Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Before Han Shizhong went to invite Zhu Dunru, brothers Zhai Xing and Zhai Jin came to surrender with their troops.

"But brothers Da Zhai and Xiao Zhai?" Han Shizhong was overjoyed.

Zhong Yanchong smiled and said: "Exactly."

Han Shizhong immediately went out of the city to greet him. He had long admired the Zhai brothers.

The two brothers were recruited as rural soldiers. They killed the Henan thief Wang Shen just after joining the army and were quickly promoted to junior officers of the Western Army.

Liu Fa was forced by Tong Guan to go deep alone. When he broke out, he fell off the cliff and broke his leg. At that time, the Erzhai brothers had successfully broken through the encirclement, and they took the initiative to lead troops to fight back many times. They repeatedly searched for Liu Fa but failed before withdrawing. As a result, they were beaten to death by Tong Guan afterwards.

During the invasion of Liao Dynasty, the imperial court reinstated them to their posts, but they were unlucky enough to serve as Liu Yanqing's subordinates.

"Duan is a good man!"

Han Shizhong clenched his fist and hit Zhai Xing on the chest, and then patted Zhai Jin on the shoulder: "It's good that you two are here, and we will serve Marshal Zhu together from now on!"

Zhai Xing and Zhai Jin were a little entangled at first, but when they saw Han Shizhong paying such enthusiastic attention, they immediately felt much better.

There is no friendship between the three of them, but they all fight in Shaanxi all year round and talk about many old events.

Han Shizhong asked: "I remember that seven or eight years ago, Brother Zhai was already the number one general in Jingxi (chief general of the first army in Jingxi Road). What is his position now?"

Zhai Jin smiled bitterly: "Commander the Luoyang Xiang Army."

"This...this is even more unlucky than me." Han Shizhong couldn't believe it and said what he thought was the most accurate assessment.

Zhong Yanchong said with emotion: "To lead the army in the Song Dynasty, you have to follow the right superior. The superior of the two generals Zhai was Liu Jinglue (Liu Fa). Liu Jinglue was killed by Tong Guansheng. This grudge was too big, and Tong Guan Ziran tried his best to suppress Liu Jinglue's old ministry."

Zhai Xing sighed and said: "These are all in the past, so don't mention them."

The Zhai brothers couldn't bear to mention it again. Liu Fa was known as a "natural god general" and beating Xixia was like beating his grandson. As Liu Fa's confidants and generals, they were only able to enjoy the unlimited natural scenery in Shaanxi during those years.

What now?

He can only command a group of Xiang troops in Luoyang, and there are very few vacancies left for a long time. He is no different from a bare commander. The thousands of soldiers they have now are just temporarily recruited local warriors.

Zhai Jin couldn't say it: "General Han, our brothers were ordered to guard the imperial mausoleum. Although we have come to serve, we still don't want anything to happen to the imperial mausoleum. Can... can your army not disturb you? Even if you occupy it, you can't dig it. The tombs of past emperors.”

Han Shizhong laughed: "When I led the troops here, there was a military commander who gave me a plan, saying that I would dig up the imperial mausoleum and cut off the dragon veins of the Song Dynasty. What do you think Marshal Zhu said?"

"What did Marshal Zhu say?" Zhai Xing's son Zhai Cong asked.

Zhong Yanchong said with a smile: "Marshal Zhu said that the dragon's veins are in the hearts of the people. If Zhao Song won the hearts of the people, he would dig all over the imperial mausoleum, and the dragon veins would continue to be dug. If Zhao Song did not win the hearts of the people, he would have dug his own grave and dug up the big dragon's veins himself. The dragon vein of the Song Dynasty was cut off. What is the human heart? People want what they want. For the common people, it is just enough food and clothing. For soldiers, it is just clear rewards and punishments. For merchants, it is just regular fees. For scholars, it is just the talents."

Zhai Xing was greatly shocked after hearing this, and said solemnly: "No wonder Marshal Zhu is able to gain power. If he can do this, the world will surely be united."

"Today I have to surrender to the Ming Lord, why can't I do my best?" Zhai Jin completely let go of the entanglement in his heart.

