Volume 5 Chapter 5: Banquet
Ma Kuo came and went in a hurry, considering state affairs as his only concern, which really shocked Zhao Jiu.
However, he did not stop the other party from turning back, because feelings were feelings, and as an official, he always had to do things... If he had really indulged in emotions, when faced with the anger of the three major cases, he, Emperor Zhao, would not have stopped at using a knife to cut Zhao Ji's congratulatory letter into pieces, and how could he have come out to inspect the army and meet Ma Kuo?
Even further, five or six years of experience in government has indeed enabled this ordinary engineering student to hone some things.
For example, Zhao Jiu actually hated Li Guang and Ma Shen, but his reason kept telling him that Li Guang was qualified for the position of Chief Censor, as he was supposed to play the role of a fault-finder. Even if Ma Shen had his own prejudices, he was one step ahead of them as he hid his criticism within his own job... From the perspective of an official in the Ministry of Justice, this person was undoubtedly qualified.
What's more, this person had indeed made contributions in Hubei before.
In addition, there is the issue of the two new ministers, Lu Benzhong and Ren Baozhong. To be honest, Zhao Jiu knows the flaws of these two people. One is incompetent, which fully fits the identity of the eldest son of a family with three generations of officials; the other is immoral, which fully fits the setting of the leader of a military clan of a minority ethnic group in a remote small country.
If these two people were placed in Zhao Jiu five years ago, he would definitely not be able to tell which of them was incompetent and which was immoral. If they were placed in Zhao Guanjia three years ago, he would probably not give these two people a chance to get close to him from the beginning.
However, the official at the moment understands in his heart that being immoral and incompetent does not mean being useless.
At a time when nobles and royal families were facing universal suppression, Lü Benzhong's identity naturally had a certain political influence. Coupled with the Lü family's special status in original studies and their relatively good reputation, there was certainly no problem in setting him up and keeping him around as a hanger-on.
Similarly, Ren Baozhong, the bald old man, not to mention his rich military and political experience, his identity as a elder of the Hengshan Dangxiang clan is enough to give him a chance to survive in the center of power.
Of course, everything must be measured... To take a recent example, the dead Yang Zheng was also very useful, but he was still beheaded; Liu Guangshi was also very useful, but he was drained of blood like a chicken... Everything must have a degree and a line, and the same is true for people.
Back to the present, although Ma Kuo left, he left behind an unmistakable message. This man who probably knew the Jurchens best and had the most say in the Northern Expedition put forward a clear concept - that is, if the offensive and defensive positions change, it will take 300,000 troops to defeat the Jurchens in the two rivers.
Zhao Jiu certainly recognized this serious reminder, or warning. However, what Emperor Zhao recognized was the general principle, that after the offensive and defensive positions changed, the Song army, which could barely maintain the confrontation at the Yellow River, was insufficient in combat power and must be significantly improved, otherwise it would be very likely to fail.
The most direct manifestation of this obvious increase in combat power is the increase from 200,000 to 300,000.
In fact, it can certainly be quantity, but it can also be quality, it can also be the right time and place, or even a breakthrough in weapons technology.
From another perspective, Zhao Jiu had already begun to make similar preparations. For example, with the improvement of financial situation year by year and the failure of Qu Duan's Imperial Camp Cavalry to recruit enough soldiers, at the end of last year and the beginning of last year, he had tacitly allowed Yue Fei's troops to slightly expand their forces after pacifying Jingxiang. The establishment of the Imperial Camp Vanguard last year had already exceeded the original framework of 35,000 and reached the 40,000 mark.
As for the troops of Han Shizhong, Wu Jie, Qu Duan, and Wang De, they were allowed to retain the more than 10,000 elite Tangut surrendered soldiers they had acquired after the expedition to Western Xia. In fact, each unit had made moves to exceed the original limit, and the overall organization of the imperial camp army actually exceeded the 200,000 mark after the war with Western Xia.
In a word, no matter what, there is a consensus that the combat effectiveness of the field corps must be qualitatively improved.
