Chapter 507: The dawn of light

"Looking back on the old days, the north and the south became brothers. Emperor Renzong of the Gui Dynasty died, and Emperor Daozong of my Daozong wept when he heard the news, made clothes and mounds, and never slackened in the sacrifice at four o'clock. This affectionate affection was exchanged for the Southern Dynasty turning around without grace and treachery? The more the Liao people talked, the more excited they became.

The story he mentioned was widely circulated among Song and Liao, and has always been a witness to the friendship of Song and Liao. It happened that during the reign of Song Renzong, there was a time when the Liao State sent an envoy to come. At that time, the crown prince of the Liao State was called Yelu Hongji, who had read the Four Books and Five Classics since he was a child, governed the Confucian classics, and of course would not give up the Khitan archery and horse riding. He really wanted to see what the Southern Dynasty was like, and he had the intention of spying on the inside story.

So, he mixed in with the mission and headed south. As a result, he thought he was doing a secret, but as soon as he arrived at the Song-Liao border, he was recognized by the officials of the Southern Dynasty. This matter is not trivial, the officials of the Great Song Dynasty are silent, and Pegasus reports the matter to Tokyo. When Yelu Hongji arrived in Tokyo and was looking around in amazement, the chamberlain from the forbidden city appeared to him and invited him into the palace.

Song Renzong did not receive him according to diplomatic etiquette, but in the inner court, with his queen, he entertained Yelu Hongji with a family banquet. This made the Khitan prince very moved, and when he was leaving, Song Renzong, as an elder, gave him a very rich gift, and took his hand and said: "I and your family should also be remembered by the alliance." ”

After Yelu Hongji ascended the throne, he always missed the elder in the Tokyo Imperial Palace, so he made a request to ask Song Renzong to send him a portrait. At that time, there was a lot of dispute in the Song court over this matter, and some ministers thought that the Khitans made such a request, I am afraid that they have bad intentions, in case they take the portrait to curse and prick the needle or something, it will be harmful to the official family.

Song Renzong ignored these remarks, and asked the palace attendant Yushi to draw a portrait and send it to Liao. When the portrait arrived, Yelu Hongji personally went out of the capital to greet him. Later, Emperor Renzong died, Yelu Hongji was shocked to hear the bad news, wept bitterly, hung the portrait of Renzong and the portraits of the Khitan emperors in the same hall, and cried and said to the Song envoy: "I have not heard of soldiers for forty-two years. "That is to say, because of the friendly relations between the North and the South, we have not fought a war for 42 years.

Listening to the Liao people's counts, the faces of the officials present were a little unbearable, and Wu Jue said unhappily: "You have come from afar just to turn over these old accounts? ”

Xu Weiyi waved his hand: "Hey, it's a guest from afar, let people say." "At the beginning, the alliance on the sea, the Great Song Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty attacked Liao, in terms of reason, it was really not kind, and it didn't make people complain?

The Liao envoy glanced at Xu Wei twice, and didn't bother to reveal the scars anymore, and changed the topic: "The Jurchen Diyi started in the mountains and forests, and was originally a slave of my court, but he rebelled against it, so that my mountains and rivers were broken, and the holy lord was covered with dust. The lord of the country led his troops to the west at a time of crisis, and with the help of the Khitan people, he broke more than a dozen countries in the Western Regions and recontinued the Great Liao State. However, those who never forget will restore their homeland and welcome back to the Holy One. ”

The Khitans called the Jurchens "Diyi", which sounds a little inappropriate. But in fact, the Liao State used the Han system, respected Confucianism, and never regarded itself as a barbarian. There was once a Han official who explained the Confucian classics to the Liao Emperor, and there was a sentence "Di Yi has a king", which was difficult for Han officials to explain. Emperor Liao said, "I repair cultural relics, and I am not different from China, so why do I suspect it?" "That is to say, I advocate and learn Chinese culture, I am polite, there is no difference from China, and I am not Diyi, what is there to say?

His view, even after a thousand years, is correct. The blood relationship is not very much, and the culture represents China.

Yelu Dashi wants to restore his homeland, this is undoubted, as for welcoming the last emperor of Liao who was captured by the Jurchens, I am afraid it is just a political slogan.

Regarding the old accounts of Lianjin's attack on Liao, Xu Wei was inconvenient to comment, but just praised: "The lord of your country has such ambitions, and I admire him very much. ”

The Liao envoy nodded and continued: "The loss of the day, so that today's disaster, although my Northern Dynasty is ruined and the Holy Lord is covered with dust, but the Southern Dynasty has also lost its city and fallen into the ground, and the soldiers have been lost, how can it not be stifled?" ”

After talking for a while, Xu Wei and other Great Song officials basically didn't talk much. Until Ma Kuo suddenly interjected: "Your country has always had dealings with the party?" ”

"This is natural, when the Khitan was in danger in the past, Lord Xia sent troops to rescue. Although it is impossible to reverse the decline, this sentiment is remembered by our lord. After the re-establishment of the Great Liao in the Western Regions, he still maintained contact with the Xia State. It's just ......" The Liao envoy didn't say any more.

