Prime Minister

Chapter 1106: Go Down the River and Go East by Boat

Chapter 1106: Go Down the River and Go East by Boat

The rich and vast Taohuang River Basin.

Countless hardworking barbarians and Han people are cultivating the fields.

Most of the crops planted in the fields were millet and sorghum domesticated from foxtail grass by our ancestors; near rivers, even rice was planted.

The foreigners were surprised to find that the Han people first piled up straw and burned it in the fields, and then flooded the rice fields with water. The weeds in the fields withered, but the rice was still able to grow.

The rivers upstream carry sand and soil to irrigate the fields along the river. In addition to the fields, Han and Tibetan children also collect snails and clams by the river, and fishermen ride on rafts and small boats to fish or ferry across the river.

The Han people brought advanced farming techniques and seeds from the Central Plains, allowing the foreign people who had lived here for thousands of years to taste what rice is.

In addition, the Han people also planted a lot of kapok trees. They picked cotton from the trees, removed the seeds, and then wove them into cloth.

The Han people called it Beji cloth and sold it to the Western Regions and Western Xia, and sometimes wore it themselves.

The Han people were not only good at farming and weaving, they were also good at water management. They built dams and canals along the river, dredged the river valley, and dug wells, which not only prevented disasters but also irrigated more fields.

Five years ago, Zhang Yue's war against Qing Tang brought not only blood and fire, but also civilization and communication.

This time, when the Xihe Road attacked Lanzhou, He Guan, the governor of Minzhou, dredged the waterway and used the Tao River to transport food and fodder needed by the army of more than 100,000 to Lanzhou.

The ship set out from outside Minzhou City, sailed along the Tao River, then changed ship to travel 60 miles overland, and then loaded the grain onto another ship to transport it to the city of Lanzhou.

He Guan's political achievements were not limited to this. He built the Guangli Canal in Minzhou. He changed the practice of conscripting civilians for labor and instead adopted a policy of rewarding according to merit. Both the Han and the aboriginal people, young and old, went to build the canal, irrigating more than 10,000 hectares of farmland.

After the Guangli Canal was completed, He Guan established a convention to prohibit local tyrants from occupying the canal so that all people could enjoy it.

Canals can benefit people, but can also harm them. The Western Xia dug a seven-level canal that flooded Lingzhou and harmed the people. The Song Dynasty built the Guangli Canal to cultivate land and benefit the people.

He Guan was already the governor of a state when he was less than 30 years old. He was promoted to the position of introduction envoy and ranked in the horizontal class.

I don’t know how many generals were envious of this.

Now that Lanzhou has been captured, He Guan will probably be promoted again based on his merits and rewards.

Under the city of Lanzhou, He Guan saw that this place was a treasure land, which was more suitable for farming than the Tao and Huanghe valleys. He Guan was confident that he could cultivate more fertile land here, and he had a comprehensive plan in his mind.

Just as He Guan was thinking carefully, he saw Li Xian riding towards him with more than a hundred cavalrymen.

"I have seen the sutra system!"

He Guan turned over and bowed. Li Xian helped He Guan up and said, "I came to you to discuss this. Lanzhou has been taken. According to your majesty's original order, we should either cross the Yellow River to the north to take Liangzhou, or go south to take Lingwu. We should attack the place where they must rescue. We should not wait and see, otherwise it will affect the affairs of the state."

"But now, according to Tong Guan's report, Qing Tang has withdrawn from Liangzhou, and Xixia has dug a seven-level canal to flood Lingzhou. I plan to let Li Hao guard Lanzhou and reorganize the troops to march east to support the troops in Jingyuan Road. What do you think?"

He Guan said: "That's right, we must save Zhang Jinglüe."

Li Xian said: "But after two months of siege on Lanzhou, the soldiers' food has run out. Where will the soldiers get food to march eastward?"

He Guan said: "According to the regulations, there is no place to get grain for the time being, but now the wheat is ripe. Our army can buy grain in Huizhou. As long as we add the price of transporting grain, we can easily obtain enough grain and grass for the army from the local area."

"At the same time, the Tao River is connected to the Yellow River. Lanzhou has been conquered now. The Mengchong, which used to transport grain, can be used as a troop transport ship, allowing the soldiers to travel east by boat."

