Chapter 50 three

Entering the city from the Lizheng Gate in the south of the capital city, to the north is the Thousand Step Corridor, which is 700 steps long and leads directly to the Lingxing Gate of the imperial city.The imperial city, also known as Xiaoqiang, commonly known as Hongmen Lanmaqiang, is about 20 miles away.Dozens of steps inside the Lingxing Gate, there is the east flow of the river. There are three white jade stone bridges built on the river, which are called Wai bridges.There are four white stone dragons under the bridge.The river bank is full of willow trees, lush and green.In the west, it faces Xigong Haizi far away.About 200 steps across the bridge is the Chongtian Gate of Miyagi.Miyagi circles nine miles and thirty steps, and is three feet and five feet high.On both sides of the Chongtian Gate, the Xinggong Gate is on the right, and the Yuncong Gate is on the left.There are Donghua Gate and Xihua Gate on the east and west sides, and Houzai Gate on the north.All gates are heavily guarded, guard posts stand everywhere, and banners are fluttering in the wind.

To the south of the star arch gate is the Yushan Pavilion, and to the east of the pavilion is the Gongchen Hall, where all officials gather.The buildings in the palace city have Daming Hall in front and Yanchun Pavilion in the back, which are evenly distributed on the central axis of the city. Kublai Khan ordered people to transplant a sedge from Genghis Khan's residence from the Mobei grassland under the Da Nei Danchi, and gave it the name "Oath and Thrift Grass", in order to warn his descendants to maintain the simplicity of their ancestors. In the east of the Daming Hall is the Wensi Hall, in the west there is the Red Sandalwood Hall, behind which there is a colonnade leading to the sleeping hall, and there is a long veranda to connect to the front door, surrounded by a golden and red sill painted with flowers in front, this is the residence of the concubines. .

Behind the sleeping hall is the Baoyun Hall, and further north is the Yanchun Gate. The corridor at the entrance is the Yanchun Pavilion.There are two imperial couches on the pavilion, and a small mountain screen bed in the colonnade, all made of nanmu and decorated with gold.There is a large nanmu imperial couch in the sleeping hall at the back, where Kublai Khan often summoned ministers and practiced Buddhism. In the ancient city of Dadu in November, the wind is biting and the auspicious snow is blowing. Kublai Khan leaned on the imperial couch, closed his eyes and meditated. King Zhenjin of Yan and Prime Minister An Tong of Zhongshu Province sat on both sides, holding their breath and not saying a word.

Not long after, Xue Chang approached and whispered: "Your Majesty, General Zhaowu and Nanjing Road Xuanfu envoy Liu Zheng are asking to see you outside the hall." Kublai Khan opened his eyes slightly: "Send the order down, and say that I have invited General Liu Wuzhong." Kublai Khan's feet stepped on the golden foot pedal. At this moment, he suddenly felt a little cold, and carefully moved his feet to the brazier next to the golden foot pedal. "Also, according to my will, Boyan, A Shu, and Zhang Hongfan will enter the palace together to discuss matters."

After a while, Liu Zheng, Zhongshu Youcheng Prime Minister Boyan, Zhengnandu Marshal Ashu, Yidu and other thousands of households Zhang Hongfan came to the main hall one after another. Kublai Khan asked Liu Zheng gently: "What does Liu Aiqing want to play? I want to hear the details." Liu Zheng looked up at Kublai Khan with a ruddy complexion and kind eyes, and said, "I want to see Your Majesty, and I have a plan to break the Song Dynasty." He took out a memorial from his sleeve and submitted it: "The ruler of the Song court is weak and his ministers are rebellious, and the country can't last forever. The minister is willing to do the work of a dog and a horse, and please lead the army to break Xiangyang first and withdraw its defense." Liu Zheng will return to the court. On the way, the long-thought strategy of attacking the Song Dynasty was revealed, "Since ancient times, the emperors have not belonged to the whole world, and they are not orthodox. The Holy Dynasty owns seven or eight out of ten of the world. How can we leave it alone and abandon the orthodox and evil?"

Ashu took Liu Zheng's words and asked very politely: "I don't know much about General Liu, and I have a few questions to clarify. Will General Liu be willing to enlighten me?" Liu Zheng smiled indifferently: "Marshal Ashu, but it's okay to talk about it." "Ashu is crude. I heard that General Wu Zhong, Shen Yi, was resourceful and good at riding and shooting. He entered the Song Dynasty during the Jin Rebellion and served under the command of Meng Gong, the governor of Jinghu. Meng Gong attacked Jin Xinyang, the general was the vanguard, and there were twelve brave men at night. , crossed the moat and boarded the city, and attacked and captured him. Meng Gong was shocked when he heard the report, saying that the general's merit was better than that of Li Cunxiao in the Tang Dynasty who led eighteen riders to pull out Luoyang. He was promoted to the appeasement envoy of the 15th Military Prefecture of Tongchuan with his military merits, and he knew the affairs of the Luzhou Military Prefecture. Is there such a thing?"

