Chapter 701: Indeed incompetent!

Since the prefect of Yecheng is a good position for Cui Zibo now, why did Cui Shao, as his father, sigh?
The reason is that Cui Shao knows that with Ye Mingsheng’s character, he would not give the lucrative job of Yecheng prefect to Cui Zibo for no reason...
After getting An Miaoyi's opinion last time, Cui Shao thought about it for a while and felt that he could not allow the power of the Murong family in the Fengwu Army to continue to expand without restraint. So he also wanted to try to support Zhang Zhiwen to become the governor of Jiyu, which would be a means of checking and balancing the Murong family.

Just when Cui Shao was preparing for this matter, news came from the Imperial Attendant's Office that Ye Mingsheng was not going to let Murong Hui serve as the Censor of Ji and Yu, but was planning to transfer him back to Youyan to replace Ji Heng as the Censor, while Ji Heng would go to Ji and Yu to serve as the Censor. There was only one reason why Ye Mingsheng made such a personnel transfer, that is, Ye Mingsheng planned to let Murong Yuliang serve as the Governor of Ji and Yu!

To be honest, when Cui Shao first got the news, he was in a very heavy mood. In the Fengwu Army, he and Murong Yuliang were in charge of Youyan and Liaoyang respectively, and both were pillars of the Fengwu Army's civil service system. Because Youyan's economic conditions were better than Liaoyang, and because of his relationship with Ye Mingsheng, Cui Shao was generally considered to be superior to Murong Yuliang in the Fengwu Army.

Even so, Cui Shao had long ago deeply realized the huge advantages of Murong Yuliang. The reputation and connections accumulated by the Murong family for more than ten generations were a huge fortune. If the Fengwu Army wanted to gain the world, they had to make good use of people like Murong Yuliang. So, if nothing unexpected happened, Murong Yuliang would definitely be valued by Ye Mingsheng...

Although they both came from aristocratic families, the Cui family's influence in Liaoyang was decent, but it was nothing in the whole world. Compared with Murong's golden signboard, it might be an exaggeration to say that the difference was like heaven and earth, but in fact, there was not much difference. Now that Ye Mingsheng transferred Murong Yuliang to be the governor of Hebei and Henan, it undoubtedly confirmed Cui Shao's previous speculation.

Ye Mingsheng wants to use Murong Yuliang's ability and the influence of the Murong family to further clean up the malpractices in the officialdom of Ji and Henan, so that Ji and Henan can stabilize as soon as possible and provide blood transfusion for the Fengwu Army. From Ye Mingsheng's perspective, Cui Shao believes that Ye Mingsheng's move is very correct. It can be said that he knows people and assigns them to the right positions, and makes the best use of things!

However, from his own perspective, Cui Shao was in a very bad mood. After all, although many people from Ji and Yu had fled due to famine and war, their economic foundation, working-age population and arable land area far exceeded Youyan. Moreover, under a series of policies of the Fengwu Army, many people from Ji and Yu who had originally left their homes have begun to return to their hometowns one after another, ready to build their hometowns well.

Coupled with the support of the Fengwu Army's military force, Murong Yuliang can make great strides in Hebei and Henan, and it is almost certain that he will achieve some success!
By the time Jiyu develops and gets on the right track, Murong Yuliang, as the governor of a region, will inevitably have a higher status in the Fengwu Army...
In this way, Murong Yuliang will have a huge impact on Cui Shao's position in the Fengwu Army, not to mention that there is also a Murong Hui in the Fengwu Army!

Whenever he saw the young man Murong Hui and then looked at his own nephews, Cui Shao would feel deeply moved. The Murong family was one of the top families in the Great Zhou Dynasty. With hundreds of years of family heritage, they were indeed not ordinary people. When it came to the training of the younger generations in the family, they really had their own way!
Murong Hui is very capable at a young age. He single-handedly defeated the local tyrants in Ji and Yu. He is also very self-disciplined, not corrupt or lustful, and is a humble gentleman. He is truly a rare talent!
From the perspective of the Fengwu Army, Cui Shao was very happy to have the help of the Murong uncle and nephew, as this undoubtedly increased the possibility of the Fengwu Army taking over the world.

However, considering their own and family interests, the abilities and value shown by the Murong uncle and nephew definitely made Cui Shao feel pressured. Now that Murong Qingwu has not given birth to a son, the situation is better, and the conflict between the two sides is not that sharp. When Murong Qingwu gives birth to a son, the situation will become even more lively.

