Chapter 632: Difficult to Reverse
As the saying goes, truth lies not in the loudness of the voice.
Although Lu Songli's words were slow and measured, they struck a heavy blow on the hearts of those present.
"What happened before was because Dali was facing internal and external troubles. Ceding the city was not what the court wanted."
"Now, the emperor and I all want to work together to rebuild the country, drive out the barbarians and recover the lost territory." Xie Zhan said evasively.
Lu Songli said sarcastically, "You just like to play the game of pacifying the country before resisting foreign aggression! When friendly forces are in trouble, you remain unmoved. When foreign enemies come, you kill friendly forces first to calm them down. You turn a blind eye to cities occupied by foreign enemies."
"Don't say you have no choice. There are only zero and countless times to compromise! If you want to solve the problem, you should have gone all out from the beginning. If you don't want to solve the problem, no matter how much time or chance you give, it will be in vain. Song Mo is like this, and so are you."
“So, Mr. Zhang, you should not have too high hopes for this monarchy.”
Xie Zhan retorted, "There's nothing wrong with pacifying the country before resisting foreign aggression. Only by pacifying the world can we muster the strength of a nation to resist foreign aggression."
"Lv Songli, no matter what you say, you can't deny that the existence of Pingzhou has divided Dali and the Han people."
"Master Zhang, you hold a very important position. Choosing Dali will accelerate unification. Choosing Pingzhou will lead to an evenly matched opponent, which will only plunge the entire Han nation into immense internal friction and ultimately lead to mutual destruction. Please consider this carefully for the sake of the people of the world."
Lu Songli raised an eyebrow. Xie Zhan said that Pingzhou had caused the Han people to fall into internal friction? He was quite good at shifting the blame.
"May I ask, how did our Pingzhou cause the Han people to become internally strife? Weren't the two states of You and Ping intended to be ceded to the Xianbei by the Dali? Wasn't the Dai Commandery lost to the Dali because they were defeated by the Xianbei? Did our Pingzhou expeditionary force participate in the Battle of the East China Sea?"
"The territory we currently occupy in Pingzhou was basically abandoned by Dali. We in Pingzhou have always been restrained and tolerant towards our Han compatriots. Since the beginning of the uprising, we have tried our best to avoid turning against our compatriots."
Lu Songli refuted him clearly.
"It's you, Xie Zhan, who will do anything to achieve your goals. First, you pacified King Cheng, then destroyed King Jin. These two large-scale battles cost countless soldiers their lives. They were the backbone of the resistance against the Xianbei. How could you be so ruthless back then?"
Lu Songli's words were so sharp that she almost skinned Xie Zhan alive.
Qin Sheng behind him smiled secretly.
Zhang Ci was trembling with fear and could not do anything wrong.
Xie Zhan tried hard to calm down.
"You and I have different paths and cannot work together. There is no need to discuss this further." He said to Lu Songli, then turned to Zhang Zhongxian, "Master Zhang, I still stick to my opinion."
"Dali currently occupies the land of Jiuzhou. Pingzhou is just a small, newly emerged power. Sacrificing the small to protect the big is what we should do."
"Da Li may have many shortcomings now, but it has nearly two hundred years of experience in governance and has experienced prosperity. After reform, Da Li will surely learn from past mistakes and regain its glory."
Zhang Zhongxian didn't say anything.
Lu Songli thought that Xie Zhan's cake was drawn very well.
"You're right. Dali truly needs talents like Elder Zhang to carry out drastic reforms. I also believe you can give him a stage to fully demonstrate his talents. But, after that, what will you use to guarantee his safety?"
"Reform, who are you going to reform? You know it, can you be so ruthless as to do it?"
Xie Zhan: "The Emperor and I are determined, so we can naturally protect Elder Zhang."
"Yes, you are indeed capable of being ruthless. After all, your Xie family has just returned to Chang'an. Compared to other aristocratic families, you can be said to have nothing. But, don't be so confident. How far can you reform? Is it thorough?"
"If the reforms are not thorough, it will be like adding fuel to the fire. Once the aristocratic and powerful class strikes back, they will inevitably accelerate their plunder of the people and accelerate the degradation of the local economy and people's livelihood."
"Also, throughout history, reformers have often had difficult endings, and sometimes even brought disaster to their descendants, such as Wang Meng, Shang Yang, and King Wuling of Zhao."