Zhai Xing said: "If General Han can be trusted, Henan Prefecture will be handed over to my two brothers. They will guarantee to capture all counties within a month without disturbing the people. The general only needs to supply food and grass."

Han Shizhong pointed to the beggar troops behind them: "Just rely on these rural soldiers?"

"That's enough." Zhai Jin said.

During the Jingkang period, when they first recaptured Luoyang, they had only more than 700 rural soldiers, who had just been recruited. They had no food, grass, or armor. And when Fan Zhixu was defeated, the "two hundred thousand troops" were reduced to nothing. They suddenly regained Luoyang when the situation was at its worst.

The two brothers first fought guerrillas in the mountains, setting up ambushes and killing the Jin Kingdom's rangers.

After many successful ambushes, he successfully lured the Jin soldiers from Luoyang to encircle and suppress him. Then he broke out in the opposite direction and led a group of rural soldiers to attack for five days. He attacked Luoyang at night where only Han soldiers were stationed, and wiped out the traitorous officials who had been left there by the Jin people.

When the Jin soldiers learned the news and hurried back to Luoyang, the two brothers set up an ambush halfway, killed the Jin soldiers and fled.

From then on, the brothers were always putting out fires for their pig teammates, and they were tricked by their pig teammates together with Han Shizhong.

At that time, Han Shizhong was the commander in chief and asked Zhai Jin to be the vanguard to lure the enemy, while he, Ding Jin and Chen Sigong outflanked the Jin soldiers. Zhai Jin successfully lured the Jin soldiers to the ambush site, but Ding Jin failed to arrive and Chen Sigong led his troops to escape. A successful siege by luring the enemy into an ambush resulted in Han Shizhong being counter-surrounded...

Han Shizhong is also ruthless and does things without regard to the consequences. After he broke out, he cut off all the toes of Ding Jin and Chen Sigong's soldiers as punishment, and directly destroyed those two troops.

The generals disagreed, and the conflicts intensified, and they almost started fighting, causing Luoyang to fall again. Han Shizhong also had to take the blame for this matter, while the Zhai brothers were confused throughout the whole process.

But at this moment, the two brothers had obtained permission from Han Shizhong and set off with their sons and troops.

A group of temporarily recruited rural soldiers, in the hands of the Zhai brothers, actually became very disciplined and did not harm the common people wherever they went.

There is no other secret, just treat the soldiers well.

Walking, sleeping, drinking and eating with the soldiers, the brothers have already gained a reputation. They are also from the same hometown as these soldiers, so they can easily gain military morale. Punish a few more erring soldiers, and the others will be obedient.

When the two brothers were fighting against the Jin Dynasty, they dug wild vegetables and let the soldiers eat them first.

In ten months, the Zhai brothers and their local soldiers captured most of Henan Prefecture. Finally, they captured Mianchi, fought their way out of Henan Prefecture, captured Shaanzhou, and approached Tongguan where the Zhong family army was stationed.

Such fierce and good generals actually became more and more miserable in the Song Dynasty. They were reduced from the commander of an army to the commander of a Xiang army.

Those who suffered miserably were not only military generals, but also civil servants with lingering consciences.

Since the strategic location was not important, both Ju Ming and Li Bao passed by Caizhou (Runan), and no one divided their forces to capture it.

Ye Mengde, the governor of Caizhou, waited and saw no rebels coming to attack. He also heard that the imperial court had formed an alliance with the Yi and Di, so he actually recruited thousands of local soldiers and captured the entire Caizhou and dedicated it to Ju Ming...

Ye Mengde arranged for trustworthy civil servants to take charge of the counties in Caizhou, and then led thousands of rural soldiers to join Ju Ming in Tokyo.

Ju Ming got the news and thought he heard wrongly.

That was a magistrate appointed by the Song Dynasty court. It was already rare for him to be willing to become a thief, but he actually dared to lead troops north to besiege Tokyo!

Ju Ming looked at the group of rural soldiers who couldn't even stand in line, and couldn't help but ask: "Do you rely on these people to conquer Caizhou?"

