Chapter 439: People from Zhenjiang

Xu Wei took a sip, as if he was savoring it, and then said, "Brother Xiyan, let's talk about it." ”

Yao Pingzhong coughed dryly, moved to Xu Wei's side, and asked in a low voice: "This time, Xu Xuanfu summoned you and me to Qinzhou to discuss matters, and he didn't reveal the slightest rumor before. This removal of the Commanders of the Roads is an unprecedented move. But Xu Xuanfu gave an order, and he really withdrew. It can be seen that Xuanfu Xianggong is determined to change the face of the Western Army. Of course, this Pingzhong is fully supportive and unconditionally obedient. Hey, why isn't this dish served yet? Drink spicy, want to eat the mouth pad pad can't be, this bird shop"

"Such a big thing, Zhenjiang Xing also approved it in such a short period of time, which shows the trust of the official family in Xu Xuanfu. Although Ping Zhong is not talented, he is in Shaanxi, and he should do his best to keep in line with Xu Xuanfu. I heard some rumors that the Minister of Xuanfu wanted to set up a force directly under the Xuanfu Disposal Division, but I don't know if there is such a thing? Yao Pingzhong asked.

Xu Weizheng picked up the tea and was about to pass it to his mouth, hearing this, he acted as a matter of such a secret, how did Yao Pingzhong know about it before Xu Xuanfu announced it? In addition to the Xuanfu Disposal Division, I am afraid that the only people who know about this matter are the eldest brother Xu Yuan's father and son and himself, who revealed it to him?

didn't have time to think about this question at the moment, and listened to Yao Pingzhong's previous statement, so he replied: "I have also heard about this, it should be no worse." ”

Yao Pingzhong sighed, paused for a moment, and asked tentatively: "This formation of directly subordinate troops, there is a lot of *** to fight troops from all walks of life, Xu Zhaozhi must be a good word?" ”

"This is nature, the military order is like a mountain, dare not obey?" Xu Wei said with a smile.

Yao Pingzhong nodded frequently: "Yes, yes, naturally you should follow." As long as Xu Xuanfu gives an order, we will pay as much as we should on the West Road. Hehe, don't blame the brothers for talking too much, and have a bottom in their hearts in advance, so as not to deal with it when the time comes, it will not be good to say the wrong thing. ”

Xu Wei felt a little strange, with his understanding of Yao Pingzhong, this person's mind would not be so detailed, right? He has always been a high-spirited and outspoken person, how did he learn these twists and turns? Isn't his father in Zhenjiang having instructions for him?

After a while of waiting, the dish finally came. Yao Pingzhong ate a few more glasses of wine with him, and then said goodbye and left. As soon as he walked on his front foot, Xu Chengli asked on his horse, "Uncle Jiu, how did he find out?" ”

"It's not surprising that he knew that he was reactivated in the court." Xu Wei said casually. But I wondered in my heart that Shaanxi's personnel arrangements were really interesting. He and his eldest brother are the nephews of the third uncle. Liu Guangshi and Yao Pingzhong both have Lao Tzu who is an official in the court, and their backgrounds are not simple. Although the third uncle is ambitious, he has only now taken the first step to integrate the Western Army. With so many intricate relationships, it may not be so easy to really enforce orders and prohibitions, and to work together from top to bottom.

At the military meeting in the afternoon, nothing else was said, only one thing was said. It is precisely Xu Shao's idea of setting up a unit directly under the Xuanfu Disposal Department to establish an elite force of about 60,000 people, which will be under the direct command of the Xuanfu Disposal Department, which will have considerable deterrent effect both internally and internally.

As soon as this figure is spread, an average of nearly 20,000 horse infantry troops will be sent each way. Needless to say, Xu Wei's three armies were already in Qin Feng. However, although Xu Yuan and Wang Yi expressed their support, they were a little embarrassed in terms of amount. After discussing for an afternoon, it was finally decided that more than 10,000 troops would be drawn from the north and west roads, plus Xu Wei's three armies, for a total of more than 40,000 troops.

On the first day of this military meeting, Xu Shao was completely in command. The next few days were the real discussions. That is for some details and procedures. In short, it lasted five or six days before this military meeting, which had a major impact on the situation in Shaanxi, came to an end. The Xuanfu Disposition Department stipulates that within two months, the officials of the recruitment department from all walks of life must be fully equipped, and within this year, the troops directly under it must be assembled in Qinzhou and the commanders of the army will be recruited from all walks of life. In the first half of next year, this series of reforms will be carried out in a down-to-earth manner.

