Chapter 536 Northern Song Dynasty and Political Correctness

In response to the emperor's lament, Zhao Pu thought about it and carefully persuaded him:

"Since Di Hanchen can be the Privy Councilor with a tattooed face, I think he is also very talented.

"Or maybe Nong Zhigao is really talented, so..."

Later generations called Di Qingbai tattooed on his face. Zhao Pu thought about it and understood that this was probably about tattooing his face.

The practice of tattooing characters on the face to identify military numbers is not new. It was first used by Zhu Wen, and many later generations followed suit, including the Song Dynasty.

Zhao Pu was born in the government shogunate, served as the secretary of the Jiedushi, and now has the right to consult on all matters of the Privy Council. Quan is more familiar with the current practice of the Song Dynasty.

First measure the ability, then check the gait, then test the vision, and then tattoo the face, give money and clothes, and register as a member. This is the step to gather the refugees who have reached the end of the road into the imperial army.

But these tattooed soldiers are far from being the main source of the imperial army, so even in the imperial army, tattooed soldiers are humble.

Zhao Pu has seen with his own eyes how the tattooed soldiers were despised and used by their comrades in the army, so he also has some admiration.

"Moreover, at that time, the Dangxiang in the west of the Song Dynasty was plotting to establish themselves, and the Khitan in the north was plotting, and the elite soldiers and generals all went to the northwest, so that the south was corrupted."

"After all, the dispute between Song and Xia was ultimately won by our Song Dynasty, so it seems that the imperial army is not hopeless. "

Later generations mentioned Xixia more than once, and Li Yuanhao's name was heard more than once. Judging from its location and surname, it is not difficult to guess its predecessor. Even the two discussed the specific arrangements of the Dingnan Army more than once.

But no matter how many times they discussed, the final conclusion was to appease.

The reason is very simple. First, the four states of Xia and Yin occupied by the Dingnan Army are quite barren and poor. The Dangxiang people regard it as their ancestral land and never abandon it. The Song people disliked its poverty and were unwilling to go there.

Secondly, whether it was the previous Dingnan Army Jiedushi Li Yiyin or Li Guangrui, who served as the current leader, was respectful to the Song Dynasty.

Now that the Song Dynasty was busy fighting the Southern Tang before attacking the Northern Han and Khitan, it would be unwise to rashly attack the Tanguts.

Zhao Pu's statement made Zhao Kuangyin reluctantly accept it temporarily.

But he immediately remembered the alliance under the city of Zhenzong, and Zhao Kuangyin had some doubts:

Did they really win?

...

The people in Chang'an of Han Dynasty had been watching the light curtain for a long time, and they could basically understand some newly coined words in later generations, but occasionally they would have doubts.

"Is this Song Dynasty dream a good word?"

Zhang Fei was a little puzzled:

"Why do I remember that the Tang Dynasty dream was about An Lushan, the adopted son of Xuanzong?"

Pang Tong laughed: "Yide, wouldn't you know if you ask the Tang Emperor? The meaning of praise and criticism must be known by the Tang people."

Liu Bei tried to analyze:

"Both of them came from poor and humble backgrounds and entered the court. "

"There is no need to say more about Di Hanchen. If An Lushan had not been evil-minded, the government had not been able to judge people, Xuanzong had not been wise, and the prime minister had not been wise, the Tang Dynasty would not have suffered such disasters."

Fa Zheng raised his head and said with a smile:

"My lord, your words should be recorded as text and put on the light curtain for the Emperor of Tang to see."

Then everyone in the hall laughed.

Ma Chao pondered for a while and suddenly realized:

"My lord has the foundation he has now, which should be called the Great Han Dream? "

Liu Bei also pondered for a moment and then looked subtle.

Zhang Fei quietly moved his butt away a little, determined to keep a distance from Ma Mengqi for the time being.

[We talked about the Song Dynasty's emphasis on civil and military affairs in the last issue. Overall, the status of Song Dynasty military officers was in a state of gradual decline until the balance between civil and military affairs was completely unbalanced.