Li Xian was overjoyed when he heard this and asked, "Can we travel along the Yellow River?"

He Guan laughed and said, "Even Lanzhou is connected to Lingzhou and Taiyuan. In the Tang Dynasty, six shipping envoys were set up in Lingzhou to transport grain and grass upstream from Taiyuan to Lingzhou City."

"However, the water from Huizhou to Lingzhou is shallow, so it can only be transported by raft. If you are traveling by Mongolian descent, you can travel from Lanzhou to Huizhou Wulan Bridge, which is 250 miles downstream from Lanzhou."

Li Xian was delighted when he heard this and said, "This will save a lot of time."

He Guan said: "Not only the Tao River, but also the Huang River can flow into the Yellow River. After taking Lanzhou, when we advance in the future, the soldiers and food ships can go from the Tao and Huang Rivers to the Yellow River, and then go downstream. Not only can we reach Huizhou and Jingyuan Road, but we can even go east to the city of Lingzhou!"

The biggest shortcoming of the Song army was logistics. If they could use the Yellow River to transport food and troops, it would save time and effort.

Li Xian was overjoyed and said, "Great! I will report this to the court!"

……

Before the Emperor.

The second day of Zhang Yue's tenure as prime minister.

He was advising the emperor to set up the Lanhui Xihe Jinglüe Anfu Zhizhisi, and to concurrently take charge of the Xihe Jingzhi Border Defense Finance Si.

This was something that Zhang Yue had planned with the emperor before he became prime minister, and it was put into practice today.

Zhang Yue said to the emperor, Wang Gui, and Yuan Jiang, "Your Majesty, the situation has changed since we captured Lanzhou."

The emperor said, "I wanted to capture Lanzhou a long time ago, but I was trying to capture Qingtang, so I couldn't turn against Xixia completely! Now I think it's too late."

Zhang Yue smiled and said, "Your Majesty, as long as you do it right, it's never too late."

"Now the Western Xia is still immersed in the joy of defeating the troops of Fuyan Road and repelling the troops of Jingyuan Road, and they don't know that the situation of victory has turned to the side of the Song Dynasty."

When these words were spoken, Feng Jing and other ministers looked up slightly. Although some ministers opposed in their hearts, no one dared to refute them in public. Instead, they all showed an expression of respect as they listened.

The official said, "Please speak!"

Zhang Yue immediately held the tablet and painted on the imperial couch, saying: "In my opinion, what is the strategic position of Lanzhou in the war between Song and Xia?"

“That’s Xiangyang.”

"Since ancient times, if you want to build a defense line along the Yangtze River, you must first defend Jianghuai and Jingxiang."

“Why is Jingxiang important to the Yangtze River defense line? Because it is located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

"So since ancient times, the northerners have always started from Jingxiang to destroy the separatist regimes in the south. As long as Jingxiang is not lost, there will be a chance for the south to rise again. Once Jingxiang is lost, the south will not be able to survive."

Yuan Jiang said: "The Emperor Taizu destroyed the Southern Tang because the Southern Tang did not have the danger of Jingxiang, so he was able to defeat it."

When Yuan Jiang mentioned the Southern Tang, Zhang Yue remembered that his family was also a remnant of the Southern Tang. Zhang Yue wondered if Yuan Jiang's words were sarcastic, but then he remembered that Yuan Jiang's ancestor Yuan Dezhao was the prime minister of Wuyue, and then he realized that he was too sensitive.

Zhang Yue used the patterns on the imperial couch to divide the enemies and friends, saying: "Lanzhou is located in the upper reaches of the Yellow River. Taoshui and Huangshui both meet the Yellow River near Lanzhou."

"As long as our army can gain a firm foothold in Lanzhou, we can control the Taoshui River Basin, the Huangshui River Basin, and the lower reaches of the Yellow River."

"Since I became the governor of Xihe Road, all the governors who have served in Xihe Road have cultivated land by the Tao and Huang rivers. Once Lanzhou is conquered, food and grass can be loaded onto ships from the Huang and Tao rivers and transported to Huizhou downstream via Lanzhou."

"What are the benefits of transporting grain by ship?" Zhang Yue looked around and said, "This is self-evident!"

