Zheng Lang replied: "It is the hearts of the people, the restrained heart of all the officials and the people.\\"

glanced at Zhao Zhen, and said: "A few days ago, Ouyang Xiu asked the minister why he wanted to lead the river into Jiji, and the minister explained the reason from the geographical location, but did not explain the military reason. Your Majesty, since the Spring and Autumn Period, the northern nomads have threatened the safety of the people of the Central Plains. The same was true of the Han and Tang dynasties, but it was the Sixteen Kingdoms and the Northern and Southern Dynasties that really presided over China by the Hu people. It was not an external invasion, but an internal strife, the Han Dynasty arranged too many Hu people on the border, and the rebellion of the Eight Kings of the Western Jin Dynasty benefited from the Hu people. The real unification dynasty, did the Hu people penetrate deep into the inner hinterland of China? No. Neither the Xiongnu nor the Turks could achieve it, and even if there were, they would mostly attack from the rugged Hedong Road. Why, Hebei is low-lying and densely packed with rivers, so it is not very suitable for the northern iron horses. Including the Khitan, why didn't they dare to cross the Yellow River when they were in Lanzhou? It is wrong to say that the Yellow River is a natural danger, and with the width of the Yellow River, it can never become a natural moat. The main reason is that my dynasty is also a unified country, and once we cross the Yellow River, the low-lying Hebei in the rear will become a drag on the speed of the cavalry, so we dare not push our troops too deeply, unless they are sure to annihilate our dynasty in one fell swoop. Wanting the low-lying benefits of Hebei Road is one of the manifestations of the minister's introvertedness, and the lack of daring to occupy Jiaozhi is also a manifestation of the minister's introvertedness. There is no belief that the northern nomads have been trampled underfoot. ”

Unless thermal weapons appear in a big way.

Otherwise, the northern nomads are so strong that most people can imagine.

Looking at the history books of the whole world, some people beautify many branches of the military in ancient Europe, no, the most powerful branches of the army are still in the Northeast and Outer Mongolia.

As long as they develop to the point where they can compete with the Central Plains Dynasty, they can completely trample on the various branches of the European army, so one of the Yuanmeng and Xiongnu has become a nightmare for Europeans. As for Gao Xianzhi's battle with Da Shi, he had few troops, and he didn't expect that Ge Luluo would suddenly rebel, otherwise the deer would die. Not necessarily.

There is still a long way to go for the direct arrival of thermal weapons.

Zheng Lang said again: "Even if our dynasty can recover the sixteen states of Youyun, we must retain the low-lying terrain of Hebei, so that the Great Wall becomes the first line of defense, and the mountainous area of Hedong and the low-lying terrain of Hebei become the second line of defense. Hebei has lost the danger of rivers and lakes, and the terrain is extremely flat, once the nomads use the speed of the cavalry to go south, our dynasty will become a nightmare. ”

"Yes, it's better to be safe," Zhao Zhi suddenly stopped talking. I also said the same, whether it has also become a restrained heart.

Zheng Lang smiled and said: "If you don't occupy Suizhou, my dynasty will never lose morality, Li Liangzuo has inherited from his father, once he eradicates the unhidden slander and grows up, he will definitely follow his father's old path." Our dynasty does not occupy the land of Western Xia, but Western Xia infringes on our dynasty. Then under the humiliation, the upper and lower levels will work together to carry out the war of destroying the country. Otherwise, once Suizhou is occupied, there will be scholars who think that our dynasty is not reasonable, and will return Suizhou, and then be depressed. If one chance is lost, the second chance is lost, and the destruction of Western Xia will become far away. ”

"Who thinks that?" Di Qing asked puzzled.

Zheng Lang smiled again, don't think too much about ministers.

"Zheng Qing. Is there any chance that my dynasty will take back the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun? Zhao Zhen suddenly asked.

"Yes. The Khitan began to fall, and I continued to maintain the upward momentum as long as I continued to do so. There is a chance. However, it is very difficult, just to defeat the Khitan garrison of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, and now our dynasty has more than fifty percent chance. But if you want to take it back, there are many difficulties, the sixteen states of Youyun account for forty percent of the population and grain output of the Khitan, which is the foundation of the Khitan economy, once lost, it will inevitably carry out a fierce counterattack, and the Khitan rule for a long time, the Xi people, the Khitan people, and the Han people in the sixteen states of Youyun will also resist. There are people resisting inside, and there are strong enemies counterattacking outside, even if our dynasty takes down the sixteen states of Youyun, this war will last at least five years. If this restrained spirit is maintained in the country, even if the Western Xia recovers, without the harm of the enemy on the flanks, I am afraid it will be very difficult. ”

Everyone will be happy to recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, which has become the dream of all Song people. Once the war is fought to a fierce battle, a protracted war, and the country withers, the competition is courage, and there will inevitably be many scholars and doctors who will retreat.

