While he was dazed, a voice rang in the ears of the Minister of Rites!
"Ah, Mr. Zhang!"
Zhang Jun looked at him and said, "How much do you think is appropriate?"
Zhuang Chi thought for a while, and then said carefully, "I think it should not exceed one or two million taels of silver at most!"
Zhang Jun sneered when he heard this, "Whether the peace talks can be successful is another matter, but even if it can be successful, if it exceeds two hundred thousand taels of silver, then your head will be removed for you!"
After saying that, Zhang Jun waved his sleeves and strode away!
Zhuang Chi looked sad and didn't know what to do for a moment. He just wanted to send away the two hundred thousand taels of silver from Dali. Isn't this embarrassing himself?
"Master Zhang, your Majesty has summoned you!"
Before Zhang Jun could walk out of the palace gate, a chamberlain hurried over!
Zhang Jun stopped and followed the chamberlain towards the palace again, "Did your Majesty tell you what happened?"
The chamberlain shook his head slightly at first, and then said in a low voice, "Your Majesty is angry, and he told the steward about the floods in Chengdu Mansion and the Fifth Northwest Road."
Zhang Jun nodded imperceptibly. Now that the disaster situation on the Northwest Fifth Road has stabilized, reports from various places are relatively timely, including the grain and grass needed for disaster relief, because the transportation of the Shaosheng and Sheng caravans can basically meet the needs. The needs of the land.
Therefore, what the Holy One has in mind is naturally not a disaster.
In this way, the only one worthy of mentioning by the Holy Spirit is Shen Tang.
Thinking about the secret reports that Shen Tang has been sending back during this period, it is obvious that because of the continuous eastward march of Dali soldiers and horses, His Majesty couldn't help it and wanted to know Shen Tang's current movements.
Following this chamberlain, Zhang Jun came all the way to the Qinzheng Palace!
Afterwards, Zhao Shen waved his hand for Wang Quan and others to leave, "Zhang Aiqing, is there any secret report from Shen Hall recently?
I have already approved his plan before. How far has it progressed now?
How long will it take to see results?"
"This Dali is simply too much to bully others. Do you really think that I can't do anything to them?"
Zhao Shen gritted his teeth and said.
"If possible, I really want to send an army to directly destroy his 20,000 soldiers and horses! Coveting my land of the Song Dynasty will make me lose face!"
"Your Majesty, Shen Tang came here on the fifth day to report that he has led 15,000 troops and arrived at the south of Jiading Prefecture and on the bank of the Dadu River! Now, counting the days, we should be on the way from Rongding Village to Wumeng Mountain. superior."
"How long will it take before Dali retreats?"
Zhang Jun closed his eyes and thought for a long time, "If you want to put pressure on the Dali Kingdom, you must at least have enough power to enter the territory of the Dali Kingdom! In other words, Shen Tang must at least integrate all the tribes in the Wumeng Mountain area. The situation in the Mengshan area is complicated, and Shen Tang only has more than 10,000 troops, so it will take a month at the earliest."
"A month?"
Zhao Shen frowned, "Does it take that long?"
Zhang Jun smiled bitterly upon hearing this, "Your Majesty, there are six or seven powerful tribes in the Wumeng Mountain area, and the Wumeng tribe has tens of thousands of elite troops. It is extremely difficult for Shen Tang to capture this area. .
I am not afraid of Your Majesty’s laughter, even if I lead my troops there is no guarantee!”
"Why!"
Zhao Shen sighed slightly, "It is indeed difficult for Shen Tang! In fact, according to my opinion, Shen Tang should really be allowed to bring more soldiers and horses. This way, he can be more confident and conquer the entire southern Xinjiang with 15,000 soldiers and horses. , I’m afraid others wouldn’t even dare to think about it!”
"Shen Tang also wanted to save military pay! Although Shen Tang didn't say anything, I knew a thing or two! Including this time of sending troops, the imperial court's military pay was not in place at all, and even the grain and grass were temporarily diverted from some of the disaster relief grain and rice! "
Zhang Jun paused, and then whispered, "In the name of His Majesty, Shen Tang took out five hundred thousand taels of military supplies and told the soldiers that it was a reward from His Majesty! As far as I know, the money was temporarily obtained from the Shao family Sent there."
"Originally Shen Tang wanted to collect more money, but His Majesty also knows that in the past few months, the Shaosheng family has invested more than one million yuan in the disaster on Northwest Fifth Road?
The salt quota promised by the imperial court has not yet been fulfilled, and these two families now have very few silver deposits."
"Privately, many colleagues told me that Shen Tang is now in control of the army, with the support of the Shao and Sheng families, and even has connections with the Kingdom of Jin. If he is not curbed to some extent, he may be in trouble in the future.
However, as far as I know, Shen Tang has very little contact with the Kingdom of Jin, and even Wanyan Yue’s family letters were sent directly through the imperial court’s post station.”
"Although the Shaosheng family is a merchant family, they have always been loyal to the emperor and patriotic. Not to mention now, even in the past, how many war horses were traded by the caravans of these two families from other places and then sold to the army at a low price?"
"Including several soldiers and horses under Shen Tang's command, every time a reward is selected, Shen Tang will secretly send a secret message to the minister, and let the minister issue the order of the Privy Council!"
"The lieutenant generals in the army do have great respect for Shen Tang, but what they respect is, firstly, because of Shentang's bravery, secondly, because of Shentang's justice, and thirdly, because of Shentang's loyalty!"
"Nowadays, he can be considered to be in a high position, but he is extremely indifferent to power! Patrolling the Northwest Five Routes, as an imperial envoy, he has great power! If Shen Tang lets go of some corrupt officials, he will not only earn a reputation for himself , these people will also remember Shen Tang’s affection! But what about him?
He did not hesitate to offend the powerful, and there were many heads of people along the way. How many moths did he capture?"
"To be honest, Shen Tang's reputation in Northwest Fifth Road has become so bad that officials, big and small, are afraid to avoid him! However, tens of millions of people in Northwest Fifth Road all praise His Majesty's kindness!"
"Other people are thousands of miles away from becoming officials just for money, but as an official like Shen Tang, I am afraid that my family fortune will be lost!"
"Shen Tang once told me that the reason why he entered the officialdom was to help the Song Dynasty conquer the North and South, so that His Majesty could become the emperor of the ages! When the Song Dynasty flourished and Shen Tang was no longer needed, he would Find a wilderness, take your family and take a leisurely stroll under the Nanshan Mountain... If other people say this, I will not believe it at all, but when these words come from Shen Tang's mouth, I can't tolerate my disbelief..."
Zhang Jun's words made Zhao Shen full of emotion and emotion. In fact, there are some things that Zhang Jun doesn't need to talk about! Although he gave Shen Tang great power, and even did not dispatch supervisors in the army, he also had Know what Shen Tang is doing through your own channels! After all, when has the emperor’s mental skills ever truly trusted someone without reservation?
Shen Tang had no need to doubt the loyal ministers of the Song Dynasty. After all, he, the emperor, really owed Shen Tang a lot!