Seeing the end of the 339th year of the Great Song Dynasty, the 340th year of the Great Song Dynasty is coming. All departments of the Great Song Dynasty invited Zhao Qian one after another, and asked him to watch the literary and artistic programs of various departments for the 60th birthday of Zhao Guan's family.

Take the train to Zhengzhou, which has been promoted to the state capital, cross the pontoon bridge to the other side, and then take the train all the way to the Hebei Plain. It only took more than a day from Kaifeng to arrive in Youzhou City, and Zhao Qian continued to take the train through the northbound railway through the Yinshan Mountains to the north of the Great Song Dynasty. If the railway bridge over the Yellow River was completed, it would only take five days for 100,000 Song troops to reach north of Yinshan from Kaifeng.

In the process of condolences to the army, Zhao Qian passed through a number of famous areas in history, where the Han court fought a bitter war to eliminate the scourge of the north. At this time, Zhao Qian saw a city that was far protected by a fortress, and the city was very lively with people coming and going. There was also an official road link from the fort to the railway, and both offensive and defensive forces no longer required huge expenditures to maintain a large army and war materiel in the bitter cold of the north.

According to the tradition of the New Army of the Great Song Dynasty, the army cultivated vegetable fields and pig farms by itself. When Zhao Qian and the soldiers held a forum, citrus, fruits, and bananas were still on the table, and there were still citrus, fruits, and bananas transported by rail...... Zhao Qian couldn't help but ask how the bananas were transported. The logistics staff here proudly said, "Take advantage of the banana when it is not ripe, pick it off, transport it to Zhigu Village (Tianjin) by ship, and then transport it directly by railway from Zhigu Village." When we arrived, we ripen the bananas by means of ripening gas in the cellar. In this way, bananas can be eaten in the north. ”

Zhao Qian was silent, he didn't expect that the transportation capacity of the Great Song Dynasty had reached such a point. You can also enjoy fruits unique to the south in the north. The fact that there is spare capacity to transport these fruits proves that grain transportation is not a problem. Zhao Qian asked the soldiers, "How is the training and patrol of the troops now?" ”

"We train every day." The soldiers said that they worked very hard, but someone still asked: "I heard that there are Iberian horse breeds transported to the Great Song Dynasty, and I don't know when they will be equipped with our troops." Director, we're all going to be discharged, and we really want to ride that kind of good horse that is said to be more amazing than Dawan horses. ”

Zhao Qian's current permanent title is the director of the Veterans Counseling Committee, and Song Jun is not allowed to lie, he can only regretfully tell the soldiers of the northern army, which is dominated by cavalry, "It will take several years to transport a large number of horses, and it will take time for horses to reproduce." It will be possible to deploy a large number of troops in about ten years. ”

The soldiers are also very sorry that the Great Song Army has now determined the service period, and the service period for ordinary soldiers is three years, and only professional soldiers will have a service period of ten years. The people who held the discussion this time were all conscripts, and they were all serving three-year terms. The soldier asked some other questions, "Director Zhao, are Iberian horses frost-resistant?" ”

Iberia is now the region of Spain, and it is said that the northern part of Spain has cold winters, but the Iberian region is not so cold. To the north of Yinshan, it is common to have a climate of minus 10 degrees or even lower in winter, and Zhao Qianzhen does not know if Iberian horses can get used to it. Zhao Qian answered the soldiers' very professional questions with a big truth, "This ...... I really don't know. ”

The soldiers were simple and serious. The soldiers were excited to be able to take the train home when they were about to retire. There are also people who envy the future recruits who will not have to walk for more than a month to reach the service area. Some soldiers also asked if there was really family leave in the future?

These questions sound a bit 'weak' even now, and Zhao Qian did not express the slightest displeasure. He himself was a soldier, and after a fierce war, after a long period of stationing and training, Zhao Qian often felt homesick. Almost everyone in the army cried because they missed home, and it had nothing to do with whether they were strong or not. It's a good thing that soldiers are finally able to go home and see them during their service.

When the meeting ended, an officer found Zhao Qian and sighed, "The current troops are becoming more and more difficult to lead." Zhao Qian smiled slightly, and was noncommittal. At this time, the army was experiencing the impact of the changes of the times, 'chariots, horses, and pedestrians, bows and arrows. The grandmother and wife sent each other off, and the dust did not see the Xianyang Bridge. The clothes stopped crying, and the crying went straight to the sky. The era has passed, and the glory of the soldiers of the Great Song Dynasty comes from their defense of the country, so there is no reason why the progress of the country should not be felt by the soldiers.

