After Xia Gui led the troops to the expedition, I felt a little relieved about the war on Huainan West Road. However, when I read the fourth battle report from Luzhou, my mood suddenly became tense again. I even felt a little depressed.
The battle report from Luzhou Prefecture was delivered one day later. The person who submitted the report also changed from the original commander Fan Sheng to the commander Miao Zaicheng. The content was longer than the previous times.
Miao Zaicheng, the commander of Huainan West Road, came to see the emperor. Since yesterday, the Mongolian army has attacked our villages and towns between Luzhou and Anqing in batches. Many villages and towns that were too late to evacuate were devastated. Food and goods were looted and people were massacred. The last general and others could not stand the barbaric behavior of the Mongols, so they discussed sending troops. General Fan Sheng decided that he and General Zhang Lin would lead the attack. The last general stayed to defend the city. Although many people were saved, the two generals But they died heroically. The feats of General Fan and General Zhang inspired the morale of our army. Under the tenacious resistance of our army, the Mongolian plundering behavior was greatly reduced. As a result, the people along the way evacuated to safe places in time. At present, the officers and soldiers in the city share the same hatred of the enemy. General Xia Gui's messenger has also arrived in Luzhou. General Mo will be temporarily responsible for the defense of the city. When General Xia arrives, General Mo will act according to his instructions.
Although the Privy Council had strictly ordered the generals in the city to defend the city in advance, Generals Fan Sheng and Zhang Lin could not ignore the Mongolian army's bullying of our people and sent troops to rescue. This move was commendable. They knew that the Mongolian cavalry was invincible in the field, but the cavalry in Luzhou Prefecture Although they are few, the two generals still attack bravely. This is actually a matter of great justice.
The land is what I want, and the people are what I want. If I need to choose, so are the people.
My voice was slightly hoarse: "Master, is there any news from Anqing Mansion and Xia Aiqing?"
"Your Majesty, according to the report from the defenders of Anqing Prefecture, the Mongolian army suddenly retreated after going deep into a place a hundred miles away from Anqing. Currently, people from Anqing Prefecture are monitoring it day and night. General Xia Gui has also learned about the situation in Luzhou. Order Xia Qing Lead the cavalry to retreat. If the enemy is weak, encircle and destroy it. If the enemy is strong, avoid it. General Xia Gui himself will lead 300 guards and rush to Luzhou by night. At the same time, he orders the infantry to advance rapidly."
"I hope Xia Aiqing can arrive in Luzhou in time to take charge of the overall situation."
"Your Majesty, please be at ease. General Xia is only two hundred miles away from Luzhou. Qingqi is on his way. He will be there soon."
"Two hundred miles away." I felt relieved. It was almost there. Suddenly I felt something was wrong. "General Xia's move is a bit risky. If he is discovered by a large number of Mongolian troops, he will be in trouble with only 300 cavalry."
"Your Majesty, two generals from Luzhou Prefecture were killed in battle today. Although General Xia's move is risky, it is worth it. Besides, General Xia is experienced and will be fine."
"Well, sir, what you said makes sense. The Privy Council will control Fan Sheng, command Zhang Lin, the general is happy, and the deputy general Meng Xing's deeds will be investigated clearly. I will publicize and reward them. Let the people of the world know that I am a great Song Dynasty son. His heroic deeds." I said excitedly. "My dear friends, please continue the court meeting."
Chen Zongli, the Secretary of the Ministry of Punishment, hesitated for a while and then went out to report: "Your Majesty, the prefect of Lin'an reported the fight between the Jia and Ma families a few months ago. Your Majesty has never given any instructions. The potential lobbyist has urged you several times. Please make your decision."
"I have been busy with the war recently, which has delayed this matter. I happened to read what was written in the newspaper last night. I heard that the people in the community were complaining. This matter should be dealt with. Master, Ma Aiqing, you all know this matter, right? ."
"Return to your majesty. I know."
"Okay then. This is just a trivial matter. How did you two make the city full of trouble and become the after-dinner joke of the people in Lin'an?"