Therefore, in order to prevent trouble before it happens, Cui Shao did not want to see Murong Yuliang become the governor of Ji and Yu. In order to prevent this from happening, he even considered becoming the governor himself. Although he was very wary of Murong Yuliang's family background, Cui Shao was still very confident in his own abilities and means. He was definitely better than Murong Yuliang...

However, Cui Shao gave up this idea after thinking about it for a few days. Although he was more capable and capable than Murong Yuliang, the network of contacts that Murong Yuliang represented was simply incomparable to him. Things that Murong Yuliang could easily accomplish by meeting a few people and having a few meals, he might need to work hard to accomplish.

After giving up the idea of ​​taking action himself, Murong Yuliang set his sights on Zhang Zhiwen, wanting to give Zhang Zhiwen a push. Zhang Zhiwen was in charge of reforms in Hebei and Henan, and they were quite effective. More than ten dams and canals were being steadily constructed. The reform of the tax system also enabled the Hebei-Henan Provincial Government to generate revenue.

In addition, Zhang Zhiwen has worked in Hebei and Henan for nearly a year and is very familiar with the local conditions in Hebei and Henan, so he is fully qualified to compete for the position of Governor of Hebei and Henan.

If he just wanted to give it a try before, then after comprehensive consideration, Cui Shao became serious. However, considering Ye Mingsheng's attitude, Cui Shao was still somewhat hesitant.

And at this critical moment, Ye Mingsheng appointed Cui Zibo as the prefect of Yecheng. Although it seems to be a kind of appeasement, Cui Shao can also feel a hint of warning in it. Ye Mingsheng is telling himself, I know what you are going to do, I will arrange a good position for your son, just put aside your little thoughts, so that everyone can be decent!

Since Ye Mingsheng had spoken, although Cui Shao was unwilling, he could only acquiesce silently and nodded slightly at An Miaoyi. Seeing the helplessness in Cui Shao’s eyes, An Miaoyi was a little disappointed and realized that it was completely impossible to stop Murong Yuliang from becoming the governor of Hebei and Henan...

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Jiyu, Shangzhou City
Under the cover of fire from hundreds of red cannons, tens of thousands of Fengwu Army soldiers are launching wave after wave of attacks towards Shangzhou like a tide.

Although the Zhennan Army soldiers defending the city were still able to stand firm during the Fengwu Army's offensive, it was obvious that they were already struggling!
At this time, on a watchtower outside the city, Ma Zhongjun walked up to Yuan Song, who was holding a telescope to observe the siege, and said in a low voice:

"General, the Marshal has led his troops from Yijing to Jiyu. It is expected that they will arrive in about ten days!"

Feeling the dullness in Ma Zhongjun's voice, Yuan Song looked at him and said lightly:

"The Marshal has come to help in person, this is a good thing! Why do you look unhappy?"

Hearing Yuan Song say this, Ma Zhongjun did not hide his thoughts and said directly:
“General, our army has an advantage over the enemy in terms of manpower, artillery, cavalry, and logistical support, but we are still in such a state that we need the Marshal to lead the troops in person to support us. I don’t think this is a good thing. It can only mean…” Ma Zhongjun, who was a little emotional, stopped talking at the end, while Yuan Song continued calmly:
"You mean to say this shows our incompetence?"

Seeing Yuan Song speak out his heart, Ma Zhongjun gritted his teeth and nodded under Yuan Song's gaze. Seeing this, Yuan Song patted his shoulder, then looked towards Shangzhou City in front of him. After a moment of silence, he said with some emotion:
“Zhongjun, you are right! Compared with Xu Zhaojie, I, Yuan Song, am indeed incompetent…”

Ma Zhongjun was shocked when he heard this, and quickly advised Yuan Song:
"General, it's a common thing for a general to be a soldier. The defeat in Chengfeng County was just Xu Zhaojie's good luck. Now he is being beaten back by our army and can only defend Shangzhou and Shenzhou, fighting a meaningless battle!"

In response to Ma Zhongjun's admonition, Yuan Song shook his head and said:
"Don't underestimate Xu Zhaojie. Apart from the defeat in Chengfeng County, Xu Zhaojie was able to fight back and forth with our army when our army had the upper hand. Xu Zhaojie was able to make correct judgments before me every time. He is really amazing. If I were to command the Zhennan Army, I'm afraid it would have been completely defeated by now!"

