Zhao Kuangyin took off his sword and straightened his clothes. The military armor reflected the cold light and bound the coldness on his body. It was very uncomfortable, but Zhao Kuangyin seemed not to notice it. As soon as he entered the hall, he felt warm air rushing towards him, and a layer of mist immediately enveloped his handsome face.
He stepped forward to pay homage: "Your Majesty, Zhao Kuangyin, is here to see you!"
Liu Chengyou held a porcelain bowl in his hand, scooped up a red date, and put it in his mouth. Looking up at Zhao Kuangyin, he saw that his body was extremely cold, and a few snowflakes that had not been cleaned were melting.
"No courtesy! Sit down first!" Liu Chengyou raised his hand, then turned around and ordered: "Zhang Dejun, give Marquis Yu of Zhaodu a bowl of ginger soup to dispel the cold!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Zhao Kuangyin thanked him, stood up, and sat down. Zhang Dejun, with his clever hands and feet, took out a bowl of the pear and ginger soup cooked in the dining room and handed it to Zhao Kuangyin.
A bowl of hot soup warmed his body and heart, and Zhao Kuangyin's complexion became rosy. After spitting out a jujube kernel, Liu Chengyou looked at him and asked, "Have the arrangements for the knights from Xiazhou been properly arranged?"
"Your Majesty, I will temporarily concentrate the cavalry troops on the left wing. I have ordered people to monitor them secretly!" Zhao Kuangyin responded.
"Yuen Long is so talented!" Liu Chengyou said: "These Xiazhou knights may also have Li Yiyin's spies, so we must keep an eye on them! From Yuen Long's point of view, how powerful are they?"
After returning to Beijing from the Southern Expedition, Liu Chengyou issued an edict to select elites from prefectures and towns all over the world to serve as the imperial army. On the side of the Dingnan Army, the Privy Council also issued an order to select elite cavalry.
Of course, Li Yiyin paid no attention to it. Later, Liu Chong wanted to plan for a permanent settlement in Hedong, so he sent people to Xiazhou with a secret letter, hoping to hook him up as a foreign aid and cooperate with him to fight against the imperial government.
The letter was sent to Li Yiyin intentionally and tacitly. As a result, before he could make a decision, Liu Chong was dismissed from his post and returned to Beijing, where he died of illness in Luoyang. During this period, the situation changed so quickly that Li Yiyin was caught off guard.
What really worried him was the major military and political changes in Hedong. The Baoning Army was under the command of Zhide in the winter, and Wang Yansheng was in Yanzhou in the west, clamping down on both sides. There was also the ruthless Shi Hongzhao on the Shuo side.
After much consideration, Li Yiyin decided to give in and finally hesitantly selected a group of cavalry from the army to be transferred to Tokyo. Of course, there are only a hundred cavalry, and another two hundred war horses are presented.
After hearing the inquiry at this time, Zhao Kuangyin reported: "I have inspected and found that they are all capable men. They are good at riding and shooting. Their combat power is superior even among the elite cavalry. They can fight one against five!"
"I just don't know how many brave people like this are in the army!" Liu Chengyou murmured.
"I have met with the leader of the team. According to what he said, the Dingnan army seems to be so elite, with as many as five thousand, and those who are slightly weaker are several times as many!" Zhao Kuangyin replied, with a hint of emotion in his tone. A bit of banter.
Liu Chengyou chuckled slightly and said: "If it is true, wouldn't it mean that all the Dingnan Army has strong troops and no weak troops? How many troops does he have in total? This Li Yiyin actually played such a trick on me, intending to tell me , He will definitely make it difficult for his troops to be strong and his horses strong, so don’t try lightly!”
Zhao Kuangyin laughed along with him and echoed: "Your Majesty is wise, and one sentence revealed Li Yiyin's clumsy scheming. Xia Sui is barren and it is difficult to raise troops and horses! It is also because the Han Dynasty is getting stronger and stronger, and the army is getting stronger, so the Dingnan Army is suspicious and fearful!"
Liu Chengyou nodded slightly, thought for a moment, and said relaxedly: "It seems that we need to slow down the attack on the troubled army! Otherwise, Li Yi, out of doubt and fear, defected to Hu Liao Khitan, and the trouble in the northwest will be difficult to deal with for a while!"
"It is hereby issued that the Han troops along the Xia Sui area are not allowed to cross the border with one man or one horse to invade, plunder, or cause disputes!" Liu Chengyou gave the order calmly.
"What about the two hundred war horses?" Liu Chengyou asked again.
Zhao Kuangyin was obviously familiar with all matters, including war horses. After hearing the question, he replied without thinking: "It's winter, and although they are rugged, they are all from Hexi. They just need to be fattened and fat enough to be used in the army! However, all the horses have been castrated!"
"Haha!" Liu Chengyou smiled faintly and said with restrained expression: "Horses are the foundation of armor and a weapon of national defense. To level the southern countries, elite infantry is enough, but if you want to go north to attack the barbarians, you must rely on elite cavalry. We don't have to worry about soldiers, we only worry about strong horses! However, Yanbei is still in the hands of Hu, and the northwest border states have little control. I really suffer from the source of the army and horses.
Earlier, I asked Wei Renpu to conduct an inventory and found that there were less than 40,000 suitable soldiers and horses in the army across the country, and there were many old and injured horses that were still retained. In the Huai expedition alone, nearly 3,000 horses were damaged before and after.
If it were not for the thousands of fine horses captured in the battle against the miscellaneous barbarians in Hexi on behalf of the Duke to supplement them, I am afraid that the cavalry and Longjie armies would not be able to support one man and one horse! "
Hearing the emperor's sigh, Zhao Kuangyin immediately stood up and asked for instructions: "Your Majesty, the horse administration should be reinstated. Although the northwest states are not yet stable, they can be used to herd and train military horses. The Central Plains and Hebei courts can also follow the old system and encourage herding. keep!"
