manynovel Chapter 1091 Peace in the world
Chapter 1091 Peace in the world
Chapter 1091 Peace in the world
You must know that when he was young he had lofty ambitions and promised to be the best in the world.
Thinking of this, Zhang Yue recalled what he had written during his first visit to Fu Bi's house.
Be it being destitute in middle age or being down and out in old age, it is actually the inevitable fate for many people. But when they were young, everyone believed that they were the best people in the world.
However, is everything you have today something that you would look down upon when you were young?
Zhang Yue clearly knew that "cultivating oneself, managing the family, governing the country and pacifying the world" was the ambition he set when he was young, and it was also the effort of every scholar and official to spread virtue to the world.
I have been working my way up from self-cultivation to managing my family, and then to governing the country, and now I have reached the stage of pacifying the world!
Clear away the worries for the king and create eternal peace. As Emperor Taizu said, the world is one family, and I will not allow others to sleep beside my bed.
You must know that all under heaven belongs to the king, and all within the four seas are the king’s subjects.
To destroy Xia is to pacify the world!
Shi De immediately moved a chair and placed it next to the emperor's couch, and Zhang Yue sat down.
Cai Bianshi and Deyi Du stood by his side.
Shi Deyi changed the incense and served the emperor loyally. Cai Bian kept writing and recorded the conversation between the emperor and his minister on paper, which was later recorded in history.
At the same time, Cai Bian was also eager to see how Zhang Yue would raise his voice to support the collapsing building and turn the tide.
His eyes were filled with deep anticipation.
The emperor said, "Before the two armies attacked Xia, I still felt that destroying Xia was as easy as pie. Now the Fuyan route has been defeated, and Zhong Yan, Zhang Shouyue and other generals have died in the king's business. I am in great pain and at a loss. From now on, whether to fight or make peace, I hope you will not hesitate to speak your mind!"
After hearing this, Zhang Yue placed the tablet in Shi Deyi's hand, stroked his short beard and said, "Your Majesty, don't worry too much. Today I am presenting you with a plan to pacify Xia!"
Hearing this, Shi Deyi, Cai Bian and others were overjoyed.
From the strategy to pacify the Rong, to the strategy to pacify the Hehuang, and finally to the strategy to pacify the Xia.
The emperor said, "The strategy for pacifying Xia? Please tell me quickly!"
Cai Bian's pen tip was fixed on the paper, and he was so anxious that all the ink dots were on the book.
Zhang Yue sat down beside the couch and said, "Your Majesty, opening up the border to Xihe is the national policy after Xining! I vaguely remember that Deputy Privy Envoy Cai Minsu once wrote a poem "Happy Oriole" to describe the peaceful scene on Xihe Road. The poem goes 'Frosty morning, looking at the ancient purple fortress, cold clouds and withered grass, sweaty horses neighing in the wind, border wild geese turning over the moon, and the iron armor on the Long Mountains is cold early in the morning. The sword songs and horsemanship songs are tragic and majestic, and all express that the emperor's kindness is hard to repay'."
When Guan Jia, Cai Bian, Shi Deyi and Zhang Yue recited this poem, they could not help but think of the vast frontier and the scene of Xihe Road after the war. It must be said that Cai Ting wrote this poem very well.
Zhang Yue said: "After the pacification of Xihe, this poem was widely circulated in the capital. It shows that the people and scholars all regard the pacification of Xihe as a great honor, and regard Your Majesty's recovery of the homeland as a wise and wise thing. This is what the people want."
The official nodded repeatedly upon hearing this.
He would never forget the scene of recovering Xihe, having all the ministers come to congratulate him, reporting the event to the Taimiao, and having the people all praising the emperor as a wise and enlightened emperor.
The most taboo thing when offering advice is to start with a long speech, say something that you think is superior, and don't talk about lofty ideas when discussing with others. You should learn to empathize with others.
Zhang Yue said: "Since ancient times, sage kings have attacked countries that have not yet submitted to us, so as to consolidate those that have submitted to us. Although Your Majesty did not launch a large-scale attack on Xia this time, Qingtang has submitted to us. The 200,000 foreign troops in Xihe, Qingtang, obeyed Your Majesty's order to attack Xia, and none dared to disobey. This is what I, Your Majesty, congratulate!"
