Tai Hao called the two deputy generals Gu Sheng and Zhiwei to the camp tent, and told them what Daxi had just told him.

After hearing this, Zhi Wei said: "That is to say, in order to prevent the attack of the thief army, they concentrated most of their forces in Yichuan City, and put the national treasure in Dingchuan City, then his purpose is to bet on whether we dare to attack Dingchuan City, and when the time comes, they will burn all the national treasures." And after attacking Yichuan City, it will be even more difficult for us. ”

Tai Hao said: "That's right, but Onishi also said that the city lord and the general defending the city of Dingchuan City are the descendants of the founding feats of the Eastern Empire when it was not the previous dynasty, and now that they have surrendered to the Beiyu Empire, there should be another hidden reason." So will this be a breakthrough for us to seize Yichuan City? ”

Gu Sheng hesitated: "I have a bold idea, since the main army of the rebels is mainly in Yichuan City in the west, then why don't we send some soldiers to bypass Yichuan City and directly attack Pinghe City in the east?" The other part can bypass Dingchuan City, directly attack Yichuan City, and come to a 'sound west and east', as the so-called 'capture the thief first captures the king', as long as we take Pinghe City and capture the rebels' lair, those rebels will naturally all surrender. ”

After hearing this, Tai Hao frowned slightly and said, "This idea is indeed bold, but we have to take into account the counterattack of the rebels. If they find out that we are attacking Pinghe City from the east, they will most likely concentrate their forces to defend Pinghe City, so that our plan may fail. ”

Gu Sheng said: "This is also true, so what should we do?" ”

Tai Hao pondered for a moment, he took out the topographic map, compared it and said: "We can ignore Dingchuan City and Yichuan City for the first time, and march to Cangchuan City first, Cangchuan City is originally very strong, and it has not been occupied by the rebels." If we can direct the forces in Yichuan City to Cangchuan City in the south, we will deploy troops in Cangchuan City in advance, and when the army enters Cangchuan City, we will take all the rebels. At the same time, we will also send an envoy to Dingchuan Castle to negotiate with the lord of Dingchuan Castle and the general who defends the city, and try to turn them against them. ”

After hearing this, Zhi Wei nodded yes and said, "General Taihao's plan is really clever. ”

Gu Sheng asked, "What method can be used to get the rebels into the territory of Cangchuan City?" ”

Tai Hao said: "This is going to come up with a countermeasure, I have a clever plan, but I can't say it yet." ”

Zhiwei said: "Then when will we leave?" ”

Tai Hao said: "I want to write a letter first, write this method to the imperial court, and wait for the imperial court's order." Because if the imperial court does not give an order, it is impossible for us to bet on the people of Cangchuan City. ”

Zhiwei nodded and said, "What General Taihao said is extremely true. ”

Tai Hao continued: "Using this time, we can send an envoy to Dingchuan City, I mean, I want to ask Vice Admiral Zhiwei to go there, I don't know how? ”

Zhi Wei said: "Of course you can, as long as the general gives you an order." ”

"Okay, you can set off early tomorrow morning, as long as you know their true thoughts, try to turn them against them, and don't anger them." Taihao commanded.

"Yes, General!" Zhiwei nodded in response.

Tai Hao said again: "In addition, we also need to prepare some materials and food for the army to use after entering Cangchuan City, and this matter will be done by Brother Gusheng." At the same time, it is necessary to ensure that the soldiers are in good physical condition for a possible war. ”

Gu Sheng also added: "We also need to send some secret agents to go deep into the camp of Yichuan City to obtain more intelligence information. In this way, the battle plan can be better formulated and avoided being calculated by the rebels. ”

After hearing this, Tai Hao nodded and said, "Very good, both of you are capable of the Eastern Empire. Now we need to act as soon as possible and strive to capture Yichuan City and Dingchuan City in the shortest possible time. ”

They know that this is a difficult task, but with faith and courage, they will be able to succeed.

The next day, Zhiwei rode a fast horse alone to Dingchuan City.

When he came to the city of Dingchuan, a soldier on the tower shouted to him: "Where are you from Diaomin? What is the matter of entering the city? ”

Zhiwei responded: "I am an envoy of the Eastern Empire, and I have come to meet the lord of Dingchuan City. ”

When the soldier heard this, he let him enter the city gates. Zhiwei came to the city lord's mansion and met the city lord of Dingchuan City. He explained his intentions to the lord of the city, saying that the Eastern Empire wanted to cooperate with them to fight against the invasion of the Northern Feather Empire.

After hearing this, the city lord did not show an angry expression, and seemed a little hesitant. said: "Do you know that this official has already surrendered to the Beiyu Empire, and the land of Dingchuan City has changed hands. ”

Zhiwei arched his hand and said: "Of course I know, dare to ask the city lord what to call it?" ”

The city lord said: "The official's name is Liangshu, since you know, aren't you afraid that the official will order you to be arrested in prison?" ”

Zhi Wei said with a smile: "As the saying goes, when the two armies are fighting, they don't kill them, not to mention that the city lord of Liangshu was once a loyal minister and good general of the Eastern Empire." He looked at the Liangshu City Lord and continued: "I heard that the Liangshu City Lord is a descendant of the founding merits of our Eastern Empire? ”

The city lord of Liangshu nodded and said, "That's right, specifically, this official's family should be the founding meritorious descendants of the Eastern Empire's Feixi Dynasty." The ancestor of this official was once named the Duke of Yi Guo by the former emperor, and his name, title, and property can be inherited from generation to generation. However, during the reign of Emperor Xuangang, he actually ordered the abolition of the hereditary official system. If we want to be officials, we can only rely on hard study and participate in the imperial examination, and only those who pass the examination can be assigned official positions. This is very disappointing to us, because the current emperor is completely oblivious to how much our ancestors once contributed to the Eastern Empire. ”

"Is this why the Lord of Liangshu surrendered to the rebels?" Zhiwei asked.

