Song Dynasty

Chapter 209 Change History
Although Zhang Jun doesn't understand military affairs, because of his different positions and identities, his overall view is unmatched by others.

Wang Shen's words are all right, and they are also safe and firm words.Perhaps, according to his thinking, the situation in Guanzhong can indeed be stabilized.However, this is purely military.But now the Guanzhong economic strategy that is about to start in the Song Dynasty has more political significance, otherwise the officials would not have sent him to Guanzhong to sit in charge.

Last year, Jurchen went south in two directions, intending to capture the officials and the Queen Mother Yulong, and destroy the Song Dynasty.The south of the Yangtze River has been beaten to pieces. At this moment, it can be said that bandits are everywhere, and the majesty of the court is gone.In such a chaotic situation, it is also a lie to say that people's hearts are not floating.

There are not only gangsters who have become rogues in various places in the south of the Yangtze River, but also many folk cult organizations and associations, Taoism, and sects are also ready to move.The officials urgently need a big victory to stabilize the court situation, so that the thieves all over the south will be intimidated.

Moreover, Guanzhong is so important, if Jurchen is there for a day, Bashu will not be safe for a day.If Bashu is not protected, and the southeast is in danger, what will the Song Dynasty do in the future?

It really moves the whole body by pulling a hair!
Therefore, after the two Jurchen armies returned to the north, the officials and the court, in view of the current dangerous situation, instead of blindly negotiating peace with the Jurchen and fleeing blindly, made up their minds to fight the enemy in Shaanxi.After all, there still remained the rest of the Western Army with a complete organizational system, and the imperial court still had strong confidence in the Western Army of the Great Song Dynasty.

In the past few years, the reason why the Western Army lost so badly in the Northern Expedition to Khitan, the Defense of Taiyuan, and the Defense of Tokyo was not a crime of war, but more of a man-made disaster.If there were not so many disputes in personnel and personnel at that time, maybe history would be different?

All in all, since the fourth year of Jianyan, the imperial court and officials have been forced by the situation to become the main combatants.

Not only that, but they are also aggressive main fighters. They want to see a victory that can stabilize the Northwest and stabilize the morale of the people in the country in a short period of time.

Zhao Gou talked with Zhang Jun for a long time when he left Beijing, and the Privy Council came up with a detailed battle plan: mobilize all available troops in Sichuan and Shaanxi, take southern Shaanxi as the basis, and first divide the troops to attack Tongzhou, Lin State, Yanzhou.That is, Dali, Fuxian, and Yan'an in Shaanxi in later generations.Occupying a place in northern Shaanxi, condescending, cut off the connection between Shanxi and Shaanxi, compressed the main force of Jurchen to the Weihe Plain and the narrow areas of Huaxian and Tongguan, and then fought decisively with them to pacify the Northwest in one fell swoop.

The officials are so concerned, how can he, the Xuanfu envoy of Sichuan and Shaanxi, be in a hurry.

After carefully thinking about what Wang Shen said, Zhang Jun suddenly realized that he had recovered the lost ground in Guanzhong in a short period of time, and driving the Jurchens to the east of Tongguan was just wishful thinking and had no basis in reality.

After a long time, he put the tea bowl in his hand on the table, and sighed heavily: "Daosi's words are reasonable, I think things should be simpler."

Seeing that he was tempted by what he said, and he was not in a hurry to have a decisive battle with Jurchen, Wang Shen was very happy.According to real historical records, after the Battle of Fuping, the last part of the Western Army was wiped out. From then on, the whole of Shaanxi fell, the Southern Song Dynasty was completely lost in the northwest, and the war against Jin was completely passive.

For a long time to come, the Southern Song Dynasty will no longer be able to fight against Jin, and will only devote all its energy to quelling civil strife in the south.The Northern Expedition started again after the Yue Family Army had grown stronger.

However, after the severe blow of the First World War in Shaanxi, Zhao Gou's thoughts have undergone major changes.From the young man who was able to draw a strong bow and focus on recovering on the ground, he has transformed into a cowardly person who is dedicated to guarding half of the south of the Yangtze River and is tired of war.

As long as Zhang Jun gave up the idea of ​​a quick battle, naturally there would be no subsequent Fuping battle, and he would naturally be able to retain the Western Army, a relatively complete field army, to keep the southern and northern Shaanxi, and to attack Hubei and Shaanxi in the future. , may not be able to completely regain the lost ground and wash away the shame of Jingkang.

Selfishly speaking, if the Song army in Shaanxi fights well, it will put strong pressure on the Jin army in Henan and Shanxi, and I and the Sizhou army can rest in Jingchu calmly. The feeling of being on the front line of national defense for a long time is really bad. .It was very difficult to punch Yanzhou, Zhang Yong, and Cao Cheng by himself.It is impossible to see what will happen once the main force of Jurchen's tens of thousands goes south.

The battle of Jiankang was just an encounter with a small group of troops, and it was luck that was able to win.To be honest, Wang Shen has no confidence in going head-to-head with Jurchen's main force now.

Zhang Jun said again: "It seems that we can't be in a hurry to make a strategy for Shaanxi."

Wang Shen: "In ancient times, there was a lesson from the king of Yue who was born and gathered for ten years. The population and wealth of our Great Song Dynasty are ten times and hundreds of times that of Jurchen. As long as we persist for a long time, victory will always belong to us."

"Shengju is easy to say." Zhang Jun said with a long sigh: "Daosi, what you said is right. The idea of ​​a certain and Jurchen to fight quickly is not a whim, and there are also difficulties in it. Now, Guanzhong's fat The land has been completely lost to the enemy. If we don't take back the Weihe Plain, how can we raise our troops?"

