Chapter 1318: Common Origin of China

Chapter 1318: Common Origin of China

Shannan can be said to be the place where the current supreme ruler rises. When the emperor first arrived at the state, it was only a small corner of the north of Mianyang. The land was narrow and the people were poor. All industries were in decline, the treasury was empty, and the state was in chaos.

But in the next few years, under the governance of the current supreme ruler, the people's livelihood and all industries in Jingzhou flourished, military and political affairs were in order, and the power was also growing rapidly. It successively recovered Guanzhong, annexed Bashu, and seized a large area of ​​Jingxiang in one fell swoop, expanding the territory to the south of the Yangtze River.

After the external expansion came to an end, the current supreme ruler also had the strength to compete with the Guanzhong hegemony, and then successfully entered Guanzhong, which led to a series of events such as unifying the north and establishing the Tang Dynasty.

However, after the supreme ruler left Shannan and returned to Guanzhong, Shannan's series of external development activities also stagnated one after another. More military actions of the court were concentrated in the north, especially a series of wars against Northern Qi. Many Guanzhong soldiers also made great achievements in battles because of this, which can be said to be successful. The soldiers who stayed in Shannan missed many opportunities and failed to make achievements and gain fame.

So when the court finally wanted to call up the soldiers in Shannan again, the soldiers stationed in Shannan suddenly became excited. Before the court's order was issued, the petitions for war had already snowed in Chang'an. All the generals who had the right to make petitions to the court again and again petitioned the court to fight for themselves and their soldiers.

Some generals were afraid that simply petitioning for war was not enough to show their sincerity and determination, so they sent letters to their relatives and friends in Chang'an, mobilizing them to come to see the emperor to fight for themselves.

For a time, this warlike atmosphere spread from Shannan to Chang'an, and all kinds of earnest words and words were piled up in front of Li Tai's eyes and ears.

The soldiers were eager to fight, ashamed to stay idle, and eager to make achievements. It was true that the army could be used, but the court also had its own considerations and rhythm when formulating military plans. It could not fight for the sake of fighting. It still had to have a clear strategic concept and interest demands, otherwise it would inevitably become a state of war and aggression.

Therefore, Li Tai did not blindly expand the concept of war and the scale of the army. He could only try his best to take into account the public sentiment and ensure that the soldiers had the opportunity to show their talents under the premise of elite soldiers and strong generals.

Today's Tang Dynasty is really not short of military talents. Although the older generation of garrison generals have gradually been eliminated, the middle-aged and young generations have already grown up and served as the main force in the war to destroy Qi.

Now Shannan does have some people who are extremely talented in military affairs, but have not been promoted and reused because of the lack of an opportunity to show their talents. Therefore, when the court chooses generals to go on the expedition, it also leans slightly towards these people.

But to be honest, this war was not a large-scale war, but a routine external expansion based on the current development status of Shannan, so the opportunities and space it could provide were not too great.

Even if the exploration and infiltration of Lingnan was further included in the combat objectives this time, under the premise of normal performance, sending 50,000 troops was already the limit of this dispatch.

At present, Shannan is divided into three major general offices of Xiangzhou, Jingzhou and Yingzhou. This time, the court appointed Jiangxia King Li Xun as the commander of the army, Jingzhou General Tian Hong and Yingzhou General Shi Ning were in charge of the left and right divisions, and Xiangzhou Governor Li Qianzhe was the central vanguard.

However, because Shi Ning had to take into account the handover of Jiangzhou Nanchuan to Nanchen, he did not need to lead his army south to Lingbiao, but moved to the downstream of Pengcheng to deal with related handover matters.

In the final analysis, Li Tai did not believe in Chen Chang's control over the Southern Chen. Although some Feng went south to Guangling, he still arranged for Shi Ning to lead the army to be stationed upstream, plus a double insurance to ensure that no matter what personnel changes occurred in the Southern Chen, the Tang army would have enough power to respond.

This is a little troublesome, but it is safe after all. Having said that, if Chen Chang is really smart and capable enough to control all the forces in his country without relying on the power of the Tang Dynasty, then Li Tai will be even more uneasy.

The Southern Chen he needs is a Southern Chen that is in appearance but not in spirit, but Chen Chang's own ability is not up to standard, which makes the situation in the Southern Chen spirit and appearance different. Even the Tang Dynasty, which is its backer, may be looked down upon by some of the Southern Dynasty because of Chen Chang's weak performance. But this is not a big deal. If these people really want to weigh how strong the Tang Dynasty is, they will always have this opportunity!

When the imperial court's list of conscriptions reached Shannan, some were happy and some were sad. However, those generals who were not sent to fight were relieved that the imperial court did not turn a blind eye to their previous requests for war. The Supreme Emperor even wrote a reply to them in person, praising their ambition to serve the country and making contributions. At the same time, he said that although they were unable to go to the war this time, they would be given priority in the future when there were war preparations.

