Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Two more imperial troops returned to Luoyang from Xixia.

Water and land travel side by side, and boats and chariots move together. One went to Yique Town, and the other went to Yanxi Town, stationed around Luoyang to defend the capital.

Lu You and others entered Beijing relatively early and had not yet formally entered Imperial College to study. They gathered their friends and stood on the shore, watching the imperial army approaching from far away, and from time to time they let out bursts of admiration.

In fact, there is nothing interesting to see, and he does not wear armor during the march.

But this is the Forbidden Army after all. The Ming Dynasty was willing to spend money on small soldiers. Even the ordinary soldiers in the Forbidden Army had regular uniforms.

They wore curved collared coats inherited from the Tang Dynasty, but the sleeves were extremely narrow and the cuffs had ties to wrap them up. The hem of the outer shirt is also shortened to the thigh, and it is tied with a belt to look particularly neat. He only has a pair of trousers on his lower body, and he also wears leggings when marching. The shoes are standard foot-boots, and the foldable fan Yangli is worn on the head.

Lu You clicked his tongue and exclaimed: "It's just an ordinary march, walking so casually, but still keeping the same pace!"

Hong Mai smiled and said: "When they pass by the capital, they naturally have to show off."

"Otherwise," Lu You pointed at the troops in front and said, "Look, some of them are still joking and joking. There is nothing deliberate about it. They can do whatever they want and be consistent."

Hong Mai didn't answer anymore and was too lazy to argue with Lu You. He determined that these Forbidden Army soldiers must be passing through Luoyang City to earn their performance.

Countless people inside and outside the city came to watch the excitement happily, and there were even young ladies waving to the sergeant.

"Master of Tiger and Wolf!" Taira Kiyomori exclaimed, watching from a distance with a Japanese sword on his waist.

He has been studying in Daming for several years and will return to Japan this year.

He also studied Confucian classics seriously, and his level was average. If he were placed in a remote area of ​​the Ming Dynasty, he would barely be able to pass the exam to become a scholar.

What Taira Kiyomori really focused on was the art of war. He went to great lengths to get a copy of "Martial Arts Summary" and even spent a lot of money to learn marksmanship from a retired cavalryman.

With these, Taira Kiyomori feels that he will definitely be able to defeat Japan's invincible opponents after he returns.

After the two Imperial Guards all left, Taira Kiyomori went for a walk at the Sifang Pavilion.

As soon as I entered the Sifang Pavilion, I found there was a lot of fun to see.

The envoys from Champa and Chenla repeatedly clamored to kill each other. Ming officials were unable to mediate and, after consulting their superiors, allowed the military attachés of the two countries to duel.

Life and death are determined by fate, and retaliation after the fact is not allowed in the Ming Dynasty!

When Taira Kiyomori ran to watch the excitement, both parties were already injured.

After all, it was the military attaché of Zhenla who was more powerful. He received a knife on his own and hit the envoy who occupied the city in the neck.

Blood was gushing out, and he probably wouldn't survive.

The military attache of Zhenla danced with his sword, endured several wounds on his body, and showed off his power in front of the envoys who occupied the city.

"How come there is a fight to the death?" Taira Kiyomori asked.

Hanoi Jingguo said: "Zhenla invaded Champa. The two countries had just fought a war. The envoy from Champa came to Luoyang to complain. The envoy from Zhenla also came to complain. He said that this time the troops were sent out, it was the border generals from Champa who crossed the border first. Provocation. The envoys of the two countries met at the Sifang Pavilion and quarreled every day.

Taira Kiyomori laughed disdainfully: "The princes of the Ming Dynasty are already regents of Annan. They still have the leisure to attack each other. Sooner or later, they will be annexed by the Ming Dynasty."

