Usurpation of Mongolia: My father-in-law is Genghis Khan

Chapter 201 The Empress of the Southern Song Dynasty will also be given to Zhao Shuo!

Zhao Shuo and the Song army joined forces to capture Bianliang, killing Wanyan Shouxu, thus ending the Jin dynasty as a nation. However, this does not mean that the Jin dynasty had no remaining forces.

The remnants of the Jin dynasty still control four prefectures: Henan Prefecture, Caozhou, Caizhou, and Guide Prefecture.

Pucha Guannu guarded Caizhou, Guo Hama guarded Caozhou, Sahalian guarded Henan Prefecture, and Shijia Niulehuan guarded Guide Prefecture.

After resting for half a month in Bianliang, the Song army split into four routes to take these four prefectural cities.

In fact, Zhao Shuo was not optimistic about the Song army's strategy of dividing its forces. Even though the Jin state had become a dead tiger, these remaining forces were not so easy to deal with.

Take Puchaguannu for example. Although he wasn't exactly a loyal subject of the Jin Dynasty, he was a formidable fighter. Historical records show that when the Mongol army attacked Caizhou, Puchaguannu defeated them several times, winning several impressive battles.

And then there's Guo Hama, who historically guarded Huizhou in Gansu, not Caozhou in present-day Henan. After the fall of the Jin Dynasty, Guo Hama managed to hold out for three years under the siege of the Mongol army.

If the main force of the Song army attacks a prefecture, those people will probably have little power to resist.

But now that our forces are scattered in all directions, we might suffer a few defeats.

But upon careful consideration, Zhao Shuo realized that Zheng Qingzhi also had his own difficulties.

Zheng Qingzhi's elite Song troops came from various strategically important border regions of the Song Dynasty and were not under the command of each other. During the siege of Bianliang, with a formidable enemy at hand, they were still able to maintain a largely united front.

Now that the Jin state has only such a small remnant force left, they might just take their old tradition of vying for credit and shifting blame to the extreme. It would be better to divide the troops and let them each attack a prefecture.

However, this has nothing to do with Zhao Shuo.

The Song army had no face to continue relying on Zhao Shuo's large army to suppress the remaining forces of the Jin dynasty. No matter how incompetent or prone to defeat the Song army was, given enough time, they could eventually wear down these four prefectures.

After these four prefectures were captured, Caozhou and Henan Prefecture would still have to be handed over to Zhao Shuo for rule.

In addition to Chenzhou, which the Song army had previously captured and handed over to Zhao Shuo, Zhao Shuo now possessed three prefectures in the Henan region: Caozhou, Chenzhou, and Henan Prefecture. Luoyang, the ancient capital of six dynasties, was located within Henan Prefecture.

The Song state's expedition to Henan only resulted in the acquisition of three prefectures: Caizhou, Guide Prefecture, and Kaifeng Prefecture.

Apart from the Nanyang Basin, the Jin state divided the Henan region equally between the two sides.

Of course, the Song Dynasty felt better than ever before at this moment.

……

……

In the Southern Song Dynasty, outside Yongjin Gate in Lin'an, on the shore of West Lake, stood Fengle Tower.

"Beyond the mountains, green hills rise; beyond the buildings, more buildings stand. When will the songs and dances of West Lake cease? The warm breeze intoxicates the tourists, making them mistake Hangzhou for Bianzhou."

The "Lou Wai Lou" here refers to Fengle Lou.

Originally, the largest restaurant in Bianliang, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, was called Fanlou, also known as Baifanlou, and later renamed Fenglelou.

After the Southern Song Dynasty was established and the capital was moved to Lin'an (Hangzhou), a restaurant was built here in the style of Fenglelou in Bianliang, and it was also named Fenglelou.

This building is also the largest restaurant in Lin'an.

Today, in a private room on the fifth floor of Fenglelou, two middle-aged men who looked like scholars were drinking and playing Go.

"Brother Yizhai, I won!"

Snapped!
The middle-aged man on the left placed a black piece, capturing a large group of white pieces, thus ending the game.

This man was none other than Feng Quji, a martial arts scholar of the Song Dynasty.

