Lord of the House

In late October, Yanjing had the first snowfall this winter.

After the winter, from Yanji to Hehuai, thousands of miles are covered with ice and snow. On the frozen ground, the hooves of horses squeaked when they stepped on it, like the horseshoes stepping on an iron plate, and they seemed to be able to slip out of the sparks when they heard the sound.

After winter, the Hehuai Plain is dominated by cavalry.

The attachment of Xihu and other clans restored the scale of the cavalry controlled by Yanjing to 200,000. From the west to Hezhongfu and to the east to Dengzhoufu, the entire Hehuai and Shandong defense lines increased to 100,000 cavalry, 160,000 infantry, and 30,000 navy.

At least in winter, Yanjing does not have to worry about the ability of the Southern Dynasties to break through the defense line from the east to the north.

After the winter, Changli to the north, Jidong and the coastal waters of Liangliao are usually frozen. The depth of sea ice varies from several to tens of miles. In the worst case, the ports to the south of Jinhai will be frozen. stand up. And the inland rivers that Yanji enters the sea will freeze solid; without these rivers, the Southern Dynasty did not infiltrate large-scale inland even if large-scale troops were transported by sea to the coastal waters of Jinhai, Changli and other places.

The first snowfall after winter means that Yanjing City has entered a severe winter season, and it also means that the tense strategic defense situation of the year can be relaxed a little.

In the royal hunting lodge in the north of Yanjing City, the sound of horses' hooves was like a shower in the snow, and the deer, hares, and elk were driven to flee in the bushes. At this moment, a large group of wild animals stopped in front of a bush, listening to the sound of horses' hooves all around, not knowing where to flee for a while. Climbing into the body of the wild animal, it caused blood droplets to sprinkle on the snow, and immediately dozens of prey twitched and struggled with their hooves, and even plucked snow particles everywhere.

Dozens of young men, wearing armor and holding bows, rode their horses out of the dense forest on the flank, ignoring the blood, picked up the prey they had shot, placed them in front of the saddle, and then galloped back on their horses. The young man in the lead was no more than sixteen. At the age of seven, he lifted the three-hundred-pound elk in front of the saddle effortlessly, and thanks to the horse he stepped on, he was extremely steed, and shouted: "Zuo Lin hunted a big deer, and gave it to the emperor. The emperor is blessed with health and longevity..."

"Zuo Linyou is the father's martial arts, great honor, reward!" Ye Jier wore a big fur on the outside of his dragon robe, stood in front of the viewing platform to watch the children of the royal family hunting in the fields. The courtiers take it to reward those who hunt the giant deer.

Zuo Lin is the son of Ye Jiluo Rong, and all the wild hunters with him are the children of the royal family. Although it is wild hunting, it also shows the fundamentals of the tribes in Yandong to establish the tribe by force. These royal children's martial arts are not weaker than their fathers, and they are still far from corruption and decline. On the other hand, it also shows that the military power of Yandong and Yanxi Hus is still on the rise.

The prey in front of the hunting viewing platform was already piled up like a hill; the royal family’s children were sweaty, but their interest did not diminish, they piled the prey in front of the hunting viewing platform, and then rode their horses to the depths of the jungle. For these wild enclosures, the hunting village has released a number of bears and tigers. Whoever hunts the bears and tigers is the supreme honor...

Yezier also liked to hunt in the early years, but at this time he was not allowed to be physically fit, so he could only stand on the hunting platform, look at the prey that was piled up like a hill under the platform, and said to the courtier beside him: "Zhang Xiang has worked hard for Dayan these years. , the deer hunted by Zuo Lin will be given to Zhang Xiang to nourish his body..."

These prey are all to be rewarded to the ministers. The larger the prey, the heavier the reward and the more mighty the emperor's favor.

Zhang Xie hurriedly knelt down and thanked him.

"Many princes and ministers believe that after this winter, the setbacks in the Battle of Jingxiang will be overcome," Ye Jier sat back on the brocade couch and asked Zhang Xie, "Zhang Xiang, what do you think?"

Ye Zier said this to Zhang Xie, but none of the princes and ministers on the hunting platform dared to be careless. They took their minds away from watching the hunting, and sat upright and listened carefully. The jade concubine standing beside Ye Zier, He also looked towards Zhang Xie.

Besides Fan Wenlan, Zhang Xie was arguably the most knowledgeable Han courtier in the court.

Zhang Xie was thinking about it, knowing that this question was not easy to answer.

It is true that the defeat of the Battle of Jingxiang was the biggest crisis that Beiyan faced after the invasion of Yanji.

