I became a saint by picking up corpses in Water Margin

Chapter 406 The Backbone of the Song Dynasty
Yang Chang was actually not interested in listening to Zhao Ji's experience in governing the country.

After all, he is my father-in-law, and he doesn't need to rest at night, so I just treat him as my 'intimate elder sister' and stay up with him until late at night.

This guy keeps nagging all night long.

He first talked about the history of the Song Dynasty, and then talked about how he worked hard to govern the country after he ascended the throne. He said that he continued to reform and strengthen the country in various ways, fighting against the Western Xia and taking back Beijing, and running education and improving people's livelihood at home, gradually shaking the power of the scholar-officials.

Unfortunately, Shi Yuanyou's party had deep roots and complicated connections. In the end, these people colluded with the Jin people externally and persuaded the prince to seize power internally, which eventually led to the current situation.

Many of the details were the first time Yang Chang heard them and he was shocked.

Including Cai Jing and Tong Guan, they were all loyal ministers that Zhao Ji used to deal with the Yuanyou Party, but Yang Chang did not feel the slightest sympathy for them.

Are you still a wise ruler?
So it’s all the civil servants’ fault?

However, the idea of ​​promoting the power of civil servants and sharing the world with the literati was also initiated by the Zhao family.

Who is building the garden? Who is squandering the people's wealth? Your loyal ministers are accumulating wealth like crazy. As a wise ruler, don't you know this?

You know, but being used to enjoying yourself, you can only make the people suffer?
If it weren't for Zhao Fujin, Yang Changben would not have wanted to take him back to the Central Plains.

After all, resettlement is rather troublesome, and it would be unacceptable to treat him too harshly. If he were to continue to live an extravagant life, Yang Chang was unwilling to start this process.

Fortunately, the country is still unsettled, and Yang Chang himself takes the lead in living frugally and will not give Zhao Ji special treatment.

Wake up the next day.

Yang Chang led the army from Zhengping, Jiangzhou, and headed west along the Fen River. When they reached the Yellow River, they turned south and arrived at Hezhong Prefecture two days later.

Zhang Qing had prepared the boat and obtained important information.

At this time in Tongguan, the Western Xia army was fighting with the Song army, and the Xia army had the upper hand.

Yang Chang was delighted when he heard this, thinking to himself, when I feel sleepy, someone brings me a pillow. My buddy is already invincible, how can I encounter a fight between him and the clam?
Don't take advantage of the bastard.

Yang Chang immediately gave an order, Qiu Qiongying led a thousand elite cavalry to cross the river first, Zhang Qing, Cao Zheng, and Yang Chun organized a large army to follow, while he himself and Zhao Fujin went first.

As usual, the couple explores the way together.

At that time, Tongguan was in the hands of Western Xia. The commander, Mu Wei, was originally the commander of Song Huanqing. He himself was from the Dangxiang tribe and later surrendered when Western Xia captured Huanzhou.

Hearing that Liu Yanqing and his son Liu Guangshi were leading the Song army westward in an attempt to seize Guanzhong, Li Qianshun's trusted minister Mou Ning Keren was ordered to go to Tongguan in person to supervise the army.

Even though there were 200,000 men in Guanzhong, they had to guard against the Shu garrison moving north to the south, the Xixia garrison moving south to the north, and the Song army moving west to the east. It was impossible for the troops to be concentrated in one place, and there were less than 40,000 men in Tongguan.

Mou Ning Keren and Li Renli, along with their young master, were on their way to fleeing into Guanzhong. Before they met the reinforcements, they learned that Xingqing Prefecture had been breached. They were so frightened that they notified the reinforcements to go back.

Later, when he arrived in Chang'an, he was always on the defensive and did not dare to touch the tiger's whiskers at all.

Before we received any news about Yang Chang heading south, we first received news that the Song Dynasty sent troops to retake Guanzhong.

The Xia army could not defeat the Jin army, nor the newly rising Jin army, so wouldn’t it be easy for them to bully the Song army?

The Liu father and son led their troops westward. Li Renli was worried that Yang Chang would take the opportunity to go south, so he placed all his main forces north of Chang'an and only sent Mou Ning Keren to supervise the battle.

Unfortunately, the Xixia people in Guanzhong lost their source of intelligence after losing their homeland and had no idea where Yang Chang was.

However, Mou Ning Keren did not understand military strategy. He focused all his attention on the area east of Tongguan and was completely unaware of the danger in the north.

At that time, Mu Wei had the upper hand in the battle, so Ning Keren mobilized a large number of troops to fight outside the pass, hoping to end the battle and return to Chang'an as soon as possible.

