You have truly caused me great suffering!

Not long after the Spring Festival, Taiyuan Prefecture was still covered in ice and snow.

In the cold wind, Chen Shao stood on the side of the road, seeing Wang Bing off.

Over the course of their time together, their relationship wasn't particularly good, but it wasn't too bad either.

Although Wang Bing always suspected that Chen Shao harbored treacherous intentions and plotted to seize Hedong, he ultimately managed to protect Yunzhong.

If Chen Shao had not appeared, Wang Bing dared not imagine how devastating the Jurchen western army's southward advance would have been to Taiyuan Prefecture.

The Dingnan Army's victory over Wanyan Zonghan in Yunzhou further impressed Wang Bing, who looked at them with new respect.

As Wang Bing was about to leave, Chen Shao reached out his hand, and Dong Dahu filled his glass with wine and handed it to him.

"Brother Zhengchen, the journey ahead is long, please take good care of yourself."

Although Wang Bing had mixed feelings, he still took the wine cup and drank it all in one gulp.

"Mingyuan, Wanyan Zonghan is now in your hands."

Chen Shao chuckled, “I hope we can work together to defeat the two Jurchen forces and protect the people of Central China from the ravages of the Tartars.”

Chen Shao felt that their situation was actually not bad. The court had appointed Li Gang, regardless of whether Li Gang knew anything about military affairs or how well he could fight.
(Historically, both Li Xiaozhong and Yue Fei said that Li Gang was ignorant of military affairs.)
At least his prestige was there, enough to promote a large number of pro-war officials and generals.

What we fear most now is that the imperial court will suddenly go and negotiate peace.

Wanyan Zongwang was a master at manipulating people's hearts; the Zhang Jue incident is a case in point. If the Song court was undecided on whether to fight or make peace, and was embroiled in internal strife while facing a formidable enemy, then it would be in danger.

Seeing that he showed no joy but had a sincere look in his eyes, Wang Bing couldn't help but start to doubt himself.

Could it be that I really misunderstood him?

Chen Shao never thought about managing Hedong; he was only focused on resisting the Jurchens.
He did misunderstand, but not in the way he thought.

In Chen Shao's eyes, whether his Huanqing Army left or not, he had already secured control of Hedong.
Putting everything else aside, if the two of them were to actually fight now, it would be hard to say whose side the wealthy gentry of Hedong would take.

The incompetence of the Song Dynasty was exposed to the world as early as when Tong Guan launched his campaign against the Liao Dynasty.

Historically, after the failure of the campaign against the Liao Dynasty, the Jurchens invaded the south. Apart from a few loyal ministers and righteous men, many forces actually chose to wait and see.

Especially after Zhao Gou became emperor, a large number of military leaders emerged like mushrooms after rain, who did not pay much attention to him.

The people of Hedong, located on the border between the Song and Liao dynasties, witnessed firsthand the Jurchens overthrowing the Liao dynasty.

He also blocked the arrogant Jurchen Tartars.

Wang Bing shook his head, clasped his hands in farewell to Chen Shao, glanced back at him from his horse, and then whipped his horse away.

The cold wind brought him back to his senses, and he couldn't help but shake his head at his earlier thoughts.

This person is good at pretending; I almost believed him anyway.
Weren't the examples of Tong Xuanshuai and Tan Fushuai clear enough?

Both of them had trusted Chen Shao so much, but what about Chen Shao?
Now, the only one in the world who is still relentlessly pursuing Commander Tong Xuan and insists that the court put him to death is Chen Shao.

Furthermore, he said things like, "If it gets any later, he might die of old age," which is extremely callous.

No matter how wrong Tong Xuanshuai is, he is still your benefactor, the one who promoted you!

Wang Bing stopped thinking about Chen Shao and left Hedong, fearing he would never return.

What he found most terrifying about Chen Shao was that he did not send the Lingwu Army to participate in the fierce battle between Yingzhou and Yunzhou.

He was absolutely certain that his people would win; that's incredible confidence.

Regardless of his character, his abilities are beyond question.

Wang Bing thought about how his group was heading to the front lines, and he didn't know if they could stop Wanyan Zongwang, but Hedong was about to fall into the hands of those with wolfish ambitions.

The situation in the world seems to be getting more and more difficult.

His mood also became heavy.
-
After Wang Bing left, Taiyuan City appeared even more pitiful.

It's like a delicate and charming young woman, with a strong and imposing Lingwu man beside her.

The setting sun melts gold, and the dusk clouds merge together.

Standing atop the city wall of Taiyuan, Zhang Xiaochun looked down upon the distant Lingwu army camp, a vast army stretching for miles, its horns blaring and its troops burning brightly.

The army assembled here numbered only over 30,000 combat soldiers, but the number of auxiliary troops was increasing. Within a 200-mile radius of Taiyuan Prefecture, wherever there was a wide and flat place to set up camp, troops were stationed.

Pack carts and camel caravans continuously transported supplies into the various prefectures of Yunnei.