Continue west, and finally reach the railway site. I saw a large number of Japanese laborers and Great Song Dynasty railway soldiers who were nervously laying railways, even in winter, it was still lively here. The sound of trumpets and the roar of machinery and equipment are intertwined, and even the cold wind seems to be conquered by such fierceness, giving people a less piercing feeling.

In another three years, the Great Song Dynasty railway on the Mongolian Plateau will be able to build the old land of the original Anxi Protectorate, and then the Great Song Dynasty will have the ability to launch a war to recapture the Anxi Metropolitan Protectorate. It has been nearly 20 years since the arrival of the Great Song Dynasty Advance in Yinshan, and the proposal to launch a western expedition to completely regain the lost territory has not been interrupted in these years. The time will come. ”

Zhao Qian felt that this opportunity would probably come after he ascended the throne, when the Great Song Dynasty had 'invested 500,000 horses' in the western expedition, as recorded in the history books. Unexpectedly, the timing of the Western Expedition was not based on the accumulation model of the past, and the Great Song Dynasty prepared for war in a new way. In the past, the war was a simple attrition, and now the railway construction is pulling the economy of the Great Song Dynasty in an all-round way.

"Prince, will you be the commander-in-chief of the Western Expedition in three years?" The general accompanying him asked.

"Can you tell I want to lead the army?" Zhao Qian did not deny it.

"We're all soldiers, you can see this just by looking at your eyes." The general calmly replied, "Prince, back then, the official family personally led the army to the Northern Expedition, and the Battle of the Yellow River defeated Kublai Khan in one fell swoop. It also diverted the Yellow River. Now that the prince is in charge of railway affairs, we are all looking forward to the prince leading the way. ”

This may be a sign of allegiance from the troops, Zhao Qian thinks. Because this analogy is really inappropriate. Zhao Qian did go to the railway department, but it was Zhao Jiaren, the father who diverted the Yellow River, who developed the railway. Dad changed the Great Song Dynasty before, and he is still changing the Great Song Dynasty. But Zhao Qian did not refute this, because in history, the crown prince basically succeeded to the throne after leading the army, and a few were directly killed. Zhao Qian never thought that his father would be unfavorable to him, and he thought that the army also understood this, so he used such a clumsy method to express his loyalty.

In the army, when a major war is completed, relations are established. Who is the main general and who is the subordinate, this kind of seniority is not so easy to overthrow. In this hierarchical system, betrayal is an unacceptable crime. As long as Zhao Qian has no problems and no evil deeds, those who follow him must support Zhao Qian.

On the way back, Zhao Qian considered Luo Yiren's persistence, and felt that Luo Yiren was really smart. After personally going to the Northern Railway of the Great Song Dynasty to see it, he could naturally understand that the new war was not far away, and the Great Song Dynasty built the railway to the enemy's territory not to surrender, but to fight, conquer, and eliminate. With the war in hand, the restoration of the Persian Protectorate was bound to be on the agenda.

Judging from the map, after seizing the Persian capital, the Great Song Dynasty completely cut off the connection between Mongolia and Tibet, and the war to recover Tibet would also start at that time. The Great Song Dynasty, which has been at peace for twenty years, will once again fully stretch its fangs and claws. At such a time, Luo Yiren, who has always advocated launching an attack from the Tianzhu side, can naturally be rewarded.

Such a smart man...... It's really not reassuring. Zhao Qian felt that he understood his father's thoughts, too many people are smart but are mistaken by smart, will Luo Yiren become prime minister because of his cleverness? If he swells, he will inevitably encounter a lot of very bad things.

The train returned to Youzhou, and Zhao Qian stayed in Youzhou City for a day. I wanted to see this important city and browse the local monuments. As a result, Zhao Qian was disappointed, and the monuments in Youzhou City were too damaged. This is really not destroyed by the Great Song Dynasty, the Jin State was originally a vassal of the Khitan, and after destroying the Khitan, it wreaked havoc on the Khitan tomb. Mongolia was even more barbaric than the Jin Kingdom, and destroyed the tomb of the Jin king. In order to rob the treasures, all the imperial tombs were dug up. As for the local monuments, they were destroyed by years of war.

After the Great Song Dynasty recovered Youzhou, in order to protect the monuments and promote patriotism. The tombs of the Khitan and Jin kings were dug up, and the places were opened up into parks, and the coffins of the Khitan and Jin lords of the past dynasties were dug up, and what they did was recorded. If you want to see the monuments, you have to go there.

