"Officials abandoned temples and communities in Jinling, people's hearts collapsed, thieves took advantage of the situation to penetrate deeper, and people were in ruins. Now that they have won a great victory, they actually indulged the enemy and invaded, and instead used their blood to feed the fishy smell. What a shame and humiliation! What a shame and humiliation!"
"You must never negotiate for peace, let alone go to the land of Yanyun, otherwise we, the Song Dynasty, will be despised by others a hundred and thousand years later!"
"Please send a letter to Mr. Cai!! Please submit a letter to Mr. Cai!!"
…
Inside the Yamen of Daming Mansion, Cai Jing was enjoying tea leisurely, but Liang Shijie walked in quickly, with a helpless face: "Father, there are more and more people around outside, and they all seem to want to rush in, and the government officials can hardly stop them!
"
He was very helpless. When the news of Yanyun's recovery came, people in Hebei were ecstatic, and everyone's face was filled with smiles.
Because from now on, they finally have a barrier that can resist the prairie cavalry, and they no longer have to be robbed and threatened by aliens all the time.
At that time, if someone proved that a relative in his family was a member of the rural army, he would be surrounded by people and go to a restaurant to celebrate.
Since Fan Lou took the lead in giving back to the relatives of the rural soldiers, other wealthy businessmen in Daming Mansion also followed suit, making the common people directly feel that the once humble thief serving the army has become a symbol of heroism and glory.
As soon as the peace talks came out, the situation took a turn for the worse. I was excited before, but now I am angry.
The Liao army burned, killed, and looted in Hebei. Even with the protection of the rural corps, it committed a lot of blood debt. Now it is clear that it can be wiped out, but it has to let the tiger return to the mountain and let the Liao army go to the land of Yanyun. The old coins are still...
After the announcements were read out by the officials, the people of Hebei fell into panic again, and the scholars in Hebei fell into unparalleled humiliation. I don’t know how many people went directly north to Yanyun. In front of the prefect’s Yamen, there were three floors inside and three floors outside.
The scene is completely imaginable.
In response, Cai Jing calmly put down the tea cup and said with concern: "Let the government officials remember that they must not hurt these martyrs who asked for their lives, and let them in when necessary. I have already prepared my memorial, you can take a look."
Liang Shijie stepped forward, looked at the wording of the memorial, and couldn't help but widen his eyes, a little horrified: "Father, will you hurt the court's face too much if you rebuke like this?"
In his impression, this father-in-law was not such an upright and awe-inspiring person!
Cai Jing looked at his son-in-law, who was so busy today and was finally much calmer, and asked for advice: "What do you think of the attitude of the court officials during this peace negotiation?"
Liang Shijie said: "There must be many people who agree. If all the officials oppose it, the officials will not be able to have their own way..."
Cai Jing nodded: "That's good, but the prime minister's attitude is particularly worthy of attention."
"The Han family is in Xiangzhou, Hebei. Naturally, Han Zhongyan cannot allow the Liao army to return, and he will definitely oppose the peace negotiation; Fan Chunli is the son of Wen Zhenggong, established the rule of the dynasty, Shen Yi is upright, and will never agree to the peace negotiation; Cai Bian is my brother
, thanks to my efforts in guarding Daming Mansion, I naturally do not want to waste all my previous efforts; even the man who once had selfish desires to gain power and was full of scheming will never compromise on such a major matter that will be infamy for thousands of years!"
Liang Shijie frowned: "Since all the prime ministers and ministers are opposed to it, how can the peace negotiation be implemented so quickly?"
Cai Jing sighed: "The situation in the court has changed drastically, and the prime minister has lost his power. Besides, these four are no better than Duke Zhang after all... His Majesty moved the capital to Jinling and gained the support of Jiangnan officials. It is indeed a masterstroke for him to stabilize the imperial power!"
Liang Shijie heard the growing noise outside and really didn't understand what this was called.
Cai Jing could understand it very well. If he were Zhao Ji, the previous treatment would be similar. At worst, he would wait for the war to end, then return to Bianjing, pretending that nothing happened, but when the victory is certain, he would sign the Baoyou Alliance in an attempt to use the Liao Emperor
It is really stupid to use the proof to wash away one's act of matricide.
The emperor is the father of the king, and the emperor is the official family. All the merits of his subordinates will ultimately be attributed to the Nine-Five Lord sitting on the dragon throne. As long as the Liao army is destroyed, Yan Yun is kidnapped, and the Liao emperor is captured, which minister can do it?
Do you dare to force him to abdicate?
At that time, some historians will be arranged. With a stroke of Spring and Autumn's brushwork, the general's army was defeated and turned into covering the rural army. Moving the capital south and fleeing was turned into luring the enemy deeper. Not to mention being an emperor through the ages, at least in the Song Dynasty, his achievements directly matched those of Taizu.
In the end, they actually chose to negotiate for peace. The bad reputation of matricide has not been completely cleared away, and they have been burdened with even greater infamy, which has completely lost the hearts of the people in the north!
"I thought that the Emperor of Liao was already a rare fool, but I didn't expect that this person could still retreat at the critical moment. And I, the Emperor of the Song Dynasty..."
Cai Jing shook his head, not knowing whether he should be sorry or grateful, and asked again: "Has the reply from Gao Tiju been received?"
Liang Shijie said: "Not yet, but Commander Lin is arriving soon, and he should send a letter."
Cai Jing was shocked when he heard this and immediately stood up: "Commander Lin is coming? Come with me to greet him!"
There were too many petitioners gathered in the front yard. Lin Yuanjing secretly entered through the back door. When he saw Cai Jing coming out of the hall to welcome him, he was a little surprised and hurriedly bowed: "How can I trouble Mr. Cai to greet me?"
