Then followed, the officials of Zizhou Road, Lizhou Road and Kuizhou Road played.

In the performance of these four roads, the White Lotus Sect was mentioned invariably, saying that there were White Lotus Sect bandits in their activities, and a large group of ignorant people were suspected of misdeeds in the four roads.

It's just that the local officials have not yet grasped their specific actions, but because there are a large number of people, and there may be a considerable number of local soldiers and officials involved.

Therefore, the four roads played this time to invite the forbidden army to go to the place where the bomb was pressed, and also wanted to ask the imperial court to select important ministers to sit in the town.

And for their invitation, the court also attaches great importance to it, after all, the four roads of Yizhou Road, Zizhou Road, Lizhou Road and Kuizhou Road are too important.

You must know that these four roads together are the complete land of Bashu, and their taxes together account for 20% of the country.

Among them, Yizhou Road is the most important, of course, it should be called Chengdu Mansion now, directly under the jurisdiction of the central government.

The reason why Chengdu Prefecture is so important is because of its vast plains, dense population, fertile land, and developed natural economy.

Of course, the economic aspect is not the most important, but the more important point is that this is the center of the four roads, where the imperial court has set up a large number of material reserves, and there is also a weapon workshop set up by the stomach here, which has a large number of ordnance reserves.

In addition, the terrain of these four roads is complex, the terrain is closed and dangerous, and it is located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, which is extremely conducive to military fortification, and it is a strategic place that has always been fought for by soldiers.

Once there is chaos here, it will not only greatly affect the tax collection of the imperial court.

What's even more dangerous is that once the bandits are allowed to take advantage of the situation, they will rely on the huge financial income, the continuous supply of military supplies, and the abundant food savings.

Then if you want to fight in from the outside to quell the rebellion, I'm afraid it will be really difficult, so there is a saying that the world is not chaotic before Shu is chaotic, and the world has ruled Shu and then ruled it.

Therefore, everyone in the court basically has no opinion on the dispatch of the forbidden army.

It's just that in this way, regarding the possible war with Western Xia in the northwest, many of the original main battle factions began to waver.

Therefore, at the court meeting, there were many voices that supported peace talks with Western Xia and did not hesitate to increase the annual coins and made concessions.

Li Hao, who participated in the court meeting, frowned, but based on the unstable situation in Bashu, considering that once he really wanted to suppress bandits in Bashu.

In terms of the topography there, I am afraid that it will take a lot of time to clear the bandits.

In this case, the Great Song Dynasty was afraid that it would be difficult to concentrate all his efforts on starting a war with the Western Xia, so Li Hao did not refute it at the court meeting.

And Zhao Zhen's side was obviously a little shaken, but he didn't make a decision on the spot, but first discussed the candidate who would lead the troops to Bashu, as well as the important ministers of the court who could sit in the town.

However, this time there is really a problem with the selection of candidates.

Last time, the prestige of the British public was enough, and after seeing him come forward, others did not come forward again.

This time there is no such person, and because this time it is facing the rebel bandits, not the elite soldiers of Western Xia.

Therefore, there are many people who bully the soft and are afraid of the hard, and they also stand up, resulting in a slightly more person who stands up, and everyone does not give in to each other, and Zhao Zhen can't make a decision for a while.

And the choice of the important ministers also encountered problems, and it was best to let Han Qi go in this matter.

After all, Han Qi had previously served as a pacification envoy for the two roads of Yi and Li, and he was more familiar with the situation in the land of Bashu.

But now that he is the prime minister of the DPRK, it is naturally impossible for him to leave Bianjing and go to the local area to inspect.

Among the remaining courtiers, Zhao Zhen did not have a better candidate for a while, so this court meeting ended in the courtiers' arguments.

Of course, the situation was urgent, so Zhao Zhen didn't plan to put it on hold, but summoned Han Qi and Ouyang Xiu to the Vertical Arch Hall.

I plan to reduce the scale of the deliberations and finalize the candidates as soon as possible.

After entering the Vertical Arch Palace, Zhao Zhen didn't make much politeness, and asked directly, "Two Qing families, what do you think about the candidates sent to Shu this time?"

At this time, Han Qi also had a good draft in his heart, and after hearing the question

, and immediately said: "There is really a candidate here who wants to recommend, Longtu Pavilion Zhishu, Hebei Du Transit Envoy Zhao Luan, this person has previously served as the Zizhou Road Transit Envoy and Yizhou Transit Envoy.

He knows Shu very well and has a lot of prestige, so if he goes, it will be smoother for him to go."

Zhao Zhen also has an impression of this person and knows his ability, but he lacks prestige after all, so he is a little worried that he will not be able to control the scene.

So he said: "Zhao Luan is a person, I also know, he does not shy away from power, he is an upright official, he is simple in government, and he does have the talent to govern the world.

