Prime Minister

Chapter 824
end of october.

It was the time for the Fan tribe in Taozhou and Minzhou to spend the winter.

The area cultivated in Taozhou is mainly along the Daxia River (Lishui River), and the lower reaches of the Daxia River are unearthed from Menguan to Hezhou. This is a basin plain that is more suitable for farming.

On the upper reaches of the Daxia River, there are many deep valleys and rivers, and Yigong City, the home city of Guizhangbu, is built among the high mountains.

Yigong City is also called Octagonal City. Octagonal City is not an imaginary octagonal city, but similar to the octagonal shape of the Iron Cross.

On the high mountains around Yigong City, terraced fields are built, and the plateau is nearby. Flocks of sheep are dotted on the slopes like stars. The pastures appear and disappear.

A caravan composed of dozens of mules and horses slowly entered Yigong City.

After listening to the report from the caravan, Bian Sibo learned the fact that the return of the Song Army's army had been cut off, and the various private markets that originally relied on the return of the army were also getting more and more difficult.

In Hezhou, the Song people set up a new government-run forum.

The business in the market is very fair, many tribes go to the market to trade, the problem is that the market only allows the tribes of Hezhou to enter the market, but there are many restrictions on the tribes of Taozhou.

Nowadays, there is a shortage of grain and salt in the mountains, and the people of Song Dynasty prohibited the army from returning to trade. All of a sudden, the channels for buying grain from the Taozhou tribe were cut off, and there was not much salt and grain that could be circulated in the private market, and it was very expensive.

They had to go to Minzhou, and it was impossible to exchange salt for food in Hezhou.

Aware of all this, Bojie stood on the top of Yigong City, looked at the land and said with a sneer, "Is it finally here? In order to deal with my Guizhangbu, the Song people did not hesitate to stop the army back to Yi , I would rather put in so much effort than leave all of us ghosts without food and clothing?"

Bian Si Bo Jie was not talking to himself, and standing beside him was a Chinese counselor.

His Chinese language improved rapidly, and he learned it from this Han counselor.The other party is an unranked scholar in Qinzhou, who has been depressed for many years.Bian Sibojie heard that Li Yuanhao used Zhang Yuan, a Han scholar, and Wu Hao had just achieved hegemony.

Bian servant Bojie also respected people from the Han area, so he was assisted by this Han counselor.

Bian Sibo attached great importance to this Han counselor, and he taught him as a teacher, and he learned the culture of Han people every day.And this Han counselor was also determined to teach him all the methods of slaying dragons.

This time, the scheme of sending people to bribe Shan Yashi to Bianjing to spread Zhang Yue's unfavorable crimes with a lot of money was exactly the Han counselor's plan.

The Han counselor said to Bian Sibo: "It's okay, the emperor of the Song Dynasty was always suspicious of the general who led the army outside. As long as he sent news that was not good for him to the Song court, sooner or later the other party would leave. At the beginning, Mu Zheng used this strategy. Deal with Wang Shao. We followed suit, and within a few months Zhang Jinglue was transferred back to Bianjing."

This Han counselor was right. Mu Zheng sent someone to Bianjing to file a complaint, saying that he was a courtier of the Song Dynasty, and agreed with the Song people on what to do, but in the end, Zhang Yue pressed forward and had to turn back. This incident caused a sensation. Wen Yanbo, Feng Jing and others discussed the matter in front of the emperor, and it happened that Wang Shao's confidants Wang Zhongtong and Huang Cha were arrested by Gao Zunyu.

Gao Zunyu, who had the handle in his hand, wanted to sue the imperial court. In the end, thanks to Zhang Yue and Wang Shao, they broke through Xizhou and solved the future troubles.

Bian Sibojie listened to the suggestions of the Han counselors and said: "I heard that five or six tribes in Shannan have secretly taken hostages from the Song people and studied in Xizhou Prefecture School. I am afraid that there will be more tribes in the future..."

The Han counselor said: "Your Majesty, you must be patient now."