At the meeting, Xu Shao announced for the first time his idea of passing through Shaanxi. It was clearly stated that from now on, Shaanxi will vigorously fight against its troops, and within three to five years, it will inevitably set off a wave of counteroffensive and sweep out of Qinchuan for 800 miles in the north

This military meeting can be said to have been surprisingly smooth, without any twists and turns. First, it is because of Xu Shao's own courage and prestige, and secondly, of course, it is inseparable from the support of Xu Da and Xu Jiu. Of course, Xu Shao didn't want to rely only on the relationship between relatives to control the Western Army, but to improve it from the system, which is very rare.

After the meeting, the generals returned to the defense area. Soon, the officials sent by the Xuanfu Disposal Department arrived in various places to take up their posts. According to the orders of their superiors, the recruitment divisions also selected troops to prepare for Qinzhou. On the issue of selecting generals, Xu Wei recommended the "two kings" to go up, Wang Yan and Wang Yu after careful consideration. Both of them are his generals, and either one can stand alone. It is a bit condescending to be placed on the South Road to recruit the division, so it is better to send a horse to help it for a ride, so as to pave the way for the future.

Xu Shao attached great importance to the formation of this unit. The troops were personally in charge of the troops, and Wang Yu, who was recommended by Xu Wei, was appointed as the commander of the capital, and the rest such as Xu Hong, Xu Sheng, and Wang Yan were all generals in charge of the army, and each was promoted. So far, the reform launched by Xu Shao in Shaanxi has been launched from top to bottom in an all-round way.

In the blink of an eye, in the fourth year of Longxing, the two countries of Song and Jin maintained a brief peace in this year after years of war. In fact, the Jurchens had no choice, and the power struggle in the country affected the war against the Song. Eventually, the battle ended with Wushu taking the helm of the Yenching Privy Council.

Sticky Han was very annoyed, but there was nothing he could do. It was precisely because of the successive defeats of the Shaanxi Jin Army that he was in a passive position in the DPRK. Although he still retained the position of "Marshal of the Capital" and was in charge of the military, the Yanjing Privy Council was snatched away by Wushu, which also announced that the military operations against the Central Plains of the Great Song Dynasty and the Two Rivers in the future would no longer be under his direct control. And the Wushu also succeeded in breaking the situation of the Sticky Han family that was caused by his brother's death.

At the same time when the Jurchens were fighting for power and had no time to look south. The Great Song Dynasty was not idle, and after Zhao Huan's southern tour, the political center of the Great Song Dynasty was completely moved to the south of the Yangtze River. And through a series of reforms, he rectified many shortcomings in the late reign of his father. Politically, through the establishment of the "Detailed Discussion Division", the role of Zhongshu Province as an administrative hub was diluted. For major military affairs, the emperor convened the ministers to discuss in the detailed division, and after forming a resolution, it was sent to the department for implementation.

Militarily, the Great Song Dynasty gradually freed itself from the chaos of the early days of the Song-Jin war. And vaguely formed three major front armies. As we all know, the army before the Great Song Dynasty was mainly composed of the Hebei Army, the Western Army and the Beijing Camp. This situation was almost shattered by the stormy attack of the Jurchens.

In the fourth year of Longxing, the Song army gradually formed an armed force with the Western Army in Shaanxi, the Tokyo Left-behind Division in the Central Plains, and the Imperial Camp Division in Jiangnan as the pillars. Among them, the Imperial Battalion Division was almost pieced together from the Western Army, and the commanders of the troops were also veterans of the Western Army, such as Zhe Keqiu, Liu Yanqing, and Yao Gu. The troops of the Tokyo Left-behind Division were represented by Zong Ze, Zhang Suo, Yue Fei, Han Shizhong and others, and the composition of the army was mainly the recruited Lianghe New Army. The strength of the Western Army is the most powerful, and it is not comparable to the other two front armies in terms of strength and combat effectiveness.

To sum up, the Great Song Dynasty has gradually gained a firm foothold from the exhaustion at the beginning of the war. Although the two rivers and one part of Shaanxi were lost, the Central Plains were also invaded. However, the south, which is heavily rich in money and grain, has not been affected, and Shaanxi, where heavy troops have been gathered, is still strong.

What is still lacking in the Great Song Dynasty at this time? There is a lack of a clear overall strategy. How this country should go, those in power must make it clear, so that the people of the whole world and the generals who lead the troops on the front line will not be confused. Whether it is an offense, a defense, or a defensive counterattack, you always have to point out the clear way. You have lost so much territory, and you have to give a clear answer whether you want to regain it or not.

