Chapter 525 Taking Han Mian
Li Tai also thought a lot about whether Wang Sizheng should be established to govern Yingchuan. He even asked Wang Sizheng a similar question directly, but he did not receive a positive response from Wang Sizheng.
Later generations discussed this a lot, with different viewpoints and perspectives, but in the end it was inevitable to sigh. Because what stands out about this matter is a twist, and it is difficult to explain it clearly through clear and visible logic.
Yuwen Taijin asked Li Tai whether it was feasible for Wang Sizheng to govern Yingchuan. Obviously, he was not just asking whether it should be done, but had a deeper and richer meaning.
From various political, economic, military and other perspectives, if Yingchuan is the well-deserved center of Henan and completely irreplaceable, then there is nothing to discuss. This choice itself is what everyone expects.
But if Yingchuan's importance does not reach this level at all, then there will be differences in positions and interests when facing this issue. What surrounds this is no longer a discussion, but a dispute and a game. The final result has nothing to do with the reason.
From the perspective of the hegemony of the Western Wei Dynasty, it is obvious that he does not want Wang Sizheng to govern Yingchuan. Especially after the huge defeat in Heluo Xinjing, it was even more impossible to maintain an overly radical strategy for the Henan direction.
If it is established in Yingchuan and wants to control Henan for a long time, the first rule will not be effective and the cost of the second rule will increase. The relationship between Henan and Guanzhong is limited by geographical factors and the current strategic environment, which is completely insufficient to form benign interaction and complementarity.
Cui You, who was the governor of Xizhou at the time, had also proposed a place more suitable for the residence of Xingtai than Yingchuan, and that was Xiangcheng. Xiangcheng is located in the southwest of Yingchuan. Going north along the Beirushui River, you can go straight to Yichuan and connect with Heluo. Going west, you can pass through Luyang and communicate with the Nanyang Basin where Jingzhou is located. It can be said that you can advance, attack, retreat, and defend. Communication can be maintained in large strategic areas.
But no matter how correct the advice is, if it is not implemented, what is the use of repeating it thousands of times? The current situation is obviously that Wang Sizheng is determined to have his own way, that is, to set up the administrative office of Xingtai in Yingchuan, and it is not that he does not know where it is.
Therefore, whether or not Yingchuan should be governed is not the core of the issue. In particular, Li Tai has now initially entered the decision-making level of the Bafu, and is not just a simple general and adviser. As the saying goes, follow the law. If he feels that Wang Sizheng should not do this, then he may have to step forward and be responsible for making Wang Sizheng follow the rules. Bafu’s decision will be implemented.
But at this stage, Wang Sizheng was full of grand plans to open up new territories. The heat in his heart was probably second only to that of Xiao Bodhisattva in Nanliang. He even dared to openly disobey and fail to execute Yuwentai's orders. This fire was so intense. Easy to extinguish?
Li Tai felt that if he wanted to make Wang Sizheng give up his insistence, he might have to go directly to the army to disarm him. This is obviously impossible, so we can only acquiesce to the result insisted on by Wang Sizheng.
Therefore, the most important thing at the moment is to cover up the conflicts and disputes that have arisen. The second thing is to minimize the negative impact on the Western Wei regime after the failure of Wang Sizheng's aggressive policy.
Historically, Yuwentai did a good job on these two points. He agreed to Wang Sizheng's request to establish governance in Yingchuan and acquiesced to its semi-independent status. Then when Wang Sizheng faced the siege, there was no hot-headed army to come to the rescue, thus burying more power in Yingchuan.
Some people may think that what Yu Wentai did was unreasonable, but Wang Sizheng should have expected this situation when he made this choice. Or ask yourself, is the strategic value of Yingchuan great enough for him to persist in resisting regardless of his own safety? Is it big enough for the Kansai Hegemony to invest in maintaining it at all costs?
If Li Tai wants to answer this question, he needs to describe his views on the gains and losses of Yingchuan and the impact of the hegemony and the general trend of the world in a relatively long time dimension.
He pondered for a while before speaking: "When my troops were stationed in that country, I saw that there were indeed people in Henan who followed the Tao and pursued righteousness, but there were also people who were ignorant of morality and succumbed to the power of thieves. The land had been in desolation for a long time. It was not a short period of time. Although the traces of the thieves have been wiped out, the evil power has not been eliminated. It is difficult to establish governance and even more difficult to educate. Perhaps the Duke of Taiyuan was worried about this, so he did not hesitate to take risks and set up a government in Yingchuan to influence him with his bright character. The abandoned humanity in that country..."
When Yuwentai heard what he said, he laughed twice with unknown meaning, and then said again: "So, in Boshan's view, Taiyuan's public administration of Yingchuan is an improper and dangerous move?"
"How can any person with lofty ideals who wants to work diligently and achieve great results deliberately avoid danger and hesitate to move forward? The land of Yingchuan is a plain with no cover on all sides. Who would dare to stand alone and defend the place without being loyal, courageous and talented?"
