Before Pang Ji and them could weigh the pros and cons, the emperor had already spoken: "Well, this matter is very good! Not abandoning it is really a loyal country. Wen Qing, Pang Qing, what do you think? ”

Obviously, from the emperor's point of view, this was a thoroughly good thing. If you want to mix well, you must try to consider the problem from the emperor's point of view, not to mention that the reason for opposition cannot be put on the table. Pang Ji had no choice but to say: "The minister also thinks this matter is very good. Please give an order to Your Majesty, and the Minister will implement it as soon as possible. ”

The emperor smiled and asked Li Buqi: "What is the other one?" ”

"There is another one that is good for the soldiers who are trained by the ministers. These soldiers not only wanted the Great Song Dynasty and His Majesty to be born and die, but also forbade unity. The Liao army could not imagine that our army could run thousands of miles, and the ministers could cross the Liao border by surprise. If the imperial court has two or three teams that can quickly maneuver and have stronger combat power than the Liao army, if the Liao people want to attack our Great Song Dynasty again, they must first defend their own family, and they will not dare to go south with all their might, in that case, I am afraid that the Liao people will no longer dare to use troops against our Great Song Dynasty. ”

Song Zhen heard that Li Buqi sold himself and boasted to the emperor to sell his method of training soldiers, and hurriedly said: "Zhongzheng's method of training soldiers is good, but it requires a large number of horses, and it costs too much money and food. ”

Li Buqi was very grateful to Song Zhen for his timely compliment, and immediately said, "Exactly." In wars between major powers, the first thing to fight is money and food. ”

He turned to Wen Yanbo and asked, "Xiaguan dares to ask Xianggong, after this battle, the Zuo Treasury is empty again, right?" ”

Wen Yanbo didn't know why he asked, but it is an indisputable fact that the treasury is empty, and some ministers have asked for a truce on this ground in the past few days, so it is no secret that the country has no money. So he just nodded.

Li Buqi turned to Zhao Zhen and said, "Your Majesty, the country has no money, and this battle is not easy to fight." I wonder when Your Majesty will cease the war? ”

The emperor did not answer, but asked Li Buqi: "When do you think it is better to stop fighting?" ”

Li Buqi said: "The minister thinks that we should stop fighting as soon as possible and negotiate with Liao. ”

Now the emperor and all the ministers are confused - Li Buqi has always advocated being tough on Liao, and he has just won a big victory, but now he is in a hurry to stop the war.

The Emperor asked, "Why is that?" ”

Li Buqi said: "The minister thinks that this battle will definitely make the Liao country understand that the land of Hebei has been operated like an iron wall, and as long as there are no major accidents, it will be difficult for the Liao army to go deep." Moreover, the Liao State lost a lot of troops this time, and it was constantly fighting with the Western Xia, so it was unable to attack the south in a short time. And the imperial court is now short of money and food, and it must be powerless to take advantage of the Northern Expedition, and it will only be a waste of money and food if it continues to fight. Since there is no reason to fight, it is better to stop the army, and the court can rest and recuperate, accumulate money valley, and wait for the opportunity to make plans again. ”

These words really said that the emperor and the prime minister were in their hearts. These people are no longer worried about the Liao army hitting Tokyo, they have a headache of money and food every day, and they don't want to fight for a long time. But if you want to stop the war, it is not up to the Great Song Dynasty to have the final say. Pang Ji said: "It would be best if there was a truce now." But I'm afraid that the Liao people won't agree. ”

Li Buqi said: "You can send an envoy to the Liao State to negotiate and persuade the Liao lord to withdraw the army." In the thought of Xiaguan, the Liao State is also short of money and food now, and it is impossible to continue fighting, but it is difficult to get by in terms of face, and I don't know the plans of our dynasty, so I can't stop the army. ”

Pang Ji heard Li Buqi say that the imperial court should send envoys to Liao, and knew that Li Buqi must have already made a plan, so he asked: "But if we send an envoy first, we may be regarded as weak by the Liao people, and when we negotiate in the future, the Liao people may ask for a price." So what can I do? ”

Li Buqi was confident: "Of course, the envoy must be sent for other reasons. But as long as the two sides communicate with each other, they can avoid mutual suspicion. If the Liao people also have the heart to rest the army, then they can talk about the truce. ”

Pang Ji hurriedly asked: "I don't know what reason to use?" ”

Li Buqi said: "The imperial court can send envoys to demand the redemption of the people who were taken captive by the Liao State. This not only shows His Majesty's benevolence, but also does not involve whether the war is truce, and I am not afraid that the Liao people will be wrong. ”

Zhao Zhen and others were all dazzled, especially Zhao Zhen was overjoyed. He is bent on fighting for a reputation as a benevolent monarch, and this is not a good opportunity. So Zhao Zhen immediately said: "This plan is very good. He turned to Wen Yanbo and Pang Ji and asked, "How do you look like you?" ”

Wen Yanbo took the lead and said: "The minister also thinks this is a very good plan. ”

There's no objection to it. They all thought that it was easy to find a way to restore contact with Liao, but they didn't expect to fall into Li Buqi's trap.

