Thinking that Wang Chong's words came from Wang Gen, Zhangchou Jianqiong dared not let his guard down.
"Chong gongzi is astute and eager to learn. Coming from a clan of ministers and generals, it's a good thing for you to have such thoughts. Don't think too much into it! "
Zhangchou Jianqiong waved his hand, first stopping his subordinates, and then he turned to Wang Chong with a faint smile, his expression brimming with vigor.
"Mengshe Zhao and Ouzan aren't the first geniuses to appear in the empire, but does Chong gongzi know that the situation you speak of has never happened before?"
"Mengshe Zhao and Ouzan are from the Erhai and the highlands respectively. They are of different languages, races, and even their skin colors are different. Furthermore, our Central Plains Tang dynasty is like a sharp knife that separates them. From the start to the end, the two countries have never had the chance to interact with one another, needless to say, ally with one another.
"The hearts of men are filled with suspicion. Even two hands are unable to coordinate with one another, needless to say, two empires. Furthermore, with such a massive army, who will command whom? Who will be the leader and who will be the subordinate? Chong gongzi has never been on the battlefield, so it's understandable that you aren't aware of the affairs of the military. "
Zhangchou Jianqiong tapped his index finger lightly on the table. As the Southern Protector-General, he couldn't be any more familiar with Ouzan and Mengshe Zhao.
"If Ouzan and Mengshe Zhao intend to attack the Central Plains together, they must mobilize at least two hundred thousand soldiers each. How are they going to command an army of four hundred thousand? What's the timing? How are they going to mobilize and coordinate their movements? ... Chong gongzi, you're still young, so don't underestimate these matters. An army of several hundred thousand isn't just a few hundred or a few thousand. How can they be mobilized so easily?
"Besides, even if they were to ally with one another, with a hundred thousand elites and a city at their back, wouldn't they be able to fend off their attack? As long as they can stall for some time and wait for the army of the royal court to arrive, no matter how many soldiers they have, they will still be reduced to ashes.
"Putting everything else aside, the army closest to Jiannan is the Big Dipper Army of Longxi! This was an army established by Great General Wang Zhongsi. Even though Geshu Han was the new commander-in-chief, the Big Dipper Army was made up of Han men. The Big Dipper Army has accumulated plenty of experience in dealing with Ouzan's cavalry. "
"If such a situation were to occur, the Big Dipper Army would surely be mobilized. In addition, he could also mobilize troops from the other borders. Since the founding of the Tang dynasty, there has never been a situation like what you described. War was not a child's play. No matter how ambitious Gelofeng was, no matter how young he was, he still had to think things through. Once you offend the Tang dynasty, you have to consider the consequences of the Tang dynasty's wrath. That's not something that Erhai Mengshe Zhao can bear! "
At the end of his words, Zhangchou Jianqiong harrumphed coldly. Mengshe Zhao was different from Ouzan. Mengshe Zhao was a vassal state of the Tang dynasty.
Vassal states were those that were influenced by Confucianism and could be occupied, but were not.
If Mengshe Zhao dared to go against him, he would have to consider the consequences.
"Lord, Wang Chong doesn't know whether Mengshe Zhao will be able to form an alliance with Ouzan, but it is a fact that Mengshe Zhao has sent an envoy to contact the seventh Ouzan!"
Wang Chong sat upright, and his words shocked everyone present. Zhangchou Jianqiong, Xianyu Zhongtong, and the other generals of Jiannan were shocked.
"Chong gongzi, what do you mean by that? You said that Mengshe Zhao contacted Ouzan to form an alliance, is that true? "
Zhangchou Jianqiong asked grimly.
Initially, he thought that Wang Chong was just seeking advice from him. After all, as the scion of a general, it was normal for him to do so. However, Wang Chong's words had already exceeded the scope of seeking advice. It was already within the scope of military affairs.
If Mengshe Zhao were to ask Ouzan for an alliance, it would not be a small matter. The southwest was under his jurisdiction, at least until he entered the Ministry of War.
If something went wrong, everyone present would be implicated.
"Not long ago, I got to know a noble young master from Erhai. His father was a high-ranking official in Mengshe Zhao. According to him, Gelofeng had already sent a trusted minister as an envoy to Ouzan to express his intention of forming an alliance. That Young Master has a good impression of our Tang dynasty and doesn't want to start a war with our Tang dynasty. Plus, I treated him with great hospitality. That's why he said this unintentionally when he was drunk. "
"However, he sobered up after getting drunk. Realizing that he had made a slip of the tongue, he hurriedly returned to Erhai the next day. He didn't even bid farewell. The general was the Annan Protector-General, which was why Wang Chong had said such a thing. I don't mean to offend you! "
Wang Chong said.
Those words abruptly caused the atmosphere in the banquet to turn heavy. The generals in the pavilion glanced at one another with grim expressions on their faces.
Even Yang Zhao's expression froze as he realized the severity of the situation.
"Chong gongzi, pardon me for asking too much, but what is the surname of that noble from Erhai?"
Zhangchou Jianqiong asked gravely.
"Chen!"
Wang Chong said. Seeing that he had attracted the attention of all the generals of the southwest, Wang Chong inwardly said, "I apologize."
The matter at Nanzhao was no small matter. It concerned the lives of 180,000 elites of the Tang dynasty and dozens of cities in the southwest, as well as the lives of nearly a million civilians.
In order to be wary of the generals from Jiannan and make preparations for the future, he could only resort to such underhanded means.
