Chapter 718 Planning for Longnan

Chapter 718 Planning for Longnan

Li Tai briefly summarized today's speech. He was not opposed to conquering Shu, but he felt that this matter could still be discussed in the long term and there was no need to rush it.

Under the premise of taking the defeat of Shu as the strategic goal, there are still many things that the Chinese Foreign Affairs Office can do at the moment. For example, disintegrating the enemy's internal forces, developing internal support, forcing the Shuzhong regime to transfer benefits through diplomatic means, imposing a regional blockade on Shuzhong through military means, etc.

Although he proposed that the Qinzhou General Manager's Office also join in, he did not elaborate on how to implement it.

After all, this is the military domain of the General Manager of Qinzhou. The Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office can order and deploy, but it is not his turn to dictate specific combat tasks. On the other hand, if Director Yuwen told the Jingzhou General Manager what to do, he would just turn a deaf ear to it.

After listening to Li Tai's series of narrations, everyone in the hall felt that they had benefited a lot. Although they had discussed this topic many times before, they mainly focused on the military aspect, which was far less broad than what Li Tai had considered. Especially on some specific issues, they gave people a sense of enlightenment.

"That's it for today. General Li's speech is thought-provoking. You and everyone will think deeply about it after you return. If you have gained something, please share it."

Yu Wentai, who also had a thoughtful look on his face, stood up and ended the meeting. Then he looked down at Li Tai and said with a smile: "It's hard to get rid of your fatigue after just two days of rest. Boshan has been in the border area for a long time, gathering with his family." When you are away from home, you should also visit your relatives when you return. There is no need to rush to town. "

Li Tai knew that Daxingtai still had to digest his suggestions before selecting and adopting them. It was estimated that it would take a period of internal discussions to reach a consensus, so he needed to wait a little longer, so he also said so. I really want to go to Chang'an to visit my parents, and it will take a few days before I can return.

After the crowd dispersed, Yuwentai also returned to the inner palace, along with his nephew Yuwen Dao, nephew Yuchi Jiong and others.

After a few people sat down, Yu Wentai couldn't help but sigh: "If you want to plan big things, you really have to conspire with wise men! All the discussions in the house a few days ago are not as profound as what Li Boshan said today."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yuchi Jiong said: "I'm afraid that his thoughts are not pure enough, and he is worried that a war in Shu may have a negative impact on the situation in Jingzhou, so his selfishness cannot be based on the facts. The situation in Liang is changing rapidly, who can Are you sure of everything?"

It can be seen that Yuchi Jiong did not agree with Li Tai's suggestion to postpone substantive military operations. Seeing Daxingtai's attitude towards Li Tai's words, he couldn't help but raise doubts about his character. .

Yu Wentai was not angry when he heard this. He just smiled and said: "Now that he is in danger of the safety of the southeast, it is understandable that his words and suggestions may be biased due to his position. If he had not considered this aspect, he would have been It makes people doubt whether he is up to the task.”

"Li Boshan's meritorious service is solid, and it is natural for my uncle to appreciate and rely on him. But the authority in Jingzhen is too heavy today. Even if my uncle has no doubts about his superiors, he cannot avoid the interference of other eyes in the world."

Speaking of this, Yuchijiong turned his head to look to the west in the direction of Chang'an, and his tone became a little erratic: "Especially now in the country, how many troubles have arisen from this in the recent period? Once or twice, maybe Be generous and tolerant, but what you are afraid of is that it will happen again and again..."

After Yu Wentai heard this, he couldn't help but sigh, and after a moment he said quietly: "It's a pity that Sheng Le fell into the hands of thieves..."

But soon, he regained his composure, looked at Yuchi Jiong and said: "Ignoring the rest for now, what Li Boshan said is very reasonable. A strong attack is very difficult, and the management after success is not easy. It's not easy. If we can get internal support, we can get twice the result with half the effort. If we attack in a hurry, it will inevitably lead to discord."

When he reached this point, he turned to look at Director Yuwen, who had been silent all this time, and asked with a smile: "What Li Boshan said today seems to have inspired you a lot."

Director Yu Wen nodded after hearing this. He was about to speak but fell silent. After a while, he said again: "It's not enlightening. It's a logical thing to do, but I worry too much. If we can take advantage of this opportunity to thoroughly clean up the lands in Longnan, it will not only supplement the strategy of conquering Shu, but also be a good strategy for stabilizing the border in the long run!"

After hearing this, Yu Wentai knew that Director Yu Wen was moved by Li Tai's words and became eager to take action.

"Longnan and other states were unstable and rebelled and surrendered repeatedly. Even if they surrendered, they still continued to plunder behind their backs, which made our state uneasy and the soldiers and people frightened."

When talking about this topic, Director Yu Wen became a little excited and even waved his fist: "In the past, we did not use the army to suppress the situation because the mountains and rivers blocked it and it was useless. But now Li Boshan has made a plan to blockade Shu and cut off its trade routes. , We are not in a hurry to send troops to Shuzhong, so we might as well conquer Longnan first!"

The Longnan area is located below Longyou, and Wudu and Yinping areas are also within the jurisdiction of the Qinzhou General Administration. However, the area is mostly mountainous and wild, the roads are rugged and difficult to travel, and there are also a large number of Di and Qiang tribes distributed there, so Qin The State Governor's Office only implemented supervision and control over this area. The real rulers of this land were the states established by the Di and Qiang chiefs.

