Chapter 1661: Shen Tang's report, disputes in the court
Chapter 1661: Shen Tang’s report, disputes in the court
This report brought silence to the civil and military officials of the entire court. Was this really the Song Army they knew?
Is this really the invincible Khitan in my memory, Dang Xiang?
The opponent had 20,000 elite soldiers, but in the end only one or two thousand remnants were left to escape. He was only injured about 5,000, and even the opponent's generals were directly killed. Such a record sounded like a myth!
"Your Majesty, will Marquis Zhongwu lie about his military exploits?"
Before Zhao Shen could speak, Liu Gong raised his eyebrows and smiled, "Shilang Wang, I haven't finished reading yet!"
Ignoring the stiff expression on the minister's face, Liu Gong continued to read aloud, "This great victory in this battle depends entirely on the power of Your Majesty and the Supreme Emperor. Therefore, I will escort the heads of the enemy generals and a thousand prisoners back to Lin'an to strengthen me." The Song Dynasty was majestic.
The rest of the captives have been temporarily escorted to the various state capitals in Lizhou. After being checked by officials from various state governments, they will be used as laborers and corvees for the use of the Song Dynasty!"
Looking at the expression on Wang Shilang's face, he looked as ugly as if he had swallowed a mouthful of Coptis chinensis.
He still couldn't tell that Liu Gong, that bastard, dug the hole on purpose, and he actually jumped in.
"When a group of prisoners arrive in Lin'an, Wang Shilang will personally count the number and interrogate their history to see if there is any discrepancy with Shen Qing's report!"
Zhao Shen, who was sitting on the dragon chair, said coldly.
Wang Shilang's face darkened. Was he hated by the emperor?
However, he had to bite the bullet and answer, "My lord, I obey the order!"
"Please, gentlemen, let's discuss this for now! Tens of thousands of soldiers fought in the north, and they were victorious. How should we reward them!"
After a moment of silence, Liu Gong took the lead and said, "Your Majesty, what Marquis Zhongwu did was to regain my homeland along the Song Dynasty. It is a great achievement and deserves a heavy reward!"
"This is inappropriate!"
The Minister of War shook his head and said, "According to what Marquis Zhongwu reported, it was just one encounter, and most of the others were small battles. If the reward exceeds the victory, what will happen to the generals in the army afterwards?"
"In my opinion, Your Majesty only needs to send people to reward the army!"
"snort!"
Liu Gong sneered, "With such a great achievement, Master Ruan just brushed off the encounter with just one sentence?
We, the soldiers of the Song Dynasty, suffered 5,000 casualties and killed nearly 20,000 enemy troops. Although the remaining soldiers and horses cleared away not a large number of enemy troops, the number gathered together is not a small number!"
"If we don't reward you generously, wouldn't the officers and soldiers of the army say that the imperial court is unfair?"
"What Mr. Liu said is inappropriate!"
Ruan Liang said lightly, "Thunder, rain and dew are all due to your Majesty's favor! All the rewards and rewards are given by Your Majesty. Is it possible that the army's lieutenants, generals and soldiers will still bear grudges against the imperial court because of the rewards given by Your Majesty?"
These words were a bit heartbreaking. Liu Gong's eyes were sharp and he wanted to go up and punch the old guy.
"Ruan Shangshu! Your Majesty is a holy king, so he is fair! Besides, the court has its own laws, and it is not like Ruan Shangshu said that he will give less rewards if he can!"
After revealing Ruan Liang's words, Shi Hao went out and said to Zhao Shen, "Your Majesty, I believe that military rewards should be given as usual in accordance with imperial laws! In addition, in order to show your kindness, your Majesty can send the Ministry of Rites to treat your Majesty. Reward the troops so that they can realize His Majesty's kindness!"
Zhao Shen nodded with satisfaction, "According to the words of the left prime minister, we will discuss the rewards for the generals in the army with the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Rites, the Privy Council, and the three departments!"
"I obey the decree!"
Ma Shao, Liu Gong, Wei Qi, and Ruan Liang went out to take orders!
"Then what do you think our army will do next?"