The side servant Bojie let out a long sigh, he didn't know how long the people who lacked salt could endure.

……

In Xizhou City, Jiazhou Defense Envoy, Mu Zheng, who was newly named Zhao Sizhong, returned to his hometown.

In order to win over Zhao Sizhong, the emperor built him a luxurious residence in Beijing, which was even bigger than the mansion bestowed on Zhang Yue.

Zhang Yue sent a letter to the emperor requesting that Mu Zheng return to Xizhou, and use his influence to appease the Shannan and Hehuang tribes. People are too much to sign, so today's surrender is a last resort, and it doesn't really have a heart for the Han.If Mu Zheng lived in Xizhou, the local Fan people would be his confidantes. Once Xia Guo or Dong Zhan sent troops to attack Hezhou Xizhou, Mu Zheng would be the internal response, and the good situation of Xihe would be ruined at that time.

But Zhang Yue tried his best to argue with reason.Seeing Zhang Yue's insistence, the emperor and the second government still believed in Zhang Yue's vision and judgment, so Mu Zheng returned to Xizhou again.

The Son of Heaven asked Mu Zheng's mother, wife and children to live in Tongyuan Army. His mother gave her the surname Li as Mrs. Suining County, and she also gave her [-] Guan of fat powder money every month. Jie Shi died as the Lord of Renhe County, and at the same time allocated fifty hectares of land from Xizhou, Hezhou to Mu Zheng, and at the same time gave Mu Zheng's two wives ten hectares of fertile land each, which can be extremely generous.

As a defensive envoy, Mu Zheng is the official governor, not comparable to the governor of Yao County. Now there are only two official governors in Xihe, one is Gao Zunyu and the other is Mu Zheng.

Mu Zheng's official position is higher than that of Gao Zunyu, but he has no director.

But after not seeing Mu Zheng for half a year, he gained a little weight, and his expression and demeanor were different from those of previous years.

Zhang Yue hosted a banquet for Mu Zheng, and during the meeting Mu Zheng said: "I want to report to Shuxue, this time I am... Zhao Sizhong returned to Xizhou, so he can only do his best to be loyal to Emperor Song, and hope to be the leader of the Qiang tribe in Hezhou, Xizhou." In order to repay the Shuxue's virtue of not killing."

I haven't seen Mu Zheng for half a year, and I have learned a lot, whether it's Chinese or the official rules of the Han people.It's not the same as in the past, calling each dragon map one bite at a time.This is also going to do as the Romans do... Zhang Yue said: "The defense envoy returned to Xizhou, Zhang did not dare to bother him with heavy responsibilities, how about being under the jurisdiction of Minzhou first?"

The ranking of military commanders along the way is the director of the road, the deputy director, the jurisdiction of the road, and the supervisor of the road. The following is the jurisdiction of the state and the supervisor of the state.

Now that Xizhou’s Fan army is led by Mu Zheng’s younger brother Blind Wu Chi (Zhao Shaozhong) and Hezhou’s Fan army is led by Bao Shun, it’s impossible for Zhang Yue to allow Mu Zheng to get involved in these two states again, so let him be under the jurisdiction of Minzhou.

Although Minzhou is now occupied by the Song army, this place is like Taozhou, with many mountains and valleys, and the Fan tribes live scattered in it. What the Song army can control are only a few key fortresses. Once the Guizhang tribe attacks Minzhou from Taozhou State, I am afraid that many Tibetan tribes will respond to them.

The purpose of Zhang Yue making Mu Zheng the governor of Minzhou is to use his prestige to attract the local Fan tribe.

This time Mu Zheng was also in the mood of giving it a try, but he didn't expect that Zhang Yue really trusted him, and he was overjoyed when he entrusted him with military power.

Immediately Mu Zheng thanked and resigned.

After Mu Zheng left, many officials and generals were worried when they learned that Mu Zheng was appointed as the governor of Minzhou. The consequences of the incident were unimaginable.

