On the eighth day of October in the seventh year of Xuanhe, the Jin army went south for the first time.
Wanyan Zongwang, the second prince of the Jin Kingdom, led the Eastern Route Army to attack Hebei. Guo Yaoshi, the commander-in-chief of Hebei Yanjing in the Song Dynasty, raised his flag and surrendered the gold after a slight resistance.
Wanyan Zonghan, another founding general of the Jin Kingdom, Wanyan Zonghan, nephew of Jin Taizu Wanyan Aguda, led the West Route Army to attack Hedong. Hedong's commander Tong Guan even failed to resist and abandoned the city and fled.
Perhaps even the Jurchens themselves did not expect that this trip south would go so smoothly. The smoothness was a bit unreal. This made the Jin soldiers who chased Tong Guan into the realm of Kaifeng Mansion confused. They did not know what the Song Dynasty court was doing. After all, are you trying to lure the army into a trap?
Therefore, this small Jin Bing army did not dare to approach Bianjing City. They only dared to fight the autumn wind along the Yellow River, waiting for the arrival of the large army.
The city gates of Bianjing City were tightly closed, and only two small gates in the southeast were opened for the entry and exit of supplies. The people in the city were not allowed to leave the city. If the Jin army besieged the city, they would all be considered fighting strength.
At this time, the city gate was surrounded by people with large and small bags and their families. They were crowded and blocked mercilessly by the city gate guards with weapons.
The pleading of the people, the crying of children, and the sighs of the elderly merged into a noisy ocean...
"Master Bing, please be kind and let us out of the city."
A man in civilian clothes pulled on the guard's sleeve and begged, and he also stuffed a package of solid objects without leaving any trace.
The guard lowered his head and looked at the object in his hand, weighed it and pushed it back distressedly. He said impatiently: "Don't mess with these things. If you let one go, I will have to explain it here today."
"Master Bing, please do well, please do well..."
The man was still begging but was pushed to the ground by the guard, "Hey, go, go, no one can leave this city today."
After saying that, he whispered softly, "Why did you go there earlier!"
The clothed man did not get up after falling to the ground. Instead, he beat his chest and stamped his feet and began to cry in the street, "Why did you leave earlier? Why did you leave earlier!"
"Little Sage Wang clearly said that there is no danger in Bianjing and the Jin people will definitely go south. Only by moving the capital and immigrating can we avoid disaster. Not only did I not listen, I also poured paint on the wall of the Wang Family Courtyard. I am really not a human being. I am not a human being." …”
As the man in cloth wailed, the people around him expressed regret. They were all opposed to moving the capital at first, and now they desperately hope that the court can open the city gates and let them move. Unfortunately, there is no medicine for regret in this world.
"The Jin army is marching south, and our glorious Song Dynasty has no general who can stop it. How sad! How sad!" A scribe with a square scarf looked up to the sky and sighed.
A person next to him answered casually, "It used to be there, but now it's gone..."
The people were even more sad when they heard this. They all knew who the person he was talking about was.
Who else could be there besides the young man who pacified and recovered the Xixia country with only thirty soldiers?
It's a pity that this man is dead.
Yes, many people saw the panic yesterday. Wang Zhi was hit by an arrow in the chest and was chased by more than ten cavalry. He was expected to die, but word of mouth revealed that he was already dead.
"Girl, help daddy up."
The fallen civilian man got up with the help of his family, and then walked away with his family.
"Dad, don't we go home?"
The little girl next to him looked at the direction his father was walking and quickly pulled his sleeve and asked.
"Don't go back yet, go to Wang Xiaosheng's house."
"What are you doing at Wang Xiaosheng's house?"
"Go paint the walls."
"Dad must pay for the sins he has committed."
…
In the palace, outside the emperor's bedroom, several noble ministers were shivering in the cold wind, but no one left.
After a while, a young Huangmen walked out of the palace, and the ministers immediately surrounded him.
Zuo Xiangbai Shizhong hurriedly stepped forward and asked: "Little father-in-law, how is the official family?"
Xiaohuangmen bowed slightly and said: "Go back to Mr. Bai, the officials have woken up, please let me call you to come into the palace."
"My lords, please follow me."
After Xiao Huangmen finished speaking, he turned around first. All the ministers looked at each other and followed him into the palace.
Entering the palace, which was set off by a fireplace, several ministers went straight to the emperor's bedside. Looking at Zhao Ji, who was still pale, they all showed concern.
What is the emperor's disease? They are clear in their minds. What else can they do besides being "excessively frightened"?
Yesterday, when I heard that the Jin people were marching southward and had crossed the Yellow River, I just looked up and fell down.
Bai Shizhong asked softly, "Is the official family better?"
Zhao Ji turned his head sideways, eyes half-opened and half-closed, and after a while he nodded slightly, "I don't mind, how is the situation?"
When Bai Shizhong saw the emperor directly asking about the war, he stepped back half a step to give up his position.
Cai You, the official of the Privy Council, had no choice but to lean out and answer: "Back at the official house, Yanjing guard Guo Yaoshi put Yanshan magistrate Cai Jing under house arrest, and the transfer envoy Lu Yihao led his troops to rebel against the Song Dynasty. Dai Mingwai has basically fallen..."
"Cough cough cough..."
When Zhao Ji heard this, he suddenly coughed violently, which frightened the eunuch Li Yan and quickly stepped forward to support him and pat his back.
Cai You asked, "Guan family?"
Zhao Ji waved his hand helplessly, "It doesn't matter, you continue talking."
Cai You lowered his head and continued: "The three prefectures of Lushuo, Ying, and Dai in Hedong fell, but Taiyuan still holds on."
"What did you say?" Zhao Ji had a look in his eyes when he heard this.
