We were still in Chongzheng Hall, with the same ministers, but the atmosphere was completely different, because this time the doors and windows of Zhengzheng Hall were closed, and all the eunuchs who were waiting on Gong'e except Sun Yanxi were dismissed.
Seeing this secret scene, all the civil and military personnel present knew that the emperor had made a decision. They looked at each other, and everyone kept their minds attentive, waiting for Liu Chengyou to speak.
"Last night, I finally had a good sleep!" Liu Chengyou looked around and said with a relaxed smile. This performance further confirmed the conjectures of the ministers.
Facing the gazes of all the ministers, Liu Chengyou picked up a memorial from the imperial case and said, "Last night, I received another petition for challenge!"
His attention was attracted by the memorial in Liu Chengyou's hand. During this period, the emperor received almost all petitions for war. What was so special about this letter?
Liu Chengyou did not continue to pretend, a faint smile flashed at the corner of his mouth, and said: "This is the letter jointly signed by King Zhao Kuangzan of Yan and Gao Fang, the observation envoy of Lulong, hoping that the imperial court can send troops to the Northern Expedition to expel the Khitan and regain Guanshan!"
After the emperor finished speaking, Chai Rong perked up and immediately said: "Your Majesty, King Yan has great merits and virtues, and his heart is so sincere. How can the imperial court ignore his request and cool the hearts of the people with lofty ideals?"
The other civil and military officials also showed a little joy. They were all knowledgeable people who could understand King Yan's thoughts behind this letter of invitation. The Han court has always been wary of the existence of King Yan and the Yan army. After all, now that the vassal towns have been wiped out, You Yan's self-contained system has indeed become somewhat prominent, giving people a feeling of being stuck in the throat.
Of course, the vassal town is second. After all, there are Xiazhou and Yanzhou in the northwest. The key lies in the special geographical location of Youzhou. It is the most important part of the northern defense line. The finishing touch cannot be directly controlled. How can it make people feel at ease in the hand. Otherwise, when he was patrolling the north, An Shenqi would not have suggested that he send troops to go north and capture Youzhou first.
This time, King Yan's submission to the letter of invitation was very clear. Everyone knew that once the Han army moved north, it would be the day when the Yan army was completely integrated into the Han military and political system.
After Chai Rong finished speaking, Liu Chengyou stood up and stood in front of the map hung high on the side of the hall. Seeing his movements, everyone also stood up. The map of the Han Dynasty in Chongzheng Hall was renovated and redrawn.
Unconsciously, after ten years of expansion strategy, the territory of the Han Dynasty has become very huge. Looking at it, a kind of pride and complacency can't help but arise in his heart.
"The dispute between the North and the South ends here!" After a long time, Liu Chengyou turned around, with a strong look in his eyes, and said with emotion: "My lords, I have decided to make the Northern Expedition. Pingnan will be put on hold for the time being. Next, the court will use all its strength. Prepare for the Northern Expedition and capture Guanshan in one fell swoop!"
The emperor made up his mind and immediately suppressed the previous controversy. Chai Rong and others were naturally overjoyed. Although Fan Zhi still had reservations, he still solemnly bowed to Liu Chengyou: "Your Majesty has made a decision, and I will only wait for you." I have all my strength to assist Bi and attack the Khitans from the north!"
Looking at Fan Zhi, Liu Chengyou showed a satisfied expression. No matter how big the differences or fierce disputes were before, once the decision was made, he could quickly change his attitude and not abandon state affairs for his own selfish ambitions. For this reason, Fan Zhi could still be the prime minister for a while.
In fact, after so many years, the Han Dynasty court has created an atmosphere of "the monarch and his ministers are united and work together". This is the temperament of a powerful country displayed by the striving for progress of an empire.
After sitting down again, the monarch and his ministers directly discussed the matter of marching into the army. War is a matter of life and death. It is not just a slap on the head, and then the army gathers and then piles up to attack the city and evict the stronghold, especially a big project like the Northern Expedition.
Temple planning and preliminary preparations are necessary. Fortunately, in terms of war, the Han Dynasty has accumulated enough experience over the years, and its war preparations have become systematic and systematic. Even the scale of the Northern Expedition to Liao Kingdom will be far greater than before. .
Liu Chengyou made arrangements directly. He first looked at Chai Rong and said, "For matters such as troop deployment, military marching strategy, and timing of dispatching troops, the Privy Council should issue a detailed charter as soon as possible and implement it step by step!"
"Yes!" Chai Rong responded immediately, his bright eyes glowing with energy, obviously already thinking about it.
"The Ministry of War is still responsible for the weapons and armaments!" Liu Chengyou said to Wei Renpu again.
Wei Renpu was well prepared for this and calmly handed over his hand; "Yes!"
"The Third Division should work closely with other ministries and divisions to plan the troops and losses, and prepare enough money, food, and uniforms for the army to go north!"
Xue Juzheng responded: "Yes!"
What Liu Chengyou said was just a guideline. In fact, the ministers would do it without him saying it, and they could do it well. Their previous experience was enough to reassure Liu Chengyou.