Seeing that the generals opposed him, Zhang Yue said with a smile, "Qiang people are naturally afraid of the nobles, and it was convenient for Mu Zheng to appease the Minzhou tribe for the nobles."

"Furthermore, the Fan tribe in Minzhou is not used by the Song Dynasty, but is used by the side servants Bojie and Lengjipu. I asked Mu Zheng not to bring a single soldier to Minzhou to recruit, just for the sake of the overall situation."

Zhang Yueshang reported to the Son of Heaven that the six prefectures of Xihe had a total of more than [-] miles of land, but they were all under the control of the tribes. It is not easy to integrate these tribes into the Song Dynasty. It is not a few years, but decades. The true Sinicization of the Fan people.

Now the Song army is heavily stationed in Xizhou and Hezhou, the two protruding parts of Xixia and Qingtang, while Taozhou, Minzhou in the belly is a weak point. The mountains and valleys here are home to several 10 people from the Shannan Qiang tribe. .

As the junction of the first ladder and the second ladder, it is not a good governance method to control or directly govern.

It is necessary to garrison troops directly under the central government. If the troops are garrisoned, the logistical supplies will not be able to go up, and the management will be too difficult, and Jumi is afraid that the local Tibetans will cause chaos.

Now Taozhou is not attached, and Minzhou is unstable. If Zhang Yue does not completely solve Minzhou, Taozhou will not be able to achieve the strategic goal of taking Qingtang from the north and controlling Xixia from the east, so the Pinghehuang strategy he dedicated to the emperor will become a success. A piece of empty talk has become a laughing stock in his mouth.

One more thing, he knew that Wang Anshi's relationship was unstable due to the affairs of Shi Yisi.Once Wang Anshi dismissed the prime minister, the Song Dynasty might turn into a strategic contraction, so he wanted to resolve the Hehuang matter once and for all before Wang Anshi dismissed the prime minister.

After convincing the generals, Zhang Yue repeatedly considered the next candidate.

Zhang Yue's first consideration was Zhang Yu.But now Zhang Yu knows Hezhou, which is an important military area, and it is the front line facing Qingtang, Taozhou, and Xixia, so it should not be moved lightly.

Now it is Shen Kuo who knows Minzhou. Shen Kuo has good talents, but he is a bit rigid and lacks flexibility.

Besides, Shen Kuo was coordinating the affairs of the whole state, and he didn't have the energy to keep an eye on Mu Zheng for himself.

So Zhang Yue thought about it and decided on a candidate.

After a while, You Shixiong, the secretary in charge of Xizhou, appeared in front of Zhang Yue. Zhang Yue said to him, "I'm going to let you go to Minzhou to appease the Tibetan tribe. You pack up and set off with Mu Zheng in a few days."

You Shixiong accepted the order without further ado.

Zhang Yue exhorted You Shixiong: "The recruiting of the Fan tribe in Minzhou is different from others, you need to consider it carefully. The Fan tribe also has a heart and flesh, you treat them like brothers and children, and they will return like brothers and children."

"However, this matter cannot be generalized. No matter how you treat these Fan people, they will be divided into three. Remember not to divide into two. It is so easy to rashly divide the Fan people in Minzhou into loyal to the Song Dynasty, or rebellious against the Song Dynasty. man of."

"The matter in front of us needs to be discussed in detail. It is wrong to divide one into two, let alone one size fits all. Doing things like this is hasty."

You Shixiong asked: "May I ask how the commander-in-chief divides one into three?"

Zhang Yue said: "There are only a small number of Fan tribes who are really determined to be loyal to the Song Dynasty and rebellious against the Song Dynasty. In the middle of catching the two heads, the Fan tribes loyal to the Song Dynasty should be appointed officials and rewarded generously, and allowed to enter the city, and those who betrayed the Song Dynasty must be wiped out immediately. In this way, the Fan tribes in the middle will naturally know what to do. With guidance, you can control the enemies!"

(End of this chapter)