At that time, the Western Front Corps led by Ye Jiluorong lost more than half, and the morale of the generals suffered serious setbacks, and the defense line in Hehuai and Shandong was only 150,000. Due to the consumption of the Western Front, the entire Hehuai and Shandong defense lines are in short supply; including the sea-locking defense line, which has just been constructed, the scale of the navy is only more than 10,000 people, and it is not yet capable of forcibly blocking the Bohai Sea. The Huaidong Navy entered. In particular, people in Jinzhong and Yanji were frightened. For a time, almost every day in the city of Yanjing, Han ministers who surrendered to the imperial family returned to their hometowns.

In the battle of Jingxiang, Huaidong not only defeated the troops on the Western Front of Beiyan, but also defeated the forces of She and Luo in one fell swoop, with nearly 400,000 troops, of which nearly 300,000 were deployed on both sides of the Huai River from Nanyang to Haizhou. If the Henan armies and Huaidong armies at that time worked together, it would be almost impossible for Beiyan to hold the area south of the Yellow River.

In the face of such a big crisis, Ye Jier decisively changed the attack into a strategic contraction, made Chen Zhihu Qin, cut off the Guanzhong envoy to defend, and shrunk the main force of his cavalry to Jinzhong and Yanji, and not only did a good job of giving up the area south of the Yellow River. Mental preparation.

At that time, even the arrogant generals realized that the situation was not good for Beiyan. As long as Lin Bing gritted his teeth and launched the northern expedition, Beiyan would face an extremely difficult and **** battle.

No one could have expected that Lin Biao did not carry out the Northern Expedition after delaying for two years. Even if he sent troops to participate in the Koryo war, the scale was very effective, so that the defense area of ​​both sides of the Koryo Civil War was still maintained on the Asan line.

These two years are too precious for Beiyan. Not only the lost soldiers were replenished, but also the Hehuai and Shandong fronts were strengthened, which increased the strength of the entire Hehuai and Shandong defense lines by 60%. After four years of construction, the sea defense line has grown to 30,000 sailors.

Especially last year, there was a severe drought in southern Zhejiang and western Zhejiang, while the weather in the north was generally good, with a large-scale increase in grain production, and there was no large-scale war for two years of rest.

Compared with the initial defeat of Jingxiang, the situation of Beiyan has been completely improved; it is not inappropriate to say that the negative impact of the battle of Jingxiang has been eliminated.

However, it is hard to say whether the overall situation is as optimistic as the princes and ministers think.

"Although the setbacks of Jingxiang have gone through the past two years, it is indeed His Majesty's contribution to governing the country," Zhang Xie said calmly. It is also a blessing for Dayan to spend money on Xiyuan, but the old minister believes that when you are in peace, you must be prepared, and you can be called prepared for nothing..."

Zhang Xie's words are too high, so that people can't find any loopholes, but after thinking about it, it is useless. Yejier couldn't hide his disappointment. Seeing that it was not too late, he said: "Today's hunting will stop here. The children are not all interested, so I will continue to hunt..." He ordered the princes and ministers to retreat, and he first returned to the palace to rest.

"The emperor is not very satisfied with Zhang Xiang's answer?" Walking into the warm pavilion where the furnace was burning, Concubine Yu waited on Ye Jier to untie the coat and asked.

"All the generals and officials in the DPRK thought that Lin Fu would usurp the establishment first, and they thought that Lin Fu would consume state money in Jiangning, build museums and iron bridges, because they lost their minds for playing with things, and they really benefited Dayan," Ye Jier said. , "I'm worried if I'm being too optimistic..."

"Lin Bie built an iron bridge in Jiangning, and built a museum to collect rare playthings from home and abroad. Only these two items can't beat a million taels of silver. It's just not enough to say that he is frustrated with playing things," Yu Fei said, "In addition, Lin Fu paved the way for usurpation, and did not hesitate to divide the land tax and the taxation tax among the localities. Although this move completely weakened the power of the six departments and made all the officials of the central government attached to the Privy Council, it also reduced the annual revenue of the central government sharply. By means of this method, the military and political power of the Southern Dynasties were concentrated in him, but if he was not in a hurry to usurp, but instead used these resources for military preparations, Dayan’s pressure in Hehuai and Shandong would definitely be much heavier than it is now…”

What Concubine Yu said was almost the consensus of the officials in Yanjing, and Ye Jier could not refute it.

Lin Fu spent huge sums of money to build iron bridges and museums in Jiangning. It is the second priority, especially the new tax-sharing system that Lin Fu vigorously implemented last year. Apart from paving the way for usurpation, there is absolutely no other explanation.