He didn't say that Ma Kuo also knew, but now the party members were also unlucky, and they didn't have the strength to compete with the Jurchens, so they had to bow down. But in that case, why did Xia Guo still maintain a relationship with Yelu Dashi, who was regarded as a remnant by the Jurchens and wanted to get rid of it as soon as possible? Or even trade? This question bothered Ma Wu, and he couldn't figure it out until the end of this courtesy meeting.

Several Liao envoys originally brought gifts to Xu Shao, but since Xu Shao had left his post, Xu Wei accepted them on his behalf. Come and don't be rude, it is said that he should also pay tribute to something, plus the Central Plains has always regarded himself as a gentleman, and he must not be stingy when he makes a move. It's a pity that now Shaanxi is so poor that Xu Wei can't find a spare copper coin to scrape. Finally, he gave the Liao envoy a knife, which his men had taken from the corpse of a Jurchen Wanhu on the battlefield. He asked the Liao envoy to transfer the knife to Yelu Dashi, which was considered a return gift.

The meeting, although of little substance, was merely courtesy. However, it marked that the Zhao and Song dynasties had made contact with the Khitans in the Western Regions.

After the talks, Xu Wei reported the matter to Mianzhou. Xu Churen didn't pay much attention to this matter, firstly, because of the lack of understanding of the newly built Khitan Kingdom of Yelu Dashi, and secondly, Dashi was far away in the Western Regions, and there was a Xia Kingdom in the middle, which seemed to have little impact on the Great Song Dynasty. Therefore, he instructed Xu Wei that after you finish the reception, just send them back, and the Sichuan and Shaanxi Xuanfu Divisions don't have to come forward.

At the beginning of April, Xu Wei personally sent the Liao people out of Qinzhou City, and ordered Xihe Shuai Si to send troops to escort him out of the country. And asked the Liao envoy to convey his greetings and respect to Yelu Dashi on his behalf. At the time of farewell, Zijin Tiger wanted to mention the words of joint anti-gold, but when it came to his mouth several times, he swallowed it back. Now when I talk about this, I don't have a word of it.

"Okay, take care of all roads, have a safe journey, and I hope there will be a time to see you again." Xu Wei clenched his fists and greeted the Liao envoy and his party.

"Take care of the prime minister and take your leave." The Liao people returned the salute one after another, and then they all stepped on horseback and galloped away.

waited until the other party ran away, he turned back to his horse and led Wu Jue, Liu Ziyu, and Ma Kuo back to the city.

"The handsome man just said, I hope we can see you again?" Liu Ziyu asked.

"Naturally, Dashi and we have a common enemy, although the grudge is very deep, but Ben Shuai believes that a man who can lead the remnants to the west when the country is ruined and the family is ruined, and overcome many difficulties to rebuild the rivers and mountains, must be a pragmatic person. If Oishi really has the heart to restore his homeland, he will send someone again. After all, we have twice entertained his messenger and have shown kindness. Xu Wei said.

"I'm afraid that far water can't quench the thirst of the near, it's more just symbolic." Wu Jue sighed.

Xu Wei smiled when he heard this: "Anything that can make the Jurchens disturb their hearts, we are willing to do it." ”

"Haha." Wu and Liu both laughed, but Ma Kuo was silent in thought.

When Xu Jiu saw it, he asked, "Brother Zichong, why are you stunned?" Ma Kuo didn't react, but Liu Ziyu drank it, and he woke up like a dream.

"What do you think?" Liu Ziyu asked.

Ma Kuo's expression was solemn, and he said loudly: "Dashuai, I have been thinking about a question these days. Why did the Dangxiang people let the Khitans pass through their territory to contact us? ”

"Have you figured out the results?" Wu Jue asked sideways.

"Of course." Ma Kuo stared at him and said conceitedly.

"Oh? Let's talk about it. Xu Wei was interested.

Ma Kuo took a breath and said, "When the Emperor Taishang was in power, he appointed eunuchs as the commander of the Western Army several times, and tried his best to expand the border. After the first line of Hengshan Tiandu Mountain was captured by our army, the national strength of the party members was declining day by day, and they were forced to go on the defensive in an all-round way. If it weren't for the fact that the Jin people were admitted to the prison later, it is estimated that the lowly position would be almost the same now. ”

This is not delusional, in history, at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, Western Xia was basically beaten by the Western Army to only parry, and there was no power to fight back. If it weren't for the Jin army's southward movement, it would have been possible that the territory in the northwest of the Great Song Dynasty would have been greatly expanded.