Zhao Zhen said: "Then, it is better for you to discuss who to send to Liao." This matter is very important, and we must choose a shrewd and capable person. ”

After Wen Yanbo agreed, he said: "Your Majesty, Li Xunbian is not only brave and powerful, but also full of strategy, and he is really a rare general. The minister thought that if he guarded the three passes, the Liao people would not dare to look south, but they would be safe for at least 20 years. ”

Li Buqi gritted his teeth secretly: he actually wanted to tie the deity to Sanguan for twenty years, this old guy is too ruthless!

He immediately looked at Wen Yanbo, and an expression of seeing an idiot appeared on his face. Then he said to the emperor: "Your Majesty, the Duke of Wen is really a courtier. Not to mention whether the minister has the ability to ensure the peace of Hebei for 20 years, only to say that if the minister goes to guard the three passes, I am afraid that Hebei will have many events from now on, and the truce will inevitably be delayed. ”

Zhao Zhen hurriedly asked, "Why is this?" ”

Li Buqi said: "The ministers slaughtered into the territory of Liao, plundered all the way to the west of Zhuozhou and Xijin Mansion, burned Zhuozhou, Yizhou, Xincheng County, Yuhe County, and used the captured Khitans in Zhuozhou to attack the city, I don't know how many Liao nobles and Haoqiang died because of this. These people will hate their ministers to the core. Your Majesty can know that these Liao nobles and heroes all have private soldiers, that is, they can't encourage the Liao lord to send troops, and they can also lead the army to take revenge on the ministers. In this way, I am afraid that the war in Hebei will not stop. ”

"Moreover, the ministers are stationed at the three passes, and the Liao people will definitely think about the plan of the imperial court to send a person who has been in and out of the Liao State to stay at the border, and it is indispensable to set up troops to prepare. In this case, will the imperial court also have to accumulate heavy troops on the border accordingly? So what's the point of a truce? ”

"Well, that's the same thing." Zhao Zhen looked at Wen Yanbo.

Li Buqi saw that the emperor hesitated but did not give Wen Yanbo a chance to speak, and hit the railway while it was hot: "The minister thinks that now that the Liao State has no ability and reason to continue fighting, it is better not to stimulate the Liao State as much as possible." Guo Kui, Zhang Kang, Jingtai and others are all temporary choices, and any one person can be competent in guarding the three passes. The minister thought that the minister could do something more important to the court. ”

The Emperor asked, "What is that?" ”

"Accumulate money and food for the imperial court and build a strong army. On the way back to Beijing, the minister wrote the "Five Things to Deal with the Aftermath", which was just presented by the Yintai Division. Your Majesty, please take a look. ”

Zhao Zhen said: "Let's talk about the five things first?" ”

Li Buqi said: "First, it is necessary to restore the defensive posture and production. Wangdu and Mancheng counties were destroyed by fire, and Baozhou and other places also suffered serious population losses, so the minister asked for 20,000 troops to enrich the population of these areas, build castles, dig irrigation canals, and resume production. And the minister has a strategy that does not cost the court a penny. ”

As soon as he heard that such a big thing did not cost the court's money, the emperor's eyes widened: "What kind of strategy?" ”

Li Buqi said: "Logging for sale." There are large forests in Hebei that are used to restrain the cavalry of the Liao State, most of which have grown for more than 30 years. However, the ministers looked at it, too much, and only left half a section high to block the cavalry, such as Yanmen Pass and other places, now Hebei is densely shaded, but it is also conducive to the enemy's sneaking. Every year, the trees outside the gate are cut off to prevent them from growing freely. The minister thought that there should be a plan to cut down some of the trees, so that they could be sold for money. ”

Pang Ji immediately said: "Your Majesty, the minister thinks this matter is impossible. As soon as this case is opened, I am afraid that all parts of the country will follow suit, and the forests that have been operating for decades will be destroyed in one fell swoop, and it will be difficult to stop the Liaoguo Iron Horse. In particular, the border pass Wufu is vulgar and greedy for money, which is even more worrying. ”

Li Buqi said: "There is such a risk. But Pang Xianggong doesn't have to worry too much, and the border generals won't joke with their lives. Moreover, the imperial court can make plans, make plans, and send personnel to supervise, county by county. After cutting a stubble, the forest will be sealed, and it shall not be cut down without the imperial edict. If there is a person who cuts it without permission, it is necessary to punish it severely to set an example. ”

Pang Ji said: "I'm afraid that the local authorities will collude and deceive the officials." ”

Li Buqi pretended to be shocked and looked at Wen Yanbo and asked, "Could it be that I am a dignified Song Dynasty, and the officials can't even do this little thing?" Or did the imperial court simply lose control of the place? ”

This is so heartbreaking that Wen Yanbo doesn't dare to say it. As long as he says "yes", then even if he, the prime minister, admits that he is incompetent, he will not be impeached if it is passed out, and he will not have the face to hold this position anymore.

Pang Ji was more upright, and said for Wen Yanbo: "Li Xunbian should know that there are always feelings and disadvantages in the locality. ”

Li Bu gave up the book: "Hebei is the most important place for my Great Song Dynasty to resist the Liao State, if you let it go because of the cheats, I am afraid that no one can afford the consequences." There are disadvantages, and I believe that the ministers will have a way. ”

Hey! I trust you very much, and I believe that you will not be disappointed. This is especially to completely stand and talk without backache! But what Li Buqi said is right, especially from the emperor's point of view, it is absolutely correct, isn't the emperor letting you people be prime ministers to govern for the Zhao family? You say that this thing can't be done, do you think you are incompetent, or do you make the emperor feel irresponsible?