White-robed Minister

Chapter 220 0218 [Excellent Matching Mechanism]

A heavy rain lasted for half the night, and the Tao River has basically risen back to its normal water level.

Although the weather cleared up again the next day, it was enough to make the people happy.

Xu Lai went to work at the Military Affairs Office with a big smile on his face, and all the officials he encountered along the way had happy expressions on their faces.

Some officials became exceptionally respectful when bowing to him. This respect was different from before, carrying a somewhat indescribable quality.

"Master Xu, we must send the Dragon God back to his place today," Gong Fugui ran over to remind him.

Xu Lai smiled and said, "You seem to know quite a bit about these things."

Gong Fugui said, "When I was a child, I followed my father to various official posts. I didn't read many classic books, but I read a lot of other books."

Xu Lai casually assigned tasks: "In that case, the matter of repairing the Taoshui Dragon King Temple will be entrusted to you. Don't be too extravagant, and don't forcibly conscript people. For the merchants who are willing to donate money to repair the temple, just erect a monument for them."

"Yes, sir!"

Gong Fugui gladly accepted the order.

There were two officially recognized methods of praying for rain in the Song Dynasty, both of which originated from the Tang Dynasty.

The first is the "dragon-drawing rain-praying method," which involves drawing a dragon on silk. The second is Li Yong's rain-praying method, which involves creating a dragon from local soil.

Regardless of the method used, if it really rains, the dragon must be thrown into the water. In other words, if you have invited the dragon god, you must send him back.

The boar, which had been locked up and fed by the government for several days, finally met its death day.

If the rain-praying ritual is effective, a boar must be offered as a reward to the dragon god.

At dusk that day, after a busy day at work, the people spontaneously went to the altar outside the city.

Xu Laiye led the officials out of the city. When he arrived at the altar, all the people cheered. Everyone agreed that Minister Xu could communicate with the Dragon God.

This is a good thing; it will make people feel more at ease.

During the ceremony, Xu Lai recited the sacrificial text to the gods and threw a silk cloth painted with the dragon god into the river. The moment the ceremony ended, the whole audience cheered again.

The boar used to thank the dragon god was cut up and taken home by the officials, and even the pig's blood was collected in a basin.

Officials don't want this stuff because boar meat is too gamey.

"The people's hearts are truly within our grasp," Li Xian remarked with emotion.

Looking at the bustling scene, Zhang Anji said, "With the interaction between humans and gods, everything is going smoothly, and the expansion of territory is just around the corner."

Both eunuchs were looking forward to it, but Li Xian genuinely wanted to learn how to fight, while Zhang Anji simply intended to gain credit.

Xu Lai led the officials away, and after the clerks finished cutting up the pork, they organized the people to dismantle the altar.

The altar, built of loess, was also believed to possess divine power. Not only the farmers in the suburbs, but even city residents flocked to it, wanting to take a handful of soil from the altar home for worship.

"Don't rush, don't panic, everyone gets a share!"

"Line up, or you'll be thrown in jail!"

The soldiers responsible for maintaining order were on high alert. The sheer number of people surging forward meant that a stampede could easily ensue if they weren't careful.

The soldiers were not as amiable as Xu Lai; they directly used knife sheaths, gun butts, and other objects to smash people, and some disobedient civilians were beaten until their heads bled.

The chaos was finally brought under control, and people lined up to receive the yellow soil, chatting and laughing as they waited.

"Tsk tsk, he said five days and it's five days. Master Xu's word really carries weight."

"He's a top scholar, a reincarnation of the God of Literature, and he already knows the Dragon King."

"I heard that when Minister Xu was an official, he personally managed flood control. He recited that prayer, and the floodwaters receded immediately."

"Really?"

"How could this be fake? I never make things up."

"Did you know? A Dragon King Temple is going to be built in the east of the city. A notice was posted this afternoon, and the people are voluntarily donating money. Those who donate more than 300 coins will have their names engraved on a stone tablet outside the Dragon King Temple."

"I don't have that much spare money, I'll just build it and go pray to the gods."

'

"7

In the following days, rain fell in Qin, Feng, Xi, He and other prefectures.

There was also rainfall in Lanzhou.

However, the drought continued in the far northwest, causing great distress to the rulers of Western Xia.

In particular, the food shortage in Yanzhou, Youzhou, and Hongzhou of Western Xia became increasingly severe, and they continued to send troops to plunder Huanqing Road, trying to seize the grain of the Song Dynasty's border residents.

The Prime Minister Liang Yimai approached Empress Dowager Liang: "This year there is a drought, and the harvest will inevitably be poor. Trade has also been interrupted for several years, and the leaders of various tribes are all planning to attack the Song Dynasty."

Even before Li Liangzuo died, the Song Dynasty imposed trade sanctions on Western Xia due to its frequent border incursions. Although smuggling could not be completely eradicated, the overall trade volume decreased sharply, severely impacting Western Xia's economy.

Especially since the beginning of this year, well salt from various prefectures in Xihe has been sold to Jingyuan Road, causing the profits from smuggling Qingbai salt to also decline.

Coupled with the drought, life became increasingly difficult for the Western Xia.

The Western Xia already had a food shortage, and their first reaction was not to conserve it, but to waste their already limited supplies by sending a large army to fight against the Song Dynasty.

Winning might yield a lot of loot, while losing could deplete population.

The Liang siblings also had political motives: to win over local leaders and enhance their own political prestige through warfare, and to take the opportunity to weaken the influence of their political rival, Wei Minglangyu, in the army.

"This year is different from the past. We must guard against the south," said Wang Meng'e, the lover of Empress Dowager Liang. "Mu Zheng has suffered heavy losses and is now very weak. He cannot withstand the Song's attack at all. If we send troops to the north, the Song is very likely to attack from the south."

