Liu Zhenglong shook his head and said, "You only know one thing, but you don't know the other." The Liao State did have the strength to destroy the Western Xia, but why didn't it do that, as long as the Western Xia was too poor and barren. Now even if the Western Liao army destroys the Western Xia, it will not be able to get the materials it wants, but will fall into the quagmire of resistance of the various tribes of the Western Xia, not to mention the decisive battle with the Jin army, even if it is a luxury to gain a foothold in the Western Xia.

It is true that the Liao State has only been the suzerainty of Western Xia for many years, but it has never thought of conquering and occupying Western Xia. Xiao Gan had to admire Liu Zhenglong's wisdom at this time, this person was a last-ditch strategy at every step, and used alternative methods to occupy Western Xia. On the surface, Western Xia is still a complete country, so that the major tribes of Western Xia can be content with the status quo, but in fact, the control of Western Xia is strengthening day by day, and to put it bluntly, Western Xia has become a back garden.

Xiao Gan asked cautiously, "Lord, what are you going to do about Western Liao's attack on Western Xia?" ”

"Provide a military base for Western Liao, provide supplies, and the two families will attack the Jin State together." Liu Zhenglong glanced at Xiao Gan and said: "You should be a special envoy, go and meet the military commander of Western Liao, and say that Yunzhou can be provided to Western Liao." The problem of army supply, I can solve it, and the negotiations will be handed over to you? ”

Xiao Gan understood a little at this time, and he asked a little confusedly: "Lord, if Xiliao gains a firm foothold in Yunzhou, will it be too big to fall?" ”

"No, the Jin Kingdom will definitely not allow the existence of the Western Liao army, besides, what is the combat strength of the Western Liao, it is unknown now, I don't know, you don't know, since everyone is not clear, why can't the tail be lost?"

Liu Zhenglong has always given people a domineering spirit, this kind of momentum that swallows thousands of miles like a tiger impressed Xiao Gan, Xiao Gan has always been relatively arrogant, but he really surrendered to Liu Zhenglong.

Liu Zhenglong continued: "I can provide the materials, but the territory is only Yunzhou, of course, it is to compete with the Jin State, and it is theirs who have robbed it, I will not interfere, but if I invade Western Xia, or invade the Great Song Dynasty, I will definitely annihilate this army that has traveled thousands of miles." ”

"Don't worry, my lord, I'll set off now." Xiao Gan is a resolute person, since he believes in something, he will go on without hesitation, no matter what the final result is.

No matter who is the commander on the Western Liao side, one thing is certain, that is, the final enemy of the duel is the Jin State, and in this case, he will definitely not be willing to go to war with the Jin State and the Song State at the same time, which is beyond doubt, which is why Liu Zhenglong arranged for Xiao Gan to send an envoy.

The clouds of war not only shrouded Hedong Road, but even the capital was overwhelmed by black clouds, and it had long been a mess. Although the Jin army did not immediately go south, and there was no battle document of the Jin emperor, it is also an indisputable fact that the Hebei Road was almost ransacked by the Jin army.

Hebei Road is too close to Bianliang City, and once the Jin army crosses the Yellow River, it will be a soldier coming to the city. Although everyone is unwilling to believe that the Kim Congress will tear up the maritime alliance, the necessary preparations still need to be made.

The first adjustment made was that Liang Fangping, the former commander of the imperial city, led an army of 80,000 troops to the bank of the Yellow River to defend to prevent the Jin army from crossing the Yellow River. In the eyes of the group of ministers in the political affairs hall, as long as the Jin army could not cross the Yellow River, it would not be able to threaten the capital.

These days, the official family is not in a good mood, he doesn't believe that the Jin State will wave troops south, but Yanshan Mansion is lost, Hebei Road is struggling under the Jin State Iron Cavalry, rumors are flying in the capital, and the clouds of war are hanging over the capital. It was at this time that the secret report of the Imperial City Division came up, naming King Yun as winning over the forbidden army, although this matter was very hidden, but it was still under the control of the Imperial City Division.

What is King Yun going to do? Do you want to rebel? The official family quickly rejected this terrible and dangerous idea, and knowing his son Mo Ruo's father, he quickly understood what this son wanted to do, that is, to seize the position of prince from the crown prince.

