From September to the end of October, it is the time of autumn harvest in Hunan and even the whole country. Whether it is war or calm, farmers can only survive in these troubled times in a humble and stooped manner. But for the imperial court, the purpose of their survival is to pay taxes.

Provide fuel for the entire country, so that it can enjoy prosperity and wealth and barely survive in this troubled world.

For Nan Tang, this year has been full of surprises.

Guo Rong died, and a childish person came to power. The literati of the entire dynasty finally breathed a sigh of relief and could finally let go of their hands and feet to make friends and have fun. Only a few people were ready to regain the lost ground, but they never occupied the mainstream.

.

Before the smell of corruption permeated the court, Zhao Kuangyin usurped the throne, and there was a wave of talk about regaining the country again, and it also occupied the mainstream. However, Li Jing was weak and lacked energy, and he had been hesitant, so in Yangzhou City

After being breached, the strategy of sitting on the mountain and watching the tiger fight failed before making up its mind.

As for Zhao Kuangyin, it only took a few months after he secured the throne. He had been on the road to countering the rebellion, first in Shangdang and then in Yangzhou. In September, he breathed a sigh of relief and tried the taste of the throne.

In this autumn harvest season, the treasury of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government was completely empty. Last year's Northern Expedition to Youyan, this year's quelling the rebellion, and the accumulation of the next ten years have all been wiped out. The Central Plains has once again returned to a difficult situation.

"Reporting to your majesty, the treasury is empty. The current plan cannot even sustain the salaries of hundreds of officials. I hope your majesty will accept your advice!" Prime Minister Fan Zhi looked at Zhao Kuangyin's face and said directly, very bluntly, "Let Zhao Kuangyin accept your advice!"

Very uncomfortable.

For this kind of prime minister who dared to question himself after the Yellow Robe Rebellion and who had a clear reputation in both the government and the public, Zhao Kuangyin was really ashamed, and his dark face turned slightly red.

He understood that this was Fan Zhi's roundabout way of teaching him not to act recklessly.

If he was frugal, Zhao Kuangyin was not greedy for enjoyment. He did not add many people to the harem, but he was lavish on his brothers and gave countless rewards.

Shangdang was a place where Li Jun had been running for many years, and he had countless money. He had previously sent half a million yuan to Zhao Guogong Li Gu. Zhao Kuangyin cut through the mess with a sharp knife and wiped it out. Then he burned Zezhou City with fire, destroying the corpses and destroying all traces.

There was a huge amount of money and grain, but most of it was lost, and the court could not make ends meet. Even Fan Zhi was rewarded with two hundred taels of gold, one thousand taels of silver, and two thousand bolts of silk.

It can be seen that the other generals were rewarded even more generously, but for the imperial court, it was a loss of blood.

"I know!" Zhao Kuangyin was a very generous man, and he didn't take Fan Zhi's roundabout accusations to heart. This was the reason why he was supported. In this troubled time, there was a kind general who was naturally loved by the soldiers.

Li Jun rebelled, but his son, Li Shoujie, was rewarded heavily, which once again calmed people's hearts.

"The Song Dynasty was newly established. It was in chaos for a while. Now it has stabilized. The court still needs to be managed by your father-in-law!" Zhao Kuangyin said with a kind smile.

"I will serve you!" Fan Zhi glanced at Zhao Kuangyin again, bowed his head in response, but sighed in his heart, this man is a wise king, but unfortunately, he is not his benefactor, Emperor Shizong.

Thinking that his position as Privy Councilor had been removed not long ago and he had been added to the position of Attendant, he could not help but feel that the day when he, the former prime minister, would retire was not far away.

"Is there any news from Hunan? Has the Puppet Tang Dynasty not handed over Li Chongjin yet?" Zhao Kuangyin's dissatisfaction was directly revealed in his words. For Li Jia, who was only in his twenties, he felt that this person was a troublesome person, and he was

A stumbling block to unifying the world.

