Chapter 90: Soldiers Have No Will to Fight
A few days later, Li Yuanhui heard that Pei Wuniang, the daughter of General Pei Minzhi of Right Dragon and Shield, had contracted a serious illness and her face was covered with red rashes.

I changed many doctors but there was no result.

Pei Min then submitted a memorial, requesting the emperor to cancel the engagement.

Liu Xuanji did come to inquire, but when he heard about what happened that day, he was speechless.

"There is always a loophole. I didn't expect that the young lady from the Pei family would know about it. Is this really okay?"

Li Yuanhui shook his head and said, "Nothing, Liang doesn't dare to say anything. If this matter gets out, the first one to lose face will be His Royal Highness Prince Liang. But this expedition is a good opportunity, maybe we can secretly contact the Qin brothers in Qi County and ask them to help solve this trouble."

Liu Xuanji raised his eyebrows: "Will this happen?"

Li Yuanhui said: "Don't worry, I know the seriousness of the matter. We cannot contact those old friends in Qi County casually, otherwise the crime of treason will be enough to cost us our heads."

Liu Xuanji nodded. Although Li Yuanhui was young, he always acted in a safe way and rarely took risks.

A few days later, Murong Ying formally issued an edict to send troops to quell the rebellion.

What surprised Li Yuanhui was that his father-in-law Murong Ying, who used to be very particular about pomp and circumstance when traveling, did not bring too many people with him this time. He did not even take the huge carriage that looked like a mobile palace. Instead, he traveled light and with a small entourage. The number of accompanying personnel was also greatly reduced.

The army that went on the expedition included the front, back, left and right armies, the left and right Longxiang armies, the left and right Yulin armies, the Xiaoguo army and the Jinwu guards.

After replenishment, the number of the front, back, left and right armies reached 20,000. The left and right Longxiang armies totaled more than 25,000, the left and right Yulin armies more than 30,000, the Xiaoguo army more than 40,000, and the Jinwu guards had 6,000.

There are a total of more than 100,000 central troops. In addition, Qingzhou, Yanzhou, Jizhou, Yuzhou, and Xuzhou will also send troops from various prefectures and counties to participate in the suppression of the rebellion.

The commander-in-chief of the army was still Prince of Qi Murong Ju.

The Xiaoguo Army was the vanguard army, led by King Murong Yang of Wu.

The army set out from Guanzhong and after half a month of continuous marching, they completed the Qiaohan Road. After passing Luoyang, they boarded a ship at Yanshi and headed south along the Yellow River.

The Xiaoguo Army arrived at Jinan County at the end of June.

At this time, the entire Qingzhou, except for Jinan County, had been occupied by Murong Xuan.

In addition, Murong Xuan also possessed most of the troops and ships of the former Qingzhou Navy, and directly blocked the Yellow River.

After the Xiaoguo Army marched to Licheng, Murong Yang adopted the advice of several Lang Jiang and Changshi Xue Ji and did not advance rashly. Instead, he sent out scouts to investigate the enemy situation in Jinan.

After learning that the county seat Dongpingling was still there and was under heavy siege, he immediately proposed to lift the siege of Dongpingling before the arrival of the army.

Outside Licheng, the Xiaoguo Army camped for dozens of miles. Ten generals, the chief secretary, and the King of Wu Murong Yang, who was the commander-in-chief of the front, and his staff including the military assistants, guards, and Sima, all gathered in the central army tent.

"Your Highness, the Xiaoguo Army has been marching for more than a month. They have just arrived in Qingzhou and need to rest for a while. There are many rebels outside Dongpingling City. As the saying goes, if you know yourself and the enemy, you will never be defeated in a hundred battles. Your Highness, please wait for a few days until the scouts find out the details before making any plans."

"Although the rebels claim to have 200,000 men, they are just hastily recruited rioters. What is there to be afraid of? The Xiaoguo Army is the elite of the central army. Once the main force arrives, the bandits will surely flee. The siege of Dongpingling can be lifted by ourselves."

"Sun Tzu said: War is a matter of great importance to a country, a matter of life and death, a matter of survival and destruction, and it must be carefully considered. Now that the road ahead is unknown, we are rushing to send troops. Isn't this treating the matter of great importance to a country as a joke?"

Xue Ji, the chief officer of the Xiaoguo Army, directly argued with Liang Chongli, Murong Yang's confidant and military officer.

Murong Yang glanced at everyone without saying a word. Seeing that his cousin, brother-in-law, and good friend did not support the decision to send troops immediately, he could only say: "What Xue Changshi said is very true. I am a little anxious. How about this, we rest for two days first, and wait until the scouts have found out the enemy situation in Dongpingling, and then make plans?"

"I will obey His Highness's orders."