For example, the Qiuchi, Wudu, Wuxing, and Yinping states established by the Yang family of the Di people, and the Dangchang state established by the Liang family of the Qiang people. Some of the small political powers in these regions have been destroyed, while others are still surviving in the cracks.

Just before the massive Eastern Expedition planned by the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office the year before last, another rebellion broke out in the Qiang country of Dangchang, which was originally attached to the Western Wei Dynasty. Its internal chiefs and cavalry expelled the king of Dangchang who was canonized by the Western Wei Dynasty. Shi Yuwengui, the new left chief of the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office, Together with the general Doulu Ning and the governor of Liangzhou Shi Ning, they put down the rebellion and welcomed back Liang Miding, the expelled king of Danchang.

When this war broke out, Qinzhou General Manager Yu Wendao, who was his direct supervisor, was recalled to the country and stayed in Guanzhong to prepare for the Eastern Expedition. He did not participate in this war from beginning to end, so naturally he had no sense of existence.

"This Qiang slave rebellion is not an isolated case. All the Di Qiang disciples have hidden thoughts of disobedience, and they will always have the heart to gnaw at me. If they slack off, they will be disturbed. Even Daang, who now relies on my military power to rule his country, Changwang Liang Miding was only humble for a while, but he would definitely rebel if he indulged in the slightest."

Speaking of these Di Qiang rebels who were uncertain about surrender, Director Yu Wen also felt a headache. He looked at Yu Wentai and continued: "Uncle, you should know that I am not a fanatic who likes great achievements. I have told you several times before that I am in trouble and want to raise troops to fight against them. , but everyone in the government refused to approve it because it was not timely. Although I have been in Qinzhou for several years, I have few achievements to boast about. People at that time said that I was not as good as Taiyuan Gongyuan, and I often thought that I was not good at fighting. I am grateful for my outstanding achievements and am not eager to compete with others. But now that the Duke of Taiyuan has spoken about the affairs within my administration, I feel the same way..."

As Yuwentai's most trusted right-hand man, Director Yuwen certainly has a stable and mature side. He has completed all the tasks assigned by his uncle very well over the years, including replacing Duguxin, an old man with high qualifications, to take charge of Longyou.

But no matter how steady a person is, there will inevitably be moments of emotional turmoil in his heart. Especially in recent years, he has been often compared to Li Tai and Zang Fei. Director Yu Wen often feels a little uncomfortable every time he hears related discussions.

At this moment, he looked at Yu Wentai with grievance and said: "I am not greedy for merit, but people around me are eager to be strong. Without merit, it is not enough to control them! There are always disturbances in the Longnan countries, so why not let their disciples cause chaos frequently? , it’s better to get rid of it quickly and organize it!”

Yu Wentai knew what kind of character Director Yu Wen was, and he would not complain even if he was extremely depressed. This time he spoke out after Li Tai had mentioned the matter before, and what he was talking about was not a powerful overseas enemy like Tuyuhun. , but these Di and Qiang forces in Longnan, which have been restrained for a long time, show that they still maintain their stability.

But after pondering for a while, he still said: "It may not be difficult to wipe out these Di and Qiang tribes, but if we need to station troops for a long time to suppress them, it will still consume a lot of money. Although the country's material resources situation has improved compared with previous years, But it’s just barely sustainable.”

Speaking of this, he paused briefly, glanced at Director Yu Wen first, and then said: "Although Jingzhou has been creating many innovations in recent years, the government has not spent much on it. It only invested in some first-class weapons and staffs in the early stage. , The rest are fighting to support the war, and there is even a surplus to return to the government. Can Qinzhou defeat this matter? "

If it's just family members discussing family matters, the atmosphere will naturally be relaxed. But what we are talking about today is official business, and the attitude must be correct. Of course, Yu Wentai is also happy to see various developments, but the important point must be made clear, that is, the Chinese and Foreign Government does not have a large surplus to support the place.

It's not that Yu Wentai is reluctant to spend money, but because the Chinese Foreign Affairs Office itself does not have much surplus.

Today's government troops are not a combination of soldiers and farmers, but detached soldiers formed according to the Xianbei military system. Although it is about Long Haoqiang leading troops and raising supplies to share part of the consumption of raising troops, the Chinese and foreign governments also need to bear part of it. .

Not to mention that in addition to raising troops, the Chinese and Foreign Affairs Office itself also has huge administrative expenses. After the Eastern Expedition returned without success, river defense expenses were also unavoidable. Money is needed everywhere. Yu Wentai doesn't like to cry about being poor now. That's because he knows it's useless to cry about being poor, not because he's not poor anymore.

Especially now, the expedition to Shu is just postponed, not completely abandoned. The Chinese and Foreign Governments also need to raise and prepare a batch of materials to sustain the expenses of this war, so they need to be even more cautious in their financial budgets. Don't go to Longnan and have a good fight at the end. When the opportunity comes in the middle of Shu, you will have no food and send troops.

That is to say, facing his nephew, Yu Wentai was embarrassed to speak too bluntly. Let’s not talk about whether we are greedy for merit or not. Li Boshan did not let the Chinese and Foreign Governments pay for his war in the southeast!