Yes, the wealth of Shaanxi is concentrated in the Guanzhong Plain, and this place is the battlefield where the Jinren cavalry gallops. It has already been occupied by the Jurchens, and the rest are mountains and wilderness, which cannot support a hundred thousand troops.

Wang Shen couldn't help asking: "Where are Hanzhong and Bashu?"

Zhang Jun just shook his head bitterly.

Only then did Wang Shen realize that Hanzhong in this era has not been fully developed and is poor.Moreover, the production of Hanzhong is always limited.As for Sichuan, the situation is not too good. It is also difficult to maintain the Xuanfu Division just by relying on the annual summer and autumn grain taxes.

His heart suddenly moved: "Mr. Zhang, when it comes to food and taxes, the last general also had a headache when he first arrived in Huangzhou. This place is too poor to support soldiers. At this time, there was a man named Yan Yuemeng under the last general's command. The scholar gave me an idea to let my Sizhou army get through the difficulties smoothly, so that I can get the money and food for the battle of Qichun later, I think this idea is good."

Zhang Jun: "Let's talk about it in detail."

Wang Shen explained in detail Yan Yuemeng's borrowing of Qi and Huangzhou people's taxes in the next few years from beginning to end.

After listening, Zhang Junhuo stood up with a look of ecstasy on his face, and shouted: "This method is good, and it can completely enlist Sichuan in the next three years. No, no, no, if you want to maintain the daily expenses of the Sichuan-Shaanxi Propaganda Department, And to be able to organize a big battle with 10 horses, it will take at least five years to pre-conquer. With money and food in hand, there is no need to worry about major events.”

He was so excited that he didn't care about the majesty of the Xuanfu envoy, and walked quickly in the tent with bare feet: "Why didn't the old man think of this? When Tong Guan went to Yanyun in the north, Cai Jing printed millions of dollars." Continuing to hand over the banknotes, forced enough to raise enough general funds. Cai Yuanchang is a treacherous man, but his means of managing money are really good. Xuan Henian was such a big mess, and he was able to maintain it for so many years."

As he was speaking, he grabbed Wang Shen's shoulders, his eyes were full of light: "Dao Si is indeed a great talent. With just one sentence, he straightened out and cut off the mess in Shaanxi. If the old man one day pacifies Shaanxi , regaining the lost ground is all because of your strategy today."

When had Wang Shen been praised so much before, so he stood up quickly and said, "Your husband is absurdly praised, but I can't afford to be a general." In real history, this is the reason why Zhang Jun gained a foothold in Shaanxi.He pre-levied taxes in Sichuan and Hanzhong for the next five years, and only then did he stabilize the morale of the troops in Sichuan and Shaanxi and defend Sichuan.

Of course, there are also big troubles.After the Fuping War, all military resources were lost, and the Western Army was wiped out.From then on, Zhang Jun could only take a defensive position in Sichuan, and made no achievements on the battlefield.Without him, all the oil and water in Sichuan will be drained by his pre-conquest, and there will be no potential for war.

"Why can't I afford it, I can afford it, I can afford it." Zhang Jun laughed loudly: "I am honored to have a student like you!" There was a sense of ridicule in these words.

Hearing this point, no matter how thick-skinned Wang Shen was, he couldn't stand it anymore.

To be honest, he still admires Zhang Jun's character and conduct.Although this person has done several scandalous things later, his flaws are not concealed. No matter how you look at it, Zhang Deyuan still deserves the four characters of a national hero.

This person is broad-minded and sophisticated, so there is no need to play tricks in front of him.

Thinking of this, Wang Shen hurriedly explained why he pretended to be Zhang Shujun's disciple and recruited Li Cheng.Among them, he naturally concealed the section that he forged the imperial decree.Just kidding, forgery of the imperial decree is an unforgivable crime to punish the three clans. He doesn't want to cause trouble for himself, and he doesn't want to let this big deal fall into Zhang Jun's hands.

He only said that he had heard that the Privy Council had obtained the government's order and sent people across the river to announce the order. In desperation, he could only pretend to be an angel, and asked Zhang Xianggong to forgive him.

"Okay!" Suddenly, Zhang Jun shouted: "What a Wang Daosi, resourceful, resourceful, and responsible. He is indeed an extraordinary person. I saw you right. I am honored to have a student like you. How can I blame you?"

Seeing that the problem was solved smoothly, Wang Shen was very happy, and hurriedly bowed down: "Thank you, Mr. Xiang."

"Please get up quickly." Zhang Jun helped him up, and asked with a smile, "Daosi, I'm afraid you didn't come to see this old man because of the war in Shaanxi? If you have something to say, you might as well say it clearly."

Wang Shen nodded: "Yes, the last general came here today, and he really asked for something. Unlike the battle in Shaanxi, the battle between Jingchu and Chu must end as soon as possible. To be honest, Sizhou, led by the last general, If the army marches westward, the army rations are only enough for more than ten days. However, Anlu's rebels are raging, and they are eager to get rid of them. "

While talking, he probably told Zhang Shujun the meaning of Lu Benzhong's words.Then he said: "At the end of the day, there is a feeling of uninvitation, and I want to invite Xianggong to stay in Jianghan temporarily and take charge of the overall situation."

"How long will it take to preside over the overall situation of Jianghan?" Zhang Jun frowned and asked, "January, February, or March?"

(End of this chapter)