"Master Zhang, if you go back, you'll offend the powerful people of Dali. If the reforms aren't thorough, the consequences are unimaginable. You can't be good at governing the country, but you're not good at governing your family."
Xie Zhan said coldly, "Lü Songli, don't exaggerate. The Emperor and I can't protect him. Similarly, if we can't protect him, how can you protect him if he goes to Pingzhou?"
Lu Songli said disdainfully, "Just because you can't do it doesn't mean others can't. I asked Elder Zhang to preside over the legislation of Pingzhou. The new power and new order don't plunder anyone's existing interests. I don't want him to offend anyone and incur hatred."
"Xie Zhan, you have to accept your fate. Dali is in a state of dire straits that is beyond redemption." Xie Zhan does not have the ability to cleanse the world, and his tricks of transplanting flowers and grafting trees are only good for appearances, while the inside is already rotten!
"No, we can still turn the tide." Xie Zhan still believed it so firmly.
Lu Songli: "Let's not talk about the 'rob Peter to pay Paul' scheme. How long it will last and what kind of backlash it will cause, we both know it. Forget it, whatever you think is okay, fine."
Xie Zhan said coldly, "There's no need for us to argue anymore. Master Zhang, make your choice. Join us in recreating the prosperity of Dali, or head to Pingzhou and gamble on the unpredictable future."
Zhang Zhongxian looked at Lu Songli, wanting to hear what she had to say.
"A prosperous age? You probably can't imagine how many people this land can support, right?" Lu Songli paused before saying, "400 million people."
Lu Songli did not use the number of 1.3 billion people in later generations to make a point.
"Right now, the combined population of the thirteen states of the Central Plains is less than one twentieth of four hundred million. The prosperous era you speak of is also far from this goal."
Everyone else present was shocked when they heard this. So many people?
"You are so exaggerated in order to win over Mr. Zhang." Xie Zhan didn't believe it at all.
Lu Songli said contemptuously, "That's right. You Dali can't even support 20 million people. No wonder you can't imagine how this land can support 40 million people."
"And Pingzhou, with its fertile land and talented people, has the ability to revitalize the local economy, revitalize it, and allow the people below to live a good life. Elder Zhang, you make the choice."
To be honest, at this time, Lu Songli didn't know what Zhang Zhongxian would choose.
She felt she had a chance of winning. But Zhang Zhongxian was quite stubborn. What if he was determined to return to Dali to fulfill his ambitions? So, there was no telling.
Zhang Ci looked at his father anxiously, wishing he could go forward and make a choice for his father.
Zhang Zhongxian took a deep breath and said firmly, "I choose Governor Lu of Pingzhou."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Ci almost cried for joy.
At this moment, a dart with a cold glow shot towards Zhang Zhongxian.
"careful!"
Qin Sheng had been secretly on guard since the end of the debate. His cuffs were tied with a slipknotted whip, and he already had the whip in his hand. By the time he discovered the dart, the tip of the whip had already wrapped around Zhang Zhongxian's waist, dragging him away.
Ji Zhen was disappointed to find that Qin Sheng had solved Zhang Zhongxian's crisis with just a whip, without losing sight of the other and staying firmly by Lu Songli's side. He also wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to solve Lu Songli's problem.
"Xie Zhan, is this what you said before, to keep Mr. Zhang safe and sound?" Lu Songli said with a cold face.
Xie Zhan frowned and looked at Ji Zhen. It was true that he wanted to keep Lu Songli, but he didn't want to embarrass himself so quickly.
Ji Zhen was wary of Qin Sheng, "Grand Commander, this is Mr. Fan's arrangement."
At this moment, several people jumped out of the cabin. Among them was the person who had just shot the arrow from the dark.
At the same time, Qin Sheng put his fingers to his mouth and let out a long roar.
When Xie Zhan's men were besieging them, the people under the boat came out from under the boat like water monkeys and quickly reached the deck.
"I'm dying of suffocation!" As soon as Zhu Dazhuang came up, he found an enemy nearby and fought him one-on-one.
"Groups of three, go ahead!" Qin Sheng gave the order while protecting Lu Songli and retreating.
Lu Songli was protected by Qin Sheng and brought to a relatively safe area. She was willing to take risks. Did he really think she was a vegetarian?
Zhang Ci pulled his father closely behind Governor Lu, his hands shaking. "Oh my God, wasn't this supposed to be a peaceful debate? Hadn't both sides checked and found no one on board? Why are there people here and there?"
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