Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 671 Laughing at the Wasted Farming (Part 2)
It was nearing dusk, and the city gates were about to close, but under Shi Ju's orders, his subordinates dared not delay. They immediately led the horses and prepared the saddles. Before long, more than ten subordinates escorted Shi Ju out of the city and back into the Jin army camp.

After being informed of his arrival, Shi Ju went to He Shi Lie Liangbi's command tent again.

However, Heshi Lieliangbi seemed to have been waiting for this all along, and was not surprised at all. He simply pointed to the military chair next to him and said, "Please sit down, Minister Shi."

Shi Ju snorted coldly and stood up, saying, "Lord He Shi Lie, what exactly was the purpose of your words during the day? Now that it's just the two of us in the tent, you can speak."

Heshi Lieliangbi poured Shi Ju a cup of tea: "Prime Minister Shi, you know the situation in Hebei. If you were to take charge, you would not be able to implement any policies unless you ruthlessly slaughtered a large number of Jurchen people."

Shi Ju took the teacup but did not drink it. Instead, he sneered and said, "Could it be that Lord Heshi Lie is behind me, endorsing me?"

Heshi Lieliangbi shook his head and laughed, "Of course it's not like that. Let alone me endorsing it, even His Majesty himself wouldn't be able to do it, and even if you succeeded, you would be torn to pieces."

As he spoke, Heshi Lieliangbi pointed to his chest and said frankly, "Only I can accomplish this task."

Shi Ju narrowed his eyes.

What does He Shilie Liangbi mean by this? Is he trying to pave the way for Shi Ju's future by taking risks?
How could that be? Do you really think Heshi Lieliangbi is some kind of virtuous person?
Seeing that Shi Ju was already holding his teacup and remained silent, He Shi Lie Liangbi sighed and said, "Prime Minister Shi, the current situation is that the Great Jin has been divided into two. The emperor in the east has Liaodong, Youyan, Hebei, and Jin, while the emperor in the west has Guanzhong, Nanyang, and half of the Central Plains."

“If there is only one emperor, or even the emperor in the west, in order to appease the large number of Han people, someone like you, Lord Shi, will definitely be given an important position.”

“But now, His Majesty in the east only has these lands that have been ruled by the Jurchens and Khitans for many years. Your scope for action is too small.”

As if he genuinely felt it was a pity, He Shi Lie Liang Bi slowly shook his head.

Shi Ju's face was gloomy, and he remained silent.

He certainly understood this principle; otherwise, why would Shi Ju have brought back Liu E and the Han people from Youyan?

Isn't it because the more Han people there are, the more power Shi Ju, as the representative of the Han people in the court, has?
But now it seems that he was thinking too simply. After the Jin Dynasty split, the proportion of non-Han people in the Eastern Jin increased significantly. Even if the Han people from Hebei were included, it would not be enough to support Shi Ju's significant influence in the court.

Of course, Shi Ju was also an extremely intelligent man, and he quickly understood the meaning behind He Shi Lie Liangbi's words: "Lord He Shi Lie, as you said, I have a place to use my talents..."

Heshi Lieliangbi nodded: "It is indeed in Henan."

Even though he had already guessed it, Shi Ju still found it unbelievable, and his sneer grew even louder: "Heh, if there's still hope for Henan, why are you running away, Lord Heshi Lie? Just take three commanders and fight the Shandong bandits, wouldn't that solve everything?"

That makes sense.

After the Shandong rebels captured the Yellow River line, they were very close to Bianliang, where Wanyan Liang was located.

Together with Liu Huai, Wanyan Liang effectively cut off Wanyan Yong's route to send troops south.

Today, the vast plains of Henan are divided in two parts. The eastern part is occupied by Shandong rebels, with Liu Huai deploying defenses along the Yellow River. The western part is mostly occupied by Wanyan Liang, while the southern part is threatened by the Song state across the Huai River.

If Wanyan Yong still wants the Henan region, he must defeat both Wanyan Liang and Liu Huai.

Without that ability, Henan is like a turtle in a jar; whoever from Wanyan Yong's faction goes there will become a turtle in the jar, and any other political force can easily crush them.

“It’s not that we don’t want to, but that we can’t.” He Shi Lie Liangbi shook his head and sighed: “The Shandong rebels have already gained momentum. To wipe them out, we need at least 200,000 troops.”

