【King of Strong Mouth】
However, Tang Zhaozong's goal was not to eliminate Li Keyong, but to consolidate imperial power. Weakening the vassal towns is superficial, while consolidating imperial power is internal. We cannot put the cart before the horse. This is big picture thinking.
What Zhaozong had to consider was how to use the annexation and attack of the vassal towns to disintegrate the power of the vassal towns, and to reap the benefits of the annexation of the vassal towns, rather than to draw chestnuts from the fire for each vassal town.
Therefore, in this melee of vassal towns, there must be a military presence from the central court to allow the Forbidden Army to intervene in order to reap the dividends of the war. However, the Forbidden Army is also a tool of the eunuch forces, and the intervention of the Forbidden Army will inevitably allow the eunuch forces to steal the fruits of victory.
So how to use the Forbidden Army to weaken the power of the vassal town, but at the same time not encourage the eunuch power behind the Forbidden Army, and let the fruits of victory flow back to the court, this is the real problem faced by Zhaozong.
Any seemingly dilemma must have a best-of-both-worlds solution. That is-civilian Dianjun.
Zhaozong only had to find someone in the civil service group who had no backing, lacked foundation, and was not tolerated by the feudal town and the eunuch Yang Fugong. Just let him lead the Imperial Army.
The best candidate is undoubtedly Zhang Jun.
This man appeared in the previous article, and his image was not very glorious. In fact, his image in this generation is not very glorious. The evaluation of him in history is that he is "extensively knowledgeable about books and history and loves to comment on high topics", and all real literati and officials "ignore him".
When he followed Emperor Xizong to Shu, he wanted to kneel down and lick Tian Lingzi, but also didn't want to bear the reputation of being a stooge to the eunuchs, so he got smart and went to the banquet in advance, and knelt down and kowtowed to Tian Lingzi when he and Tian Lingzi were the only ones in the room. , but was exposed in public by Tian Lingzi, who was so humiliated.
Zhang Jun was first appreciated by the eunuch Yang Fugong and recommended by Yang Fugong to enter the central court. As Yang Fugong lost power in the "Tian Yang Battle", Zhang Jun turned to kneel down and lick Tian Lingzi. Therefore, Yang Fugong hated Zhang Jun, a snob. When Yang Fugong regained power, Zhang Jun suffered revenge from Yang Fugong.
A blessing in disguise is a blessing in disguise.
Zhang Jun, who was rejected by Yang Fugong, was immediately promoted by Emperor Zhaozong and promoted to the imperial prime minister, allowing him to lead the civil service group to balance the eunuch group represented by Yang Fugong.
Zhang Jun often talked about reviving the Tang Dynasty. Compared with Xie An (a famous official in the Eastern Jin Dynasty) and Pei Du (a famous official in the mid-Tang Dynasty), he believed that he had the talent to navigate the world and the ambition to stabilize the country. Reviving the Tang Dynasty was a gift from God that he could not shirk. Responsibility.
He also had intersections with Li Keyong. That was when Li Keyong was attacking Huang Chao and garrisoned in Hezhong, and the two of them worked together briefly. At that time, Li Keyong looked down on Zhang Jun very much.
After Zhang Jun became prime minister, Li Keyong publicly insulted him, saying that he was vain and would only lead the empire into an abyss. Zhang Jun was so angry that he gritted his teeth.
Being tolerated by the eunuchs (Yang Fugong) and at odds with the vassal forces (Li Keyong), and lacking a foundation, he could only cling to the emperor's lap.
Therefore, it is most appropriate for Zhang Jun to play the role of Emperor Zhaozong's spokesperson in this melee. If it succeeds, Zhaozong will enjoy the dividends alone; if it fails, Zhang Jun can be an abandoned son and block Zhaozong's gun.
Emperor Zhaozong summoned Zhang Jun and asked him about strategies to revive the Tang Dynasty.
Zhang Jun talked eloquently, saying that His Majesty is wise and powerful, but he is controlled by the eunuchs and vassal towns. Whenever I think of this, I feel sad and hate that I can't use my fists and relieve the Lord's worries.
"Then in your opinion, what should I do?"
"Truth is only within the range of cannon, and caliber is justice. There must be a strong army loyal to His Majesty."
As a result, Emperor Zhaozong recruited troops on a large scale in the capital to expand armaments, and soon he had an army of more than 100,000 people.
After receiving a memorial from Zhu Wen and others requesting a crusade against Li Keyong, Emperor Zhaozong convened a meeting of officials above the fourth rank for discussion. To his surprise, more than half (sixty-seven out of ten) of the officials clearly expressed their opposition, and Yang Fugong also expressed opposition.