The new tax-sharing system will distribute a considerable part of the land tax and the tax to the localities, so that the central revenue controlled by Jiangning will drop at least 5 million taels of silver last year. If Lin Fu was not in a hurry to usurp the throne and become emperor, and used this part of the money for military equipment, he would have been able to expand his troops on a large scale and organize the Northern Expedition last year.

The biggest benefit of the new tax-sharing system, and it can be said to be the only benefit, is to completely weaken the imperial party, so that the officials of the Huaidong family can not only control the center, but also infiltrate the local area on a large scale - if it were not for Lin Tiezai to usurp the throne Paving the way for the emperor, why?

Lin Bie's new policy in Jiangning, to promote the further enlightenment of the social atmosphere, actually cannot prevent Yanjing from obtaining more accurate information on Jianghuai from all aspects.

The Jinchuan Iron Bridge, the museum, etc., are meant to be made public to the common people, and the secret spies dispatched by Yanjing to Jianghuai will naturally be able to easily obtain relatively accurate information.

Hearing that Concubine Yu also judged the situation in the Southern Dynasties, Ye Jier didn't blame Concubine Yu for being limited to this. Most of the court officials now think so, and he can put forward higher requirements for Concubine Yu, a woman like her. He just shook his head slightly and said:

"Others saw Lin Bie building a big iron bridge in Jiangning, thinking that he was playing with things and wasting national money, but Jiangning dared to invest two or three million catties of iron materials in a large iron bridge; not to mention the iron used by Jiangning on the iron bridge. Only one-third or even one-half of the iron materials made in the official iron yard in Yanjing for one year, that is, Yanjing can produce so much iron materials, and the Yanjing craftsmen have the ability to build one on the Weihe River. Is it a big iron bridge? In this incident, is it not a demonstration of Jiangning's national strength, and it has already left Yanjing far behind? In addition, Lin Bubeng is willing to invest such resources on an iron bridge. It is said that he used this method to stimulate the craftsmen of the Southern Dynasties to advance by leaps and bounds. The Jinchuan Iron Bridge was created, and the bridge-building in the south must be far higher than that of Yanjing. This principle is similar to the rapid development of Huaidong's shipbuilding. There's no real difference."

Concubine Yu did not expect that the emperor had been silent these days, and all his thoughts were on this matter, thinking of the Huaidong iron skeleton ship that he saw last year.

Yezier once asked Tieshan Shipyard to imitate the Huaidong iron skeleton ship, but the craftsmen's skills were very different, wasted several times of iron materials before and after, and failed to build a qualified iron skeleton ship—— It is not difficult to imagine how much resources Huaidong had to consume to succeed in building the first iron-framed ship.

Everything is difficult at the beginning, but if Huaidong is told to grit his teeth and build the first iron-framed ship, it will be much easier to take over the second and third iron-bone ships, and the resources will be much less consumed.

With these iron-boned ships and the simplest water collision tactics, Huaidong was able to force the Dengzhou navy to stay near the sea-locking defense line and dare not sail far.

"The lesson of the Battle of Jingxiang has not gone away," Ye Jier sighed softly, "Although the Southern Dynasty will consume 500,000 taels of state money for an iron bridge, as long as the Jinchuan Iron Bridge can be successfully constructed, it means that Huaidong's bridge-building craftsmanship will make great progress from it - and the battle at Miaotanling, which caused 70,000 to 80,000 soldiers in our division to fail to withdraw, was a key factor for the Huaidong Army to be trapped in Xiangyang and annihilated. , that is, the Huaidong Army unexpectedly erected iron cable suspension bridges on both sides of the Han River, and asked our naval forces to go forward and succeed, but they could not completely destroy them. Such differences cannot be seen, and all the ministers in the DPRK are still complacent with their horses and their food. , that's what worries me the most."

"How about the new tax policy and the construction of a museum?" Yu Fei asked hesitantly.

"Perhaps Lin Fu intends to usurp the throne first," Ye Jier said. "The secret agent reports that Emperor Yongxing of the Southern Dynasty is not as healthy as the day, and may die at any time. It is not an accident that Lin Fu plans to do this first. The matter of Lin Fuxian's plan to usurp the throne will not give us more than three or five years of respite; building a museum, even if it is a plaything, is really limited, maybe it is to confuse us and we don't know..."

At this time, a courtier came in with a wooden box, and said, "Luoyang Mizhe..."

"Oh..." Yejier took the wooden box, cut the paint, took out the secret folds that Yeji Luorong had hidden in the box, and opened it to read.

"What did Prince Chengji say?" Yu Fei asked.

Because of the defeat of Ye Jiluorong in the battle of Jingxiang, he was given the title of Prince Chiamu, and changed his title to the Prince of Chengji.

