Within a single day, Yongzhou fell, and 100,000 Nanyue wolf soldiers perished.
When Li Shiyu, the crown prince of the Nanyue Kingdom, fled back to the capital Yangcheng in a panic, he also brought news of the disastrous defeat in Yongzhou, shocking the entire Nanyue Kingdom.
The atmosphere in the court that morning was unusually cold and oppressive.
In the Golden Palace, Emperor Tiande, Li Zongmin, had a livid face and coughed from time to time. His white handkerchief was already stained with spots of scarlet blood.
The imperial physician explained that Emperor Tiande's condition was caused by emotional distress and anger, and advised the emperor to rest and recuperate to ensure his health.
However, the Longcheng Southern Expeditionary Army had already captured Yongzhou, a key gateway town of the Nanyue Kingdom, and could march straight into the capital Yangcheng at any time. How could Emperor Tiande Li Zongmin possibly find peace and quiet to recuperate?
Last night, when Emperor Tiande learned of the Crown Prince's defeat in Yongzhou, he nearly coughed up blood and died.
However, given the circumstances, Li Zongmin had no choice but to brace himself and discuss with his officials the future of the Nanyue Kingdom.
Cough cough!
Emperor Tiande, seated on the dragon throne, coughed a few more times before weakly saying, "Crown Prince, recount the causes and consequences of the defeat at Yongzhou to all the civil and military officials."
"My beloved ministers, listen carefully, and after you've heard it, discuss it and come up with a plan!"
"Your subject obeys the decree!"
Inside the Golden Palace, the once arrogant and domineering Crown Prince Li Shiyu, after suffering a crushing defeat in Yongzhou, had no choice but to keep a low profile.
Subsequently, in his retelling, Crown Prince Li Shiyu attributed the disastrous defeat at Yongzhou entirely to the fact that the Southern Expeditionary Army of Longcheng had invited a sorcerer who used rolling thunder as a weapon, which led to the disastrous defeat of the Southern Yue Kingdom.
Li Shiyu declared with unwavering conviction: "Father, esteemed ministers, it is not that the soldiers of our Southern Yue Kingdom are cowardly and afraid to fight; it is truly that the sorcery of the rebel army in Longcheng is profound."
"How could I, a mere mortal general of Nanyue, possibly withstand the rolling thunder summoned by the demonic sorcerer of Longcheng!"
"Father, I humbly suggest that we negotiate peace with that treacherous dog Chen Huai'an as soon as possible, lest our Southern Yue Kingdom suffer the calamity of national and ethnic extermination!"
brush!
Crown Prince Li Shiyu's words immediately caused an uproar in the Southern Yue court.
The once staunch advocate of war has now taken the initiative to propose peace talks with the new emperor, Chen Huai'an?
It is evident that the disastrous defeat at Yongzhou dealt an extremely heavy blow to the pro-war faction led by the Crown Prince!
However, His Highness the Crown Prince has exaggerated a bit. In order to absolve himself of responsibility for poor performance in battle, he actually fabricated such a clumsy lie as the Dragon City rebels summoning heavenly lightning with a sorcerer.
Clearly, the officials of the Southern Yue Kingdom in the imperial court were skeptical of Crown Prince Li Shiyu's account of the events leading up to the defeat at Yongzhou.
Although these South Vietnamese officials also believed in ghosts and gods, they were not so confused as to be so "stupid".
Summoning heavenly lightning as a weapon? Isn't that just plain fooling a three-year-old?
For a moment, the ministers of the Southern Yue Kingdom in the vast Golden Palace had different thoughts and ulterior motives, and none of them wanted to risk offending Crown Prince Li Shiyu by responding to his words.
Eh—
Seeing this, Emperor Tiande, Li Zongmin, on the dragon throne couldn't help but sigh. Finally, he turned his gaze to Prime Minister Tang Bo and said, "Prime Minister Tang, tell us your opinion!"
"Your Majesty, I believe that negotiating peace with Chen Huai'an at this time is not advisable!"
Um?