The "Brother Yizhai" he mentioned was naturally Yue Ke, the grandson of Yue Fei and son of Yue Lin.

As Yue Ke arranged the chess pieces, he said with a wry smile, "These days, I've been worried about the war in Bianliang, and I really haven't been in the mood for chess. This loss is truly not unjust."

"I just don't understand," Feng Quji said in a low voice. "When Brother Yizhai wrote that poem, didn't he seem unconcerned about whether the Song and Mongols should join forces to destroy the Jin, or whether the Song should ally with the Jin to resist the Mongols?"

Yue Ke shook his head slightly and said, "What I don't care about is whether this matter is good or bad for our Great Song Dynasty. But no matter what, wiping away the humiliation of Jingkang and restoring the old capital was my grandfather's lifelong wish. Now that this wish is about to be fulfilled, how can I not feel anxious about gains and losses?"

To put it bluntly, Yue Ke simply couldn't be bothered with the Southern Song court, but as the grandson of Yue Fei and a Han Chinese, he couldn't possibly be indifferent to the outcome of the Battle of Bianliang.

Feng Quji comforted him, saying, "If you ask me, Brother Yizhai, you are worrying unnecessarily. What kind of person is King Zhao Shuo? The territory he has conquered exceeds the territory of China itself. With his 50,000 troops in command and our Song Dynasty's 200,000 troops, how can we not deal with the Jin Dynasty, which is barely clinging to life?"

"Thank you for your kind words. I am ignorant, but recently there have been people in Bianliang saying that Emperor Taizong led the entire nation's army to defeat at the gates of Yanjing. This is utterly ridiculous."

"Indeed. How can today's events be compared to those of Emperor Taizong? The Jin Dynasty is doomed!"

This is something I can't go into detail about.

If we continue, we'll end up discussing how Emperor Taizong's donkey cart drifted, how wise and powerful King Zhao Shuo was, and how it was absolutely impossible for the story of the fall of Yanjing to be repeated.

However, both of them believed that nothing more would happen and that the Jin Dynasty was doomed.

But what if?
When Emperor Taizong of Song, Zhao Guangyi, launched his northern expedition, wasn't he full of confidence?

This time, the Song army attacked Bianliang alone, and Xue Ji ruined what should have been a sure victory. They even had to ask Zhao Shuo to lead the army to support them.
War is dangerous and perilous; who dares to claim certain victory?

What if the Yellow River suddenly floods?

What if Zhao Shuo suddenly falls ill and passes away?
What if an epidemic suddenly breaks out in the army, rendering the army unable to fight and forcing them to retreat?

Wouldn't this mean Bianliang could never be recovered? Wouldn't this shame of Jingkang never be avenged? Wouldn't this mean the Jurchens, who brought such heavy suffering to the Han people, never be eradicated?

How could Feng Quji and Yue Ke, who were devoted to the Han people and the world, accept this?

In fact, it's not just these two people.
Since the Song army's northern expedition, almost all the soldiers and civilians of the Southern Song Dynasty have been caught in a serious state of anxiety and fear of loss.

They hoped to destroy the Jin dynasty, restore the old capital, and allow the Han people to rise again.

They also worried that Heaven would play another cruel joke on the Han people. Just like when Emperor Taizong attacked Yanjing, they would be defeated inexplicably, and the Han people would continue to be subjugated and bullied by foreign tribes.

Recently, a large number of people in Bianliang (Kaifeng) have been bringing up the topic of Emperor Taizong's northern expedition, which arose under this sentiment.

However, at this moment—

"A great victory! A great victory! A great victory in Bianliang!"

"Our army, in alliance with King Zhao Shuo, captured Bianliang on April 17th! We killed over a million Jin soldiers!"

"The false emperor Wanyan Shouxu has been split in two by King Zhao Shuo! One half belongs to King Zhao Shuo, and the other half belongs to my Great Song Dynasty!"

"The false queen Tudan has already submitted to King Zhao Shuo!"

"All the concubines, princesses, and noble ladies of the Jin Kingdom have been assigned to meritorious soldiers as slaves!"

