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

Chapter 820 All That Struggle Was Just a Single Blade
"Report! Commander Liu is personally leading his cavalry to attack!"

"Impossible! No matter how elite the Jingnan army is, it's impossible for them to completely conceal themselves. Even if Fei Hu Zi can fly, how could he possibly bring the entire army with him?!"

"Reporting to the Prime Minister, Governor Liu has divided his troops into two routes. He personally led two hundred armored cavalry from the northeast, attracting scouts along the way, while several thousand cavalrymen circled around to the northwest and attacked from more than twenty miles away."

"My lord, it's not that the men aren't focused; it's just that Commander Liu's splitting of the army into two groups is too cunning."

"Report! Commander Liu has entered the city!"

"what?!"

Upon hearing the words of the commander who came to deliver the message, Zhang Jun slumped into his seat, speechless for a long time.

Li Xianzong gave Dai Gao a wink, and the latter quickly walked out.

As the sound of approaching hooves and shouts grew louder, the Song Dynasty civil and military officials who had been gathered in the government office, feasting and dancing, all panicked.

Yu Yunwen sighed, then slowly poured himself a cup of wine and looked at Zhang Jun, saying, "Prime Minister Zhang, what exactly do you intend to do with Liu Huai today? Do you intend to kill him outright?"

Zhang Jun paused for a moment before shaking his head with a wry smile: "Of course not. Liu Dalang is a great general of the country and has made great contributions. Why would I want to kill him? Do you really think I am Qin Hui, that dog-eating traitorous slave?"
My only plan was to bring him back to Bianliang, recommend him as the commander of the Imperial Guards, send another capable general to take over the Jingnan Army, and promote Xin Qiji to the new commander of the Loyal and Righteous Army, thus bringing Hebei and Shandong under the control of the state.

Yu Yunwen was stunned. He tilted his wine glass, spilling the wine he had just poured all over his clothes without wasting a drop.

He suddenly recalled Zhao Gou's evaluation of Zhang Jun: "I would rather lose my country than employ this man!"
To be honest, Yu Yunwen initially genuinely believed that Zhang Jun intended to kill or imprison Liu Huai.

In fact, Yu Yunwen didn't think these two methods were anything special. Once Liu Huai disappeared, the military and political group he had established would immediately collapse.

Now is probably when Liu Huai is at his weakest. If we miss this opportunity, we'll never have another chance. If we want to kill him now, we'll have to fight several major battles in the Central Plains and Shandong.

Yu Yunwen and Liu Huai did have a relationship, but given their current status, it would be laughable to talk about a personal relationship anymore.

But now Zhang Jun's naiveté really makes Yu Yunwen feel somewhat incredulous.

If transferring Liu Huai back to the central government could solve the Shandong affairs, why would I need to wait for you to take action?

Putting aside everything else, after Liu Huai took up a post in the Imperial Guard, he fled directly back to Shandong. Who could really say that they could stop him?
Moreover, it now seems that Liu Huai had been on guard against the Song army for a long time, so much so that he brought a large army to participate in the military council, and even chose a surprise attack method.

And he actually managed to break in!

Tens of thousands of Song troops were entrenched outside Xia Cai City, with numerous camps. The fact that Han cavalry were able to break in like this, even if they were allies who took advantage of the surprise attack, is still a bit too outrageous.

However, these nobles of the Song state no longer had time to think about it. The prominent generals were all stuck in the government office, making it impossible to mobilize troops for the time being.

Liu Si was quick-witted and had a sharp mind. He went to the backyard, climbed over the wall, and tried to leave the city, but he fell directly into the ranks of the Han cavalry and was captured and sent to Liu Huai.

Liu Huai struggled for a long time before recognizing the heavily made-up man as Liu Qi's nephew, and immediately ordered him to be untied.

After all, there is still a bond of camaraderie forged in the battles fought side by side.

"General Liu, go and tell the two ministers that Liu Huai, the military governor of the Jingnan Army and the commander of the Loyal Army of Shandong and Hebei, has come to visit."

Liu Si stared at Liu Huai, wanting to say something harsh, but when he saw Shao Hongyuan, who was tied up even more tightly, he couldn't help but fly into a rage.

