Time is fair to everyone, and it will not slow you down just because you are an emperor, nor will it increase the years just because you are poor...... All in all, the Great Song Dynasty, the largest empire in the world, entered the ninth year of peace.

This is a very important year, and His Majesty the Emperor, who has been on an expedition to the Western Regions for three years, will return to the capital after a long absence, with the majesty of victory.

In the streets and alleys, there is talk of this war everywhere.

The three-year period is the longest war in the Great Song Dynasty, much longer than the destruction of the Khitan and the destruction of the Western Xia.

The expedition of thousands of miles, and the time is so long, it is not the soldiers in the front who fight, but the supply in the rear, and the national strength is fighting! In the past three years, Sima Guang's hair has turned one-third white, Zeng Bu, who has just passed the age of confusion, has also gray hair on his sideburns, one of them is in charge of finance, and the other is in charge of the household department.

It's the two people who put in the most effort, but at the moment they both showed big smiles.

The burden of thousands of pounds has finally been carried down!

Zhao Shu only brought 50,000 people on this expedition at first, and then successively transferred troops to rotate, a total of almost 300,000 people participated in the war, and basically everyone stayed on the front line for half a year.

Zhao Shu has always maintained his strength at around 50,000 people, he did not pursue any million-strong army, and he finished his work in one battle...... On the contrary, Zhao Shu spent most of his time silently watching the battlefield, he just put his men in the right position and put pressure on his opponent like Tarzan.

Never lose money!

This is a point that Zhao Shu always keeps in mind.

Just in the last three years, the Seljuk Empire has been in turmoil and dazzling to watch.

First of all, Emperor Elslan died mysteriously, this huge empire would not collapse immediately, Elslan was a very talented person, he left a capable minister for his crown prince.

This man's name was Mullek, and he was the prime minister of the Seljuks, and the master of the crown prince Malikshah, the noble concubine...... He also has an identity, in his early years, he was the same disciple of Huo Shan, an old man in the mountains.

Although they came from the same family, the two brothers were-for-tat, and Mullek wholeheartedly assisted the Seljuk Emperor, suppressed the power of Huoshan, and maintained the stability and prosperity of the empire.

Maliksha had great respect for this teacher, and he often compared Mullek to King Yan of the Great Song Dynasty, both of whom were equally wise, both of whom assisted the younger king, and who were highly meritorious and loyal...... After Maliksha ascended the throne, he even wanted to crown the teacher as king.

But who would have thought that only three months after the new monarch ascended the throne, Mulek suddenly spurted blood and died in the position of prime minister.

In the months leading up to and after that, the two pillars of the empire fell at the same time, and both died unexplained.

Even the calmest of people can't exercise restraint.

Maliksha knelt in front of Master's coffin for three days, without eating or drinking...... When he got up again, he immediately announced that he would crusade against Eagle Castle and avenge his father and master!

Although Maliksha did not have real evidence, he had already determined that it must have been done by an old man in the mountain who was keen on assassination!

Blood debt and blood repayment!

If he doesn't get rid of Huo Shan, he won't be able to sit on the throne of the emperor!

It was a battle of great disparity.

Mareksha gathered 300,000 men and went to attack the Eagle Castle.

In comparison, Fort Eagle had less than 30,000 men, and although the terrain was easy to defend and difficult to attack, no one believed that Fort Eagle could win...... But the outcome of the war was a shocking shock.

Eagle Castle summoned the heavenly thunder, the gods stood on the side of Huo Mountain, thunderbolts fell from the sky, and the earth swelled with flames...... The Seljuk army was devoured, and those who offended the Eagle Castle were punished with the most brutal punishment...... The whole earth, telling the power of the gods, is prostrate at the feet of the old man in the mountain......

said very lively, in fact, it was just a sentence, Zhao Shu provided arms to Eagle Castle.

Relying on mines and fire oil, the old man of the mountain defeated the Seljuk army, and his followers became fanatical at once, and they rode horses, armed with scimitars, and prepared only dry food and water, and kept chasing the Seljuk army, like poisonous snakes and scorpions, and launched a fierce and insidious attack.

Maliksha and his remnants were terrified, day and night, and almost every moment they faced attacks from all directions...... The young emperor, who had suffered a crushing defeat and greater danger was still to come, the old man in the mountains took control of the northern frontier of the empire, while his brothers, as well as several uncles, came forward one after another, accusing him of being incompetent in leadership, incompetent in battle, and unworthy of being emperor of the Seljuks.

Lonely as never before, without the protection of his father and without the help of his master, he was isolated and overwhelmed. At this time, the Khitans came into his sights.

Although the Khitans who escaped from the grassland, although they were only in their early 10,000s, they had experienced the most cruel tests, and those who survived were the most elite people.

The will to fight is strong, and the equipment is also advanced.

As if grasping a lifeline, Maliksha promised a piece of pasture to the Khitans in exchange for their support.

The Khitan cavalry helped Maliksha to deal with Eagle Fort.

This time, the old man in the mountain ran out of firearms, but it was the Khitans, who had a lot more sharp firearms in their army. In this way, the Khitans defeated the old man in the mountain, and the army besieged Eagle Fort.

