"Are you Lu Wenjin?" Shao Shude asked, sitting on the mat.
Chen Cheng and Zhao Guangfeng, one on the left and one on the right, both set their sights on the Youzhou envoy.
"Prince Lingwu actually remembers my name?" Lu Wenjin was a little surprised.
"Where is Liu Rengong now?" Shao Shude asked.
Lu Wenjin was a little curious about why Marshal Shao, who was in the northwest of the famous town, paid attention to Liu Kutou, but he still replied: "After the fall of Weizhou, General Liu returned to Fanyang in defeat, was punished, and was sent to supervise the construction of Qigou Pass."
Shao Shude nodded. Qigou Pass, such a familiar name.
"Why did Li Shuai send you here?"
"Back to the King of Lingwu County, my commander wants to attack Yuzhou to avenge his trap. I hope that the powerful troops from Hexi can help." Lu Wenjin replied.
This is not to save the captured son, it is because the son died not fast enough!
Li Kuangwei, if you are cruel to others, you can also be cruel to yourself!
"The king of Longxi County is my sworn brother. I don't want to attack him. Please come back, envoy." Shao Shude said.
Lu Wenjin was a little surprised.
Didn't you send troops last time? More than 100,000 troops lay across the grasslands north of Yunzhou. The tribes were frightened and fled one after another. It was simply more terrifying than the Khitan in the east. In the end, the Hedong army was forced back, majestic
, why don’t you want to fight this time?
"Prince Lingwu is short of gold and silk? That's right. A large army will cost a lot of money to conquer. My commander is willing to help."
"No need." Shao Shude stretched out his hand to stop what he was saying. Then the topic changed and he asked: "General Lu, does he know that there is a young man named Yeluyi from the Nieli clan of the Khitan Diela tribe?"
"I know." Lu Wenjin replied: "The Nie Li clan has been appointed Yi Li Jin for generations. Since Nie Li, there have been 16 people in seven generations. Yelu Yi's uncle Yelu Shilu has been appointed as Yi Li Jin of his own tribe and the tribe alliance.
I took my nephew Yeluyi as my friend to attack Shali. This son has a good plan and is good at conquering, and he has become somewhat famous."
The Khitan tribal alliance implemented two systems, namely Tibetan and Han.
In the fourth year of Kaiyuan, Khitan Li died, and Xi Li Dayu led his troops to surrender, "making him the king of Songmo County, Xingzuo Jinwu, the general and the governor of Songmo". The eight tribal chiefs under him were all worshiped as governors.
He also established a Jingji Army in his residence, with Li Huohuo as the Economic and Strategic Ambassador, and General Ke Tuyu as the deputy envoy.
The imperial court sent personnel to the Songmo Governor's Mansion to reorganize its troops and allocate pastures, farmland, and Dingkou. The Khitan soldiers became somewhat like the soldiers of the imperial court.
From this time on, the Khitan military and political affairs were separated. The Songmo County King and the Governor were the supreme leaders and had a great reputation, but the military power was controlled by the deputy envoy of the Jingji Army. The actual power was actually greater than that of the County King or the tribal alliance chief.
.
Ke suddenly rebelled and was vindicated by the imperial court. In the 23rd year of Kaiyuan, Nieli was granted the title of Governor of Songmo. Nieli rebelled again and was pacified in the 25th year of Kaiyuan. Nieli fled to Mobei.
He no longer dared to be a governor or a great khan. It was shameless to honor the Yaonan family as the leader of the eight-tribe alliance and steal the title of "Supreme Khan" from the Turks. Even in the heyday of the Liao Kingdom, I was afraid that
Yes, it is far inferior to the Turks.
Since then, the Yaonan clan has been appointed as the Khan, and the descendants of Nili have been appointed as the military chiefs of the Diera tribe (Yili Jin), and also as the tribal alliance Yi Li Jin, holding actual power.
At present, the eight Khitan Khans are Hende Jin, and Yelv Shilu, a descendant of Nieli, is the Eight Yili Jin. Yelu Yi is Yelv Shilu's favorite and most trusted descendant, and he plans to replace the Yelv clan's ancestral eight military chiefs.
Pass the position to him.
"Has the Khitan been peaceful recently?" Shao Shude asked again.
"Restless. In the past few years, we have conquered the east and west and cannibalized various tribes. The Tatar, Xi, Shiwei and other tribes have been driven hard, and the tribes have been severely damaged." Lu Wenjin replied.
Shao Shude stood up and frowned in thought.
