r18novel Page 377
Page 377
"By the way, urge Xu Zhihu to marry Li Chang'an. Anyway, this marriage will never allow them to live in harmony; it will only deepen their hatred."
The outward strength but inner weakness of the Li Yang Dynasty was once again clearly exposed. They had no way to deal with Xu Xiao, and with Li Chang'an becoming stronger, they were even more helpless.
"The only hope now is that Xu Xiao and Li Chang'an fight each other to the death, and then both of them are seriously injured."
The imperial army is too scattered. The combined forces of Li Chang'an, Xu Xiao, and the Prince of Yan now exceed the number of troops that the imperial court can control.
To some extent, Li Chang'an and Xu Xiao are now in a semi-independent state.
As emperor, Zhao Chun really had no other options besides resorting to intrigue and scheming.
The Northern Liang Royal Palace.
Xu Xiao sat in the study, his face grim in the candlelight, his wrinkles more pronounced.
At that moment, a woman's voice rang out from outside the door, "Father."
"come in."
A pair of delicate, white hands pushed open the door, and Xu Zhihu, dressed in a red dress, slowly walked into the study.
Xu Zhihu was already twenty-three years old. The emperor had betrothed her to Li Chang'an, but Xu Xiao was unwilling, so she had been unable to get married.
According to Xu Xiao's plan, once Li Chang'an is eliminated, Xu Zhihu will be free to marry.
But now Li Chang'an is not only not dead, but is living a more and more comfortable life.
"Daughter, you know about Feng Nian's matter, right?"
Xu Zhihu said gently, "I understand. Such an outcome is probably beyond the prediction of even the gods."
Who could have imagined that the once-renowned Northern Liang army would suffer such a crushing defeat, with even the Iron Pagoda cavalry being completely wiped out?
The legend of Xu Xiao, the founder of the Li Yang Dynasty, has been defeated by a new legend!
“Father, Liangzhou is the foundation of Northern Liang. If we really have to give up Liangzhou, I’m afraid the generals will not be satisfied.”
Xu Xiao said with a gloomy expression, "That's true, but if we don't let Beiliang out, Fengnian will be gone."
"Yuan Zuozong led more than 3,000 Snow Dragon Cavalry to detour through Youzhou, but another 1,000 of them were wiped out by the Northern Mang."
"Of the 115,000 men who went on this western expedition, only 2,000 Great Snow Dragon Riders have returned."
"Even if we were to conquer Shazhou for my father now, we wouldn't be confident of victory."
Xu Xiao spoke from the heart. If Xu Fengnian couldn't return, what would be the point of preserving the three prefectures of Beiliang?
"Moreover, the imperial court has already issued an edict to temporarily put Li Chang'an in charge of Liangzhou, which is simply adding fuel to the fire."
"The court is urging you to marry Li Chang'an as soon as possible... but it's nothing, just ignore him."
At this moment, Xu Zhihu's feelings were equally complicated.
If it loses a prefecture, its situation will worsen day by day, sandwiched between the imperial court and Shazhou.
However, if Liangzhou is not ceded, given Li Chang'an's style, he might actually kill Xu Fengnian.
After all these years, she knows very well that Xu Xiao can never give up on Xu Fengnian.
"Father, if we agree to Li Chang'an's conditions, how will we explain it to the military generals?"
Xu Xiao gave a bitter laugh, "Of course... I can't explain it."
"Unless, Chen Zhibao is allowed to succeed the heir apparent in exchange for his efforts to suppress the rebellion."
Upon hearing Xu Xiao's decision, Xu Zhihu was stunned.
From now on, the Northern Liang royal banner... will no longer bear the surname Xu?
At first glance, this is unacceptable, but upon closer inspection, it is a helpless situation.
Xu Fengnian's western expedition ended in a disastrous defeat, and most of the generals who supported him died.
In the current Northern Liang army, the majority of supporters are Chen Zhibao. Chen Zhibao already had extremely high prestige, and now he is second only to Xu Xiao.
If Xu Xiao insists on exchanging Liangzhou for Xu Fengnian, then he must make a deal with Chen Zhibao.
He used the future position of King of Northern Liang to gain Chen Zhibao and his cronies' support for Xu Xiao to relinquish Liangzhou.
Xu Zhihu glanced at his father, the Xu Rentu who once swept away six kingdoms, now looked somewhat dejected.
The mighty King of Northern Liang is now so humiliated.
Three days later, Chen Zhibao was summoned to the Prince's Palace in Qingliang Mountain.
Chen Zhibao, clad in white armor and robes, was known as the White-Clad Soldier Immortal and was the most prestigious among Xu Xiao's adopted sons.
