Chapter 11: Three Lives (2)

"The minister seconded the proposal, the five families will fight Zhou, and the Guo clan will definitely be wiped out!" Zhao Hua, the privy deputy envoy, had a bright eye, and decisively agreed behind Zhang Yuanzheng. Taking advantage of the trend, it also faintly pointed out the fact that Zhang Yuanzheng was illiterate.

Zhang Yuanzheng didn't care, smiled, and added in a low voice: "The Han clan in Youzhou is a vicious dog raised by the Liao State, of course, it can't be counted as a separate family. As long as the Great Liao Emperor is willing to send troops, the Youzhou Han clan is willing to send troops, and if he is not willing to send troops, he will also have to do it!"

"It's better to send someone to say hello to Han Kuangsi alone, otherwise, he will inevitably fail to work!" Zhao Hua's face turned slightly red, and he proposed with a smile.

The two of them are the military generals and the heads of the civil ministers, and since the opinions have basically reached a consensus, even if the other civil and military have doubts in their hearts, it is inconvenient to say it in public. As a result, today's court meeting quickly set the tone, and in the winter, the troops were not moved, the strength was accumulated, and at the same time envoys were sent to cross the country. Strive to be in the spring of next year, the roadless army will march in parallel, attack Bianliang, and divide the picturesque country of "pseudo-Zhou".

This strategy is highly feasible, but it is quite laborious to implement.

First of all, the Northern Han Dynasty only bordered the Liao State and Youzhou among the other four families, and if they wanted to contact the Western Shu and Southern Tang Dynasty, they had to bypass the territory of the Great Zhou.

Secondly, although the civil strife in the Liao State has ended, the Tianshun Emperor Yelujing does not have any real power. The internal and foreign affairs of the Great Liao are all in the hands of Yelu Wu, the king of the Northern Courtyard. And Na Yelu was afraid that he would become Shi Hongzhao's second, so he didn't dare to leave the station for half a step. Therefore, even if the Liao State sends troops, the number of soldiers and horses that can be dispatched is very limited, and it is absolutely impossible to do it again in a short period of time.

Again, it's a matter of secrecy. Among the high-ranking officials of the Great Liao State, many of them are nomadic tribal chiefs, and there is no concept of secrecy in their hearts at all. In the past few years, Cangzhou has done business with various departments of the Liao State, as long as the tribal leaders know about anything, it will not take a few days for Cangzhou to know, and the news will spread faster than galloping horses!

Since the news of the five families meeting in Zhou has reached Cangzhou, it is impossible not to be sent to Bianliang in the shortest possible time. When the Great Zhou Emperor Chai Rong heard this, he was furious. Immediately, civil and military officials above the fourth rank were invited into the palace to discuss the countermeasures.

Although when he ascended the throne, he was supported by Fu Yanqing, Gao Xingzhou, Chang Si, Feng Dao, Bai Wenke and other old ministers, but after all, he has only been the emperor for more than a month, and his prestige is far from being erected, let alone being able to make a statement like the legend. Therefore, as soon as Zhang Yongde introduced the situation, the civil and military officials below were immediately divided into two factions that were incompatible.

Fu Yanqing and Gao Xingzhou have both returned to their respective fiefdoms, and the generals are naturally headed by Chang Si, who is the oldest in qualifications, rubbing their fists and grinding their palms, and they want to fight to the death with the invading enemy troops from all walks of life. As long as the Great Zhou can defeat the five invaders one by one, they can take advantage of the situation to launch a counteroffensive, going north to Yanyun, south to Wuyue, and west to Bashu. Even if it is not good, it can attack Taiyuan against the trend and completely solve the hidden dangers of Liu Chong's father and son!