"The Cao family sent Jiwei's secret envoy to Luoyang, and told Luo Rong that after the death of Emperor Yongxing, Lin Furuo plotted to usurp, and Yuzhou immediately supported the new emperor and invited Yan to join the alliance," Ye Jier said, "Ren Jiwei is leaving at this time. When Xuchang met Dong Yuan, Xuchang also put forward a series of conditions," Ye Jier frowned for a moment, and instructed his courtiers, "Call Zhang Xiang, Prince Mu and the others to discuss..."

Yanxiao encircled the hunt for ten days, and this was the third day. Zhang Xie, Ye Jixijin, Juqu Mengye, Nahe Wugu and other important officials also lived in the hunting camp with Yejier. Come on call.

The ministers rushed to the dormitory to discuss important matters, and Concubine Yu retired first.

Compared with the government meeting held by Lin Fu in Jiangning, Yan Ting still has a strong tradition of tribal discussion. Although Yejier is the king of Khan and the emperor of Tianming, it is difficult to specialize in state affairs. Ye Jiluorong, Ye Jiduodi, and Ye Jibaishi led the troops abroad, Ye Jixijin was the only remaining old king of the previous generation, and Juqu Mengye, Nahe Wugu and others were all members of Juqu and Nahe. The heads of the clans are all high-ranking officials who have the power to discuss state affairs.

When Jingxiang was frustrated, Ye Jier once sent a secret envoy to Yuzhou to confer Cao Yiqu as the king of Shu. Although Cao Yiqu ignored it, it also opened the prelude to the secret alliance between the two sides.

But no matter what, the Cao clan had only separated Sichuan and Shu before, and nominally still respected Jiangning. Whether it was a famous teacher or a comparison of the strengths of the two sides, the Cao clan did not dare to take the initiative to send troops to provoke Jiangning.

Although Lin Fu had the heart to guard against the Cao clan, the main contradiction that Jiang Ning faced after the battle of Jingxiang was still in the north and not in the west. Therefore, Lin Fu would not focus his strategy on the western front. He only deployed 40,000 water infantry troops in Jingzhou and Yiling to guard against Cao's westward crossing of the Xiajiang River, and deployed 200,000 troops on the eastern fronts of Xushou and Yihai. The heavy army constituted great military pressure on the Shandong in the north.

If Cao Yiqu sets up Yuan's children as the new emperor in Yuzhou, he is actually going to compete with Jiangning for the orthodox position, which must intensify the conflict with Jiangning, and Huaidong's military center of gravity must also move westward along with it. It can reduce the pressure of Yanjing on the Hehuai and Shandong defense lines.

"Emperor Yongxing is dying soon, and Lin Fu is also stepping up his plot to usurp in Jiangning; but if Lin Fu still has some patience, after Emperor Yongxing, he will make his youngest son a puppet," Zhang Xie said, "Cao clan still dares to Don't you dare to immediately set up the Yuan clan's children as the new emperor in Yuzhou?"

Yezier nodded, Zhang Xie was vague on some matters, neither party was offended, but he was still able to hit the nail on the head on some matters.

At the moment, Emperor Yongxing is still there, and the Empress Dowager Liang has the name of temporarily taking over the state. Cao's strength is limited, so he does not dare to take the risk of the world, establish a new emperor, and directly confront Huaidong.

As soon as Emperor Yongxing died, if Lin Fuxing committed rebellion and abolished Yuan and proclaimed himself emperor, Cao's family would establish a new emperor in Yuzhou, and he would have a righteous reputation. This is also the only opportunity for Cao's family to seize the righteousness.

Cao Yiqu is already seventy-seven. Although his energy is good, his age is not forgiving. He obviously does not want to miss the last chance.

According to reliable sources, Emperor Yongxing and Mrs. Liang's health are getting worse and worse. It can be said that their life is not long, and they may die anytime, anywhere. However, it is true that Lin Fu stepped up his conspiracy and usurpation in Jiangning, but it does not mean that he has no patience at all. After the death of Emperor Yongxing, it is not that Lin Fu did not have the possibility of establishing Emperor Yongxing's youngest son as a puppet. At this time, does the Cao family still have the courage to set up a new emperor and go head-to-head with Huaidong?

Cao's establishment of a new emperor in Yuzhou will share great military pressure on Yanjing, so Yanjing is very hopeful that Cao's new emperor can be established in Yuzhou to intensify the conflict with Huaidong.

However, nothing is wishful thinking, the Cao family has the Cao family's trade-offs. The risks far outweighed the benefits, and the Cao family would not be stunned. If they were not fully prepared, once they attracted the main force of Huaidong troops and horses to move westward, they would only block their final retreat.