Zhang Xiaochun felt utterly hopeless; the clearer he saw things, the bleaker his future seemed.

It was dusk, and smoke rose from the Lingwu Army camp. Large groups of warhorses were being led by auxiliary soldiers to the Lan River to drink, cool off, and wash.

The Northwest Army indeed had a lot of warhorses. Whether it was the Lingwu Legion here or the Yinxia troops in the various prefectures of Yunnei, almost all of them had horses.

They possess mobility comparable to that of nomadic tribes of the grasslands, allowing them to maneuver swiftly and launch rapid raids.

I heard that the cavalry that captured Datong had people specifically assigned to guard their armor on packhorses.

They rode swiftly on light armor during the raid, then donned heavy armor before facing the enemy, and fought their way to Datong Prefecture.

Wang Bing left, taking almost all of his troops with him, leaving only the local garrison troops in Taiyuan.

Zhang Xiaochun knew that he would have to rely on Chen Shao from now on.

Fortunately, it seems his mind has never been on Taiyuan.

He glanced at Li Ye, the transport commissioner of Hedong, beside him, and said, "Their grain transport and military supply are far more competent than yours."

Li Ye sighed and remained silent. The other party had a hundred or a thousand times more packhorses than the entire city of Taiyuan. How could they possibly compare?

"These soldiers look like elite troops."

Chen Shao's status at this time was special; he alone represented the Dingnan Army. Therefore, those who could protect him were naturally all elite troops.

In fact, these were the best-treated soldiers Li Ye had ever seen; their treatment was top-notch.

Not to mention the daily supply of refined rice and flour, there are also vegetables available frequently, and meat is a must every day.

He often saw soldiers from the Lingwu Camp gnawing on a strip of dried meat.

Most of these were dried in the sun on the west bank of the river, making them lightweight and easy to carry.

In addition to the daily food and drink supplies, there were always stoves in Lingwu Camp that were lit around the clock, simmering the best hot soup.

The patrol scouts returned from the front, and there was always hot soup to replenish their energy.

Such a superior supply was naturally supported by a massive logistical system. Heading west from Taiyuan Prefecture, along the Shaanxi Road, one could see caravans moving about everywhere.

Li Ye had heard people say that this caravan was very domineering in the Western Regions and was known as the "Kingdom-Destroying Caravan".

Li Ye and Zhang Xiaochun initially scoffed at the rumors, but after seeing them with their own eyes, they realized that most of them were true.

Suddenly, while several high-ranking officials from Taiyuan were observing the Lingwu military camp, a small group of people rushed towards Taiyuan City.

The officials on the city walls were terrified, but fortunately, these people were not there to attack the city.

They started posting official documents on the wall.

Zhang Xiaochun immediately ordered his men to go down and secretly tear off a sheet of paper and bring it up.

A short while later, a yamen runner came up with a piece of paper. Zhang Xiaochun quickly took it and saw that it was an encouragement to the people of Hedong to settle in Yunzhong Prefecture.

The benefits are very generous; anyone who goes there will be provided with land to cultivate. Once you've cultivated the land for two years, it's yours.

What frightened Zhang Xiaochun the most was that the people in the city gathered together and discussed the contents of the official document, and many of them were eager to try it out.

This is relatively speaking, for the people of Taiyuan who are doing quite well.

In the surrounding counties, wouldn't there be even more people dissatisfied with their lives who would be willing to take the risk and change their way of living?

Zhang Xiaochun's face turned ashen. This was a desperate measure. If the manpower and resources of Hedong were severely depleted, he, as the Hedong Military Commissioner and Prefect of Taiyuan, would be absolutely responsible.
-
In Cizhou, Hebei, the roads are filled with dust and smoke.

With banners flying and drums beating, the Song army advanced northward with great momentum.

On horseback, there was an old man who was very tall but thin, with a dark face and long white beard.

He was none other than Zong Ze, who was ordered to come and fight against the Jin dynasty.

At this time, Wanyan Zongwang's army was rampaging, the situation in Hebei was tense, and many local officials sent by the imperial court failed to take up their posts under various pretexts.

He was the only one who set off alone on horseback on the day he received his orders, accompanied only by a dozen or so old and weak soldiers.

After Cizhou was ravaged by the Jin army, the people fled, and the granaries were empty.

After Zong Ze arrived, he repaired the city walls, dredged the moat, repaired the weapons, recruited volunteers, and began to plan to hold the city firmly. He also submitted a memorial stating: "The five prefectures of Xing, Luo, Ci, Yue, and Xiang each station 20,000 elite troops. If the enemy attacks one prefecture, the other four prefectures will come to its aid. In this way, the military strength of each prefecture will always be maintained at 100,000 men."

The imperial court was delighted to hear such good news and immediately praised Zong Ze, appointing him as the Grand Commander of the Hebei Righteous Army.

Zong Ze seized the opportunity to request armor and weapons, but the court did not respond quickly this time, and instead disappeared without a trace.

