Deng She is on the throne of Yan in Liaoyang, and he is an official of the Hundred Divisions.

Hong Jixun, Yao Haogu, Wen Huaguo, Chen Hu, and others asked Deng She to follow the example of Zhu Yuanzhang in Jiangnan Province and set up Zhongshu in Liaoyang, Pyongyang, Wangjing, and other places to divide the province so as to facilitate local governance.

Dun She's followed.

It is a province of Liaoyang, North Korea, and South Korea.

Among them, Liaoyang Province governs the land of eastern Liaodong, west to Gaozhou, north to Liaoshen, south to Jinfu Zhuzhou, east to the bank of the Yalu River, and the province is located in Liaoyang. The provinces of North Korea govern Pyongyang and the northern boundary, west to the Yalu River, north to Guanbei, south to the sea, and east to the line along the Cibei Ridge.

To the south of the Mercy Ridge, to Jeolla and Gyeongsang provinces, there are South Korean sub-provinces, which are basically the old land of Samhan, and the sub-provinces are located in Seoul,—— that is, the Hanyang Province of the former Goryeo, and Dunshee changed its name to Seoul.

The reason why the seat of governance of the South Korean province was not placed in the former Goryeo province of Wanggyeong Kaesong was because considering that Kaesong Province had been the capital of South Korea for hundreds of years, and the power of the former Goryeo eunuchs and wealthy families was deeply rooted, which was not conducive to the foothold of the new government. So I chose Hanyang Province, which has less impact. In addition, Hanyang Province is located in the center of the South Korean province to the south of Kaesong Province, and the establishment of the administrative office here can also play a better role in controlling the southern provinces such as Jeolla and Gyeongsang.

Chen Hu is the governor of Liaoyang Province, Wenhuaguo is the governor of North Korea, and Zhao Guo is the governor of South Korea. The positions of these three in Haidong Province remain unchanged. The South Korean province was still nominally a dependency of Goryeo, and Wang Qi was appointed as the king of Goryeo.

The three provinces are allowed to set up their own left and right divisions, which are one level lower than those of Haidong Province, and are directly under the jurisdiction and management of the left and right divisions of the provinces. The garrisons of the provinces remained under the jurisdiction of the Privy Council. In other words, the provinces have a certain amount of political decision-making power, but they do not have the decision-making power of the military. The movement of the army and the appointment and dismissal of officers remained under the control of the Executive Privy Council.

At present, the area under the actual direct control of Deng She, from Goju in Liaoyang Province to Jeolla Islands in South Korea Province, is thousands of miles from east to west, hundreds of miles from north to south, and hundreds of counties and towns under his jurisdiction. The customs and customs of different places are very different.

In particular, Liaodong and South Korea are separated by mountains and rivers, and the distance is thousands of miles. The two places do not understand the same language, have different races, and do not have the same priorities in administration, so it is very difficult to rely only on one set of leading bodies in Haidong Province to carry out unified management. It must be adapted to local conditions. From this point of view, it is indeed time to further subdivide the administrative divisions. Just in time for the holy decree of King Xiao Ming to enshrine Deng She as the king of Yan, it can be said that the melon is ripe.

By the way, this move is also equivalent to the complete annexation of South Goryeo.

There is also a suggestion that the left and right divisions of Haidong Province should be separated, and that they should be changed to the left and right divisions in imitation of the scale of Zhongshu Province. Dunshe considered this move too excessive and unnecessary, so he did not adopt it.

This is the king of Yan, and in the future, on formal occasions, Deng She will not be able to call "me". Or called "lonely home", or cloud "this king". Statuses are very different. If the provincial prime minister Zuo is still a courtier, King Yan has the implication of drawing land and dividing territory. And in the two ancient kingdoms, although Yan is not as good as Qin, Jin and other countries, it is also a prominent country, which is really noble.

What's more, over the past dynasties, there have been very few kings with different surnames who can be canonized by the imperial court and recognized by the emperor. The following Han and Tang dynasties are customized: non-national surnames are not allowed to be crowned kings. If this was in the peaceful era, I would not dare to think of it. Although now in troubled times, the king officially promoted by the Song regime, so far, Deng She is also the only one.

