Zhongzhou, Taiji Palace.

"According to the urgent report of Dongguan Mansion, which had just arrived, the Taiping bandit army besieging the city launched a surprise attack seven days ago and captured the southern city wall after unsuccessfully attacking Wu'an for many days. After that, there seems to have been a big battle in the city, but the details are unknown. By the time we revisited the next day, the fighting had largely subsided, and the Imperial flag had been taken down. Due to the heavy security of the thieves, it is difficult for the secret sentry to approach, and the specific situation in Wu'an City is not known. ”

Noticing the near-freezing air in the hall, the head of the Military Intelligence Bureau spoke in a quieter and quieter voice......

"Excellent! The empire is in the hands of my fathers, and it has always been the peace of the country and the people. As a result, when I ascended the throne, the city was first broken by the thief army, but now it is good, even the county seat of Taiping County, Wu'an, has been taken by them. What an unprecedented! Lords of the center, you have done a good job! ”

Qian Yuanji was already almost out of shape, his face turned from blue to white, and he stood in front of the imperial case angrily.

The ministers in the Taiji Hall knew very well that this was an omen of the emperor's wrath, and they were silent one by one, and no one dared to speak. No one expected that the Taiping bandit army that suddenly appeared would be able to do amazing things again and again, completely breaking their expectations and judgments.

"It was mentioned in the report, how did the thieves break through Wu'an?"

The emperor's own uncle, Chengguo Gong Qiantai Zhuo, was the first to break the silence.

He really couldn't believe this six-hundred-mile rush report. As one of Qianyuanji's most powerful supporters and one of the empire's famous generals, Qiantaizhuo knew very well how strong a county's defense system and strength should be. Not to mention the two garrison brigades and a total of 8,000 officers and soldiers, as well as a large number of city defense weapons and the help of the family's private soldiers in the city.

That's right. Taiping County has the Lin family with eight major valves!

Such power. and defend the city again. What kind of means does a gang of thieves have to penetrate the sky to break through the city in less than ten months?

Anyway, Cheng Guogong himself can't imagine it.

"The messenger who reported the news made limited references, saying only that the thieves had used a large number of siege weapons, such as large trebuchets." The head of the Military Intelligence Bureau whispered to answer Cheng Guogong's questions.

"Trebuchet!"

Cheng Guogong was mainly responsible for fighting against the Lena Dynasty in the north, and he never paid much attention to the Taiping Army, just regarded him as an ordinary thief, and couldn't help but be taken aback when he heard it. Ordinary rogue. Where can such a siege weapon be made. So where is the Taiping Army sacred, and can actually get a large number of stone throwers?

Many ministers in the palace couldn't help but be taken aback when they heard this.

In the imperial capital of Zhongzhou, they are in charge of the affairs of the entire empire. Taiping County is far away from the mountains and rivers, even if the destruction of Longshan Mansion in Zhongzhou has caused a shock, there are still many people who don't take it seriously. It wasn't until this time, when things reached the Taiji Hall for the second time, and even the county town was broken, that they really realized the threat of the Taiping Army.

Seeing the surprise and confusion on the faces of many ministers in the palace, coupled with Feng Wu, who was in charge of military affairs, was infected with wind and cold due to overwork. failed to go to court, and a front-row important minister took the initiative to stand up.

It's Chen Sansheng.

As Home Secretary. It is also the Chen family of the Eight Great Lords, since Longshan was broken by Taiping County, Chen Sansheng has been paying attention to the intelligence of the Taiping Army. Among the ministers present, he should have the most knowledge before and after the development of the Taiping Army, no worse than the Feng Wu who did not go to the court, and began to introduce the information of the Taiping Army to the ministers of the Taiji Hall and the Chengguo Gongqian Taizhuo.

"The Taiping bandit army first revolted in early August in the town of Changshan in Long Son Province. The cause is...... In order to prepare for the Northwest War, the empire ordered ransom to requisition livestock from all over the country. ”

He only said a faint beginning, which made the ministers in the Taiji Hall commotion.

A minister of the Imperial War Readiness Agency stood up and accused: "What does the Minister of the Interior mean is that the plan of requisitioning livestock to transport grain and grass for the war in the northwest is wrong? Moreover, I remember very clearly, at that time, there was a clear order from the center of the empire that the local government must be redeemed at the market price, right? ”

"You're right." Chen Sansheng glanced at him and said quietly: "The order is indeed like this, but it is out of shape when it is executed in Taiping County." The government of Yicheng not only forcibly requisitioned cattle at a very low price, but also imposed an unbridled levy on the local people, so as to provoke a popular uprising, which was used by the thief leader Chen Wu to incite the people of Changshan Town to revolt. ”

"That's also the fault of the local government, what does it have to do with the Battle of the Northwest?" The minister of the Imperial War Readiness Agency still refused to give up and continued to argue with Chen Sansheng.

"Two, how about putting this dispute on hold for the time being?"

Cheng Guogong spoke slowly, and with his prestige, he calmed down the dispute with just one sentence, allowing Chen Sansheng to continue.

"The thief leader Chen Wu, according to the urgent investigation of the Military Intelligence Bureau, should be just an ordinary peasant, but judging from his words and deeds, this is definitely not the case. The other party is skilled in military affairs, ruthless, and familiar with the situation of the empire. At the beginning of the army, rumors were created, saying that 200,000 stone of disaster relief grain in Longshan Mansion was seized and not distributed, inciting the hatred of the people. He also established himself as the general of Tiangong, and wrote an essay on the Taiping Righteous Army's crusade against Qianyuan......"

