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

Chapter 701 Urgent Discussions in the Eastern Jin Court (Part 2)
Heshilie Liangbi was not only the prime minister of the Jin Dynasty, but also a powerful figure who could persuade Wanyan Liang to grant him military and administrative power with just his words.

Furthermore, he was of the Jurchen ethnicity, making him the head of all the prime ministers and the pillar of the Jin Dynasty court.

Therefore, as soon as Heshi Lieliangbi spoke, the hall immediately fell silent.

"Please speak, Lord Liangbi." Facing this person, Wanyan Yong naturally dared not be negligent, and his voice became much gentler.

Heshi Lieliangbi stood up and said, "Now that things have come to this, we can no longer treat the Shandong bandits as just a bunch of thieves. Apart from establishing a state, they are no different from the rising Han Chinese dynasty. If we don't take full action now, once they develop, the Great Jin will truly face annihilation."

These words caused quite a stir among many people.

Wanyan Fushou frowned and said, "Lord Liangbi, aren't you exaggerating a bit? Our Great Jin is now a great nation spanning thousands of miles, how could we be afraid of a corner of Shandong?"

"Oh?" Heshi Lieliangbi turned to look at Wanyan Fushou: "It seems that there are 30,000 Jurchen households and hundreds of thousands of Han people in Hesuguan Road. General Fushou, could you take back those lands from the Jurchen tribes and then give them to the Han people?"

Wanyan Fushou was a little dazed when he heard this, and for a moment he didn't know if he had misheard.

Heshilie seems to be a Jurchen surname, right?

Are you out of your mind? Are you trying to advocate for the Han people?

"This... you jest, Lord Liangbi."

Heshilie Liangbi said solemnly, "No, I am not joking. General Fushou, think about it. If you continue to enslave the Han people, will they be willing to die for you? But if you don't enslave the Han people, will the Jurchen people have to go back to farming? It's a dilemma, isn't it?"

What a dilemma!

Although Wanyan Fushou dared not refute, he was secretly cursing in his heart.

Of course, the Jurchens should continue to ride roughshod over the Han people!
Heshi Lieliangbi continued speaking: "Therefore, once war breaks out, General Fushou can only draw troops from these 30,000 households."

"But Shandong is different. They brought all the Han people in Shandong under their rule by granting them land, and registered them as commoners. Once war breaks out, Liu Dalang can draw troops from the million households in Shandong."

Wanyan Fushou seemed to grasp something in his heart, and became somewhat flustered, but still said: "Million households... Hmph, would my Great Jin be afraid of a Han man with a million households?"

Heshi Lieliangbi chuckled, "General Fushou has misunderstood."

“If Liu Dalang conquers any Han territory, he can bring the Han people under his rule by granting them land. For example, Daming Prefecture has 200,000 households. If Liu Dalang conquers Daming Prefecture, he can immediately obtain them. But what about our Jurchen people?”

"General Fushou, how long do you think it will take for the Jurchen people to have 200,000 households?"

If Wanyan Fushou could answer this question, then the Jurchen people would no longer be considered a minority.

Although he felt somewhat awkward listening to a group of Jurchen nobles discussing how to oppress the Han people, Li Shi firmly stood on his nephew Wanyan Yong's side and immediately interjected, "What you mean, Lord Liangbi, is that even though the Shandong bandits are currently somewhat weaker than our Great Jin, this gap will only narrow day by day. Therefore, we should act as soon as possible, because the Shandong bandits are becoming increasingly powerful, and one day they will become so strong that even the Great Jin will be unable to deal with them. Is that right?"

Heshi Lieliangbi nodded: "That's exactly right."

If your opponent is better at farming than you, then your only option is to crush them as soon as possible.

The Jin Dynasty... or rather, every foreign regime faces the same problem.

If Han Chinese are absorbed and promoted, the country will soon become a Han Chinese regime.

If the Han people are excluded and belittled, the country will soon have no one to rely on.

The saying "no country lasts a hundred years" applies here.

This contradiction was not resolved until the Qing Dynasty, something the current Jin Dynasty rulers and ministers could not have imagined.

Even if Wanyan Yong were exceptionally talented, there was no stable internal or external environment for him to carry out reforms.

After clearly analyzing the political advantages and disadvantages, Heshilie Zhining said, "In your opinion, Prime Minister Liangbi, should we now mobilize a large army to conquer Shandong?"

Heshi Lieliangbi firmly shook his head: "No, we have to wait until the others move before we can proceed. Otherwise, our army will face a full-scale counterattack from the Shandong bandits, and at that time, Pusan ​​Zhongyi will definitely stand by and watch."