The Song Dynasty possessed abundant resources, a vast quantity of armor and weaponry, various expensive crossbows and powerful crossbows, and all sorts of military equipment, all of which were hidden in the armories around Bianliang.

However, they dared not send them out. In the original history, when the Jurchen Tartars finally opened up Bianliang, they found that the armory was piled up with enough military equipment to supply a million-strong army!

However, the Hebei rebels of the Great Song Dynasty were poorly equipped and mostly fought to the death against the Tartars with only their passion and wooden sticks.

Undeterred by the lack of weapons, Zong Ze waged guerrilla warfare in the Cizhou and Xiangzhou areas.

Many righteous men from Hebei came to join him, and with so many people, Zong Ze had to ask the court for weapons and food again.

There has still been no response.
Bianliang was a place with a large population and a relatively tight food supply.

Therefore, grain transport by boat has always been one of the most important matters in the affairs of the Song Dynasty. Bianliang was just an ordinary military town, which was forcibly promoted to the capital of the country, even though its conditions were not very good.

At this moment, both Hebei and Hedong are embroiled in war, and both are asking the Song court for grain. Hedong is not a place with abundant grain production, and Hebei has not yet fully recovered from the war against Yan a few years ago. Both need a continuous supply of grain from the rear.

At this point, it was necessary to collect grain and fodder from places like Jiangnan, Jinghu, and even Jiannan, and then organize their transport to Bianliang. This was another extremely troublesome matter.

Previously, Cai Jing was in charge of scheduling, but now he is too old and completely unable to perform the task.

The current imperial court is now facing a host of forces: the Northwest Dingnan Army, the Western Army, the Hebei Righteous Army, the Hedong Huanqing Army, Wang Bing's New Army, and the Yanshan Prefecture Resistance Army. All of these forces are asking for supplies.

After deliberation, the Song court ingeniously chose to prioritize supplying the Western Army.
That's right, it's the Western Army, which currently has no battles to fight.

Because the officials and scholars in the court felt that the Western Army was in a very important position in Shaanxi.

They are the only army that can counterbalance Chen Shao, and must be won over.

Although the Western Army did not participate in the war, it used the pretext of preparing for war to demand grain and pay from the central government without any politeness, and it made a lot of noise, as if the Western Army would collapse and no longer be able to serve the government if the court did not provide assistance.

At that time, not only the Jurchen Tartars, but even the Dingnan Army will be unable to stop them.

The bureaucratic system of the Song Dynasty was riddled with layers of bureaucracy and mutual checks and balances, and was never known for its efficiency.

The Song Dynasty had never fought a war of such immense scale and spanning thousands of miles before! The fighting was happening from east to west.

The bureaucratic system is now learning its most severe lesson.

They are needed to do everything, but they are incapable of doing anything well.

The Hebei rebels and Chen Shao's Dingnan army, who were at the forefront, could not get any military rations or weapons from them.

Even if people wanted to pledge allegiance, they couldn't even get past the threshold of loyalty to you. On the contrary, the Western Army, which had been heartbroken a few years ago, suddenly became a hot commodity for the Song Dynasty.

This attempt to suppress the Dingnan Army is far too obvious.

On horseback, Zong Ze heard his men complaining that the imperial court's grain and military equipment had not yet arrived.

He was both anxious and angry. His men were now fighting against the Jin army in Hebei, engaging in guerrilla warfare, which was tantamount to fighting for their lives.

Fighting this kind of battle requires extremely high morale and determination from the troops. The court is so incompetent that it has dampened everyone's spirits. How can this battle be fought?
Just as he was feeling distressed and indignant, he saw a group of people walking in the opposite direction on the road in the distance.

Zong Ze was curious, and upon approaching, he discovered it was a prince's imperial carriage.

He tried to approach, but was stopped by the guards. Zong Ze asked loudly, "Whose carriage is this?"

The carriage curtain was lifted, and Prince Kang, Zhao Gou, and Minister of Justice, Wang Yun, greeted him from a distance.

Zong Ze recognized the two men and couldn't help but ask, "Where is Your Highness headed?"

"I have been sent by imperial decree to the Jin army camp to negotiate peace."

Upon hearing this, the Hebei rebels around Zong Ze immediately erupted in uproar.

The Jin soldiers burned, killed, and looted in their hometown. Everyone had a deep-seated hatred for the Jin soldiers, and they risked their lives to fight against them.

Now the imperial court wants to negotiate peace with the Jurchens!
The angry outcry spread like wildfire, drawing crowds of people to the scene.

Seeing this, Zong Ze shouted, "The Jurchens are cunning and untrustworthy. Prince Su left and never returned. Now the enemy is using deceitful words to persuade Your Majesty. I urge you to think twice and not to act!"

Zhao Gou didn't actually want to go either, fearing he'd be left in the Jin camp. Seeing the crowd's agitation, he slightly moved his eyes and said, "In that case, I'm willing to listen to Minister Zong's words." (End of Chapter)