Volume 2 Chapter 7 Fear
Zhao Jiu did not deliberately finish the game of Gobang that he had worked so hard to teach Liu Ziyu. Instead, he immediately stood up and gave a series of orders:
Send out scouts to quickly explore westward along the north and south banks of the Ru River;
Officials were sent to various surrounding villages and towns to assist local officials in leading the people into Ruyang;
Send a messenger to the north to find Wang De and Han Shizhong, inform them of the current situation, and ask them to be careful and cautious to avoid being besieged and attacked in the wild;
Then, because Yang Yizhong was not there, he specially ordered Hu Yantong, who was in the city at the time, to take charge of the city defense and be careful, and to send the imperial guards to the city defense.
Finally, of course, he ordered the four ministers, the Chief Censor Zhang Jun, the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Camp Wang Yuan and others to come and see him.
At this time, while the ministers were not yet here, Emperor Zhao called for someone to help him put on his armor while asking the military advisor Liu Ziyu beside him, "Yan Xiu, did I miss anything in this deployment?"
Liu Ziyu was obviously stunned by Emperor Zhao's calmness and orderliness. After a long pause, he bowed and responded, "Your Majesty is calm and composed, like a famous emperor in ancient times. All the dispatches and assignments are also appropriate. I am really surprised..."
Zhao Jiu sat in the corridor, letting the eunuch help him put on his armor, and couldn't help laughing: "Habit becomes second nature. After sitting in the front line for two months, even a fool would understand something."
"It's just that the emperor." Liu Ziyu hesitated for a moment, but still spoke seriously. "I think the emperor doesn't need to wear armor to avoid unnecessary trouble."
Zhao Jiu was slightly startled, and immediately signaled the eunuch beside him to stop temporarily, then stared at Liu Ziyu and asked: "Why?"
"Your Majesty... just now your Majesty gave you five instructions. I would like to ask you five questions." Liu Ziyu said sternly. "May I?"
"Tell me."
"The first one is... Is Ruyang City strong?"
Of course it is sturdy!
Scholar Kobayashi next to him had already caught his breath, and his old habit of interrupting others in his mind naturally came back to him...but for some reason, this time he just responded instinctively in his heart, but did not think deeply about it. Instead, he was a little dazed.
"Of course it is strong." With the chain on his arm, Emperor Zhao sighed slightly and answered seriously. "Ruyang City is a famous city in the world. Although the ancient county was called Runan, this city is obviously north of the Ru River, so it is called Ruyang... The Ru River flows from the north, but it flows around the south of the city and goes east, so the city is surrounded by water on three sides and a high wall on one side. Such a city can no longer be called strong, and there are not many decent big cities in the world."
"That's right." Liu Ziyu nodded repeatedly. "In fact, if it weren't for this, General Han wouldn't have asked you to come here first when Caizhou City was still in chaos... Then I would like to ask again, why was such a strong city easily breached by the Jin people before?"
"Of course it's because there was no defense." Zhao Jiu shook his head. "You forgot that Henan Yin Sun Zhaoyuan wanted to recruit the defeated soldiers under this city, but the defeated soldiers killed him instead."
Liu Ziyu did not comment, but just remained silent.
"It has nothing to do with this." Seeing this, Emperor Zhao immediately realized his mistake and changed his words. "In the final analysis, the Jingxi army was in a state of collapse and never regained its strength. In such a state of collapse, nothing can be done... It's not like I haven't seen the collapse of the army before."
"Then I will ask you one more question. Are the two thousand soldiers led by Commander Huyan and the Imperial Guard in the city the kind of soldiers who would flee in fear at the first sign of trouble?"
Zhao Jiu finally laughed: "I know, Yan Xiu wants to say that this battle is not too dangerous, so the military affairs can be left to Hu Yantong, and I should sit quietly in the city and appease the people? Just like when I was in Huaishang in the past, I just sat on the top of the city and controlled the others not to interfere in the military affairs, and I did my best?"
"Yes, but it's more than that." Liu Ziyu smiled, but he bowed and asked again. "Your Majesty, I have two more questions..."