After Ma Kuo left, Zhao Jiu, who got the answer he wanted on this trip, also left Heyin, but still did not return to the capital. Instead, under the extremely tense gaze inside the capital, he continued to patrol along the river through Tokyo City, Yuanwu, Yangwu, Suanzao, Zaocheng, Shaoxing... It can only be said that this Emperor Zhao seemed to be really concentrating on patrolling the river defense and inspecting the troops.
Moreover, compared with his previous caution in inspecting Zhang Rongjun, and compared with the previous few years of stopping at high-ranking military officers and serious staff shortages and corruption, this time, when inspecting Li Qiong's troops, Zhao Jiu obviously adopted a more severe and direct approach.
A large number of middle and low-level officers were directly convicted and expelled for their bad habits of forcing soldiers to work as slaves and encroaching on soldiers' land. A force of just over 10,000 people had hundreds of people dealt with in five places, and more than 30 of them were beheaded.
This made countless officers including Li Qiong panic for a time, thinking that the emperor was targeting them. Fortunately, Emperor Zhao had gained all the prestige he deserved over the past five or six years, and no one dared to defect as they had done in the past.
After inspecting Li Qiong's troops, Emperor Zhao did not return to the capital as suggested by those in Tokyo. Instead, he crossed Shaoxing directly in the increasingly cold winter and continued to head eastward, entering the Henan section of Kaide Prefecture.
From here on, we actually stepped into the defense zone of the front army of Yue Fei's imperial camp.
Yue Fei had just returned not long ago and was far away in Qizhou. Zhao Jiu did not notify him specifically, but in fact he came here with a cautious attitude. He also wanted to see with his own eyes how good the recognized outstanding military discipline of Yue Fei's troops was, and how powerful the so-called legendary Yue Family Army was... You must know that this was the first time Zhao Jiu came to inspect the front army of the Imperial Camp, or the Yue Family Army.
But after actually going through it, to be honest, Zhao Jiu only had a feeling that could be described as mediocre.
By mediocre, he meant that he could not see any obvious features that were completely eye-opening and groundbreaking… There were no specific military equipment and instruments. From the perspective of the equipment of elite troops, Yue's army seemed not as flashy as the elite basic troops of Han Shizhong's army; there was no outstanding military appearance with solemn formations, not to mention the neat lines of the three armed forces' guard of honor in later generations. Just in terms of physique, they were obviously not as good as the imperial guards or even the personal army of Wang De; by the same token, the officers in the army did not have the simplicity of unity between officers and soldiers. The officers of Yue's army were well paid, and it was also common for them to buy properties in the garrison. In this respect, they were even not as harmonious as the grassroots officers and soldiers of Zhang Rong's army.
But on the other hand, the official could not find any problems... There was no phenomenon of using soldiers for forced labor; there was no obvious problem of unpaid salaries; of course there were vacancies among the soldiers, but they were all clearly marked on the documents, such as who had asked for leave, who had just chosen to quit the army due to injury or other reasons; of course not everyone wore armor, only seven or eight out of ten; some archers and logistics soldiers did not get armor, but that was because that was the amount of armor distributed by the court.
The rest of the troops conducted drills every three days, performed exercises every ten days, and only ate meat once every few days, all in accordance with their duties.
Everything is so ordinary and everything is so clear. The combat personnel can be called out and it is clear at a glance. The logistics account books can also be picked out and it is also clear at a glance.
To be honest, Zhao Jiu was a little disappointed.
But among the entourage, although Lü Benzhong and Fan Zongyin were not mentioned, Wang Yan, Liu Hongdao and Ren Baozhong seemed extremely stunned. Moreover, as the imperial carriage moved eastward, the more garrisons of the imperial camp were inspected, the more stunned they became. In the end, these senior officials who were considered to be knowledgeable about military affairs simply fell into a state of disbelief.
Even Zhao Jiu began to taste the flavor.
Or, he had sensed the secret from the beginning, but did not show it because he held unrealistic ideas at the beginning. In the feudal era, it was a miracle in itself for an army of up to 40,000 to 50,000 people to maintain such mediocrity throughout the entire line.
You know, this is 40,000 to 50,000 people!
It is common sense that an increase in the number of troops will inevitably lead to management chaos and a decrease in average combat effectiveness. At this time, it is particularly important to maintain the lower limit of the troops' combat effectiveness.