Chen Sansheng was extremely eloquent, standing on this Taiji hall, and talked endlessly about all matters of the righteous army. How to raise troops, how to attack Yicheng and Lushan, how to besiege Fucheng and besiege without attacking, setting up an ambush in Xiayang Valley, etc. Except for some discrepancies in details, almost all the news that Chen Wu did not deliberately block was told by Chen Sansheng.

There were a few details that even Qian Yuanji hadn't noticed when he read the newspaper before.

After listening to Chen Sansheng's explanation, the ministers in the Taiji Hall had a detailed and comprehensive understanding of the Taiping bandit army for the first time, and they also knew how much destructive and threatening the gang of rebels who occupied nearly a county. As for the Friends of the Good Friends, which is also not small in scale, because they only followed and responded after the Taiping Army raised troops, their reputation was suppressed by the Taiping Army, and there are traces to follow, they are the remnants of the Wenxiang Sect decades ago, but they were invariably ranked in a secondary position by the ministers.

"Since the Longshan Mansion has been broken nearly two months ago, the Wu'an Garrison Brigade is in ambush in Xiayang Valley. Why didn't the empire send troops to quell the rebellion? ”

Qian Mingde, the eldest prince who listened to the government in the same dynasty, couldn't help but ask.

"Back to His Royal Highness, the empire's troops in Qinghe County and Anqing County have been greatly transferred to the northwest, and there is a military vacuum around Taiping County. However, after the recent Battle of the Northwest, the two divisions of the Qinghe Corps had received orders to go directly to Taiping County on the way back. The head of the MIA opened his mouth and said the layout of the empire.

"Qinghe's legion?"

Cheng Guogong thought about it for a while, and couldn't help but shake his head secretly. No matter how much they traveled day and night, the two legions of Qinghe should still be on the road in Longxi County in the northwest. If you want to reach Taiping County, you will have to wait for January next year at the earliest, and even if you do, you will have to rest for at least three or five days before you can enter the battle.

Is there no other force?

Chen Sansheng's eyes secretly intersected with Qianyuanji, and the monarchs and ministers invariably remained silent.

The identity of Cheng Guogong is obviously qualified to know what is really arranged. It's just that there are many people in this Taiji Hall, and they can't say it anyway. Otherwise, it will inevitably lead to a new round of controversy and admonition, so that there will be nothing to do for a good court.

"I just want to ask, is there any mention of the family in the city?"

In Chen Sansheng's silence, another minister stood up.

The familiar voice immediately attracted everyone's attention. It's none other than Lin Anping, who was once envied by many ministers, but now he has become a gloating foreign minister, the younger brother of the head of the Lin family!

When Wu'an was surrounded, Lin Anping was still on his way back from the mission to the Principality of Barents, and he learned about the Taiping bandit army not long after. Unexpectedly, within a few days, the bad news that he felt the sky was falling came over.

Wu'an City was actually breached!

One of the gate valves inherited from the founding of the Eight Great Congresses, the dignified Wu'an Lin family, is it going to be removed from now on?

The other eight major lords, such as the Chen family, the Wei Chi family, the Shen family, and the Feng family, were more or less sad, and they were deeply afraid of the Taiping bandits. Of course, while thinking about how to quell the rebellion as much as possible, they were also secretly thinking about how to annex and take over the huge resources left by the Lin family.

After sympathy, some people even immediately set their sights on Lin Anping's position as Foreign Minister.

Lin Anping's ability is undoubted, but if there is no support from the Lin family, it will be difficult to sit in this position!

"I'm sorry...... There is no detailed information, which may be mentioned in a follow-up report. However......" The person in charge of the Military Intelligence Bureau hesitated: "Look at the actions of the thieves in Yicheng, Lushan, and Longshan, all of them are plundering resources, eliminating nobles and wealthy households, and driving the people into exiles. The Lin family's wealth is famous all over the world, but I am afraid of ......"

It was hard to escape the four words, and he couldn't say it.

"The matter of the Lin family, wait for accurate news to come. I now want to know how you will end up in the current situation in Taiping County! ”

………

Lin Anping didn't know how he got out of the noisy Tai Chi Palace.

Knowing that the foundation of the Lin family might be destroyed, his whole body was in a daze, as if he had lost his soul all of a sudden. Although he did not have a little expectation in his heart, he also listened to the analysis of the Military Intelligence Bureau, which is indeed very reasonable. Even if the Lin family relied on the arrangements at home for a while, if the imperial counterinsurgency army was delayed, they would eventually be trapped to death.

"The Lin family, is it really going to die?"

This thought flashed, Lin Anping stopped blankly, and couldn't help but look up to the sky and sigh.

"Brother Lin?"

Chen Sansheng's voice faintly came from behind, Lin Anping glanced back and found that the other party was hurrying towards him.

"Is the Chen family here to see Lin's joke?"

Lin Anping lost his heart, so he naturally had no scruples when he spoke, and he rushed to death.

Chen Sansheng knew Lin Anping's current mood, and he was not angry, so he rushed over and pulled him aside, looked at no one on the left and right, and said in a low voice: "Things may not be as bad as Brother Lin thought." ”

"Why did the Home Secretary say that?"

Seeing Chen Sansheng's expression of obviously knowing something, Lin Anping's heart was shocked, and he immediately grabbed his arm tightly and looked over with pleading eyes. (To be continued.) )