It is mid-winter, and the Jiangnan region is gradually entering the coldest time. Compared with the peak of winter in previous years, Jinling City is far behind. There are a lot of discussions among the people, and people's hearts are gradually becoming unstable. The main reason is that
It's a war in Jiangbei.
Although it had been some time since there were reports of battles coming from Jiangbei, the Xinqi of the Southern Tang Dynasty no longer foolishly shouted "disaster", and sensing that the people's hearts were unstable, the Southern Tang court also strengthened martial law and control in Jinling, and began to
The failure of the blockade of Jiangbei.
However, there is no airtight wall in the world, and Jinling is leaky everywhere. Basically, the people of Jinling all know that the Northern Han Dynasty invaded massively, and the Tang army was defeated one after another.
Moreover, with the frequent mobilization of troops and horses by the imperial court, they built ordnance, recruited brave men, and collected money, food and materials. Although the Southern Tang Dynasty had accumulated a lot of capital in the past ten years, especially during the period when Li Min was in power, it could not bear to spend too much.
.
Especially since Li Jing succeeded to the throne, he has built a lot of palaces and gardens, held banquets, and spent extravagantly. He mobilized foreign troops, which is not a small amount, but wastes a lot of money and food, and cannot make ends meet.
It is precisely because the Huainan half and the Jiangnan half complement each other economically that they can support the extravagant enjoyment of the Southern Tang Dynasty monarchs and ministers. Now that the invasion from the north is coming, it is like an explosion. The reaction is fierce, and they have to fight with all their lives to resist it.
Han army.
As the Southern Tang Dynasty prepared for conquest, prices in Jinling rose, and the living costs of ordinary people skyrocketed. The adverse effects of the war on the people of the Southern Tang Dynasty were gradually reflected in the city of Jinling.
Of course, when the cold current in the north and the rustling winds are blowing southward, there are always those who are indifferent to what is going on outside the window and only focus on studying the books of saints and sages.
In Prince Zheng's Mansion, in the back garden, among the pavilions, in the conservatory, in an elegant and fragrant environment, a young man with beautiful appearance and handsome temperament was practicing calligraphy with a warm poem, which he wrote in one fell swoop. This is
The six sons of Emperor Li Jing of the Southern Tang Dynasty and Li Congjia, King of Zheng.
He muttered a few words in his mouth and praised softly: "The rhyme of Wen Gong's words is so fascinating!"
A warm smile appeared on Li Congjia's handsome face. He called the waiter who was waiting aside and asked, "How do you think the word "Gu" is written?"
The eunuch was a eunuch sent by the palace to serve King Zheng. He was well-informed and well-versed in literature. Of course, he complimented and praised his master so much that he made the young man smile.
"I'll give this calligraphy to you!" Li Congjia said happily to the waiter.
The chamberlain hurriedly said: "Xie Liulang, my little one, for your reward!"
The young man didn't know how to feel sad. He twisted his slender hands and suddenly asked: "Recently, I heard people in the mansion say that the Northern invaders invaded from the South. What's going on?"
Facing Li Congjia's curious eyes, the chamberlain said cautiously: "It is said that the Han Dynasty in the north suddenly sent troops to attack our border! Your Majesty has already sent troops north to rescue!"
"These northerners are really good at attacking, and they raised this unknown army!" Li Congjia nodded suddenly and said: "But since the imperial court has sent troops, I think there should be nothing to do, and they can be enough to stop the enemy!"
"Your Highness is right! Our Tang Dynasty has inherited the world from Zhengshuo, and our national power is strong. When the Han soldiers come, we will have our own generals!" The chamberlain said this to comfort Li Congjia, and did not use the defeat in the north to affect King Zheng.
Your Highness lives a peaceful and comfortable life.
Li Congjia became interested and said: "I will lay out the paper for Gu, and I will write a poem to wish the soldiers who resist foreign aggression!"
The chamberlain hurriedly moved and said: "Liu Lang has this intention, your majesty will be happy to know it!"
At the same time, in the Jinling Palace, Emperor Li Jing was irritated. The situation in Huainan was deteriorating day by day, reports of defeat were spreading frequently, and the oppression of the Han army almost made him breathless.
Even though more than twenty days have passed, Li Jing still remembers the palpitations and panic he felt when he learned that Liu Yanzhen's entire army was wiped out. During this period of time, Li Jing could not eat, taste, sleep, and could not sleep peacefully for a day.