"Going back to Guan's home, except for the three states behind the mountains in Hedong, the rest of the state capitals have not fallen. The Jin army on the west route was blocked by Taiyuan and could not advance even an inch."
"What about the Jin soldiers who entered Kaifeng yesterday?"
"Back at the official's house, they were just a small group of cavalrymen from the Jin army, lightly equipped to explore the road. I have arranged for the imperial army to surround them, so there is nothing to worry about."
Cai You didn't say much until he clicked, but he seemed to have said everything.
"Tong Guan ruins the country, Tong Guan ruins the country!"
The look in Zhao Ji's eyes was replaced by hatred, and his fists were clenched. If Tong Guan had not died, there was no way the emperor would take action himself.
Zhao Ji's chest rose and fell several times before he suddenly remembered, "Who is the general of Taiyuan?"
Cai You replied: "When I return to the official residence, the two Xuanfu bureaus will control the king."
"Wang Zhen... Wang Zhen... Wang Zhen..."
Zhao Ji murmured in his mouth, and the expression in his eyes changed. He didn't know what he was thinking. After a while, he came back to his senses and asked, "Where is Wang Zhi, have you caught him?"
"I haven't returned to the official residence," Cai You reported, and then continued, "None of the guards of the Guangyang County Prince's Palace who chased Wang Zhi have returned to the city."
Zhao Ji was silent again. After a moment, he waved his hands and said, "Let it go now. The Jin people broke their trust and went south. Can you guys give me some countermeasures?"
As soon as Zhao Ji finished speaking, Cai You hurriedly took over and said: "Guan, now Hebei's reputation has not been lost, Taiyuan in Hedong is still alive, and the Yellow River defense line is still solid. Our armies on both sides were defeated only because they temporarily lost their commanders and lost their position." We were caught off guard, so we should appoint the two coaches as soon as possible and make unified arrangements so that we can retreat from the enemy."
The defenses in Hebei and Hedong were all arranged by him, who was a member of the Privy Council, before he took office. This time the Jin army was unstoppable and marched southward towards Kaifeng Mansion. That would be a slap in the face to him, the Prime Minister of the West Mansion. If he didn't regain some ground, it would be a big deal. Then he will inevitably have to take the blame and step down.
Zhao Ji was obviously moved by his being persuaded. He frowned and asked him, "According to your wishes, who should I send..."
"Officials!" Bai Shizhong directly interrupted Zhao Ji, "The Kingdom of Jin has sent envoys to the DPRK, saying that this move south is just because our DPRK breached the contract to accept the Liao people's surrender and recruit the surrendered generals of the Jin Kingdom, and sent troops to warn. After demanding compensation, I will withdraw my troops and return home. I don’t want to start a national war. If I send troops to fight back at this time, I’m afraid it will be a fight to the death.”
Zhao Ji became more interested and asked him tremblingly, "Then... how much do they want?"
"The specific amount is not yet known. They said they would come to me to question and discuss in person."
Bai Shizhong didn't say anything after finishing his words. His position had been made very clear. He believed that the emperor in Danshang could also make a wise choice. Whether to fight or talk to someone who was also in Danshang, he would not do that. Pot man.
"Officials, the Jin people can't be trusted." Looking at the agitated emperor, Cai You said anxiously, "If we just send troops to warn and ask for some benefits, then we have achieved our goal. Why?" If you don't give up and continue southward, this is the strategy of the Jin people to boil frogs in warm water, just to make us relax our vigilance and go straight to Kaifeng."
Zhao Ji couldn't sleep after hearing this. He sat up and said, "Cai Qing, if our army attacks back, what is the winning rate?"
Cai You looked troubled, hesitated for a while, and finally said, "Fifty percent."
As soon as "50%" came out, the emperor was silent and the ministers sneered in their hearts.
Fifty percent?
What about the liar?
Thank God for being able to achieve something!
From a historical perspective, what Bai Shizhong said is actually correct. The Jin people did not intend to expand the war when they first went south. The moment they sent out troops, the envoys to the Song Dynasty also set out. They originally planned to punish and deter them. After asking for some benefits, he took the guy back home.
But as soon as the troops were sent out, the development of the matter could not be controlled. In just a few days, it had been pushed to Kaifeng Mansion. Can you believe it?
They also knew that the Song Army was weak, but they didn't expect it to be so weak!
Seeing that Bianjing City is right in front of you, who can resist this temptation?
The Jin people did not resist the temptation, so what Cai You said was right. Whatever the envoys talked about, what they beat them, what they compensated and what they robbed, he, the Jurchen, wanted them all!
"Li Qing, what do you think?" Zhao Ji looked at the Right Prime Minister Li Bangyan, who was looking at his nose and heart with his eyes bent.
Li Bangyan raised his head and glanced at the emperor. Knowing that he could not escape, he said: "For officials, 50%... is really a bit low. If you lose the bet, the safety of the country may be in danger."
Li Bangyan's idea was very simple. If he fought, he would lose, and if he didn't fight, he would lose. It would be better not to fight, and ask his father to pay some money earlier, and get rid of the problem. This really angered the Jurchen, and he was afraid that even if he called his father, others would not agree.
Zhao Ji looked at the other ministers in the East and West mansions. Except for Cai You, whose eyes were anxious, the rest of them lowered their heads and said nothing. He understood in his heart that these people were not here to visit him at all, but to ask him to give him a favor. Accurate faith, so that you can go away from being a legitimate traitor.
Thinking of this, he sighed bitterly, "Cai Qing arranges the defense of the Yellow River, and Bai Qing handles the peace negotiations. Let's go."
"The official family..."
Cai You was about to speak, but Zhao Ji waved his hand impatiently, "Go, go..."
After all, Cai You was pulled away by his colleagues in the Xifu, looking more like they were trying to pull him down from the top spot in the Xifu.