"So what?" Wu Jue asked.

"In this case, if the party wants to restore the old majesty, they must seek to cross the mountains and heavens. Hengshan is in the north of Dunyan, and the whole territory of Yanyan is occupied by the Jin people. It is speculated that the party members will try their best to ask for this land. But the current truth is that the Jurchens assigned the territory of Shaanxi to Gao Shiyou's puppet dynasty. Then the party members will definitely not give up, but they have already called Jin a subordinate, and they don't have the courage to send troops to take it. However, in view of the dissatisfaction with the Jin State, it is possible that the Xia Lord will allow the Khitans to pass through his territory and contact us. Of course, this is just lowly speculation, and there is no evidence whatsoever. ”

Xu Wei thought carefully about Ma Zichong's words, this assumption is still quite possible. If he says, then we will have another chance, and the most effective way for the weak to confront the strong is to unite. Boldly imagine that if the Song, Liao, and Xia kingdoms joined forces to resist the Jin, they would not dare to say that they would beat the Jurchens all over the ground to find teeth, but at least, it would also end the current strength of the Jin State.

It's just that at this stage, this can only be a hypothetical......

In fact, Ma Kuo did guess that he was not far from ten. As early as when the Jurchens decided to use troops against the Song Dynasty and asked for the assistance of the party members, they promised that after the war, they would assign the two places in Hebei and Hedong, near the Xia Kingdom, and the areas outside the Great Wall to the party members. It was precisely because of this promise that in the early days of the Song and Jin wars, the Xia army continued to attack the border of Shaanxi.

But after the Jin State captured the two rivers, it did not divide the land as promised. This made the party members very annoyed, but they had no choice but to do so, so they stopped the attack on Shaanxi and used it to protest. When the Jurchens saw it, they deceived the Xia lord and said, it doesn't matter, when we take down Shaanxi, we will give you the areas bordering the Xia State on the four roads of Yanyan, Huanqing, Jingyuan, and Xihe.

The party members are not fools, and they have to watch their deeds after listening to their words, so they have not moved, and they were really forced by the Jurchens to be in a hurry, so they sent Murong Wei, the rebel general of the original Huanqing Shuaisi, to take a few soldiers to fill the scene. When the Xia lord heard that the Song and Jin had negotiated peace and that the Jurchens had taken Dunyan and the Guanzhong Plain, he hurriedly sent envoys to meet the Jin Emperor and asked the Jin State to assign Dunyan to them.

But the result of the matter was there, and the Jurchens assigned Shaanxi to Gao Shiyou's pseudo-Han again, and placed Xia Guo together. The angry Xia lord Li Qianshun then strengthened the connection with Yelu Dashi, who was determined to resist Jin. This is the second time that the messenger of Dashi came to Shaanxi.

In fact, during this period, the relatively weak forces of the Song, Xia, and Liao were cautiously trying to make contact. It's just that limited by the environment and conditions, no one can pierce that layer of window paper.

In the blink of an eye, good news came from Sichuan, and this year the Chengdu Plain and the Hanzhong Basin are both bumper harvests. In addition to the self-sufficiency of the people, there is also a part of the surplus in the harvest in the Silu area of Shaanxi. In addition, although Xu's new financial policy in Sichuan has not yet been effective, his request for assistance has borne fruit.

Zhao Chen adhered to the meaning of Emperor Zhao Huan and allocated a one-time emergency special fund of 4 million yuan to the Xuanfu Division of Sichuan and Shaanxi. And among them, there are one million guan, which was given to Xu Wei by name, of course, not to give him personal private property, but for him to use. As early as when Zhao Huan was in power, it had been stipulated that the money from the southeast would not be supplied to the west, so that Sichuan and Shaanxi would be self-sufficient. Therefore, this emergency special fund, in Xu Churen's view, is simply a great gift.

And he had no intention of hiding his personal interests, and the special financial funds plus the taxes of Sichuan and Shaanxi, except for the necessary expenditures, were all lost to Shaanxi to raise troops. Xu Wei has the money to repair Fengxiang City, Yao Pingzhong and Liu Guangshi also have the money to recruit troops and horses, the grain is guaranteed to be eaten until next year's wheat harvest, and the welfare and military salaries owed can also be replenished, and they will no longer live as tight as last year.

