bookcurios Chapter 446 Bingzhou Crisis
Chapter 446 Bingzhou Crisis
Zhao Hui was feeling upset. He never expected that the two old men whom he respected would be the ones speaking for Bingzhou today.
Although he was dissatisfied, he couldn't lose his temper on the spot. After all, he had to consider the face of the royal family.
He turned to look at Fan Wenyuan and asked, "Prime Minister, do you also think the court needs to send troops?"
Fan Wenyuan understood that Zhao Hui wanted him to refute Qin Lian's idea. Although he was reluctant, he did not dare to disobey the emperor's order and could only say:
"Your Majesty, Bingzhou is now under the control of Governor Du Ziqing. With his abilities, mobilizing Bingzhou's troops is a piece of cake. Furthermore, several major cities have been equipped with new weaponry. Given Bingzhou's financial resources, resisting foreign enemies shouldn't be a problem."
Fan Wenyuan's words made the ministers in the court who had once been on good terms with the Wang family sigh.
Wang Danwang's resignation not only meant a change of prefect, but also meant that they would lose the channel to obtain benefits from the Wang family. They should have stood up at this time and begged the emperor to send troops to Bingzhou.
Because once Bingzhou is defeated, it will highlight the importance of the Wang family in Bingzhou, and perhaps they can take this opportunity to regain their lost interests.
However, in this oppressive court atmosphere, they ultimately chose to remain silent...
Seeing everyone like this, Zhao Hui felt that the time was ripe and there was no need to continue arguing about this troublesome matter. He waved his hand and announced the withdrawal of the court.
Zhao Hui had just returned to the imperial study and sat down. Before he could even take a sip of tea to moisten his throat, Wang Defa hurriedly leaned over to his ear and whispered, "Your Majesty, Minister Qin and Minister Si request an audience."
Zhao Hui was thirsty and annoyed at this time, and he didn't care that Wang Defa was still bent over. He picked up the teacup and took a few gulps.
After drinking comfortably, he put down the teacup and said, "Let them in!"
Wang Defa then straightened his back, took two steps toward the door, and said in a loud voice, "I summon the two ministers to the emperor!"
Qin Lian and Si Shitong were waiting outside the imperial study. When they heard the summons, they immediately straightened their clothes, walked up the stairs and headed towards the door of the imperial study.
When the guards at the door saw them coming, they immediately bowed and their originally wary gazes turned respectful.
Zhao Hui knew clearly that the two men came at this time because of something that had not yet been clearly answered in the court.
He put away the unhappy look he had in the hall, ordered Wang Defa to bring two stools, and motioned them to sit down.
Seeing that Qin Lian had already sat down, Si Shitong did not take his seat himself. Instead, he spoke with a serious expression:
"Your Majesty, General Qin's suspicions in the court are not groundless. The direction the Xiongnu chose to attack this time is indeed quite strange."
Qin Lian, who had just sat down, saw that Si Shitong had already asked the first question, so he quickly stood up and echoed:
"Your Majesty, that's indeed the case. This time the Xiongnu moved south, they should have plundered Dai County, where the reserves were the most abundant. Even Weizhou would have been a good target. But this time, they chose to attack Mayi, Linhu, and other places in Bingzhou. It's truly puzzling."
Zhao Hui frowned, rolled his eyes at the two of them, and asked:
"Why are you so obsessed with their attack position? I remember that Hong Kui once went to Bingzhou on behalf of the court and fought against the Xiongnu, but he retreated after only one round."
When Qin Lian heard Zhao Hui mention Hong Kui, he pondered in his heart.
As the Minister of War now, he had naturally checked the files of that year. The records of Hong Kui's battles were just small-scale battles involving tens of thousands of people.
Although the Xiongnu also harassed Daijun and Mayi later, the scale of their troops was only about 200,000.
However, this time, the Xiongnu actually dispatched a combat force of 500,000. Based on this scale, it is very likely that the Xiongnu will send another 200,000 or so to assist in transportation in the future.
By this calculation, the total number of troops deployed by the Huns this time will be immeasurable.
If it was just for Bingzhou, even if some food was snatched back, it would probably not be worth it for the Huns.
Therefore, Qin Lian was certain that the Huns must have other plans this time.
"Your Majesty, no matter what, we must be wary of the Xiongnu advancing southward. After all, our dynasty's largest granaries are located in the capital and Yuzhou."
Si Shitong's reminder was like a heavy hammer, hitting Zhao Hui's heart hard.
Zhao Hui's heart trembled. If what Si Shitong said was true, the Xiongnu would most likely march straight in. They would first occupy several important towns in Bingzhou, using them as transportation hubs, and then send 100,000 troops south to plunder and then leave.
Even if the imperial court sent troops to pursue them, it would be difficult to gather enough troops in a short time. Moreover, during the pursuit, they would likely be counterattacked by the Xiongnu.
"It can't be such a coincidence!" Zhao Hui thought to himself. He really didn't want to believe that things would turn out like this.
"Your Majesty, we have also heard one thing!" Qin Lian continued.
"What else?" Zhao Hui was attracted by Qin Lian's words and asked quickly.
"Conflicts arose within the Xianbei tribe. The Murong family fled to the northeast, while some other families defected to the Xiongnu and formed an alliance with them..."
Qin Lian's words left Zhao Hui's mind bewildered. He knew full well that the Xiongnu had greatly increased in strength, so why were they only attacking a small part of Bingzhou at this moment?
"You mean, they might just be creating trouble in Bingzhou, but they might actually launch an offensive against Yanzhou?"
Zhao Hui suddenly had an idea and asked.
"That possibility cannot be ruled out, Your Majesty. The situation in Qin is currently complex. If the Xiongnu were to invade, where would the court's focus lie?"
Qin Lian's words once again plunged Zhao Hui into deep confusion.
During this period, he had been worried about the problems in Yanzhou and even considered withdrawing Xing Shuren. If Qin and Bingzhou were to encounter problems at the same time, who knew what would happen next.
"According to Minister Qin's opinion, how should we respond?" Zhao Hui asked again.
"Your Majesty, even if we do not interfere in Bingzhou's affairs for the time being, we must still be on guard. The imperial army should be heavily concentrated in Luoyang at this time."
Qin Lian finally revealed everything he was thinking.
In fact, Zhao Hui had considered this issue before. Nowadays, with expressways extending in all directions, it was extremely convenient to send troops to Luoyang, whether by water or land.
If, as Qin Lian said, a large army was mobilized and stationed in Luoyang, the Huns would surely notice it, and then they would have no choice but to limit the battlefield to Bingzhou.
He would send troops there after Bingzhou's power was weakened.
This time when the Huns advanced southward into Bingzhou, he had intended to take this opportunity to consume the Wang family's military strength. This was his original calculation, and he completely ignored everything else.
But all of this was beyond his imagination. How should he weigh it all and make a decision? Zhao Hui fell into deep contemplation...