I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 151 Changes in the Zhao Song Dynasty

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It is said that every new emperor brings a new court.

However, Zhao Yu broke with this tradition.

Zhao Yu accepted almost all the ministers left behind by Zhao Xu, and even those left behind by Gao Taotao.

What's even more remarkable is that Zhao Yu managed to suppress the old and new factions, who were originally locked in fierce and irreconcilable conflict, and persuaded them to downplay their factional strife and perform their respective duties to serve the Zhao Song Dynasty.

This is actually what Zeng Bu has always advocated.

However, although Zeng Bu had such thoughts, he was completely unable to reconcile the deep-seated contradictions between the two sides.

Fortunately, just when the Zhao Song Dynasty was about to spiral out of control, the throne passed to Zhao Yu.

Zhao Yu supported the reforms, but he also saw that the reforms would bring not only national wealth and military strength, but also hidden dangers.

Zhao Yu knew that simple reforms were a double-edged sword; they could overcome obstacles, but they could also harm others and himself.

Therefore, Zhao Yu did not blindly implement the new laws in their entirety, nor did he arbitrarily abolish the old system. Instead, he chose a more stable path, which was to use the new party to carry out the reforms and the old party to supervise them. He vigorously promoted the new laws that had already proven to be effective and not harmful, and put the new laws that had not been verified to be tested in places where everyone could see them clearly. If problems arose, he would fully discuss ways to improve them. If they could not be changed, he would maintain the old system.

In short, Zhao Yu's attitude was to address the issues at hand, face up to the problems in the reform process, give the old party a chance to speak and participate in the discussion, avoid rash implementation, and at the same time, firmly follow the path of reform.

In addition, Zhao Yu himself (and actually the five women behind him) had a vision that transcended a thousand years of this era, and could always provide a reasonable direction when the new party and the old party were deadlocked.

The reforms implemented during Zhao Yu's reign progressed relatively smoothly, and the conflict between the New Party and the Old Party was also eased considerably.

It can be said that the issue of the course of the Song Dynasty, which had been debated for decades, was finally settled during the reign of Emperor Zhao Yu, and the dynasty moved forward steadily.

What was gratifying for both the new and old party leaders was that Zhao Yu valued these veteran officials. It could be said that those currently favored by Zhao Yu were all veteran officials from the previous dynasty, allowing them to use their invaluable political experience accumulated throughout their lives to help the Zhao Song Dynasty smoothly navigate this most difficult period.

However, this does not mean that Zhao Yu did not value the training of new talents.

On the contrary, shortly after Zhao Yu ascended the throne, he began to discover promising new talents and used the factional struggle between the old and new parties to carry out anti-corruption efforts, creating a political stage for these promising new talents to hone their skills.

On one occasion, Zhang Dun, Han Zhongyan, and other high-ranking officials from both the old and new factions reached a rare consensus in private conversation. They believed that although Zhao Yu was not yet twenty years old, his political composure and resolve surpassed even those of them, the older generation, and that the Song Dynasty was poised to welcome a true restorer. They also considered Empress Dowager Xiang, who had strongly advocated for Zhao Yu's ascension to the throne, to be of paramount importance.

Even the New Party, which had always been at odds with Empress Dowager Xiang, did not refute this.

For Zeng Bu personally, even with Zhao Yu's situation, he wasn't without regrets. His only concern was that he feared he wouldn't become prime minister even by the time he retired.

The good news is that these politicians, who would otherwise have met with tragic ends, should finally be able to retire peacefully. This relieves them of any worries and allows them to dedicate themselves fully to serving their country in the final years of their lives…

After leaving Bianliang, Zeng Bu headed west.

Several years ago, at the end of Zhao Xu's reign, or more precisely after the Yellow River breached its banks, bones were exposed in the wilderness, and for miles around, not a rooster crowed. The northern land was a scene of utter desolation. At that time, the people were ragged and their haggard faces were filled with the hardships of life. They were starving, struggling on the edge of life and death, their eyes filled with despair, as if they were begging the heavens for a glimmer of hope.

Zeng Bu personally visited the disaster area and witnessed the human tragedy firsthand: the dilapidated houses, the barren land, the villages submerged by the flood, the exhausted people, and the stark white bones.

At that time, Zeng Bu personally experienced the helplessness, despair, suffering, and struggle of the people.

Zhao Yu had only been on the throne for a little over two years, less than three years, and what Zeng Bu saw was a completely different scene.

Because of the measures implemented by the emperor and his ministers, such as vigorous management of the Yellow River, work-for-relief programs, tax exemptions, and relocation, the people on both sides of the Yellow River were able to recuperate and even begin to live in peace and prosperity.

