Lord: Start with a book of Water Margin

Chapter 462: Loyal or Treasonous?
In the city of Bianjing, Dai Zong and Shi Qian drove all the way without stopping at any store, and went straight to the East Hall of the Privy Council. They found out that Tong Guan was not in office today, so they turned around and went straight to Tong Guan's residence.

Shi Qian stepped forward, saluted to the soldier guarding the gate, took out the badge given to him by Tong Guan, and said, "Your Majesty, there is a war in Liangshan Prefecture. Please inform the prime minister." As he spoke, he took out a tael of silver and handed it to the soldier.

The soldier weighed the silver in his hand and said with a smile, "Wait here."

After passing through the gatekeeper, the clerk, and the steward, they entered the palace commander's residence. The two men bowed four times, bowed their heads, and said "hello", then stood up and stood aside.

Tong Guan pointed at Shi Qian and said, "I remember you, the general of Zhao Ze's family in Liangshan Prefecture. Who is this person next to you?"

Shi Qian said, "Prime Minister, I am Shi Qian. My brother's name is Dai Zong, and he can travel 800 miles a day. We are here to deliver military intelligence."

"Why, is there trouble in Qingzhou again?"

Dai Zong said: "Yizhou Prefecture was captured and the prefect was beheaded..."

"Where are the official documents?"

The steward nearby quickly handed it over.

Tong Guan took a quick look and breathed a sigh of relief, "Fortunately, there was no major chaos. The memorial from the governor Zhao said that three bandit leaders were killed in battle. Have their heads been brought over?"

They all said, "The Prime Minister is outside."

Tong Guan nodded and said, "I know everything about this matter. You two should not go anywhere else, just wait for me in the mansion. Li Duguan, arrange for them to stay, and I will go to the palace to report to the emperor, and then we can talk."

Not to mention that Dai Zong and Shi Qian stayed at Tong Guan's house for several days before they saw Tong Guan again.

It is said that Tong Guan took the official document, had someone take the three heads, sat in a warm sedan chair, and went straight to the palace.

On the way, he ordered the sedan bearers to change the route and go to the Sanya Taiwei Mansion first.

When Gao Qiu met Tong Guan, he asked, "Where is the Prime Minister?"

Tong Guan handed the document to Gao Qiu and said, "Taiwei, please take a look."

Gao Qiu took the document nonchalantly. As the document unfolded, Gao Qiu's face suddenly changed and he said in a lost voice: "My brother Gao Feng is gone?"

Tong Guan said: "General, I'm so sorry."

Gao Qiu was furious: "Hu Yanzhuo is useless."

"Zhao Ze is really despicable for not saving the dying man."

Tong Guan said: "General, it was the coldest time of the year, and the Qingzhou bandits came in the snow. No one was prepared, which led to this. Liangshan Jiedushi Zhao braved the snow to rescue them, and he did his best. Now he wrote a letter and sent someone to report to the court, but because his father-in-law is from my school, he sent it to me first."

"I came to find the Grand Commandant after receiving the memorial. There are three heads of the bandits outside, which can be considered a small revenge. The messenger complained to me that countless soldiers and horses were lost in order to save Yizhou. He asked the court to allocate a batch of war horses and send people to garrison there. He wanted to return to Liangshan to rest the soldiers. The Grand Commandant also needs to make a decision."

Gao Qiu said: "After all, there is a layer of separation. He doesn't want to be loyal to the court, but only wants to preserve his strength. He is unwilling to move forward when there is some damage. He took in Lin Chong, Chen Xizhen and others, and I haven't found him yet."

Tong Guan said: "He is just a man of humble origins, who gathers fugitives and is greedy and lustful. He is ambitious to be able to send troops to Yizhou. Does the Grand Commandant have any ideas?"

Gao Qiu said, "During the court session a few years ago, the Prime Minister requested an imperial decree that the army should be mobilized to eliminate Tian Hu in Hebei next year. Now, they want to change it to eliminate Song Jiang in Shandong. I am afraid that the officials will spread rumors and the government will suspect that we are putting personal interests above public interest. However, if we don't kill Song Jiang, I can't get rid of the hatred in my heart. What can the Prime Minister teach me?"

