Late Tang Dynasty Floating Life

Chapter 959

The two eldest sons were working hard outside, and Shao Shude took the third and fourth sons around Ruzhou.

He stayed in Ruzhou for the entire first month of this year, mainly because Zheshi, Zhangshi, and Chushi all had big bellies.

On the [-]th day of the first lunar month, Zhang Hui gave birth to a daughter.Three days later, Chu gave birth to a son.The princess is also due next month.In this case, it is really not suitable to travel long distances, it is better to stay in Qingshu Palace for the New Year.

And the two sons are not too young.

During the Chinese New Year, one of them was 12 years old and the other was 11 years old. Shao Shude didn't want to treat them as waste, so he took them with him and taught them by example.

Many families of sergeants were resettled in various places in Ruzhou, mainly from the Tielin Army, and a small number were from the Yicong Army.

Shao Shude went to dozens of families, had conversations, gave some gifts, and casually accepted more than a dozen military school children into silver saddles.

The weather was not good, it could even be said to be bitingly cold, but he still insisted on finishing these things.

How to increase your influence, or in other words, increase your popularity, is the secret of Shao Shude, and he taught his son everything.Starting from the eldest and the second, and now the third and fourth, there is no preference for one or the other.

On the 28th, he returned to Qingshu Palace.Zhe Zongben came back from the front line. Today, Weng and his son-in-law are enjoying the snow and drinking tea in the palace.

There are no outsiders in the field.The third son, Mianren, was in charge of boiling the water, and the fourth son, Guancheng, skillfully added various things to it.

The two of them received orthodox aristocratic education. Apart from studying and practicing martial arts, they naturally did not miss out on etiquette, calligraphy and painting.

"I'm old, and I can't stand winter. It's cold and damp in Handong, which forced me to run back." Zhe Zongben picked up a bowl of hot tea, took a sip, and said.

The terrain of Qingshu Palace is relatively high. Looking out from the palace, the mountains are clearly visible, and the trees are rustling in the wind and snow.The wide post road was covered with heavy snow, and on the frozen river, there was a lonely fox looking into the distance, and it disappeared in the blink of an eye.

This is a cold winter, but also a silent winter.Except for the beasts, all the people in Wanjing disappeared, farming, business, and military affairs were suspended, and everyone stayed at home, waiting for the day when the spring blossoms.

"Uncle has worked hard all his life, it's time to enjoy the blessings." Shao Shude gestured, and Mien Ren immediately stepped forward to refill Zhe Zongben with a bowl of tea.

"Sanlang is elegant and elegant, just like his mother. My Zhe family is full of rough rough, what is lacking is this kind of literary spirit. Sanlang, do you fancy any girl from my Zhe family? If you like it, just tell me, I'll take you to bed at night." Zhe Zongben held Mien Ren's hand and said with a smile.

Shao Mianren blushed.He is the son of Dafeng, and his mother is a talented woman who can review Jinshi examination papers and refute them speechless. Influenced by her mother, she likes to read since she was a child, and it is normal to have a literary spirit.

Shao Shude smiled and said nothing.

The old man likes to joke with young people, he already knew it.Moreover, Zhe Zong didn't have much thoughtfulness at all. He is a typical rough guy in Guanbei. After taking power for many years, he may have some city government, but those small thoughts are almost the same as being naked in front of an old fox like Shao Shude, and he can see through them at a glance. up.

In Zhe Zongben's heart, there has always been uneasiness and anxiety hidden all the time.This kind of emotion reflected that he loved to joke with Shao Shude's sons and recommended a lot of his granddaughters to them.

It was Zhe Zongben's initiative to dismiss Tang and Deng Suizhen this year.

In Shao Shude's plan, Congzhen should be solved first, and Fuzhen next. Zhezongben's proposal really exceeded his expectations.But since he proposed it, Shao Shude would not refuse, and at the same time, he planned to add his food seal to [-] households as a commendation.