Today, with the promotion of a series of advanced tools and agricultural implements invented by Ma Xiaojiao, with the great relief provided by the imperial court, and with the settled people working hard in the fields.

And this year, fate has also been on our side.

The fields are full of life, with swaying rice stalks, rolling wheat fields, and lush greenery.

Along the way, Zeng Bu saw people cultivating hope and reaping happiness, a stark contrast to the miserable scene of a few years ago.

'The Mesopotamian region has recovered some vitality.'

If this year's harvest is bountiful, people on both sides of the strait should be able to recover.

Through his visits, Zeng Bu also learned that Tang Ke had done a good job in managing the Yellow River. Although he had not completely eliminated flooding, he had greatly reduced the damage caused by the Yellow River through methods such as dredging and flood discharge.

'If we manage it like this for ten years, we may be able to completely cure the Yellow River…'

Zeng Bu did not go to Shaanxi immediately, but went to Hedong first.

The military defense system of the Song Dynasty in the north was mainly composed of two defense zones: Hebei and Hedong.

Let's leave Hebei aside for now, because it has little to do with the recovery of Western Xia.

Let's start by talking about Hedong, which can become a reserve force for Shaanxi.

Hedong, which is the present-day Shanxi, is a place with mountains and rivers, and many strategic passes, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Agriculture in the Hedong region was relatively developed, making it an important grain-producing area that could provide food and other supplies to the troops stationed in the Northwest Six Route Army. At the same time, the region's abundant iron and coal resources provided raw materials for weapons manufacturing and the construction of military defense facilities, ensuring the equipment supply for the Northwest Six Route Army.

Located on the northern border of the Song Dynasty, bordering the Liao and Western Xia regimes, Hedong served as the Song Dynasty's frontline defense against these northern powers. Its northern passes, such as Yanmen Pass, were crucial defensive lines against the Liao and Western Xia armies, effectively preventing large-scale southward invasions and relieving pressure on the six northwestern routes in defending against the northern regimes. This allowed the Song Dynasty to focus more on addressing the threat posed by the Western Xia in the northwest.

The Hedong region also housed the Linfu Road Military Command, which, together with the Pacification and Management Offices of the Six Northwest Routes, formed the Northwest Defense System of the Northern Song Dynasty. In military operations, Hedong and the Six Northwest Routes could support each other and coordinate their operations, enhancing the overall defensive capabilities and combat effectiveness of the Northwest defense line. For example, in the campaign against the Western Xia, the Hedong army could launch flanking attacks, coordinating with the armies of the Six Northwest Routes to encircle the Western Xia.

By the way, the general in charge of Hedong was named Zhang Yun. He was not only a skilled warrior, but also had a close relationship with Zhao Yu, who even had to call him "father-in-law".

—By chance, Zhang Yun married the mother of the current Empress Zheng Xiansu as his second wife.

Because of this relationship, Zhao Yu once considered transferring Zhang Yun to the central government to work with Guo Cheng in charge of the Imperial Guards, and even planned to reward Zhang Yun handsomely. However, Zhang Yun refused to do so, insisting that "one should not accept rewards without merit," and expressed his willingness to guard Hedong for Zhao Yu and the Zhao Song Dynasty.

After Zeng Bu arrived in Hedong, he listened to reports from Zeng Zhao and Zhang Yun, the Hedong Circuit Pacification Commissioner and Prefect of Taiyuan, in Taiyuan City.

Zeng Zhao was Zeng Bu's younger brother. Because Zhao Yu wanted to recover the Western Xia and defend against the Liao Dynasty's interference in the Song Dynasty's war to recover the Western Xia, he specially transferred the talented Zeng Zhao to Hedong to guard the area.

After Zeng Zhao arrived in Hedong, he actively prepared for war. Now the war preparedness in Hedong is very good, even better than Zhao Yu and his ministers had imagined.

This made Zeng Bu very happy.

After listening to Zeng Zhao's report, Zeng Bu personally went to inspect the military food warehouse and armory to confirm that the situation was indeed as Zeng Zhao had described.

Next, Zeng Bu and Zhang Yun went to see the various armies in Hedong. Under Zhang Yun's command, they were all quite well-trained.

Afterwards, Zeng Bu went to check on the salt.

During Zhao Xu's reign, natural disasters damaged the Jiechi salt ponds, causing significant economic losses to the Song Dynasty. To restore salt production, Emperor Zhao Yu and his ministers adjusted the salt laws (alternating between official monopoly and trade), optimized transportation (salt paper money system, grain and fodder transport), restored production (repairing the Jiechi salt ponds, introducing sea salt), and cracked down on smuggled salt.