[In view of the general environment,

But he has never entered the center after all, whether he lacks prestige."

The meaning of these words is very clear, Zhao Zhen already has a plan this time, and wants to send someone from the political hall or the Privy Council.

And Ouyang Xiu and Han Qi are inseparable, so naturally there are only a few governors and privy deputy envoys left.

Seeing this, Han Qi didn't want to continue to recommend, but followed Zhao Zhen's train of thought and thought about who among these people would be more suitable.

But Ouyang Xiu spoke out to help Zhao Luan speak at this time: "In fact, the main root cause of this Shu rebellion is still the White Lotus Rebellion, not the problem of local officials.

When Zhao Luan was in Shudi, he dealt with this kind of bandits, which changed the atmosphere in Shudi, and in his follow-up, there was no similar problem in Shudi.

It can be seen that Zhao Luan has some experience in dealing with such things, and if he is allowed to return to Shu this time, he will definitely be able to get twice the result with half the effort."

Listening to Ouyang Xiu's words, Zhao Zhen's heart was shaken.

Seeing this situation, Ouyang Xiu took advantage of the situation and pursued: "In fact, if you want to quell the chaos in Shu as soon as possible this time, you must need mutual cooperation between the military and the government.

Among them, the army can play a greater role, and if the person who chooses the ruler cannot cooperate well with the leader of the army, I am afraid that it will be a little troublesome to achieve success in this matter."

Hearing this, Zhao Zhen thought about those privy envoys and governors, and felt that it was indeed difficult for these people to get along with military generals.

So apart from the prestige of the official position, Zhao Luan is indeed a good candidate.

So far, Ouyang Xiu can be regarded as having achieved his goal, and he has also reported Zhao Luan's feelings for his maintenance when he served in the palace.

Probably the person who will lead the political affairs has been decided, and the next step is to decide who should lead the army.

But speaking of this, Ouyang Xiu and Han Qi were a little silent, after all, the Zhao family was always a little sensitive in terms of army control.

However, seeing Zhao Zhen's gaze, Ouyang Xiu, as a privy envoy, couldn't help but speak.

So he could only say, "Actually, this rebellion in Shu has not been manifested after all, and most of the people bewitched by the White Lotus Sect are ordinary people.

Even if it is implicated in the army, the combat power of the Xiang army stationed in Shu is not high, as long as it can ensure that the Chengdu Mansion is not lost, and the bandits are not allowed to get the military funds there, they are a rabble even if there are many people.

On the contrary, the terrain of Shu is complicated, and it is easy to defeat them, but if you want to really clear them, I am afraid that it will take a long time.

Therefore, the minister feels that there is not much need for the soldiers and horses that need to be dispatched this time, but it is necessary to ensure that his men and horses are elite."

Ouyang Xiu's words are quite reasonable, but in fact, the effect is not great, and even because the number of commanders does not need too much, the selection range of people who can lead the army has been expanded.

After finishing speaking, Ouyang Xiu waited for Zhao Zhen to speak, and then found a way to narrow down the scope for him, but the specific candidate must still be determined by Zhao Zhen himself.

But what Ouyang Xiu didn't expect was that at this time, Han Qi suddenly echoed and said, "What Ouyang said is reasonable, this time the soldiers who entered Shu are more expensive than many.

And since it is necessary for the military and the government to cooperate, the rank of the leader should not be too different from that of the person in charge."

This is true, it must be the same rank to cooperate with each other, otherwise it must be one person who forces the other to do things.

It's fine if the decision is right, but if the decision is wrong, it can be a big problem.

And if you choose Zhao Luan, he is from the title of Sanpin, and it is best to find the leading generals within this range.

However, considering that the imperial court has always valued literature over military force, it is best that the rank of this leader is one order higher than Zhao Luan's is the most suitable.

Of course, it doesn't have to be this way, even if some people have a lower official position, if they lead the army, it may not be inappropriate.

After seeing Zhao Zhen fall into deep thought, Han Qi then said, "There is another point, those who go to Shu this time will inevitably need to take over the defense of Shu Land.

Only then can the local garrison be mobilized and cleared, so that the loyalty of the leader becomes very important."

Hearing this, Zhao Zhen had a flash of inspiration in his mind, as if he thought of someone.

And Ouyang Xiu on the other side also felt strange at this time, he always felt that Han Qi's words meant something, but he didn't figure it out for a while.

However, Zhao Zhen said at this time: "Let's talk about this matter here today, and talk about the rest tomorrow."

Then Ouyang Xiu and Han Qi left the palace together, and on the way out of the palace, Ouyang Xiu asked, "The words of the Great Minister seem to have a candidate for the leader of the army, I don't know who it is."

Han Qi smiled at this time, "I don't have a candidate, I just said some ideas.