In any case, it is absolutely forbidden for the prince to contact the forbidden army, but at this time, the official family has no intention of punishing King Yun to death, because now not only is the cloud of war hanging in the sky, but also an even more terrible thing has happened, that is, the Xihe, Lanzhou, and Hedong earthquakes, this earthquake is the heaviest since the establishment of the Great Song Dynasty, with tens of thousands of casualties and millions of losses.

In that era, as long as there was a disaster, it would be said to be a warning from heaven, and basically the spearhead would eventually be pointed at the imperial court, and of course, there would be times when it was pointed at the emperor. For example, this time the earthquake in July of the seventh year of Xuanhe was rumored by the people, which was a kind of early warning from heaven to His Majesty the Emperor.

Warning of what, I have and losses. The official family was very angry at the rumors outside, and he slammed it on the body of the new commander of the Imperial City Division, Liang Fang, and said angrily: "You say, what do you say is going on, why are rumors spread outside, and it is also my fault that the rare earthquake is rare." ”

Liang Fang was so frightened that he didn't dare to come out, but he didn't dare not answer, he pondered for a moment and said: "Your Majesty, this earthquake should be a warning from heaven, implying that there are traitors in the court who have brought disaster to the country and the people. ”

"Shut up, you shut up." Of course, the official family has also heard this rumor, but he didn't take it seriously, and he didn't want to take it seriously, Liang Fang said it today, which indicates that the rumor is no longer a rumor, but there is such a wave, it seems that someone wants to pull Tong Guan off the horse first.

The white-faced king, the eunuch has a conscience, the eunuch has a beard, and the country is dead, how can it mean that Tong Guan, the eunuch who was crowned the king of the county, is a person who has lost his conscience, and his existence is the misfortune of the country.

Liang Fang had been thinking about it for a long time before entering the palace, and almost every sentence had been deliberated in advance. He saw that the official family was not angry, so he continued: "Your Majesty, Weichen heard that the envoy of the Jin State asked the king of Guangyang County to hand over the Hedong Road and the Hebei Road to the Jin State, and he was afraid of the enemy like a tiger and fled from Taiyuan Mansion in a hurry. It is equivalent to giving Jin Guo a false hint, that is, the Great Song Dynasty is weak and vulnerable. ”

"Presumptuous." The official's face was gloomy, and he said angrily: "You go and investigate secretly to see what is going on." ”

What to investigate, whether it is to investigate Tong Guan, or to investigate the ins and outs of the rumors, the official family did not say, and Liang Fang did not dare to ask.

When he walked out of the palace, Liang Fang's legs were weak and he almost fell to the ground, he knew that this matter was not up to him, and it seemed that his uncle had to make up his mind, this guy decided to go to Liang Shicheng's mansion.

Liang Shicheng was proud in the end, not only won the understanding of the meritorious family, but also stabilized the Taishi Cai Jing in many matters in the court, almost to the point of covering the sky with one hand.

After listening to Liang Fang's report, Liang Shicheng was shocked, and the teacup in his hand fell heavily to the ground. Seeing this scene, Liang Fang, who was kneeling on the ground, hurriedly went to clean up.

"Get up, it's good for people to do this little thing." Liang Shicheng motioned for Liang Fang to sit down and said: "It seems that Tong Guan is going to be finished, and the official family's secret investigation is actually an investigation of Tong Guan's violations of law and discipline." This time, it is a good time for you to make meritorious contributions, as long as Tong Guan is pulled off the horse, Qin Guogong will not treat you badly. ”

At this time, Liang Shicheng completely took refuge in Liu Zhenglong, and pulled Tong Guan off the horse, it must be a heavenly achievement, this guy can't care about the affairs of the court now, and is desperate to do things for Liu Zhenglong.

Liang Fang asked puzzledly: "Tong Guan is the king of Guangyang County, will it cause dissatisfaction in the political hall if he moves him without permission?" ”

"No, now the ministers of the political hall are having a headache for disaster relief, and the Privy Council is anxious about the Jin army's invasion of Hedong Road, at this time, Tong Guan's life and death are no longer important, the key is how to get him down."