He was initially puzzled as to why Liu Huai had found the government office where the military council was being held so precisely, without wasting a single moment and running even faster than the messenger.

Now Liu Si realized that Shao Hongyuan had backed down again! He might have even sold out the Song army's central command without being tortured.

"Pah!" Liu Si stared at Shao Hongyuan, spat fiercely, then straightened his dusty clothes, pushed aside the Song army confronting the Han army, and returned to the government office.

"Reporting, this humble general did not break through." Liu Si said without any shame, "And Liu Dalang has come in person, requesting an audience."

Zhang Jun finally regained his composure as a gentleman, and upon hearing this, he said somewhat indignantly, "Is this a request to meet, or a request to kill?! Is this Liu Dalang really planning a rebellion?!"

Yu Yunwen immediately said, "Minister Zhang, be careful with your words. If these words get out, and a respectable gentleman sets the record straight, Liu Dalang will have no choice but to rebel!"

No sooner had Yu Yunwen finished speaking than a soldier outside the government office stood up and shouted, "Commander Liu requests an audience with the two gentlemen!"

"Commander Liu requests an audience with you two gentlemen!"

Amidst the cheers and urging, Yu Yunwen shook his head and smiled wryly: "This is probably some kind of name-calling process to get in. Let Liu Dalang in, otherwise how will he let it go?"

Soon, Liu Huai, dressed in mourning clothes, appeared in the government office hall with his trusted generals and more than thirty armored soldiers.

The hall was now in complete disarray. The dancers and servants had all scattered and fled, and the few servants who hadn't managed to leave were huddled in corners, trembling with fear.

Contrary to expectations of arrogance, Liu Huai first bowed to Yu Yunwen, then stepped forward, approached Zhang Jun, kicked away the obstructing table, and grabbed Zhang Jun's hands with his large hands.

"You traitor Liu! How dare you overstep your bounds!"

A bold Song army officer was about to draw his sword and rebuke him when Xin Qiji personally intervened, knocking him to the ground with a single punch.

"The eldest son and husband are discussing matters; what right do you bunch of good-for-nothings have to speak here!" Zhang Baiyu drew his sword and pointed it around: "Anyone who doesn't want to die, shut up!"

However, some of the Song generals present were tough enough to fight back. Even without swords, they picked up tables and used them as weapons to smash the Han soldiers.

However, they were no match for the elite armored soldiers and were quickly suppressed.

After their initial bravado dissipated, the Song generals finally realized that Liu Huai was holding Zhang Jun's hands so close that Liu Huai didn't even need to use his sword; a single punch would have been enough to kill Zhang Jun.

Fearing the consequences, the Song generals fell completely silent.

Liu Huai, however, remained calm and composed, even maintaining proper etiquette. He took Zhang Jun's hands and said sincerely, "Lord Zhang, Lord Yu, I have come here not only for military strategy, but also to seek justice!"

Zhang Jun hadn't expected Liu Huai to pull this stunt. He struggled for a moment, but felt his hands being clamped by an iron clamp. He could only give a bitter laugh: "Brother Liu, you can just say what you want. Why take such drastic measures?"

Liu Huai gritted his teeth and said, "Only in this way can I let Minister Zhang know how resolute my heart is!"

Zhang Jun tugged at his hands again, and finding them completely unmoved, he finally said with some annoyance, "Then tell me, what kind of justice do you need?"

Liu Huai grabbed Zhang Jun's hands and turned him around, causing him to stumble. He then loudly proclaimed in the hall, "I want to ask, my father fought for many days in Suzhou, which is only a hundred miles from here. Why are there no reinforcements?"
The military envoy sent has vanished without a trace, neither alive nor dead. Who has detained him?!

After regaining his balance, Zhang Jun said with difficulty, "The two armies of Xia Cai are engaged in fierce fighting, and the Jin cavalry is numerous. Perhaps they were captured by the Jin in the middle of the battle?!"

Liu Huai slowly turned his head, his warm smile turning cold: "I don't understand what you mean by that, Minister Zhang. Does the Song army not have scouts? Is this battlefield only controlled by the Jin invaders?"

