On the Imperial Street of Tokyo, galloping horses whizzed past, the shouts of victory news faded away, and every word seemed like beads thrown into the air along the way.
News that is beneficial to the court and can stabilize people's hearts will not be concealed. In this world, some news spreads slowly, but good news can spread thousands of miles day and night because of fast horses. The great victory on the front line inspires people and the military force awes the world.
After hearing the good news, Fu Jinzhan of Jinxiang Palace also showed a relaxed smile on his face.
Congratulations, Empress Duanci. Concubine Du, who was standing by, saw Jinzhan's smile and quickly bowed and spoke with a smile.
Fu Jinzhan put down the memorial in his hand, stretched his upper body, turned his head to face the sunlight coming through the window curtains in the east, and said casually: The emperor won a great victory, what are you congratulating me for
The study room where she sat was where Guo Shao usually worked, but there was a curtain at the door; after all, all the officials working here were men. The remaining cabinet minister, Huang Binglian, also went to work outside. In the study room, besides Fu Jinzhan, there were Concubine Du and several eunuchs and palace maids who usually came and went around her.
Concubine Du said: "Your Majesty has won a great victory in the front, and the people of Tokyo are confident. With Empress Duanci in charge of Tokyo, we can rest assured and feel at ease. I want to congratulate your Majesty and also be happy for your Majesty."
After hearing this, Fu Jinzhan laughed and said: You know the general situation better than some women.
Concubine Du hurriedly said: I am always by your side, so I must have learned something from you.
Fu Jinzhan was very happy at this time, and she naturally shared Guo Shao's victory from the bottom of her heart. Because she and Guo Shao have always been on the same side, and their common advancement and retreat are fundamental.
She pondered for a moment, then stopped talking and continued to review the memorials submitted by various places. Fu Jinzhan was much more efficient than Guo Shao in doing this kind of thing. She did not need the cabinet ministers to translate and summarize the main content. Since she was very familiar with ancient Chinese, she could read a memorial line by line. She could type out the main content of the memorial after just a short while.
Before noon, Fu Jinzhan had almost finished handling the state affairs of the day. But she did not leave Jinxiang Hall immediately. She remembered that Guo Shao was busy with official business all day long when he was in Tokyo, and she was a little curious about what he was busy with. She also knew that Guo Shao had a small room where he kept secret files, so she asked the eunuch Cao Tai to open it with the key.
The secret room only had a small window and a door. Normally, no one was allowed to enter, and the key was controlled by the trusted eunuchs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. But Fu Jinzhan could easily come in because Cao Tai had the key.
As soon as she walked into the room, a look of curiosity appeared on her fair face. Fu Jinzhan was three years older than Guo Shao. Although she was already 28 years old this year, she was good-looking, with bright eyes, white teeth, red lips and fair skin. Her curious expression at this time made her look as energetic as a young girl.
Eunuch Cao Tai stepped back from the door as usual and gently closed it.
Fu Jinzhan walked slowly while looking at the various maps and notes with names on them. She felt curious and looked at them for a while, then looked at the names carefully. Most of the people she knew had names. She wanted to playfully look for her own name, but of course she couldn't find it.
She saw a row of small porcelain bottles in a wooden grid, so she picked one up, uncorked it and took a look. There was some black liquid inside. She put her nose close to it and sniffed it, frowning slightly. It seemed to be wood ash. Why did Guo Shao put wood ash in the bottles so seriously? The glass bottle next to it was even stranger. It was filled with dark yellow sewage and a hemp rope soaked in it. If someone didn't know, they would think it was a small snake soaked in wine.
Fu Jinzhan saw a booklet lying nearby, picked it up and saw that it was a toy for tinkering with weapons. Guo Shao's sloppy handwriting recorded the burning speed of linen ropes after being soaked in various things. After knowing what it was, Fu Jinzhan was no longer interested in weapons and lost interest. She soon found another interesting place, which was a chair, so she walked over and sat on it, stretching lazily.
It wasn't that the things here were so interesting, but what interested Fu Jinzhan was that Guo Shao had stayed here for a long time to tinker with his things. She picked up another booklet on the table next to her. The handwriting on it was still sloppy, and even a few words that didn't form a sentence, but Fu Jinzhan didn't mind it. She sat quietly in the chair and read it carefully.
As she read, she stretched out her jade-white fingertips and gently stroked the words on the paper.
People are strange. She recalled the past ten years, watching this man grow up from a young boy. When she thought about it carefully, they didn't spend much time together, but he became the most important person to Fu Jinzhan.
He risked his life to protect Fu Jinzhan, and Jinzhan nurtured him without reservation. After countless grievances, Guo Shao became her continuation and a kind of sustenance. Fu Jinzhan felt that she still understood Guo Shao's character, and he was at least a very grateful person; facts also proved that he was not wrong and did not let her down.
For Fu Jinzhan personally, the most important thing is not this solid and reliable alliance but the fact that Guo Shao has been loving her for a long time.
Fu Jinzhan's feelings for him were complicated, but she was also obsessed with him. When she thought of this, a shy blush appeared on her face. She looked forward to Guo Shao's early return from the war; she also looked forward to his wish coming true, so that one day they would not have to hide this relationship secretly.
In addition, Fu Jinzhan was still thinking about Zhao Kuangyin. In her opinion, this was the person who could threaten her life and property the most. And Fu Jinzhan couldn't explain the reason. Even if some people scolded her, she would not be really angry; but Zhao Kuangyin's scolding made her feel so angry that she couldn't get rid of it. She wanted to take revenge on Zhao Kuangyin and make him pay a greater price for his words and deeds.