There is only one way, when Aguta rises. This cattle man has risen, and there is a good life in the Song Dynasty?

Zhao Zhen was silent.

In the past, Song Taizong's biggest mistake in recovering the sixteen states of Youyun was that he thought that the Han people in his territory would raise the flag to welcome him, and he cooperated inside and outside to take the sixteen states of Youyun in one fell swoop. As a result, it was because the Han people, under the leadership of Han Derang, carried out a heroic counterattack, which dragged into a protracted battle, the arrival of the Khitan army, and the defeat of Gaoliang River.

Not only the Khitan, but also the Western Xia.

There are many in the Western Xia, although the Western Xia people use the Han people as cannon fodder, but neither Zhao Zhen nor Zheng Lang has any hope of naturalizing these Han people.

Zheng Lang asked: "Your Majesty, why don't you ask the ministers, why are the country and the people more and more introverted?" ”

"I know that it is overkill to emphasize the text and dethrone the military." Zhao Zhen couldn't reply, but what could he do? Zheng Lang smiled bitterly, and the emperor had no choice but to shake his head.

Zhao Zhen said: "Let's talk, let's talk about writing a note for me." ”

"Whoa."

Di Qing stayed for three days.

As for what he talked about with Zheng Lang, outsiders don't know anything.

So at the court meeting, the Imperial Historical Observatory and the Zhiyuan joined forces to impeach, Han Jiang because he had been Zheng Lang's subordinate, Zheng Lang once taught him and Lu Gongbi carefully, Han Jiang did not directly come forward to impeach, not very embarrassed, afraid that people would say that he was ungrateful. Yushitai used these four words to impeach Fu Bi. knew Zheng Lang's kindness to him, but it caused the little princess to run away from home, as well as Di Qing. In short, turning it over is one way of saying it, and turning it over is another.

Zheng Lang was also noisy, and he was not afraid of things, so don't enter the court if you are afraid of the noise.

Nowadays, not only can Yanchen make accusations at will, but even officials of the two systems have a tendency to criticize at will.

Zheng Lang stood up and said, "Fan Zhizhi, the imperial court has decided to control the river as a top priority. However, the failure of the Western Xia Dynasty is a great opportunity for me to go forward, so I don't want to let it go. However, because it requires a lot of money to control the river, it does not want to expand the war. So he consulted with Di Qing on how to expand the results of the war with clever tactics, so that he could bring peace to the border with us at the lowest cost. What is coincidence, that is, the trickery in the art of war. Sun Tzu said that the art of war complements each other. Surprise is surprise. The Western Xia spies were able to enter Huixi City and kidnap me, which shows how many spies the Western Xia distributed in our dynasty. If everything is public, what is the matter? ”

"This is military. Why didn't Di Qing consult with the Privy Council? ”

The system is like this, but Di Qing went to the Privy Council to discuss, how many people really understand military affairs?

And this discussion, what about the six spies? It's bound to be all public. Zheng Lang said: "That's right, it's just some small arrangements, after discussion, I will write a note and hand it to Your Majesty, as well as Xifu." ”

"There are no rules. It's not a circle. ”

Zheng Lang is the ruler of the river, not the prime minister who was in charge of the two governments in the past, and has the right to admonish, but he has no right to counsel, let alone the right to consult. Zheng Lang sighed in his heart, and he didn't want to fight anymore. Anyway, after three days, the discussion was almost the same, so he was silent.

But when he heard Zheng Lang say that it was some small arrangement, he thought it was just a matter of some scouts, and Yan Chen did not continue to investigate. It's not just that they want to make trouble, and once the river is opened, they have to spend so much money to go down, thinking that they shouldn't make trouble in the West.

Di Qing saw that things were not good, and hurriedly rode back to Yanzhou.

Zheng Lang couldn't resist. I can't resist it anymore.

The two letters were handed over, but the contents of the two letters were not quite the same, and the notes handed to Xifu concealed many truths.

It was this note that determined the attitude of the Song Dynasty towards the envoys of Western Xia.