Most of the civil officials, led by Feng Dao, firmly believed that the ancestor Guo Wei had just died, the rebellion of Wang Jun and Wang Yin had just been quelled, and the vitality of the Great Zhou had not yet fully recovered, and it was really the next resort to rush into battle with many enemy forces. The best choice is to give Liao, Mengshu, and Southern Tang some benefits separately, so that the puppet Han's plan will be completely frustrated. Then spend several years lying on the salary to taste the courage, accumulate strength, and wait for the domestic industry to flourish, before you can send troops to destroy the Northern Han Dynasty first, and then map the Southern Tang Dynasty and Mengshu;

Of course, there are also individual civil officials such as Fan Zhen, Lu Yuqing, etc., whose ideas are more inclined to think often. But compared with Feng Dao, Wei Renpu and other old ministers, they are soft-spoken after all and cannot play any role.

At the same time, there are also some outliers among the generals, such as Cao Bin, Li Hanqiong, Guo Jin, etc., who also think that Feng Dao's proposal is more secure. However, like Fan Zhen, Lu Qingyu and other civil officials, several of them also belong to the junior generation in front of Chang Si. The opinion is completely negligible.

Both sides have a point of truth and cannot compromise with each other. Arguments come and go, and the words smell of fireworks. Among them, Yang Guangyi's words sound particularly harsh. "In order to curry favor with the Khitan, the old thief Liu Chong has to offer 200,000 horses of silk to the Khitan people every year, and countless grains, grasses and pig iron. During the New Year's festival and the birthday of the Khitan thief chieftain, there is an extra amount of filial piety. The territory of my Great Zhou is more than seven times that of the puppet Han, and if I want to buy off the Khitans without sending troops, won't I have to spend millions of guan to do it? The princes keep saying that they will benefit and benefit them, and who will be willing to pay for these millions of silk? It's not that they want to loot the people's fat and people's cream!"

"Isn't it? Give one million to the Khitan, two or three hundred thousand to the families of Mengshu, Nantang, and Youzhou, plus the losses along the way, it will be almost two million. The general Wang Quanbin was also a violent temper, smiling and pouting at Feng Dao and the people around him, "Hehe, scrape it from the heads of your own people, and then send it out." This one in and one out, I'm afraid some people will eat with their mouths full of oil!"

Now, it has exposed too many people's shortcomings. Since the fight against Tang Mingzong, all dynasties and generations, civil ministers and military generals, there are few people with two sleeves. Including the Great Zhou, although the founding time was short, although the Taizu Emperor Guo Wei was simple to the end of the burial in a paper cloth coffin, the mansions of the ministers of civil and military affairs were more magnificent than the other. In particular, the private residences of the former privy envoy Wang Jun and the privy deputy envoy Feng Dao are simply smaller palaces. The interior furnishings are even more luxurious than in the palace!

Immediately, Zhang Zhao, the official of the ministry, stood up, trembled his snow-white beard, and shouted loudly: "Zhuzi, how can you spew blood so much? All departments handle money and grain, and they have account books, and when the emperor is in power, he will also send special personnel to review it every year, and I dare not say that every entry and exit is clear, at least ninety percent of them can stand up to inspection!"

"Yes, do you make fake accounts, who wouldn't?" Wang Quanbin got angry, didn't care whether Zhang Zhao's beard was white or black, pouted, and sneered back, "If you don't believe it, let's verify your family property, whose property, mansion and treasury are hidden, if you can also enter and exit the account, it is clear, and the total amount is less than the sum of ten years, just as I was farting just now!"

This sentence was even more excessive than the previous sentence, and suddenly, like a drop of cold water falling into boiling oil, set off a violent reaction. Not only did the vast majority of civil officials endure it, but even some military generals looked at Wang Quanbin angrily.

And that Wang Quanbin was unconscious, and continued to sneer and add, "Why, am I wrong, whose family property is innocent? At present, the great enemy is not thinking about serving the country with death, but he is still thinking about how to scavenge more money and food from the people, and then intercept the benefits to enrich himself. You and others grovel to the outside world, and take money not as money. Internally, it is cruel and ferocious, knocking out the bones and sucking the marrow. What is the use of such a group of ungrateful people? It is better to feed a few dogs, so that when the thieves come, they can open their mouths and puff a few times!"

"You, you damn it!" Zheng Guogong Zhang Zhao was so black that his eyes turned black, and he pointed at Wang Quanbin and trembled back, "The civil official's ass is not clean, you will be clean when you wait." In terms of the thickness of the family property, who can compare to your old boss Chang Kegong?!"