"I have this intention!" Liu Chengyou looked at Zhao Kuangyin with some sparkle in his eyes: "I have become a bachelor to organize the political affairs of the previous dynasty, and I want to implement whatever is feasible according to the country's situation! Within the territory of the Han Dynasty, the most The only places suitable for animal husbandry are Longyou and Hexi, but the land is sparse and the people are sparse, the borders are not peaceful, and they are often invaded by barbarians...
After the beginning of spring, I intend to send Yuen Long to inspect the northwest border defense, observe its situation, and screen pasture land for selection. By the way, take a look at the southwest frontier, the movements of the Shu army, and the situation of Qin and Feng for me! "
After listening to the emperor's instructions, Zhao Kuangyin was thoughtful, but his body reacted instinctively, and he cupped his hands and said, "Yes!"
"Within five years, I will have enough Rong and Taoist troops to arm a hundred thousand cavalry!" Liu Chengyou calmly set a goal that was not easy to achieve. After all, the restrictions were considerable.
"Your Majesty's ambition lies in the north!" Zhao Kuangyin couldn't help but glance at Liu Chengyou and thought in his heart.
If you want Ma Zheng, your goal is clearly to fight in the north of Saibei. Nowadays, the focus of the Han Dynasty's national policy is in the south, but its ambition is towards the north, and there is no slack at all.
In the Sansi Yamen, Zhang Yisu, who was promoted to Duzhi Judge, executed an edict and handed it to the Prime Minister Xue Juzheng in person.
At the end of the fifth year of Emperor Qianyou's reign, all matters need to be summarized. The Third Division is probably the most complicated and busy organization among all the imperial offices. Xue Juzheng couldn't help but smile bitterly as he looked at the piles of official documents on the overflow case.
He finally understood why Wang Zhang aged so fast and his body became so exhausted in a few years, just in this series of official documents. Of course, the financial situation was difficult in the early days of the country, and Wang Zhang was very powerful and did everything himself, which was also one of the reasons.
In comparison, Xue Juzheng's life was easier, but only in relative terms. However, the sense of accomplishment that comes with feeling the taxes, land, money and grain of the country, gradually coming into my hands, and sorting out the statistics, is still very intoxicating.
"What's the matter?" Xue Juzheng looked at Zhang Yisu and asked.
Zhang Yisu submitted the edict to the case and explained: "The Chongzheng Palace has issued a new edict. Your Majesty wants to restart the horse administration. Let the three departments do the accounting and prepare the money and food for the initial investment!"
Nodding, Xue Juzheng looked at Zhang Yisu and saw that his face was pale and had a strange look, as if he was sick. A blush came over me. After holding it back, I finally couldn't help but cough a few times. I quickly took out the silk and wiped my mouth.
"I'm rude to you, sir. Please forgive me!" Zhang Yisu apologized after he recovered.
"It's okay!" Xue Juzheng looked at his sick look and couldn't help but said with concern: "Zhengfang, you have poor health and bones, so you shouldn't work too hard. If you can't support it, you can take leave and go home to recuperate!"
"Thank you for your kindness! It's nothing serious. It's an old problem! I've been suffering from the disease for many years, and it's like this every winter. It's not surprising!" Zhang Yisu shook his head, coughed slightly, and said, "Now, it's the right time in Siyanei. There are so many things to do, how dare you avoid hard work because of illness?"
Xue Juzheng couldn't help but sigh, thinking secretly in his heart, with such a good son-in-law, there will be successors to the prince, but this sick body is pitiful.
After coming back to his senses, he browsed through the edict, raised his head, and said with a wry smile: "Restarting Ma Zheng will be a big expense! Your Majesty has repeatedly increased policies. If it were not supplemented by Huainan taxes, I am afraid it would be difficult. Of!"
"Your Majesty has a promising master. Under his encouragement, I can only do my best and follow in his footsteps!" Zhang Yisu had been a close minister beside Liu Chengyou for a while, so he was not surprised.
"Since last year, the imperial court has been carrying out major affairs, such as the southern expedition, the attack on Shu, and the restructuring. The expenditures have been extremely huge. Money and food have been wasted on repairing the city and providing relief from winter disasters. Spring is about to begin, and salaries are being lowered, and all military officers and soldiers are changing their spring uniforms. .....The Shangyuan Festival celebration is probably indispensable. I'm afraid the autumn taxes will be dissipated again..." Xue Juzheng listed them one by one, as if he was confiding his bitterness: "Now , and started to govern again, hey, I can feel the hardship of the prince's day!"
Seeing this, Zhang Yisu chuckled and said: "My lord, don't worry too much. Your Majesty is not in a hurry for success, and horse administration is not something that can be accomplished overnight. There is enough time for preparations!"
Xue Juzheng nodded, thought for a moment, and then said to Zhang Yisu: "I would like to trouble Zhengfang and lead your staff to discuss this matter first and draw up a charter. Your Majesty issued an edict directly, but we have to do our best. !”
Zhang Yisu responded: "Yes!"
With a slight sigh and a breath of white steam, Xue Juzheng picked up another memorial, which was about the preliminary financial rectification of Guanzhong, and his concentration eased. Since the mid-Tang Dynasty, Guanzhong has given people the impression of being war-torn, dilapidated, and barren.
But in fact, after several years of recuperation since the founding of the Han Dynasty, the population, cultivated land, and tax revenue have all recovered significantly. Especially the prefectures and counties on the Weihe Plain are showing signs of revival.