Seeing Yuan Song praising Xu Zhaojie so much, Ma Zhongjun didn't know what to say. After hesitating for a moment, he tentatively said:

"The general will be here with his troops soon. Do you think we should intensify our offensive against Shangzhou and try to capture Shangzhou and surround Shenzhou before the general arrives?"

During this period of time, Ma Zhongjun could not understand what Yuan Song was doing regarding the offensive on Shangzhou. According to his idea, artillery would open the way, and tens of thousands of troops would go all out to attack Shangzhou. If they had done so from the beginning, they would have almost captured Shangzhou yesterday. However, Yuan Song seemed to delay time intentionally. Although the artillery fired fiercely, he only sent two battalions to attack the city every day, as if he was wasting time bit by bit...
Facing Ma Zhongjun's proposal, Yuan Song smiled and said:

"Don't worry, Zhongjun. Our army may be able to capture Shangzhou before the Marshal arrives. Facing an opponent like Xu Zhaojie, the most important thing is to play it safe. You can't give him the slightest flaw, otherwise as long as he sees an opportunity, he will kill you with one blow!"

Seeing that Ma Zhongjun was still puzzled, Yuan Song had no choice but to continue explaining:

"Although a fierce attack is good, Zhongjun, have you ever thought about the casualties? You don't really think that the Marshal came to Jiyu in person just to repel Xu Zhaojie, right?"

After hearing this, Ma Zhongjun was stunned at first, and then a look of surprise appeared on his face. He was actually a little puzzled about Ye Mingsheng personally leading troops to support Hebei and Henan this time, although Xu Zhaojie had won the victory in Chengfeng County in the early stage, and invaded Hebei and Henan and captured Shenzhou and Shangzhou.

However, after the First Army mobilized for war and regrouped, the offensive of the Zhennan Army under Xu Zhaojie was completely thwarted. Although Xu Zhaojie's command ability was very strong, under the strong overall strength of the First Army and Yuan Song's strategy of seeking stability and not making mistakes, the more than 30,000 Zhennan Army troops who invaded Hebei and Henan had their space for movement compressed little by little. If things continued to develop in this way and nothing unexpected happened, it would not take long before Xu Zhaojie would be driven back to Anqing.

Therefore, Ma Zhongjun felt that the First Army alone could repel Xu Zhaojie. Under such a difficult situation in Yunbing, there was no need for Ye Mingsheng to lead the precious reserve troops for support. However, if they intended to take a bite out of the Zhennan Army, Ye Mingsheng’s support could be explained····························
After thinking carefully for a while, Ma Zhongjun said with some concern:

"I heard that the battle in Yunbing was very tough, and the brothers of the Second Army and the Third Army suffered heavy casualties. Under such circumstances, is it a bit too much to launch a counterattack in Hebei and Henan..."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Song ordered in a deep voice:
"Since the Marshal has made this decision, he must have weighed the pros and cons and considered it comprehensively. You and I are responsible for the execution! Besides, although Shangguan Hongyuan has risked his life to gather 200,000 troops this time, how long can his Luoan court sustain the daily food and fodder for these 200,000 people?"

"Besides, the battle of Yunbing has been going on for a month now, and the Luoan Imperial Army has not made any significant progress except for taking down a county town! Although the situation in Yunbing is difficult, we can still hold on, and it is far from the worst!"

"Once the Marshal's reinforcements arrive, together with the Fourth Army's troops, the total number of our troops in Hebei, Henan and Anqing will exceed 120,000. No matter how powerful Xu Zhaojie is, he will be powerless in the face of absolute strength! This time, the Marshal is determined to teach Xu Zhaojie a lesson!"

"That's why we can't fight too fast in Shangzhou. The Zhennan Army is not weak in combat. If we attack Shangzhou with all our might, our army will pay a heavy price. This is not conducive to our subsequent counterattack and may scare Xu Zhaojie away. If he retreats back to Anqing now, our counterattack will become even more troublesome!"

After Yuan Song finished speaking, Ma Zhongjun finally understood his thoughts and said with great admiration:
"General, you have foresight and foresight, which I cannot match!"

In response to Ma Zhongjun's flattery, Yuan Song waved his hand and then ordered:
“There are still at least 5,000 Zhennan Army soldiers in Shangzhou City. They will most likely try to break out in the next few days. Zhongjun, you lead your troops to block Sanshengslope. We must not let them retreat to Shenzhou and join Xu Zhaojie…”

(End of this chapter)