Chapter 376 A traitor, is that it?
Three days have passed since Junior Sister left the city to oversee the battle at Jishui.
For the past three days, the reinforcements dispatched by Wang Lengran at the front lines have sent a messenger back to the city daily with battle reports and the latest news.
For example, where the army is marching, what kind of supplies are urgently needed and Ouyang Changshi needs to procure, and the enemy's movements.
The latest news is that it was delivered in a hurry this evening.
Fortunately, the news was neither good nor bad:
Wang Lengran's reinforcements have safely arrived in Jishui County and are taking a short rest before advancing on the nearest town, Guling.
The latest news from Jishui County is that the Hongzhou Kuangfu Army is besieging and attacking Jishui County. Zhu Lingxu appeared in front of the enemy, but failed to persuade them to surrender. Instead, he was scorned and insulted by the defending general Zhao Rushi. Zhu Lingxu was furious and ordered the Kuangfu Army to intensify their attack.
Inside the main hall, after listening to the battle report from the front lines with Jiangzhou officials such as Yan Liulang, Yuan Huaimin, and Chen You, Ouyang Rong remained silent and walked out the door.
The corridor was dimly lit, and lanterns hung high along its edges at dusk.
It was only just getting dark, and the yamen runners in the Jiangzhou government hall hadn't come to light the lamps yet.
Ouyang Rong walked through the long corridor to the stable and led Dongmei away.
The next step is to return to the residence in Huaiye Lane.
Other officials are on night duty in the Jiangzhou main hall today, so Ouyang Rong does not need to stay here.
He went home a little early today.
The latest intelligence reports from the front lines were actually released a day ago.
Therefore, the reinforcements led by Wang Lengran, who were rushing on their way, should have already arrived at Guling Town.
Ouyang Rong pursed his lips. This was the limitation and inconvenience of this era:
The transmission of messages is slow.
There were no radios or telegraphs to transmit the latest military intelligence.
From what Ouyang Rong currently knows, supernatural powers such as Qi Refining Techniques have not fundamentally changed productivity, and thus have no impact on the feudal system and warfare model.
This also led to the situation where, as the saying goes, "a general in the field may disobey the emperor's orders."
Even if you have the mind of a micro-management master, you won't have the opportunity to use it. At most, you can send a eunuch to supervise the army and help you carry out this unfinished mischief. Otherwise, the only option is to lead the army in person.
However, emperors who loved studying abroad were still a minority.
Therefore, Ouyang Rong, who was very worried, sent his junior sister.
She was a Qi cultivator, and she traveled with great effort, leaping several meters in a single bound; she was quite fast.
If an emergency such as a defeat occurs at the Jishui front, she can send a message back immediately, much faster than ordinary messengers, reducing the delay by at least half a day.
Ouyang Rong was quite at ease with his junior sister.
This would prevent the enemy from taking advantage of time differences and information gaps to launch a surprise attack, just like Guo Yu did that night when he spread false information.
There was no point in thinking about it further, so Ouyang Rong returned to his residence in Huaiye Lane.
After dinner, he rested in his study for a while before heading out under the stars and moon, as usual, to the Xunyang Prince's Mansion.
Recently, he has been going there once a day.
Inside the Bamboo Grove Study of the Xunyang Prince's Mansion.
Everyone gathered together.
"My imperial brother has sent another message."
Li Xian smiled and said to Ouyang Rong and the others:
"Besides talking about matters of the court, the letter also mentioned the one-month celebration of the newborn son. The Prince of Xiang's residence held a one-month celebration banquet, and even the Empress Dowager, who was recuperating in Shangyang Palace, came in person to enjoy the company of her grandson."
He couldn't help but sigh:
"Speaking of which, it's been many years since we last met. I wonder if my older nephews still remember their uncle. Time really flies."
"Meiniang, prepare a gift for me tomorrow, and also prepare one for Guo'er and Dalang. You two are cousins, you can't let your friendship break down."