The emperor and the ministers all nodded in agreement.

The benefit of water transportation saves hundreds of thousands of civilian labor costs!

Zhang Yue said: "One day, we will dredge the Yellow River from Huizhou to Lingzhou, and military rations can be transported directly to Lingzhou by boat."

"During the Tang Dynasty, when Guanzhong encountered bad years, it could transport grain from Hehuang for relief."

"At that time, grain was transported from Hezhou to Lingzhou by land, and then from Lingzhou to Guanzhong by ship. Now, after hundreds of years of changes, this waterway is almost mature. I have been to Huizhou to see the Yellow River. This section of the river has sufficient water power, enough for Mengchong boats, bamboo rafts, and wooden rafts."

"In the future, when we attack Xixia, every 50,000 or 60,000 troops will be followed by hundreds of thousands of civilians. This will no longer be the case."

"The grain-carrying ships can replace civilian labor! Given time, we can take a boat from Lanzhou directly to Lingzhou."

The emperor thought that this was what Zhang Yue had said in the "Plan for Pacificating Xia" presented to the emperor the day before he was appointed as prime minister. The key to using troops is to build a commanding position. After taking Lanzhou, we can use water resources to occupy the upper reaches of the western bandits and control their country.

Zhang Yue said confidently: "I can assert that after the capture of Lanzhou, if the knowledgeable people of Xixia fail to realize this, their country will be destroyed within three years."

Destroy Western Xia within three years!

Zhang Yue made a bold statement.

Feng Jing said: "What Prime Minister Zhang said is that there will be wise men in Xixia who will realize this and fight for Lanzhou with all their strength!"

Zhang Yue said: "Yes, from what I have seen, the rulers of Xixia in all dynasties were not ordinary people. Although the current Queen Mother Liang is a woman, she is also a heroine. The other generals such as Renduo Yading are all famous generals."

"So if we want to compete with Xixia, we must be one step ahead in everything, anticipate the enemy first, and seize every opportunity!"

The officials all nodded. What is strategy? Let others follow your pace, not you follow others.

Zhang Yue said: "So I think we should set up the Lanhui Xihe Jinglüe Anfu Zhizhisi, with Lanzhou and Huizhou as the base, to manage the entire route, further delegate power, and transfer elite troops and generals from all over the country, and send money and grain to Lanhui."

"Let Xixia break its limbs every time it attacks here."

In the past it was the Xihe Road Jinglüe Anfusi, and now it is the Lanhui Xihe Zhizhisi. Although the name has changed, the meaning has changed.

In the past, the strategic focus of Xihe Road was on Xizhou and Hezhou, but now it has been changed to Lanzhou and Huizhou, followed by Xizhou and Hezhou, while Huangzhou, Minzhou, Taozhou and Tongyuanjun are not mentioned at all.

The official asked, "Who will be the governor?"

The candidate for the Office of Administration was originally Zhang Zhi, but now he can only give it to Li Xian.

Although Li Xian was a eunuch, he had one good point: he understood military affairs and was willing to give opportunities to those under him. He was more than ten times stronger than Wang Zhongzheng.

In Zhang Yue's eyes, even though you are an official, it doesn't matter as long as you have real ability.

The most feared thing is to have loyalty but no ability. This is why the government appointed Wang Zhongzheng and Gao Zunyu, but they were defeated.

Zhang Yue said nothing. He decided that since he had formulated the strategy, he should not interfere in the selection of candidates, otherwise he would be overreaching. Finally, the prime ministers discussed for a while, and the emperor really made the final decision, which was Li Xian.

When the discussion was almost over, the ministers left one after another, but Zhang Yue stayed back to make comments.

The emperor said, "Among all the ministers, only you have such farsightedness and vision. I am really pleased that you can assist me after Duke Shu resigns as prime minister."

Zhang Yue did not show any arrogance, but said: "Your Majesty, setting up the Privy Council for Shaanxi and Hedong is the first step, setting up the Lanhuixihe Pacification and Control Office is the second step, and there is a third step!"

The official said, "Please tell me now."

Zhang Yue asked, "Your Majesty, do you remember the story of the debate between Sima Cuo and Zhang Yi?"

The official nodded.