Hearing this from the corner of the hall, Liu Bao couldn't help but shiver and slowly backed away, trying to cover himself as much as possible.

However, although the main hall of the government office was huge, it was already very crowded with so many armored soldiers. Liu Bao only took two steps back before Zhang Zhen blocked him and he was unable to move.

Yu Yunwen sighed and shook his head.

Zhang Jun might not understand Liu Huai's words, but Yu Yunwen understood them perfectly.

Ultimately, the person in charge of the military and political affairs of a region is responsible for all political events that occur in that region.

This has been China's political rule for thousands of years. How could there be a situation where one enjoys power but does not take responsibility?
Is the severe drought in the country related to the emperor?
It's fine, of course.

However, even in the Song Dynasty, when the theory of the interaction between heaven and man had declined, if a natural disaster really occurred, the emperor did not need to write an edict of self-reproach, but he still had to bathe and change clothes, fast and chant Buddhist scriptures, and ascend the platform to offer sacrifices to heaven, making some gesture.

Who is in charge of the Huaibei front now?
Aren't they just the two gentlemen Zhang and Yu?
Who else can we turn to if not them?!
Seeing that Zhang Jun was speechless, Yu Yunwen slowly said with his hands clasped in his hands, "The matter has been investigated and found out. It was Liu Bao who was afraid to fight and detained and killed Wei Gong's military envoy, so that I was out of the loop and thought that only five thousand Jin bandits were going to attack Suzhou, which finally led to a big mistake."

As he spoke, in full view of everyone, Yu Yunwen actually bowed to Liu Huai.

Liu Bao was the first to react. He immediately turned and ran away, but in the time it took to turn around, Zhang Zhen kicked him in the back of the knee, knocking him to the ground.

Under the chilling gazes of the Han army generals, Liu Bao shouted, "I didn't! This is a frame-up! Yu Yunwen, you're being unreasonable! You're clearly a useless piece of trash, unable to defeat the Jin invaders, yet you're trying to pin this on me!"

Liu Huai held Zhang Jun's hands, looked into Yu Yunwen's eyes, and continued to sneer.

Yu Yunwen only had his personal guards bring up a few witnesses. Most of them were scouts from the Huaidong army, and there were also two of Liu Bao's personal guards. It was unknown when they had been turned, but they all came forward to accuse Liu Bao of intercepting military intelligence, a crime that was unforgivable.

Liu Bao was terrified. Knowing he couldn't escape this fate, he began to angrily curse his two personal guards.

The matter, which had not been confirmed due to a lack of physical evidence, was finally completed thanks to Liu Bao's self-disclosure.

Liu Huai finally shifted his gaze from Yu Yunwen: "Achang!"

Wei Chang, also dressed in white mourning clothes, entered the hall with a long sword in hand. His bloodshot eyes looked around, as if he was about to start a massacre.

"Achang! As your father's son, you cannot fail to avenge your enemy. Do it now!"

"How dare you!" Liu Bao was, after all, a general of an army. When faced with life and death, his rogue nature came out. He didn't care that his arm was being held down by the Han soldiers. He endured the pain and turned around to roar: "I am a general of the country. Even if I have broken the law, I should be punished according to the emperor's order."

"Two ministers and a general, and you think you can kill me?!"

Wei Chang dragged his sword as he approached step by step without slowing down, while glancing sideways at a Han soldier.

As his hair was pulled back, his neck was fully exposed, and Liu Bao finally became fearful again: "You can't kill me, I am the commander-in-chief of the Huaidong Army, I am..."

Master Zhang! Master Zhang, save me!
"Lord Lu! Lord Lu! Do you know what will happen when this blade strikes…"

Wei Chang, not wanting to listen to Liu Bao's words, grabbed the knife with both hands and swung it down with all his might, cutting Liu Bao in two.

Looking at the headless corpse still gushing blood from its cavity, the Han soldiers felt a sense of exhilaration at having avenged their great grudge, while on the Song side, whether they were scholars or military generals, their faces turned pale.

Just as Liu Bao had said before.

After this decisive blow, there would be little chance for Shandong and the State of Song to recover.

(End of this chapter)