As for those generals who were sent to fight, there was nothing to say. They were all happy to reorganize their troops and prepare for the war.

In addition to the enthusiastic requests for war in the preparations for this war, there was another person who was also very active, that is, Wei Shou, who had just fled from Chang'an to Xiangyang to join his nephew not long ago.

When Wei Shou was in Hebei before, he was once a great writer and historian. As a result, after coming to Chang'an, not only did he lose his past glory, but he was also forced by public opinion to be as panic-stricken as a dog who had lost his home, and he even dared not stay in Chang'an.

He naturally couldn't stand this huge gap in his heart, and still hoped to return to the current situation in glory, so when he learned that his nephew Li Xun was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary army by the court, he also requested to go with the army, hoping to share some military merits.

Although he didn't have the brave physique to fight the enemy, he had a strong writing style with sharp words. Long before the expeditionary army set out, he had already written several articles to fight against the enemy, so he was not a completely idle old man.

"The world is of the same origin; the people of Jiangzuo all come from China! The stubborn bandits deceived the heaven, occupied the land and disobeyed orders, dragged the masses and followed the barbarians. Their crimes are extremely serious and cannot be redeemed by death! The Tang Dynasty swore an oath to our soldiers, and we will defeat the bandits and return, and our achievements will be as great as those of the Holy Yao!"

People in different environments and different positions will have different ideas and ambitions. For example, there are many powerful people in Wuzhong who believe that the division between the north and the south is determined by heaven and cannot be changed by human power. However, in today's Tang Dynasty, from the emperors and ministers to the ordinary people, they have regarded the unification of the north and the south and the end of the division of the world as a task that can be achieved through hard work.

Although the court has not yet clearly advocated the conquest of the Southern Dynasty and the annexation of Jiangdong, when the troops were sworn in this time, they had openly shouted the slogan that the north and the south have the same origin and all come from China, instead of using derogatory names such as island barbarians and barbarians to belittle each other.

With magnificent and inspiring slogans, the 50,000-strong army crossed the river and marched towards their target. The first to bear the brunt was naturally Wang Lin, who was currently leading his troops in Luling.

However, just as the army was about to enter Luling, something unexpected happened. That is, Wang Lin, the target of their expedition, actually sent an envoy to surrender to the Tang army.

When Wang Lin's envoy came to the Tang army camp to surrender, the Tang army commander Li Xun and a group of generals were all surprised. In their impression, Wang Lin was cunning and fierce. He had finally escaped from the control of the Tang Dynasty and connected with Lingbiao Chunyu Liang. He looked like he was going to fight a big battle. How could he surrender so easily?

Now the army was in high spirits and the officers and men were eager to kill the enemy and gain merit. Li Xun also regarded this as a trick by Wang Lin to delay the war. He was too lazy to even meet the envoy and listen to his words. He directly ordered the soldiers to withdraw from the camp and then ordered the army to continue to advance.

However, this did not anger Wang Lin. He even sent another envoy to ask for surrender. This time, in addition to the envoy carrying the letter of surrender, even Wang Lin's son was sent to show his sincerity in asking for surrender.

"The rebellious King Lin of Shannan has written to ask the King to stop the army and listen to your words! Although I am the remnant of a fallen country and have not changed into a slave, I have always had a desire to pursue the truth and justice. I knew that it would be difficult to restore my country, so I had the intention to serve the Holy Lord. I regret that this ugly body cannot be accepted by the bright hall, and I have been wandering around the rivers and lakes to make a living. Now that I have heard that the northern country has been unified, I know that the destiny has come. If the Holy Lord accepts the order, I will be very happy.

The Holy Lord will rule well. All the people in the world are his subjects. Although I am a bandit, I am lucky to be a citizen of the Holy Lord's rule! I have heard that benevolence and righteousness are the foundation of governance, and laws and regulations are the end of governance. Without the foundation, there is no foundation, and without the end, there is no success. Although I am like the robber Zhi, I have been wandering around the night before. , I didn't know the year of Jichou, but now I can see the sunrise, I feel ashamed of myself, so I dare to ask for mercy from the holy master again.

I have more than 5,000 followers under my command, and their relatives total tens of thousands. In the past, there were still dangerous places in the rivers and lakes where they could escape, but now the world has returned to the Tang family. If the holy master blesses them, they can live, but if the holy master abandons them, they will die. The followers are worried and uneasy, and I can only stay and supervise them. It's not because I am arrogant and unwilling to meet them, so I send my flesh and blood to the king. The king will cook them alive and I will only respectfully accept them..."

Wang Lin's letter of surrender can be said to be sincere and respectful. For a moment, Li Xun couldn't tell whether he was really sincere in surrendering or still pretending to be cunning.