Liu Zheng put his hands on the golden chair, and said calmly, "It is true. I was born in Zhaofanzhou, Beijing, and later moved to Rangcheng, Dengzhou. During the Jin Dynasty, I took refuge in the Song Dynasty, and General Meng was promoted day by day." "So, why did the general turn to us?" Liu Zheng pondered for a while, but before he could answer, Zhang Hongfan took up the conversation calmly: "Marshal A Shu didn't know something. General Liu Zheng was a northerner who made great contributions in defending the west. All the generals in the south were under him. Lu Wende was jealous, always rejected the strategies he drew, and always concealed his merits."

"Which Lu Wende? Is it the elder brother of Lu Wenhuan, the governor of Xiangyang Prefecture in Song Dynasty and the deputy envoy of pacification in Beijing and Xi'an?" Kublai Khan was very interested in the Lu brothers and asked. "Return to Your Majesty, that's right. Song Jinghu Commander-in-Chief Lu Wende took advantage of the conflict between Song general Yu Xing and General Liu Zheng, and sent Yu Xing to set up Sichuan to control the general. Yu Xing summoned the general with a military plan, and the general saw through his framing scheme. Going to the camp, Yu Xing then framed the general. The general refused to accept, and sent envoys to sue Lin'an, but failed. At this time, the general's cronies and subordinates were all murdered by treachery.

Zhang Hongfan is young and energetic, and speaks quickly.Over the years, he and Liu Zheng have gotten to know each other a lot during their work together. They not only know the cause and effect of Liu Zheng's downfall, but also know that he is a rare talent, and he has long admired him.Seeing that A Shu had some doubts, he was naturally eager to explain the whole story to Liu Zheng: "In the summer of the second year of the Central Government, General Liu brought fifteen counties and 300,000 households from Luzhou to our court. Your Majesty honored him and granted him the province of Kuifu. He also served as a pacifier and gave gold and silver tiger talismans, as well as gold and silver tiger talismans to those who had meritorious service in the school. Song general Yu Xing came to attack Luzhou, and the general scattered all his wealth and distributed treasures to the soldiers, boosting morale, and defeated Yu Xing's Song army. After the war, The general sent envoys to the court to present the golden character tooth charms and seals given by the Song Dynasty to the court, and asked to garrison troops, store grain and fodder thickly, and build high city walls, thinking that it would be a long-term plan for the Song Dynasty."

"At the beginning of the third year of Zhongtong, General Liu was ordered to enter the court, and His Majesty gave Zhongshu Province to Chengdu and Tongchuan. He also ordered General Liu to remain the Marshal of the capital, and set up villages and mountains to strangle Song soldiers. Some people are jealous of the general. He wrote a letter to sue the general, saying: If you can rebel against the Song Dynasty, you will not be able to rebel against Mongolia? The general was worried that the court would misunderstand, so he wrote a letter to argue with the court, requesting that Tongchuan be assigned command. Your Majesty will accept his request, and in July, the general will be ordered to change. Marshal of the capital of Tongchuan. In May of the following year, the Song army marched into Chengdu, and the general rushed to help it. The Song army heard that "Sai Cunxiao" had arrived, and fled far away, trying to attack Tongchuan in a detour. The general had expected it, set up ambushes, and fought In the land of Jinjiang, he gathered and wiped out the Song army. In June of the third year of the Yuan Dynasty, His Majesty rewarded his achievements and moved him to General Zhaowu and Nanjing Road Xuanfu envoy."

