The second day of February.
Jinling.
There was a tense atmosphere in the court.
The Northern Liang offensive was fierce and the imperial army could not resist it. The Yizhou border troops sent to the front line suffered countless casualties.
The border town has been captured, and Beiliang’s next target is Anding City.
Minister of Works Li Shoucheng stepped forward and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, the Northern Liang is coming fiercely, why not negotiate peace for the time being and make plans for the future!"
"absurd!"
Minister of War Chen Zhi said in a cold voice, "Beiliang has evil ambitions. If they cede one city today, they will demand ten cities tomorrow. We must not negotiate peace!"
Zhang Huaian, the Minister of Revenue, also spoke up, "Minister Chen, the treasury is empty and there is not enough food and grass. How can we support the army?"
Then he bowed to Xiao Yugan and said, "Your Majesty, I think what Lord Li said makes sense. Now that Beiliang is so powerful, it is not appropriate to confront them head-on. It is better to promise them an annual tribute first..."
Before he finished speaking, Chen Zhi started cursing, "Bullshit! Making concessions again and again will only make Beiliang take advantage of you."
"We will defend the city. Beiliang will have to pay a heavy price to take it. When Beiyan sees an opportunity, they will definitely attack Beiliang, and we will have a chance to fight back."
Others also spoke up and expressed their opinions. Some advocated peace talks, while others advocated resistance. The entire court was noisy, like a vegetable market.
Xiao Yugan sat on the dragon throne, looking at the ministers arguing below, his face as gloomy as water.
“That’s enough!”
Xiao Yugan patted the dragon throne and slowly stood up.
"I have made up my mind."
"war!"
"Your Majesty, please think twice. If a war breaks out, countless lives will be lost..." the Minister of Revenue began.
"Shut up!"
Xiao Yugan shouted angrily, "Beiliang bullies me, Dajing, because I have no one. I will let them know the blood of my Dajing men."
Seeing Xiao Yugan getting angry, the ministers didn't dare to say anything more. Since the emperor had decided to fight, then let's fight.
…
March 18th.
Beiliang and Yongzhou barbarians jointly besieged Anding City.
General Mu Xiong fought hard and repelled the Northern Liang offensive.
April 1st.
Beiyan led its troops south to attack Yuzhou, and the court was in an uproar again. No one expected that Beiyan would get involved. Beiliang and Beiyan had always been at odds, and the two regimes often went to war. This gave the Jing Dynasty a chance to catch its breath.
Originally, it was thought that if Beiliang's attack was blocked, Beiyan might attack from behind, thus forming a pincer attack. However, it was unexpected that Beiyan would not play by the rules this time.
Instead of attacking the territory of Northern Liang, they attacked the Jing Dynasty.
The whole court was in mourning and peace talks were proposed again. Xiao Yugan did not advocate war this time. The two major northern Hu regimes moved south, and the situation was indeed not good.
Send people to ask for peace from Northern Liang.
However, Beiliang had too big an appetite and demanded the cession of the entire Yongzhou plus the three counties of Qingzhou, which made Xiao Yugan very angry.
Yongzhou’s strategic position is too important.
Without Yongzhou, the cavalry of the Northern Hu would be able to march straight in without any strategic locations to defend. In addition, Yongzhou controlled the trade routes to the Western Regions. Once ceded, the finances of the Jing Dynasty would drop significantly.
More importantly, there is a horse farm in Yongzhou. If it is ceded, Beiliang will be able to form a more powerful cavalry.
Moreover, once Yongzhou is ceded, will Northern Yan follow suit and cede Yuzhou?
In that case, the Jing Dynasty would not be far from its demise.
"Your Majesty, how about I go talk to Beiliang again and ask them to change their terms."
The Minister of Rites spoke up. Although he was in favor of peace, he also knew the importance of Yongzhou and wanted to discuss the conditions for peace talks.
Just as Xiao Yugan was about to speak, a guard ran in and said, "Your Majesty, General Mu's battle report."
"Present it quickly."
Cao Rui quickly took the battle report, Xiao Yugan unfolded it, glanced at it, and his expression changed slightly.
"Your Majesty, what did General Mu's battle report say?" the Minister of War asked impatiently.
Xiao Yugan took a deep breath and said, "General Mu asked the court to support Yuzhou in his letter. He will defend Anding City to the death and not let Beiliang succeed."
The faces of the ministers changed when they heard this. Mu Xiong was determined to die. He asked the court to support Yuzhou, but he didn't say a word.
There are a total of 50,000 soldiers in Anding City. How can they stop the troops of Beiliang?
Chen Zhi gritted his teeth and said, "Your Majesty, General Mu must have taken into consideration the brutality of Northern Yan. Once they capture the city of Yuzhou, they will massacre the people in the city. Compared to Northern Liang, Northern Yan is the real evil wolf."
Xiao Yugan knew very well that the Northern Yan regime was established by the Jie tribe and its emperor Jiehu was cruel and ruthless. The Northern Yan army basically did not carry rations when going to war. Once they captured a place, they would capture the people and make them into minced meat as rations.
Although Northern Liang was also fierce and cruel, it was nothing compared to Northern Yan.
I think Mu Xiong also took this into consideration and asked the court to support Yuzhou. Otherwise, once Yuzhou fell, who knows how many innocent people would die tragically.
"Pass on my order and support Yuzhou with all your strength."
Xiao Yugan finally adopted Mu Xiong's opinion that Yuzhou was equally important in terms of strategic significance and should not be lost.
He believed that since Mu Xiong made such a suggestion, he should be able to defend Anding City.
Then we should fight with Beiyan first, and after stabilizing Yuzhou's defense line, we can go and support Mu Xiong.
…
Yongzhou, Anding City.
Mu Xiong stood on the city wall, his armor covered in blood and the sword in his hand was bent, but fortunately he once again managed to resist the attack of the Yongzhou barbarians.
"General, Beiliang has been sending Yongzhou barbarians to consume us, and their main force has not moved. If this continues, I'm afraid the city will not be able to be defended."
Deputy General Zhang Huan spoke.
Mu Xiong looked at the Yongzhou barbarians who had already retreated and the Beiliang army camp in the distance, clenched his sword, and asked in a hoarse voice, "How many casualties are there?"
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