Yue Pengju was undoubtedly a talented commander in managing and fighting large military corps, and he might even be the only one of his kind in contemporary times.
Not to mention anything else, if Emperor Zhao could have this level of ability and make the 200,000 troops in the imperial camp look so mediocre, then he would dare to cross the river and try it now.
But in fact, Zhao Jiu couldn't do that, otherwise he wouldn't be forced to patrol the river in the middle of winter.
Just like that, after seeing the mediocre performance of Yue's army, Emperor Zhao continued his journey eastward, from Kaide to Puzhou, and then to Dongping Prefecture. During the journey, he even went to see the frozen Liangshan Lake and comforted the local fishermen, demonstrating the attitude of Emperor Zhao Song and his people as one family.
Towards the beginning of the twelfth lunar month, as the weather was getting colder, Zhao Jiu sent Liu Hongdao back to Tokyo to make arrangements. He finally entered Qizhou and came to the famous Jinan Prefecture.
Yue Fei and Wan Qi Xie went out of the city fifty miles to meet him. As usual, there were not many extra words between the emperor and his subjects. Even Wang Yan, who had been a general, was somewhat shocked after this trip, but he just kept a straight face and did not cause trouble in front of the emperor or in private.
The inspection of Jinan Prefecture was also unremarkable, except that there were some elite troops from the imperial camp, and Zhao Jiu was more familiar with these elite troops, so he did not pay too much attention to investigate. The only thing worth mentioning is that the official finally met the legendary mother-in-law and exchanged some experiences in raising children with her.
After staying in Jinan for only four or five days, Emperor Zhao continued his inspection trip eastwards. Yue Fei also led the Beiwei Army under Zhang Xian to escort Emperor Zhao eastwards, going down the Jishui River and arriving at Zibo. Zibo was still the place where Yue Fei's troops were stationed, but Qingzhou, further east, was the place where the Right Army of the Imperial Camp under Zhang Jun was stationed.
However, just after entering Zibo Prefecture and before reaching Qingzhou, an accident finally occurred - hundreds of armored soldiers suddenly came towards them, stopped the ceremonial guard outside the imperial camp's front garrison outside Gaoyuan City, and requested an audience.
The incident happened suddenly and everyone was cautious, but fortunately this place was outside the military camp and there were enough entourage. Hundreds of people coming to see the emperor in this way was unlikely to be a mutiny or something like that. So unlike the nervousness of others, Zhao Jiu remained calm and entered the Gaoyuan military camp with Wang Yan, Yue Fei and others, and then summoned the leader of this group of soldiers.
But unexpectedly, the visitor was not looking for Zhao Jiu, but claimed to be looking for Yue Fei. Even when this person came to the hall and heard that it was the emperor in person, he was simply at a loss. He was so frightened that he dared not say a word and just kowtowed.
At this moment, not only did the accompanying civil and military officials become nervous again, but Zhao Jiu finally turned his tentative gaze towards Yue Pengju.
"Officials."
Yue Fei knew the truth of the matter, it was just a little embarrassing, but now he dared not stand up and explain. "I do recognize this man. He is a surrendered general I recruited when I was in Jingxiang, Zhong Xiang and Yang Mo. He was called Guo Tai. Later, I placed him here as the deputy commander, leading 300 regular soldiers. But this man resigned a few months ago when I was still in Guanxi, so he is no longer my subordinate..."
"I know the name of Guo Tai. He surrendered together with Huang Zuo... But what does it mean to resign?"
Zhao Jiu frowned immediately, but he immediately realized something was wrong. "Why would a deputy commander with 300 local cadets leave his post when the commander was away? And judging from his appearance today, his 300 cadets left with him, and also with armor and weapons... Was it Wang Gui who stayed in Jinan at that time? Three hundred surrendered soldiers were just allowed to leave like that?"
Yue Fei was embarrassed for a moment, and even Wang Yan, Ren Baozhong and others remained silent at this time, because these people with rich military careers had already guessed what was going on.
"What's going on?" Zhao Jiu asked in silence, but almost at the same time his heart moved slightly, as if he had come to his senses.
