Fenghou

Chapter 589 Game ([-])
At five o'clock this chapter was missed.

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In the afternoon, the two parties formally held the first round of negotiations in the office of the Xuanfu Envoy. Huang Guinian temporarily served as Li Hui's deputy. There are officials responsible for recording and preparing materials, and each side has five or six people.

Jiang Yanxian said calmly: "We sent troops mainly for two reasons. As we all know, in the great cause of fighting against the Jin soldiers, Sichuan and Shaanxi have always been integrated. Shaanxi Road sent people, and Sichuan roads gave money and food support. It is precisely because of strong logistics. With support, the Western Army defeated the Jin soldiers again and again, killing hundreds of thousands of enemies. Although we recovered Shaanxi Road, the population was depleted, the people were hungry and cold, and all the wealth on Shaanxi Road was exploited by the Jin soldiers and the puppet Qi army. Extremely weak, he must recuperate and let the people recover slowly.

But in this way, Shaanxi Road and Xihe Road can't afford our [-] troops at all, and the army can't support them. How should we fight against gold?This is an imminent and big problem. We need a stable backup, and Bashu is our best backup base. The significance of the integration of Sichuan and Shaanxi must be reflected. "

Huang Guinian said slowly: "That's not wrong. I have inspected the prefectures along Shaanxi Road, and the people are really miserable. Their houses are barren, and some people don't even have a bowl to eat. I also saw Xuanfu envoy Wu Fang The announcement of the three-half tax reduction, tax exemption for five years, and a half-half tax payment for three years, is equivalent to eight years of recuperation, and Shaanxi Road can slowly recover."

Li Huishuo smiled slightly and said, "So, the Western Army only marched into Bashu because of insufficient money and food?"

"As I said just now, there are two reasons, and this is only one of them. The other reason is that Li Qiong's troops harass the people. At night, Li Qiong's subordinates will go out in groups to rob houses and insult the women of the people. The people in various states were filled with resentment, and the Xuanfu envoy couldn't bear it anymore, and sent troops to severely teach these rogue troops who violated discipline."

Li Hui nodded, "I understand your intention to send troops to Sichuan. The court also hopes to find a satisfactory way to solve the irrational behavior in Bashu now. That's why I am sent to Jingzhao, and to express my sincerity, The official dismissed me from the position of Xuanfu envoy of Sichuan and changed me to be the appeasement envoy of Jinghu North Road, just to avoid irritating your side, as I have explained before."

Jiang Yanxian added: "Our attitude is to hope that the two sides can find a balance point that can not only take into account the interests of the imperial court, but also meet the needs of the Western Army. Therefore, we are willing to negotiate a solution instead of relying on force. This is our sincerity. , if it is resolved by force alone, the imperial court will not have any chance."

One of Li Hui's entourage officials couldn't help but angrily scolded: "Confronting the court is called sincerity? If you admit that you are the courtiers of the Song Dynasty, then you have no right to bargain with the court, let alone use force to seize the court's territory. Then If you keep saying that you are sincere, this is clearly the separatist rule of the feudal town!"

Su Ji, the head of the Hucao Department, also responded unceremoniously: "Have we separated Sichuan and Shaanxi? If Sichuan and Shaanxi were separated, you will still have the opportunity to sit here and negotiate? It is not us who suffered a disastrous defeat in Yiling. , we will never force it!"

Li Hui was famous in the imperial court for his kindness. He quickly waved his hands and said, "Everyone, calm down. Since it is a negotiation, it means that both parties recognize the reality and are willing to face the reality. Let's continue!" Jiang Changshi said that he hoped that both parties Find a balance point, where is your balance point?"

Jiang Yanxian smiled slightly and said: "This balance point cannot be determined by one family. Just like Tianping said, both parties can find this balance point by weighing together. The key is that everyone must be ready. If the pacifier is ready, we can work together." Get up and weigh."