He carefully instructed Li Xian.
Li Guo'er and Li Dalang exchanged a glance and nodded.
With his junior sister absent, Ouyang Rong ate a pear and listened in.
A soft snort came from the side:
"The young imperial uncle has been living a happy life in the capital all these years. His mother still loves him. No matter how much he is confined to the deep palace, he is still kept by her side. Unlike our family, who were banished to the south to suffer..."
"Qilang, back when we were in Longcheng, why didn't he write to us every day? He might not even send a letter during holidays. But now he's contacting you every day to reminisce..."
Li Xian looked troubled and explained:
“Isn’t that being demoted to a commoner? It’s easy to implicate the other party. Chang Le and the Emperor’s brother are also in a difficult situation. It’s not easy to say anything in Luoyang. Besides, it’s Guo’er’s birthday. They, as her uncle and aunt, have sent gifts every time. Don’t you think so, Meiniang? The past is the past. Why bring it up again? Let’s look forward and relax…”
"You're so easygoing," Wei Mei pouted. "But other people might be narrow-minded and have a lot of ulterior motives."
Li Xian's face immediately turned somewhat embarrassed:
"Actually... actually, my younger brother also hopes that I will return to the capital soon, so that we can reunite. It might not be as bad as we've guessed..."
"When my younger brother mentioned his nephew's one-month celebration, he also discussed some ways to help us return to the capital in his letter."
Li Guo'er first glanced at the unusually calm Ouyang Rong, then looked away and suddenly interrupted, asking:
"What method did the Imperial Uncle suggest?"
"It's because of this rebellion in Guizhou and Hongzhou. My brother said that if he manages to secure the position of Grand Commander of the Jiangzhou Road Army and successfully quells the rebellion, he and Chang Le will be able to petition the Empress Dowager to bring our family back. The chances are very high... My brother still cares about us."
"Thoughts?" Wei Mei sneered.
"I'm afraid they'll use their great victory to eliminate the Wei family as well. We won't even have time to react. By then, my brother-in-law will be at the height of his prestige. What chance will you, as his elder brother, have? Even if the emperor pleads for us and lets us return to the capital, what good will it do? Can Seventh Brother outmaneuver his cunning?"
Everyone fell silent.
Seeing that Ouyang Rong remained silent, Li Guo'er had no choice but to speak up and remind him:
"Father, don't forget why Grandmother kept us and why she is now using us. The struggle between Li and Wei is not broken. The two sides fight fiercely but neither can do anything about the other. This is the best way. Only then can you benefit from both sides. They will all have to win us over."
"Although the Wei family deserves to die and still dares to dream of swallowing an elephant, the more they do this, the more magnanimous we must be in front of our grandmother. We must not show too much like or dislike towards either side, and we must not completely side with either side."
Li Xian sighed upon hearing this.
His wife and daughter were assertive, and after a thorough analysis of the pros and cons and lessons learned, he couldn't refute them and became somewhat submissive.
At this moment, Li Dalang interjected gently, smiling slightly:
"The blood ties between relatives are still there. Father is sentimental and finds it hard to sever ties in a short time... But Sister and Mother, what you said makes a lot of sense. Father, even kinship has its distances. Some of your words are for the good of our family, so we should listen to them."
"Well then, since my cousin is born, we should still send gifts as usual, and even the best ones. We can't sever our relationship with the Prince of Xiang's mansion. But Father, from now on, you have to take out every letter that Uncle sends and show it to Tanlang and us so we can all give you advice."
"Regarding the last incident where a traitor spread false information, the Imperial Uncle was indeed somewhat negligent. He may have meant no harm, but it's possible that some of his subordinates were instigating it. We must be on guard."
Li Xian looked around and saw that everyone agreed with him, so he could only nod and let his wife, children, and advisors make the decision.
