The sky was overcast, as if it was raining, but there was no rain, and it was extremely dull.
Wang Xiaolie went to the left-behind residence to offer sacrifices, said goodbye to Lu Qing and Yue Fei, and led his troops out of Kaifeng City.
At this time, the news of Zongze's death had spread, and countless people brought sacrifices and poured into the city. No matter who they are, they are all extremely sad. The pain of war in the past few years seemed to have been vented all at once with Zongze's death.
Zongze died, and the war between Song and Jin entered a new stage. The Kaifeng army once recruited by Zongze to deal with the Jin Army will soon be scattered all over the country, and many of them will become bandits. The army of the Southern Song Dynasty developed during the process of suppressing these thieves.
After leaving Xinzheng Gate, Wang Xiaolie turned around and looked at Kaifeng City. The countless thoughts in my mind turned into a sigh.
On the ninth day of July, Wang Xiaolie and his 600 men arrived at Henan Prefecture in Xijing.
Since being conquered by the Jin Army last year, Luoyang City officials have only given names. The current magistrate of Henan is none other than Zhai Jin. The April attack failed, and Zhai Jin led his army back to Yiyang. When the Jin army retreated, they came back again.
The Zhai family is a wealthy family in Yiyang. First, the bandit king Shen caused trouble around Luoyang. The brothers Zhai Xing and Zhai Jin led their tribesmen to raise troops. They became famous and were called Da Zhai and Xiao Zhai. When the Jin army attacked Luoyang, the two brothers led troops to resist the Jin army. By now, all the officials of the Song Dynasty have retired, and only the soldiers and horses of the Zhai family are left around Luoyang, who have become the prefect of Henan.
At this time, those who raise troops to lead a party are not alone. Wang Xiaolie himself, and the people he truly trusted were some of his fellow villagers who had been with him when his father launched an army. Another example is Yue Fei. He has brothers and several fellow Tangyin people by his side. This is especially true for brothers Zhai Xing and Zhai Jin. Most of their main forces are members of the Zhai family. They are particularly united and obey orders, which is unmatched by other armies.
At this time, the Zhai brothers were not in Luoyang city. The one stationed in Luoyang was his vanguard commander Dong Xian.
Wang Xiao arrived outside Luoyang City, where Dong Xian greeted him early.
Dismount and pay tribute. Dong Xian said: "Luoyang City has suffered three military disasters and is in dilapidated condition. The city is in chaos. Where does the general want to station himself?"
Wang Xiaolie raised his eyes and looked around. After pondering for a while, he said: "I wonder where the garrison is controlled?"
Dong Xian said: "Our army is stationed in the Chengfufang area in the north of the city to protect the imperial city. It is also close to Luoshui, so it is easy to carry goods."
Wang Xiaolie said: "In that case, our army will be stationed at Guanglifang on the south bank of Luoshui River. You will guard the east of the imperial city, and I will guard the south of the imperial city."
"That's fine." Dong Xian readily agreed. "By the way, there are very few households in Xijing now, and there is not enough food and grass. I really can't help you with the food and grass for your army. The general has already made preparations."
Wang Xiaolie nodded and said nothing. Without unified planning by the imperial court, the grain and grass logistics of each army could not be exchanged. This is no wonder Dong Xian. Fortunately, Luoyang is not far from Ruzhou. Once here, Wang Xiaolie was ready to run his hometown.
After entering the city, Wang Xiaolie and Dong Xian each sent their men to settle down. The two entered a restaurant in the city to greet Wang Xiaolie.
Not long after we sat down, the food and drinks were served. A plate of mutton, a carp, and a few vegetables looked very simple.
Dong Xian raised his glass and said, "This is Luoyang's famous wine jade liquor, which is very rare. General, please have a drink."
Wang Xiaolie drank the wine, but he really couldn't taste what was good about it. Put down the wine glass, said nothing, and ate meat with Dong Xian.
After eating two pieces of meat, Dong Xian suddenly laughed.
