!" ”

"This Tang Xiujing is not bad." Wu Zetian nodded and praised, "This person used to be Hu Cao under the command of Zhou Daowu, the governor of Yingzhou, and he was a Confucian general. He once followed Zhou Daowu to serve under Pei Gong to participate in the Northern Expedition, during which he made military achievements, so he was promoted to Fengzhou Sima to take charge of military affairs in border towns. If Cui Zhibi, the governor of Fengzhou, listened to Tang Xiujing's advice and did not move, there would not have been such a defeat. Now the Turks are besieging Fengzhou, even though Tang Xiujing is a rare general, but Fengzhou is weak after all, I am afraid that it will be difficult to last. Danger! ”

Xue Shao nodded, I still have a little impression of Tang Xiujing, I have met him once or twice on the basis of his brief contact with Zhou Daowu during the Northern Expedition. I remember that he was in his fifties, but he was still as lively as a young man and shot arrows well. Wu Zetian's evaluation of Tang Xiujing as a "Confucian general" is quite appropriate, Tang Xiujing has always served as a civilian but has not made any great achievements. But then after he was transferred to Yingzhou, which is located in the border pass, he showed his special talent in military affairs, and within a few years, he became a member of the right-hand man under the command of Zhou Daowu, the governor of Yingzhou, and after the Northern Expedition, he was transferred to Fengzhou Sima and became the military governor of an important border town, shouldering the heavy responsibility of guarding a country.

After thinking for a moment, Xue Shao clenched his fists and bowed, "Queen Mother, there is no other way - minister, please go on the expedition!" ”

"Wait!" Wu Zetian said, "The new monarch is about to take charge in three days, and the court of the Tang Dynasty is facing a major variable. At this extraordinary time, how can the main force of the imperial capital be moved? ”

Xue Shao gritted his teeth and endured it for the time being, and asked, "What is the intention of the Queen Mother and Pei Xianggong?" ”

Wu Zetian frowned slightly, and said calmly: "After receiving the military report, Pei Yan urgently discussed with the palace, although he did not make a decision, but he had a preliminary idea. Pei Yan said that it is better for a general to be proficient in military affairs than to consult the general before making a decision. That's why the palace will come to the door in person and ask you for advice. ”

"Don't dare to be a minister!" Xue Shao hugged his fists and bowed, thinking that it seemed that Wu Zetian did not come here to send troops, but just to listen to my opinions as a "staff officer...... That's it, after all, I'm not the prime minister who is planning the country and the army, and they are willing to ask me, which is already very face-saving for me!

"The meaning of the service is to abandon Fengzhou and retreat to Yingzhou." Wu Zetian said.

Xue Shao's eyes widened in astonishment after hearing this, "Queen Mother, this move must not be!" ”

"Hongu knows that you will say that." Wu Zetian's reaction was very calm, and he said, "In fact, this palace also knows that if Fengzhou abandons it, it will lose a country, and thousands of miles of territory will be lost to the enemy, which will also greatly breed the ambitions of the Turks." But now, the imperial court is unstable, and it is difficult to send troops to reinforce Toyoshu. Even if troops are sent, I am afraid that before Wang Shi arrives in Fengzhou, Fengzhou will already fall. Even so, it is better to give up Fengzhou in consideration of the overall situation and strengthen the defense in the Lingzhou and Xiazhou areas as soon as possible. ”

"Queen Mother, is this the meaning of the waiter?" Xue Shao asked.

Wu Zetian nodded with a stern expression, "It's also the meaning of this palace." ”

Xue Shao began to think, in fact, from the overall situation, giving up Fengzhou is indeed a way out of the way. But it's easy to give up thousands of miles of territory, so how easy is it to regain it? Moreover, what kind of pain and suffering the military and civilians on that thousand-mile territory will suffer is not something that people like Wu Zetian and Pei Yan can understand.

More importantly, Wu Zetian and Pei Yan are pure politicians, and the starting point of their consideration of the problem is first the imperial court and authority, and then the military strategy and the protection of the territory and the people. But Xue Shao, as a general, his duty is to protect the territory and the people. This may be the essential gap between politicians and military commanders.

"Queen Mother, please forgive your bluntness!" Xue Shao clenched his fists and bowed, and said, "The minister can't agree, the opinion of the servant!" ”

Wu Zetian obviously expected Xue Shao to answer like this, and she asked calmly, "Then, tell me what you think." ”

Xue Shao said: "The queen mother, the minister is a general, and the minister is in the army. Fengzhou relied on the Yellow River as a natural danger, guarding the dangerous road of the Turks to the south, and behind it was a smooth road and a fertile field, full of unarmed ordinary people. If the Hu people's petty looting in the frontier is just a disease of scabies, then taking Fengzhou is comparable to cutting off one of the hands and feet of the Tang Dynasty. If the disease of scabies does not hurt the muscles and bones, if the hands and feet are cut off, how can they be reborn? ”

Wu Zetian frowned, "Fengzhou is just giving up for the time being, and then recapture it later, can't you?" ”

"No." Xue Shao replied very affirmatively, "The Turks are like robbers, if they are allowed to break through Fengzhou, they will inevitably drive straight into and trample thousands of miles, kill all the soldiers and civilians, plunder the population, burn the city, trample the fields, and leave no chickens and dogs in ruins wherever they go." In the future, if Datang wants to take back Fengzhou, it may not be difficult to attack the city and seize the land, but if it wants to reshape the border defense again, it must rely on the support of the strong national and civil power behind it. However, thousands of miles of territory have been in ruins, and the vitality has been greatly damaged, and if you want to recover it, you must work hard for decades and invest a hundred times more manpower and material resources. If the imperial court suffers for a hundred years in response to a momentary emergency, the minister thinks that it is not advisable! ”

After hearing this, Wu Zetian was silent for a long time.

Xue Shao was not in a hurry to persuade Wu Zetian and gave her enough time to think.

At this time, Wu Zetian also stood up and began to pace slowly, pondering for a long time.

"Chengyu, you have a very reasonable point. Toyosu is indeed not to be abandoned. Wu Zetian said, "But you also understand the current crisis, how should the imperial court execute?" ”

Xue Shao said: "The minister also understands the plight of the empress dowager and the imperial court, at this time, facing the instability of the new monarch's pro-government, the imperial capital urgently needs a large number of troops to protect it, and it is difficult to send a large army to help in the war." But the imperial court must not sit idly by and watch Fengzhou be broken, otherwise...... Will be sinners through the ages! ”

Wu Zetian was slightly stunned, his expression became very serious, and he nodded silently and solemnly.

Xue Shao's words were not clear, and he secretly implied that if Fengzhou fell because of the inaction of the imperial court this time, it would be a heavy militaristic mistake, and this account would definitely be counted on the head of the empress dowager - now it is not the same dynasty of the two saints, but the period of change of imperial power when the empress dowager is in power. As soon as this account is calculated, the Queen Mother is the sinner of the ages referred to by Wanfu!

Such a crime is not something that any politician can bear, especially Wu Zetian, an "agent" with a special status. If he had made such a serious mistake during his short period of administration, it would have had a very bad impact on Wu Zetian's "development" in the future...... Especially, if she wants to take a step more "upward"!

Therefore, Xue Shao's sentence "Sinner through the ages" was like a knife, piercing Wu Zetian's heart!

Among them, it can be called the deep meaning of "punishing the heart", Xue Shao and Wu Zetian each tacitly.