The Struggle of the Reborn Prince

After discussing with the two brothers from the Zhe family, the next morning, Zhao Yu invited Li Gang and Zhang Xiaochun to serve as matchmakers and went to the Zhe family to propose marriage. Time was tight and there was no need to pay attention to it. The marriage was discussed in the morning and the betrothal was made in the afternoon. Zhao Yu had no time to prepare the betrothal gift.

, simply issued a silver note of 100,000 guan and sent it. Even if the marriage was decided, they would discuss the marriage after Zhe Meiluan came out of her filial piety period.

But whoever followed the prince would spend less time together and stay away more often. Zhu Shuzhen stayed alone in the capital for three years, while Zhao Xin and Yu Liyan also lived the life of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, and could only get together occasionally. Now Zhe Meiluan also has the same fate.

The two haven't seen each other for many years, they just had a romantic relationship for a month, and they are so far apart again!

On the tenth day of August, the Zhongyong Army set out to return to the river, and Zhao Tan also embarked on the road back to the capital. Li Gang was very thoughtful and worried that the people of Taiyuan would block the road to petition to retain the prince, so he saw the prince off at a pavilion ten miles outside the south of the city.

"I have stayed in Hedong for ten years. I don't know when I will come back after leaving today. The people of Hedong will leave it to you, sir!" Zhao Tao bowed deeply to Li Gang and others, with tears in his eyes. He took charge of Hedong as a weak-headed young man.

, he has created a lot of foundation here and laid a world. It can be said that Hedong is the second starting point of his life. This feeling can be imagined.

"Every banquet in the world must come to an end. Don't be sad, Your Majesty!" Li Gang waved his hand, and his entourage served him a farewell drink, "I will wait for you to wish Your Majesty the opportunity to return to Beijing to display his great ambitions and make new achievements!"

"Then I'll lend you your good words!" Zhao Tong drank the wine in his glass. "Prefect Zhang, General Wang, Taiyuan is the key to the Central Plains, so I leave it to you two!"

"Don't worry, Your Majesty, if our people are in the city, the city will be destroyed and people will die. As long as there is breath, Taiyuan City will never fall into the enemy's hands!" Zhang Xiaochun said with his hands.

"There are still 50,000 stones of grain and grass left by the Hezhong Army in Lanzhou. You two adults must transport them back as soon as possible to prepare for any unexpected events!" Zhao Tong whispered to the two of them. He knew that during the second siege of the city by the Jin Army, the soldiers and civilians of Taiyuan relied on cooking.

saddle,skin

A. He used his bow and string to satisfy his hunger. In the end, he still held on to the city to the point of cannibalism. When the city was broken, the soldiers were too hungry to hold their swords and guns, otherwise Taiyuan would not have been lost. As for the imperial guards, Zhao Tao thought that they were unreliable.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The two of them were overjoyed after hearing this. The Jin army herded horses in the fields during the siege, which caused the crops to fail. The price of food soared, and even those with money could not buy it. How could they not be grateful that the Lord left them so much food before leaving?

"Your Majesty has been so kind to the east of the river. I will serve you a glass of wine on behalf of the people. The people in Taiyuan will never forget your kindness!"

"I should respect you two. Without your persistence, Taiyuan would have fallen into the hands of the enemy long ago, and the golden thieves would herd horses and the capital!" Zhao Tong raised his glass and the three of them drank together.

"The future is difficult and dangerous, and the situation is changing. Please take care of yourself, Your Majesty!" Li Gang saw that it was getting late and stepped forward and said.

"Everything turns to dust, but only this green mountain remains unchanged!" Zhao Tao pointed to the towering mountains in the distance and said, drank another drink, cupped his hands and pedaled away, embarking on an uncertain and dangerous road!

………

All the troops in Hezhong withdrew from Hedong, and Prince Yan also returned to Beijing. Zhao Huan was satisfied. At this time, the Taishi Bureau reported that a comet appeared in Ziweiyuan, several feet long. It swept towards the throne of the emperor and swept northward.

Wenchang Star. It was a sign that the Jin people were about to weaken. It was not a bad sign for China. The emperor was overjoyed and issued an edict ordering Li Gang to quickly send troops to recapture Daizhou and completely expel the Jurchens from Hedong.

When Li Gang was ordered to assist Taiyuan, he also spent a lot of time thinking about ways to fight against the Jin army's cavalry. He believed that the infantry was unable to match the power of the chariots; the Jin people rushed with their cavalry and could not be stopped without chariots.