Jiang Yanxian's words are very sharp, and the implication is that you don't know the court's bottom line, so how can I tell you mine?

Li Hui smiled bitterly and said, "I'll send a pigeon letter to the court tomorrow morning!"

Li Hui released three pigeon letters in a row, flew to Xiangyang with his letters, then transferred from Xiangyang to Jiangzhou, and then from Jiangzhou to Lin'an. , the time is much shorter.

After Zhang Jun received the pigeon letter, he copied a copy and hurried to the Da Nei Palace. At dusk, Emperor Zhao Gou summoned Zhang Jun in Linde Hall.

"Your Majesty, this is the content of their first round of negotiations. Both sides are testing, but there are already a few points that can be clarified. First of all, Chen Qing has no intention of betraying Da Song."

Zhao Gou sneered and said, "Hanging up a signboard and repairing Renzong's ancestral hall will prove that he has no intention of betraying the Song Dynasty? Is this conclusion too rash?"

Zhang Jun persuaded: "Your Majesty, Chen Qing is not an old, cunning and ambitious person like Liu Guangshi. He is more motivated by a kind of anger, but it is not that I underestimate him when he says that he wants to separate the regime and rebel and stand on his own. If you can’t reach this level, if His Majesty still doesn’t understand the meaning of Weichen, then we can change someone, for example, replace Chen Qing with Liu Guangshi, he occupied Sichuan and Shaanxi, and defeated the imperial army, will he still negotiate with the imperial court?”

Zhao Gou nodded slightly, "My lord is right. If it was Liu Guangshi, I'm afraid he wouldn't have negotiated with the imperial court."

"That's what Weichen means. As long as he is still willing to negotiate, it means that he still recognizes himself as Songchen, and there is hope to resolve the crisis."

Zhao Gou sighed, "Sir, please continue to talk, what else has been clarified after the preliminary negotiation?"

Zhang Jun hesitated and said: "Maybe one thing will disappoint His Majesty, I think he will not withdraw from Bashu."

Zhao Gou's face was ugly, but he didn't have an attack, which he expected. He snorted and said, "I know he won't withdraw. If he withdraws, there is no point in attacking Bashu."

"Your Majesty is right. Although he refuses to withdraw the army, we promise to give him money and food support, pay his military salary, and then ask him to withdraw."

"and then?"

"He will certainly not believe us and is determined not to retreat, but we can take the next best thing and take over the government affairs of Bashu. The right to appoint and remove remains with the imperial court."

Zhao Gou took a few steps with his hands behind his back and asked, "What about financial power?"

Zhang Jun sighed, "Your Majesty, what Chen Qing wants is financial power. We can get local governance and the right to appoint and dismiss officials. In fact, we have already taken back half of Bashu. At most, we can get back the salaries of officials."

Standing in front of the window, Zhao Gou pondered for a long time and said, "Alright, first stabilize Chen Qing, and then go back and deal with Liu Guangshi."

"Your Majesty, maybe we can ask Chen Qing to clean up Liu Guangshi for us." Zhang Jun suggested.

Zhao Gou shook his head, "I'm afraid that the wolf will go, and the tiger will come again. What if he occupies Jingnan South Road and refuses to leave?"

"Probably not. Jinghu South Road is not protected by natural dangers like Bashu. The stall is too big, which is not good for him. He will not do such a thing that is scolded by the world, but he must have conditions."

"Let's talk about it! Liu Guangshi, let's solve it ourselves. It's not too late to find him if it doesn't work."

"Has His Majesty decided? The final compromise with Chen Qing!"

Zhao Gou hesitated for a long time, and when he realized that he had no choice, he finally made up his mind.

Zhao Gou immediately said to Zhang Jun: "I don't trust Li Hui's ability. He can't hold Chen Qing down. I still want my husband to go to Jingzhao. My bottom line is the power of local governance and the right to appoint and dismiss officials. The rest is up to the minister. .”

(End of this chapter)