Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 467 The Deepest Affection in the Northern Dynasties
Shouyang.

In the depths of winter, all things are silent.

This great city, standing on the south bank of the Huai River, became peaceful with the pacification of the Jianghuai region.

To be precise, it became even more prosperous after the war was quelled.

The route from Xuchang to Shouyang is now the most convenient way to travel south from the Central Plains to the Jianghuai region, as it is entirely by water and requires no carriages or horses.

Now that the Jianghuai region has been incorporated into the territory of the Northern Dynasties, Shouyang is no longer the front line, and Henan has become the rear area.

Furthermore, the unbroken alliance with Jiankang temporarily relieved the Jianghuai region of the threat of war.

Several months later, Li Shuang returned to Shouyang City.

Inside the house, charcoal fires burned, keeping out the cold from outside.

Li Shuang took off his gloves and fur coat, and at this moment, he showed no sign of letting up.

Hou Jing entered Li Shuang's room, bringing with him the latest intelligence from Nanliang.

"Your Majesty, we have just received military intelligence. Under pressure from the princes of Liang, Xiao Yi has given up and agreed to let the Imperial Guards return to Jiankang."

Li Shuang wasn't too surprised to hear this.

These 100,000 imperial guards were not Xiao Yi's troops. As long as the imperial court in Jiankang still existed, Xiao Yi could not rightfully control these 100,000 troops, and these 100,000 troops would not willingly obey Xiao Yi.

However, it's impossible for all 100,000 troops to return to Jiankang. The local vassal kings will surely take some of them. If even half of the soldiers can eventually return to Jiankang, Xiao Gang should be thankful.

What about Hanzhong?

"Lan Qin has withdrawn from Nanzheng and has been summoned back to Xiangyang by Xiao Lun, who has made him a general under his command. However, Lan Qin has occupied several counties of our army's territory and has not returned them."

"It seems that the princes of Southern Liang have all begun recruiting soldiers!"

The situation in Nanliang is relatively stable at present.

Firstly, with Emperor Liang still alive, Xiao Gang's presence in Jiankang was entirely legitimate, and no one else could voice their opinions, regardless of their own thoughts. Secondly, the Xiao clan princes in Jingzhou and Xiangyang had not yet decided their victories and were unable to gather their forces to sail south downstream and directly attack Jiankang.

However, as time goes by, the situation will eventually change.

Once a winner is determined in the Jingxiang battle royale scene, that winner will undoubtedly possess the power to disrupt the balance of power in Liang and even the North and South.

Hou Jing was eager to try his luck. The current chaotic situation in Southern Liang was a tempting target for him.

"Your Majesty, what should we do?"

Unlike Hou Jing, Li Shuang was not in a hurry. On the contrary, he was very calm and said:

"Make alliances with nearby states while attacking distant ones!"

Li Shuang was not in a hurry to march south and annex the territory of Southern Liang. The lands of Bashu and Jianghuai had not yet been fully digested, so there was no need for immediate expansion. The current situation also did not allow Li Shuang to do so.

Many prefectures and counties in the Northern Dynasties had not yet recovered from the natural disasters. In particular, the Henan and Qi-Ju regions, which were constantly embroiled in war, suffered greatly from the disasters, resulting in widespread poverty and hardship.

By this time, the impact of the natural disaster on various regions had weakened, and Guanzhong had recovered as well. However, the negative effects remained and would continue for a considerable period of time.

The entire Northern Dynasty appears stable, but it remains fragile and needs time to recover.

Therefore, it would be unwise to spend a lot of military and financial resources to annex the territory of the Southern Dynasty. It would easily lead to a situation of exhausting the people and even accelerate the process of the Xiao family's defeat.

Conversely, forming an alliance with the Xiao family members who own border lands can not only provide a border buffer zone but also significantly slow down the pace of the battle royale.

Hou Jing, upon hearing this, did not immediately understand Li Shuang's meaning. Li Shuang did not offer an explanation, but simply asked:

"Is Xiao Yuanming still behaving himself?"

"That kid has been staying in Shouyang for the past few months, and he doesn't have any other thoughts but just drinks and watches beautiful women dance every day."

Li Shuang nodded and said:

"Therefore, give him an army and enfeoff him in Xinyang."

As Li Shuang spoke, he still felt it wasn't enough, and added:

"Didn't Xiao Gang drive Xiao Cha away from Kuaiji?"

"What does Your Majesty mean?" "Give him a force of soldiers and send him to Beiying Prefecture."

Li Shuang walked to the table and spread out a map on it.

Place names in the territories of both the Northern and Southern Dynasties overlapped.

In addition, the Northern Wei Sinicization team made mistakes in translation, resulting in many place names in various states of the Northern Wei that no longer match the original names.

For example, Guangling City, which is now opposite Xinyang, was called Xixian in ancient times, and it was not in the same place as the Guangling City of the Southern Liang Dynasty.

"By sealing off two kingdoms on the border, the areas of Nanyang and Runan will not need to be heavily guarded and can focus on agriculture and sericulture."

Hou Jing looked troubled upon hearing this.

"But will Xiao Gang agree?"

Li Shuang said leisurely:
"He's not the emperor of Liang yet, what good will it do if he disagrees!"

Hou Jing realized what was happening and slapped his thigh.

The emperor of the Great Liang Dynasty, the Imperial Seal of the State, and the sacrificial ritual objects of the various Southern Dynasties were all in their hands.

Why not just write an imperial edict?

"Your Majesty is wise!"

After Hou Jing finished speaking, he was stunned and unconsciously took a step back.

"Your Majesty, I am a little afraid when you look at me like that."

Li Shuang waved his hand, indicating that Hou Jing didn't need to be nervous, and asked:

"I heard you brought Princess Chang Le back with you this time?"

Hou Jing, upon hearing this, became somewhat flustered and said:
"Your Majesty, I only thought of taking care of her because I felt sorry for her as a widow. It was entirely out of public interest!"

Li Shuang pursed her lips and asked:
"What about the caltrop in your house?"

Hou Jing scratched his head, a simple and honest smile appearing on his face.

"Your Majesty knows me well; I am a man who cherishes the past. As the saying goes, 'Old swords hold deep affection,' and with such deep affection, I will naturally not fail her."

The most affectionate person in the universe, with unique tastes, and a special fondness for princesses.

"So what are your plans?"

"Your Majesty knows me well. I have followed Your Majesty for many years, fighting in the south and the north, and finally managed to save up some wealth. I bought another house in Luoyang. When the time comes, we can just prevent them from meeting, right?"

Upon hearing this, Li Shuang patted Hou Jing on the shoulder and said:

"You own more than two houses in Luoyang!"

Upon hearing this, Hou Jing panicked and pleaded:

"Your Majesty, it wasn't easy for me to accumulate this wealth. You can't keep watching me all the time. He Liuhun is even more ruthless than me."

"I didn't mean to ask you for it."

Hearing this, Hou Jing finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Li Shuang smiled and said:
"The influence of the northerners in Luoyang has waned. The officials and their families who followed Emperor Liang into Luoyang need to be settled. You should vacate all sixty-nine of your houses for now and let them move in. Once Husichun's side is ready, they can move out. The rent can be set at the market price."

Hou Jing's face lit up with joy upon hearing this, and he cupped his hands in greeting, saying:
"I obey!"

After saying that, Hou Jing continued:
"Your Majesty, now that Emperor Liang has arrived in Luoyang, what should we do with him? I've heard that things are quite lively over with Yuan Baoju."

Li Shuang smiled, not caring much.

"Didn't you just say that we should just prevent them from meeting?"

……

(End of this chapter)