"Your Majesty, no matter how foolish we are, we can't really allow 300 regular soldiers from Jingxiang to leave the army in Jingdong without permission, carrying their armor and weapons." Yue Fei was cornered and finally told the truth. "According to Wang Gui, at that time, there was a letter from Zhang Jiedu, the right army of the imperial camp, which was considered a horizontal transfer."
Zhao Jiu finally sneered, sat up straight, and then asked Mrs. Guo, who was kneeling below and dared not look up, "Mrs. Guo, I am asking you a question. What did Zhang Jun promise you? A house, a concubine, or a promotion of two ranks?"
"No!" Mrs. Guo still didn't dare to look up, but just kowtowed. "I dare not say a single word of nonsense in front of the emperor!"
"Then why did you go over there?!" Zhao Jiu finally frowned.
"Because the Yue Family Army is too strict!" Guo Tai hurriedly explained. "They don't allow this, they don't allow that, they drill every three days, they train every ten days, it's too hard... And then Zibo is next to the Zhang Family Army, I got to know them, I knew they were more relaxed there, so I wanted to go over there!"
Zhao Jiu had a blank expression on his face, but he had already believed it. Looking at the people around him who had military experience, they all had an attitude of "as expected"... In fact, this kind of thing was very common in the army in the feudal era. Even after the establishment of the Imperial Camp system, it was still not uncommon in the first two years, and the scale was still very large at that time.
But in the past two years, as the situation has improved and the central government's authority has gradually risen, such things have become less common. More often than not, as it is now, hundreds of people have changed sides. With their respective military salaries being fixed, it does not involve real increases or decreases in military strength, and the generals of both sides are reluctant to complain for the sake of face.
Of course, even if you believe it, you still have doubts, just like even if you know it, it is still uncomfortable to see similar situations.
"Then why did you come back today?" Ren Baozhong saw that the emperor's expression had not changed for a long time, and he came to his senses, so he stepped forward and questioned him.
I don’t know if it’s because southerners can’t understand the northwestern accent, or for some other reason, but after being questioned, this person just bowed his head and said nothing.
On the other side, Yue Fei was also gradually becoming annoyed - it was human nature to be a little angry when encountering such a thing, not to mention that this guy had no manners and kept talking about Yue's army and Zhang's army in front of the official, causing trouble for him.
"Is it because he knows that General Yue has made great contributions this time and has been promoted to the governor of three towns, ranking second among the generals, while Zhang's army has been defeated, and he has realized that Yue's army has a bright future?" Seeing the emperor bringing tea, Wang Yan knew that the emperor was also angry, and finally he couldn't help but take the opportunity to criticize his old subordinate Yue Fei.
Yue Fei was completely furious. He had to face Wang Yan, and he was in front of the emperor, so he was really a little restrained. He simply stood up and shouted at Mrs. Guo: "Mrs. Guo, in front of the emperor, the commander-in-chief of the imperial camp, Wang Jiedu, asked you a question. What on earth do you have to hide?!"
After hearing this, Mrs. Guo finally looked up, but her face was embarrassed: "Let the governor know. It's not that I don't want to say it, but it's embarrassing to say it... If there are only a few governors in front of me, it's fine, how can I embarrass myself in front of the emperor?"
"If you don't say anything, it won't be a shame!" Yue Fei narrowed his eyes. "Are you really not afraid of military law?!"
"So that the emperor and the generals know that this matter has nothing to do with future success or failure."
Under the gaze of many people, Guo Tai finally couldn't hold back and bowed his head to tell the truth. "I went to Zhang's army, and life was indeed easy, but for our level, there were enough weapons, but only 80% of the military pay was paid..."
Zhao Jiu, who was drinking tea with his head down, suddenly looked up, shocking everyone into silence.