Liang Yi asked, "Are the Song troops on Qin Feng's side really as formidable as Mu Zheng described?"

Wang Meng'e said, "The commander there is a top scholar, I heard he's only in his twenties, named Xu Lai. Mu Zheng and his soldiers have been terrified by Xu Lai, saying that the Song army has divine assistance and some kind of magical artifact bestowed by the gods. It's utterly absurd."

The governor of Western Xia, Luo Wei, said, "The magical weapons mentioned by the Tibetans are mostly those thunderbolts. Our soldiers in the north have also encountered them. Half a month ago, when troops from Hongzhou went out to seize grain, there were several loud explosions in the Song Dynasty's fortified villages. The sound was as loud as thunder. Then iron balls flew out. Anyone hit by the iron balls was either killed or injured."

"What exactly is that thing?" Empress Dowager Liang asked.

Duro said, "According to the soldiers at the front, it might be a kind of catapult. No, it should be called an iron-throwing cart, capable of throwing iron balls very far."

Empress Dowager Liang had doubts: "Since the Song state has created new weapons, and they are so powerful, we may not be able to win this time."

Dorothy laughed and said, "We've encountered catapults before. As long as our soldiers get close, those things become useless."

Wang Meng'e said, "Even if we are to send troops, the south should make preparations as soon as possible. It would be best to join forces with Dong Zhan and Mu Zheng to send troops together."

Dorothy shook his head: "We can't fight a big war there. At most, we can send 30,000 to 50,000 troops."

During battles in Xihe, Lanzhou and other places, the Song army did indeed face supply difficulties, and its provisions were mainly transported from Qinzhou.

But logistical support was even more difficult for the Western Xia!

If the Western Xia's troop deployment exceeded Lanzhou's local grain supply capacity, it would be necessary to transport grain from other regions. Their supply routes were longer and more difficult to traverse than those of the Song army, and the Western Xia's national strength simply could not support such a situation.

Therefore, whenever the Western Xia mobilized an army of two to three hundred thousand, they would attack nearby Song territories such as Huanqing. The Western Xia army that the Qin-Feng route would face was generally fewer than thirty thousand.

If Xu Lai captures Lanzhou and wants to continue advancing, he will face the same logistical problems as the Western Xia.

Du Luowei said, "The two armies in the south can total 30,000 troops. Let's get Dong Zhan and Mu Zheng involved. It would be best if we could help Mu Zheng recapture Xihe!"

Liang Yimai sighed, "Alas, no matter which side sends troops, they need to provoke the Song army first."

There is now a "peace faction" in Western Xia, composed of members of the royal family, imperial clan, and Han officials who lost in political struggles. They believe that Western Xia's continuous warfare has led to the devastation of the country's people, and they are clamoring for peace talks with the Song Dynasty to restore trade and annual tribute, restore Han Chinese etiquette and systems, and allow the people to temporarily recuperate.

This force should not be underestimated. Therefore, if the Liang siblings want to send troops, they must find a sufficient pretext to completely suppress the voice of the "pro-peace faction".

If the Song Dynasty's border generals only focused on defense and did not take the initiative to attack Western Xia, the Liang siblings would really have no way to mobilize a large army.

These "peace faction" members in Western Xia were led by Weiming Langyu. If Weiming Langyu lost power, they would temporarily lie low, only resurfacing when the young emperor assumed personal rule.

In order to wrest power back from his mother and uncle, the young emperor Li Bingchang of Western Xia secretly made good use of these Western Xia "peace faction" members.

They even considered offering Lanzhou and Huizhou to the Song Dynasty in exchange for its full support. However, this plan was exposed, and the young emperor was imprisoned for a time.

The Song Dynasty later launched its five-pronged attack on the Western Xia under these circumstances, with the Song army heading to Xingqing Prefecture to rescue the young emperor of Western Xia!

Empress Dowager Liang asked the capital city of Rome: "How should we provoke the Song army? These past few months, they have been raiding across the border, but the Song army has only been on the defensive and has not taken the initiative to invade our Great Xia territory. If the Song army does not cross the border, we will have no reason to mobilize a large army and it will be difficult to suppress public opinion within the country."

Duro said, "We can build fortified villages at key locations to lure the Song army to attack. If the Song army doesn't come, we can build fortifications to store up grain and fodder, preparing for the next large-scale military operation."

Empress Dowager Liang then asked her lover, "What should be done with Weiming Langyu?"

Wang Meng'e suggested, "Let him fight the Song army first. If Wei Minglangyu wins, order him to hold back. Our trusted troops can then take the opportunity to achieve a great victory over the Song army, which will surely increase the prestige of the Empress Dowager and the Prime Minister. If Wei Minglangyu loses, his influence in the army will surely plummet, and we can take the opportunity to punish him accordingly."

Liang Yi nodded in approval: "This plan is brilliant!"

Xu Lai and Cai Ting both misjudged the situation; Wei Minglangyu would not be sent to Lanzhou at all, but would instead be sent by the Liang siblings to the north to spearhead the attack.

Regardless of winning or losing, the Liang siblings will profit, and Wei Minglang will inevitably lose power sooner or later.

Whether or not they would deplete the food supplies in Western Xia was not a concern for the Liang siblings; their main objective was to eliminate their political enemies.

The number of soldiers who would die in battle and the number of civilians who would starve to death were not within the scope of the Liang siblings' consideration.

They weren't the emperors of Western Xia; consolidating their power was their top priority.

The political situations of the Song, Liao, and Western Xia dynasties are all in a mess right now, and one can only marvel at the excellent matchmaking system.