"On the other hand, if we don't attack Xia, Xihe can't be defended for long. Once Xihe can't be defended, the horses from Xifan will have no way to get there again, and Xia Rong will certainly be a convenience for Shu Road. If Xihe is abandoned, Guanzhong will be shaken. After Tang abandoned Hehuang, if there is any disobedience in the west, it will alarm Chang'an, and Sichuan and Shu will also be undefendable."
"Fortunately, Your Majesty is wise and has recovered Xihe. If we had handed it over to Xixia, the troubles would have increased and it would have been too late to regret."
Recovering Xihe Road is the greatest military achievement since the emperor ascended the throne. It is also the beginning of Zhang Yue's rise to fame. This is in the common interests of the monarch and his subjects.
People who do big things always seek common ground while reserving differences. It is normal for the ruler and his subjects to have disagreements, but it would be terrible if they did not share the same interests.
The emperor said, "Yes, I will never give up even an inch of this Xihe land."
Zhang Yue smiled slightly and said, "The rest of the vacant land is fine, but Lanzhou must be taken!"
"Lanzhou?" The official was immediately annoyed. "Li Xian and Wang Hou led an army of more than 100,000 to attack for more than a month and still couldn't take it!"
Zhang Yue smiled slightly and said, "This is because the enemy has anticipated my advance. In my opinion, it is worthwhile to spend more effort on Lanzhou. If my prediction is correct, within a few days, there will be victory reports from Lanzhou!"
When Zhang Yue said this, the emperor, Shi Deyi and Cai Bian all agreed with him and did not have any doubt at all.
Cai Bian continued to write quickly while Shi Deyi served tea to Zhang Yue.
As the chief escort, Shi Deyi moved very carefully, fearing that he might accidentally interrupt Zhang Yue's train of thought.
Zhang Yue moistened his throat with a cup of tea and gestured with his hands, "The situation along the Xihe River is all in Lanzhou. If we capture Lanzhou and are promoted to Jiedushi, we will set up a city here as a shield for the whole route. Once the Xiban take advantage of this, if they drive tens of thousands of troops out of Shixia, pass Ruzha, rush to Shangantan, and directly attack Shuyang and Weiyuan, Xizhou will be in danger. If they attack Tongwei, pass Sancha, divide their troops to plunder Yongning, Laiyuan, and go straight to Tongyuan, then the whole route will be shaken!"
Zhang Yue talked effortlessly, as if all the mountains and peaks of Xihe Road were within his control.
There is no need to look at the pictures, these are all in his memory, but Cai Bian is busy recording them.
"This is defense, then attack. Since ancient times, the use of military power has always been based on building a commanding position. The Kaluo River, Huangshui River, and Taoshui River are all within the territory of Lanzhou, and the Yellow River flows from the west. If we take Lanzhou, we can take advantage of its strategic location, water resources, and occupy the upper reaches of the western bandits, then we can control their front and back, and control their country."
The capture of Lanzhou would not only consolidate the situation along the Xihe Road, but would also enable the army to attack the heartland of Western Xia from the upper reaches of the Yellow River. Therefore, Zhang Yue suggested moving the city of Xihe Road from Xizhou to Lanzhou, focusing on consolidating Lanzhou and using it as a starting point to attack Xia.
"But building Lanzhou is not enough. I suggest setting up a governor in Xihe, who will also be in charge of the Xihe Border Defense Finance Department, and appoint a governor to manage border military affairs!"
Zhang Yue's words touched a chord in the emperor's heart.
Although the General Manager and Pacifier had great power, he was not allowed to interfere in the finances, criminal justice, grain transport, warehousing, and academic affairs of the region. However, the Governor had more power than the General Manager and Pacifier, and he also had the most important financial power.
This was almost the same as the power of the Jiedushi, except that during the revival of the Southern Song Dynasty, the court was forced to appoint Han Shizhong, Yue Fei, Zhang Jun and other generals as governors.
Zhang Yue said calmly, "Your Majesty can select one of the eunuchs as the governor, and another civil official as the deputy governor!"
"As you wish!"
At this critical juncture, the government agreed straightforwardly.