After more than two years of recovery, Jieyan has finally regained some of its productivity.

Finally, Zeng Bu told Zeng Zhao and Zhang Yun that the imperial court was going to recover Western Xia. At that time, anyone who made a mistake would be severely punished. He told them to be fully prepared and not to be complacent.

After leaving Hedong, Zeng Bu went to Fuzhou and met Zhe Kexing, the current head of the Zhe family. He told Zhe Kexing that the imperial court was preparing to recover Western Xia and that the Zhe family should prepare for a major battle.

The Zhao Song dynasty maintained a loose rule over the Zhe family, granting them a high degree of autonomy in Linzhou and Fuzhou.

This is precisely why, even though Zeng Bu was the third-ranking prime minister in the Zhao Song Dynasty, he couldn't very well criticize the Zhe family.

However, on the other hand, the Zhe family has never faltered in any major matters over the years, and has always obeyed the orders of the Zhao Song Dynasty, fighting on the front line against the Liao and Western Xia. Countless family members died in battle to protect their home and country, which is why they have been able to enjoy such honors.

After leaving Fuzhou, Zeng Bu entered the Northwest Six Routes.

To defend against the Western Xia invasion, the Zhao Song Dynasty established six institutions in the northwest region similar to the military regions of later times—the Jinglue Anfu Si (abbreviated as "Shuai Si").

That is: Yongxing Military Road Pacification Office, Fuyan Road Pacification Office, Huanqing Road Pacification Office, Qinfeng Road Pacification Office, Jingyuan Road Pacification Office, and Xihe Road Pacification Office.

The heads of these six Pacification Commissioners were all powerful officials who held the positions of Pacification Commissioner of a route, Commander-in-Chief of the Cavalry and Infantry, and Governor of several prefectures and counties.

The head of the Yongxing Army Circuit Pacification Commissioner held the titles of Pacification Commissioner of Yongxing Army Circuit, Commander-in-Chief of Cavalry and Infantry, and Prefect of Yongxing Army (Jingzhao Prefecture), overseeing Jingzhao and Hezhong Prefectures, seven prefectures (Shaanxi, Tong, Hua, Yao, Bin, Jie, and Guo), and the Qingping Army. His defense area roughly corresponded to parts of southern Shanxi, western Henan, southern Shaanxi, and the Guanzhong Plain in later times.

At present, the Yongxing Military Circuit Pacification Commission and the Jingyuan Military Circuit Pacification Commission are both directly under the jurisdiction of Zhang Jie, who is also the highest person in charge of the Northwest war and the Shaanxi and Western Xia Pacification Commissioner personally appointed by Zhao Yu.

The head of the Fuyan Road Pacification Commission was Tao Jiefu, the head of the Huanqing Road Pacification Commission was Zhong Chuan, the head of the Qinfeng Road Pacification Commission was You Shixiong, and the head of the Xihe Road Pacification Commission was Lü Huiqing.

These four men all had extremely brilliant battle records, and they and their generals had been fighting on the front lines of the Northwest battlefield for many years.

It is worth mentioning that in the army of the Zhao Song Dynasty, the troops under the command of these six military commissions were collectively known as the Northwest Imperial Army, also called the "Western Army," which was the absolute main force of the Song army.

Even if Zhao Yu's Shenji Army and the Four Auxiliary New Army are completed one day in the future, if he wants to recover Western Xia, he will definitely have to rely on these six Western armies as the main force, because they have been fighting against Western Xia for nearly a hundred years and know Western Xia and its army well.

While these six Western armies cannot be said to be without any problems, they are absolutely capable of great use; otherwise, they would not have been able to drive the Xia army into a series of defeats recently.

However, war, especially wars of annihilation, depends not only on the size of the army, but also on the national strength and reserves at the front.

Zeng Bu's main task in coming here was to find out the reserves of the six routes of the Western Army and see if they were enough for the Zhao Song Dynasty to launch this war of annihilation.
Zeng Bu first went to Fuyan Road, listened to Tao Jiefu's report in Yan'an Prefecture, and then personally inspected the military grain warehouses and armories of Fuyan Road.

After reading it, Zeng Bu's expression became very serious, because Fuyan Road had been expanding outwards, and its military preparedness was not optimistic, even worse than they had imagined.

Zeng Bu then arrived at Huanqing Road, listened to Zhong Chuan's report in Qingyang Prefecture, and personally inspected the military grain warehouses and armories on Huanqing Road.