Shi Ju's eye twitched, and he inevitably thought of his good junior brother Liang Su.

I wonder how much of a role he played in last year's major battle.

"That Lord Heshi Lie sent me to Henan, could it be that he wants to kill me?" Now that things have come to this, Shi Ju no longer holds back and directly retorted.

Heshi Lieliangbi sincerely replied, "No, it is because I want to protect the Henan region for the Great Jin Kingdom."

Shi Ju frowned upon hearing this.

Today, Heshilie Liangbi's political stance is known to all. He has no desire to participate in the civil war between Wanyan Liang and Wanyan Yong. Instead, he views the two sides as a unified Jin state and prioritizes the interests of the entire Jin state.

Such political ideals naturally contain a certain degree of naiveté.

However, once Heshilie Liangbi truly persuaded Wanyan Liang and Wanyan Yong and began to take action, the others were still somewhat intimidated and began to cooperate to a certain extent.

Idealism is not a mistake. If there are truly idealists who dedicate everything to their ideals, they will naturally earn the respect of others.

However, for Shi Ju, his ambition was to stabilize the Han lands. Becoming prime minister in the Jin Dynasty was merely a prerequisite. Asking him to be grateful to the Jin Dynasty, or even to have the same deep feelings for the Jin Dynasty as He Shi Lie Liangbi, was out of the question.

If that's the case, why did he risk his life for the Jin Dynasty? Was it to better serve as a fifth-class citizen?

"Lord Shi, I know you have some doubts in your heart." With that, Heshi Lieliangbi walked to the back of the command tent and opened the map hanging on the wall with a swish.

"That's roughly the situation now." Heshi Lieliangbi drew a few lines on the map and, without wasting words with the intelligent man, said, "The next major battle will not take place in Hebei, but in the Central Plains, specifically in Henan."

Shi Ju narrowed his eyes and sneered, "You really think Liu Dalang from Shandong is easy to deal with? How do you know he won't come to the Northern Expedition?"

Heshi Lieliangbi chuckled twice: "Liu Dalang is undoubtedly an extremely intelligent man, but the actions of an intelligent man can be predicted. In my opinion, Liu Dalang is definitely plotting to conceal his strength and accumulate power, so that after the two emperors have fought another major battle, he can take advantage of the weakness of the Great Jin Dynasty to launch another northern expedition." Shi Ju pondered for a moment before nodding.

“But the actions of fools are hard to predict.” Heshi Lieliangbi drew his right index finger, but instead of pointing to Shandong or Bianliang, he pointed to Lin’an.

"The new emperor of the Song Dynasty has been enthroned, and His Majesty has already sent envoys to offer his congratulations. However..." He Shi Lie Liangbi said with a half-smile, "they were stopped in the Huai River region and were not allowed to proceed."

Shi Ju's expression changed slightly: "This young emperor of Song is so strong-willed; he really does things differently from Zhao Gou!"

Heshi Lieliangbi: "Perhaps the officials guarding Lianghuai are acting on their own initiative, but it doesn't matter. This means that the pro-war faction is now in charge in Song. In order to deal with the counterattack of the pro-peace faction, they must do something."

"A northern expedition to conquer the Central Plains?"

"A northern expedition to the Central Plains!" Heshi Lieliangbi pointed to several border prefectures in the Huai River region, including Caizhou, Yingzhou, and Shouzhou, and slowly said, "The Song Dynasty will definitely launch a northern expedition, and this expedition will certainly be hasty. Because the Song Dynasty's pro-war faction cannot afford to delay, and that scoundrel Zhao Gou is still alive!"

"With the Song state in a hurry, we have an opportunity to take advantage of it. If we defeat the Song state once or twice, or invade the Huai River region, we can force the Song state to negotiate peace."

Shi Ju looked at the map, his tone also slowing down: "Liu Dalang is a smart man. He won't let the Song Kingdom be defeated. Even if he has ambitions, I don't believe he doesn't understand the principle of 'if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold'."

“Indeed.” Heshi Lieliangbi looked at the map: “When fools make a move, they drag the wise ones into it.”