Zhang Jun had had a secret conversation with Zhaozong in advance and knew the emperor's thoughts, so he argued against all opinions and said: "Forcing the late emperor to flee for the second time was a good thing done by the Shatuo people! If they are not of my race, their minds must be different. This gang What can't the Shatuo people do? Once they unite with the towns in Hebei, the consequences will be disastrous."
After the "An-Shi Rebellion", the towns in Hebei were basically separated from the jurisdiction of the central court, and they had always been a worry for the Tang Empire. But it is not difficult to find that the relationship between Li Keyong and the towns in Hebei is not harmonious. Except for Dingzhou Yiwu Army Wang Chucun, the towns in Hebei are very wary of Li Keyong, and it seems that they have no joint confrontation. Central signs. Zhang Jun's remarks can be said to be alarmist, creating panic and forcibly inciting public opinion.
"Now, the two major vassal towns in Henan and Hebei (Zhu Wen and Li Kuangwei) are requesting a crusade against Li Keyong at the same time. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! What are you waiting for? Your Majesty is willing to give me military power, as little as ten days, or as much as one By the moon, you can flatten Sha Tuo and use it."
The tone is really loud. Even Zhu Wen was not sure about this. Even if he united seven vassal towns, he would not dare to boast about such a Haikou.
Yang Fugong argued: "The late emperor's good fortune is of course inseparable from the tyranny of the feudal town, but..." He glanced at Zhang Jun from the corner of his eye, "It is also inseparable from the improper handling of some civil servants in the court. Now, the world has just stabilized, There should be no more war, and we should try to resolve it peacefully so that the empire can rest and recover.”
The two factions are fighting with no distinction between superior and inferior, and Yang Fugong's words have been suspected of attacking his life. If it develops further, it is likely that the eunuchs and civil servants will blame each other and throw dirty water on each other.
Zhaozong Jinkou said, "Li Keyong has made great achievements in reviving the empire (defeating Huang Chao and regaining the capital), but now he is in a critical situation (Luzhou crisis). If the imperial court takes advantage of others' danger, how should the people of the world talk about me?"
Listen to the sound of gongs and drums, and listen to the sound of speech.
Everyone immediately heard Zhaozong's overtone: She became a bitch and still wanted to build a chastity memorial arch.
Another prime minister, Kong Wei, gave a rather far-fetched excuse, but in fact it was no longer an excuse:
"Your Majesty's words are a moment of honor, but Zhang Jun's words are of benefit to all generations. And after yesterday's war chess deduction, once the war begins, our logistics can support two years of losses. I hope your Majesty will not be merciful to women. When it’s time to break it, break it off!”
The winner is the king and the loser is the bandit. That's the reason.
Zhaozong then looked at Zhang Jun and Kong Wei with hope, "I'll leave the matter to you two dear friends. Don't let me be embarrassed!"
A semi-puppet emperor with no real power and a pedantic scholar who talks about being a king, want to be a trend-setter in the dangerous and gloomy political and military whirlpool, and the bronze players use their names to enter the king's game.
Emperor Zhaozong should not use the fate of the empire as a bargaining chip.
The imperial court issued an edict depriving Li Keyong of all official positions and titles, taking back the surname given to him, and restoring his old surname of Zhu Xie;
Prime Minister Zhang Jun was ordered to be the commander-in-chief of "Killing Hu" in Hedong (the camp in Hedong was recruited and appointed as a propaganda envoy), Sun Kui, the mayor of the capital (Jing Zhaoyin), was appointed as deputy commander-in-chief, and Han Jian, the governor of the Zhenguo Army, was appointed as the logistics officer. commander;
Zhu Wen, the military envoy of the Xuanwu Army, the commander of the due south front (the envoy to the south);
Wang Rong, the military commander of the Chengde Army, commander of the due east front (eastern military envoy);
Li Kuangwei, the military envoy of the Lulong Army, was the commander of the North Front Army (recruiting envoy from the north), and Helian Duo, the defense envoy of Datong, was his deputy.
Zhang Jun also asked Niu Hui to be the judge of the camp. Niu Hui is the grandson of Niu Sengru, the leader of the "Niu Party".
Niu Hui, who had rich experience in political struggles, predicted that Zhang Jun would be defeated and said: "The empire has just suffered a heavy blow. Instead of recovering and recuperating, it has fought fiercely and challenged the powerful vassal. I have already seen Zhang Jun's embarrassing ending!" So he claimed He was old and frail and resolutely resigned.
Zhang Jun: Gather and prepare for the team battle.
Zhaozong: Don’t waste your time if you are insignificant.
Zhang Jun: Go up and start a group.
Zhaozong: Economically backward, leave the group.
Zhang Jun: Go up and start a group!
Kong Wei: Go up and start a group!
Zhaozong: Leave the group and wait for everyone to gather.
Zhang Jun, Kong Wei: Go up and start a group!
Zhaozong:......
