Wan Yanliang's worries are definitely not unreasonable.
It is true that Zhao Gou did not have the courage to conduct the Northern Expedition, but he never lacked the courage to fish in troubled waters and take advantage.
He really didn't dare to break up with Jin Guo's father, but he did feel a little unhappy in his heart. He was still happy to do something secretly.
News of the rebellion in Shandong reached the Southern Song Dynasty in May.
In mid-May, this news was placed on the desk of the relevant departments of the Lin'an court.
After checking, the officials from the relevant departments felt that this was another boring rebellion that would not last long, so they did not take it seriously and simply shelved the specific information.
The high-ranking officials and dignitaries of the Southern Song Dynasty naturally had their own things to deal with. How could they allocate precious energy to care about a doomed rebellion that took place on enemy soil?
What they care more about is how to obtain more benefits, gain greater power, and seek benefits for themselves and those around them.
By the end of June, more news came.
Various intelligence shows that the Shandong rebels not only have not been eliminated, but are gaining momentum. Haizhou and other states bordering the Song Dynasty were occupied by the rebels. They raised the banner of the Liberation Army and expelled the Jin people.
By August, it was basically a fact that the Liberation Army was becoming more powerful in Shandong. Relevant departments could no longer turn a blind eye to this, so they sent relevant news to the top.
So in early August, the Privy Council learned of the news.
After the Privy Council learned about it, Chen Chengzhi, a member of the Privy Council and Wang Lun, a member of the Privy Council, were very surprised. They felt that this was an unusual rebellion and was of great value for discussion.
So they continued to send the news up together, and the prime ministers of the Song Empire finally knew the news.
The first person to know the news was Chen Kangbo, the political minister.
Chen Kangbo was very happy when he learned about the large-scale rebellion in Shandong of the Jin Kingdom.
He was even more happy when he learned that the rebels were becoming more and more powerful and had even captured Pizhou, Haizhou bordering the Southern Song Dynasty. They also raised the banner of the Liberation Army and openly broke with the Jin Kingdom.
He felt he saw an opportunity to change the deadlock.
So he immediately made the matter public and reported it to Emperor Zhao Gou, hoping that the emperor could do something after knowing about it.
For example, send troops north into Shandong, use this as a basis to attack north, and restore the Central Plains.
Of course, Zhao Gou learned about this quickly and was surprised by the strong fighting power of the Central Plains rebels this time. They actually captured Haizhou and Pizhou and directly penetrated the Jin Kingdom's border defense line. For the Southern Song Dynasty, It is a huge military benefit.
If we just go north into Shandong, join forces with the rebels, take back Shandong, and then use this as a basis to continue the war...
He suddenly felt moved.
So on August 16, Zhao Gou convened a military meeting and invited the prime ministers and the two elders of the Privy Council to discuss the matter in detail.
Zhao Gou currently has three prime minister-level assistants, namely Shangshu Zuopushe, Tongpingzhangshi Shen Gai, Shangshu Youpushe, Tongpingzhangshi Tang Situi, and Chen Kangbo, the deputy prime minister.
These three people are currently the heads of the highest political decision-making body of the Southern Song Dynasty under Zhao Gou, while Chen Chengzhi and Wang Lun are the two heads of the highest military body of the Southern Song Dynasty.
Together, these five people were the highest decision-making team of the Southern Song Dynasty and the holders of military and political power in the Southern Song Dynasty.
Of course, the real military and political power is still in the hands of Zhao Gou. Although Zhao Gou has no courage to disobey the Jin Kingdom, he still values his own power very seriously.
Fifty-one-year-old Zhao Gou has experienced thirty years of ups and downs, and has shown his age and fatigue, but his eyes are still full of calculation, which is enough to prove that he can still assume the position of emperor.
After so many years of ups and downs, his mind has become pathologically mature, which is reflected in his behavior and behavior at a neurological level that is almost schizophrenic.
This time too.
When he learned that there was great chaos in Shandong, he wanted to fish in troubled waters and reap benefits. He also had some thoughts of returning to the Central Plains.
But such thoughts were immediately blocked by the deep-rooted fear of the Kingdom of Jin.
He began to worry again that if he took this opportunity to do something, he would be considered by the Jin State to be in violation of the "Shaoxing Peace Agreement", thus giving the Jin people a pigtail after the rebellion was suppressed.
