In Jinyang, the capital of the Northern Han Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin had just returned from the court. Li Jixun, Shi Shouxin and other brothers were waiting outside the door to welcome him in. It was because Zhao Kuangyin's status in Jinyang was not good and he was not qualified to attend the court normally. Today was the first time for him to do so.
Li Jixun asked first: What does the king mean by asking Brother Zhao to go? Shi Shouxin also asked anxiously: Are they going to take the opportunity to go south
Zhao Kuangyin shook his head and said: "The current ruler is not Liu Chong, the first ruler of Northern Han. For such a long time, I have already guessed their plan. They just want to unite with Khitan to protect themselves. They have no ambition to make progress. Therefore, it is impossible to take the initiative to send troops to fight against the Great Zhou. Moreover, Guo Shao was so good at fighting in the Southern Tang Kingdom that he crossed the river and besieged Jiangning City in a few months. How could the ruler of Northern Han dare to act rashly?"
Shi Shouxin disagreed and sneered: In his hands are the elite troops that the Great Zhou has fought for many years, and he has also occupied the upper reaches. The general trend is obvious, and it is not surprising that he can defeat the Southern Tang.
Li Jixun said: But it’s a bit too fast.
After hearing this, Zhao Kuangyin pondered and said: This man has some ability in fighting.
Shi Shouxin then asked: Why did the Northern Han leader come to see Brother Zhao
Zhao Kuangyin frowned after hearing this and said: Before, Li Chongjin led his troops across the Northern Han border and encountered the battle between Guo Shao and Li Chongjin. The Northern Han army sent scouts to the border to watch the battle. They captured a Zhou scout and seized a set of armor. That kind of armor was forged from a whole piece of iron, very strong, and smooth.
Li Jixun immediately said: I have indeed seen this armor on the battlefield.
Zhao Kuangyin continued: The Lord of Northern Han was curious about it and wanted to learn the forging method of this armor. He thought I knew it, so he came to me to ask.
Shi Shouxin said: That must have been obtained by Guo Shao from an expert. We have never seen this kind of armor when we were in the imperial army.
That's right. Zhao Kuangyin said, but the Northern Han ruler didn't believe it and didn't want to force me in person. He mentioned that we have lived in Tokyo for a long time and are familiar with the place and should be able to find old friends. He asked me to send someone to Tokyo to contact and bring back two armor makers.
Shi Shouxin said: Since the Lord of Northern Han suspects that we are secretly keeping the armor-making skills, it would be bad if we don't agree to his request. After all, we are living under someone else's roof and are controlled by him in everything. Brother Zhao might as well just follow the Lord of Northern Han.
Zhao Kuangyin said: I had no choice but to agree at that time. However, if the Lord of Northern Han got this armor, he would most likely offer the armor-making technique to please the Khitans. We have no choice but to join Northern Han. Although Northern Han is the mortal enemy of the Great Zhou, it can be considered an internal struggle; the Khitans are not of our race and always want to destroy us. It would be a great loss for me to send this kind of armor to the Khitans.
Shi Shouxin didn't think so much and said: What can we do? We have to obey the Northern Han Lord. Besides, this is not a big deal. The Later Jin Dynasty ceded the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun to attract the Khitan to the south. The Southern Tang Kingdom tried many times to form an alliance with the Khitan to contain the Great Zhou. Who cares so much
Zhao Kuangyin shook his head and said: In today's world, if you ignore justice, you will lose the support of the people. There is no way out, and it is impossible to win. Otherwise, you and my brothers should have surrendered to Khitan long ago after receiving such treatment in Northern Han. Why don't you go
The big men looked at each other in silence. Zhao Kuangyin also knew that it was difficult to find a chance to make a comeback, and he felt frustrated.
Zhao Kuangyin thought of something, his face turned pale and blue, Guo Shao was now prosperous, and he must have rebelled on his way back to Beijing.
Oh, Shi Shouxin looked surprised.
Zhao Kuangyin said coldly: Since ancient times, opening up new territories has been a great achievement. He has conquered the two major countries in the south, cultivated his followers inside and outside the court, and held the military power alone outside the court. He took advantage of his fame to hold a large number of troops. If he doesn't seize the opportunity to establish himself, when will he be able to do so
He remembered that after the death of the previous emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he once had great power among the troops of the Palace Front Division, second only to Zhang Yongde. This opportunity should have been his, but now he watched others gradually approach that position; the feeling in his heart, the frustration, pain and sadness, really could not be resolved.
There are only a few people who can gain the world from common people. They only have a few chances to gain not only wealth, honor, power and status, but also a place in the history of the ages, and to fight for the supreme status for many generations of descendants. This kind of thing is really a once-in-a-lifetime achievement.
Zhao Kuangyin now saw Guo Shao's opportunity and wanted to die. He could not calm down and thought that if he made a mistake, he would regret it for the rest of his life.
Li Jixun said: Brother Zhao is right. It would be strange if such an ambitious person did not usurp the throne. It is a pity that the first emperor had gone through so much hardship in starting a business, and finally built a foundation, but it was given away to outsiders. This person can only bully orphans and widows to get to the throne, so he is not a hero.
Zhao Kuangyin said with an unpleasant expression: My widowed mother cannot be counted in this. Fu Shi has long been on the same side as Guo Shao. Without Fu Shi, Guo Shao would not be able to achieve what he has today with his limited foundation.
Shi Shouxin said: Brother Zhao, when and where do you think Guo Shao will rebel
Zhao Kuangyin pondered for a while: if there was a good place to go when conquering the Southern Tang and returning to the capital, it would be Songzhou. When he said this, he felt even worse, because he had been the governor of Guide Army in Songzhou. Although it was only a remote jurisdiction, it was also the place where he made his fortune. As a result, the person he disliked the most might very likely become emperor there.
His voice was filled with sadness, and he sighed and said: The army that conquered Southern Tang had a large number of naval forces, and the naval ships could also help the army transport supplies. When the Zhou army returned, they should have chosen a route along the water; after crossing the Huai River from the south of the Yangtze River, the Bian River was the closest and widest river. Since the returning army took the Bian River, the closest place on the river to Tokyo was Songzhou; he could be supported there and then return to the capital.
Not only was Zhao Kuangyin angry, but even Shi Shouxin and his brothers were also very angry. Even if they were not eligible for the throne, it would be natural for them to be honored as founding heroes and appointed as prime ministers. Now they are like dogs that have lost their homes. Who can feel comfortable
Sure enough, Shi Shouxin slammed the table and said: We just don't want to see him fulfill his wish.
Zhao Kuangyin and Li Jixun almost agreed with both hands and feet, and everyone had the same feeling.
Shi Shouxin said: Since Brother Zhao has guessed the time and place correctly, why don't we think of a way to make his efforts in vain, or at least let the world see his true face. I will let you be proud, let you be proud
Li Jixun couldn't help asking: "Guo Shao has people inside and outside the court, and he has a large army. Moreover, if someone is doing such a big thing, how dare he allow his subordinates to support him without making careful arrangements early on? What can we do?"
Zhao Kuangyin paced back and forth for a few steps: Guo Shaocai has such a deep foundation, there should be some way to deal with it, let's think about it carefully.