As the fighting in the Jianghuai area subsided and entered a period of calm, news of the war on the northern front gradually reached Jiangning.
In October last year, Prince Ye Ji Luorong of Yan commanded 100,000 infantry and cavalry and detoured southward from the northwest of Qin County. In early November, they fought fiercely with Cao's troops in Guyuan at Beiyuan of Qingyang. Cao's army was defeated and retreated to Qingyang.
The Yan army underestimated the enemy and marched eastward. When besieging Qingyang, they sent their troops eastward to Ningzhou. They happened to meet Cao Yiqu personally leading the main force of the Western Qin army to come to the rescue. They fought fiercely at Da Guyuan on the outskirts of Ningzhou and defeated the Yan army's vanguard of more than 10,000 cavalry. They captured Da Guyuan.
After the great victory, Ye Ji Luorong was forced to lead his troops to withdraw from Qingyang and return to the north.
The battle between Cao and Yan ended for the first time with the defeat of Bei Yan, and news of the siege of Qingyang reached Jiangning on January 28th.
After the Cao family invaded Liangchuan, Jiangning's attitude towards the Cao family became wavering.
In his early years, Zuo Chengmu proposed the idea of "uniting Cao Cao to resist the captives", but there were many opponents of this idea. After Cao's invasion of Liangchuan, he was also a "big thief" to Jiangning. If he could not send troops to suppress it, he would have to endure the humiliation and bear the heavy burden.
Can we "connect" again?
It was not until the Shejia Military Division invaded Jiangning that many people realized the reality. If it hadn't been for the beginning of autumn last year, Beiyan's troops focused on the western front to invade Guanshaan, Huaidong, and Huaixi would not have survived last winter so easily.
Compared with greater righteousness, practical needs and interests are what those in power need to consider. After the restoration of the capital in Jiangning, they also paid special attention to the war in Shaanxi.
If Guan Shaanxi falls, Liang Chengyi will be unable to defend Hezhong Prefecture alone; while if Yan Lu holds Guan Shaanxi, they can go out of Wuguan to attack the Nanyang flank, and on the other hand, they can go south into Hanzhong, seize the upper reaches of the Han River, and threaten Xiangfan in the east, forcing Changle to
The bandit Luo Xiancheng succumbed - if the Cao family died and Guan Shaanxi fell, Jiangning would be in great strategic passivity. Qingyang was surrounded, and everyone in Jiangning breathed a sigh of relief.
"The Guan-Shaanxi disaster has yet to be solved!" Gao Zongting sighed while looking at the map hanging on the wall in the White Tiger Hall of the Privy Council.
The Privy Council is juxtaposed with the six ministries. After the Royal Horse Supervisor of the Imperial City, which was originally in charge of the Royal City Guards, was abolished, the Royal Horse Supervisory Office near the Jinyang Gate of the Imperial City was vacated for the Privy Council to occupy. The Imperial City Guards and Horses were also mainly stationed there.
Among the Jinyang Gate Urn City, the Privy Council and Jinyang Gate became the core of Jiangning City.
The news of Qingyang's siege made others breathe a sigh of relief, but everyone in Huaidong still felt great pressure.
Qingyang was located in the border town of Guyuan, located between Shaanxi and Gansu in later generations. The West River and Rouge Canal met in the territory. The large plateaus were crisscrossed and suitable for planting wheat and millet. After the Guan and Shaanxi were destroyed, Qingyang Mansion, known as the granary of Longdong, appeared
It is particularly important; only after three generations of the Cao family occupied Guyuan did they have the strength to separate Guan and Shaanxi and invade the two Sichuan provinces.
Qingyang Prefecture is as important to the Cao family as the five counties of Chongzhou are to Huaidong.
If the five counties of Chongzhou were invaded by foreign enemies and forced them to retreat after repeated fierce battles, the people of Huaidong would definitely not have the joy of a great victory after the war... Just look at the ruins outside Jiangning and you can know the cruelty of the war;
Although the Cao family forced the Yan soldiers back and relieved the siege of Qingyang, they may have actually damaged the foundation.
"The Cao family does not have the determination and strength to stop the enemy from Qingyang," Song Fu said. "The defeat of Da Guyuan was an opportunity for the Yan soldiers to withdraw from the siege, but as far as the Yan soldiers are concerned, there should be no one
Just capture Qingyang’s thoughts..."