.One of his subordinates named Zhang Xingzhong, based on this idea

, made a drawing of the chariot style. This kind of chariot has two poles and two wheels, and the front is covered with leather. It is very convenient to use swords and guns on the chariot. Each chariot has twenty-five soldiers, armed with bows, spears, and shields.

They stood on both sides and fought with the enemy. The chariots moved in formation, and the Jin army's cavalry fled when they encountered them.

Li Gang saw that this thing was easy to use, so he ordered the construction of more than a thousand vehicles. He supervised the sergeants to practice every day, and he was already proficient in using it. However, the siege of Taiyuan was lifted by Prince Yan, so he never used it. This time he just had a try. He learned

Based on the experience of the Song army's several failed attempts to rescue Taiyuan, they believed that their failure was due to their separate attacks and being defeated by the Jurchens one by one.

When the troops are united together, even if there are many people and the strength is not great, they will be more courageous when they are gathered together. Prince Yan successfully rescued the siege and defeated the Jin army using this tactic. There is a successful precedent. So Li Gang took charge of the central army and

Taking the lead in formation with chariots, they left Xinkou Village and entered Daizhou.

The chariot formation is a good thing, but it is good for defense but not for offense. Li Gang used it as a weapon to attack the enemy. Daizhou is mountainous and crisscrossed by rivers. The chariots marching together slowly turned into columns. As soon as they entered Guoxian County, they encountered the Jin Dynasty.

The army's cavalry made a surprise attack, but due to the terrain, it was impossible to form a formation, while the chariots moved clumsily and slowly, and did not turn quickly. They were instantly divided into several sections by the Jin army and fell into a melee.

Zhao Tong dared to attack all the way because he could command the entire army and had strong troops at his disposal. However, the various ministries led by Li Gang were scattered and had their own orders. When he saw that the chariot formation was destroyed, Fan Qiong ran away first.

It doesn't matter, everyone ran away, Li Gang

He couldn't stop drinking and was forced to retreat. Not only did Daizhou fail to be captured, but Xinzhou was also lost. He stopped the car only after entering Shiling Pass. Li Gang thought of Zhao Tao's words again and gathered the remaining soldiers to defend the two passes.

To resist the Jin army, and at the same time submit a petition to the court to plead guilty...

The attack on Dai failed, and the Jin army once again approached Taiyuan. There was a great earthquake in Hedong. The people of Wei Shengjun, Longde Mansion, Fenzhou, Jinzhou, Zezhou, and Jiangzhou crossed the Yellow River and fled southward. Nine out of ten houses in the above prefectures and counties were empty. The imperial court

The reply came soon: stop advancing troops, prepare for peace talks, summon Li Gang back to the capital, and appoint Zhong Shidao, who was seriously ill, as the envoy to Hedong and Hebei.

There were serious differences of opinion among the ministers in the court again. Grand Prime Minister Xu Churen, Tongzhi Privy Councilor Xu Han led the battle, Geng Nanzhong advocated peace, and Young Prime Minister Wu Min also lost because of Li Gang, and also saw through Zhao Huan's thoughts and turned to Zhao Huan's side.

The peace faction. Whether it is war or peace, the two factions argue endlessly.

Zhao Huan did not dare to fight anymore, so Xu Han, who insisted on taking the lead in the battle, was dismissed from his post as Tongzhi Privy Councilor, demoted to a local official, and sent out to Bozhou. The day after Xu Han was dismissed, Xu Churen and Wu Min met again

A heated argument broke out in front of Zhao Huan, and Xu Churen turned to Wu Min.

The He faction was very angry, and their words and actions lost control during the argument, and the civil struggle turned into a military struggle. Geng Nazhong, who wanted to exclude them, and Tang Ke, who wanted to replace them, and Nie Changke found an opportunity. They secretly instructed the censor to impeach this man.

Two prime ministers who "hurt the country's integrity".

Zhao Huan dismissed these two prime ministers at the same time and appointed Tang Ke as the young prime minister and the minister of Zhongshu, He Li as the minister of Zhongshu, Chen Guoting, the minister of rites, as the right minister of ministers, and Nie Chang, the governor of Kaifeng, who was the minister of the Privy Council. After Li Gang heard the news,

He looked up to the sky and sighed: "There is nothing we can do!" He once again submitted a letter asking for dismissal. (To be continued...)