Tian Feng and Wang Shicheng of ——, Shandong, one calls himself the King of Flowers and Horses, and the other calls himself the King of Sweeping, although they are also called kings, but one has not been recognized by An Feng, and the other is not so much that they are kings, but more like nicknames, with a strong reckless atmosphere. How can there be a noble king under one person and above hundreds of millions of people, who has the names of "flower horse" and "sweeping the floor"? It just makes those who know laugh.

Let's say that Deng She unceremoniously ascended the throne, and at the same time instructed Yao Haogu to write a letter of thanks, pretending to be humble, expressing fear, and sending people to Shandong and Anfeng. He also brought heavy gifts to Liu Futong, Liu Futong's younger brother Liu Shijiu (who had sent an envoy to Pyongyang on behalf of An Feng last time), Sha Liu Er and others.

After all kinds of miscellaneous things, it was the end of leap May.

Speaking of which, it is a happy event that Deng She was promoted to the title of King Yan. Now, there is a problem in front of his eyes. On this day, he took out the holy decree of King Xiao Ming again and looked upside down.

At the end of the holy decree, there are a few sentences: "In the past few years, you swept through Liaodong and destroyed the country of Goryeo, and the prosperity of martial arts is rare in ancient times." Jin Feng Yan King, well deserved. Liaodong, the old land of Yan; Jicheng, the old capital of Yan. Today, it is certainly the honor you deserve to be named the king of Yan. But if there is no thistle city, it will inevitably be in name only.

"I have heard of your bravery, and I often hear Liu Pingzhang and others mention it, and they are full of praise for you. Your loyalty to the court is also vivid in my mind. Now that Liaodong and Goryeo have been pacified, why don't you take advantage of the aftermath that swept Haidong to boost your indomitable fighting spirit, raise the three armies and tigers, leap 100,000 iron horsemen, and go south to occupy Jicheng?

"If it succeeds, not only will your title of King Yan be worthy of its name from now on, but both of the Tartars will be broken by the king. What a glorious thing it is! It will be able to shine through the ages, shine forever in history, and be recited for future generations. That's what I mean, what do you think? Wang Qimian! ”

Jicheng, that is, the ancient name of the capital. During the Warring States period, it was the capital of the Yan Kingdom. King Xiao Ming's meaning was very clear, and asked Deng She to send troops south to attack Dadu.

It is obviously impossible to attack most of the capitals, and that is called self-defeating. However, although this is the wishful thinking of King Xiao Ming, it will inevitably arouse Deng She's different thoughts again. He summoned his ministers to the council. Showing the holy decree of King Xiao Ming to everyone to see, he didn't say what he thought first, asked the ministers, and said: "The lord is the king of Yan, and I want to use this as an inspiration to send troops from Haidong to attack Dadu." What do you think? What do you think? Speak freely, albeit yourself. ”

"This must not be done."

Chen Hu held his head high, strode out of the class with a majestic and high-spirited stride, and he said disdainfully: "The Anfeng Imperial Court clearly thinks that King Xiaoming is the main one, and the actual military and political affairs are all in the hands of Liu Taibao. If I want Haidong to send an army to attack Dadu, this must be Liu Taibao's proposal. In the past, when Bianliang was at its peak, the Three-Way Northern Expedition was still unfinished, and now there is only my Haidong Road? If I move in the east of the sea, as he said, if I attack Dadu, I will become the target of the public. Richard and Polo Timur have hundreds of thousands of troops, how can they sit idly by?

"A month ago, Chahan fought a battle, and the lord should have a general understanding of the combat power of Polo's department. Even if I Haidong do my best, I'm afraid that I will be on par with him at most. What's more, there is still Richard in the Tartars? Chakhan Timur's soldiers were very powerful, and their momentum was still above Polo. If our army acts rashly, Haidong will surely fall into an unforeseen and dangerous situation.

"Yes, the minister thinks that this must not be done."

Yao Haogu and Chen Hu agreed and echoed two sentences.