Lin Fu put the charcoal pen behind his ear and looked up at the wall map. Several red crosses were marked on the line between Qingyang, Ningzhou and Weizhou in the western part of Guan Shaanxi Province. The route from Qingyang and Yulin to the hinterland of Guan Shaanxi Province was marked with several red crosses.
Dao Ye marked it with a colored pen and said: "The thoughts of the Lord Yan are similar to the strategy of seeking Yanji. The Yan army is strong again and wants to capture Guyuan at once. The two Qingyang cities will be managed by the Cao family.
It is extremely difficult to maintain a strong city for decades. First, the war will continue to weaken the periphery, and the real killing move will remain behind..."
Gao Zongting was the clearest about the situation in Yanji at that time. In the eighth year of Chongguan, the Yanlu broke through the border crossing and destroyed northern Henan, Yannan and northern Shandong. They also completely destroyed the canal roads. If it weren't for Lin Fu's management,
The Jinhai grain road struggled to support itself, and Yanji's situation could not be delayed until the thirteenth year of Chongguan before collapsing... It was also because the northern line struggled to support it for four or five years that the Jianghuai situation looked better, without the collapse of Yanji
Later, he was defeated by the Yan soldiers.
The Cao family has been running Guan-Shaanxi for several years. Qingyang, Ningzhou, and Guyuan have become war zones. They may be able to draw grain from the hinterland of Guan-Shaanxi to support the war on the western and northern fronts, but it is difficult to say how long it can last.——The Cao family
In order to segregate Guan and Shaanxi, the two Sichuan areas have been engaged in constant wars and military expansion over the years. The Cao family's 30,000 elite soldiers back then have increased to 120,000 to 30,000 today. Even if the Cao family manages Guan and Shaanxi,
If something is gained in the hinterland, it will inevitably be used up to maintain such a huge military equipment, so there cannot be too much savings.
There is no other way, and the same is true for the She family. The poorer they are, the more they are forced to maintain greater military preparedness. After Shewenzhuang retreats to Jiangzhou, the first step is to recruit soldiers who are difficult to make soldiers; if Huaidong can't take advantage of
The bank's fundraising has long been ruined by the huge military equipment and constant wars.
Lin Fu's method of managing Huaidong is unprecedented in history. He obtained a large amount of war resources through sea trade. The Cao family's separate control of Guan and Shaanxi did not have such convenient conditions as Huaidong.
But even so, Huaidong had to maintain its ever-expanding military equipment. Not only did it have no financial savings, but it also owed money to banks worth three million taels of silver, which accounted for 60% of Huaidong's military equipment expenditure last year.
At this time, the guard came in to report Lin Xuwen's arrival, and Lin Fu threw the charcoal on the case.
Lin Xuwen came over, looked at the map of Guan and Shaanxi hanging on the wall, and said, "Are you also watching the Qingyang War?"
"Well," Lin Fu asked the guards to bring Lin Xuwen a sitting post and asked, "What's the discussion over at the Political Hall?"
"Cheng, Yu, and Zhang Zuo both proposed to 'alliance with Cao to fight against the captives,'" Lin Xuwen said. "They wanted to send envoys to Guanzhong and grant Cao Yiqu the position of deputy envoy to the Privy Council and governor of Sichuan and Qin."
It was Zuo Chengmu who proposed the idea of "alliance with Cao to fight against the captives". Chen Cheng, Zhang Yu and others strongly opposed it and regarded the Cao family as a big thief. However, as time passed and the situation changed, Jiangning was "stealed" by Huaidong, and they also
There is no need to continue to struggle with the Cao family.
Once the Cao family is officially recognized as a separate country in Sichuan and Guanshan, the Cao family can reduce the number of troops stationed in the two Sichuan areas and concentrate more troops and resources on the northern front to fight against the Yan captives. Liang Chengyi can also formally challenge Cao Cao in Hezhong Prefecture.
Countries unite and form an alliance to weaken mutual defenses on the border in order to deal with the outside world...
"This matter does not fall under the control of the Privy Council. It can be left to the Political Affairs Hall." Lin Fu said.
"Yes, the Privy Council will not interfere with this matter." Song Fu also said with certainty.
Now Cao Zi'ang, Qin Chengzu, Lin Mengde and others followed Lin Fu into the Privy Council and controlled the central military affairs, but each was responsible for a different matter. The ones who usually stayed with Lin Fu to discuss important matters were Gao Zongting and Song Fu.
