In the great war between Song Dynasty and Yong Dynasty, both sides mobilized more than 100,000 troops, and recruited no less than 100,000 servants. A large number of young men were recruited.
More than half of the garrison troops under Yang Anxuan's rule were requisitioned, and many young men were recruited into the army. This year's spring plowing, the labor force in the fields seemed insufficient. As for many projects such as smoothing roads and building canals, they have long been stopped.
Liu Yu was even more unlucky in this regard. A letter sent by Xu Xianzhi mentioned that "most of the people working in the fields are women, old and weak, and refugees are reappearing in the land of Sanwu."
Liu Yu secretly sighed that this battle could not go on. If the stalemate continued, chaos would break out before the end of the year, and the disasters of Sun En and Lu Xun might happen again.
Xie Hui, Fu Liang, Wang Xiu, Liu Zunkao and others were summoned. After reading Xu Xianzhi's letter, everyone looked worried.
Fu Liang tried to figure out Liu Yu's thoughts and tried to say: "My lord, this battle lasted nearly a year. If the farming season is missed, the people may not be able to make a living. It is better for the imperial court to send envoys to temporarily negotiate a peace with Yang Anxuan, and we can stop fighting and rest."
Liu Zunkao shook his head and said: "According to the scouts' reports, Yong's army is actively preparing for war. How can Yang Anxuan be willing to negotiate peace at this time?"
Wang Xiudao proposed to join the army: "I heard that King Langya and Duke Yong are getting married, and the wedding date is scheduled for June. Why not use this as an opportunity for the court to come forward to persuade Yang Anxuan to stop the army."
Liu Yu smiled bitterly. Last year, he was ambitious and wanted to wipe out Yang Anxuan in one fell swoop, but now he was despondently trying to find a way to sue for peace. This slap made his face burn with pain. .Ь.
However, Wang Xiu's suggestion was feasible. Liu Yu thought for a moment and said, "Let the imperial court invite the banners of Zou and Yu to stop the war and negotiate peace."
On March 9, Yang Anxuan met the envoy sent by the imperial court, He Lang, the young minister of Honglu Temple. Yang Anxuan sneered at the imperial court's request to stop the troops and asked the Song army to retreat to the territory before sending troops to discuss.
He Lang knew that this trip was not easy, so he first said a set of clichés about the imminent spring plowing and the suffering of people's livelihood. Seeing that Yang Anxuan was indifferent and wanted to leave, he hurriedly threw out the last conditions.
"Mr. Yong, the prince is getting married in June. It's a long way from Jiankang to Xiangyang. If the war continues, it may affect the marriage. I hope Mr. Yong will think twice." He Lang said earnestly.
Yang Anxuan looked at He Lang coldly and said, "Is He Shaoqing threatening me?"
Facing Yang Anxuan's anger, He Lang felt timid and said bravely: "Yong Gong, calm down. Marriage is a major event in life. Don't let the swords clash when the prince is happy."
Yang Anxuan flicked his sleeves and said, "He Shaoqing, please rest in the post house for a while. We will discuss this matter in two days."
He Lang left, and both Xin He and Xi Pijiang in the lobby advised Yang Anxuan to consider a temporary truce.
Xin He spoke first: "Spring plowing is approaching, and there is a shortage of labor in the fields. If the war does not cease, I am afraid that the grain harvest will be poor this year. There is insufficient grain storage in the warehouse, and it is easy to cause trouble. Moreover, the soldiers have been exhausted physically and mentally from fighting in recent years. It is better to let them rest. How about resting." It’s not too late to take advantage of the prince’s wedding to accumulate strength and fight again after harvesting the grain.”
Xi Bijiang said: "Our army not only needs to guard against the Song army, but also against the Wei army. Although the Wei army was defeated, it still has strength and is determined to go south. If our army is struggling to fight on both sides, it is better to temporarily suspend our troops. Now that the northwest is stable, Time is in our army's favour. According to my foolish opinion, we can capture Anyi first, occupy Hedong County, stabilize the situation in the north, and then march south."
Yang Anxuan caressed his beard and thought, Liu Yu sent an envoy to sue for peace, and he must have been unable to hold on any longer. This was a good opportunity to regain the lost territory. If he let it go easily, he would not be willing to let it go, not to mention that the Song army also captured several of his counties.
However, Song's military strength is not weak, and Liu Yu's prestige in the army is extremely high. If he really fights to the death, he may end up killing one thousand enemies and injuring eight hundred. Yu took advantage of the Wei people.
Insisting on war with Liu Yu may unify the world in advance, but the people in the Jianghuai area will be destroyed and displaced, and may experience the tragic situation of the Five Husties in China again.
