Shu Palace
Li Xiang received two reports at the same time. Both reports were very detailed and included all the young and middle-aged men under the four chieftains. This also showed their war potential.
In theory, this is the most important military intelligence, but the two people on the mountain both wanted to show off, so Li Xiang received it almost at the same time.
"This Adu Tusi is playing a trick on us. Fortunately, we have two spokespersons. If it was just him, we wouldn't know that he underreported the number of 5,000 people."
Xiao Yu pointed to the two reports and said that in the letter from Tusi Adu, the number of young and strong men under his command was 110,000, but in Mengchuan's report, the number of young and strong men under his command was 115,000.
According to what the two described, everyone was holding a meeting together at that time. Except for the high-level officials like them, no one else was allowed to attend, so the numbers at that time should be accurate. It is understandable that Tusi Adu wanted to leave himself a private army of 5,000 people, but he did not expect Mengchuan to rebel as well.
"It doesn't matter. It's just 5,000 people. Don't let the current situation change. We just need to be patient for a while. Judging from the current situation, it won't be easy to force them to surrender in a short time."
Li Xiang frowned and said that if the plan had been successful, all their will could have been crushed in one fell swoop, but it was obviously not done. The people on the mountain still had their confidence, mainly because they had been the kings of the mountain for hundreds of years and were extremely confident in themselves. We could only crush them temporarily.
"Originally, we only wanted to get some information, but unexpectedly, it increased their confidence. If that's the case, then we have to rely on our Lord Zhang. Our Lord Zhang has arranged a lot of dishes for them, and now we need to serve them."
Xiao Yu was not worried about what was happening on the mountain. Xiao Yu had also been clear about Zhang Jiuli's arrangements during this period of time. Zhang Jiuli could either not do it, or if he did it, the people on the mountain could not escape his calculations. Now the whole family, young and old, were detained, and this guy must be thinking of showing off in front of His Highness.
Everyone's eyes were focused on Zhang Jiuli's face. According to Su Dingfang and the others, they should lead the army to attack, but after a period of exploration, it was indeed as Li Xiang said. The stronghold at the bottom of the mountain was the easiest to deal with, but the higher we went, the greater the trouble. If it was not appropriate, I am afraid we would suffer great losses.
Li Xiang's army suffered losses on the battlefield, but they had never been so great. If the losses were too great this time, it would have a profound impact on the entire army. Now everyone has a desire to win, and cannot accept too many casualties. I don't know whether this is a good thing or a bad thing.
"Master Zhang, what are the follow-up arrangements?"
Zhang Jiuli was also a capable man. He knew that no matter how much praise the people present said, it would be useless. The most important thing was His Highness's thoughts. Only when His Highness spoke could I reveal all my plans. What was the point of others praising me? Could I decide the life and death of my entire family?
"Please rest assured, Your Highness. Everything is within our plan and will not go beyond it."
Zhang Jiuli took out another one from his sleeve and walked away. The plan was all planned out, but he originally thought that it would not be needed. After all, this plan was also very bloody.
"You've really calculated everything. Then we'll just quietly watch the show. The mountain may be severely damaged after this turmoil. Then we'll just have to clean up the mess. I originally thought that the mountain road was difficult to travel, so we'd save a lot of labor to build the road later. Now it seems that we can only adopt your plan."
Li Xiang sighed helplessly. Whether it was the people on the mountain or the people at the foot of the mountain, they should try their best to avoid too many casualties. After all, there were not many laborers in this area, and they would have to rely on them to develop this area in the future. Now it seemed that it was impossible. There was no way to achieve unification without bloodshed.
Longchuan Tusi Official Residence
"Did you see clearly?"
Meng Chuan spoke a little nervously at this moment, because half an incense stick of time ago, his subordinates came hurriedly to report that one of his relatives was missing. They have been searching for him for a long time but couldn't find him, but someone saw him go to the chieftain's place.
"Meng Anwu's mother saw it. The old lady was doing some mending in the Tusi's house. She must have seen it right. I rushed over after hearing the news. We need to act quickly."
The subordinates said nervously that they were all the chieftain's confidants before, but were subdued by the second young master on the way. Now they have no choice but to follow the second young master to the end. If the second young master can succeed, they will all be his loyal subjects.
Meng Chuan frowned. According to his original idea, he should wait for the peaceful change on the mountain, and then the court would give him an edict to let him take over his father's position. This should be the best, but the current situation is not according to his thinking.
"Take some of your men and guard your father's mountain camp. Due to the death of the First General, they are currently leaderless and will not be able to fight effectively for the time being. If you see anyone trying to convey an order, stop them and kill them."
The second young master finally made up his mind. Although he knew that usurping the throne would not have any good consequences, if he did not take action, he would probably be dealt with by now. He knew what his status was in his father's eyes. He was nothing more than a reserve prince who could be abandoned at any time.
"What about the young master?"
There are two powerful people in this mountain stronghold, one is naturally the chieftain of Longchuan, and the other is the future chieftain of Longchuan. Both of them hold heavy troops in their hands. If we only pay attention to the old chieftain, then no matter how successful we are, we will still be dealt with by the eldest young master in the end.
"Doesn't he want my goshawk? I'll go give it to him as a gift today."
There was a vicious look in Meng Chuan's eyes. He couldn't keep this eldest brother. Even if he failed, if he killed the eldest brother, his father would only have him as his son. Did he want to give this position to an outsider?
In the final analysis, Meng Chuan still didn't have the heart to kill his father, but if he killed his brother, he wouldn't have so much psychological pressure. He had lived in the shadow of this eldest brother since he was a child...