Tong Guan said, "General, it is not difficult to send troops. Tian Hu's rebellion is also a threat. If he colludes with Liao in the north, it will be even more troubling. The imperial army has been selected and will be dispatched in the spring of next year. It cannot be changed. For now, we have to send down to the prefectures to select capable generals to go to the expedition. I am afraid that someone in the court will obstruct and want to adopt the policy of recruiting the rebels. For now, the general should select troops and horses as soon as possible, and then go to the palace to make a report. Concubine Murong also hates Song Jiang for killing her brothers. I will send someone to send a message and let her say something in front of the emperor. As long as the emperor is unwilling to adopt the policy of recruiting the rebels, the officials' advice is not to be feared."

Gao Qiu said, "It's all these literati who want to be recruited at every turn. The previous ten military governors were all recruited. Although many of them have made contributions to the country, such as conquering Guifang, conquering Xixia, and conquering Jin and Liao, they are all unruly and cannot be easily transferred or assigned. What's the use of such people? We can't have another Song Jiang."

The two discussed secretly for a long time, and then went to the Grand Tutor's Mansion to plead the case.

Afterwards, Tong Guan first went to the palace to report to Emperor Daojun, saying that Song Jiang of Qingzhou broke into the city of Yizhou, killed the prefect Gao Feng, and looted the treasury.

The emperor said, "This bandit is a serious threat to us and must be eliminated. You want to conquer Tian Hu, so you can't take care of Qingzhou. What should we do?"

Tong Guan said: "Your Majesty, please invite the Grand Tutor, the Three Yamen Grand Commandants and others to the palace to discuss this matter."

The emperor said, "Now we only have the memorial from General Ningyuan, the vanguard of the expedition to the Eastern Capital, Zhao Ze. Don't the neighboring prefectures know about it? Let's wait and see if it's true or not."

After hearing this, Tong Guan bowed and left.

At night, the emperor stayed at Concubine Murong's place. Seeing that the emperor was unhappy, Concubine Murong asked, "Your Majesty, New Year's Day is coming. Why are you so upset?" The emperor said, "Song Jiang of Qingzhou broke into the state government and plundered the local area. I am worried about this. They say that the world is peaceful, but there are four great bandits. It's ridiculous."

"Your Majesty, Emperor Taizong is a man of both military and civil skills, but didn't Wang Xiaobo and Li Shun rebel? There are always desperate people with insatiable desires. They may be powerful for a while, but it's just a minor problem. There are many capable and experienced warriors in the court. How difficult would it be to send troops to suppress them? If we don't kill one to warn the rest, who will take the court seriously?"

Seeing that the emperor was not in a good mood, Concubine Murong did not dare to say much and just urged the emperor to drink more.

Two days later, Tong Guan entered the palace again and presented a memorial from the magistrates of Fei County, Yue Yao, and Cheng County, Qiu Hao, stating that the bandits in Qingzhou were brutal and that refugees were everywhere in Yizhou Prefecture, and requested the court to send people to provide relief.

After reading this, the emperor said angrily, "Such a brutal bandit must not be recruited. But this bandit has been causing harm for a long time. Who can be sent to suppress him?"

Tong Guan said: "Hu Yanzhuo led the army to suppress the rebellion and won three battles in a row. Later, he fought against the bandits in Laizhou. Because of the cold weather, he could not use the troops and now he has retreated to Fengfu. Hu Yanzhuo asked the court to allocate reinforcements and asked Gao Ang, the deacon of the artillery bureau, to bring artillery, but he did not set out because of the cold weather. Now that Song Jiang is rampant, we should select more capable people to suppress the rebellion."

The emperor said, "Zhao Ze of Liangshan Prefecture has made great contributions in recovering cities and killing enemies and generals. How about letting him lead the troops to suppress the rebellion?"

Tong Guan said: "In the last memorial submitted by the Zhao Observation Envoy, there were many reports that the soldiers and horses were injured and could not bear the battle."

The emperor said, "Give him a batch of war horses. The soldiers will be well fed and rested over the winter. Give them more rewards, and their morale will naturally be high."

After he had finished speaking, the emperor instructed the Grand Tutor, the Three Yamen Grand Commandants, and the Chief Official of the Censorate to come and give his advice.

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Grand Tutor Cai said, "Your Majesty, we have decided to suppress Tian Hu in the spring. We originally thought that Hu Yanzhuo could defeat Song Jiang, but now it seems that he cannot be subdued without a large army. In my humble opinion, we should not use the imperial army, but only dispatch a few prefectures to suppress him. If we send several armies together, he will not be able to take care of both ends, and this way we can win."