After finishing the pear, Ouyang Rong wiped his hands and finally spoke:
"What Dalang said makes sense."
Li Guo'er frowned:
"If we look at it this way, wouldn't it be a bit of a shame if the position of Grand Commander of the Jiangzhou Road Army fell into the hands of someone from the Prince of Xiang's mansion..."
Ouyang Rong:
"Actually, the one who should be most worried about this kind of thing is not us, but His Majesty. How could His Majesty not see the thoughts of both sides in the court? The fact that neither side can fall is also her bottom line."
"There's very little we can do to intervene, so let's wait patiently. If I'm not mistaken, they might end up choosing a relatively neutral general who has a good relationship with both sides, or one who doesn't know either side well."
Everyone's eyes lit up, and they felt relieved.
"Tanlang is right."
After a short while, the discussion ended, and everyone left.
Ouyang Ronglongxiu walked on the way back.
Having spent more time with Li Xian recently, he has gradually come to know some easily overlooked details of the past.
Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wei were actually very loving towards each other at the beginning of their marriage.
Although people enjoy delving into certain unofficial histories.
However, the two emperors did indeed have a deep affection for each other, and Emperor Gaozong trusted Empress Wei implicitly.
Don't be fooled by the fact that all the old ministers in the court now insist that they were loyal ministers of the Great Gan Dynasty. Back in the Great Gan Dynasty, there were no shortage of corruption in the court. Empress Wei helped Emperor Gaozong deal with many of the old meritorious officials and veterans left over from the founding of the dynasty.
The two saints joined forces, but unfortunately, the former died young, while the latter lived a long life...
Sometimes power pushes people forward.
In the words of the junior sister who is a Qi cultivator, this is called alienation.
Regardless, with their parents having been so loving in the past, Li Xian, Chang Le, Li Lun, and their siblings naturally valued family ties because of what they saw and heard.
Therefore, even now, Li Xian's feelings for Empress Wei Zhao are still very complicated...
Only the old story of "Duke Zheng defeating Duan at Yan," mentioned by Ouyang Rong, offers some insight.
How bizarre and unpredictable are the affairs of an imperial family!
Ouyang Rong knew that his identity was merely that of a strategist, and no matter how close he was to the person in question, he never forgot his place in the family.
So when the topic of Prince Xiang was mentioned, he didn't interrupt.
It wasn't until Da Lang spoke up that Ouyang Rong finally expressed his opinion and sided with him.
Back at Yinbingzhai, Ouyang Rong didn't read any books and went to bed early, which was unusual for him to do tonight.
These past few days, he's been so busy during the day that he's been sleeping quite soundly at night.
Before going to bed, Ye Weilai was still reading by lamplight, and Ouyang Rong ignored her.
And so, he drifted off to sleep, and after an unknown amount of time, he suddenly felt his arm being shaken violently, and Ouyang Rong immediately woke up.
I turned my head and looked.
It was Ye Weilai's worried little face, and in front of the bed in the inner room, there was a red-clad figure pacing back and forth.
She's my junior sister.
"My dear, wake up! Sister Xie is back! She has something urgent to tell you..."
What happened over there?
Ouyang Rong's sleepiness vanished instantly. He quickly rolled out of bed, not even having time to put on his coat. He grabbed the soft hand of the returning beauty by the bedside, looked her up and down, and, finding no injuries, breathed a slight sigh of relief.
"Senior Brother, I...I'm fine."
Xie Lingjiang's tone was helpless, but Ouyang Rong noticed that there was something strange about the expression on her pretty face.
He couldn't help but frown.
I initially thought it was an urgent matter of defeat, but looking at my junior sister's expression... there was something inexplicably strange about it.
"What exactly happened?"
"Wang Lengran... he seems to have won."
"Huh?" Ouyang Rong was slightly taken aback. "Win? How do you mean to win?"
"A huge win."
Ouyang Rong frowned even more.