When Yang Chang and Zhao Fujin arrived, they calculated that there were only three to four thousand defenders of Tongguan. They thought that even if they didn't have to be there, the 40,000 Jin troops could easily take it.

"A few thousand men are enough for me alone, but some of them will definitely escape and hinder the plan of the two families. I will sneak in first, and you go back quickly to inform Qiongying to bring the cavalry to come overnight. We will take Tongguan first, and the rest will arrive tomorrow."

"Okay, I'll set off right away."

"By the way, bring the Emperor as well."

"what?"

Zhao Fujin was about to leave, but he stopped immediately after hearing this and asked, "Your Majesty, you don't have to take care of Dad's whim. He needs someone to protect him at the front line. It would be better for him to stay in the river, right?"

"Haha, I really didn't take care of him on a whim. The commanders of the Song army are Liu Yanqing and his son. Maybe they recognize the emperor, which would save us a lot of fighting. Since Dad is with the army, there must be some meaning to it."

"Since it is Your Majesty's request, I will go and get it myself."

"Go ahead, and remember to set off again tomorrow."

Yang Chang's implication was that he planned to capture Tongguan at night, so he could arrive later and not wait for the city to be captured.

Of course, without Yang Chang's night vision to lead the way, Zhao Fujin would not be able to travel at night.

His illusion technique has now reached the fourth level. He can easily transform himself into a Xixia person and sneak into the city. He no longer needs to wait until night to climb up to the city.

By the time Qiu Qiongying arrived at night, Yang Chang had been replaced by Mou Ningke as his personal guard, and he used his token to open the Tongguan city gate.

That night, with the help of both inside and outside forces, the defenders of Tongguan put up almost no resistance and were killed in their sleep.

Mou Ning Keren was also dragged off the couch and brought before Yang Chang. He had no idea what was going on and threatened with an arrogant look on his face:
"You are Liu Yanqing's men, right? What's the point of going around and taking Tongguan? He is still unable to advance westward into Guanzhong after being blocked by Mu Wei's main force of more than 30,000 soldiers. Besides, reinforcements from Chang'an will arrive soon, with 100,000 soldiers!"

"One hundred thousand? Is that a lot?"

Seeing Yang Chang's playful sneer, Mou Ning Keren also sneered: "Not much?"

"Haha, what's a hundred thousand chickens and dogs? Where is Li Renxiao?"

"Are you worthy enough to ask?"

Mou Ning Ke was born as an imperial censor, and he was braver than most people. He added, "If you really want to see me, then you can surrender to Xixia. Maybe you can be appointed a general. Mu Wei was also a general of the Song Dynasty. Didn't he surrender to the light as well?"

"Xixia has already fallen, and you're still here to confer titles and make wishes? Didn't Liu Yanqing tell you about Li Qianshun's situation?"

"you"

Hearing Yang Chang's loud voice, Mou Ning Keren suddenly had a bad feeling and swallowed his saliva and asked, "Who are you?"

"Do you know Yang Chang? That's me."

"Prince Jin? Yang Chang?"

Mou Ning Keren was so frightened that his face turned pale. He could not help but crawl on the ground and muttered, "Aren't you in Xingqing or Yan'an Prefecture? How come you are here?"

"I am everywhere! Now I ask you the truth, do you want to live or die?"

"I"

"Li Qianshun has confessed everything. He asked you and Li Renli to take the prince to Guanzhong, hoping to borrow the 200,000 soldiers to restore the country. Do you think you can do it?"

Yang Chang deliberately lied to him, and Mou Ning Keren broke out in a sweat and was too timid to answer.

At this time, Yang Chang said again: "You, Li Renli, including the families of the Guanzhong Xia army, should be mostly in Xixia at this time. I only need to spread a few rumors to make the 200,000 troops collapse. Do you believe it?"

"What does King Jin want from me?"

"Go and persuade Mu Wei to surrender."

"I'm fine."

How could Mou Ning Keren dare not agree? He thought to himself that he should find a way to get out of this situation first.

The next morning, he was released from Tongguan.

Before leaving, Yang Chang reminded him: "You are a former imperial censor and a well-educated person. Don't act rashly and never come back. Have you heard the story of Wulibu? I killed people in the enemy camp like killing chickens. Don't harm yourself and Mu Wei."

"No, no."

Mou Ning Keren left swallowing his saliva, then fled to Mu Wei's camp in a panic and surrendered to Mu Wei in a few words.