Before he finished speaking, there was a commotion outside the yard. Zhao Jiu quickly tore off the armor chain on his shoulder and stuffed it under the chessboard. Feng Yi, who had been listening for a while, drove several eunuchs holding armor back into the room without waiting for Emperor Zhao to speak.
And sure enough, a moment later, Yuwen Xu Zhong, one of the four ministers, appeared in the courtyard first.
There was no way these people could move so fast. They were still on the road and did not regard Ruyang City as a serious stopover.
For example, Emperor Zhao lived in the backyard of the government office. The front hall of the government office was usually the meeting hall, and the entire government office was naturally the palace. The two ministers of the East Palace occupied the county government office one street away. For convenience, the two ministers of the West Palace of the Privy Council occupied an empty house close to both places. As for the commanders of the Imperial Camp, they simply carried out Emperor Zhao's fine tradition and robbed a Buddhist temple in the city...
"Officials!"
Yuwen Xuzhong walked into the courtyard, glanced at the still dazed Xiaolin scholar and the newly promoted close minister Liu Ziyu who saluted him, and before returning the salute, he hurriedly bowed and asked. "I was summoned here, and on the way I saw dozens of guards suddenly rushing out from the imperial camp and heading to various places. May I ask what happened?"
"It is one thing, but it is not urgent."
In the spring morning sunshine, the shadows of the trees in the courtyard danced, and the official Zhao, dressed in casual clothes, sat cross-legged under the porch, holding the chessboard without moving, and answered calmly, just like a master of Chinese studies teaching people the Three Character Classic. "Let Yuwen Xianggong know that the Zhao Zongyin of Wuguan, the monk mentioned before, went out of the pass to help Fan Zhixu in Nanyang, but was defeated on the way and lost all his troops. Now everyone has fled to Xiangyang, and Lin Xueshi was forced to turn back overnight. I just let someone inform Han Shizhong and Wang De of this news, and then call you to discuss it."
Yuwen Xuzhong nodded slightly, then thought for a moment and sighed, obviously thinking of some consequences after the loss of Wuguan.
Soon, Wang Boyan, Xu Jingheng, Zhang Jun and Wang Yuan arrived one after another. After a while, Prime Minister Lu, who had been extremely busy recently, also arrived. It was a rare occasion for the important officials and senior officials of the imperial court to get together again, so it could be regarded as an informal government meeting.
When Scholar Kobayashi waited until Prime Minister Lu arrived, he ignored Liu Yan's reminder at the hint of Emperor Zhao's eyes and only mentioned the glorious deeds of Monk Zong Yin, without saying much else.
When the gentlemen heard this, they naturally felt emotional.
"In that case, wouldn't it be a pipe dream to annihilate this group?" It is said that Wang Boyan, the minister, had recently communicated with several monks who were driven out of the temple. His words unconsciously had a Zen meaning. He stomped his feet repeatedly when he heard this, as if he had suffered a great loss. "Wuguan Pass is empty. This person can easily return to Guanzhong from there and join Wanyan Loushi."
"If you don't want to fight him, then don't fight him." Xu Jingheng, Xu's husband, seemed relieved. "It's fine if you don't want to fight him, just let him go... The place is in a mess, it's time to clean it up."
"Well!" Lü Haowen, who has been in good spirits recently, is the Prime Minister in practice. After a little thought, he nodded repeatedly. "Actually, this is also good."
Zhao Jiu opened his mouth to speak, but didn't know what to say... Because judging by the attitude of these gentlemen right now, if Wanyan Yinshu really raided the city, wouldn't they panic and abandon the city?
When he thought of this, Emperor Zhao instinctively looked at a few young ministers.
However, the performance of these people at this time was somewhat disappointing. Zhang Jun only looked at Liu Ziyu, as if he was worried with only a half-understanding, but he really didn't understand the situation, so he just wanted to get a definite message and a reminder; and Xiaolin scholar was no longer as proud as before, and he didn't even have the deep attitude of the past. After saying a few words, Yutang scholar who knew the inside story became a little dazed and detached, which made people suspicious...
Of course, considering that he was a scholar who rode back and forth on horseback all night to deliver the message, it was not easy to force him to do anything. He was the one who deserved the most leniency at the moment.