He has been with Deng She for a long time, and he understands Deng She's mind better than Chen Hu, so he changed his words and said: "It has been more than two months since the first battle of Chahan'er. The three provinces have been established, and the exchange of officials and garrisons between the DPRK and South Korea has also been carried out. The regime is basically stable. A few days ago, Lord Hong sent a document to arrive, saying that after intense construction and day and night work, the defense line of Gaozhou was basically declared complete and almost completed. He will soon return to the province.

"Last month, Shenyang Naha even accepted the terms of the lord unconditionally, and was willing to pay tribute to my Haidong.

"It can be said that Lai Zhugong is wise, civil and military, and my Haidong is now borderless on the outside, and there is nothing to worry about inside. It was the time when the wheat was ripe in June, and it coincided with the lord to become the king of Yan. The minister thinks that it is not advisable to discuss the strategy of the capital, but he might as well take this opportunity to discuss and discuss what to do next in my Haidong. ”

"What do you think, sir?"

"The minister is shallow and does not dare to speak first. Please speak, Mr. Chen. ”

Chen Hu was in charge, he still had a little respect for Yao Haogu, and he politely said a few words first, and said: "Lord Yao is reasonable, and he coincides with the views of the ministers. I have been recuperating in Haidong for more than two months, just as far as the minister's department is concerned. The soldiers all seek to fight, and they want to raise the three-foot Qingfeng and expand the territory for the lord. ”

"Where do you want to expand?"

"Long-range close attack. The minister thought that it was time to clean up Shenyang. ”

"Shenyang?"

"Naha came out of a famous family, arrogant and domineering. The minister heard that although he was soft, there were still many disrespectful words to the lord in his plain words. Hulu, if you are not of my race, your heart will be different. Shenyang is only a few dozen miles away from me, and it is really a big trouble. The uneven Shenyang, given the time to give Naha a room to breathe, will definitely be in danger of turning into elbows and armpits. Therefore, the minister thought that our army should make persistent efforts to completely destroy him! ”

Deng She was noncommittal, and asked the other ministers, "What about you?" What do you think? ”

Yang Xingjian said: "The minister thinks that what Lord Chen said is very true. If Shenyang is uneven, my heart is unstable. ”

Another person, disapproving, came out and said: "The minister thinks that the trouble in my Haidong is not in Shenyang, but in Liaoxi." ”

Everyone turned their heads to look, but it was Liu Shize who spoke. The last time Deng She convened a military council to discuss whether to rescue Shangdu, Yang Xingjian, Liu Shize, and Liu Shimin, brothers, one supported and two opposed, and they already had a-for-tat debate. This time, there were different opinions.

Yang Xingjian asked, "Why did Lord Liu say this?" Liaoxi is hundreds of miles away, and Shenyang is close at hand, why is Shenyang not as troubled as Liaoxi? I am also stupid, and I would like to hear about it. ”

"Naha, the general who was defeated three times, has long been frightened, and tens of thousands of troops and horses are now only a few thousand. I have 100,000 heroes in Haidong, and if I want to destroy him, it will be effortless to look at the ears and ears. And the family treasure of Liaoxi, although he only had the defeat of Huihe, but Daning is next to the belly, and most of the cities and other places have an endless stream of support for him, if our army ignores it and allows it to be enriched, won't it raise tigers for trouble?

"The land of Shenyang is just a city. The land of western Liaoning, with a radius of hundreds of miles. Who's more of a threat is clear at a glance. And Shenyang has made a new peace treaty with me, and the covenant is less than ten months, how can my Haidong suddenly change? It is not in good faith. Therefore, I think that the trouble of Shenyang is not as good as the trouble of Liaoxi. ”

"Haha! Lord Liu's words are ridiculous and ridiculous. ”

"What's so funny?"

Yang Xingjian ignored him, bowed to Deng She, and said: "The minister has only heard that it is easy first and then difficult, weak first and then strong. If you don't hear about it, it's hard to give up the easy, and you can avoid the weak. In the past, people also said that the engraving was enough to fit the situation. Sharpen your feet according to the size of your shoes, and the priorities are reversed. That's what Lord Liu said. ”

Dunsher sat on the throne and listened to their heated debates.