. Poems, songs, dances, and extravagant court entertainment all rarely interested him.
"Your Majesty, all the ministers are here!"
After hearing the report, Li Jing reluctantly cheered up and ordered the driver to drive.
In the main hall of the palace, several important ministers of the Southern Tang Dynasty were already waiting. Among them, the most magnanimous ones were the Taifu who returned from Hongzhou, Duke of Chu, and Song Qiqiu, Quan Privy Envoy. Originally, Li Jing was the successor of the Jin Dynasty.
The Grand Master, Song Qiqiu Guciren, is still the Grand Tutor. Yuan Chen is old, but at this time of national crisis, there is a faint tendency to become the backbone of the country.
Under the guidance of the chamberlain, Li Jing entered the palace expressionlessly. He was seated and received the ceremony. After scanning a few ministers, Li Jing asked with rare clarity: "Tell me, what's the bad news? What's the Han army doing?"
?”
The ministers looked at each other for a few times, and Li Zhenggu, the deputy envoy to the Privy Council, stood up and reported: "Your Majesty, this is the news from Hunan. Bian Hao reported from the other side that all the Chu soldiers rebelled, the Lang army was rampant, the morale of the Changsha army was turbulent, and there was insufficient food and fodder.
There is a shortage of military supplies and we can no longer defend it. If the imperial court does not rescue us, we will lose the territory of Hunan!"
As soon as he heard this, Li Jing became angry and scolded the palace: "Why is the pickaxe here so useless? An army of 30,000 can't hold down Hunan, but it was defeated by a bunch of deserters, and the mob was forced to come here."
Wait for the dilemma!”
"Your Majesty, Bian Hao is certainly responsible for what happened in Hunan, but it is not his fault that the situation has developed to this point!" Han Xizai said something fair. When he said this, he glanced at Song Qiqiu,
After Feng Yansi and others returned to Jinling from Qi Qiu in the Song Dynasty, they were immediately suppressed by the imperial court, as they were the Nandu scholars. In terms of influence on the military and political affairs of the Southern Tang Dynasty, it was these Jianghuai bureaucrats.
"Where's Xian Shilang? Why doesn't he lead his army north and join forces with Bian Hao to defeat Lang's soldiers and rebels first?" Li Jing said again. During this period, Li Jing obviously had a bad impression of the situation of all parties and the war situation.
Sorry, at least I can explain it in a simple way.
Li Zhenggu said: "There are endless rebellions and unrest over Xianshijun's side, and there is a threat from the Southern Han army in the direction of Guizhou. I dare not leave without permission!"
After listening to his explanation, Li Jing became even more depressed, and his face became very gloomy. Seeing this, Song Qiqiu spoke up, but he looked calm and spoke directly: "Your Majesty, it's time to make up your mind. Hunan is already a quagmire.
, A country that is free from chaos cannot last long. It has sunk deep in the mud and must strive to extricate itself. Cutting off the wrists of a strong man is like cutting off carrion!"
"Nowadays, Liu Yanzhen is defeated, Shouchun City is besieged, and the north of the Yangtze River is in urgent need. The first priority is to deal with the invasion of the Northern Han Dynasty. On the Hunan side, we should give up decisively and withdraw the army that entered Chu. Recruiting 100,000 men in the south of the Yangtze River is not as good as this
The 20,000 to 30,000 troops that entered Chu can just be withdrawn, rest for a period of time, without training, and then be transferred north to defend against the enemy!"
"Chu people are so forced to retreat, can they withdraw smoothly?" Li Jing obviously had this idea, but he was very worried.
Seeing this, Song Qiqiu replied sternly: "Bian Hao and others cannot hold Hunan. If they don't have the ability to retreat, then the transfer of these soldiers to the north is useless!"
After saying that, his tone softened slightly and he said: "With the current situation, the Chu armies must have their hearts set on returning home. It may be difficult for them to stay in Hunan and fight with troops when they are surrounded by enemies on all sides. But let them withdraw their troops and return home.
, they will definitely rise up eagerly, and it will be difficult for the people of Chu to stop them!"
The army that entered Chu was an army whose military discipline was completely ruined. They were unwilling to fight the Chu people, so how could they fight the more fierce and powerful Han people? I wonder if Song Qiqiu had considered this, or rather, considered it.