If there is anyone in this world who knows the official family best, it must be Liang Shicheng, this time the 'white-faced king, mourning the conscience, the eunuch has a beard, and the death of the country' is made up by him, although this is just a sentence circulated among the people, but it has a great stimulation for the most sensitive nerves of the official family.

Liang Shicheng knew that the official family could tolerate Tong Guan's defeat and greed for ink, but it was absolutely not allowed to collude with the prince without authorization. Without Tong Guan's matchmaking, how could King Yun win over the forbidden army?

There is no family affection under the imperial power, and there are fewer tragedies of father and son? At the same time as asking Liang Fang to investigate Tong Guan's forehead, the official family began to rectify the forbidden army in the capital.

Song Zhong was transferred from the command of the Shenwei Forbidden Army, his successor Cao Sheng was born in the Cao family, Zeng Sui was arrested under the command of the Longwei Forbidden Army, and Wang Mu was made up for by the deputy commander. Although the commanders of the Heavenly Dragon Forbidden Army and the Divine Guard Forbidden Army have not been adjusted, the generals below have basically been adjusted, and those who have been added are either children of the royal family or children of the four major families.

When it comes to the security of the imperial city and the imperial power, the official family still believes in the four major families, which is why the royal family has been constantly marrying with the four major families for one hundred and sixty years. In the eyes of the official family, the existence of the four major families is to escort the royal family.

The adjustment of the forbidden army is not over yet, and King Yun is directly monitored. On the surface, King Yun contacted the forbidden army just to fight for the heir. However, now that the official family is in its prime, how can the prince be allowed to contact the army?

King Yun was monitored, which made the crown prince Zhao Kai overjoyed, but this cowardly crown prince forgot one thing, that is, the official family was suspicious, and when he found that the prince was a little wrong, he directly attacked Zheng Juzhong.

The unlucky Zheng Juzhong didn't figure out what was going on, so he was dismissed from his official position and was at home. Not only that, but those military generals who had dealings with the crown prince were removed without exception.

For a time, the forbidden army in the entire capital was tossed and jumped, everyone was in danger, and the army was in unprecedented panic, which was obviously not a good thing, which made Gao Chen worried.

Just when the forbidden army in the capital was reorganized, the Jin army captured Pingzhou. Now Gao Chen feels that Da Song is suffering from internal and external troubles, and there are many crises, and he now has a feeling that he has more than enough heart but not enough strength, and he doesn't know what to do for a while. Perhaps, only at this time, Gao Chen will understand that the Privy Council is inseparable from a figure like Tong Guan, after all, Tong Guan has commanded operations on the Western Front for many years, which is not comparable to a peace officer from a wealthy family like Gao Chen.

The Jin army will come over after all, at this time, Gao Chen completely believed what Liu Zhenglong said at the beginning, but now it is useless, he wants to state to the official family the possibility of the Jin army going south to invade the Song Dynasty. However, at the last moment, he was stopped by his good friend Sun Fu, the secretary of the military department, and finally did not say it.

Sun Fu said to Gao Chen: "The Jin army has only invaded small county towns such as Guangling County and Lingqiu County on the western front, and has not launched an attack on the big state capital, and has only taken Pingzhou on Hebei Road. Besides, in military matters, only Tong Guan, the king of Guangyang County, and the Duke of Qin Guogong can say clearly, you can't tell. ”

Obviously, in the eyes of Sun Fu, the secretary of the military department, the Jin army is only provoking in a small area, as long as it is fought back. However, such a big matter as war is considered by the political affairs hall. Now Gao Chen should actively plot to pull Tong Guan off the horse, instead of overstepping his responsibilities at this critical moment and talking about military affairs without authorization.

Perhaps, Sun Fu represents the attitude of most civil officials of the Great Song Dynasty towards the military, that is, try to avoid it and do not touch it. Gao Chen was originally a person who had no opinions, but now he didn't know where to go, so he could only choose silence in the end.

Also silent is Pan Jing, who has a deeper vision than Gao Chen, but the third-in-command of the Privy Council does not take it seriously at all, and has always unswervingly followed the plan formulated by Liu Zhenglong, and as for the border war, he directly and selectively ignored it.