He could vaguely guess Xu Xiao's intentions when he came this time.
"Father, did you summon me here today because of the Crown Prince?"
Xu Fengnian was arrested, and Li Chang'an demanded an exchange of Liangzhou, a fact known throughout Northern Liang.
Xu Xiao slowly said, "How do you think this matter should be handled?"
Chen Zhibao frowned slightly and said with a firm expression, "Father, for the sake of the Northern Liang's foundation, Liangzhou must not be given up."
Although saying this means giving up on Xu Fengnian, it is also the wisest choice.
Xu Xiao stood with his hands behind his back, his face grim for a long time.
“I am getting old, and Feng Nian is no longer capable of shouldering great responsibilities. Huang Man’er is all brawn and no brains. From now on, you will be the one to take charge of Bei Liang.”
For many years, Xu Xiao had never said such a thing, not even a whisper of it.
But now, Xu Xiao has explicitly stated that he wants Chen Zhibao to take over the leadership of Beiliang!
Chen Zhibao suppressed his inner turmoil, and unconsciously tightened his grip, almost crushing the teacup in his hand.
"Godfather...you..."
Xu Xiao turned around and stared into Chen Zhibao's eyes, as if he had made up his mind.
"Feng Nian is back to provide for my retirement, but you are the heir of Bei Liang."
Chen Zhibao knew very well that this was an exchange of benefits!
He became the heir apparent of Beiliang and took over the Beiliang empire, but in exchange, he had to agree to let Xu Fengnian return.
If Chen Zhibao doesn't object to exchanging Liangzhou for Xu Fengnian, the opposition in Northern Liang will be suppressed.
Chen Zhibao is much stronger than Xu Fengnian, and even if he leaves Beiliang, he can start his own business.
The Li Yang court had tried to sow discord between Chen Zhibao and Xu Xiao on several occasions, but Chen Zhibao always remembered his father-son relationship and did not rebel.
A hint of melancholy appeared in Xu Xiao's eyes.
“Leopard, you should know better than me that Feng Nian cannot carry Bei Liang.”
Having been captured twice and losing 100,000 troops, even if Xu Fengnian returned, he would no longer have the prestige to inherit the throne.
Chen Zhibao was actually very nervous. He didn't know if Xu Xiao was using this as a delaying tactic or if he was being sincere.
However, he was very confident. His prestige and seniority far surpassed Xu Fengnian's. As long as Xu Xiao was willing to let him be the heir, he was sure he could hold the position steadily.
Therefore, even if Xu Xiao's actions are a delaying tactic, Chen Zhibao is not afraid.
"Father, I will certainly not fail in my mission!"
"What Li Chang'an took from Beiliang, I will make him spit it out, bite by bite!"
"Not only must we spit it out, but we must also seize Shazhou to avenge our godfather and Fengnian!"
As expected of the proud and arrogant white-clad military genius, Chen Zhibao's reaction did not escape Xu Xiao's expectations.
In fact, Xu Xiao is now sincere, because no one is convinced that Xu Fengnian will continue to be the heir.
Why not give the position of heir to Chen Zhibao first and bring Xu Fengnian back?
When Xu Fengnian returns, if he still has the will to succeed, Xu Xiao is confident that he can leave him a legacy.
After the two finished their discussion, Xu Xiao summoned all the generals and publicly announced Chen Zhibao as the heir apparent of Northern Liang.
Afterwards, under Chen Zhibao's persuasion, Chen Zhibao's supporters all agreed to exchange Liangzhou for Xu Fengnian.
What if they disagree? Xu Xiao is still around, after all. Giving up the position of heir apparent is already a huge concession.
Jinchang City.
The city celebrated its great victory over Northern Liang for three days and three nights.
After this battle, Northern Liang no longer held an overwhelming advantage over Shazhou.
These days, the most miserable person is none other than Xu Fengnian.
Under the blazing sun, Xu Fengnian hung miserably atop the city gate, which was several dozen feet high.
His hands were wrapped in hemp rope, and he was surrounded by dozens of Imperial Guards carrying embroidered spring knives.
Xu Fengnian was pale, his skin was cracked from sunburn, and his whole body ached unbearably. Mosquitoes and birds would occasionally land on him and suck his blood and flesh.
The imperial guard beside him was still reminding him, "The prince said you can commit suicide, no one will stop you."
However, Xu Fengnian did not want to die; he had not yet lived.
"Xu Xiao will save me, he definitely will."
Although he was on the verge of a mental breakdown, his eyes were completely vacant, and he was muttering like a madman.