When it arrived, it was not brought up.
Han Xizai spoke up to calm Li Jing's mind: "Your Majesty, according to the investigation, Wang Kui of Langzhou and Nagan Wufu of Zhou Xingfeng are all greedy and profit-seeking people. Although they are called 'ten brothers', in fact, they all have their own agendas and are plotting against Hunan."
The land has ambitions. If our army is in Hunan, they can still reluctantly fight together. Once our army withdraws, they will not be too much to hinder each other!"
"After all, those warriors definitely don't want to use their soldiers to consume with our army. Facing the withdrawal of our troops, they are more likely to sit back and watch, and turn to share Hunan, each according to his own territory, and claim hegemony!"
"The only thing that may prevent me from withdrawing is the Han army! But the Han army in Lizhou is ultimately outnumbered and cannot support itself alone, so it is unlikely to be a serious obstacle!"
Hearing Han Xizai's analysis, Li Jing still didn't respond, but Song Qiqiu smoothed his beard calmly and said: "Shilang Han's words are quite insightful. Your Majesty, Master of Hunan, can rest assured to issue an edict!"
"Issuing the edict!" Seeing this, Li Jing waved his hand.
"yes!"
The bad thing in Hunan has finally been decided, but Li Jing's heart is still heavy. The strong troops from the north are pressing down on the border, which is a serious problem.
"Where is the army of the Northern Han Dynasty? What's going on? There are just a bunch of hungry dogs in Hunan, but there is a fierce tiger in the north!" Li Jing sighed, with worry on his face: "How to defeat them?"
After saying this, there was silence in the palace for a short while, but Li Zhenggu left the message: "Since the Emperor of the Northern Han Dynasty personally marched on the Huainan front, and surrounded Shouchun with troops, the connection between our dynasty and Shouchun has been completely cut off!
Tens of thousands of Han imperial troops are trapped in Shouchun, and I don’t know what the situation is in the city!"
"Why do you and your generals stick to the loyal country and try to reverse the defeat? We still have troops, horses, food and grass, and we are defending the fortified city. It is mid-winter now. I think we can hold on for a while and wait for reinforcements from the imperial court!"
Han Xizai added: "The army of the Northern Han Dynasty set up a stronghold under Shouchun City. Judging from its movements, it can be seen that it has the intention to fight for a long time. In my opinion, at least before the cold retreat at the end of winter, the Han army will not attack Shouchun.
, Therefore, our government still has enough time to reorganize the northern aid army!"
Li Jing still believed in Han Xizai's analysis. After listening to his words, she breathed a sigh of relief, but her worries were still heavy.
Li Zhenggu continued to report: "In addition, after the loss of Haozhou, the Han Emperor sent two partial armies, one led by the enemy's Huaidong economic officer Guo Rongdong to attack our Sizhou, and the other led by Huang Guang's patrol officer Si Chao to march westward.
, have captured Huoqiu and Anfeng counties in central Shouzhou. Sizhou regiment training envoy Feng Yanlu requested the imperial court to send troops to support as soon as possible!"
"When the Han army enters the country, let it run wild and have no scruples?" Li Jing finally got angry: "They are asking for help everywhere. Will the reinforcements arrive when they are called?"
The reality is that the 30,000 imperial troops who were worthy of the Han army's fear have been defeated by Liu Yanzhen. It is useless for Li Jing to be so incompetent and furious.
"Your Majesty, I have heard that the Emperor of the Han Dynasty appointed Wang Pu, the deputy envoy who came to Jinling, as the magistrate of Haozhou and to act as the military and administrative agent of Haozhou. Although this man is young, he is extremely capable and capable. He has already begun to count the books and reforms in Haozhou.
The Han system, recruiting scholars and people, attracting disloyal ministers, buying people's hearts, and turning Haozhou into Han rule!" Han Xizai reported with a solemn expression: "Compared with violent attacks, the Han Emperor's methods are more valuable to our dynasty.
Even scarier."
Hearing this, Li Jing couldn't bear it anymore and angrily brushed away the documents on the imperial case.
"Your Majesty, calm down!" Upon seeing this, a group of ministers hurriedly asked.
The scattered documents are just like Li Jing's scattered mood at this time.