"The Jin Dynasty is destroyed! The shame of Jingkang has been avenged! Long live the Great Song Dynasty!"

……

Forty armored soldiers, riding tall horses and escorting eight large white banners with red characters, slowly made their way along the official road, loudly announcing the news.

Even if some people didn't hear clearly, it doesn't matter. The red characters on those eight banners have already clearly written what they want to proclaim! This action has a name: Lu Bu Fei Jie!
Throughout history, military intelligence has always been strictly kept secret when large armies go on campaigns. However, if a major victory is achieved, every effort will be made to spread the news widely.

Therefore, the leader of the army would order the knights to carry a "bill" with the news of victory written on it, and shout loudly all the way back to the capital to report the victory.

On the one hand, it can boost morale in the rear and let the people know what they have gained from the taxes they have paid through hard work and frugality.

On the other hand, it can deter those with ulterior motives from behind. In most cases, the number of beheadings will be exaggerated tenfold.

Zheng Qingzhi, having achieved a great victory in Bianliang, would naturally have issued a proclamation announcing the victory. His statement that he "killed over a million Jin soldiers" was already an understatement.

"Ah! Lubfeijie? We won?"

"Great! The Jin Kingdom has finally been destroyed!"

"From this day forward, the Central Plains will be entirely in the hands of the Han people!"

"My grandfather in heaven would be so happy to know this! I... I am truly happy too!"

"Come! Let's drink three big cups to celebrate today's great victory!"

"What three large cups? Drink to your heart's content! Drink as much as you want! We won't leave until we're drunk!"

"Yes! We won't leave until we're drunk! We won't leave until we're drunk!"

……

All the worries I had before had completely vanished without a trace.

Yue Ke and Feng Quji drank three cups of wine in succession, their hearts filled with indescribable joy.

They were both serious intellectuals and only focused on the political implications of the matter.

However, the Fengle Building is frequented by all sorts of people, and while they were shouting and laughing, they also had a lot of discussions.

"Haha, who would have thought! The Jin dogs have finally met their match! What they did to our Song Kingdom back then, they'll have to pay for now!"

"Now that the false empress has fallen into the hands of King Zhao Shuo, I wonder how he will deal with her?"

"And those Jurchen noble ladies, they'll have to witness the might of the mighty men of my great Han Dynasty!"

"The cycle of karma is inescapable; retribution is inevitable. This is the retribution for the Jurchens! They deserve it!"

"King Zhao Shuo is mighty! Long live the Emperor! We Han people have truly had our moment of triumph!"

"Come on, come on, nobody stop me! All drinks on the second floor of Fenglelou today are on me, Zhao!"

……

The entire Fenglelou restaurant had been transformed into a sea of ​​joy.

Gradually, the entire city of Lin'an turned into a sea of ​​joy!

Cheers of "Great King Zhao Shuo is mighty!" "Long live His Majesty!" "Long live the Great Song Dynasty!" "Long live the Emperor Zhao!" rose and fell, making it even more lively than the New Year!
Soon, Emperor Zhao Yun in the Lin'an Palace also received this good news and immediately summoned all the ministers to the palace to report on matters.

"My esteemed ministers, Zheng Qingzhi has swiftly issued a proclamation announcing that the imperial army has captured Bianliang. Half of the body of the false emperor Wanyan Shouxu is also about to be transported to Lin'an. What do you think?"

Zhao Yun asked with a delighted expression.

Of course he was very happy.

Initially, the matter of sending Zheng Qingzhi as an envoy to Zhao Shuo to request aid from the Mongol army to support the Song army caused considerable debate in the court.

Many people doubt that the Song army's morale would be greatly boosted and they would be able to capture Bianliang with just the Mongol army's presence.

In hindsight, this was definitely the right move.

Otherwise, putting aside the fact that the Song army suffered a major defeat at the gates of Bianliang, the protracted war would have required astronomical military expenditures for the Song army. How would they then pay the annual tribute to Zhao Shuo?

Now that Bianliang has fallen so quickly, it has become much easier to raise funds for Zhao Shuo's annual tribute.

Of course, the honor of "restoring the Central Plains and recovering the old capital" falling on Zhao Yun's head made him so happy that he could wake up with joy even in his sleep.