If it weren't for the fact that he knew the details of Yang Xingjian and the Liu family brothers, he would have doubted whether they had a vendetta. Not only these two military discussions, but almost every time they deliberated, their opinions were always disagreeable, and they always had to quarrel endlessly. Yang Xingjian said the east, and the Liu brothers had to say the west, and they didn't talk about it casually, they had their own reasons. Both parties are readers, quoting scriptures and classics, and their words are sharp. The mockery is sarcastic, and the smell of gunpowder is very strong.

Yang Xingjian was "carved enough", which made Liu Shize's face flushed. His brother Liu Shimin shared the same hatred for the enemy, and said in response: "It is better to carve enough than to be cheap." What is the difference between Lord Yang's high theory of Shenyang first and self-judging my Haidong's foot? To walk, you need to have two legs. Liaodong and Goryeo are the two legs of my Haidong. If Liaoxi is not destroyed, Liaodong will be uneven. If Liaodong is not completely pacified, my Haidong will be missing a leg and staggering, how can I go far? ”

He fell to the ground and said to Deng She: "Shenyang, ringworm of the skin; Liaoxi, my great trouble. If Liaoxi is determined first, then I can force Dadu to enter, and I can guard Huihe when I retreat, and advance and retreat freely.

"If Shenyang is decided first, Hong Gong has a saying: I am before I think of myself as a pack of wolves. To the north of Shenyang, there are all Mongolian tribes, and our army does not occupy Shenyang, they think they have a buffer of Shenyang, and they are scattered. If our army occupies Shenyang, it will do no good except to inspire them to unite. There is going to be hell to pay.

"In the opinion of the minister, how to decide, only please ask the lord to decide."

Yang Xingjian shook his head and said, "No, no." The Mongolian tribes north of Shenyang, the strong men have long been requisitioned by Naha, and there are some old, weak, sick and disabled left, what am I afraid of? This is not the case in Liaoxi. As Lord Liu said, if we get Liaoxi, our army can enter the capital. However, it is easy to advance and force, but it is difficult to retreat to Huihe. ”

"Why?"

"A few months ago, there was a military meeting that also talked a little about the situation in western Liaoning. I remember that Yao Gong once said, 'The wood is beautiful in the forest, and the wind will destroy it; Walk above men, and the crowd will not. 'Shicai Chen also said that Liu Taibao's three-way Northern Expedition failed. At that time, Bianliang was the most prosperous, and the three-way Northern Expedition was not more than 100,000 military horses? Showing off his might, he was menacing, threw the whip of the Yellow River, cut off the flow for it, but finally failed. Why? Without it, 'wood shows in the forest'.

"If our army captures Liaoxi and goes south to the capital, it will be possible in ten days. Then I will be the first enemy of the Tartars. If Richard Han and Polo come to fight, what can I do? Lord Liu, may I ask if you plan to come out? ......, that's why I said that it is easy to advance and force, and it is difficult to retreat. The lesson is not far away, how can it be repeated? ”

There are two of them, one says "Hong Gongyandao" and the other speaks "Yao Gongyandao". Deng She's heart moved, and he looked at Yao Haogu's face. Yao Haogu's expression did not move, and when the debate between Yang Xingjian and Liu Shize came to an end, he said slowly: "The minister thinks that it is not advisable to fight Liaoxi. Our military has won Haidong, and it is precisely time to keep its light and keep its head down, and it is really not possible to force it to be a bird on the head. ”

"Then, Mr. Yao agreed to fight Shenyang?"

"Fighting Shenyang, the minister thinks it is not advisable."

"Why?"

"Lord Chen just mentioned long-distance and close attacks. This is the true truth. However, the direction of the close attack could not be placed in Shenyang. The disadvantages of beating Shenyang, Lord Liu made it very clear. In particular, the sentence that Lord Liu quoted by Hong Gong was very much agreed. I, Haidong, must not drive away a tiger and attract a pack of wolves.