There are two main reasons why the two countries went to war this time:

First, the Ming prince regent Annan did not restore and replenish those troops after Annan's ten soldiers were disabled. Instead, they took advantage of the situation and carried out massive disarmament, directly reducing the number of Annan's standing army by half. This made Champa and Chenla feel relieved. Since they did not need to guard against Annan, they could attack each other.

Second, the old king of Champa died last year and left no heirs. He was succeeded by a collateral clan. King Chenla believed that there was something wrong with the bloodline and that his son's bloodline was more orthodox, so he wanted to send his son to be the king of Champa.

The current King of Chenla is the one who built Angkor Wat, named Suryavarman II.

The Chenla-Angkor dynasty he inherited reached its extreme territory and finances. So we worked hard to build hundreds of temples, large and small, and Angkor Wat was the largest one.

The state religion of Chenla is Brahmanism and Shivaism, but the king believes in Vaishnavism, which makes the mainstream sangha in the country extremely dissatisfied.

"The envoys from Champa and Chenla received the order!"

Not long after the duel ended, someone from the emperor came over to convey the order. Ju Ming was too lazy to deal with such a trivial matter personally.

"...Champa and Chenla are both vassal states of the Ming Dynasty. The two countries are like brothers and can no longer attack each other..."

"...The succession to the throne of Champa should be decided by the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Does King Zhenla want to usurp the authority of the Emperor? Now King Zhenla has been stripped of all official titles except the royal title, and he is no longer as high as the Prince of the Ming Dynasty..."

"...the goods and people that Chenla looted from Champa are ordered to be returned immediately..."

The envoys immediately cheered. Dad was indeed facing us.

However, the envoy of Zhenla was extremely angry and no longer ranked as high as the Prince of Ming Dynasty. The king of Zhenla was a head shorter when he met the king of Champa.

No matter how angry you are, you have to endure it!

When the messengers left, the Zhenla envoys glared at the Champa envoys, and they decided to come back with a big group.

The newly crowned King of Champa does have some bloodline problems, and there are many opponents in his country.

Historically, Chenla took advantage of the civil strife in Champa and would rush to the capital of Champa a few years later, plunder and kill the king of Champa.

Taira Kiyomori witnessed the whole process of the imperial edict being read out, and couldn't help but sigh: "This is the power of the emperor. He can not only command the country, but also command many foreign countries."

Hanoi Ching-kuo asked: "What exactly do you want to do when you return to China?"

Taira Kiyomori remained silent.

His current ambition is to unify the various counties in Japan, use the "Emperor" to control the princes, and then use force to attack the unsubordinates.

The Dali envoy was silent throughout the whole process and silently retreated to his own courtyard.

Although the Ming Dynasty did not directly attack Dali, it destroyed the Luo Dian Kingdom and the Zi Qi Kingdom and supported tribes close to the Ming Dynasty to rule the area. He also defeated Te Mo Dao, who had independent tendencies, and established a new Te Mo Dao commander who was close to the Ming Dynasty. Moreover, criminals are placed in Guizhou every year to farm.

Dali has lost its external barrier. Who knows what day Ming Dynasty will suddenly send troops.

Now that Xixia is gone, I don’t know whose turn it will be next.

However, the Goryeo envoy was not in Luoyang. Because the consumption level in Luoyang was too high, Goryeo monarchs and officials were reluctant to send envoys to stay there.

Especially after the two countries opened up trade, there was no need to do business in the name of tribute.

Due to the series of changes brought about by the Ming Dynasty, the aristocratic families of Goryeo are accelerating towards a disaster - the era of warriors!

Historically, because they could not defeat the Jin Kingdom, they used force to wipe out the Xijing nobles. The victorious aristocrats of Kaijing frantically seized power and completely failed in the military affairs. When the new king succeeded to the throne, he did not give any high-ranking positions to military personnel. Even the positions that should have been held by warriors were divided among the noble families.

At the end of the struggle, the warrior simply showed his sword, slaughtered the civil servants crazily, and established a new king.

The level of chaos in Goryeo's warrior era can be compared to China's Five Dynasties.