This is worthwhile. Old man Gein's statement can serve as a good example, which will help Shao Shude solve the internal feudal town problem, and then unify the hearts of the people and concentrate on dealing with the external feudal town.

After Shao Mianren finished pouring the tea, he stood aside and listened quietly.

"It's not yet time to enjoy Qingfu." Zhe Zongben withdrew his smile, looked at his son-in-law, and asked, "My son-in-law won the land of ten states in Henan and Hebei last year, and the situation in Henan suddenly became clear. I will hold on for another two years to chop off Yang Xingmi's claws, so that my son-in-law will not be distracted."

"This year's focus is on consolidating Henan." In front of Zhe Zongben, Shao Shude did not shy away from it, and confessed his plan: "The second town of Yan and Xu is the focus of this year. Cooked."

In short, first attack Zhu Jin, conquer the important town of Yanzhou, and then proceed to defeat Yang Xingmi and seize the five states of Xu, Si, Hao, Yi, and Hai.

Once these six prefectures are won, the "national boundary" will be directly pushed to the north bank of the Huaihe River, and they will confront Yang Xingmi across the river, and most of their worries will be resolved.

It is foreseeable that Li Keyong will not allow him to calmly take over the counties and counties of Henan Province, and will definitely launch a war on the northern front to contain the Xia army's strength.It can even be said that the action has already begun.The chaos in the river may not be as simple as it seems on the surface.This is not only the product of conflicts accumulated to a certain stage, but also factors of external instigation - Ci and Xi states came to report, and a small group of troops from Jin appeared on the mountain path, their whereabouts were strange, and they seemed to have plans.

"My son-in-law, that mess in the river, you have to be careful." Zhe Zongben reminded.

After repeated ups and downs in Hezhong, the economy is in decline and people's livelihood is difficult.Ci and Xi two states are separated from each other, and between Wang Yao and Shao Shude, they have already greatly leaned towards the latter.In addition, the three cities of Fenglingdu and Pujinguan were controlled by Xia Jun, and Hexi County was actually taken away, so Wang Yao hardly had any prestige.

The number of government soldiers in Hezhong Town has also dropped from 5 in its heyday (Wang Chongrong's era) to more than [-] when Wang Yao first took office, and now to just over [-]. has matured.

During this turmoil in Hezhong, more than [-] rebels gathered in Yu Township. The Hezhong Yajun who went to crusade turned against them.His people wantonly recruited soil groups in the surrounding counties, and their followers were like a cloud, and their appeal was even higher than that of Wang Yao. To Pu people, it was not that they supported Li Diancheng more, but they hated Wang Yao and Fengzang. people.

All the old subordinates brought from Jiangzhou opposed her, which made Wang Yao very disappointed and panicked.Now there are only [-] soldiers and horses in Hedong, and their morale is low, their minds are unpredictable, and they may rebel at any time.In the counties of Puzhou, it seems that there are more votes for Li Diancheng, and the whole situation can be said to be very dangerous.

On the fifteenth night of the first lunar month, taking advantage of the favorable opportunity of the Lantern Festival Lantern Festival, the Chishui Army envoy Fan He led 5000 people into the city. Taking advantage of the unprepared soldiers, he killed more than [-] soldiers who made many noises and took control of Hedong City.

When the soldiers in the city saw this, everyone was in danger, and there were countless people fleeing. For a while, there were only less than two thousand soldiers under Wang Yao's hands, and he looked at Fengzang, not knowing what to do.

In fact, what else can we do?According to normal circumstances, when the chaos in the town reached this level, the regime would have already changed hands.The reason why he hasn't fallen now is that Xia Jun helped him hold on to the situation.

Wang Yao also understands this truth, he has completely given up now, he only wants to keep his family safe and the wealth he has accumulated over the years, and he no longer has other extravagant thoughts.

Shao Shude is now also tempted by this piece of fat in the river, and wants to swallow it in one gulp to solve a big problem.