In fact, throughout the dynasties, as long as the dynasty lasts long enough, there will always be strong political power on the grasslands. This is a natural law and it is difficult to change.
When the dynasty was founded, the Turks became strong and established several vassal powers in the north, such as Liang Shidu and others.
After Taizong used the founding elite troops to bring peace, he has always paid great attention to the development of the grassland tribes. By the time of Gaozong, Empress Wu, and Xuanzong, both military and diplomatic methods were used, making it impossible to form a strong political power on the grassland until the Anshi Rebellion broke out.
This skillful use of diplomatic methods comes from the genes of the Northern Dynasties, which is very different from the inward-looking dynasties that emerged from the heart of the Central Plains. The imperial dynasty did not discriminate against the Hu people, and had a deep understanding of the grasslands. They often participated deeply in the internal affairs of the grasslands and achieved great results.
A stunning effect.
During the Tang Dynasty, the barbarians in the northern grasslands tried to unify many times, but there were always traitors and lackeys of the Tang Dynasty everywhere. They were too fragmented. The Uighur Khanate was unexpectedly destroyed and failed to come back to life in the end.
Of course, even in the era of feudal rule, the northern towns had strong military force. When the Xi people got carried away, they were destroyed by Youzhou Town. When the Uighurs were about to revive, they were defeated by the Tiande Army, Zhenwu Army, and Hedong Army.
At this time, it was not the Turks, not the Uighurs, not the Xi people, not the Shiwei people, but the Khitans who "stepped forward" and once again tried to integrate the various tribes on the grassland.
Shao Shude had a premonition that according to the current situation, several regimes would arise one after another in the Central Plains and grasslands, competing against each other. Everyone is racing against time. Whoever establishes a country first and annexes surrounding vassals or tribes will have an advantage.
The current strength of the Khitan is just a large vassal town.
Regarding the grassland, Shao Shude admired the approach of the imperial dynasty, treating it as part of the empire and being deeply involved in its internal affairs.
It is obvious that the danger is there, but you still bury your head in the sand, build a border wall and forget about it, and let the barbarians from the grassland torment outside the border wall. This is an extremely wrong approach.
Be proactive!
Since the Tang Dynasty, few of the various powerful leaders of the grasslands such as Turks and Xue Yantuo died at the hands of the Tang army. Most of them were killed by their own people or hostile tribes, and then their heads were sent to Chang'an.
If you don't participate in grassland affairs, you won't have influence, you won't be able to use diplomatic means, and there won't be such good things that are in danger of being nipped in the bud.
With the development of cavalry technology and tactics, this arm will usher in its golden age, far more powerful than the Han and Northern Dynasties, and the grassland peoples will also usher in their heyday.
At this time, if the Central Plains Dynasty continues to build the Great Wall and border walls, it would be very dangerous and irresponsible for future generations if the Central Plains Dynasty continued to build the Great Wall and border walls and allowed the danger to spread and develop.
Compared with the Turks, the Huns are weaklings, and they are inferior in equipment and organization. Compared with the Mongols, the Turks are also a little less interesting, and they are inferior in tactical thinking.
"General Lu, when you get back, tell Li Shuai that if there is a change in the Khitan, I am willing to send troops to help. However, Li Keyong is my sworn brother and cannot bear to attack each other." Shao Shude said.
Lu Wenjin was a little helpless.
You are willing to come to fight the Khitan, but we dare not let you come.
After a few more visits, Xixi, Shiwei and even the armies behind the mountain saw the strength of Shuofang's army. If they invaded Youzhou Town in the future, no one would be allowed to turn against them and open the door to welcome the surrender?
He doesn't understand the word influence, but the meaning is clear. Does this allow you to do whatever you want?
Yizhou, Xinzhou, Guizhou and other places are originally mixed with Hu and Han people. The Lingwu County Prince is also very "Hu". It is said that he holds several titles. He is a rare person who comes from the border area and has friends with Han people.
If a hero who was born in a mixed land were allowed to control the tribes outside the Great Wall, he would want to conquer Hedong and Hedong, and Youzhou and Youzhou. The grassland was his home, and he would appear and disappear, making it difficult for people to resist.
"Since the King of Lingwu County is unwilling, let's let this matter go. There is another matter. My commander-in-chief wants to buy five thousand war horses. He wants Qinghai Cong instead of prairie horses. He is willing to trade them with gold and silver." Lu Wen entered.
"Li Shuai is very busy," Shao Shude said with a smile.
Five thousand war horses is not too much and can be obtained by the four major ranches, but he does not want to use this part of the reserve.