Huanqing Road had fewer external wars, so its war preparedness was slightly better, but it was still not enough to support the war to recover the Western Xia.

In fact, Emperor Zhao Yu and his ministers had already realized that the Song Dynasty's continuous military campaigns would inevitably leave the six northwestern routes vulnerable.

Previously, Zhang Jie had repeatedly emphasized what he had seen and heard on the front lines in Shaanxi in his memorials.

Zhang Jie said: "The warehouses in many parts of Shaanxi are already empty. After all sorts of efforts, we can only barely replenish them from the rear when there is an urgent need for supplies. If we listen to the opinions of those border officials and those who are fond of grandiose projects and continue to advance and build fortresses, I am afraid that the border wars will never be quelled. Such a waste of national resources will inevitably cause the people on the border to suffer from rising prices. This is not a long-term solution for the country's stability."

That's right.

Zhang Jie, the highest military commander in the Northwest, actually did not approve of recovering the Western Xia, at least not in the near term. He hoped that the court would train the troops, manage the national finances, and improve the border defenses so that the national strength of the Song Dynasty would be truly enhanced, and then the surrounding barbarians would not dare to invade again.

This was also a hidden danger for the Zhao Song Dynasty in its attempt to recover Western Xia.

One of Zeng Bu's missions was to resolve this hidden danger.

Therefore, Zeng Bu and Zhang Jie had a frank discussion.

Zhang Jie asked, "Is Your Majesty determined to destroy Western Xia?"

Zeng Bu nodded: "The emperor's will cannot be changed."

Zhang Jie was very worried: "The current preparations of the six routes are insufficient to destroy Xia. I'm sure you already know this, Prime Minister Zeng."

Zeng Bu nodded: "Before I came here, His Majesty had already made it clear that if the military preparations are sufficient, you should immediately formulate a strategy and tactics to attack Western Xia and start the war as soon as possible, so as not to give Western Xia a chance to catch its breath. If the military preparations are insufficient, you will be given another year to prepare. The court will fully support you in recovering Western Xia. If you lack manpower, we will provide manpower; if you lack food, we will provide food; if you lack money, we will provide money. We will solve this major problem once and for all."

After listening, Zhang Jie sighed and said, "In that case, we will not build fortifications, strengthen our troops, or actively prepare for war this year."

Hearing Zhang Jie say this, Zeng Bu breathed a sigh of relief.

Although Zhao Yu, Zhang Dun, and Zeng Bu all believed that Zhang Jie was the best candidate to recover Western Xia, Zhao Yu would definitely change commanders if he could not unify Zhang Jie's thinking. Zhao Yu and Zhang Dun had even thought of alternative candidates.

This person is Lü Huiqing.

Fortunately, Zhang Jie changed his mind, sparing Zhao Yu and his ministers from making this difficult decision.

As for why Zhang Jie changed his mind, it was mainly because of a letter written by Zhao Yu to Zhang Jie not long ago.

In this imperial edict, Zhao Yu analyzed the situation of the Song Dynasty, the Liao Dynasty, and the Western Xia Dynasty in great detail, indicating that if the Song Dynasty did not destroy the Western Xia Dynasty, it would inevitably face the risk of national annihilation.

As emperor, Zhao Yu patiently presented Zhang Jie with the facts and reasoned with him, rather than rudely replacing him directly and allowing someone who supported the destruction of Western Xia to lead the war to recover Western Xia. This was already giving Zhang Jie ample courtesy and showed that Zhao Yu valued Zhang Jie.

The saying "A scholar will die for one who understands him" is nothing more than this.

Moreover, as a patriot, Zhang Jie knew that since Zhao Yu had made up his mind to recover Western Xia, if he didn't do it, someone else would. Therefore, it would be better to let him, who knew Western Xia better, take the lead in everything, as this would give them a greater chance of success.

Next, Zhang Jie really went all out. He wanted people, money, and grain, and he asked for an exorbitant amount of everything, demanding that the court send them all to his designated locations.

Zeng Bu calculated that Zhang Jie needed about three years' worth of supplies.

This indicates that Zhang Jie planned to spend three years eliminating the Western Xia.

No.

It should be said that Zhang Jie was making the worst-case scenario plan, which meant that it would take three years to recover Western Xia.

'Zhang Jie is as steady as ever.'

Zeng Bu didn't argue with Zhang Jie because he understood that Zhang Jie had a comprehensive plan to recover Western Xia. As for whether this plan would work, he would have to take it back and discuss it with Zhao Yu and the others...

……

(End of this chapter)