Although they are not very concerned about the military, the speed at which the four major families transfer their families is much faster, and now almost most of them have arrived in Hangzhou. The southward migration of the four major families brought about the gradual expansion of the army of the southward migration of the capital. Now it can be said that the big people in the capital have moved their families to the south.

The people in the capital were panicked, and these did not reach the palace, and of course the officials would not know that the situation was so serious. In his opinion, with Liang Fangping leading an army of 80,000 to inspect the Yellow River, there would be no major problem for the Jin army as long as it did not cross the Yellow River. As for Hedong Road, it's even more fine, with the horse Liu Zhenglong in charge, there will definitely be no problem.

Finally, at the suggestion of Taishi Cai Jing, Liu Zhenglong was appointed as the Xuanfu envoy of the Northwest to provide disaster relief on behalf of the imperial court, and at the same time to control the military and government affairs of the entire Northwest. Of course, the five million yuan needed for disaster relief needs to be paid by this Northwest Xuanfu itself.

Regarding Liu Zhenglong's Xuanfu of the Northwest, he was opposed by Bai Shizhong, Wang Shiyong, Zhang Bangchang, Fan Zhixu and other important ministers, after all, that was equivalent to letting this Duke of Qin control the entire Northwest, which was quite dangerous. In addition, since Liu Zhenglong has pacified the northwest, what is Li Bangyan? It is equivalent to two people at the same time to appease the northwest, which is obviously inappropriate.

At the same time that Bai Shizhong protested, the Imperial City Division handed over Li Bangyan's greed for military salaries in the northwest, fell out with the northwest generals, and was jointly sued by the northwest generals.

In this case, the official family ordered Li Bangyan to resign and return to Beijing, and Liu Zhenglong served as the Northwest Xuanfu envoy to control the government and military affairs of the Northwest Zhulu.

It was only at this time that I knew how huge the power of the meritorious family was, Li Bangyan was transferred back, and Liu Zhenglong served as the Xuanfu envoy of the Northwest and also served as the Xuanfu envoy of Hedong Road. And the civilian clique that has always controlled the situation of the DPRK can be said to have done nothing in this matter, or it may not even have the right to speak.

On this day, the four major families were still meeting in Que Yun Tower, and this time the theme was more clear, and they were not afraid of the Imperial City Division to listen to them.

As the initiator of the meeting, Pan Xu did not go around in circles, and said directly to the point: "The clouds of war have shrouded the land of Hebei, and the Jin State Iron Cavalry is ready to go south at any time. According to reliable sources, the Jin army has sent troops to Zhaozhou and Jizhou, and the emperor of Jin has been transferring troops and sending generals, and the troops are divided into two routes, with a total strength of 300,000. The western route was led by Yan Zonghan and sent troops to the east of the river, mainly to contain the powerful western army and create convenience for the eastern route army to attack the capital. This time, Wanyan Zongwang led an army of 200,000 to the south, wanting to conquer the capital with a thunderous force, you must know that when the Jin State destroyed the Liao State, the total number of troops dispatched was less than 200,000, and the million male soldiers of the Liao State were destroyed. As for our Great Song Forbidden Army, what the situation is, everyone should be very clear, and we don't need to discuss this issue. ”

Under the clouds of war, the civilian clique is still intriguing and trying to suppress the meritorious families. At this time, the officials were not vigilant enough and did not take the strongest defensive measures. If there was no King Yun colluding with the generals of the forbidden army without authorization, the official family would not even make any adjustments, and Liu Zhenglong would not have appeased the northwest. Of course, the purpose of the official family to let Liu Zhenglong pacify the northwest was just to let this guy pay for the relief of the earthquake-stricken area, but unexpectedly, he unintentionally planted willows and willows, so that this careerist finally controlled the entire northwest.

Gao Chen said: "Yes, the Privy Council has received countless military intelligence reports, it can be said that the war is about to break out, although it has not aroused enough vigilance from the officials, but we can't do nothing, otherwise when the Jin army is killed, the Great Song Dynasty will really be destroyed." ”

The Great Song Dynasty is going to die, this sentence can be said to be pressed in the hearts of the four major families, this is the first time it has been said publicly, especially from Gao Chen's mouth, which indicates that the change of dynasty is no longer a secret in the hearts of these meritorious families.