"The messenger sent a letter, and Yan Xutang did not pay attention to the court's order. Instead, he spoke shamelessly. It is obvious that he had the intention to protect Li Chongjin!" Fan Zhi thought for a while and said directly. He felt that the chair under his buttocks was a little stiff.

"Your Majesty, now is the time of autumn harvest, and it is difficult for the court to use troops. I hope that your majesty will calm down and the future will be long. For the court, the longer it can rest and recuperate, the stronger its national strength will be."

Fan Zhi saw the change in Zhao Kuangyin's expression and quickly admonished him.

"I have my own sense of discretion!" Zhao Kuangyin nodded and said: "The autumn harvest is an important matter now, so go and get busy!"

"I excuse you!" Fan Zhi walked away slowly.

"Come here, I'm ordering Murong Yanzhao, the governor of Shannan East Road, to pay close attention to the direction of Hunan. If there is any movement, send a message immediately!" Zhao Kuangyin walked a few steps, still feeling uneasy. He squinted his eyes and ordered in a deep voice.

"No—" the eunuch on the side agreed quickly.

"Now that we have the Khitan and the Eastern Han Dynasty in the north, and Li Jing and Li Jia in the south, we have the two pseudo-Tang Dynasties. Where should we start with the next move?"

Zhao Kuangyin looked out the window, his mind spinning a thousand times. In the hot weather, the palace was stuffy, and he was also irritable.

The Khitan cavalry was invincible, and the Eastern Han Dynasty was difficult to enter. However, in the country south of the Yangtze River, relying on its convenient water conservancy, the navy was rampant, and there was nothing that could be done for a while.

After decades of Western Shu, there were hundreds of thousands of soldiers, and the road was rugged, making it difficult to enter Shu. The strategy was to go from south to north, and the breakthrough was in Jiangling and Hunan. Unexpectedly, Lingnan was bold, and took advantage of the Central Plains to be free and Hunan to be weak, and annexed it in one fell swoop.

Twelve Prefectures of Hunan.

He originally planned to seize Jiangling and Hunan, then go to Lingnan, and then join Wu and Yue to surround the Southern Tang Dynasty. He would use Dongting Lake to train the navy, press forward step by step, and swallow it. Now, this strategy no longer works.

"Jiangling, Jiangling, there is absolutely no room for failure here!" Zhao Kuangyin frowned and muttered to himself, and the eunuchs on the side naturally did not dare to disturb him.

"We must not lose Gangneung!"

"Go and call Privy Zhao over!"

"promise--"

The so-called Privy Councilor Zhao was actually Zhao Pu, an extremely important confidant. After dismissing Privy Councilor Fan Zhi, he appointed Zhao Pu as Privy Councilor to control the army.

Soon, Zhao Pu came over with sweat on his forehead and was out of breath. Zhao Kuangyin calmed down a little and asked the eunuch beside him to quickly bring him a chair to sit on and tea. After he rested for a while, he said this time:

:

"First south and then north is the strategy of unification. But now, the Southern Tang Dynasty relies on the benefits of the Yangtze River and it is difficult to merge them. Wu and Yue have always been loyal and should not be tampered with. The land of Shu is rugged and difficult to travel, so do not act rashly. Now, the only choice is to go to Jiangling and Chu.

, we can go south, but the pseudo-Tang Dynasty occupied Hunan. I wonder what you think, sir?"

Zhao Kuangyin, as before, valued Zhao Pu very much and called him sir.

"First south and then north is Shizong's policy. This is a good recipe and cannot be changed!" Zhao Pu took a sip of tea and said solemnly:

"The only current strategy is Jiangling, the land of Shu. The land of Shu must not be lost. Jiangling must not be lost. According to this, there is no danger in Hunan to defend, and the road to the south will be smooth. I ask your Majesty to pay attention to it. If it is a critical moment, we can send

The army occupied it."

"Okay!" Zhao Kuangyin raised his eyebrows.
Chapter completed!