But this is obviously not what Geng Nanzhong, Wu Min and others, who are now in power, care about. After He Li, who was the main battler, was removed from power, Zhenjiang Xingzai has been arguing over the strategy against Jin. And the emperor himself, because the Jin State established Gao Shiyou as the emperor in Lianghe, was really annoyed for a while, and he also wanted to return the Jin people to see the color. After Xu Wei defeated the Jin army in Huazhou, he once hit the edge of the Yellow River, which made Zhao Huan feel relieved. However, when a minister proposed that he should take this opportunity to make it clear that the Longxing Peace Conference should prevail between Song and Jin, there was no reason for Jin to support Gao Shiyou in Lianghe. If the Jin people insisted on this, the Great Song Dynasty would not recognize the Longxing Peace Conference.

What is the main content of the Longxing Peace Conference? That is the Song and Jin countries, bounded by the actual control of their respective armies. At that time, the southeast of the river was still in the hands of the Song army. If the Jin people insisted on maintaining the puppet Han regime, and the Great Song did not recognize the Longxing Peace Conference, then logically speaking, it would be equivalent to declaring all the previous negotiations between the Song and Jin invalid. Since there is no peace agreement, it is war

Zhao Huan was undetermined about this, and Wu Min, who was in power, strongly opposed it. It was believed that this would cause the Jin people to be angry, and thus ignite the war again. He believes that the top priority of the Great Song Dynasty at present is to stabilize the current situation. The two rivers will not be able to get it back for a while and a half, the Jin people support Gao Shiyou, let's endure it for a while, don't worry about them, let's talk about it in the future.

His words represented the opinions of a considerable number of ministers in the DPRK and China, and Zhao Huan weighed it again and again, so be it. The left and right Western armies also retaliated and fought, sending a delegation to Jinguo to protest and protest, as for what not to recognize the Longxing Peace Conference, it is better not to talk about it. Immerse ourselves in development, straighten out armaments, and see how the situation evolves.

When the envoys of the Great Song Dynasty arrived in the Jin Kingdom, they did not see the Jin Emperor Wu begging for purchase, but they first bumped into the Prime Minister of the Kingdom. Sticky Han scolded the envoys of the Great Song Dynasty almost bloody, accusing the Shaanxi army of not abiding by the agreement between the two countries, refusing to hand over the Jingzhao Mansion area, and provoking incidents one after another, especially Xu Wei. said that this thief is too rampant, and it is not calculated that Yaozhou will break my troops in ten thousand years; At the time of the wheat harvest, they were destroyed and set fire everywhere; Attacking the Guanzhong Plain, even the "Iron Floating Massacre" annihilated the whole army, what do you want to do in the Southern Dynasties? Do you want to tear up the peace treaty and start an all-out war?

At that time, the Jin people used deceptive means to induce Zhenjiang to agree to cede the area occupied by the Jin army in Shaanxi. But at that time, Chang'an was still holding on, so Xu Wei refused to perform with the assistance of Zhang Jun. When the Song Dynasty heard about this, they all secretly shouted that they were lucky, and they were so dangerous that they were attacked by the Jurchens

Now that the old things are brought up again, Song Envoy naturally went-for-tat and shook things up. Sticky Han couldn't hold it on his face, he had the intention to kill Song Envoy Liwei, and thought about not doing this, so he provoked the tiger in Shaanxi and caused an accident. I had to endure it and let the Song envoy go to see Emperor Jin.

Wu Qimai did not pay attention to the protests of the Great Song Dynasty at all, and only blindly accused the Western army of provoking the incident. The Song envoy told him that the intention of protest was conveyed anyway, and he left the country and returned to China.

As soon as the Song envoy left, Wu Qimai convened the important ministers of the military state to discuss. In the past few years, there have been successive battles, and there has been no shortage of things to grab, but the army has also suffered a lot of losses. It is a bit powerless to launch a large-scale campaign against the Song Dynasty this year, and the elite of the Western Route Army is in danger of being trapped in Shaanxi, but it can't just let the Great Song Dynasty stop, right?

The fourth year of the Great Song Longxing, May.

After more than half a year's rest, the troops under the South Shaanxi Road Recruitment Division have recovered from last year's battle of Huazhou. Although three armies were handed over, only a little over 50,000 men remained. But these 50,000 horse infantry troops are all elite in a hundred battles, and they have rich combat experience with the Jurchens in various environments.

