Everyone kept silent, but seeing that Emperor Zhao nodded slightly while thinking about something, Minister of Revenue Lin Qi, who had nothing to do with the camp, had no choice but to speak out again:
"Prime Minister Lu Shu's words are absurd! Prime Minister Li's behavior is exactly the same as that of Zong Liushou. Didn't Zong Liushou also treat Dongjing with leniency and mercy? Didn't he use the pacified rebels and defeated soldiers to save Huazhou?"
"So Li Gang is a rough man." Lu Yihao didn't even look at him, just coldly. "Zong Ze is magnanimous, but he also knows to pick out some chickens to kill as a warning to others, while Li Gang is just lenient to the warriors, how can he be compared with him? Not to mention, Zong Ze has always known how to command generals, and he has appointed people who are loyal and willing to die for him, so what about Li Gang?"
"Let Prime Minister Lu know that Prime Minister Li is also a good judge of people."
As the Imperial Censor in the Palace, Li Guang really didn't want to confront a minister over trivial matters unless it was absolutely necessary, so as not to lose his deterrent power over the ministers. But when it came to his benefactor Li Boji, how could he bear it?
"Of course I know. This man first gained a great reputation during the Jingkang period, and then the government gave him such grace and power. In addition, he is also a man of respect for the wise and humble, so many talented people in the southeast are willing to follow him, and he has a full staff of wise men. Once he has grasped the personnel, all government affairs will naturally start... But are literati and military men the same thing? I'm talking about knowing the generals, not knowing the people!"
At this point, seeing that Lin Qi and Li Guang wanted to talk more, Lu Yihao was probably tired of confronting these henchmen of Li Gang, so he simply bowed to Zhao Jiu again and said, "Sir, I am willing to guarantee it with my life. The southeast will be in chaos, and the rear army of the imperial camp cannot be relied on at all. We must not make any plans with the southeast and the rear army of the imperial camp, which will cause the situation to deteriorate!"
As soon as these words were spoken, countless people in the barracks felt their scalps tingling. Even Lin Qi and Li Guang turned pale and dared not say anything more, because they suddenly realized that it was wartime and what they were discussing involved the lives of countless people, even their own lives.
Lin Qi thought of the previous time when Lu Yihao came to Nanyang, his own minister's evaluation of this man in the letter to him - "This man is extremely rude, and it is not worth mentioning that he was used for a short time. I am only worried that he will cooperate with the government and neither of us can control him!"
"You are a prime minister, why are you talking about the head of a man? As for the southeast, I have no idea. However, it is not because Prime Minister Li is careless, but because others cannot learn from Zong Liushou." In the panic, Emperor Zhao suddenly laughed. "You must know that just as Prime Minister Li is good at using people, once the personnel are in place, government affairs will naturally go smoothly. It is said that he is a natural prime minister. Zong Liushou is also a natural commander... As far as I know, he never cares about his status and age in the army. Once he marches, he must wear coarse cloth, carry a black pot, sit in a cart, and sleep with straw. Everyone in the army, whether it is a defeated soldier or a bandit, knows where he is at a glance, and then falls in love with him. If he can do this, it will be natural to be a good person or a powerful person."
Everyone paused, and many seemed to be thinking about something... Perhaps this was why Emperor Zhao was determined to come to the army.
"In short, the rear army cannot be relied upon. It should be Zhang Jun's Imperial Camp Right Army, Han Shizhong's Imperial Camp Left Army, and Nanyang's Imperial Camp Central Army, plus the Xijing Big and Small Zhai, Yue Fei and Zhang Rong in Zhang's camp, a total of more than 100,000 people, and then there is Zong Liushou." Emperor Zhao easily concealed the fact that he treated the Southeast and the Imperial Camp Rear Army as a garbage dump, and immediately returned to the main topic. "The problem now is that everyone says that only some of Zhang's troops can be used, so how many soldiers can Zong Liushou use? Among the remaining 100,000 people, what is their combat effectiveness?"
"There must be 100,000 troops left by Zong, right? And they are the troops that have fought against the Jin people in Huazhou." In the midst of the dullness, Wang Yuan actually said something fair and honest. "As for the overall combat power, I think defending the city can still work. As for fighting outside the city... Let's not talk about whether there are half of the troops who dare to fight in the field. Let's just say one thing, the terrain of the Central Plains is flat. From Dongjing to Nanyang, the enemy cavalry travels back and forth like flying. Now they are coming in large numbers. If they really go straight to Nanyang with 100,000 troops, it would be a bit difficult to fight in the wilderness."
Zhao Jiu nodded slowly. What Wang Yuan said was almost the same as what he thought.
In other words, if the Jin people did not change their grand strategy, they would probably just leave the west to fate and hold out as long as they could, while the east and the front would be two hundred thousand versus one hundred thousand... There might be some discrepancies, but not too big, because firstly Emperor Zhao was keeping a close eye on Nanyang and there weren't many vacancies, and secondly, it might not be too late for Han Shizhong and Zhang Jun to take advantage of the vacancies... This was one advantage of the Jin people arriving quickly.
Among them, the deployment of the Jin army's 100,000 troops was even clearer due to their Meng'an Mouke system. It was nothing more than 50,000 to 60,000 Jurchen, Khitan, Xi, and Bohai cavalry, and 40,000 to 50,000 northern Han soldiers (including cavalry and infantry).
Even the specific generals could be guessed after Wang Yuan produced the official translation list. After three or four years of fighting, everyone was familiar with the names of those Wanhu, but they were easy to confuse.
However, the more they knew about the comparison of the enemy's strength, the more depressed they became. Moreover, this depression became more obvious as Liu Ziyu from the Zhifang Division began to discuss their general strategy.
In fact, after Liu Ziyu finished speaking, Emperor Zhao asked a few more questions. The Imperial Censor Hu Yin, who probably understood what he said, could not help but ask directly: "If the Privy Council arranges this way, won't the 200,000-strong army just sit there and wait for death? The 100,000-strong Jin army will march south, just like mud and sand rising up. Those who can resist will resist, and those who can't will collapse on their own. Let them survive on their own?"
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com