Han Shizu

Chapter 977 General Jianghuai
The late Duke of Shan State, Zhao Hui, rose up at the end of Jin Dynasty and the beginning of Han Dynasty, and made great contributions to the imperial court.As the actual advocate of raising troops against Liao, he took the initiative to seek refuge in Hedong. After the founding of the country, he took the initiative to obey the central government and actively cooperated with Liu Chengyou's policy of cutting down the vassal. Later, he led the army to defeat the second invasion of Guanzhong by Hou Shu, consolidating the Han Dynasty Southwest border.

To sum up his resume, he is a late bloomer, and the current situation created it. Although he has been allowed to display it for less than ten years, he still left a strong mark in the history of the early Han Dynasty and made a lot of contributions.Liu Chengyou once commented on Zhao Hui: The prosperity of the Han Dynasty is the power of the public!

In addition, I have to mention one more point, Zhao Hui is also a general who was born in Li Cunxu's personal army, and Zhuang Zong produced it, which must be a high-quality product.

As Zhao Hui's son, Zhao Yanjin also received the emperor's kindness. Many generals, who fought bravely for him, directly inherited the title of duke, and their official positions and military positions were promoted step by step.Of course, even if you do nothing, it is enough to be rich and honorable for a lifetime.

However, among the second-generation generals of the Han Dynasty, Zhao Yanjin can be regarded as a leader.In the early years of Qianyou, there were several young generals around the emperor, such as Zhao Yanjin, Zhang Yongde, An Shouzhong, etc., and now they are basically generals of one side.

And Zhao Yanjin, who had served as the emperor's imperial bodyguard since the first year of Qianyou, was deeply trusted by Liu Chengyou. It was not until the eve of the Northern Expedition that he was sent to Yangzhou to assist Li Gu in preparing for the conquest.

Zhao Yanjin was only 21 years old when he was recruited by the emperor for the first time. Over ten years later, Zhao Yanjin has entered middle age and has become an all-rounder in civil and military affairs who is graceful, responsible, wise, and can be entrusted with heavy responsibilities.

Therefore, in the Long Live Hall, when seeing Zhao Yanjin again, Liu Chengyou was not only happy, but also quite emotional, and said frankly that people will grow old.Zhao Yanjin has always been a man who dared to speak up, so he directly broke Liu Chengyou's hypocrisy, and said frankly: "Your Majesty is at the peak of his age, how can you say he is old? Although I am nearly forty years old, I feel that it is time to build achievements!"

When he became magnanimous, Liu Chengyou was very magnanimous, and he was very satisfied with Zhao Yanjin's energy, and smiled: "I haven't seen you for more than three years, I miss you very much, come, drink with me!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Hearing Liu Chengyou's kind words, Zhao Yanjin felt grateful in his heart, saluted again, and sat down with an unpretentious attitude.

There are only a few simple dishes on the food table, fish, spring bamboo shoots, vegetables, tofu, plus two cups of chicken soup and a bottle of wine.Zhao Yanjin was a little stunned by this, and said, "Your Majesty, do you use this simple food on weekdays?"

In the three years after the Northern Expedition returned to the court, due to the lack of finances and the difficulties of the country, the Han Palace began to save money again. Liu Chengyou also took the lead in demonstrating.Today's him doesn't reject ample food and clothing, but when it's time to set an example, he has always been able to endure the desire for food and drink.

Moreover, he is simple, and other nobles and ministers must follow suit, otherwise he will be dissatisfied, and this dissatisfaction will be reflected in all aspects.The so-called putting yourself in the same way as others is just like this. On this point, the contrast between Liu Chengyou and Meng Chang back then is particularly obvious.

"Your Majesty's daily meals are even simpler, that is, when the Duke of Shan came back, he added two more dishes!" At this time, the old eunuch Sun Yanjun who was waiting on the side took the initiative to speak up and praised the emperor for the emperor.

"There are meat and vegetables, there are soup and wine, how can you talk about simple?" Liu Chengyou waved his hands, looked at Zhao Yanjin and said, "This time, I will settle down for a while, and I will be the hero of the banquet. Then I will treat you well." you!"

Hearing this, Zhao Yanjin said with emotion: "Your Majesty is like this, I just feel ashamed!"

In Yangzhou, with its wealth and Zhao Yanjin's status, obviously he would not treat himself badly in terms of food and clothing.Seeing this, Liu Chengyou's face was calm, he just raised his wine glass and motioned to him to have an aperitif first.

Treating Zhao Yanjin alone showed his closeness and respect for Zhao Yanjin. Of course, the purpose was obviously impossible to just eat and drink.After two glasses of wine, Zhao Yanjin took the initiative to ask Liu Chengyou, "Your Majesty plans to formally send troops to calm Jiangnan?"