Xu Shao's reform was carried out relatively smoothly on the South Road, and the military transfer stationed in the Southern Shaanxi Recruitment Division made Zhang Bin and Xu Wei cooperate tacitly, and Zhang Bin turned out to be the judge of the Shaanxi Transportation Division.

In the past six months, Xu Wei's department has stepped up training, especially Ma Jun. Taking many previous examples as a reference, he practiced hard in martial arts, mounted archery, charging, jumping trenches, rushing slopes, outflanking and other techniques and tactics. It's just that the Jin army controlled Yan Yan and cut off the source of war horses, otherwise Xu Wei's cavalry force would not be the size it is now.

As for weaponry, great progress has also been made, especially a breakthrough in the research and development of tubular firearms. The earliest trial-made tubular firearms were prone to exploding. Later, craftsmen discovered that iron pipes made from deeply buried coal to smelt steel would not blow up. Although they didn't know that the cause was "coke", the discovery was widely used.

After solving the problem of exploding the chamber, Xu Wei and the craftsmen solved the problem of range. The original firearms, with a rather limited range, would never exceed fifty paces. Later, I found out that the crux of the problem was because the medicine room was not airtight enough. The thrust that occurs when the gunpowder burns in the chamber cannot be completely focused on the projectile. After discovering this problem, the craftsmen filled the medicine chamber and sealed the chamber with a piece of wood wrapped in glue, which greatly increased the range and naturally became more powerful. It's just that it's still in the experimental stage, and it's neither named nor equipped.

During this period, the Jin army has been very calm. Their rangers never crossed Huazhou, and even gave up growing food in Huazhou, using it as a buffer zone. A good end of Huazhou has become a barren land.

On this day, Xu Wei had just returned from Huazhou. He led a small army of horses into the enemy's territory, not to fight, but to check how the wheat harvest of the Jin army was this year, so as to plan to help with the harvest.

As soon as he entered the city, the officers guarding the city came forward to report: "Marshal, Senator Zhang ordered to be humble, if the marshal returns to the city, please ask the marshal to rush to the office of the court." ”

Zhang Qing is now serving as a senator of the Southern Shaanxi Recruitment Division. The current senators are different from the past, in the past, there were several staff members of the pacification department, but after Xu Shao's reform, each department only has one senator, highlighting the importance, and the power is somewhat similar to the "chief of staff" in the army in later generations, and the military rank has also been improved. This dispatch really has to be Zhang Qing.

"Did you say anything?" Xu Wei asked on horseback.

"It's said that the deputy envoy has arrived." The gate guard replied.

After the establishment of the Southern Shaanxi Recruitment Division, it is needless to say that Xu Wei is the recruitment envoy, Wu Jue's qualifications, prestige, and military exploits are the best candidates for the deputy envoy. However, the quota for recruiting deputy envoys is two, and there is still a lack of a deputy envoy appointed by the superior, and there has been no news, so I don't want to arrive today. No matter who comes, he will be his deputy in the future, Xu Wei is not lazy, and immediately went to the Recruiting Department.

When I arrived at the government office, the daily office of the civil and military officials of the Recruiting Division was in the second hall. As a result, Xu Wei went in to take a look, and those staff members who were in charge of the machine, writing words, doing office work, and taking care of horses were all there, but there was no new deputy envoy. After asking, I learned that the deputy envoy Wu Jue and the senator Zhang Qingzheng accompanied the newly appointed deputy envoy to the tea party in the flower hall.

Then he turned to the flower hall again, but saw three people sitting in the guest seat. One recruited the deputy envoy Wu Jue, and the other was the senator Zhang Qing, and the two were talking with an official dressed in red official clothes and bound with gold and fish. The man was not very old, less than forty, not tall, and half a head shorter than Zhang Qing and Wu Jue. But the appearance can be described as dignified, because he did not wear a hat, but he saw that his person was full of heaven, his eyebrows were thick and black, his eyes were very bright, and he had a short beard under his chin, and he was listening attentively to others. And from time to time to bow his head, it seems very polite. This style is rare in the military.

Seeing him, Xu Wei was a little surprised, he never thought that the deputy envoy sent by the above turned out to be this person

"Haha," Xu Wei laughed before speaking. The three people in the hall turned their heads at the same time, and when they saw him coming, they got up one after another.

