Mid-March of the fourth year of Shenwu

Just as the Great Zhou Dynasty was in full swing to investigate the Dingkou field and rebuild the fish scale yellow book...

General Cheng Wanli of Yongzhou suddenly reported to Shendu, saying that the beast plague suddenly spread in the territory of Liao and Tiele, causing countless cattle and horse losses in both countries, and countless domestic herders starved to death.

According to the investigation, the Liao emperor Yelu Qi secretly transferred the three tribes of Naiyan, Zhuolu, Mengze and the Shiwang Chansu Guards to 350,000 troops and 200,000 Tiel tribes, a total of 550,000 troops to rob our two prefectures of Great Zhou, Gan and Yong. The military situation was urgent, and I beg Your Majesty to send troops quickly to prepare for war, etc.

As soon as the news reached the Shendu, the Great Zhou government and the people were shocked. At this time, when the Great Zhou treasury was empty and was in short supply, there were huge differences between the cabinet and the ministers of the Privy Council. The cabinet ministers headed by the cabinet chief Changsun Wuji advocated peace talks, but Xie Xuan and others advocated sending troops. The stalemate for more than a few days, and no one could convince anyone. In desperation, Ma Jin issued an order for all the officials of the court to discuss this matter in the Hanyuan Palace Court.

"My dear friends, since I ascended the throne, the imperial court has been fighting several times in succession to calm the inside and outside, so that our Great Zhou will be peaceful and harmonious. However, in the early years, the Liao Kingdom is undead and wants to invade the land of our Great Surroundings. I have decided to send troops to the border to fight against Liao! All the good strategies can be reported." Ma Jin was already a strong-willed person, and now he has been the emperor for a few years, so he will not tolerate the Liao Kingdom blatantly attacking his Caogu so blatantly. Therefore, as soon as he went to court, Ma Jin set aside, and could only fight, and it was impossible to speak with peace.

"The wise and wise are not your majesty! I think the wolfish ambition of Liao Kingdom and repeatedly regard our great Zhou Dynasty as nothing, which is really a crime that cannot be punished!"

Privy Councilor Xie Xuan was originally a war faction. After hearing Ma Jin's declaration, he immediately stood up and echoed loudly.

"Please give your majesty a clear explanation. I think it is not impossible to start a war, but the Ministry of Revenue's money and grain are close to Zhao Xin. It is not a blessing to force the war. I think it is better to wait until the salt and silver are put into the warehouse before making plans!"

The second assistant to the cabinet, Kou Zhun, naturally understood how difficult the Ministry of Revenue was now, and there was no financial support to the army to fight. Moreover, this battle was related to the safety of the country. Kou Zhun was unwilling to start the war easily, so he stood up and tactfully put forward his own opinions.

"I think this is a bad thing for Mr. Kou Ge. Although our Great Zhou is difficult, the Liao Kingdom Tiele was seriously injured by the beast plague. I am afraid that it is more than ten times more difficult than our Great Zhou. They can all send large troops. How can I be weaker than them in my Great Zhou? Besides, the Ministry of Revenue has insufficient money and food, so I can borrow food from those aristocratic families and return it to them when the court is rich." As soon as Kou Zhun finished speaking, Yue Fei, deputy envoy of the Privy Council, stepped out to refute.

"Your Majesty, I think that Yue Shumi's words are inappropriate. Isn't it because of a choking fight? Isn't it because of a choking resignation? I think that the Liao Kingdom is invading our territory for food, which is better than the imperial court ordering the two states of Gan and Yong to strengthen the walls and clear the fields. I think that the Liao Kingdom will retreat without fighting without fighting! This is to defeat the Liao Kingdom's troops without fighting, which may be able to resolve the border trouble. When our food and fodder are ready, we can take advantage of the lack of food and fodder to attack the Liao territory. This is my opinion of the road. I hope Your Majesty will break the sage." Xu Jin, the cabinet's political officer, also made a report.

As expected, the tone Ma Jin Dynasty decided before was considered a waste of time. The cabinet and the Privy Council expressed their opinions. The prince said that the mother had a reasonable and the mother said that the mother was right, which made Ma Jin feel that the mother made a reasonable point here and the other side was not bad. I don’t know who should listen to.

Just as Ma Jin was in a state of uncertainty, his eyes suddenly swept to a person standing in the hall and said, "Li Qing, you are aware of military affairs. In your opinion, how should you deal with it?" This person was Li Jing, a famous general of the Tang Dynasty that Ma Jin had just summoned. There is no need to say much about his achievements. He is well-known. He is currently the deputy envoy of the Privy Council of the Great Zhou Dynasty and is in charge of military affairs.