Zhao Shen asked with a bit of pride.
"His Majesty!"
This time, it was the right minister who had just taken office who spoke, "Although Marquis Zhongwu has some military exploits, he is just taking advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness.
Moreover, this time when we marched north, we first offended the Kingdom of Jin, but then started a war with Xia Liao. In this way, wouldn’t our army of the Song Dynasty be attacked from both sides?"
"If we forcefully advance the army and suffer a huge defeat, it will severely damage the vitality of our Song Dynasty!"
"In addition, nearly 100,000 soldiers and horses marched northward, and there were tens of thousands of civilians and auxiliary troops! Not long ago, the Song Dynasty just sent troops to southern Xinjiang, and the loss was huge. Now the national treasury is empty. If we reluctantly fight a strong war, wouldn't it make the government unstable? Are the people in trouble?"
"The Northern Expedition to our homeland is the wish of all the benevolent people in the Song Dynasty, but as of today, the situation has not yet arrived!"
"Therefore, for the sake of the safety of the imperial court, the safety of the Great Song Dynasty, and the safety of all the people in the world, we should immediately send an order to Shen Tang to order him to withdraw his troops. On the one hand, he will relieve the pressure on the court, and on the other hand, he will ease the hostility between Jin, Xia, and Liao!"
Zhao Shen was secretly angry. Shen Tang had finally won the battle and had actually occupied the ground. Someone wanted to back down?
Do you want to give up the territory you won?
"Haha, when did the right prime minister pay so much attention to the affairs of my third department?"
Ma Shao turned around and asked with a smile.
He is a close confidant of Zhao Shen, so he naturally knows what to say, and although Jiang Fu is the right minister, is he, the Third Secretary, easy to provoke?
"In other words, the right minister wants to change with me?"
"Although there is nothing I can do, I have been working hard! Since the beginning of this year, my Song Dynasty treasury has been rich! Furthermore, if I remember correctly, the imperial court has only temporarily allocated some food and grass to Marquis Zhongwu. Most of the grain and grass were borrowed by Marquis Zhongwu from the Dangxiang people, so although the losses in the Northern Expedition were not small, they were not considered a loss of national power!"
"Secondly, although Marquis Zhongwu was trying to steal some chestnuts from the fire, the timing was just right! Furthermore, Lintao was my hometown in the Song Dynasty. Marquis Zhongwu finally got it back, but the right minister thought that Marquis Zhongwu had done something wrong. How does this make sense?"
"If this spreads out, how disappointed will the people be with the court?
Are military lieutenants cold-blooded?"
"As for the weather and human affairs, it is even more ridiculous! Isn't it just the right time for Xia, Liao and Jin to fight each other now?
Now that His Majesty and the Supreme Emperor are in charge of the dynasty, and Marquis Zhongwu is leading the three armies, why is there a lack of personnel?"
After saying that, Ma Shao turned his head and bowed to Zhao Shen, "I congratulate Your Majesty on regaining your homeland, and you will become a holy king of this region!"
In an instant, a large number of people fell to the ground and congratulated Zhao Shen!
Jiang Fu's expression did not change, but he also bowed down with everyone. Seeing this, Zhao Shen was overjoyed and raised his head and laughed, "Okay, okay! It's rare for my monarch and his ministers to be united, but there is no need to congratulate him. Marquis Zhongwu and the soldiers are still in front." Fight hard, and when Marquis Zhongwu returns, we will congratulate him again!"
"Your Majesty, please come to a conclusion quickly and don't let the men in front of you feel cold!"
Afterwards, Zhao Shen walked away with satisfaction! Ma Shao sneered at Jiang Fu, then whispered and walked hand in hand with Shi Hao. Liu Gong also smiled and went straight out of the hall.
A confidant of Jiang Fu came forward and said to Jiang Fu in a low voice, "Master Prime Minister, your Majesty's intention to seek war is already clear, so why would the Prime Minister say such words to offend Your Majesty?"
Jiang Fu smiled nonchalantly, and then said, "The truth is that this is just a matter of reconciling my purpose. As for hurting Your Majesty, it doesn't matter."