Gao Qiu also said: "Song Jiang and his gang have committed many crimes, robbing cities, looting granaries, and gathering together evil gangs. They killed government troops, caused chaos in Yizhou, occupied Qingwei, killed all government officials and civilians, and looted all the granaries and treasuries. They have become a serious threat to us, and we must kill them as soon as possible. I beg your majesty for your decision."

The emperor asked, "Where can I lead the troops?"

Gao Qiu said, "Gao Lian of Gaotang Prefecture is good at commanding the army when on horseback and the people when off horseback. He is proficient in Taoism. He can be combined with the troops of Zizhou Prefecture to form one route. Then ask Zhao Ze of Liangshan Prefecture to reorganize the troops and send troops from Yizhou. The three armies can go together to wipe out Song Jiang. Even if we cannot wipe him out, we can prevent him from invading the prefectures and occupying the government. When the Privy Councilor wipes out Tian Hu, the army will return and then we can wipe out Song Jiang."

Tong Guan said: "It's easy to talk to Gaotang Prefecture, but Liangshan Prefecture needs more rewards to reassure them."

After hearing the report, Taiwei Yang said, "How dare the Liangshan Prefecture be so arrogant because of their achievements? The favors all came from the emperor, how can we be so indulgent?"

Tong Guan said: "Liangshan Prefecture has indeed made great contributions. Now that the soldiers have suffered heavy losses, the court has sent troops to replace them. It cannot be said that they are arrogant because of their achievements. It would be best if the Taiwei could recommend someone to take over."

Taiwei Yang said, "Let's not talk about other places. Let's just say that the eight military prefectures under Tokyo have raised 10,000 soldiers each. If they only have the military commander of this place to lead them, the Qingzhou bandits will be easily captured."

Cai Jing said, "No, it is not the time to mobilize the military prefectures under the jurisdiction of Tokyo. These places have to protect Bianjing and cannot be moved lightly. Liangshan Prefecture only needs to spend some money and weapons to send its people to fight the enemy. As General Gao said, three routes of government troops are enough to deal with it."

Imperial Censor Cui Jing said: "That being said, Yizhou is in chaos now, so we should send officials there."

Tong Guan said: "Of course we have to select officials. Now Yizhou is in turmoil, and many people who are selected have excused themselves to refuse. The Ministry of Personnel has not yet completed the selection process, and it is all under the control of the Liangshan military."

Cui Jing asked: "Is this man loyal? How can we let him supervise Yizhou? No one in the court dares to go."

Cai Jing said: "The Ministry of Personnel has already started selecting people. Now that Zhao Guanshi has made great contributions, why not give him a temporary assignment to reassure him, and then order the Ministry of Personnel to quickly send people to serve in the counties of Yizhou."

"Furthermore, it would be best if we could use his power to wipe out the Qingzhou bandits. By then, when the Privy Councilor returns from the campaign against Tian Hu, we can exempt him from his duties and give him more gold and silver. I believe he will not dare to rebel."

After the plan was finalized, the emperor immediately issued an imperial decree, appointing Gao Qiu to meet with officials from the provincial government to carry the imperial decree and send them to Gaotang Prefecture and Liangshan Prefecture separately.

Everyone bowed and left, and the emperor kept Cai Jing alone to answer questions.

The emperor asked, "Grandmaster, is Liangshan Prefecture loyal?"

Cai Jing said: "The traitor appears loyal, he looks simple and rustic, but he is cunning and deceitful. He comes from the countryside, has a crude temperament, is greedy for money and lustful, can be used but cannot be trusted. Now when you need him, reward him with gold, silver and beauties to slow him down. Once the time is right, he will be offered a high position and generous salary to be supported by the city of Bianjing, and his troops will be dispatched to various places, which will be no problem."

"This is the advice of an experienced state minister," said the emperor.

"Song Jiang of Qingzhou occupied the prefecture, but he did not establish a system and claim the title of emperor, unlike Tian Hu. The Grand Master thought that he might be recruited, so he led the expedition to suppress Tian Hu."

Cai Jing pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty is right. But now they are powerful and rampant. For the future, even if we recruit them, we should do so after we win a great victory."

Upon hearing this, the emperor nodded.

(End of this chapter)