The most famous thing about Zhao Da's reign was of course the release of military power with a cup of wine, but from the historical data, Zhao Da was only a little strict with the commander of the military officers, but he was still able to delegate power when using troops.

For example, Guo Jin, Li Hanchao, Yao Neibin, etc., who were guarding the north at that time Although the border generals did not have much autonomy, they at least had it.

For example, when pacifying the Southern Tang, General Zhao gave all matters to Cao Bin for full judgment, and those who disobeyed orders below the deputy generals could be executed immediately.

As a result, when Zhao Er came to power, Cao Bin led 100,000 troops during the Yongxi Northern Expedition but was not even given the position of Privy Councilor, let alone the autonomy to execute those who disobeyed orders.

As a result, the deputy generals coveted the military achievements of the other two routes and forced Cao Bin to advance, resulting in a great defeat. In the end, when Zhao Er concluded the defeat of the Yongxi Northern Expedition, he lightly threw the responsibility to Cao Bin, which was really a play with toilet paper.

In addition, some scholars believe The successive defeats in the Battle of Gaoliang River and the Northern Expedition of Yongxi made Zhao Er completely lose confidence in using foreign troops. In addition, Zhao Dazan's family assets had been completely lost, so the Song Dynasty under Zhao Er's rule began to shift from external expansion to internal governance, and winning over civil officials to jointly prevent and attack military generals was also a means of consolidating rule.

The Song Dynasty tradition of using civil officials to control military officials was also formed during this period. Suspicion of military generals also began to become a necessary skill for civil officials, and the prestige of generals was almost trampled on repeatedly during Zhao Er's reign.

The famous general Guo Jin died at the hands of the military supervisor Tian Qinzhao.

Another famous general Yang Ye was also forced by the military supervisor Wang Quan to Under duress, a good plan was not adopted, which led to him being trapped in a dangerous situation. As a result, Wang Cong not only did not save him but also ran away, causing Yang Ye, who was praised as "experienced in border affairs, well-informed about the enemy, loyal and brave, and sharing the hardships with the soldiers", to die heroically in battle.

Later, Wang Fuzhi summed up the survival rules of the generals of the Zhao Dynasty: be kind and honest, yield gracefully, dispel the emperor's suspicion, and eliminate the jealousy of the ministers.

Translated, it means: keep your tail between your legs and behave yourself.

Not to mention the Zhenzong Dynasty, the Chanyuan Alliance "goes down in history", and peace talks became the "political correctness" of the Northern Song Dynasty.

"After the peace talks, all military preparations were abandoned" was the angry curse of the Song people at that time.

After the Treaty of Chanyuan, if the generals worked hard, they would be reprimanded for causing trouble. If they expressed concerns about the Khitan, they would be ridiculed by the civil officials for being pedantic and out of touch with the times.

Under such circumstances, the status of military generals plummeted again, and they almost became rats crossing the street. It was also during the reign of Emperor Zhenzong of Song that the military generals completely lost their command of the battlefield, and the use of civil officials to control the military officially became a reality.

Wang Su, the son of the then Prime Minister Wang Dan, once followed his father to the Privy Council to do business, and happened to run into a conflict between the military general Ma Zhijie and the civil official Wang Qinruo of the Privy Council.

As a result, Wang Qinruo directly scolded Ma Zhijie in the Privy Council and scolded Ma Zhijie to tears on the spot.

When Zhenzong died, the important officials at that time were all discussing the issue of establishing a crown prince, but Wang Deyong, who was the Privy Envoy at the time, was left aside and could only complain helplessly: "Where is this Bodhisattva?"

As a result, this remark was heard by the civil officials next to him, and he was unceremoniously ridiculed: You know shit! (What does the old official know?)

Of course, not everyone can tolerate this extremely abnormal atmosphere. At that time, Yin Zhu, a scholar in Luoyang, complained in a weird way:

The top scholar, even if he led hundreds of thousands of soldiers, recovered Youji, drove the powerful enemy out of the desert, returned with a triumphant song, and presented the victory to the imperial temple. His honor is also beyond reach.

Later, during the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song Dynasty, Yin Zhu passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi. It happened that Fan Zhongyan was demoted for criticizing Prime Minister Lu Yijian.