He started his layout through cotton, used economic means to plunder the wealth of Jiangnan, and hollowed out Liu Yu's foundation. Given time, he might be able to win without a fight. Time is on your side, and you really don’t have to fight for temporary gains and losses.
After making up his mind, Yang Anxuan said to Xin He: "Yanmao, go and tell He Lang that the Song army will withdraw from Jiangxia County, and Yu will agree to stop the troops and make a truce."
March 2
On the 12th, Wang Zhongde was ordered to lead his troops to withdraw from Anlu City, Lu Zhongyuan left Quling City, and Shen Qingzhi led his troops to take over the two cities.
However, the Song army did not withdraw from the water stronghold in Jinkou. Wang Zhongde and Lu Zhongyuan stationed more than 20,000 soldiers and horses between Jinkou and Xiakou, blocking the eastward march of the Yangtze River. XiuShu.com
The fighting stopped, but the confrontation continued. The defense lines of Peixian, Fengxian, and Xiayi were still being strengthened. The number of soldiers and horses stationed there did not decrease, but the drafted servants began to return.
Liu Huaisu retreated to Dongguan County and also built forts and dug trenches for defense; Tan Daoji was stationed in Jiangyang County, and Li Qiang was appointed by Liu Yu as the governor of Ningzhou, replacing Fan Yuanzhi, the former governor of Ningzhou. Spending thousands of gold to buy horse bones, Liu Yu wanted to use Li Qiang to bribe Yong's army to surrender, both civil and military.
Yang Anxuan handed over the command of Peixian County to Zhu Lingshi and ordered Wang Zhene to lead 20,000 troops to Luoyang. Together with Yang Anyuan, he prepared to attack Anyi City and seize Hedong County.
After Liu Yu found out that the Yong army had withdrawn some troops, he ordered Xiang Mi, Mao Dezu, Tan Shao, and Liu Zunkao to guard Yupei County. He returned to Jiankang City in mid-April.
Jiankang City immediately became calm due to the arrival of Song Gong. Zhu Jie, the minister of the Ministry of Personnel, once again asked to give Song Gong the gift of nine tins, but Liu Yu declined in court.
At the end of April, Yang Shangbao brought the wedding team from Xiangyang to Jiankang. Eight large stern ships, clad in red and colorful, sailed into the Qinhuai River and docked at the Zhuque Bridge.
King Langya sent his minister Chu Xiuzhi, internal historian Zeng An and other officials to greet him. They played and beat all the way to welcome him to Honglu Temple where he stayed. The people of Jiankang were alarmed, and both sides of the royal road were crowded with people who came to watch.
The next day, Langya King Sima Dewen hosted a banquet for Yang Shangbao and other Yongzhou officials who came to welcome his bride. Then Liang King Sima Zhenzhi, Xi, Wen, Yu and other aristocratic families sent people to invite them. Yang Shangbao came in and out of the palaces of the powerful families in the capital with gifts. Eat, drink and have fun every day.
People in the capital were talking about this marriage, and naturally they mentioned the battle between Song and Yong. People who originally firmly believed that Song Gong would win also had doubts. Song and Yong were fighting, and the outcome was unpredictable.
On the surface, everything seems to be the same as before. Song Gong is still highly respected and powerful. However, Liu Yu, a spy sent from the Military Intelligence Department, learned that there were cracks in his rock-solid foundation, which could lead to collapse if not repaired in time.
In Song Gong's Mansion, Liu Muzhi, Zhao Lunzhi, Yuan Zhan, Kong Jing, Xie Hui, Wang Hong, Fu Liang and others gathered in the hall to discuss how to deal with the difficult situation.
Yuan Zhan said: "The most important thing is the people's hearts. Last year's campaign to recruit troops resulted in a shortage of labor in the fields and a difficult livelihood for the people. It was inevitable that they would have some complaints about the Duke of Song. The Duke of Song suspended the troops in time, dismissed the servants, and caught up with the farming season. In June, there will be a good harvest. Change."
Liu Muzhi was still ill, so Liu Yu ordered people to prepare a soft couch for him to lie down on one side to discuss matters. Hearing Kong Jing mention the people's support, Liu Muzhi said: "We need to send people to the counties and counties to inform the people of the lord's good intentions. Tell the people that this strike is because the lord cannot bear the suffering of the people, so he took the initiative to give in."
After the "Gold Inlaid Jade Seal" incident, Liu Muzhi increasingly felt that publicity was important, even worth a hundred thousand troops. Zhao Lunzhi, Yuan Zhan and others were deeply touched and nodded in agreement.
Xie Hui said: "The alliance with Wei must be widely publicized, so that the people of the world know that our lord is powerful in all directions. The Wei people take the initiative to seek peace and do not dare to go south, so as to ensure peace for one side."
