Chapter 1396: Trivial matters in the court, Diao Hongxin’s face to face
"Your Majesty, Lord Diao Hongxin is here. Urgent report from Xiangyang!"
It is already May, and flowers are already in full bloom in Lin'an, located in the south of the Yangtze River! The main hall in the imperial city has also swept away the coldness of winter. The door of the main hall is open, and a gentle floral fragrance slowly floats in!
It is said that spring is sleepy and autumn is tired, but this is true! Zhao Shen got up early in the morning and had an early morning meeting. Recently, he said he had something to do, and he said he had nothing to do.
There is no need to talk about some trivial matters. There are only two important things. One of them is naturally the battle of Xiangyang City! The victory of Fengxiang Mansion made everyone's eyes fall on Xiangyang! As for the other one, It’s the White Lotus Club incident that is getting more and more exciting!
Not long ago, the officers and soldiers went to Wu County to encircle and suppress the White Lotus Society. However, the White Lotus Society brought tens of thousands of rebels and directly dispersed the officers and soldiers!
As soon as the officers and soldiers did not dare to fight anymore, they simply retreated dozens of miles away, and the encirclement and suppression was naturally suspended for the time being!
Some people mentioned that the imperial court should recruit the White Lotus Society, and even Ye Yong, Shi Hao and others were more in favor of it! However, Zhao Shen still had some hesitation in his heart!
If the imperial army is pressing down on the territory and they win a few battles first and then appease them, there is no problem.
But now that the officers and soldiers have been defeated several times in a row, so what if they are appeased?
Doesn't it mean that the White Lotus Society has been given an upright identity for nothing?
Moreover, even if they can be stable for a few days after being appeased, wouldn't it be more troublesome if they grow stronger after a while?
Therefore, this matter has been put on hold for the time being! Fortunately, the White Lotus Society is not in the eyes of the imperial court. It is just a county. Although the Song Dynasty only has half of the country, Wu County is only a small place, even if it takes some time It’s nothing!
After going to court, Zhao Shen only felt a little tired! A few days ago, under Zhao Ling's 'threat', he had to accompany Zhao Ling to Shanglin Garden to play several times. Although he felt refreshed, his physical condition But he was a little tired! No, he returned to the main hall the next morning and took a nap in the hall.
But not long after, I was awakened by the whisper of the royal power!
Although Zhao Shen frowned a little, he also knew that if it was not a big deal, Wang Quan would not bother him. Sure enough, when he heard that it was an urgent report from Xiangyang, his sleepiness disappeared instantly!
"Xuan!"
Not long after, Diao Hongxin walked quickly into the hall!
"My lord, please see your majesty! A moment ago, a report from the Xiangyang army was sent to the Privy Council. I did not dare to delay, so I came to see your majesty!"
Zhao Shen nodded, "Send it over!"
The general's report was opened in his hand. Zhao Shen looked at it attentively. Soon his frowned brow slowly opened, "Okay! Now that Shen Tang has arrived, I'm relieved! However, he only brought 20,000 yuan with him." Are the troops and horses a little lacking?
Didn’t the previous Xiangyang battle report say that there were hundreds of thousands of Jin soldiers?”
"Your Majesty, there are indeed more than 100,000 Jin soldiers in Xiangyang! And Mr. Shen indeed only brought 20,000 troops and horses! Although the military report did not say much, I have guessed that one of them, Mr. Shen, is In order to get to Xiangyang as soon as possible! If the army sets off, it will naturally take a long time, but the situation in Xiangyang is critical, and Master Shen does not want to delay any longer!"
"And the 20,000 soldiers and horses under Lord Shen's command should all be elite, and most of them are cavalry.
Only in this way can we reach Xiangyang City in about half a month!"
"The second thing is that there should be food and grass, there is not enough ordnance!"
"The battle at Fengxiang Mansion has lasted for several months. Although the imperial court has been allocating food and grass as much as possible, it is far from enough! Now that the battle at Fengxiang Mansion is over, the food and grass consumption may be about to dry up!"
"As for the third one, Mr. Shen led 20,000 troops, only carrying food and fodder for the army, and then relied on passing through the state capital and the post station for supplies! But even if this is the case, I am afraid that Mr. Shen's army will not have enough food and grass! The reason for this is that Mr. Shen may also have some The intention is to burn the cauldron! Use the shortage of food and grass to stimulate the fighting spirit of the soldiers and horses under his command, and then end the Battle of Xiangyang in the shortest possible time!"
"This is why, after Lord Shen arrived, he only repaired for a day or two before the army directly entered Xiangyang to fight the Jin soldiers!"
"Why!"
Zhao Shen sighed quietly, "That should be it! It's not easy to come to Shen Tang. In the war with the Jin Kingdom, the court's food supply is insufficient, so it's hard for him!"
"However, there is such a big difference between the two sides' troops now, and the golden soldiers are also extremely brave. Is it possible that Shen Tang can win again?"
Zhao Shen asked with some worry.
He didn't know much about military formations. The Song Dynasty valued literature over martial arts. Zhao Shen, who entered the palace at a young age, learned more about classics and history, emperors' mental skills, etc., but he knew little about the art of war.
However, the simplest truth is that the side with fewer soldiers will naturally suffer a lot.
Diao Hongxin hesitated for a moment. If it were anyone else, he would naturally admit defeat, but the leader of the army was Shen Tang, which gave him a lot of confidence.
"Your Majesty, I think that although Mr. Shen has few troops now, he is not bound to be defeated! Now the Jin soldiers are divided into different groups in order to besiege Xiangyang. Mr. Shen's 20,000 soldiers and horses are all elites. If they are defeated one by one, there will be great success. Chances of winning! Moreover, Your Majesty also knows that Lord Shen has unparalleled military skills and strategies. Since he does this, he will not be without aim!"
"Looking at Mr. Shen's experience, which time has he not defeated more with less?
Tubo had nearly 200,000 troops, wasn't it defeated?
Master Shen led more than 10,000 troops, didn't he suppress the entire southern Xinjiang?
Therefore, Your Majesty can rest assured and wait for Master Shen’s good news!”
"Not bad!"
Zhao Shen nodded in agreement. If it were someone else, he would naturally be worried, but the name Shen Tang alone was enough to reassure him.
"Now that Yu Yunwen is out, you should pay more attention to the affairs of the Privy Council! Especially in Shen Hall, whether it is ordnance or soldiers and horses, as long as Shen Hall needs it, we can do it as quickly as possible, and we must not delay the Xiangyang war! In addition, I will inform Ma Shao and ask him to transport a batch of grain and grass as soon as possible!"
"Shen Tang leads the troops to fight, the imperial court cannot hold back!"
"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"
Diao Hongxin sang, "We in the Song Dynasty have such a sage king and a general as fierce as Shen Tang, so we will definitely win this battle!"
"Okay, let's go! If there are any changes in the war in Xiangyang, please report back at any time!"
"My lord, please leave!"
After Diao Hongxin left, Zhao Shen stood up and walked to the study on the side! On the back wall of the study, a huge geological survey map was displayed in front of Zhao Shen's eyes!
This geological survey map is about ten feet wide and about two feet long! On it is the outline of the entire Song Dynasty! However, now the large area north of the Huaihe River is marked with the name of the Jin Kingdom!
His eyes slowly moved across Xiangyang, across the Huaihe River, and finally landed on the location of Kaifeng Mansion! Perhaps, one day, he would be able to see the scenery of Kaifeng Mansion not just from this geological map!