The messenger arrived, Zhao Zhen met in person, and then began a series of accusations. The Song Dynasty was so good to him, and in turn invaded the land of the Song Dynasty and invaded the Song Dynasty several times. The heart of disobedience is stronger than Yuan Hao.

and counted him out of place. The death of the Mizo clan is unknown. Wolf ambitions.

I want the Song Dynasty to open the field again and give it to the year again. Please forgive me.

said it in an awe-inspiring manner, and even a group of ministers shook their heads. Because of pedantic, many ministers could not see the benefits of not hiding the false government, on the contrary, they hated the unsubservient behavior of not hiding the false Pang. However, many ministers still wrote to the letter, arguing that the imperial court's approach was too tough and there was no need to provoke and hide the blame at this time. He didn't hide the lie and took the initiative to admit his mistakes, and he should be given a chance to change his ways.

Zheng Lang was speechless, expecting Western Xia to change his evil and return to the right?

When it was noisy, Di Qing returned to Yanzhou.

He didn't hide Pang is now a little soft, and the country's economy is forced for a while, and the second is also the seat of these fierce generals, so that he doesn't dare to wanton Koubian anymore, and if he doesn't Koubian, he can't threaten the Song Dynasty.

Zheng Lang consulted with Di Qing for three days and made an analysis for Western Xia.

The first is the economy of Western Xia, which can not only be used in the art of war, but also in all aspects, such as the enemies in the shopping mall, the enemies in the officialdom, and even in the later competitive competitions.

The shortcoming of Western Xia is the economy, the economy is not unimportant, the people are people, and they have to eat, drink, wear and live. The economy of Western Xia itself was very weak, and it used to be supported by foreign financial resources.

The first is the commercial tax of the Hexi Corridor, because of the guidance of the Song Dynasty and the heavy expropriation of the Western Xia people, many merchants from the Western Regions changed to travel from the Tubo Road, resulting in the commercial prosperity of Qingtang City and becoming a pearl city on the Qinghai Plateau.

If the Song Dynasty passed the checkpoint blockade again, more than ninety percent of the merchants in the Western Regions would change to the Tubo Road, and the important economic source of the Western Xia would gradually be lost.

The second is the mutual market, not only from the Song Dynasty, but also from the Tibetans, Uighurs and Khitans. However, the latter accounted for a very small proportion, and Western Xia was also at odds with the three countries. Mainly the Song Dynasty, which used to need livestock, furs, and salt.

Now, after a few years of buying spree, livestock in the north is nowhere near as needed as it was in the past. Because cotton appeared, there was no historical desire for fur. If the Song Dynasty used a mandatory policy blockade, it would cause the trading volume to shrink by more than 80%. What is left is green salt, Xue Xiang went to the northwest, and has used the salt solution to resist the invasion of green salt.

It is impossible to completely eliminate it, but if you have the heart, you can eliminate more than 70% of the trading volume.

Finally, the price of gold and silver has gradually saturated over the years, although a large amount of gold and silver has been obtained, because to mint coins, and the people also need a lot of gold and silver, so the trading price has been very stable. However, if it does not rise, the final result will fall.

The price of gold and silver has not risen, but the price of silk has gradually stabilized and risen, which is equivalent to the cost of giving tribute to the Western Xia and Khitan countries invisibly.

The Song Dynasty's annual gift cannot be underestimated, and it is also an important income for Western Xia. The economic income of Western Xia is not easy to calculate, but the annual tax revenue is at most several million. How much impact will it have if the Song Dynasty is deducted.

This is the analysis of the economy, and the analysis of the soldiers. The economy is the foundation of the country, where the people's livelihood lies, and it is also the support of war. Soldiers are a direct manifestation of war.

The individual combat effectiveness of the Western Xia soldiers was no less than that of the Khitans, and they were also stronger than the Song soldiers. And they are mostly cavalry. There is speed and impact.

However, there were many weaknesses, and the weapons were slightly inferior, although in recent years the Western Xia attached great importance to weapon development. However, because of corruption, the Song Dynasty had many inferior weapons, which were about the same when compared with each other. Weakness is not weakness in weapons, but in military discipline. The Western Xia army came from all ethnic groups, and the military discipline was far less strict than that of the Song army. As a result, the overall combat effectiveness is not high. Winning with the Khitan, but also relying on the desert terrain, went to the north to block Bu, and as soon as the Khitan army arrived, it was defeated and retreated, which can also prove this point of view.

Then there is the analysis of the relationship between the number of battles and morale.