"If we cannot draw Bianliang into the battle, then all the Shandong bandits' forces will come to the Jinan Prefecture, Dongping Prefecture, and Bozhou line to fight with our army. Even if our army wins, it will suffer heavy losses."

He Shilie Zhining shook his head and replied, "What if the time is not right?"

Heshi Lieliangbi said solemnly, "Then send an envoy to Jiangnan to make an agreement with the Song Dynasty to launch a pincer attack on Henan! Afterwards, the entire Henan region will be ceded to the Song Dynasty!"

These words not only drew the attention of the court officials, but even Wanyan Yong was somewhat surprised: "Lord Liangbi, haven't you been saying that we should exercise restraint and not engage in battle with Digunai first?"

Heshi Lieliangbi bowed and said, "It's just sending envoys to make an agreement with the Song state. We can find an excuse to delay sending troops later."

Wanyan Yong still frowned: "Does the Song Dynasty believe this? You should know that the envoys who came to negotiate peace couldn't even cross the Huai River before being driven back by that Minister Yu."

“Negotiating peace is another matter; these are different,” Heshi Lieliangbi shook his head. “Moreover, this challenge to a battle is not really about reaching an agreement with the Song state.”

The young emperor of Song, newly enthroned, needed to demonstrate military achievements to win over his court officials. This provided the pro-war faction with an excuse to hastily launch a northern expedition, dragging Bianliang into the war as well.

"As long as Song Jun and Pusan ​​Zhongyi send troops to fight, Shandong, which is nominally under the banner of Song, will no longer be able to sit idly by. At the very least, it will draw some troops to Xuzhou. At that time, our army's attack on Shandong will be much smoother."

Heshi Lieliangbi's argument had thoroughly considered the political, military, and public sentiment of all parties involved. Therefore, all the important officials in the hall simply lowered their heads to think, and for a time no one refuted him.

"In addition, I have done Wu Zhe a great favor." After a moment of silence, He Shi Lie Liangbi revealed a playful smile: "It is much better to let Song launch a hasty northern expedition than to make full preparations and then take advantage of the situation."

After a brief discussion, Wanyan Yong made a decision: "There's no time to lose. Send him to the Song Dynasty under the name of He Dan. This trip might be dangerous; who dares to go?"

Before the others could speak, Wugulun Yuanzhong, who had been silent all along, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I am willing to go."

Wanyan Yong immediately hesitated.

Wugulun Yuanzhong is his most reliable and trustworthy son-in-law. Now he is equivalent to the chief of the imperial guards, directly protecting Wanyan Yong's safety. He is truly the most trusted confidant.

Wanyan Yong had essentially usurped the throne, and although nearly two years had passed, he still felt somewhat uneasy. He needed this capable son-in-law to protect him.

If Wugulun Yuanzhong were to die in the Song Dynasty for no apparent reason, it would be a tremendous loss.

He Shi Lie Liangbi was indeed a clever man. He quickly came up with a solution: "Your Majesty can return those damned coffins of the Supreme Dao Emperor and Yuan Sheng. In this way, Yuan Zhong will surely be safe and sound."

Wanyan Yong nodded immediately.

Zhao Ji and Zhao Huan have been dead for many years, and their bodies have not yet been buried. Their coffins are kept at Ganying Temple. If Wugulun Yuanzhong were to go on a mission under the pretext of returning the coffins of the two Song emperors, not only would Lianghuai (the area around Huai River) readily allow them to pass, but the Song state would absolutely not dare to kill anyone.

In feudal times, filial piety was of paramount importance.

Wugulun Yuanzhong bowed to Heshilie Liangbi: "This time we will surely succeed and force the Song Kingdom to initiate the war. I hope Your Majesty can make some preparations."

"I know, I know." Wanyan Yong nodded repeatedly, then looked at the ministers in the hall: "Gentlemen, the country has been in decline for many days and is facing threats from all sides. Fortunately, with the protection of our ancestors and the unity of the people, we have finally overcome the most difficult time."

"Now that our Great Jin Dynasty has recovered its strength, its troops are well-organized, and the surrounding areas are at peace, it is time to recover lost territories and restore the glory of our nation!"

As he spoke, Wanyan Yong seemed to have made up his mind, and his voice became somewhat fierce: "Back then, when Emperor Gaozu of Han was defeated by Xiang Yu, he once said: 'I want to abandon the land east of the pass and wait to be abandoned. Who can share the credit with me?'"

"And today I must say, I wish to reward my ministers with the land of Henan. Who is willing to share this merit with me?!"

Now, not only Wanyan Fushou, but even someone like Heshilie Zhining was tempted.

The Henan Plain is a fertile land; how many kings and nobles could be born from it, and how many tens of thousands and thousands of households would there be?

Isn't that the foundation for building a career?

(End of this chapter)