Upon hearing this, Shi Ju laughed immediately: "Lord Heshi Lie, are you saying that the Central Plains will soon be a three-way war between the rebel Liang, Liu Dalang, and the Song Kingdom? Under such circumstances, you want me to go to the Central Plains? Wouldn't that be like a lamb being led to the slaughter?"

Heshi Lieliangbi: "Prime Minister Shi, please be patient. I have not yet mentioned His Majesty Ulu's actions."

As he spoke, Heshilie Liangbi drew a line in Youzhou: "If Liu Dalang comes to the Central Plains to fight, then my entire army will march south, cross the old course of the Yellow River, attack Shandong, and take back Jinan Prefecture and Yidu Prefecture."

"If Liu Dalang really sits by and watches the success or failure of the Central Plains, then he should just deal with those useless Song people in Henan."

This plan is feasible and perfectly bypasses the problem that it is difficult for the Eastern Jin to directly participate in the war in the Central Plains.

However, Shi Ju still hesitated: "Lord He Shi Lie, I know that if I can make some achievements in Henan, it will benefit the future of the country and my career. At the very least, there are many Han people in the Central Plains. In order to appease the people of the Central Plains, I can become a proper prime minister. However, I have two more questions. If Lord He Shi Lie cannot answer them, I will absolutely not go to Henan."

"Please tell me, Mr. Shi."

"Firstly, as you said, the key now lies in whether the State of Song is eager to launch a northern expedition. But what if the State of Song can remain calm, and the rebel Liang attacks again?"

Indeed, given Wanyan Liang's temperament, it wouldn't be surprising if he did anything.

If Wanyan Liang continues the war next year, wouldn't that be exactly what the Song Dynasty wants?
Heshi Lieliangbi remained silent for a moment, then made no attempt to hide anything from Shi Ju: "This is indeed a troublesome matter, and I can only try my best to advise him. However, His Majesty Digunai also has a lot of troubles. At the very least, he hasn't resolved the trouble with Wu Lin in Guanzhong, so he shouldn't rush into war."

"However, I might as well make a deal with you: if war breaks out between the East and the West again, you can come back directly. What do you say?"

Shi Ju sneered: "You make it sound so easy."

Although he was still refuting, Shi Ju didn't dwell on it and raised the next question: "Secondly, to what extent do I need to go to Henan?"

Heshi Lieliangbi: "You will be in charge of all civil administration in Henan. What you need to do, Prime Minister Shi, is what you are best at: restore people's livelihood. As for the extent to which you do so, Henan is entirely up to you. After all..."

Heshi Lieliangbi revealed an expression that was hard to describe: "After all, there are no Meng'an Mouke households there anymore."

After pondering for a long time, Shi Ju finally nodded and said, "I also want two more powers. If Lord Heshi Lie cannot grant them to me, then all my previous words are meaningless."

"Now, tell me."

"First, I need a thousand elite Han soldiers, regular troops, and they must be completely under my command. These days, you can't get anything done without soldiers."

"This is simple."

"Secondly, I want the authority to form a new army. At the very least, I need to recruit 30,000 soldiers so that we have room to maneuver before the main army arrives to help us."

When Shi Ju saw that He Shi Lie Liangbi was about to speak, he waved his hand and said, "Don't talk about the regular troops at Wokou and Feishui. Who can I command, such as Pu Cha Shijie and Zhang Shousu?"

Heshi Lieliangbi remained silent for a long time before saying, "You only have 20,000 regular troops. Any more and His Majesty in the west will deal with you first. Moreover, I will send you several Han generals to command troops. You will have to use them."

This time it was Shi Ju's turn to be silent. After a long while, he slowly said, "Then let it be. You go and persuade the two emperors yourself. I am just waiting for the imperial edict and do not want to get involved in this mess."

After saying this, Shi Ju drank the tea that had already cooled down in one gulp, placed the teacup on the table, bowed to He Shi Lie Liangbi, and then turned and left.

Just as Shi Ju reached the entrance of the commander's tent, he heard He Shi Lie Liangbi's voice behind him: "Prime Minister Shi, I can give you another guarantee. When the Central Plains War begins, I will do everything I can to personally lead an army to the Central Plains to participate in the war."

Now that I've come up with this idea, I absolutely won't let you take the risk alone.

Shi Ju didn't even turn his head, assuming that He Shi Lie Liangbi was talking nonsense.

(End of this chapter)