How long this rebellion can last is a big question. If it is put down soon, he will undoubtedly ask for trouble by reaching out at this time, and will also give others the leverage to get it with great difficulty. Ansheng's life was ruined.
So it's best to just sit on the sidelines, right?
But looking on, he felt unwilling to do so.
It was as if a little wild cat was scratching and scratching his heart, making him itchy and itchy very badly.
He wasn't willing to just watch indifferently, and there would be no benefit at all.
But I am really afraid of the Jin people and do not want to lose the peaceful situation that has been maintained until now.
So what to do?
He invited five important ministers and wanted to ask their opinions. Anyway, there would be no tie between five people and two opinions. When the time came, he would listen to whichever side had more opinions. In short, he did not want to make this decision by himself.
After the five people arrived, the meeting officially began, and Zhao Gou put Chen Kangbo's watch on the table.
"Chen Qing came to the table. I saw that there was a big chaos in Shandong. The people who started the rebellion called themselves the Liberation Army. They have occupied Haizhou and Pizhou. The Shandong border defense of the Jin Kingdom no longer exists. This shows the scale and scope of this uprising. Guang, you can feel free to tell me what you think of this matter."
Zhao Gou stood up and waited for the answers from the important ministers.
The person on the table, Chen Kangbo, stood up first.
"Your Majesty, I believe that this is a God-given opportunity. It is a great time for our government to enter Shandong and restore the Central Plains. The Jin army in Shandong has collapsed. All we need to do is promise official positions to the rebels in Shandong and recruit them, and we can get them without any effort. An army of one hundred thousand.
Based on this, we can launch the Northern Expedition, and Shandong will be at our fingertips. Once Shandong is obtained, we can use this as the basis for a two-way Northern Expedition to the Central Plains. By then, it will not be impossible to recapture the Central Plains and restore the old capital. "
As soon as Chen Kangbo's war remarks came out, he was vigorously refuted by Tang Situi, the prime minister of the peace faction.
"What nonsense! Whether the Jin Army in Shandong collapsed is still open to question. The news we have learned so far is that Haizhou and Pizhou are occupied by the insurrectionists. Shandong is so big, and it is the seat of the Shandong Army Command of the Jin Kingdom. The troops are stationed there. Sophisticated and powerful, how could it collapse easily?
In the past, such incidents have occurred several times, but each time the perpetrators were defeated, ranging from a few months to a year. We have also made several attempts to recruit security in the past, but they all ended in failure. As far as the Jin Kingdom knew, the Shaoxing Peace Treaty had long been ruined! "
Shen Gai, who was also a member of the Harmony faction, also agreed with Tang Situi's views.
"Chang Qing, I know your ambitions, but ambitions also depend on the actual situation. Whether the chaos in Shandong is sustainable is still open to question. If I get involved too early, I don't say whether I can make a profit. Being implicated has aroused the anger of the financial owner, so what should we do?”
Although Shen Gai's words were softer, his meaning was the same.
Chen Kangbo was quite indignant about this.
"If you don't talk about success in everything, but think about defeat, how can you accomplish anything? If you are afraid of wolves in front and tigers in the back, is there anything that can be accomplished in the world? If we can give it considerable support, it will definitely be able to expand the results of the battle and not be completely defeated and lost. The division has lost ground! The chaos in Shandong has spread to the border, which proves that the chaos is huge. It is time for us to lend a helping hand!"
Tang Situi confronted him tit for tat.
"The two countries have not been at war for more than ten years. Peace is rare. You insist on doing something that is impossible to succeed, causing dissatisfaction with the sponsors, and restarting the war. By then, lives will be ruined and people will be displaced. Is this what you want to see?"
Chen Kangbo said angrily: "Is Mr. Tang so sure that he will be defeated instead of defeated?"
"Defeat or win, Chen Changqing should have some thoughts in your mind."
Tang Situi retorted sarcastically, showing no mercy.
The two of them, one fighting and the other making peace, had always been incompatible with each other. If Shen hadn't been there to make peace with the mud, they would have fought long ago.
Seeing that the two were arguing, Zhao Gou turned his attention to Chen Chengzhi and Wang Lun.
"What does the Privy Council think of this?"