In addition to the Turks, more tribes of the Seljuks are wall-to-wall grass, the empire is strong, they are attached to the emperor, the eagle fortress is strong, and they honor the old man of the mountain.

And when the Khitans became bigger, they did not hesitate to fall to the Khitan.

In this way, Yelu Jun, Yelu Yange, and many, many young Khitan generals, found a space to show their strength, they incorporated the tribe, increased the military strength, on the one hand to the Eagle Fort to adopt a strategy of encircling but not fighting, on the other hand, to Mariksha wantonly demanded benefits, the extorted gold, silver, grain and grass, into soldiers and weapons, continue to grow their strength.

A year later, the Khitans had an army of 100,000.

They challenged the Seljuks.

In order to fight with the Khitans, Maliksha took out all his skills and concentrated an army of 500,000...... It was a very brutal decisive battle, which could only be compared with the siege of Khotan by the Qarakhanid state, in which Maliksha took the initiative to attack, hoping to crush the opponent to death by virtue of his superiority in numbers.

But he underestimated the fighting power of the Khitans, who defended to the death and protected the battle line.

When the battle entered the third day, the morale of the Seljuks was exhausted, and there were holes in their battle formation, and Yelu Yange took the initiative to attack with 5,000 cavalry, and after paying nearly half of the casualties, they broke through the positions of the Seljuk army...... What followed was a tidal wave of rout, which could not be contained, and a mighty empire became the ashes of history in advance.

After talking a lot, some people want to ask, what does this have to do with the Great Song Dynasty?

Of course the relationship is big!

"That mullek was killed by someone I arranged!" Dogtooth grinned.

"I did the firearms for Fort Eagle." Zhao Zongjing was not to be outdone.

"I instigated the Khitan march." Wen Jifu also said proudly.

……

These villains got together, and just at some key junctures, they put pressure on them, and completely turned the tide of the battle.

Finally waiting for the appearance of the Great Song Dynasty, Zhao Shu appointed Murong Qingchen as the commander, with a total of 50,000 troops, to storm the capital of the Seljuks...... The Khitan, who had just had a place to settle, was unwilling to give up, and they chose to fight with the Great Song Dynasty again.

The result is obvious, the combat effectiveness of the 50,000 Song army far exceeds the 500,000 Seljuk army...... Under the command of Murong Qingchen, the battle turned into a massacre, and the remnants of the Khitan forces, except for less than 10,000 people who fled, were all defeated and captured.

Murong Qingchen has been leading the men and horses to the Caspian Sea!

About 300 years ago, there was also a general, the Prancing Horse, who fought against the Great Food Empire here!

That person's name was Gao Xianzhi.

That battle was called the Battle of Talas!

Although Gao Xianzhi suffered a lot of losses, that station also hurt the Great Food, and the invincible Great Food Empire sent envoys one after another to pay tribute to the Great Tang Dynasty...... At one time, the Tang Dynasty had the opportunity to take control of Central Asia.

But unfortunately, a few years later, the Anshi Rebellion broke out, and the following year, Gao Xianzhi was framed to death by eunuchs.

A generation of famous generals failed to expand the territory of the Western Regions Protectorate, and did not completely conquer Central Asia...... And the Tang Empire also fell into civil strife, not only did it not get Central Asia, but even the Western Regions were lost.

That is the sorrow of Gao Xianzhi, and it is also the sorrow of the Han family!

And this time, it's finally changed!

The people of the Great Song Dynasty have arrived at the Caspian Sea!

No one can stop the footsteps of the Han family's son, Zhao Shu is full of momentum, he holds a horsewhip and points to the far west.

"I will keep marching and fighting, the whole world is not the king's land, there is no other choice but to surrender to the Great Song Dynasty!"

The emperor seemed to be in high spirits, but Zhao Shu also knew that when the battle reached this point, he had to stop and repair...... Murong Qingchen had already captured nearly 200,000 prisoners, all of whom were sent to build the railway.

According to estimates, in another two years, the railway from Jingzhaofu to Hami will be completed.

Within five years, the railway is expected to reach the Caspian Sea.

At that time, the iron cavalry of the Great Song Dynasty will decisively march westward, and Zhao Shu has already planned the route, just waiting for the time to be ripe.

He handed over the government affairs to Wen Jifu, the military affairs to Murong Qingchen, and Zhao Zongjing was responsible for coordinating the overall situation. Zhao Shu and Gouya'er, with the soldiers, returned triumphantly, and there were cheers everywhere along the way, long live long live, deafening...... In the past three years, for the Great Song Dynasty, it has also been a stormy change.

Three years ago, the Bohai Tea Dumping Incident forced the Great Song Dynasty to take into account the idea of colonies.

Wang Ning'an agreed to set up a council in Bohai to select local famous figures, who were responsible for coordinating and communicating with the imperial court, making suggestions to the imperial court, and managing government affairs.

This was an expedient measure, but no one expected that other colonies, including the Great Song Dynasty, would follow suit...... The establishment of provinces and the establishment of councils became a common demand.

Zhao Shu has approved some provincial councils, but has not yet agreed to set up a national council...... Many people are waiting for the emperor's return, and this reform is imminent!