In the current situation, "joining Cao" is inevitable, but if we don't get involved at this time, there will be excuses to overturn the political hall's resolution and "suppress the Cao family" in the future - there is no need to convene everyone to discuss this matter
It can be decided that in addition to military confrontations in domestic and foreign affairs, the future will involve more wars of words.
"Cheng Yu and Zhang Zuo were afraid of opposition from the Privy Council, but they didn't expect much support from the Privy Council..." Lin Xuwen said.
If they recognize the Cao family, the Cao family will also recognize Jiangning and send people into Jiangning. At that time, the Cao family will be a force that Cheng Yu and Zhang Zuo can use to suppress Huaidong. They are naturally worried that the people in Huaidong will oppose this.
Lin Fu smiled, stopped talking about the matter, and asked Lin Xuwen: "Has the Political Affairs Hall concluded the terms of borrowing money from the Ministry of Revenue and the bank?"
"That's generally true, but the details are still entangled. Maybe it will take a few days!" Lin Xuwen said, "But it can't be delayed for more than a few days. Even the official salary will be paid out. The longer it is delayed, the pressure will be added to the political affairs hall...
…”
"Then let's postpone it for a few more days." Lin Fu said, asking Zhou Pu to prepare his carriage and horses. He spent a long time in the Privy Council. Looking at the sun setting in the west, he thought about going back home - Jianghuai entered a period of calm, and there were more people in Jiangning.
It was about finding a new balance between the various forces. With Lin Xuwen and others supporting him outside, Lin Fu felt much more relaxed and could hardly spend more time with his wife and concubines, living a happy life from nine to five.
Lin Xuwen, Gao Zongting, Song Fu and others were not as relaxed as Lin Fu, so they could only smile and let him go.
Lin Xuwen is now in charge of the Household Department and has the heaviest actual responsibilities. Lin Fu's plan is to divide political power into six departments. The plan is good, but it must be implemented step by step.
Lin Xuwen was still looking for Lin Mengde, and the discussion was still about borrowing money from a bank.
Although officials to collect taxes have been sent to various places, it will take time for all prefectures and counties to pay last year's autumn taxes.
At present, the only money Jiangning can spend is the salt tax recovered from Weiyang. The salt tax accumulated for one season is only more than 500,000 taels of silver - the counties south of Jiangning, Huizhou, Chizhou and other places have been displaced and returned home.
, the prefectural and county government offices need to be re-established. Once these two things happen, most of the more than five hundred thousand taels of silver will be spent.
Last year's autumn tax itself was missing a large part of the nearly twenty counties outside Jiangning. Last year's summer tax and autumn tax in the area controlled by Huaidong had already been used by Huaidong's army and horses, and the summer tax would be officially incorporated into the household.
Ministry of Finance and Expenditure - Weiyang, Pingjiang, Danyang, Jiaxing and other prefectures were not affected by the war. Fortunately, these core and elite areas were not affected by the war. Last year's autumn tax could still collect nearly 3 million taels. But this tax collection
To come up, we must first pay the arrears of military resources to Huaixi, Chizhou, Jinghu, Xiangtan and other towns, wait until the summer tax in the Huaidong area is merged, and reduce the central government’s investment in Huaixi. Before Emperor Yongxing returned to Jiangning, Huaixi
Dong agreed that the local taxes in Huaixi should be paid by the Huaixi camp, but the central government's military investment in Huaixi would inevitably be reduced by this amount - but Jiangning would then have to bear the expenses of Huaidong's troops.
With only more than 500,000 soldiers, Jiangning's finances may take three to five years to finally recover. But in addition to military expenditures and civil affairs expenditures, official salaries are also a large part of the central finance - in Luzhou,
Nearly one million taels of silver deposited by the Ministry of Household Affairs, the Internal Affairs Bureau, and the Ministry of Industry were secretly moved to Chizhou and Huaixi. Only more than 200,000 taels of silver were shipped to Huaidong. However, Zhang Chengzuoyu and others returned to Jiangning with officials from the Six Ministries.
, the war has slowed down a bit, but what is urgently facing is the crisis of financial collapse.
In the past, the main way for the central government to deal with the financial crisis was to either increase taxes or raid two or three large households; Huaidong currently provides a third way, which is to borrow large amounts of money from banks in the name of the Ministry of Revenue to cope with the current crisis.
Money from the bank cannot be lent out so easily.g!~!