As soon as Prime Minister Tang Bo finished speaking, it once again caused an uproar in the Southern Yue court.
Prime Minister Tang Bo, who had initially advocated for peace talks with Chen Huai'an, almost broke off relations with Crown Prince Li Shiyu at a court meeting over the issue of whether to fight or make peace.
What's going on today?
The pro-war Crown Prince Li Shiyu took the initiative to propose peace talks, but the pro-peace Prime Minister Tang Bo was the first to stand up and oppose the peace talks.
What kind of show is this now?
Prime Minister Tang Bo calmly accepted the strange looks from the court officials and continued, word by word, "Your Majesty, more than half a month ago, Pang Xianchu, the commander of the southern expeditionary army in Longcheng, personally sent someone to deliver a letter demanding that my Nanyue surrender;"
"At that time, the two sides had not yet clashed, and there was no deep-seated hatred between them. Pang Xianchu, on behalf of Chen Huai'an, offered extremely harsh terms for surrender."
"Now, Pang Xianchu nearly lost his life in Yongzhou City, and with the help of capable and extraordinary individuals within the Longcheng Southern Expeditionary Army, they captured Yongzhou, a crucial gateway to Nanyue, in a single day, resulting in the deaths of 100,000 of our Nanyue wolf soldiers;"
After a pause, Tang Bo said solemnly, "Your Majesty, if we negotiate peace now, the initiative at the negotiating table will no longer be on the side of our Southern Yue Kingdom."
"Moreover, given Chen Huai'an's vengeful nature, he might not accept the surrender of my Nanyue Kingdom at this time."
"so--"
Then, Tang Bo abruptly changed the subject, saying sternly, "Now, my Southern Yue Kingdom faces only two paths:
"Firstly, we must mobilize the entire nation to fight the southern expeditionary army of Longcheng to the bitter end. If it truly comes to the point where we must die for our country, I, Tang Bo, am willing to be the first to stand up and sacrifice myself for the sake of the Southern Yue Kingdom."
"Secondly, if Your Majesty could emulate King Goujian of Yue, willingly enduring hardship and biding your time, then you could send envoys to the southern expeditionary army camp in Longcheng."
"But I cannot guarantee whether the rebel commander Pang Xianchu will believe in Your Majesty's willingness to surrender."
"After all, His Highness the Crown Prince has already used a feigned surrender tactic outside Yongzhou City, so Pang Xianchu and the rebel generals of Longcheng will inevitably be on their guard."
"Therefore, I believe that negotiating peace with Chen Huai'an at this time is not advisable!"
Forehead--
Prime Minister Tang Bo's words left Emperor Tiande and Crown Prince Li Shiyu speechless.
Upon further reflection, the father and son realized that this did indeed make sense.
Regardless of whether Emperor Tiande, Li Zongmin, who is already in his sixties, can endure the hardship of biding his time, the key issue is that they probably don't even have the chance to surrender now.
But if he were to fight to the end, it seems he would only end up as a monarch who lost his country.
More than half of the elite troops of the Nanyue Kingdom were annihilated in a single day at the gates of Yongzhou.
How long can the remaining 100,000 troops hold off the southern expeditionary army of Longcheng?
On the dragon throne, Emperor Tiande's expression was unpredictable.
Based on his understanding of Prime Minister Tang Bo, he knew that this resourceful fellow certainly hadn't said those words on a whim.
It's possible that Tang Bo already has a plan in mind.
Immediately, Li Zongmin hurriedly asked Tang Bo, "Prime Minister Tang, at this critical moment of national subjugation and annihilation, the lives and fortunes of myself and the millions of people of Nanyue depend entirely on you, Prime Minister Tang!"
"If Prime Minister Tang has any good ideas, please feel free to speak them. I will absolutely mobilize the entire Southern Yue Kingdom to support you!"
Upon hearing this, Prime Minister Tang Bo raised an eyebrow, hesitated, and said, "Your Majesty, speaking of strategies for defending against the enemy, I do have a somewhat immature suggestion;"
"only--"
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