"The old man is shameless!" As Chang Si's henchman and disciple, Yang Guangyi was furious. An arrow step jumped in front of Zhang Zhao, and raised his fist high, "My master's family wealth is all from giving money to eat interest, and it is much more innocent than you." ”

"Gong Zheng, please be careful!" lest Yang Guangyi beat the minister in front of Chai Rong and commit an unforgivable crime, Han Chongyun hurriedly dodged between the two and shouted loudly.

Immediately after, Zheng Ziming, who was originally going to leave Bianliang recently, also stood up and forcibly pulled Yang Guangyi back to the ranks of military generals. When he turned around, he glanced at Zhang Zhao, and the expression on his face seemed to be smiling.

Zheng Guogong and Zhang Zhao then remembered, who are Chang Si's two sons-in-law? Quickly put away the grievances in your stomach and consider how to remedy them. Before he could finish making up the rhetoric, he saw Chang Si get up, walked to Chai Rong's imperial case, and said loudly: "Your Majesty, Minister Changsi, in Zelu and Luzhou, you have been lending money for profit, and over the years, you have received hundreds of thousands of interest, and in addition to the expenses of raising troops and building cities, you can also convert 100,000 yuan in silver. Today, I would like to donate the principal and interest to Your Majesty to replenish the funds to resist foreign humiliation!"

"This ......" When the words fell, not only Zhang Zhao himself, but also all the civil officials who had followed him to insinuate against Chang Si were all dumbfounded. Immediately after, they lowered their heads, their faces as red as monkey butts.

It is a well-known fact that Zelu Jie Du makes Chang Si rich and will make money. Chang Si's initiative of pacifying Zelu and Zelu Prefecture with 500 personal soldiers and forcing local tyrants to bow down to him with usury was also acquiesced by Liu Zhiyuan, and many civil officials expressed their admiration. Today, Zhang Zhao was squeezed by Wang Quanbin ruthlessly, and he was in a hurry to go through Changsi's old accounts, and he was a little sorry to do it. And Chang Si's resolute act of handing over the principal and interest of usury to the state made many people ashamed of themselves!

Only Feng Dao, the Duke of Yingguo, is still calm and relaxed at the moment. Seeing that all the civil officials looked down at the ground, they smiled, and gently bowed their hands towards Tang Guogong Changsi, "Tang Gong, good means, with 100,000 yuan of interest and millions of old debts that cannot be collected, forcing the civil and military of the Manchu Dynasty to keep silent, this deal is absolutely cost-effective." ”

After that, no matter how Chang Si reacted, he quickly turned his body to Chai Rong again, and bowed solemnly, "Your Majesty, although the old minister's family background is not as rich as Tang Gong, he also donated 3,000 hectares of fertile land, twelve shops in Bianliang City, together with the goods and capital, he can probably make up 100,000 yuan." Not to resist foreign humiliation, but only to buy the enemy's powerful ministers, so that they can find ways to prevent their respective lords from sending troops, so as to prevent us from being attacked on Thursday!"

"Wechen is willing to donate 20,000 yuan to buy the enemy country!"

"Weichen's family background is thin, and he is willing to donate 10,000 yuan in exchange for the rest and recuperation of the people of my Great Zhou!"

"Wechen is willing to donate ......"

"Wechen ......"

At any time, the minds of civil officials were more flexible than military generals, and they followed behind Feng Dao and solemnly expressed their attitudes.

Although it is painful to donate part of the family property, it can be ignored compared to letting the opinions of the main war faction prevail. Moreover, in the past, Emperor Taizu remembered the old feelings and did not hold everyone accountable for harming the public and private interests, but the new emperor may not have such "elegance". Donate part of the family wealth in exchange for not being held accountable for past corruption, this deal, how to look at how cost-effective!

"That's enough, what you Aiqing mean, I understand!" The court meeting, which was related to the life and death of the country, turned into a fundraising meeting, and Chai Rong was so angry that his face turned pale. He slapped the table with his hand and ordered loudly, "Where is Chen Liuhou? Record the amount of donations just now on behalf of me, and collect all the donations on a certain day to enrich the treasury!"

