History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 907 Fools are blessed

[Fools have good fortune]

Everyone said that Dang Jin was illiterate, uneducated, and brainless, but he rose from a household slave to a senior general of the Central Imperial Army. He was one of the "three horses" of the Song Dynasty Imperial Army (Palace Front Division, Imperial Guard Infantry Division, Imperial Guard Cavalry Division. Dang Jin successively took charge of the Imperial Guard Infantry Division and Imperial Guard Cavalry Division), and concurrently led a military governor (Xuzhou Zhongwu Army Jiedushi). He was posthumously awarded the title of Shizhong.

Is he stupid? Maybe, but I think he is the smartest one.

First of all, in his professional field, his vertical depth is almost beyond the reach of everyone else. He is the only one who can force the "Yang Family Generals" to hide in the trenches and escape from the city walls. In this respect, Dang Jin is very similar to Xu Chu in the Three Kingdoms.

Secondly, he was just the right amount of stupidity, not too much or too little. He was stupid, so he would not form cliques or factions; he would not hide his emotions, he was straightforward, he would not beat around the bush, and he would not hide any privacy from the emperor. He was completely transparent. So the emperor trusted him very much. What bad intentions could a stupid person have?
He is honest and sincere. He is very aware of his own crudeness and ignorance. Therefore, no matter who ridicules or laughs at him, he will not get angry. Instead, he thinks that the other person is right.

Not to mention his superiors and colleagues, even his subordinates, such as the guards at the door, dared to interrupt him, ridicule him, and tease him, but he would just laugh it off heartlessly and shamelessly, and would not punish or bear a grudge against that person. As a result, more subordinates dared to joke with him.

When he patrolled the streets, he angrily rebuked and beat people who kept rare and exotic animals. He released the birds into the wild instead of putting the money into his own pocket, nor did he take the opportunity to blackmail people. The purpose of his doing so was to educate and implement the emperor's admonition to "rule the world with filial piety." Even if you have money, you should think about supporting your parents, not eat, drink, gamble, or keep falcons and dogs, and not do your job properly!

But when he learned that it was Zhao Guangyi's pet eagle, he immediately became respectful. This was not double standards, but reflected his awe of authority, of his superiors, and of the feudal power system.

This is his greatest advantage: he is stupid, but he knows how to be obedient, listen to Zhao Kuangyin, and resolutely implement Zhao Kuangyin's orders without reason. On the battlefield, he never asks how many enemies there are, but only where they are. He doesn't care about life and death, and he will fight if he doesn't obey.

In the workplace, if there is such a person, he is the joker of everyone. No matter men, women, young or old, leaders or subordinates, everyone in the unit likes to make fun of him. He never gets angry and will even deliberately cooperate to make everyone laugh. No matter what position or role you are, you will be amused by him. Do you want to have such a colleague?
Although he is not very smart, he is grateful and loyal. If you ridicule him, he will not bear grudges. If you are good to him, he will risk his life and be twice as good to you. Can you refuse such a colleague?
He does not belong to any faction and never competes for power with anyone. All the benefits are yours, but he rushes to do the dirty work. Do you like such a colleague?
Because he never gets involved in conflicts of interest, no one or any faction will target him. Who would persecute or embarrass a harmless fool?
A fool has his own luck. No one should be surprised that Dang Jin has achieved a comeback in life. He is a wise man who appears foolish. Anyone who is surprised is a real fool.

[Flooding of Taiyuan City]

On April 4, Zhao Kuangyin convened a military meeting to discuss the military plan to storm Taiyuan City. All the generals signed up to be the death squad. At this time, the left Shenwu general Chen Chengzhao made everyone quiet down with one sentence, "Your Majesty has tens of millions of soldiers at your disposal, why not use them?"

Tens of millions of soldiers? Everyone looked at him in astonishment.

Zhao Kuangyin was also stunned, "Where do the troops come from?"

Chen Chengzhao, wearing a feather fan and a blue scarf, raised his hand and pointed at the Fen River not far away, smiling without saying a word.

