PFC Chapter 456 Return to Beijing and meet Qiao Shuwan!
Chapter 456 Return to Beijing and meet Qiao Shuwan!
Zhou Quan personally led the army to fight, and Nangong Shouyi would definitely not miss this opportunity.
After all, if something happened to Zhou Quan, Daxia would inevitably be in chaos in a short period of time, which would be more satisfying than killing Gu Jingzhi.
"Prepare the horses and return to the capital!"
Gu Jingzhi thought about it and gave an order to Erhu directly.
At present, the arrangements in the southwest are almost complete. Although some things have not been finalized, he is a little anxious.
If something really happened to Zhou Quan, he would still have to preside over the overall situation in the court. After all, many civil and military officials from the court would have gone with him, especially the middle-aged and young generals of Daxia.
After all, the emperor is leading the army in person, so how can the elite troops in the court not be dispatched?
The capital is empty right now, almost all the best generals in the country have gone out, and the cabinet is not good at military affairs. If he, the Minister of War, does not go back now, if something goes wrong, it is likely to lead to a complete loss!
……
It’s been a dusty journey.
Gu Jingzhi, accompanied by Erhu and several elite guards, rode fast all the way, but it still took him almost half a month to reach the capital.
Along the way, the army never stopped receiving intelligence.
The army had been on the march for more than a month, and the heavy rain for months had slowed the march, and the supply of food and fodder had also become difficult.
If the military camp and granary had not been established in Ningzhou in the early years, the army might have run out of food!
But even so, the army's losses along the way were more than double the usual amount.
Hundreds of thousands of troops went to war, and countless civilians and coolies were conscripted. In addition, the emperor led the army in person, and the standard of treatment was several times higher than that of the generals. In short, in Gu Jingzhi's opinion, it was a trip that was not worth the cost, and it was a painful trip.
As soon as he arrived in the capital, Gu Jingzhi didn't even go home, but went straight into the palace in a dusty state.
When Qiao Shuwan saw Gu Jingzhi coming back, a flash of surprise appeared in her eyes: "Jingzhi, why are you back?"
Queen Ye Junyao, who was following beside her, was stunned when she heard this.
The relationship between my mother and Duke Ningguo doesn't seem like the relationship between the empress dowager and court officials!
Although everyone knew that during their early years in Ningzhou, the late emperor and the empress dowager... and even His Majesty and other princes, had received much care from Gu Jingzhi, but this kind of intimate tone...
She looked at Qiao Shuwan, then at Gu Jingzhi, a hint of curiosity flashing in her eyes.
To be honest, this was her second time meeting Gu Jingzhi. Before that, she had always stayed in the boudoir. After entering the palace, she saw him once at the ceremony of coronation of the queen, but she only saw him from a distance.
After all, Gu Jingzhi is a legend in the capital!
After entering the palace, she was not favored by Zhou Quan, and the number of times she could see Gu Jingzhi became less and less.
After this close contact, she felt that this Duke in his thirties... was really young!
Gu Jingzhi merely glanced at Ye Junyao, then looked at Qiao Shuwan and asked, "Queen Dowager, why didn't Your Majesty inform me first about your personal expedition?"
His words were very impolite, but they were not considered presumptuous. After all, as a cabinet minister and the Minister of War, all military affairs in the country had to be consulted with the Ministry of War first, even the emperor did so.
Qiao Shuwan looked slightly embarrassed. She glanced at Ye Junyao, who thought the Queen Mother wanted her to leave. Unexpectedly, Gu Jingzhi continued, "It's the rainy season right now, making travel extremely difficult for the army. The military reports I received on my way back to the capital indicate that the army's losses on the journey alone are nearly double what they used to be!"
"Ugh!"
Qiao Shuwan sighed slightly and said, "I know you won't agree, but this time..."
"Queen Mother!"
Gu Jingzhi raised his voice and said seriously, "No matter what the reason is, military affairs, national affairs, and matters of life and death must be carefully considered!"
"The Northwestern barbarians have assembled 200,000 soldiers and horses, all of them cavalry. With the help of Beili, a total of 400,000 troops have been dispatched. My Great Xia has not yet made a complete deployment and has rushed into battle so hastily. This is a disregard for human life!"
"Your Majesty, do you know that this northwest land is vast and boundless? If the enemy army takes advantage of the heavy rain to march south and intercept our army midway, what kind of situation will arise?"
"It has been raining for months, the ground is muddy, and the army is stretched for hundreds of miles. Hundreds of thousands of troops are equivalent to dividing up a lot of land. My 300,000-strong army can't even take care of each other on the road!"
"If I were to use my troops, I would only need 30,000 cavalry to defeat the entire army!"
"By then, the court will have no troops available. The western border troops will rush south to rescue, and the enemy will surround and attack the reinforcements. The northwest will be defeated for thousands of miles. Who will bear the consequences of such losses?"
Almost as soon as Qiao Shuwan opened her mouth, Gu Jingzhi understood what she meant.
She wanted Zhou Quan to hit a wall and then follow Gu Jingzhi's footsteps in the future, because she knew that as long as she was there, Gu Jingzhi would not do anything to Zhou Quan for the sake of their only daughter.
But compared with hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers, is Zhou Quan’s life enough to pay?
What kind of situation will Daxia face without these hundreds of thousands of troops?
Qiao Shuwan was surprised when she heard this: "No, that's not possible..."
"This is the hypothesis I made after reading the military reports... As for whether it will happen, it depends on how much the enemy commander can detect. But the one leading the army is Nangong Shouyi. How confident is the Queen Mother in dealing with it?"
Gu Jingzhi closed his eyes slightly and sighed in his heart.
Qiao Shuwan and Ye Junyao's expressions changed drastically. If Gu Jingzhi's predictions were true, then Daxia would really...
"Jingzhi, what should we do now?"
Without caring about anything else, Qiao Shuwan asked anxiously.
Gu Jingzhi was slightly disappointed after hearing this. Qiao Shuwan had never made a mistake before, but she did not expect that this time...
"Ugh!"
He sighed and said, "The only plan now is to mobilize the troops in Sichuan and march north to hold Tingzhou. Firstly, we can support the main army, and secondly, we can rush to the capital at any time to provide assistance!"
"Also, mobilize the eastern front's troops to rush to the capital!"
"Uh……"
Eastern Front...
The Eastern Front Army had previously surrendered to Prince Heng and was severely punished by the imperial court. Unexpectedly, the Eastern Front Army would have to be mobilized again now.
She thought for a moment, then suddenly said, "When Li Yue attacked the northwest before, he still deployed cavalry from the northern border to reinforce him. Why not use the same trick again now?"
"That won't work!"
Gu Jingzhi shook his head: "If the Northern Border Cavalry makes any movement, Beili will know immediately. If we send troops to intercept them at this time, the army will be wasted in vain. It's not worth it!"
"Besides, the capital camp plus the troops in the northwest total 450,000 troops. If deployed properly, the northwest will be safe!"
Qiao Shuwan asked doubtfully, "You mean, after the army gathers in the northwest, we won't start fighting yet?"
"..."
Gu Jingzhi's eyelids fluttered. "Empress Dowager, the army has been marching in the rain for over a month. Even if they reach the northwest border, their fighting force will probably be half gone. How can we start a war?"
"We must send a message to Ye Wen as soon as possible to gather the troops. Otherwise, we may be taken advantage of by the enemy!"
"Also, tell Xue Ruhai that no matter how difficult it is, he must always strictly inspect all the border crossings and never let the enemy cavalry sneak through. Otherwise, our northwest will be in danger!"
"..."