Being able to say this sentence shows that Li Yun really knows the inside story of the Song Dynasty. He even read the recipe of the royal banquet given by the Song Dynasty to the envoys of the Jin Kingdom in advance.
In the past few decades, the standard of the royal banquet for the envoys of the Kingdom of Jin has been nine cups and eighteen dishes, which has not changed. Probably in order to adapt to the carnivorous habits of the Jurchens, the first five dishes are all fried or grilled meat dishes, and the sixth dish is fried meat patties.
Li Yun was a wealthy son in the Southern Dynasty these days, and he enjoyed the prosperity of Lin'an City. Therefore, at a certain level of self-importance, he has become insensitive to large pieces of meat, and now he has to mention it.
Sometimes he thinks about himself, fearing that he will not be able to adapt to the relatively rough and simple lifestyle after returning to the north.
If such thoughts were heard by colleagues in the northern army, they would probably be beaten.
Compared to the Song Dynasty, which enjoyed decades of peace, the Kingdom of Jin to the north was almost in ruins. The invasion and destruction of the Mongols were carried out almost simultaneously. They did not consider occupation, but attached great importance to cutting off the enemy's war potential. Therefore, the two large-scale invasions of the Mongolian army have completely destroyed the economy of the north.
From Hebei to Zhongdu, and then to Beijing Road, in the thousands of miles of territory, not even a single household registration is saved, and not a single savings is saved. Even the Dinghai navy officers who have their roots in Shandong farming have to eat multigrain dumplings mixed with wild vegetables in times of difficulty.
Under this situation, Guo Ning still had to carry out so many projects, even restoring the northern border trench defense line and organizing and training the naval fleet. Outsiders think that they must be extremely poor in terms of money and food, relying only on maritime trade to survive... That cannot be said to be wrong.
On the other side, compared with the areas controlled by Ding Haijun, the Kaifeng imperial court's Hedong, Hebei and other territories were equally difficult. In order to fight against Ding Haijun, the Kaifeng court granted many northern generals huge powers and encouraged them to expand their armies and prepare for war. However, the army formed on the ruins seemed huge, but in fact it had a huge flaw. That is, their logistics have already collapsed, and their supplies are simply insufficient to support them.
An army that looks like tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of people can actually only eat dirt on the spot, and there is no possibility of long-distance marching and fighting. This kind of army is the norm for the troops stationed in the northern border of the Jin Kingdom. It is no wonder that they can only stick to the fortified city. Once they fight in the field, they are easily beaten to pieces by 20,000 to 30,000 Mongolian troops.
In this regard, Mo Nian Zhongzhong, who stayed behind in Xijing of the Great Jin Kingdom and was appointed by the Kaifeng court last year as Zuo deputy marshal and Pingzhang political minister, could not understand more clearly.
As a prestigious general in the Kingdom of Jin, in the past five years, Datong Prefecture in Xijing, controlled by Mo Ni Jinzhong, was the only important town in the Kingdom of Jin that withstood a frontal attack by Genghis Khan's army. Not only did it not fall, but Genghis Khan was also shot and wounded. It delayed the Mongolian army's march south for a year.
But after this battle, Mo Nian Jinzhong could do nothing but sit back and watch the situation continue to deteriorate and heroes rise.
The only territory that Mo Ni Jinzhong can firmly control is the small basin around Datong Mansion, but he has to support nearly 40,000 soldiers.
Of those soldiers, only a little over 20,000 are actually useful. If we take into account the equipment of weapons, armors and training levels, there are probably less than 10,000 that can reach the standards of the Great Jin Kingdom's regular army.
Of course, this did not prevent Mo Ni Jinzhong from claiming to the Kaifeng court that he had an army of 200,000, and urging Kaifeng for military pay and rations from time to time.
The Kaifeng imperial court was a little proud at the beginning of its establishment, but then its resources became smaller and smaller. This year, the military pay provided to them was only about 3,000 people. On the contrary, he has been continuously promoted to be loyal and promoted, so that his current full title begins with Yitong Sansi and is more than forty characters long.
What's ridiculous is that the people of Jing'an who are confronting him only have 7,000 people in their hands, but they are extending their power from one village to another, and they have de facto controlled Hongzhou and Yuzhou, right under the eyes of Datong Prefecture.
Mo Nian Jinzhong knew that if this situation continued, the Xijing Province would not last long, and the country of Dajin would be completely over. But he didn't know what to do next. Until now, Zhang Rou and Miao Daorun's subordinates under Ding Haijun had captured Zhending Mansion, and a small group of elites had crossed Taihang and penetrated westward, but he was still undecided.
It was already evening, and there was a soup and rice on the table in front of him. The soup was vegetable soup and the rice was fried millet. They were served at noon. He didn't touch them at all. He just meditated. Occasionally, flies flew by and buzzed around the soup and rice. Then he waved his hand and said, Drive away.