Liang Shu said angrily: "Isn't that enough? ”

Zhi Wei continued to ask, "What conditions did the Northern Feather Empire offer to the Liangshu City Lord?" ”

Liang Shu said: "The official position will definitely be higher than in the Eastern Empire, when Xuanyu was in power, this official had written many times to restore the official system, but he never listened, and now he is causing chaos in the world, and he is also killed in Tianxue City because of this, this is all God's will, God is punishing him." ”

Zhi Wei said: "But the Beiyu Empire is just a puppet court built by rebels, and now that our army of thieves has recovered most of the cities, seeing that the Beiyu Empire is about to perish, don't you want to serve the Eastern Empire anymore?" ”

Liang Shu said: "If you want this official to continue to be loyal to the Eastern Empire, this official has only one request, that is, to restore the hereditary official system, and this official will regain the title of the ancestor. ”

Zhi Wei sighed and said, "This is very difficult for the imperial court. ”

Liang Shu said angrily: "What's so difficult about this? It's just a matter of his words! ”

Zhi Wei said slowly: "Liangshu City Lord, whether it is the world official system or the imperial examination system in our cat clan, we all learned it from humans. In our Eastern Empire, the practice of the hereditary system allowed some noble families to maintain their political status and privileges for a long time, without having to rely on their own abilities and talents. But because of this, it leads to a lot of problems. For example, the quality of some officials is extremely low, but because they have not undergone strict selection and assessment, they can always serve as high-ranking officials. The emergence of the imperial examination system has completely changed this situation, emphasizing the selection of talents and the cultivation of ability, rather than family background and blood relations. Imagine, if General Liangshu is not a descendant of the nobility, if your ancestors are not the founding meritorious service, when you are in your generation, will you still hope that the official election system of the Eastern Empire is a hereditary official system? ”

Liangshu's face changed, and he lost his voice: "But the fact is that the ancestor of this official has indeed made a lot of contributions to the Feixi Dynasty. ”

Zhi Wei sighed and said, "Liangshu City Lord, your ancestors are very admired by the younger generations, but those soldiers who died on the battlefield in the past, they don't even have descendants. Do you think that your ancestors have contributed to the country and can enjoy glory and wealth for generations to come, but what about them? They gave their lives to the country, and what do they get? ”

After hearing this, Liangshu suddenly didn't know how to respond, and after a long time, he said quietly: "This official knows that what you said makes sense, but the soldiers of Dingchuan City are not the ones that this official can call the shots, even if this official promises you to serve the Eastern Empire, but the military power is in the hands of Xun'an, the general who defends the city of Dingchuan City, and the ancestor of General Xun'an is also the founding merit of the previous dynasty, if you can move him, this official can agree to your suggestion." ”

Zhiwei asked, "Where is General Xun'an now?" ”

Liang Shu said: "General Xun'an should be in his general's mansion now. ”

"This official is here!" As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a tall man with a serious face walk in. He said, "This official has come to the city lord for something, and he heard your conversation outside the gate. ”

Zhiwei Shili said: "See General Xun'an in Xia Zhiwei." ”

Xun An frowned and asked him, "Where are you from?" ”

Zhiwei said respectfully: "I came from Hengchuan City in the next." ”

Xun An said: "The army of the Eastern Empire is really powerful, and it has reached Dingchuan City in just a few months...... I have already heard what you just said, and I agree with your statement......"

Zhi Wei's heart moved, and he hurriedly bowed down and responded: "In other words, General Xun'an is willing to lead his troops to surrender to the Eastern Empire?" “

Xun An said: "This official was originally a subject of the Eastern Empire, but this official has several conditions, and the court needs to agree to this official. ”

Liang Shu listened and said with a smile: "General Xun'an, this official knows that you will not give in easily, and the conditions you want should be the same as this official." ”

Zhiwei asked, "What are the conditions for daring to ask?" ”

Xun An responded: "First, after we lead our troops to surrender, we must ensure the safety of the people in Dingchuan City, as well as our generals, soldiers, and our families in Dingchuan City; second, to ensure that our own property is not confiscated or lost; Third, after we surrender, we must not revoke our official positions or demote us to the border; Fourth, after the army of thieves enters Dingchuan City, we must not be identified as rebels, and we can be allowed to take Dingchuan City without spending a single soldier. ”

Liang Shu smiled: "General Xun'an, we really want to go together, and I am about to make these requests." ”

Xun An asked Zhiwei, "How is it?" Can it be done? ”

Zhiwei listened carefully to his requests, and felt that there was nothing wrong with him, but he was not a decision-maker after all, and he had to go back to ask Taihao for instructions. Then he said: "I listened carefully to General Xun'an's request, and thought that every sentence was reasonable, please stay and return to Hengchuan City, report this matter to the general of the thief, and ask him to decide!" ”