Ye Mengde said: "I am the governor of Caizhou, and the county officials did not resist."

"Let them all act as civilian husbands. We don't need them in the war." Zhu Ming became more interested in Ye Meng. "I would like to ask, after you became an official, you became the governor of a state. Why did you take the initiative to join me?"

Ye Mengde said: "No matter who becomes the emperor, please end the troubled times as soon as possible. The people of the world can't stand the torment. If I don't have money to live, I won't be too lazy to be an official!"

Ju Ming found it even more strange: "Your ancestors have been officials for generations, and you are a member of Cai Jing's party. How can you live without money?"

"Alas," Ye Mengde sighed, "Fang La rebelled and robbed my house and even the shops on fire. It was also at that time that I realized the suffering of the people. From then on, I resigned and returned home, drawing a clear line with Cai Jing. . In the past few years, the land has been sold off, and the family of more than 20 people has only a few dozen acres of land left. I am so poor that I can only make a living by selling calligraphy and paintings. I became the magistrate of the state on the recommendation of the central government. I am the magistrate of the state, not for others. Yes, just for that little salary, my family is really starving to death."

It turned out to be Fang La's good deed, which could be regarded as reshaping Ye Mengde's outlook on life.

Before resigning, this man had already achieved a bachelor's degree in the Imperial Academy. Because of his good lyrics, he was favored by Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty. Moreover, he was an honest official and did not make much money.

Ju Ming said with a smile: "If you serve as an official under me, your salary will not be as high as that of the Song Dynasty."

"It's just enough," Ye Mengde said. "I don't know how to govern the people, but my writing is pretty good. I just want to stay with the marshal to draft documents."

"I don't believe it." Zhu Ming shook his head.

This man, who was recommended by Cai Jing back then, did not cater to Song Huizong when he talked about poetry and painting, but focused on explaining his own way of governing the country. He obviously had political ambitions.

It's just that his political ambitions were temporarily wiped out by Song Huizong.

Later generations mostly thought that Ye Mengde could only write lyrics, but he was actually a Confucian scholar, and a Confucian scholar who was proficient in the Spring and Autumn Annals.

Who has studied "Spring and Autumn" carefully and does not have the ambition to govern the country?

In the first ten years of Zhao Gounan's journey, he relied on Ye Mengde to help him manage his finances. His official position was deputy prime minister, in charge of the four-pronged water strategy, and responsible for the military pay and logistics for the anti-golden army. He also provided food and grass for Yue Fei's Northern Expedition, and then he was demoted by Qin Hui to be the governor of the state.

Ye Mengde said: "I really don't know how to govern the people, let alone the country. I am just a poet in my spare time. Caizhou has been dedicated to Marshal Zhu, and the country soldiers have also brought it. I just ask the Marshal to settle the world as soon as possible and give me a noble man." As an idle official, you can just do your job."

How difficult was Zhao Gou's finances when he crossed south?

Ye Mengde not only had to support a huge bureaucracy, but also provide food and salary for various armies, and even satisfy Zhao Gou's extravagant life. This allowed him to survive, and he never got into trouble. His financial management skills were simply inferior to Cai Jing's.

Such people say that they do not know how to govern the country and the people.

Ju Ming said: "Stay with me for a while. When the war is over, your Excellency can go to the Jinglue Mansion to listen to me."

"Okay." Ye Mengde was quite cool and unrestrained. He really had no desires and desires. He was grateful to Fang La for being his life mentor.

Just when Ye Mengde surrendered, Han Shizhong sent someone to bring Zhu Dunru. Also arriving in advance was news of the capture of Luoyang.

Luoyang fell, and Tokyo was shocked because Xijing and the imperial mausoleum were lost together.

Li Gang, Li Bangyan and others who were dismissed from their posts began to use this to launch a political counterattack. The two were unable to enter the palace to see the emperor, so Li Bangyan secretly instigated the imperial student to knock on the palace gate.

He Su, who was isolated and marginalized, also sided with them and led a group of censors to impeach them frantically.

The political struggle in Tokyo is much more exciting than war.

(The next chapter will be updated later. I am not in good health and went to the hospital today.)