"Two percent of the salary is missing. For a regular soldier, it won't show up in one or two months, but it will be a small amount of money in a year." Mrs. Guo, who was lowering her head, didn't notice anything unusual above, and just continued to explain. "The younger ones sent money back home. After a few months, the old mother at home asked her uncle to write to scold me, asking if I learned bad things. The older ones brought their wives to the local area and put the money back. The wives also made a fuss at home, asking if I had a mistress outside. Two hundred of the three hundred brothers must have trouble at home. If they are not happy, they have to ask me for an explanation. The brothers around me are all from the same family, each with their own surname and village. They really can't stand it. Then yesterday, I heard from the old brothers in the army here that the four-character banner of Yue Jiedu would come today, so I rushed here early to wait, just asking the Jiedu to forgive us and allow us to come back... Who would have thought that there was no one wearing red and green, and the emperor would suddenly come? If I knew this, I would rather die in Qingzhou than come to embarrass myself."
After these words, there was still silence in the hall. This time, even Mrs. Guo realized that something was wrong, and she became more and more frightened.
"Stay!" After a long pause, Zhao Jiu suddenly picked up the porcelain cup to break the silence, which was like an oral order, deciding this absurd thing. "It can also be regarded as a proof of Pengju's strict military management and his integrity...Stay!"
Yue Fei quickly stood up and responded, while Mrs. Guo was overjoyed and kowtowed repeatedly.
A moment later, Mrs. Guo left the lobby of the military camp, and this little matter was over. However, the lobby seemed a little dull, and almost everyone was guessing what Emperor Zhao was thinking.
But soon there was no need to guess. Zhao Jiu just sat in the slightly dull lobby for a while, then stood up with a smile and ordered:
"Pengju, don't go back to Jinan, and don't follow me to Qingzhou. Just wait here. Do you understand?"
Yue Fei was slightly startled, then quickly nodded in agreement.
Afterwards, the official did not check the local army in Gaoyuan anymore, but got up and left the military camp directly. The ceremonial entourage that had just rested for a while was shocked and hurriedly got up and continued to follow the official to the southeast... It seemed that the official only had a meeting in Gaoyuan and then went directly to Qingzhou.
The civil and military officials accompanying him were all silent.
It was not until the evening of that day, when they were about to cross the Shishui River, that Wang Yan, the most senior official among them, could no longer hold back... Of course, it could also be because of the recommendation of the accompanying ministers... He stepped forward to persuade them: "Your Majesty, why not wait until tomorrow morning to cross the river!"
"What's the difference between crossing now and crossing tomorrow morning?" Zhao Jiu, who was riding on a horse, smiled.
"Why not send an envoy forward to inform General Zhang?" The accompanying Hanlin scholar Fan Zongyin also stepped forward and pleaded.
"We are not going to any enemy territory!" Zhao Jiu still smiled. "I am walking on my own land. Do I need to report it?"
"Your Majesty, we are short of soldiers." Even the usually quiet Liu Yan could not help but step forward. "Why not ask Yue Jiedu behind us to lead the Gaoyuan troops to escort Your Majesty..."
"This is even more ridiculous. In our country, the imperial army is densely stationed. Do I need to guard against anyone else?" Zhao Jiu still had a smile on his face.
At this time, even Ren Baozhong, who was in an awkward position, and Lu Benzhong, who was a little confused, could not wait any longer and stepped forward to persuade them.
But Zhao Jiu had obviously made up his mind. He waved his hand and directly pointed out the window paper: "You think too much... The relationship between me and General Zhang is not as serious as you think. After he held on in such a difficult situation on Huaishang that day, I regarded him as my confidant. Now that I go to see him, we have our own conversations from the bottom of our hearts. How can you interrupt?"
No one dared to persuade him.
Zhao Jiu did not hesitate and took the lead, climbed the bridge and crossed the river, and stayed on the other side of the river that night.
The next day, Emperor Zhao abandoned his infantry and most of his civil officials, gathered 700 cavalrymen, and galloped southeast. After arriving in Linzi in the morning, he rested for a while. After causing chaos in Linzi City, he left Wang Yan, Ren Baozhong and some of the imperial guards to linger in the military camp, and then left with Liu Yan, whom he trusted most, and led 500 cavalrymen.
At dusk, they finally arrived at Yidu, the capital of Qingzhou. This was where Zhang Jun and his Imperial Camp Right Army headquarters were stationed. It was only then that Zhao Jiu ordered the ceremonial guard to be launched, releasing the previously stored dragon banner and the black and white bull banners.