"When Li Yuanhao was rising, he had 50,000 soldiers in Helan Mountain, 70,000 soldiers in Xingzhou, and 50,000 soldiers in Lingzhou. Xingling is the base of the Dangxiang and cannot be taken lightly. So after I conquered Lanzhou and established Xihe, I sent another general to conquer Ganliang, cut off their passage to the western region, and drive the Dangxiang from west to east like a tiger driving sheep!"
When Zhang Yue reached this point, he stretched out his hand and pressed towards the west. While he was talking and laughing, the masts, oars, and sails were reduced to ashes.
The official listened very seriously.
Shi Deyi was so absorbed in listening that Cai Bian's palms were sweating.
"Then we will build Hulu River and Jingyuan and Xihe River, and build fortresses along their borders. Xihe River will go out of Huizhou, embrace Qinfeng and connect to Jingyuan."
"This is Tiandu Mountain, a land near the river, with strong men and fine horses. The Xia people can build a country with this, but if they lose this, they will be hindered in both military and food. If I don't attack them now, the Dangxiang will also come to attack me!"
"Jingyuan Road will defend for a few days, Xihe Road can send troops from Lanhui, go down along the Yellow River, and attack the Xia bandits from both sides. Qinfeng Road and Huanqing Road can also come to rescue."
"In the past, I lost the battle with Xia because the Xia people came with their entire country, and I always fought them with one route! With Tiandu Mountain as the formation, Xihe Road and Jingyuan Road can support each other. If the Xia people take charge, the two routes can stop the invasion of Xia Qingguo. If the Xia people don't take charge, they will continue to advance along Huluchuan!"
"If Your Majesty is interested, you can also set up a governor in Jingyuan Road, or you don't have to. When Jingyuan Road is built to within 300 miles of Xiaoguan and Lingzhou, Your Majesty will send a general to go north from Xiaoguan, and another general to cross the river in Lanzhou. After cutting off the reinforcements from Xingzhou, the two armies will meet at the foot of Lingzhou city."
"After conquering Lingzhou, we will take over the five states of Dingnan in turn. After taking over Hengshan, we will finally complete the task in one battle... and destroy Xia!"
After Zhang Yue finished speaking, the hall fell into deep silence.
The hall was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
Cai Bian stopped writing and thought, what Zhang Yue proposed is indeed a strategy to destroy the country and pacify the world, but according to him, how many years will it take to pacify Xia? With the emperor's impatient temperament, can he wait?
In the past, weren’t we defeated because of the emperor’s fickleness?
The official frowned and asked, "How many years will it take to destroy Xia as you said?"
Zhang Yue said truthfully: "Five years at the shortest, ten years at the longest!"
The emperor's expression was somewhat gloomy when he heard this. Zhang Yue saw the emperor's expression and said, "Your Majesty, when it comes to border affairs, you should not take the empty name as an excuse and forget about the real dangers, or give up distant undertakings for the sake of small matters. The most urgent task is to ease the burden on the people and save money!"
"The most taboo in politics is either to act too aggressively or to let it go. Both are unacceptable. Your Majesty, once a national policy is decided, it must be unyielding!"
What Zhang Yue meant was that once a decision was made, it could not be changed, and the government could no longer be the same as before.
The official said: "Confucius said that the world and the country can be equal; titles and salaries can be refused; swords can be stepped on; moderation is impossible.'"
"The golden mean is so difficult, it is also difficult for me!"
After listening to the official's words, Zhang Yue thought to himself, if you don't listen, there is nothing I can do. I can only use the time of giving up and letting the actions and hiding be up to me.
The emperor raised his hand from the couch, stroked Zhang Yuezhi's back and said, "But I will listen to you this time! What a good plan to pacify Xia!"
"Whether it's five years or ten years, even if I can't wait, my descendants can!"
"Your talent is ten times better than mine, so I entrust the task of destroying Xia to you! In this critical moment, I am ill in bed and have no time to write an imperial edict, so I will orally order you to be the co-minister of the Secretariat and assist me in handling state affairs!"
Shi Deyi and Cai Bian were both dumbfounded when they heard this.
Zhang Yue stood up from his chair with a solemn expression, bowed beside the couch and said solemnly: "Your Highness Zhang Yue obeys your order!"
When the country is in danger, all those who are appointed as prime ministers and generals will accept the offer!
The emperor said on his sickbed: "In this dynasty, I am a general when I go out and a prime minister when I come in. You are the only one!"
(End of this chapter)