Ma Tingluan glared at Chen Zongli and said anxiously: "Your Majesty, this matter was caused by people in the Grand Master's residence. I only hope that the other party can apologize. I don't want to make the matter bigger. Your Majesty, please investigate clearly."
Jia Sidao said unhurriedly: "Your Majesty, I forgive my lax discipline for causing this to happen. I heard that it was because Mr. Ma's relatives took action first, so the people in my mansion were forced to fight back and defend themselves. He just needed Ma.
Your family members can just apologize. I also don’t want to make things worse.”
"Grand Master, these words are wrong. It was clearly Jia Xuan who first spoke insultingly..."
My face darkened and I said, "That's enough. I don't want to treat this as the lobby of Lin'an Mansion. The reason for this is to be left to the unspoken friends for trial. My dears, how do you think this matter should end?"
Jia Sidao stood up and said, "But it's up to your Majesty to make the decision."
Ma Tingluan snorted lowly and said, "I will obey your Majesty's instructions."
"This is a trivial matter. You two should resolve it privately. You shouldn't make it known to everyone. Let the people in the city point their fingers. You are all important ministers of my court. Your family's behavior represents your own character.
.And you represent the imperial court. This is clearly trying to smear my face."
"Your Majesty, this."
I interrupted Ma Tingluan and said: "The unspoken friend is rectifying the order inside and outside Lin'an. You and other family members have to go against the trend and commit crimes. Even if I can not give instructions to the unspoken friend, I should still give an explanation to the people of Lin'an.
."
Ma Tingluan whispered: "Yes."
"Chen Aiqing of the Ministry of Punishment has conveyed my decree. Regarding the fight in the gambling house, the original verdict of the unspoken friends of Lin'an Prefecture shall be upheld. Both parties will be sentenced to seven days in prison." I looked at the silent ministers and continued. "Dear dear ministers, in "
The Code of Conduct for Officials also contains provisions regarding your family members.
I hope that you can not only do it yourself, but also restrain your family members to avoid the appearance of this overlord again. Master, Ma Aiqing. You two have good conduct. Of course I know. But don’t let your family
Your reputation will be easily destroyed."
"Yes. I understand."
"Yes. I will teach you."
"The ancients said that when a prince breaks the law, he is guilty of the same crime as the people. My dear friends, I don't want to see similar things happen again. Otherwise, I will not be lenient. Remember."
After more than half a year, I met Yangzhou Li Tingzhi again in an inn next to Shifeng Commercial Bank. This inn is where the main hall of the Longya Intelligence Department is located. The name is very ordinary. It is called Yuelai Inn.
Although he looked tired and tired, Li Tingzhi looked quite happy and his eyes were bright. He seemed much younger than at the beginning of the year.
"See Your Majesty."
"No courtesy. Li Aiqing. Feel free to do it."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Li Tingzhi stood up and said to Yuan Ji and Wen Tianxiang. "I have met Mr. Yuan. I have met Mr. Wen."
Although Yuan Ji and Wen Tianxiang are not as good as Li Tingzhi in official positions, they are close ministers around me. Therefore, Li Tingzhi also politely saluted with clasped fists. As for Lu Xiufu, because he is Li Tingzhi's subordinate, there is no need to be polite to him.
"Song Rui has met Mr. Li. Mr. Li is polite." Yuan Ji and Wen Tianxiang quickly returned the greeting.
"You have actually met my lord."
"Well, Junshi. It's become a lot stronger."
I saw that everyone had finished their greetings and said, "Xiangfu, sit down. Mr. Junshi, Song Rui, you all should also sit down."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Xiangfu, you have been doing well in the past six months."
"Back to Your Majesty. I'm fine."
"Well, you look good." I smiled. "Xiangfu, I hurriedly asked you to come to Beijing secretly. Firstly, I haven't seen you for a long time. I also miss Aiqing. Secondly, I want to discuss with Aiqing the military affairs of our dynasty. ."
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. Please give me your instructions."
"Xiangfu, I originally planned to reform the administrative affairs first. As for the reform of the army, we will start with the navy this year. The army will start next year. However, the Mongolian raid on Luzhou made me also mention the reform of the army. The schedule is up."
"Your Majesty, I felt this way when I learned that Your Majesty sent General Xia Gui to send troops to Luzhou."