"Chen?"
Zhangchou Jianqiong lowered his head in contemplation. He couldn't be any more familiar with the upper echelons of Mengshe Zhao. Thinking back, there was indeed an official surnamed Chen by Gelofeng's side. Furthermore, this person had accompanied Gelofeng on a diplomatic mission to the Tang dynasty in the past.
Could the words of Duke Jiu's grandson be true? Was Gelofeng plotting a rebellion, intending to ally with Ouzan to deal with the Tang dynasty?
"Gelofeng is an ambitious person who doesn't care about the consequences. What he wants is only his own ambition. Also, Lord Protector-General has also said that. In a one-on-one fight, Mengshe Zhao is definitely no match for the Tang dynasty. Thus, if he wishes to succeed, he has to contact Ouzan.
"Erhai and Mengshe Zhao are far apart, separated by the Tang dynasty. Regardless of what request Ouzan has for Mengshe Zhao, even if it means bowing down to him, Gelofeng will surely agree to it. After all, this is all in name only. Even if Ouzan wants to do something, he can't bypass the Tang dynasty and ask for Mengshe Zhao's help. This plan of driving the tiger to swallow the wolf was definitely in line with Mengshe Zhao's interests. At the very least, Gelofeng can completely break free from the Tang dynasty's control. "
Seeing that his words were effective, Wang Chong immediately struck while the iron was hot and inculcated his words.
"As for Ouzan, the conflicts between him and the Tang dynasty are increasing day by day, and he has also fought against the Tang dynasty several times against the Tang dynasty. Even if he can't get anything out of the alliance with Mengshe Zhao, as long as he can suppress the Tang dynasty, it will be beneficial to him. The enemy of my enemy is my friend! If Mengshe Zhao requests an alliance, as long as he can confirm the sincerity and authenticity of Mengshe Zhao's alliance, there's an extremely high chance that Ouzan will agree to Mengshe Zhao's request. "
Zhangchou Jianqiong stared at the youthful face of this youth, a look of shock in his eyes. Even Xianyu Zhongtong could sense that there was something unusual about this earnest youth, and a solemn look appeared in his eyes.
At the very least, none of the surrounding generals of the southwest dared to think that he was spouting nonsense. For the first time, everyone sensed the extraordinary weight of this youth.
Although this youth from the Wang Clan was young, he was able to hit the nail on the head with regards to the relationship between Ouzan and Mengshe Zhao. Before this, they had all believed that this youth was spouting nonsense, a curse, a deliberate insult to the Protector-General.
But at this very moment, they couldn't help but think that Wang Chong's words made sense.
Even though Mengshe Zhao and Ouzan had never worked together before, it wasn't impossible for them to work together. Just as Wang Chong said, Mengshe Zhao could make use of Ouzan to break free from the control of the Tang dynasty and become an independent kingdom.
On the other hand, Ouzan could make use of Mengshe Zhao to deal a blow to the Tang dynasty and wash away the humiliation of being defeated in the hands of the Tang dynasty. Putting aside anything else, just to deal a blow to the Tang dynasty, Ouzan would be willing to form an alliance with Wang Chong.
More importantly, everyone thought that the Ouzan Empire wouldn't descend into the east easily. After all, the Ouzan Empire had never touched Jiannan, let alone ventured deep into the mainland.
As such, they knew nothing about Jiannan.
If they were to wage war on a land that they knew nothing about, the strength of the Ouzan Empire would surely be greatly reduced. While Ouzan Empire wasn't familiar with the mainland, Mengshe Zhao was.
Every year, countless merchants would enter Jiannan from Erhai. Even the civil and military officials would frequent Jiannan.
With Mengshe Zhao leading the way and acting as an insider, the final weakness of Ouzan Empire disappeared.
Even Zhangchou Jianqiong had to admit that the words of the Wang Clan's Qilin son weren't impossible, but highly probable. For a moment, his heart couldn't help but sink.
Slowly raising his head, he glanced at the young man before him, and the feeling in his heart suddenly changed.
Before coming to the capital, Zhangchou Jianqiong had heard of this young man's reputation. In the regional commanders incident, this young man was undoubtedly the center of attention, and he had stirred up the hearts of many generals in the military.
However, hearing about it was one thing, and experiencing it for himself was another.
Even though he had helped Wang Chong in the regional commanders incident, his impression back then was that the young man was fearless, and the conflict between the Hu and Han was indeed in line with his interests.
However, the current situation was completely different.
The southwest was his territory, and regardless of whether it was Mengshe Zhao of Erhai or Ouzan of the west, Zhangchou Jianqiong knew them like the back of his hand.
Yet, this young man was able to dominate his territory, and yet, he was still able to hit the nail on the head … For the first time, Zhangchou Jianqiong felt that he had underestimated the young man.
The reason why he was able to host this banquet at the Ten Sun Tavern was due to Wang Chong's help. But more than that, it was because Wang Chong was Duke Jiu's grandson and nephew.
It was because of the prestigious identity behind him!
But all of a sudden, Zhangchou Jianqiong realized that he was wrong. Even if the young man before him was stripped of his prestigious background and his identity as Wang Gen's nephew, his talent was still dazzling.
It can't be a coincidence that this young man is able to attract the attention of so many people!
Unknowingly, everyone in the Annan West Protector-General's attitude toward Wang Chong had undergone a subtle change, becoming one that was filled with respect.
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