Yang Ji, the leader of the army, stood up and bowed: "Your Majesty, the two kingdoms of Shu and Wu have just pledged their alliance, and it is a time when their morale is at a peak. I think that your Majesty should be patient for a while and wait for the opportunity."

"Furthermore, Wu has dangerous rivers, and Shu has mountain passes. If your Majesty raises his troops to the south, then Shu will come from the west; if your majesty raises his troops to the west, then Wu will raise his troops to the north."

"No matter which side attacks first, once the war breaks out, it cannot be stopped suddenly. It will only give the other side an opportunity to take advantage of it."

The central leader leads the imperial army. He has a high and powerful position and can only be appointed by the royal confidants.

As a general, Yang Ji was different from Gao Rou in terms of military say.

Cao Rui also had to pay attention to his words.

"Moreover, the Luoyang Forbidden Army suffered many battle losses in the battle of Longyou last year, and they have not yet recovered their strength."

"The Forbidden Army is the elite of the country and the foundation of protecting the country. If the damage is too great, how can we shock the generals in charge of the army in all directions?"

Cao Rui was speechless.

"The Lord cannot be angry and raise an army, and the General cannot be angry and lead to war. Now Your Majesty is angry, his mind is blocked by anger, and he talks lightly about war. This is not what the Lord is doing."

Yang Ji argued hard and did not give Cao Rui any face.

Cao Rui became more and more angry: "Since the soldiers are strong and strong, they are responsible for destroying the stubborn invaders. How can they stop fighting out of fear of injury?"

Yang Ji asked again: "The two countries of Shu and Wu may be separated by dangerous mountains or separated by water. I wonder which country your Majesty wants to conquer first?"

Cao Rui replied:

"The state of Wu was blocked by a large river. First Emperor Wu withdrew his troops from Chibi, and then Emperor Wen tried to attack several times but was unable to cross the river."

"What the state of Wu relies on is only the advantage of boats. It can fight on water but not on land. Therefore, it has more than enough to defend but not enough to advance."

"But the Kingdom of Shu is different. Zhuge Liang is vicious and takes advantage of the Wei Kingdom's unpreparedness to seize Longyou, cut off Liangzhou, and peek into Guanzhong. This must be guarded against."

"In addition, the fine cavalry of our great Wei Dynasty is the best in the world, and it is our strength to fight the Shu Kingdom on land, so we attack the Shu Kingdom first."

Yang Ji retorted loudly:

"Emperor Wu started his campaign against Zhang Lu, and brought a hundred thousand men to the campaign in person to give instructions and strategies. He also first harvested wheat and beans from the people to use as military food."

"Zhang Wei (Zhang Lu's younger brother) was just a mediocre man, leading the army to guard a dangerous pass. Although Emperor Wu had elite soldiers and tiger generals, his army was unable to do anything."

"After fighting for three days, I wanted to withdraw my troops and return them. I looked at Zhang Lu's army and sighed, "I have been in the army for thirty years, but how can I hold it for one day?"

"Fortunately, Tianzuo made the Wei Dynasty, and Zhang Lu's defense collapsed on its own, so it was settled. At the same time, during the Battle of Hanzhong, Emperor Wu organized his army for half a year, and after entering Hanzhong for only two months, he led the army and retreated."

"After this battle, Emperor Wu once said that Hanzhong is really a heavenly prison. This shows how difficult it is to enter Shu. I wonder how your majesty compares to Emperor Wu. Do you dare to talk about attacking Shu?"

Cao Rui argued: "How can I say that Emperor Wu can't do it? But the soldiers asked for a battle, thinking that if they don't march to take it, the two captives will not be able to destroy themselves."

"Therefore, I want to let the soldiers try it out to see the thieves' flaws. If it doesn't work and the time has not come yet, isn't it okay to imitate King Wu of Zhou to join forces in Jin and then return?"

…

During this discussion, most of the ministers advised Cao Rui to put the people's livelihood first and not to use weapons lightly.

Although Cao Rui knew that what the ministers said was quite reasonable, as a monarch, he already felt a sense of urgency.

Last year's two major defeats, coupled with the death of Grand Sima Cao Xiu, forced him to compromise with the family in order to stabilize the domestic situation.

If this continues, the imperial power of the Cao family will only be further threatened by the family, which is what he does not want to see.

Therefore, in order to establish his authority and at the same time reduce Longyou's pressure on Guanzhong, he had to fight another battle, and it had to be a victory.

Cao Rui noticed that Liu Ye was the only one among the officials who did not stand up and speak.

With all the important ministers objecting, Cao Rui had to temporarily cancel the meeting.

After all the ministers had retreated, Cao Rui summoned Liu Ye to the study.

"As discussed just now, everyone in our audience disagrees with the attack on Shu. Only Mr. Liu did not say a word. I wonder if we can know what Mr. Liu is thinking?"

Cao Rui asked.

Liu Ye looked around.

Cao Rui retreated with all his strength.

Liu Ye then said: "I think it can be cut down."

When Cao Rui heard this, he was overjoyed: "All the ministers in the court are scholars, how can they know the military affairs? Only Mr. Liu has the courage and wisdom, and his words are tangible. They are very in line with my wishes. Please try your words."

Liu Ye said: "The Jincheng Tangchi in Guanzhong and the fertile Shu land allowed Qin to unify the six kingdoms; the emperor of the Han Dynasty took advantage of it and ruled the Han Dynasty for more than 400 years."

"Now the Shu captives have all the Shu land, and they have stolen Longyou to get a glimpse of the pass. How can they guard the pass without Long? If there is a loss in the pass, the Shu people will become powerful!"

"Therefore, Longyou must be taken, and Shu must be conquered."

Cao Rui nodded repeatedly: "This is a great kindness!"

Cao Rui stayed with Liu Ye for a long talk before releasing him from the palace.

Unexpectedly, as soon as Liu Ye returned to his house, the concierge reported: "The Chinese leader is visiting."

Yang Ji valued Liu Ye very much and had a good personal relationship with him. He often came to Liu Ye's house.

Seeing Liu Ye finally coming back from the palace, he asked, "Zi Yang really made it easy for me to wait."

Liu Ye put a smile on his face and said affectionately: "Excuse me for waiting for so long. It's my fault."

There was some anxiety on Yang Ji's face: "In today's court meeting, everyone advised your Majesty not to attack Shu easily, but Zi Yang remained silent."

"I came here this time just to ask Zi Yang what he was thinking: Do you agree with the expedition to Shu, or do you disagree?"

Liu Ye said sternly: "Today at the court meeting, all the ministers said that we should not attack Shu. How could I not know the harm of attacking Shu?"

"Especially Xiuxian, it is right to use Emperor Wu's words to persuade His Majesty. Therefore, Shu must never be conquered!"

Yang Ji breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Liu Ye with a smile:

"After the court meeting, His Majesty left Zi Yang alone, which shows how much His Majesty values ​​Zi Yang."

"I think the person who can persuade His Majesty to give up his intention to use swords is none other than Ziyang."

"Since Ziyang said it cannot be cut, he must have persuaded Your Majesty?"

Liu Ye nodded: "That's natural."
Chapter completed!