"In the opinion of the ministers, to deal with Shenyang, there is no need to mobilize the army, two methods are enough. On the one hand, he continues to be required to contribute every year, which consumes his financial resources; On the one hand, it is often harassed by guerrillas to prevent it from getting bigger. In this way, with a two-pronged approach, Naha became a tiger, and he had to honestly change to be my Haidong's gatekeeper cat. As for Liaoxi, it can also be dealt with in the same way according to this method.

"The strength of Shijiabao has recovered slightly, and my military horses of Huihe and Wuping can find it to fight. First, they took the opportunity to train troops, and the two had Shenyang's annual contributions, which were enough to support the operation in western Liaoning. There is no need to spend half a penny or two on my Haidong to achieve the purpose of exercising new soldiers. Why not? ”

It is not possible to fight Shenyang and Liaoxi, so where did Yao Haogu take a fancy to it?

He uttered two words: "Shandong." ”

It is exactly what Deng She wants.

Shandong is rich, has many people, is rich in minerals, and is on the edge of the belly, which has long been occupied by red scarves. In the near term, the competition for Shandong, in the eyes of Meng Yuan, is just an infighting between the red scarves, which will not attract much attention from them. Looking into the distance, Chahan has been interested in Shandong for a long time, and if he gets Shandong first, it will be equivalent to closing the road to Haidong to the sea and entering the Central Plains. With Polo in the west and Chahan in the south, Haidong was suddenly under the attack of two strong enemies, and it was bound to be dangerous.

If you want to resolve it, there is no other way than to strike first.

Although Chen Hu's personality is gloomy, he is not stubborn. He pondered for a moment, admitted Yao Haogu's unique vision, and simply gave up the idea of fighting Shenyang, and agreed to support it instead.

However, there is a problem. Shandong and Liaoyang, both courtiers of the Song regime, for no reason, how could they strike first? Wang Shicheng and Tian Feng will definitely not take the initiative to welcome Deng She. If you can't find a good reason, it's really hard to do it.

Chen Hu said: "Li Chahan has been training in Shanxi for a long time, and he has long heard that he has the intention of attacking Shandong. Why not wait for him to make a move, and then our army will enter Shandong in the name of assistance? ”

Deng She shook his head and said, "Although Chahan has the intention of attacking Shandong, we don't know when he will attack. It's one of them. If he is not well prepared, he will never go on the offensive. We went to the aid at that time, and it was to attack its strength. Even if you win, you will definitely lose a lot. It's the second one.

"Shandong has Tian Feng and Wang Shicheng, they are the masters, even if we go to help, they can only be guest troops. It is inconvenient to transport grain and grass by sea, and the army needs to rely on them for food and salary, or it may be controlled by others and unable to take the initiative. Rather than that, it's better not to go. It's the third also.

"Therefore, if we wait until Chahan launches an offensive, it will be too late for us to attack."

Deng She pondered this matter and thought about it for many days. Everything. All the ministers nodded yes, and they thought so.

Yang Xingjian groaned: "If you enter Shandong at this time, Chahan is not properly prepared and caught off guard, which is one of my benefits." Tian Feng and Wang Shicheng disagree with each other and attack each other, which is my second benefit. Liaodong wheat is ripe, and the military food is sufficient; The army has been recuperating for two months, and they all have the will to fight, which is my third benefit. With these three benefits, you will win. The only thing to worry about is whether Chahan is well prepared or not, I Haidong must not be guarded against. The only thing to worry about ,......, should I find an excuse to get involved in Shandong? ”

Yes, what excuse should I find to get involved in Shandong? Deng She just received the title of King Yan, and turned his face to beat his own people, what happened?

The ministers were silent, and they all fell into thought. What excuse should I make?

Yao Haogu smiled slightly and said, "The minister has a strategy." ”

——

1. Following the example of Zhu Yuanzhang in Jiangnan Province, Zhongshu was divided into provinces in Liaoyang, Pyongyang, Wangjing and other places to facilitate local governance.

In the fourth year of Dragon and Phoenix, Zhu Yuanzhang placed the book in Hangzhou. The province of Chinese books is actually the province of books in the line. In the twelfth year (1366), the province was dismissed, and Jiangsu, Zhejiang and other places were placed in the province.