Then he looked at Liu Ziyu. It was obvious that this young official who grew up in a military camp and experienced almost the entire Jin-Liao war was also obviously a little disappointed with these people... Even though he had just reminded Zhao Jiu that as an official, if he really wanted to play a role in the military, the best way was to restrain certain people from interfering in military affairs.
Seeing that no one was saying anything, Zhao Jiu was about to send these people away and get away with it.
However, at this moment, a person who was ignored by Emperor Zhao suddenly spoke up: "Your Majesty, I would like to ask you a question. Since Wuguan Pass is vacant, why did Wanyan Yinshuke retreat to the west so easily? If I were Yinshuke, I could have conquered Dengzhou and plundered Nanyang before leaving! I could even turn around and use the advantage of the cavalry to find a battle. If I can win, then win. If I can't win, then it's not too late to leave, right? Anyway, we can't catch up."
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw that it was Wang Yuan, the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Camp. They all remained silent... It was obvious that most people here did not trust Wang Yuan politically, but they still had some trust in him militarily.
After a moment, Lu Haowen's face was as gloomy as water. He opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly seemed to think of something and turned around in surprise: "Who is Yin Shu? Isn't it Ni Chuhe?"
Emperor Zhao and Liu Ziyu looked at each other and thought to themselves that something was wrong.
"Let me tell you, Lord Lu, that I have been collecting the documents of the rebels in Caizhou these days, and I have also asked about some things..." Wang Yuan hurriedly reported. "That Ni Chuhe is a false rumor, the man here is Yin Shuke, a general of the Jin royal family who captured the Liao Emperor Tianzuo and Xi Wang Xiamo alive and participated in the battle of Taiyuan! Today, I am thinking about whether I should compile a proper translation book of the Jin people to set the record straight!"
Lu Haowen was immediately shocked.
"Who cares if he has gold or silver magic!" Emperor Zhao suddenly said. "We have tens of thousands of soldiers stationed in front of us. Are we still afraid of him? As for Dengzhou and Nanyang, we can only do our best and leave the rest to fate... Anyway, I have already sent Banzhi to tell Han Shizhong and Wang De about this matter. As veterans, they have their own judgment."
"The emperor has made such appropriate arrangements, but I was overthinking it." Wang Yuan felt something was wrong and quickly bowed his head in response.
"Yes, it is a merit for you to concentrate on your translation booklet!" Emperor Zhao became more and more annoyed.
"We should have told Han Shizhong and Wang De earlier." At this time, Yuwen Xuzhong, who had not spoken for a long time but had had direct communication with the nobles of the Jin army, suddenly spoke. "Because Wanyan Yinshuke is an extraordinary person, he is good at using cavalry and often has unexpected actions... Some people say that Emperor Tianzuo of Liao and Xi Wang Xiamo were captured by Wanyan Loushi. This is certainly true, but in fact, since the Jin army started its army, Yinshuke has often been Loushi's subordinate and deputy general, and the two often fought together. So if you look closely, Emperor Tianzuo and Xiamo were actually captured by Yinshuke in a raid, and he can be called a famous general. As for the battle of Taiyuan, this person followed Loushi to destroy the main force of the Western Army of 200,000, and his troops can also be said to have good combat power. Therefore, I think that according to his past experience, since he has no worries, he may not go to Dengzhou at all, but may go to Caizhou to spy on the real situation! Please take precautions early!"
The other gentlemen and Zhang Jun were all panicked.
Seeing this, Zhao Jiu, who was sitting cross-legged, sighed slightly, but turned around and asked seriously: "Prince Yuwen, you only know that Yin Shuke captured Emperor Tianzuo and Xi Wang Xiamo alive, and you also know that Yin Shuke made great contributions in the battle of Taiyuan. Do you know how he captured those two alive? And how did he fight the battle of Taiyuan?"