Cao Yiqu's appointment of Ji Wei to secret Luoyang and Xuchang this time is on the condition of establishing a new emperor, hoping to get more substantial support from Yanjing, so as to better consolidate its foundation in Sichuan and Shu.

In the same way, Yanjing couldn't believe Cao's unreservedly. They were also worried that after Cao's benefit, he would not be able to establish a new emperor. In that case, Yanjing would lose his wife and lose his army, causing trouble. The world's jokes.

Ye Jixijin looked at Ye Jiluorong's secret documents from Luoyang, and at the series of conditions put forward by the secret envoy of the Cao family, and said: "Cao Yiqu is really a lion's mouth, and Dong Yuan has a lot of appetite; But as long as they set up a letter of alliance and Yongxinger dies, no matter whether Lin Fu immediately abolishes Yuan and proclaims himself emperor, they will all support a new emperor, and it's okay to promise them these conditions..."

As long as Emperor Yongxing dies, even if Lin Fu sets up another son of Emperor Yongxing as a puppet, the Cao clan can still claim that Emperor Yongxing killed Lin Fu in Yuzhou, create a few false edicts, and establish a new emperor, and they can still win Some honorable names.

What's more, Lin Fu was carrying out the New Deal in Jiangning at this time, which offended the traditional gentry forces. If Cao Clan fought Jiangning over the cause of Emperor Yongxing's death, the traditional gentry forces would most likely choose to believe Cao Clan.

Yezier took back Yeji Luorong's secret fold and placed it on the long case to weigh.

The Cao family also recognized the sharpness of the Huaidong navy. Although Chuanshu also had a tradition of shipbuilding on the Nuan and Chuanzhu rivers, the craftsmanship of shipbuilding was obviously not on the same level as that of Huaidong, and it was even far behind Yanjing. . The Cao family hoped that Yanjing would send craftsmen to help them build some high-quality warships. Although the ships built by Yanjing craftsmen were far less sharp than the Huaidong warships, the ships of Yanjing occupied the gorge with dangerous terrain and dangerous currents. The upstream advantage is able to compete with the Huaidong warships.

Therefore, the first condition of the Cao family is that Yanjing assists them in building warships and controlling the water army, and it is also to enhance the ability to resist the Huaidong army from advancing along the gorge and Jiangxi~www.wuxiaspot.com~ In addition, the Cao family also asked Yanjing to give them Provide some horses and animal power, and at the same time ask Yanjing to order Chen Zhihu to withdraw the garrison west of Tianshui, so that the Qiang people can live there.

The Cao family guarded the northwest for three generations and had close ties with the Qiang Hu in the northwest. Many of the generals who served for the Cao family were Qiang and Hu people. However, after Beiyan won Guanzhong, the Cao family retreated to Sichuan and Shu, and the Qiang and Hu tribes were forced to move westward, and the Cao family also lost the most important foreign military support. Therefore, the Cao family hoped that Chen Zhihu would give up the land west of Tianshui, and ask the Qiang and Hu tribes to move back here, connect with Sichuan and Shu, and continue to be used by the Cao family, increasing the combat effectiveness of the troops and horses under the Cao family.

Dong Yuan's requirements were simple: first, to completely control the Funiu Mountains in the upper reaches of Luoshui River, and to have a base that could be retreated in order to compete with Huaidong in the future; Grain and some weapons, armor, and war equipment thought that Xuchang's troops and horses could support a year's consumption during the most difficult time; the third was to allow the households of Hezhong Prefecture to flow to Xuchang, so that Xuchang could obtain Dingzhuang and increase the reclamation of grain fields; Once Xuchang was attacked from the south, Yanjing's troops stationed in Hezhongfu and Daliang were obliged to help each other.

Of course, Dong Yuan did not dare to put these handles directly into Huaidong's hands at this time, so the above conditions were carried out through a group of troops and horses deployed by the Cao family in the Funiu Mountains at this time. Once the Cao family supports the new emperor, Dong Yuan will also support him in Xuchang, depending on Yuzhou, the Cao family will transfer the troops and horses in the Funiu Mountains to Xuchang, and Yanjing will bring the grain, grass and weapons to the Funiu Mountains. , it will naturally belong to Xuchang.

The conditions put forward by the Cao family and Dong Yuan are not simple. If these conditions are met by Cao and Dong, and Cao and Dong delay in not establishing a new emperor and confront Jiangning, then Yanjing will lose more than its gains.

Yezier is also difficult to make a decision. My QT room is open! More vulgar official QT room number [9167] Click to enter