But you, the Privy Council, who are in charge of military affairs, should know more about these things than I do, and if someone is going to recommend them, it should be you."

Ouyang Xiu replied, "That being said, I have only been in the Privy Council for a year, and there are some things that I am not familiar with.

On the contrary, you have been in charge of the Privy Council for many years, so I think you should know better than I do, or you can help me and give me a hint."

Ouyang Xiu said this politely, but Han Qi didn't answer, but instead said a few words to Ouyang Xiu and the two separated.

At this time, Zhao Zhen in the palace seemed to have decided something, so he ordered someone to pass the word and summon Li Hao into the palace to see him.

At this time, Li Hao was still busy working in the gunpowder manufacturing yard of the Stomach Eucalyptus South Workshop, since Li Hao told the craftsman the ratio of one nitrate, two sulfur and three charcoal.

After some tests by them, the power of the gunpowder explosion was indeed much stronger, and Li Hao let him come over for acceptance today.

But really looking at it, although in the eyes of craftsmen, this power can be described as terrifying, but Li Hao still feels a little disappointed, and always feels that this power does not seem to be as great as he imagined.

It's just that the production of gunpowder is beyond the scope of Li Hao's knowledge after all, after all, Li Hao is not engaged in chemistry in modern times, and this knowledge is still a little expensive.

So the next step is to rely on craftsmen to improve technology, and Li Hao himself has turned to the research and development of firearms.

And these two things now have two finished products, one is the finished mine that Li Hao suggested and realized by craftsmen.

Of course, after seeing the finished product, Li Hao felt that the thing in front of him was called a landmine, which might indeed be a little reluctant.

Because this thing has nothing to do with mines except that it is buried in the ground, but more like an explosives bag, the kind that wants to pull the lead far and then detonate it with an open flame.

However, with enough black powder, the power of the explosion can be seen.

The other is the musket that Li Hao wants to make, originally Li Hao thought that although the technology of the Song Dynasty was not good, as long as he was willing to spend effort, he should be able to chisel a few barrels by hand.

It's not too late to wait for the first time, and then to improve the technology and increase the output, but the truth is a little different from what Li Hao expected.

Because of the strength of the material, the thickness of the barrel must reach a certain point in order to withstand the impact of the gunpowder explosion.

So after blowing up a few barrels, the craftsmen successfully made it and took it out to Li Hao, not so much a gun, Li Hao preferred to call it a cannon.

But compared to a normal gun, its muzzle is too small, and the weight of this thing is obviously not something that one person can carry.

In addition, there is no accuracy, anyway, after the bullet is discharged, it can only ensure the general direction, but the actual landing point really depends on luck.

To sum up, this four-like thing is really not practical

, which is purely a waste of material.

So Li Hao could only give up the idea of making guns, and turned his head to let the craftsmen continue to enlarge the muzzle and gun body, and directly start to develop cannons, this estimate is simpler.

Although there are not many results, and it cannot be mass-produced and used in actual combat for the time being, this is a big step forward after all.

Therefore, Li Hao was also generous, and rewarded all the craftsmen who made meritorious contributions, of course, with the money of the Salt and Iron Division.

Then it is estimated that everyone will continue to work hard, and Li Hao plans to return to the Yamen of the Salt and Iron Division.

Then on the way back, he met Zhu Neiguan, who came to look for him.

I saw that after seeing Li Hao's carriage, Zhu Neiguan hurriedly asked people to stop the carriage.

After feeling the stop, Li Hao lifted the curtain and looked outside, wanting to see what was going on.

Then he saw Zhu Neiguan, and just wanted to say hello, he saw Zhu Neiguan hurriedly said, "Master Li, you let me find it easy, follow me and hurry into the palace, the official family will summon you."

Hearing this, Li Hao wanted to ask what the purpose of this summons was, but he didn't ask yet.

Zhu Neiguan was probably really anxious, and he was already turning the head of the car at this time.

When he made a U-turn, he hurriedly led the way in front of him, without the slightest intention of answering.

Seeing that this is not to be asked, how can Li Hao rest assured, so he asked for a horse with the guards outside, and rode directly to Zhu Neiguan's car.

said, "What's the matter with the official family looking for me today, why are you in such a hurry."

After hearing this, Zhu Neiguan lifted the curtain and complained, "Can I not be in a hurry, the official family is still waiting in the palace!"

As a result, I ran to the Salt and Iron Division, and found that you were not there, and then I knew that you were out of the city, and I hurried to chase here, and now I don't know if the official family is in a hurry."

After complaining, he also replied to Li Hao's words: "As for what the official family is looking for you, I don't know.

But today, the official family discussed with the two ministers, who to send to Shudi, probably because of this matter."

Hearing this, Li Hao inexplicably had some bad premonitions in his heart.

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