"minister……"
"I have felt the hardships of military affairs in the past six months, so I often ate and talked with the soldiers, and learned a lot." Zhao Jiu said slowly. "Emperor Tianzuo and Xia Mo were exactly the same. They both heard that Yin Shuke was leading light troops to attack, so they left alone, and one abandoned the city and the other abandoned the army. As a result, they were easily captured by the small group of elite troops sent by Yin Shuke in advance. As for the battle of Taiyuan, the reinforcements were forced by the central government behind them to move forward in multiple directions, but they were not under the command of each other, and the progress was inconsistent, so he and Wanyan Loushi calmly went around Taiyuan City and eliminated them one by one... Do you understand?"
Yu Wenxuzhong lowered his head and said nothing, obviously he understood, but the other gentlemen obviously did not understand.
"Your Majesty, it would be better to quickly issue a golden medal to summon Han Shizhong and Wang De back to the city." As soon as the emperor stopped talking, Lu Haowen responded earnestly.
"Maybe we can head south to Gwangju to take shelter for a while." Xu Jingheng was also extremely nervous.
Seeing this, Emperor Zhao became really impatient, but he let out a long sigh, then lifted up one side of the chessboard, revealing the armor chain hidden underneath.
The courtyard was suddenly silent. For a moment, there were only swaying flowers and trees, interweaving lights and shadows, and black and white chess pieces dotted on the green ground. If there wasn't a murderous emperor who was losing his temper, it would really be a scene of spring.
"Do you really have to make me say something unpleasant?!"
Emperor Zhao stood up with a feeling of suffocation, but he dragged the armor chain and walked with his hands behind his back in the corridor, then suddenly turned around and spoke sternly. "Do you think you really know military affairs?! If you knew military affairs, why did Taiyuan fail like that?! Why did we have the shame of Jingkang?! I knew that Yin Shu might be coming, and I was almost going to put on armor. The reason why I pretended to be nothing was that I suddenly remembered that there were still people like you who were making a fuss in the city! If I force you to put on armor, it would make you panic! I have made it clear to you about today's matter! Hu Yantong will take care of the city defense, so don't interfere! If you can turn a deaf ear to these military affairs, it will be a blessing for the world!"
"I am terrified and unfit to be the Prime Minister. I resign..."
"Why are you resigning?" Zhao Jiu was getting more and more angry, and he threw his armor chain to the ground. "I don't know when the Jin people will come, and you want to resign just because you are wronged... You are wronged, but am I not wronged? Every time I fight, I have to appease the front and the back. I am worried that the soldiers in the front will be intercepted by the officers, and I have to guard against you guys meddling in the back. I have to remind the soldiers in the front not to think about my safety, and I have to think about whether what you say has a hidden meaning... Do you think I want to be this official?! I also want to resign, will you allow it?!"
Everyone including Lu Haowen stood in silence, and the only military officer, Wang Yuan, even knelt down.
"Okay, that's it." As if his anger had suddenly disappeared, Emperor Zhao suddenly returned to normal, but he raised his hand slightly. "Based on Yin Shuke's past behavior, I think he will come, but the more so, the more we must not panic... otherwise it will be exactly what he wants. Because there are two key points in this battle. One is that we must not be scared by his reputation and abandon the fortified city and run away; the other is that we must not rush to summon Han Shizhong and Wang De here on the pretext of being safe, in order to prevent the city from being besieged and reinforcements being attacked!"
Lu Haowen and others were helpless. They looked at each other and could only suppress their anxiety and obey the order.
And as soon as all the ministers left, including Chief Censor Zhang Jun and Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Camp Wang Yuan, they had to disperse due to their status. For a while, only Scholar Xiaolin and General Liu were left... Scholar Xiaolin was Scholar Yutang, originally a close minister, while Liu was recently retained by the emperor on assignment from the Military Affairs Department and became a new attendant, assisting the emperor in military affairs. It was also known to everyone that he was referred to as General Liu.
"Thank you for your hard work, Your Majesty..." As soon as the person left, Liu Ziyu bowed his head and sighed, but he couldn't help but be cautious in his words.
"It's okay, as long as it's useful. I'm used to it." Emperor Zhao reluctantly sat back in the corridor, looking at the chess pieces on the floor and shaking his head. "Yan Xiu, there's something I didn't ask before, why don't you tell me?"