In the southern part of Jinyang in the Northern Han Dynasty, the Zhou army camp was filled with the sounds of horse hooves and drums. Tens of thousands of people gathered here, making it extremely noisy and lively.
Guo Shao slapped a piece of paper on the rough chopping board. He was dressed in iron armor and sat upright, completely treating himself as a warrior. He looked back at the ministers and generals sitting on his left and right and said calmly that he had just received a memorial that Gao Yanchou's 40,000 troops, Liu Renzhan's 30,000 troops, Longjie Army's right wing, and Hujie Army's right wing had already entered the border of Northern Han and were expected to reach Jinyang in three days.
Wang Pu immediately said: Under such circumstances, in a few days more than 160,000 Zhou troops will gather near Jinyang City and siege works can be deployed.
Guo Shao nodded, looked at Wang Pu and said: The Hedong Front Camp Military Headquarters should come up with the specific number and arrangement of the siege as soon as possible.
“Yes,” Wang Pu said with a fist salute.
Li Chuyun said: With such a large-scale siege, the Liao army will surely come to help. We should prepare to deal with the Liao army as soon as possible. The target of this battle is Jinyang. I think we should avoid letting the Liao army get close to Jinyang so that the siege troops can concentrate on taking Jinyang.
Guo Shao immediately followed the method that he had discussed in Tokyo and said decisively: Appoint. When everyone heard this, they immediately turned their heads and paid attention.
Li Chuyun, the chief inspector of the Palace Front, was appointed as the commander of the northern front, with full authority to fight against the Liao army reinforcements. Shi Yanchao was the vanguard, Dong Zunhui and Luo Yanhuan were deputy commanders, and Zan Jurun, the guest minister, was the military supervisor. Guo Shao said clearly that everything in the northern front camp was subject to Li Chuyun's military orders, and those who disobeyed his orders would be severely punished for disobeying orders in the army.
Several people immediately clasped their fists and bowed, saying: We obey your command.
Among the people called, only Luo Yanhuan has not arrived yet. He is leading the troops of the Imperial Guard to the north and is expected to arrive in three days; but the military government will issue him a written military order.
Guo Shao had weighed the pros and cons of this arrangement. The battles with the Liao reinforcements in the north were mostly field battles, and the Liao army was very strong in field battles; so it was wise to use Shi Yanchao in the front. Shi Yanchao was not easy to control. Apart from the emperor, only Li Chuyun could suppress him because Li Chuyun had a higher military rank than him; although Shi Yanchao was not easy to get along with, he understood the military rules better than anyone else.
Dong Zunhui is young and inexperienced, but he has received formal training from a military family. He obeys military orders and listens to the generals, so there is no need to worry. Luo Yanhuan was originally a good friend of Li Chuyun. Li Chuyun joined Guo Shao's account because of Luo Yanhuan's recommendation. As for the military supervisor, Guo Shao's generals were almost all his confidants, so the role of the military supervisor was almost non-existent, and he had no power to make decisions. In this way, Guo Shao guaranteed Li Chuyun's military power in the north and could really have the final say.
As for whether autocratic power distribution is good or bad in governing a country, Guo Shao is not quite sure; but based on his experience in leading troops in battle, he knows that it is definitely beneficial to maintain combat effectiveness if one person has the final say on the battlefield. This is the prerequisite for seizing the ever-changing opportunities in a complex war situation; otherwise, all opportunities will be gone by the time the arguments are over. Now Guo Shao’s priority is to win the battle and everything else can only be considered secondary.
Guo Shao paused, and then said: The main force of the northern camp is Luo Yanhuan, the right wing of the Longjie Army, Shi Yanchao, the direct and archer direct of the Crane Horse Army, and the first, second and third armies of the Huben Army, about 35,000 elite soldiers. I hope you will work together.
In the field battle, the Liao army was the most difficult to fight, but on the other hand, the military merit of fighting against the Liao army was also the most solid, equivalent to resisting foreign humiliation, which was an unquestionable military merit in any dynasty. Li Chuyun's face turned redder at this time. He was valued and trusted. Although he tried to restrain his excitement, it was still obvious. Li Chuyun clasped his fists and said firmly: I will not let your majesty down.
Shi Yanchao, Dong Zunhui and others expressed their willingness to serve as pioneers for Your Majesty.
At this time, Wang Pu asked for permission to call someone into the tent. Soon, a civil servant came. Guo Shao did not know him, but after Wang Pu introduced him, he found out that he was the Minister of Works. This was considered a high-ranking official, but Guo Shao had only heard of his name and had not paid attention to this person, because the Great Zhou Dynasty still had a military-first system, and civil officials were more neglected by the emperor than in the prosperous times.
The Minister of Works presented two maps, which were designed after inspecting the terrain around Jinyang City. One was a design of the route fortifications to divert the Fen River to flood the city after the summer flood season; the other was a recent one, in which officials believed that the river course of the moat of Jinyang City could be rebuilt and then the river water could be drained to facilitate the siege. Of course, the premise was to surround the city and prevent the Northern Han army from counterattacking, so that civil engineering could be carried out openly.
As long as they could capture the city, the Zhou army would not care about any method. Jinyang was the target of this battle, and they would use any means to capture it.