This kind of meal is already the best thing that the soldiers can eat.
Since ten days ago, he had been searching for food in the city to raise troops to go south to support Kaifeng. However, this caused the people in the city to riot twice. When the sergeants recruited locally heard that they were going south to Kaifeng, their morale was low. Two troops newly transferred to Datong Prefecture were deserting every day. Even if they tried to ignore their loyalty and let the elite garrison come in to control them, military judges would kill people one after another. Nothing could stop it.
Mo Ni Jinzhong himself actually didn't believe that the soldiers could eat these things, march thousands of miles, and then fight with Ding Haijun under the city of Kaifeng. Soldiers are not made of iron. They are human beings who can become timid, tired, frustrated and desperate!
"Marshal!" His capable subordinate, Brother Mo Niwuli, also whispered: "Time waits for no one, if you want to leave, you have to hurry up. Once Kaifeng changes hands, we will be alone in the north, and we will become a fish in the bottom of the cauldron." , there is no way out!"
Mo Ni Jinzhong patted the table and signaled Brother Cong to take a look at the poor food in front of him.
"Even if we have to leave, why don't we run out of food halfway and disperse in a rush? Where is the required military ration? When can we get it together?"
"I came here just to report it, and I have already gathered it together."
"oh?"
Mo Nian Jinzhong was surprised and looked at him up and down: "Where did it come from?"
"To be honest, Marshal, yesterday, a wealthy businessman asked to see me and was willing to donate two thousand shi of food. Today, he opened a private warehouse in Datong Mansion and sent a thousand shi to my camp!"
Mo Nian Jinzhong couldn't help but stand up: "A thousand stones? Have you checked all the food?"
"How dare I be negligent at this time? I have already looked carefully!" Mo Niwuli also said loudly: "Marshal, with these, we can send troops tomorrow and go to Kaifeng as soon as possible!"
Kaifeng, Kaifeng, Kaifeng is shit!
Mo Ni Jinzhong smiled and nodded, but he was cursing in his heart.
Everyone in the Kaifeng court was fooled by Ding Haijun, and they managed to put up such a big scene in vain. I have been raising troops in Xijing Province for several years before I got these 40,000 troops. Why should I go to Kaifeng to prepare the sword heads?
What's more, I have been operating in Xijing Province for a long time and only have a piece of land. If I lose my land and go to Kaifeng to follow orders, once my troops are exhausted, I will be abandoned by the court at any time. Is such an end worth it?
He used all his brains, thinking about how to continue delaying, and suddenly something occurred to him.
"You mean giant businessman?"
"That's the Bohai man named Gao. Marshal, you met him last year. He specializes in selling tea and medicine in the grasslands and buying sheep and horses."
"Have you ever thought about where his tea and medicine came from? He bought sheep and horses from the grassland, and where did he transport them to sell?"
"this……"
Mo Niwuli also worked as a wine supervisor in Xuzhou in his early years, so he should know a little about the flow of materials. But he didn't understand. He was the kind of Jurchen who maintained a simple style. When he was in office, he only focused on gathering money and didn't consider anything else. After taking care of my younger brother, I don’t think too much anymore.
Mo Nian Jinzhong sighed deeply: "This person's identity is hidden very deep, otherwise I wouldn't have met him last year. But I can tell you now with certainty that behind this person is Ding Haijun! The reason why he came to give food to people, It’s because the commander-in-chief of the Ding Navy, Guo Ning, wants us local generals to rush back to Kaifeng one by one, and then be defeated by him one by one!”
"This, this..." Mo Niwuli was speechless, and after a while he asked: "Marshal, what should we do?"
"You take my personal soldiers and set off immediately to inspect the inside and outside of Datong Mansion. If there are any unruly people, I allow you to kill them first and then report them." Mo Nian Jinzhong said coldly: "Invite that merchant here... No, pay him courtesy. Send him out of the country, be careful not to hurt him!"
Two days later.
The people of Jing'an were fully clothed and sitting in the lobby. More than a dozen generals surrounded him, all of them looking eager to try, but he frowned and stared at the military report on the table: "How can Ji Zhong be so smart? If this happens, our original plan will come to nothing." ?”
It was a military document that the Recording Department tried to obtain. The military document was issued by Nian Jinzhong in the name of staying in Xijing, and with a seal, it required all the ministries of Xijing Province to stay in place and guard all the passes and not move rashly.
Miao Daorun beside him chuckled: "I think you think too much about military exploits! The purpose of sending people to deliver food is to prompt Mo Nian Jinzhong to make a decision as soon as possible. If he goes south, we will take Datong Mansion; he knows what he wants, Wouldn’t it save us trouble? Don’t delay, leave two or three thousand people in Hongzhou to keep an eye on him, and we will lead our troops south quickly to join Zhang Rou...Only when we go south can we fight a big battle!"
