Chapter 79 Jiang Shao
"Prince, the Northern Yan army has issued a declaration of war."
"Oh? Declaration of war?" The young man who was playing chess tilted his head slightly.
The young man was no more than twenty-six or twenty-seven years old. He was wearing a dark blue cross-collared robe with wide sleeves, a moon-white belt around his waist, and a silver lotus crown on his head, revealing a somewhat cold widow's peak.
He has a slightly slender face, sword-like eyebrows, pale red lips, and a pair of peach blossom eyes that seem to be full of spring when he smiles. When the corners of his mouth are slightly raised, he seems cold and ruthless, but also gentle and affectionate.
This is Jiang Shao, the prince of Pingguo, and now the commander of Chongshan Pass.
At this moment, he twisted a black piece with his slender fingers and placed it on the chessboard, then said:
"Yan Xingchuan has grown up. Back then, when I was as famous as his brother in the Imperial City, he was still playing in the mud."
But the person playing chess with Jiang Shao said, "If Prince Yan knew in his afterlife that he had a brother who betrayed his ancestors and was disloyal, unjust, unkind, and unfilial, he would probably be so angry that even his coffin wouldn't be able to hold him down."
This person was a middle-aged official wearing a black official robe and a Liang crown on his head.
He was probably over thirty years old, but he had a mustache that made his face look a little feminine, and the way he twirled his mustache from time to time made him look even more cunning.
"Prince Jiang, you should understand what His Majesty means, right?"
"Your Majesty previously showed great favor by leaving a bloodline for this traitorous Yan family member. However, Yan Xingchuan was ungrateful and acted so rebelliously. Even a thousand deaths would not be enough to atone for his sins."
"Your Majesty has ordered you to eliminate the Yan thieves. You must not make any mistakes."
"Your Majesty, I understand what you mean. Supervisor Fei will just have to wait and see." Jiang Shao didn't take the other party's words to heart and raised his hand. "Supervisory Fei, it's your turn."
Military Inspector Fei You is the military inspector sent by the Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty this time.
Speaking of treacherous ministers, Fei You is one of them. He relied on flattery to rise to the third-rank official position, and now he has been sent to Chongshan Pass as a military supervisor.
"Prince Jiang, why don't you take a look at the declaration of war first?"
"The letter of challenge is here, it's never too late to read it. But this chess game needs to be decided first."
Fei Jianjun wanted to say something, but seeing Jiang Shao's eyes on the chessboard, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and continue playing with him.
Unlike others, Jiang Shao was extremely strict in managing his army, and he was decisive and his decisions could not be challenged.
If General Fei dared to offend him, he might be killed with a sword in the name of "disobeying military orders".
The last time Jiang Shao suppressed the rebellion of King Linhai, the military supervisor died in his hands.
Fei Jianjun stared at the chessboard and saw that the black and white pieces were spread out on the chessboard. The black pieces were winding and crisscrossing like a mountain range stretching for thousands of miles, and the white pieces were like trapped beasts with nowhere to escape.
A feeling of oppression came over him, and cold sweat broke out on Fei Jianjun's forehead.
At this time, the Pipa girl behind the screen was still plucking the Pipa strings, sobbing softly and whispering.
Fei Jianjun was annoyed when he heard this, but he didn't dare to say anything.
It was widely rumored in the imperial city that Prince Jiang was good in everything except for a strange hobby: he loved the sound of the pipa, finding its melody soft and affectionate.
I like its big and small strings that are like jade beads rolling on a plate, and I like its faint and sobbing feelings.
I heard that he secretly raised a young girl who was good at playing the pipa, and he loved her playing the pipa under the moon and among the flowers...
Could it be that Jiang Shao came to fight and brought this Pipa girl with him?
Fei Jianjun was a little curious, but he didn't dare to ask too much. He randomly found a place on the chessboard to place the chess piece and quickly ended the game.
"General Fei really has no patience with this prince."
Jiang Shao curled his lips and smiled, slightly raising his eyelids, and there seemed to be a coldness in his peach blossom eyes that seemed to be smiling but not smiling.
General Fei's heart skipped a beat. He was about to say something, but he saw that Jiang Shao didn't bother with him. He reached out and took the letter of challenge presented by his personal guard. After reading it, he raised his eyebrows slightly.
"It's amazing that Yan Xingchuan actually wants to fight me. If he loses, he will retreat to Yuanzhou City. If I lose, I will give up Chongshan City."
Supervisor Fei slammed the table and said hastily, "He, he, he, he... he's dreaming! If he loses, he must commit suicide to apologize, and force the Northern Yan army to surrender!"
Jiang Shao glanced at him and said, "How about Fei Jianjun, as an envoy, go to the Northern Yan camp and talk to Yan Xingchuan in person?"
Fei Jianjun had many words that he hadn't said yet, but they were suddenly stuck like a duck with its neck pinched.
What a joke! If he dared to see Yan Xingchuan, Yan Xingchuan would immediately draw his sword and kill him.
Jiang Shao placed the letter of challenge in the hands of his personal guard and said calmly, "Send someone to reply and tell them that this prince agrees with his proposal. It's a good opportunity to see if he has some of his elder brother's skills.
In the past, his brother and I were never able to decide who was the winner, so it would be better for him to take over and end this regret in my life."
"What? You agreed?" Fei Jianjun's face changed with fear. "You...you..."
"Are you crazy?!"
Fei Jianjun's voice was a little cracked.
"Don't you know that if you lose, you will have to give up Chongshan Pass? Don't you know what giving up Chongshan Pass means?"
"This means that the three states beyond Chongshan Pass will all fall under the jurisdiction of Northern Yan. This means that Yan Xingchuan will move even closer to the Imperial City, threatening the Great Zhou Dynasty. Prince Jiang, can you afford to take responsibility if something happens?"
"Do you think this prince will lose?" Jiang Shao sneered, "His brother didn't even manage to defeat me back then, let alone him. Even if he has trained hard over the years and fought his way through the battlefield, what's the difference?"
"Moreover, Yan Xingchuan is sympathetic to his soldiers and knows that the battle at Chongshan Pass will be difficult. No matter who wins or loses, there will be corpses everywhere. How can I ignore the lives of my soldiers?"
In this way, judging the outcome of the battle by the victory or defeat of the main general is also a good solution.
"Why would the battle be difficult? We occupy a natural stronghold, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack. No matter how many Northern Yan troops come, they will surely die."
"Military Supervisor Fei." Jiang Shao's tone was slightly cold, and he asked him again, "Do you think this prince will lose?"
"The imperial court only has so many troops. What if we fight to the death with the Northern Yan army? We still have the Xiling army, the Jinnan army, Prince Chongyang, and Prince Kang..."
In times of chaos, armies rise up everywhere. This is not an empty statement.
There are six rebel kings, big and small, in the world. Twenty-five of the forty-eight states in the world have fallen into the hands of others.
How many soldiers are left in the Great Zhou army? Three hundred thousand? Or four hundred thousand?
At this point, Jiang Shao continued, "Your Majesty's intention is to eliminate Yan Xingchuan. As long as he is eliminated, the Northern Yan army will be defeated. Then, Yuanzhou and Pingzhou will be recovered, and the four states north of Jiangshui will also be returned to the Great Zhou."
"Get rid of Yan Xingchuan?" General Fei's eyes flickered slightly, and there was a hint of thought in his eyes.
After a long time, he stretched out his hand, twirled his beard, and actually laughed.
"Since Crown Prince Jiang has made up his mind, I wish him immediate success and slay the Yan thief..."
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