What Liu Chengyou really needs to care about is strategy. After pondering for a while, he continued: "Although the Northern Expedition is decided, many parties need to prepare. It is not advisable to act too hastily. It is more necessary to observe the Khitan's movements and make decisions accordingly. Before the Northern Expedition, regarding the situation of the Khitan , must be closely monitored and spied on. The entire army must be loose on the outside and tight on the inside. Make preparations as soon as possible and deploy them as secretly as possible. It is not advisable to make a big splash. As for the dispute between the north and the south in the DPRK, it can continue!"
As soon as the emperor finished speaking, the ministers all understood and wanted to confuse everyone, and then they all made suggestions.
Fan Zhi reported: "Your Majesty, the imperial court should send envoys north to discuss the Han-Liao conflict, resolve misunderstandings, and repair relations!"
The same piece of advice was spoken in a different tone this time by Fan Zhi. This time, it was obviously to confuse the Khitans. In response, Liu Chengyou directly agreed: "Just send Wang Zhaoyuan. He has long wanted to envoy Liao, and I will help him this time!"
Hearing the emperor's decision, Fan Zhi and others couldn't help showing a bit of amusement. Wang Zhaoyuan, a "strange man", still had some reputation in the court. However, the mission itself is just a strategy, and there is no need to consider whether it will succeed or not. Using such a "strange person" as an mission may have miraculous effects, so no one objects.
Li Gu, who had not spoken much during the dispute between the north and the south, also spoke this time: "Your Majesty, if the Northern Expedition is to take place, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians will be sent. It is almost impossible for such large-scale preparations to be carried out completely secretly without leaking the news. .
I thought that in the name of strengthening the northern defense, the imperial court could allocate grain, grass and weapons, and at the same time let out rumors of going south, and make moves to mobilize troops and horses from the south. This would be to confuse the Khitan people by using both the north and the south, while pretending to be south and actually being north! "
"In addition, the old minister should resign to His Majesty and go to Yangzhou to take up his post!" Li Gu cupped his hands and asked Liu Chengyou.
Li Gu's strategy was to confuse the enemy and hide his strategic intentions. Li Gu's upcoming appointment as the head coach of Pingnan is actually known to everyone in the court. With the current strength of the Han Dynasty, he no longer needs to be as secretive as in the past if he wants to conquer the South.
Liu Chengyou learned about it, looked at Li Gu, and saw his calm expression, his mood was a little complicated. Originally, Liu Chengyou made Li Gu his commander-in-chief because he wanted to achieve great success for him. Now, changes in the north and strategic shifts have forced him to temporarily put aside his desire to make meritorious deeds.
When Li Gu was transferred from Hebei to Beijing, he wanted to make great use of him in Pingnan affairs. Now the strategic direction has been changed to the north. For Li Gu, it is also untimely and difficult to advocate. A feeling of ambition.
Of course, Li Gu was not yet sixty years old, so to be reasonable, Liu Chengyou would not have such feelings. However, he knew that after years of hard work, Li Gushi was in poor health and contracted wind paralysis. It was difficult to guarantee how long he could serve the big man.
But looking at his performance, Liu Chengyou can still feel that Li Gu is willing to restrain his ambitions for the sake of the country. In response, Liu Chengyou solemnly said: "As the army marches north, I will leave my full responsibility to Li Qing to defend the south of the Yangtze River!"
After a pause, Liu Chengyou said a little more emotionally: "You should take care of yourself!"
After Li Guy finished speaking, the Privy Council accepted the decree and Li Chuyun made another suggestion: "Your Majesty, the imperial court can send envoys to Goryeo to ask the King of Goryeo to invite him to send troops to attack the old land of Bohai!"
"Goryeo faces the Khitan threat directly and may not dare to take the initiative to invade, but you can still try!" Liu Chengyou said to Fan Zhi: "Let Fan Qing arrange this matter, but you have to watch the timing!"
"yes!"
Zhao Kuangyin also followed up and said: "Your Majesty, in the battle against Liao, we will face the mobile threat of the enemy's cavalry. Although the Han horse army has been operating for many years, its numbers and horse strength are still insufficient. In addition, except for the Forbidden Army, they are mostly scattered across various borders, making it difficult to centralize and appoint them. . I have been touring the northwest, and I may be able to summon Tubo, Wenmo, and Dangxiang with money and silk to help the Tibetan cavalry in the battle!"
Among the army of the Han Dynasty, there is a Tibetan cavalry group composed mainly of "ethnic minorities", which was formed by Liu Zhiyuan. It is highly Hanized and is now stationed in Hedong, under the jurisdiction of the capital.
Regarding Zhao Kuangyin's suggestion, Liu Chengyou frowned and seemed to hesitate, worried that Fan Qi would be difficult to control. But then I thought about it, if I could recruit a group of people and use them as cannon fodder, the advantages would outweigh the disadvantages. Moreover, if the recruitment can be successful, it will also be an opportunity to plan for the barbarians in the northwest, which will be conducive to the development of the northwest economic strategy in the future.
Therefore, after thinking for a moment, Liu Chengyou immediately said: "Ask Guo Chongwei to go to the northwest and be responsible for recruiting people and conducting armed training on the spot!"
"yes!"
Guo Chongwei is a general of the Han Dynasty's cavalry army. Well, he is also Guo Wei's old subordinate. Even though Guo Wei has been in his care for several years, the imperial court is still not immune to his influence in appointing people and generals.