A long-fought soldier is certainly more familiar with combat than a living soldier. However, a soldier who has been fighting for a long time will inevitably develop a war-weary mentality. In particular, the Western Xia army came from various tribes, and they did not want to see a large number of young and middle-aged people of the tribe die, so that the strength of the tribe would decline. Unless the war is won, there will be gains, or the Great Patriotic War will have to be fought.

In the past, when I fought with the Song Dynasty, the war stopped, and after the war, no matter whether I won or lost, I could get a lot of benefits from the Song Dynasty. The mutual market, the trading of green salt, just for a period of war, with the wealth of the Song Dynasty to rest and recuperate for a period of time, can also distribute this wealth, so that the various departments can get benefits, reduce complaints, and improve the enthusiasm of the battle. The warriors themselves have been tempered by actual combat.

That's the worst thing to do.

Therefore, they must not be given the opportunity to rest and recuperate, and they must continue to fight. Neither let them get the benefit. If they are not allowed to have a chance to rest, then there will be a strong sense of war weariness from all tribes to all soldiers. Generate this emotion. Morale was low, and the Tangut people were no longer terrible.

It was this analysis that made Zhao Zhen resolutely refuse to seek peace without hiding Pang despite the opposition of many scholars.

But it is only an analysis, and it can be implemented, and many arrangements are needed, just like Zhuge Liang's surrender to the middle pair, it is like this, but the final realization is several years later.

It's not what Zheng Lang said, it's just some small arrangements.

After Di Qing returned to Yanzhou, he began to set up the layout.

……

There was a loud singing voice in the distance, which was a pastoral song sung by the Qiang people.

The white clouds in the sky were long, and the six people looked up at the blue sky and the green grassland in the distance, and at this time, they all had a homesick mind.

But no one was willing to approach them, and as the six rampant tigers around him, almost half of the Tangut people hated them very much.

The true identity is not known to any Tangut person.

Zhou Yuan handed the note to the other five people.

After reading the five people, they were a little disappointed, and Zhou Yuan said: "There is no way, I heard that Zheng Xianggong wants to govern the river, and the scale is very large, it will cost 200 million yuan, and the imperial court does not have the financial resources to support another huge battle." ”

Feng Gao said: "I don't know how long we have to wait." ”

Zhou Yuan said: "It's not easy to say, if the Yellow River is well managed, our dynasty will be richer, with enough economic support, and more sure to eliminate Western Xia." But we're suffering. ”

The other four all smiled wryly.

Lu Yi said: "To be honest, I'm really a little homesick, I don't know if my son is as tall as me." ”

Several people were silent at the same time, this delay, and I don't know how many years, maybe they were in their fifties, or even in their sixties, and whether their son could recognize them after they went back was two different things. Six people, all of whom are a little homesick.

Zhou Yuan said: "The court is not thin to wait for us. ”

"It's Zheng Xianggong......" Wei Yang said, but he didn't dare to say more.

"Don't think so much, let's get down to business, first decide on the two candidates who will take refuge in Lang Zuo first."

Several people's eyes were focused on Wei Yang and Lu Yi at the same time, and among the six people, the two of them were the least reused, but the other four were not embarrassed to say. Because this candidate is decided, there is less chance of going home.

"Don't look at it, we agreed," Lu Yi replied.

"Okay, then decide on another candidate." After Zhou Yuan finished speaking, the eyes of the other four people focused on Zhou Yuan and Feng Gao, only the two of them were the most valued by the unhidden Pang Pang, and they all gave him no hidden surname.

Zhou Yuan said, "Feng Gao, you go back." ”

"No, I only have one son, and my brother is at home to take care of you, and you have two sons, and they are two years older than me, so you should go back. Moreover, this road back to China is not easy to walk. ”

The two repeatedly refused, and finally Zhou Yuan couldn't resist Feng Gao and accepted the arrangement.

Then Zhou Yuan bowed deeply.

I can't return to China now, maybe in half a year, maybe a year later, and the road back to China is also very difficult. But it's better than staying, at least I can go back to reunite with my family. And those who stay are in danger of being discovered at any time, and they have to wait, and I don't know how many years they will have to wait.

The person who returns will return to the country with Yang to replace the elderly Wang Yong and Wang Song to preside over the affairs of the special agent battalion, and there will be a marquis to be rewarded. Of course, if those who stay can have the opportunity to go back in the future, it is not impossible for the Duke of the Kingdom to be crowned. What an honor it is for a small soldier to be given the opportunity to be given to the prince. But how many young people it will take, and how much danger it will take, God knows if he will be able to live in the world at that time.

Therefore, Zhou Yuan bowed deeply.

In this worship, the entire direction of Western Xia will change.

!