Shi Yi had been holding back for a long time, and this guy said bluntly: "Now, there is no need for us to fight with the civilian clique, let them put the power, what we have to do is to purge the army as soon as possible to ensure that we win the battle to defend the capital." Regardless of the war on the Western Front, we must make sure that the capital is foolproof. ”

It was the first time that Cao Qi, the master of the horses, attended such an important meeting on behalf of the Cao family, and he said: "From today onwards, we will officially fight for the lord. The purge of the army is indeed on the agenda. Wang Mu, the new commander of the Longwei Forbidden Army, is a disciple of the Taiyuan Wang family, and the Wang family is already loyal to the lord, we must help Wang Mu control the Longwei Forbidden Army as soon as possible, and the Gao family is responsible for this, anyway, everyone fully cooperates, and the Gao family is the leader. As for the Divine Guard Forbidden Army, our Cao family is responsible for rectifying it. The Tianlong Forbidden Army, the Japanese Forbidden Army is still under the control of the official family, our level is too low, we can't change anything in a short time, we only need to control the part. Regarding the Upper Fourth Army, we only need to control the Divine Guard, the Dragon Guard. The following forbidden army will do what was agreed before. The Pan family, the Shi family, you find a way to control the forbidden army stationed in Yuwangtai and Mu Huogang, because of the peripheral war, they will be under great pressure, don't be destroyed by the blind command of the civilian officials. ”

There are 200,000 forbidden troops stationed in the capital, of which there are 80,000 in the upper four armies, which are in charge of the former commander of the palace, commonly known as the Royal Forest Army, and the remaining 120,000 troops are under the control of the Privy Council, but the Privy Council is only in nominal control, and the real charge is the Guard Infantry Division, the Guard Horse Military Division, and the front command of the palace are collectively referred to as the three divisions.

There are still 300,000 forbidden troops outside the capital, but in recent years, they have been sent out one after another, of which 100,000 followed Gao Yu to suppress Liangshan and never returned, and finally fell into the hands of Liu Zhenglong to participate in the Western Xia Campaign, and was finally reorganized into the Longxiang army, and 100,000 became 60,000. Liang Fangping took 80,000 to be stationed on the edge of the Yellow River to inspect the Yellow River and prevent the Jin army from crossing the river. Another 60,000 were transferred to the garrison in Lanzhou, and now there are only 60,000 left on the edge of the capital.

The Great Song Dynasty Forbidden Army was seriously paid empty salaries, and it was never full, and it was good to keep the six achievements. In this way, it is inferred that there are at most 120,000 forbidden troops stationed in the capital, and at most 30,000 are left outside the city, that is, there are only 150,000 troops in the huge Bianliang City, and the combat effectiveness of these armies cannot even catch up with the 50,000 of the Western Army. It's a pity that the official family doesn't know, and he still thinks that Jingshi is impregnable. The civil official group doesn't know, it's still drunk and dreaming of death, drunk and obsessed.

The situation in the capital is not optimistic, and this is very clear to the meritorious family, so they discussed the rectification of military affairs, and at the same time strengthened the contact with the local army, hoping not to drop the chain at the critical moment of King Qin.

The reason why the meritorious clique reorganized the army at this time is because it interferes in military affairs in peacetime, and is easy to be impeached by the civilian clique and is easily feared by the officials. Now that the clouds of war are hanging over the sky, these people can't care so much. Moreover, the lord is already in the wilderness and is not bound by the court, so their courage has increased.

Pan Xu finally said: "The purge of the army is the easiest to be impeached by the civilian clique, so the lord has given me authorization before leaving Beijing, and the money is being minted and the money is produced at full capacity, and the gold bank has prepared money to satisfy the appetite of those civil officials." In this matter, our Pan family will do it, and we will use money to block the mouths of these people. In addition, at this time, all the private soldiers raised by our family should be scattered, and those civilian officials should be monitored, and if they find that the person who is not long-sighted in the rectification of military affairs, he will be killed directly. The Shi family spent a snack to monitor the newspapers, and must not let unfavorable remarks appear in the newspapers. At this time, there must be no mistake in public opinion. ”