If this business is handed over to Hexi Aomo, Ganzhou Uighurs, and Suzhou Long family, there must be some benefits if you follow them.
"I agree to this matter." Shao Shude replied: "You can go to Shengzhou in person and find Deputy Governor Song of the Governor's Mansion."
After that, Shao Shude let Lu Wen go in.
"You have to go to the imperial court alone." Shao Shude turned around and sat back on the bed and said.
Chen Cheng and Zhao Guangfeng looked stern, knowing that this was serious business.
"Why, neither of you want to go?" Seeing that the two of them were silent, Shao Shude laughed and said, "Is Chang'an a dragon's pond and a tiger's den?"
Chen and Zhao laughed at each other. Those things in Chang'an were easily dealt with and wasted time.
"If you don't take the initiative, then I will call your name. Zhao Da, you can do this."
"As ordered." Zhao Guangfeng responded directly without refusing.
"Seize the opportunity, it's not time to send troops yet." Shao Shude warned again.
****
Li Hang entered Jinyang lightly.
A year later, not much seems to have changed.
If there had been any changes, maybe the place had become more chaotic. There were actually sergeants robbing merchants and civilians. This was an eye-opener for him.
If Lanzhou and Taiyuan Prefectures along the way had not sent soldiers to escort him, Li Hang doubted whether he would have reached Jinyang alive.
"The envoy will stay here." An official from the Hedong shogunate led Li Hang to a house and said.
"This is not an inn, but who's mansion? I haven't seen anyone there for a long time." Li Hang said curiously.
This house was several steps in and it looked like it cost a lot of money. Even in the three cities of Jinyang, it can be called a mansion, but no one lives in it. It's strange.
"This is He Gongya's mansion. In the past, the King of Lingwu County lived here for many days." The shogunate official said, "Since the envoy is coming from Lingxia, there is no harm in staying here."
"Thank you very much." Li Hang did not refuse and directly moved the luggage in with his entourage.
After seeing Li Hang and others moving in, the shogunate officials called over a general, gave a few instructions, and then left.
The general led a team of people to guard all the gates and strictly prohibited entry and exit.
Li Hang cursed a few words in a low voice.
Li Keyong has learned a lot and won't let him go out for a walk.
However, along the way, even though it was just a quick tour, I still saw a lot of reality and reality.
The area around Caochengchuan where Shuo and Lan meet is crisscrossed by rivers and rich in water and grass, but deserted. Obviously Li Keyong had no intention of spending any effort there.
If we want to launch a large-scale Northern Expedition, we must set up a forage warehouse and a granary in a place like this, unless we don't plan to take this route.
Upstairs, on the front line of Gujiao City, you can faintly see a lot of horses. They must be the ranch horse supervisor. Li Keyong finally got back to his business.
Horses like this kind of place that is slightly cold and has water and grass. During the prosperity of the country, a horse farm was set up here, and later a building was built to oversee the Mucheng, which was similar to the Xishi City in the southern border of Huizhou.
The roads in Youchizaka area are full of potholes and have not been repaired for many years. Cangcheng is also very dilapidated, even covered with moss, and looks abandoned.
What does this mean? It means that Li Keyong never considered attacking Hezhong, nor did he consider marching north from Lanzhou to attack Shuozhou.
After entering the city, the market was a little sluggish. As for how it compares to last year, I can't tell. It seems to have gotten worse, but it doesn't seem to have happened.
Time is too short! If we look back three years later, there may be obvious changes.
"Ke Yong is not thinking about the Northern Expedition, so the commander-in-chief may feel at ease." Li Hang wandered around the house full of weeds. When he came to the door of He Gongya's study, he turned around and left.
How dare he enter the bedroom where the Marshal once lingered?
"Alas, the commander-in-chief missed the opportunity without my words." Li Hang casually pinched a piece of thatch and sighed while playing with it.
Li Keyong obviously did not want to make the Northern Expedition. As long as his main force left the east, the time would be ripe to attack Wang Chongying and his son.
Li Hang once suggested sending someone secretly to contact Wang Ke to support him in becoming the governor of Hezhong and instigating civil strife in the Wang family, but the commander rejected it on the grounds that "insects are weak-tempered."
However, if there is no civil strife in the Wang family, how can we capture Hezhong?
That's all, maybe the commander himself didn't intend to take the river, and he didn't want to irritate Li Keyong too much.
Li Keyong should be summoned in a few days. Li Hang went over his words in his mind again and made sure that there were no problems before he returned to the main hall and sat down.
There wasn't even a maid to warm the bed. How could Li Keyong treat guests?