Xie Lingjiang took the water glass from Ye Weilai, tilted her head back, took a sip, took a deep breath, and then said:
"That Zhu Lingxu switched sides halfway and helped Wang Lengran to besiege Cai Qinjun from both sides!"
"Originally, Cai Qin had ambushed Wang Lengran's reinforcements halfway up Guling, but the surrendered soldiers of Hongzhou, under the leadership of Zhu Lingxu, stopped the siege and released the troops of the defending general Zhao Rushi, allowing them to launch an attack and join forces to attack Cai Qin's army from both sides..."
"Then they won a great victory. Cai Qin led several hundred cavalrymen in defeat, and his ships were burned by General Qin, leaving the river full of ashes and wreckage... Wang Lengran is currently pursuing the defeated enemy..."
Xie Lingjiang spoke with a complicated expression.
"You can do that?"
Ouyang Rong remained silent.
This time, I really didn't expect it. It's not that I didn't expect to win, but I didn't expect to win in this way.
He had considered countless scenarios, even taking precautions against the possibility of Wang Lengran surrendering, but now he realized he had overlooked one thing.
That's the lowest level of human shamelessness.
“Zhu Lingxu… Ha.”
The following afternoon, news of Wang Lengran's resounding victory arrived.
The whole city cheered.
However, Ouyang Rong and the Xunyang Prince's Mansion had mixed feelings and didn't know what to say.
Overall, however, the siege of Jiangzhou has been temporarily lifted, which is good for everyone.
Jiangzhou is safe for the time being, at least until Li Zhengyan's restoration army advances to Hongzhou.
Even Cai Qin and his men who escaped would likely struggle to defend Hongzhou City once they returned. Of course, that's a story for another time...
Three days later.
On a bright, sunny morning, Wang Lengran led his army back in triumph, and Zhu Lingxu and his son swaggered into the city with him.
Wang Lengran rode at the very front, his old face beaming with joy.
Following behind were Zhu Lingxu and his son, who had abandoned the darkness and embraced the light. Their faces were solemn, showing no sign of smugness, especially the eldest son, Zhu Yuheng, who kept his head down the whole time.
Zhu Lingxu, the former governor of Hongzhou, remained more composed.
Ouyang Rong stood on the city wall with his entourage. He glanced at Zhu Da Dudu, the thick-browed, square-faced general, who was slowly approaching the city gate, and his lips twitched.
You, Zhu Lingxu, are you a traitor who has served three masters?
First, he clung to the powerful Prince Teng's mansion, then surrendered to Cai Qin and responded to Li Zhengyan's call for restoration, and now he has turned against the Wei clan, "abandoning darkness for light."
Ouyang Rong shook his head, patted his sleeves, and went down from the city to greet him.
The reason is clear: it wasn't a case of defection at the last minute; Zhu Lingxu had clearly been colluding with the Wei family all along.
It seems that he was forced to surrender back in Hongzhou. He was afraid of death and pretended to follow Prince Teng and submit to Li Zhengyan and Wei Shaoqi.
Li Zhengyan and Cai Qin thought they were spending a fortune to buy Zhu Lingxu's talent, but little did they know that Zhu Lingxu was a two-faced scoundrel. So what if Prince Teng and his eldest son were trying so hard to drag him down?
Having long predicted that the court would win, this man had no intention of restoring the Li Gan regime and was secretly in contact with the Wei clan. Yes, it was very likely that the Persian merchant Li Li was secretly colluding with them.
Ouyang Rong couldn't help but look south towards Guizhou and Hongzhou.
Although they are currently enemies with Li Zhengyan and Cai Qin, Li Zhengyan and his men are at least men of courage, willing to risk their lives and fight if they disagree.
It's a pity that I seem to have run into a rare case of a treacherous traitor.
Ouyang Rong pursed his lips and couldn't help but silently mourn for Li Zhengyan for three seconds.
(End of this chapter)
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