This statement made Zhao Qian laugh. He didn't say anything, so he went to visit the coffin. After reading everywhere and reading the content of the explanation, Zhao Qian, who listened to the tour guide's explanation, felt that the Great Song Dynasty was worthy of being a civilized country. Even digging people's ancestral graves is done so beautifully. But Zhao Qian didn't think there was anything wrong with this at all. The Jin State destroyed the tombs of the Northern Song Dynasty emperors very ferociously, the bodies of the emperors of the previous dynasties were dragged out and thrown outside, and the tombs of the emperors of the Southern Song Dynasty were dug up in Mongolia. Thinking of these, Zhao Qian strengthened his determination to lead the army to the west. Daddy washed the snow and Jing Kang's shame, it was Daddy's snow. The Huns were not destroyed, and Zhao Qian also felt that he needed to wash the snow in order to have a clear conscience.

After coming back from this condolence trip, Zhao Qian went to see his father. As soon as he said that he wanted to command the future expedition to the west, Zhao Jiaren agreed. The speed surprised Zhao Qian. Such a big thing seems to be just Zhao Qian asking his father for a New Year's Day red envelope.

"But." Zhao Jiaren continued to speak.

Zhao Qian immediately listened with bated breath.

"I still don't want to destroy the Slave Dynasty. Keeping it is not necessarily a curse. Zhao Jiaren expressed his opinion.

"Is the official family so unconfident? The Great Song Dynasty was able to rule the Tianzhu region. Zhao Qian expressed his opinion.

"Da Lang, when you go to the north, do you feel that the north has changed? At least you won't feel like the North is out of reach. ”

"Yes."

"Tianzhu will also change, and wherever the Great Song Dynasty goes, those places will make progress. Originally, there would never have been a national idea in those places, but decades and hundreds of years later, there will be a national idea in those places. In those countries that have already taken the form of a primary state, after tens or hundreds of years, the idea of a larger, unified state will emerge. This one is unstoppable. Those who are backward will certainly learn from the advanced, and this is the diffusion of culture and technology. Do you think I'm cowardly? If I'm cowardly, it's just a reverence for this kind of human progress. ”

"Official, please leave the affairs of future generations to our juniors." Zhao Qian replied decisively. Dad's words should be right, but Zhao Qian felt that Dad's view of the future might be too far-reaching, so he fell into another path of 'eternal law'. Aren't these eternal things what Daddy opposes?

"You...... Just have faith. Zhao Jiaren sighed. Looking at his son, Zhao Jiaren really felt that he was old, although he didn't think that Da Song becoming the world hegemon would lead the world to a whole new world, which was unlikely. The vitality of China is that China accepts the existence of other countries, which is completely different from that of the Christian colonialists. However, China's characteristics have also led to the fact that China has never been particularly interested in interfering in other countries, just as the new China will try to integrate into the world trading system, but it has little interest in interfering with other countries to lead other countries. With such a cultural line of thought, there will eventually be a limit to the expansion of the Great Song Dynasty, and the excessive involvement of the Great Song in foreign countries at that time may not be particularly beneficial to the Great Song Dynasty.

But Zhao Jiaren felt that his energy was obviously weakening day by day, and now he had to wear glasses to read the official documents clearly. And after seeing it for a certain period of time, no matter how hard you try, the text of the official document will start to blur. Aging is the only way for human beings, and Zhao Jiaren has never expected any immortality. He said to his son, "Go as you like." I don't want to worry about it anymore. ”

Zhao Qian heard something from this, and he hurriedly asked, "What does the official family mean?" ”

"It's not that you don't know about Eastern Rome and the Two Rivers Valley, and the Eastern Mediterranean Alliance still has to stick to its current policy. As for the rest, you can discuss it with Luo Yiren. ”

But Zhao Jiaren felt that his energy was obviously weakening day by day, and now he had to wear glasses to read the official documents clearly. And after seeing it for a certain period of time, no matter how hard you try, the text of the official document will start to blur. Aging is the only way for human beings, and Zhao Jiaren has never expected any immortality. He said to his son, "Go as you like." I don't want to worry about it anymore. ”

Zhao Qian heard something from this, and he hurriedly asked, "What does the official family mean?" ”

"It's not that you don't know about Eastern Rome and the Two Rivers Valley, and the Eastern Mediterranean Alliance still has to stick to its current policy. As for the rest, you can discuss it with Luo Yiren. ”