Zhao Kuangyin clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Great!" He then ordered Chen Chengzhao to lead the flood control and flood the city. He also sent Sun Wanjin to lead thousands of people to surround Fenzhou to ensure that the water diversion project would not be disturbed.

Fenzhou closed the city gates tightly. Facing Sun Wanjin's provocation, the defenders of Fenzhou shouted, "Don't be complacent, the Khitan cavalry is coming!" As Zhao Kuangyin expected, the most critical factor in the Northern Expedition was the Liao Kingdom. Before that, Zhao Kuangyin sent He Jiyun to guard Shiling Pass. According to intelligence, a support force from the Liao Kingdom was preparing to come to the rescue from Shiling Pass. Therefore, Zhao Kuangyin urgently summoned He Jiyun to Taiyuan to teach him the strategy in person.

This was not the first time that Zhao Kuangyin "granted strategies". Since the founding of the country, whether it was Shi Shouxin and Gao Huaide before the "Battle of Zelu" or before the destruction of Shu in Pinghu, Zhao Kuangyin always met with the commanders of the army alone and gave them strategies in person. Over time, it became a common practice in the Song Dynasty. The emperor, who lived deep in the palace, issued a battle plan in advance, and the frontline generals only needed to read it, and the emperor remotely controlled the front line. At first, this method received positive feedback, but as time went on, in the middle and late stages, this mechanical and rigid bureaucratic approach harmed the Song Dynasty. This is a later story.

Zhao Kuangyin allocated thousands of elite soldiers to He Jiyun and told him confidently, "I will wait for your victory report here tomorrow at noon."

He Jiyun followed the order and defeated the Khitan troops in Yangqu County, captured Liao general Wang Yanfu alive, and killed more than a thousand people. He then sent his son He Chengrui to the outskirts of Taiyuan to report the victory.

Zhao Kuangyin had been waiting on the high platform since early morning. When it was almost noon, he saw a horse galloping towards him. The scouts went forward to ask, and it turned out to be He Chengrui coming to report his victory. The generals around him could not help but marvel at the emperor's wisdom and bravery, and his foresight was as good as a god.

The Song army used bamboo poles to hold up the heads of Khitan soldiers and held up their armor for the Taiyuan defenders to watch. The Khitan reinforcements were the spiritual support of the Northern Han soldiers. Seeing the scene outside the city, the defenders were all dejected, and the mood of loss and despair gradually spread.

Xianzhou Magistrate Shi Zhaowen surrendered in Wencheng; Lanzhou Governor Zhao Wendu surrendered.

Zhao Wendu was previously driven out of the imperial court by Guo Wuwei, but now he finally surrendered to the Song Dynasty. Zhao Kuangyin gave Zhao Wendu a jade belt and a golden saddle, and appointed him as the acting imperial tutor and the governor of Anguo Army. Later, he was transferred to Huazhou and Yaozhou.

In May, the Liao Kingdom indeed sent troops to Dingzhou. Song General Han Chongyun was eager to fight, thinking, "Why did you come so late? I have been waiting for half a year."

As expected, the Liao army thought that the Song army was unprepared and advanced rashly and blindly. Suddenly, they saw the flags of the Song army all over the mountains and were horrified. "We've been ambushed, retreat quickly!" They fled without fighting.

How could Han Chongyun let them escape? With one order, the whole army went out to attack, and the Liao army was slaughtered and defeated. Han Chongyun immediately reported the victory to the imperial court in Taiyuan, and Zhao Kuangyin issued an imperial edict to praise him.

Both Liao reinforcements were repelled, and Zhao Kuangyin decided to launch a general attack on Taiyuan City.

Just before the general attack, Guo Wuwei suddenly contacted the Song army secretly, saying that he would launch a "sneak attack" at night and asked the Song army for support.

Thanks to my old friend "江湖留白" for the first monthly ticket of the Year of the Rabbit! I wish you good luck in the Year of the Rabbit!

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(End of this chapter)