Moreover, the soldiers stationed in Qingzhou were of course the old veterans of Zhang Jun's Right Army of the Imperial Camp, the so-called old soldiers of the Imperial Camp. They were not unfamiliar with Emperor Zhao, and were even more familiar with the dragon flag. The matter of the black and white flags was also published in the official newspaper and became widely known.
Therefore, as soon as the ceremonial procession came out, Tian Shizhong's troops stationed outside Qingzhou city were panicked and on the one hand ordered all soldiers not to leave the camp without permission, and on the other hand gathered several commanders and hurriedly chased after the big banner.
When Tian Shizhong approached, he saw that it was indeed the Imperial Guard and Emperor Zhao. He was terrified, but he could only kowtow and greet them on the side of the road.
"Where is Boying?"
At this time, Zhao Jiu still looked relaxed. "Tian Qing, lead the way, and don't disturb the people."
Tian Shizhong was getting more and more confused, but he didn't dare to say anything at this time. He just followed the order and led the way to Zhang Jun's mansion. As a result, he first met Zhang Zigai, the former commander of the Imperial Camp, who was on holiday to visit his uncle and had been a guard in front of the emperor, and then met Zhang Jun himself who hurried out to greet him. But when the emperor and his subjects met, they just exchanged a casual greeting on the side of the road, and then Emperor Zhao said the same thing, just let them lead the way to Zhang's mansion.
The Zhang Mansion covers a huge area and is obviously the former residence of local dignitaries. It was taken over by Zhang Jun during the chaos of war... There is nothing to say about this kind of thing... And Zhao Jiu walked in grandly and sat down in the hall. Led by Zhang Boying, Tian Shizhong, Zhang Zigai and other military officials, they all knelt down naturally and greeted each other again in the hall.
This time, Emperor Zhao was not in a hurry to get these people up. He just smiled in the hall and said, "How is it, Boying? Did I scare you this time? Are you as surprised as the last time in Caicheng?"
Zhang Jun raised his head from the ground and smiled bitterly: "The emperor came at night and went straight into my bedroom. It is different after all."
"Really?" Zhao Jiu smiled.
"But I am still frightened." Zhang Jun immediately lowered his head again. "Your Majesty... But did I make you angry about Zhang Zongyan's matter?"
"I'm not angry." Zhao Jiu thought about it and answered seriously. "I'm really not angry, or I'm not angry enough... Boying, think about it, if I was really angry, I would have asked your son-in-law and nephew to hold your left hand and your right hand on the side of the road. Why would I walk all the way into your house and tell you about the old Cai story with a smile?"
The hall was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
"Let's have a banquet!" Zhao Jiu thought about it and suddenly said, "I didn't have the chance to have a banquet at your house last time. Today is the twelfth lunar month. I have traveled over a hundred miles and I am really hungry. I want to try the fresh New Year dishes from Qi and Lu... Don't invite anyone else, even the local officials. Just the four or five of us can have a banquet in the hall and have a good chat."
"I will obey your order!" Zhang Jun felt relieved.
It was said to be a banquet, but everyone knew that it was nonsense to hastily put out the kind of buffet that Zhang Jun had organized in the capital. What's more, it was still the twelfth month of winter, and even green vegetables were rare.
However, since it was Zhang Jun's residence, there were always some braised meats with ginger and fermented black beans, stored green vegetables, fresh seafood, and local beef, mutton, pork, chicken, duck, and goose, so it was quite abundant.
Not to mention that the accompanying cavalry had a rare feast outside, there was only one table for five people in the main hall. Zhang Jun carefully arranged it and personally toasted several times. Seeing that the official accepted all the guests, he finally tentatively opened the topic again:
"The official didn't bring any entourage?"
Zhao Jiu swallowed a meatball hastily and raised his hand to indicate, "I brought a few, but I am meeting Zhang Qing here, so it is useless to bring them with me, so I will leave them behind."
Zhang Jun smiled bitterly: "Your Majesty is considerate of me, I am grateful."
"Tell me the truth about Zhang Zongyan's matter. Did you know about it before?" Zhao Jiu suddenly turned his head and asked.