I was a little surprised and said: "Well. Why is that?"
Li Tingzhi smiled and said, "Your Majesty, Ashu is marching into Luzhou. Although we cannot capture him with the soldiers and horses on the Huainan West Road, we can still protect ourselves. Besides, the area from Luzhou to Anqing is mostly mountainous, which is not conducive. The army is marching. Ah Shu is proficient in the art of war. Naturally, he knows the consequences of going deep alone. At present, Mongolia's national strength is not enough to support a comprehensive southward war. Therefore, I think that Ah Shu is just harassing. This is something that your Majesty can naturally do from the Ministry of War in the court. From the analysis with the Privy Council, I learned that in this situation, the normal thinking should be not to send troops. At least, we should not send troops in such a hurry. Therefore, I believe that your Majesty has deep intentions."
I said with great interest: "Well, Li Aiqing, go on."
"Your Majesty, our army is divided into three parts. The navy is the most chaotic, but it has been rectified by your majesty. The border army is divided into three theaters, which are the strongest. Among them, the east and west ends are under your control. Only the center of the capital is under your control. The Forbidden Army is the most difficult place for Your Majesty to touch. Therefore, I think that if you want to manage the Forbidden Army, it is a good move to divide it first. And in the eyes of outsiders, it is because Your Majesty is worried about our border that he sent troops to Luzhou."
I smiled: "Yes. Li Aiqing is indeed a famous general today."
Li Tingzhi said humbly: "Your Majesty, I commend you."
"This is one of the reasons. There is another reason, dear, do you know?"
"Also, I don't know about this."
"Haha. It's not that you don't know. It's that you haven't thought deeply. Junshi, open the map."
I pointed to Shouchun on the map at the front of Huainan West Road and said: "Shouchun is still under our control. Its city walls are thicker and stronger than Luzhou. It is an important offensive and defensive location. It is actually the gateway to Huainan Road. If Shouchun is lost, Mongolia can directly attack the two Huaihe Rivers; if Shouchun is there, our army can go straight north. Although Kublai Khan of Mongolia sent troops to attack Shouchun several times, it has never been effective. So I think the Mongols are still There is one purpose. It is to cut off the connection between Luzhou and Shouchun and prepare for their full southward movement."
Li Tingzhi looked at the map carefully and praised: "Your Majesty has a great opinion. I am not as good as you."
Having said this, I smiled and handed the military training manual to Li Tingzhi: "My dear, take a look. These are my requirements for the training of our soldiers."
Li Tingzhi saw very quickly. For such a experienced general, he only needed to click and stop.
"Your Majesty, it is comprehensive, systematic, concise and easy to operate. I think it can be promoted among our soldiers."
"Well, I love you. Is there anything else you can add to improve this manuscript?"
"Your Majesty, that's enough. If you encounter any problems during training in the future, it's not too late to add more."
"Okay. Ai Qing took this manual away. Since there are no comments, it is finalized. This training method will be trialled in Yangzhou and Sichuan theaters first. If there are no problems, it will be designated as the standardized basic training method of our army. Jun Shi. You inform Ouyang Jianqing that he can leave at any time."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Li Aiqing. Regarding the number of muskets, I estimate that we can produce two thousand by the end of the year. In other words, you still need to select two thousand reliable soldiers from the Yangzhou Army to become musketeers before the end of the year. Try to use Longya personnel as the main force. ."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I am already working on it."
"Very good. Once we have 2,500 musketeers, we can form an army."
"Your Majesty, I have seen this musketeer before. It is extremely powerful. It just takes a long time to reload."
"The shortcomings of muskets are not limited to these. For example, they cannot be used in rainy days. Therefore, I will ask the gunpowder department to continue to improve. Because this is the direction of future wars. The specific tactics of musketeers need you to gradually improve them in actual combat in the future. .Three-stage shooting is only the basic method of musketeers at this stage."
"Well, as His Majesty said, sniper is a very effective method."
"By the way. Let's incorporate the musketeers into your own guard first."
"Yes. I obey your order."
"Li Aiqing, I will discuss with you the restructuring of our army and its future development direction."