The emperor looked serious and looked at the ministers below, "There is an urgent report from the border pass, the Turks have raised 300,000 troops to attack, Fengzhou City has fallen, and the guard General Zhu has been killed."

"What do you think Aiqing should do about this?"

Everyone had heard the rumors before the last dynasty, and now that they heard that General Zhu had died and Fengzhou City had been lost, they immediately realized the seriousness of the situation.

But because the incident came suddenly, everyone didn't think of a countermeasure, and for a while, no one stood up to reply.

The Emperor frowned.

When the fifth prince saw this, he stood up and said, "Father, the retainers think that the Turks have violated the covenant without permission and are too arrogant, so we must teach them a good lesson."

"For the sake of the present day, we should gather three armies, rush to the border passes, recover the lost cities, and drive the Turks out.

"Erchen is willing to take the initiative to ask for help, take the lead, and fight with the Turks."

The third prince has been demoted to a commoner and exiled to Lingnan, and the concubine has also been stripped of her title, demoted to a concubine, placed under house arrest and in the Changxin Palace.

The second princess was not punished, but she was grounded because of it.

The henchmen of the three princes' faction raided their homes, exiled those who were exiled, and demoted those who were demoted, seven or eight out of ten have gone, and the rest are some insignificant officials, slow down, and then clean them out.

At this point, the stumbling blocks in front of him have been cleared.

And the court has just undergone a purge, and the five princes took this opportunity to insert a lot of their cronies, and now, as long as he makes military achievements, he can set a powerful benchmark in the hearts of the courtiers, and the emperor will also look at him differently.

At that time, he would have all the ingredients to enter the East Palace.

The five princes had wishful thinking in their hearts and looked at the emperor with an eager face.

At this time, the six princes also stood up and said, "Father, the sons and daughters are also willing to go to the battlefield and serve the imperial court." ”

"Erchen, please also ask." The Seventh Prince followed.

The ministers were dumbfounded, this has not yet begun to discuss countermeasures, in the end it is war or peace, the emperor has not yet made up his mind, and the princes began to rush to fight, what is the trouble?

The emperor's face did not change, but a trace of relief crossed his eyes, and the sons and daughters of the Li family were not cowardly.

The next moment, a courtier asked, "Your Majesty, the south has just experienced floods and locust plagues, and there is a plague outbreak in Lanzhou, and the treasury may not be able to withstand a large-scale war." ”

This is Lord Hubu Shangshu Qian, and he is the only one who knows the true situation of the treasury best, and if he comes to conquer the Turks again, I am afraid that the treasury will be empty.

The Emperor's brow furrowed even tighter.

General Xue said, "Don't you fight?" That's too much of a bag. ”

Lord Qian looked at him, "It's not that you don't fight, but you want to solve the problem of grain and grass." ”

General Xue choked, and then muttered, "Isn't this the same as not saying it." ”

The emperor looked at Wu Sikong, "Sikong, what do you say?" ”

Wu Sikong pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, in fact, the grain and grass are not difficult to solve, as long as any of the granaries of Hanjiacang, Luokoucang, and Huiluocang are opened, it is enough for a million troops to eat for half a year."

"What's more, we don't need to recruit so many troops, as long as 200,000 troops are enough, plus 50,000 troops from the Anbei Protectorate, I think we will definitely be able to defeat the 300,000 Turkic army."

250,000 troops against 300,000 troops, but 50,000 differences, in Wu Sikong's eyes, this is nothing, Dayuan generals are brave and good at fighting, and they will definitely be able to defeat the Turks.

The emperor nodded, "Sikong is right, Zhong Aiqing, do you have any other opinions?" ”

The ministers looked at each other, and did not speak without a good opinion.

The fifth prince thought for a while, and the difference was 50,000 people, which is not a small number, the Turks have always been good at fighting, and their war horses are very fine, the number is equal, and he is still half sure that he can win. Now that the number of people is 50,000, then he has no confidence.

So, he said, "Father, the sons and daughters thought that the Turks were menacing this time, and they must be well prepared.

"What's more, the Turks have always been very good at horseback kung fu, and we should have more people to participate in the war."

The Seventh Emperor also echoed, "Brother Five Emperors is right, we are not short of troops, why only send 200,000, instead of 300,000 or 400,000?"

"If we send more people, we will win in terms of momentum, which will greatly increase the confidence of the soldiers, and it will be more beneficial to us."

Wu Sikong said lightly, "In a war, it is never the case that a large number of people will win, but the generals are properly commanded and the soldiers obey the command." In this way, even those who are several times lower than the enemy army can win more with less.

"There are many examples in history where less wins more, not to mention, we are only 50,000 Turks."

The corners of the fifth prince's eyes twitched, what is 50,000? He must ensure that he is sure enough to win this victory and hold the military merit firmly in his hands.

"Father"

The emperor interrupted the words of the five princes, "Okay, I also think that Sikong is right, let's discuss who to send as the commander now." ”

The fifth prince said again: "Erchen is willing to go." ”

What this means is that he wants to be the commander.

It's a pity that the emperor glanced at him lightly, didn't answer him, and looked at the others.

As soon as the seventh prince saw the emperor's expression, he knew that the emperor did not want the prince to go, so he swallowed the words of the initiative.

General Xue lowered his head before the emperor's gaze arrived, trying to lower his presence.

The emperor was particularly disappointed for a while, and he thought that if General Yang was in the court, he would definitely take the initiative to ask for Ying.

Wu Sikong knelt down on one knee, "Your Majesty, the minister is willing to lead the troops there." ”

When the emperor heard this, he felt a little comforted, but he did not agree, "The court still needs Sikong, and Sikong should not go." ”

After a pause, the emperor continued, "Just let General Yang go." ”

In this way, the emperor made the final decision and set the commander of the expedition.

After retiring from the court, Xiao Lingfeng, who was beside him, suddenly knelt down, "Your Majesty, the minister is also willing to go to the northwest and go out with the army." ”

The emperor looked at him for a long time, and finally said, "You have been with me for two years, and I see your skills and talents, and you are a talent."

"That's right."

Xiao Lingfeng was overjoyed: "Thank you, Your Majesty." ”

——

At the end of the day, the holy decree arrived at the Yang Mansion and the Xiao Mansion, as well as the mansions of other generals.

The crusade against the Turks requisitioned a total of 200,000 troops, with General Yang as the commander, and the emperor personally designated five generals as auxiliaries, Feng Xiao Lingfeng as the left general, Yang Zheng as the right general, and set off tomorrow.

When the news reached Yang Huijun's ears, it was already evening.

"Quick, pack up, let's go back to the city."

Gu Mama said, "Madam, it's too late for us to go back now, and when we get to the city gate, the city gate is already closed, so it's better for us to send the old general outside the city tomorrow." ”

Yang Huijun thought for a moment, "Tell Shen You to come over." ”

Soon, Shen You came over, "What do you have to say, Madame?" ”

Yang Huijun said, "Go and inquire, which city gate the old general will start from tomorrow." ”

"Yes, ma'am."

Xiao Ling outside the door stopped slightly, her grandfather is going to go on the expedition?

No, she'll have to take a look