"This is truly an unprecedented joy for our Great Song Dynasty since Emperor Gaozong! Your Majesty should offer the remains of Wanyan Shouxu in the Imperial Ancestral Temple to comfort our ancestors! I congratulate Your Majesty! I congratulate the Great Song Dynasty!"

As soon as Zhao Yun finished speaking, Ge Hong knelt down to offer his congratulations.

He was prepared that after the victory at the Imperial Ancestral Temple, he would once again submit a petition requesting to retire, stating that he would never again serve as the Prime Minister of the Song Dynasty.

Having recovered Henan and restored the old capital, Ge Hong had no regrets in his life.

As for the muddy waters to come? Ge Hong resolutely refused to wade in!
"That old fox is eighty years old, but he's always so fast!"

Shi Miyuan cursed under his breath and quickly led Xuan Zeng and Qiao Xingjian to kneel down, saying, "Your Majesty, I congratulate you! I congratulate the Great Song Dynasty!"

In any case, Bianliang was taken back during the time of Prime Minister Shi Miyuanwei, which will surely be recorded in history.

Leaving aside the future, let's talk about the present. Based on such achievements alone, the criticisms against him for seizing power will decrease considerably. He's already preparing to send people to create a false impression that he's comparable to the Duke of Zhou assisting King Cheng, or Wang Dao assisting Emperor Yuan of Jin.

Of course, Emperor Zhao Yun was still young. While he was happy, he had to consider more things and said, "In addition to the swift release of the news, Zheng Qingzhi also submitted a memorial to me, which mentioned a long-term concern and an immediate worry of the court."

"The immediate concern is what to do with the Jurchen men we capture after conquering the Jin capital. The long-term concern is how to respond if Zhao Shuo, with his immense power, were to launch an invasion of our Great Song in five years."

"His Majesty!"

Shi Miyuan now harbored considerable resentment towards Zhao Yun, saying, "Hasn't the court already reached a decision on how to deal with Zhao Shuo? We should present him with beauties to bewitch him, making him intoxicated by their charms and forget about attacking our Great Song. Now, half a year has passed, why haven't the beauties to be presented to Zhao Shuo been prepared yet?"

"Alas! It's all about Consort Xie and Consort Jia. Which beauty should I offer to Zhao Shuo, and which beauty should become my empress? Is it really so difficult for me and the Empress Dowager to agree?" Zhao Yun said helplessly.

“What’s so difficult about that?” Shi Miyuan advised, “With Zhao Shuo’s power, he must have seen countless beauties. If they weren’t the most beautiful women in the world, how could they achieve the goals of our Great Song? In the face of such a matter of national importance, why should Your Majesty begrudge two women?”

"what?"

Zhao Yun's expression changed drastically, and he exclaimed in surprise, "According to the Duke of Wei's intentions, are you going to give both Consort Xie and Consort Jia to Zhao Shuo?"

"That's natural."

Boom!
Shi Miyuan knelt down and kowtowed to Zhao Yun, saying, "This old minister is over seventy years old. How many more years do I have left to live? Would I not consider my descendants and offend Your Majesty for no reason? It is simply that Zhao Shuo's strength in the north is too great, and our Great Song urgently needs a chance to breathe!"

Xuan Zeng, another confidant of Shi Miyuan, chimed in, "Your Majesty, think about it. Our Great Song Dynasty has 80 million people. Given time, what kind of beauty can't Your Majesty obtain? However, once the Great Song Dynasty falls... Don't you know what happened to the false empress of the Jin Dynasty, Tudan? Even if Your Majesty takes Xie and Yang as concubines, what good will it do?"

"This...this...this..."

Xuan Zeng's words truly moved Zhao Yun.

He then realized that the fall of the Jin Dynasty had brought immense suffering to the emperor, empress, and even noblewomen, and he felt a sense of satisfaction.

But what would happen if all of this fell on the Song Dynasty?

Once the Song Dynasty falls, what good will it do him to take Consort Xie or Consort Jia as concubines? Will he just be wearing another green hat?
(End of this chapter)