Now that the Ming Dynasty has occupied Pyongyang, there is no longer a struggle for power among the Xijing nobles. The Xijing nobles are playing more crazily than in history. Moreover, the Ming Dynasty's army was too powerful, and Goryeo could not win anyway. The aristocratic families no longer cared about military construction, and most of the military expenditures went into the pockets of civilian officials.

It can be said that Goryeo's current mid-level officers do not have enough to eat, and ordinary soldiers need to find various ways to make a living.

There was only one opportunity left before the Goryeo warrior showed his sword and detonated it.

…

Chui Gong Hall.

Prime Minister Liu Yao bowed solemnly: "Your Majesty, this year's drought has become more serious, and hundreds of thousands of civilians have been recruited in the spring. Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Henan provinces need food relief. In order to conquer Xixia, starting from three years ago, the food supplies in each province have been reduced. When transporting to Shanxi and Shaanxi, there is not much grain stored in the south anymore.”

Ju Ming said: "The cabinet will discuss disaster relief matters with the six ministries."

Liu Yao hesitated for a while, but couldn't help but said: "Your Majesty, please cancel the prisoner presentation ceremony. It is a great joy to destroy Xia, but the year is not good, so we must be more frugal."

"I'll think about it again, please step back." Ju Ming said.

Liu Yao bowed and resigned.

National-level ceremonies are indeed very expensive in terms of money and food. Millions of dollars can be thrown away at any time.

From the powerful to the petty officials, from the generals to the small soldiers, all participants are rewarded and must take care of their meals.

I don’t know if it’s because of the Little Ice Age. In recent years, there have always been floods in the south and droughts in the north. This year, there are severe droughts in Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Henan.

The drought caused great misery in Xixia, and it is not an exaggeration to call it one of the reasons for the destruction of the country.

But now that Xixia is extinct, the drought cannot be eradicated.

It is really not a good year for celebrations, and holding a prisoner dedication ceremony seems to be a pity for the victims.

Ju Ming sighed and wrote: "In the year of great disaster, we should practice frugality and it is not appropriate to sacrifice prisoners under the palace. All the generals of the army will return to their bases, and the soldiers will patiently wait for their rewards..."

After all, this is a war to destroy the country, so there will be no ceremony for offering prisoners, but other rewards will be increased.

Now the Ming Dynasty is mainly short of food after the war, and there is no shortage of gold, silver and copper coins. Just give more money to the soldiers.

Ju Ming looked carefully at the memorials from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Rites, which were about titles and awards.

Yue Fei made meritorious service during the extermination of Jin and was granted the title of Marquis. Now that he has made great achievements, it stands to reason that he should be granted the title of county magistrate, but Ju Ming decided to suppress it.

This move is to protect Yue Fei!

His performance was so eye-catching that the contributions of both friendly forces were drastically reduced. It is not a good thing to rise too quickly.

But Yue Fei must not be misunderstood, and Yue Fei's generals must not be resentful.

After much deliberation, Ju Ming decided as follows:

Yue Fei's marquisship remained unchanged, but the fiefs and food fiefs were increased, and Yue Fei's military rank was raised. Honorary titles will be given to Yue Fei's parents and wife, and those who are dead will be granted posthumous titles.

The generals under Yue Fei's command, including Han Shizhong's general who followed Yue Fei on the attack, all increased their rewards on top of their original rewards.

Then reward Yue Fei with a top-notch war horse, a set of special armor, and a special spear.

Han Shizhong's rewards were relatively simple. He was promoted from earl to marquis, and there was no shortage of other rewards.

We also have to take care of the elderly.

Deng Chun was granted the title of county official.

Chen Ziyi has already been granted the title of Marquis. This time he was promoted to military rank, and he was granted the title of a full house. He was also granted the title of his parents and wife.

The rest of the early generals received additional rewards this time, which was an explanation to them.