He was hesitant in his heart, but his generals all said that he didn't need to pay attention. At present, Wang Lin was weak and desperate. As long as the army entered the country, he could directly attack and kill him on the border. There was no need to accept his surrender without any twists and turns. Moreover, he had requested to surrender before, but was rejected by the Supreme. If he surrendered again now, it would be nothing but a wishful thinking at the end of his rope.

However, Wei Shou, who had come with the army, had a different opinion. He suggested to Li Xuan: "Your Majesty's previous refusal of Wang Lin's surrender is different from the current situation. At that time, the newly-acquired Shannan still needed to be pacified. Wang Lin was not a good person, and refusing him could show the strictness of the law. Now the north has been unified, and Jiangdong is waiting to be reconciled. This place has been outside the king's rule for a long time, and there are many stubborn and evil people. Some of them are afraid of the different customs and teachings between the north and the south and hesitate to join. If you can take this stubborn bandit without bloodshed, you can show the prestige of the country and promote benevolence and forgiveness. Your Majesty should not be misled by these greedy generals. You should report this situation to the country as soon as possible and wait for the emperor's decision!"

Li Xuan didn't want to give face to his uncle, and he also felt that Wei Shou's words made sense. After weighing the pros and cons, he told Wang Lin that if he really wanted to surrender, he should lead his troops back to Bashan and wait for the court to make a decision.

As the army moved south, Bashan was again included in the encirclement of the Tang army. After Wang Lin returned to Bashan, he could cut off his connection with Chunyu Liang of Guizhou. Even if Chunyu Liang cheated and defected again, he would still be in Nanchuan and would not cause any serious consequences.

In this way, Li Xun could lead the army to stay in Nanchuan temporarily and wait for the court to make a decision.

When Li Xun's order was transmitted back to Wang Lin's army, Wang Lin couldn't help but frown. He had finally led his troops to escape the encirclement and control of the Tang army. If he led his troops back to Bashan, all his previous efforts would be wasted.

He sent envoys to the Tang army to surrender repeatedly, but it was not a delaying tactic. He had the ambition to start a business before, but he had been trapped in Nanchuan for the past few years. He could neither get rid of the control of the Tang army nor cause any major damage to the Southern Chen. He just had a lot of fun fighting with the local tyrants in Nanchuan, and his ambition was greatly worn down.

The reason why he jumped out of Nanchuan and went straight to Lingbiao this time was because of Chunyu Liang's lobbying. Chunyu Liang was full of a sense of crisis because he saw that the Tang Kingdom had invested more and more manpower and management in Xiangzhou, so he wanted to connect with Wang Lin to protect himself.

From Wang Lin's point of view, he certainly hoped to get a safer situation, but he didn't want to be an enemy of the Tang army in his heart. After several years, no matter how unruly he was, he was full of shadows in his heart about fighting the Tang army. Especially after seeing the unification of the north, he felt that the Tang Kingdom was unstoppable.

This time, Wang Lin broke out of the encirclement at Chunyu Liang's request. Rather than looking for a way out, Wang Lin actually wanted to show the Tang Dynasty that he still had courage. After all, in his opinion, since the north had been unified, the next step for the Tang Emperor would be to plot against Jiangdong. Wang Lin hoped to make the Tang Emperor realize his value and accept him to participate in the attack on the Southern Chen.

So when the Tang army came south, before they fought each other, Wang Lin immediately submitted a letter to surrender. If the Tang Dynasty still refused to accept it, he planned to lead his troops directly to Lingnan, and would no longer stay in Lingbiao to fight against the Tang army with Chunyu Liang. Chunyu Liang had been in Lingbiao for a long time, but his power had not developed much. It was a foolish dream to want to compete with the Tang army, which was now in full swing.

Facing Li Xun's request, Wang Lin hesitated for a moment. He gathered all his generals and asked, "We did all these things first to serve the Emperor of Tang and seek a future for our soldiers. If I return to Bashan now, I'm afraid I can't escape if Tang refuses to accept me. What are you going to do?"

"We swear to follow you, lord. We can go anywhere, north of the Yangtze River or south of the Lingnan River. Life and death in the future depends on you!"

When the generals heard Wang Lin's question, they all spoke up.

After hearing this, Wang Lin's eyes, which had been somewhat hesitant, became firm, and he said in a deep voice: "In this case, let's go to Bashan together. Even if we flee to Lingnan, looking at the current situation, Chen's son will not be able to stop Tang's order in Jiangbei for long. Lingnan will soon belong to the Tang emperor, and there will be nowhere to go. If you don't die now, you will have a promising future. If you flee now, you will be wandering and have no place to stay for the rest of your life."

I wish the motherland prosperity and the Chinese nation will continue to be strong! ! !