Everyone here knows that the Wei army cannot go south because the Yong army blocked it. However, there are many fools in the world. They follow what others say and three men become tigers. If you tell too many lies, they will become true. As long as you can win the hearts of the people, it doesn't matter what the truth is.
Kong Jing said: "My lord has ordered that the civil service examination be held in Beijing on June 20th. This matter has a great impact. More than 4,000 candidates have come to the Ministry of Civil Affairs to register for the examination. The examination is also held in June, so it happens to be a good time for the examination." It overshadows the excitement of King Langya marrying his daughter."
Liu Yu nodded. The nine-level Zhongzheng system blocked the way for poor scholars to make progress. Opening up a subject to obtain scholars should win the hearts of scholars all over the world. This matter is no less important than farming.
Wang Hong reported: "King Langya ordered Yin Youqi, the minister of the ancestral hall, to be the deputy envoy to see off the bride. The Lord will appoint someone else to take charge of the imperial examination."
Everyone looked at Liu Yu eagerly. The imperial examination selection had a huge impact on the ninth-rank Zhongzheng system. Both Liu Yu and Yang Anxuan were obviously very dissatisfied with the ninth-rank Zhongzheng selection. It was foreseeable that the imperial examination selection would eventually replace the ninth rank. Zhongzheng system. .Ь.
Xiangyang tried to implement the imperial examination to select scholars, but the impact was still small. The imperial court officially implemented the imperial examination.
Scholars, whoever can take the lead in this matter will definitely go down in history and even become a Confucian master of a generation.
Liu Yu took a quick glance, his eyes fell on Kong Jing, and said with a smile: "Ji Gong is a descendant of a saint. It is best for you to preside over this matter."
Kong Jing stood up, bowed and said, "I will live up to my lord's trust and work hard to collect materials for the country."
Yuan Zhan was a little disappointed. Liu Yu wanted to open a subject to get scholars, and nominally asked Yin Youqi to take charge. Liu Muzhi used Yan Song to handle the matter in detail. Later, Liu Muzhi fell ill and was not energetic, so he asked Yuan Zhan to intervene in the matter. Yuan Zhan thought that the matter would fall into his own hands, but he did not expect that the Song Dynasty public commission would be assigned to Kong Jing.
"Yin Youqi has made friends with Yang Anxuan, and he clearly wants to escape by sending off his bride," Zhao Lunzhi said, "Why don't Deyu order someone to capture him."
Liu Yu shook his head and said, "Yin Youqi doesn't matter, so let's spare his life."
Liu Muzhi coughed twice and said, "My lord ordered Jiangnan to plant cotton, but the cotton fields are nearly 300,000 acres, occupying farmland, and the wealthy families from Jiangbei have come to Jiangnan to buy land. This matter must be guarded against."
Liu Yu smiled coldly and said: "It doesn't matter, the ground cannot grow feet and cannot run away. These wealthy people want to come to Jiangnan to make money, and they just collect business taxes to fill the national treasury. Three hundred thousand acres of cotton fields can produce millions of kilograms of cotton, and they can guarantee one hundred thousand For winter clothes for soldiers, let’s talk about how much cotton we need to plant next year.”
"Yonggong sent people to welcome the bride, which has a great influence in the capital." Fu Liang reminded in a deep voice: "My lord needs to be restrained."
Liu Yuyi frowned. He used the marriage as a threat to force Yang Anxuan to truce. If he restricted the wedding team, the war might start again. Returning to Beijing this time, Liu Yu felt that on the surface, the court officials and nobles were still respectful to him, but secretly they were alienated from him.
Yang Shangbao was very popular in Beijing, and the wealthy families opened their doors one after another to express their acceptance of the Yang family. In fact, they wanted to put a wall between himself and Yang Anxuan.
From the intelligence of the Military Intelligence Department, we learned that some members of the Wang, Xie, Yuan, and Kong families in the lobby also secretly communicated with Xiangyang through their clansmen. Liu Yu naturally trusted Wang Hong, Xie Hui, and others, but behind them there was a huge For the sake of the continuation of the family's inheritance, the family will inevitably have inextricable connections with Yang Anxuan, which cannot be avoided.
In the final analysis, the swords and guns on the battlefield still have to speak for themselves. Liu Yu discussed with everyone and decided to petition the court tomorrow to reduce taxes and rectify the administration of officials, and then select useful talents from the Han tribe through the imperial examination to strengthen commercial exchanges and exchanges with the Wei State. Yes or no, exchange saltpeter for horses, train soldiers and horses, reorganize the navy, and strive to make another northern expedition in three to five years.