"I have two more questions, one of which you know better than anyone else... I was just about to ask Wanyan Yinshu about his past experiences and abilities, so as to remind you."
Zhao Jiu nodded suddenly, then picked up the chess pieces on the ground together with Feng Yi beside him.
"However, I do have one last question." Liu Ziyu saw the emperor bending down to pick up the items and wanted to help, but because Feng Yi was also there, he couldn't stand in the same line with him. He could only lower his head to pick up the piece of armor chain, then stood awkwardly to the side and continued speaking.
"It's okay." Zhao Jiu understood and stopped.
"I would like to ask Your Majesty, do you think we should fight against Wanyan Yinshu at this time, or should we not fight against him?" Liu Ziyu asked carefully.
"What do you mean?" Zhao Jiu frowned slightly. "Wanyan Yinshu can appear here. Is it because of my decision?"
"That's not what I meant. I'm asking about your attitude..." Liu Ziyu glanced at the scholar Xiao Lin who was standing at the side and looked out of control. He hesitated a little but still asked. "Do you feel that having a war to fight and having Wanyan Yinshu here makes you feel more comfortable? At least you have something to do?"
Zhao Jiu was stunned for a moment, but couldn't help laughing: "Do you think I should be happy? Or let me ask you a question, Liu Qing, do you think we should fight Wanyan Yinshu at this time?"
"I don't think so." Liu Ziyu answered simply. "I know the enemy's strengths and weaknesses. Now the emperor is unstable, the army is disorganized, and the system is not established. It is really not a good time to fight..."
"But do you think I'm looking forward to the war? Do you think I don't want to settle down after my last successful gamble?" Zhao Jiu interrupted him, holding a few chess pieces and asked with a smile. "Is that what you mean?"
"I only said that the situation was different, and I didn't mean to belittle the military achievements in Huaishang." Liu Ziyu hurriedly explained. "The Jin army's offensive was like a tide. When we fought in Huaishang before, the tide was high. If it weren't for the victory of the emperor in Huaishang, I'm afraid the fertile land in Huainan would have become like Hebei, Jingdong, Jingxi, and Guanxi..."
"Yes, I looked at the account books of the Ministry of Revenue. The Huainan and East and West Routes can submit one million pieces of silk every year. Together with taxes and food, it is enough to support an army of 100,000. The southeast can support another 200,000. Jingxiang can also support 200,000 if they settle down. Bashu can also support 100,000..." Zhao Jiu suddenly talked about some nonsense that has been very popular recently.
"Unless these places also adopt the vassal state, they can't support so many people." Liu Ziyu laughed. "I estimate that it would be good if we can support 200,000 soldiers in the end, but it is enough... But this is not what I want to say. I want to ask the emperor, now that the tide of the Jin people has receded, why can't we settle down, establish a system, recuperate, first defend, then fight, spend three to five years, and support 200,000 troops to restore the two rivers?"
Zhao Jiu finally shook his head: "Is this what you thought, or is it what Zhang Deyuan and the others meant?"
"Both." Liu Ziyu also became serious. "Zhang Xiantai felt that the emperor had worked so hard to get here, and he was obviously uneasy in his actions. He wanted to do something but couldn't find the way, and he didn't know how to do it. And I have been facing you day and night in front of you in the past two days, and I feel that the reason why the emperor is so in this attitude is that he is afraid. However, unlike others who are afraid of war, the emperor seems to be afraid of peace, fearing that once the war stops, he will not know what to do... Good teaching, the emperor knows that Zhang Deyuan is worried, and this kind of words are only in his heart, but he dare not say it to the emperor. I am a rough man, and I hope the emperor will forgive me."
"How can you be called a rude person?" Zhao Jiu sighed and stood up. "You and Zhang Deyuan are both smart people. You are both right, but you are also both wrong... In my opinion, you are all smarter than the other, but you are often limited by your vision and use your intelligence in the wrong place."
Liu Ziyu was stunned. This was not the first time that someone said that he had a low vision. The key point was that the person who said that he had a low vision had now become a person "constrained by his vision".