Xu Wei went to the official and bowed: "Brother Deyuan, I haven't seen you for a long time, don't come unharmed?" ”

The man smiled when he saw Xu Wei, and said politely: "Since the day I said goodbye, I often want to ask for the demeanor of the minister." I don't want to, I have such a fate, and I am fortunate to have a public affair with the solicitation. "Who do you say this man is? It was when the imperial court sent an envoy to Shaanxi to order the guards to hand over the land and city to the Jin army, Zhang Jun, who was specially responsible for informing Xu Wei, was at that time, it was precisely because of his help that Xu Wei was able to confidently and boldly send troops to Yaozhou, and recently defeated the Yaozhou Jin army in one fell swoop, and in this battle, wounded a member of the Jurchen clan, and later died. Unexpectedly, the deputy sent from above turned out to be him.

A few days ago, a military meeting was held, and although Xu Shao said that there were two deputy envoys, one of whom was sent by the Xuanfu Disposal Division. In fact, one of the three deputy envoys of the Recruitment Department was all sent by Zhenjiang Xing.

"Sit down and say, sit down and say, where is Brother Deyuan from?" Xu Wei greeted warmly.

After Zhang Jun sat down, he sat down and replied: "I came from Xing, and before the official left, the official personally summoned him." After seeing Xu Zhao, he must be kind to the Son of Heaven. The original words of the saint are that Xu Ziang has made meritorious contributions in Shaanxi, and I know it in my heart, and I am very pleased. ”

Xu Wei arched his hands to Nanyao and said, "Live up to the expectations of the saints." Zhao Huan asked Zhang Jun to convey this meaning, which was nothing more than to appease Xu Wei, and it is estimated that the emperor also knew that according to Xu Wei's merits, it should indeed be established.

After a while, Zhang Jun asked: "I heard from the two colleagues that the prime minister was invited to lead the troops out to check the wheat harvest of the Jin army, so as to help, what is the reason?" ”

Xu Wei laughed, knowing that Wu Jue and Zhang Qing deliberately deceived people and didn't understand. Then he explained: "The Jin army stole the territory of Yanyan and penetrated deep into the Guanzhong Plain. Since last year, he has been farming here in two places, intending to gain a firm foothold in Shaanxi and become self-sufficient. How can our army let it do what it wants? When the wheat harvest season comes, I will send an army to destroy it, and if I can't rob it, I will burn it, and now it is harvest time, so I have been thinking about it lately. ”

Zhang Jun suddenly realized and said with a smile: "I see." There are still many unknowns about such military affairs, and in the future, I will ask for more guidance from the prime minister and all my colleagues. ”

He was a member of Zhenjiang Xing, and of course Xu Wei couldn't get too close as soon as they met, so he said politely: "Where, ask each other for advice." In this way, Brother Deyuan has a long journey and goes to the pavilion to rest, and I will immediately send someone to arrange a place for you to live. ”

Zhang Jun pondered for a moment, nodded and said, "In this way, there will be labor to ask for the minister's trouble." ”

"I didn't bother, but Brother Deyuan didn't blame Ben Shuai for being ruthless, and he had to come to the government office tomorrow to sit on the council." Xu Wei said with a smile. The functions and powers of the two deputy envoys are stipulated. Wu Jun was in charge of the command, training, and law enforcement of the troops, and Zhang Jun was in charge of logistics and personnel. Confidential matters in the army, such as documents, are handled by the Senate. Before Zhang Jun came, Zhang Qing did all these things, and he was really busy.

"And rightfully so." Zhang Jun replied. After finishing speaking, he took his leave.

As soon as he went out, Wu Jue was puzzled: "Why did the deputy envoy send it directly from Zhenjiang?" ”

"Shaanxi is so big, it is only divided into three recruitment divisions, and these three divisions command all the western armies, and it is inevitable that they will have some scruples. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand the direct dispatch of personnel. Xu Wei said with a smile. Fortunately, it was Zhang Jun who sent him, but I don't know if the other two envoys have such luck as themselves. In history, Zhang Jun has always been a main battle faction no matter what. If anyone runs into a deputy envoy of the Lord and the Lord, it will make people speechless.

Wu Jue nodded and didn't say much. After a while, he asked, "Dashuai, how are you doing?" ”

"Jin Jun learned well this year, gave up farming in Huazhou, I went deep for nearly 100 miles, and only found something on the border of Tongzhou. Hey, the Jurchens thought that in this way, I would have some scruples and dare not destroy his wheat harvest. Xu Wei sneered.

"Haha, what's the matter? Now Dingrong in Shaanzhou is under the control of our army, sending people to cross the Weishui River and setting fires everywhere. I want to see how the Jin Army is doing this year," Wu Jue laughed.

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