Yin Zhu stood up and said that he and Fan Zhongyan "should be convicted of the same crime as both teachers and friends", and was demoted to Yingzhou.

Later, the Song-Liao War broke out, and Yin Zhu was re-employed as the judge of the Jingyuan Qinfeng Jinglüe Anfu Division, and recommended Di Qing, who was still a low-ranking officer at the time.

And when Di Qing was implicated in the "public envoy money case" later, he stood up and argued for Di Qing, so that Di Qing could escape.

As a result, Yin Zhu was demoted to Junzhou again because of this incident and eventually died of illness. 】

〖Let’s not talk about Guo Jin. Yang Ye’s death was a pity. He was famous in the Northern Han Dynasty and was given the surname Liu. After surrendering to the Song Dynasty, he should have been the most familiar with the Liao Dynasty and should have shined. As a result, Zhao Er of Gaoliang River was scared out of his wits, which eventually led to Yang Ye’s death.

Zhao Er: I just want to play a single 3 with a king bomb. Hey, just for fun~

Zhao Er really played politics thoroughly. He pulled a group to fight a group. If the group outside couldn’t beat them, he would find a group inside to fight.

In this way, the Northern Song Dynasty’s later situation can be understood. The soldiers were ruthless and the generals were ruthless. The commander had to act like a dog in front of the civil officials. What was the point of fighting for life? Let the literati write an article to scold the enemy to death.

The literati chose to negotiate, and the effect was outstanding! The literati used the annual tribute, and the effect was outstanding!

Li Shimin: If the general is weak, the army will not be strict. If the commander has no authority, the officers and soldiers will act according to their own will. The soldiers will be in chaos. If the soldiers are deployed in a disorderly manner, there will be chaos.

Brother, you have good literary talent. I appreciate it. 〗

In the General's Mansion in Chang'an, Zhang Fei slightly opened his eyes, then looked down at the words written on his hand, "He also brought a bird soldier", and blushed slightly.

He didn't care that his straightforward words would be seen by future generations, but seeing the praise of the Tang Emperor's casual words by future generations...

He casually crumpled the paper into a ball, and shook his head as if nothing had happened:

"After all, isn't this just talking about war on paper? Do you think you are a grandson after reading a little?"

Naturally, no one had any objection to Zhang Fei's words. After all, whether it was Hanzhong or Yongliang, or last year's expedition to Liangzhou to quell the rebellion, he was good at everything.

Moreover, not to mention the military advisors in the hall, even Mi Zhu Jianyong has been on the battlefield. Even Zhang Zhongjing has traveled all over the country for so many years, and he is good at seeing things and rarely talks about empty things.

Pang Tong knocked on the table and said bluntly:

"Later generations said that the Song Dynasty was prosperous in culture and governance. When talking about the Tang Dynasty before, it was also said that the Song Dynasty was good at cultivating military tactics. I thought he must have a good opinion."

"The beginning of Sun Tzu's Art of War says that the military is a major event of the country and must be observed. It is difficult to do the beginning of the words, let alone what to do!"

"A general who knows the military is the master of the people's life and the safety of the country."

Ma Chao also agreed: "Rather than saying that he controls the general with literature, it is better to say that he enslaves the general with literature."

He read a lot, but he didn't show it often. At this time, he suddenly expressed his opinion and attracted everyone's attention.

Kong Ming sighed, thinking that some of his previous confusions about Song had been explained:

"First, they valued civil affairs over military affairs, and then they used peace instead of war."

"No wonder Song was rich, but its people were poor and its army was weak..."

"That's because all the money was used to make friends with the enemy."

Zhang Fei's face was full of disgust, and the sourness in his words made Kong Ming helpless:

"Yide is not an official in Song, why is he so fussy?"

Zhang Fei said seriously:

"I am angry for those who are also warriors who fought to the death and killed the enemy."

"Soldiers must personally fight for their lives in the battlefield with the enemy, and life and death are decided by a breath..."

At this point, Zhang Fei sighed and couldn't say anything more. Kong Ming understood what Yide meant.