"The minister obeys the order!" Zhao Kuangyin strode forward to salute, then took the eunuch and gave him a pen and paper, and began to do "bookkeeping!"

"Really?" The officials grinned secretly, but they didn't have the courage to cheat on the spot, so they had to lower their heads and silently calculate where they could transfer some money to make up for the shortfall caused by today's impulse.

Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, Chai Rong sighed and turned his gaze to Chang Si again, "Tang Gong, your money lending in Zelu back then was an expedient measure to force the local tycoons to comply. I have heard the Emperor say it more than once, and the Emperor agrees with this matter. However, four or five years have passed, and the city defenses of Zelu and Luzhou have been rectified, and the local tycoons have no strength to continue to enrich themselves, so I will accept the money and interest, and as for the principal debt, after you return to office, you will burn it all!"

"The old minister has already dedicated it to His Majesty, Your Majesty said to burn, the old minister has nothing to say!" Chang Si had already thought about what he should do, stood up again, and bowed his hands solemnly.

"Tang Gong sit, I will never let down your old man's hard work!" Chai Rongxu pressed his arm and motioned for Chang Si to sit down. Immediately, he commanded loudly, "Come to me, prepare the decree for me, Tang Gong often thinks, has made great contributions to the country, Jin Zhongshu order, Tang Wang." Give Bianliang a manor outside the city, 1,000 acres of fertile land, in order to show his loyalty!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Chang Si got up for the third time and respectfully saluted Chai Rong.

The monarchs and ministers are so pretentious, and the generals can't turn the corner. They also followed the example of the previous ministers, and expressed their intention to donate money and materials to prepare military funds for the country to defend against foreign invaders.

Chai Rong treated the generals and civil officials equally, and according to the previous method, Zhao Kuangyin was responsible for recording the money and property that everyone promised to donate one by one. Then he encouraged the generals a few words, and said with a smile: "My father has just returned to the sky, and the puppet Han dares to unite all the countries to attack Zhou, which is really insulting to me." Is it tolerable, but which is unbearable? Besides, even if money can buy a moment of peace, it is easy to make my whole week feel slack. In the future, whenever there is an invasion by a foreign enemy, no matter whether it can be fought or not, the first thing that comes to mind is to spend money to eliminate disasters. In the long run, the day will be cut and the moon will be cut, and my Great Zhou will die without a day!"

"Your Majesty, even when Taizong of the Tang Dynasty just ascended the throne, there was a shame in Weishui. But just a few years later, the Turks were wiped out!" The more Feng Dao listened, the more wrong he became, and he hurriedly got up and saluted, interrupting loudly.

"I'm not Tang Taizong!" Chai Rong was slightly angry in his heart, frowned, and responded in a low voice.

"Tang Taizong, of course not everyone can do it!" I don't know which tendon is wrong, Feng Dao, who has only known to speak according to the will of the monarch for several dynasties, suddenly went against the norm today, bowed down again, and added loudly, "But Your Majesty can use Tang Taizong as a model." This life is comparable to it, as long as it reaches half of it, the world will be very lucky!"

"You, you ......" Chai Rong was so angry that his face turned blue even if he respected the old man and respected the virtuous. endured and endured, gritted his teeth and said, "What Yingguo Gong said is true, after I open the spring, I will follow the example of Tang Taizong and personally conquer Taiyuan!"

Knowing that Chai Rong was on the verge of rage, Feng Dao did not restrain at all, shook his head, and reminded with a sneer. "Your Majesty is cautious, beware of being the second stone and honoring the country!"

"Shut up, the Han army is just a group of rabble, I, I have Ziming, Yuen Long, and generals under my command, and they will definitely be like Mount Tai crushing eggs!"

"Your Majesty is not Tarzan!"

"You ......" Chai Rong finally couldn't bear it anymore, pulled out his sword, and slashed at the imperial book case, "Don't talk nonsense! If the ministers dare to speak out again to slow down the hearts of our army, there will be such a case!"

"Click!" the book case was cut off from the center. Chai Rong turned his head, picked up his sword and left!