Wang Xiaolie asked in confusion: "Why is Zongzhi laughing?"
Dong Xian said: "Yuye is indeed a famous wine in Luoyang. But at this time, the city is in ruins and people have fled. Where can it be found? It's just that this restaurant borrows this name to boast. The general comes from Kaifeng, how can he not think that this wine is ordinary? It's just that the wine is ordinary. Not to mention, he is also a wonderful person."
Wang Xiaolie said: "If you are in charge of inviting people to drink, it must be a good thing."
In several consecutive years of war, Luoyang was captured several times. This year it was burned even more, and the houses were taken northward by the Jin army. They were already in dilapidated condition. Nowadays, the number of households in Luoyang City can be said to be very low, and the prosperity of the past is long gone. It’s great to have a restaurant, but why do you want good wine?
In Wang Xiaolie's mind, the name Dong Xian was somewhat familiar, but he couldn't recall any of his deeds. If the memory is correct, he should be the lieutenant general of the Yue Family Army in history. There is nothing strange about Zhai Jin's subordinates now. Even Niugao is still in Lushan County.
Dong Xian is tall and powerful. He fought extremely bravely, always taking the lead in every battle, and made numerous military exploits. Wang Xiaolie defeated the Jin army twice this year and was particularly dazzling among the Song army. Dong Xian respected him very much.
I saw that Wang Xiao was meticulous in hunting etiquette but not good at words. Dong Xian said: "General, there is no need to be restrained. In Luoyang City, you can do whatever you want."
Wang Xiaolie shook his head: "The government has state laws, and families have family rules. How can we do it as we please? We are ordered by the court to guard Xijing, so we should be careful in everything we do. The people in the city have suffered so much, and they should be comforted."
Dong Xian laughed when he heard this: "Where are the officials in Luoyang City now? Without officials, where can the official laws come from? General, we are the officials in Luoyang City now, and we have the final say in everything. Without us , how can these people live a stable life? If there is no shortage of money and food, we can comfort them. But now the court has no money and food, what can we do?"
Wang Xiaolie said: "If there is no way, then find a way. We join the army to protect our family and the country. If we don't treat the people well, what country are we defending?"
Dong Xian just laughed after hearing this. He stopped talking about this and kept urging Wang Xiaolie to drink.
After leaving Kaifeng City, Wang Xiaolie made up his mind to truly develop his power. With other armies, maintain good relations but also keep your distance. Looking around the world, there are not many armies that can accept their own ideas. Perhaps there is only one Yue Fei who can build up the Yue family army without tearing down the houses, starve to death without looting, and be close to his own thoughts. However, Yue Fei was loyal to the court, and the two of them could not agree to go together.
The army that has not accepted the transformation and cannot accept its own generals should stay away. There is no way, if we force them together, there will be problems in the future. The military's thinking must be pure and cannot be put together into a hodgepodge. Otherwise, you will suffer a lot in the end.
After having enough wine and food, we left the restaurant. Mr. Dong said: "It's getting late, and the general has already returned to the military camp to rest. From now on, if you have anything to do in the city, send someone to inform me. You and I are stationed in the same city, so we should discuss everything early."
Wang Xiaolie said: "It should be like this. By the way, there are no officials in the city now, how can we manage it?"
Dong Xian said: "Before, I sent army sergeants to take care of everything. Every market should have people. When the general comes, I will tell them not to conflict with you. By the way, your station is Yonglifang. , you can arrange for someone to manage it and collect some tax money."
Wang Xiaolie nodded: "Thank you so much for the control. Now that there are few people in the city, how much tax can we collect?"
Dong Xian said: "As long as there are people, there will be taxes. Our garrison needs to eat food, what should we do if we can't collect taxes? Also, there are no wine sellers in the city now, and those restaurants just charge some money. In Wynn Square I remember that for a few companies, the general collected the money."
The Sijing Liquor in the Song Dynasty was different from other places in that it was made using the Ganqu system. Now that the government is gone, it is natural that it cannot control the sale of alcohol among the people.