"Hezhong always wants to cut down the vassals." Shao Shude said: "My original plan was to slowly wear down the spirits of the warriors in Hezhong, waste the wealth in Hezhong, and consume the thorns in batches. The remaining [-] to [-] soldiers Mali, choose the best and strong ones and send them to Luoyang. I didn’t expect the Hezhong warrior to be so decisive that he would make a mess. Li Diancheng even went directly to Jinyang and invited Jin soldiers to come. It seems that the situation is messy, but there is actually an opportunity.”

Shao Shude has always believed in the specific analysis of specific events, and the situation of each feudal town is different, so it cannot be generalized.Hezhong Town is relatively large, and it is located on Hedong Road, so it cannot be forced.Therefore, he imitated the successful experience of digesting Shanguo Town in the past, and formulated a long-term consumption plan, but now it seems that Wufu in Hezhong is not willing to sit still, let alone the position of the Luoyang Imperial Army. Dependence, this is path dependence. Facts have proved that sometimes too much reliance on past successful experience will cause problems.

"There are only [-] soldiers and horses in the river, which is a bit thin. If Li Keyong came with a large army, it might not be enough?" Zhe Zongben said.

"I have ordered Lu Huaizhong to set up the Jiangzhou camp to command the Wuwei, Jinglue, and Chishui armies. There are still [-] new recruits in Shanzhou and [-] town troops in Tongguan. The black army is in the same state and is ready to assist at any time. , is almost enough." Shao Shude said: "After repelling the Jin soldiers and flattening Li Diancheng, I will directly lead the Hezhong Jiedu envoy to unify his military registration, land registration, and wealth, and destroy this town."

These vassal towns are equivalent to an enhanced version of the chieftains in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It is good to be able to reform the land and return one.What's more, a big town like Hezhong has won two small towns.

It was also at this time that Shao Shude felt more and more how difficult it was for Zhe Zongben to hand over Tang Deng Sui Sanzhou on his own initiative.

He must also face fierce internal debate and even opposition.When it comes to such deep-seated interests, the identity of the Patriarch of the Zhe Family may not be easy to use.That is to say, Zhe Silun is still the Huaixi Jiedu envoy, and the Zhe family still has a way out, otherwise, Shao Shude doubts whether Zhe Zongben will "die of illness".

However, Tang Deng followed the three states to solve the problem, and the more than [-] people of Weisheng Army have not yet solved it.

This army has been fighting for many years. At the beginning, its combat effectiveness was mediocre, but after fighting a lot, its strength has steadily improved.Being able to gain the upper hand in the battle with the Huai army already explained everything - the Huai army has been rectified and fighting for many years, and its combat effectiveness has also improved rapidly compared to that of the past, which further confirmed the ability of the Weisheng army from the side.

"The son-in-law is a man with ideas. He has made great military achievements for more than ten years since he began to discuss Tuoba Sigong. I won't say much." Zhe Zongben said: "After the Spring Festival, the army will attack Qizhou again. Don't you want to take care of Du Hong along the way?"

Shao Shude pondered for a moment.

Zhe Zongben's meaning was to take advantage of the time passing through Ezhou, take down Du Hong, who had only a few thousand soldiers, and take control of the seven counties in Jiangxia.

This is actually not difficult, but it hurts the reputation.But in the eyes of the warlords in the world, he is already a top villain, right?There seems to be nothing that can't be done.

"My uncle can figure it out." Shao Shude said: "Du Hong has suffered a loss, I will compensate him, it's okay. Tang and Deng will follow suit, and many people in the family will not be easy to arrange. I know my uncle will also It’s very embarrassing, let them go to Ezhou.”

Zhe Zongben smiled.What he likes most about his son-in-law is that he loves to share the benefits. He never eats alone at any time. He likes to compromise and exchange benefits. This is the person who does great things.

(End of this chapter)