Mu Wei was originally a Song general who surrendered to Xia. Liu Yanqing and his son also sent people to persuade him to surrender, but people always like to move to higher places. How could he surrender to the declining Western court?

Moreover, he had rebelled against the Song Dynasty before, and he had no good results after surrendering. However, surrendering to Yang Chang was different. He was independent of the Song Dynasty and could destroy the powerful Xixia. Sooner or later, he would replace the Song Dynasty and become emperor. He did not feel ashamed to surrender, and it would not affect his future at all. Mu Wei left his deputy general to confront Liu Yanqing, and went to Tongguan to meet Yang Chang in person with Ning Keren.

At that time, Zhao Ji had already arrived at Tongguan. Yang Chang accepted Mu Wei's surrender and led the army out of Tongguan, preparing to conquer the Liu father and son with virtue.

Liu Yanqing and his son Liu Guangshi, under the order of Zhao Huan, led 50,000 troops westward and had been confronting each other in Tongguan for more than a month.

The Liu family fought in the northwest, so they were not afraid of the Western Xia army. Moreover, the opponent's main general was once a Song general. The two sides knew each other well and never fought to the death.

After Western Xia was destroyed by Yang Chang, Zhao Huan wanted to swallow up the 200,000 Xia soldiers in Guanzhong and then use them to deal with Zhao Gou who ruled the south of the Yangtze River. So he asked the father and son of the Liu family to take Li Qianshun's letter and recruit the military generals in Guanzhong along the way.

However, Mu Wei was unwilling to surrender to the Song Dynasty, and Mou Ning Keren came to supervise the army, which prevented the Liu father and son from accomplishing their goal. After several battles, the two sides found that the combat effectiveness of the Liu father and son's soldiers was much weaker than in the northwest, and they had no desire to surrender at all.

The elite direct lineage of the Liu family father and son had been exhausted in the fight against the Jin people. At this time, the Western Army among the 50,000 people had only a few hundred people, so it was natural that they could not gain an advantage. Seeing that Li Qianshun's letter was useless and they could not gain an advantage in the battle, the father and son sent people to Bian Jing for help, hoping to send Li Qianshun to the front line.

As they were waiting and confronting each other, suddenly an urgent report came from the scouts ahead: Guanzhong had sent tens of thousands of reinforcements to Tongguan and were approaching Mu Wei's camp.

Liu Yanqing panicked and discussed with his son Liu Guangshi, "Your Majesty is still too naive. Zhao Gou dared to proclaim himself emperor even though he had troops. Now Li Renli and the crown prince have an army of 200,000 and occupy the strategic location of Guanzhong. Why would they surrender to the Song Dynasty?"

"But we have already asked the court for help. If we retreat before receiving a reply, we may be criticized by the court officials."

"If we kill all these tens of thousands of people, you and I, father and son, will not only be criticized, but we may even lose our lives."

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

While the father and son were discussing, another scout broke into the tent and said with a fist, "Mu Wei is leading a small group of people towards our camp and wants the two generals to go out and talk."

"Oh, I see."

Liu Yanqing waved his hand to signal the scouts to retreat, and then instructed Liu Guangshi: "Mu Wei has sent reinforcements to meet us. I am afraid he is threatening. I will go to meet him for a while, and you stay in the camp and be on guard to prevent the Xia soldiers from taking advantage of the situation to launch a strong attack."

"Don't worry, Dad. I'll save you some trouble."

As soon as Liu Guangshi finished speaking, Liu Yanqing stood up and walked out of the tent, led a team of guards to the gate of the village, and saw the Xia army arriving from afar.

He urged his horse forward with suspicion and stopped a few feet away.

There was a strange man and woman standing in the center of Xia’s army, and Mu Wei was next to the man.

Liu Yanqing had never met Yang Chang and Qiu Qiongying, and thought they were new generals from Western Xia, so he shouted at Mu Wei, "General Mu, why did you meet with me? Have you decided to return to the Song Dynasty? I have obtained the consent of His Majesty, and not only will I not hold you accountable, I will also promote you two levels and make you a Jiedushi."

"hehe."

Mu Wei smiled faintly, pointed at Yang Chang and Qiu Qiongying and said, "I am not worthy of this. The Prince of Jin and the Princess are here, why don't you bow down?"

Brother Jin Wang Richard? Isn't he dead?

Liu Yanqing frowned and sneered: "As the commander-in-chief, I am wearing armor at this moment. Even the princes of my own country can pay full respects. You want me to pay homage to the king of a foreign country?"

"You are so brave!"

"All right."