"However, as Marshal of Zhengnandu, I still have to ask." A Shu stared at Liu Zheng sternly, "Not long ago, our soldiers captured a monk and found a secret letter from Song Ting from him. Said: Appoint Liu Zheng as Lu Longjun Jiedu envoy, and make Yanjun king. I hope General Liu can explain this matter." King Zhenjin of Yan, who had been in deep thought before, raised his head from a large topographic map of Xiangfan, and decisively waved his hands to A Shu and Liu Zheng, who was about to explain: "Marshal, don't ask further, An Tong once told you about the secret letter. As for me, regarding this matter, both of us firmly believe that it is Song Ting's plan to divorce General Liu, which is just for them to get rid of General Liu's confidant. Since ancient times, there is no doubt about people, and there is no doubt about employing people. Although I have not had much contact with General Liu, But we all know about General Liu’s character.” In December of the third year of Zhongtong, King Zhenjin of Yan received the imperial edict to lead Zhongshu to save trouble.At the beginning of May of the fourth year, the Privy Council was established, and the orders of the Central Committee were kept with real gold, and the affairs of the Privy Council were also judged, integrating military and political power.After dispelling Ah Shu's doubts, Zhenjin changed the subject: "Here, I would like to draw everyone's attention to such a practical problem: Song currently has more than 700,000 elite soldiers, including regiment training soldiers, the total is about 2 million. What about us? A mere 500,000 troops are required to appease the northwest frontier and send troops to conquer the Song Dynasty. The actual mobile force is only 300,000, and the soldiers and horses are exhausted after long-distance raids. Therefore, if we want to win this war, we must fight hard. Why not. How to fight this battle, what is Prime Minister Boyan's opinion?" Since Boyan was left behind by Kublai Khan, he has made plans and suggestions in the court, and his views are often higher than those of other ministers, and he is especially able to make prompt decisions when dealing with affairs.Kublai Khan appreciated his talent very much, and personally decided to marry him the sister of An Tong, the right prime minister of Zhongshu Province.In the following year, he served as Prime Minister Zuo of Zhongshu, and was later promoted to be a member of the Privy Council of Tongzhi and entered the core leadership of the court's military and political affairs. Boyan raised his head, with a hint of wit and calmness between his brows: "I think that although the Song Dynasty was peaceful, the court was corrupt, Jia Sidao and others in the court were arbitrarily abusing power, and people's livelihoods were resentful, but it was located in the south of the Yangtze River, Wufu. Minfeng has a large number of soldiers and a large number of generals, and its military strength should not be underestimated. In my opinion, this is still a protracted war of equal strength. With our current national strength, it will take time to capture Xiangyang. Therefore, I agree with General Liu Zheng's proposal It is suggested to encircle Xiangyang first, and then break it, that is, adopt the tactics of "siege the city and fight for aid", gradually consume the source of money and soldiers of the Song court, and finally destroy it in one fell swoop and unify the whole country." After Boyan finished speaking, there was a brief silence in the hall.An Tong put his hands on the watch case, looked at Kublai Khan with a calm face, hesitated for a moment, and then said cautiously: "Some ministers in the court believe that since the founding of the Central Committee, Ali Buge and Li Fen have happened one after another. The rebellion has had a profound impact on our dynasty. Now, the country needs to rest and the people need to recuperate. If troops are sent to attack the Song Dynasty, if it lasts for a long time, I'm afraid there will be another Li Fen rebellion." Kublai Khan had a long-awaited ambition to rule the world. In addition, all kinds of unstable factors caused by civil strife have been eliminated, the economy in the north is recovering, and the political situation is in full swing. It is precisely in consideration that the comprehensive conditions for sending troops to the south are ripe, so he convened this group. At the second military meeting, the strategy of attacking Xiangyang first and Song Dynasty later was discussed and determined.Regarding the opposition from the DPRK and China, he did not comment, but only asked An Tong: "What do you personally think about sending troops to attack the Song Dynasty?" An Tong kept his eyes on the ground, paused every word, and said loudly: "The opportunity is not to be missed, the time will never come again!" "Okay!" Kublai Khan put his hands on the armrests of the golden chair and stood up slowly. "Listen to the decree of all the gentlemen: I have made up my mind. I will set up the Marshal's Mansion immediately, mobilize all the soldiers and horses to besiege Xiangyang City, and fully implement the strategy of breaking through the middle road. After opening a gap in the Jiangbei defense line of the Song people, the army will drive straight in and break through the natural danger of the Yangtze River in one fell swoop. A Shu and Liu Zheng, I order you two to take full command of the attacking Song army; An Tong, I order you not to be in charge of the provincial army, garrisoning the land, and paying for the army, and at the same time be responsible for entering the military plane. Logistic support and troop dispatch It shall be resolved through consultation between the Ministry of Education and the Privy Council without delay, otherwise, it will be punished by military law!" "Observe the order!" Everyone left the table and accepted the order in unison. Kublai Khan had his own reasons for assigning them in this way. Ashu once accompanied Kublai Khan on an expedition to Dali, and for many years commanded the army to confront the Song army between the Yellow River and the Huaihe River. He has rich experience in fighting the Song Dynasty. At the beginning of Liu Zheng's entry into the court, he had a plan to attack the Song Dynasty in his mind. Long before the plan was finalized, he had ordered his subordinates to practice day and night to prepare for the army to cross the river. An Tong is good at coordinating the armies and ensuring supplies... After retiring from the imperial court, Liu Zheng discussed with Ashu: "Our army's cavalry and infantry are excellent, and they are invincible, but the water battle is not as good as the Song army. If we can seize their strengths, build warships, and train the navy, we will be successful." Ashu felt the same way: "Tomorrow, when I go to court, I will suggest to the court to form a navy as soon as possible, and the general will be fully responsible for training and commanding. The southern country is densely covered with rivers and lakes, and the city is fortified. It is not suitable for cavalry deployment and infantry attack. Without the cooperation of the navy Combat, if you want to defeat the Song army and win the final victory in the war against the Song Dynasty, it will be empty talk."