To put it bluntly, it is always a fact that Wang Sizheng bravely attacked and took over the land of Henan in seven states and twelve towns directly from Hou Jing. His contribution to the expansion of the territory of the Western Wei Dynasty was undoubted, which also gave Yu Wentai a headache. place.
Li Tai did not deny the fact that Yingchuan was undefeated, but he only praised Wang Sizheng's courage and determination, but did not urge him to change the town. He was also worried that if he really made such nonsense, Yu Wentai might take advantage of the trend. Arrange this for yourself.
Although he admired Wang Sizheng, he did not want to pay for his willfulness. If you have the opportunity, it is moral to give you the help you can. It is foolish to devote yourself to making up for other people's mistakes.
When Yu Wentai heard Li Tai's answer, he was speechless for a moment. Although these words are evasive, they are also very consistent with Li Boshan's thoughts and plans. Without such courage and courage, how could he have repeatedly achieved great achievements that no one can match?
"Alas, even so, in the four battles in Henan, it is far from being able to establish the situation in a few battles and in a day and night. The current battle in Heluo is not able to suppress the thieves' power. If we go to fight in Henan again, it will be even more difficult. The increase is so unpredictable!”
He Luo suffered a severe beating, and Yu Wentai also became realistic and no longer blindly optimistic. He was frightened when he thought about the manpower and material resources needed to open up a new battlefield in Henan.
"Today, the turmoil in Henan has not yet been resolved. The rebels are still there. The Huaixia army is about to move out. There will be a big fight between the north and the south. The outcome is still undecided. There is a great opportunity to take advantage of it. It is also the right thing to hold on to the ground to see its success or failure. How can we expand the territory without being exposed to the danger of war?”
Li Tai certainly didn't mean to support Wang Sizheng when he said this. Since he was not involved in this matter, there was no need to talk eloquently because he had to say a few words when asked by Yu Wentai, but the purpose was still to bring the topic to him. Concerned about the situation in Jingzhou.
At this point, Li Tai no longer concealed his feelings and said directly: "In this Eastern Expedition, everyone who fought against the Eastern bandits was lucky enough not to be defeated, but he also felt that the thieves were fierce and stubborn, just like the Lord. As mentioned above, if we want to defeat it in a big way, it may not be possible in a short time. Today, the land of Kansai is small and the people are small. Even if we use the power of the people, we may still not be able to reach the fertile land where the thieves are, and it will take a long time. A great victory, then replenishing national strength is also the key to controlling thieves and rejuvenating the country!"
When Yu Wentai heard this, he immediately became interested. Naturally, he could not forget that in addition to Li Tai's military talents and performance, he was also good at making money. The latter, in particular, has almost an irreplaceable status among the entire Bafu civil and military community. The money and food accumulated in the treasury today was obtained by Li Tai before the Eastern Expedition.
"What Bo Shan said is indeed the truth. What original ideas do you have on this?"
Yu Wentai looked at Li Tai and asked with a smile.
"Henan is not the only one who is experiencing changes now. Hou Jing worked hard to win over the Southern Dynasty, and Emperor Liang is old and faint, and at an octogenarian age, he is as young as a thief..."
Li Tai told Yu Wentai what he had said when talking with Cui Qian and others before. This time he was more specific: "The heir of Emperor Liang died young, and all his sons are strong. The heir who lives now is in his household." The Liang family claims to be dedicated to etiquette, but the clan is eccentric and has weak ethics..."
Emperor Wu of Liang, Xiao Sheng, had eight sons, half of whom are dead now. Among the deceased sons, the eldest son, Prince Zhaoming, was the most famous and had the best reputation.
The four sons who are still alive are the third son Xiao Gang, who is now the prince and the future Emperor Jianwen of Liang. The sixth son, Xiao Lun, was granted the title of Prince Shaoling. He is now the governor of South Xuzhou and is in charge of Jingkou. The seventh son, Xiao Yi, king of eastern Hunan, sat in Jiangxia as the governor of Jingzhou. The eighth son, Xiao Ji, King of Wuling, was in charge of Shuzhong as the governor of Yizhou.
At the same time, Xiao Yan felt guilty because he did not adopt Prince Zhaoming's son as his heir, so he conferred the title of Dajun on all his sons. The most important person at the moment is Prince Zhaoming's third son, Prince Xiao Qing of Yueyang, who is currently in charge of Xiangyang as the governor of Yongzhou.
It can be seen from the official resumes of Emperor Wu of Liang's descendants that he assigned famous cities and towns to clans, and a large amount of local military and political power was concentrated in the hands of these distant and distant clans.
Yu Wentai originally thought that Li Tai had some clever plan to make money. After hearing this, he found out that he had set the next goal of expanding his territory to Nanliang, so he started to think about it seriously.
Seeing that Yu Wentai was very excited, Li Tai took advantage of the situation and handed over the strategy plan written by Cui Qian, and said: "The physical conditions of Jingxiang have not changed for a long time. If you want to build on this and make great progress, then It needs to be deterred by strong men, and people will be able to understand things and then make progress. I feel very regretful that my previous achievements have not been completed, and I have invited Jingxiang to do something in the hope that I can seize Han Miang!"