"Yeah!" Liu Chengyou also nodded directly, and said in a relaxed tone as if he was not talking about a major military matter, "You must have guessed it, I also want to hear your opinions when I summon the generals from the south to return to the court. You have been on the front line in the south for a long time, and your understanding of the military situation can also provide the court with a more comprehensive consideration!"

Hearing this, Zhao Yanjin said directly: "Your Majesty, I think that the time has come to wipe out the south and rule the world!"

Zhao Yanjin was confident and straightforward, with a decisive tone.Liu Chengyou was neither impatient nor excited, but looked at him: "Tell me about the situation in Jianghuai and Jiangnan!"

After organizing the language a bit, Zhao Yanjin reported: "After several years of adjustments, the number of troops available in Jianghuai has reached [-]. Among them, the troops in Yangzhou and Luzhou are trained all year round, well-equipped and familiar with the local climate. Sharp soldiers. The Yangzhou navy, after general Zhang Yanqing's reorganization, has replaced and added hundreds of warships, which are outstanding in strength and can be used for great purposes. Once the army goes south, the Jianghuai division can be the vanguard of the army and cross the river first!"

"Jianghuai garrison, I have long intended to use it as the main force in Pingnan!" Liu Chengyou's words made Zhao Yanjin a lot of joy: "However, you have increased your training in Jiangbei, and you are eyeing tigers. Jiangnan should react!"

Zhao Yanjin nodded, with a more serious expression: "The lord of the south of the Yangtze River took Lin Renzhao as his general, and he was in charge of Jiangfang. This person is indeed talented and dedicated to his duties. He is the biggest obstacle to Wang Shi's southward march. The army he leads has two The soldiers of Wanshui army, trained by him, should have a certain fighting power. Besides, the Jiangnan army is vulnerable to a single blow, and Lin Renzhao will be alone in the end, and the Yangtze River spans thousands of miles, which is not something he can stop against the trend!"

"You and Mr. Li are in Yangzhou. I'm afraid you have studied Pingnan's idea for a long time! Tell me about your strategy for marching!" Liu Chengyou said with a light smile.

Asked Liu Chengyou for a map, Zhao Yanjin followed the instructions on the map and said: "The ministers thought that three armies could be sent. The first route is to send troops from the upper reaches, attack Ezhou by water and land, and then go east along the river to take Hukou and Chizhou; The second route used the Jianghuai land and water army as the main force, crossed the river at the right time, and pointed directly at Jinling; the third route used Wuyue soldiers and horses to go northward, attacking Changzhou and Runzhou. Of course, Li Gong believed that this was only from the perspective of the overall situation. You should also act according to the situation!"

For this, Liu Chengyou seemed very satisfied. In fact, since ancient times, the Pingnan War and the battle across the river have not been able to escape the general strategy, which is determined by geographical factors.Of course, what is different from history is that the power balance between the two sides is too disparate, and behind Jiangnan, there is a force of Wu Yue who is backstabbing, making the situation facing the Jiangnan court even worse, almost a desperate situation.

"No matter what, the number of troops Jiangnan can mobilize is still no less than [-], and it should not be underestimated!" Liu Chengyou said, his tone was cautious at first, but he said domineering sideways: "However, we should also show the strength of a big man." The majesty of the Tiger Master will wipe out Jiangnan in one fell swoop and unify the world!"

For a long time, Liu Chengyou has shown a cautious attitude towards the military. Every time he goes through a war, he often warns the generals not to underestimate the enemy.However, with the passage of time, with the continuous victories and the strengthening of the national army, this habit is still retained, but from his personal point of view, he has already formed the self-confidence of being invincible and invincible.Just like Pingnan, if he didn't send troops before, he was left to linger, but the time was not right, but once he made a decision and the soldiers went south, there was absolutely no reason for failure.

"How is Li Gong's health?" Liu Chengyou asked concerned: "I heard that the situation is not very good!"

Hearing this, Zhao Yanjin's expression was slightly heavy, and he replied: "Don't dare to lie to your majesty, Li Gong suffers from wind numbness, and the symptoms are very serious, especially when it snows in winter, the pain is unbearable, and he can hardly get off the ground. Dealing with official duties is mostly done by dictation."

Hearing this news, Liu Chengyou sighed sadly. It's not that he didn't know about Li Gu's condition, but if Li Gu didn't report it, Liu Chengyou could only pretend that he didn't know.It is also clear why Li Gu is struggling to support him. In the early years, he promised him to lead the army to march south, but the current situation forced him to delay it for nearly ten years, and Li Gu was about to enter his sixtieth year.

After a long time, Liu Chengyou said: "I owe Mr. Li a promise, and I should take this opportunity to realize my long-cherished wish!"

In fact, because of Li Gu's illness, Liu Chengyou was hesitant about whether to continue to appoint him as the coach of Nanzheng.After all, the pressure they endured during wartime and non-wartime is completely different.However, the scene of the sixty-year-old man in a wheelchair looking southward appeared in his mind, and he couldn't help being shaken.

(End of this chapter)