This revived the morale of the Western Army. As soon as Xu Wei got a huge sum of 1 million yuan, he first allocated 250,000 yuan to Yao Pingzhong, and told him to recover quickly, it is really a critical juncture, and we can only be tightly hugged by Qin Fengxi River. Yao Pingzhong was very grateful, with the two sums of money allocated by the Xuanfu Department and the Preparation Division, plus sufficient food and materials, the little captain suddenly had the confidence to recruit township soldiers to join the ranks of the regular army and raise them. According to his report to Xu Wei, in the month when the money was allocated, he recruited 4,000 new heroes.

The Duzuo Institute located in Longxi County, Gongzhou, under the condition that the materials and money are guaranteed, all kinds of equipment are also continuously imported into various ways. Among them, firearms were only allocated to Qin Feng Shuaisi. It's not that Xu Wei is hiding his secrets, he knows that the new firearms can't just let him be beautiful all the way, and sooner or later they will have to be shared. It's just that many firearms are still being tested and improved, and they have not yet formed a standard, and they cannot be promulgated by the whole army.

In late May, among the 6,000 horsemen under Xu Wei's command, 2,000 cavalry under Li Chengwei's command were equipped with new firearms. In the past, Li Chengwei's cavalry was armed with assault rifles of several hundred scales, and the army was called "assault cavalry". Actual combat proved that cavalry made muskets, more effective than infantry. When galloping, the firefighter first fires a projectile, hits whoever counts, and then uses the musket as a blunt weapon.

This time, the firearms equipped by Li Chengwei's department were very different from before. The craftsmen of Tosakuin had the idea of bringing together the three barrels together and sharing a single medicine room, which greatly improved the efficiency of the musket.

Although the Fengxiang city defense renewal project has not yet begun, all kinds of city defense equipment equipped with it are ready. Various equipment such as eight-ox crossbows, bed crossbows, divine arm bows, artillery carts, and flying artillery have arrived in the city, and some of them have been equipped to Zhuji Pass.

The various actions of the Western Army made Han Chang, who was stationed in Chang'an, very uneasy. In particular, the completion of Zhu Jiguan and the stationing of troops made him feel like he was on pins and needles. Han Chang was known for his good offensive and defensive skills in the Jin army, and he knew that after the completion of the Zhu Ji Pass, he would form a triangular defense system with Fengxiang City and Dasanguan, blocking the Jin army's westward advance along Weishui and attacking Sichuan.

However, due to the constraints of the second Longxing Peace Conference of Song and Jin, it was impossible for him to make a big move blatantly, so he constantly sent the signed army and the appeased rebel army around Chang'an to cross the Jingzhao border and enter the territory of Fengxiang to attack and destroy, loot property, and plunder the population. There are as few as 100 people and as many as 1,000, especially during the harvest season in May, when it is most frequent.

Because Fengxiang Mansion is close to the area of Jingzhao Mansion, it belongs to the western part of the Guanzhong Plain, and the terrain is flat and there is no danger to rely on. Therefore, Qin Fengshuai's troops were bounded by Zhuji Pass, and there were almost no troops deployed to the east. This made Han Chang feel at ease and boldly use some rabble to constantly harass.

Because most of the "righteous army" he used was recruited from the vicinity of Jingzhao Mansion, and he did not attack the western army's fortress camps, he thought that the situation would not be expanded, and the western army could only open one eye, close one eye, and swallow this breath.

Fengxiang Mansion, Fufeng County.

As the closest county to Jingzhao Mansion in Fengxiang Prefecture, the distance from Fufeng to Wugong County under Jingzhao Mansion is less than 100 miles. As a result, this is the hardest-hit area hit by "thieves", and since the beginning of May, there have been two large-scale attacks and damages. Qin Fengshuai Si had 200 soldiers in Fufeng County, and the garrison was not counted, mainly to assist the county yamen to maintain law and order, and was controlled by Zhang Xian, the head of Fengxiang's soldiers and horses.

On this day, May 27, in the military camp in Fufeng County, an official dressed in a blue official robe and holding a hat was hurrying, and behind him, two strong men who finished neatly and carried Pu Dao, bow and arrow.

In the barracks, officers and soldiers walked from time to time, and they didn't care when they saw him in official robes. After a while, a junior officer came out of the barracks, recognized the official, and called: "County Lieutenant Liu, what happened in this hurry?" ”

"Oh, the township soldiers in the village and town have just run to the county seat to report, and hundreds of thieves have rushed to Yidian Town, I'm afraid it's more auspicious, didn't I come to Commander Zhou to discuss how to deal with it? By the way, where is Commander Zhou? The county lieutenant Liu wiped a handful of sweat and asked breathlessly.

Commander Zhou is the "supreme military commander" of the county, the leader of the two hundred tiger army, and belongs to the Fengya army under the jurisdiction of Qin Fengshuai. When the little officer heard this, he didn't dare to delay in the slightest, so he pulled his legs and left: "Come with me"