"For example, you people, those who advocate peace, those who advocate war, those who advocate defense, no matter what your stance towards Jin is, always tell me about the system and rules, and the established family rules, as if everything will be fine as long as we stabilize and rebuild the system." Zhao Jiu stroked the chess piece in his hand and said faintly. "But in fact, in my opinion, speaking only of military matters, the more properly the established family rules and systems of the Song Dynasty are implemented, the more bad things will happen! Because the established family rules and systems of the Song Dynasty's military were originally designed to defend the inside and weaken the outside! With your methods, the Song Dynasty will perish even faster!"
When Liu Ziyu heard the words "defend the inside and weaken the outside", he was struck by lightning. He wanted to speak immediately, but he didn't know what to say. Bachelor Kobayashi next to him also came to his senses and seemed to want to say something.
However, having said this, Emperor Zhao was like a floodgate that had been opened and could no longer be stopped.
He threw down the chess piece, stood up from the corridor, and looked at Liu Ziyu, who was obviously a little out of control, with his hands behind his back, but he said earnestly: "Yan Xiu, Zhang Deyuan is right . I am indeed uneasy, but the reason for my uneasiness is not because I am at a loss, but because I know too well what to do! You are right, I seem to be afraid of the situation after the Jin people withdraw, but the reason for this is not because I like barbaric things such as fighting and killing, but compared to these things, other things are too difficult! For those things, there is only one Wang Anshi in this dynasty who has done his best, and he was almost slandered as the culprit of the Jingkang Shame. In fact, if I can live in peace and make do for a hundred years, why would I be willing to do such a thing? But this is not time for me. Isn't this the responsibility of so many people's expectations, the Jingkang Shame, and the lives of so many people in the two rivers and the Central Plains? Determined to be a good official, determined to do it personally, and determined to change the world? If I don't do it, what should I do? And if I do it, how can I not be afraid?"
Liu Ziyu and Scholar Xiao Lin were both stunned by what they heard. Even Feng Yi, who was standing next to them, had his eyes rolling around.
"This is actually why I know that Li Xianggong and the others are rare comrades who really want to fight against the Jin, but I put him far away in the southeast." Emperor Zhao continued to sigh. "It's okay to let him take charge. Maybe after ten or twenty years, there will be a general recovery. But since I am determined to take action seriously, I can't just watch him go around in circles and waste time... Yan Xiu, the Jin people are not that strong, and I know what to do. You don't have to worry! Let Zhang Deyuan not worry too much!"
"I am terrified, and I don't know the ambition of the government."
"Actually, I have been holding this in for a long time. I have long wanted to talk to someone about this. Since you are asking on behalf of Zhang Deyuan, I will just take the opportunity to talk about it." Zhao Jiu suddenly smiled again. "Don't take it too seriously."
How could Liu Yanxiu not care?
But on the other hand, did Zhao Jiu really say everything that was in his heart?
The overall conservatism of the civil service politics of the Song Dynasty; the fact that the Jin army would not give the Song Dynasty any chance to breathe unless they were exhausted; the overall corruption of the Song Dynasty army; the possible crisis after the Jin army came in the future; and the personal ambition or aspiration to contend for merit with Yue Pengju... How could he confide all this to Liu Ziyu, a man he had only known for a few days?
It was nothing more than that Emperor Zhao suddenly realized, from Hu Yin to Zhang Jun, the concerns that his poor team had shown about him during this period, so he used this person to pass the message to Zhang Jun in order to reassure people.
"Officials!"
Just after the backyard of Caizhou Prefecture became quiet again, less than an incense stick of time had passed. Just as Emperor Zhao was counting the chess pieces carefully and found that they were insufficient, he was looking around for them. Suddenly, the commander of the imperial camp, Hu Yantong, who had just received the imperial decree, rushed in in a panic. "Emperor! The scouts just set out and reported in a hurry that there are thieves in the west!"
"Why are you panicking?" Emperor Zhao picked up the two chess pieces he had finally found on the ground and put them into the bowl held by Feng Yi behind him before he casually scolded. "What is there to panic about? I'm not panicking at all! You are the only commander in the city, how can you show fear and panic?"
Hu Yantong instantly fell to the ground in shame.