All the generals of the Xiaoguo Army returned to their headquarters, leaving only Murong Yang and his staff in the central army tent. "Liang, the chief officer of the Xiaoguo Army is the confidant of the saint. Even when discussing matters in the future, we must give him some respect."

Murong Yang was quite dependent on Liang Chongli, otherwise this Liang general would not have the courage to argue with Xue Ji.

Liang Chongli bowed and replied, "Your Highness, I was a little excited just now, but time is running out. The Saint and other troops are still on the way and will arrive in half a month. If we take this opportunity to win the first victory, Your Highness's status in front of the Saint will naturally rise."

Murong Yang nodded: "I understand what Mr. Liang said, but now even my cousin and Li Silang have not come out to support the dispatch of troops, which shows that it is really not appropriate for the Xiaoguo Army to go to war now."

Liang Chongli said: "Your Highness, the key point is Xue Ji. Xue Ji's opposition to sending troops represents the opinion of the Xiaoguo Army. Even if General Wei and General Li want to support Your Highness, they have to consider the opinions of their colleagues."

This Liang Canjun was actually quite capable. He came from a poor family and worked as a minor official for ten years. Later, he was noticed by Wei Duan, the current Minister of War, who was from the Jingzhao Wei family. He was appointed an official and recommended to his nephew, King of Wu Murong Yang, as a Canjun.

In recent years, Liang Chongli has been giving advice to Murong Yang and has been highly valued, so Murong Yang still attaches great importance to his opinions.

"What does Liang Canjun mean?"

Liang Chongli said, "Your Highness is right. I really shouldn't argue with Xue Changshi. But Your Highness can bypass Xue Changshi and directly order the troops to go out. Your Highness is the commander-in-chief of the front, in charge of all the troops. Your orders are as strong as a mountain. Who dares not to obey?"

Because Murong Yang had no experience in leading troops, the emperor asked him to consult Xue Ji and listen to his opinions before he left.

This is why Murong Yang did not act arbitrarily, but summoned all the generals to discuss. So now Liang Chongli advised him to send troops directly to rescue the siege. It was not that it could not be done, but he had doubts about whether the troops could win.

"Okay, I'll think about it. Mr. Liang, please be patient."

"Yes, then Liang will withdraw first."

"Sir, walk slowly."

After Liang Chongli left, Murong Yang thought about it and ordered a banquet to be held. He also sent people to invite Li Yuanhui, Duan Wuchen and Wei Xiaoju.

The three of them arrived one after another. After Murong Yang persuaded them to drink a few glasses of wine, he explained his purpose.

"Silang, cousin, brother Duan, Liang Canjun and Xue Changshi are both civil servants and have never fought in battles. I don't know how to make a decision. I hope you can help me solve this problem."

The three looked at each other, and Wei Xiaoju said, "Your Highness, this time you are the commander of the front, commanding more than 40,000 Xiaoguo troops, while the enemy claims to have 200,000 troops. This must be a lie, but there are still more than 100,000 troops. 40,000 against 100,000. Even with the elite Xiaoguo troops, it is not easy to win this battle. First, the Xiaoguo troops have been marching for more than a month, and their physical strength has not yet recovered. Second, Licheng and Dongpingling are only a hundred miles apart. At this time, the rebels in Dongpingling must know that we have arrived in Licheng. They want to catch them by surprise and win by surprise. They have lost the opportunity. Even if they can win this battle, the Xiaoguo troops will suffer heavy losses. If the losses are too high, even if they win, it may not be what the saint wants. So Your Highness can send a small group of cavalry to harass the rebels and wait for an opportunity, but you cannot mobilize the entire army to fight immediately. The gain will not outweigh the loss."

Murong Yang finally understood at this moment that Liang Chongli insisted on sending troops just to let him grab the first prize and suppress the eldest prince and the second prince in front of the saint. However, his suggestion completely ignored the situation of the Xiaoguo Army and did not care about casualties.

Xue Ji advocated a delay because he thought that the Xiaoguo army was still in a state of exhaustion. Forcing a battle would inevitably affect its combat effectiveness and increase casualties.

The two men had different opinions, and General Shilang of the Xiaoguo Army naturally knew the situation of his troops, so he didn't say anything and tacitly stood on Xue Ji's side.

Of course there is another reason, which Wei Xiaoju did not mention, and that is that the elite troops of the Xiaoguo Army do not have much desire to fight.

Because when the sage besieged Guangwu, he promised rewards to the various units of the central army who fought desperately, but he did not fulfill his promise.

However, he rewarded the various troops in the army that came to support the king.

As the saying goes, what is worrying is not the scarcity of wealth but the inequality of wealth. The soldiers of the central army, who were once known as the backbone of the country, are slowly losing their enthusiasm to fight for the country, the court and the saints in the face of such injustice.

But no one dares to poke this window paper.

(End of this chapter)