When soldiers went to the battlefield, they entrusted their lives to their comrades and commanders, and they only wanted a victory at the cost of their lives to protect their families and country.

As a result, Song called itself a brother to the enemy, gave away the people's fat to please them, and gave away the country's wealth to appease the jackals.

Why do we need these soldiers? Why not just approach the guess to show our sincerity to our brothers?

"Fortunately, there are many scholars in Song, and many knowledgeable people."

Lu Su felt a little relieved:

"This Yin Zhu is a true gentleman."

Zhang Fei nodded in agreement and rewrote the note in his hand, then threw it into the light curtain.

〖Zhang Fei: Zhao Da Ke must not be blind again.〗

In the Bianliang Palace, Zhao Kuangyin gritted his teeth.

Although I know that Zhang Hou is giving a kind reminder, why does it make me feel a little angry when I read it?

And why don’t you want to say thank you at all?

After hesitating again and again, Zhao Kuangyin reached out and wrote on the stone table:

〖Zhao Kuangyin: I should remember Emperor Wen’s words carefully and take them as a warning〗

As for Tang Taizong, don't even think about calling him "Your Majesty"... After all, who is not an emperor anymore?

Putting these things behind for the time being, Zhao Kuangyin turned his attention to the light screen, and then said with a smile:

"I have gained something today... this Yang Ye should be that Liu Wudi."

Zhao Pu recalled the information he had read before:

"Liu Wudi...is that Liu Jiye?"

Zhao Kuangyin nodded and said:

"In my opinion, there are only two people in the Northern Han Dynasty who can be called relying on it, one is called a strong city, and the other is called a fierce general."

"If these two are eliminated, the Northern Han Dynasty can conquer without a fight."

What Zhao Kuangyin said also made Zhao Pu sigh with emotion:

"Liu Jiyuan, the king of the Northern Han Dynasty, is an incompetent person, but we have the strong city of Taiyuan to stop us from going north in the Song Dynasty, and Liu Jiye, who has won the reputation of being invincible in the battle with the Khitans, is really..."

In fact, Zhao Pu felt that calling Liu Jiyuan "incompetent" was considered a compliment.

Because before Liu Jiyuan succeeded to the throne, there should be four people in the Northern Han Dynasty who could be called dependents.

The fierce general Liu Jiye, the fierce general Zheng Han, the strong city of Taiyuan, and the Tuhun army.

The reason why there are only two items left now is to ask Liu Jiye, the king of the Northern Han Dynasty.

After he succeeded to the throne, he listened to the slander and killed the fierce general Zheng Jin. Two years later, he worked with the officials to kill the commander of the Tuhun army, Wei Chou, which caused the morale of the Tuyu army to collapse.

No wonder the affairs of the Southern Tang Dynasty are not over yet. The officials are already preparing food, grass and weapons to prepare for the attack on the Northern Han Dynasty. This is indeed a golden opportunity.

"It doesn't matter, the Northern Han Dynasty is not my enemy!"

Zhao Kuangyin said with unusual certainty.

He still remembered the artillery that Zhenguan Jun and his ministers talked about.

Preparing gunpowder was not troublesome. As for the cannon body, he also consulted craftsmen and came to the conclusion that bell-casters might be able to do it. Before the New Year, he had ordered the Imperial City Department to search for skilled bell-smiths.

Moreover, even if the artillery is difficult to control, one can still ask Zhuge Wuhou how to break the city. But he still remembers the map of Chang'an that Wuhou sent to future generations last year.

Although Chang'an and Taiyuan are not comparable, they are Zhuge Wuhou after all.

In short, now facing the Northern Han Dynasty's fortified city of Taiyuan, Zhao Da felt that his ancestors had many solutions.

Guo Jin was originally a fierce general, and Yang Ye's reputation as "invincible" was gained from his victory over the Khitans at Yanmen Pass.

In this way, as long as the Northern Han Dynasty is defeated and Yang Ye is persuaded to surrender, the Northern Expedition to take back the sixteen states of Yanyun will be close at hand.

"The matter of peace and tranquility will never happen again!"