"Your Majesty, I think it is best to defend and control the enemy. Although the Liao army came in a raging way, its food and fodder could not be sustained. According to my eyes, as long as I hold on for two months, its reputation will surely prosper and decline, and the Liao army will retreat." Li Jing paused and said.

"But if there is no complete rule and dispatch, the two states of Gan and Yong will do their own things, and there will inevitably be dangers of defeating each one. I am not talented and willing to serve Your Majesty before!" Li Jing had never expressed his intentions during the debate over the past few days, and he did not have any opinions on this. It was just that Ma Jin had not asked and did not want to speak lightly. When Ma Jin asked, Li Jing naturally expressed his opinion in a slight manner and asked for orders to go to war.

"I heard from Your Majesty that Li Shumi is afraid of this kind of fear, but the army is dangerous and there should be no mistakes. I think this battle is not a trivial matter, and everything is mixed, so I must be responsible for the old and steady people to ensure that there is no danger. I think that Xie Shumi or Yue Shumi are both experienced and familiar with military strategies, so they are the best candidates." Xu Jin, the cabinet's political officer, did not know who Li Jing was, and why he was promoted to the deputy envoy of the Privy Council without any achievements.

But Xu Jin was in love with the world. This station was related to the country and the country, and it was not a joke. How could an unknown person who appeared in nowhere take responsibility? This was why Xu Jin's comments just now came about.

“Um…”

Ma Jin was naturally trusting Li Jing's ability, but now it is no longer the time when Ma Jin ascended the throne, and he is unscrupulous in everything he does. Now he has control over the court, so he naturally has to follow the rules when doing things.

Li Jing did not make any achievements yet. If he forced himself to accept his fate, how could he block this leisurely mouth? Ma Jin hesitated for a moment and didn't know how to make a decision.

"Your Majesty, I think Yongzhou is a major place in our dynasty and will never allow any mistakes. Ganzhou's bitter and cold land is sparsely populated and lost, which is not harmful. However, if there is any mistake in Yongzhou's Longxing land, it will shake the country's roots. The Liao army is about to attack. If it is discussed for a long time, it may be a chance to miss the war. I beg Your Majesty to make a decision early!" Seeing Ma Jin pondering on the dragon throne for a while but without any correct words, Changsun Wuji flashed out from the side and spoke loudly.

After hearing Changsun Wuji's advice, Ma Jin nodded. It was really impossible to delay the safety of the country. He thought about it again, his eyes were determined, and he said in a deep voice: "Where is Xie Xuan!"

"I'm here!" Xie Xuan hurriedly stepped out and knelt down on the verge of the original.

"I have appointed you as the chief general of the Northwest Road marching. The governor of Ganzhou led the left and right Yingyang Guards, the left and right Wuhou Guards, and the left and right Longxiang Guards to the border to fight against the Liao Kingdom!"

"I obey the order!" Xie Xuan hurriedly received the order and thanked him.

"Li Jing!"

"I am here!" Li Jing also stepped out of the line and knelt down.

"I have appointed you as the deputy general manager of the Northwest Road marching. The Grand Governor of Yongzhou personally led the Shence Army to control the He Army to the capital of Yongzhou!"

"I obey the order!" Li Jing said with the order.

"Wang Cheng'en, please send money and food in the treasury quickly before the army, so there must be no mistakes!" Although the national treasury is empty, his treasury is still somewhat. After all, during this period, Ma Jinke searched many officials who did not cooperate and act indifferently, and the wealth of the aristocratic families was transported to the treasury by him.

What Ma Jin sighed was that the imperial court had too few troops available. In addition to guarding Shendu and guarding the local troops, only tens of thousands of soldiers could be sent out to fight. Even if the local government troops in Gan and Yongzhou were recruited, there were less than 300,000 soldiers and horses, which was still a huge difference compared with the Liao army.

Well, it seems that it is necessary to restore the twelve guards to the twenty-four guards. As for money and food? Well! Is it still afraid that there will be no money after the salt reform? It seems that after the yellow book is being built, we must vigorously encourage the people to reclaim wasteland and farm to enrich the granary... As for why we should restore the 24 guards instead of increasing the number of guards, it is just to summon more people in the future, so there is a place to resettle them, right?

...
Chapter completed!