Zhang Yue thought to himself that he had to set Ping Xia's tone again.

Zhang Yue said: "Your Majesty, Zhang Yi advocated attacking Han in those days, with those who competed for fame in the court and those who competed for profit in the market, and went straight to the king's cause."

"But Sima Cuo advocated the attack on Bashu, saying, 'If you want to enrich your country, you must expand its territory; if you want to strengthen your army, you must enrich your people; if you want to be king, you must broaden your virtue. Once you have these three resources, you will become king.' He refuted Zhang Yi's view."

"Sima Cuo advocated taking over Bashu, expanding his power, and then turning back to take over the kingdom."

"Zhang Yi's strategy was to go straight to Wang Ye, and he thought Sima Cuo's strategy was too far away from Wang Ye. Sima Cuo thought that under the premise that the situation was still unclear, going to Bashu first would not be far away from Wang Ye, but closer to Wang Ye."

"Later, historians' debates about Sima Cuo and Zhang Yi were mainly about the dispute over name and reality."

"This is why Zhang Yi pursues fame while Sima Cuo pursues pragmatism."

The emperor asked, "Is this what you meant by 'seeking the Way for the sake of the Technique', rather than 'seeking the Way for the sake of the Way'?"

Zhang Yue said: "Your Majesty is right. 'King' is 'Tao'. If you don't have enough strength and knowledge, it will be difficult to succeed if you rush to 'Tao' rashly."

“So I have always advocated doing what we can do first.”

"As for attacking the Xia, destroying the Xia is the 'Tao'. At present, it seems that there is really no way to achieve a final result, so we must adopt Sima Cuo's method of attacking Bashu and approach the goal step by step. This is to accumulate small victories into a big victory."

The official said, "I understand."

Zhang Yue said: "In addition, I have derived another meaning."

"Your Majesty, do you know that after the Qin Dynasty conquered Bashu, the situation was over? No, Bashu was constantly in rebellion and disasters. Later, the Qin Dynasty implemented the county system in Shu and appointed Li Bing as the governor. Li Bing's greatest achievement in controlling floods in Shu was the construction of the Dujiangyan Irrigation System."

"In the end, Shu became a land of abundance and also became the capital of the Qin Dynasty."

"Taking Lanzhou is not the end, but the beginning. Your Majesty still needs to manage Lanzhou."

"This is exactly why I established the Xihe Lanhui Division."

The official nodded.

Zhang Yue said: "To manage a place, you still have to get people first. I'll take the Qin Dynasty as an example. The reason why Qin was able to gain the world was that it attached great importance to farming, warfare and water conservancy. It used Li Bing to build the Dujiangyan Weir and Zheng Guo to build the Zhengguo Canal. This was Qin's good governance."

"Zheng Guo was discovered by the King of Qin to be a spy for Han and was to be killed. But Zheng Guo said that building this canal would only extend the life of Han for a few years, but would build a great achievement for Qin for eternity."

"The King of Qin not only did not kill Zheng Guo, but also named the canal after him, which shows the King of Qin's broad mind."

"Therefore, I believe that if Your Majesty wants to gain the world, you must first gain people and be able to use them!"

"I recommend a talented person to your majesty, this person is Li Bing, Zheng Guo from our Song Dynasty."

The official asked, "Who is this person?"

Zhang Yue said: "This person is He Guan, the governor of Minzhou!"

The official said, "I have heard of his name a long time ago, and I am planning to make great use of him!"

Zhang Yue spared no effort in recommending talents. As long as you had talent, he would never hide it and would immediately recommend you to the emperor once he discovered it.

After recommending He Guan, Zhang Yue left.

……

At this moment, He Guan was sitting on a Mengchong boat sailing down the Yellow River from Lanzhou to Huizhou.

Following He Guan were tens of thousands of soldiers from Xihe Road riding on small boats, rafts, and leather rafts.

The army marched down the Yellow River in a mighty procession, and the Song army soldiers advanced eastward by boat, with the intention of "returning to Jiangling a thousand miles away in one day".

At that time, Li Xian left Li Hao to garrison Lanzhou City, and personally led the army south to join forces with Wang Hou of Huizhou, and then went north to rescue Mingsha City.

(End of this chapter)