Cai Jing returned the courtesy, then pulled his sleeve and said affectionately: "You and I defended Daming Mansion together and fought bloody battles with the Northern invaders. What kind of friendship is this, why should we keep it outside of the relationship?"
Lin Yuanjing said: "I'm ashamed of myself. Daming Mansion was saved thanks to Cai Gong and Gao Tiju's persistence. It's a pity that Luoyang is in ruins..."
Cai Jing thought that the destruction of Luoyang City would only show my contribution to protecting Hebei. Compassion appeared on his face, and he nodded repeatedly: "Yes! Yes! Hebei can't suffer anymore. Yan Yun, who finally got it, will be more...
We can no longer hand it over to the Liao people. Is there any letter from Gao Tiju?"
Lin Yuanjing took out the letter sent back from Xiao Hei: "This is Gao Tiju's letter. Please have Mr. Cai read it."
Cai Jing took it, opened it and read it carefully, and immediately sighed: "Gao Tiju is indeed the blue sky of our people in the Song Dynasty. His letter said that he would never allow the main force of the Liao army to retreat safely, let alone let them go to Yanmen.
!”
Lin Yuanjing worried: "Gao Tiju wants to resist the decree again? But this time it is a covenant signed by the imperial court..."
Cai Jingdao: "Which is the lesser of two evils. Now that the land of Yanyun has just been recovered, once the Liao army enters Yanmen, the consequences will be disastrous. If I were to trade with Gao Tiju, I would make the same choice..."
Lin Yuanjing said respectfully: "Mr. Cai is so righteous!"
Cai Jing knew that he couldn't just talk empty words, so he said in a deep voice: "I am guarding Beijing and acting as the defense agent for Hebei. There is really not much I can do. I can only try my best to provide food and grass for the rural army to express my full support from all over Hebei!"
Lin Yuanjing was a little moved: "Is the Han family still willing to provide food?"
The food and grass for the Xiang Corps were originally provided by the three local powerful clans, Han, Lu and Chai. Since the main force of the Liao army left Hebei, the Lu and Chai still remained. The largest guild of the Han clan, Anyang, was not very active in supplying food and grass.
The person in charge of the Chamber of Commerce, Han Misun, was originally short-sighted. He relied on Han Jiayan to send people to supervise him. After he relaxed a little, he started to push back and forth.
Cai Jing had long expected this scene and left the matter to his in-law Song Qiaonian, who was far more capable than Liang Shijie. He even warned him not to be afraid of offending the Han family and to use the prefect to suppress him if necessary. Only then did he say these words
: "The rural army promised not to pay for food in Yanyun. It should provide food and grass. Only by having food in hand can the morale of the army and the people be stabilized. No amount of reserve can be exaggerated!"
Of course Lin Yuanjing knew how important food and grass were in today's current situation, and he sincerely expressed his gratitude: "On behalf of the township army, I would like to thank Mr. Cai for his great kindness!"
Cai Jing smiled and said: "Commander Lin is out again. If we really want to talk about great kindness, if Mr. Lin had not conquered Yanyun, we would still be intimidated by the Liao army. Please reply quickly and express your attitude as early as possible."
Good day Yanyun heart!"
Lin Yuanjing hugged his fists heavily and turned to leave.
Watching his back, Liang Shijie said in confusion: "Father, you sent so much food and grass to Yanyun, and you didn't even hesitate to offend the Han family. Why is this?"
Cai Jing leisurely said: "You don't understand. The land of Yanyun may not belong to the Liao Kingdom or the Song Dynasty. This time, food and grass are a timely help. How can we miss this good opportunity?"
"Besides, this is not to offend the Han family. The hearts of the people in the north have been lost. The local powerful people also want to seek self-protection. There is no harm in making friends with the rural army for them. Yanyun is also a barrier to Hebei. I can't fault this move for public or private reasons.
If something goes wrong, who can blame you?"
Cai Jing stopped talking and did not talk in depth. Then he turned to the crowd outside the Yamen asking for help, listening to the increasingly loud noise: "Has no one forced in yet? It seems that the majesty of the imperial court has not yet reached the bottom. There is an opportunity..."
"
Back in the hall, Cai Jing efficiently processed a batch of documents and prepared to rest leisurely. Suddenly, he heard a yamen officer rushing in from outside. What he reported was not that the petitioners had stormed the yamen, but another news: "Report! There is something.
Eight hundred miles to rush into the city!"
Cai Jing waved his hand casually: "Let them go directly north, I won't accept them!"
In the past, everyone had to be very careful about the eight hundred miles urgent gold medal message. But when the messenger got the reply, he really left in a hurry. Everyone in the Daming Mansion found out that it seemed to be just that.
.
But then everyone, including Cai Jing, was still shocked.
Because there was more than one batch of messengers this time, and the number was unexpectedly large.
"Report! Another 800 miles to rush into the city!"
"Report! There are still 800 miles left to rush into the city!"
"Report! The third gold medal!"
"The fifth piece!"
"The seventh piece!"
…
"Twelve yuan..."
When the messengers on the fast horses held golden lights in their hands, the dazzling light flashed through the eyes of passers-by, and even after regular intervals in time, everyone began to count.
.
In the end, I found out that it’s quite particular.
Twelve gold medals, one issued every hour, twelve batches of urgent messengers traveling 800 miles away, carrying the Song-Liao covenant and Zhao Ji's imperial edict, headed for Yanyun.
"Issuing twelve gold medals in one day is because His Majesty is worried that Gao Qiu will continue to resist the decree and will force him to submit in this way. How will this be recorded in the history books?"
Cai Jing stroked his beard for a moment, and his eyes lit up: "Go quickly and get the memorial. The scolding you gave me before was too gentle. I want to change it!"