Yang Chang stopped Mu Wei, looked at Liu Yanqing and asked, "General Liu is very imposing, worthy of being a famous general of the Song Dynasty. I think we have never met before. Let's formally meet today. I am Yang Chang."

"Who?"

"Prince Yang Chang of Jin."

"you?"

Liu Yanqing was stunned when he heard this. He thought to himself, "The Xixia people also use this trick? They have destroyed your country, and now you appear in the Xixia army?"
He immediately laughed and said, "It's really hilarious. The King of Jin is the pillar of the Song Dynasty. Not everyone can pretend to be him. Mu Wei, don't try these tricks. Xixia has already been destroyed. It can't occupy Guanzhong for long. You have to wait until Li Qianshun arrives before you wake up."

"Blind fool"

When Mu Wei was cursing, Yang Chang did not explain too much. He just waved his hand gently, and Zhao Ji was led out on horseback, which left Liu Yanqing stunned.

Yang Chang asked again: "Now, do you want to bow or not?"

"no."

Liu Yanqing swallowed hard and thought to himself, I was planning to use Li Qianshun to break the impasse, but the Xixia people actually found someone to impersonate the emperor. Did he predict my prediction?

"You are."

"Liu Yanqing, you are so brave!"

"Are you really the emperor?"

Zhao Ji's appearance could be faked, but his voice was difficult to fake. Liu Yanqing was very familiar with him, so when he heard the old emperor speak, he was already very disappointed.

"Are you questioning me?"

"No, I am just..."

"You still don't bow?"

"Yes"

Liu Yanqing quickly dismounted and bowed to Zhao Ji, "I didn't know the emperor was coming. Please forgive me."

"Bow to King Jin first!"

"Ah? Him?"

"Prince of Jin, Yang Chang, if you are genuine, quickly bring your people and obey my orders!"

Tokyo, Ouchi, Ruisi Palace.

Zhao Huan had been here for three days. On the white back of the screen with mountains, rivers, and the state in the hall was Zhao Ji's calligraphy.

From left to right: Fang La from Jiangnan, Tian Hu from Hebei, and Wang Qing from Huaixi.

The 'Shandong Song Jiang' on the far right was cut off by Chai Jin with a sharp weapon, so Zhao Ji placed a new statue of Guangming Tianzun to the right of the cut mark.

Zhao Ji's handwritten imperial edict recently reached Zhao Huan's hands. The thing he was most worried about happened. Yang Chang finally stopped pretending.

If compared with his father and brother, Zhao Huan was ordinary and confident, but if compared with Yang Chang, he would be incomparable.

Zhao Ji advised him to abdicate and hand over the throne to Yang Chang, but Zhao Huan was very hesitant.

The throne was hard-earned, and sitting on it was extremely painful. It was rare that I could hold on for so long, and now that life is slowly getting better, I am going to hand it over?

Zhao Huan certainly would not want to do so, and neither would the ministers who supported him. However, Yang Chang had the ability to slay dragons from a thousand miles away, and even the emperor of the Jin Dynasty would be gone. If he refused, the consequences would be disastrous.

More importantly, when the matter was brought to the court, most of the ministers who had originally supported him chose to remain silent, while the others, under the manipulation of Su Yuanjing, suggested that Zhao Huan follow Zhao Ji's words.

After this incident, he lost confidence in taking over Guanzhong, so the court simply ignored Liu Yanqing's request for help.

Zhao Huan locked himself in the Ruisi Palace, looking at the four characters "Guangming Tianzun" from time to time, not knowing where his life was going.

In late April, Prime Minister Li Gang rushed past the guards in front of the palace and rushed into the Ruisi Palace, shouting loudly without paying attention to etiquette: "Your Majesty, great joy, great joy!"

Seeing that Zhao Huan did not answer, Li Gang continued as he walked, "Liu Yanqing and his son have taken Chang'an, Li Renli and the remaining Xixia troops have surrendered, and they are now returning to the capital, and the front of the army is approaching Luoyang!"

"What did you say?"

Zhao Huan's body trembled, he jumped up from the throne, then ran down the stairs barefoot, grabbed Li Gang's hand, and excitedly confirmed: "Has Guanzhong really been recovered?"

"Ah."

Li Gang nodded, "Your Majesty is blessed with great fortune, and you got 200,000 Xia troops for free!"

"Great! That's great."

Zhao Huan was overjoyed, "Call all the civil and military officials immediately. I want to join them in this grand event. Oh, and call Duke Anle as well!"

"Ok."

"When the Liu family father and son return triumphantly, I will personally lead all the officials to welcome them. They are the backbone of our Song Dynasty!"

(End of this chapter)